THE LATEST CRYPTO NEWS

Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams is facing significant backlash after the crash of his newly launched cryptocurrency, the NYC Token, shortly after its debut on Monday. The token initially soared to a market cap of $580 million but has since fallen sharply to approximately $133 million. Eric Adams Under Fire In a promotional video, Adams declared, “We’re about to change the game. This thing is about to take off like crazy.” However, the excitement was short-lived as evidence surfaced suggesting that the steep decline in value resulted from a significant sell-off involving a user connected to the NYC Token’s development team. Related Reading: New Hope For Crypto: Senators Introduce Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act Blockchain analysis platform Bubblemaps flagged potentially concerning activity linked to the NYC Token. Notably, a wallet associated with the token’s deployer withdrew around $2.5 million in liquidity when the token peaked.  Although about $1.5 million was returned after the token’s value dropped by 60%, approximately $900,000 remains unreturned. This has led users on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to accuse Adams of orchestrating a crypto rug pull.  Adams, who has been an outspoken proponent of cryptocurrency, stated during a Monday event that some of the funds generated by the NYC Token would be directed towards nonprofits focused on combating antisemitism and “anti-Americanism.” Additionally, he expressed intentions to use the proceeds to “teach our children about embracing blockchain technology.” The NYC Token’s official website states there is a total supply of one billion tokens in circulation, and details reveal that 10 percent of profits are allocated to the team’s activities, though the identities of those involved were not disclosed.  NYC Token Team Responds  In response to criticism, the NYC Token team acknowledged the liquidity withdrawal, stating, “Given the overwhelming support and demand for the token at launch, our partners had to rebalance the liquidity.” They added, “We’re in it for the long haul!”  However, there remains uncertainty about the details surrounding the token’s launch, with a recently listed entity, C18 Digital, associated with the project. Delaware corporation records show that C18 Digital was incorporated on December 30, 2025. Related Reading: Coinbase Mulls Exiting Support For Crypto Market Structure Bill Ahead Of January 15 Deadline Typically, when a cryptocurrency launches, developers create a liquidity pool using various assets, such as Circle’s USDC or Solana (SOL), to allow users to buy and sell the new token. The NYC Token took a different approach by establishing a one-sided liquidity pool comprised solely of the token itself.  As users began purchasing the token, they injected liquidity into the pool using USDC, which was followed by the significant withdrawal of $2.5 million. This tactic, described by analyst Vaiman, can be more subtle than direct token sell-offs. Following the viral reports of the alleged rug pull, a new account associated with the NYC Token announced that additional funds had been injected into the liquidity pool.  Featured image from CNN, chart from TradingView.com 

US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins is confident that a long-awaited crypto market structure bill could find its way into US President Donald Trump’s office for signature before the end of the year. The SEC chief highlighted ongoing efforts during an interview with Fox Business to clarify rules around digital asset trading and said the bill could provide much-needed guidance to investors and trading platforms. Related Reading: Crypto Products Post $454M Weekly Outflows On Fed Jitters Atkins Expresses Confidence Atkins, who was confirmed by the Senate in April 2025 in a 52-44 vote, said tokenization and faster settlement systems are part of the next phase for US markets. He argued that a market structure law would give firms and investors clearer signals about which rules apply to trading in digital assets. Reports have disclosed that the chair sees the bill as fitting the administration’s push to make the US more competitive in crypto. This is a big week for crypto – Congress is on the cusp of upgrading our financial markets for the 21st century. I am wholly supportive of Congress providing clarity on the jurisdictional split between the SEC and the @CFTC. pic.twitter.com/NtDWRW85kL — Paul Atkins (@SECPaulSAtkins) January 12, 2026 Atkins discussed the regulatory forecast for crypto this year during an interview with Fox Business. Source: Paul Atkins Lawmakers’ Calendar And Odds Based on reports from financial analysts, the path to passage is not guaranteed. One market note put the chance of the bill clearing Congress in 2026 at roughly 50-60%, and warned that delays could push final action into 2027. Other analysts have suggested a longer road, saying implementation of final market structure rules might not be settled for years if political dynamics change. What Is Being Negotiated The draft measures under discussion aim to define which federal agency supervises different types of digital instruments, establish standards for trading venues that list tokens, and create clearer reporting rules for market participants. Reports have disclosed that committee markups are expected before any Senate floor vote, and those sessions will shape the bill’s final text. Industry Reaction, Market Talk The optimism expressed by Atkins has been welcomed by industry associations, as they see that clear guidance could lead to more institutional capital flowing into the onshore crypto trading space. On the other hand, the sentiment from many companies is that there is still a level of caution surrounding future regulations. Although regulators continue to show a level of agreement regarding overall regulation, the details of custody, custody provider(s), and oversight split between various regulatory agencies must be agreed upon by Congress before any definitive progress can be made. This back-and-forth between Congress and regulatory agencies has caused the markets to react in a pattern of quick positive movements followed by corresponding negative movements due to legislative inaction. Related Reading: CZ Fuels Optimism As Binance Coin’s $1,000 Target Trends Political Timing Could Matter The midterm and committee calendars are being watched closely. If the Senate delays key votes, support that exists now could wane or be reshaped by other priorities. Some commentators argue that fast action would lock in regulatory clarity; others say a rushed law could leave gaps that require later fixes. The debate over speed versus detail is active in Washington. Featured image from Gemini, chart from TradingView

Monero (XMR) is leading the crypto market bounce by breaking out of a macro resistance level and breaching above the $600 barrier for the first time. A legendary trader has suggested that the cryptocurrency is mirroring silver’s historical breakout and could see a massive price discovery rally. Related Reading: Bitcoin Tops $92,000 As DOJ Subpoenas Escalate Trump-Powell Fight Monero Soars To New Highs On Monday, Monero outperformed the rest of the market, surging nearly 21% toward its new all-time high of $611.01. The privacy-focused cryptocurrency has been leading the start-of-year market rally, experiencing a 43% increase over the past seven days. XMR’s rally has been fueled by renewed interest in privacy tokens and redirected liquidity toward the project, which has driven its market capitalization to $10 billion for the first time. Amid this performance, veteran trader Peter Brandt drew a parallel between Monero and Silver’s long-term charts, suggesting that the cryptocurrency could be near a massive breakout. In an X post, Brandt compared Monero’s current rally to silver’s historical breakout, which led to a massive run toward new highs. Silver saw a multi-decade price setup in which its price accumulated below and retested a macro ascending resistance trendline. According to the chart, its price formed its long-term resistance during its 2011 peak, when it reached a slightly higher ATH of $49.83 before correcting. During its Q4 2025 rally, silver finally broke above this key level, nearly doubling its price toward its latest ATH of $86.23. Similarly, Monero has been forming its multi-year ascending trendline in the monthly timeframe since its 2017 high. In 2021, the cryptocurrency retested this area, also hitting a slightly higher ATH before retracing. Now, XMR has broken out of its ascending resistance and could see a similar path to silver’s recent breakout into price discovery, the post suggested. XMR to See 50% Breakout Or Breakdown Next? Market observer TraderSZ recently shared an optimistic outlook for Monero once it broke through its crucial resistance area and turned this level into support. To the trader, the cryptocurrency could reach three main price targets if momentum continues. Per the post, the initial breakout level could reach the $685 area, a more than 30% rally from the resistance level. Moreover, it could surge between 50% and 80% toward the $790 and $900 levels, like silver’s recent price discovery progression in the monthly chart. Analyst 0xMarioNawfal also highlighted XMR’s performance as “price continues to trend aggressively higher, breaking through previous resistance levels with strong momentum and minimal pullback.” To him, the structure remains bullish, with buyers stepping in and “no clear signs of distribution yet.” As a result, he forecasted potential volatility but added that as long as the price holds above recent breakout levels, the trend will remain intact. Related Reading: Solana Price Jumps, But Network Adoption Remains Weak Nonetheless, Ali Martinez posted a more concerning forecast for the cryptocurrency, suggesting that a significant correction may be around the corner. According to the chart, Monero has been forming a multi-year rising wedge pattern since 2017, with the price bouncing between the upper and lower boundaries. Based on this, XMR could likely fail to turn the macro resistance into support and begin a long-term 50% decline toward the $300 area, where the pattern’s lower boundary is currently located. As of this writing, Monero is trading at $597, a 47.5% increase in the monthly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

XRP may be setting up for a final, cleaner long entry if the broader market delivers one more volatility-driven pullback, according to CryptoinsightUK’s Will Taylor, who says his preferred “risk to reward” zone sits materially below current support. The thesis hinges on whether Bitcoin prints a double-bottom-style retest and drags major alts into deeper liquidity pockets before the next leg higher. In his Jan. 10 newsletter, Taylor framed early 2026 as a market caught between two plausible paths: a familiar pullback-and-recover structure that has defined prior Bitcoin dips, or a continuation higher that leaves would-be buyers watching price run away. “The question mark for me is whether we do get a wick below this ascending trend line into that double bottom area and then push higher,” he wrote, adding that the setup is crowded. “On the other side of this, it does make you think that everyone is probably looking at the same structure and waiting for something like this to play out.” Taylor said he had closed short-term trades during the week, not as a shift in his higher-timeframe view, but as a response to what he described as low-timeframe conditions and event risk. “Today we get the ruling on tariffs in the US. Is that going to provide some volatility?” he asked, pointing to a cluster of geopolitical headlines as potential catalysts that could either produce the pullback he’s watching for—or “deceive people… who are waiting for a pullback, and instead continue higher from here and leave those orders behind.” Related Reading: Spot XRP ETFs Hit Record Trading Volume In Past Week — Details Taylor’s shorter-term trade framework leans heavily on liquidity positioning, using Ethereum as a key tell for what Bitcoin might do next. He argued ETH “kind of favours the double bottom scenario” because “the amount of liquidity that has built up for ETH down to about $2,600” is heavier below than above on the hourly chart, an imbalance he views as a magnet if the market attempts to rally without first clearing that downside interest. One Last Buying Opportunity For XRP? That same logic carries into his XRP plan. Taylor said XRP has already “swept the highs of the range first,” forcing a decision point between holding a nearer support band—his “first blue box”—or fading into a deeper demand zone. “Now the discussion becomes whether we move into the first blue box as a weaker area of support and hold there… or whether we come back down into the deeper support zone around $1.90 to $1.82 and hold there,” he wrote. “That deeper area is my preferred risk to reward zone for placing long positions, and that is where I will be looking to get back into an XRP long and add to my position if we see that move specifically.” He added that the daily RSI on XRP was “close to crossing bearish,” presenting a technical backdrop that, in his view, supports the case for one more washout before trend continuation while stressing it does not alter his higher-timeframe bullish thesis. Related Reading: Ripple Builds ‘Next Amazon’ With XRP At The Center, Says Crypto CEO Taylor then pivoted to a more stimulative medium-term narrative, citing talk of “putting 200 billion into additional mortgage backed security purchases to cut mortgage rates,” along with suggestions of potential stimulus checks and the inflation sensitivity of oil prices. “Because of all of this, I think we’re going to see an epic rally. I don’t think people are really expecting the size or the scale of the move that could come,” Taylor wrote. “I believe we’re in the final shakeout period before the market really starts to march higher.” He said he remained “around 95% exposed to the market through spot positions,” framing the decision to close short-term trades as “a capital protection mechanism.” His minimum XRP price target is $3.40 and extends to $4.40 based on liquidity in the medium term. Long-term, he says that the argument for the $8-$12 range is still valid, as reported last week. Separate commentary in the newsletter from analyst @thecryptomann1 highlighted what “confirmation” would look like on Bitcoin: a reclaim of roughly $105,000, a push through, and a successful retest. He cited “a huge amount of volume around this region” and alignment with bull market support bands, arguing that regaining them would shift the read from “relief rally” to something more durable. He also pointed to USDT dominance sitting on a multi-year trend line but showing weakness, including being “trapped below the 20 EMA” with RSI “below 50” and rolling over conditions that, if they resolve lower, could align with a risk-on breakout in majors. At press time, XRP traded at $2.05. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

