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A former federal prosecutor turned chief executive of a crypto-focused venture capital fund says she would be “surprised” if the United States securities regulator lodges an immediate appeal against the Ripple case ruling, as it currently benefits from lack of “legal clarity.”

On July 13, Judge Torres granted a partial summary judgment in favor of Ripple Labs regarding XRP’s status as a security. At the time, a few commentators warned that an appeal from the SEC would be a possibility.

However, in a July 15 Twitter thread, Haun Ventures CEO Katie Haun explained that the securities regulator will likely stay quiet as it benefits from the “current confusion” and that losing an appeal could jeopardize its future enforcement actions.

“Anything is possible, but an immediate appeal seems unlikely both because the agency would have to ask the court to split this decision from the portion going to trial and because I’m skeptical the SEC actually wants legal clarity,” said Haun.

“The Commission benefits from the current confusion and losing these issues on appeal would jeopardize its entire enforcement agenda. So I’d be surprised if the SEC tried to appeal now.”

Bitcoin (BTC) attempted to break away from its boring sideways price action on July 13 following Ripple’s legal victory over the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, but the enthusiasm proved to be short-lived. Sellers pulled the price back into the range on July 14, indicating that they remain active at higher levels. However, a positive sign is that the bulls have kept Bitcoin’s price above $30,000.

Market observers are expected to closely follow the review process for the various exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposals for a spot Bitcoin ETF, prominent being the proposal by BlackRock. Interestingly, out of 550 ETF applications by BlackRock, only one has been rejected, according to Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart.

Even as Bitcoin consolidates waiting for its next catalyst, several altcoins are witnessing solid buying. This has pulled Bitcoin’s market dominance below 50%, suggesting that the focus could be shifting to the altcoins in the near term.

Could Bitcoin start a trending move in the short term or will it remain stuck inside the range? What are the altcoins that are looking strong on the charts? Let’s study the charts of top-5 cryptocurrencies that could be on trader's radar in the next few days.

Bitcoin price analysis

Bitcoin closed above $31,000 on July 13 but that proved to be a bull trap because the bears yanked the price back below the level on July 14. This shows that the bears are fiercely defending the zone between $31,000 and $32,400.

In the latest episode of Market Talks, show host and Cointelegraph head of markets Ray Salmond sat down with Polkadot ambassador and content creator KryptosChain to discuss the current state of the crypto market and drastic changes taking place in the Polkadot ecosystem. 

According to KryptosChain, the crypto market is possibly rounding the last corner of the bear market, and across the space, sentiment and money flow are steadily beginning to improve.

“Overall, I do think the market sentiment right now is hype-driven, but hopefully, we can change that with enterprise adoption and through the eventual approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF”

He added that, “In my opinion, I think the Bitcoin halving next year will be the main driver for the start of a new bull market, because of its history, and people base the markets’ performance on the history and psychology around it. I think 2024, toward the end — maybe summer or maybe autumn — is when we’re going to see some big activity.”

When asked whether investors should believe in projects based on the team’s goals and aspirations, or simply the price of the token, KryptosChain suggested that:

Cardano (ADA) experienced a remarkable price surge of 23.9% on July 13, leaving investors curious about the potential for further gains. This significant rally comes on the heels of a favorable judicial decision regarding XRP, leading many to question if ADA has what it takes to break above the $0.40 mark.

There are three reasons to support Cardano’s bullish momentum, including its potential to integrate other blockchains, increased activity in decentralized applications, and the decreased regulatory risk, although the latest XRP event requires a more cautious approach.

SEC actions specifically named ADA as a potential security

Cardano and its ADA token found itself in the spotlight as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) referred to it as a potential security during the recent court action against Coinbase and Binance exchange. However, it's important to distinguish that while the staking offering may be considered a security, it does not pose a direct risk to Cardano or its development companies.

Following the SEC's remarks in June, ADA faced a 36% correction, dropping to $0.24. However, the recent XRP ruling on July 13 helped alleviate regulatory risks, leading to a boost in the rally of ADA and other coins impacted by the regulator's comments.

The idea of implementing sidechains sparked additional interest

After a recent video shared by John Woods, CTO at Algo Foundation, Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of Cardano, proposed incorporating Algorand (ALGO) as a Cardano sidechain.

Ripple Labs’ victory in the case against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission gives a significant boost to the crypto industry. In addition to benefitting Ripple and XRP (XRP), analysts believe that the ruling will weaken the regulator’s case against Binance and Coinbase.

