The Ethereum Foundation (EF) today allocated $120 million in ETH tokens to DeFi lending protocols: Aave, Spark, and Compound.

The Foundation has been in a sustained leadership crisis caused by token sales to pay overhead costs. The EF has shown a willingness to respond to the community, but it still faces tough challenges ahead.

Ethereum Foundation Banks on DeFi Lending

The Ethereum Foundation (EF) has been going through a leadership crisis lately. Specifically, it has been selling ETH tokens to pay overhead costs, and an outraged user base has demanded alternate solutions.

Today, the EF found one, transferring tokens worth $120 million into a few DeFi lending protocols.

“We’re grateful for the entire Ethereum security community that has worked diligently to make Ethereum DeFi secure and usable! More to come, including exploring staking. If you have suggestions or ideas for future deployments, reply in the comments below and let us know!” the Ethereum Foundation claimed on social media.

The EF picked three DeFi lending protocols for this allocation, putting 10,000 ETH into Spark and 4,200 into Compound. The rest went to Aave: 10,000 to Aave Prime and 20,800 to Aave Core.

Aave is a popular lending protocol that has been particularly entangled with Ethereum. In the past, it has surged dramatically in response to ETH price moves.

By using these DeFi lending protocols, the EF will be able to reap substantial rewards passively. Based on a 1.5% supply rate, these tokens will earn around $1.5 million annually. The community has responded positively to these changes, and Vitalik Buterin warmly welcomed them on social media.

In some ways, this turn to DeFi is a prime example of the EF actually responding to community pressure. However, the Foundation is still facing a lot of other challenges that will truly put it to the test.

When it comes to specific demands, Buterin has been willing to adapt to community pressure, but he has resolutely refused challenges to his leadership.

Meanwhile, Ethereum’s price has seen a continued decline lately. The market still shows a strong confidence that it will return: ETH ETFs are soaring because traders are buying the dip. Nonetheless, this won’t be enough to create bullish new momentum by itself.

Ultimately, these DeFi lending protocols might make a real difference in changing the EF’s fortunes. By changing tactics here, Ethereum’s leadership has demonstrated a willingness to respond to the community.

Between a show of good faith and strong investor confidence, another small push might start to turn things around for ETH’s market performance.

XRP has been forming a red bearish candle since the beginning of February, which is a result of a price crash that took place at the start of the month. Although THE ALTCOIN has since recovered slightly, it has yet to return to its January open. Nonetheless, the majority of crypto investors remain bullish on the long-term prospects for XRP, with analysts doubling down on optimistic price targets ranging from $2 to $5.

However, a crypto analyst on the TradingView platform has presented a compelling bearish case for XRP, warning that the asset is nearing the end of a crucial 12-year cycle, which could trigger a severe correction down to $0.1.

XRP’s 12-Year Cycle Nears Completion. Major Correction Ahead?

According to the analyst, XRP has almost completed a 12-year cycle, and the conclusion of this phase is going to be a very intense correction of the XRP price. While acknowledging that XRP could still reach a slightly higher high before the full decline begins, the analyst believes that the probability of significant further upside is low and warns that a continued correction might occur over the coming months.

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The warning is centered around technical indicators and technical patterns, particularly a long-term triangle pattern. This long-term triangle pattern persisted for five years between XRP’s all-time high of $3.40 in 2018 up until 2024, before breaking out into a final fifth wave. This final fifth wave has allegedly peaked at $3.40 in January 2025, and the next move from here is an extended move downwards.

The analysis also references the Bullish/Bearish Reversal Bar Indicator by Skyrexio, which confirmed the conclusion of the 12-year cycle. Now, the proposed target for the correction is set around $0.1, based on the 0.5 Fibonacci retracement level.

Contrasting Prediction As Majority Remain Bullish On The Altcoin’s Future

At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $2.43, meaning that a correction to $0.1 would represent a 95% decline from its current level. Such a drop would not only erase nearly all of XRP’s gains since 2017 but would also mark one of the most devastating collapses in its history. Interestingly, this projected loss in XRP market cap would be even greater than the one witnessed during the years it was suppressed by the weight of the SEC lawsuit against its parent company Ripple. 

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This bearish prediction contrasts the overwhelmingly bullish sentiment currently surrounding XRP. Many analysts and investors expect extended price growth in anticipation of institutional adoption and regulatory clarity under the new Trump administration. One analyst even recently predicted that the XRP price is about to make an all-time high run to $5. Another analyst, Javon Marks, noted that XRP is well on track to reach over $100 in the coming years.

Featured image from Medium, chart from Tradingview.com

Crypto majors including Bitcoin remain under pressure amid a neutral market sentiment. However, revolutionary projects within the sector are thriving as savvy investors look for cheaper alternatives with great growth potential.

Bitcoin Pepe, the first meme ICO on the Bitcoin network has captured the attention of crypto enthusiasts, surpassing $1 million within the first 6 hours of its presale. Its early adopters acknowledge that its unique approach of merging the meme culture with Solana’s speed and Bitcoin’s security will yield hefty returns ahead of its launch in Q2’25.

Bitcoin price to remain range-bound amid a neutral market sentiment 

Bitcoin price has remained in consolidation; trading in the red for the third consecutive week. At a fear & greed index of 47, which points to a neutral market sentiment, the crypto major may remain range-bound in the absence of a key near-term catalyst. 

In the short term, the range between the support level of $93,500 and the resistance zone of  $100,898.95 remains worth watching. Indeed, below this range, this thesis will be invalid. If successful at breaking the current resistance, bitcoin bulls will have their eyes on the next target at $102,954.12.

Bitcoin Pepe’s unique trifactor positions it for fastest-growing ICO of 2025

Bitcoin Pepe, the first meme ICO on the Bitcoin network, has already raised over $1.7 million within the first 48 hours of its presale. Indeed, this is the playing field that meme coin enthusiasts have hungered for. 

On the one hand, Bitcoin is highly valued as the main alternative to fiat currency. Besides, it is considered as a safe haven and hedge against inflation. 

While its Proof-of-Work (PoW) system assures Bitcoin’s unmatched security, it results in slower transaction speed of up to 60 minutes. In comparison, it takes about 0.5 seconds for a transaction to be completed on Solana with up to 65,000 transactions processed in a second. 

Bitcoin Pepe has merged the two while propelling the meme culture; a trifactor that has captured the attention of crypto enthusiasts. The project leverages on Bitcoin’s security and Solana’s super speed while integrating the ultra-popular meme culture. 

It is this ideal setup that has sparked immense interest among crypto enthusiasts. Amid the heightened FOMO, savvy investors understand that the current price of $0.0232 may be the lowest for the BPEP token moving forward. 

It is currently at stage 3 of the total 30 stages on its 2025 roadmap, which also includes launching a decentralized exchange (DEX) and L2 Bridge. As it achieves these developments, its value is set to skyrocket. As such, this is the best opportunity for cryptocurrency enthusiasts to amass some BPEP tokens. Buy the Bitcoin Pepe here.

Solana price will need steady rebounding to ratify trend reversal

Solana price is set for its fourth week of losses despite the recent rebounding that cut across crypto majors. While the selling pressure may remain a headwind in the near term, improvement of the market sentiment may flip its plight as it leverages on its super speed and low transaction fees. 

In the meantime, the bulls are keen on defending the support at $186.21. On the upside, additional momentum may have it break the resistance at $206.48. However, a rebound past $215.70 to rubberstamp a trend reversal.