Analysis Today TheBitTimes.com

A closely followed crypto strategist believes that Ethereum (ETH) is gearing up for a big rally next year after a bullish December. Pseudonymous analyst Rekt Capital tells his 380,300 followers on the social media platform X that Ethereum looks primed for an over 20% surge if it manages to end December above the key resistance level of $2,274. The analyst shares a chart showing ETH retesting $2,274 as support before igniting a rally toward $2,791. “ETH is positioning itself really well for a bullish December monthly close.”   Source: Rekt Capital/X At time of writing, Ethereum is trading for $2,302. The crypto strategist is also keeping a close watch on the Ethereum rival MultiversX (EGLD), formerly known as Elrond. Rekt Capital sees EGLD rallying to $85.46 after taking out its resistance at around $60. “EGLD continues to perform well. First, reclaimed orange area as support. And then the red area as support. Following the black path now. ...

Steven Nerayoff accused Vitalik Buterin of using Web3 in its infancy to defraud the world.  Nerayoff’s comments came in response to a Vitalik Buterin statement that Web3’s vision is lost.  The former Ethereum advisor has previously raised several allegations against Buterin and SEC officials.  Steven Nerayoff once again takes a swipe at Layer-1 blockchain Ethereum’s founder, Vitalik Buterin, as he accuses the founder and his associates of defrauding the world.  Neyaroff, who previously served as an Ethereum Foundation advisor, tweeted that Buterin and his associates “covertly took control of” Web3 in its infancy and exploited it for personal gain. Furthermore, the executive alleged that the excesses of the crypto founder are also protected by “dictators hiding in plain sight.” The comments follow a statement by Buterin where he said the original Web3 vision has been lost. Buterin, who launched Ethereum in 2015, was one of the earliest founders seen i...

Coinbase has changed its head of custody , potentially as a strategic decision for handling services related to spot Bitcoin ETFs. The departure of Aaron Schnarch, the former Chief Executive Officer of Coinbase Custody, marks a pivotal shift in the company’s leadership. Schnarch’s position has been filled by Rick Schonberg, who joined Coinbase in 2021 and brings experience from previous stints at Goldman Sachs, State Street, and Tagomi. Breaking: After @Grayscale shuffles their team before the ETF approvals, @Coinbase follows suit with Rick Schonberg replacing Aaron Schnarch at Coinbase Custody. Aaron Schnarch, chief executive officer of Coinbase Custody, left in recent weeks, a spokesperson confirmed. He was… pic.twitter.com/rUajrSXK6f — MartyParty (@martypartymusic) December 29, 2023 You might also like: Cryptocurrency option trading soars as January ETF expectations escalate Coinbase’s custody division is recognized as a preferred choice for Bi...

A blockchain developer fell victim to a crypto scam after responding to a seemingly legitimate Upwork job. Bad actors have turned to Upwork in an effort to lure blockchain developers into downloading malicious software, enabling them to drain crypto currencies from non-custodial wallets. As per a BleepingComputer report, scam recruiters are instructing victims via LinkedIn to download and debug code from two malicious npm packages , hosted on a GitHub repository. One of the malicious npm packages on GitHub | Source: BleepingComputer You might also like: Minnesota man loses $9m in LinkedIn crypto romance scam Once developers execute the packages, a malicious script gains access to their devices. In an interview with BleepingComputer, Antalya-based blockchain developer Murat Çeliktepe revealed losing over $500 from his MetaMask wallet in crypto after opening the npm packages, providing scammers with remote access to his device. The incident extends beyond Çeliktepe, a...

