Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, bought Bitcoin at around $67,000 as prices fell from recent highs near $90,000. He emphasized the U.S. debt crisis and Bitcoin’s capped supply of 21 million coins, most already mined, as strong reasons to buy now. Kiyosaki warned that the Federal Reserve could print trillions more, risking …
MARA acquires a 64% stake in French computing infrastructure operator Exaion, expanding into AI and cloud services as Bitcoin miners pivot toward data center revenue.
In crypto news today, the broader market is heading into the weekend with surprising stability. Bitcoin price is consolidating near $68,000, while Ethereum price is hovering around $1,960, and the XRP price is holding firm near $1.42. While volatility has cooled across majors, underlying positioning suggests the calm may be more strategic than passive. Bitcoin …
The collaboration highlights growing institutional interest in crypto, potentially accelerating mainstream adoption and financial innovation.
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Tether, the company behind the world’s most widely used stablecoin USDT, has announced that it will no longer support CNH₮, its offshore Chinese yuan stablecoin.The company has already stopped the minting of new CNH₮ tokens and will completely stop redemption support within the next year. No New CNH₮ Tokens, Redemption Deadline Set On 20th Feb, …
As crypto markets face renewed volatility, most industry leaders are emphasizing long-term optimism. Evgeny Gaevoy, founder and CEO of Wintermute, has taken a different approach. In a recent podcast appearance and social media thread, he argued that the crypto industry has drifted away from its original cypherpunk ideals and become overly focused on price appreciation. …
South Korean lawmakers are ramping up pressure on financial regulators after a system failure at Bithumb, the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, led to the accidental distribution of more than $43 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) earlier this month. The February 6 incident has triggered political scrutiny of both the exchange itself and the agencies responsible for overseeing the virtual asset market. Behind The Bithumb Massive Bitcoin Mishap According to local reporting by The Korea Times, members of the National Assembly are questioning how such a massive error could slip through despite repeated regulatory inspections. Rep. Kang Min-guk of the main opposition People Power Party disclosed that the country’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) reviewed Bithumb three times between 2022 and 2025. Over the same period, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) conducted three separate inspections. Yet regulators failed to detect what has now been described as a critical structural weakness in the exchange’s system. Related Reading: ‘Sell Bitcoin Now,’ Peter Schiff Warns, Predicts $20,000 Target On Breakdown Kang argued that existing oversight mechanisms were inadequate. He pointed out that safeguards were insufficient to prevent a situation in which a single employee could initiate massive coin transfers. Kang said: The episode is not merely a technical mishap but a case that lays bare deeper structural weaknesses in the virtual asset market, including complacent supervision and gaps in regulation. Instead of crediting users with Bitcoin worth 2,000 won — approximately $1.38 — the system mistakenly credited 2,000 Bitcoin per user. In total, 620,000 Bitcoin were incorrectly distributed. Rep. Han Chang-min of the minor Social Democratic Party also criticized regulators, questioning whether supervisory authorities had meaningfully evaluated the exchange’s internal systems. “Authorities appeared to be shifting responsibility onto Bithumb despite their supervisory role,” Han said. Broader Crypto Oversight In response to the incident, the FSS extended the deadline for its formal investigation from Feb. 13 to the end of the month, citing the need for additional time. An eight-member inspection team is now intensifying its review, focusing on possible violations related to investor protection and anti-money laundering (AML) compliance. Particular attention is being given to the system architecture that allowed coins not actually held by the exchange to be credited to users. Regulators have not ruled out the possibility that further erroneous distributions could be uncovered. Related Reading: House Democrats Urge Treasury Probe Into Trump Family’s Crypto Venture Separately, financial authorities have reportedly formed an emergency response team in coordination with the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA), a self-regulatory body representing domestic exchanges. The team has begun inspections of asset verification and internal control systems at four other platforms — Upbit, Coinone, Korbit, and GOPAX. Any deficiencies are expected to be incorporated into DAXA’s self-regulatory guidelines and could influence the next phase of cryptocurrency legislation in South Korea. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $67,763, marking a 2% decline over the past seven days and showing minimal change since Thursday’s trading session. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
Uniswap founder Hayden Adams highlighted a case where a victim lost a “mid-six-figure” portfolio to a fake top search result posing as Uniswap.
