An obscure Hong Kong firm has disclosed a $436 million position in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, a revelation that is fueling speculation about Chinese capital flowing into crypto through offshore side doors. Laurore Ltd, a previously unknown entity, reported the stake in BlackRock Inc.’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in a filing with the US Securities and […]
The post Is China using US Bitcoin ETFs as a backdoor? Mystery Hong Kong firm invested $436M in BlackRock’s IBIT appeared first on CryptoSlate.
A fraying global order and a renewed bid for gold may be the early setup for the next crypto cycle, even if Bitcoin hasn’t confirmed the signal yet. That’s the argument from Will Taylor (@Cryptoinsightuk), who laid out a macro-to-crypto framework in a Jan. 17 X post. Taylor framed his post as an attempt to timestamp his thinking rather than deliver a clean forecast. “I’m going to try and relate this as much to crypto as possible, because that’s where the majority of my investments reside,” he wrote. Taylor’s starting point is qualitative but clear: “something feels different,” and the shift has accelerated over the last five to six years. He points to a US-led “rules-based order” showing “early signs of fragility,” referencing Trump’s tariffs and the Russia-Ukraine war, particularly the decision to limit Russia’s ability to transact in US dollars. Gold, in his view, is the market’s canary. He argues sanctions pressure may have helped push gold out of a long consolidation, and that gold’s acceleration is less about a simple inflation trade and more about confidence. “When you see an acceleration in gold… what it’s displaying… is a lack of trust in the world’s current economy and structure,” he wrote. “The lack of trust is displayed by the price accelerating higher… because that trust is starting to break.” Related Reading: Crypto Funds Bleed $173M As Outflows Extend To Fourth Week – Report That’s where Taylor turns the lens onto crypto. If the defining macro variable is trust decay — a scenario where decentralisation should be valuable — why isn’t crypto already repricing? Taylor frames it as a fork: either crypto’s value proposition is impaired, or the market is simply in a short-term pullback inside a larger cycle. Taylor highlights a specific narrative pressure point: Bitcoin’s relationship to gold. Since October, he says Bitcoin has deviated from its prior correlation with gold. To realign that relationship, he argues Bitcoin would need to be “currently around $170,000.” He presents that level less as a target and more as a marker for how wide the gap has become between “gold is screaming uncertainty” and “Bitcoin is still negotiating its role.” He also acknowledges the uncomfortable alternative: that the narrative breaks and the correlation doesn’t return. Taylor’s counterweight is a late-cycle liquidity argument. He notes that in end-of-cycle transitions “everything in the market pumps,” pointing to historical episodes where asset prices surged before major resets, and he argues governments will lean on the familiar lever: fiat creation to try to preserve the current system. In that framing, gold’s strength could be a symptom of currency debasement already underway, while Bitcoin’s lag could be exactly that: lag. The Bull Case: Exponential Repricing, Crypto Rotation Taylor ultimately leans toward a sharp upside repricing. He argues Bitcoin is technically coiled and narratively positioned as a borderless asset in a world drifting toward bipolar or multipolar blocs. Even if the system becomes more fractured — and even if there is “rot” in parts of crypto — he argues the market lacks a better digital alternative for portability and speed, especially for machine-driven activity. He then pushes the idea into a mania scenario, writing that Bitcoin could reach $200,000 to $500,000, and potentially “$500,000 plus” if liquidity from larger markets moves meaningfully into Bitcoin. His core mechanism is not just market-cap arithmetic, but supply-demand dynamics: a concentrated wave of demand colliding with limited marginal supply can move price faster than most models expect. Related Reading: After Extreme Pessimism, Crypto Market Conditions Begin To Stabilize: Analysts Taylor’s more distinctive claim is that altcoins could lead the next leg. “If crypto is going to survive as an asset class, it won’t be Bitcoin as leading the market,” he wrote, arguing Bitcoin is largely a store-of-value rail, while a functional financial layer requires faster value transfer, smart contracts, and “a bunch of other financial tools” associated with legacy markets. In his view, if crypto becomes infrastructure — for AI-era payments and global settlement — “an altcoin is going to, or a mixture of altcoins are going to have to come to the center of the stage.” Volatility Compression And Price Targets Taylor also leans on technical signals. He points to a broader bearish structure in Bitcoin dominance and tight Bollinger Band compression as evidence that volatility is “around the corner.” He notes the emergence of a “quantum risk” narrative around Bitcoin’s cryptography, while arguing that negative narratives tend to cluster when sentiment is already depressed. On cycle structure, he argues crypto cycles have compressed in both duration and magnitude: 22,000% over 853 days (2015 to Feb. 2018), then roughly 1,200% over 395 days in the next cycle (starting from the C19 sell-off). Extending that pattern, he suggests the market could add roughly 600% “within 184 days,” sketching a “back of the napkin” path toward a total crypto value around $16 trillion. From there he proposes a scenario where $6 trillion flows into stablecoins and the remainder into liquid crypto exposure, implying downstream effects on DeFi and the networks stablecoins run on. Under that backdrop, he floats aggressive price outcomes: ETH at $30,000–$40,000, XRP at $20–$25, and Solana at $2,000 — while acknowledging how extreme those projections look from today’s vantage point. At press time, the total crypto market cap stood at $2.3 trillion. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Defensive sentiment, falling leverage, and declining ETF exposure suggest the market may be near a bottom, K33 said.