Analysis of wallets associated with the high-profile crypto entrepreneur suggests that tokens like $SPONGE, which has just embarked upon an upgrade to transform it into a games platform, will be in his sights. Savvy crypto market participants are turning to meme coins because it is a sector that has established itself as the arena of choice for traders seeking eye-watering returns on investment.  Justin Sun made it known back in May 2023 that he was looking to buy up attractive meme coins. He posted on X in May that he was going to start “trading meme coins and promising projects”. Sun owns $43,000 worth of $SPONGE.  I've decided to begin actively trading meme coins and promising projects through my public address. Please note, I will personally bear all potential losses from these trades, and any profits made will be donated entirely to charity. — H.E. Justin Sun 孙宇晨 (@justinsuntron) May 11, 2023 ...

Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital has seen its stock trading volumes soar, topping U.S. mid and large-cap stocks ahead of a potential spot Bitcoin ETF approval. In the past 24 hours, the firm’s trading volume exceeded 105 million shares, outperforming tech giants like Tesla, Apple, and Amazon, as per Yahoo Finance’s market data. Marathon Digital’s shares lead in trading volume over the past 24 hours | Source: Yahoo Finance Riot Platforms, another significant player in the Bitcoin mining sector, also marked a notable presence, ranking as the sixth most-traded stock with over 40 million shares traded in the same period. This surge in Bitcoin mining stock s is attributed to the mining industry’s expansion efforts in anticipation of the potential approval of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) in early January, coupled with the upcoming Bitcoin halving event in April. You might also like: Marathon Digital’s stock performance peaks in 2023 as BTC...

With 2023 almost over and 2024 creeping closer, XRP (XRP) is looking green on all its charts, trading around the important price level at $0.63 and leaving cryptocurrency traders and investors to wonder at which price range(s) it could end up in the year to come. As it happens, the XRP token is showing signs of recovery despite its price still standing below its yearly high at $0.82 and the (by comparison) lower December high at $0.69, according to the most recent chart information retrieved by Finbold on December 27. $0.70 – $1 in the game That said, XRP could still be looking at a significant recovery at the start of 2024, as per the analysis shared by pseudonymous cryptocurrency expert CoinsKid in an X post on December 25, in which he noted that taking out the $0.6998 level “could spell danger to the XRP perma bears.” XRP price action analysis and prediction. Source: CoinsKid Furthermore, the positive resolution of the long-running legal battle between Ripple and the U...

Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao saw his net worth grow by a whopping $25 billion in 2023 despite market challenges and Binance’s regulatory troubles. This year came with its unique challenges and market volatility. However, amid the issues, the market leveraged an opportunity to recover from the losses of the previous year triggered by the Terra and FTX implosions. The recovery campaign saw Zhao’s net worth, majorly denominated in cryptocurrencies, surge by astronomical margins, according to a recent Bloomberg report CZ’s net-worth ballooned this year over $20 billion. The report, citing the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, also noted that Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong saw his wealth growth this year. In addition, Gemini co-founders, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss were among the crypto billionaires who witnessed an increase in their portfolio value. However, Bloomberg suggests Zhao’s wealth growth outpaced the increase recorded by other crypto entrepreneurs. You mi...

A widely followed crypto strategist believes that one under-the-radar Ethereum (ETH) scaling solution is on track to more than double in price. Pseudonymous crypto strategist Pentoshi tells his 727,200 followers on the social media platform X that layer-2 rollup platform Metis (METIS) could be setting up to soar more than 141% from its current value. “METIS: if given, $48-$56 a good entry imo (in my opinion). I’m in from lower fwiw (for what it’s worth). Narrative heating up for Q1 with a lot of good upcoming fundamentals.” Source: Pentoshi/X Looking at the trader’s chart, he suggests that METIS could ride upward momentum to the next major supply area near $175. METIS is trading for $72.41 at time of writing, up 25.4% in the last 24 hours. Pentoshi also previously predicted that ETH could soar by more than 50% from its current value in 2024 due to one catalyst. He believes if spot market Bitcoin (BTC) traded funds (ETFs) are approved then the appr...

