A series of security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in internet infrastructure software within a single day, affecting PHP, Node.js, and Go.
Multiple internet infrastructure software projects rolled out security updates in a single day, addressing vulnerabilities including remote code execution, TLS certificate validation bypass, and certificate trust risks. PHP fixed two critical flaws: CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619, both enabling unauthenticated remote code execution that impacts PHP environments processing web requests. The patched versions are 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35. Node.js’ advisory details 10 vulnerabilities, four of which are high-severity: these include remote code execution via out-of-bounds write in the Brotli decoder, DNS name truncation, and two TLS certificate hostname validation bypass issues. Fixed versions are 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. Additionally, Go’s crypto/x509-related risk is tracked as CVE-2026-111943, rated "Important" by Red Hat with a CVSS 3.1 score of 6.8. Attackers with specific network access and valid certificates could impersonate legitimate servers to intercept or alter communications. Go 1.26.10 and 1.27.3 have been added to a deny list, blocking trust for compromised intermediate certificates.
1 hours ago
Dataline completes $10.6 million seed round funding, and plans to conduct an ICO.
Decentralized data network for AI agents Dataline has closed a $10.6 million seed round, co-led by Lattice and Samsung-backed Dispersion Capital, with participation from Symbolic Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Anagram, and Robinhood co-founder & CEO Vlad Tenev, among others. The round, completed in April, utilized a SAFE agreement with token warrants; valuation was not disclosed. Dataline is now live, covering approximately 50 data sources to deliver on-chain and off-chain data, and scores data reliability, timeliness, and consistency using AI. Proceeds will be allocated to expanding data sources, enhancing data validation, and expanding into robotics, AI training data, and other sectors. Dataline plans to launch a token by the end of 2026 for network payments and data access, and intends to conduct a public token sale on Base via Uniswap’s Continuous Clearing Auction (CCA) system, with details set to be revealed next week. The public sale’s target fundraising amount, token quantity, and other terms remain undisclosed.
1 hours ago
Trump plans to leverage White House cyber crime efforts to showcase achievements in combating cross-border crypto fraud.
White House officials said on October 21 that Trump planned to focus on the U.S. government’s actions to crack down on overseas crypto fraud rings during the White House’s cybersecurity event that day, including recovering funds and shutting down fraudulent operations. These transnational criminal groups steal funds from U.S. citizens via romance scams, phishing, ransomware and other methods. The U.S. government noted that law enforcement agencies have seized approximately $833 million in crypto assets linked to overseas fraud, and shut down 503 fraudulent crypto websites under the supervision of the Homeland Security Task Force. Relevant authorities have also notified nearly 9,000 U.S. citizens to alert them they are being targeted by fraud. The U.S. Treasury Department previously announced the establishment of an inter-agency "Fraud Strike Task Force" to target "pig butchering" scams run by organized criminal groups in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines. Since last year, the U.S. has also imposed multiple sanctions aimed at cutting off support for related fraud websites and their infrastructure.
1 hours ago
American Bankers Association voices dissatisfaction with OCC’s final GENIUS Act rule, which abandons proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields.
Crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett reported that the American Bankers Association (ABA) has voiced dissatisfaction with the final rules implemented by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) under the GENIUS Act. The OCC abandoned the previously proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields, a move the ABA argues will "maintain the status quo for crypto platforms." The ABA’s CEO stated: "It is a mistake to wait until deposit outflows and economic harm have already occurred before attempting to address these issues."
1 hours ago
Beyond PHP, three Node.js version branches are also affected by high-severity vulnerabilities, and users need to update their runtime environments promptly.
Node.js rolled out a security update on October 21, covering its 26.x, 24.x, and 22.x version branches, with corresponding patched releases: 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. The advisory details 10 total vulnerabilities, categorized as 4 critical-severity, 3 medium-severity, and 3 low-severity, with varying impact scopes across the three version lines. The critical CVE-2026-111497 is an out-of-bounds write flaw in the Brotli decoder that could enable remote code execution (RCE), affecting all three branches. Other critical issues include improper null character handling in DNS resolution and a TLS certificate hostname validation bypass. The update also resolves problems with persistent connection response processing, random number cache duplication, and permission models, while updating dependencies including c-ares, OpenSSL, and Undici. The official note warns that end-of-life (EOL) versions may still be vulnerable, advising users to use the latest supported releases. Separately, prior reports noted PHP has fixed two critical unauthenticated RCE vulnerabilities, with patches available for versions 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35; PHP users are urged to upgrade immediately.
1 hours ago
Bonk Guy: This round is the "privacy cycle", privacy protocol MASK is undervalued.
Renowned trader Bonk Guy posted that the current crypto market is showing characteristics of a "privacy cycle". He noted that since yesterday, Bitcoin has risen approximately 3%, ZEC is up 16%, adding over $3 billion in market capitalization. MASK currently has a market cap of roughly $26 million, with its protocol trading volume and fees hitting consecutive all-time highs, he added. Citing data from DefiLlama, he stated that MASK ranks first among privacy protocols by revenue, outearning the next 10 privacy protocols combined. By comparison, ZEC’s market cap gain over the past 24 hours is roughly 115 times MASK’s entire market cap. Bonk Guy also said that MASK’s upcoming deployment on Solana is set to launch in the coming days, which he expects will further drive growth in usage, trading volume, and fees. He went on to call MASK the most undervalued privacy protocol in the crypto market.
A series of security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in internet infrastructure software within a single day, affecting PHP, Node.js, and Go.
Multiple internet infrastructure software projects rolled out security updates in a single day, addressing vulnerabilities including remote code execution, TLS certificate validation bypass, and certificate trust risks. PHP fixed two critical flaws: CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619, both enabling unauthenticated remote code execution that impacts PHP environments processing web requests. The patched versions are 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35. Node.js’ advisory details 10 vulnerabilities, four of which are high-severity: these include remote code execution via out-of-bounds write in the Brotli decoder, DNS name truncation, and two TLS certificate hostname validation bypass issues. Fixed versions are 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. Additionally, Go’s crypto/x509-related risk is tracked as CVE-2026-111943, rated "Important" by Red Hat with a CVSS 3.1 score of 6.8. Attackers with specific network access and valid certificates could impersonate legitimate servers to intercept or alter communications. Go 1.26.10 and 1.27.3 have been added to a deny list, blocking trust for compromised intermediate certificates.
1 hours ago
Dataline completes $10.6 million seed round funding, and plans to conduct an ICO.
Decentralized data network for AI agents Dataline has closed a $10.6 million seed round, co-led by Lattice and Samsung-backed Dispersion Capital, with participation from Symbolic Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Anagram, and Robinhood co-founder & CEO Vlad Tenev, among others. The round, completed in April, utilized a SAFE agreement with token warrants; valuation was not disclosed. Dataline is now live, covering approximately 50 data sources to deliver on-chain and off-chain data, and scores data reliability, timeliness, and consistency using AI. Proceeds will be allocated to expanding data sources, enhancing data validation, and expanding into robotics, AI training data, and other sectors. Dataline plans to launch a token by the end of 2026 for network payments and data access, and intends to conduct a public token sale on Base via Uniswap’s Continuous Clearing Auction (CCA) system, with details set to be revealed next week. The public sale’s target fundraising amount, token quantity, and other terms remain undisclosed.
1 hours ago
Trump plans to leverage White House cyber crime efforts to showcase achievements in combating cross-border crypto fraud.
White House officials said on October 21 that Trump planned to focus on the U.S. government’s actions to crack down on overseas crypto fraud rings during the White House’s cybersecurity event that day, including recovering funds and shutting down fraudulent operations. These transnational criminal groups steal funds from U.S. citizens via romance scams, phishing, ransomware and other methods. The U.S. government noted that law enforcement agencies have seized approximately $833 million in crypto assets linked to overseas fraud, and shut down 503 fraudulent crypto websites under the supervision of the Homeland Security Task Force. Relevant authorities have also notified nearly 9,000 U.S. citizens to alert them they are being targeted by fraud. The U.S. Treasury Department previously announced the establishment of an inter-agency "Fraud Strike Task Force" to target "pig butchering" scams run by organized criminal groups in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines. Since last year, the U.S. has also imposed multiple sanctions aimed at cutting off support for related fraud websites and their infrastructure.
1 hours ago
American Bankers Association voices dissatisfaction with OCC’s final GENIUS Act rule, which abandons proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields.
Crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett reported that the American Bankers Association (ABA) has voiced dissatisfaction with the final rules implemented by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) under the GENIUS Act. The OCC abandoned the previously proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields, a move the ABA argues will "maintain the status quo for crypto platforms." The ABA’s CEO stated: "It is a mistake to wait until deposit outflows and economic harm have already occurred before attempting to address these issues."
1 hours ago
Beyond PHP, three Node.js version branches are also affected by high-severity vulnerabilities, and users need to update their runtime environments promptly.
Node.js rolled out a security update on October 21, covering its 26.x, 24.x, and 22.x version branches, with corresponding patched releases: 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. The advisory details 10 total vulnerabilities, categorized as 4 critical-severity, 3 medium-severity, and 3 low-severity, with varying impact scopes across the three version lines. The critical CVE-2026-111497 is an out-of-bounds write flaw in the Brotli decoder that could enable remote code execution (RCE), affecting all three branches. Other critical issues include improper null character handling in DNS resolution and a TLS certificate hostname validation bypass. The update also resolves problems with persistent connection response processing, random number cache duplication, and permission models, while updating dependencies including c-ares, OpenSSL, and Undici. The official note warns that end-of-life (EOL) versions may still be vulnerable, advising users to use the latest supported releases. Separately, prior reports noted PHP has fixed two critical unauthenticated RCE vulnerabilities, with patches available for versions 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35; PHP users are urged to upgrade immediately.
1 hours ago
Bonk Guy: This round is the "privacy cycle", privacy protocol MASK is undervalued.
Renowned trader Bonk Guy posted that the current crypto market is showing characteristics of a "privacy cycle". He noted that since yesterday, Bitcoin has risen approximately 3%, ZEC is up 16%, adding over $3 billion in market capitalization. MASK currently has a market cap of roughly $26 million, with its protocol trading volume and fees hitting consecutive all-time highs, he added. Citing data from DefiLlama, he stated that MASK ranks first among privacy protocols by revenue, outearning the next 10 privacy protocols combined. By comparison, ZEC’s market cap gain over the past 24 hours is roughly 115 times MASK’s entire market cap. Bonk Guy also said that MASK’s upcoming deployment on Solana is set to launch in the coming days, which he expects will further drive growth in usage, trading volume, and fees. He went on to call MASK the most undervalued privacy protocol in the crypto market.
A series of security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in internet infrastructure software within a single day, affecting PHP, Node.js, and Go.
Multiple internet infrastructure software projects rolled out security updates in a single day, addressing vulnerabilities including remote code execution, TLS certificate validation bypass, and certificate trust risks. PHP fixed two critical flaws: CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619, both enabling unauthenticated remote code execution that impacts PHP environments processing web requests. The patched versions are 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35. Node.js’ advisory details 10 vulnerabilities, four of which are high-severity: these include remote code execution via out-of-bounds write in the Brotli decoder, DNS name truncation, and two TLS certificate hostname validation bypass issues. Fixed versions are 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. Additionally, Go’s crypto/x509-related risk is tracked as CVE-2026-111943, rated "Important" by Red Hat with a CVSS 3.1 score of 6.8. Attackers with specific network access and valid certificates could impersonate legitimate servers to intercept or alter communications. Go 1.26.10 and 1.27.3 have been added to a deny list, blocking trust for compromised intermediate certificates.
1 hours ago
Dataline completes $10.6 million seed round funding, and plans to conduct an ICO.
Decentralized data network for AI agents Dataline has closed a $10.6 million seed round, co-led by Lattice and Samsung-backed Dispersion Capital, with participation from Symbolic Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Anagram, and Robinhood co-founder & CEO Vlad Tenev, among others. The round, completed in April, utilized a SAFE agreement with token warrants; valuation was not disclosed. Dataline is now live, covering approximately 50 data sources to deliver on-chain and off-chain data, and scores data reliability, timeliness, and consistency using AI. Proceeds will be allocated to expanding data sources, enhancing data validation, and expanding into robotics, AI training data, and other sectors. Dataline plans to launch a token by the end of 2026 for network payments and data access, and intends to conduct a public token sale on Base via Uniswap’s Continuous Clearing Auction (CCA) system, with details set to be revealed next week. The public sale’s target fundraising amount, token quantity, and other terms remain undisclosed.
1 hours ago
Trump plans to leverage White House cyber crime efforts to showcase achievements in combating cross-border crypto fraud.
White House officials said on October 21 that Trump planned to focus on the U.S. government’s actions to crack down on overseas crypto fraud rings during the White House’s cybersecurity event that day, including recovering funds and shutting down fraudulent operations. These transnational criminal groups steal funds from U.S. citizens via romance scams, phishing, ransomware and other methods. The U.S. government noted that law enforcement agencies have seized approximately $833 million in crypto assets linked to overseas fraud, and shut down 503 fraudulent crypto websites under the supervision of the Homeland Security Task Force. Relevant authorities have also notified nearly 9,000 U.S. citizens to alert them they are being targeted by fraud. The U.S. Treasury Department previously announced the establishment of an inter-agency "Fraud Strike Task Force" to target "pig butchering" scams run by organized criminal groups in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines. Since last year, the U.S. has also imposed multiple sanctions aimed at cutting off support for related fraud websites and their infrastructure.
1 hours ago
American Bankers Association voices dissatisfaction with OCC’s final GENIUS Act rule, which abandons proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields.
Crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett reported that the American Bankers Association (ABA) has voiced dissatisfaction with the final rules implemented by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) under the GENIUS Act. The OCC abandoned the previously proposed restrictions on stablecoin yields, a move the ABA argues will "maintain the status quo for crypto platforms." The ABA’s CEO stated: "It is a mistake to wait until deposit outflows and economic harm have already occurred before attempting to address these issues."
1 hours ago
Beyond PHP, three Node.js version branches are also affected by high-severity vulnerabilities, and users need to update their runtime environments promptly.
Node.js rolled out a security update on October 21, covering its 26.x, 24.x, and 22.x version branches, with corresponding patched releases: 26.12.1, 24.22.1, and 22.23.4. The advisory details 10 total vulnerabilities, categorized as 4 critical-severity, 3 medium-severity, and 3 low-severity, with varying impact scopes across the three version lines. The critical CVE-2026-111497 is an out-of-bounds write flaw in the Brotli decoder that could enable remote code execution (RCE), affecting all three branches. Other critical issues include improper null character handling in DNS resolution and a TLS certificate hostname validation bypass. The update also resolves problems with persistent connection response processing, random number cache duplication, and permission models, while updating dependencies including c-ares, OpenSSL, and Undici. The official note warns that end-of-life (EOL) versions may still be vulnerable, advising users to use the latest supported releases. Separately, prior reports noted PHP has fixed two critical unauthenticated RCE vulnerabilities, with patches available for versions 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, and 8.2.35; PHP users are urged to upgrade immediately.
