According to Onchain Lens monitoring, Bitmine has further staked 92,160 ETH, worth approximately $293 million at current prices. Following this operation, Bitmine's total staked ETH has increased to 1,436,384, with a total value of approximately $4.77 billion.

According to Foresight News, Germany's second-largest bank, DZ Bank, has received approval from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) under the MiCAR regulation to operate its cryptocurrency platform, meinKrypto. The platform, which was approved at the end of December, will serve the main institutions of the cooperative financial group. It is set to launch soon, enabling these institutions to offer their retail clients the opportunity to trade cryptocurrencies, initially including BTC, ETH, LTC, and ADA.

According to Odaily, Bitcoin treasury company Strive announced on the X platform that it purchased 123 BTC at an average price of approximately $91,561 between January 1, 2026, and January 12, 2026. As of January 12, 2026, Strive holds a total of about 7,749.8 BTC, with a total portfolio value of approximately $874 million and an average acquisition cost of around $112,810.

FTX announced its latest distribution arrangements, with the expected registration date for the next distribution being February 14, 2026, and the official launch scheduled for March 31, 2026. Simultaneously, FTX has filed an amended notice with the court, proposing to reduce the size of its disputed debt reserves by $2.2 billion. If this adjustment is approved by the court, the funds will be released and used for distribution to identified debt holders in the next distribution.

Bitcoin treasury company Strive announced on the X platform that between January 1st and January 12th, 2026, Strive purchased 123 BTC at an average price of approximately $91,561 each. As of January 12th, 2026, Strive held approximately 7,749.8 BTC, with a total holding value of approximately $874 million, and an average purchase cost of approximately $112,810.

According to PANews, JPMorgan's Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum cautioned during the fourth-quarter earnings call that yield stablecoins could lead to a 'parallel banking system' lacking traditional regulatory safeguards, which he described as 'dangerous and undesirable.' Barnum expressed support for the GENIUS Act's intention to establish guardrails for stablecoin issuance but opposed the emergence of alternative systems with banking features, such as interest-bearing deposits, that are not subject to appropriate prudential regulation. He emphasized that while banks welcome competition and innovation, they firmly oppose the creation of a parallel banking system outside existing regulatory protections. Previously, the U.S. banking sector had expressed concerns that yield stablecoins might disrupt their business models. The recently reviewed draft amendment of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act explicitly prohibits digital asset service providers from paying interest or returns solely for holding stablecoins, aiming to prevent stablecoins from functioning like bank deposits. However, the draft still allows incentives for liquidity provision, governance participation, and staking within the ecosystem.

According to PANews, Kirk West, accused of stealing over $11 million worth of XRP from Nancy Jones, the widow of late American country music singer George Jones, has filed a countersuit. West claims that during their relationship, he accumulated wealth through cryptocurrency investments and is entitled to a share of the assets. West was arrested last year for allegedly stealing $400,000 in cash and over 5.5 million XRP from Nancy Jones. Court documents reveal that the two met and became romantically involved after George Jones passed away in 2013. West, who described himself as a 'cryptocurrency expert,' persuaded Nancy to invest in various cryptocurrencies, including XRP, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. Nancy expelled West from her home last year after suspecting infidelity and subsequently discovered that her Ledger hardware wallet, which stored her crypto assets, was missing from her safe. Although over 5 million XRP were recovered with legal assistance, 483,000 XRP, currently valued at over $1 million, remain unaccounted for. In his countersuit, West denies the theft allegations and asserts that he created wealth for both parties through 'multiple wise investments.' He seeks half of the cryptocurrencies, cash, and gold and silver assets they held when he left Nancy's residence last year. According to Rolling Stone magazine, these assets include $5 million worth of gold and silver and $1 million in cash. The Williamson County court records indicate that the case, filed with a private summons last October, saw its first update this week with West's countersuit.

According to ChainCatcher, BNB Chain has implemented its third major upgrade, named Fermi after the Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi. This upgrade aims to increase block production speed by 40% and reduce finality confirmation time to approximately one second. These improvements are expected to make transaction confirmations more predictable and reduce slippage risk in highly volatile markets. The upgrade also includes technical enhancements such as optimizing validator coordination mechanisms, improving blockchain data access efficiency, and enhancing transaction execution efficiency. Previously, BNB Chain completed two upgrades named after mathematician Pascal and physicist Maxwell.

Kirk West, a man from Tennessee, has filed a countersuit against Nancy Jones, the widow of country music legend George Jones, alleging the theft of over $11 million worth of XRP. West was previously arrested after being accused of stealing approximately $400,000 in cash and over 5.5 million XRP tokens. In his countersuit, West denies the theft allegations, claiming the crypto assets were accumulated through "successful investments" during their relationship and that he legally owns a portion of them. He also accuses Jones of fraud and defamation. Public documents show that the two met and became lovers after George Jones' death in 2013. West, who described himself as a "crypto expert," advised Jones to invest in various crypto assets, including XRP, ETH, DOGE, SHIB, and XLM. Jones, however, accuses West of stealing a hardware wallet containing his private keys after being evicted from her home, resulting in the disappearance of some of the crypto assets. To date, Jones has recovered approximately 5 million XRP, but about 483,000 XRP remain unaccounted for. In its latest countersuit, West is seeking the division of assets including crypto assets, approximately $5 million worth of precious metals, and $1 million in cash. The case is still under further review. (Decrypt)

The US law firm Burwick Law recently refiled a lawsuit against Pumpfun, Solana Labs, and related executives, accusing them of building a "manipulated, unlicensed gambling platform" and allegedly organizing large-scale pump-and-dump schemes. The lawsuit documents cite private chat logs stating that Pumpfun co-founder Alon Cohen indicated in internal communications that "most investors participating in Meme coin trading on the platform would lose money," comparing such low-market-cap token trading to high-risk gambling. The plaintiff also cites anonymous KOLs who claim that some promotional activities involved prior knowledge of token information and coordinated selling. However, the report points out that the lawsuit lacks direct evidence proving that Pumpfun executives personally profited from these activities, and some allegations rely on indirect accounts, making the evidence weak. Whether "market manipulation" constitutes wrongdoing remains to be seen after further court proceedings and evidence gathering. (DL news)

Ripple’s Singapore subsidiary received an expanded payment license, allowing it to offer digital token payments, cross-border transfers, and other regulated services. The move strengthens Singapore as Ripple’s Asia-Pacific hub and supports faster, more efficient payments using RLUSD and XRP.

Mastercard, Ripple, and Gemini are testing credit card payments using the stablecoin RLUSD on Ripple’s XRP Ledger. The pilot, involving WebBank, aims to settle transactions on a public blockchain and explore faster, more efficient payment options.

Ripple has confirmed it has no plans to go public, choosing to stay private despite other crypto firms launching IPOs. The company raised $500 million at a $40 billion valuation to fund its global expansion and product development.

Speaking at a CNBC interview, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse speculated that the stablecoin market would explore to nearly tenfold within the next few years.

Ripple has applied for a US national bank charter and a Federal Reserve account to support its stablecoin RLUSD. The move comes as new laws push stablecoin issuers to meet tougher rules, with Ripple aiming to boost trust and compete with USDC and USDT.

In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump announced he would be creating a Crypto Strategic Reserve that includes XRP, SOL and ADA on top of Bitcoin and ETH.