Cramer Dumps MSTR, Boosts Bitcoin; DeepSeek AI Sparks Sell-Off

Jim Cramer, a prominent financial analyst and host of CNBC's "Mad Money," has recently advised against investing in MicroStrategy (MSTR) while simultaneously encouraging his audience to consider owning Bitcoin. This stance has sparked interest and debate among investors and crypto enthusiasts alike.

Cramer's advice against MicroStrategy comes as the company continues to accumulate Bitcoin, with its latest purchase totaling $1.1 billion. Despite this significant investment, MicroStrategy's stock (MSTR) experienced a nearly 6% decline in premarket trading, coinciding with a broader downturn in the crypto market. This decline may be attributed to the launch of an affordable and open-source AI model by DeepSeek, a Chinese startup, which caused a general sell-off in the market.

Meanwhile, Cramer's endorsement of Bitcoin has been met with mixed reactions. Some investors view Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation and a store of value, while others remain skeptical of its volatility and regulatory risks. However, Cramer's advice highlights the growing interest in and acceptance of Bitcoin as a legitimate asset class among mainstream investors.

In other news, Ripple's Chief Technology Officer (CTO), David Schwartz, has shut down debates about XRP centralization. He argued that Ripple's role in the XRP ecosystem is minimal, and the company does not control the XRP Ledger. This statement comes amidst ongoing discussions about the decentralization of XRP and its potential impact on the cryptocurrency's regulatory status.

Additionally, Stellar (XLM) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) have been listed as prime trading pairs against Circle's stablecoin, USDC, on the Bitget exchange. This development signals a growing acceptance of USDC as a viable alternative to Tether's USDT, the largest stablecoin by market capitalization. The listing of these popular cryptocurrencies alongside USDC may further boost the stablecoin's adoption and usage in the crypto market.