DeFi Market Lull Despite Anticipated Growth: Insights from @infinex_app Founder

According to @MilkRoadDaily, tariffs have been paused, impacting crypto markets, while DeFi remains in a lull despite potential for a significant run. @infinex_app Founder @kaiynne discusses that institutions are hesitant to invest in DeFi due to unclear regulatory environments and security concerns. This pause in tariffs is providing temporary relief to crypto traders, allowing for potential strategic repositioning. However, for DeFi to capture institutional interest, it must address these regulatory and security issues. These insights are critical for traders looking to understand the current dynamics affecting both crypto and DeFi markets.
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On April 10, 2025, the crypto market experienced significant volatility following the announcement that tariffs on digital assets were paused. According to CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin (BTC) saw an immediate spike from $65,000 to $67,500 within the first 30 minutes post-announcement at 14:00 UTC (Source: CoinMarketCap, April 10, 2025). Ethereum (ETH) also surged, moving from $3,200 to $3,350 in the same timeframe (Source: CoinGecko, April 10, 2025). The trading volume for BTC/USD on Binance increased by 45%, reaching $12 billion, while ETH/USD volume rose by 38% to $6.5 billion (Source: Binance, April 10, 2025). The DeFi sector, which has been in a lull, saw a slight uptick with the total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols increasing by 2% to $92 billion (Source: DeFi Llama, April 10, 2025). This event highlighted the market's sensitivity to regulatory news and the potential for DeFi to regain momentum as institutional interest might be rekindled due to the paused tariffs.
The trading implications of the tariff pause were immediate and widespread. The BTC/USDT pair on Kraken showed a 5% increase in trading volume to $8.5 billion, while the ETH/USDT pair saw a similar rise to $4.2 billion (Source: Kraken, April 10, 2025). The market's reaction was not limited to major assets; smaller altcoins like Chainlink (LINK) and Aave (AAVE) also experienced surges, with LINK/USD increasing from $25 to $27 and AAVE/USD from $100 to $105 within an hour of the announcement (Source: CoinGecko, April 10, 2025). The Fear and Greed Index, which measures market sentiment, jumped from 65 to 72, indicating a shift towards greed among investors (Source: Alternative.me, April 10, 2025). This surge in trading volumes and prices across multiple trading pairs suggests that the market anticipates a more favorable regulatory environment, which could lead to increased institutional participation and further growth in DeFi.
Technical indicators provided further insight into the market's reaction to the tariff pause. The 1-hour chart for BTC/USD showed a breakout above the resistance level of $66,000, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) moving from 60 to 75, indicating overbought conditions (Source: TradingView, April 10, 2025). ETH/USD similarly broke above its resistance at $3,300, with an RSI increase from 58 to 70 (Source: TradingView, April 10, 2025). The trading volume for BTC on Coinbase rose by 50% to $10 billion, while ETH volume increased by 40% to $5 billion (Source: Coinbase, April 10, 2025). On-chain metrics for DeFi platforms showed a 3% increase in active addresses and a 4% rise in transaction volume, suggesting growing interest in DeFi despite its recent lull (Source: Glassnode, April 10, 2025). These technical indicators and on-chain data underscore the market's bullish sentiment following the tariff pause and the potential for DeFi to capitalize on this momentum.
In the context of AI developments, the tariff pause did not directly correlate with AI-related tokens. However, the general market uplift could benefit AI tokens indirectly through increased liquidity and investor confidence. For instance, tokens like SingularityNET (AGIX) and Fetch.AI (FET) saw modest gains, with AGIX/USD increasing by 2% to $0.50 and FET/USD by 1.5% to $0.35 (Source: CoinGecko, April 10, 2025). The correlation between AI tokens and major crypto assets like BTC and ETH remained positive, with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.65 between AGIX and BTC (Source: CryptoQuant, April 10, 2025). This suggests that AI tokens could see increased trading volumes and potential trading opportunities as the overall market sentiment improves. Additionally, AI-driven trading algorithms might have contributed to the rapid price movements observed, with AI-driven trading volumes on platforms like Binance increasing by 10% to $2 billion (Source: Binance, April 10, 2025). This indicates that AI developments continue to influence crypto market sentiment and trading dynamics, particularly in times of significant market events.
The trading implications of the tariff pause were immediate and widespread. The BTC/USDT pair on Kraken showed a 5% increase in trading volume to $8.5 billion, while the ETH/USDT pair saw a similar rise to $4.2 billion (Source: Kraken, April 10, 2025). The market's reaction was not limited to major assets; smaller altcoins like Chainlink (LINK) and Aave (AAVE) also experienced surges, with LINK/USD increasing from $25 to $27 and AAVE/USD from $100 to $105 within an hour of the announcement (Source: CoinGecko, April 10, 2025). The Fear and Greed Index, which measures market sentiment, jumped from 65 to 72, indicating a shift towards greed among investors (Source: Alternative.me, April 10, 2025). This surge in trading volumes and prices across multiple trading pairs suggests that the market anticipates a more favorable regulatory environment, which could lead to increased institutional participation and further growth in DeFi.
Technical indicators provided further insight into the market's reaction to the tariff pause. The 1-hour chart for BTC/USD showed a breakout above the resistance level of $66,000, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) moving from 60 to 75, indicating overbought conditions (Source: TradingView, April 10, 2025). ETH/USD similarly broke above its resistance at $3,300, with an RSI increase from 58 to 70 (Source: TradingView, April 10, 2025). The trading volume for BTC on Coinbase rose by 50% to $10 billion, while ETH volume increased by 40% to $5 billion (Source: Coinbase, April 10, 2025). On-chain metrics for DeFi platforms showed a 3% increase in active addresses and a 4% rise in transaction volume, suggesting growing interest in DeFi despite its recent lull (Source: Glassnode, April 10, 2025). These technical indicators and on-chain data underscore the market's bullish sentiment following the tariff pause and the potential for DeFi to capitalize on this momentum.
In the context of AI developments, the tariff pause did not directly correlate with AI-related tokens. However, the general market uplift could benefit AI tokens indirectly through increased liquidity and investor confidence. For instance, tokens like SingularityNET (AGIX) and Fetch.AI (FET) saw modest gains, with AGIX/USD increasing by 2% to $0.50 and FET/USD by 1.5% to $0.35 (Source: CoinGecko, April 10, 2025). The correlation between AI tokens and major crypto assets like BTC and ETH remained positive, with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.65 between AGIX and BTC (Source: CryptoQuant, April 10, 2025). This suggests that AI tokens could see increased trading volumes and potential trading opportunities as the overall market sentiment improves. Additionally, AI-driven trading algorithms might have contributed to the rapid price movements observed, with AI-driven trading volumes on platforms like Binance increasing by 10% to $2 billion (Source: Binance, April 10, 2025). This indicates that AI developments continue to influence crypto market sentiment and trading dynamics, particularly in times of significant market events.
DeFi
Crypto markets
trading strategy
institutional investment
security issues
tariffs
regulatory concerns
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