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Peter Thiel and entities tied to Founders Fund have fully exited ETHZilla, the publicly traded Ethereum treasury play that once marketed itself as a proxy bet on corporate ETH accumulation. A Schedule 13G/A filed Tuesday shows the reporting group finished 2025 with no remaining common shares, wiping out a position that had been closely watched across both crypto and small-cap equity circles.

Thiel Exists Ethereum Treasury Play

The amended filing, dated Feb. 17, 2026, is unusually blunt on the current footprint: “Aggregate amount… 0.00. Percent of class… 0.0%. Ownership of 5 percent or less of a class.” The positions are reported as of Dec. 31, 2025, meaning the exit was completed by year-end.

PETER THIEL EXITS ETHEREUM DAT “ETHZILLA” AMID $ETHZ TOKENIZED JET ENGINE FOCUS: FILING pic.twitter.com/nnMeT32LQ4

— Aggr News (@AggrNews) February 18, 2026

That zeroed-out line item is a sharp contrast to what Thiel-related vehicles disclosed just a quarter earlier. In a prior Schedule 13G/A reporting holdings as of Sept. 30, 2025, Thiel was listed with 928,389 shares beneficially owned, representing 5.6% of the class at that time, with additional blocks attributed to Founders Fund entities. The same filing noted the company’s 1-for-10 reverse stock split effective Oct. 20, 2025, with reported share counts adjusted accordingly.

ETHZilla’s story arc matters because it tried to translate the Bitcoin treasury template into an ETH-native wrapper at a moment when public-market vehicles were being pitched as liquid, leverable on-ramps to digital asset exposure. Thiel’s initial involvement, widely reported as a 7.5% stake disclosed in August 2025, helped legitimize that pitch, at least briefly.

More recently, ETHZilla has been signaling a pivot away from a pure ETH-treasury identity and toward tokenized real-world assets, including aviation. In an 8-K tied to a Feb. 12 press release, the company said its subsidiary launched “Eurus Aero Token I,” describing it as “a tokenized real-world asset instrument” that gives exposure to aircraft engines on lease “through tradable digital tokens representing contractual revenue rights.”

The sequencing leaves traders with an uncomfortable, unresolved question: did Founders Fund’s exit precede (and implicitly front-run) the strategy shift, or was it simply a portfolio cleanup after the initial “ETH treasury” narrative cooled?

On X, one commentator framed Thiel’s timing as part of a broader pattern, though several of the post’s claims go beyond what’s in the SEC filing. The account @treebook78 called Thiel a “master at sensing crises,” writing that he “dodged this current dip too,” and arguing he’s an “exit master” who gets out early when bubbles or stress build.

“Back in 2022, he posted diamond hands on SNS telling people to hold Bitcoin forever, but then he quietly sold everything and avoided the Luna crash and FTX collapse (as I recall),” @treebook78 wrote.

At press time, Ethereum traded at $1,984.

With shifting narratives and waning ETF flows, the Ethereum price remains under heightened bearish pressure, keeping it just slightly below the $2,000 level. While price has declined sharply, Bitmine Immersion does not seem to be swayed by the pullback as the company makes another big strategic bet on the leading altcoin.

Bitmine Doubles Down On Ethereum With A $91 Million Investment

Institutional sentiment and interest in Ethereum are starting to show signs of renewed strength, with the recent large purchases of the altcoin. At the heart of this underlying strength is Bitmine Immersion, a leading ETH treasury company, following its most recent significant ETH buy.

Amid this renewed bullish sentiment, a post published on the X platform by Milk Road, a macro expert and investor, shows that Bitmine is doubling down on its long-term future by acquiring another stack of ETH worth over $91 million. Even as market volatility continues to intensify, the treasury firm is still scooping up the altcoin at a massive rate, suggesting a strategic approach.

Milk Road highlighted that the purchase was made despite the firm sitting on $8 billion in unrealized losses. The broader sentiment may still be fragile, but Bitmine continues to choose accumulation over caution as indicated by its steady purchase last week, ramping up 45,759 ETH at roughly $1,989 per token within the period.

Following its latest ETH purchase, Bitmine Immersion’s crypto holdings now boast a total of 4.37 million ETH. Interestingly, this figure represents approximately 3.6% of Ethereum’s entire circulating supply controlled by a single entity.

Considering ETH’s current price, the value of this massive stash is averaging down. Currently, the firm’s blended cost basis is sitting at the $3,821 level, which implies that a 90%+ bounce from the recent price levels is required to break even and flip the firm back into profit. 

