Bitcoin güvenliği, ekosistemin sürdürülebilirliği açısından en önemli başlıklardan biri olmaya devam ediyor. Bu kapsamda sektörün önde gelen dokuz şirketi, ağın uzun vadeli korunmasını desteklemek amacıyla Bitcoin Security Consortium adlı yeni bir oluşum kurduklarını duyurdu. Girişim; geliştiricilere finansman sağlamak, güvenlik araştırmalarını desteklemek ve kuantum sonrası şifreleme teknolojileri üzerine çalışmaları hızlandırmayı hedefliyor. Bu gelişme, yalnızca Bitcoin için değil, daha geniş kripto para piyasası açısından da önemli bir adım olarak değerlendiriliyor.
Bitcoin Güvenliği İçin Hangi Şirketler Bir Araya Geldi? Konsorsiyumun kurucu üyeleri arasında Strategy, BlackRock, Coinbase, Galaxy, Fidelity Digital Assets, Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, Block ve Blockstream yer alıyor. Böylece yatırım şirketleri, saklama hizmeti sağlayıcıları, kripto borsası işletmeleri, ödeme firmaları ve altyapı şirketleri ortak bir çatı altında buluşmuş oldu.
Girişimin günlük koordinasyonunu ise Brink İcra Direktörü Mike Schmidt gönüllü olarak üstlenecek. Ancak konsorsiyum, Bitcoin ağının yönetiminde söz sahibi olmayacağını ve yalnızca güvenlik alanındaki çalışmaları destekleyeceğini özellikle vurguluyor.
Geliştiricilere 15 Milyon Dolarlık Destek Sağlanacak Strategy tarafından paylaşılan bilgilere göre kurucu üyeler, önümüzdeki üç yıl boyunca Bitcoin geliştiricileri ve güvenlik araştırmacıları için toplam 15 milyon dolar kaynak ayırmayı taahhüt etti.
Her şirket, ayırdığı bütçeyi kendi belirleyeceği bağımsız kuruluşlara yönlendirecek. Böylece merkezi bir fon yapısı yerine farklı projelerin desteklenmesi hedefleniyor. Bu modelin, blok zinciri teknolojisinin güvenliğini artıracak yeni araştırmaların önünü açması bekleniyor.
Kuantum Sonrası Kriptografi Neden Öncelik Kazandı? Konsorsiyumun ilk çalışma alanı kuantum sonrası kriptografi olarak belirlendi. Uzmanlar, mevcut şifreleme yöntemlerini aşabilecek kuantum bilgisayarların kullanımının henüz yıllar uzakta olduğunu belirtse de, olası risklere karşı bugünden hazırlık yapılmasının kritik önem taşıdığı görüşünde birleşiyor.
Strategy CEO’su Phong Le de şirketin uzun vadeli bir Bitcoin yatırımcısı olduğunu belirterek, ağın gelecek nesiller boyunca güvenli kalmasına katkı sunmayı amaçladıklarını ifade etti. Güvenlik araştırmalarına kaynak ayırmanın, ekosisteme yapılabilecek en değerli katkılardan biri olduğunu söyledi.
Bitcoin Protokolü Değişmeyecek, Hazırlıklar Hızlanacak Bitcoin Security Consortium, Bitcoin protokolünü değiştirmeyecek ve teknik karar alma süreçlerine müdahale etmeyecek. Ağın geliştirilmesine ilişkin tüm kararlar, bugüne kadar olduğu gibi açık kaynak geliştirici topluluğu tarafından alınmaya devam edecek.
Öte yandan kuantum güvenliğine yönelik çalışmalar yalnızca bu girişimle sınırlı değil. Galaxy kısa süre önce Bitcoin Quantum Readiness Initiative programını tanıtarak kuantum sonrası güvenlik araçları geliştiren projelere 5 milyon dolara kadar hibe vereceğini açıkladı. ABD Başkanı Donald Trump da federal sistemlerin 2031 sonuna kadar kuantum sonrası kriptografi altyapısına geçişini hedefleyen iki başkanlık kararnamesini imzaladı.
Bunun yanında Project Eleven, belirli senaryolarda yaklaşık 6,9 milyon Bitcoin’in gelecekte kuantum bilgisayarların oluşturabileceği risklerden etkilenebileceği uyarısında bulundu. Şirket, “Q-Day” olarak adlandırılan dönemin en erken 2030 yılında başlayabileceğini öngörüyor.
Bitcoin ekosisteminde güvenlik yatırımlarının artması, uzun vadede hem dijital varlık sektörünün hem de yatırımcı güveninin güçlenmesine katkı sağlayabilir.
Bu içerik kesinlikle yatırım tavsiyesi niteliği taşımamaktadır. Piyasalar yüksek risk içermektedir ve yatırım kararlarınızı almadan önce kendi araştırmanızı yapmanız önemlidir.
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Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has added about $251,500 in BitMine Immersion Technologies shares and the 3iQ Solana Staking ETF across three of its exchange-traded funds.
Summary
ARKK bought 5,264 BitMine shares worth about $83,100 at Friday’s $15.79 close. ARKW and ARKF added 28,018 SOLQ.U shares valued at roughly $168,400 combined. The 3iQ Solana Staking ETF fell 2.12% to $6.01 during Friday’s session. ARK Invest adds BitMine exposure ARK Invest’s Friday trade disclosures show its flagship ARK Innovation ETF, or ARKK, purchased 5,264 shares of BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR).
Based on BMNR’s $15.79 closing price, the purchase was worth approximately $83,100. The position represented roughly 0.0014% of ARKK’s portfolio, making it a small allocation within the fund but another addition to ARK’s crypto-linked investment exposure.
BitMine has positioned itself as an Ethereum treasury company, placing ARK’s purchase alongside its wider investments in publicly traded firms connected to digital assets.
The transaction was part of a broader ARKK rebalance that also included additional purchases of X-Energy shares and sales of Figma stock. ARK also sold shares of Strata Critical Medical, ATAI Life Sciences and Elbit Systems across its funds, according to the disclosures.
3iQ Solana Staking ETF receives $168K allocation ARK’s ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) and ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF) also increased their holdings in the 3iQ Solana Staking ETF, which trades under the ticker SOLQ.U.
ARKW purchased 16,917 shares, worth about $101,700 at Friday’s close. ARKF added 11,101 shares, valued at approximately $66,700.
Together, the two funds acquired 28,018 SOLQ.U shares worth around $168,400. The purchases came as the Solana-based investment product declined $0.13, or 2.12%, to close at $6.01 on Friday.
The move gives ARK further exposure to Solana through an exchange-traded product that includes staking-related exposure, rather than a direct purchase of SOL tokens.
ARK’s crypto and AI buying spree continues Friday’s trades followed a more active week for ARK Invest, which bought nearly $60 million in Tesla, Circle Internet Group and Securitize shares on Thursday amid a broader U.S. equity market sell-off.
Tesla accounted for more than $51 million of that total, according to the firm’s daily trade reports. ARK also added roughly $14 million in SpaceX stock earlier in the week.
Outside crypto-related holdings, Friday’s filings showed new purchases of Pony AI, Kodiak AI, Scribe Therapeutics and Compass Pathways. The transactions point to continued portfolio adjustments across artificial intelligence, healthcare and digital-asset-linked companies.
What it means for U.S. investors ARK Invest’s latest activity offers U.S. investors another snapshot of how one of the country’s best-known thematic ETF managers is approaching crypto exposure.
The purchases were modest relative to ARK’s overall assets, but they spread exposure across two distinct parts of the market: BitMine’s Ethereum treasury strategy and a Solana staking-focused ETF product.
U.S. investors considering similar exposure should note that ARK’s purchases do not amount to a forecast on either asset. They instead show the firm’s continued use of public equities and exchange-traded products to gain exposure to crypto-related themes while it also rotates positions in technology and AI stocks.
On Friday, Cathie Wood-led ARK Invest upped its exposure to crypto-related assets. For this, it purchased shares of both the 3iQ Solana Staking ETF and Ethereum treasury company BitMine Immersion Technologies through its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Cathie Wood’s ARK Buys BitMine Stock, 3iQ Solana Staking ETF The company’s largest ETF, ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), bought 5,264 shares of BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR). The purchase was for about $83,100, based on the closing price on Friday of $15.79. The acquisition accounted for approximately 0.0014% of the holdings in ARKK’s portfolio.
The acquisition of the BitMine stock was also part of other changes to ARKK’s portfolio. It included buying more of X-Energy and selling off some of its holdings in Figma. Although the transaction represents a small slice of ARK’s total portfolio, it is another boost to the firm’s presence in digital asset businesses.
Also, Cathie Wood’s ARK raised its holding in the 3iQ Solana Staking ETF (SOLQ.U) via two of its funds. The ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) bought 16,917 shares, and the ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF) purchased 11,101 shares.
Based on Friday’s closing share price, the ARKW stock bought was valued at about $101,700 a piece and ARKF was valued at about $66,700. Together, the two funds bought a total of 28,018 shares worth of approximately $168,400 at the market close, per latest disclosure.
Cathie Wood’s buy moves came as the Solana-based investment product tumbled $0.13, or 2.12%, to $6.01 on Friday’s trading session.
Other Crypto & AI Investments The recent trades come after a very active trading week earlier this week when ARK loaded up on a number of stocks across the U.S. market in the midst of a broad sell-off. ARK Invest poured in almost $60 million in Tesla, Circle Internet Group and Securitize Corp. on Thursday. At the time, the Tesla stock emerged as the biggest purchase with over $51 million added to Cathie Wood’s ARK ETFs.
In addition, the investment firm had also raked in $14 million worth of SpaceX stock earlier this week.
Friday’s disclosures also revealed other portfolio rebalancing within ARK’s funds, including sales of stocks in Figma, Strata Critical Medical, ATAI Life Sciences and Elbit Systems, and purchases in X-Energy, Pony AI and Kodiak AI, as well as Scribe Therapeutics and Compass Pathways.
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Nine major Bitcoin institutions have now joined forces to protect the infrastructure behind the asset they collectively depend on. Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets, Galaxy and Strategy have launched the Bitcoin Security Consortium with combined funding commitments of $15 million over the next three years.
The initiative is being coordinated by Brink, the nonprofit supporting Bitcoin’s open-source developers, with Executive Director Mike Schmidt managing the Consortium’s day-to-day work as a volunteer.
Today nine institutions including BlackRock, Fidelity, Coinbase, and Strategy announced the Bitcoin Security Consortium (@BTCconsortium), pledging $15M toward Bitcoin security work over the next three years. I've agreed to help coordinate the group's work as a volunteer.
I said…
— Mike Schmidt (@bitschmidty) July 23, 2026 Why This Matters NowThe launch reflects a major shift in how institutional players view Bitcoin development. For companies holding billions of dollars in Bitcoin exposure, funding the developers responsible for maintaining the network is increasingly becoming a form of risk management.
BlackRock Global Head of Digital Assets Robert Mitchnick said Bitcoin Core developers perform “incredibly important work” and that the group would provide “significant additional funding” for Bitcoin’s long-term security.
The Consortium’s focus is not simply on improving Bitcoin today. It is also preparing for threats that may still be years away.
The Quantum ChallengePost-quantum cryptography has emerged as the group’s main funding priority. Quantum computers capable of breaking Bitcoin’s existing cryptographic protections do not currently exist, but the possibility has become an important long-term concern for the technical community.
The Consortium will support developers and researchers already working on potential solutions rather than decide how Bitcoin itself should evolve.
That distinction is important because the group has no authority over Bitcoin’s protocol.
Funding Without Buying InfluenceThe nine members will not place their pledges into one central pool controlled by the Consortium. Instead, each institution will independently decide where its funding goes, including developers, researchers and organizations supporting Bitcoin’s security.
The Consortium will also take no position on specific protocol upgrades and will not speak on behalf of Bitcoin or its developers.
Its role is therefore closer to a funding and information network than a lobbying organization.
Strive Adds to the Institutional PushThe timing also stands out. One day before the Consortium was announced, Strive, Inc. unveiled its own Bitcoin Stewardship Commitment and directed initial support through Brink.
Strive is not one of the nine founding members, but both announcements point to Brink becoming an increasingly important channel for companies seeking to support Bitcoin’s open-source infrastructure.
What Comes NextThe $15 million pledge signals that Bitcoin security is becoming a boardroom issue. However, the commitment currently covers only three years, while quantum-safe upgrades could require much longer-term funding. The bigger test will be whether these institutions renew their support once the initial pledge period ends.
For now, the Consortium creates a new model for institutional Bitcoin involvement. The companies with the most exposure to Bitcoin are funding the network’s security, while deliberately avoiding direct control over its development.
That balance could become increasingly important as institutional ownership grows and Bitcoin’s future security becomes too financially important to leave entirely to short-term funding cycles.
Story Ends Here
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Key HighlightsTesla’s Core Metrics Show WeaknessFigma Divestment and Broader Portfolio TrimmingCircle Internet Expansion and Minor AcquisitionsGet 3 Free Stock Ebooks ARK Invest acquired 160,151 shares of Tesla distributed among four ETFs, totaling approximately $59.9 million following Tesla’s nearly 15% stock decline Tesla’s second-quarter operating profit reached approximately $400 million, falling short of Wall Street projections by $1.3 billion ARK divested 976,368 Figma shares through two ETFs, generating roughly $21 million ARK acquired 130,136 shares in Circle Internet Group valued at approximately $8.6 million Additional portfolio reductions included Robinhood, Deere, Twist Bioscience, and 10X Genomics On Thursday, July 23, Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest executed a substantial acquisition of Tesla shares amid a steep price decline triggered by disappointing earnings results. Simultaneously, the investment firm liquidated a significant portion of its Figma holdings and expanded its Circle Internet position.
