PORTLAND – Bitcoin on Tuesday topped US$28,000 for the first time in June on the tailwind from BlackRock’s application to start a US exchange-traded fund (ETF).
The largest digital asset at one point added 5.3 per cent to hit a more than two-week high of US$28,142 during New York trading. Smaller coins such as Ether and BNB posted relatively small gyrations.
BlackRock filed for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 15. The SEC has resisted allowing such spot funds, but the latest attempt carries the heft of the world’s largest asset manager.
“The BlackRock ETF application seemed to have ignited the rally, but there’s clearly more behind it,” said crypto investor Aaron Brown.
Meanwhile, EDX Markets, a new crypto exchange backed by companies including Citadel Securities, Fidelity Digital Assets and Charles Schwab, said it has gone live, a move that could reshape the digital-asset landscape amid heightened US scrutiny of the sector.
Deutsche Bank also said it has applied for regulatory permission to operate a custody service for digital assets such as cryptocurrencies.
“Traditional incumbents are now seeing an opportunity to grab market share with the Citadel/Fidelity launch of EDX today and Deutsche Bank applying for a digital-asset custody licence in Germany,” said Arca trader Kyle Doane.
Bitcoin has climbed about 9 per cent since BlackRock’s move, helping to lift the token past a zone of resistance around US$27,000 based on key chart patterns.
The BlackRock application landed amid Grayscale Investments’ legal battle with the SEC to convert the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust into a physically backed ETF.
The trust’s discount-to-net asset value has narrowed on speculation that BlackRock’s step could end up bolstering Grayscale’s case.
Markets are also being shaped by the US crackdown on crypto and macro forces, including the outlook for further US monetary tightening after the Federal Reserve paused interest rate hikes in June.
Traders are waiting for more clarity too on the scale of expected economic stimulus in China, where the central bank recently cut borrowing costs.
The potential China-stimulus impact on Bitcoin is not “getting enough airplay”, said IG Australia market analyst Tony Sycamore. BLOOMBERG