Arkham Intelligence released new on-chain data showing that six entities control a combined 4.25 million Bitcoin. That’s roughly 21% of all BTC that will ever exist, and most of it isn’t going anywhere. Satoshi Nakamoto still tops the list with 1,096,358 BTC, worth around $75 billion. Arkham traced these coins using a known mining pattern …
The ECB is set to begin selecting EU-licensed payment providers for its digital euro pilot this quarter, with the 12-month pilot set to kick off in the second half of 2027.
The EU regulated blockchain earlier than most major economies. Its sandbox now tests whether dialogue unlocks innovation inside legal fences.
The WLFI price just ripped 25% higher intraday and no, it wasn’t random. A so-called “golden ticket” style invitation for an event at Mar-a-Lago flipped sentiment fast, and traders wasted no time piling in. Momentum didn’t just tick up. It exploded. Futures Volume Goes Parabolic Futures activity spiked 225%, with volume reaching $921.63 million. Open …
The UK is experiencing socio-economic conditions reminiscent of a Soviet-style collapse. Sudden loss of trust in institutions can lead to chaotic environments, ripe for exploitation. Poland's integration of the former regime into the new structure helped stabilize its transition.
The post Izabella Kaminska: UK’s decline mirrors Soviet collapse | The Peter McCormack Show appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
BlackRock's slight reduction in Bitcoin proxy holdings may signal cautious optimism, impacting market perceptions and investment strategies.
The post BlackRock trims stake in Bitcoin proxy Strategy but keeps top shareholder spot appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Bitcoin is currently in a bear market, and more accommodative policies might not trigger a bull market. The historical correlation between global liquidity and Bitcoin's performance has been disrupted. Global liquidity is currently around $170 trillion and continues to rise.
The post Jeff Park: Bitcoin is in a bear market with broken liquidity correlations, US policy is shifting towards centralization, and the importance of ‘peacetime’ vs. ‘wartime’ Bitcoin | The Pomp Podcast appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Crypto tax platform, Awaken Tax, polled 1,000 crypto holders about a radical shift from self-disclosure to automatic reporting of transactions.
The exploit saw the Moonwell protocol exploited for $1.78 million after cbETH was mispriced at $1.12 instead of roughly $2,200, intensifying debate around AI-co-authored smart contracts.
