Dencun reduces Ethereum L2 fees, Bitcoin dips below $65k, spot Bitcoin ETFs hit record volume | Weekly Recap

Last week, Ethereum welcomed the Dencun upgrade, leading to a reduction in transaction fees across several layer-2 protocols. Bitcoin (BTC) slipped below the $65,000 mark while spot Bitcoin ETFs continued to hit new records, clinching a peak trade volume.

Ethereum welcomes Dencun

• The Dencun upgrade finally went live on the Ethereum network, marking the start of “The Spurge.” Notably, the update went live on March 13, exactly as scheduled by developers.

• Shortly after Ethereum witnessed the implementation of the upgrade, crypto.news reported a massive reduction in average transaction fees across multiple Ethereum layer-2 protocols.

• Zora saw a 99% drop in average cost to $0.003 on March 14, while Optimism recorded a 98.8% collapse to $0.035 within the same timeframe. Base also witnessed a similar decline in fees to $0.035 per transaction.

• Arbitrum’s fees remained with the same level, as the protocol decided not to implement blobs yet. Instead, they revealed plans to implement blobs through the imminent ArbOS update.

MicroStrategy augments Bitcoin bag

• Reports from the start of the week suggested that MicroStrategy had augmented its Bitcoin holdings, procuring $821 million worth of the crypto asset amid its price discovery phase.

• The broader crypto market witnessed a rollercoaster ride this week. Bitcoin began the week strong, eventually soaring to a new all-time high of $73,750 on March 14 amid intense accumulation from long-term holders and whales. 

• The rest of the market rode on the sustained uptrend, leading to a rapid spike in the global crypto market cap. Dogecoin (DOGE) also took center stage when it rallied 11% after Elon Musk’s said the asset could be leveraged as a payment method for Tesla.

• DOGE and the rest of the market fell as BTC faced intense selling pressure above the $73,000 mark. The leading crypto asset slumped to a low of $67,000 on March 15, with ITB analysts warning of a steeper correction.

• Bitcoin’s correction spilled into the next day, with the asset collapsing below $65,000 on March 16 to hit a 10-day low of $64,780. However, BTC found a floor at this price, subsequently recovering above $67,000.

• Market watchers remain optimistic. Kevin Svenson, a veteran trader, expects BTC to reach $83,000 after the halving slated for next month.

Solana, BOME buck the trend

• Solana (SOL) and its ecosystem meme tokens, including Book of Memes (BOME), continued to record massive gains despite the market-wide downtrend.

• Solana saw an impressive 10% gain in the space of 24 hours, with some of its associated meme coins, such as Jupiter (JUP) and dogwifhat (WIF) seeing rapid surges.

• Book of Memes, a new Solana-based meme coin launched on March 14, also rode on the uptrend in the Solana ecosystem. The asset spiked 345% in the 24 hours leading to March 16, and by 39,000% from March 14 to 16.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to see record figures

• The spot Bitcoin ETF market garnered significant attention this week, as the investment products sustained demand. The previous week was a success, as reports from March 11 confirmed that the crypto market saw a record $2.7 billion inflow last week. 

• Spot Bitcoin ETFs continued to break records, seeing the purchase of 14,261 Bitcoin tokens on March 12. This overshadowed the 900 BTC produced by miners that day. 

• Market specialists at Bitcoin mining firm Luxor Technology revealed that investors have pivoted from crypto mining stocks to these products. Despite the demand, Vanguard’s outgoing CEO remained bearish on the products. 

Craig Wright is not Satoshi, UK court rules

• In the COPA vs. Craig Wright case, the U.K. High Court ruled that Wright is not Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto despite his persistent claims. 

• COPA’s aim was to prevent Wright from filing further lawsuits against community figures for debunking his claims. This week, the U.K. court ruled that evidence points to the fact that Craig Wright is not Satoshi.