Crypto World
Bitcoin’s price discovery is moving to Chicago
Bitcoin , once hailed as an anti-establishment asset and antithesis to Wall Street, may now bend to sharp traders from those same floors.
Trading in the leading cryptocurrency is steadily shifting toward CME Group, and the exchange’s move to 24/7 derivatives later this year could cement its role as the dominant venue for institutional crypto risk.
The change removes one of the last advantages held by crypto exchanges: nonstop market access.
“You’ll see more traditional hedge fund managers getting more into the asset class, because they’ll be able to trade it on instruments they know, without having to upgrade their tech or move their signals,” Karl Naim, Chief Commercial Officer at XBTO, told CoinDesk. “Why would they want to take a counterparty risk of an entity they don’t know?”
CME already leads regulated bitcoin futures markets by open interest, and its contracts underpin much of the hedging activity tied to U.S. spot ETFs. Until now, however, trading paused over the weekend, producing the well-known “CME gaps” and leaving institutional investors unable to adjust positions while offshore exchanges continued operating.
Around-the-clock trading removes that constraint. Institutions that once relied solely on exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or avoided weekend exposure will be able to hedge continuously, tightening arbitrage windows between prices for regulated futures and offshore perpetual swaps.
As those gaps disappear, so too does the need for large allocators to maintain exposure on crypto exchanges simply for access. For institutions that prioritize regulatory clarity and established clearinghouses, CME begins to look less like an alternative and more like the default.
Even crypto exchange executives are aware of this. In January, OKX President Hong Fang wrote in a CoinDesk op-ed that crypto derivatives trading could one day rival or even surpass spot volumes on major global exchanges, making U.S. regulated volatility markets an even stronger anchor for bitcoin price discovery worldwide.
Institutions calling the shots
For Naim, the shift reflects a broader evolution in how capital enters bitcoin. What began as a grassroots activism by retail traders chasing BTC as an alternative to Wall Street has flipped upside down, with traditional institutions now calling the shots.
“Today we speak to a lot of the sovereigns, a lot of the institutions. They go for what they know,” he said, describing allocators that first accessed the asset through spot ETFs before considering more complex strategies.
With institutional positioning carrying more weight, bitcoin’s short-term direction increasingly reflects global risk sentiment.
“If [Trump attacks Iran], obviously what we’re going to see is that it’s going to be all risk off,” Naim said, referring to a potential forced regime change in Iran by the U.S. “Gold already started rallying. Equities will go down. Bitcoin will go down.”
In that framework, bitcoin behaves less like a standalone crypto trade and more like a macro instrument, priced alongside equities and commodities rather than apart from them.
Naim acknowledged the irony.
“Bitcoin was all about decentralization,” he said.
But as institutional capital scales and liquidity consolidates within regulated clearinghouses, the infrastructure surrounding the asset is becoming increasingly centralized — because institutional money chases risk assets, not risky platforms.
Canaan Inc. (CAN), a manufacturer of bitcoin mining hardware and an operator of crypto mining infrastructure, said it bought a 49% equity interest in a joint venture tied to several mining projects in West Texas from Cipher Mining (CIFR) for $39.75 million in stock.
The transaction covers Cipher’s stake in the ABC Projects, which include Alborz LLC, Bear LLC and Chief Mountain LLC. The rest of the venture is owned by WindHQ, according to a Monday statement.
The purchase was funded through the issuance of 806.4 million Class A ordinary shares, equivalent to 53.8 million American depositary shares, and makes Cipher, a U.S.-based bitcoin mining company that develops and operates large-scale data centers, a major shareholder in Singapore-based Canaan. The shares are subject to a six-month lock-up.
Canaan shares fell 6% on Monday, while Cipher shares rose 4%. Cipher is scheduled to report fourth-quarter earnings before the market opens on Feb. 24.
The sites collectively operate 120 megawatts of energized power capacity and support approximately 4.4 exahashes per second (EH/s) of hashrate. Fleet efficiency stands at roughly 25.7 joules per terahash (J/TH).
As part of the agreement, Canaan also purchased 6,840 Avalon A15Pro mining rigs that were previously deployed at Cipher’s Black Pearl facility, which is being converted into an AI and high-performance computing data center.
World Liberty Financial, the crypto company backed by US President Donald Trump and his sons, reported being targeted by hackers, “paid influencers” and short sellers in an effort to “manufacture chaos” against the USD1 stablecoin.
