United Arab Emirates (UAE) is still doubling down on Bitcoin via its sovereign wealth funds.
In the latest 13F filings with the U.S SEC, one of its funds, Mubadala, reported owning 14.7 million shares (worth $490M) of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT).
Source: SEC A separate fund, Abu Dhabi Investment Council, also reported 8.2 million shares of IBIT (worth $273.6M). Collectively, the two funds own $763.6M worth of BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF.
Notably, the BTC exposure is the second largest by value in the 13F filings for Mubadala. For Abu Dhabi Investment Council, BTC was the largest holding based on the latest 13F filings.
These holdings have not changed from the Q1 reporting. In fact, at the end of Q4 2025, UAE wealth funds held a cumulative value of over $1B in BTC exposure via BlackRock’s IBIT. This bid came right after BTC’s sharp drop from over $126K to below $100K.
In other words, the UAE is bullish on BTC despite the prolonged crypto winter.
BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF sees new demand That said, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF has seen improved demand in August, breaking the decline trend observed in 2026. According to Fintel, citing the latest 13F filings, IBIT’s institutional ownership increased to 374 million shares in August.
The institutional ownership contracted from its peak of 432 million IBIT shares in February to a low of 361M in July-A 16% decline. The uptick in August meant that there was increased demand from institutional players.
Source: Fintel The renewed appetite from institutional investors may offer hope to BTC bulls.
In terms of flows, the broader U.S BTC ETFs have slowed the massive bleed-out seen in May.
Although the products have yet to fully and decisively turn green and positive, the slowing of intense outflows seen in Q2 could offer some stability for BTC’s price.
Source: Glassnode Overall, the UAE’s BTC exposure was not a surprise, as the country has been bullish since 2025. However, what’s surprising is the UAE’s unwavering faith in the asset despite the sharp decline during the crypto winter.
Final Summary UAE’s wealth funds reported combined holdings of $763.6M worth of BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Institutional appetite for BlackRock’s improved in August after a 16% decline in 2026
Paul Tudor Jones in New York in 2018. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)Summary
Tudor raised its IBIT stake by 18.9% to 688,529 shares, worth $22.9 million, as of June 30.The stake remains 91.4% below its 2024 peak and equals roughly 0.03% of Tudor’s reported 13F securities.Tudor Jones has repeatedly framed bitcoin as an inflation trade. Tudor Investment, founded by billionaire investor Paul Tudor Jones, increased its direct stake in BlackRock’s spot bitcoin ETF in the second quarter while cutting its reported call option position in the fund by 85%.
The firm held 688,529 shares of the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), valued at $22.9 million as of June 30, according to a 13F filing on Friday.
The share count rose by 109,446, or 18.9%, from 579,083 at the end of March. The holdings are now worth around $24.5 million.
Tudor also reported calls tied to 148,000 underlying IBIT shares, down 85.2% from 998,000 in March. Its put position edged down 1.4% to 715,000 underlying shares from 725,000, according to the filings.
The filing does not disclose the options’ strike prices or expiration dates, so the underlying share counts do not provide a direct measure of Tudor’s directional exposure. And the derivatives positionings are likely a hedging mechanism for its bitcoin bets.
Tudor first disclosed 869,565 IBIT shares in mid-2024 and increased the position to 8.05 million shares, worth $427 million by year-end. It then cut the stake in every quarter of 2025, ending December with 576,523 shares.
The firm’s initial buildup came as bitcoin rallied from around $60,000 to $92,000, while cuts then came into strength. In the second and third quarters of last year, BTC rallied to an all-time high of $124,000, while Tudor reduced its exposure. As bitcoin began to crash, Tudor’s share count hit its low.
Even after the latest purchases, the direct-share position remained 91.4% below its late-2024 peak and accounted for only a fraction of the $71.9 billion in the company’s portfolio.
Tudor Jones has repeatedly framed bitcoin as an inflation trade. He said in 2024 that “all roads lead to inflation” and disclosed that he was long bitcoin and gold, then called bitcoin the “best inflation hedge” in April this year, citing its fixed supply as an advantage over gold.
12345678910
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Jun 30, 2026
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Why it matters:
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
The Kremlin in Moscow (Artem Beliaikin/Unsplash)Summary
Moscow and parts of Kursk banned crypto mining and pool participation through Dec. 31, 2032, under government decree No. 936 to preserve power grid stability.The Energy Ministry enacted the year-round restriction to mitigate power-capacity shortages as energy-intensive mining facilities continue to strain regional grids.This decision follows Russia's legalization of registered mining in 2024 and subsequent bans in 10 other regions due to rising electricity demand.Crypto mining was banned in Moscow, the surrounding Moscow Region and parts of Kursk, with the restrictions set to run through Dec. 31, 2032.
The measure, established under government decree No. 936, also prohibits participation in crypto mining pools. The decree was signed on July 25 and published on July 31, local media reports.
Russia as a whole accounted for an estimated 175 exahashes per second, or 16.4% of Bitcoin’s global computing power, in the first quarter, according to Luxor’s Hashrate Index. That placed it second behind the U.S., although it’s unclear what capacity was located in the newly restricted region.
The country’s Energy Ministry said a year-round restriction was needed to reduce the risk of power-capacity shortages as energy-intensive mining facilities connect to regional grids. Mining currently consumes roughly 1 gigawatt in the Moscow power system, while the region’s data-center capacity could reach 3.6 GW, or 17% of peak demand, by 2032, Interfax reported after the decree was first signed.
Mining is also linked to the country’s Western sanctions.
Russian companies had been using domestically mined bitcoin in international payments after legal changes designed to counter Western restrictions, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in December 2024.
Legislation passed by parliament in July maintained Russia’s ban on domestic crypto payments but preserved exceptions for foreign-trade settlements and transactions involving mined cryptocurrency, keeping the mechanism available as sanctions restrict conventional payment channels.
Adding to that, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned BitRiver and 10 subsidiaries in 2022, saying Russian mining companies helped the country monetize its energy resources and could offset the impact of sanctions.
Russia legalized registered crypto mining back in 2024, before banning the activity in 10 regions through March 2031, citing electricity demand. Year-round restrictions were later extended to southern Irkutsk and most areas of Buryatia and Zabaykalsky Krai.
12345678910
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Jun 30, 2026
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Why it matters:
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
UBS boosted its quarterly call option exposure for BlackRock's IBIT by over 24-fold, reaching 1.95 million underlying shares as of June 30.Direct holdings of IBIT also rose 12% to 407,890 shares, while put option exposure dropped roughly 53% to 143,300 underlying shares during the quarter.The filing doesn't clarify if the increase stems from client initiatives, dealer hedging, market-making, or proprietary exposure, and lacks strike prices.Banking giant UBS, with over $7 trillion in assets under management, has reported a more than 24-fold quarterly increase in call option exposure tied to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in the second quarter.
That increase, which gives it the right to acquire IBIT shares at a later date at a set price, came as its outright IBIT holdings rose about 12%, according to a regulatory filing this week.
The Swiss banking group reported calls representing 1.95 million underlying IBIT shares as of June 30, up from 80,000 three months earlier. UBS separately held 407,890 IBIT shares worth about $13.6 million, compared with 364,371 shares at the end of the first quarter, according to its Q1 filing.
Put option exposure, giving UBS the right but not the obligation to sell IBIT at a set date and price, moved in the opposite direction. UBS reported puts representing 143,300 underlying shares, down about 53% from 303,300 at the end of March.
Its direct IBIT position also remained below the 548,614 shares reported at the end of 2025, according to its fourth-quarter filing.
UBS 13-filing for IBIT. (CoinDesk)The disclosure also does not include strike prices or expirations, making it difficult to determine UBS’s net directional exposure from the filing alone.
Related Assets
12345678910Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Jun 30, 2026
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Why it matters:
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
As the next Bitcoin halving event continues to draw closer, Binance's founder, Changpeng Zhao, has reignited debates on the longstanding discussion about Bitcoin's scarcity.
In a post issued earlier today, CZ emphasized Bitcoin's nature, noting that it is a deflationary asset and its available supply may actually be less than expected.
20% of Bitcoin irrecoverableIn his statement, CZ expressed the belief that the actual amount of Bitcoin's available supply could be much less than what many people expect.
HOT Stories
According to his estimate, over 20.07 million Bitcoin have been mined as of August 2026 out of the total 21 million supply limit. As such, he noted that this leaves just 4.4% of Bitcoin's maximum supply yet to be mined.
You Might Also Like
While about 20.07 million Bitcoin are expected to be available to the market since they have been mined, CZ mentioned that the tokens available to the market could be less than this figure, suggesting that Bitcoin is even more scarce than is often claimed.
Why is Bitcoin scarce?To back his point, CZ further estimated that 10% to 20% of the available Bitcoin supply may be lost, stuck, or permanently unrecoverable due to various factors.
He mentioned that these irrecoverable tokens could include Bitcoin tokens held in wallets whose private keys have been lost or funds that are otherwise inaccessible.
As such, CZ has warned that the number of Bitcoin that can actually be bought, sold, or moved by potential traders could be substantially lower than the total number that has been mined so far.
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.
People often tell the story of the first Bitcoin whitepaper as if it materialized in a vacuum and then led linearly to mining, smart contracts, tokens, DeFi, and every successive generation of blockchain design. But the intellectual history of these technologies is actually much older and more labyrinthine, complete with twists, turns, and false starts. And instead of a single inventor (or two), the foundational technologies behind blockchains pull on threads left by others.
For instance, answering questions like: How can machines agree when some fail or behave maliciously? How can strangers communicate and coordinate trustlessly? How do the rules of a market affect how people behave within them? Blockchains didn’t create these questions. But they have brought them together, helping propel them forward in new contexts.
This is why we created First Principles, a special series of conversations hosted by Institute for Advanced Study professor and a16z crypto Head of Research Tim Roughgarden. Throughout, Turing Award winners, Nobel laureates, and Gödel Prize winners share the origin stories behind their pioneering work — much of which underpins things we use every day — and explore how work done for one problem later became part of technologies its creators never anticipated.
You can watch all of the conversations here.
Barbara Liskov (2008 Turing Award Winner, MIT) shares her path from programming languages and data abstraction to distributed systems, the development of viewstamped replication and Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance, and the importance of specification and careful reasoning when building systems that have to survive failure.
“It felt to me like we were in a fun house full of these distorting mirrors. You had to really think about things in an odd way to come to grips with this.” — Barbara Liskov
Leslie Lamport (2013 Turing Award Winner, most recently at Microsoft Research) discusses his work on concurrency, logical clocks, Byzantine agreement, state machine replication, and Paxos, and how problems that began as theoretical questions became central to distributed computing.
“I got back a letter from the editor pointing out where the bug in my algorithm was. This had two effects. The first was, it made me realize how tricky concurrency is, and how you really have to be essentially able to prove the correctness of a concurrent algorithm. And the second was, I’m just gonna solve that damn problem.” — Leslie Lamport
Alvin Roth (2012 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, Stanford University) explains how market design moved from economic theory into institutions — including medical matching, school choice, and kidney exchange — and why the rules of a market often determine whether the market can exist at all.
“That was really the beginning of my career as a practical market designer, when I agreed that their hard problems would become my problem.” — Alvin Roth
Paul Milgrom (2020 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, Stanford University) discusses auction theory and the movement between theoretical economics and practical mechanism design — including the growing dialogue between economists and computer scientists.
“Many of the assumptions that we make in economics are arbitrary for convenience, for simplicity. And they’re just wrong.” — Paul Milgrom
Ron Rivest (2002 Turing Award Winner, MIT) revisits the invention of RSA and the early development of public-key cryptography, digital signatures, and hash functions, as well as the evolution of the security assumptions that underpin much of modern digital communication.
“Most of mathematics turns out to be useful somewhere, and cryptography is a great consumer of mathematics.” — Ron Rivest
Shafi Goldwasser (2012 Turing Award Winner, MIT), co-inventor of zero-knowledge proofs, traces the path from early cryptographic puzzles to interactive proofs and zero knowledge, and from there to questions about efficient verification that eventually helped make modern SNARKs possible.
“For me, I need a narrative. There has to be, first of all, a story in your head. The problem is more of a narrative, and now you can attach to it a specific math problem.” — Shafi Goldwasser
Noam Nisan (2012 Gödel Prize Co-Winner, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, also StarkWare) reflects on complexity theory, the sum-check protocol, algorithmic game theory, and the unpredictable path by which theoretical ideas can become part of practical systems decades after they first appear.
“I never thought of this as anything that could be practical … It was highly theoretical, and I was sure it [would] never become useful.” — Noam Nisan
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
Ripple CTO Emeritus David Schwartz recently weighed in on an X conversation, explaining the logic behind Bitcoin hard forks in the process.
An X user had questioned the value of a new PoW fork, citing Bitcoin Cash and the most recent BIP-110 proposal. While forks can address "surface" issues, such as whether a network has too much or too little spam, they still end up inheriting the underlying governance issue, the X user argued.
"My point here is that if you believe that the old chain has been captured, how does creating a new PoW fork help? Yes, it will have the feature you wanted, but at some point in time, if your new chain becomes super popular, it will get captured once again," the X user added.
HOT Stories
Schwartz's perspective on a PoW fork is quite different, saying that it gives participants the ability to choose between competing sets of rules.
The point of the fork is to let everyone get what they want by choosing which side of the fork they want to interact with. If people on the "losing" side come to the "winning" side, it's because they realize that the winning side's rules produce the results they prefer. Why else?
— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) August 15, 2026 "The point of the fork is to let everyone get what they want by choosing which side of the fork they want to interact with," Schwartz said. "If people on the losing side come to the winning side, it's because they realize that the winning side's rules produce the results they prefer. Why else?" Schwartz asked.
You Might Also Like
This implies that if participants strongly disagree with the rules of an existing network, a fork can give them another option. If that alternative eventually becomes more attractive, users can migrate toward it.
Bitcoin soft fork faces setbackLast Saturday, a new minority chain created when BIP-110 supporters split from Bitcoin lasted just two blocks.
You Might Also Like
BIP-110, formally the Reduced Data Temporary Softfork, was the brainchild of pseudonymous developer Dathon Ohm with input from Luke Dashjr, creator of the Bitcoin Knots node software. It called for a one-year consensus-level restriction on arbitrary data in Bitcoin transactions. This includes Ordinals inscriptions (Bitcoin's answer to NFTs), BRC-20 and Runes (both fungible token standards), and oversized OP_RETURN.
The proposal contained seven rules capping most outputs at 34 bytes, OP_RETURN at 83 bytes, and data pushes at 256 bytes, plus restrictions on Taproot annexes and control blocks.
Coinbase makes a comprehensive push into AiFi, building financial infrastructure for the AI agent economy.
