WOOFi, a leading decentralized exchange platform owned by Woo Network, has announced its strategic shift from the NEAR Protocol to Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible networks. This transition is aimed at the development of its version 2.0 omnichain DEX.
WOOFi’s decision to transition was unveiled at TOKEN 2049. Jack Tan, WOO’s Founder and CEO, emphasized that this move is indicative of a more robust offering in both centralized finance (CeFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) sectors. Tan envisions a seamless integration between the two crypto exchange realms in the upcoming bull run. WOOFi’s objective is to amalgamate major chains, centralize liquidity, and foster a cooperative ecosystem. This will enable WOOFi Pro users to trade across their preferred applications and blockchain networks. For instance, a trader on Arbitrum can execute trades against counterparts on chains like Polygon or Optimism without exiting Arbitrum.
WOOFi Pro’s design leverages the platform’s extensive experience in developing trading products. It promises a mobile-friendly interface, allowing traders to conduct transactions seamlessly. WOO X, WOOFi’s centralized exchange counterpart, boasts a daily trading volume ranging between $150 million to $500 million. It has been at the forefront of several industry innovations, including the introduction of a live transparency dashboard. This initiative is geared towards preserving the trust of its expanding community of professional traders. One of the standout features of WOOFi Pro is its gasless orderbook trading, which eradicates transaction fees. This not only enhances accessibility for users but also negates the requirement for Know Your Customer (KYC) verification. Furthermore, users maintain complete autonomy over their funds, eliminating dependence on external custodians.
Another noteworthy integration is with Orderly Network’s institutional-grade order books. This ensures that users have consistent access to a substantial liquidity pool. Orderly Network, a decentralized liquidity network, has garnered support from notable backers such as Pantera, Dragonfly Capital, and Sequoia Capital China.
Tan highlighted the synergy between WOO X and WOOFi, stating, “The combination of WOO X and WOOFi provides users with a fully-featured off-chain or on-chain orderbook trading system.” He further observed an uptick in traders seeking both traditional and cryptocurrency trading avenues. This trend has been particularly evident in the recent cycle, with a pronounced inclination towards Real World Assets (RWAs).
WOOFi Pro is set to debut with 10 crypto trading pairs in its October mainnet launch. However, there are plans to diversify its asset offerings, potentially including cryptocurrencies, stocks, commodities, and forex. To date, WOOFi has successfully facilitated over 2.9 million cross-chain swaps. With the platform’s user-friendly interface, it is anticipated that this number will surge as users can effortlessly navigate the ecosystem and diversify their asset portfolio with a single click.
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NEAR Protocol has expanded its gaming ecosystem by partnering with Vortex Gaming, a Web3 subsidiary of INVEN, Korea’s largest game media and community. This collaboration aims to attract more users and companies to the NEAR ecosystem while strengthening the NEAR game ecosystem. INVEN, with a monthly active user count of 7.2 million, brings valuable expertise and content to the partnership.
In addition to onboarding Vortex Gaming’s content onto NEAR Protocol, the NEAR Foundation and INVEN plan to support the growth of Vortex Gaming and enhance brand awareness through active collaboration, including offline hackathons and events to foster developer talent.
INVEN has been a leading company in the game industry for over 20 years, driving development as a top online game media platform. Vortex Gaming, a content-based game community optimized for Web3 games, aims to break stereotypes by offering specialized content, such as in-depth analysis of in-game economies. Leveraging their experience in building Web2 communities, Vortex Gaming plans to establish a strong user base by incorporating high-quality content and INVEN’s existing wide pool of users.
NEAR Protocol, a global Layer 1 blockchain, focuses on usability and scalability. It also serves as a Blockchain Operating System (BOS), allowing Web2 companies and developers to easily build decentralized apps and experiences for the open web. With features like FastAuth, NEAR Protocol reduces entry barriers in the Web3 gaming industry and works alongside Vortex Gaming to popularize the NEAR ecosystem.
The CEO of Vortex Gaming, Hoon Jai Lee, aims to build an integrated gamer community encompassing both Web3 and traditional Web2 gamers by providing high-quality content for both. This community-driven approach includes incentivizing gamers to create content such as character builds and game guides.
