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Memecoins Under Fire as BTC Lullfest Below $100K Revives Memories of 2018

Bitcoin’s (BTC) recent narrow price range between $94,000 and $100,000 has perplexed many market participants.
While the largest cryptocurrency historically shows strong directional moves followed by months-long consolidations, known as stair-step price movements, this time feels different. Usually consolidations are followed by a breakout. In contrast, now the range has narrowed. In December it was $90,000-$110,000.
Attendees at last week’s Consensus Hong Kong shared the sentiment, with some prominent market makers and industry figures suggesting the rampant memecoin frenzy is a key reason behind the lull in BTC and the broader altcoin market, which feels similar to the lackluster price action from seven years ago.
«The market has been very saturated with memecoin launches, and crypto natives are kind of exhausted by this,» said Evgeny Gaevoy, CEO of leading market maker Wintermute, at the conference.
Tokens such as President Donald Trump’s TRUMP and the LIBRA token promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei tend to draw liquidity from more established cryptocurrencies, Gaevoy said, with traders buying those at the expense of other coins.
Such stagnant BTC price behavior is reminiscent of September-October 2018, when the range tightened over successive weeks, ultimately settling between $6,000 and $6,400.
It’s not a totally parallel situation, though. That occurred during a bear market, following a steep decline from bitcoin’s then-record high of nearly $20,000, making the range play somewhat justifiable as investor confidence waned. This time around, BTC is only about 12% below its all-time high.
Presidential memecoins
Three days before his Jan. 20 inauguration, Trump debuted his official token, TRUMP, which reached a market cap of over $12 billion in just 48 hours. Its descent was equally fast, and the market cap had crashed to near $3 billion by early this month, data from Coingecko show.
What’s interesting is that the total crypto market capitalization remained largely unchanged at nearly $3.5 trillion during the boom-bust cycle. That’s a sign the memecoin did little to draw new capital to the market. In other words, the money simply migrated from BTC, Solana’s SOL and other coins.
Moreover, while some wallets that invested early made big money, around 800,000 lost a total of $2 billion by selling at a loss or holding as prices crashed, according to Chainalysis.
Something similar played out during the LIBRA fiasco early this month, which destroyed $251 million in investor money and became a net wealth-destroyer for the crypto market.
That’s probably why Abraxas Capital Management founder Fabio Frontini said memecoins should be banned. He was speaking during a rapid-fire round at the «Views from Wall Street to Crypto» session at Consensus.
Jason Atkins, chief commercial officer at Auros, said the fact that memecoins are sucking out liquidity from the other sectors of the market shows how fragile the liquidity pool is.
«It’s clear that adoption is still at an early stage,» Atkins said in an interview. «The number of participants remains relatively low, and the fact that one high-profile token launch can send shockwaves across the entire market shows how fragile the liquidity pool is. It’s a clear signal that the broader market lacks sufficient depth and stability.»
Those are key requirements for attracting more institutional interest, he said.
«Institutional investors are actively exploring how they can engage with this space. But they are cautious. They need to see a more mature, stable market that can handle larger volumes without getting disrupted by speculative, meme-driven activity.»
Bitcoin’s direction
Opinions were mixed on what happens next for the BTC price.
Several Consensus delegates said the meme frenzy and the uncanny stability in BTC is unhealthy. Such range plays often end with a downside move, they said. That’s what happened in 2018, when the consolidation ended with a sharp decline.
On the other hand, the memecoin saturation is overshadowing positive news on the regulatory front, Wintermute’s Gaevoy said.
«People don’t necessarily appreciate that we have a lot of positive news coming. For example, on the regulatory side, we have all forgotten how bad of an influence the SEC and even CFTC was for the last few years and now that overhang is completely gone. I don’t think it’s being properly priced, So I’m pretty optimistic,» Gaevoy said.
Altcoin ETFs?
The regulatory environment includes change of U.S. administration and exit of Gary Gensler from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of issuers have now filed SEC applications for spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to Solana’s SOL, XRP, dogecoin (DOGE) and litecoin (LTC).
