Peter Thiel and Founders Fund Exit Treasury Firm ETHZilla

Billionaire Peter Thiel and his Founders Fund entities finalized a total liquidation of their 7.5% equity stake in the Ethereum treasury firm ETHZilla. This sudden departure follows a catastrophic 97% decline in the company’s market valuation.

The formal SEC disclosure surfaced late Tuesday, 17 February 2026, triggering an immediate 7% slide in premarket trading for the Nasdaq listed stock. Investors reacted with visible trepidation as the tech mogul abandoned his high profile backing.

Leadership enacted this tactical retreat because the corporation pivoted from its primary Ethereum accumulation mandate toward the tokenization of real world assets. Management recently offloaded $74.5 million in digital tokens to settle outstanding senior secured convertible notes.

The firm executes this new direction by purchasing modular home loans and aircraft engines for onchain deployment via regulated alternative trading systems. Consequently, ETHZilla now prioritizes consistent cash flow over the volatile appreciation of its remaining reserves.

Zora Launches New Attention Markets On Solana

Decentralized protocol Zora introduced a new attention markets feature on the Solana blockchain to monetize internet trends. This specific product enables users to trade tokens tied to hashtags, memes, and cultural moments instead of macro data. Anyone can create a new market for 1 SOL, allowing traders to open long or short positions on social media virality.

The transition to Solana leverages faster block times and lower transaction costs to support instant price updates for fleeting online momentum. Initial activity remained limited as the primary attentionmarkets token briefly touched a market capitalization of $70,000 with modest volume. While the creator economy platform expands its reach, some community members criticized the pivot away from Base.

XRP Ledger Activates New Institutional Trading Upgrade

The XRP Ledger officially activated its XLS-81 amendment this Wednesday to provide a permissioned layer for regulated institutions. This specific upgrade allows banks and brokers to operate gated, members-only trading venues with built-in compliance protocols for verified participants. Designated administrators can now enforce strict identity checks while maintaining the ledger’s native speed and atomic settlement advantages.

This institutional focus follows the earlier activation of permissioned domains and credential systems designed for enterprise-grade decentralized finance. While retail users see little change, the ledger now supports a hybrid model where open and restricted markets share the same underlying liquidity. Ripple plans to utilize these new order books for its primary payment and treasury workflows throughout the year.

WLFI Token Surges 22% Ahead Of Major Forum

World Liberty Financial’s WLFI token jumped over 22% this Wednesday morning before a high-profile gathering at the Mar-a-Lago resort. The Trump-linked project is hosting a star-studded forum featuring major executives from Goldman Sachs, Franklin Templeton, and various federal regulators. Technical analysts observed that the sudden price spike was largely driven by a short squeeze rather than organic retail demand.

The event occurs as the project faces intense political scrutiny regarding a secret $500 million investment from a UAE-based entity. Lawmakers have initiated a formal investigation to determine if the deal influenced recent US approvals for advanced AI chip exports. Despite the controversy, speculators are rotating into World Liberty on expectations of announcements regarding the project’s future stablecoin plans.

Data of the Day

Bitcoin’s current market structure shows strikingly strong similarities to the late stages of the 2022 bear market according to K33. A new report published late Tuesday indicates that falling leverage and defensive derivatives positioning likely signal a local price bottom.

The research firm expects the asset to trade between $60,000 and $75,000 for a prolonged duration as the market stabilizes. Institutional interest remains cautious as spot trading volumes dropped 59% week over week while futures open interest reached multi-month lows.

Despite the extreme pessimism reflected in a Fear and Greed Index reading of 5, historical data suggests a slow recovery process. K33 emphasizes that while downside risks appear limited, investors must remain patient during this discouraging phase of rangebound consolidation.

More Breaking News

• The ECB will begin selecting payment service providers this quarter for its digital euro pilot, ahead of scheduled testing in late 2027.
• Bridge, a stablecoin firm owned by Stripe, received conditional OCC approval for a national trust bank charter to expand its financial offerings.
• Nevada sued Kalshi for offering unlicensed wagering after an appeals court denied the prediction market's bid to block state-level regulatory enforcement actions.
• Kraken acquired token management platform Magna to modernize its infrastructure for vesting and airdrops as the exchange prepares for a US IPO.
• Abu Dhabi wealth funds Mubadala and Al Warda boosted their combined Bitcoin ETF holdings to over $1 billion during the fourth quarter.
• Hyperliquid Foundation donated $29 million in HYPE tokens to establish a dedicated policy center for decentralized finance advocacy within the United States.
• PumpFun introduced a cashback feature allowing creators to redirect fees toward rewarding traders instead of keeping all deployment profits.
• Canary Capital and Grayscale launched the first spot SUI ETFs, providing investors with regulated exposure to the token and its staking rewards.

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