Tesla, Inc., TSLA
The electric vehicle manufacturer posted second-quarter operating profit figures hovering around $400 million. This result came in approximately $1.3 billion short of analyst expectations. Tesla’s stock tumbled nearly 15% during Thursday’s trading session. ARK capitalized on the price drop.
The investment firm accumulated 160,151 shares of Tesla distributed across four separate funds: ARK Innovation ETF, ARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF, ARK Next Generation Internet ETF, and ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF. The combined transaction reached an estimated value of $59.9 million.
Tesla represents the top holding within ARK Innovation ETF, comprising nearly 10% of total fund assets. ARK has maintained unwavering support for Tesla despite the stock’s underwhelming performance throughout the current year.
Heading into Friday’s session, Tesla showed a 29% decline year to date and a 3% decrease over the trailing twelve months. The stock experienced an additional 0.6% pullback during early Friday activity, trading near $317.86.
Tesla’s Core Metrics Show Weakness Tesla’s second-quarter deliveries reached approximately 480,000 vehicles, representing a 25% year-over-year increase. Despite this volume expansion, reduced pricing power and elevated operating costs undermined profitability metrics.
The company currently trades at more than 150 times forward earnings estimates. By comparison, other Magnificent Seven stocks maintain an average valuation around 24 times forward earnings. This substantial valuation premium has generated investor concern.
Tesla introduced a robotaxi service in Austin, Texas during June 2025. While the program has extended to several additional cities, adoption rates have remained modest.
Figma Divestment and Broader Portfolio Trimming Among ARK’s selling activity, the firm liquidated 976,368 Figma shares through its ARKK and ARKW ETFs, generating approximately $20.96 million. This transaction extends ARK’s recent trend of scaling back Figma exposure.
Additional divestments included 45,713 shares of Twist Bioscience and 152,597 shares of 10X Genomics. Both transactions occurred within the ARKK ETF and signal a retreat from biotechnology holdings.
Robinhood experienced another reduction as ARK sold 40,553 shares via its ARKW fund. The sustained selling pattern across multiple sessions indicates a strategic withdrawal from the digital brokerage platform.
The firm reduced its Deere position by 15,177 shares spread across three ETFs, valued at approximately $9.2 million.
Circle Internet Expansion and Minor Acquisitions ARK purchased 130,136 shares of Circle Internet Group distributed among ARKK, ARKW, and ARKF ETFs, totaling roughly $8.6 million. Circle Internet specializes in digital finance and blockchain infrastructure, sectors where ARK has been building larger positions.
Additional minor acquisitions included 31,016 shares of Compass Pathways valued at $370,020 and 48,377 shares of Securitize Corp worth $371,051.
These transactions reflect ARK’s ongoing portfolio realignment—reducing biotechnology and brokerage exposure while reinforcing its Tesla conviction and expanding into cryptocurrency-related companies like Circle Internet.
In brief Real-world assets (RWAs)—tokenized versions of traditional financial instruments like company stocks, crude oil, and market indices traded as blockchain contracts—accounted for 54% of Hyperliquid's weekly trading volume during July 13–19, the first time non-crypto assets have dominated the exchange. ARK Invest's director of digital assets research Lorenzo Valente said Hyperliquid's $26 billion in RWA trading last week surpassed the combined crypto perpetual volume of every other decentralized exchange on earth. South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix—a direct rival to Samsung in AI memory production—drove most of the interest on Hyperliquid's third-party market platform. For the first time, traders on Hyperliquid moved more money through stocks and commodities than through crypto. Lorenzo Valente, director of digital assets research at ARK Invest, announced the milestone Thursday on X: "We are entering a new era for DeFi." Hyperliquid, he said, had for the first time generated more trading volume from so-called real-world assets, or RWAs, than from crypto in a single week.
RWAs—meaning tokenized versions of traditional financial instruments like company shares, crude oil, or the S&P 500, converted into blockchain-based contracts that traders can buy and sell around the clock—totaled $25.1 billion during July 13–19, or 52% of Hyperliquid's $48.2 billion in weekly volume, per Blockworks data. Valente put the latest running figure at $26 billion and 54%.
The context makes that number land harder. Total perpetual DEX volume across the industry last week was $79 billion. Hyperliquid processed $50 billion of it. The $26 billion in RWA trading alone—just the stock bets, the oil contracts, the index plays—was larger than the combined crypto perpetual volume of every other decentralized exchange on the market.
How stocks ended up on a crypto exchangeThe mechanism behind this is HIP-3, a framework Hyperliquid launched in October 2025 that lets outside teams build their own perpetual markets—contracts that track an asset's price with no expiry date, letting traders bet on it going up or down with borrowed money—using Hyperliquid's existing infrastructure. Builders stake 500,000 HYPE tokens, currently worth roughly $30 million, to access the system.
We are entering a new era for DeFi.
For the first time ever, @HyperliquidX generated more volume from RWAs than crypto in a single week. RWAs accounted for 54% of total trading volume.
An even more interesting trend: since June, single stocks have overtaken indices and… pic.twitter.com/INbfCwc5pJ
— Lorenzo Valente (@LorenzoARK) July 23, 2026
Since June, individual stocks have overtaken indices and commodities inside HIP-3, with single-stock perpetuals now making up 61% of all RWA trading. The HIP-3 platform has already hosted pre-IPO markets for SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI. "RWAs accounted for 54% of total trading volume," Valente noted.
The most-traded stock is SK Hynix, the South Korean memory chipmaker that competes with Samsung in supplying DRAM and high-bandwidth memory for AI systems.
ARK's interest in Hyperliquid goes back further. In September 2025, CEO Cathie Wood told the Master Investor podcast that the platform "reminds me of Solana in the earlier days," adding that Solana had proven its worth and earned its place with the biggest names in crypto. She called Hyperliquid "the new kid on the block," and ARK has not confirmed any position since.
Now one of ARK's own analysts is raising a harder question for the whole industry. "I'm no longer convinced RWA trading will naturally aggregate on the same venue as crypto," Valente wrote, predicting that dedicated category leaders may emerge within RWA—and that a platform's grip on Bitcoin and Ethereum flow may prove "far less important than many people assume."
Traders still focused only on crypto tokens, he added, "are focusing on the wrong market."
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
In brief Real-world assets (RWAs)—tokenized versions of traditional financial instruments like company stocks, crude oil, and market indices traded as blockchain contracts—accounted for 54% of Hyperliquid's weekly trading volume during July 13–19, the first time non-crypto assets have dominated the exchange. ARK Invest's director of digital assets research Lorenzo Valente said Hyperliquid's $26 billion in RWA trading last week surpassed the combined crypto perpetual volume of every other decentralized exchange on earth. South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix—a direct rival to Samsung in AI memory production—drove most of the interest on Hyperliquid's third-party market platform. For the first time, traders on Hyperliquid moved more money through stocks and commodities than through crypto. Lorenzo Valente, director of digital assets research at ARK Invest, announced the milestone Thursday on X: "We are entering a new era for DeFi." Hyperliquid, he said, had for the first time generated more trading volume from so-called real-world assets, or RWAs, than from crypto in a single week.
RWAs—meaning tokenized versions of traditional financial instruments like company shares, crude oil, or the S&P 500, converted into blockchain-based contracts that traders can buy and sell around the clock—totaled $25.1 billion during July 13–19, or 52% of Hyperliquid's $48.2 billion in weekly volume, per Blockworks data. Valente put the latest running figure at $26 billion and 54%.
The context makes that number land harder. Total perpetual DEX volume across the industry last week was $79 billion. Hyperliquid processed $50 billion of it. The $26 billion in RWA trading alone—just the stock bets, the oil contracts, the index plays—was larger than the combined crypto perpetual volume of every other decentralized exchange on the market.
How stocks ended up on a crypto exchangeThe mechanism behind this is HIP-3, a framework Hyperliquid launched in October 2025 that lets outside teams build their own perpetual markets—contracts that track an asset's price with no expiry date, letting traders bet on it going up or down with borrowed money—using Hyperliquid's existing infrastructure. Builders stake 500,000 HYPE tokens, currently worth roughly $30 million, to access the system.
We are entering a new era for DeFi.
For the first time ever, @HyperliquidX generated more volume from RWAs than crypto in a single week. RWAs accounted for 54% of total trading volume.
An even more interesting trend: since June, single stocks have overtaken indices and… pic.twitter.com/INbfCwc5pJ
— Lorenzo Valente (@LorenzoARK) July 23, 2026
Since June, individual stocks have overtaken indices and commodities inside HIP-3, with single-stock perpetuals now making up 61% of all RWA trading. The HIP-3 platform has already hosted pre-IPO markets for SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI. "RWAs accounted for 54% of total trading volume," Valente noted.
The most-traded stock is SK Hynix, the South Korean memory chipmaker that competes with Samsung in supplying DRAM and high-bandwidth memory for AI systems.
ARK's interest in Hyperliquid goes back further. In September 2025, CEO Cathie Wood told the Master Investor podcast that the platform "reminds me of Solana in the earlier days," adding that Solana had proven its worth and earned its place with the biggest names in crypto. She called Hyperliquid "the new kid on the block," and ARK has not confirmed any position since.
Now one of ARK's own analysts is raising a harder question for the whole industry. "I'm no longer convinced RWA trading will naturally aggregate on the same venue as crypto," Valente wrote, predicting that dedicated category leaders may emerge within RWA—and that a platform's grip on Bitcoin and Ethereum flow may prove "far less important than many people assume."
Traders still focused only on crypto tokens, he added, "are focusing on the wrong market."
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
Well-known trader: Bitcoin’s 'protective' buy wall reappears on Binance
Well-known trader Killa (@KillaXBT) posted screenshots describing the situation as "textbook-like". Binance’s plunge protection team is back. Typically, when large bid orders start clustering just below the price, market makers and algorithms tend to temporarily front-run them. The screenshots show multiple horizontal lines appearing below Bitcoin’s current price starting around $62,000, with the densest, most prominent buy orders forming from roughly $58,000 downwards. As of press time, Bitcoin is trading at $64,803.44 according to HTX data, with a 0.46% drop over the past hour. After Bitcoin plunged below $60,000 on June 6, large buy orders emerged below BTC’s market price on Binance, an event Killa referred to as the "plunge protection team" returning. Killa, a BTC-focused quantitative trader, previously predicted the peak of this bull run in May 2025 and boasts over 200,000 followers on X. In mid-April, he shorted Bitcoin at $74,688 and shifted to long positions during the broad market sell-off on June 5.
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Fu Peng: Global assets, including the underlying fundamentals of major cryptocurrencies, are tied to liquidity. The current tightening of funding conditions is triggering a "liquidity squeeze" market.
Fu Peng, the newly appointed chief economist of Xinhuo Group, shared his views yesterday, noting that global assets—including the fundamentals of mainstream cryptocurrencies—are tied to liquidity. The current shift from loose to tight liquidity has triggered a "shrinking circle" market trend, with funds flowing into high-certainty core assets. Fu Peng believes the AI industry has reached a critical inflection point, moving from the capital-burning hardware infrastructure phase to value validation. Major players like Google have seen their free cash flow drop to zero, and capital markets no longer endorse the logic of mere capital expenditure expansion. “The AI industrial chain is divided into upstream, midstream, and downstream segments, each with its own independent industry lifecycle, and clear sector rotation shifts and allocation windows. Never treat AI as a 'faith' to hold blindly long-term; turning the AI sector into pure concept speculation will definitely lead to pitfalls.” “The full AI industry cycle spans roughly 20 to 25 years, with the first 10 years already completed. The first decade’s core focus was upstream hardware infrastructure, while the next decade’s will be end-user applications. However, a cycle gap exists currently, and the next 10 to 18 months will be the industry transition window. During this window, do not go all-in; strictly follow industry cycle rules for allocation to avoid volatility risks.” On the other hand, the crypto market will follow liquidity contraction. After the winnowing process, core assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum will stabilize, while junk coin speculation will become ineffective. Investors need to allocate in stages according to industry cycles and be wary of leverage risks.
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Over the past seven days, Hyperliquid has repurchased and burned 130,900 HYPE tokens, valued at $7.65 million.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, Hyperliquid repurchased and burned 130,900 HYPE tokens over the past seven days, valued at roughly $7.65 million, with an average repurchase price of $58.45. A total of 130,900 HYPE tokens were removed from circulation this week.
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The updated draft of the U.S. CLARITY Act will reduce users’ risk of being classified as general unsecured creditors.
U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis has released an updated draft of the CLARITY Act, which would require digital commodity exchanges, brokers, and dealers to segregate customer assets and prohibit using customer funds and assets as the platforms’ own property. The draft also proposes classifying digital commodities and other assets held by platforms for customers as "customer property" in bankruptcy liquidation proceedings, reducing users’ risk of being categorized as general unsecured creditors.
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BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF has deposited 3,126 bitcoins worth $203 million into Coinbase Prime.
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF deposited 3,126 Bitcoin into Coinbase Prime over the past hour, valued at $203 million.
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Bank of America Strategist: Market Ignoring Risks, Warn of Backlash from AI Investments
US Bank (BofA) European Equity Strategist Sebastian Raedler recently issued a stark warning: current stock market pricing logic is entirely predicated on an "everything is perfect" assumption. This extreme optimism has not only pushed market valuations to elevated levels but also left investors’ risk exposures completely unprotected. Raedler pointed out that the market’s expectations for core metrics including profit margins and five-year forward earnings growth have surged to all-time highs. In stark contrast, the "risk premium"—a gauge of market risk aversion—has dropped to a 20-year low. Raedler advised investors to decisively exit cyclical sectors with high valuations and fragile fundamentals, shifting instead to high-quality defensive stocks that have been long overlooked by the market. He specifically highlighted the healthcare and consumer staples sectors.
Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) stock declined on Thursday as broader technology-sector selling and downward pressure on cryptocurrency-linked equities affected the brokerage operator.
During Thursday trading, the Nasdaq dropped 1.63%, and the S&P 500 fell 1.08%.
