On this date in 2019, Bitcoin briefly surged above $10,000 following an extraordinary rally linked to China’s renewed interest in blockchain technology. In 2021, Shiba Inu reached another record during the memecoin boom, while investment managers pushed the boundaries of Bitcoin futures exchange-traded funds.
Later October 26 developments included new Polygon payment and interoperability partnerships, a cryptocurrency derivatives liquidation wave, the public disclosure of a university’s substantial Bitcoin ETF investment, and a market recovery following the October 2025 trade-related crash.
October 26, 2019: Bitcoin Surges Above $10,000 After China’s Blockchain Endorsement
On October 26, 2019, Bitcoin briefly climbed above $10,000 during an extraordinary two-day rally that reversed several weeks of declining prices.
According to Bitstamp trading data cited by CoinDesk, Bitcoin reached approximately $10,350 at 01:45 UTC, its highest level since September 24.
The cryptocurrency had traded below $7,500 the previous day, meaning the rebound from its recent lows approached 40% at its peak.
The rally followed comments made by Chinese President Xi Jinping on October 24, publicly reported on October 25, urging China to accelerate research and investment in blockchain technology.
Although Xi’s remarks concerned blockchain technology rather than an endorsement of decentralized cryptocurrencies, traders interpreted the announcement as a potentially important signal for the broader digital asset sector.
Other major cryptocurrencies also rallied, while derivatives markets experienced unusually volatile trading.
Bitcoin subsequently retreated from the $10,000 level, demonstrating the difference between a sudden speculative price surge and a sustained market recovery.
Historical source: CoinDesk market reporting, October 26, 2019.
October 26, 2019: Binance Futures Trading Volume Surpasses $1 Billion
The same Bitcoin rally produced another milestone for cryptocurrency trading infrastructure.
On October 26, 2019, Binance Futures recorded approximately $1.14 billion in reported daily trading volume, its highest level since launching the futures platform in September.
Contemporaneous reporting indicated that approximately 165,000 BTC in notional trading activity passed through the platform during the period.
Binance had entered the derivatives market only weeks earlier, competing with established cryptocurrency futures venues including BitMEX and other leveraged trading platforms.
The rapid increase in activity reflected growing demand for cryptocurrency instruments that allowed traders to speculate on price movements without holding the underlying assets directly.
Futures contracts also enabled traders to take short positions, hedge existing holdings and use leverage to increase their market exposure.
Binance’s early derivatives growth foreshadowed the increasingly important role that perpetual futures would play in cryptocurrency price discovery and market volatility.
Contemporaneous source: AMBCrypto, October 26, 2019.
October 26, 2021: Shiba Inu Hits Another Record During the Memecoin Boom
On October 26, 2021, Shiba Inu reached another all-time high as speculative demand drove one of the cryptocurrency industry’s most remarkable memecoin rallies.
The SHIB token traded around $0.000048 during the session, surpassing records established only days earlier.
Shiba Inu had begun the year as a relatively obscure cryptocurrency inspired by Dogecoin, but its growing online community, exchange listings and extraordinary price appreciation attracted substantial retail attention.
By October 26, the token had accumulated a market capitalization measured in tens of billions of dollars, placing it close to the world’s ten largest cryptocurrencies.
Trading activity also surged, with SHIB briefly ranking among the most actively traded digital assets on major exchanges.
The rally continued after October 26, with the token reaching an even higher record later that week. It also illustrated the considerable risks of investing in assets driven primarily by speculative demand and online enthusiasm.
Shiba Inu’s 2021 ascent became a defining example of the memecoin phenomenon, demonstrating how internet communities could rapidly influence cryptocurrency valuations.
Contemporaneous source: Benzinga, October 26, 2021.
October 26, 2021: Fund Managers Push for Leveraged Bitcoin Futures ETFs
On October 26, 2021, asset managers Valkyrie and Direxion pursued new Bitcoin futures investment products as competition intensified following the approval and launch of the first US Bitcoin futures exchange-traded funds.
