Market Analysis

This Week in Crypto: Key Updates on Ripple, Cardano, Solana, and Missouri’s Digital Currency Debate

Amos Simanungkalit · 06 Dec 2024104.2K Views

I’m Wendy O from The Street and Roundtable, bringing you the top crypto news from the week of December 2nd, 2024.

First up, there were online rumors that Ripple was ready to launch its new dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD. However, Ripple clarified on X that they are still awaiting approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).

The RLUSD stablecoin, pegged 1:1 to the US dollar, will initially operate on both the XRP Ledger (XRPL) and Ethereum, with plans to expand to other blockchains and DeFi protocols. Aimed primarily at institutional users, RLUSD is designed to complement Ripple’s cross-border payment solutions, offering price stability through its dollar backing, while XRP will provide liquidity for transactions. In other Ripple news, the XRPL has reduced its base reserve requirement from 10 XRP to 1 XRP, cutting the cost of account activation by 90%.

This change has resulted in a significant increase in new accounts, with over 30,000 new accounts activated in just 24 hours, helping to enhance liquidity and lower entry barriers. The rise of memecoins on the XRPL may also be attracting new users to the ecosystem.

Cardano is making strides in the gaming sector with its Hydra Doom Tournament, a global online gaming event offering a $100,000 prize pool. This tournament is part of Cardano’s strategy to strengthen its presence in the GameFi space.

In terms of Cardano’s price action, large holders recently sold off 55.96 million ADA, worth around $69M, signaling a shift from previous accumulation trends.

Additionally, an ADA token unlock scheduled for December 6th will release 18.53 million tokens, valued at $22.79M, into circulation. Some analysts believe this could disrupt ADA’s recent rally, but I see it as a normal move for whales or accredited investors to take profits before re-entering the market. With Bitcoin declining, the broader crypto market could experience a correction.

Meanwhile, the Solana ecosystem is seeing key developments, as Grayscale has filed to convert its Solana Trust into a spot ETF, which could attract institutional investors. However, the SEC has yet to approve any spot ETFs linked to Solana or other altcoins.

Lastly, Missouri’s state Senate has introduced a bill that aims to prevent the use of CBDCs (Central Bank Digital Currencies) as legal tender in the state, further intensifying the ongoing debate about the future of digital currencies.