Litecoin txs surge 243% in 5 months amid ETF hype: Santiment

Litecoin ETF hype is growing and has been reflected in network usage and LTC prices, both of which have increased significantly in recent months.
Litecoin ETF hype is growing and has been reflected in network usage and LTC prices, both of which have increased significantly in recent months.

Daily transactions on the Litecoin network have hit $9.6 billion per day as exchange-traded fund issuers have been making moves to list their proposed Litecoin ETFs in the United States. 

Litecoin’s (LTC) market capitalization surged by 46% from Feb. 2 to 19, showing increased investor interest, reported Santiment on Feb. 21. It added that part of this growth comes from “its strong rise in network utility, which has been processing $9.6 billion in daily transaction volume over the past 7 days.”

Litecoin had around $2.8 billion in daily transaction volume in late August so current levels represent a surge of 243% in five months. Additionally, LTC prices have doubled since early November, outpacing the broader crypto market, which has seen gains of 42% over the same period.

Litecoin, ETF

Litecoin daily transaction volume vs price. Source: Santiment 

“There is clear growing excitement around a potential Litecoin ETF, 13 months after Bitcoin’s first ETFs were approved by the SEC,” said Santiment. 

The Securities and Exchange Commission posted an acknowledgment for a rule change to list the CoinShares spot Litecoin ETF on the Nasdaq on Feb. 19.  

Meanwhile, a listing of Canary Capital’s Litecoin ETF was spotted on the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) system under the ticker LTCC on Feb. 20. 

The DTCC is a key part of global financial markets and processes trillions of dollars in securities transactions each day, explained the Litecoin Foundation, which added, “It’s a key preparatory step for the fund’s potential launch.”

Litecoin, ETF

Source: Litecoin Foundation

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas cautioned that it doesn’t mean the product is approved or ready to start trading, “but it does show the issuer is making preparations for when it is.” He added that the analysts’ odds for approval this year were still at 90%. 

Related: Analyst says spot Bitcoin ETFs used for ‘massive market manipulation’ — Is he right?

LTC prices spiked around 8.5% in response to the DTCC listing, climbing from an intraday low of $127 to $138 before a slight pullback on Feb. 21.

The asset has risen almost 30% over the past fortnight, outperforming Bitcoin (BTC), which has remained tightly range-bound since it fell back into five figures in early February.

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