The first week of July has been a difficult one for the market. But amid the growing sell-offs, crypto whales loaded their wallets with some altcoins that some may term undervalued.

Whales are large investors, and their influence on price cannot be underestimated. Therefore, market participants may need to keep an eye on Dogecoin (DOGE), Optimism (OP), and Pepe (PEPE), as they are among the altcoins crypto whales bought this week.

Dogecoin (DOGE) Large Holders Overlook The Decline

Like other cryptocurrencies, the price of DOGE tumbled. Specifically, the value has dropped by 23.76% in the last seven days. 

However, this did not stop crypto whales from buying more of the coin. BeInCrypto observes this after evaluating the Large Holders Inflow shown by IntoTheBlock.

This inflow shows strong buying activity by market participants who hold between 0.1% to 1% of the cryptocurrency.  On Tuesday, July 2, the inflow was 61.88 million DOGE. 

But one day later, the inflow reached 516.08 million, suggesting that whales were buying the dip. Currently, the figure has decreased to 215.90 million. 

At an average price of $0.11, crypto whales bought $23.74 million worth of Dogecoin in the first week of July. This is a 175.44% increase from the holdings in the last week of June.

Optimism (OP) Whales Ignore the Unlocks, Bullish About the ETF

Second on this list is OP, the token of the layer-two blockchain built on Ethereum.  This week, OP’s price has fallen by 27.82%. Apart from the broader market decline, OP’s decline can be linked to the series of token unlocks between July 1 and 5.

While the unlocks put selling pressure on the price, crypto whales decided to scoop the token at discount prices. 

According to Santiment, whales hodling between 1 million to 10 million OP added to their balance in the first week of this month. As a result, this cohort now holds 11.27% of the total OP  supply.

Read More: What Is Optimism?

The decision seems to be largely due to the upcoming Ethereum ETF approval. For most market participants, the official trading of the products may raise ETH prices.

Since ETH shares a strong correlation with OP, whales deem it fit to buy the token lower before the potential rally begins. 

Whales Put Pepe (PEPE) At the Top of the Chain

A look at PEPE’s Large Holder Netflow shows a staggering 2237.18% increase in the last seven days. This means the crypto whales buying PEPE outpaced those selling it by the abovementioned ratio.

Despite intensifying their purchase, the accumulation has had little to no effect on PEPE’s price. At press time, PEPE trades at $0.0000078— the lowest price it has hit since May 4.

If these large investors continue to buy the token as the price dips, stability may eventually appear. 

Read More: Pepe (PEPE) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

However, considering the current market condition, whale accumulation alone may not be enough to prevent prices from further declining. This is because Bitcoin (BTC) seems to be the crypto dragging the market back. 

Should BTC fail to stop its correction, DOGE, OP, and PEPE may continue to face downward pressure. However, a rebound for the number one cryptocurrency may prevent another nosedive.

A crypto analyst has identified key indicators that point to a substantial rally for XRP, the native token of the XRP Ledger (XRPL). According to the analyst, XRP is poised to rebound from its bearish trends and soar to new all-time highs 

XRP To Mirror 2017 Rally To New Highs

In an X (formerly Twitter) post in June, crypto analyst, Tylie Eric expressed bullish optimism about XRP, emphasizing the cryptocurrency’s potential for a major rally this year. He shared an XRP price chart depicting the cryptocurrency’s price movements from as early as 2014 to 2025.

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Eric disclosed that XRP has met all the necessary requirements and conditions to support a potential bull rally to new highs. The analyst also revealed that XRP is completely prepared to continue with “wave 3 and wave 5” of the renowned Elliott Wave Theory. 

The Elliott Wave Theory is a tool used to determine price movements in a cryptocurrency. The technical analysis is based on viewing long-term recurrent price patterns in a cryptocurrency.

In his post, Eric disclosed that XRP was currently displaying similar patterns and conditions to those seen during its bull rally in 2017. Earlier in 2017, XRP witnessed a massive price rally, which preceded its surge to new all-time highs of $3.84 in 2018.

Eric has suggested that XRP’s price action was displaying the same bullish patterns, as a result, he has projected a substantial price increase to $36.36 before the end of 2024. The analyst also revealed that XRP will have to witness a whopping 7,637.22% surge for it can reach the projected price target. 

