Bitcoin's market cap surpasses silver, becomes eighth most valuable asset

On March 12, the largest cryptocurrency by value reached an all-time high of over $72,850, and as of 4:34 p.m. IST, it was trading at $72,160.

"The market capitalization of BTC has now reached $1.414 trillion, exceeding that of silver, which stands at $1.38 trillion. This positive momentum is attributed to the increasing interest in Bitcoin spot ETFs and the impending Bitcoin halving event," said Edul Patel, CEO of Mudrex.

Bitcoin had already exceeded the market cap of Meta, now valued at $1.23 trillion. The next target in Bitcoin's ascent is Alphabet, the parent company of Google, currently valued at just below $1.72 trillion. Bitcoin enthusiasts are also eyeing gold, the world's most valuable asset, which boasts a market capitalisation of $14.7 trillion.

Meanwhile, the rally in Bitcoin won further support after Britain's financial watchdog on Monday became the latest regulator to pave the way for digital asset trading products after saying on Monday it will now permit recognized investment exchanges to launch crypto-backed exchange-traded notes.

The UK regulator said these products would be only available for professional investors such as investment firms and credit institutions authorised to operate in financial markets, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said in a statement.

The FCA warned that crypto exchange-traded notes (ETNs) - bonds issued by financial institutions that track the performance of underlying assets - could harm retail investors.

Nonetheless, demand is picking up across the investment community.

Asset managers now hold the biggest bullish position in Bitcoin futures on record, weekly data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed.

In the week to March 5, the net long position held by asset managers — usually interpreted as covering holdings of institutional investors such as mutual funds and pension funds — rose to 15,531 lots, worth $5.5 billion based on the current bitcoin price.

Bitcoin has gained over 70% this year and most of the rise has come in the last few weeks. Whereas it has rallied over 250% in the last one year.

Following the rally in Bitcoin, other crypto tokens have also seen gains. Ethereum, Solana, XRP, Avalanche, Toncoin, and Cardano also gained in Tuesday's trade.

"BTC's stability at this high level indicates strong underlying strength, with futures open interest also rising sharply. This stability in BTC led to 5-10% gains in altcoins, with Layer 1 tokens leading the charge," said CoinDCX Research Team.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Source: Forex-Markets-Economic Times