1 hours ago
Bonk Guy: This round is the "privacy cycle", privacy protocol MASK is undervalued.
Renowned trader Bonk Guy posted that the current crypto market is showing characteristics of a "privacy cycle". He noted that since yesterday, Bitcoin has risen approximately 3%, ZEC is up 16%, adding over $3 billion in market capitalization. MASK currently has a market cap of roughly $26 million, with its protocol trading volume and fees hitting consecutive all-time highs, he added. Citing data from DefiLlama, he stated that MASK ranks first among privacy protocols by revenue, outearning the next 10 privacy protocols combined. By comparison, ZEC’s market cap gain over the past 24 hours is roughly 115 times MASK’s entire market cap. Bonk Guy also said that MASK’s upcoming deployment on Solana is set to launch in the coming days, which he expects will further drive growth in usage, trading volume, and fees. He went on to call MASK the most undervalued privacy protocol in the crypto market.
Bankless co-founder David Hoffman shared a noteworthy prediction, stating that Zcash’s rise may not be over yet. Hoffman believes ZEC could reach 10% of Bitcoin’s market capitalization in the current cycle and 25% in the next.
However, Hoffman’s optimism towards Zcash is not new. His previous writings reveal the stages through which this view was formed.
In his May 9th assessment, Hoffman recalled that ZEC had risen from $56 to $700 in 41 days the previous year. He explained that due to the weakness that followed this movement, the rise might not be permanent and gave the impression of being a temporary bounce driven by a small group.
The second strong move seen in May changed his perspective. At the time, Hoffman noted that ZEC had risen by approximately 80 percent in the previous 30 days, arguing that a single rally wasn’t enough, but the second surge deserved closer examination.
He placed financial privacy at the heart of his optimism. According to Hoffman, the increasing capacity of AI-powered financial monitoring could boost demand for privacy technologies. He also believed that Zcash’s structure, which combined transparent and private transaction options, could provide an advantage in terms of corporate access.
A noteworthy detail is that he also discussed the scenario of Bitcoin reaching 10% of its market capitalization in the same May article. Therefore, this percentage is not a target that has been put forward for the first time today.
In his article published on September 23, Hoffman expanded on his thesis through capital movements. Comparing Zcash’s position in 2026 to Ethereum’s in 2021, he argued that even a small fraction of Bitcoin holders shifting their investments to ZEC could have a powerful impact on an asset with a smaller market capitalization.
*This is not investment advice.
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The Drift Protocol exploiter has transferred approximately $109 million in Ethereum to Tornado Cash over the past two days, heightening concerns about the movement of funds stolen in one of the largest decentralized finance attacks this year.
Details of Recent Ethereum TransfersBlockchain analytics platform Onchain Lens reported that addresses controlled by the Drift exploiter sent a total of 44,510 ETH to Tornado Cash between October 20 and 21. The transfers consisted of 25,710 ETH, worth around $63 million, on October 20, followed by 18,800 ETH, valued at roughly $46 million, on the following day.
These movements account for more than one-third of the $295.7 million equivalent stolen in April during the Drift Protocol exploit. Analyst data shows the exploiter’s wallets now hold close to 56,569 ETH, with the balance estimated at about $138 million as of October 21, according to Arkham Intelligence.
Records from Tuesday indicate that the exploiter’s monitored balance was near 81,454 ETH, which represented approximately $194 million. This reduction reflects a combination of outgoing transfers and fluctuating Ether prices.
Ongoing Use of Tornado CashThe Drift exploiter has previously used Tornado Cash to obscure transactions. In August, linked wallets sent approximately $44 million in ETH through the mixer. On October 20, Lookonchain identified an influx of about 25,700 ETH sent to the service within just two hours. Additional transfers continued through October 21, tracked across various blockchain monitoring tools.
Recent blockchain activity demonstrates an ongoing effort by the Drift exploiter to move substantial amounts of stolen funds through Tornado Cash, underscoring the complexity of tracing assets once they enter mixing services.
Analysts caution that blockchain analysis alone may not be sufficient to identify the eventual recipients of funds leaving Tornado Cash, creating ongoing challenges for investigators and affected users.
Aftermath of the April ExploitThe Drift Protocol suffered a $295.7 million loss on April 1. Discrepancies in early loss estimates reflected differences in token valuations over time. The attack stands as one of the largest in the decentralized finance ecosystem during 2024.
A June 3 update from Drift highlighted findings provided by Mandiant, which linked the incident to North Korean threat actor UNC6862 through operational evidence and analysis of prior attack patterns. The attackers had reportedly spent months building relationships with platform contributors before launching the exploit, which involved transaction approvals and access compromise rather than vulnerabilities in the smart contract code.
In response to the attack, Drift hired former Helium executive Noah Prince to oversee engineering and brought in staff from Gauntlet to review the protocol’s risk management and liquidation systems. The platform is moving to restart trading operations and intends to dedicate part of its future revenue to compensate victims of the hack. However, any funds moved by the exploiter function independently from these recovery efforts.
User Compensation and Recovery MechanismsDrift’s compensation process began on October 1 with the issuance of DFX tokens on Solana. These tokens allow verified users to redeem one DFX for every USDT lost during the exploit, with a capped supply of about 299.5 million DFX.
At the onset, approximately 3.1 million USDT was available in the recovery pool, setting the initial redemption value at $0.0104 per DFX. This structure means that direct recovery to pre-hack balances will not happen instantly, and the real value received depends on available funds.
Compensation options allow affected users to redeem DFX tokens against pool funds, sell their tokens, or hold them with the prospect of future value. Burned tokens are permanently removed from circulation as they are redeemed.
The recovery system allocates between 60% and 90% of Drift’s daily net revenue to the recovery pool, depending on performance. In addition, any assets recovered through legal measures will be added to compensatory funds. Tether has pledged up to 127.5 million USDT in assistance, with further commitments of up to 20 million USDT from other sources.
Nevertheless, these contributions are not yet available for redemption. Eligible users must claim their DFX tokens before January 1, 2028; any unclaimed tokens will be permanently burned afterward.
As the crypto market shows how quickly funds and meme tokens can gain momentum, timing and investor decisions remain critical. In the meme token sector, viral internet trends have transformed modest investments into substantial profits within days. Data from Fomo App illustrates this with an instance where a $99 investment in “Niu Lai” grew to about $370,000. Tools like Fomo App, which integrate token discovery, investor rankings, and trade notifications, offer traders a way to closely follow investor movements and activity in the fast-paced world of meme tokens.
Ethereum [ETH] staking hit an all-time high of 43.8 million, extending its growth streak to six consecutive quarters even as staking yields declined.
Bitwise’s Q4 2026 Staking Report highlighted that staked ETH represented 35.9% of the total supply of Ethereum.
The network reportedly recorded net staking inflows of 1.99 million ETH during the quarter, highlighting continued growth in participation. Ethereum’s staking yield, however, fell from 2.81% to 2.63%, reflecting how the increase in participation aligned with lower returns.
Source: X
Bitmine expands staking with a $390.6 million allocation
Institutional staking activity gained further attention as Bitmine staked another 159,728 ETH, valued at roughly $390.6 million. As per the Lookonchain’s post on X, the recent transaction pushed Bitmine’s total staked holdings to 5.23 million ETH, worth approximately $12.78 billion.
In fact, the staked assets accounted for roughly 86.5% of the company’s total ETH holdings, reflecting its significant commitment to Ethereum.
The recent allocation strengthened Bitmine’s strategy of generating staking rewards while at the same time maintaining significant exposure to ETH.
Interestingly, this significant participation further provided institutional context to Ethereum’s record staking figures, especially as yields continued depreciating.
Source: X
Binance traders favor longs as ETH exits exchanges
The derivatives market insights highlighted that Binance’s top traders maintained a strong bias for long positions despite recent price weakness.
In particular, long accounts represented 67.91% of top trader accounts, with 32.09% in favor of short positions. As a result, the Long/Short Ratio reached 2.12, implying that bullish positions outnumbered bearish positions by more than twofold.
Besides, Ethereum’s Spot market registered negative netflows of $2.34 million on the 21st of October, implying that the exchange withdrawals exceeded deposits, potentially reducing ETH available for immediate selling.
The recent outflow, however, remained relatively modest as compared with several larger withdrawals recorded during September and better part of October.
Source: ETH Spot Netflows on CoinGlass
Ethereum defends $2,400 as RSI improves
After retreating from the $2,800 resistance, Ethereum market value sat around $2,446, inside its previous consolidation range.
The daily timeframe chart highlighted ETH fluctuating between the $2,400 support and the $2,535 resistance, with the bulls defending the lower boundary repeatedly.
Following its recent correction, ETH attempted a modest rebound but struggled to establish a sustained move above the $2,500 area.
The RSI indicator, meanwhile, recovered to 42.80, above its signal average, which stood at 39.87. Even though the RSI remained below the 50-threshold, its latest improvement suggested easing bearish pressure.
On the other hand, the Parabolic SAR indicator remained above the prevailing price at $2,547.94, validating bearish structure.
Ethereum would need sustained price rebound to allow for it to retest the $2,535 resistance, where sellers previously restricted further advances, as the bearish SAR still favored caution.
Source: ETH/USDT on TradingView
Final Summary
Ethereum staking reached 43.8 million ETH as Bitmine expanded its staked holdings.
ETH defended $2,400 support, but bearish indicators continued limiting recovery prospects.
Crypto authorizations granted to a contract remain active as long as you don’t withdraw them. From May 5, 2026, attackers exploited this rule. They withdrew approximately 1.42 million dollars from 31 addresses, thanks to authorizations given to a router of the Ekubo protocol. The main victim had granted theirs 158 days earlier, according to the founder of SlowMist.
In Brief $1.42 million: that’s how much attackers drained starting May 5, 2026, using approvals users had granted to an Ekubo router. 158 days: the age of the unlimited approval that cost the main victim about 17 WBTC. 60%: the share of unlimited approvals on Ethereum, according to a 2022 study of transactions through July 2021. May 6, 2026: the day after the first drain, Ekubo’s founder proposed ERC-8255, a standard for approvals that expire by default. A crypto authorization does not stop with the transaction To exchange a token on a decentralized application, you first sign an authorization. This message thus allows a contract to withdraw your tokens on your behalf. The ERC-20 standard stipulates that it can do so “multiple times, up to the set amount”. However, your wallet does not always display what you are signing, as shown in our article on clear signing.
Moreover, this authorization has no end date. The official ethereum.org guide on revocation states plainly: “There is no expiration date on contract permissions.” They can therefore be used years later.
Disconnecting from the site does not change anything either. The authorization exists in the token’s contract, on the blockchain, and not in your browser. According to the same guide, the project therefore retains access to your tokens after disconnection. Your digital wallet does indeed keep your keys, not your authorizations. You must then revoke the authorization to cut this access.
The amount then poses a second problem. Many applications request unlimited access, so as not to ask again at each exchange. A university study published in 2022 measured this on transactions made up to July 31, 2021. At the time, 60% of authorizations on Ethereum were for an unlimited amount.
Crypto authorizations: what you think you accept When you validate an exchange, you think you authorize only that single operation. In reality, the authorization goes further. It allows the contract to take a token amount, at any time, until withdrawn.
As long as the contract functions well, it only withdraws for your own operations. However, a code flaw can allow a third party to trigger the withdrawal. The authorization does not verify who calls the contract. It only checks that the contract has the right to take your tokens.
Ekubo has revised its own explanation. On May 8, its report probably attributed large authorizations to users who raised the ceiling themselves. On May 16, the text changed. The team indicates that its interface may have created some of these authorizations and no longer tries to attribute their origin.
Ekubo: how a forgotten router drained wallets Ekubo is an exchange protocol present on Starknet and on several blockchains compatible with Ethereum. The attack targeted the HuffRouter, a router optimized to reduce fees, deployed on Ethereum and Arbitrum. Its users had indeed given it the right to withdraw their tokens to execute their exchanges.
A data parsing bug in HuffRouter […] allowed a caller to add arbitrary bytes after a otherwise valid exchange path, and have them interpreted as data set by the router upon settlement.
Specifically, the attacker could designate any user as the payer of an exchange. Anyone who had authorized this router thus became a target. The first withdrawal was on May 5, 2026, at 5:50 p.m. UTC.
Ekubo estimates losses at around 1.42 million dollars, across 31 addresses. However, a single address lost about 17 WBTC, or nearly 1.37 million dollars, as well as 0.34 cbBTC. It therefore concentrates 98% of the total. The attack did not affect the liquidity providers nor the Starknet version of the protocol.
The team also acknowledges not having audited this contract. They considered its risk low. According to them, authorizations could be limited, and exchanges via the interface should remain small and rare. These routers can no longer be modified: they “remain vulnerable,” the report specifies. Ekubo then deployed on June 23 a reimbursement fund, capped per address and voluntarily paid by its DAO.
Socket, LI.FI, SwapNet: the same pattern for years Ekubo is not an isolated case. The site Revoke.cash lists these attacks in its annual report. It counts 9 authorization exploits in 2025, totaling just over 6 million dollars. In 2024, they had cost 80 million.
In July 2024, the LI.FI platform lost about 11.6 million dollars, taken from 153 wallets. According to the report published by LI.FI, the flaw only affected unlimited authorizations. In January 2024, a similar flaw at Socket targeted about 200 users, all with unlimited access.
In January 2026, 18 users lost 13.43 million dollars through SwapNet’s contracts. According to the post-mortem of the Matcha Meta platform, victims had disabled the one-time use authorization offered by default. Matcha notes, however, that a precise unused amount also left funds exposed.
These attacks differ from signature scams. In that case, a fake site makes you sign an authorization for the scammer. This type of theft cost 83.85 million dollars in 2025, according to the 2025 report from security company ScamSniffer.
Reducing the risk of crypto authorizations The first reflex is to limit the amount. MetaMask allows setting a spending cap when signing. Their official help is clear: “Never grant unlimited (astronomically high) authorizations.”
Then, clean up regularly. The tool Revoke.cash displays your crypto authorizations on more than 80 networks. The verifier on the Etherscan explorer does the same on Ethereum. Revoking one authorization at a time is free, excluding network fees. Revoke.cash charges 1.50 dollars per batch revocation. In a January 2024 advisory, the police and cybersecurity agency of Singapore also recommend reviewing and revoking large authorizations.
Finally, some applications already limit the duration. The Uniswap application uses Permit2 and grants 30-day authorizations, according to its help center. However, you first give an authorization to the Permit2 contract itself, and that one does not expire. On Starknet, tokens follow the same model as Ethereum, without expiration.
