Coin360 Weekly Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | January 4 - 10, 2026

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Crypto Weekly Recap

Total crypto market cap: $3.06T

Crypto Fear & Greed Index: 25 (Extreme Fear)

BTC.D: 59.13%

Bitcoin:

• Weekly performance: +1.18%
• U.S. Spot BTC ETFs: -$681.01M
• BTC closed ~$90.8K from sub-$90K zone, after a failed breakout to ~$94.7K (Jan 5) and a long-liquidation drop to ~$89.5K (Jan 8), showing sellers dominated at resistance.
• Flows told the same story: US Spot BTC ETFs went net -$681M (Jan 5–9), with a huge +$697.25M inflow on Jan 5 flipping to consistent outflows, wiping out the positive net inflow recorded in the week ending Jan 2 (+$458.77M).
• ~$449M in liquidations on Jan 7 helped accelerate the retracement after rejection above ~$94K.
• Real geopolitics mattered for risk assets: the United States conducted Operation Absolute Resolve, striking Venezuela and capturing President Maduro early Jan 3; Maduro and his wife were flown to New York to face charges, and interim leadership took over amid national mourning and global condemnation at the UN.
• U.S. continued intercepting sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers, pressuring Venezuela’s currency and hydrocarbons flow, deepening uncertainty in global energy markets and adding another macro layer that can tighten financial conditions.
• U.S. leadership publicly revived ambitions to acquire Greenland, framing it as a strategic Arctic asset post-Venezuela, with Trump saying the U.S. would seek control “whether they like it or not,” and Greenland’s PM rebuffing the idea outright — a flashpoint in NATO alliances and Arctic security.
• The Jan 9 US jobs report showed softer job creation but stable unemployment—enough to support equities, but not weak enough to force rate cuts, keeping real-rate pressure intact. Geopolitical risk pushed gold ~+3.5% while S&P 500 surged to 6,966 during macro data digest.

Ethereum:

• Weekly performance: -0.03%
• U.S. Spot ETH ETFs: -$68.57M
• Ether closed the week sliding from ~$3,145 to ~$3,100 after failing to hold a breakout above $3,300.
• The early-week rally (+5% into Jan 6) aligned with broader risk-on sentiment in equities, coinciding with a wide rally for memecoins and AI tokens.
• That correlation broke midweek, as ETH sold off ~3.9% on Jan 7 despite equities remaining firm, pointing to crypto-specific pressure rather than macro risk-off.
• US Spot ETH ETFs flipped from supportive to punitive, with ~$282.9M inflows on Jan 5–6 followed by ~$351.4M outflows on Jan 7–9.
• Derivatives positioning amplified the downside, as positive funding into the highs left ETH vulnerable to long-side liquidations once spot demand weakened.
• Despite elevated stablecoin liquidity in the system and institutional staking activity that helped increase validator deposits and reduce immediate circulating ETH supply, ETH failed to convert “dry powder” into sustained upside, implying rotation caution rather than capital scarcity.
• Macro backdrop stayed broadly constructive, with Fed commentary leaning data-dependent and recession probabilities still sub-25%, removing macro as the primary sell trigger.
• Key levels crystallized by the tape: ~$3,300–3,310 as reclaim-or-fail resistance, and ~$3,050–3,060 as the demand zone bulls must defend to avoid trend deterioration.

Others:

