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#xrp$XRP #DOGE $DOGE $SHIB #Shibalnu
Google's Gemini AI reveals some explosive 2026 price projections for XRP, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu after some careful prompting.
Google’s Gemini AI leverages its parent company’s vast data sets whenever forming conclusions.
It’s somewhat surprising, given months of red candles, that Gemini is pretty bullish XRP, Dogecoin, and Shiba Inu, and thinks all of them will hit towering new all-time highs (ATHs) over the next ten months.
But how realistic are Gemini’s projections?
XRP ($XRP): Gemini AI Prophesies 9x Surge To $13 by Christmas
In a recent update, Ripple reiterated that XRP ($XRP) remains a core pillar of its long-term vision to establish the XRP Ledger as a global, enterprise-ready payments network.
With fast settlement times and minimal transaction costs, the XRP Ledger is in a great position to capitalize on two rapidly expanding areas: stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets.
Currently trading around $1.44, Gemini’s long-term forecasting points to a 2026 high of $13, implying gains of 9x for current HODLers.
Technical indicators asupport this scenario. XRP’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) is a neutral 43 and the price has converged with the 30-day moving average, hinting that the prolonged and painful consolidation phase might be over.

Dogecoin (DOGE): Is the $1 Milestone Finally on the Horizon?
Launched in 2013 as a parody, Dogecoin ($DOGE) is now one of the most recognized digital assets, with a market capitalization of almost $15 billion, nearly half of the $35 billion meme coin sector.
DOGE last peaked at $0.7316 during the retail-fueled crypto rally of 2021.
For much of its history, the Dogecoin community has rallied around the goal of reaching $1. According to Gemini AI, under strong bullish conditions DOGE could comfortably overshoot that target this year, after clearing sticky resistance at $0.20 and $0.40.
With the token currently trading just below $0.10, a move toward $1.50 would net an explosive 15x for current holders.

Shiba Inu (SHIB): Gemini AI Thinks a 1,500% SHIB Rally is Incoming
Shiba Inu ($SHIB), introduced in 2020 as a tongue-in-cheek rival to Dogecoin, has since grown into an ecosystem with a market capitalization of over $3.5 billion.
At its current price near $0.000006, Gemini’s analysis suggests that a decisive breakout above the $0.000025–$0.00003 resistance range could trigger strong upside momentum, potentially pushing SHIB toward $0.0001 before year-end.
That move would equate to gains of roughly 17x, placing it just above SHIB’s October 2021 ATH of $0.00008616.
The project offers much more than just meme coin speculation. Shiba Inu’s Ethereum Layer-2 network, Shibarium, delivers faster transaction speeds, reduced fees, enhanced privacy features, and a more robust environment for developers.

#Tether $tether
PARIS, Feb 27 (Reuters) - El Salvador-based stablecoin issuer Tether said it has frozen about $4.2 billion of its crypto tokens over links to "illicit activity", mostly in the past three years, as authorities around the world try to crack down on crypto-related crime.
The world's largest stablecoin company, which has more than $180 billion of its dollar-pegged token in circulation, up from around $70 billion three years ago, is able to remotely freeze its tokens held in users' crypto wallets when asked to do so by law enforcement.
Tether said this week it had helped the U.S. Justice Department freeze nearly $61 million worth of its tokens, called USDT, which were linked to "pig-butchering", a form of fraud in which scammers form a personal relationship with their victims.
That brought its total frozen assets linked to illicit activity to $4.2 billion, of which $3.5 billion has been frozen since 2023, a spokesperson for Tether said in emailed comments late on Thursday.
Tether has also previously said it had blocked wallets linked to human trafficking, and "terrorism and warfare" in Israel and Ukraine. Sanctioned Russian crypto exchange Garantex said last year Tether had blocked funds on its platform.
Authorities around the world have long raised concerns about the role of crypto in illicit finance. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) last year called on countries to take stronger action to combat illicit finance in crypto markets, which are generally less regulated than mainstream financial markets.
Money launderers received at least $82 billion in cryptocurrencies last year, up sharply from just $10 billion in 2020, partly driven by growth among Chinese-speaking groups, blockchain researchers said in January.
Stablecoins are mostly used in crypto trading, and their volumes have surged in recent years.

