- Bitcoin surpassed its previous record high
- The cryptocurrency has rocked in recent weeks
- Gold has also recently hit a record high
Bitcoin touched a record high on Tuesday, as investors continue to pour money into the newly-approved spot ETFs.
The cryptocurrency hit a high of $69,202 – topping its peak of $68,999 which it reached in November 2021 – before dipping to settle around the $66,000 mark on Tuesday afternoon.
Bitcoin has rocketed in recent weeks after the US regulator approved a series of bitcoin spot ETFs, which track the price of bitcoin.
To the moon: Bitcoin reached a record high of $69,000 on Tuesday
In the past seven days, the cryptocurrency has gained around 18 per cent and is up over 50 per cent over the course of the month.
It marks a significant turnaround for the cryptocurrency which fell to a low of $16,000 in the wake of the collapse of FTX in 2022.
In 2023, it languished between $20,000 and $30,000 before reaching $43,000 by the end of the year in anticipation of the US regulator’s approval of the Bitcoin spot ETFs, which track the price of bitcoin.
At the end of January, the Security and Exchanges Commission gave approval for the launch of 11 Bitcoin ETFs, including funds from Wall Street giants BlackRock and Fidelity.
The SEC’s decision marks a significant milestone for cryptocurrencies in gaining mainstream acceptance.
Previously the only way to buy bitcoin is from an exchange, which can be a intimidating process and involves confusing technical aspects like wallets and keys.
Simon Peters, market analyst at eToro said: ‘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.’
Bitcoin is also benefiting from the prospect of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates, which often pushes investors to divert capital into assets that are higher yielding or more volatile.
Gold has also benefited, surging to $2,134 an ounce in the spot market after steady increases over the past few weeks.
It followed the publication of US economic data last week which sparked hope for the Federal Reserve’s first rate cut of the year in June.
