Invest ideasNews
19 May 2026, 06:00
Why is Tom Lee calling Ethereum’s latest price drop a buying opportunity?
Fundstrat’s Tom Lee reiterated his bullish long-term outlook while Bitmine Immersion Technologies disclosed another major Ether purchase during the recent market pullback, even as the flagship altcoin remained under pressure. Ethereum price is down roughly 8% in the past 7 days, as per Coingecko data. Market weakness has coincided with renewed risk aversion across digital assets, particularly among higher-risk altcoins. According to comments posted by Lee on X , the latest weakness in Ethereum prices has been tied largely to macroeconomic conditions, particularly rising oil prices, rather than any deterioration in the network’s long-term outlook. Lee said Ether’s inverse correlation with crude oil had reached its “highest ever,” arguing that the rally in energy markets over the past six weeks coincided with a decline in ETH prices. Lee described the pullback as an “attractive opportunity” for accumulation, adding that Bitmine expects to eventually control 5% of Ethereum’s circulating supply sometime in 2026. Meanwhile, Ethereum’s long-term outlook has continued to split opinion across Wall Street firms, with projections ranging from steep declines to fresh record highs. In a March report, Citigroup projected that Ethereum could rise to $3,175 over the next 12 months, while the bank’s bullish scenario placed ETH closer to $4,488 on expectations of continued growth in stablecoins and tokenization activity. On the other hand, prediction market data cited by CoinGecko suggested Ethereum has a 48% probability of ending the year near $1,500, while assigning a 25% chance to a move toward $3,500. Earlier this year, Standard Chartered maintained one of the more aggressive forecasts for Ether . Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s head of digital assets research, stated in a January report that Ethereum could reach $7,500 by year-end if adoption of blockchain-based financial products continues expanding. Whale activity weighs on sentiment Elsewhere in the market, large Ethereum holders were seen moving substantial amounts of ETH as volatility continues to rise. Blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain reported that an Ethereum whale who originally accumulated ETH more than a decade ago has returned to buying after previously exiting their position last year. According to the platform’s X post, the investor recently acquired 1,951 ETH at an average price of $2,182. Separately, Lookonchain also flagged activity involving a dormant Ethereum initial coin offering participant identified as wallet “0xCD59.” The wallet transferred its entire 10,000 ETH holdings, worth roughly $22.9 million at the time, to a new address after remaining inactive for nearly 10.8 years. Data shared by Lookonchain showed the investor originally acquired the ETH during Ethereum’s 2014 ICO for approximately $3,100, leaving the position with gains exceeding 7,000-fold at current market prices. Traders often monitor such dormant-wallet movements closely because they can indicate potential selling pressure from early holders sitting on large unrealized profits. Ethereum price analysis On the 4-hour ETH/USD price chart, the token was attempting to stabilise near $2,130 after losing support around the 20-day EMA near $2,160. ETH/USD 4-hour price chart. Source: Tradingview. Recent price action showed Ethereum slipping below several short-term moving averages following a steady decline from the $2,400 region earlier this month. At the same time, ETH continued trading beneath the 50-day and 100-day exponential moving averages, positioned near $2,214 and $2,253, respectively, indicating that bearish momentum still remained intact across the medium-term structure. Momentum indicators are also suggesting that buying strength remains weak. The relative strength index, or RSI, hovered near 35, remaining below the neutral 50 level and approaching oversold territory. Although the indicator showed signs of flattening near the lower range, buyers have yet to reclaim momentum decisively. From a price structure standpoint, Ethereum appeared to be holding a key support zone around $2,100 to $2,120. A sustained breakdown below this range could expose ETH to another decline toward the psychological $2,000 level, with additional downside support sitting near the late March consolidation area around $1,920. On the upside, any recovery attempt would likely need to reclaim the $2,160 region first before buyers can challenge the heavier resistance cluster between $2,210 and $2,260, where multiple moving averages were converging on the 4-hour chart. Meanwhile, continued institutional accumulation from firms such as Bitmine and renewed whale buying activity could help cushion downside pressure if broader crypto market sentiment stabilizes. However, with macro concerns and oil-price volatility still weighing on risk assets, Ethereum may continue facing choppy price action in the short term. The post Why is Tom Lee calling Ethereum’s latest price drop a buying opportunity? appeared first on Invezz
19 May 2026, 06:00
Assessing if XRP retail frenzy is about to start again soon
XRP's latest move may be more than just a price breakout.
