The cryptocurrency market has encountered significant volatility following the recent expiration of $2.63 billion in options for Bitcoin and Ethereum, catalyzing shifts in market dynamics. With traders rapidly adjusting their
Cryptocurrency prices today are showing bullish momentum, with Bitcoin (BTC) rebounding above $97K after touching a low of $92K. Major altcoins like Ethereum (ETH) and XRP also saw gains, reflecting positive market sentiment. Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Virtual Protocol (VIRTUAL) emerged as top gainers, each rising by 25% in the last 24 hours. Hyperliquid’s price surge follows Bitget’s announcement of listing its token on their exchange, while Virtual Protocol’s increase is attributed to the launch of their GAME SDK. The global crypto market has also risen, reaching $3.38 trillion, up by approximately 0.5% in the last 24 hours. Trading volume surged by 10%, hitting $301 billion, showcasing increased activity in the market. Cryptocurrency Prices Today: BTC Above $97K, ETH, XRP, SOL Gain Cryptocurrency prices today reflect a positive shift, with Bitcoin (BTC) trading above $97K and major altcoins like Ethereum (ETH), XRP, and Solana (SOL) posting gains. Meme coins, including Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, also showed signs of recovery after recent declines. Bitcoin Price Today Bitcoin (BTC) price was trading at $97,412, reflecting a 1% increase in the last 24 hours. Its 24-hour low and high were $92,210 and $98,136, respectively. The market cap stood at $1.93 trillion, with a trading volume of $100 billion, while BTC’s market dominance was recorded at 56.83%. According to SoSo Value , BTC ETFs experienced outflows of $204 million, marking the second consecutive day of outflows after a long period. Additionally, Ark & 21Shares reported outflows of $87 million, while Fidelity recorded $71 million in withdrawals. Data from BlackRock regarding BTC ETF activity is still awaited. In other news, Michael Saylor unveiled a mechanism demonstrating how the U.S. could generate $81 trillion by establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve . This proposal has sparked discussions on leveraging Bitcoin for national financial strategies. Ethereum Price Today Ethereum (ETH) price was trading at $3,466, reflecting a 1% increase in the last 24 hours. Its 24-hour low and high were $3,099 and $3,497, respectively. Cryptocurrency prices today highlight ETH’s market cap at $417 billion, with a trading volume of $62 billion and a market dominance of 12.32%. ETH ETFs saw an inflow of $28 million, with Fidelity purchasing $13 million worth of ETFs. Grayscale followed closely, buying $15 million in ETFs, while data from BlackRock is still awaited, which could influence cryptocurrency prices today. In other news, Donald Trump’s World Liberty Financial has reportedly accumulated more ETH during the recent price dip. This development underscores growing institutional interest in Ethereum despite market volatility. XRP Price Today XRP price was trading at $2.31, reflecting a 0.5% increase in the last 24 hours. Its 24-hour low and high were $1.97 and $2.338, respectively. Cryptocurrency prices today show XRP’s market cap at $130 billion, with a trading volume of $26 billion. It remains the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, with a market dominance of 3.86%. In other news, Ripple, the company behind XRP, has pledged $5 million in its native XRP token to support President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration . This move highlights Ripple’s strategic initiatives and its commitment to fostering global partnerships. Solana Price Today Solana (SOL) price was trading at $193, with a 24-hour low of $175 and a high of $197. Cryptocurrency prices today show SOL’s market cap at $92 billion and a trading volume of $9 billion in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, crypto analytics platform Glassnode reported significant capital movement across Solana assets, indicating heightened investor activity and interest in the Solana ecosystem. Meme Cryptocurrency Prices Today Meme coins have also followed the trend of major altcoins, with Dogecoin (DOGE) up by 1%, trading at $0.32. Similarly, Shiba Inu (SHIB) was also up by approximately 1%, trading at $0.00002259. Other top meme coins like PEPE, BONK, and WIF saw increases ranging from 2% to 9% in the last 24 hours, as cryptocurrency prices today show positive momentum in the meme coin market. Top Cryptocurrency Gainer Prices Today Hyperliquid Hyperliquid (HYPE) price surged by 25% in the last 24 hours, trading at $31.97. Its 24-hour low and high were $22.96 and $32.23, respectively. Cryptocurrency prices today highlight HYPE’s market cap at $8.69 billion, with a trading volume of $583 million. Virtual Protocol Virtual Protocol price also saw a 25% gain, trading at $2.734. Its 24-hour low and high were $2.03 and $2.842, respectively. The market cap stands at $2.73 billion. Ethena Ethena (ENA) price rose by 16%, trading at $1.16. Its 24-hour low and high were $0.85 and $1.224, respectively. In other news, Ethena Labs has partnered with Trump-backed WLFI to boost stablecoin liquidity and rewards by adding sUSDe as core collateral on Aave. Top Cryptocurrency Loser Prices Today Aptos (APT) Aptos (APT) price became the top loser for today, falling by 13% in the last 24 hours. It was trading at $10.23, with a 24-hour low and high of $9.90 and $11.77, respectively. The price drop is attributed to the resignation of Mo Shaikh, the co-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs , which has caused concerns within the community. Hedera Hedera (HBAR) became the second worst performer for today, with a 4% price drop, trading at $0.2688. Its 24-hour low and high were $0.23 and $0.28, respectively, with a market cap of $10 billion. In other news, the Hedera Foundation has announced Charles Adkins as its new CEO , effective January 1, 2025. Besides this, the hourly chart is showing a rebound in the crypto market after yesterday’s flash crash. Bitcoin (BTC) and major altcoins are showing positive momentum, indicating a recovery in cryptocurrency prices today. The post Cryptocurrency Prices Today Dec 21: BTC Hits $97K, HYPE and VIRTUAL Gain 25% appeared first on CoinGape .