In a Monday X post, World Liberty said the attack, which happened earlier in the day, failed after hackers targeted “several WLFI cofounder accounts,” opened “massive shorts” against the company’s WLFI token, and “paid influencers to spread FUD [fear, uncertainty, and doubt].”
The price of WLFI dipped by about 7% amid the “manufactured chaos,” according to the company, but was trading at $0.1128 at the time of publication. USD1 similarly dropped to about $0.994, briefly losing its peg to the US dollar, before returning to more than $0.999.
“Thanks to USD1’s sound mint-and-redeem mechanism and full 1:1 backing, we are trading steadily at par,” said World Liberty. No scammer can shake the long-term commitment of the entire WLFI team and cofounders to USD1.”
The attack came just days after a World Liberty-organized crypto forum at Trump’s private Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, which included speakers from the US government, crypto and banking industries, and former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, whom the president pardoned in October 2025. Forbes reported on Feb. 9 that Binance holds about 87% of the USD1 in circulation, worth about $4.7 billion at the time.
Related: OCC Comptroller says WLFI charter review will remain apolitical
Ties between WLFI and Binance are still under scrutiny
Some US lawmakers are questioning potential connections between World Liberty and Binance entities after Trump’s pardon of Zhao.
The former CEO had been barred from a leadership role at Binance as a result of a 2023 deal with US authorities in which he later served four months in prison, but the presidential pardon would effectively allow him to legally return. Zhao said in January that there were “no business relationships whatsoever” between himself and the Trump family, and he did not intend to return to lead Binance.
Both Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal have reported that Binance helped create USD1. The stablecoin was also used to settle a $2 billion investment by UAE-based company MGX into Binance in March 2025, leading to conflict of interest accusations due to WLFI’s ties to the president’s family.
Magazine: Bitcoin’s ‘biggest bull catalyst’ would be Saylor’s liquidation: Santiment founder
France saw 40+ crypto kidnappings since 2023 amid a 75% wrench‑attack surge, driven by overseas‑coordinated gangs targeting visible wealth.
Summary
- French police memo links 40+ kidnappings between Jul 2023–Dec 2025 to crypto motives, with organizers operating from abroad via local recruiters.
- Victims are mostly 20–35‑year‑old male investors, entrepreneurs, or influencers monitored through social media before kidnappings or home invasions.
- CertiK reports 72 wrench attacks in 2025, up 75% YoY, with losses above $40.9m and physical assaults jumping 250%.
More than 40 cryptocurrency-related kidnappings occurred in France between July 2023 and the end of 2025, with evidence pointing to overseas organizers coordinating the crimes, according to French law enforcement authorities.
A confidential report from the Organized Crime Information, Intelligence and Strategic Analysis Service of the Judicial Police (SIRASCO) revealed the findings, French news outlet Franceinfo reported.
The kidnappings are typically orchestrated by organizers based abroad who coordinate with recruiters in France, according to the report. The recruiters connect the organizers with young individuals who have criminal records and carry out online intimidation and physical attacks.
Victims are typically men between the ages of 20 and 35 who are involved with digital assets as investors, entrepreneurs or influencers, the report stated. Many victims display their wealth on social media platforms, enabling kidnappers to monitor their daily routines and those of their family members, who are also targeted.
Physical attacks against cryptocurrency holders now constitute a “structural threat” to digital asset ownership, according to blockchain security firm CertiK. The firm reported earlier this month that “wrench attacks” — incidents in which criminals use violence, intimidation or confinement to force cryptocurrency holders to reveal private keys or passwords — increased by 75% last year.
CertiK documented 71 incidents in 2025 that resulted in significant losses, representing a 44% year-on-year increase, the firm stated.
Kidnapping represents the most common form of wrench attack, according to CertiK. The blockchain security firm also reported that physical assaults rose by 250% last year, indicating what it described as “a clear escalation in brutality.”
Raising capital in Web3 is no longer about choosing the loudest marketing channel or the fastest investor. In 2026, successful token launches are built on strategic capital design, investor quality, regulatory readiness, and long-term ecosystem growth.
Founders planning serious fundraising rounds are facing a critical decision. Should they rely on influencer-led community growth or pursue traditional venture capital backing? For growth-stage Web3 startups, this decision directly affects valuation, governance control, token stability, and market credibility. This guide explains both models in depth, compares their real-world impact, and shows why structured ICO development services are essential for designing scalable, compliant, and investor-ready fundraising systems in 2026.
