Market Commentary
This week brought a brief reprieve from the chaos of early April. Volatility eased across markets, with the VIX falling from a peak of over 50 last week to around 30.
In crypto, Solana was the clear standout, rising 17% on the week. SOL’s relative strength reflects renewed attention from both traders and builders. This is important because everyone thought that, when the memecoin narrative started to fade, Solana was doomed. We still believe Solana is best positioned to continue capturing value in the onchain economy.
Meanwhile, Ethereum’s price continues to lag. Despite upcoming catalysts like the May 7 Pectra upgrade, ETH remains stuck in a tight range and finished the week flat. Institutional appetite remains limited, while issues such as fragmentation and poor UX across L2s remain unanswered.
Bitcoin was up 3% this week, trading around $84,500 as of Thursday. While price action has stabilized, spot ETF flows remain negative. BTC funds recorded another week of net outflows, signaling that institutional demand has not yet returned in force. This marks the third straight week in the red for Bitcoin ETFs, even as traditional financial markets rebounded.
The broader backdrop remains dominated by Trump’s unpredictable tariff policy. After the 90-day pause, the administration walked back key exemptions on tech imports and doubled down on China. These back-and-forth moves are starting to wear on markets.
We are now looking to earnings season for early signals on how tariffs are affecting real corporate performance, particularly in supply-chain-heavy sectors like tech and manufacturing.
With the 10-year Treasury yield still elevated and forward inflation expectations creeping higher, the Fed’s next steps remain unclear. Meanwhile, Trump is bullying Fed Chair Jerome Powell calling him “Too Late.”
For now, the market is caught between Trump’s erratic policy moves and a central bank that’s increasingly boxed in.
Raydium Expands Into Token Issuance with LaunchLab
Raydium launched LaunchLab on Wednedsay, positioning itself as a full-stack ecosystem player beyond its core liquidity provisioning. The platform enters direct competition with tools like Pump.fun, offering a streamlined, customizable approach to token launches.
LaunchLab’s key innovation is its flexible bonding curve model, allowing projects to choose from linear, exponential, or logarithmic pricing mechanisms based on capital formation goals. It features a no-code interface, including a quick-launch mode (JustSendIt) and referral incentives to drive network effects. The platform is free to use.
Once a token raises 85 SOL (~$11,300), liquidity is automatically migrated to Raydium’s AMM, with LP tokens either burned or locked to support price stability. LaunchLab takes a 1% trading fee—split across RAY buybacks, the community pool, and operations—while creators earn 10% of AMM trading fees, aligning long-term incentives.
While LaunchLab introduces more configurability than its competitors, its bonding curve model could invite speculative behavior. Strong auditing and community oversight will be critical. Raydium’s roadmap includes multi-chain support, which could elevate LaunchLab as core infrastructure for permissionless token issuance across ecosystems.