Cryptocurrency thrives on chaos, but keen observation reveals patterns and signals for spotting opportunities.

Cryptocurrency is a riddle wrapped in hype. It’s a market that loves chaos, where every spike and dip feels like the start of something big or the end of everything. To outsiders, it’s a game of chance. To those who study it, who watch for patterns and listen to the whispers beneath the noise, it’s something more deliberate. The market moves in signals. The trick is knowing how to read them.

Crypto trends aren’t about crystal balls or insider tips; it’s about observation and interpretation. Someone doesn’t have to be a programmer or a trader to spot opportunities. What they need is focus. Patterns emerge for those who care to look closely enough.

The patterns

Cryptocurrency doesn’t move randomly, no matter how wild the charts look. There’s a beat to the chaos, driven by technology, investor sentiment and broader economic forces. Knowing the beat is key to trends.

Look at the basics: price movements, trading volume, market capitalization. These aren’t just numbers; they’re signals. A surge in trading volume might mean growing interest in a project. A sudden dip could mean a sell-off due to bad news or profit taking.

And then there’s Bitcoin, the market’s constant pulse. Keeping an eye on Bitcoin price trends is non-negotiable — it’s the base layer. When Bitcoin moves, it often takes other coins with it, pulling the whole market up or down in its wake. Study how it behaves in different market conditions. Watch how altcoins react to its movements. These patterns don’t just happen; they’re a reflection of the global investor sentiment.

Get to know the ecosystem

The cryptocurrency world isn’t a monolith. Bitcoin is the flagship, yes, but thousands of other coins — Ethereum, Solana and a sea of altcoins — each bring something different to the table. Some are for privacy, some for speed, some for building platforms other developers can use.

Start here: learn the language of the ecosystem. Know which projects matter and why. Bitcoin sets the tone for the market—its influence on price trends is unmatched — but it’s not the only one shaping sentiment. Ethereum for example, drives the conversation around smart contracts and decentralized finance. Keep an eye on how these projects evolve and how they react to the market.

Knowing the players isn’t about memorizing a list of coins. It’s about learning their stories. Why were they created? What problems are they trying to solve? And most importantly, are they delivering on their promises?

In crypto, the chatter is everything. Twitter and Reddit aren’t just where people talk about trends — they’re where trends start. A single tweet can send a coin to the moon or to zero. But navigating this noise is an art.

Look beyond the hype. Who’s behind the chatter? Influential voices in the crypto space — devs, analysts, and a few high-profile investors—set the tone. If they’re talking about a project, there’s a reason.

But don’t take everything at face value. Social media is a playground for hyperbole and false promises. Use it as a tool to spot themes, not as the only source of truth. Combine what people see online with real data and their own research.

The Macro

The crypto market doesn’t exist in a bubble. It’s tied to tech, regulation, and global events in ways that aren’t always immediately apparent. Watching cryptocurrency trends means watching what’s happening outside the bubble.

When governments announce new regulations, the market listens. When a big company adopts blockchain or accepts Bitcoin, it creates waves. And when economic uncertainty looms, crypto becomes a topic of conversation as people look for alternatives to traditional investments.

Stay curious. Read widely. And remember, trends aren’t just about what’s happening now — they’re about where the world is going.

Finding the signals

Not all trends are worth following. The crypto market is full of noise — meme coins and overhyped projects promising the moon. The trick is to know how to filter out the noise from the signals.

Start with consistency. Is there real work happening behind the scenes or is the chatter just speculation? Projects with strong teams, clear goals and transparent operations tend to stand out. They may not get the same hype as a new shiny coin but they’re often more reliable in the long term.

Be cautious of sudden moves. Price spikes are exciting but often followed by sharp declines. Ask what’s driving the movement.

There are plenty of tools to track cryptocurrency trends. Market trackers, portfolio apps and even blockchain explorers can help someone make sense of it all. Try a few and find what works.

The best tools don’t just show numbers; they help understand them. Look for platforms that visualize the data in a way that’s easy to read. And don’t be afraid to switch it up as needs change. The crypto market changes fast, and so do the tools that are used too.

Senator Elizabeth Warren, ranking member of the House Banking Committee, is asking federal agencies to investigate whether President Donald Trump’s recent launch of a meme coin violated ethical or regulatory standards.

The Massachusetts lawmaker, alongside Representative Jake Auchincloss, directed the request to the heads of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), the Treasury Department, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Concern Over TRUMP, MELANIA

In a letter dated January 22, the Democratic legislators shared their unease over the launch of the Official Trump (TRUMP) and Melania Meme (MELANIA) tokens. According to them, the cryptocurrencies allowed the head of state to earn “extraordinary profits” using his position.

