By Adam Clark
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were rising on Wednesday. The slump caused by the prospect of refunds linked to the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox appears to be over.
Bitcoin was up 0.8% over the last 24 hours to $61,538. The largest cryptocurrency hit a record high near $74,000 in mid-March amid a surge of interest from new spot exchange-traded funds but its price has dropped since then.
Bitcoin fell sharply from levels of around $64,000 on Monday after news that the trustee of Mt. Gox will begin to return more than $8.5 billion worth of the crypto owed to creditors from the beginning of July. The concern was that those refunds would flood the market.
However, the digital asset has bounced back from levels of below $60,000. It's being helped by prospects for lower interest rates later this year, which nudges traders toward riskier investments.
"There is some optimism for the coming months," wrote eToro analyst Simon Peters in a research note. "Central banks globally are beginning to lower interest rates and loosen financial conditions, which has generally been favorable for cryptocurrency prices."
Ether -- the second-largest crypto -- was up 0.6% at $3,389 and has risen around 80% over the past 12 months.
The Securities and Exchange Commission recently approved critical rule changes to allow spot Ether exchange-traded funds to trade. The review process for the ETFs is "going smoothly" SEC Chair Gary Gensler said on Tuesday. He has previously said the final approvals should come this summer.
Smaller cryptos or altcoins were in the green, with Solana gaining 0.8% and Cardano rising 0.1%. Dogecoin gained 2.4%.
Write to Adam Clark at adam.clark@barrons.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 26, 2024 03:33 ET (07:33 GMT)
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