An editor affiliated with YouTube star MrBeast has been fined more than $20,000 and suspended from trading platform Kalshi for two years after the company found he engaged in insider trading tied to event contracts related to the creator’s content.

Kalshi cracks down on ‘MrBeast’ contract trades

In a disciplinary notice effective February 25, 2026, Kalshi said its Disciplinary Committee determined that the individual, identified as Artem Kaptur, violated rules that bar insiders with access to material non-public information from trading on related contracts.

The rule also prohibits employees or affiliates of a “Source Agency” for any contract from entering or attempting to enter trades in those markets.

According to Kalshi’s findings, Kaptur traded in August and September 2025 in event contract markets connected to a YouTube channel while employed by or legally affiliated with “Mr Beast” contracts. The committee concluded he traded using material, non-public information obtained through that employment.

Kalshi also found that Kaptur failed to cooperate fully with its investigation, violating rules that require participants to promptly and fully cooperate with inquiries and proceedings.

As a result, the committee suspended him from direct or indirect access to Kalshi for two years and imposed a financial penalty totaling $20,397.58. That amount includes $5,397.58 in disgorged profits linked to the improper trading and an additional $15,000 civil penalty.

Kalshi further identified another individual, Kyle Langford, a 24-year-old Republican political candidate in California, for insider trading activity connected to the matter.

In response, Beast Industries said it has “no tolerance for this behavior, whether by contestants or our own employees,” citing a longstanding policy prohibiting employees from using proprietary company information.

The company confirmed it has initiated an independent investigation and urged Kalshi to share its findings, adding that integrity and audience trust remain paramount.

Cardano price is under pressure, but its largest holders are buying aggressively into the dip. Whales and sharks have accumulated more than 819 million ADA, signaling strong conviction beneath the surface volatility and hinting at a potential long-term reversal.

Cardano whales and sharks go on a buying spree

Data from the on-chain analytics platform Santiment reveals a striking trend: wallets holding between 100,000 and 100 million ADA have been consistently stacking the token for the last six months.

This period saw ADA’s price endure a punishing 71% decline, falling from $0.90 to roughly $0.26.

Despite this capital erosion, these key stakeholders added 819.14 million ADA to their portfolios, representing a 1.6% increase in their total share of the circulating supply.

Valued at approximately $213.9 million, this concentrated buying during a steep drawdown is a classic signal of a market bottom, as high-conviction holders absorb the liquidity left behind by panicked sellers.

Cardano price at a crossroads

The ADA/USDT daily chart illustrates a market struggling to translate this whale accumulation into immediate upward momentum.

Currently trading near $0.2935, the price is hovering just above the 20-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) of $0.2753. Recent price action shows a clear rejection at the upper Bollinger Band near $0.2985, identifying it as the immediate ceiling that bulls must shatter.

While strong horizontal support has been established at the $0.2520 level, the Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) remains slightly bearish at -0.04. This negative reading suggests that despite the whale activity, there is still enough short-term distribution from smaller participants to keep the price suppressed.

For a definitive bullish flip, ADA needs a sustained daily close above the $0.30 psychological barrier.

If it can maintain its position above the 20-day SMA, a retest of the $0.32 resistance is likely, though a slip below $0.25 would signal that the accumulation phase may need to extend further before a breakout occurs.

Bitcoin BTC$68,233.81 cooled off in Asia hours on Thursday, trading at $68,600 after testing $70,000 during a ferocious U.S. session on Wednesday.

As February draws toward a close, the largest cryptocurrency remains in a trading range that has persisted since early in the month, having tested $62,500 on Tuesday and $71,100 to the upside on Feb. 15.

It’s worth noting that bitcoin broke a similar trading range to the upside in January, trapping breakout traders before the price tumbled from $98,000 to $60,000 over the subsequent three weeks, forming a lower high in this recent bearish cycle.

A few tokens outshone the broader altcoin market. HYPE is up 4.3% since midnight UTC as it moves back toward $30, while privacy token decred (DCR) rose to its highest since November after adding 4%.

