Bitcoin is once again having a moment. On Monday, the world's largest cryptocurrency soared past $41,000 for the first time in over a year and a half — and marking a 150% rise so far this year.
Volatile bitcoin rocketed from just over $5,000 at the start of the pandemic to nearly $68,000 in November 2021, according to FactSet, a period marked by a surge in demand for technology products. Prices fell back to earth during an aggressive series of Federal Reserve rate hikes aimed at taming inflation and then the collapse of FTX, one of the biggest companies in crypto.
When 2023 began, a single bitcoin could be had for less than $17,000 after losing more than 75% of its value. Investors, however, began returning in large numbers as inflation started to cool. And the collapse of prominent tech-focused banks actually led more investors to turn to crypto as they bailed out of positions in Silicon Valley start-ups and other risky bets.
Industry advocates say this new way of investing in bitcoin at spot prices, instead of futures, could make it easier for anyone to enter the cryptoverse while lowering some of the well-documented risks associated with investing in cryptocurrencies. Regulators have previously rejected bitcoin spot ETF applications, but recent wins for some crypto fund managers have improved odds for a first approval, perhaps as soon as next month.
“The longer-term catalyst (for bitcoin) is a lot of optimism related to the potential approval of a spot ETF,” Kaiko research analyst Riyad Carey said Monday. He noted, however, that a regulatory green light doesn't promise continued gains.
While analysts expect the potential approval of spot bitcoin ETFs to create a much larger pool of crypto investors, future volumes could go either way, Carey added. That could either boost or undermine bitcoin's value.
Bitcoin's current rally also arrives during an incredibly disruptive period for cryptocurrencies. Just last month, the U.S. government slapped Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, with a $4 billion fine as its founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to a felony charge.
But Binance continues to operate and maintain its market share, Carey noted. In some ways, the company's settlement “propelled the market forward more by removing one of the ... more ominous overhangs that was a sort of a big question mark,” he said, noting bitcoin's gains in the two weeks since the settlement was announced.
Despite the recent excitement around bitcoin, experts still maintain that crypto is a risky bet with wildly unpredictable fluctuations in value. In short, investors can lose money as quickly as they make it.
Last year's collapse of crypto exchange giant FTX also “left a big scar” on the public's confidence in the crypto industry and crushed retail investors, Edward Moya, a former senior market analyst at Oanda, previously told The Associated Press — noting that institutional money, like hedge funds, are behind the bulk of current crypto investing.
Carey added that liquidity in cryptocurrency markets has yet to return to where it was before FTX collapsed, and lower liquidity can exacerbate price fluctuations.
“In the past few months, that has normally been the price moving up — but people should always be aware it can go in the reverse and quickly,” he said.
As of around 1:30 p.m. Eastern time Monday, the price of bitcoin stood at $41,709.
The stocks of some other crypto players have also seen rises over recent months, but not with the same speed or heights as bitcoin. Ethereum, for example, stood at $2,223 Monday afternoon, up 85% since the start of 2023. Meanwhile, Binance Coin and Dash are down about 5.25% and 24.37% for the year, respectively, with Monday afternoon prices of roughly $231 and $32.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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