The prospect of a spot bitcoin (btc) exchange-traded fund (ETF) soon being approved in the United States has increased demand for the leading cryptocurrency, leading to a rise in transaction fees.
The bitcoin blockchain reached $11.6 million in fees paid on November 16, according to statistics from CryptoFees. As of this writing, YCharts data shows that the average transaction fee is $18.69, up 113% from the day before and 746% up from a year ago.
According to Cointelegraph market analysis, bitcoin remains near 18-month highs and beyond its bear market trading range. At the time of writing, the cryptocurrency is trading at $36,407, a gain of 0.58% in the last 24 hours.
The price of bitcoin has risen since Wall Street investment manager BlackRock filed for a spot btc ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission in June. Following BlackRock’s request, several other major US asset managers submitted similar proposals, including Fidelity, ARK Invest and WisdomTree, among others.
bitcoin?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#bitcoin has officially changed eth daily fees for the first time in 3 years. pic.twitter.com/2G3t6j64TP
— ₿ Isaiah (@BitcoinIsaiah) November 17, 2023
While the SEC appears to be engaging with companies on adjustments to the proposals, it has yet to make a decision and has moved the final deadlines to January 2024. On November 16, WisdomTree amended its S-1 form with the regulator, followed by similar amendments from ARK and 21Shares, Valkyrie, Bitwise and VanEck.
According to Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas, the revised versions may be a response to concerns the SEC has raised. “It means ARK received the SEC’s feedback and dealt with all of it, and now put the ball back in the SEC’s court,” Balchunas said. “(In my opinion) it’s a good sign, solid progress.”
A bitcoin spot ETF is an investment fund that reflects the price of bitcoin. The “spot” aspect means that the fund directs the purchase of bitcoin as the underlying asset. It allows investors to participate in the bitcoin market through their regular brokerage accounts. It is a way to expose yourself to btc price fluctuations without the need to buy it on a crypto exchange, for example.
As a result, a spot bitcoin ETF is expected to attract capital from institutional investors, which could see the price of bitcoin reach new highs in the coming months. According to Bloomberg analysts, there is a 90% chance that all proposals from the same batch will be approved in January.
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