Asia Crypto News: Institutional Buying Makes $3K ETH Likely, While ...
Welcome to Asia Morning Briefing, a daily summary of top stories during U.S. hours and an overview of market moves and analysis. For a detailed overview of U.S. markets, see CoinDesk's Crypto Daybook Americas.
As Asia begins its Thursday business day, ETH is trading at $2,770. ETH is up almost 11% this month, according to CoinDesk market data, outperforming BTC, which rose 5%.
Institutional Trading Demand for Ethereum
Part of ETH's recent surge could be attributed to institutional trading demand. It has overtaken BTC in derivatives markets as sophisticated investors increasingly bet on ETH’s structural growth and its role as a gateway between decentralized finance (DeFi) and traditional finance (TradFi), as mentioned by OKX Chief Commercial Officer Lennix Lai in an interview with CoinDesk.
"Ethereum is overshadowing BTC on our perpetual futures market, with ETH accounting for 45.2% of trading volume over the past week. BTC, by comparison, sits at 38.1%," Lai said.
This trend is mirrored by a similar finding on Derebit, as reported by CoinDesk. While institutions are showing interest in ETH, they have not lost interest in BTC.
Institutional Interest in Bitcoin
A recent report from Glassnode indicates that institutions are buying BTC despite its recent volatility, with long-term holders realizing significant profits during rallies.
Even with geopolitical risks and black swan events like the Trump-Musk feud, institutional conviction remains strong. ETH is seen as the preferred choice for accessing regulated DeFi, while BTC continues to benefit from long-term accumulation by institutions via ETFs.
"Macro uncertainties remain, but $3,000 ETH looks increasingly likely,” Lai concluded.
The Rise of Stablecoins
The stablecoin market has reached an all-time high of $228 billion, up 17% year-to-date, according to a new CryptoQuant report. This surge in dollar-pegged liquidity is being driven by renewed investor confidence, showcased by the blockbuster Circle IPO, rising DeFi yields, and improving U.S. regulatory clarity.
"The amount of stablecoins on centralized exchanges has also reached record high levels, supporting crypto trading liquidity," CryptoQuant reported.
CryptoQuant noted that the total value of ERC20 stablecoins on centralized exchanges has climbed to a record $50 billion, with USDC reserves on exchanges growing significantly.
Tron's Leadership in the Stablecoin Space
Tron has been a net beneficiary of the stablecoin market growth, with its fast finality and deep integrations with stablecoin issuers like Tether making it a liquidity magnet. Presto Research highlighted Tron's success in attracting stablecoin inflows, topping all other chains in May.
On the other hand, Ethereum and Solana experienced stablecoin outflows and bridge volume losses, indicating a shift in capital towards chains like Base, Solana, and Tron that offer faster execution and dynamic ecosystems.
The Intersection of AI and Crypto
In a recent a16z Crypto essay, Scott Duke Kominers discusses the role of crypto in enabling AI agents to transact, collaborate, and evolve across systems. Blockchains provide a neutral substrate for building interoperable agent economies, allowing autonomous agents to pay each other without human intervention.
Projects like Halliday, Catena, and Skyfire are leveraging crypto to facilitate interactions between AI agents, creating an open AI economy where agents can transact transparently.
The Evolving Landscape of Gaming dApps
Gaming remains the dominant category in the dApp ecosystem, but its market share has been declining. Venture funding for gaming projects saw a significant drop in May, indicating challenges in the industry.
Projects need to prioritize engaging gameplay over tokenomics and marketing to retain player interest and succeed in the Web3 gaming space.
Despite the setbacks, the industry continues to evolve, learning from past experiences and striving to build better games for players.
