Bucharest, March 5, 2024 – RBJ (By Simon Peters, cryptoasset market analyst at multi-asset investment platform eToro) – Against the US dollar bitcoin is currently at $66,700, only 4% from the all-time high. If the price continues on its current trajectory it is possible we could see $69,000 and a new all-time high against the US dollar within the week.
The driving force behind the price move remains the bitcoin spot ETFs, which continue to acquire bitcoin in significant quantities. The daily amount acquired is currently 10 times the daily new issuance of bitcoin that comes into circulation from the mining block rewards. Demand is fast outstripping supply.
In addition, on-chain metrics which measure exchange reserves i.e. the total number of bitcoin held across crypto exchanges, continue to decline, dropping 0.25% in the last seven days. A falling exchange reserve is generally perceived to be positive for bitcoin prices as it indicates potentially lower selling pressure.
Other major cryptoasssets have also benefited from the bullish sentiment. Ethereum is back above $3,500, the highest price since January 2022 and Solana reached $135, the highest price since March 2022.
THE WEEK AHEAD
With the start of a new month, attention will turn to Friday’s release of the latest non-farm payrolls.
Non-farm payroll, which measures the change in the number of employed people in the United States during the previous month excluding the farming industry, is generally considered a leading indicator of overall economic activity.
The US economy has been somewhat resilient and a non-farm payroll figure higher than forecast could give the Federal Reserve reason to hold interest rates higher for longer.
Although the crypto market is mainly being driven by the bitcoin spot ETFs right now, any increased probability or perception of the Fed keeping rates higher for longer could trigger a pull back in cryptoasset prices as well as stock markets.
LAST WEEK’S MOVERS
Meme coins were the biggest movers last week with PEPE (Pepecoin) gaining over 330%. The daily trading volume for the frog-themed coin reached an all-time peak of $3.6 billion.
DOGE (Dogecoin) and SHIB (Shiba-inu) also had a good week, gaining 80% and 130% respectively.
The moves in meme coins reflect the positive sentiment in the crypto markets currently. Investors may be rotating out of larger cap cryptos into coins or tokens which are generally considered more speculative.
EYE-CATCHING STORIES
IBIT fastest to surpass $10billion
BlackRock’s IBIT crossed $10 billion in assets becoming the fastest bitcoin spot ETF to reach this milestone. Only 152 ETFs (out of 3,400) have more than $10 billion under management, so to achieve this in only 7 weeks is impressive.
Wells Fargo and Bank of America’s Merrill now offering spot bitcoin ETFs
As reported by Bloomberg, Bank of America’s Merrill arm and Wells Fargo’s brokerage unit are now offering their wealth management clients access to bitcoin spot ETFs, highlighting the growing trend of investors wanting to gain exposure to bitcoin.
Carson Group, with $30 billion in assets under management, also announced last week that they have begun offering four out of the 11 spot ETFs on their platform.
Also, according to Yahoo Finance Morgan Stanley is also deciding whether to add the bitcoin spot ETFs to its brokerage platform.
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Disclaimer
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