Ethereum

Solana

On May 17, <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/" data-wpel-link="external" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Ether</a>’s price surged by 5.5%, nearing $3,100 for the first time in ten days. Analysts attributed this rally to a decline in demand for fixed-income instruments following stagnant U.S. retail sales data for April.
This data heightened market expectations of a potential interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy.
Expansionary measures by the central bank are typically seen as bullish for risk-on markets, due to increased monetary supply or reduced credit costs for businesses and individuals.
Investors sought exposure to scarce assets, including cryptocurrencies, leading to gold reaching $2,410, just 0.8% below its all-time high.
A U.S. Department of Justice indictment unsealed on May 15 also boosted Ether’s surge.
The indictment accused two individuals of wire fraud and money laundering by manipulating the Ethereum blockchain.
The document stated that “Ethereum is a decentralized blockchain […] without the need for a trusted intermediary” and added, “No central actor runs the Ethereum Network.”
Additionally, the court noted that Ethereum smart contracts enable transactions without a trusted intermediary.
These statements boosted Ether investors’ confidence, especially after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued a Wells notice to Robinhood on May 4 over alleged securities violations related to crypto listings and custodian operations.
Orlando Cosme, founder and CEO of Lexproof, remarked that this verdict contradicts regulators’ classification of ETH as a security, “as there would be no management or entrepreneurial efforts of others.”
READ MORE: <a href="https://www.cryptointelligence.co.uk/oobit-mobile-payment-app-integrates-with-tethers-usdt-and-xaut-on-ton-for-streamlined-transactions/" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Oobit Mobile Payment App Integrates with Tether’s USDT and XAUt on TON for Streamlined Transactions</a>
While this analysis does not change the approval odds of U.S. spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs), it certainly lifted investors’ spirits.
The U.S. SEC is expected to provide its final ruling on VanEck’s spot Ether ETF request on March 23 and rule on the conversion of Grayscale’s ETHE fund by June 18.
Although analysts predict approval odds below 35%, the regulators’ case for classifying Ether as a security instrument has weakened, contributing to the rally above $3,050 on May 17.
Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko praised Ethereum’s network security, highlighting how coordinating “an invalid state transition or double spend attack” would be nearly impossible.
In a May 17 post, Yakovenko added that layer-2 scaling reduced costs without compromising security due to the network’s large number of validators and operators.
Investors realized that Ethereum’s setbacks, including high transaction fees and slow scalability efforts, were decisions prioritizing security and decentralization.
Meanwhile, competitors Solana and BNB Chain opted for higher processing capacity solutions, increasing dependency on fewer entities.
Ethereum’s strength is evident in its dominance in decentralized application (DApp) activity.
The growth of layer-2 solutions such as Base, which gained traction due to its low fees and integration with Coinbase, reinforces Ethereum’s potential as a global settlement layer.
Ethereum’s $181.5 billion in DApp volume over 30 days is more than seven times larger than its direct competitor, BNB Chain.
This volume declined merely 3% compared to the previous month, while BNB Chain and Solana experienced 52% and 41% decreases, respectively.
Analyzing unique active addresses engaging with DApps yields similar results, with Ethereum gaining 3% in 30 days, while BNB Chain and Solana faced steep declines.
Highlights from the Ethereum network include Balancer, which saw a 34% volume increase, Morpho Optimizers with an 80% gain, and DODO with a 61% boost.
In essence, even if U.S. spot Ether ETF approval odds remain low, the network’s dominance in the DApp ecosystem remains unaffected.
This realization contributed to the ETH price gains on May 17.
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Ether Price Surges 5.5%, Nears $3,100 Amid Market Optimism and Legal Boost

Crypto Intelligence

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