Bitcoin breaches $70K for the first time

Bitcoin broke a new high of $71,415, three days after Ether breached the $4,000 mark for the first time since 2021.

Bitcoin (BTC) reached a new all-time high of $71,415 on March 11 after rising 2.62% in the 24 hours leading up to 08:05 am UTC.

The world’s first cryptocurrency rallied over 10% during the past week and 47% during the past month, according to CoinMarketCap data. The new all-time high comes three days after Ether (ETH) breached the $4,000 mark for the first time since December 2021.

Bitcoin hit a new all-time high 36 days before the much anticipated Bitcoin halving event set to occur on April 20, which will see mining rewards reduced from 6.25 BTC ($418,800) to 3.125 BTC ($209,400).

Bitcoin recorded its highest-ever weekly close of 68,955 on March 10, days after Bitcoin breached its previous all-time high of $69,200 on March 5.

Related: Bitcoin miner revenue records second-best day in history

Bitcoin ETFs amass over 4% of BTC supply

Bitcoin’s bullish momentum can largely be attributed to increased institutional interest generated by the recently launched spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States.

Since launch, the ETFs have amassed 4.06% of the current Bitcoin supply, surpassing $56.9 billion in total on-chain holdings, according to data from Dune. At this rate, ETFs are projected to absorb 8.65% of the BTC supply on a yearly basis.

The spot Bitcoin ETFs amassed a total of 33,000 BTC ($2.3 billion) last week, including Grayscale’s GBTC fund, which saw over 10,200 BTC in outflows, according to data from HODL15 Capital.

Digital asset manager Bitwise expects more institutions, representing “trillions of dollars in assets,” are preparing to buy into spot Bitcoin ETFs by the end of June, according to a March 9 investment report sent to investors.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin whales continue holding onto their BTC despite the new highs. The number of unique addresses holding at least 1,000 BTC, also known as whales, has risen to 2,107 addresses as of March 9. Yet this is still lower than the record 2,489 addresses reached in February 2021, when Bitcoin was trading above $46,000.

Related: Bitcoin whales not selling despite $70K — BTC holdings growth ‘is going parabolic’