MAROKO133 Breaking crypto: Bitcoin Is a “Digital Labubu,” Says Vanguard — Yet It Opens ETF

📌 MAROKO133 Breaking crypto: Bitcoin Is a “Digital Labubu,” Says Vanguard — Yet It

Vanguard Group now allows clients to trade spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, but the $12 trillion asset manager’s skepticism toward crypto remains firmly intact.

According to Bloomberg, John Ameriks, Vanguard’s global head of quantitative equity, compared Bitcoin to a viral plush toy collectible rather than a productive asset at Bloomberg’s ETFs in Depth conference on Thursday, saying it lacks the income, compounding, and cash flow that the firm seeks in long-term investments.

“It’s difficult for me to think about Bitcoin as anything more than a digital Labubu,” Ameriks said, referencing the popular stuffed toy craze.

The comment comes as Bitcoin trades around $90,000, down from $126,000 in October.

At the same time, Vanguard maintains its longstanding position against launching its own crypto-focused ETFs even as it opened platform access to third-party products earlier this month.

Platform Opens Despite Deep Investment Doubts

Vanguard’s decision to allow ETF trading followed months of tracking the performance of crypto products, since spot Bitcoin funds launched in January 2024.

The firm wanted to ensure these products “delivered what’s on the tin, the way that they’re described,” Ameriks explained in a separate conference interview.

However, he stressed that Vanguard won’t advise clients on whether to buy or sell digital-asset ETFs.

“We allow people to hold and buy these ETFs on our platform if they wish to do so, but they do so with discretion,” he said.

“We’re going to not give them advice as to whether buy or sell or which crypto tokens they ought to hold. That’s just not something we’re going to do at this point.“

The reversal reflects growing pressure on the world’s second-largest asset manager after rivals BlackRock and Fidelity captured billions in crypto ETF flows.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust became the fastest ETF ever to reach $70 billion in assets, generating hundreds of millions in annual fees while Vanguard clients complained about restricted access and some threatened to close accounts in response to the firm’s initial blockade.

Leadership Change Drives Strategic Shift

The firm’s leadership transition played a key role in the platform’s opening. Salim Ranji, who took over as CEO this year after running BlackRock’s giant ETF business and overseeing the launch of IBIT, has spoken publicly about blockchain’s potential despite Vanguard maintaining that it has “no plans to launch its own crypto products.“

Andrew Kadjeski, head of brokerage and investments at Vanguard, told Bloomberg that “cryptocurrency ETFs and mutual funds have been tested through periods of market volatility, performing as designed while maintaining liquidity.”

He added that “the administrative processes to service these types of funds have matured; and investor preferences continue to evolve.“

Ramji’s predecessor, Tim Buckley, had said a Bitcoin ETF did not belong in a typical retirement account, reinforcing the firm’s reputation as crypto-skeptical.

The platform now serves more than 50 million clients worldwide who previously couldn’t buy spot Bitcoin ETFs through their existing Vanguard accounts, potentially pulling mainstream money toward digital assets.

Speculative Asset View Persists Despite Market Evolution

Vanguard executives have consistently labeled cryptocurrencies speculative investments throughout Bitcoin’s volatile boom-and-bust cycles.

The firm now considers digital assets extremely or very risky, with 66% of US investors aware of crypto sharing this view, according to recent FINRA Foundation data, up from 58% in 2021.

Ameriks conceded that Bitcoin might offer non-speculative value in certain scenarios, including high-inflation environments or periods of political instability.

“If you can see reliable movement in the price in those circumstances, we can talk more sensibly about what the investment thesis might be and what role it could play in a portfolio,” he said. “But you just don’t have that yet—you’ve still got too short of a history.“

A Vanguard spokesperson added that the firm remains optimistic about blockchain’s utility and its ability to improve market structure.

Despite platform restrictions, Vanguard holds indirect Bitcoin exposure as the second-largest institutional shareholder in Strategy, while managing approximately $11 trillion and treating crypto funds similarly to other “non-core” assets, such as gold, on its U…

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🔗 Sumber: cryptonews.com

📌 MAROKO133 Hot crypto: 3 Made in USA Coins to Watch Before Christmas 2025 Hari In

The entire category featuring Made in USA coins has traded almost flat over the past week, even as broader crypto volatility picked up. That lack of movement stands out heading into Christmas, when thin liquidity often exposes which projects are quietly building pressure.

