Top stories: Spot Bitcoin ETFs lose $635.5M in one day; Brent settles 4% higher at $113.17; HSBC launches HKD stablecoin RedCoin for retail.
- Fear & Greed Index
- 50/100
alternative.me, 2026-10-23
Neutral, 68 yesterday
1Macro & Global Markets
US 10-year Treasury yield drops to 4.96% on October 22 from 5.13%
The 17 basis point fall was matched at the short end, where the 2-year yield slid to 4.65% from 4.81%. The 30-year yield eased to 5.29% from 5.42%. The 10-year had closed at 5.15% on October 19, its highest level of the month, before easing to 5.12% on October 20. The Federal Reserve announces its next rate decision on October 28.
Source: US Treasury
Japan's core inflation hits 2.1% in September, first reading above BOJ target since December
The reading, released Friday, rose from 1.7% in August and matched the consensus forecast. The core-core gauge, which strips out food and energy and is the Bank of Japan's preferred measure, climbed to 2.4% against a 2.3% forecast. Headline inflation also reached 2.1%, up from 1.9%. Analysts tied the rise to a weak yen lifting import costs and to higher energy prices. The BOJ raised its policy rate to 1.25% in September, a three-decade high, and the data adds pressure for another hike this year.
Source: CNBC
2Geopolitics & Energy
Brent settles 4% higher at $113.17 on Thursday, WTI climbs 2.4% to $99.47
It was Brent's biggest one-day gain in roughly two weeks, and the December contract is now up more than 80% this year. Houthi attacks on Saudi targets, including Aramco's Shaybah field, the airport in Dammam and the port of Yanbu, revived supply fears. Iran has also stepped up attacks on shipping around Hormuz as the US-Iran war nears its ninth month. Diesel prices rose too, with Gulf product flows constrained and Ukraine striking Russian refineries. Crude exports through Hormuz have recovered to near pre-war levels, which partly offset the worries.
Source: Rigzone (Bloomberg)
Drone strike on Saudi Aramco's Shaybah field kills two, operations continue
The same wave of Houthi attacks hit King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, causing casualties, while the rebels claimed strikes on the Red Sea port of Yanbu. Aramco's output at Shaybah was not disrupted. The attacks helped push Brent up 4% on the day. They come as the US-Iran conflict nears its ninth month and Iran steps up attacks on shipping near Hormuz.
Source: Rigzone (Bloomberg)
Market & Sentiment
Bitcoin falls 3.4% to $81,387 as Nasdaq posts its worst session since June
The drop, measured over 24 hours to Thursday night US time, came as the broader crypto market lost about 3%. Ether fell 3.5% to $2,388, XRP 3.8% and Zcash 7.7%. On Wall Street the S&P 500 lost 1.21%, its worst day since July, with Meta down 6.98%, AMD down 8.1% and Nvidia down 4.4% on AI spending worries. The selling spread to Asia on Friday, where Korea's Kospi fell 2.3% and the Nikkei 1.6%. Analysts described crypto as trading like a high-beta tech position.
Source: The Block
Crypto liquidations reach $440.9M in 24 hours, with $397M from long positions
The figures come from CoinGlass and cover the 24 hours to Thursday night US time. Longs made up about 90% of the total as Bitcoin slid below $82,000 and Ether lost 3.5%. The broader crypto market fell about 3% over the same period, tracking a 2.6% drop in the Nasdaq.
Source: The Block
Investment Products
Spot Bitcoin ETFs lose $635.5M on October 22, IBIT sheds $254M and FBTC $217.5M
The outflow, per SoSoValue data, ended a three-day run in which the funds took in more than $1 billion. On October 21 they had added about $528M, including $235M into IBIT and $212.7M into FBTC. Cumulative net inflows since the January 2024 launch stand at roughly $57B to $58B. Bitcoin traded between $82,000 and $85,000 during the period before falling below $82,000 on Thursday.
Source: Crypto Briefing
JPMorgan brings tokenized money market funds MONY and JLTXX to Solana, $1M minimum
• J.P. Morgan Asset Management opened both funds to qualified US investors on Solana, with subscriptions and redemptions through its Morgan Money platform.
• MONY holds US Treasuries and Treasury-backed repos, charges 16 basis points and first launched on Ethereum in December 2025.
• JLTXX is a registered government money market fund built for stablecoin reserve management, with 0.16% expenses after waivers.
• Only approved wallet addresses can buy, redeem or transfer JLTXX tokens.
• BlackRock's BUIDL and Franklin Templeton's BENJI added Solana support in early 2025.
Source: crypto.news
Stablecoins & Payments
HSBC launches HKD stablecoin RedCoin in PayMe, usable at over 100,000 merchants
The token, ticker RCHKD, went live Friday and PayMe users can activate a stablecoin wallet over the coming days. It supports peer-to-peer transfers as well as merchant payments. HSBC received one of the HKMA's first stablecoin licenses in April 2026, alongside Anchorpoint Financial, under the Stablecoins Ordinance that took effect in August 2025. The bank plans more products and an expansion into wholesale corporate and institutional use cases.
Source: The Block
SoFi launches SOFIE, an FDIC-insured tokenized deposit paying 4.40% APY
SoFi calls the product, branded SoFi Earn, the first national bank-issued tokenized deposit for consumers. Each token represents $1 on deposit at SoFi Bank and is FDIC-insured up to applicable limits, unlike typical stablecoins. Members can convert it one-to-one into SoFiUSD, the bank's stablecoin, to buy crypto in the app or move dollars on blockchain rails. SoFi is targeting idle stablecoin balances, which it puts at about $64B citing Federal Reserve research.
Source: Decrypt