Why Fundraising Strategy Matters More Than Ever in 2026
The Web3 funding landscape has matured. Investors are more selective. Regulators are more active. Communities are more skeptical. Token buyers expect transparency, utility, and governance frameworks. In earlier cycles, hype alone could drive millions in funding. That era is over. Today’s high-performing projects focus on:
- Sustainable capital inflows
- Institutional credibility
- Community retention
- Regulatory compliance
- Long-term token economics
A poorly designed fundraising approach now leads to weak liquidity, investor exits, governance disputes, and brand erosion. For founders targeting multi-million-dollar raises, the funding strategy is no longer a marketing decision. It is a business architecture decision.
Get your personalized ICO fundraising strategy.
Understanding Influencer-Led ICO Outreach
Influencer marketing in Web3 has evolved from casual promotions to structured community acquisition systems. Leading projects now collaborate with ecosystem leaders, analysts, educators, and regional community builders to build credibility, technical awareness, and long-term engagement. When aligned with professional ICO development services, influencer campaigns become scalable growth channels rather than short-term promotional tactics.
How Do Influencer Campaigns Work Today?
Modern influencer-driven ICO campaigns include
- Multi-platform educational content
- Private investor communities
- Regional ambassador programs
- Technical walkthrough sessions
- Live governance discussions
This approach focuses on building distributed awareness, informed participation, and early adoption across multiple market segments.
Advantages of Influencer-Led Fundraising
- Faster Market Entry: Campaigns can be launched within weeks, not months.
- Organic Community Formation: High-quality influencers bring engaged users rather than passive followers.
- Global Reach: Projects can penetrate multiple regions simultaneously.
- Early Liquidity Support: Strong communities support post-launch trading activity.
Limitations and Risks
However, influencer-led models carry risks:
- Inconsistent investor quality
- Short-term speculation
- Brand dependency on personalities
- Reputation exposure
- Compliance uncertainties
Without strong governance and token design, influencer-driven raises often suffer from volatility, reduced investor confidence, and long-term retention problems.
Understanding Venture Capital Funding for ICOs
Venture capital remains a dominant force in institutional crypto investment. Top-tier funds bring capital and strategic networks, governance expertise, regulatory guidance, and long-term market credibility. For many projects, VC backing also signals operational maturity, technical readiness, and serious commitment to sustainable growth, especially when supported by structured ICO development frameworks.
How Does VC-Led ICO Funding Work?
VC-backed projects usually follow this sequence:
- Private seed round
- Strategic investment round
- Advisory onboarding
- Token allocation agreements
- Gradual public exposure
This model prioritizes long-term institutional alignment, disciplined capital deployment, and controlled market entry, helping projects avoid premature volatility and reputational risks.
Advantages of VC Funding
- High Credibility: Institutional backing improves investor trust.
- Strategic Guidance: VCs provide operational and regulatory support.
- Network Access: Portfolio synergies accelerate partnerships.
- Stable Capital Base: Funds usually commit long-term capital.
Limitations and Trade-Offs
VC funding also introduces challenges:
- Dilution of founder control
- Extended negotiation timelines
- Token discount pressure
- Governance constraints
- Exit-driven decision-making
For many founders, the biggest concern is losing strategic autonomy, creative flexibility, and long-term influence over product direction and community governance.
Influencer vs VC: A Strategic Comparison
| Factor | Influencer Model | VC Model |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | High | Moderate |
| Capital Stability | Medium | High |
| Community Depth | High | Medium |
| Governance Control | High | Low |
| Brand Risk | Medium | Low |
| Brand Risk | Medium | Low |
| Valuation Impact | Variable | Predictable |
| Compliance Support | Low | High |
This comparison highlights that neither model is universally superior. The optimal choice depends on project maturity, market positioning, and long-term objectives, which is why many founders rely on professional ICO development services to design scalable and investor-ready fundraising frameworks.
Get expert guidance to structure, launch, and scale your ICO
The Real Problem: Why Most Projects Fail at Fundraising
Across hundreds of token launches, recurring failure patterns emerge. These mistakes are rarely caused by technology alone. Instead, they stem from poor strategic planning, misaligned fundraising priorities, weak execution frameworks, and the absence of experienced guidance during critical growth stages.
- Fragmented Capital Strategy: Projects pursue influencers and VCs independently, without alignment. This results in conflicting narratives, inconsistent investor expectations, and diluted market positioning.
