Market Signal Briefing

Data shows calls for sub-$60,000 Bitcoin prices have seen a rise on social media recently, a sign that fear is brewing among retail traders.

Bitcoin Social Volume Data Suggests Growth In Bearish Calls In a new post on X, on-chain analytics firm Santiment has talked about how social media users have reacted to the recent bearish price action. The indicator of relevance here is the “Social Volume,” measuring the total number of posts on the major social media platforms that contain mentions of a given term or topic.

To separate between bullish and bearish predictions, Santiment has filtered the Social Volume of Bitcoin with terms referencing certain price levels. For the bullish side, the analytics firm has chosen levels in the $90,000 to $99,000 range, while for the bearish one, $50,000 to $59,000.

Now, here is the chart shared by Santiment that shows how the Social Volume related to the two types of Bitcoin market calls has changed during the latest price volatility:

The value of the metric seems to have shot up for the bearish predictions most recently | Source: Santiment on X As displayed in the above graph, the Bitcoin Social Volume for levels above $90,000 spiked toward the end of last month, suggesting social media users were expecting the cryptocurrency to revisit the higher levels. What followed the spike, however, was a notable drawdown for the asset’s price.

Then, on the last day of the month, the trend flipped as bearish calls observed a sharp surge instead. BTC’s decline temporarily cooled alongside this and prices saw a small rebound.

This pattern of Bitcoin going in the direction that goes against the opinion of the majority is actually something that has been witnessed throughout history. Naturally, it doesn’t always happen, but the chances of a reversal tend to go up whenever the traders are leaning into one direction too heavily.

From the chart, it’s visible that social media users have recently once again started leaning in on a direction, and, like the last time, they are fearing sub-$60,000 price levels. The analytics firm explained:

Markets move opposite to what the crowd expects, meaning there can at least be founded arguments for a short-term relief rally while retail is already assuming sub-$60K Bitcoin is a foregone conclusion.

It now remains to be seen how the cryptocurrency’s price will develop in the near future, given the rise in fearful sentiment that has occurred on the various social media platforms.

In some other news, the Bitcoin supply sitting on centralized exchanges has been on the rise recently, as CryptoQuant author Axel Adler Jr has highlighted in an X post.

The value of the metric seems to have shot up in recent days | Source: @AxelAdlrJr on X As data of the Exchange Reserve indicator shows, 34,000 BTC has returned to exchanges since January 19th.

BTC Price Bitcoin has continued to slide down as its price has now reached the $73,600 mark.

The trend in the price of the coin over the last five days | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told lawmakers this week that the federal government lacks the legal authority to bail out Bitcoin or direct banks to purchase cryptocurrencies.

Summary

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the federal government has no legal authority to bail out Bitcoin or compel banks to buy cryptocurrencies, ruling out taxpayer-funded intervention during market downturns. Lawmakers also pressed Bessent on World Liberty Financial, a Trump-linked crypto venture, with Democrats urging heightened scrutiny of any banking applications tied to potential conflicts of interest or foreign influence. The testimony comes as Bitcoin slid nearly 8% in 24 hours, hitting its lowest level since early November 2024 amid broader market uncertainty and risk-off sentiment. His remarks emphasized the limits of government intervention as digital assets face renewed market pressure.

U.S. Treasury rules out Bitcoin bailout During a House Financial Services Committee hearing, California Representative Brad Sherman pressed Bessent on whether the Treasury Department or the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) could use taxpayer funds to support Bitcoin (BTC) during a downturn.

Bessent replied unequivocally that neither he nor the council holds that authority.

“I am Secretary of the Treasury, I do not have the authority to do that, and as chair of FSOC, I do not have that authority,” Bessent said.

Bessent’s testimony clarified that while the U.S. government may retain Bitcoin obtained through legal forfeitures, it cannot mandate banks to buy Bitcoin or invest U.S. tax dollars in cryptocurrencies. Thus, effectively ruled out bailout scenarios reminiscent of those seen in past financial crises.

Bessent also mentioned that the $500 million in seized Bitcoin held by the US government has surged to over $15 billion while in custody.

The Treasury Secretary additionally faced pointed questions about World Liberty Financial, a crypto and decentralized finance venture tied to President Donald Trump.

 Representative Gregory Meeks demanded that Bessent commit to pausing and intensifying scrutiny of any bank charter or license application tied to World Liberty Financial until conflicts of interest and potential foreign influence are fully reviewed and shared with Congress.

Bessent declined, noting that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the agency that would approve banking charters, is an independent regulator and not under Treasury control.

Bitcoin’s price slide deepens amid market uncertainty The remarks came amid a sharp sell-off in the cryptocurrency market. Bitcoin’s price has fallen nearly 8% in the last 24 hours, dragging the world’s largest cryptocurrency to its lowest level since early November 2024 as investor sentiment turns cautious.

Broader market stress, including macroeconomic concerns and shifting risk appetites, has compounded selling pressure.

A senior Democratic lawmaker has launched a formal investigation into World Liberty Financial Inc (WLF), demanding information and documents over reported foreign investments and potential links between the crypto company, national security policy, and U.S. competition with China.

Summary

Democratic lawmakers have asked World Liberty Financial to provide documents and explanations over reported foreign investments, including a nearly 49% stake allegedly purchased by an entity linked to the UAE royal family. The inquiry raises concerns about potential foreign influence on U.S. policy, particularly around technology restrictions and strategic competition with China. Lawmakers are also examining World Liberty Financial’s stablecoin activity and its reported role in facilitating a major investment into crypto exchange Binance. Lawmakers raise national security concerns tied to World Liberty Financial In a letter dated February 4, 2026, Representative Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, wrote to Trump-linked crypto firm World Liberty Financial’s co-founder Zach Witkoff.

The letter cited recent reports that an entity controlled by a member of the United Arab Emirates royal family purchased nearly a 49% stake in WLF for about $500 million shortly before President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Khanna’s letter, which forms part of an expanded probe, said the transactions raise “shocking and scandalous” concerns about potential foreign influence over U.S. government actions.

It specifically pointed to policies related to technology and strategic competition with China, including efforts to restrict the transfer of advanced artificial intelligence technology to the People’s Republic of China.

The letter also highlights that the WLF stablecoin USD1 was used to facilitate a $2 billion investment by a UAE-linked investment firm, known as MGX, into Binance, a major cryptocurrency exchange founded in China whose former CEO was pardoned last year by President Trump. Khanna’s office said those connections could have implications for U.S. national security and monetary policy.

Broad inquiry into foreign ties, policy influence Khanna’s request for documents is wide-ranging. Lawmakers asked WLF to verify the details of the reported UAE investment, disclose how funds were distributed, and provide communications related to U.S. export control policy, stablecoin usage, and interactions with federal agencies.

The committee also sought details on any board appointments connected to foreign entities and revenue or profit distributions linked to the Binance investment.

In the letter, Khanna emphasized that congressional oversight is necessary to ensure that U.S. policy on economic and technological competition with China remains driven by national interest rather than potential private financial interests tied to foreign governments or senior officials.

Payy has announced a privacy-enabled Ethereum layer 2 that it claims will make on-chain financial activity effectively “invisible” to the public eye.

Summary

Payy has launched a privacy-enabled Ethereum layer 2 that makes ERC-20 transfers from wallets like MetaMask private by default. The network functions by routing transactions through private ERC-20 pools. Payy, which operates a privacy-focused wallet and a Visa-powered crypto card, said in a Wednesday X post that its layer 2 network can now be integrated into MetaMask, and it will make ERC-20 transfers private by default without making any smart contract changes.

“In the past, privacy always had tradeoffs: bad UX, fragmented liquidity, limited compatibility. With Payy, privacy is invisible,” the project said.

According to the project’s website, Payy aims to make stablecoin usage private by design while offering support for all ERC-20 tokens.

Payy is targeting two main user segments specifically: institutions and fintech firms that want to bring flows on-chain “without fear of analysis and exploitation,” and privacy enthusiasts that want to use tools without having to juggle between multiple wallets.

“Crypto natives will use their existing wallets and apps, while Fintechs and TradFi will onboard through our distribution partners,” Payy said.

The layer 2 network routes transactions through private ERC-20 pools, through which users’ transactions are automatically routed when using traditional wallets like MetaMask, thereby effectively concealing the destination of funds, which would have otherwise been publicly visible.

When interacting with decentralized finance protocols through smart contracts, funds are withdrawn to a new, freshly generated address.

“Private transaction data goes to offchain Privacy Vaults,” it said, adding that “users can choose applications and contracts to interact with based on the privacy-compliance tradeoff.”

To start off, Payy said it would bootstrap the network using 100,000 users that already use its wallet service, alongside “some of the largest stablecoin players” that will be announced in the coming weeks.

“I firmly believe privacy is the final barrier to critical mass adoption. By removing it, we’re unblocking the path for the $2 quadrillion global payments economy to move onchain, without turning every transaction into a data leak,” Payy CEO Sid Gandhi said in a separate X post.

Privacy tools step back into the spotlight Payy’s launch comes at a time when demand for privacy-preserving tools has grown. Throughout 2025, some of the popular privacy tokens, such as Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC), have seen a resurgence.

Meanwhile, Ethereum (ETH) developers are also working on wallet-level privacy features via Kohaku, and the Ethereum Foundation announced a privacy roadmap in September. The foundation said at the time that the roadmap’s goal is to ensure Ethereum avoids becoming “the backbone of global surveillance.”

What to Know:

Bitcoin’s correction to $70,000 triggered a $775M liquidation cascade, flushing out over-leveraged long positions and resetting market open interest Market sentiment has shifted from aggressive speculation to defensive infrastructure, favoring projects with tangible utility over high-beta trading assets. BMIC is defying the downturn by addressing the “harvest now, decrypt later” quantum threat, securing $432,976.78 in early funding. The divergence between Bitcoin’s price action and presale inflows suggests smart money is hedging volatility with early-stage tech plays. The crypto market delivered a harsh reality check this morning. In a violent flush that caught leverage traders off guard, Bitcoin plummeted back to the $70,000 support level.

That move triggered a cascading liquidation event totaling $775M across major exchanges. What began as a minor technical correction accelerated into a mass capitulation of long positions, reminding the market that liquidity hunts are rarely gentle.

Why does this matter? It’s not about the specific price point, $70,000 remains a historically high baseline, but rather what it reveals about market structure.

Open interest (OI) had ballooned to unsustainable levels over the past week, driven by retail FOMO and aggressive perp positioning. When the floor gave way, the algorithmic selling pressure was instantaneous. This flush has effectively reset the leverage ratio.

While painful, it potentially sets the stage for a healthier, albeit more cautious, accumulation phase. However, the psychological damage is evident; the ‘up only’ narrative has been fractured, forcing capital to rotate out of high-beta speculative assets and into infrastructure plays that offer utility decoupled from immediate price action.