Buterin's initiative could enhance Ethereum's resilience and security, potentially reshaping its ecosystem and addressing fragmentation issues.
The post Vitalik Buterin plans bolt-on cypherpunk layer to upgrade existing Ethereum appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Small wallets have increased their BTC holdings by 2.5% since October's all-time high while large holders trimmed 0.8%, Santiment data shows.
XRP is flashing an interesting signal. Over the past 10 days, around 200 million XRP have left Binance. At the same time, the exchange supply ratio has fallen from 0.027 to 0.025, according to market data. In simple terms, a smaller share of the total XRP supply is now sitting on Binance. That usually means …
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has made a subtle yet potentially far-reaching change regarding how broker-dealers handle stablecoins on their balance sheets. In a small update to its Broker-Dealer Financial Responsibilities FAQ, the agency clarified that stablecoin holdings can now be included in regulatory capital calculations. While the change may seem minor, it represents …
Data shows the Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index continues to be inside the extreme fear zone as the cryptocurrency market continues to struggle. Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index Is Still Pointing At ‘Extreme Fear’ The “Fear & Greed Index” refers to an indicator created by Alternative that tells us about the average sentiment present among traders in the Bitcoin and wider cryptocurrency markets. The index uses the data of the following five factors to determine the market mentality: trading volume, market cap dominance, volatility, social media sentiment, and Google Trends. Related Reading: Bitcoin Big-Money Exits: Large-Holder Supply Hits Lowest Since May 2025 When the value of the metric is greater than 53, it means the sentiment shared by the majority of the investors is that of greed. On the other hand, the indicator being under 47 suggests the investors are fearful. Naturally, values lying between the two thresholds indicate the presence of a net neutral mentality. Besides these three main zones, there are also two ‘extreme’ areas called the extreme fear (25 and under) and extreme greed (above 75). Recently, the market has been inside the former of the two. Here is how the latest value of the Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index looks: As is visible above, the Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index has a value of 7, which is pretty deep into the extreme fear zone. In fact, this level of despair is something that the traders have rarely held historically. The Fear & Greed Index has consistently been at similarly low levels during the last couple of weeks, as the below chart shows. Overall, the indicator has been stuck inside the extreme fear territory for 22 straight days now. The recent bad market sentiment is a result of the drawdown that the Bitcoin price has faced. In the past, cryptocurrency markets have often tended to move in the direction that goes contrary to the expectations of the majority. The probability of a contrarian move occurring has generally been the strongest in the extreme sentiment zones as that’s where the crowd is the most sure about the market’s outcome. Given this, the recent extreme fear mentality could help the sector bottom out. The lowest that the metric has gone this cycle is 5, which is similar to the lowest point of the previous bear market. In that bear market, however, the market consolidated and spent more time inside the extreme fear zone even after the low in the Fear & Greed Index, before a bottom was eventually reached. Related Reading: XRP Social Sentiment Hits 5-Week High—BTC, ETH Mood Still Off It now remains to be seen how long Bitcoin and others will take to hit a cyclical low this time around. BTC Price Bitcoin has been unable to make much recovery since its bounce from the $60,000 level as its price continues to trade around $67,700. Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com
