Ethereum price started a fresh decline from the $4,630 zone. ETH is now showing bearish signs and might decline further below $4,460.

• Ethereum is struggling to settle above the $4,630 zone.
• The price is trading below $4,580 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average.
• There was a break below a rising channel with support at $4,600 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD (data feed via Kraken).
• The pair could start another increase unless there is a close below $4,460 in the near term.

Ethereum Price Faces Hurdles

Ethereum price started a downside correction and tested the $4,310 zone, like Bitcoin. ETH price found support and recently started a fresh increase.

There was a move above the $4,400 and $4,420 levels. The price cleared the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the key decline from the $4,956 swing high to the $4,310 low. However, the bears were active near the $4,630 resistance zone.

The 50% Fib retracement level of the key decline from the $4,956 swing high to the $4,310 low is acting as a hurdle. Recently, there was a break below a rising channel with support at $4,600 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD. Ethereum price is now trading below $4,580 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average.

On the upside, the price could face resistance near the $4,580 level. The next key resistance is near the $4,630 level. The first major resistance is near the $4,710 level.

A clear move above the $4,710 resistance might send the price toward the $4,820 resistance. An upside break above the $4,820 resistance might call for more gains in the coming sessions. In the stated case, Ether could rise toward the $4,880 resistance zone or even $5,000 in the near term.

More Losses In ETH?

If Ethereum fails to clear the $4,630 resistance, it could continue to move down. Initial support on the downside is near the $4,460 level. The first major support sits near the $4,420 zone.

A clear move below the $4,420 support might push the price toward the $4,310 support. Any more losses might send the price toward the $4,240 support level in the near term. The next key support sits at $4,150.

Technical Indicators

Hourly MACD – The MACD for ETH/USD is gaining momentum in the bearish zone.

Hourly RSI – The RSI for ETH/USD is now below the 50 zone.

Major Support Level – $4,460

Major Resistance Level – $4,630

A crucial question has been raised by Bitcoin’s recent market performance: Is the bull run already over, or is this just a mid-cycle pause? BTC has had difficulty maintaining upward momentum since hitting a new high earlier this summer, and recent price action indicates the rally may be losing steam. Because Bitcoin has failed to stay above the 50-day EMA, this is the main problem. In the past, this level has served as a solid basis for bullish continuation, however, in the present configuration Bitcoin tried to break through but failed.

The rejection at this moving average indicates a market where buying pressure is insufficient to sustain the subsequent leg up, and indicates a weakness in demand. Volume has been continuously dropping, adding to the bearish weight, and indicating that traders are not very confident. Every correction during prior strong bull phases was greeted by aggressive buybacks and increased volume inflows. Now, the lack of these indicators suggests hesitancy on the part of investors who are hesitant to commit to additional upside.

The next logical area of support for Bitcoin is around the 100 EMA, which is close to $111,000, if it is unable to regain the 50 EMA anytime soon. A test of that area might significantly strain sentiment, and possibly prolong the correction. The story would change from a healthy retracement to a more comprehensive trend reversal if it breaks below it.

The failed 50 EMA breakthrough, however, indicates that the road to higher highs might be postponed for the time being. The main resistance level that investors should keep a close eye on is $116,000. Talk of a sustained bull run seems premature in the absence of a clear move above it.

Shiba Inu is anemic

Shiba Inu’s recent trading sessions have seen nearly zero volatility, signaling the start of an extremely stagnant phase. Although symmetrical triangles are frequently used to precede breakouts, the current dynamics indicate that SHIB may be headed for a protracted period of sideways movement rather than an explosive rally.

According to the chart, SHIB has been steadily tightening between levels of support and convergent resistance. Every recovery attempt has been capped by the upper descending trendline, and the July ascending support has prevented the token from dropping further. This gives the appearance of a balanced market that lacks clear-cut momentum.

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It is a double-edged sword that volatility has dropped to almost zero. It lessens the possibility of unexpected malfunctions in the near future, on the one hand. On the contrary, it indicates that liquidity is dwindling and that traders are generally disinterested at current levels. The price may move indistinguishably for weeks as a result of this type of compression.