• Robinhood Markets stock is showing weakness. Why is HOOD stock trading lower?
Portfolio Adjustments By ARK InvestDebt Financing PlansSecond-Quarter Earnings ScheduleRobinhood Markets will report second-quarter financial results on July 29. Analysts project earnings per share of 41 cents and revenue of $1.21 billion.
Technical AnalysisRobinhood is trading 4.9% below its 20-day SMA ($107.18), which frames the current move as a pullback from short-term overextension rather than a clean trend break. At the same time, it remains 7.3% above the 50-day SMA ($95) and 1% above the 200-day SMA ($100.92), so the intermediate uptrend is still intact but being tested.
RSI at 48.32 is neutral, which typically signals momentum has cooled back to wait-and-see territory after prior strength.
From a longer-term trend perspective, the death cross that formed in February (50-day SMA below the 200-day SMA) is still a caution flag, even though price has climbed back above key averages. Traders will likely watch whether this dip holds above the 200-day area to keep the recovery structure from turning into a failed breakout.
Key Resistance: $120.50 — Nearby pivot zone where rebounds can stall after the recent July swing high. Key Support: $93 — Prior demand area that sits near the 50-day SMA neighborhood at $95. HOOD Stock Price Activity: Robinhood Markets shares were down 1.87% at $102.62 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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US Democratic Senator slams ethics provisions of Republican CLARITY Act, calling the draft "not in good faith"
According to Politico, U.S. Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego has criticized the ethics provisions of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act) recently tabled by Senate Republicans, dismissing the draft as "not a serious effort." This Wednesday, Senate Republicans unveiled the CLARITY Act draft, which includes digital asset ethics restrictions that would ban all U.S. federal officials—including former President Donald Trump—from issuing or supporting any digital assets. Democrats argue the ethics provisions are insufficiently robust. Gallego said he will collaborate with Republican Senator Thom Tillis and others to put forward a new counter-proposal. "We are still in this fight and will submit new provisions," Gallego stated. Republicans, for their part, counter that the relevant ethics rules are already strict enough. Senator Bernie Moreno claimed the draft contains "the strongest ethics provisions in U.S. history." The CLARITY Act is designed to clarify the regulatory framework for the U.S. digital asset market, but its provisions addressing conflicts of interest between government officials and crypto assets have emerged as the main point of contention in bipartisan negotiations.
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The first purchase was made at a price 55% higher than the current market level; the largest loss holder of SK Hynix has held the losing position for 28 days.
According to Hyperinsight monitoring, the whale address starting with 0x511 is still holding onto its high SK Hynix (SKHX) long positions. The address currently holds 4,034 SKHX longs with 3x full leverage, at an average entry price of $1,622.6, with a position value of roughly $4.942 million and a liquidation price of $923.67. Its unrealized loss stands at $1.6034 million (-73.5%), making it the address with the largest unrealized loss on SKHX. This long position was opened on the early morning of June 26 (Beijing time), and has been held for 28 days. At the time, SKHX was trading around $1,900. The whale’s first entry was 325.5 contracts at an average price of $1,898.5, which is now 55.1% higher than the current price. As the price trended downward, it added to its position four more times at approximately $1,659, $1,678, $1,436, and $1,361, respectively. After its final position increase on July 15, the holding has not been adjusted since. Holding the position has been a constant financial drain: since opening the long, the whale has paid a net funding fee of about $198,200. The current hourly funding rate is around +0.00955%, with longs still paying, leading to an estimated hourly outflow of roughly $472 based on the existing position. Looking at its track record, this is a trader known for patience: all of its previous large trades were long-held US stock-linked longs—Micron for ~45 days, Marvell for ~29 days, and Cerebras for ~39 days, generating a total net profit of around $494,500. That same patience was once its profit source, but it has now dug the whale deeper into a losing position on SK Hynix... Data shows that SK Hynix (SKHX) on Hyperliquid hit a daily high of $1,302.8 before quickly falling to $1,214.3, marking a 6.8% intraday pullback.
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BitMEX accelerates the delisting of 65 trading pairs in July, as liquidity pressure intensifies ahead of the platform's closure.
Crypto trading platform BitMEX has accelerated the delisting of derivative contracts and trading pairs in July, removing a total of 65 trading products—far exceeding the 19 delistings recorded in the first six months of this year. Data from BitMEX’s website shows that at the start of July, the platform delisted 21 derivative contracts, and two weeks later, it removed 9 spot trading pairs due to insufficient trading interest. This Thursday, BitMEX announced another delisting of 35 derivative contracts, pushing July’s total delistings to 65. BitMEX stated that the adjustment is mainly attributed to "insufficient trading interest" in the relevant contracts and the exchange’s shutdown plan. Earlier, BitMEX announced it would cease all exchange services at 4:00 UTC on September 23, 2026. The platform noted the shutdown decision followed a "strategic review" of its business and the broader crypto industry, though it did not disclose specific reasons. Industry insiders believe BitMEX’s exit reflects structural pressures facing mid-sized centralized exchanges, including factors such as further concentration of market liquidity in top-tier platforms and rising regulatory compliance costs.
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Binance adds ACX, LSK, STX to its monitored token list, tagging them as highly volatile and high-risk assets.
Binance announced in an official statement that starting July 24, 2026, it will add Across Protocol (ACX), Lisk (LSK), and Stacks (STX) to its "Monitoring Tag" list. Binance noted that tokens with the monitoring tag have higher volatility and risk compared to other listed assets, and the platform will closely monitor the relevant projects and conduct regular reviews. Such tokens face the risk of failing to meet Binance's listing standards and potentially being delisted in the future. Binance added that factors including the project team's level of commitment, quality of development activities, trading volume and liquidity, network security, smart contract stability, information disclosure status, changes to token economic models, and presence of any improper conduct will all be included in subsequent assessments. Binance stated that other services related to ACX, LSK, and STX will not be affected for the time being, and the monitoring tag will be updated after the announcement is released.
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Sources familiar with the matter: The Bank of Japan is likely to maintain its policy guidance and commit to continuing interest rate hikes.
According to sources, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) is shifting its focus to whether companies will pass rising cost pressures on to households, and will continue to warn at next week’s policy meeting that inflation could stay above the 2% target for a prolonged period. Sources said the BOJ is expected to signal that the risk of short-term inflationary shocks triggered by rising oil prices has eased since April, though overall price pressures remain a concern. Additionally, the BOJ is likely to maintain its current policy guidance of continuing its interest rate hike path. Markets expect the BOJ to determine the pace of future monetary policy adjustments based on wage growth, service prices, and corporate pricing behavior.
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South Korea's KOSPI index saw its decline widen to 5.61%, with Samsung falling more than 6%.
According to Bitget's market data, South Korea's KOSPI index has extended its decline to 5.61%, Samsung fell more than 6%, and SK Hynix dropped 5.52%.
On Thursday, July 23, Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest purchased almost $60 million worth of Tesla, Circle Internet Group and Securitize Corp. stock. The purchases coincided with a dramatic sell-off in U.S. stocks. Inflation-driven higher oil prices, higher US Treasury yields and a strong dollar led to a bearish investor sentiment.
Cathie Wood Bets Big On Tesla, Circle, Securitize Stocks Elon Musk’s Tesla was ARK’s biggest purchase of the day. The EV company fell 14.52% to close at $319.69. ARK purchased roughly $51.20 million in Tesla stock via its four exchange-traded funds (ETFs), per the stock’s closing price.
Tesla stock price chart. Source: Yahoo! Finance Cathie Wood’s ARKK ETF added approximately $31.58 million worth of 98,782 TSLA shares. ARKQ’s total number of added Tesla shares added was 30,396, worth $9.72 million. Moreover, ARKW purchased 21,048 Tesla shares at $6.73 million, while ARKX bought 9,925 shares at $3.17 million. Recently, ARK also invested $14 million in SpaceX stock as the share price continued declining despite Tesla merger talks.
Additionally, ARK has raised its stake in Circle Internet Group. The stablecoin provider closed at $62.18, losing over 6%. At this closing, ARK’s purchase of CRCL stock is worth around $8.09 million.
Here is every move that Cathie Wood and Ark Invest made in the stock market today 7/23 pic.twitter.com/f2qHkLBUoN
— Ark Invest Tracker (@ArkkDaily) July 24, 2026
According to ARK Invest’s disclosure, ARKK purchased approximately $5.74 million in Circle stock for a total of 92,352 shares. Nearly $1.63 million worth of shares were added to the ARKW stock. The company, ARKF, bought 11,512 shares that cost about $715,216.
The Cathie Wood-led firm also bought 48,377 shares of Securitize Corp through ARKF. The stock closed at $7.30, down 4.82%. An estimated $353,152 was paid for the purchase at the closing price.
The U.S. Stock Market Plummets Hard Cathie Wood’s shopping spree occurred while the U.S. stock market registered a crash. Overnight, prices for Brent crude oil rose above $101. Treasury yields and the U.S. dollar also gained. Technology stocks were among the worst hit by the sell-off. Tesla, Alphabet, Nvidia, Meta, Amazon and Oracle stocks were among the worst affected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 506.93 points, or 0.97%, to 51,711.65. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 553.21 points, or 2.15%, to 25,137.69. The S&P 500 lost 90.66 points, or 1.21%, to close at 7,408.30.
Charles Schwab’s Head Trading and Derivatives Strategist Joe Mazzola commented on the recent tech earnings miss. He said, “Earnings were mostly positive for Alphabet and somewhat disappointing for Tesla. Alphabet raised spending forecasts and Tesla confirmed that 2026 remains a ‘massive’ spending year, giving chip firms a lift.”
He further added, “It wasn’t enough to overcome geopolitical headwinds, and worries intensified in the bond market, where the benchmark 10-year note yield posted a new 2026 high of 4.71%. In the background, chances of a Federal Reserve rate hike next week keep climbing as oil raises inflation concerns, reaching 38% according to the CME FedWatch Tool.”
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Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Robinhood CEO’s official Twitter account posts suspicious messages, suspected of being hacked.
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev’s X account was reportedly hacked, leading to an abnormal post published in the early morning that announced the launch of Robinhood Chain’s so-called "official" mascot token Vladhood (VLAD), along with the token’s contract address. The token’s contract page was later flagged as "SCAM" in the Robinhood Chain block explorer, alerting users to potential fraud risks. The post has since been removed.
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AMD saw a short-term drop of more than 5%, while Helios has entered full-scale production and is nearing shipment.
According to market data from BIT (bit.com), AMD (AMD.O) shares have fallen to an intraday low, currently down 4.72%, after earlier rising 0.66%. AMD CEO Lisa Su just announced the launch of the Helios AI server full rack, noting that Helios has entered full-scale production and will begin shipping soon; the MI450 AI accelerator will become the industry's highest-performance AI accelerator.
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SpaceX has released the live stream page for its 13th Starship flight, with today’s launch probability currently reported at 64%.
According to PolyBeats' monitoring, SpaceX has just released the official live stream page for its 13th Starship flight test, which lists the live stream start time as 6:14 AM (UTC+8) on the 24th. On prediction market Polymarket, the "yes" probability for the question "Will SpaceX launch Starship today (local time 23rd)?" is currently at 64%, while the probability of a launch this month stands at 91%. Starship Flight 13 previously aborted automatically roughly 1 second before clearing the launch pad on the morning of July 17. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), in its latest operational plan released today, continues to list SpaceX’s 13th Starship flight test as a scheduled task for the day. Flight 13 is now targeted for launch as early as 17:45 local time in Texas, or 06:45 Beijing time on July 24, with a 90-minute launch window extending to 08:15 Beijing time. Real-time data from Next Spaceflight shows all 19 launch preparation conditions—including rocket testing, stacking, airspace notices, and maritime warnings—have been completed, with no new technical faults or delay announcements reported to date. --------------------------------- Be among the first to glimpse the future. Follow @PolyBeats_Bot See tomorrow, today. Follow @PolyBeatsEN
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Citrini’s view: Bullish on AMD, bearish on NVIDIA. Coding AI is eroding NVIDIA’s competitive moat from the software side, marking the end of its CUDA moat.
Citrini analyst Jukan, citing recent core views from DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng, pointed out that AI-driven code generation and high-level programming languages like TileLang are rapidly lowering entry barriers to the CUDA ecosystem. While DeepSeek uses NVIDIA GPUs to train its V3 model, it has significantly reduced its reliance on NVIDIA’s software ecosystem via its self-developed compiler and TileLang environment. Earlier, Liang projected that porting TileLang and DeepSeek’s compiler to Huawei chips would largely resolve China’s chip ecosystem issues in about a year, with production capacity being the only remaining bottleneck. Liang quantified the China-U.S. chip gap: hardware efficiency is roughly four times lower, and there is a roughly two-year time lag. He also revealed that DeepSeek is working closely with Huawei, expecting to obtain around 16,000 Huawei AI chips, and the Huawei 950 SuperNode can replace the workloads of NVIDIA’s GB200/GB300. Analyst Jukan characterized this as "the end of CUDA’s moat" and holds a highly bearish outlook on NVIDIA. Jukan added that this line of reasoning is precisely one reason for being bullish on AMD: advances in coding AI will also naturally accelerate the development of the ROCm ecosystem, helping narrow its gap with CUDA. When AMD recently invested in Anthropic, it announced it would actively use Claude Code for chip design and software engineering. Overall, advances in AI programming tools are systematically eroding NVIDIA’s competitive barriers from the software side. China’s chip ecosystem issues will be rapidly resolved thanks to code generation capabilities, while AMD will benefit from ROCm’s accelerated growth. The CUDA moat NVIDIA relies on to retain developer loyalty is facing a two-pronged attack, and catching up in hardware efficiency and production capacity is only a matter of time.