U.S. stock index futures are little changed, with NVIDIA’s earnings report failing to generate sustained upside amid lingering concerns that AI valuation is overdone.

Derivatives positioning

• Total crypto futures market open interest (OI) has increased by over 6.6% to nearly $100 billion. This is bigger than the increase in the total crypto market cap, indicating there’s been an influx of fresh capital into the market.
• ADA and ETH futures stand out with OI increases of 21% and 15%, respectively. Several other altcoins have seen increases of 9%.
• Bitcoin’s OI growth of over 3% appears largely due to the spot price gain.
• BTC and ETH’s 30-day implied volatility indices, BVIV and EVIV, remain near weekly lows, indicating market calm and supporting continued price gains.
• Annualized perpetual funding rates for most tokens, including bitcoin and ether, have stabilized to slightly above zero, indicating a renewed bias for bullish, long bets.
• On Deribit, bitcoin’s price bounce triggered demand for call options at strikes ranging from $85,000 to $90,000. However, the overall options market continues to show a bias for puts, a sign that downside reservations still linger.
• The $60,000 put option remains the most popular bet, with a notional open interest of over $1.4 billion.

Token talk

• Layer-1 token DOT$1.5790 posted a 21% gain over the past 24 hours. While the move petered out in European hours, investors are showing appetite ahead of the network’s reward halving coming in March.
• Uniswap’s governance token (UNI) also jumped, adding 15%. The move can be attributed to a new governance vote that proposes increasing the protocol’s revenue capture across several layer-2 networks.
• One token that particularly underperformed was ATOM$1.9102, which lost more than 6%, with the selloff continuing into European hours. There is no clear bearish catalyst for the move, which reflects persistent altcoin vulnerability due to a lack of liquidity.
• Crypto majors ADA$0.2912 and ether (ETH) rose by around 8.5% since Wednesday morning. The moves were intriguing because open interest for both assets increased, suggesting they was backed by leverage as opposed to spot buying, according to Coinalyze.

TLDR:

• • The OCC proposed a regulatory framework for payment stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act with a 60-day comment window.
  • BSA, AML, and OFAC sanctions rules are excluded from this proposal and will be addressed in a separate Treasury rulemaking.
  • Stablecoin transfer volume topped $10 trillion in January 2026, the highest recorded level since April 2022 on-chain activity.
  • Over 200 stablecoins across 37 chains now carry a combined market cap exceeding $320 billion, per Dune Analytics data.

Payment stablecoins are now at the center of a major U.S. regulatory push. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued a proposed rulemaking under the GENIUS Act.

The proposal covers regulations for permitted stablecoin issuers within the OCC jurisdiction. It also addresses foreign issuers and custody activities by OCC-supervised entities.

Public comments are open for 60 days after Federal Register publication.

OCC Sets the Scope of Its Proposed Rule

The proposed rule addresses most regulations the OCC must issue under the GENIUS Act. However, it does not cover Bank Secrecy Act or Anti-Money Laundering requirements.

Those areas will be handled in a separate rulemaking with the Department of the Treasury. The OCC confirmed it will coordinate with all relevant agencies throughout the process.

Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould spoke directly about the agency’s approach to the proposal. He stated, “The OCC has given thoughtful consideration to a proposed regulatory framework in which the stablecoin industry can flourish in a safe and sound manner.”

He further added, “We welcome feedback on the proposal to inform a final rule that is effective, practical and reflects broad industry perspective.” Gould also noted the OCC will keep working to provide regulated entities with more ways to serve customers and communities.

The proposed rule applies to both domestic and foreign payment stablecoin issuers equally. It also reaches custody activities conducted by OCC-supervised entities.

This broad coverage shows a clear intent to regulate a wide range of market participants. The OCC wants regulated entities to have more ways to serve their customers and communities.

The agency will continue working to fully implement the GENIUS Act going forward. It will also maintain close coordination with other federal agencies involved in the effort.

The public comment period offers stakeholders a formal channel to share concerns. Those responses will directly inform the structure of the final rule.

