UpGate

Blog

  • Cardano Hits 5-Year Low Amid Hoskinson’s ‘Wave of Failures’ Warning

    Cardano Hits 5-Year Low Amid Hoskinson’s ‘Wave of Failures’ Warning

    Cardano Founder Warns of Ecosystem Collapse Amid Market Downturn

    The recent sunsetting of Cardano analytics firm TapTools has prompted network founder Charles Hoskinson to issue a stark warning: more companies within the Cardano ecosystem are likely to cease operations this year as market pressures intensify, impacting both Cardano (ADA) and the broader cryptocurrency landscape.

    The network’s native token, ADA, has seen a further 6% decline in the last 24 hours, recently trading at $0.20. This marks a price point not seen in over five years for one of the most prominent tokens in the crypto space. ADA is now down approximately 70% over the past year and has fallen more than 93% from its all-time high of $3.09, which was set in 2021.

    “This is where we’re at as an ecosystem,” Hoskinson stated in a passionate monologue posted to his YouTube channel on Tuesday.

    “I said at the beginning of the year, we’re going to see a lot of people collapse because the markets are really bad,” he continued, adding, “There’s going to be a wave of failures in the ecosystem.”

    Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano and a co-founder of Ethereum, is actively seeking solutions but admitted he is “not exactly sure what my role or place is to resolve this.”

    “I don’t have any special powers with Cardano,” he asserted, urging viewers and Cardano enthusiasts to shift their focus from blaming him for the network’s challenges to actively seeking “a vision, a strategy, and fix it.”

    Failure to do so, he cautioned, will lead to further setbacks.

    Ecosystem Challenges and Resistance

    “For months, if not years, I outlined various things we need to do as an ecosystem to prevent these things from happening,” Hoskinson explained, referencing his past attempts to acquire and commercialize applications within the ecosystem.

    However, he claims these initiatives were met with resistance. Similarly, efforts to utilize funds from the Cardano Foundation’s ADA treasury to support its decentralized application ecosystem have also faced hurdles. Most recently, the community voted against hosting the annual Cardano Summit.

    “There doesn’t seem to be a lot of community desire to spend the treasury to take these ventures to the next level,” Hoskinson observed.

    For TapTools, the decision to conclude its four years of development on the network was driven by the economic realities of ongoing building, maintenance, and support.

    “The economics of running a platform like this remain challenging. Infrastructure costs are real. Development costs are real. Support costs are real. Operating a platform that serves the ecosystem at scale is expensive,” the firm stated in its announcement on X. It further explained that it could not responsibly commit to the future under the prevailing circumstances.

    Hoskinson believes that without significant changes, more decentralized finance (DeFi) applications within the ecosystem will falter, leading to consolidation.

    “We as an ecosystem have no reason to lose,” he declared. “We have the technology, we have the philosophy.”

    “There’s people, good people, but we’re losing them,” he added. “It’s not Charles Hoskinson driving them out. It’s the economic reality driving them out.”

  • Weisenthal: 12 Reasons for Crypto’s Deepest Winter

    Weisenthal: 12 Reasons for Crypto’s Deepest Winter

    Bloomberg’s Joe Weisenthal has reignited and expanded his thesis that the cryptocurrency market is mired in what he terms the “coldest crypto winter ever.” His argument, now comprising 12 points, extends beyond mere price fluctuations to encompass market psychology, capital flows, regulatory landscapes, and the burgeoning influence of artificial intelligence and quantum computing.

    In his Odd Lots newsletter and subsequent posts on X, Weisenthal elaborated on his earlier assertion from February, which outlined 10 reasons for the current downturn’s unusual severity. “Everything I cited then still holds,” he stated, adding that two additional factors have since exacerbated the bleak outlook.

    Crypto’s Problem Extends Beyond Its Own Market

    The crux of Weisenthal’s argument is that crypto’s current weakness is occurring precisely when other speculative market segments are experiencing significant gains. This divergence is crucial. A bear market is one thing when risk assets are broadly under pressure; it is an entirely different proposition when investors witness adjacent trades soaring.

    One chart presented in the newsletter illustrated a sharp resurgence in the Goldman Sachs non-profitable tech basket. Kevin Gordon, head of macro research and strategy at Schwab Center for Financial Research, observed that this basket is “mooning again” in a manner reminiscent of the 2021 boom. Another chart highlighted the Goldman Sachs US quantum computing basket, which has also seen a substantial rise following a dramatic rally.

