🎯Today's Crypto Pulse
Updated 1h agoWhat's happening: Bitcoin ETF Custody Concentrates Power, Raising Systemic Risk
Spot Bitcoin exchange‑traded funds now hold over $54 billion, roughly 1.5 million BTC. The ETF structure places the underlying coins in a trust controlled by a handful of custodians, with Coinbase identified as the dominant custodian, creating a single point of operational failure.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Pepeto raises $7M in token presale
News•Feb 4, 2026
Cap Airdrops $12 Million in Stablecoins to Early Users
Cap Protocol concluded its Frontier rewards phase on Feb. 4 by airdropping 12 million cUSD, its dollar‑pegged stablecoin, to early participants. The project framed the distribution as crypto’s first stablecoin airdrop, emphasizing a fixed‑value reward over volatile governance tokens. With roughly $315 million TVL, Cap aims to expand its yield engine by courting institutional borrowers. The protocol now launches the Homestead phase, offering caps points for cUSD holdings through July 2026.
By The Defiant
News•Feb 4, 2026
U.S. Regulator Declares Do-Over on Prediction Markets, Throwing Out Biden Era 'Frolic'
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, led by newly confirmed Chairman Mike Selig, has formally withdrawn the 2024 proposal that would have banned political event‑contracts and rescinded a September advisory that confused market participants. The move restores regulatory certainty for...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
The Great Migration: How Bitcoin’s Halving Cycle Is Rewriting the Safe-Haven Playbook
The article argues that Bitcoin’s halving cycle is reshaping the safe‑haven playbook, with institutions increasingly treating the cryptocurrency as a digital counterpart to gold. It highlights Bitcoin’s 24/7 trading, rapid settlement, and transparent scarcity as advantages over physical gold. The...
By TechBullion
News•Feb 4, 2026
Payments Protocol by Coinbase, Shopify Processes Just $1.2M USDC Since June: Growthepie
Shopify, Coinbase and Stripe launched an open‑source Commerce Payments Protocol that lets merchants accept USDC on Base. Since the June 2025 rollout, growthepie reports only $1.2 million in USDC transactions across roughly 5,700 merchants and 3,200 customers. The bulk of that...
By The Defiant
News•Feb 4, 2026
US Won't 'Bail Out' Bitcoin, Says Treasury Secretary Bessent
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Congress the government will not bail out Bitcoin or direct banks to buy it, confirming he lacks authority. He noted the seized Bitcoin reserve grew from $500 million to over $15 billion. The strategic reserve, created...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bessent Offers Deregulatory Vision, but Few Specifics
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a campaign to deregulate the smallest banks but offered no concrete policy details. He blamed Biden‑era rules and "regulation by reflex" for the Silicon Valley Bank fallout, while urging the Financial Stability Oversight Council to...
By American Banker Technology
News•Feb 4, 2026
Wall Street Giant CME Group Is Eyeing Its Own 'CME Coin,' CEO Says
CME Group’s CEO Terry Duffy confirmed the firm is evaluating a proprietary cryptocurrency, potentially deployed on a decentralized network. The move follows CME’s ongoing tokenized‑cash project with Google, slated for launch later this year, and aligns with its broader push...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitnomial Launches First US-Regulated Tezos Futures, Allowing Retail Exposure to XTZ
Chicago‑based Bitnomial has introduced the first CFTC‑regulated futures contracts for Tezos (XTZ), allowing both institutional and retail traders to gain price exposure using crypto or U.S. dollar margin. The launch marks the inaugural futures market for XTZ in the United...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
Top 10 Best Crypto Marketing Agencies for Web3 Growth – MEXC 2026 Rankings
MEXC’s 2026 ranking spotlights the ten leading crypto marketing agencies, placing Bond Finance at the top followed by Coinbound, NinjaPromo, ICODA and others. The agencies were evaluated on ROI, Web3 expertise, regulatory compliance, community building, client portfolio, innovation, market presence...
By TechBullion
News•Feb 4, 2026
After Having Over 100,000 Downloads In Record Time Remittix Rewards Users With Massive 300% Bonus
Remittix PayFi has surpassed 100,000 wallet downloads in a short span, prompting the launch of a 300% token bonus for early adopters. The protocol, built on Ethereum, offers crypto‑to‑fiat conversions across more than 30 jurisdictions and is set for a...
By TechBullion
News•Feb 4, 2026
Cardano Price Drops, Solana News Today & Remittix 300% Bonus Goes Live For Early Investors
The crypto market remains volatile as Cardano slipped below $0.27 and Solana’s volume fell 47%, underscoring pressure on altcoins. Amid the turbulence, utility‑focused Remittix (RTX) is attracting attention with a limited‑time 300% bonus for early investors. Over 93% of its...
