Crypto markets saw total capitalization rise by about 4.4% in the last 24 hours as Bitcoin (BTC) showed signs of bottoming out and traditional markets showed strength earlier this week.
After nine weeks of losses, Bitcoin regained the $31,000 level in the U.S. on Monday. The move came amid a relief rally in Asian markets and technical data suggesting the asset may have bottomed in the $29,000 to $30,000 range.
Cardano's ADA token led the gains among major cryptocurrencies with a 17% increase, trading above 64 cents on Tuesday. Fundamental catalysts include a surge in native asset issuance on the network - over five million assets have now been minted on Cardano, data shows - and the upcoming Vasil hardfork, a network upgrade expected in June that would increase scaling opportunities.
Price charts suggest ADA has found support at 45 cents. Relative Strength Index (RSI) readings - a tool used by traders to calculate the extent of an asset's price movement - fell to nearly 33 earlier this week, indicating early signs of a bottom for ADA. However, the token could face strong resistance at the 80-cent mark.
Ether (ETH) gained 5.8% despite gas fees falling to a low. A drop in fees usually indicates falling demand for the network, suggesting that the move may have been led by traders betting on a market-wide revival rather than being driven by fundamental growth.
XRP rose 5%. Avalanche's AVAX and Solana's SOL gained as much as 4%. Memecoins Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) posted limited gains, rising only 3.8% and 2.3%, respectively, underperforming the broader market.
Elsewhere, metaverse tokens posted price gains. Axie Infinity's AXS rose 46%, while The Sandbox's SAN gained 11%. The increase in AXS came weeks after the launch of the "Origin" version of the game in April, triggering demand for the tokens.
The relief in crypto markets comes amid optimism in Asian markets. The number of coronavirus cases in China fell below 100 for the first time since early March, fueling sentiment among traders betting on a broader economic recovery.
The rally in Asia continued Tuesday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng and China's Shanghai Composite gained more than 0.70% since the start of trading, while futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 in the U.S. rose 0.63%.