# LayerZero Jumps 16% as Smaller Cryptocurrencies Steal the Spotlight

> Pyth and Filecoin join LayerZero’s rally while Bitcoin slips. Meta and Salesforce rise, chip stocks retreat, and IonQ falls after a $1.3 billion deal.

By Lidia Yadlos · October 12, 2026

Canonical: https://blockster.com/layerzero-jumps-16-as-smaller-cryptocurrencies-steal-the-spotlight

Bitcoin was staying cool on Monday. Some smaller cryptocurrencies were doing anything but.

LayerZero’s ZRO traded around **$2.36, up 16.26%**, in the morning snapshot used for this report. Pyth Network rose **10.76% to $0.085444**, while Filecoin gained **9.01% to $1.21**. Bitcoin slipped **0.69% to $82,489**.

The split extended to stocks. Meta and Salesforce were higher, while Nvidia, Micron and IonQ moved lower. For investors watching both markets through the same trading apps, Monday offered a reminder: a strong move in one part of the digital economy does not mean everything connected to it is rising.

## LayerZero takes the lead as the cryptocurrency market splits

The gap between ZRO and Bitcoin was the clearest feature of this snapshot. A double-digit advance in LayerZero arrived alongside a modest decline in the largest cryptocurrency, giving the session a more selective character than a broad market rally.

[LayerZero builds infrastructure for moving assets across blockchains](https://layerzero.network/). That puts it in the plumbing of the multichain economy: the systems issuers and applications use when activity extends beyond a single network. Its token’s performance on Monday was striking, but the price move alone does not establish a new adoption milestone or identify one announcement as its cause.

Pyth and Filecoin added two different infrastructure stories to the winners’ list. [Pyth supplies financial price data](https://www.pyth.network/), while [Filecoin operates a decentralized storage network](https://www.filecoin.io/). They serve different purposes, and their gains should not be treated as evidence of a single shared catalyst.

[Post from @PythNetwork on X](https://twitter.com/PythNetwork/status/2108203369340993767)

The larger names were mixed. Ethereum edged up **0.64% to $2,521.29**, but Solana fell **0.96% to $108.60** and XRP dropped **2.14% to $1.37**. Ethereum’s small gain was a very different move from the double-digit advances in ZRO and PYTH.

![October 12 cryptocurrency snapshot: LayerZero +16.26%, Pyth +10.76%, Filecoin +9.01%, Ethereum +0.64%, Bitcoin −0.69%, Solana −0.96%, XRP −2.14%, Starknet −16.98%.](https://ik.imagekit.io/blockster/studio/inline/a76138f6-0f1b-4063-80e9-13c06076fa0e/decaaf09-194c-407f-8d9d-dee920ba0453.png)

_Cryptocurrency figures were retrieved around 10:58 a.m. ET on October 12. Changes use the data provider’s previous-close reference, rather than a rolling 24-hour comparison. Quotes may be delayed._

## Starknet shows how quickly leadership can change

Starknet sat at the other end of Monday’s table: **STRK fell 16.98% to $0.093320** against the provider’s previous-close reference.

That follows [Friday’s rally, when Blockster covered Starknet’s consideration of becoming an independent Layer 1](https://blockster.com/starknet-jumps-25-ethereum-quantum-security-market-moves) to accelerate its quantum-security ambitions. The proposal was under consideration, not an approved migration.

The comparison needs care. Friday’s article captured STRK at approximately $0.0748. Monday’s $0.0933 snapshot was still above that level, despite the sharp negative daily reading. Different observation times and reference prices explain why “down nearly 17%” does not mean it had surrendered every gain since Friday’s report.

The more useful question is whether traders continue supporting the network’s longer-term security story after the initial repricing. One rally, or one pullback, cannot answer that.

## Meta and Salesforce rise while chips lose ground

In the equity snapshot, **Meta gained 3.59% to $744.50** and **Salesforce climbed 2.74% to $235.41**. Nvidia fell **1.68% to $225.42**, while Micron dropped **4.55% to $982.20**.

