Key Highlights
- The global crypto market capitalization climbed to about $2.77 trillion, gaining roughly 2% over 24 hours as buying spread across major assets.
- HYPE jumped 12.3%, SOL 10%, ZEC 7.8% and XRP 7.2%, while Ethereum and Bitcoin gained 4.8% and 5.5%, respectively, in the latest market snapshot.
- The rebound comes after the market absorbed the Fed’s first rate hike since 2023 and the SEC unveiled a five-year conditional framework for tokenized U.S. stock trading.
The crypto market is moving sharply higher on Friday, with gains spreading well beyond Bitcoin as Solana, Hyperliquid, XRP, Zcash, Ethereum and BNB all climbed over the past 24 hours.
Global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at about $2.77 trillion on September 18, up roughly 2% over the previous day, according to CoinGecko. Daily crypto trading volume was around $98 billion.
The latest market snapshot at around 16:00 UTC showed Solana (SOL) at $110.84, up 10%, while XRP gained 7.2% to $1.38. Hyperliquid’s HYPE led the major assets shown, jumping 12.3% to $91.31.
Ethereum rose 5.2% to $2,587, BNB gained 4.6% to $755, while Bitcoin was up 5.5% near $80,659.
Crypto Market Performance
| Asset | Price | 24H | 7D |
|---|---|---|---|
| HYPE | $91.31 | +12.3% | +10.5% |
| SOL | $110.84 | +10.0% | +5.6% |
| ZEC | $1,485.41 | +7.8% | +22.5% |
| XRP | $1.38 | +7.2% | -1.2% |
| BTC | $80,659.26 | +5.5% | +2.1% |
| ETH | $2,577.29 | +5.2% | -1.8% |
| BNB | $755.37 | +4.6% | +3.2% |
Altcoins Lead Crypto Market Rally | Source: Coingecko
Why Is the Crypto Market Up Today?
Friday’s move appears to be driven by a combination of post-Fed relief, improving regulatory sentiment and stronger rotation into altcoins, rather than a Bitcoin-specific catalyst.
The crypto market initially came under pressure after the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 3.75%-4.00% on September 16, marking its first rate increase since 2023.
Bitcoin fell below $76,000 during that selloff, while Ethereum briefly slipped below $2,400 and Solana moved under $100. The latest rally has now recovered much of that decline, suggesting the immediate post-Fed liquidation pressure has eased.
The recovery is particularly visible in altcoins. SOL has moved from near $100 on Thursday to above $110, while HYPE has climbed from roughly $82 to above $91.
SEC Innovation Exemption Adds Regulatory Catalyst
A second catalyst arrived from Washington on Thursday.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued its Innovation Exemption on September 17, creating a five-year conditional framework under which qualifying Tokenized Securities Venues can facilitate trading in tokenized U.S. stocks through permissioned automated market maker liquidity pools.
The order provides conditional exemptions from parts of the Exchange Act for qualifying venues and certain liquidity providers while imposing requirements covering participant access, transparency, recordkeeping and other safeguards.
It does not approve individual cryptocurrencies or DeFi protocols, but the move gives onchain financial infrastructure a clearer path into regulated U.S. securities markets.
That regulatory catalyst has been particularly visible in DeFi. Uniswap’s UNI, for example, surged more than 28% earlier Friday as traders reacted to the new AMM framework.
Altcoins Are Outpacing the Broader Market
The composition of Friday’s rally is also notable.
Bitcoin is up 5.5% breaking $80K, but several large and mid-cap assets are rising considerably faster. HYPE’s 12.3% surge and SOL’s 10% gain are nearly twice Bitcoin’s daily move, while XRP and ZEC are each up more than 7%.
Zcash has also extended its advance to 22.5% over seven days, making it the strongest weekly performer among the major assets shown in the market snapshot.
Ethereum has recovered to $2,577, up 4.5-5.5%, over the day after trading below $2,400 following the Fed decision. The move means ETH has recovered more than $170 from Thursday’s sub-$2,400 levels.
What Comes Next for the Crypto Market?
Despite Friday’s rally, macro pressure has not disappeared.
The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield moved back toward 5% on Friday, while Federal Reserve policy remains a potential headwind for risk assets. Reuters reported that traders were also increasing expectations for another Fed rate increase in October.
That makes the breadth of the crypto rebound important. The current move is no longer being driven by a single large asset: SOL, XRP, HYPE, ZEC, ETH and BNB are all participating.
Whether that strength continues will depend on whether the market can hold the gains recovered after Wednesday’s Fed-driven selloff while traders assess the next U.S. rate decision and further regulatory developments from the SEC and CFTC.
Also Read: Litecoin Posts Over 4% Gain in 24Hrs Amid Rising Open Interest