While the broader market bleeds, a divergence is occurring in the presale sector. Smart money appears to be hedging against volatility by moving into early-stage infrastructure projects that solve fundamental ecosystem problems rather than relying on market sentiment.

One such project, BMIC ($BMIC), has continued to attract capital despite the sea of red candles. It suggests investors are prioritizing long-term security narratives over short-term speculative gains.

Buy your $BMIC here.

Quantum-Secure Architecture Offers Refuge From Systemic Risk It’s a classic pattern: when portfolio values drop, security anxiety spikes. The tolerance for risk evaporates, and the focus shifts from ‘how much can I make?’ to ‘how do I keep what I have?’

This psychological shift is precisely where BMIC is finding its footing. While traders panic-sold Bitcoin, the $BMIC presale continued to tick upward.

Frankly, its value proposition, securing the digital future against post-quantum threats, remains relevant regardless of whether Bitcoin is at $70K or $100K.

Current wallet infrastructure relies on cryptographic standards that quantum computing will eventually render obsolete. Experts call this the ‘harvest now, decrypt later’ threat: bad actors are scraping encrypted data today to unlock it once quantum processing power matures.

BMIC addresses this existential risk with a full Quantum-Secure Finance Stack. By using ERC-4337 Smart Accounts and Zero Public-Key Exposure protocols, the platform effectively nullifies the vulnerabilities inherent in legacy wallets.

For enterprise clients and serious DeFi users, this isn’t just a feature update, it’s survival. The platform’s integration of AI-Enhanced Threat Detection adds a proactive layer of defense, monitoring transaction patterns for anomalies before they execute.

In a market environment where $775M can vanish in hours due to liquidation algorithms, the appeal of a ‘Quantum Meta-Cloud’ that secures assets against both market mechanics and cryptographic breakage is driving a distinct flight to quality.

Get your $BMIC here.

Presale Momentum Accelerates as Investors Seek Uncorrelated Alpha While the secondary market suffers from liquidity shocks, the primary market, specifically high-conviction presales, often operates with an inverse correlation. The numbers back this up. According to official project metrics, BMIC has successfully raised over $432K, maintaining a steady inflow of capital even as Bitcoin tests the $70K floor.

The token is currently priced at $0.049474. That figure represents a fixed entry point in a volatile environment.

For investors, this offers a strategic hedge: allocating capital to a pre-market asset that is immune to today’s leverage flush while gaining exposure to the ‘Burn-to-Compute’ narrative. The BMIC token serves as the ecosystem fuel for this new security paradigm, governing the protocol and facilitating the immense computational resources required for post-quantum encryption.

What most coverage misses is the timing of this capital rotation. Experienced whales (who’ve seen these cycles before) often use dips to rebalance into infrastructure.

By securing a position in BMIC now, investors are essentially betting on the inevitable upgrade cycle of the entire Ethereum network. As the project rolls out its Quantum-Secure Staking, allowing yield generation without key exposure, it creates a sticky utility loop that discourages selling.

In a market currently defined by fear, a project offering a tangible solution to the industry’s largest looming security crisis is naturally outperforming the speculative noise.

$BMIC is available for buy here.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments, especially presales and leveraged trading, carry high risks. Always perform independent due diligence.

Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.

High-profile on-chain activity connected to Ethereum Cofounder Vitalik Buterin seems to be the most recent catalyst for the severe selling pressure that Ethereum is currently experiencing. Blockchain tracking data indicates that over the past three days wallets linked to Buterin have bought and sold about 2,961.5 ETH, or roughly $6.6 million, at an average execution price of about $2,228.

Worst timing possibleThe timing of this activity is critical for Ethereum's price structure. ETH has already lost important support zones on the daily chart, which were once strong consolidation areas around $2,800 and $2,700. One of the biggest sell-offs since mid-2025 occurred as a result of the most recent breakdown, which drove the price quickly toward the $2,100-2,200 range. Sellers, not passive holders, are driving the current price action, as evidenced by the volume spike during the decline.

ETH/USDT Chart by TradingViewTechnically speaking, Ethereum is currently trading well below major moving averages, and all short- and midterm trend indicators are pointing downward. Even though the RSI readings have reached extremely oversold levels, the price is still having trouble holding rebounds. When traders are still taking risks, oversold conditions are insufficient to halt momentum, which makes the psychological $2,000 level the crucial battleground.

HOT Stories

Ethereum ready to diveEthereum may easily fall below this barrier if selling pressure continues and overall cryptocurrency sentiment remains subdued. The price might move toward deeper support zones created in early 2025 if there were a break below $2,000, which would probably lead to more liquidations and panic-selling.

You Might Also Like

Notably, though significant wallet movements do not always indicate bearish intent, funding for ecosystems, donations, operational costs and protocol development are all common examples of transfers. However, markets respond to perception, and significant ETH withdrawals from well-known individuals invariably increase trader anxiety.

The upcoming sessions will be important for investors, and in order to prevent further structural damage, Ethereum needs to stabilize above $2,000. Failure to do so could cause the story to change from one of correction to a protracted bear phase, with recovery taking far longer than bulls had anticipated.

On Feb. 4, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) activated the highly anticipated Permissioned Domains with 91% validator approval.

At first glance, the approval appears contradictory, as it involves a public blockchain hosting “permissioned” zones.

However, a deeper look at the mechanics shows how the upgrade operates. Permissioned Domains introduces an on-ledger access-control object that enables other network features to reference and restrict participation to digital wallets that hold specific on-chain credentials.

The fundamental point of this architectural shift is not to convert the XRPL into a private network.

Rather, the objective is to enable highly regulated financial activity to exist on a public ledger, with enforcement occurring directly at the protocol layer instead of through bespoke, off-chain allowlists and centralized gatekeepers.

This design choice is becoming increasingly important as the broader tokenization sector shifts from a “proof of concept” phase to a genuine market structure.

What are permissioned domains?To understand the shift, one must understand what a permissioned domain actually is.

According to the technical specifications, Permissioned Domains are intentionally a simple infrastructure. A domain is strictly a ledger object owned by an account. It stores a list of Accepted Credentials, and each is defined by a credential issuer and a credential type.

Credentials are on-ledger attestations from an issuer about a subject account. One might think of these as digital stamps stating “this account is KYC’d,” or “this account is part of a whitelisted institution.”

So, the key point for privacy-conscious institutions is that the ledger can validate the authorization signal by verifying it exists, is accepted, and has not expired, without putting personal identity data on-chain.

It is closer to verifying an anonymous authorization token than publishing Know Your Customer (KYC) documents on a public network.

Given these credentials, the logic behind Permissioned Domain technology is binary and automated.

If a wallet holds at least one matching, non-expired credential, it automatically has access to the domain. If it does not, domain-aware transactions can fail immediately at the protocol level.

XRPL’s documentation is explicit that domains “do nothing on their own.”

According to the firm, they exist so that other advanced features, like permissioned trading venues or lending protocols, can enforce access rules without having to reinvent the compliance wheel each time a new product launches.

How will this impact Ripple's ecosystem?The clearest example of what this means for the market appears in trading.

Until now, institutions have often preferred to keep most activity off-chain because they could not control with whom they interacted.

With Permissioned Domains, access can be restricted to approved entities, and liquidity providers can be known and verified.

Consequently, payments, trading, and future lending can happen on-chain in a compliant way. This unlocks real institutional usage of XRPL, shifting the narrative from experimentation to production.

This development would also enable Ripple to use the XRPL's upcoming “Permissioned” DEX for Ripple Payments. Notably, this was something it could not do safely before due to unknown liquidity sources.

Under the Permissioned DEX design, offers can specify a DomainID and be valid only within that domain’s order book. This creates credential-gated liquidity islands sorted by domain and currency pair.

Furthermore, cross-currency payments can also be restricted to consume liquidity only from the corresponding permissioned books.

This is particularly useful if a regulated product is only legally allowed to trade with regulated counterparties.

Ripple has over 300 institutional partners, and these features are the missing piece that would allow those partners to operate directly on-chain.

A macro backdrop favoring an “always on” marketPublic blockchains are converging on familiar market-structure concerns, especially as real-world asset tokenization gains traction as a way for the public to access investment opportunities.

CryptoSlate Daily Brief

Daily signals, zero noise.Market-moving headlines and context delivered every morning in one tight read.

5-minute digest 100k+ readers

Free. No spam. Unsubscribe any time.

You’re subscribed. Welcome aboard.

Data from RWA.xyz currently pegs the value of distributed tokenized real-world assets at approximately $24.11 billion. This figure is up nearly 12% over the past 30 days, while the number of asset holders is up more than 36% over the same period.

Furthermore, Intercontinental Exchange (the parent company of the NYSE) is developing a platform aimed at 24/7 tokenized securities trading and settlement, potentially funded via stablecoins.

This serves as an important signal that “always-on markets” are becoming a mainstream expectation rather than a crypto novelty.

In that environment, “regulated DeFi” cannot rely entirely on centralized front ends to enforce rules.

Permissioned Domains are a direct response to this shift, enabling compliance to be composable and shared across the structure.

XRP commentator Vincent Van Code noted that the PermissionedDomains enables compliant, gated environments on XRPL and unlocks institutional use cases by restricting access to accounts with specific verifiable credentials.

In simple terms, it allows banks and financial institutions to use XRPL in a way that complies with real-world compliance rules for KYC, AML, counterparty risk, and sanctioned entities.

According to him, this bridges traditional finance and blockchain. He added that it helps to attract institutional capital by enforcing jurisdictional rules on a public ledger without full centralization.

What to watch next for XRPLAs the market digests this upgrade, observers are considering three distinct scenarios in which Permissioned Domains could affect the blockchain.

The base case is “plumbing first.” In this scenario, domains enable the technology, but adoption ramps gradually. Early signals are not trading volume spikes but rather metrics like credentials issued and accepted, domains created, and early pilots.

The upside case sees regulated liquidity islands scale rapidly. Stablecoin issuers, broker-dealers, and RWA platforms use domains to operate venues subject to KYC and AML regulations on XRPL.

Here, hybrid offers keep spreads competitive by connecting liquidity across permissioned and open books.

In this world, XRPL’s differentiator becomes “public settlement with optional compliance gates,” creating a credible lane for tokenized cash-like instruments, commodities, and curated securities products.

However, the downside case involves fragmentation and indifference. If liquidity splits and hybrid bridging are underused, developers may decide the complexity is not worth it without guaranteed institutional flow.

So, the permissioned domains would exist but remain lightly used.

Essentially, the bottom line is that Permissioned Domains are less about “one new feature” and more about XRPL choosing a model that enables open rails with optional compliance gates.

Mentioned in this articlePosted in

Bhutan-linked wallets controlled by Druk Holding & Investments (DHI) moved more than 284 bitcoin worth roughly $22 million over the past week, according to on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence.

