Emerging blockchains like Stable and Monad highlight the shifting dynamics in DeFi, challenging established players and attracting new capital.

The post Stable leads blockchains in 30-day TVL growth, Monad hits $621M after Aave deployment appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Fink's bullish stance on Bitcoin's stability may drive institutional adoption, reshaping crypto's role in traditional finance markets.

The post BlackRock CEO Larry Fink expresses bullish outlook on bitcoin’s stability appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The resumed blockade heightens global energy market volatility, increases shipping costs, and pressures Iran towards alternative trade solutions.

The post Fewer vessels travel through Hormuz as US resumes blockade appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Rising drone threats in Kuwait could destabilize regional security, influencing military strategies and prediction market dynamics.

The post Kuwait air defenses counter drone threats amid US-Iran tensions appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The dual approach of military escalation and diplomatic gestures may alter U.S.-Iran relations, impacting regional stability and global markets.

The post Trump expands military strikes on Iran, releases detained US citizen appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin to $40,000? If History’s Anything to Go By, It’s Possible, Says Report

Bitcoin has underperformed compared to other “risk-on” assets this year — and if history’s anything to go by, its price could dip as low as $38,000 by October. 

That’s according to a new report by NYDIG, which reveals that the asset’s current slump is down to supply mechanics rather than risk sentiment. 

Bitcoin’s price has in the past moved with tech stocks but 2026 has been different: AI-related equities have soared while crypto markets have slumped. Bitcoin was recently priced at $64,809, down nearly 30% year-to-date and close to 50% less than its October all-time high of $126,080. 

“Bitcoin’s 2025–2026 drawdown is bringing the 4-year cycle narrative back into focus, because the timing and structure increasingly resemble the prior reset years of 2014, 2018, and 2022 even though the path has not matched those drawdowns exactly,” the report read. 

NYDIG revealed that Bitcoin’s year-to-date performance makes it the worst-performing asset — losing out against US treasuries, silver, and currencies like the Swiss Franc. 

It added that if Bitcoin’s price action were to match other drawdowns — like the bear market of 2022 — a “potential cycle low near $38k-$39k” was possible. 

The good news: Bitcoin had its least volatile year ever in 2025, and some analysts opining that this year’s drawdown may be shallower than in previous bear markets. 

Is Bitcoin digital gold?

NYDIG added that Bitcoin’s rolling correlation with gold increased during 2026’s second quarter, with both assets experiencing sell-offs. 

Bitcoin has been correlated to the precious metal in the past and Bitcoiners have described the top digital coin as “digital gold.” 

But the asset last year was more correlated with US equities — especially tech stocks. 

NYDIG added that other commodities experienced sell-offs in the second quarter of 2026, with the so-called debasement trade losing momentum. Traders in 2025 spoke of the “debasement trade” as a hot move to hedge against the dollar — and other fiat currencies — losing value. 

Bitwise said in a report last week that while Bitcoin closed Q2 2026 in its deepest and longest downturn since the last bear market, the fundamentals are in place for a quick recovery, with regulators passing crypto-friendly legislation. 

NYDIG added that the passing of the market-structure CLARITY Act “is the most important forward catalyst for the digital asset industry.”

“For Bitcoin, CLARITY’s direct price impact is less significant than for altcoins and crypto equities, but the investment implication remains material because a clearer U.S. market-structure regime would benefit the entire industry,” it noted. 

This post Bitcoin to $40,000? If History’s Anything to Go By, It’s Possible, Says Report first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.

Bitcoin Magazine

President Trump To Meet Senators On Clarity Act’s Ethics Fight: Report

President Donald Trump plans to meet with a group of senators at the White House on Thursday afternoon to address the last major obstacle to the crypto market structure bill, according to people familiar with the plans that spoke to Politico and lawmakers involved in the talks.

The sticking point is the ethics section of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which would restrict senior government officials from holding personal business interests in the crypto sector. Democrats have made such limits a condition of their support, in large part to address Trump’s own ties to the industry. 

Negotiators have not reached a compromise, and the Senate calendar leaves a narrow window.

Senator Bernie Moreno, an Ohio Republican in the negotiations, said the senators will brief the president on the bill and its “path to success.”

“We’ll be talking about the entirety of the bill. I mean, obviously the president’s been very engaged in this bill,” Moreno said. “He’s the one who’s really driven the innovation that I think will pay dividends.”

Trump’s crypto disclosures as the Clarity Act teeters

Clarity’s fate may hinge on what Trump will accept, and on whether he will support a bill that restricts his own businesses. He has pressed the Senate to pass the legislation, though he has not stated which conflict-of-interest terms he will sign into law. His disclosure that he made more than $1 billion from crypto involvement in 2025 gave critics fresh ammunition.

The bill cleared the Senate Banking Committee in a 15-9 vote, with Democrats Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks joining Republicans to advance it. Both said in May they would not back final passage without an ethics provision. During the committee markup, an amendment from Senator Chris Van Hollen to bar the president, vice president and members of Congress from crypto business ties failed 11-13.

On Tuesday, a group of Democratic senators held a press conference to call for opposition to Clarity if it does not sever what they term Trump’s “corrupt” ties to the sector. Gallego, who has led the ethics negotiation for months, was not among them.

Timing on the revised text remains open. Senator Cynthia Lummis, a Wyoming Republican and a chief architect of the bill, said a draft could circulate as soon as Wednesday, but that senators were weighing whether to include the ethics language or bracket it for later.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he hopes to bring the bill to the floor before the work period ends August 7. Asked whether he would hold a vote absent a deal with Democrats, Thune said, “at some point, we’ll vote on it, yeah.”

The chamber breaks for its summer recess after the first week of August, which opens a narrow stretch to finish Clarity before members turn to the November midterms. Galaxy Research put the odds of passage at 50-50 as the clock runs down.

This post President Trump To Meet Senators On Clarity Act’s Ethics Fight: Report first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Traders Took $8.2 Million From Polymarket’s Five-Minute Bitcoin Bets, Study Found

A new study argued that Polymarket’s five-minute Bitcoin contract became a machine for wealth transfer. It moved money from retail bettors to a small band of manipulators, and it made Bitcoin’s spot price worse in the process.

The paper, “Settlement Manipulation in Prediction Markets” by David Dai, Ruizhe Jia, and Shihao Yu of Stanford and Singapore Management University, studied a product that did not exist before February 12, 2026. 

On that date Polymarket launched a binary contract that paid $1 if Bitcoin closed a five-minute window above where it opened, and $0 otherwise. A fresh contract opened every five minutes around the clock. 

Within months, Polymarket’s five- and fifteen-minute crypto up/down markets traded more than $4 billion and tripled the platform’s daily volume. The flaw in polymarket was when the contract settled against a Chainlink oracle that averaged Bitcoin’s price across major spot exchanges. 

A trader who held the contract could buy or sell real Bitcoin in the closing seconds, drag that reference price across the strike, and win the bet.

The oracle’s blend of exchanges looked like a defense, because moving it seemed to require moving many venues at once. The authors showed it was not much of a defense. Binance, the largest crypto exchange, sat about two and a half basis points from the oracle and moved near one-for-one with it. It finished on the same side of the strike as the resolution about 85%of the time. A push that drove the Binance price a few basis points past the strike carried the outcome.

The pattern was in the Binance data. After the five-minute contract went live, net order flow in the final ten seconds before each close jumped about 50% above the pre-launch level. The spike was sharpest where a push mattered: in the 6% of cycles the market judged near-even, the jump was about 3.9 times the rest.

The reversal gave it away. Real information stays in a price; a manipulative push does not. Within ten seconds the price reverted, by about a quarter in the near-even cycles. The pushes clustered in thin hours, when a dollar of flow moved the price the most: 56% landed overnight and 44%on weekends.

Who won, who paid with these Polymarket bets

In near-even cycles, a push against the favored side flipped the winner 65% of the time, against 41% in normal trading. Even when one side held a 90-to-100% chance before the close, a push against it reversed the outcome 34% of the time, against 1% in cycles with no push. A bet the market treated as near-certain lost one time in three.

Because Polymarket settled on a public blockchain, the authors traced each wallet. Just 821 traders fit the manipulator profile, about one in three hundred of the 243,000 who traded the contract. They took $8.2 million in the pushed cycles and broke even in the rest. Of the losses, 93% fell on retail.

The authors ruled out hedging as the innocent explanation. A binary contract carried little exposure to hedge once one side was near-certain, yet those were the cycles a push flipped. And the trades arrived in one burst in the final fifty seconds, not as a position built over the window.

The remedy

The fix was the contract’s horizon. Manipulation was absent from the fifteen-minute contract, because a longer window took in more ordinary trading before the close and made a fixed push a weaker force. The stakes reached past crypto: Nasdaq and Cboe each filed with the SEC to list binary asset-price contracts on equity indices, which would carry the same risk onto larger markets.

This post Traders Took $8.2 Million From Polymarket’s Five-Minute Bitcoin Bets, Study Found first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Price Jumps Over $65,500 on Soft Inflation Data 

The Bitcoin price jumped over $65,500 on Wednesday after US inflation data showed that producer prices fell in June. 

Data from the Labor Department showed that the Producer Price Index posted its biggest decline in 14 months. The PPI, excluding food and energy, fell 0.3% in June, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers. 

Bitcoin’s price was recently trading at $64,943, a 2% 24-hour jump. 

The Bitcoin price has typically surged when signs inflation is cooling emerge as investors then expect a bigger chance of lower interest rates. Crypto, stocks and other “risk-on” assets have in the past done well in a low-interest rate environment. 

Still, the cooling inflation does not take into account the latest escalation in the US-Iran war: President Trump this week said the US would take control over the Strait of Hormuz. 

On Wednesday, the US leader vowed to intensify the bombing until Tehran stops attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz and agrees to open the waterway. 

“We’re going to hit [Iran] very hard the night after,” President Trump told Fox News on Tuesday. “And then next week it gets really bad for them because next week comes the power plants.”

“The only way you can negotiate with these people is through strength,” he added. 

Bitcoin’s price has faced increased volatility since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, with the leading cryptocurrency dropping hard on initial reports of war.

Since the start of the year, the leading cryptocurrency has shed nearly 30% of its value, and is now close to 50% below the $126,080 record it notched in October. 