There has been a consistent drop in volume, and the token is still below its major moving averages. A breakout from this triangle might be more noise than signal if there isn’t a significant catalyst or a spike in demand. This means patience is key for investors.

The absence of volatility raises the possibility that stagnation rather than growth will characterize the foreseeable future, even though the symmetrical triangle can ultimately resolve in either direction. It is unlikely that the market will regain momentum in the near future unless SHIB recovers important levels above $0.0000135 and $0.0000141.

XRP’s bounce

After a sharp decline, XRP recently made one of the most unexpected recoveries of the summer, rising above the 50-day EMA. The asset appeared destined to decline further toward the 100-day EMA near $2.75, making this recovery nearly impossible. Rather, XRP abruptly reversed course, pushing back above short-term resistance and surprising the market. Because of how swiftly sentiment changed, the move has been called an unthinkable comeback.

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A few sessions ago, XRP was on the edge of diving below the 100 EMA as it struggled to stay above $2.80. Volume was declining, and momentum indicators were weak. Nevertheless, the market managed to muster enough strength to push the token back above the 50 EMA, giving investors hope for a possible continuation rally.

There is a catch to this rally though. Although the 50 EMA breakout appears promising, XRP never really broke through its 26 EMA support. It may not be as strong as it looks because the price tested it several times but was unable to close much below it. In summary, technical resilience rather than fresh demand is the foundation of XRP’s recovery. This raises doubts about the rally’s viability.

Should XRP fail to gain traction above $3.05 and retest the $3.20-$3.30 range, the move may not last as long as it seems. The market might retest the 100 EMA if it is unable to hold above the 50 EMA, at which point genuine support would need to be verified. For the time being, holders of XRP can find solace in this improbable recovery, but the warning indicators are still there: This recovery could be brief in the absence of volume and more solid fundamentals.

The following is a guest post and analysis from Shane Neagle, Editor In Chief from The Tokenist.

Although the Terra (LUNA) collapse pricked the crypto bubble in May 2022, it took the FTX exchange catastrophe to firmly pop it at the year’s end. Ever since, the blockchain narrative has been supplanted by the AI hype. Moreover, during the Biden administration, the crypto space entered a vulnerable state of constant harassment and debanking.

This was at a time when digital assets needed to shore up, evolve, and recover from the overleveraged string of busts during 2022. Fortunately, the crypto-friendly Trump administration is now presenting a real path to recovery — to a blockchain-based decentralized finance (DeFi). This is already evident by the rise in capital across dApps.

Now at $156 billion DeFi total value locked (TVL), this marks a return to the first half of 2022. Likewise, Ethereum (ETH) price drastically outperformed Bitcoin (BTC) over the last month, at +53% vs. -1%, respectively. This is a clear sign that an altcoin season is ramping up — but which primary Layer-1 chains should crypto enthusiasts consider for long-term exposure?

Ethereum (ETH)

As the second-largest blockchain network and the DeFi vanguard, Ethereum is an obvious choice. Yet, it should not be overlooked merely for that reason, albeit within some caveats. There are two key aspects to Ethereum that are attractive as the primary exposure to the DeFi narrative.

Ethereum has the first-mover advantage, which generated the highest developer activity, ecosystem momentum, and scaling through Layer-2 networks such as Base, Polygon, Unichain, Optimism, Arbitrum, and others.

After introducing the token-burning mechanism with EIP 1559, Ethereum’s inflation rate is on par with Bitcoin (post-4th halving) at around 0.75%. Although Bitcoin’s inflation rate will continue to drop with more successive halvings, ETH could be considered sound money compared to the dollar with its 2% target inflation rate.

In other words, despite having an elastic token supply — generated by staking — compared to Bitcoin’s fixed supply, it is self-adjusting. As dApp activity rises on the mainnet, more ETH is burned. And after the Pectra upgrade, which made L2 networks more efficient with Blob Space, the burn rate has doubled.

