In the last 24 hours, the collective market value of cryptocurrencies surged by 3.3%, fueling speculation that the recent submission of regulatory documents to the SEC could enhance Bitcoin’s appeal to investors.
On Wednesday, the cryptocurrency markets saw incremental gains as traders shrugged off the regulatory challenges faced by Binance and Coinbase, two of the largest crypto exchanges known for their high trading volumes. This resilience indicated a bullish sentiment towards major tokens.
Bitcoin (BTC) and Dogecoin (DOGE) took the lead in the past 24 hours, experiencing a 5% surge and driving the overall market gains. Other major cryptocurrencies such as Litecoin (LTC), XRP, and Shiba Inu (SHIB) also saw notable jumps, with increases of up to 4%. As a result, the total market capitalization of the crypto market reached $1.12 trillion, rising by 3.3%.
This rebound came as a relief to traders who had suffered from a significant liquidation event on Monday, where token-based futures contracts worth over $293 million were forcefully liquidated. Liquidation occurs when an exchange forcibly closes a trader’s leveraged position due to insufficient margin funds. Such occurrences often indicate potential turning points in price movements, offering traders opportunities to adjust their positions accordingly.
In summary, the cryptocurrency markets displayed resilience by overcoming regulatory concerns and witnessing notable gains, primarily led by Bitcoin and Dogecoin. This bounce back provided some relief to traders impacted by the recent liquidation event, emphasizing the significance of monitoring liquidation events as potential indicators for market trends.
Traders seemed to brush off the potential long-term consequences of regulatory challenges faced by influential U.S. exchanges, particularly concerning certain tokens being classified as securities. A security refers to a tradable financial instrument representing some form of financial value, such as stocks, bonds, or options.
In recent filings on Monday and Tuesday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Binance and Coinbase of engaging in the sale of unlicensed securities within the country. These charges were made despite the SEC’s lack of clear regulatory guidance on whether crypto tokens should be considered securities. The SEC has yet to provide official legal definitions for token issuers and has not responded to Coinbase’s petition seeking clear regulatory guidelines.
Tokens like BNB coin (BNB), Solana’s SOL, Cardano’s ADA, and Polygon’s MATIC, which were mentioned as securities in multiple filings earlier this week, experienced a reversal in losses but still traded at a 3% lower value compared to Tuesday.
Consequently, some market observers predicted potential turbulence for crypto majors labeled as securities in the SEC filings. Jeff Mei, COO of crypto exchange BTSE, highlighted the impact, stating that altcoins experienced a significant downturn due to the SEC’s lawsuits categorizing a group of altcoins as securities while exempting bitcoin and ether from the same classification. Mei further noted that crypto traders appeared to be seeking refuge in the top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization for relative safety.
It is possible that we may witness a continued divergence in the crypto market, where established cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether maintain their positions while uncertainty continues to loom over the majority of altcoins, according to Mei.
The filings also seemed to reinforce the value proposition of bitcoin as the largest cryptocurrency, along with ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, since neither were explicitly mentioned as securities in the SEC’s accusations against Binance and Coinbase. This underscores the SEC’s previously stated stance that bitcoin falls outside the scope of securities regulation, as shared by Alex Adelman.
