Exclusive XRP News: Early ETF Demand May Favor Traders Before Institutions Step In

According to CoinGlass data, Shiba Inu has surged 2,394.51% in spot volumes on major U.S. crypto exchange Kraken in the past week, revealing traders betting on the altcoin as the market awaits fresh catalysts.

The Federal Reserve policy decision is anticipated on Dec. 10. Markets are expecting that the Fed will cut its key interest rate at its final meeting of the year, with traders pricing in around an 87% chance of a 25-basis-point cut when the central bank concludes its two-day meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

After a few days of consolidation between $0.0000081 and $0.0000086, Shiba Inu began a move early Monday as the broader market turned green.

According to Maartunn, an on-chain analyst at CryptoQuant, spot buyers are stepping aggressively into the market. The Bid/Ask Ratio (0–20% Spot) has flipped to +0.31, which marks the highest since April 2025. Maartunn noted that this level of bid-side imbalance often marks local bottoms or signals trend reversals.

Volumes indicator flashes bullish for altcoins

At press time, SHIB was up 2.23% in the last 24 hours and up 7% weekly to $0.000008513.

In a recent analysis on the altcoin market, which includes Shiba Inu, CryptoQuant noted this particular cycle has been tough for traders as many coins did not perform as expected.

CryptoQuant noted that the altcoin market has now entered an interesting period, taking a look at overall altcoin trading volumes. The aggregated 30-day altcoin trading volume for stablecoin quote pairs to its annual average reveals something noteworthy.

The 30-day volume fell below the yearly average, which might suggest a buying zone for altcoins. CryptoQuant added that this phase could last for weeks or even months, giving enough time to optimize a DCA strategy with well-targeted entry points.

However, caution is required given the current uncertainty on the market. Despite the recent rise in the market, sentiment remains cautious, with the potential for further declines without fresh catalysts and liquidity.

Circle and Bybit — operators of the world’s second-largest stablecoin and second-largest crypto exchange, respectively — are joining forces in a partnership that could have a significant impact on how digital assets move across the globe.

Under the partnership announced Monday, Bybit, the second-ranked exchange globally in terms of trading volume, will increase USDC’s presence across its ecosystem by boosting liquidity in spot and derivatives markets, expanding the stablecoin's use in savings, payments, and card rewards, and integrating Circle’s fiat on- and off-ramp infrastructure to make deposits and withdrawals faster and more transparent. Traditionally, like most exchanges, Bybit has primarily relied on Tether's USDT stablecoin.

From Circle's perspective, which has long been heavily dependent on top U.S.-based exchange Coinbase, the stablecoin issuer will have the opportunity to be utilized across an ecosystem with increased global reach. Some analysts have suggested Circle's stock could suffer if USDC's circulation and adoption growth stagnate.

Circle's drive to narrow the gap between it and Tether could come down to adding global partners able to expose more traders to USDC. Almost a year ago to the day, Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, also partnered with Circle to expand USDC's availability across its platform for trading, saving and payments.

USDC's circulation is currently about $78 billion while USDT sits at $186 billion, according to The Block Data Dashboard.

Bybit grows credibility

It appears Bybit is taking the stance that working with Circle will boost its credibility, with Monday's statement referencing USDC as "the world’s largest regulated stablecoin," a statement Tether might take issue with. 

"Bybit’s partnership with Circle represents a major milestone in our mission to offer a fully compliant, liquid, and user-friendly ecosystem," Bybit co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou said.

The exchange also pointed out it recently secured a Virtual Asset Platform Operator License from the UAE’s Securities and Commodities Authority in addition to expanding "its regulatory oversight across the European Economic Area (EEA), Turkey, and other jurisdictions around the world."

Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.

© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

After multiple days of showing heightening sell pressure, Shiba Inu is moving back to the bullish side of the market, although it is still struggling to retain crucial support.

As interest begins to return to the SHIB ecosystem, new on-chain data shows a massive change in its market dynamics as holders are increasingly moving tokens out of exchanges rather than returning them.

Shiba Inu sellers slow down

Data from crypto analytics platform Cryptoquant shows that the leading meme token has witnessed a decent decrease of about 2% in the SHIB exchange netflow over the last 24 hours.

As such, the difference between SHIB inflows across all supported exchanges and its outflows, which sum up to be its overall exchange netflow over the past day, is sitting at a massive -45,201,400,000 SHIB.

The metric, which shows that more tokens are being moved out of exchanges rather than being deposited for sale, is a key indication of heightening demand.

With over 45 billion tokens being wiped off centralized exchanges in just one day, it appears that both retail and whale holders are moving their tokens into self-custody amid surging buy activities, while also lowering the immediate risk of significant liquidations.

SHIB exchange reserve plummets

With this negative netflow, the Shiba Inu exchange reserve has returned to the red zone, showing an acceptable decrease of about 0.87% over the last 24 hours, signaling growing conviction among holders.

As the SHIB exchange flow goes extremely negative, the data further shows that the total SHIB currently held on leading cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance and Coinbase has also decreased over the last 24 hours, currently sitting at over 60 trillion and 374 billion, respectively.

Following this bullish on-chain movement, data from CoinMarketCap shows that SHIB has surged rapidly by 3.7% over the last day, trading at $0.000008550 as of press time.

While this has restored the market's confidence, analysts suggest that SHIB might be removing a zero soon if it is able to hold momentum and succeed at its potential rebound.

BlackRock has officially filed for a staked Ethereum exchange traded fund. The proposed product, named the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF, would hold Ethereum and earn staking rewards through approved validators.