Together with account abstraction and further Ethereum scaling with sharding, Ethereum is future-proofing itself to handle DeFi traffic while keeping transaction fees low. In turn, this ties in with the ongoing stablecoin push with the GENIUS Act.

Ethereum has the most diversified stablecoin ecosystem, holding $138.6 billion in stablecoins. This is half of the total $272.6 billion stablecoin market cap, according to DeFiLlama. As the bridging currency that brings the familiarity of the dollar in tokenized form, stablecoins are the first interaction for most people, leading to wider DeFi exposure.

Moreover, when Circle announced the launch of its ARC blockchain for stablecoin traffic, one should note it is an EVM-compatible L1 network.

Superficially, this may seem bearish for Ethereum as stablecoin transactions could shift away from Ethereum. In reality, it is bullish because it signals Ethereum’s integration into enterprise-grade liquidity through cross-chains and Ethereum’s L2 ecosystem.

All of these factors are now driving up Ether accumulation across treasuries. According to the Strategic ETH Reserve tracker, they have accumulated 3.57 million ETH worth around $16.58 billion. Effectively, Ether treasuries are likely to have the same effect on ETH price that spot-traded Bitcoin ETFs had on the BTC price.

But does that mean investors should go all in on ETH? For existing ETH holders, they should consider locking in profits in the following few months. Historically, when Ethereum’s Market Value to Realized Value ratio (MVRV) is above 3.0, it signals a peak before a selloff.

After the Fed’s likely interest rate cut in September, Ethereum’s MVRV ratio should start rising to that level. Following the market correction, this is when new investors should gain ETH exposure. According to a recent FundStrat forecast, ETH price is likely to reach $10,000 by the year’s end.

Avalanche (AVAX)

Since its launch in 2020, this L1 network has caught attention with its novel approach to blockchain architecture design. Namely, Avalanche divides workload through X-Chain for asset exchange, C-Chain to execute EVM-compatible smart contracts, and P-Chain for managing subnets, validators, and staking.

The implication of this design results in an effortless export of Ethereum dApps in addition to customized subnets. If an organization values financial privacy, it could create unique governance and consensus rules for its subnet. This opens the door to a wide range of use cases in banking, healthcare, supply chains, and private funds.

Case in point, FIFA picked Avalanche in May for its NFT deployment. Most recently, the Avalanche Foundation launched its $50 million accelerator program to fund blockchain gaming.

In terms of tokenomics, 90% of AVAX token supply is unlocked out of a total supply of 458.1 million, from the initial mining of 360 million AVAX. In Q2 2025, the annualized inflation rate remained at 3.8%, following a dynamic schedule driven by the amount of AVAX staked and the staking period.

Although this makes AVAX inflationary compared to Ethereum or Bitcoin, the AVAX token still has a hard cap of 720 million.

AVAX token price is likely to go up as more services are launched. To name a few: lending service Euler Finance, Nexpace (MapleStory N), VanEck’s VBILL treasury fund, Watr’s commodity trading, and Dinari’s tokenized securities.

This burst of activity increased average daily active addresses by 210% on a quarterly basis, according to Messari data. Over the last month, AVAX is up 18%, currently priced at $25 per token. The potential for gains is high, as AVAX reached multiple $50 peaks during 2024. Reminder: this was still during the crypto-hostile Biden administration.

Cardano (ADA)

Following an academic approach to blockchain development, Cardano is closely tied to Ethereum’s origins, as its co-founder Charles Hoskinson founded Cardano due to differences in how Ethereum should be organizationally set up. Over the years, Cardano gained a perception as the “left-behind” chain, with Solana (SOL) gaining prominence as Ethereum’s competitor.

Nonetheless, Cardano’s roadmap is progressing, and its ecosystem is slowly building up. In early 2024, Cardano gained its own USDM stablecoin, issued by fully compliant Moneta, even meeting Europe’s strict MiCA standard. Likewise, the Norwegian Block Exchange (NBX) onboarded USDM.

