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

**Jan. 13 — As U.S. midterm elections loom, Wall Street is interpreting former President Trump’s recent economic statements as a “broad growth stimulus signal,” betting he’ll aggressively boost the economy and consumer spending ahead of November to benefit cyclical assets.** Market players note: From repeated calls for rate cuts to floating credit card rate caps, the Trump administration’s core goal is to sustain economic activity and household affordability. Investment banks broadly favor cyclical sectors (industrial, raw materials, non-essential consumer goods) over defensives. Raymond James said in a recent report: With strong monetary/fiscal policy expectations and Trump’s frequent pro-growth signals, the market can’t easily bet against a cyclical economic recovery. UBS added the policies are election-focused, with voters’ top concerns still prices, housing, gasoline and interest rates. While Trump’s credit card rate cap proposal briefly pressured bank stocks, UBS argues i

January 13: The Chinese meme coin "Dark Horse" saw a short-term surge of over 400%—possibly influenced by news of Binance Alpha’s launch related to the token—with its market cap once exceeding $8 million. It has since fallen to $5.94 million, posting a 24-hour gain of 242%. BlockBeats reminds users that most meme coins lack practical use cases and are highly volatile. Please exercise caution to protect your assets and avoid FOMO.

On January 13, possibly driven by news of Binance Alpha listing the Chinese meme coin “Laozi,” the token surged nearly 80% in the short term before pulling back. Its market cap has now fallen below $10 million, currently sitting at $9.32 million — down 18% from its price prior to the listing announcement. BlockBeats advises users that most meme coins lack real-world use cases and are prone to extreme price volatility. Exercise caution to protect your assets and avoid FOMO (fear of missing out).

January 13th, per monitoring by HyperInsight (Telegram: @HyperInsight), key whale position shifts between 10:00 and 20:00 today are as follows: **Bullish Moves** - Whale "Strategy Opponent" closed a SOL long position, netting $700k in profits. - Whale "Flash Reversal" reopened a BTC long position with 20x leverage, holding 310.29 BTC. - Whale with "100% Win Rate in ETH Opponent" boosted its BTC long position by ~$14.8M, bringing total holdings to $26.3M. **Bearish Moves** - A whale opened short positions on BTC, ETH, and SOL with 20x leverage, totaling $140M in position size. - Whale "20 Million Swing Trader" reduced short positions on BTC and PUMP, while opening a long position on ZEC.

January 13: The Federal Reserve’s independence faces a severe challenge as the Trump administration launches a judicial probe into Fed Chair Jerome Powell—yet the U.S. business community remains unusually calm. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued a criminal investigation subpoena to Powell over renovation costs at the Fed’s headquarters. Powell pushed back firmly, stating the probe is not about testimony or the project itself—but because the Fed did not align with the president’s interest rate preferences, threatening “central bank independent decision-making.” While the incident briefly roiled markets, major corporations, industry groups, and CEOs have been nearly silent publicly. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, founder of the Yale CEO Leadership Institute, noted private surveys show: - 71% of CEOs believe the Trump administration is eroding Fed independence; - 80% think pressuring for rate cuts is not in the U.S.’s overall interest; but most fear political retaliation if

On January 13, data from Coinglass indicates that Bitcoin (BTC) saw a total net outflow of 1,037.83 BTC from centralized exchanges (CEXs) over the past 24 hours. The top three CEXs by outflow volume are: - Binance: 915.96 BTC outflows - Bybit: 499.46 BTC outflows - Gate: 238.68 BTC outflows Additionally, Kraken recorded an inflow of 796.45 BTC, ranking first on the inflow list.