Bitcoin's 160% Rebound in 2023 Is a Gamble on ETF "Demand Shock"
-- The sense of doom that gripped crypto markets at the end of 2022 following a $1.5 trillion wipeout has 12 months later given way to a very different sentiment: avarice.Hyperloop One to Shut Down After Failing to Reinvent Transit. Tencent Leads $80 Billion Rout as China Rekindles Crackdown Fear. Harvard Financial Pain Grows as Blavatnik Joins Donor Revolt. Bitcoin stormed back with a more than 160% advance this year that added some $530 billion to its market capitalization. In its wake, myriad smaller tokens ranging from Sam Bankman-Fried-backed Solana to dog- and frog-themed memecoins took off as investors embraced risk again. An investor who bought $100,000 of Solana at the start of 2023 would now be sitting on a more than $800,000 gain.Bitcoin derivatives saw a burst of activity in 2023. Bitcoin options open interest on Deribit — the largest crypto options exchange — exceeded $16 billion for the first time in December, according to CCData. Bitcoin futures op