Day: February 13, 2026

Crypto Use in Trafficking Surges, but May Help in Crackdowns

admin

Crypto flows to suspected human trafficking networks increased by 85% over 2025, but crypto analytics company Chainalysis said blockchain’s transparency could help disrupt the operations. Chainalysis said in a report on Thursday that the total transaction volume to suspected trafficking networks, largely based in Southeast Asia, reached “hundreds of millions of dollars across identified services.”  It added that the services are “closely aligned” to scam compounds, online casinos, and Chinese-language money-laundering networks, which have recently grown in popularity. Chainalysis said the crypto-facilitated human trafficking it tracked included Telegram-based services for…

Israel Arrests Two Over Polymarket Trades on Iran Strikes

admin

Israeli authorities have arrested and indicted two people for allegedly using secret information to place bets on the predictions market Polymarket related to Israel striking Iran. In a joint statement on Thursday, Israel’s Defense Ministry, its internal security service Shin Bet, and police said a military reservist and a civilian were arrested after an investigation found that the reservist obtained classified information to place the bets. The prosecutor’s office will pursue criminal charges for security-related offenses, bribery, and obstruction of justice. Authorities said the reservist was working for Shin Bet.…

Is The Bull Market Over?

admin

Key takeaways: BTC open interest falls to $34 billion, but stable BTC-denominated volume suggests leverage demand remains unchanged. Weak US jobs data and Bitcoin options skew indicate a bearish shift, even as gold and stocks show relative strength. Bitcoin (BTC) price has struggled to sustain levels above $72,000 for the past week, leading investors to question whether institutional demand has evaporated. The aggregate Bitcoin futures open interest plummeted to its lowest level since November 2024, fueling fears of a retest of the $60,000 support as uncertainty grows. BTC futures aggregate…

Bitcoin Posts $2.3B Loss In Historic Capitulation Event

admin

Bitcoin has posted $2.3 billion in realized losses in what an analyst says is one of the largest capitulation events in history, rivaling its crash in 2021. Bitcoin’s (BTC) seven-day average realized net losses hit $2.3 billion, analyst IT Tech said in a note on CryptoQuant on Thursday, which it called “one of the largest capitulation events in BTC history, rivaling the 2021 crash, 2022 Luna/FTX collapse, and mid-2024 correction.” “This puts us in the top 3-5 loss events ever recorded,” IT Tech added. “Only a handful of moments in…

Ethereum Price Rejected Again — Is Another Leg Lower Brewing?

admin

Ethereum price started a fresh decline and traded below $1,980. ETH is now consolidating and remain at risk of another decline below $1,920. Ethereum struggled to extend gains above $2,000 and corrected lower. The price is trading below $1,980 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average. There is a bearish trend line forming with resistance at $1,960 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD (data feed via Kraken). The pair could start a fresh decline if it stays below the $2,000 zone. Ethereum Price Remains In The Red Ethereum price failed to…

Crypto PAC to Oppose Al Green in Texas Democratic Primary

admin

The pro-crypto political action committee (PAC) Protect Progress will reportedly spend $1.5 million opposing Texas representative Al Green in the upcoming Democratic Party primary over his past opposition to crypto. “As a member of the Financial Services Committee, Representative Al Green has decided to try and stop American innovation in its tracks,” Protect Progress, an affiliate of the major crypto PAC Fairshake, told The Hill on Thursday. Green, a Democrat who has represented Texas’s 9th congressional district in the House since 2005, opposed the stablecoin regulating GENIUS Act and the…

CFTC Adds Crypto Execs to Innovation Advisory Committee

admin

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has added a slew of crypto executives, including those from Coinbase and Ripple, to its Innovation Advisory Committee, who will shape how the regulator crafts policy. CFTC chair Mike Selig said on Thursday that the 35 members of the committee will “ensure the CFTC’s decisions reflect market realities” and enable it to “develop clear rules of the road for the Golden Age of American Financial Markets.” The committee launched in January, and replacing the Technology Advisory Committee, which drew on the advice of tech leaders…