Author: Faith Yakubu

Dogecoin (DOGE), the leading meme cryptocurrency by market capitalization, is showing signs of entering another bullish phase reminiscent of its spectacular rise in early 2021. According to CoinDesk, Dogecoin’s market cap currently stands at approximately $22 billion, with a remarkable year-to-date price increase of over 70%, significantly outstripping Bitcoin’s (BTC) near 50% gain.

A critical technical indicator, the ‘golden cross’, is nearing confirmation for Dogecoin. This occurs when the 50-week simple moving average (SMA) crosses above the 200-week SMA, signaling potential long-term upward momentum. Such crossovers are often used by momentum traders to pinpoint optimal market entry and exit points.

Historically, Dogecoin experienced a golden cross in early January 2021, which preceded a four-month rally leading to an unprecedented 8,000% increase in its price, peaking at 76 cents on Binance. However, it’s crucial to approach such indicators with caution as past performance is not always indicative of future results, and moving average crossovers can sometimes lag behind actual market movements.

Moreover, the dynamics around meme cryptocurrencies like Dogecoin differ significantly from more traditional investments. Lacking substantial real-world applications, their market movements are largely driven by speculative trading. This makes them particularly vulnerable to shifts in global financial conditions such as liquidity and interest rate changes.

During Dogecoin’s 2021 rally, global interest rates were at or near zero, fostering an environment ripe for high-risk investments. Currently, however, with U.S. interest rates exceeding 5%, the economic backdrop is considerably different, potentially influencing the trajectory of speculative assets like Dogecoin.

Investors should remain vigilant, considering both the technical setup and broader economic factors when evaluating the potential for another major rally in Dogecoin’s price.

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April witnessed a monumental surge in the total volume of stablecoins traded on Ethereum, with DAI emerging as the dominant contributor to this unprecedented growth. The rise in DAI volume can be attributed to its increasing involvement in complex Miner Extractable Value (MEV) transactions, often facilitated by flash loans.

Record-Breaking Month

After several months of stagnant activity, Ethereum’s total monthly stablecoin volume has experienced a consistent uptick for the past three months, culminating in April’s historic milestone. It’s essential to note that flash loan activity is included in these figures, amplifying the overall volume significantly.

DAI’s Role in the Surge

DAI has emerged as the primary catalyst behind Ethereum’s soaring stablecoin volume, with its involvement in complex MEV transactions drawing significant attention. Notably, one transaction alone added nearly $1 billion in DAI volume, showcasing its pivotal role in Ethereum’s ecosystem.

DAI’s April Performance

In April, DAI’s volume surged to $636 billion, constituting the majority of Ethereum’s total on-chain stablecoin volume, which reached nearly $1.2 trillion for the month. DAI’s supply has also experienced substantial growth, adding approximately $1 billion worth of tokens since March 7, bringing the current supply to 5.44 billion.

Potential Challenges Ahead

While DAI’s performance has been stellar, competitors like Ethena’s USDe and Ripple’s upcoming stablecoin pose potential challenges to its dominance. Nevertheless, DAI’s supply has continued to expand, with an additional $220 million added since May 1, as reported by MakerBurn.

Market Response

Despite the surge in DAI volumes, the price of Maker, the token associated with MakerDAO, experienced a decline throughout April. However, a slight uptick in early May hints at potential market resilience amid DAI’s growing prominence in the stablecoin landscape.

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Ethereum (ETH) witnessed a significant decline in daily ETH burned, hitting a yearly low primarily due to decreased gas fees. Gas fees currently range between 5 and 10 gwei, marking one of the lowest levels observed this year.

The Ethereum network experiences a notable decrease in the daily volume of ETH burned, reaching its lowest point this year, largely influenced by a recent decline in average gas fees. Presently, gas fees fluctuate between 5 and 10 gwei, representing one of the lowest levels recorded year-to-date and impacting ETH issuance.

The reduction in network fees translates to a decrease in ETH burned. On Sunday, only 610 ETH were burned, marking a record low for the year, while Ethereum’s gas fees remained minimal. In contrast, the daily volume of ETH burned during the first four months of this year consistently exceeded 2,500–3,000 ETH.

