And Ethereum Hits A New High! 🏆

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Welcome to the first-ever CMC Crypto Awards. In the spirit of the Oscars—albeit with a Crypto twist—this annual online event, running Feb 21st to Mar 6th, honors the exceptional people, products, and projects shaping Crypto and Web 3. The CMC Crypto Awards will recognize outstanding achievements across eight categories, including Crypto of the Year, Most Innovative DeFi Project, and Crypto Leader Of The Year. Watch the official CMC Crypto Awards trailer now to learn more. [Watch Now](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0RJaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9ldmVudHMvY21jLWNyeXB0by1hd2FyZHMtMjAyNC8_bGlkPXRsa2NiY2dnaGIyalcDc3BjQgpl1cDg1WUQuPl-Uht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAxw~) Check our website and social media for daily nominee announcements until March 3rd. Winners will be decided based on CMC data, expert committee opinions, and public votes. [Calendar March 6th] Save the date: March 6th to see who won at the Awards Ceremony live on [CMC](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0RJaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9ldmVudHMvY21jLWNyeXB0by1hd2FyZHMtMjAyNC8_bGlkPWp3ZHhldXlua2ZkalcDc3BjQgpl1cDg1WUQuPl-Uht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAxw~) and YouTube   Let’s jump to our daily news recap! So what’s new in crypto today? Well, Ethereum powered back above $3,000 this week for the first time since last April 2022 - that’s 22 months! While prices have settled around $2,900 at the time of writing, the momentum shows growing confidence in Ethereum's future due to the highly anticipated ETF approval. There seems to be an air of optimism across crypto more broadly too. Bitcoin is just 61 days away from its next halving, which has historically marked the start of its exponential bull runs. With so much anticipation building in the market, let's dive into today’s top crypto stories! Here’s what we we got for you today: - Ethereum goes up 📈 - USDC abandons Tron network due to regular risk reviews ⚠️ - StarkNet token launch distribution causes controversy 💸 - A sudden 14x volume spike in Bitcoin ETF trading puzzles analysts 🤔 - Avalanche prepares for a major token-unlocking event 🗝️ Now let's dig deeper into each of these headlines...   [Globe Icon] GLOBAL CRYPTO MARKET CAP 1.95T ▼0.63% (24H) [24H Icon] 24H CRYPTO MARKET VOLUME $91.36B ▲31.1% (24H) [Bitcoin Icon] BITCOIN’S DOMINANCE 51.73% ▼0.02% (24H) FEAR & GREED INDEX [Fear & Greed Index] [ALL CRYPTO PRICES/DATA »](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0QraHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS8_bGlkPWt2OWJpZHM1d2R1MlcDc3BjQgpl1cDg1WUQuPl-Uht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAxw~) [TRENDING CRYPTO »](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0RFaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS90cmVuZGluZy1jcnlwdG9jdXJyZW5jaWVzLz9saWQ9aDUyZG9ncGI0aWFxVwNzcGNCCmXVwODVZRC4-X5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkyQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAADHA~~) [NEW LISTINGS ON CMC »](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0QvaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9uZXcvP2xpZD11cnhzbnBuOG03NDdXA3NwY0IKZdXA4NVlELj5flIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTJAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAMc) [TRENDING DEX PAIRS »](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0RAaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9kZXhzY2FuL3RyZW5kaW5nL2FsbC8_bGlkPXc3MjlkZzIwOHdhYlcDc3BjQgpl1cDg1WUQuPl-Uht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAxw~) Data as of: 21 Feb 2024 10 AM UTC Ethereum Hits $3,000 Ethereum broke back above $3,000 this week for the first time since April 2022, capping a red-hot 30% surge year-to-date. The recent rally builds on blossoming institutional investment interest as expectations build for regulatory approval of ETFs directly backed by Ethereum's token later this year. Analysts eye $3,500 as the next target if the momentum continues as more mainstream investors embrace direct exposure to the asset powering one of the world's most used blockchains. But what’s the probability of Ethereum ETFs getting approved? And when is the final deadline for the decision? [Read the full story](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0RxaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9hY2FkZW15L2FydGljbGUvZXRoLXJlYWNoZXMtZG9sbGFyMzAwMC1mb3ItZmlyc3QtdGltZS1zaW5jZS1hcHJpbC0yMDIyP2xpZD1nbGIza2phcWVzdmFXA3NwY0IKZdXA4NVlELj5flIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTJAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAMc)!   