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For years, blockchain had promise in the finance industry, but lacked the liquidity and connectivity to scale.

Yuval Rooz, CEO and co-founder of Canton Network, believes that era is now ending.

The problem: Legacy friction

Traditional banking still depends on millions of costly, slow and error-prone messages as institutions attempt to reconcile fragmented records across systems.

Repurchase agreement (repo) trades highlight the problem. Moving cash and collateral typically requires multiple intermediaries, manual checks and settlement delays that can stretch for days.

Public blockchains such as Ethereum offer speed, but their full transparency creates a different obstacle, exposing sensitive transaction data that banks cannot legally or competitively disclose.

At the heart of the issue is a structural trade off. Banks need shared networks to scale efficiency, yet legacy infrastructure and open ledgers force a choice between operating in isolation or revealing too much information. The result has been a patchwork of private systems that protect data sovereignty, but sacrifice interoperability and efficiency.

Explaining how Canton’s technology removes that trade off, Rooz said:

“Banks built walled gardens because there was no way to share infrastructure without giving up control or privacy. What we’re seeing now is a gradual shift away from isolated systems toward shared rails where institutions retain sovereignty over their data, while still achieving interoperability.

‘That doesn’t mean internal systems disappear overnight, but it does mean the center of gravity shifts toward networks where counterparties can transact in real time.”

Canton’s solution: Privacy-enabled synchronization

Canton has created a shared ledger where institutions maintain private blockchains, yet synchronize seamlessly.

“I think critics misunderstand what financial institutions actually need,” Rooz explained. “Banks don’t want a system where everything is hidden, and they don’t want one where everything is public. They need a way to work together on shared processes, while keeping sensitive details private. That’s what Canton was designed for.”

In practice, JPMorgan keeps its ledger sovereign, while plugging into LSEG for atomic delivery-versus-payment (DvP) settlements, all without revealing private data. Sub-transaction privacy ensures only trade participants see details; to others, it’s invisible. This network of networks lets banks achieve interoperability without sacrificing control.

“(This) gives institutions a shared record they can trust, with configurable privacy at the protocol level to divulge transactional information only with involved parties. And because it’s built to connect different applications, firms can link markets and workflows together without sacrificing confidentiality,’ said Rooz.

“This combination is something traditional systems cannot offer and is why you’re seeing institutions move from pilots into production onchain,’ the expert added.

Live momentum: JPM Coin and tokenized repos

JPM Coin’s native integration is a strong signal that the market is maturing.

JPMorgan’s blockchain rail, with over US$1 trillion in processed volume, has fueled settlements across Canton’s ecosystem. Paired with LSEG’s tokenized deposits, which power live repo activity, there are now synchronized markets where DvP happens in seconds, not days.

Rooz highlighted the deeper impact, commenting, “Everyone notices the speed, but the collateral mobility is the substance beyond the headline. In legacy markets, collateral spends most of its life idle because moving it safely across systems requires messaging, reconciliation and time. Atomic settlement collapses those steps into a single transaction.’

He added, ‘When repos settle in seconds, collateral stops being static and becomes reusable. That improves liquidity, balance sheet efficiency and risk management.”

2026 outlook

JPM Coin and LSEG repos demonstrate Canton’s shift from pilots to production.

“We measure success by utilization,” said Rooz, adding, “Having Canton be the network where real transactions are taking place, and regulated assets are moving.’

He envisions steady expansion powering this transformation. Indeed, similar efforts are already live elsewhere, such as BlackRock’s BUIDL fund, which has tokenized US$1.7 billion in treasuries for 24/7 yields, and DRW Cumberland’s weekend repos, which use tokenized collateral with instant DvP settlements.

“I’d like to see more asset classes brought on to Canton, and the corresponding transaction volume we’re already seeing will continue to grow in the year ahead,’ said Rooz.

He sees this convergence accelerating across markets.

“Our ‘North Star’ is to drive the convergence of TradFi and DeFi onchain to create a new AllFi reality,’ he said.

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Investing

Top 5 Canadian Mining Stocks This Week: Giant Mining Gains 70 Percent

Statistics Canada released January’s jobs report on Friday (February 6). The data showed that the Canadian workforce shrank by 25,000, or 0.1 percent.

Manufacturing experienced the largest decline, losing 28,000 workers, followed by education with 24,000, and the public sector, which decreased by 10,000. These declines were balanced by increases of 17,000 across information, culture, and recreation; 14,000 in business, building and support services; and 11,000 in agriculture.

Despite the declines, the unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 6.5 percent. While the rate was the lowest since September 2024, the agency notes that the decrease was driven by fewer people looking for work through the month, and coincided with a 0.4 percent drop in the labor force participation rate, which came in at 65 percent.

The release came just a day after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its job opening report on Thursday (February 5) that showed that labor demand had decreased to its lowest level since September 2020, as December’s figures fell by 386,000 openings.

The report differs from the employment situation summary, which is typically released on the first Friday of each month. The report has been delayed due to the extended US government shutdown in late 2025 and will be released next Wednesday, February 11.