ETF Will Hold ETH and Capture Staking Rewards

According to the filing, the fund is designed to track the price of Ethereum while also collecting staking yields. The structure excludes leverage, derivatives, and lending. It will operate as a simple, passive investment vehicle. Coinbase Custody will serve as the primary custodian, while Anchorage Digital is listed as an alternative to diversify risk and improve operational security.

The ETF’s shares will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker ETHB once approved. Only authorized participants will be allowed to create or redeem shares in large blocks. The filing also outlines details on custody, staking arrangements, issuance, redemption, and administrative roles.

SEC Review Will Decide Launch Timeline

The ETF will go live only after the United States Securities and Exchange Commission completes its review and declares the registration effective. This filing shows growing institutional demand for Ethereum products, especially those that combine price exposure with staking rewards.

Ethereum Price Rallies

Ethereum has gained more than 7% in the past 24 hours and is now trading near $3,122. Despite the jump, the price is still stuck in a choppy sideways range with no clear breakout. ETH recently hit resistance around $3,165–$3,550 and pulled back, but support between $2,745–$2,917 is still holding. 

For now, Ethereum remains trapped between these levels, and experts are watching $3,169 as the point that must break for a stronger upside move. Until then, the market is likely to stay quiet and unclear, with no strong trend in either direction.

Bitcoin’s recent movement has left many traders waiting for signs of an altcoin season, and a post shared by crypto analyst Crypto Nova offers a different way to understand when this will actually begin. 

The explanation, supported by charts from 2017 and 2021, shows that altcoins have historically performed their best while Bitcoin’s price action was already climbing, not after it had reached its peak. The charts she shared show how those earlier cycles unfolded and why the timing of Bitcoin’s surge has been the important factor each time.

Altseasons Form During Bitcoin’s Strongest Surges

This outlook goes against the projection of many crypto analysts, who have been waiting for a downturn in the Bitcoin dominance characterized by outflows from Bitcoin and into the altcoin market.

However, careful technical analysis shows that the largest and most explosive altcoin seasons did not occur after Bitcoin had completed its run. Instead, they developed while Bitcoin was already pushing to new price highs. 

The 2017 cycle illustrated this the most clearly. Bitcoin dominance began to decline during an altcoin season, even as BTC surged from around $1,000 to nearly $20,000. The chart shows a waterfall-like collapse in dominance from 95% in early 2017 to below 40% in early 2018, happening at the exact moment when Bitcoin was rising massively. Altcoins were already outperforming the leading cryptocurrency long before Bitcoin topped just below $20,000.

A similar pattern played out in 2021. Bitcoin dominance peaked in January of that year and started falling while the Bitcoin price climbed from roughly $30,000 to its mid-cycle high above $60,000. Although altcoins took a little longer to increase compared to 2017, the bulk of their performance still arrived during Bitcoin’s rapid upward trajectory, not after it had stalled or reversed. 

The charts below highlight this synchronicity clearly: dominance moves lower while Bitcoin candles continue to stretch higher.

Bitcoin Needs A Confirmed Bottom And A New Surge

Nova noted that traders are making a mistake by focusing solely on Bitcoin dominance without considering Bitcoin’s broader market structure. It is important to note that dominance does not drop simply because Bitcoin moves sideways or reaches a peak. 

Instead, dominance mostly declines when Bitcoin is in a strong, sustained uptrend, but the altcoin niche is witnessing more inflows compared to the leading cryptocurrency. This means an altcoin season is unlikely to start until Bitcoin prints a confirmed bottom and its rally convinces inflows into altcoins. 

As noted by the analyst, Bitcoin is currently in a downtrend, and without a shift in trend, dominance metrics alone cannot trigger altcoin momentum. This viewpoint challenges the frequent claims circulating online that altseason is here or just about to begin.

As it stands, the crypto industry is still logged into a Bitcoin season, with the CMC altcoin season index sitting at 19 and the CMC Bitcoin dominance at 58.7%.

Tether-backed mobile payments app Oobit is partnering with Bakkt to launch in the United States on Monday.

The tap-to-pay solution integrates with non-custodial wallets like Base, Binance, MetaMusk, Phantom, and Trust Wallet, enabling users to make purchases from their iOS and Android devices. Merchants receive instant fiat payouts through existing Visa rails.

"Oobit's launch in the United States marks its most significant global expansion milestone to date and introduces a payment experience Americans have never had until now: real crypto payments from the wallets they already use," the firm wrote in an announcement. 

The move comes months after U.S. legislators passed the GENIUS Act, providing guidelines for stablecoin businesses in the U.S., following encouragement from President Donald Trump. Bo Hines, who served as executive director of Trump’s Council of Advisers on Digital Assets, was named CEO of Tether's U.S. unit, working to roll out a GENIUS-compliant USAT stablecoin.

Founded in 2017, Oobit raised a $25 million Series A led by stablecoin giant Tether, Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko, CMCC Global, and 468 Capital in 2024. The project migrated its rebranded OOB token to Solana from Ethereum last month.

Bakkt (ticker BKKT) will lay the "regulated foundation" for Oobit's most recent expansion, providing licenses and compliance infrastructure across the U.S., according to the release. As part of its "B2B2C model," Bakkt acquired money transmitter licenses enabling it to facilitate crypto trading, transfers, and settlement in all 50 U.S. states and operates as a turnkey provider for institutions.

Oobit was part of Tether’s plan to maintain a market presence in the European Union following the rollout of the MiCA regulatory guidelines. Earlier this year, Oobit integrated stablecoins issued by StablR, another Tether-backed project leveraging Tether's Hadron tokenization platform.

In November, Malaysia-based technology consulting services firm VCI Global (VCIG) announced a $100 million investment in OOB tokens and plans to manage Oobit's digital treasury, in an arrangement that would make Tether a major stakeholder in VCI, it said at the time.

Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.

© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.