Bitcoin hits new highs in 2024, but a calm market reflects institutional control and strategic growth.
In an investor note dated April 15, 2025, Matt Hougan, the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Bitwise, shared an examination of Bitcoin’s recent trading patterns that may surprise both critics and supporters. “Bitcoin is acting like an asset that wants to go higher, if only macro obstacles would get out of the way,” he wrote. According to Hougan, Bitcoin’s price on April 14 hovered around $84,379, compared to $84,317 a month earlier—a minuscule change of 0.07% during a 30-day window. This flat performance emerged against the backdrop of two significant geopolitical events: the United States announcing the creation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and President Donald Trump imposing sweeping tariffs on countries around the globe. The resilience that Bitcoin has shown during this period stands in stark contrast to the broader downward trend in traditional financial markets. Hougan pointed out that the S&P 500, which peaked on February 19, has lost 12.0% of its value, with Bitcoin down a comparable 12.4% since that date. He found this alignment astonishing, particularly because it departs from Bitcoin’s behavior during past market downturns. In the 2022 correction, for example, the S&P 500 slid 24.5% while Bitcoin plunged 58.3%. Similarly, at the onset of the COVID-19 crisis in early 2020, stocks fell 33.8% but Bitcoin sank 38.1%, and in late 2018, when escalating trade tensions between the United States and China dragged equities down 19.36%, Bitcoin declined 37.22%. This track record had historically reinforced the notion that, when stocks took a hit, Bitcoin would invariably suffer a far steeper pullback. Related Reading: Bitcoin Lags Gold As Wall Street Doubts Persist, Claims Expert In his latest note, Hougan emphasized how different the present situation feels. Instead of being battered well beyond the equity market’s turbulence, Bitcoin is now mirroring stock losses closely. He acknowledged that this alone does not make Bitcoin an unequivocal hedge asset, adding, “Critics will point out that matching stocks’ performance during a downturn is not the same as acting as a hedge asset, and that gold has been a better performer than Bitcoin during this pullback. That’s true.” Nonetheless, he argued that Bitcoin’s ability to stay around the $80,000 mark while global markets churn is a testament to its robust staying power in the face of multiple macroeconomic shocks. “If that doesn’t give you confidence in its staying power, I don’t know what will,” he remarked. Hougan’s view is that we are witnessing a transitional phase in Bitcoin’s evolution. He explained that the cryptocurrency has historically been driven by two competing forces: it has served as a risk asset, associated with significant upside potential and high volatility, yet it has also occasionally taken on the role of a hedge similar to gold. Related Reading: This Bitcoin Pullback Mirrors 2017’s Path To Parabolic Highs, Says Analyst In Bitcoin’s early days, the risk-asset angle tended to dominate; in major equity sell-offs, investors often shed Bitcoin faster and more aggressively than they exited stocks. Now, with more corporations integrating Bitcoin into their balance sheets, institutional investors exploring it as part of diversified portfolios, and governments—like the United States—incorporating it into strategic reserves, there appears to be a gradual tilt toward Bitcoin being treated more like “digital gold.” . Still, Hougan warned that investors should not overlook the inherent unpredictability in the current macro environment. He noted that equity markets may not yet have found a bottom, raising the possibility that deeper slides could re-expose Bitcoin’s vulnerability if broader panic sets in. He also conceded that gold’s performance remains a more classic example of a safe-haven behavior during systemic shocks, meaning Bitcoin has not conclusively demonstrated that it can replace traditional hedges during intense economic strain. Even so, in his words, “The world is unraveling, and Bitcoin is trading above $80,000.” Hougan underscored that there is no guarantee this dynamic will endure, particularly given the unpredictable repercussions that could stem from sudden tariff escalations or shifts in monetary policy. As he concluded in his note, “Our baby is growing up as a macro asset. And that’s a beautiful thing to see.” At press time, BTC traded at $85,200. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Noble, a blockchain for issuing real-world assets (RWA) and stablecoins, announced Wednesday that it will expand its platform by introducing “AppLayer,” an Ethereum-compatible rollup that allows developers to create their own RWA applications and infrastructure. Noble’s AppLayer aims to let developers build new financial tools optimized for real-world assets like stablecoins — digital assets whose value is pegged to another asset, like the U.S. dollar. AppLayer will leverage Celestia, a data availability blockchain that aims to bring down storage costs for data-intensive blockchain networks. Celestia, like Noble, is plugged into the Cosmos blockchain ecosystem and is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), meaning it can read smart contracts from other Ethereum-based chains. The Noble team stated in a press release viewed by CoinDesk that it will launch its Ethereum-compatible AppLayer rollup in the third quarter of 2025. “Noble plans to unlock its cross-ecosystem potential as EVM applications continue to seek reliable and seamless access to native stablecoin liquidity,” the team wrote. “Noble’s AppLayer will be seamlessly integrated with a number of blue chip DeFi projects born in the Ethereum ecosystem.” Stablecoins have received considerable attention in recent weeks, with the U.S. Congress preparing significant stablecoin legislation later this year. Entities including President Trump’s World-Liberty Financial , banking giant Fidelity, and the U.S. state of Wyoming have also expressed plans to create their own stablecoins. Noble launched in March 2023 as an application-specific blockchain , or "appchain," purpose-built for stablecoin issuance within the Cosmos ecosystem . Initially, it aimed to expand liquidity Cosmos by enabling native asset issuance through the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol, which is the technology used by Cosmos-based blockchains to transfer assets and other data. Over time, Noble has extended its reach beyond Cosmos, integrating with Ethereum and other ecosystems to facilitate quick stablecoin transfers. Additionally, in March, Noble introduced USDN , a yield-bearing stablecoin backed by U.S. Treasury bills. “Building stablecoin issuance infrastructure over the past two years has given us a deep appreciation for the transformative potential of stablecoins to onboard the world to crypto,” said Jelena Djuric, co-founder and CEO at Noble, in the press release. “The Noble AppLayer, built with Celestia's technology underneath, finally gives builders the freedom to build highly scalable and performant stablecoin-native applications.” Read more: How a Ph.D. Student's Research Paper Turned Celestia Into $345M Blockchain Project Overnight
On April 6, Bitcoin witnessed a significant technical event known as a “Death Cross”, which occurred when the 50-day Moving Average fell below the 200-day Moving Average. This pattern has
Bitcoin price started a fresh decline from the $86,500 zone. BTC is now consolidating and might continue to decline below the $83,200 support. Bitcoin started a fresh decline from the $86,500 zone. The price is trading below $85,000 and the 100 hourly Simple moving average. There was a break below a connecting bullish trend line with support at $84,500 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken). The pair could start another increase if it clears the $84,500 zone. Bitcoin Price Faces Rejection Bitcoin price started a fresh increase above the $83,500 zone. BTC formed a base and gained pace for a move above the $84,000 and $85,500 resistance levels. The bulls pumped the price above the $86,000 resistance. A high was formed at $86,401 and the price recently corrected some gains. There was a move below the $85,000 support. Besides, there was a break below a connecting bullish trend line with support at $84,500 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair. The price tested the $83,200 support. Bitcoin price is now trading below $85,000 and the 100 hourly Simple moving average . On the upside, immediate resistance is near the $84,000 level and the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $86,401 swing high to the $83,171 low. The first key resistance is near the $84,500 level. The next key resistance could be $84,750 and the 50% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $86,401 swing high to the $83,171 low. A close above the $84,750 resistance might send the price further higher. In the stated case, the price could rise and test the $85,500 resistance level. Any more gains might send the price toward the $86,400 level. Another Decline In BTC? If Bitcoin fails to rise above the $85,000 resistance zone, it could start another decline. Immediate support on the downside is near the $83,500 level. The first major support is near the $83,200 level. The next support is now near the $82,200 zone. Any more losses might send the price toward the $81,500 support in the near term. The main support sits at $80,800. Technical indicators: Hourly MACD – The MACD is now gaining pace in the bearish zone. Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) – The RSI for BTC/USD is now below the 50 level. Major Support Levels – $83,200, followed by $82,200. Major Resistance Levels – $84,750 and $85,500.
Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange OKX is expanding to the U.S., establishing a new regional headquarters in San Jose, California and rolling out access to its platform and its native OKX Wallet to U.S.-based crypto traders. In a Tuesday evening announcement, newly-appointed CEO Roshan Robert said the expansion was “a commitment to responsible growth.” Robert was most recently an executive at institutional crypto lending platform CLST, and was a founding team member of crypto prime broker Hidden Road, which was recently acquired by Ripple for $1.25 billion . “As regulations evolve, OKX is working closely with US regulators and policymakers to ensure we operate transparently and compliantly,” Robert wrote. “We’ve built a comprehensive, risk-based global compliance program that includes enhanced due diligence, a robust KYC process, customer risk rating systems, advanced fraud detection, AML tools, geo-blocking, and market surveillance technologies. These are all part of our commitment to a secure, compliant trading environment.” Two months ago, a subsidiary of OKX settled charges that it had operated in the U.S. without a money transmitting license, agreeing to pay the Department of Justice (DOJ) over $500 million in penalties and forfeited fees. The DOJ alleged that, despite having an official policy prohibiting U.S.-based users from accessing its platform, OKX “sought out customers in the United States, including in the Southern District of New York.” Read more: After Binance’s $4.3B Lesson, Do Rival Exchanges Risk Running Afoul of U.S. Rules? OKX is not the first crypto company to eye an expansion or a return to the U.S., which has grown considerably friendlier to the crypto industry under U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. Earlier this month, token launch platform CoinList announced a return to the U.S. after five years away, and bigger names — including Binance , the world’s largest crypto exchange — are reportedly considering returning to the U.S. Existing customers of OKCoin, the U.S.-accessible sister company of OKX, will be “seamlessly migrated” to the OKX platform, which will offer customers “deeper liquidity, lower fees and advanced trading tools,” according to the company’s launch announcement.
According to recent updates from COINOTAG News, Canada’s 3iQ has announced its choice of Figment as the staking service provider for its newly launched Solana Staking ETF (SOLQ). This ETF,
Things are looking bearish for Trump Coin (TRUMP), the official meme coin of US President Donald Trump that was launched back in January, ahead of the release of a major token unlock later in the week. TRUMP was last trading just under $8 per coin, up a modest 10% from the lows it hit around $7 last week, but still very much stuck in a long-term downtrend. The meme coin has continually found resistance at its 21DMA over the last three months. TRUMP has now dropped around 90% from its post-launch highs above $70. But things could be about to go from bad to worse. 4% of the meme coin’s supply is set to unlock on the 18th of April. On April 18, 40 million tokens will unlock for $TRUMP (currently worth $330M) Let’s see if they’ll sell or hold pic.twitter.com/xxfnutGJaG — LANGERIUS (@langeriuseth) April 14, 2025 Given that only 20% of the supply is currently in circulation, this means an increase to circulating supply of 20%. Bearish technicals combined with bearish supply dynamics mean that TRUMP coin could soon dump to fresh lows under $7 per token. And with sentiment in the broader crypto market still downbeat thanks to ongoing macro uncertainties and poor altcoin performance, the outlook for a major bullish reversal anytime soon is week. Was TRUMP Coin a Scam? TRUMP Coin isn’t a scam; its launch was fair and the team behind the coin have not deceived investors in anyway. It was simply launched as a collectable meme coin, with no promise of returns, or anything for that matter. That said, questions have been raised about the ethics surrounding the meme coin’s launch. Firstly, while early buyers made millions, and while the Trump organization has earned over $100 million in trading fees, the vast majority of TRUMP buyers have been left out of pocket. Indeed, a Chainalysis study conducted in conjunction with the New York Times revealed that, three weeks on from the meme coin’s launch, over 800,000 wallets had lost money buying the coin. Indeed, just looking at the TRUMP coin chart since its launch – it paints a perfect picture of a classic “pump-and-dump”. Trump’s meme coin has to be the biggest scam of the season. pic.twitter.com/nCvNWgyVP1 — VolgaLad (@cym27s) April 13, 2025 The fact that the Trump organization gifted itself 80% of the supply to be vested over the course of Trump’s presidential term has also been strongly criticized. $TRUMP coin is a scam and embarrassing for all US citizens. Essentially, it allowed insiders to snipe the entire supply at launch. We should hope for better from our leaders. Just because the other side is corrupt doesn’t give you a license to do the same. I hope people on… pic.twitter.com/yHgfdQhZqz — Dr. Danish (@operationdanish) January 18, 2025 Is It a Good Time to Buy TRUMP? Its possible that when broader crypto market conditions take a substantial turn for the better, TRUMP coin could see a major resurgence. Perhaps when sentiment regarding the economy is better, and when the Fed is pumping the market with liquidity. That said, these times have not arrived yet. Yes, TRUMP coin buyers getting into the market are buying the dip, a 90% dip in fact. However, there could still be a lot lower to go. Its not unheard of for meme coins to drop 99% from prior record highs. Investors should not risk more than they can afford to lose in buying TRUMP coin. Investing in major coins like Bitcoin , Ethereum and Solana would be much safer. The post TRUMP Coin (TRUMP) Price Analysis: 90% Dip Coming? appeared first on Cryptonews .
