These Altcoins Rip as Crypto Market Cap Hits 2023 High

Total crypto market capitalization has increased 4% over the past 24 hours to reach a 2023 high of $1.79 trillion on CoinGecko during Thursday morning Asian trading. 

The big move has pushed markets to their highest levels since early May 2022, almost 20 months ago.

However, unlike in recent weeks, it is not Bitcoin driving the momentum but the altcoins, many of which have made double-digit gains today.

#Altcoins – Perfect breakout and approaching the first major resistance. Buy low, sell high. https://t.co/bZ8ilXBNVr pic.twitter.com/EuhCSlqOdp

— IncomeSharks (@IncomeSharks) December 28, 2023

Altcoins on Fire

Resistance remains stubborn for Bitcoin, which hit an intraday high of $43,750 before retreating slightly on Thursday morning. 

However, following months of lethargy, Ethereum has finally made a big move, jumping 7% on the day to challenge $2,400 for the first time since May 2022. ETH peaked at $2,442 before a slight retreat to $2,380 at the time of writing. 

ETH prices are now just 51% down from their all-time highs of $4,880 in November 2021. 

Analyst “Rekt Capital” targeted $2,791, stating, “ETH will probably expand by another +22% if it can reclaim $2,274 as support.”

$ETH will probably expand by another +22% if it is able to reclaim $2274 as support#ETH #Crypto #Ethereum pic.twitter.com/p12ybG8umv

— Rekt Capital (@rektcapital) December 27, 2023

Ethereum is not the only altcoin on fire at the moment. Binance Coin (BNB) has made a full recovery from its regulatory-induced crash, topping $300 for the first time since the exchange was sued by the SEC in June. 

BNB was up 10% on the day, trading at $325 at the time of writing, cementing its position in fourth as Solana corrects from its massive rally. 

Cardano (ADA) is another big mover, with an 8.4% surge to reach $0.674 during Asian trading on Thursday. However, ADA remains down a painful 80% from its all-time high of $3.09 in September 2021.

Chainlink (LINK) has surged a whopping 17% over the past 24 hours to hit an intraday high of $17.50. It is the highest the Oracle provider token has been since April 2022. 

Double-digit Movers 

Other double-digit movers today include Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Internet Computer (ICP), Optimism (OP), Lido DAO (LDO), Arbitrum (ARB), and Aave (AAVE). 

However, the biggest mover in the top 100 cryptocurrencies is the long-considered dead Bitcoin fork, BSV, which has surged 63% to reach $87. 

Bucking the trend in retreat were Solana (SOL), Avalanche, (AVAX), and Polygon (MATIC), though these have all rallied in recent weeks.