Cryptocurrency prices today surged with Bitcoin trading above the $22,000 mark. The world’s largest and most popular cryptocurrency rose more than 8% to $22,757. The global cryptocurrency market cap today was above the $1 trillion mark, as it surged more than 7% in the last 24 hours to $1.09 trillion, as per CoinGecko.
On the other hand, Ether, the coin linked to the ethereum blockchain and the second largest cryptocurrency, gained nearly 13% to $1,614. Meanwhile, dogecoin price today was trading over 6% higher at $0.06 whereas Shiba Inu also surged over 7% to $0.000011.
Ethereum’s long-anticipated software upgrade has made the blockchain’s early offshoot an unexpected winner, pushing up the prices of the latter’s token in recent days.
Ethereum Classic, which was created after a 2016 software change known as a ‘hard fork’ on Ethereum’s blockchain, saw its token’s price jump by as much as 30%.
The Merge is set to take Ethereum to a system called Proof of Stake, in which staked Ether tokens will order transactions, from its current system called Proof of Work, a mechanism which uses powerful computers to order transactions.
Other crypto prices’ today performance also improved as XRP, Solana, BNB, Litecoin, Stellar, Chainlink, Apecoin, Avalanche, Polkadot, Tether, Polygon, Tron, Uniswap (up over 28%) prices were trading with slight gains over the last 24 hours.
The UK needs to reform legislation to specifically account for cryptocurrencies and nonfungible tokens, the country’s Law Commission said, arguing that existing laws aren’t robust enough to govern the fledgling sector, reported Bloomberg.
Authorities around the world are taking steps to regulate the crypto asset sector. Cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, surged in price in 2020 and 2021, but have fallen sharply this year. NFTs – blockchain-based assets which represent a digital files such as images, have also proliferated rapidly. Rising interest rates and high-profile meltdowns like that of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital have pummeled digital tokens this year.
Meanwhile, crypto exchange FTX US is expanding its no-fee stock trading service to all US users, including non-crypto investors, in a move to expand its customer base and increase assets under custody.
(With inputs from agencies)
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