In last week’s piece, we examined ongoing adoption in the Ethereum network. This week, we’ll take a look at how that adoption has paid off with the growth now seen in DeFi prices as well as Ethereum network users.

DeFi Begins Price Recovery

The latest crypto crash exasperated much of the DeFi and Ethereum community, triggered as it was by tweets and regulatory news related to Bitcoin. While ETH price fell from its all-time high of over $4,646, fundamentals remained stronger than ever with ongoing developments in DeFi and the Ethereum network itself. 

The crash led many to comment that price is somewhat unconnected to network progress, one assumption being that ETH is currently undervalued.

However, DeFi is inching its way back up the charts, with SNX token soaring 22% today on renewed interest in the Synthetix protocol which allows users to mint real-world and crypto assets as DeFi tokens. 

SNX is now up 44% this week overall, while Balancer has risen 53.2%. Aave is up 35.9% and Maker by 29.2%, painting a positive picture of a swift price recovery for major DeFi projects. Aave Pro, a liquidity protocol aimed towards major financial institutions, will launch this month.

Compound, meanwhile, has risen 64% following the news that it would launch a Treasury account guaranteeing a 4% APR (the cost of borrowing money).

We're proud to announce Compound Treasury, designed for businesses and financial institutions to access the benefits of the Compound protocol.

The idea is simple: a fixed 4% APR on US dollars, with daily liquidity and none of the complexity of crypto.https://t.co/l8ih8IzrHh

— Compound Labs (@compoundfinance) June 28, 2021

The APR on US dollars outperforms typical centralized financial offerings of a similar nature, and the fact that the APR will remain fixed should appeal to many new users put off by the changeable nature of flexible APRs for other DeFi investment products.

Interestingly, Coinbase is now offering a 4% APY (the return for lending money) on staked USDC, meaning crypto users now have access to a 4% fixed rate of lending and borrowing from major, trusted sources.

🤩4.0% APY on USDC!🤩

USD Coin is a safe and secure stablecoin that's backed by the US dollar. Soon, eligible users will be able to earn 4.0% APY on their USDC, which is pretty great if we say so ourselves.

Pre-enroll now → https://t.co/Sl1KrMlEeL pic.twitter.com/5ns3ekwQ2Z

— Coinbase News (@CoinbaseNews) June 29, 2021

Of course, lending and borrowing rates from other protocols, while subject to change, are often even higher than this.

Institutional Interest is Building

JP Morgan commented recently on the massive potential for the Ethereum network’s use case in staking, stating that Ethereum could quadruple the industry’s value.

"We estimate that staking is currently a $9bn business for the crypto economy, will grow to $20bn following the Ethereum merge, and could get to $40bn by 2025 should proof-of-work grow to the dominant protocol." – JPMorgan equity research pic.twitter.com/VgzIia8cLv

— SantΞago R Santos (@santiagoroel) July 3, 2021

Senior JP Morgan analysts issued a report estimating that the crypto staking industry is currently worth $9 billion, and that the upcoming Ethereum merge will bring that value to $20 billion. “We could get to $40 billion should proof-of-work grow to the dominant protocol.”

The report commented on the rapid growth in the proof-of-stake ecosystem as more tokens begin to follow the more energy-friendly method of consensus.

“Staking makes the crypto ecosystem more attractive as an asset class. We think staking will make the cryptocurrency marketplace increasingly attractive relative to other asset classes, yield-generating or not,” stated the analysts.

Price Overview

ETH price looks set to climb as it continues to consolidate above $2,000. A rally to around $2,400 could be in progress with ETH ranging between . After bouncing off a support level formed at $2,045 over the weekend, Ethereum appears to be targeting the resistance level at $2,460, with subsequent supply barriers at $2,552 and $2,640.

If ETH falls below $2,045, buying pressure will be considered weak and a drop below $2,000 is then likely, with support levels then at $1,804 and $1,728.

Ethereum price seems to be done with its retracement after bouncing off a support barrier at $2,045. #ETH #ETHEREUM pic.twitter.com/Hn7y8Hxzj1

— Elena R (@elena_rcrypto) July 3, 2021

Ethereum surpassed Bitcoin in the number of daily active addresses for the first time ever over the weekend, a major milestone that may indicate the long-awaited changeover of market dominance from BTC to ETH some day soon.                  

Events Roundup

The];  New York Family Office & High Net Worth Blockchain Conference takes place on July 06, with conversation “dedicated to the world of Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, Non-Fungible Tokens ( NFT), and Decentralized Finance (Defi) as well as the investment opportunities, and risks involved.” Speakers include Francis Suarez, mayor of Miami, as well as Chronicled CEO Susanne Sommerville, senior Bloomberg commodity strategist Mike McGlone, Statistica Capital founder Samuel Kalt, and more.
The Blockchain and Internet of Things Conference will take place on July 08 in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. The event will feature a variety of academic speakers from the University of Southampton Malaysia, Nanyang Technological University, Feng Chia University, the University of Salamanca, and Japan’s Waseda University.