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


Markets

Strategy surges 6% on MSCI decision not to exclude DATs from indexes

Shares of the Michael Saylor-led firm had been under pressure not just from weak bitcoin prices, but also the chance that the indexing giant might exclude DATs from its indexes.

Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman of Strategy (MSTR)

Markets

Polkadot's DOT declines in U.S. afternoon selloff

The technical breakdown erased earlier gains as DOT plunged through $2.19 support on heavy volume.

Polkadot (DOT) Drops 1.63% to $2.16, Breaking $2.19 Support Amid Heavy Volume

Markets

Riot Platforms sold $200 million of bitcoin in 2025's last two months

VanEck’s head of digital assets said bitcoin sales and the AI trade are increasingly linked as miners fund infrastructure build-outs.

Riot Platforms’ acquisition of Block Mining makes sense, JPMorgan says. (Sandali Handagama)

Markets

Crypto prices retreat in return to downward U.S. trading day action

Bitcoin pulled back to just above the $92,000 area as gold surged back to $4,500 per ounce and silver rallied above $80.

Bitcoin, among other crypto assets, largely erased overnight gains during U.S. morning hours. (CoinDesk)

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Finance

Former CFTC Commissioner Brian Quintenz joins SUI Group board

Quintenz, who previously led policy at a16z crypto, joins the Nasdaq-listed firm as it advances its SUI-focused treasury strategy.

Brian Quintenz (Senate Agriculture Committee, screen capture)

Markets

This metric suggests bitcoin's late November plunge was the bottom and major upside lies ahead

Extreme readings in the ratio between short-term holder supply in profit and short-term holder supply in loss have aligned with the end of bear markets.

BTC: Short-Term Holder

Markets

Solana memecoin frenzy sends PumpSwap trading volume to record $1.2 billion

Despite high trading volumes, PumpSwap's fee generation remains modest, with $2.98 million in fees recorded on Monday.

U.S. dollar (Unsplash, modified by CoinDesk)

Markets

XRP's 9% surge leads crypto as bitcoin climbs to 6-week high near $95,000

Bakkt, Figure and Hut 8 were among numerous crypto-related stocks posting double-digit percentage gains.

Rocket

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Markets

BNB token ticks higher as technical upgrades frame tight price compression

Technically, BNB is compressed between rising support and a descending resistance zone near $910, indicating a balance rather than a clear direction.

BNB Rises 1.7% to $901.83 Amid Volume Surge but Hits Resistance at $902-$908

Markets

Bitcoin eyes $94,000 as crypto prices manage early U.S. gains for second straight session

Digital asset treasury companies — 2025's worst performers — were leading crypto-related stock gains.

Bull statue