Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Bitcoin hits $60,000 as U.S. stock exchange listing draws near

The cryptocurrency surged on Friday, trading at its highest level since May…traded 2.5 per cent higher in the past 24 hours, at $59,112.

• October 15, 2021
Bitcoin
A bitcoin used to illustrate the story

Ahead of its New York Stock Exchange listing, Bitcoin hit a five-month high, trading as high as $60,000.

The cryptocurrency surged as high on Friday, trading at its highest level since May. Data from Binance exchange platform shows that Bitcoin was traded 2.5 per cent higher in the past 24 hours, and hit $59,999.95 before dropping to $59,400 on Friday afternoon.  . 

The digital asset’s trade surge was due to the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF scheduled to debut at the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. Despite former rejections for cryptocurrency to be listed on the stock exchange, a Bloomberg report noted that the proposal by ProShares and Invesco Ltd. was based on futures contracts and have been filed under mutual fund rules that provide “significant investor protections.”

“The ETF news is being priced in with the market expecting an approval on Monday. This is driving the price up,” Vijay Ayyar, head of Asia Pacific at cryptocurrency exchange Luno, told CNBC.

The approval of digital assets like Bitcoin at the stock exchange would set the tone for wide acceptance from mainstream investors. 

Bitcoin and other tokens in the cryptocurrency have been on a wild ride this year. The digital coin hit an all-time high of nearly $65,000 in April before slumping sharply on the back of a crackdown on the crypto market in China.

In October, it slowly rose to about $51,000 following the Bank of America’s decision to support cryptocurrency transactions as a new asset class with the launch of a digital asset research programme. 

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Diaspora

Canada-based popular entrepreneur Maryam Muritala dies, Nigerian community mourns

Ms Muritala’s demise has drawn tributes from the Nigerian community in Canada and other groups.

Trading floor

Economy

Stock market gains N652 billion amid sustained buying interest

The gains were driven by NGX Group, Aradel Holdings, Sovereign Trust Insurance, Mc Nicholas, International Breweries and 29 other equities.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (Credit: Twitter)

Economy

Okonjo-Iweala urges Niger Delta states to establish special economic zones

The WTO chief said the Niger Delta could become Nigeria’s next major industrial hub, alongside Lagos.

Health

Kano govt, partners target 16,000 women as new gender-based violence prevention project takes off

Ms Amina-Abdullahi said the project would address GBV and discrimination against women engaged in agriculture and other economic activities.

Heading 2

Over 300 South Korean workers to sue Trump administration over Georgia immigration raid

About 475 South Koreans were arrested during the raid executed by nearly 500 immigration agents.

Speaker of the Lagos House of Assembly , Mudashiru Obasa

Lagos

Lagos ‌⁠‍‍⁠⁠‌⁠⁠‌‌‌assembly passes 2026 appropriation amendment bill

The passage followed consideration of a letter from Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu seeking the assembly’s approval to reorder priorities under the 2026 budget.