Bitcoin&#8217;s dominance is increasing, even as the crypto markets rise, points out Binance Research.

Bitcoin dominance hits 4-year high as altcoins lose steam: Binance Report

Crypto analyst Tolimanu has used the Elliott Wave Theory to provide insights 
into where Bitcoin currently is in this market cycle. Based on his analysis, 
the bull run is not yet over, with the flagship crypto set to reach new highs. 
Elliot Wave Theory Shows Bitcoin’s Current Position In This Cycle In an X 
post, Tolimanu noted that in Elliot Wave Theory, a 5-wave move up typically 
marks a primary trend, and an ‘ABC’ correction is a natural retracement of 
that trend. Based on this, he stated that unless this Bitcoin correction 
breaks major long-term support levels, such a decline would typically set up 
the next higher-degree bullish phase. Related Reading: LMACD Indicator Reveals 
Where The Bitcoin Price Is After Rejection From $97,000 On the bearish side, 
his accompanying chart showed that Bitcoin could still correct to as low as 
$73,969 on wave C of the ABC correction. However, as the analyst suggested, a 
hold above this support level could send BTC to new highs. Technical expert 
Tony Severino also recently warned that the Bitcoin price is in a precarious 
position. Despite the recent surge, he suggested that BTC is still in a 
bearish position. The expert remarked that if the daily momentum crosses 
bearish, it could prevent the weekly bullish crossover and pull the weekly 
LMACD below zero. In another post, Severino noted that Bitcoin’s daily RSI 
failed to get above 70, which is a key trigger required for a bullish impulse. 
He remarked that failure at 70 the last time led to the most vicious leg down 
of the last bear market. He added that the entire bear market remained below 
70. The technical expert also noted that in 2023, the two local tops did make 
it above 70, but it wasn’t convincing enough, while in 2024, the entire 
corrective phase stayed below 70 on the RSI. Basically, Severino highlighted 
the importance of 70 on the RSI and how BTC is still in a bearish position. 
BTC Looking To Fill CME Gaps Below And Above Crypto analyst Titan of Crypto 
revealed that Bitcoin is looking to CME futures gaps below and above its 
current price. The upside gap is between $96,480 and $97,300, while the 
downside gap is between $91,990 and $93,400. In another post, the analyst 
suggested that BTC might fill the downside gap before moving to the upside 
targets. Related Reading: Bitcoin Price Confirmed Local Bottom As All 
Indicators Flash Bullish, Where’s Price Headed? This came as he noted that the 
next key support for Bitcoin is the daily Fair Value Gap, which is around 
$90,000. The analyst added that a bounce from that zone is likely. His 
accompanying chart showed that the target on this bounce is $102,096. At the 
time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $94,300, down in the 
last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from 
Unsplash, chart from Tradingview.com

Elliot Wave Theory Shows Where Bitcoin Is In This Cycle – Bull Rally Over?