Employment data is an important metric for assessing the overall health of the Canadian and US economies and plays a significant role in helping central banks set interest rate policy.

For more on what’s moving markets this week, check out our top market news round-up.

Markets and commodities react

Canadian equity markets were mixed this week.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) gained 1 percent over the week to close Friday at 32,470.98, while the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (INDEXTSI:JX) shed 5.38 percent to 1,015.34. The CSE Composite Index (CSE:CSECOMP) dropped 1.22 percent to 167.56.

The gold price gained 4.84 percent to close at US$4,951.69 per ounce on Friday at 4:00 p.m. EST. The silver price didn’t fare as well, closing the week down 1.78 percent at US$77.32 on Friday.

In base metals, the Comex copper price recorded a 0.85 percent rise this week to US$5.93.

On the other hand, the S&P Goldman Sachs Commodities Index (INDEXSP:SPGSCI) was down 3.7 percent to end Friday at 587.55.

Top Canadian mining stocks this week

How did mining stocks perform against this backdrop?

Take a look at this week’s five best-performing Canadian mining stocks below.

Stocks data for this article was retrieved at 4:00 p.m. EST on Friday using TradingView’s stock screener. Only companies trading on the TSX, TSXV and CSE with market caps greater than C$10 million are included. Mineral companies within the non-energy minerals, energy minerals, process industry and producer manufacturing sectors were considered.

1. Giant Mining (CSE:BFG)

Weekly gain: 69.57 percent
Market cap: C$27.51 million
Share price: C$0.39

Giant Mining is an exploration company working to advance its Majuba Hill District copper, silver and gold project north of Reno in Nevada, US.

The site consists of 403 federal lode mining claims and four private property parcels that cover an area of 3,919 hectares. Mining at the property took place between 1900 and 1950, resulting in the production of 2.8 million pounds of copper, 184,000 ounces of silver and 5,800 ounces of gold.

Extensive exploration work has been carried out at Majuba Hill, with 89,930 feet being drilled since 2007.

The most recent news from Giant came on January 30, when it reported that it planned to drill up to 10,000 feet in a multi-phase drill program at Majuba Hill, targeting three breccia zones.

Following the first phase of 5,000 feet of drilling, the program will include underground and surface sampling to support follow-up drill targeting for the remaining holes.

2. CGX Energy (TSXV:OYL)

Weekly gain: 64.71 percent
Market cap: C$66.02 million
Share price: C$0.28

CGX Energy is an oil and gas exploration company with 27.48 percent ownership of a portfolio of wells in the Corentyne block off the coast of Guyana. Frontera Energy (TSX:FEC) is the company’s joint venture partner in the Corentyne block and also holds 76.05 percent interest in CGX.

The Kawa-1 exploration well was drilled in 2021 and 2022 and encountered an active hydrocarbon system extending to a depth of 6,000 feet, mirroring trends in the Guyana-Suriname Basin. CGX’s Wei-1 well was drilled in late 2022 and is located on-trend between the Kawa-1 well and Exxon’s (NYSE:XOM) Pluma discovery.

CGX and Frontera are currently in a legal dispute with the government of Guyana, which believes the petroleum prospecting license for Corentyne expired in 2024, a stance the joint venture disagrees with. The most recent update on the matter mentioned plans to meet and discuss the situation, with potential dates in November or December of last year.

Shares in CGX posted gains this week, but the company has not released news since November 13, when it announced its third-quarter financial statements. However, Frontera announced on January 30 that it divested its producing Colombian assets while retaining its interests in Guyana, news that may signal that the Corentyne block permitting situation could still be resolved.

3. Saba Energy (TSXV:SABA)

Weekly gain: 61.11 percent
Market cap: C$12.07 million
Share price: C$0.29

Saba Energy is an oil and gas exploration company with operations in British Columbia, Canada, as well as the Philippines.

The company’s primary Canadian operations consist of the producing Boundary Lake and Laprise oil and gas fields, which have a net present value of C$43 million as of its September quarterly report.

The most recent news from Saba came on January 27, when it announced a heads-of-agreement with Nido Petroleum for a farm-in arrangement on a pair of offshore assets in the Philippines.

Saba will earn 60 percent of Service Contract 54 (SC54). SC54 covers an area of 550 square kilometers to depths of 50 to 110 meters and hosts three discovery wells and one production well, which previously produced 270,000 barrels at 19,000 barrels per day before it was closed due to water encroachment.

The company will also earn a 52.73 percent share in the DPPSC Cadlao, which covers an area of 914 square kilometers to depths of 93 meters. The site has 6.8 million barrels in reserves and produced 11.1 million barrels between 1982 and 1992.

If the transaction is completed, Saba will become the operator of both assets. The company plans to open a US$7.5 million convertible debenture private placement to achieve the requirement of raising US$7 million by mid-April.

