Infinex’s non-fungible token (NFT) collection, Patrons, has made waves in the digital asset landscape, amassing an impressive $67.7 million in total investments just six weeks post-launch. This remarkable achievement comes despite a notable downturn in the wider NFT market, signaling a potential shift in investor sentiment and the resilience of select projects.
Backed By Industry Titans
The Patrons collection’s success is bolstered by significant backing from high-profile investors, including the Founders Fund, co-founded by billionaire and former PayPal CEO Peter Thiel. Their support underscores the project’s credibility and future potential. Infinex announced on October 28 that users can now withdraw their unlocked Patrons NFTs, enabling trading on popular NFT marketplaces like OpenSea. With a floor price starting at 1.22 ETH (approximately $3,086), the collection offers an enticing entry point for investors looking to capitalize on a vibrant digital art market.
Navigating a Bear Market
Despite the overall NFT market’s struggles, Infinex’s Patrons collection has demonstrated remarkable performance. The platform recorded $40 million in sales within the first four days of launching, showcasing strong demand in a challenging environment. This surge contrasts sharply with the broader market trends, where many leading collections are experiencing significant declines.
For instance, CryptoPunks, the largest Ethereum-native NFT collection, is currently trading at a floor price of 26 ETH, worth around $65,000. This represents a staggering 76% drop from its peak valuation of 113 ETH (approximately $285,000) in October 2021. Similarly, the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), the second-largest collection, has seen its floor price plummet over 91%, currently standing at just 11.5 ETH (around $29,000), down from a peak of 128 ETH.
The State of the NFT Market
The NFT market is in a state of flux, with total sales volume on Ethereum falling 34% over the past 30 days to $119.8 million. This decline has made Ethereum the largest blockchain for NFT sales, followed by Bitcoin with $67 million, according to CryptoSlam data. The contrasting performance of Infinex’s Patrons collection raises questions about the factors driving investor interest in specific projects amidst widespread market challenges.
Infinex aims to lead the charge into what it terms the “post-CEX era,” offering a non-custodial platform that provides easy access to on-chain protocols and decentralized applications (DApps). As more investors look for innovative solutions within the blockchain space, Infinex’s approach could position it favorably as the NFT market evolves.
With the launch of the Patrons collection, Infinex not only demonstrates resilience amid a bearish market but also hints at the potential for future growth in the NFT space. As more investors flock to projects with solid backing and clear utility, the landscape may witness a revival, suggesting that opportunities still abound in the world of digital assets.
In conclusion, Infinex’s Patrons NFT collection stands as a beacon of hope in a challenging environment, reflecting a possible shift towards more sustainable investment strategies within the NFT ecosystem. As the platform continues to innovate, it may well set the stage for the next wave of success stories in the NFT domain.
April 5, 2025, marks what would be the 50th birthday of Satoshi Nakamoto—the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. This alleged birthday is based on the date listed in his P2P Foundation profile.
While Nakamoto’s true identity remains unconfirmed, his legacy continues to shape the digital financial landscape. Here are five facts about the elusive Bitcoin architect:
April 5 Wasn’t Random
Nakamoto listed April 5, 1975, as his birthday—exactly 42 years after the US government banned private gold ownership under Executive Order 6102 on April 5, 1933, to stabilize the dollar.
Satoshi’s wallet, believed to hold 1.096 million BTC, has remained untouched since early 2010. Over the past decade, its value has risen more than 333-fold, now exceeding $91 billion.
Despite the wallet’s inactivity, CoinJoin transactions are regularly sent to its address. Some view this as an act of homage or a method of obfuscation.
Embedded in Bitcoin’s first block is the headline: “The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks.” The line is from a UK newspaper.
It is seen as a critique of centralized monetary policy and remains one of Nakamoto’s only public statements beyond technical documentation.
Fifteen years after its launch, Bitcoin remains secure and deflationary by design. Nakamoto’s codebase, while modified and improved by the open-source community, still forms the foundation of the network, securing over $1.6 trillion in value.
The Cardano community has approved a major development proposal, allocating over 96 million ADA—worth approximately $70 million—to Input Output Engineering (IOE), the blockchain network’s development team.
The decision, announced on August 2, followed a community vote in which nearly 74% supported the funding request.
Significant Funding to Support Cardano Development
According to the firm, the funding will power IOE’s protocol roadmap, which targets scalability improvements, better developer tools, and enhanced cross-chain capabilities.
