Cryptos were staging a comeback from recent losses after US regulators said Sunday they would “fully protect” depositors with funds in the banks
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, rose 7.3% to $22,108 in the 24 hours to 6:30 a.m. ET, while ether gained 7.2% to $1,582, according to CoinMarketCap data. Prices stepped higher across the board, with USD Coin (USDC) up 2.6%, cardano adding 8.01%, and solana up 5.6%.
Those moves helped drive the total value of the crypto market above $1 trillion, up 6.1% in the past 24 hours. There was $80 billion in volume in the market in the last 24 hours, per CoinMarketCap.
It’s been a tumultuous few days for the crypto market, with fears about the fallout from the failure of SVB and Signature Bank helping drag down crypto prices. Bitcoin slumped to its lowest level in two months on Friday, with the closure of crypto-friendly bank Silvergate Capital a drag.
On Friday, SVB and Signature were closed by regulators and put under the control of The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. That followed a turbulent few days for SVB, which saw a call for capital fail and a rush of depositors withdrawing their funds.
Then the Treasury, Federal Reserve and the FDIC said Sunday they would protect customers with funds in SVB and make whole those with deposits in Signature Bank.
“After receiving a recommendation from the boards of the FDIC and the Federal Reserve, and consulting with the President, Secretary (Janet) Yellen approved actions enabling the FDIC to complete its resolution of Silicon Valley Bank, Santa Clara, California, in a manner that fully protects all depositors,” the Sunday evening statement said.
Meanwhile, Circle — the company behind USD Coin — said all of USDC’s $3.3 billion reserve deposit with SVB will be available on Monday. The stablecoin has regained its peg to the dollar, Circle said, after losing it as investors fretted about the turmoil at the bank.
