Standard Chartered Bank has reaffirmed its earlier forecast that Bitcoin (BTC) will see its price reach $100,000 by the end of next year, with the bank’s team believing that the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States will be the catalyst for its growth.

Four foreign banks have joined China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, the e-CNY, after London-based multinational banking firm Standard Chartered engaged in the trials.

Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest has sold 43,956 shares of the Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, amounting to approximately $5.3 million, after the stock’s price rose to its highest level in 18 months.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Standard Chartered Reaffirms Bitcoin Will Hit $100,000 By End of 2024
• Four Foreign Banks Have Now Joined China’s e-CNY Trials
• Ark Invest Sells $5.3 Million Worth of Coinbase Shares and Invests in Robinhood

Standard Chartered Reaffirms Bitcoin Will Hit $100,000 By End of 2024

Standard Chartered Bank has reaffirmed its earlier forecast that Bitcoin (BTC) will see its price reach $100,000 by the end of next year, with the bank’s team believing that the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States will be the catalyst for its growth.

The team, led by Geoff Kendrick, anticipated that spot Bitcoin ETFs are “likely to come sooner than expected,” noting that they see a number of spot ETFs being approved in the first quarter of next year, for both BTC and ETH.

Moreover, Standard Chartered highlighted the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will see the reward miners receive per block get cut in half. This  is expected to take place in late April 2024, and is another element that could lead to potential price surges.

Previously, Standard Chartered projected that BTC would reach $120,000 by the end of the following year, attributing Bitcoin’s success to its reputation as a reliable safe haven asset. The bank also pointed out BTC’s dominance “remains intact” at around 50% of the overall market.

Four Foreign Banks Have Now Joined China’s e-CNY Trials

Four foreign banks have joined China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, the e-CNY, after London-based multinational banking firm Standard Chartered engaged in the trials.

Standard Chartered’s move has now been followed by Hong Kong-based HSBC, Hang Seng Bank, and the Taiwanese bank Fubon Bank, increasing the total to four foreign banks integrating e-CNY on their platforms.

These banks will allow clients to manage e-CNY transactions, with Hang Seng Bank’s personal banking customers set to be able to bind their debit cards with the e-CNY app and redeem digital renminbi.

Fubon Bank, on the other hand, has made provisions for customers to add e-CNY to their accounts through mobile banking and to spend it using their bank cards, with the bank also planning to explore e-CNY applications in areas like cross-border transactions and smart contracts.

China’s CBDC was used for the first time in a cross-border deal last month after PetroChina bought 1 million barrels of oil with the digital currency.

Ark Invest Sells $5.3 Million Worth of Coinbase Shares and Invests in Robinhood

Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest has sold 43,956 shares of the Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, amounting to approximately $5.3 million, after the stock’s price rose to its highest level in 18 months.

Concurrently, the firm also made a substantial investment in the commission-free trading platform Robinhood, purchasing 143,063 shares worth about $1.2 million for its Ark Fintech Innovation exchange-traded fund (ETF).

This latest move came after the firm bought 93,297 Robinhood shares for around $780,000, which were added to its ARK Next Generation Internet fund.

Ark also sold 94,624 shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) from its ARKW fund. Grayscale’s GBTC has, this week, seen its discount to net asset value shrink to a two-year low.

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