TheStreet Roundtable

Elk Capital Markets believes innovation will drive crypto adoption (5:20)

Institutional adoption in crypto is no longer just about chasing returns.

That’s the view of Neel Patel, founder and CEO of Elk Capital Markets, who argues that the current wave of institutional participation feels fundamentally different from previous bull cycles. 

It is not because prices are soaring, but because the market is finally catching up.

Related: Hyperlocalizing crypto access for broader adoption

Liquidity changes everything

Patel noted that earlier waves of institutional growth were largely price-driven. When crypto rallied, institutions followed. But this cycle, he said, shows deeper structural maturation.

“It feels very, very different than three years ago, five years ago,” Patel said. “The actual liquidity and size we see will be meaningful. It’s not going to be a sideshow.”

He pointed to recent moves by Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange to accelerate plans for 24/7 trading. The developments mirror crypto’s 24/7, 365-day markets. 

According to Patel, traditional finance is now "playing catch-up."

Perpetual futures, automated market makers and 24/7 trading are examples of crypto-native innovations that traditional markets are beginning to emulate.

“If you tell someone, if you wanted to sell your Tesla stock on Saturday night at 5 p.m., you can now, that’s going to make sense,” Patel said.

Payment rails and stablecoins, he added, are tangible use cases that resonate beyond speculative trading.

In prior cycles, institutions hesitated because liquidity was thin. A large fund cannot meaningfully deploy capital into markets where only small amounts are available at the touch. 

That constraint, he said, is fading.

Operational clarity is also improving. Regulatory pathways are becoming clearer, technology stacks are maturing and trading interfaces increasingly resemble traditional finance tools rather than experimental websites. For integration teams inside large firms, that familiarity matters.

While Bitcoin’s store-of-value narrative remains popular, Patel said innovation, not price appreciation, is the more compelling driver for long-term adoption.

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What defines 2026?

Looking ahead, Patel expects prediction markets and binary options to have a moment, noting that even traditional exchanges are revisiting those products.

But the bigger shift may come from artificial intelligence.

"I imagine as AI agents are taking off, they're going to need ways of transacting with the world. And I think that's where a really big technical driver can come in here," he said.

He also highlighted the emerging need to distribute and underwrite risk tied to GPU infrastructure and AI development.

In his view, the real story of crypto in 2026 will not hinge on whether prices dip or rally, but on whether innovation continues to reshape how markets operate.

And this time, institutions appear ready to participate at scale.

Related: 'AI that remembers': Jeremy Frank on blockchain, autonomous agents, and the future of software

David Duong Coinbase best video (3:40)

Coinbase Global (Nasdaq: COIN), the largest cryptocurrency trading exchange in the United States, reported the financial results for the fourth quarter of 2025 on Feb. 12.

It was during early October last year that Bitcoin (BTC) hit the record high price of $126,080 but has since only plummeted during Q4 and onwards. BTC is trading above $65,000 currently.

The COIN stock has crashed 65% since early October and fell around 8% at close at $141.09 today.

Only recently, JPMorgan Chase analyst Kenneth Worthington lowered the stock's price target from $399 to $290 and reiterated an "Overweight" rating.

FactSet expects Coinbase to report earnings share of $1 per for Q4, down from $4.66 per share a year earlier. Analysts predict revenue will fall 20% to $1.8 billion.

The earnings couldn't come at a worse time for Coinbase which suffered a trading disruption for more than an hour today.

Related: JPMorgan cuts Coinbase's price target ahead of earnings

Coinbase aims to become 'Everything Exchange'

Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam founded Coinbase in 2012 and took it public in 2021. In May last year, the company's stock earned a spot on the S&P 500 index.

It also acquired the world's largest crypto derivatives trading exchange, Deribit the last year.

The acquisition was part of the broader goal to turn Coinbase into an "Everything Exchange" where every assets, including stocks, cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, and prediction markets, are available to traders on a single exchange.

Coinbase has also emerged as a major player in the political circles in Washington, D.C. It first supported the Clarity Act but then withdrew support from the Senate draft over the restriction on stablecoin rewards.

Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder and chief executive officer of Gemini Trust Co., from left, Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder and president of Gemini Trust Co., Brian Armstrong, chief executive officer of Coinbase Global Inc., and Paolo Ardoino, chief executive officer of Tether Holdings Ltd., speak with Howard Lutnick, US commerce secretary, during a signing ceremony for the GENIUS Act in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, July 18, 2025.

"We’d rather have no bill than a bad bill," Armstrong remarked. The remark was met with sharp criticism from top figures of the Donald Trump administration such as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Coinbase is still engaged in negotiations regarding the legislation.

Meanwhile, Armstrong has sold about $545.7 million worth of company stock over the past nine months.

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Coinbase reports Q4 2025 financial results

Coinbase reported a net loss of $666.7 million in Q4 2025. The company posted $1.78 billion in total revenue, down 5% from the previous quarter.

The loss was largely driven by non-cash investment impacts, including a $718 million hit on its crypto investment portfolio and a $395 million loss tied to strategic investments such as its stake in Circle.

Despite the headline loss, core operations remained profitable. 

Coinbase generated $983 million in transaction revenue, down 6% quarter over quarter, with $734 million from retail trading and $185 million from institutional activity. Subscription and services revenue came in at $727 million, including $364 million from stablecoins and $152 million from blockchain rewards.

Key financial highlights:

Adjusted net income: $178 million

Adjusted EBITDA: $566 million

Operating expenses: $1.5 billion, up 9% quarter over quarter

Cash and cash equivalents: $11.3 billion at year-end

Paid Coinbase One subscribers: Nearly 1 million

Full-year 2025 net income: $1.26 billion

Coinbase had a strong Q3 2025

Coinbase posted strong results in the third quarter of 2025, even as broader crypto volatility returned later in the year.

The exchange reported $1.87 billion in revenue, up 25% from the previous quarter, with net income of $433 million and adjusted EBITDA of $801 million. Transaction revenue rose 37% to $1 billion as trading volumes reached $295 billion. Assets on the platform climbed to $516 billion, including a record $300 billion under custody.

Siddarth Bharwani - Bitcoin cycle (3:00)

February has been a difficult month for Bitcoin (BTC). 

In the past 30 days, it has dropped by 29.9%. At press time, it was trading at $65,189.77, well below its October 2025 peak of $124,000. 

Meanwhile, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index stood at just 5 as of Feb. 13, signaling “Extreme Fear.”

But investment bank Standard Chartered says crypto markets may not be done correcting just yet, according to CoinDesk.

The firm has lowered its short-term and full-year price forecasts for major cryptocurrencies.

Related: Standard Chartered apologises on bullish Bitcoin prediction

ETF investors under pressure

Geoff Kendrick, the bank’s head of digital assets research, said in a research note that ETF dynamics are a key driver of the ongoing weakness.

According to Kendrick, ETF holders, many of whom bought at higher levels, are more likely to reduce exposure than “buy the dip.”

