Deep Dive
1. Etherlink’s Farfadet Upgrade (Bullish Impact)
Overview: Tezos’ EVM-compatible L2 chain Etherlink activated its sixth upgrade, Farfadet, on December 22, enabling 1,000+ transactions per second and instant confirmations while keeping fees under $0.01.
What this means: The upgrade directly addresses scalability concerns, making Etherlink more competitive with Ethereum L2s. Recent integrations with Curve and Midas’ tokenized assets ($82.7M TVL as of November) have amplified utility-driven demand for XTZ.
What to look out for: Etherlink’s TVL growth post-upgrade and adoption of its new institutional-grade tokenization features.
2. Altcoin Rotation & Technical Resilience (Mixed Impact)
Overview: XTZ is up 8.78% this week, outperforming Bitcoin (+0.78%) and Ethereum (+1.94%). The 24h turnover ratio (6.68%) suggests moderate liquidity, but the MACD histogram turned positive for the first time since December 20.
What this means: Traders are rotating into undervalued alts with strong fundamentals. XTZ’s RSI (50.97) avoids overbought territory, leaving room for upside if it holds above the 7-day SMA ($0.448).
What to look out for: A close above $0.50 (23.6% Fibonacci level) could trigger a test of $0.528 – its 30-day high.
3. Ecosystem Growth & Partnerships (Bullish Impact)
Overview: Tezos’ art ecosystem saw 500K+ NFTs sold in 2025, anchored by partnerships like the Museum of the Moving Image. Gaming integrations (e.g., REAPER ACTUAL) added 438K users to Etherlink.
What this means: Real-world use cases are driving organic demand. Unlike meme coins, XTZ’s rise aligns with measurable network activity – a critical factor during Bitcoin-dominated markets.
Conclusion
XTZ’s 24h gain reflects Etherlink’s technical strides, DeFi/gaming traction, and broader altcoin rotation – though its 30-day performance (-6%) shows lingering skepticism. Key watch: Can Etherlink sustain its $82M+ TVL growth amid competing L2s? Monitor XTZ’s ability to hold $0.48 as a new support floor.