In brief
- The total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies hit $4 trillion Friday morning.
- Bitcoin’s market cap swelled to $2.4 trillion, and Ethereum $440 billion, as institutional inflows accelerated.
- Bitcoin ETFs pulled in $522.6 million Thursday alone, the second straight week topping $2 billion, with BlackRock’s IBIT capturing $497.3 million of the flows.
For the first time ever, the total value of all cryptocurrencies surpassed $4 trillion Friday before pulling back slightly, with Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) accounting for over 70% of total market value, driven by surging investor demand and a string of regulatory victories in the U.S.
Bitcoin rose 1.4% in 24 hours to top $120,336, while Ethereum surged 6.4% to $3,647, per CoinGecko data, with BTC’s market cap climbing to $2.395 trillion and ETH’s at $440.4 billion. Both assets have since retreated, with BTC currently trading at $118,673 and ETH at $3,610.
“The $4 trillion crypto market milestone underscores the industry’s rise as a mainstream asset class,” Devere Bryan, group general manager of stablecoin issuer First Digital, told Decrypt. “Bitcoin’s status as digital gold fuels unparalleled wealth creation.”
The surge follows Thursday’s bipartisan passage of the GENIUS Act, which creates the U.S.’s first federal framework for stablecoins, and the CLARITY Act, offering a legal structure for broader crypto assets.
Both bills now head to President Trump, who is expected to sign them today.
On the same day the House delivered crypto’s biggest legislative victory, institutional investors poured $522.6 million into spot Bitcoin ETFs.
It extends a two-week streak of heavy inflows totaling over $4 billion, the second consecutive week above $2 billion, according to U.K.-based asset manager Farside Investors.
“I believe the momentum will be sustained in the short-term,” Charmaine Tam, head of OTC sales and trading at Hex Trust, told Decrypt. “We did not witness a “Buy on Rumour, Sell on Facts’,” after the passing of the “landmark crypto legislation,” she added.
She expects the momentum to continue as “other countries will likely follow the US in setting clear crypto rules, leading to even more global adoption” and institutional capital deployment.
Altcoin season incoming?
Ethereum’s market dominance jumped from 9% to 11% while Bitcoin’s share dropped 4 percentage points, signaling the start of “altcoin season,” according to analysts as investors rotate into higher-risk assets.
“Institutional capital is finding its footing, with Ethereum’s surge past $3,600 backed by a whopping $726m in single-day ETF inflows signalling systematic adoption,” Sohan Sen, head of Structured Products at Mantle, told Decrypt.
“Beyond the charts, sustained value will premise on live activity at the infrastructure level,” Sen said, pointing to Ethereum’s role hosting over half of global stablecoin supply as validation that “programmable money is inevitable as table stakes in the future of finance.”
Traders brace for consolidation
Bitcoin’s climb to $120,336 comes after completing its strongest weekly performance since May, though analysts are watching for consolidation signals.
QCP Capital shared that the asset “took a brief pause after surging past the $120k mark, triggering profit-taking flows that began to cap the momentum.”
“A pullback toward $110k, which marked the previous cycle high, may provide a more stable foundation for the current rally to consolidate,” QCP analysts said in the firm’s latest research note.
Meanwhile, on Myriad, a prediction markets platform developed by Decrypt’s parent company DASTAN, just 7.4% of users believe Bitcoin will close above $122,000 by 11:59 p.m. UTC on Friday.
An overwhelming 94% majority have voted No, suggesting that traders are positioning for a near-term pullback or consolidation.
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