The cryptocurrency markets continued their post-tax day climb on Friday, as 97 of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies posted gains against the US dollar. The rally enabled the Bitcoin price to crack the $8,500 barrier, but the Ripple price was the true headliner, leaping more than 20 percent during intraday trading. Source: CoinMarketCapAltogether, the rally enabled the cryptocurrency market cap to climb by more than $25 billion to $373.8 billion — a single-day gain of 7.4 percent. Bitcoin Price Cracks $8,500The Bitcoin price trailed the index for the day, but an early morning bounce nevertheless propelled it past the $8,500 threshold to a present value of $8,514 on Bitfinex. Bitcoin now has a $144.5 billion market cap, which translates into a 24-hour increase of three percent. Bitcoin Price ChartThis movement is largely in line with recent forecasts from Fundstrat Global Advisors and Pantera Capital, each of whom predicted that a reduction in tax-based selling would likely lead to a Bitcoin price bump in the short-term and a new all-time high by the end of the year. Notably, though, Bitcoin dominance has declined to 38.7 percent, its lowest point since late February. Ethereum Price Beats the IndexThe Ethereum price, meanwhile, managed to beat the index by two full percentage points. The second-largest cryptocurrency rose by nine percent for the day, raising its price to a present value of $589 on Bitfinex. Ethereum now has a $58.1 billion market cap. Ethereum Price ChartRipple Leaps 20 PercentThe Ripple price was the large-cap altcoin index’s true headliner. The San Francisco-based company’s XRP token leaped by more than 20 percent on Friday, peaking above $0.87 on Bitstamp. Ripple now has a $34.1 billion market cap. Ripple Price ChartSmooth Sailing for AltcoinsThe remaining top-tier altcoins made a comprehensive advance as well, with every cryptocurrency in the top 10 climbing by at least three percent. Source: CoinMarketCapThe Bitcoin Cash price achieved a 17 percent rally, which among large caps was second only to Ripple. The advanced enabled BCH to cross the psychologically-significant $1,000 threshold, and it is now valued at a global average of $1,051. Litecoin, meanwhile, rose seven percent to just under $150. However, it faces a renewed challenge for the fifth spot in the market cap rankings from EOS, which increased by 11 percent to $10.17. The Stellar price rose four percent for the day, and it is now valued at $0.37. XLM now has a market cap that is slightly above $7 billion. The IOTA price posted a 13 percent leap and is now trading at $1.90, while NEO rose three percent to $75.28 to round out the top 10. Featured image from Shutterstock