Opinion by: Maksym Sakharov, co-founder and group CEO of WeFi The current markets are experiencing tailwinds as a result of the tariffs imposed by the US administration and retaliatory measures from trading partners. So far, however, market proponents say that Trump’s tariffs are primarily a negotiation strategy, and their effect on businesses and consumers will remain manageable.Market uncertainty drives institutional interest Adding to the uncertainty are the inflationary pressures that could challenge the US Federal Reserve’s rate-cutting outlook. Besides that, an impending fiscal debate in Washington over the federal budget is also causing jitters in the market. Resolving the debt ceiling remains a pressing issue, as the Treasury currently relies upon “extraordinary measures” to meet US financial obligations. The exact timeline for when these measures will be exhausted is unclear, but analysts anticipate they may run out after the first quarter. While the administration has proposed eliminating the debt ceiling, this could face resistance from fiscal conservatives in Congress. According to a recent report, one sector experiencing steady growth is stablecoins despite this macroeconomic uncertainty. Much of the volume is driven by flows in Tether’s USDt (USDT) and USDC (USDC). Dollar-pegged stablecoins dominate the market Stablecoins started as an experiment — a programmable digital currency that would make it easier for users to enter the crypto market and trade different digital assets. A decade later, they are a critical part of the broader digital financial infrastructure.The stablecoin market cap currently stands at a record $226 billion and continues to expand. Demand in emerging markets drives this growth. A recent ARK Invest report states that dollar-pegged stablecoins dominate the market. They account for over 98% of the stablecoin supply, with gold- and euro-backed stablecoins only sharing a small portion of the market.In addition to this, Tether’s USDt accounts for over 60% of the total market. ARK’s research suggests that the market will expand and include Asian currency-backed stablecoins.Recent: US will use stablecoins to ensure dollar hegemony — Scott BessentBesides that, digital assets are going through a shift marked by “stablecoinization” and “dollarization.” Asian nations like China and Japan have offloaded record amounts of US Treasurys. Saudi Arabia has ended its 45-year petrodollar agreement, and BRICS nations are increasingly bypassing the SWIFT network to reduce reliance on the US dollar. Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) were traditionally the primary entry points into the digital asset ecosystem. Stablecoins have, however, taken the lead over the past two years, now representing…Read More

Concerns over a global trade war continue to pressure traditional and cryptocurrency markets as investors brace for a potential tariff announcement from US President Donald Trump on April 2 — a move that could set the tone for Bitcoin’s price trajectory throughout the month.Trump first announced import tariffs on Chinese goods on Jan. 20, the day of his inauguration as president.Global tariff fears have led to heightened inflation concerns, limiting appetite for risk assets among investors. Bitcoin (BTC) has fallen 18%, and the S&P 500 (SPX) index has fallen more than 7% in the two months following the initial tariff announcement, according to TradingView data, TradingView data shows.“Going forward, April 2 is drawing increased attention as a potential flashpoint for fresh US tariff announcements,” Stella Zlatareva, dispatch editor at digital asset investment platform Nexo, told Cointelegraph.S&P 500, BTC/USD, 1-day chart. Source: TradingView Investor sentiment took another hit on March 29 after Trump pressed his senior advisers to take a more aggressive stance on import tariffs, which may be seen as a potential escalation of the trade war, the Washington Post reported, citing four unnamed sources familiar with the matter.The April 2 announcement is expected to detail reciprocal trade tariffs targeting top US trading partners. The measures aim to reduce the country’s estimated $1.2 trillion goods trade deficit and boost domestic manufacturing.Related: Bitcoin ‘more likely’ to hit $110K before $76.5K — Arthur HayesBitcoin ETFs, whales continue accumulatingDespite mounting uncertainty, large Bitcoin holders — known as “whales,” with between 1,000 BTC and 10,000 BTC — have continued to accumulate. Addresses in this category have remained steady since the beginning of 2025, from 1,956 addresses on Jan. 1 to over 1,990 addresses on March 27 — still below the previous cycle’s peak of 2,370 addresses recorded in February 2024, Glassnode data shows.Whale address count. Source: Glassnode“Risk appetite remains muted amid tariff threats from President Trump and ongoing macro uncertainty,” according to Iliya Kalchev, dispatch analyst at Nexo, who told Cointelegraph:“Still, BTC accumulation by whales and a 10-day ETF inflow streak point to steady institutional demand. But hawkish surprises — from inflation or trade — may keep crypto rangebound into April.”Related: $1T stablecoin supply could drive next crypto rally — CoinFund’s PakmanThe US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds halted their 10-day accumulation streak on March 28 when Fidelity’s ETF recorded over $93 million worth of outflows, while the other ETF issuers registered no inflows or outflows,…Read More

