Crypto news

10 October 2026

1. 1

   Bitcoin dips to around $80,000 before partial rebound amid weekly sell-off

   Bitcoin slid from a peak near $87,000 to a low of $80,393 between October 5 and 8, KuCoin reported, then recovered to around $83,000 on Saturday, the first anniversary of the October 10 flash crash. Investing.com said rising oil prices, higher U.S. Treasury yields and security concerns weighed on sentiment, leaving Bitcoin 3% down on the week, though Yahoo Finance put the loss at 3.6%. Ledger is investigating alleged missing crypto linked to devices sold by reseller CryptoBilis, which it asked to suspend sales, though there is no confirmed evidence its own systems were compromised. AMBCrypto reported Axel Adler Jr.'s Bitcoin Stress Index has cooled to calm after peaking on October 7, though short-term caution is warranted.

   Key facts

   • Spot U.S. Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows of about $681.11 million from October 5 to October 9, per SoSoValue.
   • Investigators estimated losses of $86 million to $93.4 million, which Ledger has not confirmed.
   • Investing.com said markets expect Federal Reserve rates unchanged at the October 27-28 meeting, with a possible 25-basis-point December increase.
   • Yahoo Finance reported that 13 major coins fell more than Bitcoin, with Stellar down 13.5%.

   Commentary

   The calm in market stress is the weaker signal, since the pressures named were largely external to crypto and flows cannot settle them. Reading the bounce as a turn is premature, because the calm reflects a lull in selling rather than a return of demand. Watch whether those outside pressures ease before calling the rebound more than a pause.

   Sources: Yahoo Finance, KuCoin, AMBCrypto

2. 2

   Ethereum ETFs record ninth straight day of outflows, losing about $2 billion in assets

   US spot Ethereum ETFs recorded their ninth straight day of outflows on October 9, when investors pulled $56.1 million, all of it from BlackRock's fund, BeInCrypto reported. Total assets have fallen to $15.71 billion, per SoSoValue, from nearly $17.9 billion in late September. Pluang put the loss over October 5 to 9 at nearly $2 billion but said a 6.9% drop in Ether's price accounts for most of it. Benzinga suggested investors may be booking profits after Ether's rally from a June low of $1,516, and named rising US bond yields as the most likely reason for the weakness. Pluang attributed the outflows to waning investor confidence amid broader bearish sentiment.

   Key facts

   • ETF outflows since September 29 total about $697 million, erasing most of $850.8 million inflows from the prior seven sessions.
   • Net outflows for the week ending October 9 were $542.1 million, the largest weekly outflow since January, per Pluang.
   • BlackRock's iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) made up about 88% of outflows in the week ending October 9, per Pluang.
   • Derivatives traders hold $5 billion in Ether shorts against $1.53 billion in longs, per analyst Ted Pillows.
   • Ether trades at $2,496, below $2,500 and its 50-day moving average, per BeInCrypto and Pluang.

   Commentary

   Redemptions are the smaller part of this drawdown, so the streak reads more as a symptom of falling prices than a fresh vote against Ether. The sharper signal is positioning: crowded shorts can be forced to buy back and lift ETH even as ETF money leaves. The next test is whether ETH holds the support an analyst has flagged.

   Sources: Yahoo Finance, Pluang, Benzinga

3. 3

   US Treasury Secretary says Washington likely to seize $1 billion in Iran-linked crypto this week

   Cointelegraph reported on October 10 that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at a Newsmax policy summit that Washington is likely to seize about $1 billion in Iran-linked cryptocurrency this week. In an interview with Newsmax anchor Greta Van Susteren, he said US authorities have identified the assets and are isolating them as part of a strategy to cut Iran off economically. The move comes as Washington keeps imposing sanctions on financial networks that fund Iran, a pressure campaign that has continued since military clashes with Iran began in February.

   Key facts

   • Bessent did not name the exchange or custodian involved in the planned seizure.
   • Bessent did not say whether a stablecoin issuer would freeze the assets.
   • Bessent said in April the US had seized $500 million in related crypto assets.
   • Tether said in September it had frozen $550 million of USDT this year in support of Iran sanctions.
   • In August, Treasury's OFAC added crypto exchanges backing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps transfers to its sanctions list.

   Commentary

   The seizure is the predictable part, extending a sanctions campaign running for months. What is unsettled is whether it adds to earlier freezes or relabels assets already held, which decides whether crypto becomes a sustained enforcement channel or repeats past actions. Until the mechanism is spelled out, Iran's exposure cannot yet be judged.

   Sources: bloomingbit

4. 4

   A year after the $19 billion crypto crash, bitcoin and ether liquidity has recovered while altcoin liquidity keeps shrinking

   A year after the October 2025 selloff exposed the dangers of leverage, crypto's recovery remains incomplete. Spot trading has not recovered: weekly volume on centralized exchanges is still far below crash-week levels, though it has roughly doubled from an August low. Bitcoin remains more than 30% below its record high, Bloomberg reported. Analysts say the conditions behind the crash persist. Risk Dimensions' Mark Connors warned another crash remains possible and said the four-year cycle has changed, while Hyperion Decimus co-founder Chris Sullivan urged traders to avoid leverage and watch open interest and funding rates. CoinDesk Research's Joshua de Vos expects the gap between majors and altcoins to persist into next year.

