The US Bureau of Labour Statistics released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for February on Tuesday, which revealed that the inflation in the US economy is moving in the wrong direction.
The US CPI rose to 3.2% year-over-year (YoY) in February, hotter than the expected 3.1%. The core CPI - which excludes food and energy costs - fell to 3.8%, worse than the expected 3.7%. The annual headline inflation for February was also worse than January’s 3.1%.
More importantly, this is now the fourth straight month in which the CPI inflation data came out to be worse than the consensus economist expectations.
Crypto Prices Crash, Then Recover After Bad CPI Data
Crypto prices went topsy-turvy in the aftermath of the bad February inflation data. The Bitcoin price fell 5% to $68,800 in the hours after the CPI, only to bounce back up to hit a new all-time high of $73,600 during the Asian trading hours on Wednesday.
The recently approved spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to act as a risk proxy, absorbing any potential dips. The ETFs recorded a cumulative inflow of over $1 billion for the first time since their approval, with BlackRock’s IBIT ETF alone responsible for ~$850 million of it. More importantly, the outflows from $GBTC dropped to just $80 million on Tuesday, significantly less than the $494 million on Monday.
Crypto analysts have been quick to call the bad CPI data a “nothing burger”. James van Straten, the lead analyst at CryptoSlate, reveals that the US is currently in a “structurally higher inflationary environment” and the market does not care about the CPI. He also highlights that Bitcoin investors have chosen the “right asset to beat inflation”.
Why The Possibility of A Major Crypto Crash Cannot Be Ignored?
Analysts believe that investors would be unwise to ignore the possibility of a larger crypto crash. Last night’s temporary decline in crypto prices is a clear signal that the cryptocurrency market - as part of the broader equities market - is still somewhat dependent on the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy.
Jesse Cohen, a global markets analyst at Investing.com, reveals that the market was pricing in as many as 7 interest rate cuts from the start of 2024. However, the Minnesota Fed president Neel Kashkari stated earlier this month that “two cuts, potentially one” is ideal for 2024. Cohen believes that there is a growing chance that the Fed will not cut rates in 2024 at all.
Furthermore, Bloomberg analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart are becoming increasingly doubtful regarding the spot Ethereum ETF approval. If the SEC indeed rejects BlackRock and other issuers’ spot ETH ETF application, crypto prices will likely crash, considering that the market had previously overestimated the probability of receiving the SEC’s nod.
5 Best Altcoins To Buy The Dip
Analysts believe that any market downturn would likely be temporary as the crypto industry remains in a bull run. This can present excellent buying opportunities.
In this article, we list the 5 best altcoins to “buy the dip” in the event of a potential crypto price crash.
Solana ($SOL)
The “Ethereum Killer” token Solana is our first pick for the best altcoins to buy in the event of a price dip.
In 2023, $SOL displayed a strong tendency to rally even when the rest of the crypto market was dealing with a severe liquidity crunch. As a result, the Solana price outperformed every major cryptocurrency last year, thanks to strong ecosystem growth and partnerships with major companies such as Shopify, Visa and Circle.
Furthermore, while the Bitcoin price has hit a new all-time high and Ethereum is extremely close to doing the same, the SOL price is still over 40% below its peak and thus offers a much higher upside.
Analysts such as Jackis, who has over 122k followers, believe that the Solana price could trade as high as $600 in this bull cycle. Therefore, in the event of a price crash, investors buying the dip could earn close to 6x returns with SOL.
Smog ($SMOG)
Similar to Sol, Solana meme coins such as Smog could be excellent cryptocurrencies to buy in the event of a crypto crash.
After all, smart-money investors have been treating meme coins as beta bets on their respective blockchains, with tokens such as Bonk and Dogwifhat benefitting heavily from the SOL price rally. However, while the aforementioned meme coins already have a high valuation, Smog’s mid-cap status could lead to much higher returns.
Smog has already delivered staggering returns for the early buyers, rallying close to 27,000% in the span of just one month to hit an all-time high valuation of over $260 million. Despite a pullback in its price since, analysts believe that Smog still has a much higher upside.
The biggest reason behind their optimism is Smog’s ambitious airdrop campaign, which promises the “greatest airdrop in Solana history”, aiming to reward 10,000+ token holders.
Smog has also launched on Ethereum at a 10% discount, which also allows investors to stake their holdings and earn 42% APY.
XRP ($XRP)
XRP is another excellent altcoin to invest in during a crypto crash, especially if the SEC rejects the spot Ethereum ETFs.
There has been long-standing bad blood between the supporters of the two cryptocurrencies, with the XRP army accusing the SEC of showing favouritism towards Ethereum. Now that the XRP has gained regulatory clarity in the US - at least until the SEC decides to appeal against Ripple’s win last year - the rejection of spot ETH ETFs will further bolster XRP’s legitimacy in comparison to Ethereum.
Pro Ripple lawyer Bill Morgan believes that the odds of spot ETH ETF approval are low, likely because it does not have a legal victory like XRP. He further highlighted how the SEC has tried to distance itself from the opinions of former commissioner Bill Hinman who had previously stated that Ethereum is not a security.
XRP is still 80% below its all-time high and thus offers a high upside.
Chainlink ($LINK)
Chainlink was one of the first cryptocurrencies to start its upside move in this bull cycle. Similar to Solana, it showed a strong tendency to rally irrespective of the broader market sentiment in 2023 and is therefore one of the best altcoins to buy the dip.
$LINK remains one of the most fundamentally strong cryptocurrencies on the market, thanks to cutting-edge tech innovation and mainstream adoption in the Chainlink ecosystem.
The company's latest products such as Chainlink CCIP and Data Streams are being used by a number of Web3 projects as well as by TradFi giants such as SWIFT and the ANZ banking group.
Furthermore, the Chainlink price still has tremendous upside, considering it is 60% below its previous all-time high. The LINK/BTC chart further crystallizes this, considering that Chainlink is currently at its cycle low against BTC and could hit the $100 price point in this bull market.
Green Bitcoin ($GBTC)
New crypto coins such as Green Bitcoin that are still in their presale phase offer excellent investment opportunities during market downturn since they are not affected by short-term price action.
$GBTC has already raised close to $4 million in its ICO, with multiple fundraising rounds still remaining. The project combines the legacy of Bitcoin with the energy efficiency and eco-friendliness of Ethereum.
Green Bitcoin’s innovative staking program has also piqued the interest of several analysts. At first, investors can simply stake their $GBTC holdings and earn passive income, currently at an APY of 125%. However, the project will soon launch “Gamified Staking”, in which stakers will have a chance to earn exponential rewards by correctly predicting the Bitcoin price trend.
Considering this innovative concept and the strong demand that $GBTC has seen in its presale, investors such as Jacob Bury believe that Green Bitcoin could offer up to 10x returns.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
