BizwavemediaPersonal Finance and Crypto Updates

Bitcoin just posted its best price since early February, touching $74.5K as a sustained wave of institutional buying through spot ETFs continues to power the rally. The asset is now eyeing eight consecutive green daily candles — a streak that hasn’t happened in months.

Here’s the thing: while the price action screams confidence, the broader sentiment landscape is whispering something else entirely. The Fear and Greed Index sits at 23, deep in “Extreme Fear” territory. That’s up from a brutal 8 last week, but still the kind of reading you’d expect during a crash, not a rally.

The ETF engine keeps humming

Institutional inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs have topped $2.8B over recent weeks. That’s not a trickle — that’s a firehose of capital pointed directly at the asset.

BlackRock’s IBIT has been the standout, pulling in $307M in a single trading day. To put that in perspective, many mid-cap altcoins don’t see that kind of volume in a week. When the world’s largest asset manager is vacuuming up Bitcoin at that pace, the signal is hard to ignore.

The ETF flows represent something structurally different from previous Bitcoin rallies. This isn’t retail traders on leverage chasing green candles at 2 AM. It’s pension funds, wealth advisors, and institutional allocators moving through regulated vehicles. The buyer profile has fundamentally changed since the spot ETFs launched in January 2024.

Bitcoin was trading near $74K at the time of writing, up 3.3% on the day and 7% over the past seven days. That weekly gain alone outpaces what most traditional equity indices deliver in a quarter.

The rest of the market caught a contact high

Bitcoin’s rally didn’t happen in isolation. The broader crypto market joined in, with some assets outperforming BTC by a wide margin.

Ethereum climbed to around $2,300, posting a 9.4% gain over 24 hours — nearly triple Bitcoin’s daily move. Solana pushed toward $94, adding 6.8% on the day. XRP held steady near $1.50.

The real fireworks were in the speculative corners of the market. Meme coin PEPE surged roughly 20%, and Polkadot’s DOT climbed 10%. When meme coins start outperforming blue chips, it usually means risk appetite is returning — or at least trying to.

The top-performing category over the past week was Binance Wallet IDO tokens, which collectively rallied 111.6%. That’s the kind of number that makes you read it twice. It’s also the kind of number that tends to show up right before either a sustained breakout or a spectacular reversal. History doesn’t pick favorites.

Look, the altcoin rally is encouraging for bulls who want to see broad-based participation. A Bitcoin-only move can feel fragile. When capital starts rotating into ETH, SOL, and even meme coins, it suggests the rally has legs — or at least more participants willing to bet that it does.

The fear paradox

Now for the part that should make you pause.

The Fear and Greed Index reading of 23 is genuinely unusual for a market printing seven consecutive green days. Normally, a streak like this would push sentiment into neutral or even greed territory. The fact that it hasn’t suggests a large portion of market participants are either positioned short, sitting in stablecoins, or simply don’t trust the move.

In English: lots of people got burned recently and they’re not ready to believe the rally is real.

That skepticism can actually be bullish. Rallies that climb a “wall of worry” — where participants are reluctant and underinvested — tend to have more room to run than rallies driven by euphoria. When everyone is already all-in, there’s nobody left to buy. When the crowd is still scared, there’s dry powder on the sidelines.

Last week’s Fear and Greed reading of 8 was about as low as the index gets. The jump to 23 represents a meaningful improvement in sentiment, even if the absolute number still looks bleak. Think of it like going from “the house is on fire” to “okay, maybe just the kitchen.” Progress, technically.

The disconnect between price action and sentiment also raises a question about who exactly is doing the buying. If retail is scared, and the price is rising, the math points back to institutions. The ETF flow data supports that interpretation. BlackRock and its peers don’t check the Fear and Greed Index before placing orders.

For investors trying to make sense of this environment, a few things are worth watching. First, whether Bitcoin can close above $74K for multiple consecutive days. Intraday wicks are nice for headlines, but sustained closes above key levels are what matter for trend confirmation.

Second, keep an eye on ETF flow data. The $2.8B in recent inflows has been the primary catalyst. If those flows slow or reverse, the rally loses its main engine. BlackRock’s IBIT in particular has become something of a bellwether — when IBIT buying accelerates, Bitcoin tends to follow.

Third, watch the Fear and Greed Index trajectory. A move from 23 toward 40 or 50 would suggest the broader market is starting to participate. A drop back toward single digits would be a warning sign that the rally is running on institutional fumes alone.