Several US-based tokens are now sitting at clear technical decision points, where small moves could shift the short-term trend. This piece lists three such Made in USA coins to watch before Christmas 2025, led by improving price structures, rising breakdown risks, and setups that could move sharply in either direction.

Cardano (ADA)

Cardano is one of the Made in USA coins that traders could be watching ahead of Christmas 2025. It is down around 3.5% over the past 24 hours, extending its monthly losses to over 27%.

The recent Midnight upgrade failed to shift sentiment, and downside pressure has returned as the broader market weakens.

On the daily chart, Cardano has broken down from a bearish continuation structure — the bearish pole-and-flag. The prior consolidation resolved lower, confirming sellers remain in control.

This keeps the broader downside projection active, which still points to a potential drop of nearly 39% from the earlier breakdown zone.

Want more token insights like this? Sign up for Editor Harsh Notariya’s Daily Crypto Newsletter here.

The first level that matters now is $0.370. This area has acted as strong support in recent weeks, but the price is already drifting toward it. A daily close below $0.370 would increase downside risk and bring $0.259 into focus, which aligns with the full bearish projection.

For the Cardano price to stabilize, selling pressure must ease near $0.370. To invalidate the bearish setup and regain momentum, Cardano needs to reclaim $0.489, followed by $0.517. Those levels mark key Fibonacci resistances and would signal buyers stepping back in.

Until then, Cardano remains vulnerable into Christmas, especially if weakness across the Made in USA category continues.

Stellar (XLM)

Stellar sits at an important decision point among Made in USA coins ahead of Christmas, as price action begins to test whether long-term adoption can still support value in the short term.

XLM is down around 2.5% over the past 24 hours, extending its monthly decline to nearly 18%. That caution becomes clearer when looking at adoption data.

While the number of RWA holders on Stellar has increased sharply over the past month, the total value of assets on the network has declined.

The price chart reinforces that message. Between December 3 and December 9, Stellar formed a hidden bearish divergence. Price made a lower high while the RSI made a higher high. RSI, or Relative Strength Index, tracks momentum. Since that divergence appeared, XLM has continued drifting lower, confirming that the broader downtrend remains intact.

The key level now is $0.231. This zone has acted as short-term support during recent pullbacks. Holding above it would suggest sellers are slowing, especially into the thin Christmas trading period. A daily close below $0.231 would expose $0.216 next, opening the door to further downside if market weakness persists.

For the bearish structure to break, Stellar needs to reclaim $0.262. That level has capped every rally attempt since mid-November.

A move above it would require roughly a 10% push and would signal that buyers are finally willing to defend higher prices again. Some hope of reclaiming that level remains as analysts on X highlight XLM flashing a buy signal.

Until then, Stellar remains a Made in USA coin where the trend still favors caution, making this support test especially important heading into Christmas.

Litecoin (LTC)

Litecoin is one of the few Made in USA coins showing relative stability heading into Christmas.

LTC is up around 1.5% on the week, making it an outlier among Made in USA coins. At the same time, it has remained down roughly 19% over the past month. This mixed performance lines up with recent fundamentals. Reports show institutions and funds have quietly accumulated around 3.7 million LTC, even as retail interest stayed muted.

That accumulation has not translated into immediate upside, but it helps explain why Litecoin has avoided deeper breakdowns compared to peers. For Made in USA projects, that kind of steady demand matters more than short-lived hype, especially into year-end.

On the price chart, Litecoin is forming an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern, which is typically bullish. This structure reflects the fading of selling pressure over time, followed by buyers slowly regaining control. The pattern attempted a breakout on December 9 but failed to hold, pushing the price back into consolidation rather than triggering a reversal.

The structure remains valid as long as Litecoin holds above $79.63. A drop below this level would weaken the setup and delay any upside attempt. A deeper move below $74.72 would invalidate the pattern entirely and shift the outlook back to bearish continuation.

For confirmation, Litecoin needs a clean daily close above the neckline near $8…

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🔗 Sumber: www.beincrypto.com