Holdings of Bitcoin ETFs have declined by nearly 100,000 BTC from their October 2025 peak. The average ETF purchase price sits around $90,000, leaving many investors with unrealized losses of roughly 25%.

That positioning creates what Kendrick sees as additional downside risk if redemptions accelerate.

The crypto market has already weakened sharply in early 2026. Bitcoin has dropped almost 23% since the start of the year, and the total market capitalization has contracted significantly amid large liquidations and heightened volatility.

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Macro headwinds intensify

Crypto is also moving in closer correlation with equity markets as risk appetite fades.

Concerns over global growth and uncertainty around the interest-rate outlook have pushed capital toward traditional safe havens like gold. 

Markets are not expecting rate cuts before Kevin Warsh’s first Federal Open Market Committee meeting as Federal Reserve chair in mid-June, limiting near-term support for risk assets.

At the same time, stalled regulatory clarity in the United States and liquidity strains at certain institutions have weighed on confidence and trading volumes.

A painful but milder cycle

Despite the bearish near-term outlook, Standard Chartered does not view the current drawdown as catastrophic.

At its worst in early February, Bitcoin was down about 50% from its October 2025 high, with roughly half of the circulating supply still in profit. That decline is sharp, but less severe than previous cycles.

Crucially, this downturn has not been accompanied by the collapse of major crypto platforms, unlike 2022’s failures of Terra/Luna and FTX.

Kendrick argues this signals a maturing asset class with stronger structural underpinnings. 

Standard Chartered now expects Bitcoin to fall toward $50,000 in the coming months, with Ether potentially bottoming near $1,400.

Kendrick has also reduced his year-end 2026 targets from $150,000 to $100,000 for Bitcoin, $4,000 for Ether (ETH) from $7,500, and $135 from $250 for Solana (SOL).

The bank left its long-term targets unchanged, maintaining end-2030 projections of $500,000 for Bitcoin and $40,000 for Ether.

Related: BlackRock shares 2026 shocking crypto outlook

Inside U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessant's plan to tackle soaring debt (1:48)

When I dialed up a longtime financial adviser in New York this week and asked whether the latest household debt numbers worried him, he paused.

“Back in 2015, nobody was worried,” he said. “Delinquencies were low. Housing felt stable. Credit was expanding, but it didn’t feel dangerous.”

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit shows US household debt climbing to $18.8 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2025, up $191 billion from the previous quarter and $740 billion over the full year.

Since the end of 2019, total household debt has increased by $4.6 trillion.

Mortgage balances rose to approximately $13.17 trillion. 

Credit card balances climbed to $1.3 trillion. Auto loans reached $1.7 trillion, while student loans also stood at $1.7 trillion.

Related: Treasury Secretary Bessent reveals plan to tackle soaring $38T debt

What rising delinquencies mean

A loan becomes “delinquent” when a borrower misses a scheduled payment. 

Loans that are 90 days or more overdue are considered “seriously delinquent,” a key measure of financial stress because they signal deeper repayment trouble.

In the fourth quarter of 2025, the share of total household debt in some stage of delinquency rose to 4.8%, up from 4.5% in the prior quarter, the highest level since 2017.

Mortgage performance remains stable at the national level, but stress is beginning to build in certain areas.

“Overall, mortgages continue to perform well by historical standards and have risen recently only after having reached artificially low levels during the (COVID-19) pandemic,” economists at the regional Fed bank said in a blog post accompanying the report.

On average, 1.3% of mortgages became seriously troubled last year, a level comparable to pre-pandemic norms. 

However, the share of mortgages newly entering serious delinquency rose to 1.4% in Q4, up from 1.09% in the previous quarter.

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The deterioration is concentrated.

“In lower-income areas and in areas experiencing worsening labor markets or housing market conditions, we are seeing mortgage delinquencies grow at a fast pace,” the economists wrote.

Multifamily housing is also showing strain. Seriously delinquent multifamily loans at Freddie Mac have climbed to 0.48%, the highest in at least 21 years. Fannie Mae’s comparable rate has reached 0.75%, approaching levels seen during the 2008 financial crisis.

Student loans remain the most pressured segment

Student debt continues to represent the weakest part of household credit.

The New York Fed reported that 9.6% of student loans are at least 90 days delinquent, “reflecting continued effects from the resumption of payment reporting following the extended pandemic forbearance period.” 

The share of student loans flowing into serious delinquency surged to 16.2%, up sharply from 0.7% in the previous quarter.

Credit card and auto loan balances also increased during the quarter. While non-mortgage delinquency rates remain elevated, Fed researchers suggested they may be stabilizing.

“We would characterize overall that delinquency rates have, especially for non-mortgage debt, that they've really stabilized or leveled off,” a New York Fed researcher said during a conference call.

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What it means for crypto

Rising delinquencies mean that tightening financial conditions.

When more households fall behind on payments, it often reflects thinner savings cushions and reduced flexibility in spending.

That matters for risk assets.

Crypto markets are closely tied to retail liquidity and speculative participation. 

Higher debt burdens combined with slower labor momentum can reduce disposable income, limiting trading activity. Exchanges have already reported softer transaction volumes in recent months, reflecting weaker retail engagement.

Related: Gold, silver, S&P 500, crypto crash again amid extreme fear

Gold vs Bitcoin: Which one is a better store of value? (2:59)

The markets are witnessing another day of bloodbath as precious metals, leading U.S. market benchmarks, and cryptocurrencies crashed on Feb. 12.

Gold's price fell 2.77% today to drop below $4,900 per ounce. The precious metal had surpassed the price mark of $5,000 per oz a few weeks ago to hit a new all-time high (ATH).

Silver crashed worse, dropping more than 9% today to trade around $75 per oz. The metal had also surpassed the price mark of $100 per oz a few weeks ago to hit a new ATH.

Related: Coinbase trading disrupts on earnings day

The S&P 500, a stock market index tracking the stock performance of 500 leading companies listed on stock exchanges in the U.S., fell 1% to 6,870 points. The benchmark reached above 7,000 points in late January to reach a record high.

The Nasdaq Composite, a stock market index that includes almost all stocks listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange, fell 1.5% to around 22,700 points. This index also surpassed 24,000 points in late October last year to reach a record high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), a stock market index of 30 prominent companies listed on stock exchanges in the U.S., also fell 1% to 49,500 points. The DJIA reached above 50,000 points on Feb. 10 to hit its new ATH.

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Crypto continues to bleed

Bitcoin (BTC) fell more than 2.5% over the last 24 hours to trade around $65,250 today. It was trading at $65,848.94 at the time of writing.

Like other assets, even BTC had been hitting record high prices and even surpassed the $126,000 mark in early October last year. But after the devastating crypto market crash on Oct. 10, it has failed to recover.

In fact, it has been struggling to stay afloat the $70,000 mark for the past few days.

As per the onchain analytics platform CoinGlass, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index is sitting at 6 points right now, indicating "extreme fear" among traders in the crypto markets.

Source: Crypto Fear & Greed Index, CoinGlass

The total crypto market cap fell 1.5% over the last 24 hours to $2.33 trillion.

