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The Crypto Market Is Creeping Upwards Across the Board

By
Alexander Kuptsikevich
Published: May 21, 2026, 10:40 GMT+00:00

Crypto markets are broadly higher, with Bitcoin steady and privacy coins leading the gains.

zcash coin and bullish chart.

Bitcoin Rebounds Cautiously While Zcash Leads the Altcoin Surge

Fig. 1. The crypto market is showing signs of a turnaround towards growth.

The crypto market capitalisation has risen by 1.3%, reaching $2.59T. The stock market’s return to growth has bolstered appetite for cryptocurrencies, allowing the market to rebound from the 50-day moving average. This could mark the start of a more sustained rally, similar to the one seen in April. Should the uptrend continue, the immediate resistance levels appear to be around $2.7T and $2.8T, where the previous local highs and the 200-day moving average are located, respectively. In terms of 24-hour performance, Zcash is once again leading the pack (+14%), followed by Dash (+8%) and the volatile Toncoin (+6.3%). Performing worse than the rest but still in positive territory are Hedera (+0.1%), Ethereum Classic (+0.2%), and Cardano (+0.4%). This is a good indicator of the breadth of buying in the crypto market.

Fig. 2. Bitcoin is rebounding from the 50-day moving average.

Bitcoin is trading at $78K, rising for the third day in a row after rebounding from the 50-day moving average and the area of recent local lows. The rebound looks fairly cautious so far. Likely, altcoins are currently attracting some retail buyers, while institutional investors are cautiously selling ETFs ahead of a quieter market and focusing on big tech.

Fig. 3. Zcash has surpassed its 2026 highs, is targeting the 2025 peak, and could reach 2018 levels.

Zcash surged to $688 on Wednesday, surpassing the start-of-month highs and bringing the price back into the region of the November 2025 highs. The corrective pullback from 9–16 May wiped out half of the gains from the early-month rally. This is deeper than a typical correction, but not uncommon for volatile markets. The Fibonacci extension suggests a target of $840, which would bring the price back to the peak levels seen in early 2018. Historically, Zcash has surged when the crypto market peaks, and the current rally marks a departure from that pattern.

Crypto News

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to integrate cryptocurrencies into the traditional financial system and to revise rules governing crypto companies’ access to payment infrastructure. A period of 180 days has been allocated to implement measures to support innovation.

The presence of US Treasury bills in their portfolios does not guarantee Tether and Circle protection against a sudden liquidity crisis, warns Union Investment. The largest stablecoin issuers’ investments in gold and Bitcoin are more reminiscent of a speculative fund than a conservative monetary instrument.

According to Defillama, the total market capitalisation of stablecoins has reached another all-time high, exceeding $323 billion. USDT and USDC account for approximately 59% and 24% of the total market.

BNB Chain developers have reported on the results of testing the network’s transition to post-quantum cryptography. The experiment confirmed the blockchain’s theoretical readiness for future threats but revealed a significant drop in performance.

The FxPro Analyst Team

About the Author

Alexander is engaged in the analysis of the currency market, the world economy, gold and oil for more than 10 years. He gives commentaries to leading socio-political and economic magazines, gives interviews for radio and television, and publishes his own researches.

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