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Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) is investigating Telegram co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov on suspicion of aiding terrorist activities, state-run media outlet Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported. The probe was reportedly triggered after Telegram refused a request from the country's communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, to remove content. Russian authorities had asked Telegram to delete approximately 155,000 channels, chat logs, and bots flagged as illegal or harmful. This included 104,093 channels allegedly spreading false information, 10,598 promoting extremism, 4,168 justifying extremism, and 3,771 related to drugs. Durov has previously stated that the Russian government attacks Telegram to promote its own state-run messenger, adding that similar blocking strategies by other countries like Iran have failed. He argued that restricting civil liberties is not the right solution and that Telegram supports freedom of expression and privacy.

BlackRock has deposited 1,814 BTC ($114.45 million) and 24,472 ETH ($44.57 million) into Coinbase Prime, Onchain Lens reported. Coinbase Prime is a prime brokerage platform that facilitates large-scale trading and custody for institutional investors.

HashGraph, the developer of Hedera (HBAR), has launched TrackTrace, a platform to track and record product data and carbon emissions, Cointelegraph reported. The platform will initially focus on electric vehicle and industrial batteries before expanding to other items such as textiles and steel. This initiative is part of an effort to comply with the European Union's (EU) Digital Product Passport (DPP) regulations, a system designed to standardize and share product information across the supply chain.

A wallet suspected of belonging to YZi Labs, formerly Binance Labs, deposited 13.54 million AI (worth approximately $278,000) and 11.11 million WOO (worth approximately $176,000) to Binance about five hours ago. Transfers to an exchange are typically interpreted as a precursor to selling. On-chain analyst EmberCN noted that after YZi Labs completely sold its ID tokens about two weeks ago, it now appears to be liquidating its AI and WOO holdings. The analyst added that these tokens were acquired through vesting unlocks from projects in which YZi Labs had invested.

Panic selling by short-term Bitcoin holders and a Relative Strength Index (RSI) near all-time lows suggest that Bitcoin is entering a full-blown capitulation phase, Cointelegraph reported. The outlet explained that as holders continue to sell, the price of BTC has fallen below $63,000, with short-term holders believed to be leading the sell-off. On-chain data platform Glassnode added that the overall cryptocurrency market remains under downward pressure, noting that investors who had been holding on during the bottoming phase are now choosing to capitulate.

The altcoin market, excluding Ethereum (ETH), has seen a net sell-off of $209 billion since January of last year, according to Unfolded. This suggests that investors are prioritizing cashing out over accumulation in the cryptocurrency market, Unfolded added.

UK-based web developer Smarter Web Company (SWC) has secured a strategic credit line of up to $30 million from Coinbase Credit, TipRanks reported. The facility, which functions like a revolving line of credit where interest is paid only on the amount drawn, is collateralized by SWC's existing Bitcoin holdings. The company plans to use the funds to purchase additional Bitcoin.

A bill that would allow the Arizona state government to create a reserve fund with Bitcoin and other digital assets has passed the state's Senate Finance Committee, Decrypt reported. The legislation, SB 1649, would establish a 'Digital Asset Strategic Reserve Fund' using cryptocurrencies that have been seized, forfeited, or voluntarily surrendered to the state. The fund would be authorized to hold, invest in, and lend these digital assets. The bill passed the Arizona Senate Rules Committee on Feb. 23 before clearing the Finance Committee on the same day. It is now set to proceed to a full floor vote.

Bitcoin is poised to rally and establish itself as a store of value despite ongoing outflows from spot ETFs, according to Eric Jackson, founder of EMJ Capital. He noted that BTC is currently correlated with BlackRock's tech stock ETF, IGV, which means it is positioned as a tech stock rather than a store of value. Jackson predicted that BTC will rise when the selling pressure on IGV subsides and the supply of stablecoins on exchanges begins to expand again. He added that the new buyers entering over the next few years will include sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and corporate treasuries. Unlike existing holders, these entities are not tied to tech stock movements and are investing funds they intend to hold for decades, he explained. Jackson emphasized that the temporary departure of some institutions is part of BTC's evolution into a true store of value.

