Bitcoin News Today: BTC Eyes $55,000 on Spot ETF Inflows and Senator Warren

Key Insights:

• BTC rallied 4.38% on Wednesday, closing the session at $51,890.
• Inflow numbers from the BTC-spot ETF market drove buyer demand for BTC.
• On Thursday, BTC-spot ETF-related data and US lawmakers need consideration.

BTC Revisits the $52,000 Handle

On Wednesday, BTC rallied 4.38%. Reversing a 0.27% decline from Tuesday, BTC ended the session at $51,890. Significantly, BTC revisited the $52,000 handle for the first time since December 27, 2021. BTC-spot ETF market flow data for February 13 drove buyer demand for BTC.

BTC-Spot ETF Inflows: iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) Defied Gravity

BTC-spot ETF market net inflows surged from $493.3 million (February 12) to $631.2 million (February 13), according to figures from BitMEX Research. Notably, inflows were the highest since $655.2 million of net inflows on January 11, Day 1 of trading for the Nine.

iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) continued to corner the BTC-spot ETF market, with net inflows of $493.1 million. Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) came a distant second, with net inflows of $163.6 million. Four of the Nine BTC-spot ETFs had zero net inflows on Tuesday.

Bloomberg Intelligence ETF Senior Analyst shared his views on the IBIT trends, saying,

“More unusual second wind strength on display from IBIT which has broken its weekly volume record and its only Wed w avg $760m/day. Top 1% numbers. Volume also good predictor of inflows for newborn ETFs given there aren’t many existing owners to sell.”

Early Flow Data for February 14 Signal Strong Total Net Inflows

On Thursday, BitMEX Research shared available flow data for February 14.

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) saw net outflows increase from $72.8 million (February 13) to $131 million (February 14). However, ARK 21 Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) recorded net inflows of $101.5 million, its third-highest since launch. Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) saw net inflows fall from $163.6 million to $118.9 million on February 14.

iShares Bitcoin Trust needs another impressive day of net inflows to drive BTC toward the $55,000 handle.

Beyond the numbers, US lawmakers garnered investor interest.

Anti-Crypto Army Campaign Faces Scrutiny

On Wednesday, Republican Tom Emmer shared a session from Capitol Hill putting the actual use of crypto by Hamas on the record, saying,

“You said that digital assets are not the preferred means of terrorist financing. But I want to be clear, digital assets were not even a popular tool for Hamas or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, correct?”

Undersecretary Nelson replied,

“I think that’s correct.”

Clarifying the response, Republican Emmer asked,

“I really want to make just a record here. Because, regardless, to be clear, Hamas is using crypto in relatively small amounts compared to what’s been widely reported, that’s correct?

US Undersecretary Brian Nelson affirmed,

“That’s our assessment, yep.”

Republican Emmer went on to ask if the Treasury had a responsibility to correct the record here, saying Treasury has the data to paint the correct picture of the crypto narrative.

Significantly, Emmer said,

“And instead, we have senators who are legislating on these false figures and major CEOs using these figures to inform their perspectives on digital assets. Sure, we can go to Chainanalysis and use their third-party reporting, but Treasury already has the data, so doesn’t Treasury have a responsibility to correct the record here?

Undersecretary Nelson referred to other terrorist organizations and their use of crypto. Republican Emmer elaborated, asking,

“I appreciate that, but I’m talking about the misinformation that the Wall Street Journal has suggested and that certain senators are trying to base legislation on that would literally destroy the innovation in this country and I take it that you don’t have a position then as to whether Treasury has an obligation to correct this record with the data that they have.”

Undersecretary Nelson had a different view from Senator Elizabeth Warren.

Senator Warren and the Anti-Money Laundering Act

In December, Senator Elizabeth Warren announced more support for her proposed Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act. At the time, Senator Warren said,

“The Treasury Department is making clear that we need new laws to crack down on crypto’s use in enabling terrorist groups, rogue nations, drug lords, ransomware gangs, and fraudsters to launder billions in stolen funds, evade sanctions, fund illegal weapons programs, and profit from devastating cyberattacks.”

Before the statement, Senator Warren invited US Banking CEOs to a Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon famously said,

“If I was the government, I would close it down.”

Technical Analysis

Bitcoin Analysis

BTC remained well above the 50-day and 200-day EMAs, affirming the bullish price signals.

A BTC breakout from the $52,500 handle would support a move to $55,000.

US lawmaker scrutiny and BTC-spot ETF market flows need consideration.

However, a break below the $50,500 support level would bring sub-$49,000 support levels into view.

The 14-Daily RSI reading, 82.11, shows BTC in overbought territory. Selling pressure may intensify at the $52,500 resistance level.

Ethereum Analysis

ETH remained well above the 50-day and 200-day EMAs, affirming bullish price signals.

An ETH break above Thursday morning high of $2,826 would support a move toward the $3,000 handle.

ETH-spot ETF-related chatter also needs consideration.

However, an ETH break below the $2,750 handle would give the bears a run at the $2,650 support level.

The 14-period Daily RSI at 77.21 shows ETH in overbought territory. Selling pressure may intensify at the $2,850 resistance level.