Cryptopolitan

Long term crypto investing is no longer about chasing quick hype cycles. As the market matures, investors are focusing more on strong fundamentals, real use cases, and projects that can grow steadily over time. Choosing the right crypto for long term growth now requires deeper analysis, not just price charts.

In this article, experts compare three cryptocurrencies with long term potential, looking at network strength, adoption trends, and future development. From established blockchains to emerging protocols, this breakdown highlights which crypto projects may be best positioned for sustained growth in the years ahead.

Bitcoin (BTC)

Bitcoin (BTC) is still the main store of value in the crypto market, and its recent price performance has been driving most investors crazy. Digital gold is currently trading at about $69,000 and has a market value of $1.30 trillion, which is undergoing heavy headwinds. The asset is facing challenges in hitting its past peaks after having swung unpredictably at the beginning of February 2026.

Bitcoin is technically in high resistance at $72,000 and $74,650. Any move to promote upward has been greeted with the greed of institutional holders. Bearish analysts have made a price forecast with a low price to the effect that in case BTC did not manage to support the level of $60,000, it would fall back to $50,000. It is one of the possible downside risks of individuals seeking explosive short-term returns.

Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum (ETH) remains the foundation of decentralized applications, although its value has been negatively impacted by the rise in competition and ETF movement. ETH has a market capitalization of about $250 billion and is presently trading at an approximate of $2,000. Although it has been a major long-term investment, its 20% fall in the recent past has cast doubts on its short term trend.

The two main areas of resistance of Ethereum are concentrated at $2,250 and $2,500. The asset is left exposed without a clear outburst above these levels. The downward trend points to the fact that Ethereum may go down to a point of $1,750 or $1,400 by the end of 2026 provided it fails to regain its position at $2,300. This would reflect a long term consolidation and not growth.

Mutuum Finance (MUTM)

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is emerging as a strong alternative in decentralized lending at a time when many long standing projects are losing momentum. Instead of relying on promises, Mutuum is focused on building a working lending system designed for real world use. The project has already raised over $20.4 million and grown its community to more than 19,000 holders, showing steady interest and adoption.

Mutuum Finance is currently in Phase 7 of its presale, with the MUTM token priced at $0.04. This stage follows the successful V1 protocol launch on the Sepolia testnet, where the protocol demonstrated its core lending functions. 

The V1 version includes live liquidity pools for major tokens, mtToken minting, and automated risk controls, proving the system can operate as intended. With a confirmed launch price of $0.06, Mutuum Finance is positioning itself as a high utility project ahead of future exchange listings.

Price Analysis 2026-2027

Mutuum Finance’s official whitepaper highlights an advanced revenue mechanism and rewards its community. By providing assets, users are issued with yield-bearing mtTokens that increase in value due to the accumulated interest by the system. This is backed by a buy-and-distribute model in which platform fees are utilized to purchase MUTM tokens in open markets as a reward to stakers.

The protocol is combined with the best oracles of real-time prices to be precise. This revenue-based structure is very optimistic to analysts. The current price projections are an estimate of between $0.40 and $0.50 towards the end of 2026 as long as the protocol’s roadmap unfolds as expected. This would be an increment of 900%-1150% of the present level as the platform takes over a bigger portion of the DeFi market..

MUTM is also emerging as a leading top crypto candidate to grow in the long run with its institutional-grade security and a working testnet and with a well-defined revenue model. When Phase 7 is selling out, it is running out of time to buy at a 50% discount. The incumbent code and high demand are what make the experts compare it to the very beginning of what can be called the biggest hits in the market.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://www.mutuum.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance

The American digital currency asset management company Grayscale says Bitcoin is behaving less like gold and more like a tech stock, as its price has recently dropped sharply, prompting investors to quickly sell their holdings. 

In its latest research report, Market Byte: Bitcoin Trading More Like Growth Than Gold, Grayscale says Bitcoin’s short-term movements are more like those of growth-oriented markets than those of precious metals like gold.

Bitcoin falls like tech stocks when markets sell off

The price of Bitcoin dropped to about $60,000 on Feb. 5 before rising again. While this trajectory is normal for the token, it’s worth noting that the coin reached its peak in October at prices above $126,000, and has since dropped by more than 50%. 

Because Bitcoin is one of the largest and most closely monitored cryptocurrencies worldwide, investors will naturally ask questions about the forces driving its price movements. They want to know the causes and how BTC behaves during stressful market periods.

And that’s where Grayscale’s new research comes with answers. The firm quickly dismantled the claim that BTC and gold are both safe havens for investment, saying the crypto asset is risky and that people rush into it only during periods of high hype. 

The company also mentioned that the same investors will quickly sell off their holdings when fear enters the market, so instead of absorbing the shock and standing still like gold, the token moves with it.

Grayscale explained that more traders don’t view Bitcoin as a safe investment that can withstand market pressure. According to the report, as the stocks of high-growth software companies dropped, investors also pulled funds out of Bitcoin. 

Also, the report revealed that Bitcoin’s price has been moving with the performance of the stocks of software companies with extremely high valuations over the last 12 months. This simply indicates that the market expects significant future growth from the companies, as their stock is heavily influenced by confidence and risk-taking. It therefore declines quickly if investors suddenly become wary.

The firm also stated that investors have expressed concerns that AI could disrupt or even replace traditional software services, which has led to the decline in technology stocks. As a result of this close association between Bitcoin and technology stocks, Bitcoin has fallen almost in step with them.

Grayscale says Bitcoin could become digital gold someday

In its report, Grayscale still said that Bitcoin hasn’t reached its full potential yet and that it has several long-term features that make it a strong store of value and worthy of the title “digital gold.”

For example, Bitcoin’s limited supply helps protect its value even as demand rises, and because it runs on a decentralized network, investors see it as different and more favorable than traditional money, whose control is not with the holder. 

However, Grayscale has also indicated that Bitcoin does not behave like gold at the moment, at least not in the short term. According to Zach Pandl, the report’s author, the recent movements in Bitcoin price have not closely correlated with those of gold and other precious metals.

While gold and silver have seen strong rallies over the past few months, Bitcoin has not behaved the same way and has actually fallen alongside riskier growth assets rather than holding steady as a safe haven. Therefore, while Bitcoin may be “gold-like” in some ways, the market does not treat the cryptocurrency the same way at the moment.

This difference, according to Pandl, should not be surprising, as Bitcoin is still in its infancy compared to gold. Gold has been used as money for thousands of years and was the foundation of the entire monetary system up until the early 1970s. 

Today, gold is still held by central banks and governments as one of the world’s largest reserve assets. Bitcoin is still just 17 years old and is still proving itself as a global monetary asset.

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Samsung Electronics has officially confirmed that its next‑generation Galaxy S26 flagship lineup will debut at a global Galaxy Unpacked event on February 25 in San Francisco.

The announcement sets the stage for Samsung’s biggest challenge yet to Apple’s smartphone dominance, as the Korean tech giant is placing greater emphasis on artificial intelligence and software smarts rather than just traditional hardware improvements.

Rather than just responding to commands, the phone’s AI will learn from how people use their devices and offer more useful suggestions and tools. Samsung is working to enhance these capabilities for the Galaxy S26 and to provide users with a wider range of AI options. Many Galaxy AI features currently use Google’s Gemini platform for their information. But even so, Samsung is also looking to partner with other AI suppliers such as OpenAI and Perplexity AI to expand its AI ecosystem. 

Choi Won-Joon, Samsung’s president and chief operating officer of its mobile division, said yesterday that it is willing to work with any AI partner that can provide the most effective user experience. It demonstrates that Samsung wants its smartphones to make more intelligent suggestions than serve as communication devices. 

Samsung is investing in its AI capabilities to be at least as (or better) functional as the AI tools that Apple has been incorporating into its own products.

New privacy display and hardware improvements stand out

Although the Galaxy S26 is expected to resemble the latest Galaxy S models, Samsung is introducing new features intended to enhance personal privacy and the user experience. 

Among the most notable additions is a built-in privacy display that prevents people nearby from seeing the screen. This technology limits the viewing angle by blocking side views. 

