There’s never a dull moment on the blockchain. Here’s what you need to know this week:

Bitcoin

$105,460.01

陋

3.15%

Ethereum

$3,323.87

陋

2.84%

XRP

$3.16

陋

3.52%

Tether

$1.00

陋

0.13%

Solana

$253.38

陋

7.82%

Dogecoin

$0.37

陋

8.30%

See the latest prices

MARKET BYTES

Crypto markets dip following early 2025 rally

After surging in the first week of 2025, a wide range of cryptocurrencies slid on Tuesday as new U.S. jobs data came in stronger than expected. 

By Wednesday, Bitcoin (BTC) had fallen roughly 8% for the week, from roughly $102,000 to $94,000. Meanwhile, Ether (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Solana (SOL) all fell by more than 10%.

Why might a strong economy push crypto prices down? In part, analysts say, because traders fear that it could cause the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates this year more slowly than markets initially expected. (As a general rule, lower interest rates tend to boost growth assets like crypto and tech stocks.) 

Another potential cause for the dip? Traders cashing in on profits after prices spiked last week — a consistent pattern in the weeks since prices first began to soar in the wake of the U.S. election in November.

Here are more market stories you should know about…

Crypto ETF inflows spike to start 2025

After a brief down cycle to end 2024, crypto investment products came roaring back to start the year, with around $585 million in inflows in just the first three days of 2025.

At this time last year, the major U.S.-based spot BTC and ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) didn’t even exist, and their emergence in 2024 was one of the biggest catalysts for the historically high prices markets have seen since. How big? The most popular BTC ETF — BlackRock’s iShares product —has accumulated more than $50 billion in assets alone. 

• What’s next for ETFs? Firms are seeking approval for a wide range of new crypto-related ETFs, from funds that would hold altcoins like XRP and SOL to a new kind of crypto fund that would combine BTC exposure with “downside protection” via options.

MicroStrategy bought more BTC 

For the ninth week in a row, publicly-traded software firm MicroStrategy purchased more bitcoin for its corporate treasury, adding an additional $100 million in BTC and announcing that it will be raising another $2 billion in financing to add to its holdings. The firm's current tally of 447,470 BTC was worth around $44 billion as of Monday. 

MicroStrategy’s BTC-buying spree has made it a hit on Wall Street, with shares up around 450% over last year at this time — however share prices are down sharply from November highs. The firm was added to the Nasdaq 100 index in late December.

• Adopting the strategy… Other publicly-traded firms have been experimenting with BTC purchases, although in much smaller quantities than MicroStrategy. On Monday, KULR Technology Group, a renewable energy company that trades on the NYSE, purchased around $21 million worth of BTC.

TIS THE ALTSEASON?

Four tokens to watch as markets ramp up in 2025

Last year’s massive crypto resurgence was driven in large part by bitcoin, which rose more than 100% as the launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. helped usher tens of billions of dollars into the crypto market.

But could 2025 be the year that altcoins outperform BTC? Data from the first days of the year — along with insights from a growing number of analysts — suggest that it might.

“Heading into the new year, market participants have started to diversify their exposure by allocating capital to representations of more speculative narratives,” Chris Newhouse, director of research at web3 firm Cumberland Labs, told Bloomberg.

Which tokens might be set for a big year? Here’s what you need to know. 

1. Ethereum

The second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap had a relatively disappointing 2024, notching just a 45% gain despite the launch of spot ETH ETFs and rising activity across Ethereum's network of layer-2 blockchains. Its underperformance has investors split on its 2025 outlook. 

Steno Research is predicting a big year for Ethereum, anticipating a rise from its current level of around $3,300, to around $8,000, citing historical trends and rising onchain activity. 

However, a new report from 10x Research suggests the asset might continue to underperform bitcoin in 2025, in part due to a “growing risk that some validators may begin exiting the network.”

“While the possibility of a new catalyst cannot be ruled out, we wouldn’t be surprised if Ethereum struggles to deliver meaningful rallies next year,” said 10x Research.

2. XRP

After years of sideways price action caused in part by a long-running legal dispute between the SEC and payments platform Ripple, XRP woke up in a big way after last year’s U.S. presidential election, rising more than 400% in a matter of weeks. 