Stablecoin Market Growth Adds Urgency to New Rules

The stablecoin market has seen strong growth leading into this regulatory moment. Data from Dune Analytics tracks over 200 stablecoins across 37 different blockchain networks.

Total market capitalization has now exceeded $320 billion. That figure reflects how deeply stablecoins have embedded themselves in digital finance.

In January 2026, stablecoin transfer volume surpassed $10 trillion for the month. That marks the highest transfer activity recorded since April 2022.

Around 56% of that volume came from decentralized exchange liquidity pools. This shows the scale of on-chain stablecoin usage well beyond centralized platforms.

Centralized exchanges hold approximately $80 billion in stablecoins currently. That places them as the largest category among labeled on-chain addresses.

The data points to growing reliance on stablecoins across both retail and institutional segments. It also shows why a clear and workable framework has become a pressing need.

The proposed rule arrives as stablecoin adoption reaches a measurable high point. Market participants now have 60 days to formally submit their comments to the OCC.

Those responses will shape the final regulatory direction for payment stablecoins. The industry and regulators alike are now moving in the same direction.

Yesterday, the world’s most valuable company, Nvidia, released its quarterly earnings, which exceeded expectations:
→ Earnings per share: actual = $1.62 (forecast = $1.53);
→ Revenue: actual = $68.13 billion (forecast = $66.13 billion).

Sentiment was further supported by the chipmaker’s guidance for first-quarter revenue above market estimates, reflecting continued heavy spending by major technology companies on artificial intelligence processors.

As the Nvidia (NVDA) share price chart shows, the stock rose above the psychological $200 level in after-hours trading, but subsequently pulled back, which may point to excessive optimism and aggressive selling pressure.

Technical Analysis of the Nvidia (NVDA) Chart

On 10 February, when analysing NVDA price movements, we:
→ reaffirmed the validity of the long-term ascending channel (which remains intact) and highlighted the importance of the $192.50 resistance level;
→ suggested that the initiative was on the side of the bulls, who were aiming to resume the long-term uptrend towards the psychological $200 mark.

Since then:
→ NVDA formed a pullback from the указанного resistance level towards the 50–61.8% Fibonacci retracement zone;
→ on 17 February, it resumed its advance, supported by a short-term ascending channel (marked in black), ultimately reaching $200.

Overall, the picture appears constructive, and the next potential target for NVDA may be the median line of the long-term channel. However, it is worth recalling the recent experience of other technology giants whose shares rallied briefly after earnings before turning lower (for example, Meta). The sharp reversal from above the $200 mark lends weight to this scenario.

Therefore, if bulls are to confirm control over NVDA shares, it is important for the price to hold above the $192.50 level.

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TLDR:

• Prevalon Energy added STRC to its treasury focusing on capital preservation, liquidity, and long-term financial discipline.
• Anchorage Digital holds STRC on its balance sheet, aligning its capital with Strategy’s institutional Bitcoin framework.
• Both companies conducted independent evaluations through their own management teams and boards before allocating STRC.
• Strategy’s STRC offers an 11.25% annual dividend paid monthly, designed for stable price dynamics in corporate treasuries.

Prevalon Energy and Anchorage Digital have publicly announced their allocations of STRC to their corporate treasuries. The disclosures were made during Strategy World 2026 in Las Vegas.

Both companies presented during the “Bitcoin for Corporations” track at the conference. Each firm conducted an independent evaluation before committing to the allocation.

The announcements were made on behalf of Strategy Inc., listed on Nasdaq under tickers including STRC, MSTR, STRF, STRK, and STRD.

Prevalon Energy and Anchorage Digital Step Forward With Independent Treasury Decisions

Prevalon Energy’s CFO, Benjamin Hunnewell, made the formal announcement on behalf of the company. He confirmed that Prevalon added STRC to its treasury as part of a broader capital management strategy.

Hunnewell stated, “As Prevalon continues to scale globally, we remain focused on maintaining a strong and flexible balance sheet.” He added that after evaluating a range of treasury alternatives, STRC aligned best with the company’s objectives.

