Bitcoin hit a record high of $73,794 last month, with a 50% gain so far this year. Goldman Sachs' Mathew McDermott says that while retail investors have driven the surge, institutions are now beginning to participate.
The recent surge in cryptocurrency prices has primarily been driven by retail investors, but institutions are starting to join the fray, according to Goldman Sachs' head of digital assets, Mathew McDermott. Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, hit an all-time high of $73,794 last week and has gained 50% so far this year, pulling other crypto prices up with it. McDermott spoke at the Digital Asset Summit (DAS) conference in London, noting a significant shift in institutional appetite.
Goldman Sachs launched its crypto trading desk in 2021 and continues to expand it, seeing increased client types and trading volumes. Analysts suggest that the billions of dollars flowing into U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs, which launched this year, have prompted a "psychological shift" in the market. However, the bitcoin rally has cooled slightly in recent days due to U.S. economic data suggesting the Federal Reserve may not cut interest rates as much as expected this year.