Retail investors of the official TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins have recorded significant losses since their launch, leaving holders absorbing over $4 billion in losses now that the tokens trade more than 90% below their early 2025 highs. Related Reading: Analyst ‘Cautiously Optimistic’ About Dogecoin As Price Rally Stalls Trump Family Memecoins Leave Investors In Red On Friday, a CryptoRank report shared how retail investors have lost billions on the official Trump family memecoins while insiders seemingly pocketed millions of dollars. Over a year ago, President Trump surprised the industry by launching his official token ahead of the start of his second term. The memecoin rapidly skyrocketed to an all-time high (ATH) of $75, bringing massive profits for many early investors. Two days later, the US First Lady, Melania Trump, announced the launch of her memecoin, which quickly surged to an ATH of $13.05 in less than 24 hours. However, the tokens faced significant backlash from the crypto community, with some X users calling the memecoins a “big red flag” as later reports revealed that one of the faces behind the MELANIA memecoin was Hayden Davis, the mastermind behind the LIBRA Token disaster. A year after their launch, the TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins have sunk, collapsing 92% and 99%, respectively, from their January 2025 highs. As of this writing, the token based on the US President trades around $3.55, while the First Lady’s token hovers around $0.11. According to CryptoRank, the damage to retail investors has been staggering, with holders absorbing losses at a 20-to-1 ratio. “For every dollar insiders earned, ordinary investors lost $20,” the report noted. As a result, retail losses have exceeded $4.3 billion from nearly two million wallets currently underwater. Citing data from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, CNBC shared that most wallets that lost money held smaller amounts of the token. Insiders And Crypto Exchanges Generate Millions While retail holders bear the losses, CryptoRank highlighted that insiders have cashed out over $600 million through fees and token sales. Notably, 45 wallets extracted approximately $1.2 billion combined, and 58 wallets made more than $10 million each, CNBC data shows. The report also noted that the selloff may not be over, as $2.7 billion in insider tokens that will be locked until 2028 suggests significant selling pressure is still on the horizon for the memecoins. As reported by NewsBTC, a Reuters analysis claimed that crypto exchanges were major beneficiaries of the presidential family’s memecoins, with the TRUMP token generating millions of dollars in revenue for some of the largest exchanges. Based on standard fee estimates compiled by the news outlet, the reviewed crypto platforms allegedly made more than $172 million in trading fees just six months after the token’s listing. Related Reading: SUI Eyes Price Recovery As Institutional Exposure Expands With Grayscale, Canary ETF Launches Meanwhile, the Trump family has also significantly benefited from their main crypto ventures, including World Liberty Financial (WLFI) and the TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins. According to recent Bloomberg data, the official presidential memecoins have generated gains worth roughly $280 million from the family’s holdings and associated proceeds. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
Bitcoin (BTC) is currently holding below the key $70,000 level. Still, a new report from data and research firm Ecoinometrics suggests that the market may not be building a base for recovery. Instead, the firm argues that the cryptocurrency remains vulnerable to another downward move, driven by three overlapping forces: weakening equity momentum, structural changes in Bitcoin’s volatility profile, and a Federal Reserve (Fed) that is steady but not supportive. Structural Headwinds For Bitcoin According to the report, Bitcoin no longer trades in isolation. It has become increasingly linked to equity markets, capital flows, and broader macroeconomic conditions. At the moment, that linkage is not working in its favor. Bitcoin is already showing signs of weakness, equity markets are losing steam, and the Federal Reserve is maintaining a neutral stance that offers little additional liquidity support. Together, those factors keep downside risks elevated. Related Reading: ‘Sell Bitcoin Now,’ Peter Schiff Warns, Predicts $20,000 Target On Breakdown While Bitcoin has attempted to stabilize in recent weeks, Ecoinometrics cautions that this does not resemble a clear bottoming pattern. Rather, it looks more like a pause within an ongoing bear phase. Structural headwinds are already in place, as highlighted by the firm, including continued outflows from Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and a broader “risk-off” environment in financial markets. The report noted that Bitcoin is trading below its long-term trend, with its 200-day moving average (currently above $100,000) turning downward and rallies repeatedly failing beneath that level — a classic sign of a bearish structure. By contrast, the Nasdaq 100 has stalled for roughly three months, but its 200-day moving average is still rising. That suggests equities are slowing but have not yet entered a confirmed structural downturn. The distinction is important. When Bitcoin weakens on its own, declines can unfold gradually. However, history shows that when