The Ethereum price crossed a major milestone on Tuesday, surpassing the $700 mark for the first time in more than a month.
The rally was far from an isolated occurrence, as the cryptocurrency market cap achieved an eight percent advance, adding nearly $33 billion to its rapidly expanding waistline. In the past week, the market has added almost $100 billion.
At present, the combined value of all cryptocurrencies is $430 billion, which puts the nascent asset class within striking distance of Facebook, who incidentally, a recent MIT Technology Review article suggested could take down Bitcoin if it made a coordinated effort.
Bitcoin Price Continues Push Toward $10,000
The Bitcoin price continued to lose market share to its peers, and the flagship cryptocurrency now accounts for just 37.1 percent of the index’s total valuation. Nevertheless, Bitcoin continued to post a steady advance, rising approximately six percent to $9,367 on cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex. Bitcoin now has a $159.5 billion market cap, and many analysts predict that it will continue to grow throughout the year.
Ethereum Price Leaps Past $700
The Ethereum price, meanwhile, beat the index by nearly two percentage points en route to a 10 percent surge that carried the coin above $700 for the first time since mid-March. The Ethereum price is now trading at $704, which translates into a $69.7 billion market cap and a 16.3 percent share of the index.
EOS Price Continues to Lead Large-Cap Index as Market Swells
The bullish wave continued throughout the wider cryptocurrency markets, and the majority of top-tier altcoins outpaced Bitcoin’s single-day performance.
The Ripple price swelled by seven percent, brushing off accusations from a former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chairman that XRP is likely a security under US law. If the rally continues much longer, Ripple will likely reach dollar parity.
Fourth-ranked Bitcoin Cash matched the index with an eight percent climb, and the BCH price is currently valued at a global average of $1,488.
The EOS price, meanwhile, continued to post the large-cap tier’s most impressive single-day performance, exploding by 26 percent and racing to a nearly $12 billion market cap.
The Litecoin price increased by nine percent to just under $164, while Cardano’s similar advance carried its price to $0.31.
Stellar rose by seven percent to $0.39 and now boasts a $7.4 billion market cap.
IOTA returned the top-tier’s worst performance, increasing just four percent to $2.19, while NEO rounded out the top 10 with a 10 percent rally to $83.40.