Political rancor hands crypto a landslide victory; majors, alts unitedly crushing it

With the crypto world transfixed by Bitcoin's sudden breakout – BTC has shot up 15% in the past week to roughly $15,600 – there are suddenly signs that altcoins, likewise, are ready to rock.

In recent days, the altcoin market broadly has seen its market capitalization increase 10% to more than $150 billion. Almost all of the largest altcoins enjoyed impressive gains this week (Coingape)

XRP was up 7.5% over the 24 hours ending Friday 8 a.m. (EST). During the same period: LINK was up 12%; DOT was up 10%; LTC, up 11%; ADA, 14%.

Lark Davis, of TheCryptoLark, on Thursday night tweeted: "This #bitcoin pump is super fun to watch, but it will be nothing compared to the insane #altcoin rally that will follow when the big boy finally takes a nap!"

BTC and ETH have been killing it during the past 48 hours. Looking ahead, the trend could lead to DeFi reigniting. UNI was exploding well back above $2, up 35% in 24 hours ending 9 a.m. Friday (EST).

Looking back … it’s hard to look.

The DeFi Composite Index, launched by Binance Futures in August, is hurting, according to a Binance report released Thursday.

The index as of the start of November is down to $400 from highs of $1,200, a 60% decline.

Most DeFi tokens have erased between 70% and 90% of their gains since September (Cointelegraph).

As of Friday morning, the free world was still waiting for clarity as far as future leadership.

The crypto rally this week was like a nuclear beacon slicing through the dense fog of a down-to-the-wire U.S. presidential election. Perhaps it reaffirmed that digital coinage has staying power.

Blockchain may even have a role in the transfer of power. A secure, transparent blockchain system could help trace mail-in ballots, BlockchainNews points out. The U.S. Postal Service has already patented such a system to securitize the voting process.

President Donald Trump has cast doubt on mail-in votes still being counted well into Friday morning, with former Vice President Joe Biden taking the lead in the key state of Pennsylvania. In a tirade Thursday, Trump hurled allegations of rigged voting and a coordinated effort against him coming from "Big Tech."

Trump’s campaign website was briefly compromised in the days prior to the election, as hackers tried to trick supporters into parting with some digital cash (CoinDesk).

With a path to electoral victory narrowing, Trump will look to his base for financial donations as he unleashes a torrent of lawsuits, suing to stop vote counting.

Could Trump win the election in court?

On Wednesday, Rutgers Law Professor Stacy Hawkins categorized that outcome as “a very likely possibility,” in a nod to the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court’s openness to hearing arguments concerning votes coming through the mail.