Crypto Market Edges Higher in October Opener

The crypto market kicked off October with a modest gain, with the total market cap rising 1.02% to $2.89 trillion. Bitcoin led the way, adding 1.08% to break above the $84,000 range, while Ethereum surged 1.58%. However, not all signals were green, as crypto ETFs saw a combined $200 million in net outflows, led by Bitcoin funds.

The market's cautious tone was fueled by a range of factors, including a security incident affecting MetaMask, which announced it was responding to a compromise in its infrastructure. Bitget also reported a breach, tracing it to a zero-day flaw in a third-party security product. Despite these challenges, the market held firm, with the Fear & Greed Index reading 68, in the Greed zone.

Another key development was the launch of Open USD, a new stablecoin backed by major payment networks and liquidity providers. The coin's founding partners, including Coinbase, Mastercard, and Visa, hold equal equity and have committed over $1 billion in liquidity support.

Regulatory concerns also weighed on the market, as EU regulators pressed Binance over its use of a legal exemption to serve customers in the bloc. Meanwhile, a new Senate crypto tax bill, the ADAPT Act, was introduced, which would provide tax relief on qualifying stablecoin payments and drop gain or loss rules for network fees of $10 or less.