Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, blue-chip non-fungible token collections recorded double-digit priccrypto exchange Gemini surpassed Coinbase on the US Apple App Store charts hours after releasing an XRP Mastercard. Exchange trade groups are working with global regulators to slow the rise of tokenized stocks and Galaxy Digital, Multicoin Capital and Jump Crypto are said to be raising $1 billion to accumulate Solana.

Blue chip NFTs sink double digits as ETH retreats from record highs

Blue-chip non-fungible token (NFT) collections had steep weekly declines as Ether pulled back from all-time highs. 

Data from decentralized finance aggregator DefiLlama showed that top projects saw their floor prices sink by double digits in the last seven days. Blue-chip NFT collections like Pudgy Penguins, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Doodles were among the hardest hit.

Pudgy Penguins, the top NFT collection by 24-hour and 7-day volume, saw a 17.3% drop to a 10.32 Ether (ETH) floor price. BAYC shed 14.7% to 9.59 ETH, while Doodles recorded one of the sharpest corrections, dropping 18.9% to 0.73 ETH. Other major collections like Moonbirds and Lil Pudgys dropped 10.5% and 14.6%, respectively.

The NFT floor price drop followed a sharp ETH retracement after hitting new all-time highs. On Monday, CoinGecko data showed that ETH reached a new all-time high of $4,946. ETH dropped 12% on Tuesday to $4,342 before recovering slightly. At the time of writing, the crypto asset traded at $4,433.

Gemini flips Coinbase on app store after XRP Mastercard launch

Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, surpassed Coinbase in the app store charts after launching an XRP-rewards credit card with Ripple Labs and Mastercard. 

“This limited edition metal card gives up to 4% back in XRP instantly. No waiting, just stacking,” Gemini said in an X post on Monday.

Sensor Tower data shows Gemini overtook Coinbase in the finance category rankings in the US after the announcement, with Gemini at 16th place at the time of publication, and Coinbase at 20th. 

Gemini co-founder Tyler Winklevoss said, “The flippening is accelerating” in an X post on Monday.

The event may be seen as significant as Coinbase has over three times the daily trading volume of Gemini, recent data from Messari shows.

Global regulators, exchanges push back on tokenized stocks in SEC letter: Report

Exchange industry associations and global regulators are joining forces to curb the growth and adoption of tokenized stocks, arguing that these products do not represent actual equities and expose investors to significant risks.

According to Reuters, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), and the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) have sent a letter to the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Crypto Task Force, urging stricter regulatory oversight of tokenized stocks.

The organizations argue that tokenized stocks “mimic” the equities they are designed to represent but lack the investor protections built into traditional markets.

“We are alarmed at the plethora of brokers and crypto-trading platforms offering or intending to offer so-called tokenized US stocks,” the WFE told Reuters, without naming specific firms or platforms. “These products are marketed as stock tokens or equivalent to the stocks when they are not.”

The push carries weight given the influence of the signatories. EMSA is a European Union agency and one of the bloc’s three main financial supervisory authorities.

IOSCO is an international body that sets standards for securities regulation and investor protection across global markets.

WFE, headquartered in the UK, is an industry group representing exchanges and clearing houses worldwide.

The call for clampdowns comes as tokenized securities gain traction on Wall Street and beyond, driven by the promise of greater efficiency, lower costs and broader market access through blockchain technology.