Marieke Flament, CEO of NEAR Foundation, expects the partnership with INVEN to further enhance NEAR’s sustainable game ecosystem, following the success of leading companies in the gaming industry. Scott Lee, Co-CEO of NEAR Korea, highlights the importance of community in maintaining content competitiveness and believes that onboarding Vortex Gaming will strengthen NEAR’s position as the optimal mainnet in the Web3 game ecosystem, accelerating its development.
The NEAR Foundation, an organization, supporting the NEAR blockchain, announced on Monday that it is winding down its stablecoin, popularly known as USN.
The foundation said it is shutting down the stablecoin after the token started exhibiting risky characteristics similar to those witnessed in the TerraUSD stablecoin that terribly crashed this year and lost investors’ funds worth over 30 billion dollars.
The Near Foundation said USN recently became undercollateralized, meaning there is insufficient collateral backing the stablecoin.
In April, NEAR protocol launched its USN stablecoin issued by the DAO Decentral Bank (DCB). However, Decentral Bank recently advised the Near Foundation that the stablecoin had become undercollateralized, a condition that is associated with algorithmic stablecoins, especially in “extreme market conditions.” DCB further disclosed that there was also double-minting of USN, a condition that contributed to the under-collateralization.
In a statement issued on Monday, Decentral Bank said it would shut down the USN project. “USN has faced many headwinds over the last few months with an increased regulatory focus and changes in market perception from recent high-profile incidents,” Decentral Bank stated.
Decentral Bank said due to such issues. They have taken the difficult decision to shut down the USN project in a responsible manner that ensures USN holders are protected. The NEAR Foundation said it is using $40 million to fund a “USN Protection Programme” to protect investors as the stablecoin winds down.
When NEAR Protocol’s USN stablecoin was launched first in April, it was an algorithmic stablecoin, but it was later changed to be backed by USDT tokens — the largest stablecoin in the crypto market. Despite the update, USN became “susceptible to under-collateralization during extreme market conditions,” which could put investors at risk, the NEAR Foundation explained.
While stablecoins are considered as the backbone of the crypto economy, regulators recently have launched increased scrutiny against trading of such tokens, mainly because of TerraUSD stablecoin’s fatal collapse in May. TerraUSD was an algorithmic stablecoin not backed by anything but rather relied on code to maintain its value. This code eventually failed – leading the stablecoin to lose its peg and crash.
Near Foundation, the Switzerland-based Non-Profit in charge of the Near Protocol has launched a new $100 million Web3.0 fund.
As announced by the firm, the new fund is being floated in partnership with Caerus Ventures, a new Venture Capital fund whose primary focus is hinged on creators, talents, and IP owners.
With a plan to strengthen new protocols with seed rounds that could be as high as $100 million, the Near Foundation said it would inject the largest chunk of this targeted fund with $50 million.
“Our cultural passions for live sport, film, or music have historically been leveraged to on-ramp billions of consumers to new technologies. The creators, talent, and franchises with reach and influence spearheaded that growth and will now drive the adoption of blockchain at scale. But this time, they and their fans will have greater access to the value created,” said Marieke Flament, CEO of the NEAR Foundation.
Near Protocol is a major blockchain network currently the 23rd largest digital currency by market capitalization. At $4.97 and a market cap of $3.88 billion, the NEAR coin has been tagged as one of the most resilient cryptocurrencies since the crypto onslaught started.
With the Near Foundation notably pushing the frontlines of the blockchain’s ecosystem, more relevance is now being attached to the protocol as a whole. While it is not immediately clear if the new Web3.0 fund spinoff will focus entirely on creators building on the Near Blockchain, the fund administrators said these and more modalities are yet to be finalized.
Earlier in April, the Near Protocol, for the second time, raised the sum of $350 million in funding from investors that was led by Tiger Global. The funding rounds were aimed at bolstering the Near ecosystem.
The decentralised money market protocol Bastion has announced its successful $9 million in Series A funding, led by the hedge fund manager, Three Arrow Capital.
This is coming a month after the Aurora-based Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocol closed a $2 million seed round. Although in both funding rounds, the protocol’s valuation remains undisclosed.
Several other prominent investors also participated in the round, including FTX Ventures, a leading blockchain investment firm – The Spartan Group, CMS holdings, and Crypto.com, amongst others.
