Bitcoin’s 160% Rebound in 2023 Is a Gamble on ETF ‘Demand Shock’

  • Bitcoin weathered Binance, SBF scandals to jump more than 160%
  • Speculators expect US spot ETF approvals to drive demand

Bitcoin stormed back with a more than 160% advance this year that added some $530 billion to its market capitalization. 

Photographer: Paul Yeung/Bloomberg
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The sense of doom that gripped crypto markets at the end of 2022 following a $1.5 trillion wipeout has 12 months later given way to a very different sentiment: avarice.

Bitcoin stormed back with a more than 160% advance this year that added some $530 billion to its market capitalization. In its wake, myriad smaller tokens ranging from Sam Bankman-Fried-backed Solana to dog- and frog-themed memecoins took off as investors embraced risk again. An investor who bought $100,000 of Solana at the start of 2023 would now be sitting on a more than $800,000 gain.