Summary

Bhutan-linked wallets moved over $22 million in Bitcoin this week, including a $14 million transfer and an earlier $8.3 million transaction tied to an institutional merchant deposit, according to Arkham data. Arkham says Bhutan has a history of selling Bitcoin in structured clips of around $50 million, with heavy selling observed in mid-to-late September 2025, though no sale has been confirmed from the latest transfers. Additional Ethereum and USDT movements suggest active treasury management, reinforcing Bhutan’s role as one of the few governments with Bitcoin sourced from state-backed mining operations. The activity places fresh focus on the Himalayan nation’s growing role as a sovereign Bitcoin holder.

Bhutan’s Largest Transfer Tops $14 Million The most significant transaction occurred seven hours ago, when a wallet linked to Bhutan moved 184.028 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at about $14.09 million.

Last Friday, another 100.818 BTC, worth approximately $8.31 million, was transferred from a Bhutan-controlled wallet to an address labelled as a QCP Capital WBTC merchant deposit. Such destinations are commonly associated with institutional crypto infrastructure.

Source: Arkham The transfers do not confirm that Bhutan has sold any Bitcoin. However, deposits to merchant or intermediary-linked addresses are often viewed as preparatory steps for liquidity management or asset repositioning.

The activity comes amid heightened market volatility, with Bitcoin recently under pressure. Sovereign-linked movements tend to attract attention due to their potential impact on market sentiment.

Interestingly, Bhutan’s Bitcoin holdings have now fallen from a peak of 13,295 BTC in October 2024 to 5,700 BTC at press time.

According to Arkham, Bhutan’s Bitcoin movements tend to follow a consistent pattern.

“From our observations, Bhutan periodically sells BTC in clips of around $50 million,” Arkham noted. The firm added that a particularly heavy period of selling occurred around mid to late September 2025.

Additional Ethereum and Stablecoin Activity Beyond Bitcoin, Bhutan-linked wallets also recorded several small Ethereum (ETH) transactions during the same period.

Separately, $1.5 million in USDT moved between exchange-linked wallets and Bhutan-associated addresses within the last several hours. The flows suggest active treasury operations rather than passive holding.

Bhutan’s Unique Position as a Sovereign Bitcoin Holder Bhutan’s Bitcoin reserves are widely believed to come from state-backed mining operations powered by hydroelectric energy. This sets the country apart from other governments whose holdings typically stem from seizures or enforcement actions.

The latest transfers highlight Bhutan’s continued engagement with crypto markets. They also underscore how sovereign involvement in digital assets is becoming harder for markets to ignore.

Bhutan moves bitcoin to trading firms and exchanges as BTC drops to nearly $70,000Wallet data shows the Royal Government of Bhutan moving bitcoin to trading firms and exchanges for the first time in months, as markets slide and volatility spikes across crypto and metals.Updated Feb 5, 2026, 6:12 a.m. Published Feb 5, 2026, 6:06 a.m.

The Royal Government of Bhutan has begun moving bitcoin BTC$70,853.46 after months of wallet inactivity, shifting funds to trading firms, exchanges and fresh addresses as bitcoin slid below $71,000 and broader markets convulsed.

Onchain data tracked by Arkham shows Bhutan-linked wallets transferring more than 184 BTC, worth roughly $14 million, over the past 24 hours.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW

Some of the bitcoin was sent to new addresses, while other transfers flowed to known counterparties including QCP Capital and a Binance hot wallet, according to Arkham.

These destinations typically associated with trading, liquidity management or potential sales. CoinDesk reached out to QCP Capital via Telegram for comment.

The activity marks Bhutan’s first notable wallet movement in roughly three months and comes at a volatile moment for crypto markets. Bitcoin has fallen more than 7% in 24 hours, while silver plunged as much as 17% and global equities slid amid fears that artificial intelligence spending is undermining traditional software business models.

Bhutan has emerged over the past two years as one of the more unusual sovereign bitcoin holders, quietly building a stash through state-backed mining tied to hydropower.

Unlike corporate treasuries that trumpet accumulation strategies, Bhutan’s holdings have largely been managed out of the spotlight, making changes in wallet behavior closely watched by traders.

The latest transfers do not confirm outright selling. Coins were split across multiple destinations, including new wallets that could indicate internal reshuffling or collateral management rather than immediate liquidation.

Still, sending bitcoin to exchanges and trading firms during a sharp drawdown contrasts with the country’s otherwise long periods of inactivity.

The moves also echo a broader theme emerging in this selloff: large holders treating bitcoin less as a static reserve asset and more as a balance-sheet tool during stress.

Corporate treasuries, miners and now sovereign-linked entities are adjusting positions as liquidity tightens and price swings accelerate.

US-based spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) holders are showing relatively strong conviction despite a four-month Bitcoin downtrend, according to ETF analyst James Seyffart.

“The ETFs are still hanging in there pretty good,” Seyffart said in an X post on Wednesday.

While Seyffart said that Bitcoin (BTC) ETF holders are facing their “biggest losses” since the US products launched in January 2024 — at a paper loss of around 42% with Bitcoin below $73,000 — he argues the recent outflows pale in comparison to the inflows during the market’s peak. 

Bitcoin ETF holders are “underwater and collectively holding”Before the October downturn, spot Bitcoin ETF net inflows were around $62.11 billion. They’ve now fallen to about $55 billion, according to preliminary data from Farside.

“Not too shabby,” Seyffart said. 

Source: James SeyffartMeanwhile, investment researcher Jim Bianco said in an X post on Wednesday that the average spot Bitcoin ETF holder is 24% “underwater and collectively holding.”

Bitcoin holders often look to the performance and flows of spot Bitcoin ETFs to gauge market sentiment and potential near-term price direction. 

Bitcoiners are being “very short-sighted”Crypto analytics account Rand pointed out in an X post on Tuesday that this is “the first time in history there have been three consecutive months of outflows.”

The extended outflows come as Bitcoin’s spot price has fallen 24.73% over the past 30 days, trading at $70,537 at the time of publication, according to CoinMarketCap.

Some analysts argue that Bitcoin investors are overlooking the bigger picture.

ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said on Jan. 28 that Bitcoiners are being “very short-sighted,” given that Bitcoin's performance since 2022 has been up over 400%, compared with gold at 177% and silver at 350%.

“In other words, bitcoin spanked everything so bad in '23 and '24 (which ppl seem to forget) that those other assets still haven't caught up even after having their greatest year ever and BTC being in a coma,” Balchunas said.

Meanwhile, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju said in an X post on Wednesday that “every Bitcoin analyst is now bearish.”

Magazine: South Korea gets rich from crypto… North Korea gets weapons

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently. Read our Editorial Policy https://cointelegraph.com/editorial-policy

Why Trust CoinGape

CoinGape has covered the cryptocurrency industry since 2017, aiming to provide informative insights to our readers. Our journal analysts bring years of experience in market analysis and blockchain technology to ensure factual accuracy and balanced reporting. By following our Editorial Policy, our writers verify every source, fact-check each story, rely on reputable sources, and attribute quotes and media correctly. We also follow a rigorous Review Methodology when evaluating exchanges and tools. From emerging blockchain projects and coin launches to industry events and technical developments, we cover all facets of the digital asset space with unwavering commitment to timely, relevant information.

The crypto market crash deepens, with Bitcoin falling 7% to $70K lows and erasing all gains since crypto-friendly Donald Trump’s election as the US President. Top altcoins Ethereum (ETH), BNB, XRP, Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Cardano (ADA) tumble 6-10% over the past 24 hours.

Several headwinds, including a hawkish Fed outlook, whale capitulation, and bearish technical and on-chain data, are dragging the Crypto Fear & Greed Index further into extreme fear. Notably, $650 billion in crypto market cap is wiped out in a week, bringing the total plunge to $1.87 trillion since the October 10 market crash.

Gold and silver prices tanked more than 2% and 13% today after investors booked profits as the US dollar strengthened above 97.5 on Thursday.

Crypto Market Crash: Over $800M Liquidations in Bitcoin, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL As whales and institutions continue to liquidate their holdings and open short positions, the crypto market bloodbath has worsened. Coinglass data shows that an additional $800 million in liquidations occurred in the past 24 hours.

Over 165K traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours, with the largest single liquidated order of BTCUSDT worth $11.36 million on Hyperliquid. Over $650 million in long positions and $150 million in short positions were liquidated. The long positions liquidations continue occurring almost every hour during today’s crypto market crash.

ETH, BTC, SOL, XRP, SILVER perpetual, XAG, DOGE, XAU, ZEC, BNB, and ADA were among the most liquidated assets in the past 24 hours. Hyperliquid leads crypto long liquidations of $50 million over the last 24 hours, indicating massive liquidations of leveraged bets.

Crypto Liquidations Per Hour. Source: Coinglass Bitcoin Plunges to $70K amid Bear Market Signals While broader macroeconomic stress, including hawkish Fed and rate cut pause expectations amid Kevin Warsh’s nomination rattle markets, Bitcoin has also plunged to $70K lows.

BTC is crashing again amid the US-Iran geopolitical tensions. BTC options keep pricing elevated downside risk, with massive put volume over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin 25 delta skew is gradually falling and signals further downside risks.

Glassnode data points to bear market concerns as profitability resets, realised losses rise, spot demand stays weak, and leverage unwinds. Also, the 3D-SMA of Net Realized Profit & Loss is now down $317 million/day, a bear market regime last witnessed in December 2022. It warns that “loss realization has regained control, liquidity is fading, and patience is being tested.”

Bitcoin Realized Price. Source: Glassnode Meanwhile, CryptoQuant research shows that on-chain indicators now confirm a bear market. The BTC Bull Score Index fell to zero from a high of 80 in October last year, signaling broad structural weakness.

Institutional demand has reversed, as evidenced by persistent outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs, creating a 56K BTC demand gap. Spot Bitcoin ETFs saw outflows on Wednesday as BlackRock sells $373,800,000 in BTC.

BTC Bull Score Index. Source: CryptoQuant Technical Indicators Predict Further Crypto Market Crash The technical structure also indicates further risks of a crypto market crash. Bitcoin has broken below its 365-day moving average for the first time since 2022. It confirms a risk of Bitcoin dropping to the $70K-$60K range.

Experts including veteran trader Peter Brandt and prominent investor Michael Burry warns Bitcoin price crash to at least to $58K. Burry cautioned that Bitcoin’s sharp fall would severely impact Bitcoin treasury companies, gold, silver, and the broader financial markets.

Also, Bitcoin price crash below $70K could lead to $4 billion in unrealized losses for Strategy (MSTR). MSTR stock closed 3.13% lower at $129.09 on Wednesday.

Popular analyst Michael van de Poppe noted that Bitcoin/S&P is hitting the lowest weekly RSI ever. The last time it happened was during the 2022 bear market and the 2015 bear market. Meanwhile, analyst Ali Martinez revealed that below $77,086, the next key support levels for BTC are $60,176 and $47,824.

Bitcoin/SPX in Weekly Timeframe. Source: Michael van de Poppe

A new crypto-linked political controversy has erupted in Washington after a reported $500 million investment from a UAE royal–connected group in World Liberty Financial, a project tied to the Trump family.