The funding will be utilised to aggressively improve its business development, engineering, marketing, and product offerings. The firm currently operates with just five team members, and with the aid of the new liquidity, it will also enable the company to hire more talents while perfecting its partnerships. The greatest impact that will be seen as growth for Bastion is building new innovative features as well as expanding the Aurora Ecosystem. It also intends to form the liquidity foundation of Aurora, NEAR’s Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible layer.
Bastion’s Growth in the Ecosystem
Ever since the launch of Bastion by a pseudonymous founder, it has gained over $620 million in Total Value Locked (TVL), making it the biggest DeFi protocol on Aurora per data from DeFiLlama. It is ahead of other protocols sitting on the Aurora network, with over 40% of TVL on the Aurora chain.
The launch of its governance token BSTN, as unveiled by the startup, opened a new chapter for the firm as it introduced additional utility into its ecosystem. Token holders will be allowed to govern both the lending protocol and stable swap protocol. BSTN will also enable token holders to vote on proposals and shape the protocol’s future. Bastion also plans to gamify DeFi through the loyalty-based Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) it is building.
The funding of Bastion is one other move to showcase how unrelenting investors are in bootstrapping innovative protocols in the space. In a bid to power its ecosystem growth, Near Protocol also raised $350 million to back the growth of its ecosystem earlier this month.
For the second time this year, Near protocol, a layer-1 blockchain network, has pulled massive funds from investors cutting across the traditional finance and crypto industries.
According to Bloomberg, the platform pulled in $350 million, which is more than double what it raised ( $150 million) back in January.
“We are delighted to have such a fantastic list of backers supporting NEAR’s mission,” says Marieke Flament, NEAR Foundation’s CEO. “We are looking forward to leveraging the funding to improve access to blockchain technology in an ever-growing list of countries across the world.”
This latest funding round was led by Tiger Global, an investment firm that caters to more traditional tech and innovation startups. Other investors who participated in the round include Republic Capital, FTX Ventures, Hashed, and Dragonfly Capital. The massive capital injection Near protocol received has outlined how deep-rooted the platform’s solutions are projected to be integrated into the growing decentralized ecosystem.
Unlike this current funding round, the previous rounds were funded mostly by crypto native investors like Three Arrows Capital, Mechanism Capital, Dragonfly Capital, a16z, Jump, Alameda, Zee Prime, Folius, and Amber Group amongst others. Despite the diversity in its backers who may have different motives for investing in the protocol, Near has also been quite assertive about its goals, one of which is to fuel the decentralization of its growing ecosystem.
NEAR Protocol is a layer-one blockchain that was designed as a community-run cloud computing platform. That eliminates some of the limitations that have been bogging competing blockchains, such as low transaction speeds, low throughput, and poor interoperability. The protocol was designed to serve as one of the solutions to Ethereum and its congestion woes.
While the protocol has active communities in Europe, Africa, and Asia, it plans to extend into Latin America, Turkey, and India. Its goals are in tandem with other growing blockchain protocols like Avalanche and Binance Smart Chain (BSC), both of which have also launched dedicated funds to grow their ecosystem.
Bitcoin (BTC) surged above the $40,000 psychological resistance on Feb. 4 and successfully held the level over the weekend. This boosted the total crypto market capitalization from $1.78 trillion on Feb. 3 to about $2 trillion on Feb. 6, according to data from CoinGecko.
A new financial disclosure by Senator Ted Cruz shows that he bought the recent dip in Bitcoin on Jan. 25 through River brokerage. On that day, Bitcoin traded roughly between $35,700 and $37,600. If the Texas Senator has held his purchase, he is already in the profit.
Crypto market data daily view. Source:Coin360
Although the sharp recovery in Bitcoin’s price may have provided relief to the bulls, data analyst Material Scientist warned that large traders with a ticket size of over $100,000 are selling the rally.
Could Bitcoin hold or extend its gains? If that happens, could the altcoins join the party? Let’s study the charts of the top-5 cryptocurrencies that look ready to move to the upside in the short term.
BTC/USDT
Bitcoin soared and closed above the 20-day exponential moving average ($39,600) on Feb. 4, indicating that bulls are attempting a strong comeback. The small range day on Feb. 5 shows that traders who may have purchased at lower levels are in no hurry to book profits yet.
BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The relative strength index (RSI) has jumped into the positive territory indicating that the momentum favors the bulls. However, it is unlikely to be a straight dash higher for the BTC/USDT pair.
The bears are likely to mount a stiff resistance in the zone between the 50-day simple moving average ($42,860) and $44,500.
If the price turns down from the overhead zone but does not plummet below $39,600, it will suggest that the level has flipped to support. The bulls will then again try to push the pair above the zone. If they succeed, the next stop could be the 200-day SMA ($49,115).
BTC/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows an ascending triangle formation, which completed on a break and close above $39,320. This bullish setup has a pattern target at $45,722. The price is currently stuck in a tight range between $42,168 and $40,843.
A break and close above this range will signal the resumption of the uptrend. The pair could then climb to $44,500 where the rally may hit a barrier. On the contrary, if the price turns down and breaks below $40,800, the pair could plunge to the breakout level at $39,320.
ETH/USDT
Ether (ETH) surged above the 20-day EMA ($2,839) on Feb. 4 and has reached the resistance line of the descending channel. This level has acted as a strong resistance previously, hence the bears may again try to defend it with all their might.
ETH/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
If the price turns down from the zone between the resistance line and the 50-day SMA ($3,256), it will suggest that bears continue to sell at higher levels. The ETH/USDT pair could first drop to the 20-day EMA and then to $2,652.
If the price rebounds off this zone, it will indicate a change in sentiment from sell on rallies to buy on dips. The bulls will then make one more attempt to push the pair above the overhead zone. If that happens a trend change could be in order.
Alternatively, a break below $2,652 will suggest that the pair may continue to trade inside the channel for a few more days.
ETH/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows the price is rising inside an ascending channel pattern. The 20-EMA and the 50-SMA have turned up and the RSI is in the positive territory, indicating that bulls have the upper hand.
If bulls drive the price above the channel, the momentum could pick up further and the pair may rally to $3,400 where the bears are expected to mount a stiff resistance. Conversely, if the price breaks below the 20-EMA, the pair could plummet to the support line of the channel.
NEAR/USDT
NEAR protocol (NEAR) bounced off the psychological support zone at $10 to $9.50 and cleared the 20-day EMA ($12.58) hurdle on Feb. 4. The bears tried to pull the price back below the 20-day EMA on Feb. 5 but the bulls held their ground.
NEAR/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The up-move has resumed today and the bulls are trying to push the price above the 50-day SMA ($14). If they manage to do that, the NEAR/USDT pair could climb to the 50% Fibonacci retracement level at $15.05 and then to the 61.8% retracement level at $16.36. The bears are likely to mount a strong defense in this zone.
Conversely, if the price turns down from the current level, the bears will attempt to pull the pair below the 20-day EMA. If they manage to do that, it will suggest that bears continue to sell on rallies. The pair could then once again drop to $10.
NEAR/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows the formation of a symmetrical triangle which generally acts as a continuation pattern but in this case, has functioned as a reversal pattern.
Currently, the recovery is facing stiff resistance at the 200-SMA. If the price rebounds off the 20-EMA, it will suggest that bulls are accumulating on dips. That could improve the prospects of a break above 200-SMA. If that happens, the up-move could reach the pattern target of the setup at $16.36.
This positive view will invalidate in the short term if the price breaks below the 20-EMA. In such a case, the pair could drop and retest the breakout level from the triangle.
Related:Axie Infinity token AXS gains 40% after taking steps to avoid ‘permanent economic collapse’
MANA/USDT
Decentraland (MANA) broke above the 20-day EMA ($2.70) on Jan. 31 but turned down from the 50-day SMA ($2.93) on Feb. 1. The bears tried to pull the price back below the 20-day EMA but failed. This indicates that the 20-day EMA may have flipped into support.
MANA/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The up-move resumed and the bulls pushed the price above the 50-day SMA on Feb. 05. If bulls sustain the price above the 50-day SMA, the MANA/USDT pair could rise to the overhead resistance at $4.
Conversely, if the price turns down and breaks below the moving averages, it will indicate that bears are selling aggressively at higher levels. In that case, the pair could retest the strong support at the 200-day SMA ($2.03).
