The US dollar value of Bitcoin has surpassed the $40,000 mark in the early Asian trading hours today (Monday). As of press time, the original cryptocurrency is inching closer to $49,000 apiece, gaining about 3.8 percent in the past 24 hours.

A Remarkable Milestone for Bitcoin

With the ongoing rally, Bitcoin crossed the $40,000 level for the first time in 19 months since early May 2022.

Meanwhile, the push in the price was not limited to Bitcoin. Ethereum, the second-largest crypto by market capitalization, is trading beyond $2,200 a piece. In the past seven days, Bitcoin gained 9.5 percent, while Ethereum is up by over 8.3 percent.

One idea I’ve been contemplating is that Bitcoin may be the key to extending western civilization.

The natural trend of whichever country has the reserve currency is to inflate the money supply and increase deficit spending until it loses that advantage. The U.S. is somewhere on…

— Brian Armstrong 🛡️ (@brian_armstrong) December 3, 2023

FOMO Grips the Crypto Market

While the crypto industry is witnessing positive and negative developments, the FOMO (fear of missing out) phenomenon has engulfed traders, which is the factor behind the latest rally. The crypto fear and greed index has jumped to 74, the highest since November 2021.

Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index is 74 ~ Greed
Current price: $39,978 pic.twitter.com/kHQQBX9JGT

— Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index (@BitcoinFear) December 4, 2023

Traders are also optimistic about the upcoming decision on the Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval deadline is approaching. Further, the involvement of traditional financing industry giants like Blackrock has raised the level of optimism.

However, the actions against Binance in the US failed to shutter the enthusiasm for cryptocurrencies. Changpeng Zhao recently handed over control of Binance, the largest crypto exchange by trading volume, to Richard Teng, a former regulatory executive, and has pled guilty to one count of money laundering charges in the US. The exchange settled with the US federal prosecutors, paying $4.3 billion, and paid another $2.85 billion to settle with the US commodities regulator. The exchange and its former CEO, Zhao, is still fighting the civil charges against them brought by the SEC.

10 years ago today, I quit my job, sold my house, and aped into #bitcoin.

No, I am not saying you should do the same. Many people asked, how could you take such risks? Me, I knew I could easily get a job... Everyone's risk profile is different. Learn risk management.

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) December 3, 2023

The chaos at Binance resulted in a massive outflow of cryptocurrencies from the exchange, while its rivals like Coinbase had their crypto reserves increased.