ETH Staking Now The Primary Means Of Generating Yield

In the meantime, their strategy remains on generating yield from their ETH staking while they wait, transforming a position that is now weak into useful capital. Over 3.04 million of their ETH is locked away in staking, which is the major long-term unlock. 

Bitmine’s crypto holdings are not just made up of Ethereum. They also hold Bitcoin, $670 million in cash, and stakes in the Beast Industries run by the biggest and most popular YouTuber, Mr. Beast; a move that could see ETH get integrated into his new financial app.

Ethereum investors, especially retail holders, now have a publicly traded company with major skin in the game advocating for the altcoin’s success, and stress-testing whether Strategy’s MSTR model translates to ETH. With a single firm essentially locking up 3.6% of the supply with no plans to sell, this is known as a structural supply reduction that could play a role in shaping the market outlook.

At the time of writing, the price of ETH was trading at $1,998, demonstrating a nearly 2% rise over the past day. Within the same period, its trading volume has increased by more than 7%, according to CoinMarketCap’s data.

The price of Dogecoin (DOGE) is steadily approaching a critical level that could shape its next significant move. According to a crypto analyst closely tracking the meme coin’s price action, a reaction at this key level could form a “divergence,” a technical pattern often associated with a major trend reversal. 

Dogecoin Divergence Setup Could Trigger Next Move

On Tuesday, February 17, crypto market analyst NaBer shared fresh updates on Dogecoin in an X post, providing his latest insights into the meme coin’s recent price action. Specifically, he highlighted a key horizontal zone around $0.10 on the DOGE chart, noting that this area would be his primary watch zone if he were considering adding more to his position. 

The analyst admitted to already holding some DOGE tokens at around $0.10 and outlined a simple plan based on whether the meme coin can hold or form a divergence. The one-week chart shared in the post shows Dogecoin’s price compressing directly above a long-standing support band that previously acted as resistance during earlier cycles. This support is marked by a green horizontal zone around $0.07 and $0.10. 

Interestingly, NaBer’s focus is not only on horizontal support but also on the structure. The chart shows a sequence of lower highs, with a recent swing high that has fallen well below previous peaks. At the same time, the weekly candles are grinding into support, with a slight descending trendline pressing down from the right and price action tightening into a narrowing wedge against the horizontal support. 

While Dogecoin’s price has been making new lows around the $0.10 support, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) in the chart is at 34.78, down from a previous reading of 37.22, indicating that momentum is flattening. NaBer has said he wants to see a possible divergence and, ideally, some Lower Time Frame (LTF) volume stepping in, signaling that buyers are absorbing supply at this range. 

The analyst has also made it clear that he intends to closely watch for an ABC structure or an LTF impulse before making any aggressive projections. He agreed that an impulsive move will be enough confirmation of a divergence formation. 

DOGE Bearish Channel Flips Bullish

In his latest Dogecoin analysis, crypto expert Trader Tardigrade stated that the DOGE price has officially transitioned from a descending channel downtrend into an ascending channel uptrend. According to him, the meme coin’s price recently broke out of its bearish structure and tested the lower support below $0.083. 

After this, Dogecoin entered a new bullish channel and is now trending upwards within higher lows and higher highs. Trader Tardigrade has characterized this price behavior as a textbook trend reversal. He said Dogecoin has finally shifted momentum, projecting a possible price rally toward $0.165. 

The waning cryptocurrency market momentum, coupled with ongoing geopolitical tensions, continues to hamper Bitcoin’s price trajectory, pushing it downward. With BTC’s price and sentiment dropping significantly, the market appears to have entered a phase of heightened uncertainty and caution as investors look for alternative assets to hedge against geopolitical risks.

Bitcoin Weakness Reflects Broader Risk-Off Move

Bitcoin remains on a downward trajectory as its price trades below the $70,000 mark, bolstered by the geopolitical tensions around the world. Following the unfavorable conditions of Bitcoin and the sector, the market is now positioned at a critical moment, where the bearish action could either flip or continue.

Walter Bloomberg shared that Bitcoin is sliding as geopolitical risks spur risk-off trade after examining the cryptocurrency’s price against Nasdaq Futures. Such synchronous decrease indicates that market behavior across asset classes is once again being driven by macro variables like changing interest-rate expectations and a generalized feeling of risk aversion.

The report shows that Bitcoin fell by 1.7% to about $67,000 ahead of the United States Open, tracking weaker equity futures. Meanwhile, Nasdaq 100 Futures experienced a drop of 0.9% and S&P 500 contracts fell by 0.6%.

This development has impacted investors’ sentiment and focus. Currently, investors are becoming more cautious due to growing tensions over Iran, renewed discussions about AI’s broader economic effects, and uncertainty about a potential Fed rate cut following recent inflation data.