Markets pulled $454 million from crypto exchange-traded products last week as investors stepped back amid rising bets that the US Federal Reserve may not cut rates soon. Related Reading: CZ Fuels Optimism As Binance Coin’s $1,000 Target Trends According to CoinShares data and market reports, the move erased much of the early-week gains that had pushed roughly $1.5 billion into the sector during the first two trading days. The shift was sharp and broad, though a few assets saw money flow in. Smart Money Flees Bitcoin While Some Altcoins Attract Cash Bitcoin-linked products bore the brunt of withdrawals, with about $405 million leaving Bitcoin ETPs. Ethereum funds were also hit, posting roughly $116 million in outflows. Multi-asset crypto products reported net redemptions near $21 million. Based on reports, these outflows came as recent inflation and jobs data made investors lower the odds of a March Fed rate cut, weakening appetite for risk assets that had been boosted by earlier optimism. Selective Inflows Show Pockets Of Interest But not all tokens were abandoned. XRP funds drew around $46 million in fresh money, while Solana products attracted about $33 million. Smaller tokens, including some newer layer-one projects, picked up modest flows as investors hunted for opportunities beyond the main leaders. Total assets under management across global crypto ETPs remained near $182 billion, a figure that shows scale despite the weekly redemptions. Regional Patterns Reveal US Outflows And Overseas Inflows According to regional flow data, US-linked crypto investment products saw roughly $569 million exit last week. That outflow contrasted with inflows in some European and North American markets: Germany attracted about $59 million, Canada added $25 million, and Switzerland drew roughly $21 million. The pattern suggests capital moved away from US vehicles and into other jurisdictions where investor appetite held up better. What Traders And Analysts Are Saying Based on reports from market analysts, the reversal came as traders reassessed the timing of monetary easing. With inflation readings remaining firmer than expected and the labor market showing resilience, market pricing shifted and risk assets were repriced. Some analysts warned that volatility could persist while others noted that pockets of demand for specific altcoins might support short-term rallies. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s Next Peak Might Ignite ADA’s Rally, Says Cardano Creator According to observers, the outflows highlight how sensitive crypto fund flows are to macroeconomic signals. While $454 million is a meaningful weekly move, the sector’s overall AUM near $182 billion means a single week does not rewrite the market picture. Investors will likely watch upcoming economic releases and Fed communications closely; fund flows are expected to respond quickly to any sign that rate-cut hopes are returning or fading further. Featured image from Gemini, chart from TradingView

Crypto.com has launched a fresh reward campaign inside Airdrop Arena, giving users a new way to earn without needing to trade daily. The event comes with a headline incentive, a US$250,000 SOL token reward pool that will be distributed to participants who allocate CRO during the campaign window. The promotion is already live and runs for the full month of January, combining Crypto.com’s CRO ecosystem with Solana, one of the most active layer-1 networks in crypto right now. Instead of pushing high-volume trading, this campaign is built around steady participation, where users accumulate points over time and receive SOL rewards after the event ends. A Straightforward CRO Allocation Reward System The structure behind the campaign is intentionally simple. Users allocate CRO into Airdrop Arena, earn points while the event is active, and then receive a portion of the SOL pool based on how many points they’ve collected. Crypto.com is also rewarding early activity. The first 10,000 users who allocate CRO unlock an exclusive points boost of up to 120%, giving them a clear advantage right from the start. On top of that, users can qualify for a daily points boost of up to 120% when they purchase at least 1,500 CRO and transfer it into Airdrop Arena. Tip: The purchase task needs to be completed before allocating CRO, otherwise the daily boost may not apply. How to Participate Through the Crypto.com App Everything happens inside the Crypto.com app, making the process quick even for casual users. Airdrop Arena can be accessed through the Account section, the Earn tab, or the Supermenu. Once inside the feature, users simply allocate CRO into the event and begin earning points automatically. There’s no need for constant monitoring, no complicated strategy, and no trading requirement, which makes this campaign feel more like passive participation than active speculation. Visit Crypto.com Allocate now and start building points. Campaign Dates and Key Event Details The event runs on a fixed schedule: Event duration: 1 January 2026, 10:00 UTC to 31 January 2026, 09:59 UTC Once the event ends, Crypto.com will calculate each participant’s points total and distribute SOL accordingly. Rewards, Distribution Timeline, and Lockup Rules SOL rewards will be airdropped within 7 days after the campaign concludes. Users who activate Loot Locker will receive their rewards after the lockup period ends. If Loot Locker is not enabled, SOL will be distributed directly to the user’s Crypto Wallet. The CRO allocation itself comes with a long-term condition: allocated CRO is locked for 6 months. After the lockup ends, users can withdraw their CRO or keep it allocated in Airdrop Arena to automatically join future campaigns, which is clearly designed to encourage longer-term engagement instead of short-term participation. Solana Rewards Add Extra Appeal Choosing SOL as the reward asset is not random. Solana remains one of the most watched ecosystems in crypto, supported by ongoing developer activity, memecoin momentum, DeFi growth, and infrastructure expansion. That makes SOL a reward that users actually want to hold, not just a token they instantly dump. By linking CRO allocation with SOL incentives, Crypto.com effectively ties its platform activity to another major chain that continues to attract attention from both retail and serious market participants. Airdrop Arena Reflects a Bigger Exchange Trend This campaign also fits a bigger shift happening across exchanges. Platforms are increasingly moving away from pure volume-driven rewards and instead focusing on loyalty mechanics: time-based campaigns, allocation systems, and engagement incentives that keep users active inside the ecosystem. For CRO holders, the SOL Airdrop Arena offers a way to gain exposure to Solana without selling assets or actively trading. For Crypto.com, it strengthens retention and pushes long-term platform participation through structured lockups and recurring event access. Visit Airdop Arena Allocate now and watch your points grow.

Crypto trading platform MEXC has rolled out a new promotional campaign built around its peer-to-peer marketplace, offering a $200,000 airdrop pool exclusively for users making their first-ever deposit on the platform. The limited-time event began on Jan. 4, 2026, at 11:00 UTC and will run until Jan. 31 at 16:59 UTC. Participation is restricted to accounts that have never previously deposited funds on MEXC, with eligibility tied specifically to deposits completed through the exchange’s P2P channel rather than standard trading methods. To take part, users must first register for the campaign via the dedicated event page. Only after opting in are participants able to qualify by completing their first P2P deposit and reaching a net deposited amount exceeding $100 during the event period. MEXC notes that users who fail to register before depositing will not be counted toward the promotion. Participants who meet the requirements within seven days of registration unlock a fixed 10 USDT reward. All rewards are distributed from a shared $200,000 pool and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, meaning that late participants may miss out once the pool is fully claimed. Following the conclusion of the campaign, eligible rewards will be credited directly to users’ Spot wallets. MEXC states that distribution will take place within 14 calendar days after the event ends, with most users expected to receive their airdrops within five business days. The campaign places renewed focus on MEXC’s P2P trading service, which allows users to purchase cryptocurrencies using local currencies, flexible pricing, and a wide range of payment methods. Unlike traditional exchange trades, P2P transactions on MEXC come with zero platform fees, a feature the exchange continues to promote as competition among P2P marketplaces intensifies. Through the P2P platform, users can access major cryptocurrencies including USDT, Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC, Dogecoin, and Solana. The service is designed to cater to regions where direct fiat on-ramps may be limited or where users prefer localized payment options. However, the exchange has outlined several restrictions tied to the promotion. Users who withdraw funds within 24 hours of meeting the deposit requirements will be disqualified from receiving rewards. In addition, participants who have previously received rewards from other MEXC P2P promotions are excluded from this campaign. Eligibility is limited to main accounts only. Sub-accounts cannot participate independently, and any activity associated with them will be consolidated under the primary account for the purposes of eligibility checks and reward calculations. MEXC also applies internal risk and compliance reviews before rewards are finalized. Any attempts to manipulate the event, including creating multiple accounts, providing false identity information, inflating trading data, or engaging in other forms of abnormal activity, may result in disqualification and forfeiture of rewards. The exchange added that the campaign rules may be adjusted or terminated if necessary. Users were also reminded that cryptocurrency markets remain volatile and that promotional incentives do not remove the risks associated with trading digital assets. Claim the P2P airdrop

As Solana (SOL) fails to reclaim a major resistance area, a market watcher suggested that the cryptocurrency is poised to retest the November lows. However, other analysts predicted that the altcoin consolidation period may end soon. Related Reading: Dogecoin Prepares For Major Recovery As Bullish Momentum Builds – Here’s The Target Solana Rejected From Key Area On Friday, Solana faced a nearly 4% correction after trying to reclaim a crucial resistance zone for the second time this week. The cryptocurrency has been trading between the $120-$145 price range since the early November correction, hitting its local lows three weeks ago. Amid the crypto market’s star-of-the-year rally, SOL jumped over 13% from its yearly opening, breaking out of a three-month downtrend and hitting a one-month high of $143.4 earlier this week. After being rejected from the upper boundary on Tuesday, the altcoin is now attempting to build a base below the $140 level, where the cryptocurrency has faced strong resistance over the past three months. Despite the surge, Market observer Crypto Batman predicted that SOL could retrace toward the November lows as a bullish reversal pattern appears to be forming on its one-day timeframe. In an X post, the analyst noted that the altcoin has been rejected by the strong resistance area, asserting that a local top has formed. As a result, the cryptocurrency’s next support area is around the $128-$130 area, where its unfilled bullish Fair Value Gap (FVG) is located. Crypto Batman also pointed out that Solana has been potentially forming an inverse Head and Shoulders pattern since the Q4 corrections. According to the chart, the cryptocurrency formed the patterns left shoulder and head during the November and December pullbacks, with the neckline around the $145 area. Moreover, the recent rejection could signal that the right shoulder has begun forming, which would see the price drop to its late November lows before retesting the pattern’s neckline again and potentially breaking out if the formation is confirmed. Is SOL Waking Up? Market watcher King Arthur shared a bullish outlook for Solana, affirming that the altcoin “is finally waking up.” He affirmed that “We’ve been watching that long downward slide for a while now, and it’s so good to see SOL finally breaking free from that falling channel. This is a huge first step, but let’s stay sharp.” As he explained, breaking above the $143 level is crucial for Solana’s momentum, as it would open the door for a reclaim of the $152 level, lost during the November 13 breakdown. “If we manage that, I’d say the uptrend is officially back on track with my eyes set on $171.55,” he asserted. However, he warned that a drop below the $133 area would suggest that the price is not ready for bullish continuation. Related Reading: XRP Named The ‘New Cryptocurrency Darling’ After Strong Start Of The Year Meanwhile, analyst Crypto Jelle pointed out that Solana has been unable to challenge the $200 psychological barrier, chopping below this level over the past few months. He suggested that its recent performance is starting to resemble BNB’s price action. “Kinda starting to feel like BNB. Sideways for what feels like forever – and then, sudden expansion again. (…) Waiting for the same outcome,” he concluded. As of this writing, Solana is trading at $134.9, a 2.3% decline in the daily timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