4. Copper Giant Resources (TSXV:CGNT)

Weekly gain: 60.66 percent
Market cap: C$157.77 million
Share price: C$0.98

Copper Giant Resources is an exploration company advancing its Mocoa copper-molybdenum project in Southern Colombia. It changed its name from Libero Copper and Gold last year.

The property covers 1,324 square kilometers and hosts a copper porphyry system originally discovered in 1973.

A November 2025 mineral resource estimate significantly increased its resource. Mocoa now holds an inferred resource of 7.6 billion pounds of copper and 1 billion pounds of molybdenum, at 0.31 percent copper and 0.039 percent molybdenum, from 1.12 billion metric tons of ore. The upgrade made the project South America’s largest undeveloped molybdenum deposit.

The most recent news from Copper Giant came on January 29, when it reported results from the first drill hole at the La Estrella target. While assays returned low-grade mineralization, the company noted that the significance was geological, as it confirmed continuity of the porphyry system beyond the established deposit.

The release also reported results from a second hole at the southern edge of the Mocoa footprint, which the company said were stronger than previously interpreted at the southern margin of the deposits. Grades in the hole were 0.13 percent copper and 0.01 percent molybdenum over 804 meters starting from surface, which included an intersection of 0.44 percent copper and 0.05 percent molybdenum over 33 meters.

5. Benz Mining (TSXV:BZ)

Weekly gain: 50.46 percent
Market cap: C$749.9 million
Share price: C$3.25

Benz Mining is a gold exploration company that is focused on advancing projects in Québec, Canada, as well as Western Australia.

Its Eastmain project consists of an 8,000 hectare property located in Central Québec within the Upper Eastmain Greenstone belt. The most recent resource estimate from May 2023 reported an indicated resource of 384,000 ounces of gold from 1.3 metric tons of ore grading 9 g/t gold, and an inferred resource of 621,000 ounces of gold from 3.8 metric tons grading 5.1 g/t.

In 2025, Benz acquired the Glenburgh and Mount Egerton gold projects in Western Australia from Spartan Resources (ASX:SPR). It spent much of 2025 exploring Glenburgh, which covers an area of 786 square kilometers and features 50 kilometers of strike. The site hosts six priority extension targets and 5 kilometers of exploration trend with over 100 parts per billion gold.

A November 2024 resource estimate for Glenburgh showed an indicated and inferred resource of 510,000 ounces of gold from 16.3 million metric tons of ore with an average grade of 1 g/t gold.

On January 28, the company announced a shallow, high-grade discovery at the Glenburgh project’s Icon trend. Assays returned grades including 29 g/t gold over 13 meters starting at a depth of 60 meters. Additionally, results showed wide mineralization as well, including 200 meters grading 1 g/t gold starting at 76 meters.

The most recent news from Benz came the next day, when it announced it received firm commitments for a AU$75 million bought deal placement, which it said was led by strong demand from two global institutional fund. The company said the investment increases its pro forma cash position to AU$94 million, which will be allocated across its portfolio, particularly focused on the Glenburgh project.

FAQs for Canadian mining stocks

What is the difference between the TSX and TSXV?

The TSX, or Toronto Stock Exchange, is used by senior companies with larger market caps, and the TSXV, or TSX Venture Exchange, is used by smaller-cap companies. Companies listed on the TSXV can graduate to the senior exchange.

How many mining companies are listed on the TSX and TSXV?

As of December 2025, 898 mining companies and 71 oil and gas companies are listed on the TSXV, combining for more than 60 percent of the 1,531 total companies listed on the exchange.

As for the TSX, it is home to 175 mining companies and 51 oil and gas companies. The exchange has 2,089 companies listed on it in total.

Together, the TSX and TSXV host around 40 percent of the world’s public mining companies.

How much does it cost to list on the TSXV?

There are a variety of different fees that companies must pay to list on the TSXV, and according to the exchange, they can vary based on the transaction’s nature and complexity. The listing fee alone will most likely cost between C$10,000 to C$70,000. Accounting and auditing fees could rack up between C$25,000 and C$100,000, while legal fees are expected to be over C$75,000 and an underwriters’ commission may hit up to 12 percent.

The exchange lists a handful of other fees and expenses companies can expect, including but not limited to security commission and transfer agency fees, investor relations costs and director and officer liability insurance.

These are all just for the initial listing, of course. There are ongoing expenses once companies are trading, such as sustaining fees and additional listing fees, plus the costs associated with filing regular reports.

How do you trade on the TSXV?

Investors can trade on the TSXV the way they would trade stocks on any exchange. This means they can use a stock broker or an individual investment account to buy and sell shares of TSXV-listed companies during the exchange’s trading hours.

Article by Dean Belder; FAQs by Lauren Kelly.

Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Securities Disclosure: I, Lauren Kelly, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Investing

Editor’s Picks: Is Gold and Silver’s Price Correction Over?

It’s been a wild couple of weeks for gold and silver.

After surging to record highs at the end of January, prices for both precious metals saw significant corrections, creating turmoil for market participants.