Downwards pressure has been added to the Bitcoin price as US investors fast cashed out of spot exchange-traded funds throughout the month of June as inflation uncertainties and a boom in artificial intelligence-related stocks has led speculators to put their cash elsewhere.

Bitcoin price jumps on cooler inflation numbers

Figures released on Tuesday from June’s Consumer Price Index also showed that inflation appeared to be easing in the US, also leading to a jump in the Bitcoin price. 

Over a seven-day period, Bitcoin’s price has traded from $61,507 to as high as $65,501. 

Traders are now keeping an eye on what new Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh — who’s typically been an inflation hawk in the past — will do while leading the central bank. 

The new Chair told congress this week that the Federal Reserve has “no tolerance for persistently elevated inflation,” and that policy makers at the bank share “a resolute commitment to restoring price stability.”

Kevin Warsh was sworn in as the new central bank chief in May. The former Federal Reserve governor has said he wanted to lower the cost of borrowing but markets initially priced him in as a hawk — someone who would raise interest rates to tackle inflation. 

At the time of writing, the bitcoin price is near $65,000.

This post Bitcoin Price Jumps Over $65,500 on Soft Inflation Data  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.

Bitcoin Magazine

VerifiedX and BitGo Sign MOU to Deliver Qualified Custody for vBTC, Expanding Institutional Access to Native Bitcoin Utility, and with Immediate Support for Non-Synthetic Canonical on Base

VerifiedX today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with BitGo to provide qualified custody support for vBTC, with immediate support for vBTC.b, the non-synthetic canonical Bitcoin asset issued through the VerifiedX Network and deployed on Base. The partnership represents a significant milestone in bringing institutional-grade custody, compliance, and security standards to programmable Bitcoin while preserving direct redemption to native Bitcoin.

Under the agreement, institutions, asset managers, family offices, corporations, and professional allocators will be able to custody vBTC upon final integration and can now immediately custody vBTC.b through BitGo’s qualified custody infrastructure while accessing the utility of Bitcoin across decentralized finance, payments, collateralization, treasury operations, and on-chain vaulting with recovery features.

Unlike traditional wrapped Bitcoin products, vBTC.b is designed as a fully collateralized non-synthetic on-chain and consensus embedded Bitcoin token with native redemption built directly into the asset architecture without any counterparty or federation reliance. Holders can redeem directly back to Bitcoin without requiring the asset to first be unwound back through the VerifiedX network, creating a seamless institutional experience across Base and Bitcoin liquidity ecosystems.

“Institutions have consistently told us they want two things: qualified custody and non-synthetic productive Bitcoin,” said Jay Pollak, Head of Strategy at the VerifiedX Foundation. “This partnership delivers both. With BitGo’s best-in-class institutional custody infrastructure and vBTC.b’s native Bitcoin redemption model, allocators can maintain institutional-grade security while activating their Bitcoin across a growing ecosystem of applications and opportunities.”

Institutional Bitcoin Without Synthetic Risk

As Bitcoin continues to mature as a treasury and reserve asset, institutions increasingly seek ways to generate utility from their holdings without sacrificing security, transparency, or redemption certainty.

vBTC.b addresses these requirements through a framework that combines:

• Native Bitcoin
• Direct Bitcoin redemption
• Qualified custody support
• Institutional-grade compliance tooling
• On-chain transparency
• Self-custodial programmability
• Cross-ecosystem interoperability

The result is an asset that enables institutions to move beyond passive Bitcoin ownership and participate in productive and programmable financial infrastructure while maintaining real native ownership to the underlying Bitcoin asset.

Activating Bitcoin Capital

Through vBTC.b, institutions can utilize Bitcoin across a broad range of applications including:

• Curated institutional yield vaults
• Bitcoin-backed lending and borrowing
• Treasury optimization
• Digital collateral management
• Settlement infrastructure
• Automated payment workflows
• Agentic and AI-powered financial systems
• Cross-chain liquidity deployment
• Bitcoin-native commerce and payments

Because vBTC.b remains redeemable to Bitcoin at the protocol level, institutions can maintain confidence that utility does not come at the expense of redemption rights or trade-offs, while reducing counterparty risks and smart contract vulnerabilities, and eliminating rehypothecation at the protocol level.

Security and Compliance First

The partnership combines VerifiedX’s programmable Bitcoin infrastructure with BitGo’s industry-leading custody platform.

BitGo currently safeguards more than $49 billion in Bitcoin under custody, with an overall estimate of digital asset custody levels exceeding $100 billion during peak periods, making it one of the largest digital asset custodians globally. The company provides regulated qualified custody services, institutional security controls, cold storage infrastructure, and insurance protections utilized by some of the world’s largest digital asset participants.

VerifiedX complements this foundation through integrated compliance tooling, transaction monitoring capabilities, auditability features, and institutional controls designed to satisfy modern operational and regulatory requirements.

Building the Financial Operating System for Bitcoin

The BitGo relationship represents another step in VerifiedX’s mission to build the financial operating system for Bitcoin and intelligent assets.

Through the VerifiedX ecosystem, Bitcoin can be transformed from a passive store of value into a programmable financial asset capable of supporting payments, lending, settlement, collateralization, tokenization, AI-driven automation, and next-generation financial infrastructure.

As institutions increasingly seek secure native plumbing to deploy Bitcoin capital, the combination of BitGo qualified custody and vBTC.b provides a framework designed to meet institutional standards without sacrificing Bitcoin’s core principles of ownership, redemption, and utility.

Additional details regarding custody availability, onboarding, and supported institutional products will be announced as the partnership progresses.

About VerifiedX

VerifiedX is a financial operating system for Bitcoin and intelligent assets, enabling self-custodial ownership, instant settlement, programmable finance, native Bitcoin utility, and agentic financial infrastructure. Through products including vBTC, BFLY, and PulseXAI, VerifiedX connects institutions, users, and autonomous systems through a unified blockchain ecosystem framework.

Its ecosystem includes:

• vBTC & vBTC.b (BTC)
• BFLY payments and click to earn infrastructure
• SwitchBlade wallet technology
• PulseXAI generative and tokenized intelligence 
• Institutional settlement architecture
• Privacy-enabled transactions and programmable assets
• Canonical interoperability systems

 Further VerifiedX Inquiries:

Website: https://verifiedx.io/

Discord: https://discord.gg/7cd5ebDQCj

Twitter (X)): https://twitter.com/vfxblockchain

Github: https://github.com/verifiedxblockchain

Email: info@verifiedx.io

PulseXAI and BFLY are trademarks of VerifiedX. Copyright 2026 VerifiedX. All rights reserved.

This post VerifiedX and BitGo Sign MOU to Deliver Qualified Custody for vBTC, Expanding Institutional Access to Native Bitcoin Utility, and with Immediate Support for Non-Synthetic Canonical on Base first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Bitcoin Magazine.

ZachXBT recently argued that a dedicated iPhone offers better security than a hardware wallet, a line of reasoning that already splits crypto's security community.

Both devices are fundamentally signing devices, and the real vulnerability crypto has spent a decade building around lives in what a valid signature gets to do once it exists.

Hardware wallets address the moment when malware might extract a private key directly from an internet-connected computer, providing real and effective isolation.

Crypto's largest recent losses occurred at a different point in the same chain: the moment a user approves the transaction.

When the key stays safe and the money moves

Attackers stole roughly $1.5 billion from Bybit by manipulating what the signers saw on their screens, collecting legitimate signatures for a transaction the signers believed was routine.

The hardware wallets involved couldn't display enough of the transaction's meaning for anyone to catch the swap before approving it.

Radiant Capital lost roughly $50 million in the same way months earlier, when developers using hardware wallets signed a malicious transaction during a workflow that looked completely normal on their screens.

In both cases, the failure sat in what those signatures authorized.

Chainalysis counted roughly 158,000 individual wallet compromises in 2025, affecting 80,000 victims and totaling $713 million in losses, a mix of attack types spanning far more than any single device category.

The scale is still wide enough to show that key isolation covers only part of the self-custody problem.

Where the iPhone argument gets complicated

A dedicated iPhone brings a hardened operating system, app sandboxing, biometric locks, and a screen large enough to show more than a hardware wallet's tiny display.

It can also operate completely independently of the email, messaging, and browser extensions running on someone's main device.

A purpose-built hardware wallet still isolates its key through silicon designed for that job. Apple's Secure Enclave signs with NIST P-256 keys, while Bitcoin and Ethereum use a separate standard, secp256k1.

That gap means a typical BTC or ETH wallet app tends to use the Secure Enclave to guard access to encrypted wallet material, with the blockchain signature generated elsewhere in the software stack, depending on how each wallet is built.

Apple's review process still lets bad wallet software through occasionally. A fake Ledger application that bypassed the Mac App Store's review was linked to over $9.5 million in thefts from over 50 victims in April 2026 on Mac, as ZachXBT found.

Clear signing fixes the display problem

The industry's current answer is ERC-7730, which lets protocols supply machine-readable instructions that translate a raw contract call into plain language, replacing an opaque hash with the assets, permissions, and intent behind a transaction.

Ledger helped build the standard and has now handed its governance to the Ethereum Foundation, aiming to make it a standard the whole wallet industry shares.

Trail of Bits has proposed extending the fix to a second stage, building restrictions directly into smart contract wallets so that a captured or mistaken signature moves only what the wallet's own rules allow.

The proposed toolkit includes daily spending limits, allowlisted destinations, withdrawal delays on large transfers, separate keys for everyday spending versus policy changes, and an emergency window to cancel a transaction before it finalizes.

Chainalysis's Hexagate product pushes the same idea for organizations, running pre-signing simulations that flag transactions against a company's own policy before anyone signs.

A policy wallet that caps daily transfers at $100,000 to approved addresses reduces failures, and adding a 24-hour delay to anything above that cap can bring the realistic loss close to zero if the attempt is caught in time.

This still leaves real gaps, and Bitcoin security specialist Jameson Lopp continues to recommend dedicated hardware for cold storage, since pulling a key off any internet-connected device closes off a huge range of remote attacks.

For straightforward Bitcoin storage with occasional transfers, that threat model stays about as clean as security gets.

Cold storage and active transaction signing have become two different problems now, each needing its own answer.

Constrained keys meet real attackers

If policy-enforcing wallets become standard for serious balances, smart accounts, spending caps, and pre-signing checks turn a valid signature into something short of unlimited authority.

