Bitcoin is rising after regaining the $68,000 level. Coin360 data at 5:20 a.m. on Aug. 20 showed bitcoin (BTC) at $68,610, up 6.16 percent from a day earlier. Bitcoin's market share was tallied at 58.84 percent.

Major altcoins also mostly rose. Ethereum (ETH) climbed 10.48 percent to $2,113.77, and Ripple (XRP) rose 6.67 percent to $1.069. Solana (SOL) gained 6.76 percent to $82.38. BNB rose 2.38 percent to $617.26.

Some tokens fell. Tron (TRX) slipped 0.3 percent to $0.3322, while Leo (LEO) fell 2.13 percent to $9.2756 and Monero (XMR) dropped 4.21 percent to $419.929.

Among other major tokens, Hyperliquid (HYPE) jumped 13.57 percent to $69.4003 and Steter (STETH) rose 9.49 percent to $2,075.63. Chainlink (LINK) gained 4.18 percent to $10.14, and Zcash (ZEC) rose 3.52 percent to $553.22.

The surge was triggered by two pieces of good news overlapping. On Aug. 18, the SEC proposed a new rule dubbed "Regulation Crypto Asset" that includes exemptions for startup fundraising, and the next day, Aug. 19, President Trump invited the CEOs of Coinbase, Ripple, Gemini, Robinhood, Polymarket and Kalshi, as well as the chairmen of the CFTC and SEC, to the White House to hold the highest-level crypto summit of his current term.

News of a U.S. Treasury buyback of government bonds also added to the move, drawing buying across risk assets. About $2 billion of crypto positions were liquidated during the surge, and crypto-related stocks such as Strategy and Bitmine also rose by around 10 percent.

The CLARITY Act remains uncertain. On Polymarket, the probability of passage in 2026 is stuck in the 10 to 20 percent range, and the bill is set for a vote next month. Expectations that the SEC's new rule could provide regulatory clarity regardless of whether the bill passes are seen as supporting this rally. The Jackson Hole symposium scheduled for Aug. 27 to 29 is cited as the next key variable.