ERC-8255 wants authorizations to expire by default On May 6, 2026, Moody Salem, founder of Ekubo, submitted the project ERC-8255 on the EIP site. Its principle is simple: a classic authorization would expire after a maximum duration, set by each token. A new function would also allow granting a shorter authorization, down to a single block.
The text first adds new functions, compatible with existing applications. However, it changes the behavior of ordinary authorizations, which divides developers. On the Ethereum Magicians forum, some prefer to leave the classic authorization untouched. Researcher pcaversaccio believes instead that “authorizations have always been a bug, not a feature” (editorial translation).
Other approaches also exist. The ERC-7674 proposal provides for authorizations erased at the end of the transaction. Since the Pectra update of May 2025, a compatible wallet can also bundle authorization and exchange in a single operation.
As of October 18, 2026, ERC-8255 remained a project, and its text referenced no implementation. The Ekubo routers targeted on May 5 cannot be modified. Their unlimited authorizations therefore only disappear if each user revokes them. Our comparison of the most secure crypto wallets presents other available protections.
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Ering N.
Independent author, specialized in decentralized artificial intelligence and crypto ecosystems. I analyze projects by what they actually do, not by the noise around them. Openly a supporter of the Qubic project: my articles about Qubic and its direct competitors carry a disclosure.
Zcash gains nearly 10% as XRP and Ethereum rebound. October 21 analysis maps key price support, resistance and signals for ETH, XRP, XMR, ZEC and PUMP.
Asset Price 24-hour change Aggregate volume Ethereum $2,443.19 +1.24% $11.30B XRP $1.33 +2.10% $1.41B Zcash $1,259.24 +9.64% $1.04B Monero $575.41 −4.80% $185.56M Pump.fun $0.0047416 +6.35% $189.25M Ethereum Rebounds but Remains Below the Bollinger Midpoint Ethereum closed October 20 at $2,446.73, up 1.72%, after trading between $2,370.41 and $2,475. The candle recovered Monday’s $2,443.70 high at the close but did not clear the October 16 high at $2,490.84 or the October 14 high at $2,527.11.
TH/USD daily Bollinger Bands show a rebound to $2,446.73 below the falling $2,532.04 midpoint, with support concentrated near $2,370–$2,383. Daily Bollinger Bands, calculated from a 20-day simple moving average and two population standard deviations, placed the midpoint at $2,532.04. The lower and upper bands stood at $2,296.81 and $2,767.26.
Price remains in the lower half of the envelope while the midpoint continues to fall. This characterizes a rebound beneath a declining trend reference rather than a confirmed reversal.
The completed 00:00–04:00 UTC candle closed at $2,441.56. CoinGecko’s aggregate quote was 1.34% above Tuesday’s $2,410.99 report.
A daily close above $2,475 would strengthen the approach to $2,490.84 and the Bollinger midpoint near $2,532. A close below $2,382.78 would weaken the rebound and expose $2,370.41, followed by $2,313.42.
XRP’s MACD Gap Narrows Without a Bullish Crossover XRP closed Tuesday at $1.33457, gaining 2.45% and finishing above the previous session’s $1.32128 high. The move recovered part of the decline from $1.38535 but remained beneath the $1.34473 session high and $1.34600–$1.35208 resistance.
XRP/USD daily MACD (12,26,9) remains below its signal even as the histogram becomes less negative following a 2.45% completed-session gain. Daily MACD, using 12- and 26-period exponential averages with a nine-period signal EMA, remained bearish. The MACD line improved to −0.03536 against a −0.02410 signal.
Its histogram narrowed from −0.01569 to −0.01126, showing reduced downside momentum but no completed bullish line-signal crossover.
Four-hour MACD offered a stronger short-term reading: the line was above its signal and the histogram was positive at 0.00611. That divergence supports a near-term rebound attempt but does not replace daily confirmation.
A daily close above $1.34473–$1.35208 would strengthen the recovery toward $1.38076–$1.38535.
Failure to hold $1.29213 would weaken the move and expose Tuesday’s $1.285 low. A close below $1.25477 would invalidate the recovery from the new October low.
Compared with the October 19 report, XRP’s Kraken daily close has risen 2.21% from $1.30573.
Monero Holds Above Its Daily EMAs After a $625 Rejection Monero closed October 20 at $597.57, down 1.29%, after reaching $625. The upper wick and lower close show rejection from that high, while Kraken volume reached 10,422 XMR—approximately 1.66 times the preceding 20-session average.
XMR/USD remains above rising 20-day and 50-day EMAs despite rejecting $625, while four-hour price action has weakened toward $575. Despite the pullback, price remained above the rising 20-day EMA at $559.91 and 50-day EMA at $530.54. The faster average was already above the slower one, and Tuesday did not produce a fresh crossover.
The setup therefore combines a still-positive daily trend position with near-term rejection at resistance.
Short-term conditions weakened after the daily close. The completed four-hour candle fell to $574.94, below its 20-period EMA at $592.17 and near its 50-period EMA at $574.17. CoinGecko’s $575.41 quote likewise sat well below Tuesday’s close.
A daily close above $611.93 would improve the odds of another test of $625. Clearing $625 would bring the September 21 high at $633.90 into focus.
A close below $582.55 would weaken the latest advance, while losing $569.44 would expose the 20-day EMA.
Zcash RSI Reclaims Neutral as Price Tests October Resistance Zcash closed at $1,256.30, gaining 9.17% after trading as low as $1,117.08. The close recovered Monday’s $1,189.88 high and approached the $1,278–$1,284.78 resistance area.
ZEC/USD daily RSI rises above 50 as price approaches $1,278–$1,284.78 resistance; the four-hour move to $1,296 is not yet a daily breakout. The 14-day RSI, calculated with Wilder smoothing, rose to 51.05 from 43.69. Moving above 50 provides momentum confirmation for the rebound, while the reading remains below the conventional 70 overbought threshold. Four-hour RSI was stronger at 64.82, reflecting the sharp short-term advance.
The latest completed four-hour candle reached $1,296 and closed at $1,260.25. This intraday break above $1,284.78 was not confirmed by a completed daily close.
The broader October structure also retains lower highs from the September peak.
A daily close above $1,284.78 would confirm a break of immediate resistance and improve the path toward $1,303–$1,335.
A close below $1,189.88 would weaken the rebound, with $1,150.80 and $1,108.86 next. Losing $1,047.63 would invalidate the recovery.
The current aggregate quote is 4.51% above the $1,204.87 snapshot in the October 16 report.
Pump.fun Rebounds as ATR Keeps Volatility Elevated Pump.fun closed Tuesday at $0.004864, advancing 8.91% after a $0.004325–$0.004878 session. The close recovered Monday’s $0.004586 high but stopped below $0.004878 and the October 14 high at $0.005130.
PUMP/USD daily ATR (14) remains near $0.000596, or 12.25% of price, as the token rebounds toward $0.004878–$0.005130 resistance. The 14-day Average True Range, using Wilder smoothing, stood at $0.000596, down slightly from $0.000599. That equals approximately 12.25% of Tuesday’s close, indicating that recent daily ranges remain wide relative to price.
ATR measures volatility, not direction, so it does not confirm that the rebound will continue.
The latest completed four-hour candle closed at $0.004738 after touching $0.004963. The move cleared Tuesday’s high intraday but failed to hold above it at the four-hour close.
A daily breakout therefore remains unconfirmed.
A daily close above $0.004878 would strengthen the recovery toward $0.005130, followed by $0.005503–$0.005610.
A close below $0.004325 would weaken the setup and expose $0.004153. Losing the October 18 low at $0.003788 would invalidate the current rebound.
Crypto asset manager Grayscale continues to take innovative steps regarding cryptocurrencies. In its latest announcement, Grayscale stated that it will allow investors to invest in spot cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin directly in exchange for shares in its ETFs and other investment products.
Accordingly, Grayscale has implemented an in-kind subscription model in 10 of its products, allowing investors to exchange eligible digital assets for direct investment product shares. The new model aims to facilitate the integration of crypto assets into traditional portfolio management.
The Need for Cash Conversion is Decreasing!
Grayscale has announced a new investment method for some of its investment products. This system allows investors to directly exchange their crypto assets for shares in Grayscale’s investment products without first having to convert them to cash.
The company stated that this method could reduce operational burdens stemming from custody and security processes, lower transaction costs in crypto markets, and facilitate the inclusion of digital assets in traditional investment portfolios.
10 Cryptocurrencies, Including Bitcoin and Ethereum, on the List!
According to Grayscale, the subscription service includes 10 investment products, including Bitcoin and Ethereum: “Bitcoin, Ethereum, Avalanche, Chainlink, Dogecoin, Hyperliquid, Solana, XRP, Sui, Zcash”
“Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC)
Grayscale Ethereum Staking Mini ETF (ETH)
Grayscale Avalanche Staking ETF (GAVA)
Grayscale Chainlink Trust ETF (GLNK)
Grayscale Dogecoin Trust ETF (GDOG)
Grayscale Hyperliquid Staking ETF (HYPG)
Grayscale Solana Staking ETF (GSOL)
Grayscale Sui Staking ETF (GSUI)
Grayscale XRP Trust ETF (GXRP)
The Zcash ETF (ZCSH)”
Finally, according to Grayscale’s statement, the service is available to eligible investors. Clients wishing to trade on the primary market must work with authorized participants or the institutions that act as intermediaries for these participants.
*This is not investment advice.
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TLDR A wallet tied to the April Drift hack sent 25,710 ETH, worth about $63.1 million, into Tornado Cash on Oct. 20. The wallet made 258 deposits over two hours and 13 minutes, leaving about 3.98 ETH behind. Drift estimated about $280 million was taken in the April 1 attack, which Mandiant linked to North Korean group UNC6862. Drift opened DFX token claims on Oct. 1, giving users one DFX for each USDT of verified loss. As of Oct. 4, the redemption quote was about 0.0104 USDT per DFX, close to one cent per USDT lost. A wallet tied to the April hack of crypto trading protocol Drift sent 25,710 ETH into the Tornado Cash mixer on Oct. 20. The transfers were worth about $63.1 million.
The address is labeled “Drift Exploiter 5” on the blockchain explorer Etherscan. The deposits were the wallet’s first outgoing Ethereum transactions, and they left it nearly empty.
How the Transfers Happened The wallet made 258 deposits to the Tornado Cash router. It sent 257 deposits of 100 ETH each, followed by one final deposit of 10 ETH.
The first deposit was confirmed at 07:08:35 UTC in block 26,232,203. The last came at 09:21:35 UTC in block 26,232,865. The full sequence took two hours and 13 minutes.
After the transfers, the address held about 3.98 ETH. The dollar value of the deposits is based on an average Ethereum price of $2,450 on Oct. 20.
On-chain analysis account Lookonchain separately reported that the exploiter wallets it tracks hold a combined 81,864 ETH.
Drift was attacked on April 1, more than six months before these transfers. In an April 2 disclosure, the protocol estimated that about $280 million had been withdrawn.
Drift said the attacker took over the administrative powers of its Security Council. The attacker used durable nonce accounts to pre-sign transactions and delay when they were carried out.
According to Drift, this allowed the attacker to get unauthorized or misrepresented transaction approvals in advance. At the time, the protocol said it had not found a bug in its programs or smart contracts.
In a June 4 update, Drift said the investigation it hired Mandiant to carry out linked the attack to UNC6862. That is a North Korean threat group.
How Drift Plans to Repay Users Drift has set up a Recovery Pool to return funds to affected users. Money recovered through freezes, a bounty, or law enforcement goes into the pool. A share of the platform’s net protocol revenue is also added.
The protocol opened claims and redemptions for its DFX token on Oct. 1. Users receive one DFX for each USDT of verified loss.
Holders can trade their DFX for USDT at the quoted redemption amount. The tokens they submit are burned in the same transaction.
Users who redeem give up their share of future pool deposits for those tokens. Those who redeem only part of their holdings keep that share for the DFX they hold onto.
As of Oct. 4, the quote was about 0.0104 USDT per DFX. That is close to one cent per USDT lost.
In an April 16 update, Drift proposed up to $127.5 million from Tether and $20 million from other partners. The plan included a revenue-linked credit facility, an ecosystem grant, and market-maker loans.
The Oct. 20 deposits show where this wallet’s ETH went. How much of the stolen money will return to the Recovery Pool is still unknown. Ethereum was last trading at $2,462.20, up 3.55% over the past 24 hours.
The privacy startup said its encryption coprocessor is now in production with dual-mode tokens and two launch apps, and that Consensys Diligence audited the system.
Fhenix's encryption coprocessor is now live on Ethereum and Arbitrum mainnet
Posted October 21, 2026 at 9:00 am ET.
On Ethereum, a wallet’s holdings are public by default: anyone with the address can see what it owns, what it trades and when. Fhenix, a startup building privacy tools for Ethereum, said Wednesday that smart contracts on Ethereum and Arbitrum mainnet can now work with balances, positions and trading strategies that remain encrypted onchain, while the contract still enforces its rules.
The company said its CoFHE coprocessor, built on fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), is now in production on both networks. Until the launch, CoFHE ran only on public test networks.
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How It Works FHE is a form of cryptography that lets a computer do math on data without decrypting it first. According to Fhenix, CoFHE handles the heavy encrypted computation off-chain and passes the results back to contracts on the two chains. Developers add it with one Solidity import and encrypted data types that, the company said, behave like normal variables.
The launch also brings Fhenix’s dual-mode token design into production. Tokens issued under Fhenix’s dual-mode standard carry a confidential mode next to their public one, according to the company, and a holder can shift a balance into confidential mode in one transaction and switch it back when needed. Fhenix said those tokens never leave their home chain, are not wrapped or bridged, and keep working with existing wallets, exchanges and DeFi apps.
Fhenix said Consensys Diligence audited the system before launch. Unchained could not find a public copy of the audit report.
First Apps and What Comes Next Two design partners went live on day one, according to Fhenix: Fluton, which the company describes as a confidentiality engine built on encrypted intents, and AlphaEngine, where strategists compete for users’ liquidity with strategies that stay encrypted, so their methods remain private. A December 2025 post on Fhenix’s blog said AlphaEngine’s operators decrypt and match users’ swap intents in a step designed to run inside a trusted execution environment, a secure hardware enclave.
Fhenix said three more apps will launch on CoFHE in the fourth quarter, and that it plans to name two strategic partnerships with institutions in the coming weeks. Founder Guy Zyskind said in the announcement that the team is “working on a confidential stablecoin together with Tandem,” Offchain Labs’ venture arm that invested in Fhenix in 2025. Offchain Labs develops Arbitrum.
Fhenix is not the only team bringing FHE to stablecoins. In late May, a court order led Circle to freeze about $12.6 million held in a confidential USDC contract run by Zama, another FHE developer, locking funds of users unconnected to the case.
