The crypto world woke up to big news today as XRP officially became part of the SEC-approved Grayscale Digital Large Cap ETF. This move means, for the first time in nearly five years of legal battles between the SEC and Ripple, everyday investors in the U.S. can now gain exposure to XRP through a regulated investment product on the New York Stock Exchange.
The Grayscale ETF includes multiple major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Cardano, and XRP, making it the biggest multi-token crypto ETF in the market. Many in the crypto space are calling this a massive moment for XRP, hinting it could soon clear the path for individual spot XRP ETFs to be approved next.
Biggest news from today IMO…
xrp will now be accessible to everyday investors via Grayscale Digital Large Cap ETF.
After nearly 5yrs of SEC vs Ripple litigation.
And now anyone will be able to easily access xrp in SEC-regulated investment vehicle.
Crypto analysts and XRP supporters are celebrating as this approval signals a shift in the SEC’s stance toward XRP. Around 17 more XRP ETFs are reportedly waiting for SEC approval. While the exact number isn’t officially confirmed, multiple applications are in line, and today’s development has significantly increased the hope that more approvals could start rolling in over the coming months.
Why does this matter?
Until now, U.S. investors faced hurdles buying XRP through exchanges due to regulatory uncertainty and the ongoing Ripple-SEC lawsuit. With this new ETF, investors can simply buy shares backed by XRP, just like any traditional stock, without dealing with crypto exchanges or wallets.
This move could bring massive inflows of capital into XRP, as institutional investors and traditional traders who previously avoided direct crypto exposure can now safely invest in it.
At the same time, XRP’s price chart is tightening, showing signs of a breakout setup. If Bitcoin rallies and market conditions remain strong, XRP could soon make a major move upward.
Ethereum price continued to consolidate above $1,820 over the weekend, outperforming BTC over the 14-day timeframe.
Ethereum (ETH) Consolidates as Vitalik Shares Fresh Proposal
Ethereum held steady above $1,820 across the weekend, registering relative strength compared to Bitcoin, which slid below $96,000.
According to CoinGecko, ETH price posted a 14-day gain of 15.7% while Bitcoin price rally was subdued at 12% over the same period. Daily trading volumes for ETH remained elevated above $7 billion, reflecting robust market participation.
Ethereum price action (ETHUSD) May 4, 2025 | Coingecko
Investor sentiment appears bolstered by Vitalik Buterin’s latest technical commentary. The Ethereum founder posted on May 3 about the importance of protocol simplicity, stating, “One of the best things about Bitcoin is how simple it is… let’s bring those benefits to Ethereum.”
His suggestion alluded to streamlining Ethereum’s design, a move that may aim to address criticisms around execution layer complexity, state management, and overall maintainability.
While short on specifics, the proposal hints at a philosophical shift — one that favors reduced protocol surface area and improved auditability over maximal flexibility.
This comes amid a broader industry push for modularity, security, and composability. Ethereum’s resilience over the weekend and its outperformance signal that Buterin’s remarks may have struck a positive tone with short-term traders.
Buterin’s remarks triggered swift criticism from prominent Bitcoin maximalists. Alistair Milne quipped that Bitcoiners have been urging Vitalik to embrace simplicity “for a decade.” Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream and a legendary cypherpunk, delivered the most scathing critism.
“I literally told him so a decade ago, but they still haven’t learned about balance vs utxo or the complexity of state, “rich state fullness” mistake. Redirecting miner revenue to the insiders with PoS etc. At this point just flush it before it hits 0, and buy Bitcoin.” – Adam Back, May 4 2025.
Back blamed Ethereum’s complexity — especially the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) — for the recent ByBit wallet hack.
According to him, the EVM’s design makes it “basically impossible” for hardware wallets to verify transaction details reliably, creating exploitable vectors in real-world deployments.
From this lens, Ethereum’s initial ambition to support smart contracts without first building a minimal, robust foundation is seen as a strategic misstep.
The ensuing comments on X has further re-hased the long-standing ideological divide between Bitcoin maximalists, and Ethereum advocates over the last 24 hours.
What’s Ahead?
While Bitcoin maximalists dismiss Vitalik’s call for simplicity as a desperate pivot, Ethereum markets responded differently.
With ETH showing strength and price stability above $1,820, buyers appear to interpret the proposal as a sign of Ethereum’s maturity possibly moving toward more efficient fundamentals.
Despite criticisms from Bitcoin maxis like Adam Back, Ethereum price has evidently attracted buying more buying pressure that BTC over since Vitalik’s proposal on Saturday.