- Weak Tokenomics Architecture: Poor supply design, vesting schedules, and incentive models undermine investor confidence and long-term ecosystem stability.
- No Institutional Readiness: Lack of documentation, compliance planning, and governance frameworks discourages serious capital and limits institutional participation.
- Marketing Without Infrastructure: Promotion is launched before the technical and operational foundations are complete, leading to erosion of trust and reduced conversion.
- Absence of Long-Term Liquidity Planning: Projects focus on the raise, not on post-launch market health, price stability, or investor retention.
This is where professional ICO development becomes essential.
Why High-Growth Projects Choose Hybrid Fundraising Models
In 2026, the most successful token launches use hybrid frameworks that integrate influencer reach with institutional capital.
What Do Hybrid Models Look Like?
A structured hybrid approach includes:
- Early institutional validation
- Controlled influencer onboarding
- Phased community expansion
- Strategic private rounds
- Governance-ready token design
This model delivers both speed and stability.
Benefits of Hybrid Fundraising
- Balanced investor portfolio
- Reduced volatility
- Stronger valuation defense
- Regulatory resilience
- Scalable governance
Hybrid systems are increasingly built through end-to-end ICO development frameworks rather than isolated marketing efforts.
How to Choose the Right Fundraising Strategy for Your Project
Founders should evaluate five core dimensions before selecting a fundraising model. A clear assessment across these areas helps determine whether influencer, VC, or hybrid approaches can be effectively supported through professional ICO development services.
Product Readiness: Is your protocol fully audited, thoroughly documented, security-tested, and scalable for long-term adoption?
- Market Timing: Does your solution align with current demand cycles, investor sentiment, and emerging industry trends?
- Capital Requirements: Are you raising primarily for product development, ecosystem expansion, strategic partnerships, or long-term liquidity?
- Governance Vision: Do you plan decentralized community control, structured DAO governance, or centralized leadership during early growth?
- Regulatory Exposure: Which jurisdictions will you operate in, and how will compliance requirements impact token distribution and investor participation?
Your answers determine whether influencer, VC, or hybrid models are optimal and how effectively they can be executed through a structured ICO development framework.
Final Verdict: Which Strategy Wins in 2026?
The evidence is clear.
- Influencer-led models deliver speed and community.
- VC-backed models deliver stability and credibility.
- Hybrid systems deliver scalable dominance.
Projects that succeed in 2026 do not choose between marketing and capital. They design unified fundraising ecosystems supported by professional infrastructure and end-to-end ICO development services that align growth, governance, and compliance from day one. This is where experienced partners like Antier play a critical role. We help founders build investor-ready frameworks that scale beyond the raise and sustain long-term ecosystem value by treating fundraising as a strategic asset rather than a short-term campaign. Start building your investor-ready ICO strategy today. Book a consultation and turn your fundraising vision into scalable success.
Frequently Asked Questions
01. What factors are crucial for successful token launches in 2026?
Successful token launches in 2026 rely on strategic capital design, investor quality, regulatory readiness, and long-term ecosystem growth.
02. How has the Web3 funding landscape changed for founders?
The Web3 funding landscape has matured, with investors becoming more selective, regulators more active, and communities more skeptical, making fundraising strategies critical for business architecture rather than just marketing.
03. What role do influencer-led campaigns play in modern ICO fundraising?
Influencer-led campaigns in modern ICO fundraising focus on structured community acquisition through educational content, private investor communities, and regional ambassador programs, enhancing credibility and long-term engagement.
Bloomberg Intelligence estimates that Coinbase’s stablecoin revenue, which is largely tied to its USDC revenue share with Circle and already about 19% of total revenue in 2025, could grow by two to seven times if USDC adoption in payments accelerates.
Despite reporting a net loss of $667 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, according to Coinbase’s Q4 2025 shareholder letter, the company netted around $1.35 billion in stablecoin revenue last year.
That figure was up from $911 million in 2024, with $364 million in stablecoin revenue in Q4 2025 alone, as interest income on USDC (USDC) balances became a high-margin line for the exchange compared to volatile trading fees.
Stablecoins themselves have gone mainstream in usage terms. The total stablecoin transaction volume hit a record $33 trillion in 2025, with USDC accounting for about $18.3 trillion of that, ahead of Tether’s USDt (USDT) by transaction value, even though Tether still leads on market cap.
