Cryptocurrency shares experience a notable increase as Bitcoin reaches a new peak in 2023

December 4 (Reuters) - As bitcoin crossed $42,000 to reach a new high for the year, equities tied to cryptocurrencies that are listed in the United States jumped on Monday, hoping to build on their solid gains from November.

The largest cryptocurrency in the world, Bitcoin, surged 4.0% to $41,598.0, the highest level since April 2022, on traders' bets that U.S. stock market-traded bitcoin ETFs will soon be approved and a surge of excitement about possible interest rate reduction in the United States.

At $42,162, the cryptocurrency reached a session high.

According to Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior market analyst at Swissquote Bank, "an (ETF) approval is going to have a big impact on investment appetite because it's going to be more easily regulated, more attractive, and easier to invest."

"Risk is rallying at the moment, and declining rates are also helping bitcoin tremendously. Additionally, there is an optimistic outlook for the upcoming year as it will be a halving year."

The goal of halving is to gradually reduce the amount of bitcoin released, and prices have usually increased after halvings.

Coinbase (COIN.O) had a 7.3% increase before to the bell. Even though the cryptocurrency exchange revealed a drop in third-quarter trading volumes, the stock increased by about 62% in November.

Microstrategy (MSTR.O), a bitcoin investor, earned 8.2% after purchasing $593 million worth of bitcoins last month.

Miners of Bitcoin, Riot Platforms (RIOT.O), Marathon Digital (MARA.O), and CleanSpark (CLSK.O), increased their profits to double digits in November by jumping between 9.7% and 12.0%, respectively.

The ProShares Short Bitcoin Strategy ETF, which lets investors wager on a decline in bitcoin futures, dropped 7.2%, while the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, which monitors bitcoin futures, increased 7.4% and was poised to reach a peak of more than a year.

Earlier in the year, investor attitude toward cryptocurrencies and similar assets was sluggish following a series of high-profile failures in 2022 that resulted in withdrawals of over a trillion dollars from the industry.

But because to the latest surge, bitcoin has increased by more than 150% in 2023 and is on track to have its greatest year since 2020.