equities roll over decisively, Bitcoin tends to fall sharply alongside them. Lower Volatility, Higher Correlation Beyond price action, the firm highlights a deeper structural shift in Bitcoin’s behavior: a marked compression in volatility. In prior cycles, 12-month realized volatility surged dramatically during both bull markets and subsequent crashes. This time, even after a full bear-bull-bear sequence since 2022, volatility has not returned to those previous extremes. In fact, peak volatility in the current cycle has been materially lower. This change reflects who is driving demand. ETF flows now play a dominant role in shaping trends. These flows are typically larger, steadier, and more systematic than the retail-driven surges that characterized earlier cycles. Bitcoin, in other words, has become embedded within institutional portfolios, often sitting alongside technology and growth stocks. That shift brings advantages, including lower volatility and more predictable flow patterns. It may also strengthen Bitcoin’s long-term durability. However, it comes with a trade-off: deeper sensitivity to equity market drawdowns. Ecoinometrics asserts that as BTC becomes more integrated into the broader risk-on complex, it behaves more like a component of that system rather than a detached speculative asset. Downside Risks Grow On the policy front, Ecoinometrics suggests the Fed’s posture remains largely unchanged: inflation has improved but is not fully contained, and the labor market remains resilient. Related Reading: House Democrats Urge Treasury Probe Into Trump Family’s Crypto Venture As a result, rate cuts are not urgent, and rate hikes are not imminent. The communications index sits well below the tightening peak seen in 2022 and far above the crisis-level dovishness of 2020, placing current policy in the middle ground. For Bitcoin, that steady stance removes the risk of a sudden policy shock, but it does not provide a tailwind. The firm said in a fragile market, stability may be preferable to tightening, yet it offers little support if risk assets begin to slide. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
Bitcoin only needs a “marginal amount of new demand” to push higher, according to macroeconomist Lyn Alden, who is watching for a potential peak in AI stocks as a signal.
t54.ai has launched an x402 “facilitator” on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), a payments relay that lets AI agents pay for API calls and digital services in-line with normal HTTP requests using XRP or RLUSD. The pitch is simple: turn pay-per-request into a native part of the web stack, no accounts, no API keys, and settlement that happens on-chain. AI Agents Can Now Pay Via XRP Ledger The release plugs XRPL into x402, an open payments standard built around the long-reserved HTTP status code 402 Payment Required. In an x402 flow, a client requests a resource, the server replies with a 402 and machine-readable payment requirements, and the client retries the request with proof of payment. Coinbase’s x402 documentation frames the goal as programmatic access “without accounts, sessions, or complex authentication,” so both humans and autonomous agents can pay for usage-based services directly over HTTP. Related Reading: The 200 Million XRP Exodus: Investors Swap Speculation For Private Custody On X, t54.ai described the facilitator as “now live on the XRPL,” adding that agents can pay with “XRP and RLUSD – no API keys, no accounts, no friction.” Another post positioned x402 as “the open standard for machine-native payments,” where the server responds with HTTP 402 “Payment Required” and the agent pays immediately, with the facilitator handling verification and settlement on-chain. Popular XRP community account BankXRP wrote via X: “t54ai just launched the x402 facilitator AI agents can now pay for API calls and services with frictionless $XRP or $RLUSD micropayments using the HTTP 402 standard. No API keys. No accounts. Instant, sub-cent fees. Real machine-to-machine economy on the fastest, most scalable ledger in crypto.” t54’s XRPL deployment is designed to be “plug and play,” emphasizing no custody and no API keys. The public documentation for the XRPL x402 facilitator says it processes x402 payments on XRPL using payer-signed presigned Payment transaction blobs, and supports XRP plus IOU tokens including RLUSD (and USDC). Resource servers verify and settle by calling standard facilitator endpoints like /verify and /settle, mirroring the core x402 architecture where the facilitator is the chain-aware component that validates payment payloads and executes settlement. Related Reading: This Korean XRP Exchange Data Has The Community Losing It t54.ai also claims the system is already “in production” with BlockRunAI, a unified gateway that