Why Crypto Prices Soared on Monday and May Only Be Getting Started

Source The Motley Fool

The crypto market soared on Monday as U.S. presidential candidates battle to win the crypto vote. Today's news is that Kamala Harris will support crypto legislation to "make sure owners of and investors in digital assets benefit from a regulatory framework."

While the details were sparse, the sentiment was enough to send crypto higher, and some altcoins and memecoins were the biggest beneficiaries. Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) is up 7% in the last 24 hours as of 5:00 p.m. ET, Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) is up 5.7%, Pepe (CRYPTO: PEPE) jumped 11.5%, and Bonk (CRYPTO: BONK) has risen 10.4%.

The crypto policy debate

It's not usually a good idea to invest based on politics, but that doesn't mean that politics and policy don't impact investments. That's more evident than ever in the crypto market, where most exchanges and tokens have faced a court date with the SEC at some point.

Both presidential candidates are now firmly in favor of regulating cryptocurrency in one form or another and that could open up more development and innovation in the industry. What's interesting today is that meme coins and altcoins have reacted the fastest.

How regulation could help the crypto market

While Bitcoin and Ethereum have gotten the most attention in crypto, they're not where most of the innovation is taking place. Blockchains like Solana are faster and less expensive, processing many times more transactions than Bitcoin and Ethereum combined. If there's a regulatory framework for crypto and the blockchain, it's likely these altcoins are where the activity will move.

Memecoins like Shiba Inu, Pepe, and Bonk are just along for the ride in some ways. They are riding the "meme" of crypto and could ultimately be tokens people transact with. But just being legal to own would be a good start for these tokens, whether they're tied to a blockchain or not.

Where will crypto go from here?

The biggest answer the crypto industry needs is clarity about what the rules are. The U.S. SEC has even admitted it hasn't been clear or answered the industry's questions about what's allowed and what's not under current securities law.

Two changes could happen under a new administration, which will take shape in January 2025, no matter who wins. First, the leadership of the SEC could change and they could shape the industry's future without any changes to the law. Second, Congress could pass new laws that would give the industry clarity about guardrails and what's allowed.

Either way, it's possible more friendly leadership in the White House would be good for the industry, unlocking potentially billions in investment that's been forced offshore or to the sidelines.

We saw a flood of funds coming into the industry when Bitcoin ETFs were approved and that could be the case for companies building on the blockchain with regulatory clarity. That's what investors are betting on today and it could help drive crypto values higher. I think the tokens with real utility are the best plays for investors, but meme coins could ride the wave longer than many observers think.

Should you invest $1,000 in Solana right now?

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Travis Hoium has positions in Ethereum and Solana. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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Bitcoin has dropped back below $88,000 after rolling over from $90,500, with price still trading under the 100-hour Simple Moving Average. The sell-off found a floor at $85,151, and BTC is now consolidating near that base, but rebounds are facing pressure from a bearish trend line around $89,000. Bulls need to retake $88,000–$89,000 to ease downside risk; failure to do so keeps $85,500–$85,000 and then $83,500 in play, with $80,000 as the deeper “line in the sand.” Bitcoin (BTC) is back in damage-control mode after a sharp pullback wiped out recent gains. The price failed to reclaim the $90,000–$90,500 band, rolled over, and slid through $88,500 before briefly dipping under $87,000. Buyers did show up around $85,000, but the rebound so far looks more like stabilization than a clear trend reversal. Bitcoin dips hard, finds a bid near $85,000(h3) BTC’s latest move lower began when it couldn’t build follow-through above $90,000 and $90,500. Once that upside stalled, sellers took control and pushed price down through $88,500. The slide accelerated enough to spike below $87,000, but the market didn’t free-fall. Bulls defended the $85,000 zone, printing a low at $85,151. Since then, Bitcoin has been consolidating below the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement of the drop from the $93,560 swing high to the $85,151 low — a clue that the bounce is still shallow and that sellers haven’t fully backed off yet. Structurally, BTC is still on the back foot: It’s trading below $88,000, and It remains below the 100-hour Simple Moving Average, keeping short-term trend pressure pointed downward. Resistance is layered, and $89,000 is the problem area(h3) If bulls try to turn this into a recovery, they’ll have to climb through multiple ceilings in quick succession. First, BTC faces resistance around $87,150, followed by a more meaningful barrier near $87,500. From there, the market’s attention snaps back to $88,000 — the level BTC just lost and now needs to reclaim. A close back above $88,000 would improve the tone, but it doesn’t solve the bigger issue: there’s a bearish trend line on the hourly BTC/USD chart (Kraken feed) with resistance near $89,000, which also lines up with the next technical hurdle. If BTC can push through $89,000 and hold, the rebound could extend toward $90,000, with follow-through targets at $91,000 and $91,500. But until price clears that $88,000–$89,000 zone, rallies are at risk of being sold rather than chased. If BTC fails to reclaim resistance, the downside path is clear(h3) The near-term bear case is simple: if Bitcoin can’t climb back above the $87,000 area and keep traction, sellers may attempt another leg lower. Support levels line up like this: Immediate support: $85,500 First major support: $85,000 Next support: $83,500 Then $82,500 in the near term Below that, the major “don’t break this” level is still $80,000. If BTC slips under $80,000, the risk of acceleration to the downside increases significantly — not because it’s magic, but because it’s the kind of psychological and structural level that tends to trigger forced de-risking. Indicators: momentum still leans bearish(h3) The intraday indicators aren’t offering much comfort yet: Hourly MACD is losing pace in the bearish zone. Hourly RSI remains below 50, suggesting sellers still have the upper hand on short timeframes. So while the $85,000 defense held for now, the market hasn’t flipped bullish — it’s just stopped bleeding.
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