Politics of stablecoin yield
That growth is exactly why the politics around stablecoin yield have become so fraught. The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, signed by US President Donald Trump in July 2025, created a federal regime for payment stablecoins and explicitly bars issuers from paying interest or yield to holders.
Related: Who gets the yield? CLARITY Act becomes fight over onchain dollars
That provision is backed by the banking lobby because yield‑bearing stablecoins could siphon deposits from the traditional system.
Banks and their allies now want to go further in the Senate’s Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act of 2025 negotiations by closing what they see as a loophole that still allows non‑issuer affiliates, such as exchanges like Coinbase, to pass some of the interest on reserves back to customers as “rewards.”
Draft Senate language of the market structure bill could extend the yield ban and prevent Coinbase from offering any rewards tied to stablecoin balances.
In January, Coinbase withdrew support for the bill after objecting to provisions that would restrict its ability to offer stablecoin rewards to customers.
Coinbase earns a share of interest income from USDC reserves through its partnership with Circle, and the companies split that revenue based on USDC distribution.
Ironically, Armstrong told investors that if Congress bans rewards, the company would simply keep more of the Circle revenue share, making the stablecoin line more profitable, despite users losing out on yield.
Cointelegraph reached out to Coinbase but had not received a response by publication time.
What’s next for CLARITY?
The CLARITY Act, which bundles a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) split with tougher language on third‑party stablecoin yield, is currently working its way through the Senate.
Senator Bernie Moreno has said he expected the CLARITY Act to clear Congress as soon as April.
With stablecoins already accounting for nearly a fifth of Coinbase’s revenue and onchain dollar volumes hitting record highs, the eventual shape of those yield rules may matter more for Coinbase’s business model than the next crypto price cycle.
Magazine: Bitcoin may take 7 years to upgrade to post-quantum — BIP-360 co-author
Bitcoin mining hardware maker Canaan has purchased Cipher Mining’s 49% interest in a trio of Texas mining projects for $39.75 million, expanding its mining interests.
The transaction covers joint venture entities Alborz LLC, Bear LLC and Chief Mountain LLC, together known as the “ABC Projects,” according to a Monday announcement. After the deal, Canaan holds a 49% stake while partner WindHQ, a renewable energy infrastructure company, retains 51%.
“By increasing our exposure to high-quality, low-cost operational power assets in Texas, we are aligning our proprietary technology with critical infrastructure to drive long-term efficiency and scale,” said Nangeng Zhang, chairman and chief executive officer of Canaan.
The three facilities are already operational, with a combined 120 megawatts of power capacity and about 4.4 exahashes per second (EH/s) of hashrate. Canaan also acquired 6,840 Avalon A15Pro mining rigs from Cipher. Those machines were previously deployed at Cipher’s Black Pearl location, which is being converted into an artificial intelligence and high-performance computing (AI-HPC) data center.
Related: Bitcoin mining difficulty rebounds 15% as US miners recover from winter outages
Canaan funds deal with $40 million share issuance
The purchase was financed through shares. Canaan issued 806,439,900 Class A shares, equal to 53,762,660 American Depositary Shares (ADS), priced at $0.7394 per ADS and subject to a six-month lockup.
According to the announcement, the Texas sites benefit from electricity costs below $0.03 per kilowatt-hour and include wind-powered generation and grid demand-response capabilities within the ERCOT power market. “ABC Projects feature industry-leading power pricing and offer a strong foundation for growth,” Zhang added.
Canaan reported a strong fourth quarter of 2025, with revenue rising 121.1% year-on-year to $196.3 million, as hardware shipments and mining output improved. Bitcoin (BTC) mining revenue climbed 98.5% to $30.4 million, increasing its treasury to 1,750 BTC. It shipped a record 14.6 EH/s of computing power and expanded installed hashrate to 9.91 EH/s, supported by a large institutional order in the United States.
Related: Bitcoin miners chase 30 GW AI capacity to offset hashprice pressure
Bitcoin miners turn to AI as margins tighten
Bitcoin mining companies are increasingly branching into AI and cloud computing as profitability pressures mount. Last week, MARA Holdings acquired a 64% stake in French infrastructure company Exaion, giving the company a foothold in AI services.
The move came amid a broader industry trend. Companies including Hive, Hut 8, TeraWulf and Iren are converting mining facilities and power capacity into data-center operations, and some players such as CoreWeave have already transitioned fully into AI infrastructure.