#tether $tether

Recent secondary market transactions reveal that stablecoin giant Tether may now be valued as high as $375 billion, potentially vaulting its secretive owners into the highest ranks of the world’s richest.
Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, is trading on secondary markets in a range of $350 billion to $375 billion, according to industry sources. Though this is below the $500 billion maximum target the company was seeking for its fundraise first reported by Bloomberg in September, the amount is still large enough to catapult its top executives into the top ranks among world billionaires.
Tether did not respond to Forbes’ request for comment by press time. SoftBank and Ark Invest have previously been mentioned as potential participants in Tether’s fundraise, but a source familiar with the matter told Forbes that SoftBank is not an investor in Tether. ETF manager Ark Invest, founded by Cathie Wood, did not respond to a request for comment.
Earlier reports suggested the El Salvador-based crypto juggernaut was initially seeking up to $20 billion for roughly 3% of the business, but its advisers later floated raising as little as $5 billion after encountering investor hesitation, according to the Financial Times.
For now, based on conversations with crypto investors and executives, Forbes is valuing Tether at roughly $200 billion—still far above the $50 billion estimate assigned to the company one year ago. That valuation would also create a windfall for Cantor Fitzgerald, putting its 5% stake at $10 billion, up from a reported $600 million in 2023.
Last year, CEO Paolo Ardoino said Tether was building its own artificial intelligence platform, alongside new data, energy and education divisions. It has also built sizable positions in commodities and crypto—about $23 billion in gold and $6.4 billion in bitcoin. Separately, Tether’s venture portfolio spans more than 120 companies and is worth over $10 billion, including a recent $200 million investment in internet marketplace Whop.com and a $775 million bet on video platform Rumble in 2024. Ardoino has also claimed his company has a 99% profit margin with a staff of about 300 employees.
But Tether is facing increasing competition in stablecoins. Besides Circle with its popular USDC stablecoin, Stripe and crypto venture firm Paradigm recently unveiled a new blockchain for stablecoin payments called Tempo, with partners that include UBS, Deutsche Bank, OpenAI and Anthropic. Meta, which spent years pursuing its own stablecoin project, Libra, is also plotting a return. CoinDesk reported its plans to support stablecoin-backed payments and implement a new wallet later this year.

#PIPPIN$PIPPIN
TLDR
Influential crypto accounts on X abruptly shifted from promoting Pippin to calling it a scam and "topped out," triggering a sharp intraday drop that accelerated a broader 16–18% decline over 24 hours—all without any token unlocks, protocol changes, or structural catalysts to explain the move.
Pippin's Sharp Drop Follows Social Media Sentiment Flip as Influential Accounts Turn Bearish
Coordinated Bearish Messaging Coincides With Selling Pressure
Pippin's social media landscape shifted dramatically in the hours preceding the price drop. Earlier in the day, large follower accounts had been actively promoting the token's run, highlighting "80x" gains and spinning off derivative projects like "Baby Pippin"—a pattern that typically draws momentum traders and late-stage participants chasing parabolic moves. Within a matter of hours, several of these same high-profile accounts reversed course entirely, explicitly labeling Pippin a "scam coin" and warning followers it had "topped heading to zero."
These bearish warnings on X clustered around 06:00–08:00 UTC, aligning precisely with the period when Pippin's price began accelerating downward. The timing pattern suggests that public accusations from influential traders created immediate selling pressure and drained liquidity, particularly among holders who had entered during the hype phase. For a meme-style token with a large social-driven holder base, this kind of coordinated negative messaging can function as a direct, tradeable catalyst even without any underlying change to the project's fundamentals or on-chain mechanics.
The 24-hour sentiment data shows net neutral readings overall, but that figure masks the sharp intraday reversal—averaging together the earlier bullish promotion and the more recent bearish calls. The rapid shift in tone from key accounts likely contributed to a local air pocket in liquidity, amplifying the downward move beyond what organic profit-taking alone would produce.

