A sophisticated cyber operation is quietly infiltrating remote tech jobs worldwide. Blockchain investigator ZachXBT uncovered a major leak from a DPRK IT worker’s device showing a small team of five managing 30+ fake identities, with government IDs and purchased Upwork/LinkedIn accounts to obtain developer jobs at projects. They also claimed experience at top blockchain companies …
For much of late 2024 and early 2025, many in the crypto world believed XRP could overtake Ethereum in market capitalization. The belief grew after XRP’s powerful rally late last year, which saw it outperform most major coins while Ethereum struggled to hold key price levels. At the time, market analysts were confident the gap between the two would soon close. Now, one of the most vocal supporters of the flippening, a popular analyst known as Charting Guy, has reversed his position and says it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon. Analyst Backtracks On XRP Flippening Ethereum Prediction Charting Guy pointed to the period between November 2024 and January 2025, when XRP surged nearly 600%, while ETH barely moved and even dropped to lows of $1,385 in April. During that time, XRP’s price strength and rapid market cap growth, increasing about seven times in just weeks, led many to believe it could become the top altcoin. Related Reading: The Grand Bitcoin Roadmap: Crypto Expert Says $160,000 Still In The Works However, in a post this week, Charting Guy admitted, “that is no longer the case.” He explained that he re-entered Ethereum in April, near its lows, and since then, ETH has shown “immense strength.” As of today, Ethereum is trading just 10% below its all-time high of $4,891, reaching $4,784 earlier in the day. Its current price of $4,736 marks a 239% increase from its April low. The surge pushed Ethereum’s market cap to $572 billion, compared to XRP’s $193 billion. The gap between them, now more than $368 billion, has grown significantly since July 13, when it was under $200 billion. Charting Guy says Ethereum’s strong performance has made a flippening far less realistic, at least in the near term. Ethereum’s Strength Leaves XRP Playing Catch-Up In the past four weeks alone, ETH has jumped 52%, while XRP’s growth has largely stalled. Even if XRP were to rise 2.5 times from its current price of $3.22 to roughly $8, its market value would be around $477 billion, still far short of Ethereum’s current level. Related Reading: Raoul Pal Says He’s Been Long XRP For 4 Years After Calling It A “Moron” Trade Charting Guy also pointed out that for XRP to match Ethereum’s current market cap, it would need to reach $9.30, and that’s assuming ETH stops moving entirely while XRP rallies 3x. In his view, that scenario is “rather unlikely.” He warned against listening to “moon boys” who push unrealistic XRP price targets while ignoring Ethereum’s continued strength. Instead, he advises investors to hold both assets, arguing that being too focused on one coin leaves traders exposed if the market moves in a different direction. He stressed that Ethereum’s strong rally was overdue, as it had been playing catch-up to Bitcoin for most of the season. What once seemed like a real possibility now appears distant as Ethereum gains momentum. While XRP still has room to grow, it’s clear that Ethereum is not standing still, making the race between them more one-sided for now. Featured image from Dall.E, chart from TradingView.com
Framework Ventures leads Series A for GPU-collateralized stablecoin protocol USD.AI
The Dinari Financial Network will serve as a coordination layer for tokenized equities, with a group of institutions such as VanEck, BitGo and Gemini operating validators.
Gemini users can now access Web3 and DeFi ecosystems with social recovery, gas sponsorship, and integrated trading support.
Inflation at wholesale level in the U.S. in July sped up far beyond economist forecasts, calling into question expectations for lower interest rates.
Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds are on pace to hold more than 1.5 million BTC by year-end if current inflow rates persist, according to holdings data tracked by WalletPilot. This would allocate more BTC to ETFs than most estimates for lost coins, which stand around 1.4 million BTC. U.S. spot ETFs collectively hold about 1.296 million […]
The post Bitcoin ETFs to lock up 1.5 million BTC by New Year as supply squeeze tightens grip appeared first on CryptoSlate.
