Cryptocurrency markets are in the green today, following a sideways trading market most of last week. Bitcoin price is up over 3% in the past 24 hours, currently trading at $21.3k, while Ethereum price shows a significant upside of 12.85% in the past 24 hours, trading at $1,356 at the time of writing. Is this the beginning of a bull market or the calm before the storm next week?

Bitcoin Surpasses $400 Billion Market Cap

With the recent price hike past $21.3k, BTC’s market cap is over $400 billion, making it the third time this month that BTC managed to surpass the current level.

Each time, Bitcoin’s market fell back to the $360 billion level as the stock market and global economic uncertainty influenced the crypto asset.

According to a report from Forbes, the current price action for Bitcoin is “too good to be true” as the SEC prepares to issue additional regulatory measures to crypto firms in “an attempt to tame the crypto Wild West.”

While the SEC is looking to work with the crypto industry and is willing to go as far as to provide exemptions to certain companies, it’s clear why many crypto firms refuse to let the commission in on their operations. Crypto companies will do anything to avoid a hefty legal battle with the SEC, the likes of Ripple, which according to Brian Garlinghouse, Ripple CEO, has cost the company over $100 million in legal fees so far.

In an interview, Brian Garlingouse said:

“When this is all done, we will have spent over $100 million on legal fees fighting the SEC.”

Final Thoughts

While cryptocurrency markets are showing bullish momentum today, the week-to-week pattern coincides with a slight upside over the weekend, followed by a correction during the week when the stock markets open, incurring selloffs which cascade into crypto markets.

The latest CPI released last week revealed that inflation is still on the rise, and there have been rumors circulating that the Fed is looking to raise interest rates by as much as 1% in their next round. This will cause substantial bearish pressure on stock markets which could create another correction for global markets.

Lastly, earnings season is coming up, revealing which companies are still profitable and providing valuable data to investors looking to capitalize on dividend stocks. However, the current state of the stock market and global economy means that high-earning companies won’t get rewarded as much as they usually would during a healthier market, and high earnings still might not move stocks by a substantial amount.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any stocks.

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