China's crude import rebound may drive global oil demand and prices higher, with potential geopolitical impacts on supply routes.

The post China’s crude imports rebound as fuel export curbs ease, Middle East supplies rise appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Mbapp's edge in assists highlights the evolving importance of playmaking in determining top individual honors in global football tournaments.

The post Mbappé leads Golden Boot race over Messi in 2026 World Cup semifinals appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The attack may prompt a strategic reassessment by the U.S., affecting military operations and regional stability in the Middle East.

The post Iranian strike damages US 5th Fleet warehouse in Bahrain amid conflict appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Iran's warning heightens regional instability risks, potentially drawing Gulf states into conflict and impacting nuclear site inspections.

The post Iran warns neighbors: US strike facilitators risk retaliation appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The limited Russian gains in Ukraine suggest prolonged conflict, impacting prediction markets and highlighting strategic uncertainties.

The post ISW: Russian forces make limited gains in Ukraine offensive appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Bitcoin Magazine

U.S. Representatives Urge Senate to Vote on CLARITY Act in July, Address Ethics Concerns

Rep. French Hill wants a deadline. 

One year after the House passed the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act, the Arkansas Republican who chairs the House Financial Services Committee used a Fox Business interview with anchor Maria Bartiromo to press Senate leaders for a floor vote before the August recess.

“I’ve encouraged Senate leadership to put it on the floor,” Hill said. “I think if you schedule a floor date here in the month of July, that will cause these final meetings, these final discussions to take place. You’ve got to have a deadline in Congress to get people to move and find consensus.” 

Hill thanked Senators Kirsten Gillibrand, Cynthia Lummis, John Boozman and Tim Scott for working toward a deal, and pointed to the 78 Democrats who backed the House measure a year ago.

Hill’s central argument is that the CLARITY Act would resolve the ethics concerns now used to block it, rather than deepen them. 

Critics point to President Trump’s crypto ventures, including $TRUMP meme coin licensing and World Liberty Financial token sales, which a July 1 financial disclosure tied to about $1.4 billion in 2025 income. 

Hill contends a market framework offers the transparency those critics want. 

“If we passed the CLARITY Act last summer, many of the things that people are expressing concern about — meme coin issuance, co-investment, use of exchange, investing in exchanges — all that would be under a market framework of regulation with clarity, no pun intended, and that would provide a lot of transparency to people that are concerned about the Trump family’s investments,” he said.

Clarity Act pairs with the GENIUS Act

Hill framed the bill as the missing half of a system that pairs it with the GENIUS Act, the stablecoin law enacted last year. 

“Stablecoin is like a cell phone not connected to a cell phone network,” he said, “and the market framework is in fact that network that we need.” To keep the pressure on, Hill plans a field hearing in New York next week, led by digital assets subcommittee chair Rep. Bryan Steil, to make the case for a market structure.

His push drew support from two other voices in the same Bartiromo appearance. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig warned of “mission creep beyond what’s really critical here” and cautioned that a stalled bill leaves the rules to regulators. 

Coinbase Vice Chair Ryan VanGrack, a former SEC official, described the measure as “on the one-yard line,” with senators from both parties “working around the clock to get this across the finish line.”

The Senate returns July 13 with about three weeks before recess. Prediction market Polymarket prices Clarity Act 2026 passage near 39%, a fall from the prior month’s 74%.

This post U.S. Representatives Urge Senate to Vote on CLARITY Act in July, Address Ethics Concerns first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Circle (CRCL) Wins Final OCC Approval for National Trust Bank

Circle Internet Group secured final approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency today, to establish a national trust bank, a milestone that sent the stablecoin issuer’s shares higher and deepened its ties to the federal banking system.

The regulator cleared Circle to charter First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A., which will operate under the name Circle National Trust. 

The company, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CRCL, said the charter places the new entity under direct federal oversight by the OCC, the primary supervisor for national banks and national trust banks.

Circle National Trust will provide fiduciary custody services for digital assets held by Circle and its affiliates. Under the business plan the OCC approved, the bank could extend custody services to a limited set of institutional customers, with a focus on banks and regulated derivatives organizations. 

The charter opens a path for the bank to manage the reserve backing USDC, the largest regulated stablecoin, which would bring that multibillion-dollar pool under federal supervision.

National trust banks differ from traditional lenders. They safeguard client assets and provide fiduciary services, and they do not take deposits or issue loans. The structure aligns its digital-asset infrastructure with a long-standing model for holding client assets under strict fiduciary standards.

“OCC approval to establish Circle National Trust marks a defining step in bringing blockchain technology and digital assets into the core of the U.S. financial system,” said Jeremy Allaire, co-founder, chairman, and chief executive of Circle. He said federal oversight of the trust bank “sets a new standard for transparency, governance, and scale” and unlocks a phase of adoption in which large financial institutions can build on public blockchains with confidence.

Investors welcomed the decision. CRCL shares climbed as much as 14% on the day of the announcement, a rebound from a three-month low. Other crypto-linked names, including Coinbase and Strategy, posted gains near 5% this morning as bitcoin bounced.

CRCL shares have since settled to 5% gains.

Circle’s federal framework

The approval caps a process that began when Circle filed its application on June 30, 2025. The OCC granted conditional approval in December 2025, alongside peers such as Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos. 

The final decision arrives as the GENIUS Act, the federal stablecoin law enacted in July 2025, moves toward full implementation in early 2027. 

That statute requires OCC supervision of large stablecoin issuers, and the trust charter positions Circle to meet the mandate while bringing USDC reserves into a federal framework.

Circle has built a record of regulatory engagement across markets. It received a BitLicense from New York in 2015, became the first global stablecoin issuer to comply with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework in 2024, and holds licenses in the United Kingdom, Singapore, Bermuda, and Abu Dhabi.

The charter strengthens USDC’s role as regulated digital-dollar infrastructure for payments, settlement, and capital markets, Circle said.

This post Circle (CRCL) Wins Final OCC Approval for National Trust Bank first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Metaplanet Announces Joint Study to Bring Bitcoin-Backed Digital Credit to Japan

Metaplanet wants to turn its bitcoin pile into a credit market. On Friday, Japan’s largest corporate bitcoin holder said it has opened a joint study with three partners to build tokenized credit products backed by bitcoin, a step that pushes the company past simple treasury accumulation and toward the role of a financial platform.

The study group brings together Metaplanet, the yen stablecoin issuer JPYC, the regulated security token platform Progmat, and Siiibo Securities, the licensed brokerage Metaplanet bought last month for 2.1 billion yen, or about $13 million. Siiibo becomes Metaplanet Securities on July 13.

The four firms will examine whether bitcoin can serve as collateral for credit instruments that pay interest each day. Metaplanet frames this as a product that exists in the United States but not in Japan. 

Digitization, the company said, would allow trading and settlement of these instruments around the clock, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with rights management at the holder level, pro-rata interest math handled in software, and redemptions recorded on a public ledger.

Bitcoin-backed credit is a young product class. Public companies that hold bitcoin use the asset as core collateral for debt offerings, and those offerings pay dividends or interest. The design takes a static coin balance and turns it into an instrument that throws off cash.

Metaplanet was blunt about how early this is. “The four companies will examine issues in product design, the need for proof-of-concept initiatives, and the possibility of future issuance,” the company said. “At this time, nothing has been determined regarding issuance timing, terms, yield, product details, distribution methods, or the form of collaboration.” 

Why Japan?

The pitch rests on a gap in Japan’s debt market. That market favors large corporations that can float public bonds. Mid-sized and growth companies face steep costs and heavy operational load around issuance, sales, investor management, interest payments, and redemptions. Many of them stay shut out.

Digital credit, in Metaplanet’s telling, could open the door to those smaller firms. Onchain infrastructure would bridge traditional capital markets and blockchain rails, cut the manual work, and give issuers a path to raise money that a public bond sale did not offer them. If it works, a growth company in Tokyo could raise debt on a system that settles at any hour and tracks every holder in code.

Each partner brings one piece. Metaplanet and its securities arm will design the products that fuse bitcoin with credit, sell them to investors, field customer questions, and manage the instruments after issuance. 

JPYC will test whether its yen-pegged stablecoin can move payments and redemptions through the system. Progmat will supply the regulated tokenization layer, which tracks ownership, processes transfers, and wires the whole thing to the stablecoin payment system.

The division of labor maps onto a full stack: an issuer and distributor with a license, a settlement asset, and a token platform.

Metaplanet’s bigger plan

The study fits a strategy the company calls Project Nova, its plan to build a bitcoin-centric financial platform in Japan. The Siiibo purchase gave Metaplanet a Type I Financial Instruments Business Operator registration, the license Japan requires to structure and sell financial products to retail investors. 

Siiibo, founded in 2019, runs an online platform for private-placement corporate bonds and has backed more than 40 issuers across 100-plus offerings. Metaplanet gains that track record, plus a shareholder base of about 250,000 investors to sell into.

Simon Gerovich, Metaplanet’s president and CEO, has cast the shift in stark terms. “We view Bitcoin not as a treasury reserve asset, but as the foundation of the next generation of financial ecosystems,” he said when the Siiibo deal was announced.

Metaplanet holds 43,000 BTC, worth about $2.47 billion. Strategy and Twenty One Capital are the two public holders ranked above it.

For the moment, the digital credit plan is a set of questions and four companies willing to study them. Whether it becomes a product depends on the proof-of-concept work that remains. But the direction is clear: Metaplanet wants its bitcoin to do more than sit on a balance sheet. It wants the coin to underwrite a market.

This post Metaplanet Announces Joint Study to Bring Bitcoin-Backed Digital Credit to Japan first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin is “A Screaming Buy”: Standard Chartered Backs $100,000 Target, Shrugs Off Strategy (MSTR) Sell-Off

Standard Chartered maintained its end-2026 Bitcoin price forecast of $100,000 in a note to investors on Friday, arguing that the recent weakness reflects a failure by Strategy to explain a strategic shift rather than any deterioration in the company’s balance sheet.

Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s global head of digital assets research, wrote that Strategy — the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, with 843,775 coins, more than 4% of the 21 million that will ever exist — “appears to be pivoting from its ‘never sell Bitcoin’ mantra to a more complex approach.” 

Clear communication of that pivot, he wrote, will determine how fast the pressure on BTC lifts.

