Solana Will Face A Pivotal Moment In May – Bear Market Bounce Or Bull Market Dip?

Ripple remains trapped within a tight range between its 100-day and 200-day moving averages, signaling an imminent breakout. The direction of this breakout will be crucial in determining the cryptocurrency’s next major trend.XRP Analysis

By ShayanThe Daily Chart

Following a rebound from the crucial 200-day moving average at $1.7, Ripple (XRP) has entered a low-volatility consolidation phase, trading within a very tight range. This range is defined by the dynamic 100-day and 200-day moving averages, currently positioned at $2.4 and $1.9, respectively, reflecting market indecision.

Notably, the 100-day MA at $2.4 aligns with the upper boundary of a prolonged descending wedge pattern. A confirmed breakout above this level could mark a significant bullish shift, potentially initiating a fresh upward leg toward higher resistance zones.

On the lower timeframe, XRP has recently invalidated a breakout attempt above its prior swing high at $2.2, forming what appears to be a bull trap. This has led to continued sideways price action, signaling an ongoing equilibrium between buyers and sellers.

A decisive breakout above the $2.2 line would establish a new higher high and likely confirm a bullish market structure shift. This would set the stage for a rally toward the $2.5 resistance, which corresponds with the upper boundary of the descending wedge.

Conversely, if Ripple fails to overcome this key boundary, a retracement toward the critical $1.7 support zone becomes increasingly probable.

Bitcoin has signaled notable bullish strength by breaking above both the 100 and 200-day moving averages at $90K. However, as the price approaches the critical $100K psychological threshold, a temporary consolidation phase is expected before any further breakout.Technical Analysis

By ShayanThe Daily Chart

Bitcoin has recently notched a strong bullish signal, staging a major market shift driven by substantial buying pressure. This rally has propelled the price above a critical resistance zone, reclaiming both the 100 and 200-day moving averages at $90K — a key indication of buyers’ dominance.

Currently, BTC is approaching the psychological $100K threshold, a major resistance likely filled with significant supply. As a result, a temporary consolidation around this level is expected before any potential breakout occurs. A decisive move above $100K would likely pave the way toward retesting the all-time high (ATH).

On the lower timeframe, Bitcoin confirmed its bullish momentum after breaking above the descending channel’s upper boundary at $84K. This breakout triggered an impulsive surge, pushing the price past the critical $90K resistance level, highlighting strong buyer commitment.

Now, the asset is nearing the crucial $100K psychological resistance, which also aligns with a major previous swing high. If buyers succeed in breaching this barrier, the road to Bitcoin’s ATH could reopen. Conversely, failure to break above may lead to a short-term consolidation below $100K before the next significant move.

By Shayan

After Bitcoin completed its corrections and initiated recoveries in October 2023 and September 2024, Binance Futures funding rates notably turned deeply negative during the early stages of each rally. This recurring pattern highlights a persistent lack of investor confidence during sharp declines or prolonged consolidations.

In contrast, during strong Bitcoin rallies, FOMO-driven traders aggressively deployed leverage to open long positions, causing funding rates to spike sharply. This often signaled overheated conditions and triggered subsequent corrective pullbacks.

Currently, Bitcoin has surged more than 28% off its recent low. Following this rally, the funding rates have, with a delay, experienced a significant upward shift, signaling a renewed influx of leveraged long positioning.

Considering the historical behavior during the previous two major recoveries, current sentiment dynamics, and price structure strongly suggest that Bitcoin is well-positioned to break through its previous all-time highs in the near term.

Bitcoin has entered an important zone in recent days, with the $94,500 price area standing out as an increasingly important battleground for its short-term trajectory. Although the leading cryptocurrency has made several attempts to clear this region during its latest rally, it has faced repeated rejections, highlighting the presence of strong resistance.

Despite these setbacks, on-chain data indicates significant whale accumulation noted on crypto exchanges, hinting that the bullish undercurrent is still strong as Bitcoin looks to end April 2025 on a postive close.