24-01-08 - David Duong Coinbase -- PULLOUT 3 (4:15)

Trading on Coinbase Global (Nasdaq: COIN), the largest crypto trading exchange in the U.S., has disrupted at the moment.

"We are aware that customers may be unable to buy, sell, transfer on Coinbase.com at this time. Our team is investigating this issue and will provide an update. Your funds are safe," Coinbase informed the users on Feb. 12, 10:07 PST.

The crypto exchange will report its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2025 after the closing bell today.

This is a breaking story. Please keep refreshing for latest updates.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino says CBDCs could turn money into a surveillance tool (3:11)

Bo Hines, the former White House crypto advisor now leading the crypto giant Tether's U.S. subsidiary, has revealed a new plan regarding the purchases of U.S. Treasury Bills.

Tether is a major crypto company that is best known for its flagship USDT stablecoin.

Last month, Tether also launched USAT, the federally regulated, USD-backed stablecoin developed specifically to operate within the U.S.'s new federal stablecoin framework established under the GENIUS Act.

Related: Explained: What is a stablecoin?

A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency that tries to stabilize its value by being pegged to a "stable" asset like a fiat currency or a commodity.

Both USDT and USAT are stablecoins pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar and backed by reserves like U.S. Treasury Bills.

Tether could be among top 10 U.S. Treasury Bill buyers this year, Hines says

Hines thinks that increasing demand for both USDT and USAT stablecoins could drive Tether to ramp up its U.S. Treasury Bill purchases in 2026.

“This year, I think we'll end up being a top 10 purchaser of T-bills.”

The Tether USAT CEO made the remark while speaking at the Bitcoin Investor Week conference in New York on Feb. 11.

In fact, 83.11% of Tether’s reserves are in T-bills, with $122.32 billion worth of the U.S. government debt securities as of Dec. 31, 2025, according to the attestation.

Tether is already among the largest 20 T-bill holders, “including all sovereign states,” Hines added.

Tether, with over $122 billion worth of T-bills, is far ahead of countries like Germany ($109.8 billion) and Israel ($107.7 billion) when it comes to holdings of U.S. Treasuries.

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“We're obviously increasing the amount of T-bills we have in our reserves as we move towards this GENIUS compliance standard,” Hines said.

Notably, he is said to have played a major role in the progress on the GENIUS Act as the former executive director of the White House Crypto Council under President Donald Trump.

President Donald Trump signs the GENIUS Act at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 18, 2025.

Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law in July last year, and Hines stepped down from the role a month later.

The GENIUS Act mandates that every regulated USD-pegged stablecoin should be backed 1:1 by dollar holdings like short-term U.S. Treasury Bills. This is why Hines sounds certain about Tether becoming among the top 10 purchasers of T-bills.

As far as USDT and USAT are concerned, Hines said there will be “reciprocity” between the two.

“It's just Tether at the end of the day,” he added.

As per the onchain analytics platform DeFiLlama, the total stablecoin market cap is $307.456b at press time.

Source: Total Stablecoins Market Cap, DeFiLlama

With a market cap of $183.94 billion, USDT is the world's largest stablecoin and accounts for 59.83% of the total stablecoin market.

Related: Tether appoints former White House crypto director Bo Hines as strategic advisor

‘People are putting money behind the outcome’ — Polygon CEO on Polymarket (4:35)

A prediction market platform best known for letting users wager on world events is making an unexpected foray into New York City’s grocery business.

Polymarket has opened what it describes as the city’s first-ever “free grocery store,” a fully stocked pop-up in Lower Manhattan offering food staples at no cost.

Related: NYSE owner acquires major stake in Polymarket

Prediction market now has pantry shelves

Polymarket is a decentralized prediction market platform that allows users to bet on real-world outcomes using cryptocurrency, with odds set by market demand.

Founded in 2020 by Shayne Coplan, the blockchain-based platform gained prominence during major political and macroeconomic events.

Now, it is applying a similar attention-grabbing strategy in the physical world.

The grocery store opened on Feb. 12 at 12 pm. 

No purchase is required, and shoppers can walk in and pick up items while supplies last.

However, it is not forever. The grocery store is scheduled to remain open through Feb. 16, according to NYC for Free listings. 

Photos circulating on social media show shelves stocked with everyday essentials like milk, eggs, and bread, alongside brand-name snacks such as Pringles, Sour Patch Kids, and Oreo cookies.

While temporary, the pop-up has generated significant buzz, both online and offline.

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A growing marketing trend

Just days ago, rival prediction market Kalshi also staged a similar publicity event. Kalshi owner George Zoitas reportedly gave hundreds of shoppers at Westside Market in Manhattan’s East Village $50 each toward their grocery purchases.

These stunts arrive amid heightened political debate over food affordability in New York City.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani previously pledged to open government-run grocery stores as part of his campaign platform, proposing a model that could involve partnerships with local grocery and bodega owners. 

His plan includes launching five city-run stores.

Related: Polymarket now accepts Solana for wallet deposits

Mark Cuban has a one-word reaction to Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s explosive feud (2:46)

After taking over Twitter, Elon Musk has turned the social media platform into a different beast. First, he rebranded it to X, and then, algorithm updates every few weeks became a constant.

Musk argues the goal of these algorithm updates is to offer the best experience to X users. But not everyone seems happy.

Billy Markus, the software engineer who co-created Dogecoin (DOGE), expressed his displeasure that he really hates the current X algorithm.

Musk acknowledged that he also doesn't like it and is working to improve it.

Markus responded that any social app should show your content to your followers and you see the content from accounts you follow. Any algorithm that fails this norm is a failure, he added.

in general, any algorithm that disrespects the implicit contract of a social app - you mostly see the content of the accounts you follow, your content is mostly shown to your followers - is a failure

imo metrics should track what percent of people’s posts are shown to followers

— Shibetoshi Nakamoto (@BillyM2k) February 12, 2026

Launched in December 2013, Dogecoin is the first meme coin. In short, it is a type of cryptocurrency that originates from an internet meme or a prank.

The meme coin found support from Musk earlier, who once used to talk or share posts about DOGE quite often.

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X and crypto community

It's not the first time that the crypto community has found the X algorithm to be troubling.

Last month, X product head Nikita Bier announced a revision of its developer API policies to not allow apps like information finance (InfoFi) that reward users for posting on X.

InfoFi is a crypto concept that involves turning financial information and user engagement into monetary value. Kaito, a popular InfoFi project, saw its native token tanking immediately after the announcement.

While a lot of crypto users found the development to be positive as it aims to remove "AI slop" and spam, some users complained that since X doesn't pay creators enough, they have to rely on other means like InfoFi to earn.

However, not every development on X has been ill-fated for crypto users.

Bier announced last month that X is going to launch Smart Cashtags, a feature designed to let users tag exact assets, including crypto assets, directly in posts.

The same month, he announced the launch of a new tool called "Starterpacks" to help new users find the best X accounts as per their interests. There are several crypto-focused super packs on X, such as Crypto Founders, Bitcoin Maximalists, etc.

