Ethereum Badly needs Blood Transfusion

Posted on April 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Ethereum’s market dominance has fallen to 7.18%, close to its all-time low. A bearish chart pattern suggests a potential correction at $1,100 in the coming months..
Ethereum’s dominance has reached critical levels..

A technical analysis of ETH’s price indicates that a “bearish flag” pattern has formed on the daily chart, signaling that the downtrend will likely persist. Short sellers need a daily close below $1,600 to maintain a significant market correction.

The target of this technical pattern, determined by the height of the flagpole, suggests a possible decline to $1,100, representing a 33% drop from current levels.

Relative Strength Index (RSI) affirmed ETH’s bearish outlook, which remains below 50.

This decline reflects Ethereum’s ongoing loss of strength relative to its direct competitors. Analyst Rekt Capital notes that Ethereum’s dominance decreased from 20% in June 2023 to 8% in 2025, dropping even lower to about 7.1% at the time of writing.

Deribit data showed options traders are placing bearish bets on Ethereum. The amount had been invested in contracts that will pay out if the price of Ethereum doesn’t rise above $1,800 in April. Many of those bearish wagers anticipate that Ethereum’s price will plummet to $1,300.
Trump-affiliated World Liberty is among the whale investors who have dumped Ethereum in a wave due to its ill-fated state. Eric Trump, Trump’s son, stated that now is a “great time to add Ethereum.”

Ethereum dropped by over 40% since then, and the Trump family’s cryptocurrency project is selling the asset for a steep loss. Last week, the DeFi project sold $8 million worth of Ethereum, according to Arkham Intelligence data.

The project lost 55% of its Ethereum investment after the sale. Ethereum’s community shows weakness, and the cryptocurrency has lost its edge. The overall decline in the cryptocurrency market hasn’t helped the price performance.

Ripple: XRP Lacks Gun Power for Good Friday’s Rally

Posted on April 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

XRP had been largely stable around the $2 mark amid ongoing volatility in the cryptocurrency market, fluctuating around the support level.

However, that support weakened, leading to a dramatic drop that completed a head-and-shoulders formation and broke through the neckline. After this, the retest failed, and XRP began trending lower, settling at approximately $2.06 in the Asian trading session on Friday.

This rejection suggests a potential build-up of downside momentum and confirms a bearish setup.

Options traders on Deribit are exercising caution despite a series of positive developments surrounding XRP. Data from Kaiko reveals that the implied volatility (IV) smile for XRP options expiring on Friday, April 18, shows a significant leftward skew.

This indicates higher demand for downside protection, particularly as investors buy out-of-the-money (OTM) puts, especially at strike prices of $1.5, where implied volatility can reach 160 percent.

This cautious approach is largely influenced by the SEC’s upcoming decision regarding Grayscale’s application for a spot XRP ETF, due by May 22, a few weeks after the April options expiration.

Traders seem to be positioning themselves defensively, projecting a potential delay or denial from the SEC. Additionally, Teucrium has recently launched a 2x leveraged XRP ETF, which some analysts believe could weaken any objections the SEC might raise against a trade.

Ripple: Hidden Road grabs FINRA registration

Posted on April 18, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Hidden Road, owned by Ripple, has expanded its broker-dealer capabilities by registering under the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has granted the prime brokerage Hidden Road, which Ripple recently purchased for $1.25 billion, a broker-dealer license, enhancing its ability to operate in the fixed-income markets.

Hidden Road stated on April 17 that it can expand its capabilities in traditional markets and boost its fixed-income prime brokerage services as a FINRA broker-dealer.

This includes providing regulatory-compliant clearing and financing services for fixed-income securities to institutional clients.

Membership in FINRA is viewed as a major commitment to investor protection and compliance.

Telos Capital Advisors, an investment bank headquartered in Dallas, claims that it also enhances registrants’ perceived credibility in the eyes of investment bankers. On behalf of more than 300 institutional clients, Hidden Road operates a premier brokerage and credit network, processing over $10 billion in transactions daily.

Founded in 2018, Hidden Road initially focused on foreign exchange markets before branching into digital assets.