This week brought some relief, with gold bouncing back from its low point and even trading above US$5,000 per ounce for a brief period of time.

Silver, which is known for outperforming gold on both the upside and the downside, was more volatile, but seems to have found support around the US$70 per ounce level.

Why did gold and silver drop, and more importantly, what’s next? As always, there are a variety of different factors at play, but I’ll give you a rundown of what I’ve been hearing.

Starting with the pullback, I spoke with Joe Cavatoni of the World Gold Council, who pointed to speculative players as a key reason for gold’s price decline. Here’s how he explained it:

‘At the end of this, you’re looking at a lot of people who were pushing the price higher — speculative in nature — pulling back and taking money off the table. That’s why I think we’re seeing a correction in the price. I don’t think that we have an issue with, fundamentally, what’s going on in the gold market.’

Gary Savage of the Smart Money Tracker newsletter made a similar comment, saying that there are times when sentiment gets so bullish that eventually there’s no one left to buy.

However, on the silver side he saw signs of market manipulation as well:

‘Some of it is just (that) we got way too bullish, ran out of buyers. We were due for some kind of correction anyway, and I think the banks took advantage of that and coordinated a huge overnight attack that dropped silver … I think it was almost 30 percent, or maybe it was 30 percent, almost overnight. That allowed them to get out of their shorts, because a lot of those contracts were going to stand for delivery, and they were going to have to buy physical silver at US$120 an ounce to to deliver.’

Adding more nuance to the silver story this week was the news that billionaire Chinese trader Bian Ximing has reportedly established the largest net short position on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, with his bet against the white metal clocking in at US$300 million.

Bloomberg analysis of exchange data shows he started ‘ramping up silver shorts’ in the last week of January, although he initially began shifting from a long silver stance this past November.

Aside from silver, Bian is known for his moves in gold and copper.

There’s also been commentary suggesting that the nomination of Kevin Warsh for the US Federal Reserve chair position has weighed on gold and silver prices.

President Donald Trump announced his choice on January 30, with market watchers quickly pointing to Warsh’s hawkish reputation and questioning whether he will fall in line with Trump’s calls for lower interest rates. Rates have been a sticking point between Trump and current Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

However, in the days since the news broke, the tone has shifted, with Trump himself saying that Warsh wouldn’t have gotten the job if he said he wanted to raise rates.

Taking a step back from what’s happening now, I want to emphasize that the majority of the experts I’ve been speaking with recently don’t believe gold and silver are topping.

In a January 25 interview, Adrian Day of Adrian Day Asset Management said exactly that, pointing to previous bull markets where both metals moved steeply down before continuing up. This quote is from before last week’s correction, but I think you’ll see why it’s still relevant:

‘A pullback is always in the cards. And people forget, everybody talks about … 1974 to 1975, when gold dropped almost 50 percent. But people forget, the same thing happened in 2006. Halfway through the bull market, you had a 30 percent correction in gold, which of course means a much bigger correction for gold stocks.

‘So a pullback at some point is always not just a possibility, but it’s almost a certainty. But if we rephrase the question to, ‘Is this a top?’ You know, absolutely not. In my view, we are absolutely nowhere near a top.’

With that said, a point that’s come up repeatedly in my interviews lately is personalization — while it’s valuable to listen to other people’s views, what’s really important is to form your own opinions and understand why you own the assets in your portfolio. If you can do that, you’ll be better equipped to weather any storms, and to buy and sell when it’s time.

Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Investing

Tech Weekly: Chip Stocks Pop to Close Volatile Trading Week

We also break down next week’s catalysts to watch to help you prepare for the week ahead.

This week’s tech sector performance

Tech stocks extended their selloff into their second week, with the Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) posting its steepest two‑day decline since last April.

Monday (February 2) saw an early rotation out of tech ahead of Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR) earnings report. NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) slipped on news that its proposed OpenAI‑backed investment hit a snag, dragging AI‑chip names like Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD), Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) and other semiconductor leaders.

Palantir’s earnings, which beat expectations and included an aggressive revenue growth guide, lifted shares in an early surge on Tuesday (February 3); however, Nvidia’s OpenAI‑investment‑snag news, plus general AI‑disruption worries and positioning, weighed on the broader tech stack, sparking a tech‑growth selloff that impacted NVIDIA, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and other software‑heavy names.

The Nasdaq fell deeper on Wednesday (February 4) as influential tech names such as AMD and other chip and software stocks reversed post‑earnings gains. AMD saw a sharp intraday plunge following its after‑hours earnings print on Tuesday. Its losses dragged the broader index lower.

Tech selloffs extended into Thursday (February 5), with the Nasdaq closing down 1.6 percent as major tech stocks saw profit‑taking and forward‑looking capex‑related concerns, later crystallized by Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) aggressive 2026 spending plans.

The Nasdaq made an impressive recovery on Friday (February 6) as a rally in chip stocks helped pare earlier week losses, despite ongoing volatility in the mega‑caps.

