• Cardano’s new stablecoin Djed could prove to be a game changer.
• The development activity of Cardano increased since the start of 2023.

Ethereum [ETH] could be in for tough competition in 2023 as Cardano [ADA] investors eagerly await the launch of Djed, the first algorithmic stablecoin on the network. 

The official Twitter handle of the stablecoin had announced earlier on 14 January that the much-awaited launch will happen in January 2023. 

And yes, $Djed is still on track for launching THIS month

— Djed Stablecoin (@DjedStablecoin) January 14, 2023

In 2021, Cardano developer Input Output HK (IOHK) entered into a joint partnership with the fintech platform COTI to build and issue the network’s stablecoin, Djed. 

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Read Cardano’s [ADA] Price Prediction 2023-24

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Cardano builds up on its arsenal

As per a COTI blog, Djed is an over-collateralized algorithmic stablecoin pegged to USD. It is backed by Cardano’s native coin ADA and uses SHEN as its reserve currency, to offset the impact of ADA’s price fluctuation. 

To go with this, the developers will also roll out Djed Pay, a payment app that will allow retailers and non-profit organizations to accept Djed as a form of payment. 

Interestingly, the chief executive of COTI Group, Shahaf Bar-Geffen stated in 2021 that Djed could be used to settle transaction fees on the Cardano platform in the future. It is worth noting that no specific update has been provided on this aspect nor has anyone from Cardano confirmed this.

Will Cardano’s bullish rally continue?

Meanwhile, ADA continued its bullish run as it shook off the post-FTX gloom to record gains of about 35% since last month. At press time, the price faced resistance at 0.347 even as the trading volume dipped by 25% as per CoinMarketCap. 

The indicators suggested that the massive buying pressure which was seen last week had started to fade. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) climbed down from its highs while On Balance Volume (OBV) too recorded a similar trajectory. That said and done, the market sentiment for the coin still remained bullish. 

Well, the Development Activity has aggressively ascended since the start of 2023, reassuring the Cardano community of the network’s commitments to enhancements.

Other on-chain indicators responded positively to Djed’s launch announcement on 14 January. But since then, the activity has subsided. The frequency with which coins moved across the network dipped after hitting 3.25 on the day of the announcement.

Social buzz also cooled down after attracting a lot of traction on 14 January. 

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Unlike other volatile cryptocurrencies, stablecoins are not free-floating and hence provide stability, especially during bear markets. Stablecoin dominance, or basically their share in the crypto market hit almost 17% at the peak of last year’s great crypto crash. 

The crypto market hasn’t been propitious since the Fed’s interest rate hikes. As the fight against inflation becomes more aggressive, the financial markets bleed. Many coins are trading in the reds instead of recovering as investors expected. 

Bitcoin and other altcoins have lost their last week’s gains and are now struggling to remain at expected levels. As of September 5, the trading price for most of these assets started very low, indicating a tough week ahead. 

Related Reading: Ethereum (ETH) Struggles Ahead Of the Merge, Can Price Retest $1,900?

Apart from price loss, bitcoin’s dominance has fallen below 39%, and its market cap has remained below $380 billion. The dominance metric indicates the performance of BTC relative to altcoins. When the figure is high, it means bitcoin has outperformed the others and vice versa. 

BTC Struggles To Maintain $20K Mark 

Bitcoin prices have lost their footing on the $20K mark. The current price of the BTC stands at $19687 on TradingView. Moreover, the CoinMarketCap price for BTC shows it has lost 0.57% in 24 hours. 

Bitcoin price fluctuated between $24K and $23K from August 13 to 19. Then on August 20, the price dipped to $20K, causing a lot of panic in the market. The next day, BTC gained again to stand at $21K. It continued at that level until after the Feds meeting on August 26, which saw the crypto market in the reds again. 

By the end of that day, BTC lost more than $1k and closed the market at $20,260. The next day, the price dipped below the mark but regained it later. Unfortunately, the coin hasn’t performed well since then.

From August 27 till September 2, BTC prices struggled to maintain $20K. There have been some little rallies, but the pullbacks have been more. Bitcoin lost its footing on $20K and has been trading below the mark from September 3 to 5. 

Chainlink Token Gains Amid Price Drop 

Even though the week started badly for Bitcoin, some altcoins seem not to be affected. One such cryptocurrency is Chainlink LINK. Currently, the LINK price stands at $7.19 on many platforms, including TradingView and CoinMarketCap. 

The current price shows a 0.34% increase in 24 hours trading session. The coin fell from $8.05 on August 18 to trade between $7.04 and $7.13 on August 22 and 26. After the Feds meeting on August 26, LINK fell off the mark and remained below $7 until today, September 5, when it gained $7+ again.

Other Coin Prices and Indicators Negative  

Other altcoins are currently struggling. The effect of this bearish trend this week hasn’t helped the overall crypto market. The figure is still below $1 trillion and might remain longer if the bears keep pushing. 

Some other altcoins, such as XRP, ADA, ATOM, DOGE, XCN, BNB, AVAX, MATIC, and others, are continuing in price losses. For instance, Ripple has lost 1.16%, while ADA lost 1.31%. ATOM is down by 0.08%, while DOGE has lost 1.25% already. 

Related Reading: Cradles’ New SIN System Allows You To Earn By Staking Into NFTs Of Elite Players

The price moves are not encouraging for now. But some coins are also gaining, indicating that price swings from the red to greens are still possible. For instance, Ethereum lost its footing on $1500 early today but gained 1.87% to stand at $1,582.13.

Featured image from Pixabay and chart from TradingView.com