A crypto insider made over $1.68 million of realized profits in 15 days, trading in the Solana (SOL) ecosystem. The cryptocurrency trader spent 23 SOL, worth $3,300, to buy two meme coins and sold all his positions for 11,229 SOL, valued at above $1.69 million.

Notably, Lookonchain classified this trader as a crypto insider, considering the purchases were immediately after the tokens’ liquidity pools launch. The platform reported this recent accomplishment in a post on X on June 22, tracking on-chain data from multiple addresses. 

How did the crypto insider make over $1.68 million in profits trading two meme coins on Solana?

Overall, this crypto insider used 7.1 SOL and 16 SOL to buy HULK and GUNIT, respectively. 

First, multiple addresses acquired 190.2 million HULK with $1,200 worth of Solana and held them through 15 days. These addresses sold the entire position for 5,760.7 SOL, worth $974,200—an 810x gain over the initial investment.

For GUNIT, the insider spent 16 SOL, worth $2,100, to buy 366.92 million of the crypto. Eight hours later, the meme coin token experienced a massive surge, and the trader sold all his stack. This trade resulted in 5,475.5 SOL, worth $719,800, for a 343x increase in his holdings.

Later, the insider consolidated his profits in the crypto wallet address ‘4uh969’. From the now-acquired 11,229 SOL, the address sent 3,070 SOL to a Kraken address, likely to realize this profit in fiat.

The dangers of insiders and crypto traders speculating on meme coins

This is another example of how crypto insiders often take advantage of retail by creating and launching meme coins and money-grab schemes. They benefit from information asymmetry and the hype of a market that insists on gambling with poor fundamental digital assets.

This mentality aligns with the “Greater Fool Theory,” which suggests that profits can be made by buying overvalued assets and selling them to a “greater fool.”

Cryptocurrencies are inherently volatile and present considerable risks for traders, investors, and users, even with solid and usable projects. However, trading meme coins adds another layer of risks that will often drain money from many to a few insiders.

For this reason, investors should avoid these schemes and look for a cryptocurrency‘s fundamentals, cautiously researching supply and demand properties. Recent data reported by Finbold suggests the trend is shifting away from meme coins and into better-fundamented projects.

Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.

The cryptocurrency market witnessed severe bearish pressure over the past week, and the price of Chainlink (LINK) wasn’t an exception. The altcoin has continued to struggle with its torrid form, losing nearly 10% of its value in the last seven days.

Interestingly, the bears seem to still be in control at the moment, with the latest on-chain revelation suggesting that there might be further downside for the LINK price over the next few days.

Are Chainlink Investors Offloading Their Assets?

Popular crypto analyst Ali Martinez revealed in a post on the X platform that huge amounts of the Chainlink token have made their way to centralized exchanges in the past day. This on-chain observation is based on Santiment’s “Supply on Exchanges” metric, which tracks the amount of a particular cryptocurrency being held on centralized exchanges.

Related Reading

When this metric’s value increases, it implies that investors are making more deposits than withdrawals of a cryptocurrency (Chainlink, in this case) into centralized exchanges. A decrease in the metric’s value, on the other hand, indicates that holders are moving their coins out of the trading platforms.

According to data from Santiment, more than 18.77 million LINK (worth roughly $256.2 million) were transferred to cryptocurrency exchanges in the past day. This substantial transfer represents one of the largest single-day movements for the Chainlink token in recent months. 

Interestingly, a report from SpotOnChain revealed that 21 million tokens were unlocked from Chainlink’s non-circulating supply contracts on Friday, June 21. Specifically, the contract transferred 2.25 LINK tokens were sent to the multi-sig wallet 0xD50f

More notably, 18.25 million LINK tokens were sent to Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. This significant token unlock presents a case of supply inflation, which can impact the value of the token especially if a sell-off occurs.

Moreover, these fund movements can precipitate an increase in market volatility and possibly lead to price fluctuations. Given the magnitude and destination of these transfers, there is a greater likelihood of increased selling pressure, which can drive down the price of LINK. 

Is A Return To $12 On The Cards?

As of this writing, the price of Chainlink is barely holding above $13.6, having declined by more than 3% in the past day. Meanwhile, the altcoin slumped 9% from about $15 to $13.5 over the past week, according to data from CoinGecko.

If the recent selling pressure continues, then further decline might be on the horizon for LINK’s price. This could see the cryptocurrency make a return to around the $12 price zone for the first time in more than a month.

Related Reading

Nevertheless, the Chainlink token ranks amongst the top 20 largest cryptocurrencies in the sector, with a market capitalization of over $8.27 billion.

Featured image from Binance Academy, chart from TradingView

• USDT now dominates over 40% of cryptocurrency transactions in Latin America, surpassing Bitcoin in regional popularity.
• Inflation and currency devaluation drive Latin American traders towards stablecoins, seen as more stable than volatile Bitcoin.

A recent study by research firm Kaiko highlights a significant shift in the cryptocurrency landscape of Latin America. The report indicates that USDT, a stablecoin, now accounts for over 40% of all cryptocurrency transactions in the region, surpassing Bitcoin, which has long dominated the market.

The findings suggest a decreased interest in Bitcoin alongside a surge in trading with stablecoins. This trend marks a notable change, as Bitcoin has been the preferred digital currency in Latin America for many years. The study attributes the start of this shift to as early as 2023.

This preference for stablecoins over Bitcoin is thought to be influenced by the ongoing inflation issues in the region. Historically, inflation has driven the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Latin America. Traders now seem to prefer stablecoins as they are viewed as a more stable mechanism against the devaluation of local currencies.

Inflation has historically been a major driver of cryptocurrency adoption in Latin America, which may explain merchant preferences for certain tokens and which now impacts the use of stablecoins.

Kaiko Report.

According to Kaiko’s report, the trading pairs involving stablecoins to fiat currencies represented 63% of the transaction volume in the last six months. The preferred stablecoins are those pegged to the US dollar, reflecting their use in transactions involving local fiat currencies like the Mexican peso (MXN), Colombian peso (COP), Argentine peso (ARS), and Brazilian real (BRL), you can read more about it in Crypto News Flash.

“BTC gained more than 100% against the Argentine peso (ARS) and more than 70% against the Brazilian real (BRL) between January and May, outperforming other fiat-denominated pairs in those months,” Kaiko notes.

The report also highlights the significant appreciation of Bitcoin against local currencies in 2024. For example, Bitcoin gained more than 100% against the Argentine peso and over 70% against the Brazilian real between January and May. 

This appreciation has made Bitcoin relatively more expensive, shifting some traders’ preferences towards more stable investments like USDT and XRP, particularly in Mexico following political changes led by the election of Claudia Sheinbaum as president.

Despite the rise in stablecoin popularity, Bitcoin continues to hold value as a potential hedge against economic instability, providing an alternative for those in precarious financial situations. This is reinforced by the global increase in trust in Bitcoin, particularly after the approval of Bitcoin ETFs in the United States, a development that resonates in the Latin American market as well, you can read more about it in Crypto News Flash.