Though the same effects can be achieved with special screen protectors, Samsung seems to have included this feature right on the phone’s display, making it more user-friendly and efficient. 

Samsung is expected to include hardware upgrades such as faster processors, improved cameras, and better battery performance. Such upgrades align with Samsung’s strategy of keeping its flagship phones competitive with Apple’s iPhone and other premium Android devices. 

While Apple recently introduced major design changes and an ultra-thin model in its latest lineup, Samsung seems more focused on enhancing functionality and intelligence than on dramatic updates to the phone’s appearance, which is the biggest difference between the two.

Galaxy S26 strengthens Samsung’s push to compete with Apple

Even as the company develops advanced folding devices, the Galaxy S series remains Samsung’s most important smartphone lineup. Foldable models like the Galaxy Z Fold and experimental products like the TriFold showcase Samsung’s engineering prowess, but they still post lower sales than traditional smartphones. 

This is why every Galaxy S launch is so significant to Samsung’s business. These phones reach far more people and drive more sales than foldable models. A successful Galaxy S26 launch would open opportunities for Samsung to attract new customers and help retain existing customers planning an upgrade. 

The company could also post a promotion after Feb. 25, with new accessories like wireless earbuds or other connected device products to go with the Galaxy S26. These products help shore up Samsung’s larger ecosystem and make its smartphones more attractive for end consumers who have many Samsung products to choose from. 

Samsung’s focus on AI follows the emerging role of AI as a primary battleground in the smartphone business. Samsung and Apple are both racing to make their devices smarter, more helpful, and more personalized. 

With the Galaxy S26, Samsung also bets that higher-level AI, privacy, and consistent hardware upgrades would support its strong competition with Apple’s latest iPhones. 

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FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has filed a pro se motion for a new trial of the firm’s bankruptcy case, for which he already serves a 25-year sentence. He argued that new witnesses can refute the prosecution’s case that he defrauded the exchange’s customers.

The pro se motion, meaning SBF is representing himself, was filed on February 5 but was docketed today in Manhattan federal court. SBF’s mother, Barbara Fried, who is a retired Stanford Law Professor, sent the motion to the clerk. The motion is also separate from Bankman-Fried’s appeal of his 2023 conviction.

Could FTX’s previous executives save SBF’s trial case trajectory? 

CRYPTO CRIMES: After Sam Bankman-Fried Got a 25 Year Sentence, Now Files a Pro Se Motion for New Trial, via his professor mother, Saying Why Salame No Testimony- Inner City Press story https://t.co/N4rKdoCCpq 35 page motion on Patreon here https://t.co/zhFyvY0Zlu

— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) February 10, 2026

Barbara revealed that the appeal has been in the works for a long time. She also disclosed that SBF planned to write the motion in his own voice.

SBF’s motion is currently being considered by a three-judge appeals panel. Bankman-Fried claims that the trial judge’s previous ruling tainted the verdict. During a November hearing, the judges also appeared skeptical of his lawyer’s arguments.

Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven criminal counts, including fraud and conspiracy. He told U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw the trial, that he illegally transferred billions of dollars from FTX customer accounts to the firm’s affiliate, Alameda Research. Risky investments by the affiliated hedge fund contributed to FTX’s collapse.

SBF stated in his appeal that two former FTX executives who didn’t testify at trial, Daniel Chapsky and Ryan Salame, could refute the prosecution’s narrative about the firm’s financial status at the time. However, Salame had previously pleaded guilty and received a 7½ prison sentence.

SBF claimed on Monday that Salame had evidence backed up with emails, memos, and legal work. He argued that the recent administration couldn’t let Salame present the evidence, and instead threatened his pregnant fiancée to force him to plead guilty.

Salame also revealed on February 2 that there was no mention of prosecutors explicitly advising the executives that Alameda didn’t need U.S. money-transmitting licenses for the non-U.S. work. He claimed that’s what got him to prison.

Shapiro also stated during SBF’s appeal hearing that Kaplan had wrongly prevented the defense from telling jurors about FTX’s financial position. He claimed that the crypto exchange had ample funds to repay investors, despite its 2022 collapse.

Kaplan also prevented SBF’s lawyers from presenting evidence about the advice they had given the former CEO. The incident occurred after an unusual hearing in which a judge put Bankman-Fried on the stand for 3 hours to preview his proposed testimony, without a jury present.

SBF calls for a different judge for his new trial

Sam Bankman-Fried has requested a different judge to be assigned to consider his motion for a new trial. He argued that Kaplan had demonstrated manifest prejudice toward him. 

“So they lied, said I stole billions of dollars and bankrupted FTX. But the money was always there, and FTX was always solvent.”

–Sam Bankman-Fried, Former CEO of FTX.

SBF also claimed that the Biden administration threw bogus charges at him and prevented the executives from responding to make the charges stick. He also argued that the Biden administration hated him because they hated crypto, and he was one of the faces of crypto in the U.S. 

SBF believes the Biden administration hated him because he was a former Democratic donor who turned and started donating to Republicans. He added that the administration didn’t like his ties to the former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, Gary Gensler.

The former FTX CEO also revealed that his prosecutor, Sassoon, who was later fired under Trump, wrote a 70-page document on all the evidence that the administration didn’t want the jury to see.

SBF has also been seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump. Trump said earlier this year that he has no intention of freeing the former FTX CEO.

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MoonPay, a leading financial technology company, struck a deal that could grant about 40,000 businesses the opportunity to streamline payroll via stablecoin transactions. 

In a statement dated Tuesday, February 10, the firm noted that, “With the help of our fiat infrastructure division, Iron, MoonPay will collaborate with Deel, a payroll and human resources platform. This partnership will enable companies to pay their workers directly in stablecoins that are sent to their wallets.”

This service is scheduled to begin in the UK and the EU, but reports from reliable sources indicate that MoonPay has also signaled its intention to expand into the US.

Several firms embrace cryptocurrency as a payroll option for workers 

Regarding MoonPay’s recent agreement, the Founder and CEO of Iron, Max von Wallenberg, shared an X post noting that, “Deel will utilize Iron’s system to provide stablecoin payroll services, enabling quick and smooth worldwide payments on a large scale.” According to the industry executive, “ The figures tell a clear story: Deel handled $22 billion in global payroll in 2025 and is making a strong move toward crypto solutions.” 

Reports highlighted that Deel has been involved with digital assets since 2021, when they began offering crypto-based payroll, specifically USDC or Solana, to employees. Following the adoption of this new payment option, Deel secured $425 million in a Series D funding round.

While the tech platform celebrated this significant milestone, sources alleged that it had already backed BTC, ether, and XRP as salary payment options. However, for its employees to effectively activate the new capabilities, Deel required them to create an account with Coinbase,  a leading, regulated, and publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange.

The platform argued that its decision to adopt a crypto-based payroll option for its workers as its preferred payment method stemmed from its belief that cryptocurrency enables faster contractor payments with lower transaction fees. 

To break this point down for better understanding, Deel mentioned that crypto exchange Coinbase imposed a 1.5% provider fee on crypto payroll withdrawals. In addition, USDC payments applied a 1% variable fee while Solana payments applied an additional 1.5% charge. 

Meanwhile, in December of last year, self-custody wallet company Exodus Movement successfully collaborated with MoonPay and  M0 to enter the stablecoin market with a USD-pegged offering.

Visa embraces stablecoin payouts amid global cryptocurrency acceptance

Towards the end of last year, Visa Inc., an American multinational payment card services corporation, released a statement hinting at a new pilot initiative that enabled businesses and platforms to settle payments directly into recipients’ stablecoin wallets. Notably, the multinational payments tech company made these remarks at the Singapore Fintech Festival.

Regarding this new pilot initiative, the company further elaborated that businesses using Visa Direct were permitted to fund payouts with regular funds. At the same time, recipients could receive payouts in USD-backed stablecoins, such as USDC. This change played a key role in accelerating and easing global payments.

