In a remarkable turn of events today, on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a surge of approximately 6%, reaching a staggering $28,000 within the past hour. This remarkable surge follows a federal appeals court's groundbreaking decision, demanding that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reevaluate their refusal to consider Grayscale Investments' endeavor to convert their Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF.
GBTC has soared by 17%, substantially narrowing the gap between its current value and its net asset value (NAV), from a previous 25% discount down to a mere 17%. This notable development has prompted traders to speculate that this ruling might pave the way for a complete elimination of the discount through an ETF conversion. This legal victory potentially signals the opening for a spot Bitcoin ETF in the United States. Advocates have consistently argued that endorsing such a product could enable a broader spectrum of the general population to invest in Bitcoin without encountering the complexities of direct crypto acquisition or the potential predicaments of custodial service disruptions.
Circuit Judge Neomi Rao, the author of the opinion from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, emphasized the necessity for federal agencies to ensure uniformity in their treatment of similar cases.
Rao stated, "The Securities and Exchange Commission recently approved the trading of two bitcoin futures funds on national exchanges but denied approval of Grayscale’s bitcoin fund. Petitioning for review of the Commission’s denial order, Grayscale maintains its proposed bitcoin exchange-traded product is materially similar to the bitcoin futures exchange-traded products and should have been approved to trade on NYSE Arca. We agree."
Prominent publicly-traded cryptocurrency entities such as Coinbase (COIN) have been on the rise, with a 13% increase, and MicroStrategy (MSTR) with a 9% rise. In an even more striking move, the mining sector, which has faced its challenges, has seen Marathon Digital (MARA) soaring ahead by 24%, while Riot Platforms (RIOT) and Hut 8 Mining (HUT) have both achieved gains of 16% each.
Altcoins are also making significant strides, including ether (ETH), cardano (ADA), dogecoin (DOGE), and solana (SOL), all marking substantial gains of around 5%.
CoinGlass data reveals that shorts worth a staggering $87 million were liquidated within the last 24 hours, with a considerable portion of $76 million materializing within the first hour after this morning's news broke.
Ji Kim, the general counsel and head of global policy for the Crypto Council for Innovation, remarked, "Bitcoin's immediate price surge post-ruling underlines the market's anticipation and the profound impact such a decision holds. As spot bitcoin ETFs are now closer to a potential launch, we're witnessing real-time investor confidence in the crypto space amidst this court's ruling."
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