The price of Bitcoin climbed in premarket trading to hit a five-month high of $60,000 U.S.
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency surged to just over $60,000 U.S., reaching its highest level since May. 10. The digital coin has risen 2.5% in the last 24 hours.
The latest jump has been prompted by optimism that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will give the green light to the first Bitcoin futures exchange traded fund (ETF).
The SEC is unlikely to block Bitcoin futures ETFs from starting to trade next week, according to multiple media reports.
Approval of an ETF that gives mainstream investors exposure to Bitcoin would be a landmark for the cryptocurrency industry, which has long been pushing for greater acceptance of digital assets on Wall Street.
However, not all cryptocurrencies got a boost from the ETF news. Ethereum, the second-largest digital coin, rose 3.7% to $3,777 U.S. However, XRP was down about 0.6% while ADA-Cardano fell 0.3%.
Bitcoin hit an all-time high of nearly $65,000 U.S. in April, before falling on the back of a crackdown on the cryptocurrency market in China. It’s still more than doubled in price so far this year.
Regulators have been taking a tougher line on cryptocurrencies this year, as interest from investors has surged. Earlier this week, Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe warned that cryptocurrencies could spark a global financial crisis of similar magnitude to the 2008 crash.