19 May 2026, 06:00
Bitcoin Recovery Above Key Cost Basis Level Fails As BTC Falls Under $77,000
Bitcoin has witnessed a drop back below the $77,000 level, and with it, the cryptocurrency has lost its recovery above the short-term holder cost basis. Bitcoin Has Fallen Under The STH Realized Price In a new post on X, analyst Maartunn has talked about how BTC’s move above the short-term holder Realized Price ended in rejection. The “Realized Price” here refers to an on-chain indicator that measures the cost basis of the average investor or address on the Bitcoin network. Related Reading: Ethereum Sell Signal That Last Preceded A 63% Drop Flashes Again When the spot price of the cryptocurrency is greater than this metric, it means the investors as a whole are in a state of net unrealized profit. On the other hand, the asset being under the indicator implies the dominance of loss on the blockchain. In the context of the current topic, the Realized Price of a specific investor group is of interest: the short-term holders (STHs). This cohort includes all addresses that purchased their coins within the past 155 days. Now, here is the chart shared by Maartunn that shows the trend in the Bitcoin Realized Price for this group over the last few years: As displayed in the above graph, Bitcoin dropped below the STH Realized Price with its crash in the last quarter of 2025 and stayed below it until the recent recovery rally. This surge finally resulted in the cryptocurrency climbing back above the line, thus putting the STHs back into the green. The profitable status couldn’t last for the cohort, however, as a pullback in the asset has meant that the spot price is once more below the indicator. In the past, the Bitcoin spot price finding rejection around the STH Realized Price is something that has often been witnessed during bearish phases. The reason behind the trend lies in selling from the group’s members that arises as a result of panic-exiting at the break-even level. The recovery attempt in January also fizzled out near the cost basis of these investors. Related Reading: Ethereum Dips To $2,250 As Trader Profit-Taking Hits 3-Week High In some other news, the long-term holders (LTHs), the counterpart of the STH cohort, have seen an uptrend in their supply recently, as CryptoQuant author Darkfrost has pointed out in an X post. From the chart, it’s visible that the Bitcoin LTHs saw their supply go down during the second half of 2025, indicating that the diamond hands of the network were selling. The trend changed this January, with the netflow of the group turning positive. Currently, this cohort controls a total of 15.26 million BTC. BTC Price Bitcoin dropped to a low of $76,700 during the latest retrace, but the coin has since bounced back a bit to $77,700. Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com
19 May 2026, 06:00
XRP Rally On The Radar: ‘Violent Price Expansion’ May Be Near As Bollinger Bands Tighten
XRP is experiencing increased price pressure, mirroring the broader crypto market’s drop, with the token falling 6% over the past week. This pullback has forced XRP to lose the $1.40 support level for now. Despite this recent weakness, market analyst Ali Martinez posted on X (formerly Twitter) that a technical setup is forming on XRP’s 3-day chart that could result in a significant rally for the token. XRP Key Break Levels According to Martinez, XRP is showing what he calls the “tightest Bollinger Band squeeze on its 3-day timeframe in over a year.” In his view, when volatility compresses that tightly, it often acts like a prelude to a sharper expansion in price, with bigger directional movement following once the squeeze resolves. Martinez emphasized that this compression zone is essentially a “no-trade zone.” The idea, he said, is to wait and see how the market breaks before taking directional exposure. Instead of guessing, he wants confirmation through the structure of the next candles. Specifically, he is watching for a clean 3-day candlestick close either outside the established range or back inside it. His key levels for that confirmation are the bounds of the squeeze zone, which Martinez described between $1.50 and $1.29. If XRP is able to produce a 3-day close above $1.50, Martinez believes it would signal an upward expansion. In that scenario, he flagged $1.80 as his primary target , suggesting the next phase could push the coin meaningfully higher from current trading levels of $1.37 at the time of writing. On the other hand, a close below $1.29 would change the tone. Martinez stated that such a breakdown would invalidate the immediate bullish structure he is monitoring and could open the door for a deeper correction, with the altcoin potentially dropping toward the $1 level. Regulatory Catalyst Ahead While technical levels can guide near-term trading expectations, XRP’s path could also be influenced by regulatory developments in the United States. In a recent report , market expert Sam Daodu referenced the CLARITY Act , which cleared the Senate Banking Committee by a 15–9 vote on May 14. He explained that XRP reacted positively to that progress, rallying to $1.54 in response to the news. In his assessment, a full Senate vote in June could strengthen expectations that the bill may receive presidential approval before the White House deadline on July 4. If that clearer regulatory timeline plays out, Daodu suggested it could help the token overcome resistance that has limited its performance for months. The expert identified the $1.44–$1.45 level as the sell wall—an area where selling pressure has capped upside. In Daodu’s view, breaking above that wall would be a meaningful step, and he pointed to a further rally toward $2 as a confirmation of the coin’s upside trajectory. Featured image created with OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
19 May 2026, 06:00
Bitcoin Spot Demand Falters as Options Market Tilts Bearish: Glassnode
