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

Barclays stated that despite the ongoing sell-off in global bonds, the assets remain too expensive to attract investor purchases. Stubborn inflation and governments' unwillingness to cut spending continue to weigh on the bond market. The bank added that while current bond trading levels are closer to fair value than at any time in recent years, "the forces pushing yields higher have not yet been exhausted".

JPMorgan announced it is raising Marvell Technology (MRVL.O)’s price target from $240 to $305.

According to market data from BIT (bit.com), U.S. pre-market crypto-related stocks fell broadly, with individual declines as follows: CRCL down 1.06%, MSTR down 1.15%, MARA down 1.26%, COIN down 0.82%, RIOT down 0.81%, BMNR down 1.25%, SBET down 2.25%, and PURR down 1.03%.

According to official announcements, Ethena is expanding the assets supporting USDe to include basis trading in stock perpetual contracts. Currently, the open interest (OI) of stock perpetual contracts stands at nearly $6 billion, covering around 200 contracts, all on the same trading platforms where Ethena already operates. Since March this year, the market size has grown more than 10-fold. Stock perpetual contracts boast an average funding rate of 15%–20%, over five times the Bitcoin funding rate in 2026; meanwhile, their funding rate exhibits near-zero correlation with that of the broader cryptocurrency market.

Jiang Zhuoer, founder of LeBit Mine Pool (B.TOP), stated in a post that inflows into crypto Ethereum (ETH) ETFs have hit a new record high. BTC ETFs recorded an inflow of $242 million today, while ETH ETFs saw an inflow of $234 million. Despite ETH’s total market capitalization being just 18.8% of BTC’s, it absorbed 96.8% of BTC’s inflow volume, reflecting far stronger buying momentum for ETH than BTC. Against the backdrop of sustained capital inflows, the current pattern of "range-bound consolidation with progressively higher lows" is quite stable, and a new upward short squeeze could erupt at any time. He emphasized that one must adhere to trading discipline, resolutely avoid leverage, and even prepare to go long on ETH directly. His current position strategy is: hold all ETH spot without opening short positions, waiting for upside; any additional long positions would mean adding leverage, which would bring liquidation risk.

Stablecoin issuer Circle has struck a sponsorship deal with Premier League heavyweights Chelsea, becoming the club’s lead partner and official chest jersey sponsor. The agreement was announced Friday, with Circle and USDC branding set to appear on the jerseys of Chelsea’s men’s, women’s and youth teams starting from the 2026/27 season. USDC operates under the framework of the GENIUS Act, which was signed into law by former President Donald Trump last year. Tether’s USDT primarily operates globally outside this framework, and has also launched a smaller stablecoin, USAT, targeted at the U.S. market.