Aave charts post-SEC expansion as DeFi lender sharpens growth strategy

  • The strategy focuses on a major protocol upgrade, real-world asset lending, and mobile adoption.
  • Aave V4 aims to unify cross-chain liquidity and simplify development.
  • Horizon targets faster growth in tokenised real-world asset markets through institutional partners.

Aave is setting out its next phase of expansion as regulatory uncertainty in the US eases for the decentralised finance protocol.

Founder and chief executive Stani Kulechov on Dec. 17 detailed what he described as a “2026 Master Plan”, one day after the US Securities and Exchange Commission formally dropped its long-running investigation into the platform.

The update comes after what Aave described as its strongest year so far, with 2025 marked by record net deposits and billions of dollars in activity processed across the protocol.

With the regulatory probe no longer hanging over the project, Aave’s leadership is now focusing on scaling its technology, widening its institutional footprint, and pushing further into consumer-facing products.

According to Kulechov’s post on X, Aave’s strategy for 2026 rests on three core priorities: a major protocol upgrade, the expansion of tokenised real-world asset markets, and broader user adoption through a mobile app.

Aave V4 upgrade

The first pillar of the roadmap is Aave V4, the next major iteration of the lending protocol.

The upgrade is designed to introduce cross-chain liquidity, a modular architecture, and deeper customisation for developers and partners.

Aave Labs, the core development team, had already published a V4 launch roadmap in September, outlining final testing and review phases.

A central feature is the Cross-Chain Liquidity Layer, which builds on earlier versions of the protocol to address fragmented liquidity across different blockchains.

Under the new design, liquidity pools are reorganised into capital hubs on each network, with specialised spokes layered on top to support tailored lending markets for specific asset types.

The structure is intended to support significantly larger volumes of capital while simplifying how new products are launched on Aave.

The upgrade also includes new cross-chain interfaces and a revamped developer experience, which Aave expects will make integrations easier for fintech firms, enterprises, and other large-scale users.

Horizon and institutional markets

The second focus area is Horizon, Aave’s decentralised lending market for tokenised real-world assets.

Horizon is positioned as a gateway for traditional financial institutions to access DeFi infrastructure while bringing off-chain assets on-chain.

Horizon launched on Aug. 27 and surpassed $50 million in deposits by September 1, with most of the early liquidity arriving in RLUSD and USDC. Since then, net deposits have grown to around $550 million.

Aave plans to accelerate Horizon’s growth in 2026, with a stated aim of pushing deposits beyond $1 billion.

The strategy involves expanding collaborations with established financial players including Circle, Ripple, Franklin Templeton, and VanEck.

Through these partnerships, Aave intends to onboard major global asset classes and expand its reach into a real-world asset market estimated at more than $500 trillion.

Aave App and user growth

The third pillar of the roadmap targets consumer adoption through the Aave App. Launched in mid-November, the app offers a banking-style savings experience designed to make decentralised lending more accessible to non-crypto-native users.

The app is currently available on the Apple App Store and is expected to see a broader rollout next year.

Aave is targeting a user base of one million as it seeks a foothold in the global mobile fintech market, which it estimates at about $2 trillion.

The push reflects Aave’s view that long-term scaling depends on product-level adoption, not just protocol-level liquidity.

The post Aave charts post-SEC expansion as DeFi lender sharpens growth strategy appeared first on CoinJournal.

SUI price forecast as bulls risk bearish flip below $1.40

  • Sui price has dropped 6% in the past 24 hours as altcoins extend losses.
  • Bitcoin’s downtrend means Sui could see new losses.
  • A technical breakdown might bring the $1 support level into play.

Sui price hovers in the red as a 6% dip sees bulls battle to keep bears off the $1.40 support level.

At the time of writing, SUI changed hands at around $1.47, down as cryptocurrencies witnessed fresh sell-off pressure amid a broader market correction.

Aster and Telcoin are among the top losers in the past 24 hours.

SUI shows bearish bias amid crypto dump

The Sui token has declined 6% over the past 24 hours and sits more than 24% below its monthly peak, when it approached $1.77 in early December.

As with other altcoins, the downturn has coincided with a drop in open interest across derivatives markets and a rise in liquidations.

