(Bloomberg) — Bitcoin hit $65,000 for the first time in about three weeks as demand for dedicated U.S. exchange-traded funds rebounded amid signs the Federal Reserve might ease monetary policy.
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The largest digital asset rose 1.2% to $65,030 on Monday before falling to $63,780 as of 9:19 a.m. New York time. The cryptocurrency rose 7.4% last week, its biggest gain since mid-July.
US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Friday signalled for the clearest time yet that the central bank is on track to cut interest rates, which are at their highest in more than two decades, foreshadowing more favourable liquidity conditions for global markets.
Following Powell’s signal, 12 U.S. bitcoin spot ETFs saw net inflows of $252 million on the day, the highest level in more than a month, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The funds have seen inflows for seven consecutive days. Investment vehicles that hold Ethereum saw net outflows of $36 million last week, according to data compiled by CoinShares.
“All eyes are on the Fed,” said Cici Lu McCalman, founder of blockchain advisory Venn Link Partners, adding that a rate cut in September could boost bitcoin.
Unlike Bitcoin portfolios, a group of U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs experienced net outflows on Aug. 23. Ethereum retreated on Monday, dropping as much as 2.1%, while other major tokens were little changed.
Toncoin, the blockchain token linked to messaging app Telegram, has suffered losses after Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov was detained in France.
–With assistance from Sidhartha Shukla.
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