Freepik

This Week’s Summary

• The crypto market ends the week at a total market capitalization of $1,69 trillion.
• Bitcoin decreased by over 2% to reach around $42,900.
• Ethereum is up by almost 13% to trade at a little over $2,550.
• XRP gained almost 1% in value this week, reaching around $0.57.
• Almost all altcoins are trading in the green, with very few exceptions.
• The DeFi sector increased the total value of protocols (TVL) to around $56 billion.

Crypto Trends, January 8-14: Market Analysis and Performance

The crypto market is many things, but it is never dull. This week marked a historical event for the industry and its leading star, Bitcoin, after the United States Securities and Exchange Commission approved a spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF). However, the long-awaited confirmation shocked the market unexpectedly, primarily because of the way it became public.

At the beginning of the week, and before the SEC had released any public statements regarding the Grayscale BTC ETF filing, the Commission’s X account was hacked. The malicious actors falsely announced the ETF’s approval. Unsurprisingly, BTC’s price skyrocketed. However, a few hours later, the SEC confirmed the security breach and denied the ETF’s approval. As a result, Bitcoin’s value decreased rapidly.

A few days later, the SEC published the ETF’s approval on its website, but the report was taken down shortly after. This back-and-forth, together with fake reports and all kinds of rumors, took Bitcoin’s price on a rollercoaster, from $45,000 to $49,000 and all the way down to $41,000.

Eventually, the SEC re-published the approval confirmation for Grayscale’s filing of a spot BTC ETF. This time, everything was official, allowing the crypto market and its leading cryptocurrency to stabilize. Bitcoin returned to a comfortable trading value, now at around $43,000. Meanwhile, the overall market capitalization increased by almost $40 billion.

While Bitcoin scored an impressive win in the ongoing tug-of-war with the US regulators, the talk of the town this week was Ethereum. The second crypto in command is flying high with a 13% value boost. Its ascent stems mainly from the crypto community’s anticipation of a new ETF approval by the SEC. This time, the Exchange-Traded Fund should be dedicated to ETH. BlackRock – the world’s largest asset manager – is in the lead in obtaining it. Currently, ETH is trading at around $2,550

Altcoins & DeFi

Most altcoins have reacted positively to the recent developments in the crypto space. For instance, XRP is back in the green, albeit only showcasing a 1% increase. Solana is up by 2%, Cardano by 4%, and Avalanche by 3%. Other coins boast higher gains, including TRON, up by 11%; Chainlink, up by 9%; and Ethereum Classic, up by a whopping 40%.

The Metaverse sector shares the same sentiment as the rest of the crypto market, with most projects trading in the green. For instance, ICP is up by 11%, Stacks by 5%, Decentraland by 1%, and Render by 3%. Meanwhile, Axie Infinity is down by 1%, The Sandbox by 1%, and Theta Network by 6%.

The DeFi sector added almost $4 billion to the total value of locked protocols (TVL), now at $56.39 billion.

Crypto Market Analysis – What’s in the News?

• Ripple – the company behind XRP – will buy back $285 million worth of its own shares from early investors and employees.
• Big Blockchain Game List reports that over 30% of the blockchain-based games released in 2023 are already defunct.

Next Week’s Crypto Market Forecast

The crypto market rejoices following the SEC’s approval for the first-ever spot BTC ETF. The effects should impact the cryptosphere for at least the following week. After all, greenlighting ETFs for Bitcoin and Ethereum is the crypto community’s most anticipated development this year, besides Bitcoin’s imminent halving. It is interesting to see how this event will mark the industry’s trajectory in 2024.

More By This Author:

WMA: Bitcoin Drops to $42,000 As The Market Ends 2023 In The Red
WMA: Bitcoin To Spend Xmas At $43K, Solana Leads Altcoin Surge
Bitcoin Drops To $42,000, And Altcoins Bleed Amid Ledger Drain Worth $600K