Between 2020 and mid-2025, Strategy’s mNAV — enterprise value divided by the value of its Bitcoin — traded above 1.0. That premium lets the company issue shares, buy Bitcoin, and grow its value by more than the value of the new stock. Convincing the market it would never sell was the load-bearing part of the model.

With mNAV near 1.0, that arithmetic no longer works. Kendrick said Strategy is pivoting toward holding Bitcoin as backing for STRC, its perpetual preferred stock, which functions as a credit product.

The STRC feedback loop

STRC pays a 12% annual dividend, settled twice a month in cash, with the rate reset each month to keep the security near its $100 par value. It has about $10 billion notional outstanding, the largest of the instruments Strategy has deployed.

A negative feedback loop took hold once STRC broke from par, hitting an intraday low of $71.25 on June 26. The divergence began after the June 1 disclosure that Strategy had sold 32 BTC the prior week. STRC still trades near $90, according to Standard Chartered. The USD reserve for STRC dividends stands at $2.55 billion, or 17.4 months of coverage.

Bitcoin is a ‘screaming buy’

The problem with “never sell,” Kendrick argued, is that it constrains how Bitcoin gets perceived. Strategy has announced a monetization program that lets it sell BTC from time to time, including up to $1.25 billion in proceeds for the reserve.

Given its Bitcoin backing, STRC is over-collateralized and should trade back toward $100, the note said. Kendrick compared the mechanism to a central bank promising to do “whatever it takes” and, through credibility, never having to act. 

Effective signaling, he wrote, should remove the need for Strategy to sell any Bitcoin. Kendrick treats the episode as noise rather than a signal about BTC’s medium-term direction. At $64,000, he calls the coin “a screaming buy.”

Strategy sold 3,588 BTC for about $216 million last week, its largest disposal to date, using the proceeds to fund preferred stock distributions and refill the reserve. JPMorgan analysts said the formal sale policy introduces “avoidable two-way risk” by making Strategy both buyer and seller. 

Strategy’s stock trades near $98 on Thursday. BTC traded above $64,400 on Friday.

This post Bitcoin is “A Screaming Buy”: Standard Chartered Backs $100,000 Target, Shrugs Off Strategy (MSTR) Sell-Off first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

JPMorgan Says the Real Threat to Bitcoin Isn’t Strategy (MSTR) — It’s Private Blockchains

Strategy’s recent bitcoin sales and its formal monetization program have rattled investors, but JPMorgan analysts see a bigger danger to bitcoin: blockchain adoption that routes around public networks and the tokens that ride on them.

In a report led by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou and reported by The Block, the bank argued that Strategy is not the main structural threat to the asset. 

The company sold 3,588 bitcoin for $216 million in early July to cover preferred dividends, its largest disposal on record, and such sales can add bursts of selling pressure. The deeper concern, the analysts said, is where tokenization, payments and settlement end up.

Should that activity settle on permissioned rails rather than public chains, the crypto ecosystem could face a structural de-rating — thinner liquidity, weaker capital flows and slower on-chain volume — a drag that would reach bitcoin in time.

Institutions have leaned toward permissioned blockchains, which offer privacy, know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering controls, governance, throughput, legal accountability and regulatory certainty. 

That preference, per JPMorgan, creates a competitive problem for public networks like Ethereum.

The analysts cited the Bank for International Settlements, which has warned against public permissionless chains for systemic financial infrastructure and has pushed instead for “unified ledgers” that hold tokenized central bank money, bank deposits and assets inside regulated walls.

Tokenization as a real-world use case

Banks are building to that spec. Tokenized deposits — digital claims on bank balances, backed by banking regulation and deposit insurance — stand out as the clearest case. Should such deposits spread in the non-transferable forms regulators favor, they could crowd out stablecoins in institutional payments. 

SWIFT’s blockchain project and central bank digital currency efforts such as the digital euro and digital yuan would reinforce that regulated lane.

Real-world asset tokenization tells a similar story. The market sits near $50 billion, much of it on Ethereum for now, though the analysts read that as early experimentation rather than a settled structure. 

As adoption matures, issuance, custody and settlement could migrate to private infrastructure, leaving public chains for distribution and interoperability. DTCC and Securitize show the pattern in motion, and the analysts questioned whether public settlement is even the most efficient model for regulated firms, given the capital savings of deferred, netted settlement.

What could prove JPMorgan wrong

The Clarity Act, even should it pass this year, might not lift the threat; it could embolden bank-issued deposit tokens at the expense of public stablecoins. 

The analysts flagged three ways their thesis breaks: a hybrid model where both chain types matter, stronger stablecoin adoption under friendly rules, or bitcoin holding its role as “digital gold” and a debasement hedge whatever happens across the rest of crypto.

This post JPMorgan Says the Real Threat to Bitcoin Isn’t Strategy (MSTR) — It’s Private Blockchains first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Interpol said a crypto wallet linked to a 20-year-old fraud suspect processed more than $122.5 million over 10 months.

Police in Thailand arrested two people in a money-laundering investigation involving romance-scam proceeds moved through crypto and cross-chain token swaps. The swaps were used to obscure the financial trail, Interpol said in a July 9 account of Operation First Light 2026.

The $122.5 million reflects money that passed through the wallet over 10 months, rather than a balance sitting there at once. Interpol did not identify the wallet, name the assets or chains used, say how much of the total came from theft, or disclose how much Thai authorities recovered.

The case was one part of a coordinated operation spanning 97 countries and territories. Interpol reported 5,811 arrests, $293 million in intercepted illicit assets, and more than 142,000 identified victims.

Related Reading

Tether freezes 134 wallets as stablecoins now sit inside the sanctions machine

The 134-address action exposes how public-chain intelligence and issuer controls are becoming real-time enforcement infrastructure.

Jul 2, 2026 · Liam 'Akiba' Wright

Cross-chain swaps raise the tracing burden

A token swap can push funds from one asset or blockchain into another. Once a laundering trail spans multiple chains, investigators must piece together records from different ledgers and services before the money reaches an off-ramp tied to a real-world identity.

Related Reading

Did Tether just freeze $72M in USDT with no link to a hack in Monero money laundering sting?

A reported $120.2 million USDT routing through Monero left about $72 million frozen, but the market impact showed how quickly traceable liquidity can move toward harder-to-follow rails.

Jun 15, 2026 · Liam 'Akiba' Wright

Using cross-chain swaps means each transition adds another technical and legal handoff to an investigation, especially when funds pass through peer-to-peer wallets or services with different recordkeeping and compliance controls.

The Financial Action Task Force said in a March 2026 report that cross-chain activity can fall outside some counter-illicit-finance controls. It called for law-enforcement and supervisory bodies to build expertise in cross-chain mechanics, smart contracts and blockchain analytics, alongside stronger monitoring of peer-to-peer risks.

Related Reading

Australia’s new crypto transfer rules to make exchange withdrawals pass through identity checks

From July 1, AUSTRAC’s virtual-asset transfer rules change what exchanges ask before crypto moves.

Jul 1, 2026 · Liam 'Akiba' Wright

Thailand shows how quickly that policy concern becomes an enforcement problem. Any company along a cross-chain route, from wallets and exchanges to swap services and analytics firms, may be expected to keep records authorities can use and flag suspicious flows before the trail goes cold.

Operation First Light combined intelligence exchange with raids, account and wallet freezes, Interpol notices, and requests through I-GRIP, a mechanism designed to block illicit flows in fiat and virtual assets.

The operation ran from Jan. 15 through April 30 after an initial intelligence-gathering period. Its results show that enforcement agencies can disrupt large fraud networks, but the Thailand case also highlights the next pressure point: tracing value quickly enough as it changes hands across chains before investigators can act.

The post One crypto wallet tied to a 20-year-old fraudster processed over $122M before Interpol closed in appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The US Justice Department says a prisoner serving a nine-year sentence for money laundering conspired to move about $290,000 in cryptocurrency in January 2024 after a court ordered the assets forfeited to the United States.

The case highlights a potential gap between a court’s forfeiture order and the government obtaining control of assets that can still be transferred.

Until an agency obtains practical control of the wallet, someone with valid access may still be able to send the assets elsewhere.

In a July 9 announcement, the Justice Department said Rossen Iossifov allegedly routed the cryptocurrency through multiple exchanges and illicit mixing services, preventing the United States from obtaining possession.

Iossifov owned Bulgaria-based crypto exchange RG Coins and was convicted of RICO conspiracy and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Prosecutors said Romanian scammers posted fake listings for vehicles and other expensive goods on sites such as Craigslist and eBay, took payments from at least 900 Americans, then converted the proceeds into crypto.

The release calls the funds seized and forfeited but leaves a crucial gap: Had agents taken the private keys or moved the crypto into a government wallet before the alleged transfer?

According to the DOJ, they had not. The crypto moved before the government secured it.

Related Reading

The US says it grabbed Iran’s crypto in a $1B seizure – will it end up in Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve?

Bessent’s Iran crypto seizure claim puts $1 billion in adversary assets between frozen wallets, forfeiture, and Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve.

May 31, 2026 · Gino Matos

A seizure order still needs a key-custody plan

The Justice Department's Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual outlines what must happen after agencies obtain authority to seize cryptocurrency.

The seizing agency should immediately transfer the assets to an agency-controlled, unhosted wallet, as others may hold copies of the private key.

It should then keep the cryptocurrency in cold storage until transfer to a wallet controlled by the US Marshals Service or its contractor.

Related Reading

US Marshals Service picks Coinbase Prime to custody ‘Class 1' digital assets

Coinbase Prime will implement storage and liquidation techniques in compliance with both DOJ and USMS policies.

Jul 1, 2024 · Assad Jafri

A warrant or forfeiture order can freeze the account, but control changes hands only once every usable key and credential is out of reach. Exclusive control begins only when another usable key or account credential can no longer authorize a transaction.

Iossifov was in prison when the alleged conduct occurred.

The filings do not say where Iossifov’s crypto was held, who had the keys, which services moved it, or how he pulled it off from prison. The specific failure point and any prior arrival in an agency-controlled wallet remain unresolved.

A November 2024 court order states that Iossifov received a 121-month sentence in January 2021, which was reduced to 111 months in May 2024.

DOJ says Iossifov had also been ordered to pay $2.64 million in restitution to victims of the earlier fraud scheme.