In the scaling department, Cardano advanced Hydra Layer-2 scaling for off-chain transactions and launched Mithril for lightweight node synchronization. By the year’s end, Ouroboros Peras is set to drastically reduce transaction settlement times. Together with Ouroboros Leios, Cardano is likely to be as performant in transaction throughput as Solana.

Zero-knowledge (ZK) smart contracts are also set for mainnet launch in late 2025, bringing privacy, scalability, and interoperability to the Cardano table. In addition to the privacy-focused Midnight project, Cardano is surrounded by positive narratives.

Another positive narrative from a sound money-wise perspective is that Cardano’s inflation rate is on par with Ethereum. In Q1, it was at 0.7% annually, while trending downward owing to the interplay between 5-day 0.3% expansion epochs, the hard cap of 45 billion ADA, transaction fees, and staking participation.

Year-to-date, ADA is up 2.5%, still under the dollar per token. In September 2021, ADA reached its all-time high price of $3.10. This makes it one of the cheapest blockchain exposures. And because Cardano has been dismissed so many times, its upside potential is amplified if its roadmap delivers as planned. In the stock market, dividend growth investing follows a similar principle of patience and compounding returns.

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The NFT market saw a remarkable resurgence in July, outpacing DeFi in terms of user activity, according to an Aug. 7 DappRadar report.

The shift marks a significant milestone and could indicate that NFTs are once again capturing the public’s attention following significant lull that has lasted since their fall in the 2022 bear market.

NFTs volume surge in July

DappRadar data showed that NFT trading volume surged by 96%, reaching $530 million in July. However, the total number of transactions fell by 4%, with only 5 million NFTs changing hands during the month.

The trend reveals a clear shift in buyer behavior, with fewer NFTs changing hands but selling for significantly higher prices. In fact, the average NFT sale price more than doubled, rising from $52 in June to $105 in July.

Platforms catering to power users and creators saw the most growth during the period. Blur accounted for as much as 80% of Ethereum-based NFT trading volume, driven by professional traders and its Blend lending feature.

Meanwhile, OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace, remained the most active in daily user count, with approximately 27,000 traders, thanks to its long-tail listings and multichain support.

Meanwhile, Zora, a platform built for creators on the Coinbase-backed Base network, gained momentum with its Layer 2 solution and native ZORA token, which reduced NFT minting costs.

DappRadar concluded that these numbers show the significant evolution within the NFT landscape from the early market hype to the increasing utility of these digital assets.

According to the blockchain firm, the space is no longer limited to art and digital collectibles. Instead, it has expanded into practical use cases such as digital identity, event ticketing, gaming, and real-world asset tokenization.

DeFi grows too

While NFTs made waves in July, DeFi also continued to experience impressive growth. DappRadar reported that the total value of assets locked (TVL) in DeFi surged by over 30%, reaching $259 billion by the end of the month.

Notably, the sector reached a new all-time high of $270 billion on July 28, driven by growing user demand and fresh liquidity injection across lending, trading, and tokenized assets.

Meanwhile, a standout trend in DeFi came from tokenized stocks, with wallet interactions increasing from approximately 1,600 to over 90,000. This surge contributed to a 220% increase in the market cap of tokenized stocks, signaling that real-world assets (RWAs) are gaining substantial traction.

Across assets, Ethereum continued to lead DeFi, commanding $166 billion in TVL, far surpassing Solana’s $23 billion.

ETH’s significant rise can be attributed to a nearly 60% price surge in July, likely driven by positive regulatory developments, alongside staking rewards reaching 29.4% APY.

On Solana, Hyperliquid emerged as a key player, accounting for 35% of blockchain revenue in July. The platform saw rising demand for derivatives and now processes over 60% of 24-hour perpetual trading volume, with $15.3 billion in open interest and $5.1 billion in USDC bridging.

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HodlX Guest Post  Submit Your Post

Remember when blockchain gaming meant million-dollar Axie scholarships and nonstop token pumps? And rug pulls? Lots of rug pulls.

Those days feel like a fever dream.