According to official announcements, Coinbase has announced a full-scale push into the "Agentic Economy", covering three groups: users who utilize AI agents, enterprises that provide services to AI agents, and developers building products and infrastructure for AI agents. Coinbase says it is constructing a comprehensive financial service system for AI agents: AI agents can conduct research, planning, decision-making, and trading on its "Everything Exchange", covering assets including cryptocurrencies, stocks, derivatives, and more. The company is also launching Coinbase Advisor, an AI investment advisor built into the Coinbase app to assist users in making investment decisions. On the enterprise front, Coinbase is introducing payment capabilities for AI agents, allowing businesses to accept USDC payments from AI agents via Coinbase Business, with native integration of the x402 standard—no need to build separate payment processes. Coinbase notes that this solution eliminates credit card-style chargeback risks, idle USDC can earn 3.35% rewards, and enterprises can manage funds, reconcile accounts, and withdraw funds all within the same account. Additionally, Coinbase has launched the CDP x402 SDK, enabling developers to integrate AI agent payment capabilities into APIs or MCPs with just approximately 3 lines of code, without requiring deep expertise in x402 technology. Coinbase adds that as AI agents gain autonomous payment capabilities, they also require a marketplace to discover and purchase services. The x402 is emerging as an open payment standard for machines, enabling agent-to-agent transactions without human intervention; when AI agents need capital, they can turn to Coinbase. The company refers to this entire ecosystem as "AI Finance" (AiFi), stating that the global economy is being restructured around AI agents.
26 minutes ago
Meme token "Niu Lai" on BSC briefly surged past $15 million in market capitalization, with its price rising more than 150 times in 24 hours.
According to GMGN market data, the market capitalization of the Meme coin "Niu Lai" on BNB Chain briefly exceeded $15 million, and is currently trading at $14.2 million, surging more than 150 times in 24 hours. Recently, the summer animated film "Niu Lai" unexpectedly gained widespread attention due to controversies over its visual production. A relative of the director revealed that the film was created entirely by the director and his mother—no production team was hired, and all work was done manually over five years. As of press time, today's box office has reached 852,800 yuan. BlockBeats reminds users that most Meme coins lack practical use cases, feature highly volatile prices, and thus require caution for investment.
26 minutes ago
Analysis: Bitcoin is in the "extreme discount" zone of the Rainbow Chart, with its downward deviation surpassing that of the previous bear market bottom.
CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. noted in a post that Bitcoin is currently trading in the lowest range of the Rainbow Chart model — "basically a fire sale price". This represents an extreme discount relative to the cryptocurrency’s long-term price trajectory, and is not merely a measure of how much Bitcoin has declined. The Rainbow Chart model compares Bitcoin’s current price to its long-term trend, so the gap reflects the market’s deviation from historical patterns. The volatility-adjusted Z-Score now stands at -2.293, the lowest reading since 2016 and lower than the -1.979 recorded at the 2022 bear market bottom. This metric accounts for volatility differences across distinct market cycles, meaning the current downward deviation from the model is more severe than that seen at the last bear market’s trough. Bitcoin is now in an extreme discount zone, with the volatility-adjusted Z-Score hitting a 10-year low. This signals significant undervaluation relative to the model, but it does not alone confirm the final market bottom. Extremely low valuations point to a potentially attractive entry range, though a market reversal would need separate confirmation. Note: The Z-Score is a widely used standardized statistical metric that quantifies how far a data point lies from the mean, measured in units of standard deviation.
26 minutes ago
Google will allow users to remove visible watermarks from its AI-generated content.
Google announced that users can now remove visible watermarks from its AI-generated content, including images, videos, and songs. The company clarified that this change does not impact invisible SynthID watermarks or metadata related to the C2PA standard. Josh Woodward, vice president of Google Gemini, stated in a post that this toggle will apply to the Nano Banana, Omni, and Lyria models. He added that the setting to turn off visible watermarks will be available in Gemini and Google’s Video Editor Flow, with support for Search launching soon. The feature will roll out gradually over the coming days; once live, users can access "Settings > Media Watermarks" to enable or disable visible watermarks. Google has also open-sourced a new library named Credentio, designed to help developers embed local verification mechanisms into their own applications.
26 minutes ago
Stepping into the fray! DeFiLlama reported the fraudulent app for months to no avail, and only after testing it themselves and falling victim to theft did Apple finally take it down from its App Store.
DeFiLlama founder 0xngmi posted on social media that for months, he has been working to get Apple’s App Store to take down a fake app impersonating DeFiLlama, repeatedly reporting trademark infringement and unauthorized impersonation of the official app to Apple. The team then loaded a small amount of funds into a test wallet, downloaded the fake application, and as expected, all funds in the wallet were stolen. The incident was reported to Apple, and the app was removed from the store within days. 0xngmi noted that he hopes other cryptocurrency companies will learn from this to avoid wasting time on similar efforts, as his team did.
26 minutes ago
Iran says it has reached an agreement with Oman on the plan for passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
According to CCTV News, on local time August 15, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Baghaei said that despite US obstruction, talks between Iran and Oman are still advancing actively, and the two sides have reached an agreement on a navigation plan for the Strait of Hormuz.
Coinbase makes a comprehensive push into AiFi, building financial infrastructure for the AI agent economy.
According to official announcements, Coinbase has announced a full-scale push into the "Agentic Economy", covering three groups: users who utilize AI agents, enterprises that provide services to AI agents, and developers building products and infrastructure for AI agents. Coinbase says it is constructing a comprehensive financial service system for AI agents: AI agents can conduct research, planning, decision-making, and trading on its "Everything Exchange", covering assets including cryptocurrencies, stocks, derivatives, and more. The company is also launching Coinbase Advisor, an AI investment advisor built into the Coinbase app to assist users in making investment decisions.
On the enterprise front, Coinbase is introducing payment capabilities for AI agents, allowing businesses to accept USDC payments from AI agents via Coinbase Business, with native integration of the x402 standard—no need to build separate payment processes. Coinbase notes that this solution eliminates credit card-style chargeback risks, idle USDC can earn 3.35% rewards, and enterprises can manage funds, reconcile accounts, and withdraw funds all within the same account. Additionally, Coinbase has launched the CDP x402 SDK, enabling developers to integrate AI agent payment capabilities into APIs or MCPs with just approximately 3 lines of code, without requiring deep expertise in x402 technology.
Coinbase adds that as AI agents gain autonomous payment capabilities, they also require a marketplace to discover and purchase services. The x402 is emerging as an open payment standard for machines, enabling agent-to-agent transactions without human intervention; when AI agents need capital, they can turn to Coinbase. The company refers to this entire ecosystem as "AI Finance" (AiFi), stating that the global economy is being restructured around AI agents.
26 minutes ago
Meme token "Niu Lai" on BSC briefly surged past $15 million in market capitalization, with its price rising more than 150 times in 24 hours.
According to GMGN market data, the market capitalization of the Meme coin "Niu Lai" on BNB Chain briefly exceeded $15 million, and is currently trading at $14.2 million, surging more than 150 times in 24 hours. Recently, the summer animated film "Niu Lai" unexpectedly gained widespread attention due to controversies over its visual production. A relative of the director revealed that the film was created entirely by the director and his mother—no production team was hired, and all work was done manually over five years. As of press time, today's box office has reached 852,800 yuan. BlockBeats reminds users that most Meme coins lack practical use cases, feature highly volatile prices, and thus require caution for investment.
26 minutes ago
Analysis: Bitcoin is in the "extreme discount" zone of the Rainbow Chart, with its downward deviation surpassing that of the previous bear market bottom.
CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. noted in a post that Bitcoin is currently trading in the lowest range of the Rainbow Chart model — "basically a fire sale price". This represents an extreme discount relative to the cryptocurrency’s long-term price trajectory, and is not merely a measure of how much Bitcoin has declined. The Rainbow Chart model compares Bitcoin’s current price to its long-term trend, so the gap reflects the market’s deviation from historical patterns. The volatility-adjusted Z-Score now stands at -2.293, the lowest reading since 2016 and lower than the -1.979 recorded at the 2022 bear market bottom. This metric accounts for volatility differences across distinct market cycles, meaning the current downward deviation from the model is more severe than that seen at the last bear market’s trough. Bitcoin is now in an extreme discount zone, with the volatility-adjusted Z-Score hitting a 10-year low. This signals significant undervaluation relative to the model, but it does not alone confirm the final market bottom. Extremely low valuations point to a potentially attractive entry range, though a market reversal would need separate confirmation. Note: The Z-Score is a widely used standardized statistical metric that quantifies how far a data point lies from the mean, measured in units of standard deviation.
26 minutes ago
Google will allow users to remove visible watermarks from its AI-generated content.
Google announced that users can now remove visible watermarks from its AI-generated content, including images, videos, and songs. The company clarified that this change does not impact invisible SynthID watermarks or metadata related to the C2PA standard. Josh Woodward, vice president of Google Gemini, stated in a post that this toggle will apply to the Nano Banana, Omni, and Lyria models. He added that the setting to turn off visible watermarks will be available in Gemini and Google’s Video Editor Flow, with support for Search launching soon. The feature will roll out gradually over the coming days; once live, users can access "Settings > Media Watermarks" to enable or disable visible watermarks. Google has also open-sourced a new library named Credentio, designed to help developers embed local verification mechanisms into their own applications.
26 minutes ago
Stepping into the fray! DeFiLlama reported the fraudulent app for months to no avail, and only after testing it themselves and falling victim to theft did Apple finally take it down from its App Store.
DeFiLlama founder 0xngmi posted on social media that for months, he has been working to get Apple’s App Store to take down a fake app impersonating DeFiLlama, repeatedly reporting trademark infringement and unauthorized impersonation of the official app to Apple. The team then loaded a small amount of funds into a test wallet, downloaded the fake application, and as expected, all funds in the wallet were stolen. The incident was reported to Apple, and the app was removed from the store within days. 0xngmi noted that he hopes other cryptocurrency companies will learn from this to avoid wasting time on similar efforts, as his team did.
26 minutes ago
Iran says it has reached an agreement with Oman on the plan for passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
According to CCTV News, on local time August 15, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Baghaei said that despite US obstruction, talks between Iran and Oman are still advancing actively, and the two sides have reached an agreement on a navigation plan for the Strait of Hormuz.
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.
The Cboe exchange is seeking approval to list the first triple-leveraged Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs in the US. The filing comes on the back of weakening demand for crypto ETFs amid the ongoing price weakness.
The Cboe filing has not driven gains for Bitcoin and Ethereum, with the two trading at $63,000 and $1,879, respectively, at the time of writing.
Cboe Seeks Approval For the First 3X Leveraged BTC and ETH ETFs A filing made with the SEC on August 14 revealed that Cboe is planning to list triple-leveraged ETFs for various assets, including gold and silver. The ETFs will be issued by Volatility Shares.
The exchange is also including Bitcoin and Ethereum in this filing, with that part standing out because these will be the first triple-leveraged crypto ETFs to trade in the US.
Volatility Shares already offers access to 2x Bitcoin and Ethereum Strategy ETFs that the SEC approved in June 2023.
The 2x Bitcoin ETF (BITX) has already amassed $846 million in net assets while the 2x Ether ETF (ETHU) has $723 million in net assets.
Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs Face Weak Demand Data from SoSoValue shows that Bitcoin ETFs recorded outflows of $389 million between August 10 and August 14. Outflows to Ethereum ETFs also reached $2.26 million in outflows during the same period.
Crypto ETF Weekly Flows (Source: SoSoValue) The drop was a stark contrast to the previous week after the coldcard hacking attack fuelled $853 million inflows to BTC ETFs between August 3 and August 7. ETH ETFs also saw inflows of $244 million during the same week.
Still, other altcoin ETFs are recording a surge in inflows, with Solana topping the ranks with $10.26 million inflows in the week starting August 10. XRP and HYPE ETFs also saw $2.25 million and $2.74 million in inflows, respectively.
Bitcoin Price Prediction as Options Data Signals Near Team Fears Are Easing Data from Glassnode shows that Bitcoin’s one-week implied volatility has dropped to 26%.
The on-chain analytics platform also observed that the one-week 25-delta skew has dropped to 5%, suggesting that there are fewer traders hedging against a decline in Bitcoin price.
BTC: 25-Delta Skew (Source: Glassnode) This 25-delta skew also supports a bullish future Bitcoin price outlook because it shows that traders are not expecting an increase in selling pressure
Glassnode also notes that the price of Bitcoin could remain between $60,000 and $70,000 unless there is a breakdown of the support at $60,000 that could increase sell-side pressure.
A recent CoinGape Bitcoin price analysis also observed that BTC is creating a rounded top pattern on the four-hour chart that could push the price to $60,000.
Ethereum Price Prediction as Bull Flag Appears Ethereum has created a bull flag on the one-day chart. This pattern often suggests that a current downtrend is only temporary before the price resumes a previous strong upside move.
The height of this bull flag pattern is 28%. This suggests that Ethereum price could surge by 28% if it closes above the resistance at $1,947.
The MACD line that is positive supports a bullish long-term Ethereum price outlook. However, the MACD line has moved below the signal line to suggest that the bullish momentum is weakening.
ETH Price Chart The RSI reading of 50 also suggests that the momentum remains neutral, and this could force ETH to remain within the parallel channel of the bull flag until the buy-side pressure rises to push it above the resistance at the upper trendline.
Bitcoin hovers near the $63,000 mark as weaker ETF demand and cancelled SEC meeting dampen the crypto market sentiment. The cryptocurrency was trading near the $63,086 mark.
In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin and Ethereum were down 0.7% and 0.3% respectively. Among the major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Solana, Tron, Hyperliquid, Cardano fell upto 1.1%.
The global crypto market capitalisation edged down 0.4% to $2.24 trillion, according to Coingecko.
Crypto Tracker
TOP COINS (₹)
58,350 (0.5%)
179,310 (0.4%)
6,014,312 (0.1%)
96 (0.0%)
96 (0.0%)
Also Read | Quant Mid Cap Fund exits Anthem Biosciences and Lenskart Solutions, adds Cochin Shipyard and 4 others in July
Riya Sehgal Research Analyst Delta Exchange said the crypto markets remain cautious, with Bitcoin hovering near the $63,000 mark as weaker ETF demand and renewed regulatory uncertainty limit risk appetite.
Sehgal further said the cancellation of the SEC’s scheduled crypto-rule meeting removed a potential near-term catalyst, while recent spot Bitcoin ETF outflows indicate that institutional buying momentum has cooled. However, the absence of aggressive downside acceleration is equally important.
In the past week, Bitcoin and Ethereum fell 2.8% and 1.6% respectively. Among the major altcoins, XRP and Cardano were down 2.4% and 9.8% respectively whereas BNB, Solana, Tron, Hyperliquid, Dogecoin rallied upto 2.9%.
Nischal Shetty, Founder, WazirX said Bitcoin remained range-bound near 63K - 65K, with 62.4K-63K providing key support and 64K-65.5K acting as the main resistance zone. Ethereum held around 1,870-1,885, with 1,850-1,870 as support and 1,900-1,925 as immediate resistance.
Shetty further said that institutional demand stayed constructive, with strong ETF inflows, but offsetting selling and subdued momentum kept both BTC and ETH in consolidation.
Also Read | Mutual funds raise IT exposure to 6.6% in July after record low. Is sentiment towards tech improving?
Here is what other analyst sayHarish Vatnani, Head of Trade, ZebPay: Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency market continue to trade with subdued momentum, as BTC remains range-bound between $62,000 and $66,000. Uncertainty surrounding global macroeconomic conditions and geopolitical developments has kept traders cautious, limiting fresh participation and resulting in low market volatility.