Why UNUS SED LEO Barely Moves While Other Tokens Swing Wildly
#LEO $LEO$UNUS#UNUS#SED $SED
UNUS SED LEO's near-flat price action stems from its unique structure as a tightly held exchange utility token with extraordinarily low trading volume, making it fundamentally different from speculative altcoins that chase narrative-driven pumps.
A Token Built for Stability, Not Speculation
UNUS SED LEO operates under a completely different model than most cryptocurrencies. As Bitfinex's native utility token, LEO exists primarily to provide fee discounts and exchange benefits rather than serve as a vehicle for speculative trading. This fundamental difference shapes everything about how it trades.
The token's ownership structure reinforces this stability. A significant portion of LEO's supply sits with iFinex insiders and long-term Bitfinex users who value the utility benefits over short-term price action. Unlike meme coins or emerging Layer-1 protocols that attract waves of momentum traders, LEO's holder base consists largely of strategic positions that rarely change hands. The project's ongoing buyback and burn program, funded by Bitfinex revenues, creates additional structural support. These buybacks tie LEO's value to the exchange's profitability rather than speculative narratives, encouraging gradual appreciation over time instead of volatile swings.
With a market cap around $8.09 billion and a top-15 ranking, LEO commands significant value. Yet it trades on far fewer exchanges than mainstream assets, further concentrating liquidity among existing holders. This combination of concentrated ownership, utility-focused design, and limited listing venues creates a token that structurally resists the kind of rapid repricing common in crypto markets.
The Structural Story Behind the Stillness
LEO's tight 0.03% to 0.29% range over roughly two days reflects its fundamental nature as a large, tightly held exchange token with minimal speculative turnover. The combination of concentrated ownership, utility-focused design, buyback support, and extraordinarily low trading volume creates a token that naturally resists volatility. When speculative attention flows elsewhere and the token consolidates after a modest rise, multi-day periods of near-flat price action become the expected outcome rather than an anomaly requiring explanation.

#mara $mara
What to know:
MARA climbed 16% in pre-market trading after announcing a Starwood partnership to expand into AI data centers.Block surged 20% ahead of the open, announcing it will cut more than 40% of its workforce.CoreWeave dropped about 12% after posting a wider than expected quarterly loss and issuing softer Q1 revenue guidance, with sharply higher capex plans.
Earnings season is wrapping up with a mixed bag of results across crypto miners, AI infrastructure plays and fintech names, including MARA Holdings (MARA), TerraWulf (WULF), CoreWeave (CRWV) and Block (XYZ).
Bitcoin BTC$65,839.89 has remained relatively flat around $67,000 during Asia and European hours, with limited movement spilling over into other crypto related equities.
MARA Holdings jumped 16% to $9.80 after striking a deal with Starwood Capital to convert select bitcoin mining facilities into AI focused data centers. The partners expect to deliver about 1 gigawatt of capacity in the near term, with plans to scale beyond 2.5 gigawatts.
The pivot reflects a broader shift among miners looking to monetize power access as AI compute demand surges, following Bitfarms (BITF) and Cipher Digital (CIFR) amongst others.
TerraWulf is trading 3.5% lower at $17 after its Q4 print, with revenue down due to lower bitcoin production and transitional GAAP optics.
However, executives emphasized that the key story is the ramp in contracted high performance computing revenue. The company has expanded from one site a year ago to five today and expects about 2.9 gigawatts of gross capacity by year end, according to head of digital assets VanEck, Matthew Sigel.
CoreWeave shares are down 12% despite revenue of $1.57 billion, beating expectations of $1.53 billion. The company reported weaker than forecasted Q1 revenue guidance, in addition to an increase in capital expenditure, which raised concerns about profitability and cash burn. EPS came in at -$0.89 versus -$0.68 expected, a 31% miss.
Block is up 20% after announcing it will cut more than 40% of its workforce, reducing headcount to about 6,000. While management pointed to AI driven efficiencies, investors are also weighing longer term margin pressure from stablecoin based payment rails.
The company guided Q1 operating income to $600M versus $574M expected, forecast Q1 gross profit of $2.8B versus $2.72B consensus and raised full year gross profit, according to Sigel.

