XRP Holds Unique Position in the Market and Is Set to Grow, Says Crypto Expert

Solana's decentralized finance (DeFi) scene is buzzing. Raydium, a leading decentralized exchange (DEX), has grabbed a whopping 60% market share. This comes as overall DeFi activity cools off and meme coins start fleeing towards Tron. DeFiLlama data shows total value locked across major blockchains sits at $77 billion. Ethereum still leads the pack, but Solana's making waves. Raydium's user base is exploding. An analyst on X shared Artemis data showing the DEX attracts over 200,000 active users daily. It's simply leaving other competing protocols in the dust. Solana's daily active addresses have hit an all-time high. The blockchain now boasts 5.5 million daily active users on average. That's huge. Ethereum and its layer-2 solutions can't keep up. Solana's base layer scalability is giving it an edge. No need for sequencers or fault-proof systems here. "Solana's throughput is off the charts," says a crypto analyst who preferred to stay anonymous. "It's no wonder users are flocking to it." But here's where things get weird. Despite the user base growth gas fees are tanking. As of September 7, fee revenue hit a six-month low of $414,000. That's peanuts compared to the $5 million seen on March 18. What's behind the fee drop? Pump.fun, a popular meme coin launchpad, is losing steam. Its fees have nosedived by over 80% since late July. But don't you worry, meme coin enthusiasts aren't disappearing. They're just moving house. Tron, another speedy blockchain, is seeing a surge in activity. Its new launchpad, SunPump, is picking up where Pump.fun left off. "It's like musical chairs for meme coins," jokes a Solana developer. "First Solana, now Tron. Who knows where they'll go next?" Despite the fee slump, Solana's user activity remains red-hot. It's a mixed bag of signals for the blockchain. High engagement but lower revenue – a puzzle for analysts to unravel. As the DeFi landscape evolves, Solana's position remains strong. Raydium's dominance and record user numbers paint a rosy picture. But the exodus of meme coin activity and plummeting fees add a note of caution. One thing's for sure: the DeFi world never stays still for long. Solana's next moves will be closely watched by investors and enthusiasts alike.

Tether, TRON, and TRM Labs have teamed up. They're launching a private sector crime unit. It's called the T3 Financial Crime Unit (T3 FCU). The goal? To fight dodgy USDT use on the TRON blockchain. USDT is the biggest stablecoin out there. It's also become a go-to for some shady dealings. The new unit wants to change that. "We're creating a safer crypto community for everyone," the companies said in a joint statement. They're not messing around. The T3 FCU has already frozen over $12 million linked to scams. TRON founder Justin Sun chimed in. "We believe tech can be used for good," he said. "This collaboration sends a clear message. Illicit activity isn't welcome in our industry." The move comes as USDT usage skyrockets, it's now surpassed Visa in transaction volume. That's huge. In countries with weak economies, people are turning to USDT, trying to hedge against inflation. Tether's been busy on the crime-fighting front. Earlier this year, they helped the U.S. Department of Justice recover $5 million in USDT. That's no small potatoes. This new unit brings together some serious expertise. TRM Labs is a top blockchain intelligence firm. TRON's a major player in the blockchain world. And Tether? They're the biggest fish in the digital asset pond. The focus right now is on TRON. But who knows? If this works out, we might see similar efforts on other blockchains. It's a bold move in a wild west industry. Will it work? Only time will tell. But one thing's for sure – the crypto world is growing up fast. This initiative could be a game-changer. It's not just about catching bad guys. It's about building trust in crypto.

The Open Network (TON) blockchain has set a new record. Over 17 million users claimed its dog-themed cryptocurrency, Dogs (DOGS). This makes it the largest meme token launch in crypto history. Despite Pavel Durov's recent legal hurdles in France and the overall buzz around Telegram, TON keeps developing. TON developers announced the milestone on Telegram. The blockchain, originally created by Telegram in 2018, is now run by independent developers. The numbers are staggering. Daily active users hit 1.1 million several times in two weeks. Single-day transactions peaked at 14.4 million. "DOGS token is now held by 4.5 million unique wallets on TON," the developers said. This puts it in a unique position as it has the most unique token holders on any chain ever, achieved in just two weeks. Only USDT on TRON and Ethereum have more holders than DOGS. That's pretty wild for a meme token. The token's inspiration? Pavel Durov's iconic dog drawing. Talk about a ruff start to a crypto project. Here's the kicker: 53 million users engaged with the DOGS Mini App. Of those, 42.2 million were eligible for the airdrop. And 17 million actually claimed their free tokens. But TON isn't stopping there. They're gearing up for even bigger launches. Catizen (CATI) and Hamster Kombat (HMSTR) are next on the list. "In September, we anticipate even larger TGEs," the team said. They're talking tens or even hundreds of millions of new users. That's no small potatoes in the crypto world. Of course, it's not all smooth sailing. The network will face "technical pressures and possibly some unforeseen issues," the developers admitted. But they're committed to tackling these challenges head-on. At the time of writing, Dogs is trading for $0.001047. It's up 2.6% in the last 24 hours, with a market cap of $541,450,195. Not too shabby for a pup.