• U.S. Spot XRP ETFs: +$38.07M
• U.S. Spot SOL ETFs: +$41.08M
• U.S. Spot DOGE ETFs: +$1.94M
• U.S. Spot LINK ETFs: +$3.80M
• Coinbase outlined a 2026 “Everything Exchange” plan to offer 24/7 stocks, prediction markets, and stablecoin rails, as critics flagged Base listing standards and security risks.
• Crypto funds saw $47.2B inflows as institutional capital rotated beyond Bitcoin into alternative digital assets.
• Ledger confirmed limited customer data exposure following a Global-e breach, while stating wallets and on-chain crypto assets were not compromised.
• PwC signaled rising institutional adoption of crypto, with Ripple gaining recognition as core financial infrastructure.
• Telegram targeted $2B in revenue as crypto volatility, sanctions pressure, and a weak 2025 IPO market complicated its outlook.
• Binance launched regulated gold and silver perpetual contracts as precious metals outperformed crypto in the 2025 rally.
• South Korea moved to legalize stablecoins, approve crypto ETFs, and permit Bitcoin seizures following a Supreme Court ruling.
• Rain raised $250M in a Series C at a $1.95B valuation, as stablecoin payments were projected to reach $56T by 2030.
• Tether introduced a satoshi-style Scudo unit for its gold-backed XAUT token and disclosed up to a $50M investment in crypto lender Ledn at a $500M valuation.
• The SEC approved Bitwise’s spot Chainlink ETF for listing on NYSE Arca.
• Wyoming’s FRNT stablecoin went live for public use on Solana and Avalanche.
• Donald Trump said he had no plans to pardon jailed FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, according to the New York Times.
• The CFTC issued a no-action letter to Bitnomial, clearing the path for event-based contracts.
• Pump.fun restructured creator fees to reduce what it described as “dangerous” low-risk trading activity.

Morgan Stanley Unveils Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana Staking ETFs and In-House Crypto Wallet in $2T ETF Boom

Morgan Stanley filed S-1 registrations for spot Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana ETFs, with ETH and SOL featuring staking mechanisms—an uncommon move among traditional asset managers. The bank also plans to launch a proprietary crypto wallet and expand E*TRADE to include direct crypto trading. This follows $2 trillion in total spot ETF trading volume and $1.1 billion in net inflows in the first two days of 2026. The Solana and Ethereum ETFs will earn staking yield, enhancing fund value. 

Grayscale Launches First U.S. Ethereum Staking ETF Payout with $9.4M Distribution

Grayscale paid $9.4 million in Ethereum staking rewards ($0.083178/share) to investors in its Ethereum Staking ETF (ETHE), marking the first-ever U.S. spot crypto ETF to distribute staking income. The payout, covering rewards from October 6 to December 31, 2025, was issued in cash, preserving ETH holdings. Grayscale uses third-party validators to ensure regulatory compliance. This move expands ETFs from price-tracking to yield-generating products, setting a new precedent. Grayscale, managing $31B in crypto assets, now leads competitors in staking-enabled ETFs, operating outside the Investment Company Act of 1940 to enable staking flexibility.

Zcash Devs Resign, ZEC Drops Then Recovers Amid Governance Turmoil

Zcash faced a major governance crisis as the entire Electric Coin Company (ECC) core dev team, including CEO Josh Swihart and Chief Scientist Chelsea Komlo, resigned over board conflicts, calling it “constructive discharge.” ZEC plummeted 17.6% to $382 before rebounding above $428, with trading volume surging to $780M. Developers announced plans for a new wallet, cashZ, and continued development outside ECC. The Zcash Foundation affirmed network stability, despite lowest dev activity since 2021. The event highlights tensions in decentralized governance and raised concerns over future upgrades and market confidence.

World's Largest $15B Bitcoin Seizure Tied to Crypto Scams, Forced Labor, Bank Shutdown

Authorities revealed the seizure of 127,271 BTC (~$15B) linked to Chen Zhi, founder of Prince Group, in the largest crypto bust ever. Chen, extradited from Cambodia to China, allegedly ran a global fraud ring involving crypto scams, forced labor, and money laundering. U.S. prosecutors tied the funds to “pig-butchering” scams defrauding hundreds of thousands globally—including 250+ Americans—with individual losses exceeding $400K. Cambodia responded by liquidating Prince Bank to protect its financial system. Despite U.S. charges, Chen was sent to China amid international legal maneuvering.

