On January 15, news emerged that the cryptocurrency market had rebounded, with Bitcoin rising to a two-month high of $97,500. This surge coincided with the U.S. Senate Banking Committee preparing for a critical vote on the Cryptocurrency Market Structure Act, but the bill's fate has been thrown into uncertainty due to intense negotiations between Wall Street banks and the cryptocurrency industry over revenue rights for stablecoins.
As of press time, $Bitcoin (BTC.CC)$ Bitcoin fell by 0.34%, trading at $96,438.56. $Ethereum (ETH.CC)$ Ethereum fell by 0.97%, trading at $3,313.39.
Key Focus
U.S. Digital Currency Regulatory Proposal Faces Critical Vote as Wall Street and Crypto Industry Engage in Intense Negotiations
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee is preparing for a critical vote on the Cryptocurrency Market Structure Act, but the bill's fate has been thrown into uncertainty due to intense negotiations between Wall Street banks and the cryptocurrency industry over revenue rights for stablecoins.
On the eve of the Senate Banking Committee's scheduled review of the bill on Thursday morning, Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, suddenly announced on social media that the company was withdrawing its support for the bill. Armstrong stated, "We would rather have no bill than a bad one," and listed several key issues, including restrictions on stablecoin rewards, tokenized stocks, and decentralized finance.
This statement dealt a significant blow to the prospects of the bill, which originally aimed to clarify the regulatory division between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding the cryptocurrency sector.Futures Exchange,The legislation was considered a key step toward legitimizing the cryptocurrency industry. However, disagreements between banking lobbyists and cryptocurrency companies over stablecoin revenue payments, along with Democratic demands to include conflict-of-interest clauses for government officials, could hinder the bill’s passage during the committee vote.
According to reports by crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett, after Coinbase publicly expressed opposition, several companies in the crypto industry, along with trade associations, have issued statements in support of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee’s cryptocurrency market structure bill. Currently, a16z, Circle, Kraken, Digital Chamber, Ripple, and CoinCenter have all voiced their support.
According to a cryptocurrency lobbyist who spoke anonymously to Fortune magazine, "There is a real possibility this bill could collapse at the committee stage. Industry insiders are extremely agitated right now."
Robinhood CEO: The US Should Take a Leadership Role in Crypto Policy and Support the Passage of the Market Structure Bill
$Robinhood (HOOD.US)$ CEO Vlad Tenev stated on the X platform that staking is one of the most in-demand features on RobinhoodApp, but due to the ongoing impasse, customers in four U.S. states still cannot access this feature.
Stock tokens are now available to EU customers but have yet to be launched in the U.S. market. The U.S. should take a leadership role in crypto policy by enacting legislation that protects consumers while fostering innovation for everyone. Efforts to pass the market structure bill through Congress have encountered challenges, but progress is being made, and there is now a clear path forward. Assistance will be provided to BankingGOP and SenateBanking in advancing the bill’s passage.
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has canceled the market structure bill markup session originally scheduled for Thursday.
According to crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett, given that today$Coinbase (COIN.US)$ Amidst the controversy triggered by the incident, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee decided to cancel the market structure bill markup session originally planned for Thursday. It remains unclear whether a new date for the meeting has been determined.
Ethereum staking reaches a new high, with nearly 30% of its total supply now locked.
Data from validatorqueue.com shows that Ethereum staking has hit a record high of 35.9 million ETH, accounting for approximately 29.61% of the total ETH supply. As of now, there are 160 ETH in the PoS network's exit queue, with an estimated waiting time of about 4 minutes. Meanwhile, there are 2,479,680 ETH awaiting activation, with an expected delay of roughly 43 days and 1 hour.
Manhattan prosecutor calls for criminalizing unlicensed cryptocurrency operations.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is urging New York State legislators to criminalize unlicensed cryptocurrency businesses to prevent crypto assets from being widely used in money laundering and organized crime. This includes mandating that crypto businesses obtain licenses and implement Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols. He specifically highlighted unlicensed crypto ATMs as potential facilitators of anonymous currency exchanges for illicit funds. Bragg also expressed support for legislative measures aimed at enhancing the recovery of stolen crypto assets, advocating for mandatory licensing and KYC requirements for all cryptocurrency enterprises, backed by criminal penalties.
Visa: Stablecoin settlement annualized run rate reaches $4.5 billion but remains unscaled at merchant endpoints.
$Visa (V.US)$Crypto lead Cuy Sheffield stated that Visa is working to integrate stablecoins into existing payment systems. The annualized run rate for stablecoin settlements is approximately $4.5 billion, driven primarily by demand for stablecoin-linked payment cards. However, stablecoins still lack 'scaled acceptance' at merchant endpoints. A pilot program allowing select banks to settle with Visa using USDC has been launched in the United States.
JPMorgan: Cryptocurrency inflows may continue to rise through 2026, with institutional investors becoming the main driving force.
$JPMorgan (JPM.US)$Analysts predict that after recording a historic influx of nearly $130 billion into the cryptocurrency market in 2025, representing year-over-year growth of about one-third, overall inflows are expected to continue rising in 2026. However, the primary drivers will increasingly shift toward institutional investors. The analysis indicates that 2025's growth was largely propelled by allocations in Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, as well as Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) companies, while institutional participation reflected in CME futures showed a marked slowdown compared to 2024.
