In a day marked by speculation and swift price movements, Bitcoin and Ethereum Classic experienced temporary surges on Monday. The cryptocurrency market responded to unfounded rumors about the approval of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)'s iShares Spot Bitcoin ETF (TSX:EBIT) application, with Bitcoin's price momentarily spiking by 10% before settling back at a 3% increase at $28,000. Concurrently, Ethereum Classic (ETC/USD) saw a brief 4.9% surge to $15.72.
The rumors, which were later clarified as false by BlackRock, underscored the market's heightened anticipation for a US spot-Bitcoin ETF and its vulnerability to social media speculation. The incident also highlighted how such rumors could trigger increased buying activity and expectation of price gains in volatile altcoins like Ethereum Classic due to positive regulatory perspectives on Bitcoin.
CoinTelegraph is currently conducting an internal investigation after admitting to disseminating the misleading information through a tweet. As of Monday morning, Ethereum Classic was trading 2% higher at $15.28, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
The market's reaction to the rumors also emphasized the potential influence of industry giants like BlackRock and Invesco in the cryptocurrency space. Over ten spot-Bitcoin ETF applications have been lodged by these firms, leading analysts to predict higher approval odds this time around.
Adding fuel to these predictions is Grayscale's recent victory against the SEC in transforming its $16.7 billion Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF. This move is seen as a positive step toward the approval process for other similar applications.
Teong Hng, CEO of crypto investment firm Satori Research, described the swift price movement as a "good 30 minutes of fun and games," underlining the unpredictability of the approval process.
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