They noted that the President’s family business and affiliates hold 80% of the TRUMP meme coin’s supply, and his net worth shot up by at least several billion USD as the coin’s value rose last weekend.

Warren and Auchincloss also highlighted that anyone, including foreign leaders, could secretly use the cryptocurrency to gain influence over Trump.

“Anyone, including the leaders of hostile nations, can covertly buy these coins, raising the specter of uninhibited and untraceable foreign influence over the President of the United States,” the letter read.

Further, they pointed out that meme coins are infamous for rug pulls and scams, suggesting that Trump and his associates could dump their holdings, make lots of money, and crash the coin’s price. They also emphasized how the terms of the two tokens purport to indemnify them from fraud-related claims, meaning buyers may not be able to sue or join class action lawsuits against their issuers. This, in the legislators’ opinion, made TRUMP and MELANIA “ripe for market manipulation.”

The Senator and the Congressman also observed a possible conflict of interest: the President could directly benefit from selling crypto while also being in a position to appoint the people responsible for crafting policies to regulate the digital asset sector.

“He will be in a position to seek commitments from agency heads, to not only decide how the market is valued, but to implement lax policies to crack down on crypto scams like pump-and-dump schemes that are regularly conducted through meme coins,” the two claimed.

Questions for Regulators

Warren and Auchincloss concluded their missive with several questions for the government agencies addressed, including one to the OGE, about whether it was aware of any other president-elect who launched a business hours before taking office. They also wanted to know if there were any ethics rules the President and First Lady could be subjected to regarding their meme coin holdings.

From the Treasury, the legislators wanted to know if U.S. corruption laws prevent foreign actors from buying cryptocurrencies like those issued by Trump and whether there is a way to track and identify people or entities that buy the coins.

The SEC and CFTC, which recently got interim heads, were also put on the spot and asked if they had any authority to handle “threats posed by meme coins.” Additionally, the Democratic politicians wanted to know whether the agencies would investigate investor complaints against the TRUMP and MELANIA tokens. All queries are expected to be answered by February 4.

From Trump to Melania, we now have the Ivanka Trump coin. The crypto industry is going full-throttle on Trump mania, but at least one family member isn’t happy with the latest development, particularly the release of the $IVANKA coin.

Related Reading

In a post on Twitter/X, Ivanka Trump blasted the news of the new crypto project, calling it a “fake crypto coin” currently being promoted without her consent. The presidential daughter stated that she’s not connected with the project and is currently working with her legal team over the unauthorized use of her name in marketing the crypto.

This isn’t the first time a Trump-themed coin became available in the market. Just days before taking office, Trump advertised a meme coin, followed by the launch of the $MELANIA coin.

Ivanka Publicly Denies Any Link With $IVANKA Crypto Project

On Thursday, the presidential daughter publicly denied any links to a new crypto meme coin that’s marketed under her name. In a Twitter/X post that has generated over 1.2 million impressions, Ivanka issued a strong warning and reminder to consumers against this suspicious crypto project.

It has come to my attention that a fake crypto coin called “Ivanka Trump” or “$IVANKA” is being promoted without my consent or approval.

To be clear: I have no involvement with this coin. This fake coin risks deceiving consumers and defrauding them of their hard-earned money,…

— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) January 23, 2025

Ivanka shared that she had no connection with the project and criticized the developers for using her likeness and name without approval, calling it a violation of her rights. She added that her legal team is taking this issue seriously and plans to sue over misuse of identity.

The presidential daughter added that the crypto project is not just unacceptable but also deceptive and exploitative. Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, held important positions in the first Trump administration. However, the couple seems to enjoy their time on the sidelines.

Controversy Swirls Around The New Coin Releases

Trump-themed meme coins are some of the most popularly traded tokens in the market today. However, their release and marketing were controversial. On January 17th, US President Donald Trump launched the Official Trump token on the Solana blockchain. Then, after two days, the First Lady also announced her coin, the “Melania Coin”, supported by the Solana blockchain.

President Trump used Truth Social to announce his crypto coin, encouraging the community to join the celebration and the special Trump Community. Days after its launch, the Trump token hit an all-time high of $75, pushing the project’s market cap to $15 billion.

However, the enthusiasm on Trump’s coin immediately fizzled, trading at the $37 level, reflecting a 50% drop. Also, the Melania meme coin suffered the same fate, plunging by 80%, and it’s now trading at $2.8.

Related Reading

Trump Continues Pro-Crypto Stance

Before the November elections, Trump indicated his intention to support Bitcoin and crypto projects. He promised a favorable crypto environment and outlined specific plans, including replacing SEC Chair Gary Gensler and supporting a Bitcoin reserve.