#AVAX$AVAX
Story Highlights
The live price of the Avalanche is  $ 9.14206074.Price predictions for 2026 range from $400 to $600.Long term outlook suggests gradual growth potential to approach $1200 by 2030.
$AVAX Aave (AAVE) is a decentralized finance protocol built on Ethereum that facilitates permissionless lending and borrowing through smart contracts. After witnessing a strong expansion in the previous market cycle, AAVE entered a prolonged correction phase, with price gradually retracing from its earlier highs. Throughout 2025, AAVE remained in a consolidation structure, reflecting a period of market digestion rather than trend continuation. While short-term momentum has cooled, the broader technical structure suggests that AAVE may be transitioning into a new accumulation phase. 
As volatility contracts and price holds above long-term demand levels, attention is now shifting toward whether 2026 can trigger the next major price discovery cycle.

#GOLD $GOLD
Escalating US-Iran tensions are boosting safe-haven demand, with gold attracting investors while equities and Bitcoin face pressure.
Rising tensions in the Middle East are pushing investors toward safe-haven assets, with gold demand climbing as investors flee equities and crypto markets.
On Wednesday, reports revealed that Iran has sharply increased crude oil exports, with shipments from Kharg Island reaching 20.1 million barrels between Feb. 15 and Friday, about three times January’s level, as a preemptive supply release and a hedge against possible disruption if tensions with the United States escalate.
At the same time, increasingly hawkish US rhetoric regarding Iran’s nuclear program has raised expectations of confrontation, according to Bitunix analysts. “In the event of a direct US–Iran military conflict, gold could rise by roughly 15% within two weeks on safe-haven demand, targeting a range of $5,500-$5,800 per ounce,”
Crypto markets also remain sensitive to the macro forces, the analysts said, noting that safe-haven flows into the US dollar could pressure Bitcoin 
BTC$67,124 prices toward the $64,000-$65,000 zone. On the other hand, if inflation concerns dominate over dollar strength, capital could rotate into alternative hedges and push BTC toward $69,000 liquidity levels, Bitunix analysts said.

#ETH $ETH
$ETH Ethereum’s looked bullish, with onchain data showing that the ETH price may have hit a macro bottom as a key support level holds.Ethereum ETH$2,026 price is up 18% since plunging below the $1,800 mark on Feb. 6, reclaiming the $2,000 support level. Surging price volatility and a low MVRV Z-score value are also signaling a local bottom forming.
Key takeaways:
Ethereum realized volatility on Binance has risen to its highest level since March 2025, hinting at a potential recovery.Ether’s MVRV Z-Score has dropped into the accumulation zone, suggesting that ETH has bottomed. Ether’s multiyear trend line around $1,800-$1,900 holds as support. 
Ethereum’s volatility hits 12-month highs
$ETH Ethereum's volatility has seen a sudden spike, suggesting that the market is entering a period of intense activity and strong repricing, according to data from CryptoQuant.
Volatility is a metric used to determine how much and how quickly Ether’s price fluctuates over a given period. 
The chart below shows that the realized volatility (30-day) indicator on Binance rose sharply to 0.97 on Thursday from 0.37 in mid-January. 
A spike in realized volatility to such high levels indicates that the “market has emerged from a period of relative calm and entered a highly volatile environment,” CryptoQuant analyst Arab Chain said in a Quicktake analysis, adding:
“Past experience has shown that such readings have often preceded a significant upward move in Ethereum’s price.”
The last time the volatility was this high was between late March and early April 2025 as ETH price formed a bottom range between $1,500 and $1,700.
After that, the ETH/USD pair rallied 77% to $2,700 in less than 30 days. A similar spike in Q4/2024 preceded a 74% rally in Ether’s price.
If history repeats itself, this spike in volatility could mark the end of the downtrend, setting up ETH for a multimonth rally once volatility normalizes and conviction builds