Ethereum is trading near the $1,885 mark after recovering from recent lows, but it continues to face strong resistance in the $1,950–2,000 zone. Despite repeated rejection near these levels, buyers remain active on dips, indicating that underlying demand is still intact.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)
Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States are recording notable outflows, with total holdings shrinking by 917 BTC in recent trading sessions. The value of these outflows stands at approximately $57.63 million, representing a significant shift among institutional investors.
Institutional outflows hit Bitcoin ETFsMajor U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, including those operated by investment giants such as BlackRock and Fidelity, led the net decrease in Bitcoin assets over the past two days. The cumulative outflow now exceeds the total Bitcoin mined within the same period, signaling a period of increased selling pressure from large institutional holders.
This trend is viewed by market analysts as a potential indicator of caution among big players, as funds reduce their exposure in the current market environment. The selling activity in these ETFs draws attention to the evolving sentiment in institutional circles.
Bitcoin ETFs experienced 917 BTC in net outflows, equivalent to $57.63 million, with BlackRock and Fidelity among the major managers reducing positions.
Bitcoin’s supply on exchanges continues to decline at the same time, possibly reflecting efforts by investors to hold assets in private wallets. The combined effect of ETF redemptions and wider on-chain outflows has led some to anticipate tighter liquidity conditions ahead.
Chainlink sees notable ETF inflowsWhile Bitcoin ETFs have experienced net selling, the trend has shifted in the case of Chainlink, a decentralized oracle network designed to facilitate secure communication between blockchains and external data sources. In recent trading, ETFs acquired 163,280 LINK, equating to $1.47 million in value. This represents growing institutional interest in the altcoin, with some investors considering Chainlink as a diversification play as Bitcoin faces more volatility.
Analysts have pointed out that inflows into Chainlink ETFs may support the network’s position in the broader crypto market, especially as flows in major coins appear subdued.
Mini dictionary: Chainlink is a decentralized oracle platform that connects smart contracts with external real-world data, enabling blockchain applications to securely access information from outside networks.
AssetETF FlowValueBitcoin-917 BTC$57.63 million (outflow)Chainlink+163,280 LINK$1.47 million (inflow)Market outlook and sentimentAs Bitcoin price remains near $62,980, ongoing ETF outflows and shrinking on-exchange supplies create a unique dynamic that may influence price swings in the short term. Observers have noted that institutional moves are occurring as market sentiment holds in the Fear zone, which may contribute to uncertainty among individual traders.
Many investors are closely watching how continued redemptions from Bitcoin ETFs might affect overall liquidity, while the positive trend in Chainlink flows could indicate shifting preferences among funds seeking exposure to alternative digital assets.
Ongoing ETF outflows and tighter supply could directly impact liquidity and price dynamics, leading to heightened volatility.
Looking ahead, market participants are expected to track changes in ETF activity for both Bitcoin and emerging altcoins, assessing their potential impact on broader price action as institutional sentiment evolves.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
Bank Leumi, the leading financial institution in Israel, will integrate Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana trading into its Leumi Trade application
Retail customers through Leumi and Pepper mobile banking will gain access beginning early 2027
Galaxy Digital’s GalaxyOne Institutional platform will power the trading framework
Digital asset security will be managed by Galaxy’s custody solution, previously branded as GK8
Leumi will become Israel’s pioneering bank to deliver cryptocurrency trading to everyday customers
In a significant development for Israel’s financial sector, Bank Leumi has entered into a collaboration with Galaxy Digital to bring cryptocurrency trading capabilities to its customer base. The rollout is scheduled for the first quarter of 2027.
LATEST: 🇮🇱 Bank Leumi, Israel’s largest bank, is partnering with Galaxy to let customers trade Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana via its Leumi Trade app starting early 2027. pic.twitter.com/PiHu8aFFuZ
— CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) August 15, 2026
Both Leumi’s primary customers and those using Pepper, its mobile-first banking subsidiary, will gain the ability to purchase, store, and liquidate Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. These transactions will occur within a specialized segment of the Leumi Trade mobile application.
The underlying trading technology will be provided by Galaxy Digital’s GalaxyOne Institutional solution. Meanwhile, the safeguarding of digital assets will rely on Galaxy’s custody platform, which operated under the GK8 brand before rebranding.
According to Leumi, the institution provides financial services to millions of clients spanning both consumer and commercial banking sectors. The bank emphasizes that this initiative positions it as the inaugural Israeli banking institution to provide direct digital asset trading capabilities to its clientele.
Rationale Behind the Asset Selection
The selection of these particular digital assets mirrors prevailing institutional appetite. Bitcoin and Ethereum represent the cryptocurrency market’s two dominant assets by total valuation. Solana has experienced increasing adoption among institutional investors.
Galaxy has already established operational infrastructure supporting Solana. The firm operates as a validation provider for investment products connected to the Solana ecosystem.
GalaxyOne Institutional consolidates trading execution, asset custody, staking services, financing solutions, and market analysis into a unified platform. This architecture aims to deliver cryptocurrency exposure to banking clients while maintaining institutional-grade security protocols.
Galaxy’s Strategic Expansion in Traditional Finance
The agreement with Leumi represents part of Galaxy Digital’s comprehensive approach to building relationships with established financial institutions. The company has been actively developing its institutional banking network across various regions.
Galaxy recently broadened its collaboration with BNY to incorporate institutional staking capabilities into BNY’s digital asset infrastructure. This enhancement enables clients to manage custody and staking operations through a unified system.
During July, Galaxy finalized a naming rights agreement with Texas Tech University, establishing itself as the official digital assets and data center partner for the school’s athletics program.
Galaxy Digital commenced public trading on the Nasdaq exchange in May 2025 using the GLXY ticker symbol. The stock closed Friday at $21.38, reflecting a 2% intraday gain while showing approximately 25% decline year-over-year.
The firm reported an $85 million net deficit during the second quarter, attributing the loss to diminished cryptocurrency valuations. Nevertheless, its digital asset operations generated $66 million in adjusted gross earnings, representing a 34% sequential increase.
Mike Novogratz established Galaxy and continues to serve as its chief executive. The organization has maintained its institutional expansion trajectory despite experiencing share price contraction.
The Leumi collaboration expands Galaxy’s portfolio of institutional banking partnerships. Implementation remains on schedule for early 2027, subject to completion of trading and custody system integration.
Edelman Financial Engines has disclosed a $34 million stake in spot Bitcoin ETFs, marking a significant allocation within its investment portfolio. This holding surpasses the firm’s $25 million position in Amazon, despite representing a relatively modest portion of its total assets under management.
Major ETF Holdings Reflect Institutional ShiftsThe company’s Bitcoin investment is spread across BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust and Grayscale’s flagship Bitcoin product. This strategy aligns with the long-standing public stance of founder Ric Edelman, who has promoted digital assets for several years.
Edelman has advocated for the adoption of Bitcoin ETFs since 2019, well ahead of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024. He is also the founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals, which educates advisors on crypto and blockchain technology.
Edelman Financial’s position in spot Bitcoin ETFs now exceeds its Amazon holding, reflecting a notable rebalancing toward digital assets within its broader portfolio.
The $34 million investment strengthens Edelman Financial’s exposure to cryptocurrencies and signals growing institutional acceptance of Bitcoin-related products in traditional finance.
Tudor Investment Increases Bitcoin ExposureTudor Investment Corporation, led by veteran macro trader Paul Tudor Jones, also reported a sizable Bitcoin ETF position. According to regulatory filings released this week, the firm holds 688,529 shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, valued at $22.9 million as of June 30.
This represents an increase from the previous quarter, when the fund reported owning 579,083 shares. Jones, who is recognized for his expertise in navigating inflation cycles, has steadily expanded his Bitcoin exposure in recent quarters.
Paul Tudor Jones’ investment corporation owns $22.9 million worth of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, up from the prior quarter, indicating continued institutional appetite for digital assets.
Both Edelman Financial Engines and Tudor Investment Corporation manage considerable assets, with Edelman overseeing approximately $326 billion and Tudor Investment managing about $106 billion. Their growing Bitcoin ETF positions have drawn attention within the financial sector, suggesting more firms are integrating digital assets into their core strategies.
Broader Market Trends and Web3 IntegrationThe increasing allocation of institutional portfolios to Bitcoin ETFs comes as more traditional investors explore blockchain-based assets. As the industry evolves, market watchers note a broader transformation as Wall Street migrates to Web3 platforms. Investors now access tokenized versions of major stocks, commodities like gold and silver, and other real-world assets through tools such as 1stepSwap, which delivers these assets directly to crypto wallets. By automating price discovery and removing intermediaries, these solutions facilitate seamless entry for traditional capital into digital markets.
The latest filings from Edelman Financial Engines and Tudor Investment Corporation point to accelerating adoption among U.S. asset managers, driven both by market innovation and increasing client interest in cryptocurrencies.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
Global oil giants Norway (the 12th-largest global oil producer) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE; the 9th-largest global oil producer) are increasingly exposing their sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) to Bitcoin (BTC).
Norway state-owned fund invests in BitcoinA recent disclosure shows that Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global, also known as the “Oil Fund,” increased its Bitcoin exposure by 21.2% in H1 2026, and by 60.5% in the past year.
Managed by Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the fund is the largest of its kind in the world, with $2.3 trillion in total assets.
The latest report brings Norway’s total holdings to an all-time high of 11,549 BTC (worth about $725 million at press time). Leading Bitcoin treasury Strategy dominates the fund’s indirect Bitcoin exposure at 81%, or $1.18 billion worth of MSTR stock. The rest of the BTC-related stake is held in firms such as Coinbase and MARA Holdings.
UAE invests sovereign funds in BlackRock’s IBITMeanwhile, sovereign funds in the UAE’s Abu Dhabi hold a combined $764 million in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF (IBIT).
According to recent SEC 13F filings, Mubadala Investment Company and Al Warda Investments own 14.7 million ($565.6 million) and 8.2 million shares, respectively. For Mubadala, the latest figures represent a 16% increase from the 12.7 million shares held at the end of 2025.
Even more, the funds’ Bitcoin exposure has been increasing in the past five consecutive quarters since Q4 2024, showing long-term commitment rather than a chase of short-term gains.
The indirect Bitcoin bets trendThe above investments point to an increasing trend among institutions and traditional investment vehicles to place indirect bets on Bitcoin. Investing in Bitcoin holdings companies eliminates the compliance, custody, and operational difficulties associated with direct BTC holdings.
As a result, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF has experienced record-breaking growth in the past year, making it the world’s most dominant investment vehicle of its kind. The firm now boasts over 1,560 institutional clients with inflows surging to $61.17 billion.
Source: CoinGlass
In contrast, MSTR has plummeted 72.6% in the past year due to Bitcoin-associated volatility.
Source: MarketWatch
Nonetheless, recent regulatory filings show that 13 of the top 15 institutional shareholders actively boosted their positions by a combined total of $4.6 billion.
Story Ends Here
Trust with CoinPedia:CoinPedia has been delivering accurate and timely cryptocurrency and blockchain updates since 2017. All content is created by our expert panel of analysts and journalists, following strict Editorial Guidelines based on E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness). Every article is fact-checked against reputable sources to ensure accuracy, transparency, and reliability. Our review policy guarantees unbiased evaluations when recommending exchanges, platforms, or tools. We strive to provide timely updates about everything crypto & blockchain, right from startups to industry majors.
Investment Disclaimer:All opinions and insights shared represent the author's own views on current market conditions. Please do your own research before making investment decisions. Neither the writer nor the publication assumes responsibility for your financial choices.
Sponsored and Advertisements:Sponsored content and affiliate links may appear on our site. Advertisements are marked clearly, and our editorial content remains entirely independent from our ad partners.
Crypto is trading broadly lower in a quiet weekend session on August 15, 2026, extending a pullback that has been building since this week’s inflation report. Bitcoin sits at $62,812.32, down 0.92% over the past 24 hours and 3.34% over the past week, with the broader market drifting toward the lower end of the range that has boxed BTC in since early August.
Why the Post-CPI Rally Never Showed Up July’s CPI report, released Wednesday, came in exactly at expectations: consumer prices rose 0.1% month-over-month and 3.4% year-over-year, with core inflation up 0.2% monthly and 2.5% annually. In a typical cycle, an in-line, cooling inflation print like that would support a relief rally. It didn’t.
Institutional flows failed to provide any follow-through after the release. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a meaningful outflow session in the days immediately after CPI, a sharp reversal from the roughly $854 million inflow week that opened August. Strategy also added to sell-side pressure with further BTC disposals during the same window. Some analysts now argue the old mechanical relationship between cooling inflation data and ETF buying has weakened: flows increasingly follow price momentum rather than macro releases, meaning a good CPI print no longer guarantees fresh institutional demand the way it once did.
Today’s Price Action Bitcoin (BTC): $62,812.32, down 0.92% on the day and 3.34% over the week, still capped below the breakeven zone where many recent buyers would be looking to exit near cost. Ethereum (ETH): $1,877.57, down 0.47% and 1.89% over the same periods, holding up marginally better than Bitcoin on a weekly basis. XRP: $0.9976, down 0.99% on the day and 2.54% on the week, slipping just under the $1.00 level it had been defending earlier this week. Zcash (ZEC): $490.16, up 0.93% over 24 hours but down 4.19% over the week, giving back a further chunk of its August rally. Cardano (ADA): the week’s clear laggard among large caps, down more than 11% over seven days. Chainlink (LINK): the standout outperformer, up roughly 9% on the week even as most majors slid. What This Means for the Days Ahead With Bitcoin still range-bound and ETF demand cooling rather than accelerating, the market looks stuck between exhausted sellers below and hesitant buyers above. A decisive break in either direction likely needs a fresh catalyst, whether that’s a return of sustained ETF inflows or a clearer signal from the regulatory side, where momentum has also stalled this week.
AUTHOR
Max delves deep into the cryptocurrency realm, with a passion for altcoins and NFTs. Convinced of crypto's transformative potential, he envisions a decentralized financial future. Max's background in the financial sector grants him unique insights into global monetary systems. In his leisure, Max embraces the thrill of adventures and is an avid sports enthusiast, finding balance and rejuvenation away from work.
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.
Bitcoin (BTC) remains under selling pressure, with a recent failure to reclaim resistance levels reinforcing concerns over the broader market trend. As of the latest data, BTC is priced at $63,342.39, with a 24-hour trading volume of $19.4 billion and a total market capitalization of $1.27 trillion. While the price showed stability in the short term, technical signals and notable whale activity suggest ongoing downside risks.
Key resistance and whale selling activityCrypto analyst Crypto Patel has indicated that BTC maintains a bearish structure on higher timeframe charts following rejection at the $82,800 resistance zone and a confirmed break in the prevailing price pattern. The failed attempt to recover this level signals that recent gains may be corrective, rather than indicative of a genuine trend reversal.
The region between $71,000 and $74,500 is now seen as a critical retest zone, where a combination of bearish order blocks and a fair value gap could draw further selling if the price attempts a recovery. A sustained break above $82,800 would be needed to reverse the bearish outlook, but until then, technical analysts remain cautious about the potential for further declines.
