Crypto Weekly Report (2026/8/24): BTC Surges 26% to Multi-Year High as Trump and SEC Policy Tailwinds Align

Summary: Last week, the crypto market staged a strong rebound. Improved U.S. liquidity expectations and positive regulatory signals helped boost market risk appetite. After the U.S. Treasury expanded its long-term Treasury buyback program, markets renewed their focus on how better liquidity and a weaker dollar could support risk assets.

The rally also triggered a major short squeeze. On August 19, total crypto liquidations approached $3 billion, with short positions accounting for the vast majority. This became an important catalyst for the rally. BTC and ETH then surged, while capital continued to flow into high-beta altcoins.

On the regulatory front, the SEC introduced a new crypto asset financing exemption framework, while South Korea continued to advance its STO market. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s White House crypto meeting further strengthened expectations for a more supportive U.S. crypto regulatory environment.

Crypto Market Overview

1. Market Trends and Price Action

Last week, the crypto market staged a strong rebound, with the total cryptocurrency market cap rising from $2.24 trillion to $2.68 trillion, up approximately 19.39% for the week. As BTC broke through key price levels, market risk appetite recovered rapidly, with capital flowing from BTC into ETH and higher-beta altcoins. The altcoin sector also strengthened, accelerating the rotation of capital across the market.

BTC was the main driver of last week’s market rebound. The price started the week at around $62,800 and surged to an intraday high of $79,500 on August 21, with a weekly peak gain of more than 26%, marking the largest weekly gain since March 2023. As of now, BTC has pulled back to around $77,000, but it remains up more than 20% from the start of the week. Its strong performance continues to provide upward momentum for the broader crypto market.

ETH also posted a strong performance last week, further reinforcing the recovery in market risk appetite. The price climbed from around $1,900 at the beginning of the week to a high of $2,546, gaining nearly 30% for the week and clearly outperforming BTC. As of now, ETH is trading at around $2,448, remaining at elevated levels and indicating that capital is increasingly flowing into major altcoins.

Hot Tokens: Altcoins heat up as high-beta assets lead the rally. As BTC and ETH surged, capital increasingly flowed into higher-beta altcoins. ENA, PUMP, STX, TRUMP, and ZEC all gained more than 75% last week, while ENA rose by more than 100%, making it one of the strongest-performing major altcoins.

Over the past 24 hours, the BTCC USDT-M Perpetual Futures market has shown strong overall performance, with 258 tokens gaining and 82 tokens declining. Among the top gainers, GRASS led with a 24-hour increase of 24.58%, while UAI also posted a strong gain of 23.36%.

2. Capital Flows & Market Sentiment

From August 17 to 23, global capital flows turned more supportive for risk assets. U.S. Treasury buyback plans improved liquidity expectations, while a softer dollar and strong precious metals reinforced the market’s preference for alternative stores of value. At the same time, crypto ETF flows rebounded sharply, with both Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs recording strong net inflows. The combination of improving liquidity expectations and renewed institutional demand helped push the broader crypto market into a strong rebound.

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Gold and Silver: Precious Metals Surge Higher

GOLD/USDT

Last week, gold and silver continued to attract investor attention amid ongoing focus on liquidity conditions, monetary policy expectations, and macroeconomic uncertainty.

As expectations for easier financial conditions strengthened, gold remained strong. Its price rose from $4,386 to $4,649, gaining approximately 6.0%.

Demand for gold call options has also increased significantly in recent weeks. In addition to central bank purchases, Chinese imports, and renewed ETF inflows, options trading is creating a new mechanism that could amplify price movements in the gold market.

This means gold’s next move may not be driven entirely by traditional supply and demand. As prices approach key options strike levels, dealers’ hedging activity could further amplify gains. If the trend reverses, the same mechanism could also accelerate a decline.

Silver also continued its upward momentum, marking its third consecutive weekly gain. Its price rose from $64.97 to $69.14, an increase of approximately 6.42%. Compared with gold, silver tends to have higher price elasticity, allowing it to amplify gains when the broader precious metals market strengthens.

DXY: Dollar Weakness Supports Risk Appetite

source: investing.com

Last week, the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) fell 0.77% to 98.87. The dollar’s weakness was mainly driven by pressure on U.S. fiscal conditions and the Treasury market. On August 19, the U.S. Treasury announced that it would increase the size of long-term Treasury buybacks to at least $4 billion per operation. While the move was seen as potentially easing pressure on long-term yields, it also raised concerns about the U.S. fiscal outlook and the long-term value of the dollar.

Crypto ETFs: Institutional Capital Returns Strongly

Last week, the total assets under management (AUM) of U.S. spot crypto ETFs rose from $91.74 billion to $113.46 billion, an increase of approximately $21.72 billion, or 23.67%. The sharp rise in AUM indicates that institutional capital and overall market asset values recovered alongside the broader crypto market rebound.

Bitcoin spot ETFs continued to dominate capital inflows, recording approximately $1.92 billion in net inflows last week. They also saw net inflows on all five trading days. Trading activity increased significantly, signaling continued institutional demand for Bitcoin.

Ethereum spot ETFs also performed strongly, recording approximately $697 million in net inflows last week, marking one of their strongest weekly inflows since October 2025. Meanwhile, ETH gained nearly 30% over the week. The combination of strong inflows and price appreciation further highlights the recovery in institutional demand for ETH.