provides agents access to “30+ models (GPT, Claude, Grok, etc.).” In that integration, agents pay per request via x402, and the resulting payment volume “is now settling on XRPL,” effectively turning model inference and tool calls into metered on-chain commerce. Why This Is Bullish For XRP The “bullish” framing here isn’t about a single partnership logo, it’s about inserting XRPL into a broader emerging standard for agent-native commerce. x402 is explicitly designed to be network-agnostic, but in practice, standards only become real once developers can ship them with minimal ceremony. A working facilitator on XRPL means one more credible rail for high-frequency, low-value payments where the unit economics break traditional billing. It also cleanly links XRPL’s identity—fast settlement and low fees—to a use case that’s structurally growing: autonomous software paying other software. x402’s ecosystem pages and docs emphasize pay-per-use pricing and minimal integration overhead; that aligns with agent workflows where “thousands of API calls” and tool invocations need granular billing rather than subscriptions. None of this guarantees meaningful volume. But it does make the path to volume legible: more x402-enabled endpoints, more agent clients, and more facilitators that can clear payments cheaply and predictably. At press time, XRP traded at $1.4126. sd Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Reports say a popular risk metric has fallen into territory that, in the past, lined up with major buying opportunities for Bitcoin. Related Reading: Bitcoin Market Bleeds $1 Trillion, Saylor Signals Strongest Crypto Conviction Yet The short-term Sharpe Ratio has plunged to about -38.38, a level that markets rarely see. Traders who follow on-chain and statistical signals point out that similar extremes showed up around the lows of 2015, 2019, and late 2022 — moments that later saw sizable recoveries, CryptoQuant verified author Moreno said. Sharpe Ratio Hits Unusual Low The Sharpe Ratio measures returns against volatility. When it drops far below zero over short stretches, it means investors have been taking heavy losses relative to how wildly the market is moving. A -38.38 reading is extreme. Reports note this kind of reading has happened only four times in Bitcoin’s history, and each time followed a stretch of high stress and weak sentiment. That pattern suggests selling can exhaust itself even when the charts look bleak. Bitcoin’s Short-Term Sharpe Ratio Hit a Level Historically Reserved For Generational Buying Zones “The arrows in the chart illustrate this clearly: each prior extreme negative reading was followed by violent recoveries to new highs.” – By @MorenoDV_ pic.twitter.com/nxFBUgHxi9 — CryptoQuant.com (@cryptoquant_com) February 19, 2026 Historical Lows And Recoveries Past cycles give one way to read the signal. Around $287 in 2015, and near $4,100 in early 2019, and again around $15,000 in late 2022, risk measures and mood were at their worst before money flowed back in. Based on reports from on-chain analysts, those moments shared common traits: many traders had capitulated, volume was thin, and volatility spiked. Yet those conditions later coincided with multi-month rallies that erased large parts of the prior losses. Bitcoin Price Action Bitcoin’s price has been sensitive to headlines lately. It slid under psychological levels as risk assets weakened, and trading has been muted. Markets reacted to diplomatic rows and conflict-related stories, causing bigger moves in thin markets. Sometimes BTC held up and brushed off sharp risk-off flows. Other times it fell further, especially when liquidity dried up. That stop-and-start behavior has left short-term traders cautious, while longer-term holders watch for signs that selling momentum is fading. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s Record Red Month May Be Setting Up A Reversal: Analysts Clear Coast Ahead? Based on reports and the data, this signal is not a magic ticket. External forces — such as tightening liquidity or a macro shock — can keep downward pressure longer than statistical patterns alone would predict. The recent 50% fall from an all-time high near $126,200 in October 2025 to about $65,700 shows much of the move is already behind us, but it does not rule out more pain. Risk management matters. Position sizing and clear entry plans will help anyone who decides to act around these levels. Featured image from Anne Connelly – Medium, chart from TradingView
The crypto industry is gaining recognition and achieving its objectives, signaling a positive trajectory. Despite challenges, the infrastructure for crypto is evolving with a focus on modular solutions and interoperability. Bitcoin and stablecoins serve as alternatives to fiat currencies, each wi...
