Bitcoin (BTC) price above $47,000: engines are heating up ahead of spot ETF approval

In the late afternoon yesterday, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) returned above $47,000 after a whopping 19 months of being traded at a lower level.

All eyes are focused on Washington D.C, waiting for the SEC to express its judgment regarding the spot ETF for the cryptocurrency, which could be approved at any moment.

A stock exchange-listed fund on Bitcoin would create billions of inflows into the crypto markets, greatly increasing trading volumes and pushing up the prices of major cryptographic assets.

On this occasion, the London-based bank Standard Chartered has predicted a Bitcoin price of $200,000 by the end of 2025, supported by money inflows for the spot ETF.

Let’s see all the details below.

The price of Bitcoin (BTC) returns to 47,000 USD for the first time since April 2022

Yesterday, around 8 pm the price of Bitcoin (BTC) grew up to 47,250 USD, reaching a level that had not been touched for 19 months, more precisely since April 2022.

Yesterday’s daily candle on the BTC-USDT chart saw an increase of 6.88%, breaking local highs and creating FOMO among crypto investors, who are currently excited about the approval of the first spot ETF in the USA, which could come very soon.

After yesterday’s peak, the price of the cryptocurrency has slightly dropped to 46,200 dollars and then settled at 46,780 dollars, on which it is currently being traded at the time of writing this article.

The Bitcoin dominance has returned to the level of 54.5% closing yesterday its tenth consecutive green candle and consolidating the majority of capital in the first cryptocurrency of the crypto market.

The “Total Market cap” of the sector is also rising and has reached $1.68 trillion, up 120% from a year ago but still 44% below the all-time highs of November 2021.

With the volatility of yesterday, there was a significant number of liquidations on perpetual trading derivative markets for the BTC-USDT trading pair: 155 million shorts liquidated against 120 million longs.

These numbers are not actually as high as we might have expected and should be related to the bearish movement of January 3rd, which saw over half a billion long positions liquidated.

On that day, BTC indeed lost 4.68% of its value with a daily candle range exceeding 10%, which allowed for resetting all the overextended parameters of leveraged cryptocurrency markets.

The funding rate has returned positive, but at a very low funding rate (0.015% every 8 hours), which essentially indicates a situation of balance between the demand for leverage from traders for long positions and for short positions.

The open interest, despite the aggressive rally above $47,000, has not grown consistently, stopping at around $11.98 billion.

It is worth noting in this context that there is a small bearish divergence between the overall open interest on Bitcoin and the price of the asset. 

In fact, while the prices of the currency have greatly exceeded the levels of December, the values of the OI are lower by about 800 million dollars compared to those of the same period.

At this moment, despite the widely positive outlook for Bitcoin, we can only alert market operators, as a lot of volatility is expected in the coming hours.

Digital gold could reach $50,000 in no time, especially if Gary Gensler were to give a positive response for the first spot-listed fund on Nasdaq, but at the same time we can also expect a rapid incursion below $45,000.

Given these considerations, it is preferable to operate in markets with reduced leverage and low size, waiting for safer times to be able to take on greater risk.

Everyone ready for the approval of the spot ETF: billions of inflows expected in the markets

The rally yesterday in which Bitcoin (BTC) surpassed the price of $47,000 is supported by the market frenzy surrounding the spot ETF issue.

In the next few hours, in fact, the Securities and Exchange Commission could approve the first exchange-traded fund for Bitcoin in the USA, which would effectively become a regulated and transparent asset that can be invested in through authorized brokers like BlackRock, VanEck, Fidelity, etc.

Yesterday many asset managers who have asked the US Securities and Exchange Commission to approve this financial instrument, have submitted their FORM S-1 updates that include information about the fees or the identity of the market makers for potential ETFs.

The SEC added further comments to the S-1 forms overnight, requesting another update from the parties involved, which is expected to arrive by the first half of the morning.

The wait is almost over: after exhausting months in which rumors and speculations have taken over, creating a climate of high tension, we are finally about to see Gary Gensler make a final decision.

Let’s say that the odds are extremely in favor of approval, with all the Fund Managers involved already releasing information regarding the fees they will apply to their investment vehicles, as highlighted by Bloomber’s ETF strategist James Seyffart.

There are even those who, like VanEck, have bought $72.5 million worth of Bitcoin for the initial seed of their potential ETF.

The same investment fund has promised 5% of its profits linked to the fees of the instrument to the Bitcoin core developers of the Brinks association.

According to many experts, the spot ETF will lead to a influx of billions of dollars into the cryptographic markets, with enormous benefits for both issuing brokers and Bitcoin holders.

In addition to regulating an industry that until a few months ago was considered the foundation of drug trafficking and international money laundering, the new publicly traded fund will bring the presence of institutional investors, who will be able to rely on a secure support base for their positions.

Regarding the likely approval of the SEC, London-based bank Standard Chartered has predicted a Bitcoin price of $200,000 by the end of 2025.

Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seat belts.