Meanwhile, blockchain records tracked by Lookonchain have highlighted ongoing large-scale selling from whales via market maker Wintermute. Around eight hours ago, a whale associated with the Paxos network transferred 800 BTC, valued at roughly $50.72 million, through Wintermute. This move follows the recent offloading of 2,500 BTC, worth an estimated $154 million, from whales over the past two months.
BTC’s rejection at $82,800 and recent 800 BTC sale via Wintermute, totaling $50.72 million, have reinforced the bearish market structure and elevated the risk of a deeper correction if support levels give way.
Traders are monitoring whether ongoing whale selling patterns will continue or shift toward accumulation. If significant holders resume selling, short-term sentiment could weaken further.
Critical levels and market outlookAccording to Patel, the $71,000 to $74,500 zone serves as an important gauge for both upward recovery and further downside. If this range is rejected and BTC closes below $59,800, analysts suggest a drop toward $50,000 could follow. Conversely, consolidation at these levels may help relieve some bearish pressure and stabilize the market in the near term.
Traders are especially focused on monitoring whether whales continue their distribution via Wintermute, as further large transactions could accelerate any downward moves. The number and timing of these trades remain crucial to understanding potential market direction.
Navigating this environment has become increasingly complex for individual investors. In a market where a single Fed decision or a sudden altcoin listing can change everything in seconds, jumping between different apps for charts, news, and portfolio tracking is costing investors money. Smart traders are now utilizing privacy-first tools like CryptoAppsy to consolidate everything. Without even the hassle of creating an account, you get real-time charts, smart price alerts, coin-specific news, and critical macro data all on one screen.
The future direction of Bitcoin will largely depend on the outcome of the $71,000-$74,500 retest. Should this level hold, the market may stabilize, but a rejection and break below $59,800 could open the way for a deeper correction potentially targeting the $50,000 level.
While Bitcoin has managed to maintain some near-term stability, both technical resistance and ongoing whale activity continue to present significant challenges for any sustained recovery. Traders are advised to watch key resistance and support zones, given the rapidly shifting landscape and persistent volatility within the crypto market.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, Jump Crypto has continued transferring Bitcoin (BTC) to Binance this week, with total deposits reaching around 1,560 BTC valued at approximately $99.2 million, suspected to be for a sale operation. The latest data shows Jump Crypto transferred an additional 286.83 BTC to Binance just two hours ago, worth roughly $18.01 million. As of now, Jump Crypto’s wallet still holds around 1,410 BTC valued at about $88.58 million. The market will continue to track its subsequent transfers and changes in holdings.
Relevant content
ABFinance officially announced it will shut down in approximately five months and is currently initiating an orderly liquidation.
Crypto finance platform ABFinance, founded by former Bybit co-CEO Helen Liu, announced it will not proceed with its planned launch and is now in the process of orderly shutdown. ABFinance stated on social media that it thanks all team members, community users, and partners involved in its development, adding: "Thank you for your trust, support, and belief along the way." In March this year, after leaving Bybit, Helen Liu announced the launch of her startup ABFinance, which aimed to build a one-stop financial platform connecting fiat and crypto assets, integrating functions such as deposits, yields, trading, and payments, and emphasized that it would be built under the U.S. compliance license framework from day one. According to prior reports, Bybit announced that Helen Liu would step down on April 30, 2026, to embark on her personal entrepreneurial journey. However, just about five months after ABFinance unveiled its project plan, the platform announced it would halt its launch and enter the shutdown process. The specific reason for the shutdown has not been disclosed by officials so far.
17 minutes ago
Morgan Stanley’s holdings of Circle surged nearly sixfold, but the firm cut its rating on the crypto firm to "Underweight" and lowered its target price to $38.
Morgan Stanley downgraded Circle (CRCL) stock rating from "Hold" to "Underweight" on August 3, slashing its price target from $106 to $38. Analysts attributed the rating cut primarily to the contraction in USDC circulation, which exposed Circle’s high sensitivity to reserve-related revenue. Meanwhile, the company’s business structure is shifting toward a transaction-based revenue model with lower profit margins. The report also cut Circle’s USDC size forecasts for 2027 and 2028 by approximately 33% and 44% respectively, and projected the company’s GAAP earnings per share (EPS) to be about 3% and 20% lower than market consensus. However, Morgan Stanley’s latest filed 13F document shows that as of June 30, its holdings of Circle shares surged from around 1.46 million to 8.32 million, marking a clear position increase in the second quarter. This means that while Morgan Stanley publicly downgraded Circle’s rating and price target in early August, signaling a cautious outlook, its disclosed holdings as of the end of Q2 showed a significant position increase. It should be noted that 13F filings reflect holdings as of June 30, and cannot reflect whether positions were adjusted before or after the August rating cut. The market’s focus centers on the stark contrast between the institutional research view and the historical holdings disclosure.
17 minutes ago
Binance Research: Gen Z Prefers ETFs, With Lower Trading Frequency and Leverage Usage Than Other Age Groups
Binance Research data shows that Gen Z investors are gradually shifting to long-term asset allocation tools like ETFs, with lower trading frequency and weaker leverage preference compared to Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers. In early August, ETFs accounted for 25% of Gen Z's stock trading volume. In July, ETFs made up 21.9% of Gen Z's net inflows into stocks, up from 18.5% in June; over the same period, the share of individual stock investments dropped from 77% to 74.2%. Binance Research analyzed trading activities including direct stocks, tokenized stocks, and traditional financial perpetual contracts. The data shows Gen Z's trading activity across these three asset classes is lower than that of other working-age groups. Specifically, Gen Z's traditional financial perpetual contract accounts average 13 trades per month, lower than Millennials' 17 and Gen X's 16.5. Among direct stock accounts, 22% of Gen Z users have never sold any stocks, higher than Gen X's 19% and Baby Boomers' 9%. For Gen Z accounts where stocks were purchased but never sold, the top assets by cumulative purchase amount include Broadcom, Tesla, and the Charles Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF. In terms of leveraged products, Gen Z exhibits a lower risk appetite. Data shows 88.2% of Gen Z's traditional financial perpetual contract accounts have never traded leveraged or inverse ETFs, higher than Millennials' 84.5% and Gen X's 85.9%. Additionally, the tokenized stock market continues to expand. Data shows Binance's bStocks recently briefly surpassed Kraken's xStocks to become the world's second-largest tokenized stock issuance platform. As of the latest data, Ondo Finance ranks first with approximately $972 million in tokenized stock value, while xStocks and bStocks stand at around $611 million and $580 million respectively.
17 minutes ago
Serenity responds to "going to zero" rumors by sharing a screenshot, with its year-to-date return standing at 2411.84%.
Serenity released a statement accompanied by photos to address recent market rumors that his trading account has "gone to zero", calling the claims "too exaggerated". He added that despite the sharp correction in the AI sector in July, his year-to-date (YTD) return still stands at 2411.84%. Earlier, Serenity had publicly stated that the slump in AI-related stocks in July led to a roughly 49.4% drawdown in his portfolio at one time, with his positions mainly concentrated in key segments of AI infrastructure—including high-volatility sectors such as storage, optical communications, robotics, and upstream semiconductors. Serenity has long focused on "bottleneck segments" within the AI industrial chain, has conducted multiple researches on memory, photonics, CPO, and semiconductor supply chains, and has drawn market attention for his bets on AI infrastructure-related assets.
17 minutes ago
Talks between Stripe and Advent to acquire PayPal are heating up, with the potential deal valued at up to $53 billion.
Payment giant PayPal’s acquisition talks with Stripe and private equity firm Advent Global Opportunities are heating up, with a potential deal to be finalized in the coming weeks. Back in July, Stripe and Advent proposed acquiring PayPal at $60.50 per share, valuing the deal at roughly $53 billion, but PayPal rejected the offer at the time. However, sources familiar with the matter revealed that negotiations have not broken off and are still ongoing. Neither PayPal nor Stripe has confirmed the reports. PayPal declined to comment, while Stripe said it does not respond to market rumors or speculation. The potential sale comes as PayPal seeks to reverse its growth struggles. Since PayPal CEO Enrique Lores took office in March this year, he has rolled out a restructuring plan splitting the business into three segments: checkout and PayPal core services, consumer financial services (including Venmo), and payment services and crypto operations. Lores has stated that PayPal will return to its identity as a technology company and strengthen its core payment capabilities. Meanwhile, the company plans to boost efficiency through cost cuts, with an estimated 20% workforce reduction over the next two to three years. Founded in 1998, PayPal’s founding team includes Silicon Valley figures such as Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and Max Levchin. The company grew rapidly during the pandemic due to the e-commerce boom, but has faced challenges including slowing growth and downward pressure on its stock price in recent years. If the deal is completed, it will be one of the largest acquisitions in the fintech industry in recent years.
17 minutes ago
Duan Yongping has bet on SpaceX for about 20 days, with paper gains exceeding $5.4 million.
According to public information from Xueqiu platform, Duan Yongping recently participated in SpaceX (SPCX) via two transactions: options and common stock. On July 24, he sold 1,000 SPCX put options expiring on December 18, 2026, with a strike price of $115, at a transaction price of approximately $23.26, corresponding to a premium of about $2.326 million. Then, on August 5, Duan Yongping bought 100,000 SPCX shares at a cost of roughly $108.68 per share. Based on SpaceX’s latest closing price of $140, this long stock position has an unrealized gain of around $3.132 million. Combined, Duan Yongping’s round of SpaceX trades has generated an unrealized profit of approximately $5.458 million in about 20 days. However, it should be noted that although the premium from selling the put option has been credited, the option has not yet expired. If SPCX subsequently falls below $115 and is exercised, he will still be obligated to take delivery of the shares at the strike price. SPCX has been highly volatile recently: after its June listing, the stock once surged to above $200, then dropped back to around $105. In August, as the impact of the first batch of restricted stock unlocks was weaker than expected and market risk appetite recovered, the stock price rebounded to the $140 level. As a result, Duan Yongping’s current trade has evolved from "selling puts to collect premiums" to a staged high-probability trade.
Global financial index provider MSCI has renewed its push to exclude Bitcoin treasury firms from its listings. According to its latest proposal, MSCI is consulting to delete any “non-operating company” regardless of the asset the firm handles.
The new broader framework has flagged Strategy (MSTR) and Metaplanet, some of the leading Bitcoin treasury firms worldwide.
If the framework is implemented as drafted, both Strategy and Metaplanet would be deleted from the MSCI Index. Notably, Ethereum treasury firm Sharplink would also be on the “watchlist” and likely end up being deleted too.
Source: MSCI
The proposal is not any different from the earlier guidelines floated in late 2025 that triggered massive panic around MSTR.
In the previous proposal, only non-operating firms handling crypto assets were under target. So if a firm only buys and holds crypto assets but does not use them to run commercial services for revenue, then it would be a “non-operating firm” ripe for deletion.
For the latest rule, the coverage has been expanded beyond just crypto assets. For example, Yellow Cake, which is also marked for deletion, buys and holds uranium.
Will MSCI trigger another MSTR sell-off?
Following the uproar and strong lobbying against MSCI’s initial proposal in late 2025, the firm shelved the plan. However, it reiterated that crypto treasury firms will only be left on its index for the “time being.”
Most of the criticism against MSCI at that time was bias against the crypto sector. Some firms in different segments also fell within its so-called “non-operating company” category.
Perhaps, the newly proposed broader framework now seeks to be “fair” to avoid similar backlash. The firm has clarified that consultation on the new rule “may or may not lead to implementation of part or all of its proposals.”
Firms with zero cash flows, less than 20% of operating assets, and limited expenses will automatically trigger screening for possible deletion from the MSCI index.
With the previous proposal, JPMorgan analysts estimated that MSTR could see $2.8B in immediate direct outflows if MSCI axes it out. Over $8-12B in outflows would be feasible if other indices followed MSCI steps.
At that time, MSTR stock faced heavy selling pressure amid market fears, which spilled over to Bitcoin.
Whether a similar scenario will repeat for the second proposal remains unclear. However, MSCI plans to collect feedback by September and announce consultation results by mid-October. The final implementation of the rule could happen by November.
For his part, analyst Adam Livingston said,
Strategy vs. MSCI -$MSTR under attack! MSCI is considering a rule that could remove Strategy from major global indexes!
Following the update, MSTR dropped by 2% during pre-market hours on Friday, 14th August.
Source: Google Finance
Final Summary
MSCI plans to remove Strategy and Metaplanet from its index by November.
MSTR dumped by 2% to $95 following the renewed exclusion threat.
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.
CRekt Fencer's opinion aligns almost perfectly with other analysts' takes on the matter.
Ever since bitcoin started to lose value rapidly and consistently in Q4 last year, the main question within the cryptocurrency community is how low it can go. The next one was: when and where it will bottom out.
Analysts began speculating after each leg down. At first, it was $60,000 when BTC dipped to that level in February. Months later, though, it crashed to $59,000, $58,000, and even slightly below that on July 1. As such, the bottom figures have slightly changed. Now, popular analyst Rekt Fencer brought some historical figures to outline the exact date.
October 2026: Here We Go In an August 13 tweet, the market commentator outlined that there are 53 days left (now 51 since two days have already passed) until this market slumber and sluggishness end. They based this prediction on previous BTC cycles, as bull markets lasted approximately 1,064 days, while the subsequent bear phases required roughly 364 days to find their ultimate bottom. The pattern sounds simple, but it has been surprisingly consistent.
Bitcoin’s bull cycle from the 2015 bottom to its 2017 peak lasted exactly 1,064 days. The painful bear market needed another 364 days before the cryptocurrency finally bottomed in December 2018.
History almost perfectly repeated itself from that 2018 bottom to the November 2021 peak. Guess what: another 364-day decline followed that culminated in the 2022 bear-market low.
It gets better. BTC’s latest bull cycle ran from late 2022 until October 2025. Yes, another approximately 1,064 days. If the second half of this pattern repeats as accurately as the first, Rekt Fencer believes the next bottom will arrive on October 5, 2026.
BITCOIN HAS 53 DAYS LEFT.$BTC macro cycles are almost too perfect:
2015 ➜ 2017 bull: 1064 days
2017 ➜ 2018 bear: 364 days
2018 ➜ 2021 bull: 1064 days
2021 ➜ 2022 bear: 364 days
You may also like: Solana Overtakes Bitcoin and Ether in GSR’s Latest Crypto Portfolio Shake-Up Bitcoin Rebound Faces Risk as Futures Demand Outpaces Spot Buying: Analysts ETFs Are Buying, But Who Is Selling? Inside Bitcoin’s Tug-of-War October in Focus The screenshot reshared by Rekt Fencer has been a popular one in the crypto community. The reason for this is its surprising accuracy. The previous two major BTC bear markets required approximately 363 and 376 days, respectively, to move from their cycle peaks to eventual capitulation lows.
Applying that range to Bitcoin’s October 2025 ATH produces a potential bottoming window between roughly October 4 and 17 this year. Ali Martinez recently outlined almost the same possibility, but his dates ranged between October 6 and 16.
There’s an obvious problem with relying too heavily on particular calendar patterns. BTC’s previous cycles developed under entirely different macroeconomic environments. Today’s market includes spot ETFs, enormous institutional holders, corporate treasuries, a different regulatory landscape, and far greater integration with TradFi.
