Decentral Block Post

The total crypto market capitalization increased by 26% in seven days, reaching $1.16 trillion on March 17. Bitcoin (BTC) was the biggest winner among the top 20 coins, up 31.5%, though some altcoins gained 50% or more during that period.

The surge in cryptocurrency prices occurred as the United States Federal Reserve was forced to lend banks $300 billion in emergency funds. According to PBS News Hour, nearly half of the money went to failed financial institutions Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and was used to pay uninsured depositors. The remaining $153 billion was obtained through a long-standing program known as the "discount window," which allows banks to borrow funds for up to 90 days.

While appearing to protect the banking sector, additional funding for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and credit facilitation using Fed resources ultimately creates a "false sense of confidence," according to activist billionaire investor Bill Ackman.

The $30 billion plan devised by U.S. regulators to avoid a major liquidity crisis in First Republic Bank (FRB) "raised more questions than it answers," said Ackman, who manages the hedge fund Pershing Square. Furthermore, Ackman stated that "half measures don't work when there is a confidence crisis."

Warren Buffett, the billionaire, is on the losing side of the bet

As the banking crisis worsened, Warren Buffett, the largest shareholder and co-founder of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB), a $650 billion financial conglomerate, saw his holdings rapidly deteriorate. Berkshire Hathaway, for example, is the largest holder of Bank of America (BAC) stock, which has fallen 15.5% year-to-date. This position alone has cost Buffett's investment vehicle $5.2 billion.

The total crypto market capitalization increased by 26% in seven days, reaching $1.16 trillion on March 17. Bitcoin (BTC) was the biggest winner among the top 20 coins, up 31.5%, though some altcoins gained 50% or more during that period.

The surge in cryptocurrency prices occurred as the United States Federal Reserve was forced to lend banks $300 billion in emergency funds. According to PBS News Hour, nearly half of the money went to failed financial institutions Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and was used to pay uninsured depositors. The remaining $153 billion was obtained through a long-standing program known as the "discount window," which allows banks to borrow funds for up to 90 days.

While appearing to protect the banking sector, additional funding for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and credit facilitation using Fed resources ultimately creates a "false sense of confidence," according to activist billionaire investor Bill Ackman.

The $30 billion plan devised by U.S. regulators to avoid a major liquidity crisis in First Republic Bank (FRB) "raised more questions than it answers," said Ackman, who manages the hedge fund Pershing Square. Furthermore, Ackman stated that "half measures don't work when there is a confidence crisis."

Warren Buffett, the billionaire, is on the losing side of the bet

As the banking crisis worsened, Warren Buffett, the largest shareholder and co-founder of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB), a $650 billion financial conglomerate, saw his holdings rapidly deteriorate. Berkshire Hathaway, for example, is the largest holder of Bank of America (BAC) stock, which has fallen 15.5% year-to-date. This position alone has cost Buffett's investment vehicle $5.2 billion.

After a recovery on March 16, the United States equities markets are again down on March 17. Investors remain concerned about the vulnerability of the banks in the U.S. and Europe. A silver lining for cryptocurrency investors is that Bitcoin (BTC) has remained decoupled with the equities markets and has risen to its highest level since Jan. 12.

Galaxy Digital founder and CEO Michael Novogratz said in an interview with CNBC that the US and the globe will face a credit crunch as banks lend less to rebuild capital. He said investors should be long on Bitcoin and crypto because these are the times for which it was created.

Quantitative tightening seems to be giving way to a period of quantitative easing. The banks have already borrowed $150 billion from the Federal Reserve, which is more than the amount borrowed during the 2008 financial crisis.

Analysts pointed out that the Fed has added $300 billion to its balance sheet in a week, second only to the $500 billion pumped after the March 2020 crash. The QE in 2020 triggered a rally in Bitcoin that took it from about $4,000 to $69,000.

Will history repeat itself? Could Bitcoin and altcoins sustain the higher levels? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.