3 tech stocks moving markets this week

1.Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER)

After reporting Q4 2025 earnings results and strong AI-driven guidance on Monday, the stock rose sharply. The semiconductor‑test and robotics‑automation company makes equipment used to test chips, including AI‑related compute and memory and industrial robots.

2. Skyworks (NASDAQ:SWKS)

The analog and RF‑semiconductor company, which designs and manufactures components used in smartphones, 5G infrastructure, automotive and IoT devices, reported Q1 fiscal 2026 results on Tuesday, beating expectations and guiding up, which helped it outperform the broader tech selloff.

3. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Apple’s strong performance this week was driven by a wave of analyst upgrades and bullish notes that reinforced the positive narrative from last week’s record‑breaking Q1 print, especially around iPhone demand and China‑market strength.

Skyworks Solutions, Teradyne and Apple performance, February 2 to 6, 2025.

Chart via Google Finance.

Top tech news of the week

Canada led an AI delegation to the 2026 World Governments Summit (WGS) in Dubai this week, led by SCALE AI.

Alphabet Q4 numbers were driven by search revenue growth, which accelerated by nearly 17 percent, and Google Cloud revenue that jumped 48 percent YoY, helping ease fears that AI chatbots would eat into search. Despite the strong print, the stock dipped as the company said it plans to increase capital expenditures to between US$175 billion and US$185 billion, more than its 2025 cash generation.

Palantir’s earnings triggered a pop on Tuesday as it beat revenue expectations and laid out an aggressive 2026 growth guide. The company reported Q4 2025 revenue of US$1.41 billion, up 70 percentYoY, with US commercial revenue surging 137 percent and government revenue rising 66 percent, while guiding full‑year 2026 revenue to about US$7.2 billion

Amazon also posted a solid quarter, but said it will spend roughly US$200 billion this year on capital expenditures, a 56 percent jump from 2025, to fund AI‑related infrastructure, data centers and custom chips for AWS. Revenue rose approximately 14 percent to US$213.4 billion, driven by AWS reaccelerating to 24 percent growth and advertising increasing by 22 percent, despite free cash flow collapsing due to a capex surge.

Tech ETF performance

Tech exchange-traded funds (ETFs) track baskets of major tech stocks, meaning their performance helps investors gauge the overall performance of the niches they cover.

This week, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) advanced by 1.89 percent, while the Invesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXQ) advanced by 1.66 percent.

The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) also increased by 0.75 percent.

Tech news to watch next week

Next week is another earnings‑heavy, tech‑adjacent stretch, with a mix of big‑name reports and key macro data that will like keep markets sensitive to AI capex and earnings.

Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) and Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ:HOOD) will be among the most‑watched names tied to crypto and retail trading. Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) also reports midweek.

In addition to US wholesale inventories, Employment Cost Index and CPI reports, the FOMC minutes will be released on February 11, so rate policy and inflation will stay front‑of‑mind.

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Investing

Crypto Market Update: Bitcoin Price Ends Week Higher Following Earlier Losses

Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Friday (February 6) as of 9:00 p.m. UTC.

Get the latest insights on Bitcoin, Ether and altcoins, along with a round-up of key cryptocurrency market news.

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$70,178.66, up by 11.3 percent over 24 hours.

Bitcoin price performance, February 6, 2026.

Chart via TradingView.

Bitcoin has stopped behaving as an alternative safe-haven asset and has re-aligned with the risk-asset cycle. Its high correlation with traditional financial markets, including a broad sell-off in technology stocks, precious metals, and equities, suggests a scenario of systemic stress and scarce liquidity.

Downward pressure intensified after breaking key technical levels, causing nearly US$770 million in leveraged long positions to be liquidated in 24 hours, suggesting the market’s ‘cleansing phase’ is ongoing. The decline was exacerbated by a strong dollar and rising bond yields, which reduced the appeal of non-yielding assets like cryptocurrencies, prompting a rotation into defensive assets.

In the short term, price action will be limited and vulnerable to renewed selling pressure as long as restrictive financial conditions and a defensive tone prevail in global markets. Stabilization requires an improvement in global financial conditions and Bitcoin’s ability to rebuild solid technical support.

Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,052.03, up by 10 percent over the last 24 hours.

Altcoin price update

XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.46, up by 25.2 over 24 hours.

Solana (SOL) was trading at US$87.37, up by 10.4 percent over 24 hours.

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Politics

RNC rolls out ‘powerful’ new TikTok strategy to win over key demographic after Trump’s 2024 success

The Republican National Committee is upping its social media presence and following President Donald Trump’s lead by officially launching a TikTok account, marking a strategic shift for the party as it continues to look to connect with younger voters.

The RNC’s plan to make an impact on the digital front lines involves the official launch of @Republicans on TikTok, which is designed to engage a critical demographic, voters under 30 who may not follow traditional political news but rely heavily on social media for information.

The move comes at the same time polling from Pew Research shows that 63% of Americans aged 18-29 use TikTok. The platform has become an essential battleground for reaching the next generation of voters.

Trump has credited TikTok with being a key part of his election victory in 2024.

