Crypto Market Shakeup: Bitcoin Leads, Ethereum Retreats, XRP Overtakes Solana

Crypto Market Shakeup: Bitcoin Leads, Ethereum Retreats, XRP Overtakes Solana

othifinance.com   June 25, 2025   Comment  

Bitcoin has maintained its top position in the digital asset space, gaining ground as U.S. regulations loosen and institutional interest picks up. This movement has also been supported by the rollout of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which have driven more structured investment into the asset.

Bitcoin Extends Lead as Institutional Focus Shifts

Bybit reports that investors now hold Bitcoin in roughly one out of every three crypto positions, with its share of total portfolios climbing to 30.95% in May 2025, up from 25.4% in November 2024.

This significant rise reflects how major players are repositioning, with a clear tilt towards Bitcoin as a core digital asset. CoinGecko data reinforces this, showing that Bitcoin’s dominance across the broader crypto market has surpassed 62%.

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Ethereum Allocation Contracts as Focus Centres on BTC

While Bitcoin is tightening up its hold on the market, Ethereum is slowly losing ground in investor portfolios. The latest figures reveal a clear shift in sentiment, with institutions leaning further into Bitcoin and stepping back from ETH. The contrast between the two assets is becoming harder to ignore.

Here’s what the latest data shows about this turning tide:

• As at May 2025, the ETH-to-BTC holding ratio hit 0.27, with Bitcoin outweighing Ether four to one in portfolios
• 245 institutional players now include BTC in their treasury holdings
• Combined corporate and ETF holdings exceed 3.45M BTC, a growing chunk of total supply
• Retail investors have pulled back, with holdings down 37% since November 2024

While Ethereum’s share has dipped, it has seen signs of recovery. Between April and May 2025, ETH holdings rebounded from a low of 3.89%, almost doubling in a month.

However, it remains below the November 2024 peak of 11.12%, showing that Ethereum’s position is still under pressure relative to Bitcoin.

XRP Overtakes Solana as Expectations Rise

Meanwhile, XRP has climbed the ranks to become the third largest non-stablecoin crypto asset by holdings, overtaking Solana. This shift is being fuelled by expectations surrounding an XRP spot ETF. With investor sentiment favouring regulatory approval, capital has begun to rotate into the token.

Bloomberg analysts have maintained a 95% probability for XRP’s spot ETF approval, reflecting strong confidence in its prospects. Meanwhile, Polymarket’s odds have declined to 75% at the time of writing.

Despite the slight downgrade, the asset remains a frontrunner in market discussions, particularly when compared to other alternative tokens. Bybit wrote:

With its bullish price movement, XRP has come out as a winner among altcoins, its holding percentage surging from 1.29% in November 2024 to 2.42% in May 2025.

Bybit observed that interest in Solana has softened significantly. Since October 2024, the percentage of investor holdings in SOL has declined by 35%. Though prospects for a Solana ETF remain, confidence appears to be lower in the near term.

Market participants widely expect that Ripple’s ETF will be given regulatory clearance ahead of Solana’s. This belief has led to a visible shift in asset allocation. Some institutional funds have reduced their exposure to Solana, reallocating into XRP in anticipation of more immediate ETF approval. This rotation of capital has helped XRP edge ahead in the rankings.

Related topics: Crypto Market, Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana

What is Stargate Finance? Stargate STG Explained

What is Stargate Finance? Stargate STG Explained

othifinance.com   May 29, 2025   Comment  

Stargate Finance Introducing

Stargate Finance is a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol that was launched in 2022 to address the challenges of interoperability and liquidity fragmentation across various blockchain ecosystems. The core objective of Stargate is to create a unified, cross-chain liquidity pool that enables efficient and cost-effective token transfers between different blockchain networks.

The need for cross-chain interoperability has become increasingly evident as the cryptocurrency and DeFi landscapes have continued to diversify, with numerous blockchains, such as Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche, and Polygon, each offering their own unique features and use cases. However, the lack of seamless integration between these blockchain networks has resulted in fragmented liquidity, higher transaction costs, and friction for users who need to move their assets across different chains.

Stargate Finance aims to address these challenges by providing a robust and scalable solution for cross-chain asset transfers and liquidity management. By leveraging advanced cryptographic techniques and a decentralized architecture, Stargate seeks to create a more connected and efficient DeFi ecosystem, where users can seamlessly access liquidity and move their digital assets between different blockchain networks.

Key Features and Functionalities of Stargate Finance

Cross-Chain Liquidity Pools: At the core of Stargate Finance is the concept of cross-chain liquidity pools. These pools aggregate liquidity from various blockchain networks, allowing users to swap tokens between different chains with low slippage and minimal transaction fees. The initial version of Stargate supports transfers between Ethereum, Avalanche, Polygon, Optimism, and Arbitrum, with plans to expand to additional chains in the future.

