Bitcoin pops to highest in six months as regulatory crackdown fears ebb

Cryptocurrency traders on Thursday appeared to be steering clear of growing regulatory risks as bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) flirted with the highest level seen since August 2022, partly underscoring traders' increased appetite for risk. Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) surged as much as 10.7% to $25.21K earlier in the session, now changing hands at $24.80K at 12:21 p.m. ET. That extended its year-to-date gains to sub-50%. Ethereum ( ETH-USD ) also rose markedly, up 8.6% to $1.71K. Both tokens, though, still have a lot of ground to cover to reach their respective November 2021 highs, as seen in this chart . At the same time, the two largest token by market cap ( BTC-USD ) ( ETH-USD ) both contributed to a 7.1% climb in the total value of the crypto market, standing at $1.12T at the time of writing, according to CoinMarketCap data . As Coinglass data showed earlier this week, traders have been covering their short-bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) bets more than normal , resulting in a so-called short squeeze that's helping push up the price. Meanwhile, the stock market's price action continued to diverge from that of crypto, with all three major stock indexes trading in the red . It's a rare dynamic, but it will be interesting to see if the deviating relationship persists as crypto continues to be influenced by the Federal Reserve's monetary policy. Crypto-exposed stocks were mostly higher intraday, with Core Scientific ( OTCPK:CORZQ ), +10.3% , Galaxy Digital ( OTCPK:BRPHF ), +8.1% , Hut 8 Mining ( HUT ), +7.1% , and Coinbase GLobal ( COIN ), +2.8% , among some of the notable gainers. Take a look at the most recent outlooks for the crypto market.