XRPL will introduce permissioned DEX, identification tools, and tokenization functionality for institutions.
 The new lending capabilities will interface with Ripple payments, stablecoins, and decentralized exchanges.
Ripple, the company behind the XRP Ledger (XRPL), has come out with its 2025 strategic development plans. The plan focuses on enhanced institutional decentralized finance (DeFi) and lending and includes substantial upgrades to enhance regulatory compliance, programmability, and asset tokenization.
Ripple says, it will allow financial institutions to satisfy compliance needs, grow lending solutions, and provide developers with greater freedom in creating blockchain applications. Future updates will add a Permissioned decentralized exchange (DEX) and Permissioned Domains, which

Metro is now accepting stablecoins, including USDT, USDC, WUSD, and FDUSD.
Singapore’s crypto-friendly rules promote stablecoin adoption.
Singapore’s top department store chain Metro has joined forces with local crypto payments company DTCPAY to launch stablecoin payments in its offline stores and online shopping mall, Metro Mall. Tether’s USDT, Circle’s USDC, Worldwide Stablecoin Payment Network’s WUSD, and First Digital Dollar’s FDUSD can be used to make payments. The shift will increase the domain of crypto payments for merchants.
Unlike highly fluctuating cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum, stablecoins are pegged to an asset, hence suitable for regular transactions. With the use of stablecoins, Metro aims to offer consumers a smooth and secure payment process. It also hopes to

Traders can earn up to $100K USDT and double GRVT Trader Points.
 Competition encourages large volume traders with incentives and multipliers.
GRVT, the world’s first self-custody CEX and hybrid DEX-licensed, has revealed a high-profile trading occasion with Alertatron. The Alertatron x GRVT Trading Airdrop shall take place between March 1 and March 14. Traders will have the opportunity to collect up to $100,000 USDT as rewards. They will also gain preferential priority over Alertatron’s cutting-edge algorithmic trading functions. Traders shall also receive twice GRVT Trader Points. This will enable them to earn double rewards.
The contest is designed to introduce users to Alertatron’s automated trading platform, which facilitates seamless integration with TradingView alerts. Alertatron

Mimir Upgrade allows for on-chain storing and retrieval of vector data. 
Chromia combines Python and a $20M fund to accelerate AI development.
Chromia will launch one of the world’s first decentralized vector databases on March 25 through its Mimir Upgrade, offering a blockchain-enhanced alternative to traditional centralized offerings. This technology has the potential to revolutionize AI-driven applications by providing an open and decentralized method for storing vector embeddings on-chain. It also enables a decentralized approach to retrieving these embeddings.
AI tools such as GPT and DeepSeek have attracted widespread public attention. However, the underlying vector databases remain out of the spotlight. Vector databases are behind AI capabilities through enhanced text retrieval,

Avalanche Card allows users to spend USDC, USDT, wAVAX, and AVAX anywhere in the globe without having to convert them.
The Visa-backed card simplifies crypto payments for in-person and online shopping.
Avalanche Foundation and Rain launched the Avalanche Card, a digital and physical Visa-accepted payment card that allows users to spend cryptocurrency for payments wherever Visa can be accepted. This is an important step towards the mass adoption of digital assets. It removes the need for conversion and wallet-based transaction flows.
With the Avalanche Card, consumers can spend USDC, USDT, Wrapped AVAX (wAVAX), and AVAX in-store and online. It makes it easy to spend digital assets daily. At the same time, it takes advantage of the safety and stability of Visa’s payment network worldwide.

