List of questions about [Cryptocurrency]

Crypto Plunge: What’s Happening?

The cryptocurrency market is a rollercoaster, and today, it’s taken a nosedive that’s left investors scrambling for answers. If you’ve typed why is crypto down today or why is crypto going down  into Google.

The global crypto market cap has dropped to $3.24 trillion, with major players like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) facing significant declines. Whether you’re a seasoned trader in the U.S., or an investor managing portfolios in euros,

this article dives deep into why crypto is down today and what it means for your next move. Buckle up as we unpack the reasons behind this crypto crash and offer insights to help you make informed decisions.

What’s Driving the Crypto Market Down Today?

The crypto market is notoriously volatile, but today’s downturn has specific triggers that are shaking investor confidence. why crypto is down and explore the context behind the plunge.

1. Geopolitical Tensions Fuel Risk-Off Sentiment

Geopolitical uncertainty is a major driver of today’s crypto market decline. Recent escalations, particularly between Israel and Iran, have sent shockwaves through global financial markets. Investors are pulling back from risk assets like cryptocurrencies, favoring safer havens like gold or U.S. Treasury bonds. For example, a cyberattack on Iran’s largest digital asset exchange, No bitex, drained $82 million, with the Israeli-linked hacking group,  Gonjeshke Darande , claiming responsibility. This incident has heightened fears, contributing to a 1.6% drop in the global crypto market cap to $3.28 trillion as of June 18, 2025.

In the crypto market, Bitcoin makes the headlines, but Tether (USDT) provides the liquidity. As the most widely used stablecoin in the world, USDT is the bridge between the volatile crypto world and the stability of the US Dollar.

For a trader, understanding USDT trading pairs is not just about knowing which coin to buy; it’s about understanding market sentiment, liquidity, and how to lock in profits effectively.

In this guide, we go beyond the basic list to explain the most critical USDT pairs and the strategies seasoned traders use to profit from them.

Why Trade USDT Pairs Instead of BTC Pairs?

Before we list the top pairs, you must understand why you are using them. In crypto, you can trade a coin against Bitcoin (e.g., ETH/BTC) or against Tether (e.g., ETH/USDT).

Why beginners and pros prefer USDT pairs:

1. Simplicity in Profit Calculation: When you trade ETH/USDT, you know exactly how many "dollars" you made. Trading against BTC requires you to constantly calculate the value of Bitcoin itself, which fluctuates.
2. Stability: If the entire market crashes, holding USDT protects your portfolio's dollar value. Holding a BTC pair during a crash means your "cash" position is also losing value.
3. High Liquidity: USDT pairs almost always have the highest trading volume, meaning you can enter and exit large positions instantly without "slippage" (losing money due to a lack of buyers).

The "Big Three" Pairs You Must Watch

Even if you are trading obscure meme coins, you must keep an eye on these three pairs. They dictate the direction of the entire market.

1. BTC/USDT (The Market Mover)

This is the single most important chart in crypto.

• Why it matters: Bitcoin leads the market. If BTC/USDT drops 5%, almost every other coin will follow.
• Strategy: Always check the BTC/USDT trend before opening a trade on any other coin. It is your weather report.

2. ETH/USDT (The Altcoin Leader)

Ethereum is the leader of the "Altcoins."

• Why it matters: If ETH/USDT is rising while Bitcoin is stable (sideways), it often signals the start of an "Altseason," where smaller coins explode in value.

3. SOL/USDT (The Volatility Play)

Solana has become a favorite for active traders due to its high volatility and liquidity.

• Why it matters: For traders looking for quicker, larger swings than Bitcoin can offer, SOL/USDT has become the go-to pair for day trading.

The "Stablecoin Swing" Strategy

One of the most powerful strategies involving USDT pairs is defensive trading.

In traditional stocks, if the market crashes, you sell for cash. In crypto, you swap to USDT.

