Ripple Raises $500 Million at $40 Billion Valuation

Ripple has secured a $500 million equity investment from affiliates of Citadel Securities, Fortress Investment Group, and Brevan Howard. The raise values the crypto fintech firm at $40 billion, underscoring renewed institutional confidence following XRP’s historic rally this year.

XRP, the token underpinning Ripple’s ecosystem, traded at $2.28 on Wednesday after peaking at $3.65 in July amid ETF speculation. CEO Brad Garlinghouse called the deal “a clear bet on crypto’s future,” adding that Ripple’s growth remains anchored in XRP’s global adoption.

Additional participants in the round included Pantera Capital, Galaxy Digital, and Marshall Wace, further expanding Ripple’s Wall Street alignment. The firm said the capital will deepen financial partnerships supporting its expanding suite of blockchain payment, liquidity, and treasury products.

Ripple recently completed a $1 billion acquisition of GTreasury and a $1.25 billion purchase of prime broker Hidden Road. The company’s expansion coincides with a friendlier US regulatory climate under President Donald Trump, whose administration has prioritized digital asset innovation.

Chainlink Partners With Dinari on Onchain S&P Index

Chainlink and Dinari announced plans to bring the S&P Digital Markets 50 Index onchain before year-end. The benchmark, developed with S&P Dow Jones Indices, tracks thirty-five public companies and fifteen major digital assets. Chainlink oracles will deliver authenticated pricing data, ensuring real-time accuracy and transparency across decentralized finance and traditional markets.

Dinari said it will tokenize the index through its dShares platform, providing exposure to over two hundred tokenized stocks. The collaboration follows Chainlink’s recent partnership with FTSE Russell to expand access to institutional-grade market data. Analysts expect the integration to accelerate tokenization adoption as financial indices move increasingly toward blockchain-based infrastructure.

Monad Sets Launch Date and Token Airdrop for Nov. 24

Monad confirmed its mainnet and MON token launch for November 24 at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. The project opened a claim portal in October allowing verified users to view allocations and connect eligible wallets. The airdrop rewards long-term contributors, DeFi traders, and NFT participants across major protocols integrated within Monad’s growing ecosystem.

The foundation said over two hundred thousand verifiable users qualify based on activity within lending, trading, and governance platforms. Partnerships include integrations with Uniswap, Magic Eden, and OpenSea, supported by wallets such as MetaMask, Backpack, and OKX. Founded in 2022, Monad aims to merge Ethereum compatibility with Solana-level throughput through its high-speed parallel execution.

Polymarket Traders Correctly Predict Mamdani’s NYC Victory

Zohran Mamdani secured New York City’s mayoral seat, winning slightly over half of all recorded votes. Prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi forecasted his victory early, with traders placing millions on the outcome. Mamdani’s campaign drew strong backing from progressive coalitions and grassroots networks that emphasized community-driven economic and social reform.

The 34-year-old assemblyman is expected to prioritize transparency, financial oversight, and consumer protection in his administration. His record includes co-sponsoring legislation restricting proof-of-work mining and advocating stronger investor safeguards in digital asset markets. Mamdani will assume office January 1, marking the city’s first Muslim mayor and expanding New York’s progressive political bloc.

Data of the Day

Perpetual futures exchanges collectively processed $1.2 trillion in trades during October, doubling totals from the previous month. Lighter, Aster, edgeX, Pacifica, and ApeX all recorded new highs, while Hyperliquid’s activity fell sixteen percent below its prior peak. Incentive programs and large-scale liquidations fueled record participation across decentralized derivatives platforms.

Analysts attribute the surge partly to reward schemes promising future airdrops and zero-fee trading environments. The October 10 liquidation cascade also forced widespread position closures, generating additional turnover across both long and short contracts. Despite the spike, researchers expect volumes to normalize yet remain elevated due to continued incentive-driven trading momentum.

More Breaking News

• Japan’s Metaplanet borrowed $100 million against its Bitcoin reserves to buy the dip and expand its income-generation program, despite shares plunging over 80%.
• Canada’s 2025 budget introduced national stablecoin regulation, granting the Bank of Canada oversight to ensure fiat-backed issuers maintain reserves and redemption safeguards.
• Solana Company approved a $100 million open-ended share buyback plan to reduce its NAV discount and bolster shareholder value amid steep price declines.
• Gemini is preparing to launch prediction market contracts pending CFTC approval, marking its expansion into the booming onchain betting and event-derivatives sector.
• Switzerland-based Future Holdings raised $34.5 million to build institutional Bitcoin custody and treasury services co-founded by Adam Back and Syz Capital executives.
• RedStone launched HyperStone, a specialized oracle for Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 framework, delivering high-speed price data for permissionless perpetual markets and tokenized assets.
• Hong Kong charged 16 people, including influencer Joseph Lam, in the $205 million JPEX fraud case, its largest-ever crypto prosecution with global ramifications.
• ZKsync co-founder Alex Gluchowski proposed revamping the ZK token to add revenue-based staking, buybacks, and protocol fees for long-term decentralized sustainability.

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