Anchorage Digital’s Head of Prime Sales, Manuel Andreani, disclosed the firm’s STRC position during his presentation.

Nathan McCauley, Co-Founder and CEO of Anchorage Digital, further elaborated on the rationale behind the move.

McCauley said, “Institutions don’t adopt Bitcoin on conviction alone; they adopt it through structure and disciplined capital management.” He noted that holding STRC aligns Anchorage’s capital with Strategy’s institutional framework.

Both companies stressed that their evaluations were conducted independently by their own management teams and boards. Neither firm’s decision was influenced by the other’s allocation.

The separate reviews point to a shared conclusion reached through distinct internal processes. This adds credibility to STRC as a treasury instrument appealing across different corporate profiles.

Strategy CEO Phong Le responded to the announcements during the event. He described STRC as a flagship digital credit instrument built for stable price performance.

Le said, “We are encouraged to see innovative companies like Prevalon and Anchorage Digital integrate STRC into their corporate treasury strategies.” He added that the stock offers an 11.25% annual dividend distributed every month, with more institutions expected to follow.

STRC Draws Institutional Interest as a Structured Digital Credit Instrument

STRC stands for Strategy’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock. It is designed to deliver stable price dynamics alongside a consistent dividend yield.

The monthly distribution structure makes it attractive for treasury teams managing cash flow. Unlike direct Bitcoin exposure, STRC offers a structured entry point into the Bitcoin treasury ecosystem.

Anchorage Digital’s involvement carries additional weight given its position as a regulated crypto institution. McCauley noted that “the link between Bitcoin treasury strategy and regulated infrastructure becomes even more critical” as adoption accelerates.

The firm serves institutional clients and operates within a compliance-focused infrastructure. Its decision to hold STRC reinforces the connection between regulated custodians and Bitcoin-aligned treasury tools.

Prevalon Energy’s announcement broadens the conversation beyond financial and technology sectors. Hunnewell emphasized that the decision reflects Prevalon’s focus on “capital preservation, liquidity, and disciplined long-term financial management.”

Energy companies entering the digital credit space reflect a wider corporate shift in treasury thinking. Treasury diversification into instruments like STRC is gaining ground in unexpected corners of the corporate world.

Together, the two announcements at Strategy World mark a notable moment for STRC’s market visibility. The public disclosures during a major conference signal growing confidence in the instrument.

Both companies chose to go on record at a high-profile venue, lending further weight to their decisions. For Strategy, the announcements serve as real-world validation of its digital credit strategy.

After weeks of subdued activity, US spot ETH ETFs also witnessed a surge in inflows.

Ethereum reclaimed the coveted $2,000 level on Wednesday, amidst a broader improvement in market tone. The world’s largest altcoin by market cap extended its gains and rallied by 8% over the past day.

But new data suggest that ETH’s price action may be entering a more unstable phase.

Ethereum at a Crossroads

Ethereum’s 30-day realized volatility on Binance has climbed to nearly 0.97. According to CryptoQuant, this is its highest level since March 2025. Such a move indicates that ETH’s daily price swings have widened significantly, in what appears to be a pivot away from the relatively calm trading conditions seen in recent weeks.

At the same time, Ethereum is trading in an area that has acted as a mid-range support zone. The combination of rising volatility and price consolidation points to an active standoff between buyers and sellers. Market participants are repositioning as they anticipate a larger move.

The analytics platform explained that this type of volatility expansion often reflects a repricing phase, rather than random short-term fluctuations.

From a structural front, the current volatility levels imply that the market has exited a low-volatility environment and entered a more reactive and uncertain phase. If volatility continues to rise in addition to the price movement, it could pave the way for a decisive directional breakout.

However, if price fails to follow through despite high volatility, ETH may remain trapped in a range until stronger conviction emerges. In past cycles, sharp increases in volatility have frequently come just before strong price rallies, which means that the market may now be at a critical turning point.

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Analysts have recently stated that Ethereum is trading within a five-year demand zone, which they say has historically favored accumulation rather than selling.

