Solana Turns Meme Market into Dead Sea

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Solana’s price performance has been awful this week. The asset has dropped by 8% over the last day and 20% over the week.

February saw a severe blow to the meme coin market, with several popular Solana-based tokens seeing a more than 50% decline in value. Once regarded as this cycle’s top performers, these tokens posted significant sell-offs and waning interest. Many tokens are far lower than their peak values because of this collapse.

A lengthy five-wave corrective structure can be seen on the 4-hour chart, which began after SOL hit its highest point in January at $294.50.

The price has been making lower highs and lower lows in a clearly defined descending channel. Wave (v), the last leg of this correction, aligned with the 1.0 Fibonacci extension of the previous corrective wave and reached a critical support zone at $161.8.

A new bullish phase would be confirmed if SOL could break above the descending trendline resistance, at $175. Failing to do so, though, might lead to another rejection and possibly force the price back toward the $160–$165 range for a retest before a last breakout attempt.

In addition, its value has decreased by roughly 40% from its peak in January, and it is currently trading below $170 from early November. Cardano’s native token has also dropped significantly over the last day, dropping more than 6% to less than $0.75.

Ripple’s XRP Melts Like Ice Under Fire

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Ripple’s cross-border token was the talk of the town, but it hasn’t been able to build on its momentum and has fallen 5% every day to just over $2.5.

The market reaction shows this month has been the opposite compared to January when whales aggressively amassed over $1.05 billion in XRP, driven by wallets holding between 100 million and 1 billion coins. There hasn’t been any “major” accumulation in sight.

Traders become uncertain and doubt the market’s direction because of these missed significant moves. The next few days will be critical in deciding whether or not investors put more money into the Ripple-based token, not amid weak risk appetite in the crypto market.

There is no retail FOMO, and with the absence of whale support, Ripple could retest the $2.45 or drop below it.

Recent declines in the price of XRP have been attributed to general market patterns in which significant cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum also saw drops.

This implies a strong correlation between XRP’s performance and the state of the cryptocurrency market as a whole. Profit-Taking: Following a sizable rally, investors frequently sell off their holdings to realize gains.

XRP Ledger Problems: X posts and reports have indicated that the XRP Ledger often had technical issues, such as a halt in block production. Such occurrences have the potential to erode investor confidence and cause price declines because they may be interpreted as an indication of instability

Nigeria plans to tax Crypto industry by licensing Crypto exchanges

Posted on February 18, 2025February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

The federal government has plans to tax cryptocurrency transactions as part of larger measures to increase government revenue. The tax framework bill is being reviewed and is anticipated to be passed this quarter.

The SEC intends to establish a formal tax system for qualified cryptocurrency transactions on regulated exchanges. However, the financial watchdog did not provide precise numbers, it acknowledged the “substantial amount of tax revenue that will accrue from cryptocurrency transactions.”.

The SEC plans to grant additional licenses for centralized cryptocurrency exchanges in addition to taxation. The financial regulator thinks these exchanges will provide superior investor protection and monitoring capabilities.

Lawmakers are considering a bill to tax cryptocurrency transactions. It is anticipated that this bill will be approved this quarter.

The Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that it is also seeking to expand cryptocurrency licensing by granting licenses to cryptocurrency exchanges to monitor and tax transactions. The federal agency believes that this will also boost investor comfort and confidence.

When the SEC of Nigeria granted its first license to a cryptocurrency exchange in August 2024, it marked the start of regulatory oversight and clarity for cryptocurrencies in the African country.

The SEC intended to begin enforcement actions against unregulated exchanges later, in September 2024; however, at that time, there were only two regulated exchanges in the nation.

The watchdog anticipates that centralized exchanges will progressively become more popular because of the improved guarantees and protections they provide to investors.

This comes after international scrutiny of Nigeria’s handling of crypto-related issues and the country’s increasing adoption of crypto assets

Nigeria’s FG budget calls for spending of N55 trillion ($36.4 billion), and cryptocurrency taxes, viewed as a possible source of extra funding to help reach these goals.

