Telegram’s H1 2025 revenue climbed 65% to $870 million, while Toncoin write-downs and $500 million in frozen bonds have added pressure. Update (Jan. 6, 1:20 pm UTC): This article has been updated with a statement from Telegram. Cryptocurrency-friendly messenger Telegram boosted its operating revenue in 2025 as it explores a potential initial public offering (IPO). Telegram’s revenues hit $870 million in the first half of 2025, up 65% from $525 million a year earlier, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing unaudited financial statements. Read more
The investment banking giant’s filings for Bitcoin and Solana ETFs follow an uptick in investor demand for regulated crypto investment vehicles, driven by the new year’s “clean-slate” effect. Update Jan. 6, 12:57 p.m. UTC: This article has been updated to include a paragraph on Morgan Stanley’s prior involvement with cryptocurrency funds. US investment bank Morgan Stanley has filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to launch two cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs), one tied to Bitcoin and the other to Solana, as Wall Street firms push deeper into regulated digital-asset products. The proposed Morgan Stanley Bitcoin (BTC) Trust and the Morgan Stanley Solana (SOL) Trust will function as “passive investment” vehicles that hold and track the performance of the underlying tokens, according to Tuesday’s filings with the SEC. Read more
Polymarket updated its documentation to show taker-only fees on short-term crypto markets, with proceeds redistributed to market makers as liquidity rebates. Prediction market platform Polymarket updated its documentation to show that 15-minute crypto up/down markets now carry taker fees, marking a departure from its long-standing zero-fee trading model. According to the newly updated “Trading Fees” and “Maker Rebates Program” sections of the site’s documentation, the prediction markets platform has enabled taker-only fees on 15-minute crypto markets to fund liquidity incentives for market makers. Fees collected from takers are redistributed daily in USDC (USDC) stablecoin to liquidity providers, rather than retained by the protocol. The change applies only to these short-duration crypto markets, while the vast majority of Polymarket’s markets remain without fees. Read more
BitMEX is rolling out 24/7 Equity Perps that use crypto as collateral for exposure to major US stocks and indexes, as exchanges from Bitget to Kraken race to bring equities onchain. BitMEX is expanding beyond crypto-native markets with the launch of Equity Perps, a new line of perpetual swap contracts that provide 24/7, crypto‑collateralized exposure to major US stocks and indexes like Apple, Tesla, Nvidia, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph. The product mirrors the role perpetual swaps played in reshaping crypto markets with non-expiring, funding‑rate‑based, highly leveraged exposure — now applied to equities that have traditionally been confined to limited market hours. The move comes as onchain access to equities is showing signs of traction. Bitget recently reported that cumulative spot trading volume for tokenized stocks on its platform had surpassed $1 billion, with roughly 95% of that volume generated in December alone, driven in part by surging demand fo...