MANA/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows that both the 20-EMA and the 50-SMA are sloping up and the RSI is in the overbought zone. This indicates that bulls have the upper hand. Any dip from the current level is likely to find support at the moving averages.
On the upside, the buyers may face stiff resistance at $3.40 and later at $4. This positive view will be invalidated if the price turns down from the current level and breaks below the moving averages. The pair could then drop to $2.40.
LEO/USD
UNUS SED LEO (LEO) completed an ascending triangle pattern when it broke and closed above $3.92 on Feb. 1. The bears tried to pull the price back below the breakout level on Feb. 2 and Feb. 3 but the bulls did not relent.
LEO/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView
The buying resumed on Feb. 4 and the price soared to a new all-time high at $5.44. However, the long wick on the day’s candlestick shows profit-booking at higher levels. The pullback has pulled the RSI out of the deeply overbought zone.
Usually, the corrections in an uptrend are short-lived. The long tail on today’s candlestick suggests aggressive buying at lower levels. The bulls will now attempt to push the LEO/USD pair above $5.44. If they succeed, the pair could rally toward the pattern target at $5.81 and later to $6.
Alternatively, if bears pull the price below $4.50, the pair could correct to the 20-day EMA ($4.06).
LEO/USD 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows the pair is correcting in an uptrend. The bulls successfully defended the 20-EMA and are attempting to push the pair above the psychological level at $5. If they do that, the pair could retest the all-time high at $5.44.
Conversely, if the price turns down from the current level and breaks below the 20-EMA, it will indicate that traders are aggressively booking profits at higher levels. If the price slips below $4.38, the pair could drop to $4.20.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.
A top crypto analyst and trader is naming Solana (SOL), Chainlink (LINK) and three other altcoins as the digital assets to watch this month.
In a new video, pseudonymous trader Altcoin Sherpa says that he expects one more leg down for smart contract platform Solana to around $65 before it can ignite a relief rally to his target at $140.
“I would just like to see this area [$60-$70] get tapped several times and then form some sort of bottom and then probably come up, hit this high volume node again around $140 and then probably come back down.”
Another coin on the trader’s list is decentralized oracle network Chainlink, which he says looks bullish as it trades close to a key support area.
“You can probably just look to buy any dip for LINK. I think that it’s possible that we might see [a] return back lower as well down to $15 or so, somewhat like a double bottom in the lower timeframe charts. To me, this looks pretty strong given it’s at range lows, given its high sell volume, given that we’re seeing dips getting bought pretty quickly.”
Next up is blockchain-based game Axie Infinity (AXS). Altcoin Sherpa predicts a strong rally for Axie Infinity as the coin continues to respect support at $45.
“You can still hit like a 2x or something like that from $45 to $90 or some of these levels up [above $110]. It’s certainly possible that this comes.”
While Altcoin Sherpa is currently bullish on AXS, he does not expect the coin to print a new all-time high anytime soon.
The crypto analyst is also keeping an eye on Kyber Network Crystal (KNC), an Ethereum-based token used to pay fees on the Kyber Network. According to Altcoin Sherpa, KNC looks very strong right even amid the general bearish trend across the crypto markets.
“I would just consider buying any dip personally. Looking for resistance levels, I would look for around $2.40 or so.”
The last coin on the analyst’s radar is Near (NEAR), a developer-focused blockchain designed for scalability and stability. Altcoin Sherpa predicts one more move down for NEAR before rallying to his target at $14.
“It’s possible that we see maybe one last potential shakeout to $8 or so, and I do have bid there. But overall, this coin has held up pretty strong, and to me, this coin looks a little bit better than many other coins right now.”
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A crypto investor from Crypto Valley Venture Capital is reportedly keeping a close watch on a number of Ethereum (ETH) rivals showing potential for growth.
In a new Business Insider report, Olaf Hannemann, the founder and chief information officer of the blockchain-focused venture capital firm, says that beyond Bitcoin (BTC), there are a number of interesting projects in the arena of smart contract platforms as led by Ethereum.
“[A] fundamental view we have is favoring the protocols where people truly develop projects. Our view on Ethereum is generally positive. It’s still the go-to for many projects and I think there’s positive momentum still.”
In addition to Ethereum, the venture capitalist says he likes several of ETH’s competitors.
