Altcoins are popping off this week, showing that Bitcoin isn’t the only token set to rocket higher in the new crypto bull market.
In the past week, $XRP is up 30% and $XLM is up 133%—with a 59% gain recorded in the last 24 hours alone.
With big moves already on the books, traders are wondering if there is gas left in the tank for these coins or whether there are better candidates to buy for altcoin season. We’ll take a closer look at $XRP and $XLM, plus highlight 3 emerging altcoins that could be next to explode.
XRP and XLM React to Gensler Resignation with Massive Pumps
The main catalyst driving gains in both $XRP and $XLM this week is the announcement that SEC Chair Gary Gensler will resign his post on January 20, clearing the way for President-elect Trump to nominate a new chair.
Gensler has long been public enemy #1 for the crypto industry, and he picked a massive legal fight with Ripple, the company behind $XRP. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghous reacted to the news with a cheer.
So did $XRP investors. Gensler’s resignation paves the way for the SEC to drop its lawsuit against Ripple altogether, especially since Trump has promised his administration will be the most crypto-friendly in history.
That could open the door to financial institutions picking up $XRP for cross-border payments—the purpose the token was originally created for—and generating huge demand as a result.
Investors are betting on a tsunami of institutional demand for $XRP, which is why the token’s price has rocketed more than 175% since the election.
$XLM, the native token of the Stellar blockchain, hasn’t faced the same legal issues as Ripple, but it’s long been in the crosshairs of the SEC. That’s held the token back from major listings on US exchanges and made investors wary of picking up $XLM, lest it be labeled an unregistered security.
That black cloud of doubt is gone now, and $XLM’s price is reacting accordingly. The price jumped 59% today, while trading volume more than doubled to $9.8 billion.
The exuberance around $XRP and $XLM isn’t likely to fade soon. They’ll get another catalyst when Gensler leaves the SEC on January 20th. They could also pump higher on any crypto-focused announcement from President Trump in the days after he takes office.
Plus, technical analysis for both tokens suggests there are more gains ahead. One analyst set a $8-$13 price target for $XRP based on a breakout from key Fibonacci retracement levels.
That’s a potential gain of up to 780% from today’s price.
3 Emerging Altcoins to Watch: Pepe Unchained, Crypto All-Stars, Best Wallet
While $XRP and $XLM have strong momentum behind them, it’s important to keep in mind that these are already mega-cap tokens. $XRP is the 6th-largest crypto, with an $83 billion market cap. $XLM is the 14th-largest crypto, with a $15 billion market cap.
So, the upside potential for either of these tokens is ultimately limited, no matter how impressive their gains in this bull run.
That’s not the case, however, for emerging cryptocurrencies with small market caps. These tokens could be the next $DOGE or $PEPE, offering potential gains of 1,000x or more for investors who pick the right token at the right time.
One such token that crypto investors won’t want to miss is Pepe Unchained. This new project is building an Ethereum Layer-2 devoted entirely to meme coin development and trading. It’s raised more than $40 million in a presale that ends in just 19 days, and prominent crypto analysts have called it ‘the greatest ICO of 2024.’
Pepe Unchained’s $PEPU token is crucial to launching and trading new meme coins on the project’s Layer-2 network, so it could be one of the biggest winners of the meme coin supercycle.
Another token to watch is Crypto All-Stars, another project that’s combining meme virality with much-needed utility. This project is building a one-of-a-kind Meme Vault, which will offer staking rewards to investors in $DOGE, $SHIB, $PEPE, and dozens of other top meme coins.
Rewards will be paid out in $STARS tokens, and the project is incentivizing investors to hold $STARS by offering them 3x rewards for staking it.
Crypto All-Stars has raised more than $5 million in its ongoing presale. Investors have to hurry to join—the presale ends in less than a month.
As altcoin values rip higher, secure token storage is more important than ever. That’s why we’re also watching the new $BEST token launch from leading Web3 wallet Best Wallet.
Token holders not only get access to Best Wallet’s ultra-secure wallet technology, but also discounts on trading using Best Wallet’s DEX and exclusive early access to new token presales.
Best Wallet is fast approaching $1 million raised, so investors need to hurry to lock in the best price.
