Why is Decred up by more than 15% today?

The broader crypto market is underperforming at the moment, but Decred is rallying.

The broader cryptocurrency market has been struggling over the past few days, and the bearish trend could continue for the rest of the day. The market has lost more than 4% of its value in the last 24 hours.

Currently, the total cryptocurrency market cap has dropped to the $1.8 trillion level. If the bearish trend continues, the total crypto market cap could drop to the $1.7 trillion level before the end of the week.

Bitcoin and Ether, the two leading cryptocurrencies by market cap, have lost more than 3% of their values in the last 24 hours. Bitcoin has dropped below the $40k psychological level while Ether is trading below $3k for the first time in weeks.

However, DCR, the native token of the Decred ecosystem, is up by more than 18% in the last 24 hours. Thus, making it the best performer amongst the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap.

There is no clear catalyst behind DCR’s ongoing rally, with the broader market currently underperforming.

Key levels to watch

The DCR/USDT 4-hour chart is bullish as the coin has outperformed the market in the last 24 hours. However, the technical indicators show that it could be due for a trend reversal if the broader market continues with its current bearish performance. 

The MACD line is above the neutral zone, indicating bullish momentum. The 14-day RSI of 66 shows that DCR could enter the overbought region if it gains the support of the broader market. 

At press time, DCR is trading at $67.2 per coin. If the current momentum continues, DCR could rally past the $70 mark before the end of the day. However, it would need the support of the broader market to reach $75 over the coming hours and days.

DCR could drop below the first major support level of $63.4 if the broader market continues to be bearish. However, it should defend the second major support level at $59 over the next few hours.

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Where does Bitcoin go next after dropping below $40k again?

Bitcoin has dropped below the $40k level again as the broader market continues to struggle.

The cryptocurrency market has been struggling over the past few days, and the bearish trend could continue in the coming days. The broader market has lost more than 4% of its value in the last 24 hours.

At the moment, the total cryptocurrency market cap has dropped to the $1.8 trillion level. If the bearish trend continues, the total crypto market cap could drop to the $1.7 trillion level before the end of the week.

Bitcoin, the world’s leading cryptocurrency by market cap, has lost more than 3% of its value so far today. At press time, BTC is trading around $38,900 per coin. Bitcoin has lost more than 8% of its value in the past seven days.

The latest bearish trend puts Bitcoin even further below its all-time high price of $69,044, which was achieved in November 2021. 

After dropping below the $40k psychological level, the bulls would need to defend the $35k support region to allow Bitcoin to regain its value of around $45k in the short term.

Key levels to watch

The BTC/USD 4-hour chart is bearish at the moment as the bears control the market. The technical indicators show that BTC is underperforming and could soon slip lower.

The MACD line is below the neutral zone, indicating a bearish momentum currently in play. The 14-day RSI of 30 shows that Bitcoin is currently in the oversold region and could face further selling pressure in the short term. 

If the bearish trend continues, Bitcoin could drop below the first major support level at $37,527 over the next few hours. In the event of an extended bearish run, BTC could be forced to defend the major support level at $35,000.

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Highlights April 18: Decred jumps 17% against gloomy market backdrop

The crypto market as a whole was mostly lower, with the majority of top 10 cryptos registering losses over the past 24 hours. 

Top cryptos

Bitcoin lost around 3% of its value and was priced at $39,000 at the time of writing. Other cryptos were also lower, including Ethereum and XRP, down 5% and 6%, respectively. Cardano registered losses of 7%, making it the biggest loser in the top 10. 

Top movers

Almost all top 100 coins were in the red at the time of writing. Against this background, the Decred price jumped sharply, reaching an all-time high since January 22 this year. 

Decred is a protocol created to facilitate open governance, community interaction, and sustainable funding policies. One of the likely reasons for its surge is the recent consensus changes its members have approved. 

Some of the most recent votes were related to automatic ticket revocation, reverting treasury expenditure policies, and concrete version upgrades. Another reason is the increasing demand for privacy tokens.

The only other coin in the green was Stacks, with gains of 6%. Ryder recently announced the launch of an NFT collection, and minting prices are in STX, Stacks’ native token. Web3 wearables and a social wallet are also in the works. 

On the other end, Kyber Network’s KNC token shed 12% of its value. Zilliqa, Waves, EOS, and Filecoin are also reversing recent gains, each down around 10%.

Trending

The biggest gainer today is Metacyber, a virtual blockchain-based metaverse set in a space where one can explore, play, trade, and socialize with other players. Its in-game currency and utility token METAC is up 629% in the last 24 hours. 

The token can provide access to an abundance of virtual assets, upgrades, and services in the Metacyber ecosystem.

