It’s a story that has gained more coverage than any other event in recent cryptocurrency memory. Yet such is the influence of spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval, that another promising update has moved the dial once again.
In this instance, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a memo showing that the SEC’s special counsel David Remus met with Grayscale Investments to discuss its application to convert the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF.
“The discussion concerned NYSE Arca, Inc.’s proposed rule change to list and trade shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (BTC) under NYSE Arca Rule 8.201-E,” read the memo.
NYSE Arca is a regulated ETF exchange and a subsidiary of the New York Stock Exchange.
It has been a remarkable turnaround for the SEC, which for years refused to entertain the idea of bringing bitcoin-linked products onto the traditional stock exchange. But with BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), Fidelity and other large-scale firms joining the chorus, SEC head Gary Gensler’s tone has dramatically shifted.
Bitcoin rallied 1.5% after the memo became public, hitting $38,348 in early Asia trading hours; a mere $2 off the year-to-date high penned on Wednesday.
Looking back across the month, the BTC/USDT pair notched up another 10% in gains, bringing year-to-year performance above 130%.
Bitcoin has a bullish November – Source: tradingview.com
Recapping the month, research analyst Matteo Greco at Fineqia International Inc (CSE:FNQ, OTC:FNQQF) commented: “November brought a resurgence in trading activity, with the total volume on centralised exchanges reaching around $729 billion, the highest since the beginning of the second quarter of 2023.”
However, Greco did note that liquidity has not seen a proportional improvement, “with slippage for a $100,000 sell order on the BTC/USD pair remaining at similar levels observed in previous months… This suggests that market makers remain cautious in providing additional liquidity, despite the strong price action and renewed trading activity.”
Ethereum (ETH), the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, outperformed bitcoin in November, adding more than 15%. Year-to-date performance has been considerably more muted at 75%.
In the wider altcoin space, Dogecoin (DOGE), Solana (SOL) and Avalanche (AVAX) have taken the bullish lead, adding high-single-digit gains across the week, while BNB, Ripple (XRP) and Cardano (ADA) have slipped into the red zone.
Global cryptocurrency market capitalisation currently stands at $1.44 trillion, with bitcoin dominance above 53%.
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