BF199 - Top Bitcoin News - 1/18/26

🎙️ The Bitcoin Fortress Podcast — Episode 199

Date: January 18, 2026
Block Height: 932,830
Moscow Time: 1,049
Fees: 1 /1 / 3

 

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Featured Substack Post:

https://bitcoinfortress.substack.com/p/why-the-system-needs-you-distracted

 

Bitcoin Fortress Books:

• Bitcoin Fortress: A Simple Guide to Bitcoin for Beginners

• Bitcoin Retirement and Estate Planning

• The Bitcoin Lifestyle

 

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News (1/11/26-1/18/26):

 

POLICY / REGULATION

- US senators introduce long-awaited bill to define crypto market rules (Reuters): https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/us-senators-introduce-long-awaited-bill-define-crypto-market-rules-2026-01-13/

- Senate Banking: Chairman Scott releases bipartisan negotiated market structure bill text: https://www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/majority/chairman-scott-releases-bipartisan-negotiated-market-structure-bill-text

- Senate Banking delays crypto bill after Coinbase CEO opposition (Reuters): https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/coinbase-cannot-support-crypto-bill-current-form-ceo-armstrong-says-2026-01-15/

 

MARKETS / ETFS
- Bitcoin jumps above $97,000 on regulatory optimism (Barron’s): https://www.barrons.com/articles/bitcoin-xrp-ether-crypto-legislation-8cae962e

- Bitcoin ETFs see ~$1.42B weekly inflows (crypto.news): https://crypto.news/bitcoin-etfs-see-1-42b-weekly-inflows-ibit-dominates/

- iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) fund stats (BlackRock): https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/products/333011/ishares-bitcoin-trust-etf

 

CORPORATE TREASURY
- Strategy makes largest Bitcoin purchase since July (CoinDesk): https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/01/12/strategy-makes-largest-bitcoin-purchase-since-july-adds-13-627-btc

- Strategy stock jumps as cryptos rally (Barron’s): https://www.barrons.com/articles/mstr-stock-price-strategy-microstrategy-bitcoin-coinbase-1fd70347

 

STATE / PUBLIC FINANCE
- Florida legislators renew push for bitcoin reserve (Yahoo Finance): https://finance.yahoo.com/news/florida-legislators-renew-push-bitcoin-133703293.html

 

MINING / NETWORK
- Bitcoin network difficulty dips slightly in first 2026 adjustment (Yahoo Finance): https://finance.yahoo.com/news/bitcoin-network-difficulty-dips-slightly-071138201.html

- Miner stress read: difficulty slip + profitability pressure (CryptoSlate): https://cryptoslate.com/why-a-small-bitcoin-difficulty-drop-can-mean-big-miner-stress-in-2026/

 

SECURITY / SCAMS
- Hacker steals $282M in hardware wallet social engineering attack (CoinDesk): https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/01/16/hacker-steals-usd282-milion-in-hardware-wallet-social-engineering-attack

- Chainalysis: record ~$17B estimated stolen in scams/fraud in 2025 (Chainalysis): https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/crypto-scams-2026/

 

NARRATIVE / QUANTUM
- Jefferies strategist drops bitcoin citing quantum risk (Business Insider): https://www.businessinsider.com/bitcoin-price-prediction-quantum-computing-risk-cryptography-jefferies-2026-1

 

PODCAST THEME ANCHORS
- Investopedia Express Ep. 277 (Jan 12, 2026): https://www.investopedia.com/the-express-podcast-episode-277-11883706

- The Bitcoin Standard Podcast episode listing (Jan 13, 2026 entry on Apple Podcasts): https://podcasts.apple.com/mz/podcast/308-fiat-money-inflation-the-collapse-of/id1403202032?i=1000744960198

- What Bitcoin Did — Episodes feed: https://www.whatbitcoindid.com/episodes
- Citadel Dispatch (Podchaser listing / latest): https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/citadel-dispatch-1656796