Meanwhile, the latest data from Santiment revealed that Ethereum’s 30-day MVRV sits at -5.5%, which places it in mildly undervalued territory despite the recent market rally. The negative MVRV suggests recent buyers are, on average, at a loss, a condition that historically aligns with improved risk-reward zones rather than local market tops.

Improving Sentiment

On the institutional front, US-based spot Ethereum ETFs saw a sharp pickup in demand on February 25, logging more than $157 million in net inflows – its strongest daily total in over a month. The surge was led by Fidelity’s FETH, which attracted $62 million.

Grayscale’s ETHE followed with $33.8 million in inflows, while BlackRock’s ETHA added $31 million.

Centrifuge jumps ~180% in hours on Upbit listing, then eases as traders take profits and mixed technicals flash caution.

Centrifuge’s CFG token rose more than 180% following the announcement that trading would commence on South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, according to market data.

The rally occurred as broader cryptocurrency markets posted gains, with Bitcoin advancing alongside several major alternative cryptocurrencies. The token subsequently retreated from intraday highs as traders took profits, according to trading data.

Upbit announced trading support for Centrifuge would begin on February 26, 2026, at 2 PM Korea Standard Time, according to the exchange’s statement. The listing includes spot trading pairs against the Korean won, bitcoin, and a major stablecoin. Deposit and withdrawal services were scheduled to become available shortly after the announcement, the exchange stated.

On-chain data indicated increased accumulation by large holders, referred to as “whales” in cryptocurrency markets, according to blockchain analytics. Trading volume increased substantially as the token’s price surged, market data showed.

Upbit’s user base and liquidity have historically generated significant price movements for newly listed tokens, according to market observers.

Centrifuge operates as a platform for tokenizing real-world assets, with its native token enabling governance functions that allow holders to participate in protocol decisions, according to the project’s documentation. The token’s price had followed broader cryptocurrency market declines until the Upbit listing drove prices to levels last observed in October 2025, according to historical price data.

Technical analysis presented mixed signals, with the Moving Average Convergence Divergence indicator suggesting bullish momentum while the Relative Strength Index reached levels typically associated with overbought conditions, according to chart data. The token traded above its 50-day and 100-day simple moving averages, technical indicators showed.

Market analysts noted that sustained trading volume from Korean market participants could drive prices toward higher resistance levels, though a decline below key moving averages could accelerate downside pressure.

Three companies have added Strategy’s perpetual preferred equity, Stretch (STRC), to their balance sheets as the security returns to its $100 par value.

Strategy said Prevalon Energy and Anchorage Digital disclosed during presentations at Strategy World 2026 in Las Vegas that each company has allocated a portion of its corporate treasury to STRC, Strategy’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock, during the “Bitcoin for Corporations” track. In separate remarks at the conference, OranjeBTC, a Brazilian bitcoin treasury company also confirmed it has added STRC to its balance sheet.

According to STRC.live, STRC briefly touched par during Wednesday’s trading session. Based on trading volume, it is estimated that roughly 22 BTC were purchased through STRC activity. In pre market trading, STRC is again at $100.

STRC is a short duration, high yield credit instrument that ranks senior to MSTR common stock and offers an 11.25% annual dividend, distributed monthly.

The conference also featured additional announcements, including 21Shares bringing STRC exposure to Europe through the Strategy Yield ETP on Euronext Amsterdam.

Separately, Morgan Stanley plans to introduce bitcoin trading, lending, yield, and custody services, with Amy Oldenburg, Head of Digital Asset Strategy at Morgan Stanley, confirming the plans during a panel discussion with Strategy CEO Phong Le.

Bitcoin is trading above $68,000, while MSTR rose 9% on Wednesday and is slightly lower in Thursday pre market trading at around $135.

Key Takeaways

• The Skeptic: Jimmy Wales predicts a crash to $10,000, calling the asset a failure.
• The Data: Prediction markets signal a 66% confidence in bullish continuation.
• The Divergence: On-chain volume and ETF flows contradict the “bubble” narrative.