Bitcoin price RECORD: Cryptocurrency sets new high of over $66,000 today

Bitcoin price record: The cryptocurrency jumped to a record high Wednesday morning, topping $66,000, as it rides a wave of excitement about getting further mainstreamed by the financial establishment.

Bitcoin was trading at $66,109 as of 10:04 a.m. Eastern time. It’s rallied back after sinking below $30,000 during the summer to top its prior record set in April. That prior all-time high was nearly $64,889, according to Coindesk.

A day earlier, the first exchange-traded fund linked to Bitcoin attracted huge interest from investors looking to get into the surging field of cryptocurrencies. Shares of the ProShares BitCoin Strategy ETF changed hands 24.1 million in a resounding debut.

The ETF doesn’t invest directly in Bitcoin. It instead invests in the futures market tied to Bitcoin, but the industry sees the ETF as offering a way for a new class of investors to get involved in Bitcoin.

First fund linked to bitcoin futures debuts on NYSE

(AFP) Bitcoin took another step closer to mainstream investing Tuesday with the launch of a new security on Wall Street tied to futures of the cryptocurrency.

To mark the occasion, ProShares, leader in exchange-traded funds, a type of investment linked to an index, rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday.

The Bitcoin Strategy ETF, trading under the "BITO" ticker, rose 4.9 percent to $41.94 in its first session, an eagerly-anticipated event in the world of crypto-money that boosted bitcoin futures.

The arrival of the fund helped propel bitcoin back near its all-time high. Near 2030 GMT, the digital currency stood a $64,313, less than $600 short of its April record.

Unlike mutual funds, which are traded only once a day, ETFs can be transacted throughout the trading session, making them more like individual stocks and increasingly popular with everyday investors.

Rather than a direct investment in the digital currency, BITO will invest "primarily in bitcoin futures," ProShares said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has repeatedly rejected ETFs linked directly to bitcoin, maintaining that they were subject to market manipulation.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler said futures connected to bitcoin also could be volatile, but noted that the ProShares ETF is linked to a futures contract that has been regulated by the Commodities Futures Trading Commission since 2017.

"I think what you have here is a product, it's been overseen for four years," Gensler said on CNBC, adding that the SEC has jurisdiction over the ETF under longstanding US law.

"So we have some ability to bring it inside of investor protection (but) it's still a highly speculative asset class," he said. "Underneath this, it still has that same aspect of volatility and speculation."

Other funds are planning ETFs linked to bitcoin including Valkyrie Investments.