Key takeaways

• BTC traded around $81,593, above its 50-day EMA at $80,878.
• Bitcoin’s RSI near 47 and slightly negative MACD suggest recovery momentum remains weak.
• BTC faces resistance at $85,000, with deeper support at $77,528 and $76,186.

Crypto prices stabilize after support tests

Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP edged higher on Friday after the previous session’s correction brought all three assets toward important technical support levels.

Bitcoin held just near its 50-day Exponential Moving Average, Ethereum found support around its 100-day EMA, and XRP maintained its horizontal floor near $1.300.

The modest rebound suggests buyers remain active around these levels. However, the recovery remains dependent on support holding, with decisive daily closes below those areas potentially opening the door to a deeper correction.

Bitcoin holds its 50-Day EMA

Bitcoin traded just below $81,856 on Friday, remaining above its 50-day EMA at $80,878.

Holding that average preserves a constructive technical backdrop despite the recent consolidation. The 100-day EMA at $77,528 and the 200-day EMA at $76,186 also remain below the current price, providing additional support for the broader trend.

Momentum indicators offer less convincing evidence of an immediate rally. The Relative Strength Index sits near 46, slightly below the neutral 50 threshold, suggesting buyers have yet to establish clear control. Meanwhile, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence remains marginally negative.

Together, those readings indicate stabilization rather than a confirmed bullish reversal. The first major upside barrier is the horizontal resistance near $85,000, where previous selling could limit recovery attempts.

A sustained move toward that level would test whether buyers can build on Friday’s rebound. Stronger momentum would be needed to turn the current support defense into a more durable advance.

Until then, Bitcoin remains vulnerable to further consolidation as buying interest below price competes with overhead supply.

On the downside, the 50-day EMA at $80,878 remains the immediate level to watch. A decisive daily close below it would weaken the recovery setup and bring the 100-day EMA at $77,528 into focus. Further selling could expose the 200-day EMA at $76,186.

Bitcoin Ordinals and Runes supporters have renewed calls for native trading on OpenSea after Leonidas shared a comment attributed to a company marketer saying community feedback helps shape its product roadmap.

Leonidas, in posts dated Oct. 21 and Oct. 22, urged collectors to make their interest known and directly asked OpenSea to support both asset types. His posts included an image of Bitcoin collections displayed in an OpenSea interface and a separate promotional graphic imagining trading support.

“Please add support for Ordinals and Runes.”

The request establishes a public campaign for integration. Neither screenshot contains an official OpenSea announcement confirming native Bitcoin trading, an approved integration, or a release date.

OpenSea supporters press for a Bitcoin integration

In his Oct. 21 post, Leonidas reproduced a statement attributed to an OpenSea marketer encouraging people who want Ordinals to keep asking for them. The quoted statement said community feedback “very much directly informs our product roadmap.”

The screenshot does not include the original recording or the full conversation surrounding the remark. Its wording describes how feedback informs product decisions without promising that Bitcoin support has been scheduled.

Alongside the statement, Leonidas shared an interface showing Runestone in a featured position. Bitcoin Puppets and NodeMonkes appeared under a section labeled “Trending Ordinals Collections,” alongside Bitcoin Wizards and Taproot Wizards.

The image displays collection prices in BTC and includes activity figures, but it does not show a completed purchase or a Bitcoin transaction. Collection visibility in that screenshot therefore remains separate from evidence of an available trading service.

A second post, dated Oct. 22, paired the direct request with an OpenSea-branded graphic reading “Ordinals and Runes trading is live!” Because Leonidas published the image while asking for support, the graphic cannot be treated as a company launch notice.

In a milestone decision for European cryptocurrency regulation, the European Banking Authority (EBA) has classified USDC as the European Union’s first significant e-money token under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation framework.

What the EBA’s Significance Classification Means

According to the EBA, 45 e-money tokens have been notified under MiCA to date, but USDC is the very first to meet the criteria for “significant” designation. USDC is issued within the European Union by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS.

Beginning November 12, USDC will transition to a dual-supervision model for significant e-money tokens under MiCA rules:

• European Banking Authority (EBA): Direct supervision covering essential structural areas including own funds requirements, reserve assets management, liquidity standards, as well as recovery and redemption planning.
• Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Resoluton (ACPR): France’s national regulator will retain responsibility for local governance, outsourcing, qualifying holdings, managing conflicts of interest, and executive fitness assessments.

Heightened Supervision vs Non-Compliance

Unlike previous regulatory guidance regarding non-compliant stablecoins, the EBA’s decision does not designate USDC as non-compliant or restricted. Instead, it subject USDC to enhanced, direct European oversight due to its substantial scale and systemic importance across digital asset markets.