In the midst of the geopolitical tension, flows, especially from Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), have stayed negative. US-listed Bitcoin ETFs recorded a fourth consecutive week of outflows, with over $360 million withdrawn just last week. These outflows point to weakening sentiment as indicated by CryptoQuant’s Fear and Greed Index, which is positioned at 10, classified as extreme fear.

While the market has shifted into extreme fear levels, analysts believe that BTC might extend its ongoing consolidation phase, with $60,000 considered as the main support. However, further macro shocks are expected to push BTC’s price back toward the $50,000 threshold.

Which BTC Investors Are Under Stress

During increased bearish phases, investors’ action and activity are crucial to gauging the current market state and its next possible direction. In a recent analysis, Anil, an on-chain researcher and investor, has outlined a key divergence between Bitcoin short-term holders and long-term holders.

With the market’s current state, BTC short-term holders are going through a stress period driven by capitulation. Meanwhile, long-term Bitcoin holders have yet to undergo a true stress or capitulation process. 

It is worth noting that long-term holders eventually go through a phase of capitulation in every cycle, and then a fresh uptrend starts after a period of accumulation. However, it is hard to determine whether the group will capitulate again this time. Should this occur, Anil noted that the area below 1 on the LTH Unrealized Profit/Loss Ratio chart would be the decisive point for the market.

The OTHERS D chart, which tracks the crypto market cap excluding the top 10 cryptocurrencies, is showing signs of a rotation away from Bitcoin and other large market cap cryptos. After months of Bitcoin holding relative strength, new technical analysis is implying that the balance could tilt in favor of the altcoin market very soon.

Biweekly Breakout Signals Shift In Momentum

Technical analysis of the crypto market capitalization is showing a developing shift in capital flows, particularly into altcoins outside the top 10 by total market value. Major names like Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana have struggled through a period of price weakness, leading to smaller-cap cryptocurrencies quietly gaining relative ground. This subtle rotation has not necessarily translated into explosive price rallies yet, but it has shown up clearly in dominance metrics.

This quiet change in dominance is reflected in the OTHERS D index. At the beginning of 2026, dominance was sitting below the 5% mark. Since then, however, the metric has steadily climbed, recently pushing above 7%. The latest biweekly candlestick now places dominance at approximately 7.6%, bringing it right up against a descending resistance trendline that capped a previous breakout attempt.

Interestingly, this move has occurred in tandem with a break above a downward-sloping resistance trendline in the Relative Strength Index (RSI). This trend was also noted on the social media platform X by a crypto analyst that goes by the name RickUntZ. 

As noted by the analyst, the most recent biweekly confirmed breakout in trend on altcoin dominance. Dominance appears to have formed a higher low off the multi-year support band on the chart, followed by a push upward that challenges overhead resistance.

The horizontal zone around 7.5% to 8% has repeatedly served as both support and resistance for years. In terms of resistance, each prior reclaim of this region has preceded extended periods where altcoins gained ground against Bitcoin. 

Watch Resistance For Confirmation

Despite the improving structure, the resistance mentioned above is still in play. This resistance is notable because the  altcoin dominance was rejected somewhere here in the second half of 2025. However, according to the analyst, the 3-week trend is already looking really good. 

At the time of writing, Bitcoin has a market dominance of 58.1%. A decisive Bitcoin breakout could cause the OTHERS D to dwindle a bit longer, but the expectation is that alts will still outperform BTC regardless. Once this level of dominance is taken, then it would confirm on all major time frames for the next couple of months when the altcoin niche is expected to outperform Bitcoin. 

Such a move would align with the altcoin season where large-cap altcoins such as Ethereum, Solana, and XRP would also post stronger percentage gains relative to Bitcoin.

On-chain data shows the Bitcoin network Difficulty is set for a significant jump in the upcoming adjustment. Here’s what’s behind it.

Bitcoin Difficulty To Go Up Massively In Thursday’s Adjustment

The Bitcoin “Difficulty” is a feature built into the blockchain that controls how hard miners will find it to mine a block on the network. The feature exists to limit the speed at which these chain validators can earn mining rewards.

Satoshi coded in a simple rule for the network to follow: keep the block production rate constant at 10 minutes per block. Whenever miners are producing the average block in an interval faster than 10 minutes, the blockchain raises its Difficulty to bring them back to the standard rate. Similarly, them being slow forces the network to ease the metric instead.

Changes in the Difficulty occur about every two weeks in events known as adjustments. The upcoming such event happens to be tomorrow, February 19th. Below are the details related to this adjustment from CoinWarz.