Despite being a cryptocurrency analyst, Eric is an avid supporter of the XRP cryptocurrency. The analyst has constantly made bullish predictions for the altcoin, anticipating potential rebounds from bearish sentiment. Moreover, the crypto analyst revealed in his earlier post that XRP’s price action was significantly “boring.” This could be attributed to the cryptocurrency’s recent downward spiral. 

As of writing, the price of XRP is trading at $0.45, reflecting a 4.12% decrease in the past 24 hours and a 11.71% drop over the past month. The popular cryptocurrency has continually recorded steep declines since the beginning of June. 

Previously, the cryptocurrency was consolidating slightly above $0.5, however now the cryptocurrency is on a major downward trend, triggered by market volatility and Ripple’s ongoing legal battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Bullish Sentiment Rises

Despite its waning value, XRP’s bullish sentiment from crypto analysts continues to rise. A particular crypto analyst identified as ‘Egrag Crypto’ predicted that the altcoin was getting closer to the Fibonacci (Fib) 1.618. The analyst disclosed that this unexpected development could indicate possible areas for a price reversal or continuation in XRP. 

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Egrag Crypto also shared a price chart depicting XRP’s price actions from 2014 to 2024. In his post he emphasized that if history repeats itself XRP could potentially see a price surge to $27. The analyst has urged investors to remain prepared and optimistic about XRP’s projected surge to to $27. 

Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com

South Korea will see its one-year grace period for the Virtual Asset User Protection Act end this month. With the end of this window period, two important developments are set to change crypto regulations as the country’s citizenry knows it.

As the country’s regulatory climate toughens this month, crypto market recovery could slack amid reduced trading volumes.

Crypto Regulation Shake-Up: New Laws in South Korea

South Korea’s lawmakers passed the Virtual Asset User Protection Act in July 2023, allowing a one-year grace period before implementation. Local media reported that the legislation would be divided into two parts, with the first due on July 19. The second part remains a work in progress.

Under this legislation, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), South Korea’s regulatory body, and the Bank of Korea would jointly oversee crypto operators and asset custodians in the country. According to an official statement from the FSC, the objective is to prevent illicit market activity.

Crypto exchanges would also have to safeguard at least 80% of deposits in cold storage and enroll in insurance programs. These measures will guarantee the safety of user funds, with a capacity for compensation in case of security breaches.

Read more: Crypto Regulation: What Are the Benefits and Drawbacks?

As the one-year window expires this month, South Korea is meeting the expiry of this grace period with new technology. In a Thursday announcement, South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said it would launch a 24-hour surveillance system for local exchanges on July 19. The deployment will happen as the Virtual Asset User Protection Act is enacted.

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has developed a standardized reporting format by benchmarking the Korea Exchange. This system analyzes data submissions from local exchanges, identifying and removing irregularities from transaction reports.

“We benchmarked KRX’s (Korea Exchange) criteria in extracting abnormal transactions and prepared models and metric indicators through several simulations, which we expect will filter out abnormal transactions meticulously,” read an excerpt in a press release shared on Thursday.

Notably, the FSS employs the help of exchanges, who will monitor suspicious transactions and uncover illegalities. There is also a hotline between local exchanges and the FSS to report violations.

Implicantions for Crypto as Exchanges Ramp Up

Meanwhile, exchanges ramp up their activities to beat the July 19 window. Bithumb, the second largest exchange in South Korea, launched the ICP Korean Won trading market on June 12. Others are reevaluating over 1,000 previously listed tokens, with the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA) informing local users of plans to join 20 other local exchanges in reviewing 1,333 tokens.

The DAXA is an alliance that represents five major Korean crypto exchanges. This will help get ahead of possible delisting once the Virtual Asset User Protection Act’s axe falls. 

These regulatory adjustments sprouted from the TerraUSD and Luna saga in 2022, revolving around South Korean national Do Kwon.

Read More: Terra (LUNA) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

As crypto markets continue to bleed, some say the toughening of regulations in South Korea could delay price recovery. The speculation sprouts from the Korean won position against the US dollar (USD) as the most commonly used currency for crypto trading.

While this competition solidifies South Korea’s position in the global crypto arena, it qualifies as a factor in the much-awaited market recovery as the country’s regulatory climate heats up. As traders and exchanges navigate this development, trading volumes are expected to drop, especially among major trading platforms, making the market more susceptible to sharp price movements and heightened volatility.