A group of crypto traders reportedly purchased millions of dollars worth of 
Melania Trump&#8217;s memecoins minutes before she announced the launch on social 
media.
According to a May 6 Financial Times report, the crypto traders earned roughly 
$100 million from buying $2.6 million worth of MELANIA tokens before the 
public launch on Jan. 19. Shortly after Trump announced the memecoin launch on 
social media, the price surged from roughly $2.00 to $12.95 &#8212; a 550% 
increase. The traders reportedly sold their holdings within 12 hours.
&#8220;In total, the 24 accounts bought up 16.7mn of the 200mn total $MELANIA tokens 
scheduled for sale during the launch period,&#8221; the Financial Times reported. 
&#8220;[&#8230;] the run of sales that started pre-launch continued. About $900,000 
worth of tokens bought by an additional 22 accounts in the 42 seconds after 
the launch.&#8221;
_Price of MELANIA token from Jan. 19 to Jan. 28. Source:__CoinMarketCap_
The memecoin started trading roughly two days after then-president-elect 
Donald Trump announced the launch of his own TRUMP coin. Both tokens have come 
under scrutiny from lawmakers, alleging conflicts of interest and corruption 
due to the potential for bribery and foreign influence.
## Memecoin dinner prompts call for impeachment
Much of the scrutiny and criticism from US lawmakers over the memecoins seems 
to be directed at the president rather than the first lady. After Trump 
announced some of the top TRUMP tokenholders would be offeried the chance to 
get access to him at a private dinner and tour, one senator called for his 
impeachment.
_**Related:**__**Dem lawmakers object to hearing, citing &#8216;Trump&#8217;s crypto 
corruption**_ _**&#8217;**_
Both the prices of the MELANIA and TRUMP tokens have dropped significantly 
since shortly after their launch in January, with the First Lady&#8217;s memecoin 
falling to $0.31 at the time of publication. The TRUMP token price briefly 
surged after the memecoin dinner announcement in April, but had dropped to 
$10.90 as of May 6.
Two companies connected to the president control roughly 80% of the TRUMP 
supply, though many of the tokens were locked and will be released over the 
next three years. Critics have suggested that the project&#8217;s insiders could 
still rug-pull investors.
_**Magazine:**__**Trump &#8216;s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider 
trading questions**_

FT report suggests advance knowledge of Melania Trump memecoin launch

The Kenyan High Court has ordered Sam Altman&#8217;s World to cease processing, 
collecting or dealing in biometric data without conducting a Data Protection 
Impact Assessment. The order also requires Worldcoin to permanently delete 
biometric data collected in Kenya without proper assessments within seven 
days. Worldcoin Activities in Contravention of Data Protection Laws The Kenyan 
High […]

Sam Altman’s World Ordered to Stop Biometric Data Collection in Kenya

**Key Takeaways:**
 * The Fed may pause rates but inject liquidity. Crypto could rally as a recession hedge.
 * The weak US dollar and gold rally signal a shift to scarce assets.
The US Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) interest rate decision on 
May 7 will be a defining moment for risk-on assets, including 
cryptocurrencies. While the consensus points to no change in interest rates, 
Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoins could see gains if the US Treasury is compelled to 
inject liquidity to stave off an economic recession.
A more accommodative monetary policy could stimulate activity, but the Federal 
Reserve (Fed) is also contending with a weakening US dollar. Some analysts 
argue that a US interest rate cut may fail to stimulate growth as recession 
risks persist, potentially creating an ideal environment for alternative hedge 
assets such as cryptocurrencies.
_Source:__Jim Paulsen_
Economist and investor Jim Paulsen notes that when Fed funds trade above a 
&#8220;neutral&#8221; interest rate (Fed Funds minus the annual core Personal Consumption 
Expenditures Index), the economy has historically moved toward recession or a 
&#8220;growth recession,&#8221; a period of sluggish growth with rising unemployment and 
weak consumer demand. Similar patterns since 1971 support this analysis.
According to Paulsen, the Fed will likely be compelled to lower interest 
rates. Moreover, central bank Chair Jerome Powell is under significant 
pressure from US President Donald Trump, who has criticized the Fed for not 
reducing the cost of capital quickly enough.
## Reasons why the Fed could start easing
Concerns about overheated markets remain as the US consumer inflation exceeds 
the 2% target, and April unemployment rates of 4.2% suggest no signs of 
economic weakness.
_FOMC rates estimate for the Sept. 17 decision. Source:__CME FedWatch_
Market expectations, as reflected in Treasury yield futures, show a 76% chance 
of interest rates at 4.0% or lower by Sept. 17. This probability has dropped 
considerably from 90% on April 29, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Traders are growing less confident that the Fed will ease monetary policy. 
While this may initially seem bearish for risk assets, it could prompt the 
Treasury to inject liquidity into markets to support government spending.
Regardless of the FOMC&#8217;s decision, some analysts point out that the Fed&#8217;s 
recent $20.5 billion Treasury bond purchase on May 5 signals renewed 
intervention. Additional liquidity has historically been bullish for 
cryptocurrencies, especially as the US dollar lags behind other major global 
currencies. Consequently, investors are increasingly seeking alternative 
hedges rather than holding cash.
_**Related:**__**Bitcoin price rallied 1,550% the last time the &#8216;BTC risk-off&#8217; 
metric fell this low**_
 _DXY US Dollar Index (left, green) vs. Bitcoin/USD (orange). Source: 
TradingView / Cointelegraph_
The US Dollar Index (DXY) has dropped below 100 for the first time since July 
2023, as investors retreat from US markets amid economic uncertainty. 
Meanwhile, gold has risen over 12% in the past 30 days and is now trading just 
2% below its all-time high of $3,500. Declining confidence in the US 
Treasury&#8217;s ability to finance its debt favors scarce assets such as Bitcoin.
While the probability of multiple rate cuts has diminished, this scenario may 
still be favorable for cryptocurrencies. Should the Fed be pressured to expand 
its balance sheet, it would likely fuel inflation and erode the value of 
fixed-income investment factors that ultimately support cryptocurrencies.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and 
should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and 
opinions expressed here are the author&#8217;s alone and do not necessarily reflect 
or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

