Kraken connects its OTC desk to ICE Chat, embedding crypto liquidity into 
institutional trading workflows. Kraken announces on February 17, 2026 that it 
has integrated its over‑the‑counter (OTC) desk with ICE Chat, Intercontinental 
Exchange’s instant messaging platform, enabling ICE Chat’s network of over 
120,000 clients to contact Kraken’s OTC desk within familiar real‑time 
communications used […]

Kraken Integrates OTC Desk With ICE Chat to Serve Institutional Traders

XRP price grinds higher as XRP Ledger stablecoin velocity hits a 1-year peak, 
signaling rising real payment activity behind the price action. XRP price and 
market snapshot As of Feb. 18, XRP (XRP) is trading around $1.48, with 24‑hour 
moves…

XRP price outlook as velocity hits 1-year peak

Bitcoin price is stabilizing after a sharp correction, but on-chain data 
suggests the real story may lie beneath the surface. As Bitcoin (BTC) 
consolidates near the $68,000 level, Arkham Intelligence’s latest ownership 
data reveals who controls a large share of…

Bitcoin price prediction as Arkham data reveals who controls BTC supply

While the crypto market struggles and broader sentiment sits at its lowest 
levels in years, BNB Chain has shown resilience, building on last year’s on- 
chain momentum, while taking key steps toward strong builder activity and 
growing user participation. Now, the ecosystem has turned to AI agents, one of 
the rapidly growing narratives, to start preparing for the next market phase. 
Related Reading: Crypto Funds Bleed $173M As Outflows Extend To Fourth Week – 
Report BNB Chain’s AI Agent Ecosystem Grows In a recent development, the BNB 
Chain has rolled out support for AI agent standards ERC-8004 and BAP-578, 
seeking to make agent identity practical at scale “with low fees, fast 
transactions, and infrastructure designed for frequent agent activity.” 
Notably, AI Agents are autonomous programs capable of making decisions, 
interacting with other systems, and carrying out tasks, including trading and 
managing data, without continuous human participation. However, these agents 
have shown limits that must be addressed to operate beyond single apps or 
centralized platforms. As a result, BNB Chain announced earlier this month the 
deployment of the ERC-8004 infrastructure on the BNB Smart Chain (BSC) Mainnet 
and Testnet. ERC-8004 is a new on-chain identity standard designed to give 
autonomous AI agents verifiable, portable identity across platforms. According 
to the announcement, they also introduced BNB Application Proposals (BAPs), 
which are a new standard for the application layer, to complement the ERC-8004 
infrastructure. BAP-578, the first BAP, launches the Non-Fungible Agent (NFA) 
standard, which enables AI agents to “exist as on-chain assets that can hold 
assets, execute logic, interact with protocols, and be bought, sold, or hired. 
This marks the first step toward an open, predictable, and interoperable Agent 
Economy on BNB Chain.” By February 17, its AI Agent ecosystem had reached 58 
projects across 10 categories, including infrastructure, social platforms, 
DeFi, trading, gaming, and entertainment. Moreover, it has seen over 200 
builders participate in its ongoing “Good Vibes Only: OpenClaw Edition” 
hackathon event, focused on AI/on-chain actions. The Ecosystem’s Momentum The 
BNB Chain has continued to show strength across its ecosystem despite the 
recent market downturn and BNB’s price correction, holding key on-chain 
metrics and strong fundamentals. Crypto market intelligence firm Messari 
recently highlighted BNB Chain’s performance during the last quarter of 2025. 
Notably, BNB Chain remained the third-largest network by DeFi Total Value 
Locked (TVL), ending the year with $6.6 billion in TVL across its ecosystem, 
up 23.6% YoY. Per the report, average daily transactions surged 30.4% QoQ, 
while daily active addresses increased 13.3%. In addition, the total Real- 
World Asset (RWA) value grew to $2 billion, a 228.1% increase QoQ, and 554.6% 
up YoY from the $3.6 million registered at the start of the year. Related 
Reading: Bitcoin Whales Flood Binance As Correction Deepens: On-Chain Data 
Shows As reported by NewsBTC, most of these metrics have held throughout the 
recent market struggles, with TVL across its ecosystem, daily active 
addresses, and average daily transactions showing sustained growth since the 
end of 2025. Meanwhile, it has seen massive growth in the prediction markets 
sector, with leading platforms within the ecosystem reaching crucial 
milestones after surpassing $20 billion in cumulative volume in late January. 
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com

BNB Chain’s AI Agent Ecosystem Surges As Crypto Markets Bleed

Enso has launched live production deployments of cross‑chain minting and 
execution flows using Chainlink’s CCIP, advancing decentralized finance ( 
DeFi) infrastructure from simple asset transfers to deterministic, 
outcome‑driven execution. Launch Partners and Production Deployments Enso, 
decentralized Layer‑1 blockchain, has rolled out live production deployments 
of cross-chain minting and execution flows powered by Chainlink’s Cross-Chain 
Interoperability […]

Cryptocurrency price in NOK