Stephen Alpher

Stephen is CoinDesk's managing editor for Markets. He previously served as managing editor at Seeking Alpha. A native of suburban Washington, D.C., Stephen went to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, majoring in finance. He holds BTC above CoinDesk’s disclosure threshold of $1,000.

Stephen Alpher

Latest from Stephen Alpher


Policy

Ex-SafeMoon CEO gets 8-year prison sentence for defrauding investors

Braden John Karony had been convicted last year on several federal charges, and he's ordered to pay back $7.5 million in restitution.

The U.S. Department of Justice headquarters in Washington (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)

Policy

Sam Bankman-Fried files for new trial over FTX fraud charges

The incarcerated former leader of the failed crypto exchange wants a new chance to defend against fraud charges.

FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)

Markets

Concerns over Strategy selling bitcoin are 'unfounded,' Michael Saylor says

Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor affirmed the firm’s commitment to a long-term bitcoin strategy following major fourth quarter losses and a continued plunge in prices early this year.

Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor at the Digital Asset Summit in New York City on March 20, 2025. (Nikhilesh De)

Markets

Struggling Coinbase gets price target cut from JPMorgan ahead of Thursday earnings

Shares of COIN are down nearly 30% this year, with analysts warning that softer trading and crypto prices are likely to weigh on revenue.

Coinbase CEO, Brian Armstrong, at Consensus 2019 (CoinDesk)

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Finance

Tether invests in LayerZero Labs as it doubles down on cross-chain tech, agentic finance

LayerZero’s Omnichain infrastructure (OFT) enables liquid stablecoin use across networks and “agentic finance” use cases.

Stylized Tether logo

Markets

Bitcoin remains in tight range under $70,000 ahead of Wednesday's U.S. jobs report

Two Trump administration officials suggested markets should brace for weaker-than-expected January employment data.

Trading. (TyliJura/Pixabay)

Policy

Blockchain.com wins UK registration nearly four years after abandoning FCA process

The London-based company elected to withdraw its application for FCA licensing in March 2022 having not won approval ahead of an impending deadline.

Blockchain.com founder and CEO Peter Smith (Blockchain.com, modified by CoinDesk)

Markets

Bitcoin a tech trade for now, not digital gold, says Grayscale

The cryptocurrency's latest sell-off looks more like a retreat from growth, according to the crypto asset management firm.

A person looking at multiple trading screens. (sergeitokmakov/Pixabay/Modified by CoinDesk)

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Finance

Farcaster founders join stablecoin startup Tempo after Neynar acquires social protocol

Dan Romero and Varun Srinivasan have both exited crypto social media to focus on global payments via stablecoins.

Farcaster co-founder Dan Romero (CoinDesk TV)

Markets

Bitcoin shakes off early decline, returns to $70,000 as Bernstein reiterates $150,000 outlook

"What we are experiencing is the weakest bitcoin bear case in its history," wrote Bernstein's Gautam Chhugani.

Bull vs bear (Midjourney/Modified by CoinDesk)