The U.S. economy is expected to lose billions of dollars in revenue this year from a drawback in foreign tourism and boycotts of American products. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimated the hit in 2025 from reduced travel and boycotts could total 0.3% of gross domestic product, totaling around $90 million. Data from the International Trade Administration showed that the number of non-citizens who had entered the U.S. by plane plummeted almost 10% in March compared to a year earlier. The report also noted that foreign tourism has been a blow for the U.S. recently after the pandemic-era restrictions sparked a resurgence of international travel. U.S. travel declines amid geopolitical frictions US Economy Is Set to Lose Billions as Foreign Tourists Stay Away https://t.co/DXWMIS1rbZ pic.twitter.com/wOpY5OiHwg — Ray Wang (@rwang07) April 15, 2025 Potential U.S. visitors are now rethinking traveling to the U.S. amid increased hostility at the border, rising geopolitical frictions, and global economic uncertainty. Curtis Allen, a Canadian videographer, canceled an upcoming U.S. vacation after President Trump imposed tariffs on his home country and suggested it should become the 51st U.S. state. Allen said, “We’re not just staying home; we’re going to go spend the same money somewhere else.” “Given what we know about how much Canadian travel has fallen off, that’s potentially a bit worrying for that region.” -Omar Sharif, president of Inflation Insights. According to ITA data , foreign travelers spent approximately $254 billion in the U.S. in 2024. The analytics firm also estimated in early March that the country would receive 77 million visitors in 2025. The data came out just before news of detentions at U.S. airports made headlines, where travelers from countries like France and Germany were ensnared. Canadians, who contribute the largest number of foreign travelers in the U.S., are choosing to stay put as Trump heightens attacks on the country’s economy and sovereignty. Bloomberg Intelligence analysis revealed that roughly $20 billion in retail spending from international tourists in the U.S. may be compromised. A monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics report on consumer prices published on April 10 indicated that early signs of a sharp pullback are already showing up as airfares, hotel rates, and car rental costs fell in March. Sharif also highlighted that the decline in hotel rates was driven by an almost 11% drop in the Northeast in particular, possibly a result of fewer Canadians traveling there. Canada remains resilient despite challenging U.S. traveling conditions Patrick Keyes, sales and marketing manager at Rainbow Air Helicopter Tours in Niagara Falls, said that the timing is “very interesting” for the firm, which just invested $25 million in a new building, an enhanced fleet, and a virtual reality attraction ahead of the busy summer season. Keyes also added that “we are waiting to see the fallout.” A report by OAG Aviation Worldwide also reported that Canadian flight reservations to the U.S. have plummeted by 70% through September versus the same period last year. U.S. summer bookings have also dropped by 25% among European tourists at Accor SA hotels. The firm’s Chief Executive Officer Sebastian Bazin maintained the drop could be attributed to border detentions creating a “bad buzz” and diverting tourists to other destinations. Goldman Sachs economists Joseph Briggs and Megan Peters mentioned in a March 31 report that U.S. tariff announcements and a more aggressive stance towards historical allies hurt global opinions about the state. The duo also believe that tariffs will lead to U.S. gross domestic product growth to underperform consensus expectations in 2025. Todd Davidson, CEO of Travel Oregon, Oregon’s tourism commission, said the company was continuing efforts to attract foreign travelers. Davidson noted his team was on a trip to pitch the state at an adventure tourism conference in Vancouver. He also acknowledged that his team will host sales and marketing partners from the UK, India, and Brazil in the coming weeks. The company’s senior executive maintained that his team was also contemplating whether the commission will need to tweak its strategy more toward domestic visitors as the situation unfolds. He added, “Oregon is not and will not take its eye off those international markets.” Cryptopolitan Academy: Tired of market swings? Learn how DeFi can help you build steady passive income. Register Now
Strive Asset Management CEO Matt Cole is pushing for fintech giant Intuit to reevaluate its policies regarding cryptocurrency, arguing for the addition of Bitcoin to its assets. Fresh off a