Convertible bonds to fund bitcoin purchases have been lapped up by investors, but some fear impact if token falls sharply
Bitcoin and Ethereum face volatility after $2.63B options expiry, with prices below key levels.
The post SEC Accuses Tai Mo Shan of Misleading Terra Investors appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News Cryptocurrency can be a road for financial freedom for some however for others crypto scandals can be disruptive. The SEC has charged Tai Mo Shan Limited, a subsidiary of Jump Crypto Holdings LLC for misleading investors about Terra USD stability and selling unregistered securities. The story doesn’t just expose a company but raises questions about the broader crypto ecosystem. How did things go so wrong? Let’s dig in. The Truth Behind Terra Terra USD was supposed to be a stablecoin. As the name suggests, such a token should remain stable as it should be pegged to $1. Tai Mo Shan played a role in assuring investors it was safe, claiming Terraform Labs’ algorithm kept everything in check. But things weren’t as solid as they seemed. When UST lost its $1 peg in May 2021, Tai Mo Shan stepped in. They made $20 million worth of trades to stabilize the price, temporarily. Could they save it? No. Behind the scenes, the company had an agreement with Terraform Labs. They’d stabilize UST in exchange for discounted LUNA tokens. Investors weren’t told the truth. The peg wasn’t held by some magical algorithm but by external interventions. The SEC calls this misleading. Hard to argue with that. SEC Labels LUNA Sales as Securities Here’s where it gets messier. From January 2021 to May 2022, Tai Mo Shan acquired LUNA tokens from Terraform Labs. Then they resold them on U.S. based exchanges. The SEC sees LUNA and most of the crypto tokens as a security, as we all know. So, by acting as a statutory underwriter and failing to register these offerings, the company broke securities laws. Tai Mo Shan agreed to pay over $123 million in fines , prejudgment interest, and civil penalties. They’re also under a cease and desist order now. But an important thing to note here is that they didn’t admit to the charges. They’re not exactly waving a white flag, just agreeing to move on. What to Expect For the crypto world, Terra collapse was a wake up call. And the SEC is tightening the reins on crypto. Gary Gensler, who is stepping down in January as the SEC chair, shared that protecting investors from fraud is a top priority. This case shows how fragile the systems can be and how much investors rely on trust. Though the new administration is focusing on creating a nurturing environment for the digital space, cases like this highlights the need for strict regulations.
Santa Rides Shiba could turn early investors into multi-millionaires, like Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) did. Santa Rides Shiba (SANTSHIB), a new Solana memecoin that was launched today, is set to explode over 19,000% in price in the coming days. This is because SANTSHIB is set to soon be listed on numerous crypto exchanges, according to reports. This will give the Solana memecoin exposure to millions of additional investors, who will pour funds into the coin and drive its price up. Currently, Santa Rides Shiba can only be purchased via Solana decentralized exchanges, like Jup.ag and Raydium.io, and early investors stand to make huge returns in the coming days. Early investors in SHIB and DOGE made astronomical returns, and Santa Rides Shiba could become the next viral memecoin. Santa Rides Shiba launched with over $9,000 of liquidity, giving it a unique advantage over the majority of other new memecoins, and early investors could make huge gains. How to Buy To buy Santa Rides Shiba on Raydium.io or Jup.ag ahead of the CEX listings, users need to connect their Solflare, MetaMask or Phantom wallet, and swap Solana for Santa Rides Shiba by entering its contract address – CxpeR8vdgeVWZFwBytS7PRrXHBwVgPJWZBJUcpK3k7vT – in the receiving field. If you don’t have one of these wallets already, you can create a new wallet in a few minutes and transfer some Solana to it (which will then be used to buy the memecoin), from an exchange like Coinbase, Binance and many others. In fact, early investors could make returns similar to those who invested in Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) before these memecoins went viral and exploded in price. If this happens, a new wave of memecoin millionaires could be created in a matter of weeks – or potentially even sooner. The Solana memecoin craze continues amid larger memecoins, like Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE) and DogWifHat (WIF) trading sideways in recent weeks and losing momentum. This is why many SHIB, DOGE and WIF investors are instead investing in new Solana memecoins, like SANTSHIB. Such memecoins have no utility and no inherent value, but investors looking for high gains have been investing in them due to their potential to rapidly rise in price.
