Plus: DOGE dreams vs. Musk's reality check

GM. Grab your crypto blender - we're tossing in today's juiciest updates for a smooth, market-ready mix.

🏦 Standard Chartered got a digital asset license in Luxembourg.

🍋 News drops: James Howells took a legal L in his battle over $770M BTC he accidentally threw away, Elon Musk's plans for DOGE got a reality check + more

🍍 Market flavor today

Find out more about the Fear & Greed Index here.

Name		Price	24H	7D
Crypto Market Cap: $3.31T -0.5% (24H)
	Bitcoin BTC	$93,887.41	-0.48%	-4.60%
	Ethereum ETH	$3,253.81	-1.48%	-9.21%
	XRP XRP	$2.29	-1.36%	-7.58%
	BNB BNB	$692.71	-0.50%	-2.99%
	Solana SOL	$185.72	-3.12%	-15.32%

Prices as of 12:00 EST. Click here to see live data.

The crypto market feels like that one friend who always has "a crazy business idea" - they're unpredictable, even scary, but everytime you hang out it's hella exciting (and you still wanna start that podcast with them) 💡

The Fear & Greed Index just moved into the Neutral zone (50) for the first time since October as Bitcoin dipped close to $91K yesterday.

And that's not all - US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a $578.8M outflow on Wednesday.

Source: BitDegree

This drop is tied to a bunch of stuff we already talked about yesterday: a stronger US dollar, anxiety over inflation, fading hopes for interest rate cuts, and chatter about the US government potentially selling off a huge stash of BTC.

CryptoQuant's Mac_D noticed that short-term holders are now selling at a loss - that's historically been a time when long-term investors stepped in to get cheaper coins. So Mac_D thinks this is just a correction in a longer upswing.

Source: @nicrypto

And, of course, Raoul Pal from Real Vision brought bananas into the conversation 🍌 He uses the term "Banana Zone" to describe a time when prices shoot up fast and things get busy.

Here's how Pal breaks it down:

Phase One: The initial breakout;
Phase Two: The "Banana Singularity" (aka altcoin season), where loads of coins go up;
Phase Three: The concentration phase, during which the leading cryptos hit crazy new highs.

Pal says that the market is currently in Phase One, so the "Banana Singularity" might be just around the corner.

Source: @888Mooncat

So yeah, whether the market's next "crazy idea" is pure genius or just another wild detour, one thing's for sure - it's definitely not gonna be boring, and we're definitely here for it 😛

🥝 Memecoin harvest

The mood of these memecoins today? All jokes, all gains, no ragrets.

	Name		24H Change
	StealthSDK STEALTH		▲ 22K%
	ai16zterminalfartARCzereLLMswarm GUDTEK		▲ 11K%
	AIWS AIWS		▲ 5K%
	Autonomous Virtual Beings AVB		▲ 164%

Data as of 07:50 AM EST.

Check out these memecoins and plenty more here.

😱 TradFi FOMO

One of the core principles of crypto is like, "Let's stop relying on these banks and TradFi, we gotta take the power back into our own hands, LFG!! 🗣🔈" (there's also stuff like Butthole Coin, but let's not get into that today).

But… at the same time… when that institutional money starts pouring in… let's just say the drinks might actually be on me 👀

The latest update in that department: Standard Chartered, a banking giant with over $870 billion in total assets, is getting even more comfy with crypto.

They got a digital asset license in Luxembourg, which is basically their VIP pass to start offering digital asset custody services in the EU.

At launch, they're starting with the OGs - Bitcoin and Ethereum - but they've promised more assets in 2025.

While they're only gonna offer custody services (no trading for now), the ripple effect of this might be huge. For starters:

TradFi validation: another proof that crypto is not just some internet Monopoly money;
More liquidity: when trusted entities like Standard Chartered enter the industry, people take notice. Translation: wider adoption, and thus more cash in the system;
Setting a trend: banks and asset managers are realizing they can't sit out the crypto wave. And especially with Trump's pro-crypto stance, we can expect even more institutions to hop on.