Cryptocurrencies To Watch: Week of January 9

Keep an Eye on These Coins

Is the crypto market on the verge of breaking out of the doldrums? That’s not certain, but the asset class looks healthier than last week. Most cryptocurrencies are above where they were last week, with green across the board. However, there’s no guarantee that the tokens will continue upward. What is notable is that a handful of assets clearly outperformed the market last week.

This week we examine Solana (SOL), Ethereum Classic (ETC), The Graph (GRT), Optimism (OP), Decentraland (MANA), and Ethereum (ETH). In selecting these assets, we have considered several factors, including, but not limited to, positive technical developments, significant news events, and noticeable changes in price.

Key Takeaways

  • The price of Solana (SOL) increased by a massive 45% in the past week as a result of the Solana-based BONK token becoming popular.
  • Ethereum Classic (ETC) saw its token increase by 30% in the past seven days after a favorable turnaround in the network’s hashrate.
  • The Graph (GRT) experienced a 22% increase in the past week after news of its ecosystem’s expansion and the number of indexers increased.
  • The Optimism (OP) token went up by over 35% in a week as a result of bullish sentiment related to its rollups.
  • Decentraland’s MANA token increased by approximately 29% in the past seven days, thanks to an increased interest in gaming and metaverse tokens, as well as it is represented in CME’s new reference rates.
  • Ethereum (ETH) also saw a sizable jump of 10% over the week, thanks to the upcoming Shanghai upgrade.

Solana (SOL)

Solana (SOL) was one of the biggest gainers in the past seven days, with the coin increasing by about 45%. This was partly due to the fact that the Solana-based meme coin, BONK, took the crypto community storm, with its own valuation increasing by 1000% in the last week.Solana’s active user base also increased significantly over the week. The number of daily active wallets increased by 3x from pre-FTX levels.

The Solona blockchain network made news last week due to its efforts to rebuild itself after the collapse of FTX. The Solana Foundation, which holds approximately 3.24 million shares of FTX Trading LTD common stock, along with about 3.43 million FTT tokens and 134.54 million SRM tokens from the decentralized exchange (DEX), Project Serum, is now trying to move forward without Sam Bankman-Fried’s help.

Solana is currently priced at around $16.55 after having started last week at $11.30.


Solona (TradingView).

Ethereum Classic (ETC)

Ethereum Classic (ETC) saw its price increase by 30% after a critical change in the hash rate of the network. In simple terms, the hash rate refers to how fast a crypto mining machine works.

Currently, Ethereum Classic’s hash rate is 107.58 TH/s, up nearly 10% from its December 2022 low. A faster mining speed means more transactions on the network, and therefore more profitability.

ETC is currently trading for around $21.26.


Ethereum Classic (TradingView).

The Graph (GRT)

The Graph (GRT) saw its token increase by 22% in price as a result of an increase in the number of projects working on the network. It also saw a rise in the number of indexers, which likely also contributed to the price growth. The token is now priced at around $0.07.

There are currently over 600 decentralized apps, or DApps, on The Graph, while there are over 300 indexers. Together, this helps boost the ecosystem and increases usability.


The Graph (TradingView).

Optimism (OP)

Optimism’s OP token increased by 35% as a result of all the positive sentiment surrounding the rollup technology. The Layer 2 scaling solution is one of the most well-known projects implementing the rollup technology. Through these scaling solutions, blockchain networks are made faster and more secure. 

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin also provided some details on rollup scaling, which no doubt added brought some attention to Optimism. It is among those scaling projects which will have an eventful 2023. The OP token is currently valued at around $1.31.


Optimism (TradingView).

Decentraland (MANA)

Metaverses and blockchain-based gaming remain on the radar of investors, and Decentraland’s MANA token is a strong beneficiary of the revival in this niche. The token went up by 29% consequently.

The CME Group revealed that it would add reference rates and real-time indexes for metaverse crypto assets, with Decentraland being one of them. This might be primarily the reason why the MANA token shot up in value. The token started last week at $0.31. It is currently priced at around $0.40.


Decentraland (TradingView).

Ethereum (ETH)

The market’s second largest token, Ether, saw its price increase by 10% as the network is about to experience its Shanghai upgrade. The latter will be a major shift for Ethereum, as it will allow staked tokens to be unstaked.

Ethereum introduced staking when it switched to the proof-of-stake consensus mechanism last year. However, those who staked could not unlock their tokens until the Shanghai upgrade was introduced. This major upgrade will change that and mark another major moment in Ethereum’s history. ETH started last week at $1,216. It is now hovering at around $1,322.


Ethereum (TradingView).

Investing in cryptocurrencies and other initial coin offerings (ICOs) is highly risky and speculative, and this article is not a recommendation by Investopedia or the writer to invest in cryptocurrencies or other ICOs. Because each individual’s situation is unique, a qualified professional should always be consulted before making any financial decisions. Investopedia makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy or timeliness of the information contained herein. As of the date when this article was written, the author does not own the cryptocurrencies mentioned above.


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