Crypto

XRP touched a three-week peak.

The hacker behind the 2016 Bitfinex breach says he was freed early under Donald Trump’s First Step Act, just over a year after receiving a five-year sentence. Ilya Lichtenstein, the hacker behind one of the largest Bitcoin thefts on record, has been released from prison just over a year after receiving a five-year sentence, thanks to a criminal justice reform law signed during former President Donald Trump’s first term. “Thanks to President Trump's First Step Act, I have been released from prison early,” Lichtenstein said in a Friday post on X. “I remain committed to making a positive impact in cybersecurity as soon as I can,” he added. The First Step Act, passed in 2018, expanded eligibility for sentence reductions through earned time credits and other rehabilitation measures. Lichtenstein was sentenced in November 2024 after pleading guilty to a money laundering conspiracy tied to the 2016 hack of Bitfinex, in which nearly 120,000 Bitcoin (BTC) were stolen. Read more

The broader meme coin market is heating up, with CoinGecko's GMCI Meme Index showing a market value of $33.8 billion and a trading volume of $5.9 billion.

The departure of SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw is seen as potentially paving the way for more crypto-friendly policies.

The crypto market may see FOMO enter the market if Bitcoin suddenly creeps toward the $92,000 price level, according to a crypto analyst. Sentiment among crypto market participants on social media has started the year strong, according to a Santiment analyst, who warned that further market upside depends on retail investors staying level-headed. “We need retail to continue to be a bit cautious, a bit pessimistic, a bit impatient,” Santiment analyst Brian Quinlivan said in a video published to YouTube on Saturday. Despite other crypto sentiment indicators showing fear among market participants, Quinlivan said Santiment’s social media data points the other way. Read more

Another double-digit dump or a massive rebound ahead?

The US Genius Act dealt with “structurally simpler” issues than the CLARITY Act, which has yet to be passed into US law, according to a Coinbase executive. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, or CLARITY Act, is moving along the appropriate timeline despite the crypto industry’s growing impatience, according to a Coinbase executive. “I completely understand why this is taking longer,” Coinbase Institutional head of strategy John D’Agostino said during an interview on CNBC on Friday. “It’s the kind of bill that is quite frankly more foundational for the growth of crypto or any real asset class,” he said, emphasizing that it makes sense for the process to take some time. Read more

The crypto market has gained nearly 2% with total capitalization surpassing $3.1 trillion. As Bitcoin and Ethereum rise, attention has turned to PEPENODE, the best new meme coin projected to deliver major returns after its presale success and Ethereum launch in early 2026. The post Best New Meme Coin to 100x in 2026 – January 2 appeared first on Cryptonews.

Solana Price Prediction has strengthened following Anthony Scaramucci’s endorsement of SOL as a leading altcoin for 2026. With market momentum, strong network metrics, and ETF launches, analysts suggest Solana could extend gains toward $1,000 as its fundamentals and trading volumes continue to improve. The post Solana Price Prediction: Wall Street Investor Scaramucci Picks SOL as Top Altcoin for 2026 – $1,000 SOL Incoming? appeared first on Cryptonews.

ETH wrapped up the year with an 11% loss, capping off a turbulent stretch that saw the token fall below $3,000 just weeks after hitting a new all-time high.While prices are showing signs of recovery, current Ethereum price predictions remain divided.Historically, January has been a strong month for ETH.The token has posted gains in 5 […] The post Ethereum Price Prediction: ETH Ends 2025 Messy – Will 2026 Be the Start of a Bull Cycle or a Brutal Reset? appeared first on Cryptonews.

Whales are making big moves to start the year, snapping up over 3 billion XRP tokens in just 24 hours as crypto prices push higher.This surge in accumulation could be a strong signal, raising the odds of a bullish XRP price prediction in the near term.January has often been a favorable month for altcoins.Data from […] The post XRP Price Prediction: Whales Load Up With $3.6B as Chart Flips Bullish – Is This the Bottom Everyone Missed? appeared first on Cryptonews.

XRP, Solana, and PEPE have been viewed as the best crypto prospects heading into 2026. Analysts have cited ETF inflows, network strength, and renewed memecoin momentum, while early investors are tracking Bitcoin Hyper as a possible emerging project in this evolving market cycle. The post Best Crypto to Buy Now 2 January – XRP, PEPE, Solana appeared first on Cryptonews.