Self-custody is looking like a programmable risk system, with theft capped by deliberate design.
If attackers adapt their phishing, fake apps, and social-engineering flows to the new interfaces, users end up approving clearer, better-labeled transactions that are still dangerous.

That outcome would prove that showing people more information solves less than restricting what a valid key can do.

Pure self-custody meant a valid key could move everything on command. The wallets built next may trade some of that instant control for a way to contain a mistake before it becomes a total loss.

The post Is using an old iPhone safer than a crypto hardware wallet? ZachXBT thinks so appeared first on CryptoSlate.

BlackRock generated $82 million in revenue from its digital-asset products during the first half of 2026, even as falling Bitcoin and Ethereum prices erased nearly $30 billion from the assets supporting the business.

The world's largest asset manager recorded $42 million in digital-asset base fees and securities-lending revenue in the first quarter, followed by $40 million in the three months ended June 30.

The results extend a lucrative expansion into cryptocurrency products that began with the launch of BlackRock's spot Bitcoin and ETH exchange-traded funds in 2024. These funds generated about $174 million in net sponsor fees last year as digital-asset prices and investor demand surged.

Revenue proved more resilient during this year's downturn because BlackRock collected fees on average balances that remained substantially higher than the amount held at the end of the second quarter.

BlackRock's Q2 filing showed average digital-asset assets under management of $67.74 billion in the first quarter and $61.48 billion in the second. The balance had fallen to $48.84 billion by June 30.

That difference softened the immediate revenue impact. Second-quarter digital-asset fees declined by just $2 million, or about 5%, from the previous three months, even as ending assets dropped almost 20%.

Crypto price declines, not withdrawals, drove the decline

The resilience of BlackRock's fee income masked a sharp contraction in the assets generating it. Data from CryptoSlate showed that BTC and ETH declined by more than 26% respectively since the beginning of this year.

As a result, BlackRock's digital-asset AUM fell 38% during the first half of the year, declining to $48.84 billion from $78.44 billion at the end of December.

Most of the damage came from the market rout rather than investor redemptions. BlackRock attributed $27.4 billion of the decline to lower asset prices, compared with $2.18 billion of net withdrawals and an $11 million foreign-exchange effect. This means that market depreciation accounted for roughly 93% of the total reduction.

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Nearly $1 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated as weakening spot demand pushed Bitcoin below $75,000.

May 23, 2026 · Oluwapelumi Adejumo

The pattern was evident from the start of the year. BlackRock's crypto products attracted about $934 million in the first quarter, yet assets fell to $60.67 billion by March 31 as the value of the Bitcoin and ETH held by the funds declined.

Conditions weakened further in the second quarter. Investors pulled $3.12 billion from the products, more than reversing the inflows recorded during the first three months, while market movements erased another $8.71 billion. Digital-asset AUM consequently dropped 19.5% between March and June.

The two pressures worked differently. Redemptions reduced the amount of capital invested in the products, while lower cryptocurrency prices diminished the value of the remaining assets. Because BlackRock's spot funds track their underlying tokens, their assets can contract sharply even without equivalent investor redemptions.

BlackRock's flagship Bitcoin and Ethereum funds reflected that sensitivity. Their balances declined substantially from their start-of-year levels, then recovered somewhat after the second quarter as Bitcoin rebounded toward $65,000 in July.

By mid-July, the iShares Bitcoin Trust and iShares Ethereum Trust held a combined total of about $52.6 billion, recouping only part of the losses sustained earlier in the year.

BlackRock looks beyond spot ETFs for its next revenue leg

The contraction in BlackRock’s cryptocurrency funds has not altered its longer-term expansion plans. It has instead increased the importance of businesses that could generate digital-asset revenue without depending as heavily on rising Bitcoin and Ethereum prices.

Chief Financial Officer Martin Small said on the earnings call that BlackRock has about $110 billion in assets tied to digital markets and aims for the segment to generate $500 million in annual revenue by 2030.

This revenue target would be roughly three times the annualized pace implied by the $82 million generated during the first half of this year. Reaching it will require BlackRock to expand beyond fees collected from spot cryptocurrency ETFs.

Small outlined three areas of focus: connecting regulated investment products to digital markets, managing reserves backing stablecoins, and placing traditional investment products on blockchain networks.

Related Reading

BlackRock says your crypto wallet can’t hold real investments — and plans to change that

Larry Fink says there is still “very little access” to traditional investment products in digital wallets, and BlackRock plans to change that.

Mar 24, 2026 · Gino Matos

BlackRock has already broadened its investment lineup beyond IBIT and ETHA. The company launched the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF in February, giving investors exposure to ETH and a portion of the rewards generated by staking the token.

It followed in June with the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, which combines Bitcoin exposure with an options strategy intended to generate monthly income.

Those products widen the fees BlackRock can earn from cryptocurrency investors, but their assets remain sensitive to market prices and investor sentiment.

The larger potential shift lies in reserve management and tokenization, where BlackRock could earn revenue from digital-market infrastructure without relying entirely on a recovery in Bitcoin or Ethereum price.

BlackRock manages about $60 billion of reserves for Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, Small said. The amount represents almost one-fifth of the roughly $310 billion stablecoin market,

The company is seeking similar mandates from other issuers as the sector expands. Such arrangements could generate management fees from the cash, Treasury securities and other assets backing stablecoins, allowing BlackRock to benefit from growth in digital payments even when demand for speculative cryptocurrency products weakens.

Reserve management also fits BlackRock's existing money-market and cash-management operations. Stablecoin issuers require liquid assets that can support customer redemptions while generating income from the reserves held against their tokens.

BlackRock's tokenization strategy extends that opportunity by using stablecoins and blockchain networks to distribute its conventional investment products.

Small said the company recently filed registration statements for two tokenized money-market offerings. One would create an Ethereum-based share class for an existing fund, while the other would include digital-market features such as daily dividend reinvestment.

BlackRock expects the products to become available across multiple blockchain networks and to support subscriptions and redemptions funded with stablecoins. The structure could allow investors to move from digital cash into money-market funds without first transferring assets through a conventional brokerage account or banking platform.

The filings build on BUIDL, BlackRock's tokenized Treasury and cash-management fund. The company eventually wants to apply similar structures to a wider range of products, including iShares ETFs, long-term stock and bond portfolios and private-market investments.

Small said:

“Over the longer term, we want BlackRock’s products to be accessible natively where many investors already hold digital assets.”

The strategy would turn blockchain-based wallets into another distribution channel for BlackRock’s existing products. Investors could allocate across stablecoins, cryptocurrencies, stocks, bonds, and cash-management funds within the same digital account.

Small cited an estimated 5 billion digital wallets globally as evidence of the potential scale of that network.

BlackRock views these blockchain-based accounts as a way to reach investors who may not currently use conventional financial platforms. Rather than building its digital-assets business solely around demand for Bitcoin and Ethereum, the company wants to place a broader range of investment products inside the systems where stablecoins and other blockchain assets are already held.

Small stated:

“We want to build a digital wallet-native asset manager.”

That ambition makes the $500 million target dependent on more than a recovery in BlackRock's spot ETFs. Stablecoin reserve mandates, tokenized funds and blockchain-based distribution will need to become meaningful businesses alongside IBIT, ETHA and BUIDL.

The post BlackRock earned $82M while its crypto funds erased $30B – now it wants inside your wallet appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Ethereum has recorded $478 million in net exchange outflows over the last 7 days, a pace running roughly five times above average and the kind of supply-side move traders typically read as accumulation, according to Nansen.

Nansen's data complicates that reading, as top-PnL wallets sold a net $64 million over the past seven days, and smart traders and whale accounts on Hyperliquid perpetual futures both hold net short positions.

“Smart traders” held $38 million net short, and whale wallets added another $21 million net short on top of that. Those are cohorts the market treats as genuinely informed traders, which gives their skepticism more weight.

Why ETH/BTC is the real scoreboard

The renewed attention traces back to Ethereum's underperformance against Bitcoin, a gap that widened earlier this year. ETH is down about 37.1% year-to-date, compared with Bitcoin's 26.2% decline as of July 14, with the ETH/BTC ratio near 0.029.

The bounce from June's low at 0.025 is short of the levels that preceded Ethereum's past periods of leadership.

Citi's March 2026 scenario work gives that recovery a price range to test against, with a 12-month base case near $3,175 and a bull case reaching $4,488 if end-investor demand strengthens meaningfully.

Citi puts its recessionary case at $1,198, a wide spread that shows how much of ETH's near-term path depends on demand materializing on top of the supply tightening already underway.

The bull case's own trigger, stronger end-investor demand, names the same gap Nansen's framework noted, which is capital that shows up and stays.

At Ethereum's current price, the Nansen outflow amounts to roughly 255,000 ETH, a figure worth comparing against two other numbers.

US-traded spot Ethereum ETFs pulled in about $84.3 million from July 6 through July 10, their first clearly positive week since a stretch of weakness through late June, equal to roughly 45,000 ETH.

The exchange outflow was nearly six times as large as that week's entire ETF demand. Set against Ethereum's market cap, the same $478 million amounts to roughly 0.21% of the total, small enough that it serves more as an indicator.

Farside Investors' data show that July 13 flipped back to a $15.4 million outflow.

A usage picture that cuts both ways

DeFiLlama puts Ethereum's active addresses near 484,966, with 2.7 million transactions and $7.63 billion in seven-day DEX volume, up 27.6% for the week.

The same dashboard shows perpetual futures volume on the network down 48.1% over that period, a split that keeps the activity data from reading as a clean confirmation in either direction.

The network carries roughly $150 billion in stablecoin market cap and RWA.xyz counts more than 1,000 tokenized real-world assets settling on it.

Robinhood's new chain saw over $70 million in ETH bridged during its first week, a genuine data point for Ethereum's role as settlement infrastructure, even if still small next to the flows already in question.

Jake Kennis, senior research analyst at Nansen, argued that Ethereum needs sustained multi-week ETF inflows, beyond any single positive stretch, combined with continued growth in active addresses, climbing DeFi total value locked (TVL), and altcoins holding their own momentum.

Together, Kennis says, those readings would point to real capital rotation and renewed risk appetite, distinct from a short-term bounce that fades once the initial supply squeeze eases.

The Fed held its target rate at 3.50% to 3.75% at its June 17 meeting, and June CPI cooled to 3.5% year over year, easing some of the strain that had weighed on risk assets.

