Cryptocurrency prices advanced on Friday, with Bitcoin approaching $85,000 and several major altcoins recording stronger gains as investors assessed institutional demand, regulatory developments and the outlook for U.S. monetary policy.
Bitcoin rose 1.75 percent over the previous 24 hours to $84,994.40, approaching the $85,000 threshold. The world’s largest cryptocurrency had a market capitalization of approximately $1.70 trillion, up 1.76 percent, while 24-hour trading volume reached $34.17 billion, down 27.93 percent.
Ethereum gained 2.54 percent to $2,714.18, while XRP advanced 6.32 percent to $1.5586. Solana climbed 7.05 percent to $121.325, reflecting a broader recovery across major alternative cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin continued to account for the largest share of the cryptocurrency market, while trading activity extended across Ethereum, Solana, BNB and smaller digital assets.
The gains followed a volatile week in which Bitcoin approached an eight-month high above $87,000 before retreating as investors reassessed U.S. interest rates and Treasury yields.
Institutional fund flows and developments in U.S. digital asset regulation remained important areas of market attention, although higher borrowing costs continued to present a challenge for risk-sensitive assets.
Bitcoin extends weekly gains
Bitcoin’s latest advance followed a substantial recovery from recent lows, supported by renewed interest in U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted approximately $2.65 billion in net inflows over five consecutive trading sessions through Wednesday.
The five-session total included approximately $347 million on Wednesday, following $714.75 million on Tuesday and $998.95 million on Monday. The inflows represented a sustained recovery in institutional investment activity after earlier withdrawals.
The $2.65 billion figure covers the five-session inflow streak through Wednesday rather than a new inflow recorded during Friday’s trading.
Bitcoin previously climbed above $87,000, reaching its highest level in approximately eight months, although rising bond yields subsequently weighed on its momentum.
Bitcoin’s $81,722 cost-basis level is an important reference point for the recovery amid pressure from U.S. Treasury yields.
The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points on September 16, bringing the target range to 3.75–4 percent as policymakers continued efforts to contain inflation.
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Higher interest rates can affect demand for cryptocurrencies by increasing returns on interest-bearing investments and influencing broader investor appetite for risk.
Ethereum and XRP Advance
Ethereum outperformed Bitcoin during Friday’s trading session, rising 2.54 percent to $2,714.18. Its weekly gain reached 8.08 percent, while market capitalization stood at $331.34 billion and 24-hour trading volume totaled $13.24 billion.
XRP posted a stronger advance, gaining 6.32 percent to $1.5586. The token was up 16.94 percent over seven days, with a market capitalization of approximately $98.08 billion and daily trading volume of $4.76 billion.
Solana was another notable performer, climbing 7.05 percent to $121.325 and extending its weekly gain to 12.15 percent. Its market capitalization reached $70.05 billion, while daily trading volume stood at $4.19 billion.
BNB gained 1.57 percent to $782, with a market capitalization of $103.44 billion and trading volume of $1.52 billion. The cryptocurrency recorded a seven-day increase of 3.29 percent.
Meanwhile, TRON declined 0.81 percent to $0.336923, despite retaining a weekly gain of 0.09 percent. Its market capitalization stood at $32 billion.
Several smaller cryptocurrencies recorded stronger advances, reinforcing the broader improvement in market activity.
Zcash surged 9.01 percent to $1,598.54, extending its seven-day gain to 8.31 percent. Its market capitalization reached $26.99 billion, supported by $1.28 billion in daily trading volume.
Hyperliquid gained 3.29 percent to $94.0875, while Dogecoin climbed 4.65 percent to $0.096932. The two assets recorded weekly advances of 4.01 percent and 12.82 percent, respectively.
Altcoins extend their rally
Monero rose 5.16 percent to $570.550, while Chainlink advanced 13.97 percent to $13.896. Chainlink’s weekly increase reached 16.77 percent, with daily trading volume of approximately $823.65 million.
Cardano gained 8.93 percent to $0.2568, extending its seven-day advance to 17.50 percent.
Bitcoin Cash climbed 2.01 percent to $341.29, bringing its weekly gain to 35.61 percent. NEAR Protocol advanced 15.87 percent to $5.0170, while Uniswap rose 4.50 percent to $9.3243.
Litecoin increased 7.37 percent to $71.21, extending its weekly gain to 27.48 percent. Stellar gained 11.90 percent to $0.22295, while UNUS SED LEO declined 0.89 percent to $8.8330.
The different rates of increase across major cryptocurrencies reflected a market in which several alternative digital assets outperformed Bitcoin over both the daily and weekly periods.
However, the performance of individual tokens remained uneven, with TRON and LEO declining despite the broader market advance.
Stablecoins, meanwhile, remained relatively stable. Tether’s USDT traded at $0.9997, while USDC stood at $1.0000. Their respective market capitalizations reached $183.73 billion and $75.41 billion.
Stablecoin regulation also returned to the spotlight following a September 24 announcement from the Federal Reserve.
The central bank requested public comment on two proposals establishing a regulatory framework for Board-supervised payment stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act.
Regulatory developments attract attention
The Federal Reserve’s first proposal would require supervised payment stablecoin issuers to fully back their tokens with permissible reserve assets, including short-term Treasury bills and other high-quality liquid assets.
It would also establish capital requirements addressing credit and operational risks, alongside risk-management standards and rules for supervised firms safeguarding reserve assets.
A separate proposal would introduce an application process for Board-supervised banks seeking approval to issue payment stablecoins, requiring business plans and financial information.
The proposals remain subject to public consultation and should not be presented as finalized regulations.
The wider cryptocurrency market also continued to assess recent developments involving tokenized securities.
On September 17, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced temporary, conditional exemptions allowing eligible venues to facilitate trading in certain tokenized U.S.-listed stocks through permissioned automated market makers and liquidity pools.
The exemptions include investor-protection conditions and are intended to facilitate limited forms of blockchain-based securities trading while the regulator considers further measures.