Interest rates, liquidity, ETF flows, geopolitical developments, and Fed policy could easily break even the most accurate pattern. As such, October 5 (or 6-16) shouldn’t be treated as some predetermined date on which BTC is guaranteed to print its lowest candle before it explodes to new peaks within days, weeks, or even months.
But then again, it’s always good to have a North Star, and October 2026 has quickly become the month every crypto investor has circled on the calendar.
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.
Donald Trump opens the door to a new form of response against foreign criminal networks. In a memo signed on August 12, 2026, the American president authorizes certain licensed private companies to participate in cyber operations under federal supervision. Crypto scam networks are among the targets, but the precise rules of these interventions are still to be written.
In brief
The program will be supervised by a coordination center and two leaders from Justice and Homeland Security.
The FBI recorded 181,565 complaints involving cryptos in 2025, with 11.366 billion dollars of declared losses.
Washington has 60 days to set the operational rules of the program. A first report is expected within 180 days.
Washington wants to go beyond freezing funds
American authorities already have several tools to pursue crypto scam networks. They can seize domains, block assets, or trace laundering circuits. The freezing of over 700 million dollars linked to a Chinese network is a recent illustration.
The memo signed by Donald Trump goes further. It now allows selected American companies chosen by the State to take part in certain operations conducted directly against the infrastructures used by these criminal networks. So it is no longer just about following the money or seizing funds afterward.
In its August 12 text, the White House entrusts the National Coordination Center (NCC) with implementing the program aimed at “Participating Companies.”
To enter, a company must sign a contract with the Department of Justice or the Department of Homeland Security, go through a vetting process, and obtain written authorization before each mission. Two executive directors will oversee the system, one designated by Justice and the other by Homeland Security.
Participating companies are American private firms admitted to the program and authorized to carry out cyber operations under the direction of the United States government.
At first reading, the term “hack” thus simplifies the scope of the text. Cyber-surveillance aims at clandestine information gathering and may involve unauthorized access to a system.
Cyber effects operations can manipulate, disrupt, degrade or destroy systems or the data they contain. Operations likely to cause death or serious injury, or involving the use of force under international law, are beyond the delegated approval authority of the program directors.
Crypto losses show the scale of the problem
Why does Washington want to expand its arsenal? FBI figures provide part of the answer.
In 2025, the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) recorded 181,565 complaints involving cryptocurrencies. That is 21% more than the previous year. Declared losses reached 11.366 billion dollars, a 22% annual increase.
These data obviously do not represent all victims. They only correspond to cases reported to the FBI. Actual damage may therefore be greater.
The crypto scam report in the United States already showed the extent of the phenomenon. However, the FBI’s 2025 IC3 report gives an important clarification: not all crypto-related complaints necessarily involve investment fraud.
This category alone represents 61,559 complaints and 7.228 billion dollars in losses. Over one year, reports increased by 48%, while losses grew by 25%.
Behind these figures are sometimes organizations much more structured than a simple fake investment site.
This distinction changes the reading of the memo. The targeted networks are not just sites that collect deposits: “pig butchering” schemes, which gain a victim’s trust before pushing them to a fictitious platform, combine social engineering, cross-border laundering, and in some cases, exploit workers in clandestine complexes.
Intervention in the infrastructures could accelerate the identification or disruption of networks, but nothing in the memo yet proves it will reduce losses or automatically return stolen funds.
It remains to be seen who will be responsible for errors
The memo does not yet specify the mode of operation. Within 60 days, Justice, Homeland Security, and the Homeland Security Council must establish targeting, coordination, and cessation rules for an operation mistakenly affecting a person or an American system. A report is planned within 180 days, with an annual evaluation.
The FBI file on the Tai Chang network helps to understand what is changing. In this case, the Strike Force claims to have blocked over 700 million dollars in cryptos linked to laundering proceeds from fraud. Until now, this type of action mostly relied on investigation, domain seizures, and asset confiscation.
With the new program, Washington wants to be able to intervene earlier, notably through covert surveillance and technical disruption of infrastructures.
The government may require participating companies to post a bond or escrow deposit of at least 1 million dollars to cover certain cases of non-compliance. However, the public version of the memo does not yet clearly detail the role an independent authority would have in case of error or collateral damage.
The problem is therefore not that private companies can act without any rules. They will remain under the authority of the government.
The real question is rather responsibility: who will be accountable for an operation that exceeds its target or causes harm to a third party?
The procedures expected in the next 60 days should provide a first answer. They will especially reveal how far Washington intends to delegate its cyber capabilities to the private sector.
For crypto users, however, the result will be measured elsewhere. Faced with impersonation scams that continue to target crypto communities, the program’s effectiveness will depend less on the number of infiltrated networks than on its ability to prevent new victims and, when possible, recover stolen funds.
Maximize your Cointribune experience with our "Read to Earn" program! For every article you read, earn points and access exclusive rewards. Sign up now and start earning benefits.
Join the program
A
A
Lien copié
Fenelon L.
Passionné par le Bitcoin, j'aime explorer les méandres de la blockchain et des cryptos et je partage mes découvertes avec la communauté. Mon rêve est de vivre dans un monde où la vie privée et la liberté financière sont garanties pour tous, et je crois fermement que Bitcoin est l'outil qui peut rendre cela possible.
DISCLAIMER
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.
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.
Bitcoin faces a critical $63K support test after sellers pushed price below the $64K level.
Reclaiming $64K could improve Bitcoin’s short-term structure, while $61K remains the next support.
ETF outflows and steady interest rates continue to limit fresh momentum around Bitcoin price action.
Bitcoin needs a move above $67K with stronger volume before the bullish scenario gains traction.
Bitcoin price has fallen back toward $63,000 after losing the $64,000 support level. The move follows a rejection near $65,000, leaving short-term momentum under pressure.
Bitcoin now faces a key test between $63,000 support and $64,000 resistance. The next move could depend on whether buyers reclaim resistance or sellers force another decline.
Bitcoin Price Holds $63K as $64K Resistance Caps Recovery
Bitcoin traded around $62,975.85, according to the latest CoinGecko data. The crypto declined 0.20% over 24 hours and 3.01% over seven days. Its 24-hour trading volume stood at roughly $19.15 billion.
Bitcoin price on CoinGecko
Analyst That Martini Guy identified $63,000 as the immediate support level for Bitcoin.
The trader said Bitcoin needs to recover $64,000 before its short-term structure improves. A break below $63,000 could expose the $61,000 area as the next major support.
The current setup follows Bitcoin’s rejection around $65,000. That level has repeatedly limited upside attempts during the recent trading period.
Meanwhile, funding conditions remain healthy, while leverage has cooled, according to MartiniGuyYT.
Bitcoin is sitting at a very important level.
After getting rejected from the $65K area, Bitcoin lost the $64K support zone and is now testing the $63K region.
The levels I’m watching:
$64K – needs to be reclaimed
$63K – key support
$61K – next major support if this breaks… pic.twitter.com/KaWDCC4ItP
— That Martini Guy ₿ (@MartiniGuyYT) August 15, 2026
Bitcoin therefore remains caught between nearby technical levels. Holding $63,000 could keep the current range intact and allow another test higher. However, losing that level would put $61,000 back into focus.
Bitcoin Market Faces ETF Flow and Macro Pressure
Another market expert, Tanaka_L2, presented three possible Bitcoin scenarios for the remainder of August. The sideways scenario carries a 50% probability in the trader’s framework. It places Bitcoin within a broader $58,000 to $67,000 range.
Tanaka pointed to weaker ETF flows as one factor limiting near-term momentum.
Bitcoin ETFs recorded approximately $61 million and $131 million in outflows on August 12 and 13. August 14 remained broadly flat, according to the data shared by the analyst.
How I’m looking at $BTC rn: 3 possible scenarios 👇$BTC is currently trading around $63K, and I’m looking at 3 main scenarios for the rest of Aug.
[1] Sideways: 50%
This is still my base case. I expect BTC to keep ranging between $58K–$67K, with most of the action around… pic.twitter.com/Z7jiAIP724
— Tanaka (@Tanaka_L2) August 15, 2026
The Federal Reserve continues to hold rates between 3.5% and 3.75%. July consumer inflation eased to 3.4% year over year, but Bitcoin lacks a clear macro catalyst.
Tanaka expects this backdrop could keep BTC trading sideways while leverage continues clearing.
A bearish break below $58,000 to $60,000 could shift attention toward $52,000 to $55,000.
The bullish case requires Bitcoin to reclaim $65,000 and clear $67,000 to $68,000 with stronger volume. Tanaka’s longer-term ranges include $55,000 to $75,000 for the base case and $80,000 to $100,000-plus for the bull case.
The XRP token, which serves as the flagship asset of the Ripple ecosystem, is currently facing persistent downward pressure against the U.S. dollar. The price is now hovering near the psychological threshold of $1, highlighting ongoing investor caution amid challenging market dynamics.
USD slump triggers concernsXRP experienced a significant surge in a previous cycle, reaching a high above $3.20. However, since then, its price trend has shifted into a prolonged decline. By August 2026, XRP had approached the $1.00 mark, raising concerns among traders about the durability of this support level.
The Bollinger Bands indicator, monitored on both weekly and monthly timeframes, shows XRP’s price lingering near the lower edge of its trading range. This suggests mounting bearish momentum in the USD pair.
If the $1.00 support fails, analysts expect the technical corridor to direct the price toward a broader support zone between $0.65 and $0.85. This potential shift may pressure short-term holders and increase volatility in the near term.
XRP MilestoneHistorical HighCurrent Level (Aug 2026)Key Support RangeUSD Value$3.20+~$1.00$0.65 – $0.85XRP/BTC indicators suggest reversalIn contrast to its performance against the dollar, XRP’s price action versus Bitcoin is generating different signals. On the XRP/BTC chart, recent data indicates that sellers may be exhausted, with the pair now testing a historical multi-year low of 0.00001480 BTC.
This level has consistently acted as a solid floor during previous contractions, with large holders preventing XRP from breaking down further against Bitcoin, even through significant market downturns.
Technical factors are further supporting this view. The daily chart for XRP/BTC shows a bullish divergence on the Relative Strength Index (RSI), implying growing buying interest. Volume profiles also highlight the existence of a “vacuum” above current prices, meaning there are limited sell orders to halt upward movement.
Mini dictionary: Bollinger Bands – A popular technical analysis tool consisting of a moving average and two price channels (bands) above and below it, used to measure market volatility and potential price reversals.
The nearest short-term technical target for a rebound in XRP/BTC is a recovery to typical average levels, which could deliver a gain of approximately 28% against Bitcoin.
Outlook for investorsAs of August 2026, market participants are monitoring Ripple’s next move as macroeconomic headwinds continue to impact the token’s dollar value. Despite the risks associated with buying XRP in USD, analysts suggest it may present an opportunity for Bitcoin holders seeking to reallocate their assets during a period of relative stagnation.
Ripple is recognized as a technology company focused on developing global payment solutions utilizing blockchain and the XRP token. XRP’s current positioning near historical lows against Bitcoin could make it an attractive short-term alternative in volatile market conditions.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
According to Farside's monitoring, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a net outflow of $56.2 million yesterday, marking the third consecutive day of net outflows. U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded no net inflows or outflows yesterday.
Relevant content
ABFinance officially announced it will shut down in approximately five months and is currently initiating an orderly liquidation.
Crypto finance platform ABFinance, founded by former Bybit co-CEO Helen Liu, announced it will not proceed with its planned launch and is now in the process of orderly shutdown. ABFinance stated on social media that it thanks all team members, community users, and partners involved in its development, adding: "Thank you for your trust, support, and belief along the way." In March this year, after leaving Bybit, Helen Liu announced the launch of her startup ABFinance, which aimed to build a one-stop financial platform connecting fiat and crypto assets, integrating functions such as deposits, yields, trading, and payments, and emphasized that it would be built under the U.S. compliance license framework from day one. According to prior reports, Bybit announced that Helen Liu would step down on April 30, 2026, to embark on her personal entrepreneurial journey. However, just about five months after ABFinance unveiled its project plan, the platform announced it would halt its launch and enter the shutdown process. The specific reason for the shutdown has not been disclosed by officials so far.
16 minutes ago
Morgan Stanley’s holdings of Circle surged nearly sixfold, but the firm cut its rating on the crypto firm to "Underweight" and lowered its target price to $38.
Morgan Stanley downgraded Circle (CRCL) stock rating from "Hold" to "Underweight" on August 3, slashing its price target from $106 to $38. Analysts attributed the rating cut primarily to the contraction in USDC circulation, which exposed Circle’s high sensitivity to reserve-related revenue. Meanwhile, the company’s business structure is shifting toward a transaction-based revenue model with lower profit margins. The report also cut Circle’s USDC size forecasts for 2027 and 2028 by approximately 33% and 44% respectively, and projected the company’s GAAP earnings per share (EPS) to be about 3% and 20% lower than market consensus.
However, Morgan Stanley’s latest filed 13F document shows that as of June 30, its holdings of Circle shares surged from around 1.46 million to 8.32 million, marking a clear position increase in the second quarter. This means that while Morgan Stanley publicly downgraded Circle’s rating and price target in early August, signaling a cautious outlook, its disclosed holdings as of the end of Q2 showed a significant position increase. It should be noted that 13F filings reflect holdings as of June 30, and cannot reflect whether positions were adjusted before or after the August rating cut. The market’s focus centers on the stark contrast between the institutional research view and the historical holdings disclosure.
16 minutes ago
Binance Research: Gen Z Prefers ETFs, With Lower Trading Frequency and Leverage Usage Than Other Age Groups
Binance Research data shows that Gen Z investors are gradually shifting to long-term asset allocation tools like ETFs, with lower trading frequency and weaker leverage preference compared to Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers. In early August, ETFs accounted for 25% of Gen Z's stock trading volume. In July, ETFs made up 21.9% of Gen Z's net inflows into stocks, up from 18.5% in June; over the same period, the share of individual stock investments dropped from 77% to 74.2%.
Binance Research analyzed trading activities including direct stocks, tokenized stocks, and traditional financial perpetual contracts. The data shows Gen Z's trading activity across these three asset classes is lower than that of other working-age groups. Specifically, Gen Z's traditional financial perpetual contract accounts average 13 trades per month, lower than Millennials' 17 and Gen X's 16.5. Among direct stock accounts, 22% of Gen Z users have never sold any stocks, higher than Gen X's 19% and Baby Boomers' 9%. For Gen Z accounts where stocks were purchased but never sold, the top assets by cumulative purchase amount include Broadcom, Tesla, and the Charles Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF.
In terms of leveraged products, Gen Z exhibits a lower risk appetite. Data shows 88.2% of Gen Z's traditional financial perpetual contract accounts have never traded leveraged or inverse ETFs, higher than Millennials' 84.5% and Gen X's 85.9%.
Additionally, the tokenized stock market continues to expand. Data shows Binance's bStocks recently briefly surpassed Kraken's xStocks to become the world's second-largest tokenized stock issuance platform. As of the latest data, Ondo Finance ranks first with approximately $972 million in tokenized stock value, while xStocks and bStocks stand at around $611 million and $580 million respectively.