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On-chain data shows the key Bitcoin investors have been distributing recently, with their supply share dropping to the lowest level in months. Large Holder Demand For Bitcoin Has Remained Weak Recently In a new post on X, on-chain analytics firm Santiment has talked about how the Bitcoin investor behavior has compared between the top and low ends of the market. Related Reading: XRP Social Sentiment Hits 5-Week High—BTC, ETH Mood Still Off The analytics firm has chosen these wallet ranges to represent the two sides: 0 to 0.01 BTC and 10 to 10,000 BTC. The former includes the smallest of retail investors, while the latter includes key investor cohorts like the sharks and whales. Below is the chart shared by Santiment that shows the trend in the percentage of the total circulating Bitcoin supply held by each cohort. As is visible in the graph, the 0 to 0.01 BTC cohort has been expanding its supply since the October price peak. Bitcoin has witnessed a deep drawdown inside this window, but the data would imply that it hasn’t held back retail traders from accumulating. In total, this accumulation has expanded the holdings of these small hands by 2.5%, taking their percentage supply share to the highest level since June 2024. While retail has been buying, the sharks and whales have shown a different trajectory. From the chart, it’s apparent that the 10 to 10,000 BTC holders sold alongside the market drawdown between October and December. In January, these investors participated in some buying, which interestingly coincided with a drop in retail holdings. Then, the drawdown toward the end of the month again kicked off a selloff from the key investors. This selloff was steep, in fact sharper than any part of Q4 2025’s distribution phase. Recently, even as Bitcoin has made some recovery from its $60,000 low and found some stability, the big-money investors haven’t shown any return of bullish conviction. Compared to the October peak, the supply of the 10 to 10,000 BTC holders is now down 0.8%, which has taken the network share of this group to the lowest since May 2025. Related Reading: Bitcoin Consolidating In A Triangle—Is A 15% Move Next? The analytics firm explained: Optimally, we begin to see these two Bitcoin groups begin to reverse course. Without key stakeholder support, any spark of a rally will tend to be slightly limited due to the lack of large capital. In another X post, Santiment has also discussed the behavior of the mid-tier Bitcoin holders, occupying the space between retail and large investors. As displayed in the chart, the 0.01 to 1 BTC wallets have seen their combined Bitcoin supply hit a 15-month high following a 1.05% increase since October. Meanwhile, the 1 to 10 BTC hands have reduced their holdings by 0.49% in the same period. BTC Price At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $67,400, up 0.7% over the last week. Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com
European Central Bank President, Christine Lagarde, runs an institution that trades in certainty, and she does it in a moment that rewards ambiguity. Earlier this week, the story around her took on a familiar European shape: official silence wrapped around very specific timing. The FT reported Lagarde is expected to step down before her term […]
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The securities regulator has continued its Project Crypto work to make unofficial policy changes as it moved to let broker-dealers treat stablecoins as capital.
XRP is struggling to reclaim higher price levels as persistent selling pressure and broader market uncertainty continue to weigh on sentiment. Despite intermittent rebound attempts, momentum remains fragile, with traders hesitant to commit capital amid elevated volatility and cautious liquidity conditions. The asset has yet to establish a convincing higher high, reinforcing the perception that XRP remains in a transitional phase rather than a confirmed recovery trend. Related Reading: Ethereum Breaks the Final Whale Floor In A 2018-Style Capitulation: What To Expect A recent CryptoQuant report provides additional context through exchange flow data. According to the analysis, Binance recorded a sharp spike in XRP exchange inflows during a previously highlighted period that preceded a strong rally. Large inflows typically reflect tokens moving onto exchanges, a dynamic often