BitcoinWorld Bitcoin Spot Demand Falters as Options Market Tilts Bearish: Glassnode Bitcoin’s recent price recovery from the high $60,000s to over $82,000 appears to be losing steam, according to a weekly report from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode. The leading cryptocurrency has since corrected back to the $77,000 range, and data from the report suggests the upward momentum is not being supported by strong spot market conviction. Key On-Chain Indicators Point to Weakening Sentiment Glassnode’s analysis highlights several metrics that signal a shift in market dynamics. The most striking is the Spot Cumulative Volume Delta (CVD), which has experienced a sharp 848.7% decline. This metric measures the net difference between market buy and sell orders, and such a dramatic drop indicates a significant increase in selling pressure. While spot trading volume did increase by 4.2%, the data suggests this activity was not driven by aggressive buying interest but rather by distribution. In the derivatives market, futures open interest (OI) decreased by 2.9%, pointing to a slight reduction in overall leverage. However, the picture is more nuanced. Funding rates for long positions surged by 136.6%, a sign that some traders are still willing to pay a premium to maintain bullish bets. This creates a divergence: while some participants are betting on further upside, the broader market is showing signs of caution. Options Market Flashes a Warning The most significant bearish signal comes from the options market. The 25-delta skew, a key measure of demand for puts versus calls, rose by 42.8%. This increase reflects a growing preference for downside hedging, as traders seek protection against potential price declines. This shift in options positioning is often a leading indicator of changing market sentiment and suggests that professional traders are bracing for further downside risk. Institutional Demand Shows Signs of Cooling Adding to the cautious outlook, Glassnode noted that net inflows into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs are slowing. These investment vehicles have been a major driver of institutional demand and price appreciation over the past year. A deceleration in inflows could dampen the broader institutional sentiment that has been a key pillar of the recent rally. Without sustained buying pressure from these large-scale investors, the market may find it difficult to reclaim and hold higher price levels. Conclusion The combination of a collapsing spot CVD, rising downside hedging in the options market, and cooling ETF inflows paints a picture of a market at a crossroads. While pockets of bullish leverage remain, the prevailing data from Glassnode suggests that the path of least resistance may be shifting to the downside. For traders and investors, these on-chain signals serve as a critical reminder to monitor the underlying health of demand, rather than relying solely on price action. FAQs Q1: What is the Spot Cumulative Volume Delta (CVD)? A1: It is an on-chain metric that measures the net difference between the volume of market buy orders and market sell orders. A declining CVD indicates that selling pressure is outweighing buying pressure. Q2: What does a rising 25-delta skew in options mean? A2: It indicates increased demand for put options (bets on a price decline) relative to call options (bets on a price increase), signaling that traders are hedging against downside risk. Q3: Why are Bitcoin ETF inflows important? A3: U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs provide a regulated way for institutional and retail investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin. Strong inflows generally signal high demand and can drive prices higher, while slowing inflows can indicate waning interest. This post Bitcoin Spot Demand Falters as Options Market Tilts Bearish: Glassnode first appeared on BitcoinWorld .
19 May 2026, 06:00
Echo Protocol Hit by $76M eBTC Minting Exploit
The attacker moved part of the funds through Curvance, bridged assets to Ethereum, and sent some ETH through Tornado Cash. Security researchers believe the incident was caused by a compromised admin private key rather than a smart contract flaw. Hacker Exploits Echo Protocol Echo Protocol suffered a major security breach after an attacker minted approximately 1,000 unauthorized eBTC tokens on the protocol, which operates on the Monad blockchain. The exploit resulted in roughly $76.7 million worth of synthetic Bitcoin being created without authorization. Because of this, it is one of the latest large-scale attacks to hit the decentralized finance sector during an already difficult month for crypto security. Blockchain security firms PeckShield and Lookonchain both reported the incident on Tuesday, while Echo Protocol later confirmed that it was investigating a security issue affecting its bridge infrastructure. The protocol also announced that all cross-chain transactions were suspended while the investigation continued. The attacker quickly began moving portions of the stolen assets through decentralized finance platforms in an attempt to launder the funds. According to PeckShield, the hacker deposited 45 eBTC, valued at around $3.45 million, into Curvance, a DeFi lending and liquidity management platform. The attacker then borrowed approximately 11.3 wrapped Bitcoin worth about $868,000 against the collateral before bridging the assets to Ethereum. After transferring the funds to Ethereum, the attacker swapped the assets into ETH and eventually sent around 384 ETH, valued at roughly $822,000, through Tornado Cash. Despite these movements, the majority of the stolen assets are still untouched. Data from DeBank indicates that the attacker still controls approximately 955 eBTC, which is close to 95% of the stolen cryptocurrency and worth around $73 million. Blockchain developer Marioo suggested that the exploit was not caused by a flaw in Echo Protocol’s smart contracts. Instead, the incident appears to have stemmed from an admin private key compromise. According to the developer, the problem was operational rather than technical, with the eBTC contract functioning as intended. Several security weaknesses may have contributed to the scale of the exploit, including reliance on a single-signature admin role, the absence of a timelock mechanism, no minting supply cap or rate limit, and a lack of supply validation checks for newly minted collateral on Curvance. Curvance stated that its own smart contracts were not compromised but confirmed that it paused the affected eBTC market while investigations continue. Monad co-founder Keone Hon also clarified that the Monad blockchain itself is unaffected and is operating normally. The Echo Protocol exploit adds to a growing list of recent DeFi attacks, joining incidents involving THORChain, Verus Protocol’s Ethereum bridge, Transit Finance, TrustedVolumes, and Ekubo.
