By 
Bitcoin price surged over 20% overnight after the launch of futures on Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). The cryptocurrency prices shot from $13,400 to $17,000 within the past 24 hours.
Contrary to what many analysts’ claims, the listing of Bitcoin futures by CBOE has been a driving factor behind the recent Bitcoin price surge. In fact, the Bitcoin price has been rally since the announcement of futures launch by CBOE and CME.
Investors are expecting Bitcoin price to increase further in the upcoming months, as tens of billions of dollars in institutional money flow into the Bitcoin market. A Hong Kong trader who successfully forecasted the Bitcoin price’s dramatic year-end ascent believes that the rally is far from over.
Adding to speculations, cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX business development head Greg Dwyer stated that the price of bitcoin could surpass $50,000 by the end of 2018, as with billions in institutional money, the market valuation of Bitcoin will likely reach a trillion dollars in the mid-term.
This dramatic entrance of large-scale institutional investors, retail traders, and hedge funds into the bitcoin market will trigger a domino effect across all major exchanges in leading bitcoin markets such as the US, South Korea, and Japan.
Already, CBOE has started to demonstrate struggles in facilitating the high demand. Within three hours of Bitcoin futures launch, CBOE’s website was down for several hours.
It is likely by the time CME launches Bitcoin futures (December 18th), Bitcoin price will cross $20,000 – a fresh all-time high.
Top Stories from the Crypto World
1. New Bitcoin ETF filings follow CBOE futures debut
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR system, new applications have been received for the VanEck Vectors Bitcoin Strategy ETF, as well as both the REX Bitcoin Strategy ETF and REX Short Bitcoin Strategy ETF.
Filings from these firms were withdrawn earlier this year after the SEC raised questions about the timing of the launches. This time timing is notable given that Chicago-based CBOE launched its initial bitcoin futures products.
Could this make SEC finally approve the ETFs? Only the time will tell.
2. Analysts blame fall of Gold on Bitcoin’s rise
As Bitcoin’s price has surged, gold has suffered. Some market analysts see a correlation. Gold and Bitcoin have both been viewed as safe havens for capital during periods of uncertainty for asset values.
GDX, an exchange-traded fund for gold miners, has lost 15% of its value since September while gold prices have fallen to its July low point.
According to Larry McDonald, who oversees U.S. macro strategy at ACG Analytics, there has been an 82% correlation between bonds and gold prices, but this past week, that correlation dissolved. He pointed to bitcoin as the cause for this.
A good thing to know: Cryptocurrencies currently have a market capitalization equal to 23% of liquid tradeable gold. That figure has increased 2% or 3% over a year ago, so it looks like cryptocurrencies are eating into the gold.
3. CryptoKitties sales surpass $12 million
CryptoKitties is a Tamagotchi-like game developed as a decentralized application (dapp) launched on top of the Ethereum protocol. Each digital kitten represents a unique crypto asset and the ownership of it cannot be altered, as it is integrated onto the immutable Ethereum Blockchain.
According to Kitty Sales, five of the rarest digital kittens on the CryptoKitties platform were sold for over $100,000 each, with the most expensive digital kitten being sold at around $120,000.
While the vast majority of CryptoKitties critics perceive the platform as a simple collectibles game, prominent venture capital investor, Andreessen Horowitz partner, and Earn.com CEO Balaji Srinivasan explained that CryptoKitties has demonstrated frictionless international trading of digital assets on a Blockchain at a large-scale.