Bitcoin rebounds from $100,000 support level as US Senate makes progress to end government shutdown. The Bank of England publishes a consultation paper for sterling-denominated stablecoins.
Bitcoin has rebounded from the $100,000 support level and is currently trading at $106,200, following reports that the US Senate has made significant progress towards ending the government shutdown, now in its 40th day and the longest in US history, Simon Peters, cryptoasset market analyst at multi-asset investment platform eToro.
The Crypto Fear and Greed Index, a measure of crypto investor sentiment, has also ticked higher over the weekend after being at its lowest level since early April.
While the Senate has moved the deal forward, the House has not yet voted on the final bill.
If the bill is approved by the House however and signed quickly, many government services will resume, helping reduce risk and uncertainty in markets as well as seeing liquidity flow back into the economy, as hundreds of thousands of federal workers receive back-dated pay.
Depending on how quickly the shutdown ends, we could also have consumer price index and producer price index inflation data being released this week, which could add further optimism to markets and cause prices to rally.
Markets have been rattled in recent weeks following hawkish comments from Fed Chairman Powell that a cut to interest rates at the upcoming December meeting is not a foregone conclusion. A cooler-than-expected inflation print though could start to swing the pendulum the other way in the Fed’s decision making.
BIGGEST MOVERS
$ICP was one of the biggest movers last week, up 90%, sparked by DFINITY foundation’s (a major contributor to the Internet Computer blockchain) opening of its new platform called Caffeine AI, which allows decentralised apps to be created with no coding needed and could attract more potential developers to ICP’s ecosystem.
$ZEC has continued its rally, briefly touching $750, the highest price since January 2018 as the resurgence in privacy cryptos continues and investors speculate on further price appreciation.
Discover more here: https://www.etoro.com/discover/markets/cryptocurrencies/market-movers
EYE-CATCHING STORIES
Bank of England publishes consultation paper setting out proposed regulatory regime for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins
The Bank of England has today published a consultation paper setting out its proposed regulatory regime for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins, which could be used for retail payments and wholesale settlement in the future.
Systemic stablecoin issuers will be permitted to hold up to 60% of backing assets in short-term UK government debt. For the remaining 40% the Bank of England will provide issuers unremunerated accounts at the Bank, ensuring robust redemption and public confidence, even under stress.
The Bank’s regime would not cover stablecoins used as assets for non-systemic purposes, such as the buying and selling of cryptoassets. These would be supervised by the Financial Conduct Authority the BoE press release went on to say.
The consultation is open until 10 February 2026. Following this the Bank of England will then consult on and finalize Codes of Practice later in 2026 which will set out the detailed requirements for systemic stablecoins.
