.
Strong ETF inflows and anticipation of the upcoming Bitcoin halving have pushed Bitcoin above the $60,000 mark.
Bitcoin +6.88%
MARKET CAP: $1.21T
VOL. 24H: $36.10T
BTC 593.10M breached the $60,000 mark on Feb. 28 for the first time in over two years, extending its “up only” rally. The world’s first cryptocurrency rose over 6.64% to $60,629 as of 2:10 pm UTC.
The last time Bitcoin traded above $60,000 was on Nov. 12, 2021, when Bitcoin started its reversal, falling over 67% to the macro low of $19,297 at the beginning of April 2022.
Bitcoin’s price action was bolstered by record spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows and a continually improving investor sentiment in anticipation of the upcoming Bitcoin halving.
Bitcoin ETFs surpass SPY and QQQ in individual trades
More individual trades were executed in the 10 spot Bitcoin ETFs than in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 (QQQ) indexes.
The ETFs amassed a total of 241,000 trades on Feb. 27, exceeding the 185,000 trades on the SPY and the 138,000 individual trades on the QQQ for the same day, according to a Feb. 28 X post by Jim Bianco, founder and president of Bianco Research.
Individual trades on Bitcoin ETFs, SPY and QQQ. Source: Jim Bianco
Adding to investor confidence, nine spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded combined trading volumes of over $2 billion for the second consecutive day on Feb. 28.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust recorded over 100,000 individual trades on Feb. 27, up from around 30,000 to 60,000 average daily trades, according to an X post by Balchunas.
Traded value on spot Bitcoin ETFs. Source: Eric Balchunas
Pre-halving rally or pre-halving correction?
According to Mikkel Morch, founder of the digital asset investment fund ARK36, both Bitcoin and Ether
ETH $3,352 could see new all-time highs in the next couple of weeks, driven by the anticipation of the upcoming Bitcoin halving and the potential acceptance of a U.S. spot Ether ETF. He wrote:
“The anticipation swirling around the approval of spot Ether ETFs further underscores the maturation of the cryptocurrency market. It’s a recognition of Ethereum’s role not just as a digital currency but as an infrastructure backbone for a future where finance and technology merge more seamlessly.”
Bitcoin price all-time chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
Yet, according to pseudonymous crypto analyst Rekt Capital, a “pre-halving retracement” could still be on the table. The upcoming Bitcoin halving isn’t priced in by the market, based on historical market data that saw Bitcoin’s major movements occur after previous halvings, not before, Rekt Capital shared in a Feb. 28 X post.
Crypto investor sentiment: Extreme greed
As Bitcoin breached an over two-year high, investor sentiment turned to “extreme greed.”
CMC Crypto Fear & Greed Index. Source: CoinMarketCap
The CoinMarketCap Crypto Fear & Greed index rose to over a three-month high of 80, signaling extreme greed among crypto investors. The last time the index was above 80 was in early December 2023. The Crypto Fear & Greed index is a multifactorial measure of crypto market sentiment.
The Bitcoin halving and the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs are the main reasons behind the increased investor sentiment, Alex Onufriychuk, co-founder and CEO of Kaminari — a Lightning Network payments infrastructure firm — told Cointelegraph:
“It’s a pivotal moment every four years when the rewards for mining new Bitcoin are slashed in half, effectively making Bitcoin mining twice expensive and usually driving up its value. And with the green light for Bitcoin ETFs, these have legitimized Bitcoin in the eyes of many investors.”