Instant and Secure Token Transfers: Stargate's cross-chain token transfer functionality enables users to move their digital assets between supported blockchains quickly and securely. Unlike traditional cross-chain bridges, which can involve lengthy waiting periods and higher risks, Stargate's instant token transfers are facilitated through a combination of advanced cryptographic techniques, including Optimistic Rollups and Turing-complete smart contracts.

Unified Liquidity Management: Stargate's cross-chain liquidity pools provide a unified interface for managing liquidity across multiple blockchain networks. Users can contribute liquidity to these pools, earning trading fees and other rewards in the process. The protocol's liquidity management system is designed to be efficient, scalable, and resilient, ensuring that liquidity is always available for users to access.

Decentralized Governance and Incentives: Stargate Finance is built on a decentralized governance model, where the protocol's key decisions and upgrades are made by the community of STG token holders. The STG token serves as the governance token and also enables users to participate in the protocol's liquidity mining and staking programs, earning rewards for their contribution to the network.

Composability and DeFi Integrations: Stargate Finance is designed to be highly composable, allowing it to integrate seamlessly with other DeFi protocols and applications across different blockchain networks. This enables users to leverage Stargate's cross-chain liquidity and transfer capabilities within their existing DeFi workflows, unlocking new opportunities for cross-chain collaboration and innovation.

What Does the Future Hold for Stargate Finance?

As they say, impersonation is the best blandishment. Stargate Finance has no deficiency of copycats, like Stargate Finance or on the other hand Stargate Finance DEX. All things considered, Stargate Finance 's open-source code is not difficult to duplicate and somewhat change. Nonetheless, later beginning commitments of higher liquidity yields, they collapsed while Stargate Finance remained steadfast.

Unfortunately, Stargate Finance's principal hindrance came from Ethereum itself. The greatest shrewd agreement stage with more than $109B TVL is going through a change itself, from evidence of-work to completely verification of-stake agreement with the forthcoming Guide Chain consolidation. Accordingly, Ethereum gas charges have not been reasonable, to say the least.

Related topics: stargate, what is stargate finance, stargate project, stargate ai stock, stargate company, stargate stock, stargate ai, stargate finance crypto

WalletConnect Token Expands to Solana With 5 Million WCT Set For Airdrop

WalletConnect Token Expands to Solana With 5 Million WCT Set For Airdrop

othifinance.com   May 24, 2025   Comment  

WalletConnect, a protocol that connects crypto wallets to apps, has launched its token on Solana — its third chain after Optimism's OP Mainnet and Ethereum — along with an airdrop of 5 million tokens set for active Solana users.

The Solana expansion uses Wormhole's native token transfers (NTT) framework, allowing WCT to move natively — not as a wrapped token — across all three supported chains. The Solana launch comes less than a month after WCT went live on Ethereum, also via NTT, following its original debut on Optimism's OP Mainnet.

To support the launch, the WalletConnect Foundation said it will airdrop 5 million WCT to active Solana users through partners including Phantom, Jupiter, Backpack, and Solflare. The 5 million tokens are part of the 185 million WCT the foundation earmarked for airdrops last September, founder and director Pedro Gomes told The Block. This will be the second major WCT airdrop, following the 50 million tokens distributed to the WalletConnect community in the first season last November, the foundation said.

WCT is currently trading at around $0.60, valuing the airdrop for Solana users at about $3 million, according to The Block's WCT price page.

Airdrop claims for Solana users will open this summer, with eligibility criteria, distribution timelines, and claiming instructions to be announced in the coming weeks, Gomes said.

WCT launches on Solana

Launching WCT on Solana gives users faster and cheaper transactions and makes WalletConnect easier to use across Solana apps, Gomes said. "It will eventually open new governance opportunities and further connect WalletConnect to one of the most vibrant onchain communities," he added. Currently, WCT staking and governance are available only on Optimism's OP Mainnet.

WCT is expected to start trading on Solana decentralized exchanges soon, and users will be able to move tokens via Wormhole's Portal Bridge once support goes live, Gomes said.

Notably, Solana apps like Backpack, Drift, Kamino, and Marinade already use Reown's AppKit — a software development kit built on top of the WalletConnect protocol. While many Solana projects have integrated the AppKit to enable WalletConnect connectivity, the Wormhole NTT integration now allows these apps to also support the WCT token directly, including listing, trading, and eventually staking and governance features, Gomes said. Reown, formerly known as WalletConnect Inc., is the core team behind both the protocol and its developer tools.

The expansion to Ethereum and Solana does not affect WCT's total supply, which remains unchanged. Gomes said WalletConnect used Wormhole's "burn-and-mint" model for both deployments, where tokens are burned on the source chain and minted on the destination chain — keeping supply consistent across networks.

WalletConnect is also planning to expand WCT to more chains in the future. Gomes said the team is actively working with several networks in the Optimism Superchain ecosystem and is prioritizing chains with a strong focus on wallet user experience and onchain content. "We want to go where the builders and users are," he said.

