The post Trump’s New Fed Chair Kevin Warsh Could Cut Rates “Aggressively”, Says Analyst appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

Bitcoin fell to $75,000 over the weekend, down over 40% from its all-time high of roughly $126,000 reached in early October. The sell-off came amid renewed uncertainty around Fed policy and risk sentiment across crypto markets.

In a recent Schwab Network segment, analyst Adam Lynch and host Jenny Horne discussed what’s driving Bitcoin’s decline and why Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed Chair could shift the outlook for crypto investors.

Who Is Kevin Warsh and Why Should You Care?

President Trump nominated Warsh, a former Fed Board of Governors member who served under Ben Bernanke from 2006 to 2011, to replace Jerome Powell after his term ends in May. The pick came as a surprise, as BlackRock’s Rick Rieder had been the early favorite.

Warsh has historically been seen as a hawk, but his recent stance has leaned more dovish. Robin Brooks at the Brookings Institution expects Warsh to cut rates aggressively, projecting around 100 basis points in cuts over his first four meetings.

“He can’t be and he won’t be [hawkish] because his worst nightmare is probably to have Trump on him the way he was on Powell,” Brooks noted, as cited by Lynch.

His confirmation does face one hurdle. Senator Tom Tillis (R) has said he will oppose any nomination until the Fed’s investigation into Jerome Powell is resolved, though most expect this to be cleared by May.

A 40% Bitcoin Drop

Bitcoin started 2026 at around $88,000, briefly hit $95,000, then began its most recent decline in mid-January. It now trades well below its 50-day and 100-day moving averages.

Lynch put the drawdown in perspective. Bitcoin’s volatility runs 3-4x that of equities.

“If you can reasonably expect a 10 to 15% equity market correction in any given year, and you can, a 40% drop in Bitcoin is just as reasonable,” he said.

Is Strategy Drowning?

Strategy disclosed it purchased 855 Bitcoin last week at roughly $88,000, bringing its total holdings to around 713,000 BTC at an average cost of $76,000. With Bitcoin below $75,000, the position is currently in the red.

Canaccord analyst Joseph Vafi cut his price target 61%, from $475 to $185, but maintained a buy rating. He described Bitcoin as being “amid an identity crisis. Still somewhat fitting the profile of a long-term store of value, but increasingly trading like a risk asset in the short term.”

The post XRP Community Day 2026: Grayscale, Solana, Gemini Join Ripple’s Global Event appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao shared Ripple’s XRP Community Day 2026 announcement on X today, drawing attention to what’s shaping up to be a major event for the XRP ecosystem.

The global virtual event is scheduled for February 11-12 and will feature Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, President Monica Long, and a lineup of speakers from some of the biggest names in crypto and traditional finance.

According to Ripple’s blog, the event will bring together “XRP holders, builders, institutions, and Ripple leaders” to discuss the growing utility and adoption of XRP and the broader XRPL ecosystem.

Why the Speaker Lineup Matters

The names on this roster are worth paying attention to.

Grayscale’s Head of Product & Research, Rayhaneh Sharif-Askary, will speak on regulated XRP investment products and the growth of crypto ETFs and ETPs globally. Brad Vopni, Head of Institutional at Gemini, and Bitnomial President Michael Dunn are also part of the event.

Ripple also teased a “surprise guest” for a fireside chat on tokenized finance with Markus Infanger, SVP of RippleX. No details yet on who that might be.

Wrapped XRP Comes to Solana

One session that stands out covers wrapped XRP expanding to other blockchains, starting with Solana. Solana Foundation’s Interim CMO Vibhu Norby and Hex Trust’s CPO Giorgia Pellizzari will discuss what this means for liquidity, access, and real-world use across chains.

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Ripple’s 2026 Game Plan

Monica Long will lay out Ripple’s key priorities for 2026, with XRP at the center of the company’s strategy. Other sessions will cover stablecoins, DeFi on XRPL, ecosystem funding, and the introduction of a new XRPL Foundation Executive Director.

David Schwartz, co-creator of the XRPL, will close out the APAC session with a live community Q&A.

XRP Community Day kicks off next week!@JoelKatz returns with @sentosumosaba to take some of YOUR questions and share his perspective on how XRP use cases have evolved, what matters most for adoption, and where real progress is happening.

Set a reminder and tune in:… pic.twitter.com/UALBmaNwgS

— Ripple (@Ripple) February 4, 2026

How to Join

The event runs across three live X Spaces on Ripple covering EMEA and Americas on February 11, and APAC on February 12.

Attendees can RSVP through Luma for reminders, and recordings will be posted on Ripple’s official channels after the event.

FAQs

The post Vitalik Buterin Warns Ethereum L2 Projects: Stop Copying, Start Innovating appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has taken aim at the current state of Layer 2 projects in a follow-up post that has the crypto community talking. According to Buterin, most L2s are recycling the same tired formula and adding nothing new to Ethereum.

