BizwavemediaPersonal Finance and Crypto Updates

Hyperscale Data, a technology firm operating AI-focused data centers and Bitcoin mining operations, announced today a strategic initiative to acquire up to 100,000 ounces of silver.

The company, traded on NYSE American under ticker GPUS, said it will accumulate the precious metal gradually using a dollar-cost averaging method that mirrors its approach to acquiring Bitcoin.

Funding for the silver purchases will come from existing cash reserves and available liquidity, according to the announcement.

Executive Chairman Milton “Todd” Ault III characterized silver as a long-term strategic asset intended to bolster the firm’s balance sheet while maintaining flexibility for future expansion.

The initiative follows a $35.4 million equity raise aimed at expanding the company’s asset base, including the acquisition of additional Bitcoin and potentially gold, silver, and copper.

The announcement comes as silver has been correcting after reaching an all-time high above $120 in late January. Since then, the metal has declined roughly 36% from its peak and is trading near $77, up 5% on the day.

Shares of the company rose 8% following the announcement, though they remain down 28% year to date.

Amazon, the e-commerce and cloud computing giant, has shed roughly $450 billion in market value since early February during a losing streak that could match the company’s longest run of daily declines on record.

Should the stock close lower, it would mark a tenth consecutive negative session, matching a streak last seen in 1997. The selloff has erased about 18% from the company’s valuation since Feb. 2.

The downturn stems from investor unease over Amazon’s plan to deploy $200 billion in capital expenditures this year, a figure that exceeded Wall Street projections by more than $50 billion. The bulk of that outlay targets AI-related infrastructure, including data centers, semiconductors, and networking equipment.

Wedbush Securities, a research firm covering technology stocks, described Amazon as now operating in “prove it mode.” Analysts at the firm maintained an outperform rating but cautioned that elevated spending will weigh on sentiment until concrete returns materialize.

The skepticism extends across mega-cap tech, with shares of Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta also experiencing significant downturns after outlining elevated 2026 capital expenditure plans.

While the stocks are seeing a brief bounce on Tuesday, analysts caution that further downside remains possible as investors reassess the scale and timing of AI-related spending. Combined capital expenditures among the four tech giants could reach $700 billion this year.

Mubadala Investment Company, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund focused on global investments across technology and financial services, expanded its position in iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) by 46% in Q4 2025, according to a recent filing with the SEC.

As of December 31, Mubadala held around 12.7 million IBIT shares valued at over $630 million at the time of reporting. This represents an uptick from the 8.7 million shares held in Q3.

IBIT, managed by BlackRock, provides institutional and retail investors with regulated exposure to Bitcoin’s price movements through shares traded on conventional stock exchanges.

Despite recent volatility, mainly linked to Bitcoin’s price movements, the fund continues to dominate the Bitcoin ETF market with $52.4 billion in assets under management as of February 13.

Mubadala decided to double down on IBIT while a number of institutions, including Goldman Sachs and Harvard Management Company, reduced their exposure amid a challenging crypto market environment.

Growing concerns over quantum computing and its ability to disrupt Bitcoin’s encryption are limiting institutional participation. According to Kevin O’Leary, the Canadian investor and Shark Tank personality, until those threats are resolved, major investors are unlikely to raise their Bitcoin allocations beyond 3%.

“They’ll stay cautious, they’ll stay disciplined, and they’ll wait for clarity. That’s the reality,” O’Leary said in a recent statement, noting that he’s still bullish on Bitcoin.

Experts caution that while quantum computing is nascent, it poses a potential structural vulnerability to Bitcoin’s protocol.

Reflecting this concern, Jefferies strategist Christopher Wood revealed last month he had removed Bitcoin from his model portfolio due to concerns over quantum breakthroughs.

However, the Bitcoin community and developers are actively preparing for quantum challenges, with critical proposals now entering the official codebase.

Coinbase has established an advisory board focused on quantum threats, and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has advocated for upgrades that would make blockchain systems resistant to such attacks.

October crypto crash revealed why Bitcoin and Ethereum dominate

Bitcoin is hovering around $67,700 at press time, down about 46% from its peak value of $126,000 established last October, per CoinGecko.

The top crypto asset has faced headwinds following the October 10 crash that wiped out $19 billion in leveraged crypto positions.

On the pullback, O’Leary suggested that something more important is happening beneath the surface than just price volatility.

“Back in October when everything melted, Bitcoin got slaughtered and the rest of the market was wiped out, some coins down 80–90% and they never recovered. Why? Because institutions finally did the math and realized if you want 90% of the upside and volatility in crypto, you only need Bitcoin and Ethereum,” he said, adding that smaller coins were seen as low-quality and risky, and institutions decided to sell them off.

The business mogul said last month in a CoinDesk podcast that he had cut 27 crypto positions from his portfolio to concentrate solely on the “Two Girl Dance” of Bitcoin and Ethereum, along with the energy infrastructure supporting them.

Standard Chartered cut its year end price target for XRP by roughly 65% to $2.80, down from a prior forecast of $8, citing persistent weakness across digital assets.

The revision follows what analysts described as the most severe crypto downturn in nearly four years. XRP fell as low as $1.16 last month, its weakest level since late 2024, before staging a partial rebound.

Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s global head of digital assets research, said recent price action has been particularly challenging and warned of further near-term declines, prompting the bank to lower projections across the asset class.

Standard Chartered also reduced its year-end targets for Bitcoin to $100,000 from $150,000, Ethereum to $4,000 from $7,000, and Solana to $135 from $250.

ETF flows have mirrored the pullback. Assets in XRP-linked exchange-traded funds fell from $1.6 billion on January 5 to about $1 billion by mid February, according to SoSoValue data, marking a roughly 40% decline.

ARK Invest expanded its exposure to crypto-linked equities on Thursday, adding to positions in Bitmine, Bullish, and Robinhood.

The firm, led by Cathie Wood, purchased 212,314 shares of Bitmine across three exchange-traded funds, a position valued at approximately $4.2 million. Bitmine shares rose 8% to $21.47 by midday Friday.

ARK also acquired 74,323 shares of Bullish worth about $2.4 million, marking the eleventh consecutive trading day it has increased its stake in the crypto exchange. Bullish shares climbed 3.6% to $32.85.

In addition, ARK bought 174,767 shares of Robinhood valued at $12.4 million. The brokerage’s stock rose 7.4% to $76.40.

According to ARK’s latest disclosures, Bullish is now the ninth-largest holding in the firm’s ARKF ETF, representing a 3.4% weighting valued at nearly $30 million.

The firm’s flagship ARK Innovation ETF rose 3.5% on Friday. Despite the rebound, the ETF remains down roughly 24% from its multi-year high of $92 reached in October 2025, trading near $70.7 at press time.

Figure Technology Solutions shares rose about 6% to $36.10 in early Friday trading after the company released preliminary fourth-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations.

The firm projected revenue between $158 million and $162 million for the quarter, topping the $154 million consensus estimate. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to range from $80 million to $83 million, broadly in line with forecasts.

Consumer loan originations on its marketplace jumped 131% from a year earlier, highlighting strength in its core onchain credit platform, which generates the bulk of revenue.

The update accompanied a prospectus for a secondary share offering allowing existing shareholders to sell up to 4.23 million shares. The company also plans to repurchase up to $30 million of stock from underwriters.

Investors are watching the continued expansion of Figure’s blockchain-based lending infrastructure, while longer-term initiatives such as the OPEN network for onchain equity issuance remain in development. The company is also exploring moving stock lending onto blockchain rails to reduce reliance on traditional prime brokers.

A formal earnings release and guidance update are expected later this month.