Moreover, analysts acknowledged that this new feature enhances the value of Visa Direct by providing creators, freelancers, and marketplaces with a secure alternative for storing value and faster access to funds, even in environments characterized by high currency volatility or restricted access to banking services. 

Chris Newkirk, President of Commercial and Money Movement Solutions at Visa, commented on this change. He argued that they decided to launch stablecoin payouts to give everyone worldwide the opportunity to access their funds swiftly, in minutes, avoiding the delays that had previously occurred. 

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Strategists at State Street Corp. say the dollar could slide as much as 10% this year if the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates more sharply than expected. 

The caution comes as investors remain vigilant for potential shifts in policy and the Fed’s leadership. Easing monetary policy, the firm’s researchers said, will likely weaken the dollar by dampening its appeal to international investors and further pressuring the currency. 

State Street, one of the world’s largest asset managers, reports that the US dollar is already in its weakest stretch in almost a decade. Strategist Lee Ferridge articulated this outlook at a conference in Miami, where he explained that further declines could happen if financial conditions become more relaxed. 

Ferridge said that the firm’s main outlook for the year was that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates twice. However, he added that there was a real possibility of additional cuts beyond that. He explained that two cuts were a reasonable base case, but noted that three cuts could also happen depending on how the economy develops.

When US rates are high, global investors hold dollar-based assets because they provide superior returns. But when rates drop, returns become less attractive, and investors run from it, pulling out of the sector and moving elsewhere.

When the interest rates go down, borrowing becomes an affordable option for many. As a result, spending habits and investment patterns rise. And while this might boost economic growth, it can dampen the dollar’s strength and demand, particularly from foreign investors seeking better returns elsewhere.

Possible Fed leadership shift raises rate cut expectations

Another factor that could affect the dollar’s strength is a potential leadership shake-up at the Fed. President Donald Trump has nominated Kevin Warsh to replace Jerome Powell. If he is appointed, Warsh is widely accepted as someone who can also support faster and deeper rate cuts. 

A leadership shift like that might signal that the country would be aggressively easing its monetary policy stance. Such a shift in mindset would raise expectations of lower rates and could further weaken the dollar. 

Currently, the Fed’s target interest rate is between 3.50% and 3.75%. Financial markets are now anticipating a cautious approach as well, with two cuts expected this year. 

According to data from CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, investors are betting the first cut will occur in June, notwithstanding two policy meetings to come before. If the Fed eventually cuts rates more than previously expected, the dollar could face even more downward pressure. 

Investors react rapidly to changes in interest rate expectations, and even indicators of future rate cuts can have a significant impact on the exchange rate market.

Dollar weakness could reshape demand for Bitcoin and other assets

A weaker US dollar often boosts riskier assets, such as Bitcoin. Historically, BTC prices tend to move inversely to the dollar index, meaning that when the dollar drops, Bitcoin and other alternative investments can become more attractive to investors.

Dollar weakness has played the same role as good performance in crypto markets. Some investors see Bitcoin as a hedge against the risks of fiat currencies, particularly during periods of loose monetary policy. This relationship, however, is not always the case. 

There have certainly been periods when Bitcoin has fallen as the dollar weakened. Other factors, such as investor mood, profit-taking, and general economic uncertainty, can also affect crypto prices. 

For now, State Street’s warning reflects the extent to which the dollar is sensitive to policy choices and investor expectations.

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The crypto market is going through a major rotation as capital moves aggressively across the space. Many experienced traders are starting to look beyond long-standing names that once dominated previous cycles. As competition grows and returns tighten, attention is shifting toward newer projects with room to expand.

With Ripple (XRP) still struggling to reclaim its former momentum, a new protocol has begun to draw serious interest from analysts and early adopters. This project has already tripled in value at a very early stage, raising questions about whether it could follow a similar breakout path seen in past market cycles. Investors are now closely examining the numbers, comparing its growth potential against established giants, and searching for the next opportunity capable of delivering strong returns in an increasingly crowded market.

Ripple (XRP)

Ripple (XRP) is still among the top ten assets with a market capitalization of approximately $85 billion. It achieved popularity with its initial boom when it was set to take over the SWIFT banking scheme. The token has however experienced years of sluggishness and stiff opposition. It is currently trading around the $1.40 mark and it is extremely difficult to push it up. The enormous supply and the unending dumping of tokens out of escrow forms a permanent sell wall which prevents the price explosion.

A lot of analysts are currently giving a bad price forecast on XRP. Its market cap is already so large that it would require billions of dollars of new money to gain the value to double. There are some analysts who feel that the XRP might fall to around the $1.10 price as it cannot hold its support. The upside of XRP is extremely low to investors who are interested in a high return. It is now considered a slow mover which might fail to keep pace with the quicker segments of the crypto world.

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) 

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is a decentralized system focused on lending and borrowing through smart contracts. The protocol is being developed to support fast and low cost transactions by leveraging Layer 2 infrastructure, while allowing users to borrow or earn yield without giving up control of their funds.

The project is currently in its presale phase and has shown steady progress. The MUTM token launched at an initial price of $0.01 and has gradually increased to $0.04, representing a 3x rise before any public exchange listing. The team has confirmed a planned listing price of $0.06, which gives current participants a structured entry below the expected market debut.

So far, the presale has raised over $20.4 million and attracted more than 19,000 holders, indicating broad participation rather than concentrated demand. Mutuum Finance aims to build a professional lending hub where all rules are enforced by code, not intermediaries. The total token supply is capped at 4 billion MUTM, with distribution outlined in advance to support long term development and user incentives.

Why MUTM May be More Effective than XRP

The largest opportunity MUTM has to outperform XRP is its ability to grow in the early stages. The protocol just released its V1 protocol to the Sepolia testnet. This demonstrates that the team is living up to its promises. The system is supported by the use of mtTokens that generate salary to the holders. It also possesses a buy and distribute model which is supportive of the token value throughout the time.

E.g. a comparison of a $600 allocation. In the case of XRP, having invested $600, one can only have an increase of 50% as long as XRP gets $50B in market cap, which is extremely unlikely in 2026-2027. 

Nevertheless, in the case of MUTM, an investment of 15,000 tokens is expected to be grounded with a cost of $600 at a cost of $0.04. As long as the expected post-launch price of several analysts reaches $0.40, that would transform into $6,000. It is this 10x potential that is making the newer protocol popular among the experts. MUTM has a low market cap which implies that it can grow significantly in comparison to a multi billion dollar asset such as XRP.

Security and Market Urgency

The presale, Phase 7 is currently sold out fast. Before the price hits new levels, investors are scrambling to get their tokens. Already, the protocol has undergone a complete security audit by Halborn. This company is a blockchain security pioneer. The dashboard on the project also comprises a 24 hour leaderboard. The best producer of the day achieves a token bonus of $500 in MUTM.

It has been very easy to join Mutuum Finance. MUTM is payable with major cryptos or even a direct card purchase. This eliminates the pressure of the complicated exchanges. The urgency is increasing as the supply is decreasing. Whales already make huge positions in order to outpace the mainnet launch. According to many currency investors this is the best crypto opportunity since it has a testnet that works and confirms security to people who are leaving XRP.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://www.mutuum.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance

Stock traders are holding their breath this week as January employment numbers arrive. The data threatens to derail a recovery that’s pushed the Dow Jones to historic heights.

After bouncing back from a brutal technology selloff just days ago, investors face a critical question: will Friday’s jobs data keep things moving or send markets tumbling?

JPMorgan’s trading team mapped out five possibilities for how stocks might react when the Labor Department releases nonfarm payrolls data. The market’s walking a tightrope. Numbers coming in too strong or too weak could both spell trouble.

Here’s what JPMorgan sees:

If employers added more than 110,000 workers last month, the S&P 500 could drop 0.5% to 1%. JPMorgan thinks there’s only a 5% chance of that. Strong hiring might convince the Federal Reserve to hold off on cutting interest rates. That’d disappoint investors who want easier monetary policy.

Between 90,000 and 110,000 jobs has a 20% chance and could lift stocks 0.25% to 1%.