Heavy Resistance Cluster Between $94,125 And $99,150

According to crypto analyst Ali Martinez, who shared insights from on-chain analytics platform IntoTheBlock, Bitcoin is encountering heavy resistance between the $94,125 and $99,150 price range.

Notably, his post on social media platform X shows that approximately 2.61 million wallet addresses have accumulated about 1.76 million BTC within this zone, making it one of the densest supply barriers Bitcoin has faced in its current market cycle.

As shown in the chart below, about 1.26 million addresses hold close to 843,000 BTC between $94,125 and $96,582, while another 1.35 million addresses are clustered between $96,582 and $99,146, holding roughly 917,000 BTC. This concentration of holders creates a formidable wall that Bitcoin must breach decisively if it is to continue its upward march into the next month.

A strong and decisive daily or weekly close above $96,600 could invalidate the overhead resistance here, placing the next target zone at $99,150. Ultimately, the buying momentum here would clear the path for the Bitcoin price to finally target $100,000 and beyond again.

Conversely, repeated failures at this zone could cause a retest of lower support levels around $93,000 and $84,000, which also have significant volumes of 678,000 BTC and 759,150 BTC, respectively.

Image From X: ali_charts

Bitcoin’s Bullish Structure Still Intact

Even as the $94,000 to $99,000 resistance zone poses a near-term challenge, technical patterns suggest that Bitcoin’s rally is just beginning. Another prominent crypto analyst, known as Titan of Crypto, reaffirmed that Bitcoin’s long-term price target of around $125,000 is still valid.

This target is derived from a massive Inverse Head and Shoulders (H&S) pattern identified on the Bitcoin monthly candlestick chart.

Image From X: Titan of Crypto

The chart shows a clear breakout above the neckline of the Inverse H&S formation earlier this year when Bitcoin pushed to its current all-time high around $108,790. Since then, the price action has been followed by a retest that is holding firm above a support trendline on the monthly timeframe.

According to the analyst, this technical structure shows that Bitcoin is well-positioned to rebound and reach a new all-time high of $125,000 very soon. Of course, this timeline will also depend on whether the current support zone around $85,000 to $87,000 holds steady.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $94,147

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

What is crypto price manipulation?

When a coin moons out of nowhere and then crashes just as fast — it is rarely pure market magic.

Cryptocurrency price manipulation is the dark art of bending the market to your will. It is when insiders or coordinated groups inflate or crash a coin’s price, not through real demand, but through smoke and mirrors. They might fake volume, spread hype, trigger fear, or pull sudden sell-offs — all to trap unsuspecting traders and walk away with the profits.

In traditional finance, this kind of behavior gets you fined or jailed. But what about in the world of crypto? It often flies under the radar. With light regulations and heavy emotions in play, the digital asset market has become a playground for manipulators, especially where liquidity is low and oversight is weaker.

Here’s the classic playbook:

• Manipulators create fake demand or fear
• The price spikes or crashes based on emotional reactions from other traders
• The manipulators sell or buy at the right moment
• The rest of the market suffers the consequences.

The most common crypto market manipulation tactics

Scammers don’t need magic — they just need market psychology and a few tricks.

As the digital asset landscape expands, criminals have honed various crypto price manipulation tactics. Each tactic capitalizes on the market’s volatility and traders’ fear of missing out (FOMO). Let’s break down the most used:

• Pump-and-dump: This scheme starts with a coordinated group quietly buying a low-cap token. They then ignite hype through influencers, fake news or viral posts to drive the price up rapidly. As retail investors rush in, the group sells at the top — causing the price to crash. Latecomers are left holding devalued tokens, having bought into the illusion of explosive growth.

