NEW YORK, February 28, 2024 — Bitcoin surged past $63,000 for the first time since November 2021 on Wednesday morning, driven by a significant increase in trading volumes for spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and growing excitement over the upcoming “halving” event.

The cryptocurrency has experienced a remarkable resurgence since trading at around $20,000 less than a year ago. Bitcoin prices have risen approximately 45% since the start of the year, climbing from $42,000 to over $60,000 in just a few weeks

The surge in Bitcoin's price is largely attributed to heightened activity in spot bitcoin ETFs, which began trading in January and have reached record trading volumes this week. The nine new spot bitcoin ETFs, excluding the pre-existing Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), set a new all-time high for trading volume on Monday, according to Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) led the charge, breaking its own trading volume records on both Monday and Tuesday.

Additionally, the anticipation of Bitcoin's upcoming halving event in April is contributing to the price increase. The halving will reduce the number of new bitcoins created per block and halve the rewards for miners. With Bitcoin's supply capped at 21 million, and over 19.6 million already in circulation, the halving will further constrain supply, increasing the token's scarcity and potentially driving up its value.

TThis rally in Bitcoin has also positively impacted the broader cryptocurrency market. According to CoinGecko, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies has surpassed $2 trillion for the first time since April 2022, with Bitcoin alone representing nearly $1.2 trillion of this value.

The overall crypto market has seen gains, although not matching Bitcoin's pace. Ether (ETH) recently broke through the $3,000 mark for the first time since April 2022. Crypto-related stocks, including Coinbase (COIN) and Riot Blockchain (RIOT), have reached new year-to-date highs. MicroStrategy (MSTR) has also seen significant gains, holding more than $11 billion worth of Bitcoin on its balance sheet.