Related Reading

DOJ seizures of $580M expose how crypto investment scams scaled into shift work with quotas and scripts

Justice Department says it froze or seized $580M in three months by hitting scam infrastructure.

Mar 1, 2026 · Gino Matos

The new indictment charges him with removal of property to prevent seizure and conspiracy to commit money laundering, carrying a combined maximum of 25 years if he is convicted.

The case exposes the operational gap that can remain between a court’s forfeiture decision and technical control of the assets. For future seizures, DOJ policy calls for agencies to pair court authority with a rapid transfer into a wallet they control.

What remains unanswered in this case is where that chain of control stopped short.

The post Convicted scammer’s “seized” crypto moves to unknown wallets while in prison as DOJ failed to secure funds appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Demand for XRP is weakening across several key market indicators, testing whether the XRP Ledger’s (XRPL) growing institutional pipeline can translate into sustained investor and network activity.

US spot XRP exchange-traded funds recorded about $7.2 million in net outflows in the week ended July 10, according to SoSoValue. The withdrawals ended a nine-week inflow streak that brought nearly $200 million into the products.

The weekly outflow ranked among the five largest for XRP funds this year, though it represented only a modest reversal in the broader trend. The products have attracted cumulative net inflows of $1.48 billion, while their combined assets approached $1 billion at the end of the week.

Still, the shift coincided with a decline in futures exposure and some of the weakest XRPL user activity recorded in 2026, suggesting that demand is cooling across both regulated investment products and the wider market.

XRP open interest falls as bullish traders pay more

That cooling in fund demand is also showing up in the leveraged market, where traders are cutting exposure.

Global open interest in XRP futures fell from nearly $3 billion in June to about $2.3 billion by mid-July, according to CoinGlass.

The decline was most evident on Binance, where open interest fell from over $500 million in mid-June to $399 million by July 10, according to CryptoQuant data. Long liquidations rose 94% from the previous week and stood 172% above their three-month average, while short liquidations fell by more than half.

Meanwhile, XRP funding rates moved in the opposite direction. Binance’s XRP funding rate increased 266% over the week despite a shrinking pool of open positions and elevated long liquidations.

The divergence suggests that the remaining bullish traders are paying higher premiums to maintain exposure in a contracting derivatives market.

That structure could leave XRP vulnerable to another funding reset if prices weaken and additional long positions are forced to close.

XRPL activity concentrates as wallet growth stalls

The retreat from leveraged trading is also evident in XRPL, where fewer wallets are participating even as established services generate more activity.

Blockchain analysis platform Santiment reported that XRPL experienced its second-quietest day of the year this week, logging only 25,350 active wallets.

The pipeline of new participants has similarly dried up, with new wallet creation plummeting to 2,130. This is the lowest level recorded since November 2024.

The slowdown followed a brief increase in dip-buying activity in late June. Since then, both active wallet numbers and new wallet creation have fallen back, with no clearer price or network catalyst.

However, other indicators suggest that network activity has become more concentrated among existing users and applications rather than disappearing altogether.

Vet, an XRP Ledger validator, said transactions containing source tags rose 28.6%, while the number of source tags increased 13%. The tags are commonly used by exchanges, payment providers, and other services to identify transactions linked to customers who use shared accounts.

The increase points to greater activity from service-based applications, but it does not necessarily signal broader adoption. A smaller group of established platforms can generate more transactions even as the number of active and newly created wallets declines.

CryptoQuant data showed the same divide. Transaction counts increased about 3% to 4% over the previous week and month, but remained roughly 21% below their three-month average. Active addresses were also 11% below their three-month baseline.

The network-value-to-transactions ratio eased over the period, suggesting utilization may be stabilizing after an earlier decline.

However, the improvement remains limited, as transaction volumes and user participation continue to trail their longer-term averages.

Can XRPL’s institutional growth revive demand for XRP?

XRP’s weakening market position has increased the importance of the institutional activity developing on XRPL.

Data from CryptoSlate shows that the token has fallen about 5% over the past week to roughly $1.11, as ETF outflows, declining futures exposure and weaker wallet growth point to reduced demand across several parts of the market.

At the same time, institutions are making greater use of XRPL for tokenized assets and settlement. Evernorth, an XRP-focused digital-asset treasury company, said about $4 billion of tokenized real-world assets associated with the network now span more than 500 products.

That growth gives developers an incentive to make the ledger more suitable for banks, asset managers and other financial companies. Their latest effort focuses on privacy, one of the main features institutions often require before moving sensitive financial activity onto public blockchains.

The proposed XLS-96 standard would introduce confidential transfers for Multi-Purpose Tokens. It would use encryption and zero-knowledge proofs to hide individual balances and transfer amounts while still allowing validators to verify that transactions comply with the ledger’s supply rules.

The proposal would also allow selective disclosure, enabling issuers to provide transaction information to regulators and auditors without making it publicly available. Controls such as freezing and clawback functions would remain available for confidential assets.

Those features could make XRPL more attractive to institutions that do not want competitors or outside observers monitoring their collateral movements, settlement amounts or trading positions in real time.

Institutional interest in the network is already producing practical use cases. In May, Ondo Finance, Ripple, Mastercard and JPMorgan’s Kinexys platform completed a cross-border redemption involving Ondo’s tokenized US Treasury product.

The tokenized asset portion was processed on XRPL in less than five seconds, while the corresponding dollar payment moved through Kinexys and JPMorgan’s banking network. The transaction showed how assets recorded on the ledger could interact with traditional financial infrastructure.

Adding confidential transfers could help expand that activity by removing a key obstacle to institutional adoption. More tokenized assets, settlement transactions, and financial products on XRPL could, in turn, strengthen demand for XRP if the token is used for liquidity, transaction fees, collateral, or settlement.

The post XRP loses $700 million in futures bets while XRPL builds a $4 billion institutional pipeline appeared first on CryptoSlate.

US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded their first weekly net inflow in more than two months, attracting $197 million across 13 products.

The inflow ended an eight-week run of net redemptions that pulled more than $8 billion from the Bitcoin ETF sector.

Following the renewed inflows, Bitcoin prices appreciated 3% this week, pushing past the $64,000 threshold as market observers eyed the $65,000 level.

Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs register weekly inflows

Data from SoSoValue shows that the week ending July 10 commenced with $265 million in inflows on Monday, followed by an additional $21.4 million on Tuesday.

However, demand temporarily reversed midweek, with net outflows of $84.8 million on Wednesday and $95 million on Thursday. The funds subsequently rebounded on Friday, taking in $90.4 million to close the five-day trading period in positive territory.

Notably, spot Ethereum ETFs mirrored the trajectory of their Bitcoin counterparts, similarly breaking an eight-week streak of net redemptions.

The Ethereum products ended the week with $84.42 million in net inflows, aligning with the broader recovery across cryptocurrency investment vehicles.

The improvement across both Bitcoin and ETH products suggests investors have become less aggressive in reducing their crypto exposure.

Digital asset market intelligence firm Swissblock said:

“The most overwhelming ETF distribution wave of this bear market has ended. As Bitcoin Risk continues easing from Capitulation Risk, Spot ETF flows have turned slightly positive again.”

Demand remains weak

Despite these positive inflows, market analysts caution that this short-term reversal may not signal a sustained institutional return.

Still, one positive week provides limited evidence that the broader demand trend has reversed after eight consecutive weeks of redemptions.

Ecoinometrics, a digital asset analysis firm, noted that Bitcoin maintaining a price near $64,000 is unexpected given the broader capital flight from the ETF sector.

According to the firm, BTC's current price stabilization appears to be outpacing the recovery in demand because a handful of positive-flow days have yet to offset the redemptions recorded over the previous eight weeks.

It added:

“For us, the important signal isn't whether ETF flows turn positive for a day or two. It’s whether they remain positive long enough to reverse the broader trend in cumulative holdings.”

Swissblock also agreed with this view, stating that the current accumulation remains weak and lacks robust institutional conviction.

In view of this, the latest inflow only points to a slowdown in selling rather than a confirmed change in trend.

While Bitcoin ETFs might have broken their eight-week losing streak, the funds still need several more weeks of consistent inflows to show that investors are rebuilding exposure rather than briefly pausing their retreat.

The post Bitcoin’s $64,000 rebound is outrunning ETF demand despite a $197 million inflow appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Cantor Equity Partners I and BSTR said they will not close Adam Back's 30,021-BTC treasury deal under the July 2025 agreement.

One of the market’s most visible Bitcoin treasury launches is now stuck rebuilding its financing before BSTR can reach public investors.

In a July 8 Form 8-K, Cantor Equity Partners I said it and BSTR are discussing a revised structure and amended terms for the proposed business combination. The filing said the companies will not complete the deal under the terms in the original agreement, and that the pending private placements tied to the transaction will not be required to be consummated.

The accompanying company update said the revised structure and terms are intended to better reflect current market conditions. The same update said the shareholder meeting scheduled for July 10 has been postponed indefinitely, while any public shares submitted for redemption will be returned and will not be redeemed.

The financing reset is where the Bitcoin treasury trade meets reality. Before BSTR can worry about how its shares perform, it has to prove investors will still fund the launch on workable terms.

Related Reading

Bitcoin treasury investors are turning on companies diluting them to keep buying

For two years, buying more Bitcoin was enough to lift a treasury stock. Strategy's BTC Yield is now sliding, Metaplanet sits below the value of its coins, and Europe's new entrants are asking investors to fund them on terms nobody has priced yet.

Jun 29, 2026 · Andjela Radmilac

The old deal was built around scale

BSTR's original pitch rested on size and access to financing. A July 2025 SEC-filed company release said BSTR was expected to launch with 30,021 Bitcoin on its balance sheet, up to $1.5 billion of fiat PIPE financing, 5,021 Bitcoin in an in-kind PIPE, 25,000 Bitcoin from founding shareholders, and up to about $200 million from Cantor Equity Partners I, subject to redemptions.

The same release tied the vehicle to Adam Back as BSTR's chief executive and co-founder of Blockstream. It also framed BSTR around a Bitcoin-per-share mandate, not just a passive holding-company model.

The detailed business-combination filing shows that the 30,021 BTC figure is made up from separate components: a 25,000 BTC seller contribution, a 4,156.11 BTC CEPO Bitcoin equity PIPE, and an 865 BTC Newco equity PIPE. The same filing described cash equity, convertible notes, preferred stock, and Bitcoin-denominated commitments that depended on the transaction reaching closing.

