[Bitcoin Now] Rises to 76 Million KRW Range... US Bitcoin ETF Launch 'Imminent'

Growing Expectations for Investor Base Expansion
Another Protest Against Bitcoin Legal Tender Adoption Held in El Salvador, a Latin American Country

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] The leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin has risen to the 76 million KRW range. As the launch of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the U.S. stock market approaches, the cryptocurrency market is also showing signs of improvement.

According to the domestic cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, as of 3:45 PM on the 18th, Bitcoin recorded 76.83 million KRW, up 1.19% from the previous day. It had stalled after dropping to 73.95 million KRW on the 16th but is now rising again. It even rose to 77.27 million KRW at 10:14 AM that day.

The ETF launch in the U.S. stock market appears to have had a positive impact. According to cryptocurrency specialized media CoinDesk on the 16th (local time), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commissioners approved the launch of a Bitcoin futures ETF created by asset management company ProShares. ProShares' Bitcoin futures ETF tracks Bitcoin futures traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). It is expected to start trading as early as the 18th.

Although it tracks futures rather than Bitcoin spot prices, it is expected to have a significant impact on the cryptocurrency market. This is because it is the first case where U.S. financial authorities have included cryptocurrency within the regulatory framework. Until now, the U.S. Treasury and SEC have focused only on the potential criminal use and volatility of cryptocurrencies. However, there is now hope that their stance may change starting with this ETF approval.

Additionally, the investor base is expected to expand. The U.S. ETF market assets amount to $6.8 trillion (approximately 8,058 trillion KRW). Industry observers believe that even if only a portion of this is drawn into the cryptocurrency market, the scale will become quite large. U.S. economic media CNBC explained, “The Bitcoin futures ETF can avoid problems that may arise from directly holding Bitcoin,” and “more people will participate.”

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, in the Latin American country El Salvador, protests against the adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender have erupted again. According to major foreign media on the 17th (local time), about 4,000 people gathered in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, to protest against policies of President Nayib Bukele, including the adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender. The protesters even burned an effigy resembling President Bukele, showing somewhat violent tendencies.

Last month, El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender and decided to provide citizens who downloaded the cryptocurrency wallet “Chivo” with $30 worth of Bitcoin. However, dissatisfaction among citizens grew as the Chivo app was not downloadable from application platforms from the first day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.