Crypto Market Update: Shorts Feel the Squeeze as Week Starts on High Note

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$73,461.15, up by 3.3 percent over the last 24 hours.

Simon Massabni, head of business development at XS.com, said Bitcoin's pullback from its recent peak indicates that positive momentum is driven by short-term factors and lacks the structural foundation for a sustainable uptrend.

“In the past week, BTC traded relatively positively as the market welcomed lower-than-expected inflation data … somewhat (easing) concerns over persistent inflation pressures, thereby triggering a 'risk-on' sentiment and supporting risk assets, including BTC," Massabni said in an email to the Investing News Network.

He added that exchange-traded fund flows also played a short-term supportive role.

“This indicates that institutional demand has not fully withdrawn from the market, thereby providing additional momentum for Bitcoin to approach the key resistance zone around US$74,000," added Massabni.

He noted that this positive reaction is driven more by short-term factors rather than a structural shift. Although lower than expected, inflation overall remains relatively level, particularly as energy prices continue to fluctuate due to geopolitical factors. This continues to limit expectations for an early policy easing by the US Federal Reserve.

As the market gradually absorbs the information, the focus quickly returns to the scenario of interest rates remaining higher for longer. This is a structural factor that directly impacts global liquidity and the valuation of risk assets.

According to Massabni, in such an environment, rallies often struggle to sustain, especially in the absence of a sufficiently strong catalyst from both macro conditions and capital flows:

“From a broader perspective, BTC is currently being simultaneously affected by multiple constraining factors. In the current context, BTC is likely to continue moving in a consolidation or range-bound pattern, rather than forming a strong uptrend immediately. To confirm a sustainable bullish trend, the market will require clearer conditions, including a genuine easing of inflation, signals of policy loosening from the Fed, or a strong return of institutional capital flows.”

With Bitcoin pushing higher even as perpetual funding sits slightly negative and open interest climbs, derivatives positioning suggests the move is being fueled by fresh shorts getting squeezed rather than by aggressive long chasing.

Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,266.73, up by 3.1 percent over the last 24 hours.

Altcoin price update

• XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.36, up by 1.8 percent over 24 hours.

• Solana (SOL) was trading at US$84.20, trading 2.7 percent higher over 24 hours.

Today's crypto news to know

Strategy expands Bitcoin reserve with US$1 billion acquisition

Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) has cemented its status as the world’s premier Bitcoin treasury, adding another 13,927 BTC to its balance sheet for a staggering US$1 billion.

Executive Chair Michael Saylor confirmed that the purchase was executed at an average price of US$71,902, bringing the company’s total stockpile to a massive 780,897 tokens.

The latest purchase means the firm now controls approximately 3.8 percent of the entire circulating Bitcoin supply, a concentration that far outstrips any other publicly traded company.

Despite the firm currently facing roughly US$14.5 billion in unrealized losses due to recent market pullbacks, Saylor remains steadfast in his accumulation strategy, recently noting that the company's holdings now only need to grow by 2 percent annually to cover all preferred stock dividends indefinitely. To fund these massive buys, Strategy has been using its high-yield preferred stock, allowing it to hoard coins without diluting common shareholders.

At its current pace, analysts believe the firm is on track to hit 1 million BTC by the end of the year.

Investor mutiny rocks Trump-linked WLF

World Liberty Financial (WLF), the crypto venture closely tied to the Trump family, is grappling with a high-profile investor revolt led by billionaire Justin Sun, according to a Bloomberg report.

Sun, who was an early and heavy backer of the project, has publicly denounced it as a "trap," accusing insiders of building secret controls to freeze user funds at will. The backlash centers on a controversial maneuver where the project deposited 3 billion of its own WLFI tokens into a lending protocol to borrow US$75 million in stablecoins.

Allegations state that this allows the team to extract liquidity effectively before a massive wave of early investor tokens are scheduled to unlock, potentially leaving retail holders with the bill. The drama has sent the WLFI token diving, with its value dropping over 50 percent to hit an all-time low below US$0.08 over the weekend.

Coinone slapped with massive fine, partial ban

South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit has handed down a severe penalty to Coinone, one of the nation’s largest crypto exchanges, over systematic failures in its anti-money laundering protocols.

The Korea Times reported that the exchange was fined 5.2 billion won (roughly US$3.5 million) and will undergo a three month partial business suspension after regulators discovered 70,000 cases of failed customer identity verification.

During this suspension period, Coinone is strictly prohibited from onboarding new customers or allowing them to deposit and withdraw funds for trading. Investigations also revealed that the platform facilitated approximately 10,000 transactions through 16 unregistered overseas exchanges, bypassing mandatory reporting requirements.

Under Korean law, exchanges must link user accounts to real-name bank accounts and report any transactions that exceed specific thresholds to prevent illicit financial activity.

HSBC pilots tokenized deposits on public Canton Network

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) has introduced a simulated pilot for tokenized deposits on the public Canton Network, marking the first time the bank's tokenized deposit service has been issued on a public blockchain. This follows the May 2025 launch of its tokenized deposit service on HSBC Orion, a private blockchain utilizing Canton distributed ledger technology.

By testing these tokenized deposits on the broader Canton network rather than restricting them to the internal Orion environment, HSBC has demonstrated its ability to settle instantly and atomically against other digital assets. This successful trial proves that the deposits can interoperate effectively beyond HSBC's proprietary ecosystem.

Webull Canada launches zero-commission trading

Webull Canada, an online investment platform and subsidiary of Webull (NASDAQ:BULL), announced the launch of zero-commission trading across its platform for Canadians investing in US and Canadian equities.

Other fees, including regulatory and exchange fees, may still apply.

“Every dollar Canadian investors once spent on commissions is now a dollar fully invested in their future,” said Michael Constantino, CEO of Webull Canada, in a press release.

“By eliminating commissions, Webull Canada is removing a layer of friction from trading, and delivering on our continued commitment to making capital markets more accessible to Canadian investors.”

Report identifies key factors for stablecoin adoption

A summary of a new report from stablecoin payment card provider DeCard identifies three key factors affecting the practicality of stablecoin adoption. The research combines factors such as economic instability, financial limitations and existing crypto activity to generate the Stablecoin Need Score and Access Score.

These were combined to form the Stablecoin Readiness Index.

Argentina ranks first due to its high economic instability, driving residents to seek alternative financial systems. Argentina recorded a 33.1 percent year-on-year inflation rate and high currency volatility compared to the US dollar.

“In countries where inflation is on the rise and traditional markets don’t provide financial stability, stablecoins are not about speculation. They offer a way to preserve everyday purchasing power and access to international markets,” a DeCard representative said in an email sent to the Investing News Network.

“Rather than chasing outsized returns, the value lies in financial stability, ensuring people don’t lose value overnight.”