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


Finance

Ripple looks to expand crypto and payment services in Brazil

The blockchain firm is adding custody, payments and brokerage tools for digital asset management and tokenization as it plans to apply for regulatory approval from the central bank.

Brad Garlinghouse at DC Fintech Week (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)

Markets

Citigroup cuts BTC and ETH targets as U.S. crypto legislation stalls

The Wall Street investment bank cited slower ETF flows, weak network activity and a narrowing window for U.S. regulatory catalysts.

(Photo by Kanchanara on Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)

Policy

Argentina joins growing list of countries blocking Polymarket access

The ruling directs internet providers to block access to the site, and Apple and Google to remove or restrict Polymarket's mobile apps.

Flag of Argentina (Angelica Reyes/Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)

Markets

Ether surges 10%, leading crypto rebound as ETF demand, Bitmine buying pick up

Fresh ETF inflows, digital asset treasury buying and a shift away from bitcoin to altcoins are helping lift the second-largest cryptocurrency.

Ethereum (ETH) price on Monday (CoinDesk)

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Markets

Institutions had ‘diamond hands’ during bitcoin's 50% plunge, Bitwise's Matt Hougan says

“The wildest thing about my $1 million prediction is that it's not wild at all,” said the digital asset fund manager's CIO.

Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan (CoinDesk Archives)

Markets

Bitcoin eyes $75,000, nearing 25% bounce from February bottom

Gains came for crypto and stocks as tensions around the Strait of Hormuz appeared to ease slightly, sending oil prices lower.

Bitcoin (BTC) price on Monday (CoinDesk)

Markets

Bitcoin outperforms gold and stocks in global turmoil as ETFs and Strategy accumulate

Wall Street broker Bernstein took note of an institutional ownership shift as behind bitcoin's resilience during this latest bout of global turmoil.

(Photo by Kanchanara on Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)

Markets

Michael Saylor's Strategy made another huge buy of bitcoin, adding $1.57 billion worth last week

The company's stack now stands at 761,068 bitcoin, acquired for $57.61 billion.

Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman of Strategy (MSTR)

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Markets

Bitwise’s Matt Hougan revisits $1 million bitcoin — analysts agree but debate his timeline

Hougan says bitcoin could reach that milestone if it captures a larger share of the global store-of-value market, though analysts say it would likely take years of institutional adoption and macro shifts.

Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan (Suzanne Cordiero/CoinDesk/Shutterstock)

Tech

AI agents are quietly rewriting prediction market trading

Valory co-founder David Minarsch says autonomous agents running on the Olas protocol are giving retail traders a 24/7, strategy-driven edge on platforms like Polymarket.

(Unsplash)