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AMD: AI Accelerator Market to Reach $1.4 Trillion by 2030
AMD CEO Lisa Su stated that the AI accelerator market is projected to reach $1.4 trillion by 2030. AI accelerators are specialized hardware designed for AI computing tasks such as matrix operations in deep learning, capable of processing massive parallel workloads with far higher efficiency and energy efficiency than traditional CPUs. Mainstream types include NVIDIA GPUs and custom ASICs from vendors like Broadcom, which serve as the core computing backbone driving large model training and inference.
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Data: Approximately 75% of BMEX tokens have never been claimed or put into circulation, with only 8% allocated at the time of listing.
On-chain visualization analytics platform Bubblemaps noted that after BitMEX announced it would officially cease operations in September, its platform token BMEX plummeted by roughly 95% today. However, per the token economics model released in 2021, 92% of BMEX tokens are locked in vesting contracts, with only 8% allocated at launch — 5% via airdrop and 3% for product and liquidity purposes. On-chain data shows the only token withdrawal occurred on November 2, 2022, when the product and liquidity address received 63.75 million BMEX. Meanwhile, approximately 75% of tokens originally earmarked for employee incentives, ecosystem growth, and long-term reserves have never been withdrawn and have never entered circulation. Bubblemaps added that this is not necessarily a violation, but per the publicly disclosed allocation plan, these large portions of tokens have indeed never been actually distributed. BlockBeats previously reported that notably, the platform’s current handling of BMEX tokens is very limited, with no additional compensation or special arrangements. The only action explicitly mentioned in BitMEX’s official shutdown announcement today is that the platform has immediately unstaked all staked BMEX tokens and returned them directly to holders’ accounts. Per BitMEX’s earlier announcement, BMEX is a pure platform utility token, not equity, debt, or an asset with promised returns. The official disclaimer states that BMEX is only used for features such as trading fee discounts and staking rewards on the BitMEX platform, does not constitute an investment, and the platform assumes no refund or exchange liability.
Some of the biggest names in the Bitcoin industry have united to form a new consortium dedicated to strengthening Bitcoin’s long-term security.
The group, called the Bitcoin Security Consortium, includes Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets, Galaxy, and Strategy, according to a Thursday statement.
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Under the initiative, members have collectively pledged $15 million over three years to support developers and researchers working on Bitcoin’s long-term security, including preparations for the future era of quantum computing.
“As long-term holders, we have every incentive to see Bitcoin remain secure for generations. Funding the people who do this work, and helping inform the conversation around it, is a natural way for us to contribute,” Strategy CEO Phong Le stated.
The consortium will also act as a central source of reliable information on Bitcoin security developments for investors, the public and the media, while allowing each member to direct its own funding independently.
The consortium stressed that it will not influence Bitcoin’s protocol or governance, saying development will remain decentralized. It added that although quantum computers capable of threatening Bitcoin do not yet exist, supporting research into post-quantum cryptography is a prudent long-term investment.
“Bitcoin Core developers do incredibly important work, and we’re pleased that our firm and the others in this group will now be making significant additional funding available to support Bitcoin’s long-term security needs,” Robert Mitchnick, Global Head of Digital Assets at BlackRock, commented.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Vivian Nguyen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Michael Saylor’s Strategy has joined eight financial firms in pledging $15 million over three years to protect Bitcoin, starting with preparations for potential quantum-computing threats.
Summary
Strategy and eight financial firms pledged $15 million to strengthen Bitcoin’s long-term security. BlackRock, Coinbase, ARK Invest and others will independently fund developers and researchers. Quantum readiness will be the consortium’s first focus despite uncertain threat timelines. Strategy announced the Bitcoin Security Consortium in a press release, naming Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets and Galaxy Digital as its other founding members.
Today we're announcing the Bitcoin Security Consortium @BTCconsortium: a group of leading financial institutions and Bitcoin companies supporting the long-term security of the Bitcoin network.
Members have pledged $15 million toward this work over the next three years. pic.twitter.com/0Wh4G7xEqJ
— Strategy (@Strategy) July 23, 2026 Drawn from several parts of the institutional Bitcoin market, the coalition includes exchange-traded fund issuers, custodians and infrastructure companies. BlackRock, Fidelity and ARK Invest issue spot Bitcoin ETFs, while Anchorage Digital and Coinbase provide custody services. Block, Blockstream and Galaxy Digital operate businesses tied to Bitcoin infrastructure and financial products.
Rather than combining the $15 million under a central fund, each founding member will choose which developers, researchers and organizations receive its share, according to Strategy. The model allows the companies to finance different projects while coordinating their security work through the consortium.
Brink Executive Director Mike Schmidt will coordinate the consortium’s daily operations in a volunteer capacity, Strategy stated. Addressing concerns about his independence, Schmidt wrote on X that he will receive no compensation and will continue running Brink separately from the founding firms.
“I continue to run Brink, independent of any Consortium member. I’ve committed to a year in this role, maybe I’d do two, but ultimately I see it as a seat that should rotate to other participants over time. My commitment is to Bitcoin, and that doesn’t change.”
Today nine institutions including BlackRock, Fidelity, Coinbase, and Strategy announced the Bitcoin Security Consortium (@BTCconsortium), pledging $15M toward Bitcoin security work over the next three years. I've agreed to help coordinate the group's work as a volunteer.
I said…
— Mike Schmidt (@bitschmidty) July 23, 2026 Wall Street funding targets Bitcoin security research Under its initial plan, the consortium will support developers and researchers already working on Bitcoin security, with quantum readiness serving as its first focus, according to Strategy. Schmidt added that the group could finance other security projects if the initial program proves effective.
Protocol decisions will remain outside the consortium’s control. In his X post, Schmidt stated that the group will not adopt collective positions on Bitcoin upgrades, leaving members to direct their funding independently while developers use the network’s existing review process.
Galaxy Digital had committed separate funds to the field before joining the consortium. As crypto.news reported earlier this week, the company opened applications for a $5 million Bitcoin Quantum Readiness Initiative supporting quantum-resistant signatures, wallet migration tools and independent security audits.
According to Galaxy, introducing post-quantum protections would require years of cooperation among Bitcoin Core developers, exchanges, wallet providers, infrastructure companies and users. Its grant program also invites other institutions to contribute money and research to the effort.
Galaxy’s initiative and the consortium pledge have placed $20 million behind the two disclosed programs. The commitments remain separate, however, as Strategy’s consortium allows every member to control its own grants.
Bitcoin’s quantum exposure carries a market cost Future quantum computers could threaten Bitcoin if they become capable of breaking the elliptic curve cryptography that protects its wallets, according to the companies and researchers behind the programs. Galaxy noted that current machines cannot perform such an attack and most experts do not expect an immediate danger.
Despite the uncertain timeline, Galaxy argued that preparations must start early because deploying new protections across Bitcoin could take years. The company has prioritized alternative signature algorithms, tools that help users transfer funds into safer wallets and audits that test proposed defenses.
CryptoQuant research cited by Galaxy estimated that around 6.9 million BTC could become exposed if a sufficiently powerful quantum computer broke Bitcoin’s existing cryptography. Using market prices from its announcement, Galaxy valued those potentially vulnerable holdings at about $461 billion.
Citi has reached a similar estimate, according to an earlier crypto.news report. The bank calculated that between 6.5 million and 6.9 million BTC may already have public keys visible on-chain, creating a pool of coins that researchers consider more vulnerable to a future quantum attack.
Lost wallets pose another problem because their owners cannot transfer the coins to addresses protected by updated cryptography. Quantus warned in a previously reported assessment that quantum development may be advancing faster than earlier estimates, which could leave dormant and inaccessible holdings without a practical migration route.
Concern over the issue has also entered Bitcoin valuation models. As crypto.news reported in early June, Capriole Investments founder Charles Edwards estimated that Bitcoin was trading at a 28% “quantum discount” compared with his projected valuation path toward $120,000.
Bitcoin traded near $62,099 following a sharp selloff when Edwards presented the model. He attributed the discount to investor concern over what he described as slow progress among Bitcoin Core developers on post-quantum signature planning.
Prediction-market traders remain less worried about the immediate timeline. Polymarket data placed the probability of quantum computing breaking Bitcoin by December 2027 at 14%.
With Strategy coordinating institutional participation and Galaxy already accepting grant applications, the funding gives researchers additional resources before quantum computers pose a proven threat. The consortium’s first test will be whether independently directed grants produce usable security tools without influencing Bitcoin’s protocol governance.
Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has purchased 220,012 Circle Internet Group shares worth about $13.9 million as CRCL stock has fallen below $64 and every major daily moving average.
Summary
ARK Invest purchased 220,012 Circle shares worth about $13.9 million during CRCL’s decline. CLARITY Act progress could improve regulatory certainty for Circle and other digital-asset companies. CRCL remains below major moving averages despite an improving daily MACD signal. According to ARK Invest’s trading disclosure, the firm divided the purchase among three actively managed exchange-traded funds. The ARK Innovation ETF acquired 159,517 shares, while the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF and ARK Fintech Innovation ETF added 42,400 and 18,095 shares, respectively.
The transaction extended ARK’s buying during a steep decline in Circle’s market value. CRCL traded at $63.38 on July 23 after falling 4.20%, with the session producing a high of $65.41 and a low of $61.49, according to the daily TradingView chart.
Circle’s stock has struggled as weaker sentiment toward crypto-linked companies has reduced investors’ willingness to hold volatile digital-asset equities. Circle operates USDC, a dollar-backed stablecoin used across exchanges, payment services and decentralized finance applications.
Wood’s purchase suggests ARK remains willing to increase its exposure during the decline, although the investment manager has not guaranteed that CRCL has reached a bottom. ARK describes its investment approach as focused on companies tied to disruptive technologies and long-term growth, a strategy that can leave its funds exposed to sharp price swings.
Earlier this week, ARK used a similar approach with another high-volatility holding. As reported by crypto.news, four ARK funds purchased 170,634 SpaceX shares worth about $20.45 million while the stock traded below its $135 initial public offering price.
SpaceX then climbed 7.10% to $128.37, handing ARK an early unrealized profit on the new position, according to the crypto.news report. Although SpaceX and Circle operate in different industries, the transactions show ARK adding to selected companies after large declines rather than waiting for their charts to confirm a recovery.
CLARITY Act progress offers Circle a regulatory catalyst Circle’s outlook has also become tied to negotiations over the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which could establish federal rules for digital-asset markets and divide regulatory responsibilities between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Senator Cynthia Lummis released an updated version of the legislation on July 22, combining texts advanced by the Senate Banking and Agriculture committees. In her announcement, Lummis described the coming weeks as a critical window for reaching an agreement that could allow the bill to become law.
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott and Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman have backed the revised framework. According to Lummis’ official release, Boozman argued that the proposal would give consumers, companies and markets clearer rules while adding safeguards for digital-asset activity.
For Circle, passage could reduce uncertainty surrounding businesses that issue stablecoins or provide related financial services. Such an outcome may make it easier for institutions to assess USDC-based products, but the proposal still requires enough Senate support and final approval before its provisions can take effect.
The latest draft faces political obstacles despite Republican support. Some Democrats have reportedly objected to the proposal’s treatment of crypto-related conflicts involving government officials, an issue that could complicate efforts to secure the 60 votes generally needed to advance legislation in the Senate.
CRCL remains bearish despite improving MACD momentum CRCL’s daily chart shows that sellers still control the main trend even though one momentum indicator has started to improve. At $63.38, the stock sits below its 20-day simple moving average at $65.68, while the 50-day average is much higher at $84.24.
Circle daily price chart | Source: TradingView Longer-term resistance remains even further away. The chart places the 100-day moving average at $95.02 and the 200-day average at $92.14, leaving CRCL below all four trend indicators after a decline from its May peak near $140.
A recent rebound reached the $70–$72 region but failed to hold, according to the chart. Buyers would first need to recover the 20-day average at $65.68 before challenging that recent rejection zone. A daily close above $72 would provide stronger evidence that demand is returning, while the 50-day average at $84.24 would remain the next major obstacle.
On the downside, the July 23 intraday low places immediate support near $61.50. The chart also shows a demand area between $58 and $60, where buyers previously interrupted the decline. A sustained move below $58 would extend the sequence of lower lows and leave CRCL vulnerable to another leg down.
Momentum has offered one early sign of relief. The daily moving average convergence divergence line has risen to minus 4.74, above its signal line at minus 6.10, while the histogram has turned positive at 1.36.
Because both MACD lines remain below zero, the chart indicates that selling momentum has eased without confirming a trend reversal. Until CRCL recovers $65.68 and then $70–$72, ARK’s latest purchase remains a bet against an established downtrend rather than confirmation that Circle stock has formed a durable bottom.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
Michael Saylor’s Strategy and eight financial firms, including ARK Invest, BlackRock, and Coinbase, have launched the Bitcoin Security Consortium to support the network’s long-term security. The founding members have also pledged $15 million to support Bitcoin developers as they seek to address quantum threats.
Strategy Announces Launch of Bitcoin Security Consortium In a press release, the Bitcoin treasury firm announced the launch of the Consortium to support the Bitcoin network’s long-term security, with members pledging an aggregate of $15 million over the next three years.
Founding members of the Bitcoin Security Consortium include Strategy alongside Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Galaxy Digital. The Bitcoin treasury firm noted that these are a cross-section of the institutional BTC ecosystem.
BlackRock, Fidelity, and ARK Invest are notably Bitcoin ETF issuers; Anchorage Digital and the top crypto exchange Coinbase offer custody services to these ETF issuers. Meanwhile, Block, Blockstream, and Galaxy offer Bitcoin-related services.
Strategy revealed that Mike Schmidt, Executive Director of Brink, will coordinate the day-to-day work in a volunteer capacity. Schmidt also confirmed in an X post that he is receiving no compensation from the Bitcoin Security Consortium.
Today nine institutions including BlackRock, Fidelity, Coinbase, and Strategy announced the Bitcoin Security Consortium (@BTCconsortium), pledging $15M toward Bitcoin security work over the next three years. I’ve agreed to help coordinate the group’s work as a volunteer.
