✍️ Ex-Ripple CTO Clarifies Connection between Epstein and XRP, XLM

Schwartz’s statement came after new documents from Epstein’s estate were released, prompting discussion across social platforms. Some suggested that XRP might appear in the files.

Schwartz made it clear that no such connection exists, emphasizing that indirect ties between Epstein and individuals connected to Bitcoin are separate from Ripple and Stellar. Documentation and analysis confirm that XRP were not funded by or involved with Epstein.

The files should be reviewed carefully without concluding based on partial information. The presence of names in emails does not equate to financial involvement or operational ties.❗️ Instead, investors should focus on Ripple’s notable strides in the financial sector. Schwartz’s comments provide definitive guidance, confirming that XRP operations remain unaffected.

#Stellar

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✍️ Elon Musk responds to Ukraine over blocking Starlink use by Russian forces

Elon Musk has publicly responded to a message from Ukraine’s Minister of Defense Mykhailo Fedorov, thanking him for addressing issues related to the use of Starlink terminals by Russian forces.

Starlink has introduced a speed limit of roughly 75–90 km/h to prevent its terminals from operating on fast-moving drones, affecting both Russian and Ukrainian UAVs. Ukraine is reportedly creating a whitelist so only approved Ukrainian terminals function, potentially grounding Russian Starlink-enabled strike drones if the restriction cannot be bypassed.

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🇦🇪 Dubai officially unveils world's first Gold Street dedicated to the gold and jewellery trade

Dubai has launched its first-ever dedicated gold trade hub, the Dubai Gold District, aiming to solidify its position as a global leader in the gold and jewellery market. The initiative, introduced by Ithra Dubai, unites the full value chain of the industry, including retail, bullion, wholesale, and investment.

The district was officially unveiled in early January 2026 and has already drawn interest from over 147 nationalities in a single year. This diversity reinforces Dubai's status as a global marketplace. A landmark feature of the district is the world's first Gold Street, a road using gold. 🤩 Additional developments will be announced in phases.

#BRICS

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💵 Oracle to raise up to $50bn to expand cloud infrastructure

Oracle on Sunday said it plans to raise $45 billion to $50 billion in 2026 to expand its cloud infrastructure business. The software company said the funds would be used to build additional capacity and meet contracted demand from major customers, including AMD, Meta, NVIDIA, OpenAI, TikTok and xAI.

Oracle expects to achieve its funding objective through a mix of debt and equity financing and plans to raise about half of its funding through equity-linked and common equity issuances.

On the debt side, Oracle said it will complete a single, one-time issuance of senior unsecured bonds early in 2026 to cover the remaining half of its planned funding. The company does not expect to issue additional bonds during the year beyond this transaction.

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🛰 SpaceX formalizes plan to build 1 million satellite Orbital Data Center System

SpaceX has just filed an application with the FCC seeking authority to launch and operate a massive new satellite constellation dedicated to orbital data centers. The company said in the document that these will support AI, machine learning, and edge computing applications, taking advantage of the sun's energy without interference from the Earth’s atmosphere.

“Launching a constellation of a million satellites that operate as orbital data centers is a first step towards becoming a Kardashev II-level civilization — one that can harness the Sun’s full power — while supporting AI-driven application for billions of people today and ensuring humanity’s multi-planetary future amongst the stars,” the company wrote in its filing.

To deliver the compute capacity required for large-scale AI inference and data center applications serving billions of users globally, SpaceX aims to deploy a system of up to one million satellites to operate within narrow orbiting shells spanning up to 50 km (over 31 miles) each. 🤩

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🔖Ripple reiterates XRP's central role amid ecosystem expansion

The executives are moving to reassure the community that XRP remains the "heartbeat" of the company’s rapidly diversifying ecosystem. Ripple is sending a clear signal to the market and its community: XRP remains the central engine of its corporate strategy. This comes amid the company's rapid expansion into custody, stablecoins, and prime brokerage.

In a recent statement on X, Ripple executive Reece Merrick addressed the issue, stating, "XRP will continue to be at the heart" of the San Francisco-based enterprise blockchain company.

There is a major update scheduled for mid-February, where the company plans to outline exactly how the digital asset fits into its evolving ecosystem. Monica Long (Ripple President) will lead the discussion, moderated by Jacquelyn Melinek (CEO of Token Relations).

#Stellar

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🇨🇳 China is rapidly scaling up production of AI powered robots designed to handle tasks in warehouses and retail stores, aiming to boost efficiency, cut labour costs, and accelerate automation across logistics and commercial sectors.

