Today's Crypto Pulse
Bitcoin slides below $70k as energy‑price worries spark $1.8B in liquidations
Bitcoin fell under $70,000 amid heightened energy‑price uncertainty linked to U.S.–Iran tensions. The dip triggered roughly $1.8 billion in crypto liquidations, while institutional investors pulled more than $4.2 billion from digital‑asset positions.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Strive acquires 2,500 Bitcoin for $185.2M
The Breakdown with David Canellis | Teaser
In this teaser episode of "The Breakdown," host David Canellis introduces the podcast’s focus on dissecting the crypto ecosystem’s underlying systems, incentives, and power structures. He outlines the intent to provide a crypto‑native perspective that goes beyond surface‑level news, aiming to uncover how technical design and economic motives shape the industry. The brief preview sets the tone for deep, analytical conversations with experts and insiders who will illuminate the forces driving blockchain development and adoption.
Wall Street Giants Push Back on Exemptions for Tokenized Securities in SEC Meeting
Wall Street firms—including SIFMA, Cahill Gordon & Reindel, Citadel and JPMorgan Chase—met with the SEC Crypto Task Force to argue against special exemptions for tokenized securities. They warned that blockchain‑based issuance should not create a separate regulatory track and urged...
Matching Treasury $1k for Kids' Early Bitcoin Investments
Starting to invest early is more important than ever. @TrumpAccounts is a great move to kick-start financial security + literacy for children. We're proud to join @POTUS's initiative by matching the $1k from the U.S. Treasury for all eligible...
Dubai Insurance Launches Crypto Wallet Premium Payments, Claims Settlements
Dubai Insurance has introduced a crypto‑enabled digital wallet that lets policyholders pay premiums and receive claim settlements in digital assets. The wallet is built on Zodia Custody’s institutional custody platform and operates within the United Arab Emirates’ existing regulatory framework....
Circle Shares Rise 4% as Polymarket-Driven USDC Growth Prompts Analyst Upgrade
Circle (CRCL) shares jumped 4% after Mizuho upgraded the stock to neutral, citing a surge in USDC usage on prediction market Polymarket. The analyst projects Polymarket’s 2026 trading volume to reach $50 billion, roughly three times 2025 levels, potentially adding 25%...
Coinfari Introduces a Unified Digital Platform for Crypto Trading and Market Engagement
Coinfari has launched a unified digital platform that merges cryptocurrency spot‑trading, real‑time market data, and community‑engagement tools into a single web‑and‑mobile interface. The solution supports multiple digital‑asset pairs and caters to both novice traders and seasoned participants, emphasizing usability, performance...
Robinhood CEO Says Tokenized Stocks Could Prevent Another GameStop Freeze
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev says the 2021 GameStop buying halt was caused by outdated settlement infrastructure, not market actors. He argues that blockchain‑based tokenized stocks would eliminate the multi‑day settlement lag that still exists under the T+1 regime. Robinhood has...
Global Blockchain Show Abu Dhabi 2025 Concludes as a Landmark Gathering Shaping the Future of Web3 and Digital Economies
The Global Blockchain Show Abu Dhabi 2025 wrapped up on Dec 10‑11, drawing over 5,000 participants, 100+ international speakers and more than 100 exhibiting companies. Organized by VAP Group and backed by the Abu Dhabi Convention & Exhibition Bureau, the two‑day summit...
Peter Thiel and Galaxy-Backed Citrea Wants to Turn Idle Bitcoin Into a High-Speed Bank Account
Citrea, backed by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Galaxy Ventures, has launched its Bitcoin‑focused mainnet, aiming to create a credit market anchored directly to BTC. The platform introduces ctUSD, a Treasury‑backed stablecoin issued by MoonPay, designed for U.S.‑dollar settlement and compliance...
Moonbirds Debuts BIRB Token on Solana at $200M FDV
Moonbirds, the Ethereum‑based NFT collection, launched its native BIRB token on Solana, seeing the price jump from $0.20 to $0.35 within hours and a 70% intraday gain. The token’s fully diluted valuation tops $300 million while market capitalization sits near $86 million....
