Canadian fintech Mogo announced on July 2 that its board had cleared up to $50 million for staged Bitcoin purchases as a long-term treasury reserve, prompting its shares to jump 140% at market opening on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

MOGO closed July 1 priced at 1.74 Canadian dollars, worth roughly $1.28. It opened on July 2, priced at 4.18 Canadian dollars, equivalent to $3.08. The move is the largest daily increase in Mogo’s shares since 2021.

As of press time, MOGO was trading at 3.60 Canadian dollars, up roughly 107% over the past 24 hours.

The firm told investors it will fund the allocation with surplus cash and future portfolio monetizations once the WonderFi–Robinhood sale closes in the second half of 2025.

Management expects to hold approximately $50 million in cash and investments at that point. It plans to convert the balance into Bitcoin in tranches, while maintaining sufficient working capital for its lending, wealth management, and payments arms.

President and co-founder Greg Feller said the move continues a crypto strategy that began with Canada’s first retail Bitcoin account in 2018 and the firm’s initial balance sheet purchase in 2020.

Bitcoin reserve and capital benchmark

Management will now test every deployment of corporate capital, such as mergers, product investments, and share buybacks, against an internal Bitcoin hurdle rate and will reject projects expected to yield returns that lag behind the asset’s long-term return. 

Feller called the rule “a new bar for capital discipline” and framed it as a hard-coded check on incremental spending.

CEO David Feller linked the policy to Mogo’s “Warren Buffett” behavioral framework, which stresses long-horizon decisions and mental focus. 

The company will embed Bitcoin across its businesses in a “Wealth” model, consisting of a 60/40 equity and Bitcoin portfolio on the $400 million assets under management platform, and a lending arm with collateralised BTC loans aimed at lower borrowing costs.

Furthermore, an effort to explore stablecoin rails will focus on $12 billion in annual cross-border volume.

Mogo holds minority stakes in Gemini and Hootsuite, which it can liquidate to accelerate purchases. It also retains indirect exposure through a 12% stake in WonderFi, the parent of Canada’s largest independent crypto exchange.

Hours after Ripple Labs said it would abandon its long-running appeal in its securities case with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, watched market technician CasiTrades (@CasiTrades) on X argued that XRP’s price structure has already completed its corrective phase and is “now wave 3 in motion.”

The pseudonymous trader described how Friday’s slide to $2.07 had “tagged” three separate Fibonacci confluence markers—the 0.618 retracement of the March-to-May rally, a 1:1 equality projection for wave C of the prior correction, and a 0.618 extension of sub-wave 5. “The market snapped upward from that exact price,” she observed, before adding: “$2.07 tagged. $2.25 loading. XRP breakout in progress!”

XRP Enters Wave 3

By midday in Europe on Monday XRP was changing hands at $2.19, roughly 4% above Friday’s close and 8.5% higher than a week ago.

That recovery has carried the token to the edge of the next “major test” cited by CasiTrades: the long-monitored $2.25 zone, which she notes coincides with the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement measured from XRP’s 2021 swing high. In classical Elliott Wave analysis, a decisive breach and subsequent retest of that level would validate the start of a powerful third wave, the phase in which momentum typically accelerates and sentiment flips decisively bullish.

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CasiTrades outlined two near-term paths: either a brief thrust to $2.30 followed by a healthy back-test of $2.25, or a more explosive extension toward $2.45–2.69 before any significant pull-back.

“From here, I’m watching two key scenarios short-term: 1) A move into $2.30, then a pullback to backtest $2.25 as support. This would be ideal and healthy. 2) Or, price pushes harder through to ~$2.45, closer toward $2.69 resistance. Has a small pullback, before touching $2.69 with resistance. In this plan, a backtest of $2.25 later would be expected,” Casi writes via X.

In either scenario, she argues, the structural message is the same: “Flipping that level opens the door for the next full breakout… once these local resistances are out of the way → fireworks.”

