Bitcoin surged to an eight-month high above $85,000 as oil fell and ETF inflows returned

Bitcoin reached an eight-month high on Monday, with the cryptocurrency peaking at $85,222 for a gain of up to 5.1%, as renewed ETF demand and improving appetite for risk assets carried forward momentum that took hold the previous week, according to Bloomberg.

The token settled at $85,117, a 4.7% advance, completing a stretch that has seen it surge more than 30% from its Aug. 19 level while tacking on close to 6% in last week's trading alone, according to The Wall Street Journal. Bitcoin has managed to stay comfortably clear of the $80,000 mark, a threshold that had repeatedly resisted upward breakthroughs in prior weeks.

Three factors underpinned the advance, according to Zaye Capital Markets analyst Naeem Aslam, writing in a note cited by the Journal: accelerating ETF inflows, favorable signals from regulators, and traders covering short positions. On the options platform Deribit, call contracts — giving holders the right to buy bitcoin — outnumbered puts by more than 272,000 to 154,000, signaling bullish positioning, according to Bloomberg.

"The crypto market capitalization has risen to $2.8T, its highest level since the end of January this year," Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, told Bloomberg. "Buyers have once again been dominating the cryptocurrency market since Sunday."