Related: Elon Musk reveals surprising SpaceX moon mission for Dogecoin

‘Banks are quietly warming up to crypto again,’ says Bison Digital exec (2:29)

America’s top banking trade group is urging regulators to slow crypto’s march into federally supervised finance, even as approvals move forward.

In a letter submitted Feb. 12 to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the American Bankers Association (ABA) asked the agency to delay additional crypto trust bank charter approvals until Congress finalizes stablecoin and broader digital asset rules. 

The ABA is the largest U.S. banking trade group, representing banks of all sizes before Congress and federal regulators. 

Its members include major institutions such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, among thousands of regional and community banks.

Related: Ripple receives surprising news to operate as national trust bank

OCC conditionally approves five trust banks

On Dec. 12, the OCC announced it had conditionally approved five national trust bank charter applications following what it described as a rigorous review process.

Among those receiving approval were Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos.

If regulatory conditions are met, the firms will join roughly 60 national trust banks already supervised by the federal regulator.

OCC Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould said welcoming new entrants into the federal banking system promotes competition, innovation and consumer access to financial services.

Unlike traditional banks, national trust banks do not take deposits or make loans. Instead, they safeguard assets and provide custody, settlement and fiduciary services, functions that align closely with crypto infrastructure and tokenized assets.

For firms such as Ripple and Circle, trust bank status offers federal oversight and credibility without the balance sheet risks of operating a full-service consumer bank.

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The ABA, however, urged caution.

The group criticized the OCC’s practice of conditioning approvals on compliance with the GENIUS Act, noting that full implementation of the law could take years and requires rulemaking from multiple federal agencies.

The banking lobby asked regulators to “be patient” and not measure charter decisions against traditional timelines, arguing that each applicant’s regulatory responsibilities should be fully clarified before approvals advance.

It also flagged resolution risks, citing the collapses of FTX and Celsius in 2022 as examples of how novel business models can unravel in ways regulators may struggle to manage.

Additionally, the ABA called for restrictions on non-bank trust companies using the word “bank,” arguing that such branding could mislead consumers about the nature of services offered.

TheStreet Roundtable reached out to Ripple, Circle and others for a comment and had not received a response by the time of publication.

Related: Treasury Secretary Bessent warns Coinbase is blocking major legislation

Over $19 billion liquidated in worst crypto crash since COVID (2:06)

The World Uncertainty Index (WUI) hit a new all-time high (ATH) and surpassed levels previously seen during the Sep. 11 attacks in 2001, the Iraq War in 2003, the global financial crisis in 2008, and the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

The WUI is an indicator that measures how much uncertainty is discussed in a country’s reports by counting the frequency of the word “uncertainty” and its variants in country reports published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

The more often the word "uncertainty" is mentioned in EIU country reports, the higher the country’s uncertainty index.

Source: FRED

Higher uncertainty generally translates into lower investment, slower economic growth, and increased financial volatility.

Last year, the WTI hit its ATH of 106,862.2 during Q3 and remained only slightly below 100,000 during Q4.

The global tariff tensions, geopolitical conflicts in Eastern Europe, West Asia, and Latin America, the weakening dollar, and the threat to the Federal Reserve's independence during the Donald Trump administration are the primary factors behind the uncertainty.

Related: Treasury Secretary Bessent reveals new plan to finance U.S. government

U.S. market rallying amid record 'uncertainty'

But it might seem strange why a metric indicating uncertainty has been hitting record highs while nearly all the major market indicators are performing exceedingly well on the charts.

Whether it's the NASDAQ Composite (above 24,000 points), the Nasdaq 100 (above 26,000 points), or the S&P 500 (above 7,000 points), nearly every market benchmark has been hitting new record highs.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index—an index of the value of the USD relative to a basket of foreign currencies—is at its lowest point at around 95.

So, the U.S. market is rallying higher while the general public is losing faith in the fiat currency.

The dollar debasement has driven traders to flock to precious metals like gold and silver. Gold surpassed $5,500 per ounce and silver surpassed $100 per ounce to hit new record prices recently.

But unlike precious metals, Bitcoin (BTC) has failed to leverage the dollar debasement trade of late.

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Is Bitcoin trading in line with 'uncertainty' index?

Bitcoin maximalists argue the cryptocurrency is "digital gold," as, like the bullion, it is also scarce and acts as a hedge against inflation and dollar debasement.

The argument stood until early October last year when Bitcoin surpassed the $126,000 price mark to reach its ATH. But the Oct. 10 crash sent the crypto market plummeting, and Bitcoin is yet to recover from the shock.

While the U.S. dollar index kept tanking, Bitcoin couldn't take advantage of it, reflecting thinner demand from both institutional and retail investors.

While many commentators would read it as "uncertainty" around Bitcoin, senior analysts have diverging views on its future.

Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s head of digital assets research, recently warned BTC could fall to $50,000 before rebounding to $100,000 by the end of the year. The $100,000 target is a downgrade from the earlier target of $150,000, though.

JPMorgan analysts led by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou are, however, bullish on Bitcoin, believing it could eventually hit $266,000.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $67,826.43.

Related: Cathie Wood just made her biggest stock purchase of 2026

How Cathie Wood became one of crypto’s earliest believers (3:41)

Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest loaded up on the biggest bag of 2026.

Wood has been accumulating crypto-related stocks for several years, but her 2026 buying activity only began toward the end of January.

Oddly enough, her largest single-day purchase of 2026 is Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ: HOOD), a stock that has fallen roughly 31% year-to-date. 

Much of the decline has been attributed to investor disappointment following its latest earnings report. HOOD closed at $78.07 on Feb. 11, sliding 8.69% in a single session.

Related: Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest praises Robinhood’s foray into prediction markets

Wood scooped up HOOD shares in early February, buying roughly $50 million worth of shares across multiple sessions

Trade disclosures from ARK’s flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) show the fund purchased $23.8 million in HOOD shares on Feb. 11, its single largest transaction of 2026. 

The buy followed additional acquisitions of $21.7 million on Feb. 2 and $5.2 million on Feb. 3, bringing ARKK’s total February allocation to approximately $50.7 million.

Robinhood ranks among top 10 Cathie’s trades

The Feb. 11 purchase represented 10.63% of ARKK’s position in HOOD added in a single day, according to ARK’s trade breakdown.

Robinhood now ranks among the top 10 holdings across ARK funds and sits as the No. 9 holding in ARKK, with a portfolio weight of roughly 3%.

The buying was not limited to ARKK. Other ARK funds, including ARKW and ARKF, also added HOOD shares during the same period, reinforcing the view that Wood sees the pullback as an opportunity rather than a warning sign.

ARK’s aggressive positioning contrasts with its recent trimming of other crypto-exposed names. In the same week, ARK reduced holdings in Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) across multiple ETFs, selling more than $20 million worth of shares.

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Earnings beat, crypto revenue cools

Robinhood’s fourth-quarter results were stronger than the stock’s recent performance might suggest.