Renewed Middle East tension pushed the 10-year Treasury yield back up to about 4.62% at the same time, reviving the kind of yield strain that tends to hit high-beta assets like Ethereum hardest.

Two ways the rotation resolves

If ETF inflows persist for three to four more weeks and ETH/BTC pushes from its current 0.029 toward the 0.032 to 0.035 range, active addresses and DeFi TVL will keep climbing alongside it.

Existing short positioning on Hyperliquid turns into forced covering, adding fuel to the move, and Ethereum gets a real shot at the $2,100 to $2,400 zone.

If ETF flows revert to negative and Ethereum loses the $1,800 to $1,813 zone that has held as support, active-address growth and DeFi TVL stall alongside it. Wallets with large profits keep selling into any strength, ETH/BTC risks retesting June's 0.027 low or breaking below it, and Ethereum revisits the $1,500 to $1,650 range.

The traders with the strongest records in the same dataset still need convincing, and Kennis's framework is that Ethereum needs weeks of ETF demand stacked on top of each other, along with on-chain growth that keeps compounding beyond one good print.

Until that framework fills in, ETH/BTC stays the number that settles the argument.

The post Ethereum is flashing a $478 million buy signal but top traders still expect it to fail appeared first on CryptoSlate.

A $288 million Coinbase Prime transfer has put the U.S. government’s crypto rules under an early operational test.

U.S. government-tagged wallets sent 3,941 BTC and 30,007 ETH to Coinbase Prime over roughly eight hours, according to Lookonchain. Arkham placed the combined value at about $288.33 million.

Notably, Coinbase Prime hosts more than one kind of government activity. Coinbase announced in July 2024 that the U.S. Marshals Service selected Prime for custody and advanced trading services covering large-cap digital assets. The service’s dual role leaves custody consolidation, asset administration and authorized disposal as distinct operational possibilities.

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Reserve status determines whether the pledge applies

A March 2025 executive order says Government BTC deposited into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve “shall not be sold.” Yet, its definition covers a narrower pool than all crypto controlled by federal agencies. Reserve-eligible Bitcoin held by Treasury must be finally forfeited and free of specified statutory requirements or permitted releases.

Reserve status comes from legal and accounting records, beyond the information carried by wallet labels. A breach would require two facts: entry of the BTC into reserve accounts and a subsequent prohibited sale. The public data currently ends with the transfer into Coinbase Prime.

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The 30,007 ETH follows a separate policy. Finally forfeited non-Bitcoin assets belong in the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, where Treasury must set “responsible stewardship” strategies under applicable law.

The order preserves pathways for assets or proceeds needed for victim restitution, law enforcement, equitable sharing, court orders, and other statutory obligations. Those pathways explain the different treatment of ETH while leaving the purpose of this transfer undisclosed.

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An exchange-address alert supplies evidence of movement. Proof of a completed sale should come from a Treasury, Justice Department, or Marshals Service statement; a court or forfeiture record authorizing disposition; or custodian records showing the execution and treatment of proceeds. A later outflow from Coinbase Prime would remain ambiguous until paired with such evidence.

The public record ends with government crypto entering contracted custody-and-trading infrastructure. Its reserve status and operating instruction remain unknown – for now.

The post US government sends $288M to Coinbase putting Bitcoin reserve rules into question appeared first on CryptoSlate.

In June, Morgan Stanley received preliminary conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a national trust bank for digital assets.

The OCC decision opened a path for Morgan Stanley Digital Trust to bring custody, transaction administration, fiduciary staking, and collateral support inside the firm.

The proposed subsidiary would serve Morgan Stanley Wealth Management clients. Its public application presents it as a wholly owned national trust bank, giving the firm a regulated vehicle for functions that separate specialist providers have often handled.

The OCC's application record classifies the filing as a new bank charter under a holding company with trust powers requested.

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The proposed services cover everything from safeguarding assets to running the day-to-day operations behind an institutional account. It covers custody, purchases, sales, swaps and transfers, fiduciary staking, and collateral administration supporting affiliate digital-asset lending.

With final approval and implementation, Morgan Stanley could retain customer assets, transaction administration, staking administration, and lending-collateral work within its group.

That shift puts crypto-native intermediaries under fresh pressure. Third-party custodians, staking administrators, and collateral-service providers face the clearest exposure where their products overlap with the trust bank's approved functions.

Bringing those controls in-house at Morgan Stanley could make outside firms less central to client relationships and daily operational workflows around digital assets. It could also reduce the number of handoffs among the teams safeguarding assets, administering staking and managing collateral, concentrating more of the service relationship in one Wall Street group.

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Several layers would still sit beyond the defined trust-bank plan. Access to execution venues, trading liquidity, lending counterparties, validator operation, and broader blockchain infrastructure each involve their own relationships and implementation choices. The OCC filing shows what Morgan Stanley wants to keep inside the bank, while outside firms can continue handling the rest.

The approval still comes with hurdles. Morgan Stanley Digital Trust needs at least $50 million in Tier 1 capital, a set pool of liquid assets, and enough liquidity to cover 180 days of operating costs, according to Corporate Decision 1378. The OCC application record lists the charter action as approved on June 18.

Final approval would let Morgan Stanley pull custody, transfers, fiduciary staking and collateral support for affiliate lending under one roof. Crypto-native providers would then have to show where they still add value once a Wall Street bank keeps the most important control points for itself.

The post How Morgan Stanley plans to bring crypto custody, staking and lending support in-house appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Trump Backs a Transatlantic Stablecoin Deal — Why Now?

The biggest crypto story of the last 24 hours isn't a price candle — it's a political one. President Trump has strengthened support for a new UK-US stablecoin framework as the Senate races to advance the CLARITY Act despite growing opposition from banking groups over its stablecoin provisions.

The framework itself came out of a body called the Transatlantic Taskforce for Markets of the Future. Created in September 2025, the taskforce described stablecoins as "an important vehicle for innovation in digital money," and both governments agree that properly regulated stablecoins can improve cross-border payments, financial market infrastructure, and competition while giving businesses more consistent regulatory treatment across both jurisdictions.

The technical bar the two sides set is the important part. Regulated stablecoins should be backed one-to-one with clearly defined, high-quality liquid reserve assets under each country's legal framework. And crucially for anyone holding these tokens: during insolvency or restructuring, stablecoin holders should have legally protected claims over reserve assets ahead of other creditors, subject to domestic insolvency laws.

Trump's motive isn't subtle. He has repeatedly linked crypto legislation to his goal of making the United States the "crypto capital of the world" and has continued pushing the Senate to pass the CLARITY Act before the August recess. 

What Is the CLARITY Act — and Why Is It Stuck?

If you've lost track of this bill, you're not alone — it's been grinding through Washington for over a year. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act is a federal market-structure bill that would divide digital-asset oversight between the SEC and CFTC, set intermediary rules, address self-custody and BSA coverage, and add anti-CBDC provisions. It cleared the House with bipartisan support back in July 2025.

Since then it's been trapped in the Senate over one issue above all others. The bill has been bogged down over a highly contentious provision regarding stablecoins and whether digital asset firms can offer yield to customers.

Why Are US Banks Revolting Against It?

This is where the fight gets real. Banks don't hate crypto abstractly here — they're worried about their own deposit base. Banking groups have argued that several provisions remain too unclear and could encourage consumers and businesses to move money from traditional bank accounts into stablecoins. They've warned that sustained deposit outflows could place additional pressure on community and regional banks that depend heavily on customer deposits for lending, and have called on lawmakers to tighten the bill's wording before it moves forward. 

The numbers behind that fear are eye-watering. Standard Chartered analysts previously estimated that a yield provision, if enacted, could redirect up to $1 trillion in deposits away from traditional banks toward stablecoin products by 2028. That's the entire ballgame for why the American Bankers Association has fought this line by line.

Interestingly, even parts of the crypto industry aren't fully on board with the current draft. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong withdrew support for the CLARITY Act shortly before a Senate Banking Committee review, calling the draft "materially worse than the current status quo" — a reminder that "bad crypto law" worries both sides for very different reasons. 

How Does This Tie Into Europe and MiCA?

For EU readers, the transatlantic angle matters. Europe already has its rulebook — MiCA — live and enforced, with fully-backed reserve and redemption requirements that look a lot like what the US and UK just agreed to in principle. The direction of travel globally is now clearly toward one-to-one backed, legally ring-fenced stablecoins. If you're choosing where to hold or trade them, using a MiCA-regulated exchange is the safest bet as these frameworks harden.

Want a MiCA-compliant home for your crypto? We've compared the leading MiCA-regulated exchanges on fees, supported stablecoins and security. [ See the full comparison → ]

Bitcoin Price Analysis: Cooling Inflation Meets Political Tailwinds

While the regulatory drama plays out, the market got its own jolt from macro data. $Bitcoin hit a three-week high above $65K after US inflation data showed the Consumer Price Index fell 0.4% in June — the largest monthly drop since April 2020, with annual inflation slowing to 3.5%, below analyst forecasts. Core inflation, stripping out food and energy, eased to 2.6% from 2.9%.

That reset rate-hike expectations almost instantly. Odds of a Fed rate hike this month fell from 43% to just 13% right after the data came out. Not everyone is convinced it lasts, though. The inflation drop was largely driven by lower oil prices in June amid a US-Iran ceasefire — but with fighting resumed, Brent crude has climbed back toward $80, which could show up in July's CPI data.

As of writing, momentum has cooled slightly. Bitcoin is still around 3% higher over 24 hours but slipped about 0.5% since midnight, with Ether up 4.7% in 24 hours before a similar pullback. The levels to watch: traders are eyeing $64,800 resistance closely, with some warning of a possible lower high, while a sell wall sits at $65,000. A clean break above there opens the door toward the June high near $67,250. Sentiment is still fragile, though — the Crypto Fear and Greed Index rose to 25 but remains in "extreme fear" territory.

Upcoming Events to Watch

• CLARITY Act Senate action — Trump wants it passed before the August recess; watch for a floor vote and any last-minute yield-provision compromise.
• US PPI & PCE data — Producer prices are due imminently, with PCE near month-end; both feed the Fed's next read on inflation.
• July FOMC meeting (July 28–29) — the rate decision that all the CPI positioning is really about.
• Oil / Strait of Hormuz — the wildcard that could reignite inflation and drag on risk assets.