Bitcoin (BTC) circled $83,000 on March 30 after weekend volatility brought new ten-day lows.BTC/USD 4-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewBTC price action deals snap weekend downsideData from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD gradually recovering after a trip to $81,600 the day prior.With no added selling pressure from the ongoing rout in US stock markets, Bitcoin managed to erase most of the downside to come full circle versus the last Wall Street close.“Quite the volatility for a weekend indeed,” popular trader Daan Crypto Trades summarized in part of his latest content on X. “Looking like it might end up opening on Monday where it closed on Friday as most of the dump has been retraced now.”BTC/USDT 15-minute chart with CME futures data. Source: Daan Crypto Trades/XDaan Crypto Trades eyed the potential for a new gap in CME Group’s Bitcoin futures markets to be created thanks to the erratic market moves.“Would be nice to not open with a gap for once so we can focus on everything else instead,” he argued, adding that a “big week” lay ahead.Others had little hope for a short-term turnaround in Bitcoin’s fortunes. Veteran trader Peter Brandt even doubted the stability of the multimonth lows seen earlier this month.I am not a big fan of inverted H&S patterns with downward slanting necklines. H&S patterns with horizontal necklines are far more reliable $BTC pic.twitter.com/GKGUZbrab8— Peter Brandt (@PeterLBrandt) March 29, 2025“Don’t shoot the messenger. Just reporting on what the chart says until it says something different,” he told X followers this week, giving a new lower BTC price target. “Bear wedge completed with 2X target from the double top at 65,635.”BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: Peter Brandt/XBrandt’s is not the only $65,000 BTC price prediction currently in force.Can “spoofy” $78,000 Bitcoin bids be trusted?Updating his market observations, meanwhile, Keith Alan, co-founder of trading resource Material Indicators, doubled down on his suspicions that a large-volume entity had been manipulating BTC price action lower in recent weeks.Related: ‘Bitcoin Macro Index’ bear signal puts $110K BTC price return in doubtAs Cointelegraph reported, the entity, which Alan dubbed “Spoofy, The Whale,” had used overhead liquidity to pressure the price lower and stop it from gaining traction above $87,500.This form of order book manipulation, known as “spoofing,” is a common feature in crypto and can involve both bid and ask liquidity.“While I have no real way of confirming that it is the same entity using ask liquidity to herd…Read More