Chinese companies like UBTECH, Unitree Robotics, and CloudMinds are prominent in the humanoid robot sector. Check out these cutting-edge humanoid robots developed by a company in China's Guangdong. From attaching car badges to quality inspection, they're changing the game in manufacturing! 🤩

#BRICS

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🤑 Waymo closes US$16bn round at record US$110bn valuation

Waymo is finalising a US$16bn funding round that more than doubles the valuation of Google’s self-driving car business to US$110bn, bringing in several new investors as it gears up for a highly-anticipated global expansion. Parent company Alphabet will contribute more than three-quarters of the amount raised, with new participants including Sequoia Capital, DST Global and Dragoneer Investment Group alongside existing investors Andreessen Horowitz and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala.

Waymo has established itself as the de facto champion of global robotaxi deployment. In the US it dominates the segment, with primary competitors Zoox and Tesla only having deployed fully autonomous driving services in one city each against Waymo’s six. Thus far the firm has recorded more than 125 million fully autonomous miles on US roads.

Waymo’s annual recurring revenue grew to more than US$350m in 2025. Currently the firm is testing in London and Tokyo; conversations have also been confirmed to have taken place with the Australian government. The company expects to host one million rides weekly this year across cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Miami. It has also partnered with Uber for secondary markets such as Austin and Atlanta. In 2026, it plans to expand to additional US cities including Detroit, Las Vegas, Nashville and Washington DC.

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😄 At a black-tie dinner, Trump joked about territorial expansion, first saying he needed to “watch the invasion of Greenland” before walking it back.

“We’re not going to invade Greenland. We’re going to buy it,” he said. “It’s never been my intention to make Greenland the 51st state. I want to make Canada the 51st state. Greenland will be the 52nd state. Venezuela can be 53rd.”

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🇩🇪 Germany may develop its own nuclear weapons with EU allies: ‘Talks are taking place’

Berlin is considering developing its own atomic weapons to bolster Europe’s nuclear umbrella and the US’s own stockpile in the region, according to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Merz said the country is in talks with its partner nations on the possibility of extending Europe’s nuclear arm, which currently involves Britain and France as the sole nations in the continent with atomic weapons.

“These talks are taking place,” Merz said, adding that the discussions were only in their initial phase.

The German chancellor stressed that no decision would be made quickly nor would it “conflict with nuclear-sharing with the United States of America.” Germany is currently banned from developing nuclear weapons of its own under the Four Plus Two agreement that allowed East and West Germany to reunite in 1990.❗️ As with most of the world, Germany is also a signatory of the 1969 nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Merz said that while Germany has certain obligations to meet under the treaties, the pacts do not prevent a discussion on the matter with its partners.

“We do not have missiles or warheads, but we do have a significant technological advantage that we could contribute to a joint European initiative,” Roewekamp told Germany’s Welt TV.

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💎Billiton Diamond and Ctrl Alt Launch $280M+ Diamond Tokenization Initiative in the UAE with the participation of Ripple

In a landmark move for the diamond and digital asset industries, Billiton Diamond and leading tokenization provider Ctrl Alt, today announced a collaboration that has tokenized over AED 1 billion ($280m) of certified polished diamonds held in the UAE.

The move positions Billiton at the forefront of diamond investment innovation and Ctrl Alt as a leader in commodities tokenization. The tokenized assets will be secured through Ripple’s enterprise-grade custody technology.
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Through this collaboration, Billiton will launch a new tokenized diamond platform that embeds real-time inventory management and certification data on the blockchain, allowing stakeholders to verify the origin, grading, and ownership history of each polished stone before any transaction. These novel operations will be subject to regulatory approval by the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) prior to launch.

“The potential of tokenization relies on enterprise-grade trust and security. As Billiton Diamond and Ctrl Alt move $280 million in diamond inventory onto the XRPL, our custody technology provides the rigorous security required to manage these assets at scale, proving that high-value physical assets can be moved on-chain with absolute confidence. Alongside Billiton Diamond and Ctrl Alt, we are proud to set a new precedent for commodities trading in the digital age," - said Reece Merrick, Managing Director, Middle East & Africa, at Ripple.

#Stellar #BRICS

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🧑‍💻Adobe Animate is shutting down as company focuses on AI
 
As Adobe ramps up its investments in AI, the company has decided to shut down its 2D animation software, Adobe Animate. On Monday, Adobe issued an update to the company’s support site and sent emails to existing customers announcing Adobe Animate will be discontinued on March 1, 2026.
 
Enterprise customers can continue to receive technical support through March 1, 2029, to ease the transition. Other customers will have support through March of next year, the company said.
 

“Animate has been a product that has existed for over 25 years and has served its purpose well for creating, nurturing, and developing the animation ecosystem. As technologies evolve, new platforms and paradigms emerge that better serve the needs of the users. Acknowledging this change, we are planning to discontinue supporting Animate,” - Adobe explained its decision to discontinue the program in an FAQ.

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