Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | March 18, 2024

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Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Market Trends and Analysis

• Bitcoin's Resilient Surge Amid Market Fluctuations
• Ethereum Holds Strong Despite Price Dip
• Bitcoin ETFs Draw Unprecedented Interest
• Digital Assets See Record Inflows
• Solana Overtakes BNB Amid Memecoin Frenzy

Project Updates and Controversies

• Controversy Surrounds Ether.Fi's Airdrop
• Reddit's MOON Token and IPO Stir Interest
• Cardano Progresses Amid Skepticism
• Shiba Inu Community Anticipates Metaverse Update
• Coinbase's Base Network Booms

Financial Products and Innovations

• Kalshi Bets on Crypto's Future
• Coti's Airdrop Sparks Excitement
• Worldcoin Focuses on Compliance
• Arbitrum Faces Token Unlock Challenges
• Fantom's Remarkable Turnaround

Legal and Regulatory Developments

• Attestor Capital Sues Lemma Technologies
• Figure Technologies Launches Decentralized Exchange
• Chiliz Partners for Fantasy Football Game
• Milady's Memecoin Phenomenon
• Starbucks Ends NFT Loyalty Program
• Bitcoin NFTs Gain Traction

Bitcoin's Resilient Surge Amid Market Fluctuations

Bitcoin's landscape is marked by significant events and trends as it navigates through volatility and anticipation towards its next halving. Bitcoin reclaimed $67,000 at the time of writing, driven by memecoin market surge and macroeconomic concerns, indicating a volatile yet optimistic market sentiment. The FOMC meeting and the forthcoming Bitcoin halving are central focal points, hinting at a possible pre-halving price retracement. Key economic data releases this week, alongside Fed decisions, could impact Bitcoin's price direction. 

A notable shift sees Bitcoin whales and sharks accumulating, contrasting with smaller holders selling, suggesting a diverging market sentiment. The Bitcoin sentiment has cooled, potentially setting the stage for a rebound amidst growing short-term holder activity, emphasizing the market's fluctuating dynamics. With the Bitcoin halving in April, analysts advise caution, predicting a new era of scarcity as over 93% of Bitcoin has been mined, signaling tighter supply and potentially higher volatility and price movements.

Ethereum Holds Strong Despite Price Dip

Despite a recent 11% dip in price, around 89% of ETH holders remain in profit as the cryptocurrency trades around $3,500. The Ethereum network saw positive dynamics post-Dencun upgrade, with increasing transactions and staking activity, though analysts predicted a correction. The largest on-chain sell volume for ETH is at $3,700. Altcoin market resilience is evident as the Total3 index, excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum, hits a new high, signaling investor confidence and the potential for a "mania phase." Ethereum-based altcoins and major Layer 1 projects like Tron, Near, and Solana show robust performance, with significant Ether netflow from exchanges indicating a bullish outlook.

Bitcoin ETFs Draw Unprecedented Interest

Bitcoin ETFs have attracted record inflows, with $2.5 billion in a week, signaling strong market demand. The trend seems largely driven by retail investors, with average trade sizes suggesting nonprofessional investor participation. However, a potential bitcoin price correction looms if ETF inflows disappoint, with forecasts suggesting a drop to $59,000. Meanwhile, the SEC's scrutiny toward upcoming crypto-based ETFs, especially for Ether, is expected to increase, casting uncertainty on the approval of Ether ETFs despite the innovation and upgrades on the Ethereum network.

Digital Assets See Record Inflows

Digital assets hit a record $2.9 billion in weekly inflows, led by Bitcoin's $2.86 billion. Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon saw minor outflows. Crypto investment products have seen inflows for seven consecutive weeks, pushing year-to-date inflows to $13.2 billion, surpassing 2021's total. Global trading volume for digital assets reached $43 billion, outperforming Bitcoin by 47%.  

Solana Overtakes BNB Amid Memecoin Frenzy

Solana's surge led to a $3.802 billion DEX volume and a $4.034 billion DeFi TVL. The success of memecoins like BOME drove Solana's market cap beyond BNB, with a $200 price point and widespread social media attention. However, transaction congestion and concerns over memecoin trading integrity caution of potential risks within the vibrant Solana ecosystem.  

Controversy Surrounds Ether.Fi's Airdrop

Ether.Fi faced criticism for its airdrop distribution, particularly around Justin Sun's allocation of approximately 3.5 million ETHFI tokens, about 2% of the initial 60 million tokens. Critics argued this setup favored whales, potentially leaving smaller contributors with minimal rewards. Despite these concerns, supporters believe the distribution incentivizes desired behavior like substantial staking. Meanwhile, the ETHFI token experienced a nearly 30% drop in value shortly after its trading debut on major exchanges, highlighting volatility and market response to the airdrop controversy and broader tokenomics.

