Leading cryptocurrencies edged lower alongside stocks on Thursday as President Donald Trump’s warning cast a shadow on Iran negotiations.

Crypto Slide As Leveraged Longs Get Liquidated

Bitcoin dipped to $68,100, with trading volume increasing 10% from the previous day. Ethereum also sank below $2,100, while XRP and Dogecoin recorded steeper declines.

Over $330 million in cryptocurrency positions were liquidated in the past 24 hours, with $293 million in bullish long positions alone erased,  according to Coinglass data.

Notably, nearly $500 million in Bitcoin shorts on Binance risked liquidation if the apex cryptocurrency rebounds to $71,000

Open interest in Bitcoin futures fell 0.37% in…

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Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) on Tuesday set a 2029 deadline for migrating its entire infrastructure to post-quantum cryptography, warning that quantum frontiers “may be closer than they appear.”

The target is more aggressive than the U.S. federal government’s 2035 mandate and the NSA’s 2031 deadline, and it may carry serious implications for Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC).

Google’s VP of Security Engineering Heather Adkins and Senior Staff Cryptography Engineer Sophie Schmieg cited faster-than-expected progress in quantum hardware, error correction, and factoring resource estimates.

Two Threats, One Deadline

Google flagged two distinct risks.

The first is already happening:…

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CFTC Chairman Mike Selig expects to approve perpetual futures contracts for crypto trading in the U.S. within the next few weeks, ending years of offshore dominance by exchanges like Binance and bringing a popular trading product back to American markets.

The Perpetual Problem

Crypto perpetual futures exploded offshore around 2017-2018 as U.S. regulators remained averse to the product despite its popularity. 

The main regulatory hurdle centers on how to characterize perpetuals under the Commodity Exchange Act, which originally only covered futures contracts and options before Dodd-Frank added swaps.

The debate focuses on whether perpetuals qualify as “contracts for future delivery”…

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The Midterm Year Pattern

Cowen points to a consistent pattern across midterm years: Bitcoin finds a low in February, rallies to a lower high in March, then drops into April. 

This played out in 2014, 2018, and 2022—and appears to be repeating in 2026.

Bitcoin’s year-to-date returns historically start heading down around day 82-90 of the year.

The market currently sits on day 86, placing the potential breakdown within the next week or two based on historical precedent.

In 2014, 2018, and 2022, Bitcoin found resistance at the 21-week EMA or 20-week SMA during March rallies before rolling over. In 2026, Bitcoin hasn’t even reached that resistance level yet, suggesting weakness compared to…

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This innovative approach allows millions of Americans to secure home loans by pledging Bitcoin or USDC without needing to liquidate their assets.

Details

The partnership aims to democratize homeownership for the 52 million Americans who own digital assets. It will enable them to use their crypto holdings as collateral for conforming mortgages.

The tokenized asset pledge acts as a substitute for the cash down payment. This means customers can utilize their digital assets, without selling them, to satisfy down payment requirements for a mortgage.

In addition, the token-backed mortgages will be compliant with Fannie Mae guidelines, ensuring they remain standard conforming loans.

Max Branzburg,…

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XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) is down 4% on the day, despite Binance leverage ratios plunging 78% from 0.59 in mid-July 2025 to just 0.13 now as speculative positions flush out and the derivatives market resets.

The Leverage Unwind

Binance’s Estimated Leverage Ratio for XRP has collapsed from around 0.59 in mid-July to 0.13, indicating that most highly leveraged positions have been flushed out. 

Analysts calculate this ratio by dividing an exchange’s open interest by its coin reserves to measure average leverage used.

At the same time, XRP’s open interest on Binance stands at only $375 million, significantly lower than peaks recorded over the past year. 

“The main takeaway is that speculative…

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