Uptober Begins with Bitcoin Gold Rising Crypto Daybook Americas

By Francisco Rodrigues (All times ET unless indicated otherwise)
Bitcoin (BTC) moved higher amid the U.S. government shutdown and its up roughly 3% in the last 24 hours to $116,400. The broader crypto market, as measured by the CoinDesk 20 index (CD20) rose 3.5%.
Equities markets excluding the U.S. also moved higher, even as traders remain cautious over the shutdown. Europe’s STOXX 50 is up 0.3% in today’s session, while the FTSE 100 rose 0.7%. Futures on the S&P 500 are, however, down 0.55% while on the Nasdaq they’re down 0.64%.
The U.S. government shutdown could lead to economic data delays, which are compounded by looming tariffs on various items. This has seemingly seen investors move away from the country and into alternative stores of value.
That uncertainty has seen the price of gold rise 3.75% in the past week to now hover around $3,890 per ounce. Spot crypto ETFs drew in more than $550 million in net inflows on Sept. 30, with spot bitcoin ETFs representing the lion’s share of that figure.
The flight to alternative assets is occurring against a favorable macroeconomic backdrop.
The Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep cutting interest rates this month, with Polymarket traders weighing an 85% chance of a 25 bps cut. That figure is near 95% in the CME’s Fedwatch tool. Lower interest rates could make risk assets, which include cryptocurrencies, more appetizing for investors.
Institutional involvement has also deepened amid the changing monetary policy. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) overtook Deribit to become the top venue for bitcoin options trading by open interest, now near $38 billion.
“We have seen the convergence of both institutional backing and maturation across the Bitcoin ecosystem. Bitcoin is more embedded in the foundations of global finance, and institutional interest is at an all-time high,” Dom Harz, co-foudner of Bitcoin DeFi gateway BOB, told CoinDesk.
“Unlike previous years, this Uptober will see more targeted inflows, which could be a breakout moment in accelerating Bitcoin DeFi, as investors will want to do more with their Bitcoin holdings; transforming it from a static store-of-value into a yield-bearing asset class,” he added.
Indeed, bitcoin exposure coupled with yield appears to be becoming a new trend. Just this morning Swiss digital bank Sygnym launched a new BTC Alpha Fund, aiming to generate yield on bitcoin without reducing exposure to the cryptocurrency’s price movements.
While traditional markets are likely to see lower volatility due the upcoming data vacuum from the government shutdown, crypto market see a wave of spot ETF decisions in the near future to look forward to.
The SEC is scheduled to make decisions on a total of 16 spot crypto ETF applications this month. Stay alert!
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s week-ahead note.
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s week-ahead note.
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s week-ahead note.
By Oliver Knight
Crypto Treasury Companies
Spot BTC ETFs
Spot ETH ETFs
Source: Farside Investors