Sperax Joins Forces with Google Cloud: Accelerating AI-Integrated DeFi Tools for Seamless User Experiences
Sperax, the DeFi protocol behind SperaxOS and the auto‑yield stablecoin USDs, has announced a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to accelerate AI‑integrated financial tools. The collaboration introduces the open‑source Model Context Protocol, allowing AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT to...
Europe’s DeFi Tax Gap Won’t Last Forever, Says Ex-OECD Official
The EU’s DAC8 directive, aligned with the OECD’s Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), will obligate crypto exchanges and custodians to collect and report user activity data starting in 2026. The framework deliberately leaves decentralized finance (DeFi) out of scope because...
Fidelity Investments Starts Its Own Stablecoin in a Massive Bet that Future of Banking Is on Blockchain
Fidelity Investments is launching the Fidelity Digital Dollar (FIDD), an Ethereum‑based stablecoin redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars, in early February. Backed by cash, cash equivalents, and short‑term Treasuries, the coin will be issued by Fidelity Digital Assets, a federally chartered...
Crypto Loses Speculative Edge as AI and Robotics Attract Capital: Delphi
Delphi Digital reports that speculative capital is migrating from cryptocurrency to artificial intelligence and robotics, eroding crypto’s traditional role as the go‑to high‑risk asset class. Over the past year Bitcoin fell about 12% while the Global X Robotics and AI...
Traditional Banks Set to Increase Engagement with Digital Assets : Analysis
Elliptic’s 2026 forecast predicts traditional banks will move digital assets from experimental projects to core offerings. Major institutions such as JPMorgan, BNY Mellon and Citi are already piloting tokenized funds, crypto custody and stablecoin initiatives. A wave of clearer regulations...
Stablecoin Player Fitpo Achieves Dual Authorisation Status
Fitpo, a regulated payment infrastructure for stablecoins, announced it received a Crypto‑Asset Service Provider (CASP) licence from France’s Autorité des Marchés Financiers. The approval grants Fitpo dual authorisation status, complementing its existing licence in another jurisdiction. This regulatory clearance enables...
For Wall Street’s Most Sophisticated Trading Firms, the Next Alpha Is Onchain
Wall Street’s high‑frequency trading firms are shifting their edge from physical data‑center proximity to on‑chain infrastructure. By running validators, designing low‑latency nodes, and participating in blockchain governance, they aim to capture the next source of alpha in decentralized finance. Early...
WisdomTree Expands Tokenized Fund Access to Solana in Multichain Push
WisdomTree announced that its full suite of tokenized funds will now be available on the Solana blockchain through its WisdomTree Connect and WisdomTree Prime platforms. Both institutional and retail investors can mint, trade, and hold these real‑world asset tokens directly...
WisdomTree Brings Its Full Tokenized Fund Lineup to Solana
WisdomTree announced that its entire catalog of tokenized exchange‑traded products is now available on the Solana blockchain. The move expands the firm’s multi‑chain deployment, adding Solana to its existing presence on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base and Optimism. Institutional and retail...
Masumi Network: How AI-Blockchain Fusion Adds Trust to Burgeoning Agent Economy
Masumi Network, a collaboration between NMKR and Serviceplan Group, launched as a framework‑agnostic platform that lets autonomous AI agents collaborate, monetize services, and exchange value with verifiable trust. Built on the Cardano blockchain, the network equips each agent with a...
BeeXpay Expands Its Crypto-Funded Payment and Digital Travel Services Through Regulated Partners
BeeXpay announced an expansion of its crypto‑funded platform to deliver broader payment and digital travel services through regulated third‑party partners. The rollout adds eSIM connectivity for international data, while payment cards remain issued by licensed financial institutions. Future integrations will...
Bitcoin Finds Firmer Ground as Macro Stress Meets a Healthier Market
Two independent analyses suggest Bitcoin is better positioned despite recent volatility. Arthur Hayes highlights mounting stress in Japan, where a weakening yen and rising government bond yields could prompt U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve intervention, injecting liquidity that would support...
The Future of Hardware and Software Integration - Rand Hindi | ATC #596
In this episode, Stephen Sargeant interviews Rand Hindi, CEO of Zama, about the company's work on Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) for Web3. They explore how FHE enables confidential transactions on public blockchains such as Ethereum and Solana without sacrificing security...
