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- > Bitcoin Rebounds From Sub $100k USD Move as Tensions Ease
- > Altcoin ETFs given 90%+ probability of approval by end of 2025
- > Mastercard LINKs up with blockchain to power adoption
Bitcoin Rebounds From Sub $100k USD Move as Tensions Ease
2025 feels a bit like Groundhog Day for the cryptocurrency market. It’s been a year marred by political, economic and geographical uncertainty, ranging from conflict tensions to the almost-patented Trump Tariffs.
The past week has encapsulated this sentiment to a tee.
After a month or so of consolidation among the top digital assets, fear and volatility spiked amid potential hostility between Iran and Israel. This standoff reached a breaking point when Israel launched a targeted strike and a US airstrike targeted Iranian nuclear facilities.
The looming conflict sent shockwaves through the crypto industry, with Bitcoin falling below $100k USD for the first time in over a month.
But the dip into five figures was short-lived, with institutional buyers grabbing the opportunity to lower their average buy-in price. Within hours, BTC emerged back above the $100k USD milestone.
While the conflict remains complex – and out of this newsletter’s pay grade – diplomatic solutions are reportedly being pursued between the US, Israel and Iran. According to a post from Donald Trump on his social media platform, Truth Social, leaders from the Middle Eastern nations reached out to the White House seeking an immediate ceasefire.
The hope for stability radiated throughout the global markets, with crypto quickly wiping away the losses from just days prior.
Several altcoins posted double-digit percentage gains within 24 hours, and the weekly returns for most prominent cryptocurrencies moved back to parity or, in some cases, green.
So, with the year now at half time, the market takes a moment to breathe and reflect on a first stanza defined by concern, instability, and uncertainty — with the outcome of the second half still anyone’s guess.
Altcoin ETFs given 90%+ probability of approval by end of 2025
Bloomberg has predicted that Solana, XRP and Litecoin are extremely likely to be greenlit before the year is out, with other filings also a strong chance.
Spot crypto ETFs were all the rage in 2024. Bitcoin’s exchange-traded product, in particular, smashed inflow records for a fund of its tenure.
And while BTC and ETH funds have ticked along throughout the year, noise around new, altcoin-based ETFs has barely broken past a light simmer.
However, ETF excitement may be back on the menu according to Bloomberg experts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart, who have predicted a 90% chance of major altcoin funds coming to life by the end of 2025.
The revised odds comes on the back of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ramping up communications with ETF issuers. The SEC has opened Franklin Templeton’s Solana and XRP ETF filings for public comment, inviting feedback on potential staking features and the safety of the products.
‘The Commission seeks comment on whether the proposal to list and trade Shares of the Trust, which would hold XRP, is designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices or raises any new or novel concerns not previously contemplated by the Commission.’
– The US Securities and Exchange Commission
The Bloomberg analysts assigned a 95% chance of approval for major altcoins like Solana, XRP and Litecoin, while filings for Cardano, Dogecoin and other prominent altcoins were given a 90% likelihood of coming to fruition.
If the predictions hold true, 2025 could mark a significant turning point for altcoins in the eyes of institutional investors. While regulatory hurdles remain, the groundwork is being laid for broader crypto adoption.
Mastercard LINKs up with blockchain to power adoption
Cardholders will be able to buy crypto via a decentralised exchange using a supported credit or debit card.
Over three billion people in the world have a Mastercard at their disposal.
Now, thanks to an initiative spearheaded by Mastercard and Chainlink, cardholders will be able to purchase crypto on-chain using their existing credit or debit cards.
On its own, the partnership doesn’t sound like huge news. Most modern centralised exchanges support buying digital assets via a card of some sort.
The key to the collab is the secure fiat-to-crypto onramp, which will support users buying digital currencies on decentralised exchanges (think Uniswap v3) using their Mastercard.
This could provide a major boost for adoption in the DeFi sector, simplifying the purchase process while maintaining the non-custodial benefits and typically cheaper fees of DEXs.
The front-end user experience for buying crypto on-chain with a debit/credit card will be relatively straightforward. Using the Swapper.finance interface, investors simply connect their digital wallets,, punch in the amount of crypto they want, add their cards and confirm the transaction.
However, the mechanisms powering the technology are a little more involved.
Basically, Swapper platform utilises zerohash, a Web3 infrastructure provider, to securely and quickly convert fiat into digital currency. Meanwhile, another partner, Shift4, will process the card via liquidity providers such as Uniswap.
Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) sits at the heart of the system, powering XSwap – a native DEX designed for secure cross-chain crypto transfers. XSwap is the final piece of the puzzle, seamlessly executing the token swap and delivering the purchased crypto directly to the user’s wallet.
There’s a lot happening behind the scenes in the Chainlink–Mastercard partnership, but one thing is clear: adoption remains a top priority for industry leaders, and this collaboration marks another step forward.
Ben Knight