In another positive event for the crypto space, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) completed a bearish head and shoulders pattern on July 12 and followed that up with a drop below the psychological level of 100 on July 13. The DXY typically moves in inverse correlation with Bitcoin (BTC), hence its weakness is a positive sign for the crypto bulls.

LookIntoBitcoin creator Philip Swift said that increased on-chain spending volume shows that Bitcoin is in the first stage of a bull market.

The sharp rally in XRP and several other altcoins following Ripple’s victory is a sign that the crypto bulls are making a comeback.

What are the important resistance levels that need to be crossed for Bitcoin and the altcoins to start the next leg of the up-move? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.

Solana (SOL) price briefly surged to a new year-to-date peak on June 14 after Ripple’s partial win against the U.S. Securities Exchange and Commission in the case contesting XRP’s position as a security. 

The token recorded gains of 48.09%, reaching a peak of $32.40 as news of the court ruling spread, before retracing below the $30.00 level.

The positive gains following the verdict not only eliminated the losses from June 2023 when the SEC considered SOL a security in its lawsuit against Binance and Coinbase, but also reclaimed levels not seen since the FTX collapse in November 2022.

However, the network's usage and market charts suggest that a long-term bullish price trend is unlikely, with the $30 level forming a crucial resistance level.

Solana ecosystem growth stalls

The total fees paid on Solana are still ranging below Q3 2022 levels, per Token Terminal data, referring to a time before the FTX collapse, suggesting that the network’s activity has failed to revive completely.

The price of XRP (XRP) has skyrocketed in the aftermath of a federal court ruling saying that its sales on crypto exchanges complied with U.S. securities laws.

On July 14, XRP price retreated by about 10% to $0.76, but compared to its lowest price the previous day, it was still up around 65%.

Related: Why is XRP price up today?

At its highest in the last 24 hours, the XRP/USD pairreached $0.93, its best level since December 2021, just shy of hitting the $1 mark.

A whale-backed XRP rally

Certain indicators show that XRP's ongoing price pump may not be just a short-term reaction to the positive news for Ripple.

Bitcoin (BTC) consolidated near $31,000 on July 14 after a classic short squeeze sparked new yearly highs.

BTC liquidates $50 million shorts in new squeeze

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC price movements returning to cement support after rapid gains the day prior.

Already tipped for a trip higher, Bitcoin reacted instantly to news that a United States judge had supported the idea that altcoin XRP (XRP) was not a security.

This was taken by markets as a blow to regulator the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which in recent months had sought to label altcoins as securities en masse.

XRP/USD immediately spiked by over 100%, almost touching the $1 mark before returning to trade near $0.80 at the time of writing. The last time that such levels formed part of the chart was in April 2022.

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A court ruling in favor of Ripple Labs — stating that XRP (XRP) is not a security — reignited the long-lost hype around the ecosystem. Anticipating an influx of scams as the token rallies defying bearish sentiments, Ripple CTO David Schwartz issued a warning to investors.

A two-year-long legal battle between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple partly concluded on July 13 with XRP having ripped off the ‘securities’ label by the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York.

What followed was an organic but substantial spike in XRP’s market price. As shown below, the XRP price rallied over 70% — bringing up its value from $0.47 to $0.82 in a day. The incident also marks the biggest price jump XRP witnessed over the past year.

The hype around cryptocurrencies or crypto ecosystems like nonfungible tokens (NFTs) is when crypto scammers get highly active in trying to dupe unwary investors. Schwartz took to Twitter to warn against the rising XRP scams. He said:

“A lot of scammers are taking advantage of the recent good news to try to cheat and steal. There are no airdrops, giveaways, or special offers associated with this ruling.”

Polygon (MATIC) has experienced a significant price increase on July 13, driven by several key factors. These include a recent positive court ruling for XRP, increased activity of decentralized applications (Dapps) on the Polygon Network, and the highly anticipated launch of Polygon 2.0.

Within just 12 hours, MATIC witnessed a remarkable 24% rally, propelling its price to $0.89 on July 13, reaching its highest level in five weeks. Although the initial excitement subsided, the token managed to sustain a daily gain of 15%, indicating growing demand from traders and investors.

MATIC seizes opportunity from the SEC's loss

On July 13, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that XRP is not a security. This court decision could have far-reaching implications for other alternative cryptocurrencies, particularly after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) specifically classified MATIC as a security during its legal battle against Coinbase on June 6.

As investors evaluated the risks associated with holding and trading assets that could potentially face delisting from regulated centralized exchanges, the price of MATIC plummeted by 37% over the next five days, hitting its lowest point in 11 months on June 10.