The planned initiatives include upgrades to Ouroboros Leios, Hydra for scalability, Mithril enhancements, Nested Transactions, and Project Acropolis.
Collectively, these efforts aim to make Cardano more responsive, efficient, and accessible for users and builders alike.
How the Cardano Community Voted for Input Output’s Funding. Source: ADASTAT
Ricky Rand, the General Manager at IOE, hailed the approval as a strong vote of confidence in Cardano’s long-term potential.
However, he acknowledged that delivering the planned upgrades with integrity, transparency, and alignment with community goals is the real challenge.
“This is a vote of confidence in Cardano’s future – and a model for how decentralized funding and delivery can work at scale. The real work begins now – delivering with integrity, reporting with transparency, and building with and for the community,” Rand stated.
Meanwhile, the approved grant will not be provided all at once. Instead, the funds will be distributed in stages, tied to measurable milestones.
The firm also stated that Cardano-based smart contracts and an oversight committee will monitor progress and verify that the funds are spent appropriately.
Separately, the IOE has committed to releasing monthly development updates, engineering timesheets, and quarterly budget reports.
The updates aim to keep the Cardano community informed throughout the build cycle and ensure transparency in the use of treasury funds.
Other Projects Seeking Cardano Treasury Funding
Following IOE’s funding approval, Tim Harrison, EVP of Community & Ecosystem at Input Output, pointed out that many valuable projects within the Cardano ecosystem still need support.
“There are still a host of worthy projects looking to get across the line, with your support. So DReps – please keep voting,” Harrison stated
One such project is Snek, a Cardano-based memecoin. It has submitted a proposal seeking 5 million ADA to support listing efforts on top-tier exchanges and trading platforms like Hyperliquid.
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinsonresponded to the request by suggesting that structuring it as a bond would be more sustainable. In this case, he noted that the treasury should receive the ADA repayments over three years.
Nevertheless, he reaffirmed his support for ecosystem projects but stated that treasury funds should not subsidize listing fees, even for prominent ventures like Midnight.
Ethereum reached a notable milestone earlier this month when the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved options trading for several spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The move is expected to increase liquidity, attract interest from institutional investors, and solidify Ethereum’s position as a major cryptocurrency.
Yet Ethereum’s smaller market cap relative to Bitcoin means it is also vulnerable to gamma squeezes, thereby increasing investor risks. BeInCrypto consulted an expert in derivatives trading and representatives from FalconX, BingX, Komodo Platform, and Gravity to analyze the potential impact of this new characteristic.
This week marked the official debut of options trading for spot Ethereum ETFs in the United States. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) was the first to list options, with trading commencing on the Nasdaq ISE.
Shortly after, a broader availability of options followed, including those for the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) and the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH), as well as the Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW), all of which began trading on the Cboe BZX exchange.
This move allows a wider range of investors, beyond crypto traders, to benefit from hedging and speculation opportunities on Ethereum’s price through options on familiar investment vehicles like ETFs without direct ownership.
The timing of this news is particularly positive, as Ethereum has been losing some ground in the market lately.
Options Trading to Bolster Ethereum’s Market Position
A significant decline in market confidence surrounded Ethereum this week, with BeInCrypto reporting its price had plummeted to its lowest point since March 2023. This drop coincided with a broader market downturn, worsened by Donald Trump’s Liberation Day.
Meanwhile, large Ethereum holders are increasingly selling off substantial amounts, putting downward pressure on their prices. Ethereum’s value has fallen sharply by 51.3% since the beginning of 2025, and investor confidence has waned, as evidenced by a decrease in addresses holding at least $1 million in ETH.
Holders with at least $1 million worth of ETH. Source: Glassnode.
With options trading now accessible to more traders, experts anticipate that Ethereum’s market position will improve.
“ETH’s been leaking dominance, stuck sub-17%. Options give it institutional gravity. It becomes more programmable for fund strategies. More tools mean more use cases, which then in turn means more capital sticking around,” Martins Benkitis, CEO and Co-Founder of Gravity Team, predicted.
This newfound accessibility of options trading will create additional opportunities for investors and the broader Ethereum ecosystem.
Greater Investor Access and Liquidity
The SEC’s approval of Ethereum ETFs in July 2024 was significant because it allowed traditional investors to enter the crypto market without directly holding the assets. Now, with options trading also available, these benefits are expected to be even greater.
