Crypto

Solana’s validator count has dropped 68% since 2023 as rising costs and zero-fee competition push smaller node operators offline. Solana’s validator count has fallen dramatically over the past three years, raising concerns about the blockchain network’s decentralization as the economics of running a node squeezes out smaller operators. The number of Solana validators fell 68% to 795 as of Wednesday, from a peak of 2,560 validator nodes in March 2023, according to Solanacompass data. Validators are responsible for adding new blocks and verifying transactions in proposed blocks, playing a vital role in the operations of the decentralized ledger. Read more

Ripple has pushed deeper into corporate finance with a new treasury platform that aims to let finance teams manage cash and digital assets in one system. The product, called Ripple Treasury, is built on treasury management software Ripple acquired in October 2025 when it bought GTreasury in a $1 billion deal. The new move represents […] The post Ripple’s billion dollar masterstroke forces 13,000 banks to rethink corporate cash while raising tough questions for XRP appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Metaplanet said proceeds will be used for Bitcoin purchases, its Bitcoin income business and partial debt repayment as it executes its capital strategy. Tokyo-listed Bitcoin-focused company Metaplanet approved an overseas capital raise of as much as $137 million, combining new common shares and stock acquisition rights as it looks to expand its Bitcoin holdings and reduce debt.  In a Thursday filing, Metaplanet said it plans to issue 24.5 million common shares at 499 Japanese yen per share, raising about 12.24 billion yen ($78 million) upfront. It also approved the issuance of 159,440 stock acquisition rights, representing up to 15.9 million additional shares, which could raise about $56 million if exercised.  The warrants give investors the option to buy shares later at a fixed price above the current market level, but only over the next year. Both the shares and warrants will be sold privately to overseas investors, subject to routine closing conditions, according to the filing.  Read more

Trump-linked stablecoin USD1 is surging on institutional adoption, while the U.S. President’s official meme coin reels from waning hype.

Regulators gain wider discretion to vet shareholders, finances and controls as South Korea tightens crypto market access. South Korea’s National Assembly has approved an overhaul of the country’s crypto licensing regime, tightening entry requirements for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and expanding scrutiny to include controlling shareholders. On Thursday, lawmakers passed an amendment to the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information, a cornerstone of Korea’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) framework for digital assets. The committee substitute bill was approved at a plenary session and is expected to take effect six months after the law is enacted. The new rules widen background checks for crypto firms applying to operate in South Korea. Regulators will now vet not just company executives but also major shareholders. The list of red flags has expanded beyond financial crimes to include offenses such as drug trafficking, tax evasion, fair-trade violations, serious economic cr...

AIOZ Pin replicates data into multiple, independent copies that are tamper-proof—meaning it will stay accessible for years to come.

During the final week of January, Bitcoin saw renewed volatility, which accelerated as positioning started shifting. The cryptocurrency has traded between $86,000 and $93,000 after retracing from its October 2025 peak near $126,000. While macro, as well as political uncertainty, has undoubtedly driven near-term risk reduction, the same environment has also prompted some of the […]

Crypto exchange Bybit said its new “My Bank” accounts will give users personal IBANs, instant fiat access, multi-currency transfers and crypto trading under their own name. Bybit, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges by trading volume, plans to launch retail banking services on its platform starting in February, the company said Thursday. Bybit unveiled the product, “My Bank powered by Bybit,” during a live online keynote on Thursday. Bybit CEO Ben Zhou said the service will offer users a personal IBAN (international bank account number), allowing them to send and receive funds across banks in multiple currencies, with US dollar transfers supported at launch. Read more

Santiment data suggests XRP whales are accumulating during consolidation, even as price remains below key levels.

Hang Seng plans to offer tokenized gold fund units recorded on public blockchains, though the product remains subject to regulatory approval and will not trade on secondary markets. Hang Seng Investment Management has launched a new physically backed gold exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Hong Kong, with an option for future tokenized access to the asset. The Hang Seng Gold ETF, which began trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Thursday under stock code 3170, is designed to track the LBMA Gold Price AM, the widely used morning benchmark set in London. The fund is structured as a passive ETF and holds physical gold bars that meet London Bullion Market Association good delivery standards, according to product details. Gold held by the ETF is stored in vaults in Hong Kong, with HSBC acting as gold custodian. The structure allows for both in-cash and, in certain cases, in-gold creation and redemption by participating dealers, though retail investors trade units on the secondary market like ordinary shares. Read ...