Dogecoin (DOGE) is attempting to hold a crucial area as support after recording a 3.2% drop in the daily timeframe. Despite this, an analyst suggests that the leading memecoin is preparing to reclaim a key resistance level lost during the Q4 2025 pullbacks. Related Reading: XRP Named The ‘New Cryptocurrency Darling’ After Strong Start Of The Year Dogecoin Q1 Momentum Builds Dogecoin has seen a remarkable start to the year, recording a 21% jump from its yearly opening price of $0.117. Amid the recent market recovery, the cryptocurrency reclaimed a crucial price area and hit an eight-week high of $0.156 this Tuesday. Notably, the largest memecoin by market capitalization had retraced more than 50% from its Q2 2025 highs and was in a downtrend until last week’s price breakout. Amid this performance, market observer Trader Tardigrade highlighted a pair of Tweezer candlesticks on the monthly chart, which could suggest a bullish reversal is taking place. DOGE “has nearly recovered last month’s losses in just 8 days,” he explained, which signals that “clearly, bullish momentum is building up.” Notably, the analyst recently noted that DOGE has broken out of a bullish pattern, “showing strong upward momentum.” According to the chart, the cryptocurrency displayed a three-month falling wedge in the three-day chart. Following the recent price surge, Dogecoin was able to breach the pattern’s upper boundary, signaling an initial jump to the $0.140-$0.150 area. The trader highlighted that the memecoin displayed a similar performance during his 2024 rally, moving within a multi-month falling wedge before breaking out and kicking off a remarkable performance. If DOGE repeats its previous performance, the price could retrace briefly to retest the breakout area as support before the next major surge, the market watcher added. He also pointed out that after breaking out of the daily trendline, the cryptocurrency appears to be forming a bullish pennant in the one-day chart. A breakout from this pattern would lead to a 40% move toward the $0.20 area, lost during the early Q4 pullbacks. However, DOGE’s price needs to close the day above the $0.142 area to hold the formation. DOGE’s Rally In Danger? Despite the bullish outlooks, analyst Ali Martinez affirmed that Dogecoin is “hanging by a thread.” In a Thursday post, the market watcher emphasized that the cryptocurrency is trading within a crucial support zone between the local lows of $0.118 and the recent highs. If the memecoin’s momentum doesn’t hold and the price loses this key zone, it could risk a more than 40% retrace. According to the UTXO Realized Price Distribution (URPD) metric cited by Martinez, the next major support is around $0.073, where over 28 billion DOGE tokens were previously exchanged. Related Reading: Bitcoin At A Crossroads: $93,500 Reclaim Holds The Key For Next Move The analyst has recently pointed out that cryptocurrency’s price is seemingly on track to retest the $0.08 level after breaking out of a multi-year ascending channel. The chart shows that Dogecoin traded within an ascending channel on the three-day chart since 2023. However, the late 2025 corrections saw the memecoin lose the lower boundary of the ascending channel, potentially painting a concerning picture for its price if long-term bearish momentum continues. As of this writing, Dogecoin is trading at $0.142, a 14.55 increase in the weekly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

In the lead-up to the potential passage of the crypto market structure bill, known as the CLARITY Act, Faryar Shirzad, Chief Policy Officer at Coinbase, shed light on the ongoing discussions surrounding key provisions of the already enacted GENIUS Act.  GENIUS Act Under Fire Shirzad noted that the stablecoin rewards provisions of the GENIUS Act are currently a central topic of debate among lawmakers. Shiraz remarked, “reopening it now only creates uncertainty and risks the future of the US Dollar as commerce moves onchain.” Shirzad emphasized the importance of protecting the GENIUS Act, arguing that rewards benefit consumers without adversely affecting community banks. Related Reading: Solana Shatters Records: 2025 Annual Review Reveals New All-Time Highs In Key Metrics He alleged that the motivation behind banks’ opposition to stablecoin rewards is evident. He claimed that US banks currently generate approximately $176 billion annually from the $3 trillion they hold at the Federal Reserve (Fed) and another $187 billion from card swipe fees, which averages to nearly $1,440 for each household.  This results in over $360 billion yearly from payments and deposits, in addition to substantial unused lending capacity, as the Federal Reserve incentivizes banks to maintain reserves rather than deploy them. According to Shirzad, stablecoin rewards pose a challenge to these financial margins—not by impeding banks’ ability to lend, but by introducing real competition in payment systems.  Shirzad further expressed alarm at how, during these Senate discussions, China has recognized the opportunity presented by the bank lobby.  The country has recently announced interest payments to users of its Digital Yuan, aiming to undermine the supremacy of the US dollar. He warned that banning rewards in the Senate would inadvertently aid China’s efforts to challenge the dollar’s dominance. Concluding his remarks, Shirzad asserted that the opposition from banks toward stablecoin rewards is not based on prudential concerns but stems from a desire to protect lucrative revenue streams threatened by competition.  Deaton Critiques ABA’s Threat To Stablecoin Rewards John E. Deaton — attorney for XRP holders in the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple Labs and a former Senate candidate — also reacted to these developments. He emphasized the importance of the situation as China officially began offering interest on the digital yuan.  He highlighted that the American Bankers Association (ABA) is exerting pressure on the Senate to close a “third-party loophole” in the GENIUS Act, which would restrict companies like Coinbase (COIN) and Kraken from offering rewards to consumers. Related Reading: Ethereum Staking Queue Grows: What Does This Mean For ETH Prices Moving Forward? Deaton argued that banning American firms from providing yield to everyday citizens does not protect banks, as claimed by the ABA; rather, it risks forcing global reliance on China’s currency over the US dollar.  He emphasized that major banks are threatened by the concept of digital dollars because they are unable to “rent” that money back to consumers if individuals are earning yield themselves. The criticism also extended to banking officials, with Deaton asserting that the Banking Policy Institute, led by figures like Jamie Dimon, has crafted an anti-crypto bill last year that undermines the interests of average Americans.  He contended that if the Senate capitulates to the bank lobby, it effectively imposes a hidden tax on retail investors and customers nationwide to safeguard Wall Street’s profits. Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com 

Following a remarkable performance in the first trading days of the year, CNBC anchors have named XRP the breakout trade of 2026, arguing that it has been the silent outperformer during the recent crypto market volatility. Related Reading: Bitcoin At A Crossroads: $93,500 Reclaim Holds The Key For Next Move XRP Becomes The Hottest Trade Of The Year CNBC’s Brian Sullivan highlighted XRP’s strong start to the year, calling the cryptocurrency the “new cryptocurrency darling” of 2026 and placing it ahead of the market’s leading assets. During the Power Lunch segment, the network’s anchor affirmed that “the hottest crypto trade of the year is not Bitcoin, it is not Ether, it is XRP,” arguing that there’s “big money behind this trade.” In his initial remarks, he pointed out the altcoin’s remarkable seven-day rally toward the recent highs. XRP has seen a notable performance since the start of the year, climbing over 30% from its yearly opening to its two-month high of $2.41 on Tuesday morning. Amid this recent performance, the altcoin recently flipped BNB again to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, a place it had lost during the December market volatility. Moreover, it has outperformed most of the largest cryptocurrencies in the weekly timeframe, including BTC’s and ETH’s 4.3% and 6.2% respective rallies. CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos weighed in on XRP’s performance on various segments, affirming that “XRP has been the quiet outperformer for months now.” She addressed whether XRP is taking its place as “the next cool thing to know about” or whether it has a different and more relevant use case that sets it apart from the leading cryptocurrencies, emphasizing its role in cross-border payments as one of its key appeals. What’s Driving The Rally? Sigalos cited three main reasons for the strong star-of-the-year performance. First, she stated that “the regulatory overhang has finally cleared as Ripple has fully wrapped up its SEC fight as of August 2nd.” Second, she asserted that people consider the cryptocurrency “a less crowded trade than Bitcoin or Ether,” which “proved out to be true” just in the first trading days of January. For the third reason, she pointed out that “the flows have held up even during the Q4 dip,” arguing that investors continued to add to XRP-based funds, while the largest crypto ETFs’ flows fell with the price. Well, it’s actually been interesting is that during the doldrums of Q4, you actually saw a lot of people piling into those XRP ETFs, which is the exact opposite of what happens with the spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, where people really move in tandem with the price of the coin. But it was the fact that it is a way to have a higher percentage jump. Related Reading: Ethereum’s Q1 Outlook: Analyst Shares Historical Setup As Price Nears Key Resistance Notably, XRP funds had a remarkable performance since their launch in Q4 2025. The investment products, which first debuted in November, have recorded cumulative net inflows of $1.25 billion, according to data from SoSoValue. The ETF category has not recorded a single day of negative net flows in nearly two months, with consistent inflows since going live. During the first three trading days of the year, XRP funds have seen a total inflow of $78.81 million. As of this writing, XRP is trading at $2.19, a 20% increase in the weekly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

There’s still a lot of work to be done by US lawmakers to give clarity (no pun intended) and perhaps closure to the long-standing debate on how the CLARITY Act should be enacted into law, when, and how. Related Reading: Bitcoin ETFs Bring The Heat: $1.2 Billion Flows In First 48 Hours—Analyst One lawmaker in the person of Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Tim Scott said the CLARITY Act will be debated in the Senate next week, setting up what could be a decisive moment for US crypto rules. Scott has signaled a markup and a committee vote as early as next Thursday, reports note, putting pressure on negotiators who have been revising the bill for months. Related Reading: Bitcoin ETFs Bring The Heat: $1.2 Billion Flows In First 48 Hours—Analyst Senate Vote Scheduled For Next Week According to multiple reports, Scott told press he wants a formal vote to put members on record about market structure for digital assets. The move comes after lawmakers paused action late last year and pushed key work into January, a delay that left the industry watching closely. seems to me we’re probably going to get a crypto market structure bill…I reviewed the list of remaining issues and the main potential ‘showstoppers’ left are some things around illicit finance re: DeFi front-ends etc…surely some deal should be possible there?…Jan 15th… — _gabrielShapir0 (@lex_node) January 6, 2026 Supporters say the bill would aim to spell out which federal agencies regulate different parts of the crypto market, and to reduce some legal uncertainty for exchanges and token projects. Based on reports, the draft includes provisions on how the SEC and CFTC would share oversight and on consumer protections, though most final details are still being hashed out. Lawmakers Face Key Policy Disputes Several major sticking points remain unresolved, including rules for decentralized finance, stablecoin yields, and how many regulators are needed to take enforcement actions. Reports have warned that the committee may be rushing toward a vote while those issues are still open, which could complicate getting bipartisan support later on. Industry groups and some senators have urged more time to iron out those details. That pressure comes as proponents argue the country needs clearer rules to guide firms and investors. The debate has become both technical and political, with members of both parties expressing concern about leaving important protections unclear. Markets React To The Uncertainty Based on market reports, news of delays and uncertainty around the bill has already moved prices. Bitcoin briefly pushed past $93,000 before retreating to about $86,729 after a recent holdover in the Senate, showing how sensitive crypto markets can be to legislative timing. Traders and firms are watching the calendar closely because even the promise of a vote can sway flows and sentiment. Related Reading: Bitcoin Wealth Isn’t About Hype—It’s About Time And Stacking, Expert Says Bill Could Reach The President The House approved its version of the market structure framework last year, meaning a Senate passage would send the measure to the desk of US President Donald Trump for signature. Committee leaders say getting a clear vote on record is important both for transparency and for moving negotiations forward on the Senate floor. Featured image from National Investigative Training Academy, chart from TradingView