16 minutes ago
Serenity responds to "going to zero" rumors by sharing a screenshot, with its year-to-date return standing at 2411.84%.
Serenity released a statement accompanied by photos to address recent market rumors that his trading account has "gone to zero", calling the claims "too exaggerated". He added that despite the sharp correction in the AI sector in July, his year-to-date (YTD) return still stands at 2411.84%. Earlier, Serenity had publicly stated that the slump in AI-related stocks in July led to a roughly 49.4% drawdown in his portfolio at one time, with his positions mainly concentrated in key segments of AI infrastructure—including high-volatility sectors such as storage, optical communications, robotics, and upstream semiconductors. Serenity has long focused on "bottleneck segments" within the AI industrial chain, has conducted multiple researches on memory, photonics, CPO, and semiconductor supply chains, and has drawn market attention for his bets on AI infrastructure-related assets.
16 minutes ago
Talks between Stripe and Advent to acquire PayPal are heating up, with the potential deal valued at up to $53 billion.
Payment giant PayPal’s acquisition talks with Stripe and private equity firm Advent Global Opportunities are heating up, with a potential deal to be finalized in the coming weeks. Back in July, Stripe and Advent proposed acquiring PayPal at $60.50 per share, valuing the deal at roughly $53 billion, but PayPal rejected the offer at the time. However, sources familiar with the matter revealed that negotiations have not broken off and are still ongoing. Neither PayPal nor Stripe has confirmed the reports. PayPal declined to comment, while Stripe said it does not respond to market rumors or speculation.
The potential sale comes as PayPal seeks to reverse its growth struggles. Since PayPal CEO Enrique Lores took office in March this year, he has rolled out a restructuring plan splitting the business into three segments: checkout and PayPal core services, consumer financial services (including Venmo), and payment services and crypto operations. Lores has stated that PayPal will return to its identity as a technology company and strengthen its core payment capabilities. Meanwhile, the company plans to boost efficiency through cost cuts, with an estimated 20% workforce reduction over the next two to three years.
Founded in 1998, PayPal’s founding team includes Silicon Valley figures such as Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and Max Levchin. The company grew rapidly during the pandemic due to the e-commerce boom, but has faced challenges including slowing growth and downward pressure on its stock price in recent years. If the deal is completed, it will be one of the largest acquisitions in the fintech industry in recent years.
16 minutes ago
Duan Yongping has bet on SpaceX for about 20 days, with paper gains exceeding $5.4 million.
According to public information from Xueqiu platform, Duan Yongping recently participated in SpaceX (SPCX) via two transactions: options and common stock. On July 24, he sold 1,000 SPCX put options expiring on December 18, 2026, with a strike price of $115, at a transaction price of approximately $23.26, corresponding to a premium of about $2.326 million. Then, on August 5, Duan Yongping bought 100,000 SPCX shares at a cost of roughly $108.68 per share. Based on SpaceX’s latest closing price of $140, this long stock position has an unrealized gain of around $3.132 million. Combined, Duan Yongping’s round of SpaceX trades has generated an unrealized profit of approximately $5.458 million in about 20 days.
However, it should be noted that although the premium from selling the put option has been credited, the option has not yet expired. If SPCX subsequently falls below $115 and is exercised, he will still be obligated to take delivery of the shares at the strike price. SPCX has been highly volatile recently: after its June listing, the stock once surged to above $200, then dropped back to around $105. In August, as the impact of the first batch of restricted stock unlocks was weaker than expected and market risk appetite recovered, the stock price rebounded to the $140 level. As a result, Duan Yongping’s current trade has evolved from "selling puts to collect premiums" to a staged high-probability trade.
The thorniest part of Mike Wilson’s pitch isn’t the gold call itself. It’s the word defensive. The Morgan Stanley chief US equity strategist and CIO told Bloomberg Money that gold has been in a bull market for 25 years and still functions as a portfolio shield, according to the original report. For crypto allocators, that framing does more than restate an old macro trade. It puts the digital gold narrative back under the kind of scrutiny that bitcoin has rarely passed during equity drawdowns.
The point is not simply that gold goes up. It is that gold behaves differently when other parts of a portfolio break down. A quarter-century bull market is long enough to cover multiple credit cycles, a global financial crisis, a pandemic, and several inflation scares. That durability is what allocators are buying when they move into gold. Bitcoin, by contrast, has spent much of its history proving it can be liquid, global, and censorship-resistant, but not that it decouples from risk assets when volatility spikes.
The Digital Gold Comparison Keeps Running Into the Same Problem The phrase digital gold suggests a natural bridge between the two assets. The actual behavior has been less clean. Bitcoin has spent stretches trading like a high-beta risk asset during sharp equity selloffs, while gold has often retained its defensive character. The distinction matters for institutional portfolios. A defensive allocation has to be boring in the right moments. Bitcoin has been many things, but boring under stress has not consistently been one of them.
That does not make bitcoin useless in a portfolio. It changes the label. Many allocators treat bitcoin as a hybrid: part commodity, part network equity, part monetary experiment. Gold gets the defensive sleeve. Bitcoin gets a different line item. Wilson’s framing suggests that line item is not likely to replace gold in the near term, especially for investors whose primary goal is capital protection rather than upside capture.
Institutional Money May Split the Difference Some institutions will not choose one asset over the other. They will hold both and assign them separate roles. Gold handles defense. Bitcoin handles exposure to digital scarcity and on-chain growth. That split is already visible in how real-world asset tokenization is developing. As tokenized real-world assets attract more institutional attention, gold is becoming easier to wrap in on-chain form, which could reinforce its role rather than displace it.
Meanwhile, crypto’s own regulatory overhang still makes it harder to pitch bitcoin as a safe harbor. The fight over US crypto legislation, including a major Senate bill facing last-minute bank resistance, keeps the asset class in a policy-sensitive bucket. Safe-haven assets generally do not need a legislative rescue to maintain their status.
The Speculative Side of Crypto Is Not Going Away Gold’s defensive argument does not cancel out crypto’s risk-on appeal. It simply clarifies the divide. While Wilson talks about portfolio protection, the crypto market continues to produce the kind of fast-moving speculative activity that defines a very different investor base. Altcoin bursts and niche on-chain movements remain common even as macro traders rotate toward defensive assets, as seen in recent weekly gainers.
The next test will not come from branding. It will show up in correlation data and in how allocators actually size the two positions. Gold has a 25-year head start in the defensive conversation. Bitcoin still has to earn that status in a market that keeps rewarding speed over safety.
AUTHOR
A freelance writer with a passion for crypto, delivering insightful and accurate content on blockchain and fintech. With a knack for translating complex concepts into accessible content, Eric produces well-researched articles, blog posts, and thought leadership pieces that cover the latest trends and developments in the digital finance space. His writing is aimed at educating and engaging both newcomers and industry experts, offering fresh insights into the world of cryptocurrencies, decentralized finance (DeFi), and blockchain innovations. Eric’s dedication to quality and accuracy makes him a trusted voice in the fintech and crypto communities
After its most recent recovery failed to result in a long-term trend reversal, Shiba Inu is making an effort to stabilize. Although SHIB is currently trading at $0.000453, up about 1.6 percent on the daily candle, sellers are still favored by the larger technical structure. The short-term moving averages of SHIB are the most recent developments.
The price is testing around $0.00000446 and is currently sitting just below the short-term average near $0.000459. As a result, a small consolidation zone is formed around current levels. The first sign that buyers are regaining short-term control would be the recovery of $0.00000459.
SHIB/USDT Chart by TradingViewNonetheless, $0.00000492 represents much stronger resistance. After the dramatic late-July volatility spike, this moving average rejected SHIB and is still the most significant nearby barrier. The path toward roughly $0.00000520–$0.00000550 could be opened by a daily close above it.
HOT Stories
The long-term outlook is still significantly weaker. At $0.00000581, SHIB is trading well below the 200-day moving average, which is still declining. Rallies should still be viewed as attempts at recovery within a broader bearish structure until the price begins closing above these longer-term trend indicators.
The immediate support area on the downside is represented by $0.00000440–$0.00000445. If it were lost, attention would return to the July consolidation around $0.00000420.
SHIB might be subject to another test of the recent lows if it breaks below that area. Momentum offers a slightly more positive signal. Recovering from lower levels without going into overbought territory, the RSI is currently at about 47.5. As a result, buyers have the opportunity to push higher if demand recovers.
Bitcoin's decline acceleratesAlthough Bitcoin is still stuck in a small consolidation range, the most recent rejection raises the possibility that the structure will resolve downward. After a daily decline of about 1.2 percent, which caused the price to drop below its short-term moving averages, Bitcoin is currently trading at about $62,587.
The cluster between $63,400 and $63,900 is the current technical issue. Over the past few weeks, Bitcoin has fluctuated in this region several times, but buyers have not been able to turn it into dependable support.
BTC/USDT Chart by TradingViewSellers are once again in control of the immediate structure after the most recent move below both short-term averages. That cautious reading is supported by momentum. The RSI has dropped to 40.65, but the signal line is still at 48.8. As a result, although Bitcoin is losing ground, it is still not in an oversold position.
This allows for one more decline before technical fatigue becomes a serious issue. The next significant range is between $61,500 and $62,000. Since July, selling pressure has been absorbed by this zone multiple times.
The current consolidation would be significantly weakened by a decisive daily close below it, revealing the $60,000 psychological threshold. The late-June low between $58,000 and $59,000 becomes the main downside reference below $60,000. The upside is still severely constrained.
Before challenging the more significant resistance around $66,500, where the intermediate moving average is currently located, Bitcoin must first recover from $63,900 to $64,000. Since Bitcoin has continuously traded below this declining trend indicator, recovering $66,500 would be a far more significant change. Longer-term resistance is still much higher at $71,800, indicating the amount of technical work that Bitcoin still needs to do before the overall chart turns bullish once more.
Near Protocol struggles for now As buyers struggle to create a compelling recovery structure, Near Protocol continues to face significant technical pressure. Despite sporadic attempts to stabilize around recent lows, NEAR continues to trade below its major moving averages, making the overall trend bearish. Regaining the short-term moving-average cluster is the current challenge.
The fact that NEAR has consistently failed to turn these dynamic resistance levels into support indicates that sellers are still taking advantage of comparatively small rebounds to lower exposure. Upside moves are still susceptible to rejection unless that changes. In this situation, momentum is also crucial.
NEAR/USDT Chart by TradingViewAlthough the RSI has recovered from its lowest readings during earlier sell-offs, it has not yet demonstrated the kind of consistent movement above the neutral 50 level that would point to a significant shift in favor of buyers. As a result, NEAR is in a potentially stabilizing but technically vulnerable position.
A series of higher daily lows followed by a break above the closest short-term resistance would be the first positive signal. After that, NEAR would have to prove that the recovery goes beyond a brief relief bounce by challenging the intermediate moving average. Recent local lows continue to be a crucial benchmark on the downside.
The emerging stabilization would be invalidated and the current pattern of lower highs and lower lows would be reinforced by another breakdown below that zone. As a result, NEAR is still in the recovery-attempt stage rather than a proven reversal.
Before the overall technical picture can significantly improve, buyers must recover short-term resistance and hold onto it as support.
Hyperliquid looks recovery-readyAlthough Hyperliquid's recovery still faces a significant resistance test, it is in a far stronger technical position. HYPE is trying to establish itself around $56-$57, where the intermediate moving average currently creates a significant decision point, after recovering from the $51-$52 range.
HYPE/USDT Chart by TradingViewThe rebound is significant because the long-term moving average, which was around $50.90, held during the recent correction. After dropping precipitously from the $70+ area, HYPE came close to that level but managed to avoid a more serious breakdown.
The larger structure maintains a plausible bullish foundation as long as the $50–$52 region endures. Now, a consistent move above roughly $56.50–$57 is the immediate goal. A daily close above this area could enhance short-term momentum and pave the way for the next significant resistance around $60–$61, as HYPE has frequently interacted with this region.
Because the declining medium-term moving average is located close to $60.70, that level is especially significant. Reclaiming it would offer far more convincing proof that the correction from July's highs has ended.
Though it's still unclear, momentum is increasing. After spending a large portion of the recent correction below the neutral 50 region, the RSI has recovered in that direction. This indicates a decrease in selling pressure, but buyers have not yet demonstrated a definite advantage in momentum.
Another retest of $53–$54 is possible if HYPE fails at $56–$57. A loss of $50.90 would be far more detrimental and could turn the current correction into a more severe bearish structure. As of right now, HYPE has defended the level it had to defend; the question is whether buyers will be able to convert that defense into a real breakout.
Shiba Inu continues its effort to stabilize after a failed attempt at reversing its long-term trend. Currently trading at $0.00000453, the token has climbed about 1.6% on the daily chart, but bears still maintain an advantage in the broader technical setup.
Shiba Inu faces resistance in recovery attemptSHIB has established a consolidation zone near the $0.00000453 level. The price is testing support around $0.00000446, hovering just below the short-term moving average of $0.00000459. A recovery above $0.00000459 would mark an early sign of renewed buyer interest, while $0.00000492 stands as a stronger resistance level that twice rejected price advances following late-July volatility.
A daily close above $0.00000492 may allow for further upside toward $0.00000520–$0.00000550. However, SHIB’s long-term outlook remains weak, as it continues to trade beneath the 200-day moving average at $0.00000581, which is still trending downward. Until SHIB closes above these longer-term trendlines, any rallies should be seen as possible recovery bounces within a larger bearish context.
Immediate support resides between $0.00000440 and $0.00000445. A breakdown below this range could bring the July consolidation zone around $0.00000420 back into focus and open up a test of local lows. On a positive note, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 47.5, suggesting momentum has room to improve and buyers could regain control if demand rises.
Although SHIB rebounded 1.6% daily, breaking through $0.00000492 could unlock a higher price range while a loss of $0.00000440 would risk retesting recent lows.
Bitcoin remains in tight range near $62,600Bitcoin continues to consolidate within a narrow range, following a 1.2% daily decline that saw the price slide below short-term moving averages to around $62,587. Over recent weeks, Bitcoin has repeatedly tested support between $63,400 and $63,900 without a sustained breakout above this region.
The downward move reinforces short-term seller dominance, backed by momentum indicators: the RSI fell to 40.65, with the signal line at 48.8, showing Bitcoin is not yet oversold. The next key support zone stands between $61,500 and $62,000, an area that has absorbed selling pressure several times since July.
A decisive daily close below this support would weaken the current structure and shift attention to the psychological $60,000 mark. Below that, the late-June lows between $58,000 and $59,000 become the next reference.
LevelTypeCurrent Price/Range$66,500Key resistanceIntermediate moving average$63,400–$63,900Short-term resistanceCurrent trading range$61,500–$62,000Key supportImmediate downside$60,000Psychological levelNext support$58,000–$59,000Major supportJune lowsTo approach more meaningful resistance around $66,500, Bitcoin must recover $63,900–$64,000. Sustained trading above this falling trendline would signal a more substantial bullish shift, although longer-term resistance remains much higher at $71,800.
Buyers need to push Bitcoin above $66,500 to reverse the broader downtrend, while a break below $61,500 could open the way to $58,000.
