While Bitcoin held its ground above $95,000, the altcoin market wasn’t so lucky. Solana, XRP, and Dogecoin took a beating this week as the broader crypto market entered a downturn. Total market cap dropped 3% overall, with alts bearing the brunt of the sell-off. Guess not all cryptocurrencies are created equal after all. The current market volatility reflects typical patterns seen in the Fear and Greed Index during major sell-offs.
Solana’s SOL token plummeted 5.31% to $168.72, with a staggering $50 billion wiped from its market cap in just 30 days. Yikes. An impending $2 billion token release event isn’t helping matters, with traders giving SOL only a 10% chance of climbing above $280 by quarter end. The odds of falling below $170? A much more likely 20%. Not exactly confidence-inspiring.
XRP didn’t fare much better, dropping 2.97% despite hitting a two-week high of $2.83 on February 15. It’s now testing support at $2.6, with active addresses declining and funding rates staying negative for three consecutive weeks. Both tokens were issued on the Solana blockchain. The trend isn’t exactly screaming “buy me.”
Dogecoin investors got a rude awakening too. DOGE crashed 5.5% to $0.2494, confirming a bearish flag pattern that’s been developing since February 16. Even a strategic partnership couldn’t save the memecoin from testing support at $0.26. The new five-year partnership was supposed to enhance Dogecoin’s adoption across multiple platforms but failed to offset current market pressures. With an MVRV ratio at 15%, further downside looks likely. Man’s best friend? Not for investors this week.
Macroeconomic factors are piling on the pressure. Trump’s proposed tariffs, the Fed’s quantitative tightening, and stubbornly high interest rates have investors spooked. Add recent security concerns after the Bybit hack, and it’s no wonder the crypto market is jittery.
Meanwhile, controversy swirls around LIBRA and MELANIA tokens, with $100 million mysteriously withdrawn from associated wallets. Confidence in Solana is waning, and the Crypto Fear & Greed Index sits at neutral.
For now, Bitcoin stands alone while alts take a beating. Some “digital gold rush” this turned out to be.