Japan has taken one of its most significant steps toward integrating cryptocurrencies into the traditional financial system.

The Japanese parliament has passed an amendment formally designating cryptocurrencies as “financial assets.” Until now, crypto assets in Japan were primarily regulated under the country’s Payment Services Act. The new classification brings them closer to financial products such as stocks, bonds and investment funds.

The decision could eventually lead to lower taxes, stronger investor protections and the introduction of regulated cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds in Japan.

However, the reform does not mean that Japanese Bitcoin ETFs are already trading or that every crypto investor will immediately benefit from a 20% tax rate. Further regulatory and tax implementation measures will still be required.

What changes under Japan’s new crypto law?

By bringing crypto assets under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, Japan is shifting its regulatory focus from payments toward investment and market oversight.

Crypto exchanges and other financial institutions could face rules similar to those applied to traditional securities companies. These may include stricter disclosure obligations, enhanced consumer protections and controls against insider trading and market manipulation.

Earlier proposals from Japan’s Financial Services Agency suggested applying the new framework to more than 100 cryptocurrencies available through approved Japanese exchanges, including Bitcoin and Ethereum.

The legislation could therefore make Japan’s crypto market more regulated, but also more accessible to traditional financial institutions.

Will Japan reduce crypto taxes to 20%?

Japan currently treats many cryptocurrency profits as miscellaneous income. Depending on an investor’s total income, the combined tax rate can reach approximately 55%.

This has long been criticized by Japanese crypto companies and investors. Traditional stock gains, by comparison, are generally taxed separately at around 20%.

The new financial-asset classification establishes the legal foundation for Japan to move eligible crypto gains toward a similar separate taxation system. Reports indicate that lawmakers are targeting an effective rate of approximately 20%, although the tax reduction is expected to require separate implementation and may not take effect until 2028.

Reducing the rate from as much as 55% to around 20% could encourage Japanese investors to keep their trading activity inside regulated domestic platforms rather than moving funds abroad.

It could also make Bitcoin and Ethereum more attractive as long-term investment assets.

Does the law approve Bitcoin ETFs?

The law does not appear to provide immediate approval for a Japanese spot Bitcoin ETF.

Instead, classifying cryptocurrencies as financial products removes one of the most important legal barriers preventing crypto assets from being included in conventional investment products.

Japan’s regulators could now develop rules allowing investment trusts and exchange-traded funds to hold Bitcoin, Ethereum or other approved crypto assets.

Previous reports said the reform was designed partly to open the door to products such as crypto ETFs. The timing will depend on detailed regulations, product applications and approval from Japanese financial authorities.

Therefore, the most accurate interpretation is that Japan has created a potential pathway for Bitcoin ETFs—not that such funds have already been approved.

Could Japanese Bitcoin ETFs move the crypto market?

Japan is one of the world’s largest economies and has a substantial household savings market.

Japanese investors held more than 5 trillion yen in crypto assets in mid-2025, equivalent to roughly $33 billion at the time. The amount had increased by approximately 25% within one month, demonstrating growing domestic interest in digital assets.

A regulated Bitcoin ETF could give pension funds, asset managers, banks and cautious retail investors a more familiar way to gain crypto exposure.

The immediate market impact would depend on the size of the products and the amount of capital they attract. Japan’s decision alone does not guarantee large Bitcoin purchases.

Nevertheless, the combination of lower taxation and regulated ETFs could gradually unlock a new source of demand for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Why Japan’s decision matters globally

Japan was among the first major countries to establish a formal licensing system for cryptocurrency exchanges following several high-profile industry failures.

The new legislation represents the next stage of that approach. Instead of treating crypto mainly as a speculative payment technology, Japan is recognizing it as part of the broader investment market.

The shift also reflects a wider international trend. Governments are increasingly moving from debating whether crypto should exist toward deciding how it should be regulated, taxed and integrated into financial markets.

Japan’s decision could place additional pressure on other Asian economies to create competitive tax and investment frameworks.

What happens next?

Investors should now watch for three major developments:

First, Japan must publish detailed regulations explaining which crypto assets and companies will fall under the new financial framework.

Second, lawmakers must finalize the proposed tax changes, including the eligibility requirements and implementation date for the approximately 20% rate.

Third, Japanese asset managers may begin preparing applications for Bitcoin or Ethereum investment products once regulators establish an ETF framework.

The law is therefore an important milestone, but it is the beginning of Japan’s next crypto phase rather than the final step.

Japan crypto outlook

Recognizing cryptocurrencies as financial assets could fundamentally reshape Japan’s digital-asset market.

Lower taxes may encourage more domestic participation, while regulated ETFs could provide access to investors who currently avoid cryptocurrency exchanges. Stronger market rules could also improve institutional confidence.

For Bitcoin, the long-term impact may be more important than the immediate price reaction.

Japan has not simply announced support for crypto. It has started building the legal infrastructure required to place digital assets alongside traditional investments—and that could eventually bring a new wave of capital into the market.

Bitcoin has finally punched through the $65,000 wall that capped every rally for the past month. After grinding sideways for weeks, BTC exploded off its early-July lows and reclaimed the level that bulls have been staring at since mid-June. The move is fast, it's clean, and it's got a real macro story behind it — which is exactly why traders are suddenly paying attention again.

Let's break down what happened, why it happened, and where the charts say we're going next.

Why did Bitcoin break above $65,000?

The short answer: inflation cooled and the Fed rate-hike fear evaporated. Bitcoin pushed toward $65,000 as a sharper-than-expected slowdown in US inflation weakened the case for another near-term Federal Reserve rate move. June CPI came in soft, and that single data point flipped market psychology from defensive to risk-on almost overnight.

But this isn't a one-catalyst story. Several things stacked up at the same time:

• Relief bounce. The stream of bad news that dragged BTC under $58,000 on July 1 — including chatter around Michael Saylor trimming part of his stack — has dried up. When the bad news stops, price tends to snap back.
• Regulatory tailwinds. There's growing buzz around a fresh version of the Crypto Clarity Act, plus Circle securing approval to set up a national trust bank. Regulatory clarity is rocket fuel for institutional confidence.
• ETF inflows. Weekly Bitcoin ETF inflows have been running north of $1.3 billion, a strong signal that big money is accumulating, not fleeing.
• Seasonality. July has historically been a reliably green month for Bitcoin. The calendar was quietly on the bulls' side the whole time.

From a low near $58,000 at the start of the month to above $65,000 now, that's a move of roughly 15% in two weeks. Not bad for a coin everyone had written off as "boring" ten days ago.

Bitcoin price analysis: what the chart says

On the 2-hour chart, the structure is textbook. BTC spent the back half of June and early July carving out a base, put in a clear higher low around the $58,000 zone (the level marked as major support), and has now driven straight into the $65,000 resistance that rejected price back in late June.

The key levels to watch:

• $65,000 — the line in the sand. This capped the June rally and is the level BTC is now testing. A clean 2-hour or daily close above $65,000 turns old resistance into new support and opens the door higher.
• $67,300 — the next real obstacle. This was the lower high printed on June 15. To convince anyone that a real trend change is underway, bulls need to take this out. Until they do, this remains "just a bounce" for the skeptics.
• $58,000 — the floor. As long as BTC holds above this, the broader structure stays constructive.

Momentum backs the move: RSI on the lower timeframe has surged toward 67 and is pointing up, showing real buying pressure rather than a limp drift higher. It's not yet screaming "overbought," which leaves room for continuation.

Prediction: If Bitcoin holds $65,000 as support on a retest, the path of least resistance points to $67,300 first, then a run at $70,000, which analysts have flagged as the natural upside target if the $58,000 base holds. The bullish scenario needs that June high taken out to confirm. The bearish scenario is simple: rejection at $65,000, a slip back below, and a re-test of $62,000–$58,000. Watch the reaction at the line — that's where this gets decided.

One honest caveat: some analysts warn the inflation-relief pop may already be fading, and geopolitical risk in the Middle East hasn't gone anywhere. This is a real breakout attempt, not a guaranteed one.

How are ETH, XRP, SOL and DOGE reacting?

Altcoins are riding Bitcoin's coattails — and in several cases outperforming it on the day:

• Ethereum ($ETH): trading around $1,875, up roughly 5–6% on the day. ETH is leading the majors, helped by news that Morgan Stanley pushed forward updated S-1 filings for spot ETH and SOL ETFs. Staking demand keeps grinding higher in the background.
• $XRP: around $1.10, up close to 4%. Social sentiment on XRP has turned notably bullish — though it's worth noting that historically, loud XRP optimism has sometimes preceded pullbacks, so keep expectations measured.
• Solana ($SOL): near $77–78, up around 3–3.7%. SOL is a direct beneficiary of the Morgan Stanley ETF filing story and remains one of the higher-beta plays when risk appetite returns.
• Dogecoin ($DOGE): around $0.074, up roughly 3%. Classic DOGE behavior — it wakes up when Bitcoin runs and the mood turns risk-on.

The broad tape is green: total crypto market cap climbed back toward $2.3 trillion, up nearly 3% on the day, with Bitcoin dominance holding around 56%. When BTC leads and alts follow without dominance collapsing, it usually signals a healthy, BTC-led leg rather than a frothy alt blow-off.

Trading the majors and want regulated access? If you're in Europe, make sure your exchange is MiCA-compliant. Compare the top MiCA-regulated exchanges here to trade $BTC, $ETH, $XRP, $SOL and $DOGE with proper regulatory coverage.

Bottom line

Bitcoin breaking $65,000 is the most convincing move BTC has made in weeks, and it's backed by a genuine macro shift: cooling inflation, fading Fed-hike fears, strong ETF inflows and improving regulatory optics. The technicals agree, with a clean higher-low base and momentum turning up.

The catch is confirmation. Bulls must hold $65,000 and then clear the $67,300 June high to prove this is a trend change and not just the best relief bounce of the summer. Reclaim those levels and $70,000 is squarely in play. Lose $65,000 and we're right back to chopping between $62,000 and $58,000.

Bitcoin Price Breaks $64,000 After Cooling CPI Inflation

The trigger was a single data point: US Consumer Price Index inflation came in at 3.5%, well below the 3.8% markets expected. Cooler inflation is exactly what risk-on traders had been waiting for, and Bitcoin responded instantly, punching through $64,000. Ethereum followed, climbing toward $1,900 as the broader crypto market caught the bid.

