In a dramatic twist, a mere 48 hours after the United States laid out a hefty $4.3 billion settlement proposal with the major player in the crypto market, Binance, Bitcoin price defied expectations by catapulting to a new peak for the year. in the early stages of the New York trading session on Friday, the cryptocurrency sector, witnessed the long-anticipated surge. Bitcoin’s recent consolidation within a pennant pattern had hinted at the prospect of a bullish upswing, and it seems those predictions have materialized.

Bitcoin Price Hits Highest Peak Since 2022

Bitcoin’s rally also occurred following the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, marking its highest point since May 2022. This surge took place in the face of subdued activity in conventional markets. Although the top coin has experienced a slight pullback, it still holds a 1.5% gain for the day. Traders are incredibly excited by Friday’s surge in Bitcoin’s price, which has rekindled the fear of missing out (FOMO) feeling. Because of this spike, Bitcoin may be able to reach the next major resistance level, which is located at about $42,000, in the next few weeks.

Still so far, so good on . Slowly grinding upwards to a new resistance point and a break above $38K immediately means $40K is next. — Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL)

Some market watchers are optimistic about its short-term trajectory, with trader Michael Van Pope suggesting in a tweet that the next milestone for Bitcoin is set at $40,000. The US Department of Justice and Binance reached an agreement, which is undoubtedly the most significant development of the month. Changpeng Zhao was forced to resign as the CEO of the company, and the exchange was forced to pay a punishment totaling around $4.3 billion. Binance, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, has named Richard Teng as its new CEO.

Bitcoin poised to reclaim the $38K territory today. Chart: 

Bitcoin Circulating Supply In Profit Region

A recent is another important component impacting the Bitcoin price. Long and short position liquidations have increased significantly across different time frames, with a total of $80.29 million in liquidations in the last 24 hours, according to statistics from Coinglass.

Source: Coinglass

In a related development, during last week’s gain, the proportion of Bitcoin’s circulating supply that is currently in profit hit 84%, or 16.36 million BTC. Additionally, Glassnode noted that this is historically noteworthy because it is significantly higher than the 74% all-time mean number.

With trading at yearly highs above $37k last week, over 83% of the coin supply was driven back into profitable territory. However, the magnitude of unrealized profit remains modest, and is not yet sufficient for long-term investors to divest. — glassnode (@glassnode)

Meanwhile, further fueling the positive outlook is the heightened expectation surrounding the potential approval of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. With a looming deadline of January 10, the SEC is tasked with evaluating numerous pending applications for these ETFs. If given the green light, these ETFs are poised to provide investors with a more cost-effective avenue to tap into the Bitcoin market, adding another layer of optimism to the current bullish sentiment.

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