DeFi’s TVL reaches $100B with Bitcoin boost, high expectations for Cardano’s AI competitor

It’s just three months into 2024 and it’s still raining records in the crypto sector. The latest one came on March 9, 2024, after the global value of DeFi protocols crossed $100 billion as the rising demand for Bitcoin (BTC) fueled interest in top cryptos to invest in. 

Bitcoin has been growing impressively since the launch of BTC ETFs in the US after a landmark decision from the country’s regulators.

There’s reason to cheer in the altcoin space too. Altcoin holders are in good spirits after InQubeta (QUBE) recently made waves with its positive price action. 

The QUBE token has left analysts impressed with its presale gains. With its cryptocurrency ICO raising more than $11.9 million so far, some investors see it as a potential competitor for Cardano (ADA)

InQubeta: helping AI startups rise higher

InQubeta is a crypto-based crowdfunding platform for AI projects. The Ethereum-powered platform connects AI innovators with a community of investors, mentors, and financial experts, and helps them scale their business.  

People can participate in the process by purchasing its QUBE token and buying NFTs that represent the projects. Once the transaction is processed, the funds are transferred to the startup and the buyer gets to own a share in the former’s equity. 

Besides fundraising, InQubeta helps startups scale their projects through mentorship and marketing support. The platform connects innovators with an extensive network of professionals. Some of these professionals include veterans who come with years of experience and can guide startups through the challenges of the AI industry. 

The vibrant community can also help them with brand strategy and marketing their projects. To maintain a distinctive brand presence, startups can leverage InQubeta’s social media channels. 

Rated as one of the best altcoins for 2023, the QUBE token has to thank its deflationary model for its popularity. The model contracts the token supply when the markets are in red. 

The reduced supply allows the price to stay stable and demand to rise. The advantage helps the token retain its audience and even draw more crypto users. If there is any increase in token supply during such a time, it’s checked by burning the additional tokens. 

The InQubeta team has created an ambitious roadmap for the platform and its longevity. As per the plan, several new initiatives in store will enhance the platform’s brand presence. 

The first among such initiatives is a staking dApp for crypto users that will also boost blockchain growth. The team is also looking to get the QUBE token listed on a centralized exchange so that more people can explore its USPs. 

 

Bitcoin has become eighth most valuable asset in the world

Bitcoin is a top-notch cryptocurrency that supports high-speed and secure online transactions. As investing in BTC ETFs reaches new highs, its native token BTC has become among the highest-grossing assets globally.

The BTC token’s growth has helped the crypto market attract more people. In March, the global value of DeFi protocols reached $100 billion due to a Bitcoin-led rally.

In a related development, Bitcoin’s market capitalization reached $1.42 trillion, making it the eighth most valuable asset globally.

Cardano to partner with Dubai police

Cardano is a public blockchain that’s powered by the Ouroboros protocol. The evidence-based methodology behind the protocol gives Cardano leverage over new altcoins. The open-source platform supports seamless dApp deployment with its scalability. Its native token is ADA and it’s used for various transactional purposes on the blockchain. 

It recently unveiled its ‘SuperNode’ feature that aims to ramp up smart contracts operations through a more efficient and scalable ecosystem. 

The blockchain has been in the news due to its collaboration with the Dubai police. According to reports, the Dubai police department will be joining hands with the Cardano Foundation to leverage blockchain to improve its data security measures. 

Conclusion

Apart from driving financial inclusion, Bitcoin, InQubeta, and Cardano have emerged as popular options for increasing generational wealth. With their sustained growth, these tokens are fast outperforming other asset categories and analysts are recommending them for long-term holdings.

The uptick in these coins’ popularity comes after a slew of new initiatives that have expanded their scope. For Bitcoin, the ETF mania unlocked a major growth surge. In the case of Cardano, its lightweight consensus and collaborations have bolstered its market presence. 

Meanwhile, InQubeta has been riding high after its AI-centric platform and presale success took the world by storm.

These tokens sport cutting-edge security frameworks and consensus protocols that boost investors’ confidence in their potential.

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Ether.Fi (ETHFI) token dumps after trading debut

  • ETHFI, the governance token of liquid restaking protocol Ether.Fi, fell nearly 30% after its market debut.
  • Ether.Fi’s token listed on major exchanges like Binance and OKX.

The price of ETHFI, the governance token of liquid restaking protocol Ether.Fi, has declined 30% just hours after its market debut.

ETHFI listed on major exchanges, including Binance and OKX, and traded to highs of $5.32. However, with profit taking in full swing, the token’s price has fallen by about 30% to hit lows of $3.30.

According to CoinGecko, Ether.Fi has a market cap of $394 million at the time of writing and a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of $3.4 billion. The token’s circulation supply is 115.2 million ETHFI while total supply is 1 billion ETHFI.

Ether.Fi was seeing trading volumes of $250 million. DeFiLlama data shows total value locked (TVL) at $2.97 billion. That’s slightly down from the peak of $3.13 billion on March 15, 2024.

ETHFI tokenomics

Ether.Fi is a huge protocol in the liquid restaking space and interest and hype around it was huge.

Launching in the Binance Launchpool was one of the biggest in recent listings. After its season 1 airdrop of 6% of total supply, season 2 will introduce 5%. The season 1 airdrop claims window will remain open for 90 days, the platform noted.

While analysts are bullish on the future of Ether.Fi as a project, the one disquieting factor for holders is the project’s tokenomics.