Ethereum Price Forecast Today: ETH Targets $1,950 on Vitalik’s Proposal Momentum
Ethereum price remains resilient, consolidating just below $1,830, while showing early signs of a bullish continuation. Price action is forming a subtle ascending triangle on the daily timeframe, suggesting accumulation beneath resistance.
Notably, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator reflects positive momentum, with the MACD line holding well above the signal and zero lines. This bullish divergence, confirmed by a widening histogram, hints at increasing buying pressure despite recent profit-taking.
Ethereum Price Forecast Today
Ethereum price forecast today shows ETH price is holding up well-above its 50-day MA at $1,784, while the 100-day moving average near $2,176 remains the first significant ceiling.
More so, ETH trending currently trading just above the 20-day EMA, which is turning upwards. The Stochastic Slow strategy has recently issued a sell signal (-2) on the daily close, but this appears to be weakening in effect as price fails to retrace lower, indicating that bears lack conviction to press further
Within these conditions, should Ethereum price break and close above $1,880, the path toward $1,950 opens with relatively little friction, supported by declining volatility and improved sentiment after Vitalik’s latest proposal.
A failure to break higher could see ETH retest $1,783, but sustained strength above that level could keep the upside momentum active.
In recent months, Solana has demonstrated remarkable growth in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, prompting discussions about its potential to rival Ethereum’s valuation.
A new report by Franklin Templeton highlighted that Solana’s DeFi protocols are among the most utilized and highest-earning platforms across all blockchain environments.
Franklin Templeton Predicts Solana as Ethereum’s Rival
In an analysis, Franklin Templeton highlighted the rapid growth and potential of Solana’s DeFi ecosystem. The report suggested that its valuation could soon rival Ethereum’s.
The global asset management firm, which oversees $1.68 trillion in assets, noted that six Solana-based protocols surpassed $1 billion in Total Value Locked (TVL).
During the third and fourth quarters of 2024, Solana outperformed Ethereum in several key metrics. Solana’s decentralized exchange (DEX) volume notably exceeded that of Ethereum and all Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)–based DEXs combined.
The surge indicates a significant shift in DeFi activity towards Solana, challenging Ethereum’s longstanding dominance in the space. Jito (JTO) leads the charge, a liquid staking protocol that recently reached an all-time high of $3 billion in TVL. Notably, this marked the first time a Solana-based protocol has achieved this milestone.
Other notable protocols include Jupiter (JUP), Raydium (RAY), Kamino (KMNO), Marinade (MNDE), and Sanctum Coin (SANCTA). Collectively, these protocols contributed to Solana’s growing DeFi ecosystem.
Further emphasizing its growing prominence, Solana’s active addresses per hour were reported to be 26 times higher than Ethereum’s as of January 2025. This surge in user activity reflects the network’s scalability and efficiency, making it an attractive platform for developers and investors seeking faster transactions and lower fees.
Despite the impressive growth, Franklin Templeton’s report points out that Solana’s DeFi protocols remain undervalued compared to their Ethereum counterparts. The analysis reveals that Solana’s DeFi tokens are trading at lower valuation multiples, although they exhibit higher growth profiles and strong fundamentals.
“Solana DeFi valuation multiples trade on average lower than their Ethereum counterparts despite significantly higher growth profiles. This highlights an apparent valuation asymmetry between the two ecosystems,” an excerpt in the report read.
Notwithstanding, Franklin Templeton says the increased activity has also contributed to Solana’s rising market capitalization and overall ecosystem growth. According to the asset manager, these discrepancies suggest a potential investment opportunity as the market adjusts to recognize Solana’s expanding influence in the DeFi sector.
Reflecting this optimism, Franklin Templeton filed for a spot Solana ETF (exchange-traded fund) with the US SEC. Notably, the proposed ETF includes staking capabilities. This means investors can earn rewards by participating in network validation processes, which is the first for a Solana-based ETF.
Solana Rising – Could It Overtake Ethereum?
While some investors are enthusiastic about Solana’s potential, others remain skeptical. A user on X (Twitter) challenged the move to compare Solana to Ethereum, alluding to stark differences in foundational robustness.
“It’s like comparing Ethereum versus Las Vegas casino. Yea Vegas has more chips,” the user quipped.
Similarly, industry analysts caution against assuming Solana is poised to surpass Ethereum imminently. Juan Pellicer, Senior Research Analyst at IntoTheBlock, noted that while Solana has narrowed the market capitalization gap with Ethereum, it still faces significant hurdles.
“While Solana may continue to grow and potentially challenge Ethereum in specific niches, overcoming Ethereum’s entrenched position as the dominant platform in the immediate future is still unlikely, though the competitive landscape is dynamic and evolving,” Pellicer told BeInCrypto.
Specifically, Pellicer emphasized that Ethereum benefits from established trust and a vast developer community. According to the analyst, these are critical factors in maintaining its leading position in the DeFi space.
