Investing.com-- Bitcoin jumped on Wednesday, extending overnight gains as traders welcomed the tentative ceasefire between Iran and Israel.
The broader crypto market also rose, but gains remained limited as traders were still on edge over whether the ceasefire would continue to hold. This notion also spurred some profit-taking in major altcoins.
Bitcoin rose 2.7% to $107,950.0 by 10:01 ET (14:01 GMT).
Israel-Iran ceasefire caution persists, crypto markets skittish
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday evening announced a ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran, which now appeared to be holding up in the early hours of Wednesday.
While Trump had chided both countries for allegedly breaking the ceasefire on Tuesday, Tehran and Jerusalem appeared to have wound down their aerial strikes on each other by Wednesday.
Market focus was squarely on whether the deal would hold, given that renewed hostilities between the Middle Eastern powers had decimated risk appetite in the past week.
Crypto’s speculative nature left it particularly exposed to shifts in sentiment.
While Bitcoin did recoup some losses this week, it still remained within a $103,000 to $108,000 trading range seen through most of June.
Guotai Junan shares surge over 100% on HK crypto license
Shares of Chinese brokerage Guotai Junan International Holdings Ltd (HK: 1788 ) more than doubled on Wednesday after the firm’s Hong Kong unit received regulatory approval to trade crypto assets.
The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission granted the firm an upgraded license to provide crypto dealing services to its clients. The move allows the brokerage to further tap into Hong Kong’s rapidly growing crypto market.
While crypto is essentially banned in China, it is still legal in Hong Kong, allowing international and mainland investors to buy into the asset class through local brokers.
Last month, Hong Kong’s government passed a landmark stablecoin bill that introduced a regulatory framework for fiat-pegged stablecoin issuers.
NYSE Arca files to list Truth Social crypto ETF tracking Bitcoin and Ether
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has submitted a proposed rule change to the SEC to list a new cryptocurrency ETF tied to Truth Social, the social media platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group.
According to a 19b-4 filing on Tuesday, NYSE Arca aims to list and trade the Truth Social Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF, described as a “passive investment vehicle that seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of bitcoin and ether.”
This follows last week’s submission of the ETF prospectus, which outlines an initial asset split targeting a 3-to-1 ratio of bitcoin to ether by value.
Yorkville America Digital is listed as the ETF sponsor, while Foris DAX Trust Company will serve as custodian for the crypto holdings.
The dual-crypto product isn’t the only ETF in development. Earlier this month, NYSE Arca also filed to list the Truth Social Bitcoin ETF, which will invest exclusively in Bitcoin.
Crypto price today: altcoins less upbeat
Broader crypto prices largely lagged Bitcoin on Wednesday, as a recent rebound in the sector ran out of steam.
World no.2 crypto Ether rose 0.4% to $2,435.40, while XRP climbed 2.2% to $2.22.
Solana added 2.2 %, while Cardano remained flat.
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin advanced over 2%, while $TRUMP slipped 0.6%.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this report.)