Those commitments did the heavy lifting, turning a large Bitcoin stack into a vehicle built for public-market funding. The original structure combined common equity, convertible notes, preferred stock, Bitcoin-funded subscriptions, and a SPAC shareholder base with redemption rights across several investor groups.

Once the July 8 update said the existing private placements do not have to close, the question changed from whether BSTR had announced enough capital to whether fresh terms can pull that capital back in.

That also changes the role of the postponed shareholder meeting. Postponing the vote would be procedural in itself. Returning the shares submitted for redemption while the parties renegotiate is more consequential because the public float, CEPO cash contribution, and shareholder base remain unresolved. Those variables are exactly what a Bitcoin treasury company needs to settle before it can credibly promise expansion.

That structure made BSTR more than another company saying it wanted Bitcoin. It was a test of whether Bitcoin treasury promoters could combine stock-market access, PIPE capital, in-kind Bitcoin commitments, and public shareholders into a single funding machine.

Now the old machine has to be rebuilt or replaced.

Related Reading

A US Bitcoin treasury company sold every BTC because debt and Nasdaq pressure just closed in

New SEC filing ties a full BTC liquidation to debt repayment, collateral language, Nasdaq pressure and an AI pivot.

Jul 2, 2026 · Liam 'Akiba' Wright

The reset puts investors back in control

BSTR and Cantor are still negotiating, with the original terms now off the table.

If the parties reach a revised agreement, additional SEC filings are expected to amend or supplement the registration statement and proxy materials. The next filings will show how much of the original deal is still standing, including the Bitcoin stack, the PIPE commitments, and the price investors now demand to fund it.

They will also show how much demand remains for a digital asset treasury company, even as Bitcoin is not making the launch easy.

CryptoSlate's Bitcoin market page showed BTC trading near $63,688 on July 12, with a market capitalization of roughly $1.27 trillion and about 58% dominance in the broader crypto market. That backdrop is not catastrophic for Bitcoin, but it is very different from a market that treats treasury vehicles as automatic upside.

CryptoSlate readers have already seen the pressure points in other treasury structures. Recent coverage has focused on dilution and Bitcoin-per-share economics, preferred-stock stress at Strategy, and the broader point that treasury companies are really funding stacks with Bitcoin wrappers.

BSTR raises the same question in the process. Instead of asking whether the stock will trade at a premium after trading begins, the reset asks whether the premium assumptions still finance the company before investors ever receive a listed share.

Related Reading

Strategy bought time but Bitcoin’s next cycle may need buyers beyond Saylor

Strategy may not become a major seller, but its ability to keep driving Bitcoin demand is under fresh scrutiny.

Jul 3, 2026 · Oluwapelumi Adejumo

For a company that measures success in Bitcoin per share, that distinction is central. Capital that arrives at a lower valuation, with higher yield demands, heavier dilution, or fewer Bitcoin commitments can change the economics, even if the deal still closes. The amended filing will therefore be read less like a relaunch notice and more like a market-clearing document.

That makes the forthcoming terms more important than the vehicle's branding. Investors do not have to reject Bitcoin to demand a different price for balance-sheet exposure, redemption risk and future capital calls.

The next filing is the test

The companies' own risk language points to the variables that now matter. The July 8 filing and release cite risks related to public-shareholder redemptions, public float, liquidity, exchange listing, Bitcoin price volatility, competition, regulatory uncertainty, and the difficulty of scaling Bitcoin accumulation and treasury operations.

Those are the terms of the next negotiation.

If a revised BSTR deal preserves the 30,021-BTC launch scale, keeps meaningful investor commitments, and avoids shifting too much cost onto new shareholders, the digital asset treasury company trade will have a stronger answer. It would show that the market can reprice a large Bitcoin treasury deal without killing the model.

If the revised terms reduce the Bitcoin stack, raise the cost of capital, weaken investor protections, or lean harder on dilution, the message changes. The reset would suggest that the next wave of Bitcoin treasury companies cannot rely on stale premiums from the last cycle.

BSTR has become a live price check for the whole Bitcoin treasury trade. The revised terms will show whether investors still want to bankroll expansion or whether shareholders are left paying for the reset.

The post Adam Back’s 30,021 BTC Bitcoin treasury deal just lost the funding structure holding it together appeared first on CryptoSlate.

One of the most important companies in crypto came within reach of disappearing entirely — and taking its plan for $XRP with it. In a candid talk this week, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse revealed just how close the firm came to shutting down and handing its XRP treasury to shareholders rather than fighting the SEC. Here is the xrp news today and why it still matters for the xrp price.

What Did Ripple's CEO Actually Reveal?

Speaking at the University of Kansas School of Business, Garlinghouse said he and co-founder Chris Larsen seriously considered winding Ripple down and distributing its XRP holdings to shareholders after the SEC sued the company in 2020. The mechanics were surprisingly simple: Ripple holds a large treasury of XRP, so the founders could have distributed those tokens to shareholders on a pro rata basis and wound the business down — a maneuver not unlike an airdrop to equity holders. Doing so would have ended the case outright, since Ripple could then tell the regulator it no longer held the asset the SEC claimed was a security.

Why Did Ripple Decide to Fight Instead?

According to Garlinghouse, the deciding factor was not confidence in winning — it was people. A shutdown would have put hundreds of employees out of work, while litigating kept the company operational. He was candid about how difficult the call was, saying he was glad in retrospect, but that it was not obvious at the time. Former CTO David Schwartz reinforced how dire things looked: the company received advice from lawyers that it was done, unsavable, and that leadership should cut a deal to save themselves.

How Much Did the SEC Fight Cost Ripple?

The price of standing its ground was steep. Garlinghouse put Ripple's four-year legal bill at roughly $150 million and confirmed the SEC named him and Chris Larsen personally. He argued the personal charges were a pressure tactic — Schwartz suggested the SEC named Garlinghouse and Larsen personally as a deliberate maneuver to weaken their resolve and force a quick capitulation. Garlinghouse also said he met SEC officials four times between 2017 and 2019 without a lawyer and was never warned that XRP might be treated as a security, feeding a long-standing industry complaint about regulation-by-enforcement.

How Did the XRP Lawsuit End?

Ripple ultimately won on the central question. Judge Analisa Torres ruled that XRP in itself is not a security, and the case was settled last year after a change in SEC leadership that took a more accommodating stance toward crypto. That outcome preserved XRP's primary corporate backer and kept development of its cross-border settlement rails alive — a very different ending from the one Ripple's own lawyers had predicted.

What Does This Mean for the XRP Price Today?

The revelation is a look back, not a new catalyst, so the immediate xrp price impact is muted — $XRP trades near $1.09, down around 1.4% on the day amid a broader market pullback. But there is a quieter bullish read underneath. On-chain data points to accumulation beneath the surface, with roughly 64.9 million XRP flowing into Binance against 49.2 million flowing out on July 7 — a net spot-buying imbalance of about 15.7 million XRP. 

One important caveat: Schwartz later pushed back on the more dramatic headlines, saying his earlier comments were taken out of context and that he never claimed Garlinghouse seriously considered shutting the company down. Either way, the story is a reminder of just how existential the regulatory fight was — and how much of XRP's survival came down to a single decision.

The crypto market is doing something unexpected this weekend: almost nothing. Despite a third round of US strikes on Iran and Tehran declaring the Strait of Hormuz closed, $BTC has barely flinched. Here is a breakdown of the crypto news today and why the bitcoin price is shrugging off a major geopolitical shock.

What Is the Bitcoin Price Today?

The btc price today sits at roughly $63,900, down around 0.3% over 24 hours but still up about 2% across the week. $ETH trades near $1,803, $XRP around $1.09, $SOL near $76.60, and $DOGE at about $0.073. Total market cap sits near $2.28T. With oil, stock and bond markets closed for the weekend, bitcoin is one of the few assets pricing the latest escalation in real time, with a fuller reaction in crude expected when trading resumes Monday.

What Just Happened Between the US and Iran?

The escalation began on July 7, when US Central Command said US forces struck more than 80 targets in Iran in retaliation for attacks on commercial ships near the Strait of Hormuz, and the US reimposed sanctions on Iranian oil sales. By July 8, President Trump said the memorandum of understanding and the ceasefire with Iran "is over, as far as I'm concerned." Over the weekend, the conflict deepened further: Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps closed the Strait of Hormuz after firing a warning shot at a vessel using an unauthorized route — a serious move, given the strait is one of the most important chokepoints for global oil.

How Did the Crypto Market React to the US-Iran Strikes?

Crypto's first reaction was textbook risk-off. When Trump declared the ceasefire dead, the price of bitcoin fell 2.5% and altcoins took heavier losses, with roughly $450 million in leveraged positions liquidated. Altcoins bore the brunt, with $350 million of the $450 million in total liquidations coming from altcoin pairs. But by July 9 the mood flipped: Bitcoin rose 1.2% to $63,000, ether added 0.75% and Nasdaq 100 futures gained with markets unperturbed by U.S. airstrikes on 90 Iranian military targets.

Why Is Bitcoin Ignoring the Geopolitical Risk?

The key shift is how traders now frame the conflict. According to market analysis, investors have stopped pricing Middle East risk as a crypto-specific event and started pricing it as a rates event — the real worry is whether higher oil prices reignite inflation and keep interest rates elevated. As a result, bitcoin now tracking front-end Treasury yields more closely than traditional hedges like crude or gold. Notably, gold has slid even as tensions climb, hinting at a possible rotation into Bitcoin as a rates-sensitive asset.

What Should Crypto Traders Watch Next?

Traders are fixated on the $60,000 level. Holding it through further escalation would reinforce the "Bitcoin as a rates asset" thesis, while a sharp break lower would suggest the calm was temporary. Sentiment has thawed — the Fear and Greed Index recently climbed out of the extreme-fear zone it had held for 40 straight days — but this looks more like relief than conviction. The bigger risk is Monday's oil open, when crude finally reprices the weekend's Hormuz closure and could send fresh ripples through the crypto market today.