Robert Kiyosaki expects a sharp market slide and sees it as a chance to add to his holdings. He has named Bitcoin and Ethereum alongside gold and silver as places to park money when prices tumble. Related Reading: Bitcoin Should Be Flying—Instead, Quantum Risk Keeps It Grounded: Analyst The book author and crypto figure calls scarcity a simple reason to act now. That idea is not new, but he is putting fresh public emphasis on buying during market panic. “I am so excited and bullish on Bitcoin I am buying more and more as Bitcoin’s price goes down,” Kiyosaki said in an X post. Kiyosaki’s Scarcity Argument Kiyosaki’s view rests on one clear point: some assets are limited. Bitcoin’s capped supply is used as the main example. He believes limited supply can protect value when currencies are under pressure. “I will be buying more Bitcoin as people panic and sell into the coming crash,” he said. The strategy he’s talking about is to keep buying during price drops, taking advantage of panic to pick up more at lower levels. I Am Warning You: In Rich Dad’s Prophecy published 2013 I warned of the biggest stock market crash in history still coming. That giant crash is now imminent. The good news is those of you who followed my rich dad’s warning and prepared….the coming crash will make you richer… — Robert Kiyosaki (@theRealKiyosaki) February 17, 2026 For people who can handle big swings, that approach may produce strong gains over many years. It is an aggressive stance, and it relies on the buyer staying calm while markets move wildly around them. “This coming crash may make you richer beyond your wildest dreams if you realize crashes are the best of times to get richer,” Kiyosaki said. Market Voices Push Back Not everyone agrees with that approach. Billionaire Warren Buffett has long warned that crypto looks speculative, and financial commentator Peter Schiff argues that digital coins lack a reliable store of value. Their warnings are blunt: prices can fall much further and stay low for a long time. This tension between bullish accumulation and caution is shaping investor debate right now. Price swings in a short span are not uncommon, and those moves can test conviction. What To Watch Next Liquidity and regulatory shifts remain key factors. Large drops have often been amplified when buyers pull back or regulators implement sudden rule changes. Exchange outages, forced selling by major holders, and rapid swings in lending markets have triggered past selloffs. Reports note that macro headlines and shifts in sentiment among big investors can drive prices lower even when long-term fundamentals appear steady. Steady accumulation during such periods has historically depended on the ability to endure these shocks. Related Reading: What Bitcoin Rout? Michael Saylor Unfazed, Teases New Accumulation A Plain Takeaway Kiyosaki is making a choice about how to deal with risk: accept volatility and buy more, or avoid it and likely miss big rebounds. Both approaches have been proven right at different times. Short-term noise will be loud and distracting. Long-term results will be shown by market prices and by who keeps their nerve. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
The launch of GSUI may accelerate institutional adoption of digital assets, highlighting the growing importance of scalable blockchain solutions.
The post Grayscale debuts SUI Staking ETF on NYSE appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Nominal GDP is a crucial indicator for understanding macroeconomic policy mistakes. Fiscal policy and supply shocks are often overrated in their impact on nominal GDP growth. The earlier, simpler monetary system was more effective than the current complex Federal Reserve system.
The post Scott Sumner: Nominal GDP is key to understanding macro policy errors | Macro Musings appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Ten years after the famous hack, the DAO Security Fund has decided to stake the untouched ETH and use the yield to fund Ethereum security initiatives, honor claims indefinitely, and professionalize governance and key management.
Following the latest rebound in Bitcoin and Ethereum, Cardano’s price has also staged a modest recovery. ADA opened the session near $0.281 and continues to trade slightly above that level, around $0.282, after retreating from an intraday high of $0.2858. However, trading volume has continued to decline even as price action holds above local support …
BRICS nations, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and many other nations, have publicly discussed reducing reliance on the US dollar in cross-border trade. But new news is circulating on X that BRICS nations are in talks with Ripple, a leading cross-border payment solution, to create a global digital currency and may use the …
Bitcoin is trading sideways around $68,000, stuck in a $65K-$72K range since early February. Outflows of $105 million from U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs are capping short-term rallies, while low volatility keeps the market in a holding pattern. Bulls highlight strong support near $50K and undervaluation versus gold, but bears warn of potential drops to $48K-$42K …
Social engineering and impersonation-related scams were the most frequent attack vectors targeting crypto investors in AMLBot’s investigations last year.
Retail crypto investors are increasingly moving beyond the largest cryptocurrencies and building long-term positions in select altcoins, according to insights shared by a senior executive at Caleb & Brown, a global crypto brokerage that works closely with high-net-worth and retail clients. Speaking about recent client activity, the executive Jake Boyle revealed that investor interest has …
The Bitcoin price is hovering in a range of $60K to $70K and quietly sketching a structure that feels eerily familiar. If this is a bullish divergence phase like the one after the 2021 crash, then the current Bitcoin price prediction might frustrate impatient bulls more than outright bears ever did. First Top Shock Repeats …
Your day-ahead look for Feb. 18, 2026
Bitwise's February announcement arrived as two moves packaged as one. The crypto asset manager announced a partnership with Morpho to launch curated yield vaults and simultaneously acquired Chorus One's institutional staking business. It looks like a deliberate assembly: curation mechanisms to filter protocol risk, infrastructure to deliver returns, and enough operational scaffolding to make the […]
The post Wall Street is selling crypto income inside TradFi products and one hidden switch decides who gets in appeared first on CryptoSlate.