As is visible, the average block time on the Bitcoin network has stood at 8.75 minutes since the previous adjustment, meaning that miners have been significantly faster than usual.

As a result of this fast pace, the network is estimated to raise its Difficulty by more than 14% on Thursday. This is an unusually big jump for the indicator, and the reason behind it lies in equally unusual circumstances.

In late January, a massive snow storm swept across the United States, causing disruptions to the nation’s infrastructure, including the electrical grid. As a response to the extreme weather event, Bitcoin miners situated in the country curtailed their power to help ease pressure on the grid.

Foundry USA, the world’s largest BTC mining pool, saw a notable drop of nearly 60% in its total computing power or “Hashrate” as miners pulled back. The drop in the global Hashrate was so drastic that the Difficulty adjustment that followed led to an easing of about 11%.

However, while the Hashrate decline was dramatic, it was never gonna be something permanent. As the below chart for the 7-day average Hashrate from Blockchain.com shows, the indicator has already recovered back to about the same level as on January 24th, before the snow storm took American mining machines offline.

The Bitcoin network had reduced its Difficulty based on the speed miners were operating at due to the reduced US capacity, but as the Hashrate has bounced back, the blockchain is now forced to correct the metric in the other direction.

BTC Price

Bitcoin has continued to move sideways recently as its price is still trading around $67,600.

XRP has surpassed Ethereum in terms of the crypto assets that are most discussed among institutional investors. This comes as its ETFs continue to record notable inflows despite net outflows from Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs.  

XRP Ranks Above Ethereum In Institutional Interest

Grayscale drew attention to its Head of Research, Rayhaneh Sharif-Askary’s statement during the XRP Community Day, in which she revealed that the altcoin is the second most talked about asset behind Bitcoin in some cases. This puts the token ahead of other altcoins, including Ethereum, in terms of crypto assets that are generating interest among institutional investors. 

Sharif-Askary noted that advisors are constantly asked by their clients about the altcoin, a development that provides a positive outlook for the altcoin. Grayscale is notably among the crypto ETF issuers that offer an XRP ETF. These funds have seen significant inflows since they launched in November last year. 

Wall Street giants such as Goldman Sachs and Jane Street have already disclosed significant exposure to the token through these ETFs. According to Goldman Sachs’ Q4 filing, it currently holds shares in Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Grayscale, and 21Shares’ XRP funds. 

SoSoValue data shows that these ETFs currently have net assets of just over $1 billion, which represents 1.17% of the altcoin’s market cap. These funds have also continued to see considerable inflows despite the current crypto market downtrend. This month, they have recorded net inflows of $46.69 million. Meanwhile, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs continue to see outflows and are expected to see another month of net outflows. 

Crypto pundit X Finance Bull highlighted this demand for the token among institutional investors, noting that they were likely positioning ahead of regulatory clarity. The pundit expects that the altcoin will be one of the major beneficiaries once the CLARITY Act is passed. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has predicted that the crypto bill could be 80% close to signing by April. 

The Altcoin Leading In YTD Flows

A CoinShares research report shows that the XRP funds are currently leading Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto assets in year-to-date (YTD) inflows. These funds have seen $148 million in YTD flows while the BTC and ETH funds are in the red at the moment, with YTD outflows of $1 billion and $458 million, respectively.

Furthermore, the Solana funds are behind XRP, with YTD inflows of $99 million. It is worth noting that XRP funds again saw inflows last week, as Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs bled. CoinShares shows that these funds recorded net inflows of $33.4 million. On the other hand, the BTC and ETH ETFs saw outflows of $133 million and $85 million, respectively.

At the time of writing, the altcoin price is trading at around $1.47, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Two Abu Dhabi-linked investment vehicles disclosed sizeable additions to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in new US filings, signaling that at least part of the region’s sovereign capital used the late-2025 drawdown to scale regulated Bitcoin exposure rather than step away.

Abu Dhabi Wealth Funds Add Bitcoin On The Dip

Mubadala Investment Company reported owning 12,702,323 shares of IBIT worth $630,670,337 as of Dec. 31, 2025, according to its latest Form 13F information table filed on Feb. 17. That’s a sharp step up from the 8,726,972 IBIT shares it disclosed in its prior quarter filing, which valued the position at $567,253,180 at the time of that report, a 46% increase in share count quarter-over-quarter.

A separate Feb. 17 filing shows Al Warda Investments reported 8,218,712 shares of IBIT valued at $408,059,051 as of Dec. 31. Combined, the two filings put Abu Dhabi-linked exposure through IBIT at just under 21 million shares at year-end, well over $1 billion.

