As stock markets crumbled for a second day on April 4, US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the Trump administration’s “reciprocal tariffs” could significantly affect the economy, potentially leading to “higher inflation and slower growth.”
Addressing the public at a conference on April 4, Powell maintained a cautious approach and noted that tariffs could spike inflation “in the coming quarters,” complicating the Fed’s 2% inflation target, just months after rate cuts indicated a soft landing. Powell said,
“While tariffs are highly likely to generate at least a temporary rise in inflation, it is also possible that the effects could be more persistent.”
Moments before Powell’s speech, US President Donald Trump called out the Fed chair to “CUT INTEREST RATES” in a post on the Truth Social, taking a jab at Powell for being “always late.”
Source: Truth Social
Currently, the Fed faces a critical choice: pause interest rate cuts throughout the year or respond quickly with rate reductions if the economy shows signs of weakening. While the Fed official noted that the economy is in a good place, Powell said that it was,
“Too soon to say what will be the appropriate path for monetary policy,”
On April 4, the unemployment rate also increased to 4.2% in March from 4.1% in February, but on the contrary, March’s Non-Farm Payrolls added 228,000 jobs, which exceeded expectations and reinforced economic strength. In March, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) also rose by 2.8% year over year, with March data due on April 10.
The above figures highlight a strong labor market but nagging inflation concerns, thus aligning with Powell’s warning about potential tariff impacts.
Powell’s caution on higher inflation and slowing economic growth came on the same day that the DOW dropped 2,200 and a 10% two-day loss from the S&P 500. X-based markets resource ‘Watcher Guru’ announced that,
“$3.25 trillion wiped out from the US stock market today. $5.4 billion was added to the crypto market.”
Stock market losses hit $3.5 trillion. Source: Watcher Guru / X
Bitcoin to entertain further volatility
Most investors anticipate that in the short term, Bitcoin (BTC) could see a surge in volatility. Powell’s remarks about tariffs driving “higher inflation” and possibly “higher unemployment” could rattle traditional market investors, prompting a pivot to BTC.
In fact, analysts have pointed out that BTC price appears to be “decoupling” from stocks recent downturn. Although Bitcoin hit a 9-day high on April 2 before President Trump rolled out his “reciprocal tariffs” on “Liberation Day,” the price sold off sharply once the tariffs were revealed at a White House presser.
Since then, Bitcoin has held steady above the $82,000 level, and as US equities markets collapsed on April 4, BTC rallied to $84,720, reflecting price action, which is uncharacteristic of the norm.
BTC/USD price versus major stock indices. Source: X / Cory Bates
Independent market analyst Cory Bates posted the above chart and said,
“[…]Bitcoin is decoupling right before our eyes.”
With China retaliating with 34% tariffs on US goods and Trump pressuring Powell to cut interest rates, market volatility could push Bitcoin’s price upward as a hedge against uncertainty.
During the 2018 U.S.-China trade war, Bitcoin price didn’t see any increase across the entire year. However, it experienced notable volatility and a 15% price rise when the trade war escalated in mid-2018, with the US imposing tariffs on Chinese goods in July, followed by retaliatory measures from China.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
Stablecoins are “in a bull market of their own,” even as smart contract platforms — including Ethereum and Solana — sputter amid the marketwide tumult, asset manager VanEck said in an April 3 monthly note.
The diminished activity on smart contract platforms reflects cooling market sentiment in cryptocurrencies and beyond as traders brace for the impact of US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff policies and a looming trade war.
But stablecoin adoption — a key measure of Web3’s overall health — continues apace. This is partly because ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty “could accelerate the strategic case for crypto,” Matthew Sigel, VanEck’s head of research, said in an April 4 X post.
Tokenized treasury bills help support stablecoin adoption. Source: VanEck
Stablecoins collectively added nearly $10 billion in total market capitalization in March as multiple issuers, including VanEck, prepare to launch branded stablecoin products, it said.
The inflows persisted despite a steep drop in average stablecoin yields, the asset manager noted.
Stablecoin yields now range from around 3% to 5% — near or slightly below Treasury Bills — compared to as high as 10% at the start of the year, it said.
Even so, issuance of tokenized Treasury Bills — a primary source of institutional stablecoin yield — increased 26% from February to March, surpassing $5 billion in total issuance, according to the report.
Ethereum, Solana slow down
Meanwhile, smart contract platforms suffered across-the-board declines in activity, with revenues and trading volumes dropping 36% and 40%, respectively, according to the report.