I said…
— Mike Schmidt (@bitschmidty) July 23, 2026
“I continue to run Brink, independent of any Consortium member. I’ve committed to a year in this role, maybe I’d do two, but ultimately I see it as a seat that should rotate to other participants over time. My commitment is to Bitcoin, and that doesn’t change,” he said.
How The $15 Million Funding Will Work The Bitcoin Security Consortium will fund and support developers and researchers already working on Bitcoin’s security. This will include the long-term work of securing the network against potential quantum threats.
Strategy also revealed that each founding member will direct its own funding independently to the developers, researchers, and organizations it chooses. Schmidt mentioned in his X post that there will be no Consortium positions on protocol changes.
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Cathie Wood just named her favorite stock. It is Elon Musk’s SpaceX (SPCX), and she says it could become the most important company in history.
That is a bold call right now. SpaceX has fallen about 40% from its peak and now trades below where it started.
SpaceX (SPCX) Stock Performance. Source: TradingViewSpaceX Is Wood’s Top PickWood spoke in a July interview with Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo. Bartiromo asked for her favorite stock. Wood picked SpaceX right away.
“Ultimately SpaceX when they combine… the orbital data center opportunity.”
She has backed SpaceX since late 2023. When it went public, she spent $529.7 million on the first day. She sold Tesla shares to help pay for it.
This is a familiar move. ARK also bought Coinbase and CoreWeave soon after they listed. Wood likes to buy fast-growing names early.
Wood’s Boldest Prediction YetThen Wood made her biggest claim.
“We think this could become the most important company in history and I mean in global history.”
Her reasons are simple. SpaceX runs Starlink, which beams internet from space. Wood says it controls about 70% of all active satellites. Starlink is also the only part of SpaceX that makes money.
SpaceX rents out computing power to big AI firms too.
“In the meantime on Earth, SpaceX is renting out its data centers to Anthropic and Google and others.”
It may also feed data to xAI’s Grok models. Wood says the company is on track to make $47 billion a year.
SpaceX Stock Has Fallen HardBut the market is not sold yet. The stock trades near $119. That is below where it started, and almost 4% lower on Wednesday.
The numbers explain the doubt. SpaceX has run up $41.3 billion in losses, its IPO filing shows. Recent Starship test delays hurt the stock too.
Wood says the sell-off misses the bigger picture.
“It has a ten year lead and the key has been reusable rockets.”
She has a point. SpaceX landed and reused a rocket back in 2015. No rival matched that for years.
Wood has been early before. She bought Tesla in 2016. She backed Bitcoin years ago. Bloomberg even named her the best stock picker of 2020.
But her record swings a lot. Her main fund fell about 78% from 2021 to 2022. Morningstar says it wiped out $7 billion for investors between 2014 and 2024.
Wood sees the drop as a chance to buy. She says SpaceX opens up huge markets.
“There are lots of opportunities and they are multi trillion dollar opportunities.”
Key Takeaways Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest divested 203,352 Shopify shares valued at $25.1 million from several ETFs The firm acquired 28,106 Meta Platforms shares for $18.2 million before the company’s July 29 quarterly report Meta shares have surged more than 15% in the last 30 days with a Strong Buy rating from analysts Analyst consensus forecasts Meta’s Q2 revenue at $60.22 billion, representing nearly 27% growth from last year Raymond James boosted Meta’s price target to $850, highlighting its expansion into AI cloud infrastructure In a significant portfolio adjustment on July 20, Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest executed two substantial transactions: offloading a sizable Shopify stake while accumulating Meta Platforms shares just ahead of the social media giant’s upcoming quarterly disclosure.
The investment firm divested 203,352 shares of Shopify distributed across ARKK, ARKW, and ARKF portfolios, generating proceeds of $25.1 million. This transaction marks a continuation of ARK’s recent Shopify divestment pattern, indicating a strategic reduction in its e-commerce holdings.
Simultaneously, ARK accumulated 28,106 shares of Meta Platforms valued at $18.2 million through its three flagship ETFs. This strategic purchase arrives mere days before Meta’s anticipated second-quarter 2026 financial results disclosure on July 29.
Meta Platforms, Inc., META
Meta’s stock price has experienced a robust rally, appreciating over 15% during the past month. Market participants have shown enthusiasm for the company’s strategic initiatives around leasing AI computational infrastructure to external enterprises and manufacturing proprietary semiconductors to optimize operational expenses.
Analysts Highlight Meta’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy Meta is preparing to commence production of its proprietary AI processor, designated “Iris,” scheduled for September launch through a collaboration with Broadcom. This initiative represents a strategic effort to minimize dependence on third-party hardware providers while expanding into AI infrastructure services.
On July 21, Raymond James analyst Josh Beck elevated his Meta price objective to $850 from $825, maintaining a Strong Buy recommendation. Beck highlighted Meta’s potential to monetize its extensive data center infrastructure by offering computational capacity to external organizations, establishing an additional revenue channel from its AI capital expenditures.
Bank of America analyst Justin Post reaffirmed a Buy rating with an $835 target on July 20. He anticipates robust advertising demand will propel Q2 performance beyond market expectations, projecting revenue of $60.6 billion alongside earnings per share of $7.50.
Post additionally observed that Meta’s May workforce reductions could enhance profitability metrics. He identifies Meta’s AI capabilities as catalysts for future advertising revenue growth and emerging income streams.
Wall Street’s Q2 Expectations for Meta BMO Capital analyst Brian Pitz maintained a Market Perform stance with a $720 price objective. He acknowledged that Meta’s recent AI product launches and cloud infrastructure plans have alleviated certain investor concerns, though he seeks greater transparency regarding investment return trajectories.
Pitz also identified potential regulatory challenges from government-mandated age-verification requirements that could impact Meta’s platform operations.
Among 40 Wall Street analysts covering Meta, the stock commands a Strong Buy consensus, comprising 35 Buy ratings and five Hold recommendations issued over the past three months. The average price target of $805.98 implies approximately 25% appreciation potential from present trading levels.
The analyst community broadly anticipates Meta will deliver Q2 EPS of $7.19, reflecting 0.8% growth versus the prior-year quarter, accompanied by revenue of $60.22 billion, marking nearly 27% year-over-year expansion.
In addition to the Meta and Shopify transactions, ARK also acquired $21.2 million in space industry company SPCX while divesting holdings in Iridium Communications, Baidu, Advanced Micro Devices, and Robinhood Markets.
Meta’s Q2 2026 earnings release scheduled for July 29 will provide critical insights into the stock’s forward trajectory.
Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has gained an early paper profit after buying $20.45 million of SpaceX stock one day before the shares jumped 7.10% to $128.37.
Summary
ARK Invest bought 170,634 SpaceX shares worth about $20.45 million across four ETFs. SpaceX stock jumped 7.10% to $128.37, giving ARK an early paper gain. ARK’s SpaceX investment has surpassed $475 million despite heavy short selling and IPO losses. ARK Invest’s July 20 trading disclosure shows that four of the firm’s actively managed exchange-traded funds bought a combined 170,634 SpaceX shares while the stock was trading under its $135 IPO price. Based on Monday’s closing price of $119.85, the purchases were worth about $20.45 million.
During Tuesday’s session, SpaceX shares rose $8.52 to $128.37 as of 11:31 a.m. EDT, according to Nasdaq real-time market data. Applying that increase to ARK’s latest purchase gives the position an unrealized gain of about $1.45 million, although its final value will depend on where the stock trades when the funds sell.
Source: Yahoo Finance Tuesday’s advance followed a 3.34% decline on Monday, when SpaceX extended a steep retreat from its post-IPO peak. Despite the rebound, the stock remained about 4.9% below its $135 offer price and nearly 43% under its record high of $225.64.
ARK expands its SpaceX exposure Among the four funds, the ARK Innovation ETF made the largest purchase by adding 97,664 SpaceX shares. ARK’s disclosure valued that position at roughly $11.70 million using Monday’s closing price.
The ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF purchased another 31,807 shares worth about $3.81 million. At the same time, the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF added 28,153 shares valued at approximately $3.37 million.
Completing the latest round, the ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF bought 13,010 shares for close to $1.56 million. ARK spread the purchase across funds with different mandates, although each portfolio gained exposure to the same SpaceX price recovery.
Monday’s transaction followed another large ARK purchase on July 17, when four funds acquired 147,623 SpaceX shares after the stock fell 5.43% to a fresh post-IPO low. According to ARK’s July 17 trading report, those shares were worth about $18.3 million at the closing price of $123.99.
ARKK led that earlier purchase with 95,129 shares valued at approximately $11.8 million. ARKQ bought 30,464 shares worth $3.78 million, while ARKX added 12,611 shares valued at $1.56 million. ARKW completed the transaction with 9,419 shares worth roughly $1.17 million.
Across the July 17 and July 20 disclosures, ARK purchased 318,257 SpaceX shares valued at about $38.75 million at the respective closing prices. The two transactions continued a series of investments that began around SpaceX’s June 12 stock-market debut.
According to Ark Invest Tracker, Wood’s firm had already invested more than $475 million in SpaceX by the week ending July 10. The tracker reported about $52.1 million of purchases during that week, following roughly $444 million of buying around the IPO.
Wall Street’s outlook remains largely positive despite SpaceX’s post-IPO decline. According to an Ark Invest Tracker post citing Reuters data from July 7, analysts had a median price target of $213.50, which implies about 66% upside from Tuesday’s $128.37 price. Raymond James held the highest target at $800, followed by Morgan Stanley at $300, while MoffettNathanson had the lowest estimate at $130.
WALL STREET'S MEDIAN TARGET ON SPACEX IS $213.50, 43% ABOVE ITS $149.5 CLOSE.
Raymond James has the street high at $800
Fourteen of sixteen firms have targets above the $149.5 close
Deutsche Bank ($143) and MoffettNathanson ($130) are the only two below it https://t.co/GGgmGH0GuB pic.twitter.com/tp70Lod9sa
— Ark Invest Tracker (@ArkkDaily) July 21, 2026 Short sellers retain large exposure Although Tuesday’s rally gave ARK’s latest position an early lift, S3 Partners data indicates that bearish traders have benefited from the decline that followed SpaceX’s record high. According to the financial-data firm, short sellers accumulated about $4 billion in paper profits over the previous month.
S3 Partners also estimated that investors betting against SpaceX had shorted about 30% of its freely traded shares, equal to roughly 192 million shares. A large short position can add buying pressure when the price rises because some traders may repurchase shares to close their bets, though S3 Partners had not attributed Tuesday’s gain specifically to short covering.
Operational concerns have also weighed on investor sentiment since the IPO. SpaceX called off Starship’s first planned post-listing flight after an automatic abort triggered by engine problems, according to the original launch update. The cancellation added another setback while the stock was already retreating from its June peak.
Investors are also watching the scheduled expiration of SpaceX’s post-IPO lockup on Aug. 19. According to the lockup details cited in the original report, the expiration could make an additional 900 million shares eligible for trading, potentially increasing the stock’s available supply.
For now, Tuesday’s 7.10% jump has recovered Monday’s entire decline and moved SpaceX closer to its IPO price. Nasdaq data still placed the shares $6.63 below the $135 offer level, leaving ARK’s earlier purchases with different results depending on their entry prices, even as the latest $20.45 million bet moved into profit.
On Monday, Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest bought more than $20 million worth of SpaceX shares. The purchase is viewed as a “buy the dip” strategy as Elon Musk-led SpaceX stock continued its sharp run of losses after the IPO.
Cathie Wood Continues Buying SpaceX Stock At A Discount Cathie Wood’s latest buy occurred as SpaceX stock closed at price of $119.85, down 3.34% on Monday, June 20. At this closing, then the total value of ARK’s combined purchases, based on the closing price, come to about $20.45 million. The stock has since recovered 1.88% to $122.10 in premarket trading Tuesday.
The ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) had the largest buy of 97,664 SPCX shares. This stash represented approximately $11.70 million in total value of the purchase, according to ARK’s disclosure of daily trading activities. The ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF (ARKQ) bought 31,807 shares, representing an investment of about $3.81 million.
Further, the Cathie Wood’s ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) raked in 28,153 shares with nearly $3.37 million in value. In addition, the ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF (ARKX) bought 13,010 SpaceX shares for close to $1.56 million.
SPCX Stock Grapples With Losses As Short Selling Surges Cathie Wood’s latest purchase follows investor confidence in the new public company for the aerospace group remaining low. SPX has dropped over 45% since its IPO. It even erased almost $1 trillion in market cap in just a few weeks since its introduction to the market.
Moreover, tbe downturn has also brought the share price down from the IPO price of $135. This SpaceX stock crash put most investors in the public market at a loss.
The extended selling stretch has rewarded bearish investors with handsome returns. The financial data firm S3 Partners reports that over the last month, short sellers have made approximately $4 billion in paper profits. Investors who bet on further declines have reportedly taken out about 30% of the company’s shares, which is approximately 192 million free-floating ones.
Also, SpaceX’s first post-IPO trip with its Starship vehicle has been called off after an automatic abort due to engine problems. This event eventually led to an increase in selling pressure. Moreover, another important event in the in-road is also a lockup that is set to expire on August 19, which will unleash an additional 900 million shares for trading.
For those looking for opportunities similar to SpaceX pre-IPO trading, visit our page on Best Platforms & Crypto Exchanges to Trade Pre-IPO Tokens.
Key Highlights ARK Investment disposed of 23,573 AMD shares valued at $11.7 million on July 17 The firm acquired 147,805 SpaceX shares for a total of $19.4 million Advanced Micro Devices stock plummeted more than 11% last week amid chip sector downturn ARK Innovation ETF has declined 3.43% in 2026, trailing the S&P 500’s 8.94% advance UBS analysts upgraded AMD’s price target to $700, pointing to robust AI accelerator momentum Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management offloaded its position in Advanced Micro Devices on July 17, simultaneously increasing exposure to SpaceX and other holdings. These transactions reflect a strategic reallocation within ARK’s investment portfolio.