The industry that once promised to revolutionize gaming overnight through unsustainable play-to-earn models has quietly evolved into something far more substantial and sustainable.

In 2024-2025, blockchain gaming is experiencing a quiet renaissance, driven by fundamentals instead of FOMO.

Gone are the days when success meant token velocity and hype cycles.

Instead, serious capital is backing projects with real gameplay, legacy studios are engaging on their own terms and unexpected markets like Spain are emerging as strategic launchpads.

This isn’t the loud, flashy comeback many expected but the methodical rebuilding that actually matters.

From speculation to substance

The 2021 cycle was intoxicating in all the wrong ways. Success was measured by how fast a token pumped rather than by whether anyone enjoyed the game.

Projects launched with elaborate tokenomics promising sky-high returns, attracting players who treated gaming like a second job.

The collapse was inevitable, baked into the model from the start.

Today’s projects tell a different story. Developers are focused on gameplay, cross-platform interoperability and economic models designed to survive market volatility.

In 2024, blockchain games attracted 7.4 million daily active wallets – a 421% jump from 2023 – proof that players are sticking around for the fun, not just the tokens.

Developers are asking better questions. Will people still play this game without token rewards? Does it offer lasting value beyond speculation? Can the economy stand on its own?

What matters now isn’t token velocity but whether the game is fun. This shift from hype to substance is the industry’s most important evolution.

The new generation of blockchain games is being developed by teams that understand entertainment, not just cryptocurrency mechanics.

Blockchain is no longer the main event – it’s the technology quietly powering experiences people actually want to engage with.

Why serious investors are back

The smart money that fled during the 2022 crash is quietly returning, but with a very different mindset.

Investors like José Herrera, a prominent Spanish angel, aren’t just cutting checks but are also advising teams directly and backing founders they trust with long-term capital.

This is disciplined value creation, not just speculative noise.

With the blockchain gaming market valued at $14.8 billion in 2024 and projected to hit $1.17 trillion by 2033, the opportunity in sustainable models is too big to ignore.

Today’s investors are doing real due diligence.

They’re scrutinizing teams’ track records, evaluating partnership potential and stress-testing whether business models can weather market cycles.

Flashy whitepapers and polished roadmaps aren’t cutting it anymore. What matters is traction, working products, clear revenue pipelines and real product–market fit.

This new capital is sharper, more selective and deeply pragmatic. Rather than chasing token pumps, they’re backing capable teams, proven studios and strong IP.

The focus is back on fundamentals like compelling gameplay, strategic partnerships and business-savvy execution.

And that discipline is exactly what the industry needs to move beyond the hype and build something that lasts.

Mainstream validation and real partnerships

The most telling sign of blockchain gaming’s maturation isn’t on crypto X (formerly Twitter) but in traditional gaming boardrooms.

AAA and AA studios are stepping in as development partners, tech collaborators and strategic advisors.

Rather than crypto projects learning to build games, established game companies are exploring how blockchain can enhance what they already do best.

Partnerships with major entertainment and sports IPs signal a real shift in confidence.

When legacy brands license their properties to blockchain games, they’re doing so because they see viable, long-term value and not for short-term novelty.

These alliances bring more than recognition. They offer seasoned distribution networks, monetization expertise and deep understanding of what makes entertainment succeed.

Rather than trying to disrupt the gaming world from the outside, the new wave of projects is integrating blockchain inside existing entertainment frameworks.

The result? Games that feel familiar to mainstream players but that also offer something truly new through digital ownership, interoperability and community-driven economies.

Why Spain is becoming a Web 3.0 gaming powerhouse

While much of the crypto world focuses on Silicon Valley or Asia, Spain is quietly emerging as one of Europe’s most dynamic hubs for Web 3.0 gaming.

Thanks to supportive policies, like regulatory sandboxes, developers can test blockchain projects in a supervised environment, free from much of the regulatory drag found elsewhere.

In 2024-2025, Web 3.0 investment in Spain is surging.