‘I wasn’t a fan of TikTok, and then I got to use it,’ Trump said last fall. ‘And I became a fan, and it helped me win the election in a landslide.’

The data shows that TikTok was a valuable tool for Trump and his administration. Reuters reported he amassed roughly 3 million followers in just 24 hours after joining the platform and quickly began drawing tens of millions of views.

In 2025, the White House joined TikTok and quickly gained traction, racking up 5 million followers and 80 million-plus likes as of early January. In addition to launching its own account, the RNC is encouraging Republican candidates across the country to follow its lead and join the platform to engage with voters and level the playing field in a space where Democrats have historically dominated.

‘President Trump proved how powerful TikTok can be and took decisive action to secure this platform for American users,’ RNC Chair Joe Gruters told Fox News Digital.

‘Our new account will deliver America First content directly to younger voters who get their news online, and we’re encouraging Republican candidates nationwide to do the same now that the platform is safe.’

Earlier this year, TikTok announced it reached a historic deal to launch a majority American-owned joint venture, a move guided by Trump and aimed at averting a potential U.S. ban on the popular social media app and hoping to alleviate concerns about China’s ability to influence Americans on the app.

‘I am so happy to have helped in saving TikTok! It will now be owned by a group of Great American Patriots and Investors, the Biggest in the World, and will be an important Voice,’ Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

Gains by Trump and Republicans in courting younger voters helped the GOP win back the White House and the Senate and hold their House majority in last year’s elections.

Republicans will be hoping to repeat that success in the upcoming midterms as they attempt to hold onto a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives and a three-seat majority in the Senate despite historical trends suggesting Democrats have the advantage.

‘I think the President of the United States is our secret weapon. … He’s laser focused,’ Gruters said in a national digital exclusive sit-down interview with Fox News last month.

Pointing to Trump’s unprecedented agenda during his first year back in the White House, Gruters argued, ‘I think it’s going to pay huge dividends across the board, whether you’re running for governor, Senate, House or whether you’re running for a local seat.’

Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Politics

Iran’s Khamenei stays away from talks as JD Vance says dynamic makes diplomacy ‘much more complicated’

As indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran started on Friday in Oman, remarks from Vice President JD Vance earlier in the week questioning the absence of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei from talks have raised a core dilemma for Washington — the person with ultimate authority in Tehran is not sitting at the negotiating table.

In the interview, Vance said, ‘It’s a very weird country to conduct diplomacy with, when you can’t even talk to the person who’s in charge of the country. That makes all of this much more complicated… It is bizarre that we can’t just talk to the actual leadership of the country. It really makes diplomacy very, very difficult,’ he said on Megyn Kelly’s podcast.

The Supreme Leader has no equals

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, has served as Iran’s supreme leader since 1989 and remains the country’s highest political and religious authority, with ultimate control over military, security and strategic decisions. That concentration of power means any diplomatic outcome must ultimately pass through him.

Sina Azodi, the director of the Middle East Studies Program at George Washington University, told Fox News Digital that Khamenei’s authority stems from direct control over Iran’s core power centers. ‘He is very powerful because he is the commander in chief of the armed forces and appoints the heads of the IRGC, the Artesh (conventional military), the judiciary and other important institutions.’

Azodi added that protocol and hierarchy also explain Khamenei’s absence from negotiations. ‘Iranians are very adamant about diplomatic protocols — that since other countries don’t have the equivalent rank, he does not participate in any negotiations because his ‘equal’ rank does not exist,’ Azodi said. ‘Even when foreign heads of state visit him, there is only the Iranian flag, and foreign flags are not allowed.’

Iranian sources familiar with internal discussions described Khamenei as operating from a legacy mindset at this stage of his life. ‘The supreme leader sees the confrontation with Washington as defining his historical role and believes Iran can retaliate against U.S. interests in the region. Khamenei is not focused on personal risk and views strategic confrontation as part of preserving his legacy,’ a Middle Eastern source speaking on the condition of anonymity told Fox News Digital.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that Khamenei remains the decisive figure in Iran’s system even as the regime faces pressure at home and abroad.

‘He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy’

‘He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy,’ Ben Taleblu said.

He added, ‘The Iranian strategy… is to raise the cost of war in the thinking of the adversary,’ he said, describing a system that signals willingness to talk while simultaneously preparing for confrontation.

He warned that ‘regimes that are afraid and lethal and weak can still be dangerous,’ and said Tehran may believe threatening U.S. assets could deter a broader war even if such escalation risks triggering a stronger American response.

‘Very difficult to say what Khamenei’s mindset is, but I think that he, along with other senior officials, think that the current conflict is not an isolated phenomenon but rather the continuation of the June 2025 conflict and the recent protests, which he called ‘an American coup,’’ Azodi told Fox News Digital.

‘I think that he thinks that the U.S. is definitely after a regime change and that needs to be resisted at all costs,’ he added.

Inside Iran, frustration with Khamenei has become increasingly visible, according to a journalist reporting from within the country.

