Crypto markets gained $84 billion in value yesterday despite tougher regulatory stand from the USA government.
Bitcoin rose to $24,500.00 while ether was up at $1,679.31, as per the Coin Metrics.
Vijay Ayyar, vice president of corporate development and international at crypto exchange Luno said, “There are increasing signs that the market bottomed last November and has turned bullish. We are gaining in momentum here and any bad news is being shrugged off, typical signs that the market believes the worst is over.”
Crypto markets were on edge at the start of this week after increased regulatory stance from U.S. government on digital currencies.
Bitcoin’s value on Thursday was at its highest since mid-August 2022.
Yuya Hasegawa, an analyst at Japanese crypto firm Bitbank, said, “There is a shift from so-called altcoins, or alternative coins, to bitcoin in the wake of the regulatory action. Wednesday’s crypto rally was a bit of a surprise but one thing stood out: it was led by bitcoin. The current regulatory environment surely looks like a headwind for the crypto market, but it seems like some money is moving from altcoins to bitcoin, since bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency that is labeled commodity by the SEC chair. Consequently, bitcoin’s market dominance is on the rise.”
Securities and Exchange Commission sees bitcoin as a commodity rather than a security. Commodities are assets just like gold whereas stocks are generally considered securities. Both are regulated differently.
Bitcoin has outperformed the NASDAQ index and is up 49% this year.