Key facts
- Bitcoin surged past $81,000, driven by decreased expectations of interest rate hikes.
- Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest daily net inflows since January, totaling $731 million.
- Several altcoins, including Zcash and Lighter, reached new all-time highs.
- Meme coins experienced substantial gains, with some tokens seeing significant price increases.
- AMC CEO Adam Aron criticized Robinhood's stock tokens, leading to a rally in related meme coins.
Cryptocurrencies experienced a significant rally, with Bitcoin reclaiming the $80,000 mark and pushing past $81,100, fueled by cooling expectations of further interest rate hikes and a weaker U.S. dollar. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also saw gains, while over 119,000 traders faced liquidations exceeding $500 million.
Bitcoin ETFs attracted substantial inflows, with $731 million on Thursday, marking their largest day since January. This positive momentum extended across the broader crypto market, with Ethereum rising 4.7% to $2,497, XRP leading majors with a 7.8% increase, and BNB and Solana each adding approximately 5%.
Altcoins also performed strongly, with Zcash jumping 18% to a new all-time high above $1,000. Down the risk curve, PONS surged 56%, reaching a new all-time high and a $500 million market cap, while Lighter, Ethena, and Arbitrum also saw significant gains. Several tokens, including HYPE, ZEC, and LIT, hit new all-time highs.
The rally erased a week of losses, though caution remains as Federal Reserve Governor Waller's stance is conditional on upcoming data. The August jobs report, the last major release before the September Federal Open Market Committee meeting, is expected to influence market direction. If the report contains no negative surprises, a risk-on rally into November is anticipated.
In other crypto news, the CFTC urged a judge to dismiss CME's lawsuit regarding Kalshi's Bitcoin perpetual contract. Polymarket launched its own perpetuals with up to 20x leverage, and Coinbase filed SEC registrations for single-stock perpetual futures. Standard Chartered began offering institutional spot trading for Bitcoin and Ethereum in Dubai, while SoFi and Kraken partnered for settlement networks and crypto trading services. Bitget's CEO is in discussions with BlackRock and other firms about distributing tokenized ETFs in Asia.
Meme coins saw notable gains, with DOGE up 6%, SHIB up 3%, and PEPE up 6%. The controversy surrounding AMC CEO Adam Aron's criticism of Robinhood's stock tokens led to a significant rally in related meme coins, including PONS and MEME. Solana-based tokens also performed well, with Useless and Troll leading gains.
Uniswap announced its acquisition of PONS tokens, contributing to its price surge. Hyperliquid is testing a new layer for market deployers, and Robinhood Chain generated $4 million in revenue. NFTs showed mixed performance, with Punks down 1% and BAYC up 2%.