Cardano (ADA) is now facing renewed scrutiny following a challenging year marked by significant price losses and a slowdown in ecosystem momentum. Over recent weeks, a combination of technical signals, governance decisions, and regulatory speculation has brought ADA back into focus. Related Reading: Bitcoin ETFs Bring The Heat: $1.2 Billion Flows In First 48 Hours—Analyst While optimism has returned to parts of the market, the network now faces a critical test: whether short-term recovery can translate into sustained progress across price, adoption, and infrastructure. ADA's price trends slightly upwards on low timeframes as seen on the daily chart. Source: ADAUSD on Tradingview Cardano’s (ADA) Technical Signals Suggest Improving Momentum Cardano’s price action has shown signs of stabilization following a decline of more than 60% in 2025. Currently, ADA formed its first golden cross of 2026, with short-term moving averages crossing above longer-term averages on both hourly and two-hour charts. ADA has also printed its first positive weekly candle in over two months, reflecting improving sentiment. At the time of writing, the token is trading around the $0.41–$0.416 range, supported by higher futures open interest and daily trading volume near recent highs. However, price remains capped by resistance near $0.401, a level that aligns with the 50-day moving average and has rejected multiple breakout attempts since late 2024. A sustained move above this zone is widely seen as necessary for further upside toward higher historical ranges. Governance Funding and Ecosystem Priorities Beyond charts, Cardano has taken steps to address ecosystem development through governance. A proposal authorizing the withdrawal of 70 million ADA for critical integrations has been ratified by the network’s governing bodies. The funding is intended to support infrastructure additions such as stablecoin integrations and oracle services, including work related to USDC, USDT, and Pyth. In parallel, the Cardano Foundation has allocated additional resources to boost stablecoin liquidity, a key requirement for competitive DeFi activity. Founder Charles Hoskinson has emphasized that future success will be measured less by short-term price movement and more by growth in metrics such as active users, total value locked, and real-world usage. The upcoming Ouroboros Leios upgrade and the planned expansion of the Midnight, a privacy-focused sidechain, are central to this strategy. ETF Expectations and the 2026 Outlook Another factor shaping expectations is the prospect of a spot Cardano ETF in the United States. While no application has been approved as of December 2025, products such as the Grayscale Cardano ADA Trust remain under SEC review, with decisions now expected in early 2026. Previous approvals of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs have raised expectations, though analysts note that ADA faces additional scrutiny tied to classification debates. Related Reading: XRP Rally Reopens The $8–$12 Zone Debate, Says Will Taylor Taken together, Cardano enters 2026 at a pivotal moment. Technical indicators suggest a recovery, governance actions aim to strengthen the ecosystem, and regulatory developments could impact institutional access. Whether these elements align into a durable new phase will depend on execution in the months ahead. Cover image from ChatGPT, ADAUSD chart from Tradingview

Crypto entered 2026 with a sharp bid, and Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan says the next leg higher hinges on three checkpoints that have less to do with chart patterns and more to do with market plumbing, Washington, and the broader risk backdrop. In a January 6 memo, Hougan wrote that Bitcoin and Ethereum were each up 7% year-to-date as of Monday, January 5, while higher-beta names had moved faster, Dogecoin was up 29% over the same window. The question, he argued, is whether that early strength can turn into something sustained rather than a fleeting January pop. Three Hurdles To Overcome For Bitcoin, ETH And Dogecoin Hougan’s framework starts with a memory the market would rather bury: October 10, 2025, when crypto saw what he called “the largest liquidation event in its history,” with “$19 billion in futures positions wiped out in a single day.” The mechanical damage mattered, but the psychological overhang may have mattered more. In the weeks that followed, he wrote, investors worried the cascade had “impaired major market makers and/or hedge funds—perhaps fatally,” raising the specter of forced selling as large players unwound. “One of the reasons crypto struggled to rally in Q4 was that investors worried one of these big players might have to wind down operations, a process that typically requires the forced sale of assets,” Hougan wrote. “These potential sales hung over the market like a heavy fog.” Related Reading: Bitcoin Accumulation: Data Shows Institutions Are Net Buyers Again His first hurdle, then, is simply the absence of another blow-up with similar systemic implications. On that front, he struck a notably confident tone. “The good news: If it were going to happen, it probably would have happened by now,” he wrote, adding that while “there’s no guarantee,” a firm shutting down would likely have tried “to wrap up by year’s end.” In his read, part of the early-2026 rally reflects a market that has “put October 10 in the rearview.” He labeled that hurdle a “Green Light.” The second checkpoint is legislative, and far less within the market’s control: passage of the crypto market structure bill known as the CLARITY Act. Hougan wrote the bill is “winding its way through Congress,” with the Senate “targeting January 15 for markup,” the stage where committees align drafts and try to move a final bill toward a vote. He did not present it as a clean glide path. “Hurdles remain,” he wrote, citing “competing visions of how to regulate DeFi, stablecoin rewards, and political conflicts of interest.” Still, he framed markup as a pivotal gate: if CLARITY clears that process, it would be “a huge step toward approval.” Related Reading: Bitcoin At A Crossroads: $93,500 Reclaim Holds The Key For Next Move Hougan’s core argument is about durability. “Passage of the CLARITY Act is key to the long-term future of crypto in the U.S.,” he wrote. “Without legislation, the current pro-crypto regulatory tilt at the SEC, CFTC, and other agencies could reverse under a new administration. Passage of the Act would enshrine core principles into law and provide a strong foundation for future growth.” He pointed to signals from both politics and prediction markets. White House crypto czar David Sacks, Hougan wrote, says “we are closer than ever” to passing the bill. Kalshi, he added, puts the odds at 46% by May and 82% by year’s end. Hougan’s own takeaway: “I’m cautiously optimistic.” He tagged this hurdle “Yellow Light.” The third checkpoint is the one crypto traders often prefer to dismiss, until it matters: equity-market stability. Hougan argued the market doesn’t need a roaring stock rally to support crypto, noting “crypto is not highly correlated with stocks.” But he drew a hard line around drawdowns that force broad deleveraging and risk-off positioning. “A sharp collapse—say, a 20% pullback in the S&P 500—would take the shine off of all risk assets in the short term, crypto included,” he wrote. Here, he was explicit about limits: “I can’t claim any special expertise on the equity markets.” While he noted some investors are worried about an AI bubble, he pointed to prediction markets that “see a relatively low probability of a recession in 2026 and a roughly 80% probability of S&P 500 gains.” Like the CLARITY Act, he labeled the equity backdrop a “Yellow Light.” Hougan closed by arguing the setup is constructive if those remaining yellows turn green. “There is a lot to like in the crypto market right now,” he wrote, pointing to growing institutional adoption, surging real-world use cases “like stablecoins and tokenization,” and the market “starting to feel the benefits of the pro-crypto regulatory push that started in January 2025.” If the three milestones fall into place, he added, “2026’s early momentum will have some serious legs.” At press time, Bitcoin traded at $91,717. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

Crypto heads into the second week of January jam-packed with crucial events. Here’s what crypto holders need to know: #1 BTC: Bank Of America Opens The Advisory Spigot Starting January 5, advisers across Bank of America Private Bank, Merrill, and Merrill Edge can recommend “several crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs)” for client portfolios, removing prior asset thresholds and shifting advisers from execution-only to active allocation guidance. In an early-December note tied to the rollout, Merrill’s Chris Hyzy framed the bank’s stance in portfolio-construction terms: “For investors with a strong interest in thematic innovation and comfort with elevated volatility, a modest allocation of 1% to 4% in digital assets could be appropriate.” Related Reading: 2026 Crypto Market Prediction: Will Prices Soar Or Face Continued Declines? The market relevance is less about one day of flows and more about plumbing. Bank of America is one of the largest US wealth distribution networks; even a modest allocation over the long-term could have significant price impact. #2 Ethereum Blob Capacity Steps Up Again Ethereum’s latest scaling cadence continues on January 7 via the second “Blob Parameter Only” upgrade (BPO2), which increases the per-block blob target and maximum to 14 and 21, respectively, an incremental move designed to expand rollup data throughput without bundling the change into a larger named hard fork. The Ethereum Foundation has positioned the BPO track as a deliberately minimal, config-only mechanism to “safely increase blob throughput” after Fusaka. For L2 users, the direct linkage is data availability pricing. More blob supply, all else equal, can pressure blob fees lower, which is the component many rollups pass through into end-user transaction costs. The nuance is that these gains are conditional: if demand for blobspace ramps as quickly as capacity, fee relief can be muted, and operators still have to validate stability as targets rise. #3 Hyperliquid (HYPE) Token Unlock Hyperliquid’s HYPE token has a scheduled supply event on January 6: Hyperliquid Labs team members are set to receive an initial 1.2 million HYPE allocation, valued at roughly $31.2 million. Core contributors hold rights to approximately 237 million tokens under a structured release plan, nearly one quarter of the total supply. The setup for traders is straightforward: token unlocks are reflexively modeled as potential sell pressure, but the realized impact depends on recipient behavior and any offsetting mechanics. #4 Stellar’s Privacy Track Moves To Testnet Stellar is scheduled to upgrade its testnet to Protocol 25, branded “Stellar X-Ray”, on January 7 at 21:00 UTC, with the mainnet vote slated for January 22. In its developer guidance, Stellar explicitly calls out the operational requirement: SDK and infrastructure operators should upgrade ahead of the testnet date, with holiday timing cited as a reason for the unusually long runway between stable releases and activation. Related Reading: Austin Arnold Unveils His Top 6 Crypto Altcoin Picks For 2026 On the product side, Stellar frames X-Ray as foundational privacy infrastructure: “laying the groundwork for developers to build configurable, compliance-forward privacy applications using zero-knowledge (ZK) cryptography,” while keeping the network’s transparency model intact. #5 Macro Outlook Macro is doing crypto no favors in terms of clean narratives. Over the weekend, US forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a move that pushed Bitcoin and crypto prices higher. Oil initially jolted but then softened amid expectations that near-term supply disruption is limited. Geopolitically, the spillover risk is in escalation rather than the single event. US President Trump raised the possibility of further interventions in the region, including language around Colombia. Overall, the weekly US market open will be crucial for the week. Rates politics are the other macro overhang. Trump has repeatedly said he will name his pick to succeed Fed Chair Jerome Powell “early next year,” with Powell’s leadership term ending in May 2026; the process has turned into a live market variable because of what it implies about the White House’s preferred rate path and perceived Fed independence. With prediction markets explicitly trading on whether a nomination lands by January 9, some crypto desks will treat the date as a volatility waypoint even if mainstream reporting stays looser on timing. At press time, the total crypto market cap stood at $3.12. trillion. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

Bitcoin climbed past the $92,000 mark on Monday, driven by a mix of strong buying and fresh geopolitical noise. Traders watched as BTC moved toward $93,000 after brief gains in global markets, hitting roughly $92,800 in early US trading. Related Reading: Shiba Inu’s 16% Pop Signals Meme Coin Revival – Details Geopolitical Jitters And Market Moves According to market reports, comments from US President Donald Trump about potential action in Colombia added to market uncertainty, helping send flows into risk assets like Bitcoin. Traders sold some positions and then bought back into BTC as prices steadied near the highs. ETF inflows were also cited as supporting demand, with one report noting about $645 million in net flows into Bitcoin spot ETFs around the same session. Bitcoin’s climb was modest in percentage terms, but the dollar amounts grabbed attention. Data showed BTC trading in the low $92,000s before attempts to push higher toward $93,000. Reports have also pointed to liquidations and futures activity that rearranged short positions, prompting quick moves in both directions. PRESIDENT TRUMP JUST NOW: Trump: “Colombia is run by a sick man, he’s not going to be doing it for very long.” Reporter: “So there will be an operation by the US in Colombia?” Trump: “Sounds good to me.” pic.twitter.com/66fQM7cEIY — The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) January 5, 2026 Colombia On Trump’s Crosshairs Based on reports, the recent US operation in Venezuela and wider tensions in Latin America had a role in shifting sentiment. Speaking on Sunday, Trump took aim at Colombia over cocaine trafficking, saying a fresh US military operation tied to the country “sounds good to me,” according to Reuters. He also warned that action may be needed in Mexico. Trump described Colombia as “very sick” and accused its leader of fueling the cocaine trade into the United States, saying that situation “won’t last very long.” Total crypto market valuation at $3.12 trillion on the daily chart: TradingView Institutional Flows And Market Structure Meanwhile, spot ETF purchases and macro traders were active during the move higher. The inflows cited in market pieces suggest institutions continued to add exposure, even as headline risk rose. At the same time, derivatives desks reported notable liquidations that briefly amplified volatility. Some analysts told outlets they see technical hurdles near the current range that could cap gains without fresh catalysts. Others said the next key levels to watch are the area around $93,000 and the lows near the $88,000s to $90,000s, where stop orders and margin calls could trigger sharper swings. Related Reading: $18 Million Ethereum Loss Sends Whale Running To Gold Mixed Signals Market signals remain mixed. While ETF inflows point to steady interest from larger pools of capital, geopolitical headlines from the region keep a risk premium live in prices. Traders are watching US economic data this week as well, since work on jobs and inflation prints could alter the tone for both stocks and crypto. Bitcoin’s push above $92,000 came at a moment of heightened news flow — where comments from US President Donald Trump and big institutional buying intersected. Prices moved quickly, numbers mattered, and traders now watch whether demand can hold near current levels or if headline risk will force a pullback. Featured image from Britannica, chart from TradingView

