Bitcoin Breaks $44,000 | Miners Race For New Hardware

Options traders are placing bets that bitcoin will soon surge to $50,000, according to data from Deribit, the largest crypto options exchange. Market analysts expect the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve the first spot bitcoin ETFs by January 10.

Even with the gains, bitcoin remains about 37% below its November 2021 record of $69,045, according to CoinGecko.

As investors look for opportunities leading into the halving, it is worth keeping an eye on those miners who have yet to place orders for the newest generation of rigs. Among them are Hut 8, Hive, and Bitdeer. Marathon, which has high power costs but one of the most efficient fleets, may also pull the trigger on new machines to improve margins.

A magistrate judge initially ruled that Zhao could return to the United Arab Emirates, where his family lives, while he awaited sentencing on February 23. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Richard Jones wrote he had been persuaded by the Justice Department’s argument that Zhao was a flight risk, emphasizing he “has enormous wealth and property abroad, and no ties to the United States.”

Zhao is facing up to 18 months in prison over the money-laundering charges. Last month, Binance agreed to pay over $4 billion to the U.S. government—one of the largest fines in U.S. history—to settle while Zhao agreed to step down and pay $50 million personally.