Gate Research: Ripple Injects $150M Into LMAX | BitMine’s ETH Could Earn $400M a Year

Crypto Market Overview

• BTC (-0.01% | Current price: 95,251 USDT): Over the past 24 hours, after the previous rally pushed BTC up to around 97,900 USD, the price has entered a high-level pullback and consolidation structure, with the price center of gravity gradually shifting downward. It is currently fluctuating slightly around the 95,000–95,500 USD range. From the overall structure, this phase belongs to a technical pullback and digestion period after a rapid rise, and no obvious trend breakdown signals have appeared. From the moving average structure, the short-term MAs (MA5 and MA10) have already crossed below and are suppressing price action, while MA30 is still near 96,100 USD, forming clear resistance to rebounds, indicating that the short-term rhythm remains weak and in consolidation. In terms of volume, the rally phase saw明显 volume expansion, while volume has gradually contracted during the pullback, which is normal profit-taking at high levels rather than panic selling. On the downside, the key short-term support to watch is the 94,800–95,000 USD area; if this zone is lost, the price may further retrace toward the 94,000–94,300 USD area. On the upside, resistance is mainly concentrated in the 96,000–96,500 USD range. Only if the price can regain and hold this area with renewed volume will the short-term structure have a chance to turn strong again. Overall, BTC is still in the post-rally pullback and digestion phase. The medium-term trend has not deteriorated, but the short-term bias is weak and range-bound. In terms of rhythm, it is more suitable to wait for either a stable base after a pullback or a renewed volume-driven breakout before following.
• ETH (+0.10% | Current price: 3,291 USDT): Over the past 24 hours, ETH has generally remained in a high-level consolidation structure. After a previous rapid surge that reached a high near 3,403, it failed to break higher with increasing volume and then entered a repeated tug-of-war within the range. It is currently fluctuating narrowly around the 3,280–3,320 area. From the price structure, this phase belongs to a high-level digestion period after a rise. The overall center of gravity has slightly shifted downward, but no clear weakening signal has appeared. From the moving average structure, the short-term MAs (MA5 and MA10) have begun to flatten and slightly turn downward, forming some pressure on price, while MA30 is still around 3,320. The price is generally running near the medium-term moving average, indicating that the short term is in a consolidation and repair phase rather than a trend reversal. In terms of volume, the rally phase saw volume expansion, while volume has gradually contracted during the recent pullback and sideways movement, which is a typical post-strong-trend consolidation and rotation structure. On the downside, the key short-term support to watch is the 3,250–3,270 area. If this zone is effectively broken, the price may further retrace toward 3,200 or even 3,150. On the upside, resistance is mainly concentrated in the 3,330–3,360 area. Only by regaining and holding this zone with renewed volume will there be a chance to test the previous high above 3,400 again. Overall, ETH is still in a high-level consolidation phase within a strong trend. The short-term rhythm is range-bound, with the price mainly using time to trade for space. In terms of strategy, it is more suitable to wait for low-buy opportunities near the lower bound of the range after stabilization, or to follow the trend after a volume-backed breakout.
• Altcoins: Most major altcoins recorded small declines, and market sentiment is mainly “neutral” or “buy.” The Fear & Greed Index is 49 today, in the normal range, indicating that market sentiment has somewhat recovered from last month’s pullback.
• Macro: On January 15, the S&P 500 rose 0.26% to 6,944.47 points; the Dow Jones rose 0.60% to 49,442.44 points; and the Nasdaq rose 0.25% to 23,530.02 points. As of 00:20 (UTC+8) on January 16, spot gold is temporarily quoted at 4,598.10 USD per ounce, down 0.39% over the past 24 hours.

Trending Tokens

OWL – Owlt0 Finance (+57.75%, Circulating Market Cap: $31.92M)

According to Gate market data, the current price of the OWL token is 0.09623 USD, up 57.75% in the past 24 hours. Owlt0 Finance is a DeFi project focused on cross-chain and on-chain yield aggregation, aiming to provide users with more efficient capital utilization solutions and automated yield strategies. Recently, the project has continued to promote product feature optimization and ecosystem integration at the community level, and has gradually increased its exposure among small and medium-sized capital users.

According to the latest market information, OWL’s sharp rise in the past 24 hours is mainly related to a rapid increase in short-term capital attention. Against the backdrop of a broadly range-bound market, some funds have begun rotating into small- and mid-cap tokens in search of high elasticity opportunities, and OWL has become one of the more concentrated targets. At the same time, the token’s trading volume has expanded significantly, and short-term trading activity has risen sharply, driving an accelerated price surge. This round of gains is more a sentiment- and liquidity-driven move under capital gaming, and no clear single fundamental catalyst has been observed so far.

EGL1 – Eagles Landing (+47.11%, Circulating Market Cap: $31.57M)

According to Gate market data, the current price of the EGL1 token is 0.03191 USD, up 47.11% in the past 24 hours. Eagles Landing is a community-oriented crypto asset project driven mainly by narrative and community consensus. Recently, discussion heat on social platforms and trading communities has rebounded, attracting some short-term speculative capital.

According to the latest market dynamics, this round of EGL1’s rally is mainly driven by capital rotation and short-term sentiment. As major coins have shown relatively weak performance, some funds have shifted toward low-market-cap, high-volatility tokens for speculation, and EGL1 has become one of the beneficiaries. At the same time, the token saw a rapid volume expansion in a short period, triggering a technical breakout and follow-on buying, further amplifying the gains. This move is more a sentiment-driven rally pushed by short-term funds, and its sustainability still needs to be observed based on subsequent volume changes.

