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Bitcoin (BTC) dropped below $42,000 on Friday, plunging almost 10%, as the euphoria over the bitcoin ETFs approved this week gave way to a massive rout.
Bitcoin had been as high as $46,000 earlier Friday and surged to a two-year high of $49,000 on Thursday, when bitcoin ETFs began trading in the U.S. But the heady prices didn’t last long.
Shares of Coinbase (COIN), the crypto exchange that provides vital custody services to most of the ETF issuers, lost 7.4% on Friday. Bitcoin miners Marathon Digital (MARA), Hut 8 (HUT) and Riot Platforms (RIOT) all sank at least 10%; Marathon fared worst, slumping 15%.
The declines happened a day after spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) began trading, marking a significant milestone for the industry. Bitcoin ETFs are traditional financial vehicles that may give retail and institutional investors alike easier exposure to bitcoin’s price.
Friday’s price declines may not be a surprise; research firm CryptoQuant predicted last month that bitcoin would fall to as low as $32,000 in the next month after an ETF approval, being a “sell the news” event.
Notably, previous landmark events such as Coinbase’s stock market listing in April 2021 and ProShares’ futures-based bitcoin ETF (BITO) debut in October 2021 happened near a significant peak in crypto prices, possibly foreshadowing cooling prices ahead.
Edited by Nikhilesh De and Nick Baker.