Author: dfmines

The lead of Reddit’s avatar NFT offering has left, sparking concerns from the platform’s users over whether the social giant will swing the axe at the program.

submitted by /u/Latter-Fudge1063 [link] [comments]

A recent report by digital assets research firm 10x Research highlights that the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) stance on interest rate cuts remains the most significant hurdle that could dampen the current Bitcoin (BTC) rally. Bitcoin’s Trump-Fuelled Rally At Risk Ahead Of FOMC Meeting Since pro-crypto Republican candidate Donald Trump secured victory in the November presidential election, Bitcoin has climbed an impressive 47%, rising from approximately $67,500 on November 4 to around $99,700 as of January 6. Related Reading: Metaplanet Bitcoin Reserves Grow With Fresh $61 Million Purchase While further gains are anticipated during the so-called “Trump rally” leading up to the January 20 inauguration, the momentum might stall ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting later in January, says 10x Research’s Markus Thielen. Thielen predicts a “positive start” to January for BTC, followed by a slight dip before the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data release on January 15. A favorable CPI report could reignite optimism, potentially fueling another rally before Trump’s inauguration. However, Thielen cautions that bullish momentum may wane ahead of the FOMC meeting on January 29. Latest data from CME Group’s FedWatch tool shows that interest rates are likely to remain unchanged following the upcoming FOMC meeting. The tool currently predicts a 90.9% chance of interest rates remaining 425 and 450 basis points (BPS). Bitcoin’s decline of approximately 15% to $92,900 following the December 18 FOMC meeting underscores the Fed’s significant influence. This drop came after the Fed signaled only two rate cuts for 2025 instead of five, reinforcing Thielen’s view that the Fed’s decisions are the “primary risk” to BTC’s current bullish trajectory. Thielen stated: We anticipate lower inflation this year, though it may take some time for the Federal Reserve to recognize and respond to this shift formally. Thielen also cited institutional participation as a key factor influencing Bitcoin’s short-term price action, with metrics like stablecoin minting rates and crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows serving as indicators of institutional interest. Institutional Interest In Bitcoin Continues To Rise Although US spot Bitcoin ETFs faced significant outflows at the end of December, fresh inflows have sparked optimism about rising institutional interest in the premier cryptocurrency. Data from SoSoValue notes that spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $908 million in inflows on January 3. Related Reading: Bitcoin May Face ‘Demand Shocks’ In 2025 Due To Growing Institutional Interest: Report In addition, several major BTC mining firms such as MARA and Hut 8 are bolstering their BTC reserves. Technology firms such as Canada-based video-sharing platform Rumble also recently unveiled a $20 million BTC treasury strategy. A separate report by cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex predicts Bitcoin could surge to $200,000 by mid-2025, despite minor price pullbacks. At press time, BTC trades at $101,555, up 3.7% in the last 24 hours. Featured image from Unsplash, charts from 10x Research, CME FedWatch and Tradingview.com

“We’re seeing people up and down the cabinet who have been supportive of digital assets, innovation, and AI,” said TRM Labs’ Ari Redbord.

"Stop the FED! Use Bitcoins" a sign held by that guy who in 2011 was paid 32 btc to wear the hat and hold it on a bisy street. On top of the 32 btc he was also tipped additional bitcoins from other users of the forum it was posted on. His address – 15Qvts3L2ML538ybH3xP9hKrM282QS6NL…
Read more

Cardano price started a fresh surge above the $1.00 zone. ADA is consolidating and might aim for a fresh increase above the $1.1150 level. ADA price started a downside correction from the $1.1150 zone. The price is trading above $1.00 and the 100-hourly simple moving average. There is a short-term rising channel forming with support at $1.075 on the hourly chart of the ADA/USD pair (data source from Kraken). The pair could start another increase if it clears the $1.1150 resistance zone. Cardano Price Starts Fresh Surge After forming a base above the $0.80 level, Cardano started a fresh increase, beating Bitcoin and Ethereum. ADA surged above the $0.90 and $1.00 levels. The bulls even pushed the price above $1.120. A high was formed at $1.1156 and the price is now consolidating gains. There was a minor decline below $1.1120, but the price remained above the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the $0.8373 swing low to the $1.1156 high. Cardano price is now trading above $1.00 and the 100-hourly simple moving average. There is also a short-term rising channel forming with support at $1.075 on the hourly chart of the ADA/USD pair. On the upside, the price might face resistance near the $1.10 zone. The first resistance is near $1.1120. The next key resistance might be $1.1150. If there is a close above the $1.1150 resistance, the price could start a strong rally. In the stated case, the price could rise toward the $1.20 region. Any more gains might call for a move toward $1.250 in the near term. Downside Correction in ADA? If Cardano’s price fails to climb above the $1.1120 resistance level, it could start another decline. Immediate support on the downside is near the $1.080 level. The next major support is near the $1.050 level. A downside break below the $1.050 level could open the doors for a test of $0.975 or the 50% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the $0.8373 swing low to the $1.1156 high. The next major support is near the $0.950 level where the bulls might emerge. Technical Indicators Hourly MACD – The MACD for ADA/USD is gaining momentum in the bullish zone. Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) – The RSI for ADA/USD is now above the 50 level. Major Support Levels – $1.0800 and $1.050. Major Resistance Levels – $1.1120 and $1.1150.