Key Implications for UK and European Traders

For cryptocurrency exchanges, custodians, liquidity providers, and retail investors using USDC, this supervisory shift establishes a structured regulatory precedent under MiCA:

• Formalised supervisory coordination between national and EU-level regulators.
• More detailed operational requirements regarding reserve management, redemption protocols, and liquidity arrangements.
• Increased regulatory scrutiny for other stablecoin issuers approaching significant volume thresholds in European markets.

This development comes alongside wider European regulatory developments and ongoing implementation of cryptocurrency framework standards. Readers following institutional regulatory updates can also review our previous coverage on UK FCA crypto authorisation deadlines and UK banking access restrictions for additional context on evolving crypto compliance rules.

Alpenglow actually makes those transactions faster, giving apps a way to show users their money has arrived with stronger assurance that the payment will hold. Such a benefit is especially useful when a service needs to release funds or goods immediately after receiving payment.

An exchange could credit a deposit sooner, letting a customer trade with the funds. A shop accepting a stablecoin payment could confirm it without keeping the customer at the counter waiting for settlement.

How quickly that reaches a user’s screen also depends on the service handling the payment. Anza, the company behind Solana’s Agave software, told CoinDesk in a release that some computers receive finality information later than the validators voting directly.

The 150-millisecond figure remains a target under normal network conditions, rather than a guaranteed time for every payment.

Users can continue sending funds through their existing wallets. Transaction fees and the way applications run remain unchanged.

The speed comes from changing how validators, the computers checking transactions and agreeing on the network’s records, communicate.

Meanwhile, there is also a change readers may notice on network dashboards. Validator votes no longer appear as blockchain transactions, so services that counted them will report lower transaction totals.

President Donald Trump planned to put special focus on his administration’s efforts against overseas crypto-fueled criminal operations at a Wednesday event on cybercrime, according to a White House official.

Crypto-related scams have stolen tens of billions from U.S. citizens, and Trump was set to highlight how much his administration is targeting and disrupting the transnational organizations behind it. Multinational criminal cartels have set up elaborate scam centers designed to steal money through relationship scams, phishing campaigns, ransomware attacks and other fraudulent means, and the official said that the U.S. strategies to seize funds and shut down the operations will be discussed.

The administration says its law enforcement agencies have halted about $833 million in crypto connected to the overseas scams, and 503 fraudulent crypto websites have been seized under the watch of the Homeland Security Task Force. It’s also informed almost 9,000 U.S. citizens that they’re being victimized, the official said.

In November, the Department of the Treasury announced it had formed a multi-agency Scam Center Strike Force that pursued so-called “pig butchering” that was coordinated by widespread and well-funded organized-crime operations in places such as Burma, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines.

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According to an October 2026 report by Stand with Crypto UK shared with crypto.news, 9,803 individuals submitted 10,092 complaints over a 90-day period between May and August after facing difficulties transferring money to crypto platforms.

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The complaints span all 650 UK parliamentary constituencies, highlighting how widespread the issue has become for retail crypto investors and traders.

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Which Banks Are Restricting Crypto?

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Lloyds Banking Group received the most complaints at 2,297, including those involving Halifax and Bank of Scotland customers, followed by Barclays with 1,569 and NatWest Group (including Royal Bank of Scotland) with 1,278. HSBC UK was the fourth bank to receive more than 1,000 complaints during the period.

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Other banks named in the report included Monzo, Santander UK, Nationwide, Revolut, Starling Bank, TSB and Chase UK, while Virgin Money and Co-operative Bank received the fewest complaints at 103 and 76 respectively.

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What Restrictions Are Actually in Place?

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The complaints covered a range of restrictions on crypto-related payments, from banks imposing daily and monthly transaction limits to providers blocking transfers to cryptocurrency platforms altogether.

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Barclays and HSBC UK allow customers to transfer up to £2,500 per transaction to cryptocurrency platforms, with a maximum limit of £10,000 over a 30-day period. NatWest allows no more than £1,000 per day and £5,000 over 30 days. Santander caps individual transactions at £1,000 with a monthly limit of £3,000. Monzo allows crypto-related transfers of up to £5,000 over 30 days, while Nationwide imposes a daily limit of £1,000.

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Six banking providers examined in the report, including Starling Bank, TSB, Chase UK, Metro Bank, Virgin Money and Co-operative Bank, were listed as imposing outright bans on crypto-related transfers.

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Lloyds and Revolut didn’t officially announce any restrictions, but customers of both providers still reported difficulties completing transfers.