Large crypto holders moved about $2.4 billion in Bitcoin and Ether to Binance in the past week, a flow split almost evenly between the two tokens. According to CryptoOnchain, the size of individual deposits has jumped — average transfers onto the exchange rose from around eight to 10 Bitcoin to highs near 22 to 26 Bitcoin. Related Reading: $18 Million Ethereum Loss Sends Whale Running To Gold At the same time, withdrawals have shrunk, with the Exchange Outflow Mean reported between 5.5 and 8.3 Bitcoin. That change in behavior signals a shift away from taking coins into long-term storage and toward holding tradable balances on-platform. Rising Deposit Sizes And Flat Stablecoin Flows Based on reports, the move onto Binance did not arrive with fresh buying power. Stablecoin net flows were essentially flat, showing an inflow of $42 million for the week, a figure that analysts say mostly reflected token transfers between Ethereum and Tron rather than new capital entering crypto. CryptoOnchain said that such large transfers to exchanges can mean preparation for selling or the use of assets as collateral in derivatives markets. In plain terms: more supply is ready to hit the market, while obvious signs of new demand are missing. Market Action Tested By Geopolitics Bitcoin traded around $92,620 after earlier hitting a 24-hour peak of $93,180, and it was reported to have climbed to a three-week high of $93,340 in early Asian trading. The price moves came as political tension rose following the US military’s action on Venezuela that resulted in the capture of its president, Nicolas Maduro. Meanwhile, gold climbed above $4,400 an ounce, and silver jumped as much as 4.8%. According to FalconX, the recent Bitcoin uptick was driven in part by crypto-focused firms and by limited selling from miners and big holders. Selling Pressure Versus Thin Demand Analysts are watching the mismatch. Large deposits and a fall in the average size of withdrawals suggest that major holders are less willing to lock up Bitcoin in cold storage. Reports say accumulation has stalled since October. That combination creates a scenario where price rallies are more likely to be met by selling from holders who have quietly moved assets onto exchanges. Related Reading: A Maduro Bet, A Market Alarm: US Lawmaker Targets Trading Abuses Outlook: Cautious, Not Catastrophic Based on these signals, the risk of downward pressure has risen but a major crash is not guaranteed. Price strength right now appears tied to headlines and cross-market moves as much as to fresh crypto demand. Traders and investors will be watching whether stablecoin inflows pick up or whether whales actually press sell. US President Donald Trump’s previously cited pro-crypto stance was not enough to reverse the accumulation lull by year-end, and until buyers return in force, gains may be limited and short lived. Featured image from Gemini, chart from TradingView

The Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin prices are rising today, with the flagship crypto rising to as high as $93,000. This market rally comes on the back of several factors, including the U.S.-Venezuela escalations, which have increased risk sentiment. Why The Bitcoin, Ethereum, And Dogecoin Prices Are Up In an X post, market commentator The Kobeissi Letter noted that risky assets seem to be gaining momentum despite the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan president Maduro. This suggests risk sentiment may be back after the year-end decline in 2025, which has contributed to the recent rise in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin prices.  Related Reading: Here’s How Much BlackRock Spent Buying Bitcoin And Ethereum In 2025 The Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin prices are also rising on the back of an increase in the M2 money supply, which now stands at $22.4 trillion, according to data from the St. Louis Fed. This is bullish for crypto assets as some of this liquidity is expected to flow into the crypto ecosystem. Meanwhile, the U.S. debt continues to rise, standing at $38.6 trillion, a development that is bullish for crypto as investors hedge against inflation by allocating to these asset classes. Meanwhile, it is worth noting that the Fed has also been carrying out its Reserve Management Purchases (RMP), which experts such as James Lavish have described as a form of quantitative easing (QE), which is positive for the prices of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has even predicted that BTC could rally to as high as $200,000 on the back of this move from the Fed. Meanwhile, the Fed has also been injecting liquidity into the economy through the New York Fed’s repo operations.  Crypto Bulls Are Back In Control Market analyst Ted Pilliows also suggested that the crypto bulls are back in control, which is why the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin prices are rising. In an X post, he noted that BTC has large sell orders from the $92,000 to $95,000 level on Binance. Ted added that if bulls push BTC above the $95,000 level, there is very little resistance until $100,000, suggesting a rally to this psychological level could be on the cards.  Related Reading: Dogecoin Reclaiming $0.128 Support Could Signal The Perfect Chance For Long Positions In another X post, the market analyst noted that the Coinbase Bitcoin premium is recovering, with institutional demand for BTC picking up again. SoSoValue data show that Bitcoin ETFs recorded a daily net inflow of $471.14 million on January 2, their largest since December 17. A sustained daily net inflow could lead to higher prices for BTC, which is also a positive for the Ethereum and Dogecoin prices.  At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $92,400, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Pngtree, chart from Tradingview.com

In an era where computational power is becoming the new petroleum, there emerges an infrastructure capable of making it universally accessible. DGrid represents the inaugural genuinely decentralized AI ecosystem that merges transparency, community ownership, and equitable value distribution. The Current AI Landscape: Critical Challenges The Fourth Industrial Revolution, driven by artificial intelligence, confronts fundamental obstacles. Contemporary AI services are characterized by elevated costs, opaque operations, and concentrated control within the hands of a few technology titans. Corporations like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic have constructed closed ecosystems where: Users pay undefined prices for services whose algorithms remain concealed User data fuels model training without meaningful profit participation Platforms can arbitrarily restrict, censor, or terminate services Web3 promised a different approach—decentralization, user autonomy, and collective value creation. However, in the artificial intelligence domain, this sector still depends on centralized APIs that undermine its foundational principles. This reality is now transforming. DGrid: A New Paradigm in AI Infrastructure DGrid represents a fundamental reconstruction of AI infrastructure through a decentralized, modular, and completely verifiable network for AI inference. The project’s vision is to transform intelligent computation within the Web3 ecosystem so it becomes minimally trust-dependent, permissionless, and community-driven. If OpenRouter demonstrated the power of aggregating and routing between AI models, and 1inch showed how optimal path discovery can unlock efficiency in DeFi, then DGrid represents the fusion of both concepts—extended into an autonomous, cryptographically native framework. DGrid = Web3’s OpenRouter + AI inference’s 1inch + autonomous AI DAO structure Fundamental Distinctions from OpenRouter: Web3-Native vs. Web2 Optimization While OpenRouter represents significant progress in AI model aggregation, it remains a Web2 SaaS platform with inherent limitations of centralized systems. DGrid does not aspire to become another OpenRouter—the goal is to transcend the entire model aggregation paradigm through authentic Web3 principles. The distinction is not incremental—it is structural: Economic Architecture: Instead of centralized trust and platform-controlled incentives, DGrid employs a token-based economy and DAO governance. This architecture directly resolves two critical problems: incentive misalignment and trust overhead. All participants—from compute providers to developers—are economically aligned and transparently rewarded, without dependence on a single coordinating authority. Performance Capabilities: DGrid is engineered to be fully competitive with centralized aggregators, with a particular advantage in routing and serving niche and emerging models, where decentralized supply can outperform centralized provisioning. DGrid is not adding another layer to the existing stack—it multiplies its capabilities through cryptographic economic coordination and verifiable infrastructure. Technological Foundation: The “Trustless Inference” Revolution DGrid’s confidence rests upon robust academic research and technological breakthroughs. The theoretical framework is derived from advanced scientific work (Ref: https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16317), developed by a team of PhDs and co-founders—experts in cryptography and AI system architecture. The DGrid architecture resolves the most formidable challenge in decentralized artificial intelligence: How to guarantee the quality of AI results in an environment of untrusted nodes? 1. Proof of Quality (PoQ): Making Inference Auditable In a centralized world, users must blindly trust the results returned by OpenAI. In a decentralized network, nodes might return inferior results to reduce costs or even act maliciously. DGrid introduces the innovative “Proof of Quality” mechanism—a challenge system combining cryptographic verification with game theory. Specialized “Verification Nodes” randomly audit and revalidate inference tasks. If a node’s output fails verification, its staked $DGAI tokens are slashed. This ensures every AI transaction is transparent, traceable, auditable, and fair. This marks the “trustless” milestone for the AI industry. 2. Modular and Elastic Architecture Decentralized Inference Network: No single point of failure and no centralized control. A globally distributed node network collectively maintains system robustness. AI RPC Interface: For dApp developers, DGrid integration is as straightforward as connecting to a standard blockchain RPC. A unified gateway enables seamless access to all global LLMs and AI models. Node Incentive Economy: Anyone can operate a node, provide computational resources, and earn rewards. This transcends a technical network—it is a computational economy. 3. DGrid’s Operational Process Developers submit requests through the standard AI RPC interface (e.g., “Execute this prompt using Llama 3”). The DGrid network routes the task to the optimal inference node based on staking and performance metrics. The node executes computation, while the Blockchain layer manages verification (PoQ), settlement, and reward distribution. Users receive transparent, verified AI results at substantially lower costs. Backed by Leading Capital and Ecosystem Partners DGrid has secured robust backing from premier crypto venture capital firms, including Waterdrip Capital, IOTEX, Paramita, Abraca Research, CatherVC, 4EVER Research, and Zenith Capital. DGrid is more than a protocol—it is rapidly evolving into a comprehensive ecosystem: Global Computing Network: Connecting decentralized AI nodes distributed worldwide. Extensive Integration: Early integration with leading DeFi, GameFi, SocialFi, and AI Agent protocols to inject “intelligent power” into Web3 applications. Strategic Alliances: Established partnerships with Web3 infrastructure giants and top-tier model providers. Economic Model: DGrid Premium NFT and Token Economics While DGrid’s technical vision is impressive, its economic model and user rights are equally fascinating. Recognizing that community is the heart of Web3, DGrid has designed a value-return system centered around the DGrid Premium Membership NFT. Benefit I: Lifetime “All-in-One” AI Membership Owning a DGrid Premium NFT enables direct access to premium features of all top-tier models on the DGrid.AI platform, covering virtually every major AI product globally. Instead of individual subscriptions to OpenAI (ChatGPT Plus), Google Gemini 3 Pro, or Anthropic Claude Pro, DGrid aggregates these elite models into a single membership at a significant discount: $1,580 USD for the first year, with renewals at only $200 USD annually thereafter. For intensive AI users, developers, and teams, this represents enormous cost savings and an efficiency leap—the keys to the entire AI arsenal. Benefit II: Ownership Rights – 50% of Total $DGAI Supply This is the most aggressive aspect of DGrid’s economic model. Half of the total supply of the platform token, $DGAI, will be distributed exclusively to DGrid Premium NFT holders. This NFT represents “equity” in the future value of the entire DGrid ecosystem. As inference volume grows and more AI Agents operate on the network, the value-capture potential of $DGAI becomes exponential. These tokens are not merely an airdrop; they serve as permanent credentials for early builders and core supporters of the DGrid network. Join the Computational Paradigm Shift Web2 AI giants are attempting to establish a new digital hegemony. They own the data, they control the compute, and they dictate the rules. DGrid is not just a project—it is a movement for AI equality. Our commitment is to dismantle monopolies, making AI inference a decentralized, accessible, and verifiable public utility—like electricity. With an architecture superior to OpenRouter, a vision comparable to 1inch, solid academic backing, and a determination to return 50% of value to the community, DGrid is redefining the industry. The metric of the AI era is no longer whose model has more parameters, but whether computational power truly belongs to the people. Sales for the DGrid Premium NFT commenced on January 1, 2026. This is more than a purchase—it is a choice to stand with the future and master the wealth of decentralized computation. Official website: https://dgrid.ai X/Twitter: https://x.com/dgrid_ai Technical documentation: https://docs.dgrid.ai White paper: https://static.dgrid.ai/dgrid_litepaper.pdf