Canaan also said the new acquisitions align with its initiative to stabilize power grids amid rising data center demand.
Magazine: Bitcoin may take 7 years to upgrade to post-quantum — BIP-360 co-author
Crypto World
RedotPay stablecoin payments firm said to consider $1 billion IPO in New York: Bloomberg
RedotPay, a Hong Kong-based stablecoin payments upstart, plans to raise more than $1 billion in a U.S. initial public offering (IPO) that could value it at over $4 billion.
Sources close to the matter told Bloomberg that the company, which achieved unicorn status in September last year, has tapped banking heavyweights such as JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Jefferies for a potential New York listing as early as this year.
Details of the IPO, such as the exact size and timeline, are still fluid, and more banks could jump in.
RedotPay raised $194 million in 2025, capped by a Series B in December, and now claims more than 6 million registered users. Backers read like a Who’s Who of crypto venture capital: Accel, Pantera Capital and Blockchain Capital among others.
If it pulls off the IPO, it’d be one of the biggest from Asia’s stablecoin scene.
Stablecoins are digital tokens with values pegged to an external reference such as the U.S. dollar. These tokens are widely used in trading cryptocurrencies and to move capital across borders.
Hong Kong, like other advanced nations, has warmed up to these tokenized versions of fiat currencies and is ready to license its first stablecoin issuers next month.
Doctor Profit compared Saylor’s approach to the 2000 dot-com bubble, and added that buying blindly without strategic selling is a “reckless” trading approach.
Strategy has spent years aggressively buying Bitcoin, pitching the move as a long-term, high-conviction bet, but critics say that the approach has crossed from bold into reckless.
Popular analyst Doctor Profit, for one, drew parallels to the dot-com bubble, while warning that the firm risks repeating history amid today’s AI-fueled frenzy.
Blind Faith vs Market Timing
In a recent post on X, Doctor Profit stated that he repeatedly expressed his concerns with Strategy’s co-founder, Michael Saylor, that nonstop Bitcoin accumulation, financed and backed by issuing company shares, was “playing with fire.” According to the analyst, those warnings were dismissed and even mocked.
He pointed out that since then, Strategy’s share price has fallen by roughly 75% from its highs, while Bitcoin itself is down 50% from its peak. With Saylor’s reported average BTC entry around $76,000 and the asset trading near $63,000, the position sits roughly 17% below cost.
Doctor Profit also argued that, despite accumulating since 2020, the company has never realized meaningful profits or executed serious strategic selling. Meanwhile, its stock has suffered a substantial drawdown, exposing shareholders to extreme volatility with little relief.
Looking back at past cycles, Doctor Profit said Saylor’s experience during the 2000 dot-com collapse offers a warning. He explained that intense excitement surrounding AI today may be creating a similar late-cycle setup, increasing the chance of history repeating itself by 2026.
Rather than de-risking as these signals emerged, Doctor Profit claimed that the executive chairman doubled down, increasing exposure while ignoring red flags.
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“I truly wish MSTR and Saylor the best, but I cannot understand how reckless this trading approach is in such a late-cycle environment. Markets reward discipline, not blind belief in Bitcoin. There is always time to buy and time to sell. I hope he will listen next time instead of mocking my warnings.”
The fresh concerns come against the backdrop of Strategy’s latest Bitcoin purchase, which is smaller than its past billion-dollar buys but consistent with its long-standing accumulation plan. The firm spent just under $40 million to acquire 592 BTC at an average price of $67,286, which pushed its total holdings to 717,722 BTC.
The purchase was funded through equity sales. Nearly 298,000 Class A shares were sold via the firm’s at-the-market program over the past week, according to an update cited by Walter Bloomberg. Strategy still has substantial capacity to raise more capital through future ATM sales, as $37.4 billion in securities remain available, including MSTR and STRK stock.
Billions at Risk
As Bitcoin’s price decline deepened, earlier warnings from Michael Burry and Zac Prince drew fresh attention to the fragility of BTC treasury business models. For instance, Burry recently said BTC’s drop increases the risk of broader stress across crypto and related financial markets. “The Big Short” investor had said that further downside could severely impact companies that accumulated Bitcoin at higher prices, potentially leaving firms like Strategy billions underwater and cut off from capital markets.
Former BlockFi CEO, Prince, also questioned the sustainability of BTC treasury models, saying they rely on financial engineering rather than core business fundamentals and may struggle to justify valuations without real operating revenue.