It’s indicative of waning confidence among leveraged positions, which makes the current pullback likely to morph into a prolonged correction.

For SUI, bulls have struggled since their advances were rejected around $4.45 in July 2025.

As Bitcoin trades in a downtrend around the $86,500 following its retreat from recent highs, altcoins, including Sui, have suffered a bearish cascade.

This broader market sell-off has amplified downside pressure on most layer-1 tokens, despite increased institutional interest across ETFs, tokenization and digital asset treasury initiatives.

CoinGecko has outlined Solana as the blockchain with the most market traffic share year-to-date.

However, as the platform’s data below shows, Base, Ethereum and Sui are the next top chains, ahead of BNB Chain, XRP Ledger, and Sonic.

Sui Among Top Chains
Chart showing Sui among the top blockchains by interest in 2025. Source:  CoinGecko

Sui price forecast

Technical indicators currently point to heightened downside risks, with a potential breakdown threatening to accelerate selling pressure.

On daily charts, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) sits at 41. It’s approaching oversold territory and suggests momentum could weaken further if buyers fail to defend current levels.

Sui Price Chart
Sui price chart by TradingView

Meanwhile, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator shows signs of an impending bearish crossover.

With the signal line likely to cross below the MACD line, this indicator reinforces a short-term negative momentum.

If SUI price fails to bounce above $1.40, bears could target $1.34 area and then $1.20.

A sustained breakdown might expose bulls to deeper retracements toward $1.

On the upside, a recovery above $1.50 could invalidate the immediate bearish thesis.

In this case, the key target will be resistance near $2.00. The 50-day exponential moving average at $1.87 provides the first hurdle.

The post SUI price forecast as bulls risk bearish flip below $1.40 appeared first on CoinJournal.

Stellar Lumen price prediction: XLM retests the June low, eyes further dip

Key takeaways

  • Stellar’s XLM is down 3.4% and is now trading around $0.22.
  • Derivatives data signals a bearish positional buildup, with further downside expected in the near term.

XLM derivatives suggest further bearish price action

Stellar (XLM) is trading in the red zone for the seventh consecutive day, losing 3.4% of its value in the last 24 hours. The bearish performance comes as the broader cryptocurrency market is bleeding, with XLM now expected to retest the April low in the near term. 

XLM’s derivatives data shows that the bearish trend could grow thicker. Data obtained from CoinGlass shows that XLM futures Open Interest (OI) is in a largely declining trend, at $118.43 million, down from $124.72 million recorded yesterday. 

The declining OI suggests a decline in the notional value of XLM futures, with the total value of all active positions (long and short) currently on the decline. 

With XLM declining,  long liquidations over the last 24 hours totaled $406,740, outpacing short liquidations of $6,040. The long-to-short ratio chart shows that short positions increased to 53.37% today, up from 50.57% recorded on Monday. 

XLM could decline below the $0.20 psychological level

The XLM/USD 4-hour chart is bearish and inefficient as Stellar has underperformed over the last seven days. The coin is currently trading at $0.222, retesting the June low of $0.217.

XLM/USD 4H Chart

If the bearish trend continues, XLM could drop below the $0.2001 level marked by the April 7 low. An extended bearish trend could see the cross-border remittance token aim for the support at $0.1642, followed by the annual low of $0.1600. 

Currently, the technical indicators are bearish, suggesting that sellers are in control. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 35, pointing toward the oversold zone. Furthermore, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) is falling steeply after crossing below the signal line a few hours ago.

However, if the bulls regain control, XLM could flip the bearish narrative and retest the $0.2579 support-turned-resistance.

The post Stellar Lumen price prediction: XLM retests the June low, eyes further dip appeared first on CoinJournal.

ONDO price prediction: Will Ondo defend the $0.40 psychological level?

Key takeaways

  • ONDO is down 10% in the last 24 hours and briefly dropped below the $0.40 support level.
  • The coin could retest lower support levels as the price action remains bearish.

ONDO recovers after dipping below $0.40

ONDO is one of the worst performers among the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap, as it has lost 10% of its value in the last 24 hours. At press time, ONDO is trading at $0.41, slightly recovering from its dip below $0.40.