The setup matters because IBIT has become the cleanest “institutional plumbing” for BTC exposure in US markets: quarterly 13F tables don’t show when a fund bought, only what it held at quarter-end, but they do show who is comfortable wearing the exposure on a regulated wrapper and who is still scaling it.

The timing also lines up with the way BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has been describing sovereign participation in Bitcoin more broadly. Speaking at the New York Times’ DealBook Summit in December, Fink framed the buying as methodical rather than momentum-driven: “There are a number of sovereign funds that are standing by. They’re adding incrementally at $120,000, at $100,000. I know they bought more at $80,000.”

That quote is doing a lot of work in the current market narrative, because it suggests sovereign demand isn’t just a headline event, it’s a laddered allocation process that can keep showing up during stress, even if the public only sees it later through filings.

There’s also a subtle but important distinction in what the filings imply about the process. These are not disclosures of direct BTC custody. They’re disclosures of ETF shares, held alongside traditional equities and other liquid instruments inside a standard reporting framework. In practice, that choice compresses operational friction: custody, execution rails, and governance overhead into a familiar package, which can be decisive for large allocators that move slowly but move size.

At press time, Bitcoin traded at $68,246.

Соучредитель проекта Bitcoin Vector и инвестфонда CMCC Crest Вилли Ву (Willy Woo) заявил, что первая криптовалюта вошла только в первую фазу медвежьего цикла, а всего их будет три.

Финансовый комитет Сената Аризоны одобрил большинством голосов (четыре против двух) законопроект о создании принадлежащего штату запаса криптовалют, куда должны войти биткоин, XRP и DigiByte.

According to Coin Center, a fresh version of the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act is on the table and could redraw the lines between crypto, software work and criminal liability.

The bill aims to say, in plain terms, that people who write code or run infrastructure but do not control other people’s crypto funds shouldn’t be treated as money transmitters.

Who Gets Legal Cover

Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden offered the updated language after the original measure was introduced by Tom Emmer in the House years ago.

Based on reports, the change is meant to draw a clearer line in federal law between creating tools and moving money. Supporters say that without clear rules, simple acts of coding could be treated like operating a bank.

Opponents worry about loopholes. Debates have already split lawmakers and tech teams in Washington.

https://t.co/s2WfxKDelb

— Coin Center (@coincenter) February 17, 2026

High-Profile Convictions And Risk

Reports note several recent prosecutions that helped push this debate into view. The developer linked to Tornado Cash faces charges tied to money transmission. Two men tied to Samourai Wallet were also convicted on similar counts.

Roman Storm is awaiting sentencing. Keonne Rodriguez and Will Lonergan Hill received multi-year terms. These cases are short, sharp reminders that tools used by others can end up at the center of criminal probes.

That fact has pushed more than one developer to ask whether the US remains the easiest place to build.

What Could Change If Protections Weaken

According to Coin Center policy chief Jason Somensatto, diluting the bill would leave creators guessing where liability begins and ends.

In a letter to to the Senate Banking Committee, he argues that software authors deserve the same basic protections as other internet builders — hosting firms, browser teams, and email providers — who are not jailed when a bad actor misuses their products.

The argument is framed around certainty: clear rules, advocates say, let people decide to stay and invest here rather than move projects offshore.

A Decision With Tradeoffs

Reports say the Senate Banking Committee has not yet marked up the bill. Lawmakers must weigh public-safety concerns against the goal of keeping promising technical work in the US.

Some legal experts want narrower safe harbors. Others want stronger guardrails so that criminal abuse can still be prosecuted.

Whichever path the committee picks will shape where developers choose to work, and how people build the next wave of crypto tools.

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

A previously unknown Hong Kong-linked entity called Laurore Ltd. surfaced as a major new buyer of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in the latest 13F disclosures, triggering a scramble among ETF watchers to identify who’s behind it and why the position appears purpose-built.

The catalyst was a post from ProCap CIO and Bitwise adviser Jeff Park late Tuesday, who highlighted Laurore as the “biggest new entrant into IBIT” from what he described as “a brand new entity” with “no website. No press. No footprint.” The only public breadcrumbs, Park said, are that “the filer’s name is Zhang Hui and it’s HK based.”

A Bloomberg terminal snapshot shared alongside the thread shows Laurore Ltd. reporting an IBIT position of 8,786,279 shares (worth approximately $337,3 million), amounting to roughly 0.65% of shares outstanding. The entry sits above a roster of recognizable allocators and intermediaries in the same view, underscoring how quickly the entity landed among top reported holders.