He also highlighted the need for Solana to address centralization concerns and achieve parity in developer adoption. These, according to the analysts, would see Solana truly challenge Ethereum’s dominance.
As Solana continues to innovate and expand its DeFi ecosystem, its potential to reach valuations comparable to Ethereum becomes more plausible.
Bitcoin (BTC) is now one year past its most recent halving, and this cycle is shaping up to be unlike any before it. Unlike previous cycles where explosive rallies followed the halving, BTC has seen a far more muted gain, up just 31%, compared to 436% over the same timeframe in the last cycle.
At the same time, long-term holder metrics like the MVRV ratio are signaling a sharp decline in unrealized profits, pointing to a maturing market with compressing upside. Together, these shifts suggest Bitcoin may be entering a new era, defined less by parabolic peaks and more by gradual, institution-driven growth.
A Year After the Bitcoin Halving: A Cycle Unlike Any Other
This Bitcoin cycle is unfolding noticeably differently than previous ones, signaling a potential shift in how the market responds to halving events.
In earlier cycles—most notably from 2012 to 2016 and again from 2016 to 2020—Bitcoin tended to rally aggressively around this stage. The post-halving period was often marked by strong upward momentum and parabolic price action, largely fueled by retail enthusiasm and speculative demand.
The current cycle, however, has taken a different route. Instead of accelerating after the halving, the price surge began earlier, in October and December 2024, followed by consolidation in January 2025 and a correction in late February.
This front-loaded behavior diverges sharply from historical patterns where halvings typically acted as the catalyst for major rallies.
Several factors are contributing to this shift. Bitcoin is no longer just a retail-driven speculative asset—it’s increasingly seen as a maturing financial instrument. The growing involvement of institutional investors, coupled with macroeconomic pressures and structural changes in the market, has led to a more measured and complex response.
Another clear sign of this evolution is the weakening strength of each successive cycle. The explosive gains of the early years have become harder to replicate as Bitcoin’s market cap has grown. For instance, in the 2020–2024 cycle, Bitcoin had climbed 436% one year after the halving.
In contrast, this cycle has seen a much more modest 31% increase over the same timeframe.
This shift could mean Bitcoin is entering a new chapter. One with less wild volatility and more steady, long-term growth. The halving may no longer be the main driver. Other forces are taking over—rates, liquidity, and institutional money.
The game is changing. And so is the way Bitcoin moves.
Nonetheless, it’s important to note that previous cycles also featured periods of consolidation and correction before resuming their uptrend. While this phase may feel slower or less exciting, it could still represent a healthy reset before the next move higher.
That said, the possibility remains that this cycle will continue to diverge from historical patterns. Instead of a dramatic blow-off top, the outcome may be a more prolonged and structurally supported uptrend—less driven by hype, more by fundamentals.
What Long-Term Holder MVRV Reveals About Bitcoin’s Maturing Market
The Long-Term Holder (LTH) MVRV ratio has always been a solid measure of unrealized profits. It shows how much long-term investors are sitting on before they start selling. But over time, this number is falling.
In the 2016–2020 cycle, LTH MVRV peaked at 35.8. That signaled massive paper profits and a clear top forming. By the 2020–2024 cycle, the peak dropped sharply to 12.2. This happened even as Bitcoin price hit fresh all-time highs.
In the current cycle, the highest LTH MVRV so far is just 4.35. That’s a massive drop. It shows long-term holders aren’t seeing the same kind of gains. The trend is clear: each cycle delivers smaller multiples.
Bitcoin’s explosive upside is compressing. The market is maturing.
Now, in the current cycle, the highest LTH MVRV reading so far has been 4.35. This stark drop suggests long-term holders are experiencing much lower multiples on their holdings compared to previous cycles, even with substantial price appreciation. The pattern points to one conclusion: Bitcoin’s upside is compressing.
This isn’t just a fluke. As the market matures, explosive gains are naturally harder to come by. The days of extreme, cycle-driven profit multiples may be fading, replaced by more moderate—but potentially more stable—growth.
A growing market cap means it takes exponentially more capital to move the price significantly.
Still, it’s not definitive proof that this cycle has already topped out. Previous cycles often included extended periods of sideways movement or modest pullbacks before new highs were reached.
With institutions playing a larger role, accumulation phases could stretch longer. Therefore, peak profit-taking may be less abrupt than in earlier cycles.
However, if the trend of declining MVRV peaks continues, it could reinforce the idea that Bitcoin is transitioning away from wild, cyclical surges and toward a more subdued but structured growth pattern.
The sharpest gains may already be behind, especially for those entering late in the cycle.