Near Protocol and Hyperliquid diverge in technical outlooksNear Protocol, a layer-1 blockchain offering fast, scalable smart contracts, continues to face persistent technical headwinds. Despite periods of stabilization near recent lows, NEAR remains under its major moving averages, reinforcing a bearish bias. Reclaiming the short-term moving average cluster is essential for a shift in sentiment.
Sellers still have the upper hand as attempted rebounds fail to convert resistance into meaningful support. The RSI is recovering from previous lows but remains below the neutral 50 level, suggesting potential stabilization but no convincing reversal. NEAR would need to record higher daily lows and break above near-term resistance to confirm a genuine recovery. Further downside could confirm the prevailing pattern of lower highs and lows.
Hyperliquid, a decentralized perpetuals exchange and its governance token HYPE, is in a stronger technical position after holding support near $51–$52 and rebounding to the $56–$57 area. The intermediate moving average at around $57 is the focus, as a daily close above this level could improve momentum and open the door to $60–$61. The long-term moving average, now at $50.90, successfully halted the previous decline. Sustaining this defense is crucial for a larger bullish recovery.
Momentum in HYPE has also picked up, with its RSI recovering toward neutral levels and indicating reduced selling pressure. However, unless buyers push the price above $56–$57, another retest of $53–$54 remains possible. A decisive break below $50.90 could mark a much deeper slide.
As HYPE defends key technical levels, the coming sessions will determine if a true upward breakout materializes or if the consolidation phase continues.
Mini dictionary: Hyperliquid, a decentralized trading platform, specializes in perpetual contracts and leverages non-custodial on-chain settlement mechanisms, aiming to provide users with fast and permissionless derivatives trading without intermediaries.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
SEC: Notice of Filing of a Proposed Rule Change to List and Trade Shares of 3x Gold ETF, 3x Silver ETF, 3x Bitcoin ETF, 3x Ether ETF, 3x Crude Oil ETF, and 3x Natural Gas ETF, each a Series of the VS Trust, under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4) (Commodity-Based Trust ... Comments Due: 21 days after date of publication in the Federal Register Submit a Comment on SR-CboeBZX-2026-065
Invesco, one of the world’s largest independent asset managers, has boosted its stake in Strategy Inc. by 42%. The position is now valued at roughly $862 million, making Invesco one of the more significant institutional holders of the company formerly known as MicroStrategy.
The disclosure, surfaced through standard 13F filings, shows Invesco held 8.72 million shares of MSTR as of March 31, 2026. That translates to approximately 2.39% ownership of the entire company.
What Invesco is really buying
On paper, Strategy Inc. is a business intelligence software company. In practice, it’s the closest thing public equity markets have to a leveraged Bitcoin ETF with a corporate charter.
Advertisement
Strategy held 818,334 BTC as of early May 2026, a figure that climbed to 843,775 BTC in its most recent Q2 earnings report. That makes it, by a wide margin, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin among publicly traded companies. The firm’s entire investment thesis has been reorganized around accumulating Bitcoin on its balance sheet, funded through a mix of equity issuance, convertible debt, and operating cash flow.
Why institutional 13F filings matter
13F filings are the quarterly snapshots that institutional investment managers with over $100 million in assets are required to submit to the SEC. They’re inherently backward-looking, capturing positions as of quarter-end, which means Invesco’s actual current exposure could be higher or lower than what the March 31 data shows.
Invesco has not issued any public commentary on the rationale behind the increased allocation.
The broader institutional picture
MSTR’s stock price has been notably volatile, largely tracking Bitcoin’s own price swings but with amplified magnitude.
The company’s Bitcoin treasury now represents over 843,000 BTC as of the latest reporting period. To put that in perspective, that’s roughly 4% of Bitcoin’s total circulating supply sitting on one company’s balance sheet.
The development also raises questions about how traditional asset managers are thinking about Bitcoin allocation in the current environment. Some institutions have opted for direct spot Bitcoin ETF exposure, while others clearly prefer the equity route through companies like Strategy. Invesco’s choice to increase MSTR exposure suggests the firm sees value in Strategy’s specific approach to Bitcoin accumulation, including its use of leverage and convertible debt to amplify returns.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Susquehanna International Group, one of the largest quantitative trading firms on the planet, has roughly doubled its equity position in Strategy Inc. to a stake now worth $232 million. The move puts SIG among the most prominent institutional backers of the company formerly known as MicroStrategy, which has become Wall Street’s de facto Bitcoin proxy.
SIG’s 13F filing, dated May 15, 2026, disclosed ownership of 1,282,636 shares of Strategy Inc. valued at approximately $160 million as of March 31. The current $232 million valuation reflects either additional share purchases since the filing cutoff date, subsequent price appreciation, or both.
Part of a much bigger wave SIG isn’t acting alone. Institutional investors collectively boosted their MSTR positions by roughly $4.6 billion during the first quarter of 2026, a 27% jump based on aggregated 13F data.
Advertisement
The pattern from SIG has been building for a while. In early 2025, the firm was actively accumulating MSTR shares while simultaneously trimming positions in companies like Super Micro Computer.
Strategy’s Bitcoin playbook keeps humming Strategy Inc., led by Executive Chairman Michael Saylor, has spent years perfecting a simple but audacious corporate strategy: use every available financial lever to accumulate more Bitcoin. The company sells stock, issues convertible notes, and deploys the proceeds into BTC.
In December 2025 alone, Strategy sold $748 million worth of common stock in a single week to bolster its cash reserves while maintaining its Bitcoin stockpile.
What SIG’s bet signals for the market SIG hasn’t publicly explained why it doubled its position, which is standard practice for quantitative firms that guard their models like state secrets. The first quarter of 2026 saw broad institutional appetite for Bitcoin-adjacent equities, suggesting that large allocators view current price levels as attractive entry points or that their models identify favorable risk-reward dynamics at this stage of the cycle.
Strategy remains the dominant publicly traded Bitcoin treasury company, but it’s not the only one anymore. Several firms have adopted similar models, though none at comparable scale. SIG’s decision to concentrate its bet on Strategy rather than diversify across smaller competitors suggests confidence in the market leader’s execution and liquidity profile.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Peter Schiff, a prominent gold advocate and persistent critic of Bitcoin, has expressed concerns that Michael Saylor, the executive chairman of Strategy, could be compelled to sell additional Bitcoin (BTC) and shares of MSTR in order to support the firm’s STRC preferred stock price.
Schiff’s Criticism of Strategy’s ApproachSchiff stated on X that despite recent efforts, STRC remains below the $95 mark. “Despite selling Bitcoin and $MSTR to raise cash and buy back $STRC, STRC is still trading below $95,” he wrote, emphasizing the company’s ongoing struggle to bring the preferred stock price closer to its original $100 target.
He argued that Saylor will be forced to sell more Bitcoin and discounted MSTR common shares in an attempt to push STRC back to $100, which, according to Schiff, is negative for holders of both Bitcoin and MSTR shares.
He claims that Saylor is going to have to sell a lot more Bitcoin and discounted common stock to raise the price of STRC to $100. That’s bad news for Bitcoin and MSTR. Sell both!
Schiff has intensified his criticism of Strategy’s capital management in recent weeks, alleging the company’s attempts to boost STRC have weakened shareholder value in its common stock and reduced direct Bitcoin exposure.
Last week, Strategy sold around 1,690 BTC, amounting to roughly $108.6 million. The firm used the proceeds to repurchase about 1.15 million STRC shares, aiming to bolster STRC’s price.
Additionally, the company sold roughly $653 million worth of MSTR common stock to reinforce its dollar reserves. Schiff has argued that these moves come at the cost of current shareholders, creating a cycle where Bitcoin and common shares are sold to defend STRC.
On August 10, Schiff described Strategy’s latest sale as evidence of growing challenges. He commented that Saylor appears to have relinquished the concept of “digital credit,” with MSTR now regularly selling Bitcoin for cash due to decreased lender confidence in Bitcoin as collateral.
Strategy is a technology and business intelligence company known for holding significant Bitcoin reserves. The firm has positioned STRC, a preferred stock product, as a critical pillar of its capital and liquidity management model.
Mini dictionary: STRC — Strategy’s Series C preferred stock, used by the company as part of its corporate financing approach to manage capital and provide liquidity. Preferred stock typically has fewer voting rights but is prioritized for dividends before common shareholders.
Strategy’s Perspective: “Digital Credit” and STRC LiquidityMichael Saylor has consistently presented STRC as central to Strategy’s so-called “digital credit” vision. He has emphasized the company’s goal of enhancing liquidity and stability in the security, and stated during a July earnings call that they remain “laser focused on Stretch,” the internal name for STRC.
Saylor noted that Strategy is seeking investors open to trading STRC at varying price levels, particularly those willing to buy below $99 to help stabilize and elevate the stock price back toward $100.
During a July earnings call, Saylor explained that the company wants investors willing to trade the security at different price levels, including those prepared to buy at prices below $99 and support a return to the $100 target.
In June, Saylor remarked that having the flexibility to sell Bitcoin assets is essential for Strategy to continue issuing digital credit via STRC.
Ongoing Debate Over Corporate StrategyDespite Saylor’s reassurances, Schiff remains unconvinced. He views the frequent asset sales as a sign of mounting financial pressure and questions the sustainability of the “digital credit” strategy if Bitcoin sales continue.
Earlier in August, Schiff described STRC as “an albatross around MSTR’s neck,” contending that its presence may force Strategy into recurrent Bitcoin sales and ongoing dilution of its common stock base.
The situation underlines a significant divide between Strategy’s approach to capital management and the concerns raised by external critics such as Schiff.
Asset SoldAmount/ValuePurposeBitcoin (BTC)1,690 BTC / $108.6 millionRepurchase 1.15 million STRC sharesMSTR Common Stock$653 millionBolster cash reservesDisclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
The Cboe BZX Exchange has filed a proposed rule change to list and trade the first-ever 3x leveraged Bitcoin ETF in the US. The filing, designated SR-CboeBZX-2026-065, was submitted on August 10, 2026, and represents a meaningful escalation in the arms race of crypto-linked investment products available to American traders.
Volatility Shares LLC, the firm behind the product, is sponsoring a suite of 3x leveraged funds covering Bitcoin, Ether, Gold, Silver, Crude Oil, and Natural Gas. For Bitcoin specifically, the fund would aim to deliver daily investment results equal to three times the performance of Bitcoin, achieved through first- and second-month CME Bitcoin futures contracts.
What triple leverage actually means
A 3x leveraged ETF does exactly what it sounds like: it multiplies the daily return of its underlying asset by three. If Bitcoin futures rise 2% in a day, the fund targets a 6% gain. If they fall 2%, you’re looking at a 6% loss.
Advertisement
That daily reset is the part most people gloss over, and it matters enormously. Over longer holding periods, the compounding effect of daily rebalancing can cause the fund’s returns to diverge significantly from simply tripling Bitcoin’s cumulative return. A volatile, sideways market can eat into returns even if the underlying asset ends up flat. These products are designed for short-term trading, not buy-and-hold retirement portfolios.
The US market already has 2x leveraged Bitcoin ETFs. Europe got ahead of the curve, with 3x Bitcoin exchange-traded products beginning to trade in November 2025. This Cboe filing would bring the US in line with what European investors have already had access to for months.
Structure and regulatory path
One of the more interesting wrinkles in the filing is the fund’s legal structure. Rather than registering under the Investment Company Act of 1940, which governs traditional mutual funds and most ETFs, the 3x Bitcoin fund would be structured as a commodity pool. That’s a meaningful distinction because it places the product under a different regulatory framework, one overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission rather than the SEC’s investment company rules.
The filing also relies on amended generic listing standards that Cboe developed between 2025 and 2026. These standards essentially create a streamlined pathway for listing certain types of derivative-based ETFs without requiring individual SEC approval for each product, provided they meet pre-established criteria.
There’s one important caveat: shares of the fund cannot actually begin trading until the associated S-1 registration statement becomes effective. The exchange approval was granted on the same date as the filing, but that doesn’t mean the fund is immediately available. The SEC still needs to greenlight the registration, and no specific listing date has been confirmed.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Bitcoin (BTC) long positions are “facing liquidation” as volatility shows signs that a range breakout is finally coming.
Key points:
Bitcoin long positions face multiple threats as BTC price action heads toward new August lows, analyst warns.The correlation between Binance open interest and price reached 0.25 on Thursday as both fell.The Bitcoin bull market is not ready to make a comeback, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju says.
Bitcoin longs feel the squeeze as price dropsInsights published on onchain analytics platform CryptoQuant by community analyst “BorisD on Thursday said that leveraged long BTC positions are being flushed out as BTC/USD targets month-to-date lows.
The analysis focuses on the relationship between price and open interest (OI) on Binance. OI represents total active derivative positions, both long and short, and reflects capital commitment in a given market.
While price has traded in a narrow range since June, CryptoQuant data show that Binance OI has gradually increased, reaching $8.15 billion on Wednesday as futures increasingly steer the market while spot traders sit on the sidelines.
Bitcoin open interest on Binance. Source: CryptoQuant
With price now seeing downside volatility on lower time frames, the correlation between price and OI has entered a state of flux, potentially squeezing long positions that have built up in the low $60,000 zone.
“In the Bitcoin market, the Binance Open Interest (OI) Correlation and liquidation warning signals clearly reveal the process of leveraged positions being flushed out. Initially, as the price fell, the correlation shifted to the negative side, indicating that OI was rising despite declining prices,” the analyst wrote.
“This showed a double-sided squeeze and [an] increasingly complex liquidity structure — driven by long positions trying to buy the dip on one end, and additional short positions entering the market on the other.”BTC/USD vs. Binance OI data. Source: CryptoQuant
The latest correlation data showed a reading of 0.25, a number that the analyst said reflects declining long positions as price continues to fall, suggesting the “anticipated cleanout has begun.”
“The simultaneous drop in both price and OI indicates that leveraged long positions are giving up, getting stopped out, or facing liquidation,” the analyst continued.
Data from CoinGlass put total 24-hour cross-crypto liquidations at $236 million at the time of writing.
Crypto liquidation history (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass
CryptoQuant CEO: “Stars haven’t aligned” for Bitcoin bull marketIn his latest market commentary, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju said conditions for a renewed Bitcoin bull market have yet to emerge.
“The stars haven’t aligned for a Bitcoin bull run just yet,” he wrote on X alongside a basket of onchain indicators still in “bear” territory.
Bitcoin onchain indicator heatmap. Source: Ki Young Ju on X.com
Cointelegraph has previously reported on several composite onchain indicators reaching similar conclusions about the current stage of the BTC price cycle. One of them, from onchain analytics platform Glassnode, is currently in its longest “capitulation” phase since the end of Bitcoin’s last bear market in 2022.
This article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph's Editorial Policy and is intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or recommendations. All investments and trades carry risk; readers are encouraged to conduct independent research.
The United States announced plans to intensify economic measures against Iran, including a continued naval blockade and new sanctions, amid escalating tensions across the Middle East. Markets responded swiftly, with gold heading for a strong weekly gain and oil prices moving higher on fears of supply disruptions. In contrast, Bitcoin showed limited momentum, trailing gains in other major asset classes.