• The Strategy: When the market enters a downtrend (Bear Market), successful traders sell their volatile assets (BTC, ETH) into USDT.
• The Goal: They sit in USDT (earning 0% but losing 0%) while the market drops 50%. Then, they use that USDT to buy back more Bitcoin at the bottom.

This is only possible because of the deep liquidity of USDT pairs.

Risks to Consider: The "De-Peg"

While USDT is stable, it is not risk-free. A "de-peg" happens if USDT drops below $1.00 (e.g., to $0.98). While rare and usually temporary for USDT, traders should diversify.

• Tip: Keep an eye on USDC/USDT pairs. If huge volume flows into this pair, it might mean whales are nervous about one of the stablecoins.

Conclusion

USDT pairs are the lifeblood of your trading strategy. They offer the clarity of cash with the speed of crypto. By focusing on high-liquidity pairs like BTC/USDT and knowing when to sit in stablecoins, you stop gambling and start managing your risk like a professional.

When you decide to use a Crypto ATM, you are paying for one primary benefit: convenience. But what is the actual price of that convenience? While the machines are straightforward to use, their fee structures can be opaque, often costing you far more than you realize. As a responsible investor, understanding these costs is non-negotiable. This guide will shine a light on the fees, breaking down exactly how they work and what you are truly paying.

The Two Fees You Pay: The Obvious and The Hidden

The total cost of a Crypto ATM transaction is typically made up of two distinct parts. The first is the service fee. This is the most transparent cost, usually displayed on the screen as a direct percentage of your transaction. It is a commission that the ATM operator charges for their service, and it can range anywhere from 5% to over 10%.

The second, and often much larger cost, is the exchange rate spread. This is the hidden fee. The price the ATM offers you for Bitcoin is not the real-time market price that you would see on an online exchange. The ATM operator adds a significant markup, or "spread," to the price. Think of it like exchanging currency at an airport kiosk versus at a bank; you always get a worse rate at the kiosk. This spread can easily be an additional 5% to 10% above the true market rate.

A Real-World Example: The True Cost in Action

Let's make this tangible with a simple example. Imagine you want to buy $1,000 worth of Bitcoin.

• The Real Market Price: Let's say the current market price for Bitcoin on an online exchange is $60,000.
• The ATM's Inflated Price: The ATM might set its own price at $66,000, which includes a 10% spread.
• The Service Fee: The machine also charges a 5% service fee on your  1,000,whichis  50 .

So, your $1,000 in cash is now only $950 of purchasing power. And you are buying at the inflated price of $66,000. The amount of Bitcoin you actually receive is $950 divided by $66,000, which is approximately 0.0144 BTC.

Now, compare that to an online exchange. Your $1,000, minus a small trading fee (e.g., 0.5% or $5), gives you $995 of purchasing power at the real market price of $60,000. You would receive approximately 0.0166 BTC. In this common scenario, you received about 15% less crypto for the same amount of cash by using the ATM.

Why Are the Fees So High?

These high fees are not arbitrary; they are the result of the ATM operator's business model. They have to pay for the expensive physical hardware, rent for the retail space, cash handling and armored car services, software licensing, and customer support. All of these high overhead costs are passed directly on to you, the user.

The Smart Choice for Your Capital

While a Crypto ATM offers a quick solution for a specific need, it is an extremely expensive way to build a portfolio. The combination of service fees and the exchange rate spread creates a significant and unavoidable drag on your investment from the very start. For a complete overview of the machines, you can read our main guide: [What Is a Crypto ATM? A Beginner's Guide].

For e-commerce merchants, chargeback fraud is a silent killer of profits. A customer buys a product, receives it, and then disputes the charge with their credit card company, leading to forced refunds and penalty fees for you. This practice, often called "friendly fraud," costs businesses billions. But there is a technology that stops it completely: cryptocurrency.

What is Chargeback Fraud and Why Does it Happen?