The firm divested 23,573 shares of AMD with an estimated value of $11.7 million, calculated using the July 17 closing price of $495.76. This transaction continues a significant pattern — throughout July, ARK has liquidated 137,421 AMD shares worth approximately $68.1 million at present market valuations.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., AMD
Despite the continuous reduction, AMD maintains its position as the eighth-largest holding in ARK Innovation ETF. As of July 16, the semiconductor company represents 4.04% of the fund’s total assets.
The chip manufacturer’s stock experienced a sharp decline exceeding 11% during the previous week. The broader semiconductor selloff initiated with Micron Technology facing pressure following news that Chinese competitor ChangXin Memory Technologies plans a Shanghai IPO potentially raising as much as $9.8 billion.
While AMD doesn’t operate in the memory chip segment, investors engaged in profit-taking across the entire semiconductor industry after an impressive rally this year. Despite the recent pullback, AMD shares remain up an impressive 131.5% year to date.
SpaceX Becomes Major ARK Acquisition On the acquisition front, ARK snapped up 147,805 SpaceX shares valued at $19.4 million distributed across multiple ETFs. The investment firm also added CoreWeave to its portfolio, purchasing 115,827 shares worth approximately $8.4 million.
Additionally, ARK accumulated positions in Kratos Defense and Security Solutions and AeroVironment, demonstrating a sustained focus on defense and aerospace sector investments.
ARK Innovation ETF Underperforms Broad Market in 2026 ARK Innovation ETF has posted a decline of 3.43% year to date in 2026, significantly underperforming the S&P 500’s 8.94% gain during the identical timeframe. Looking at a five-year horizon, the fund has recorded an annualized return of negative 8.23%, contrasting sharply with the S&P 500’s 11.50% annualized performance.
According to data from ETF research provider VettaFi, the fund experienced approximately $1.26 billion in net capital outflows during the 12-month period ending July 16.
Wood has publicly stated her conviction that technological innovation is creating deflationary pressures in the economy, especially through artificial intelligence adoption. She contends this trend will result in declining inflation, reduced interest rates, and enhanced economic expansion — market conditions she believes are advantageous for innovation-focused equities.
AMD has a significant catalyst approaching on its calendar. CEO Lisa Su is scheduled to introduce the MI450X accelerator and MI500 GPU series at the company’s Advancing AI 2026 conference on July 22 and 23.
UBS recently upgraded its AMD price objective to $700 from $670, maintaining a buy recommendation. The investment bank increased its 2027 revenue projection for AMD to $83.4 billion and elevated its earnings forecast to $14.63 per share.
AMD is scheduled to announce its next quarterly earnings report in August.
SpaceX shares have cratered 45% from their post-IPO peak, falling from roughly $226 to around $124. That’s actually below the $135 IPO price from just a month ago. Cathie Wood, apparently unbothered, spent another $52.1 million buying the dip.
The Elon Musk-led aerospace company listed on Nasdaq on June 12, 2026, under the ticker SPCX. The initial euphoria pushed shares from the $135 IPO price to approximately $226 in short order.
ARK’s half-billion-dollar SpaceX bet ARK Invest purchased roughly $52.1 million worth of SPCX shares in the week ending July 10, 2026, bringing the firm’s total post-IPO investment in SpaceX to over $475 million. The bulk of that, approximately $444 million, was purchased on IPO day itself.
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ARK’s internal models project SpaceX reaching an enterprise value between $2.5 trillion and $3.1 trillion by 2030. The bull case rests on three pillars: reusable rocket technology, the Starlink satellite internet constellation, and the integration of artificial intelligence into computational operations.
SpaceX currently carries a market capitalization of around $1.6 trillion with no reported earnings and a price-to-sales ratio of approximately 65.5.
The crypto connection: Coinbase and Circle in the same shopping cart ARK simultaneously increased its holdings in both Coinbase Global and Circle Internet Group during the same trading week as its SPCX purchase.
Coinbase remains the largest publicly traded crypto exchange in the US. Circle is the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap.
What this means for crypto investors ARK’s concentrated bets mean that a prolonged downturn in any of these names, whether SPCX, COIN, or CRCL, could force redemptions in ARK’s funds, potentially triggering selling pressure across the entire portfolio.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
According to a July 17 trading disclosure from Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest—known in Chinese financial circles as "Wood Sister"—after SpaceX (SPCX.O) shares fell below their IPO price on Friday, ARK Invest purchased $18.3 million worth of the stock. The firm’s four actively managed ETFs together bought 147,623 shares. The stock closed at $123.99 that day, hitting an intraday low of $122.12. This purchase appears to be a deliberate accumulation amid the stock’s weakness rather than a hedging move, as the transaction further expands ARK’s already large existing position. Data tracking ARK’s holdings shows that in the week ended July 10, the firm’s ARKK, ARKQ, ARKW, and ARKX funds together bought approximately $52.1 million worth of SpaceX stock, bringing ARK’s total investment in SpaceX since the company’s June IPO to over $475 million. This indicates that Cathie Wood’s team has consistently viewed every price dip as a buying opportunity, not a warning sign. (Jin10)
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Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest increased its exposure to Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: SPCX) on Friday, July 17. It purchased nearly $18.3 million worth of shares after the stock tumbled to a new post-IPO low. Meanwhile the investment firm also sold off some of its shares in Robinhood Markets on the same trading day.
Cathie Wood Makes Bullish Moves On SpaceX Stock In total, Cathie Wood’s ARK purchased 147,623 shares of SpaceX across four of its actively-managed ETFs, according to the firm’s daily trading report. The SpaceX purchases totalled around $18.3 million based on the closing price of $123.99.
The flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) made the biggest purchase, with 95,129 shares valued at approximately $11.8 million. The ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF (ARKQ) bought in $3.78 million worth of 30,464 shares and the ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF (ARKX) took up 12,611 shares valued at nearly $1.56 million. The ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) also purchased 9,419 shares, valued at approximately $1.17 million.
The buying came as SpaceX shares closed at $123.99, down 5.43% on the day after falling as low as $122.12. The stock is down about 35% from the $135 IPO price, and has weakened since it went public due to lagging interest.
On the other hand, ARK sold off its holdings in Robinhood, selling 20,089 shares via ARKW 5,913 shares from ARKK. The selloff came as Robinhood’s stock closed at $99.96 on Friday with a 5.72% fall.
What’s Next For SPCX Stock? With the Super Heavy booster’s at least two Raptor engines failing to ignite during a series of pre-flight tests, SpaceX canceled its Starship Flight 13 launch minutes before liftoff, ratcheting up selling pressure. Elon Musk later claimed that the engines would be replaced, and the company rescheduled the mission for July 20 at 6:45 p.m. ET.
Market observers reacted on a mixed basis over the SpaceX stock drop as the company is seeing a sharp decline in its share prices. Cognitive scientist Gary Marcus said the most recent slide was an expression of increased doubts about Elon Musk’s performance. He added that another record low appeared more likely than a dramatic collapse.
Tesla investor Sawyer Merritt, however, said the selloff is an overreaction, because a few days of delay is not a significant operational setback for SpaceX and that investors have been overreacting to that short-term setback.
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Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has bought $18.3 million of SpaceX shares after the stock fell 5.43% to a new post-IPO low, according to the firm’s July 17 trading report.
Summary
ARK Invest bought $18.3 million of SpaceX shares after the stock hit a post-IPO low. Four ARK ETFs acquired 147,623 shares as SpaceX closed 8.2% below its IPO price. SpaceX delayed Starship Flight 13 after two Raptor engines failed during pre-flight testing. According to ARK’s daily disclosure, four of its actively managed exchange-traded funds purchased a combined 147,623 SpaceX shares as the stock closed Friday at $123.99. During the session, shares dropped as low as $122.12.
Source: Yahoo Finance The ARK Innovation ETF made the largest purchase, adding 95,129 shares worth about $11.8 million based on Friday’s closing price. ARK’s Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF bought 30,464 shares valued at $3.78 million, while its Space Exploration & Innovation ETF added 12,611 shares worth around $1.56 million.
Completing the purchase, the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF acquired another 9,419 SpaceX shares valued at approximately $1.17 million, according to the same disclosure.
ARK adds to its SpaceX position below the IPO price Friday’s purchase has extended a series of SpaceX investments made by Wood’s firm since the company entered the public market in June.
As crypto.news previously reported, ARK bought roughly $52.1 million of SpaceX shares during the week ending July 10 through the ARKK, ARKQ, ARKW and ARKX funds. Data from Ark Invest Tracker showed that those purchases lifted the firm’s investment since the June IPO above $475 million.
Ark Invest Tracker also reported that ARK acquired about $444 million of SpaceX stock around the company’s June 12 market debut. Its latest purchase came with the shares trading 8.2% below their $135 offer price, based on Friday’s closing value.
While adding to SpaceX, ARK reduced its exposure to Robinhood Markets during the same trading session. The firm’s report showed that ARKW sold 20,089 Robinhood shares and ARKK disposed of another 5,913 shares.
Robinhood ended Friday at $99.96 after losing 5.72% during the session. ARK’s disclosure did not provide a reason for selling the 26,002 shares.
Starship delay adds pressure to SpaceX shares As crypto.news reported, SpaceX’s latest decline followed the cancellation of Starship Flight 13 shortly before its scheduled launch. According to the report, at least two Raptor engines on the Super Heavy booster failed to ignite during pre-flight testing, prompting the company to stop the mission minutes before liftoff.
Elon Musk later stated that SpaceX would replace the affected engines. The company subsequently rescheduled Flight 13 for July 20 at 6:45 p.m. ET.
Commenting on the stock’s decline, cognitive scientist Gary Marcus linked the latest weakness to rising doubts about Musk’s performance. Marcus expected another record low to be more likely than a sudden and much larger collapse, according to his assessment cited in the report.
Tesla investor Sawyer Merritt offered a different view, arguing that traders had overreacted to a short operational delay. Merritt maintained that postponing the launch by several days did not represent a serious setback for SpaceX.
The quiet reversal is the one that often gets ignored until it isn’t. After a grinding multi-month stretch of outflows that bled through May and June, Bitcoin ETFs have flipped back to positive territory, registering $264.4 million in net inflows over the past two weeks as BTC reclaimed the $64,000 level. The Santiment update shows the demand shift is not just a headline number—it’s spread across multiple issuers, making the turnaround harder to dismiss as a one-off event.
The post-outflow tape had been defined by apathy. Daily redemptions chipped away at assets, and the narrative that ETF demand had peaked in March was cementing into conventional wisdom. That assumption now looks premature. The two-week figure includes some of the largest single-day flows since early summer, and the fund-level breakdown points to buyers easing back in rather than front-running.
A Two-Week Turnaround Led by Major Issuers Fidelity’s FBTC did the heaviest lifting early on, drawing roughly $166 million as July’s reversal began. ARKB added about $91.8 million, and BlackRock’s IBIT later stepped in with a $138.9 million day that anchored a $181.1 million total Bitcoin ETF inflow session. The distribution matters: when massive flows concentrate in a single fund, the market often treats it as tactical positioning. A spread across Fidelity, ARK, and BlackRock suggests broader re-engagement, not a single mandate.
The multi-fund pattern also weakens the argument that these inflows are merely mechanical—say, rebalancing or basis trades. While basis trade flows can still be part of the mix, genuine spot demand appears to be returning alongside a more forgiving macro backdrop. The timing is consistent with traders who had been waiting on the sidelines for inflation signals to clear.
Macro Tailwinds and Policy Hopes The macro picture provided the spark. Encouraging CPI data softened rate expectations and renewed traders’ risk appetite, while the Fed’s tone cemented a faint but real pivot narrative. On the policy side, a sense of incremental optimism around Washington’s approach to crypto added another reason for sidelined capital to move. Banks are trying to kill the biggest crypto bill in US history four days before the Senate vote, and that fight itself has forced a conversation about what a clearer regulatory framework could look like—whether or not the bill passes immediately.
What remains uncertain is whether this flow trend can persist beyond a short macro window. A single CPI print and a softer Fed do not guarantee sustained buying, and Bitcoin’s price still needs to clear proven resistance zones for conviction to solidify. The ETF market has shown it can generate large daily inflows that vanish just as quickly when risk sentiment sours. The next critical test is weekly fund flow data throughout the rest of July: if the positive streak extends, the narrative could shift from “dead cat bounce” to a genuine demand recovery.
For now, the data point is tangible: Bitcoin ETF flows are positive, the selling pressure that defined the spring has paused, and the buyers are not concentrated in one vehicle. That alone is enough to force a reassessment of the institutional demand story.
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Key Takeaways HOOD shares declined approximately 5% Friday without specific company news catalyzing the selloff ARK Invest divested more than $7 million in HOOD holdings through two distinct transactions The Nasdaq index declined over 1%, creating headwinds for high-beta fintech stocks Goldman Sachs elevated its price target to $137; Piper Sandler maintains a Buy rating at $135 Q2 2026 results scheduled for July 29, with consensus forecasts of $0.41 EPS and $1.21B revenue Robinhood Markets (HOOD) shares declined approximately 5% during Friday’s trading session, settling around $100.82, without any quarterly report or significant company-specific catalyst triggering the decline.
Robinhood Markets, Inc., HOOD
The decline appears to reflect portfolio rebalancing rather than a fundamental deterioration in the company’s outlook.
The most significant identifiable catalyst came from ARK Invest, which reduced its HOOD exposure through multiple transactions. ARK divested roughly $3.2 million in HOOD shares in one trade and separately offloaded 33,466 shares from its ARKK ETF worth approximately $3.9 million.
ARK regularly rebalances positions to maintain individual holdings below 10% of fund assets. However, continued selling from a prominent institutional investor typically pressures sentiment irrespective of the underlying rationale.