The corrective wave in XRP is nearing completion, with experts targeting $1.97 as support.
 Analysts believe a breakout above $3 might signify a bullish reversal.
XRP price action has been ranging inside a symmetrical triangle, a sign of market indecision. Whereas investors are pulling funds from exchange-traded cryptocurrency products. And they are actively seeking XRP as one of the few desirable assets. This is indicative of increasing confidence in its long-term prospects even during volatility.
Technical charts indicate a break-or-make point for XRP’s price action. Elliott Wave theory predicts that the asset has reached a break-or-make situation, with Fibonacci retracement levels as the critical signs of potential direction. Currently, the price is behaving against the 0.236 Fibonacci

DFSA approves Circle’s USDC and EURC for usage in DIFC enterprises.
The approval allows stablecoin-backed services, such as payments and treasury management.
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has officially cleared Circle’s USDC and EURC stablecoins, the first stablecoin clearance in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). This is a follow-up to Circle’s successful applications in the EU and Canada, continuing to broaden its regulatory presence. With DFSA’s go-ahead, companies in DIFC can now use USDC and EURC on a large scale.
A press release confirmed that Circle, the stablecoin issuer, was granted formal regulatory approval following the submission of its application to the DFSA. The move paves the way for cryptocurrency exchanges and businesses in the DIFC region

Aurora’s Cloud Console enables blockchain setup in under a minute.
Future improvements will enhance interoperability, gas management, and fiat-to-crypto conversions.
Aurora Labs has released a major update to the Aurora Cloud Console, which allows developers and enterprises to deploy custom blockchains in under one minute. The innovation overcomes technology hurdles, bringing blockchain development to a level as simple as the rollout of a smart contract. The capability, part of Aurora’s 2025 roadmap, will support 1,000 custom chains by year’s end.
Aurora Cloud Console enables effortless onboarding with parameters such as permissions, base tokens, gas fees, and integrations, which can be customized. Transaction usage can be monitored and deployment can be traced in real-time, without

Metaplanet and El Salvador increased their Bitcoin holdings before prices plummeted below $91K.
 Bitcoin price decreased 5% in 10 hours, reaching $89,663, on weakening market mood.
Metaplanet increased its Bitcoin reserves by buying 135 BTC worth $13 million, bringing its reserves to 2,225 BTC worth more than $205 million. Simon Gerovich-run Japanese company has continued to add to its Bitcoin holdings since taking it on as a treasury investment in April 2024. Even amidst market volatility, its BTC return, defined as a percentage change in Bitcoin balances on diluted shares, has risen 23.3% quarter to date, positioning the company well toward meeting its Q1 target of 35%.
El Salvador also seized the dip, buying 7 BTC on February 24 when Bitcoin was at around $94,050. The acquisition was

Alice in Nodeland combines humor and web3 culture to emphasize decentralization.
 The dRPC film debut at ETHDenver offers an interactive mobile theater experience.
Blockchain infrastructure company dRPC will debut Alice in Nodeland, an AI-powered short film, at ETHDenver 2025. Based on Alice in Wonderland, the 11-minute animated short takes a satirical plunge into web3. It presents a vibrant and humorous interpretation of decentralization.
ETHDenver, the largest Ethereum developer conference globally, will be held from February 23 to March 2 in Colorado. Alice in Nodeland will have its premiere on February 25, with the delegates having an opportunity to see it for seven days. dRPC is making the experience immersive by showing the movie on a mobile theater bus, where spectators can have

Montana lawmakers voted 41-59 against letting Bitcoin into state reserves.
Lawmakers rejected the bill due to concerns about its volatility and taxpayer risk.
Montana’s legislature rejected House Bill 429, seeking to authorize state investment in Bitcoin, stablecoins, and precious metals. The lawmakers voted 41-59 against the bill, with the legislators purporting that the potential dangers of having taxpayers’ funds used to make investments in risky assets are a concern. Although the bill had passed the Business and Labor Committee by a 12-8 vote on February 19, it could not get wider support during the recent House floor session.
The proponents of the bill maintained that investing in Bitcoin and other investments would enable the state to earn better returns on excess funds.

Georgia submitted another bill allowing unrestricted Bitcoin investment by the state treasurer.
 More US states are adopting Bitcoin reserves amid expanding crypto-friendly policies.
Georgia doubled down on Bitcoin plans by adding a second reserve bill on Bitcoin, with an aim to let the state treasurer invest freely in the cryptocurrency. More US states are increasingly investing in Bitcoin, especially as former President Donald Trump, with his pro-crypto agenda, took charge of the nation. Georgia had also earlier presented a Bitcoin reserve bill on February 14, 2024, and now desires to confirm its commitment to embracing digital assets utilizing this latest piece of legislation. 
The latest SA228 proposed bill would provide for the ability of the state treasurer to invest in Bitcoin and

Ethena Labs’ exposure to Bybit decreased from $30 million to zero.
 USDe stablecoin remains completely collateralized in off-exchange custody.
Ethena Labs has assured that its unrealized profit and loss (PNL) exposure to Bybit is zero, after a significant security incident at the crypto exchange. The Ethereum-based synthetic dollar protocol assured users that it fully collateralized its USDe stablecoin and kept no backing funds on exchanges.
The update comes after an initial release where Ethena Labs approximated its unrealized PNL exposure at below $30 million. The team assured users that off-exchange custody arrangements, such as Bybit through Copper ClearLoop, held USDe’s spot assets. These structures aimed to minimize exposure to threats and vulnerabilities on exchanges.
Ethena Labs

The SEC’s 240-day investigation of Grayscale’s XRP ETF is currently underway.
Following regulatory changes, the possibility of XRP ETF approval has increased to 81%.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially approved the Grayscale bid to reclassify its XRP Trust as an ETF based on a spot exchange-traded product. NYSE Arca filed on January 30th, initiating a 240-day review cycle before a decision must be made by October 18, 2025.
The SEC approval was released in the Federal Register on February 13, a 21-day comment period. This will enable investors and industry participants to comment before the regulatory authority moves forward with additional assessments.
Grayscale’s XRP ETF Under SEC Fire During Time of Regulatory Change
The SEC will concentrate on

AltVest Capital intends to raise $10 million to boost its Bitcoin holdings.
 The corporation sees Bitcoin as a currency devaluation hedge.
South African investment company AltVest Capital is adopting Bitcoin as a reserve asset for the treasury, and it is setting the pace in Africa as the first company to do so. The company already owns one Bitcoin and is making a bid for regulatory approval to raise another 200 million rand (about $10 million) to increase its Bitcoin holdings.
AltVest Capital is taking a cue from international companies like Strategy, MARA, and Metaplanet, which have also made Bitcoin a strategic asset. While Strategy and MARA issued 0% convertible notes to fundraise, AltVest Capital will raise capital by selling its shares. The company has not revealed additional

Trader profiles provide insight into portfolio strategy and results.
Users can share trading data while keeping privacy and control.
Binance Square, Binance’s social media platform, has rolled out its newest feature, Trader Profiles, to promote responsible trading and transparency to its growing user base. Traders can activate the new feature to showcase their portfolios, performance statistics, and Trader Badges. This allows them to share verified trading information while engaging with like-minded investors.
With more than 35 million monthly active users, Binance Square is an international platform for cryptocurrency discussion, subject matter expert opinion, and market insight. It connects creators and viewers with highly personalized feeds based on people’s interests. Hosted in 30

Shannon Testnet provides 1M+ TPS and sub-second finality for high-speed blockchain applications.
 Multistream Consensus improves scalability through parallel transaction execution.
Somnia openly launched the Shannon Testnet, a pivotal step in its vision to place the world’s data on chain more quickly and effectively than ever before. The testnet, named after information theory visionary Claude Elwood Shannon, is a high-performance sandbox for developing scalable blockchain applications.
After achieving over 1 million transactions per second, sub-second finality, and nearly free transaction costs on DevNet, Somnia now aims to push blockchain scalability further with the Shannon Testnet. During DevNet testing, the network successfully processed over 3.6 million transactions. It also handled

PRIME Chain is already functioning, with over 130 stake pool operators safeguarding the network. 
NEXUS, VECTOR, and Reactor Bridge will allow for seamless cross-chain activity.
Apex Fusion has introduced its blockchain network and indigenous token, AP3X, which has started developing a decentralized and scalable network. The initial chain in the network is PRIME, which today is running on a strong staking and security framework. Apex Fusion, which has a hybrid architecture that retains the programmability of Ethereum coupled with the Bitcoin UTXO security model, is developing a successful blockchain network for mass use.
PRIME has a decentralized staking model, which is a more secure network and more decentralization. More than 130 SPOs are already securing the chain, thereby making it way

KuCoin EU has applied for a MiCAR license in Austria to expand in Europe.
The Vienna-based hub will oversee compliance and innovation for digital assets.
Top international cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin has revealed that its subsidiary, KuCoin EU Exchange GmbH, has applied for a MiCAR license in Austria. This is a key step in KuCoin’s effort to expand its regulatory presence and provide compliant digital asset services within the EU and EEA. After securing authorization, KuCoin EU will enable users to trade securely and in compliance with regulations. This approval will grant access to all 30 member states of the EEA and EU.
The choice of Vienna, Austria, as the location for its headquarters was spurred by the country’s early commitment to MiCAR regulations, stable regulatory environment,

Transak secures MTLs in Illinois and Missouri, expanding US crypto transaction possibilities.
The move improves compliance, accelerates transactions, and promotes financial access in important markets.
Transak, the top payments infrastructure solutions firm for Web3, has advanced its United States regulatory footprint with the acquisition of Money Transmitter Licenses (MTLs) in the states of Illinois and Missouri. The newly achieved MTLs allow the company to receive direct cryptocurrency payments from both businesses and customers. This expansion strengthens its suite of services and broadens its regulatory footprint across these strategically crucial states. With these licenses, Transak mitigates its third-party license dependency and, therefore, exercises direct oversight across these

Interpol issued a Red Notice to Richard Schueler for violence and tax fraud.
Schueler is facing an SEC lawsuit for $1B in unregistered token offers.
Interpol has issued a Red Notice for Richard Schueler, the founder of the cryptocurrency project Hex, who is accused of tax fraud and assault. A Red Notice calls for law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest the wanted person, though it is not an international arrest warrant.
Schueler, now in Finland, keeps running until he reaches one of the most wanted persons in Europe. Offenses that were committed by Schueler are such cases wherein he beats up a 16-year-old by dragging him down the stairs and causing him bodily harm.  Additionally, for his failure to file his income and also his failure to present his tax returns from

Brian Brooks adds extensive crypto and financial expertise to the board.
MicroStrategy joined Nasdaq-100, strengthening its Bitcoin-focused approach.
MicroStrategy is a business intelligence company focused on Bitcoin and has now added three new members to its board of directors. On December 20, the company appointed Brian Brooks, former CEO of Binance.US, along with Jane Dietze and Gregg Winiarski, to the board. This move aligns with the company’s efforts to establish a strong crypto-oriented strategy. The company is putting forth significant efforts in this direction.
Brooks has played several very important roles in the crypto world, like acting Comptroller of the Currency. He is known for deep insight into how to control cryptocurrencies and innovations. His experience advising

SEC penalizes Tai Mo Shan for falsely fixing TerraUSD’s $1 peg.
The settlement includes a $123M punishment, emphasizing tougher crypto market oversight.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposed a $123 million fine on Tai Mo Shan Ltd., a subsidiary of Jump Crypto, for misleading investors about the stability of TerraUSD. This algorithmic stablecoin, issued by Terraform Labs, collapsed in May 2022. It brought about a catastrophic loss of $40 billion in investor assets.
According to the SEC, it was Tai Mo Shan who during the destabilization of TerraUSD purchased $20 million, to artificially maintain TerraUSD at a $1 peg. This created an illusion that the algorithmic mechanism of the stablecoin had started working properly, in turn deceiving investors and markets at the critical

Binance showcases tokens on Binance Alpha that it may offer in the future.
The Quick Buy program optimizes token trading and increases success rates.
Binance, the world’s top blockchain ecosystem, has just introduced Binance Alpha as part of Binance Wallet, formerly known as Binance Web3 Wallet. The platform shall help users find promising, early-stage tokens. The platform will focus on identifying potential tokens that could soon trade on the Binance Exchange. It will also allow users to explore tokens before they become available to the public.
The global lead of Binance Wallet, Winson Liu explained, “Binance Alpha is a pre-listing token selection pool to further increase transparency around how tokens are considered for listings on Binance Exchange.” By curating early-stage projects,

