What happened
The crypto market stormed back this weekend, with the price of the world's largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, now topping $47,400. Most of the crypto market followed suit.
The price of Dogecoin (DOGE -1.23%) has risen nearly 7.5% over the last 24 hours as of noon today. The price of EOS (EOS 3.02%) has risen nearly 13%, while the price of Theta (THETA 3.12%) is trading roughly 9% higher.
So what
In recent days, there have been a number of positive developments for the crypto market that could be driving the bullish sentiment.
Last week, the investment banking giant Goldman Sachs became the first bank to trade cryptocurrencies over the counter. Goldman traded a nondeliverable option with the crypto bank Galaxy Digital (BRPHF -1.79%). The move shows how cryptocurrencies are becoming more ingrained in the mainstream financial system every day. By trading over the counter, Goldman assumed more risk.
Image source: Getty Images.
In other news, U.S. lawmakers recently introduced a bill called the Electronic Currency and Secure Hardware Act, or the ECASH Act, that would task the U.S. Treasury Department with creating a token-based electronic dollar that people could store on their phones or on cards.
"We're proposing to have a genuine cash-like bearer instrument, a token-based system that doesn't have either a centralized ledger or distributed ledger because it had no ledger whatsoever. It uses secured hardware software and it's issued by the Treasury," Rohan Grey, a consultant on the bill, told CoinDesk.
Additionally, CNBC recently reported that British lawmakers are expected to announce crypto regulations over the next few weeks. While many were initially concerned about how regulations might affect the decentralized industry, regulation is now starting to be seen more favorably because it provides the industry with more clarity. More regulation also shows that the industry is becoming a more prominent part of everyday life. CNBC is reporting that the regulations are likely to be fairly reasonable and show openness toward the benefits that digital assets can bring to the table.
Meanwhile, analysts have noted that Dogecoin has broken some key technical trends in a way that could suggest a further breakout for the token. The number of long-term holders of Dogecoin has also been growing even though the coin hasn't performed well in a while. Investors that have maintained their investments in Dogecoin for a year or more is up by 17% since 2020, according to FXStreet.
Aside from the broader rally, EOS appears to be benefiting from renewed faith in the token from the crypto enthusiast and former actor Brock Pierce, who said on Twitter that he had just taken a large position in EOS.
Now what
Overall, all these developments on Wall Street and among lawmakers and regulators are good news for the crypto market, signaling further adoption. I think it's also good news to see the market being resilient amid a rising-rate environment, as cryptocurrencies seem to have traded a lot like tech stocks in recent months. But further rate hikes could still potentially put a dent in the crypto market, which is why it's still likely a good idea to focus on tokens that have real-world utility.
That's why I tend to prefer tokens like Theta, which is disrupting the video streaming space, and EOS, which has strong network fundamentals, over a meme-inspired cryptocurrency like Dogecoin. But Dogecoin has a much higher market cap than the other two and has managed to stay relevant through the turbulence in the market, so perhaps it is here to stay as well.