With 1 billion tokens, nearly 56% of that – 55.76% to be precise – will go to private investors and core contributors. Private investors have 32.5% of the ETHFI supply while core team members will have 23.26% of the total supply, according to the project’s tokenomics details.

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Zodia Custody secures TCSP license in Hong Kong

  • Zodia Custody (HK) has received the Trust or Company Service Provider (TCSP) license.
  • The Standard Chartered-backed digital assets custody platform will offer regulated services to institutional clients.

Zodia Custody (HK), a crypto custody solutions provider, has received the Trust or Company Service Provider (TCSP) license.

The license allows the Standard Chartered-backed digital assets custody provider to bring its services to the Hong Kong market, according to details in a company news report.

This pivotal milestone allows Zodia Custody (HK) to solidify its position within the crypto space, it added.

Zodia Custody targets Hong Kong market

Zodia Custody’s targeting of the Hong Kong market comes as the region looks to enhance their global standing as a digital assets hub. The various initiatives include the push for proper licensing of crypto firms and the reported pursuit of spot Ethereum c exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The company recently appointed Kal Chan as CEO, with one of his goals being to spearhead the adoption of digitals assets in the region.

“Hong Kong isn’t just a major hub for digital assets in Asia, it is leading the world in showing the pathway to mainstream adoption,” Chan said at the time. The crypto platform will leverage its bank-backed heritage in its regulatory and institutional goals, Chan added.

With the Hong Kong license, Zodia Custody will offer its services to institutional clients, both local and international. The objective is to provide a regulated platform whose infrastructure and products comply with TCSP requirements.

In December last year, Zodia Custody integrated with Metaco, a crypto storage provider owned by Ripple. The integration allowed for global sub-custody, with this akin to the use of custody providers in the traditional banking ecosystem.

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Digital assets see new record of $2.9 billion weekly inflows

  • Digital assets saw a new weekly record as inflows hit $2.9 billion last week.
  • Bitcoin recorded inflows of $2.86 billion, while Ethereum, Solana and Polygong saw minor outflows.
  • CoinShares shared the details in its Digital Asset Fund Flows report published on Monday, March 18.

The crypto investment space saw a record $2.9 billion in inflows last week, digital assets manager CoinShares says.

Per the report, the figure beat the previous week’s $2.7 billion, with this a seventh consecutive week that crypto investment products are seeing inflows.

This week’s inflows have pushed year-to-date inflows to US$13.2bn, smashing the full 2021 inflows of US$10.6bn,” CoinShare’s global head of research James Butterfill noted in the Digital Asset Fund Flows report published on Monday, March 18.

Bitcoin saw inflows of $2.86 billion

In a week where Bitcoin price shot to a new all-time high above $73k before flipping negative to test lows of $65k, crypto ETPs shone.

Bitcoin saw inflows of $2.86 billion during the week to push its market share to 97% year-to-date.

Meanwhile, smart contracts platforms Ethereum, Solana and Polygon recorded outflows of $14 million, $2.7 million and $6.8 million respectively.

According to CoinShares, an aggregate of all crypto investment products, the global trading volume for digital assets reached $43 billion last week. This was also the volume for the previous week, and was 47% more than the global trading volume for Bitcoin (BTC).

Notably, global ETPs surpassed $100 billion for the first time last week. However, the dip witnessed as Bitcoin led the price correction saw the market close at $97 billion.

BTC price has traded back to $68k and sentiment remains bullish going into the Bitcoin halving. Altcoins are also expected to explore new highs in coming months and this could play into further inflows.

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Standard Chartered raises 2024’s BTC forecast to $150K, projects $250K in 2025

  • Standard Chartered upgrades BTC forecast to $150K year-end.
  • The bank’s analysis is based on ETF inflows, historical gold performance, and institutional interest.
  • The bank believes the potential ETH ETF approval could drive ETH to $8K by 2024.

Standard Chartered Bank has upgraded its year-end forecast for Bitcoin’s price to $150,000, representing a 50% increase from its previous estimate of $100,000.

The bank anticipates significant bullish momentum for BTC, attributing the revision to strong inflows into spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States. These inflows are outpacing the growth of bitcoin derivatives’ open interest, suggesting sustainable positioning and long-term investment interest, particularly from pension-type funds.

The revised forecast also includes a projection for Bitcoin to reach a high of $250,000 during the 2025 cycle before stabilizing around $200,000.

Standard Chartered bases its analysis on the historical performance of gold after the introduction of gold ETFs in the U.S., drawing parallels between ETF inflows and BTC price movements.

Additionally, the bank highlights the potential for an overshoot in BTC’s price if ETF inflows reach an estimated $75 billion or if reserve managers begin acquiring BTC.

Ethereum ETF approval prospects

In addition to Bitcoin, Standard Chartered Bank also speculates on the impact of a potential Ethereum (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on May 23.

The bank suggests that such approval could lead to substantial inflows, potentially up to $45 billion within the first 12 months. This influx of capital could drive ETH’s price to approximately $8,000 by the end of 2024, assuming approval of a spot ETF.

Looking ahead to 2025, Standard Chartered envisions a scenario where the ETH-to-BTC price ratio returns to around 7%, indicating a potential ETH price of $14,000 given the bank’s estimated BTC price of $200,000 by the end of that year.

The bank’s analysis underscores the significance of regulatory developments, ETF approvals, and institutional investment trends in shaping the future trajectory of both Bitcoin and Ethereum.

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