The competitive landscape for Bitcoin has also shifted. With spot ETFs now firmly established, Bitcoin competes not just with other crypto assets but with gold, treasuries, and traditional portfolio hedges for institutional allocation. The $2.8B in recent inflows suggests it’s winning some of those allocation battles, at least for now.

Risks remain real. A sudden reversal in ETF flows, a macro shock, or a breakdown below key support levels around $69K could unwind the rally quickly. The Extreme Fear reading, while potentially bullish from a contrarian perspective, also reflects genuine uncertainty about the macro environment and regulatory landscape.

Bottom line: Bitcoin’s push to $74.5K is being driven by institutional capital, not retail enthusiasm — and that’s actually the more durable kind of rally. Eight straight green days against a backdrop of extreme fear is the market equivalent of someone calmly walking through a haunted house. Either they know something everyone else doesn’t, or they’re about to get spooked. The ETF flows suggest the former, but the smart move is watching those inflows like a hawk.

Jane Street, the quantitative trading powerhouse and authorized participant in spot Bitcoin ETFs, has resumed active crypto trading.

According to data tracked by Lookonchain, wallets linked to the firm saw an inflow of 205 Bitcoin, worth about $15 million, from institutional exchanges BitMEX and LMAX Digital on Monday.

Jane Street, recently accused of insider trading during the LUNA/Terra crash and dumping $BTC at 10 AM, is actively trading again.

In the past 2 hours, wallets linked to #JaneStreet received 205.36 $BTC($15.08M) from BitMEX and LMAX Digital.https://t.co/6Jt6RTJRed pic.twitter.com/JJ4PKyCVA4

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) March 16, 2026

Jane Street’s fresh on-chain activity comes as the firm faces accusations over its role in the May 2022 collapse of TerraUSD (UST) and LUNA that wiped out about $40 billion in value.

Todd Snyder, Terraform Labs’ bankruptcy plan administrator, is suing the Wall Street giant for alleged front-running using non-public insider information. Snyder also filed a $4 billion claim against Jump Trading.

Alongside the legal action, a widely circulated theory on X accused Jane Street of systematically influencing Bitcoin price movements.

Crypto traders pointed to a pattern in which Bitcoin frequently dropped around 10:00 a.m. ET, shortly after the US market opened, for months leading into early 2026.

Jane Street is suspected of having leveraged its role as an authorized participant for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF to sell Bitcoin, trigger liquidations, and then accumulate ETF shares at lower prices.

And there it is: Jane Street was behind the 2022 crypto winter, destroying Terraform by first depegging the token and destroying the ecosystem, then pretending it would rescue Terra, while effectively it was soaking up what little value remained. pic.twitter.com/Wo9HnBHAoP

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 24, 2026

Observers later noted that the sell-off pattern appeared to stop in late February 2026, about a few days after the Terraform lawsuit became public.

However, several analysts and market veterans dismissed the allegations that Jane Street manipulated Bitcoin prices.

Rob Hadick, partner at Dragonfly Capital, said the claims show a fundamental misunderstanding of derivatives markets and the role of ETF authorized participants.

A person close to Jane Street also told Fortune in late February that the claims were an “absolutely ridiculous” conspiracy theory.

BlackRock’s digital assets chief Robert Mitchnick said that more than 90% of Bitcoin ETF investors, including retail, financial advisors, and institutions, have followed a steady accumulation strategy.

Speaking to CNBC today, Mitchnick said retail investors “are some of the most long-term focused” and have tended to “buy the dip” when markets decline, while hedge funds account for a smaller share of more tactical trading activity.

“The only part of the demand base where we do see some tendency towards short-termism is the roughly 10 or so percent that is actually comprised of hedge funds,” said Mitchnick when asked what ETF flows reveal about crypto investor behavior.

He added that these investors have employed different trading strategies such as basis trades, going long on spot ETFs, and shorting futures contracts. These trades are largely market-neutral but can create temporary inflows or outflows in ETF data.

“But the other kind of 90 plus percent of the investor base,” Mitchnick emphasized, “have tended to be very steady and have been on an accumulation path pretty consistently.”

He noted that despite declines in the price of Bitcoin, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, IBIT, ranked among the top ETF inflows globally in 2025, drawing about $26 billion and placing fourth worldwide by inflows even as the asset posted negative returns.