XRP Price Fails to Respond to Two Extremely Bullish Developments — Here Is Why

XRP Price Fails to Respond to Two Extremely Bullish Developments — Here Is Why

othifinance.com   May 24, 2025   Comment  

An increase in leverage use and favorable regulatory changes could trigger an XRP rally to $3.50 and above.

The two most bullish events ever imagined by XRP advocates happened in 2025, but XRP continues to underperform the cryptocurrency market. On March 6, XRP was listed as a candidate for the United States' “Digital Asset Reserve,” and Ripple Labs settled a years-long complaint with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on May 8.

XRP fell 6% in the three months leading up to May 22, while overall crypto market capitalization rose 10%. Traders remain hopeful for a 45% rally to $3.50, with derivatives metrics signaling rising confidence.

Leverage use ramps up ahead of potential spot XRP ETF listing

The aggregate open interest on XRP futures on major exchanges jumped to 923 million XRP on May 22, up 31% from two weeks prior. The $2.2 billion position in futures markets signals growing interest from traders, but it is not necessarily bullish, as those instruments can also be used to speculate on the XRP price downside.

Some traders argue that the increased demand for leveraged XRP positions indicates growing institutional interest, especially as multiple issuers filed for a spot XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF) listing in the US. However, the final decision by the US SEC should be made in October.

Excessive demand for bullish leveraged XRP causes a positive funding rate, meaning longs (buyers) are the ones paying the carry cost. As cryptocurrency traders are generally optimistic, a 7% to 14% annualized funding rate is expected in neutral markets, while periods of FOMO can push the indicator above 50%.

The annualized funding rate jumped to 19% on May 22, nearing the highest levels in six months. Still, the current optimism level is nowhere near the 100% annualized funding rate from Dec. 4, 2024, which followed an impressive 7-day rally to $2.90 from $1.33. Far from being bearish, the current level leaves room for bullish positioning on XRP futures markets.

Favorable regulation opens the door for new partnerships and acquisitions

Part of the limited XRP price upside can be explained by the multiple rejections of US Senator Cynthia Lummis, chair of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Digital Assets, to meet with Ripple representatives. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse asked on May 19 that the lawmaker “reconsider and be a leader for ALL of crypto,” and discuss “how to make the US the crypto capital of the world.”

There is nothing stopping XRP from hitting $3.50 or even higher, as Ripple Labs is no longer facing direct threats from regulators, which paves the way for partnerships and acquisitions. Historically, XRP has reacted very positively following those announcements, and the $2.2 billion futures open interest could help catapult XRP price above the current $3.25 all-time high.

Bitcoin Trading Volume Soars as Price Pumps to New Heights

Bitcoin Trading Volume Soars as Price Pumps to New Heights

othifinance.com   May 23, 2025   Comment  

Bitcoin set new peaks this week while trading volume on futures and spot exchanges rose significantly, reflecting intense investor demand.

Bitcoin trading volume for spot and futures exchanges has soared the past two days as the underlying asset pumped to new heights.

Spot trading volume for the world's largest crypto by market value hit the highest two-day total in nearly two months, $150 billion, according to crypto markets data provider CoinMarketCap. Meanwhile, BTC futures trading volume on Wednesday jumped to over $203 billion, the third-highest daily total of 2025, according to CoinGlass.

Those figures come as BTC's price climbed to all-time highs just shy of $112,000. Bitcoin was recent trading at about $111,100, up 2% over the past 24 hours and nearly 8% for the past week. The surge has come as investors buoyed by encouraging macroeconomic signs, but also confident in Bitcoin's status as a potential hedge against the potential depreciation of the U.S. dollar, purchase the asset.

The CoinGlass data does not include inflows into American spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have taken in over $1.6 billion in inflows from investors so far this week, according to Farside Investors data.

Only 10 other days this year have eclipsed more than $75 billion in single-day spot Bitcoin volume this year. CoinGlass shows that the only days that Bitcoin futures volume has been higher so far this year was on April 7 and January 20, when volumes stood at $229.7 billion and $222.9 billion, respectively.

The crypto market has rebounded as Trump has ratcheted back his global trade war, and the most recent inflation readings have been favorable.

Bitcoin's record-breaking surge also comes as demand for Bitcoin ETFs increases and as publicly traded firms, including Strategy and Metaplanet, have continued their recent Bitcoin buying sprees. Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy now holds about 576,000 Bitcoin in its treasury, worth more than $64.5 billion at the current price.

Major altcoins have also risen over the same period with Ethereum, the second-largest digital asset by market value, up 56% over the past 30 days. ETH was recently changing hands at over $2,600, a 5.6% gain over the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin has often traded with stocks in its brief history, and more recently in line with safe-haven asset gold as markets look to account for macroeconomic uncertainties.