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The stablecoin market capitalization has effectively entered a period of stagnation due to factors including stricter regulations, Cointelegraph reported, citing Jimmy Xue, co-founder of the quantitative yield protocol Axis. Xue explained that more stringent regulatory frameworks in the U.S. and Europe have increased compliance costs, slowing the pace of stablecoin issuance. He also noted that higher real yields on U.S. Treasury bonds have created alternative options for generating returns beyond holding stablecoins. The report highlighted that the current stablecoin market cap is holding steady at around $310 billion, a stark contrast to the period from January 2024 to early 2025 when the circulating supply more than doubled.

The three major U.S. stock indices closed higher. The S&P 500 rose 0.55%, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.91%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.63%.

The city council of Kingsport, Tennessee, has passed a zoning ordinance to allow cryptocurrency mining firms and data centers to operate in the area, Cointelegraph reported. The measure requires one additional vote before it can be finally implemented.

Coinbase has established an independent advisory council to assess the potential impact of quantum computing technology on the cryptographic security of major blockchain networks, Cointelegraph reported. The council includes senior university researchers and experts from both Ethereum and Coinbase. It plans to release its first report in early 2027, which will aim to provide a baseline for evaluating quantum-related risks.

The Optimism (OP) community has begun voting on a governance proposal to allocate 50% of the Ethereum (ETH) revenue generated by its Superchain sequencer toward OP token buybacks over a 12-month period, CoinDesk reported. According to the proposal, the repurchased OP tokens would initially be held in the treasury and could later be burned, used for ecosystem funding, or distributed to network security participants. The vote is set to conclude on Jan. 28.

Kansas State Senator Bowser has introduced a bill to establish a strategic reserve of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, Watcher.Guru reported. The proposed legislation would place the state treasurer in charge of managing the reserve. Under the bill, a portion of the revenue generated from airdrops, staking rewards, and interest would be allocated to the state's general fund, while the principal BTC holdings would not be sold but instead held in reserve.

The blockchain-based golf game PGA Tour Rise is scheduled to launch on mobile this year, Decrypt reported. The game is a collaboration between the PGA Tour, the NODE Foundation, and game developer Solis Interactive. Players will be able to purchase and trade tokenized items through SKALE on Base, an Ethereum Layer 3 network.

Citibank has suggested that the recent surge in Ethereum's daily transaction volume and active addresses may be attributable to address poisoning scams, CoinDesk reported. In a report, the bank noted that a significant portion of recent transactions are for small amounts under $1, a pattern more consistent with scam activity than an influx of new users. Citibank's analysis concluded that lower transaction fees on the Ethereum network have enabled attackers to conduct these large-scale activities at a low cost. This assessment follows a similar analysis previously offered by security researcher Andrey Sergeenkov. Address poisoning is a scam in which attackers use vanity address generators to create wallet addresses that match the first and last few characters of a target's address, aiming to trick the user into mistakenly sending funds to the fraudulent address.

Bitwise has launched an actively managed exchange-traded fund (ETF) that combines investments in Bitcoin and gold, Cointelegraph reported. The fund, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker BPRO, invests in BTC, precious metals, and related mining stocks. It plans to maintain a minimum 25% allocation to gold.

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao stated that while artificial intelligence (AI) will put people out of work, cryptocurrency will make jobs unnecessary. He suggested that those who buy and hold cryptocurrencies now could retire within a few years, adding that some people may have already done so.

Pension funds across Nordic countries are re-evaluating their investment exposure to U.S. assets, with some already selling off government bonds, Walter Bloomberg reported. Funds in Sweden, Denmark, and Finland have stated that the risk premium on U.S. stocks, bonds, and the dollar has increased. The report explained that discussions to diversify away from the U.S. market are intensifying due to heightened risks from geopolitical tensions and policy uncertainty. This development follows a previous warning from U.S. President Donald Trump, who stated there would be strong retaliatory measures if European nations were to sell their holdings of American assets, including government bonds and other securities.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping could meet four times this year, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, according to U.S. political media outlet Politico.

On-chain lending protocol USD.AI has approved a $500 million loan for Australian AI infrastructure provider Sharon AI, The Block reported. The loan will support the expansion of Sharon AI's GPU deployment, and the company plans to use the facility to finance an initial $65 million GPU acquisition starting this quarter. USD.AI operates as a blockchain-based lender for AI startups that have difficulty accessing traditional financial systems, providing loans collateralized by tokenized GPU assets.

Spot gold has once again set a new all-time high, breaking above $4,900 per ounce. The milestone comes just two days after it surpassed the $4,800 mark. Since the start of the new year, gold has gained approximately $600 per ounce. It is currently trading at $4,900.74, up 1.4% from the previous trading day.

