Bitcoin’s month-long slide may be coming to an end. The cryptocurrency was part of a major boost in the markets on Wednesday, as investors reacted to news that the United States Senate may be considering a warmer approach to Bitcoin. Cryptocurrencies across the board reported gains, and one watcher even predicted Bitcoin could reach $50,000 in the next 12 months.
It was a strong day for cryptocurrencies across the board according to tracker CoinMarketCap. Bitcoin jumped 13 percent over the space of 24 hours to reach $8,059 with a market cap of $135.8 billion. Ethereum, still the second-largest token on the market, jumped 12.62 percent to a token price of $810.37 and a market cap of $79 billion. The best performer of the day was Ethos, with a 45.7 percent boost in value to reach a price of $4.21 and a market cap of $318 million. All but one of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies reported gains.
The rally comes one day after a Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs that looked at cryptocurrency regulation. Industry observers were pleased with the measured tone of discussion and deep knowledge from participants.
“As a lawyer – and a criminal defense lawyer in particular – I was heartened to hear acknowledgment that existing laws suffice to address age-old human conduct,” attorney Zoe Dolan told CoinDesk. “Fraud is fraud.”
It comes just one day after a chart shared by Chris Weston, chief market strategist for trading platform IG, seemed to suggest bitcoin was behaving like a regular bubble:
Other watchers were bullish about the prospects of a market recovery, with the potential of upgrades to the way Bitcoin works making transactions faster than ever. With the upcoming Lightning Network offering a boost in transaction times, some believe it could cause a jump in prices.
“Increasing regulatory recognition of cryptocurrency exchanges, the entrance of institutional capital and major technology developments will contribute to the market’s rebound and push cryptocurrency prices to all new highs this year,” Thomas Glucksmann, head of APAC business development at cryptocurrency exchange Gatecoin, told CNBC on Tuesday. “There is no reason why we couldn’t see bitcoin pushing $50,000 by December.”
It seems Bitcoin’s wild price ride isn’t over yet.
