The cryptocurrency market begins a new week characterized by a familiar yet odd mix of diverging capital flows and price movements, with major assets seemingly operating in separate cycles. While Bitcoin maintains its late-November base and Ethereum shows signs of recovery into the weekend, XRP has experienced a chart setback despite being the recipient of significant institutional capital inflows. Meanwhile, the Shiba Inu (SHIB) meme coin is building a structured low-range base that appears ready for action.

One of the most notable stories of the week, according to CoinShares, reveals a stark contrast in institutional interest: XRP-focused investment products attracted a massive $244.7 million in fresh capital, vastly overshadowing the $39.1 million pulled into Ethereum-focused products. This 625% spread is an unusual indicator of strong allocator conviction, yet paradoxically, XRP’s price concluded the period down by nearly 4.8%, while ETH finished up by almost 3.8%. Such a mismatch between strong capital inflows and a declining price often signals an impending market correction to bridge the gap, and XRP is historically an asset that can snap back quickly when repricing occurs. Further underscoring institutional interest, Bitwise's XRP exchange-traded fund is now accessible to Vanguard clients. Vanguard, a financial giant with over $11 trillion in assets under management and a historically conservative stance against crypto products, has reversed its policy, allowing its more than 50 million customers to trade select crypto ETFs. Currently, XRP's price remains compressed at around $2.15, yet it continues to defend the critical support range of $2.00-$2.10.

In the Bitcoin ecosystem, Strategy's CEO Phong Le has firmly articulated the company's long-term vision, stating there will be no Bitcoin sales until 2065. Strategy, which holds approximately 650,000 BTC with an average cost of $74,431 and a total line near $60 billion, continues to be positive by 23.64% even through recent downturns. Le clarified that the company functions effectively as a leveraged Bitcoin proxy, with its stock price exaggerating Bitcoin’s movements. Strong liquidity, demonstrated by pulling in $1.44 billion in 8.5 days, covers over 21 months of payouts, dispelling any dividend panic. The CEO framed BTC sales as a last-resort measure in an extreme scenario of dollar liquidity collapse. Bitcoin’s chart supports this long-term view, reclaiming its midrange after a late-November dip and now trading around $92,000, forming a stable structure. Support remains intact as long as the $89,000 area holds. Veteran crypto trader Peter Brandt also presented an analysis suggesting Bitcoin may face a deeper correction before embarking on its next parabolic rally, potentially reaching $200,000 to $250,000. He noted that previous bull cycles have followed similar patterns, and despite slowing exponential growth, the next major cycle holds significant upside. For the immediate future, Bitcoin’s upside trigger sits near $94,300, with a breakdown marker at $84,400.

Shiba Inu (SHIB) has defied expectations, initiating December with an unexpected 11% gain over the past 10 days, breaking from what many considered an exhausted narrative. This rally is particularly noteworthy given the broader market's "extreme fear" sentiment, suggesting SHIB's movement is driven by chart mechanics rather than collective mood. The meme coin has stabilized after months of downward pressure, forming a higher low and refusing to break below the crucial $0.0000080 region. Buyers are actively absorbing supply, and sellers are no longer able to drive prices to new lows, indicating a structural shift. The short-term trend shows improvement, with SHIB rising above the 20-day moving average and approaching a flattening 50-day moving average, a common precursor to bullish breakouts. Momentum indicators, such as the rising RSI from the mid-40s, confirm fresh purchasing activity without overheating. A successful reclaim of the 50-day moving average would target the $0.0000095-$0.0000105 resistance cluster. A breakthrough here could validate a mid-term trend reversal and bring the much-discussed "zero removal" option closer to reality. SHIB usually responds quickly when its base stops bleeding and liquidity shifts into meme assets, treating $0.0000085 as workable support. To unlock the next part of its chart, SHIB needs a push toward the $0.00000918 line.

Ethereum, while showing signs of recovery, also experienced a significant operational challenge. A bug in the Prysm consensus client on the mainnet caused approximately 23% of the Ethereum network to go offline in the early hours of Thursday, prompting the Ethereum Foundation to urge affected node operators to reconfigure their CL nodes. Prysm quickly identified the issue and promised a workaround. Despite this outage, the market is displaying indicators that Ethereum's selloff may be concluding. ETH has stabilized and formed a distinct higher low around $2,800 after a fall from the $4,600 area, indicating waning bearish momentum. Buyers are retaliating, and panic-driven spikes in volume have been replaced by stable participation, characteristic of transitional periods where weak hands have capitulated. The RSI in the mid-40s signals balance rather than capitulation, suggesting a shift from breakdown to stabilization. Investors should anticipate a cautious recovery phase, with momentum gradually favoring buyers.

The broader crypto market outlook suggests that the current misalignment between flows and prices will not persist for long, with the second week of December being crucial for repricing decisions. Bitcoin’s performance, with key levels at $94,300 for upside and $84,400 for breakdown, will largely dictate the market's direction. XRP’s substantial inflow gap demands repricing, despite its current compressed price. Shiba Inu's sustained push above $0.00000918 is needed for confirmation of its upward trajectory, with a base at $0.0000080-$0.0000085 as a key support level. Amidst these technical discussions, Dogecoin creator Billy Markus offered sarcastic commentary on recent crypto crashes, dismissing claims of "manipulation" as emotional responses and highlighting that "all dumps are manipulation, and all pumps are super organic," challenging the common narrative that large holders are solely responsible for price movements.