Following this, U.S. Representative Ro Khanna has launched an investigation, raising concerns over possible conflicts of interest and national security risks.

Rep. Ro Khanna Open Investigation In UAE – WLFI Deal On January 16, 2025, a group linked to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE signed a deal to buy a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial. The agreement was finalized just days before Donald Trump officially took charge of the White House.

Rep. Ro Khanna, Select Committee focused on China-related risks, has now demanded full details of this deal.

He sent a formal letter to Zach Witkoff, co-founder of World Liberty Financial (WLF), asking for ownership documents, payment flows, internal messages, and board communications connected to the transaction.

Lawmakers want to understand who approved the deal, how funds moved, and whether any policy decisions followed it.

Khanna believes the timing and size of the deal raise serious questions about transparency and national security.

Concerns Over National Security Risk & Conflict of InterestThe concern is not only about the investment size but also about timing and connections. The foreign investor group is reportedly tied to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a senior security official in the United Arab Emirates. 

Khanna’s letter raises questions about whether this UAE investment could create possible conflicts of interest. Since the Trump family is directly connected to the crypto project, any foreign money flowing into it may affect US government decisions.

Although President Trump has denied knowing about the deal. He told reporters that his sons manage the business and accept investments from different global partners.

JUST IN: 🇺🇸🇦🇪 President Trump says he did not know Abu Dhabi invested $500 million in his World Liberty crypto project.

"I don't know about it. My sons are handling that, I guess they get investments from people." pic.twitter.com/AOBosetnpE

— Bitcoin Black (@Bitcoinblacck) February 2, 2026 AI Chip Exports and Binance Deal Under ScrutinyKhanna linked the crypto deal to sensitive U.S. technology policy. He said that soon after the UAE investment, the U.S. approved exports of advanced AI chips to the UAE, which are usually restricted due to security concerns.

He believes that the investment may have played a role in shifting US policy in favor of the UAE.

Khanna also raised concerns about the USD1 stablecoin from World Liberty Financial, saying it was used in a $2 billion Binance investment by a UAE-linked group. He believes this helped boost USD1’s global use and benefited the Trump-linked firm. 

He even questioned whether these business ties were connected to the later pardon of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao.

Deadline For The Response Khanna has asked World Liberty Financial to provide full documents and records by March 1, 2026. He warned that Congress would closely examine the matter to protect US national security.

While the company and the White House call the deal a normal business transaction, the investigation is likely to keep political and crypto circles on edge in the coming months.

Trust with CoinPedia:CoinPedia has been delivering accurate and timely cryptocurrency and blockchain updates since 2017. All content is created by our expert panel of analysts and journalists, following strict Editorial Guidelines based on E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness). Every article is fact-checked against reputable sources to ensure accuracy, transparency, and reliability. Our review policy guarantees unbiased evaluations when recommending exchanges, platforms, or tools. We strive to provide timely updates about everything crypto & blockchain, right from startups to industry majors.

Investment Disclaimer:All opinions and insights shared represent the author's own views on current market conditions. Please do your own research before making investment decisions. Neither the writer nor the publication assumes responsibility for your financial choices.

Sponsored and Advertisements:Sponsored content and affiliate links may appear on our site. Advertisements are marked clearly, and our editorial content remains entirely independent from our ad partners.

Ethereum remains under heavy pressure, struggling to hold above the $2,300 level as selling dominates across the broader crypto market. After weeks of weakening structure, price action has failed to attract sustained demand, prompting many analysts to warn that further downside may still lie ahead. With risk appetite fading and leverage being unwound, attention is increasingly shifting from short-term rebounds to signals that could define the next phase of the cycle.

A recent report from CryptoQuant highlights a notable development on the network side. The Ethereum Transfer Count (Total), smoothed by a 14-day Simple Moving Average, surged sharply to approximately 1.17 million on January 29, 2026. This abrupt and near-vertical rise in activity stands out against recent trends and has historically coincided with periods of heightened market stress rather than organic growth.

While elevated network activity is often associated with adoption, sharp spikes of this magnitude tend to emerge during moments of extreme positioning—either distribution into strength or forced movement during volatility. In past cycles, similar transfer count surges appeared near major inflection points, often preceding meaningful price corrections.

As Ethereum trades near multi-month lows, this spike raises a critical question for investors: Does the surge in on-chain activity reflect defensive repositioning ahead of another leg down, or is it the final phase of a broader reset? The answer may determine whether ETH stabilizes—or extends its decline.

The report explains that a retrospective look at Ethereum’s transfer count reveals a recurring and cautionary pattern. Spikes of the magnitude seen recently have only appeared at a handful of critical turning points in the network’s history. On January 18, 2018, a sharp surge in transfers marked the cycle peak, immediately followed by the start of a prolonged bear market. A similar event occurred on May 19, 2021, when a sudden jump in network activity coincided with a major market crash and a deep price correction.

Ethereum Transfer Count | Source: CryptoQuant From an on-chain perspective, this context matters. While analysts often associate rising network activity with growing adoption, a parabolic surge in transfer counts near price peaks typically signals an overheated market. These spikes tend to occur during moments of extreme stress or euphoria, when large volumes of assets are moving simultaneously.

In practice, this can reflect distribution, as long-term holders or institutional participants move funds toward exchanges to realize profits or peak volatility, where trading activity reaches a climax before momentum reverses.

The current setup closely resembles those earlier episodes. Although the broader macro environment has changed since 2018 and 2021, the behavior of network participants appears strikingly similar. If historical patterns hold, Ethereum may be entering a high-risk zone where the probability of further downside increases. Consequently, traders and investors must exercise caution and monitor confirmation signals closely before assuming stability has returned.

Ethereum’s weekly chart shows a market that has decisively shifted from expansion to distribution. The price is now struggling to stabilize after losing the $2,300–$2,400 support zone. The latest breakdown pushed ETH back toward the $2,200 area, a level that previously acted as a pivot during earlier consolidation phases in 2024 and mid-2025. The inability to hold above this zone reinforces the idea that sellers remain in control on higher timeframes.

ETH testing fresh demand | Source: ETHUSDT chart on TradingView From a trend perspective, ETH is trading below its short- and medium-term moving averages. Both of which have rolled over and are beginning to slope downward. This configuration typically reflects a loss of upside momentum and signals that traders sell into rallies rather than accumulate on dips. The long-term moving average near the mid-$2,400s has flattened. This suggests that the market is transitioning from trend to range, with downside risk still present.

Elevated volume accompanied the recent sell-off, signaling conviction behind the move rather than a low-liquidity drift. Historically, similar volume spikes during downswings have preceded either deeper drawdowns or prolonged consolidation phases.

ETH has also printed a sequence of lower highs since the peak above $4,800, confirming a broader bearish market structure. Unless price can reclaim and hold above the $2,400–$2,500 region, the path of least resistance remains sideways to lower. With the market likely probing for demand at lower support levels before any sustainable recovery can form.

Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com 

Kyle Samani, the co-founder of Multicoin Capital, has announced he is leaving the firm.

The departure comes amid a major market crash, which makes it rather notable. 

However, it should be noted that Samani had pushed back against the narrative that he is capitulating.

HOT Stories

A sudden exit After spending nearly a decade building Multicoin with highly aggressive bets on Solana (SOL), Samani described the decision to call it quits as "bittersweet."

"My time at Multicoin has been some of the most meaningful and rewarding of my life," Samani wrote. "That said, I am excited to take some time off and explore new areas of technology."

You Might Also Like

At the same time, he expressed full confidence in the remaining leadership team, including co-founder Tushar Jain and other partners. Samani has described them as "some of the best investors and operators in the world."

Not selling Samani went to great lengths to clarify that he is not giving up on Solana itself despite the sudden exit. 

He has announced he has requested an "in-kind redemption" in shares and warrants of Forward Industries (FWDI) instead of redeeming his stake in Multicoin’s Master Fund for cash. 

Forward is a publicly traded entity where Samani serves as Chairman. It functions as a crypto-native holding company with substantial exposure to the Solana ecosystem.

"To be absolutely crystal clear," Samani stressed, "I am still mega long SOL, mega long crypto, and will continue to be involved in crypto both in my personal capacity, and as Chairman of Forward."

XRP price is testing a critical demand zone near $1.45 as rising on-chain velocity and falling open interest hint at a decisive move ahead.

Summary

XRP trades near $1.44 after sharp weekly losses, with sellers still dictating short-term direction. On-chain velocity has surged to yearly highs, suggesting heavy re-positioning as price weakens. A firm hold above $1.45 could spark a short bounce, while a breakdown risks deeper losses. XRP was trading near $1.44 at press time, down about 10% over the past 24 hours, sliding to its lowest level since November 2024. The token has weakened across all major timeframes, falling 23% over the past week and nearly 40% over the past month.

Price action over the last seven days has remained confined between $1.44 and $1.88, with sellers maintaining control. Even so, market activity has picked up. XRP (XRP) recorded $5.07 billion in trading volume in the past 24 hours, up 25%. This points to heavy participation during the sell-off.

Derivatives data show a more cautious tone. CoinGlass figures indicate futures volume rose 17% to $7.94 billion, while open interest slipped 1.8% to $2.61 billion. This mix suggests that traders reducing leverage while spot activity rises, a setup that can appear near short-term turning points.

XRP velocity spikes as supply shifts hands A Feb. 4 analysis by CryptoQuant contributor CryptoOnchain highlighted a sharp move in XRP Ledger activity. The seven-day SMA of XRP velocity climbed to 0.013 on Feb. 3, matching the highest levels seen since January 2025.

In previous cycles, this level has appeared at key moments. During this instance, the velocity increase coincided with a price decline, suggesting rapid coin movement rather than steady accumulation. Such conditions are often linked to older holdings changing hands or aggressive short-term trading during periods of stress.

According to the analyst, when velocity reaches its upper range while price struggles, it can mark a high-friction phase in the market. Whether this activity marks late-stage selling or the early stages of stabilization depends on how the price reacts around key support.

In a separate note, CryptoOnchain pointed to a sharp drop in XRP open interest on Binance, which has fallen to $405.9 million, the lowest level since November 2024.

A market reset of this size suggests that leverage has been significantly reduced. The probability of more forced sales drops as positions are unwound. This eases the influence of derivatives on short-term price moves.

Under these conditions, if spot demand holds up, any rebound is more likely to develop in a gradual and orderly way.

XRP price technical analysis XRP is testing a clearly defined demand zone at $1.45, which has held during prior drops. The token is trading well below its 20-day moving average, placing the price in a stretched position.

XRP has also slipped below the lower Bollinger Band, which points to shrinking volatility. Instead of sellers running out of steam, the price action suggests heavy selling pressure pushing straight into support.

XRP price daily chart. Credit: crypto.news The relative strength index is in the low-30s, indicating that momentum is weak but getting closer to levels where selling pressure often slows. 

