The popular AI framework Virtuals Protocol will host an in-person meet-up in Hong Kong on Friday, January 17.

Per official sources, Binance Alpha is launching an AI Avatar (AIAV) airdrop on January 2nd—one day after its official rollout date of January 1st. Once trading opens, eligible users can claim the airdrop using Alpha Points on the Alpha Events page.

January 1 – Per HTX market data, Bitcoin rallied past $88,000 on a rebound, last trading at $88,024.

On January 1st, per MLM Monitor data, of the roughly $200 million Justin Sun deposited into the Lighter LLP platform, he has to date withdrawn ~$38 million, allocated ~$33 million to purchase 13.25 million LIT tokens, and retains ~$5.5 million in his spot account. These LIT holdings represent ~1.33% of the token’s total supply and ~5.32% of its circulating supply.

On January 1, according to Coinglass data, Ethereum (ETH) recorded a total net inflow of 117,300 ETH across centralized exchanges (CEXs) in the past 24 hours. The top three CEXs by ETH inflow were: - Binance: 115,600 ETH - Gate: 1,423.40 ETH - Gemini: 673.35 ETH Additionally, OKX led all CEXs in net outflows with 10,600 ETH withdrawn.

On January 1, a new report from Global SWF reveals global sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) have hit a record $15 trillion in assets under management (AUM) this year. The growth is driven primarily by major funds’ gains in a bull market and their ongoing focus on the technology sector. Sovereign investors’ total AI and digitalization investments are projected to reach $66 billion by 2025. Middle Eastern SWFs have emerged as leaders in this digital transformation push: Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. plans to allocate $12.9 billion to AI and digitalization by 2025, followed by the Kuwait Investment Authority ($6 billion) and Qatar Investment Authority ($4 billion). (Source: Jinse)

On January 1, Coinglass data shows that if Ethereum (ETH) drops below $2,900, cumulative long liquidation strength across major centralized exchanges (CEXs) will hit $784 million. Conversely, a break above $3,100 would trigger cumulative short liquidation strength of $923 million across these major CEXs. BlockBeats Note: Liquidation charts do not display the exact number or value of contracts at risk of liquidation. Instead, the bars represent how each liquidation cluster ranks in importance relative to its neighboring clusters—i.e., "strength." In short, these charts illustrate how significantly the underlying asset’s price will react when it hits a specific level. A taller liquidation bar signals a more intense price response driven by a liquidity cascade.