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Glassnode said leverage in the altcoin market remains elevated. The firm said prices have fallen since leverage peaked earlier this month, but more than 40% of large altcoins still show leverage near this year’s highs, while the share of mid-cap altcoins posting year-to-date peak leverage has reached a record level. Glassnode added that if the market downturn deepens further, a significant number of investors holding leveraged long positions could face liquidation risk.

The World Gold Council said in a report that the digital gold market could generate as much as $700 billion in potential investment demand, according to Crypto Briefing. To reach that level, the group said the market would need to build investor trust, expand accessibility, and address barriers tied to product utility and pricing. The digital gold market, including tokenized gold, is currently estimated at about $45 billion to $55 billion. That remains below 1% of the $13 trillion physical gold investment market.

The three major U.S. stock indices closed mixed today. - S&P 500: +0.41% - Nasdaq: +1.11% - Dow Jones: -0.07%

Coinbase announced the addition of AXIS, PEARL and STABLE to its listing roadmap.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said on X that Iran-linked stablecoin trading volume has fallen 94%, arguing the decline followed Tether’s early freezing of related wallet addresses. Referring to a report released late last month by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Ardoino said the report missed a key point: since 2023, Tether has frozen related wallet addresses an average of four weeks before U.S. and Israeli authorities formally announced sanctions targets. Ardoino also said 99% of the wallet addresses frozen by Tether had already been blocked before blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis classified them as high-risk addresses. Earlier, Blumenthal said a report found 84% of 846 crypto wallets linked to Iran and sanctioned by the U.S. and Israel handled all or nearly all of their transactions in Tether’s USDT. He also sent a letter to the U.S. Treasury Department and the Justice Department requesting an investigation into Tether.

Bitmine Chairman Tom Lee said in an interview he believes a $10,000 price target for Ethereum is still too low, citing its dominant market share, expanding institutional investment and broader adoption of corporate crypto treasury strategies. Lee added he expects Ethereum to rise well above $10,000.

U.S. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said crypto market regulatory clarity should not come with an expiration date. Selig said he would continue bipartisan cooperation to provide lasting regulatory clarity and establish clear, stable rules that would remain firm over time.

An anonymous whale address beginning with bc1q4p withdrew 774.77 BTC worth $63.36 million from Robinhood, according to Onchain Lens. Exchange withdrawals are typically interpreted as a move to hold assets.

Coinbase announced a partnership with global payments infrastructure company Thunes to support cross-border payments and remittances using stablecoins in 140 countries worldwide. The company said it plans to connect stablecoins with traditional financial networks through Thunes’ global clearing network and its own infrastructure.

XRP’s official X account was activated around 4:00 p.m. UTC on Oct. 19, more than a decade after the token’s launch. According to the profile information, the account is jointly managed by Ripple and the XRPL Foundation, and states that XRP is the native token of the XRPL. About two hours after the account went live, it had around 33,000 followers.

The Ethereum Foundation said it plans to deploy the Glamsterdam upgrade on the Hoodi testnet at 5:42:48 p.m. UTC on Oct. 26, while the testnet gas limit will also be raised to 200 million. The move follows the upgrade’s rollout on the Sepolia testnet on Oct. 6. Developers plan to review software compatibility in an additional testing environment before deciding on a mainnet deployment schedule.

Uniswap said UNI has become the first DeFi protocol token to have futures listed on CME Group. It said two contract sizes are available and trading is offered around the clock.

Google plans to conditionally allow ads for cryptocurrency, forex and CFD products in the United Arab Emirates starting Oct. 21, Crypto Briefing reported. Companies holding licenses from local regulators can apply for ad certification through their accounts, according to the report. Eligible regulators include the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) and the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). Ads for ICOs, DeFi trading protocols and crypto lending will remain prohibited.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a brief arguing CME lacks standing to sue over the policy allowing crypto perpetual futures, CoinDesk reported. The CFTC approved Kalshi’s Bitcoin perpetual futures product in May, after which CME sued on the grounds that perpetual futures should be treated as swaps rather than futures contracts. The CFTC countered CME had not been harmed by the approval and said CME’s crypto futures trading volume had instead increased. TD Cowen analyst Jaret Seiberg said the situation could become more complicated if the perpetual futures market expands while the lawsuit is pending.