The court ruling determined that XRP holders do not have a reasonable expectation of earning profits from the efforts of others. This outcome represents a positive development for the entire cryptocurrency industry.

Bitcoin (BTC) dominance has taken a tumble in the wake of Ripple’s partial victory against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, with a surge in altcoin prices briefly causing BTC dominance to fall under the 50% mark. 

Bitcoin dominance — the measure of how much Bitcoin makes up of the total crypto market cap — fell to 49.76% during Asian trading on July 14, according to Tradingview.

Just weeks earlier, BTC market dominance finally managed to rachet above 50%  after a dry spell of two years, amid a slew of applications for spot Bitcoin ETFs from major financial firms. Over the last 24 days, Bitcoin dominance had been hovering around 51% and 52%.

The recent dip in Bitcoin dominance comes as the crypto community is chanting the return of “altcoin season.”

Boosted by Ripple’s court victory the XRP token skyrocketed 83% to top out at an intraday high of $0.866, and briefly became the fourth-largest crypto asset by market capitalization. It is currently sitting at 5th place after a tussle with Binance Coin (BNB).

Ripple Labs’ split-decision victory against the United States securities regulator is being seen as a significant blow to the regulator’s “war on crypto,” however, crypto lawyers warn it isn't a definitive victory for the industry or the firm y

In a landmark ruling on July 13, Judge Torres determined that XRP (XRP) is not a security — at least when sold to the general public.

The decision was met with a joyous uproar from XRP token holders and came with a massive surge in the token's price, with industry heavyweights lauding the decision as likely to aid crypto exchanges Coinbase and Binance in their respective lawsuits.

Luke Martin, the founder of crypto investment firm Venture Coinist noted that the “core component” of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) claim in its suits against Binance and Coinbase is that they offered the sale of unregistered securities on their platforms.

After losing on this matter in the case of XRP, Martin believes this will serve as a substantial blow to the SEC and its chair, Gary Gensler.

The current state of Web3 user experience is akin to driving a manual transmission car — there’s more control, but most users will find it unnecessarily clunky, according to several UX designers.

Over the years, discussion around mainstream adoption of Web3 has centered around the need to improve crypto’s user experience and “ease of use.”

However, in a July 12 Twitter post, Web3 UI/UX designer “0xDesigner” argued that certain properties of blockchain make it challenging to build easy-to-use Web2-like applications.

According to 0XDesigner, the one of the main issues with cryptocurrency applications is that every action is “irreversible” — there’s no “undo button” on the blockchain and mistakes are expensive. They added:

“Think of it this way: Web2 is like driving an automatic car. It's straightforward; you get in, press the pedal, and off you go. Web3, on the other hand, is more like driving stick.

The Binance-operated BNB Beacon Chain mainnet is set to add a new feature in its upcoming hard fork, which will give the blockchain the ability to “halt” the production of new blocks if certain conditions are met.

In a July 12 statement from BNB Chain, the “ZhangHeng” upgrade is expected to take place at block height 328,088,888, which it expects will occur on July 19.

The hard fork will introduce Binance Evolution Proposal BEP-255, which seeks to implement "on-chain asset reconciliation" — which Binance believes could mitigate damage from potential cross-chain bridge exploits such as the Binance Smart Chain exploit on Oct. 7, 2022. 

"Although some enhancements have been made to improve cross-chain security, such as BEP171, the security of assets on the BNB Beacon Chain itself should also be guaranteed, especially after the bridge exploitation," according to the Github post concerning BEP-255. 

Binance explained that under the BEP, user balance changes will be tracked in each block and will be reconciled to identify any issues.

The price of BNB token has experienced a 24.5% decline over the past 90 days, despite a 7% gain between July 10 and July 11. BNB has performed worse than the overall altcoin market, indicating that the underlying cause for the bearish momentum persists.

It is highly likely that the correction in BNB's price can be attributed to the lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Binance exchange and its CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao on June 5, as the decoupling coincides with that event.

To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the situation, analyzing derivatives contracts provides valuable insights into the positions of whales and market makers.

Is the recent BNB price rally sustainable?

This analysis should highlight whether the surge above $245 on July 11 is supported by an improvement in sentiment or a balanced demand for leverage through BNB derivatives.

Price is undoubtedly the most important metric for understanding traders' sentiment, but it does not encompass all possibilities. For instance, between August 2022 and September 2022, BNB outperformed the altcoin market by 19%.