Consumer use of crypto-linked payment cards continued to gain traction heading into 2026, following a sharp rise in spending volumes reported by Visa for 2025. Data from Dune Analytics shows that spending across Visa-backed crypto cards increased steadily throughout last year, a significant growth. Related Reading: XRP Is Setting Up For Its ‘Next Explosive Move,’ Analysts Say: Here’s The Target Across six Visa-partnered crypto card programs, total net spending rose from $14.6 million in January 2025 to $91.3 million by December. The increase represents a 525% jump over the year and reflects growing consumer comfort with paying directly from crypto wallets at traditional points of sale. The cards are issued by a mix of crypto payment platforms and decentralized finance projects, including EtherFi, Cypher, GnosisPay, Avici Money, Exa App, and Moonwell. ETH's price trends slightly to the upside on the daily chart. Source: ETHUSD on Tradingview EtherFi and Cypher Lead Visa Crypto Card Spending Among the tracked programs, EtherFi recorded the highest spending volume, accounting for $55.4 million in transactions during 2025. That figure placed it well ahead of Cypher, which ranked second with $20.5 million in total spend. The remaining card issuers posted smaller but consistent increases, suggesting broader participation across the ecosystem rather than growth driven by a single outlier. Monthly spending data shows a gradual rise throughout the year, with no major spikes or sharp reversals. Analysts say this pattern points to routine usage rather than one-off events. Commenting on the data, Polygon researcher Alex Obchakevich noted that crypto card spending increasingly reflects regular financial behavior, indicating that crypto-linked cards are moving beyond experimental use cases. Visa Expands Stablecoin Infrastructure Visa’s growing role in crypto payments has been supported by its expanding stablecoin infrastructure. The payments firm now enables stablecoin settlement across multiple blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche, and Stellar. This setup allows card issuers to convert crypto balances to fiat in real time during transactions, while still relying on Visa’s global merchant network. In December 2025, Visa also launched a stablecoin advisory team focused on helping banks, merchants, and fintech companies design and manage stablecoin-based products. The initiative highlights Visa’s view that blockchain-based settlement and programmable money are becoming more relevant to mainstream payments. Outlook for Crypto Card Usage in 2026 With spending volumes rising and infrastructure continuing to expand, crypto card usage is expected to grow further in 2026. While volumes remain concentrated in the U.S., Europe, and parts of the Asia-Pacific region, the steady increase suggests consumer crypto spending is becoming more normalized. Related Reading: Memecoin Strength Returns After Historic Market Decline: A Setup For A Comeback? How sustained this trend will be may depend on broader market conditions and continued integration between crypto platforms and established payment networks. Cover image from ChatGPT, BTCUSD chart from Tradingview

A large crypto wallet that recently took a sharp loss on Ethereum has restructured its holdings, moving away from volatile tokens and increasing exposure to stablecoins and tokenized gold, according to on-chain tracking data. Related Reading: A Maduro Bet, A Market Alarm: US Lawmaker Targets Trading Abuses The address drew attention after an aggressive Ethereum purchase late last year went wrong. Between November 3 and November 7, 2025, the wallet spent about $110 million to acquire 31,005 ETH at an average price of $3,581. As prices slid, the position was unwound. Nearly the entire holding was sold for roughly $92.19 million, locking in a loss close to $18 million within two weeks. At current prices near $3,020, that same Ethereum stack would now be valued at around $93.6 million. Shift Away From Ether After Costly Exit Based on reports from blockchain monitoring platforms, the sell-off marked a clear change in behavior. The wallet, once heavily tied to Ethereum, no longer holds a large directional bet on the asset. Instead, balances have been spread across cash-like tokens and commodities. The move reflects caution rather than an attempt to quickly recover losses. An unknown whale, who lost $18.8M on $ETH in just 2 weeks, has abandoned $ETH and rotated into #gold. The whale has spent $14.58M to buy 3,299 $XAUT at $4,421 over the past 7 hours.https://t.co/hit6agWmHd pic.twitter.com/X7k94zV0iQ — Lookonchain (@lookonchain) January 2, 2026 Gold Buying Shows Preference For Lower Volatility According to on-chain records, the address began building a position in Tether’s tokenized gold product, XAUT. Starting on Friday, the wallet spent $14.58 million in USDT to buy 3,299 XAUT across several transactions. The average purchase price came in near $4,421 per token. This was not the first gold buy. A smaller XAUT acquisition was made on December 13, roughly three weeks earlier. As of the latest data, the wallet holds 3,386 XAUT tokens worth about $14.92 million. The broader portfolio now totals close to $91 million. About $58 million sits in USDT, another $18 million is held in USDC, while the remainder is split between XAUT and a reduced Ethereum balance. The composition points to capital protection rather than high-risk positioning. Metals Outperform Crypto In 2025 Returns from last year help explain the change. Reports have disclosed that Bitcoin fell by 6% in 2025, while Ethereum dropped 11%. Over the same period, gold surged over 60%, and silver rose an even steeper 147%. Related Reading: Bitcoin Dominance Grows As Altcoins Post Another Losing Year: Analyst Major stock indexes such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq 100 also posted stronger performance than much of the crypto market. With those results in view, some investors appear more comfortable holding assets linked to metals or cash. Meanwhile, analysts at asset manager VanEck have pointed to 2026 as a possible recovery year for the crypto market. Their view contrasts with the current behavior of large wallets moving into stablecoins and gold-linked tokens. The divide shows how uncertain sentiment remains after a year when metals and traditional assets delivered stronger gains than major cryptocurrencies. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

With 2025 now closed, the crypto market is beginning 2026 with attempts to recover from one of its most challenging years. After a tumultuous period, total market capitalization has surged back above $3 trillion. However, many investors are left wondering what the new year has in store for digital assets. Institutions Forecast Bullish Crypto Prices For 2026 According to a recent report by analysts at Bull Theory, the past year proved to be robust for traditional markets, particularly for metals, while cryptocurrencies fell short of expectations. Silver surged by 160%, and gold followed suit with a 66% increase.  In contrast, Bitcoin (BTC) wrapped up 2025 down approximately 5%, despite several positive indicators, such as consistent purchasing by Strategy, strong inflows into Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and growing institutional interest.  Related Reading: Is The Dogecoin Bottom In? 3 Analysts Break Down the Charts Yet, when one asset class lags significantly while liquidity remains abundant, historical trends show that the gap typically narrows. In terms of specific projections, various major institutions and prominent investors have offered their forecasts for both Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH).  Standard Chartered targets Bitcoin to reach $150,000 by the end of 2026, and JPMorgan projects a price of $170,000. Meanwhile, Citi’s base case stands around $143,000, with a more aggressive bull case suggesting a potential rise to $189,000.  Cathie Wood of ARK Invest envisions a long-term scenario where Bitcoin could hit $500,000, contingent on widespread institutional adoption. Tom Lee from Fundstrat anticipates Ethereum will trade between $7,000 and $9,000 by early 2026, fueled by the tokenization of real-world assets. New Regulations And Economic Optimism The analysts further highlighted that, unlike previous years, this cycle looks distinct in several key aspects. For one, crypto is no longer encumbered by operating within a legal gray area.  New regulatory frameworks, particularly in the US, are poised to offer clearer guidelines, reducing uncertainty and facilitating easier access for institutional investors. The anticipated changes aim for simplified regulations that could enhance market structure while broadening institutional participation beyond just Bitcoin and Ethereum.  Moreover, several factors suggest that a sharp movement in the crypto markets could be on the horizon. The end of quantitative tightening on December 1, 2025, coupled with a growing GDP, signals a conducive environment for crypto.  Related Reading: Dogecoin Long-Term Bullish Structure Still In Play And Will Cross $10 With inflation stabilized below 3% and unemployment at 4.6%, there are indications that the Federal Reserve (Fed) may adopt a more dovish stance, especially with a new Fed Chair expected to take office in May 2026.  Overall, as the new year begins, the crypto market finds itself in a position of underperformance rather than excess. This contrasting state often results in rapid repricings as gaps are closed in response to liquidity alignment.  As a result, Bull Theory analysts believe that 2026 could very well be the year when these disparities start to correct, leading to a potentially bullish environment for cryptocurrencies. Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com 

Despite the recent price action, Bitcoin (BTC) closed 2025 as the year with the lowest volatility in its history, driven by market maturity, regulatory developments, and the increasing participation of institutions in the crypto space. Related Reading: Ethereum Optimism For 2026: Analysts Share Bullish Forecast Despite Disappointing End-Of-Year Bitcoin Records Least Volatile Year On Friday, K33 Research data revealed that Bitcoin has recorded the least volatile year in the asset’s history. According to the chart, the flagship cryptocurrency saw its lowest volatility level, measured by the average deviation of daily returns, in 2025, hitting just 2.24%. The recent data shows that BTC fell below the previous lowest year on record, 2023, which registered 2.30% volatility. Moreover, it’s annual volatility has also ended below the 3% mark over the past three years, its lowest levels since 2016. This signals a “clear” diminishing trend, K33 Research noted, as Bitcoin’s volatility has been trending lower year by year, suggesting growing market maturity and stabilizing price action. Crypto trader Niels highlighted that “for the first time, BTC recorded its lowest annual volatility on record, lower than every cycle before it, including the early ‘wild west’ years and the post-ETF era.” As he explained, 2025 was “the calmest year in Bitcoin’s history” despite all the price movements of the years, including the Q4 daily corrections, which saw the flagship crypto retrace up to 16% in a single day. It’s worth noting that BTC’s deepest correction in 2025 saw the cryptocurrency drop nearly 36% in a two-month period, while previous cycles’ corrections recorded retraces of more than 50% during similar periods. Previously, Nic Carter addressed the negative sentiment brewing around Bitcoin and the broader market. He detailed that the market could be considered “boring” now because most of the questions that drove the historical volatility have been answered. Carter also asserted that the space matured significantly with “more serious businesses (…), [and] less chaos” in the industry. The Start Of The ‘Institutional Era’ In his X post, Niels also pointed out that the diminishing trend in Bitcoin volatility was fueled by the massive institutional participation, calling for “More capital. More long-term holders. More institutional participation. [and] Less emotional trading” for the future. Similarly, Bitwise’s CEO, Hunter Horsley has affirmed that the overall crypto market was changing, driven by the significant decrease in regulatory risk, which has led to last year’s spike in institutional adoption and mainstream recognition. Notably, the market saw the second of wave of crypto Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) go live, with funds based on altcoins like Solana (SOL) and XRP breaking multiple records. In addition, the Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) trend, led by Strategy’s Bitcoin purchases, poured billions of dollars into cryptocurrencies in 2025. Related Reading: Crypto Hacks Swipe Nearly $3 Billion In 2025 Despite Fewer Attacks – Report In November, Ark Invest’s CEO Cathie Wood stated that growing institutional adoption will be a powerful driver for long-term value for Bitcoin, noting that large-scale institutions have barely dipped their toes into the space and “have a long way to go.” Meanwhile, Head of Research at Grayscale, Zach Pandl, said in an January 2 interview that 2026 could be the “dawn of the institutional era” for crypto. He noted that rising demand for alternative stores of value and progress on bipartisan US crypto market structure legislation could drive Bitcoin to new highs in the first half of the year. As of this writing, Bitcoin is trading at $90,240, a 1.54% increase in the daily timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