Binance, the world's top crypto exchange by volume, has launched a new feature. It shows when token unlocks hit the market. The move could shake up how everyday traders evaluate tokens. The feature integrates token unlocking and vesting data. It's a team-up with CoinMarketCap, a price resource. Binance bought CoinMarketCap in April 2020. The two have run separately since then. What's token vesting? It's gradually dishing out virtual tokens to stakeholders. This includes investors and creators. It happens over a set time period. Crypto projects often lock up token allocations. This can last for years. Why? To avoid flooding the market. It also keeps developers motivated. The project's success can impact token prices. Fans say these processes boost predictability and also increase transparency in digital assets. Large token unlocks have jolted the market before. Holders fret about potential impacts. A Binance spokesperson chimed in. "Token unlocks can sway prices," they told Decrypt. "Having this info at your fingertips is crucial." The new feature aims to keep users in the loop. It shows each token's circulating supply. You can see unlocked and locked quantities too, percentages are there as well. But wait, there's more. The platform displays upcoming scheduled unlocks and it even has countdown timers for each distribution. Talk about keeping traders on their toes. The feature's already live on Binance's website. It'll hit the app soon too. Traders, get ready to level up your game. This move could be a game-changer. It puts crucial data in users' hands. Will it lead to smarter trading? Only time will tell. But one thing's for sure – Binance is betting big on transparency.

Base, Coinbase's layer-2 blockchain, has become the second-largest L2 network. It's a surprising twist. Base isn't exactly cutting-edge tech. The project launched last year using borrowed code - it's built on Optimism's OP Stack framework. Yet Base now holds an 18% market share among 74 active L2 networks. Only Arbitrum One beats it, with a 40% share. Base has leapfrogged over established players like Starknet, Polygon, and even Optimism itself. L2 networks aim to make Ethereum faster and cheaper. They bundle transactions and settle them on the main chain. It's a bit like filing records at the county clerk's office. But here's the kicker: marketing prowess trumps tech chops in the blockchain race. Coinbase's deep pockets and promo events have fueled Base's growth. Take their recent "Onchain Summer" campaign. It drew over 2 million unique wallets, and creators pocketed more than $5 million in mint revenue. "The results really blew us away," a Coinbase spokesperson gushed. Participation was 8x higher than last year, doubling internal expectations. Blockchain data backs this up. Token Terminal shows Base accelerating while other L2s slow down. Coinbase's not shy about splashing cash. They spent $165 million on marketing in Q2 2023 alone. That's double the previous year's figure. Base is raking it in, too. In Q1 2024, Coinbase reported $52.5 million in "other" transaction revenues, including Base's sequencer fees. But is it all smoke and mirrors? Are these real users or just crypto tire-kickers? Some reckon it's down to memecoins and easy onboarding from Coinbase. Rob Hadick of Dragonfly VC notes Base's popularity for swapping "longer-tail assets". But a closer look shows lots of memecoin action. That's notoriously fickle. Coinbase's smart contract wallet makes it a breeze to move tokens over. No seed phrases, no hassle. It's a game-changer for curious newbies. Oskari Tempakka from Token Terminal credits the Coinbase-Optimism combo. A U.S.-listed exchange plus Optimism's tech smarts? It's a potent mix. Base's rise shows that in crypto, as in life, it's not just what you know. It's who you know – and how well you can sell it.

Bitcoin's mining hashrate has hit a new all-time high. This comes despite the cryptocurrency's recent price slump. The move suggests miners are betting on a future rally. The hashrate measures the total computing power on the Bitcoin network. It's a key indicator of network health and miner confidence. A rising hashrate typically signals optimism among miners. On-chain data shows the 7-day average hashrate recently spiked. This push came near the end of July and set a new record for the metric. But the high was short-lived. The indicator saw a rapid decline soon after. It wasn't until mid-August that the metric started to recover. This recovery held steady for a while. But the indicator ended August on a low note, simply retreating to earlier lows. Why the rollercoaster ride? The answer might lie in Bitcoin's price action. Miners make most of their money from block rewards. These rewards are fixed in Bitcoin terms. They're also given out at regular intervals. So, there's really only one variable that matters: Bitcoin's dollar value. When the price goes up, so does miner revenue. It's that simple. The late July hashrate peak coincided with Bitcoin's rally towards $70,000. The subsequent decline? That happened as the asset took a nosedive. But here's where things get interesting. Since September started, the hashrate has been climbing. And get this - it's happening while Bitcoin's price is tanking. It's a head-scratcher, for sure. But it suggests miners are feeling gutsy. They're expanding operations, likely betting on a future price surge. We've seen this movie before. Earlier this year, a similar hashrate trend preceded Bitcoin's rally to its all-time high price.