Steven Goldfeder, co-founder and CEO of Offchain Labs, said in Fhenix’s announcement that the launch is “the beginning of something big: a programmable economy with programmable privacy, fully composable for the end user.”
Related Listen: ‘Like a Peanut Butter Allergy’: Why Institutions Need Onchain Privacy
AI-assisted content: This article was produced with the assistance of AI tools and was reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by a member of the Unchained editorial team before publication.
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Fhenix has announced that its CoFHE coprocessor, which leverages fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), is now operational on both the Arbitrum and Ethereum networks. This milestone marks the shift of CoFHE from public test environments into full production, signaling a significant development in on-chain encrypted computation.
Key features of CoFHE and dual-mode tokensFHE, a cryptographic method, allows computing on encrypted data without needing to decrypt it first. By integrating this technology, Fhenix has enabled developers to perform complex calculations off-chain while preserving user privacy. The results of these encrypted computations are then relayed back to smart contracts across the two networks.
Fhenix claims that developers can integrate CoFHE with a single Solidity import, using encrypted data types that function like standard variables within Solidity-based applications. This integration is designed to streamline adoption while maintaining compatibility with existing Ethereum development practices.
Mini dictionary: Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE), a form of encryption that allows computations to be performed on encrypted data without needing to decrypt it. This enables privacy-preserving operations, safeguarding confidential information even during processing.
With the launch, the company has also rolled out its dual-mode token design. This new standard equips tokens with both public and confidential modes, allowing holders to switch balances between the two with a single transaction. According to Fhenix, these tokens always remain on their native chain and are neither wrapped nor bridged, ensuring compatibility with existing wallets, exchanges, and decentralized finance protocols.
Security audit and early partnersPrior to launch, Fhenix engaged Consensys Diligence to conduct a security audit of the CoFHE system. The company stated that the system successfully passed the audit, although a publicly accessible report has not been located.
On its first day in production, Fhenix onboarded two design partners: Fluton and AlphaEngine. Fluton is described as a confidentiality engine focusing on encrypted intents, while AlphaEngine offers a platform where strategists compete for user liquidity using private, encrypted strategies. Fhenix noted that AlphaEngine utilizes a trusted execution environment to decrypt and match user swap intents, supporting confidential transaction execution.
Mini dictionary: Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) is a secure area of a processor that ensures sensitive data is processed safely, protecting it from external software attacks.
Upcoming launches and ecosystem developmentFhenix reported that three additional applications are scheduled to launch on the CoFHE platform in the fourth quarter. The company also indicated that it will soon announce two new strategic partnerships with institutional players.
Founder Guy Zyskind mentioned that the team is collaborating with Tandem on a confidential stablecoin project. Tandem is the venture division of Offchain Labs, which develops the Arbitrum network and invested in Fhenix in 2025.
Founder Guy Zyskind stated that Fhenix is “working on a confidential stablecoin together with Tandem,” as part of the growing institutional interest in privacy-enabled blockchain assets.
Competitive developments in FHE stablecoinsFhenix is not the only company using FHE for stablecoin applications. In May, Circle, the issuer of USDC, froze approximately $12.6 million related to a confidential USDC contract managed by Zama, another FHE-focused technology developer. The action affected funds belonging to users who had no connection to the underlying legal case that prompted the freeze.
Tokens issued under Fhenix’s dual-mode standard carry a confidential mode alongside their public one, enabling users to move balances between modes securely without transferring assets across chains or requiring wrapped tokens.
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Ethereum Price hovered at $2,448.46 on Wednesday, rising 2.76% over 24 hours as the broader cryptocurrency market gained ground.
The overall crypto market capitalization rose by 2.49%, reaching $2.79 trillion during the same time, and major tokens gained.
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Ethereum Schedules Glamsterdam Upgrade on Hoodi for October 26
Ethereum developers have scheduled Glamsterdam’s Hoodi testnet activation for October 26, 2026, with a higher gas limit. The Ethereum Foundation announced on October 16 that activation will be at 17:42:48 UTC, after the rollout of Sepolia on October 6.
Ethereum Sets October 26 for Glamsterdam Upgrade on Hoodi Testnet, Raising Gas Limit to 200 Million
The Ethereum Foundation announced that the Glamsterdam upgrade will activate on the Hoodi testnet on October 26 at 17:42 UTC, raising its block gas limit to 200 million, matching Sepolia. The upgrade introduces enshrined proposer-builder separation (ePBS) and block-level access lists (BALs) to enable parallel transaction validation and improve Ethereum Layer 1 throughput, alongside revised gas pricing for state creation and data access.
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 20, 2026
The block gas limit of Hoodi will be 200 million, equal to Sepolia, and increase the testing transaction processing capacity.
Glamsterdam proposes proposer-builder separation and block-level access lists, which are enshrined to enhance block production and allow parallel validations of transactions. The upgrade also changes the prices of gas to create blockchain state and to access stored data.
Execution and consensus clients require updating before they can be activated. These changes will be tested by developers on test networks before they can proceed, and the date to activate the Ethereum mainnet has not been decided yet.
Will Ethereum Price Hit $3K This Month?
ETH price rallied from its recent lows, with the $2,500 resistance level on the horizon. The $2,500 level marks the first major test because earlier trading repeatedly clustered around that area.
A four-hour close above this barrier could open a move toward $2,600, the next clearly marked resistance. And if the bullish trend continues, the ETH long-term prediction could rally to $3k.
Source: TradingView
The MACD line was at 4.51 and above the signal line of negative 3.41, and the histogram 7.92. The RSI, however, stayed above the 50 average and above the 50 level as it stood at 59. The area nearest to the marked support, $2,400, is the next closest marked support.
A prolonged decline below it may see the recent levels in the range of $2,320–$ 2,350 tested again. If more weakness occurs, $2,300 will be considered, but the chart does not confirm a support level there.
Ethereum Staking Hits Record 43.8 Million ETH
According to the Bitwise report, dated October 20, Ethereum also had a record 43.8 million ETH staked at the end of September.
Bitwise
Net inflows of 1.99 million ETH in Q3 led to Staked Ether accounting for 35.9% of the total supply. The rise represented the sixth quarter of Ethereum’s stake growth in the last six quarters. Meanwhile, the annualised staking yields fell slightly to 2.63%, from 2.81% in the previous quarter.
Ethereum ended the third quarter with more stake securing the network than at any point in its history, according to Bitwise’s Q4 2026 staking report. A record 43.80 million ETH, equal to 35.9% of the total supply, now sits locked in validators. The figure marks a sixth consecutive quarter of growth, with net inflows of 1.99 million ETH. But the same three months pushed the reward for securing Ethereum lower once more, squeezing the economics validators depend on.
The tension between those two numbers, more capital and less yield, is the story of proof-of-stake in late 2026. Bitwise frames it plainly: “Growth got cheaper—and it was mostly by design.”
The Record: 43.8 Million ETH and a Falling Yield
Bitwise’s headline finding is unambiguous: “Ethereum staking hit an all-time high: 43.80 million ETH, or 35.9% of supply.” Net inflows of 1.99 million ETH during the third quarter carried the total to a sixth straight quarter of expansion. Staked supply has now cleared the 40 million-ETH mark with room to spare, a level that would have looked improbable when validator withdrawals first opened.
The yield did not follow the capital. Ethereum’s gross staking yield slipped from 2.81% to 2.63% quarter over quarter. At recent prices near $2,449 per ETH, the 43.8 million staked tokens represent roughly $107 billion in notional value now earning a lower headline rate than a three-month Treasury bill. That is a comparison worth keeping in mind for anyone weighing validator income against simpler yield alternatives.
The gap is an arithmetic the report leaves implicit: a move from 2.81% to 2.63% is a 0.18-percentage-point decline, or about a 6.4% relative cut to validator revenue before node costs and fees. In a quarter where total stake grew, the per-validator share of issuance necessarily shrank. That is the mechanism behind the compression.
Why Validator Counts Fell While Stake Rose
One of the report’s more counterintuitive data points is that validator counts dropped on both major networks even as stake climbed. “Validator counts fell on both Ethereum and Solana, for opposite reasons,” Bitwise writes.
On Ethereum, the validator set contracted from roughly 1.1 million to 881,000, a decline of about 219,000 validators or nearly 20%. Bitwise attributes the drop to operators consolidating under the Pectra upgrade: fewer validator records now carry the same ETH behind them. The consolidation is a structural change rather than a loss of security, because the total stake securing the network rose even as the number of validator entries fell. A single operator can run consolidated validators that hold identical economic weight with less overhead, which is exactly why stake rose while the raw count of validators fell.
Solana’s decline had a different driver. Its validator set fell from 696 to 659, roughly 30% below where it stood a year earlier, under what Bitwise describes as cost pressure. Running a Solana validator is expensive, and with gross yields easing from 6.38% to 5.99%, marginal operators have been pushed out of the network.
Staking Beyond Ethereum: Solana, NEAR and the Rest
The report is not only an Ethereum story. “Stake rose while yields fell” across the major proof-of-stake networks. Solana finished the quarter with 69% of supply staked at a 5.99% gross yield, down from 6.38%. NEAR posted a 46% staking ratio at 4.87%. Hyperliquid held 436 million HYPE staked at 2.24%, a figure Bitwise calls broadly unchanged.
The yield spread between networks is itself instructive. Ethereum pays the least at 2.63%, while Solana’s 5.99% and NEAR’s 4.87% reflect smaller, faster-growing security budgets that still need to attract validators with higher issuance. As a network matures and its stake grows, the marginal reward for each additional validator tends to fall. Bitwise’s own framing, that falling yield is “mostly by design,” points to issuance schedules rather than a sudden loss of demand.
What stands out is how the report’s center of gravity has shifted toward on-chain financial activity rather than pure consensus. Tokenized equity volume on Solana reached $6.93 billion in the quarter, up 45%. Non-crypto markets made up 36.5% of Hyperliquid’s perpetuals volume. On Robinhood Chain, average daily Stock Token volume rose 22-fold from July to September, and Bitwise notes the chain generated more than $50 million in fees in its first quarter.
The 45% jump in tokenized-equity volume implies a baseline of roughly $4.8 billion in the prior quarter, a reminder that the growth is not only staking infrastructure but the markets now running on top of it. Recent Ethereum mainnet launches are layering more activity onto this same base.
What the Falling Yield Means for Stakers
For the individual staker, the report’s numbers translate into a thinner margin. Ethereum’s 2.63% gross yield lands before node costs, MEV strategy, and any liquid-staking fee, which means net returns sit lower still. The incentive to stake, in other words, is now as much about maintaining long-term network exposure as it is about income.
The consolidation trend reinforces that reading. As operators merge validator records under Pectra, the infrastructure becomes more efficient but also more concentrated at the professional level. Bitwise does not speculate on the regulatory or decentralization implications, but the direction is consistent with an industry where institutional players are moving onto Ethereum and staking is increasingly a service that businesses run rather than a hobby individuals maintain.
That institutional tilt is visible in Bitwise’s own footprint. The firm manages $9 billion in client assets across more than 70 investment products and serves over 5,500 private wealth teams, family offices and institutional investors, plus 21 banks and broker-dealers. A report of this kind lands precisely because the readership is no longer only retail validators, and because staked networks are now settling tokenized equities and perpetuals rather than just processing transfers.
A second-order effect runs through the supply side. With 35.9% of ETH locked in validators, a growing share of the token’s circulating supply is illiquid by design. Staked ETH cannot be sold without first entering the exit queue, so the record stake is also a record share of supply that cannot react quickly to a price move. That is not a claim Bitwise makes about the market, but it is a structural condition the report’s own figure makes visible.
What remains unresolved is how much further yields can fall before the growth in staked ETH stalls. The report records a sixth straight quarter of rising stake against falling yield, but it does not predict when that curve bends. Ethereum’s yield is set by issuance mechanics, and any change would be a protocol-level decision well beyond a quarterly data report.
For now, the cleanest read of Bitwise’s Q4 numbers is that Ethereum is more secured than ever, at a price its validators are quietly absorbing.
Convert Ethereum to USD with our live exchange rate calculator.
JPM Coin moves beyond Base onto Ethereum, with the bank citing liquidity and existing client use while keeping holders on an approved list
JPMorgan said Monday that it will make JPM Coin, its token representing US dollar deposits at the bank, available to institutional clients on the Ethereum network, according to Bloomberg. The token first launched on Base, the Coinbase-affiliated layer-2 network, in November 2025.
Emma Landriault, global head of Kinexys Labs at the bank's blockchain unit, told Bloomberg that JPMorgan chose Ethereum for its liquidity and because clients already use it. She described two target groups: crypto firms that want to make payments over blockchain networks, and financial institutions that need onchain cash to settle trades in tokenized assets or post as collateral.
Access stays restricted. JPM Coin is a claim on a deposit at JPMorgan, usable by approved institutional participants rather than any Ethereum wallet. That separates it from stablecoins, which circulate freely, and keeps it inside the bank's compliance perimeter even though the token now sits on a public chain.
The bank's private rail is already large. Kinexys's own Blockchain Deposit Account network handles more than $7 billion in daily volume, against about $12 trillion a day across JPMorgan's payments business as a whole, according to Bloomberg's reporting. The public-chain version is aimed at counterparties that cannot or will not sit on a private ledger.
A rollout Blockhead has tracked in stagesBlockhead reported the first public-chain plan in June 2025, when JPMorgan said it would launch the deposit token on Base. In December 2025 it covered the bank launching a $100 million tokenized money market fund on Ethereum, a sign that the bank was not tied to one network. In January, Blockhead covered the plan to bring JPM Coin to the Canton Network in phases through 2026, a route that still has to deliver.
The Ethereum move also sits next to other work on bank money. In June, Blockhead reported that JPMorgan, Citi and other US banks were planning a shared tokenized deposit network for 2027 through The Clearing House. In August, the bank was weighing a stablecoin of its own, which would run in parallel with JPM Coin rather than replace it. And Kinexys's technology already sits under tokenized fund products such as BlackRock's tokenized money market share classes, which are available in Singapore.
The Asia connectionKinexys's Asian partnerships point the same way. Blockhead covered the DBS and JPMorgan framework for moving tokenised deposits across public and permissioned blockchains last November. A JPM Coin that lives on Ethereum is the kind of endpoint that framework was meant to reach, though neither bank has said whether it will connect to the new deployment.
What is still unknownThe reports do not name clients, volumes or fees for the Ethereum deployment. The restricted-access design also means other banks' tokens will not be able to move freely against JPM Coin without agreed standards, which is the gap The Clearing House network is meant to fill. What the launch does show is where the largest US bank expects institutional settlement to happen: on a public chain, with a permission list attached.
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UK High Court approves appeal by Chinese victims in the Qian Zhimin case over property rights to more than 60,000 Bitcoin.