US outlines economic and military pressure on IranOfficials from the administration signaled a significant increase in economic pressure on Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the United States would launch economic actions “never before seen on Iran,” targeting broader financial isolation and maintaining the naval blockade around key Iranian ports.
Details of these impending measures remain undisclosed. However, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the military’s readiness to sustain the blockade indefinitely, with plans to rotate naval assets as required to uphold the operation.
Reports indicated that the USS George Washington is preparing to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East, following the latter’s extended deployment in the region.
While Hegseth dismissed allegations of poor living conditions aboard the Abraham Lincoln, Representative Mike Levin expressed concern in a letter to Pentagon and Navy leaders. Levin highlighted complaints from military families regarding shortages, sanitation challenges, and fatigue among crew members.
US Central Command also refuted reports circulated by Iranian outlets suggesting there had been a fatal incident on the carrier, stating that no service members had died.
Mini dictionary: Strait of Hormuz, a strategically vital waterway connecting the Persian Gulf with the Arabian Sea, serves as a critical passage for global oil shipments and is often a flashpoint for regional tensions.
Gold gains on soft inflation data and stable Fed policyGold prices climbed on Friday, setting up for a weekly increase as a softer US dollar and easing expectations for a September rate hike boosted demand for bullion. Spot gold advanced 0.5% to roughly $4,375 per ounce, recovering after profit-taking drove prices down from a two-month high during the previous session. US gold futures settled 0.25% higher by the end of the session.
This move followed economic data showing US inflation figures mostly met expectations, while July’s employment numbers came in weaker than anticipated. The data supported predictions that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged within the 3.50% to 3.75% range at the next policy meeting.
CME FedWatch tool data showed market participants now attach a 33% probability to a rate hike in September, falling from levels seen the week before. The decline in the dollar added further support, making gold comparatively cheaper for international buyers.
Other precious metals also gained, with silver, platinum, and palladium all closing higher for the session.
Spot gold moved up 0.5% to about $4,375 per ounce on Friday as expectations of a Federal Reserve rate increase in September declined sharply and the weaker dollar boosted sentiment toward bullion.
Oil edges up on geopolitical risks and supply disruptionsOil prices rose on Friday, building on weekly gains driven by concerns about disruptions in the Middle East and supply interruptions. Brent crude traded at $88.54 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude stood near $82.34, with both benchmarks on pace to finish the week more than 4% higher.
Recent attacks on oil tankers operated by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in the Strait of Hormuz heightened fears of prolonged supply disruptions through the vital shipping route. The United States’ renewed warnings about keeping the blockade of Iran in place further added to the cautious mood in oil markets.
The Sheskharis oil terminal at Novorossiysk, operated by Russia, suspended crude shipments following a reported drone incident, placing additional strain on global energy supplies. Despite these factors, some analysts pointed out that pessimistic demand forecasts from OPEC and increasing US crude inventories are holding back a sharper rally in prices.
AssetCurrent PriceWeekly ChangeGold (spot)$4,375/oz+0.5%Brent crude$88.54/barrel+4%WTI crude$82.34/barrel+4%Bitcoin$62,770-0.9%Oil prices notched weekly gains as escalating tensions in the Middle East and supply threats in the Strait of Hormuz overshadowed broader demand worries.
Bitcoin trades lower as stocks stay strongBitcoin lagged the broader financial markets on Friday despite US stocks hovering near record highs, buoyed by softer inflation numbers. The cryptocurrency traded at about $62,770, down 0.9% for the day and holding near its lowest level in August.
Market analysts observed that, unlike stocks, Bitcoin did not rally on easing inflation and declining prospects for further rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. Technical specialists warned that Bitcoin must reclaim the $63,220 level before the weekly close to reduce the risk of a further price drop.
Observers pointed out an increase in long positions and open interest across derivatives markets, highlighting that any further decline in price could spark enhanced volatility.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser has said that while some improvements need to be made to the crypto Clarity Act, the bank wants a “good bill to go through.”
The banking executive said that the bank was a “leader in digital assets” so wanted “safe adoption” of the technology.
Lawmakers were trying to get a vote on the Clarity Act through before splitting for recess last week but ran out of time. A vote will now take place in September.
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 Citi CEO Jane Fraser says she wants the CLARITY Act to become law.
“We would like to see a good bill go through.”
Watch 👇 pic.twitter.com/caX4lEJivk
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) August 14, 2026 “We want to have good regulation that supports innovation and also encourages the safe adoption of the capabilities of digital assets,” Fraser said.
“I think it would be excellent for the system.”
A sticking point for the bill has been from the banking lobby, who raised concerns over crypto companies paying customers yield for holding stablecoins. U.S. banks have said they could lose customers if crypto exchanges offer more attractive products for their deposit base.
Fraser reiterated the point on Friday, saying that small banks play an important role in the U.S. and a reward system on deposits could have a “detrimental effect.” But she added: “We have not given up on pushing to get some improvements made to the bill, but we would like to see a good bill go through.”
America’s biggest crypto exchange, Coinbase, pulled support for the bill in January after clashing with banking chiefs who said that earning yield on stablecoins should be banned.
The Clarity Act was passed last year by the House of Representatives but has been deadlocked since 2026.
Still, the bill has been worked on by both Republicans and Democrats — despite crypto legislation being something pushed by pro-crypto President Donald Trump.
Major institutions, including Fidelity and Goldman Sachs, as well as crypto lobby groups and politicians, have said the revised bill works in its current form.
Mathew Di Salvo
Mathew is a reporter who's covered the space since 2019, reporting on everything from Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele's Bitcoin bet to crypto exchange FTX's bankruptcy.
MSCI has proposed excluding Bitcoin (BTC) treasury firms Strategy and Metaplanet from its Global Investable Market Indexes (GIMI) under a new eligibility framework targeting firms it classifies as non-operating companies, according to a consultation document.
Strategy, Metaplanet among firms facing possible removal from MSCI indexThe proposal would introduce additional quantitative screens to identify corporate issuers whose business operations are closer to investment vehicles than to traditional operating companies.
Strategy and Metaplanet are among three current constituents of the MSCI ACWI Investable Market Index (ACWI IMI) that would be excluded if the proposal is approved. The third company identified for potential exclusion is Yellow Cake, a UK-based firm.
MSCI noted that its proposed framework is designed to identify companies that create value primarily by accumulating and holding non-operating assets, generate limited cash from actual business operations and rely heavily on market movements or external capital to grow.
The proposed screening process would consist of two stages. The first is a Core Screen designed to determine whether a company has sufficient operating assets. Companies that fail the Core Screen would then be assessed under an Exclusion Screen based on five financial ratios.
These measures include operating asset intensity, expense intensity, cash flow, fair value intensity and capital dependence. Under the proposal, a company would be considered ineligible for inclusion if it triggers at least four of the five flags.
Proposed 2-Step Additional Eligibility Screen. Source: MSCIFor current index constituents, MSCI has proposed less stringent thresholds and additional safeguards intended to reduce unnecessary index turnover. Companies already included in the index would need to fail the relevant screens for two consecutive annual filing periods before being removed.
The proposal would also create a public watchlist for companies that fail the screens based only on their latest filings but have not yet met the two-year requirement.
Ethereum (ETH) treasury firm SharpLink has been placed among this proposed watchlist, alongside Center Laboratories and Lydia Holding. MSCI noted that it could remove companies from the watchlist if they fail the screens again during the next annual review.
The potential changes stand as a major test for the affected companies because inclusion in major equity indexes can influence institutional investment and the funds that track those benchmarks.
MSCI emphasized that the consultation may or may not result in implementing the proposed changes. The index provider is seeking feedback from market participants through September 30.
Following the consultation period, MSCI expects to announce its decision on or before October 16. If the proposal is adopted, MSCI would implement the changes as part of the November Index Review.
MSCI’s latest consultation follows an earlier debate over how to treat Bitcoin-heavy treasury companies in major equity indexes. In November, the index provider considered whether Strategy and other digital asset treasuries should remain eligible for its benchmarks, a move that raised concerns about potentially significant passive fund outflows from these companies' stocks.
Bitcoiners have been warned after France’s tax administration confirmed that hackers breached its information system, exposing sensitive financial and personal data belonging to hundreds of thousands of taxpayers and businesses.
Writing on X on Friday, Bitcoin developer Jameson Lopp said the leak was “more bad news for Bitcoiners living in the leading country for wrench attacks.”
Lopp has created a tracker counting wrench attacks — when physical violence is used to steal crypto — across the world. A large amount happens in France, where data has been leaked before.
More bad news for Bitcoiners living in the leading country for wrench attacks. The French tax authority has been hacked and 678K records leaked.
26,805 people with income over 100K€
386 people with income over 1M€
8 people with income over 10M€https://t.co/KlT0XqPLFR
— Jameson Lopp (@lopp) August 14, 2026 The news comes one day after hardware wallet manufacturer Trezor announced a data breach exposing customer data.
Cybersecurity researchers at FrenchBreaches, who reviewed samples of the leaked data, reported that the affected records break down to roughly 392,867 individuals and 285,570 businesses.
Among the individuals, an estimated 26,805 have a reported annual taxable income of €100,000 or more, 386 exceed €1 million, and eight exceed €10 million. The hacker is said to be offering the full dataset for sale for several thousand euros.
The breach first surfaced publicly on August 12, when a hacker using the alias “ZeroBytes” posted on a cybercrime forum claiming to have infiltrated internal DGFiP servers and obtained VPN credentials that unlocked an internal lookup tool covering millions of taxpayers.
According to the hacker’s own account, the extraction was interrupted before it could be completed, leaving what they described as only a partial dataset of 678,438 records.
The exposed sample reportedly includes highly sensitive information: full legal names, dates and places of birth, home and mailing addresses, marital status, number of dependents, internal tax identification numbers, reference taxable income, individual withholding tax rates, phone numbers, email addresses, and records of past correspondence with tax officials.
Security analysts warn that this combination of identity, contact and financial data could fuel highly convincing phishing campaigns impersonating tax authorities, as well as identity theft and fraud schemes tailored to victims’ income levels or family circumstances.
2025 was the worst on record for wrench attacks (crypto targeted kidnappings), with around 55 reported globally last year, according to TRM Labs. Lopp’s tool counted over 70 throughout last year. And this year is already looking bad, according to the tracker: 54 attacks have been documented so far.
Wrench attacks made headlines last year when crooks kidnapped David Balland, co-founder of crypto hardware wallet brand Ledger, and his wife in France.
Criminals held the pair for around 24 hours before they were rescued by the French authorities.
Mathew Di Salvo
Mathew is a reporter who's covered the space since 2019, reporting on everything from Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele's Bitcoin bet to crypto exchange FTX's bankruptcy.
Matt Cole, CEO of Strive, fired back at MSCI’s latest attempt to classify companies with significant digital asset holdings, arguing the index giant’s revised framework still fails to recognize Bitcoin treasury operations as legitimate business activities.
Cole’s response, posted on August 14, targets MSCI’s updated consultation proposal, which aims to reassess how firms with large cryptocurrency positions are categorized within major financial indices. His core complaint: companies that actively use finance and capital markets to build Bitcoin treasuries aren’t just sitting on a pile of coins. They’re operating companies.
From exclusion threat to consultation
To understand why this matters, rewind to late 2025. MSCI floated a proposal that would have effectively booted companies from its indices if more than 50% of their balance sheet consisted of digital assets.
Advertisement
The pushback from the industry was swift and loud. Firms that had deliberately structured their businesses around Bitcoin treasury strategies saw the proposal as a misunderstanding of what they actually do. Holding Bitcoin as a strategic reserve, raising capital through instruments like perpetual preferred equity to acquire more, and managing treasury operations around digital assets, all of that, they argued, constitutes real business activity.
In January 2026, MSCI chose not to implement the exclusion plan. Instead, it opted for a broader industry consultation to develop a more nuanced approach to classifying non-operating companies. The revised framework that emerged from that process is what Cole is now responding to.
The operating company problem
The crux of Cole’s argument is a classification question that sounds academic but has enormous financial consequences. When MSCI decides whether a company is an “operating” business or an “investment” entity, it determines whether that company gets included in the indices that trillions of dollars in passive investment track.
Getting kicked out of a major index isn’t just a reputational hit. It means index funds, ETFs, and institutional portfolios that mirror MSCI benchmarks would be forced to sell shares.
Cole has led Strive since 2023, building it into a structured finance and Bitcoin treasury company. The firm maintains a notable Bitcoin treasury and has utilized various financial instruments, including perpetual preferred equity, to fund its digital asset strategy. In Cole’s view, that kind of active capital markets engagement is textbook operating company behavior.
The distinction he’s drawing is between a company that passively holds Bitcoin like a trust and one that actively deploys capital market strategies to acquire, manage, and grow a Bitcoin position. The latter, Cole contends, looks a lot more like a traditional corporate treasury operation than a closed-end investment fund.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
In brief
A reported breach of France’s tax authority exposed data tied to 678,437 people and businesses.
The records allegedly include income figures, addresses, tax identifiers, and family information.
The data could help criminals craft targeted scams against wealthy taxpayers and Bitcoin holders.
A hacker is selling a trove of French tax records that could expose more than 678,000 people and businesses, including Bitcoin holders, to phishing, identity theft, and targeted attacks.
According to a report by French cybersecurity outlet FrenchBreaches, a hacker is selling records allegedly stolen from France’s tax authority, the DGFiP, during a June breach for several thousand euros.
Myriad: Bitcoin's next move? Click to make your prediction.“More bad news for Bitcoiners living in the leading country for wrench attacks,” Chief Security Officer at Bitcoin security platform Casa Jameson Loop wrote on X. “The French tax authority has been hacked, and 678K records leaked.”
FrenchBreaches said the database contains records on 392,867 individuals and 285,570 professionals, including 26,805 people with reference tax income of at least $116,000, 386 above $1.16 million, and eight above $11.6 million; the hacker is reportedly offering the file for several thousand dollars.
FrenchBreaches said a sample of the leaked data included names, birth details, home and email addresses, phone numbers, income figures, withholding tax rates, family status, dependents, and tax-share information.
“There DGFiP officially confirms the intrusion in its information system,” FrenchBreaches wrote in an update. Stolen credentials were used in late June to access and extract taxpayer data, and the number of people affected remains under investigation, the firm added.
According to FrenchBreaches, the attacker used stolen VPN credentials and an internal search tool to extract names, contact details, tax identifiers, income figures, withholding rates, and family information before officials cut off access.
“A scammer with real tax information and knowing of the existence of an old approach to the DGFiP could, for example, construct a fraudulent message that is much more credible than a simple fake generic email,” FrenchBreaches wrote.
While the FrenchBreaches report focused on the data leak, it comes amid a rise in wrench attacks, in which criminals use violence or threats to steal cryptocurrency.
In July, CertiK reported 52 attacks worldwide during the first half of 2026, including 33 in France. Earlier this month, Chainalysis reported 46 attacks through June, including 30 in France, with more than $30 million stolen.
“Criminals have recognized that crypto holders are high-value targets because they possess wealth in an instantly and irreversibly transferable form,” Chainalysis wrote.
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
