Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile following President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again 25% tariffs on imports.
Bitcoin (BTC) dipped below $83,000 on Tuesday, March 4 when the tariffs went into effect; by Thursday, certain tariffs were suspended or delayed and Bitcoin bounced back above $90,000.
On Sunday, it dipped below $83,000 again and is down 11.8% over the past seven days. Ethereum (ETH), meanwhile, is hovering above $2,000 and is down 18.2% over the same timeframe.
As we head into a new week, crypto.news chose to spotlight three altcoins: Arbitrum (ARB), Flare (FLR), and Pi Network (PI)
Arbitrum
Arbitrum has been in a strong downward trend for about two years. In 2023, it peaked at $2.4253 and became the second-biggest layer-2 blockchain in the industry.
It eventually dropped to a record low of $0.312.
Why did it crash? Arbitrum is a highly dilutive cryptocurrency. It has a circulating supply of 4.41 billion against a total supply of 10 billion coins. It releases 479,068 new tokens each day, and this week, it will unlock 93.2 million. These unlocks will go on until April 2027.
Arbitrum token has been in a steep downward trend in the past few days, and has just dropped below the key support at $0.4310. It has remained below the 50-day moving average, while the Relative Strength Index has drifted downwards.
Therefore, the token will likely keep falling ahead and after the token unlock. If this happens, the next ARB price level to watch will be at $0.25.
Arbitrum was developed by Offchain Labs, a New York-based company founded by Steven Goldfeder, Ed Felten, and Harry Kalodner.
Flare
Flare is another top cryptocurrency to watch as it unlocks tokens worth $28.16 million, equivalent to 2.90% of those in circulation. It has already unlocked about 68% of all tokens in circulation.
Flare token has retreated from a high of $0.03840 on December 3 to $0.01575, its lowest level since Nov. 15.
It has crashed below the 50-day moving average. On the positive side, it has formed a falling wedge pattern whose two lines are about to converge. Therefore, there is a likelihood that the Flare price will bounce back, and possibly retest the 50-day moving average at $0.0220.
Flare was developed by Flare Networks, founded by Hugo Philion, Sean Rowan, and Francisco Riordan. The Its blockchain aims to enable smart contracts and interoperability with non-smart-contract networks like Bitcoin and XRP.
The token plays multiple roles within the ecosystem, including governance, where holders can vote on network proposals, and participation in the Flare Time Series Oracle, a decentralized oracle system where users can earn rewards.
Additionally, FLR can be used as collateral within decentralized finance (DeFi) applications and to pay for transaction fees on the network.
Pi Network
Pi Network, the popular tap-to-earn token, has crashed in the past few days, reaching a low of $1.3960, its lowest level since February 2023. This decline happened after it emerged that Pi would unlock over 1.4 billion tokens this year.
Pi coin price has dropped below the key support at $1.5337, the neckline of a head and shoulders pattern. It has also formed a small bearish pennant pattern and moved slightly below the 50-period weighted moving average.
Technicals suggest that the value of Pi will continue falling as sellers target the psychological point at $1.00.
The other top cryptocurrencies to watch this week will be Aptos, Perpetual Protocol, and Apecoin, which will unlock millions of tokens. Mainstream coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP will also be in focus this week as traders watch their price action after remaining in a tight range for weeks.
On the positive side, a potential listing by top exchanges like Binance and Coinbase may provide some relief.
Pi Network was created by Stanford graduates Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis, Dr. Chengdiao Fan, and initially Vincent McPhillip.
