Upward momentum triggered in bitcoin by the launch of the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF yesterday.

Bitcoin surged to a new all-time high of $66,283.96 today, driven higher by investors’ enthusiasm over the launch Tuesday of the first-ever bitcoin futures ETF on the NYSE. The leading crypto had previously touched a peak of $64,895 in April this year. (CNBC)

The ProShares Bitcoin Strategy Fund (NYSEArca: BITO), which made its debut yesterday, is up 3.74% today and trading at $43.56. More than 24 million shares of the ETF changed hands on Tuesday, making it the second-most heavily traded fund on record.

The launch of the ETF is a huge shot in the arm for the digital assets industry, showing a thaw in the SEC’s so far frosty reception to applications for a bitcoin ETF based on the spot market.

However, crypto enthusiasts are not complaining, and welcomed that the SEC did not nix the next best thing, a futures-based bitcoin ETF, and allowed it to launch.

Gushing appreciation for the top crypto

“It’s a validating moment,” said Jesse Proudman, co-founder and chief executive at Makara, a crypto advisory firm, to Bloomberg. “It’s no longer a question of does this asset class continue to exist — I think that’s a really meaningful mark in the history of the broader digital-asset class.”

Legendary trader and billionaire investor Paul Tudor Jones said crypto assets were a great hedge, hinting at the current global macroeconomic situation of a world awash in stimulus-linked liquidity.

“There’s a plan in place for crypto and clearly it’s winning the race against gold at the moment … I would think that would also be in very good inflation hedge,” Jones said. “It would be my preferred one over gold at the moment.”

Related Story: Bitcoin Futures ETF From ProShares To Start Trading Tomorrow On The NYSE [Updated]