The recent surge in privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash may reflect short-term capital rotation rather than the start of a durable bull market, according to Real Vision founder and macro investor Raoul Pal.

Speaking on the When Shift Happens podcast with Kevin Follonier on Thursday, Pal said Zcash’s rally has yet to prove it represents a structural trend rather than speculative repositioning within the broader crypto market.

“Do I need that asset to say I was in earliest? I don’t really,” Pal said, suggesting that recent price action alone is not enough to justify long-term conviction.

Zcash’s 699% Rally Loses Steam as Prices Pull Back 37% in a Month

Zcash (ZEC) has posted some of the strongest gains among major cryptocurrencies this year, rising roughly 699% since Jan. 1 to trade around $385, according to CoinMarketCap.

However, momentum has faded in recent weeks, with the token down about 37% over the past 30 days.

Pal said that distinction is critical. “We can’t prove it until the whole market goes up and it continues to trend and not a rotation,” he said. “Right now it’s confirming the rotation thesis.”

According to Pal, the next key test for Zcash will be whether it can establish a stable base after its sharp move higher.

Sustained support at lower levels would indicate that buyers are stepping in with longer-term conviction, rather than exiting after a rapid run-up.

“What you want to see is whether it finds a base and then starts pulling up again,” he said.

Despite the strong year-to-date performance, Pal said he is not inclined to chase the asset at current levels. “I’m not sure I’m going to chase it, but I might buy it in the next down cycle,” he added.

Zcash’s rally has stood out in a broader market that has struggled to maintain upward momentum. The token’s market capitalization climbed from under $1 billion in August to more than $7 billion at its early November peak, even as several major cryptocurrencies traded lower.

Part of that surge followed comments from crypto entrepreneur Arthur Hayes, who said in late October that Zcash could eventually reach $10,000, triggering a sharp short-term price reaction.

ZEC jumped roughly 30% within 24 hours of the remarks.

Institutional Interest Moves Toward Zcash ETF

Interest in privacy-focused assets has also increased amid growing concerns around surveillance, censorship, and regulatory scrutiny.

In November, XT Exchange said anonymity-focused tokens were gaining renewed attention as traders reassessed the role of privacy in digital assets.

Institutional interest has begun to follow. On Nov. 27, Grayscale Investments filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to convert its Zcash trust into a spot ETF, signaling a potential pathway for broader investor exposure.

The post Raoul Pal Says Zcash Rally Looks Like Capital Rotation, Not a Structural Bull Run appeared first on Cryptonews.

A senior promoter behind the collapsed crypto platform IcomTech has been sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that targeted working-class, Spanish-speaking investors across the United States.

Magdaleno Mendoza was sentenced on Thursday to 71 months in prison, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

Prosecutors said Mendoza played a central role in promoting IcomTech, a purported crypto mining and trading company that launched in mid-2018 and unraveled by the end of 2019.

IcomTech’s “Guaranteed Returns” Masked Classic MLM-Style Crypto Ponzi

IcomTech promised investors guaranteed daily returns from cryptocurrency mining and trading.

In reality, the operation functioned as a classic multi-level marketing Ponzi scheme, using funds from new investors to pay earlier participants while senior promoters diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars for personal use.

In addition to prison time, Mendoza was ordered to pay $789,218.94 in restitution and forfeit $1.5 million, along with his home in Downey, California, which prosecutors said was purchased using proceeds from the scheme.

Court filings show Mendoza was one of IcomTech’s most senior promoters and maintained close contact with founder David Carmona.

He hosted recruitment events at his own restaurant in the Los Angeles area, collecting large amounts of cash from attendees.

Promoters traveled nationwide hosting flashy expos, arriving in luxury vehicles and designer clothing, while investors were shown dashboards displaying profits they could not withdraw.

By August 2018, investors began encountering delays and excuses when attempting to cash out.

IcomTech responded by introducing a proprietary token called “Icoms,” which promoters claimed would eventually be used for payments. The token ultimately proved worthless, further compounding investor losses.

The sentencing also covered Mendoza’s illegal reentry into the United States after deportation. Prosecutors said he had been removed from the country four times, once under a false identity, and continued promoting crypto Ponzi schemes even after IcomTech collapsed.

IcomTech Mastermind Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison

Several other figures connected to IcomTech, including founder David Carmona and multiple senior promoters, have already been convicted and sentenced.

In October, Carmona, the mastermind behind IcomTech, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Gustavo Rodriguez, an IcomTech promoter, was sentenced to eight years on October 31, while David Brend received a 10-year sentence on December 2. In January, Ochoa was sentenced to five years in prison for his role in the scheme.

Between 2018 and 2019, IcomTech promised investors a 100% return every six weeks.

IcomTech promoters enacted the massive crypto scheme by attending lavish expos in luxury cars and wearing expensive clothing, giving the illusion that the sham digital asset company could offer investors financial freedom.

However, this facade began to crumble by August 2018 as investors struggled to withdraw their funds from the platform.

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Coinbase has filed lawsuits against the US states of Michigan, Illinois, and Connecticut, escalating a growing legal fight over who has the authority to regulate prediction markets in the United States.

According to a Bloomberg report, Coinbase said the three states have either taken action or threatened to act against prediction market operators, despite lacking the legal authority to do so.

The exchange said it is seeking court orders to affirm that prediction markets fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), not state gaming regulators.

Coinbase Lawsuit Follows Kalshi Deal Ahead of 2026 Prediction Market Launch

The lawsuits come one day after Coinbase announced plans to offer event-based contract trading through a partnership with Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated prediction markets platform.

According to court filings, Coinbase plans to roll out prediction market access to U.S. customers starting in January 2026, including in Illinois.

Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said the cases are meant to clarify a point the company views as settled law.

“Prediction markets fall squarely under the jurisdiction of the CFTC, not any individual state gaming regulator,” Grewal said in a post on X.

He argued that state-level efforts to block or control these markets undermine innovation and conflict with federal law.

In its Illinois filing, Coinbase warned that state interference could cause “immediate and irreparable” harm to its business.

The company is seeking both declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent enforcement actions while the courts weigh the issue.

At the center of the dispute is whether prediction markets, particularly those tied to sports outcomes, should be treated as gambling.

Several states have argued that event-based contracts resemble unlicensed sports betting, placing them under state jurisdiction.

Coinbase disputes that framing, saying prediction markets operate as neutral exchanges that match buyers and sellers rather than setting odds for profit.

Grewal also pointed to Congress’s definition of commodities, noting that lawmakers excluded only a narrow list of items from CFTC oversight, such as onions and box office receipts.

By that logic, he said, sports-related event contracts remain within the agency’s remit.

Connecticut Targets Kalshi and Robinhood

The lawsuits follow recent enforcement actions by Connecticut regulators, who earlier this month issued cease-and-desist orders to Kalshi, Robinhood and Crypto.com.

Kalshi challenged the move in court and won temporary relief after a federal judge paused state enforcement while the case proceeds.

As reported, crypto exchanges and platforms are accelerating their push into prediction markets, with Gemini and PancakeSwap emerging as the latest players to roll out new offerings.

Rivals such as Coinbase and Crypto.com have also been exploring similar expansions as competition intensifies.

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Kraken-backed xStocks have gone live on the TON blockchain, allowing users to access tokenized versions of US stocks and exchange-traded funds directly inside Telegram through its built-in TON Wallet.

The move brings tokenized equities into one of the world’s largest messaging platforms, potentially expanding their reach beyond traditional crypto trading venues, according to a Thursday announcement.

Through the integration, users can buy, hold and transfer onchain representations of assets such as Tesla, Nvidia and the S&P 500 ETF without leaving the Telegram app.

xStocks Offer Onchain Price Exposure Without Direct Share Ownership

xStocks are designed as fully collateralized products, backed one-to-one by underlying equities and ETFs held through regulated partners.

The tokens track the price of the underlying assets but do not confer direct ownership of the shares, offering users price exposure in an onchain format.

The service is not available to US users and is restricted to jurisdictions where the tokens can be legally offered.

xStocks has not registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, meaning distribution relies on jurisdictional controls.

Tokenized equities are not new, but previous attempts struggled to gain traction. Liquidity constraints, regulatory uncertainty and limited distribution often confined earlier offerings to niche crypto platforms.

By embedding tokenized stocks inside a mainstream messaging app, Kraken and its partners appear to be testing whether access and ease of use can unlock broader adoption.

The TON Foundation framed the launch as a step toward bringing real-world assets into everyday digital activity.

TON Foundation president and CEO Max Crown said the integration allows users to hold and trade tokenized U.S. equities “with the same ease as sending a message,” while maintaining self-custody through TON Wallet.

For Telegram’s wallet ecosystem, the move builds on earlier experiments. Wallet in Telegram previously launched custodial access to stocks and ETFs through its Crypto Wallet product, which saw early demand despite limited geographic availability.

Telegram claims more than 900 million global users, while TON Wallet reports close to 100 million users, giving xStocks immediate exposure to a large consumer base.

RWA Tokenization Gains Momentum

Earlier this month, Libeara, the blockchain infrastructure platform backed by Standard Chartered’s venture arm SC Ventures, rolled out a new tokenized gold investment fund in Singapore, bringing one of the world’s oldest safe-haven assets onto digital rails.

The fund, launched in partnership with FundBridge Capital, allows professional investors to gain exposure to gold through blockchain-based tokens issued on Libeara’s ledger.

In a recent research, Web3 digital property firm Animoca Brands said that tokenization of RWAs could unlock a $400 trillion traditional finance market.

Animoca researchers Andrew Ho and Ming Ruan said the global market for private credit, treasury debt, commodities, stocks, alternative funds, and bonds represents a vast runway for growth.

“The estimated $400 trillion addressable TradFi market underscores the potential growth runway for RWA tokenization,” they wrote.

Meanwhile, according to the 2025 Skynet RWA Security Report, the market for tokenized RWAs could grow to $16 trillion by 2030.

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Markets are bracing for the latest US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, with analysts warning the inflation print could determine whether risk assets rally into year-end or face renewed pressure.

“Jerome Powell recently said rates are at good levels to wait & observe the data,” crypto analyst Mister Crypto wrote in a recent post on X.

He said a hotter-than-expected CPI reading would likely dampen expectations for rate cuts, weighing on both equities and digital assets. A softer print, however, could revive hopes for easier monetary policy and trigger a late-year rally.

Bitcoin Stalls Near $85K as Risk-Off Mood Limits Upside, Analyst Says

Bitcoin enters the data release on fragile footing. The largest cryptocurrency slipped around 2% on Tuesday to near $85,300 and has traded sideways between $85,000 and $90,000 throughout the week.

Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com, said the failure to push higher reflects a broader risk-off tone driven by mixed US macro signals.

Recent data offered little clarity. Nonfarm payrolls surprised to the upside, unemployment ticked higher, and S&P Global PMI readings missed expectations.

“The mixed signal kept bearish momentum intact and limited any immediate upside response,” Hasn said.

Still, Bitcoin appears to be finding tentative support near the $85,000 level. Hasn noted early signs of bargain accumulation, with dip buyers stepping in cautiously after weeks of selling pressure.

On-chain data from BGeometrics supports that view, showing small increases in whale wallets and retail-sized holders owning between 1 and 100 BTC.

At the same time, addresses holding 100 to 1,000 BTC declined slightly, suggesting a pause in the heavy whale distribution seen in November.

ETF flows add another layer of support. Data from SoSo Value shows US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded more than $450 million in inflows on Tuesday, even as futures market activity cooled.

Derivatives data points to a continued reduction in speculation. CoinGlass reports that crypto futures open interest has fallen by roughly $11 billion over the past week, nearing its lowest level since June.

With leverage being flushed out and spot demand stabilizing, Hasn said the $85,000 area is starting to look less like a trap and more like a level buyers are willing to defend.

Bitcoin’s Long-Term Holder Selling May Be Nearing Its End: K33

Bitcoin has seen sustained sell-side pressure from long-term holders since 2024, but that trend may be nearing exhaustion, according to a new report from research and brokerage firm K33.

The firm estimates that around 1.6 million BTC, worth roughly $138 billion, has re-entered circulation over the past two years as early investors took profits.

K33 head of research Vetle Lunde said the scale of these movements points to deliberate selling rather than technical factors like wallet consolidation or ETF-related transfers.

The report notes that 2024 and 2025 rank among the largest years on record for long-term supply reactivation, driven not by speculation, but by direct selling into deeper institutional liquidity.

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A Singapore-based entrepreneur has lost a six-figure sum in cryptocurrency after unknowingly downloading malware disguised as a game-testing program.

Mark Koh, founder of victim-support organization RektSurvivor, shared details of the incident in an interview with Chinese-language outlet Lianhe Zaobao and in a LinkedIn post.

According to Koh, the scam began on Dec. 5, when he encountered a beta testing opportunity on Telegram for an online game called MetaToy.

Polished Website and Active Discord Helped Lure Victim Into Crypto Scam

Koh said he was convinced the project was legitimate due to its polished website, an active Discord server, and responsive team members.

As someone who has invested in and evaluated multiple Web3 projects, he said the setup did not initially raise red flags.

The situation changed after he downloaded MetaToy’s game launcher. Koh said the installer quietly uploaded malware onto his computer.

Although his Norton antivirus software flagged suspicious activity, Koh attempted to contain the issue by running full system scans, removing suspicious files and registries, and reinstalling Windows 11.

Despite those efforts, the damage had already been done. Within 24 hours, every software wallet connected to his Rabby and Phantom browser extensions was drained.

In total, Koh lost 14,189 USDT, or roughly 100,000 yuan, representing crypto he had accumulated over eight years.

Koh said the attack appeared highly targeted and urged others, particularly angel investors and developers who are more likely to download beta software, to take additional precautions.

He advised users to remove seed phrases from browser-based wallets when not actively in use and to consider using private keys instead of seed phrases to limit exposure across derivative wallets.

The fraud has been reported to Singapore police, which confirmed to Lianhe Zaobao that it has received a corresponding report.

The MetaToy incident comes amid a broader rise in malware campaigns targeting crypto users.

In October, McAfee warned that hackers were abusing GitHub repositories to keep banking malware connected to new servers.

This year has also seen fake AI tools, malicious Captchas and compromised Ethereum code extensions used to spread crypto-stealing malware.

Investor Loses $3M in Crypto Phishing Scam

In August, a cryptocurrency investor fell victim to a phishing scam, losing $3.05 million in Tether (USDT) after unknowingly signing a malicious blockchain transaction.

The loss, flagged by blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain on Wednesday, underscores the rising threat of phishing attacks targeting digital asset holders.

The attacker exploited a common habit among crypto users: validating only the first and last few characters of a wallet address while ignoring the middle.

Crypto investors lost over $2.2 billion to hacks, scams, and breaches in the first half of 2025, driven largely by wallet compromises and phishing attacks, according to CertiK’s latest security report.

Wallet breaches alone caused $1.7 billion in losses across just 34 incidents, while phishing scams accounted for over $410 million across 132 attacks.

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Bitcoin’s price swings are becoming more restrained, with the cryptocurrency now showing lower volatility than Nvidia shares in 2025, a shift Bitwise says reflects a maturing and more diversified investor base.

In a report released Wednesday, Bitwise said Bitcoin is likely to remain less volatile than Nvidia (NVDA) through 2026, pointing to a long-term decline in Bitcoin’s price fluctuations over the past decade.

Bitwise Says Institutional Adoption Is Derisking Bitcoin

The asset manager argued that Bitcoin’s growing presence in traditional financial markets is changing how it trades.

“Bitcoin’s volatility has steadily declined over the past ten years,” Bitwise said, adding that the trend signals a broader “derisking” of the asset as institutional investors gain exposure through regulated products such as spot exchange-traded funds.

According to Bitwise, the rise of ETFs and other traditional vehicles has expanded Bitcoin’s investor base beyond retail traders and crypto-native funds.

That diversification, the firm said, has helped dampen sharp price moves that once defined the asset.

The data highlights a notable contrast between Bitcoin and Nvidia this year. Bitcoin has moved 68% between its 2025 low of around $75,000 in April and its all-time high of $126,000 reached in early October.

Nvidia, by comparison, has recorded a much wider 120% swing, rising from a low near $94 in early April to a peak of $207 later in the year.

Despite Nvidia’s higher volatility, the chipmaker’s shares have delivered stronger returns.

Nvidia is up roughly 27% year-to-date, while Bitcoin has slipped about 8% since the start of the year as crypto markets have increasingly decoupled from equities.

Bitwise sees the calmer price action as a structural shift rather than a temporary phase. The firm said traditional market forces that once drove extreme crypto cycles, such as leverage-fueled speculation and sharp reactions to halving events, are losing influence.

Looking ahead, Bitwise struck an optimistic tone on Bitcoin’s broader outlook. The firm expects Bitcoin to set a new all-time high and break away from the historical four-year cycle that has shaped previous bull and bear markets.

It also predicts deeper institutional involvement in 2026, naming banks such as Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Merrill Lynch as potential entrants.

Bitcoin’s Long-Term Holder Selling May Be Nearing Its End: K33

Bitcoin has seen sustained sell-side pressure from long-term holders since 2024, but that trend may be nearing exhaustion, according to a new report from research and brokerage firm K33.

The firm estimates that around 1.6 million BTC, worth roughly $138 billion, has re-entered circulation over the past two years as early investors took profits.

K33 head of research Vetle Lunde said the scale of these movements points to deliberate selling rather than technical factors like wallet consolidation or ETF-related transfers.

The report notes that 2024 and 2025 rank among the largest years on record for long-term supply reactivation, driven not by speculation, but by direct selling into deeper institutional liquidity.

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Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin says the network must become easier to understand if it wants to fully live up to its promise of trustlessness, a challenge he argues extends across much of the blockchain industry.

In a post on X this week, Buterin said that while Ethereum already operates without centralized control, true trustlessness goes beyond code execution and validator decentralization.

It also depends on how many people can actually understand how the protocol works.

Vitalik Buterin Warns Complexity Can Undermine Blockchain Trustlessness

Trustlessness, in theory, means a system enforces its own rules through code, without relying on developers or intermediaries.

However, Buterin noted that when a protocol becomes so complex that only a small group of experts can grasp it end to end, users are still forced to trust that group in practice.

“An important and underrated form of trustlessness is increasing the number of people who can actually understand the whole protocol from top to bottom,” Buterin wrote. “Ethereum needs to get better at this by making the protocol simpler.”

Ethereum already enforces transactions and smart contracts through open-source software and a decentralized validator set.

However, Buterin acknowledged that growing layers of features, upgrades and technical abstractions have made it harder for average users, and even developers, to fully follow how the system operates.

Asked about the tradeoff between advanced features and simplicity, Buterin said the ecosystem should be willing to accept fewer features if it leads to better understanding and broader participation.

Projects building on Ethereum echoed Buterin’s view. INTMAX, a privacy-focused layer-2 network, said trustlessness breaks down when only a handful of people can audit or explain a system.

“If only five people can understand how your privacy protocol works, you haven’t achieved trustlessness, you’ve just changed who you trust. Simple, auditable privacy architecture > complex black boxes,” the project said.

Ethereum Roadmap Targets Simpler User Experience

Ethereum’s own roadmap acknowledges the problem. The network has said it remains “too complex” for most users and has outlined plans to lower barriers to entry and make Ethereum feel closer to a Web2 experience.

Planned improvements include smart contract wallets that simplify gas fees and key management, as well as making node operation possible on consumer devices like smartphones and browsers.

The Ethereum Foundation also continues to fund education initiatives aimed at expanding understanding of blockchain technology.

As reported, Ether held on centralized exchanges has dropped to an all-time low, with balances falling to just 8.7% of total supply, the smallest share since Ethereum launched in 2015.

The decline marks a 43% drop since July, a shift analysts say is tightening liquid supply and setting the stage for a potential market squeeze.

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Bitcoin’s prolonged sell-side pressure from long-term holders may be approaching its limits after years of steady distribution, according to a new report from research and brokerage firm K33.

The firm argues that a large portion of early holders has already taken profits, potentially setting the stage for a shift in market dynamics.

1.6M BTC From Long-Term Holders Has Re-Entered Circulation Since 2024

In a recent note, K33 head of research Vetle Lunde said Bitcoin supply held in unspent transaction outputs (UTXOs) older than two years has been declining consistently since 2024.

Over that period, roughly 1.6 million BTC, worth about $138 billion at current prices, has re-entered circulation, signaling sustained onchain selling from early investors.

Lunde said the scale of this decline suggests intentional distribution rather than routine technical activity.

While some reactivations can be explained by factors such as Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust converting into an ETF, wallet consolidation, or security upgrades, he argued those factors alone cannot account for the magnitude of supply that has moved.

“The numbers point to meaningful selling,” Lunde wrote, rather than passive reshuffling of coins.

According to K33, 2024 and 2025 rank as the second- and third-largest years on record for long-term supply reactivation, exceeded only by 2017.

Unlike that earlier cycle, which was driven by ICO participation and altcoin speculation, the current wave appears to be fueled by direct selling into deeper institutional liquidity.

Lunde pointed to the growth of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs and increased corporate treasury demand as key enablers of this shift.

The report cited several large transactions as evidence, including an 80,000 BTC over-the-counter sale facilitated by Galaxy in July, a whale swapping 24,000 BTC for ether in August, and another selling roughly 11,000 BTC between October and November.

K33 said similar activity has been widespread among large holders and is likely a major factor behind Bitcoin’s relative underperformance in 2025.

In total, K33 estimates that about $300 billion worth of Bitcoin aged one year or more has been revived this year alone.

Lunde said the availability of institutional liquidity has allowed long-term holders to exit positions at six-digit prices, reducing ownership concentration and establishing new cost bases across the market.

K33 Expects Bitcoin Sell-Side Pressure to Ease as Long-Term Supply Stabilizes

Looking ahead, K33 expects sell-side pressure to ease. “With 20% of BTC’s supply reactivated over the past two years, we expect onchain sell-side pressure to approach saturation,” Lunde said.

He expects the two-year supply metric to stabilize and end 2026 above its current level of around 12.16 million BTC.

The firm also flagged potential portfolio rebalancing effects as the quarter turns. Bitcoin has historically tended to move opposite the prior quarter early in a new one, Lunde noted.

After underperforming other asset classes in Q4, Bitcoin could see renewed inflows in late December and early January as managers rebalance fixed allocations.

As reported, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan and Grayscale Research both project BTC will exceed its previous peak despite conventional wisdom suggesting 2026 should be a pullback year.

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Bitcoin’s Lightning Network has climbed to a new all-time high in capacity, signaling renewed momentum for the layer-2 payments network after a long period of stagnation.

Data from Bitcoin Visuals shows that Lightning capacity reached 5,606 BTC on Monday, surpassing its previous record set in March 2023.

Separate figures from Lightning analytics platform Amboss put the peak slightly higher, at 5,637 BTC, worth roughly $490 million at current prices.

Lightning Network Capacity Rebounds, but User Growth Lags

The increase follows a noticeable rebound in November and December, after capacity trended lower for much of the past year.

The data suggests that more Bitcoin is being committed to Lightning payment channels, allowing for faster and cheaper transactions compared with on-chain transfers.

However, the growth in capacity has not been matched by a similar rise in network participation.

As of this week, the number of Lightning nodes stood at around 14,940, down from a peak of more than 20,700 in early 2022.

The number of channels connecting those nodes has also declined to about 48,678, well below its previous high.

This gap points to a network that is becoming more capitalized, but not necessarily more widely used by individual operators.

According to Amboss, the recent capacity jump is being driven less by grassroots growth and more by institutional players.

“It’s not just one company that’s putting more Bitcoin into the Lightning Network; it’s across the board,” the firm said, noting that major crypto exchanges such as Binance and OKX have added significant amounts of BTC to Lightning channels in recent weeks.

Broader developments in the Bitcoin ecosystem may also be supporting renewed interest in Lightning.

Stablecoin issuer Tether announced this week that it led an $8 millionfunding round in Lightning-focused startup Speed, which aims to enable stablecoin payments over the network.

While stablecoins largely operate on other blockchains today, some developers see Lightning as a potential settlement layer.

Lightning Labs Upgrades Taproot Assets to Enable Stablecoins on Bitcoin

At the protocol level, Lightning Labs said it has rolled out version 0.7 of Taproot Assets, an upgrade that introduces reusable addresses, auditable asset supplies and more reliable large transactions.

Taproot Assets allows assets such as stablecoins to be issued on Bitcoin and transferred over Lightning, combining Bitcoin’s base-layer security with near-instant settlement.

“With this release, we are laying the foundation for trillions of dollars to flow on Bitcoin and Lightning,” Lightning Labs said, pointing to a longer-term vision of Bitcoin evolving into a multi-asset network.

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US Senator Elizabeth Warren is seeking answers from federal law enforcement and financial authorities over whether decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges are under active investigation.

In a letter sent Monday to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Massachusetts Democrat asked whether their departments were “investigating significant national security risks posed by decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges like PancakeSwap.”

Warren requested a response by Jan. 12, framing the inquiry as part of broader congressional debates over crypto regulation.

Warren Warns DeFi Could Be Exploited for Illicit Finance Without Oversight

Warren said the public deserves clarity as Congress weighs crypto market structure legislation, including measures aimed at preventing illicit finance.

She pointed to concerns raised by national security experts and the crypto industry itself, warning that decentralized finance could be exploited by terrorists, criminals and sanctioned states if left unchecked.

The senator also questioned whether political considerations were influencing how crypto-related cases are enforced, citing what she described as selective action under the Trump administration.

Her letter referenced reports linking crypto activity to North Korea’s money laundering efforts and flagged claims that enforcement priorities may not be applied evenly across the sector.

Warren’s intervention comes as legislative momentum around crypto regulation slows in Washington.

Lawmakers had expected the Senate Banking Committee to advance the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, a key digital asset market structure bill, before the end of the year.

However, committee chair Tim Scott confirmed Monday that a markup hearing on the legislation has been delayed until 2026.

The letter also highlighted reports alleging that PancakeSwap had been promoting tokens tied to World Liberty Financial, a crypto company linked to the Trump family.

Warren said such activity raised questions about conflicts of interest and the president’s potential influence over crypto policy, concerns echoed by other Senate Democrats.

The renewed focus on Warren’s crypto stance comes as political dynamics shift ahead of the next election cycle.

John Deaton, a lawyer known for representing XRP holders in legal battles with regulators, announced in November that he will run as a Republican for the US Senate in 2026.

Deaton previously challenged Warren in the 2024 election and has emerged as a vocal critic of her approach to digital asset regulation.

Warren, Reed Urge DOJ and Treasury to Probe Trump-Linked Crypto Firm

Last month, Warren and Jack Reed also called on the DOJ and the US Treasury to investigate World Liberty Financial, a crypto company linked to the Trump family, over alleged connections to illicit actors in North Korea and Russia.

The senators cited a September 2025 report from watchdog group Accountable.US, which claimed the firm sold tokens to buyers with ties to money laundering platforms, an Iranian crypto exchange and North Korean hackers.

World Liberty Financial has denied any wrongdoing or conflicts of interest in response to the allegations.

World Liberty Financial lists President Donald Trump as a “co-founder emeritus,” with his sons Donald Jr. and Eric serving as Web3 ambassadors and Barron Trump as a DeFi visionary.

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Crypto exchanges and platforms are accelerating their push into prediction markets, with Gemini and PancakeSwap emerging as the latest players to roll out new offerings.

Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, announced Monday that it has launched its in-house prediction platform, Gemini Predictions, across all 50 US states.

The product is offered through Gemini Titan, an affiliate that recently secured a designated contract market license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), clearing the way for regulated prediction markets in the country.

Gemini Launches Regulated Prediction Markets in US

Gemini’s new platform allows users to trade on the outcomes of real-world events with near-instant execution and transparent settlement, according to the company.

The launch follows Gemini Titan’s regulatory approval last week, marking one of the most notable US expansions of prediction markets by a major crypto exchange.

The move fits into Gemini’s broader strategy of building an “everything app” for digital assets. Alongside spot trading, the exchange has expanded into staking, rewards, tokenized stocks and now prediction markets, mirroring a wider industry trend toward all-in-one platforms.

Rivals such as Coinbase and Crypto.com have also been exploring similar expansions as competition intensifies.

Prediction markets are not limited to centralized exchanges. Decentralized platforms are moving quickly as well.

PancakeSwap on Tuesday unveiled Probable, a new prediction market incubated by the decentralized exchange and backed by YZi Labs, the venture firm founded by Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.

Probable is set to launch exclusively on BNB Chain and will initially charge no fees.

According to PancakeSwap, the platform will automatically convert deposited tokens into USDT on BNB Chain, eliminating the need for users to manually swap or bridge assets. Event outcomes and settlement will be verified using UMA’s Optimistic Oracle.

While PancakeSwap is supporting the project’s early development, Probable will operate as an independent platform. A launch date has not yet been announced.

Prediction Markets Gain Traction as Volumes Hit Billions

The rapid expansion reflects growing demand for prediction markets, which gained momentum this year as platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket posted billions of dollars in monthly trading volumes beginning in October.

The trend has attracted attention from both crypto-native firms and traditional financial players, including Robinhood and MetaMask.

As reported, Kalshi has secured a major media breakthrough after signing a partnership with CNN, making the company the network’s official prediction markets partner while closing a $1 billion funding round at an $11 billion valuation.

Under the agreement, Kalshi’s real-time market data will be used inside CNN’s newsroom to support reporting on politics, economics, and major cultural events.

Meanwhile, Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital is in talks with Polymarket and Kalshi about becoming a liquidity provider, as on-chain betting on real-world events draws more attention from both retail traders and Wall Street.compliance remain unresolved.

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The Marshall Islands has launched a nationwide universal basic income (UBI) program that allows citizens to receive payments via cryptocurrency.

Under the initiative, every resident citizen is entitled to quarterly payments of roughly $200, or about $800 annually, as the government seeks to offset rising living costs and slow outward migration, according to a report from The Guardian.

The first payments were distributed in late November, with recipients given the option to receive funds through bank deposits, paper checks, or a government-backed digital wallet that delivers payments on the blockchain.

Marshall Islands Says UBI Aims to Boost Inclusion, Not Replace Work

Finance Minister David Paul said the scheme was designed to ensure broad inclusion rather than replace employment income.

“We the government want to make sure no one is left behind,” Paul told the Guardian, adding that the payments are intended to act as a social safety net and a morale boost rather than a substitute for work.

The Marshall Islands, a Pacific nation of around 42,000 people located between Hawaii and Australia, faces unique economic and geographic challenges.

Many communities are spread across remote atolls, complicating the delivery of public services and financial assistance. Officials say the cryptocurrency option was introduced to help overcome those logistical barriers.

The program is funded through a trust established under a long-standing agreement with the United States, partly aimed at compensating the Marshall Islands for decades of US nuclear testing.

The fund holds more than $1.3 billion in assets, with Washington committed to contributing an additional $500 million through 2027.

Dr. Huy Pham, an associate professor and crypto-fintech lead at RMIT University, said the initiative represents a global first.

“This is the world’s first national rollout of a UBI program,” he said, noting that the use of blockchain technology at a countrywide level is highly unusual.

The crypto payments are made using a US dollar-pegged stablecoin, a choice officials say provides price stability while allowing fast, traceable transfers across hundreds of islands.

Still, uptake of the digital option remains limited. According to the Marshall Islands Social Security Administration, about 60% of the first payments were made via bank deposits, with most of the remainder issued as checks.

Only around a dozen people have opted to receive their UBI through the digital wallet so far.

Sam Altman’s World Aspires to Create a Global UBI Mechanism

Sam Altman’s World, originally launched as Worldcoin, has also positioned its blockchain initiative as a path toward a global UBI mechanism.

The project’s core idea is to verify each person’s unique human identity using biometric scans. The “Orb” device creates a World ID that proves a user is real and not a bot, enabling fair distribution of its native token, WLD.

Verified users receive allocations of WLD, which some view as a form of UBI within the network, aimed at expanding financial inclusion and economic participation worldwide.

World also launched World Chain, an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, last year. The network serves its 15 million verified users with a “World ID” obtained via iris scanning.

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Digital asset platform Exodus has partnered with crypto payments firm MoonPay to roll out a US dollar-backed stablecoin designed for everyday use.

The Exodus Movement, known for its self-custodial crypto wallet, said Tuesday that the fully reserved digital dollar is scheduled to launch in early 2026.

The asset will be issued and managed by MoonPay and built using M0, a stablecoin infrastructure platform that enables companies to create and operate custom fiat-backed tokens.

Exodus Pay to Bring Self-Custodial Digital Dollar Spending to Global Users

The yet-to-be-named stablecoin will be integrated into Exodus Pay, a forthcoming payments feature within the Exodus app.

The goal is to allow users to spend and send digital dollars globally while maintaining self-custody, without requiring technical knowledge of cryptocurrencies or blockchain networks.

“Stablecoins are quickly becoming the simplest way for people to hold and move dollars onchain, but the experience still needs to meet the expectations set by today’s consumer apps,” said JP Richardson, co-founder and CEO of Exodus.

He added that the project aims to make digital dollar payments as seamless as traditional financial apps, starting with Exodus Pay.

MoonPay will distribute the stablecoin across its global network, supporting buying, selling, swapping, deposits and checkout services.

According to the companies, this broad integration is intended to give the digital dollar immediate real-world utility for consumers, merchants and partner applications.

The collaboration comes as MoonPay expands its enterprise stablecoin business, launched in November, which focuses on issuing and managing compliant digital dollars across multiple blockchains.

Its integration with M0 allows stablecoins to be programmable and interoperable while remaining tailored to specific product use cases.

“Enterprises want stablecoins that are programmable, interoperable and tailored to a specific product experience,” said Luca Prosperi, co-founder and CEO of M0.

“Our infrastructure is built to support that flexibility at scale.”

GENIUS Act Sparks Renewed Stablecoin Push Across Banks and Crypto Firms

The announcement lands amid a renewed surge of interest in stablecoins following the passage of the GENIUS Act in July, which established a federal regulatory framework for fiat-backed stablecoins in the US.

Since then, banks and crypto firms alike have accelerated their efforts to launch proprietary digital dollars.

This year alone has seen the Trump family-linked World Liberty Financial introduce the USD1 stablecoin, Stripe roll out stablecoin-based accounts in more than 100 countries, and Tether announce plans for a regulatory-compliant token dubbed USAT.

Despite the influx of new entrants, the market remains heavily concentrated. Tether’s USDT dominates with roughly 60% market share and about $186 billion in circulation, while Circle’s USDC holds around 25% with a market capitalization of $78 billion.

Together, the two account for roughly 85% of the $310 billion global stablecoin market.

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Russia’s largest lender, Sberbank, is expanding its push into digital finance as it tests decentralized finance (DeFi) tools and rolls out investment products linked to cryptocurrencies.

Speaking at the “FI Day. AI & Blockchain” conference in Moscow, senior Sberbank executives outlined a strategy focused on digital financial assets, blockchain infrastructure, and regulated access to crypto-linked investments.

The bank is also working on integrating with public blockchains, a notable step for a systemically important institution in Russia’s tightly controlled financial system.

Sberbank in Talks With Russian Regulators on Regulated Crypto Access

Anatoly Popov, deputy chairman of Sberbank’s management board, said the lender is already in active dialogue with the Bank of Russia and Rosfinmonitoring on how crypto-related services could fit within a regulated framework.

The goal, he said, is to allow qualified investors to access digital assets using familiar banking infrastructure, while ensuring investor protection and financial stability.

Sberbank has already begun testing DeFi instruments and expects traditional banking and decentralized finance to converge over time.

Within current regulations, the bank offers structured bonds and digital financial assets (DFAs) whose returns are tied to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether, as well as baskets of multiple digital assets.

These products allow clients to gain exposure to crypto markets without holding tokens directly.

The bank has also issued digital asset funds tracking indices linked to Bitcoin and Ether, along with a broader crypto infrastructure portfolio that includes assets such as Solana, Tron, Avalanche, and BNB.

In addition, Sberbank has launched several structured bonds, both on exchanges and over the counter, with yields linked to Bitcoin and Ether indices.

The total volume of these crypto-linked instruments has reached about 1.5 billion rubles, which Popov described as a strong result for a nascent market.

While Sberbank does not view cryptocurrencies as a speculative investment for its own balance sheet, it has signaled readiness to act as a liquidity provider and market maker on regulated platforms once clear rules are in place.

The bank estimates that crypto adoption among Russians remains high, with the central bank projecting digital asset holdings in domestic wallets could reach hundreds of billions of rubles by early 2025.

Sberbank is Building its Own Blockchain

Alongside crypto-linked products, Sberbank is continuing to build its own blockchain platform for issuing and managing digital financial assets.

The platform, developed internally, supports smart contracts and tokenization tools for corporate clients and has already been used to issue digital assets linked to commodities and cryptocurrency indices.

Looking ahead, Sberbank sees stablecoins, tokenized assets, and greater interoperability between private and public blockchains as key trends.

Executives said the bank is particularly interested in public networks with mature smart contract ecosystems, such as Ethereum, though broader integration will depend on regulatory clarity.

In March, Sberbank launched a blockchain technology-powered token that tracks global cocoa prices.

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Solana has weathered one of the most powerful distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks ever recorded without any visible impact on network performance.

The attack, which has been ongoing for more than a week, peaked at nearly 6 terabits per second (Tbps), ranking as the fourth-largest DDoS attack in internet history, according to data shared by SolanaFloor.

Despite the scale, network metrics show Solana continued to process transactions normally, with sub-second confirmations and stable slot latency throughout the period.

Solana Joins Google, Cloudflare and AWS in Record-Scale DDoS History

Charts accompanying the disclosure place the Solana incident alongside historic attacks targeting major centralized infrastructure providers, including Google Cloud, Cloudflare customers, Microsoft Azure, and AWS.

While those attacks ranged from 2.3 Tbps to as high as 46 Tbps, Solana’s appearance on the list marks a rare case of a public blockchain facing traffic volumes comparable to the largest assaults on traditional internet services.

Validators and core infrastructure absorbed the traffic without degraded performance, reinforcing claims that Solana’s architecture has matured significantly since earlier congestion episodes.

Meanwhile, the Sui network experienced a DDoS attack just a day earlier, which resulted in delayed block production and periods of reduced performance.

A DDoS attack is an attempt to overwhelm a network, website, or system with massive traffic so it can’t operate normally.

Attackers use large numbers of compromised devices (a botnet) to send junk requests at the same time, flooding the target with data.

The goal isn’t to steal information, but to slow the system down, cause outages, or make services unavailable.

DDoS attacks are not rare in crypto. Last year, the Cardano network experienced an attempted DDoS attack beginning at block 10,487,530.

Raul Antonio, chief technology officer of Fluid Tokens, explained that the attack tried to manipulate the blockchain into charging lower fees for high-value transactions.

Likewise, layer-2 blockchain Manta suffered a DDoS attack shortly after successfully listing its Manta token on multiple exchanges last year.

Solana Faces Liquidity Reset as Losses Mount

As reported, Solana is entering a period of stress as on-chain data points to shrinking liquidity and falling profitability.

Glassnode data shows the network’s 30-day realized profit-to-loss ratio has remained below 1 since mid-November, a level typically linked to bearish conditions, meaning traders are realizing losses more often than gains and market sentiment has weakened.

Analysts at Altcoin Vector describe the situation as a “full liquidity reset,” a phase that has historically marked the early stages of new liquidity cycles and, in some cases, market bottoms.

While near-term volatility remains high, analysts say conditions could begin to stabilize within weeks, potentially setting the stage for a recovery by early January if the pattern mirrors past cycles.

Meanwhile, amid growing demand for Solana funds, Web3 infrastructure provider Alchemy has rebuilt its Solana stack from the ground up, aiming to deliver near-zero downtime, faster transaction speeds, and higher scalability.

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The US Securities and Exchange Commission has sharply scaled back its enforcement actions against the cryptocurrency industry since President Donald Trump returned to office.

The agency has dismissed or paused close to 60% of crypto-related cases, according to a report published Sunday by The New York Times.

While enforcement activity continues across traditional markets, cases involving crypto firms have been disproportionately affected by withdrawals, pauses, or outright dismissals since January, the report said.

SEC Retreats From Ripple and Binance Cases

Among the most prominent cases cited were the SEC’s long-running lawsuits against Ripple Labs and Binance, both of which have seen significant pullbacks.

The Times also noted that the regulator is “no longer actively pursuing a single case against a firm with known Trump ties,” a detail that has intensified scrutiny of the agency’s motives.

The SEC pushed back on suggestions of political favoritism, telling the newspaper that its decisions were driven by legal and policy considerations rather than politics.

The report added that it found no evidence President Trump directly pressured the agency to abandon specific investigations.

Industry figures argue the enforcement retreat reflects a broader reassessment of the SEC’s earlier approach to crypto.

Alex Thorn, head of firmwide research at Galaxy Digital, said claims that the shift is linked to Trump’s personal interests overlook what he described as years of aggressive and inconsistent regulation.

Thorn said framing the pivot as politically motivated ignores “four years of direct attacks by the actual partisans.”

The backdrop to the enforcement slowdown includes a deepening connection between Trump-linked entities and the digital asset sector.

In 2025, projects associated with the president or his family expanded significantly, ranging from World Liberty Financial to Trump-branded crypto initiatives, including the Official Trump memecoin and American Bitcoin, a mining venture backed by the president’s sons.

Leadership Shift at SEC Looms as Final Democratic Commissioner Exits

At the same time, changes at the top of the SEC are set to further reshape the agency’s stance.

Paul Atkins, a Republican appointee seen as more receptive to market-driven regulation, is expected to remain chair for the foreseeable future. However, the commission is preparing to lose its final Democratic member.

Caroline Crenshaw, whose term officially expired in 2024, is expected to depart in January after serving an additional 18 months.

Trump has yet to announce nominees to fill her seat or another vacant Democratic position on the commission.

Crenshaw has been one of the most vocal critics of the SEC’s softer approach to crypto under the Trump administration.

In one of her final public appearances last week, she warned that easing oversight could expose markets to wider contagion risks, cautioning that reduced scrutiny may come at a cost to investor protection.

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Crypto wallet provider MetaMask has expanded its multichain push by adding native support for Bitcoin, marking a notable shift for a platform long associated with Ethereum-based networks.

The company announced the rollout on social media on Monday, nearly ten months after first hinting at the integration in February.

With the update, Bitcoin now joins Ethereum, Solana, Monad and Sei as supported assets within MetaMask, allowing users to hold and transact BTC directly from the wallet.

MetaMask Lets Users Buy, Swap and Send Bitcoin

MetaMask said users can now buy Bitcoin, swap other tokens into BTC, and send or receive the asset, with confirmed transactions appearing automatically in their asset list.

The company cautioned that Bitcoin transfers typically settle more slowly than transactions on EVM-compatible chains or Solana, reflecting the network’s design.

To encourage adoption, MetaMask is offering reward points for users who swap into Bitcoin through the wallet.

Until now, access to BTC on MetaMask was limited to wrapped versions of the asset, which rely on intermediaries and carry additional smart contract risk.

The Bitcoin integration was first discussed earlier this year, when MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay suggested the feature could go live in the third quarter of 2025.

Its arrival underscores the company’s broader effort to reposition itself as a multichain wallet rather than an Ethereum-only tool.

MetaMask began that transition in May with support for Solana, followed by integrations with Sei in August and Monad in November. While details remain limited, the firm has signaled that further blockchain support is planned.

“Bitcoin support marks the latest step in our multichain expansion,” MetaMask said, adding that additional networks are expected to be added in 2026.

MetaMask to Integrate Polymarket

As reported, MetaMask has entered the prediction market space through a new integration with Polymarket, allowing users to trade on real-world event outcomes directly from their wallets.

The feature introduces one-tap funding, enabling deposits from any EVM-compatible chain, and rewards users with MetaMask points for each prediction placed.

The partnership creates a new on-ramp for Polymarket, which has seen rapid growth over the past year, particularly during the 2024 US election cycle.

A more favorable regulatory backdrop and renewed US market access have helped drive its expansion, with the platform now reportedly exploring a valuation of up to $15 billion following a strategic investment from Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the NYSE.

The wallet is also preparing for the rollout of a native MASK token, as parent company Consensys gears up for a potential IPO.

The move comes as Polymarket is recruiting staff for an internal market-making team that would trade against its own customers, mirroring a controversial feature already used by rival Kalshi that has drawn criticism and legal challenges.

The New York-based prediction market startup has reportedly approached traders, including sports bettors, to join the new unit, people familiar with the matter said, requesting anonymity because the plans remain private.

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A Bitcoin investor lost his retirement savings after falling victim to a so-called “pig butchering” scam, despite repeated warnings from his advisory firm, according to a firsthand account shared by a Bitcoin wealth adviser.

Terence Michael, an author and adviser affiliated with The Bitcoin Adviser, said an unnamed client transferred his Bitcoin holdings to a scammer after being approached online by a woman posing as a trader.

The woman promised to double his Bitcoin and gradually built what appeared to be a romantic relationship, a hallmark tactic of pig butchering scams.

Bitcoin Adviser Says Client Ignored Warnings, Lost Funds to Scam

In a post shared on X, Michael said he made “numerous phone calls” and sent a “string of text messages” in an effort to stop the transfer.

The warnings went unheeded. While Michael was out to dinner, he received a message from the client confirming that the funds were gone.

“My client was falling for a pig butchering scam,” Michael wrote. “And as of last night … I received a devastating text message from him saying he had lost it all.”

Unlike traditional cyberattacks that rely on malware or direct wallet compromises, pig butchering scams depend on emotional manipulation.

Victims are convinced to willingly send their assets, often after being groomed through days or weeks of conversation that blend investment advice with personal and romantic claims.

Michael said the client, who had recently divorced, went beyond sending Bitcoin. He also purchased a plane ticket for the scammer, expecting to meet her in person.

After the transfer was completed, the attacker reportedly admitted that the photos used throughout the relationship were fake and generated using artificial intelligence tools.

The case highlights the growing scale of pig butchering scams across the crypto industry. In 2024 alone, these schemes drained an estimated $5.5 billion from victims across roughly 200,000 reported cases, according to industry data.

In June, the US Department of Justice announced the seizure of more than $225 million in cryptocurrency tied to pig butchering operations, underscoring the growing enforcement response to one of crypto’s most damaging fraud trends.

AI-Driven Crypto Scams Hit $4.6B as Deepfakes Fuel New Fraud Wave

As reported, the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence is driving a new generation of crypto scams, pushing global losses to $4.6 billion in 2024, according to a 2025 Anti-Scam Research Report released on June 10.

The study, co-authored by Bitget, SlowMist, and Elliptic, found that scammers are increasingly using AI-generated deepfakes, fake video calls, and Trojan-infected job offers to deceive victims, with at least 87 AI-powered scam rings dismantled in the first quarter of 2025 alone.

The report warns that deepfake impersonations, social engineering, and Ponzi schemes disguised as DeFi or NFT projects now dominate the threat landscape.

Criminal groups are also using cross-chain bridges and obfuscation tools to launder stolen funds, complicating recovery efforts.

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Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor’s Strategy has doubled down on its long-standing conviction, announcing another massive Bitcoin buy worth nearly $1 billion.

In a Form 8-K filing dated December 15, Strategy disclosed that it acquired 10,645 BTC between December 8 and December 14, spending $980.3 million at an average price of $92,098 per coin.

The purchase was funded through proceeds raised under the firm’s at-the-market (ATM) equity and preferred stock offerings, including sales of common shares and multiple preferred stock classes.

Strategy Becomes World’s Largest Corporate Bitcoin Holder With 671,268 BTC

Following the latest acquisition, Strategy’s total Bitcoin holdings climbed to 671,268 BTC, with an aggregate purchase cost of $50.33 billion and an average price of $74,972 per Bitcoin.

The move further cements the company’s position as the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin globally, far ahead of other public firms.

Last week, Strategy also purchased 10,624 BTC for roughly $962.7 million, paying an average price of $90,615 per coin.

The new purchases come as Strategy has built a $1.44 billion reserve to cover dividend and debt interest payments in cash, avoiding the need to sell any of its extensive Bitcoin holdings during periods of high market volatility.

CEO Phong Le has said the company’s newly built cash reserve is designed to quiet investor anxiety over its ability to withstand a sharp downturn in Bitcoin.

Le said the move followed weeks of speculation about whether the firm could continue meeting its dividend and debt commitments if market conditions worsened.

“We’re very much a part of the crypto ecosystem and Bitcoin ecosystem,” Le said. “Which is why we decided a couple of weeks ago to start raising capital and putting US dollars on our balance sheet to get rid of this FUD.”

The reserve, funded via a stock sale, is intended to secure at least 12 months of dividend payments, with plans to stretch that buffer to 24 months.

Concerns over Strategy’s dividend stability had grown louder in recent weeks as Bitcoin retreated from its highs.

Bitcoin Drops Under $90,000 as Investors Turn Defensive

Bitcoin slipped below the $90,000 mark this week, reinforcing a cautious short-term outlook as investors pull back from risk assets, according to Lin Tran, senior market analyst at XS.com.

In a note shared with Cryptonews, Tran said Bitcoin continues to trade in line with broader risk sentiment, remaining closely tied to US technology stocks and shifting expectations around monetary policy.

The analyst noted that Bitcoin’s rejection near $100,000 and its struggle to hold above the psychological $90,000 level point to growing risk aversion, particularly as markets head into year-end.

Investors appear focused on protecting gains after the strong rally earlier in the cycle.

Tran highlighted US Federal Reserve policy as the key macro driver.

While interest rates have been cut, the Fed’s cautious guidance and still-elevated real rates have limited the return of global liquidity, capping Bitcoin’s upside.

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