The company reported diluted earnings per share of $0.66 for the fourth quarter of 2025, beating analyst expectations, while total net revenue climbed 27% year-over-year to $1.28 billion.

Transaction-based revenue increased 15% to $776 million. However, the crypto segment showed clear signs of cooling. 

Crypto transaction revenue fell 38% to $221 million, as digital asset trading activity slowed sharply.

Total crypto notional volumes came in at $82 billion, including $48 billion from Bitstamp and $34 billion from the Robinhood app, representing a 52% year-over-year decline.

Net income for the quarter reached $605 million, compared with $916 million in Q4 2024, while adjusted EBITDA rose 24% year-over-year to $761 million, indicating operational resilience despite weaker crypto flows.

On a full-year basis, Robinhood generated $4.5 billion in revenue in 2025, with $1.9 billion in net income and diluted EPS of $2.05, underscoring that the business remains profitable even in a softer trading environment.

Importantly, subscription revenue continued to strengthen. Robinhood Gold subscribers increased 58% year-over-year to 4.2 million.

Robinhood co-founders Baiju Bhatt and Vlad Tenev attend Robinhood Markets IPO Listing Day on July 29, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Robinhood)

Analyst sentiment remains constructive

Wall Street analysts remain broadly constructive on HOOD.

The consensus price target stands at $122.81 based on 28 analysts, implying significant upside from current levels. The most bullish forecast is $180, while the lowest sits at $47.

Recent updates from Cantor Fitzgerald, KeyBanc and Truist Securities placed average targets around $130. 

Truist lowered its price target from $155 to $130 while maintaining an Overweight rating, and KeyBanc cut its target from $160 to $130 while reiterating a Buy rating. Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to Outperform with a $125 target.

FactSet estimates ahead of the earnings release projected a 38% year-over-year decline in EPS to $0.63, while revenue was expected to increase nearly 34% to $1.36 billion. Analysts had anticipated crypto revenue to fall roughly 28% to $259 million.

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ARK Invest: Top 5 combined holdings

Across ARK’s ETFs, the portfolio remains heavily concentrated in high-conviction innovation names:

Tesla (TSLA) — $1.1B (10.11%)

AMD (AMD) — $461.8M (4.26%)

CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) — $453.8M (4.19%)

Tempus (TEM) — $438.3M (4.04%)

Teradyne (TER) — $430.0M (3.97%)

Robinhood now ranks #9 overall, with a $328.5M position and a 3.03% portfolio weight.

Where crypto stands inside ARK

Direct crypto and crypto-linked exposure includes:

• Coinbase (COIN): $280.6M (2.59%)
• Circle (CRCL): $206.9M (1.91%)
• Bullish (BLSH): $168.4M (1.55%)
• Bitmine (BMNR): $156.6M (1.44%)
• ARK Bitcoin Holding (ARKB): $99.2M (0.92%)

For comparison, Tesla alone outweighs ARK’s entire direct crypto allocation.

Related: Cathie Wood predicts 2026 revised outlook

25-01-16 Coinbase - PULLOUT 4 (3:11)

Just days after JPMorgan's price revision for Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN), another equity analyst has lowered the largest American crypto exchange's price target.

This comes right ahead of its earnings, which will be announced after market close on Feb. 12. 

H.C. Wainwright analyst Mike Colonnese warned of a potential revenue and adjusted EBITDA shortfall tied to weaker crypto markets.

Related: Cathie Wood buys crypto stocks aggressively as Bitcoin crashes

Earnings pressure builds on Coinbase

Colonnese expects the crypto exchange to report a miss on both net revenue and adjusted EBITDA, citing soft digital asset prices and subdued trading volumes throughout the quarter.

According to Colonnese's note, the crypto exchange may post an "unusually large headline EPS [earnings per share] loss." This would be largely because of unrealized crypto losses and its stake in Circle (NASDAQ: CRCL), which reportedly fell roughly 40% quarter-over-quarter.

Subscription and Services revenue guidance for the first quarter of 2026 could come in below consensus expectations due to continued weakness in digital asset prices and declining USDC market capitalization. 

H.C. Wainwright has currently estimated it at $756 million. 

Colonnese also warned of potential near-term share pressure right after earnings.

"We would not be surprised to see shares trade lower on the optics of a large reported net loss, especially given ongoing weak investor sentiment for crypto," the note read.

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Coinbase CEO's stock sales reach $500 million

Meanwhile, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has been selling his crypto stocks. 

VanEck’s Matthew Sigel said Armstrong has sold about $545.7 million worth of company stock over the past nine months, as reported by Decrypt.

Sigel, who leads digital assets research at the asset manager, shared Bloomberg pricing data showing Armstrong sold more than 1.5 million shares between April 2025 and January 2026.

Brian Armstrong, co-founder and chief executive officer of Coinbase Inc., speaks during the Singapore Fintech Festival, in Singapore, on Friday, Nov. 4, 2022.

The largest single-day sale took place on June 25, 2025, when Armstrong sold 336,265 shares at $355.37 each. The most recent transaction occurred on Jan. 5, when he sold 40,000 shares at $254.92 apiece, according to Sigel.

As the report began circulating, Armstrong responded on X,

"It would be a little crazy after 13 years, to have 99.999% of your net worth in one stock no? So there is only one direction to go. I still have vast majority of my net worth in Coinbase stock though, so I'm super long."

He added that he used the proceeds from his stock sale to start more companies.

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Analyst slashes Coinbase price target

Colonnese cut his price target on Coinbase to $350 from $425, a reduction of 17.6%, while maintaining a "Buy" rating on the stock.

At press time, shares were trading near $152.80 during pre-market hours on Feb. 12 after closing at $153.20 a day earlier. In this case, Colonnese's new price target is a potential upside of more than 128%.

Despite the cautious near-term outlook, the analyst remains constructively bullish on Coinbase's future.

"We are buyers of any weakness after tomorrow night's results, as we believe the risk/reward skews to the upside at these levels," he wrote.

He also pointed to potential positive catalysts, including progress on crypto market structure legislation, which could provide regulatory clarity and support long-term growth prospects for the exchange.

Recently, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent indirectly criticized Coinbase, tagging it as among the “recalcitrant actors” who are not ready to compromise and are holding back the progress on crypto legislation.

Related: Coinbase CEO denies reports of White House clash over crypto bill

Over $19 billion liquidated in worst crypto crash since COVID (2:06)

The crypto market is yet to recover from the Oct. 10 crash. The total digital asset market cap has fallen from $3.1 trillion a month ago to $2.3 trillion right now.

The leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), is trading at $67,610.98 right now, losing more than 25% of its value within a month. Ether (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency, has lost more than 35% of its value during the same period to trade at $1,950.28 at press time.

As per CoinGlass, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index is sitting at 12, indicating "extreme fear" for months now.

Related: JPMorgan revisits Bitcoin forecast after crash

The crypto community now fears if the ongoing winter could be worse than 2022 itself. While no big names like FTX have collapsed, several popular crypto companies have filed for bankruptcy protection or shut down during the last few months.

