IoTeX said it is assessing suspicious activity tied to a token safe, coordinating with exchanges to trace funds after analysts linked the incident to a possible private key compromise. Decentralized identity protocol IoTeX has confirmed that it is investigating unusual activity tied to one of its token safes after onchain analysts flagged a possible security incident. In a Saturday post on X, the project said its team was “fully engaged, working around the clock to assess and contain the situation.” IoTeX added that early estimates indicate the potential loss is lower than circulating rumors and that it has coordinated with major exchanges and security partners to trace and freeze funds linked to the attacker. “The situation is under control. We will continue to monitor closely and provide timely updates to the community,” the project said. Read more
ECB president Christine Lagarde is a crypto skeptic, but her likely successors are no more enthusiastic about cryptocurrencies. European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde is stepping down sometime before the French presidential election next year. Under her leadership, the ECB has consulted on the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation that defined the crypto landscape in the European Union. The preeminent European bank also began work on the digital euro — the next iteration of the Eurozone’s currency. But there is still work to be done on crypto policy in Europe. MiCA does not, in its current form, regulate decentralized finance (DeFi), and policymakers at the ECB are still deliberating over the digital euro’s final details. Read more
US spot Bitcoin ETFs logged five straight weeks of outflows, with $315.9 million leaving last week as institutional investors de-risk amid macro uncertainty. US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have posted five consecutive weeks of net outflows, with investors pulling roughly $3.8 billion from the products over the period. During last week, the funds recorded about $315.9 million in net outflows, according to data from SoSoValue. The biggest weekly withdrawal during this 5-week streak occurred in the week ending Jan. 30, when spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs recorded about $1.49 billion in net outflows. The net weekly outflows come as some sessions posted inflows. On Friday, Bitcoin ETFs saw about $88 million in inflows, but they were outweighed by larger redemption days earlier in the week. Notable withdrawals included more than $410 million on Feb. 12, along with additional negative sessions from Feb. 17 through Feb. 19, leaving the weekly total firmly negative. Read more
Bitcoin “retail optimism is fading,” which may be a healthy indicator as sentiment returns to neutral territory, according to Santiment. The overall number of crypto market participants calling for Bitcoin to enter new all-time high territory has tapered off, which crypto sentiment platform Santiment points out is a positive signal. “Calls for Bitcoin to hit $150k to $200k, and even $50k to $100k, are drying up,” Santiment said in a report on Friday. “This reduction in FOMO and 'Lambo' memes is actually a healthy market indicator. It shows that retail optimism is fading,” Santiment added. Read more