Bitcoin breaks through $51,000 to become the world's tenth most valuable asset

2022 is undoubtedly a challenging year for the cryptocurrency market. Especially for Bitcoin, the world's most famous cryptocurrency, it experienced intense volatility last year. With the collapse of TerraUSD and FTX trading platforms, the value of the entire cryptocurrency market evaporated nearly $1 trillion in the so-called "cryptocurrency winter". In December 2022, the price of Bitcoin dropped to less than $17,000, a significant decrease from the historical high of nearly $69,000 a year ago. However, in 2023, the price of Bitcoin gradually recovered, showing a slow and steady growth trend with an increase of over 150%. Last month, the price of Bitcoin even surpassed $45,000, reaching its peak in 21 months, and has continued to rise since then. Zhitong App has learned that on Wednesday, the price of Bitcoin has surpassed $51,000, the highest level since November 2021. At the same time, the market capitalization of Bitcoin (the total value of all circulating Bitcoins) has exceeded $1 trillion for the first time. In January 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Despite a brief decline in the price of Bitcoin afterwards, the demand for ETFs has remained high. ETFs allow investors to purchase products that track the price of Bitcoin without directly holding Bitcoin itself, which increases the avenues and flexibility for investors to invest in Bitcoin. Furthermore, the anticipation of the Bitcoin halving event scheduled for April has further pushed up the price of Bitcoin. The halving event occurs every four years and reduces the Bitcoin rewards for miners. Based on historical experience, this usually leads to an increase in the price of Bitcoin. The strong performance of Bitcoin has also driven up the prices of other cryptocurrencies, and the total market value of the cryptocurrency market is approaching $2 trillion. This is undoubtedly good news for cryptocurrency holders. According to the financial blog Zerohedge, the market capitalization of Bitcoin has surpassed that of globally renowned companies such as Tesla (TSLA.US) and TSMC (TSM.US), making it the tenth most valuable asset in the world. This achievement signifies the increasingly important position of Bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology in the global financial market. As of the Wednesday closing, stocks related to Bitcoin concept have risen. Marathon Digital (MARA.US) and Riot Platforms (RIOT.US) rose over 14%, Coinbase (COIN.US) rose over 13%, and Canaan (CAN.US) rose over 31%.