US Debt Blows Past $38 Trillion 💣, T Rowe Price Eyes Bitcoin ETF 🚀, UK Cracks Down on ‘Rogue’ Exchanges 🚔

Greetings Bitcoiner,

Welcome to Issue #387 of the daily Bitcoin Breakdown, where we have some excellent Opinion & Analysis pieces and Tools & Projects for you today!

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Now for today’s Top Stories:

• 📈 US National Debt Rockets Past $38 Trillion in Record Time

• 💥 T. Rowe Price Jumps Into Crypto ETF Arena

• 🚨 UK's FCA Goes Full Crackdown Mode on Exchanges

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• How rolling an old 401(k) into a bitcoin IRA could offer tax advantages and help build generational wealth

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Oct 23, 2025

TODAY’S TOP STORIES

📈 US National Debt Rockets Past $38 Trillion in Record Time

America's national debt exploded past $38T just two months after hitting $37T, marking the fastest growth rate outside the pandemic era. Interest payments alone now cost $1T annually and could balloon to $14T over the next decade. The ongoing government shutdown compounds fiscal pressures while credit agencies warn of unsustainable spending trends threatening the dollar's global reserve status, making sound money look all the more promising by the second... Tick tock, next block. Fortune

💥 T. Rowe Price Jumps Into Crypto ETF Arena

T. Rowe Price, a massive traditional asset manager, just filed for an active Bitcoin or crypto ETF that can overweight and underweight digital assets beyond a standard index. Bloomberg's Eric Balchunas called it a 'semi-shock' from the top-five active managers known for mutual funds. The move signals a 'land rush' as traditional finance giants scramble to capture crypto market share alongside BlackRock's $100B Bitcoin ETF dominance. Bitcoin Magazine

🚨 UK's FCA Goes Full Crackdown Mode on Exchanges

The Financial Conduct Authority recently issued hundreds of warnings against unlicensed Bitcoin and crypto exchanges, including Elite Bit Markets and HTX, while also filing lawsuits against companies serving UK residents. Despite strict advertising rules requiring registration and consumer protection measures, about half of flagged crypto advertisements remain online after FCA warnings. Executives violating UK crypto advertising laws face up to 2 years in prison. Cointelegraph

POLL #387

PREVIOUS POLL RESULTS

OPINION & ANALYSIS

• Jason Maier, author of 'A Progressive's Case For Bitcoin', in an excerpt from a revised and updated edition of his book, argues that Bitcoin offers progressives a pathway to peaceful revolution by replacing unjust monetary systems rather than merely reforming them, challenging the US dollar hegemony that perpetuates global inequality and violence (Oct 22 | 3 min read).

• Shinobi, Technical Editor at Bitcoin Magazine, warns that Wall Street's growing influence through products like ETFs threatens Bitcoin's decentralized nature, undermining its core promise of neutrality and stability by centralizing economic power and reducing self-validating participation (Oct 22 | 4 min read).

• Anita Posch of Bitcoin For Fairness explores how a Zimbabwean farmer is leveraging Bitcoin for financial sovereignty, using solar-powered mining and a circular economy to combat currency instability and empower his community through innovative agricultural projects in Bulawayo (Oct 21 | 6 min read).

• Helmut Schindlwick, author of 'Brick by Brick: Building a Sovereign Life on Bitcoin' details his multi-year transformation from fiat dependency to Bitcoin sovereignty, sharing nine real-world stories demonstrating how ordinary people build freedom through health, minimalism, self-hosted technology, and local Bitcoin adoption (Oct 21 | 6 min read).

• Hannah Rosenberg, Founder of Velas Commerce, explains how Taproot Assets enables stablecoins on the Lightning Network, allowing Bitcoin infrastructure to compete with Visa by meeting users where they are with stable-value transactions while building adoption through utility rather than ideology (Oct 21 | 6 min read).

• Ten31, a Bitcoin-focused investment firm, argues that bitcoiners endure the 'long solitude' of being right early, building infrastructure and tools while society catches up to bitcoin's truth as sound money and foundation for individual sovereignty (Oct 21 | 4 min read).

• Jaran Mellerud of Hashlabs debunks US hosting providers' claims that mining dramatically reduces taxes, explaining that bonus depreciation only shifts deductions forward in time rather than creating actual tax savings, with the real economic benefit being just $200 on a $10,000 machine (Oct 21 | 5 min read).

