BizwavemediaPersonal Finance and Crypto Updates

21shares is set to distribute Ethereum staking rewards to holders of its 21shares Ethereum ETF (TETH), according to a Thursday announcement. The distribution rate is set at $0.010378 per share, following the record date of January 8, 2026.

The TETH fund has attracted $25 million in net inflows since its launch, with assets under management surpassing $34 million, per its latest disclosure.

As a major global issuer of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products, 21shares has built a long-standing track record since launching the first physically backed crypto ETP in 2018.

The company focuses on delivering simple, regulated, and efficient crypto investment vehicles and is part of the institutional digital asset firm FalconX.

XRP ETFs recorded their first day of net outflows since launching in early November, marking a shift after months of steady inflows.

Figures for January 7, 2026, from SoSoValue show XRP ETFs posted roughly $40 million in outflows, with the majority coming from the 21Shares XRP ETF. In contrast, products from Bitwise and Grayscale recorded modest inflows, while the Franklin Templeton XRP ETF saw no net creations or redemptions.

Since launch, XRP ETFs have attracted more than $1.5 billion in cumulative inflows, underscoring strong institutional demand despite the recent reversal.

The outflows coincided with a pullback in XRP prices. The token has fallen more than 12% from its weekly high near $2.40 reached on Monday. At press time, XRP was trading around $2.12.

Despite the recent decline, XRP remains higher on a year-to-date basis. The token rallied more than 31% to reach its recent intraweek high near $2.40 and is currently trading about 14% above its yearly open.

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Alphabet, the parent company of Google, saw its shares open about 1% higher on Thursday, briefly reaching a new intraday record near $330 before paring gains as technology stocks weakened more broadly.

The stock had previously touched an all-time high in late November, when shares briefly reached $328. Google’s highest closing price remains $323, set during that same session.

Traders are watching whether the stock can close above that level to confirm a new record close. At press time, shares had retreated toward $326 as the broader tech sector moved lower in early trading.

Despite the pullback, the stock remains sharply higher compared with late November levels.

The recent rally has pushed Google past Apple to become the fourth-largest asset globally by market capitalization, according to Companies Market Cap data. Google is now valued at roughly $3.9 trillion, compared with Apple’s $3.8 trillion.

Google has seen renewed investor interest since Warren Buffett disclosed in November that his firm increased its position in the company during the third quarter of 2025. Since that disclosure, shares have risen more than 57%.

Additional momentum has come from advances in artificial intelligence, including the rollout of the Gemini 3 model and the Nano Banana image generation system. Both releases have drawn strong early feedback, reinforcing Google’s position in the fast-growing AI market.

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Bitcoin’s Short-Term Holder Output Profit Ratio (STH-SOPR) is climbing toward the key 1 level, signaling that new investors are nearing break-even on their holdings, according to data from CryptoQuant.

STH SOPR is climbing 📈

Short-term holders are now close to break-even, as STH SOPR approaches the key 1.0 level.

🟢 Above 1 = profit-taking
🔴 Below 1 = loss realization

A sustained breakout above 1 could signal bullish momentum is back. pic.twitter.com/7s5u08iGnZ

— Maartunn (@JA_Maartun) January 7, 2026

STH-SOPR measures the profitability of transactions by holders who have owned their coins for less than 155 days, comparing selling prices to acquisition costs.

When the metric sits above 1, holders are realizing profits. Below 1 indicates loss realization.

A sustained breakout above the 1.0 threshold has historically marked the end of market shakeouts and the return of positive momentum for Bitcoin.

Bitcoin was trading close to $91,000 at press time, down about 2% in the last 24 hours, per CoinGecko. The crypto asset had climbed above $94,000 earlier this week before pulling back.

Bitcoin fell below $92,000 on Wednesday morning, triggering over $490 million in liquidations in the past 24 hours, according to Coinglass data.

The drop follows a brief rally on Monday that saw BTC hit a weekly high near $95,000 before retracing on Tuesday and accelerating losses into Wednesday.

Long positions accounted for the bulk of the liquidations, totaling $374 million, while shorts contributed another $83 million. Bitcoin and Ethereum led the liquidation charts, with other majors also taking a hit.

Ethereum dropped from a weekly high near $3,300 to around $3,140. Solana fell from $143 to $136, and XRP registered one of the sharpest declines among large-cap tokens, sliding from $2.41 to $2.20.

Overall, the crypto market is down 1.5% over the past 24 hours, with most top assets trading in the red, according to CoinGecko data.

Bitcoin’s recent rally is being driven by recovering market liquidity and strong institutional demand rather than geopolitical events like the US intervention in Venezuela or the capture of Nicolas Maduro, according to John D’Agostino, Coinbase’s head of institutional strategy.

“It’s a massive geopolitical event. That narrative certainly holds as a long-term thesis, that proof of Bitcoin as a temporary currency to replace a destabilized currency. That’s fine. I also hear the argument that we’re probably going to have lower oil prices. Historically, the Fed has eased during lower oil price conditions,” said D’Agostino, speaking on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’ today.

“However, usually that’s a demand issue versus a supply issue. I’ve got to be honest. I don’t see any direct evidence that what’s happening in Venezuela is directly applicable,” he added.

D’Agostino highlighted market makers rebuilding positions as a key factor driving Bitcoin higher, along with rising retail sentiment, strong institutional momentum, and Bitcoin’s decades-long performance as a store of value.

According to him, Bitcoin has gained over 11,000% in the past decade compared to gold’s 260% and the S&P 500’s roughly 300% rise.

“We’re seeing gradual rebuilding from this liquidity event we had on October 10. The market makers are getting more comfortable with their risk parameters, adding risk back into the market,” he noted.

“We’re seeing retail sentiment catch up to what we’ve known on the institutional side. So retail sentiment [is] catching up to institutional momentum,” he said.

On institutional adoption, D’Agostino said no major institution working on crypto strategies pulled back despite Bitcoin’s 6% decline in 2025.

“I don’t know of a single large company that doesn’t have an AI and blockchain strategy, or at least thinks of one,” he said.

He noted that regulatory momentum has accelerated institutional timelines rather than slowed them.

D’Agostino also addressed Bitcoin’s volatility concerns, acknowledging that while the asset remains volatile, it has become less so over time.

He pointed to expanding use cases, including new regulations allowing Bitcoin as mortgage collateral and partnerships enabling spending at thousands of vendors.

Regarding ongoing public skepticism around crypto, D’Agostino said that senior institutional leaders no longer openly doubt Bitcoin’s viability. He noted that few, if any, executives at the partner level would now claim Bitcoin is going to zero.

“If you think that now at a partner level, you’re keeping your mouth shut, because it’s a bit embarrassing,” he said.

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Roughly $1.2 billion flowed into spot Bitcoin ETFs over the first two trading days of 2026, as investor demand spread across several funds. According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, that rate would translate into about $150 billion in inflows over a full year if sustained.

“If they can take in $22b when it’s raining, imagine when the sun is shining,” the expert wrote via his official X account.

The early 2026 surge marked a reversal from late 2025, when spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced consistent outflows.

Yesterday, BlackRock’s IBIT fund netted about $372 million, while Fidelity’s FBTC also saw heavy buying, attracting $191 million. These strong inflows helped lift total US spot Bitcoin ETF net flows to roughly $697 million for the day, the highest level in nearly three months.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs hold actual Bitcoin and trade on traditional stock exchanges, offering regulated exposure to the asset for investors who may not want to custody crypto directly.