The sweet spot sits between 60,000 and 90,000 new jobs. JPMorgan gives this a 40% probability, the most likely scenario. The S&P 500 might climb between 0.25% and 0.75% there. This “Goldilocks” outcome would show the economy cooling without crashing.

The 30,000 to 60,000 range carries a 30% chance. Stocks might wobble between a 0.25% decline and a 0.5% gain.

Fewer than 30,000 jobs would probably hammer stocks down 0.5% to 1.25%, though there’s just a 5% shot of that.

Michael Feroli is JPMorgan’s chief economist for the United States. He expects 75,000 jobs created in January. Better than December’s paltry 50,000. Unemployment probably stayed flat at 4.4%.

“We think the print falls in the Goldilocks zone but one that is too hot will trigger a repricing of the yield curve higher and the elevated bond vol likely produces a down for stocks and one that is too cool will have the market on edge that the Fed is late to resuming its easing cycle and with Powell unlikely to cut before his term as Fed Chair ends, means that first cut would be in June,” JPMorgan’s trading desk wrote as quoted by CNBC.

Recent employment signals have turned worrying

Private sector hiring nearly stalled in the latest ADP report. Job openings plummeted to levels not seen since September 2020. January layoffs hit their worst mark since 2009, per outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Investors are nervous the labor market might be cracking.

There’s a twist though. Lower immigration has slowed labor force growth. The economy now needs only about 30,000 jobs monthly to keep unemployment steady. Way down from the 250,000 monthly pace needed back in 2023. Markets haven’t fully absorbed this. Explains why seemingly weak numbers might not be alarming.

Options traders are betting on a 1.2% swing either way when the data drops. Shows how uncertain Wall Street feels.

The jobs report comes as stocks undergo a massive shift

The Dow crossed 50,000 on February 6. Money’s flooding out of expensive technology stocks into cheaper, overlooked companies. Small-cap stocks in the Russell 2000 index jumped 7.6% this year. Crushes the S&P 500’s roughly 2% gain. Energy stocks surged 14.2% in January. Materials climbed 8.6%. Financials stumbled 2.4%.

If jobs come in just right, this rotation from growth to value could speed up. Companies sensitive to economic cycles tend to do better when the economy shows resilience without overheating. Manufacturers, commodity producers, retailers.

Technology giants are planning to spend between $650 billion and $700 billion on artificial intelligence infrastructure in 2026. Amazon pledged $200 billion. Alphabet’s around $175-185 billion. Meta $115-135 billion. Microsoft roughly $145 billion. Software stocks have crashed 24% this year though. Investors are questioning whether these investments will pay off.

Amazon fell 8-10% after reporting earnings despite the spending spree. Alphabet declined even after beating expectations. Investors want proof AI will generate profits, not just consume capital.

The jobs report could determine where money flows next. Into beaten-down value stocks or back into technology shares if economic data suggests growth is fading.

JPMorgan says it’s “tactically bullish” and expects stocks to continue their broadening rally. Everything hinges on getting that Goldilocks number. Strong enough to show economic health. Weak enough to keep rate cut hopes alive.

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A few hours after winning $1 million in X’s recent article contest, an online user popularly known as Beaver was caught in a blockchain investigation alleging that he profited over $600,000 from launching meme tokens that would instantly collapse.

The allegation comes from blockchain intelligence firm Bubblemaps, who published a detailed thread on February 5, 2026, tracing some on-chain activity to wallets that are allegedly linked to the contest winner, an X user known as Beaver with the handle @beaverd. 

The analysis claimed that those wallets repeatedly launched meme coins majorly through Pump.fun before selling immediately after launch, causing the value to drop near zero.

Did X contest winner launch and rugpull memes? 

Findings from Bubblemaps’ investigation uncovered Solana blockchain explorer data finding multiple “Create Token” actions connected to wallets that allegedly form part of the same cluster connected to Beaver. 

An example involves a token called $SIAS, which surged up to $6 million market cap for a short period before crashing.

Bubblemaps estimated that wallets in this cluster generated approximately $600,000 in profit across multiple meme coin launches. This follows a pattern of repeated instances where tokens would launch, enjoy a short price spike period, before collapsing after holding wallets sold their assets. 

This scheme is known as a “pump and dump”, where fraudsters try to drive a buying frenzy among the public to increase the value of an asset, before “dumping” it by selling their own assets or shares at the increased price.

Pump.fun, originally created as a Solana-based project that simplifies the process of creating tokens, has now become a popular platform for these scams. 

The platform allows anyone to create and launch tokens in minutes, which also contributes to an environment where 97% of meme coins fail in their first year.

Beaver’s response to the allegations

A few hours after Bubblemaps’ thread started gaining traction, @beaverd responded by saying “cry me a river,” even adding that the allegations brought forward were “not even the top 5 greatest hits.” This response did not refute the wallet links, nor the on-chain transactions Bubblemaps released.

This reply sparked even more controversy as parts of the crypto community began to question the ethics of meme coin launches connected to influential creators. 

Most argue that when creators with large followings and some form of “credibility” from winning high-profile contests launch tokens, they hold an unfair advantage over regular investors, which allows them to profit while others are left with crumbs of their investment.

As of now, Beaver has yet to issue a formal statement addressing the specifics of Bubblemaps’ allegations aside from the initial response.

X contest rewards engagement over ethics

The X article contest was announced on January 17, 2026, as part of X’s strategy to encourage high-quality, long-form content on its platform. The contest promised $1 million to the author of the most popular long-form article posted between January 16 and January 28.

However, the selection criteria left a lot to be desired. The criteria used “Verified Home Timeline impressions” as the main metric, which critics believe essentially rewards engagement farming instead of quality content. 

The winning article was titled “Deloitte, a $74 billion cancer metastasized across America,” which dissected data about government contracts with the consulting giant.

While the contest’s guidelines explicitly stated that submissions “must not contain political or religious statements,” NBC News noted that over $2 million in prize money went to users ranging from popular right-wing influencers to anonymous accounts. They also highlighted a history of controversial and racist content from @beaverd’s account history.

These allegations add yet another layer of controversy to an already disputable prize announcement. 

While Elon Musk (X’s owner) has positioned the platform as an avenue for quality content creation and fair monetization, others argue that basing rewards majorly on engagement metrics can incentivize harmful behavior against regular users, whether through controversial/racist content or scams.

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Ford missed Wall Street expectations by a wide margin in the fourth quarter, delivering earnings per share of just $0.13 when analysts expected $0.19.

That’s a 32% miss, the worst the company has reported since 2021. It was also the first quarterly earnings miss since 2024.

Ford blamed unexpected $900 million in tariff costs, saying those charges hit harder than expected because credits for parts didn’t apply as early as planned. Before that hit, Ford had anticipated $7.7 billion in EBIT for the quarter. The final figure dropped to $6.8 billion.

Even though Ford’s automotive revenue hit $42.4 billion, which was slightly above the $41.83 billion consensus, total company revenue fell 5% to $45.9 billion.

Ford’s net income collapsed from a $1.8 billion profit in Q4 2024 to a massive $11.1 billion loss in Q4 2025. That’s a swing of $12.9 billion. Diluted EPS turned negative too, going from $0.45 to a brutal loss of $2.77. The margin for net income plunged from 3.8% to -24.1%.

Ford’s 2025 performance shows weakness across every major segment

On a full-year basis, Ford posted revenue of $187.3 billion, up 1%, but that’s where the improvement stops. The company booked a full-year net loss of $8.2 billion, swinging down from a $5.9 billion profit in 2024.

Ford’s diluted EPS for the year collapsed by $3.52, from $1.46 to -2.06. Adjusted EBIT also dropped from $10.2 billion to $6.8 billion, and adjusted free cash flow fell from $6.7 billion to $3.5 billion.

Every major business segment showed cracks. Ford Blue, the legacy gas-powered division, saw revenue drop 1% to $101 billion, with EBIT down $2.2 billion to $3.0 billion. Wholesale units slipped 5%.

Bronco hit a new sales record, and F-150 and Maverick led hybrid pickup sales, but that wasn’t enough to lift the entire segment.

