Compiled by: Cora, Techub News
TinTinLand
Fear of Greed Index: 17 (Extreme Greed)
Bitcoin price: $78,804
BTC/ETH Spot ETF Fund Flows (2.2)
BTC net inflow: $256.46 M
Net inflow of ETH: $12.63 M
Hongkong
BTC/ETH Spot ETF Fund Flows (2.2)
BTC net subscriptions/redemptions: 0 BTC
ETH net subscriptions/redemptions: 0 ETH
Following a meeting of the Financial Services Committee, Eddie Yue, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), stated today that 36 institutions have submitted applications for stablecoin licenses, including banks, technology companies, securities firms, asset management companies, investment companies, e-commerce companies, payment institutions, and startups/web3 companies. Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong), as one of Hong Kong's three note-issuing banks, is considered a strong contender. Two other sources indicated that JD.com's JD Coin Chain Technology (Hong Kong), which had previously reportedly withdrawn from the initial competition for Hong Kong stablecoin licenses, has not withdrawn its application. JD Coin Chain Technology (Hong Kong) is also one of the three main participants in the stablecoin testing sandbox.
Eddie Yue, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said that the Hong Kong Stablecoin Ordinance officially came into effect on August 1 last year. In the first round, a total of 36 institutions submitted applications for stablecoin licenses. The authorities are currently evaluating these applications and hope to make a decision as soon as possible, aiming to issue the first batch of licenses in March.
Hong Kong Legislative Council member Ng Kit-chung stated in an interview that cryptocurrencies cannot be easily categorized by country or economy; it is a unified whole. The crypto industry needs cross-jurisdictional regulatory coordination and predictability. He hopes the Hong Kong government can strengthen its connections with different jurisdictions and promote collaboration among regulatory bodies. Furthermore, he indicated that the next phase of work will focus on improving the regulatory system, with custody and over-the-counter (OTC) trading regulations to be introduced this year, and potential reforms allowing professional investors to conduct large-scale transactions.
Consensus Hong Kong 2026, hosted by CoinDesk, will be held from February 10 to 12 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Regulation/Macro
India's 2026-27 federal budget maintains the existing 30% tax on cryptocurrency gains and 1% withholding tax, disappointing industry groups that had previously sought tax cuts. Instead of adjusting tax rates, the government proposed new penalties, effective April 1, 2026, for entities failing to properly declare crypto asset transactions under Section 509 of the Income Tax Act. Failure to submit the required reports will incur a daily penalty of 200 rupees (approximately US$2.20) until the default ends. A fixed penalty of 50,000 rupees (approximately US$545) will be imposed if the submitted information is incorrect or if errors are not corrected after being discovered. Officials stated that this move aims to strengthen compliance, but market participants warned that it will continue to create friction for traders.
Project/Company Updates
Russian cryptocurrency mining company BitRiver is facing bankruptcy. The Sverdlovsk Oblast Arbitration Court has initiated bankruptcy watch proceedings against Fox Group, which holds a 98% stake in BitRiver. The case, filed by En+'s Siberian Infrastructure, involves over $9.2 million (approximately 700 million rubles) in unpaid debts and penalties. This debt stems from a 700 million ruble equipment supply contract, which BitRiver failed to deliver after receiving advance payments. Currently, several of BitRiver's mining farms in Irkutsk Oblast and the Republic of Ingushetia have been shut down or ceased operations, and its partnership with Gazprom Neft has ended. By the end of 2025, approximately 80% of the company's senior management will have left, and founder and CEO Igor Runets has been placed under house arrest for alleged tax evasion. Negotiations are currently underway regarding the disposal of BitRiver's assets and a change of ownership.
Ripple has received a Full Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license from the Luxembourg Financial Sector Supervisory Authority (CSSF). Ripple had previously received preliminary approval for the license last month and has now fulfilled all the conditions required by the CSSF.
Tria, the self-custodial digital bank, has launched the Tria Foundation, an independent non-profit organization. The Foundation will support technological development and public goods related to routing, execution, and security; fund developer tools, integrations, and ecosystem initiatives; promote transparent governance and protocol management; and expand partnerships to drive the practical application of self-custodial finance in everyday life.
A Nevada court issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting Polymarket from offering event contract services to Nevada residents prior to its preliminary hearing on February 11. Judge Jason Woodbury determined that the platform's activities may have violated Nevada gambling laws and were not protected by the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal derivatives regulator. He also ruled that the Commodity Exchange Act does not grant exclusive jurisdiction over Polymarket contracts to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Jupiter has secured a $35 million strategic investment from ParaFi Capital to accelerate the development of its on-chain financial infrastructure.
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren has called for congressional hearings regarding the $500 million acquisition of WLFI by UAE National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The deal, signed by Eric Trump, saw $187 million flow directly to Trump family entities and at least $31 million to entities associated with Trump ally Steve Witkoff. Warren stated, "This is pure corruption. The Trump administration must rescind its decision to sell sensitive AI chips to the UAE. Steve Witkoff, David Sacks, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and other Trump administration officials must testify before Congress regarding the mounting evidence that they betrayed U.S. national security for the benefit of the president's crypto company."
Sunil, a representative of FTX creditors, tweeted that the next round of funding distribution for FTX is expected to take place on March 31. Currently, the total amount of claims settled is approximately $9.6 billion, including approximately $780 million in claims under $50,000, approximately $7.8 billion in claims over $50,000, and approximately $1 billion in non-customer claims. Sunil also pointed out that the dispute reserve has decreased by approximately $2.2 billion. If the remaining approximately $2 billion is distributed, it is estimated that claims over $50,000 could receive approximately $1.7 billion in additional payouts. Overall, FTX's debt recovery progress continues, and the subsequent distribution schedule still depends on the progress of dispute settlement and asset realization.
CrossCurve, a cross-chain liquidity protocol, tweeted that its cross-chain bridges were attacked, resulting in a loss of approximately $3 million. The official statement urged users to immediately suspend all interactions with CrossCurve until the investigation is complete.
In-depth & Foresight
In fact, between September and December 2025, the Federal Reserve did implement three "defensive" rate cuts due to concerns about the labor market and announced the end of quantitative tightening (QT). However, this did not bring the "liquidity flood" that investors had hoped for. Starting in October, the effective federal funds rate (EFFR) gradually moved towards the midpoint of the "interest rate corridor," and subsequently even drifted past the midpoint to the upper limit of the corridor—this was by no means a sign of looser liquidity.
If someone achieves quantum computing power to crack encryption, Bitcoin wallets will become the prime target because they are easier to liquidate and offer a first-mover advantage. If the money has already been taken by the first hacker, a second hacker will gain nothing.
So, will Sui eventually bounce back like Solana? There's still hope as long as the team continues to deliver progress. In the short term, we'll be closely monitoring developer activity. As for the SUI token itself? We're looking for signs of extreme overselling. If this happens before the restrictions are lifted in May, it could present a good buying opportunity.
Amid recent market volatility and various noises, Tommy, co-founder of Delphi Digital, shared his five core reasons for being bullish on the crypto market, taking into account the current macroeconomic background, policy trends, and cutting-edge technological trends. He believes that as Trump's influence over the Federal Reserve expands, expectations of low interest rates will drive funds from US Treasuries to risk assets; at the same time, the strength of gold is not a rival to cryptocurrencies, but rather a common signal of damage to the credibility of the US dollar.
