eToro has secured a New York BitLicense and money transmission license, reopening crypto trading to New Yorkers and extending its US coverage to 48 states after a 2024 SEC settlement.

Online brokerage and social trading platform eToro has obtained a coveted New York BitLicense and a parallel money transmission license, clearing the way for residents of the state to trade cryptocurrencies on its platform for the first time. The twin approvals from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) mean eToro’s crypto offering now reaches 48 US states, according to a report from Crowdfund Insider cited by ChainCatcher.

Announcing the launch, Andrew McCormick, head of eToro’s US division, said that “New York is the heart of the financial markets and a hub of innovation,” describing the expansion as “both a strategic milestone and a reflection of our commitment to responsibly advancing the next generation of financial market accessibility.” NYDFS’s BitLicense regime, introduced in 2015, remains one of the strictest state-level crypto frameworks in the US, with only a limited number of exchanges and custodians approved over the past decade, as repeatedly highlighted by outlets such as Bloomberg and the Financial Times.finance.

The New York green light comes roughly two years after eToro resolved an enforcement action with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. In 2024, the company agreed to pay a $1.5 million civil penalty to settle charges that it operated as an unregistered broker and clearing agency, and subsequently delisted most crypto assets from its US platform while it overhauled its compliance controls. That retrenchment mirrored a broader regulatory crackdown on offshore-style token menus, with major venues trimming their listings in response to SEC and CFTC pressure, as detailed in earlier reporting by Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal on post-2022 enforcement trends.finance.

Since then, eToro has adopted a more conservative US stance, focusing on a narrower range of assets and building out its compliance and surveillance stack to meet NYDFS standards. By securing the BitLicense, the firm joins a small club of global exchanges able to serve New York retail customers, preserving a regulatory moat that rivals without state approval cannot easily cross. For US users, the expansion means a familiar social-trading interface will now sit alongside licensed incumbents in the country’s most tightly regulated crypto market, while for the industry it offers a template for how post-enforcement platforms can re-enter New York — provided they accept heavier oversight and a slimmer token set.

Since its inception, bitcoin BTC$68,179.81 has been like a daredevil climber scaling new heights, rarely looking back at the ledges it left behind. Its price seldom retraced to previous bull-market peaks, even during long, grueling bear markets.

But that pattern seems to have changed, suggesting that the market has matured, and the era of runaway, parabolic gains is behind us.

BTC trades near old peak

Bitcoin has been hovering around $70,000 since early February – well below the $126,000 peak of the 2023-2025 bull run.

That $70,000 mark is important because it was the record high in the 2019–2022 market cycle. In other words, this bear market has retraced all the way back to a previous summit.

This is unusual. In earlier bear markets, such as those in 2014 and 2018, bitcoin never returned to prior cycle highs. The exception was 2022, when prices dipped under the 2017 high of $20,000. At the time, analysts dismissed it as an anomaly, blaming crypto scams and massive deleveraging.

What makes the current retrace remarkable is that it’s happening without any extreme catalysts. The market has simply returned to a prior peak as part of the natural ebb of a bear cycle.

Slowing growth and the law of diminishing returns

Each new bull run isn’t generating the parabolic gains of the past. Pushing prices far beyond previous peaks is getting harder, which makes retraces to old highs more natural. In other words, previous peaks are no longer untouchable.

This is a clear example of the law of diminishing returns. As bitcoin becomes more expensive, moving prices higher requires ever-larger sums of capital. The days when modest inflows could trigger massive rallies are largely behind us, making price movements more measured and predictable.

Looking at historical growth highlights this trend:

• The 2013 peak was 38 times higher than 2011.
• The 2017 peak was 16 times higher than 2013.
• By 2021, the increase slowed to just 3 times the 2017 level.
• The 2025 peak of over $126K was less than twice the 2021 peak.

While prices are still rising, the pace of growth is steadily slowing.

Institutionalization and broader market participation

Part of this slowdown comes from the institutionalization of Bitcoin and the growth of the derivatives market. Traders now have structured ways to bet on volatility, timing, and market direction, not just price increases. This broader participation has tempered extreme swings.

This is very different from the pre-2020 era, when trading was largely limited to buying and selling on the spot market. Back then, only bullish believers of bitcoin actively participated, often jumping in at the first sign of a dip.

Behavioral patterns and what’s next

Old peaks often act as strong support levels due to a behavioral concept called anchoring bias, where traders fixate on previous highs as reference points.

Many who missed the initial breakout tend to buy when prices return to these familiar levels, fueling the next leg of a bull run. This behavioral tendency, combined with the self-reinforcing nature of support and resistance, helps explain why the recent downtrend has stalled around $70,000.

A strong bounce from this level could signal that the bear market has run its course, similar to late 2022, when the downtrend ended around $20,000.

However, if the law of diminishing returns is any guide, the next uptrend may be more measured and “tradfi-like,” rather than the frenzied rallies of the old speculative days.

Jesse Spiro, the head of government affairs at stablecoin issuer Tether, will be chairing the organization of a crypto-backed Super political action committee (PAC) to “actively support candidates” in the 2026 US midterm elections and beyond.

In a Wednesday announcement, the Fellowship PAC, a committee that launched in August 2025 and later claimed to have raised “over $100 million” from undisclosed backers aligned with the crypto industry, said that Spiro would become chair ahead of its first political endorsements for the 2026 elections.

The PAC said that it would support candidates in favor of innovation, regulatory clarity for digital assets, and open markets.

”We have an opportunity to ensure the United States remains the global hub for builders, entrepreneurs, and technological progress,” said Spiro. “Fellowship PAC is committed to supporting leaders who understand what’s at stake and are willing to act.”

The addition of a crypto-aligned Super PAC with potentially hundreds of millions of dollars could be used to influence US elections. The Fairshake PAC, backed by Ripple Labs and Coinbase, spent more than $130 million on media buys in the 2024 elections, and reported having $193 million ahead of the 2026 midterms.

Related: Crypto awareness tops 80% among young people in UK: Coinbase survey

Fellowship filed a statement of organization with the US Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Aug. 7 and had reported no contributions or expenditures as of Dec. 31. Although the PAC has claimed to have more than $100 million in its war chest, it was unclear at the time of publication who may be responsible for funding the committee.

Cointelegraph did not receive an immediate response to requests for comment by the PAC.

Money from the crypto industry may already have been a factor in US state primaries, which kicked off in March. Although some of the industry-aligned candidates did not win their races in Illinois, there are more than seven months before the 2026 general election, giving PACs like Fairshake, Fellowship, and others the opportunity to sway voters.

A debate on stablecoin yield is still shadowing a congressional crypto bill

Tether, the issuer behind the largest stablecoin by market capitalization, USDt (USDT), is likely to be affected by legislation being considered by US lawmakers in the Senate.

The House of Representatives passed a digital asset market structure bill in July 2025 called the CLARITY Act, which has effectively been stalled in the Senate amid debate over stablecoin rewards, tokenized equities, ethics and other issues.

As of Wednesday, the Senate Banking Committee had not rescheduled a markup on the bill which it postponed in January. It’s unclear if or when the bill could head to the full chamber for a vote.

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