To date, the regulator has approved only spot bitcoin and ether ETFs, assuming that the CME’s surveillance system for bitcoin and ether futures mitigates concerns about price manipulation. If CME futures are seen as a prerequisite to win approval for ETFs tied to digital assets, it’s worth noting the broader altcoins don’t have that privilege yet.
Gaevoy disagrees.
«It’s a relic from the previous SEC leadership. I would definitely not be surprised if Solana and other top 10 tokens excluding stablecoins are approved,» he said.
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XLM Sees Heavy Volatility as Institutional Selling Weighs on Price

Stellar’s XLM token endured sharp swings over the past 24 hours, tumbling 3% as institutional selling pressure dominated order books. The asset declined from $0.39 to $0.38 between September 14 at 15:00 and September 15 at 14:00, with trading volumes peaking at 101.32 million—nearly triple its 24-hour average. The heaviest liquidation struck during the morning hours of September 15, when XLM collapsed from $0.395 to $0.376 within two hours, establishing $0.395 as firm resistance while tentative support formed near $0.375.
Despite the broader downtrend, intraday action highlighted moments of resilience. From 13:15 to 14:14 on September 15, XLM staged a brief recovery, jumping from $0.378 to a session high of $0.383 before closing the hour at $0.380. Trading volume surged above 10 million units during this window, with 3.45 million changing hands in a single minute as bulls attempted to push past resistance. While sellers capped momentum, the consolidation zone around $0.380–$0.381 now represents a potential support base.
Market dynamics suggest distribution patterns consistent with institutional profit-taking. The persistent supply overhead has reinforced resistance at $0.395, where repeated rally attempts have failed, while the emergence of support near $0.375 reflects opportunistic buying during liquidation waves. For traders, the $0.375–$0.395 band has become the key battleground that will define near-term direction.
Technical Indicators
- XLM retreated 3% from $0.39 to $0.38 during the previous 24-hours from 14 September 15:00 to 15 September 14:00.
- Trading volume peaked at 101.32 million during the 08:00 hour, nearly triple the 24-hour average of 24.47 million.
- Strong resistance established around $0.395 level during morning selloff.
- Key support emerged near $0.375 where buying interest materialized.
- Price range of $0.019 representing 5% volatility between peak and trough.
- Recovery attempts reached $0.383 by 13:00 before encountering selling pressure.
- Consolidation pattern formed around $0.380-$0.381 zone suggesting new support level.
Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk’s full AI Policy.
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HBAR Tumbles 5% as Institutional Investors Trigger Mass Selloff

Hedera Hashgraph’s HBAR token endured steep losses over a volatile 24-hour window between September 14 and 15, falling 5% from $0.24 to $0.23. The token’s trading range expanded by $0.01 — a move often linked to outsized institutional activity — as heavy corporate selling overwhelmed support levels. The sharpest move came between 07:00 and 08:00 UTC on September 15, when concentrated liquidation drove prices lower after days of resistance around $0.24.
Institutional trading volumes surged during the session, with more than 126 million tokens changing hands on the morning of September 15 — nearly three times the norm for corporate flows. Market participants attributed the spike to portfolio rebalancing by large stakeholders, with enterprise adoption jitters and mounting regulatory scrutiny providing the backdrop for the selloff.
Recovery efforts briefly emerged during the final hour of trading, when corporate buyers tested the $0.24 level before retreating. Between 13:32 and 13:35 UTC, one accumulation push saw 2.47 million tokens deployed in an effort to establish a price floor. Still, buying momentum ultimately faltered, with HBAR settling back into support at $0.23.
The turbulence underscores the token’s vulnerability to institutional distribution events. Analysts point to the failed breakout above $0.24 as confirmation of fresh resistance, with $0.23 now serving as the critical support zone. The surge in volume suggests major corporate participants are repositioning ahead of regulatory shifts, leaving HBAR’s near-term outlook dependent on whether enterprise buyers can mount sustained defenses above key support.
