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


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)

Markets

How MicroStrategy and Others Are Taking on Billions in Debt to Buy More Bitcoin

Michael Saylor has raised $6 billion in convertible bonds, with $18 billion more to come. His strategy is unprecedented — here’s how it works.

Debt

CoinDesk Indices

CoinDesk 20 Performance Update: XRP Gains 7.9%, Leading Index Higher From Monday

Stellar (XLM) joined Ripple (XRP) as a top performer, rising 6.7%.

9am CoinDesk 20 Update for 2024-12-17: leaders chart

Markets

Bitcoin Holder Semler Scientific's Shares Now Available for Options Trading

The medical device company adopted a bitcoin treasury strategy earlier this year and currently holds 2,084 tokens worth roughly $220 million.

Bitcoin, Semler Scientific

Finance

Tether Invests in MiCA-Compliant Stablecoin Issuer StablR

The crypto company behind USDT, the largest stablecoin, decided to shutter its own euro-pegged stablecoin and back smaller issuers that comply with the EU's MiCA regulations.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino (Tether)

Finance

Ripple to Roll Out RLUSD Stablecoin on Dec. 17, Adds Former Central Bankers to Advisory Board

The stablecoin will become broadly available to crypto users on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum networks beginning on Tuesday.

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, speaks at Consensus 2024. (Shutterstock/CoinDesk)