[Bank of America double-upgraded Salesforce from Underperform to Buy](https://www.barrons.com/articles/salesforce-stock-buy-double-upgrade-ai-c22d8a50), raising its price target to $285 from $160. The shift reflected a more favorable view of the company’s enterprise AI strategy and the durability of its role inside large organizations.

For memory chips, competition was in focus. [Barron’s reported that Micron and other memory names were under pressure](https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-movers-df731e29) after Chinese rival CXMT described progress on a competing chip design. That provides context for Micron’s decline; it should not be assumed to explain every move across the semiconductor sector.

[Post from @StockMKTNewz on X](https://twitter.com/StockMKTNewz/status/2109627931978817922)

The broader setting was unsettled. [Reuters reported Brent crude above $106 a barrel](https://www.reuters.com/business/us-stock-futures-muted-oil-stays-above-100-ahead-earnings-2026-10-12/), with investors preparing for major bank earnings and U.S. inflation data this week. Higher oil and a busy earnings calendar leave room for company-specific winners even when the overall market struggles for direction.

![October 12 stocks: Meta +3.59%, Salesforce +2.74%, Nvidia −1.68%, Micron −4.55%, IonQ −8.95%, with verified Kraken share and xStocks access.](https://ik.imagekit.io/blockster/studio/inline/a76138f6-0f1b-4063-80e9-13c06076fa0e/9b638ea1-6751-4497-a0a0-f3ab4c651cb3.png)

_Stock quotes are from approximately 10:42–10:43 a.m. ET on October 12. Percentage changes are measured against the previous close. The prices shown are for the underlying U.S. shares._

## IonQ’s $1.3 billion deal meets a falling share price

IonQ was the largest decliner in this stock selection, falling **8.95% to $36.32**. The move came as the company announced an agreement to acquire cybersecurity business Elisity in an [all-stock transaction valued at up to $1.3 billion](https://ionq.com/news/ionq-to-acquire-elisity-to-accelerate-zero-trust-for-the-quantum-era).

> “Elisity will bring proven enterprise policy enforcement scale and deployment experience to our quantum security strategy.”

That was how IonQ chairman and CEO Niccolo de Masi described the strategic fit. The company plans to combine its quantum-security capabilities with Elisity’s enterprise security platform.

The announcement connects to a theme already visible in crypto: preparing systems for future quantum threats. But a compelling technology strategy and a positive immediate stock reaction are separate things. Monday’s price action made that distinction clear.

[Post from @MSBIntel on X](https://twitter.com/MSBIntel/status/2109607514304401700)

## Where crypto-platform users can buy the stocks

Kraken’s U.S. share service lists all five companies in the stock table: [Meta](https://www.kraken.com/stocks/meta), [Salesforce](https://www.kraken.com/stocks/crm), [Nvidia](https://www.kraken.com/stocks/nvda), [Micron](https://www.kraken.com/stocks/mu) and [IonQ](https://www.kraken.com/stocks/ionq). Availability is subject to account eligibility and geographic restrictions.

For eligible customers outside the United States, Kraken also lists [METAx, CRMx and NVDAx](https://www.kraken.com/xstocks). Those are tokenized products providing exposure to the underlying stocks. They do not give holders direct shareholder rights, and their traded prices can differ from the share quotes above.

The table marks verified access routes rather than an exhaustive list of brokers. Blockster’s [exchange comparison guide](https://blockster.com/crypto-exchange-guide-compare-stocks-ai-trading-rewards-and-borrowing) explains the differences between conventional shares, tokenized stocks and derivatives across platforms.

Monday’s strongest message was the dispersion itself. LayerZero, Pyth and Filecoin were advancing while Bitcoin slipped; software stocks found support as several hardware and quantum names weakened. The headline market direction was only part of the story.