Nic Puckrin, CEO of the crypto media outlet Coin Bureau, which has around 2.73 million subscribers, stated on his X account that the weekly Relative Strength Index (RSI) for the BTC/USD pair on Bitstamp has reached an all-time low of 25.6. He noted this indicates the BTC market is in its most oversold condition in history. Puckrin highlighted that the RSI has never been this low, falling below the levels seen during the collapses of Terra/Luna and Three Arrows Capital. He suggested that while further declines are possible, a market bottom could be imminent.

South Korea's ruling Democratic Party plans to propose a bill on stablecoins as early as next week, according to a report from Edaily. Representative Ahn Do-geol, secretary of the party's Digital Asset Task Force, stated that the group will spend a week drafting a compromise bill that can be mutually agreed upon by the industry and financial authorities. The task force held a meeting with its advisory committee on Feb. 24. Following the meeting, task force chairman Representative Lee Jeong-mun added that they will deliver their proposal to the government and the Financial Services Commission in the next one to two weeks, noting there would be no issue in formally introducing the bill if an agreement is reached.

A major shareholder of Empery Digital (EMPD), a Nasdaq-listed company formerly known as Volcon that has been strategically acquiring Bitcoin, is urging the firm to sell its entire BTC holdings. Tice P. Brown, who holds a 9% stake in Empery, made the demand in a letter to the company's board of directors. Brown stated that he had rejected an offer from management to acquire all of his shares, describing it as an insulting proposal that prioritized management's self-interest over shareholder value. He is now calling for the immediate resignation of the CEO, the replacement of the entire board, the sale of all company-held BTC, and the return of the proceeds to shareholders.

Cathie Wood, CEO of crypto investment firm and spot Bitcoin ETF issuer Ark Invest, has described Bitcoin as a vastly superior alternative to gold, The Crypto Basic reported, citing a recent Bloomberg interview. She explained that Bitcoin serves as a modern hedge against both inflation and deflation, a role similar to gold's, but argued its digital nature makes it structurally superior. Wood noted that Bitcoin adoption is still in its early stages, institutional investor participation is growing, and younger investors show a preference for digital assets over gold. She added that she views Bitcoin and digital assets as a generational turning point in finance and is focused on long-term growth over short-term market volatility.

Global virtual asset Travel Rule solution provider VerifyVASP announced through its official channels that cryptocurrency exchange Echobit has joined its alliance. VerifyVASP is a network of global virtual asset service providers (VASPs) that supports Travel Rule compliance, with members including South Korean exchange Upbit and other domestic and international firms. Last year, Echobit joined the Travel Rule solution CODE and began integrating deposits and withdrawals with Coinone.

The inverse correlation between the price of Bitcoin and gold is approaching a record high, according to a recent analysis. Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, stated that Bitcoin is currently in a phase where it is not behaving like digital gold. He shared a Pearson graph comparing the two assets, which shows their correlation coefficient nearing -1. This figure suggests a perfect negative correlation, meaning the two assets are moving in completely opposite directions.

The Ethereum Foundation staked 2,016 ETH, valued at $3.69 million, today and plans to stake a total of 70,000 ETH in the future. This action aligns with the treasury policy announced last year, and all staking rewards will be allocated to the foundation's treasury. The process utilized open-source software from Ethereum staking service provider Attestant.

The slow recovery of the Bitcoin Coinbase Premium's 30-day moving average (SMA) is being cited as a potential bearish factor, according to crypto analyst nino. In a CryptoQuant contribution, nino noted that the metric is facing resistance as it attempts to turn positive. "The 30-day SMA for the BTC Coinbase Premium briefly surpassed zero but failed to maintain its momentum this week," he added. The Coinbase Premium Index measures the price difference between the U.S.-based crypto exchange Coinbase and the global market average, with a rising value typically indicating strengthening buying pressure from U.S. investors.

