Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. 

The S&P 500 extended its rally with a nine-day winning streak, its longest since 2004, as optimism over potential trade deals and upcoming Fed and earnings updates lifted sentiment. Gold rose to $3,245 on trade uncertainty and Fed rate cut hopes. CoinDesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, fell 1.50% in the past 24 hours, while Bitcoin and Ether dropped 0.10% and 0.51%, respectively. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is AI16Z, which surged 7.0% after Bonsai's smart media protocol integrated with Eliza to empower agent-driven social content creation.

elizaOS (AI16Z), launched in October 2024, formerly ai16z, is a Solana-based DApp that uses a DAO and an AI agent, "Marc AIndreessen," to manage community-driven investments in tech and crypto projects. 

, lets developers create agent-driven social media scripts and templates using ElizaOS plugins. The Bonsai Client, its first implementation, enables easy deployment of these smart media agents on platforms like Lens. Builders can explore these tools and compete for prizes in the Lens Spring Hackathon.

Check out the latest prices, charts, and data of 

Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. Despite muted ETF flows and neutral derivatives sentiment, ETH’s dominance remains unshaken—boasting $64B in TVL, dwarfing Solana, BNB Chain, and Tron combined. With fresh momentum from the recent pectra upgrades and Trump distancing from rival altcoins, all eyes are now on a potential push toward $2,700. 

BTC spot ETFs saw $920.9M in net inflows this week, driven by $1.09B into non-GBTC funds despite $171.5M outflows from GBTC. Since inception, total net inflows stand at $41.1B.

 are now live and claimable as a small bonus for users farming the upcoming Aster (AST) airdrop. By depositing BNB to mint asBNB, users can start earning points toward both the main airdrop and future ecosystem rewards. Optional perp trading can boost points further, but simply holding asBNB is enough to qualify.

Beginner

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Ethereum outperforms with a 20% rally as fresh capital flows in and undervaluation signals flash

Our monthly report delves into insights from options volatility to inspire your next crypto move.

: April 2025 saw BTC's implied volatility surge above 75% due to tariff chaos, but it collapsed to 35% within a week, indicating a surprising short-term drop in volatility expectations despite ongoing macro uncertainty.

: BTC's return above $100K was met with muted enthusiasm in the derivatives market, suggesting that 

traders no longer view this level as a significant psychological barrier, and the rally isn’t likely to be sustained.

: ETH significantly outperformed BTC with a 23% rally, leading to increased demand for short-dated calls and a positive shift in the options market, highlighting renewed bullish sentiment.

: Historical trends suggest a potential summer lull in volatility in store for BTC, raising questions about whether this pattern will repeat in 2025 amidst ongoing macroeconomic challenges.

Bitcoin’s volatility plunges in late April

April 2025 witnessed significant volatility in the cryptocurrency market, particularly influenced by US trade policies. As President Trump announced steep reciprocal tariffs, the crypto landscape experienced sharp fluctuations. Bitcoin (BTC) initially demonstrated resilience, despite widespread sell-offs in equities and the US dollar, only to succumb to a decline from $88K to $75K by early April. This period was characterized by a dramatic rise in implied volatility that peaked above 75% as traders sought protection through short-dated puts. However, as the tariffs faced moderation, implied volatility plummeted to 35% by mid-April, marking the lowest level since early March.

Interestingly, while short-tenor volatility collapsed, 

the back end of BTC's term structure remained elevated, signaling that market participants expect heightened volatility in the mid-term

. Amidst this backdrop, realized volatility fell below the five-year seasonal average, paralleling similar trends in previous years and suggesting a 

. The historical pattern contrasts that BTC often experiences a rebound in volatility heading into May, raising questions about whether this trend will persist.

Subdued derivative response suggests Bitcoin rally might not endure

The market's reaction to BTC's resurgence above the $100K threshold was notably subdued compared to previous instances. While BTC rallied 20% following the initial tariff sell-off, the derivatives market displayed a muted response. The 25-delta put/call skew, a measure of market sentiment, indicated only a slight bias toward out-of-the-money calls, contrasting sharply with sentiment previously when BTC first breached the $100K mark in December 2024. This lack of exuberance suggests that traders no longer view $100K as a significant inflection point, raising concerns about the sustainability of the rally. 

