Daily Crypto Briefing – January 11, 2026

Banking tensions over stablecoins intensify while Ethereum infrastructure continues evolving. Here's what happened in crypto over the past 24 hours.

Top Stories

Banking Industry Splits on Stablecoin Threat

The American Bankers Association warned the U.S. Senate that yield-bearing stablecoins pose a $6.6 trillion risk to traditional banking, claiming they could undermine banks' ability to grant loans. However, JPMorgan disagrees with this assessment, highlighting a growing divide within the financial sector over digital assets.

X Teases Crypto-Aware Smart Cashtags

X's head of product outlined plans for asset-aware Smart Cashtags just one day after facing criticism from the crypto community over content suppression concerns. The feature aims to provide accurate asset tracking and live pricing data directly within the platform.

Ethereum ETF Yield War Begins

Grayscale's Ethereum Staking ETF paid its first distribution of around $0.083 per share on January 6, marking the beginning of what analysts call a "hidden yield war" among Ethereum ETF providers. This development could force other issuers to offer similar staking rewards to remain competitive.

Regulation

• Senate Banking Committee advances sweeping market structure legislation aimed at rewriting digital asset rules
• Tennessee orders Kalshi, Polymarket, and Crypto.com to halt sports betting contracts and issue refunds by January 31
• Iran's Revolutionary Guard allegedly moved $1 billion through UK-registered crypto exchanges using primarily USDT on Tron network

Technology

Ethereum Development Focus

• Vitalik Buterin identifies three unsolved problems with decentralized stablecoins: price benchmarks, oracle security, and staking incentives
• Ethereum Foundation director says zero-knowledge proofs are central to Ethereum's midterm roadmap
• BitMine crosses 1 million staked ETH milestone, becoming the largest Ethereum treasury company with over 4 million ETH

Markets

Bitcoin Consolidation Continues

• Bitcoin trades near $90,800 with analysts watching for potential breakout patterns
• Bitcoin whales on Bitfinex trimming long positions after late-December peak
• ETF outflows hit $343 million as investors pull back from Bitcoin and Ether funds

Altcoin Movements

• Monero (XMR) hits $500 for first time since 2021 while Zcash struggles
• XRP maintains position above $2.10 following UK FCA approval for Ripple
• Ethereum trades near $3,110 with $5.5 billion in staking queues

DeFi & Security

Security Incidents

• Truebit hacker laundered $26 million in ETH through Tornado Cash mixer
• French tax employee sold government crypto database to violent home invaders, highlighting privacy risks

Infrastructure Developments

• Stablecoins facilitate $500K-$2.5M property deals across UK, France, and Malta
• WazirX launches recovery tokens as part of post-hack comeback strategy

Quick Hits

• Russians calling government hotlines asking if pensions can be paid in crypto
• CryptoQuant founder criticizes X for penalizing crypto content instead of addressing bot spam
• Brazil's B3 exchange to expand trading hours for crypto futures starting in April
• Bitcoin mining difficulty dips slightly in first 2026 adjustment
• Nasdaq and CME Group relaunch crypto index as regulated benchmark
• XRP ETFs hit record trading volume in past week
• UBS predicts silver might reach triple digits in 2026