‘What people want more than anything else is for Khamenei to die… I hear it every day, everywhere I go — why doesn’t he die?’ the journalist told Fox News Digital.

‘He is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them.’

‘You just open the Twitter of Iranians… the tweet is, why don’t you die? And everybody knows who we are talking about. So a nation is waiting for him to die.’

The journalist said many Iranians no longer believe political reform is possible and instead see generational change as the only turning point.

Iranian journalist in exile, Mehdi Ghadimi, told Fox News Digital that, ‘The Islamic government considers itself obligated to enforce Islamic law across the entire world. They harbor hatred toward Iranians and Jews, whom they regard as enemies of Islam,’ he explained, ‘In such a structure, the leader is seen as more than a political ruler; he is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them. If dialogue or compromise were to take place, his sacred image would collapse in the eyes of his supporters.’

He continued, ‘For this reason, groups labeled as ‘moderate,’ ‘reformist,’ or ‘pro-Western’ are created so that the West can negotiate with them,’ Ghadimi added. ‘No one within the structure of the Islamic Republic thinks about anything other than defeating the Western world and establishing Islamic dominance globally. The diplomats presented to Western politicians as moderates are tasked with using diplomacy to buy time for Khamenei.’

The negotiations come amid heightened regional tensions, U.S. military deployments and unresolved disputes over Iran’s nuclear program and missile capabilities.

Regional analysts say that for the U.S., the central challenge remains unchanged. Diplomats can negotiate, but the final decision rests with one man — a leader shaped by decades of confrontation with the United States, focused on regime survival and determined to preserve his legacy even as Iran enters a new round of talks.

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Politics

Republicans warn Democrats’ ICE reform push is cover to defund border enforcement

Senate Democrats are standing firm by their demands to rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), but Senate Republicans believe they have an ulterior motive: completely defund immigration operations across the country.

‘I’m really concerned that all the Democrats want to do is defund ICE,’ Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital, ‘They want open borders. They don’t want to get rid of criminals.’

Republicans argue the canary in the coal mine came last week when the Senate was advancing a Trump-backed funding deal.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., attempted to pass an amendment that would have stripped the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and ICE of $75 billion, which was summarily defeated on the floor.

‘Every single Senate Democrat voted yes,’ Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said. ‘That’s how radical Democrats have become. The Senate rightly rejected this amendment. The Sanders Amendment exposes Democrats’ open borders goals.’

That money came from President Donald Trump’s marquee ‘big, beautiful bill,’ which shoveled billions to DHS for immigration operations, ensuring the agency is flush with cash for the next three to four fiscal years, regardless of congressional Democrats’ desires to defund it.

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told Fox News Digital that the money from the ‘big, beautiful bill,’ wasn’t going anywhere. Britt is leading talks for Senate Republicans over the issue.

‘That’s not up for negotiation,’ Britt said.

‘Once again, just like they did in the last shutdown, they would be putting the American people in jeopardy and at a worse place as a result of trying to win on a political posturing or political issue,’ she continued. ‘So look, I plan on going into this with good-faith intentions, and I certainly hope that they will as well.’

As the week has gone on, some Senate Republicans believed that all their counterparts wanted to do was gut ICE.

When asked if he believed that Democrats’ end goal was to completely defund immigration enforcement operations, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., told Fox News Digital, ‘100%.’

‘There’s no way we’re going to put handcuffs on ICE to limit what they can do,’ Tuberville said.

Senate Democrats pushed back against the assertion that they wanted to gut the agency, arguing that because of the funding already established by the ‘big, beautiful bill,’ there was little they could actually do to defund immigration operations.

‘I want accountability,’ Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., told Fox News Digital. ‘I want to make sure that there’s oversight. But right now, what I’m seeing is lawlessness and some of the actions and behaviors that should be alarming to all of us, and you know, that’s the underlying factor that we want to address.’

‘It’s not about some game,’ he continued.

Congressional Democrats coalesced around a list of 10 demands, finally unveiling their proposal late Wednesday night. It included several policies Republicans have already spurned, like de-masking ICE agents and requiring judicial warrants.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., balked at the new proposal, and said that ‘there’s just a bunch of stuff in there that’s a nonstarter.’

‘They know that. Now maybe they had to put it in there to satisfy MoveOn.org, or some other special left-wing special interest groups,’ Thune said. ‘But there are a few things that actually there’s probably some room to move on there to negotiate on, but a lot of that stuff, obviously just wasn’t serious.’

Republicans are also mulling turning to another short-term funding patch, given that as of Thursday, their last day in session, they had just eight days left on the clock before the current continuing resolution (CR) for DHS ran out.

But Democrats aren’t keen on supporting another extension — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., warned that Thune and Republicans ‘shouldn’t count on our votes.’

He also pushed back against grumbling Republicans, arguing that negotiations wouldn’t move along unless Republicans revealed what they wanted in return.

‘They have to get their act together,’ he said. ‘We spent three days diligently, seriously coming up with a comprehensive, commonsense plan that police departments throughout the country use. Where are they?’