Smaller bodies and longer wicks on recent candles suggest that sellers are meeting more resistance close to the current price. So far, the $1.45 level has not given way on a daily close.

If buyers continue to defend this zone, a short-term bounce toward $1.60–$1.70 becomes possible, driven by oversold conditions and reduced leverage. For the price to stabilize further, XRP would need to reclaim $1.80 and hold it.

Failure to hold $1.45 would change the picture quickly. A clean break below that level could open the door to deeper losses, as visible support becomes thinner beneath current prices.

Ethereum on-chain lending surpasses $28 billion, led by Aave controlling roughly 70% market share.Aave processed $140 million liquidations during weekend crash without downtime or bad debt.Automated DeFi liquidations acted as a crisis shield, preventing broader market contagion.Ethereum’s on-chain lending ecosystem has reached a new milestone, with active loans surpassing $28 billion as of January 2026.

Central to this growth is Aave, the leading Ethereum-based lending protocol, which controls approximately 70% of the network’s active lending market.

Sponsored

Sponsored

Aave’s Automated Liquidations Prevent DeFi Contagion Amid Weekend CrashData on Token Terminal shows that the growth in active loans across Ethereum-based lending platforms achieved a tenfold increase from January 2023 lows.

Active loans across lending platforms on Ethereum. Source: Token Terminal on XThis milestone highlights Ethereum’s continued dominance in DeFi. It gives it a roughly tenfold advantage over competing networks such as Solana and Base.

The surge in lending activity, while a signal of DeFi’s expanding adoption, also raises questions about systemic risk.

In 2022, elevated loan volumes contributed to waves of liquidations that exacerbated broader market downturns. By Q3 2025, crypto lending had reached a record $73.6 billion. This represents a 38.5% quarter-over-quarter increase, and nearly tripling since the start of 2024.

According to Kobeissi analysts, this was driven largely by DeFi protocols benefiting from Bitcoin ETF approvals and a sector-wide recovery.

Crypto market leverage is through the roof:

Total crypto loans jumped +35% in Q3 2025, to a record $73.6 billion.

This surpasses the previous record of $69.4 billion set in Q4 2021.

Crypto lending has nearly TRIPLED since Q1 2024, when the sector began to recover following… pic.twitter.com/qk20W9vik7

— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) November 7, 2025 While leverage in DeFi remains far below that in TradFi sectors—representing just 2.1% of the $3.5 trillion digital asset market, compared to 17% in real estate—its concentration in algorithmic lending platforms like Aave amplifies the potential for rapid, automated liquidations.

Sponsored

Sponsored

Weekend Crash Highlights Aave’s Role as DeFi’s Stabilizer Amid $2.2 Billion LiquidationsThe late January 2026 weekend market crash tested this system under extreme stress. Bitcoin dropped sharply from around $84,000 to below $76,000 amid:

Thin weekend liquidity Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, and Pressure from the US government funding uncertainties. Over $2.2 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated across centralized and decentralized exchanges in just 24 hours.

Aave’s infrastructure played a crucial stabilizing role. The protocol processed over $140 million in automated collateral liquidations across multiple networks on January 31, 2026.

Yesterday was another significant stress test to Aave's +$50B onchain lending markets.

Aave Protocol liquidated over $140M collateral across multiple networks without any issues, fully automated demontrating (yet again) the market leader protocol resiliency.

Aave will win.

— Stani.eth (@StaniKulechov) February 1, 2026 Sponsored

Sponsored

Despite high Ethereum gas fees spiking above 400 gwei, which temporarily created “zombie positions” where undercollateralized loans hovered near liquidation thresholds but could not be profitably cleared immediately, Aave handled the surge without downtime or bad debt.

Aave’s performance prevented what could have been a far more severe contagion across DeFi. Had the protocol failed, undercollateralized positions could have accumulated into bad debt. Such an outcome would trigger cascading liquidations and potential panic across the ecosystem.

Other protocols, including Compound, Morpho, and Spark, absorbed smaller liquidation volumes. However, they lacked the scale or automation to fully replace Aave.

Lending Protocols by Ranking. Source: DefiLlamaEven large ETH holders, like Trend Research, who deleveraged by selling hundreds of millions of dollars in ETH to repay Aave loans, relied on the protocol’s efficiency to mitigate further market stress.

Sponsored

Sponsored

The weekend crash highlights both the opportunities and vulnerabilities inherent in Ethereum’s lending ecosystem.

While active loans and leverage are rising, Aave’s resilience signals that DeFi’s infrastructure is maturing.

The protocol’s ability to absorb large-scale liquidations without systemic failures highlights Ethereum-based lending as a stabilizing force in volatile markets. It reinforces its “flight-to-quality” reputation among both institutional and retail participants.

AAVE Price Performance. Source: BeInCryptoDespite this bullish outlook, the AAVE token is down by over 6% in the last 24 hours, and was trading for $119.42 as of this writing.

Disclaimer

In adherence to the Trust Project guidelines, BeInCrypto is committed to unbiased, transparent reporting. This news article aims to provide accurate, timely information. However, readers are advised to verify facts independently and consult with a professional before making any decisions based on this content. Please note that our Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy, and Disclaimers have been updated.

What to Know:

Vitalik Buterin’s $29M ETH transfer has sparked market speculation, highlighting the sensitivity of blue-chip assets to founder activity. Capital is rotating from stagnant legacy coins into high-beta narratives, favoring projects with strong cultural momentum and active user bases. Maxi Doge ($MAXI) is attracting significant inflows, raising over $4.5 million in its presale with confirmed whale purchases totaling $503K. The “leverage king” narrative and gamified trading competitions offer a fresh utility layer on the Ethereum network. The crypto markets woke up to a jolt this week.

On-chain trackers flagged a massive transfer tied to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin: roughly $29M in ETH moving from a known wallet.

Naturally, social media lit up. Historically, when high-profile founders move this much capital, it triggers immediate anxiety about potential sell-offs or donations that could dampen prices in the short term.

Is it a donation? Just wallet hygiene? While the intent remains unclear, the market’s jittery reaction highlights just how fragile sentiment has become around large-cap assets. Ethereum is already battling tough resistance levels; movements from its creator (even routine ones) often act as psychological pivot points for retail investors.

But focusing solely on the ETH transfer misses the real story unfolding beneath the surface. Smart money isn’t leaving the ecosystem. It’s reallocating.

As blue-chips like Ethereum face regulatory headwinds and supply overhangs, capital is aggressively flowing toward high-beta plays promising outsized returns. Investors are increasingly bypassing the slow grind of major altcoins for projects combining viral culture with distinct tokenomics.

That rotation is fueling the surge around Maxi Doge ($MAXI), a new entrant capitalizing on the leverage-trading culture dominating this cycle.

Explore the Maxi Doge presale.

Maxi Doge Brings Gym Culture And Leverage Mechanics To Ethereum While the Ethereum Foundation focuses on scalability and roadmap milestones, Maxi Doge ($MAXI) is grabbing the retail attention that actually drives bull market euphoria.

The project ditches the “cute” aesthetic of typical meme coins for a persona centered on strength, discipline, and the ‘1000x leverage’ mentality. Think of it as a rallying cry for retail traders who lack whale capital but have the conviction to hold through volatility, the market equivalent of ‘never skipping leg day.’

This isn’t just branding; it’s a structural approach to community building. The project runs holder-only trading competitions with leaderboard rewards, incentivizing active participation rather than passive holding. By gamifying the experience, Maxi Doge aligns its success with user activity. Plus, the ‘Maxi Fund’ treasury adds a layer of economic sustainability.

It’s designed to provide liquidity backing and fund partnerships, ensuring the project has the “muscle” to sustain momentum even when market conditions tighten.

The narrative taps into a specific vein of crypto culture: the relentless grind. Where other tokens rely on fleeting trends, this project doubles down on a ‘lift, trade, repeat’ philosophy. It resonates with traders hunting for high-octane opportunities on Ethereum (ERC-20), a culturally punchy alternative to the stagnation plaguing legacy assets.

Get your $MAXI today.

Whale Wallets Accumulate $MAXI As Presale Hits $4.5M That capital shift is quantifiable. While casual observers watch Vitalik’s wallets for sell signals, sophisticated actors are quietly positioning themselves in early-stage setups.

According to the official presale data, Maxi Doge has already raised over $4.5M. That figure suggests significant confidence, potentially from whales, despite the broader market’s choppy conditions.

The on-chain specifics paint an interesting picture: smart money is moving. Etherscan data shows two high-net-worth wallets accumulated over $600K in recent transactions, both at $314K each. Concentration like that in the early stages often signals that capitalized investors anticipate strong post-launch performance, likely eyeing the project’s dynamic staking APY.

Currently priced at $0.0002802, the token offers an entry point contrasting sharply with the saturated valuations of established assets. The staking model allocates 5% of the supply for daily distribution, encouraging long-term lockups to remove supply from circulation.

For investors watching Ethereum’s sluggish price action, the combination of a $4.5 million raise and verified whale inflows makes a compelling case for rotating into this high-leverage narrative.

Buy your $MAXI here.

Disclaimer: The content provided in this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Crypto assets are volatile.

8h25 ▪ 4 min read ▪ by Luc Jose A.

Summarize this article with:

While the crypto market remains without a clear direction, XRP attracts attention. According to analyst XForceGlobal, the token has entered a “washout zone”, an intense correction phase potentially preceding a major reversal. Relying on Elliott wave theory, he suggests a scenario where the current drop precedes a surge up to 30 dollars. As selling pressure intensifies and technical signals blur, this interpretation divides opinion.

In brief XRP is entering a phase known as a “washout zone,” identified by analyst XForceGlobal as a deep correction. According to Elliott Wave Theory, this decline would correspond to a Wave C, often marked by intense market panic. The analyst believes this purge could precede a major rebound, with a long-term target set between $20 and $30. Other experts remain more cautious, highlighting the formation of a “bear pennant” that could trigger another drop toward $1.22. XRP in the “washout zone”: a purge phase In a recent analysis, analyst XForceGlobal estimates that XRP is currently in a critical zone he calls a “washout zone”, while Ripple charts the future.

According to him, “this zone is designed to wash the market of its excesses, eliminating weak positions”. The analysis is based on Elliott wave theory, a framework that breaks down market movements into psychological cycles.

XForceGlobal identifies the current movement as a corrective wave C, following an initial wave A drop and a wave B partial rebound. This scenario suggests that the current selling pressure could precede a major reversal, with a long-term target set between “20 and 30 dollars” for XRP.

To back up his analysis, XForceGlobal highlights several technical elements characteristic of this purge zone :

The emotional nature of wave C, where panic pushes investors to exit at a loss, reinforcing the drop ; The massive activation of stop-losses, contributing to automatic sales at critical support levels ; An ideal correction structure according to the Fibonacci ratio 1.618, often associated with the end of a deep bearish cycle ; The necessity of a market purge before a sustainable recovery, with a concentration of purchases between $1.08 and $1.50, according to his model. The analyst insists that this zone should not be seen as a definitive capitulation, but as a rare technical opportunity for investors capable of anticipating a recovery based on a cyclical reading of the market.

