Author: Tristan Lodenberg

Franklin Templeton has introduced an institutional off-exchange collateral program in collaboration with Binance, allowing clients to use tokenized money market fund (MMF) shares to support digital asset trading. The structure enables institutions to pledge tokenized MMF shares issued through Franklin Templeton’s Benji Technology Platform while keeping the underlying assets in regulated custody. Instead of transferring assets directly onto the exchange, the tokenized fund shares are held off-exchange by Ceffu Custody, a Dubai-regulated digital asset custodian. Their collateral value is mirrored within Binance’s trading system, enabling institutions to maintain trading positions without relinquishing control of their assets. The model is designed…

The era of explosive, high-risk gains in cryptocurrency markets could be drawing to a close as institutional investors reshape the industry, according to Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz. Speaking at a financial conference in New York, Novogratz said the influx of more risk-averse capital signals a maturing market structure. Institutional Adoption Changing Crypto Market Returns Novogratz noted that retail traders historically entered crypto seeking outsized returns, often targeting multiples such as 8x or even 30x gains. In contrast, institutional participants are typically focused on steadier, risk-adjusted performance. This shift, he suggested, may reduce the extreme volatility that once defined the sector.…

Bitcoin slid below the $67,000 level early Wednesday as traders reacted to a more hawkish U.S. macroeconomic outlook, triggering renewed pressure across major cryptocurrencies. The world’s largest digital asset dropped 3.1% over the past 24 hours to $66,804. Ether declined 4.1% to $1,965, while XRP and BNB fell 4.3% and 4.5%, respectively. Hawkish Federal Reserve Expectations Pressure Crypto Market analysts linked the downturn to shifting expectations around U.S. monetary policy. The nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair has been interpreted as a signal of tighter liquidity conditions and fewer potential rate cuts ahead. Traders are now closely watching…

Robinhood shares fell sharply in after-hours trading after the company reported fourth-quarter results that missed Wall Street revenue forecasts, despite posting record overall revenue for the period. The trading platform generated $1.28 billion in net revenue in Q4, a 27% increase year over year but below analyst expectations of $1.34 billion. The earnings shortfall weighed on investor sentiment, sending shares down 7.66% in extended trading to $79.04 after closing the regular session at $85.60. Crypto Revenue Declines as Market Slows Crypto-related revenue dropped 38% compared to the same quarter last year, falling to $221 million. The decline followed a broader…

LayerZero Labs has announced plans to launch a new layer-1 blockchain called “Zero,” with support from major financial players including ARK Invest and Citadel Securities. The network is scheduled to go live in fall 2026 and is designed to serve institutional financial markets. The company, best known for its cross-chain messaging protocol, said Zero aims to dramatically increase blockchain scalability by leveraging zero-knowledge proofs and a zero-knowledge virtual machine known as Jolt. Zero Chain Targets 2 Million Transactions Per Second According to LayerZero Labs, the Zero blockchain could scale to as many as two million transactions per second. The firm…

Goldman Sachs significantly reduced its exposure to spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds in the fourth quarter of 2025, trimming both bitcoin and ether ETF holdings as digital asset markets declined. Goldman Sachs Reduces Spot Bitcoin ETF Exposure As of Dec. 31, 2025, the firm held approximately 21.2 million shares across various spot bitcoin ETFs, valued at $1.06 billion, according to its latest regulatory filing. That represents a 39.4% drop in share count compared with the third quarter. The bank also reduced its position in spot Ethereum ETFs. Holdings totaled roughly 40.7 million shares worth about $1 billion at year-end, marking a…

Crypto mining firm Canaan saw its shares slide nearly 7% on Tuesday, even after posting its strongest quarterly revenue in three years. The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of $196.3 million, marking a 121.1% year-over-year increase driven by higher hardware sales and improved mining performance. Canaan Q4 Revenue Surges 121% Year Over Year Canaan’s Bitcoin mining revenue rose 98.5% compared to the same period last year, reaching $30.4 million. The company also expanded its digital asset holdings, with its Bitcoin treasury climbing to 1,750 BTC, valued at approximately $120 million. In addition, Ether holdings increased to 3,950 ETH, worth nearly $7.9…

The tokenized commodities market has climbed above $6.1 billion in value, marking a 53% increase in less than six weeks and emerging as the fastest-growing segment within the real-world asset tokenization sector. The sharp rise has been largely fueled by growing demand for tokenized gold as bullion prices rally to historic highs. Tokenized Gold Dominates Market Growth At the start of the year, the tokenized commodities market was valued at just over $4 billion, meaning nearly $2 billion has been added since January 1. Gold-backed digital assets account for the overwhelming majority of that growth. Tether Gold (XAUt) leads the…

Former FTX chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried has filed a motion requesting a new criminal trial as he continues to challenge his conviction related to the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange. The filing was submitted Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York through a pro se motion filed by his mother on his behalf. In the accompanying memorandum, Bankman-Fried accused federal prosecutors of withholding evidence and argued that the trial judge should be recused. The motion claims the case was built on what it describes as false allegations that customer funds were stolen and irreparably…

Robinhood has introduced a public testnet for Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum layer-2 network built using Arbitrum technology. The move signals a deeper push into tokenized real-world assets and decentralized finance infrastructure. The testnet is now accessible to developers and includes documentation, network access points, and compatibility with standard Ethereum development tools. Early infrastructure partners have already begun integrations. A mainnet launch is expected later this year. Robinhood says the network is engineered for financial-grade applications, including 24/7 trading, seamless asset bridging, self-custody functionality, tokenized asset platforms, lending protocols, and perpetual futures markets. Expansion Into Tokenized Stocks and DeFi Ecosystem The…