Solana (SOL) price is struggling near the $85 mark, after failing to reclaim the $100 psychological level. The broader crypto market remains stable, but Solana is not showing relative strength. Instead, SOL is drifting inside a weakening structure that has produced consistent lower lows since the rejection near $130. The question now shifts from recovery …
The first quarterly report for the Franklin Templeton XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF), trading under the ticker XRPZ, has offered an early look at how quickly institutional investors are entering the XRP market. The filing shows that the fund, launched in late November 2025, already controls a massive pool of XRP worth hundreds of millions of …
A permissioned DEX amendment creates controlled versions of XRPL’s built-in exchange, letting approved entities decide who can place and take orders.
Dogecoin is trading under low pressure, struggling to build sustained upside momentum due to low bullish sentiment in the entire market. The leading meme coin has had its price action trading around the $0.1 support, with buyers and sellers locked in a tight battle. However, crypto analyst Cryptollica has shared a chart that suggests that Dogecoin may be setting up for the biggest déjà-vu in history. His analysis points to a recurring pattern that has appeared multiple times since 2014, with the current structure following lows in previous cycles. The Four-Cycle Pattern Dogecoin’s weekly timeframe was mapped out from 2014 through early 2026 in the weekly candlestick price chart shared by the analyst. Four separate points were marked with circles labeled 1, 2, 3, and 4. Each of these points corresponds with periods where Dogecoin entered deeply oversold conditions on the Relative Strength Index (RSI), shown in the lower panel of the chart. Related Reading: Dogecoin Has Now Broken Out Of A Descending Triangle, Here’s The Next Stop The first circle is projected around 2014-2015, when Dogecoin experienced an extended price decline, and the RSI dipped into oversold territory. That period was followed by a strong recovery and eventually a larger expansion phase. The second marked zone was in 2020, which also coincided with a depressed RSI reading and a horizontal support region on price. Shortly after, Dogecoin launched into its historic 2021 rally. The third instance is visible around 2022, when the market entered a bear cycle after the previous bull cycle in 2021. Dogecoin once again found support near a similar structure and RSI levels. Now, the fourth circle is projected in early 2026, with the RSI pressing near the low 30 region, close to previous cycle bottoms. Price is also sitting around a horizontal support band that previously acted as support back in late 2024. Cryptollica’s question, “Coincidence or Math?” is based on the symmetry in these repeating structures. Each time Dogecoin reached comparable oversold conditions on the weekly chart, a significant move followed. What A History Repeat Could Mean For Dogecoin Every time Dogecoin’s weekly RSI fell below the 30 level, it led to exhaustion in selling pressure. Following those oversold phases, Dogecoin did not immediately explode upward. Instead, it formed a base before beginning a sustained climb. Related Reading: What The Dogecoin Recovery From This Accumulation Zone Means For The Price If the fourth marked setup follows previous cycles, the outcome would likely unfold in stages. The first phase would involve stabilization around the current support zone, with volatility gradually compressing between $0.10 and $0.15. This would then be followed by bullish momentum when market conditions finally improve, and capital rotates into meme coins. Based on this outlook, we could see the Dogecoin price reversing from oversold into normal condition, which in turn would be reflected in its price action, pushing into price levels above $0.2 at least in the short term. Featured Image from Peakpx, chart from Tradingview.com
The altcoin market just set a new record that no one wanted. Crypto assets outside Bitcoin and Ethereum have now closed five consecutive months in the red, a streak that has no precedent in crypto history. Michaël van de Poppe, CIO and Founder of MN Fund, highlighted this on X, calling it a first for …