The Federal Revenue of Brazil (RFB) has resumed the publication of domestic crypto asset reporting data after an interruption of approximately three months.
The Federal Revenue of Brazil (RFB) has resumed the publication of domestic crypto asset reporting data after an interruption of approximately three months, with the latest disclosure as of September 2025. The data shows that about 4.58 million individuals and 92,000 businesses reported crypto transactions during the month, marking a notable decline compared to August. In terms of transaction structure, stablecoins continue to dominate, with USDT leading at approximately 15.7 billion Brazilian reais in trading volume, significantly higher than Bitcoin's roughly 2.46 billion reais, although Bitcoin still recorded more transactions. Assets such as Ethereum and Solana maintained high activity levels. The tax authority stated that it will further strengthen the supervision and tracking of crypto transactions through the DeCripto mechanism in the future.
Arthur Hayes predicts: Dollar liquidity will increase in 2026, and Bitcoin will rise accordingly.
According to Cointelegraph, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes predicted in his latest article that dollar liquidity will increase in 2026 as the Federal Reserve expands its balance sheet, and bank loans and mortgage rates decline, which will also drive the rise of Bitcoin.
Lemon, Argentina’s second-largest crypto exchange, announced the launch of the country’s first Bitcoin-backed Visa credit card.
According to La Nación, Lemon, Argentina’s second-largest crypto exchange, announced the launch of the country’s first credit card backed by Bitcoin. $Visa (V.US)$ This credit card allows users without a bank account or credit history to obtain peso financing without selling their BTC. In the first phase, users can pledge 0.01 BTC (approximately $900) to receive a credit limit of about 1 million pesos. Lemon stated that subsequent phases will allow customization of collateral ratios and credit limits, with plans to support direct repayment of dollar spending using stablecoins. $USDCoin (USDC.CC)$ 、 $Tether (USDT.CC)$ These efforts aim to transform Bitcoin’s long-term savings into a tool for everyday financial use.
Multiple companies, including a16z, Circle, and Ripple, have expressed support for the crypto market structure bill introduced by the Senate Banking Committee.
According to crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett, following Coinbase's public opposition, several companies and industry associations within the crypto sector have issued statements supporting the crypto market structure bill proposed by the U.S. Senate Banking Committee. Currently, a16z, $Circle (CRCL.US)$ Kraken, Digital Chamber, Ripple, and CoinCenter have all expressed support.
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev: Staking is one of the most demanded features by users
$Robinhood (HOOD.US)$ CEO Vlad Tenev tweeted that staking is one of the most demanded features by users, but due to regulatory deadlock, it is still not available to users in four U.S. states. Meanwhile, stock tokens have already launched in the EU but cannot be rolled out within the U.S. He called on the U.S. to take a leadership role in crypto policy, urging swift passage of market structure legislation that both protects consumers and unleashes innovation potential. He also expressed support for relevant congressional legislative efforts and is willing to assist the House and Senate Banking Committees in advancing the bill.
Strategy's counterparty increases its BTC, ETH, and SOL long positions, now worth a total of $471 million
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, " $Strategy (MSTR.US)$ the counterparty further increased its long positions in BTC, ETH, and SOL, currently valued at $471 million: 2,578.51 BTC (worth $249.88 million); 45,124 ETH (worth $151 million); 479,601 SOL (worth $70 million). The whale closed its FARTCOIN position at a loss of $85,000. At the same time, it opened and subsequently closed a PUMP long position, incurring a loss of $138,000.
Stablecoin service provider Meld has completed a $7 million financing round, led by Lightspeed Faction.
According to Fortune, stablecoin service provider Meld announced the completion of a $7 million financing round, led by Lightspeed Faction, with participation from F-Prime, Yolo Investments, and Scytale Digital. To date, the total financing has reached $15 million, with the specific valuation yet to be disclosed. Meld aims to become a one-stop platform for businesses and individuals to access and convert digital assets globally. Its goal is to create the 'Visa of cryptocurrencies,' supporting the purchase or settlement of stablecoins, Bitcoin, Ethereum, or any other type of digital asset worldwide.
Oobit, a Tether-supported wallet, integrates Phantom, extending Solana payment capabilities to the Visa network.
According to The Block, Oobit, a mobile wallet supported by Tether, announced native integration. $Solana (SOL.CC)$ Ecosystem wallet Phantom allows users to make one-click stablecoin payments at merchants globally supporting $Visa (V.US)$ through Oobit's DePay system. Funds are deducted in real time from the wallet and automatically converted into fiat currency without pre-transfer or intermediaries. Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana, participated in Oobit’s $25 million Series A financing round.
Project Eleven has completed a $20 million financing round, with a post-money valuation of approximately $120 million.
According to Axios, Project Eleven completed a $20 million financing round, with a post-money valuation of approximately $120 million, focusing on protecting cryptocurrencies from future quantum computing attacks. The company is developing cryptographic solutions that can resist quantum computing breaches, aiming to provide an upgrade path for existing public blockchains and crypto assets to address the risk that quantum computing could compromise current encryption algorithms.
Editor/Joe