#AAVE $AAVE
AAVE price rises 5% to $118 as ACI audit questions $86M funding ahead of $51M Snapshot vote on Aave Labs proposal.
AAVE price has climbed to $118.04, up more than 5% in 24 hours, even as governance tensions intensified within the protocol. The token’s market cap stands near $1.8 billion, while 24-hour trading volume exceeded $380 million, both up 5%. 
The AAVE price increase comes as Aave Chan Initiative founder Marc Zeller published an “audit” of Aave Labs ahead of a proposed $51 million funding vote. Tokenholders are now weighing financial transparency concerns against expansion plans.
ACI Audit Questions $86M in Aave Labs Funding
Marc Zeller shared a governance post reviewing Aave Labs’ historical funding and performance. He wrote that ACI applied a framework asking, “what did you deliver, what did it cost, and what was the return.” The post argued that Aave Labs, which was cleared of charges last year by the SEC,  has received about $86 million in total capitalization.
That figure includes $16.2 million from the 2017 ICO, $32.5 million from venture rounds, and $31.93 million in direct DAO payments. The audit also cited roughly $5.5 million in what it described as unapproved swap fees. Zeller questioned the absence of a public accountability report with wallet disclosures.
The post further pointed to the founding team retaining 23% of the original LEND token supply. Current AAVE holdings were described as undisclosed. These claims surfaced one day before the Snapshot vote on the “Aave Will Win” $51 million proposal.

#SHIB $SHIB
$SHIB Shiba Inu’s projected 700% cycle target and Dogecoin’s rare 1,100-day profit milestone spotlight diverging signals.
Memecoin markets are back in focus. Renewed speculation around Shiba Inu's cycle targets and a structural development for Dogecoin are drawing trader attention, even as both assets retreat under broader Bitcoin-led pressure.
Shiba Inu currently trades at, $0.00000615, up 3.84% in 24 hours. The decline carries no coin-specific catalyst. SHIB is moving in lockstep with Bitcoin weakness, a pattern analysts describe as classic beta-driven selling. Without a fresh ecosystem trigger, price action remains reactive rather than directional.
$SHIB A widely circulated forecast projects a cycle peak for SHIB between $0.00003 and $0.00005 by late 2026. That would represent a gain of roughly 400% to 700% from current levels. The projection has reignited debate among traders over whether such targets are grounded in fundamentals or driven solely by cycle optimism.

#SKR $SKR #ESP $ESP
South Korea’s Upbit and Bithumb list SKR and ESP, driving double-digit gains and surging trading volumes.
South Korea’s leading crypto exchanges moved to broaden their token offerings on February 24, adding new spot markets for Seeker (SKR) and Espresso (ESP) as investor demand accelerated. Upbit confirmed trading support for both assets, while Bithumb also introduced ESP to its platform. Consequently, both tokens posted sharp double-digit gains as liquidity expanded across major Korean markets.
Upbit Adds SKR and ESP Markets
Upbit introduced SKR trading pairs against KRW, BTC, and USDT earlier today. The exchange opened spot trading at 16:00 KST and activated deposits and withdrawals shortly after the notice. Additionally, Upbit listed ESP in the same three markets, with trading beginning at 17:00 KST.
SKR serves as the native token of the Solana Mobile ecosystem. It supports the second-generation Web3 smartphone known as Seeker. Besides enabling ecosystem participation, SKR aims to expand mobile-focused blockchain utility.
Upbit instructed users to verify the Solana network before depositing SKR. The exchange limited transactions to the designated Solana contract address. Hence, traders had to confirm technical details before moving funds.
Bithumb Expands KRW Market With ESP
Bithumb followed with its own ESP listing in the KRW market. The exchange opened deposits and withdrawals within hours of its announcement. Trading also started at 17:00 KST, matching Upbit’s schedule.
Both platforms implemented temporary safeguards to manage volatility. Upbit restricted buy orders for five minutes after trading began. It also blocked sharply discounted sell orders during the same window. Moreover, it allowed only limit orders for roughly two hours.
Bithumb adopted similar controls. The exchange paused aggressive buy activity for five minutes. It also restricted sell orders priced far below or above its reference price. Consequently, both exchanges aimed to reduce sudden price swings during the debut session.
Prices Surge After Listings
Market reaction remained strong throughout the day. SKR traded near $0.02689, marking a 46.75% daily gain. Weekly performance showed a 23.78% rise. Trading volume exceeded $135 million, reflecting heightened demand. Its market capitalization stood above $152 million.
ESP recorded even stronger momentum. The token traded near $0.1676, climbing 52.99% in 24 hours. Over seven days, ESP advanced 183.73%. Volume surpassed $309 million, while its market value approached $87 million.

