Bitcoin is on a tear again, surging past $40,000. Is now the time to invest? Put it like this: if you’d put $1,000 into bitcoin at the start of December 2021, today you’d have… $1,000. *This is not financial advice*

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Bitcoin breaks $40,000

Bitcoin has jumped more than 140% this year, passing the $40,000 mark to reach a 14-month high. There are three things driving the move:

• The first US spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). These are investment vehicles traded on traditional regulated exchanges that track the price of bitcoin. Major applicants include BlackRock and approvals could come in early January, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

• The next bitcoin halvening. This is when the reward for mining bitcoin is cut in half. It happens every four years to help cap supply at 21 million tokens. Bitcoin hit record highs after each of the last three halvings.

• Fed softening. Various central bankers, including Jerome Powell, have been striking a more dovish stance recently. Bitcoin has historically struggled with high interest rates, so investors have taken this as a good sign for the cryptocurrency.

The content we're consuming today

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• FT: Why staff loyalty is not always a good thing ($)

Off-balance sheet items

• What do you do when your garden ornament turns out to be a live bomb?

The bottom line