According to Caixin, just four days after the UK High Court of Justice ruled that the property rights dispute over more than 60,000 bitcoins in the Qian Zhimin case is subject to Chinese law, around 16,000 Chinese victims participating in the UK asset recovery process have been granted the chance to challenge the ruling further. The UK High Court held a fresh hearing, with the judge approving the Chinese victims’ appeal against the October 12 ruling on applicable law. Lawyers from all parties also discussed issues including litigation costs related to the earlier applicable law dispute, whether the approximately 16,000 individual claimants will continue to pursue their claims, and how to opt out of the proceedings.
5 minutes ago
Analyst: Short-term Bitcoin whales' unrealized profit falls 53%, with over 10,000 BTC transferred to CEX in a single day.
CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr stated in a post that Bitcoin short-term whales’ unrealized profit dropped 53% from a record $9.8 billion on September 22 to $4.6 billion on October 20, though the whales remain profitable. On the same day, whales transferred 10,605 BTC to centralized exchanges (CEXs), the highest single-day volume since October 8, roughly 2.8 times the 3,815 BTC average daily amount over the past 30 days. The decline in unrealized profit does not indicate reduced holdings, nor do transfers to exchanges equal actual sales, but analysts point out that the increased inflow signals a rising potential sell-off risk.
5 minutes ago
Crypto market liquidity crunch: Binance's stablecoin reserves hit their lowest level of the year.
According to crypto analyst Darkfost's data, centralized exchange (CEX) stablecoin reserves have been declining recently, with Binance's stablecoin reserves hitting their lowest level this year. Data shows Binance's stablecoin market capitalization has been on a downward trend since June, dropping approximately 4.7% over the past 90 days. Darkfost also pointed out that the decline in stablecoin reserves is not unique to Binance. This stablecoin outflow dynamic will continue to exert pressure on the market, and the lack of inflowing liquidity is exacerbating the current market weakness. To reverse the situation, the market needs to see capital flowing back into CEXs, which is a sign of demand recovery.
5 minutes ago
Zcash developers confirm the NU7 upgrade will roll out in November, cutting the block time to 25 seconds.
Zcash developers have reached consensus on the NU7 upgrade, set to activate at block height 3,543,405 (estimated around November 5). The upgrade will reduce block time from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, tripling transaction confirmation speed. Additionally, 60% of fees collected per block will be removed from circulation, with plans to return these funds to miners starting February 2031, while the original block reward halving schedule remains unchanged in the interim. Furthermore, Zcash’s original privacy protocol Sprout will be permanently shut down after the upgrade; funds not transferred in time will become inaccessible. The proposal was put forward by developer Sean Bowe and approved by the Zcash Improvement Proposal (ZIP) editing team, but it still needs to be formally merged into deployment specifications and integrated into node software before it can officially take effect.
5 minutes ago
US pre-market trading: All three major indices rise, SpaceX surges nearly 9% pre-market, and AI stocks rebound sharply.
Before U.S. stock market opens, all three major index futures rose, with the Nasdaq 100 futures up around 0.80%. In terms of individual stocks, according to BIT (bit.com) market data, boosted by strong quarterly results, SpaceX gained nearly 9% to $161.08. Additionally, driven by merger rumors, Tesla rose 2.67% to $383.68. AI-related stocks mostly advanced before the market open: Nvidia was up 1.8%, AMD up 2.5%, Intel up 2.9%, SanDisk up 2.9%, Western Digital up 2.1%, and Seagate Technology up 2.4%. Meanwhile, optical communications and Neocloud-related stocks saw notable gains: Credo (CRDO) jumped over 5.2%, Lumentum (LITE) rose around 3.98%, and CoreWeave (CRWV) gained around 2.95%. For crypto-related stocks, BNB Standard (BNC) surged over 7.8%, and Strategy (MSTR) added around 1.99%.
5 minutes ago
Sources: Bank of Japan will decide at next week's meeting whether inflation has reached the 2% target.
According to Kyodo News, a source familiar with the matter revealed on Wednesday that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will assess whether the underlying inflation rate has hit its 2% target at next week’s policy meeting. A confirmation would mark a symbolic turning point for the BOJ, signaling an end to its long-standing monetary policy stance aimed at combating deflation. The BOJ first set the 2% inflation target in January 2013. Despite implementing aggressive monetary easing programs, the central bank has repeatedly pushed back its timeline for achieving the goal. If the target is ultimately met, it will come nearly 14 years after the target was first introduced.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
UK High Court approves appeal by Chinese victims in the Qian Zhimin case over property rights to more than 60,000 Bitcoin.
According to Caixin, just four days after the UK High Court of Justice ruled that the property rights dispute over more than 60,000 bitcoins in the Qian Zhimin case is subject to Chinese law, around 16,000 Chinese victims participating in the UK asset recovery process have been granted the chance to challenge the ruling further. The UK High Court held a fresh hearing, with the judge approving the Chinese victims’ appeal against the October 12 ruling on applicable law. Lawyers from all parties also discussed issues including litigation costs related to the earlier applicable law dispute, whether the approximately 16,000 individual claimants will continue to pursue their claims, and how to opt out of the proceedings.
4 minutes ago
Analyst: Short-term Bitcoin whales' unrealized profit falls 53%, with over 10,000 BTC transferred to CEX in a single day.
CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr stated in a post that Bitcoin short-term whales’ unrealized profit dropped 53% from a record $9.8 billion on September 22 to $4.6 billion on October 20, though the whales remain profitable. On the same day, whales transferred 10,605 BTC to centralized exchanges (CEXs), the highest single-day volume since October 8, roughly 2.8 times the 3,815 BTC average daily amount over the past 30 days. The decline in unrealized profit does not indicate reduced holdings, nor do transfers to exchanges equal actual sales, but analysts point out that the increased inflow signals a rising potential sell-off risk.
4 minutes ago
Crypto market liquidity crunch: Binance's stablecoin reserves hit their lowest level of the year.
According to crypto analyst Darkfost's data, centralized exchange (CEX) stablecoin reserves have been declining recently, with Binance's stablecoin reserves hitting their lowest level this year. Data shows Binance's stablecoin market capitalization has been on a downward trend since June, dropping approximately 4.7% over the past 90 days. Darkfost also pointed out that the decline in stablecoin reserves is not unique to Binance. This stablecoin outflow dynamic will continue to exert pressure on the market, and the lack of inflowing liquidity is exacerbating the current market weakness. To reverse the situation, the market needs to see capital flowing back into CEXs, which is a sign of demand recovery.
4 minutes ago
Zcash developers confirm the NU7 upgrade will roll out in November, cutting the block time to 25 seconds.
Zcash developers have reached consensus on the NU7 upgrade, set to activate at block height 3,543,405 (estimated around November 5). The upgrade will reduce block time from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, tripling transaction confirmation speed. Additionally, 60% of fees collected per block will be removed from circulation, with plans to return these funds to miners starting February 2031, while the original block reward halving schedule remains unchanged in the interim. Furthermore, Zcash’s original privacy protocol Sprout will be permanently shut down after the upgrade; funds not transferred in time will become inaccessible. The proposal was put forward by developer Sean Bowe and approved by the Zcash Improvement Proposal (ZIP) editing team, but it still needs to be formally merged into deployment specifications and integrated into node software before it can officially take effect.
4 minutes ago
US pre-market trading: All three major indices rise, SpaceX surges nearly 9% pre-market, and AI stocks rebound sharply.
Before U.S. stock market opens, all three major index futures rose, with the Nasdaq 100 futures up around 0.80%. In terms of individual stocks, according to BIT (bit.com) market data, boosted by strong quarterly results, SpaceX gained nearly 9% to $161.08. Additionally, driven by merger rumors, Tesla rose 2.67% to $383.68. AI-related stocks mostly advanced before the market open: Nvidia was up 1.8%, AMD up 2.5%, Intel up 2.9%, SanDisk up 2.9%, Western Digital up 2.1%, and Seagate Technology up 2.4%. Meanwhile, optical communications and Neocloud-related stocks saw notable gains: Credo (CRDO) jumped over 5.2%, Lumentum (LITE) rose around 3.98%, and CoreWeave (CRWV) gained around 2.95%. For crypto-related stocks, BNB Standard (BNC) surged over 7.8%, and Strategy (MSTR) added around 1.99%.
4 minutes ago
Sources: Bank of Japan will decide at next week's meeting whether inflation has reached the 2% target.
According to Kyodo News, a source familiar with the matter revealed on Wednesday that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will assess whether the underlying inflation rate has hit its 2% target at next week’s policy meeting. A confirmation would mark a symbolic turning point for the BOJ, signaling an end to its long-standing monetary policy stance aimed at combating deflation. The BOJ first set the 2% inflation target in January 2013. Despite implementing aggressive monetary easing programs, the central bank has repeatedly pushed back its timeline for achieving the goal. If the target is ultimately met, it will come nearly 14 years after the target was first introduced.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Ethereum’s [ETH] path has now forked into two paths. The big players are back, but Futures aren’t quite there yet.
And regular traders? Still nowhere to be seen.
Who’s about to win?
Whales have returned, but not everyone’s happy!
Well, let’s start with the big money, because it just came back.
CryptoQuant’s Spot Average Order Size for Ethereum indicated “Big Whale Orders” again. This was with ETH near $2.4K. That’s the first time since mid-August.
Source: Cryptoquant
There’s a story behind it. Whale-sized orders were all over the place through February and March. They came back in June too, during the bottom. Both times, the price recovered soon after.
There’s one catch here though. It’s clear how big the orders are, but not which way they’re going. Big trades could be buying the dip or selling. This is not a sure sign.
The Futures market’s a lot less friendly.
Source: Cryptoquant
Futures Taker CVD has been sell-dominant since earlier this month. There hadn’t been a red stretch with this metric all year…until now.
Back in January and again from late April to May, it was firmly leaning on the buy-side. In that same window, ETH had slipped on the charts. The sellers weren’t exactly wrong.
Spot retail activity hasn’t leaned either way, with neutrality being the theme of the year. Not even during August’s rally!
Source: Cryptoquant
So, it’s whales vs. Futures traders right now. Regular buyers? They are probably just bystanders.
Is ETH turning a corner?
Ethereum was valued at $2,433 at the time of writing, up 1.5% over the day. This, after the token hit $2,476 for a brief period of time.
The RSI made things interesting too. It was at 42.6, having just crossed above its Signal line at 39.4. That hasn’t happened since the drop from earlier in the month.
Source: TradingView
The Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) was negative at press time with a reading of -0.07. However, it was still climbing back from the -0.17 reading of the 14th. Simply put, sell pressure seemed to be getting slower.
Still, ETH has a long way back. Getting to $2,500 would be the first real win.
Final Summary
Ethereum spot data’s at “Big Whale Orders” for the first time since mid-August.
Futures traders have been sell-dominant all October.
Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP are all testing support levels that could decide whether the crypto market recovers or falls further. Ali Martinez says all three could rebound, “but only if these levels hold.” Gareth Soloway’s view of Bitcoin and Ethereum is similar, though he places the trigger points differently.
Bitcoin: Both Watch $81,000
Martinez and Soloway both see $81,000 as the important level for Bitcoin.
Ali Martinez:
$81,000 is the bottom of Bitcoin’s rising channel on the daily chart.If buyers defend it, BTC could move to the middle of the channel at $84,000, then to the top at $86,500.A break below $81,000 would shift his focus to $76,000.Gareth Soloway:
Bitcoin is stuck in a range of about $6,000, between $81,000 and $87,200.It briefly fell to about $79,750 before climbing back above support.A move above $87,200 could take BTC to a rising trendline near $91,000. By late November, that trendline would be near $97,000.A daily close below $81,000 would point to lower prices.Soloway said the bullish structure is intact, though he called the price action “not the healthiest.” He said that Bitcoin has held up despite the slide in AI stocks and the Nasdaq. He currently has no swing position in BTC.
Ethereum: $2,350 Or Sub-$2,000
Ali Martinez:
ETH is testing $2,350, the support line of a right-angled ascending broadening pattern.A bounce from there could take it to $2,700, or as high as $3,000.A daily close below $2,350 would bring $2,000 into focus.Gareth Soloway:
ETH has held its key support but has not yet broken its key resistance.A breakout should lead to a retest of $2,800.A breakdown could send ETH below $2,000, where Soloway said he would be a heavy buyer.XRP: An Inverse Head And Shoulders In The Making
Martinez is watching $1.25 for XRP. On the three-day chart, holding that level could complete the right shoulder of a possible inverse head-and-shoulders pattern, a setup that often comes before a trend reversal.
Confirmation: a sustained close above $1.56Target if confirmed: $2Risk: losing $1.25 would bring $1 into view Story Ends Here
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Ethereum maintained levels near $2,400 over the past 24 hours, continuing a six-day recovery streak as buying activity absorbed pressure from recent sell-offs. This price zone has provided stability for ETH amid broader macroeconomic headwinds and ongoing withdrawals from investment products, serving as a key support area during the latest consolidation phase.
Onchain support and realized priceRecent trading activity has positioned Ethereum just above a critical onchain reference point. CryptoQuant data shows Ethereum’s realized price is approximately $2,311, reflecting the average onchain acquisition cost of ETH holders based on the price at which coins last changed hands.
When Ethereum trades below this level, it often signals that, on aggregate, holders are dealing with unrealized losses, although this does not necessarily mean that all investors are underwater. Historically, buying above the realized price has helped sustain support during market weakness.
Continuing to defend this onchain support may play a vital role in maintaining Ethereum’s current stabilization. However, a breach and daily close below $2,311 could undermine investor confidence and potentially trigger further sell-offs.
Mini dictionary: Realized price, the average price at which all circulating coins were last moved onchain, indicating an aggregate cost basis for holders and serving as a benchmark during periods of market stress.
Pressure has increased on ETH as US spot Ethereum ETFs saw significant outflows, with $103.2 million withdrawn on Monday and another $26 million on Tuesday, according to data from SoSoValue. This marks the fifteenth consecutive session of net outflows over the last fifteen trading days, suggesting persistent softness in institutional demand for ETH through regulated products.
Even with fifteen days of negative flows from US spot ETFs, Ethereum has stabilized near its recent support, showing that market demand outside of ETF channels has helped offset the selling activity.
Derivatives trading has also mirrored this volatility. Within the past 24 hours, total ETH futures liquidations reached $90.59 million, with $62.17 million of those being short positions. The figures imply that recent upward price moves have caught leveraged bearish traders off-guard, reversing a trend that previously favored long liquidation events during ETH’s decline.
Technical levels: $2,324–$2,362 support and near-term resistanceOn the daily ETH/USD chart, Ethereum has been consolidating, with technical support tightly clustered between $2,324 and $2,362. This area aligns with the 100-day Exponential Moving Average ($2,362) and a major horizontal support line ($2,324).
Ethereum has repeatedly tested this range without closing below it, which has enabled buyers to push prices back above $2,400 during the recent rebound phases.