Binance has announced the listing of the ADA/U, DOGE/U, PEPE/U, and TAO/USD1 spot trading pairs, scheduled for 8:00 a.m. UTC on Feb. 25.

Bitcoin is testing a critical support level between $60,000 and $63,000, with an analysis suggesting that a failure to hold the $60,000 mark could lead to a drop to $47,000. According to The Block, Andri Fauzan Adziima, head of research at crypto exchange Bitrue, said that if BTC successfully holds its current support, a short squeeze could occur, amplified by negative funding rates. He added that improving macroeconomic conditions and a resumption of ETF inflows could further fuel this phenomenon. Conversely, Adziima warned that a drop below $60,000 combined with a deteriorating macro environment could push the price down to the mid-$50,000s and even to $47,000. In this case, long-term investors might also capitulate and sell, potentially creating a deeper market bottom. Meanwhile, as BTC gave up the $63,000 level today, Presto Research analyst Jeong Min-gyo stated that the decline was due to a general worsening of sentiment across the crypto market rather than a specific factor. He added that in the short term, macro-related news, such as U.S. tariff issues and escalating U.S.-Iran tensions, is stimulating risk-averse sentiment among investors.

South Korean crypto exchange Coinone announced it will list Litentry (LIT) for KRW trading at 3:00 a.m. UTC on Feb. 25.

Global cryptocurrency research firm Four Pillars has published a report titled 'Fluent: An Integrated Operating System for Reputation.' According to the report, the current crypto ecosystem has more than 10 reputation protocols based on social activity, on-chain transactions, peer endorsements, and identity verification. This fragmentation creates inefficiencies, forcing each project to build separate Sybil (fake user) detection systems due to differing standards and data structures. The report also notes that reputation is often tied to specific chains and platforms, making it difficult to transfer, and remains vulnerable to manipulation due to the limitations of off-chain data verification. Four Pillars states that Fluent addresses these issues with a "blended execution environment" that combines EVM, SVM, and Wasm, allowing data from multiple chains to be verified and combined in a single environment. The firm predicts this will enable new models that use on-chain reputation as an economic variable, such as for determining reputation-based loan rates, evaluating curators, and measuring agent reliability.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is solidifying its position as the central hub for institutional cryptocurrency trading, according to a CoinDesk analysis. The shift comes as the CME Group prepares to introduce 24-hour trading for its crypto futures and options products on May 29. CoinDesk noted that the CME is already a leader in the Bitcoin futures market by open interest, with its contracts serving as the basis for hedging activities related to U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs. Previously, the exchange's weekend closures created the "CME gap," preventing institutions from adjusting their positions while offshore exchanges remained active. The introduction of around-the-clock trading is expected to eliminate this restriction and likely narrow the price difference between CME futures and perpetual swaps on offshore exchanges. The analysis also predicted that as institutional involvement on the platform grows, Bitcoin's short-term price movements will become more sensitive to global risk sentiment.

South Korean crypto exchanges Bithumb and Coinone have announced the delisting of Neiro (NEIRO), effective at 6:00 a.m. UTC on March 27. Bithumb stated that the decision was made because the materials submitted by the Neiro foundation were insufficient to resolve the issues that had led to the token being placed under an investment warning.

OKX has announced it will delist six perpetual futures contracts: CAT/USDT, MOG/USDT, XAN/USDT, FUN/USDT, ACE/USDT, and PROMPT/USDT. The delisting is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. UTC on Feb. 27.

KB Kookmin Bank has renewed its real-name account partnership with South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb but has shortened the contract term from one year to six months, the Seoul Shinmun reported. While technically a renewal, the decision to halve the typical annual contract period signals a more cautious, conditional approach from the bank. The move is seen as a response to the increased risk management burden on the bank, following a police investigation into allegations of hiring favors at Bithumb, compounded by the exchange's recent large-scale erroneous Bitcoin payout incident.