A fresh round of Bitcoin market-manipulation chatter is ricocheting through crypto X after Jane Street added 7,105,206 shares of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, in Q4 2025, bringing its reported position to 20,315,780 shares. Speculators tie this disclosure to a long-running rumor about a daily “10AM” sell program. Is Jane Street Manipulating The Bitcoin Price? The allegation is simple and sticky: the same sophisticated desk “accumulating” IBIT is also supposedly the desk leaning on BTC and BTC-linked vehicles at a predictable time each morning to create better entry prices. The rebuttal, from market structure veterans, is equally blunt: you’re reading a market maker’s inventory like it’s a directional bet. BullTheory framed the 13F as an accumulation story, writing that Jane Street bought 7,105,206 IBIT shares “worth $276 million” in Q4 2025 and “now holds 20,315,780 IBIT shares worth $790 million,” before adding: “This is the same entity rumoured to be behind the daily ‘10 AM’ manipulation to push Bitcoin prices lower.” Related Reading: Bitcoin Accumulation Notably Weaker Than Nov 2025 Bounce: Glassnode The screenshot circulating alongside the claim shows Jane Street Group LLC listed with a 13F source tag, an options indicator marked “Y,” a position of 20,315,780, and a latest change of 7,105,206, filed 12/31/25. That “Y” is the detail critics keep coming back to because it’s the quickest tell that the position may not be what the headline suggests. BREAKING: Jane Street bought 7,105,206 $IBIT shares worth $276 million in Q4 2025. It now holds 20,315,780 IBIT shares worth $790 million. This is the same entity rumoured to be behind the daily “10 AM” manipulation to push Bitcoin prices lower. pic.twitter.com/NFC5r5hHUn — Bull Theory (@BullTheoryio) February 17, 2026 Milk Road amplified the “10am theory,” calling it “persistent whispers” about “certain institutional trading desks running a very specific/shady playbook… (Jane Street included.).” The account described an alleged routine: “Around 10 AM ET, right at the US stock market open, large sell volumes hit BTC and related ETF shares. This creates panic → triggers liquidations of leveraged longs → and exploits thin liquidity pockets. Then the same firms allegedly buy back at lower prices.” Milk Road added that the pattern “apparently emerged prominently in early Nov 2025,” showed up in Q2 and Q3, and “has continued into early 2026,” while stressing: “To be clear – these are unverified rumors circulating in the community.” Not everyone bought the internal logic even on its own terms. CryptoQuant contributor Darkfost responded with the question many traders would ask first: “In this rumor, when is Jane Street supposed to have bought large amounts of BTC so as not to be selling at a loss right now”. Milk Road replied that the rumor “suggests they’d accumulated in the lead up,” then used existing holdings to “sell/dump prices → buy in size at a lower price,” adding again: “totally unverified.” Market Makers: Inventory Isn’t A Thesis The strongest pushback focused on mechanics, not vibes. Louis LaValle, CEO and co-founder of Frontier Investments, argued the viral framing misreads what a 13F is showing in the first place: “This isn’t correct. You’re misinterpreting the 13F. Jane Street is a lead market maker and Authorized Participant for IBI. They aren’t ‘holding’ as a bet. The ‘Y’ in the options column next to that $5.7B value confirms this is a delta-hedged position.” Related Reading: Bitcoin Whales Flood Binance As Correction Deepens: On-Chain Data Shows LaValle added that the Q4 increase could be operational rather than directional: “They added 7 million shares in Q4 to manage the record volatility and creation/redemption demand. As a market maker, they hold these shares to balance the risk of the options they write. It has nothing to do with conviction or some mysterious price manipulation.” Former hedge fund manager Michael Green struck a similar note, calling the discourse “painful” and pointing to what isn’t visible in the filing: “Jane Street may be taking a position in IBIT, but that position is almost entirely offset by undisclosed options (on IBIT) and futures positions. They are certainly not ‘accumulating’ a position in Bitcoin. That’s how market making works.” Others put it more sharply. Former prop trader Ryan Scott (“Horse”) warned: “Anyone posting this as bullish is committing a capital offense. This should be ‘You’ll never guess who also has offsetting derivative positioning that does not need to be reported’ Jane Street is not longing Bitcoin.” Nik Bhatia boiled it down to incentives: “Jane Street owns IBIT so that it can write options, arbitrage, and everything else a quantitative trading shop does to make fast money.” Overall, the market-maker explanation appears more consistent with how these positions are typically managed, while the “10AM slam” narrative remains, at this stage, just that, a theory circulating on crypto X rather than a verified claim. At press time, BTC traded at $68,107. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com