The price of bitcoin breached over $42,000 for the first time in around 20 months on Monday, buoyed by speculation that Americans might soon be able to invest in the cryptocurrency through more traditional means.
The price of one bitcoin hit as high as $42,089 during the morning, the highest it had been since early April 2022.
It means that the price of bitcoin has soared around 50 per cent in less than two months.
Last week the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) met with asset manager Grayscale Investments to discuss its Bitcoin Trust.
Grayscale is trying to turn the trust into a so-called exchange-traded fund (ETF), one of many investors who want to launch a bitcoin ETF in the US.
An ETF essentially tracks the price of an asset, in this case bitcoin.
It would therefore allow investors to bet on bitcoin without actually owning the cryptocurrency themselves.
This would essentially allow them to invest in bitcoin like it was a regular stock.
They would not have to deal with a crypto exchange.
Last year one of these exchanges, FTX, collapsed.
Last month its founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of fraud.
He is yet to be sentenced.
“Bitcoin surprised and delighted over the weekend as it surged through $41,000, continuing a strong run of recent form,” said Simon Peters, a market analyst at eToro.
“The cryptoasset has broken through its highest level since early April 2022 as investors continued to gear up for the potential launch of the bitcoin ETF market.”
Meanwhile, gold prices also pushed to its highest price ever on Monday morning, peaking at around $2,134 per ounce.
It later gave back many of those gains.
Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “Gold hit an all-time high for the second day in a row today, surpassing $2,100 per ounce.
“So far this year, the precious metal is up around 13.5 per cent and has gained around 5 per cent in the past month.
“Concerns about the shaky global economic backdrop and the Israel-Hamas conflict have fuelled investor demand for safe-haven assets like gold.
“Plus, expectations for Fed rate cuts next year have put downward pressure on the US dollar which is trading around three-month lows, adding to gold’s attractiveness.”