The crypto price today paints a cautiously green picture: the total market cap sits around $2.28 trillion, up roughly 1.2% in 24 hours, with Bitcoin holding the $64,000 line and most of the top 10 posting modest gains. But the numbers are only half the story — the big exchanges are racing to let AI software place trades on your behalf, a shift that could change how everyday people trade crypto. Here's your snapshot for today.

What are the crypto prices today?

Here's where the major coins stand as of today, based on live market data:

• Bitcoin ($BTC): ~$64,100, up about 1.4% on the day
• Ethereum ($ETH): ~$1,795, up around 2.5% — the day's stronger large-cap
• XRP ($XRP): ~$1.11, up roughly 1%
• BNB ($BNB): ~$575, up about 1.2%
• Solana ($SOL): ~$78, roughly flat
• Dogecoin ($DOGE): ~$0.07, up nearly 2%
• TRON ($TRX): ~$0.33, slightly lower

Stablecoins USDT and USDC held their $1 peg as usual. Bitcoin dominance remains firm at around 56.4%, while Ethereum sits near 9.5% — a sign the market's recovery is still being led from the top.

Why is the crypto market up today?

Sentiment has quietly improved after a brutal June, Bitcoin's worst month in four years. A few threads are driving today's tone:

• ETF inflows returned. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recently snapped a long losing streak, ending an eight-week run of outflows with roughly $200 million in net weekly inflows — a signal that institutional appetite is thawing.
• The Fear & Greed Index is easing. The gauge climbed to 26 (Fear) from 23 (Extreme Fear), pointing to calmer nerves even if conviction is still cautious.
• Volume stays thin. The catch: trading volumes remain subdued for the summer, leaving the market sensitive to macro and headline risk.

AI is coming to crypto trading — what does that actually mean?

The freshest story today is the race to let software trade for you. An "AI trading agent" is a program you give permission to act on your behalf: instead of tapping buy and sell yourself, you connect an AI assistant that can read the market, decide, and place the trades for you — a bit like autopilot for your account.

Robinhood said this feature will "soon" reach its crypto traders. Eligible US users would be able to link a third-party AI agent — from providers like OpenAI, Anthropic or Grok — to execute trades and manage their portfolio. No firm US launch date has been given yet.

It's not alone. Kraken is reportedly rebuilding its mobile app around a similar AI assistant, making automated trading the app's headline feature rather than an add-on. The takeaway: letting AI place trades is quickly becoming the new battleground for retail crypto apps. It's powerful — but also brand new, so it's worth understanding exactly what you're handing over before switching on any autopilot.

Tokenized stocks keep spreading on-chain

The real-world-asset trend is picking up pace too. Backpack joined the growing race for 24/7 tokenized equity markets, while tokenized SK Hynix shares became accessible through Telegram Wallet, Backpack and Ondo Finance — letting traders access stock exposure around the clock via crypto rails. It's another sign of the line between traditional finance and on-chain finance continuing to blur.

Other crypto news you should know today

A few more threads moving in the background today:

• South Korea tests stablecoins. Gyeonggi Province will begin a stablecoin pilot in August using zero-knowledge proofs and reserve verification for public-fund transparency.
• Binance Pay expands offline. A Kazakh commercial bank moved to connect roughly 5,000 POS terminals to Binance Pay, letting merchants accept crypto payments at physical checkout.
• ESMA scam warning. Europe's securities regulator flagged phishing emails exploiting MiCA rules, reminding firms that official messages only come from its verified domain.

Bitcoin is trading around $64,100 today, holding onto a roughly 2.6% weekly gain and pressing toward the top of a well-defined range. The bitcoin price today sits in a tug-of-war between a firm floor at $58,000 and a stubborn ceiling near $65,581 — and with June's US inflation report due July 14, the next few sessions could set the tone for weeks. Here's the full BTC price analysis.

What is the Bitcoin price today?

As of writing, BTC/USD trades near $64,100, up about 1.5% on the day and roughly 2.6% over the past seven days. The move comes after Bitcoin's worst month in four years in June, making this rebound a meaningful recovery of composure rather than a fresh breakout. Notably, 24-hour volume has been running around 20% below its recent average — a sign the grind higher is happening on thin conviction, not a flood of buyers.

What are the key Bitcoin support and resistance levels?

The 2-hour chart lays out a clean range that's easy to trade around:

• Resistance – $65,581: This is the line that matters. $BTC tapped it in mid-June and got rejected, and it's capped every attempt since. A clean 2-hour close above it is the trigger bulls are waiting for.
• Support – $58,000: The lower boundary has been tested twice (late June and early July) and held both times, forming a higher-low structure. As long as this floor holds, the broader recovery stays intact.
• Current price – ~$64,100: BTC is trading in the upper third of the range, closer to resistance than support — a constructive sign, but not yet a breakout.

What is the Bitcoin RSI telling us?

Momentum is quietly bullish. The RSI (14) reads around 60, sitting above its signal line and comfortably in the upper half of the range without being overbought. That leaves room for further upside before buyers get exhausted — but it's not the kind of stretched reading that screams "top." In short: momentum supports another push at resistance, it just hasn't confirmed the break yet.

Why does the July 14 CPI report matter for BTC?

This is the swing factor. June's US Consumer Price Index lands on July 14, and it's the next major macro catalyst for risk assets. Here's why it's pivotal:

• A cooler-than-expected print would revive hopes of Fed easing, likely pressuring Treasury yields and the dollar lower — a tailwind that could give BTC the fuel to clear $65,581.
• A hotter print would do the opposite, reinforcing higher-for-longer rate fears and potentially knocking Bitcoin back toward the middle of its range.

Complicating the picture, renewed Middle East tensions have nudged oil prices higher, which feeds back into inflation expectations — exactly the channel the market is watching. ETF inflows turned positive recently, but only for a single session, so it's still unclear whether institutional buyers will step up after the data.

Bitcoin price prediction: what happens next?

The setup is a classic coiled range heading into a known catalyst. Two scenarios stand out:

• Bullish case: A 2-hour close above $65,581, ideally confirmed by a soft CPI print, opens the path back toward the June high near $67,250. Clearing that zone would flip the medium-term structure decisively bullish and put the $70,000 round number firmly in play — the next major psychological target and a level analysts widely flag as the gateway to a broader recovery.
• Bearish case: Rejection at resistance or a hot CPI print sends BTC back toward the $61,000–$60,000 mid-range, with $58,000 as the line that absolutely must hold. A break below it would expose deeper support and put the recovery in question.

The most likely near-term path is continued consolidation between $58,000 and $65,581 until CPI forces a decision. Traders will want to watch whether volume expands on any breakout attempt — a move through resistance on weak volume is far less trustworthy than one backed by real participation.

Can Bitcoin reach 70K soon?

Bitcoin is holding a constructive structure — higher lows, supportive RSI, and price pressing resistance — but it hasn't yet earned a breakout. The $65,581 ceiling and the $58,000 floor define the battlefield, and the July 14 CPI report is the catalyst most likely to break the deadlock. Clear resistance on real volume and the road to $70,000 opens up; fail, and this stays a range to respect rather than a trend to chase.

Circle has received final approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust bank, marking one of the biggest regulatory milestones a stablecoin issuer has ever reached in the United States. The new entity — formally First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A. — will operate as Circle National Trust under direct federal oversight, and it places the world's largest regulated stablecoin, USDC, deeper inside the U.S. banking framework than ever before.

What did Circle get approved for with this OCC approval?

The OCC granted Circle a de novo national trust bank charter, which lets the company create and operate Circle National Trust as a federally regulated institution. Importantly, this is a trust bank, not a commercial bank — it cannot take consumer deposits or make loans. What it can do is safeguard client assets under strict fiduciary standards, the same role national trust banks have played for decades.

At launch, Circle National Trust will offer fiduciary digital asset custody services for Circle and its affiliates. Its OCC-approved business plan leaves the door open to eventually serving a limited number of institutional customers — mainly banks, financial institutions, and regulated derivatives organizations — depending on demand.

Why does the Circle OCC trust bank matter for USDC?

Until now, the cash and short-term U.S. Treasurys backing USDC have been held by third-party banking partners. With its own federal trust charter, Circle is positioned to eventually hold those multibillion-dollar reserves under its own federally regulated custody — reducing reliance on outside banks.

Here's why that's significant:

• Reserve management is the endgame. The charter is designed to support future management of the USDC Reserve, which would bring those operations under OCC supervision. That's deferred to a later phase, not day one.
• Custody comes first. When the bank opens, its primary job is fiduciary custody for Circle and its affiliates.
• It lowers the barrier for institutions. Federal oversight makes it easier for banks, asset managers, and other regulated firms to build on Circle's infrastructure with more regulatory clarity.

CEO Jeremy Allaire called the approval a defining step in bringing blockchain technology and digital assets into the core of the U.S. financial system, framing federal oversight as a new standard for transparency and governance.

How does this fit into the wider stablecoin regulation race?

Circle isn't moving alone. The approval lands as a wave of crypto firms chase federal banking status. The OCC granted conditional approvals to Circle, Ripple, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity Digital Assets back in December 2025, and BitGo has already been upgraded to full approval. Crypto.com secured an OCC custodian license earlier in 2026, and names ranging from Coinbase to traditional finance giants have entered the queue.

The backdrop is the GENIUS Act, the federal framework that set reserve, reporting, and compliance rules for approved stablecoin issuers. Circle's charter is widely read as cementing USDC's position as the incumbent in a newly regulated stablecoin world.

Is there any pushback on the OCC granting these charters?

Yes. Not everyone views the expansion as clean. Some banking groups have questioned the OCC's decision to grant national charters to crypto companies, arguing that crypto trust banks could offer bank-like services without facing the same rules as full-service lenders. Senator Elizabeth Warren has separately challenged whether these firms qualify under the National Bank Act.

So far, that tension hasn't slowed the pace of approvals — but it signals the framework enabling these charters could still face legal or legislative scrutiny down the line.

What happened to Circle stock (CRCL) after the news?

Circle shares (NYSE: CRCL) jumped sharply on the announcement, trading up double digits in premarket before settling to close the session up around 5%. USDC itself, as a stablecoin, held its dollar peg — the market reaction played out in Circle's equity, not the token.

One product photo, three AI tools, and about 20 minutes: Here's the full workflow for generating a sales video without a camera, a model, or a studio.

Robinhood Chain is an Ethereum layer-2 network built with Arbitrum technology for tokenized assets, crypto apps, and on-chain financial products.

