XRP has continued to defend the $1.96–$2.0 support zone while trading above the $2 psychological demand area. On-chain and derivatives metrics, including funding rates, spot CVD and cost basis distribution, suggest buyers may be accumulating and a local bottom could be forming near current levels. A move below $1.96 could deepen bearish sentiment, while the $2.15 region remains a key resistance for bulls.

US spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted about $1.42 billion in inflows over the latest week, marking the strongest weekly increase since early October and briefly lifting Bitcoin prices. Midweek activity concentrated the surge, with one day drawing more than $840 million and another roughly $754 million, while BlackRock's IBIT reportedly contributed around $1.03 billion to the total. Analysts note that these bursts of institutional demand via regulated funds have recently produced short-lived price bounces rather than lasting trend changes.

Chinese EV manufacturers such as BYD and Geely are gaining limited access to Canada after Prime Minister Mark Carney removed the additional 100% tariff and introduced a yearly import ceiling of 49,000 vehicles. A 6.1% duty still applies in Canada, while Europe has moved from steep tariffs to pricing arrangements, even as China's exports hit 2.6 million EVs and BYD's European deliveries jumped sharply in 2025. Analysts say Canada's partial reopening, after imports were driven to nearly zero in 2024, could become an important first step for Chinese brands in the broader North American market.

On 18 January 2026, analysis attributed to the Atlantic Council indicated that the China-backed mBridge cross-border payment platform has processed more than $55 billion in cumulative transactions and over 4,000 international payments. The pilot system links central banks from China, Hong Kong, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, with the digital yuan accounting for nearly all of the activity.

Hong Kong will sign a memorandum of understanding with the Shanghai Gold Exchange at the Asian Financial Forum to develop a central gold clearing system. Paul Chan said a trial is planned within the year to cut costs, speed settlement and boost liquidity, alongside trade digitization projects connecting 2,300 firms and using AI and blockchain.

Roscosmos chief Dmitry Bakanov said the agency will begin serial production of 'Zorkiy' satellites in 2026, with more than 300 expected to form the low‑Earth‑orbit Rassvet constellation by 2027. The spacecraft are intended for digital mapping and connectivity in remote areas, and a later Roscosmos post clarified Zorky‑2M is an Earth observation platform rather than a Starlink analogue.

A Satoshi-era wallet tagged by Arkham as "5K BTC OG" began selling on Dec. 4, 2024, according to Lookonchain and Arkham. It has offloaded 2,500 BTC for about $265 million at an average exit price of $106,164, and later moved 500 BTC to Binance valued at $47.77 million. The address still holds 2,500 BTC worth $237.5 million.

In a Sunday post on X, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin urged adding a "garbage collection" function to cut protocol bloat stemming from perpetual backward compatibility. He warned that excessive code and complex cryptography weaken trustlessness and self-sovereignty. His proposal targets fewer lines of code, reduced reliance on advanced primitives, and more invariants.