A chief equity strategist even warned that Bitcoin could slip to as low as $40,000 within 6-8 months.

Despite such bearish sentiment after the market crash, JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JMP) is still bullish on cryptocurrencies in 2026.

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JPMorgan counts on institutional investors in crypto

JPMorgan is the world's largest bank in terms of market capitalization. 

The bank recently argued institutional inflows and regulatory clarity could consolidate gains for digital assets, CoinDesk reported.

"We are positive in crypto markets for 2026 as we expect a further rise in the digital asset flow but more led by institutional investors," analysts led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said in a report.

JPMorgan analysts estimate Bitcoin’s production cost at roughly $77,000 currently, which creates a potential new equilibrium after miner capitulation.

If BTC continues to trade below the above-mentioned production cost for long, it could force miners to abandon operations. This could, however, reduce Bitcoin's production cost, leading to self-correction, the bank analyzed.

Earlier, the bank even remarked that gold's higher volatility, as compared to that of Bitcoin, makes the latter "more attractive."

JPMorgan is counting on institutional investors, not retail traders or digital asset treasuries, to drive a rebound in crypto flows in 2026. More regulatory clarity in the U.S., such as the progress on the Clarity Act, will likely boost the crypto rebound this year, the Wall Street bank said.

Related: JPMorgan revisits Bitcoin forecast after crash

Wellington bets on tokenized funds as client demand grows (3:37)

Traditional asset managers are increasingly exploring tokenization not as a radical reinvention of finance, but as a new delivery rail for familiar products. 

That was the message from Mark Garabedian, head of digital assets at Wellington Management, during a conversation with TheStreet Roundtable.

Speaking with host Jackson Hinkle, Garabedian said tokenization is less about creating entirely new asset classes and more about enhancing how existing products are issued, owned and transferred.

Related: What is tokenization? Explained

'New technology for a delivery method'

Garabedian framed tokenization as an evolution in infrastructure rather than a departure from core investment principles.

“With tokenization, really what you are doing is you are just utilizing new technology for a delivery method,” he said. “What you are delivering is still going to be an ETF, it’s still going to be a fund structure, it’s still going to be a private fund in cases, it’s still going to be [...] a stock, an equity product.”

In his view, the underlying investment mandate does not change. 

A tokenized fund can still hold treasuries, equities or other traditional assets. The difference lies in how ownership is recorded and transferred, via blockchain-based tokens rather than paper-based registries.

Garabedian emphasized that tokenization offers both operational efficiencies and added utility for clients. 

“There are efficiencies that can be gained but there’s also more utility that the end clients will be able to use,” he said.

For Wellington, client demand is central. 

“What we always want to make sure is that we are in a position to be able to deliver our services to our clients in the format that they want to take them in,” he added.

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Tokenized fixed-income strategy

Wellington’s initial move into digital assets came through its sub-advisory business, where the firm manages investments on behalf of product issuers.

Garabedian explained that the company was approached by Singapore-based issuer FundBridge to manage an ultra-short-duration fixed-income strategy offered in tokenized form. Instead of recording ownership in a traditional register, “the ownership shares are delivered to them in token form,” he said.

From an operational standpoint, the shift was less dramatic than some might expect.

“This is business as usual for Wellington,” Garabedian noted, adding that the firm did not require new portfolio management systems or processes to manage the underlying treasuries.

The experience, which also involved digital transfer agent Libera handling token minting and burning, demonstrated what he described as clear “product market fit” and a commercial opportunity.

Education as the core challenge

While the technology itself may be straightforward, Garabedian said education has been the most critical component, both internally and externally.

As he recounted, an early presentation to the firm’s CEO and leadership team “really resonated,” but broader buy-in required ongoing education across the organization.

In his assessment, one of the biggest values he brings to the firm is helping colleagues and clients understand what tokenization is, and what it is not.

Rather than positioning blockchain as a disruptive force that replaces traditional finance, Garabedian described it as an enabling layer. 

Related: As Wall Street eyes tokenization, a lack of market infrastructure presents hurdles

FTSE Russell’s Kristen Mierzwa says tokenized indices face liquidity hurdles (2:38)

Tokenized versions of traditional stock indices could become mainstream within the next 3-5 years, according to Kristen Mierzwa, the global head of digital asset business at FTSE Russell.

Speaking with TheStreet Roundtable host Jackson Hinkle, Mierzwa said the financial industry is already exploring how to bring index exposure fully on-chain and potentially allow investors exposure directly rather than through traditional exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

When asked whether investors may eventually purchase tokenized indices directly instead of ETF products, Mierzwa said, “Absolutely, that's where it's going.” 

Related: What is tokenization? Explained

Why asset managers still matter

Today, investors don’t directly buy the S&P 500 index itself. Instead, they purchase ETFs or other pooled investment vehicles that track it. Asset managers perform critical behind-the-scenes functions, including custody, dividend distribution, tax processing, and corporate action management.

Mierzwa emphasized that these operational layers are often overlooked but essential.

“Why do you use an asset manager? Because they're doing a lot of functions that are very important.”

She pointed to dividend payments, foreign tax reclaims, and custody management as key services that ensure investors receive the full exposure of the index.

How tokenization takes up corporate action challenges

In a tokenized system, those same processes would need to be automated and embedded into blockchain-based infrastructures.

One of the most complex hurdles to tokenized indices involves tokenizing corporate actions such as stock splits, mergers, or dividend adjustments.

"If there's a split, how does that kind of get all handled?" Mierzwa said. 

She underlined the importance of getting complex corporate actions right.

Ensuring that index token holders automatically receive dividends, stock splits, and other adjustments remains a significant technological and regulatory challenge.

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Discussions underway but liquidity yet to be addressed

While tokenized index products are not yet mainstream, Mierzwa revealed that discussions are already underway.

“We're already talking to people about tokenizing our indices today,” she said.

However, she noted that current blockchain ecosystems often operate in “walled gardens,” where tokenized assets may exist but lack deep secondary-market liquidity.

“You can tokenize something, there’s one investor that buys it, but there’s no liquidity in the secondary market for that,” she added.

Additionally, compliance requirements such as Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) norms must be addressed before broader adoption can occur and investors can buy tokenized indices.

Tokenized indices will be mainstream in 3-5  years

When asked whether tokenized index investing could arrive as soon as 2026, Mierzwa suggested the shift would take slightly longer.

“So we're there today in terms of proof of concept,” she said.

“But when do I think it will go mainstream? It's probably going to take another 3-5 years.”

Despite the wait, she characterized that timeline as relatively short given the scope of change.

If successful, tokenized indices could mark a major evolution in how investors access diversified market exposure, potentially reshaping the role of ETFs and traditional asset managers in the digital asset era.

Related: What are tokenized stocks? Explained

25-01-16 Coinbase - PULLOUT 5 (2:04)

The ripple effects of Oct. 10, 2025 are still moving through crypto markets. 

Now they are reshaping the billionaire leaderboard.

Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong is no longer listed among the world’s 500 richest people on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, following a steep downturn in digital asset prices and Coinbase stock.

Related: Treasury Secretary Bessent warns Coinbase is blocking major legislation

What is the Bloomberg Billionaires Index?

Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s wealthiest individuals, compiled by Bloomberg News. 

It estimates net worth using publicly available data tied to company holdings, stock prices, and other investments, adjusting fortunes in near real time as markets move.

For founders whose wealth is concentrated in volatile equities and crypto-linked assets, positions on the list can shift quickly.

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Armstrong’s fortune slides with Coinbase

Armstrong’s net worth has fallen by more than $10 billion from a peak near $17.7 billion, as reported by Bloomberg on Feb. 11. The index now estimates his wealth at approximately $7.5 billion, enough to push him out of the top 500.

The drop tracks closely with Coinbase’s stock performance. At press time, COIN was trading 7.16% lower at $150. This is roughly a 64% drop from their July 18, 2025 high of $419.

Bitcoin has also declined by about half since early October, dragging sentiment across the sector.

Further pressure followed a downgrade by JPMorgan Chase, which cut Coinbase’s price target by 27%. Analysts cited “softness in crypto prices,” lower trading volumes and slower stablecoin growth ahead of earnings.

Most of Armstrong’s wealth stems from his estimated 14% stake in Coinbase, the New York-based exchange he co-founded in 2012 with Fred Ehrsam. Bloomberg also notes that he has been a regular seller of the COIN stock.

Armstrong additionally holds a stake in longevity-focused biotech startup NewLimit, which he co-founded and personally backed.

Armstrong's drop from the billionaires index appears right before Coinbase's Q4 2025 earnings report scheduled after the closing bell on Feb. 12.

Brian Armstrong (Source: Flickr)

Techcrunch, Flickr

Crypto billionaires reshuffled

Armstrong is not alone in seeing his ranking shift.

As of Feb. 11, several crypto executives have experienced notable declines. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao remains the only crypto figure among the top 40 billionaires, with a net worth of $52.2 billion, though he is down $1.39 billion.

Justin Sun sits near the 400th position at $9.29 billion, down $76.7 million.

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, co-founders of the Gemini (NASDAQ: GEMI) crypto exchange, have seen their fortunes fall to roughly $1.9 billion each from about $8.2 billion in October. Gemini recently announced plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 25% and wind down select international operations.

Galaxy Digital (NASDAQ: GLXY) CEO Michael Novogratz’s fortune has dropped to around $6.2 billion from nearly $10.3 billion in October after the firm reported a roughly $500 million loss during the fourth-quarter crypto crash. 

Strategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) co-founder and executive chairman Michael Saylor has also seen his net worth decline to about $3.4 billion, down roughly two-thirds from a July 2025 high.

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Willy Wood Bitcoin and Altcoins (4:57)

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of Twitter and Block, Inc. (NYSE: XYZ), is one of the pioneering tech entrepreneurs of the 21st century.

While Twitter revolutionized social media forever, his Bitcoin (BTC)-centric fintech venture Block is dedicated to making crypto mainstream among both merchants and retail users.

Related: Elon Musk's X plans new feature for crypto traders

Founded in 2009, Block joined the S&P 500 index in July last year. Over the years, the company has integrated Bitcoin into several of its products:

Cash App, a wallet that allows Bitcoin investing

Bitkey, a self-custody Bitcoin hardware wallet

Proto, a Bitcoin mining system

Square, a point-of-sale system launching Bitcoin integration soon

The aggressive Bitcoin integration is no surprise, given the fact that Dorsey himself is a strong Bitcoin believer. He once said that if he weren't working on his other ventures, he would be working on Bitcoin.

Jack Dorsey

JD Lasica, Flickr

During an interview in May 2024, he predicted that Bitcoin's price will hit at least $1 million in 2030. Nobody knows what he thinks of that forecast amid the recent crypto crash.

But it hasn't stopped him from believing in maximal Bitcoin adoption.

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Jack Dorsey responds to zero-fees Bitcoin buy feature

On Feb. 9, Cash App rolled out "zero to low fee" Bitcoin buys. What it means is that users will incur zero fees on large or recurring Bitcoin buys and Bitcoin spending via the Lightning Network. Qualified users can also avail higher Bitcoin withdrawal limits.

Cash App users purchasing Bitcoin with the auto buy feature will incur no fees at all. 

For over $2,000 worth of Bitcoin, users buying or selling it will incur zero fees. For the rest, the market buy/sell fee structure is:

$1-$500: 2%

$501-$1,000: 1.5%

$1,001-$2,000: 0.9%

Other platforms charge 1%-2.5% fees for such Bitcoin purchases, Cash App said and added the goal of the feature launch is to make Bitcoin usable as money and a part of everyday life.

Cash App clarified that every Bitcoin a user buys on Cash App is held 1:1; so if they buy Bitcoin, the app holds it, and they have 24/7 access to withdraw it anytime.

The statement also clarified that Lightning Network, Square Bitcoin, and Bitkey are not available to New York residents. Bitcoin services are not licensable activity in all U.S. states and territories.

In his usually cryptic manner, Dorsey shared a one-word response to the latest announcement: "math".

math https://t.co/ovGB5cZI3i

— jack (@jack) February 10, 2026

Numbers don't lie and incentives drive adoption.

Though platforms like Cash App depend on transaction fees for revenue, the decision to roll out a zero-fees feature aims to attract maximum users to Bitcoin usage.

Bitcoin, meanwhile, has fallen nearly 5% over the last 24 hours. At press time, it was trading at $66,138.70.

Related: Jack Dorsey sends strong message on crypto tax

Wall Street is now ‘aggressively’ tracking an asset that’s outpaced U.S. debt since the Obama era (2:17)

It was in the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis that Bitcoin (BTC) was launched a year later to challenge the dominance of Wall Street in international money circles.

Since then, the cryptocurrency has come a come a long way and is now a $1.3 trillion behemoth despite the ongoing crash.

Wall Street giants like BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) were at first quite critical of Bitcoin, but growing adoption and soaring value drove the asset manager to launch a U.S. spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) linked to the crypto asset in January 2024. The success of the spot Bitcoin ETF encouraged BlackRock to launch a spot ETF linked to Ethereum (ETH) in July the same year.

Now, a 154-year-old banking institution has also decided to offer crypto investments after much hesitation.

Related: Mysterious trader bets millions right after latest BlackRock announcement

Danske Bank to offer Bitcoin and Ethereum ETPs 

Founded in 1871, Danske Bank A/S is a Danish multinational banking and financial services corporation. Headquartered in Copenhagen, it is the largest bank in Denmark and a major retail bank in the northern European region.

Like most traditional institutions, the bank was first dismissive of cryptocurrencies.

In 2018, it refused to allow crypto trading over its platforms and urged customers to refrain from investing in these assets. 

“Overall, we are negative towards cryptocurrencies and we strongly recommend that our customers avoid investing in cryptocurrencies,” the bank remarked in a report that year.

