Bitcoin Hits $85,000, Reaching an Eight-Month High

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, extended the rally that began last Friday, surging more than 5% at one point on the 21st to surpass $85,000—an eight-month high. Shares of related companies, such as Coinbase and MicroStrategy, also rallied sharply during early trading in the U.S. market that day, posting gains of at least 5%.

Data from Bloomberg showed Bitcoin climbing as much as 5.1% intraday to reach $85,222.49; other cryptocurrencies, including the second-largest, Ether, and Ripple, also rose in tandem.

During the final two days of last week, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs showed signs of rebounding investor demand, attracting a combined $593 million in inflows on the 17th and 18th; this offset the heavy outflows seen earlier in the week, resulting in a net inflow of $6 million for the week. Bitcoin surged more than 6% on the 18th.

Open interest on the options trading platform Deribit is dominated by call options, signaling a bullish market sentiment. The platform recorded over 272,000 Bitcoin call option contracts, compared to just 154,000 put option contracts.