interpreted as potential sell pressure since assets become readily available for liquidation. Such spikes can increase short-term supply and amplify volatility. However, inflows do not always result in immediate distribution. In the referenced case, the surge in exchange deposits coincided with rising volatility and ultimately preceded a significant price expansion. This suggests that some inflow events may represent strategic positioning, liquidity preparation, or internal reallocation rather than outright selling. As XRP navigates current uncertainty, monitoring exchange flow behavior remains critical for assessing whether renewed volatility could once again precede a directional breakout. Liquidity Compression Signals Rising Volatility Risk The report explains that liquidity dynamics provide important context for understanding XRP market structure, particularly when evaluating volatility risk and potential price inflection points. USD liquidity measures the depth of capital supporting XRP trading pairs. During the previous rally phase, USD liquidity expanded significantly, allowing price advances to be absorbed without excessive volatility. Recently, however, USD liquidity has been declining, suggesting thinner market depth compared with the expansion period. Reduced depth typically increases sensitivity to order flow and can amplify price swings. Liquidity measured in XRP terms reflects the availability of tokens on the sell side. Prior to the last major breakout, XRP liquidity compressed notably, indicating reduced active supply on exchanges. That contraction phase aligned closely with the beginning of the strong upward move. Currently, XRP liquidity is trending lower again, showing similarities with earlier pre-expansion conditions. Historically, this combination of exchange inflow spikes alongside liquidity compression has preceded volatility expansion. Rising USD liquidity tends to support sustained trends, while declining liquidity often introduces fragility into market structure. At present, exchange inflows remain moderate, but both USD and XRP liquidity are contracting. This suggests a thinner environment where price reactions could become sharper. These indicators provide structural context, but they should be evaluated alongside derivatives positioning, funding trends, and broader macro conditions before drawing directional conclusions. Related Reading: The 200 Million Exodus: Investors Swap Speculation For Private Custody XRP Remains Under Pressure As Key Support Levels Face Ongoing Tests XRP remains under sustained technical pressure, with the weekly chart reflecting a clear corrective phase following the sharp rally that pushed the price above the $3.00 region in 2025. Since that peak, price structure has shifted toward a sequence of lower highs and lower lows, a pattern typically associated with weakening momentum rather than consolidation. The recent move toward the $1.40 area highlights continued selling pressure and cautious positioning among market participants. From a technical standpoint, XRP is currently trading below key moving averages that previously acted as dynamic support. These averages now function as overhead resistance, limiting upside attempts unless price can reclaim them decisively. The shorter-term average has rolled over more aggressively, while the longer-term trend line remains upward sloping but lagging, suggesting residual macro support alongside deteriorating short-term momentum. Related Reading: The Altcoin Exodus: Trading Volumes Halve As Capital Flees To Bitcoin $65,000 Fortress Volume activity has moderated compared with the impulsive rally phase, indicating reduced speculative participation. However, declining volume during corrections can also signal seller exhaustion if accompanied by stabilization in price structure. Immediate support appears concentrated near the recent lows around the $1.30–$1.40 zone, while resistance remains clustered near the $1.80–$2.20 range. Until XRP reclaims higher levels with strong participation, the broader trend remains fragile. Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com
A Trump-tied hotel development in the Maldives and the Dubai Land Department announced details on tokenizing their real estate projects this week.
Crypto prices edged higher on Friday despite a splash of tariff turbulence after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Trump's levies illegal.