The traditional payment system is built to favor the consumer. If a cardholder claims a transaction was unauthorized or the product wasn't delivered, the burden of proof falls on the merchant. This system is easily abused, leaving you with lost products, lost revenue, and penalty fees.

The Blockchain Solution: Irreversible Transactions

Cryptocurrency transactions, once confirmed on the blockchain, are final and irreversible. There is no central authority like a bank that can step in and reverse a payment. When a customer sends you Bitcoin or another crypto, the payment is yours permanently. The concept of a chargeback simply does not exist.

The Benefits for Your Business:

•100% Protection from Friendly Fraud: You will never lose a sale to a fraudulent dispute again.

•Reduced Administrative Burden: No more wasting hours gathering evidence and fighting with payment processors.

•Increased Security: You take control of your revenue without needing to rely on a third party to validate your sales.

How to Get Started

The first step to gaining this protection is to implement a crypto payment gateway on your website. This service will handle the customer checkout process securely. (You can learn more in our main guide to the best crypto payment gateways).

Securing Your Revenue for the Long Term

Eliminating chargebacks means your revenue is truly yours. The final step is to manage that revenue on a secure and professional platform. Whether you want to hold your crypto, trade it for other assets, or convert it to cash, using a trusted exchange is crucial for financial management.

Why Everyone Is Talking About a Vanguard Crypto ETF

In today’s fast-moving investment world, few debates get people as fired up as the one around cryptocurrency. If you’ve been googling “Vanguard crypto ETF” or searching for “Vanguard Bitcoin ETF,” you’re definitely not alone. With Bitcoin blasting through the $100,000 mark in 2025 and crypto ETFs smashing records for inflows, it feels like everyone is asking the same question: why hasn’t Vanguard, the $10 trillion giant that built its reputation on low-cost index funds, joined the crypto ETF revolution?

Crypto ETFs Are Surging While Vanguard Sits Out

Crypto’s rise over the past few years has been nothing short of meteoric. When the first spot Bitcoin ETFs launched in 2024, few expected them to dominate the way they have. By mid-2025, billions had poured into these funds, with some months seeing Bitcoin ETFs outpace even Vanguard’s own legendary S&P 500 ETF in new inflows. Investors clearly wanted exposure, and they wanted it in the easiest, most regulated way possible. But Vanguard? They’ve stayed firmly on the sidelines.

The Irony of Vanguard’s Hidden Bitcoin Exposure

Even while Vanguard refuses to offer a direct Bitcoin ETF or even allow trading of spot Bitcoin ETFs on its own platform, its funds now hold billions in Bitcoin-linked stocks. MicroStrategy, a company that’s basically a giant Bitcoin vault disguised as a software firm, is a prime example. With over 600,000 BTC on its balance sheet, its stock has skyrocketed, and because MicroStrategy is included in major indexes, Vanguard funds have had no choice but to buy in. Today, Vanguard owns about 8% of the company through its broad index products like the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index and Vanguard Growth ETF.

Why Vanguard Rejects a Bitcoin ETF

The official stance hasn’t changed much. Vanguard’s CEO Salim Ramji has doubled down in interviews throughout 2025. He argues that Vanguard is focused on assets that generate real cash flow—dividends, bond interest, business earnings. To him, Bitcoin’s lack of income makes it more speculation than investment. That may be comforting for conservative investors who fear volatility, but it also feels out of step with where markets are heading.

The Reality of Risks and Rewards in Crypto ETFs

Because let’s face it: crypto ETFs are here, and they’re not going away. They trade on major exchanges with SEC oversight, they’ve attracted billions in capital, and they’re increasingly seen as a legitimate diversification tool. In July 2025 alone, Bitcoin ETFs brought in over $12 billion in new money. For many investors, Bitcoin has become  digital gold,  a hedge against inflation, currency debasement, and market turmoil. Still, the risks are real. Anyone who lived through Bitcoin’s 70% drop in 2022 knows how brutal the ride can be.

