ETH/USD: Ethereum Surges 10% to Break Recent Top, Outshines Bitcoin for the Week

Second-largest coin pulled ahead of Bitcoin on the week with prices surging as much as 10% on Wednesday.

• Ethereum ETHUSD broke above $3,600 per coin on Wednesday, pumping as much as 10% on the day. The powerful upside swing kicked Ether out of a weekly loss, leaving its big bro Bitcoin languishing in the red paint for the week. Bitcoin is down about 3% since Monday, while Ether is higher by 7% and on track to log its second straight week of gains. Still, both coins boast hefty gains this month.
• Since Election Day on November 5, Ether is higher by about 46% and Bitcoin is up by roughly 40% for the same time span. Behind the big push to the upside is President-elect Donald Trump’s friendly policies for the crypto industry. All that good stuff is backed by crypto proponents placed in all the right places. The US Congress now flexes tens of digital-asset supporters and the SEC might get a crypto bro to lead its efforts after Gary Gensler steps down on Inauguration Day.
• There’s more to that — Elon Musk is about to head the DOGE department (Department of Government Efficiency), which will aim to clean up the federal government’s excessive spending and rein in costs across its many departments. Against this backdrop, volatility could be expected in the leadup to January 20 when Trump will officially step into the White House.