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Politics

Sen Tim Scott calls Trump post ‘most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House’

Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., called out President Donald Trump for a post on Truth Social on Friday, demanding that the president take it down.

The post in question, which Trump put on his Truth Social Thursday night, depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as monkeys or apes.

Scott, the only Black member of the Senate GOP, called on Trump to remove the post.

‘Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,’ Scott said. ‘The President should remove it.’

Scott found an unlikely ally in his request in Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who similarly called on Trump to take the post down.

‘Racist. Vile. Abhorrent. This is dangerous and degrades our country — where are Senate Republicans? The President must immediately delete the post and apologize to Barack and Michelle Obama, two great Americans who make Donald Trump look like a small, envious man,’ Schumer said on X.

Scott and Trump have shared a warm relationship since he ran and ultimately dropped out of the Republican presidential race last year.

He now chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Senate GOP’s campaign arm tasked with keeping Republicans’ thin majority in the upper chamber and expanding it during the 2026 midterm cycle.

Scott has rarely bucked Trump, positioning himself as a top ally to the president — he was on the short list of possible vice presidential picks before Trump ultimately tapped then Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio.

However, he has recently broken with the president on the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Scott, who also chairs the Senate Banking Committee, said during an interview with Fox Business earlier this week that he didn’t believe Powell had committed a crime during his testimony to the committee last year.

‘I found him to be inept at doing his job, but ineptness or being incompetent is not a criminal act,’ Scott said.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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Politics

Republicans blast Democrats’ Trump election meddling claims as hypocritical ‘conspiracy theory’

Senate Democrats are accusing President Donald Trump of trying to meddle in the upcoming election cycle, and Senate Republicans are calling them out.

The topic of election integrity was again thrust back into the forefront by House Republicans last week, who demanded that voter ID legislation be included in a deal struck by Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to fund the government.

While that ultimately never came to fruition, the talking point and legislative push have remained.

Trump has called on Republicans to nationalize elections throughout the week; the FBI conducted a raid on an election hub in Fulton County, Ga. and a cohort from the Senate GOP are pushing for the SAVE America Act to get a shot in the upper chamber.

Senate Democrats see the moves as laying the groundwork for election interference during the 2026 midterm election cycle — a point that they railed against Trump and Republicans for years.

‘I think as Trump gets more desperate, he’s looking at ways that he can rig the election anytime a Republican doesn’t win,’ Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital. ‘He thinks it’s unfair, and so he wants to tilt the rules to make sure the Democrats don’t win.’

‘So yeah, I think we ultimately have to be really vigilant about this,’ he continued. ‘The Constitution is crystal clear, the federal government can’t run state elections, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try.’

The accusation has made Senate Republicans balk, particularly after congressional Democrats raged against the GOP for questions of election integrity following the 2020 election and after Democrats pushed for their own, sweeping election reform packages under former President Joe Biden.

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., told Fox News Digital that Democrats’ charge was ‘ridiculous.’

‘Sounds like a conspiracy theory,’ Schmitt said.

‘I think President Trump cares very deeply about the integrity of our elections,’ he continued. ‘If you ask the American people, they support voter ID by overwhelming numbers. So look, they’ve got some outrage of the week every week.’

Trump’s comments to nationalize elections came first during an interview with former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino on his podcast, where the president said, ‘The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over, we should take over the voting in at least many — 15 places.’’

Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., shot back that a Democratic politician didn’t need to weigh in on the issue because Trump ‘said it with his own mouth.’

‘You can take the president at his own words and believe what he says,’ Slotkin told Fox News Digital. ‘And he’s had an obsession with this issue, certainly an obsession with Fulton County, since he lost the 2020 election, and he’s now weaponizing the federal government because of his obsession.’

But some Senate Republicans have pushed back on Trump’s desire to implement more federal control over elections.

They argue that it’s a request that runs headfirst into the Constitution, which dictates that elections are run at the state and local levels with little impact from the federal government. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has also thrown cold water on the notion.

‘Distributed, decentralized elections held at state-level, in my view, are a protection against hacking and other things, so it’s a lot harder to hack 50 systems than it is one,’ Thune said. ‘So, if that’s the issue, I’m a believer in keeping most of those administered — most issues, at least administered by the state. The issue of citizenship, when it comes to voting, would be an exception to that.’

And while there is a push to pass the SAVE America Act, which would include voter ID, proof of citizenship to register to vote, and other reforms, it’s unlikely to survive in the Senate.

That’s because of the 60-vote filibuster threshold and Senate Democrats’ near-unanimous disdain of the legislation, which Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has called ‘Jim Crow 2.0.’

Still, Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Rick Scott, R-Fla., the three most vocal supporters of the bill, met with Trump to discuss a path forward on Thursday.

‘It is Democrats bending over backwards to prevent voter ID and proof of citizenship for American elections,’ Lee told Fox News Digital in a statement. ‘It is Democrats demanding that nobody ask questions about election security and irregularities. The projection is jaw-dropping.’

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