Strong Investor Demand Meets Weak Bitcoin Futures as Price Slumps

Bitcoin (BTC) failed to break beyond $71,000 on Thursday, partially driven by the decline in the US stock market, with BTC funding rates dropping deeper into negative territory. Key takeaways: Bitcoin bears show high conviction as funding rates drop, but steady institutional buying keeps sellers in check. Gold and government bond yields are rising, making…

What True Self-Custody Actually Requires

New research examines how investor behavior, wallet architectures, and operational security practices determine what genuine self-custody requires in 2026. The foundational promise of cryptocurrency is decentralized, sovereign ownership. But this promise has run into a far more sobering reality, as a lot of funds held on centralized exchanges have been lost over the years. Users…

BlackRock Launches Staked Ethereum ETF Offering Yield

BlackRock is expanding its crypto investment lineup with a new Nasdaq-listed product tied to Ethereum staking. BlackRock on Thursday introduced its iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF, or ETHB, describing it as an exchange-traded product (ETP) that combines spot Ether (ETH) exposure with “monthly income potential” by staking a portion of its ETH holdings. Source: iShares…

Offshore Crypto Exchanges Create Oversight Gaps, FATF Says

A new report from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) warns that crypto service providers operating offshore pose risks of money laundering, sanctions evasion and other illicit financial activity. In the report, titled “Understanding and Mitigating the Risks of Offshore Virtual Asset Service Providers (oVASPs),” the FATF said some offshore firms exploit gaps and differences…

Bitcoin–Gold Ratio Rebound Signals a Potential Opportunity Window

Bitcoin’s (BTC) long-term price trend against gold shows a bullish shift after retracing to a level previously seen in 2017, 2022, and 2023. The potential trend change appears alongside what analysts describe as an “opportunity within risk.” BTC–gold ratio shows bullish divergence MN Capital founder Michaël van de Poppe noted that the Bitcoin-to-gold ratio is…

BlackRock Launches Staked Ethereum ETF Offering Yield

BlackRock is expanding its crypto investment lineup with a new Nasdaq-listed product tied to Ethereum staking. BlackRock on Thursday introduced its iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF, or ETHB, describing it as an exchange-traded product (ETP) that combines spot Ether (ETH) exposure with “monthly income potential” by staking a portion of its ETH holdings. Source: iShares…

65% of Bitcoin Supply Not Vulnerable to Quantum Threat: Ark Invest

US investment manager Ark Invest claims that the lion’s share of the Bitcoin supply is already safe from the quantum computing breakthrough, leaving ample warning signals for builders to quantum-proof the rest of the supply. Around 65.4% of the Bitcoin (BTC) supply is not vulnerable to the threat of a quantum computing breakthrough, but about…

Eightco shares jump $125 million funding commitment from Btmine, ARK, Kraken parent Payward

Eightco Holdings’ (ORBS) shares rose as much as 25% in early trading after the firm said it secured $125 million in new institutional funding commitments and made $75 million in AI and crypto investments. The commitments include $75 million from Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR), an ether (ETH) treasury asset company that holds a near 7%…

Why Every Blockchain Suddenly Wants Its Own Perp Dex

In crypto’s latest infrastructure race, blockchains are competing to host perpetual futures exchanges. Many are now launching or incubating decentralized derivatives markets themselves, even as centralized platforms continue to dominate. Derivatives make up most of today’s crypto trading activity, often accounting for the majority of total volume. On Tuesday, Bitcoin (BTC) spot trading volume across…

Utah Set to Block Prediction Markets Like Kalshi and Polymarket

The US state of Utah is set to block prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, escalating a growing dispute between state regulators and federal authorities over how the industry should be regulated. On Wednesday, Utah’s HB243 (Gambling Revisions) bill was sent to the governor’s desk after passing the Utah House on Feb. 10…