Google's cheapest, fastest image model is a genuinely capable tool—until you need it to be great.

Apple alleges former employees took confidential designs, supplier information, and engineering files before joining OpenAI.

Top Democrats on key Senate committees demanded inquiries into the more than $1.2 billion that President Trump made on crypto last year.

The cryptocurrency market is attempting to recover from a sharp selloff, with Bitcoin stabilizing above key support while traders watch for confirmation of a broader trend reversal.

Prominent wealth manager and top Tesla investor Ross Gerber has launched a scathing attack against Michael Saylor.

Evernorth, a multi-million dollar digital asset treasury, has launched its presence in the Japanese market.

Shiba Inu layer 2 blockchain, Shibarium sees noticeable decline in activity, prompting attention in the market.

Crypto lawyer John Deaton blames the SEC for the previous Ripple lawsuit, describing the SEC lawyers involved as ethically challenged.

TLDR:

• Bitcoin ETFs attracted $197.4 million and ended an eight-week withdrawal streak, although the inflow recovered only a small part of earlier losses.
• BlackRock’s IBIT recorded $291.9 million in weekly inflows, while Grayscale, Fidelity and ARK funds experienced combined investor withdrawals.
• The category lost about $8.26 billion during the prior eight weeks, leaving analysts cautious about declaring a lasting institutional demand recovery.
• Weak trading volumes and the July 14 U.S. inflation report could determine whether the latest ETF inflows develop into a broader allocation shift.

U.S.-listed Bitcoin ETFs attracted $197.4 million in weekly net inflows, ending eight straight weeks of withdrawals. The reversal arrived as Bitcoin recovered from recent lows, yet the latest total remains small compared to earlier losses.

Investors removed about $8.26 billion from the funds after May 11. BlackRock’s IBIT supplied most of the new capital, while several competing products recorded redemptions.

The shift offers the first positive weekly signal since early May. Still, muted trading activity and uneven daily flows leave institutional demand difficult to judge. Tuesday’s U.S. inflation report may decide whether the improvement gains momentum or fades quickly.

Bitcoin ETFs Gain $197M as BlackRock Leads Weekly Flows

Farside Investors data shows Bitcoin ETFs opened the week with $265.7 million in net inflows. Demand then slowed to $21.5 million on Tuesday.

Combined withdrawals reached about $180.2 million across Wednesday and Thursday. Friday’s $90.4 million inflow kept the weekly result positive.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust recorded $291.9 million in weekly inflows. That amount exceeded the category’s final net gain.

Grayscale’s GBTC lost roughly $108.2 million, while Fidelity’s FBTC shed about $93.4 million. ARK 21Shares’ ARKB also posted a weekly outflow near $15.3 million.

The concentration shows that demand did not improve across every product. Instead, investors favored selected funds while reducing exposure elsewhere.

Bitcoin ETFs recovered only about 2.4% of the $8.26 billion withdrawn during the previous eight weeks.

That gap limits claims of a broad institutional comeback. One positive week can mark an early shift, but sustained allocations would offer stronger evidence. Daily data also showed that buyers stepped back after Monday’s strong opening.

Ether funds displayed a similar pattern. U.S. spot Ether ETFs attracted $84.4 million and ended their own eight-week withdrawal streak.

Those products had lost around $1.2 billion over the prior period. The two categories recorded a combined weekly inflow of $281.8 million.

Low Trading Volumes Keep Institutional Recovery in Doubt

Trading activity remained weak despite the return of capital. Weekly Bitcoin ETF volume reached about $84.1 billion, the lowest normal five-day total since October 2025.

Ether ETF turnover fell to $20.5 billion, its weakest reading since May 2025. Lower volume suggests many investors still prefer to wait for firmer market direction. Bitcoin ETFs also remain down roughly $5.34 billion during 2026.

Ether funds show about $1.35 billion in yearly net outflows. Bitcoin’s recent price rebound has not yet produced consistent ETF demand. The funds posted sizable midweek redemptions despite ending the week in positive territory.

That split supports the view that portfolio managers remain selective rather than fully risk-on. Bitcoin ETFs may need several positive weeks before the trend signals renewed institutional allocation.

Seasonal conditions may add pressure. August and September often bring weaker trading conditions, while recent Bitcoin gains have tended to fade later in the month.

The next major test arrives with the June U.S. Consumer Price Index on Tuesday, July 14. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the report at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

A softer reading could support risk assets and extend ETF inflows. A hotter figure could revive rate concerns and encourage another round of redemptions.

The post Bitcoin ETFs Draw $197M as Record Eight Week Outflow Streak Ends appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR:

• Zcash price gained roughly 5% to trade near $531, outperforming a quiet broader market after Forbes placed ZEC in its July 10 crypto ranking.
• The immediate bullish test sits between $540 and $547, while a loss of $500 could expose the $478 retracement area and weaken the recovery.
• Allium found volume surged 12 to 13 times above normal before the Orchard flaw was privately discovered, but the data does not prove informed trading.
• Long-term support comes from the 2024 halving and 5.1 million shielded ZEC, while July 2027 EU rules create a major distribution risk.

Zcash traded near $531 on Monday after gaining roughly 5% in 24 hours. The move pushed the privacy coin above the flat broader market. Fresh attention followed Forbes’ July 10 ranking of leading cryptocurrencies, which included ZEC among ten selected assets.

The Zcash price reaction suggests the listing improved sentiment around an already strong recovery. That separation gives the move more weight, though it does not prove durable demand.

The rebound also carries unresolved questions from June’s Orchard security crisis. Traders now face a narrow technical test between firm support and nearby resistance.

Zcash Price Breakout Targets the $540 to $547 Resistance

Forbes applied a market-cap threshold of at least $5 billion when compiling its latest list. The ranking also favored assets with practical utility or store-of-value qualities. Zcash met those conditions through its privacy-focused payment design and fixed supply structure.

That recognition appears to have added fresh demand during Monday’s session. CoinGecko data placed ZEC near $531, with a daily gain close to 5%. The token also gained about 15% across seven days, showing that buying started before the latest media attention.

The Zcash price now sits below a resistance band between $540 and $547. A daily close above that area could expose the next extension near $595. Failure to hold $500 would weaken the setup and place $478 back in focus.

The next macro test arrives Tuesday with the June U.S. CPI release. The Zcash price may react sharply if Bitcoin volatility changes broader risk appetite. A breakout on stronger volume would offer firmer confirmation.

Supply conditions support the bullish argument. Shielded addresses held about 5.1 million ZEC by early June, close to one-third of circulating supply. Coins in shielded pools are not automatically removed from sale, yet their growth can reduce visible exchange liquidity.

The November 2024 halving also cut block rewards from 3.125 ZEC to 1.5625 ZEC. That change slowed new issuance and reinforced Zcash’s scarcity narrative. The ZEC price has risen more than 1,100% over the past year, though the path has included sharp reversals.

Orchard Trading Questions Temper the Strong Recovery

The strongest risk comes from the Orchard vulnerability disclosed in early June. Researcher Taylor Hornby found the flaw on May 29. Developers said it could have created unlimited counterfeit ZEC inside Orchard without detection.

An emergency response fixed the vulnerability within days. Yet the privacy design prevents a definitive cryptographic audit of past exploitation. No public evidence has established exploitation, but absolute proof remains unavailable.

Allium Research later found that trading volume jumped 12 to 13 times above normal on May 26. That activity appeared three days before the private discovery. Several profitable short positions also opened before public disclosure, raising questions about early positioning.

The data does not prove insider trading. Futures markets pair every short with a long, while large losses also appear on bullish positions. That balance prevents the trading trail from establishing intent.

The Zcash price recovered despite that uncertainty, helped by supply tightening and reduced U.S. regulatory pressure. The SEC ended its investigation into the Zcash Foundation in January without recommending enforcement action.

Europe presents a separate challenge. EU anti-money-laundering rules will restrict service providers from offering accounts that increase transaction obfuscation through anonymity-enhancing coins. Those provisions are scheduled to apply from July 2027.

The post Zcash Price Rallies as Forbes List Offsets Orchard Bug Concerns appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR:

• Uniswap daily fees reached about $5.2 million in 24 hours, placing the decentralized exchange near the top of current crypto fee rankings.
• Robinhood Chain supplied roughly $4.38 million of the total, far exceeding Ethereum and Base during the same measured period.
• Only about $73,454 counted as 24-hour protocol earnings, as most swap fees still flowed to liquidity providers rather than UNI holders.
• Governance proposals could extend protocol fees and the UNI token burn system to v4 pools and Robinhood Chain after community approval.

Uniswap daily fees reached about $5.2 million in 24 hours, placing the DEX near the top of crypto fee rankings. Founder Hayden Adams highlighted the figure on X, saying only USDC and USDT generated more fees. DefiLlama recorded $5.16 million during the same period, supporting his estimate. 

Robinhood Chain supplied most of that total after launching on July 1. The sharp increase shows how quickly new networks can redirect trading activity. UNI traded near $3.62, up about 35% from its early-July low near $2.70. Yet the token still sits roughly 92% below its 2021 peak.

Uniswap Daily Fees Surge as Robinhood Chain Takes Lead

Robinhood Chain contributed about $4.38 million of the reported Uniswap daily fees. Ethereum produced roughly $296,000, while Base added about $288,000. That distribution marks a sudden shift from Uniswap’s traditional Ethereum-led activity.

The Arbitrum Orbit network launched with Uniswap v2, v3, v4, and UniswapX available from day one. Cumulative swap volume crossed $1 billion by July 10, according to a Uniswap governance post. The chain also recorded a 24-hour Uniswap volume peak near $500 million during its first week.

Across seven days, Robinhood Chain generated $10.98 million of Uniswap’s $20.1 million in total fees. That share made the new network Uniswap’s largest short-term fee source. It also placed Robinhood Chain above Ethereum and Base during the measured period. The fee spike shows how concentrated short-term trading activity can become.

Uniswap daily fees reflect charges paid through swaps, but they do not equal protocol income. DefiLlama listed only $73,454 in 24-hour earnings for Uniswap. Most trading fees still flow to liquidity providers instead of the treasury or UNI holders.

The distinction matters when comparing Uniswap with stablecoin issuers or centralized exchanges. Annualizing one strong day would imply almost $1.9 billion in fees. Still, that calculation does not show how much value the protocol retains.