Solana has suffered particularly sharply. Daily fee revenues and decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes diminished by 66% and 53%, respectively, in March, VanEck said.
In fact, Solana’s DEX share of volumes once again fell below those of Ethereum and its layer-2 scaling chains (L2s) after briefly surpassing them for the first time in February.
Solana lost ground to Ethereum in DEX volume. Source: VanEck
This relative decline partly reflects a slowdown in memecoin trading, which still dominates Solana DEX activity.
The segment has suffered since February after a series of memecoin-related scandals soured sentiment among retail traders.
On Feb. 14, Libra, a memecoin seemingly endorsed by Argentine President Javier Milei, erased some $4.4 billion in market capitalization within hours of launching.
In March, trading volumes on Ethereum’s L2s also experienced declines — retracing by some 18% from February — but held up better than Solana’s, according to VanEck.
During the final week of March, “blob fees,” the Ethereum network’s main source of income from L2s, sunk to the lowest weekly levels so far this year, according to Etherscan.
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) is down 18.4% over the past 30 days, a much steeper drop than Bitcoin’s (CRYPTO: BTC) 7% loss in the same timeframe. While many traders still maintain a bullish outlook on ETH long-term, the altcoin’s recent volatility has raised doubts and curiosity across the crypto community.
What Happened: In early February, Eric Trumptweeted that it was a “great time” to buy Ethereum.
His post gained traction on Crypto Twitter, prompting a sharp response from Bitcoin advocate Pierre Rochard, who dismissed the idea and included Ethereum on his list of assets to avoid. Since then, Ethereum has fallen 39%.
Adding to the selloff pressure, trader Wicked pointed out that World Liberty Financial recently moved $175 million worth of ETH to Coinbase — likely preparing …
The election of US President Donald Trump was supposed to usher in a golden era of crypto. Although the regulatory stars are aligning, the crypto industry just experienced its worst quarter in years.
The prices of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) recorded their worst Q1 in seven years, market sentiment fell to its lowest point since the last bear market, and Coinbase stock experienced its worst sell-off since the FTX debacle.
With the first quarter finally in the books, investors are looking forward to positive catalysts for Bitcoin and the broader market. This could come in the form of favorable Spring seasonality, more clarity on Trump’s tariff policy and shifting policy winds at the Federal Reserve.
Coinbase stock suffers worst quarter since 2022
Coinbase stock, which has long been considered an important bellwether for the crypto industry, plunged by 33% in the first quarter despite reporting strong business fundamentals and a solid revenue outlook. As Cointelegraph reported, it was the worst quarterly decline since the FTX exchange collapse in late 2022.
Like other crypto-native businesses, Coinbase’s performance languished under the pressure of Trump’s tariff war, volatile digital asset prices and the overhang of tightening financial conditions from the previous quarter.
Beyond these short-term headwinds, though, Coinbase is booming. The company’s revenues more than doubled in 2024, reaching $6.6 billion. Its adjusted earnings rose to $3.3 billion, marking two consecutive years of growth.
COIN stock’s volatile year so far. Source: Google Finance
Trump family backs Bitcoin mining venture
Despite fear and volatility gripping the crypto markets, Donald Trump’s family is doubling down on its long-term investments in the industry.
On March 31, two of Trump’s sons, Eric and Donald Jr., announced they are backing a new crypto-mining venture called American Bitcoin. The venture is majority-owned by Hut 8, a public crypto miner.
American Bitcoin “aims to become the world’s largest, most efficient pure-play Bitcoin miner while building a robust strategic Bitcoin reserve,” the announcement said.
Although crypto prices are down, it’s getting harder for investors to remain bearish on the industry with the Trump family investing so heavily. The family is behind the DeFi project World Liberty Financial, which has amassed a large portfolio of digital assets that include Ether, Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), Aave (AAVE) and Chainlink (LINK).
Tether stacks more BTC
Stablecoin issuer Tether bolstered its balance sheet in the first quarter by acquiring 8,888 Bitcoin, according to onchain data that was later confirmed by CEO Paolo Ardoino. The company now holds 100,521 BTC valued at roughly $8.7 billion.
Tether is able to acquire Bitcoin and expand its venture capital business thanks in large part to its highly profitable stablecoin operations. The company generated $13 billion in profit last year on the back of its massive holdings of interest-bearing US Treasury bonds.
Despite its success, Tether has been the subject of negative reports by the media, industry and politicians. A recent JPMorgan report argued that Tether would be forced to sell a portion of its Bitcoin holdings to comply with forthcoming US stablecoin regulations.