“There’s a lot of capital in Ethereum, but there is also Tezos and Cardano. We like Solana and Polkadot too.
There are projects looking at stacks, which offer applications built on top of Bitcoin. Avalanche is one to watch too and more recently we are looking at NEAR protocol.”
Tezos (XTZ) is a platform that enables developers to build smart contracts and decentralized applications for products and services. while Cardano (ADA) is a scalable decentralized blockchain platform.
Solana (SOL) is a layer-1 smart contract platform like Avalanche (AVAX) and Polkadot (DOT) is a cross-chain interoperability protocol. Meanwhile, Near Protocol (NEAR) is a developer-focused blockchain designed for scalability and stability
Looking at the broader future of cryptocurrencies, Hannemann foresees more mainstream money entering the markets but that won’t necessarily eliminate the volatility that has been a hallmark of the digital asset space since its inception a decade ago.
“There’s more and more established capital also coming in. It has different market dynamics to traditional established markets. Something which is both a challenge and an opportunity is that you are able to trade at extremely high-leverage positions. That will bring with it a very volatile market in the short term.”
When it comes to the ultimate winners and losers after the crypto space reaches maturity, the venture capitalist investor says,
“Our investment thesis is essentially that we believe that blockchain technology is a catalyst for a lot of other mega-trend technologies that are happening right now, like machine learning, internet of things, personalized healthcare and longevity.
I think long long-term, the jury is still out on whether will there be one or two endgame winner protocols, or whether it will be many different blockchains for different industries.
You get evangelists who truly believe one blockchain is better than the other but you know what, I may have the better protocol, but if I can’t convince startups to build on on my protocol, I’m going to lose out medium term.”
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Bitcoin (BTC) has stopped its decline and is attempting a recovery along with select altcoins. Some traders have been fearing a massive sell-off in Bitcoin but Capriole CEO Charles Edwards said that Bitcoin’s worst crashes have happened “due to miner capitulation (December 2018 and March 2020), when BTC fell below production costs.” However, the current production cost of Bitcoin was $34,000, which is well below the current price.
In a sign that institutional investors remain bullish on the crypto sector even after the recent fall, Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest bought 6.93 million shares of the special purchase acquisition company that will merge with Circle, the principal operator of USD Coin (USDC) and the second-largest stablecoin in terms of market capitalization.
Crypto market data daily view. Source:Coin360
Another sign that the crypto markets are maturing is the fact that nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have not responded negatively to the fall in crypto prices. A recent report by DappRadar said that NFT trading in the first ten days of 2022 generated $11.90 billion compared to $10.7 billion in Q3 2021.
Could Bitcoin continue its recovery and pull select altcoins higher? Let’s study the charts of the top-5 cryptocurrencies to find out.
BTC/USDT
The bulls are struggling to propel Bitcoin above the 20-day exponential moving average ($44,415) for the past few days but a minor positive is that buyers have not given up much ground. This suggests that bulls are buying on every minor dip.
BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
If buyers push and sustain the price above the 20-day EMA, it will signal a possible change in trend. The BTC/USDT pair could then rally to the 50-day simple moving average ($47,987) where the bears may again mount a stiff resistance. A break and close above this resistance could clear the path for a rally to $52,088.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price fails to rise above the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that the sentiment remains negative and traders are selling on rallies. The bears will then attempt to sink the price below the critical support at $39,600. If they succeed, the pair could extend its downtrend.
BTC/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The moving averages have flattened out and the relative strength index (RSI) is just above the midpoint on the 4-hour chart. This suggests a range-bound action in the short term. The pair could remain stuck between $39,600 and $45,456.
A break and close above $45,456 could tilt the advantage in favor of the bulls, signaling the start of a possible rally to $52,088. Alternatively, a break and close below $39,600 could indicate the resumption of the downtrend.
NEAR/USDT
NEAR Protocol’s NEAR token is in a strong uptrend. The price broke above the previous all-time high at $17.95 on Jan. 11, signaling the resumption of the up-move. The bears pulled the price back below $17.95 on Jan. 12 but the bulls bought this dip and reclaimed the level on Jan. 13.
NEAR/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
Both moving averages are sloping up and the RSI is in the positive territory, indicating that the path of least resistance is to the upside. If bulls do not allow the price to dip below the breakout level at $17.95, the NEAR/USDT pair could rally to $25.44.
