As of January 17, 2026, U.S. officials, tech firms, and miners are focusing on Greenland's rare earths, lithium, and graphite for AI, defense, and electronics supply chains. A bipartisan bill last week seeks a $2.5 billion rare earths reserve, while a July Department of Defense–MP Materials deal and fresh remarks by top leaders highlight the push.

On January 17th, Defiance ETFs said it will liquidate its Nasdaq-listed Ethereum ETF (ETHI) together with seven other leveraged products. ETHI’s last trading day is January 26, 2026, with delisting after market close, and cash redemptions at net asset value set for January 30, 2026.

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria has updated its crypto capital rule, raising the minimum capital requirement for firms to two billion naira with a compliance deadline of June 30, 2027. Supporters argue the move will strengthen investor protection and reduce systemic risks, while critics warn it could stifle innovation and push smaller local operators out of the market.

Dogecoin's hourly chart has printed a death cross as the 50-period moving average fell below the 200-period one, while higher time frames still show a bullish inverse head-and-shoulders pattern. DOGE trades around $0.1377 after a sharp move at $0.151 on Jan. 13, struggling to hold gains from an early 2025 surge amid cooling risk appetite and a possible range-bound phase.

On January 17, 2026, Japan's government said it is investigating X over sexually suggestive images generated by Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok and has demanded immediate improvements. Officials in Tokyo are weighing legal options, while other countries and regions including the Philippines, Indonesia, Canada, California, the EU and several European states are already examining or restricting Grok over explicit or degrading image outputs.

Debate in the US Senate over the Clarity Act has revived attention on XRP and other token-backed exchange-traded funds, with reports indicating the bill may clarify how ETF underlying assets are treated under existing rules. Since their November 2025 debut, XRP spot ETFs have reportedly attracted about $1.37 billion in inflows, fueling community discussion about whether in-kind structures could let holders use these products in a bank-like way. Some XRP advocates argue that, once legal status is clearer, investors may treat regulated ETFs as a preferred place to park tokens while preserving access.

Bitcoin started an important week trading just under its 50-week MA and EMA cluster, while U.S. spot ETF inflows have reached about 3.8K BTC so far this year. The inflow pace is slightly ahead of roughly 3.5K BTC over the same 2025 period and appears consistent with prior seasonal patterns, as price consolidates near the mid $90,000s.

Arkham reported that the so-called $10B Hyperunit Whale, linked to Garrett Jin, expanded an existing Ether long by $66.2 million, taking the position to about $733.3 million and pushing overall ETH, SOL and BTC long exposure above $900 million. At the same time, chart data showed Ethereum's market dominance stabilizing around 12.5% near a key support zone, with MACD turning bullish and trading volume rising after a rebound from early 2025 lows.