A company spokesperson threw cold water on the conclusion, telling Cointelegraph that JPMorgan understands “neither Bitcoin nor Tether.”
GameStop raises $1.5B for Bitcoin purchases
Video game retailer turned meme stock GameStop Corporation is poised to add Bitcoin to its balance sheet after finalizing a $1.5 billion convertible debt offering.
“The company expects to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition of Bitcoin in a manner consistent with the Company’s Investment Policy,” GameStop said.
GameStop’s board approved the plan to invest in Bitcoin last month. The approval also green-lighted the company’s acquisition of US dollar-denominated stablecoins.
In addition to raising debt to buy Bitcoin, GameStop hinted at potentially using a portion of its $4.8 billion cash reserves to fund future acquisitions.
GameStop shares have experienced extreme volatility since March 26, when the company first disclosed its plan to acquire BTC. Source: Google Finance
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In its latest in a series of what’s-not-a-security statements on digital assets, the Securities and Exchange Commission has added dollar-based stablecoins.
IntoTheBlock data shows large transaction volume increasing by 7.3% and daily active addresses growing by 6.5%. Transactions greater than $100,000 are down from 10,152 to 9,980 in a single day. Exchanges netflows are down by 498.2%.
Coinglass data reports 88,275 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $264.95 million.
First Trust Advisors has launched two Bitcoin (BTC) strategy exchange-traded funds (ETFs) designed to provide investors with Bitcoin exposure while capping losses and earning yield, the asset manager said.
The move comes amid an outpouring of funds seeking to enhance Bitcoin’s appeal to traditional investors by offering tailored exposure to the cryptocurrency’s performance.
The FT Vest Bitcoin Strategy Floor15 ETF (BFAP) is designed to track Bitcoin’s performance up to a capped upside while limiting drawdown risk to approximately 15%, First Trust said in an announcement.
“Over the past few years, investors have shown a remarkably strong appetite for bitcoin-linked ETFs, but the potential for sharp drawdowns has kept many on the sidelines,” Ryan Issakainen, an ETF strategist at First Trust, said in a statement.
First Trust launched two new Bitcoin strategy funds. Source: First Trust
The FT Vest Bitcoin Strategy & Target Income ETF (DFII) is an actively managed fund aiming to offer partial Bitcoin exposure while generating a yield that beats short-dated US Treasurys by at least 15%, according to the asset manager.
The DFII fund “will seek to take advantage of bitcoin’s high volatility to generate income by selling call options,” Issakainen said. The BFAP fund also uses financial derivatives to hedge downside risk.
Options are contracts granting the right to buy or sell — “call” or “put,” in trader parlance — an underlying asset at a certain price.
Launched in January 2024, Bitcoin ETFs emerged as one of last year’s hottest investment products.
As of April 4, spot BTC ETFs collectively manage approximately $93 billion in assets, according to data from Bitbo.
Bitcoin ETFs saw outflows after US President Trump announced tariffs. Source: Farside Investors
Other types of ETFs designed to offer tailored exposure to Bitcoin’s performance are also gaining popularity.
On April 2, Grayscale — a cryptocurrency-focused asset manager — launched two Bitcoin strategy ETFs. Like First Trust’s ETFs, they use financial derivatives to optimize for downside risk management and income generation.
Spot BTC ETFs saw nearly $100 million in outflows on April 3 amid the heightened market volatility following US President Donald Trump’s tariff announcement of sweeping tariffs on April 2.
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) is up 6% on Friday, and technical indicators currently present a mix of signals, with several potential bullish breakout scenarios.
What Happened: In a Chart Action video podcast, a technical analyst identified a distinct falling channel pattern following Dogecoin’s breakout from a previous falling wedge.
Currently trading below the 0.185 Fibonacci retracement level, Dogecoin continues to form lower highs and lower lows.
The weekly 9-period moving average remains a critical marker.
“If we’re below that line, it’s a bad position; if we break above it, then …
Bitcoin (BTC) price has managed to stay above the $80,000 level as volatility wrecked US stock markets on April 3 and April 4. The failure of the bears to capitalize on the opportunity shows a lack of selling at lower levels.
While several market participants are concerned about the near-term impact of tariffs, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes said he loves tariffs since he expects them to be positive for Bitcoin and gold in the medium term.
Capriole Investments founder Charles Edwards said in his analysis that Bitcoin would turn bullish on a break and close above $91,000. If that does not happen, he anticipates Bitcoin to fall to the $71,000 zone.
