Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), two of the most popular cryptocurrencies, failed to show notable upwards movement early Thursday. While BTC remained below $28,000, ETH dwelled within the $1,800 range. Other popular altcoins — including the likes of Dogecoin (DOGE), Ripple (XRP), Litecoin (LTC), and Solana (SOL) — saw minor gains across the board. The Render Token (RNDR) managed to become the top gainer, with a 24-hour jump of over 16 percent. Memecoin PEPE continues to be the biggest loser, with a 24-hour loss of over 6 percent.
The global crypto market cap stood at $1.14 trillion at the time of writing, registering a 24-hour gain of 0.62 percent.
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Today
Bitcoin price stood at $27,362.33, registering a 24-hour gain of 1.13 percent, as per CoinMarketCap. According to Indian exchange WazirX, BTC price stood at Rs 23.40 lakh.
Ethereum (ETH) Price Today
ETH price stood at $1,825.04, marking a 24-hour gain of 0.10 percent at the time of writing. As per WazirX, Ethereum price in India stood at Rs 1.58 lakh.
Dogecoin (DOGE) Price Today
DOGE registered a 24-hour jump of 1.78 percent, as per CoinMarketCap data, currently priced at $0.07452. As per WazirX, Dogecoin price in India stood at Rs 6.40.
Litecoin (LTC) Price Today
Litecoin saw a 24-hour gain of 1.15 percent. At the time of writing, it was trading at $93.98. LTC price in India stood at Rs 8,199.15.
Ripple (XRP) Price Today
XRP price stood at $0.4477, seeing a 24-hour dip of 2.39 percent. As per WazirX, Ripple price stood at Rs 38.65.
Solana (SOL) Price Today
Solana price stood at $21.03, marking a 24-hour gain of 0.27 percent. As per WazirX, SOL price in India stood at Rs 1,820.15.
Top Crypto Gainers Today (May 18)
As per CoinMarketCap data, here are the top five crypto gainers over the past 24 hours:
Render Token (RNDR)
Price: $2.32
24-hour loss: 16.10 percent
Synthetix (SNX)
Price: $2.43
24-hour loss: 9.87 percent
Mask Network (MASK)
Price: $4.41
24-hour loss: 7.12 percent
Axie Infinity (AXS)
Price: $7.44
24-hour loss: 6.05 percent
Optimism (OP)
Price: $1.82
24-hour loss: 5.50 percent
Top Crypto Losers Today (May 18)
As per CoinMarketCap data, here are the top five crypto losers over the past 24 hours:
Pepe (PEPE)
Price: $0.000001571
24-hour loss: 6.19 percent
Conflux (CFX)
Price: $0.3007
24-hour loss: 4.12 percent
Casper (CSPR)
Price: $0.04815
24-hour loss: 2.22 percent
Decentraland (MANA)
Price: $0.511
24-hour loss: 2.21 percent
Ripple (XRP)
Price: $0.4473
24-hour loss: 2.15 percent
What Crypto Exchanges Are Saying About Current Market Scenario
Mudrex co-founder and CEO Edul Patel told ABP Live, “Bitcoin and Ethereum showed little movement despite concerns about the US debt ceiling. Bitcoin is currently trading at approximately $27,300, with a potential upward trend if it surpasses the resistance level of $27,550. The support level is currently at $27,000, while resistance levels are at $27,420 and $27,550. Meanwhile, Ethereum experienced a decline following Chinese prosecutors' announcement of a crackdown on the NFT market, but it has since rebounded and is trading at around $1,825.”
WazirX Vice President Rajagopal Menon said, “Bitcoin and Ether remain resilient despite concerns over US debt ceiling negotiations. While crypto markets are generally unaffected due to tight liquidity, Tether's decision to diversify reserves into crypto indicates some impact. On WazirX, Cartesi (CTSI) and MOBOX (MBOX) have been the top gainers in the last 24 hours.”
Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO and co-founder of Unocoin said, “Bitcoin (BTC), the dominant cryptocurrency, is trading sideways after falling from $28,000. Currently valued at $27,300, its performance is being closely watched to see if the decline continues or if another crash is imminent. Analysts note historical patterns of temporary rallies followed by new lows, while others predict a bullish trend in 2023. Bitcoin's defence of critical support near $25,000 is crucial, and a break below could lead to lower prices. Axie Infinity's native cryptocurrency, AXS, has seen a 12 percent increase after launching its card game on the Apple App Store. Already installed more than 1.5 million times, the game is initially targeting users in Latin America and Asia, with plans to expand to Google and Apple platforms in the future.”
Shivam Thakral, the CEO of BuyUCoin, said, “The overall crypto market witnessed a marginal jump of 0.65 percent as BTC and ETH continue to remain in the green zone. With the US president declaring that the US will not default on its debt ceiling, there may be some liquidity crisis in the market which can restrict the momentum. Tether (USDT) announced that it will invest 15 percent of realised profits into Bitcoin to mitigate the dollar risk, this may be a good sign for BTC in the long term.”
CoinDCX Research Team told ABP Live, “Bitcoin experienced retracement, falling below the $27,000 mark. Last week's high volatility resulted in a price decline for Bitcoin, reaching a two-month low of $25,800.Since the introduction of the Shanghai upgrade to Ethereum about a month ago, demand for ETH staking has surged significantly. As a result, the number of staked ETH tokens has reached 21.6 million, marking an increase of approximately 3.5 million within the month following the Shanghai upgrade. With the total supply of ETH tokens standing at around 120 million, the current staking participation rate has surpassed 18 percent, according to Glassnode data. These developments demonstrate the growing interest and confidence in ETH staking as an investment strategy.”
Disclaimer: Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions. Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is subject to market risks. Readers are advised to seek expert advice and read offer document(s) along with related important literature on the subject carefully before making any kind of investment whatsoever. Cryptocurrency market predictions are speculative and any investment made shall be at the sole cost and risk of the readers.