Broader market dynamics compounded the pressure. The Nasdaq declined more than 1% during the session, creating unfavorable conditions for high-beta fintech equities. The S&P 500 also registered modest losses, signaling a cautious market tone.
HOOD had been trading 17.6% above its 20-day moving average and more than 30% above its 50-day moving average prior to Friday’s selloff. Such extended positioning often precedes sharper corrections when buying momentum dissipates.
Analyst Price Targets Stay Elevated Notwithstanding Friday’s weakness, Wall Street’s outlook on HOOD remains constructive. Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its Buy rating this week while increasing its price objective to $137. Piper Sandler’s Patrick Moley similarly maintained a Buy stance with a $135 target.
The average price target among 27 analysts stands at $119.41, representing meaningful upside from current trading levels.
Asset-Backed Securities and Credit Card Expansion In separate developments, Bloomberg reported this week that Robinhood intends to issue at least $400 million in asset-backed securities, with the possibility of reaching $500 million. The instruments would be collateralized by consumer credit card receivables.
Robinhood introduced a $695 platinum-plated card in March, building on its zero-fee Gold Card launched two years earlier. The ABS offering represents part of a strategic diversification beyond traditional brokerage operations.
From a technical perspective, HOOD is currently hovering near its 200-day moving average at $101.73. The stock traded below this threshold on an intraday basis, which technical analysts suggest could dampen near-term bullish sentiment.
Critical support resides at $93. Overhead resistance is positioned at $112.50.
Q2 2026 earnings are slated for release on July 29. Analysts are projecting earnings per share of $0.41 and quarterly revenue of $1.21 billion.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
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AI inference startup General Compute has secured a $400 million loan, in what is the first financing transaction backed by inference-specific chips as collateral.
AI inference-focused startup General Compute recently secured a $400 million loan from Upper90, marking the first financing transaction backed by inference-specific chips as collateral. The company builds its dedicated cloud platform using SambaNova ASIC chips. General Compute closed a $15 million seed round in May, positioning itself to proxy AI workloads, delivering faster token processing speeds and lower latency than traditional GPU-based clouds, with deployments in existing data centers including crypto mining facilities.
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One hour ago, a founding investor of Lido deposited 4.3 million LDO tokens they have held for five years into Kraken.
According to monitoring by Chinese crypto analytics platform Yu Jing, an initial institutional investor in Lido transferred 4.3 million LDO tokens (valued at $1.61 million) to Kraken one hour ago, after holding the assets for five and a half years. The institution received an allocation of 5 million LDO tokens in December 2020; at the 2021 bull market peak, these tokens were worth $30 million, while their current market capitalization stands at just $1.88 million. However, the investor’s cost basis for acquiring the LDOs is only $0.0085, meaning it still holds over 40x profits even at today’s prices.
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U.S. House Financial Services Committee holds a hearing on the CLARITY Act today, with the updated text possibly delayed until next week.
Crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett posted on X that Republican members of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee will hold an in-person hearing in New York at 10 a.m. ET, focusing on how the CLARITY Act can drive innovation in the digital asset space. The hearing is an informational session designed to gather industry input and discuss policy implications, and will not impact the Senate’s ongoing consideration of the bill. Meanwhile, the updated legislative text of the CLARITY Act has not yet been released. Citing industry sources, Terrett noted that crypto industry leaders currently expect the updated text to be delayed until next week.
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The decline in US stocks narrowed, with SK Hynix ADR gaining more than 4%.
According to BIT (bit.com) market data, SK Hynix ADR rebounded after briefly trading below its issue price today, now up over 4% at $158.91. Driven by this, Micron has also turned positive, with a current gain of 0.49%. Earlier news: the preliminary reading of the University of Michigan’s U.S. Consumer Sentiment Index for July hit 54.4, versus an expectation of 51 and a prior reading of 49.5. The preliminary one-year U.S. inflation expectation for July stands at 4.2%, against an expectation of 4.50% and a prior value of 4.60%.
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US Central Command: No US troops have been captured or killed recently.
US Central Command: Claims by Iranian forces that they attacked the US garrison in Syria’s Tanf and captured or killed US troops during the operation are false. No US military personnel have been killed or captured in the region recently. Earlier, Iranian authorities had claimed to have killed multiple US service members.
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Following the opening of US stock markets, Bitcoin and Ethereum accelerated their downward trend; 'Maji' rapidly cut positions to avoid liquidation.
Per HTX market data, Bitcoin and Ethereum accelerated their declines after today’s US stock market opened. As of press time, Bitcoin trades at $62,554.81, down 0.84% over the past hour. Ethereum is holding just above the $1,800 level, currently at $1,810.62. In response, "Maji" has sharply cut its Ethereum long positions in the past hour. HyperInsight monitoring shows its 25x leveraged Ethereum long positions have been reduced to 3,500 coins, valued at $6.338 million, with the long positions’ liquidation price also dropping to $1,795.49—less than 1% away from the current price.
Bitcoin may be approaching a cyclical market low as selling pressure shows signs of exhaustion, according to ARK Invest’s latest The Bitcoin Quarterly report.
The leading digital asset fell around 4% to $58,544 by quarter-end, closing below major technical and on-chain averages after an early rally failed to hold above them.
While ARK views that configuration as historically bearish and said Bitcoin has yet to revisit its realized and investor cost bases, implying potential downside toward $49,000-$53,000, the firm also sees evidence that selling pressure is becoming exhausted.
According to the report, supply in loss surpassed supply in profit, long-term holders accumulated to an all-time high of 14.85 million BTC, and realized-loss velocity briefly exceeded profit-taking, a combination ARK said has historically clustered around capitulation phases.
Meanwhile, realized volatility remained subdued despite the price decline, reflecting a more mature and orderly market.
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Bitcoin traded at $62,806 at press time, off about 2% in the last 24 hours after pulling back from a weekly high of $65,000. The decline came as markets turned cautious over escalating geopolitical risks and uncertainty over the CLARITY Act’s path through Congress.
ETF outflows and STRC weakness pressured Bitcoin’s institutional market According to ARK, institutional Bitcoin markets weakened during the second quarter as treasury financing came under pressure and ETF investors pulled capital, though derivatives markets showed few signs of panic.
Strategy’s STRC preferred stock fell sharply from its $100 face value to a late-June low of about $74.6 before closing the quarter near $85.
ARK said the persistent discount to par suggests financing conditions are worsening for Bitcoin treasury companies, increasing their cost of capital and potentially limiting future Bitcoin purchases.
At the same time, US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded their first seven-week streak of net outflows, with investors withdrawing approximately 71,000 BTC over the quarter and removing a key source of market support.
Despite those headwinds, the three-month futures basis stayed slightly positive at around 2.3%, indicating muted bullish positioning without slipping into backwardation, ARK added.
Productivity and AI investment support long-term US growth On macro, ARK noted that the US macro environment continues to favor long-term growth, supported by rising productivity and accelerating business investment despite lingering inflation pressures.
The firm also said the recent flattening of the Treasury yield curve should be viewed as evidence of technology-driven deflationary pressures rather than a recession warning.
In addition, record orders for core capital goods point to a strengthening investment cycle fueled by AI, energy infrastructure, deregulation and tax policy, which the firm expects to extend beyond previous technology booms.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Vivian Nguyen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
SpaceX isn’t just trying to get humans to Mars anymore. According to ARK Invest, the company’s Starship launch system is the linchpin of a $28.5 trillion total addressable market, with the vast majority of that figure, somewhere between $22.7 trillion and $26.5 trillion, tied directly to artificial intelligence infrastructure in orbit.
The math behind space-based AI The company filed its S-1 in June 2026, laying out the $28.5 trillion TAM figure ahead of its IPO. In that filing and in a separate FCC application from late January 2026, SpaceX outlined plans for a constellation of up to 1 million satellites designed specifically for AI workloads.
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The satellite design, called AI1, is built around efficient heat dissipation using radiators, integrated solar power, and Starlink-style connectivity. ARK analysts Daniel Maguire and Brett Winton have noted that these AI satellites would actually be simpler than existing Starlink units.
The economic argument hinges on Starship’s reusability. SpaceX has driven launch costs down by approximately 95% since 2008, and ARK believes the trajectory points toward costs below $100 per kilogram to orbit. ARK’s analysis suggests these space-based compute facilities could become economically viable within 2-3 years.
ARK’s valuation case ARK Invest forecasts SpaceX’s enterprise value at roughly $2.5 trillion by 2030. The bullish case pushes that to approximately $3.1 trillion.
More than 90% of SpaceX’s future market opportunity is tied to AI, according to ARK’s July 2026 commentary.
The crypto angle investors shouldn’t ignore SpaceX currently holds 18,712 BTC on its balance sheet, valued at around $1.29 billion.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
ARK pushes back against a16z’s ‘TradFi wants blockchain, not DeFi’ claimARK Invest’s director of research disputed a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt permissioned blockchain infrastructure instead of decentralized finance, saying institutions will increasingly rely on DeFi rails.
ARK Invest’s director of research pushed back against investor a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt blockchain through permissioned infrastructure rather than decentralized finance (DeFi).
Lorenzo Valente said in a Wednesday X post that public blockchains have already outperformed private blockchain initiatives, citing the growth of tokenized assets on Ethereum and other open networks.
He added that crypto-native firms such as Circle and Coinbase, rather than incumbent financial institutions, are best positioned to build the next generation of financial infrastructure.
A day earlier, a16z crypto had argued that traditional financial institutions are not embracing DeFi but selectively adopting blockchain technology that fits existing compliance, governance and operational requirements.
The venture capital firm’s X post said banks and asset managers will build “programmable financial infrastructure” that borrows blockchain primitives such as tokenization and atomic settlement while remaining permissioned and institutionally controlled.
Sentora co-founder Jesus Rodriguez also pushed back against a16z’s thesis, saying institutions are likely to adopt DeFi’s underlying infrastructure while layering compliance, custody and other enterprise controls on top.
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
ARK pushes back against a16z’s ‘TradFi wants blockchain, not DeFi’ claimARK Invest’s director of research disputed a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt permissioned blockchain infrastructure instead of decentralized finance, saying institutions will increasingly rely on DeFi rails.
ARK Invest’s director of research pushed back against investor a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt blockchain through permissioned infrastructure rather than decentralized finance (DeFi).
Lorenzo Valente said in a Wednesday X post that public blockchains have already outperformed private blockchain initiatives, citing the growth of tokenized assets on Ethereum and other open networks.
He added that crypto-native firms such as Circle and Coinbase, rather than incumbent financial institutions, are best positioned to build the next generation of financial infrastructure.
A day earlier, a16z crypto had argued that traditional financial institutions are not embracing DeFi but selectively adopting blockchain technology that fits existing compliance, governance and operational requirements.
The venture capital firm’s X post said banks and asset managers will build “programmable financial infrastructure” that borrows blockchain primitives such as tokenization and atomic settlement while remaining permissioned and institutionally controlled.
Sentora co-founder Jesus Rodriguez also pushed back against a16z’s thesis, saying institutions are likely to adopt DeFi’s underlying infrastructure while layering compliance, custody and other enterprise controls on top.
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Key Takeaways Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest purchased approximately 123,000 SpaceX shares valued at $17M across four ETFs on July 15 SpaceX shares had declined in seven out of the previous nine trading sessions, hovering near the $135 IPO price point An anticipated share unlock event representing 20% of total outstanding shares looms after second-quarter results SpaceX plans its 13th Starship test flight Thursday evening with plans to deploy 20 Starlink V3 satellites ARK divested from Deere & Co while reducing holdings in Twist Bioscience and 10X Genomics Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest acquired approximately 123,000 shares of SpaceX valued at roughly $17 million on July 15, 2026. The acquisition was distributed among four exchange-traded funds: ARKK, ARKQ, ARKW, and ARKX.
Space Exploration Technologies Corp., SPCX
This purchase occurred during a downturn for SpaceX shares. The stock had experienced losses in seven of the nine trading sessions leading up to Thursday, trading merely 27 cents above its $135 initial public offering price. During premarket hours, the stock temporarily fell beneath that threshold to $134.94.
Within ARK’s primary Innovation ETF, SpaceX represents the sixth-largest position, accounting for approximately 4.4% of total assets. Tesla continues to hold the top spot in that portfolio.
Factors Behind SpaceX’s Recent Decline The stock has faced pressure from two primary sources. The first concern centers on valuation: SpaceX currently trades at roughly 45 times projected 2026 revenue, a multiple that certain market participants consider elevated.
The second issue involves an impending share unlock. Approximately 20% of total shares held by initial investors will become tradeable following the company’s Q2 earnings announcement, expected within weeks. This pending supply increase has created hesitation among some investors.
Nonetheless, ARK chose to expand rather than reduce its stake. The investment firm has consistently accumulated SpaceX shares during recent trading periods.
Thursday Evening Marks Starship Test 13 The chronology of ARK’s stock purchase coincides with a significant milestone for SpaceX. The company has scheduled its 13th Starship rocket test flight for Thursday evening at approximately 6:45 p.m. Eastern time.
This mission will endeavor to deploy 20 Starlink V3 satellites utilizing Starship’s upper stage. Additionally, the upper stage will attempt to reignite a single Raptor engine while in orbit before descending through the atmosphere for a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
Starship features a design capacity to transport up to 150,000 kilograms to orbit while dramatically reducing costs. In contrast, the reusable Falcon 9 rocket handles approximately 25,000 kilograms at about $1,500 per kilogram. A completely reusable Starship aims to slash that expense by roughly 90%.
Starship has not yet achieved operational status. However, a positive test outcome could boost investor confidence surrounding the stock.
Regarding portfolio reductions, ARK disposed of 6,833 Deere & Co shares valued at approximately $4 million, extending a trend of decreasing exposure to the agricultural equipment manufacturer. ARK also sold positions in Twist Bioscience and 10X Genomics, while acquiring stakes in Beam Therapeutics and Kratos Defense.