    For Weisenthal, this makes crypto’s stagnation all the more painful. “First, other people are making SO MUCH MONEY,” he wrote, pointing to listed Nasdaq companies and other equities that have surged in recent months. He specifically cited SK Hynix, up over 250% year-to-date, and Micron, up more than 260%, arguing that such gains amplify the perception among crypto participants that they are missing out on the market’s primary opportunities. He encapsulated this sentiment with a reference to a famous New York Times headline: “Everyone Is Getting Hilariously Rich and You’re Not.”

    The Original 10-Point Case

    Weisenthal’s initial February argument, as summarized in the newsletter, posited that the current drawdown is occurring amidst rising anxiety about the U.S. dollar, thereby undermining one of crypto’s traditional macroeconomic narratives. He also contended that crypto can no longer credibly claim to be in its nascent stages, with “crypto Twitter is dead” and institutional adoption having already occurred, diminishing expectations of a future adoption wave.

    Furthermore, the regulatory environment, in his view, is no longer a clear future tailwind. He wrote that the current climate is already “about as favorable as it gets,” suggesting that market participants may have limited room to anticipate a significant policy-driven recovery.

    Competition for Attention and Resources

    Another significant factor is the competition for attention and capital from the artificial intelligence boom. Weisenthal noted that the AI surge is not only straining electricity resources, which directly impacts miners, but is also capturing “all the mental market share.” In his analysis, crypto no longer appears to be the definitive frontier trade for technology-focused investors.

    The list also included concerns regarding crypto’s reputation and structural issues. Weisenthal wrote that crypto is “Epstein-adjacent,” referencing its mention in the Epstein files, and highlighted growing apprehension about quantum computing and its potential implications for Bitcoin’s security model. He also singled out digital asset treasury companies, including Strategy, arguing that firms which had previously accumulated Bitcoin are now transitioning to sellers rather than buyers. He pointed to Strategy’s announcement of selling 32 bitcoins as a symbolic reversal for a company long associated with corporate Bitcoin accumulation.

    FOMO Without Crypto

    The two new points introduced by Weisenthal reinforce the overarching theme: crypto is not merely declining; it is being left behind. Weisenthal suggested that a month prior, he might have characterized individual stock rallies as occurring without a broader speculative mania. Now, he believes, the market is increasingly resembling “some real FOMO everything rally.”

    This represents a more pointed claim. If AI, quantum computing, and speculative tech are rallying while crypto remains stagnant, then crypto’s challenges extend beyond liquidity, regulation, or price momentum. They touch upon its very relevance. For a sector that was partly built on being the highest-beta expression of technological change and monetary skepticism, losing the attention trade may be the most unsettling signal of this prolonged winter.

    At press time, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.3 trillion.

  • Law Professors: AI Outperforms Us in Reasoning

    Law Professors: AI Outperforms Us in Reasoning

    AI Outperforms Law Professors in Legal Reasoning Study

    A recent study spearheaded by Stanford University has revealed a surprising outcome: law professors demonstrated a preference for answers generated by artificial intelligence over those written by their human colleagues when evaluating legal reasoning tasks.

    The research involved 16 professors from 14 prominent U.S. law schools, including Stanford, Yale, New York University, the University of Chicago, Georgetown, UCLA, and the University of Virginia. These academics developed 40 contract law questions encompassing legal doctrine, case law, hypothetical scenarios, and policy considerations, providing an ideal testing ground for the capabilities of modern AI.

    “Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly promoted as educational tutors, yet most evaluations focus on domains with a single ground truth,” the researchers noted. “Many disciplines, however, hinge on judgment: reasoning, weighing ambiguity, and reaching defensible conclusions. Law provides a sharp test.”

    In a series of 2,918 blinded comparisons, professors were asked to select the answer they would prefer to give to a student. Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro emerged victorious in 75.92% of its matchups against human instructors, while the tech giant’s NotebookLM won 74.75% of the time. This indicates that AI-generated responses were favored over human ones in approximately three-quarters of the evaluations.

    To ascertain if these results reflected a broader professional consensus, the researchers analyzed the extent to which professors agreed when assessing the same answer pairs. “Observed agreement exceeded the level expected if judgments were entirely idiosyncratic, indicating that the LLMs’ success reflects alignment with common disciplinary criteria,” they stated.