$135M in Short Liquidations Fuel the Crypto Market Surge

Rallies this sharp are rarely just spot buying. As Bitcoin ripped higher, traders betting on lower prices got caught on the wrong side — and in a 60-minute window, $135 million in short positions were liquidated. Each forced liquidation buys back the asset to close the position, adding fuel to the move that triggered it. That short squeeze cascade is why the candle went vertical rather than grinding up slowly.

Why Cooling CPI Inflation Boosts Rate Cut Odds

This is the real story beneath the price action. Inflation cooling to 3.5% strengthens the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates sooner. Lower rates are broadly bullish for crypto: cheaper money pushes investors out of safe yield and into higher-risk assets like Bitcoin, and rate cuts typically weaken the dollar, historically a tailwind for crypto. Markets are now repricing the odds of a cut, and that repricing is showing up directly on the charts.

Bitcoin Price and Ethereum Price Outlook

The immediate direction hinges on whether the move holds above key levels — $64,000 for $Bitcoin and the approach to $1,900 for $Ethereum. Holding confirms the breakout; failing could signal the rally was driven more by liquidations than conviction. The bigger swing factor is the Fed: if more data confirms the cooling trend, rate cut expectations firm up. If the next print runs hot, today's optimism could reverse just as fast.

Crypto Price Today: Red Across the Board

The market is having a rough Tuesday. The global crypto market cap sits at around $2.23 trillion, down roughly 1.5% over the last 24 hours, with total trading volume near $68.5 billion. Sentiment has soured too — the Fear & Greed Index dropped from 28 (Fear) to 22 (Extreme Fear).

Here's how the top of the board looks today:

The one standout is Hyperliquid (HYPE), which despite today's dip is up a staggering ~150% year-to-date — a rare bright spot in an otherwise brutal year for holders.

Why Is the Crypto Market Down Today?

Two words: geopolitics and macro. Crypto's weekend gains gave way to a Monday selloff as Middle East tensions resurfaced, and around $253 million in leveraged positions were wiped out. Bitcoin slipped below $62,000 after climbing to roughly $64,500 earlier, as escalating U.S.–Iran tensions added another layer of risk to global markets.

The bigger picture remains sobering: Bitcoin is down about 30% year-to-date and sits more than 50% below its October record.

What Important Events Are Happening in Crypto Right Now?

Is institutional money still buying the dip? Yes — aggressively. Tom Lee's BitMine expanded its ether treasury to 5.77 million tokens, roughly 4.8% of total ETH supply. On the ETF side, the rotation into Ethereum has been dramatic: ether ETFs recently tallied $1.6 billion in inflows while Bitcoin ETFs saw around $175 million in outflows.

Where does regulation stand? The CLARITY Act — crypto's market-structure bill — is in a decisive phase. The revised draft merges proposals from the Senate Banking and Agriculture Committees, but key provisions remain under active negotiation, particularly around ethics rules, so the timing of a Senate floor vote is uncertain. President Trump has urged the Senate to pass the bill in honor of Senator Lindsey Graham, who passed away on July 11.

What else is on the radar?

• New Hampshire passed the Blockchain Fundamentals Act, safeguarding crypto self-custody, developers and miners, and introducing blockchain dispute resolution.
• Circle's 2026 Developer Grants awarded nearly half of recipients from Africa and the Global South, focused on stablecoin payments and remittances.
• Oil jumped after President Trump's new restrictions on Iranian shipping, with Brent crude up about 10% — a reminder that macro shocks are bleeding straight into risk assets.

🇪🇺 Trading from Europe? With MiCA now in force, not every exchange is fully compliant. See which platforms tick every box in our MiCA-regulated exchanges comparison before you deposit a cent.

The 3 Events This Week That Could Unlock Bitcoin's Next Move

Buckle up — the next few days are stacked with catalysts. Between July 13 and 19, crypto enters one of 2026's busiest macro weeks. Here are the three that matter most.

1. Inflation Data: June CPI (Today) and PPI (Wednesday)

The headline event. Monthly CPI for June is expected to slow to 0.2% from 0.5% in May, with annual inflation projected to fall to 3.8% from 4.2%. A soft print revives rate-cut hopes; a hot one keeps the pressure on crypto. The Producer Price Index follows on Wednesday, July 15, measuring wholesale inflation and rounding out the picture ahead of the Fed's next move.

Watch out for the wildcard: Fed Governor Christopher Waller warned that another strong inflation reading could push the central bank toward tighter policy, saying he'd treat a higher print as "signal, not noise." Following his remarks, the odds of a September rate hike jumped to 51.6% on the CME FedWatch Tool.

2. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh Testimony (July 14 & 15)

Arguably the single biggest swing factor. Warsh testifies before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday — his first appearance since taking the helm in May. At his June debut, he effectively killed the market's remaining 2026 rate-cut thesis and sent Bitcoin tumbling, so every word will be parsed for clues on the path ahead.

3. The CLARITY Act Push

The regulatory catalyst. A dovish Warsh lean or a legislative breakthrough could spark the relief rally the market has been waiting for; a hawkish tone and a stalled bill would deepen the malaise. The key deadline to watch: August 7, 2026 is the last day of the Senate term before the summer recess and campaign season.

And looking just beyond this week: all of this data feeds directly into the next FOMC meeting on July 28–29, 2026, where the rate decision will be made.

Crypto Future Price: Will Bitcoin Price go up?

Bitcoin is pinned at the psychologically critical $60K zone while three forces — inflation data, Fed signaling, and the CLARITY Act — pull the market in different directions at once. It's a high-volatility setup layered onto a fragile market. The next 48 hours could set the tone for the rest of the summer.

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TLDR

• DeltaDeFi suspended operations indefinitely after exhausting its available operational runway.
• Development and active platform maintenance will remain paused until further notice.
• Remaining funds will return to users once sufficient minimum UTXO becomes available.
• Hydra technology supported sub-second settlement and high-speed order execution on the exchange.
• Cardano’s ecosystem faces broader sustainability pressures involving funding, expenses, governance, and developer support.

DeltaDeFi has suspended operations indefinitely after exhausting its operational runway, creating another challenge for the Cardano ecosystem. The announcement removes the first Hydra-powered decentralized exchange from active development and raises fresh questions about project sustainability across Cardano. The team confirmed immediate operational changes while outlining plans for future fund distributions and possible recovery efforts.

DeltaDeFi Halts Operations After Funding Runs Out

DeltaDeFi announced that it has paused development and maintenance because available operational resources have been exhausted. The decision takes effect immediately and remains in place until further notice. The team said it will review possible strategies before considering any future restart.

The developers also confirmed plans to return remaining user funds when sufficient minimum UTXO becomes available. Users who do not receive automatic withdrawals can contact the team through X or Discord. The project said those support channels will remain available during the suspension period.

DeltaDeFi operated as the first Hydra-powered decentralized exchange on Cardano. Its suspension removes one of the ecosystem’s most visible demonstrations of Hydra-based decentralized trading. The announcement focuses on operational limits rather than technical failures or security issues.

Hydra-Based Trading Loses an Active Platform

Unlike many decentralized exchanges, DeltaDeFi adopted an order-book model instead of relying primarily on automated market makers. Hydra enabled faster settlement while supporting high-speed trade execution. The design aimed to provide a trading experience closer to traditional financial markets.

The platform promoted sub-second transaction settlement and improved trading efficiency through Layer-2 technology. Those features distinguished the exchange from several existing decentralized trading platforms. However, operational sustainability ultimately became the deciding factor behind the suspension.

Hydra recently released version 2.2.0 with improvements supporting practical applications across Cardano. The update emphasized benchmarking enhancements and optimized snapshot latency for network performance. Those protocol improvements remain separate from DeltaDeFi’s operational decision.

Sustainability Pressures Continue Across the Ecosystem

DeltaDeFi joins several Cardano projects that have reduced operations or exited during recent months. Previous examples include JPG Store, TapTools, and contributor Chicken. Each project cited different circumstances while identifying financial and operational pressures.

Several common themes have emerged across Cardano ecosystem projects despite their differing situations. Teams have pointed to limited funding opportunities, rising operating costs, governance challenges, and prolonged market weakness. Those conditions have affected long-term development planning for multiple builders.

The latest announcement leaves Cardano without its first active Hydra-powered decentralized exchange for the foreseeable future. Cardano continues advancing its protocol while individual projects address separate operational realities. DeltaDeFi said it will evaluate recovery options and distribute remaining user funds when withdrawal conditions permit.

The post Cardano Loses First Hydra DEX Amid Funding Strain appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• Bitcoin retreated to $64,000 after reaching a three-week high near $65,600.
• Ethereum fell below $1,900 after briefly approaching a six-week peak of $1,950.
• Lower-than-expected US inflation data initially supported gains across the crypto market.
• Bitcoin maintained a 56.7% market dominance despite its latest price decline.
• Ondo gained 17%, while Bitcoin Cash and DeXe led losses among larger cryptocurrencies.
• Total cryptocurrency market capitalization dropped by $40 billion to approximately $2.27 trillion.

Bitcoin price returned to $64,000 after briefly reaching a three-week high near $65,600. Ethereum also reversed from a six-week peak near $1,950 and slipped below $1,900. Meanwhile, the broader crypto market lost about $40 billion from its latest daily peak.

Bitcoin Reverses After CPI-Fueled Advance

Bitcoin price had traded near $64,000 during a relatively calm and positive weekend. However, renewed tension between the United States and Iran pressured markets when trading resumed. Bitcoin then fell below $62,000 by Tuesday morning as traders assessed the weekend strikes.

Bitcoin price recovered sharply after June inflation figures came below market expectations. It reclaimed $64,000 and later crossed $65,000 as buying activity strengthened across major exchanges. The advance then peaked near $65,600, marking Bitcoin’s highest level in roughly three weeks.

Sellers regained control after the peak, and the Bitcoin price dropped by about $1,500. The asset returned to approximately $64,000, erasing much of the inflation-driven increase. Its market value also declined to about $1.285 trillion, according to CoinGecko data.

Ethereum Retreats From Six-Week High

Ethereum outperformed several large-cap assets as it climbed toward $1,950 during the broader rebound. The move placed ETH at its highest level since early June. However, selling pressure later pushed the token below the $1,900 mark.

