Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Wednesday (March 12) as of 9:00 p.m. UTC.
Bitcoin and Ethereum price update
Bitcoin (BTC) is currently trading at US$83,016.38, reflecting a 0.2 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. The day’s trading range has seen a high of US$83,625.34 and a low of US$80,833.49.
Bitcoin has rebounded from its four-month low of US$76,600.
Despite a brief rise following a consumer price index report that pointed to cooling inflation, data analytics firm CryptoQuant warned of valuation metrics hinting at a further correction below US$70,000.
Ethereum (ETH) is priced at US$1,881.77, down 3.6 percent over the same period.
The cryptocurrency reached an intraday high of US$1912.08 and a low of US$1,841.97.
Glassnode indicated that Ethereum’s recent price drop near $1,900 led to the accumulation of a significant amount of ETH, which their cost-basis analysis suggests could act as a support level.
Altcoin price update
Solana (SOL) is currently valued at US$125.10, down 2.4 percent over the past 24 hours. SOL rose to a high of US$128.44 and later fell to a low of US$123.40 on Wednesday.
XRP is trading at US$2.24, reflecting a 1.6 percent increase over the past 24 hours. The cryptocurrency recorded an intraday high of US$2.24 and a low of US$2.14.
Sui (SUI) is priced at US$2.22, down 2.4 percent over the past 24 hours. It achieved a daily high of US$2.31 and a low of US$2.19.
Cardano (ADA) is trading at US$0.7299, reflecting a modest 0.1 percent increase over the past 24 hours. Its highest price on Wednesday was US$0.7541, with a low of US$0.7161.
Crypto news to know
BITCOIN’s second act
Senator Cynthia Lummis reintroduced the BITCOIN Act in US Congress on Tuesday (March 11), an initiative first introduced in July 2024, coinciding with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump’s promise to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve if he were elected.
Although the bill did not pass in the previous Congress, the updated version has garnered additional support from new co-sponsors, including Republican Senators Jim Justice, Tommy Tuberville, Roger Marshall, Marsha Blackburn and Bernie Moreno.
At a Bitcoin for America event hosted by the Bitcoin Policy Institute in Washington, DC, on Tuesday night, Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK) said he plans to introduce the bill to the House of Representatives.
The legislation would allow the United States Department of Treasury to hold approximately 5 percent of the total Bitcoin supply, “mirroring the size and scope of gold reserves held by the United States.” Additional Bitcoin could be purchased by “diversifying existing funds within the Federal Reserve System and Treasury Department.’
House votes to repeal IRS DeFi broker rule
On Tuesday, the US House of Representatives voted to repeal a rule that would have mandated decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to report gross proceeds from crypto sales to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), including information regarding taxpayers involved in the transactions.
The motion passed with a final tally of 292-132 in favor. This follows the US Senate’s March 4 vote on the motion to repeal, which passed with a 70-27 majority.
Republican Representative Mike Carey submitted the repeal motion alongside Senator Ted Cruz, arguing that the rule was invasive for taxpayers and would overwhelm the IRS, as well as stifle innovation in “an important new industry in the United States.
The White House has voiced support for the repeal. The motion will now need to pass a second Senate vote before passing President Donald Trump’s desk.
Franklin Templeton files to list spot XRP ETF
Franklin Templeton has joined eight other fund managers — Bitwise, ProSHares, 32Shares, Canary Capital, Wisdom Tree, CoinShares, Grayscale and Volatility Shares — seeking approval to list spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund manager applied on March 11.
On that same day, the SEC delayed decisions on numerous crypto-related filings, followed by two more delays on March 12. These included proposals for ETFs tracking Solana, DOGE, Litecoin, and XRP.
The Cboe BZX exchange has also filed two proposals to incorporate staking into Fidelity’s spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) and the Franklin Ethereum ETF.
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.