Altcoin Daily host Austin Arnold used a Jan. 1 video titled “Top 6 Crypto Altcoins To Invest In For 2026” to lay out what he framed as three “first-time” catalysts for crypto in 2026 and a corresponding list of six altcoins he says he’d “buy and hold” into that backdrop, spanning smart-contract platforms, AI infrastructure, and tokenization-focused plays. Arnold opened with the claim that crypto sits at the center of “two mega trends”: digital assets and the tokenization of financial assets and argued the combination of macro policy, US legislation, and SEC posture could drive “trillions of dollars” of new inflows. The 3 Bullisch Crypto Catalysts First, Arnold pointed to what he described as a monetary-policy regime shift, including the resumption of “reserve management purchases,” and framed it as supportive for risk assets broadly. “We’re starting to see significant stimulus,” he said, adding that markets were already seeing “quantitative easing light” as “the Fed is starting to buy its own bonds,” while suggesting demand for government debt could fall alongside lower rates. Related Reading: Scaramucci Picks His Top 3 Crypto Altcoins As Rate-Cut Tailwinds Build Second, he argued crypto-specific regulation could function like a green light for institutional capital. He singled out the market structure focused Clarity Act, saying its passage would be “like a starter gun for ETH and SOL to run into trillions of dollars of value,” and noted discussion of a US Senate markup date of Jan. 15 with hopes of movement by late January or February. Third, Arnold highlighted what he called a tokenization push led by SEC chair Paul Atkins, describing “Project Crypto” as an effort to “bring all of traditional finance on the blockchain.” He paired that theme with a distribution angle around spot crypto ETFs, leaning on a quote he cited about how unusual the early ETF growth was: “These were the single best-selling product in the world and no one was allowed to make a phone call to sell it or advertise it,” he said. Top 6 Crypto Altcoins To Invest In For 2026 Arnold’s first pick is Ethereum. He frames it as the primary beneficiary of stablecoin growth and added that stablecoins are “mostly on the Ethereum blockchain,” and tied the thesis to regulation via the Genius Act, citing a view that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expects the sector to grow “10x in the next few years.” Arnold also said Ethereum’s stablecoin share rose to 53% from the high-40s “just a few months” earlier, and argued the link to ETH value accrual runs through fees: “30% of all fees on Ethereum are actually stablecoin revenue,” he said. “So as this is 10x’es the amount of fees, the amount of Ethereum being burned should be 10x to match.” Arnold’s second pick was Solana, which he portrayed as a usage leader relative to its market value versus Ethereum. He argued Solana is “already one of or if not the most used chain in crypto,” and claimed that through 2025 it was “more used than the entire rest of the industry combined times 2 to three.” He also cited a real-world asset milestone, saying Solana “RWA holders…have surpassed 125,000 holders.” Cardano is next, which Arnold said had a weak 2025 but could benefit from founder Charles Hoskinson’s push around Midnight. Arnold played a longer excerpt in which Hoskinson argued privacy could be the wedge that changes user behavior: “They can go through Midnight to Cardano and they get privacy. They do something new and different,” Hoskinson said. “Midnight my view will be through hybrid applications… private prediction markets, private DEXes, private stable coins… maybe… those Bitcoin people are going to want to trade on a private DEX instead of a public DEX.” Related Reading: Crypto ETFs Defy The Pullback With $32 Billion In Fresh Investor Cash Arnold then shifted to AI infrastructure with Bittensor (TAO), calling it “decentralized AI” plumbing and noting it had a recent “halving” and a fixed supply model he compared to Bitcoin’s. He also pointed to early-2026 ETF momentum, saying Grayscale filed an S-1 for a TAO product and Bitwise followed with a Bittensor ETF filing. For tokenization exposure, Arnold highlighted Ondo Finance (ONDO) ahead of what he described as an Ondo Summit on Feb. 3, where “world leaders, investors, policy makers” would reconvene, and closed his list with Propy, a real-estate-focused project he said is “US licensed” for title and escrow closing and “backed by Coinbase,” positioning it as a bet on bringing home buying and selling “on-chain.” Arnold closed his list with Propy, explicitly flagging it as the most speculative end of the spectrum and pairing it with a warning that lower-cap exposure can mean “these altcoins go to zero.” The Altcoin Daily host described it as “essentially real estate on-chain.” He emphasized operational and regulatory positioning as part of the pitch, saying Propy is “US licensed title and escrow closing,” and also highlighted its backers: “They’re backed again by Coinbase.” The investment thesis, as Arnold presented it, is straightforward tokenization logic applied to housing: bringing parts of the buying and selling process onto rails that can be settled and recorded on-chain, with Propy positioned as a project already operating within the US compliance perimeter he expects to matter more in 2026. At press time, the total crypto market cap stood at $2.98 trillion. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

Anthony Scaramucci says a friendlier US policy mix: rate cuts, looser financial conditions, and a renewed push for crypto legislation could set up 2026 as a better tape for “quality” altcoins, even after what he described as an unexpectedly bruising 2025 for the sector. In a Dec. 31 interview with Altcoin Daily, the SkyBridge Capital founder framed 2025 as a year where positioning and sentiment broke down under selling pressure he said he didn’t anticipate. “There’s probably $4.6 billion of whale selling this year into the ETF demand,” Scaramucci said, arguing that the deleveraging event around Oct. 10 amplified the move. “There was a massive amount of deleveraging. It impacted some of the market makers. It forced a liquidity crisis,” he added, describing a 30% drop as “garden variety” for bitcoin, but still a surprise for traders leaning bullish. Scaramucci said he now sees the setup improving precisely because sentiment turned so negative. “We were tilted to the bulls, we’re now decidedly very bearish,” he said, claiming his internal “bull meter” sits around 13 or 14 out of 100. The flip side, he argued, is that incremental good news, less large-holder selling, steadier ETF inflows, or regulatory progress, could matter more than usual. Related Reading: Crypto Hacks Swipe Nearly $3 Billion In 2025 Despite Fewer Attacks – Report A central part of Scaramucci’s thesis was that the market still expects US market-structure legislation to pass, and that the timeline matters. “I do think it is detrimental because I do think there is still a market expectation that it’s going to pass. I do think you need that clarity,” he said of the Clarity Act. Without it, he argued, serious tokenization efforts remain constrained by legal uncertainty: “Who’s going to spend the kind of money that you need to switch over the financial system if you’re not guaranteed that you’re going to be able to use it.” He also tied the policy fight to a broader economic claim: “There’s between, depending on how you measure it, there’s three and a half to $4 trillion dollars worth of transaction verification expenses in the global economy per year… If you could get that down, let’s say you cut it in half, you could unleash a $2 trillion capital spend in other areas of the economy or just better wages for people.” Related Reading: RWA Tops Crypto Narratives In 2025: CoinGecko Reports 185% Growth Pressed on odds of passage before the midterms, Scaramucci said it should be “north of 50%,” arguing Democrats have learned there is “no anti-crypto voter,” while crypto-aligned spending can be decisive in tight races. Scaramucci’s Top-3 Altcoins And Bitcoin Prediction Asked for his current top-three altcoins, Scaramucci named Solana first, followed by Avalanche and Telegram-linked TON. “My three top coins then would be Solana, it would be Avalanche and believe it or not… it would be the Telegram token known as Ton,” he said, while acknowledging he has been early or wrong on timing. He said he first bought TON at $7.50, averaging near $4.00, while saying it was trading around $1.50 at the time of the interview, but still sees it as a token that could be used across Telegram’s network as it grows. On why Solana sits at No. 1, Scaramucci kept it simple and comparative: “Cheap, low cost, very fast, easy to use, easy to develop on,” he said, adding he’s “not an Ethereum negative person” and expects “a multicoin world.” Macro is the other pillar. Scaramucci expects “two to four interest rate cuts” next year and argued a president facing midterms will want growth optics. “He’s going to flood the zone with capital. He’s going to drop interest rates. He’s going to try to perk up the economy,” Scaramucci said. “That bodes well for the stock market… for the altcoin market… and… for crypto.” For bitcoin, he stuck with his $150,000 call—“I’m off by a year, I think”—and said he recently “bought more Bitcoin” for his family, betting that ETF flows and easier policy can overpower the hangover from 2025’s whale-driven selling. At press time, the total crypto market cap stood at $2.94 trillion. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

As Ethereum (ETH) is set to end the year on a disappointing note, some market observers have shared an optimistic outlook for the altcoin’s start-of-year performance, suggesting that an early 2026 breakout remains possible. Related Reading: Crypto Hacks Swipe Nearly $3 Billion In 2025 Despite Fewer Attacks – Report Ethereum Holds ‘Equilibrium Level’ Ethereum is attempting to end the year above a crucial area following its recent sideways action. Notably, the cryptocurrency has been in a downtrend for the past three months, currently recording a 27.8% decline from its Q4 opening of $4,145. ETH has been trading sideways over the past several weeks, hovering within the $2,800-$3,000 price range. During this period, the King of Altcoins has failed to hold above the upper boundary on the weekly timeframe despite multiple attempts to break out. Amid this performance, market watcher Crypto Batman recently noted Ethereum is trading around the mid-zone of a multi-year bullish channel, which he named “the equilibrium level.” This zone has historically acted as both a strong support and resistance point for Ethereum, he explained, making it the crucial area to hold as we approach the monthly and yearly closes. Despite the recent price action, Crypto Batman suggested that “given how ETH rallied from $1,500 to $4,600, this current move looks like nothing more than a bullish retest to that equilibrium, likely forming the next higher low.” Similarly, analyst Cas Abbé affirmed that the leading altcoin’s structure remains “incredibly bullish” even with the recent volatility, highlighting ETH’s uptrend line on the higher timeframes. According to the post, the cryptocurrency has not only held its ascending trendline over the past eight months but also bounced after each retest, suggesting that a rebound could be possible if this level continues to hold on the higher timeframes. ETH Breakout In Early 2026? Crypto Jelle also shared a bullish outlook for Ethereum, affirming that the altcoin looks strong on the macro chart. “If price can push towards $4k from here, I doubt bears can hold it down again,” the analyst wrote on X, adding that “It might finally be time for ETH to shine again next year.” Market observer Trader Tardigrade underscored a giant Inverse Head and Shoulders pattern on ETH’s weekly chart. Per the post, the cryptocurrency has been forming this bullish pattern for the past two years, with the neckline currently located around the $4,950-$5,000 mark. Notably, the left shoulder and head developed during the Q3-Q4 2024 and Q2-Q3 2025 rallies. Meanwhile, the Q4 2025 correction has started to form the pattern’s right shoulder, which signals that the altcoin could rise to the neckline area in the next few months, and potentially aim for higher levels if the pattern continues to develop. In the shorter timeframe, Man of Bitcoin noted that Ethereum could see a breakout in the first week of 2026. The analyst pointed out a one-month symmetrical triangle formation on ETH’s chart, where the price has been “getting squeezed between both trendlines.” Related Reading: Solana Bearish Formation Hints At Major Correction Until Mid-2026 – Here’s The Target While the altcoin continues to compress between these levels, a break from the pattern becomes more likely, leading the market watcher to suggest a 15%-20% breakout toward the $3,400 resistance. As of this writing, ETH is trading at $2,977, a 1.2% increase in the weekly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