Today in crypto, crypto industry professionals say US regulation must clarify banking and stablecoins before focusing on taxes, a video of Vitalik Buterin interacting with a robot has caught the crypto industry’s attention, and the Kalshi prediction market filed lawsuits against gaming regulators in New Jersey and Nevada.Stablecoin rules needed in US before crypto tax reform, experts sayUnited States cryptocurrency regulations need more clarity on stablecoins and banking relationships before lawmakers prioritize tax reform, according to industry leaders and legal experts.“In my view, tax isn’t necessarily the priority for upgrading US crypto regulation,” according to Mattan Erder, general counsel at layer-3 decentralized blockchain network Orbs.A “tailored regulatory approach” for areas including securities laws and removing “obstacles in banking” is a priority for US lawmakers with “more upside” for the industry, Erder told Cointelegraph.“The new Trump administration is clearly all in on crypto and is taking steps that we could have only dreamed about a few years ago (including during his first term),” he said. “It seems likely that crypto regulation will be able to have it all and get much more clear and rational regulation in all areas, including tax.”Still, Erder noted there are limits to what President Donald Trump can accomplish through executive orders and regulatory agency action alone. “At some point, the laws themselves will need to change, and for that, he will need Congress,” he said.Trump’s March 7 executive order, which directed the government to establish a national Bitcoin reserve using crypto assets seized in criminal cases, was seen as a signal of growing federal support for digital assets.Vitalik Buterin meows at a robot, and the crypto world loses itA video of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin kneeling in front of a robot and seemingly letting out a “meow” sound has gone viral — and, as usual, the crypto industry is already speculating what it might mean for Ether’s future.“The future of Ethereum is in this man’s hands… Meow,” crypto influencer Wendy O said in a March 29 X post. Cork Protocol co-founder Phil Fogel shared the video and commented that “so much” of his professional life and net worth depend on Buterin but reiterated that the entertaining interaction makes him “bullish.”Source: RinorPseudonymous crypto trader Scott Crypto Warrior shared the video with his 514,300 X followers and said, “Pray for our ETH bags.” The short clip shows Buterin on his knees, gesturing at a four-legged robot and letting out what sounds like a “meow” before…Read More

A savvy cryptocurrency trader reportedly turned $2,000 into more than $43 million by investing in the memecoin Pepe at its peak valuation, despite the token’s extreme volatility and lack of underlying technical value.The trader made an over 4,700-fold return on investment on the popular frog-themed Pepe (PEPE) cryptocurrency, according to blockchain intelligence platform Lookonchain.“This OG spent only $2,184 to buy 1.5T $PEPE($43M at the peak) in the early stage. He sold 1.02T $PEPE for $6.66M, leaving 493B $PEPE($3.64M), with a total profit of $10.3M(4,718x), Lookonchain wrote in a March 29 X post.Source: LookonchainThe trader realized over $10 million in profit despite Pepe’s price falling over 74% from its all-time high of $0.00002825, which it reached on Dec. 9, 2024, Cointelegraph Markets Pro data shows.PEPE/USD, all-time chart. Source: Cointelegraph Markets ProMemecoins are considered some of the most speculative and volatile digital assets, with price action driven largely by online enthusiasm and social sentiment rather than fundamental utility or innovation.Still, they’ve proven capable of generating life-changing returns. In May 2024, another early Pepe investor turned $27 into $52 million — a 1.9 million-fold return — according to onchain data.Related: $1T stablecoin supply could drive next crypto rally — CoinFund’s PakmanMemecoins are stealing the spotlight from altcoinsDespite their intrinsic lack of utility, memecoins continued to steal the spotlight from more established cryptocurrencies, Stella Zlatareva, dispatch editor at digital asset investment platform Nexo, told Cointelegraph:“High-beta, i.e., volatile tokens, are stealing the spotlight. Case in point, memecoins surged 5.6% on average, with DOGE, PEPE, and FLOKI responding to rate cut optimism and broader crypto strength.”Top 100 cryptocurrencies, weekly performance. Source: CryptobubblesWhile investor demand for memecoins has surged, it may also be siphoning capital from more established assets. For example, Solana (SOL) has fallen more than 51% since the launch of the Official Trump (TRUMP) token in January, according to Cointelegraph data.Related: Friday’s US inflation report may catalyze a Bitcoin April rallyMemecoins “don’t tend to draw in much external capital flow; instead existing eco-system capital ‘round-robins’ from one meme to the next,” Dan Hughes, founder of the decentralized finance platform Radix, told Cointelegraph, adding:“Even in the case of TRUMP, most of the inbound liquidity was outflow from other crypto assets, people selling their crypto portfolio to buy TRUMP in extreme FOMO [fear of missing out].”SOL/USDT, 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewInsider scams and fraudulent activity have plagued the memecoin industry, and US regulators are taking note. On March…Read More

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Crypto markets see over $300M in liquidations as investors flee risk ahead of April policy changes and over concerning macroeconomic data.Read More

A quick recap of all the SEC cases that have been dropped and paused over the past two months.Read More