BTR – Bitlayer (+46.76%, Circulating Market Cap: $13.74M)

According to Gate market data, the current price of the BTR token is 0.05335 USD, up 46.76% in the past 24 hours. Bitlayer is a project focused on infrastructure and ecosystem expansion. Recently, its activity level on some trading platforms has increased, attracting funds that favor small- and mid-cap thematic plays.

From a market performance perspective, this round of BTR’s rise is also mainly driven by a short-term concentration of capital inflows and increased trading activity. In the absence of a clear main market narrative, funds are more inclined to rotate into small-cap, high-elasticity targets for speculation. Because BTR’s circulating supply is relatively small, its price elasticity was rapidly amplified after volume picked up. In addition, a technical breakout from the previous consolidation range also attracted some trend-following and short-term trading funds, forming a phase of accelerated upward movement.

Alpha Insights

XRP breaks below the USD 2.10 level as technical selling pressure dominates short-term price action

Despite stable institutional demand and continued inflows into spot XRP ETFs, against the backdrop of a generally weak crypto market, XRP fell about 4% over the past 24 hours, with the price pulling back from around 2.15 USD to the 2.07 USD area. Selling pressure was mainly concentrated near the key resistance level of 2.13 USD, where traders repeatedly chose to take profits on rallies, preventing the price from effectively holding above that area. On the fundamental side, Ripple recently obtained preliminary authorization for a Luxembourg e-money license and continues to advance its EU compliance strategy. At the same time, XRP balances on exchanges have fallen below 2 billion tokens, indicating that medium-term supply-side pressure is still easing.

However, in the short term, the market is almost entirely dominated by technical factors and position adjustments. After being rejected at 2.13 USD, the price formed a series of lower highs and lower lows, confirming that bears still have the upper hand in the short term. The 2.05–2.06 USD area currently forms near-term support. If this zone holds, XRP may continue to move sideways and test the 2.13–2.15 USD area again. If it breaks below 2.05 USD, the downside space may point toward the psychological 2.00 USD level. Overall, this looks more like a technical pullback after a rise rather than a trend reversal, and the short term is still likely to maintain a range-bound pattern.

BitMine says its Ethereum holdings could generate USD 400 million annually; MrBeast investment is expected to deliver “10x returns”

At the latest shareholder meeting, Tom Lee, Chairman of BitMine Immersion Technology, said that the company currently holds about USD 13 billion worth of Ethereum and is expected to generate more than USD 400 million in pre-tax income annually through staking and other means. He also pointed out that, thanks to more refined execution strategies, BitMine “may have saved about USD 400 million” in costs in its recent ETH purchases. However, since beginning large-scale accumulation of Ethereum in July 2025, the company has still recorded about USD 2.3 billion in unrealized losses on its books, reflecting the phased pressure of heavy crypto asset exposure amid sharp market volatility.

In addition to its crypto asset allocation, Lee also highly praised the company’s USD 200 million investment in the media company of top YouTube creator MrBeast, calling it a deal that “almost requires no hesitation” and is expected to deliver 10x returns. He believes that combining the Ethereum narrative with younger-generation audiences has important strategic significance. The cooperation may include sponsorship of MrBeast’s flagship shows and commercialization explorations around new products. In addition, BitMine also plans to launch a mobile app and pursue more aggressive布局 in tokenization, showing that it is trying to expand into more imaginative growth paths beyond traditional crypto mining and asset holding.

Ripple injects USD 150 million into LMAX to push RLUSD stablecoin into institutional trading systems

Ripple announced a multi-year strategic partnership with the LMAX Group, under which Ripple will provide USD 150 million in financing to support LMAX’s business expansion and accelerate the adoption of the RLUSD stablecoin in institutional markets. According to the agreement, RLUSD, whose market capitalization has exceeded USD 1.4 billion, will be integrated into LMAX’s global trading infrastructure as a core collateral and settlement asset. The two sides stated that this will help clients—including banks, brokers, and asset managers—use stablecoins more efficiently across products such as spot crypto, perpetual contracts, and CFDs, thereby improving margin efficiency and reducing cross-market funding friction.

This cooperation comes as LMAX disclosed that its institutional trading volume reached USD 8.2 trillion last year, and also highlights the trend of stablecoins evolving from “crypto-native tools” into “institution-grade financial infrastructure components.” Ripple hopes to position RLUSD as a highly compliant, institution-focused stablecoin and further expand its use cases through LMAX’s custody and trading systems. For institutional investors, RLUSD is expected to be used to integrate margin pools across different asset classes, simplify fund management processes, and liquidity, while also providing Ripple with a new foothold for penetrating the traditional financial system.


References

• Gate, https://www.gate.com/trade/BTC_USDT
• Farside Investors, https://farside.co.uk/btc/
• Gate, https://www.gate.com/trade/ETH_USDT
• Gate, https://www.gate.com/trade/GT_USDT
• Gate, https://www.gate.com/price
• Coindesk, https://www.coindesk.com/web3/2025/12/20/crypto-user-loses-usd50-million-in-address-poisoning-scam
• The Block, https://www.theblock.co/post/383442/hilbert-group-bolsters-institutional-crypto-push-with-25-million-enigma-nordic-deal
• The Block, https://www.theblock.co/post/383439/tether-backed-northern-data-sold-bitcoin-mining-arm-to-companies-run-by-tethers-own-executives-ft

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Disclaimer
Investing in cryptocurrency markets involves high risk. Users are advised to conduct their own research and fully understand the nature of the assets and products before making any investment decisions. Gate is not responsible for any losses or damages arising from such decisions.