Hodler’s  Digest, Dec. 1 – 7 – Cointelegraph Magazine

Prime Tales of The Week

SEC to reject bids for spot Solana ETFs — Report

The USA Securities and Trade Fee is ready to reject purposes in line for spot Solana exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The company has notified a minimum of two of 5 issuers searching for approval for a Solana ETF, based on Fox Information reporter Eleanor Terrett.

“The consensus right here, I’m informed, is that the SEC gained’t entertain any new crypto ETFs below the present administration,” Terrett mentioned on Dec. 6.

A number of asset administration companies have lately filed for SOL ETFs, aiming to supply traders with direct publicity to Solana’s market.

VanEck was the primary asset supervisor to submit a 19b-4 utility with the company on June 27, shortly adopted by 21Shares on June 28 and Canary Capital in late October. Following Donald Trump’s win within the Nov. 6 US presidential elections, Bitwise and Grayscale additionally utilized for a SOL fund.

Ether worth returns to $4K for the primary time since March

The worth of Ether has damaged previous the $4,000 worth degree following months of lackluster worth efficiency — reclaiming ranges not seen since March 2024.

Based on information from CoinMarketCap, the value of Ethereum is up 2.8% on the day and has gained 10.7% over the previous week.

Ether’s constructive efficiency follows months of buying and selling beneath its 200-day exponential transferring common, which is a dynamic degree of assist. Presently, the relative energy index is roughly 71 and coming into into overbought territory.

From August till early November, Ether skilled sideways worth motion till the present rally ignited on Nov. 6 in response to Donald Trump’s electoral victory.

Analysts consider that the value of Ether may attain $7,000 through the present market cycle, bolstered by report inflows from exchange-traded funds and a strong ecosystem of builders constructing on the Ethereum blockchain.

Bitcoin worth hits $100K for first time in historical past

The worth of Bitcoin reached $100,000 for the primary time in historical past, marking a milestone for the cryptocurrency market after a yr of great progress.

Bitcoin hit the $100,000 worth mark on Dec. 5, breaking a psychological degree simply weeks after reaching the $90,000 milestone on Nov. 12, based on TradingView.

Bitcoin additionally set a brand new all-time excessive of $104,000 at 3:08 am UTC — roughly 90 minutes after surpassing the $100,000 mark.

The yr has seen greater than $31 billion in internet inflows from the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the US, together with tightened provide from Bitcoin’s fourth halving in April.

Republican Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election in early November, rising hypothesis of a strategic Bitcoin nationwide reserve, and elevated Bitcoin company adoption led by MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor have additionally contributed to Bitcoin’s worth rally.

Trump nominates Paul Atkins to interchange Gensler as SEC chair

US President-elect Donald Trump has nominated pro-crypto Paul Atkins to interchange Gary Gensler as the brand new chief of the Securities and Trade Fee.

In a Dec. 4 announcement, Trump highlighted Atkins’ monitor report and expertise as a former SEC commissioner. Trump wrote on Reality Social:

“Paul is the CEO and Founding father of Patomak World Companions, a danger administration consultancy. As Co-Chairman of the Digital Chamber’s Token Alliance since 2017, he has labored on and studied the digital belongings business. A former SEC Commissioner from 2002-2008, Paul strongly advocated for transparency and defending traders.”

The nomination of a pro-crypto SEC commissioner to interchange Gensler was considered one of Trump’s guarantees to crypto voters throughout his marketing campaign and a spotlight of his keynote deal with on the Bitcoin 2024 convention in Nashville, Tennessee.

Hawk Tuah memecoin dumps 90% amid backlash over controversial launch

The launch of viral influencer Haliey Welch’s Hawk Tuah memecoin sparked outrage throughout social media because the newly launched token briefly pumped after which dumped quickly following a controversial deployment involving allegations of snipers and insider wallets.

Welch has denied any insider gross sales or exercise on behalf of her crew or any affiliated entities. 

The Hawk Tuah memecoin was launched at 10:00 pm UTC on Dec. 4 and rapidly rose to a peak market cap of $490 million.

The worth of the token then plummeted and was buying and selling at a valuation of $41.7 million on the time of publication, marking a 91% downturn in lower than three hours, based on DEX Screener information. 

Winners and Losers

On the finish of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $100,573, Ether (ETH) at $4,024 and XRP at $2.44. The overall market cap is at $3.69 trillion, based on CoinMarketCap.

Among the many largest 100 cryptocurrencies, the highest three altcoin gainers of the week are Curve DAO Token (CRV) at 129.67%, Hedera (HBAR) at 106.03% and JasmyCoin (JASMY) at 88.70%.

The highest three altcoin losers of the week are Raydium (RAY) at 12.23%, BONK (BONK) at 8.17% and Stellar (XLM) at 6.31%. For more information on crypto costs, be sure that to learn Cointelegraph’s market evaluation.

Most Memorable Quotations

“We’re sorry in the event you misunderstood our crypto cynicism to be a declaration of assist for tradfi, as a result of we hate that too.”

Bryce Elder, metropolis editor, Alphaville at Monetary Instances

“Paul Atkins on the helm of the SEC will deliver widespread sense again to the company.”

