Author: NBTC

In a move underscoring institutional confidence in digital assets, cryptocurrency mining giant Bitmain (BMNR) executed a significant $109 million Ethereum purchase last week, further solidifying its position as a major force in the blockchain ecosystem. This strategic acquisition, confirmed on January 19, 2025, adds 35,268 ETH to the company’s already substantial treasury. Consequently, this action brings Bitmain’s total Ethereum holdings to a staggering 4.2 million ETH, valued at approximately $12.96 billion. This substantial stake now represents 3.48% of Ethereum’s entire circulating supply, highlighting a profound long-term commitment to the network’s future. Bitmain’s Ethereum Purchase and Portfolio Expansion Bitmain’s latest transaction…

Wall Street placed a $500 million bet on Ripple in November, lifting the company to a $40 billion valuation. The deal locked in protections that gave investors the right to sell shares back at set returns and jump ahead of other owners if Ripple is sold or fails. The buyers in this $500 million deal were Citadel and Fortress Investment, joined by funds tied to Marshall Wace, Brevan Howard, Galaxy Digital, and Pantera Capital. For some backers, the bet was not on software or payment rails but on XRP itself. Two funds in the round calculated that at least 90%…

U.S. senators have filed over 130 amendments ahead of this week’s landmark crypto market structure legislation hearing, according to a document detailing the provisions obtained by CoinDesk. These provisions range from prohibiting stablecoin yields entirely to blocking “public officials from profiting from crypto interests” to modifying how digital asset mixers and tumblers are defined, and they’re being offered by senators from both the Republican and Democrat parties. The Senate Banking Committee is holding a Thursday markup hearing, where lawmakers will debate amendments, vote on whether to adopt any of them and ultimately vote on whether to advance the underlying bill.…

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is calling for an overhaul of decentralized autonomous organizations, or DAOs, which are core to blockchain-based democratization of finance, arguing that most have strayed from their promise to shift financial power from banks to everyday token holders. In a post published on social media, Buterin said that the dominant approach, DAOs governed by token-based voting, has become too easy to manipulate and fails to deliver on the promise of decentralized governance. “The concept of DAOs has migrated to essentially referring to a treasury controlled by token holder voting – a design which “works”, hence why it…

Bitcoin inched higher on Sunday, reclaiming the $90,000 price tag as traders await the Federal Reserve’s last interest-rate decision for the year and this week’s latest jobs data. The world’s largest crypto is up 1.8% on the day to $91,950 and has since recovered from its early December lows near $85,000, according to CoinGecko data. The asset is up 5.3% for the month. Bitcoin has been caught in a narrow trading range following the $19 billion leverage wipeout in early October, amid fears of sticky inflation that could complicate the Fed’s path to future rate cuts. “Shifting rate expectations ripple…

Galaxy Research warned that a draft crypto market-structure bill circulating in the Senate Banking Committee would significantly expand U.S. financial surveillance powers, arguing in a note that new Treasury authorities targeting decentralized finance frontends and transaction freezes could represent the largest such expansion since 2001. The analysis focuses on certain provisions from the draft that would grant the U.S. Treasury Department new escalation tools, including an expansion of “special measure” authority over digital assets and a statutory framework allowing transaction holds without a court order. The draft “includes substantially enhanced financial surveillance authorities to combat illicit finance than the House’s…

Genius Terminal, a crypto trading platform backed by YZi Labs (formerly known as Binance Labs) and advised by Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, is seeing exponential growth ahead of an expected “airdrop.” The relatively under-the-radar platform just saw its highest single-day trading volume to date this Saturday, hitting $787 million, according to Dune analytics data. A large portion of that volume, about $728 million, came from Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible networks. EVM refers to a virtual, decentralized computer that runs smart contracts for apps. The platform has now surpassed $2 billion in weekly volume, according to the data, compared to…

The space agency has begun exploring blockchain technology as a way to protect aviation systems from cyber threats and data tampering, marking an important step towards more secure aircraft communications in the future. NASA recently ran an experiment at its Ames Research Center involving drones to see if spreading data across multiple platforms could keep aircraft-to-ground communications safe from interference. The project is part of NASA’s Air Traffic Management and Safety initiative and has the potential to change how airspace systems function in the years ahead. How the experiment was conducted The experiment used an Alta-X drone flying under normal…

The Federal Reserve’s final FOMC meeting of 2025 is on the horizon, with markets positioning for a possible rate cut that could steer risk sentiment into early 2026. Summary The FOMC meets on Dec. 9–10, with a policy statement and Jerome Powell’s press conference scheduled for Dec. 10. Markets price in an 87% chance of a 25bp rate cut to 3.50%–3.75%, alongside updated economic projections and confirmation of QT’s recent end. Risk assets, including crypto, could see sharp moves depending on whether the Fed maintains a dovish stance or signals caution heading into 2026. Investors and economists will be closely…

Amid growing concerns about the Federal Reserve’s independence, US President Donald Trump continued his harsh criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Speaking to reporters in front of the White House, Trump accused Powell of being “either incompetent or corrupt.” Trump’s remarks came amid growing criticism from both Democrats and Republicans of the unprecedented criminal investigation launched by the US Justice Department against Powell. Responding to a question about whether the investigation undermined public trust in the Fed, Trump accused Powell of exceeding the budget by billions of dollars for renovations to the Fed building in Washington. “He exceeded the…