If you are a crypto enthusiast, you know that this market is never boring. There is always something happening, whether it is good, bad, or just plain weird. This week was no exception, as we witnessed some of the most dramatic events in the crypto space.
First, we had Litecoin (LTC), the silver to Bitcoin’s gold, that got a huge boost from a fake news story. On Monday, Litecoin’s official Twitter account posted that Walmart, the giant retailer, had teamed up with Litecoin to accept the coin as a payment option. This was huge news, as it would mean that millions of customers could use Litecoin to buy anything from groceries to electronics. The price of Litecoin skyrocketed by more than 30% in minutes, reaching a high of $237. But then, the plot twist: the news was a hoax, a clever prank by someone who wanted to manipulate the market. Walmart denied any such partnership, and Litecoin deleted the tweet. The price of Litecoin plummeted back to its previous levels, leaving many investors feeling betrayed and furious.
Then, we had Arbitrum, a layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum that promises to make it faster and cheaper. Arbitrum launched its mainnet beta on August 31, and it was a big hit. Many decentralized applications (DApps) and protocols migrated to Arbitrum, bringing a lot of liquidity and activity to the network. But then, the glitch: on Tuesday, Arbitrum suffered a network outage that lasted for about 45 minutes, causing some DApps to stop working. The Arbitrum team explained that the outage was caused by a bug in their sequencer service, which they fixed and deployed. They assured users that no funds were lost or at risk, and that the network was now stable and secure.
Finally, we had Shibie, a new meme coin that emerged and raised $200,000 in just a few days. The coin is a fusion of Shiba Inu and Barbie, two popular cultural icons. Shibie claims to be the “cutest and most fashionable meme coin ever”, and it has a pink and purple logo that looks like a Barbie doll with a Shiba Inu head. Shibie launched its presale on Friday, with a target of $500,000 and a price of $0.0001 per token. The presale is expected to end in 72 hours or less, as the coin has already attracted a lot of interest from meme coin lovers. Shibie plans to list on major decentralized exchanges (DEXs) after the presale, and to use the funds for marketing, development, and charity.
The crypto market is always full of surprises and opportunities, and this week was no exception. While some coins faced challenges and controversies, others managed to capture the attention and imagination of the crypto community. Whether these coins will maintain their momentum or fade away remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the meme coin craze is not over yet.