These advantages made Hidden Road a desirable target for Ripple, a blockchain payments network, which ultimately acquired the business on April 8.

Ripple’s chief technology officer, David Schwartz, called the acquisition a “defining moment for the XRP Ledger.”

RWA: Ondo Finance set to conquer U.S Treasury Bond Market with Mastercard

Posted on April 17, 2025April 17, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

Ondo Finance set to conquer the U.S Treasury Bond Market with Mastercard. Ondo Finance surpassed $2.5 billion in total value locked (TVL), solidifying its position as a key player in Real World Assets (RWA).

Even though the token’s price has moderated amid ongoing market correction, the project is moving more quickly and getting ready to launch Ondo Global Markets, which has the potential to transform conventional financial assets.

Mastercard has been a major player in the cryptocurrency space for several years, and recently announced a partnership with Ondo Finance to offer US Treasury bonds via RWA tokenization.

The expansion of its projects about this new and innovative digital economy, including its Multi-Token Network (MTN), which was introduced last June, indicates this in any event. a network created to give organizations access to the benefits of blockchain technology.

The evolving financial asset class offers safe, quick, and round-the-clock transactions. Mastercard also announced a collaboration between its MTN network and the cryptocurrency project Ondo Finance (ONDO). This is to provide a tokenized, digital version of its US Government Treasuries Fund (OUSG) for short-term investments.

The Real World Assets (RWA) sector stands out from the daily turbulence of the cryptocurrency market by exhibiting consistent growth, despite the market’s unpredictable direction. This development appears more natural than other cryptocurrency subsectors, which might be likened to speculative bubbles.

April 17 FX Signals: Can an ECB Hawkish Cut Crash DAX and Boost the Euro?

Posted on April 17, 2025April 17, 2025 by Skerdian Meta

Today the ECB is expected to cut rates by 25 bps, with Dax at risk of a major decline while the Euro could benefit from a hawkish statement.

Will this be a dovish or hawkish rate cut by the ECB?

Continue reading “April 17 FX Signals: Can an ECB Hawkish Cut Crash DAX and Boost the Euro?” →

China, Japan increase US Treasury Holdings in February

Posted on April 16, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

A Treasury Department report revealed that foreign holdings of Treasuries increased 3 percent in February, dampening recent rumors that China and Japan were selling off US Treasuries. During the month, both China and Japan saw increases in their holdings. Japan maintained its position as the largest holder, growing its holdings by 4% to $1.125 billion.

China increased its holdings to $784.3 trillion, a 3% increase. China continued to be the second-biggest foreign owner.

The total amount of US Treasury holdings held by foreigners was $8.172 trillion by the end of February.

The rumors that China or Japan was dumping treasuries may still be true because they intensified in April following the implementation of President Trump’s higher-than-expected reciprocal tariffs. The latest data showed both nations were becoming more exposed to US debt before the tariffs were imposed. Japan has not responded to the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States; China has.

The United States imposed a 20 percent tariff on China, which is accompanied by a reciprocal 125 percent tariff to combat the fentanyl crisis. China’s import tariffs reached 245 percent if section 301 tariffs on particular Chinese goods are applied.

The Trump administration will be among the first to hold trade talks with Japan, currently subject to a reciprocal tariff of 24 percent from the US. Japan is coming today to negotiate tariffs, and the President will be present.

SEC, Ripple legal battle pause amid Settlement

Posted on April 16, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple jointly requested that an appeal in a 2020 SEC case against Ripple be paused while settlement talks were underway, and the appellate court granted their request.

SEC-Ripple’s motion to hold the appeal in abeyance or temporarily halt the case for 60 days was granted by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a filing on April 16.

The order requires the SEC to submit a status report by June 15. The case against Ripple and its executives, which was filed in December 2020, was anticipated to start to wind down following the announcement by Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse on March 19 that the SEC would be dropping its appeal against the blockchain company.

In August, a federal court ruled that Ripple was liable for $125 million. The SEC and the blockchain company filed an appeal and cross-appeal, respectively.

However, in a seemingly political turnabout, the SEC started dropping numerous enforcement cases against cryptocurrency companies after US President Donald Trump took office, and former chair Gary Gensler was replaced as acting chair by Mark Uyeda.

