Crypto Market Comes Roaring Back As Hong Kong Approves Spot Bitcoin, Ether ETFs

Bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) are up today by around 4.2% and 7.5%, respectively, and many other top altcoins are doing even better. It’s all the more impressive when you consider it comes after a brief period of panic, during which Bitcoin experienced a sharp sell-off to $62,773 lows yesterday following news of an impending Iranian attack against Israel.

This rebound comes as several local issuers in Hong Kong revealed Monday that they’d been approved for spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Hong Kong’s First Bitcoin, Ether ETFs Go Live

Several prominent Chinese asset management firms, including Bosera Capital, China Asset Management, and Harvest Global Investments, announced that they had secured approval in principle from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission to list spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

This development gives investors in China easier access to exposure to digital assets. Matrixport estimates that these spot BTC and ETH ETFs could unlock up to $25 billion in demand.

Crypto traders have started the new week with a smile on their faces. BTC has made a 4.2% recovery from yesterday’s lows, returning to its current standing at $66,762, while Ether has risen 7.3% to a price above $3,257. Solana (SOL) is currently the best-performing token among the top 10, with a +9.2% gain in the last day. Toncoin (TON) has also experienced strong price performance, spiking 7% in the last 24 hours.

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The broader crypto market is also on an upward trajectory, with the market cap of all cryptocurrencies increasing by 4.2% to $2.55 trillion.

Hong Kong’s approval of the spot Ethereum ETFs comes ahead of a decision from United States regulators and is a huge milestone in the city’s journey to become a leading cryptocurrency hub.

No Ether ETFs In The US

In mid-January, nearly a dozen spot Bitcoin ETFs were greenlighted in the US. BlackRock’s investment product became a record-breaking success story, attracting over $18 billion in new cash in just three months.

While BlackRock and other high-profile firms have also filed paperwork to introduce spot ether ETFs, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is so far hesitant to give the regulatory blessing to such ETH-based investment vehicles. In fact, the regulator is reportedly attempting to recategorize ether as a security token.

Furthermore, Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets at BlackRock, posited in March that demand for ETH from their customers was “little” while BTC remains their main focus. 

Nonetheless, the second-largest crypto potentially being designated as a security won’t hurt chances of spot ETH ETF approvals, according to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink.