Crypto World
Kraken Joins ICE Chat to Boost Institutional OTC Access
Kraken has expanded its institutional reach by linking its over-the-counter (OTC) desk to ICE Chat, Intercontinental Exchange’s real-time messaging platform used by banks and trading desks. Announced February 17, 2026, the arrangement makes Kraken the first cryptocurrency platform to be approved for ICE Chat, enabling quote requests and negotiations to flow directly within a system that aggregates more than 120,000 market participants. The move positions Kraken’s liquidity alongside traditional assets across a familiar workflow, signaling a broader push to incorporate digital assets into mainstream financial-market infrastructure. The OTC desk at Kraken handles large block trades in crypto spot and options, and the partnership with ICE is expected to evolve as institutions look for deeper, more integrated access to crypto liquidity.
Key takeaways
- Kraken’s OTC desk is now integrated with ICE Chat, enabling institutional traders to access Kraken’s crypto liquidity directly through a widely used messaging platform.
- ICE Chat connects more than 120,000 market participants, including banks, brokers, and trading desks, allowing real-time deal negotiation within established workflows.
- Kraken is the first crypto platform approved to connect to ICE Chat, situating digital asset liquidity alongside traditional asset classes.
- The integration is expected to expand over time, reflecting broader efforts to embed digital asset trading into traditional financial-market infrastructure.
- ICE’s broader crypto initiatives include on-chain data collaborations, large-scale investments in crypto markets, and potential partnerships with wallet and payments providers, signaling a more integrated financial ecosystem.
Market context: Link the story to broader crypto conditions (liquidity, risk sentiment, regulation, ETF flows, macro, or sector trends) WITHOUT inventing facts.
Why it matters
The Kraken-ICE Chat linkage marks a notable step toward deeper institutional access to crypto liquidity. By enabling quote requests and negotiations to occur within ICE’s established messaging network, hedge funds, asset managers, and banks can integrate crypto trading into their existing workflows without resorting to separate channels or processes. The arrangement reduces friction for large crypto block trades, a key consideration for participants handling significant volumes in both spot and options markets. In practical terms, traders can coordinate, price, and settle trades within a single, familiar interface, potentially improving execution efficiency and speed while preserving governance and compliance controls.
The move also highlights ICE’s broader strategy to bring digital assets into mainstream capital-markets infrastructure. ICE operates ICE Chat, the New York Stock Exchange, and a suite of data, clearing, and technology services. Its push into crypto markets aligns with the industry-wide trend of bridging traditional finance with digital assets, leveraging established market infrastructure to widen participation and liquidity. In recent months, ICE has pursued a series of crypto-related initiatives, including a collaboration with Chainlink to pull FX and precious metals data on-chain, substantial investments in crypto-native ventures, and explorations into crypto payments capabilities. These steps underscore a broader ambition to weave crypto more deeply into the fabric of conventional trading and risk management.
The partnership comes amid a wider set of tokenization and on-ramp developments across major exchanges. Nasdaq has signaled a willingness to explore tokenized equities through regulatory channels, while the NYSE has discussed plans to operate a 24/7 trading platform for tokenized stocks and ETFs, integrating traditional post-trade settlement with blockchain-based processes. These efforts reflect a synchronous push from traditional venues toward digitized asset classes, where liquidity, transparency, and execution efficiency are often cited as critical advantages. The ecosystem is evolving rapidly, with market participants watching how these initiatives will interact with evolving regulatory standards and the pace of adoption by institutional users.
The timing of Kraken’s announcement overlaps with other notable industry moves. Earlier in the year, Kraken pledged to support a government-backed initiative to create “Trump Accounts,” a savings program for Americans under 18—an effort that reflects the broader intersection of crypto policy and retail-facing programs. This backdrop illustrates how crypto firms are navigating public policy while expanding their institutional capabilities, seeking to demonstrate value beyond consumer-focused products and toward core market infrastructure.
Why it matters (continued)
The integration could help amplify liquidity for large crypto trades by tapping into ICE’s global network, potentially reducing spreads and improving price discovery for institutional participants. It also signals to regulators and incumbents that crypto liquidity can be treated as part of the same market ecosystem that handles equities, bonds, and other traditional asset classes. For Kraken, the collaboration with ICE Chat may expand its reach among asset managers who prefer operating within standardized, risk-managed environments—furthering the normalization of digital assets within regulated financial marketplaces.
What to watch next
- Expansion updates: Follow announcements about extending ICE Chat access to additional Kraken clients and other Kraken desks or counterparties.
- Broader ICE crypto initiatives: Monitor developments tied to ICE’s data services, on-chain integrations, and potential partnerships in payments or custody.
- Tokenization momentum: Track regulatory progress and product launches related to tokenized stocks and ETFs at Nasdaq and NYSE, which could influence liquidity and settlement paradigms.
- Data and settlement enhancements: Look for updates on ICE’s Consolidated Feed and how it interoperates with on-chain data streams and DeFi-native pricing mechanisms.
Sources & verification
- Kraken Integrates with ICE Chat to Expand Institutional OTC Access — Business Wire press release (official announcement of the integration).
- ICE Chat and Market Participation — ICE corporate communications outlining the platform’s reach beyond traditional markets.
- Chainlink and ICE Forge On-Chain Data Collaboration — Cointelegraph coverage detailing ICE’s data-on-chain initiative.
- ICE Invests in Polymarket — Cointelegraph reporting on ICE’s $2 billion investment and the valuation context.
- Nasdaq and NYSE tokenization efforts — Cointelegraph coverage of Nasdaq’s tokenized-stocks push and NYSE’s plans for 24/7 tokenized-trading platform.
What the announcement changes
The Kraken-ICE Chat integration represents a concrete step in the ongoing evolution of institutional crypto access. By embedding Kraken’s liquidity within ICE’s established communications platform, the move lowers barriers for large-scale crypto trading and aligns digital asset execution with the workflows many institutions already use for other asset classes. The collaboration reinforces the idea that cryptos are not merely retail instruments but elements of a broader, interconnected market infrastructure that includes data, clearing, risk management, and settlement. As the ecosystem expands, institutions may increasingly rely on a combination of on-chain data, centralized exchanges, and OTC desks to manage exposure, price risk, and execution efficiency across diverse crypto products.
What to watch next
- Monitoring quarterly updates from Kraken and ICE for new client onboarding and expanded platform access.
- Regulatory developments affecting crypto-asset trading infrastructure and tokenized securities, including any policy shifts impacting tokenization and cross-market liquidity.
- Progress on ICE’s partnerships with data providers and on-chain data feeds, and how these integrations affect price discovery and risk management.
More than 36,000 BTC left exchanges this month as miners shifted holdings to cold storage, hinting at bullish expectations ahead.
Bitcoin miners have moved more than 36,000 BTC from exchanges since the beginning of February.
The volume stands out when measured against earlier months and points to a change in how they are managing their holdings.
Miner Activity in February
A CryptoQuant report indicates that roughly 36,000 BTC were transferred from trading platforms within a short period this month. Out of that total, more than 12,000 BTC was withdrawn from Binance, while the remaining 24,000 BTC was distributed across several other exchanges. This shows that the activity occurred broadly across the market, instead of being linked to a single exchange or one isolated transaction.
This type of activity is generally associated with long-term storage because miners typically move BTC to cold wallets instead of leaving their holdings on exchanges. Such transfers can also mean confidence in future price growth, as lower exchange balances reduce the amount of BTC readily available for sale on the spot market.
CryptoQuant also noted that daily withdrawals accelerated during the period. On one day alone, more than 6,000 BTC was moved off exchanges, marking the highest single-day total since last November. Compared to January, February’s withdrawal levels are much higher, contributing to the view that miners are actively repositioning.
At the same time, miners are not the only group showing sustained faith in the OG cryptocurrency’s upside. Data shows that long-term holders accumulated 380,104 BTC over the past 30 days, indicating continued demand from that segment of the market.
Market Outlook
The opening weeks of February have delivered a blow to BTC, with its price falling near the $60,000 at one point. Data from CoinGecko shows that over the past 24 hours, the cryptocurrency went from slightly over $67,000 to just under $70,000, while posting a decline of more than 28% over the past month.
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However, analysts at VanEck describe the 2026 downtrend as an “orderly deleveraging” instead of a sudden collapse. Head of Digital Asset Research Mathew Sigel previously explained that this is because futures open interest has dropped by about 20%, suggesting leveraged positions are being reduced in a controlled manner rather than through panic-driven liquidations.
February’s performance has also been shaped by institutional outflows, macroeconomic pressure, and tax-related factors. Spot Bitcoin ETF outflows are now exceeding inflows, suggesting profit-taking or a shift to defensive assets like gold. The Federal Reserve has also maintained rates near 3.75% amid 2.4% inflation, while the newly introduced Internal Revenue Service 1099-DA form adds compliance pressure for investors.
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An Ethereum user lost $600,000 on Tuesday morning to a common crypto scam known as ‘address poisoning.’
Highlighting the loss, SpecterAnalyst, a self-described “onchain investigator,” warned users to “always verify the entire wallet address.”
The costly mishap comes just one week after another user lost over $350,000 to the same scam, despite first sending a test transaction to the attacker’s address.
Read more: Crypto trader loses $50M USDT to address poisoning scam
Address poisoning is an attack vector in which scammers send spam transactions to genuine users, after they make a transfer.
The incoming transactions come from similar-looking addresses in the hopes that the user will confuse them for the intended address in future transfers. Fake versions of common token tickers may be transferred in these spam transactions, or small amounts of genuine assets.
The strategy requires generating a new, look-alike address with identical beginning and end characters, which the user accidentally copies and pastes into future transfers.
Popular block explorers often abbreviate the middle portion of addresses to save space.
Read more: Refund of $70M ‘address poisoning’ scam ongoing, over 50% returned
Barabazs.eth, of the Ethereum Foundation and Ump.eth, proposes a partial solution to this issue. The tool allows for visually truncated addresses, while the full text remains searchable for users to double-check before transfers.
However, using an address book is far safer than copying addresses from a block explorer.
After Ethereum’s Fusaka upgrade lowered transaction costs, address poisoning has surged. The volume of freshly created addresses has risen sharply following the protocol upgrade in December last year, according to research from Andrey Sergeenkov.
Test failed successfully
In the wake of today’s loss, SpecterAnalyst also drew attention to a significant loss from last week.
This time, the user even sent a test transaction to the scammer’s spoofed address, but “the test fund was not properly confirmed before sending the main amount.”
The simple error led to a loss of over $350,000.
SpecterAnalyst suggests that, for this user, testing became “a routine step rather than serving its actual purpose of confirming the correct destination address.”
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Dutch payments company Quantoz Payments has become a principal member of Visa, enabling it to issue virtual debit cards backed by its regulated e-money tokens and sponsor third-party fintechs seeking to offer stablecoin-linked payment products across Europe.
Under the agreement, Quantoz will be able to issue Visa-branded virtual cards tied to balances held in its USDQ, EURQ and EURD e-money tokens, allowing users to spend those funds online, in stores and through mobile wallets.
The company will also act as a BIN sponsor, enabling fintech partners to embed card issuance directly into their platforms.
Quantoz holds an Electronic Money Institution license from the Dutch central bank and issues its tokens as regulated electronic money within the European Economic Area, with reserves held 1:1 in safeguarded accounts through a bankruptcy-remote foundation structure. The company said it is also required to maintain at least an additional 2% reserve buffer on its balance sheet.
Quantoz and Visa did not disclose a launch date for the first card programs or name any fintech partners that will use the infrastructure. The partnership is focused on the European market.
Related: Stablecoins gain ground for paychecks and daily spending: BVNK report
Big payment networks racing to integrate stablecoins
As major payment networks compete to integrate stablecoins into mainstream finance, Visa has expanded its capabilities through new settlement integrations and cross-border pilots, while Mastercard is weighing acquisitions to accelerate its onchain infrastructure strategy.
In July, Visa broadened its stablecoin settlement platform to support Global Dollar (USDG), PayPal USD (PYUSD) and Euro Coin (EURC), while adding integration with the Stellar and Avalanche blockchains, allowing institutions to move supported stablecoins across those networks or convert them into fiat through Visa’s infrastructure.
In September, the company launched a Visa Direct pilot enabling banks to pre-fund cross-border payments with USDC and EURC, aiming to support near-instant payouts while reducing the need to park capital in advance.
The following month, Visa said it would expand support to four stablecoins across four separate blockchains, with CEO Ryan McInerney telling investors that Visa plans to continue growing its stablecoin capabilities after increased activity over the past fiscal year.
Unlike Visa’s expansion through pilots and network integrations, Mastercard appears to be pursuing a more acquisition-driven strategy to deepen its stablecoin infrastructure.
Rather than building each onchain component internally, Mastercard is evaluating the purchase of a turnkey provider that could be integrated into its existing payments network.
Magazine: Did a Hong Kong fund kill Bitcoin? Bithumb’s ‘phantom’ BTC: Asia Express
Nakamoto, the Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) treasury company formerly known as KindlyMD, has signed definitive agreements to acquire BTC Inc and UTXO Management GP, advancing its plan to build a Bitcoin-native operating company. The move consolidates media, events and capital allocation under a single public vehicle as the company pivots away from its prior healthcare focus. The arrangement underscores a broader push to formalize Bitcoin-centric businesses within a listed framework, linking media properties, advisory services and asset management under one umbrella.
Key takeaways
- The all-stock deal values the acquisition at roughly $107.3 million, calculated from a fixed $1.12 per share under Nakamoto’s call-option framework combined with Friday’s close around $0.2951.
- BTC Inc and UTXO Management GP shareholders will receive 363,589,816 shares of Nakamoto common stock on a fully diluted basis, diluting existing holders given the price disparity with the current trading level.
- The transaction leverages a Marketing Services Agreement that granted Nakamoto a right to acquire BTC Inc, which itself owned a call option to acquire UTXO, tying three entities together through a stock-based consideration.
- Nakamoto’s balance sheet currently includes 5,398 BTC, a figure that places it ahead of several other public Bitcoin treasury holders and aligns with its expanded treasury strategy long in the works.
- The deal follows a broader Bitcoin treasury pivot, built on the idea that media, advisory and asset-management services can be bundled under a public company dedicated to Bitcoin, even as the broader market faces volatility and downcycles.
Tickers mentioned: $BTC, $NAKA
Sentiment: Neutral
Price impact: Negative. The stock traded lower after the announcement as dilution concerns weighed on investors.
Market context: The deal arrives amid a testing phase for corporate treasury strategies in crypto markets. Bitcoin’s price has experienced a steep swing in recent quarters, with the asset retreating from previous peaks and testing investor appetite for Bitcoin-focused corporate moves. The broader market environment has underscored the tension between ambitious, asset-backed business plans and the need for actionable, near-term value delivery to shareholders.
Why it matters
The proposed acquisition acts as a strategic centripetal force for Nakamoto’s ambitions to create a Bitcoin-native operating ecosystem. By bringing BTC Inc, known for Bitcoin Magazine and The Bitcoin Conference, together with UTXO Management GP, which provides advisory services and connections to Bitcoin-focused capital, Nakamoto aims to streamline the decision-making and capital allocation process around Bitcoin. This consolidation could shorten the path from media coverage and thought leadership to real-world investment and capital deployment in the Bitcoin space.
From a portfolio perspective, Nakamoto’s 5,398 BTC on its balance sheet places the company among the more substantial publicly disclosed Bitcoin treasuries. The tally is frequently cited by market trackers such as BitcoinTreasuries.NET, which catalogs corporate bitcoin holdings and related disclosures. The combination of media influence, conference branding and asset-management capabilities under one roof positions Nakamoto to influence both public perception and practical investment flows around Bitcoin. The move follows a broader industry pattern where companies seek to align communications, investor relations and treasury management under a single corporate entity to maximize efficiency and visibility.
The background of the deal is also noteworthy: Nakamoto rebranded from KindlyMD after facing headwinds in its healthcare business, including a subpar share price performance that spurred a strategic repositioning toward Bitcoin. This pivot — from healthcare services to a Bitcoin-focused treasury and media strategy — illustrates how public markets reward clear alignment between asset exposure and governance, as well as a coherent long-term plan for capital allocation in an asset class that remains highly cyclical and sensitive to macro shifts.
In the context of the crypto downturn, where Bitcoin’s price has declined from peaks observed during the previous cycle, investors are closely watching how treasury-centric models can sustain growth and deliver cash flow in a public market setting. As Cointelegraph and other outlets have reported, treasury adoption and the formation of Bitcoin-focused public vehicles have faced pressure during periods of downturn, making the current deal a critical test case for the viability of a diversified, Bitcoin-centric public platform.
Related coverage has highlighted the interplay between Bitcoin media, events and investment vehicles as a potential accelerator for mainstream adoption, even as the sector contends with volatility and evolving regulatory scrutiny. The current transaction, with its all-stock consideration and fixed-price framework, emphasizes a willingness to prize strategic alignment and long-term value creation over near-term share-price parity.
What to watch next
- Regulatory approvals and closing conditions for the acquisition of BTC Inc and UTXO Management GP, including any required shareholder votes.
- Completion of the stock issuance: timing, share registrations and any subsequent adjustments to the fully diluted share count.
- Performance of BTC Inc and UTXO assets under Nakamoto’s ownership, especially how BTC Inc’s media assets (Bitcoin Magazine) and conference operations scale within the public vehicle.
- Monitoring Nakamoto’s treasury strategy as new corporate cash flows emerge from the consolidated platform and whether additional acquisitions or partnerships follow.
Sources & verification
- Nakamoto Holdings announces definitive agreements to acquire BTC Inc and UTXO Management GP, with details of the all-stock consideration and call-option framework.
- The Marketing Services Agreement (MSA) underlying the call option and acquisition structure, including the right to acquire BTC Inc and its implications for the deal’s valuation.
- Nakamoto’s disclosed Bitcoin holdings (5,398 BTC) and the company’s public market status on Nasdaq under NAKA, as reflected in industry trackers and the company’s filings.
- Bitcoin Inc’s role as the parent entity for Bitcoin Magazine and organizer of The Bitcoin Conference, and UTXO’s advisory relationship with 210k Capital.
- BitcoinTreasuries.NET and publicly accessible market data pages showing Nakamoto’s position relative to other public Bitcoin treasury holders and the company’s market capitalization trends.
Key figures and next steps
Nakamoto broadens Bitcoin treasury play with all-stock acquisitions
Nakamoto’s latest pivot marks a concerted effort to transform a niche treasury strategy into a scalable, publicly traded platform. By acquiring BTC Inc, which operates Bitcoin Magazine and The Bitcoin Conference, and UTXO Management GP, which provides Bitcoin-focused advisory services, the company is positioning itself as a one-stop shop for Bitcoin media, events, strategy and asset management. The stock-based consideration, fixed at $1.12 per share, is substantial relative to the current trading price, underscoring a willingness to accept significant dilution to accelerate the consolidation of these assets under a single corporate umbrella. The resulting combined entity would have a diversified revenue stream spanning media properties, event-driven revenue and Bitcoin advisory and asset services, all tethered to the performance of the Bitcoin ecosystem itself. The size of the consideration — 363,589,816 shares on a fully diluted basis — reflects both the ambition of the deal and the complexity inherent in cross-entity stock swaps tied to a volatile asset class.
From a governance perspective, the transaction hinges on a stock-for-assets approach that aligns incentives with Nakamoto’s long-term growth strategy. The fact that Nakamoto’s stock trades on Nasdaq under NAKA, with a market capitalization around a few hundred million dollars, adds pressure to deliver tangible upside for investors beyond mere consolidation. The market’s initial reaction appeared negative, as indicated by a post-announcement decline in Nakamoto’s share price, a typical response when large pools of new shares enter the float. Yet the strategic logic remains: a public vehicle that can coordinate Bitcoin media reach, capital-formation activities and wallet-level treasury strategies may unlock synergies that are not as easily realized through standalone entities.
Historically, Nakamoto’s Bitcoin holdings have been a cornerstone of its narrative. With 5,398 BTC on its balance sheet, the company sits ahead of several peers in the public-treasury space, positioning it as a reference point for others evaluating whether to scale similar approaches. The integration of BTC Inc’s media empire and UTXO’s advisory reach could deepen liquidity for Bitcoin-focused assets and accelerate capital allocation to Bitcoin-related ventures, potentially smoothing the path for new fundraising or strategic partnerships.
As this process unfolds, observers will watch how the combined entity manages governance, treasury allocation, and the delivery of near-term earnings or cash flows that can validate the business model. The deal’s all-stock structure implies a forecast of growth fueled by equity rather than immediate cash, a choice that emphasizes confidence in long-run value creation but also invites closer scrutiny of dilution effects and ongoing capital discipline.
In summary, the acquisition represents a deliberate bet on the breadth of the Bitcoin ecosystem — media influence, conference-driven engagement, and advisory and asset-management services — converging in a single public platform. If executed thoughtfully, the new entity could become a template for how Bitcoin-centric businesses scale within public markets while maintaining alignment with the asset’s core network and community dynamics. The coming quarters will reveal whether the expected synergies translate into sustained shareholder value as Bitcoin’s market cycles continue to shape corporate strategy in this evolving sector.
MYX Finance has entered a critical phase after weeks of intense selling pressure. The token has suffered a steep decline amid broader bearish crypto market conditions.
Heavy profit-taking and forced exits accelerated the fall. MYX has now become a focal point of concern among traders
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MYX Finance Token Forms History
MYX’s correlation with Bitcoin has shifted sharply since February 8. The coefficient improved from negative 0.42 to positive 0.47. This change indicates that MYX is increasingly tracking Bitcoin’s price movements.
However, this alignment presents risk. Since February 8, Bitcoin has remained in consolidation without meaningful recovery. A stronger positive correlation suggests MYX may continue mirroring Bitcoin’s weakness. Without a BTC breakout, bearish conditions could persist for MYX.
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The Money Flow Index highlights the intensity of recent selling. The indicator shows severe capital outflows as investors rushed to exit positions. Panic selling, combined with leveraged liquidations, intensified downward pressure.
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This wave of capitulation has pushed MYX into oversold territory for the first time in its trading history. Typically, oversold conditions suggest selling may slow as value-focused buyers step in. In many cases, such readings precede short-term relief rallies.
However, context matters. Oversold signals alone do not guarantee immediate recovery. Broader market weakness and fragile sentiment could delay accumulation. If Bitcoin fails to stabilize, MYX may struggle to attract fresh capital despite extreme technical readings.
MYX Price Bounce Back Unlikely
MYX price is down nearly 30% in the past 24 hours. The token trades at $1.50 at the time of writing. This sharp drop compounds a 70% decline recorded since February 8, reinforcing the scale of the correction.
Current technical and macro signals suggest further downside risk. Continued correlation with Bitcoin and persistent outflows could pressure MYX lower. A retest of the $1.22 level appears plausible before oversold conditions trigger meaningful stabilization.
Conversely, investor behavior could shift sooner than expected. If holders halt selling and begin accumulating at discounted levels, momentum may change. Reclaiming the $1.68 support level would mark an early recovery signal. A confirmed bounce could open MYX price’s path toward $2.01 and potentially higher, invalidating the prevailing bearish outlook.
Stablecoin platform Bridge, owned by the payments processor Stripe, said it had received conditional approval to operate as a federally chartered national trust bank under the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).
In a Tuesday notice, Bridge said it had received conditional approval from the banking regulator, allowing the company to “operate stablecoin products and services under direct federal oversight” once fully approved. Bridge said the charter would allow it to offer custody of digital assets, issue stablecoins and manage stablecoin reserves.
“Our compliance framework already positions Bridge to be GENIUS ready,” said the company, referring to the stablecoin bill signed into law in July 2025. “Now achieving a national trust bank charter will provide our customers the regulatory backbone they need to build with stablecoins confidently and at scale.”
Bridge is one of several crypto-aligned companies seeking a national trust bank charter from the OCC following the passage of the GENIUS Act. In December, the agency conditionally approved applications from BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos to convert their respective state-level trust companies, and conditionally approved Circle and Ripple for national trust bank charters.
Related: Bankers push OCC to slow crypto trust charters until GENIUS rules clarified
According to OCC records, Bridge applied for a bank charter in October and was given approval on Feb. 12. Stripe acquired the platform in 2025 as part of a $1.1 billion deal for the company to support stablecoin payments.
In a Wednesday letter, the American Bankers Association (ABA) urged the OCC to slow its approval of crypto companies for national bank trust charters, saying rules under the GENIUS Act were still unclear. According to the banking group, companies could use national trust charters to essentially bypass oversight by US financial regulators.
“[…] ABA strongly encourages OCC to be patient, not measure its application decisioning progress against traditional timelines, and allow each charter applicant’s regulatory responsibilities to come fully into view before moving a charter application forward,” said the letter.
US policymakers still considering how to handle stablecoin rewards
As US lawmakers in the Senate advance bills to establish a comprehensive digital asset market structure framework, White House officials continue to meet with representatives from the crypto and banking industries to address stablecoin yield. Addressing stablecoins within the market structure bill, as well as issues related to tokenized equities and conflicts of interest, could be a sticking point for many lawmakers ahead of a potential vote in the Senate.
Magazine: IronClaw rivals OpenClaw, Olas launches bots for Polymarket — AI Eye
[PRESS RELEASE – Panama City, Panama, February 17th, 2026]
Pred, a peer-to-peer sports prediction exchange, announced a $2.5 million funding round led by Accel, with participation from BEF by Coinbase Ventures and Reverie. The capital will support team expansion, liquidity development, and global user onboarding as Pred builds exchange-grade infrastructure for sports prediction markets. The platform is live in private beta, with traders being onboarded through an invite-only program ahead of broader public access.
Pred is building the fastest sports prediction exchange on Base, Coinbase’s layer-2 blockchain network. The platform lets traders buy and sell positions on sports outcomes with 200-millisecond execution and spreads under 2 percent. It is designed for traders who approach sports markets with the same analytical discipline used in financial markets, emphasising transparent order books, market-driven pricing, and on-chain settlement.
“Prediction markets have proven their value for episodic events, but sports represent an entirely different scale of opportunity, continuous, global, and deeply liquid. Pred is building purpose-built infrastructure for this market rather than retrofitting general-purpose tools. That’s the kind of focused execution we back.” – Prayank Swaroop, Partner at Accel.
While prediction markets have historically demonstrated strong forecasting accuracy, most applications have been limited to episodic events such as elections or macroeconomic outcomes. Sports present a fundamentally different environment, with continuous global demand, frequent events, and a natural fit for high-speed trading strategies. Despite the scale of the global sports betting economy, the majority of volume remains concentrated within house-controlled sportsbooks that set prices and manage risk internally.
Pred takes a different approach by applying an exchange model to sports predictions, allowing participants to trade directly with one another. Prices emerge through real supply and demand, reflecting collective market sentiment rather than fixed odds. By removing the house from the equation, Pred aims to create a more efficient, transparent, and trader-driven marketplace for sports outcomes.
“Sports prediction is a $500B global industry still running on infrastructure that punishes winners. We built Pred to change that, a decentralised exchange where speed, transparency, and skill are rewarded, not penalised.” – Amit Mahensaria, CEO and Co-Founder.
Pred will use the funding to build out its team with talent from financial and sports sectors, deepen market liquidity through institutional partnerships, and drive the trader growth needed to sustain a high-velocity exchange. The goal: become the premier global destination for sports prediction trading.
About Pred
Pred is building a sports prediction exchange that lets traders buy and sell positions on sports outcomes with 200ms execution and spreads under 2%. Unlike traditional sportsbooks that limit or ban winning users, Pred operates as a peer-to-peer exchange where skilled traders are welcome.
*Disclaimer: Pred does not operate in India, Singapore, the US, or OFAC-sanctioned countries.
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Users need not share his politics, product opinions, or cultural tastes to freely use the decentralized network, says Vitalik Buterin.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said that users do not need to agree with his views on applications, trust assumptions, politics, decentralized finance, decentralized social platforms, privacy-preserving payments, artificial intelligence, or even cultural preferences in order to use Ethereum.
He believes that disagreement with him on any one issue does not require agreement or disagreement on any other.
“Corposlop” Isn’t Censorship
In a lengthy post on X, Buterin stated that he does not claim to represent the entire Ethereum ecosystem. He described Ethereum as a decentralized protocol built around permissionlessness and censorship resistance, which allows anyone to use the network in whatever way they choose without regard for his opinions, the views of the Ethereum Foundation, or those of Ethereum client developers.
He said that labeling applications he dislikes as “corposlop” is not censorship. According to Buterin, free speech means individuals cannot prevent others from operating, but remain free to criticize, just as they may be criticized in return.
Buterin said such criticism is necessary and rejected the concept of “pretend neutrality,” in which individuals present themselves as equally open to all perspectives while avoiding clearly stated positions. He wrote that neutrality should apply to protocols, such as HTTP, Bitcoin, and Ethereum, and within limited scope to certain institutions, but not to individuals, who should instead clearly state their principles, including by identifying and criticizing things they believe are incompatible with those principles, and working with others who share aligned goals to build a metaverse where those principles are treated as a baseline.
He asserted that principles cannot be confined solely to protocol design, while arguing that any principle naturally leads to conclusions not only about how a protocol should be built but also about what should be built on top of it, and that such principles inevitably extend beyond technology into broader social questions, which he said should not be avoided.
Hollow Uses of “Freedom” in Tech
Buterin added that valuing concepts such as freedom while treating them as relevant only to technical choices and disconnected from other aspects of life is not pragmatic but is hollow. He further stated that a decentralized protocol must not be viewed as belonging to only one metaverse and that the boundaries of a metaverse are inherently fuzzy, which makes it common for people to align on some axes while disagreeing on others.
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The latest comments from the Ethereum co-founder came a month after he backed the view held by Bitcoin maximalists that concerns around digital sovereignty were well-founded. Buterin had then argued that today’s internet has pivoted toward corporate-controlled systems that erode user power and described sovereignty as protecting privacy, attention, and autonomy from profit-driven platforms, not just resisting governments.
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Shiba Inu price has reclaimed a key monthly support level after an impulsive sell-off, signaling that oversold conditions may be giving way to a relief rally as buyers begin to step back in.
Summary
- Monthly support reclaim signals seller exhaustion and short-term stabilization
- Oversold conditions are easing, supporting upside rotation
- Holding above value area low favors a move toward range highs
Shiba Inu (SHIB) price action has entered a critical phase after a sharp bearish expansion pushed the token into deeply oversold territory. Following this impulsive decline, SHIB briefly traded below a major high-timeframe support level before quickly reclaiming it, a technical development that often signals seller exhaustion rather than sustained breakdown.
This reclaim has shifted the short-term narrative from risk of continuation to potential stabilization. While broader market conditions remain mixed, SHIB’s ability to recover lost support and hold above it suggests that demand is beginning to absorb supply at lower levels.
The coming sessions will be key in determining whether this move develops into a larger recovery or remains a short-lived reaction.
Shiba Inu price key technical points
- Monthly support has been reclaimed, invalidating the recent breakdown
- Oversold conditions are easing, supporting a relief bounce scenario
- Holding above value area low increases upside probability, toward range highs
The recent sell-off in Shiba Inu was aggressive, producing a sequence of lower lows and strong bearish momentum. However, this downside move ultimately pushed the price below a key monthly support level, a zone that has historically attracted demand.
Rather than accepting below this level, the price quickly rebounded and reclaimed support, forming a bullish retest. This type of behavior is often associated with capitulation-style moves, where sellers exhaust themselves and buyers step in aggressively once liquidity is taken.
From a market structure perspective, reclaiming lost support after a brief breakdown weakens the bearish case and increases the likelihood that the move lower was corrective rather than trend-defining.
Consolidation at value area low
Following the reclaim, SHIB has entered a consolidation phase around the value-area low of the prior trading range. This region represents the lower boundary of fair value and is often where markets pause to rebalance after impulsive moves.