“There’s clearly been a lot of selling pressure elsewhere in the Bitcoin ecosystem, on crypto exchanges, on these offshore levered perps platforms,” Mitchnick said. “But the ETF investor base has taken a much steadier, longer-term fundamental view of things.”

Bitcoin and Ether dominate crypto ETF demand

Commenting on investor demand for crypto assets, Mitchnick reiterated that it remains overwhelmingly concentrated on Bitcoin and Ethereum.

While BlackRock sees interest in other crypto assets, it takes “a very discerning approach” to expanding crypto offerings within its iShares ETF lineup.

“We continue to evaluate those as conditions evolve and as maturity, liquidity scale, and use cases develop,” he said.

Staking transforms Ether ETF economics

This week, the leading asset manager launched ETHB, its staking-enabled Ether ETF. The fund drew in over $43 million in net inflows on its trading debut, per Farside Investors.

Earlier Ethereum ETFs did not capture staking rewards, leaving investors unable to participate in the network’s native yield.

The new structure addresses that limitation, adding an income component that many portfolio allocators view as a meaningful incentive and one that could help narrow the adoption gap with Bitcoin products.

Despite the constraint, BlackRock’s flagship Ethereum ETF, ETHA, became the third-fastest ETF ever to reach $10 billion in assets under management, following only IBIT and FBTC.

With staking yield now incorporated, the firm expects that ETHB will become a dominant ETF vehicle for Ether exposure.

Mitchnick called the fund a near-silver bullet for investors seeking convenient exposure.

PI, the native crypto asset of the Pi Network, rose over 30% to $0.29 as market participants anticipated its trading debut on Kraken, one of the largest US crypto exchanges.

The rally lifted PI’s market capitalization to $2.7 billion, pushing it ahead of established altcoins such as Uniswap’s UNI, Bittensor’s TAO, and Polkadot’s DOT, according to CoinMarketCap data.

The token moved up from around $0.22 on Thursday after Kraken first revealed the listing and extended its gains once the launch time was confirmed.

Volume spiked as PI’s price climbed, rising over 130% in the past 24 hours to $144 million. The token is now among the top five gainers of the day with TRUMP, RIVE, NIGHT, and FET.

Kraken confirmed that trading would commence on March 13 at 15:00 UTC, with deposits already enabled and the platform currently operating in post-only mode.

Coming soon: $PI@PiCoreTeam Pi Network is a mobile-first Layer-1 blockchain and developer platform enabling accessible crypto mining via smartphone, with a utility-based ecosystem on an identity-verified mainnet.

Trading starts March 13

Get ready → https://t.co/47fNCUnRqD pic.twitter.com/nPmrRElAPW

— Kraken Listings (@krakenlistings) March 12, 2026

Launched in 2019 by Stanford graduates, Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis and Dr. Chengdiao Fan, Pi Network enables users to mine crypto on mobile devices and personal computers using a user-friendly, energy-efficient consensus model based on the Stellar Consensus Protocol.

The platform introduces four key user roles, including Pioneers, Contributors, Ambassadors, and Nodes, allowing participants to collectively validate transactions and earn Pi tokens daily.

According to the project’s whitepaper, the Pi Network aims to create a fair and accessible crypto ecosystem. Its tokenomics are designed to reward early contributors while maintaining wide distribution through mining, referrals, and developer incentives.

The network prioritizes decentralization, trust, and meritocratic distribution of rewards while keeping transaction fees optional and fair. Pi wants to scale beyond existing blockchain networks while maintaining fast transaction finality and security.

Commenting on the Kraken listing, Kokkalis expressed appreciation for the strong support and excitement surrounding the project.

He said he would continue sharing updates, research, and market analysis through his timeline to keep followers updated on progress within the Pi ecosystem and crypto developments.

🚨 Pi Network Community Update

Since the Kraken listing announcement, my inbox has been absolutely flooded with DMs from the community. 🙏

I truly appreciate the incredible support and enthusiasm around Pi Network. The community energy right now is amazing! 🔥 However, due to… pic.twitter.com/gPJToGoy6z

— Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis (@drnicolas_) March 12, 2026

Here’s a fun paradox: the US economy just delivered a one-two punch of stubborn inflation and weakening growth, and Bitcoin’s response was… a 3% rally. Either crypto has developed an immunity to macroeconomic gravity, or the market is pricing in something the headlines haven’t caught up to yet.