Spar will launch crypto and stablecoin payments across 300 Swiss supermarkets via Binance Pay and DFX.swiss, marking a retail first for the country.
After reaching a fresh all-time high earlier this month, XRP’s momentum has slowed, with the price consolidating around $3.23. While the overall crypto market continues to climb, weakening on-chain activity and fresh allegations of market manipulation are giving traders reason to pause. Many now fear a drop in XRP’s price due to its falling market …
Blockchain sleuths flag suspicious multi-chain transfers from the Turkish exchange, prompting a suspension of deposits and withdrawals.
The decision to halt new crypto acquisitions may stabilize government reserves but could impact market dynamics and investor confidence.
The post Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rules out new acquisitions for crypto reserve appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that the United States holds up to $20 billion worth of Bitcoin as part of its digital asset reserves. This significant holding reflects the government’s ongoing involvement in the cryptocurrency space and underscores Bitcoin’s growing role in financial markets. The announcement highlights a new era of digital asset recognition …
Four people who kidnapped and held a Brazilian woman until her son paid a ransom of five bitcoins have been arrested.
The hacker behind the Radiant Capital $58 million October 2024 exploit now holds $103 million in Ether since the asset’s price almost doubled.
The Ethereum Foundation's clarification highlights the importance of transparency and trust in managing digital assets to maintain investor confidence.
The post Ethereum Foundation clarifies no connection to recent ETH sale appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Securitize President Michael Sonnenshein discusses the rise of tokenized securities and the impact of shifting regulatory attitudes.
ICP posts 5% swing before consolidating, after security concerns gripped the ecosystem.
Despite the price decline, whale accumulation of PEPE continued, with the top addresses on Ethereum increasing their holdings by 1.5% in the last 30 days.
Some argue the "circular-economy optics" of some digital asset treasury deals raise ethical concerns all too familiar in crypto.
Ripple chief technology officer (CTO) David “JoelKatz” Schwartz used a late-Wednesday post on X to frame a surge of payments and stablecoin companies launching their own base-layer networks as validation of blockchain’s role in finance—and to restate how the XRP Ledger’s design differs from the new entrants. “We’ve been seeing more and more players in the payments and stablecoins space launch their own blockchains. To me, that’s a clear sign the market sees blockchain as core financial infrastructure — something we’ve believed in and have been building toward on the XRP Ledger for over 13 years,” he wrote, adding, “Launching a blockchain is hard. Building an ecosystem with developers, liquidity, trust, and real-world usage is even harder.” Competition For Ripple And The XRP Ledger? Schwartz situated XRPL’s posture in the long-running debate over network governance. “Some blockchains are built with permissioned validator sets controlled by one entity or a small group. This can provide control and compliance for specific, closed-network scenarios, but it limits reach, resilience, and the ability for anyone to contribute to securing and growing the network,” he wrote. Related Reading: XRP Ruling Sends Shockwaves Through The Financial System “As many of you know, the XRPL is public and permissionless at its core, with optional permissioned features for regulated use cases.” He argued that the ledger’s open base “makes it adaptable, interoperable, and well-positioned to serve as critical infrastructure for the world’s financial system — connecting assets, markets, and participants seamlessly across borders.” The remarks arrive as two US fintech heavyweights move into L1 territory. Circle this week unveiled Arc, an EVM-compatible Layer-1 it says is “purpose-built for stablecoin finance,” with dollar-denominated fees (USDC as native gas), opt-in privacy, a built-in RFQ-style FX engine, and “deterministic sub-second settlement finality” via the Malachite consensus engine. Circle says Arc will enter private testnet in the coming weeks, target public testnet in the fall, and a mainnet beta in 2026. Separately, Stripe is developing Tempo, a high-performance, payments-focused L1 being built in partnership with crypto VC firm Paradigm. Tempo is designed to run code compatible with Ethereum, is currently in stealth with a small team, and it remains unclear whether it will have a native token. Schwartz also highlighted specific XRPL design choices he sees as aligned with financial-grade settlement. “It’s encouraging