LevelSignificance$2,311Onchain realized price/cost basis$2,324Major horizontal support$2,362100-day EMA$2,44450-day EMA/resistance$2,50020-day EMA/resistance$2,548Horizontal resistance target$2,781Higher resistanceA definitive daily close below $2,324–$2,362 would put the onchain cost basis at $2,311 in sharper focus and could intensify the downside momentum, potentially exposing secondary support at $2,215. On the upside, the 50-day and 20-day EMAs, currently at $2,444 and $2,500 respectively, continue to act as resistance. Sustained movement above these levels could signal a turn in short-term sentiment and open a path toward the $2,548 resistance.
The Relative Strength Index and Stochastic Oscillator have shifted upward but remain below neutral, indicating that selling pressure is waning, while buyers have yet to establish lasting control over price momentum.
For now, preserving the key technical support between $2,324 and $2,362 is central to keeping Ethereum’s current recovery intact. Further advances would likely require buyers to reclaim the $2,444–$2,500 region, reaffirming a stronger upside trajectory.
Ethereum staking reached approximately 36% of the total supply, while the annual yield dropped to 2.63%; a similar trend was observed in Solana.
The amount of ETH locked for staking on the Ethereum network reached a new record high of 43.8 million in the third quarter of 2026. According to data released by Bitwise, this amount represents approximately 36% of the total Ethereum supply. The net amount of ETH that entered the staking system in the first nine months of the year was 7.96 million.
Investor returns moved in the opposite direction during the same period. Ethereum’s annualized average staking yield fell from 2.81 percent in the second quarter to 2.63 percent. As more ETH joins the validator system, the rewards distributed by the network are shared among a wider pool.
Ethereum staking balance grew for the sixth consecutive quarter, with net inflows of approximately 2 million ETH recorded in the third quarter. Bitwise cited institutional investors as a significant driver of this growth. However, over 96% of staking revenue came from newly created ETH. The share of MEV revenue from transaction tips and queuing within blocks remained limited.
Ethereum network revenue also fell from $63 million in the second quarter to approximately $40.6 million. On Solana, 440.5 million SOL, or 69% of the total supply, was staked. Solana’s transaction fees increased by 49% to $76 million, while the number of transactions reached 14.2 billion.
The record staking volume could support the economic security of both networks. However, increased participation doesn’t guarantee higher returns for each token; on the contrary, data shows reward rates remain under pressure.
*This is not investment advice.
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CRCL Stock faces fresh economic uncertainty ahead of Thursday’s U.S. jobless claims report, with cryptocurrency prices showing early stability.
Bitcoin price traded near $83,000 on Wednesday, while Ethereum hovered around $2,450 and XRP held near $1.34. The employment release could reshape interest rate expectations before the Federal Reserve announces its next policy decision.
U.S. Jobless Claims Report-Oct 22
The Labor Department’s next weekly jobless claims report arrives Thursday, October 22, ahead of next week’s Federal Reserve meeting. The previous release showed 199,000 initial claims for the week ending October 10, up 1,000 from the revised preceding week. That reading provides a comparison point as markets assess whether layoffs are increasing.
An unexpected increase in claims could strengthen concerns about slower hiring and rising unemployment. It might also give rise to monetary policy easing expectations if inflation data and other indicators of employment conditions continue to evolve favorably. However, if it suddenly and significantly deteriorates, it might dampen appetite for volatile stocks and put pressure on CRCL Stock.
Crypto Stability and Fed Policy Shape CRCL Stock Outlook
Circle Internet Group, the USDC issuer, earns reserve income that responds to changes in interest rates. Consequently, lower rates could improve market sentiment while reducing the yields available on Circle’s reserve assets. Circle’s first-quarter results showed that lower reserve yields partly offset the income benefit from higher average USDC circulation.
The Federal Reserve meets October 27–28, placing the upcoming claims and PMI reports immediately before its next decision. Policymakers announce their decision on October 28 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern, followed by a 2:30 p.m. press conference. Further guidance about employment and inflation could influence rate expectations and the near-term direction of CRCL Stock.
Fedwatch data
Friday’s S&P Global manufacturing and services PMI reports will offer another assessment of business activity and price pressures.
CRCL Stock Prediction: Will CRCL Reach $90?
The supplied trading range places initial resistance at $86, with $87 and $88 marking the next potential hurdles. A sustained breakout above those levels could strengthen the case for a move toward the psychological $90 mark. A move from $86 to $90 would represent a gain of approximately 4.7%.
CRCL stock
However, buyers would need to maintain that breakout as markets respond to Thursday’s employment data and Friday’s PMI releases. Holding above former resistance would offer stronger evidence of buying demand than an isolated intraday price spike. A quick reversal below $86 would weaken the bullish case and raise the prospect of another support test.
On the downside, $81 provides the first reference level if buying momentum weakens after the employment report. A decline below that level could expose $80, followed by the recent $79 low. A sustained break beneath $79 could open a path toward $75, extending the downside scenario beyond the recent range.
Santiment noted in a post that Dogecoin (DOGE) has a 365-day MVRV ratio of approximately 0.74, indicating holders who bought over the past year are on average sitting on deep unrealized losses. XRP’s 365-day MVRV stands at around 0.92, also showing holders are overall in a loss position. In contrast, Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Chainlink (LINK) have 365-day MVRV ratios between 0.97 and 1.04, meaning holders are roughly at break-even overall. Santiment pointed out that a lower MVRV may signal selling pressure is nearly exhausted, forming a historically relatively favorable, low-risk potential opportunity zone; a higher MVRV, meanwhile, may mean rising profit-taking risk. The metric can be used to monitor market participants’ profit and loss status and risk appetite, but it does not guarantee an inevitable price rebound.
According to security firm Salus' monitoring, on October 21, the attacker behind Drift Protocol began transferring funds from another long-dormant wallet, depositing 4,600 ETH into Tornado Cash, valued at around $11.23 million. The two linked wallets tracked by Salus have now deposited a total of 30,310 ETH into Tornado Cash. The address starting with 0xaa8 had previously sent 19,600 ETH to Tornado Cash, then added another 6,110 ETH, bringing its total deposits to 25,710 ETH. The other address starting with 0xd3f, after lying dormant for about 202 days, made its first outbound transfer, sending 4,600 ETH to Tornado Cash in 46 separate transactions over roughly 19 minutes. This address had earlier received a total of around 24,882 ETH across 11 wallets, with funds primarily sourced from USDC bridged from Solana to Ethereum via CCTP and converted into ETH. As of the monitoring time, the address still holds approximately 20,286 ETH.
On-chain detective ZachXBT reported that two addresses belonging to an institution had a combined 973,000 MORPHO tokens stolen hours ago, valued at approximately $2.3 million. The stolen funds have been deposited into Tornado Cash. Both thefts involved EIP-7702 account delegation transactions. Per ZachXBT’s tracking, the entity linked to one of the hacked addresses was also targeted in a $3.5 million hack on October 9. That earlier batch of assets came from claims on an old cross-chain bridge, then was cross-bridged from Ethereum to Zcash via NEAR Intents before entering the Ironwood privacy pool. ZachXBT further noted that the hacked address has an on-chain association with an address suspected to belong to Nima Capital.
Ethereum staking reached a record 43.8 million ETH, or 35.9% of supply, in Q3 2026, according to Bitwise, while yields fell to 2.63%. Solana had 69% of its supply staked.
Ethereum (@ethereum) staking reached an all-time high of 43.8 million $ETH at the end of the third quarter, according to Bitwise's (@Bitwise) latest staking report. The figure represents 35.9% of the total supply.
The milestone came even as returns for stakers continued to shrink, a trend that also showed up on Solana (@solana) $SOL.
Inflows rise for a sixth straight quarter, yields slip Yields moved in the opposite direction.
Bitwise's explanation is that rewards are shared among more participants. The report also points to where the yield comes from: , according to Crypto Economy's summary of the report.
Institutional demand played a role.
The number of validators fell, but Bitwise links that to consolidation rather than unstaking.
Solana leads on share of supply staked The report's coverage also included other networks, with , which leaves Solana with the highest staked share among the networks cited here.
Solana's validator set also shrank. Network activity rose over the same period:
The data suggests staking demand on both networks is holding up despite lower returns, though rising participation may keep compressing per-staker rewards.
SourcesThe Block: Ethereum staking hits record as yields fall and Solana activity grows
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Malaysia's central bank launches SSDS+ platform to support the issuance of tokenized bonds and Islamic bonds.
Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysia’s central bank, has announced the launch of SSDS+, a next-generation paperless securities depository system based on distributed ledger technology. The platform supports the issuance, depository, and custody of tokenized debt securities, including sukuk (Islamic bonds). It can track the ownership and transfer of tokenized securities, and connects to the real-time electronic funds and securities transfer system RENTAS+ to settle bond payments using central bank currency. Bank Negara Malaysia stated that SSDS+ is primarily designed for wholesale issuance, but it also already has the capability to support tokenized government bonds and corporate retail bonds.
2 minutes ago
South Korean stocks closed up more than 3%, with SK Hynix rising 5.8%.
According to Bitget market data, South Korea’s KOSPI index closed 182.93 points higher on Wednesday, October 21, marking a 3.29% gain to end at 5,735.67 points. Samsung Electronics rose 5.67%, and SK Hynix gained 5.8%.
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Arthur Hayes: Flop Labs' testnet and airdrop are expected to launch in the coming weeks.
BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes announced in a post that Flop Labs' testnet and airdrop are set to launch in the coming weeks. He specifically warned that no FLOP token currently exists, and anyone claiming the token is already available is a scammer.
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Former Alibaba P10 Algorithm Director Prepares to Launch RSI Startup, First-Round Valuation Approximately $80 Million
Beating AI Express News: Zhu Xiaoyong, former Algorithm Director of Alibaba's ATH team, is preparing to launch a startup named RSI, with an initial round valuation reportedly around $80 million. Previously, he served as Chief Applied Scientist at Microsoft, and at Alibaba was responsible for model research and development and self-evolution-related work. RSI stands for Recursive Self-Improvement, whose goal is to enable AI to participate in improving its own training and operation methods. Zhu’s team plans to start with open-source tools, data, and model training services, helping enterprises in sectors including healthcare, robotics, and semiconductors to continuously optimize their proprietary models using their own data.
2 minutes ago
MEXC halts services for Russian users, triggering a 15% slump in its platform token MX.
According to HTX market data, MEXC's platform token MX has plunged 15% to $1.695, likely impacted by MEXC's official announcement that it will cease services for users in Russia and Belarus. Earlier, crypto exchange MEXC released an official notice stating the move is a measure to strengthen its global compliance operations.
2 minutes ago
NASDAQ-listed company BNB Standard will begin trading on October 26.
Nasdaq-listed company BNB Standard (stock code: BNC) announced it will ring the Nasdaq opening bell on October 26 to celebrate its corporate rebranding and the appointment of a new management team. The company’s chief executive officer will attend the bell-ringing ceremony alongside board members, its management team, investors, and ecosystem partners.
Two of the biggest names in global banking are now building on Ethereum. Deutsche Bank is preparing a digital asset custody service for institutions, and JPMorgan’s JPM Coin has moved onto Ethereum’s main network.
What Deutsche Bank is launching Deutsche Bank first announced its custody service on September 16, 2026, then followed up with updates in October 2026. The offering is built for institutional clients, not retail traders.
The bank’s target list includes corporates, asset managers, hedge funds and sovereign institutions.
The initial asset lineup covers ether (ETH), Bitcoin (BTC), USDC, EURC and EURAU.
The launch is planned for Germany first, with further expansion across Europe expected afterward. Deutsche Bank aims to go live within weeks, but only once the necessary regulatory approvals land.
JPMorgan takes JPM Coin to mainnet Over at JPMorgan, the bank’s blockchain unit Kinexys moved JPM Coin (JPMD) to the Ethereum mainnet around October 19, 2026. The change enables on-chain payments and peer-to-peer transfers inside the Ethereum ecosystem.
Before this, JPM Coin ran on Base, an Ethereum Layer 2 network.
JPM Coin also slots in next to JPMorgan’s tokenized money-market funds. The bank launched those in December 2025 and May 2026.
Kinexys has processed more than $4 trillion in transactions, with average daily volume of about $7 billion as of October 2026.
Why the market shrugged There was no immediate price reaction to ETH following either announcement. Institutional reactions were similarly muted.
The bigger picture for Ethereum JPMorgan’s steps are widely viewed as building toward heavier use of public blockchains for institutional liquidity and asset tokenization.
Deutsche Bank’s custody service addresses a different piece: many large investors cannot hold crypto at all unless a regulated, trusted custodian is in the picture.
What this means for investors and institutions For institutional clients, the practical upshot is access. A corporate treasurer or hedge fund that wanted ETH or euro stablecoin exposure through a familiar bank may soon have that option in Germany, pending approvals.
The first thing to watch is whether Deutsche Bank secures its approvals and actually launches within the weeks it has targeted. The second is how quickly the service expands beyond Germany into wider Europe. The third is how much of Kinexys’ activity starts flowing through public Ethereum rather than private or Layer 2 systems.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Kaye Quema. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Sberbank, the largest bank in Russia, plans to make Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether’s USDT accessible to its 110.6 million retail customers starting December 1. The bank received approval from the Bank of Russia to operate as both a cryptocurrency exchange and a digital depository, according to recent announcements.
Launch details and access channelsThe new crypto assets will become available through Sberbank’s existing digital platforms, including SberBank Online, SberInvestments, and SberBusiness. As of the last quarter, Sberbank also served 3.5 million corporate clients. These established channels are already widely used by Russian consumers for day-to-day banking activities.
The exchange and depository licenses were cleared by the Bank of Russia, with the depository permit coming six days prior to the exchange approval on October 12. Sberbank indicated that the digital depository status will allow the bank to provide crypto trading and custody services within interfaces familiar to its clients.
“This status will allow the bank to provide services related to organizing the circulation of digital currency on interfaces which clients already use.”
Sberbank’s launch date is contingent on the finalization of secondary regulations by the central bank. The bank is now authorized to act as a counterparty to client trades and record client holdings in-house, eliminating the need for third-party platforms.
Asset offerings and investor restrictionsFor the initial rollout, only Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT are included in the Bank of Russia’s draft list for retail trading. Anatoly Popov, Deputy Chairman of Sberbank, has estimated that the annual crypto trading volume in Russia could reach 4 trillion rubles, approximately $48 billion, after the introduction of these services.
In recent years, Sberbank has expanded its digital asset services, offering structured bonds and digital financial products linked to cryptocurrencies. In December 2025, the bank conducted a test of a crypto-backed loan involving qualified investors, and its offerings now extend to crypto baskets as well.
First Deputy Chairman Alexander Vedyakhin explained that a digital depository would be central to the new infrastructure, maintaining records of client cryptocurrency rights and accounting for off-chain transactions.
