1. BTC broke through 95k, reaching a high of 98k before falling back to 92k. Tariff headlines triggered 850 million in liquidations, while ETFs saw a weekly inflow of 1.4 billion.
Wintermute analyzed that Bitcoin broke through the $95k resistance level on January 19 (the first time since November), reaching a high of nearly $98k, driven by $1.4 billion in ETF inflows (including $760 million on Tuesday alone) and a moderate core CPI data of 2.6%. It later fell back to $92k due to headlines about Trump announcing tariffs on eight countries, accompanied by $850 million in long liquidations (half of which were in BTC/ETH). This week, attention will be focused on Davos (Trump's first attendance in six years), the EU emergency summit on Thursday, and the core PCE on Friday. On the regulatory front, the CLARITY bill is stalled due to disagreements between Coinbase and the White House regarding stablecoin returns; Goldman Sachs confirmed its exploration of tokenization and stablecoin technology; South Korea passed the legal basis for tokenized securities; and the NYSE is exploring 24/7 trading through tokenization.
2. One-fifth of the Trump family's $6.8 billion fortune is in crypto assets.
The Trump family's net worth is $6.8 billion, with $1.4 billion added to their wealth in the past year through crypto projects, accounting for about one-fifth of their total wealth. Major sources include World Liberty Financial ($390 million from cryptocurrency sales and $500 million from Alt5 Sigma transactions), Trump memecoin (worth $280 million), and American Bitcoin Corp. (Eric Trump's stake is worth $114 million). The USD1 stablecoin has over $3 billion in circulation. Trump Media's stock price has fallen 66% in the past 12 months.
3. Hong Kong industry associations oppose proposed new regulations for virtual asset management.
The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Professionals Association (HKSFPA) has submitted its opinion to regulators against the proposed new rules for virtual asset management. They argue that removing the current exemption of up to 10% crypto asset allocation for Type 9 (asset management) licenses would require a full virtual asset management license even for allocations of only 1% in Bitcoin. This would create a mismatch between compliance costs and risk exposure, potentially discouraging traditional asset management institutions from exploring crypto assets.
4. The Paper: A man's account contained a large amount of Bitcoin; police in two locations intervened and filed cases on different charges.
Network engineer Li Dong is suspected of two crimes: 1. Operating a gambling den: In 2024, he was summoned by Zhangjiajie police, who seized 103 Bitcoins, which were then converted into over 49.61 million yuan; after being released on bail for four days, he was taken away by Xuchang police, who seized approximately 80 Bitcoins. 2. Theft: Prosecutors allege that Li Dong exploited a vulnerability in the "Kaiyun Sports" gambling website to steal the personal information of over 1.84 million Chinese citizens, and in 2020, he replaced the agent's commission bank account, stealing over 35.5 million yuan in commission funds (over 6.44 million yuan was transferred to bank cards under his control, and over 29.05 million yuan was used to purchase Bitcoin and transferred to his wallet). The defense argues that the evidence for theft is insufficient, and the connection between the accounts lacks proof; Li Dong's confession was obtained by the police under threat against his pregnant wife, and they are requesting the exclusion of illegally obtained evidence.
5. The USDT/Bolivar exchange rate in the Venezuelan market has been falling continuously since January 7th, with a cumulative decline of approximately 40%.
The price of USDT against the Venezuelan bolivar has been falling continuously since January 7th, accumulating a decline of approximately 40%, returning to levels seen in December 2025. Data shows that the USDT price on the Binance P2P market quickly dropped from a high of 880 bolivars to around 500 bolivars. On local compliant platforms Kontigo and Crixto, USDT and USDC are quoted in the range of approximately 450-456 bolivars. The analysis firm Ecoanalítica points out that this volatility is an "overshooting" of the market in response to a sudden event, and not a problem with USDT itself. The price correction stems from expectations of a potential economic recovery and improved foreign exchange liquidity.