On January 23rd, Trump issued his first crypto regulation, banning the creation and issuance of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

Featured image from Tobias Hase/Picture Alliance/Getty Images, chart from TradingView

An investigation in the U.S. House of Representatives and a hearing in the Senate will examine whether financial regulators during the administration of former President Joe Biden deliberately cut off crypto industry leaders and others from the banking system in an inappropriate use of authority.

“Debanking is un-American — every legal business deserves to be treated the same regardless of their political beliefs,” said Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott, a South Carolina Republican who took over the gavel earlier this month and has scheduled a February 5 hearing on debanking. “Unfortunately, under Operation Chokepoint 2.0, Biden regulators abused their power and forced financial institutions to cut off services to digital asset firms, political figures, and conservative-aligned businesses and individuals.”

Operation Chokepoint 2.0 is the name Republican lawmakers and the digital assets industry have been using for the systemic severing of crypto insiders from U.S. banks, in reference to an earlier era’s Operation Chokepoint — a government-sanctioned effort to reduce risk in banking by encouraging the lenders to back away from legal but otherwise risky businesses.

Delving into the struggle of crypto executives and businesses to maintain banking relationships, the House Oversight Committee is “investigating whether this debanking practice originates from the financial institutions themselves or from either implicit or explicit pressure from government regulators,” according to a letter the committee chairman, Representative James Comer, sent on Friday to founders and CEOs of several crypto companies and organizations, including Coinbase, Lightswap and Uniswap Labs.

The challenge of pinning the lack of banking options entirely on the government is that some financial institutions may have made decisions based on their own risk appetites or business plans that deliberately steered clear of crypto interests. And banking regulators such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency were public in their guidance that regulated banks seeking to do crypto business would face restrictions and additional scrutiny from the agencies.

However, a Coinbase pursuit of private FDIC communications with banks demonstrated that the agency directed them to stop pursuing digital assets services until the regulator had specific rules in place, which it wasn’t developing.

“We are grateful to assist in the thorough investigation of this pernicious practice,” said Kristin Smith, CEO of the Blockchain Association, which also received the House committee’s letter probing the trend.

Meanwhile, congressional Democrats have been focusing their own investigation requests on President Donald Trump’s recently launched meme coin, $TRUMP. He’s been accused of using the presidency to rack up billions of dollars, and they cite the token as a potential risk for dangerous conflicts of interest.

The council of one of Britain’s most famous cities is drawing up plans to charge residents a 200 per cent council tax bill in effort to generate more revenue for the local authority.

Oxford City Council has approved plans to double council tax charges on second homes in a move aimed at making the city “a fairer place to live” in a move than will impact hundreds of households.

Oxford City Council is preparing to hike council tax on second homes

Advertisement

GETTY

The council had initially planned to implement the charge from April 2024, following its initial approval in February 2023.

However, these plans faced a setback in late December 2023 when council officers received guidance from the Government.

This delay came after officials were informed they needed to provide affected homeowners with 12 months’ notice following the legislation’s royal assent.

Advertisement

As a result, this requirement pushed the implementation date back to April 2025, as the legislation did not receive royal assent until October 2023.

Council tax bills are expected to go up this year

GETTY

Speaking after the committee’s approval, Oxford City Council’s deputy leader Ed Turner emphasised the fairness aspect of the new measure.

“We really want to make Oxford a fairer place to live,” he said. Turner added: “If people have a second home in Oxford, it’s only right that they make an appropriate contribution for local services.”

Advertisement

The deputy leader also highlighted the council’s eagerness to implement the charges, stating: “We need this money, and I think we will be charging from the first moment that we legally can.”

Oxford is not the only local authority floating raising council taxes on specific types of property owners.

Wandsworth Borough Council, where residents are known for paying the lowest council tax in the country, are preparing to target foreign investors who are buying London properties and leaving them vacant.

As of April 1, the Labour-run council will charge a 100 per cent council tax premium on homes which have not been lived in for 12 months.

Advertisement

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

Wandsworth is one of the wealthier boroughs in London but is looking to raise more council tax revenue

GETTY

Property owners who do not reside in the property for five years will have to pay 200 per cent more, while those who not live in the home for five years will be charged a 300 per cent penalty.

Those who are second home owners, who have furnished their property despite it not being their primary residence, will be hit with a double council tax bill.

Advertisement

Under previous tax rules, a property in Wandsworth needed to be empty for two years before being hit with a 100 per cent council tax rate.

GB News has contacted Oxford City Council for comment.