Daily Degen
April 8, 2025

DCR and CORE Surge as Market Plays Favorites

Altcoins are back in the spotlight—but only the select few. From DCR’s governance-fueled climb to FARTCOIN’s meme-powered explosion, the market made room for both serious protocols and comedic chaos. Let’s unpack what’s moving, and what’s not.

Selective market strength defined the past week with Decred (DCR) and CORE making solid moves. Meme coins like FARTCOIN also saw action, while several projects sunk under poor traction and community fatigue. Twitter debates raged on L2 usage and VC patience.

Movers and Shakers

Today's Top Gainers:
Top 7-Day Gainers:
DCR (21.26%), CORE (15.57%), FARTCOIN (10.14%), KET (8.224%), NEO (7.849%)
Today's Top Losers:
Top 7-Day Losers:
SPX (-14.0%), IBERA (-13.9%), BERA (-12.4%), ELF (-11.0%), ZRO (-10.6%)

A Week of Selective Strength in a Fragmented Market

While the broader crypto market has been relatively tepid, a few outliers have stolen the show. This week, Decred (DCR) surged 21.26%, followed by CORE with a solid 15.57% lift. These gains suggest a market willing to reward fundamentals—or at least a good narrative—in an otherwise cautious environment. Meanwhile, lesser-known coins like FARTCOIN (+10.14%) and KET (+8.22%) rode a wave of speculative attention, reminding us that meme magic and microcap moonshots haven’t gone anywhere.

NEO, the OG smart contract platform once dubbed the ‘Ethereum of China,’ also made a nostalgic comeback with a 7.85% gain. It seems there’s life in old tokens yet, especially as regulatory talks rekindle interest in Asia-focused projects.

Pain on the Other Side of the Spectrum

The losers highlight the duality of the current market. SPX fell by a stunning 14%, followed closely by IBERA (-13.9%) and BERA (-12.4%). These declines hint at liquidity drain from projects heavy on hype but lacking recent catalyst. ELF and ZRO rounded out the bottom with double-digit losses. It’s a sobering reminder: in a market that trades 24/7, attention is currency—and when it dries up, so do prices.

Twitter Chatter: Meme Revival and Quiet Giants

Crypto Twitter was lit this week with whispers of a meme coin rebirth. The hashtag #FartSeason trended briefly following FARTCOIN’s double-digit rally, evidence that degens still have power to move markets. Meanwhile, more serious discussions centered around the sluggish performance of major layer-2s. Despite recent updates, user engagement on platforms like Arbitrum and zkSync is slipping, with many traders voicing frustration over fee structures and incentive fatigue.

Elsewhere, influential VCs shared mixed takes on market depth. Parafi’s latest thread questioned whether institutional hesitance is due to macro uncertainty or technical limitations. BlackRock’s recent ETF filings may have stolen headlines, but boots-on-the-ground adoption still lags, especially outside BTC and ETH.

What’s Driving the Gainers?

DCR’s pop appears tied to renewed interest in governance-first protocols. Its hybrid PoW/PoS security model is gaining praise amid fresh scrutiny around centralized staking hubs. For CORE, the uptick is fueled by rumors of cross-chain integrations and a bump in liquidity mining incentives that—at least temporarily—sparked renewed capital flow.

FARTCOIN, naturally, benefited from hype and hilarity. A single large buy order last Sunday seems to have triggered a cascade of copy-trades on smaller DEXs, juicing price and engagement on Twitter. Price doubled intraday before retracing, but its 10% weekly jump still made headlines in the degen corners of the internet.

Flight from Hype-Heavy Projects?

SPX’s tumble is the most telling. Once touted as a next-gen synthetic asset platform, it’s now facing both declining TVL and sour community sentiment. Recent delays in its v2 launch may have triggered stop-losses and profit-taking after months of sideways grind. IBERA and BERA saw similar exits as earlier momentum failed to translate into lasting ecosystem growth.

This bifurcation makes sense: in a market searching for signals in the noise, investors are doubling down on what they perceive as 'staying power' and punishing the rest.

From Rotation to Consolidation?

There’s no denying it: we are in a rotation-driven micro cycle. Assets are not uniformly rising or falling, but instead jumping from trend hotspot to trend hotspot. From DeFi summer flashbacks to meme revivals, this market has a short attention span and a long memory. Traders are rotating capital every few days, chasing alpha but increasingly weary after months of horizontal movement.

We may be heading toward a phase of short-term consolidation. The lack of moves in majors like BTC and ETH—oscillating just above $70k and $3.6k respectively—suggests market participants are waiting for stronger macro cues or the next big protocol catalyst. But while the top may sleep, the mid and low-caps are partying (or panicking), depending on which side of the rotation they land on.

Crypto Is a Game of Momentum and Memes

This week was a classic example of crypto’s split personality. On one end, high-conviction believers are backing governance-heavy tokens like DCR. On the other, full-blown meme flux is powering things like FARTCOIN into 8-figure volumes on nothing but vibes and viral tweets.

The market is sending a clear message: you need a narrative—whether it’s regulatory legitimacy, technical robustness, or just being hilarious. Without it, you’ll likely end up in the red zone, alongside ELF or ZRO.

Looking Ahead: Catalysts or Caution?

With institutional activity slowly tapering back after Q1’s ETF euphoria, the summer could prove choppy. Projects that execute—particularly those offering real yield, strong community devs, or unique tokenomics—may leapfrog sagging peers. Keep eyes on liquidity maps and social sentiment data to avoid bagholding yesterday’s hype.

