Best Cryptos To Buy Now: Baby Shark ($BSU), Polygon ($POL), Memecoin ($MEME)

The global cryptocurrency market declined by 0.56% over the past 24 hours, extending its 1.8% weekly loss. The downtrend was driven by various factors, including traders’ profit-taking following last week’s 29% gains, delays in the potential approval of crypto ETFs, and liquidations across the derivatives market.

Several cryptocurrencies managed to deliver returns, especially memecoins, as risk-taking sentiment has sustained despite the overall drop. According to our analysis, the best cryptos to buy now are: Baby Shark (BSU), Polygon (POL), and Memecoin (MEME).

Crypto Market Dips as SEC Delays Decision on Altcoin ETFs and Traders Reduce Long Exposures Ahead of Fed’s Jackson Hole Event 

Derivatives open interest (OI) across the market rose 12.75% in 24 hours to $895 billion, which came amid Bitcoin’s (BTC) price drop, signalling over-leveraged long positions. This was due to perpetual funding rates turning neutral, reducing incentives to hold positions. Most traders reduced their exposure after BTC failed to hold $118,000, triggering $54 million in liquidations. Ethereum (ETH) also faced similar pressure, dipping 3.8% to $4,322.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed its decision on nine crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications, including those for BTC, ETH, XRP, Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin (LTC), and Solana (SOL), pushing the review deadlines to October.

While the deferral hurt altcoins the most, ETH spot ETF inflows hit a weekly record of $2.87 billion, suggesting that institutional investors favor the second-largest crypto by market capitalization. This is a boost for the Altcoin Season narrative.

The correlation between crypto and the Nasdaq-100 fell to 0.55, while the crypto-to-gold correlation is down to 0.77. Traders have shifted to gold-backed tokens like Paxos Gold (PAXG) and Tether Gold (XAUt) ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole speech on August 21. Hawkish rate cut expectations by the Fed and U.S. tariff-related fears have triggered defensive moves across the market, sapping crypto liquidity.

Best Cryptos to Buy Now (08/19): $POL, $BSU, $MEME

1. Polygon (POL)

Source: TradingView

The price of POL (formerly MATIC) rose 4.2% in the past 24 hours, outpacing the broader crypto market’s 0.83% decline. The rally for the native asset of Ethereum L2 Polygon was driven by growth in the blockchain’s DeFi ecosystem, the altcoin rotation trend, and positive technical momentum.

The total value locked (TVL) on Polygon-based DeFi platforms has surged 43% this year, hitting $1.23 billion, and drawing $123 million in net inflows over the past month. QuickSwap and Polymarket drove the adoption of POL during this time. Rising TVL signals increasing network utility, attracting developers and users. POL’s 6.6% DeFi sector gains during the last 30 days outpaced peers like SOL (4.5%), reflecting rising demand for scalable Layer-2 scaling solutions.

The Altcoin Season Index (ASI) rose 29.41% weekly, with ETH’s market dominance dipping 13.17%. The 24-hour trading volume for POL spiked 77% to $446 million, signaling speculative interest in the token. Traders are increasingly rotating capital from BTC and ETH to alts like POL for higher beta plays. However, leverage risk persists as Polygon’s derivatives OI is up 13.5%.

POL has broken out of its 7-day SMA at $0.2456 and 200-day EMA at $0.2577. Its MACD histogram has turned positive at +0.00167, while the 14-day RSI at 62.15 has avoided overbought territory for the time being. Traders anticipate a bullish confirmation for POL but face resistance near the 23.6% Fibonacci at $0.26, with a close above that level targeting the 127.2% Fib extension at $0.2636.

At the time of writing, Polygon (POL) is trading at $0.2533, up 3.66% in the last 24 hours. According to our technical analysis based on its current market price, in 2025, POL is expected to change hands in a trading channel between $0.1783 (Low) and $0.2628 (High), with an average annualized price of $0.1987. This could result in a potential ROI of +3.61% over its current rate.

Also Read: Best Altcoins to Buy Now Before Next Crypto Market Breakout

2. Baby Shark Universe (BSU)

Source: TradingView

Baby Shark Universe (BSU) was among the best-performing cryptocurrencies, rising 37.58% over the last 24 hours. The memecoin has outperformed its 7-day and 30-day gains by over 90%. This surge coincides with the crypto market’s overall dip and is driven by speculative demand ignited by BSU’s migration to the Binance Smart Chain (BSC), recent airdrop listing on Binance Alpha, and positive technical breakout.

BSU began migrating from Polygon to Binance Smart Chain on August 13, requiring holders to move their tokens to their self-custody wallets for a 1:1 swap. Baby Shark Universe started distributing BSC-native BSU tokens on August 18, which aligned with the price surge. The network migration has reduced immediate sell pressure as tokens are locked during the swap, and has managed to attract BSC-centric traders.

Network-related issues, like BSU’s incompatibility with the Immutable Passport protocol, forced manual withdrawals, which temporarily tightened the memecoin’s supply. Traders need to keep an eye on the completion of the second phase of the BSU swap and post-distribution sell pressure.