The Ethereum ETF market will naturally become more liquid with increased participation through options trading.
High Trading Volumes and Hedging Demands
The SEC’s fresh approval of options trading for Ethereum ETF investors suggests that the market will likely initially experience a high trading volume. As a result, market makers must be prepared.
An increase in call options will require institutional market makers to hedge by buying more Ethereum to meet demand.
Ethereum will also secure a unique advantage, particularly in institutional trading, enhancing its perceived quality and driving optimism among key market participants.
“ETH just got a serious institutional tailwind. With options now in play, Ether is stepping closer to BTC in terms of tradable instruments. This levels up ETH’s legitimacy and utility in hedging strategies, narrowing the gap on Bitcoin’s dominance narrative,” Benkitis told BeInCrypto.
Yet, rapid surges in options trading could also have unintended consequences on Ethereum’s price, especially in the short run.
Will Investors Suffer a Gamma Squeeze?
As market makers rush to acquire more of the underlying asset in case of a higher volume of options calls, Ethereum’s price will naturally increase. This situation could lead to a pronounced gamma squeeze.
When market makers hedge their positions in this scenario, the resulting buying pressure would create a positive feedback loop. Retail investors will feel more inclined to join in, hoping to profit from Ethereum’s rising price.
The implications of this scenario are especially pronounced for Ethereum, considering its market capitalization is notably smaller than that of Bitcoin.
Retail traders’ aggressive buying of ETHA call options could compel market makers to hedge by acquiring the underlying ETHA shares, potentially leading to a more pronounced effect on the price of ETHA and, by extension, Ethereum.
“We believe option sellers will generally dominate in the long-run but in short bursts we could see retail momentum traders become massive buyers of ETHA calls and create gamma squeeze effects, similar to what we’ve seen on meme coin stocks like GME. ETH will be easier to squeeze than BTC given it is only $190 billion market cap vs BTC’s $1.65 trillion,” Joshua Lim, Global Co-head of Markets at FalconX, told BeInCrypto.
Arbitrage involves exploiting price differences for the same or nearly identical assets across different markets or forms. This is done by buying in the cheaper market and selling in the more expensive one.
According to Grant, traders will increasingly look for and exploit these price differences as the market for ETH options on different platforms develops.
While arbitrage activity is expected to refine pricing and liquidity within the Ethereum options market, the asset continues to operate under the shadow of Bitcoin’s established market leadership.
Will Landmark Options Approval Help Ethereum Close the Gap on Bitcoin?
Though Ethereum achieved a major landmark this week, it faces competition from a major rival: Bitcoin.
In late fall of 2024, options trading started on BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), becoming the first US spot Bitcoin ETF to offer options. Though not even a year has passed since the original launch, options trading on Bitcoin ETFs experienced strong trading volumes from retail and institutional investors.
According to Kadan Stadelmann, Chief Technology Officer of Komodo Platform, options trading for Ethereum ETFs will be comparatively underwhelming. Bitcoin will still be the cryptocurrency of choice for investors.
“Compared to Bitcoin’s Spot ETF, Ethereum’s ETF has not seen such stalwart demand. While options trading adds institutional capital, Bitcoin remains crypto’s first mover and enjoys a greater overall market cap. It is not going anywhere. It will remain the dominant crypto asset for institutional portfolios,” Stadelmann told BeInCrypto.
Consequently, his outlook does not include Ethereum’s market position surpassing Bitcoin’s in the immediate term.
“The once-promised flippening of Bitcoin’s market capitalization by Ethereum remains unlikely. Conservative and more-monied investors likely prefer Bitcoin due to its perceived safety compared to other crypto assets, including Ethereum. Ethereum, in order to achieve Bitcoin’s prominence, must depend on growing utility in DeFi and stablecoin markets,” he concluded.
While that may be the case, options trading doesn’t harm Ethereum’s prospects; it only strengthens them.
Can Ethereum’s Options Trading Era Capitalize on Opportunities?
Ethereum is now the second cryptocurrency with SEC approval for options trading on its ETFs. This single move will further legitimize digital assets for institutions, increasing their presence in traditional markets and boosting overall visibility.
Despite recent significant blows to Ethereum’s market position, this news is a positive development. Although it might not be sufficient to surpass its primary competitor, it represents a step in the right direction.
As investors get used to this new opportunity, their participation level will reveal how beneficial it will be for Ethereum.