Technical signals and mixed perspectives Beyond Elliott structures, other technical indicators feed the current analysis. According to FX Leaders, XRP has broken the $1.50 threshold, now evolving in a setup that could signal a new down phase toward $1.22.

Analysts mention the formation of a “bear pennant”, a pattern often interpreted as a continuation bearish signal. This contrasts with XForceGlobal’s optimistic projections, revealing the complexity of current dynamics on the token.

Another interesting signal highlighted is the decline of “open interest” on XRP contracts, observed on several platforms. This reduction in exposure could, according to some observers, mark a short-term exhaustion of selling pressure.

Such a configuration is sometimes interpreted as a prelude to a technical rebound, in the absence of massive capital inflows. However, caution remains essential, as crypto market reactions to these situations can vary significantly depending on macroeconomic contexts or regulatory announcements.

The XRP price is going through a turbulent zone that some perceive as a necessary purge before a possible rebound. Between conflicting signals and bold projections, the next market moves will be decisive. Investors and analysts now scrutinize each fluctuation carefully, awaiting confirmation, bullish or not, of this technical scenario.

Maximize your Cointribune experience with our "Read to Earn" program! For every article you read, earn points and access exclusive rewards. Sign up now and start earning benefits.

Join the program

A

A

Lien copié

Luc Jose A.

Diplômé de Sciences Po Toulouse et titulaire d'une certification consultant blockchain délivrée par Alyra, j'ai rejoint l'aventure Cointribune en 2019. Convaincu du potentiel de la blockchain pour transformer de nombreux secteurs de l'économie, j'ai pris l'engagement de sensibiliser et d'informer le grand public sur cet écosystème en constante évolution. Mon objectif est de permettre à chacun de mieux comprendre la blockchain et de saisir les opportunités qu'elle offre. Je m'efforce chaque jour de fournir une analyse objective de l'actualité, de décrypter les tendances du marché, de relayer les dernières innovations technologiques et de mettre en perspective les enjeux économiques et sociétaux de cette révolution en marche.

DISCLAIMER

The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.

What to Know:

Bitcoin’s 2026 outlook targets the $180K-$200K range, contingent on sovereign adoption and holding the $70k support floor. The bullish thesis breaks if $BTC sustains a breakdown below $80K, signaling a potential cycle reset. Bitcoin Hyper is capitalizing on L2 demand with over $31M raised, leveraging SVM integration to bring high-speed smart contracts to the Bitcoin network. Institutional liquidity fragmentation is creating a dual market: slow growth for $BTC spot and high-velocity speculation in infrastructure layers. Bitcoin enters the mid-2025 to 2026 window facing a pivotal structural shift. It’s no longer just fighting for legitimacy, it is battling for utility in a world demanding high-speed execution.

While price action hovers near the $70k psychological barrier, the market dynamics underneath tell a different story: a divergence is forming between store-of-value assets and high-velocity infrastructure layers.

The catalyst for the next leg up? Ideally, a shift from ETF inflows to sovereign adoption and corporate treasury standardization.

However, the recovery narrative for 2026 isn’t just about reclaiming lost ground. It’s about whether $BTC can break the diminishing returns cycle that plagues maturing assets. Analysts are watching the $71K to $75K support band like hawks, as that level has acted as a decisive liquidity floor through all the recent volatility.

That matters because liquidity is beginning to fragment. While institutional capital locks up $BTC for the long haul, retail and ‘smart money’ cohorts are aggressively rotating into ecosystem plays solving Bitcoin’s inherent sluggishness.

Frankly, this creates a dual-track market: a slow, steady grind for $BTC, and an explosive, high-beta environment for infrastructure layers like Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER). These protocols are attracting significant presale capital by promising to modernize the Bitcoin network.

Learn more about Bitcoin Hyper here.

Path to $200K: Why 2026 Could Define the Supercycle Heading into 2026, Bitcoin’s technical outlook hinges on two things: successfully defending the 50-week moving average and realizing the ‘U.S. Strategic Reserve’ thesis. Current market structure suggests that once the $80K sell wall is fully absorbed, price discovery could accelerate rapidly. Why? Lack of historical resistance overhead.

Data from recent trading sessions indicates tightening Bollinger Bands on the weekly timeframe, a classic precursor to a high-volatility breakout. If macro conditions remain favorable, specifically regarding Federal Reserve rate cuts and global liquidity injections, models from firms like Bernstein and Standard Chartered point toward a $180Kto $200K target by mid-2026.

That projection relies on the multiplier effect of corporate adoption. Basically, every $1B  in inflows impacts market cap by a factor of 3x to 5x due to supply illiquidity.

However, traders must weigh three distinct scenarios for the coming 12 months:

The Bull Case ($180k+): Sovereign wealth funds publicly disclose $BTC allocations. This triggers a front-running frenzy pushing RSI into overbought territories for weeks. The Base Case ($120k–$140k): A steady grind higher punctuated by 20% corrections (mostly driven by ETF rebalancing and slow institutional uptake). The Invalidation Scenario (<$85k): A sustained break below $85,000. That would invalidate the bullish structure, suggesting the cycle top is already in. Keep an eye on the volume profile at $80K A high-volume close above that level confirms the bullish thesis. Until then, Bitcoin Hyper is where it’s at.

Buy your $HYPER today.

Bitcoin Hyper Targets High-Velocity Upside as L2 Narrative Heats Up While Bitcoin aims for macro stability, speculative capital is flooding into Layer 2 solutions unlocking the network’s dormant capital. Traders hunting for outsized returns are increasingly hedging $BTC exposure with Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER), a project designed to bring the speed of Solana to the security of Bitcoin.

The market appetite is evident in the hard numbers. According to the official presale page, Bitcoin Hyper has raised a staggering $31.2M, with tokens currently priced at $0.0136751.

That capital inflow suggests strong conviction in the project’s core thesis: integrating the Solana Virtual Machine (SVM) directly with Bitcoin. The goal? Enable sub-second transaction finality and robust smart contract capabilities.

Smart money (often the first to move) is already active. Etherscan data reveals 3 high-net-worth wallets accumulated over $1M with the largest single buy hitting $500K. This whale activity points to strategic positioning ahead of the token generation event (TGE).

By offering a decentralized canonical bridge and high-yield staking immediately after launch, $HYPER addresses the two biggest complaints of the Bitcoin ecosystem: high fees and zero native yield.

However, inherent risks remain. As a presale stage project, $HYPER naturally carries higher volatility risks compared to established assets. Regulatory changes regarding L2s and bridge security are factors potential investors must consider.

Yet, for those betting on a ‘Bitcoin DeFi’ summer in 2026, the SVM-integration narrative offers a compelling high-risk, high-reward alternative to just holding spot BTC.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and presale tokens like Bitcoin Hyper, are volatile and high-risk assets. Always conduct your own independent research before making investment decisions.

Ripple made a big announcement yesterday, while the XRP ETFs are actually in the green - so, what's up with the price move today?

Ripple’s cross-border token has not been spared in the past 24 hours (or the last week or so), and has actually become the poorest performer from the larger-cap alts.

The asset has slumped by over 10% daily as it dumped to $1.42 minutes ago, which became the lowest price tag since late November 2024.

XRPUSD Feb 5. Source: TradingView The chart above demonstrates that XRP has dropped significantly on smaller and larger timeframes. Recall that it had surged to $2.40 just a month ago, when it was violently rejected, and has plummeted by 40% since then.

While last Thursday’s crash could be attributed, at least to some extent, to investors employing the ETFs to gain XRP exposure, as they withdrew $92.92 million in just a day, making it the worst since their inception, the price moves now contrast with the most recent ETF behavior.

Data from SoSoValue shows that investors have actually invested $19.46 million on Tuesday and $4.83 million on Wednesday into the financial vehicles.

Additionally, Ripple made a big announcement yesterday by outlining institutional support for Hyperliquid through its prime brokerage platform.

Consequently, the most probable reasons behind today’s crash don’t seem to be related to ecosystem weakness or fundamental problems. Instead, the growing FUD within the broader crypto market continues to take its toll, with (retail) investors disposing of their positions.

You may also like: XRP Open Interest Hits Lowest Since November 2024: What This Means for Traders XRP ETFs Beat BTC, ETH, and SOL Funds – Yet Ripple’s Price Still Struggles Earn Yield on XRP: Flare Launches New Lending Markets with Morpho Moreover, the liquidation cascades have often been blamed by analysts for the market behavior in crypto, where volatility is often in the double digits.

CryptoWZRD weighed in on XRP’s daily performance, indicating that the asset closed bearish. At the time of their post, the token tested the $1.51 support, which cracked in the following hours and opened the door for another decline.

Previously, analysts identified $1.42 and $1.27 as the only two support levels remaining before XRP heads toward the psychological $1.00 level.

Tags:

BEIJING — Chinese electric car giant BYD reported a nearly two-year low in local sales in January, signaling mounting challenges for the world's largest auto market.

The slump comes amid rising concerns about lackluster domestic demand in China, and overproduction of cars spilling into other countries.

At least six major electric car brands from Xiaomi to Xpeng reported a sharp sales drop in January from December, according to CNBC's analysis. Some companies only report deliveries rather than sales, and don't break down overseas figures.

"We see increasing pressure on China's auto market in 2026, driven by a combination of policy and competitive factors," said Helen Liu, partner at Bain & Company. She said policy changes could prompt consumers to delay their car purchases, while automakers become more cautious about new vehicle launches.

China's economic and business figures for the first two months of the year tend to be volatile as the Lunar New Year holiday, which follows an agrarian calendar, falls on different dates each year.

But this past January also saw a major reduction in government support for electric cars. Starting Jan. 1, China has reinstated a 5% purchase tax, after exempting new energy vehicles from the full 10% vehicle purchase tax for over a decade. New energy vehicles include battery and hybrid-powered cars.

"We know [EV sales will] slow, we just don't know by how much," said Tu Le, founder and managing director at consulting firm Sino Auto Insights. "We'll know much better after the first quarter is over."

watch now

Fierce competitionThe automaker also faces rising competition from local rivals, amid a price war that's pushed automakers to offer more features at lower prices.

Aito, whose cars use smartphone and telecom giant Huawei's operating system, reported more than 40,000 vehicle deliveries in January, up more than 80% from a year ago.

Leapmotor and Nio also saw year-on-year deliveries rise, to 32,059 and 27,182, respectively.

Smartphone company Xiaomi posted a year-on-year increase to over 39,000 deliveries of its electric cars in January, ahead of a planned upgrade to its SU7 sedan in April. But that was down from over 50,000 deliveries in December.

"BYD has had a stellar run at the top and it's impressive how long they've been able to hold off their domestic competitors," Le said, noting it's not just one but several automakers vying for the same market.