Now, with the lawsuit largely settled, the token could be poised for an even bigger 2025. XRP started the year up 15%, before pulling back on Tuesday. 

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, whose global payments firm uses XRP across its network, said that a positive political backdrop following Donald Trump’s win has helped significantly boost business. 

“We signed more U.S. deals in the last six weeks of 2024 (since the election) than the previous six months,” Garlinghouse said in a recent post on X. 

Another potential boon to XRP prices? The increasing likelihood of a spot ETF launching this year. “The chances of approval have risen lately with a crypto-friendly face – Paul Atkins – heading the SEC under the Trump administration,” said an article in Forbes. 

3. Solana

Solana was one of the early outperformers of this bull cycle, rising from $23 in October 2023 all the way to a new all-time-high of $264 in November 2024. A major catalyst behind the run: Solana’s underlying network, which has turned into a major moneymaker. 

The total fees generated by apps on Solana represented more than half of all onchain application fees last year, according to Messari, and upgrades to Solana’s blockchain helped spur new institutional use cases, like PayPal launching a version of its stablecoin on Solana.

While much of Solana’s activity is still concentrated around speculative DeFi trading — compared to ETH’s ecosystem of lending, yield farming, and liquid staking apps — Messari believes that could change quickly this year. 

“2025 may well mark the year of Solana as a fully realized ecosystem,” Messari wrote as part of its Crypto Theses 2025 report. “While Solana’s fee generation underscores its strong position in spot trading, the broader ecosystem began to show signs of growth beyond trading in 2024."

One other potential 2025 catalyst: the potential approval of spot ETFs for SOL. As of Wednesday, Polymarket bettors assigned a 74% chance of one being approved in the U.S. this year, an estimate that VanEck’s Head of Digital Assets Research Matthew Sigel recently called “underpriced.”

4. DOGE

Last year, Dogecoin wasn’t even the biggest gaining dog-themed memecoin, with Solana-based tokens like Dogwifhat (WIF) rising by more than 1,000% before ending the year with around a 400% gain. But some analysts believe the “original memecoin” could reclaim its spot as the top dog in 2025.

DOGE has maintained its spot as a Top 10 token throughout most of this bull cycle, and was the second biggest gainer in the Top 10 leading up to this week’s selloff. 

And with “Dogefather” Elon Musk headed to Washington to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (aka DOGE) and potential spot ETFs in the works, some analysts suggest the token could finally surge to $1 as holders have long hoped. 

According to Galaxy Digital’s head of research, Alex Thorn, “DOGE to $1” might not just be a meme in 2025. “Dogecoin will finally hit $1, with the world’s largest and oldest memecoin touching a $100bn market cap,” predicts Thorn.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

$190 million

Size of Arbitrum’s “Gaming Catalyst Program,” which aims to fund 100 gaming projects on the popular layer 2 network within three years. On Tuesday, Arbitrum announced its largest-ever developer grant to South Korea’s Lotte Group in a move that would see the blockchain become the main partner of Caliverse, Lotte’s metaverse gaming platform.

$2.5 million

Approximate amount that Ethereum co-creator Vitalik Buterin is donating to Kanro, his philanthropic fund related to pandemic readiness and relief, founded in response to COVID-19. Buterin recently raised the proceeds by selling several dozen memecoins, including SHIB and DOGE.

70%

Percent of new token launches on Solana that memecoin-creation platform Pump.fun was responsible for over the weekend. The application, which enables users to create new tokens without requiring deep technical knowledge, has helped produce over 5.6 million new tokens since its inception nearly a year ago.

TUNE IN

Catch up on the new season of “Evolving Money”

The latest episode of Coinbase’s award-winning “Evolving Money” podcast drops this Thursday, and explores how stablecoins are making payments faster, cheaper, and easier for individuals and businesses around the globe.

In the meantime, get caught up by tuning in to episode 1 of Season Two, which takes a look at the internet’s shortcomings and why moving onchain can create better outcomes for creators and consumers worldwide.

Start listening today on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts.

TOKEN TRIVIA

What is Bitcoin’s maximum supply?

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