Ford Pro, the commercial unit, lost steam too. Revenue fell to $66.3 billion, while EBIT tumbled by $2.1 billion to $6.8 billion. Margins slid from 13.5% to 10.3%.

Super Duty pickups had their strongest year since 2004, and Transit vans posted a record volume, but those high points didn’t stop the bleed. Paid software subscriptions did rise 30% during 2025.

Ford Model e, the electric vehicle unit, continued to rack up losses. The segment reported a $4.8 billion EBIT loss, slightly better than 2024’s $5.1 billion loss. Model e revenue jumped to $6.7 billion, up 73%, but margins are still ugly: -72.1%. The company sold 178,000 units, a 69% jump from the prior year, yet still can’t get this business out of the red.

Company outlines bigger 2026 targets despite brutal earnings miss

Despite everything, Ford laid out a more aggressive plan for 2026. The company expects adjusted EBIT to land between $8 billion and $10 billion, which would be a decent jump from 2025’s $6.8 billion.

They also guided for $5 to $6 billion in free cash flow, up from $3.5 billion, and capex to rise to $9.5 to $10.5 billion, including $1.5 billion to ramp Ford Energy.

Segment guidance also shows bold projections. Ford Pro is expected to deliver $6.5 to $7.5 billion in EBIT, Ford Blue is targeting $4.0 to $4.5 billion, and Model e is still expected to lose $4.0 to $4.5 billion.

Ford Credit, which reported a strong 2025 with $2.6 billion in earnings before taxes (up 55%), is expected to book $2.5 billion in 2026.

CEO Jim Farley said, “We made critical strategic decisions that set us up for a stronger future.” CFO Sherry House added, “A disciplined approach to capital efficiency will drive stronger results in 2026 and beyond.”

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Americans are carrying more credit card debt than ever. Balances hit $1.28 trillion by the end of last year’s fourth quarter, a $44 billion jump in three months, according to data the Federal Reserve Bank of New York released Tuesday.

The year-over-year number looks worse. Balances climbed 5.5% compared to the same period in 2024.

Holiday shopping always pushes credit card use higher, but New York Fed researchers say there’s more going on. Despite problems in the job market, people kept spending through the final months of 2025. The catch? Most spending came from wealthier households, not regular families.

“You see evidence consistent with a ‘K-shaped’ economy,” Fed researchers said during a Tuesday call. “Some groups are really struggling.”

The split between rich and poor shows up in the numbers. Delinquencies on auto loans, credit cards, and home equity lines all went up. Mortgage payment problems are getting worse too.

Low-income neighborhoods are getting hammered. Delinquency rates there run much higher than the national average, Fed researchers found.

Consumer confidence drops as reality sets in

A Monday survey from the New York Fed backs this up. Fewer Americans think their finances will improve over the next year. More expect things to get worse.

About 175 million Americans have credit cards. Around 60% don’t pay off the full balance each month, which means they’re paying interest charges that average around 20%.

Debt management company Achieve released findings Monday showing 55% of cardholders use credit to cover basics like groceries and utilities. The survey of 2,000 people found many have to choose between paying credit cards and buying necessities.

“This is what the K-shaped economy looks like in the real world,” said Andrew Housser, who runs Achieve. “There’s an affluent half of the population whose financial lives aren’t disrupted by momentary inconveniences. But for everyone else, financial triage and tradeoffs are a way of life.”

He added “The longer this persists, the more the gap widens.”

How rate caps could reshape credit access

President Donald Trump recently proposed capping credit card rates at 10% temporarily. For the 60% of cardholders paying interest, this could cut their costs in half. As Cryptopolitan reported on Trump’s executive action to cap card interest rates, the plan targets what the administration calls predatory lending by big banks.

Banks aren’t having it. Industry leaders say they’ll fight any price controls, just like they blocked the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s attempt to limit late fees last year. Wall Street blasted Trump’s 10% cap proposal, with major banks warning about reduced credit access.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon called Trump’s card rate cap an “economic disaster” in earlier Cryptopolitan coverage, saying it would force banks to cut off credit to millions.

Wages haven’t kept up with living costs. Inflation ate savings. The job market started showing problems. People used credit cards when paychecks came up short.

Two things could happen now. If Trump’s rate cap somehow passes despite bank pushback, millions of borrowers get relief. But banks might tighten credit standards, making cards harder to get for people who need them.

More likely, nothing changes. That means more families falling behind, more delinquencies, and a bigger gap between those who can handle economic problems and those who can’t. Without policy changes or higher wages, expect that $1.28 trillion number to keep growing through 2026.

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Robinhood reported earnings for Q4 2025, and the numbers were straight-up massive. Revenue jumped 27% to $1.28 billion, with a big chunk coming from trading activity and subscriptions.

It wasn’t just a random good quarter for the boys, Vlad and Baiju. The whole year was huge, as full-year revenue hit $4.5 billion, up 52% compared to 2024, according to the report.

Robinhood’s net income for Q4 was $605 million, down from last year’s $916 million, only because 2024 included a $424 million tax reversal. Earnings per share came in at $0.66, compared to $1.01 last year, again because of that same reversal. Operating expenses went up 38% to $633 million, mostly because of more spending on marketing and acquisitions. Adjusted EBITDA rose 24% to $761 million.

Trading, subscriptions, and interest income pushed Robinhood’s revenue higher

Robinhood’s transaction-based revenue totaled $776 million, up 15%. Options trading brought in $314 million, up 41%. Equities trading hit $94 million, up 54%. And other transaction revenue exploded to $147 million, more than tripling. The one weak spot was crypto trading, which dropped 38% to $221 million.

Robinhood’s net interest revenue came in at $411 million, up 39%, driven by interest-earning assets and more activity in securities lending. Other revenue doubled to $96 million, with Robinhood Gold subscriptions pulling in $50 million, up 56%.

More people signed up and started using the app. Funded accounts rose 7% to 27 million, and investment accounts grew 8% to 28.4 million. Total platform assets jumped 68% to $324 billion, thanks to net deposits, acquisitions, and the stock market rally.

Robinhood’s net deposits for Q4 totaled $15.9 billion, while full-year deposits hit $68.1 billion, a 35% increase from last year.

Average revenue per user went up 16% to $191.Cash on hand stayed flat at $4.3 billion. The company bought back $100 million worth of shares in Q4, totaling 0.8 million shares at an average of $119.86.

Since launching the program, Robinhood has repurchased $910 million in stock, or 22 million shares at an average price of $40.64.

New products and retirement features expanded across the platform

2025 was the year Robinhood pushed into new territory. It launched Prediction Markets, where users traded over 12 billion event contracts.

To scale that, it created Rothera, a joint venture with Susquehanna, and bought MIAXdx in January 2026 to build its own licensed exchange. It also updated its AI investing assistant, Cortex, and added more tools for traders.

In November, short selling was introduced, and users already traded billions in volume. The company also rolled out new tools for long-term investing. Robinhood Gold hit 4.2 million subscribers, up 58%.

Retirement assets under custody more than doubled to $26.5 billion, spread across 1.8 million accounts. Users received over $500 million in matching contributions. Robinhood Strategies grew to 200,000 customers, with $1.3 billion in assets. Robinhood Banking also launched to Gold subscribers. By the end of January 2026, 20,000 users had deposited $300 million.

Global expansion, crypto trading, and fresh data for January 2026

Outside the U.S., Robinhood grew fast. It launched a stocks and shares ISA in the UK, the top request from British users. In Europe, the number of Stock Tokens jumped to 2,000. Bitstamp volumes have more than doubled since Robinhood bought it last June.

Robinhood also signed deals to acquire a brokerage and crypto platform in Indonesia, boosting its presence in Asia.

Trading volume data was wild. Equity notional volume hit $710 billion in Q4, up 68%. Options contracts traded were 659 million, up 38%. Crypto trading volume totaled $82 billion, with Bitstamp contributing $48 billion, while the Robinhood app handled $34 billion, down 52%.