Bitmine Stakes $2.95B ETH as Crypto Treasuries Surge Past $14B in Bold Institutional Shift

Bitmine expanded its Ethereum holdings to 4.14 million ETH (~$13B), staking over 908,000 ETH worth $2.95B—3.43% of ETH’s supply—with plans to reach 5% by year-end. It added 32,977 ETH in one week and holds $14.2B in crypto and cash, including 192 BTC and $915M liquid. Chairman Tom Lee targets ETH at $250,000 long-term. SharpLink staked $170M on Linea Layer-2, part of a $200M treasury strategy blending staking and restaking. Meanwhile, Strategy bought 1,287 BTC between Dec 29–31, raising its Bitcoin holdings to 673,783 BTC alongside $2.25B in cash reserves.

BNY Mellon Unleashes Tokenized Deposits for 24/7 Settlements with Citadel, ICE, Ripple Prime

BNY Mellon unveiled tokenized bank deposits on a permissioned blockchain for institutional clients like Citadel, ICE, Ripple Prime, Circle, and Baillie Gifford. These deposits, direct claims on BNY’s balance sheet, enable programmable 24/7 settlements, margin, and collateral operations within regulated infrastructure—unlike public stablecoins. The move signals blockchain's shift from pilots to core financial systems, with $57.8T in custody. It aligns with rising regulatory openness to always-on markets. The initiative mirrors JPMorgan’s and HSBC’s similar advances and positions tokenized deposits as key to modernizing capital markets and unlocking liquidity.

Polymarket Joins Forces with Dow Jones, Launches Daily Housing Prediction Markets, Eyes Financial Mainstream

Polymarket announced an exclusive partnership with Dow Jones to integrate real-time prediction market data into top financial outlets like The Wall Street Journal and MarketWatch. The collaboration aims to enhance financial reporting with live probabilities on elections, economics, and corporate events. Simultaneously, Polymarket launched real estate prediction markets based on daily U.S. housing price indices via Parcl, enabling rapid resolution and transparency. Taker-only fees were also introduced for 15-minute crypto markets to boost liquidity. These moves mark a strategic pivot from niche crypto toward mainstream financial relevance.

Nasdaq and CME Unveil Institutional Crypto Index to Power 2026 ETF Wave

Nasdaq and CME relaunched the Nasdaq-CME Crypto Index to support regulated products like ETFs and structured funds. The index, calculated by CF Benchmarks, tracks a diversified basket of major crypto assets including BTC (70%+), ETH (15%), and others like XRP, SOL, ADA, LINK, and AVAX. It features institutional-grade governance, transparent pricing from vetted venues, and quarterly rebalancing. The move addresses rising institutional demand for regulated, diversified crypto exposure and positions the index as key infrastructure for global financial markets, bridging legacy finance and crypto with oversight, transparency, and consistency.

Ripple Gains UK FCA Approval, XRP ETFs Near $1.4B, and DeFi Expansion via FXRP Boosts Utility

Ripple secured UK FCA approval for a regulated crypto-fiat payment system, bolstering its institutional strategy amid muted XRP price reaction. XRP ETF market saw WisdomTree exit due to stiff competition, while assets across ETFs neared $1.4B, with Canary Capital’s ETF hitting $59M in first-day volume. Ripple's valuation is around $40B post a $500M private share sale, with no IPO planned. XRP’s DeFi role expanded via Flare’s FXRP on Hyperliquid, enabling DeFi trading backed 1:1 by XRP, with 5M FXRP cap and strong early adoption.

JPMorgan Launches JPM Coin on Canton Network to Power 24/7 Regulated Institutional Settlement

JPMorgan announced the phased rollout of JPM Coin (JPMD) on the privacy-focused Canton Network, reinforcing its multi-chain strategy following its 2025 deployment on Coinbase's Base. Unlike stablecoins, JPMD represents direct claims on USD deposits at JPMorgan, targeting 24/7 regulated on-chain settlement for institutions. Canton, a Layer-1 blockchain by Digital Asset, offers permissionless access with configurable privacy, enabling synchronized settlement of tokenized assets. This move aims to modernize legacy payment rails and support institutional workflows. The bank’s Kinexys platform will expand functionality, signaling growing demand for compliant digital cash in tokenized finance.