Nigeria has led the way in adopting cryptocurrencies. Eighty-four percent of Nigerian respondents to Consensys’ 2024 Perception Survey claimed to have a cryptocurrency wallet. Chainalysis ranked Nigeria No. 1 in its October 2024 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report and No. 2 in the world for cryptocurrency adoption, demonstrating Nigeria’s desire for decentralized finance

XRP Price Down 15% Despite ETF Optimism and SEC Shake Up – Ripple at $2 or $3 First?

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Skerdian Meta

The XRP price failed to hold above the 50 SMA and has reversed lower to $2.50, which is right at the middle of the $2-$3 range, which defies the bullish or bearish sentiment.

Continue reading “XRP Price Down 15% Despite ETF Optimism and SEC Shake Up – Ripple at $2 or $3 First?” →

Forex Signals Brief Feb 18: RBA Cuts Rates, Canada Inflation Next!

Posted on February 18, 2025February 18, 2025 by Skerdian Meta

The Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates today, while later, CPI inflation is expected to show an increase in Canada for January.

Continue reading “Forex Signals Brief Feb 18: RBA Cuts Rates, Canada Inflation Next!” →

Cardano, Ripple, Coinbase React as DOGE investigate SEC

Posted on February 18, 2025February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Crypto executives responded to the DOGE audit of the SEC including Coinbase CLO Paul Grewal and Ripple CLO Stuart Alderoty.

Grewal notably offered a tip on how the government can address SEC fraud, waste, and abuse.

He believes a new rule should mandate that the SEC pay the legal fees and costs of defendants who win a case against the agency.

Alderoty, meanwhile, said, “I have the receipts,” implying that he has proof that might point to the SEC’s wrongdoing. Coinbase and Ripple are involved in separate lawsuits against the SEC, which is worth mentioning.

The Ripple case is being appealed, but the Coinbase lawsuit is still pending in a district court. Alderoty and Grewal have been outspoken opponents of the SEC’s litigation strategy and regulatory approach, arguing that it stifles American innovation.

Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, is excited following the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) investigation into the SEC.

The Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk, hinted in a tweet on Monday that it was looking into the SEC to possibly uncover fraud, waste, and abuse within the securities organization.

The action comes after DOGE established several X accounts for federal agencies, such as the IRS and the SEC.

The DOGE account, which was primarily focused on the SEC, notably requested public support in exposing agency misconduct, especially fraud, abuse, and waste. It requests the public send direct messages to support the current inquiry.

Top stakeholders like Hoskinson have responded to the DOGE investigation into the SEC, which attracted attention in the crypto community. In response, the founder of Cardano posted a GIF of a happy man with the words “so happy.”.

Nonetheless, some of these issues are being addressed by the recently appointed SEC leadership. Through its crypto task force, it is also working to create fair and transparent regulations for the sector.

Traders Dump Solana amid FTX Repayment

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Solana posted significant losses, in the aftermath of reports that FTX will start returning tokens to creditors from its 2022 collapse, beginning with those who owned $50,000 or less.

Investor reactions to the report were not uniform; some believed such was negative for the cryptocurrency market.

The now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX is set to start its first round of creditor reimbursements after collapsing in late 2022. As part of FTX’s ongoing bankruptcy deal, the exchange will begin making payments to its creditors this week. The official refund process is scheduled for Tuesday

FTX’s restructuring proposal states that Convenience Class creditors with claims under $50,000 will benefit first.

In addition to the entire repayment, they will receive 9% yearly interest after the petition.

There is still disagreement, however, some people think cash inflow could raise market values.

Markus Thielen, the head of 10x Research, stated in a client note made public on Monday that “FTX will allocate roughly $1.2 billion to Convenience Class creditors […] too tiny to move the market

The March 1 unlock event for Solana (SOL) is quickly approaching, releasing 112 million tokens valued at roughly $207 billion.

Notably, this represents a significant cliff unlock, or 2:29 percent of the supply. Traders expect more volatility through mid-March as the cryptocurrency market responds to this development. Technical indicators, meanwhile, point to a bearish outlook, supporting the ambiguity surrounding SOL’s price movement.

SEC to Stop Ripple’s XRP Appeal

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Former SEC Internet Enforcement Office director John Reed Stark thinks the agency will soon halt the Ripple appeal.

“Expect all crypto-related appeals, including the appeal of the Ripple matter, to pause or even more likely, to be fully withdrawn,” he stated.