BitGo (BTGO) stock rose 25% from its initial public offering price on its first day of trading, according to CoinDesk. The stock, which was priced at $18 for its IPO, opened at $22.43 on Jan. 22. The company is valued at approximately $2 billion. Ondo Finance (ONDO) had previously announced the launch of a tokenized version of BitGo's stock.

BlackRock Chief Investment Officer (CIO) Rick Rieder is gaining attention as a potential candidate for the next Federal Reserve Chair, Walter Bloomberg reported, citing Axios. On the prediction market Polymarket, the odds of Rieder's appointment are currently at 35%, placing him second behind former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh.

U.S. President Donald Trump has filed a $5 billion lawsuit against JPMorgan and its CEO, Jamie Dimon, according to Walter Bloomberg. The suit alleges that the bank closed Trump's accounts in 2021 for political reasons. Trump claimed that JPMorgan blacklisted him and his associated businesses, wrongfully terminating their accounts and causing financial loss and reputational damage. He asserted that this is a classic example of political debanking, aimed at excluding those with different political views from the financial system. JPMorgan maintains its position that it has never closed a client's account due to political views. The Trump family has previously mentioned that past experiences with debanking sparked their interest in cryptocurrency.

The DeepBook Protocol (DEEP), a dApp within the Layer 1 Sui (SUI) ecosystem, announced via its official X account that it has activated a margin trading feature. The protocol explained that this addition introduces leverage, enabling risk management capabilities beyond its previous focus on spot trading. Users will also have the opportunity to earn points and receive additional rewards by using the margin trading feature on DeepBook.

Ondo Finance (ONDO) has announced the launch of a tokenized version of BitGo (BTGO) stock. The tokenized shares will be tradable on Ethereum, Solana, and BNB Chain through Ondo Global Markets. This initiative marks the first time a company's stock has been tokenized immediately following its Initial Public Offering (IPO).

Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle (CRCL), predicts the stablecoin market will grow by approximately 40% annually, driven by accelerating adoption within the global banking system. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Allaire said that stablecoins have moved past the experimental phase and are now being integrated into actual financial infrastructure, according to The Block. He noted that this trend is increasing USDC transaction volumes among major banks and payment networks, adding his belief that all financial entities will participate in the stablecoin ecosystem in the medium to long term.

Chainlink has acquired Atlas, a transaction ordering tool developed by Fastlane, The Block reported. As part of the acquisition, Chainlink will hire Fastlane's core personnel, and Atlas will discontinue its support for RedStone, a competing oracle provider. Atlas is set to be integrated into Chainlink's SVR data technology project to enhance its capabilities in preventing MEV-related value leakage, a persistent issue within the DeFi ecosystem.

Spacecoin (SPACE) has entered into a token swap partnership with World Liberty Financial (WLFI), the project announced on its official X account. The two projects will collaborate to integrate DeFi with satellite internet connectivity. As part of the agreement, World Liberty Financial plans to use its native stablecoin, USD1, to provide payment and settlement services for new users on the Spacecoin network.

No written agreement has been reached between the United States and NATO regarding Greenland, Walter Bloomberg reported. Previously, U.S. President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had agreed to discuss several measures, including amending the U.S.-Denmark-Greenland military pact, banning Russian and Chinese investment in Greenland, and expanding NATO's role in the region. Walter Bloomberg added that because there is no formal document, other NATO member states are unable to ascertain the exact details of the discussions.

The Russian ruble-pegged stablecoin A7A5 has surpassed $100 billion in trading volume in less than a year since its launch and is being used to bypass economic sanctions, CoinDesk reported, citing a report from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The report noted that A7A5, issued on the Ethereum (ETH) and Tron (TRX) networks, is used by approximately 41,000 addresses. It functions as a bridge between the ruble and Tether, having processed $17.3 billion in swap transactions to date. However, its daily trading volume has recently plummeted following the strengthening of infrastructure sanctions in mid-2023. The report also explained that the stablecoin is becoming isolated within the crypto ecosystem because only its issuer has the authority to block addresses.

Bitcoin is exhibiting severe price weakness against gold, challenging its narrative as a digital store of value, Coindesk reports. The current BTC-to-gold price ratio is approximately 18.46, down about 55% from its peak in December 2024. This comes as spot gold has gained 12% year-to-date, climbing as high as $4,900 an ounce. Over a five-year period, gold's 160% return has also outpaced Bitcoin's 150%. The analysis pointed to historical precedents, noting the ratio fell 77% in 2022 and 84% in 2018, suggesting the current downturn may not have reached its floor.