    The study further found that AI models surpassed human instructors across various categories, including recall questions related to case law, statutes, or doctrine, as well as hypotheticals and policy discussions.

    “To probe whether any LLM advantage might be driven by surface-level writing style rather than substantive content, we additionally engineered a set of lexico-syntactic features—answer length, structural organization, reasoning nuance, legal anchors, confidence tone, clarity, and pedagogical support—and tested how much of the preference pattern they could explain,” the study elaborated.

    AI-generated answers were also flagged as harmful less frequently than those authored by professors. Gemini exhibited a 3.41% harmfulness rate and NotebookLM 3.64%, a stark contrast to the 12.06% rate for human instructors. In a separate analysis involving additional models, Anthropic’s Claude Opus ranked first with a 4.7% harmfulness rate, followed by OpenAI’s ChatGPT at 5.4% and Gemini 2.5 Pro. Notably, every AI model evaluated outperformed human instructors on average in this regard.

    However, the researchers cautioned that the study did not measure whether the AI-generated answers aligned with individual professors’ specific teaching preferences. This leaves open the possibility that the AI responses were perceived as generally acceptable rather than tailored to a particular instructor’s pedagogical approach.

    “While LLM responses are generally preferred over those of human instructors, our evaluation setting does not allow us to directly measure the extent to which instructor preferences are satisfied,” the study acknowledged. “It is at least theoretically possible that LLMs, although generally delivering stronger responses, still generate answers that are merely viewed as ‘good enough.’”

    This study emerges as courts, law firms, and law schools increasingly grapple with the integration of artificial intelligence into the legal profession. In March, the Los Angeles Superior Court initiated testing of AI tools to assist judges in managing burgeoning caseloads, while law schools are actively incorporating AI training programs.

    “The potential benefits of these new technologies as a force multiplier in the practice of law just can’t be ignored,” John P. Anderson, Dean of Mississippi College School of Law, previously told Decrypt. “Whether our students plan to be litigators or transactional attorneys, their future employers will expect familiarity with these AI tools. We want the firms hiring our students to be confident that every MC Law grad is competent in AI technologies.”

    Concurrently, law firms continue to encounter cases complicated by AI-generated errors, including hallucinations. In April, the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell admitted to a U.S. bankruptcy court that a recent filing in a high-profile case contained fabricated citations produced by AI.

  • Bitwise CEO: Crypto’s Reign as ‘Belle of the Ball’ Over

    Bitwise CEO: Crypto’s Reign as ‘Belle of the Ball’ Over

    Crypto Market Shifts from “Belle of the Ball” to Contrarian Bet, Says Bitwise CIO

    The cryptocurrency market, once the darling of investors, is now a “brutal” environment and has transformed into a contrarian investment, according to Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise. In a recent memo, Hougan outlined three key factors contributing to this shift.

    Fading Enthusiasm and AI’s Dominance

    The primary challenge for digital assets is a struggle to attract investor enthusiasm, as prices remain under pressure and market momentum wanes. This year, Bitcoin has seen a 24% decline, Ethereum is down 36%, Solana has fallen 40%, and XRP has dropped 32%. Concurrently, exchange-traded funds have experienced outflows, and spot trading volumes have hit multi-year lows.

    Hougan attributes some of this weakness to a growing investor preference for artificial intelligence-related opportunities. These include AI stocks, robotics companies, and private firms like SpaceX. In contrast, the Nasdaq-100 has surged 43% year-over-year.

    The Bitwise executive explained that the overwhelming success of AI investments has compelled the crypto market to evolve. It has moved away from being a momentum-driven investment fueled by excitement, and is now a “contrarian” bet that demands patience, a long-term outlook, and a focus on underlying fundamentals. This pivot, he noted, is why investors are increasingly scrutinizing revenues and favoring projects with clear fundamentals, citing Hyperliquid as an example.

    Regulatory Uncertainty Dampens Institutional Interest

    Hougan emphasized that crypto is not disappearing but is changing the profile of investors and projects it rewards. The second significant factor impacting the market is the uncertainty surrounding the Clarity Act, a proposed bill aimed at establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in the United States. Despite clearing a hurdle in the Senate, Hougan pointed out that prediction market Polymarket currently estimates only a 55% chance of its approval before the end of the year.

