Bitcoin Surges Over $28K, but Analyst Questions ETF Optimism Angle

Bitcoin (BTC) rose above the $28,000 mark early Monday to log its highest prices in over a month as analysts pointed to ETF optimism and seasonality as a few reasons behind the gains.

Traders at Japanese exchange Bitbank were already eyeing the $28,000 level for bitcoin last week, as CoinDesk reported. The $28,500 acted as a major support level in the previous bull market and could be a key price level to watch for in the coming weeks as it potentially flips into a level of resistance.

In the past 24 hours, ether (ETH) bumped over $1,700, bnb (BNB) and cardano (ADA) added 3.3%, while polygon (MATIC) rose 5.5%. Solana’s SOL tokens led major gains at 14.5%, mainly on renewed optimism for the network among some traders.

Short liquidations on crypto-tracked futures may have contributed to the rise in bitcoin and ether. Data shows some $94 million in bets against rising prices were impacted on Sunday, creating a “short squeeze” – which occurs when there is a lack of supply and an excess of demand for the stock due to short sellers having to buy stocks to cover their short.

Some 30,000 bearish bets were liquidated, the data shows, with most liquidations taking place on the crypto exchange OKX.

Liquidation refers to when an exchange forcefully closes a trader's leveraged position due to a partial or total loss of the trader's initial margin. This happens when a trader is unable to meet the margin requirements for a leveraged position or fails to have sufficient funds to keep the trade open.

Elsewhere, some traders pointed to historic seasonality as a driver of Sunday’s gains.

“These gains in cryptocurrencies come with the bullish impression that characterizes the month of October in general,” shared Samer Hasn, markets analyst at XS.com.

“Bitcoin has not recorded monthly losses in October since 2013 except twice, which prompted this month to be called “Uptober” within the cryptocurrency community,” Hasn added.

While some are attributing the rise in prices to optimism about crypto-related ETFs – after all a number of futures-based ether ETFs opened for business on Monday morning and Grayscale applied with the SEC to convert its $5 billion Ethereum Trust (ETHE) to a spot ETF – Dexterity Capital Managing Partner Michael Safai isn't so sure.

"ETF issuers don't know the markets like traders do," he told CoinDesk TV. "Their optimism is a bit misplaced; anyone who wants bitcoin or ether surely has it."

(Oliver Knight contributed reporting.)