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Solana (SOL) price rises as airdrops attract new users to the network

Over the past six months blockchain projects that have issued token airdrops have re-emerged. Most notably, the airdrops by Uniswap (UNI) and MEME will be remembered as recipients were rewarded with gains ranging from $20,000 to $600,000 simply for holding the tokens.

One Ethereum (ETH) competitor that has seen numerous projects launch with airdrops in the past three weeks is Solana (SOL), an open-source project that focuses on utilizing blockchain technology to provide decentralized finance solutions.

While Solana isn’t explicitly making a concerted effort to launch these projects, the protocol’s main decentralized exchange Serum (SRM) was responsible for the recent COPE airdrop which distributed 2,000 tokens to users who participated in the joint DeFi hackathon held by Solana and Serum.

After the airdrop, COPE eventually listed on Serum for $0.50 on March 30 and the price of the token surged to a high of $5.43 on April 11, rewarding holders with a $10,860 reward.

SOL/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView

The success of the COPE airdrop prompted a series of token launches and airdrops with similar-sounding names including HOPE, ROPE and KOPE, whose launches on the Solana blockchain have coincided with a 55% rise in the price of SOL since the start of April.

Airdrops on the network may have played a small role in the recent price appreciation due to users needing SOL to receive airdropped tokens but this is not possible to ascertain based on the available data.

Interactions on the Solana blockchain, including the addition of new tokens to the Sollet wallet, require small amounts of SOL to complete the contract executions. Thus, users rushing to sign up for airdrops before they filled up would have needed to purchase SOL and fund their wallets in order to create new addresses for the airdropped tokens.

Analysts expect the airdrop trend to continue

For those worried that they missed out or that the ‘airdrop season’ is over, a recent tweet from Solana’s Twitter feed suggests that the Solana ecosystem is just getting started, meaning the likelihood of future airdrops remains high.

New users are the lifeblood of successful blockchain networks, and the use of airdrops continues to be one of the most utilized methods for drawing attention to fledgling projects and sapping liquidity from one protocol to another.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Solana (SOL) price rises as airdrops attract new users to the network

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Ethereum Price Prediction: ETH/USD Prepares for New All-Time Highs; $2,000 Resistance May Come to Play

ETH Price Prediction – April 1

After several days of bullish momentum, Ethereum (ETH) opened at $1,919 as the coin breaks the previous significant swing high of $1,950.

ETH/USD Market

Key Levels:

Resistance levels: $2100, $2200, $2300

Support levels: $1800, $1700, $1600

ETHUSD – Daily Chart

ETH/USD price is currently indicating a good amount of volatility as the trading volume increased by 30%, meaning an increased market interest is likely to push the market price above the previous swing high. The second-largest crypto is currently trading at $1,955 with a bullish movement above the 9-day and 21-day moving averages.

Where is ETH Price Going Next?

If there is an upside break above $1950, the price could test the $2000 resistance level. Any further gains might push the price towards the $2100, $2200, and $2300 resistance levels. On the downside, the $1850 level is initial support and if there are more downsides, the price could test the critical support levels of $1800, $1600, and $1500, where the bulls are likely to take a stand.

However, ETH/USD is now showing some positive signs above the $1950, but it might rise further in the short term. More so, ETH/USD may continue to bounce above $1950, as long as there is no daily close below $1800. However, the technical indicator RSI (14) is seen crossing above 60-level to increase the bullish movement in the market.

Against Bitcoin, the market price remains within the descending channel as the bulls are currently dominating the market. More so, ETH/BTC is trading at 0.033 BTC and the bulls are pushing the price to cross above the upper boundary of the channel. Looking at the chart, if the market continues to rise, the next key resistance may likely be at 0.035 BTC and above.

ETHBTC – Daily Chart

However, on the downside, a possible bearish movement may likely push the market below the moving averages, immediately after this, the support level of 0.031 BTC and below could be visited. Meanwhile, the technical indicator RSI (14) is moving above the 55-level and this is suggesting that the market may continue to go up.

Ethereum Price Prediction: ETH/USD Prepares for New All-Time Highs; $2,000 Resistance May Come to Play

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Bitcoin closes six monthly green candles for the first time since 2013

Bitcoin has just closed six consecutive monthly green candles for the first time since April 2013. Should history repeat, Bitcoin may enjoy further parabolic gains this year.

In April 2013, Bitcoin closed at roughly $140 after posting six green monthly candles. While the markets would retrace to less than $100 over the next two months, Bitcoin would then surge 700% over the following six months and tag prices above $1,000 for the first time.

BTC/USD since 2012, 1m candles: Trading View

Bitcoin posted a similar pattern in the lead up to its parabolic bull run in 2017, with the markets posting five consecutive green monthly candles heading into September. While September saw BTC post range-bound consolidation, Bitcoin surged into new all-time highs in October to rallied from $5,000 to almost $20,000 by the end of the year.