Bitcoin could rally regardless of what the Federal Reserve FOMC decides this week: Here’s why

21Shares has launched an exchange traded product (ETP) in Europe, providing 
investors with exposure to Crypto.com&#8217;s Cronos token, the asset manager said.
The ETP is listed on Euronext&#8217;s Paris and Amsterdam exchanges, 21Shares said 
in a May 6 announcement.
Cronos (CRO) is a layer-1 blockchain network affiliated with Crypto.com, a 
centralized exchange.
The chain is designed to integrate with the Ethereum and Cosmos ecosystems and 
support &#8220;decentralised finance (DeFi), NFTs, and Web3 applications,&#8221; 21Shares 
said.
The ETP aims to provide investors with a &#8220;straightforward way to integrate CRO 
into their portfolios through traditional banks and brokers, eliminating the 
need to directly handle digital wallets or exchanges,&#8221; 21Shares said.
_The CRO token &#8216;s historical performance. Source: __CoinMarketCap_
&#8220;By launching a Cronos ETP, we are offering investors […] regulated exposure 
to a blockchain ecosystem that is driving real-world adoption,&#8221; Mandy Chiu, 
21Shares&#8217; head of financial products development, said in a statement.
_**Related:**__**Standard Chartered sees BNB more than doubling in 2025**_
The CRO token has a market capitalization of approximately $2.3 billion and a 
fully diluted value (FDV) of nearly $8.7 billion, according to data from 
CoinMarketCap.
Cronos has a total value locked (TVL) of approximately $400 million, according 
to data from DeFiLlama.
Its DeFi ecosystem includes Crypto.com&#8217;s liquid Ether staking token, 
Crypto.com Staked ETH, which has nearly $64 million in TVL, the data shows.
_Cronos &#8216; TVL. Source: __DeFiLlama_
## Altcoin ETFs abound
On May 5, asset manager VanEck filed to list an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in 
the US tied to yet another exchange-affiliated token.
The VanEck BNB ETF is the first proposed ETF in the US holding BNB Chain&#8217;s 
native token, BNB. The chain is affiliated with Binance, the world&#8217;s largest 
centralized exchange.
In the US, 21Shares has proposed ETFs holding cryptocurrencies including 
Dogecoin (DOGE), Polkadot (DOT), and Solana (SOL).
Asset managers are seeking the US Securities and Exchange Commission&#8217;s (SEC) 
permission to list upward of 70 cryptocurrency ETFs.
The wave of filings has come as a result of US President Donald Trump 
softening the SEC&#8217;s regulatory posture toward crypto after taking office in 
January.
_**Magazine: **__**Solana &#8216;will be a trillion-dollar asset&#8217;: Mert Mumtaz, X 
Hall of Flame**_