Binance Wallet launched a feature on Wednesday, integrating with decentralized exchange Aster—the second-largest perpetuals platform with $6.74 billion in 24-hour volume—to enable leveraged futures trading directly from users' self-custody wallets on BNB Smart Chain. This allows trading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC at $97,447.39) and Ether (ETH at $3,379.38), plus equities such as Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA), and the Invesco QQQ ETF, using collateral like BNB and Tether's USDT. Users retain full asset control, blending CeFi speed with DeFi security, amid risks highlighted by FTX's 2022 collapse. Winson Liu, Binance Wallet's global lead, called it a step toward sophisticated tools in Web3. The web-interface feature is the first in the Binance ecosystem, excluding the centralized exchange's futures platform, potentially attracting users from Binance's 200 million base.

KuCoin achieved a record $1.25 trillion in trading volume for 2025, averaging $114 billion monthly, capturing an all-time high centralized exchange market share as volumes outpaced the broader crypto market. Spot and derivatives each exceeded $500 billion, with altcoins dominating activity beyond BTC and ETH.

Bybit Pay partnered with Peru's Yape and Plin digital wallets, each reaching 14 million users, to enable crypto payments (stablecoins and majors like BTC) automatically converted to Peruvian soles at point-of-sale, expanding in Latin America after Brazil and Argentina ties.

Bitcoin surged over 4% on Wednesday, breaking above $95,000, fueled by lower-than-expected US inflation data. This reinforced market expectations that the Federal Reserve will continue cutting interest rates this year, boosting overall crypto sentiment.

Ethereum climbed more than 7% to $3,330 during the same period, reflecting broader market gains. Over $688 million in crypto derivatives positions were liquidated in the prior 24 hours, with short sellers bearing the brunt of the losses.

The rally also highlighted regulatory optimism, as seen in Ripple (XRP)'s price rise amid the positive inflation data. Additional industry news included Prosperity Life Group naming Mark Williams as VP of National Accounts, and Salt Financial's collaboration with FTSE Russell on risk-managed index solutions.

Corporate Bitcoin accumulation has outpaced new supply, with companies adding a net 260,000 BTC to balance sheets over the past six months—more than three times the 82,000 BTC mined globally. Treasuries grew from 854,000 to 1.11 million BTC, averaging 43,000 BTC monthly purchases, absorbing over three times daily miner output of 450 BTC. Holdings are concentrated, led by Strategy (co-founded by Michael Saylor) with 687,410 BTC (60% of corporate total, valued at $65.5 billion). Strategy resumed buying, acquiring 13,627 BTC from January 5 to 11—its largest since July. MARA Holdings follows with 53,250 BTC ($5 billion).

Spot Bitcoin ETFs have intensified supply pressure, purchasing over 100% of new issuance since early 2024. In 2025, U.S. ETFs saw $22 billion inflows, led by BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust; 2026 inflows remain modestly positive.

Strive’s stock fell nearly 12% on Tuesday after announcing an all-stock acquisition of Semler Scientific, adding 5,048.1 BTC to Strive’s 7,749.8 BTC (post-123 BTC purchase), totaling 12,797.9 BTC (11th-largest holder). Plans include monetizing Semler’s business, retiring a $100 million convertible note and $20 million Coinbase loan, and a 1-for-20 reverse stock split. Such pivots show volatility: Strive surged over 2,000% after May 7 announcement (from $0.61 to $13.01 by May 22), now at $0.97; Semler rose from $30 to $67 by December 2024 after May adoption, now ~$20.

Over the past six months, public and private companies accumulated 260,000 BTC in their treasuries, absorbing three times the new supply produced by miners (82,000 BTC), according to Glassnode data. Monthly net inflows averaged 43,000 BTC, valued at about $25 billion. Corporate Bitcoin holdings expanded rapidly from 854,000 BTC to 1.11 million BTC, marking one of the fastest growth periods on record. Across structured entities, 4.06 million BTC is held, with ETFs and funds leading at 1.49 million BTC, followed by public companies at over 1.1 million BTC; the rest is owned by governments, private firms, DeFi contracts, and custodians.

Bitcoin's current price stands at $96,468, with 24-hour volatility of 1.1%, a market cap of $1.93 trillion, and 24-hour volume of $68.24 billion. Top corporate holders include Strategy with 687,410 BTC (60% of corporate total), funded via equity and debt; MARA Holdings at 53,250 BTC from mining retention; Twenty One Capital with 43,514 BTC since its December 2025 launch via merger with Cantor Equity Partners; and Japan's Metaplanet at 35,102 BTC, accumulated since 2024 to hedge inflation. Miners add 450 BTC daily, but corporate absorption outpaces this, reducing liquid supply.

