Ethereum Merge, the crypto world’s most-awaited event this year, was officially completed on September 15. However, despite general expectations that the Merge will result in a boost in crypto prices, the actual situation turned out to be otherwise. Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s oldest and most valued crypto coin, dipped below the $20,000 mark, while Ethereum (ETH) dipped below the $1,500 mark on Friday morning. Other popular coins, including the likes of Dogecoin (DOGE), Ripple (XRP), and Litecoin (LTC), saw themselves in the reds. Among lesser-known altcoins, the Golem (GLM) token emerged to be the biggest gainer with a gain of over 16 percent in the last 24 hours.
At the time of writing, the global crypto market cap stood at $962 billion, marking a 2.42 percent dip in the last 24 hours, as per CoinMarketCap data.
Bitcoin (BTC) price today
As per CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin saw a 24-hour loss of 1.15 percent, priced at $19,787.55. As per Indian exchange WazirX, BTC price stood at Rs 16.90 lakhs.
Ethereum (ETH) price today
ETH price stood at $1,476.58, marking a 24-hour dip of 7.59 percent at the time of writing. As per WazirX, Ethereum price in India stood at Rs 1.26 lakhs.
Dogecoin (DOGE) price today
DOGE registered a 24-hour loss of 1.20 percent as per CoinMarketCap data, currently priced at $0.05971. As per WazirX, Dogecoin price in India stood at Rs 5.01.
Litecoin (LTC) price today
Litecoin saw a 24-hour dip of 4.95 percent. At the time of writing, it was priced at $56.16. LTC price in India stood at Rs 4,649.10.
Ripple (XRP) price today
XRP price stood at $0.3289, seeing a 24-hour loss of 2.12 percent. As per WazirX, Ripple price stood at Rs 27.62.
Solana (SOL) price today
Solana price stood at $32.96, marking a 24-hour loss of 0.18 percent. As per WazirX, SOL price in India stood at Rs 2,857.93.
Top crypto gainers today (September 16)
As per CoinMarketCap data, here are the top five crypto gainers over the past 24 hours:
Golem (GLM)
Price: $0.3503
24-hour gain: 16.42 percent
Chiliz (CHZ)
Price: $0.1979
24-hour gain: 8.56 percent
Terra Classic (LUNC)
Price: $0.000287
24-hour gain: 5.82 percent
Kyber Network Crystal v2 (KNC)
Price: $2.00
24-hour gain: 5.50 percent
Quant (QNT)
Price: $102.35
24-hour gain: 5.18 percent
Top crypto losers today (September 16)
As per CoinMarketCap data, here are the top five crypto losers over the past 24 hours:
Ravencoin (RVN)
Price: $0.05554
24-hour loss: 10.44 percent
Celsius (CEL)
Price: $1.76
24-hour loss: 8.25 percent
Gnossis (GNO)
Price: $139.33
24-hour loss: 8.24 percent
Ethereum (ETH)
Price: $1,469.39
24-hour loss: 8.11 percent
UNUS SED LEO (LEO)
Price: $4.86
24-hour loss: 5.65 percent
What crypto exchanges are saying about the current market scenario
Mudrex co-founder and CEO Edul Patel told ABP Live, “Bitcoin, Ethereum, and most cryptocurrencies dropped on Thursday. The sentiment around cryptos remains bearish as market participants look for clues about the pace of interest rate hikes. BTC dipped below its vital support at $20,000 level for the first time since September 8. If BTC breaks below its current level, its next support will be $19,500. While the immediate resistance now lies at $20,475. On the other hand, Ethereum slipped below the $1,500 level despite the Merge being a resounding success transitioning from PoW to PoS. ETH’s next primary support level is $1,400, while the immediate resistance is $1,500. If ETH fails to hold these levels, we may see ETH test the $1,300 level again.”
Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO and co-founder of Unocoin said, “The bearishness of the market continued on Thursday as well, as more than 90 percent of the top 100 coins and tokens were in the red zone. The highlight of the day was Ethereum, which lost approximately 7 percent in just 24 hours, though the coin did see some gains in the first half of the day with around 3 percent. And some part of it is because of people anticipating there could be a split of the chain after the activity merge and that due to that split, people will be able to get extra free tokens. However, after the merge, the signs of split are minimal even though it is not completely out of chance yet. The particular price increase that happened because of this fact that it may happen is getting nullified making the ether token lose some value. Some international exchanges are already selling the IOU split tokens and its price has ranged between $35 and $100 over the day. The effect of this merger was seen with other ERC tokens as well with a fall in prices on an average of 1 percent to 4 percent. By the upcoming week, it’ll become much clear how the investors and miners will take this merger and how will it affect the global crypto market. Investors should continue to be cautious that the split may happen after a few days as well.”
weTrade founder Prashant Kumar offered his take on the market scenario as well, “A day after completing the historic Merge, Ethereum during Asia trading hours on Friday morning saw a decline that is indicative of the market reacting to the ‘sell-the-news’ rumours that have been doing the rounds. The cryptocurrency has seen a sharp fall of 9.4 percent in the past 24 hours taking its price to approximately $1,500. Interestingly, there has also been a steep increase in trading volumes which show that prices of the cryptocurrency could recover soon. Meanwhile, on account of the Merge and rising inflation rates, Bitcoin once again fell below its resistance level of $20,000 on Friday.”
Disclaimer: Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions. Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is subject to market risks. Readers are advised to seek expert advice and read offer document(s) along with related important literature on the subject carefully before making any kind of investment whatsoever. Cryptocurrency market predictions are speculative and any investment made shall be at the sole cost and risk of the readers.