• Whale moves: Whales — wallets holding large amounts of crypto – can shift market trends with a single trade. Their massive buy or sell orders influence price direction and trigger emotional responses from smaller traders. Many follow the whale’s lead, thinking they know something others don’t, which compounds the volatility. Some whales use this effect strategically to buy low and sell high.
• Wash trading: This usually involves a single user who buys and sells the same token to themselves to artificially inflate trading volume. This creates a false sense of activity and demand, misleading investors into thinking the project is more legitimate or liquid than it really is. It’s especially common on unregulated exchanges and can help tokens climb rankings on tracking platforms.
• Spoofing and layering: In spoofing, manipulators place large fake orders to buy or sell without intending to execute them. This gives the illusion of strong market interest and influences price action. Layering uses multiple fake orders at different price levels to amplify the effect. Once real traders react, the fake orders are removed and the manipulator takes profit, leaving others chasing phantom momentum.

Behind the scenes: Advanced crypto price manipulation tactics

Not all crypto price manipulation is obvious. Some of it is deeply technical — or done in silence.

Beyond basic scams, cybercriminals use more complex tactics to manipulate and sway the market.

• Bots manipulating crypto prices: High-frequency trading bots can front-run trades, spoof orders, or simulate volume — all faster than any human.
• Insider trading in crypto: When someone trades on non-public info (like a token listing or partnership), it gives them an unfair edge. And yes — it happens.
• Oracle manipulation: Hackers sometimes exploit oracles — the tools that feed price data into decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. Faking a price feed can drain liquidity pools or trick smart contracts.

Why manipulation works: Psychology over logic

In crypto, emotion moves faster than reason — and scammers know it.

Even experienced traders fall for manipulation because it plays on powerful instincts. Because the market moves fast, decisions are often made in the heat of the moment — on gut feeling, not deep analysis. And manipulators are experts at pressing the right emotional buttons.

Greed is the oldest trick in the book. Everyone wants to catch the next 100x gem, and scammers know how to dress up trash as treasure. A few flashy tweets, a celebrity shoutout and, suddenly, a random coin looks like the ticket to financial freedom.

Fear is just as powerful. One big red candle can trigger a chain reaction of panic selling. Manipulators use this to buy back cheap, while everyone else scrambles to exit.

FOMO is the final piece. When traders see others making big gains, logic goes out the window. Instead of researching, they ape in, hoping not to be left behind.

These emotions are hardwired. They’re faster than logic, and in crypto, speed is everything. Manipulators don’t need to hack wallets or break code — they just hack human behavior. Stir up just the right storm of excitement or dread, and the market plays right into their hands.

Did you know? The infamous Squid Game Token soared tens of thousands of percent before crashing to zero. It was a textbook rug pull — but the hype was too loud for many to resist.

What crypto price manipulation does to the market

One scam doesn’t just hurt victims — it damages the entire ecosystem.

Crypto price manipulation doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Every fake pump, every engineered crash, every orchestrated scam chips away at the foundation of the entire crypto ecosystem: trust.

When retail traders — especially newcomers — get caught in a pump-and-dump or a whale-induced panic, the damage runs deeper than a single bad trade. Many walk away for good, disillusioned and angry, taking their money and optimism with them. The promise of open, decentralized finance starts to look like just another casino — rigged and unforgiving.

And it doesn’t stop there. High-profile cryptocurrency frauds and price manipulation scandals light up the radar of regulators worldwide. Each incident becomes a case study in why crypto “needs to be tamed.” That means stricter rules, more compliance hoops and an overall slowdown in innovation. The free-spirited, experimental energy that drives crypto forward starts to feel boxed in.

Meanwhile, legit projects — those building real utility, transparency and long-term value — struggle to rise above the noise. Scam tokens dominate the charts. Shady influencers flood timelines. The signal gets buried under waves of hype and deception.

In the end, crypto price manipulation doesn’t just hurt individual investors. It poisons the well for everyone — developers, communities and the future of the space itself.

