Ether gained 8% as falling crude oil prices and weakness in the U.S. dollar encouraged a broader recovery across financial markets. However, traders remained focused on the potential impact of Democratic control of Congress on the future of cryptocurrency regulation.
Bitcoin held firmly above $80,000 on Thursday as digital assets recovered alongside global equities following Democratic victories in both chambers of Congress. Zcash led the advance among major cryptocurrencies, posting gains of nearly 12%.
Data from CoinGecko showed Bitcoin trading around $80,484 during Asian market hours, up 5.7% over the previous 24 hours. Ether rose 8% to approximately $2,425, while XRP increased 4.7% to $1.31. Solana advanced 5.9% to $96, and BNB gained 4.2%, reaching roughly $715.
Zcash climbed 11.7% to nearly $1,318, supported by trading volume of approximately $1.2 billion over the past day. The cryptocurrency focuses on transaction privacy, allowing users to conceal payment details, including the sender, recipient, and amount transferred.
The latest gains followed a brief market downturn after the U.S. election results emerged. Bitcoin initially slipped toward $75,700 early Wednesday but recovered as investors returned to riskier assets.
Jeff Mei, chief operating officer at cryptocurrency exchange BTSE, told CoinDesk that Bitcoin’s rebound was moving in line with equities. He pointed to growing expectations that the Iran conflict and the surge in oil prices could eventually ease.
Brent crude plunged more than 8% on Wednesday as investors anticipated that Democratic control of Congress could increase pressure to resolve the Middle East conflict. Lower energy prices may help contain inflation and reduce operating costs for businesses.
U.S. stock markets also advanced, with the S&P 500 gaining 1.6%, while the dollar weakened.
Trading across Asia was more divided. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix dropped more than 6% on Thursday as investors considered the possibility of tighter oversight of data centers. Meanwhile, Chinese technology stocks moved higher, with Tencent and Alibaba recording gains of more than 5%.
Democratic Control Creates Uncertainty for Crypto Legislation
Despite the market rebound, Mei warned that the election outcome could complicate efforts to advance cryptocurrency legislation in Washington.
He suggested that the CLARITY Act, in its current form, may struggle to secure approval. Expectations for additional Federal Reserve rate cuts also remain limited. The proposed legislation is intended to establish clearer rules governing the U.S. cryptocurrency industry.
Zcash’s rally has also coincided with concerns within its community about the regulatory direction under the incoming Congress.
A policy memorandum published on the Zcash forum Wednesday warned that lawmakers could intensify their examination of financial privacy and illicit financial activity. The document defended privacy-focused payment systems by pointing to their importance for consumer security, commercial confidentiality, and individual freedoms.
Zcash Network Upgrade Approaches as ZEC Gains 12%
Investor interest in Zcash is also building ahead of its upcoming NU7 network upgrade, expected around Friday. The update aims to reduce the target time between blockchain blocks from 75 seconds to 25 seconds.
The improvement could accelerate transaction processing and allow cryptocurrency exchanges to credit deposits sooner. Under an unchanged three-confirmation policy, an exchange could see the expected waiting period fall from almost four minutes to roughly 75 seconds.
Mei also recommended monitoring proposed revisions to the CLARITY Act and any additional cryptocurrency-related investigations pursued by Congress.
The new Democratic majorities are scheduled to assume office on January 3, potentially bringing significant changes to the legislative environment for digital assets. For cryptocurrency markets, the combination of improving macroeconomic sentiment and uncertainty surrounding U.S. regulation remains an important factor influencing the latest price movements.