Could Bitcoin outperform by staying above $80,000? Will the altcoins crumble? Let’s analyze the charts of the top 10 cryptocurrencies to find out.
Bitcoin price analysis
Bitcoin rose above the resistance line on April 2, but the long wick on the candlestick shows solid selling at higher levels. The price turned down sharply and broke below the 20-day exponential moving average ($84,483).
The bears will have to sink the price below the $80,000 support to strengthen their position. If they do that, the BTC/USDT pair could retest the March 11 low of $76,606. Buyers are expected to defend this level with all their might because a break and close below $76,606 could sink the pair to $73,777 and eventually to $67,000.
The crucial resistance to watch out for on the upside is $88,500. A break and close above this level will signal that the corrective phase may be over. The pair could then start its journey toward $95,000.
Ether price analysis
Ether (ETH) has been trading between the $1,754 support and the 20-day EMA ($1,928) for the past few days.
That increases the likelihood of a break and close below $1,754. If sellers can pull it off, the ETH/USDT pair could start the next leg of the downtrend to $1,550.
A minor positive in favor of the bulls is that the relative strength index (RSI) has formed a positive divergence. That suggests the bearish momentum may be weakening. If the price rebounds off $1,754, the pair could face selling at the 20-day EMA. However, if buyers overcome the obstacle, the pair could rally to $2,111. A short-term trend reversal will be signaled on a close above $2,111.
XRP price analysis
XRP (XRP) bears successfully defended the 20-day EMA ($2.23) on April 2 and pulled the price to the critical support at $2.
The downsloping 20-day EMA and the RSI below 44 increase the risk of a break below $2. If that happens, the XRP/USDT pair will complete a bearish head-and-shoulders pattern. The pair has support at $1.77, but if the level gets taken out, the decline could extend to $1.27.
Buyers have an uphill task ahead of them if they want to prevent the breakdown. They will have to swiftly push the price above the 50-day simple moving average ($2.37) to clear the path for a relief rally to the resistance line.
BNB price analysis
BNB (BNB) bulls failed to push the price back above the moving averages in the past few days, indicating selling at higher levels.
The moving averages have started to turn down, and the RSI is in the negative zone, signaling a minor advantage for the bears. There is support at the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of $575 and next at the 61.8% retracement level of $559.
On the upside, the bulls will have to push and maintain the price above the 50-day SMA ($614) to signal a comeback. The BNB/USDT pair may rise to $644, which is a critical overhead resistance to watch out for. If buyers overcome the barrier at $644, the pair may travel to $686.
Solana price analysis
Solana (SOL) rose above the 20-day EMA ($128) on April 2, but the bears sold at higher levels and pulled the price below the $120 support.
The downsloping moving averages and the RSI in the negative territory heighten the risk of a break below $110. If that happens, the selling could intensify, and the SOL/USDT pair may plummet to $100 and subsequently to $80.
The bulls are unlikely to give up easily and will try to keep the pair inside the $110 to $260 range. Buyers will have to push and maintain the price above $147 to suggest that the selling pressure is reducing. The pair may then ascend to $180.
Dogecoin price analysis
Dogecoin (DOGE) bears thwarted attempts by the bulls to push the price above the 20-day EMA ($0.17) on April 2.
A positive sign in favor of the bulls is that they have not allowed the price to slide below the $0.16 support. A break above the 20-day EMA could push the price to the 50-day SMA ($0.19). Buyers will have to overcome the 50-day SMA to start a rally to $0.24 and later to $0.29.
Alternatively, if the price turns down from the moving averages and breaks below $0.16, it will clear the path for a drop to $0.14. Buyers are expected to fiercely defend the $0.14 support because a break below it may sink the DOGE/USDT pair to $0.10.
Cardano price analysis
Cardano (ADA) turned down sharply from the 20-day EMA ($0.69) on April 2 and closed below the uptrend line.
The bulls are trying to push the price back above the uptrend line but are likely to face solid selling at the 20-day EMA. If the price turns down from the overhead resistance, the ADA/USDT pair could descend to $0.58 and then to $0.50.
This negative view will be invalidated in the near term if the price turns up sharply and breaks above the 50-day SMA ($0.74). That opens the doors for a rally to $0.84, which may attract sellers.
The TON/USDT pair broke below the 20-day EMA ($3.65) on April 3, indicating that the bullish momentum is weakening. There is support at $3.32, but if the level cracks, the pair may drop to $2.81.