He compared the standard L2 approach to “forking Compound,” calling it “something we’ve done far too much for far too long, because we got comfortable, and which has sapped our imagination and put us in a dead end.”

“We don’t friggin need more copypasta EVM chains, and we definitely don’t need even more L1s,” he added.

Why the Original L2 Vision No Longer Works

Buterin’s frustration didn’t come out of nowhere. In an earlier post, he pointed to two key problems: L2 progress toward Stage 2 security has been much slower than expected, and Ethereum L1 is now scaling on its own, with gas limit increases planned for 2026.

“The original vision of L2s and their role in Ethereum no longer makes sense, and we need a new path,” he said.

With L1 set to handle a lot more blockspace directly, the main reason most L2s exist, scaling, is losing relevance.

What Vitalik Wants Ethereum L2s to Focus On

Instead of more generic EVM chains, Buterin wants L2s building around privacy, app-specific efficiency, ultra-low latency, and emerging sectors like AI, social platforms, and digital identity. These are areas where even a scaled L1 won’t be enough.

From Ethereum’s side, he also pushed for a native rollup precompile, a protocol-level tool that would verify ZK-EVM proofs and give real L2s secure, trustless connections to Ethereum without relying on security councils.

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“Vibes Should Match Substance”

Buterin also had a clear message on L2 branding. If your project barely depends on Ethereum for security, stop calling yourself an Ethereum L2.

“The degree of connection to Ethereum in your public image should reflect the degree of connection to Ethereum that your thing has in reality,” he said.

With Ethereum L1 scaling fast and Buterin publicly reshaping what counts as a legitimate L2, projects still running the 2021 playbook could find themselves without a purpose.

The post Was ZKsync Price Manipulated on Upbit? 15 Wallets Make $18.7M in Hours appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has opened an investigation into ZKsync (ZK) after the token surged nearly 970% in just three hours on Upbit, the country’s largest crypto exchange.

The February 1 spike happened right around a scheduled maintenance window, and regulators suspect coordinated price manipulation.

So, is trouble brewing?

All About the ZKsync Pump

ZKsync was trading at around 33 KRW that morning. By 11:30 AM, just before Upbit’s maintenance began, the price shot up to 350 KRW. By 6:30 PM, when maintenance ended, it had dropped back to the 30 KRW range.

“We are aware that ZKsync experienced a rapid price fluctuation in a short period of time,” a spokesperson for the FSS’s Virtual Asset Investigation Bureau said. “We may quickly transition to a formal investigation after determining the severity of the case.”

Blockchain data showed that 15 previously inactive wallets bought over 4.2 million ZK tokens in the 30 minutes leading up to the maintenance window. Once the price peaked, the same wallets sold, with estimated profits of around $18.7 million.

Upbit’s Volume Spike Stood Out

Upbit recorded a 4,200% spike in ZKsync trading volume on February 1. In comparison, Binance saw a 180% increase and Coinbase logged 150%.

The price on those exchanges moved just 38-42%, while Upbit saw nearly 987%.

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The Legal Stakes Are High

Legal experts say the incident likely falls under the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which came into effect in 2024.

Jin Hyeon-su, managing partner at Decent Law Firm, pointed out that the pattern of “a large number of buy orders being concentrated in a short period of time, followed by a release of the volume afterwards” likely constitutes “price manipulation, collusive trading, and unfair trading.”

Under the law, offenders face over a year in prison and fines up to five times their profits.

Regulators Are Already Moving

This is not an isolated case. A Seoul court sentenced the CEO of a crypto management firm to three years in prison on February 4 for manipulating token prices on Bithumb.

The FSS has also announced plans to use AI-powered tools for real-time crypto market surveillance, a clear sign that South Korea’s crackdown on altcoin manipulation is picking up pace.

FAQs

The post CoinRoutes Co-Founder Alleges “Coordinated” Manipulation Behind October Crypto Crash appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

Dave Weisberger, co-founder of CoinRoutes and the man who built Morgan Stanley’s first program trading system, thinks October’s crypto crash was a coordinated attack. He shared his views on the Thinking Crypto podcast with host Tony Edward.

Weisberger called it “the greatest mass liquidation event in history.” The damage, that has kept the industry talking, was $19 billion wiped out. Bitcoin alone saw $5 billion in liquidations. Many altcoins dropped 20-70% at the bottom.

“Was it manipulation? I damn well think so. I have no proof. But it was just too damn obvious a time for an incredibly profitable attack,” he said.

How Did It Happen?

Weisberger broke down the playbook. Attackers spend weeks building a position: long spot, short perpetual futures. Then they wait for a low-liquidity window and dump spot holdings. They place bids far below market price in perpetuals.

