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Bitcoin blew past $60,000 for the first time in more than two years on Wednesday as the popularity of spot ETFs drove a renewed trading frenzy for volatile cryptocurrencies — and crashed popular crypto exchange Coinbase.

The price of bitcoin soared to nearly $64,000 in the early afternoon, nearing it’s all-time high of $$68,789 in November 2021, before falling to around $61,000 by 6 p.m. That marked an 18% increase in the leading digital currency compared to one week ago and 40% bump compared to a month ago.

In the midst of Wednesdays rally, Coinbase, one of the largest digital asset exchanges, warned users that its website was experiencing issues but assured customers that their assets are safe after several complained that their digital wallets showed “$0.00.”

“We are dealing with a large surge of traffic — apologies for any issues you encounter, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong posted on X.

The bullish run on the world’s most popular crypto token could be the start of what Split Capitals Zaheer Ebtikar called a pretty clear FOMO kind of rally, referring to the “fear of missing out.”

More and more people are just convinced to buy, Ebkitar told Bloomberg.

The massive early success of recently approved spot bitcoin ETFs — which allow investors to acquire stakes in funds that own bitcoin offered by Blackrock, Fidelity and other firms has played a key role in the surge, experts told The Post.

The boom drove $520 million into BlackRocks Bitcoin ETF, a one-day record.

I do think the fact this is happening concurrent with the ETFs and you can look at the inflows of those things that seems to be a pretty big driver for this [rally], said Colin Harper, head of research at the bitcoin mining software firm Luxor.

Theres a large segment of the population that sees regulatory approval as, well, the states okay with this, theyre not going to ban it, institutions are cleared now. Theres a lot more legitimacy to it for the average person, Harper added.

However, other market experts warned that investors may soon see a “sharp correction” of 20% or more.

“This move has been very sharp, leverage is very high at the moment,” AnB Investments’ Jaime Baeza Baeza told Bloomberg.

The overall market capitalization for the cryptocurrency market hovered at a whopping $2.31 trillion as of Wednesday afternoon after crossing the $2 trillion threshold earlier this month for the first time in two years.

Cryptocurrencies have re-emerged as a hot asset alongside other trendy bets such as AI chipmaker Nvidia and weight-loss drug maker Eli Lilly, according to Jake Dollarhide, CEO of Longbow Asset Management.

You have the additional momentum of it being legitimatized by the SEC approving the ETFs from Blackrock and others. And then, frankly, the trash was hauled off to the curb in the form of Binance and FTX, Dollarhide said. You get rid of some bad actors and you rebuild trust within the crypto space.

The latest rally in bitcoins price brought it within striking distance of its all-time high of $69,000 a number that seemed unattainable over the last two years as a so-called crypto winter crushed demand for cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoins struggles throughout 2021 and 2022 were compounded by a number of scandals, including the collapse of convicted crypto fraudster Sam Bankman-Frieds FTX empire.

We are dealing with a LARGE surge of traffic – apologies for any issues you encounter. The team is working to remediate.

Other bullish factors include investor optimism that the Federal Reserve will cut sky-high interest rates at some point this year as well as a looming bitcoin halving a pre-planned event due in April that reduces the amount of digital currency people receive for mining by half.

Bitcoins halvings are meant to ensure the currencys scarcity over time. While the exact impact of each halving on bitcoins value is up for debate among experts, the price of bitcoin has soared ahead of past halvings that occurred in 2020, 2016 and 2012.

As the halving approaches, supply of new coins will be cut in half while demand is buoyed by the ETFs, said Christopher Alexander, chief analytics officer at Pioneer Development Group.

Once the small retail investors fully regain confidence in crypto exchanges there will be demand pressure at a level that has never been seen before, Alexander added.

With Post wires

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Science

Crystalline Ice Discovered in Space: New Study Reveals Hidden Order in Cosmic Ice

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Crystalline Ice Discovered in Space: New Study Reveals Hidden Order in Cosmic Ice

Water ice coats many outer solar system bodies – from Jupiter’s icy moon Ganymede (above) to interstellar dust. On Earth, ice freezes into a neat crystal lattice, but in the deep cold of space it was assumed to form a completely amorphous (glassy) solid. A new study by University College London and Cambridge scientists challenges this picture. Their computer simulations and X-ray tests on cosmic “low-density” ice suggest it actually contains tiny crystalline grains. In some models roughly 20–25% of the ice was in crystal form, overturning the long-held view that space ice is entirely structureless.

Simulations reveal hidden nanocrystals

According to the paper, computer simulations of space ice showed it contains nanocrystals. In one approach, researchers cooled virtual water to –120 °C at different rates to form model “ice cubes.” Depending on the cooling speed, the simulated ice ranged from fully amorphous to partly ordered. Structures with roughly 16–19% of the molecules in tiny crystal clusters best matched published X-ray data for low-density ice. In another simulation, thousands of nanometer-sized ice grains were packed together and then the remaining water molecules were randomized. This produced ice about 25% crystalline, yet still reproduced the known diffraction pattern.

In laboratory experiments the team also made actual low-density amorphous ice by vapor deposition and gentle compression. When these samples were slowly warmed to crystallize, the resulting ice showed a “memory” of its formation method.