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What Stand with Crypto UK Is Asking For

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Stand with Crypto has called on banks to replace blanket bans and rigid payment limits with controls based on individual customer and transaction risks, and urged banks to clearly explain when and why crypto-related transfers could be blocked or restricted.

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The organization also recommended that customers be given a proper way to challenge such decisions or request exemptions when transferring money to FCA-registered or authorized platforms.

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Why This Matters for UK Traders

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The dispute comes as the FCA has opened its crypto authorization process ahead of a new regulatory framework. The FCA opened applications for the new crypto regulatory framework on September 30, 2026, and firms have until February 28, 2027, to apply if they want to qualify for transitional arrangements.

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However, the new rules do not require retail banks to process payments to cryptocurrency exchanges, meaning customers could continue facing restrictions depending on their bank’s policies even after the new framework takes effect.

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If you bank with one of these providers, keep records of any blocked transactions and contact your bank’s customer service for clarity on their specific policies before attempting transfers to crypto platforms.

Key takeaways

• ADA futures open interest fell to $475.58 million from $549.14 million, reflecting reduced derivatives exposure.
• Positive funding shows a modest bullish tilt among perpetual traders, leaving longs vulnerable if prices fall further.
• ADA remains below key moving averages, with $0.1894 emerging as a potential downside target.

Cardano Stabilizes After Sharp Weekly Decline

Cardano held above $0.2200 on Monday as buyers attempted to steady the price following a roughly 12% decline last week.

ADA has lost more than 10% so far in October, while weakening derivatives activity and subdued large-wallet positioning suggest limited conviction behind a recovery.

The daily chart also remains under pressure after last week’s break below trendline support near $0.2321. With the token trading beneath its key moving averages, sellers retain the near-term advantage.

CoinGlass data shows that Cardano futures open interest declined to $465.87 million on Monday from $549.14 million last week.

That represents a reduction of approximately 14.5% in the notional value of outstanding contracts.

The decline suggests reduced derivatives exposure, though it does not prove that retail traders alone are leaving the market. Falling ADA prices can reduce dollar-denominated open interest, while position closures and liquidations can also contribute.

The funding rate remained positive at 0.0032%, indicating that long positions were paying shorts in the tracked perpetual market.

That modest positive reading suggests some traders are still positioned for a rebound. However, funding alone does not demonstrate excessive leverage. 

A further price decline could nevertheless put vulnerable long positions under pressure and trigger additional forced selling.

Onchain figures suggest large holders have made only modest adjustments to their exposure.

According to Santiment data, wallets holding more than 100 million ADA accounted for 15.99% of circulating supply, slightly higher than 15.95% last week.

Meanwhile, the cohort holding between 10 million and 100 million ADA represented 38.11% of supply, down from 38.27%.

The opposing movements provide a mixed picture rather than a clear accumulation trend. They also do not, by themselves, establish whether tokens were sold, transferred between wallets or moved across holding categories.

Combined with lower futures exposure, the figures offer limited evidence of renewed buying conviction.

Cardano’s technical outlook remains bearish

ADA continues to trade beneath its 50-day Exponential Moving Average near $0.2290 and its 200-day EMA around $0.2395.

The loss of trendline support near $0.2321 adds to the weak structure, leaving several barriers above the current price.

Momentum indicators reinforce the bearish bias. The Moving Average Convergence Divergence indicator remains below zero with a negative histogram, while the Relative Strength Index hovers around 41.

The RSI reading suggests sellers retain the upper hand, although ADA has not reached the conventional oversold threshold of 30.

Without a recovery through nearby resistance, the latest stabilization remains a pause within the correction rather than confirmation of a trend reversal.

The psychological $0.20 level is an immediate downside reference if selling resumes. Below it, the August 30 low near $0.1894 represents the next structural support. 

A move toward that level would be about 14%–15% downside from the current price area.

On the upside, buyers first need to challenge the 50-day EMA at $0.2290. The former trendline support near $0.2321 then presents another obstacle, followed by the 200-day EMA at $0.2395.

A sustained recovery through those levels would help weaken the bearish setup. Until then, Cardano remains exposed to further losses as traders assess whether demand can strengthen around $0.2200.

Key takeaways

• NEAR fell 7% on Tuesday to around $4.70, extending Monday’s decline.
• Bitwise’s NEAR ETF attracted $5.42 million on Monday after three consecutive weeks of inflows.
• Resistance near $5.02 must be reclaimed to strengthen the recovery outlook.

NEAR retreats despite continued ETF buying

NEAR Protocol declined by over 7% on Tuesday, following a similar loss the previous day, as weakening short-term momentum outweighed continued demand through its exchange-traded fund.

The token traded around $4.70 at the time of this report, remaining below a closely grouped resistance area near $5.02.

