📌 TOPINDIATOURS Breaking crypto: Spot Bitcoin ETFs Log Fifth Straight Week of Outf

US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded a fifth consecutive week of net withdrawals, extending the longest negative streak since early 2025 as institutional demand softened alongside a broader pullback in digital assets.

Data from SoSoValue shows the 12 funds collectively lost about $316 million during the week ending Feb. 20.

Trading activity was compressed into four sessions due to the Presidents’ Day holiday, and the first three days all closed negative.

Bitcoin ETFs Post Heavy Midweek Outflows Despite Friday Rebound

Roughly $105 million exited on Tuesday, followed by $133 million on Wednesday and $166 million on Thursday.

A modest recovery on Friday, when $88 million flowed back into the products, was not enough to reverse the weekly trend. BlackRock’s IBIT led the rebound with about $64.5 million in inflows, while Fidelity’s FBTC added roughly $23.6 million.

The current run of outflows began the week of Jan. 20 and has removed around $3.8 billion from the Bitcoin ETF complex.

The last comparable stretch occurred nearly a year ago during a tariff-driven market sell-off that also weighed on risk assets.

While the duration of the streak matches that period, the magnitude has been smaller, with the heaviest withdrawals concentrated in late January when funds lost $1.33 billion and $1.49 billion in consecutive weeks.

More recent weekly losses have ranged between roughly $316 million and $360 million.

Despite the withdrawals, the ETF market remains substantial. Cumulative net inflows since launch in January 2024 still total about $54 billion, and aggregate net assets stand near $85.3 billion.

Bitcoin has traded around $68,600, down more than 20% year to date and below a key onchain level identified by analysts as separating expansion from consolidation phases.

Ether funds showed a similar pattern, losing about $123 million during the week and extending their own five-week streak of withdrawals.

By contrast, newer products tied to Solana attracted approximately $14.3 million in inflows, while XRP-based funds recorded a modest $1.8 million gain.

The divergence suggests capital is rotating within crypto investment products rather than leaving the sector altogether, with investors repositioning across assets as sentiment remains cautious rather than panicked.

Trump Media Files for Bitcoin, Ether and Cronos ETFs With Staking Rewards

Last week, Trump Media and Technology Group filed applications for two cryptocurrency ETFs that would track Bitcoin, Ether and the Cronos (CRO) token, expanding the company’s involvement in digital assets.

The proposed “Truth Social Bitcoin and Ether ETF” would primarily follow the performance of the two largest cryptocurrencies, while the “Truth Social Cronos Yield Maximizer ETF” would provide exposure to CRO.

The Cronos-focused fund would also offer staking rewards, with Crypto.com serving as custodian and providing liquidity and staking services.

Trump Media has also signaled interest in integrating blockchain beyond ETFs.

The company recently said it intends to distribute a new digital token to shareholders on the Cronos network and previously disclosed plans for a corporate crypto treasury involving CRO.

The post Spot Bitcoin ETFs Log Fifth Straight Week of Outflows as Institutional Demand Cools appeared first on Cryptonews.

🔗 Sumber: cryptonews.com

📌 TOPINDIATOURS Breaking crypto: Vitalik Buterin Supports Ethereum Protocol Upgrad

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has thrown his support behind the Fork-Choice Enforced Inclusion Lists (FOCIL) upgrade, calling it a critical reinforcement of the network’s cypherpunk principles.

The protocol change, slated to headline the Hegota hard fork in 2026, aims to neutralize transaction censorship by forcing validators to include all valid transactions in the blockchain.

Why the Ethereum FOCIL Upgrade Matters In The Push for Neutral Blockspace

Developers confirmed FOCIL (EIP-7805) for the upcoming Hegota upgrade during a February 19 All Core Devs meeting initiated by researcher Alex Stokes.

The move targets the centralization risks inherent in current block production, where sophisticated actors can selectively filter transactions to comply with local regulations. Previously, following OFAC sanctions on Tornado Cash, compliant validators censored up to 90% of blocks that contained related interactions.

While Consensys and other major infrastructure providers have historically navigated these legal gray areas via voluntary exclusion, the protocol itself remained vulnerable.

FOCIL changes the consensus rules so that any block ignoring valid inclusion lists is immediately orphaned by the network. This ensures that the base layer remains neutral regardless of the validator’s jurisdiction.

Vitalik Talks FOCIL Mechanism and Ethereum Validator Impact

In a recent post, Buterin stated that FOCIL “enables censorship-resistant rapid inclusion” by utilizing 17 random actors per slot to curate transaction lists.

There is also an important synergy between FOCIL and AA (EIP-8141, which is based on 7701):

8141 makes not just smart accounts (including multisig, quantum-resistant signatures, key changes, gas sponsorship) first-class citizens, it also can do the same for privacy protocols… https://t.co/wLCEuq66eI

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) February 19, 2026

Writing on X, he highlighted the synergy with EIP-8141, noting that the duo makes smart accounts, including key changes and gas sponsorship, “first-class citizens.”

The technical specification requires that if a proposed block ignores valid transactions from these lists, the chain automatically forks away from it. This mechanism specifically addresses criticisms regarding Vitalik’s broader views on sovereignty, proving a commitment to neutral, uncapturable infrastructure.

Industry observers note that this guarantees any public-mempool transaction settles within a bounded timeframe.

According to the proposal, smart wallet transactions, gas-sponsored transfers, and privacy protocol interactions will share the same inclusion guarantees as standard ETH transfers.

How Will This Hit Ethereum Markets?

The complexity of the Hegota upgrade has drawn mixed reactions from the developer community. While Layer 2 developer Tim Clancy called it essential for neutral blockspace, others warn of potential friction with U.S. regulations if validators are forced to process sanctioned funds.

The market response has been measured but stable, with Ether holding strong at suppressed levels as traders digest the long-term timeline.

Before Hegota, the network must successfully navigate the Glamsterdam hard fork, which focuses on Enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation (EPBS).

As investors analyze current crypto price predictions, the successful implementation of censorship resistance is increasingly viewed as a fundamental value driver.

The post Vitalik Buterin Supports Ethereum Protocol Upgrade for Censorship Resistance appeared first on Cryptonews.

🔗 Sumber: cryptonews.com