The leading cryptocurrency started the new year on the right foot, with its price surpassing $45,000 for the first time since April 2022.
BTC price surpasses $45,000, possibly influenced by expectations of US spot ETF approvals.
The value of SOL reaches almost $115, surpassing Binance Coin in the market ranking. Its increased internet searches and high NFT sales indicate growing interest.
XRP is showing positive trends with predictions of significant price increases in 2024, potentially reaching new highs.
Bitcoin (BTC) Enters 2024 with a Splash
The impressive performance could be due to the hype of the spot ETF. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected to decide whether to approve or reject several applications from financial giants in the first quarter of 2024.
The deadline for BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, is January 15. Other giants, including Fidelity, WisdomTree and VanEck, are also set for that day.
The possible approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the US is expected to have a positive impact on the price of the digital asset for several reasons. It will make it easier for institutional investors to gain exposure to BTC as it will eliminate many of the challenges associated with investing in cryptocurrencies, such as self-custody, for example.
An approved Bitcoin ETF could also signal regulatory confidence in the cryptocurrency market, thereby increasing investor confidence and attracting more retail investors. Some experts, including Fox Business reporter Charles Gasparino and popular YouTuber Lark Davis, think the measure could see the light of day later this week.
On Monday night, after remaining calmly at around $42,500, the cryptocurrency began an ascent that resulted in a rise to $44,000. Tuesday morning brought even more joy for bulls as BTC soared and surpassed $45,000 for the first time in nearly two years, leaving millions of short positions liquidated.
Solana (SOL) Also Flying High
Another crypto asset that has been in the spotlight for quite some time is Solana (SOL). Today (January 2), its value continued the upward trend, rising to almost $115 (according to data from CoinGecko), while its market capitalization surpassed $49 billion. Thus, it regained its position as the fourth largest asset on the market, leaving Binance Coin (BNB) in fifth place.
Its price performance could be one of the reasons why Google searches for Solana surpassed those for Ethereum (ETH) last month. In addition to its growing popularity on the Internet, Solana’s on-chain trading volume reached spectacular peaks in late December, surpassing its rival for several days.
It was also successful in the field of non-fungible tokens. Solana NFT sales volume reached almost $75 million (weekly) at the end of last month, while Ethereum accounted for approximately $72 million.
Is Ripple (XRP) Ready to Explode?
Last but not least, we will address another crypto asset that has been very intriguing to investors: Ripple’s XRP.
Many analysts and experts have noted its positive moments in 2023 and expect a significant increase during the current year. X (Twitter) user EGRAG CRYPTO predicted that XRP could skyrocket to $1.20 by the end of March.
Dark Defender was even more optimistic, believing the coin’s price could reach $1.88 and then skyrocket to an ATH of $5.85 in Q2 2024.
With most other altcoins posting notable gains over the past day, it is no surprise that the total cryptocurrency market capitalization has reached its own peak of $1.77 trillion on CMC. That means the metric has added approximately $100 billion in one day.
By Audy Castaneda