   Key facts

   • More than $19 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated in one day on October 10, 2025.
   • Bitcoin fell from about $122,000 to below $105,000 on October 10, 2025, with much of the decline within minutes.
   • Bitcoin's order book held about $11.7 million within 1% of its price on October 7.
   • Ether's order book within 0.5% of price has more than doubled since October 10, 2025, to about $4.2 million.
   • Altcoin depth within 5% of price is down about a third since January 2025, to about $2 million.

   Commentary

   The recovery matters less than who is left exposed. If leveraged positions unwind again, altcoin holders would likely bear the sharpest moves, because thinner books let a single large trade move the price further.

   Sources: Bloomberg.com, CoinDesk, CryptoRank

5. 5

   Empire Market co-creator Raheim Hamilton sentenced in federal court in Chicago

   A federal court in Chicago sentenced Raheim Hamilton, co-creator of the dark-web marketplace Empire Market, to 40 years in prison and fined him $5 million. Empire Market facilitated more than four million transactions worth over $430 million, mostly from drug sales and other illegal activities. The case highlights ongoing U.S. efforts to crack down on dark-web marketplaces and their cryptocurrency transactions. Hamilton's co-runner, Thomas Pavey, is expected to be sentenced later this month after agreeing to forfeit significant assets in the case.

   Key facts

   • Hamilton must forfeit about 1,230 Bitcoin, worth roughly $100 million.
   • He must also forfeit 24.4 Ether and three properties in Virginia.
   • Empire Market operated from 2018 to 2020.

   Commentary

   The prison term is the predictable part; the telling element is that forfeiture of cryptocurrency and property runs alongside it, so the proceeds are pursued as hard as the sentence itself. Pavey's agreement to forfeit significant assets before his expected sentencing suggests the same logic applies to the marketplace's other operators.

   Sources: Pluang

6. 6

   Tom Lee cuts Ethereum year-end target to $5,000

   Tom Lee, chairman of BitMine Immersion Technologies and co-founder of Fundstrat, said at Token 2049 in Singapore on Friday that Ethereum should top $5,000 by year-end. That is half the $10,000 figure he had called conservative more than a week earlier. He tied the call to Bitcoin, saying Ethereum should trade near $7,500 if Bitcoin reaches $100,000. Stocktwits reported that Lee said this, but CryptoRank said social posts attributed the figure to him and his presentation did not establish it. Lee called Ethereum 'massively undervalued,' citing years of sideways trading, and argued this cycle differs because institutions, not retail buyers, are building real products on blockchains. He said investors 'aren't bullish enough.'

   Key facts

   • Tom Lee's cycle target fell to $25,000-$50,000 per token from an illustrative $62,000 set nine days earlier.
   • Ethereum traded above $2,400 on Saturday, down from near $2,670 when Lee made his 12-month forecast.
   • Bitcoin traded near $82,600, well below its October 2025 record above $126,000.
   • BitMine reported holding over 6 million ETH in its October 5 update, about 4.9% of circulating supply.
   • Bitcoin's market dominance is about 57.5%, while Ethereum's is near 10.5%.

   Commentary

   The cut is the predictable part; what moved is that Lee's near-term call now hinges on Bitcoin reaching his level. His case rests on institutional demand, yet the signals against him, rising Bitcoin dominance and bearish retail chatter, point the other way. As BitMine's chairman he has direct exposure to Ethereum's price, so the forecast also carries a stake.

   Sources: Yahoo Finance, Stocktwits, BigGo Finance, CryptoRank

7. 7

   Bitcoin ETF flows swing from September inflows to early October outflows

   US spot Bitcoin ETFs swung from heavy buying in September to outflows in early October 2026. TradingView reported a peak week of $2.4 billion in net inflows as Bitcoin recovered and traded between $82,000 and $87,000. Motley Fool put inflows at about $2.6 billion over the three weeks ending October 2, even though Bitcoin remained about 32% below its October 2025 peak. Ecoinometrics said buying had slowed as Bitcoin consolidated above $80,000, but ETF demand still supported the recovery. On who is buying, TradingView says hedge funds appear to have played only a minor role, while Motley Fool suggests hedge funds, via basis trades, were responsible for at least some inflows.

   Key facts

   • US spot Bitcoin ETFs took in about $3 billion net between September 17 and 25, 2026, per TradingView.
   • Year-to-date flows swung from a deficit of about $5.8 billion in mid-July to about $934 million positive by late September.
   • Q3 2026 Bitcoin ETF inflows reached $6.34 billion, the highest of any quarter this year.
   • AMBCrypto reported Farside Investors data showing $244 million left Bitcoin ETFs on October 8.
   • CoinShares analysis of regulatory filings found hedge funds cut Bitcoin ETF holdings 39% in Q1 2026.