This follows the SEC’s apparent suspension of the Coinbase case. Stunning Narratives Soon, the SEC will pause the ripple appeal.

The SEC recently informed the Second Circuit that it may be able to resolve its enforcement case against the top US cryptocurrency exchange with the assistance of its recently established crypto force.

The SEC pleaded for a two-month halt in the Binance case earlier in February. Following SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda’s appointment on January 20 as the agency’s interim head made significant changes

Last month, the SEC established a task group dedicated to cryptocurrency to establish unambiguous regulations for the sector. Reed Stark highlighted that the SEC’s cryptocurrency division was “dead and buried.”

Jorge Tenreiro, the senior litigator at the SEC, was recently demoted by the agency’s new leadership.

“I suppose that winning cases is not a sign of success under the new SEC environment. Rather, it is more deserving of disbandment and a Scarlet Letter,” he declared. Stark now thinks that all official and informal SEC crypto-related investigations will come to a “screeching halt.”

Solana interest falls as Libra, TRUMP Kills Liquidity

Posted on February 17, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Solana, the sixth largest cryptocurrency by market valuation, was down 6% in the last 24 hours to $175 at press time against the broader crypto market’s losses posted huge losses as Bitcoin dipped below $96K.

Traders’ sentiment on the altcoin turned bearish as the mood declined amid growing meme coin controversies on the network.

On-chain analytics platform LookOnChain reports that in only one week, $772 million worth of USDT and USDC stablecoins left the Solana blockchain. Ethereum’s supply of USDT and USDC rose by $1.1 billion in the same time frame.

The ratio of long to short SOL bets on cryptocurrency futures exchanges fell from 4 to 2.5 on February 17, suggesting a marketwide inclination toward bearishness on SOL.

Crypto market influencer Tyler Durden, who goes by a pseudonym, stated, “The market has decided it is angry at Solana’.

Durden added that Binance’s ratio concerning short-to-long holdings increased to 4-1, indicating an overbalance of bearish bets, citing data from the company’s perpetual futures trading platform.

Libra (LIBRA), a cryptocurrency that appeared to be supported by Argentina President Javier Milei, wiped over $4.4 billion in market capitalization within hours of its inception on February 14

Milei erased her post after first promoting the coin on X. In Argentina, he is currently being sued for allegedly disappointing investors.

$2 billion has been lost by traders on 800,000 wallets of Official Trump (TRUMP), the official memecoin of US President Donald Trump, since January.

TRUMP’s fully diluted value has plummeted over 75% from its peak of over $70 billion to about $17 billion as of February 17.

Bitcoin’s institutional adoption high

Posted on February 17, 2025February 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Investor caution over monetary policy tightening and its potential impact on risky assets has caused Bitcoin to struggle with volatility in recent weeks.

The latest US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for January, which was released last week, indicated that inflation continued to rise above the objective of 2 percent, suggesting that the Federal Reserve may continue to retain its hawkish posture for longer than anticipated.

Price action shows Bitcoin bulls and other risk-sensitive assets in jeopardy because higher interest rates often make investors less inclined to make speculative investments. The Fed’s position on Bitcoin and increased institutional interest, give the market hope. The present asset price fell below the $95.5K market.

Institutional adoption high

According to US SEC filings, global asset managers, including wealth management firms, hedge funds, and pension funds, increased their allocations to US exchange-traded funds linked to the price of bitcoin in the fourth quarter of 2024, as the price of the largest cryptocurrency in the world rose 47%.

In its quarterly 13-F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Wisconsin State Investment Board reported that as of December 31, its holdings in bitcoin ETFs had more than doubled to 6 million shares of the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF IBIT.O.
Tudor Investment Corp. is a systematic hedge fund manager with $55 billion under management, iShares ETFs exposure grew from 4.5 million to eight million units.

The value of those holdings increased from $159.9 million at the end of September to $426.9 million in tandem with the surge of Bitcoin.

Mubadala Investment Co., an Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund, has revealed its first foray into bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). 8.2 million shares of the iShares ETF were worth $436.9 million in the fourth quarter.

Historical trends linked to a crucial indicator suggest that bitcoin (BTC) has plenty of potential to rise, especially as rising US inflation could threaten the current increase.