Bitcoin broke through $68,000 on Wednesday and was up about 6%, posting its strongest one-day move since March. The rally coincided with Donald Trump’s meeting with representatives of the cryptocurrency industry in the White House and new SEC proposals that may significantly change the rules for token issuance in the US.
The market reacted more broadly than just Bitcoin. Coinbase shares rose about 13%, Circle rose 12% and Strategy rose 14%. Investors have apparently begun to price in a scenario in which, after many months of political declarations, specific regulations begin to come out of Washington.
Key conclusions
- Bitcoin broke through $68,000 and recorded its biggest daily gain since March.
- Donald Trump is meeting with crypto industry representatives and regulators today at the White House.
- The SEC presented a proposal for special exemptions for some token issues, including the possibility of raising up to USD 75 million without standard registration.
- On September 15, the Senate will hold a key procedural vote on the Clarity Act. 60 votes are needed, and failure could seriously jeopardize the bill.
Bitcoin is rising even before the decision in Washington
On Wednesday afternoon, Bitcoin was trading at around $68,500. According to The Wall Street Journal, this represented an increase of about 6% on the day and the largest percentage jump since March. Bloomberg also noted that BTC broke out of its months-long trading range just as the market’s attention shifted to the White House.
Cryptocurrency-related companies react even more strongly. Coinbase was up about 13%, Circle was up 12%, Strategy was up 14% and American Bitcoin was up 17%. This is important because the activities of these companies are much more directly dependent on the US regulatory environment than Bitcoin itself.
This does not mean, however, that the meeting at the White House alone “caused” today’s entire rally. It is more accurate to say that the increases coincided with the accumulation of several positive regulatory news for the market. And this build-up may be the most important element of the whole story.
Trump invites the crypto industry to the White House
Donald Trump is meeting with representatives of cryptocurrency companies, industry organizations and the technology sector on Wednesday afternoon, Washington time. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, CFTC head Michael Selig and White House cryptocurrency adviser Patrick Witt are also scheduled to attend the event.
Industry media list among the participants representatives of, among others: Coinbase, Gemini and Ripple, as well as companies from the traditional financial market. The meeting takes place the day before the meeting of the Innovation Advisory Committee at the CFTC, so it is difficult to treat it only as another photo of the president with industry representatives.
The moment is special. The Trump administration has been declaring for months that it wants to make the United States the global center of the digital assets market, but the biggest change still requires a statutory arrangement of the competences of the SEC and CFTC. Now several pieces of this puzzle are starting to shift at once.
The SEC is not waiting for Congress. Tokens can get their own rules
Even more interesting is the proposal of the so-called safe harbor. Under certain conditions, a cryptocurrency could cease to be treated as a security after the issuer completes key project development activities. This is an attempt to solve a problem that the American market has been struggling with for years: a token may be initially sold as part of an investment contract, but it should not necessarily remain a security throughout its entire existence.
That’s it for now a proposal, not applicable law. The SEC bill is scheduled to undergo a 60-day public consultation period. Nevertheless, the market got something much more concrete than another declaration about “supporting innovation”.
September 15 may be more important than today’s meeting
The most important political test is yet to come for the market. On September 15, the Senate is scheduled to hold a procedural vote on the Clarity Act. There will not be a vote on the final adoption of the bill yet.
Republican Majority Leader John Thune filed a motion for the so-called cloture, i.e. limiting the debate and opening the way to further proceedings of the project. 60 votes are needed. If they are missing, Reuters estimates that given the tight calendar before the November elections, the further fate of the act in 2026 may be in serious doubt.
The stakes are high. The Clarity Act is intended to create the first comprehensive federal system for regulating the cryptocurrency market in the US, specifying, among other things, when a token is subject to the SEC as a security, when it is treated more like a commodity, and where the CFTC’s powers begin. In May, the bill passed the Senate Banking Committee on a 15-9 vote.
The problem is that not all disputes have been resolved. Senators still differ, including: regarding AML regulations, rewards paid to stablecoin holders and ethical rules regarding the cryptocurrency activities of high-ranking officials. These points may decide whether the required 60 votes will be collected.
Why does the market react so strongly?
Today’s situation is interesting because the market did not receive one piece of good news, but several elements of the same scenario. The SEC showed specific proposals regarding token issuance. The White House invited industry representatives and regulators. The Senate already has a date set for the first major test of the Clarity Act.
Just a few days ago the situation was completely different. Bitcoin was losing ground and the chances of passing the Clarity Act quickly were slimming after the Senate went into August recess without a vote. Today’s rally can therefore be interpreted as a sharp overestimation of expectations, rather than a reaction to one of Trump’s statements.
For Coinbase, Circle or other companies operating on the American market, the difference between regulation through subsequent SEC proceedings and clear rules set out in the Act may be fundamental. That is why the shares of some crypto companies are growing even faster than Bitcoin itself.
What does this mean for Bitcoin holders?
In the short term, the market will now likely scrutinize every speech following the White House meeting. The biggest catalyst, however, would not be another Trump declaration on supporting cryptocurrencies, but specific details regarding the further path of the Clarity Act or the implementation of new SEC rules.
In the longer term, Congress remains crucial. Regulations introduced by the SEC and CFTC may make life easier for the industry, but are more susceptible to change after the next election. The bill passed by Congress would create a much more durable legal basis for the US cryptocurrency market.
The market has already started pricing in a more optimistic scenario. Bitcoin broke through USD 68,000, and the shares of the largest crypto companies jumped by several percent. Now the most important date is September 15. Then it will turn out whether the political optimism that is driving the rates today has the required 60 votes in the Senate.
