Weekly Wrap: Bitcoin Breaks Out

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC) was on track to end the week up more than 20% following its biggest rally since 2023. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization was trading at $77,200 U.S. late on Aug. 21, up 23% from $62,800 U.S. at the start of the week. After treading water for months, Bitcoin has finally broken out after the U.S. Treasury intervened to lower government bond yields and U.S. President Donald Trump called on Congress to pass the Clarity Act. 

Since those events occurred on Aug. 19, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have seen their prices shoot higher, with Ethereum (CRYPTO: $ETH) rising nearly 30% this week to trade at $2,400 U.S. Until now, Ether had been unable to break through resistance it encountered at $2,000 U.S.  

The crypto rally has extended to stocks of cryptocurrency firms, with Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: $COIN) and Strategy (NASDAQ: $MSTR) each up more than 15% on the week. Bitcoin had been rangebound between $60,000 U.S. and $65,000 U.S. for six consecutive weeks. BTC hit a low for the year of $58,000 U.S. at the end of June. 

However, despite the recent rally, Bitcoin remains well-below its all-time high of $126,198 U.S. reached on October 6th of last year.