Bitcoin zips past $41,000 amid unending ETF optimism

Bitcoin's (BTC) price zipped past $41,000 for the first time in the last 19 months earlier today, Dec. 4, fueled by the unending optimism surrounding a possible spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval in the U.S.

The top digital asset gained more than 5% during the last 24 hours to trade at $41,448 as of press time, continuing an upward price movement that emerged over the weekend, according to CryptoSlate's data.

Data from Coinglass shows that BTC's price action liquidated more than $70 million from short traders during the reporting period, with the single largest liquidation occurring on Bitmex, valued at $6.01 million.

BTC's rally follows a recent revelation that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) met with several asset managers, including Grayscale, BlackRock, and others, towards the end of November regarding their proposed spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Meanwhile, the price increase has made BTC one of the world's top 10 assets by market capitalization, ahead of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway and Elon Musk's electric car maker Tesla. However, it remains a few billion behind social media behemoth Meta, according to data from CompaniesMarketCap.

BTC's market capitalization stands at $811.89 billion as of press time, according to CryptoSlate's data.

Ethereum, others surge.

BTC's upward movement also lifted the value of several alternative cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, Solana, and Cardano, which posted significant gains during the reporting period.

ETH, the second-largest digital asset by market cap, increased by more than 4% to break $2,200 for the first time since May 2022. Its ascent could also be attributed to the optimism surrounding the spot Ethereum ETF applications filed by several traditional financial giants, including BlackRock.

On the other hand, Solana continues its year-long positive momentum, breaching the $65 mark during the weekend before mildly retreating to $64 as of press time, according to CryptoSlate's data.

Others like Cardano, Dogecoin, BNB, and XRP saw more than 2% gains during the reporting period. Notably, Terra-related coins—Terra Classic and Terra Luna– are among CryptoSlate's top gainers list today.