The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge — the core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index — came in at 3.1%, matching expectations but doing absolutely nothing to suggest rate cuts are around the corner. Meanwhile, GDP growth was quietly revised down to a barely-there 0.7%, and real consumer spending essentially flatlined. In English: prices are still rising too fast, but the economy is losing steam. That’s the definition of stagflation, and it’s a word nobody in Washington wants to say out loud.

The numbers that matter

Bitcoin traded near $72K, up 3.1% over the past 24 hours and 3.5% on the week. That’s a quietly confident performance for an asset that supposedly dances to the Fed’s tune.

Ethereum wasn’t far behind, gaining 3.9% on the day to trade above $2,100. Solana posted the strongest move among major tokens, climbing 4.7% to hover around $90.

But here’s the thing — the vibes don’t match the price action at all. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index sits at 15, deep in “Extreme Fear” territory. Last week it was 18, which was also “Extreme Fear.” So we have prices ticking up while sentiment remains pinned to the floor. That disconnect is worth paying attention to.

For context, a Fear & Greed reading of 15 is the kind of number you typically see during capitulation events or right before sharp reversals. The last time this index was this low while Bitcoin was simultaneously posting green daily candles was… unusual, to put it mildly. It suggests that retail investors are nervous, but someone — institutional flows, algorithmic strategies, or longer-term accumulators — is steadily buying the fear.

Why crypto didn’t flinch

The core PCE reading of 3.1% was exactly what economists expected. No surprise means no shock. Markets had already digested the probability that inflation would remain sticky, and the lack of an upside miss meant there was no fresh reason to sell risk assets.

The GDP revision to 0.7% is arguably the more interesting data point. Growth slowing that dramatically — from earlier estimates that were already modest — would normally spook equity markets and drag crypto along with it. But there’s a counterintuitive logic at play here.

Weaker growth actually increases the pressure on the Fed to eventually cut rates, even if inflation hasn’t fully cooperated. The market is essentially playing a game of chicken with the central bank: the worse the economy looks, the more likely monetary policy loosens, and the more attractive risk assets become. Bitcoin has been running this playbook for months.

It’s also worth noting that Bitcoin has been increasingly decorrelating from traditional risk assets in 2024. The narrative has shifted from “crypto is a leveraged tech bet” to something closer to “digital gold with better upside.” Whether that narrative holds through an actual recession is an open question, but for now, it’s providing a floor under prices.

What investors should actually watch

The stagflation setup is real, and it creates a genuinely tricky environment for every asset class. Stocks don’t love rising prices. Bonds don’t love rising prices either. Gold does well in this environment, and Bitcoin has been increasingly trading like a gold proxy — albeit a much more volatile one.

The extreme fear reading on the sentiment index, combined with positive price action, historically precedes one of two outcomes. Either sentiment catches up to price and we get a broader rally, or price catches down to sentiment and the floor drops out. There’s not a lot of middle ground when the gap between feeling and reality gets this wide.

For the crypto-specific picture, a few things matter more than today’s PCE print. The Bitcoin halving’s supply shock is still working its way through the system. Spot Bitcoin ETF flows, which have been the dominant price driver in 2024, remain the single most important variable to track. And Solana’s 4.7% daily pop — outperforming both BTC and ETH — suggests that risk appetite within crypto hasn’t disappeared, it’s just being selective.

One category worth noting from the broader market data: Binance Wallet IDO tokens surged over 80% on the week, a reminder that speculative capital in crypto doesn’t disappear during downturns. It just migrates to wherever the next perceived edge is.

The real test comes if GDP continues deteriorating while inflation refuses to budge. That scenario forces the Fed into an impossible choice — fight inflation with tight policy and risk a deeper recession, or cut rates to support growth and risk re-igniting prices. Bitcoin bulls are betting that either path eventually leads to more liquidity in the system. They might be right, but the road between here and there could get bumpy.

Bottom line: Bitcoin absorbed a nasty macro print without blinking, and that resilience is telling. But with the Fear & Greed Index at 15 and stagflation risks rising, this feels less like calm confidence and more like the deep breath before something bigger — in one direction or the other.

Dubai, UAE, March 13th, 2026, Chainwire

Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, today announced the launch of AI Trading Skill, a feature that enables users to execute crypto trades, access market data, and manage assets using simple natural language through any major AI assistant, including ChatGPT, OpenClaw, Claude, Gemini, Cursor, and Windsurf. With zero installation, universal AI compatibility, and 253 API endpoints, the launch marks a significant step toward agentic trading — where AI interprets user intent and executes actions seamlessly.

