Crypto News

- Australia Puts Crypto Oversight Gaps on 2026 Risk List Australia’s primary corporate and financial services regulator has listed regulatory gaps around crypto firms as a key risk for this year. In its Key Issues Outlook released Monday, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission said fast-growing crypto, payments, and AI players operating at the edge of regulation are exposing consumers to unlicensed advice and misleading conduct. ASIC Chair Joe Longo said the agency is tracking "major shifts across Australia's financial system as pressures on consumers, markets and businesses intensify," while global regulatory settings diverge, "creating growing fragmentation that makes compliance more complex and increases the risk of...

- Russia Blacklists Crypto Exchange WhiteBIT Over Ukraine Support Russia has moved to block crypto exchange WhiteBIT, after prosecutors labelled the platform and its affiliated organizations as “undesirable” over allegations tied to support for Ukraine’s war effort. The Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation posted, “A foreign cryptocurrency exchange that finances the Ukrainian regime has been declared undesirable in the Russian Federation.” Prosecutors also accused the exchange of enabling “gray” schemes to move money out of Russia and of facilitating other illegal activity, as Moscow steps up scrutiny of crypto rails linked to cross-border flows. Funds Allegedly Used To Procure Drones For Ukrainian Forces Since...

- Bitcoin encounters mounting selling pressure as January 2026 ends, including a $2.24 billion drop in stablecoin market capitalization, a year-low Coinbase premium, and a sharp decline in mining hashrate due to a severe US ice storm. The combined impact of these factors has prompted veteran trader Peter Brandt to warn that Bitcoin could fall below $70,000 if these market pressures persist. Stablecoin Exodus Signals Capital Flight From Crypto The crypto market is facing a major liquidity drop, as the market cap of the top 12 stablecoins has fallen by $2.24 billion in just 10 days, in line with Bitcoin's 8% decline. According to market intelligence platform Santiment, this decrease goes beyond typical profit-taking. The data...

- Key Points The total value of all cryptocurrencies in circulation currently stands at $3.1 trillion, which is down 29% from its peak of $4.4 trillion in late 2024. No major coins or tokens have escaped losses, not even Bitcoin, which is down 28% from its peak. However, the more speculative end of the market is definitely feeling the most pain. Meme tokens Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) and Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) fell by 61% and 66%, respectively, during 2025, but they are down even more sharply from their record highs set way back in 2021. Both cryptocurrencies are facing structural issues, which is why I predict they will suffer further declines of at least 50% during 2026. Read on. Dogecoin's never-ending supply has consequences...

Bitcoin held around $88,000 in early Asian trading on Tuesday as investors split their attention between a busy earnings week and a fresh round of trade threats from President Donald Trump. Markets kept a cautious tone. Asian shares inched higher overall, while gold and silver drew new inflows as traders leaned into safety ahead of the Federal Reserve decision and a heavy run of results from US tech bellwethers. Trump’s latest tariff move centered on South Korea. Accusing South Korea’s legislature of “not living up” to its trade deal with Washington, Trump said late on Monday he was increasing tariffs on imports from Asia’s fourth-biggest economy into the US such as autos, lumber, and pharma to 25%. Market snapshot Stocks Hold Firm...

- Stablecoin Outflows Signal Capital Exit as Bitcoin Trades Flat Stablecoin supply has continued to shrink over the past week, coinciding with Bitcoin’s extended drop that began two weeks ago. The combined market capitalization of the top 12 stablecoins has shed roughly $2.24 billion over the past 10 days, according to on-chain analytics platform Santiment. The outflow has tracked Bitcoin’s decline from $95,000 to $88,441, per CoinGecko. Bitcoin is up 1.4% on the day to $88,500 but remains down 4.2% on the week. “Normally, when traders sell Bitcoin or altcoins, that money stays in crypto as stablecoins. A falling stablecoin market cap shows that many investors are cashing out to fiat instead of preparing to buy dips,” Santiment...

- FIDELITY WISE ORIGIN BITCOIN FUND (NYSEMKT:FBTC) and iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (NASDAQ:ETHA) both offer pure-play crypto exposure at identical expense ratios, but differ in asset focus, risk profile, and scale. Both FIDELITY WISE ORIGIN BITCOIN FUND (FBTC) and iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) aim to provide investors with straightforward access to the price movements of a single cryptocurrency—bitcoin for FBTC, ether for ETHA—without the need to hold the digital assets directly. This comparison looks at cost, recent returns, risk, and what is inside to help investors decide which may better fit their portfolio objectives. Snapshot (cost & size) Beta measures price volatility relative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from...

- 3 Altcoins I've Got My Eye On in 2026 Key Points There's more to the crypto market than just Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH). While these two account for a combined 70% of the total value of the crypto market, there are hundreds of high-risk, high-upside cryptocurrencies that have the potential to outperform these market bellwethers. Three cryptocurrencies that I have my eye on in 2026 are XRP (CRYPTO: XRP), Solana (CRYPTO: SOL), and Chainlink (CRYPTO: LINK). All three have the potential to outperform Bitcoin and Ethereum to deliver outsized gains to investors. XRP In many ways, XRP is an obvious pick. It has experienced enormous rallies in the recent past, including an epic rally from November 2024 to January...

- Shark Tank's Kevin O’Leary thinks crypto bill is closer than Washington admits Crypto regulation in the U.S. has a reputation for moving slowly, then all at once. According to Kevin O'Leary, we may be closer to that “all at once” moment than markets realize. In a recent conversation with CoinDesk, the Shark Tank-famed investor and outspoken crypto advocate offered a surprisingly specific estimate for when meaningful crypto legislation could finally land. What’s slowing crypto regulation right now On the surface, the reasons for delay are familiar. Lawmakers remain divided over key clauses, industry players are pushing back on certain provisions, and bipartisan consensus has been uneven. But the biggest obstacle is political...

- Russia Bans WhiteBIT, Deeming Crypto Exchange 'Undesirable' Over Ukraine Support Russian authorities blacklisted WhiteBIT on Monday, highlighting the crypto exchange's support of Ukraine’s war effort as the conflict in Europe enters its fourth year. The Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation designated WhiteBIT and parent company W Group as “undesirable organizations,” prohibiting the entities from holding bank accounts, transferring funds, or servicing customers within the country. In a press release, Russian authorities described WhiteBIT as a European platform. Although the company is currently headquartered in Vilnius, Lithuania, WhiteBIT was established in Kharkiv, Ukraine, by entrepreneur Volodymyr Nosov. A...

- Bitcoin is approaching a key macro event as US lawmakers race to avert another federal government shutdown before the January 30 funding deadline. The market enters this period under pressure, following a failed January rally and a sharp shift in sentiment. Historically, Bitcoin has not behaved as a reliable hedge during US government shutdowns. Instead, price action has tended to follow existing market momentum. Why a US Shutdown Is Back on the Table The renewed shutdown risk stems from Congress failing to finalize several FY2026 appropriations bills. Temporary funding is set to expire on January 30, and negotiations remain stalled, particularly around Department of Homeland Security funding. Unless lawmakers pass either a new...

- Influential NFT Platform Nifty Gateway Set to Shut Down in February Nifty Gateway, one of the most influential platforms of the early NFT boom, announced on Friday that it will shut down on February 23. The move blindsided many artists and collectors and reignited long-standing concerns around custodial platforms, centralization, and the long-term preservation of digital art. Billed as a user-friendly on-ramp to NFTs, Nifty Gateway distinguished itself by offering credit card payments, custodial wallets, and tightly curated drops at a time when most NFT platforms required technical knowledge and self-custody. As interest in tokenized digital artwork surged in late 2020 and into early 2021, the platform—which was acquired by crypto...

- BlackRock eyes new Bitcoin ETF with premium BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has filed to launch a second Bitcoin-focused exchange-traded product that would give investors exposure to the cryptocurrency — along with a little yield. The iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF would feature Bitcoin, cash, and shares of BlackRock’s two-year-old Bitcoin ETP, the iShares Bitcoin Trust, or IBIT. To generate the “monthly premium income” for the new ETP, BlackRock would sell call options on the IBIT shares, according to the filing. “Although the Shares [in the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF] are not the equivalent of a direct investment in bitcoin or in a spot bitcoin ETP, they provide investors with an alternative method of...

- A winter storm in Washington, D.C., has compelled the senators to delay the first markup vote on comprehensive digital asset market structure legislation. The Senate Agriculture Committee confirmed on Monday that it had postponed its scheduled Tuesday markup of the Digital Commodity Intermediaries Act because of dangerous weather conditions across the capital. The committee staff cited unsafe travel conditions, noting that much of Washington is covered by snow and ice amid dangerously low temperatures caused by a major winter storm. Flights Canceled, Roads Icy as Senate Crypto Markup Slips The weekend was topped off by an arctic cold snap and heavy snowfall, with wind chills dropping down to below zero and daytime temperatures...

- Ex-crypto stock surges after $2B Nvidia investment Another former crypto miner is quietly making the case that pivoting to AI may be the smartest survival move in today’s market. This time, the proof point is CoreWeave (NASDAQ: CRWV), a firm that began life as a Bitcoin mining operation and is now pulling in billions from Big Tech. A Bitcoin miner that changed course early CoreWeave didn’t start out as an AI darling. The company was founded in 2017 under the name Atlantic Crypto, initially focused on Bitcoin mining. But after the 2018 crypto crash exposed how fragile mining economics could be, the team made a decisive pivot. Instead of doubling down on mining, CoreWeave leaned into cloud computing and GPU infrastructure...

- Crypto Charts are Down, But Bitcoin Price Bets Surge on Polymarket Prediction markets are seeing heavy activity on crypto price outcomes. Tens of millions in volume have been spent on Bitcoin’s January price alone, alongside high-volume contracts for Ethereum, XRP, and Solana. The concentration of capital in short-term price bets has raised concerns about crypto’s future. These rotating, binary wagers suggest the industry is being treated less as a long-term investment asset class and more as a speculative wagering venue. Polymarket Users Bet on Crypto Prices Crypto prediction polls are gaining traction on Polymarket. One contract, which will remain active through the end of the week, has already recorded nearly $67 million in...

- River Crypto Token Up 1,900% in the Last Month—What's the Deal? A little-known crypto token—River (RIVER)—has been making waves over the last month, jumping more than 1,900% and catapulting into the top 100 tokens by market capitalization, according to data from CoinGecko. The native token of the multi-chain stablecoin abstraction platform of the same name was trading around $5 near the end of December, but has since exploded to recently change hands around $82. At Monday’s prices, RIVER has a total market cap of about $1.6 billion, good enough to make it the 67th largest token in crypto. The platform, which aims to remove the need for bridging stablecoins across blockchains, has earned the attention of some of crypto’s biggest...

- Analyst who predicted 2021 crypto crash sends chilling warning The 2021–2022 crypto crash is something that still gives investors nightmares. And one of the few analysts who consistently warned ahead of that collapse was Into The Cryptoverse founder Benjamin Cowen. In the final months of 2021, as Bitcoin (BTC) traded near its then-record high around $69,000, Cowen flagged mounting risk. Tightening Federal Reserve policy, excessive leverage, and overheated altcoin valuations, he argued, were creating a fragile setup. What followed was one of crypto’s sharpest drawdowns on record. Bitcoin slid nearly 78% to around $15,000. Ethereum (ETH) fell roughly 80%, while many altcoins lost 90% or more. Now Cowen is back again with another...

- MicroStrategy disclosed its latest Bitcoin purchase on January 26. In its 4th purchase of the month, the company acquired $264.1 million in Bitcoin at an average price of $90,061 per BTC. The acquisition brings the company’s average cost of Bitcoin purchase to $76,037. The purchase came as Bitcoin traded in a volatile January range, slipping from early-month highs above $95,000 to the high-$80,000 range. Latest Buy Details and Funding Structure While the headline buy reinforces MicroStrategy’s long-term Bitcoin conviction, underlying data suggests the company’s funding model is facing mounting structural pressure. MicroStrategy funded the January 20–25 purchase window primarily through equity issuance. The company sold...

- BlackRock’s new ETF could pay investors even if Bitcoin crashes I remember the excitement in the market when BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) launched its U.S. spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) linked to Bitcoin (BTC) in January 2024. After all, the world's largest asset manager had decided to launch a Bitcoin product after much hesitation and the move had indicated Wall Street finally embracing cryptocurrency. More than two years have passed since then, and BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (Nasdaq: IBIT) has accumulated $62.9 billion in net inflow as of Jan. 23, as per the onchain analytics platform SoSoValue. Its iShares Ethereum Trust (Nasdaq: ETHA), launched in July 2024, is also the largest spot Ether ETF in the U.S. The fund has...