UNI Burn Vote Tests the Value of Rising Protocol Activity

Uniswap governance is now considering a wider protocol fee rollout. One proposal would activate fees across v4 pools on several supported networks. Another would extend fee collection and UNI burns to Robinhood Chain.

The Robinhood Chain temperature check runs from July 10 through July 15. It covers v2, v3, and v4 deployments on the network. On-chain votes would follow if the Snapshot proposals pass.

Under the UNIfication system, collected protocol fees move into TokenJar contracts. Searchers can claim those assets after supplying UNI of equivalent value for burning. The process permanently removes the submitted UNI from circulation.

Higher Uniswap daily fees could expand the amount available for this mechanism. Yet liquidity providers may receive slightly lower returns when protocol fees activate. That trade-off could influence where they place capital across competing pools.

Uniswap v4 adds programmable hooks that let developers customize pool logic. These tools support dynamic fees, specialized liquidity rules, and other trading features. Wider v4 adoption could increase activity across more chains.

The post Uniswap Daily Fees Hit $5.2M as Robinhood Chain Volume Soars appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR:

• Michael Saylor has revived speculation over Strategy’s next Bitcoin move. His orange-dot message did not confirm another purchase or sale.
• Strategy sold 3,588 BTC for about $216 million. The company now holds 843,775 BTC at an average purchase price of $75,476.
• Bitcoin price is testing resistance near the 50-day moving average at $64,950. A confirmed breakout could expose the $67,000 level.
• June CPI data and Kevin Warsh’s July 14 testimony may shape risk appetite. Renewed US-Iran tensions add another source of uncertainty.

Michael Saylor revived uncertainty around Strategy’s next Bitcoin move after posting its acquisition chart with a cryptic message. He wrote that orange dots tell only part of the story, days after Strategy completed its largest Bitcoin sale.

Strategy sold 3,588 BTC for about $216 million and holds 843,775 BTC. Bitcoin price trades near $63,775, leaving the position below its $75,476 average cost.

The post lands as BTC tests resistance near its 50-day moving average. Traders face three possibilities: another purchase, more selling, or a capital-management action that does not involve adding Bitcoin.

Michael Saylor Posts Cloud Strategy, Next Bitcoin Move

Michael Saylor usually posts the tracker before Strategy files a weekly Bitcoin purchase. This caption breaks that familiar rhythm. Orange dots record acquisitions, yet they do not show sales, reserve funding, dividends, or share repurchases.

That distinction matters after the Strategy Bitcoin sale changed the company’s one-way accumulation narrative. An SEC filing shows that Strategy sold 1,363 BTC during June 29 and June 30.

It sold another 2,225 BTC between July 1 and July 5. The proceeds funded preferred-stock distributions and restored cash used for those payments.

Strategy reports an aggregate Bitcoin cost of $63.69 billion. At the current Bitcoin price, the holdings are worth about $53.8 billion. That puts the paper loss near $9.9 billion, although the figure shifts with every market move.

Michael Saylor may also be pointing toward Strategy’s broader funding structure. The company ended July 5 with a $2.55 billion reserve.

Its new Bitcoin monetization program permits sales to raise another $1.25 billion for that reserve. The filing says the full capacity was still available after the recent disposal.

Strategy also reported no common or preferred share sales through its at-the-market programs during the week. It made no purchases through its authorized repurchase plans.

Those details leave Michael Saylor’s message open to several readings without confirming a transaction.

Bitcoin Price Tests Resistance as CPI Risk Approaches

Bitcoin price adds another layer to the uncertainty. BTC has formed higher lows since touching about $57,800 in June. That recovery now meets horizontal resistance and the falling 50-day simple moving average near $64,950.

A daily close above that zone could improve the short-term structure. Traders would then watch whether Bitcoin retests the area as support.

A successful hold may expose the 0.382 Fibonacci level near $67,000. Failure to clear resistance keeps $63,600 in focus, followed by a possible slide toward $61,800.

Momentum does not offer a decisive signal. The daily relative strength index sits near 54, which shows positive pressure without an overbought reading. The 100-day and 200-day averages also sit much higher, near $70,769 and $73,913.

Michael Saylor’s post therefore arrives during a technical test and a busy macro window. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will publish June CPI data on July 14 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh will testify before the House at 10 a.m. that day. He will appear before the Senate Banking Committee on July 15.

Renewed US-Iran clashes around the Strait of Hormuz have also weakened risk appetite. The Bitcoin price has struggled to clear resistance as traders assess inflation, oil risks, and monetary policy.

The post Michael Saylor Teases Next Move After Strategy Sells Bitcoin appeared first on Blockonomi.

TL;DR

• Coinbase argues the CLARITY Act would strengthen, not weaken, U.S. national security by bringing crypto platforms under clearer federal oversight.
• Coinbase says the legislation requires strict AML compliance, enhances Treasury sanctions enforcement powers and increases FinCEN resources.
• Senator Elizabeth Warren continues to warn that the CLARITY Act could create opportunities for sanctions evasion.
• Supporters, including Senator Cynthia Lummis, say the bill would provide long-awaited regulatory clarity while reinforcing protections against illicit finance.

Coinbase has intensified its defense of the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, arguing that the proposed legislation would strengthen, not undermine, the United States’ national security framework. The exchange’s response comes after Senator Elizabeth Warren warned that the bill could create new avenues for sanctions evasion and weaken oversight of the crypto industry.

In a statement published on X, Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad said the absence of clear digital asset regulations poses a far greater risk than the legislation itself. 

According to Shirzad, regulatory uncertainty allows illicit actors to exploit gaps in oversight, while the CLARITY Act would place crypto companies under robust federal compliance requirements.

Coinbase Says Clear Rules Improve Enforcement

Shirzad argued that the legislation would require digital asset platforms to comply with many of the same anti-money laundering (AML) and national security obligations already imposed on traditional financial institutions.

He said the bill would strengthen the Treasury Department’s ability to detect and block sanctions evasion, expand resources available to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and give crypto platforms clearer authority to freeze suspicious transactions when requested by law enforcement.

Rather than creating a regulatory loophole, Shirzad maintained that the legislation would bring crypto firms into a more transparent supervisory framework.

“The argument that the CLARITY Act compromises national security gets it exactly backward.” 

He wrote, adding that bad actors benefit most when regulatory expectations remain unclear.

The latest comments were made in response to criticism from Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has repeatedly argued that the current version of the CLARITY Act could weaken U.S. sanctions enforcement.

Earlier this month, Warren described the proposal as a potential “ticket to sanctions evasion,” expressing concerns that parts of the legislation could create compliance gaps that hostile governments, cybercriminal organizations, or illicit financial networks might exploit.

Her objections reflect broader concerns among some lawmakers that the U.S. should prioritize strict financial controls as digital assets become increasingly integrated into the global financial system.

Debate Intensifies Ahead of Key Congressional Decisions

The dispute comes as Congress continues debating several major cryptocurrency bills that could reshape oversight of the industry.

Supporters of the CLARITY Act argue the legislation establishes clear jurisdictional boundaries between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), while introducing comprehensive compliance standards for digital asset intermediaries.

The bill has gained backing from several industry organizations that believe regulatory clarity would encourage innovation while strengthening consumer protections and enforcement capabilities.

Senator Cynthia Lummis has also defended the proposal, rejecting claims that it would weaken financial safeguards. She recently stated that the legislation contains multiple provisions designed to combat illicit finance, including anti-money laundering requirements, sanctions enforcement measures, and reporting obligations for digital asset firms.

Lummis has warned that failure to advance comprehensive crypto legislation during the current congressional session could leave the United States without a clear regulatory framework for several more years.

The discussion surrounding the CLARITY Act reflects a broader debate over how the United States should regulate the rapidly expanding digital asset sector.

The post Coinbase Defends CLARITY Act, Says Bill Strengthens U.S. National Security Rather Than Weakening It appeared first on Blockonomi.

Crypto markets have largely held on to gains over the weekend, but were looking a little shaky on Monday morning as traders digested the latest developments between the US and Iran.

The US has launched several waves of strikes on Iran over an Iranian attack on another container ship in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has declared the Strait closed, while President Trump said otherwise.

Meanwhile, some heavy inflation reports could further rattle sentiment and add to the volatility as the bear market drags on.

“Q2 2026 earnings season has arrived, and Strait of Hormuz tensions are mounting again,” said the Kobeissi Letter.

Economic Events July 13 to 17

US Central Command reported on Monday morning that forces began launching more strikes against Iran “to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”

Crude oil prices were up around 4%, with WTI and Brent hitting $74.50 and $79, respectively, while US stock futures opened slightly lower.

June’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data is due on Tuesday, which could add to the market volatility. This is followed by the Producer Price Index (PPI) data out on Wednesday, measuring wholesale inflation.

Year-on-year measures for both headline CPI and PPI are expected to rise by 3.8% and 6.2%, respectively, reported Yahoo Finance. Rising inflation will put more pressure on the Federal Reserve to hike rates, which is bad news for risk-on assets such as crypto. The escalation of military action in the Middle East is also not good for dampening inflation concerns.

June Retail Sales data and July Philly Fed Manufacturing Index reports are due on Thursday, followed by July’s Michigan Inflation Expectations and Consumer Sentiment reports on Friday.

Key Events This Week:

1. Markets React to Strait of Hormuz Closure – Today, 6 PM ET

2. June CPI Inflation data – Tuesday

3. June PPI Inflation data – Wednesday

4. June Retail Sales data – Thursday

5. July Philly Fed Manufacturing Index – Thursday

6. July MI Inflation…

— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) July 12, 2026

Several Wall Street banks and finance giants are reporting Q2 earnings this week, including JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank on Tuesday, followed by Morgan Stanley and BlackRock on Wednesday.

Crypto Market Outlook

Total market capitalization has remained steady over the weekend, hovering around $2.26 trillion with a very minor dip on Monday morning after the latest airstrikes.

Bitcoin had held ground just above $64,000 for the past 12 hours or so but dipped to $63,400 during early trading, where it remains at the time of writing.

Ether prices fared a little better, holding above $1,800 for most of the past day following a 15% gain over the past fortnight. Escalation of conflict and higher inflation this week could send both much lower.

The post 4 Things That Could Impact Crypto Markets This Week appeared first on CryptoPotato.

