The total cryptocurrency market capitalization — a major bellwether for the overall health of the digital asset class — broke $1 trillion for the first time ever at 19:00 ET on Tuesday January 6th. Bitcoin briefly topped $37,000 around the same time.
Measured by market cap, the crypto asset class has virtually doubled over the past month as Bitcoin (BTC) broke out to new all-time highs and Ether (ETH) cleared $1,100 for the first time in three years. Combined, both assets account for roughly two-thirds of the overall market.
BTC and Ether’s gravitational pull on the market has seen dozens, if not hundreds, of cryptocurrencies, report double-digit percentage returns this past week.
The trillion-dollar capitalization was reached mere days after the market exceeded the highs from the 2017-18 bull market. During the last cycle top in early 2018, the combined market cap hit roughly $830 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
The top of the last crypto bull market in early