Bitcoin just experienced another week of rollercoaster price action. News from the central bank initially gave the biggest cryptocurrency a boost, sending prices soaring, only for them to tumble back down. In the end? We’re pretty much right back where we started.
Currently, Bitcoin is hovering around $84,150 per coin. Interestingly, according to CoinGecko data, that’s practically unchanged from where it was seven days ago. While it’s nudged up slightly by 0.2% today, overall, it’s been a week of sideways movement.
The price briefly spiked after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell addressed reporters on Wednesday. He reassured everyone that things were under control and suggested that President Trump’s tariffs would only have a “transitory” effect on inflation.
Bitcoin, much like the stock market, has been reacting downwards whenever President Trump has announced new tariffs over the past month. However, it seems investors were encouraged by Powell’s comments, leading to that temporary price jump.
ETF action
Earlier in the month, American Bitcoin investors were quickly pulling their money out of Bitcoin ETFs. However, new data from Farside Investors reveals that this trend completely reversed this week.
This week has seen a daily influx of cash back into these new investment vehicles. By Wednesday alone, over half a billion dollars had flowed into these funds. In total, around $734 million returned to Bitcoin ETFs this week, signaling a shift in investor sentiment as many now anticipate interest rate cuts later in the year.
It’s worth noting though, that this positive vibe hasn’t spread to all crypto ETFs. Ethereum funds, for example, are currently experiencing a 13-day losing streak (and Friday’s data continues this!), even while Bitcoin funds have been in the green for the past six days.
Choppy waters here to stay
Despite the ETF rebound, it looks like investors should brace themselves for continued volatility. Data indicates Bitcoin’s volatility is at its highest point in six months, fueled by worries about the U.S. economy and global political uncertainties that are pushing people towards a more cautious, “risk-off” approach.
Greg Magadini, Director of Derivatives at Amberdata, told Decrypt that this volatility – at least in the short term – is likely to stick around.
SEC continues to clean up ‘mess’
Meanwhile, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is continuing its efforts to clarify the regulatory landscape for digital assets, aiming to rectify what it described as the previous administration’s “mess.” In a recent statement relevant to Bitcoin mining, the SEC confirmed that proof-of-work mining operations don’t need to register their activities as they “do not involve the offer and sale of securities.”
The regulator explained that because a miner’s “expectation to receive rewards is not derived from any third party’s managerial or entrepreneurial efforts upon which the network’s success depends,” this type of activity falls outside of the SEC’s regulatory scope.
Under the current crypto-friendly President Donald Trump, the SEC seems to be adopting a more lenient approach to the crypto space. Notably, the regulator has already dropped several lawsuits and investigations targeting companies within the industry.
BlackRock talks Bitcoin
Separately, BlackRock – the world’s largest asset manager – has once again weighed in to clarify Bitcoin’s position. In a recent interview on CNBC‘s Squawk Box, Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock’s Digital Asset Head, argued that labeling Bitcoin as simply a “risk-on” asset isn’t entirely accurate.
Mitchnick elaborated, stating, “What we’ve observed recently appears to be a self-fulfilling prophecy, almost a self-inflicted issue caused by some of the industry’s own research and commentary, which tends to categorize it as a risk-on asset at times.”
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust has been one of the most successful Bitcoin ETFs since it launched last January. Could this commentary from BlackRock be a move to attract even more clients to their fund?
Edited by Andrew Hayward