After nearly eight years, the bank announced on Feb. 11 that for the first time, its customers will be able to invest in exchange-traded products (ETPs) that track Bitcoin and Ethereum prices.

The bank's customers will be able to invest in these crypto products via Danske eBanking and Danske Mobile Banking without using any digital wallets.

The headquarters of Danske Bank in Bernstorffsgade is pictured in Copenhagen, Denmark on February 12, 2025.

These crypto products are offered by leading asset managers like BlackRock and Wisdomtree, and are covered by MiFID II regulations to ensure enhanced investor protection and transparency, said Kerstin Lysholm, Danske Bank's head of investment products and offerings.

The bank said it has launched the new investment option to meet an increasing customer demand.

“As cryptocurrencies have become a more common asset class, we are receiving an increasing number of enquiries from customers wanting the option of investing in cryptocurrencies as part of their investment portfolio," said Lysholm.

She also credited Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), the crypto regulatory framework in the European Union, for encouraging the bank to offer these products in a better-regulated market.

"On balance, we have therefore come to the conclusion that the time is ripe for making cryptocurrency investment products available to the customers who want to invest in the asset class and who accept the very high risks involved in cryptocurrency-related investments,” she added.

Lysholm underlined that the bank considers ETPs as a "suitable solution" with clear advantages as compared to direct investments in cryptocurrencies.

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ETP offerings don't mean a recommendation of crypto assets

The bank clarified that it doesn't offer any advisory services for crypto investment products as it currently considers them to be "opportunistic" investments rather than long-term financial instruments.

Lysholm emphasized that the bank's offering of crypto ETPs shouldn't be construed as a recommendation of the asset class on the part of the bank.

The bank also underlined that crypto investments are highly volatile and customers won't be able to invest in these ETPs using its trading platform until the bank is satisfied that the customers have sufficient experience and knowledge to understand the risks and characteristics of investing in crypto ETPs.

Bitcoin has dropped nearly 5% over the last 24 hours and was trading at $66,256.79 at press time.

Ether has dropped more than 5% to trade at $1,920.02 at press time.

Related: US Treasury, IRS clear crypto ETPs to stake and share rewards

Why crypto bankruptcies are rising again in 2026 (3:22)

Whenever a company files for bankruptcy, markets and business models are usually blamed. But not every collapse begins with bad strategy or falling demand. Sometimes, natural disasters deliver a fatal blow.

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) filed for Chapter 11 in January 2019 after facing tens of billions of dollars in liabilities tied to California wildfires, including the deadly Camp Fire.

The company said wildfire-related claims created unsustainable financial pressure, ultimately forcing bankruptcy protection.

J.C. Penney, while primarily burdened by debt and declining sales, cited damage from Hurricane Harvey in 2017 as one of several compounding financial stressors ahead of its 2020 bankruptcy.

Pacific Theatres, operator of ArcLight Cinemas, also pointed to fire-related property damage alongside pandemic shutdowns before filing in 2021.

PG&E remains the clearest example of a bankruptcy substantially triggered by fire-related liabilities. In most cases, natural disasters act as accelerants rather than sole causes.

Related: What is Bitcoin mining? Explained

Mining bankruptcies are usually blamed on margins

In Bitcoin mining, however, bankruptcies are often immediately attributed to falling hashprice and compressed margins.

To be fair, mining is no longer a small-scale operation run by a handful of early adopters.

It now includes industrial hosting firms, complex sale-leaseback financing structures, AI-integrated data centres and even politically connected ventures such as Eric Trump-backed American Bitcoin.

But even in a more institutional era, the economics remain unforgiving.

Related: Analyst predicts 139% surge for sinking Trump-backed stock

NFN8 files for Chapter 11

Texas-based mining operator NFN8 Group Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the Western District of Texas after a fire at one of its primary facilities and prolonged financial strain tied to lease obligations and litigation.

According to its Declaration in Support of First Day Motions, the company’s distress stems from what Chief Restructuring Officer Erik White described as “a convergence of extraordinary events – market dislocation following the April 2024 Bitcoin halving, prolonged and expensive litigation, and a catastrophic fire at one of the Debtors’ primary operating facilities.”

NFN8 operates what it describes as an “asset-intensive Bitcoin mining business at industrial scale.”

Through subsidiaries NFN8 Capital LLC and NFN8 Holdings LLC, the firm owns more than 5,000 unencumbered machines and manages thousands more via leases and joint ventures across facilities in Texas and Iowa.

A central pillar of its capital structure was a sale-leaseback equipment financing programme involving more than 250 counterparties.

Related: Bankrupt Bitcoin miner faces new hurdle in Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Under the arrangement, NFN8 sold mining machines to investors and leased them back under fixed-term agreements, with lease payments funded by mining revenue.

The April 2024 halving compressed margins across the sector. According to the filing, revenue-per-terahash recovered “far more slowly than in previous halvings.”

Liquidity pressures intensified as litigation emerged. Three sale-leaseback participants filed suit in October 2024, alleging breach of contract and securities violations.

While the dispute was moved to arbitration, White warned that:

“An adverse arbitral award followed by post-judgment collection efforts would likely result in operational paralysis and a value-destructive dismemberment of the Debtors’ mining platform.”

The fire that tipped the balance

Then came the operational blow.

A fire at NFN8’s 78,377-square-foot Crystal City facility between Christmas and New Year’s Day 2025 “reduc[ed] the Debtors’ mining capacity and revenue by as much as 50%.” While the company maintains insurance coverage, the filing states that “the timing of payment remains uncertain.”

To stabilise operations during the restructuring, NFN8 secured $2.75 million in debtor-in-possession financing from Twelve Bridge Capital LLC. The company now intends to pursue a court-supervised sale process under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code.

The filing says Chapter 11 will allow the company to “preserve value and ensure an orderly, transparent restructuring.”

NFN8 is not alone in the current cycle

Orb Energy Co., a Texas-based Bitcoin miner, filed for Chapter 11 in 2025 in the Southern District of Texas.

Rhodium Enterprises, another Texas-based mining firm, filed for Chapter 11 in August 2024 with liabilities of up to $100 million. Proceedings extended into 2025, reflecting continued sector stress.

Related: Explained: Types of Bitcoin mining

Network strength despite miner failures

Yet while individual miners struggle, the broader Bitcoin network tells a different story.

According to CoinWarz data, the current Bitcoin network hashrate stands at 930.57 exahashes per second (EH/s) at block height 936,066, with mining difficulty at 125.86 trillion. Bitcoin is trading around $66,288 at the time of writing.

Hashrate measures the total computing power securing the Bitcoin network — essentially how many guesses per second miners collectively make to solve the next block. The higher the hashrate, the more competitive and capital-intensive mining becomes.

Despite bankruptcies, the network remains historically strong. Bitcoin’s all-time hashrate high reached 1.442 zettahashes per second (ZH/s) in September 2025. For context, one zettahash equals 1,000 exahashes.

Related: Another crypto company halts withdrawals as markets slide