Ethereum gives way

Market picture

The crypto market remains in a downtrend. Its cap rose 0.2% over the past 24 hours to $2.72 trillion and generally remains in a very tight range with a short-term ceiling of $2.75 trillion. Just over a month ago, similar local resistance was half a trillion higher.

While almost all altcoins combined have been broadly stable at 30% market share since July 2023, Ethereum has been giving away its share since July 2024, falling to 8%, a five-year low. BTC's share has been growing for more than two years, reaching 60.7%. Interest from institutional traders and governments has so far not extended beyond the first cryptocurrency, which they see as a strategic reserve asset rather than the practicality offered by altcoins, including ETH.

Bitcoin reversed to the downside again on Tuesday, touching its 200-day average. Nevertheless, it gained around 2% from the start of the day to $83.3K on Wednesday. Ultimately, it is worth paying closer attention to the dynamics of the crypto market after the Fed's comments, as this could be the start of a longer trend.

News background

Standard Chartered downgraded its 2025 Ethereum forecast from $10,000 to $4,000. One of the reasons is the growing influence of L2 solutions, especially the Base platform. The changes made to Ethereum in recent years, "while perhaps necessary, have damaged its value".

The US Securities and Exchange Commission is set to relax storage requirements for crypto assets. Current SEC commissioner Mark Uyeda has ordered a review of a proposal to tighten storage rules for cryptocurrencies.

The GMCI Meme Coin Index, tracked by The Block, is down 90% from its peak in December, indicating a cooling of interest in this type of risky asset.