The industry’s largest cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), are enduring one of their most difficult openings to a year on record, according to a recent analysis by Fortune, with both digital assets trading sharply below their previous peaks. Bitcoin is currently down roughly 46% from its all-time high, while Ethereum has fallen about 60% from its record level. The steep declines mark what the publication describes as historically poor year-to-date performances for the assets. Bitcoin, Ethereum Lag While S&P 500, Gold Post Gains While Bitcoin and Ethereum, along with broader crypto prices, have often moved in tandem with equities in recent years, that relationship has weakened over the past two months. Since January, major US stock indices have edged higher. The S&P 500 has gained approximately 0.4%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 2.3%. Precious metals have also performed strongly. Gold has surged about 17% since the start of the year, while silver has advanced roughly 14%, even after experiencing a brief drop several weeks ago. Related Reading: ‘Sell Bitcoin Now,’ Peter Schiff Warns, Predicts $20,000 Target On Breakdown The disconnect between cryptocurrencies and broader market gains has prompted some industry observers to declare the arrival of another “Crypto Winter.” “We’re certainly in a Crypto Winter,” said Danny Nelson, a research analyst at crypto asset manager Bitwise. He pointed to investor behavior as evidence of deteriorating sentiment. “You can tell by how investors react to good news,” Nelson said. “They don’t.” ‘We’re Really Close To The End’ Despite the current pullback and the increased challenges for prices seen since the October 10 liquidation event, Nelson argues that the underlying foundation of the industry is strengthening. “Crypto’s reality is getting stronger,” he said, adding that the structural changes underway are likely to outlast the current downturn. Related Reading: House Democrats Urge Treasury Probe Into Trump Family’s Crypto Venture Similar sentiments have been expressed by Tom Lee, cofounder of research firm Fundstrat and a long-time supporter of Ethereum. In a recent interview, Lee suggested the market may be nearing a turning point, stating, “We’re really close to the end.” Whether the latest slump proves to be a temporary correction or a deeper cycle shift remains uncertain. For now, however, the data underscores a challenging start to the year for the cryptocurrency market, even as other asset classes continue to surge. At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $67,595, which is a slight 1% increase compared to Thursday’s prices. Ethereum is trading at around $1,968, with similar gains over the past 24 hours. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
Despite the sharp multi-month market downtrend, Bitcoin whales added 236,000 BTC since December 2025, with order size data showing large players building new positions.
The tokenized shares were issued by the BNP Paribas’ AssetFoundryTM platform using a "permissioned access model on Ethereum."
FOCIL was officially “scheduled for inclusion” as the consensus-layer (CL) headliner for the upcoming Hegota upgrade, targeted for late 2026.
XRP continues to maintain its macro bullish structure despite experiencing a deeper corrective move than initially anticipated. Although price action has tested lower levels, it has not confirmed a higher-timeframe breakdown, suggesting the pullback is still part of a broader consolidation within an ongoing uptrend rather than a full trend reversal. XRP Dips Deeper, But HTF Level Still Holds In a recent XRP update, Hov noted that price action pushed deeper toward the lows than what would typically be acceptable for the previously considered diagonal scenario. The move forced a reassessment of the short-term structure. Despite that deeper sweep, the broader setup has not completely broken down. Related Reading: Historic Trend That Led XRP To A Sharp 40% Trend Has Just Reappeared Importantly, XRP has yet to produce a higher-timeframe close below the critical support level. Price is holding the area by a narrow margin, and as long as a decisive HTF breakdown is avoided, the broader bullish structure cannot be invalidated. Given the recent price behavior, Hov adjusted the corrective count, labeling the structure as a sideways combination correction within a larger-degree Wave 4. The pullback delivered a precise tag of the 50% retracement level, adding technical confluence to the idea that this could be a mature corrective phase rather than the start of a broader reversal. The next key development to watch is a clear five-wave advance from the recent low. XRP has already shown a clean micro five-wave structure off the bottom; something many other altcoins are lacking, as they continue to print overlapping three-wave moves instead. That relative structural strength keeps the bullish case alive. A sustained push toward the $2 region in a confirmed Wave 5 would increase confidence that a durable low is in place. From there, analysts would look for a controlled wave 3 retracement into support as confirmation, signaling that the market is preparing for continuation rather than a deeper breakdown. Technical Structure Remains Firmly Bullish XRP continues to maintain a technically bullish posture despite recent consolidation. Price action has pulled back, but the broader structure has not shifted into bearish territory. Momentum may have cooled, yet the underlying trend remains constructive. Related Reading: XRP Spot ETFs Riding The Bullish Wave, Attracting Broader Wall Street Allocation According to Steph Is Crypto, the key level to monitor is the 200-week moving average. As long as XRP holds above that long-term indicator, the macro uptrend remains intact. In previous market cycles, sustained bearish phases often began after a decisive break below this level, something that has not occurred in the current setup. At present, XRP appears to be consolidating within a broader bullish framework, meaning the structure still favors upside continuation unless proven otherwise. Trend dynamics have not flipped, and until major support gives way, the long-term outlook stays technically positive. Featured image from Peakpx, chart from Tradingview.com