This Week in Crypto: SHIB Major Move, Solana to $100, Will SEC Approve Bitcoin ETFs?

This week, the crypto sphere saw a blast in some altcoins, such as Solana. Meanwhile, Shiba Inu (SHIB) co-founder has laid out plans to move beyond the memes.

As the holiday season approaches, some altcoins have rewarded their holders. For instance, since last Friday, Worldcoin and Solana have given double-digit gains.

Meanwhile, the anticipation around the spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) continues to build up.

Bitcoin to New All-Time Highs?

On December 16, BeInCrypto reported that Jan van Eck, the CEO of VanEck, predicted that Bitcoin would hit a new all-time high by the end of 2024. He believes that Bitcoin is a store of value, similar to gold. 

Not to mention, the gold price soared by 300% after the approval of its first ETF. 

The fund manager, VanEck, has filed for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It is expected that the SEC will respond to VanEck’s filings between January 5 and January 10, 2024. However, the final deadline for the regulator is January 15, 2024. 

Read more: Top 7 Platforms To Earn Bitcoin Sign-Up Bonuses in 2024

Bitcoin’s Price After Approval of Spot Bitcoin ETF

The approval for the first spot Bitcoin ETF in the US is expected in January 2024. As a matter of fact, Bloomberg analysts believe that there is a 90% probability that the SEC would give a green signal to the spot Bitcoin ETF.

Hence, analysts are confident about Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high. But there are various other bold predictions as well.

Adam Back, the CEO of Blockstream, believes BTC could skyrocket to $100,000. Meanwhile, the on-chain analysis firm CryptoQuant told BeInCrypto that the price of Bitcoin could even surpass $160,000.

Read more: How To Prepare for a Bitcoin ETF: A Step-by-Step Approach

Decimated, Arbitrum, And Solana Attract Community Attention

According to CoinGecko data, Arbitrum and Solana have been the most viewed large-cap projects in the past 24 hours. The development comes as Solana approaches the $100 milestone, while Arbitrum surged 14% in the past 24 hours.

However, the first spot is secured by Decimated (DIO), which is a gaming project with a market capitalization of around $30 million.

Most Viewed Crypto. Source: CoinGecko

Read more: What Is GameFi?

AI Crypto Projects Receive Smart Money Interest

In 2023, AI-powered crypto has emerged as one of the most popular narratives. Institutional investors and retailers are both constantly hunting for AI gems.

Amidst these, Nansen analysts told BeInCrypto that Autonolas (OLAS) and Fetch.AI (FET) are the AI-powered projects with one of the highest smart money interests. 

As a matter of fact, 939,000 OLAS tokens were held by 14 smart money holders on November 1, 2023. However, by mid-December, 35 smart money holders held 1.87 million OLAS tokens.

OLAS Tokens Held by Smart Money. Source: Nansen

Read more: A Comprehensive Guide on Tracking Smart Money in the Crypto Market

Why Worldcoin Price Nearly Doubled During Weekends

Worldcoin (WLD) is gaining prominence as another AI-powered cryptocurrency, notably because it is a project associated with Sam Altman, the co-founder of OpenAI.

The screenshot below shows that during the past weekend, the price of WLD surged by nearly 100% to $4.84. The price skyrocketed as Altman is reportedly seeking additional funding of $50 million for Worldcoin.

However, throughout the week, the price retraced, currently trading at $3.53. On Thursday, BeInCrypto reported that Worldcoin stopped Orb verification services in India.

WLDUSDT, Daily Timeframe. Source: TradingView

Read more: What Is Worldcoin? A Guide to the Iris-Scanning Crypto Project

Shiba Inu Seeks to Focus on Real-World Utility

Shiba Inu and Dogecoin are the flagbearers of the meme coins. However, the Shiba Inu developer Shytoshi Kusama wants to move ahead of memes and focus on real-world utilities.

Shiba Inu penned down a new partnership with D3 Global to enable its community to have a unique identity. BeInCrypto explained on Wednesday:

“Once users secure a top-level domain, they could receive a .shib address. The Shiba Inu community claims their domains are distinct from long-established projects like the Ethereum Name Server system.”

As of writing, SHIB is trading at $0.00001058, up by 1.84% in the last 24 hours.

Shiba Inu Price. Source: BeInCrypto

Read more: How To Buy Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Everything You Need To Know

This Week’s Crypto Top 10

This week, the price of Solana has been up by more than 40%. As a matter of fact, it flipped XRP, claiming the 5th position on the list of cryptocurrencies with the highest market capitalization.

Earlier today, it also surpassed BNB to secure the 4th spot for a small period of time.

Top 10 Crypto Based on Market Capitalization. Source: BeInCrypto

Read more: How to Buy Solana (SOL) and Everything You Need To Know

Do you have anything to say about the biggest stories in crypto this week or anything else? Write to us or join the discussion on our Telegram channel. You can also catch us on TikTok, Facebook, or X (Twitter).

For BeInCrypto’s latest Bitcoin (BTC) analysis, click here.