Holding above the value area low is critical. Acceptance above this level would indicate that buyers are defending price and absorbing remaining supply. Conversely, a failure to hold this region would reopen downside risk and call into question the recent reclaim.
At present, price action suggests balance rather than renewed selling pressure, reinforcing the stabilization narrative.
Oversold conditions support a relief rally
Momentum indicators had reached extreme oversold levels during the recent decline, reflecting panic-driven selling rather than orderly distribution. As price stabilizes, these oversold conditions are beginning to ease, a common prerequisite for relief rallies.
When oversold momentum coincides with a reclaim of high-timeframe support, the probability of a rotational move higher increases. This does not necessarily imply a full trend reversal, but it does open the door for a corrective rally toward higher resistance levels.
Volume behavior will be key in confirming this thesis. Sustained bullish volume during consolidation and early expansion phases would strengthen the case for continued upside.
Upside targets come into focus
If SHIB can hold above the value area low on a closing basis, the next logical upside objective is near the value area high of the previous range. This level represents the upper boundary of fair value and often acts as the first major resistance during recovery phases.
A move toward this area would complete a clean rotational structure, shifting sentiment from defensive to constructive in the short term. However, failure to reclaim and hold above value would keep the market vulnerable to renewed volatility.
What to expect in the coming price action
From a technical, price action, and market structure perspective, Shiba Inu is showing early signs of stabilization after an oversold sell-off. The reclaim of monthly support and consolidation above the value area low suggest that downside momentum is weakening.
In the near term, traders should watch for continued acceptance above current support levels and an increase in bullish volume. If these conditions persist, a rotational move toward higher resistance becomes increasingly likely.
That said, SHIB remains within a broader corrective environment, and patience is required. As long as price holds above reclaimed support, the path of least resistance favors further upside exploration rather than immediate continuation lower.
Wall Street analysts are betting that BitGo’s push into full-service institutional crypto finance will not only fuel long-term growth but also position the company as a prime acquisition target for traditional finance firms.
Compass Point analyst Ed Engel, who has a buy rating on the stock, wrote that the firm’s services could be attractive to traditional firms looking to offer crypto products to their clients.
“We … view BTGO as an ideal M&A target for Wall Street companies expanding into crypto. BitGo offers a full suite of services that could be integrated into traditional prime brokers and new entrants could acquire BitGo to provide these solutions to clients,” the analyst wrote.
BitGo was one of the first digital asset firms to go public this year, providing custody and security services for digital assets, primarily catering to institutional clients. The IPO marked one of the first times public equity investors could gain direct exposure to crypto infrastructure, making BitGo the bridge between traditional finance and digital assets as more financial firms push deeper into the digital asset space.
The infrastructure play is one of the points Engel said could offer more upside, noting that investors are overly focused on its core custody business rather than BitGo’s “opportunity to cross-sell prime services.” The analyst went as far as comparing it to Galaxy (GLXY) and Coinbase’s (COIN) prime brokerage services and noting that Galaxy’s average revenue per trading counterparty is “~6x BitGo’s, implying significant upside,” for BitGo, if the firm is able to ramp up its services.
‘Attractive’ take over target
The company’s competitive advantage and acquisition potential were echoed by at least one other Wall Street investment bank’s analyst.
“We believe BitGo’s competitive moat is solid, but more importantly we believe the company could make an attractive time-to-market asset for major Tradfi players looking to enter this market in an expedited manner,” said Canaccord Genuity in a note. The analyst has a $15 price target and a buy rating on the stock.
BitGo’s acquisition potential isn’t without precedent.
In May 2021, Galaxy Digital said it agreed to buy the firm for $1.2 billion, but later abandoned the deal after Galaxy said BitGo had failed to provide financial statements by a deadline at the end of July. With the stock being public, those concerns may no longer be an issue.
BitGo’s stock has dropped more than 40% since the company set its January IPO at $18 per share, now trading near $10.26. Meanwhile, bitcoin has declined about 24% year-to-date, Galaxy fell about 9% and Coinbase tumbled nearly 30% amid a broader crypto market selloff.
The IPO valued the firm at $2 billion, but after the recent selloff, the stock’s market cap is currently about $1.24 billion, bringing it closer to the valuation near the failed Galaxy deal.
However, Canaccord sees BitGo’s underperformance as an overreaction by the market. “BTGO shares… have reacted much more severely than any shorter term P&L trajectory weakness might warrant,” the investment bank’s analyst said, defending the stock.
BitGo currently has 10 analysts covering the stock, with nine buy ratings and one hold rating, according to FactSet data. Analyst price targets range from $12 to $18 per share, implying the stock could still rise by 17% to 75% from current prices.
Read more: Crypto M&A Heats Up as Big Banks and Fintechs Race to Scale
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