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Ethereum vs Solana: Which is a better buy between ETH and SOL

Ethereum and Solana are leading blockchain projects that are helping developers build decentralized applications (dApps) in all industries. ETH and SOL have a combined market cap of over $390 billion, with Ethereum being the bigger one. In this Ethereum vs Solana comparison, we will assess the better option between the two.

The case for Ethereum

Ethereum stats

  • Market cap: $353 billion.

  • Total value locked: $115 billion.

  • Architecture: Proof-of-work (PoW)

  • YTD performance: -22%.

  • How to buy Ethereum.

There are several reasons why Ethereum investors believe in its platform. First, it has one of the best-known brands in the blockchain industry. In terms of brand awareness, only Bitcoin comes first. Therefore, investors believe that this quality will lead to more investments as the industry grows.

Second, Ethereum price has performed well over the years. Its price has moved from less than $10 to over $3,000, making it one of the best performers of all time. Third, the network has maintained a strong market share even as it faces substantial competition from the likes of Solana, Avalanche, and Cardano.

Third, Ethereum is a dynamic platform that is going through changes. After successfully running on the proof-of-work (PoW) model, the developers are transitioning to a proof-of-stake (PoS) framework. The merge of the Beacon Chain and the current platform is set to happen in July. 

Therefore, the network will be substantially faster and cost effective. Therefore, developers will not have the need for other blockchains.

The case for Solana

Solana stats

  • Market cap: $32 billion.

  • TVL: $6.8 billion.

  • Architecture: Proof-of-history

  • YTD performance: -45%

Solana is a blockchain project that uses an architecture framework known as a proof-of-history. This is a relatively new framework that deals with a high-frequency verifiable delay function (VDF) that takes a number of steps to evaluate blocks. 

As a result, Solana has a substantially high throughput of over 2,000 transactions per second (tps) and low costs of about $0.0001 per transaction. This strong performance is one of the main reasons why most developers believe that Solana is a better investment than Ethereum.

Second, Solana has been used to build some of the best-known applications in Web 3.0. Some of these applications are Audius, Brave Browser, and StepN among others. Therefore, there is a likelihood that more Web 3.0 developers will select Solana for their development.

Third, Solana has a longer runway for growth than the mature Ethereum. Besides, it is a young project that has gained a lot of traction from developers already.

Verdict: Ethereum vs Solana

In my opinion, I believe that Ethereum is still a better investment than Solana. I expect that the merger of the Beacon Chain and the main Ethereum will lead to faster speeds and lower costs. As a result, it will become a better alternative for developers.

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Ethereum vs Cardano: Which is a better buy?

Ethereum and Cardano are some of the best-known blockchains in the industry. They are also some of the largest, with Ethereum having a market cap of more than $351 billion. Cardano has a market value of over $28 billion and is the eighth biggest cryptocurrency in the world. In this Ethereum vs Cardano comparison, we will identify the better buy between the two.

The case for Ethereum

Ethereum is a dynamic blockchain project that is helping people build all types of decentralized applications (dApps). Some of the most popular dApps are in the decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible token (NFT), and gaming industries. 

There are several reasons why Ethereum is better than Cardano. First, it has a better brand recognition considering that it was among the first cryptocurrencies to be established. As such, it is the second most popular cryptocurrency after Bitcoin.

Second, it has the biggest ecosystem in the blockchain industry. Its DeFi apps have a total value locked (TVL) of over $120 billion, giving it a market dominance of over 52%. It also has a leading market share in industries like non-fungible tokens (NFT) and gaming. Some of the most popular platforms in the industry like OpenSea, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and Decentraland use Ethereum.

Finally, Ethereum is in a transition to become a proof-of-stake (PoS) network. The merge of the current Ethereum and the Beacon Chain will happen in Q3 of this year and will help transition the network to the faster proof-of-stake network. Here’s how to buy Ethereum.

The case for Cardano

The next part of the Ethereum vs Cardano comparison looks at the latter. Cardano is a similar blockchain project that offers fast speeds and lower transaction costs. Unlike Ethereum, it was built using a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus. 

While Ethereum has a bigger ecosystem, there are several reasons why some analysts believe that Cardano is a better investment. First, it is a relatively new platform that has millions of fans globally. Indeed, on-chain data shows that Cardano has some of the most active holders in the market.

Second, since Cardano is a newer platform, analysts believe that it has a longer runway for success than Ethereum. They see Ethereum as a mature platform whose growth will be limited.

Third, Cardano’s ecosystem is growing, with the number of developers building in it rising. Some of the top apps in the ecosystem are SundaeSwap and MinSwap. Here’s how to buy Cardano.

Cardano vs Ethereum

In my opinion, I believe that Ethereum is a better buy than Cardano because of its strong ecosystem and the ongoing transition to Ethereum 2.0. A faster and cheaper Ethereum will remove the incentive for developers to build on alternative chains.

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