Crypto market rises as banks expand digital asset coverage

The crypto market added ground, with total market value rising 2% to $3.22 trillion as large tokens moved higher. For retail investors, the move came alongside a more institutional signal: major banks are broadening how they talk about, rate and package digital assets.

Bitcoin rose 1% to $93,780, while ether gained 2% to $3,240. Solana advanced 3% to $139. XRP was the strongest move among the major names cited, climbing 12% to $2.37.

Several smaller tokens posted larger gains. Render, Sui and Litentry were among the top movers, with Render and Sui each up 18% and LIT up 15%, according to the market data.

Wall Street keeps moving closer to crypto

Bank of America launched crypto recommendations for wealth clients, with suggested exposure of up to 4% of a portfolio. In plain English, a portfolio allocation is the share of an investor’s total holdings assigned to one asset class. A 4% allocation means crypto would remain a smaller slice of the account rather than the main driver of returns.

Morgan Stanley filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a Solana Trust. A trust is an investment structure that can give investors exposure to an underlying asset through shares of the vehicle, rather than requiring them to directly hold the asset itself. The filing adds Solana to the list of tokens drawing attention from large financial firms.

Goldman Sachs also changed its view on crypto-linked equities. The bank upgraded Coinbase to a Buy rating and downgraded eToro, according to the update. A Buy rating means the bank’s analysts expect a stock to perform well relative to their coverage framework, though it is not a guarantee of performance and should not be read as personal investment advice.

Policy and network claims add to the backdrop

Japan’s finance minister endorsed deeper crypto integration, including lower taxes and changes at the exchange level. Tax treatment and exchange rules can shape how easy or expensive it is for investors to trade and hold digital assets, so policy changes remain a key part of the market’s longer-term setup.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said Ethereum has effectively solved the “blockchain trilemma” through its Layer 2 roadmap. The blockchain trilemma refers to the challenge of balancing decentralization, security and scalability. Scalability means a network can process more activity without becoming slow or too expensive to use. Layer 2 networks are systems built on top of a base blockchain that aim to process transactions more efficiently while still relying on the main chain for security.

Security concerns remain in focus

Kraken is investigating reports that customer data is allegedly being offered for sale on the dark web after a possible security exploit. The reports remain under investigation, according to the update.

Ledger users are also on alert after a data breach involving the hardware wallet company’s e-commerce partner, Global-E. The breach exposed customer contact details, according to the update. Hardware wallets are physical devices used to store crypto keys offline, but customer contact information can still become exposed through retail or service partners.

The day’s market action showed higher prices across several major tokens, while the surrounding news showed the split investors keep facing: more traditional finance interest on one side, and continuing security and data-risk concerns on the other.

This story draws on original reporting from Decrypt.