When prices fall, leveraged traders get liquidated. Forced selling kicks in. The attackers scoop up assets at rock-bottom prices and walk away with massive profits.

DeFi exchanges got hit hardest because positions were visible on-chain. Binance’s auto-deleveraging system, Weisberger said, was “broken” during the event.

Also Read: Was Binance Behind the $19B October Crypto Crash or the Target of It?

Is the Four-Year Cycle Dead?

Weisberger has no patience for the halving cycle theory. He pointed out it’s based on just three data points.

He compared it to the Super Bowl Indicator, a 16-year streak that linked NFL wins to stock market performance. That correlation was “complete and unadulterated bullshit,” he said. The four-year cycle, in his view, is no different.

Why Recovery Is Still on the Table

Weisberger stays bullish long-term. Hash rate is now 6x what it was in 2022. Around 10-30% of Bitcoin supply has moved from early holders with cost basis between $10 and $1,000 to newer buyers who paid more.

New institutional holders are making multi-year allocations, not leveraged bets, he noted.

His portfolio reflects that confidence: Bitcoin as his main holding, Solana and BitTensor as secondary plays, and smaller positions in Zcash and XRP.

The post Coinbase Accuses Australia’s Big Four Banks of ‘Unlawful’ Crypto Debanking appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

Coinbase has taken its fight against crypto debanking to Australia’s parliament, filing a formal complaint that accuses the country’s biggest banks of shutting legitimate crypto businesses out of the financial system.

Here’s the scoop.

Big Four Banks Named in Filing

The submission, sent to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics, names Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, ANZ, and National Australia Bank. Coinbase said these banks are closing accounts without warning and blocking transactions tied to digital assets.

“There is nothing that degrades trust in an economy faster than being told you cannot use your own money,” Coinbase wrote.

The exchange warned that debanking has gone from a rare problem to a “systemic feature of the Australian financial landscape.” With four banks controlling most of the country’s payment rails, losing access amounts to an “unlawful regulatory ban” on lawful businesses.

Data cited in the filing shows 60% of fintech businesses faced denial of service from banks in 2021. That problem remains unresolved.

Reforms That Never Happened

Coinbase urged lawmakers to pass five transparency measures that regulators recommended years ago. The government backed these reforms in August 2022, but they were never put into law.

The measures would require banks to explain account closures, give 30 days’ notice, and provide access to dispute resolution.

Also Read: Why Was Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong Snubbed by Top US Bank CEOs at Davos?

Australia Falling Behind?

The exchange pointed to how other countries handle the issue. The EU guarantees a basic bank account for all legal residents. Canada allows account access even with a bankruptcy history. In the U.S., President Donald Trump signed an executive order last August to stop crypto-related debanking.

Australia’s $4 billion fintech sector now waits on parliamentary recommendations expected later this year. The outcome could determine whether crypto innovation stays or moves elsewhere.

The post Crypto.com Launches OG Prediction Market Platform Days Before Super Bowl appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

Crypto.com is spinning off its prediction market business into a standalone platform called OG, and it’s launching just days before the Super Bowl.

The platform will offer CFTC-regulated sports event contracts along with markets covering financial, political, cultural, and entertainment events. OG will also be the first prediction market platform to offer margin trading on prediction contracts.

The first one million users to sign up will receive up to $500 in rewards.

Why a Standalone Platform Now?

The numbers tell the story. Crypto.com has seen 40x weekly growth in its prediction market business over the past six months. That kind of traction demanded its own home.

“Crypto.com successfully built one of the largest brands and best app experiences in cryptocurrency during a period of hypergrowth amid a complex regulatory landscape, and now we will work to replicate this experience with OG in the prediction market space,” said Kris Marszalek, Co-Founder and CEO of Crypto.com.

OG is powered by Crypto.com | Derivatives North America (CDNA), the same CFTC-registered exchange and clearinghouse that launched the nation’s first federally licensed sports prediction contracts back in December 2024.

Nick Lundgren Named OG CEO

Nick Lundgren will lead OG as CEO. He currently serves as Crypto.com’s Chief Legal Officer and was the one who led the CDNA acquisition in 2022, then the largest acquisition in crypto history.

“Sports are the natural hub of prediction markets, and we see a massive opportunity to provide fans with an all-encompassing platform where it pays to be right,” Lundgren said. He called prediction markets a “deca-billion dollar industry.”

VIP Program Taps Major Sports Partnerships

OG will roll out a VIP program tied to Crypto.com’s existing sports deals. That includes access to experiences through Crypto.com Arena, UFC, Formula 1, and UEFA Champions League.

The launch lands at an interesting time. The CFTC said last week it would craft new rules for the prediction market industry. OG will be headquartered in the US and focused on that market first.