Cryptocurrency market cap hits record $2trn level
By Neil Dennis
08:58, 6 April 2021
The cryptocurrency market hit a new record high on Tuesday, as the total capitalisation of all issued coins reached $2trn for the first time.
Crypto tracker CoinGecko, which tracks the price, volume and market caps of more than 6,600 cryptocurrencies across 447 exchanges, suggested that at around 2AM London time, the total market capitalisation hit a new record high of $2.04tn.
To put this in context, the January 2018 peak - which staggered many traditional asset investors, who called the crypto market faddish - reached just over $8.5bn.
The 2021 cryptocurrency rally has been a powerful one, with Bitcoin - which reprepresents more than 50% of the total market cap - surging by more than 100%. In March, the Bitcoin price reached a record level above $61,000, and on Tuesday traded just below this peak at $58,683 - up 2.9%.
Ethereum price pop
Ethereum, the second-biggest crypto by market cap, has been surging too - up around 180% since the start of the year - as the popularity of its blockchain continues to underpin the price.
Marios Athinodorou, chief analyst at K-DNA Financial Services, said in a post on FXStreet: "The Ethereum blockchain is similar to a software platform that enables programmers to create applications. The fundamental characteristic of Ethereum is smart contracts and there is an increasing enthusiasm regarding the use of Ethereum in so-called decentralised finance."
The price of Etherium coins reached a record high of $2,153.08 on Tuesday, and in early London hours trading stood 4.5% higher on the day at $2,114.15.
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Coinbase IPO
Meanwhile, the crypto market remained watchful for any fresh details of the upcoming Coinbase initial public offering (IPO) - the flotation of the largest digital asset exchange in the US - scheduled for 14 April.
The Securities and Exchange Commission - known for its cautious approach to all things crypto - has accepted Coinbase's S-1 registration document.
The company is aiming for a direct listing, bypassing the traditional IPO route of hiring banks and brokers to manage the deal, and will disclose a reference trading price the day before its listing on the New York Stock Exchange.