Mini dictionary: Digital depository, a platform or entity designated to store, record, and track digital assets and cryptocurrency holdings for users, often performing custodial and settlement functions outside of public blockchains.
Regulatory framework and transaction limitsUnder the latest regulations, approved intermediaries such as Sberbank may sell up to 300,000 rubles (around $3,600) of digital assets annually to each non-qualified retail investor. Buyers must pass a knowledge test before making such purchases. Despite the ability to buy cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Sberbank clients will not be able to use crypto for goods and services payments within Russia, in line with the country’s prohibition on crypto payments for transactions.
Further, the law specifically prohibits transfers of digital currency between individuals and bans transfers to non-custodial wallets. The Bank of Russia clarified that individual-to-individual digital currency transfers are forbidden under Part 5 of Article 31 of Federal Law No. 282-FZ, although certain direct deals will be permitted until July 1, 2027.
AssetStatus for Retail BuyersYearly Cap (Non-qualified)Bitcoin (BTC)Approved300,000 RUBEthereum (ETH)Approved300,000 RUBUSDTApproved300,000 RUBPresident Vladimir Putin signed the law “On digital currencies and digital rights” in August, putting it into effect on September 1. Until July 2027, some limited direct peer-to-peer crypto deals are still permitted.
Sberbank is one of nine companies on the Bank of Russia’s register of exchange operators, alongside other major Russian institutions such as VTB and T-Invest Lab. The depository register includes five entities, featuring VTB and Atomyze. Currently, Sberbank, VTB, and Atomyze are all subject to Western sanctions in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine, and authorities have accused Moscow of using digital assets to attempt to bypass these restrictions.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
The next eight days in crypto have a deadline. On October 28 the Federal Reserve announces its rate decision, and Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple coin are all trading with that date in mind. This outlook for BTC, ETH and Ripple coin skips the long recap and works as a week-ahead playbook: where each coin stands on October 20, what would be a good sign and a bad sign before the Fed, and where MemeToro $MT, an open-source AI meme coin launchpad on BNB Chain whose $MT presale is at Stage 9 for $0.00649, fits as the fourth name on the board.
Key Points
Bitcoin trades near $82,600 to $83,000, about 58% of the $2.86 trillion crypto market (CoinGecko). Ethereum is $2,446 and Ripple coin $1.33. The Fed is expected to hold at 3.75% to 4.00% on October 28, and all 100 economists in a Reuters survey expect a hike in December, according to Bitcoin Sistemi. Bitcoin ETFs took in $526.7 million on October 19, while Ethereum ETFs lost $103.3 million, according to Bitcoin Sistemi. MemeToro’s $MT presale is at Stage 9, $0.00649. The Setup Before the Fed
The Fed raised rates by a quarter point in September, the first increase since 2023. In a Reuters survey of economists on October 16 to 20, 94 of 100 expect a hold at 3.75% to 4.00% on October 28, and all 100 expect another increase at the December 8 to 9 meeting. September inflation was 3.7% from a year earlier, according to Bitcoin Sistemi. For crypto, that sets a simple test: a hold with a calm message keeps the range, while a signal of faster tightening tends to pressure risk assets.
Bitcoin (BTC): Steady, With Institutions on Its Side
Where it stands. Bitcoin is near $82,600 to $83,000, up about 1% in 24 hours, with a market value of about $1.66 trillion, according to CoinGecko.
What helped this week. Bitcoin ETFs took in $526.7 million on October 19, and Switzerland’s financial regulator FINMA approved the country’s first exchange-traded retail fund that holds Bitcoin directly, according to Bitcoin Sistemi.
If-then for the week:
If ETF inflows continue and the Fed message is calm, Bitcoin can hold its current range, and a round number such as $85,000 becomes the next reference point.
If inflows fade or the Fed sounds hawkish, round numbers like $80,000 become the area to watch on the downside.
Ethereum (ETH): The Name Under Pressure
Where it stands. Ethereum is $2,446, up 2.4% on the day but below $2,500 after a recent sell-off, according to CoinGecko.
What worries traders. Ethereum spot ETFs lost $103.3 million on October 19, the fourth straight day of outflows, and about $362.8 million from October 14 to 19. Bitmine bought another 12,535 ETH and now holds 6,041,481 ETH, about 4.9% of supply. If ETH holds the $2,350 to $2,370 support zone and ETF outflows stop, it can try $2,600, and then $2,700.
If it loses that zone, analysts cited by Bitcoin Sistemi see $2,300 as the next downside target.
Ripple Coin: Pulled Back, With Mixed Signals
Where it stands. Ripple coin is $1.33, up 2.3% in 24 hours, but about 22% below a local high near $1.70, according to CoinGecko and Bitcoin Sistemi.
What the data says. Binance XRP withdrawals fell to $49.7 million a day, the lowest since October 2021, while Binance received 1.669 billion XRP in deposits over 30 days, a seven-month high, according to CryptoQuant data cited by Bitcoin Sistemi. Large deposits on exchanges can signal selling, although the article notes some inflows may support derivatives or internal strategies. On the other side, US spot XRP ETFs have drawn $1.8 billion in net inflows, and Germany’s Sparkassen network began rolling out Ripple coin trading on October 19. If exchange inflows slow and ETF demand continues, XRP can stabilize.
If large deposits turn into selling, the recent pullback area near $1.30 is the level to watch.
The Fourth Name on the Board: MemeToro $MT
In a week when the three majors wait for the same event, MemeToro $MT is a name whose calendar is its own. Its $MT presale runs in stages, each with a funding target, and Stage 9 is priced at $0.00649 per token. The next stage opens at a higher price, so progress is set by the project’s own milestones as well as the market’s mood. That is the argument supporters make for keeping an early-stage name on the watchlist beside Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple coin.
What it is. An open-source AI meme coin launchpad on BNB Chain. An AI agent scans news and conversation on X, drafts a coin concept and writes down its reasoning. The terms of each launch are saved in a launch manifest, and the FairLaunchEscrow contract applies them. The AI does not hold funds.
What you can verify.
The code is public at https://github.com/MemeToro/memetoro under an MIT license, and the team calls it an early MVP.
Coinsult, SolidProof and BlockSAFU have each audited the $MT token contract.
Of 1.2 billion $MT, 71% (852 million) is for the public sale and 2% (24 million) for the team. See https://memetoro.com/tokenomics.
A public BNB testnet round with tBNB, a test token without value, lets you practice at https://memetoro.com/memecoin.
What is still ahead? The FairLaunchEscrow launch contracts have not yet been independently audited, the team is pseudonymous, and the roadmap lists token creation and liquidity, a public funding page and a formal manifest schema.
A Simple Plan for the Week
Note the Fed date, October 28, and decide your plan before it, not during it. Check live prices for BTC, ETH and Ripple coin on the day. If you want to look at MemeToro, read the site, the code and the audits, and practice on the testnet. If you take part, connect a BNB Smart Chain wallet or pay by card, check the contract 0x44412181b7eb66bff974c0a9a9e908e5bba8cfff and the Stage 9 price, and check the rules where you live. Do the checks, run the testnet, then decide at https://memetoro.com/ with a clear head.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Bitcoin outlook now?
Bitcoin is near $82,600 to $83,000 with ETF inflows, and the main event is the Fed on October 28.
What is the Ethereum outlook?
It is under pressure from four straight days of ETF outflows. Analysts watch $2,350 to $2,370 as support and $2,600 to $2,700 as resistance.
What is the XRP outlook (Ripple coin)?
Ripple coin is $1.33, about 22% below a local high. Exchange data is mixed, while US spot ETFs have drawn $1.8 billion.
When is the next Fed decision?
October 28, with the meeting on October 27 and 28. A hold is expected, and a hike in December.
Will crypto go up after the Fed?
No one knows. A calm hold may keep ranges, and a hawkish tone could pressure risk assets.
What is MemeToro?
A BNB Chain launchpad where an AI agent drafts meme coin concepts under published launch rules. $MT, its token, is in a staged presale.
How much is MemeToro at Stage 9?
$0.00649 per $MT while Stage 9 runs. The next stage opens higher once this one fills.
Is the MemeToro presale legit?
You can verify the contract, the code, the tokenomics and three token audits by Coinsult, SolidProof and BlockSAFU. The team is pseudonymous and the launch contracts are not yet audited, so do your own checks.
How do I buy MemeToro?
Visit https://memetoro.com/, connect a BNB Smart Chain wallet or pay by card, check the contract and stage price, and confirm.
Optimum wants one number to do the work before anything else: $3.4 billion. That is the dollar value of Ethereum stake the startup says its block-propagation protocol, mump2p, is already “boosting” after going live on Ethereum mainnet on October 20. The launch went out on X with a simpler claim — that data now moves across Ethereum two to three times faster than the default network.
The Optimum team is pleased to announce our first mainnet deployment, mump2p on Ethereum. With mump2p, data moves across all of Ethereum 2-3x faster, boosting validator performance and network health.
$3.4B of Ethereum stake is already being boosted by mump2p, and we’re now… pic.twitter.com/6HP0eMAd3D
— Optimum (@get_optimum) October 20, 2026
Behind the headline sit 16 node operators, roughly 22,000 validator keys, and more than 1.4 million ETH in active stake, according to Optimum’s launch announcement. It is the first production deployment of Random Linear Network Coding, or RLNC, on Ethereum’s consensus layer — technology co-invented by MIT professor Muriel Médard, who is also Optimum’s co-founder and chief executive.
What mump2p actually changes
mump2p runs as a sidecar gateway beside a validator’s consensus client. It does not replace GossipSub, the gossip protocol Ethereum’s consensus layer uses by default, and it does not touch consensus rules, execution, or signing keys. Blocks and attestations still travel the default path; mump2p adds a second, coded channel that can deliver the same data sooner.
Under the hood, the protocol breaks a block into fragments and sends random linear combinations of those fragments. A receiving node reconstructs the full block after collecting enough linearly independent pieces. Because every node can forward and recombine fragments before the entire message arrives, the network stops re-sending identical data through every hop — the main source of gossip overhead.
Validators reach mump2p through two services. Signal lets a validator receive blocks and attestations earlier than it would over GossipSub alone and is free. Accelerate propagates the blocks a validator sends and is offered to operators running 200 or more validators, according to Optimum’s product page.
The $3.4 billion number, deconstructed
The “Total Value Boosted” figure is easy to decode. Divide $3.4 billion by 1.4 million ETH and you get about $2,428 per ether — almost exactly where ETH traded around the launch, and just below the $2,454 it printed on CoinGecko at the time of writing. Total Value Boosted is not a separate economic quantity. It is staked ether multiplied by the market price, given a new name.
Optimum says its reach is “more than 3%” of all staked ETH. The arithmetic holds: 1.4 million ETH is about 3.2% of the roughly 43.7 million ETH locked in the Beacon Chain.
The speed claims are where the numbers begin to drift. The launch post says “2-3x faster.” The homepage advertises “2-4x faster” and a “90% first seen” rate. The press release cites 2.42 times faster block delivery and 7.88 times lower arrival variance, with mump2p users seeing the block first in nine of ten measurements. All of it is self-reported, and the announcement does not disclose how the measurements were gathered.
There is also a count that does not match. The homepage says “20 mainnet partners & counting,” while the release names 16 node operators. Optimum did not explain the gap.
What faster blocks actually buy a validator
Ethereum validators earn rewards in small, regular increments for attesting to blocks. When they attest late or on the wrong head, they forfeit part of that reward. A validator that reliably sees blocks a few hundred milliseconds sooner misses fewer head votes and collects a steadier stream.
The second payoff sits on the proposal side. A block proposer has a narrow window to collect bids from builders before it must commit. Accelerate is pitched as a way to wait longer for higher MEV bids and still land the block on time. That is a measurable margin for large operators — and the reason a liquid restaking provider would make the software mandatory.
Rok Kopp, ether.fi’s co-founder and chief growth officer, framed the decision in the announcement: “We don’t mandate new infrastructure across our entire validator set unless we’re confident it raises the bar for our stakers and for the network.” Optimum says ether.fi now requires all 12 of its node operators to run mump2p.
What isn’t proven yet
The numbers are Optimum’s own. There is no independent benchmark, and ether.fi has not published anything about the mandate on its own blog, docs, or governance forum. The 2.42x and 7.88x figures also appeared in an Optimum-sponsored Four Pillars report in August, which described a test across 30 gateways while the protocol was still preparing for mainnet.
The full operator list, as Optimum published it: Blockdaemon, Everstake, P2P.org, Stakefish, Luganodes, InfStones, Meria, Finoa, Node.Monster, HashKey Cloud, DSRV, RockX, Nansen, Validatrium, Ebunker and Validation Cloud. That roster spans most of the institutional staking market — and none of them independently confirmed the performance numbers either.
“Permissionless” deserves the same scrutiny. Optimum’s marketing describes free, permissionless onboarding, but its own August blog post called the network “permissioned for now,” with operators connecting through an API key issued by the company.
There is also a hard bound on what mump2p can do. It accelerates how quickly data arrives; it does not make Ethereum settle transactions faster or process more of them. The upside is concentrated in attestation timing and the proposer’s bid window — real money for operators, but not a consensus upgrade.
Médard put the pitch in sharper terms in the announcement: “In traditional finance, firms spend billions shaving milliseconds off execution because speed is money. The same economics now apply to Ethereum’s top operators.” And: “This goes beyond validator performance. Optimum is the optimal acceleration path, built on a new coded networking approach for systems that are truly decentralized.”
The next signals are concrete. An independent benchmark of mump2p’s mainnet numbers, an official ether.fi confirmation, and the launch of “Optimum for Traders” — which the team says is coming without a date — would each move the story from self-reported claims toward verified validator infrastructure.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
“What is the best crypto to invest in right now?” In this article we sort today’s main names into three buckets, a core, a growth layer and an early-stage slot, score them on the same checklist, and explain why MemeToro $MT, an open-source AI meme coin launchpad on BNB Chain whose $MT presale is at Stage 9 for $0.00649, is the name this guide puts at center stage in the early-stage bucket.
Key Points
Prices on October 20, 2026 (CoinGecko): Bitcoin $82,640, Ethereum $2,446, XRP $1.33, Solana $106.27. Three buckets: a core of the largest assets, a growth layer of established altcoins, and a small early-stage slot. MemeToro $MT fills the early-stage slot in this guide. Its $MT presale is at Stage 9, $0.00649. Why “Best” Depends on the Investment Bucket
Comparing Bitcoin with a presale is like comparing a bank with a start-up: they do different jobs. Many investors therefore split their thinking into buckets, and judge each name against its own bucket.
Bucket 1: The Core (Bitcoin)
Bitcoin trades near $82,600 and makes up about 58% of the $2.86 trillion market, according to CoinGecko. It is the deepest and most liquid asset. This week brought institutional news: Bitcoin ETFs took in $526.7 million on October 19, and Switzerland’s financial regulator FINMA approved the country’s first exchange-traded retail fund that holds Bitcoin directly, according to Bitcoin Sistemi. The role of the core is stability relative to the rest of crypto, not high growth, and it can still fall sharply.