The bearish performance comes despite Ondo Finance announcing on Monday that it plans to integrate with Solana (SOL) in early 2026 to expand its tokenized stocks and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) platform. 

According to its X post, Ondo will bring ETFs to the Solana network. While this announcement signals a bullish outlook for ONDO, the coin has underperformed over the last 24 hours. 

The integration is set to enhance scalability, liquidity, and tap into SOL’s fast-growing user base, broadening Ondo’s ecosystem and adoption. 

The bearish performance aligns with ONDO’s declining open interest on the Binance exchange, which currently stands at $22.32 million, close to its 2025 low. The decreasing open interest suggests that traders are closing their positions, with speculative interest currently declining. 

ONDO could retest $0.34 as bears remain in control

The ONDO/USD 4-hour chart is bearish and inefficient as Ondo has lost 10% of its value in the last 24 hours. 

The coin faced a rejection at the $0.52 resistance level last week and has lost 16% of its value since then. If the downward trend continues, ONDO could retest the $0.34 support level in the near term.

The October 10 low of $0.24 could serve as another strong support in the coming weeks or months. 

ONDO/USD 4H Chart

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) on the 4-hour chart is at 32, pointing downward toward oversold conditions, indicating strong bearish momentum. Furthermore, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator is showing a bearish crossover, adding confluence to the negative outlook.

However, if the bulls recover, ONDO could rally towards the $0.52 resistance level once again. 

The post ONDO price prediction: Will Ondo defend the $0.40 psychological level? appeared first on CoinJournal.

Aster, Telcoin top losers amid sharp crypto downturn

  • Aster (ASTER) and Telcoin (TEL) are the altcoins with the sharpest dips over the last 24 hours.
  • The broader cryptocurrency market shows weakness amid Bitcoin’s price dip.
  • Top altcoins are down as investor jitters pile up.

Aster price fell sharply as the token joined the likes of Telcoin in posting double-digit losses over the past 24 hours.

This came as Ethereum, XRP and Solana led top altcoins in shedding gains after Bitcoin (BTC) dropped to below $86,000.

ASTER and TEL risk further losses as selling pressure mounts, particularly as BTC trades negative despite a slight bounce above $86,000.

The risk-off sentiment taking over the market does not bode well for the altcoins.

Aster dips 12% as bulls lose key support

Aster extends the losses for the third consecutive day, dropping below the $0.80 mark.

At the time of writing, ASTER is down more than 12%, with a break below $0.77 potentially opening the door to a deeper slide toward $0.54.

Momentum indicators underline the cautious setup. On the four-hour chart, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) has moved into oversold territory.

While that can signal a possible reversal as selling pressure fades, it also leaves room for further capitulation before any sustained rebound takes hold.

Aster Price Chart
Aster price chart by TradingView

Also, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator remains firmly negative.

A recent bearish crossover confirms the dominance of a negative outlook amid broader market dynamics.

What could bolster ASTER bulls?

Like many new coins, Aster is seeing huge profit-taking deals.

The decentralized perpetual exchange nonetheless has recorded key developments that could bolster investor confidence.

One of these is Aster’s announcement of Shield Mode, a protected trading mode that the DEX plans to integrate into its perpetuals platform.

The feature allows for private position opening and management, among other key offerings.

“Shield Mode is for traders who want performance without broadcasting their next move—a protected execution mode today and an early building block for the privacy features we’re exploring with Aster Chain,” the team posted on X.

Telcoin price risks further losses

Telcoin is down 12.7% at press time on Tuesday.

As seen in the chart below, the altcoin’s price is extending recent losses amid overall crypto weakness.

The TEL token is down for a sixth straight day, having flipped negative as Bitcoin slumped below $90k.

Telcoin Price Chart
Telcoin price chart by TradingView

Amid the ongoing wider market correction, TEL price has lost 25% in the past week and broken below its September support at $0.0040.

If this psychological support level falls, Telcoin could drop to $0.0027 and likely retest support at November 2024 lows of $0.0014.

The daily chart shows that the token’s bearish momentum is gaining pace. A downsloping RSI and MACD that recently printed a bearish crossover add to this outlook.

The post Aster, Telcoin top losers amid sharp crypto downturn appeared first on CoinJournal.