The article also highlights Bitcoin Hyper (HYPER), a Layer 2 solution addressing Bitcoin's scalability issues, with its presale token at $0.013575 after raising $30.4 million.

MicroStrategy recently acquired an additional 1,287 Bitcoin for approximately $116 million, at a price of about $90,000 per coin. This purchase increases their total holdings to 673,783 Bitcoin, representing 3% of Bitcoin's total supply of 21 million coins, effectively locking them off the market.

The move highlights ongoing corporate accumulation of Bitcoin amid discussions on its rising value and accessibility. Michael Saylor, associated with MicroStrategy, is noted for buying more Bitcoin, emphasizing that the focus is not just on price appreciation but on securing access before prices surge further. Critics question the hoarding strategy, contrasting it with Bitcoin's ethos of being accessible to everyone.

Bitcoin Price Surge
Last week, Bitcoin (BTC) regained momentum, briefly reaching 93,000 USD within a range of 80,600 to 95,000 USD. On Tuesday evening, it broke above 96,300 USD before a slight correction. As of writing, BTC trades at 95,000 USD, up 3.5% in the last 24 hours—the first time at these levels since November last year. Ethereum (ETH) hit 3,300 USD, up 6.2%, while Cardano (ADA) rose 7.5% above 0.42 USD.

Market Factors and Optimism
The move suggests a potential range breakout, fueled by record highs in the S&P 500, signaling investor optimism. Speculation grows for BTC to reclaim 100,000 USD. Regulatory progress includes the upcoming CLARITY Act; SEC President Paul Atkins praised it on X, stating, "The most important thing we can do now for investors is to get crypto-asset markets out of the regulatory gray area."

Geopolitical Tensions
Escalating Iran unrest, with at least 734 protesters killed since December 28 last year per Iran Human Rights, raises US intervention risks. Donald Trump urged Iranians to protest on Truth Social, canceled meetings with officials, and noted allies should leave. In June 2025, US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites led to an Israel ceasefire. A potential new intervention could boost markets.

ETF Inflows and Liquidations
Bitcoin ETFs saw 754 million USD in net inflows on Tuesday. Crypto derivatives liquidations totaled 685.5 million USD in 24 hours, with 86.5% from short positions. Despite Trump pressure, the Fed may hike rates.

U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded their largest daily inflows in three months on Tuesday, with $753.7 million in net inflows—the strongest single-day total since Oct. 7—signaling a return of institutional demand amid year-end portfolio rebalancing and rotation into risk assets, according to data from SoSoValue. Fidelity’s FBTC led with $351 million, followed by Bitwise’s BITB at $159 million and BlackRock’s IBIT at $126 million. This pickup follows a subdued end to 2025, driven by tax-related selling and risk-off positioning that reduced allocations to crypto products.

Ether-linked funds also saw renewed interest, posting a combined $130 million in net inflows across five U.S. spot ether ETFs, reflecting broader crypto market recovery. Improving macro signals bolstered sentiment: the latest U.S. consumer price index (CPI) data indicated cooling inflation, raising expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts later this year—a historically supportive backdrop for risk assets.

Crypto prices rose in tandem. Bitcoin gained about 3% over the past 24 hours to near $94,600, while ether climbed more than 6% to around $3,320, outperforming as demand expanded beyond bitcoin.

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest daily inflows in three months, with $753.7 million on Tuesday, the strongest since Oct. 7, per SoSoValue data. This signals renewed institutional demand after a subdued end to 2025 due to tax-related selling and risk-off positioning. Fidelity’s FBTC led with $351 million, followed by Bitwise’s BITB ($159 million) and BlackRock’s IBIT ($126 million). U.S. spot ether ETFs saw $130 million in net inflows across five products, reflecting broader crypto recovery.

Improving macro signals bolstered sentiment, as the latest U.S. consumer price index showed cooling inflation, raising expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts later this year. Bitcoin rose 3% to near $94,600, while ether gained over 6% to around $3,320.

KuCoin achieved a record centralized exchange market share in 2025, with over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume—averaging $114 billion monthly. Spot and derivatives each exceeded $500 billion, with altcoins dominating activity amid slower overall crypto volumes.

Bitcoin extended its rally past $97,000 during U.S. market hours on Wednesday, boosting related equities like Strategy (up over 8%). Investors sought haven assets, including gold, silver, and Bitcoin, amid a criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell. (Dec 22, 2025)