The crypto market bounced back on Tuesday, pulling above the three trillion dollar mark after a wave of fresh ETF activity and rising expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut. Traders responded quickly to the renewed optimism, lifting bitcoin and ether sharply higher after a rocky start to the week.
Bitcoin climbed past ninety-one thousand dollars, gaining around eight percent in a single day. Ether pushed above three thousand dollars after a ten percent jump. The overall market value reached roughly $3.06 trillion, recovering the ground lost during Sunday’s sell-off.
The sudden uptick followed Vanguard’s decision to end its long-running ban on bitcoin ETF purchases. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Balchunas noted that bitcoin’s spike aligned closely with the opening of U.S. equity markets, the first session since Vanguard reopened access. He highlighted that BlackRock’s IBIT ETF logged one billion dollars in volume during its first half hour of trading.
THE VANGUARD EFFECT: Bitcoin jumps 6% right around US open on first day after bitcoin ETF ban lifted. Coincidence? I think not. Also $1b in IBIT volume in first 30min of trading. I knew those Vanguardians had a little degen in them, even some of the most conservative investors… pic.twitter.com/OKyihvEqqD
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) December 2, 2025
Vanguard’s shift coincided with a similar change at Bank of America. The bank reportedly informed advisers across Merrill, Private Bank, and Merrill Edge that clients may now allocate one to four percent of their portfolios to crypto. This marks a significant reversal for a network of more than fifteen thousand advisers who had been restricted from recommending digital asset products.
Leaders in the sector pointed to these developments as signs of structural change. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley called the timing a classic indicator of a market that has yet to fully appreciate positive news. Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan added that during down periods, progress often piles up quietly and later fuels stronger rallies.
Momentum also grew around expectations for lower interest rates. The CME FedWatch tool shows an 87.2 percent chance of a quarter-point cut at the Federal Reserve’s December 10 meeting, up from 63 percent a month earlier. Only 12.8 percent of traders expect the Fed to hold its current target range. Looser liquidity prospects offered a broader lift to risk assets, including cryptocurrencies.
Several major altcoins joined the rally. ADA rose about 14.5 percent, while Solana gained 11 percent. LINK advanced more than 12 percent, helped by the debut of Grayscale’s Chainlink ETF on NYSE Arca. The launch gave U.S. investors their first spot product tied to LINK and added fuel to an already active day for oracle-focused projects.
On the regulatory front, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said on CNBC’s Squawk Box that the agency is preparing an “innovation exemption” and expects to finally move forward with long-awaited crypto rulemaking within the next month. He described the effort as part of a wider plan to modernize U.S. capital markets regulations.
The latest shift in sentiment and policy suggests a market finding its footing again. Whether the momentum lasts will depend on how investors respond to evolving rules, fresh ETF accessibility, and the Fed’s next move. For now, traders appear more confident that the next chapter could be brighter.
