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Securitize and Binance have jointly announced on Friday that the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) will now be accepted as off-exchange collateral for trading on Binance. 

BlackRock’s BUIDL Gains Momentum

Fortune reported that the collaboration with Binance is expected to boost the popularity of BUIDL, a token launched by the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, last year. Since its inception, BUIDL has witnessed significant growth, with its market capitalization exceeding $2.5 billion. 

Functioning akin to a stablecoin, BUIDL is commonly utilized as collateral for trading cryptocurrency derivatives, catering primarily to large institutional investors like private equity firms and hedge funds that make a minimum investment of $5 million into the BlackRock BUIDL fund. 

What sets BUIDL apart from traditional stablecoins like Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) is its unique feature of distributing the yield collected from its reserves to investors. 

Currently offering a yield of around 4%, BlackRock imposes a management fee ranging from 0.2% to 0.5% on the token. To bring BUIDL into existence, BlackRock collaborates with Securitize, a company specializing in issuing digital assets. 

Securitize’s CEO, Carlos Domingo, highlighted the growing popularity of tokenized assets due to their ability to facilitate quick and efficient trade settlements. 

Domingo emphasized the “antiquated nature” of current capital market ledgers, often built on outdated software, contrasting this with the “agile and near-instant settlement capabilities” of blockchain technology. 

Binance Responds To Demand

Catherine Chen, Binance’s Head of VIP & Institutional, noted that the addition of BUIDL was driven partly by customer demand. She noted in the statement: 

Integrating BUIDL with our banking triparty partners and our crypto-native custody partner, Ceffu, meets their needs and enables our clients to confidently scale allocation while meeting compliance requirements.

Concurrently, BUIDL is set to introduce a new share class on the BNB Chain network, enhancing investor reach and interoperability with other blockchain financial applications.

Launched in March 2024, BUIDL marked BlackRock’s inaugural tokenized fund on a public blockchain, tokenized by Securitize, offering qualified investors access to U.S. dollar yields with flexible custody, daily dividend payouts, and seamless peer-to-peer transfers.

This integration builds upon BUIDL’s presence across networks like Arbitrum (ARB), Aptos (APT), Avalanche (AVAX), Ethereum (ETH), Optimism (OP), Polygon (POL), and Solana (SOL), further enhancing its accessibility and utility within the blockchain ecosystem.

When writing, Binance’s native token, BNB, trades at $931.60, recording losses exceeding 20% in the past 30 days. This positions Binance Coin 32% below all-time high levels of $1,369 reached back in October of this year. 

Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com 

Bitcoin has dropped below the $100,000 mark for the first time since May, igniting renewed anxiety across the crypto market. The flagship cryptocurrency is currently trading near $97,000, with traders and investors facing growing uncertainty amid persistent selling pressure and waning momentum. Fear levels have surged as many market participants begin to question whether this breakdown marks the start of a new bear market phase or simply a deeper correction within the ongoing cycle.

Some analysts warn that the recent loss of key psychological support could trigger further downside if buyers fail to defend lower levels. Historical patterns show that once BTC breaks below major round numbers, volatility tends to accelerate before finding a stable base.

However, others remain cautiously optimistic. Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, noted that it is still too early to confirm a full-scale bear market. He argues that on-chain data — including exchange flows, miner behavior, and long-term holder activity — does not yet reflect the kind of structural weakness typically seen during cycle tops. Instead, he suggests that the market may be entering a prolonged consolidation phase, where volatility cools before Bitcoin prepares for its next directional move.

$94K Becomes the Line in the Sand for Bitcoin’s Bull Case

According to Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, the key level that could determine Bitcoin’s next major trend lies around $94,000. On-chain data shows that investors who entered the market between six to twelve months ago have an average cost basis near this level, meaning it represents a crucial psychological and structural support zone.

Ju explains that while Bitcoin’s drop below $100,000 has triggered widespread concern, the market hasn’t yet confirmed a full-blown bear cycle. He notes that price action would need to sustain a breakdown below $94,000 before signaling a significant shift in sentiment and long-term trend structure. “Personally, I do not think the bear cycle is confirmed unless we lose that level,” Ju said, emphasizing the importance of patience amid heightened volatility.

He adds that overreacting to short-term fluctuations often leads to poor decision-making during periods of market stress. For now, the best course of action may be to wait rather than jump to conclusions. If $94,000 holds as support, it could serve as the foundation for a potential recovery. Conversely, a decisive breakdown below that threshold would mark a clear warning sign that the bull phase has likely ended.

Bitcoin Drops Below $100K, Testing Long-Term Support Levels

Bitcoin’s weekly chart paints a concerning picture as the cryptocurrency trades around $96,900, marking its first sustained move below the $100,000 level since May. The breakdown represents a 7.4% decline over the last week, with selling volume increasing significantly — a clear sign that market participants are de-risking amid fear and uncertainty.