• Contra, an advocate of Bitcoin and Voluntaryism, frames Bitcoin adoption as military-style warfare that psychologically transforms users from passive consumers into disciplined 'operators' fighting a multi-generational campaign against traditional fiat monetary systems through self-custody and node operation (Oct 21 | 6 min read).

• Nick Ward of Bitcoin For Corporations explains how Pierre Rochard's 2014 'Speculative Attack' essay accurately predicted how corporations would abandon fiat currencies for bitcoin treasuries, with companies now borrowing weak money to acquire strong money exactly as he suggested (Oct 20 | 5 min read).

• James Lavish, CFA, financial analyst and author of 'The Informationist' newsletter, argues that the Federal Reserve's quantitative tightening program is ending as bank reserves fall below critical thresholds, forcing an inevitable return to quantitative easing and benefiting Bitcoin and gold as scarce assets (Oct 19 | 23 min read).

TOOLS & PROJECTS

• New on Geyser: 2140 dot Wtf and Cyphermunk House host Bitcoin Culture Festival 2025 in London, featuring documentary screenings, art exhibitions, tech discussions, and Halloween parties from October 29 to November 5.

• New on Geyser: What Bitcoin Taught Me leverages AI to curate and simplify Bitcoin knowledge from leading thinkers, using repetition across multiple platforms to make complex concepts accessible for learners at every level.

• Peach Bitcoin launches a BTCPay Server plugin enabling merchants to sell BTC directly from their hot wallet via encrypted P2P trades without KYC requirements or third-party custody.

• Blockschmiede turns bitcoin gifting into self-custody with a near field communication (NFC) gift card and Lightning Network wallet, enabling PIN protection, on-chain swaps, and celebrating 21M scarcity.

• Spark Lightning Address Doxxer is a web application that extracts underlying Spark addresses from Lightning addresses and invoices, exposing the privacy-related shortcomings of Lightspark's L2.

• River introduces supercharged recurring buys that automatically double bitcoin purchases during price dips, combining consistent dollar-cost averaging with strategic dip buying at zero fees.

• Trezor, the company behind the first hardware wallet, launches Safe 7 featuring fully auditable secure element TROPIC01 and quantum-ready architecture for enhanced Bitcoin security.

• Shakepay, a Canadian bitcoin platform, launches Lightning network withdrawals enabling instant bitcoin transactions with lower fees and enhanced convenience for everyday use.

• Jack Mallers, Strike CEO and Bitcoin advocate, says his company is working on a BTC-secured line of credit for Lightning payments and bills, enabling living on Bitcoin without holding fiat currency.

• Orange Pill App launches a City Feeds feature showing active members within 3 days in major cities, and an improved chat media picker for easier GIF sharing.

• Bull Bitcoin launches its BULL Wallet worldwide on iOS and Android, offering an open source, self-custodial, and Bitcoin-only solution with Lightning and Liquid network support, atomic swaps, and privacy features.

• Alby, a Bitcoin payments company, unveils refreshed brand identity featuring simplified bee logo, calmer color palette, and unified visual language across their Hub, Extension, and Go products to reflect the company's evolution beyond a browser extension into comprehensive bitcoin payment solutions.

• PlebLab and Yopaki partner to bring Startup Day Yucatán 2025 to Mérida, launching White Paper House as a builder hub while showcasing Bitcoin payment solutions and startup innovations across Mexico.

• Bitcoin++ Consensus Edition brings together protocol developers and open-source contributors in Toronto, Canada on July 22-24, 2026, focusing on consensus mechanisms and pressing Bitcoin network topics at The Great Hall.

• CCNS is a Nostr-focused community platform that enables link aggregation, curation, and discussion.

• Nostr Writer is a plugin that enables publishing from Obsidian markdown editor to Nostr, offering writers ownership, direct monetization, and freedom from platform censorship.

• Angor, a Bitcoin-based crowdfunding platform, launches version 2.0 with enhanced security through native apps, simplified funding for small contributions, flexible project timelines, and improved user experience for mainstream adoption.

• Noscall is a secure voice and video calling app built on Nostr, compatible with NIP-100 clients like 0xchat, available on iOS and Android.

• HAVEN Kit is a streamlined tool that enables users to deploy Nostr relays with simple clicks, featuring custom configuration UI and Umbrel support for easy setup.

• SatShoot is a Bitcoin and Nostr-powered freelance marketplace designed to eliminate platform capture and create unstoppable economic opportunities.

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