Bucket 2: The Growth Layer (Ethereum, XRP, Solana)
Ethereum ($2,446) is under pressure from fund flows, with $103.3 million of ETF outflows on October 19, its fourth straight day. XRP ($1.33) is about 22% below a local high near $1.70, and large holders have moved coins to exchanges, with Binance seeing its biggest XRP deposits in seven months, according to Bitcoin Sistemi and CryptoQuant. At the same time US spot XRP ETFs have drawn $1.8 billion of net inflows. Solana ($106.27) is now available through the Sparkassen banking network in Germany, which began rolling out trading for XRP, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and Polygon on October 19. These are established networks with real usage, and prices that swing more than Bitcoin’s.
Bucket 3: The Early-Stage Slot (MemeToro)
This is the smallest slot and the one with the widest range of outcomes. A project at the start of its life can grow much faster than an asset with a $1.6 trillion market, or it can fail. The key for this bucket is not to guess the winner but to find a project whose claims you can check. That is why MemeToro is the focus here.
A Five-Point Scorecard
Using the same five questions for each name:
1. Is the code open to read?
Bitcoin: yes, widely reviewed. Ethereum and XRP: yes, open networks. MemeToro: yes, MIT-licensed repository at https://github.com/MemeToro/memetoro, which the team calls an early MVP.
2. Has anyone outside the team reviewed it?
Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP: more than a decade of public scrutiny each, with ongoing regulatory attention. MemeToro: three audits of the $MT token contract, by Coinsult, SolidProof and BlockSAFU. The launch contracts are not yet audited.
3. How is supply held?
Bitcoin: mined, no team allocation. Ethereum and XRP: large foundation and company holdings are part of the story. MemeToro: 1.2 billion $MT, 71% for the public sale and 2% for the team, according to https://memetoro.com/tokenomics.
4. Can you try it first?
Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP: you can use them in small amounts. MemeToro: a public BNB testnet round with tBNB, a test token without value, at https://memetoro.com/memecoin.
5. How much is still to be proven?
Bitcoin: its role as a store of value is established, price is not. Ethereum, XRP: use cases are live but still evolving. MemeToro: the most. The roadmap lists audits of launch contracts, token creation and liquidity, a public funding page and a formal manifest schema.
The scorecard shows the trade clearly. The established names have the proof and the lower upside from today’s size. MemeToro has the least proof and, by the nature of being early, the highest potential and the highest risk.
Why MemeToro Takes Center Stage in This Guide
Many early-stage projects ask you to believe. MemeToro $MT asks you to read. It is building a launchpad where an AI agent scans the news and conversation on X, drafts a meme coin concept and writes down its reasoning. The terms of the launch are saved in a launch manifest, and a contract called FairLaunchEscrow carries them out. The AI does not hold funds. Supporters see three reasons it stands out in the early-stage slot:
It tackles the weakest part of meme coins. The sector’s common problem is that most new tokens have no reason to exist beyond a joke. MemeToro’s pitch is a reasoned concept with published launch rules.
The price steps up. The $MT presale runs in stages, each with a funding target, and each new stage opens at a higher price. $0.00649 is the Stage 9 price, and buyers who join a stage pay that stage’s price.
You hold the tokens. $MT goes directly to your wallet, and presale tokens are not locked up.
MemeToro Stage 9 at a Glance
Price: $0.00649 per $MT. Network: BNB Smart Chain. Contract: 0x44412181b7eb66bff974c0a9a9e908e5bba8cfff. Supply: 1.2 billion, with 852 million (71%) public sale, 120 million (10%) exchange reserves, 90.72 million (7.56%) marketing partner vesting over 24 months, 60 million (5%) MemeToro trading, 53.28 million (4.44%) rewards and 24 million (2%) team. Payment: wallet or card, on a site available in more than 16 languages. How to Start in Four Steps
Read https://memetoro.com/, the tokenomics page, the code and the audit reports. Practice on the testnet with tBNB. If you decide to take part, connect a BNB Smart Chain wallet or choose card payment, and check the contract address and the Stage 9 price. Check the rules where you live, because buyers are responsible for following local law. Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bitcoin still a good investment?
It is the largest and most liquid crypto asset, and ETF inflows continue, but its price can fall sharply.
Is XRP a good buy?
XRP is about 22% below a recent local high. US spot ETFs have taken $1.8 billion in net inflows, while large holders have moved coins to exchanges. Evidence points both ways.
Is Ethereum a good buy now?
Ethereum has had four straight days of ETF outflows, with support watched near $2,350 to $2,370. Decide based on your own time frame.
Which crypto is best for beginners (en iyi kripto para hangisi)?
Beginners often start with the largest assets in small amounts and learn the process before moving into riskier names.
How much is MemeToro at Stage 9?
$0.00649 per $MT until the stage target is reached and the next stage opens at a higher price.
Is the MemeToro presale legit?
You can verify the contract, the code, the tokenomics and three token audits. The team is pseudonymous and the launch contracts are not yet audited, so do your own checks.
How do I buy MemeToro?
Visit https://memetoro.com/, connect a BNB Smart Chain wallet or pay by card, check the contract and stage price, and confirm.
Midnight Network has unveiled Nightmode, a cross-chain privacy feature built with Sig Network that uses MPC vaults to extend $NIGHT privacy tools to Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and Tron.
Midnight Network has unveiled Nightmode, a cross-chain privacy feature built with @MidnightNtwrk and @Sig_Network. It is designed to extend Midnight's privacy tools to chains including Bitcoin ($BTC), Ethereum ($ETH), Solana ($SOL) and Tron ($TRX) without relying on a conventional bridge.
Nightmode is due to go live on mainnet with ledger v9, Midnight's next major network upgrade, later this year.
How Nightmode worksUsers lock coins in vaults on their home chain and receive a matching private balance on Midnight, guarded by shared keys. According to Crypto Economy, the vaults are Multi-Party Computation (MPC) contracts, and the original assets stay on their native network rather than moving through a traditional bridge. The same report says a vault is governed by seven private cryptographic signatures, and that Midnight records each deposit and issues tokens representing the user's balance in a shielded pool.
Sig Network describes itself as a signing network. On its website, it says no single signer holds the key and that it signs only requests that come from a contract on Midnight. It also says Midnight contracts can hold accounts on Ethereum, so users can trade on Uniswap or lend on Aave while their identities stay shielded.
On apps such as Uniswap, trade amounts stay public but the user behind them stays hidden. KuCoin News reports that users can trade, swap or stake the shielded tokens, and that burning them redeems the original native assets. The same report says Nightmode supports selective disclosure based on zero-knowledge proofs, aimed at meeting compliance requirements.
Context: ledger v9 and Midnight's push into DeFiLedger v9 is also the upgrade tied to Midnight's planned Solana support. Hokanews reports that Midnight Foundation CTO Sebastien Guillemot said the Solana integration remains on testnet, with a mainnet rollout scheduled for later in 2026. Midnight's own roadmap says the project is extending NightMode to additional blockchains, giving users on those networks access to private transactions on Midnight and giving Midnight users access to the liquidity held there.
Crypto Economy notes that the design targets DeFi, payments and real-world asset settlement, and that it does not claim transaction detail becomes invisible. Trade values remain visible, while identity information stays unlinked.
Nightmode is still pending mainnet release, so its real-world performance and security remain to be tested. Users should watch for the ledger v9 launch date and any audits of the vault design.
Ethereum staking hit a new record in the third quarter of 2026, but investors found themselves earning smaller yields as rewards were spread across a wider pool of staked ETH.
According to Bitwise's latest quarterly staking report, 43.8 million ETH, which is nearly 36% of the total supply, was locked into staking at the end of September. At the same time, annualized staking yields averaged 2.63%, down from 2.81% in the prior quarter.
"As more ETH is staked, rewards are distributed across a larger pool, reducing the yield earned on each ETH," the researchers wrote.
Staked Ethereum QoQ. Source: BitwiseInstitutional staking drives Ethereum inflowsEthereum recorded net staking inflows of just under 2 million ETH in the third quarter, its sixth consecutive quarter of positive flows.
Institutional staking has been a big driver of these flows. Bitwise pointed to Bitmine, the leading Ethereum treasury company led by Tom Lee, whose staking rose more than 1,000% from 410,000 ETH in December to 5.07 million ETH as of Sept. 27.
Newly issued ETH accounted for more than 96% of Ethereum's staking yield, leaving the rest to come from transaction tips and revenue from ordering transactions (MEV).
In the same period, Ethereum network revenue fell to roughly $40.6 million from $63 million in the second quarter.
Solana staking hits record 69% of supplySolana's active staking numbers also hit a record, climbing to 440.5 million SOL, totaling 69% of the total supply. Similar to Ethereum, gross staking yields fell around 6%, with newly issued tokens making up 90% of returns.
The network recorded 14.2 billion transactions, up 45% from the second quarter, while average transaction costs stayed mostly flat.
Solana Non-Vote Transactions. Source: BitwiseTransaction fees jumped 49% to $76 million, driven mostly by memecoin trading. Tokenized equities trading volume climbed 45% to more than $6.9 billion.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Ethereum staking hit a record 43.8 million ETH in the third quarter, yet the yield fell to 2.63%. More stakers explain only part of that drop.
Key Takeaways
Stake growth explains roughly half the drop
Falling fees and MEV explain much of the rest
Solana’s decline came from shrinking issuance
Real gain after dilution: about 1.7-2.2%
Validators hold 35.9% of all ETH, the most in the network’s history, according to Bitwise’s latest staking report. The annualized yield fell from 2.81% in Q2, while Solana’s slipped from 6.38% to 5.99%.
What Bitwise reported
Bitwise reports both networks’ yields gross, before validator commission or operator fees.
Network
Supply staked, Q2 → Q3
Gross yield, Q2 → Q3
Main pressure on yield
Ethereum
33.0% → 35.9%
2.81% → 2.63%
More stake, lower fees and MEV
Validator counts fell on both networks, for opposite reasons. Ethereum’s dropped from about 1.1 million to 881,000 as operators merged validators under EIP-7251, which raised the maximum balance per validator to 2,048 ETH; the ETH behind those records stayed staked. On Solana, the count fell from 696 to 659 as smaller operators left under cost pressure.
Stake growth explains about half of Ethereum’s decline
Ethereum pays no fixed reward rate. Under the rules set out in its protocol documentation, the base reward per staked ETH scales with the inverse square root of all ETH staked. Total issuance rises as stake grows, but more slowly than the stake itself, so every new deposit lowers the rate paid on the rest.
Active validator balances rose 8.8% over the quarter, from 40.24 million ETH to 43.80 million. On a square-root curve, an increase of that size trims the issuance rate by roughly 3-4%, depending on whether quarter-end or average balances are used. Applied to Ethereum’s yield, that accounts for about 0.08-0.10 of the 0.18-point decline.
ETH held by active validators rose by 3.6 million in Q3, the biggest quarterly increase since early 2025. Source: Bitwise, Allium
The rest tracks a drop in what users paid. Network fees and MEV averaged 198 ETH a day in Q3, down 40% from 331 ETH in Q2, and part of that total is burned rather than paid to validators. Higher gas limits after the Fusaka upgrade added capacity, so users competed less for block space. Bitwise found the average cost of four common transaction types fell 67% from a year earlier.
Where Ethereum’s 2.63% came from in Q3
New issuance: 2.53 pts
Priority fees and MEV: 0.10 pts. Source: Bitwise.
Solana’s drop came from issuance, not fees
Solana’s rate moved for a different reason. Its issuance follows a disinflation schedule that currently cuts the inflation rate by 15% a year until it reaches a 1.5% floor. Issuance accounts for almost 90% of Solana’s gross staking yield, so that schedule sets the direction of rewards.
Bitwise’s breakdown shows the issuance component fell 0.53 percentage points in Q3: fewer new tokens were created, and they were spread across 3.1% more stake, now 440.5 million SOL. Fees moved the opposite way. Users paid 33% more SOL to transact, and block rewards and Jito tips added 0.14 points, leaving a net decline of 0.39 points.
What a holder actually keeps
Bitwise’s yields are measured before anyone takes a cut. A validator may charge commission, a staking pool may take a service fee, and a fund may keep part of its holdings unstaked while charging its own expenses. In an ETF, rewards often build into the value of each share instead of paying out in cash, as covered in our look at how staking rewards reach an ETF investor.
The second deduction is less visible. Most of the yield on both networks is newly created tokens, and those tokens enlarge the total supply. A staker’s share of the network therefore grows by less than the headline rate, while a holder who doesn’t stake sees their share shrink.
Rough math: yield after dilution
Ethereum
≈1.7%
Issuance paying 2.53% on 35.9% of supply adds new ETH equal to about 0.9% of total supply a year. A 2.63% yield then grows a staker’s share of all ETH by about 1.7% a year. Fee burns would lift that slightly; operator fees would reduce it.
Solana
≈2.2%
Issuance paying roughly 5.3% on 69% of supply expands total SOL by about 3.7% a year. A 5.99% gross yield then grows a staker’s share by about 2.2%, before commission. An unstaked holder’s share shrinks by about 3.5%.
Estimates from Bitwise’s Q3 figures. Results shift with stake levels, burns and commission, and exclude any change in token price.
Getting in and out
New ETH waited about 25 days to start earning at the end of Q3, down from roughly 70 days in February. Exits are capped at 57,600 ETH a day across the network, so queues can stretch when many holders leave at once; a proposed change, EIP-8061, would raise that limit to about 247,000 ETH a day by Bitwise’s estimate. Liquid staking tokens offer a faster route, because they can be sold while the underlying ETH stays staked, though a seller in a hurry may have to accept a price below the ETH they represent.
Both networks are rethinking issuance
On Solana, faster cuts are already approved. In August, validators passed SGP-0002, which doubles the annual disinflation rate to 30% while keeping the 1.5% floor. It cleared with 67.00% support, 0.33 points above the threshold, and has no activation date yet. Once live, it would bring Solana to that floor in about 2.8 years instead of 5.7.
Ethereum’s version of the debate is less advanced. EIP-8363 would burn a rising share of consensus rewards as more ETH is staked, reaching 76% at 50 million ETH. Supporters say holders shouldn’t be diluted to fund an ever-larger security budget, while critics warn that thinner rewards would push out small operators. On September 7, the Ethereum Foundation’s protocol team declined to recommend it for the Hegotá upgrade, saying a change to issuance needs wider community discussion.
A record stake shows how much ETH and SOL is locked up. For a holder weighing staking, the figures that decide the outcome are the reward left after costs, the portion paid in new tokens and the time needed to get out.
This article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Staking rewards are variable, and token-price losses can exceed rewards earned.
Author
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP.
Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem.
To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem.
His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
