Bitcoin, Ether Gain After US Congress Passes Stablecoin Bill

Bitcoin rose to $120,162.01 on Friday after US Congress passed the first federal legislation to regulate stablecoins on Thursday. The US Congress delivered a watershed victory for the crypto industry on Thursday, as it passed the first federal legislation to regulate stablecoins and cleared the way for broader use of the technology in everyday finance.

The cryptocurrency rose 0.6% to $120,162.01 as of 7:00 a.m. India time, as per Bloomberg data.

On Thursday, Bitcoin slipped 0.4% but continued to hold above $119,000, after hitting its all-time high of about $123,000 on July 14, partly on optimism about the stablecoin bill’s prospects.

Ether, which has long lagged Bitcoin, rose as much as 6% to $3,628 in early trading on Friday, its highest level since January, as per Bloomberg data.

The stablecoin bill is the centerpiece of a legislative push Trump has dubbed 'Crypto Week.' Earlier Thursday, the House also passed a broad crypto market structure bill that still has to be considered by the Senate.

Stablecoins so far have largely been used for transactions related to the cryptocurrency market rather than business payments. 

Backed by Republicans and championed by President Donald Trump, the bill imposes federal or state oversight on dollar-linked tokens that can move around the clock and across platforms. The measure, which passed the House 308-122 with broad bipartisan support after clearing the Senate, is now on track to become law.