🔐 END-OF-DAY MARKET REPORT — August 24, 2026

🌐 TOP NEWS OF THE DAY

Bitcoin and Ethereum posted their strongest performance in recent weeks over the weekend; BTC reached its highest level since May, while ETH reached its highest level since late January/early February

CoinShares Head of Research James Butterfill described the rally as “a macro story, not a crypto story,” noting that easing inflation and weak employment data have weakened the case for further tightening

The Fed’s annual Jackson Hole Symposium will take place this week (August 27–29); the 2026 theme is “Financial Innovation and Payments and Their Implications for Policy” — its focus on digital assets makes it particularly relevant for crypto investors

The comment period on two joint SEC-CFTC requests covering crypto derivatives definitions and alternative compliance/swap data reporting closes today

BNB Smart Chain will activate the Pasteur hard fork this evening (22:30 TRT)

The U.S. weekly ADP employment report will be released on August 25; Fed Chair Warsh’s comments at Jackson Hole will be critical for market direction throughout the week

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₿ BITCOIN

BTC opened this morning in the $77,700–79,100 range, up 0.8% from yesterday’s open; after gaining approximately 22–24% over the past seven days, it is trading near the local high of $78,048 reached on August 22. Since the $64,928 level on July 24, the monthly gain has reached roughly $12,788. Analysts say the move has largely been driven by renewed demand for U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, short covering in derivatives markets, and a broad recovery in risk appetite; approximately $1.92 billion flowed into ETFs over the past seven days. Analysts warn that the market is now increasingly vulnerable to profit-taking, with $80,000 emerging as the next psychological test level.

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🔷 ETHEREUM & ALTCOINS

ETH opened this morning in the $2,463–2,507 range, up 1.6% from yesterday and approximately 26% on the week, outperforming BTC. The rally remains broad-based; XRP gained 14.6% last week, while Solana rose around 6–7%. The broader market reflects improving risk appetite supported by two separate regulatory developments in Washington: the SEC proposal offering a pathway for crypto projects to exit securities classification and continued pressure surrounding the CLARITY Act.

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📋 KEY CRYPTO NEWS

Atlantic Council senior fellow Hung Tran emphasized that the future direction of the Fed — increasingly populated by members who will take office under a new chair in May 2026 and increasingly share the White House’s economic agenda — will be more important for markets than Powell’s “farewell speech”

CoinDesk reported that the week will be shaped by “Jackson Hole colliding with geopolitical risk” — tensions between Iran and the U.S. and the risk of escalation in the Russia-Ukraine war remain sources of uncertainty in the background

Analysts assess that the SEC’s proposal offering crypto projects a pathway out of securities classification does not directly create new demand, but is significant from a reputational standpoint by strengthening the perception that the U.S. regulatory environment is becoming more accommodating

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🔓 TOKEN UNLOCKS

Humanity Protocol (H) August 25, 2026 Amount: ~$21.3 million (2.66% of circulating supply) — 266.47 million tokens Recipient profile: Three equal allocations Selling pressure: 🟡

Plasma (XPL) August 25, 2026 Amount: ~$8.91 million (3.31% of circulating supply) — 88.89 million tokens Recipient profile: Allocated to the ecosystem and growth fund Selling pressure: 🟡

According to Tokenomist, August 25 will see approximately $30.4 million in total unlocks; on August 26, HUMA is also expected to unlock 4.59% of its supply ($9.3 million).

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🔭 OUTLOOK & UPCOMING EVENTS

The Jackson Hole Symposium on August 27–29 is the week’s most important event — the direct focus on digital assets means Fed officials’ comments are likely to carry more weight for crypto markets than usual. A dovish tone on interest rates or a further decline in yields could support the continuation of the rally, while a hawkish surprise could trigger profit-taking. A sustained breakout above $80,000 for BTC stands out as the week’s most critical technical threshold. The H, XPL and HUMA unlocks on August 25–26 appear relatively absorbable in an environment of strong risk appetite.