Crypto Inflows Hit Record $9.3bn in 2021; What’s next for Alts?

4 min readJan 7, 2022

2021 was a year of records, chief among which being the record number of inflows into the crypto space. Unlike in 2017, there’s no reason to leave this time.

Ethereum lost $4,000 yet this hasn’t resulted in immediate death; hodlers rejoice. Meanwhile, Litecoin continues to exist in darkness and in doubt. But one chart suggests the wait is finally over.

Let’s dig in.

Crypto Assets Under Management Soared to Record Highs in 2021

The last 12 months witnessed unprecedented growth in global crypto assets under management (AUM), with a whopping $9.3 billion inflows flooding into the industry throughout the year. In fact, digital asset investment products saw inflows totaling US$9.3bn in 2021, a 36% increase from 2020 according to an end-of-year 2021 report.

Read the full article here.

Dear readers,

The purpose of this newsletter is to provide context to cryptocurrency markets. This analysis takes time to write-up and it’s released every Monday and Wednesday. I am not perfect and this is not a science — nor is this newsletter a signals service. While I cannot promise perfection I do my best to be honest and transparent.

Thank you for reading.

Feel free to contact me with feedback on contact@chrisoncrypto.com.

Technically speaking

ETH is Still Alive

Ethereum/Dollar closed a weekly candle below the $4,000 psychological level.

Despite having done that, the pair didn’t disappear into the abyss immediately. This is a good thing.

I’ve had to adjust the technical picture as new data has come along which speaks to a different market structure/story. Please bear with me while I access my crystal ball. Specifically, the horizontal levels that appear consequential with left-over buy and sell orders are $3,300 and $4,600, respectively.

Other than that, price action is all over the place on the daily time-frame. However, most TA gurus probably noticed the descending wedge ETH/USD has been in for the better part of a month too.

The technical target for a falling wedge breakout is the top of the wedge (4.6k), while bear targets are less reliable for this particular structure ($2.7k).

If bulls close a daily candle above $3,900 (as close to $4,000 as possible), that opens the door to $4,600. On the flip side, a close below the 20-weekly EMA ($3,784) opens the door to $3,500 and $3,300.

All in all, the lackluster strength to break lower levels could be indicative of an imminent reversal. Still, price is the primary indicator and provided ETH/USD refuses crawl back up, then one must assume that sellers are in control. Paradoxically, the best risk-reward setups for longs are usually nearest to invalidation levels.

Let’s see who folds first.

LTC — The Ugly Duckling

Litecoin/Dollar is sitting on top of support.

After losing the 20-daily EMA on Nov. 16, the coin has trailed below the moving average, with retests being sold off.

Since July 2021 the coin has traded within a range, with $240-$250 being take profit areas and $137-$150 being accumulation levels. $137 is a historically significant high which could shift the narrative towards the coin’s demise if lost, given that price is the primary indicator of success.

However, a reclaim of the 20-EMA ($153) would be an initial sign of a reversal that opens the door to the historically pivotal 200-EMA ($177). If reclaimed, the technical picture wouldn’t look terrible and perhaps, marking the figurative transformation from an ugly crypto duckling to a swan. Hurray.

Jokes aside, LTC/BTC has printed 8 consecutive green candles (with the 8th one forming today). The pair recently hit a low not seen since March 2017, all the while the weekly RSI trend has shown waning seller strength for months on end. If the bottom is finally in, there are probably fireworks in store for both pairs in 2022. Fundamentally, the coin is practically pristine compared to most altcoins on the market, the most glaring top shitcoins being xrp, doge and shiba, pardon my French.

I would add Cardano to that list but too much honesty can be detrimental.

Check out the telegram channel for more short-form altcoin analysis.

Catch you later.

p.s. This is my opinion. It is not financial advice.

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