Bitcoin jumps 160% in 2023 amid roller coaster ride; What lies ahead for cryptocurrencies?

livemint.com:

Investors of virtual digital currencies, popularly known as cryptocurrencies, have experienced a roller coaster ride in the year 2023. However, cryptocurrencies have given profitable returns this year. The grand old cryptocurrency, Bitcoin price has jumped 160% this year, which is second best to over 350% generated during 2020.

This year, the crypto space has witnessed a myriad of regulatory onslaught that tested investors’ nerves. But, this hard to categorise asset class has literally dwarfed any other asset category when compared with returns it has generated and rewarded investors in minting money.

At the beginning of this year, the sector was plagued with many obstacles. Be it FTX, TerraLuma debacle, inviting regulatory ire, suits filed against many leading exchanges, several countries shutting the doors fearing the consequences - losing or rather handing over economic power into the hands of private currencies, etc. 

Also Read: Bitcoin’s 160% rebound in 2023 is a gamble on ETF ‘Demand Shock’

These concerns filled the air of negativity in market pricing. It is this situation that caught the eye of savvy investors - the large asset backed institutional investors.

BlackRock, Fidelity, Valkyrie, many others jumped in with spot bitcoin exchange traded funds (ETF), clearly indicating the huge institutional appetite waiting to grab their share.

According to a private surveyor, it is expected that approximately $60.6 billion could flow into Bitcoin from the combined stock and bond ETFs, and about $9.9 billion from the gold market, totalling around $70.5 billion in potential new capital influx.

Currently, the total market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies stands at $1.66 trillion.

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