Alternatives to a Vanguard Bitcoin ETF

Let's talk about the question on every crypto investor's mind: what is the next big cryptocurrency? It's the dream that powers this market—the search for that one project that can deliver life-changing returns, the next Bitcoin or Ethereum. Every day, social media is filled with people promising they've found it. But the hard truth is that for every legitimate success story, there are a thousand failures and scams.

So, how do you navigate this? As an expert guide, I'm not going to give you a "hot tip." A crystal ball doesn't exist. Instead, I'm going to do something much more valuable: I'm going to share the framework that savvy investors use to identify areas of potential. We're going to learn how to fish.

Stop Looking for Coins, Start Looking for Narratives

The biggest mistake new investors make is chasing individual coins based on hype. Experienced investors do the opposite. They identify powerful, emerging "narratives" or trends that have the potential to attract billions of dollars in capital, and then they look for the strongest projects within that trend. Your job is to find the wave, then find the best surfer.

Here are some of the most powerful narratives currently shaping the market. This is where you should be hunting.

Narrative 1: Layer 2 Scaling Solutions (The "Express Highways")

Blockchains like Ethereum are incredibly secure, but they can be slow and expensive. Layer 2 solutions are projects built on top of Ethereum to make it faster and cheaper. As more users flock to crypto, the demand for these "express highways" will only grow. This narrative is about making crypto usable for the masses.

Narrative 2: Real-World Asset (RWA) Tokenization (The "Digital Bridge")

This is one of the most talked-about trends for a reason. RWA projects are focused on bringing traditional, off-chain assets—like real estate, bonds, and private equity—onto the blockchain. This has the potential to unlock trillions of dollars in illiquid value and bring it into the digital ecosystem. This narrative is about bridging the old financial world with the new. [Read our detailed guide: What Is Crypto Tokenization?]

Narrative 3: DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure)

This is a more advanced but powerful narrative. DePIN projects use crypto incentives to build and operate real-world infrastructure. Think of decentralized versions of services like cloud storage (Filecoin), 5G networks (Helium), or GPU rendering power. This narrative is about using crypto to build a more efficient and community-owned physical world.

Your Research Checklist: How to Vet a Project

Once you've identified a narrative that excites you, you need to dig into the specific projects within it. Here is a simple checklist to protect you from the hype and help you identify real substance.

• The Project's Purpose: In one sentence, what problem does this project actually solve? If you can't answer this clearly, it's a red flag.
• The Team: Are the founders public and experienced? Do they have a track record of success, or are they anonymous? A transparent and credible team is a massive green flag.
• Tokenomics: What is the coin used for? Does it have a fixed supply (like Bitcoin) or is it inflationary? Understand the economic model of the token you are buying.
• Community and Adoption: Is there a vibrant, active community of developers and users, or is it just a Telegram channel full of price hype? Real projects have real users.

Your Final Step: From Research to Action

The search for the next big cryptocurrency is a marathon, not a sprint. It requires patience, skepticism, and a solid research framework. By focusing on powerful narratives and rigorously vetting the projects within them, you dramatically increase your odds of success.

Once your research has led you to a project with genuine potential, you need a secure and reliable platform to act on your findings.

You’ve probably heard the story. A few years ago, people were buying small, simple devices called "hotspots," plugging them in, and earning a significant passive income in Helium (HNT) crypto. It sounded like the perfect set-it-and-forget-it dream.

But if you're looking into it today, you're likely asking a much more cautious question: is Helium mining still profitable?

The short answer is: for most people, it has become much more challenging, but it's not impossible. As your guide, I'm going to give you a completely honest, no-hype breakdown of the factors you need to consider before you spend a single dollar on a miner.

The Core Factors That Determine Your Profitability

Your earning potential isn't a lottery; it's a formula based on several key variables.