#SOL$SOL
Key Takeaways:
Solana’s Pacific Backbone upgrades APAC infrastructure for faster, reliable network performance.Low-latency network enhances institutional staking, validation, and trading across Asia.Provides RPC and execution support for exchanges, market makers, professional validators.
$SOL Solana Company has started building high-speed infrastructure across the Asia-Pacific region under a program branded the Pacific Backbone, as reported by Bitcoin.com News. The build is framed around upgrading network performance for users located in major Asian financial and developer hubs.
According to Coinfomania, the Pacific Backbone is a low-latency network intended to improve institutional staking, validation, and trading on Solana. The plan references services such as RPC and execution support that are central to market makers, exchanges, and professional validators operating in the region.
According to The Block, the initial footprint connects four hubs: Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore, and Hong Kong. The roadmap begins immediately, with a performance-focused rollout targeted for the second half of 2026.
Within these hubs, the company’s buildout is expected to support validators, staking, RPC, and execution services while reducing reliance on external providers. The emphasis on local infrastructure is designed to help Asia-based operators lower latency and improve reliability for Solana-dependent workflows.
Institutional investors have emphasized the operational importance of regionally optimized infrastructure. “The reality is, we see an opportunity to improve Solana staking and validation for users across Asia,” said Cosmo Jiang, General Partner at Pantera Capital.
As reported by Moneycheck, Solana Foundation leadership has described Asia as crypto’s core market given the region’s user base and talent pool. That positioning aligns the Pacific Backbone’s geographic coverage with the foundation’s stated long-term focus on scalable infrastructure for broader tokenized finance use cases.
$SOL At the time of this writing, Solana (SOL) traded near $78.36, with sentiment noted as bearish and volatility described as very high. This market context underscores that infrastructure upgrades and asset prices can move on different timelines.
$SOL

#PEPE‏ $PEPE #CRYPTOPRESALE
Pepeto Could Turn a $6,000 Buy Into $300,000 as Backpack Exchange Offers Equity and Smart Money Rotates Into Real Utility
$PEPE Backpack Exchange just announced that stakers of its token can earn actual equity in the company ahead of a potential IPO. When exchanges start giving away ownership to keep users loyal, it tells you one thing. The market is about to get very competitive for attention.
For the best crypto presale, Pepeto is the token to watch. It is building a project that solves the meme coin infrastructure problem that a $45 billion market has ignored. The presale raised over $7,258,000. For those looking for early investor opportunities, the potential to turn $6,000 into $300,000 makes Pepeto the clear choice.
Backpack Exchange offers equity to token stakers
Backpack CEO Armani Ferrante confirmed users can stake the Backpack token for at least a year and exchange those tokens for equity at a fixed ratio representing 20% of the company. Ferrante said many past token launches were built on empty utility promises, a trap he wants to avoid. Equity offers are attractive for patient investors, but presale returns happen faster for those who position early.
The Best Crypto Presale To Buy Now
Pepeto: the best crypto presale for immediate impact
While equity offers reward patience, the best crypto presale for aggressive growth remains Pepeto. Unlike waiting for a distant IPO, Pepeto is live and building, driving organic demand from day one.
Here is the story most people do not know. When PEPE launched in 2023, it exploded to a $7 billion market cap on pure meme energy. Zero products. Zero infrastructure. Just a frog and the internet. One of the original Pepe Coin cofounders watched that happen and asked a simple question: what if the next generation actually built something?
That question became Pepeto. The cofounder took the cultural power of meme coins and combined it with real trading infrastructure. A cross chain swap for meme coin trading. A blockchain bridge between networks. And a zero fee exchange that saves money on every transaction. Three working demos live today at the official Pepeto website. Holders can test every tool right now.