Robinhood’s margin loans grew to $16.8 billion, up 113%. Cash sweep balances rose 26% to $32.8 billion. Event contracts hit 8.5 billion.

For January 2026 alone, Robinhood posted $4.5 billion in net deposits. Margin loans hit $18.4 billion, up 121%. Equity volume reached $227 billion, and options contracts totaled 200 million. Crypto trading reached $22.9 billion, with Bitstamp at $14.2 billion and Robinhood App at $8.7 billion. Event contracts traded were 3.4 billion.

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The Russian ruble-pegged stablecoin A7A5 has increased yields on stored tokens, according to reports providing a glimpse into how the cryptocurrency actually works.

The news comes against the backdrop of talks on fresh European sanctions targeting Russian crypto platforms and banks in Kyrgyzstan, where its issuer is registered.

A7A5 offers holders 15% annual interest

Keeping A7A5 coins in a wallet will yield 15% per annum, following a recent increase, the project legitimized by Russia and targeted by the West, announced.

Users are now being paid almost all of the income generated by the cryptocurrency through overnight placements, local crypto media reported.

A7A5 is pegged 1:1 to the Russian national fiat and is backed by bank deposits. The yield varies and has been set now to one percentage point below the Bank of Russia’s key rate, currently standing at 16%.

Income is accrued automatically through its rebase mechanism, the leading Russian crypto news outlet Bits.media explained in a post on Tuesday.

The digital token operates on the blockchains of Ethereum and Tron. It’s traded on both centralized and decentralized exchanges, RBC Crypto noted in a report.

At the same time, A7A5 funds are stored in their users’ personal wallets, without transferring them to a custodial platform.

The token can be freely bought in Moscow, at the branches of the company A7 Finance, and through the project’s website. The minimum purchase amount is 100 coins.

A7A5 transactions are subject to certain caps. Withdrawals are limited to 600 tokens, and the maximum monthly transaction volume is 600,000.

The issuer claims its token is designed to serve as a tool to manage ruble liquidity in the crypto space, thanks to its automatic income accrual and the ability to circulate the coins at any time.

Unlike bank deposits or many DeFi solutions, A7A5 funds remain permanently available for transfer, exchange, or withdrawal, its team highlighted.

Rise of a Russian ruble stablecoin

A7A5 was launched in February 2025. Developed by the Russian company A7, it’s actually issued by an entity registered and regulated in Kyrgyzstan, Old Vector, which claims to be “fully independent.”

According to data released earlier by DeFiLlama, its capitalization exceeds $500 million, with more than 39 billion tokens in circulation. A7A5 accounts for nearly half of the non-dollar stablecoin market.

In September, financial authorities in Moscow classified it as a digital financial asset (DFA) under local law, which allows Russian businesses to use it for cross-border settlements in foreign trade.

Since its very beginning, A7A5 has been suspected of being used by Russian actors to circumvent Western financial restrictions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine.

Both A7, owned by Moldovan oligarch and Russian citizen Ilan Shor, and Old Vector have been hit with sanctions, alongside other entities associated with the stablecoin, including the Kyrgyzstan-based exchange Grinex.

The latter is the alleged successor of the Russian crypto trading platform Garantex, which was dismantled in March 2025, and took over the processing of A7A5 withdrawals from it.

Its transactions are also processed by Tokeon, a digital asset platform part of the PSB Group of the state-owned Russian bank formerly known as Promsvyazbank. A7A5 is supposedly backed by deposits at the PSB, which is also sanctioned.

According to data compiled and released recently by the blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, the rubble-pegged stablecoin has processed transactions worth over $100 billion within the first year of its existence.

Meanwhile, the European Union is preparing to slap new sanctions on crypto platforms linked to Russia. Organizations based in third countries will also be affected, including two Kyrgyz banks accused of processing crypto-related transactions for Russian entities.

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Pavel Durov says Russian officials are now blocking access to Telegram because they want people to start using a government app that spies on users. He said the same thing happened in Iran eight years ago.

Back then, Iran banned Telegram, made up excuses, and pushed people toward its own tool. But it didn’t work. Most people kept using Telegram anyway. Durov said this new crackdown in Russia is just another case of the state trying to force control over communication.

Durov wrote, “Russia is restricting access to Telegram in an attempt to force its citizens to switch to a state-controlled app built for surveillance and political censorship.” He also said, “Restricting citizens’ freedom is never the right answer.”

Russian agency says Telegram broke rules and will be punished

The Russian government watchdog, Roskomnadzor, said on Tuesday that Telegram would face even more restrictions. The agency said the app didn’t fix problems it was warned about earlier.

Officials started limiting voice and video calls in August. That same month, they did the same thing to WhatsApp. Then, in December, they blocked Apple’s FaceTime.

Roskomnadzor said Telegram and other messaging apps failed to follow Russian laws. It complained that the apps don’t protect user data and don’t do enough to stop scams or terrorism.

“Russian law is not being observed, personal data is not protected,” the agency said. “There are no effective measures to counter fraud and the use of the messaging app for criminal and terrorist purposes.” Because of that, more limits are coming.

People in Moscow are starting to notice that Telegram is running slower. The app is used by the Kremlin, the courts, news outlets, influencers, and even groups that have left the country. Military bloggers say it’s also a key tool for soldiers in Ukraine.

A man named Roman, who works in media, told reporters, “I noticed it clearly today. My business is very tied up with it, so that’s bad.” He said Russian companies rely on Telegram more than email to talk to new clients.

Another user, Anna, said, “It’s very bad because all my friends and family use Telegram. I don’t want to move to other platforms.”

On top of all this, state news agency RIA said Telegram has eight court hearings coming up. It’s facing fines of up to 64 million roubles, or $830,000. Bailiffs are also trying to collect another 9 million roubles from older fines.

Russia is also promoting its own app, MAX, while pushing Telegram out of the way. MAX is being used for messaging and getting government services. Critics say it’s built for surveillance.

The government says that’s not true. Russia already tried and failed to ban Telegram in 2018. Since then, it has blocked Facebook and Instagram and made YouTube harder to access.

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Braden John Karony, famously known in crypto circles as John Karony, the former CEO of SafeMoon, has just been sentenced to 100 months behind bars. 

That amounts to about 8 years and 4 months in a federal prison, a major legal conclusion for one of the key figures linked to the SafeMoon incident.

Closer to theft than fraud 

Karony was convicted of his crimes in May 2025 following a jury trial that took place in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The court found him guilty on three counts, including conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. 

According to court proceedings from today, February 10, 2026, Karony’s total offense level was 37, and he was put in criminal history category 1 with a guideline of 210 to 262 months.

The proceedings today involved victims sharing their experiences with SafeMoon and specifically Karony, whom several of them claimed had been the one to convince them the project was trustworthy and would not rugpull. 

“We believed in Mr. Karony, what he said – it gave us a sense of false security. Our investment changed the trajectory of our life. We have not been able to buy a house. To this day, we have not been able,” one victim claimed. 

Karony’s defense defended his position by claiming that it all went down when Karony was just 25, and his brain was just developing. His defense tried to attract sympathy by diving into his family history, but that did little to help. He had already been convicted. 

After the court went on recess and resumed session, the Judge in charge, United States District Judge Eric R. Komitee of the Eastern District of New York, called what happened with SafeMoon a “massive fraud.” 

“I’d describe it this way: the defendant and co-conspirators went to great pains to earn the trust of people who bought it, assuring there would not be a rug-pull. That happened,” Komittee said. 

The judge also pointed out that the incident was more similar to “theft than fraud,” especially since it was not a small loss per person, as is the case in many securities frauds. 

“I sentence you to 100 months in the custody of the AG. On count 1, 60; count 2, 100 concurrently,” Komittee concluded. 

The hearing for the third count of money laundering will reportedly take place on April 23 at 10 in the morning. 

What happened to the SafeMoon project?  

According to SEC documents, Karony and his co-conspirators misrepresented various material aspects of the SafeMoon offering to investors. 