1. Your Location (This is the #1 Factor)

The Helium Network is designed to create a decentralized wireless network for the "Internet of Things" (IoT). To do this, it needs hotspots that are spread out.

• The Hex System: The world is divided into geographic areas called "hexes." The network rewards hotspots more for providing coverage in an underserved hex.
• The Problem of Saturation: If your hex is already crowded with other hotspots, you will all be sharing a smaller piece of the rewards pie. Before you do anything else, check the official Helium Explorer map. If your area is already a sea of hotspots, your earning potential will be severely limited.

2. The Shift in Tokens: HNT, IOT, and MOBILE

This is a crucial update that many old guides miss. You no longer mine the HNT coin directly.

• HNT: This is now the "governance" token of the Helium ecosystem.
• IOT: This is the token you earn for providing coverage with a standard IoT hotspot.
• MOBILE: This is the token you earn for providing coverage with a more expensive 5G hotspot.

You earn IOT or MOBILE tokens, which you can then choose to convert to HNT or another currency. Your profitability depends on the current market price of these new tokens.

3. The Cost of Hardware

A standard IoT hotspot can cost anywhere from $100 to $500. A more powerful 5G hotspot can cost over $1,000. You must factor this initial investment into your calculation. How long will it take for your daily earnings to pay back the cost of the hardware?

4. The Halving Schedule

Just like Bitcoin, the Helium network has "halvings" where the amount of new tokens issued is cut in half. This is designed to make the tokens more scarce over time, but it also means the rate at which you earn rewards will decrease.

The Verdict: Who Is Helium Mining For Today?

Given these factors, Helium mining is no longer a get-rich-quick scheme. It is best suited for two types of people:

1. The Tech Enthusiast: Someone who is genuinely interested in building a decentralized network and sees the token earnings as a bonus.
2. The Strategically Located Individual: Someone who has checked the Helium Explorer map and has access to a location in an underserved hex with a clear line of sight.

The Alternative: Investing in the Ecosystem

What if you believe in the vision of the Helium Network but realize that running a miner isn't the right move for you?

The simplest way to gain exposure to the ecosystem's growth is by investing in the tokens directly. This allows you to be part of the project's potential upside without the challenges of hardware setup, location optimization, and variable rewards.

When you're ready to explore the Solana ecosystem, the Phantom wallet is your key. But with stories of hacks and scams being all too common in crypto, it's natural to ask the most important question of all: "Is the Phantom wallet safe?"

The short answer is yes, Phantom is widely considered to be a secure wallet for the Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon ecosystems. However, the long answer is more important, as it involves understanding how the wallet's security works and what your role is in protecting your funds.

The Security of the Phantom App

Phantom's security is built on a strong, industry standard foundation. First, it is a non custodial wallet. This is the most critical feature, as it means you, and only you, hold the private keys to your assets. Phantom as a company never has access to your funds or your secret recovery phrase. Second, the wallet's code has been independently audited by top security firms to check for vulnerabilities. Finally, for users seeking maximum protection, Phantom allows for seamless integration with hardware wallets like Ledger, which keeps your keys in a secure offline environment.

The Human Factor: Your Responsibility

No matter how secure the software is, the most common point of failure is always the user. The safety of your funds ultimately rests in your hands. Your primary responsibility is the protection of your Secret Recovery Phrase, the twelve word phrase that acts as the master key to your wallet. If someone else gets this phrase, they have total control of your funds. It is essential to never share it with anyone and to store it offline in a safe, private place. Never store it as a screenshot on your computer or in a cloud drive.

Common Threats to Be Aware Of

The vast majority of funds lost by wallet users are not due to the wallet itself being hacked, but due to scams that trick the user into giving up control. You must be vigilant against phishing scams, where fake websites or emails try to trick you into entering your secret recovery phrase. You should also be cautious about interacting with unknown or untrusted decentralized applications. Approving a malicious smart contract can give it permission to drain your wallet, so always double check the websites you are connecting to.