According to Bloomberg strategist, Mike McGlone, Bitcoin could be trading for more than $400,000 by 2022, should the markets follow the trends previously witnessed during 2013 and 2017. McGlone recently claimed that Bitcoin is “well on its way to becoming a global digital reserve asset.”

Veteran trader and market analyst, Peter Brandt, is also bullish on Bitcoin, predicting BTC could gain a further 250% to break above $200,000. “I think we’re in that midpoint pause where in 2017 Bitcoin swirled around for a month or two before we saw the final move up,” he said.

However, past trends do not guarantee future performance and the history of green candles is a little murky. Despite Bitcoin posting five green monthly candles in a row during late 2015, the early weeks of 2016 saw BTC crash by 20% before producing several months of tightening consolidation.  

Similarly, the five consecutive months of bullish momentum that kicked of 2019 was followed by a protracted downtrend, with BTC having fallen more than 60% from its 2019 highs amid the “Black Thursday” crash of March 2020. Bitcoin did not reclaim its 2019 price-highs until December 2020.

Bitcoin closes six monthly green candles for the first time since 2013

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Digital Banking: Reserve Bank in the Philippines Is working on Virtual Bank Framework to Enable Greater Financial Inclusion

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Philippines, is reportedly looking into adopting a virtual banking framework so that it may be leveraged to enable greater financial inclusion.

The new digital banking guidelines are being developed to support a regulatory environment that promotes responsible innovation. The new rules will also aim to support cyber or online resilience while enabling the ongoing digital transformation of the financial services industry.

Introduced in December 2020, BSP’s “Guidelines on Establishment of Digital Banks” states that a virtual bank is a financial organization or entity that may be categorized as a bank, providing financial products that are delivered end-to-end via an all-digital platform with no physical branch locations.

Digital banking platforms are expected or required to maintain proper digital governance while offering secure, robust, and resilient tech infrastructure, according to the announcement. Proper data management strategies and related best practices are also expected of these new financial services providers.

Digital banks must also adhere to the same set of applicable requirements as other banking solution providers. These guidelines include maintaining proper corporate governance structures, appropriate risk management policies, compliance, internal control and audit procedures, and reporting governance practices.

During his speech at the recently-held SAP Virtual Roundtable discussion, Benjamin E. Diokno, Governor of BSP, said that for the Philippines, “digital banking or digital finance in general as a strategy is not so much about being ahead of the curve.” Instead, it’s “more about capitalizing on its gains to bring about a more inclusive financial ecosystem.” he added.

It’s worth noting that other Asian countries like Pakistan are working on their own digital banking regulatory guidelines. In a manner that’s somewhat similar to the Philippines, Pakistan is also looking to leverage virtual banking solutions in order to enable financial inclusion and bring more people into the formal economy.

The Southeast Asia region, in general, has been increasingly adopting digital banking and modern Fintech solutions, which is a trend that has really accelerated following the COVID-19 outbreak.

Countries throughout Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Vietnam are investing considerable resources into their financial services sector.

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SEC issues first ever charges over phoney ‘insider information’ on darknet

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has announced charges against California resident James Roland Jones in the first-ever enforcement action from the commission to target securities fraud on the darknet.

According to the March 18 complaint, Jones is accused of accessing a darknet-based insider trading forum in late 2016 to seek material non-public information, or MNPI, on which to trade securities.

He was unsuccessful in obtaining any useful MNPI from the forum, but in the spring of 2017, Jones allegedly began selling insider stock tips himself under the false pretext he was privy to MNPI obtained both from the forum and corporate sources he claimed to be personally affiliated with. Jones is believed to have received roughly $27,000 worth of BTC for the fraudulent tips.

Jones’ tips were believed to be general predictions as to whether a stock would go up or down, with Jones sometimes selling tips for the same stock to go in both directions to different customers. When tips failed, Jones would offer another tip for free in exchange for positive reviews on a darknet marketplace.

The alleged fraudster also began operating a collective investment pool in 2017, laiming to make trades on behalf of investors. However, Jones was not trading with investors’ funds, and would instead return a small amount of the principal invested as purported profits to lure his victims into depositing additional funds.

The SEC accuses Jones of having acted in violation of anti-fraud provisions of the Exchange Act, and is seeking disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus interest, civil penalties, and permanent injunctive relief.

David Peavler, the director of the SEC’s Fort Worth regional office, noted that the agency has committed significant resources to investigate crime on the dark web, stating:

“This case shows that the SEC can and will pursue securities law violators wherever they operate, even on the dark web. We have committed staff and technology to pierce the cloak of anonymity these wrongdoers try to throw over their crimes.”

SEC issues first ever charges over phoney ‘insider information’ on darknet

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