Ahead of the network migration, BSU debuted on Binance Alpha on August 9 with an airdrop that required users to spend Alpha Points. Over 510 BSU was offered to each Binance Alpha user, driving demand for the memecoin. The 172.89% spike in BSU’s trading volume suggests that airdrop recipients may be trading tokens post-claim. However, there are concerns regarding the rally’s sustainability due to the event’s short-term focus.

BSU is trading 62% above its 7-day SMA at $0.1127, but its 7-day RSI hit extremely overbought conditions at 96.37. While the ongoing momentum is strong for Baby Shark Universe, such overheated market conditions have historically preceded price corrections, and traders could take profits near the $0.20 psychological resistance. Holding above $0.15 will be key for BSU’s price if RSI cools below 70.

At the time of writing, Baby Shark Universe (BSU) is trading at $0.1831, up 31.57% in the last 24 hours. According to our technical analysis based on its current market price, in 2025, BSU is expected to change hands in a trading channel between $0.1162 (Low) and $0.1591 (High), with an average annualized price of $0.1265. This could result in a potential ROI of -11.29% over its current rate.

3. Memecoin (MEME)

Source: TradingView

The price of MEME rose 4.98% over the past 24 hours, with the rally driven by buzz surrounding potential memecoin ETFs, positive technical breakout for its price, and sector-wide capital rotation into alts, especially memecoins.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas reiterated that there is a “really good chance” of ETFs tied to memecoins launching in the U.S. by 2026, with several altcoin ETFs expected to be approved by the SEC by the year-end. MEME’s position as a top-10 memecoin by market cap makes it a potential candidate for an ETF. While the asset has no particular utility, the speculation surrounding an ETF acts as a narrative catalyst for its price, and retail traders often front-run such news, driving short-term demand.

🐶📈 Are Memecoins the Next Big ETF Play?

Bloomberg’s top ETF analyst Eric Balchunas just dropped a spicy take:
A U.S.-listed Memecoin ETF could launch by 2026.

Yes, an entire ETF of dog coins, Pepe's, American Presidents and degen dreams!

Why?
👉 Active crypto ETFs are… pic.twitter.com/GmCSiOaAX0

— Seedify (@SeedifyFund) June 9, 2025

Daily memecoin launches have hit yearly lows, with liquidity concentrating in established tokens like MEME, as reflected by the 412% spike in its 24-hour trading volume, which hit $153 million. This reflects speculative trading, and not organic demand, with the memecoin sector prone to sudden sentiment shifts. Furthermore, MEME’s 80% drop in annual return highlights its fragility to broader market rotations.

MEME broke above its 7-day SMA at $0.00194 and 30-day SMA at $0.00187, with the MACD histogram showing bullish divergence. The token’s 14-day RSI at 62.4 suggests room for further upward movement before hitting overbought conditions. This means that traders may interpret the breakout as a signal to enter the MEME market, especially considering that the token is still trading 15% below its 200-day SMA at $0.00239.

However, weak support at its current price has increased volatility risk. A close above the 23.6% Fibonacci of $0.00217 could target July’s swing high of $0.00235. Traders need to monitor Bitcoin’s price action, as further drops could trigger profit-taking in high-beta assets like MEME.

At the time of writing, Memecoin (MEME) is trading at $0.002036, up 5.17% in the last 24 hours. According to our technical analysis based on its current market price, in 2025, MEME is expected to change hands in a trading channel between $0.001407 (Low) and $0.002046 (High), with an average annualized price of $0.001561. This could result in a potential ROI of +0.92% over its current rate.

Final Thoughts on the Best Cryptos to Buy Now

Today’s nearly 2% dip across the crypto market has resulted in Bitcoin’s dominance dipping 0.41 points to 59.04%, while the Altcoin Season Index fell to 44/100 – remaining well in “Bitcoin Season” territory. The overall decline has reversed last week’s +29% surge in ASI, suggesting that traders are profit-taking on alts.

A positive note for altcoins was that ETH spot ETFs saw $2.85 billion inflows this week, far outpacing the $1.65 billion influxes for their BTC counterparts. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) now holds 3.6 million ETH, worth $12 billion, with daily inflows up 46% since August 10.

POL surged 4.2% on the back of Polygon’s rising DeFi momentum, with TVL across native applications crossing $1.23 billion this year, and bringing in $123 million over the past 30 days as developers and users rushed in. BSU saw its price surge nearly 90% weekly following the Baby Shark Universe network’s ongoing migration to the BSC ecosystem, reducing immediate sell pressure for the token while attracting BNB traders. MEME’s 5% rally was driven by the positive narrative surrounding potential memecoin ETF approvals that could be expected in 2026.

Despite the market potential of these assets, readers should note that cryptocurrencies are speculative and highly volatile assets. Investing in them requires proper research and understanding of market dynamics, which are subject to macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds. The contents of this article are purely for educational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice. Always remember, only put money that you can afford to lose in crypto.