More important than ever: be nimble, stay liquid, and remember that in this game, volatility is your only friend—and your fierce enemy.

A Week of Selective Strength in a Fragmented Market

While the broader crypto market has been relatively tepid, a few outliers have stolen the show. This week, Decred (DCR) surged 21.26%, followed by CORE with a solid 15.57% lift. These gains suggest a market willing to reward fundamentals—or at least a good narrative—in an otherwise cautious environment. Meanwhile, lesser-known coins like FARTCOIN (+10.14%) and KET (+8.22%) rode a wave of speculative attention, reminding us that meme magic and microcap moonshots haven’t gone anywhere.

NEO, the OG smart contract platform once dubbed the ‘Ethereum of China,’ also made a nostalgic comeback with a 7.85% gain. It seems there’s life in old tokens yet, especially as regulatory talks rekindle interest in Asia-focused projects.

Pain on the Other Side of the Spectrum

The losers highlight the duality of the current market. SPX fell by a stunning 14%, followed closely by IBERA (-13.9%) and BERA (-12.4%). These declines hint at liquidity drain from projects heavy on hype but lacking recent catalyst. ELF and ZRO rounded out the bottom with double-digit losses. It’s a sobering reminder: in a market that trades 24/7, attention is currency—and when it dries up, so do prices.

Twitter Chatter: Meme Revival and Quiet Giants

Crypto Twitter was lit this week with whispers of a meme coin rebirth. The hashtag #FartSeason trended briefly following FARTCOIN’s double-digit rally, evidence that degens still have power to move markets. Meanwhile, more serious discussions centered around the sluggish performance of major layer-2s. Despite recent updates, user engagement on platforms like Arbitrum and zkSync is slipping, with many traders voicing frustration over fee structures and incentive fatigue.

Elsewhere, influential VCs shared mixed takes on market depth. Parafi’s latest thread questioned whether institutional hesitance is due to macro uncertainty or technical limitations. BlackRock’s recent ETF filings may have stolen headlines, but boots-on-the-ground adoption still lags, especially outside BTC and ETH.

What’s Driving the Gainers?

DCR’s pop appears tied to renewed interest in governance-first protocols. Its hybrid PoW/PoS security model is gaining praise amid fresh scrutiny around centralized staking hubs. For CORE, the uptick is fueled by rumors of cross-chain integrations and a bump in liquidity mining incentives that—at least temporarily—sparked renewed capital flow.

FARTCOIN, naturally, benefited from hype and hilarity. A single large buy order last Sunday seems to have triggered a cascade of copy-trades on smaller DEXs, juicing price and engagement on Twitter. Price doubled intraday before retracing, but its 10% weekly jump still made headlines in the degen corners of the internet.

Flight from Hype-Heavy Projects?

SPX’s tumble is the most telling. Once touted as a next-gen synthetic asset platform, it’s now facing both declining TVL and sour community sentiment. Recent delays in its v2 launch may have triggered stop-losses and profit-taking after months of sideways grind. IBERA and BERA saw similar exits as earlier momentum failed to translate into lasting ecosystem growth.

This bifurcation makes sense: in a market searching for signals in the noise, investors are doubling down on what they perceive as 'staying power' and punishing the rest.

From Rotation to Consolidation?

There’s no denying it: we are in a rotation-driven micro cycle. Assets are not uniformly rising or falling, but instead jumping from trend hotspot to trend hotspot. From DeFi summer flashbacks to meme revivals, this market has a short attention span and a long memory. Traders are rotating capital every few days, chasing alpha but increasingly weary after months of horizontal movement.

We may be heading toward a phase of short-term consolidation. The lack of moves in majors like BTC and ETH—oscillating just above $70k and $3.6k respectively—suggests market participants are waiting for stronger macro cues or the next big protocol catalyst. But while the top may sleep, the mid and low-caps are partying (or panicking), depending on which side of the rotation they land on.

Crypto Is a Game of Momentum and Memes

This week was a classic example of crypto’s split personality. On one end, high-conviction believers are backing governance-heavy tokens like DCR. On the other, full-blown meme flux is powering things like FARTCOIN into 8-figure volumes on nothing but vibes and viral tweets.

The market is sending a clear message: you need a narrative—whether it’s regulatory legitimacy, technical robustness, or just being hilarious. Without it, you’ll likely end up in the red zone, alongside ELF or ZRO.

Looking Ahead: Catalysts or Caution?

With institutional activity slowly tapering back after Q1’s ETF euphoria, the summer could prove choppy. Projects that execute—particularly those offering real yield, strong community devs, or unique tokenomics—may leapfrog sagging peers. Keep eyes on liquidity maps and social sentiment data to avoid bagholding yesterday’s hype.

More important than ever: be nimble, stay liquid, and remember that in this game, volatility is your only friend—and your fierce enemy.

Newsworthy

DCR’s rise reflects renewed interest in hybrid consensus models. FARTCOIN's meme-driven surge is a case study in how social sentiment drives price discovery in low-liquidity environments.

Pro-Tip:

Ride the rotation, but do it smart: set tight stop-losses and look for volume/momentum convergence, not just trending tokens. Narratives shift quick—your portfolio should too.

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Disclaimer: The content of this article is for general market education and commentary and is not intended to serve as financial, investment, or any other type of advice.

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