The most notable feature on the chart is Bitcoin’s test of the 50-week moving average (blue line), which currently sits near $95,000. Historically, this level has acted as a key support zone during mid-cycle corrections, helping to stabilize price before major recoveries. A confirmed weekly close below this moving average, however, could shift momentum firmly in favor of the bears, opening the door for a potential retest of the $88,000–$90,000 region near the 100-week MA (green line).

Despite the bearish tone, there’s also evidence of potential accumulation. Volume spikes during declines often indicate that larger players are stepping in to absorb selling pressure. If Bitcoin can hold above $95,000 and reclaim $100,000 in the coming weeks, it could form a solid base for recovery. Conversely, failure to defend this area would reinforce the narrative that the market is entering a deeper correction phase.

Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com

While the European Union (EU) authorities are pushing to shift oversight of key financial markets, including crypto, to a centralized supervisory authority, some industry players have shared multiple concerns about the proposal.

EU’s Plan For Crypto Oversight Shift Raises Concerns

On Friday, Bloomberg affirmed that the European Commission (EC) is pressing to advance its proposal to transfer regulatory supervision of the crypto businesses from national authorities to the bloc’s market watchdog, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).

As reported by Bitcoinist, ESMA’s Chair, Verena Ross, stated last month that the EU’s executive arm was preparing rules to give new powers to the regional watchdog to push for a “more integrated and globally competitive” capital market in Europe.

Ross argued that “while we are doing a lot of work to try to make sure the implementation of MiCA is aligned, it clearly takes a lot of effort from us and the national supervisors to achieve that.”

“It also means that people had to build up specific new resources and expertise 27 times in different national supervisors, which could have been done more efficiently once at a European level,” she continued.

According to the Friday report, draft plans circulated by EU officials propose that the bloc’s market watchdog be responsible for authorizing new businesses and the main supervisor for all Crypto Asset Service Providers (CASP). This was initially suggested during the development of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).

Nonetheless, some consider that the move could overturn the work that national watchdogs and businesses have done over the past few years to regulate the industry and implement the bloc’s comprehensive framework for digital assets.

Robert Kopitsch, secretary general of Blockchain for Europe, an organization that represents international Blockchain industry players in the EU, told Bloomberg that “reopening MiCA at this stage would introduce legal uncertainty, risk delaying the authorization process, and divert attention and resources from the practical task of consistent implementation.”

Kopitsch affirmed that a shift to a more centralized supervisory model should happen in the future, based on “concrete experience and evidence gathered from MiCA’s first years of implementation,” noting that local regulators have had closer day-to-day engagement with firms.

Meanwhile, Andrew Whitworth, founder of Global Policy Ltd., a consulting firm that works with crypto companies and regulators, believes that digital assets could be a good test for ESMA’s ability to take on more responsibilities. However, it would require additional resources to handle the workload currently managed by local regulators.

He emphasized that the change would be difficult at the time, “given where we’re at with implementation for the goalposts to change.”

‘Institutional Standoff’ To Undermine MiCA?

Notably, smaller EU nations, including Luxembourg, Ireland, and Malta, have also questioned the proposal and ESMA’s ability to oversee the rapidly growing crypto market, claiming it could weaken their financial sectors.

Recently, Judith Arnal, associate senior research fellow at the Centre for European Credit Research Institute (ECRI) and board member at the Bank of Spain, affirmed that the ongoing “institutional standoff has created regulatory paralysis with far-reaching consequences.”

Arnal has argued that the recent attempts to already amend the bloc’s crypto rules, particularly in the stablecoins sector, risk “undermining MiCA’s credibility as a coherent and globally influential regulatory framework.”

Earlier this week, the European Banking Authority (EBA) addressed the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB)’s concerns about financial instability risk related to stablecoins.

The ECB has recently been calling for stricter regulations, including a ban on multi-issuance stablecoins in the bloc and other jurisdictions. However, the region’s banking supervisor defended the framework, arguing that MiCA already has safeguards against risks posed by stablecoins.

On-chain data shows Ethereum investors with a holding time greater than three years have ramped up their selling to levels not seen since 2021.

Seasoned Ethereum Holders Are Increasing Their Distribution

As explained by on-chain analytics firm Glassnode in a new post on X, the 3 to 10 years old Ethereum holders have notably raised their spending recently. These investors belong to a broader group known as the long-term holder (LTH) cohort, which has a holding time cutoff of 155 days.

Statistically, the longer an investor holds onto their coins, the less likely they become to sell them at any point. As such, the LTHs as a whole can be considered diamond hands.