By TechBullion
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Stablecoin Risks Rise as Blockchains Gain Systemic Role
GENIUS leaves a lot unspecified. In particular, we think people are underestimating the risks of decentralized blockchains as novel financial infrastructure. All blockchains are not created equal: Did you know the majority of stablecoin transactions are currently happening on Binance...
By Neha Narula
News•Feb 4, 2026
Fireblocks to Integrate Stacks for Institutional-Grade Bitcoin DeFi
Fireblocks announced it will integrate the Stacks layer‑2 protocol to give institutional clients access to Bitcoin‑based DeFi lending and yield products. Stacks processes transactions in roughly five seconds, sidestepping Bitcoin’s ten‑minute block time while still anchoring finality on the Bitcoin...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
Europe’s Role in the Next Wave of Tokenisation
The tokenisation of real‑world assets surged 260% in H1 2025, reaching $23 billion on‑chain, cementing its role as a cornerstone of institutional blockchain adoption. Major banks such as BlackRock, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are actively exploring tokenised products, yet growth is hampered...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
What Dubai’s Ban on Monero and Zcash Signals for Regulated Crypto
Dubai's DFSA prohibited licensed firms in the DIFC from trading, marketing or packaging privacy‑focused tokens such as Monero and Zcash, though private ownership remains allowed. The rule reflects growing global AML pressure, aligning Dubai with upcoming EU restrictions and US...
By Cointelegraph
Podcast•Feb 4, 2026•0 min
Fintech Recap: Shorting Tender, Crypto Market Structure & More
In this Fintech Recap episode, Jason Mikula and Alex Johnson dissect the latest fintech headlines, from the dark banking drama portrayed in HBO's "Industry" to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong's unexpected pullback on crypto market‑structure legislation. They evaluate the potential impact...
By Fintech Business Weekly
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitcoin's Correlation with Troubled Software Stock Sector Is Growing
Bitcoin’s price is now moving in lockstep with the software‑focused IGV ETF, as a 30‑day rolling correlation climbs to 0.73. Both assets have underperformed this year—IGV down about 20% and Bitcoin roughly 16%—reflecting a shared exposure to the software sector’s...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Indian Investors Are Buying the Bitcoin Price Dip, CoinDCX Says
Indian investors are shifting from speculative trading to disciplined Bitcoin buying, using systematic investment plans and strategic market orders. CoinDCX reports rising volumes, with trading up 15% from December to January, as investors diversify into Ether, Solana and XRP. The...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitcoin Falls Back to $74,000, Remaining on Defense as AI Jitters Shake Tech Sector
Bitcoin slipped below $74,000 on Tuesday, erasing Tuesday’s rebound as weakness in the tech sector weighed on the cryptocurrency market. The Nasdaq 100 fell 1% after a 1.5% drop the previous day, while the iShares Expanded Tech‑Software ETF lost another 4%,...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Spanish Lender BBVA Joins EU Banks' Stablecoin Venture to Challenge Digital Dollars
BBVA, Spain's second‑largest bank with $800 billion in assets, has become the 12th member of the Amsterdam‑based Qivalis consortium, which aims to launch a euro‑pegged stablecoin. The initiative seeks to provide a regulated, bank‑backed alternative to crypto‑native stablecoins that are dominated...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitcoin-Native USDT Protocol Joins CTDG Dev Hub
Utexo, a Bitcoin-native USDT protocol, has been added to the Cointelegraph Decentralization Guardians (CTDG) Dev Hub. The project combines the Lightning Network’s fast, low‑fee payment channels with the RGB protocol’s client‑side asset model to issue and transfer USDT directly on...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
Euro Stablecoin Boom Will Be Driven by RWA Tokenization, Not Payments: S& P Global
S&P Global Ratings forecasts that euro‑pegged stablecoins will expand dramatically, growing between 800‑ and 1,600‑fold by 2030 to a market size of €25 billion‑€1.1 trillion. The surge will be powered chiefly by tokenized real‑world‑asset (RWA) investments rather than everyday payments. Currently, the...
By The Defiant
News•Feb 4, 2026
Ripple’s Prime Brokerage Platform Adds Support for Decentralized Exchange Hyperliquid
Ripple announced that its institutional prime brokerage platform, Ripple Prime, now integrates the decentralized derivatives exchange Hyperliquid. The link gives clients on‑chain perpetual liquidity while keeping margin and risk controls inside Ripple Prime, enabling cross‑margining of DeFi derivatives with traditional...
By CoinDesk
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Cohere Engineer's Token Lock Signals 10x Upside
I think this one is sort of a no-brainer 10x+ from this market cap. Dev @mateoknox is a fullstack engineer at @cohere (100k+ followers) Cohere specializes in providing AI solutions to enterprise - meaning he has the skill and resources to scale App...
By NickPlaysCrypto
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Every Trade Needs Both a Buyer and Seller
Remember, for a trade (last price) to happen, for every seller, there is a buyer. 🤯
By Changpeng Zhao
News•Feb 4, 2026
Crypto VC Funding Doubled in 2025 as RWA Tokenization Took the Lead
Venture capital investment in crypto startups surged to over $34 billion in 2025, doubling the previous year’s total. Investors shifted toward later‑stage financing, with seed rounds down 18% and Series B funding up 90%. Real‑world asset tokenization emerged as the leading narrative,...
By Cointelegraph
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Hold Quality Assets as Market Caps Surge to $100T
The game you should be playing.... Market cap from $3trn to $100trn in next 8 to 10 years. Strategy: Hold high quality assets and do nothing... 1/ https://t.co/X5zvZjaRpK
By Raoul Pal
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Sherman Backs Bank Bailouts, Rejects Bitcoin Rescue
Brad Sherman is ok with bailing out the banks but asks about bailing out bitcoin You can not bail out bitcoin https://t.co/mK1xnjiVti
By Wendy O
Podcast•Feb 4, 2026•14 min
EP1 - Bitcoin Before Maximalism: The Experiments We Forgot.
In this debut episode, the hosts revisit Bitcoin’s early experimental era (2012‑2014), highlighting projects like Colored Coins, Mastercoin, Counterparty’s NFTs, and the Lightning Network. Guests JR Willett, Matt Luongo, Yoni Assia, Adam Krellenstein, and Elizabeth Stark discuss how these innovations...
By The Defiant – DeFi Podcast
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Bloomberg Analyst Defies “Bitcoin Is Dead
This from a Bloomberg analyst. I was expecting them to write "bitcoin is dead, again" again. 😆
By Changpeng Zhao
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Profitable Crypto Coins Hit Record Low, 9M BTC Losing
According to CryptoQuant, for the first time in this cycle, the number of profitable coins has dropped to a critical level. Nearly 9 million Bitcoins are now at a loss. https://t.co/lksOaqSVq1
By Crypto Jack
News•Feb 4, 2026
ProShares Unveils First U.S. ETF that Lets You Buy the Top 20 Cryptos at Once
ProShares launched the CoinDesk 20 Crypto ETF (KRYP), the first U.S.-listed fund that tracks the CoinDesk 20 Index covering the twenty largest and most liquid digital assets. The index is market‑cap weighted, subject to concentration caps, and rebalanced quarterly, while excluding stablecoins,...
By CoinDesk
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Ethereum Evolves Into Cosmos' Vision, ECV?
My takeaway on Vitalik's post yesterday: Ethereum is becoming Cosmos's Vision (Maybe the ticker should be ECV?)
By Laura Shin
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Enduring HODL Pain Reveals Its True Meaning
HODLing is painful. If you survive the journey you will truly know what HODL means.
By Dan Held
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitcoin’s Thinnest Price Zone Hints at Extended Stay Between $70,000 and $80,000
Bitcoin has been trading tightly between $70,000 and $79,999 for five straight days, marking a prolonged stay in a historically thin $10,000 bucket that it has occupied only about 35 days in total. The scarcity of on‑chain supply within this...
By CoinDesk
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Bonding Curves Spark Buying Frenzy, Boost Mindshare
I think @virtuals_io should just go back to bonding curve launches and scrap all the elaborate launch mechanisms tbh. There is no better way to get a mindshare foothold than a buying frenzy. https://t.co/rXTv9R5x8O
By NickPlaysCrypto
Social•Feb 4, 2026
Trenches Still Active; Hunt Cheap Sub‑100k Market Cap Coins
Trenches are still alive. Just gotta find decent coins fast while theyre still cheap (sub 100k mc ideally) https://t.co/cqFiv1NZhN
By NickPlaysCrypto
News•Feb 4, 2026
Banks Are Not Prepared for the Industrialization of Crypto Theft
Drainer‑as‑a‑Service (DaaS) platforms are industrializing crypto theft, letting low‑skill actors launch high‑value heists at scale. Traditional bank compliance, reliant on static blacklists, cannot keep pace with the real‑time, multi‑domain attacks these services enable. The author urges banks to shift from...