Meanwhile, funding rates and implied volatility — though still bullish — didn’t reach the extremes observed in earlier months, indicating more cautious market sentiment. The relationship between BTC's spot price and implied volatility suggests that although traders are optimistic, they’re waiting for BTC to approach previous all-time highs before adjusting their volatility expectations.

Ethereum's option data points to further rally

In stark contrast to BTC, Ethereum (ETH) displayed remarkable resilience and outperformed major cryptocurrencies, gaining 23% overnight following favorable trade news. This rally catalyzed a surge in demand for short-dated calls, pushing front-end volatility expectations significantly higher. The response from the derivatives market was robust, inverting the term structure and indicating renewed bullish sentiment toward ETH, even as it’s trading well below its all-time high.

The ETH options market exhibited a shift from neutral to slightly negative skew, to a 10% bias favoring out-of-the-money calls, reflecting the market's confidence in ETH's potential to regain lost ground. Despite overall macroeconomic uncertainty, the demand for ETH options suggests that traders are optimistic about Ether’s future price movements.

In conclusion, April 2025 highlighted the complex interplay between macroeconomic factors and cryptocurrency market dynamics. While BTC faced challenges in eliciting strong responses from derivatives markets upon recrossing the $100K threshold, ETH's performance indicated a divergence in market sentiment. As traders navigate the evolving landscape, the potential for seasonal volatility patterns and the influence of macroeconomic developments will remain critical factors in shaping future market expectations.

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Bybit X Block Scholes options volatility report (April 2025): Data suggests Bitcoin rally might not endure, but Ether sees further upside

Our weekly crypto derivatives analytics report delves into macro events; the current state of crypto and trading signals from spot trading volume; and futures, options and perpetual contracts.

After mostly trading sideways at the end of April 2025, a US-UK trade deal sparked a crypto rally. BTC surged past $100K for the first time since February, but it’s ETH's performance that captured the derivatives market's attention. 

A 23% increase in ETH's spot price led to an inverted term structure and a spike in front-end volatility. The put/call skew for ETH shifted from a bearish bias to a nearly 10% skew toward OTM calls. Other sentiment indicators, such as perp funding rates and futures yield, also supported the rally. In contrast, while BTC's funding rates and skew have increased, its implied volatility remains low at 40%, over 30 points below ETH's 7-day implied volatility.

Please check out the report’s highlights.

ETH’s record performance since 2021 was propelled by positive term structure

ETH has significantly outperformed BTC and the top 10 cryptocurrencies, marking its largest single-day gain since May 2021. The options market has reflected this enthusiasm, with implied volatility for short tenors rising sharply and inverting ETH’s term structure, thus contrasting with BTC's muted, positively sloped structure. The 7-day tenor for ETH is now trading at a 33-point premium over that for BTC. 

While puts dominate BTC's open interest, ETH is seeing the opposite trend. On May 8, 2025, options volumes surged over $120M, more than double the typical monthly volume, with $60M more in calls than puts. ETH now boasts a positive futures curve and funding rates, as well as a strong skew toward OTM calls.

ETH sees exceptionally bullish put/call skew

ETH's substantial outperformance in the current crypto rally has led to bullish sentiment in its derivatives markets. Funding rates have surged, futures yields are strongly positive and the put/call skew has shifted significantly toward OTM calls, now close to 10%. This starkly contrasts with early April, when the skew was 20% toward OTM puts. Although ETH has underperformed (relative to BTC and other "ETH killers"), it has rebounded in this rally, with the ETH/BTC ratio rising after spending most of the year declining.

Open interest for Bitcoin options increased, with implied volatility remaining suppressed

The announcement of the new US administration's first trade deal, nearly 30 days into Trump's 90-day tariff pause, jolted crypto markets, pushing BTC back up above $100K. Surprisingly, implied volatility has remained suppressed, failing to invert BTC's term structure, with front-end volatility trading at around an 18-month low of 35-40%. On May 8, 2025, options volumes surged, with call volume reaching $189M, reversing last week's trend of higher put volumes. Meanwhile, open interest rose steadily to exceed $300M, the highest level this month, but remains significantly larger for puts than for calls despite the price increase.