Technical Indicators Summary
- Corporate resistance levels crystallized at $0.24 where institutional selling pressure consistently overwhelmed enterprise buying interest across multiple trading sessions.
- Institutional support structures emerged around $0.23 levels where corporate buying programs have systematically absorbed selling pressure from retail and smaller institutional participants.
- The unprecedented trading volume surge to 126.38 million tokens during the 08:00 morning session reflects enterprise-scale distribution strategies that overwhelmed corporate demand across major trading platforms.
- Subsequent institutional momentum proved unsustainable as systematic selling pressure resumed between 13:37-13:44, driving corporate participants back toward $0.23 support zones with sustained volumes exceeding 1 million tokens, indicating ongoing institutional distribution.
- Final trading periods exhibited diminishing corporate activity with zero recorded volume between 13:13-14:14, suggesting institutional participants adopted defensive positioning strategies as HBAR consolidated at $0.23 amid enterprise uncertainty.
Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk’s full AI Policy.
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Dogecoin Inches Closer to Wall Street With First Meme Coin ETF

The first exchange-traded fund (ETF) built around a meme coin could hit the market this week, after multiple delays and much speculation.
The DOGE ETF — formally called the Rex Shares-Osprey Dogecoin ETF (DOJE) — was originally slated to debut last week, alongside a handful of politically themed and crypto-related ETFs. Those included funds tied to Bonk (BONK), XRP, Bitcoin (BTC) and even a Trump-themed fund. But DOJE’s debut never materialized.
Now, Bloomberg ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart believe Wednesday is the most likely launch date, though they caution nothing is certain.
“It’s more likely than not,” Seyffart said. “That seems like the base case.”
Ahead of the introduction of the ETF, DOGE has been among the top performers over the past month, ahead 15% even including a decline of 3.5% over the past 24 horus.
If launched, DOJE would mark a milestone as the first U.S. ETF to focus on a meme coin — cryptocurrencies that generally lack utility or a clear economic purpose. These include tokens like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Bonk, which often surge in popularity thanks to internet culture, celebrity endorsements and speculative trading.
Balchunas described DOJE’s significance in a post on X: “First-ever US ETF to hold something that has no utility on purpose.”
DOJE is not a spot ETF. That means it won’t hold DOGE directly. Instead, the fund will use a Cayman Islands-based subsidiary to gain exposure through futures and other derivatives. This approach sidesteps the need for physical custody of the coin while still offering traders a way to bet on its performance within a traditional brokerage account.
The ETF was approved earlier this month under the Investment Company Act of 1940, which is typically used for mutual funds and diversified ETFs. That sets it apart from the wave of bitcoin ETFs that received green lights under the Securities Act of 1933, a framework used for commodity-based and asset-backed products. In short, DOJE is structured more like a mutual fund than a commodity trust.
More direct exposure may be coming soon. Several firms have filed applications to launch spot DOGE ETFs, which would hold the meme coin itself rather than derivatives. These applications are still under review by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which has grown more comfortable with crypto ETFs since approving a slate of bitcoin products in early 2024.
The broader crypto market has shown that investor demand can outweigh fundamental critiques. Meme coins have long drawn skepticism for having no underlying value or use case, but that hasn’t kept them from drawing billions in speculative capital.
Seyffart said the ETF market is likely to follow the same path. “There’s going to be a bunch of products like this, whether you love it or need it, they’re going to be coming to market,” he said.
He added that many existing financial products serve no deeper purpose than providing a vehicle for short-term bets. “There’s plenty of products out there that are just being used as gambling or short-term trading,” he said. “So if there’s an audience for this in the crypto world, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if this finds an audience in the ETF and TradFi world.”
Whether the DOJE ETF opens the door to more meme coin funds — or just proves the concept is viable — may depend on how the market responds this week. Either way, it signals a new phase in the merging of internet culture and traditional finance.
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