    Insiders in Washington D.C. have provided Hougan with passage probability estimates ranging from a mere 5% to 30%. This ambiguity, he stated, is deterring institutional investors. These investors face a choice: allocate capital to rapidly appreciating AI assets or invest in crypto, knowing there’s a significant risk of a major regulatory setback.

    Hougan argued that large-cap crypto assets are unlikely to see a sustainable rally until this regulatory uncertainty is resolved. He stressed that the resolution itself is more critical than the specific outcome, as the crypto industry can adapt to either the passage or failure of the legislation, but struggles to thrive amidst prolonged ambiguity.

    A Shift Towards Fundamentals in Bear Market

    Looking at the broader market trend, Hougan observed that the current downturn differs from previous crypto bear markets. Instead of rotating into Bitcoin, investors are now gravitating towards smaller, less established cryptocurrencies that possess “credible fundamentals.” He highlighted one-month gains of 73% for Hyperliquid, 50% for Zcash, and 44% for Stellar, even as larger assets declined.

    This rotation, Hougan suggested, demonstrates the increasing importance of fundamentals as crypto moves away from momentum-driven trading. He posited that this could indicate the market is “closer to the end of this winter than the beginning,” while acknowledging that the immediate weeks ahead could remain “painful.”

    However, not all market observers share Hougan’s optimistic outlook. Analyst Doctor Profit has consistently warned that the worst may still be yet to come, predicting that Bitcoin could enter a capitulation phase below $60,000 and ultimately bottom out in the $40,000-$50,000 range between September and October 2026.

    Meanwhile, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju cautioned that the current bear market could potentially extend into early 2027.

  • Hermes Launches Official Desktop App, Ending AI Agent Terminal Era

    Hermes Launches Official Desktop App, Ending AI Agent Terminal Era

    Nous Research Launches Hermes Desktop, Bringing Self-Improving AI Agent to a Wider Audience

    Nous Research has released a public preview of Hermes Desktop, offering a user-friendly interface for its highly anticipated self-improving AI agent. This move eliminates the need for command-line interfaces or complex configuration files, allowing users to simply download, install, and run the software.

    Previously, users seeking a visual interface for Hermes had to rely on third-party solutions. While the AI community had developed impressive unofficial options, including GUIs, SSH companions, and browser-based wrappers, these were not officially supported.

    Hermes Agent, an open-source autonomous AI agent developed by Nous Research, distinguishes itself by its ability to improve with use. It saves newly discovered methods as reusable skill documents, enabling it to apply them in future tasks without requiring repeated explanations. This core functionality has been the primary driver of Hermes’s popularity.

    The primary hurdle for wider adoption had been the setup process, which involved opening a terminal, executing an installation command, and interacting through text-based prompts. This presented a significant barrier for individuals without extensive technical expertise.

    OpenClaw, a leading open-source competitor, had already addressed this by including a visual interface, which contributed to its faster adoption among non-technical users. While Hermes boasted a more sophisticated architecture, particularly its self-improving skills loop, it was consequently more challenging to implement.

    The new desktop application aims to bridge this gap.

    Hermes Desktop is a native application designed for macOS 12+, Windows 10/11, and Linux. Built using Electron and React with a Python backend, it utilizes the same core agent as the command-line version, preserving existing memory, skills, and configurations.

    Direct downloads are available for macOS and Windows builds. Linux users will still install via the terminal, a practical compromise for the platform.

    The application’s feature set includes persistent memory for project storage and problem-solving methods, natural-language scheduling for recurring tasks and reports, web browsing, image generation, and support for over 300 models via the Nous Portal.

    Users can delegate tasks to sub-agents, which are isolated instances of Hermes running parallel tasks. The agent is accessible across multiple platforms, including Telegram, Discord, Slack, WhatsApp, Signal, and email. Five execution backends—local, Docker, SSH, Singularity, and Modal—provide sandboxed environments.

    The Nous Portal offers a free tier, with paid plans (Plus, Super, Ultra) providing monthly credits and model access. The application itself is licensed under MIT, allowing for open auditing, self-hosting, and modification without requiring explicit permission.

    The new desktop app makes Hermes significantly more accessible than OpenClaw for new users. OpenClaw offers a comprehensive ecosystem with a skill marketplace, over 50 messaging integrations, and a large community, but it also comes with its own learning curve. Hermes’s simpler proposition—use it, and it learns—is now more readily available.

