Crypto Market Plummets 40% Amid Trump Tariffs, Whales Accumulate ETH, OP

The cryptocurrency market has experienced a significant downturn, with its total market capitalization plummeting to $2.4 trillion from its December 2024 peak of $3.9 trillion. This near 40% contraction over approximately four months reflects growing investor anxiety due to escalating geopolitical and economic tensions. The selloff coincides with a sharp decline in global equity markets, triggered by President Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping new tariffs on key trading partners, including the European Union, India, and Japan, with rates as high as 54%. As these measures approach implementation, investors have adopted a risk-off stance, pulling back from both stocks and crypto assets in anticipation of increased volatility and economic fallout.

Despite the widespread market correction, Ethereum (ETH) and Optimism (OP) have seen notable accumulation by crypto whales—large holders whose activity often foreshadows major market shifts. Between April 4 and 6, the number of Ethereum wallets holding between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH increased from 5,340 to 5,388. This 48-wallet increase, though modest, indicates a deliberate move by large investors to build positions during a downturn. ETH has been under heavy pressure, and if the downtrend continues, it risks falling below $1,400—a level not breached since January 2023. However, if it regains momentum and reclaims $1,748, technical charts suggest a possible climb toward $1,938 and even a retest of the $2,000 threshold. Similarly, Optimism has shown a rise in large holders, with wallets holding between 10,000 and 1,000,000 OP increasing from 4,138 to 4,151. This trend suggests confidence in the Layer 2 protocol’s long-term fundamentals, even as broader sentiment across crypto markets remains fragile. Whale accumulation amid volatility often indicates that institutional or high-net-worth players are positioning for a recovery ahead of retail participation. If this behavior persists, it may mark the early stages of a bottoming-out process for select altcoins, starting with ETH and OP.

With established cryptocurrencies under pressure, investors are shifting focus to early-stage projects that show potential for strong returns. One such project that is gaining attention is CartelFi. CartelFi aims to disrupt the intersection of meme culture and decentralized finance, addressing a long-standing dilemma in crypto: the trade-off between the speculative upside of meme coins and the stability of yield-focused DeFi protocols. By offering specialized liquidity pools for meme tokens, CartelFi converts idle speculative assets into yield-generating capital, allowing investors to maintain exposure to high-growth potential while earning returns typically associated with more traditional DeFi platforms. A key feature of the protocol is its deflationary mechanism, which uses up to 100% of collected fees for automatic token buybacks and burns, applying sustained upward pressure on token value. With a large volume of meme coins sitting inactive in wallets, CartelFi sees untapped potential. Its core premise is straightforward: meme coins don’t just have to be a moonshot; they can also generate a consistent yield. CartelFi kicks off its presale, offering early investors a chance to capitalize on a structured 30-stage sale model.