This week in the crypto market is marked by critical events and strategic developments that promise to influence trends and investor sentiment significantly. Here is an in-depth analysis of the most anticipated cryptocurrencies and their upcoming milestones.

#1 US Spot Ethereum ETF Deadline Looms

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) faces pivotal deadlines on May 23 and May 24 regarding the approval of spot Ethereum ETFs proposed by VanEck and ArkInvest/21Shares, respectively.

The likelihood of approval this month has significantly declined. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas described the odds as “slim to none,” pointing to the SEC’s silence as a major indicator. However, last week, Coinbase released a new report, asserting that the approval of a US spot Ethereum ETF is a matter of “when, not if.”

They argue that the rationale used to approve spot Bitcoin ETFs — namely, the high correlation between CME futures and spot exchange rates — should also apply to Ethereum. Thus, they estimate the chances to be much higher, around 30-40%.

The SEC’s decisions on these applications will be crucial, potentially opening doors for broader institutional adoption and new investment products tied to Ethereum.

#2 AI Crypto Coins

This week, two significant events could influence the trajectory of AI related crypto projects. Firstly, NVIDIA’s Q1 2024 earnings report, scheduled for release on May 22, is highly anticipated. NVIDIA’s performance and outlook can significantly impact AI-related crypto projects. Strong earnings and positive guidance could bolster investor confidence in AI-driven crypto projects.

Secondly, on May 24, the Artificial Super Intelligence Alliance (ASI) will officially launch, marking the merger of Fetch.AI (FET), SingularityNET (AGIX), and Ocean Protocol (OCEAN). This merger aims to create the highest-valued decentralized AI crypto project. The consolidation into a unified ASI token is designed to streamline operations, incentivize collaboration, and foster a stronger, more cohesive community.

The ASI token will bundle the resources and technological capabilities of FET, AGIX, and OCEAN, aiming to establish a dominant position in the decentralized AI market. The performance of the ASI token post-launch will be critical, as it will reflect the market’s reception to this ambitious merger.

#3 Fantom Rebrand

Fantom (FTM) is undergoing a transformative rebranding initiative, with a proposal to launch a new token, S. This rebranding effort involves renaming the Fantom network to Sonic and migrating FTM tokens to the new S tokens on a 1:1 basis.

The rebranding includes the launch of the Sonic Network, a new layer-1 blockchain with a native layer-2 bridge to Ethereum. This new network aims to leverage advanced technology to significantly enhance performance compared to the existing Opera network. Fantom Foundation has earmarked hundreds of millions of FTM from its treasury to support ecosystem development for Sonic, including marketing, business development, migration grants, and other adoption initiatives.

Fantom Operations Ltd will continue to support the Opera network, while Sonic Operations Ltd will focus on the Sonic Network. This dual-support system ensures continuity for current users while promoting migration to the new, more efficient Sonic Network.

Users will initially be able to swap their FTM tokens for S tokens at a 1:1 ratio, with the migration process anticipated to be bi-directional initially, allowing for flexibility. Over time, this is expected to transition to a one-way migration.

#4 Solana V1.18

Solana is preparing for a significant update. Scheduled for release on May 27, Solana’s mainnet v1.18 upgrade aims to address the network’s congestion issues, which have been triggered by spam transactions and the surge in memecoin activities.

This update is crucial as it aims to enhance the network’s efficiency and scalability. The congestion earlier this year, primarily caused by bots prioritizing their transactions and a dramatic increase in transactions associated with newly released meme coins, created an extraordinary demand for block space, impeding access for many users.

The Solana community is eagerly anticipating this update. A successful implementation could significantly improve the user experience, mitigate congestion issues, and restore confidence in Solana’s ability to handle high transaction volumes.

This could attract more users and developers to the platform, further strengthening SOL’s price, which rallied 22% over the past seven days.

#5 FLOKI Announcement

FLOKI, a meme coin inspired by Elon Musk’s pet Shiba Inu, has generated considerable buzz with a cryptic announcement. On May 4, FLOKI’s official Twitter account teased a major announcement for May 27, stating, “[…] And with FLOKI set to make a major announcement later this month, the excitement is far from over!”

While details remain undisclosed, the anticipation is poised to spark speculation and increased trading activity. Speculative announcements like this often lead to heightened price volatility and trading volumes. Traders and investors will be keen to see if the announcement delivers on the hype and positively impacts FLOKI’s price.