Crypto News Today: Dalio Backs Bitcoin, BTC Eyes $126K, MANTRA Crashes 18%

Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio is urging investors to favor gold and "a bit of Bitcoin" over bonds, warning that the United States could face a debt crisis within roughly three years. Speaking Friday, the billionaire investor recommended allocating 10% to 15% of portfolios to gold to reduce risk, while overweighting gold and Bitcoin relative to debt assets. Dalio pointed to mounting political and geopolitical tensions as key drivers of his caution. Though historically skeptical of Bitcoin—arguing it cannot replace gold as a store of value—he has gradually warmed to BTC, calling a 1% to 2% allocation "reasonable" back in 2022.

Standard Chartered's Geoff Kendrick now says his $100,000 year-end Bitcoin forecast may be "too low," with BTC potentially challenging its all-time high of $126,000 before year-end. In a Friday research note, the bank's global head of digital assets attributed the recent rally largely to short liquidations and recovering inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs. Low open interest, he added, could give room for sidelined investors to return as prices climb. Standard Chartered had previously cut its Bitcoin target from $150,000 and its Ether target from $7,500 in February.

MANTRA's native token sank 18.5% from its 24-hour high to a record low shortly before the MANTRA Chain blockchain halted block production. The team announced a precautionary pause following an unexplained incident, triggering heavy selling across the OM token. The episode adds to a volatile week across altcoins, with XLM surging over 10% and HYPE climbing 8.58%, while BTC traded near $77,379 and BNB rose 5.14% amid broader market recovery.