   Commentary

   The rebound's staying power hinges on who was buying, and TradingView and Motley Fool disagree on that. Basis trades can unwind quickly once the spread closes, whereas allocators holding Bitcoin as a portfolio slice are stickier. Early October's outflows offer a first real test of which kind of buyer is driving the rebound.

   Sources: TradingView, Yahoo Finance, AMBCrypto

8. 8

   Ethereum Glamsterdam upgrade pushed to third quarter of 2026 as gas limit target set

   The Ethereum Foundation has confirmed that the Glamsterdam upgrade will now launch later than planned. It disclosed the delay in a Monday blog post alongside several technical milestones. Glamsterdam is designed to scale Ethereum's layer-1 chain by overhauling how blocks are created and verified. Devnets are already live, the Foundation said at an interop event in Svalbard, Norway.

   A finalized proposal, EIP-8037, raises the cost of state creation to prevent excessive state growth under higher block limits. On the leadership side, Barnabé Monnot and Tim Beiko are leaving the Foundation, and Alex Stokes is taking a sabbatical. Will Corcoran wrote on X that a new chapter is starting for the Protocol cluster.

   Key facts

   • Glamsterdam is now expected in the third quarter of 2026, previously targeted for June.
   • The Ethereum Foundation set a 200-million gas limit floor for the post-upgrade network.
   • Ethereum's current gas limit is approximately 60 million.
   • Enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation has been confirmed as stabilized, reducing reliance on external relays.
   • Will Corcoran, Kev Wedderburn and Fredrik named as new Protocol cluster leads.

   Commentary

   The slip matters less than what the Foundation is already building past it: scoping for Hegotà is well underway and the quantum-resistant Strawmap is advancing. That points to a timetable reset rather than a change of direction. The real test is whether the revised launch holds once the new Protocol leads take over the work.

   Sources: CoinMarketCap

9. 9

   French Finance Committee adopts crypto tax amendments, then rejects budget revenue section

   France’s National Assembly Finance Committee adopted two amendments from Nicolas Sansu of the GDR group, aimed at what the stablecoin amendment’s authors call “a hole in the legislation.” Swapping Bitcoin for a stablecoin triggers no tax in France today, and crypto held directly escapes the exit tax that applies to shares, they argue. They insist they are not creating a new burden but applying existing law to cases it missed. The committee then rejected the budget’s revenue section, so the government’s original text goes to the floor without the amendments, and backers must table them again. Attorney Burçak Ünsal has called taxing early token holders potentially “economically unjust.”

   Key facts

   • Swaps into MiCA-regulated stablecoins would be taxable sales from Jan. 1, 2027, measured against original purchase price.
   • Exit tax would cover tax households whose crypto, including custodial holdings, exceeds €800,000 from Jan. 1, 2027.
   • Floor debate on the revenue section opens Oct. 13, with a vote scheduled for Oct. 20.
   • Daniel Labaronne’s amendment would let crypto losses be carried forward 10 years against future gains.
   • In late October 2025 the Assembly adopted, 163-150, a 1% annual levy on wealth over €2 million covering digital assets.

   Commentary

   The exit tax, not the stablecoin change, is the measure most likely to draw fire, since it taxes gains holders have not sold. Requiring a statement of self-custody wallets suggests lawmakers see holdings outside exchanges as the real gap. Whether lawmakers accept stablecoins as ordinary investments will shape how much of the revenue section survives.

   Sources: Decrypt

10. 10

    Arthur Hayes says French debt crisis could push Bitcoin to $250,000

    BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes said at TOKEN2049 Singapore that a French debt crisis could force the Fed and US Treasury to print money, pushing Bitcoin higher. He labeled France the weak link, citing high government spending and few investors wanting its debt. In that scenario, he expects Bitcoin's low end near its previous record of about $126,000, set in October last year. Hayes also said the US would respond to its debt with a gold revaluation, setting gold at $50,000 to $60,000 an ounce to retire Treasury securities, a move he predicted would be significantly inflationary. He also warned AI data center debt could trigger a 2008-style crisis, with the waste possibly obvious in 2027 and 2028.

    Key facts

    • Hayes said Bitcoin could trade between $125,000 and $250,000 by year-end if the French crisis scenario develops.
    • France's 10-year government bond yield momentarily exceeded 5% on October 1 and 2, its highest since 2002.
    • France's premium over German bonds rose to about 152 basis points, the highest since 2011.
    • The French government intends to borrow a record €340 billion next year.
    • Bitcoin was trading near $82,751, down 0.5% over the past 24 hours.

    Commentary

    What moved is less the Bitcoin target than the premise: Hayes is betting bond stress forces money printing, and that the same pressure hits AI data center financing. The price case rests on a policy shift that has not happened, while the squeeze lands on indebted states like France, not on hyperscalers he says care less about debt costs.

    Sources: Yahoo Finance, Stocktwits