The value of BTC rose by 20% overnight amid a significant fall in the stock quotations of several regional and national banks in the U.S.
On Monday, March 13, the quotes of the KBW Nasdaq banking index fell by 11.66% during the trading session, according to Google Finance. Against this background, according to CoinGecko, the value of the first cryptocurrency rose by about 20% overnight. Altcoins followed BTC, meaning that the total capitalization of the crypto market increased by 6%.
In addition to the problems in the banking sector, Bitcoin’s growth was also facilitated by the launch of futures trading at CME Group, the largest financial derivatives market in North America. During the first trading session, 550,000 contracts on BTC’s future value were sold.
However, a sharp increase in the price of BTC started at the exact moment as trading on the New York Stock Exchange, which marked a strong decline in quotes of various U.S. banks. Regional banks were hit the hardest:
- First Republic Bank fell 62%.
- Western Alliance Bancorp lost 47%.
- PacWest Bancorp dropped 21%.
Other regional banks that fell more than 20% on Monday included Charles Schwab & Co., Customers Bancorp Inc., Comerica Inc., and Zions Bancorp NA. Massive sell-offs caused numerous trading stoppages, and the drop levels for many of the banks were record-breaking.
Quotes of the largest U.S. banks also fell. Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., and Wells Fargo & Co. lost 5% or more on Monday, while JPMorgan Chase fell 3%. The destabilization of the U.S. banking sector was affected by the “voluntary liquidation” of Silvergate Bank, as well as the closures by government regulators of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
