Bitcoin surged past the $120,000 mark for the first time on Monday, reaching a record high of $123,153.22 before easing to around $122,000 — still up 2.4% for the day.

The rally underscores renewed investor optimism as key U.S. legislative discussions around cryptocurrency regulation get underway this week.

Later today, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to debate a set of bills aimed at establishing a long-awaited regulatory framework for the digital asset industry.

Those efforts have found a vocal ally in U.S. President Donald Trump, who has declared himself the “crypto president” and urged lawmakers to overhaul existing rules in favor of the industry.

“It’s riding a number of tailwinds at the moment,” said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, pointing to strong institutional demand, bullish momentum, and Trump’s backing as key drivers.
“It’s been a very, very strong move over the past six or seven days and it’s hard to see where it stops now. It looks like it can easily have a look at the $125,000 level,” he added.

Bitcoin is now up roughly 30% since the start of the year, and its rally has fueled gains across the broader crypto market. Ethereum (Ether) jumped to its highest level in over five months at $3,059.60, while XRP and Solana also rose about 3% each.

The total market capitalization of the crypto sector has swelled to approximately $3.81 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

“What we find interesting and are watching closely are the signs that bitcoin is now being seen as a long-term reserve asset, not just by retail investors and institutions but even some central banks,” said Gracie Lin, CEO of crypto exchange OKX’s Singapore unit.
“We’re also seeing increasing participation from Asia-based investors, including family offices and wealth managers. These are strong signs of bitcoin’s role in the global financial system and the structural shift in how it is perceived, suggesting that this isn’t just another hype-driven rally,” Lin noted.

Earlier this month, Washington designated the week of July 14 as “crypto week,” with Congress scheduled to vote on three major bills: the Genius Act, the Clarity Act, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. The Genius Act, in particular, aims to establish federal rules for stablecoins — a critical area of focus for the sector.

Crypto-related stocks and ETFs also gained on Monday. In U.S. premarket trading, Coinbase shares rose 1.7%, bitcoin-holding firm Strategy gained 3.3%, and crypto miner Mara Holdings jumped 4.6%.
In Asia, spot bitcoin ETFs listed in Hong Kong by China AMC, Harvest, and Bosera all touched new record highs.

Vanguard News