In a somewhat atypical development in the cryptosphere, on Thursday a clutch of coins and tokens surged in price while the leading one sagged on the day.
Among the many seeing notable improvements in price were Chainlink (LINK 15.38%), with a rise of almost 21% from 4 p.m. ET. Less propulsive but still popular that day, both Aptos (APT -0.26%) and Sui (SUI 0.52%) were rising in excess of 6%. Cardano (ADA 2.40%) was trailing only slightly behind at a gain of slightly more than 4%.
Trumping Bitcoin
The reason this is atypical is that altcoins tend to more or less move in concert with said leader, Bitcoin (BTC -0.56%). Yet Bitcoin had rather an up-and-down Thursday, sinking below the vaunted $100,000 level in the morning (although it subsequently recovered as the day wore on). In contrast, many altcoins enjoyed a sustained rise. More than a few investors, it seems, continue to believe there’s more upside with other coins and tokens.
Meanwhile, president-elect Donald Trump provided his latest signal that the incoming administration would be relatively crypto-friendly. In remarks to well-known stock pundit Jim Cramer during a ceremony where he rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange Thursday morning, Trump said that “We’re gonna do something great with crypto,” adding that “others are embracing it, and we want to be the head.”
That isn’t exactly a specific policy statement on the industry, nevertheless it helped bolster confidence in the sector.
Meanwhile, the trend toward central bank rate cuts got a large boost across the Atlantic Ocean. The European Central Bank (ECB) reduced its key rate for the fourth time this year, slicing it by 25 basis points to 3%. This, of course, comes after the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) enacted two cuts of its own in the waning months of this year.
All things being equal, lower rates make “safe harbor” assets less attractive and increase investor appetite for riskier plays. Cryptocurrencies are the poster boys of risky assets due to their frequently volatile performance.
A crypto-friendly appointment
Elsewhere in the political realm, crypto got another boost with news of an important appointment. Media reports stated that Republican congressman French Hill of Arkansas has been tipped by the party’s steering committee to lead the House Financial Services Committee.
Hill is known for being quite crypto-friendly, not least because he co-sponsored the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21), a bill that was seen as being rather favorable to cryptocurrency developers and investors.
Eric Volkman has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Aptos, Bitcoin, Cardano, Chainlink, and SUI. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
