Here's a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Wednesday (April 22) as of 10:00 a.m. UTC.
Get the latest insights on Bitcoin, Ether and altcoins, along with a round-up of key cryptocurrencymarket news
Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$78,024.52, up by 3.1 percent over the last 24 hours.
Chart via TradingView
Bitcoin price performance, April 22, 2026.
Bitcoin is roaring back to life, briefly surging past US$78,400 on Wednesday to clock its highest valuation since early February.
The market-wide rally was sparked by President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would extend the ongoing ceasefire agreement with Iran. The diplomatic breather injected a massive dose of confidence into global markets, lifting equities and pushing Brent crude past US$99 a barrel.
Despite volatility, the flagship cryptocurrency has proved remarkably resilient throughout the Middle East conflict, outperforming traditional safe havens like gold over the same period. Technical analysts are currently eyeing the US$72,000 to US$75,000 range as a fortified support floor, noting that a clean breakout above the psychological US$80,000 barrier could trigger substantial momentum.
Institutional capital is also flooding back into the space to chase the rally. US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs have already absorbed over US$250 million in net inflows this week, hot on the heels of nearly US$1 billion in fresh capital recorded the week prior.
Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,387.42, up by 4.5 percent over the last 24 hours.
Altcoin price update
- XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.45, up by 1.5 percent over 24 hours.
- Solana (SOL) was trading at US$88.33, trading 3.8 percent higher over the past 24 hours.
Today's crypto news to know
Tron founder drags Trump-linked crypto project to federal court
The escalating feud between Tron founder Justin Sun and the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial has officially spilled into federal court.
Sun, who became the project's largest individual backer after dropping $75 million on WLFI tokens late last year, filed a lawsuit in California on Tuesday (April 21). He alleges the development team maliciously blacklisted his wallet, stripped his voting rights, and threatened to unilaterally destroy his holdings without any formal recourse.
The relationship initially soured last September when the project froze his assets after he allegedly moved portions of his stack, an action Sun claims was done with absolutely no intent to sell.
The billionaire investor has publicly accused World Liberty leadership of acting as bad faith operators who baked a secret confiscation backdoor into the protocol's smart contracts.
The high-profile controversy has absolutely decimated investor confidence in the platform. The WLFI token is currently trading around US$0.08, a 76 percent collapse from its all-time high.
US$418 million short squeeze ignites altcoin breakouts
A sudden upward surge in Bitcoin's price has caught bearish traders completely off guard, triggering a brutal US$418 million liquidation event across the crypto derivatives market.
With the leading digital asset pushing toward the US$78,000 mark, over US$286 million in leveraged short positions were forcibly closed out over a single 24-hour period. This mechanical short-covering has created a tailwind for the broader altcoin sector as capital begins rotating further out on the risk curve.
The Pudgy Penguins-themed meme coin, PENGU, capitalized heavily on the momentum, posting double-digit gains of over 12 percent, while established networks like Cosmos and Aptos also enjoyed significant daily bumps.
Despite the price action, market analysts are warning that the rally's foundation remains highly dependent on Bitcoin maintaining its current stability. Analysts point to a formidable resistance wall waiting at US$83,000, which represents the critical breakeven point for a massive cohort of institutional spot ETF buyers.
British financial watchdog raids undercover crypto trading rings
Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is ramping up its offensive against unregulated digital asset operators, executing a coordinated sweep across eight suspected illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading hubs in London.
Reuters reported that the operation saw the financial regulator team up directly with local police and tax officials to issue formal cease and desist orders at every targeted location. Investigators suspect these decentralized peer-to-peer networks, which deliberately bypass centralized, compliant exchanges, are actively providing pathways for criminals to launder funds and finance illicit activities.
The FCA noted that evidence seized during the on-site inspections is already being funneled into several ongoing criminal investigations.
Currently, operating a peer-to-peer crypto brokerage requires strict registration in the UK, yet authorities confirm there is not a single legally registered entity of this kind currently operating in the country.
The crackdown conveniently coincides with the regulator's push for broader, comprehensive rules governing the entire crypto industry, which are slated to take full effect by October 2027.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