Did you know? The memecoin craze has pulled in not just investors — but celebrities, too. From hyped tokens to sudden rug pulls, in 2024, several celeb-backed crypto projects have gone off the rails, blurring the line between fame and fraud.

How to protect yourself from crypto manipulation

You can’t control the market — but you can avoid its traps.

Here are practical steps to avoid falling for crypto scams and manipulation:

• DYOR (Do Your Own Research): Don’t rely on TikTok tips or Telegram groups. Look into the token’s team, roadmap, use case and trading history.
• Watch trading volume: Sudden spikes or weirdly low volume can signal wash trading or a setup for manipulation.
• Monitor whale activity: Use tools like Whale Alert or blockchain explorers to spot big wallet movements.
• Use trusted platforms: Stick to exchanges that actively monitor for illegal crypto trading tactics like spoofing and wash trading.
• Keep learning: Stay up to date on the latest tactics and red flags. Knowledge is your best defense.

The push for safer crypto markets

The good news? The crypto world is fighting back.

The crypto universe might still feel like the digital frontier, but it is no longer a lawless land. Across the ecosystem, the good guys — builders, platforms and policymakers — are stepping in to make the space more transparent, resilient and secure for users.

Crypto exchanges are starting to unleash AI-powered surveillance tools designed to spot shady behavior in real time. Wash trading? Spoofing? Pump-and-dump groups? These algorithms are already trained to catch the tricks before they catch you.

On the DeFi side, protocols are stepping up with on-chain governance and transparency upgrades. Communities can now vote on key actions, track wallet movements, and call out suspicious patterns — all out in the open.

And regulators? They are finally moving from the sidelines to the rulebook. New legislation is targeting insider trading, fake promotions and market abuse, bringing long-overdue accountability to crypto’s fast lanes.

Is the system foolproof yet? Far from it. But every smart contract, policy update and AI model pushing back against manipulation is a win for the space.

So, if crypto scams thrive in the dark, knowledge is your flashlight. If a token’s mooning with no clear reason, pause. If something does not feel right, it probably is not. Trust your gut, not the hype. Because in the end, staying informed is your best defense — and your smartest investment.

United States President Donald Trump recently said that federal income taxes would be "substantially reduced" or potentially eliminated once the tariff regime fully sets in.

In an April 27 Truth Social post, Trump added that the focus of the purported tax cuts would be on individuals making less than $200,000 per year.

The US President also said that the "External Revenue Service" — a reference to funding the federal government exclusively through import tariffs instead of the current model of collecting taxes through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) — is materializing.

Eliminating the federal income tax would likely be a positive catalyst for asset prices, including cryptocurrencies, as the increase in disposable income should partially flow back into productive investments. However, this stimulative effect is not guaranteed.

Trump’s plan leaves analysts and markets doubting

Trump previously floated the idea of eliminating the federal income tax in an October 2024 appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience, although Trump, who was on the campaign trail at the time, provided scant concrete details on the proposal.

The US President suggested that replacing the federal income tax with revenue from import duties would return the US to a time of prosperity seen during the Gilded Age, in the 19th century, when the US did not have a permanent federal income tax.

Research conducted by accounting automation company Dancing Numbers found that Trump's proposal could save the average American $134,809 in lifetime tax payments.

Dancing Numbers added that the tax savings could be as much as $325,561 per American if other wage-based income taxes are also eliminated.

On April 2, Trump signed an executive order imposing sweeping tariffs on all US trading partners, which included a 10% baseline tariff on all countries and different "reciprocal" tariff rates on countries with import duties on US goods.

However, since that time, the Trump administration walked back its tariff policies several times, flip-flopping on tariff rates and when the tariff regime would fully take effect.

The Trump administration's ever-changing rhetoric surrounding trade policies has heightened volatility in the US stock market, caused a rise in US bond yields, and has drawn widespread criticism from financial analysts who say the protectionist trade policies hurt capital markets while achieving little else.