Stephen Alpher

Co-regional news chief, Americas

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.

Latest from Stephen Alpher

Tech

AI-Powered Court System Is Coming to Crypto With GenLayer

GenLayer Labs is building a protocol that uses AI models as judges, with the goal of providing reliable, neutral, third-party arbitration in record time.

Apr 30, 2025

GenLayer is building an on-chain court system. (Credit: Unsplash, Wesley Tingey)

Markets

Stagflationary Data Puts Pressure on Bitcoin, Stocks

U.S. GDP turned negative in the first quarter, while prices rose more than forecast; ADP jobs data was the weakest in nearly one year.

Apr 30, 2025

XRP bears chalk out a H&S pattern. (Unsplash, mana5280)

Markets

Bitcoin Edges Above $95K, U.S. Stocks Remain Strong as Analyst Warns of 'Blind' Market

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick announced that the White House was finalizing a trade deal with an unnamed country.

Apr 29, 2025

The recent market downturn has made regulating crypto "politically possible." (Best Backgrounds/Shutterstock)

Finance

SoFi Plans Major Push Into Crypto Amid New Regulatory Environment

There's been a “fundamental shift” in the crypto landscape in the U.S., CEO Anthony Noto said on Wednesday.

Apr 29, 2025

Tech

Coinbase’s Base Network Achieves ‘Stage 1’ Status, Reducing Centralization Risk

The move means that Base will now have a security council which will help approve certain network upgrades if needed.

Apr 29, 2025

Jesse Pollak (courtesy Winni Wintermeyer/Coinbase)

Markets

Robinhood Crypto Revenue Expected to Fall in Q1 After Record Late 2024 Gain: JPMorgan

After a 700% surge in Q4 crypto revenue, analysts now expect a pullback in Q1 as trading activity slows.

Apr 29, 2025

Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest Buys 1.3M Robinhood Shares on Nasdaq Debut

Tech

Polygon Spin-Off Miden Secures $25M to Bring Speed, Privacy to Institutional Giants

The funding round was led by a16z crypto, 1kx and Hack VC.

Apr 29, 2025

Funds rising (Darío Martínez-Batlle/Unsplash)

Markets

Bitcoin Holds Tight Despite Dismal Economic Data, Rising India/Pakistan Tensions

The Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index plunged to its lowest level since the COVID pandemic closed the economy.

Apr 28, 2025

Chart pointing upwards.(Frank Busch/Unsplash)

Finance

Kraken’s Former Legal Chief Marco Santori Joins Pantera Capital

“The timing couldn’t be better, and Pantera couldn’t be better positioned to capitalize on it,” Santori said about his new role.

Apr 28, 2025

Markets

Tether's $770M XAUT Backed by 7.7 Tons of Gold in Swiss Vault, Says Company

Tether reported the first attestation report for its Tether Gold product under new El Salvador regulations as gold demand surges globally

Apr 28, 2025

Gold breaks $3,000 an ounce (shutterstock)