In the early hours of Tuesday morning in Asia, Bitcoin and Ether demonstrated marginal movement, while other leading non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies exhibited mixed trading patterns. Notably, Cardano’s ADA took the lead in gains following optimistic remarks from founder Charles Hoskinson, envisioning a surge in ADA’s price beyond that of Ether and Bitcoin. Despite the recent collaboration announcement between Solana Pay and Shopify, Solana’s SOL faced further losses. Experts anticipate that the generally subdued sentiment in the cryptocurrency market during the summer could gain momentum in the upcoming fall season.
Coinciding with this market backdrop, the Forkast 500 NFT Index persisted in its decline, indicating challenging times for the NFT sector. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) took a notable step by announcing the charging of L.A.-based media firm Impact Theory LLC with securities violations linked to their NFT offerings.
Bitcoin encountered a marginal decline of 0.12% over the past 24 hours, settling at $26,050.51 as of 07:00 a.m. in Hong Kong. The token’s weekly loss stood at 0.30%. During the earlier hours of the day, Bitcoin briefly reached a high of $26,198.58 before retracting.
Ether also underwent a minor dip of 0.40%, registering $1,650.23 for a weekly loss of 0.99%.
According to Michaël van de Poppe, CEO of Amsterdam-based crypto trading company MN Trading, the current market conditions might entail a temporary selloff. He alluded to the conventional correction observed in August and September, predicting a likely upward trajectory moving forward.
Van de Poppe’s perspective harmonizes with a JPMorgan Chase & Co. report that anticipates “limited downside” for the crypto market, as losses gradually taper off. The banking conglomerate’s analysts noted a reduction in the number of Bitcoin-linked futures contracts awaiting settlement, indicating a diminishing momentum in downward price movement.
Highlighting the forthcoming Bitcoin halving event projected for April 16, 2024, Van de Poppe forecasted a potential rally in Q4 2023, which historically corresponds with a favorable period for crypto markets (October-December). The halving event involves a halving of the issuance rate of new Bitcoins, potentially catalyzing a surge in its value.
Van de Poppe underscored the influence of the SEC’s decisions on Bitcoin exchange-traded fund applications from investment giants like BlackRock and Fidelity, which are anticipated to be announced as early as Saturday.
In terms of other top non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies, Cardano’s ADA emerged as the leader, accruing a gain of 1.46%, settling at $0.2669, resulting in a weekly uptick of 1.24%.
Solana’s SOL, on the other hand, experienced a dip of 1.35%, reaching $20.50, causing a weekly decline of 3.61%. Despite the announcement of Solana Pay’s collaboration with Shopify, which would enable USDC stablecoin payments for online shopping without intermediary fees, SOL continued its downward trajectory. It briefly surged on August 24, the day of the Solana Pay news, gaining 7% before retracing.
Benjamin Stani, Director of Business Development at Hong Kong-based Matrixport, noted that the integration of Solana with a mainstream shopping app represents a minor accomplishment for the industry and is unlikely to significantly impact the markets. He compared it to PayPal’s PYUSD, highlighting the gradual mainstream acceptance of stablecoins.
