Altcoins

Crypto’s optimism isn’t just hype; it’s a structural feature. Even as global shocks and policy shifts rattle traditional markets, digital assets consistently show greater emotional resilience.

Trader’s interest in Solana is strong, but declining memecoin prices and SOL token unlocks have put a cap on the altcoin’s rally.

REX Shares took a “regulatory end-around” with its Ethereum and Solana staking ETF filings, and the launch looks “imminent,” an ETF analyst says.

Sui validators voted to return $162 million in frozen assets from the Cetus exploit, enabling a full recovery and restart plan for impacted users.

The SEC said protocol staking isn’t a securities transaction, marking a key win for crypto regulation and paving the way for potential ETF staking approval.

Stripe’s president confirms growing interest in stablecoins from banks, but adoption would still require more green lights from regulators.

Bitcoin’s drop below $104,000 puts the asset into a consolidation phase where even lower lows could be tested.

The crypto market is currently facing significant pressure, largely due to US President Donald Trump’s trade war and deteriorating macroeconomic conditions. These factors have put markets under strain, with some analysts predicting that the bull run is over and a bear market may be on the horizon.

In a recent Cointelegraph interview, Kevin O’Leary, also known as “Mr. Wonderful,” shared his thoughts on the current state of the market and what could be ahead. Despite the turbulence, O’Leary remains optimistic about the future of Bitcoin (BTC). He explains that while the market is under pressure, he still expects Bitcoin to end the year higher as a couple of key factors come into play.

A key issue discussed in the interview is the need for regulatory clarity, especially surrounding stablecoins. O’Leary is particularly focused on the GENIUS Act, which he believes will be passed imminently by the US Congress. “We have been waiting for almost seven years for this legislation. I have a feeling it’s going to make it, and when that happens, it’s a game changer,” O’Leary said.

The passage of the GENIUS Act, which aims to provide regulatory clarity around stablecoins, should boost the adoption of dollar-backed stablecoins. This move is expected to bring much-needed stability and legitimacy to the crypto market, helping to mitigate some of the ongoing risks. O’Leary also shared insights into his personal crypto portfolio, revealing a diversified mix of assets in his portfolio.

To dive deeper into O’Leary’s views on the current state of the crypto market and his personal approach to investing in crypto, make sure to watch the full interview on our channel.

Related: Trump says US will be ‘Bitcoin superpower’ as BTC price breaks 4-month downtrend

Asset manager Canary Capital has filed to list an exchange-traded fund (ETF) holding Pengu (PENGU), the governance token of the Pudgy Penguins non-fungible token (NFT) project, US regulatory filings show. 

The ETF is the latest in a slew of filings for new US investment products tied to spot cryptocurrencies, including altcoins and memecoins. 

According to the filing, the ETF is intended to hold spot PENGU as well as various Pudgy Penguins NFTs. It would be the first US ETF to hold NFTs if approved. 

Additionally, “[t]he Trust will also hold other digital assets, such as SOL and ETH, that are necessary or incidental to the purchase, sale and transfer of the Trust’s PENGU and Pudgy Penguins NFTs,” the filing said. 

Launched in December, PUDGY has a roughly $438-million market capitalization as of March 20, according to CoinGecko.

On March 18, Canary filed to list the first US ETF holding Sui (SUI), the native token of the Sui layer-1 blockchain network.

Related: Canary Capital proposes first Sui ETF in US SEC filing

Policy reversal

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has acknowledged dozens of filings for new crypto investment products since US President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20. 

They include filings for proposed ETFs for native L1 tokens such as Solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP), as well as for memecoins such as Dogecoin (DOGE) and Official Trump (TRUMP). 

Some industry analysts are skeptical that ETFs holding non-core cryptocurrencies will see a meaningful uptake among traditional investors. 

“Pengu ETF announced. Price barely goes up. New ETFs for crypto assets have become an irrelevant joke,” crypto researcher Alex Krüger said in a March 20 post on the X platform. “Most crypto ETFs will fail to attract AUM and cost issuers money.”

Since starting his second presidential term, Trump has reversed the US government’s stance on digital assets, promising to make America “the world’s crypto capital.” 

Under his predecessor, former US President Joe Biden, US regulatory agencies brought upward of 100 enforcement actions against crypto firms.

On March 20, asset manager Volatility Shares launched two Solana futures ETFs, the Volatility Shares Solana ETF (SOLZ) and the Volatility Shares 2X Solana ETF (SOLT). 

They use financial derivatives to track SOL’s performance with one- and two-time leverage, respectively. Spot SOL ETFs are still awaiting regulatory approval. 

Magazine: Crypto fans are obsessed with longevity and biohacking — Here’s why 

Onchain sleuth ZachXBT said he had identified the mysterious whale who profited $20 million from highly leveraged trades on Hyperliquid and GMX as a British hacker going by the name William Parker. 

According to ZachXBT’s March 20 X post, Parker — who was previously known as Alistair Packover before changing his name — was arrested last year for allegedly stealing around $1 million from two casinos in 2023. 

Parker also made headlines a decade ago for allegations of hacking and gambling, ZachXBT said.

“It is abundantly clear WP/AP has not learned his lesson over the years after serving time for fraud and will likely continue gambling,” ZachXBT said.

Related: Hyperliquid ups margin requirements after $4 million liquidation loss

ZachXBT said his findings are based on a phone number provided by a person who allegedly received a payment from the whale trader’s wallet address. 

He also said that public wallet addresses associated with the whale trader received proceeds from past onchain phishing schemes.

Cointelegraph has not independently verified ZachXBT’s claims. 

Massive leveraged bets

The mysterious whale rose to prominence after profiting approximately $20 million from highly leveraged trades — in some cases with up to 50x leverage — on decentralized perpetuals exchanges Hyperliquid and GMX. 

On March 12, the trader intentionally liquidated an approximately $200 million Ether (ETH) long, causing Hyperliquid’s liquidity pool to lose $4 million. 

Meanwhile, the whale earned profits of some $1.8 million.

Hyperliquid said the liquidation was not an exploit but rather a predictable consequence of how the trading platform operates under extreme conditions. The DEX later revised its collateral rules for traders with open positions to guard against such occurrences in the future. 

On March 14, the whale took another multimillion-long position, this time on Chainlink (LINK).

Perpetual futures, or “perps,” are leveraged futures contracts with no expiry date. Traders deposit margin collateral — typically USDC (USDC) for Hyperliquid — to secure open positions. 

Magazine: ‘Hong Kong’s FTX’ victims win lawsuit, bankers bash stablecoins: Asia Express