The technical argument lands at a moment when a key fundamental overhang appears to be fading. On June 27 Ripple chief executive Brad Garlinghouse announced that the company will withdraw the cross-appeal it filed last year contesting parts of Judge Analisa Torres’s split decision on XRP sales. “We’re closing this chapter once and for all,” Garlinghouse wrote on X, adding that the SEC “was also expected to drop its appeal.” The move came one day after Torres rejected a joint request from both parties to shrink Ripple’s civil penalty to $50 million and dissolve her permanent injunction.

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That backdrop helps explain why the Fibonacci “golden-ratio” bounce at $2.07 drew such an emphatic response. But for now, the market’s focal point is whether XRP can turn the $2.25 shelf from resistance into support. If it does, the next cluster of historical supply sits between $2.60 and $2.70—the area that capped rallies in December 2021 and March 2022. A break beyond that zone would leave little chart resistance before psychological milestones at $3.00 and the all-time closing high near $3.40 set in January 2018.

Even so, technicians caution that Elliott Wave targets remain probabilistic, not predictive certainties, and that any new macro-regulatory twist could reset the calculus. Friday’s ruling also left Ripple’s injunction intact, meaning the company must still navigate a compliance regime that did not exist when the lawsuit began in 2020. Whether those realities temper the exuberance around wave 3 remains to be seen.

In CasiTrades’ words, however, timing is everything: “This is exactly why we rely on TA. The charts help us spot setups before the news hits. News hits harder after price has positioned.” For a market that has waited more than four years to see its signature legal saga reach closure, traders appear ready to test that maxim on the road to $2.25—and beyond.

At press time, XRP traded at $2.19.

Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

Journalist

Tanzeel Akhtar

Journalist

Tanzeel Akhtar

About Author

Tanzeel Akhtar has been covering the cryptocurrency and blockchain sector since 2015. She has written for the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, CoinDesk, Bitcoin Magazine and Bitcoin.com.

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May 25, 2025

In a bold bet on Bitcoin’s DeFi future, Changpeng Zhao (CZ)–backed YZi Labs—formerly Binance Labs—has made an undisclosed investment in Avalon Labs, a fast-rising platform building on-chain capital markets powered by BTC.

In an X post on May 26, the firm said the project is building financial infrastructure around BTC-collateralized lending, stablecoin USDa, savings products, and credit services, showing there is interest in Bitcoin-powered DeFi.

USDa: Powering a Bitcoin-Backed Financial Ecosystem

At the core of Avalon’s ecosystem is USDa, a Bitcoin-backed stablecoin that allows users to borrow, earn yield, and transact without selling their BTC.

The firm has over $500 million in total value locked (TVL). USDa is the second-largest collateralized debt position (CDP) project tracked by DeFiLlama.

The platform goes beyond stablecoins to include BTC-backed lending, yield-bearing savings accounts, and a Bitcoin-collateralized credit card, managing more than 20,000 BTC.

Scaling Toward Regulation and Institutional Growth

Avalon’s journey began in Season 8 of the Most Valuable Builder (MVB) accelerator—run in partnership with BNB Chain, CoinMarketCap, and YZi Labs.

In a blog post, the firm explains that with this new capital injection, Avalon is preparing to scale globally, targeting regulatory licenses across key markets and working with elite law firms to launch a fully regulated public fund.

At the same time, the company said it is ramping up its institutional lending business, seeking to become the world’s first fully regulated on-chain Bitcoin financial institution.

“Avalon leverages Bitcoin’s security and liquidity to create a full-stack financial ecosystem,” said Alex Odagiu, Investment Director at YZi Labs. “It bridges the gap between Bitcoin’s vast potential and real-world usability.”

“We’re building the premier financial hub for Bitcoin,” added Venus Li, Co-Founder of Avalon Labs. “With YZi Labs’ support, we’ll bring Bitcoin-backed products to everyday users and unlock yield for a global audience.”

