Top cryptocurrency prices today: Bitcoin, Dogecoin, XRP, Solana shed up to 4%

New Delhi: Major crypto tokens were trading lower on Monday after muted action during the weekend. However, the volatility in the digital asset market was not very steep and cuts in the major tokens were capped. After a volatile Friday, the crypto market had a quiet weekend as US Fed chairman Jerome Powell signalled aggressive rate hikes to tame the rising inflation. The war crisis dented the sentiments further.

Barring the dollar-pegged USD Coin, all major crypto tokens were trading lower during the early hours on Monday. XRP, Dogecoin and Avalanche tumbled 4 per cent each, followed by 3 per cent fall in Solana, Shiba Inu.

The global cryptocurrency market cap was trading almost lower at $1.81 trillion mark, with a fall of 2 per cent in the last 24 hours. However, the total cryptocurrency trading volume zoomed about 26 per cent to $68.35 billion.

What’s cooking in India?
Questioning the ‘shadow ban’ on cryptocurrencies, leading banks have asked the umbrella institution National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to spell out in a formal directive the curbs on the use of the popular money transfer tool ‘Unified Payment Interface’ to buy and sell the virtual digital assets (VDAs).

Several banks have grudgingly blocked UPI for trading of cryptos following “verbal instructions” from NPCI which operates retail payments and settlement systems in the country.

Global updates
While the nation is still under martial law, the Ukrainian central bank has prohibited residents from acquiring bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with local money, said Wazi X Trade Desk.

“As part of the new limits, Ukraine citizens can only acquire cryptocurrency in foreign money, with total monthly transactions limited to 100,000 Ukrainian hryvnias,” it added.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) price surge to as much as $69,000 last year and a range above $40,000 this year has failed to attract continual interest from retail crowds, search data from Google Trends suggests.

Ether (ETH) spot market lull has traders focusing on derivatives, with some finding options cheaper in this low implied volatility environment.

Binance, the world’s largest crypto trading exchange by volume, has recruited two former regulators to enhance its surveillance capabilities and strengthen its compliance efforts.

Polygon plans to invest $100 million in customizable “Supernet” chains, customizable networks that projects will be able to run without cost.