South Korea Regulator Backs Ownership Caps for Crypto Exchanges
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced it will impose ownership caps of roughly 15%‑20% on licensed crypto exchanges, aligning them with governance standards applied to securities markets. The proposal, part of the draft Digital Asset Basic Act, would shift...
Digital Euro Key to Payments Sovereignty in ‘Weaponised’ World: ECB Exec
European Central Bank executive Piero Cipollone said the digital euro is essential for payment sovereignty amid rising geopolitical tensions. He highlighted that cash now represents only 24% of transaction value, underscoring the need for a public‑money digital alternative. The ECB...
Nomura's Laser Digital Applies for U.S. National Trust Bank to Offer Crypto Custody
Laser Digital, Nomura’s digital‑assets division, filed an OCC application to launch a U.S. national trust bank that would provide crypto custody, spot trading and staking services under federal supervision. The bank would serve institutional clients and also hold U.S. government...
Bitget Appoints Oliver Stauber as EU CEO
Bitget, the world’s largest Universal Exchange, has appointed Oliver Stauber as CEO of its European operations and will locate its EU headquarters in Vienna, Austria. Stauber brings deep regulatory and legal experience from previous leadership roles at KuCoin EU and Bitpanda....
Red Horse (RH) Launches On-Chain Membership Protocol to Turn Commitment Into a Verifiable Signal
Red Horse (RH) launched a Solana‑based on‑chain membership protocol that converts token locking into verifiable tiered membership. Users lock RH tokens in a non‑custodial contract, and their tier determines access, priority, and reward weighting across ecosystem programs. The tokenomics allocate...
Fufuture Joins Hong Kong Web3 Festival 2026 as a Secondary Exhibition Sponsor
Fufuture has become a secondary exhibition sponsor of the Hong Kong Web3 Festival 2026, scheduled for April 20‑23 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The partnership showcases its decentralized perpetual options protocol to a gathering of DeFi innovators,...
High-Performance Crypto-Processor Achieves Efficient Implementation for Robust FrodoKEM KEM
Researchers unveiled a high‑performance crypto‑processor tailored for the FrodoKEM post‑quantum key encapsulation mechanism. The design employs a multiple‑instruction overlapped execution scheme, a reconfigurable parallel multiplier array, and a compact memory‑scheduling strategy. Implemented on an Artix‑7 FPGA, it consumes 13,467 LUTs,...
Bitget Wallet Shifts Toward an Everyday Finance App
Bitget Wallet is rebranding itself as an all‑in‑one everyday finance app, placing payments at the core of its refreshed interface. The update follows the wallet surpassing 90 million global users and reflects a broader industry shift from investment‑centric wallets to real‑world...
Chinese National Sentenced to 46 Months for Laundering Millions Stolen From U.S. Investors
A Chinese national, Jingliang Su, received a 46‑month federal prison sentence for laundering roughly $36.9 million stolen from U.S. investors in a cryptocurrency fraud scheme run from Cambodia. The court ordered him to pay nearly $27 million in restitution and highlighted a...
Wallet Linked to Alleged US Seizure Theft Launches Memecoin, Crashes 97%
A Solana‑based memecoin called John Daghita (LICK) was launched on the Pump.fun launchpad by a wallet investigators link to an alleged theft of US government‑controlled crypto. Within its first day the token lost roughly 97% of its value, dropping from...
Open‑weight AI + Obsidian + Crypto Enables Personal Private Programmable Stack
PERSONAL PRIVATE PROGRAMMABLE I’ve been thinking more about the intersection of Claude Code and Obsidian. There is an upcoming tech stack here that I’m calling personal private programmable. Here’s a sketch of the idea. First, if you squint ahead a few months, we...
Crypto Market Heats Up: Dollar Dip, XRP Surge, ETFs
Crypto things you might have missed: -US dollar collapses to 4-year low -21Shares predicts $2.69 $XRP in 2026 -WisdomTree launches tokenized funds on Solana - @BitwiseInvest files for Uniswap ETF -Morgan Stanley launches digital asset strategy -Fed rate cut announcement today?