New York’s Department of Financial Services and the Wyoming Division of Banking signed a memorandum of understanding to streamline licensing and supervisory procedures for crypto firms operating in both states and support expedited reviews, Crypto in America reported. Under the agreement, the regulators will share examination information and conduct joint supervision, offering reviews within six months for companies with no regulatory violations for more than three years. The outlet added this appears to be a move by state regulators to improve supervisory efficiency amid delays in CLARITY Act legislation.

Wallets holding between 10 BTC and 10,000 BTC have been aggressively accumulating since Sept. 19, according to Santiment. The on-chain analytics firm said the cohort bought about 88,987 BTC over the past month, bringing total holdings to about 13.69 million BTC, the highest level in the past six months. Santiment said movements by the group have historically shown a close correlation with major Bitcoin price trends, making the accumulation pattern a notable indicator. Amid continued price volatility, the firm said the ongoing buying suggests large-scale investors are increasing their Bitcoin exposure rather than reducing holdings, adding that the trend could support further gains in Bitcoin if it continues.

SharpLink Gaming (SBET), an Ethereum accumulation company, announced it has staked a total of $400 million in ETH, allocating $200 million each to Ether.fi (ETHFI) and Lido (LDO). According to The Defiant, the staking had been announced in advance and does not represent an additional investment. SharpLink currently holds 888,938 ETH.

Mastercard has launched Stablecoin Security, a service designed to assess risks in stablecoin payments in advance, The Block reported. The service tracks the source of funds and the potential for involvement in financial crimes such as fraud and sanctions violations, then analyzes transaction context to provide financial institutions with risk scores. Banks and other institutions can integrate the service into existing compliance systems through an API, according to The Block. Borderless and Keyrails joined as initial partners, and Mastercard plans to roll out the service first in the U.S. before commercializing it globally starting next year.

StoneX has maintained a Buy rating on Galaxy Digital (GLXY) and set a $57 price target, The Block reported. The firm said the market has been too focused on debt concerns surrounding CoreWeave, a key tenant at Galaxy Digital’s Helios AI data center campus in western Texas, and as a result has undervalued the business. GLXY has fallen about 30% over the past two weeks amid concerns about CoreWeave’s financial health. Against that backdrop, StoneX analyst Mark Palmer said investors should also consider Helios’ additional expansion potential and the broader outlook for AI computing demand. GLXY was trading at $16.34, up 1.21%, at the time of the report.

Crypto financial infrastructure firm Mesh has partnered with payments giant Visa to let users pay with cryptocurrencies and stablecoins held in wallet apps at more than 175 million physical merchants worldwide, The Block reported. Mesh supports automatic conversion and payment processing, allowing users to complete purchases without selling assets in advance.

The U.S. Congress is set to introduce a program that would reduce penalties for voluntary cryptocurrency tax disclosures, Cointelegraph reported. Under the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, or H.R. 10357, the Treasury Department would be required to implement the program within 12 months after the bill takes effect. Taxpayers would need to file amended returns and demonstrate that crypto-related tax violations were not intentional. Those who come forward within 12 months of the law taking effect and pay unpaid taxes and interest would be eligible for penalty relief. The bill passed the House Ways and Means Committee in a 38-5 vote. It still must clear floor votes in the House and Senate and be signed by President Donald Trump.

Nevada-based Bitcoin custodian AnchorWatch has launched an insured Bitcoin custody service with coverage of up to $370 million per client, The Block reported. Monthly custody fees are capped at $10,000, and the service is offered with approval from Nevada authorities. The coverage includes losses tied to kidnapping, physical harm and corporate fraud.

Crypto infrastructure firm Zerohash has launched AUTH, a transfer service that does not require users to copy wallet addresses. AUTH supports multiple cryptocurrencies and tokenized stocks and integrates with more than 600 wallets and exchanges, The Block reported.

USDT issuer Tether invested in AI chip designer Tenstorrent, Reuters reported. The investment helped Tenstorrent close its $1.5 billion Series E round at a $6.2 billion valuation. The round was led by Trace Capital and Innovation X. Participants included ARK Invest, Fidelity, Morgan Stanley, SanDisk, Tether and Virtu Financial. Tenstorrent plans to use the proceeds for mass semiconductor production and business expansion.

Sparkasse, Germany’s savings bank group, launched a cryptocurrency trading service on Oct. 19, local outlet Blocktrainer reported. The service is operated by major German bank DekaBank and allows users to trade five cryptocurrencies in the bank app: BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL and POL. More than 230 local savings banks have expressed interest in adopting the service.