Implications for planets and origins of life

The findings give “a good idea of what the most common form of ice in the Universe looks like at an atomic level,” which is important for models of planet and galaxy formation. They also bear on theories of life’s origins. Partly crystalline ice has less internal space to trap organic molecules, potentially making it a less efficient vehicle for amino acids or other prebiotic compounds. However, Dr. Davies notes that pockets of fully amorphous ice still exist, so cosmic dust grains and cometary ices could continue to harbor organic ingredients in those disordered regions.

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Chancellor Rachel Reeves considering ‘changes’ to ISAs – and says there’s too much focus on ‘risk’ in investing

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Chancellor Rachel Reeves considering 'changes' to ISAs - and says there's too much focus on 'risk' in investing

The chancellor has confirmed she is considering “changes” to ISAs – and said there has been too much focus on “risk” in members of the public investing.

In her second annual Mansion House speech to the financial sector, Rachel Reeves said she recognised “differing views” over the popular tax-free savings accounts, in which savers can currently put up to £20,000 a year.

She was reportedly considering reducing the threshold to as low as £4,000 a year, in a bid to encourage people to put money into stocks and shares instead and boost the economy.

However the chancellor has shelved any immediate planned changes after fierce backlash from building societies and consumer groups.

In her speech to key industry figures on Tuesday evening, Ms Reeves said: “I will continue to consider further changes to ISAs, engaging widely over the coming months and recognising that despite the differing views on the right approach, we are united in wanting better outcomes for both savers and for the UK economy.”

She added: “For too long, we have presented investment in too negative a light, quick to warn people of the risks, without giving proper weight to the benefits.”

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Rachel Reeves’s fiscal dilemma

Ms Reeves’s speech, the first major one since the welfare bill climbdown two weeks ago, appeared to encourage regulators to focus less on risks and more on the benefits of investing in things like the stock market and government bonds (loans issued by states to raise funds with an interest rate paid in return).

She welcomed action by the financial regulator to review risk warning rules and the campaign to promote retail investment, which the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is launching next year.

“Our tangled system of financial advice and guidance has meant that people cannot get the right support to make decisions for themselves”, Ms Reeves told the event in London.

Read more:
Should you get Lifetime ISA? Two key issues to consider
Building societies protest against proposed ISA reforms
Is there £15bn of wiggle room in Reeves’s fiscal rules?

Last year, Ms Reeves said post-financial crash regulation had “gone too far” and set a course for cutting red tape.

On Tuesday, she said she would announce a package of City changes, including a new competitive framework for a part of the insurance industry and a regulatory regime for asset management.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Reeves is ‘totally’ up for the job

In response to Ms Reeves’s address, shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “Rachel Reeves should have used her speech this evening to rule out massive tax rises on businesses and working people. The fact that she didn’t should send a shiver down the spine of taxpayers across the country.”

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈  

The governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, also spoke at the Mansion House event and said Donald Trump’s taxes on US imports would slow the economy and trade imbalances should be addressed.

“Increasing tariffs creates the risk of fragmenting the world economy, and thereby reducing activity”, he said.

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Politics

Chancellor Rachel Reeves considering ‘changes’ to ISAs – and says there’s too much focus on ‘risk’ in investing

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on

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Chancellor Rachel Reeves considering 'changes' to ISAs - and says there's too much focus on 'risk' in investing

The chancellor has confirmed she is considering “changes” to ISAs – and said there has been too much focus on “risk” in members of the public investing.

In her second annual Mansion House speech to the financial sector, Rachel Reeves said she recognised “differing views” over the popular tax-free savings accounts, in which savers can currently put up to £20,000 a year.

She was reportedly considering reducing the threshold to as low as £4,000 a year, in a bid to encourage people to put money into stocks and shares instead and boost the economy.

However the chancellor has shelved any immediate planned changes after fierce backlash from building societies and consumer groups.

In her speech to key industry figures on Tuesday evening, Ms Reeves said: “I will continue to consider further changes to ISAs, engaging widely over the coming months and recognising that despite the differing views on the right approach, we are united in wanting better outcomes for both savers and for the UK economy.”

She added: “For too long, we have presented investment in too negative a light, quick to warn people of the risks, without giving proper weight to the benefits.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Rachel Reeves’s fiscal dilemma

Ms Reeves’s speech, the first major one since the welfare bill climbdown two weeks ago, appeared to encourage regulators to focus less on risks and more on the benefits of investing in things like the stock market and government bonds (loans issued by states to raise funds with an interest rate paid in return).

She welcomed action by the financial regulator to review risk warning rules and the campaign to promote retail investment, which the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is launching next year.

“Our tangled system of financial advice and guidance has meant that people cannot get the right support to make decisions for themselves”, Ms Reeves told the event in London.

Read more:
Should you get Lifetime ISA? Two key issues to consider
Building societies protest against proposed ISA reforms
Is there £15bn of wiggle room in Reeves’s fiscal rules?

Last year, Ms Reeves said post-financial crash regulation had “gone too far” and set a course for cutting red tape.

On Tuesday, she said she would announce a package of City changes, including a new competitive framework for a part of the insurance industry and a regulatory regime for asset management.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Reeves is ‘totally’ up for the job

In response to Ms Reeves’s address, shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “Rachel Reeves should have used her speech this evening to rule out massive tax rises on businesses and working people. The fact that she didn’t should send a shiver down the spine of taxpayers across the country.”

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈  

The governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, also spoke at the Mansion House event and said Donald Trump’s taxes on US imports would slow the economy and trade imbalances should be addressed.

“Increasing tariffs creates the risk of fragmenting the world economy, and thereby reducing activity”, he said.

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