They lied that SafeMoon relied on “locked” liquidity pools that would automatically increase in size due to a 10% tax imposed on every SafeMoon transaction; that the “locked” SafeMoon liquidity pool meant the defendants and other insiders at SafeMoon would not be able to “rug pull” SafeMoon investors by removing liquidity from the SafeMoon liquidity pool. 

They also claimed that tokens in the liquidity pool would only be used for limited pre-defined business purposes, not personal enrichment; that the defendants would manually add token pairs to the SafeMoon liquidity pool when transactions of SafeMoon occurred on specific centralized exchanges; and that the developers were not and had not been holding and trading SafeMoon for their benefit.

In truth, Karony and his co-conspirators had access to the SafeMoon liquidity pools, which they used to intentionally divert and misappropriate millions of dollars’ worth of tokens for their personal benefit. 

Also, although they publicly denied that they personally held or traded SafeMoon, they repeatedly bought and sold SafeMoon, sometimes at the height of SafeMoon’s market price, earning themselves millions of dollars in profits. 

They masked their movement of the fraudulent proceeds via numerous private un-hosted crypto wallet addresses, complex transaction routing, and pseudonymous centralized exchange accounts. 

Other company executives are in trouble too

Karony reportedly walked away from the scheme with over $9 million in crypto assets, some of which he used to purchase luxury vehicles and real estate, including a $2.2 million home in Utah, additional homes in Utah and Kansas, a $277,000 Audi R8 sports car, another Audi R8, a Tesla, and custom Ford F-550 and Jeep Gladiator pickup trucks.

His co-conspirator, Thomas Smith, previously pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, while his other co-conspirator, Kyle Nagy, remains at large.

“As proven at trial, the SafeMoon digital asset was anything but safe and turned out to be pie in the sky for investors who were deliberately misled by Karony, a man who sought to get rich quick by stealing and diverting millions of dollars,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. 

The maximum possible sentence for his crimes could have been up to 45 years. Prosecutors had reportedly recommended 12, while the defense pushed for about a year. 

The decision to settle on the 100-month term has taken into account federal sentencing guidelines, forfeiture orders, and some other factors like restitution considerations.

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The beginning of 2026 has changed the world of top cryptocurrencies significantly. Whereas most individuals continue chasing the old market leaders, a new crypto generation of intelligent money is shifting to a particular protocol. This undertaking has crept to be the most viewed name in the first quarter. It does not base its expansion on mere hype and viral memes. 

Rather, it employs high technology to solve the actual financial issues of the global consumers. The increasing interest of the large scale holders implies that a big breakout is in the offing. Observers of the charts can observe the indications of a huge change ahead of the other market.

MUTM Presale Growth 

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is a professional DeFi crypto protocol built on the Ethereum network. It is creating a hub for digital credit that removes the need for banks or middlemen. The goal is to let users manage their assets safely through automated smart contracts. At the heart of this system is a powerful dual-market lending model.

The first part is a Peer-to-Contract (P2C) market. In this system, users put assets like ETH or USDT into shared liquidity pools. This allows others to borrow funds instantly. The interest rates change automatically based on how much the pool is used. The second part is a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) market. This is built for custom lending deals. It lets lenders and borrowers agree on their own terms directly.

The platform offers high Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratios, meaning users can access more cash against their assets. It also provides competitive Annual Percentage Yields (APY) for those who supply funds to the system. This model is perfect for niche or volatile assets that do not fit into standard pools.

MUTM is in the seventh phase of the presale of the project. MUTM token is currently valued at $0.04. This is a gradual growth as compared to the initial cost of $0.01. Having an official launch price of $0.06, the project is gaining momentum. It has already raised in excess of $20.4 million and had an excess of 19,000 holders. The community is expanding rapidly since the project is aimed at equitable accessibility to all.

Technical Milestones and Safety

The project has recently hit a massive milestone of the V1 protocol launch on the Sepolia testnet. This is a prototype of the lending engine which demonstrates that the code is well prepared. In order to ensure that everything was safe the team underwent a complete security audit with Halborn. This is one of the reputable companies in the field of blockchain security. The fact that this audit passed indicates that the smart contracts are robust and sound.

Due to such technical procedure, analysts are highly optimistic about the project. Several analysts feel that MUTM can experience a huge increase in value upon entering the mainnet. Existing price forecasts indicate that the price could hit a threshold of $0.15 to $0.25 in 2026. This would see a great leap of the current entry price of $0.04. 

Revenue Mechanism and Future Utility

Mutuum Finance has a special system in the form of mtTokens. Providing assets would earn you mtTokens as a digital certificate. The value of these tokens increases due to the fact that they receive a portion of the interest which the borrowers pay. 

The buy and distribute model is also applied in the project’s whitepaper. This is equivalent to purchasing back tokens of MUTM in the market with a proportion of the platform fees. Such tokens are then distributed to the asset staking people.

Top tier decentralized oracles are also utilised by the protocol to receive real time price information. This makes all loans secure and precise. Analysts believe that these features would result in 8x or 10x value growth. Other analysts in the market expect the price to hit up to $0.50 provided that the platform takes a significant portion of the lending market. This would be an 1,150% improvement compared to the present level.

Following the Path of Solana (SOL)

Numerous analysts believe that Solana is taking the same initial steps followed by Mutuum Finance. Similar to the initial years of SOL, this project is establishing a high-speed system that pays attention to low prices. Mutuum Finance is attempting to create a decentralized center that eliminates the antique banking obstacles. It applies Layer 2 technology to maintain the transactions fast and affordable to all users.

It is aimed at building a completely decentralized economy, in which any individual can get access to loans. MUTM is positioning itself as a high quality asset by integrating elite security, as well as a working testnet. Phase 7 is selling out, and it is time to buy at a discount. Due to the combination of the verified code with a solid revenue model, it is the most viewed cheap crypto of the year.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://www.mutuum.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance

A major group representing news publishers across Europe filed a complaint on Tuesday against Google, claiming the tech giant is using their articles to power artificial intelligence tools without permission or payment.

The European Publishers Council submitted the formal complaint to European Union authorities on February 10, 2026. The group takes issue with Google’s AI-driven search results, which create automatic summaries of information pulled from news websites. These summaries appear at the top of search pages when users look for information.

Publishers say AI tools threaten journalism’s survival

This legal action could strengthen an existing EU probe that started in late 2025. Regulators are already looking into whether Google is breaking competition rules with these AI features.

The fight centers on a basic question: Should Google be allowed to use content from news sites to train its AI systems and generate answers without paying the publishers who created that content? For years, Google and media companies had a working relationship.

News outlets got visitors from Google searches, and Google benefited from having quality content to point users toward. But publishers say AI summaries are breaking that arrangement.

Christian Van Thillo, who chairs the publishers council, explained the problem in a statement released Tuesday. He said AI search tools threaten independent journalism’s ability to survive.

“It is about stopping a dominant gatekeeper from using its market power to take publishers’ content without consent, without fair compensation, and without giving publishers any realistic way to protect their journalism,” Van Thillo said. He added that “AI Overviews and AI Mode fundamentally undermine the economic compact that has sustained the open web.”

Google rejected the publishers’ arguments. A company representative said the complaint tries to block useful features that people across Europe want to use.

“These inaccurate claims are an attempt to hold back helpful new AI features that Europeans want. We design our AI features to surface great content across the web and we provide easy-to-use controls for them to manage their content,” the spokesperson said.

The search company points to tools it’s developing that would let website owners choose whether their content gets used in AI-generated results. Google says it’s working on technical options for sites to opt out of these features.

But publishers say these controls don’t really help. They argue that blocking Google’s AI tools would hurt their ability to show up in regular search results, cutting off a major source of traffic. Experts describe this as an impossible choice: either let them use your content for AI summaries that reduce clicks to your site, or opt out and become invisible to people searching online.

Google’s AI Overviews cut publisher traffic by 33% globally
Source: Debug Lies analysis

Complaint strengthens EU investigation into Google

The complaint comes at a bad time for Google’s parent company, Alphabet. It gives European regulators more evidence as they examine whether the company is breaking rules designed to limit powerful tech platforms.