As we approach the final day of a massive year for the crypto industry, a recent report revealed that the sector has lost nearly $3 billion amid the emergence of new trends from malicious actors and growing security complexities. Related Reading: Solana Bearish Formation Hints At Major Correction Until Mid-2026 – Here’s The Target 2025 Crypto Losses Increase By 45% On Tuesday, blockchain security firm SlowMist shared its 2025 Blockchain Security & AML Annual Report, highlighting the severe security challenges the crypto industry faced throughout the year. According to SlowMist, the total value stolen from crypto hacks increased by 46% in 2025 compared to 2024, a trend previously noticed by earlier reports. Notably, crypto theft had been more devastating by the first half of this year than the entirety of 2024. A Mid-Year report by Chainalysis showed that 2025’s activity by the end of June revealed a significantly steeper trajectory into the end of the first half than any previous year, with an alarming velocity and consistency. Now that the year is near its end, security incidents have cost approximately $2.935 billion, according to SlowMist data, significantly surpassing the $2.013 billion in losses from the previous year. However, the number of incidents dropped year-over-year (YoY) despite the total amount of losses increasing, signaling a trend of fewer but larger-scale crypto heists. The number of incidents declined by 51%, with 200 cases in 2025. In comparison, 2024 saw 410 reported hacks. The report shared that DeFi remained the most frequently targeted sector this year, with 126 security incidents, accounting for approximately 63% of all hacks and total losses of around $649 million. This represents a 37% and 62% YoY decrease from 2024’s 339 incidents and $1.029 billion in losses, respectively. Meanwhile, Centralized exchange (CEX) platforms reported 22 incidents, which accounted for $1.809 billion in losses, led by Bybit’s hack. The February attack resulted in approximately $1.46 billion being stolen in a single incident, becoming the most serious and largest security event of the year. Regulatory Enforcement Strengthens Although phishing remained one of the most active schemes, scams and intrusive attacks continued to evolve in 2025, noted SlowMist. Therefore, scams have become more deceptive and difficult to detect, with malicious actors no longer relying on a single method of attack to deceive victims: Traditional phishing has gradually expanded into permission hijacking, malicious code execution, and supply-chain poisoning. Attacks are no longer reliant on a single method; instead, they increasingly combine social engineering, browser exploitation, new protocol mechanics, and hybrid lure strategies to form stealthy and destructive attack chains. However, the report highlighted that crypto enforcement and sanction actions worldwide displayed a “clear trend of escalation” this year, as regulatory and law enforcement agencies directly intervened “in key areas of crypto-related money laundering, fraud, sanctions evasion, and illicit financing.” Related Reading: Crypto’s Big Money Signals Change: BTC Holders Pause, ETH Whales Buy Notably, there were 18 incidents this year in which lost funds were recovered or frozen. In these cases, the total stolen funds totaled to $1.95 billion, of which nearly $387 million was successfully returned or frozen. SlowMist concluded that “the development of the Web3 industry will no longer rely solely on technical innovation. (…) Organizations that can build stronger internal security controls, more transparent fund governance models, and more comprehensive KYT/AML review capabilities will gain longer-term resilience in the next cycle.” Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

Solana (SOL) is retesting a make-or-break area that could set the stage for a major move at the start of next year. Some analysts have suggested that altcoin’s chart signals a bearish performance for the coming months. Related Reading: Here’s Why Bitcoin Advocate Max Keiser Restates Bullish Outlook For 2025 Solana Faces Another Rejection From Key Resistance After hitting a three-week high of $130 on Sunday, Solana started the week with a 6.1% correction to the $122 area. The cryptocurrency recently breached below its macro support around the $120 zone, hitting an eight-month low of $116 in mid-December. Since then, the altcoin has been trading between the $120-$126 mark, attempting to break out of the local resistance multiple times but ultimately being rejected after each retest. SOL’s price surged around 5.6% toward during Sunday’s broader market bounce, trying to build a base below the crucial resistance level before plunging after the early Monday correction. Amid this performance, market observer Crypto Jobs pointed out that Solana had broken out of a six-week falling wedge, which could target the $144-$146 area if momentum holds and price confirms a retest of the breakout. However, the star-of-week pullback has momentarily sent SOL below the pattern’s upper boundary. Analyst Man of Bitcoin also highlighted that the cryptocurrency had broken above a one-month downtrend line, which suggested an initial move toward the $129-$130 area. The analyst explained that “holding above the broken trendline is key to maintaining upside momentum,” but noted that as long as the price remains below $146, a scenario where price is headed for one more low, around the $100-105 horizontal support, remains likely. Following the Monday rejection, he affirmed that “it could be that wave-4 is already complete. A decisive break below the trendline would confirm this further.” SOL’s Higher Timeframe Chart Shows Troubling Signs Market watcher Elite Crypto affirmed that Solana “doesn’t look very strong” on the higher timeframe, pointing to a multi-year bearish pattern potentially forming on SOL’s chart. According to X analysis, the cryptocurrency has been developing a Head and Shoulder pattern since early 2024, with the neckline sitting around the $105 area in the weekly timeframe. The char shows that left shoulder formed during the Q1 2024 rally, while the head and right shoulder formed during its rally to its latest all-time high (ATH) in Q1 and Q3 2025 breakouts, respectively. “If $SOL loses the $105 support then the price could move down to the $75–$51 range and this phase may last until mid 2026,” the investor detailed, adding that “after this period, the overall trend for SOL can turn bullish and set up a better move ahead.” Similarly, Henry from Lord of Alts suggested that Solana has formed a double top formation with the neckline around the current levels instead of a Head and Shoulders pattern. Related Reading: Bitcoin Nears Red Yearly Close: Galaxy Digital Explains The Setup Per the analyst, “We put in a clean double top, rolled over, and now price is going back toward a zone that’s acted as real support before.” If the altcoin fails to hold the current support, its price could retrace toward the $60 mark, the chart shows. Moreover, he added that SOL’s price could also risk a drop to the $35 area in the coming months as there’s “a big gap below that market hasn’t dealt with yet.” Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

XRP is trading around $1.87 and has slipped below the $2 mark after a recent slide. According to market trackers, the token is down about 30% in the fourth quarter of 2025, yet some analysts say the current weakness may be part of a larger build-up that has preceded strong rallies before. Investors and commentators are watching price action closely as debate grows over whether the token is setting up for a sharp rebound or more weakness. Related Reading: Bitcoin Forecasts For 2026 Range From $65K To $250K As Sentiment Hits ‘Extreme Fear’ Historical Accumulation Patterns Based on reports from chart watchers, XRP has shown what some call repeatable accumulation phases in past cycles. One run of consolidation unfolded from early 2015 through early 2017. During that span a steep drop took XRP from $0.00885 to $0.005, and later it rallied hard, climbing to about $3.30 by January 2018. A second cycle ran from mid-2023 into late 2024, where an August to November slide saw prices fall from $0.62 to $0.50, before a quick push up to roughly $3.4 in January 2025. Analysts point to these past moves as a pattern that could provide clues about what happens next. Recent Downtrend And Support Levels Reports show that since October 2025, XRP has fallen from about $2.8 to the current price near $1.84. Technical commentators have highlighted that the $1.8–$2 band, which acted as resistance earlier, may now be acting as support after recent trading. One analyst framed the present setup as an ABC reset, a short-term corrective structure that sometimes precedes renewed upward movement. Still, traders are split; some see a base forming, while others view the decline as evidence of continued selling pressure. The most hated $XRP rally is about to start! ???? pic.twitter.com/HTwbTIwxZ2 — STEPH IS CRYPTO (@Steph_iscrypto) December 16, 2025 Market Voices And Possible Catalysts According to community commentators, legal and market actions could influence XRP’s next leg. The potential end of a long-running SEC case, the arrival of XRP-focused ETFs, and pending legislation known as the Clarity Act were all cited as items that might change investor sentiment. One market watcher went so far as to say this could become the “most hated” rally, a phrase meant to describe a sudden surge that comes while many remain doubtful and frustrated. Utility Versus Price Several observers have urged a focus on real-world use. According to Aljarrah, the token’s value comes from practical utility and improved liquidity, which allows larger transfers with fewer tokens and makes the payment rails more efficient. People obsess over price, but XRP’s value is in its utility. A higher price strengthens liquidity, efficiency, and adoption. Let the tech and leadership do the work, short-term noise doesn’t matter. — Black Swan Capitalist (@VersanAljarrah) December 21, 2025 Related Reading: Big Bet On Ethereum: CEO Sees 10X TVL Growth In 2026 Price moves matter, he said, but not as speculation—rather as a factor that can broaden adoption by improving liquidity and network function. Traders should note that past patterns do not guarantee future results. While the accumulation thesis rests on historical parallels and technical charts, the market remains sensitive to news and flows. Selling now could mean missing gains if a rally follows, some warn; others say patience and careful sizing remain essential. For investors, the coming weeks may tell whether the current slump is the end of a retracement or the start of another climb. Featured image from LumerB/Getty Images, chart from TradingView

The Bitcoin price is currently over 30% below its all-time high of around $126,000, which was reached in the first week of October 2025. Unfortunately, it has gone downhill for the premier cryptocurrency since reaching this peak, starting with the infamous October 10 market bloodbath. The general consensus in the crypto market has been that this price downturn was triggered by the increasing selling pressure. Interestingly, the latest on-chain data suggests that the Bitcoin price has not seen significant selling pressure in years. Lack Of Selling Pressure Means No Distribution In BTC Market In a December 27 post on the X platform, on-chain analyst Axel Adler Jr. revealed that the Bitcoin price has not seen strong selling pressure since early 2023. This puts the market leader on the verge of a new record in terms of selling activity. Related Reading: Bitcoin Hovering In A Descending Range, But Alts Are Quietly Gaining Momentum The crypto pundit’s on-chain observation revolves around the Sales Pressure metric, which evaluates different indicators that track investor behavior and supply/demand dynamics. This metric tracks the movement of coins on the blockchain in real-time, providing insights into potential price movements.  CryptoQuant’s data shows that the Bitcoin price has gone 1,079 days without strong selling pressure, nearing the current all-time high of seller silence of around 1,125 days. Ultimately, this suggests that the BTC price is yet to see the selling pressure often associated with bear markets. According to Adler Jr., the lack of strong selling pressure means that the Bitcoin price has not seen mass profit-taking, capitulation events, or distribution. The on-chain analyst did note that the absence of selling pressure doesn’t automatically mean price growth for the flagship cryptocurrency. However, Adler Jr. highlighted that periods of major selling pressure are often followed by significant price moves for Bitcoin. As shown in the chart below, the Bitcoin price historically tends to go on an extended rally after a period of significant selling pressure. The price of BTC was below $1,000 as the sales pressure subsided in late 2015, before running to around $20,000 in December 2017. A similar occurrence could be observed after the Bitcoin price came out from under the sales pressure of 2019, before surging to the then-all-time high of around $69,000. Strong sales pressure is looking imminent for the Bitcoin price, especially as the period of seller silence nears its record high of 1,125 days. While the market leader might struggle during the period of strong selling pressure, the coin would likely exit the phase with an upward bounce. Nevertheless, Adler Jr. concluded that the Bitcoin market remains structurally resilient in its current state. Bitcoin Price At A Glance As of this writing, the price of BTC stands at around $87,810, reflecting no significant movement in the past 24 hours. Related Reading: Bitcoin 4-Year Cycle Is Dead: Crypto Trader Explains What Happens Next Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView