BizwavemediaPersonal Finance and Crypto Updates

Spain’s second-largest lender, BBVA, announced Wednesday that it has become part of Qivalis, a bank-led consortium aiming to build a shared euro-pegged stablecoin for institutional and crypto use.

Qivalis, originally formed by nine major lenders, is targeting a late-2026 launch for its MiCAR-compliant stablecoin to reinforce Europe’s financial autonomy, counter US dollar dominance in stablecoins, and offer a faster, lower-cost payment and settlement infrastructure.

“Collaboration between banks is key to creating common standards that support the evolution of the future banking model and deliver financial innovation to our clients in a consistent and practical way,” said Alicia Pertusa, Head of Partnerships & Innovation at BBVA CIB, in a statement. “BBVA brings to Qivalis extensive experience amassed over years of exploring and developing use cases linked to digital assets.”

The Amsterdam-based venture is currently awaiting authorization as an Electronic Money Institution from the Dutch Central Bank to legally launch the stablecoin.

With BBVA joining the group, Qivalis has expanded to 12 major banks, including Banca Sella, BNP Paribas, CaixaBank, Danske Bank, DekaBank, DZ BANK, ING, KBC, Raiffeisen Bank International, SEB, and UniCredit.

“Having BBVA join the banking consortium marks an important step forward,” Qivalis CEO Jan-Oliver Sell stated. “This growing alignment strengthens our ability to deliver a resilient institutional-grade on-chain infrastructure for businesses and consumers across Europe and the world.”

The rollout of MiCAR has accelerated digital asset adoption among European banks. BVVA has been active in increasing its digital asset engagement.

Last March, BBVA secured regulatory approval to expand its retail crypto offering in Spain, complementing its operations in Switzerland and Turkey.

The bank has collaborated with SWIFT on blockchain infrastructure and participated in Agorá, a Bank for International Settlements project focused on wholesale cross-border payments.

It has also partnered with Binance to offer customers a safe way to store and manage their crypto assets.

Bitcoin fell to around $72,000 on Wednesday, marking its lowest level of the year as selling pressure across digital assets intensified. The move deepens a downtrend that has been in place since mid-January, when Bitcoin peaked near $96,000.

The selloff weighed broadly on crypto-linked equities, though the steep drop in Strategy shares stood out given the company’s position as the largest corporate holder of bitcoin. With roughly 713,000 bitcoin acquired at an average price near $76,000, the slide to $72,000 leaves the company facing sizable unrealized losses on its treasury.

At current prices, the position implies an unrealized loss of about $2.9 billion. Shares of Strategy fell about 9% on the day, sliding to around $121.9, a level last seen in September 2024.

Coinbase fell roughly 8%, while Robinhood dropped around 10% as investors reduced exposure to crypto-sensitive names. Mining stocks were among the hardest hit, with Cipher Mining off roughly 21%, Iren down about 18%, and Hut 8 sliding about 14%.

Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms each fell around 11%. Ethereum treasury-focused companies also came under pressure, with BitMine down about 10% and SharpLink Gaming off roughly 8%.

The broader crypto market continued to soften, with total market capitalization slipping about 3% to roughly $2.5 trillion. Ether traded near $2,100, Solana hovered around $90, and XRP fell to about $1.51.

Weakness in digital assets came alongside a pullback in broader risk markets. The S&P 500 fell about 1%, while the Nasdaq dropped close to 2%. Gold eased around 1% and silver fell about 0.3%.

Market stress was evident in derivatives data, with more than $120 million in crypto positions liquidated in recent hours and over $860 million wiped out over the past 24 hours.

Spot silver plunged below $75 per ounce, down 15% in Asian trading on Thursday, while gold fell 2% to $4,852 as a stronger US dollar weighed on precious metals.

The US dollar’s strength, with the index now near 98, is driving down demand for precious metals among international buyers.

The sharp drop extends a volatile stretch for silver, which reached highs near $120 per ounce last month before entering a steep correction. Over a three-day period in early February, prices fell by more than 35%.

Market volatility intensified after Kevin Warsh‘s nomination as Fed Chair dampened expectations of further monetary easing, which normally supports precious metals. Slower easing increases the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as gold and silver.

Trump made clear that Warsh would not have been picked if he favored raising rates, suggesting that the nominee, despite his reputation as a monetary hawk, may share his goal of lowering interest rates.

However, this has done little to calm markets as uncertainty over Fed leadership and the timing of rate cuts continues to keep markets under pressure.

Garrett Jin, a prominent crypto trader commonly known as Bitcoin OG “1011short,” withdrew 80,000 Ethereum worth approximately $168 million from Binance on Thursday, according to on-chain data.

The transfers took place during a market-wide selloff that pushed most crypto assets lower, with Bitcoin falling below $71,000 and Ethereum dropping under $2,100. The total crypto market capitalization shed 6% to $2.4 trillion, per CoinGecko.

Heads up: Garrett Jin(#BitcoinOG1011short) has started buying back $ETH!

He just withdrew 80,000 $ETH ($167.8M) from #Binance.https://t.co/LyveMqUKoj pic.twitter.com/K18mvT4aoj

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) February 5, 2026

The move signals a renewed interest in buying Ethereum, as Jin recently deposited a large Ethereum holding into Binance starting in late 2025, according to Lookonchain. Large transfers to exchanges are often seen as potential selling signals.

BREAKING!

The #BitcoinOG(1011short) with a massive $717M long position in $BTC, $ETH, and $SOL, just deposited 100,000 $ETH($292M) into #Binance.

Big move — what’s the play?https://t.co/LyveMqUKoj pic.twitter.com/jVHuQE6Q84

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) December 24, 2025

Jin has gained widespread attention for his on-chain moves during periods of extreme volatility. He is best known for a $735 million Bitcoin short on Hyperliquid that netted an estimated $160 million in profit just minutes before a massive market crash triggered by President Trump’s October 2025 tariff announcement.

The trader’s wallet shows that he still holds over 30,600 BTC worth over $2 billion.

Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, announced Thursday it is cutting 25% of its workforce and exiting operations in the UK, EU and Australia as part of a major restructuring.

The move comes as Bitcoin dropped below $70,000 Thursday morning, erasing gains made since its $69,000 all-time high in late 2021.

The exchange said it would refocus its business around the US market, AI-powered productivity and prediction markets. In its “Gemini 2.0” update, the company emphasized that smaller, AI-augmented teams are now more effective and aligned with its evolving mission.

Gemini highlighted early traction in its Gemini Predictions platform, which has processed over $24 million in volume since launching in December.

The news comes as Gemini confirmed it will shut down its NFT marketplace Nifty Gateway on February 23, following a prolonged decline in NFT trading volumes. Users have been instructed to withdraw their assets before the shutdown, though NFT support will continue through Gemini Wallet.

The announcement coincided with fresh pressure on crypto markets. Gemini stock, which debuted in September 2025, fell nearly 7% on Thursday, extending losses to nearly 80% from its IPO price and marking a new all-time low.

Gemini said narrowing its geographic footprint and product focus would help lower expenses and accelerate its path to profitability.

Bitcoin extended its sharp decline on Thursday, falling to $67,000 and breaking below its 2021 all-time high of $69,000. The drop erased nearly all gains since the bear market bottom in November 2022.

Ethereum fell below $2,000, Solana dropped to $84, and XRP sank to $1.29. The total crypto market cap fell over 7% in the past 24 hours, now sitting near $2.3 trillion.

Heavy leverage compounded the selloff, with $480 million in liquidations in the past hour and more than $1.4 billion over the past 24 hours, according to Coinglass data.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs also saw mounting pressure. Over $800 million in net outflows hit BTC ETFs over the past two days, while ETH ETFs recorded $68 million in outflows this week, according to SoSoValue data.

Strategy, the largest corporate Bitcoin holder with over 713,000 BTC, is now facing a paper loss exceeding $6.7 billion. Shares fell another 13% on Thursday, trading near $112 and approaching levels last seen in August 2024. The company is scheduled to report earnings later today.

BitMine, the largest corporate Ethereum holder, is sitting on a nearly $8 billion unrealized loss on its ETH holdings.

The risk-off move extends beyond crypto. The S&P 500 fell 1.2% and the Nasdaq dropped 1.8%. Precious metals also declined, with silver down 15% and gold down 5% in an unusually steep overnight move.

The week’s losses mark one of the sharpest cross-asset resets since late 2022.

Around 8.9 million Bitcoin, or 45% of the circulating supply, is now underwater, marking the highest level of supply in loss since January 2023, according to CryptoQuant analyst J.A. Maartun. He said capitulation risk climbs when this metric surges.

🔴 8,941,278 BTC is now sitting at a loss — the highest level since January 2023.

That’s 45% of the circulating supply underwater 📉

Capitulation risk rises when this metric spikes. pic.twitter.com/NCp73fQy7q

— Maartunn (@JA_Maartun) February 5, 2026

Bitcoin has fallen about 10% in the past 24 hours, slipping below $65,500 at the time of reporting after breaking under the $67,000 level early in the morning, per TradingView.

US Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows in late January 2026, marking the second- and third-worst weeks in ETF history. Cumulative inflows have declined by 12.4% since their peak in October 2025.