Crypto News Today 21-Feb : Pi Network News, XRP ETF Approval , Story (IP) Price Rally and More

The post Crypto News Today 21-Feb : Pi Network News, XRP ETF Approval , Story (IP) Price Rally and More appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

February 21, 2025 07:34:30 UTC

South Africa’s Altvest Capital Bets Big on Bitcoin, Plans $10M Capital Raise

South African firm Altvest Capital Ltd. is set to become Africa’s first listed company to adopt Bitcoin as its primary treasury reserve asset, following Michael Saylor’s successful strategy. Having already purchased one Bitcoin, Altvest is seeking regulatory approval to raise 200 million rand ($10 million) through a share sale to expand its Bitcoin holdings. CEO Warren Wheatley noted that final decisions are pending.

February 21, 2025 07:31:13 UTC

Pi Network Faces Liquidity Hurdles Amid Token Frenzy

Pi Network, a smartphone mining project with 60 million users, launched its PI token on Thursday. The token debuted at $1.70, surged 18%, then fell 50% within two hours. With a maximum supply of 100 billion tokens and 6.3 billion in circulation, its market cap is around $6.1 billion despite a high fully diluted value. The project uses referral-based mining, similar to MLM schemes, and faces liquidity issues. Token lock-ups can boost mining rewards but also add to trading volatility.

February 21, 2025 07:28:07 UTC

Kraken and Crypto.com Lead EU Stablecoin Charge

Kraken and Crypto.com are set to launch their own stablecoins in the European Union, taking advantage of the new MiCA regulations that have led to Tether’s exit. With only ten companies authorized so far, the competition is intensifying. Major players like Circle, Societe Generale, and StablR are on the list. This move signals a shifting digital finance landscape, as more firms strive to provide secure, compliant stablecoin solutions and innovation.

February 21, 2025 07:06:04 UTC

XRP ETF in Focus: SEC Set to Decide by October 18

Grayscale’s XRP ETF filing is now in the Federal Register. The SEC must approve or deny the proposal by October 18, though a decision might come earlier. The agency has received several XRP ETF proposals, raising the approval odds to 81% in 2025. Additionally, multiple Solana ETF filings from Grayscale, VanEck, Canary Capital, and Bitwise will be reviewed by the SEC before October 16. This marks a significant step for crypto ETFs in the U.S.

February 21, 2025 06:24:05 UTC

Michael Saylor Urges US to Buy 20% of Bitcoin to Strengthen the Economy

Michael Saylor, founder of Strategy, said the U.S. should buy 20% of Bitcoin to build a national digital reserve. He believes that owning about 4 million coins could strengthen the dollar, boost the economy, and help pay off the national debt. Saylor warned that if the U.S. doesn’t act, other nations like China or Russia might grab the opportunity first. He also emphasized that Bitcoin’s decentralized nature makes it a safe asset.

February 21, 2025 06:24:05 UTC

Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP Price Today

The crypto market today has seen a spike of 1.26% in 24 hours, taking the market cap to $3.21T. The upward move was majorly catalyzed by Bitcoin, which surged 1.16% to $98,298.02. With more positive influence, we can expect the BTC price to hit a 24-hour high of $99k. Coming to Ethereum’s move, ETH with a surge of 0.30% to $2,749.47. Conversely, XRP lost 2.13% gains to trade at $2.65.

February 21, 2025 05:59:32 UTC

SafeMoon CTO Pleads Guilty in $200M Crypto Scam

SafeMoon CTO Thomas Smith pleaded guilty to securities and wire fraud conspiracy charges in a multimillion-dollar crypto fraud scheme. Prosecutors allege that Smith, along with CEO Braden John Karony and token creator Kyle Nagy, deceived investors by falsely claiming the SafeMoon token’s liquidity was locked while diverting over $200 million for personal use. While Karony remains defiant and Nagy is at large, Smith’s plea marks a major development in the case. After a probe, the plea underscores crypto fraud risks.

February 21, 2025 05:40:39 UTC

Sam Bankman-Fried Criticizes Biden, Embraces Trump’s Bold Vision

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, now serving a 25-year sentence for fraud, is shifting his political stance by expressing support for Donald Trump and criticizing Biden’s administration during interviews with the New York Sun. Once a prominent Democratic donor, he now praises Elon Musk’s bold approach to cutting government waste. Bankman-Fried also blames a politicized DOJ and criticizes Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw both his trial and a case against Trump. His family is now reportedly seeking a presidential pardon for him.

February 21, 2025 05:36:44 UTC

Upbit to List JTO on Solana Network: Trading Starts Feb 21

Upbit will list JTO (Geeto) on its KRW market starting February 21 at 14:30 KST, supported on the Solana network. Users are advised to ensure deposits are made via the designated network (JTO-Solana), as other networks won’t be supported. Trading restrictions will apply for the first 5 minutes, including buying and selling limits. Check the BTC market for the previous closing price of JTO at 0.00002857 BTC (4,163 KRW).

February 21, 2025 05:19:13 UTC

Japan’s Inflation Hits 19-Month High, Surges to 3.2%

Japan’s core inflation hit 3.2% in January, the fastest pace in 19 months, fueling expectations that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will continue raising interest rates. Bond yields rose as markets bet on more aggressive hikes. Despite slower services inflation, goods prices remain high, with energy and food costs pushing inflation further. With Japan’s economy growing 2.8% in Q4, most economists expect the BOJ to hike rates again this year, likely in Q3, to 0.75%.