BITCOIN

Data indicate that investors are still focused on Bitcoin, the world's largest crypto asset by market capitalization, with an inflow of $20 million, recording a year-to-date total of $1.7 billion.

The recent development suggests that the SEC could be ironing out details before finally approving some spot Bitcoin ETF applications.

As the king of crypto briefly sunk below the $41,000 price level, it caused over $270 million worth of long positions to be liquidated.

Bitcoin was trading in the red zone at $43,950, which means the software and business intelligence company is now sitting on an unrealized profit of $2.390 billion.

After BlackRock submitted another amended prospectus last week, VanEck followed suit with its fifth amendment, showing a unique Bitcoin ETF ticker, HODL.

While BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF listing pushed the value of Bitcoin to a new high, Fidelity's listing did not have the same impact on the price of the "king of crypto."

The ongoing discussions include "substantive details, some of which are usually discussed near the end of an ETF application process," a report has claimed.

Not everyone was pleased with the latest development in the cryptocurrency industry and Dimon was one among them. He said he would close the industry down if he had the power.

Bukele said that it has never been El Salvador's objective to sell its Bitcoin and while he confirmed that they are well aware the crypto asset's price will fluctuate, he underlined that it does not impact the country's long-term strategy.

Industry experts and ETF analysts scrutinized the amended prospectus and discovered that BlackRock had seeded its ETF on Oct. 27. It was the same month when the crypto community found the Bitcoin ETF ticker of the firm listed on the website of the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation.

Over the past weeks, Bitcoin continued to rally, pushing its value up on the anticipation that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would soon announce the country's first-ever spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund.

The substantial Bitcoin investment by MicroStrategy has yielded a significant return, a growth that began under the leadership of its current executive chairman, Michael Saylor, starting in August 2020.

While the act is viewed as operational or part of the process before its launch, for some, it is a positive indication that the U.S. will have a spot Bitcoin ETF very soon.

A report attributed the surge to "a culmination of various factors, including a notable shift in the dynamics of the futures market compared to the spot market."

Although timelines on the approval of spot Bitcoin ETF filings are uncertain, Grayscale said it remained "focused on uplisting GBTC to NYSE Arca as a spot Bitcoin ETF."

The crypto market is currently a sea of green, as Bitcoin, the world's largest crypto asset by market cap, leads the digital assets in a price rally that benefited most crypto holders.

The king of crypto pushed through the $41,000 price level without much resistance with short positions on BTC contracts, immediately liquidating as much as $54 million.

However, Bitcoin's latest move also caused $190 million worth of liquidated derivates, $150 million of which was in short positions.

Bitcoin was up 5.2% for the week, followed by the Russell 2000 small caps index, which was up 3.5%. These gains outperformed the 0.2% tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index gains and the S&P 500 index's 0.9% gains.

Bitcoin on Monday rose past $40,000 for the first time since May last year, boosted by hopes that the United States will soon allow broader trading of the world's biggest cryptocurrency.

The price rally of Bitcoin, which started in October, also fueled speculations that it would touch $40,000 or higher by the end of 2023.