Interest Rate Messages from Fed Members
- Fed official Barkin said that the interest rate cuts made so far have helped the job market stay healthy and that the Fed is entering the final stretch in its process of bringing inflation back to target.
- Fed Board Member Miran said the Fed needs to cut interest rates by a total of about 1% this year.
- Michelle Bowman also said that an interest rate cut of about one point is necessary this year. The statements show that dovish views are gaining strength within the Fed.
Trump Campaign Donations
Donald Trump and his allies broke records in political donations ahead of the midterm elections, raising a total of $429 million. While the share of donations from cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence companies is noteworthy, it is noted that the campaign team aims to increase donations through policy changes. Maga Inc. currently has $304 million in its coffers, surpassing the PAC reserves of all previous midterm election periods. The largest single donation came from Crypto.com, while A16Z founders and OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman also contributed millions of dollars.
Wintermute Market Commentary
Wintermute stated that crypto markets are currently in a bear market, but that this one is different from previous cycles. It emphasized that this process stems from macro conditions and changes in risk appetite, rather than systemic collapses like FTX or Luna. It stated that this bear market could end more quickly because there is no structural damage. The company predicts that the recovery will most likely occur in the second half of 2026.
Musk and Dogecoin
An X user brought up Elon Musk’s old post about his idea to send Dogecoin to the moon in 2021. When asked “When?”, Musk replied, “Maybe next year.” The statement reignited excitement in the Dogecoin community. However, it is unclear whether this is symbolic rhetoric or a concrete project.
Cango Bitcoin Production
Bitcoin mining company Cango published its production report for January. The company produced a total of 496.35 BTC during the month. This brings Cango’s total Bitcoin holdings to 7,474.6 BTC. This figure shows that the company is steadily increasing its mining capacity.
PayPal Weak Balance Sheet
PayPal announced lower-than-expected profit and revenue figures for the fourth quarter. Following this development, the company announced that CEO Alex Chriss would step down and be replaced by HP CEO Enrique Lores. PayPal shares fell by up to 16% in the premarket. The company stated that weak US retail spending and issues in international operations had negatively impacted results.
Solana Corporate Move
The Solana Foundation announced it will launch a new product and program for corporate users. Large traders and market makers invited under the VIP Trading Plan will be able to benefit from liquidity incentives. The program aims to provide high-quality on-chain market data with FIX protocol support. This step is seen as part of Solana’s strategy to increase corporate adoption.
Arbitrum Account Compromise
Arbitrum issued a security alert, announcing that the official X account belonging to Governance had been compromised. Users were asked not to interact with any links shared by the account. The team stated that it was working to regain access and would provide an update once control was restored. The incident brought the importance of social media security in crypto projects back into focus.
DeFi TVL Resilience
Despite sharp declines in crypto markets, the total value locked in the DeFi ecosystem fell by only about 12%. TVL fell from $120 billion to $105 billion, but performed better than major crypto assets. It was noted that most of the decline was due to price movements and that there was no significant fund outflow. During the same period, the amount of ETH in DeFi continued to increase.
X Investigation in France
The Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office in France launched an official investigation by conducting searches at X’s offices in France. Elon Musk and former CEO Linda Yaccarino were summoned to testify in Paris in April 2026. The investigation began with allegations regarding the platform’s algorithms and the excessive promotion of political content. The scope was later expanded to include serious allegations related to the Grok AI tool.
Flare FXRP Loans
The Flare network has launched a lending feature for the FXRP asset, which is pegged to XRP. This feature was made possible through integration with the cross-chain lending protocol Morpho. FXRP holders can earn interest by depositing their assets or borrow stablecoins by providing collateral. The system is currently available through the Mystic app.