Trump’s inauguration fund received a $5 million XRP pledge from Ripple, and Garlinghouse and chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty participated in pro-Trump events.

Some legal entanglements remain after the August 2024 judgment and appellate cases, even though Ripple and the SEC both support the case’s termination. According to Alderoty’s March statement, Ripple would drop it.

CBEX; Nigerian, Kenya Residents Lose Life Savings To Crypto Trading App

Posted on April 16, 2025April 16, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

CBEX, a self-described digital asset trading platform, allegedly perpetrated a financial scam in Africa

Thousands of Nigerian and Kenyan residents are now in financial ruin. CBEX immediately drew users from all over Nigeria and Kenya by promising astronomically high returns of 100 percent in just 30 days.

To entice victims, it took advantage of the area’s economic difficulties. But beneath the ostentatious façade was a sophisticated Ponzi scheme. The platform abruptly collapsed in early April 2025.

In what is generally believed to be a last-ditch effort to extort more money from victims, CBEX disabled withdrawals, closed its official Telegram channel, and required users to pay a $100–$200 “verification” fee to have a chance to get their money back.

CBEX had assured users that they would receive a thirty percent return on their investment in just one month. However, many investors fear that their capital was stolen because they can’t withdraw it. In Ibadan, southwestern Nigeria, irate clients stormed a CBEX office.

Other users reported that their accounts were locked. Many people posted videos of their tears. Just last week, I was prepared to take all of my money out, but my friend advised me to wait and be patient, and now it has crashed,” investor Ola told the BBC.

Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) announced that it launched an investigation into CBEX.

Known by another name, CryptoBank Exchange, it abruptly shut down on Monday, April 14, leaving thousands of investors with losses estimated to be in the millions. EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale stated, “We were already working on it, but now that the project has collapsed, the key players and their collaborators will be held accountable,” according to local media.

The Commission assured the Nigerian populace that it was working closely with the FBI, Interpol, and other foreign organizations to find the culprits.

CBEX gained popularity in Kenya by promising profitable trading powered by AI that would nearly double profits in a month. Awuor (not her real name), a finance worker, stated the scam cost her life savings. “I’m not feeling well.”.

According to whoever introduced us, people were earning up to KSh 30 million per month; the more money invested, the larger the returns. I put in more than a million dollars. I know someone who borrowed KSh 4 million and lost everything.

Awuor claims that while she does not anticipate receiving payment, she hopes her story will prevent Kenyans from falling victim to similar frauds.

Forex Signals April 16: Have Tariffs Impacted March US Retail Sales?

Posted on April 16, 2025April 15, 2025 by Skerdian Meta

Today we have the US retail sales and Bank of Canada meeting, which might offer some reprieve for markets besides the tariff talk.

March sales are expected to show a 1.4% jump

Continue reading “Forex Signals April 16: Have Tariffs Impacted March US Retail Sales?” →

Binance, Kucoin battle Service disruptions due to AWS Data

Posted on April 16, 2025 by Olumide Adesina

An Amazon Web Services (AWS) data center outage caused transaction failures and forced withdrawal suspensions on Binance, KuCoin, and several other cryptocurrency exchanges.

The incident rekindled concerns about centralized crypto platforms’ reliance on cloud infrastructure and the vulnerability of even the largest market participants. Binance acknowledged the issue, stating that the inconsistent order execution was due to a “temporary network interruption in the AWS data center.”

The exchange suspended withdrawals as a precaution, although some trades were successful while others were not. While it warned that some functions might still experience delays, the company reported that services had begun to recover.

DeBank, Rabby, and KuCoin customers also encountered failed transactions and unresponsive services.

KuCoin informed customers of the network outage and stated that its technical team was working to resolve the issue.

This was not the first disruption of cryptocurrency platforms caused by a significant cloud outage. The risks of relying solely on a single cloud provider were highlighted in 2021 when a widespread AWS failure crippled trading apps, exchanges, and mainstream services alike.

AWS continues to be the foundation for a substantial portion of the internet, hosting over 30% of global traffic..