Valkyrie filed registration documents for the Valkyrie XBTO Levered BTC Futures ETF, which proposed providing approximately 1.25 times the daily performance of a Bitcoin futures exposure benchmark.
Direxion also filed paperwork for a Bitcoin Strategy Bear ETF, designed to offer investors inverse exposure to Bitcoin futures.
The proposals followed the October 19 launch of the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, which became the first US-listed ETF providing Bitcoin futures exposure.
Regulators were not prepared to accept every variation of the new investment products. SEC staff requested the withdrawal of Direxion’s filing on October 26, according to the company’s subsequent correspondence.
Neither filing represented approval or an immediate product launch.
The episode demonstrated how quickly fund managers sought to introduce leveraged and inverse cryptocurrency products once a regulatory pathway for conventional Bitcoin futures ETFs had emerged.
Original sources: Valkyrie’s October 26 SEC filing and Direxion’s SEC withdrawal correspondence.
October 26, 2022: Crypto Short Sellers Face Nearly $700 Million in Liquidations
On October 26, 2022, cryptocurrency market reports revealed that a sharp recovery in Bitcoin and Ethereum prices had triggered extensive liquidations of leveraged trading positions.
Market data cited by The Block indicated that approximately $686 million in short positions and $99 million in long positions had been liquidated during the preceding trading period, for a combined total near $786 million.
Bitcoin recovered above $20,000 for the first time since early October, while Ethereum rose toward $1,550 during the rally.
Ethereum’s gains were particularly notable because the cryptocurrency had struggled to sustain upward momentum following its transition to proof-of-stake through The Merge in September.
The recovery coincided with expectations that the US Federal Reserve might eventually reduce the pace of aggressive interest-rate increases.
Short positions suffered as rising prices forced leveraged traders to close their trades, potentially adding buying pressure to the market.
The October 26 reporting illustrated the growing influence of derivatives liquidations on cryptocurrency price movements, even during periods when the underlying market appeared relatively quiet.
Contemporaneous source: The Block, October 26, 2022.
October 26, 2022: BitPay Announces Polygon Cryptocurrency Payments
On October 26, 2022, cryptocurrency payment processor BitPay announced support for Polygon, expanding the number of blockchain networks available for payments through its services.
The integration was designed to allow consumers and merchants to transact using MATIC and supported tokens on Polygon, including USDC, DAI, Ether and Wrapped Bitcoin.
BitPay said users would be able to buy, store, exchange and spend supported Polygon assets through its wallet and merchant payment infrastructure.
Panini America, the sports and entertainment collectibles company, was identified as an early merchant adopting the new payment functionality.
Polygon offered an alternative to conducting every supported transaction on Ethereum’s main network, where transaction costs and congestion had previously created obstacles for smaller payments.
The announcement came during a period of expanding commercial interest in blockchain-based payment systems, including applications involving digital collectibles and online marketplaces.
BitPay’s October 26 announcement concerned the integration and planned rollout, rather than confirmation that every supported payment feature was already active for all customers.
Original company material: BitPay’s October 26, 2022, Polygon publication.
October 26, 2022: Axelar and Polygon Announce Cross-Chain Infrastructure Partnership
October 26, 2022, also brought an announcement concerning interoperability between blockchain networks.
Axelar and Polygon announced plans to integrate Axelar’s cross-chain communication technology with Polygon Supernets, a framework for developing application-specific blockchain networks.
The partnership was intended to enable Supernets to communicate with other connected blockchains and transfer assets between different network environments.
At the time, blockchain ecosystems were increasingly fragmented, with assets and applications distributed across Ethereum, Polygon and numerous alternative networks.
Developers faced technical challenges when attempting to connect applications and liquidity across those ecosystems.
Axelar proposed using its proof-of-stake network and messaging infrastructure to support interactions between otherwise separate blockchain systems.