Bitcoin price remained comparatively stable while Ethereum recorded the stronger short-term move. BNB edged closer to $580, but XRP slipped slightly while contesting the $1.10 level. These mixed results showed limited follow-through among several leading alternative cryptocurrencies.

Solana, Tron, Hyperliquid, Rain, Zcash, Canton, Litecoin, and Cardano all posted daily losses. Bitcoin Cash and DeXe recorded sharper declines among larger assets. In contrast, Ondo gained about 17% as the Bitcoin price stabilized near $64,000.

Crypto Market Value Declines

The total cryptocurrency market value fell by roughly $40 billion from its daily peak. It later stood near $2.270 trillion as selling spread across several major tokens. The Bitcoin price decline contributed to the broader pullback after the earlier market advance.

Bitcoin maintained a 56.7% share of the total cryptocurrency market despite the decline. Therefore, its dominance stayed unchanged even as several alternative assets recorded deeper losses. The Bitcoin price remained above levels seen during Tuesday’s early decline below $62,000.

The market ended the period with Bitcoin near $64,000 and Ethereum below $1,900. The Bitcoin price held part of its CPI-driven recovery but remained below Wednesday’s three-week peak. Overall market value also stayed lower as the Bitcoin price rally lost momentum.

The post Crypto Market Sheds $40B as Bitcoin Price Pulls Back appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• American forces conducted coordinated strikes against Iranian military installations near Bandar Abbas and strategic positions along the Strait of Hormuz
• U.S. warplanes targeted the sanctioned oil supertanker Belma in the Persian Gulf as it approached Iran’s Kharg Island petroleum terminal
• President Trump indicated military operations will persist until Tehran enters diplomatic negotiations
• Tehran launched retaliatory strikes using missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles against American military positions while continuing assaults on commercial shipping
• The International Energy Agency cautioned that global economic stability could face significant threats if the Hormuz crisis remains unresolved in coming weeks

On Wednesday, American military forces executed two distinct operations against Iranian territory, striking defense installations in the vicinity of Bandar Abbas and strategic locations bordering the Strait of Hormuz. According to CENTCOM officials, these operations were designed to diminish Tehran’s capacity to launch attacks on maritime traffic navigating through the critical waterway.

BREAKING: President Trump Just Went Inside the Situation Room

Trump has unleashed the full might of the U.S. military on Iran.

The Navy is enforcing a full blockade and the military is carrying out massive air strikes.

The U.S. military destroyed one oil tanker that tried to… pic.twitter.com/59mYAC1o1N

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 16, 2026

Tehran’s response included deploying ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles against U.S. military installations throughout the region. Iranian authorities disputed American assertions that the Strait of Hormuz remained operational for international shipping, while simultaneously maintaining their offensive operations against commercial maritime traffic attempting passage through the strait.

In an unprecedented escalation, American military aircraft launched missiles at the sanctioned supertanker Belma operating within Persian Gulf waters. The vessel had disregarded multiple warnings while proceeding toward Kharg Island, which serves as Iran’s primary crude oil export facility.

This marked the inaugural strike against a maritime vessel following Washington’s renewed enforcement of its Iranian shipping blockade. Defense analysts interpreted this action as evidence that American forces may be broadening the geographical parameters of their blockade operations beyond the immediate Strait of Hormuz corridor.

Maritime tracking systems indicated the Belma was traveling northward toward Kharg Island late Wednesday evening before executing an abrupt course reversal following the strike.

Trump Warns Iran While Leaving Door Open to Talks

On Tuesday, President Trump revealed that his administration had established communication channels with Iranian representatives, stating that Tehran “wanted to make a deal.” He emphasized that military operations would continue unabated until Iran accepted negotiation terms.

During a Fox News appearance, Trump disclosed that his representatives had communicated with Iranian officials within the hour preceding the interview. He issued a stern warning to Iran that the nation would be left with “nothing left” should it refuse to engage in negotiations.

Trump indicated that targeting Iran’s oil infrastructure remained a final option but would ultimately be implemented. He also suggested the possibility of additional strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, including a location identified as Pickaxe Mountain.

According to a Wall Street Journal investigation, Trump is weighing options to broaden the military campaign. Potential strategies under consideration encompass additional aerial bombardment operations, deployment of American ground troops to capture Iranian islands positioned near the Strait of Hormuz, and precision strikes on facilities associated with clandestine nuclear programs.

Trump convened a Situation Room conference on Tuesday to evaluate an expanded offensive strategy, Axios reported. Discussions centered on extending operations beyond Southern Iranian territory and the immediate Hormuz region.

Trump had earlier rescinded a proposal to implement a 20% transit fee on Hormuz shipping following consultations with Gulf state leadership. CENTCOM reported successfully redirecting two compliant vessels and neutralizing one non-compliant ship during the initial twenty-four hours of the blockade, which became operational Tuesday at 4 p.m. Washington time.

The International Energy Agency’s director issued a warning that the worldwide economy could encounter substantial risks unless the Hormuz situation achieves resolution within several weeks.

Iran maintains control over Kharg Island, which represents a critical source of petroleum export revenue. A minimum of 11 oil and petrochemical shipments had departed from the island following the implementation of a June peace agreement.

The U.S. Navy announced it would permit the transit of food supplies, medical provisions, and essential civilian commodities through the blockade following proper verification of vessel requests.

The post U.S. Military Strikes Target Iranian Forces and Oil Tanker Amid Hormuz Tensions appeared first on Blockonomi.

FUNToken continues to make joining its ecosystem more accessible by adding LINK as a supported deposit asset. Users can now deposit LINK and have it automatically converted into $FUN with 0% conversion fees, creating an even simpler way to access the growing FUNToken ecosystem.

The integration removes unnecessary steps from the onboarding process. Instead of manually swapping assets before participating, users can deposit LINK directly and receive $FUN automatically, allowing them to begin using the ecosystem immediately.

As the FUNToken ecosystem continues to expand across gaming, staking, and community rewards, increasing the number of supported assets remains a key priority. Supporting LINK gives users another convenient way to acquire $FUN while maintaining a fast and frictionless experience.

Key Highlights

• LINK is now supported for deposits
• Automatic conversion from LINK to $FUN
• 0% conversion fees
• Fast, seamless deposit experience
• Instant access to the growing $FUN ecosystem

Adding support for LINK is part of FUNToken’s ongoing commitment to improving accessibility and making it easier for more users to participate in the growing $FUN ecosystem.

By continuing to expand supported assets, FUNToken is lowering barriers to entry while providing a streamlined experience for both new and existing community members.

About FUNToken

FUNToken is powering a rapidly expanding digital rewards ecosystem through mobile gaming, staking, wallet services, and community-driven experiences. With a growing portfolio of games, seamless asset support, and an expanding range of earning opportunities, FUNToken continues to make digital rewards more accessible while delivering greater utility for the $FUN token.

The post FUNToken Expands Deposit Options with LINK Integration appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• Crude prices retreated modestly following a three-day surge, with Brent settling at $84.58 and WTI at $79.56 per barrel
• Washington conducted military operations against Iranian installations on Wednesday to safeguard Gulf shipping lanes
• Tehran characterized the confrontation as an “existential war” and threatened additional disruptions to energy shipments
• The Strait of Hormuz, a critical passage for approximately 20% of worldwide oil and gas transit, faces mounting risks
• American crude stockpiles declined by 1.7 million barrels in the previous week, maintaining supply tensions

Crude oil markets experienced a modest retreat on Thursday following a nearly 10% advance earlier in the week, as traders assessed the potential for extended disruptions to a vital global shipping corridor.

Brent crude declined 0.4% to reach $84.58 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate dropped 0.1% to $79.56 per barrel during early Thursday trading. Both benchmarks had reached their highest levels in a month at the week’s start amid intensifying confrontations between Washington and Tehran.

American forces executed additional airstrikes on Wednesday targeting Iranian military facilities connected to assaults on commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf. Officials in Washington stated the operations aimed to diminish Iran’s capacity to endanger maritime commerce.

Tehran reacted by characterizing the confrontation as an “existential war” and issued warnings that energy shipments across the region could experience additional interruptions should hostilities persist.

Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central HQ just issued a blistering warning to Washington over the Strait of Hormuz.

The spokesman said Iran will never allow the U.S., as an outside power, to interfere in the strait, calling it an inviolable red line.

He warned that if Trump…

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) July 16, 2026

Hormuz Strait Emerges as Primary Concern

Trading desks are monitoring developments around the Strait of Hormuz closely, a confined waterway that facilitates the transit of roughly one-fifth of worldwide crude oil and liquefied natural gas volumes. Any prolonged closure would create significant supply constraints across international markets.

Analysts at Jefferies projected the current escalation phase could persist for multiple weeks, even without evolving into comprehensive warfare. They noted this scenario would likely sustain disruptions to strait traffic and continue applying upward momentum to pricing.

MUFG’s Soojin Kim observed that tanker movements have persisted with American military support, though cautioned the escalation jeopardizes export pathways that had enabled Gulf producers to maintain crude flows during previous disturbances.

President Trump is reportedly evaluating expanded military action, with potential measures including increased aerial bombardment and deploying ground forces to capture Iranian-controlled islands near the strait, per Wall Street Journal reporting.

Storage Data Reinforces Supply Pressures

The U.S. Energy Information Administration disclosed on Wednesday that crude oil inventories decreased by 1.7 million barrels during the week concluded July 10, closely matching analyst projections.

Gasoline reserves likewise contracted by 1.5 million barrels as seasonal driving consumption remained robust. Distillate stocks, conversely, expanded by 4.6 million barrels, representing an unanticipated gain.

ING analysts cautioned that the renewed hostilities arrive during a precarious period, referencing substantial inventory withdrawals throughout the second quarter. They emphasized that worldwide strategic petroleum reserve distributions, which had provided market relief in recent months, are scheduled to conclude within weeks.

The International Energy Agency noted in its July Oil Market Report that while crude flows through the strait had partially rebounded in June, the rekindled conflict this month has created uncertainty and could postpone anticipated surplus conditions projected for 2027.

The post Crude Oil Retreats Following Weekly Surge as U.S.-Iran Tensions Endanger Persian Gulf Shipping appeared first on Blockonomi.