Key Advantages

• Zero installation: No Node Package Manager (NPM), Command Line Interface (CLI), Software Development Kit（SDK) or configuration files — get started instantly.
• Universal AI compatibility: Works with all major AI platforms and assistants.
• Automatic updates: The Skill updates automatically alongside Bybit’s platform, ensuring users always have access to the latest features.

Full Market Access, Powered by AI

Behind the natural-language interface lies Bybit’s complete trading ecosystem. With six modules, Bybit AI Skills enables everything from querying live prices to executing complex orders. The 253 API endpoints allow users to chain commands, follow up with additional queries, and manage their portfolio intuitively — all without ever touching a traditional trading interface.

1. Market Intelligence: Querying real-time prices, candle lines, order book depth, and funding rates.
2. Spot Trading: Executing market buy/sell, limit orders, and batch operations.
3. Derivatives Trading: Leverage trading, take-profit/stop-loss, and conditional orders.
4. Earn: Flexible Savings and On-Chain Earn.
5. Account & Assets: Accessing account information, deposits, withdrawals, and currency conversion.
6. Advanced Features: Real-time market intelligence and execution tools through WebSocket streams, including margin lending (e.g., “Borrow 10,000 USDT”), price differential trading (e.g., “Place a price difference order”), and RFQ pricing (e.g., “Get BTC options bulk pricing”).

Bybit has long been committed to unlocking trading power through AI. Previous releases, including TradeGPT and other platform AI tools, assisted users in making informed investment decisions across market analysis and strategy. With AI Trading Skill,, Bybit delivers its most comprehensive AI integration to date — end-to-end coverage across the entire trading and digital asset wealth management journey. By turning complex market operations into simple conversations, Bybit sets a new standard for what an intelligent trading experience can be.

Security Designed for Safe AI-Powered Trading

While the experience feels as simple as chatting with an AI assistant, Bybit has embedded multiple safeguards into the AI Trading Skills framework to ensure that user assets remain protected at every step.

New users are first guided through testnet trading, allowing them to experiment with AI-driven commands in a simulated environment before interacting with real funds. When switching to live trading, all transactions require explicit user confirmation, ensuring that traders retain full control over every order.

The Skill manages the connection between the AI assistant and Bybit’s infrastructure through secure API authentication, eliminating the need for users to manually configure complex credentials or expose sensitive information during setup. Every instruction issued by the AI is translated into precise API calls and executed only after passing platform security checks.

By combining conversational simplicity with layered security controls, Bybit ensures that AI-powered trading remains both intuitive and safe — giving users confidence to explore this new way of interacting with crypto markets, backed by enterprise-grade infrastructure.

To find out more about Bybit AI Skills, traders can visit: https://www.bybit.com/ai

For further technical details, users may visit: GitHub – Bybit AI Skills

#Bybit / #CryptoArk

About Bybit

Bybit is the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, serving a global community of over 80 million users. Founded in 2018, Bybit is redefining openness in the decentralized world by creating a simpler, open, and equal ecosystem for everyone. With a strong focus on Web3, Bybit partners strategically with leading blockchain protocols to provide robust infrastructure and drive on-chain innovation. Renowned for its secure custody, diverse marketplaces, intuitive user experience, and advanced blockchain tools, Bybit bridges the gap between TradFi and DeFi, empowering builders, creators, and enthusiasts to unlock the full potential of Web3. Discover the future of decentralized finance at Bybit.com.

For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press 

For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

For updates, please follow: Bybit’s Communities and Social Media

Contact

Head of PR
Tony Au
Bybit
[email protected]

Tesla has received regulatory clearance to convert its investment in Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence firm xAI into a small stake in SpaceX, formalizing financial ties between the billionaire’s companies ahead of the rocket maker’s planned initial public offering, according to a Bloomberg report.

Filings with the US Federal Trade Commission list Tesla as the acquirer of a SpaceX stake from Musk. The documents, dated March 11, also show Musk selling additional holdings to investors, including Valor Equity Partners and DFJ Growth.

The filings relate to Tesla’s previously disclosed $2 billion investment in xAI, which was recently rolled into SpaceX following the merger of the AI firm with the rocket company. The conversion would leave Tesla with a stake of less than 1% in SpaceX.

Musk previously acquired Twitter in 2022 and later merged the platform, now called X, with xAI in a $33 billion deal. That move paved the way for the SpaceX tie-up, creating a combined entity valued at about $1.75 trillion when the transaction was announced earlier this year.