ETH price charts confirmed a triangle breakdown, shifting the near-term bias lower and putting $2,250 in focus if sellers stay in control. Ether (ETH) is now more than 14% below its local peak near $3,400, underscoring the sellers’ tenacity above $3,000. A bearish technical setup suggests the pressure may extend into February. Key takeaways: ETH fell back below $3,000, confirming a triangle breakdown that targets $2,250. Read more

PI has marked at least three ATLs in the past few days.

The American asset manager has finally entered the stablecoin market and has chosen Ethereum for deployment. 

Abu Dhabi’s Universal Digital has launched USDU, the first US dollar‑backed stablecoin registered by the UAE central bank under its Payment Token Services Regulation. Abu Dhabi-based Universal Digital has launched USDU, the first US dollar‑backed stablecoin to be registered by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) as a Foreign Payment Token under the Payment Token Services Regulation (PTSR), the company said. According to a release shared with Cointelegraph, the registration makes Universal the UAE’s first Foreign Payment Token Issuer and creates a clear, regulated US dollar‑denominated settlement option for digital assets in the UAE. Juha Viitala, a senior executive officer of Universal, told Cointelegraph that the PTSR had allowed a transition period for payment token issuers to become PTSR-compliant and that, among all the USD stablecoins, USDU was the first to obtain such registration. Read more

[PRESS RELEASE – New York, United States, January 28th, 2026] QXMP Labs announced that it has registered approximately $1.1 trillion of certified real-world, in-ground assets on its proprietary Layer-1 blockchain, QELT. The announcement follows the activation of QXMP’s proprietary oracle infrastructure, which is designed to ingest and verify qualified geological and scientific documentation and record […]

Sygnum says its market-neutral BTC Alpha Fund posted 8.9% annualized returns in Q4 and raised more than 750 Bitcoin from professional and institutional investors. Cryptocurrency banking group Sygnum said its market-neutral Bitcoin fund posted an annualized return of 8.9% in the fourth quarter of 2025, highlighting growing institutional demand for yield-focused crypto strategies amid volatile prices. Sygnum on Wednesday announced seed-phase completion of its Starboard Sygnum BTC Alpha Fund, which attracted more than 750 Bitcoin (BTC) from professional and institutional investors in just four months following its October 2025 launch. The amount is worth around $66 million at current prices. Sygnum said the fund reflects a broader shift among institutional investors toward structured Bitcoin products that aim to produce steady returns while maintaining exposure to the asset. Read more

Robinhood is once again blaming the GameStop crisis on infrastructure, but experts point to undercapitalization.

The validator entry queue for the Ethereum network is heavily congested, with 3.6 million ETH lined up to be staked with a forecasted 63-day wait. Ether held on crypto exchanges has declined over the last six months as the price of Ether has held steady, while holders are continuing to participate in staking, according to Santiment. In an X post on Tuesday, Santiment shared data from Sanbase showing that after July saw the highest amount of Ether (ETH) on exchanges with 12.31 million tokens, the amount has steadily declined to 8.15 million. Santiment analysts predict that the amount of Ether on exchanges could continue to decline as price movements remain muted and more ETH is sent for staking. Ether has been drifting between $2,801 and $3,034 in the last seven days, according to CoinGecko. Read more

Cere Network is facing a second lawsuit this month that accuses its co-founder and board of fraud in relation to a public token launch for the platform in 2021. Update (Jan 29, 10:30 a.m. UTC): This article has been updated to correct the name of the plaintiff. The co-founder and board of crypto infrastructure platform Cere Network are facing a $100 million lawsuit that alleges a pump-and-dump scheme tied to the project’s 2021 token launch. In a lawsuit filed in a San Francisco federal court on Tuesday, Vivian Liu, who said she worked for and invested in the company, claimed Cere co-founder Fred Jin, his brother, his wife, and the company’s board stole $41 million from investors. Read more

The ruling marks one of the largest court-imposed penalties yet tied to crypto marketing practices in Australia.