to see some newer chains adopt design choices that have long been part of the XRPL’s architecture, like deterministic finality … It shows there’s growing alignment in the industry on the importance of predictable, reliable settlement for financial applications without expensive validation,” he wrote. He reiterated that XRPL fees are meant to stay “low and predictable, just fractions of a cent, without a separate gas token,” noting that “every transaction on the XRPL uses/burns XRP.” XRPL’s technical documentation specifies that each transaction destroys a small amount of XRP as an anti-spam fee, and describes consensus rules aimed at deterministic ordering and finality. Related Reading: XRP Double-Bottom Breakout Sets Sights On $34, Predicts Analyst Where Schwartz drew a line was on governance flexibility. He acknowledged that permissioned validator sets can make sense for “specific, closed-network scenarios,” but underscored XRPL’s approach: a public, permissionless core with opt-in controls for compliance needs. The ledger’s native features include Authorized Trust Lines, Deposit Authorization/Preauthorization, and issuer-level freeze tooling for issued assets—not for XRP itself—allowing regulated token issuers to gate or police flows without converting the entire network into a walled garden. XRPL’s own FAQ emphasizes that it is a decentralized, public blockchain where changes require supermajority validator approval. The strategic contrast with the new fintech chains is already visible. Arc explicitly centers USDC—making fees dollar-denominated and embedding Circle’s payments stack—whereas XRPL retains XRP for fees and settlement while supporting issued assets through trust-line mechanics. If Tempo proceeds as reported, Stripe would be pursuing an Ethereum-compatible L1 optimized for predictable payments performance, potentially mirroring Arc’s enterprise-centric pitch but with a broader merchant-services integration surface. Schwartz closed on a deliberately expansive note about the competitive set: “Looking forward to the next phase of XRPL innovations, bringing more programmability, compliance-grade capabilities, and deeper liquidity for institutional use,” he wrote—before welcoming rivals: “And to those just getting started… Welcome to the party! The crypto tent is only getting bigger.” At press time, XRP traded at $3.23. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Sentora's report warns that corporate adoption of bitcoin as a treasury asset is akin to playing 'balance sheet roulette.'
Ethereum price continues its bullish momentum with another 5% jump, pushing the price to new short-term highs and putting approximately $2 billion in short positions at risk of liquidation. Market optimism is fueled by rising institutional interest, increased network activity, and growing anticipation around Ethereum’s upcoming upgrades. Traders are closely watching key resistance levels, while …
The agreements lock in approximately $3.7 billion in contracted revenue, with potential to rise to $8.7 billion if two five-year extension options are exercised.
Japanese company Metaplanet has surged to become the 6th largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, now owning 18,113 BTC. This milestone pushes Metaplanet ahead of Trump Media in the rankings. Valued at over $1.21 billion, their growing Bitcoin treasury reflects aggressive accumulation and a strong commitment to digital assets. Metaplanet’s bold move underscores Japan’s expanding influence …
The recent August rally in the TRON price has drawn fresh attention in the crypto market. Unlike the unsustainable December 2024 rally, this upswing appears broader and steadier, which has been supported via an ascending trendline. Currently, the TRON price today sits at $0.3685, around 18% below its all-time high (ATH) of $0.44, with a …
The largest banking association in the U.S. urged senators to close alleged gaps in a stablecoin bill signed by President Trump last month.
Crypto exchange Gemini has launched a self-custody wallet and an onchain trading portal as its centralized exchange volumes remain comparatively low.
Bitcoin and Ethereum may be near their all-time highs, but according to Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan, the real fireworks could still be ahead. In a memo to clients, Hougan listed four major developments he says the market hasn’t fully priced in – each with the potential to push prices much higher. “Markets don’t rise on …
After Pi Network’s token slipped below $1 and set a new all-time low, the community has been buzzing with one big question, where is Pi coin headed next? For weeks, PI has been moving sideways with little excitement. But now, seasoned crypto traders have spotted a bullish chart pattern that could be the spark for …
Your day-ahead look for Aug. 14, 2025