Instead, if the price rebounds off $3.32, the pair could attempt to form a range in the near term. The pair could swing between $3.32 and $4.14 for some time. A break and close above $4.14 will signal that the downtrend may be over. The pair could then jump to $5.
UNUS SED LEO price analysis
UNUS SED LEO (LEO) bears pulled the price below the uptrend line on March 2 but could not sustain the lower levels. That suggests buying at lower levels.
The 20-day EMA ($9.57) is turning down gradually, and the RSI is in the negative zone, signaling a slight advantage to the bears. If the price turns down from the moving averages, the bears will make one more attempt to sink the LEO/USD pair below the $8.84 support. If they succeed, the pair may tumble to $8.
Contrarily, a break above the moving averages opens the doors for a rise to the overhead resistance of $9.90. If buyers pierce the $9.90 resistance, the pair will complete a bullish ascending triangle pattern. The pair may then climb toward the target objective of $12.04.
Chainlink price analysis
Chainlink (LINK) once again turned down from the 20-day EMA ($13.98) on March 2, indicating that the bears continue selling on rallies.
The LINK/USDT pair has strong support in the zone between $12 and the support line of the descending channel pattern. A rebound off the support zone will have to rise above the moving averages to signal a stronger recovery toward $17.50.
Sellers are likely to have other plans. They will attempt to pull the price below the support line. If they can pull it off, the pair could extend the downtrend toward the crucial support at $10 and, after that, to $8.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
President Donald Trump publicly urged the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, but prediction market data shows that bettors remain skeptical the central bank will act in May.
What Happened: According to decentralized forecasting platform Polymarket, 72% of market participants believe the Federal Reserve will hold rates steady at its next meeting on May 7, with only 24% pricing in a 25 basis point cut, and a mere 2.7% expecting a deeper 50+ bps reduction.
In a post on Truth Social on Friday, the former president pressed Fed Chair Jerome Powell to act, writing, “This would be a PERFECT time for Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to cut Interest Rates… CUT INTEREST RATES, JEROME, AND STOP PLAYING POLITICS!” Trump cited lower inflation, falling energy prices, and stronger employment as justification for immediate easing.
Despite growing tariff-related uncertainty, there is a 70% probability cryptocurrency markets will find the local bottom in the next two months, which will serve as the supporting foundation for the next leg up in the 2025 cycle, according to Nansen analysts.
Savvy traders continue making generational wealth despite growing volatility and lack of risk appetite. One unidentified trader turned an initial $2,000 investment into over $43 million by trading the popular frog-themed memecoin, Pepe.
70% chance of crypto bottoming before June amid trade fears: Nansen
The cryptocurrency market may see a local bottom in the next two months amid global uncertainty over ongoing import tariff negotiations, which have been limiting investor sentiment in both traditional and digital markets.
US President Donald Trump on April 2 announced reciprocal import tariffs, measures aimed at reducing the country’s estimated trade deficit of $1.2 trillion in goods and boosting domestic manufacturing.
While global markets took a hit from the first tariff announcement, there is a 70% chance for cryptocurrency valuations to find their bottom by June, according to Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst at the Nansen crypto intelligence platform.
The research analyst told Cointelegraph:
“Nansen data estimates a 70% probability that crypto prices will bottom between now and June, with BTC and ETH currently trading 15% and 22% below their year-to-date highs, respectively. Given this data, upcoming discussions will serve as crucial market indicators.”
She added: “Once the toughest part of the negotiation is behind us, we see a cleaner opportunity for crypto and risk assets to finally mark a bottom.”
Crypto trader turns $2,000 of PEPE into $43 million
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.
The trader realized over $10 million in profit despite Pepe’s price falling over 74% from its all-time high of $0.00002825, reached on Dec. 9, 2024, Cointelegraph Markets Pro data shows.
PEPE/USD, all-time chart. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro
Memecoins 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.
$1 trillion stablecoin supply could drive next crypto rally — CoinFund’s Pakman
The global stablecoin supply may surge to $1 trillion by the end of 2025, potentially becoming a key catalyst for broader cryptocurrency market growth, according to David Pakman, managing partner at crypto-native investment firm CoinFund.
“We’re in a stablecoin adoption upswell that’s likely to increase dramatically this year,” Pakman said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X on March 27. “We could go from $225 billion stablecoins to $1 trillion just this calendar year.”
He noted that such growth, while modest compared to global financial markets, would represent a “meaningfully significant” shift for blockchain-based finance.