Bitwise’s NEAR-focused ETF, NRR, recorded $5.42 million in net inflows on Monday, according to SoSoValue data. The buying followed three consecutive weeks of inflows totaling more than $80 million.

The positive flows indicate sustained demand through the fund, although they have not prevented the latest price correction. ETF activity represents one investment channel and does not determine the direction of the broader market.

NEAR’s Q3 2026 report, released Monday, highlighted growth in its multichain transaction infrastructure.

Cumulative volume through NEAR Intents exceeded $32 billion, approximately 45% above the previous quarter’s reported cumulative figure.

The protocol also reported that more than $8 million in fees had been directed toward token buybacks.

Meanwhile, total value locked in its privacy-focused Confidential Intents reached approximately $160 million, an increase of roughly 463%.

These figures point to expanding use of NEAR’s infrastructure. However, network growth and token buybacks do not guarantee an immediate recovery in NEAR’s market price.

Resistance around $5.02 caps recovery attempts

On the four-hour chart, NEAR remains below its 50-period Exponential Moving Average at $5.0179 and a descending resistance trendline near $5.0261.

Together, those levels form the first significant obstacle for buyers seeking to restore short-term momentum.

A sustained breakout above $5.0261 would strengthen the recovery case and bring the September 28 high at $5.5780 into focus. Beyond that, the $6.00 round-number level represents the next upside reference.

Until NEAR clears this resistance cluster, rebounds remain vulnerable to selling. The Relative Strength Index stands near 50 on the daily chart, indicating subdued momentum below its neutral midpoint.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence indicator has also crossed marginally beneath its signal line, suggesting that upward pressure is fading.

These readings support a cautious near-term outlook, although they do not establish that the broader upward trend has reversed.

NEAR continues to trade above its 200-period EMA around $4.5513, leaving an important technical support level intact.

If the correction extends, the 200-period EMA near $4.55 provides the first significant support reference.

Below it, horizontal support at $4.4440 marks an area that limited losses on October 8. Holding this zone would support the interpretation of the decline as a correction within the broader uptrend.

A sustained break beneath both levels would weaken that structure and increase the risk of a deeper decline toward $3.9140, the September 19 high.

For now, NEAR’s outlook hinges on whether buyers can defend support and regain the resistance cluster around $5.02, even as ETF inflows and network activity remain constructive.

Smarter Web Lists Bitcoin-Backed Preferred Shares on LSE

The Smarter Web Company (SWC) listed its perpetual preferred shares on the London Stock Exchange, marking a significant development in how UK companies can now structure corporate Bitcoin investments.

The shares, trading under the ticker MORE, represent the UK’s first sterling-denominated perpetual preferred shares backed by a corporate Bitcoin treasury. The offer was priced at £90 per share with an annualized dividend rate of 12%, payable weekly.

This weekly dividend schedule sets MORE apart from traditional UK income stocks, most of which pay dividends quarterly or twice yearly. Smarter Web describes the weekly payout schedule as a first among London-listed public companies.

How the Shares Work

Perpetual preferred shares sit between bonds and common stock. They typically pay a set dividend and take priority for payment before ordinary shareholders, but they carry no maturity date and no promise of capital repayment. The shares carry a liquidation preference of £100 per share, which is the amount holders receive ahead of common shareholders if the company is wound up.

The 12% initial dividend rate translates into a running yield of approximately 13.33% for anyone who bought at the £90 issue price.

Funding Bitcoin Purchases

The listing comes after the company published results showing the offer raised £10.0 million gross, with net proceeds of around £8.3 million. The Bristol-based company, which trades under ticker SWC on the London Stock Exchange, adopted a formal Bitcoin treasury policy in 2025, making Bitcoin accumulation a central part of its corporate strategy.

As of September 30, Smarter Web held approximately 2,747 BTC. The structure ties the dividend-paying instrument directly to Bitcoin accumulation, creating a link between investor returns and corporate Bitcoin holdings.

What This Means for UK Investors

The listing opens a new income product for UK retail and institutional investors seeking exposure to Bitcoin through a regulated London-listed vehicle. Unlike buying Bitcoin directly, preferred shareholders receive weekly dividend payments and have claim priority if the company is wound up.

However, income depends entirely on Smarter Web’s ability to fund payouts. The company’s treasury is concentrated in Bitcoin, an asset known for sharp price swings, which creates both opportunity and risk for income consistency.

For investors tracking the shares, watch how MORE trades relative to the £90 issue price and £100 liquidation preference, and monitor updates to the company’s Bitcoin holdings as it deploys capital into the asset.

Main picture: Photo by Dylan Gillis on Unsplash