With the integration of smart contracts functionality into the Cardano (ADA) network, there has been a noticeable surge in growth metrics, propelling the network towards competing with well-established platforms like Ethereum (ETH). As of December 26, the Plutus smart contracts platform on Cardano hosted 14,302 smart contracts (both V1 and V2 combined). This figure reflects an impressive growth of over 200%, surging from 4,731 smart contracts recorded on January 1, according to data obtained from Cardano Blockchain Insights . Number of ADA smart contracts as of December 26. Source: Cardano Blockchain Insights Significantly, the upsurge in Cardano’s smart contract count aligns with intensified network development efforts focused on improving the feature’s functionality. Cardano reports that the team has recently concentrated on expanding script capacity with the introduction of the Plutus V2 Cost Model network upgrade, which was implemented on the Cardano mainnet ...

XRP managed to close above the weekly 21MA and recovered to $0.63. XRP may rise back to $0.70 if the buying momentum continues to rise. Traders are bullish on the price action, as indicated by the funding rate. Despite Ripple’s (XRP) Head and Shoulder (H&S) structure, the weekly close was below resistance, technical analyst Cryptoes revealed. The H&S pattern is a chart formation that spots a bullish to bearish trend while indicating an upward movement is nearing its end. Cryptoes showed that XRP had initially closed above the daily diagonal support at $0.67. However, the second image shared by the analyst indicated that the support had been lost. Nonetheless, he noted that XRP managed to close above the weekly 21-day Moving Average (MA). XRP Closed right above green diagonal daily support XRP Rises Again Interestingly, the weekly close of the 21MA close seemed to have helped the XRP price. At press time, the token value had increased to $0....

Tron (TRX) is among the cryptocurrencies making waves in the market in recent months, achieving key milestones for its on-chain metrics. After gaining almost 100% in the past year, the valuation of TRX remains a key area of focus for the crypto market, especially considering the network’s increased activity, which is likely to influence adoption. With a spotlight on the value of TRX, Finbold consulted the generative artificial intelligence (AI) platform ChatGPT, designed by OpenAI, to offer insights into how the token might trade in the future. Indeed, the query focused on both speculative bullish and bearish scenarios for Tron on January 1, 2024. To begin with, ChatGPT cautioned about the challenges of predicting cryptocurrency price s, noting that the sector is notoriously volatile. Prices are subject to various influences, including market sentiment, regulatory developments, technological advancements, and macroeconomic trends. Speculative bullish scenario According to the...

Bulgarian prosecutors have ended the criminal investigations into crypto lender Nexo. A report published on Friday said authorities had found no evidence of money laundering and tax offences against Nexo and four of its executives. The Bulgarian Prosecutor’s Office closed its criminal investigations against crypto lender Nexo and four of its executives, a local news agency reported on Friday. According to the report, prosecutors found no evidence of criminal activity on the part of Nexo and the four executives Kosta Kanchev, Antoni Trenchev, Kalin Metodiev and Trayan Nikolov. Tax and computer fraud charges against the defendants have also been dropped. Bulgaria police raided Nexo offices in January this year, with authorities alleging potential criminal activity in relation to money laundering, tax offences and unauthorised banking activities. But the prosecution has concluded that Nexo’s products “do not constitute financial instrument...

DOT recovered from its slide on December 19 and jumped to $8.45  While the token’s momentum may increase upwards, there could be a reversal down to $7.50. The DMI suggests that DOT could gain another 20%, putting it in pole position to hit $10. The price of Polkadot (DOT) crossed the $8 mark on December 21, thanks to a 7.02% increase in the last 24 hours. The increase marked a moment of relief for DOT holders who endured a downtrend period between December 13 and 19. During that period, selling pressure led the Polkadot native token to fall from $7.63 to $6.52. However, the $6.52 region quickly turned into support and was crucial to the DOT’s rise to $8.45. DOT Is Not Stopping Yet From the technical point of view, it does not seem like DOT would end its uptrend at $7 or $8. This was because of the Awesome Oscillator (AO) state as shown on the 4-hour DOT/USD chart.  At press time, the AO was 1.02. With increasing green bars, the indicator ...