Bitcoin Surges to $81,080 Amid SEC's Tokenized Stocks 'Windfall'

As of 5:56 a.m. KST on May 19, according to Coin360, Bitcoin (BTC) traded at $81,080, surging 5.93% from the previous day with a market share of 58.51%. Ethereum (ETH) rose 7.34% to $2,632, while XRP climbed 7.91% to $1.

Altcoins saw double-digit gains, led by NEAR at $4 (+32.48%), UNI at $9 (+18.37%), SOL up 12.12%, HYPE +10.5%, XMR +9.88%, LINK +8.76%, and BNB +3.92%.

CoinDesk reported that U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s announcement of a five-year 'innovation exception' allowing tokenized stock trading on May 17 spurred strong gains in DeFi-related assets, coinciding with a risk-on market shift following easing interest rate concerns. NEAR continued its rise despite overheating signals from network fee surges.

TRX rose 1.07% to $0.34, while ADA traded at $0.22. ZEC, which surged the previous day, edged up 0.98% to $1,503 as it paused for breath.