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple Labs

“So in the event you’re an asset that’s going to commerce and behave in a memetic fashion, then the sky’s the restrict as a result of who is aware of the right way to worth that?”

Murad Mahmudov, memecoin evangelist

“The foretold huge and purported suffocating assertion of regulatory dominion over a complete business has not occurred, however they complain about that, too.”

The USA Securities and Trade Fee

“We tried to cease snipers as finest we may by way of excessive price’s within the begin of launch on Meteora.”

Haliey Welch, web influencer

“Certainly, ARK Make investments believes that Bitcoin is a a lot larger concept than gold.”

Cathie Wooden, founder and CEO of ARK Make investments

Prediction of The Week

Ether poised to outperform Bitcoin: Bybit

Ether outshined Bitcoin within the cryptocurrency spot and spinoff markets after the Nov. 5 United States presidential election and retains gaining momentum, based on a Dec. 2 report by crypto alternate Bybit.

In November, Ether “gained vital traction towards BTC, as mirrored by the sharp drops within the ratio between their spot costs,” Bybit mentioned in its November 2024 “Volatility Evaluate,” co-created by market researcher Block Scholes.

Rising demand for ETH choices additionally signifies “[t]raders are more and more favoring ETH,” Bybit mentioned in a press release. 

Ether’s outperformance accelerated after US Securities and Trade Fee Chair Gary Gensler introduced plans to step down on Nov. 21, bringing “further momentum and a focus” to the asset, based on the report. Since then, “[t]his most up-to-date transfer has been sustained.”

Bybit mentioned ETH’s mounting dominance is “clearest in spot,” the place the ratio of ETH to BTC has risen from round 0.0325 on Nov. 21 to greater than 0.04 as of Dec. 6, based on TradingView. 

FUD of The Week

FDIC requested banks to ‘pause’ crypto actions — Court docket docs

Court docket paperwork filed in a Freedom of Info Act lawsuit towards the US Federal Deposit Insurance coverage Company (FDIC) confirmed the US regulatory physique requested sure monetary establishments to pause crypto banking actions.

In a Dec. 6 submitting within the US District Court docket for the District of Columbia, the courtroom launched “pause letters” despatched by FDIC officers to the boards of administrators for various US banks, whose names have been redacted.

Based on the letters despatched in 2022, the FDIC requested the establishments “pause all crypto asset-related exercise” in response to the unsure rules round digital belongings.

“The FDIC will notify all FDIC-supervised banks at a later date when a dedication has been made on the supervisory expectations for participating in a crypto asset-related exercise, together with the necessity for any regulatory filings,” mentioned among the letters.

Potential prices Haliey Welch may face if SEC probes HAWK launch

The disastrous launch of influencer Haliey Welch’s Hawk Tuah (HAWK) memecoin this week was marred by allegations of sniping and insider buying and selling, with the token plunging 91% in simply three hours.

Welch has denied these claims, and authorities haven’t introduced any investigation.

Nonetheless, if the US Securities and Trade Fee or the Division of Justice (DOJ) resolve to research the controversial launch, Welch and her crew may face vital authorized scrutiny.

Based on Yuriy Brisov, companion at regulation agency Digital and Analogue Companions, the SEC can pursue civil prices for securities fraud, alleging misrepresentation or deceit within the gross sales of securities if HAWK qualifies as a safety below the Howey take a look at. The DOJ would possibly take into account felony prices like wire fraud or cash laundering, particularly if there’s proof of intentional deception or monetary misconduct.

On Dec. 4, Welch launched the HAWK memecoin, which briefly surged to a peak worth of $490 million earlier than plummeting over 90% to $30 million in just a few hours.

Sky faces scrutiny over potential $756M exploit flaw

Sky, previously referred to as MakerDAO, is going through criticism for its reliance on an externally owned account (EOA) to handle $756 million in USD Coin reserves inside its lite peg stability module (PSM).

Issues have been raised by an X person concerning the protocol’s reliance on an EOA to handle a considerable portion of its reserves, amounting to $756 million in USD Coin. Critics argue this custodianship mannequin may depart funds weak to potential exploits or insider misuse.

After its current rebrand to Sky and considerations surrounding the power to implement a freeze operate sooner or later, the danger of a breach or misuse of those EOA-managed funds may additional impression the protocol’s popularity and person belief.

Journal Tales of The Week

‘Normie degens’ go all in on sports activities fan crypto tokens for the rewards

“Many individuals spend hours on social media or taking part in Sweet Crush — I spend time on fan tokens. What’s the issue?” asks one sports activities token superfan.

‘China’s MicroStrategy’ Meitu sells all its Bitcoin and Ethereum: Asia Categorical

‘Asia’s MicroStrategy’ Meitu has bought all of its 940 Bitcoin and 31K ETH — passing the title to Japan’s Metaplanet with its 1100 BTC reserve. Asia Categorical

Comeback 2025: Is Ethereum poised to meet up with Bitcoin and Solana?

Roadmap headwinds and FUD stalled Ethereum’s worth efficiency in 2024, however there are indicators that it could flip a nook within the new yr.

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