By American Banker Technology
Social•Feb 4, 2026
CFTC Chair Says Bill Could Make US Crypto Gold Standard
🇺🇸 CFTC Chair Selig says the market structure bill can make the U.S. the "gold standard" for crypto regulation and could reach Trump’s desk within months. Source: Fox Business https://t.co/a0QxAGWKzX
By Wendy O
News•Feb 4, 2026
U.S. Crypto Media Attention Now Mirrors Venture Capital, Leaving Most Visibility to a Small Tier
Outset PR’s Q4 2025 analysis shows U.S. crypto‑media traffic collapsed while a tiny elite captured almost all attention. Visits fell from roughly 148 million to 106 million, yet the 53 tier‑1 publishers (over 400 k monthly visits) generated more than 95 % of the remaining...
By TechBullion
News•Feb 4, 2026
Colle AI Enhances AI-Driven Design Automation Across Multichain Workflows
Collé AI has upgraded its AI‑driven design automation platform to streamline NFT creation across multichain workflows. The new system automatically generates design elements, adapts assets to differing blockchain standards, and coordinates minting on multiple networks. By cutting repetitive tasks, creators...
By AiThority
News•Feb 4, 2026
This Onchain Metric Has Identified the Bitcoin Bottom Every Cycle
The BTC profit‑vs‑loss supply metric compares the amount of Bitcoin held at a cost basis above the current price with the amount held below it. Glassnode reports 11.1 million BTC in profit and 8.9 million in loss, indicating a narrowing gap. Historically,...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Crypto Going Mainstream Among US Merchants
According to a PayPal and National Cryptocurrency Association survey, 39% of U.S. merchants now accept cryptocurrency at checkout, and 84% anticipate it becoming commonplace within five years. Customer demand is a primary driver, with 88% of merchants reporting inquiries about...
By Retail Customer Experience
News•Feb 4, 2026
Payoneer CFO Eyes Stablecoin, AI Innovation Amid ‘Stop-Start’ Economy
Payoneer CFO Bea Ordonez says the company is navigating a volatile, stop‑start global trade environment by doubling down on its highly local, globally‑scaled network. The fintech firm, which operates across 7,000 trade routes and holds eight regulatory licenses, is investing...
By Banking Dive
News•Feb 4, 2026
Arbitrum, Optimism and Base Weigh in After Vitalik Questions L2 Scaling Model
Ethereum co‑founder Vitalik Buterin warned that L2s can no longer serve as the primary scaling engine, urging a shift toward specialized rollups. He highlighted security gaps from multisig bridges and the base layer’s growing capacity via gas‑limit hikes and native...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
Base Says Configuration Change Caused Transaction Delays, Fixes Issue
Base, Coinbase’s Ethereum layer‑2 network, experienced elevated transaction drops and delays over the weekend due to a mis‑configured transaction‑propagation setting that caused block builders to fetch unexecutable transactions as base fees rose. The network remained operational, and Base quickly rolled...
By Cointelegraph
News•Feb 4, 2026
A New Platform Lets AI Agents Pay Humans to Do the Real-World Work They Can't
Rentahuman.ai lets autonomous AI agents hire humans for physical tasks through an API, paying workers in stablecoins after verification. The platform attracted over 10,000 users within 48 hours, with 130 sign‑ups on its first night, including an OnlyFans model and...
By THE DECODER
News•Feb 4, 2026
Crypto’s Wealthy Investors and Industry Leaders See IPO Hype Waning in 2026
The CfC St. Moritz report shows cryptocurrency IPO enthusiasm fading after a record 2025 that delivered 11 listings and $14.6 billion in capital. Investor confidence has slipped, with fewer respondents feeling as optimistic as last year. Over 100 of the 242...
By CoinDesk
News•Feb 4, 2026
Bitcoin Has Ended Its $1.5B Outflow Streak, yet the Trade Driving Inflows Could Vanish Under Pressure
US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a net $561.8 million inflow on Feb 2, ending a four‑day streak of roughly $1.5 billion in outflows. Analysts argue the inflow likely reflects mechanical ETF creations and delta‑neutral basis trades rather than genuine dip‑buying. Authorized participants can...
By CryptoSlate
News•Feb 4, 2026
Turkish Police Shut Down Payments Firm in FX Fraud and Illegal Betting Probe, 38 Arrested
Turkish authorities shut down a centrally‑licensed payments platform accused of laundering proceeds from illegal betting and fraudulent forex trading. Police conducted coordinated raids across eight cities, arresting 38 suspects and seizing assets, while appointing a Deposit Insurance Fund administrator to...
By Finance Magnates Fintech