Asia Morning Rundown: Korean Crypto KOLs Fuel Enormous $USELESS Rally as Traders Shake Off Traditional Narratives
Meet Korea’s next alt coin, $USELESS.
Great Early Morning, Asia. Here’s what’s making news in the markets: Invite to Asia Morning Rundown, an everyday summary of top stories throughout U.S. hours and an overview of market relocations and analysis. For an in-depth summary of U.S. markets, see CoinDesk’s Crypto Daybook Americas. South Korea has actually long been known for its outsized influence on altcoin markets, from the XRP mania that drove a 400% rally last year to the present-day obsession with a token that happily calls itself worthless. The $ worthless phenomenon has ties to South Korean KOLs, Bradley Park, a Seoul-based expert with DNTV Research, informed CoinDesk in an interview. At the center of everything is Yeomyung, a Korean KOL and liquidity provider who affected into worthless early, held through a 50% drawdown, and is now sitting on severe paper gains. “He made big profits during the Trump coin run, and with USELESS, he also made from [offering liquidity] early on and is now simply holding,” Park told CoinDesk. “They’re all just awaiting a CEX listing, because without it, there’s no genuine way to exit.” Park tracked Yeomyung’s wallet activity and noted that his early conviction has actually inspired copy-trading among Korean retail financiers. Even wallets tied to insiders on Solana’s Jupiter “I genuinely believe Korean users in this market are no longer simply leave liquidity,” he stated. “They’re starting to comprehend the market and are progressing into real international players.” Another character in this story is Bonk Guy, an early promoter of BONK, who reappeared to tweet enthusiastically about USELESS after the rate rebounded, though some Korean traders, consisting of Park, have actually questioned his genuineness. “Bonk Guy was the first to shill LetsBONK,” Park said. “But after the cost collapsed, he went quiet. Now that USELESS is bouncing back, he’s all of a sudden revealing interest again.” Park indicated the rise of Hyperliquid, Kaia, and now Solana-based memecoins like USELESS as evidence that Korea is no longer a secondary market. While XRP’s rally was underpinned by legal clarity in the U.S. and stories about Trump-era deregulation, worthless feels less like mayhem for turmoil’s sake and more like a reflection of where attention, and fatigue, is streaming in today’s market, Park stated. With no roadmap, no utility, and no pretense of building something larger, it take advantage of a type of memetic disillusionment: a cumulative shrug at standard crypto pledges, and a paradoxical bet on nothingness that, paradoxically, appears to be more honest than lots of tokens claiming to change the world. Trump Backs GENIUS Act President Donald Trump on Tuesday backed the GENIUS Act in a Truth Social post following its bipartisan passage in the Senate, calling it a major action toward U.S. management in the digital asset sector. Trump urged your home of Representatives to pass the costs “lightning quick” and without changes, stating it should be sent out to his desk with “no hold-ups, no add-ons.” The message signals strong executive support for the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, which presents reserve and compliance requirements for dollar-backed stablecoin providers and marks the first significant piece of crypto legislation to clear the Senate. Trump framed the legislation as crucial to making it possible for “enormous financial investment” and “huge innovation,” positioning the U.S. as an international leader in digital properties. While the costs passed the Senate with significant bipartisan backing, its fate in your home remains unsure. Democratic lawmakers are weighing prospective modifications, including stricter oversight for foreign-issued tokens and limitations on prospective providers. The expense isn’t without its critics. In a current CoinDesk editorial, Georgetown University financing teacher James J. Angel argues that the GENIUS Act is a flawed piece of legislation since of fragmented oversight by 55 regulators, redundant processes, exemption of interest-bearing stablecoins, and ineffective joint rulemakings. News Roundup: Coinbase Reveals Coinbase Payments for Merchants Coinbase (COIN) revealed Coinbase Payments on Wednesday, CoinDesk previously reported, a brand-new merchant-focused payments stack developed on its Ethereum layer-2 network Base. The item allows international ecommerce platforms like Shopify to accept USDC 24/7 without requiring blockchain competence, utilizing tools like a gasless stablecoin checkout, an ecommerce API engine, and an onchain payments procedure. Coinbase stated the system is created to duplicate traditional payment rails while decreasing expenses and providing always-on settlement. The launch positions Coinbase along with fintech firms like Stripe and PayPal in the race to update payments with blockchain infrastructure. It also deepens its partnership with USDC provider Circle (CRCL), whose shares leapt 25% on the news, while Coinbase rallied 16%. Coinbase says stablecoins processed $30 trillion in transactions last year, tripling from the year prior, and it’s wagering that programmable, dollar-pegged payments will continue to interfere with the worldwide financial stack. Market Movements: BTC: Bitcoin rebounded above $105,000 in a V-shaped healing regardless of escalating Israel-Iran tensions, with strong ETF inflows and essential assistance at $103,650 highlighting institutional confidence amidst market volatility, according to CoinDesk Research study’s technical analysis information. ETH: Ethereum rebounded 4% to hold above $2,500 regardless of Middle East stress, with record-high staking and accumulation signaling growing financier conviction amid market volatility. Gold: Gold slipped 0.19% to $3,383.11 after the Fed held rates steady at 4.25– 4.5%, with Chair Powell signaling no impending policy modifications and stressing ongoing financial strength regardless of trade stress. Nikkei 225: Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.27% on Thursday as Asia-Pacific markets traded combined, weighed down by the Fed’s rate time out and continuous Israel-Iran tensions. S&P 500: The S&P 500 dipped 0.03% to 5,980.87 after the Fed held rates steady, with Chair Powell indicating a wait-and-see approach amid unpredictability over Trump’s tariffs. Elsewhere in Crypto: Crypto doesn’t have to be a market for lemons (Blockworks) Are Lawbreakers Actually Changing From Crypto to Gold for Cash Laundering? (Decrypt) UK to Propose Limitations on How Banks Can Deal With Crypto Next Year (CoinDesk).
Here’s what’s making news in the markets: Invite to Asia Early Morning Instruction, a daily summary of leading stories during U.S. hours and an overview of market moves and analysis. South Korea has long been known for its outsized impact on altcoin markets, from the XRP mania that drove a 400% rally last year to the contemporary fixation with a token that happily calls itself Ineffective. Market Movements: BTC: Bitcoin rebounded above $105,000 in a V-shaped healing in spite of escalating Israel-Iran stress, with strong ETF inflows and crucial support at $103,650 highlighting institutional self-confidence amidst market volatility, according to CoinDesk Research’s technical analysis information. ETH: Ethereum rebounded 4% to hold above $2,500 regardless of Middle East tensions, with record-high staking and accumulation signaling growing financier conviction amid market volatility. Nikkei 225: Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.27% on Thursday as Asia-Pacific markets traded blended, weighed down by the Fed’s rate time out and ongoing Israel-Iran stress.