The European Commission launched its investigation in December, stating that the company might be misusing its position as the top search engine to force unfair terms on publishers. The publishers council noted that Google uses its control over online search to access content without paying for it, matching concerns EU antitrust officials have raised.

In February 2026, Teresa Ribera, an Executive Vice-President at the EU, suggested the Commission might take swift action to prevent permanent damage to media companies while the full investigation continues.

The shift Google is making, from sending people to websites toward answering questions directly, poses a serious threat to how news organizations make money. Most publishers rely on advertising revenue from people who visit their sites.

When Google provides complete answers on the search page itself, fewer people click through to read the full article. Even though it includes links in its AI summaries, early data from 2026 shows these citations don’t make up for the lost traffic.

Whatever happens with this complaint could set rules worldwide for how AI companies must pay content creators whose work trains these systems. If EU officials side with the publishers, Google might have to create a payment system similar to one established by a 2019 Copyright Directive, but potentially much more extensive and automatic in how it operates.

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The European Union Parliament showed its first support for the launch of the digital euro on Tuesday. The Parliament endorsed the European Council’s call for a central bank digital currency with both online and offline functionality.

The parliamentary decision comes as two amendments were added to the European Central Bank’s annual report shortly before the vote. Up to 420 lawmakers voted for the First Amendment, with 158 voting against and 64 absent. However, 438 lawmakers voted for the Second Amendment, with 158 against and 44 absent.

European lawmakers urge ECB to boost its monitoring of digital assets

Today’s vote in the European Parliament sends a clear message: Europe cannot stand still on the digital euro. At a time when payments, data and financial infrastructures are increasingly shaped by non-European actors, strengthening our monetary sovereignty is a strategic choice.… pic.twitter.com/IYYJXyv3mF

— European Democrats (@democrats_eu) February 10, 2026

The Parliament’s backing is crucial, as the European Central Bank requires legislative approval from Parliament before it can issue a digital euro. The initiative also means the central bank’s goal of a 2029 launch depends on regional lawmakers signing off.

The EU’s stance on the digital euro marks a shift from previous proposals focused only on offline payments. The shift also signals better alignment with the ECB on preserving the region’s monetary sovereignty. The MEPs called for a digital euro that enables access to payment services and provides usable public money in both online and offline forms.

“These votes are a big win for the progress of the digital euro. There is now a clear parliamentary majority in favour of an inclusive future form of cash – money in digital form backed by the central bank.”

-Laura Casonato, Head of Policy at Positive Money Europe.

European lawmakers also called for the ECB to advance its monitoring of virtual assets. The MEPs warned that the shift to digital payments could create new forms of exclusion for merchants.

Europe’s push for a digital euro aims to enable the bloc to make online payments without relying on U.S payment systems. A legislative amendment stated that the digital euro is essential to reduce fragmentation in retail payments and to support the integrity and resilience of the single market. 

The initiative follows Europe’s efforts to break its dependence on foreign firms, such as Visa and Mastercard. Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB, on Monday revealed that the digital euro will be built on European infrastructure to reduce excessive reliance on foreign payment system providers critical to the region’s economy.

The EU first proposed the digital euro in June 2023, but it stalled in countries such as Germany, awaiting support of member states and approval from European lawmakers. A number of nations in the bloc gave their green light to the digital euro in December, putting pressure on lawmakers. 

ECB’s president calls for a tokenized central bank money

Lagarde stated that the bloc needs to complement physical cash with the digital euro. She argued that cash cannot be used for digital payments and also noted that its share in day-to-day payments is declining as a result.

Lagarde believes that a digital euro will provide consumers across the bloc with a solution accepted for all digital payments. She also revealed that the digital euro will ensure greater privacy, even though the central bank will not have access to personal data.

The ECP president added that the digital euro will benefit businesses in the region by reducing merchant fees. She argued that it will allow European private payment service providers to expand the reach of their services with ease.

Largarde also urged lawmakers to make tokenized central bank money available to support the development of an integrated crypto-based European ecosystem. She said the initiative will ensure the ecosystem has a risk-free, euro-denominated, European asset at its core.

The ECB’s president said the initiative needs to settle DLT-based wholesale transactions in central bank money. She revealed that the bank’s project Pontes will provide a solution for the initiative in Q3 of 2026. Another goal Lagarde highlighted was the ECB’s Appia project, aimed at creating an integrated European market for virtual assets from the outset. 

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A Federal Reserve governor went against the grain Monday, saying foreign firms actually pay for Trump’s tariffs instead of American consumers. Stephen Miran’s comments at Boston University clash with what most economists and researchers have found.

Miran told the audience that accounting tricks hide who really pays. When data shows a U.S. company bearing the cost, he says it’s often just the American arm of a foreign business.

“It’s entirely inappropriate to say that we can conclude from those data that U.S. agents are bearing the burden of the tariff, because some of those companies are actually subsidiaries of foreign companies,” he said.

But Yale Budget Lab’s research from November tells a different story. The poorest families pay about $964 annually, while the richest pay $4,056, but lower-income households get hit three times harder as a share of what they earn. Yale calculated prices went up about 1.2% because of tariffs.

The Tax Foundation went further, calling Trump’s tariffs “the largest U.S. tax increase as a percent of GDP since 1993.” Their data shows the average tariff rate jumped from around 2% in 2024 to roughly 10% in 2025, the highest level since 1946.

The federal government collected $264 billion in tariff revenues in 2025, according to Tax Foundation research, far short of the trillions the White House regularly mentions.

Grocery bills show real impact

Grocery shelves tell the real story. Coffee prices went up 33.6%, ground beef rose 19.3%, romaine lettuce climbed 16.8%, and frozen orange juice increased 12.4%, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data. These items got hit because they’re either not made domestically or grown abroad. Electronics, toys, and cars faced similar pressures.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said last week that shoppers were seeing tariff costs show up in prices. Economist Paul Krugman figured tariffs added 0.8 percentage points to inflation in early February.

The White House pushed back hard. “America’s average tariff rate has increased by nearly tenfold in the past year, while inflation has actually cooled, real wages have risen, GDP growth has accelerated, and trillions in investments continue pouring in to make and hire in America,” spokesman Kush Desai said.

The most recent government numbers show annual inflation in December at 2.7%, about the same as when Trump took office.

But Tax Foundation research found the tariffs will wipe out most economic gains from Trump’s new tax cuts that kicked in this year. That creates a situation where the administration gives with one hand through tax relief while taking back with the other through import taxes.

Miran came to the Fed last year when Trump appointed him to fill an open seat. Before that, he was Trump’s top economic adviser. He even took a controversial leave from the White House while working at the central bank at the same time.

His idea is that foreign sellers eat the tariff costs through weaker currencies instead of raising prices on Americans. Trump himself admitted late last year that Americans faced some higher prices, though he said the policy still helped overall. “I think that they might be paying something,” Trump said.

Yale’s September numbers showed the typical household paying $2,000 a year in tariff costs. Cryptopolitan reported back in December that UBS warned Trump’s tariff approach would cause problems for the Fed’s 2% inflation goal. The bank said slowly adding more tariffs would make fighting inflation harder.

This matters because the Fed has been saying tariffs pushed inflation above target this year. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in January that tariffs probably cause a one-time price jump, not lasting inflation. Other Fed officials said the damage wasn’t as bad as expected.

Former fed chairs join 50 economists against tariffs

Miran’s stance creates friction at the Fed while the Supreme Court decides if Trump’s tariffs were even legal. Former Fed chairs Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen got almost 50 economists together last October, asking the court to throw out most of the global tariffs. They called the tariffs economically pointless and legally shaky.

What comes next depends on two things. First, the Supreme Court ruling on whether the tariffs are legal. Second, whether inflation numbers back up Miran’s claim that tariffs don’t hurt much. Jobs data already shows problems, as Cryptopolitan reported in September that manufacturers stopped hiring because tariff policy kept changing.

Miran also said Monday that tariff money helps cut the federal deficit. But Yale’s research found that slower economic growth from tariffs actually reduces total tax revenue by $400 billion to $1 trillion over ten years, which eats into what tariffs bring in.

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