Crypto Newsletter

ESMA orders EU crypto platforms to remove all non-MiCA-compliant stablecoins (including USDT) from their offerings by January 8, 2027. This affects trading, custody, and transfers, forcing exchanges to undergo massive restructuring of stablecoin support.

BlackRock's Spot Bitcoin ETF IBIT attracts over $1.5 billion BTC in 30 days; weekly net inflows indicate sustained institutional adoption. The establishment of a US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and new Treasury-focused ETF products signal mainstream integration into institutional-grade portfolios.

Bitcoin trades at ~$84.8K with resistance at $85–86K; ETH sits at $2.6–2.7K and lags BTC by 50%+. Analysts forecast divergent scenarios: conservative BTC $75–115K through EOY 2026, bullish to $250K; ETH targets range from $3–5K to $12K depending on thesis.

The ECB and all 27 EU central banks call for abolition of the MiCA rule requiring 60% of stablecoin reserves in bank deposits in favor of highly liquid short-term securities. Circle (USDC issuer) criticizes that only 3 of 25 leading global stablecoins are MiCA-compliant; EU overhaul expected in 2027.

L2 ecosystem shows cooling trends (Kroma, Zkfair, Swel shutdowns); top 5 DeFi TVL concentrated on Base, Arbitrum, Optimism (~$91B total). Solana establishes itself as a counter-model with 200ms blocks and $6.2B TVL, but $453M app fees – monolithic architecture gains traction.

Altcoin season index rises to 44/100; RWA tokenization, next-gen DeFi (Lido, Aave dominating) and AI/DePIN overlaps attract concentrated capital flows. Layer-2 tokens show volatility ($LSK +1195%, $STX +118%, $ARB +83% in 30 days); Aptos/Sei as underdogs with 2026 milestones in focus.