At 11.20 AEDT, Bitcoin was trading at just over $47,000, having surged more than 7 per cent over the last 24 hours.

The last time the crypto hit this level was the end of 2021, just before a long crypto winter saw the fickle asset plunge to a low of $16,000 in January last year.

Now, US regulators are expected to greenlight applications for the very first spot Bitcoin ETF, or exchange-traded fund, in the American market.

Those expectations have driven Bitcoin’s price up since the weekend.

A spot Bitcoin ETF allows investors in without them actually owning the digital currency.

That is appealing for mainstream investors, who may be wary of crypto, a relatively safe way to dip their toe in the notoriously volatile market.

As ETFs trade on traditional stock exchanges, investors can access trades through their tried-and-true brokerage rather than creating a new account in the crypto-verse.

The prospect of regulatory oversight adds another layer of protection and transparency.

Some crypto experts think an approved ETF will bring new money flowing into Bitcoin.

Although Bankman-Fried’s conviction dented confidence in Bitcoin, many have viewed his imprisonment as ultimately good for the space, essentially getting rid of bad apples.