Crypto's plunge may have been halted by the SEC/CFTC hearing

• Crypto building up again, albeit cautiously.
• Bearish risks still remain, but confidence boosted.
• SEC/CFTC hearing on Tuesday

Crypto markets are still weak but seem to have found a foothold, with Bitcoin currently trading near 8,250.00 after putting in a bottom at 6,000.00 recently. Cryptocurrencies were ravaged in January, caught up in a plunge that saw the entire market shed a majority of its market cap, Bitcoin falling from just beneath the 20,000.00 handle to 6,000.00 in a matter of weeks. Prices stabilized earlier this week and have begun to creep back up the charts after receiving a possible lifeline from the most unlikely of organizations, the SEC and the CFTC.

A joint hearing on Tuesday from the SEC and the CFTC, focusing on the organizations' respective stances on cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology may very well have come to the rescue in the midst of the crypto crash, with both bodies expressing surprisingly on-balance and equalized attitudes towards the crypto space in general. A negative slant to either groups' outlooks could have sent cryptocurrencies into the basement, accelerating losses as regulators and institutions globally take turns slamming doors on blockchain tech. Instead, CFTC Chair Christopher Giancarlo tipped his hat to Bitcoin, noting the aforementioned's contributions to transaction settlements, stating, "if there was no Bitcoin, there would be no distributed ledger technology." Giancarlo went on to express an open-minded attitude to the future of blockchain tech, noting in a written statement, “virtual currencies mark a paradigm shift in how we think about payments, traditional financial processes, and engaging in economic activity. Ignoring these developments will not make them go away, nor is it a responsible regulatory response. The evolution of these assets, their volatility, and the interest they attract from a rising global millennial population demand serious examination.”

SEC Chair Jay Clayton further drove the point home, commenting, “said simply, we should embrace the pursuit of technological advancement, as well as new and innovative techniques for capital raising, but not at the expense of the principles undermining our well-founded and proven approach to protecting investors and markets.”

While regulators continue to be wary of cryptocurrencies and exchanges in their current form, a positive attitude from cornerstone organizations about the future evolution of crypto was precisely what the market needed as China's recent banning of Bitcoin added to a growing dismal outlook on the future of crypto.

Bitcoin Technicals

BTC is currently testing into the 10-day EMA, and a continued bullish move from the coin will be challenged by support-turned-resistance at 10,500.00, while the recent bottom at 6,000.00 will hopefully provide support should a bearish retracement build up on the back of the recent downward trend.