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Bybit X Block Scholes crypto derivatives analytics report (May 9, 2025): Ether’s put/call skew turns remarkably more bullish than Bitcoin’s

This article explores how Sign works, its flagship products (such as TokenTable, SignPass and EthSign), its native token (SIGN) and how to trade SIGN on Bybit.

Sign is an omnichain attestation infrastructure that empowers users and developers to verify real-world claims on-chain. Built for a more transparent and decentralized future, it eliminates the need to “just trust” and enables everyone to verify with cryptographic proof.

This article explores how Sign works, its flagship products (such as TokenTable and EthSign), its native token (SIGN) and how to trade SIGN on Bybit.

 is an omnichain attestation protocol designed to make it easy for anyone to verify the authenticity of any claim — 

. Whether it’s a document, credential or user identity, Sign transforms traditional trust models into verifiable, cryptographic attestations. 

Sign’s mission is to replace outdated, opaque validation systems with transparent, 

 proof — enabling a future where “verify” replaces “trust.” Through tools like schema registries and digital signatures, Sign empowers users to bring accountability and integrity to digital interactions.

Sign is developed by the team behind EthSign, a 

-native e-signature and agreement platform. Its core team brings deep experience in 

 development and cross-chain integrations.

The project is backed by top-tier investors, including Sequoia Capital China (now known as HongShan Capital Group), Mirana Ventures, HashKey Capital and Hack VC.

This strategic funding positions Sign as a foundational layer in the web3 infrastructure stack.

Sign allows users to create attestations — cryptographically signed statements that prove the validity of claims, such as credentials, achievements or actions. These digital proofs can be verified by anyone at any time, making them tamperproof and transparent.

Sign’s key technical elements include a schema registry that ensures consistent data formatting, digital signatures proving authenticity, and on- and off-chain attestations with support for revocation or updates

This system acts like a programmable layer for web3, bringing a new level of trust to identity, credentials and data exchange.

TokenTable is Sign’s flagship token distribution platform. It helps projects unlock, distribute and manage tokens transparently and securely at scale.

It uses Sign’s attestation engine to verify token unlocks, 

 and vesting schedules, ensuring traceable, auditable token flows.

SignPass is a blockchain-based identity solution that brings real-world credentials on-chain. One notable implementation is the Sierra Leone PR Card, used for the world’s first government-approved on-chain permanent residency program.

SignPass offers encrypted on-chain records for easy 

 verification, physical ID issuance for daily identity use and streamlined digital application systems for cross-border access.

It showcases the way blockchain can modernize public sector services worldwide.

EthSign is a decentralized contract signing platform that lets users create, sign and store legally binding agreements directly on-chain. It removes intermediaries and ensures documents are immutable and accessible.

EthSign reinforces Sign’s mission by bringing traditional documentation into the realm of verifiable web3 attestations.

The SIGN token is the native utility token powering the Sign ecosystem. It’s used for:

The total supply is capped at 10 billion SIGN, with 1.2 billion tokens in circulation. While the fully diluted valuation (FDV) sits above $746 million as of May 7, the circulating market cap is approximately $89.6 million. SIGN continues to gain traction across exchanges and developer networks.

SIGN is available for trading on Bybit via Spot trading and as a USDT Perpetual contract. Bybit offers up to 75x leverage for the SIGNUSDT Perpetual contract and supports secure, high-liquidity spot trading.

Start exploring the future of attestations with SIGN on Bybit today.

Intermediate

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Sign (SIGN): Web3 protocol for trustless attestation

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Altcoins

Karate Combat (KARATE) is one of the top meme coins empowering enthusiasts to engage with karate in a digitalized manner. Learn about its utility & value.

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Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology have infiltrated virtually every sector of society, creating a worldwide buzz. Now, they’re making a high-flying leap into the martial art dojo! 

 — a fresh-faced contender in the crypto space. Understand its utility, tokenomics and how it squares off against other meme coin gladiators. You'll also get some hard-hitting tips to help you grapple with meme coin investing. Let's jump into the fray.

Karate Combat (KARATE) is not just a digital asset — it's a novel fusion of cryptocurrency and martial arts branded as a meme coin, empowering enthusiasts to engage with karate in an entirely new way. Founded in 2018, Karate Combat is a professional, full-contact karate league based in New York and broadcast across over 100 countries. What sets this league apart is its innovative use of technology in presenting its events.