While the spot Bitcoin ETFs smashed industry expectations in 2024, the products finished poorly with outflows in six of the last eight trading days.

“The Trump bull market is real,” Ripple’s CEO declared, pointing to skyrocketing U.S. hires and deals as crypto’s explosive comeback accelerates under the new administration. Ripple CEO: Crypto’s New Era Is Here and Trump’s Team Is Fueling the Fire Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has voiced strong optimism about the U.S. cryptocurrency market, attributing the shift […]

Some crypto traders have made millions of dollars from the latest leading narrative, Artificial Intelligence (AI) related tokens. However, the sector’s quick rise in popularity has received backlash from several community members and industry figures, who consider the tokens “worse” than the memecoin trend. Related Reading: Bitcoin Bounces Back Above $100K – Is the Bull Run Resuming or a Correction Ahead? Crypto Traders Make Millions From AI-Related Tokens On January 6, on-chain data analysis firm Lookonchain shared that a smart Solana trader obtained massive returns from AI agent and memecoin ai16z (AI16Z). The investor turned $2 million into $21 million in less than two months amid the AI-related tokens rally. The AI-managed crypto fund is on the Solana blockchain and governed by the ai16zDAO. Its name is a wordplay originating from the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z, seemingly created to bring attention to the project. According to the post, the whale purchased 10.6 million ai16z, worth $2.27 million, between November 15 and November 22, 2024, at an average cost of $0.214. Since then, the cryptocurrency has seen a 965% surge to trade around $2.28. At the time of the report, the investor’s holdings were valued at around $21 million, making $19 million in unrealized profits. Earlier today, the whale sent 5.3 million ai16z, worth $10.68 million, into Jupiter to sell via limit order. Meanwhile, another trader turned $123,000 into $4.5 million after betting on ai16z when the token’s market capitalization was $22 million. The whale purchased 6.17 million ai16z and sold 4.67 million for around $1.78 million last month. The investor currently holds 2.65 million ai16z tokens, valued at $2.9 million, bringing the total profits to more than $4.5 million in two months. This whale also made another $13.4 million from other AI crypto tokens like GOAT, FARTCOIN, and ARC. Community Calls AI Agent Tokens ‘Overrated’ In late 2024, AI Agent tokens gained massive popularity among crypto investors, with several experts predicting that AI-related tokens, alongside memecoins, would be the largest narrative of this year. Meanwhile, AI memecoins stole the spotlight as the year ended, sending some of the tokens in the sector to the top 10 memecoins ranks in late December. Ai16z, the largest AI memecoin by market capitalization, has seen a 251% increase in the past month, hitting an all-time high (ATH) of $2.47 on January 2. The token is also the third-largest AI agent crypto and has seen a 25% surge in the last 24 hours, trading between $2.25 and $2.28 throughout Monday morning. Nonetheless, the sector has received heavy criticism recently from the crypto community. On-chain sleuth ZachXBT recently called AI agent tokens a scam. Responding to Justin Taylor, another industry member, the crypto detective stated that “99% of it is a scam” and suggested that “the AI agent wrapper grifts are probably worse than other past trends.” Related Reading: Litecoin Comeback: LTC Breaks Free And Guns For $400 Zach argued that memecoins “at least” promised nothing, “AI coins try to larp as much as possible to appear legit to unsuspecting buyers.” Similarly, Solana founders consider AI agent tokens to be overhyped. According to an anonymous poll of 42 Solana founders, several of the polled considered AI Agents, alongside Blinks, to be the “most overrated Solana sector.” Despite the criticism, the sector still registers a 5% increase in the last 24 hours, with a daily trading volume of $2.28 billion and a market capitalization of $17.5 billion, according to CoinGecko data. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

Spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States hoovered up a whopping 51,500 BTC in December while only a fraction of that was produced.