Aurora Labs launched TurboChain, its first blockchain powered by artificial intelligence.
TurboSwap provides low-cost, high-speed decentralized trading.
Aurora Labs has launched two innovation projects, TurboChain and TurboSwap, marking the next big step for the TURBO ecosystem. These innovations are a joint product of the NEAR Protocol’s collaboration with Aurora. They will broaden the horizons of Decentralized Finance, the utility of tokens, and general blockchain innovation. The first AI-powered memecoin blockchain is TurboChain dedicated to the virtual chain for TURBO.
It is extremely scalable, fast, and low-fee, making it highly accessible to both retail investors and developers. Being the primary token of the ecosystem, $TURBO plays the role of being able to conduct all transactions

Crypto.com users can convert over 20+ cryptocurrencies to hotel points.

The company initially offered the new function in the UK, the EU, and Switzerland.

Crypto.com has introduced a revolutionary new partnership with Accor’s loyalty program, ALL, whereby users can convert their cryptocurrency into points that can be used for their travel. This partnership is unprecedented and aims to revolutionize the travel experience. Crypto.com users will be able to easily use their digital assets for hotel bookings and travel reward redemptions.
The service will initially target users in the UK, EU, and Switzerland for the first launches. The company plans to expand to additional international locations in the future. Crypto.com enables converting over 20 cryptocurrencies with which it

Lido will stop staking on Polygon in June 2025 owing to poor adoption.
The unstaking phase begins on December 16, with a six-month transition window.
Lido Finance is the biggest liquid staking protocol in the DeFi space and has recently declared that it is shutting down its Polygon staking service. It made the declaration on December 16, 2024. The move follows a discussion by the Lido Decentralized Autonomous Organization as well as a vote by the community to endorse the action. Lido DAO holders voted for the proposal submitted by Shard Labs in the year 2021.
There are a couple of reasons why Lido decided to discontinue services on Polygon. According to Lido, two big drivers of this decision were limited user adoption and a general shift in DeFi dynamics. Plus, liquid staking activities

Ethereum may reclaim market supremacy in 2025.
Rising inflows into ETH ETFs indicate growing investor confidence.
The most recent report from Matrixport says Ethereum is expected to bounce back in 2025, with a huge fall that happened toward the end of the year in 2024. The report states that surging inflation will act as a catalyst for ETH to reclaim its previous strength. It also notes that rising interest from institutional investors in the ETF will play a role in this recovery. This will mark a new turning point for the second-largest cryptocurrency in the world.
In the current year, Ethereum’s market dominance declined from approximately 18% to 13%. Bitcoin and other altcoins, including Solana, XRP, and such, outperformed on the bull market. Bitcoin market dominance increased from a

Trump states the creation of a Bitcoin reserve in the US  in order to increase crypto supremacy.
Bitcoin has reached $100K, with expectations of reaching $800K by next year.
The price of Bitcoin has surged past $100,000 after former President Donald Trump declared the creation of a U.S. Bitcoin strategic reserve. The news comes as Trump intensified his efforts to make the United States a world leader in cryptocurrencies. This follows his decisive November elections.
According to the plan, which Trump revealed during an interview on CNBC, he called the reserve something like the US oil reserve. We’re going to do something great with crypto because we don’t want China or anybody else getting ahead, he said. The news comes on the heels of a promise that Trump made in July during the Bitcoin

The suspect took $300K in cryptocurrency by accessing passenger phones.
Hussein is facing theft, fraud, and money laundering accusations.
A Scottsdale man accused of impersonating an Uber driver was arrested for allegedly ripping off $300,000 in cryptocurrency from two different passengers. Scottsdale detectives and U.S. authorities booked Nuruhussein Hussein on December 11. Secret Service agents. He now faces charges of theft, fraud, and money laundering.
Incidents took place outside the W Hotel in Scottsdale, both in March and October. Authorities said Hussein posed as the Uber driver that victims were expecting by using their names to gain their trust. Then, when they entered his car, he reportedly asked to have access to their phones, this time under false pretenses.
At one point, he