#BTC$BTC #ETH $ETH #XRP $XRP

Story Highlights
Crypto market falls 4.4% to $2.23T as Bitcoin drops near $64.8K, triggering $240M liquidations while ETF outflows signal weaker demand.Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP slide amid macro pressure and high leverage, pushing total crypto market cap toward the key $2T support level.
Global cryptocurrency markets fell sharply on Monday, extending a multi-month downturn that traders say is being driven less by crypto-specific news and more by mounting macroeconomic pressure.
The total digital asset market capitalization dropped roughly 4.4% in 24 hours to about $2.23 trillion, according to market data. The selloff was led by losses in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP, which together account for a large share of overall market value.
Bitcoin Drops Rapidly, Triggers Liquidation Wave
Bitcoin fell nearly 5% on the day to around $64,800, with prices at one point sliding roughly $2,500 in about an hour. The swift move triggered an estimated $240 million in long liquidations, according to derivatives data.
In leveraged markets, when prices fall quickly, traders who borrowed to bet on higher prices are forced to sell to cover their positions.
Over the past 139 days, Bitcoin has declined close to 49%, wiping out more than $1 trillion in market value. Analysts say that unlike prior cycles, the downturn has not produced a sustained relief rally.
At the same time, U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have seen notable outflows in recent sessions, signaling weaker institutional demand. Weekly withdrawals totaling hundreds of millions of dollars have raised questions about whether the strong ETF-driven inflows earlier in the year are losing momentum.
Ethereum Follows as Derivatives Market Unwinds
Ethereum declined nearly 6% to trade around $1,859, underperforming Bitcoin slightly during the latest drop.
Market participants say Ethereum’s weakness shows both its sensitivity to Bitcoin’s direction and elevated leverage across the crypto derivatives complex. Total open interest across major exchanges remains high, suggesting that many positions were vulnerable to sharp moves.
As Bitcoin fell, Ethereum longs were also liquidated, amplifying losses. This pattern has become familiar during periods of heightened volatility, where price moves are magnified by automated liquidations rather than fundamental shifts in network activity.
XRP and Altcoins Face Broader Risk-Off Rotation
XRP fell nearly 6% on the day and more than 9% over the past week, trading near $1.33. This reflects a broader retreat from altcoins as investors rotate toward perceived safety or reduce overall exposure.
In risk-off environments, capital typically exits smaller or more volatile assets first. Even large-cap altcoins such as XRP can experience outsized declines when confidence deteriorates across the sector.

#BTC #STRC $STRC$BTC
$BTC Strategy has become the most-shorted large-cap US stock as hedge funds ramp up bearish bets, according to data from Goldman Sachs.
Crypto bank Anchorage Digital said it holds Strategy’s perpetual preferred security STRC on its balance sheet, adding an institutional backer to Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin treasury company at a time when Wall Street traders are increasingly betting against it.
In a Wednesday post on X, Anchorage co-founder and CEO Nathan McCauley said the purchase shows alignment between two companies built around Bitcoin 
 infrastructure and corporate treasury adoption. “Conviction compounds. Institutions don’t just talk about Bitcoin, they structure around it,” McCauley wrote.
“When the company that operationalizes Bitcoin infrastructure puts capital alongside the company that operationalized the Bitcoin treasury strategy…that’s a signal,” he added. Anchorage did not reveal the size or timing of the position.
According to Strategy’s website, STRC is a Nasdaq-listed perpetual preferred security marketed as a short-duration, high-yield instrument. The shares pay an 11.25% annual dividend distributed monthly in cash. Capital raised through the instrument has historically financed the company’s continued Bitcoin accumulation.

#bitcoin$BTC #ATM
$BTC Bitcoin Depot is moving to require ID for all transactions as regulators have cracked down on crypto ATM operators over scams and money laundering concerns.
The biggest Bitcoin ATM operator in the US has begun phasing in a new requirement for users to provide identification for every transaction at its crypto ATMs amid increasing pressure from regulators and lawmakers for operators to curb illicit activity.
Bitcoin Depot said on Tuesday that it began the rollout earlier in February across the company’s US network ATMs, with the goal of helping to detect suspicious activity in real time and eliminate misuse by bad actors, such as account sharing, identity theft, and account takeover.
“Continuous verification allows us to detect suspicious activity based on customers, locations, or transaction amount before a transaction is approved,” Bitcoin Depot CEO Scott Buchanan said in a statement.
Bitcoin Depot implemented ID requirements in October, but only for all new users to its service. Buchanan said that “by requiring identity verification at every transaction, we are taking an additional step to strengthen security, protect customers, and maintain the integrity of our services.”
The US is the largest hub for Bitcoin BTC$65,864 ATMs, with Coin ATM Radar listing 31,360 machines in the country, accounting for 78% of the worldwide total. Bitcoin Depot is the market leader in the US with 9,019 kiosks.
$BTC