Pakman also suggested that the rise in capital flowing onchain, combined with growing interest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), could further support decentralized finance (DeFi) activity:
“If we have a moment this year where ETFs are permitted to provide staking rewards or yield to holders, that unlocks really meaningful uplift in DeFi activity, broadly defined.”
Avalanche stablecoins up 70% to $2.5 billion; AVAX demand lacks DeFi deployment
Avalanche saw a significant surge in stablecoin supply over the past year, but the onchain deployment of this capital points to passive investor behavior, which may be limiting demand for the network’s utility token.
The stablecoin supply on the Avalanche network rose by over 70% over the past year, from $1.5 billion in March 2024 to over $2.5 billion as of March 31, 2025, according to Avalanche’s X post.
Market capitalization of stablecoins on Avalanche. Source: Avalanche
Stablecoins are the main bridge between the fiat and crypto world, and increasing stablecoin supply is often seen as a signal for incoming buying pressure and growing investor appetite.
However, Avalanche’s (AVAX) token has been in a downtrend, dropping nearly 60% over the past year to trade just above $19 despite the $1 billion increase in stablecoin supply, Cointelegraph Markets Pro data shows.
AVAX/USD,1-year chart. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro
“The apparent contradiction between surging stablecoin value on Avalanche and AVAX’s significant price decline likely stems from how that stablecoin liquidity is being held,” according to Juan Pellicer, senior research analyst at IntoTheBlock crypto intelligence platform.
DeFi TVL falls 27% while AI, social apps surge in Q1: DappRadar
Economic uncertainty and a major crypto exchange hack pushed down the total value locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to $156 billion in the first quarter of 2025, but AI and social apps gained ground with an increase in network users, according to a crypto analytics firm.
“Broader economic uncertainty and lingering aftershocks from the Bybit exploit” were the main contributing factors to the DeFi sector’s 27% quarter-on-quarter fall in TVL, according to an April 3 report from DappRadar, which noted that the price of Ether (ETH) fell 45% to $1,820 over the same period.
Change in DeFi total value locked between Jan. 2024 and March 2025. Source: DappRadar
The largest blockchain by TVL, Ethereum, fell 37% to $96 billion, while Sui was the hardest hit of the top 10 blockchains by TVL, falling 44% to $2 billion.
Meanwhile, blockchains that experienced a larger volume of DeFi withdrawals and had a smaller share of stablecoins locked in their protocols faced extra pressure on top of the falling token prices.
The newly launched Berachain was the only top-10 blockchain by TVL to rise, accumulating $5.17 billion between Feb. 6 and March 31, DappRadar noted.
According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, most of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization ended the week in the red.
The Pi Network (PI) token fell over 34%, logging the week’s biggest decline, followed by the Berachain (BERA) token, down nearly 30% on the weekly chart.
Total value locked in DeFi. Source: DefiLlama
Thanks for reading our summary of this week’s most impactful DeFi developments. Join us next Friday for more stories, insights and education regarding this dynamically advancing space.
A group of investors with cryptocurrency custody and trading firm Bakkt Holdings filed a class-action lawsuit alleging false or misleading statements and a failure to disclose certain information.
Lead plaintiff Guy Serge A. Franklin called for a jury trial as part of a complaint against Bakkt, senior adviser and former CEO Gavin Michael, CEO and president Andrew Main, and interim chief financial officer Karen Alexander, according to an April 2 filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The group of investors allege damages as the result of violations of US securites laws and a lack of transparency surrounding its agreement with clients: Webull and Bank of America (BoA).
April 2 complaint against Bakkt and its executives. Source: PACER
The loss of Bank of America and Webull will result “in a 73% loss in top line revenue” due to the two firms making up a significant percentage of its services revenue, the investor group alleges in the lawsuit. The filing stated Webull made up 74% of Bakkt’s crypto services revenue through most of 2023 and 2024, and Bank of America made up 17% of its loyalty services revenue from January to September 2024.
Bakkt disclosed on March 17 that Bank of America and Webull did not intend to renew their agreements with the firm ending in 2025. The announcement likely contributed to the company’s share price falling more than 27% in the following 24 hours. The investors allege Bakkt “misrepresented the stability and/or diversity of its crypto services revenue” and failed to disclose that this revenue was “substantially dependent” on Webull’s contract.
“As a result of Defendants’ wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the Company’s securities, Plaintiff and other Class members have suffered significant losses and damages,” said the suit.
Other law offices said they were investigating Bakkt for securities law violations, suggesting additional class-action lawsuits may be in the works. Cointelegraph contacted Bakkt for a comment on the lawsuit but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
