Monero (XMR) has surged back into price discovery, trading near $577 after a 19% daily jump, as capital rotates into privacy coins amid rising regulatory and governance risks elsewhere. Strong volume, a clean daily breakout, and spillover from Zcash’s governance crisis have positioned XMR as the primary beneficiary of renewed demand for censorship-resistant assets in early 2026.

Early-2026 instability in Venezuela and Iran has underscored the dual use of USDT: a hedge for residents against inflation and banking risk, and a channel allegedly used by sanctioned actors. Dec. 5 data indicates Tether blacklisted about $3.3 billion from 2023 to late 2025, while since 2023 a network linked to Iran's IRGC moved over $1 billion in stablecoins.

Vitalik Buterin said in a post on X on Sunday that Ethereum needs more resilient decentralized stablecoins, highlighting risks from USD pegs, oracle attacks, and staking incentives. He floated reducing staking yields to around 0.2% and redesigning staking to avoid slashing, while the stablecoin market reached $311.5 billion in 2026.

Solana's price extended above $140 and is consolidating near $142 on the hourly chart. Based on Kraken's SOL/USD data, trendline support sits at $138, while resistance levels are $144 and $145; a close above $150 could open $162 and $170. If $145 holds, supports are $142 and $140, with the 50% Fib of $135–$144 near $140.

XRP extended its decline below $2.10 and is now trading under $2.120 and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average while attempting a recovery. The XRP/USD pair is capped by a bearish trend line and resistance near $2.10–$2.120, with potential upside targets at $2.220 and $2.320 if buyers break higher. Failure to clear $2.120 could trigger another drop toward support at $2.050, $2.020 and possibly $2.00.

On January 11, BNB Foundation invested $200K across four Chinese-themed memecoins, allocating $50K to each. According to CoinMarketCap, $币安人生 rose 26.56% in 24 hours after the announcement. The Fermi Hard Fork is scheduled for January 14, and per X, it will reduce BNB Smart Chain block times from 0.75 to 0.45 seconds.

On January 12 2026, Monero climbed to a new all‑time high of $545, breaking its earlier peak of about $518 from 2021. The privacy coin has gained 15% in a day, 26.5% over a week and 168% in a year, while capital has been rotating out of Zcash after a roughly 25% weekly drop tied to governance disputes, helping push Monero toward the 12th spot by market value.

Monero’s XMR price jumped 7.18% in the last 24 hours alongside a 25% rise in Open Interest, signaling strong bullish sentiment. Key support has formed around $460-$480, while traders are watching the $490-$500 region and the $517.6 all-time high as major resistance levels. Short-term participants are advised to stay cautious around weekend volatility driven by Bitcoin.