On Tuesday evening, the official X account of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was hacked and posted an unauthorized message stating that regulators had approved a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).
The now-deleted tweet sparked a brief rally in cryptocurrency markets before the SEC clarified that the account had been compromised. While the tweet was bogus, the knee-jerk reaction has provided insight into how cryptocurrencies may respond to future Bitcoin ETF approvals.
Well, we’ve got fake news on the #Bitcoin ETF approval for the third time.
This time an hack on the #SEC account.
Theory remains, upside relatively skewed, might reach $51K and then the rotation towards $ETH happens.
Atleast $48K touched and Ethereum is taking of.#BTC pic.twitter.com/onHfZ0H3Kf
— Polaris (@ElifYolaz) January 10, 2024
Ethereum Price Spikes on Fake Bitcoin ETF News
In particular, the price of Ethereum surged on the fake news. Ethereum volume spiked 73% to nearly $22 billion as prices reached a peak of 9.3% intraday. The major increase despite the tweet referencing Bitcoin suggests that an actual Bitcoin ETF approval could also act as a catalyst for Ethereum as traders selling the news rotate into ETH in anticipation of an Ethereum ETF approval.
“Everyone is concerned with what Bitcoin will do when the ETF gets approved,” tweeted crypto analyst Scott Melker. “Yesterday’s insanity gave us the road map… traders will rotate into Ethereum. The market has spoken.”
If cryptocurrency prices can spike based on a fake tweet, one can only imagine the potential impact of real news.
The long-awaited SEC decision on a Bitcoin ETF is expected later today. While the regulatory agency has rejected all proposals so far, many believe prospects are improving for approval.
Just based on the charts it appears the ethereum ETF has been approved
— Dyme (@CryptoParadyme) January 10, 2024
If approved, a Bitcoin ETF would make the cryptocurrency more accessible to mainstream investors, boosting demand and having spillover effects for other major coins like Ethereum.
Prague Upgrade Generates Optimism
Beyond the price movements sparked by Tuesday’s fake tweet, Ethereum has an upcoming network upgrade that could also impact prices.
The Ethereum blockchain is on the verge of the Dencun upgrade, an imminent technical improvement to the platform. This upgrade has generated excitement within the cryptocurrency community as it seeks to enhance Ethereum’s functionality, security, and overall capabilities.
Investors and analysts expect this upgrade to have a bullish effect on Ethereum’s price. The modifications could serve as a catalyst for an ETH price surge, propelling values higher.
Tuesday’s fake tweet provided a small preview of what may be on the horizon. The industry awaits the SEC’s announcement with bated breath. A positive decision could unleash the next leg up for the nascent asset class. As traders anticipate the Ethereum ETF approval, there may be huge upside for the cryptocurrency after Bitcoin’s ETF approval.
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