Summary
gm, US President Donald Trump announced an executive order allowing cryptocurrencies in 401(k) retirement accounts serving as a major catalyst for market optimism. This potential access to the $12.5 trillion retirement market boosted Bitcoin above $116,000 and fueled Ethereum's surge toward $4,000, with daily Ethereum transactions approaching all-time highs. Regulatory developments continued as Ripple and the SEC formally ended their years-long legal battle by mutually dismissing their appeals, causing XRP to jump over 10% to around $3. Meanwhile, Nomura's Laser Digital received Dubai's first license to offer regulated OTC crypto options, and South Korea's KakaoBank announced plans to enter the stablecoin market, reflecting growing institutional interest in digital asset infrastructure.

News Headlines
🤝 Ripple to Buy Stablecoin Payments Platform Rail for $200 Million

  • Ripple has announced its acquisition of stablecoin payments platform Rail for $200 million, with the deal expected to close in Q4 2025, enhancing Ripple's digital asset infrastructure.
  • The acquisition will enable Ripple to offer stablecoin on- and off-ramps without requiring customers to hold cryptocurrency, facilitating payments through Ripple USD (RLUSD) and XRP.

đź’° Crypto Salaries Triple in 2024 as Stablecoins Dominate Payrolls

  • The number of crypto professionals receiving salaries in digital assets has tripled in 2024, with 9.6% being paid in stablecoins according to Pantera Capital's global compensation survey.
  • Circle's USDC dominates crypto payrolls at 63%, despite Tether's USDt being the most traded stablecoin by volume, highlighting growing trust in dollar-backed assets for compensation.

🌊 XRP Whales Offload $1.9B Putting Price at Risk of Drop Toward $2

  • XRP whales have offloaded approximately 640 million tokens over the past month, amounting to around $1.91 billion, raising concerns about a potential 30% price drop.
  • Analyst insights indicate that the market remains structurally weak, as consistent inflows from whale wallets would be necessary for a trend reversal.

đź’ą Ethereum Treasuries Better Investment Than ETH ETFs: Standard Chartered

  • Standard Chartered's analyst Geoffrey Kendrick states that investing in Ethereum treasuries offers better value than purchasing Ethereum ETFs, especially as ETH's price rallies.
  • Treasury companies like SharpLink and BitMine have already amassed billions in ETH, with Ethereum treasury companies collectively purchasing 1% of all ETH since June.

đź“Š Ethereum Transactions Near All-Time High Amid Surging Stablecoin Activity

  • Ethereum daily transactions have soared to 1.87 million, nearly reaching the all-time high of 1.96 million set in January 2024, driven by increased stablecoin and Uniswap activity.
  • The passing of the GENIUS Act, providing regulatory framework for stablecoins in the U.S., has boosted market confidence and liquidity from recently approved ETFs in traditional markets.

Market Metrics

Fundraising & VC
1. Bit2Me (Undisclosed, $34.86M) - Spanish cryptocurrency exchange
2. Build on Bitcoin (Strategic, $9.5M) - Hybrid ZK rollup
3. Doppler Finance (Seed, $3M) - DeFi yield protocol on XRP Ledger

Regulatory
🏦 Trump Signs Order Prohibiting Debanking of Crypto Industry

  • President Trump signed an executive order titled "Fair Banking for All Americans" prohibiting the politicized debanking of crypto-related businesses.
  • The order directs federal banking regulators to adopt policies preventing financial institutions from denying services to crypto companies based on political considerations.

🔎 EU Banking Authority Finalizes Strict Capital Rules for Crypto

  • The European Banking Authority has finalized regulations requiring banks to hold significantly more capital against cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
  • Unbacked cryptocurrencies are classified under Group 2b and subject to a 1,250% risk weight, while digital assets tied to traditional financial instruments face a 250% risk weight.

🏛️ Crypto Investor Under Consideration for Federal Reserve Board Seat

  • President Trump is considering several candidates for a vacant Federal Reserve Board seat, including economic adviser Kevin Hassett who disclosed a $1-5 million stake in Coinbase.
  • Another candidate, former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, has previously expressed that blockchain technology could enhance Federal Reserve payment systems.

đź’° Paxos Settles with NYDFS for $48.5 Million Over Binance Partnership

  • Paxos agreed to pay $48.5 million to settle with the New York Department of Financial Services over inadequate anti-money laundering measures related to its partnership with Binance.
  • The settlement includes a $26.5 million fine and a commitment to invest an additional $22 million to enhance Paxos's compliance programs.

⚖️ Australian Regulators Charge Four in Crypto Money Laundering Case

  • The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has charged four men for laundering funds from a fraudulent investment scheme through crypto exchanges.
  • Between January and July 2021, the defendants allegedly moved money from fake bond investments through Australian bank accounts to offshore accounts and converted it to cryptocurrency.

Technical Analysis
Bitcoin - Bitcoin is in a rising trend channel in the short term. This shows that investors over time have bought the currency at higher prices and indicates good development for the currency. The currency is moving within a rectangle formation between support at 113201 and resistance at 118183. A decisive break through one of these levels indicates the new direction for the currency. The currency has support at points 113400 and resistance at points 120800. Volume has previously been low at price tops and high at price bottoms. This weakens the rising trend and could be an early signal of a coming trend break. The currency is overall assessed as technically positive for the short term.

Ethereum - Ethereum has broken through the floor of a rising trend channel in the short term. This indicates a slower rising rate at first, or the start of a more horizontal development. The currency has marginally broken up through resistance at points 3900. An established break predicts a further rise. RSI diverges negatively against the price, which indicates danger of a reaction downwards. The currency is overall assessed as technically positive for the short term.