"Companies like Geely with its Xingyuan [Galaxy EV] have really taken sales on the low end, where BYD's bread is buttered," he added.

Geely has climbed into second place in China's electric car market behind BYD. In January, Geely sold more than 270,000 cars, including its electric car brands Galaxy and Zeekr, along with exported vehicles — more than 60,000 last month.

The company expects its overall new energy vehicle sales will grow to 2.22 million cars in 2026, up by 32% on year.

BYD, which sold 4.56 million new energy cars last year, has yet to release a full-year domestic sales target. Instead, the company only told reporters late last month it plans to boost its overseas sales by nearly 25% this year to 1.3 million cars.

The automaker's exports also tapered off in January to 100,482 vehicles, down from 133,172 cars in December.

BYD

Despite recent headwinds, Le expects BYD to retain its dominance in both the domestic and international markets, citing planned upgrades to the company's charging, energy storage, and intelligent driving infrastructure.

Xpeng reported just 20,011 car deliveries in January, after a year that saw an average of more than 35,000 cars a month. Li Auto deliveries also fell, to 27,668 cars, last month.

Broader economic impactThe slowdown in sales is industry-wide. New energy vehicle sales, which includes hybrid and battery-powered cars, eked out a 2.6% year-on-year increase in December, in a third-straight month of slowing growth, according to China Passenger Car Association data.

It's a troubling sign for an electric car industry that's been a bright spot in an economy struggling to overcome a years-long decline in real estate, once a driver of about a quarter of gross domestic product.

If, on top of the prolonged property slump, the autos sector worsens further, many in the industry expect Beijing to reinstate some or all of the subsidies," said Cameron Johnson, Shanghai-based senior partner at consulting firm Tidalwave Solutions, citing conversations in the last week with car parts manufacturers. "We'll have to see how Q1 goes."

Weekly analysis and insights from Asia's largest economy in your inbox
Subscribe now

The autos sector contributes to about 30 million jobs in China, or more than one-tenth of urban employment, the head of a China machinery body reportedly said in November.

However, Fitch Ratings Economist Alex Muscatelli said that the economic share of the autos sector is still relatively small compared to real estate. He said that in fixed asset investment, which signals future growth, autos only accounted for 3.7% of the total last year, while real estate made up 23%.

China's top leaders are expected to release policy targets for the year at an annual parliamentary meeting in March.

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

SUMMARY: The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is driving an enormous build-out of data centers, with total investment expected to reach unprecedented levels. While major AI companies dominate headlines, much of the real opportunity may lie in less visible businesses that provide the infrastructure behind the scenes. These “glue” companies supply the materials, networking, and connectivity that allow AI systems to function at scale.

Fiber optics, cables, and server infrastructure are critical as massive volumes of data must move quickly and efficiently, which places firms with long histories in networking and communications as potential benefactors from this demand. This includes Corning Inc, which develops and manufactures specialty glass, ceramics, and optical physics-based products. The company recently announced a multiyear partnership with Meta, to assist in their US data center buildout.

“If you’ve ever seen what a data center looks like, it’s racks and racks of servers and things of that nature,” 24/7 Wall St. Analyst Lee Jackson explains. “Corning makes fiber-optic fiber that’s being used in a lot of AI data centers because when you’re having to put through gigantic amounts of data it has to travel on light and fiber optics – it’s not going through coax like your cable. So I would suspect that Corning is a player in that area.”

TRANSCRIPT: Doug: Lee, there are some hidden winners in the AI business. When you look at what’s happening with the data center build-outs, the forecast is that this year or next, the total investment in data center build-outs will be a trillion dollars. So who’s going to make money in that that no one ever hears about?

Lee: Well, I think a couple of the companies I can think of – and one had outstanding earnings today – was Corning (NYSE: GLW). And if you’d like to know what GLW stands for, in the old days Corning was called glassworks. I know this because I had a client that worked at JDS Uniphase and schooled me on this. Corning makes fiber-optic fiber that’s being used in a lot of AI data centers because when you’re having to put through gigantic amounts of data it has to travel on light and fiber optics – it’s not going through coax like your cable. So I would suspect that Corning is a player in that area.

If you’ve ever seen what a data center looks like, it’s racks and racks of servers and things of that nature. One big company I think is involved is Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) – they make infrastructure. They were a big part, if you remember, of the build-out for the internet. Cisco was a big player for broadband and the internet, so I would suspect that. We talked about this recently: Cisco just finally surpassed the high it was at in like 2001, which was $80 or something. They just finally surpassed that after 24 years, which proves that if you hold onto a stock long enough maybe you will get your money back if you’re down.

But yeah, I would take a look at Cisco in that space. Also, and I’m not one hundred percent sure about this, but I think I’ve read enough that Amphenol, which makes cables and cording and things of that nature, is involved. I’m not sure of the exact symbol – it might be APH – but I think Amphenol is one to look at. I’m not saying it’s for sure involved, but from what I’ve read they’re involved in AI infrastructure. And again, the contractors that are pouring all the concrete to build these places – I think there are some industrial companies that will benefit as well.

Doug: If you’re an investor and you feel like the AI companies have had their big run-ups and the utilities have had their big run-ups as suppliers, I would start to look around at all the other companies that are not really visible in the Wall Street Journal or the Financial Times. I’d start to look and say, okay, it’s not just utilities and AI companies – where’s the glue? If I were an investor right now, I’d start to look for the glue. There are glue companies out there and they’re probably undervalued because their name isn’t in the newspaper every day.

Lee: Yeah, and again, I’m sure if you went to ChatGPT or Claude or any of them and just asked who are the companies providing infrastructure pieces to AI and data center build-outs, you could probably get a list of five or six right away.

Doug: Use AI to find investments in non-AI companies that are making money off AI.

Lee: Exactly, thank you. You put it in a nutshell. I don’t think we need to say anymore.

If You’ve Been Thinking About Retirement, Pay Attention (sponsor) Retirement planning doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. The key is finding expert guidance, and SmartAsset’s simple quiz makes it easier than ever for you to connect with a vetted financial advisor. Here’s how:

Answer a Few Simple Questions.  Get Matched with Vetted Advisors  Choose Your  Fit  Why wait? Start building the retirement you’ve always dreamed of. Get started today! (sponsor)  

This news release constitutes a "designated news release" for the purposes of the Company's prospectus supplement dated November 25, 2025 to its short form base shelf prospectus dated October 31, 2025.

San Antonio, Texas--(Newsfile Corp. - February 5, 2026) - HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd. (TSXV: HIVE) (NASDAQ: HIVE) (FSE: YO0) (BVC: HIVECO) (the "Company" or "HIVE"), a diversified global leader in renewable-powered blockchain and AI infrastructure, today announced exceptional Bitcoin production results for January 2026, highlighted by 290% year-over-year hashrate growth, highly competitive fleet efficiency, and consistent performance across its Tier-1 and Tier-3 data centers worldwide (all amounts in US dollars, unless otherwise indicated).

Built for Scale and Resilience

Since its founding in 2017, HIVE has built one of the most geographically diversified digital infrastructure platforms in the public Bitcoin mining sector. Operating across nine time zones, three continents, and five languages, the Company's teams in Canada, Sweden, and Paraguay coordinate around the clock to optimize uptime, energy efficiency, and production.

This distributed operating model enabled HIVE to maintain steady performance through January's severe northern hemisphere cold fronts, while portions of the global mining network experienced curtailments. The Company continues to demonstrate consistent execution across 4-year Bitcoin halving cycles, bear markets, unwinding of Japanese carry trade that ignites selling in global capital markets, extreme cold weather events, and energy volatility.

With HIVE's geographically decentralized operating model—spanning the northern and southern hemisphere—Company is pleased to note the high uptime, operational resilience, and production consistency in Paraguay, the flagship southern hemisphere operations for HIVE.

January 2026 Production Highlights

Bitcoin Produced: 297 BTC

+191% year-over-year (102 BTC in January 2025), while Bitcoin mining difficulty increased 30% year-over-year for the month of January

Average Daily Production: 9.6 BTC/day

Hashrate: Averaged 22.2 Exahash per Second ("EH/s"), peaking at 23.7 EH/s

+290% year-over-year (5.7 EH/s in January 2025)

Fleet Efficiency: 17.5 Joules per Terahash ("J/TH")

BTC per EH/s: 13.4 BTC

Global Bitcoin Network Share: Sustained above 2% of worldwide Bitcoin hashrate

Strategic Execution and Responsible Growth

HIVE realized approximately $7.4 million in value through the cashless exercises of 480 BTC tied to its 2025 Bitcoin pledge, at an average value of approximately $102,000, including exercises done at $110,000 per Bitcoin; these cashless exercises have preserved treasury flexibility. Remaining pledge redemption timelines were extended, while securing Bitcoin downside protection, reflecting the Company's disciplined and risk-aware capital management strategy.

The Company has no cash calls required to buy back Bitcoin under the pledge. Rather, the pledge provides Bitcoin downside protection, with potential upside realized through cashless exercise when Bitcoin is above the pledge strike price. Certain proceeds of the cashless exercises have been applied towards the purchase of 2,667 Bitmain S21 XP ASIC miners.

These new air-cooled Bitmain S21 XP ASIC miners have been received in Paraguay and are being installed this week at Yguazú, upgrading and replacing legacy Buzzminer ASICs. Going forward, this is expected to increase HIVE's installed global hashrate to 25.5 EH/s and improve its global average fleet efficiency to 17 J/TH. These upgrades enhance operational efficiency, lower the cost per hash, and therefore improve operating margins.

HIVE's total current operational capacity is 440 megawatts ("MW") of renewable-powered energy. Additionally, HIVE has another 100 MW of renewable contracted energy scheduled for deployment in calendar Q3 2026. As a result, HIVE will have a total portfolio of 540 MW of green energy. Although the Company previously disclosed that the additional 100 MW of capacity would be used to expand its EH/s, this new capacity also enhances the Company's ability to support potential future AI and high-performance computing workloads.

Management Commentary

"Our strength comes from our people and our disciplined execution," said Frank Holmes, Executive Chairman. "Teams operating across nine time zones work with shared purpose and precision, allowing us to scale efficiently and remain profitable through every market cycle. With 290% year-over-year growth and more than 2% of the global hashrate, HIVE continues to benefit from economies of scale while maintaining the flexibility to navigate volatility while growing our business."

Aydin Kilic, President & CEO, added: "Our operational performance reflects years of focused investment in renewable energy, high-efficiency hardware, and a decentralized global team. January's results validate our strategy and provide a strong foundation as we expand further into AI and high-performance computing infrastructure."

About HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd.

Founded in 2017, HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd. is the first publicly listed company to mine digital assets powered by green energy. Today, HIVE builds and operates next-generation Tier-1 and Tier-3 data centers across Canada, Sweden, and Paraguay, serving both Bitcoin and high-performance computing clients. HIVE's twin-turbo engine infrastructure-driven by Bitcoin mining and GPU-accelerated AI computing-delivers scalable, environmentally responsible solutions for the digital economy.