Who Is The Mysterious New Bitcoin IBIT Whale?

Park’s thesis leaned heavily on structure and signaling rather than confirmed identity. “Zhang Hui is the Chinese equivalent of John Smith. It’s what I like to call a ‘non-anonymous anonymous’ name, something hiding in plain sight buried under the statistical weight of millions to make it untraceable,” he wrote. “The ‘Ltd’ suffix suggests a Cayman or BVI structure, the classic offshore wrapper for accessing US markets. And the portfolio? A single holding. Nothing but IBIT.”

He then framed the position as something closer to a bespoke access rail than a conventional manager allocation. “This isn’t a diversified fund. It’s a $436 million Bitcoin access vehicle dressed in institutional clothing,” Park wrote, before pivoting to motive: “Because Chinese investors can’t hold Bitcoin.”

Park argued that if the read is correct, it could point to Chinese institutional capital seeking exposure “not through crypto exchanges or gray market channels, but through a BlackRock ETF,” using a jurisdiction he called “the most ‘transparent non-transparent’ place imaginable.”

Others in the ETF research orbit offered less romance and more uncertainty. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart replied that he had already tried to chase the trail. “I spent almost an hour trying to figure this out earlier this morning… I got absolutely nowhere. Lol,” he wrote, capturing a broader point: public filings can reveal size and timing while still keeping beneficial ownership largely opaque.

A response by COO and CIO of DeFi Development Corporation (NASDAQ: DFDV) Parker White claimed Laurore Ltd. “appears to be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hao Advisors Management,” citing a shared address and what he described as overlapping signatory names.

Parker added that the address sits in “one of the most prestigious office complexes in HK,” a building he said is “widely know[n] for the largest hedge funds,” and argued the setup “seems to be very well structured and very professional.”

Park pushed back on equating name similarity with shared control, but agreed that a shared office address may not be a smoking gun. After another commenter suggested the possibility of a “fund hq” or registered address arrangement where “none of the people actually work there,” Park responded: “Bingo.”

However, none of this is confirmed. It’s informed speculation, and the underlying ownership remains opaque for now.

At press time, BTC traded at $67,713.

Аналитик крупного американского банковского холдинга Wells Fargo Осунг Квон (Ohsung Kwon) предположил, что спрос на первую криптовалюту и крипторынок сможет вернуть «стратегия жизни на полную катушку».

A new, organized push is under way to shape how crypto prediction markets are treated in the US. A blockchain advocacy group has launched a unit aimed at guiding policy, pressing regulators, and backing industry players through legal fights and public research.

Industry Sets Legal Strategy

According to the group’s announcement, the first move was a letter praising the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and its chair for arguing that federal oversight should cover many event contracts.

The Prediction Markets Working Group, created by the blockchain advocacy group, The Digital Chamber, called for clearer rules and an end to what it described as enforcement-first regulation.

The group plans to meet with regulators, file policy ideas, publish studies and join court fights through friend-of-the-court briefs to press its view that a single federal regulator should be the lead voice on these crypto markets.

The regulator’s recent public comments were framed as support for that approach. CFTC Chairman Mike Selig has said the agency has overseen similar contracts for many years, and industry backers see that as a foundation for wider federal authority.

4/4 Focusing exclusively on shaping durable and responsible policy and regulation, our Prediction Markets working group looks forward to working closely with the CFTC, Congress, and market participants. Full statement: https://t.co/p9T7pP7e6r

— The Digital Chamber (@DigitalChamber) February 17, 2026

Tests On The Ground

Reports note that litigation and enforcement are already testing the theory. A major crypto US platform was hit with state action this week, accused of offering unlicensed wagering.

Kalshi faces a civil case brought by a state gaming regulator seeking to stop certain markets that the regulator calls gambling.

Rival platforms have felt the squeeze too; one has moved to federal court to try to head off state bans. Polymarket sued a state to argue federal oversight takes precedence.

The platforms argue their contracts behave like derivatives and should be treated as such, while state officials keep saying these products look a lot like bets.

States Push Back

That tension is clear along state lines. Nevada Gaming Control Board, which enforces strict gambling rules in its jurisdiction, has been among the most aggressive.

Reports say a governor in another state called these markets gambling that harms people, signaling political heat. Utah Governor Spencer Cox criticized federal arguments and framed the issue as one of public safety.

Meanwhile a platform chose to take its fight to the federal courts in a state that has been moving toward enforcement. Massachusetts figures into that legal push.

What Comes Next

The next stretch will likely be shaped by filings and court rulings as much as by rulemaking. Industry lawyers are preparing to press federal primacy; state officials are planning to press their gambling statutes.

