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

U.S. CFTC Chair Behnam Makes Departure Official, Stepping Down on Inauguration Day

Like Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler, CFTC chief Rostin Behnam will exit his job on the day that Donald Trump takes the oath of office.

Rostin Behnam

CoinDesk Indices

CoinDesk 20 Performance Update: POL and LINK Each Fall 3.1% as Index Declines

Bitcoin (BTC) was also among the underperformers, dipping 1.4%.


CoinDesk Indices

CoinDesk 20 Performance Update: HBAR Falls 3.5% as Index Trades Lower From Friday

Cardano (ADA) joined Hedera (HBAR) as an underperformer, declining 3.4%.

9am CoinDesk 20 Update for 2025-01-06: laggards

Markets

Sell the News: MicroStrategy Plunge Deepens in Days Following Nasdaq-100 Inclusion

George Soros called it Reflexivity, but most know it as a virtuous circle, and MicroStrategy's at the moment has been broken.

MicroStrategy bubble

CoinDesk Indices

CoinDesk 20 Performance Update: HBAR Drops 8.2% as All Index Constituents Trade Lower

Aptos joined Hedera as a top underperformer, declining 7.4% from Wednesday.


Markets

Bitcoin Returns to $95K as Christmas Rally Snuffed Out

Interest rates were a tailwind to prices for much of 2024, but now may have become a headwind.

Prices fall post-Xmas

CoinDesk Indices

CoinDesk 20 Performance Update: AVAX Declines 3.7% as Index Trades Lower

Internet Computer also fell 3.7%, joining Avalanche as a top underperformer.


Markets

Bitcoin Slips to $101K, Altcoins Spiraling on Federal Reserve's Hawkish Tone

The Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 basis points as expected, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell's hawkish press conference

Fed Chair Jerome Powell (House Financial Services Committee)

Finance

RWA-Focused Network Plume Raises $20M from Brevan Howard and Others Ahead of Mainnet Launch

The platform has brought over $4 billion of traditional assets on-chain, ranging from renewable energy projects to mineral rights and private credit.

Plume co-founders Eugene Shen, Chris Yin and Teddy Pornprinya (Plume)