Metroblox Unveils Ride USD Stablecoin for Everyday Transportation Payments
Metroblox announced the launch of Ride USD, a USD‑pegged stablecoin designed for everyday transportation payments. The token will be usable across ride‑hailing, public transit, and micro‑mobility services, offering instant settlement and near‑zero transaction fees. By embedding the stablecoin into its...
Team Delivers Faster, Reliable All‑in‑One Exchange
Thank you - the team has crushed it. And lots more work going into app quality first half this year. Speed, reliability, UX, reducing frictions and defects, etc. And now with the everything exchange (trade stocks, millions of crypto assets, prediction...
Altcoin Market Update: ETH, LTC, PENGU, SUI, SOL, SPX
New edition of the Rekt Capital Newsletter is live I share an Altcoin Market Update Features analysis on the following Altcoins: $ETH $LTC $PENGU $SUI $SOL $SPX Sign up to read it here: https://t.co/vpus4Oltmt #BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin
OKX Launches EU Stablecoin Payment Card via Regulated Issuer Monavate
OKX has introduced the OKX Card in Europe, a Mastercard‑compatible payment card that lets verified users spend stablecoins such as USDC and Global Dollar. The card is issued by Monavate, an EMI regulated under the EU’s MiCA framework, and requires...
Hold Bitcoin in Bull Markets, Sit Out Bear Markets
#BTC When it comes to Bitcoin... In a Bull Market, it's worthwhile holding In a Bear Market, it's worthwhile holding off $BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin
21Shares Projects XRP
JUST IN: 21Shares sees XRP at $2.45 in 2026, with $2.69 upside on ETF and institutional demand, or $1.60 downside if adoption stalls
Understanding Fiat Cryptocurrency: Bridging Traditional and Digital Finance
Halcón Portflow explains that fiat cryptocurrency blends government‑issued money with blockchain technology, offering a stable digital asset for Chile’s evolving financial system. By pegging tokens to fiat currencies, volatility is curbed, making them suitable for daily transactions, payroll, and cross‑border...
Bitcoin Shows Resilience Amid Macro Uncertainty and Lower Leverage
Bitcoin is entering a period of macro uncertainty with less leverage, steadier holders, and a market structure that looks more resilient than in past stress events
Tether Hoards $23B Gold, Mimicking Central Bank Balance Sheets
Tether has amassed roughly $23 billion worth of gold as it expands beyond stablecoins, signaling a strategy that increasingly mirrors a central bank’s balance sheet.
Cryptocurrency Leverage Trading Explained: How It Really Works
Cryptocurrency leverage trading lets Australian traders borrow capital to control positions far larger than their own funds, magnifying both potential profits and losses. Leverage ratios such as 10:1 or 50:1 determine how much exposure a trader gains per dollar of...
Bull EMA Crossover May Signal Fourth BTC Downtrend
#BTC Could this be the 4th consecutive cycle where the crossover of the Bull Market EMAs precedes macro downside continuation? $BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin https://t.co/13UNb0lagd
Bitcoin Peaked Oct 2025, 25% Into Bear Market
#BTC If Bitcoin indeed peaked in its Bull Market back in October 2025... Then that would mean that Bitcoin is already over ~25% of the way through its current Bear Market $BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin
Hackers Exploit React2Shell Vulnerability to Deploy Miners and Botnets Worldwide
A critical insecure‑deserialization flaw in React Server Components, identified as CVE‑2025‑55182 or “React2Shell,” is being actively exploited worldwide. The vulnerability affects react‑server‑dom‑webpack, –parcel and –turbopack versions 19.0‑19.2, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code and deploy a range of malware, including...
Stablecoins Set to Transform Financial Services Landscape
[New Episode] How Stablecoins Will Reshape Financial Services. Watch our latest episode with @lamontkblack of @DePaulU: https://t.co/pKKUHeEv80 https://t.co/PdwZcM76uV
Market Structure Thaw as Stablecoin Fight Intensifies
The episode examines the renewed momentum behind the stalled crypto market structure bill, highlighting behind‑the‑scenes negotiations in the Senate Agriculture Committee and the political trade‑offs shaping its next markup. It delves into why stablecoin yield remains the chief obstacle, despite...