3. U.S. Long-Term Treasury Yields Remain Elevated

U.S. Treasury yields rose overall last week. The 10-year Treasury yield closed at around 4.73%, while the 30-year Treasury yield remained near its highest level since 2007. Persistently high long-term yields show that markets remain focused on U.S. fiscal pressures, inflation, and the future path of interest rates.

Amid pressure in the Treasury market, the U.S. Treasury increased its long-term Treasury buybacks to ease upward pressure on long-term yields. However, yields rose again after a brief pullback. This suggests that Treasury buybacks alone may not be enough to change the broader pricing dynamics of the long-term bond market.

Hot Market Events

1. U.S. Treasury Expands Long-Term Treasury Buybacks

Event: On August 19, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced larger long-term Treasury buybacks. The size of each operation will increase from $2 billion to at least $4 billion. The move aims to improve market liquidity and ease pressure on long-term yields.

Impact: Markets viewed the move as a positive liquidity signal. The U.S. dollar weakened after the announcement. Gold and Bitcoin also strengthened. This renewed focus on how better liquidity and a weaker dollar could support risk assets.

2. South Korea Plans New Securities Market in November

Event: The Korea Exchange (KRX) plans to launch a new securities market on November 16. Assets such as artwork, real estate, and music copyrights could be traded through securities accounts. KRX plans to conduct simulated trading from October 6 to November 13.

Impact: South Korea’s STO market is moving closer to implementation. Initial products will still use traditional electronic securities systems. Blockchain-based tokenized securities could follow after the relevant law takes effect in February 2027. This could create new opportunities for RWA and security tokens.

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3. “819 Crypto Market Shock”: $2.739 Billion in Short Positions Liquidated

Event: The crypto market surged sharply on August 19. Total liquidations reached approximately $2.987 billion, including $2.739 billion in short liquidations, the highest level on record. Long liquidations totaled around $248 million.

Impact: The rally was dominated by short liquidations. The wave of forced liquidations created a strong short squeeze, accelerating gains in BTC and ETH and driving capital toward higher-beta altcoins.

4. GTA 6-Themed Meme Coin CYBERLEEK Surges More Than 14x in a Day

Event: Solana-based Meme coin CYBERLEEK surged on the back of the so-called “GTA 6 hacker group” narrative. Its market cap briefly exceeded $25 million. The token’s 24-hour gain surpassed 14x at one point. On August 22, the project team publicly burned around 270 million tokens, equal to about 27% of the total supply.

Impact: CYBERLEEK once again highlights how highly Meme coins react to trending events and narratives. However, prices of such assets are mainly driven by sentiment and liquidity. Sharp short-term gains also come with very high volatility and project risks.

Related Reading: CyberLeek Coin Explained: What Is CYBERLEEK and Why Is It Trending?

5. Trump Meets Crypto Executives at the White House, Pushing for Hyperliquid to Enter the U.S. Market

Event: On August 20, Trump held a roundtable at the White House with executives from the U.S. financial, crypto, and technology sectors, as well as regulatory officials. He again called for the passage of the CLARITY Act. The meeting also raised the possibility of Hyperliquid exploring a compliant path into the U.S. market.

Impact: The remarks further signaled the Trump administration’s support for the crypto industry. If Hyperliquid can enter the U.S. through partnerships with licensed institutions or changes to its product structure, its market reach and institutional participation could increase. The move also strengthened expectations for a more open and clearer U.S. crypto regulatory environment.

Related Reading: Why Is HYPE Surging? What Does Trump’s Support for Hyperliquid’s U.S. Entry Mean?

6. SEC Proposes New Exemptions for Crypto Asset Issuance

Event: The SEC’s “Regulation Crypto Assets” framework includes mechanisms such as the Startup Exemption, Fundraising Exemption, and Safe Harbor for digital asset issuance. Eligible projects could receive exemptions from securities registration requirements within certain fundraising limits and time periods.

Impact: The framework could reshape how crypto projects raise funds in the U.S. Compared with the previous enforcement-driven approach, clearer exemptions could reduce regulatory uncertainty. They could also help move digital asset issuance from “gray-area fundraising” toward a more rules-based model.

Related Reading: SEC 2026 Crypto Regulation Explained: Digital Commodities, Fundraising Exemptions and the Token Safe Harbor

Key Highlights to Watch This Week

1. Token Unlock Overview

Several projects will see large one-time token unlocks this week. H, HUMA, XPL, and SOSO will release tokens worth more than $46 million in total. HUMA and H have the largest unlocks, making their potential short-term supply impact worth watching.

HUMA has the highest unlock ratio at 16.7% of its current circulating supply, making its potential short-term supply pressure more significant. H has the largest single unlock by value, at approximately $18.31 million. XPL and SOSO have smaller unlock amounts, but their unlocks still represent a notable share of their circulating supply.

2. Key Events Ahead

This week’s market focus will center on U.S. macroeconomic data, Fed policy, AI earnings, and crypto regulation and infrastructure upgrades.

On the macro side, the U.S. July PCE report on August 26 will directly influence expectations for the Fed’s rate path. On August 28, Fed Chair Waller’s speech at Jackson Hole could further affect Treasury yields, the U.S. dollar, and crypto risk sentiment.

In the broader market, Nvidia’s earnings report on August 27 will be an important catalyst for AI and technology stocks. Strong results and guidance could further improve overall risk sentiment.

In crypto, BNB Chain, Conflux, and Zcash will undergo major upgrades or governance events. The CFTC’s 24/7 futures trading proposal and Coinbase’s perpetual contract changes will also be worth watching. Overall, U.S. inflation, rate expectations, and risk sentiment remain the key market drivers this week.