Author: NBTC

Crypto market maker Wintermute’s Singaporean derivatives trading entity Wintermute Asia has introduced a contract for difference (CFD) linked to the GMCI USA Select Index, enabling traders to swiftly adapt to evolving market narratives, especially concerning the potential establishment of a strategic digital asset reserve. The index tracks the performance of the top crypto projects with a legal entity based in the U.S. based on their circulating supply. Payments-focused cryptocurrency XRP, Solana’s SOL and memecoin DOGE have the highest weight in the index, which also comprises of ADA, AVAX, LINK, UNI, HBAR, NEAR, LTC, and APT. The index is up over…

After Donald Trump introduced his meme coin, the decision sparked a flurry of commentary among cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Anthony Scaramucci, the head of Skybridge Capital, weighed in on the matter, asserting that the “Trump meme coin stuff is bad for the industry.” Trump’s Meme Coin Faces Backlash and Speculation of Collapse This weekend, incoming U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a meme coin, though the project has not been met with universal approval. Numerous cryptocurrency advocates have voiced their disapproval, particularly due to the allocation of approximately 80% of the supply to insiders. Critics have gone so far as to label the…

The US Senate Banking Committee Republicans have officially dropped their lineup of witnesses for the Feb. 5 crypto-focused debanking hearing. The witnesses are Nathan McCauley (CEO of Anchorage Digital), Evan Hafer (founder and executive chairman of Black Rifle Coffee), and Stephen Gannon, an attorney and partner at DWT Law. Their combined testimonies are expected to unpack just how bad the debanking issue is—and whether there’s more to this story than banks just following the rules. The session is set to take place on Capitol Hill, and will dig deep into allegations that financial regulators have been strong-arming banks to cut…

Chainlink’s standard for verifiable data has officially launched on Scroll, a zero-knowledge-proof-powered scaling solution on Ethereum. The decentralized oracle platform announced the integratio on Jan. 29, noting Data Streams were now live on Scroll (SCR) mainnet. Chainlink (LINK) now provides developers on the zkEVM platform access to its low-latency market data. With Chainlink Data Streams live, developers on Scroll can leverage a solution that combines low latency and automated execution to build next-generation decentralized finance applications. These DeFi apps will benefit from features such as faster transaction settlement, lower fees, and advanced blockchain functionality. “Chainlink Data Streams enable Scroll developers…

In a significant develoment for the crypto landscape, BlackRock has launched its iShares Bitcoin ETF on Cboe Canada, offering investors a way to gain exposure to Bitcoin through their brokerage accounts. Cboe Canada Inc. has announced the launch of BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited’s latest exchange-traded fund (ETF), the iShares Bitcoin ETF. The iShares Bitcoin ETF, now trading on Cboe Canada under the symbol IBIT, with U.S. dollar-denominated units trading under IBIT.U, marks a key step in expanding accessible crypto investment products in Canada. The ETF, traded under the symbols IBIT and IBIT.U, aims to track Bitcoin’s price performance, investing…

Ethereum (ETH) shows signs of a potential price surge, fueled by significant whale activity. Despite recent underperformance, whales accumulate ETH during the recent dip, a sign of strong bullish sentiment among major market players. According to a post on X (formerly Twitter) by well-known analyst Ali Martinez, whales scooped up a massive 100,000 ETH during the market dip when investors saw ETH drop to the support at $2,900. As the support level holds strong, market analysts make bullish predictions for the cryptocurrency. Yet another crypto analyst on X, Ted, stated that in the short term, ETH could climb as high…

Interoperability, privacy, and infrastructure still pose hurdles to retail CBDC adoption, a survey by GlobalData reveals. Central bank digital currencies are still a tough sell, even where they’ve officially launched. GlobalData’s latest survey report reveals that for consumers in many countries, CBDCs just don’t offer enough to make the switch from familiar payment methods, as state-backed digital currencies struggle with a lack of user incentives, privacy concerns, and technological challenges. Blandina Szalay, banking and payments analyst at GlobalData, says the “very limited uptake of CBDC in countries where it fully launched — in the Bahamas, Jamaica, the Eastern Caribbean Currency…

Solana’s SOL token erupted this weekend after the release of a meme coin tied to self-proclaimed ‘crypto president’ Donald Trump. According to data by Coingecko, SOL has increased by more than 16% in the past twenty-four hours, even as Ether plunged by 7%. Earlier, Solana’s gains had hit an intraday high of nearly 23%, making it the most profitable day for the token since this year started. Meme coin mania ignites Solana’s rocket Late Friday night, Trump announced on Truth Social that he was launching a meme coin called Official Trump (TRUMP) on the Solana blockchain and that instantly shook…

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has launched a direct attack on Howard Lutnick, President Donald Trump’s nominee for Commerce Secretary, demanding answers about his ties to stablecoin issuer Tether, according to a Jan. 28 report by Bloomberg. Elizabeth, a longtime proud crypto hater, sent a letter to Howard today, questioning how much he and his firm, Cantor Fitzgerald, have invested in the stablecoin issuer. Bloomberg claims to have obtained a copy of the letter, in which Elizabeth also asks Howard to disclose any due diligence Cantor Fitzgerald conducted before partnering with Tether. She specifically wants to know if the firm made…

Abstract, the layer-2 network rolled out this week by Pudgy Penguins, is off to a muted start despite offering a series of incentives to new users. The network notched 711,000 user transactions on the day of release, but that respectable total has been overshadowed by a lack of inflows. Its total value secured (TVS) was standing at just $33 million worth of ether (ETH) and stablecoins, a far cry from the tens of billions of dollars distributed across other hyped layer 2 networks. The platform’s native decentralized exchange, NOXA, has $109K worth of total value locked (TVL), down from $515K…