Bullish view
- Buy the BTC/USD pair and set a take-profit at 46,000.
- Add a stop-loss at 42,000.
- Timeline: 1-2 days.
Bearish view
- Set a sell-stop at 44,000 and a take-profit at 42,000.
- Add a stop-loss at 46,000.
The BTC/USD price remained on edge as traders continued waiting for the upcoming spot Bitcoin ETF decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Bitcoin was trading $44,000, where it has been stuck at in the past few days.
Bitcoin ETF approval
This will be an important week for Bitcoin as a crucial deadline arrives. The SEC has until January 10th to make its decision on the recent spot Bitcoin approvals. Several companies like Blackrock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, and Invesco have all applied for these ETFs.
Most analysts believe that the SEC will ultimately approve these ETFs since these companies have taken measures to mitigate risks. In a statement on Friday, SEC staff told the companies to submit the final version of a key document known as 19b-4 filing.
These are proposals for rule changes on stock exchanges that allow the funds to be traded. Companies like Blackrock and Grayscale have already submitted these documents. In addition to a vote by the SEC, the agency will also need to sign off the ETF prospectus.
A spot Bitcoin ETF will have a major implication on the crypto industry by allowing hedge funds and other institutional investors to invest in the coin. Before that, these funds could buy Bitcoin directly, buy BITO, an ETF that tracks Bitcoin futures, or the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). The challenge for investing in GBTC is that it has long had a big discount to NAV.
Investors also had access to MicroStrategy, a company that is believed to be the biggest holder of Bitcoin in the world. It has continuously added to its Bitcoin assets since 2020. The benefit of investing in MSTR is that it does not have an expense ratio.
Bitcoin also reacted mildly to the latest US jobs numbers, which showed that the economy added over 200k jobs in December.
BTC/USD technical analysis
The BTC/USD pair remained in a tight range ahead of a potential Bitcoin ETF approval. It was trading at 44,000, a few points below the key resistance at 44,455, the highest swing in December. It remains above the 50-period moving average on the four-hour chart.
Also, it is above the ascending trendline shown in black while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) remains slightly above the neutral point at 50. Therefore, the pair will likely bounce back ahead of the ETF approval. The key target to watch will be last week’s high of 46,000.
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