The cryptocurrency market has endured a significant sell-off that saw its total market capitalization plunge by over $600 billion before it started recovering. In a sell-off that saw Bitcoin drip from a new high around $108,000 to a $92,000 low. The cryptocurrency has, however, since started recovering and despite still being down more than 6.8%
Wall Street Pepe (WEPE), a new crypto project combining meme coin culture with trading tools,
Recent technical analysis has revealed that the XRP price is consolidating after breaking key resistance levels to new highs. A crypto analyst has warned of an impending XRP price crash, urging investors not to get distracted as the RSI is still significantly above 50%. Discussing his predictions through short and long-term XRP price charts, the analyst shows that the cryptocurrency is firmly positioned in a bullish trend despite impending corrections. XRP Price RSI Hints At Potential Crash On the 4-hour XRP chart, a double tap structure is highlighted in the Relative Strength Index (RSI), a technical indicator used to measure the momentum of a cryptocurrency. This double tap pattern typically signals further downward movement before a price stabilization. Related Reading: This Analyst Predicted The Dogecoin Price Crash 2 Days Ago, Full Prediction Shows A Further 30% Decline According to Dark Defender, a crypto analyst on X (formerly Twitter), the RSI’s recurrent dips into oversold territory indicate that XRP could experience a price crash to new lows. The analyst disclosed that the XRP price had previously found strong support at $2.17; however, the cryptocurrency experienced a bounce to the upside. After hitting this support level, the XRP price is now consolidating, a pattern often associated with a potential uptrend after a correction. Despite the slight market recovery, the analyst has warned of another impending price crash in this same support zone as the RSI approaches oversold levels once more. Earlier in December, the RSI had hit oversold territories after dipping below 30%. Now XRP’s RSI is above 50% and signaling a potential to experience a price correction between the support levels at $2.17 and $2.18. Dark Defender has revealed that this price crash could occur soon as XRP is expected to enter oversold territory within a day. Despite this potential price correction, the analyst has acknowledged that the XRP’s broader outlook still looks bullish, with an uptrend continuation expected once the market consolidates following its projected price dip to new lows. Dark Defender has also predicted that XRP’s next price target after this projected correction is likely above $3, marking an almost 40% increase from the $2.17 support area. XRP 3-Month Chart Signals Strong Bullish Set Up Following his predictions that the XRP price could crash as it enters oversold conditions, Dark Defender also shared a 3-month chart analysis, painting a brighter outlook for the cryptocurrency. The chart shows that XRP has recently broken through a multi-year resistance level for the first time in over five years, signaling a strong bullish shift. Related Reading: Bitcoin Price Crash Below $100,000 Not The End As Analyst Predicts Another 52% Jump The three-month green candle structure between October and December confirms strong buying pressure, setting the stage for a potentially bullish Q1 2025 from January to March. A rounded bottom pattern can also be seen on the XRP 3-month chart. This pattern is a classic bullish reversal structure that indicates a gradual move from a downtrend to an uptrend. Dark Defender has marked several Fibonacci levels as potential price targets for XRP. According to the analyst, XRP could see a 261.80% rise to the 5.8563 Fibonacci level between $5 to $9. After which, the analyst expects a 361.80% surge to the 18.2275 Fibonacci between $16 to $28. Support levels at the 0.6649 Fibonacci at $0.9 have also been highlighted, acting as a safety net for XRP during price corrections. Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com
BRICS is gaining global traction, with plans for major 2025 meetings under Brazil’s leadership and a vision to rival G20 prominence while championing collaboration. BRICS Rising: Is It Set to Eclipse the G20 in 2025? Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira has highlighted the growing influence of BRICS, stating that the group is approaching the stature