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Bitcoin hit its highest level in a year amid renewed fervor for digital assets despite a slew of challenges for the industry. The original digital currency crossed above $31,013, its 2023 peak, to reach its highest level since June 2022, Bloomberg data show. The surge brought Bitcoin to as high as $31,410 before the gain was pared. The token is up by almost 90% since the start of the year, though still more than 50% below an all-time high of almost $69,000. Other cryptocurrencies followed suit, with Ether also rallying. Its a remarkable development and show of resiliency for a market that many had written off as being on the verge of extinction following a number of high-profile and high-impact scams and company fallouts that left the industry besmirched among investors. From the ardent Bitcoiners perspective, the tokens most fundamental investment thesis is playing out: inflation, monetary mismanagement, banking crises, sovereign debt anxiety, US-dollar-reserve-status questions are all playing a role in giving Bitcoiners an I told you so moment, said Strahinja Savic, head of data and analytics at FRNT Financial. I would not describe rallying to new all time highs despite the challenging environment, but rather because of it. Most recently, its been news about BlackRock Inc s shock filing for a US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund thats reignited fervor for crypto, with some in the market hoping that such a product which currently doesnt exist gets approval from regulators. An approval whatever its odds would mark a win for fans who have for years longed for such an investment product. BlackRocks filing is big news for Bitcoin due to its close ties with regulators and a very strong ETF-approval track record, wrote K33s Bendik Schei and Vetle Lunde. Its also worth noting that BlackRock would not dedicate time and resources to this filing if they did not view the probability of long-term strength from BTC, and thus strong inflows, as substantially high. They added: An approval would profoundly impact the market structure of Bitcoin, as it would reduce the barriers for financial advisors to offer exposure to BTC through an accessible investment vehicle with daily creations and redemptions delivered by a trusted issuer. Other recent news also reinforced crypto believers faith in the rally. A new crypto exchange backed by firms including Citadel Securities, Fidelity Digital Assets and Charles Schwab Corp. called EDX Markets said its gone live. And, among other pieces of news, JPMorgan Chase & Co expanded one of the most high-profile projects to bring blockchain technology to traditional banking, introducing euro-denominated payments for corporate clients using its JPM Coin. The effects of the so-called crypto winter seem less persistent today than a year ago, as various jurisdictions and institutional players continue to embrace crypto-related initiatives, David Duong, head of research at Coinbase, said in a recent note. On Twitter, where a lot of crypto discourse takes place, a number of users cited FOMO or the fear of missing out as part of the recent price surge, whereby some investors jump into the market because they are watching others reap the benefits of the rally and want to take part in it. But the fact that the industry is facing harsh regulatory oversight has not dissipated, despite all the renewed hype over prices surging. The SEC has set its sights on the crypto space following last years numerous instances of scams and fallouts of once-vaunted companies, including FTX and a number of lenders. Its led to a mass exodus by retail investors in particular, who have collectively lost billions of dollars in the wake of the revelations and implosions. Trading volumes have dried up as a result. In May, the combined spot and derivatives trading volumes on centralized exchanges fell more than 15% to $2.4 trillion, according to CCData. Spot trading volumes alone dropped nearly 22% to $495 billion, notching the lowest monthly reading since March 2019, the researcher said in a report. Given the thin liquidity and the relatively scant amount of BTC available to new entrants (no eager sellers at these levels), even a tiny uptick in large investor interest would be enough to move the price, said Noelle Acheson, author of the Crypto Is Macro Now newsletter. Others point out that hype around a potential spot-Bitcoin ETF has come and gone in the past, without regulators ever approving such a product. People are speculating BlackRocks heft in the financial markets will help them get approval. I am not quite there yet, said Michael ORourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading. The SEC has been aggressively cracking down on the crypto space, it seems a bit early for such an about-face.

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Bitcoin hits highest in a year as crypto rebounds from scandals - Times of India