Early-stage capital is flowing into infrastructure, DeFi and gaming projects, with new funds launching to target opportunities across both Europe and Latin America.

Spain also boasts robust market momentum in emerging gaming formats.

Its metaverse gaming sector is forecast to reach $472 million in 2024 and grow to $2.7 billion by 2030. This growth mirrors rising digital media spending and gaming adoption across the country.

On the ground, Spain blends competitive dev talent, startup agility and strong connections to Latin America, giving Web 3.0 gaming projects a unique advantage – EU-level infrastructure and regulatory clarity, coupled with access to a rapidly growing Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking market.

Compared with slower, more cautious European tech hubs, Spain is fast, connected and culturally aligned with what comes next in gaming.

It’s not just joining the blockchain gaming renaissance but is helping to lead it.

The next era isn’t loud – it‘s built to last

Blockchain gaming is no longer trying to disrupt traditional gaming overnight. Instead, it’s seeking to integrate with it.

This quiet shift signals real maturity.

The projects succeeding now aren’t the loudest or most ambitious. They’re the most sustainable, the most playable and the most useful.

Builders rather than hype men are leading this new phase. They’re creating games people genuinely want to play, economies that hold up and partnerships that move the needle.

The future belongs to teams that can blend great gameplay with real-world utility, not those chasing token pumps or social media virality.

The next chapter of blockchain gaming won’t be written in pump-and-dumps.

It will be shaped by playable, investable and enjoyable experiences that put the tech back in service of the player. This isn’t a comeback. It’s a new game entirely.

Xavier Baldó is the CEO and founder of EFC and a member of the Blockchain Game Alliance. With a strong background in automation, robotics and blockchain technology, he is a visionary leader known for driving innovation and leading multidisciplinary teams.

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Crypto Reporter

Shalini Nagarajan

Crypto Reporter

Shalini Nagarajan

About Author

Shalini is a crypto reporter who provides in-depth reports on daily developments and regulatory shifts in the cryptocurrency sector.

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Last updated: 

June 23, 2025

Crypto exchange OKX is weighing a potential initial public offering in the US, just two months after settling with US authorities and relaunching its operations in the country, according to a report from The Information.

The move would mark a sharp turnaround for the Seychelles-registered exchange, which exited the US market after a series of regulatory violations.

In February, OKX agreed to pay over $504m in penalties to settle charges brought by the Department of Justice.

OKX Makes a Big Return to US Markets

Prosecutors said the company operated an unlicensed money-transmitting business and failed to implement basic anti-money laundering controls. Between 2017 and its exit, OKX allegedly processed more than $1 trillion in trades for US users despite policies suggesting otherwise.

Just two months later, OKX announced its return to the US market. The company set up a regional headquarters in San Jose, California, and tapped Roshan Robert, a former executive at Morgan Stanley and Barclays, as its US CEO.

At the time, Robert said the firm’s re-entry reflected “a commitment to responsible growth” and added that OKX was working closely with regulators to stay compliant.

The exchange has been working to rebuild its reputation, particularly in the eyes of US regulators. Its leadership has framed the relaunch not as a relabeling effort, but as a strategic reset focused on transparency and adherence to evolving US crypto laws.

IPO Plans Signal Ambition, but Regulatory Hurdles Still Loom

A listing on a US stock exchange would mark a big shift for OKX, potentially opening the door to greater institutional trust and a broader investor base. The company has not yet filed paperwork with the SEC, and the timeline remains unclear.

OKX is not alone in exploring a public offering. Bullish, backed by investor Peter Thiel, and Gemini, founded by the Winklevoss twins, have both confidentially filed for IPOs in recent months.

Meanwhile, stablecoin issuer Circle recently closed an oversubscribed listing valuing it at nearly $8.1b on a fully diluted basis.

However, regulatory scrutiny continues to shadow OKX. In May, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission said it planned to shut down certain exchanges, including OKX, for operating without a license.

If OKX proceeds with a US IPO, it will gauge investor interest while also revealing how much leeway regulators are willing to give crypto firms after past violations.