The ongoing decline in gas fees is attributed partly to a shift in activity towards Layer 2 scaling solutions and the increasing adoption of blob transactions introduced with the Dencun upgrade in March, which helps alleviate transaction costs on Layer 2s.

The dynamics of gas fees and ETH burning are closely monitored aspects of the network’s economic model. While low fees benefit network users, the recent decrease in ETH burn impacts Ethereum’s deflationary characteristics.

The London hard fork, also known as EIP-1559, implemented in August 2021, fundamentally altered Ethereum’s fee structure. The upgrade introduced a base fee that is burned and a priority fee acting as a tip to validators. As the base fee correlates with network usage, higher fees result in a greater amount of ETH being removed from circulation through burning.

In the past week, Ethereum’s supply has turned inflationary, with a growth rate of 0.49%, contrasting its previous deflationary trend, as reported by ultrasound.money. If activity surges and more ETH is burned than issued, Ethereum will return to a deflationary state.

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Phishing attacks within the crypto industry decreased by 46% to $38 million in April, marking the lowest amount recorded this year, according to the security firm Scam Sniffer. Notably, this decline aligns with CertiK’s findings, indicating that crypto-related exploits and scams reached a historic low of $25.7 million in April.

April’s Phishing Attack Insights

According to Scam Sniffer’s analysis, the Coinbase-backed Ethereum layer-2 network Base experienced a notable surge of 145% to $8.2 million in phishing incidents during the past month. Interestingly, two of the top 10 largest single thefts occurred on this chain, constituting 21% of the month’s total theft.

ERC-20 tokens faced the brunt of these attacks, with a staggering 88% of the stolen assets belonging to this class.

Tools and Tactics Employed by Attackers

Scam Sniffer has pinpointed fake accounts on the social media platform X (previously known as Twitter) as the primary tool utilized by scammers. These attackers impersonated prominent projects like Renzo, Avail, Ether.fi, Wormhole, and Omni. These fake accounts often displayed counterfeit verification marks, giving them an appearance of authenticity that was exploited to lure unsuspecting users.

Using these fake accounts, the attackers posted deceptive comments on social media platforms to redirect unsuspecting individuals to malicious sites where their assets could be stolen.

Additionally, the attackers frequently utilized phishing signatures such as Permit, IncreaseAllowance, and Uniswap Permit2. These malicious signatures enabled the attackers to access their victim’s funds without their knowledge.

Scam Sniffer further added that despite wallets increasing phishing alerts for certain signatures, wallet drainers are actively finding ways to circumvent these alerts by using legitimate contracts like Disperse and Uniswap Multicall, along with variants of value normalization.

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Coinbase announced a remarkable first quarter, with revenue reaching $1.6 billion, marking a substantial 72% increase from the previous quarter and a significant rise from $736 million in the same period last year. The company also reported a notable swing in net income, posting $1.18 billion for the quarter compared to a loss of $79 million in the previous year’s corresponding period. Additionally, Coinbase generated $1.01 billion in EBITDA, surpassing expectations with earnings of $4.04 per share, exceeding the consensus estimate of $1.15 per share.

The surge in revenue reflects Coinbase’s strategic investments in product expansion, operational discipline, and favorable market conditions, according to the company’s earnings statement. Notably, the company observed increased market share in US spot and derivatives, achieving all-time highs on Coinbase Prime, and witnessing growth in USDC market capitalization.

Transaction revenue for both consumer and institutional clients experienced a substantial uptick, totaling $1.08 billion for the quarter. Institutional transaction revenue notably grew by 113% from the previous quarter to $85 million. Coinbase’s consumer-facing business remained its primary revenue stream, generating $935.2 million from consumer transactions. The company also reported growth in user numbers alongside revenues collected from its subscription service.

Looking ahead, Coinbase anticipates continued growth, stating that it generated over $300 million of total transaction revenue in April, with expectations for Q2 subscription and services revenue to fall within a range of $525-$600 million.

Despite surging nearly 9% in regular trading, Coinbase shares dipped about 3% in after-hours trading to $222 as of 4:32 p.m. ET. Nonetheless, Coinbase shares have seen a remarkable increase of nearly 50% over the past year.

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