Legal briefs and amicus filings will try to persuade judges about what these crypto contracts really are. Regulators could also respond with formal rule proposals, and those would change the tone of the debate.

Featured image from The Center for Public Justice, chart from TradingView

Американская криптобиржа Kraken объявила о готовности проспонсировать предвыборные «счета Трампа» для каждого ребенка, родившегося в штате Вайоминг в 2026 году.

Венчурный фонд миллиардера и инвестора Питера Тиля (Peter Thiel) Founders Fund полностью распродал свою долю в компании ETHZilla, одном из крупнейших корпоративных держателей эфира. Еще в августе доля Тиля составляла 7,5%.

Bitcoin maximalist and founder of BnkToTheFuture, Simon Dixon, has reignited debate over the role of altcoins, accusing Ripple and XRP of undermining Bitcoin’s original purpose. He described XRP as a “psyop,” arguing that the need to explain the difference between it and Bitcoin has constantly helped sow division within the crypto community. 

Why Ripple and XRP Are A “Psyop”

In a recent YouTube podcast with BTC Sessions, Dixon spoke about several factors, major historical events, and prominent figures in the financial industry that have had a significant impact on Bitcoin’s growth over the years. While he mentioned the rivalry between XRP and BTC as one of the ultimate psyops that fractured the Bitcoin community, he also highlighted the influence of altcoins in general, and how “shitcoinery and gambling” distracted investors from Bitcoin for a significant period. 

During the podcast, Dixon argued that the emergence of XRP contributed to long-standing fractures within the Bitcoin ecosystem by drawing attention away from BTC’s original vision as a decentralized monetary system. He noted that the persistent need to clarify the difference between XRP and Bitcoin had created confusion among investors and internal divisions within the community. 

Beyond XRP, Dixon also highlighted that the failure of Mt. Gox in 2014 was one of the first major shocks that weakened trust and unity among BTC holders. He characterized Mt.Gox as a deliberate war “op,” stating that the combination of hacking incidents and the disappearance of large amounts of BTC from the now-defunct exchange had “destroyed Bitcoin’s reputation” at a critical stage in its early development and nearly brought the crypto project to an end.

Other Historical Events And Controversies That Shaped Bitcoin

In the podcast, Dixon also revisited the contentious block-size war from years ago, which culminated in multiple network splits, including the creation of Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and later Bitcoin SV. These hard forks reflected deep disagreements over scalability, governance, and Bitcoin’s future direction. 

According to him, each of these controversial episodes fragmented the Bitcoin community and redirected energy toward competing projects rather than reinforcing a single, cohesive movement. He further alleged that prominent figures such as Brock Pierce, the co-founder of Tether, may have been involved in the hard fork events that indirectly contributed to divisions in BTC’s ecosystem. 

Dixon further referenced potential historical associations involving Jeffrey Epstein, suggesting that controversial networks of influence may have intersected with early crypto developments. 

While his claims remain speculative, Dixon strongly characterized these moments as part of a recurring “divide and conquer” war tactic that weakened Bitcoin’s momentum and the growth of the crypto space. Despite these internal conflicts, Bitcoin has continued to recover, emerging stronger as it expands in adoption, market value, and institutional recognition. It remains the number one cryptocurrency, with a market capitalization of $1.35 trillion.

The President of the German central bank has supported the use of euro-pegged stablecoins and Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) to protect the bloc’s payments independence.

Bundesbank Chief Pushes For Stablecoins, CBDCs

On Monday, Joachim Nagel, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank, touted euro-pegged stablecoins and CBDCs as strategic tools for reducing the European Union’s (EU) reliance on the US dollar (USD).

In a speech at the New Year’s Reception of the American Chamber of Commerce in Frankfurt, Nagel highlighted that Europe has been affected by geoeconomic fragmentation, which has slowed the bloc’s economic growth and decreased competitiveness over the last couple of years.

As a result, the German Central Bank’s chief affirmed that Europe must take “decisive” measures to boost its economic dynamic, focusing on supporting the international role of the euro and making the EU “more independent in terms of payment systems and solutions.”

He highlighted the bloc’s efforts with CBDCs, noting that “Currently, the Eurosystem is working hard on the introduction of the digital euro – a retail central bank digital currency, or CBDC. This will be the first pan-European retail digital payment solution, based solely on European infrastructures.”

Additionally, Nagel emphasized the role of stablecoins, reaffirming that he sees merit in euro-denominated stablecoins for cross-border payments by both individuals and firms at a lower cost.