Alternatively, if bears pull the price below $17.95, the pair could drop to the 20-day EMA ($16.42). A bounce off this level could keep the uptrend intact but a break and close below it will suggest that traders are rushing to the exit. The pair could then decline to $13.
NEAR/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows that the price has been taking support at the 20-EMA. The upsloping moving averages and the RSI in the positive territory indicate that the short-term trend favors the buyers.
If bulls propel the price above $20.59, the uptrend could begin. The pair could then rise to $22 and later to $25.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price drops below the 20-EMA, it will indicate that short-term traders may be booking profits. The pair could then drop to the 50-SMA. A break and close below this support will indicate the start of a deeper correction.
ATOM/USDT
Cosmos (ATOM) is attempting to form an inverse head and shoulders pattern, which will complete on a breakout and close above the overhead resistance at $44.80.
ATOM/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The rising moving averages and the RSI in the overbought territory indicate that the path of least resistance is to the upside. A close above $44.80 could open the gates for a rally to the psychological level at $50 and then toward the pattern target at $69.42.
Alternatively, if the price turns down from the overhead resistance, the ATOM/USDT pair could drop to the 20-day EMA ($36). This is a key level for the bulls to defend. If the price rebounds off this level, the bulls will again attempt to drive the pair above the overhead resistance and resume the uptrend.
A break and close below the 20-day EMA will be the first sign that the up-move could be losing steam. The pair could then drop to $32.90.
ATOM/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows that the price has broken out of the symmetrical triangle pattern, indicating that the uncertainty has resolved in favor of the buyers. The bears may attempt to defend the overhead resistance at $44.80 but if they fail, the pair could rally to the pattern target at $51.19.
Alternatively, if the bears successfully defend the resistance at $44.80, the pair could drop to the 20-EMA. If the price rebounds off this support, the bulls will again try to clear the overhead hurdle. This positive view will be negated on a break and close below the 50-SMA.
Related:Dogecoin leaps 25% after Musk announces DOGE payments for Tesla merch
FTM/USDT
Fantom (FTM) is in a strong uptrend. The price action of the past few days has formed an inverse (IH&S) which will complete on a break and close above $3.17.
FTM/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The bears may attempt to stall the rally at $3.48 but if bulls push the price above this level, the next leg of the uptrend could begin. The up-move could first reach $4 and later continue its journey toward the pattern target at $5.11.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the overhead resistance, the bears will attempt to pull the FTM/USDT pair to the 20-day EMA ($2.62). If the price turns up from this level, it will suggest that the sentiment remains positive and traders are buying the dips.
However, a break and close below this support will signal the start of a deeper correction to the 50-day SMA ($2.07).
FTM/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The bears attempted to stall the up-move at $3.17 but the bulls had other plans. They bought the dip to the 20-EMA and have pushed the price above the overhead barrier. If bulls sustain the price above the breakout level, it will signal the resumption of the uptrend.
On the other hand, if bears pull the price below $3.17, the pair could drop to the 20-EMA. This is an important level to watch out for because a break and close below it could indicate that the current breakout may have been a bull trap. The pair could then drop to $2.80 and later to the 50-SMA.
FTT/USDT
FTX Token (FTT) has been in a strong corrective phase for the past several weeks. The bulls pushed the price above the downtrend line on Jan. 14, signaling a possible change in trend.
FTT/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The moving averages are on the verge of a bullish crossover and the RSI has risen above 64 after forming a positive divergence. This suggests that bulls are attempting a comeback. If the price sustains above the downtrend line, the FTT/USDT pair could rise to $53.50.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the current level and breaks below the moving averages, it will suggest that the breakout was a bull trap. That could pull the price down to $33.76. A break and close below this support could open the doors for a possible drop to $24.
FTT/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The 4-hour chart shows the formation of a falling wedge pattern. The buyers pushed the price above this pattern and have also cleared the horizontal resistance at $45.07.
Both moving averages are sloping up and the RSI is in the overbought zone, indicating that bulls have the upper hand. If bulls maintain the price above $45.07, the pair could start its march toward the psychological resistance at $50.
This positive view will invalidate if the price turns down and re-enters the wedge. Such a move will indicate that demand dries up at higher levels.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.