As analysts have predicted for July based on historical data, BTC is off to a strong start. The leading digital currency has rebounded from its most recent low of $57,700 to $64,000, a major support and pivot level.

According to the latest CryptoQuant weekly report, bitcoin’s rebound can be attributed to July’s positive seasonality and recovering demand. These factors are likely to contribute to a significant pump before the month runs out.

July Starts Strong, Bitcoin Sees Recovery

To substantiate the claims, CryptoQuant analysts cited past data that showed that the seasonal tailwind is strongest in July during bear markets. July has become bitcoin’s reliable positive month over the last decade. During previous bear cycles in 2018 and 2022, BTC closed the month with 20% and 17% surges, respectively.

So far this month, BTC has risen 11% from its lows of $57,700, trading above $64,000. The positive momentum witnessed in July usually happens regardless of how weak the broader market trend is. Since BTC entered July fresh off a bear market low, there is a higher chance of further upside, thanks to positive seasonality.

Moreover, total bitcoin demand is recovering and has climbed back towards neutral after its sharpest contraction since 2022. Analysts noted a recovery in 30-day total demand metrics after the indicator fell to -650,000 BTC in early June as the asset declined toward $58,000.

“It has since recovered to near neutral, with speculative futures demand turning slightly positive while spot apparent demand contracts at its slowest pace since mid-May. A move back into positive territory would confirm that the demand engine is re-igniting,” analysts explained.

Stronger Demand Still Needed

Furthermore, investor demand in the United States is improving, as seen in the Coinbase Premium Index, which has recovered from deeply negative readings to -0.062. The rebound was aided by BTC rebounding from the $57,000 level. It signals that selling pressure on U.S. trading platforms is easing and institutional appetite is stabilizing.

Unfortunately, market conditions are still extremely bearish despite these recent developments, as seen in the CryptoQuant Bull Score Index hovering at 20, which is the bearish zone. Even though BTC has reached short-term undervalued territory and more price recovery is possible, stronger demand is needed.

In fact, the Bull Score Index needs a reading above 60 for a sustainable rally. Until this happens, every rebound will be treated as a bear-market recovery, not a trend reversal.

The post Bitcoin’s Recovery Gains Momentum, Putting July Off to a Strong Start appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Kevin Warsh’s arrival at the Federal Reserve, renewed geopolitical tensions, and the AI investment boom have pushed stocks, gold, and Bitcoin onto sharply different paths this year, according to a new report from crypto trading firm BIT.

The report argues that investors are no longer responding to a single macro theme, with markets instead swinging between shifting catalysts that have repeatedly changed where capital flows.

Warsh, Iran, and a Fed That Won’t Budge

According to BIT, traditional relationships between equities, gold, and BTC have broken down as investors continuously reprice assets around changing macro narratives.

Its report noted that the S&P 500 has climbed 9% year to date, while gold has fallen 6% and Bitcoin has dropped 31%. Rather than moving together, the three assets have responded differently as expectations around monetary policy, geopolitical events and AI have taken turns dominating investor attention.

BIT traced the first major shift to expectations surrounding Federal Reserve policy. After President Donald Trump proposed Kevin Warsh to lead the central bank, markets abandoned earlier expectations of three interest rate cuts this year and instead began pricing in a more hawkish policy path. The June Federal Open Market Committee meeting reinforced those expectations, keeping pressure on assets that typically benefit from easier liquidity, including Bitcoin and gold.

Then there was Iran, which closed off the Strait of Hormuz following strikes against it by the United States and Israel, sending oil prices jumping and equities falling. Gold also fell, since, according to BIT, markets expected central banks in the Middle East to redirect funds toward financing reconstruction of infrastructure affected by the conflict instead of buying more bullion.

With all that happening, BTC hit a downward patch of its own, dipping below the $60,000 level and breaking what the crypto firm described as its previous resilience during geopolitical crises.

Once the Iran arc cooled, attention then shifted almost entirely to artificial intelligence, with Nvidia’s reported $2 billion stake in Marvell Technology and Anthropic’s annual revenue beating the $30 billion mark, ahead of the $20 billion OpenAI had previously reported. That combination made the AI market’s dominant investment theme, lifting tech shares while drawing capital away from other assets.

Where BIT Thinks This Goes

However, the enthusiasm around AI started fading around June, with what BIT called the “tokenmaxxing” trade losing steam as companies began to notice the true cost of AI tokens, while cheaper open-source models out of China added more pressure.

The report also noted that spot Bitcoin ETFs became heavy sellers during that period, cutting holdings by about $9 billion while BTC itself went from about $82,000 to near $63,000.

Gold, in the firm’s view, is already technically oversold, and Bitcoin is closing in on a cycle bottom somewhere between $50,000 and $55,000. But it believes the current divergence will not last, especially if the September FOMC meeting brings a change in the Fed’s hawkish stance and AI spending demand picks back up while inflation cools. In that scenario, gold, BTC, and AI trades could all turn higher together.

The post Report: AI, Warsh, and Geopolitics Break Bitcoin Correlation With Stocks and Gold appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Ethereum has continued its recovery from the June lows and is now approaching a major technical inflection point. While the recent rally has improved short-term sentiment, the asset is still trading beneath a confluence of long-term resistance levels.

Interestingly, the liquidation landscape aligns closely with these technical barriers, suggesting that ETH could first target overhead liquidity before the market decides whether a larger trend reversal is underway or another corrective leg lower remains ahead.

Ethereum Price Analysis: The Daily Chart

On the daily timeframe, ETH remains within a broader descending structure in place since the beginning of the year. It has recovered strongly from the major demand zone around $1.45K-$1.55K and is currently testing the key resistance region around $1.80K-$1.85K.

This area is particularly significant because it coincides with the descending trendline that has capped price action since May. The level also represents a major horizontal resistance that previously acted as support before the June breakdown.

Despite the recent strength, ETH remains below the 100-day and 200-day moving averages, both of which continue to trend lower. The 100-day MA is positioned around the $2K-$2.1K resistance zone, while the 200-day MA remains considerably higher near $2.2K, reinforcing the broader bearish market structure.

As long as ETH remains below the descending trendline and the $1.80K-$1.85K resistance zone, the current move can still be viewed as a recovery rally within a larger downtrend. A decisive breakout above this area would shift focus toward the next major resistance at $2K-$2.1K.

ETH/USDT 4-Hour Chart

The 4-hour chart highlights a clear ascending structure that has developed since the late-June low. Price has respected the rising channel boundaries while forming higher highs and higher lows, reflecting improving short-term momentum.

The market has already reclaimed the $1.62K-$1.64K demand zone and subsequently established another support area around $1.72K-$1.74K. These zones have repeatedly attracted buyers during pullbacks and continue to define the short-term bullish structure.

However, the rally is now approaching the upper boundary of the channel and the major resistance band around $1.83K-$1.85K. This creates a natural area where profit-taking and seller activity could emerge.

From a structural perspective, ETH remains constructive above the $1.72K-$1.74K support region. Losing this level would be the first sign that bullish momentum is fading and could expose the lower channel boundary and the broader support zone around $1.55K.

Sentiment Analysis

The Binance ETH/USDT liquidation heatmap provides an important clue regarding the next likely move.

The most significant concentration of short-side liquidity sits above the current market price, particularly within the $1.95K-$2.1K region. This cluster aligns remarkably well with the daily chart resistance zone, the 100-day moving average, and the broader supply area visible on the higher timeframe.

Meanwhile, substantial liquidity pools remain below the market around the $1.45K-$1.55K region, which corresponds closely with the major daily demand zone that has supported ETH throughout the recent recovery.

The alignment between the liquidation map and the technical structure suggests that the market may first be drawn toward the overhead liquidity cluster. A move into the $2K-$2.1K area would effectively sweep a large concentration of short liquidations while simultaneously testing one of the most important resistance zones on the chart.

The reaction at that region will likely determine the next major directional move. If buyers manage to reclaim the $2K-$2.1K resistance area and establish acceptance above it, the recovery could evolve into a broader bullish trend reversal. However, if the liquidity sweep is followed by strong selling pressure and rejection from resistance, ETH could enter another notable decline, potentially targeting the large liquidity pools resting beneath the market around the $1.45K-$1.55K support zone.

The post Ethereum Price Analysis: ETH Reaches Its Biggest Obstacle on the Road to $2K appeared first on CryptoPotato.

For weeks and weeks, the spot Ripple ETFs, alongside HYPE and sometimes SOL, dominated all cryptocurrency-related exchange-traded funds, while the market leaders suffered.

However, this trend has finally changed as the financial vehicles tracking the performance of the cross-border token turned red in the past week for the first time in over two months.

Streak Broken

Although the actual numbers were not as impressive as they were back in October, November, and December last year when the XRP ETFs launched, they were still in the green for nine consecutive weeks. Moreover, the only week that broke that streak saw a minor $35.21K (not millions) in net outflows, so it doesn’t really count. Within this timeframe, the total net inflows rose from under $1.29 billion to a new all-time high of $1.49 billion as of July 2.

However, the tides finally turned in the past five business days. Interestingly, though, only one day was in the red, with $7.29 million leaving the funds on July 8. A minor $107.38K entered the funds on Friday, while the other three trading days saw no reportable action, according to SoSoValue data.

This is rather concerning as XRP has seen similar net inflow-free days in the past, but that wasn’t the case in the last few months. Now, though, investors appear to have turned their attention away from Ripple’s token and back to the market leaders. As reported yesterday, both the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs recorded their first green week in two months, with net inflows of almost $200 million and $84 million, respectively.

XRP Price Stalls

Despite the major net inflows for nine weeks, Ripple’s native coin failed to capitalize and record any substantial gains in that time. However, the net ouflows in the past week seem to have harmed it, as current data from CoinGecko shows a 3.2% decline over the past week.

XRP challenged the $1.15 resistance earlier this week, but it was halted there, and the subsequent rejection pushed it south to under $1.10. Although it has rebounded to that level now, the uncertainty continues as many analysts expect a major move ahead.

The direction, as usual, is unknown, but the overall belief within the crypto community is that XRP has reached a decision point and it could either head below $1.00 soon or rocket toward new local peaks.

The post The End of a Ripple Era: XRP ETFs Record First Red Week In Months appeared first on CryptoPotato.