The league's fights are captured using 360-degree cameras and delivered to fans in immersive virtual reality, providing a unique spectator experience. But the innovation doesn't stop there: Karate Combat also incorporates blockchain technology, adding a fresh dimension to fan engagement.

The league's native token, KARATE, is central to this innovation. It's more than a cryptocurrency — it symbolizes the community's fighting spirit. Serving as a decentralized medium of exchange, Karate Combat allows fans to support and invest in their passion for this ancient martial art. Its blockchain-driven ecosystem fosters interaction and decentralizes value within the karate community.

Karate Combat is on a mission to popularize karate on a global scale, and its unique blend of martial arts and cryptocurrency is the powerful roundhouse kick propelling this goal.

KARATE tokens serve as the primary governance and gamification tool for Karate Combat, offering an innovative way to deepen fans' engagement with the sport while shaping the league's trajectory. 

One of the intriguing applications of KARATE tokens is in the 

 platform as a web3 game where players back their favorite fighters. The beauty of this game is its zero-loss mechanism, which means players can earn more tokens without any risk of losing theirs. The potential winnings of a player increase as they acquire more KARATE tokens. Over time, active participants and successful fighters naturally reduce the number of less active players, creating a dynamic and engaging ecosystem.

What sets Karate Combat apart from other sports NFT projects and fan tokens is the league-wide governance powered by its token through the 

. This model allows Karate Combat to enhance the value of the KARATE token significantly by providing token-gated experiences (merch, live event ticketing and more). This approach amplifies the utility of the KARATE token and enriches the overall fan experience, showcasing an innovative intersection of blockchain technology and sports.

The KARATE token, issued by Karate Combat, manifests a unique token structure to foster long-term growth and stability. With a 

, 4.5 billion were in circulation at the token generation event, indicating a substantial quantity kept for future distribution. This future allocation intends to cater to a broad array of stakeholders, including not only founders and investors but eventually extending to fans and athletes, thereby promoting inclusive growth.

Fully 80% of the tokens are subject to rigorous lockup schedules to discourage short-term speculation. This involves a one-year hard lock, during which trading is disallowed, followed by a three-year unlocking schedule, gradually releasing these tokens into circulation. This approach not only encourages long-term holding, but also underpins the sustainability of the KARATE ecosystem.

Karate Combat’s distribution strategy, including airdrops, is naturally inflationary but also aims to bolster the community without compromising token value, breaking from the traditional scarcity-focused mindset that pervades the crypto world.

Further adding to the flexibility and adaptability of KARATE tokens, they are dual-issued on both the 

 network and Ethereum mainnet as HTS and 

 tokens, respectively. While bridging between these networks is possible, there will be no initial “mint & redeem” functionality to prevent pricing discrepancies. KarateDAO pledges to manage resources across both networks to actively ensure constant liquidity.

While Karate Combat (KARATE) is unique in its focus on martial arts, it shares the meme coin realm with popular tokens like Dogecoin (DOGE) and PepeCoin (PEPE). These coins started as internet memes, but have seen significant growth and adoption.

Dogecoin launched as a joke in 2013 and has gained a massive following and market cap, primarily driven by social media and celebrity endorsements. PEPE, while not as mainstream, also boasts a dedicated community.

In comparison, KARATE offers a more targeted appeal. It combines the virality of a meme coin with the enthusiasm of the karate community. Its unique value proposition and utility may attract a niche — but more passionate — user base. However, like all meme coins, it’s also subject to the volatile and unpredictable nature of the crypto market.

If you're considering having a go at meme coins, here are a few tips to help you get started.

Karate Combat (KARATE) is a unique experiment at the crossroads of martial arts and cryptocurrency. Its specific focus on the karate community gives it a distinct edge, offering a platform for enthusiasts to invest in and engage with their passion in a new way.

However, risks are involved with any cryptocurrency, especially meme coins. The volatile nature of the market can lead to significant price swings, which can be a double-edged sword for investors. While there's potential for high returns, the risk of losses is also substantial.

The key to navigating the meme coin market is staying informed and understanding the risks involved. If you're an investor with a passion for karate and a willingness to participate in a new form of community-driven project, Karate Combat could be an exciting opportunity. Remember, as always, in the worlds of crypto and karate alike — discipline is key.

Karate Combat (KARATE): A Crypto-Driven Martial Art

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