Reddit's MOON Token and IPO Stir Interest

Reddit's MOON token reached a record 84 cents ahead of Celer's bridging facility launch before dumping, enabling movement between Arbitrum Nova and One. The Reddit IPO, set for a $6.5 billion valuation, saw shares oversubscribed by four to five times, with a range of $31-$34 per share, highlighting strong investor interest despite a net loss of $90.8 million in 2023. Concurrently, Reddit faces an FTC probe over a $60 million AI data deal with Google, which could impact its IPO, showcasing the intersection of AI, cryptocurrency, and regulatory challenges in tech innovation.

Cardano Progresses Amid Skepticism

Cardano's founder, Charles Hoskinson, refuted claims that the Hydra project was abandoned, emphasizing its progress and community engagement. Despite skepticism regarding Cardano's delivery on its ambitious roadmap, Hoskinson highlighted achievements like SingularityNET's launch and initiatives in Africa and Mongolia. Contrary to perceptions of low developer interest, Hoskinson rebutted by pointing out the irony in comparing Cardano to Ethereum. Meanwhile, Cardano launched Mehen's USDM, a fiat-backed stablecoin, marking a historic milestone. USDM, unlike previous Cardano tokens, is fully USD-backed, expected to foster ecosystem growth. 

Shiba Inu Community Anticipates Metaverse Update

The Shiba Inu community is eagerly anticipating the SHIB Metaverse update, with the upcoming TREAT token as a major part of it. TREAT aims to offer rewards for SHIB holders, provide liquidity to the SHI stablecoin, and function as the new reward token for ShibaSwap. The recent price surge and increased transaction volume have brought relief to SHIB holders.  

Coinbase's Base Network Booms

The recent Dencun upgrade saw Coinbase's Layer-2 network, Base, experience a remarkable surge, hitting a record of 2 million daily transactions and welcoming 666,866 new users on March 16. This 350% increase was driven by significantly reduced fees, dropping by over 60%, which propelled Base's transaction volumes to new heights.  

Kalshi Bets on Crypto's Future

Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated prediction market in the US, is set to launch betting contracts on the price movements of Bitcoin and Ether. This includes predicting when Bitcoin will hit $100,000, reaching up to $150,000 in 2024, and daily price movements. Clients will use USD for bets, and Kalshi offers event contracts across various sectors.  

Coti's Airdrop Sparks Excitement

Coti has launched a $10 million rewards program for the rollout of Coti v2 tokens via an airdrop campaign starting on March 25. The distribution of 40 million Coti v2 tokens will benefit existing native and ERC-20 COTI holders, along with treasury participants, with rewards based on their involvement in the ecosystem and a total value locked of approximately $98.7 million.  

Worldcoin Focuses on Compliance

Worldcoin, a global digital identity and cryptocurrency project, emphasizes compliance with data protection laws in all operational locations. The platform prohibits minors and assures self-custody of personal information. Despite legal challenges in Spain and a previous ban in Kenya, Worldcoin continues to work towards resuming operations in 2024, with a focus on data privacy and security.

Arbitrum Faces Token Unlock Challenges

After unlocking 1.1 billion tokens valued at $2.32 billion on March 16, Arbitrum experienced a wave of whale token movements, with 11 whales depositing 34 million tokens worth nearly $58 million onto exchanges. This "Cliff Unlock" raised concerns of price depreciation, resulting in a 29% drop from its all-time high and a further upcoming release of 92.65 million tokens.  

Fantom's Remarkable Turnaround

Fantom's resurgence is marked by FTM's 104% price surge in 30 days, hitting $0.974. With a 1,000% trade volume increase and 236% TVL growth since mid-October, Fantom gears up for its Sonic upgrade. Sonic's new smart contract language promises reduced costs, scalability up to 2,000 TPS, and enhanced DeFi and gaming capabilities.   

Attestor Capital Sues Lemma Technologies

Attestor Capital is pursuing legal action against Lemma Technologies over the sale of FTX claims following a dispute arising from a $58 million deal in June 2023. The lawsuit in New York seeks to enforce the initial agreement, underlining the volatility of cryptocurrency markets and potential gains. The case sets a precedent for handling bankruptcy claims and reflects wider legal challenges in the cryptocurrency industry.  

Figure Technologies Launches Decentralized Exchange

Figure Technologies has raised $60 million for a new decentralized exchange, Figure Markets, aiming to rival Coinbase and Binance. Utilizing the Provenance blockchain, it offers a range of securities. The exchange addresses security concerns with multi-party computation wallets. Additionally, Figure is developing a registered security alternative to stablecoins, forging a path in financial innovation.  

Chiliz Partners for Fantasy Football Game

Chiliz (CHZ) has partnered with Unagi and the French Professional Football League to launch Coach Ligue 1, a fantasy football game utilizing Chiliz-based NFTs. This initiative will likely impact CHZ's ecosystem, potentially leading to a significant price rally in the coming months. Currently, CHZ holds a fully diluted valuation of $1.2 billion with an average daily trading volume of $112 million.