USDC Abandons Tron A leading stablecoin is leaving the Tron blockchain network as part of ongoing efforts to ensure reliability and trust. Citing regular risk assessments, Circle announced it will stop minting new USD Coin (USDC) on Tron while continuing to support asset transfers until 2025. The move allows business users time to migrate holdings through available crypto services and exchanges. However retail holders face more immediate impacts from the severed ties. What exact reasons did Circle give for this decision? [Read the full story](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0R6aHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9hY2FkZW15L2FydGljbGUvc3RhYmxlY29pbi1pc3N1ZXItY2lyY2xlLXdpbGwtc3RvcC1taW50aW5nLXVzZGMtb24tdHJvbi1uZXR3b3JrP2xpZD1ra3A2d2htd252N2xXA3NwY0IKZdXA4NVlELj5flIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTJAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAMc)!   Token Airdrops Amid Distribution Controversy A hotly anticipated Ethereum scaling startup airdropped over $700 million worth of governance tokens yesterday, immediately igniting controversy around allocation. While the token launch attracted intense early interest, critics accused StarkNet of disproportionately favoring speculative traders over committed community builders in its distribution model. Address analysis showed potentially hundreds of thousands of duplicate wallets tied to "airdrop hunters" exploiting criteria for maximized personal gain rather than ecosystem participation. Did StarkNet respond to this criticism? Are they going to launch more airdrops to incentivize contributors? [Read the full story](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0R4aHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9hY2FkZW15L2FydGljbGUvc3RhcmtuZXQtYWlyZHJvcHMtdG9rZW4tZGVzcGl0ZS1jb250cm92ZXJzaWVzLW92ZXItYWxsb2NhdGlvbj9saWQ9YmtscXk3dm1lOXhsVwNzcGNCCmXVwODVZRC4-X5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkyQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAADHA~~)!   Bitcoin ETF Volume Goes Up Out of Nowhere Financial analysts are confused about an overnight mystery explosion in trading activity for VanEck’s spot Bitcoin ETF this week. Rather than a concentrated whale splurge, the volume suddenly spiked on over 32,000 separate retail investor transactions - dwarfing the average daily trade count sixty-fold. The wave of interest drove fund volume to over $250 million a day, up a staggering 14x from the previous session, without any obvious news or events explaining the surge. What are the speculations? Did other Bitcoin ETFs experience the same surge? [Read the full story](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0SUaHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9hY2FkZW15L2FydGljbGUvdmFuZWNrLWJpdGNvaW4tZXRmLXNhdy1kb2xsYXIyNThtLWluLXRyYWRpbmctdm9sdW1lLXVwLTE0LXRpbWVzLWZyb20tcHJldmlvdXMtdHJhZGluZy1kYXk_bGlkPXkzYXBscHV2NnVsMVcDc3BjQgpl1cDg1WUQuPl-Uht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAxw~)!   Avalanche Token Slips The native Avalanche token dipped this week leading up to a significant unlocking event set to flood millions in new supply into circulation. On Thursday, backers and developers will gain access to 9.5 million previously locked Avalanche tokens worth over $350 million at current prices. The token faces its first major unlock test after rallying last quarter but remains well below previous all-time highs. Will AVAX experience a continuous price slump after the unlock? [Read the full story](~/AAQRxQA~/RgRnuGXAP0R1aHR0cHM6Ly9jb2lubWFya2V0Y2FwLmNvbS9hY2FkZW15L2FydGljbGUvYXZhbGFuY2hlLWF2YXgtZGlwcy1haGVhZC1vZi10b2tlbi11bmxvY2std29ydGgtZG9sbGFyMzY1bT9saWQ9aXM5azVxajc0dnV5VwNzcGNCCmXVwODVZRC4-X5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkyQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAADHA~~)!   And that wraps up today's top stories and latest developments. 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