    Nous Research has indicated that the application is in public preview, and users should anticipate potential rough edges. The GitHub repository is active, and the team is actively soliciting feedback.

  • XRP Price: Falling Amidst Bullish Signals

    XRP Price: Falling Amidst Bullish Signals

    XRP Price Slides to 15-Week Low Amidst Conflicting Signals

    XRP’s price has hit a 15-week low of $1.18 before recovering to hover around the $1.20 mark. The outlook for the cryptocurrency in the coming sessions is uncertain, marked by a divergence between on-chain data and price action.

    The recent downturn was significant, with trading volume surging to 205.7 million XRP yesterday, pushing the price below the $1.25 support level. This triggered a sharp decline before buyers intervened.

    XRP Drops 5% to $1.20, Breaches $1.25 Support on High Volume

    The sell-off occurred despite a backdrop that typically signals accumulation. In recent days, over 25 million XRP has been withdrawn from exchanges, a trend usually associated with investors increasing their holdings. Concurrently, inflows to Binance have fallen to their lowest levels of 2026. This presents a puzzling scenario: bullish on-chain indicators clashing with bearish price movements.

    XRP is currently trading between $1.21 and $1.26, down 2% in the last 24 hours and 7% over the past week. The market sentiment, as indicated by the Fear & Greed Index, is at 23, signaling “Extreme Fear,” with momentum appearing weak.

    Technical Analysis Points to Bearish Trend

    From a technical standpoint, the 4-hour chart suggests a bearish trend. The 50-day moving average is declining, and the 200-day moving average has been on a downward trajectory since May. Key resistance levels are identified at $1.32, $1.36, and $1.38. Immediate support is found at $1.21, with a more significant floor at $1.18, the recent intraday low.

    Potential Scenarios for XRP

    Three scenarios are being considered:

    1. Defense of $1.21: If buyers successfully defend the $1.21 level, trading volume could decrease on further dips, potentially allowing XRP to climb back towards $1.27, its first significant resistance.
    2. Consolidation: The price could stabilize within the $1.20 to $1.24 range for the remainder of the week.
    3. Further Decline: A close below $1.18 would invalidate the current stabilization thesis and open the door for a more substantial price drop.

    While the on-chain data, such as exchange outflows and slowing inflows, could eventually provide a tailwind, technical selling pressures have consistently overshadowed these signals this week.

    Exploring Alternative Investment Opportunities

    The recent 7% weekly decline in XRP, reaching 15-week lows, prompts questions about where significant upside potential might lie. For investors looking to diversify away from large-cap cryptocurrencies during market downturns, early-stage infrastructure projects have historically attracted capital. One such project gaining attention is LiquidChain.

    LiquidChain ($LIQUID) is a Layer 3 infrastructure protocol designed to act as a cross-chain liquidity layer, integrating liquidity from Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana into a unified execution environment. Its architecture is built on four core principles: a Unified Liquidity Layer, Single-Step Execution, Verifiable Settlement, and a Deploy-Once Architecture, enabling developers to access multiple ecosystems without the need for redeployment. The LiquidChain token is currently priced at $0.01466, and the project has raised $820,000 in its presale phase.

  • Mastercard Taps USDC, RLUSD for Stablecoin Settlements

    Mastercard Taps USDC, RLUSD for Stablecoin Settlements

    Mastercard Expands Stablecoin Settlement Capabilities

    Global finance powerhouse Mastercard is accelerating the integration of stablecoins into mainstream financial operations with its latest enhancement, which will provide expanded settlement capabilities for credit card transactions using regulated stablecoins such as Ripple’s RLUSD and Circle’s USDC.

    This strategic expansion by Mastercard offers issuers and acquirers the flexibility to conduct additional intraday, holiday, and weekend card settlements, aligning with the company’s pursuit of a truly 24/7 economy.

    “The next phase of stablecoin adoption is about real-world utility, especially in settlement, where timing and liquidity matter most,” stated Raj Dhamodharan, Mastercard’s EVP of Blockchain and Digital Assets, in a press release. “By introducing intraday and weekend settlement options across our global network, we’re expanding how partners manage liquidity and operate in an always-on digital economy.”

    The firm’s move into stablecoin settlement builds upon its existing collaboration with Circle and its dollar-backed stablecoin, USDC, which has already been utilized for settlements in select markets. Last fall, Mastercard also partnered with Ripple and Gemini to explore transaction settlements on the XRP Ledger using RLUSD.

    Furthermore, Mastercard will support stablecoin settlements from tokens issued by Paxos, including PYUSD, USDG, and USDP, as well as SoFiUSD, the recently launched dollar-backed token from neobank SoFi.

    “As demand grows for faster and more flexible movement of money, organizations are increasingly seeking infrastructure that can operate beyond traditional banking hours,” said Circle Chief Commercial Officer Kash Razzaghi in a statement. “Mastercard’s expanded settlement capabilities help meet that need, offering greater choice in how value is transferred and settled.”

    Settlement will be facilitated on a select group of blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana, the payments-focused network Tempo, the XRP Ledger, and Base, Coinbase’s incubated Ethereum layer-2 network.

    Initially, transactions in the U.S. and Latin America will be supported by ARQ (formerly DolarApp), CBW Bank, Cross River, Lead Bank, and Nuvei. Mastercard anticipates further expansion throughout the remainder of the year.

    “Mastercard’s move into on-chain settlement is a landmark validation that blockchain technology is ready for the world’s most critical payment infrastructure,” commented Jack McDonald, Ripple SVP of Stablecoins, in a statement.

    Mastercard’s shares saw a dip of approximately 2.6% since the opening bell on Wednesday, recently trading around $464.87.

  • Bitcoin Bear Market Ends: Cycle Position Revealed

    Bitcoin’s Bear Phase May Already Be Behind It

    Bitcoin is once again at the center of a fierce debate. While many market participants have interpreted recent weakness as the beginning of a new bear market, crypto trader @CryptoFergani argues the opposite. According to his assessment, the market has already endured its bearish phase, and current conditions point to a different stage of the cycle altogether.

    To understand his argument, it is important to look beyond daily price swings and focus on the larger structure of the market. @CryptoFergani’s chart presents Bitcoin moving within a long-term ascending channel that has guided price action across multiple cycles. Historically, the lower boundaries of this channel have acted as accumulation zones, while the upper boundaries have marked periods of optimism and cycle peaks.

    The chart highlights several occasions where Bitcoin touched the lower sections of the channel before beginning substantial recoveries. In previous cycles, those moments coincided with widespread pessimism before being followed by powerful advances. The current position on the chart places Bitcoin near a similar region, leading the analyst to conclude that the market is emerging from a prolonged corrective period rather than entering a fresh bear market.

    Market psychology is central to this thesis. Many investors following the traditional four-year cycle have recently reduced exposure or exited positions. With fewer potential sellers, downward pressure weakens, and even small increases in demand can significantly move the price. This is why the analyst interprets recent weakness as exhaustion rather than collapse, suggesting the market is resetting ahead of another expansion phase.

    Bitcoin’s Next Chapter

    If the bear market is indeed over, the next question becomes where Bitcoin currently sits in the cycle. The answer, according to the analyst’s framework, is somewhere between accumulation and acceleration. Several factors support this view. Institutional participation in digital assets continues to expand, regulatory discussions in the United States are gaining importance, and expectations of future economic stimulus remain part of the broader outlook.

    @CryptoFergani also highlights business cycle shifts, US dollar movements, Federal Reserve policy changes, and commodity trends as parts of a larger setup that could favor risk assets.

    At the same time, Bitcoin’s short-term performance remains mixed. It is currently trading around $67,176 after a 4.3% decline over 24 hours. From @CryptoFergani’s perspective, these pullbacks are not a new bear market but turbulence within a broader transition. His long-term projection still anticipates a sharp upside move after the current consolidation, with a potential rise from the $60,000–$80,000 range to $320,000–$340,000 later in the cycle, provided Bitcoin stays within its long-term ascending channel.

    Whether that forecast ultimately materializes remains to be seen. However, the central message is clear: while much of the market is focused on recent declines, some analysts believe Bitcoin is no longer fighting a bear market at all. Instead, it may be laying the groundwork for the next major stage of the cycle.

  • Mastercard Adds XRP Ledger and 7 Other Blockchains to Stablecoin Settlement

    Mastercard Adds XRP Ledger and 7 Other Blockchains to Stablecoin Settlement

    Mastercard announced Wednesday its intention to integrate regulated stablecoins into its global card-settlement network, a strategic move aimed at enabling card issuers and acquirers to process transactions directly on-chain. The company stated that this new service will be operational across eight distinct blockchains, thereby enhancing the “real-world utility” of digital assets. In addition to the on-chain settlement capabilities, Mastercard also plans to introduce settlement cycles that operate intraday, on weekends, and during holidays.

    Stablecoin Integration and Blockchain Support

    Mastercard’s announcement specified that the stablecoins supported by this initiative include Circle’s USDC, a rival to Tether, which the company noted is already facilitating early on-chain settlement activities in select markets. The company also listed stablecoins issued by Paxos, such as PYUSD, USDG, and USDP. Furthermore, Ripple’s RLUSD and SoFi’s SoFiUSD were cited as part of the initial stablecoin lineup for the network.

    The stablecoins will be accessible across a wide array of supported blockchain networks, including Arbitrum (ARB), Base, Canton, Ethereum (ETH), Polygon (POL), Solana (SOL), Tempo, and the XRP Ledger (XRPL). While Mastercard did not detail any changes to the types of partners eligible to utilize the network, it indicated that the plan will allow customers to leverage both traditional payment settlement and digital-asset-based settlement through their existing infrastructure.

    Expansion Plans Through 2026

    Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president of Blockchain & Digital Assets at Mastercard, articulated the company’s perspective that the next phase of stablecoin adoption hinges on practical applications in scenarios where timing and liquidity are critical. He specifically highlighted settlement as a key area, describing intraday and weekend settlement options as a means for partners to optimize liquidity management within an always-on digital economy.

    Mastercard further stated that these expanded capabilities will be rolled out globally, contingent upon regulatory approval. The initial deployment will be confined to “parts of the United States and Latin America.” The payment giant indicated that additional regions, partners, and regulated stablecoins are slated for inclusion through 2026, as its stablecoin settlement offering grows beyond its initial launch areas.

  • Crypto4me: Recurring Buys Cement Crypto’s Status as Regular Asset

    Crypto4me: Recurring Buys Cement Crypto’s Status as Regular Asset

    Crypto4me Rolls Out Recurring Purchases to Simplify Regular Digital Asset Investment

    Bratislava, Slovakia – June 3, 2026 – crypto4me, a service operated by licensed crypto-asset provider Madison Six j. s. a., has launched a new feature designed to streamline regular cryptocurrency investments. Dubbed “Recurring Purchases,” the functionality allows users to automate their monthly crypto acquisitions, catering to both novice and experienced digital asset investors.

    The new feature enables clients to pre-set a monthly investment amount, select one or more cryptocurrencies, and designate their funding source. Once activated, purchases are executed automatically on a monthly basis according to the user’s defined parameters. Users retain full control, with the ability to modify, pause, or cancel their recurring purchase plans at any time, ensuring flexibility in their investment strategy.

    Introduced in mid-May, Recurring Purchases complement crypto4me’s existing cryptocurrency packages, which offer exposure to curated digital asset groups through pre-designed strategies. This latest addition underscores crypto4me’s commitment to enhancing user convenience, promoting regularity, and simplifying the day-to-day management of digital asset investments.

    “Many individuals are drawn to cryptocurrencies but prefer not to navigate the same purchase process repeatedly each month or constantly make decisions about timing their next investment,” stated Miloš Mázor, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Madison Six. “Recurring Purchases simplify this by allowing users to establish their preferences once and adjust them as needed. It’s a practical feature that aligns with crypto4me’s core mission: making crypto access more straightforward while empowering users with control.”

    Prior to finalizing a recurring purchase plan, users are presented with a comprehensive overview detailing the selected amount, cryptocurrencies, associated fees, and payment information. The objective is to foster transparency and manageability in regular cryptocurrency transactions without introducing undue complexity.

    About crypto4me

    crypto4me facilitates the acquisition of major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ether, and SOL. Operating under the stringent requirements of the European MiCA license, the company upholds high security standards for trading and cryptocurrency storage. Additional security measures include multi-factor client authentication, encryption, and regular penetration testing.

    Madison Six j. s. a. operates the crypto4me service. As of December 18, 2025, the company holds authorization from the National Bank of Slovakia (license number 100-001-025-213), granted in accordance with the MiCA regulation, to provide cryptocurrency-related services. This license also permits the company to offer cryptocurrency services on a cross-border basis throughout the EU/EEA.

    *Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2023 on markets in crypto-assets and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 1095/2010 and Directives 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/1937.

    Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and may carry an increased risk of investment loss.