At the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong publicly debated French central bank chief François Villeroy de Galhau over whether Bitcoin or central banks better safeguard monetary independence. Armstrong argued that Bitcoin's decentralized design makes it more independent than state institutions, while later accusing U.S. banking lobbies of using stalled stablecoin legislation to stifle crypto competition. Hedge fund veteran Ray Dalio separately warned of a breakdown in the monetary system as investors increasingly look to Bitcoin and gold and seized Bitcoin is moved into U.S. strategic reserves.

Starting February 1, Shanghai will let registered consumer drones fly without prior approval in designated zones covering 46% of the city as part of its push to expand the low-altitude economy. The city logged 3.2 million drone flights with 220,000 registered drones by the end of 2025 and aims to build an 80 billion yuan industry by 2028, while Shenzhen targets a low-altitude sector worth over 130 billion yuan by 2026.

On January 19, silver crossed $94, intensifying debate between precious‑metal advocates and crypto investors. Peter Schiff linked the metal's rally to a looming Bitcoin downturn, saying on X that the cryptocurrency could suffer a sharp collapse, while BTC's brief move above $97,000 earlier this month failed to hold.

On January 20, 2026, veteran trader Peter Brandt said on X that Bitcoin's rising wedge points to a 33–37% decline, targeting $58,000–$62,000 from around $92,400. Other analysts warned of a 2022-style bull trap, while Ted Pillows argued improving US liquidity could support a crypto rally. Lookonchain noted notable whale movements.

In its latest quarterly assessment released on Monday, the IMF increased its 2026 global growth forecast to 3.3% from 3.1%, while cautioning that higher tariffs and geopolitical frictions could hinder that expansion. The fund highlighted heavy investment in artificial intelligence and elevated equity valuations as key vulnerabilities, warning that even a moderate stock market decline could drag growth down to 2.9%. It also upgraded projections for the United States, China and India, and stressed that central banks should safeguard their independence and cut interest rates only when inflation expectations remain firmly anchored.

NASA conducted a blockchain experiment with an Alta-X drone at its Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley to protect aircraft-to-ground communications from cyberattacks. The system distributed flight data across multiple platforms so that each interaction was logged and verified, aiming to keep information tamper-resistant while the drone flew under normal conditions. Researchers believe this decentralized approach could later support safer autonomous aircraft, delivery drones, and urban air mobility operations.

On January 15, the China Securities Regulatory Commission outlined steps to curb speculation and, last week, lifted margin funding requirements on all mainland exchanges to 100% from 80%, with the change effective on Monday. The adjustment covers only new contracts and follows early‑2026 gains led by AI and space themes, with mainland tech shares trading about 40% above Nasdaq 100 peers.

Software stocks have dropped 15% since the start of January 2026, marking their weakest year-opening performance since 2022. A new AI product from Anthropic unveiled on January 12 triggered renewed concern over disruption, hitting names like Intuit, Adobe, Salesforce and widening the gap with surging chipmakers that are forecast to deliver far stronger profit growth.

French President Emmanuel Macron intends to ask the European Union to trigger its anti-coercion instrument after US President Donald Trump announced a 10% tariff on products from eight European nations starting February 1. Trump has also warned that tariffs could rise to 25% in June unless a deal is reached for the purchase of Greenland, putting the recently finalized but not fully approved EU-US trade agreement in jeopardy. EU ambassadors and European political leaders are now weighing potential responses, including possible countermeasures against the United States.