Alibaba AI has unveiled its latest crypto forecasts for Bitcoin, Solana, and XRP, projecting potential volatility in early 2026. The model outlines bullish upside targets and bearish downside risks, citing institutional inflows, ETF momentum, and macro trends as key market drivers to watch. The post China’s Alibaba AI Predicts the Price of XRP, Bitcoin and Solana By the End of 2026 appeared first on Cryptonews.

A new law signed by President Berdimuhamedov allows crypto activity, but strict internet controls and payment bans remain firmly in place.

Following a rejected governance vote, Stani Kulechov laid out a plan to expand beyond DeFi lending and reshape how tokenholders capture value. Aave founder and CEO Stani Kulechov has outlined a broader strategic vision for the protocol following a contentious governance vote that rejected a proposal to transfer control of Aave’s brand assets and intellectual property to its decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The failed vote has prompted renewed debate within the Aave community over the protocol’s long-term direction and governance structure, an issue Kulechov addressed directly. In a post published Friday on the Aave governance forum, Kulechov argued that the protocol must evolve beyond its core decentralized finance (DeFi) lending business to pursue opportunities in real-world assets (RWAs), institutional lending and consumer-facing financial products.  Read more

The largest crypto exchange by trading volume announced two moves related to the FLOW token following the project's foundation updating users on a $3.9 million exploit. Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced a change in its policies related to trading and monitoring following a $3.9 million exploit of the Flow blockchain last week. In a Friday announcement, Binance said it would remove nine spot trading pairs from the exchange beginning on Saturday, including one for Flow (FLOW)/Bitcoin (BTC). In a separate notice, the company included FLOW and three other tokens on its monitoring tag list. The tag is featured in tokens exhibiting “notably higher volatility and risks compared to other listed tokens,” the exchange said, noting that tokens with the monitoring tag are at a high risk of no longer meeting listing standards. Read more

Being able to strategically raise capital by having shares ready to issue was one of the secondary reasons Lee gave for the proposal. Tom Lee, chairman of publicly listed Ether treasury company BitMine, urged shareholders to back a proposal to dramatically increase the company’s authorized share count to 50 billion from 50 million, citing the potential need for future stock splits as Ether’s price drives the the company’s valuation. Lee said BitMine’s share price closely tracks the price of Ether (ETH), and that he modeled potential future valuations using the ETH/Bitcoin ratio. According to Lee, ETH could reach $250,000 if Bitcoin (BTC) climbs to $1 million, a scenario that would push BitMine’s share price to levels he said would be inaccessible for most retail investors. BitMine shifted from operating as a Bitcoin mining and holding company to an ETH treasury strategy in 2025, but it still retains some of its Bitcoin operations. Read more

Bitcoin traded in the $80,000s on Dec. 31 just as U.S. inflation cooled and investors priced Federal Reserve rate cuts. The lack of follow-through has left traders leaning less on macro headlines and more on a mix of real yields, money-market plumbing, and spot ETF flows. That shift is keeping price action pinned to defined […] The post Why “good news” hasn’t been moving Bitcoin recently: Macro without the boom appeared first on CryptoSlate.

XRP Price Prediction reflects a 365% surge in Coinbase ETF volume as analysts observe growing USD inflows driving Ripple’s token toward the $2 resistance. Technical charts indicate a possible rally back to the $3.37 region as XRP consolidates above key support following its long-term bullish shift. The post XRP Price Prediction: Coinbase USD–XRP Volume Jumps 365% in Early 2026 – Can ETFs Drive XRP Back to $3? appeared first on Cryptonews.

Strategy has seen its mNAV hover around 1.0, as the stock has slid 66% from July, leaving investors weighing if direct Bitcoin offers cheaper exposure. The firm holds 672,497 BTC and has raised $747.8M via ATM sales, saying cash covers about 21 months of payouts. Bitcoin has traded near $90K lately. The post Michael Saylor’s Strategy Nears “Danger Zone” as mNAV Threatens to Slip Below 1 appeared first on Cryptonews.