SpaceX shares declined approximately 0.2% during Thursday’s premarket trading session.
ARK Invest has challenged a16z crypto’s view that traditional financial institutions will mainly adopt controlled blockchain systems rather than decentralized finance.
Summary
ARK argues public blockchains will win institutional adoption as tokenized assets increasingly connect with DeFi. A16z expects banks to adopt blockchain primitives while keeping compliance, governance and operational control centralized. Standard Chartered forecasts mature DeFi protocols could capture much of the future tokenized asset activity. ARK director of research Lorenzo Valente called the argument “overly bearish and simplistic” in a response on X. He argued that public blockchains have already gained more traction than earlier private blockchain projects and that institutional finance will increasingly depend on infrastructure created by crypto-native companies.
I think @a16zcrypto is top notch out there but this is overly bearish and simplistic imo. Let me strawman the counterargument here.
Let's start with the historical analogies. The article invokes enterprise firewalls, private intranets, private cloud, FedRAMP etc to argue… https://t.co/dYB6STJsr1
— Lorenzo Valente (@LorenzoARK) July 15, 2026 A16z sees institutions choosing control over open access The debate began after a16z crypto published an essay titled “TradFi doesn’t want DeFi. It wants blockchains.” The firm argued that banks and asset managers will adopt blockchain features when they reduce costs, improve settlement or expand distribution without giving up control.
Under that model, institutions may use tokenization, programmable money and atomic settlement while limiting open access and pseudonymous participation. A16z described the emerging system as “programmable financial infrastructure” built around regulatory, risk and governance requirements rather than today’s fully permissionless DeFi model.
The firm did not argue that open networks will disappear. Its thesis says institutional blockchain systems and crypto-native DeFi can develop in parallel, with open networks continuing to create technology that regulated firms later adopt.
ARK argues public networks have already proved their value Valente’s counterargument centers on adoption already taking place on public blockchains. Tokenized funds, stablecoins and other financial assets increasingly operate on networks such as Ethereum rather than isolated private systems.
As previously reported, tokenized real-world assets had crossed $29 billion by April 2026. Tokenized US Treasury products alone reached about $13.4 billion, while more than 40 major financial institutions had launched or developed products using public blockchain infrastructure.
That growth supports part of ARK’s case, although institutional projects are not purely permissionless. Products can use public networks while placing restrictions on investors, wallets, custody and transfers. This allows firms to use shared blockchain infrastructure without adopting every feature associated with open DeFi.
DeFi protocols are gaining institutional connections Recent institutional activity also shows that the dividing line between DeFi and traditional finance is becoming less clear. Standard Chartered has forecast that $4 trillion in stablecoins and tokenized assets could move onchain by the end of 2028, with established DeFi protocols handling much of that activity.
As reported by crypto.news, the bank identified Aave, Compound and Morpho as potential beneficiaries as institutions move more assets onto blockchain networks. BlackRock’s BUIDL fund has also gained DeFi utility by serving as collateral and connecting with onchain markets.
Other blockchain ecosystems are adding controls directly to decentralized infrastructure.However, XRP Ledger developers have been working on permissioned trading and lending features designed for regulated institutions while maintaining onchain settlement.
Permissioned networks remain a competing model Traditional finance is also putting capital into systems designed specifically around institutional privacy and control. Canton Network has attracted banks and market infrastructure companies by offering permissioned access and privacy-focused settlement tools.
A crypto.news analysis previously examined the growing competition between Canton’s institution-focused model and Ethereum’s open infrastructure. The two approaches show that financial firms are testing both controlled systems and public blockchain rails rather than following one clear model.
The dispute between ARK and a16z therefore centers less on whether traditional finance will use blockchain and more on which infrastructure will carry the activity. A16z expects institutions to reshape blockchain technology around existing controls. ARK argues that public networks and DeFi protocols have already built liquidity and infrastructure that financial firms will find increasingly difficult to avoid.
Bankless Co-founder: Bitcoin may have entered a sideways consolidation phase, with the bottom largely in place.
Bankless co-founder David Hoffman published an article stating that Bitcoin’s current trend faces two possible paths: sideways consolidation to bottom out, or one final round of panic selling. He opines that Bitcoin is more likely to enter a sideways grinding phase, with its bottom already largely formed.
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SpaceX’s short interest ratio rose to 29% of its outstanding shares, with short positions totaling $25 billion.
As SpaceX’s share price has fallen back to near its IPO price, short sellers are rapidly increasing their bearish positions on the company. Data from S3 Partners shows that roughly 185 million SpaceX shares are currently sold short, accounting for about 29% of its publicly traded float, equivalent to around $25 billion in short positions. Three weeks ago, the estimated number of SpaceX shares sold short was just 40 million, making up 5% to 7% of its float. The stock has dropped roughly 20% cumulatively since July, and on Wednesday it briefly fell below its $135 IPO price for the first time. KeyBanc Capital Markets noted that when SpaceX went public, its publicly traded shares made up only 5% of its total share count of around 13 billion. The first batch of large-scale restricted shares is expected to unlock around the release of its second-quarter financial results, at which point roughly 11% of the total share base will become eligible for sale; multiple subsequent batches of restricted shares, each accounting for about 4% of total shares, will also be unlocked starting about 70 days after the IPO. Elon Musk’s roughly 42% stake in SpaceX remains locked until June 2027. The company’s 13th Starship test flight is scheduled for Thursday, which could impact market sentiment toward the stock.
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Ansem: If PUMP delivers on its airdrop promises and improves community relations, the token could surge 10 to 15 times.
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Cathie Wood is leaning further into Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) at a time when Wall Street is becoming increasingly divided on the stablecoin issuer’s outlook.
The aggressive accumulation comes as Circle faces mounting headwinds despite improving regulatory prospects, underscoring ARK’s conviction that the long-term stablecoin opportunity outweighs near-term competitive and valuation concerns.
• Circle Internet Group shares are climbing with conviction. Why are CRCL shares rallying?
Buying Into WeaknessCircle shares have fallen roughly 2% year to date and remain about 7% below their post-IPO high, pressured by slowing investor sentiment and intensifying competition in the fast-growing stablecoin market.
Adding to the uncertainty, Circle’s earnings remain closely tied to interest income generated from reserves backing USDC, meaning future Federal Reserve rate cuts could weigh on profitability.
Why ARK Is Staying BullishDespite the headwinds, ARK appears to be treating the recent selloff as a buying opportunity rather than a warning sign.
Circle recently secured a national trust bank charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, allowing it to manage USDC reserves under federal oversight. This strengthens its regulatory credentials as policymakers move toward a clearer framework for digital assets.
The company also remains one of the largest players in the approximately $310 billion global stablecoin market. While USDC’s circulating supply has slipped to roughly $73 billion from its March high of almost $80 billion, it is still around 17% higher than a year ago, reflecting continued long-term adoption.
ETF Exposure GrowsThe move also highlights a broader theme for ETF investors.
Rather than simply betting on crypto trading activity, ARK is increasing exposure to companies building the infrastructure behind digital finance — including stablecoins, tokenized payments and blockchain-based financial services.
While some analysts have turned more cautious, citing slower USDC network activity and growing competition, ARK’s latest trades suggest Wood sees the current pullback as an opportunity to build exposure before stablecoins become a more mainstream component of the global financial system.
Photo: Courtesy Art Invest
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Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest is doubling down on its bet on USDC issuer Circle even as the company’s stock remains under pressure.
ARK bought another 220,000 shares of Circle Internet Group (CRCL) across three of its actively managed exchange-traded funds on Tuesday, according to the company’s daily trade disclosure reviewed by Cointelegraph.
Based on Circle’s Tuesday closing price of $63.22 on the New York Stock Exchange, ARK’s latest purchase was worth about $13.9 million.
Circle shares were down about 22% year-to-date and roughly 76% below their post-initial public offering (IPO) peak.
ARK discloses 725,000 Circle shares in July purchasesARK’s latest buy brought its disclosed July acquisitions of Circle shares to 725,517, following previous buys of 287,609 shares on July 1 and 217,896 shares on July 9.
The latest trade disclosures show ARK has consistently added to its Circle position across its flagship funds despite the stock’s prolonged decline, underscoring the investment manager’s conviction in the USDC issuer.
Source: ARK Invest
As of Wednesday, Circle accounted for 4.37% of the ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF), making it the fund’s seventh-largest holding. ARKF’s Circle position was valued at about $33 million, according to its latest holdings data.
Circle also represented 3.35% of the flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), where it ranked as the fund’s ninth-largest holding, worth about $218 million.
Analysts see growing risks for CircleARK’s latest purchase came as analysts reassessed Circle’s outlook following a sharp decline in the company’s stock price.
Digital asset research platform 10x Research said it no longer considers Circle a buy after the stock fell back below $80. In a report published Tuesday, the company said it previously viewed CRCL as attractive below that level but now says Circle’s fundamentals have “meaningfully deteriorated.”
Source: 10x Research
The research report also pointed to slower USDC activity, including a decline in active addresses, as a concern for Circle.
USDC’s market capitalization has declined roughly 3% year-to-date to $73 billion at the time of publication, according to CoinGecko. Despite the recent decline, the stablecoin’s market capitalization remains about 17% higher than a year ago.
Still, 10x Research said a bullish case for Circle remains, adding the stock’s recent decline could either present a long-term buying opportunity or mark the start of a more prolonged downturn.
Magazine: Strategy became a symbol of the dot-com crash: Could history repeat?
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest is doubling down on its bet on USDC issuer Circle even as the company’s stock remains under pressure.
ARK bought another 220,000 shares of Circle Internet Group (CRCL) across three of its actively managed exchange-traded funds on Tuesday, according to the company’s daily trade disclosure reviewed by Cointelegraph.
Based on Circle’s Tuesday closing price of $63.22 on the New York Stock Exchange, ARK’s latest purchase was worth about $13.9 million.
Circle shares were down about 22% year-to-date and roughly 76% below their post-initial public offering (IPO) peak.
ARK discloses 725,000 Circle shares in July purchasesARK’s latest buy brought its disclosed July acquisitions of Circle shares to 725,517, following previous buys of 287,609 shares on July 1 and 217,896 shares on July 9.
The latest trade disclosures show ARK has consistently added to its Circle position across its flagship funds despite the stock’s prolonged decline, underscoring the investment manager’s conviction in the USDC issuer.
Source: ARK Invest
As of Wednesday, Circle accounted for 4.37% of the ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF), making it the fund’s seventh-largest holding. ARKF’s Circle position was valued at about $33 million, according to its latest holdings data.
Circle also represented 3.35% of the flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), where it ranked as the fund’s ninth-largest holding, worth about $218 million.
Analysts see growing risks for CircleARK’s latest purchase came as analysts reassessed Circle’s outlook following a sharp decline in the company’s stock price.
Digital asset research platform 10x Research said it no longer considers Circle a buy after the stock fell back below $80. In a report published Tuesday, the company said it previously viewed CRCL as attractive below that level but now says Circle’s fundamentals have “meaningfully deteriorated.”
Source: 10x Research
The research report also pointed to slower USDC activity, including a decline in active addresses, as a concern for Circle.
USDC’s market capitalization has declined roughly 3% year-to-date to $73 billion at the time of publication, according to CoinGecko. Despite the recent decline, the stablecoin’s market capitalization remains about 17% higher than a year ago.
Still, 10x Research said a bullish case for Circle remains, adding the stock’s recent decline could either present a long-term buying opportunity or mark the start of a more prolonged downturn.
Magazine: Strategy became a symbol of the dot-com crash: Could history repeat?
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
ARK Invest scooped up roughly 217,896 shares of Circle Internet Group on July 9, adding approximately $13.7 million worth of the stablecoin issuer’s stock to its portfolio. The purchase came as CRCL shares were trading near one-month lows.
The move is part of a pattern that’s becoming hard to ignore. ARK has been steadily accumulating Circle stock since the company listed on the NYSE on June 5, 2025, with an IPO price of $31 per share. The fund bought $16.3 million worth of shares back on March 24 this year, followed by another $5.5 million in May. This latest purchase brings the 2026 total to north of $35 million in CRCL alone.
Selling Robinhood to buy the stablecoin giant Here’s the thing about this trade: it wasn’t just a buy. ARK simultaneously sold 85,319 shares of Robinhood for around $9.8 million. That’s a deliberate rebalancing, moving capital from a retail trading platform toward the company behind the second-largest stablecoin in existence.
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Circle’s stock closed near $63 in mid-July, roughly double its IPO price from just over a year ago.
Why Circle, and why now To understand ARK’s thesis here, you need to understand what Circle actually is. The company issues USDC, a dollar-pegged stablecoin that currently has approximately $73 billion worth of tokens in circulation. That makes it the second-largest stablecoin by market cap, trailing only Tether’s USDT.
Circle holds reserves backing USDC in US Treasuries and cash equivalents, earning yield on those holdings. When interest rates are elevated, that’s a very profitable business to be in.
The timing of ARK’s accumulation also coincides with growing regulatory clarity around stablecoins in the US. For a company like Circle that has positioned itself as the compliance-first alternative to Tether, clearer rules are a competitive advantage. More regulation in this space tends to benefit incumbents who already play by the rules.
What this means for investors The Robinhood-to-Circle rotation reflects a broader shift in how ARK is thinking about digital finance exposure. Rather than betting on platforms that let people trade crypto, ARK is increasingly betting on the infrastructure layer itself.
That said, Circle’s stock is not without risk. The company’s revenue is heavily tied to interest rates, since yield on USDC reserves is a primary income driver. If the Fed cuts rates aggressively, Circle’s margins compress. There’s also competitive pressure from Tether, which dominates the stablecoin market.
ARK has now spent over $35 million on Circle stock in 2026 alone, while actively trimming positions elsewhere, making a concentrated bet on the stablecoin infrastructure layer.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.