Trust Wallet, a crypto wallet backed by ex-Binance boss CZ, is seeing user growth in developing regions. Africa and South Asia are the hotspots. Users there want stablecoins like USDC for financial stability. Trust Wallet CEO Eowyn Chen spilled the beans to CryptoNews at Korea Blockchain Week 2024. The firm's still got CZ's backing, even after his Binance exit and prison stint. Chen, based in Dubai, says downloads are steady at 1-2 million per week. Market ups and downs? No sweat. This shows a growing need for on-chain wallets where traditional finance is shaky. "Many of our users in Africa and South Asia are looking for security and stability in their financial holdings," Chen said. She's not kidding around. Over $8 billion in USD stablecoins, mainly USDC, are chilling in Trust Wallet. Why the stablecoin craze? It's a no-brainer. In emerging markets, banking infrastructure often sucks. Crypto wallets step in, letting users manage money without relying on traditional banks. Stablecoins, pegged to the greenback, help users dodge inflation and currency depreciation. Now, let's talk South Korea. Chen says local users are all over crypto trading and DeFi. But it's not all smooth sailing. Regulations and market quirks make widespread adoption a tough nut to crack. "Korea is a highly competitive market," Chen explained. They want local language support, slick UI/UX, and high-risk, high-reward investments. It's a FOMO-driven market, where big local launches can spark wider adoption. David Kim, a smart contract whiz at Trust Wallet, chimed in on South Korean conglomerates exploring Web3. He told CryptoNews that big names like Line, Naver, and SK Telecom are waking up to Web3 wallets' importance. But it's not all rainbows and unicorns. Most companies are still figuring out how to mesh Web3 with their existing services. Some are teaming up. Ahn Lab and SK Telecom, for instance, merged their Web3 products to create a more appealing solution. Despite these moves, Kim notes that South Korea's Web3 market is still CEX-heavy. "A lot of retail users' funds are concentrated on CEXs, while only a small portion is in the DeFi sector," he said. Looks like there's still a long way to go.

Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, might be in for a rough ride, even despite the fact the bull market is over. At least, that's what one crypto strategist reckons. Justin Bennett, a well-known figure in the crypto world, has raised eyebrows with his latest prediction. He's not pulling any punches. Bennett thinks ETH isn't going to do well, and as such isn't a good investment. "To say this is an important moment for ETH is a massive understatement," Bennett told his 111,100 followers on X. How's so? Well, the analyst believes Ethereum is testing a crucial support level. It's part of what traders call an ascending channel pattern. Bennett's outlook isn't pretty. He expects Ethereum to eventually break below this support level. His base case? A drop to $700. That's a whopping 69% decrease from current prices. As of writing, Ethereum is trading at $2,278. The potential downturn has got the crypto community on edge. Bennett isn't buying into the hype around potential Fed rate cuts either. He thinks any resulting rallies could be a trap. "Markets are forward-looking. Why would they wait for rate cuts to rally?" he questioned. It's worth noting that Ethereum's price history has been a rollercoaster. The cryptocurrency hit an all-time high of $4,878 in November 2021, and that was the moment of the greatest optimism. Bitcoin was worth $69,000 at the moment, and many analysts predicted ETH would skyrocket at least to a $10,000 mark. That never happened. As for the crashes, Ethereum has had a fair share of those. For instance, ETH dropped as low as to around $80 in December 2018. Yes, that was a long time ago. But more recently, Ethereum weathered the crypto winter of 2022, when its price fell below $1,000. It's since recovered, reaching $2,000 and staying above this mark for a little while, but Bennett's forecast suggests more turbulence ahead. Crashing below $1,000 now - in a world where ETH ETFs are already legal - might have unpredictable and easily the most uncomfortable consequences for the second largest crypto. Of course, Ethereum is not only about the price and trading. Like it or not, to many users Ethereum remains a cornerstone of the crypto ecosystem. Why? Well, the ETH token is traded, yes, but the core feature of the Ethereum blockchain goes far beyond that. It's the go-to platform for decentralized applications and smart contracts. Most popular and widey used stablecoins and most successful meme coins - they all exist thanks to Ethereum blockchain. Even if ETH prices plummet, it poses no immediate threat to Ethereum ecosystem. At least, it would be fair to say that meme coins on Solana blockchain is clearly a bigger threat to Ethereum's dominance. Whether Bennett's prediction comes true remains to be seen. But one thing's for sure – the crypto market never has a dull moment.