Last week, he outlined the benefits of the fiat-pegged tokens at a dinner speech at the Euro50 Group meeting. The Bundesbank president noted that stablecoins open the door for programmable transactions and could facilitate cross-border payments by reducing the transaction costs and duration.

However, he also discussed the potential European monetary policy challenges in the new geopolitical environment, including central bank independence and the rise of US-denominated stablecoins.

European Sovereignty At Risk

According to Nagel, the rise of stablecoins could pose risks for the EU if the digital assets, particularly those denominated in a foreign currency, become widely used as means of payment and store of value in the euro area.

He noted that the US, under the Trump administration, has been promoting the development of the crypto industry by working on establishing a clear regulatory framework that protects customers and fosters innovation.

Notably, US President Donald Trump signed into law the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, also known as the GENIUS Act, last July, offering a legal framework for issuers to operate within the US.

Since then, the sector has seen strong growth, with its market capitalization rising nearly 50% last year from $205 billion at the start of the year to over $300 billion in late 2025. Nonetheless, most of the market is dominated by USD-denominated stablecoins, while the share of euro-pegged tokens accounts for less than 1%.

“Thus, if this market composition persists, a hypothetical replacement of a domestic currency with stablecoins would be equivalent to a dollarization of the corresponding economy,” the Bundesbank Chief explained. “In this scenario, the effectiveness of domestic monetary policy could be severely impaired, not to mention that European sovereignty could be weakened.”

Nagel asserted that the risk of this scenario materializing is small, but added that authorities are exploring ways to leverage new technological opportunities to reduce its likelihood.

He advocated for a wholesale CBDC to allow institutional actors on financial markets to execute programmable transactions in central bank money. In addition, they could support DLT-based payment instruments not directly related to central bank money, such as tokenized deposits and euro-denominated stablecoins.

To him, “these measures will allow us to utilise cutting-edge digital technologies to maintain our monetary policy effectiveness in an uncertain geopolitical future. Additionally, they will increase our sovereignty.”

Председатель Банка России Эльвира Набиуллина заявила, что ради борьбы с мошенниками в стране необходимо «ввести ответственность за операции вне официально регулируемого сегмента».

Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy has continued to buy despite the market downturn as it has increased its holdings by another 2,486 BTC.

Strategy Has Added Bitcoin Worth $168 Million To Its Reserves

In a new post on X, Strategy co-founder and chairman Michael Saylor has shared the details related to the latest Bitcoin acquisition completed by the company. With this new purchase, The firm has added 2,486 BTC to its treasury at a price of $67,710 per token or $168 million in total.

According to the filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the buy occurred between February 9th and 16th and was funded using proceeds from the company’s STRC and MSTR at-the-market (ATM) stock offerings.

Usually, Strategy drops its purchases on Mondays, but this time the announcement has come on a Tuesday instead. The reason behind it is likely to be the fact that this Monday was a federal holiday: Presidents’ Day.

Following the new acquisition, the treasury firm’s holdings have risen to 717,131 BTC. Strategy spent a total of $54.52 billion on this stack, but at the current exchange rate of the cryptocurrency, its value is just $48.66 billion, meaning that the company’s tokens are holding a net unrealized loss of more than 10.7%.

Strategy’s holdings have gone underwater as a result of the downturn that Bitcoin and the digital asset sector as a whole have faced in recent months. The collapse since the end of January, in particular, has taken the token’s price below the firm’s cost basis. At present, the company’s acquisition level is sitting at $76,027.

Despite its massive reserve dipping into losses, Saylor’s firm doesn’t appear to have given up on accumulating more Bitcoin. On Sunday, Strategy’s official X handle made an X post explaining that the company can withstand a BTC drawdown to $8,000 and still have assets left to fully cover its debt. “Our plan is to equitize our convertible debt over the next 3–6 years,” noted Saylor in a quote-repost

Strategy’s latest purchase was its 99th overall since the company adopted a Bitcoin treasury model back in 2020. Saylor’s routine Sunday post foreshadowing the acquisition referenced this, with the chairman using the caption “99>98” alongside an image of the company’s BTC portfolio tracker.

In related news, the largest Ethereum treasury company, BitMine, has also announced a new acquisition. The firm has purchased 45,759 ETH, taking its total holdings to 4,371,497 ETH, equivalent to 3.62% of the total Ethereum circulating supply.

BitMine has continued to buy even as the firm’s holdings have been in a significant amount of loss due to the market downturn. “In our view, the price of ETH is not reflective of the high utility of ETH and its role as the future of finance,” noted Tom Lee, BitMine chairman.

BTC Price

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is floating around $67,700, down nearly 2% in the last seven days.