For more information, visit hivedigitaltech.com, or connect with us on:

X: https://x.com/HIVEDigitalTech
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HIVEDigitalTech
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hivedigitaltechnologies/
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/hiveblockchain

On Behalf of HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd.

"Frank Holmes"
Executive Chairman

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Forward-Looking Information

Except for the statements of historical fact, this news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of the applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation and regulations that is based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. "Forward-looking information" in this news release includes but is not limited to: the construction of the Company's site in Yguazú, Paraguay and its potential specifications and performance upon completion, the timing of it becoming operational; hash rash growth projections; business goals and objectives of the Company; the results of operations for January 2026; the acquisition, deployment and optimization of the mining fleet and equipment; the continued viability of its existing Bitcoin mining operations; the prospectivity of the BUZZ HPC operations and the ability of the Company to successfully expand the infrastructure and operate in this sector, the receipt of government consents; and other forward-looking information concerning the intentions, plans and future actions of the parties to the transactions described herein and the terms thereon.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such forward looking information include, but are not limited to: the inability to complete the construction of the Paraguay acquisition on an economic and timely basis and achieve the desired operational performance; the possibility of flaws in the implementation of the Paraguay build-out and energization; the ongoing support and cooperation of local authorities and the Government of Paraguay; the volatility of the digital currency market; the Company's ability to successfully mine digital currency; the Company may not be able to profitably liquidate its current digital currency inventory as required, or at all; a material decline in digital currency prices may have a significant negative impact on the Company's operations; the regulatory environment for cryptocurrency in Canada, the United States and the countries where our mining facilities are located; an inability to apply the Company's data centers to HPC/AI opportunities on a profitable basis; a failure to secure long-term contracts associated with HPC/AI customers on terms which are economic or at all; economic dependence on regulated terms of service and electricity rates; the speculative and competitive nature of the technology sector; dependency on continued growth in blockchain and cryptocurrency usage; lawsuits and other legal proceedings and challenges; government regulations; the global economic climate; dilution; future capital needs and uncertainty of additional financing, including the Company's ability to utilize the Company's ATM Program and the prices at which the Company may sell Common Shares in the ATM Program, as well as capital market conditions in general; risks relating to the strategy of maintaining and increasing Bitcoin holdings and the impact of depreciating Bitcoin prices on working capital; the competitive nature of the industry; currency exchange risks; the need for the Company to manage its planned growth and expansion; the need for continued technology change; the ability to maintain reliable and economical sources of power to run its cryptocurrency mining assets; the impact of energy curtailment or regulatory changes in the energy regimes in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates; protection of proprietary rights; the effect of government regulation and compliance on the Company and the industry; network security risks; the ability of the Company to maintain properly working systems; reliance on key personnel; global economic and financial market deterioration impeding access to capital or increasing the cost of capital; share dilution resulting from the ATM Program and from other equity issuances; the construction and operation of facilities may not occur as currently planned, or at all; expansion may not materialize as currently anticipated, or at all; the digital currency market; the ability to successfully mine digital currency; revenue may not increase as currently anticipated, or at all; it may not be possible to profitably liquidate the current digital currency inventory, or at all; a decline in digital currency prices may have a significant negative impact on operations; an increase in network difficulty may have a significant negative impact on operations; the volatility of digital currency prices; the anticipated growth and sustainability of electricity for the purposes of cryptocurrency mining in the applicable jurisdictions; the inability to maintain reliable and economical sources of power for the Company to operate cryptocurrency mining assets; the risks of an increase in the Company's electricity costs, cost of natural gas, changes in currency exchange rates, energy curtailment or regulatory changes in the energy regimes in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates and the adverse impact on the Company's profitability; the ability to complete current and future financings, any regulations or laws that will prevent the Company from operating its business; historical prices of digital currencies and the ability to mine digital currencies that will be consistent with historical prices; an inability to predict and counteract the effects of pandemics on the business of the Company, including but not limited to the effects of pandemics on the price of digital currencies, capital market conditions, restriction on labour and international travel and supply chains; and, the adoption or expansion of any regulation or law that will prevent the Company from operating its business, or make it more costly to do so; and other related risks as more fully set out in the Company's disclosure documents under the Company's filings at www.sec.gov/EDGAR and www.sedarplus.ca.

The forward-looking information in this news release reflects the Company's current expectations, assumptions, and/or beliefs based on information currently available to the Company. In connection with the forward-looking information contained in this news release, the Company has made assumptions about the Company's objectives, goals or future plans, the timing thereof and related matters. The Company has also assumed that no significant events will occur outside of the Company's normal course of business. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking information are reasonable, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance, and accordingly, undue reliance should not be put on such information due to its inherent uncertainty. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/282813

Source: HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd.

Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.

Contact Us

Item 1 of 2 Argor-Heraeus' CEO Robin Kolvenbach holds one kilo bars of silver and gold at the plant of refiner and bar manufacturer Argor-Heraeus in Mendrisio, Switzerland, July 13, 2022. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

[1/2]Argor-Heraeus' CEO Robin Kolvenbach holds one kilo bars of silver and gold at the plant of refiner and bar manufacturer Argor-Heraeus in Mendrisio, Switzerland, July 13, 2022. REUTERS/Denis... Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Read more

SummarySilver drops nearly 15%; gold and oil give up about 2%Easing U.S.–China, U.S.–Iran tension reduces premiumsSoybeans buck trend on hopes of increased Chinese buyingSINGAPORE, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Prices of commodities, from silver and gold to crude oil and copper, dived on Thursday, as global tensions eased after a telephone call between the leaders of China and the United States, which is also set for talks with Iran this week.

Silver plunged almost 15% while gold, crude oil and copper fell about 2% as investors pared positions on a strengthening U.S. dollar, in which all commodities are priced.

The Reuters Inside Track newsletter is your essential guide to the biggest events in global sport. Sign up here.

"We saw extreme volatility in precious metals and other commodities this week, and what we are witnessing today are some aftershocks," said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at broker IG.

"Talks between Iran and the United States appear to be back on track, which has removed some of the geopolitical premium from commodity markets, particularly oil," he added.

"Following the call between Trump and Xi, tensions on the trade front have also eased. Investors are inclined to sell gold at these levels."

The dollar steadied at the start of Asian trade ahead of interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, which are both expected to keep rates on hold later in the day.

The U.S. dollar index of the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies traded near a two-week high. A stronger dollar makes commodities expensive for buyers who hold other currencies.

Prices fell on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump nominated Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair, sparking risk-asset selling. A hawkish U.S. central bank outlook boosts the dollar and raises opportunity costs for gold and silver, reducing their appeal.

VOLATILE COMMODITIESSpot gold retreated from a near one-week high earlier in the session, and spot silver plummeted. Last week, gold climbed to a record high of $5,594.82 an ounce and silver to an all-time high of $121.64.

"Sentiment (has) turned soggy across most asset classes, with losses feeding into one another and creating a self-reinforcing feedback loop amid thin market liquidity," said Christopher Wong, a strategist at OCBC.

Such expectations were reflected in precious metals, cryptocurrencies and regional equities, he added.

Oil prices , fell about 2% after the U.S. and Iran agreed to hold talks in Oman on Friday, allaying fears that a military conflict could disrupt supply from the key Middle East producing region.

Copper faced additional pressure from worries over demand and rising stocks in warehouses registered with the London Metal Exchange.

The metal widely used in construction had previously rebounded from a two-session slump, supported by China's plan to expand its copper strategic reserves.

Soybeans bucked the trend, climbing to a two-month high, boosted by Trump's comment that China is considering buying cargoes from the United States.

Iron ore also fell 2%, weighed down by high inventories .

Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Additional reporting by Ishaan Arora in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

SummaryCompaniesBNP Paribas beats Q4 expectations with record net incomePlans cost cuts to achieve 2028 profitability targetsBank faces U.S. litigation concerns over Sudan casePARIS, Feb 5 (Reuters) - BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), opens new tab nudged up its 2028 profitability target on Thursday and pledged more cost cuts, after reporting a better-than-expected fourth quarter profit despite a mediocre performance at its investment bank.

The euro zone's largest lender by assets will be hoping that growth in its insurance and asset management division and an uptick in retail banking will support the numbers and help revive investor confidence, amid concerns about the impact of ongoing litigation in the United States related to Sudan.

The Week in Breakingviews newsletter offers insights and ideas from Reuters' global financial commentary team. Sign up here.

BNP reported net income of 2.97 billion euros ($3.51 billion) for the three months ending in December, up 28% year-on-year and beating the 2.84 billion euro average estimate of 16 analysts compiled by the company.

The bank is targeting a return on tangible equity (ROTE), a key measure of profitability, of more than 13% by 2028, up from its previous target of 13%, although the new target is lower than at many European rivals. It also aims to lower its cost-to-income ratio to less than 56% versus an earlier target of around 58% by 2028.

The bank expects average annual net income growth of more than 10% over the 2025-2028 period, with cost reduction as a key driver.

It plans "additional measures" in 2026 of about 600 million euros, bringing total recurring cost savings for the 2022-2026 period to 3.5 billion euros, above the 2.9 billion euros initially projected.

TRADING REVENUES DISAPPOINTThe investment banking division saw revenues rise 1% year-on-year to 4.58 billion euros, marking a record quarter. Yet revenue from trading in fixed income, currencies and commodities grew just 0.8%, significantly less than Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, and Wall Street rivals.

By contrast, net interest margin in retail rose 6.3% in France and 17% in Belgium in the fourth quarter.

NEW TARGETSThe new targets offer a glimpse of BNP's next three-year strategic plan, the bank said, to be presented in early 2027. It will include a "comprehensive review of processes," the French lender said, suggesting artificial intelligence tools would be involved.

BNP’s shares have recovered sharply since hitting lows of around 65 euros in early November, rebounding to about 91 euros, a roughly 40% gain.

But the bank's shares have underperformed peers over the longer term, gaining about 110% in the past five years, less than half the wider European sector (.SX7P), opens new tab, as CEO Jean-Laurent Bonnafe struggled to boost profitability.

Meanwhile, BNP continues to face uncertainty related to litigation in the United States.

The bank said it will appeal a New York jury's October ruling that it helped Sudan’s former government commit genocide by providing banking services in breach of U.S. sanctions, and expects to file by Feb. 9.

BNP remains the cheapest among its European peers, trading at around 9.25 times earnings compared with about 13.5 for Banco Santander and more than 11 for Deutsche Bank and UniCredit.

The bank maintained its dividend policy, announcing a cash dividend of 5.16 euros per share for 2025, with the final payment of 2.57 euros to be distributed in May.

($1 = 0.8473 euros)

Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Ingrid Melander

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Mathieu is part of Reuters' finance team, covering French banks and major M&A stories in the country and in Europe. A graduate of Sciences Po university, Mathieu previously covered the Tech beat at Reuters, following stints at Bloomberg News and French business daily Les Echos.