Highlights of the Week
SEC Reportedly Set to Reject Solana ETF Proposals
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to reject spot Solana ETF applications.
According to Fox News reporter Eleanor Terrett, the agency has notified at least two of the five issuers seeking to launch Solana ETFs.
"The consensus here, I'm told, is that the SEC will not be considering any new Crypto funds under the current management," Terrett said on December 6.
Several asset managers have recently filed for SOL ETFs to provide investors with direct exposure to the Solana market.
VanEck was the first to file a 19b-4 with the agency on June 27, followed by 21Shares on June 28 and Canary Capital in late October. After Donald Trump's U.S. presidential election victory on November 6, Bitwise and Grayscale also filed for SOL funds.
Ether Price Reclaims $4,000 for the First Time Since March
Ether has surpassed the $4,000 mark after months of muted price action, reaching levels not seen since March 2024.
According to CoinMarketCap data, Ethereum's price has increased by 2.8% in the day and 10.7% over the past week.
Ether's positive performance follows several months of trading below its 200-day exponential moving average, a dynamic support level. Currently, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is around 71 and trending into overbought territory.
From August to early November, Ether experienced a sideways price action until the current rally sparked on November 6 in reaction to Donald Trump's election victory.
Analysts believe Ether could reach $7,000 in the current market cycle, driven by record inflows from ETFs and the strong ecosystem of developers building on the Ethereum blockchain.
Bitcoin Price Hits $100,000 ATH for the First Time
Bitcoin has reached the $100,000 ATH for the first time, marking a milestone for the cryptocurrency market after a year of significant growth.
Bitcoin hit the $100,000 price level on December 5, breaking the psychological barrier just weeks after reaching $90,000 on November 12, according to TradingView.
Bitcoin also set a new ATH of $104,000 at 03:08 UTC — about 90 minutes after crossing the $100,000 mark.
This year has seen over $31 billion in net inflows from U.S. Bitcoin ETFs, coupled with a tightening supply after Bitcoin's 4th halving event in April.
Donald Trump's Republican party victory in the U.S. presidential election in early November, speculation of a strategic national Bitcoin reserve, and increased corporate Bitcoin adoption led by MicroStrategy's Michael Saylor have also contributed to Bitcoin's price surge.
Trump Nominates Pro-Crypto Paul Atkins to Replace Gensler as SEC Chair
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated pro-Crypto Paul Atkins to replace Gary Gensler as the new leader of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In a December 4 announcement, Trump highlighted Atkins' track record and experience as a former SEC commissioner. Trump wrote on Truth Social:
"Paul is the CEO and Founder of Patomak Global Partners, a risk management consulting firm. As Co-Chair of the Token Alliance of the Digital Chamber from 2017, he has worked and researched the digital asset industry. As an SEC Commissioner from 2002-2008, Paul was a strong advocate for transparency and investor protection."
Nominating a pro-Crypto SEC commissioner to replace Gensler was one of Trump's promises to Crypto voters during his campaign and a highlight of his keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Tennessee.
Memecoin Hawk Tuah Plunges 90% After Controversial Launch
The launch of influencer Haliey Welch's memecoin Token Hawk Tuah sparked outrage on social media as the new Token skyrocketed and then plummeted significantly after a controversial rollout with allegations of insider trading.
Welch denied any insider trading or activities by her team or any related entities.
The Hawk Tuah memecoin Token launched at 10:00 PM UTC on December 4 and quickly reached a market capitalization of $490 million.
The Token's price subsequently crashed, trading at a $41.7 million valuation at the time of reporting, marking a 91% decline in less than three hours, according to data from DEX Screener data.
Winners and Losers
Last weekend, BTC was at $100,573, ETH was at $4,024, and XRP was at $2.44. The total market capitalization was $3.69 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the top 100 Cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week were Curve DAO Token (CRV) with 129.67%, Hedera (HBAR) with 106.03%, and JasmyCoin (JASMY) with 88.70%.
The top 3 altcoins that declined in price this week were Raydium (RAY) down 12.23%, BONK (BONK) down 8.17%, and Stellar (XLM) down 6.31%. For more information on Cryptocurrency prices, be sure to read the market analysis of TinTucBitcoin.
Most Memorable Quotes
"We apologize if our crypto skepticism has been misunderstood as support for traditional finance, because we hate that too."
Bryce Elder, City Editor, Alphaville at Financial Times
"Paul Atkins leading the SEC will bring rationality to the agency."
Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple Labs
"So if you're an asset that's going to trade and behave in a meme-like fashion, then the sky's the limit because who knows how to value that?"
Murad Mahmudov, Meme coin proponent
"The widespread and foreseeable dominance of regulation across the entire industry has not happened, but they also complain about it."
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
"We've tried to stop the best snipers as much as possible through high fees right at launch on Meteora."
Haliey Welch, Internet influencer
"Indeed, ARK Invest believes that Bitcoin is a much bigger idea than gold."
Cathie Wood, Founder and CEO of ARK Invest
Predictions for the Week
Ether Poised to Outperform Bitcoin: Bybit
Ether has outperformed Bitcoin in both the spot and derivatives markets since the U.S. presidential election on November 5 and continues its growth trajectory, according to a December 2 report from cryptocurrency exchange Bybit.
In November, Ether "attracted considerable attention relative to BTC, as reflected in the sharp decline in their spot price ratio," Bybit said in its November 2024 "Volatility Review" report, co-authored by market research firm Block Scholes.
The increased demand for ETH options also indicates that "[traders are increasingly favoring ETH]," Bybit stated in a media release.
Ether's outperformance accelerated after SEC Chair Gary Gensler announced his departure on November 21, providing "additional momentum and attention" for the asset, according to the report. Since then, "[this has been maintained]."
Bybit said ETH's growing dominance is "most evident in the spot market," where the ETH/BTC ratio has risen from around 0.0325 on November 21 to over 0.04 as of December 6, according to TradingView.
FUD of the Week
FDIC Ordered Banks to 'Pause' Crypto Activities — Court Documents
Court records in a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) show the agency has instructed several financial institutions to temporarily halt their cryptocurrency banking activities.
In a document filed on December 6 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the court released "pause letters" sent from FDIC officials to the boards of various U.S. banks, with their names redacted.
According to the letters sent in 2022, the FDIC has asked the institutions to "pause all activities related to Cryptoassets" to comply with unclear regulations surrounding digital assets.
"The FDIC will notify all FDIC-supervised banks at a later time when a decision is made regarding supervisory expectations for engaging in any Cryptoasset-related activities, including any required legal filings," some of the letters stated.
Potential Charges Haliey Welch Could Face if SEC Investigates HAWK Launch
The disastrous launch of influencer Haliey Welch's HAWK meme token this week was marred by allegations of sniping and insider trading, with the token plummeting 91% within just three hours.
Welch has denied these allegations, and authorities have not announced any investigations.
However, if the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Department of Justice (DOJ) decide to investigate this controversial launch, Welch and her team could face significant legal scrutiny.
According to Yuriy Brisov, partner at Digital and Analogue Partners law firm, the SEC could pursue civil charges of securities fraud, misrepresentation or deception in the sale of securities if HAWK qualifies as a security under the Howey test. The DOJ could consider criminal charges such as wire fraud or money laundering, especially if there is evidence of an intent to deceive or illegal financial activities.
On December 4, Welch launched the Hawk Tuah meme token, which initially surged to a peak market cap of $490 million before plummeting over 90% to $30 million within just a few hours.
Sky Faces Oversight Over $756 Million USDC Vault Exploit Potential
Sky, formerly MakerDAO, is facing criticism over its reliance on externally owned accounts (EOAs) to manage the $756 million in USD Coin reserves in its lightweight vector stable module.
Concerns have been raised by a user on platform X about the protocol's reliance on EOA to manage a large portion of its reserves, amounting to $756 million USD Coin. Critics argue that this storage model could make the fund vulnerable to potential attacks or internal abuse.
There have been concerns since Sky's recent rebranding and the ability to perform freezing functions in the future, the risks from an attack or abuse on these EOA-managed funds could further impact the reputation and trust of users in this protocol.
Weekly Magazine Stories
'Regular Degen' invests entirely in Sports Fan Token for rewards
"Many people spend hours on social media or play Candy Crush — I spend time on Fan Tokens. What's the problem?" asked a sports fan token enthusiast.
'China's MicroStrategy' Meitu sells all Bitcoin and Ethereum: Asia Express
'Asia's MicroStrategy' Meitu has sold all of its 940 Bitcoin and 31K ETH — passing the title to Japan's Metaplanet with 1,100 BTC reserves. Asia Express
Comeback 2025: Is Ethereum on track to catch up to Bitcoin and Solana?
Freezing lanes and FUD have slowed Ethereum's price movement in 2024, but there are signs that Ethereum may turn the tide in the new year.
