Last week, U.S. regulators filed lawsuits against exchanges Binance and Coinbase, causing a drop in the prices of altcoins, which are most cryptocurrencies except for bitcoin and ether. Over 50 cryptocurrencies worth over $100 billion in total and making up about 10% of the overall market are now viewed by the SEC watchdog as securities, which could lead to a forced closing of various altcoin pairs.

The SEC's classification is likely to hit investment interest for the blockchains underlying tokens like solana and cardano, both notable chains for developing decentralized finance and other applications. However, some market watchers say the price declines of beleaguered altcoins could be attracting investors hunting value.