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Hong Kong-based stablecoin payments company RedotPay is reportedly weighing a US initial public offering (IPO) that could raise more than $1 billion and value the company at over $4 billion.
The company is working with JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Jefferies on a potential New York listing that may occur as early as this year, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Terms remain under review and could change, while additional banks may join the underwriting group, per the report.
Founded in April 2023, RedotPay provides stablecoin-linked payment cards, multicurrency wallets and international payout services. According to its website, the company has 6 million users and handles about $10 billion in annualized payment volume.
RedotPay declined to comment on the matter.
Related: Binance stablecoin reserves have sunk 19% since November
RedotPay raised $194 million in 2025
The US IPO plans follow a year of fundraising for RedotPay, which raised a total of $194 million in 2025 across three rounds. In March, it closed a $40 million Series A funding round led by Lightspeed, with participation from HSG and Galaxy Ventures.
In September, the stablecoin payment company said it became a fintech unicorn after closing a $47 million strategic round that saw investment from Coinbase Ventures, alongside continued backing from Galaxy Ventures and Vertex Ventures and participation from an undisclosed global technology entrepreneur.
It later closed a $107 million Series B in December. The round was led by Goodwater Capital, with participation from Pantera Capital, Blockchain Capital and Circle Ventures, as well as continued support from HSG.
Related: Standard Chartered sticks to $2T stablecoin call but trims T-bill impact
Stablecoin sector attracts significant funding
Stablecoin-focused companies drew significant investment in 2025 as venture capital continued flowing into payment and infrastructure providers. In August, investors committed almost $100 million to the sector, including a $40 million Series B for Switzerland-based M0 led by Polychain Capital and Ribbit Capital, and a $58 million raise by US startup Rain to build tools enabling banks to issue regulated stablecoins.
Funding activity continued through the year. In October, Chicago-based Coinflow secured $25 million in a Series A led by Pantera Capital to expand cross-border settlement services, while CMT Digital later launched a $136 million fund with allocations for stablecoin startups, including Coinflow and Codex.
Big Questions: Is China hoarding gold so yuan becomes global reserve instead of USD?
As the AUD/USD chart shows, the Australian dollar posted strong performance in January and February. Since the start of the year, the “Aussie” has gained nearly 6% against the US dollar.
Among the bullish drivers:
→ The policy stance of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), which raised its cash rate to 3.85% in February 2026, while many other central banks are considering rate cuts.
→ A resilient labour market. Australia’s unemployment rate remains at 4.1%, giving the RBA room to keep interest rates elevated.
→ Commodity markets. High prices for gold, iron ore and energy exports continue to support Australia’s trade balance.
However, an important CPI report is due tomorrow. Inflation data could inject additional volatility into the market and test the strength of the Australian dollar.
Technical Analysis of the AUD/USD Chart
In early January, we identified an ascending channel that remained valid through February 2026, as bulls managed to break above resistance line R. Note that:
→ The upper boundary of the channel acted as resistance (resulting in the formation of peaks A–B).
→ The median line served as support.
An important observation is that after forming peak B, the market quickly fell back below the level of peak A. This suggests insufficient buying pressure to sustain the advance.
At the same time, the recent candlestick with a long upper wick — a potential bull trap and a bearish signal — may indicate that the AUD/USD reaction to the CPI report could be negative.
In that case, a break below the channel’s median line cannot be ruled out, opening the way for a test of the psychological 0.7000 level.
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Crypto World3 hours agoXRP price enters “dead zone” as Binance leverage hits lows
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Entertainment6 days agoDolores Catania Blasts Rob Rausch For Turning On ‘Housewives’ On ‘Traitors’
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NewsBeat24 hours ago‘Hourly’ method from gastroenterologist ‘helps reduce air travel bloating’
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Business6 days agoTesla avoids California suspension after ending ‘autopilot’ marketing
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Tech2 days agoAnthropic-Backed Group Enters NY-12 AI PAC Fight
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NewsBeat2 days agoArmed man killed after entering secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, Secret Service says
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Politics2 days agoMaine has a long track record of electing moderates. Enter Graham Platner.
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Crypto World6 days agoWLFI Crypto Surges Toward $0.12 as Whale Buys $2.75M Before Trump-Linked Forum
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Crypto World5 days ago83% of Altcoins Enter Bear Trend as Liquidity Crunch Tightens Grip on Crypto Market