Since the 3 to 10 years old ETH investors would be old even by the standard of the LTHs, they may be assumed to include the most stalwart of HODLers. Given this stature of the cohort, the behavior of its investors may be worth keeping an eye on, for selling from them could be a sign that market conditions have forced even the most seasoned hands into exiting.

One way to track the behavior of the group is through the Spent Volume by Age indicator, which tracks the transactions that the various investor age bands are making on the blockchain. Below is the chart for the metric shared by Glassnode that shows the trend in its 90-day moving average (MA) for Ethereum over the last few years.

As displayed in the graph, the Spent Volume by Age has shot up for the investors belonging in the 3 to 10 years holding time bracket since late-August. At present, the 90-day MA is sitting above 45,000 ETH, meaning the veterans of the market are selling tokens worth $139 million every day.

“This marks the highest spending level by seasoned investors since Feb 2021,” noted the analytics firm. Besides the selloff in February, this group also participated in almost the same level of distribution alongside the bull run top in the second half of that year.

As the latest wave of selling has arrived, Ethereum has witnessed bearish momentum. It only remains to be seen whether this decline in the price would lead into another bear market like in late 2021, or if the bull run will regain its footing as in February 2021.

LTH selling isn’t the only bearish factor that ETH has had to deal with recently. As the chart shared by CryptoQuant community analyst Maartunn shows, the Ethereum spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have witnessed significant outflows over the past month.

From the above chart, it’s apparent that Ethereum spot ETFs are seeing a negative 30-day netflow of $1.21 billion, while Bitcoin has had it even worse with $2.80 billion in net outflows.

ETH Price

At the time of writing, Ethereum is trading around $3,100, down over 4% in the last week.

Bitcoin has fallen below the crucial $100,000 mark, now trading near $97,000 for the first time since May. The drop underscores the growing weakness in bullish momentum, as traders struggle to defend key support levels amid mounting macroeconomic uncertainty and fading risk appetite. Market sentiment has turned sharply fearful, with investors showing increased caution following a wave of liquidations and declining volume across major exchanges.

According to data shared by CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler, Bitcoin’s performance has notably lagged behind traditional assets. Year-to-date, BTC is up just 5.5%, a gain that now risks evaporating entirely if current conditions persist. In stark contrast, gold surged 5.6% in just the last week, continuing its strong rally as investors seek safer havens amid global volatility.

While Bitcoin’s long-term structure remains intact, its short-term weakness reflects a tightening liquidity environment and growing skepticism about risk assets.

Bitcoin Faces Harsh Comparison As Traditional Markets Outperform

Axel Adler highlights how Bitcoin’s muted performance stands in sharp contrast to the impressive gains seen across traditional markets this year. His analysis paints a sobering picture of where capital has been flowing in 2025.

Gold leads the pack with a staggering 55% year-to-date (YTD) increase, driven by global uncertainty and strong institutional demand. Copper follows with +27%, benefiting from industrial expansion and supply constraints. Meanwhile, risk assets like the Nasdaq (+21%) and S&P 500 (+16%) have also delivered consistent returns, reflecting continued investor confidence in equities despite macroeconomic headwinds.

Against this backdrop, Bitcoin’s modest 5.5% YTD gain appears increasingly underwhelming. Adler notes that professional fund managers are often measured against the S&P 500 benchmark, meaning any underperformance tends to attract swift scrutiny. “If a fund manager delivers less than the S&P 500, they usually don’t stay in the job for long,” Adler remarks — a pointed reminder of how traditional assets continue to set the standard for performance.

His final comment cuts to the heart of the matter: “You don’t need a Harvard degree to buy SPY.” The implication is clear — in a market where simplicity and stability outperform speculation, Bitcoin must prove its resilience or risk losing investor attention.

Bitcoin Slips Below $100K as Selling Pressure Builds

Bitcoin’s price has fallen sharply below the psychological $100,000 mark, currently hovering around $97,300 after losing more than 2% in the past 24 hours. The daily chart reveals a clear continuation of the recent downtrend, with BTC now trading well below its 50-day and 100-day moving averages, signaling sustained weakness in short-term momentum.

The next significant support zone sits near $94,000, where Bitcoin previously consolidated in early summer. A decisive breakdown below this level could open the door to deeper retracements toward the 200-day moving average near $88,000–$90,000. On the flip side, reclaiming $100,000 as support will be crucial for any potential recovery, as that level now acts as a strong resistance barrier.

Volume data shows an uptick in sell-side activity, confirming growing pressure from profit-taking and possible liquidations. Despite the pullback, analysts suggest that the recent correction may serve as a market reset, allowing leverage to unwind and preparing for a healthier recovery phase.

Bitcoin remains in a volatile consolidation period, with macro uncertainty and exchange inflows weighing on sentiment. Bulls must defend current levels to prevent momentum from shifting decisively toward a deeper mid-cycle correction.

Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com