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- Bitcoin Slips as Geopolitical Stress Sparks a Global Risk Off Move
Bitcoin Slips as Geopolitical Stress Sparks a Global Risk Off Move
Plus: 🧠 Ethereum and Optimism prepare for a post quantum future.
Juan Aranovich
January 26, 2026
Hi! In today’s edition:
📉 Bitcoin stumbles as global tensions trigger a risk off rotation
🧠 Ethereum and Optimism begin preparing for a post quantum world
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Bitcoin Stumbles as Global Tensions Push Investors Toward Safe Havens
Bitcoin opened the week under pressure as rising geopolitical stress pushed investors away from risk and toward assets seen as safer.
Late Sunday, bitcoin slid as much as 3.5% to just above $86,000, its lowest level of the year, before stabilizing near $87,700 in early Asian trading. ETH fell even harder, dropping nearly 6% at one point before bouncing slightly, but it remains near its weakest levels since mid-December.
The modest rebound so far has looked fragile, with traders describing it as a pause rather than a real recovery.
“The risk-off move appears to have been catalyzed by a confluence of macro developments,” wrote QCP, a digital asset trading firm.
These developments include President Trump’s threat of steep tariffs on Canada, mounting concerns over tensions in the Middle East, fears of a U.S. government shutdown, and unease around Japan potentially stepping into currency markets. Together, those signals have triggered a classic move into safety.
That rotation is clear elsewhere. Gold surged past $5,100 an ounce for the first time, while silver also hit record highs. Crypto has not shared in that rally. Instead, it has traded like a risk asset, vulnerable when uncertainty spikes.
Pressure has also come from flows. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw $1.7 billion in outflows last week, nearly erasing recent inflows and adding to selling pressure.
For now, markets remain on edge. “With multiple macro risks unresolved, crypto prices are likely to chop around in the near term, pending greater clarity,” QCP concluded.
We’ll unpack what’s really driving this move, why crypto is still trading like risk, and what to watch next on today’s Bits + Bips show at 4:30 pm ET, livestreamed.
Charles Edwards of Capriole joins the crew to break down the macro crosscurrents, positioning, and whether this drawdown is setting up the next opportunity.
Ethereum and Optimism Lay the Groundwork for a Post-Quantum Future
The Ethereum Foundation is taking concrete steps to protect the network against a risk most users never think about: quantum computing.
This week, the foundation announced a dedicated post-quantum security team, calling it a top strategic priority. The concern is not immediate. Large-scale quantum computers do not exist yet.
But if they arrive before blockchains are ready, today’s cryptography could be broken, putting wallets and transactions at risk. The hard part is not flipping a switch. It is coordinating upgrades across millions of users without breaking anything.
To get ahead of that, Ethereum is moving from research into execution. The foundation is backing the effort with $2 million in research prizes, funding work on new cryptographic tools and running live test networks. The focus is simple: make sure Ethereum can transition smoothly, with no loss of funds and no downtime, if stronger security is ever needed.
Senior researcher Justin Drake described the move as a top strategic priority, signaling a shift from quiet research to active building.
The push reflects a growing industry consensus that preparation matters more than timing. Once a threat becomes urgent, it is already too late to start planning.
Optimism took a similarly long-term view.
On Sunday, Optimism announced a 10-year roadmap to phase out today’s standard wallet signatures across its Superchain (which hosts many layer 2s, including Coinbase’s Base).
By 2036, traditional wallet keys will be replaced by smart accounts that can support post-quantum security, without forcing users to change addresses or move funds. The plan relies on gradual upgrades, clear timelines, and coordinated hardforks rather than rushed fixes.
OP also said its infrastructure, including sequencers, will move away from current signatures, and that it is working closely with Ethereum on shared standards.
The message from both ecosystems is the same: quantum security is not a crisis yet, but migration takes time, and the clock only starts when builders decide to act.
🎮 GameStop moved its entire 4,710-bitcoin stash worth about $420 million to Coinbase Prime, triggering market speculation that the retailer could be preparing to sell at a sizable loss, though the transfer could also reflect routine institutional custody management.
🔐 Hardware wallet maker Ledger is preparing a potential U.S. IPO that could value the company around $4 billion, betting that rising institutional demand for secure crypto custody will outweigh mixed performance from recent crypto stock listings.
🏛️ Fintech giant Revolut is abandoning plans to buy an existing U.S. bank and instead pursuing its own national banking license, pivoting to a slower but cleaner regulatory path after its valuation jumped to $75 billion.
🕵️♂️ A crypto “bragging” session backfired after blockchain investigator ZachXBT traced about $23 million publicly flashed online to a wallet linked to over $90 million in suspected illicit funds, including crypto tied to a major U.S. government seizure from the Bitfinex hack.
💳 A new study found stablecoins moved roughly $35 trillion on blockchains last year, but only about 1% reflected real payments like payroll or remittances, showing that most activity still comes from crypto trading rather than everyday economic use.
🏦 Swiss banking giant UBS plans to let a small group of wealthy clients trade bitcoin and ether, marking a cautious expansion into crypto services as client demand grows and traditional banks face pressure to keep pace with rivals embracing digital assets.
✈️ ETHZilla, an Ethereum-focused treasury firm, bought two leased jet engines for $12.2 million after selling over $114 million of its ether holdings, signaling a pivot toward turning real-world assets like aircraft and loans into blockchain-based financial products.