Despite rebounding from a local bottom near $1, Ripple’s cross-border token remains heavily suppressed in the current bear market and hasn’t been able to stage a decisive comeback.

Even so, several key signs suggest the bulls might be getting ready to step in and take control soon.

Green Days on the Way?

Currently, XRP trades at around $1.11, representing a mere 1% increase on a weekly scale but a substantial 62% collapse over the past year. The recent whale behavior, though, may tilt the scales toward a more tangible rebound in the near future.

The renowned analyst Ali Martinez revealed that large investors have purchased roughly 70 million tokens over the last week, thus boosting their total holdings to approximately 3.8 billion units (around 6% of the asset’s circulating supply). Whale accumulation signals growing confidence among major holders, which can help stabilize price action and attract retail investors into the ecosystem.

The second bullish factor was presented again by Martinez, who noted that XRP’s TD Sequential indicator has flashed a buy signal. It is important to note that this metric hasn’t been fully reliable over the last several months. In December, it flashed a buy signal, which was followed by a strong price increase, but in January 2026, it preceded a major correction instead.

Last but not least, we will touch upon the shrinking amount of XRP stored on Binance. As CryptoPotato reported, the figure dropped to around 2.61 billion tokens, the lowest since February. The development indicates that a growing number of investors have moved their holdings to self-custody wallets, thereby reducing immediate selling pressure.

The Latest Predictions

Analysts on X have been quite vocal on XRP recently, with most outlining bullish forecasts. The market observer who uses the moniker Gerla claimed that if buyers defend the important $1.10 level, the price could rise to $1.24 next.

Crypto Patel and Celal Kucuker have been even more optimistic, envisioning an explosion to $9 and $7, respectively. JAVON MARKS joined the club of ultra bulls, arguing that $15+ is “a measured level that can be reached in the next wave.”

Of course, some remain cautious and believe the cycle’s bottom has yet to be formed. X user Diana, for instance, warned that the price could plummet to $0.87 before a new bull run begins.

The post Is (Ripple) XRP Finally Ready to Break Out? Here Are 3 Reasons Why appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Bitcoin’s price rose to a multi-week high of its own yesterday when it briefly exceeded $65,500 on the heels of the lower-than-expected US CPI data. However, it was stopped there and now sits a grand and a half lower.

ETH rode the wave even harder, jumping to roughly $1,950 for the first time since early June before it was halted and pushed south to under $1,900.

BTC Back to $64K

The primary cryptocurrency had a relatively quiet and positive weekend in which it stood mostly at around $64,000. This came after a volatile business week in which it plunged a couple of times from that high to under $62,000 after Strategy announced its latest BTC sale and the tension in the Middle East escalated once again with new attacks.

On Monday, though, bitcoin slipped once again as the markets priced in the new strikes between the US and Iran initiated during the weekend. The cryptocurrency dipped below $62,000 by Tuesday morning but then rocketed by several grand in a day or so after the US CPI data for June was a lot lower than expected.

Bitcoin first reclaimed the $64,000 level before it did the same to $65,000 and peaked at $65,600. After tapping this three-week high, though, it retreated by $1,500 and now sits at around $64,000 again.

Its market cap is down to $1.285 trillion on CG, while its dominance over the alts remains at the same level at 56.7%.

ETH Pulls Back

Ethereum stole the show from the larger-cap alts today, jumping to almost $1,950 for the first time in six weeks. However, it was stopped there and now sits below $1,900. BNB is close to $580 after a minor increase, while XRP is fighting for $1.10 after a minor daily decline.

SOL, TRX, HYPE, RAIN, ZEC, CC, LTC, and ADA are all in the red today, while BCH and DEXE have dumped the most from the larger caps. ONDO, in contrast, has rocketed by 17% to $0.37.

The total crypto market cap has declined by $40 billion in a day from its peak and is down to $2.270 trillion on CG.

The post Bitcoin Slips Down to $64K, Ethereum Pulls Back From Six-Week Peak: Market Watch appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Bitcoin’s price action so far this year has put the four-year cycle narrative back in focus as its timing and overall structure increasingly resemble the major reset years of 2014, 2018, and 2022, even though the current market has not followed those cycles exactly.

BTC has fallen almost 50% from its all-time high of $126,000 established on October 6, 2025, with the cryptocurrency hitting a new cycle low of $57,700 on July 1 during the quarter-end period. The drawdown lasted more than 268 days before BTC staged a mild recovery this week.

$38K in Play

Looking at previous cycles, the last two major drawdowns extended for 363 and 376 days before bottoming, with peak-to-trough declines of 84.3% and 77.6%, respectively.

Based on that historical framework, NYDIG said a repeat of the duration seen in those cycles, combined with a shallower 70% decline in line with the trend of progressively less severe cycle bottoms, would point to a potential low in the $38,000-$39,000 range around early October.

The firm also added that this is a scenario and not a base-case forecast, but said the comparison highlights why the four-year cycle framework is becoming increasingly relevant as Bitcoin’s current drawdown continues to deepen and lengthen.

Analyst Doctor Profit previously predicted that Bitcoin would likely find its final low between $40,000 and $48,000 around September or October 2026.

Even as analysts continue debating where that bottom will ultimately form, the world’s largest crypto asset gained around 3% this week. It is currently trading a little below the $65,000 mark. The rebound, however, has done little to change some analysts’ broader outlook. Alphractal founder Joao Wedson said the surge in optimism across social media following Bitcoin’s recovery indicates the market has yet to reach its ultimate bottom.

Attractive Buy Zone

Not everyone believes investors should focus on finding the exact bottom, though. Crypto analyst Ali Martinez urged investors not to “obsess” over the exact timing. Looking at BTC’s performance over the past decade, the analyst noted that periods when the asset traded near its 200-week moving average have consistently turned into strong long-term buying opportunities, even though very few investors managed to buy at the absolute low.

He added that as Bitcoin matures and its returns gradually diminish, investors now need more capital to achieve the same gains from simply holding the asset. Despite this, Martinez said he believes the current price remains an attractive area for long-term accumulation.

The post Don’t Obsess Over Bitcoin’s Bottom as $38K Low Comes Into Focus: Analyst appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Ethereum (ETH) has stolen the show in the past few days, posting impressive gains and outperforming the market leader and many of the larger-cap alts.

One of the reasons behind this notable rally that drove it to a multi-week peak could be ongoing accumulation by major players, including BitMEX’s co-founder, Arthur Hayes.

Hayes Buys ETH High

On-chain data provided by Lookonchain indicated that the popular crypto personality spent roughly $2.5 million to acquire 1,293 ETH. Consequently, he continues to display a somewhat controversial approach to Ethereum given his most recent moves.

CryptoPotato reported back in mid-June that Hayes had accumulated a total of 5,900 ETH for $10.58 million in the span of just a few days. However, he disposed of his entire stash (and some more) just a day later for around $10 million, registering a loss of more than $600,000 in hours.

What’s interesting in this situation is that he seems to be buying high and selling low. His most recent accumulation came at prices of well over $1,900, where ETH has stood for the past day. In contrast, the aforementioned offload took place when the asset dipped below $1,700.

Hayes has also exhibited controversial behavior toward other crypto assets. He received substantial backlash over his overpromotion of tokens like HYPE, ZEC, and WLD, as he disposed of his positions weeks after praising them and long before they reached his massive price targets.

Whales, Abraxas Buy Too

With speculation running rampant about ETH’s future following its notable surge past $1,900, the broader Ethereum ecosystem shows that other participants are joining through large acquisitions. Additional data from Lookonchain suggested that three newly created wallets withdrew nearly $58 million in ETH from Coinbase Prime earlier today. The analysts concluded that “whales continue accumulating ETH.”

Moreover, wallets linked to Abraxas Capital deposited $40 million worth of bitcoin into the veteran US exchange Kraken earlier this week. Lookonchain noted that they used a large portion of the capital they gathered to rotate into ETH after withdrawing 8,153 tokens from the platform.

Abraxas Capital is selling $BTC and buying $ETH!

Over the past 3 hours, Abraxas Capital withdrew 8,153 $ETH($15.3M) from #Binance and #Bybit, while depositing 618 $BTC($39.99M) into #Kraken.https://t.co/qwAXChjYvp pic.twitter.com/EdWBYF36Lf

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) July 15, 2026

The post Arthur Hayes Buys ETH Above $1,900 Weeks After Selling at $1,700 appeared first on CryptoPotato.

After several weeks of little to no updates from the Core Team regarding the status of the upcoming version 25, they finally announced the completion deadline.

The question now is whether the next major upgrade can provide some relief for the underlying asset, which has been the most volatile token in the past few days – mostly in the wrong direction, though.

Next Update Date

Pi Network’s team has been trying to improve the overall ecosystem for months. The protocol updates began in mid-Q1 with the introduction of version 19.6. Several others followed suit, with v20.2 perhaps being the most important since it laid out the foundation for smart contract capabilities.

The speed at which the new upgrades were deployed slowed down in Q2, but the team still migrated to v22 and v23 in May. The last and current version 24 was implemented in early June, but it came with a slight delay.

It has been six weeks since then, and there was no major clarification on when version 25 will be deployed. However, the team changed that hours ago by outlining that it should be completed by July 22. They noted that the new update will focus mostly on “improving network stability and reliability.” It will also support new capabilities for “more efficient, privacy-preserving smart contracts.”

On July 22, Pi is scheduled to upgrade to Protocol v25, which primarily focuses on improving network stability and reliability, and supports new capabilities for more efficient, privacy-preserving smart contracts.

Go to the Pi mining app to learn more! pic.twitter.com/Btg8aEFAFh

— Pi Network (@PiCoreTeam) July 15, 2026

PI Craters Again

The project’s native token has been on nothing short of a painful rollercoaster ride in the past several days. It broke down below the key $0.10 support, and the bears managed to control almost all moves, which included setting consecutive all-time lows. The latest came two days ago at just over $0.07.

That level managed to act as a strong support at first and provided a major rebound yesterday. As reported, PI rocketed by over 15% at one point and jumped past $0.085. However, another rejection followed suit, and the token nosedived again. It’s down by 8% in the past 24 hours and struggles below $0.074.

PI continues to trade more than 97% away from its all-time high from February last year. Moreover, it’s down by over 35% in the past two weeks alone.

The post Pi Network Team Reveals New Update Deadline Amid PI Price Turmoil appeared first on CryptoPotato.