Bitcoin and a cluster of leading altcoins edged higher as geopolitical risk cooled, lifting appetite for risk assets in crypto markets. Bitcoin rose to around $73,200 from a weekly dip near $72,000, while the total crypto market capitalization lifted to roughly $2.47 trillion, according to Invezz data.
Stellar (XLM) surged 18% in the last 24 hours to about $0.2160, its highest level since January 26 and roughly 45% above its weekly trough. Hedera (HBAR) advanced for a second straight session, trading near $0.091, its highest since May 16. Hyperliquid (HYPE) vaulted to $61.70, more than double its year-to-date low of $20. Other notable gainers included Humanity, DeXe, Algorand, and Cardano’s Midnight.
Key takeaways
- Bitcoin up to about $73,200 amid easing tensions and a broader risk-on tilt in crypto markets.
- Stellar climbs 18% on news of a major partnership with DTCC, signaling potential asset-tokenization expansion.
- Hyperliquid leaps beyond $60 as ETF inflows and network growth support momentum; the token remains among the year’s standout movers.
- Hedera recovers on dip-buying with no obvious catalyst, highlighting selective demand within established layer-one ecosystems.
What drove the move
The strongest impulse came from a reduction in geopolitical risk, with investors parsing a softer backdrop between the United States and Iran. That shift contributed to a broader risk-on mood, benefiting marquee crypto assets as traders rotated into tokens viewed as high-beta plays within a still-evolving macro backdrop.
A separate driver for Stellar’s run was a strategic partnership announced with the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). The collaboration aims to bring tokenized traditional assets onto the Stellar network and enable the full asset lifecycle, including reporting, with tokenized assets slated for availability in the first half of next year. Stellar described DTCC as “the backbone of global capital markets,” and emphasized the potential to connect public blockchain networks to regulated market infrastructure.
The DTCC partnership comes as more blue-chip institutions explore Stellar’s technology. Notable names cited include Franklin Templeton, WisdomTree, Janus Henderson, and Ondo. In addition, data showed Growth in its Real-World Asset (RWA) ecosystem, with tokenized asset value rising 14% over the past 30 days to $1.82 billion, and RWA transactions up 67% to $294 million. This asset-class momentum adds a practical narrative to the price action in XLM, underscoring a shift from speculative hype toward real-world utility.
Market reaction
The market’s reaction to the DTCC news underpins a broader narrative around tokenization and regulated infrastructure integration. While Stellar led the charge among major movers, gains were observed across other ecosystem tokens as traders priced in longer-term adoption potential alongside near-term liquidity improvements.
Hyperliquid’s rally has been driven by a confluence of factors tied to the platform’s expanding use case and a surge in related ETF products. The HYPE price has moved from around $20 earlier this year to $61.70, a trajectory that has boosted its market capitalization to over $15.6 billion, placing it among the more prominent players in the crypto space. The rally has been supported by continued inflows into Hyperliquid-linked exchange-traded products, with BHYPE (Bitwise) and THYP (21Shares) reporting meaningful asset growth. BHYPE has added more than $65 million in assets, while THYP has gained about $56 million, and BHYPE now accounts for roughly $122 million in assets under management.
In tandem with the price action, the Hyperliquid network is seeing higher activity, which has elevated on-chain fees and contributed to token buybacks and burns. Supporters point to a constructive pattern in the chart, with some noting a cup-and-handle formation that could signal more durable upside if demand persists.
Bigger picture
Hedera’s price rebound to around $0.091 underscores ongoing dispersion within the broader market. The token has benefited from dip-buying after a period of consolidation, but it also faces headwinds rooted in ecosystem metrics. Notably, Hedera’ s total value locked has fallen to roughly $53 million from last year’s high near $213 million, and its on-chain chain-fee activity dropped to about $53,000 in Q1 from a year-ago peak of roughly $206,000, illustrating a more fragile near-term growth trajectory for the network despite a recent price uptick.
Taken together, the moves reflect a nuanced environment where investors are balancing macro risk sentiment with sector-specific catalysts—ranging from major regulatory-leaning partnerships to ETF-driven inflows and on-chain activity dynamics. The DTCC collaboration, if it progresses as outlined, could deepen the alignment between traditional financial markets and blockchain ecosystems, potentially widening the scope for more asset classes to be tokenized on public networks.
What’s next for markets will depend on a mix of geopolitical developments, regulatory signals, and the pace at which real-world asset tokenization scales across major infrastructures. Investors will be watching for any updates on the DTCC–Stellar rollout timeline, further ETF data, and any fresh incentives or product launches that could sustain momentum across BTC, XLM, HYPE, and related ecosystems.
Upcoming milestones to monitor include regulatory clarifications around tokenized assets, developments in the real-world asset space, and the continued evolution of crypto ETFs and their liquidity. The trajectory of macro data—especially inflation and rate expectations—could also influence risk appetite for crypto assets in the near term.