Binance Labs Rebrands to YZi Labs With CZ Engaging More

In December, Binance Labs announced plans to rebrand in 2025. Changpeng Zhao (CZ) will lead and personally engage with investment projects. CZ served four months in prison for violating the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act and other regulatory issues.

Binance Labs broke away from the exchange Binance and became an independent entity in 2024. The rebranding reflects its evolving vision and distances itself from the exchange.

The investment arm said Binance founder CZ will dedicate more time to investing and directly engaging with projects. CZ is permanently banned from being involved in Binance leadership but is allowed to focus on investments.

Between March 21 and March 24, Bitcoin futures open interest (OI) experienced notable fluctuations. On March 21, OI stood at $52.83 billion, edging slightly to $52.86 billion on March 22, a negligible increase of 0.06%.

The following day, March 23, saw a dip to $51.87 billion, a 1.87% decrease. However, the real action unfolded on March 24, when OI surged by 10.97% to reach $57.56 billion. This spike followed Bitcoin’s price, which climbed from $83,804 on March 23 to $87,674 on March 24, a 4.62% increase.

Data from CoinGlass shows that certain exchanges stand out in terms of their significant increases in OI. BingX led the pack with a remarkable 121.15% surge, bringing its OI to 9.02K BTC (approximately $790 million).

Gate.io followed with a 26.25% increase, raising its OI to 85.88K BTC (around $7.53 billion), while Bitunix saw a 17.66% rise to 51.85K BTC (about $4.55 billion). Although BingX’s percentage jump was the most dramatic, its absolute OI remains modest compared to larger players like Gate.io, which contributed more significantly to the overall OI pool.

Meanwhile, Binance, the largest exchange by OI with 110.43K BTC ($9.69 billion), experienced a more moderate 9.86% increase — substantial given its scale but below the market average.

The robust growth at Gate.io and Bitunix signals broadening activity across mid- and low-tier exchanges.

Several factors likely contributed to the surge in open interest on March 24. The 4.62% Bitcoin price rally was a clear catalyst, as rising prices often attract traders to futures markets, particularly for long positions betting on further gains. Market sentiment and speculation also played a role in the rapid OI growth — especially BingX’s 121.15% leap.

While the price increase caused a surge in futures activity, exchange-specific catalysts could have further fueled the increases. For instance, BingX’s outsized growth might stem from a low starting base or platform incentives like lower fees or promotions, while Gate.io and Bitunix likely benefited from their larger user bases and established liquidity. Additionally, leverage and margin trading probably amplified the spike in OI.

The 10.97% OI jump and a 4.62% price rise indicate a bullish sentiment. The OI increase outpacing the price gain suggests traders are aggressively positioning for more upside. However, this rapid growth, particularly on smaller exchanges like BingX, also points to heightened speculation, which can amplify price moves but raises the risk of increased volatility. When paired with leverage, elevated open interest increases the likelihood of liquidations. Any sharp pullbacks could trigger forced selling, further accelerating downward pressure.

In terms of OI distribution across exchanges, Binance holds 16.83% of the total OI with $9.69 billion, but its 9.86% growth lagged the market’s 10.97% average. Meanwhile, Gate.io’s 26.25% surge pushed its OI to 85.88K BTC, indicating a potential shift in dominance among exchanges.

Timeframe variations in OI changes also revealed that shorter-term shifts were less dramatic, with Kraken leading 1-hour changes at +1.22% and Bitget topping 4-hour gains at +1.82%. The 24-hour window, dominated by BingX, captured the bulk of the activity, suggesting a concentrated burst of trading.

The OI/24h volume ratio offers further insight. Deribit’s ratio of 4.0109 indicates lower trading turnover relative to its OI, hinting at longer-term positions, while Gate.io’s ratio of 2.1339 reflects higher activity, consistent with its OI growth. A lower ratio often signals aggressive short-term trading.

The post Bitcoin futures open interest jumps 10% as price rally ignites trading frenzy on small exchanges appeared first on CryptoSlate.