Polygon Supernets, meanwhile, were designed to allow developers to create networks optimized for specific applications and business requirements.
The announcement was an integration plan, not evidence that every proposed interoperability function was immediately operational.
Original source: Axelar announcement, October 26, 2022.
October 26, 2023: Sam Bankman-Fried Takes the Witness Stand in FTX Fraud Trial
On October 26, 2023, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried testified for the first time in his federal criminal trial, facing questions about the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange and its relationship with Alameda Research.
In an unusual procedural development, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed the jury before hearing Bankman-Fried’s testimony to determine which subjects would be admissible.
The former executive faced questioning about the use of FTX customer funds, corporate communication policies, the deletion of electronic messages and the involvement of lawyers in important business decisions.
Bankman-Fried maintained that he had relied on legal advice in certain circumstances but struggled to provide clear answers to some questions about the exchange’s operations.
Prosecutors had previously presented testimony from former executives, including Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang and Nishad Singh, concerning the use of customer assets and Alameda’s special privileges.
Bankman-Fried subsequently testified before the jury on October 27.
He was convicted of fraud-related offenses in November 2023 and sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024.
The historical consequences of FTX’s collapse have continued to follow its executives. Dave Finances later reported on Caroline Ellison’s professional activities following her release from prison.
Historical sources: October 26, 2023, courtroom transcript archive and TechCrunch courtroom reporting.
October 26, 2024: Emory University’s $15 Million Bitcoin ETF Investment Draws Attention
On October 26, 2024, cryptocurrency industry reporting highlighted a regulatory filing showing that Emory University, a private research institution in Atlanta, held approximately $15.1 million in shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust.
The university had disclosed the holdings in a Form 13F submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on October 25, covering investments held as of September 30.
The filing showed approximately 2.68 million shares in the Bitcoin investment product, alongside 4,312 shares of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.
The disclosure attracted attention because university endowments had rarely appeared among publicly identified investors in US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products.
US regulators had approved the first spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, creating a conventional brokerage-market route for institutions seeking exposure to the cryptocurrency.
Emory’s position illustrated how Bitcoin investment products were beginning to appear in portfolios managed by institutions outside traditional asset management firms.
The broader importance of institutional flows and their relationship with Bitcoin prices is examined in Dave Finances’ analysis of Bitcoin ETF demand and market liquidity.
Original filing and reporting: Emory University’s SEC Form 13F filing history and The Block, October 26, 2024.
October 26, 2025: Bitcoin Rebounds as US-China Trade Negotiations Ease Market Fears
On October 26, 2025, Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies rallied after US and Chinese officials reported progress toward a preliminary framework addressing trade tariffs and export restrictions.
The development followed the severe market disruption earlier that month, when renewed trade tensions contributed to an unprecedented wave of cryptocurrency liquidations beginning on October 10.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said negotiations in Malaysia had produced a framework that could avert threatened additional tariffs of 100% on Chinese imports.
Bitcoin climbed toward $114,000 during October 26 trading, while Ethereum traded above $4,000 as investor appetite for risk assets improved.
Binance’s market update recorded Bitcoin near $113,847 at 14:00 UTC, approximately 2% higher over the preceding 24 hours.
The negotiations had not yet produced a finalized trade agreement, but the prospect of avoiding another escalation helped cryptocurrency markets recover some of their earlier losses.
The episode highlighted the increasingly close relationship between digital asset prices, international trade policy and global financial-market sentiment.
Contemporaneous sources: Reuters, October 26, 2025 and Binance’s October 26 market report.
Johan Shamshad is a financial markets writer at Dave Finances covering cryptocurrencies, trading platforms, brokers, fintech, financial regulation, and developments across global markets. He previously worked at Gulf News, adding newsroom experience to his coverage of fast-moving financial and digital-asset markets.
His work focuses on identifying market-moving events, company developments, regulatory changes, product launches, and shifts in trading and financial infrastructure.
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