Crypto criminals are increasingly targeting people, not just digital wallets, as violent attacks climb globally.
So-called wrench attacks — where criminals use violence to coerce victims to hand over cryptocurrency — have accelerated this year, according to a new report by blockchain security firm CertiK, which tracks cyber threats and security incidents in the digital asset industry. CertiK verified 52 physical attacks against digital asset holders globally in the first half of 2026, up 33% from a year earlier. France, with 33 attacks, accounted for nearly two-thirds of publicly reported cases.
Key Highlights J.B. Hunt delivered Q2 earnings per share of $1.91, representing a 45% year-over-year increase and surpassing analyst expectations of $1.74 Total revenue reached $3.5 billion, marking a 19% increase and exceeding consensus estimates of $3.25 billion Shares surged up to 9.5% during after-hours trading and climbed 7.1% in premarket sessions to $296 The intermodal division led performance with 22% revenue growth and a remarkable 58% increase in operating income Citi’s Ariel Rosa upgraded his price target from $278 to $309, pointing to strengthening supply-demand dynamics J.B. Hunt Transport Services delivered robust second-quarter results that captured investor attention. Shares spiked as high as 9.5% during Wednesday’s after-hours session following the earnings release, maintaining a 7.1% gain in premarket activity Thursday morning at $296.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc., JBHT
Earnings per share reached $1.91, climbing 45% from the prior year’s $1.31. Total revenue touched $3.5 billion, representing a 19% increase from the year-ago figure of $2.93 billion. Both metrics exceeded Wall Street projections of $1.74 per share and $3.25 billion in sales.
Operating income advanced 32% to $259.5 million, fueled by stronger revenue performance, enhanced productivity measures, and strategic cost management initiatives.
FY26 Guide:
🔹 Annual Effective Tax Rate: 24.0% to 24.5%
Segment Net Revenue:
🔹 Intermodal:…
— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) July 15, 2026
The intermodal division emerged as the quarter’s star performer. This segment generated $1.75 billion in revenue—representing a 22% year-over-year gain—while operating income jumped 58% to $150.9 million. Shipment volume increased 10%, benefiting from elevated fuel prices and constrained trucking capacity that directed more shippers toward rail-based transportation.
Eastern network volumes expanded 16%, while transcontinental shipments rose 5%.
The Dedicated Contract Services division also demonstrated solid results, recording 9% revenue growth to $921 million with operating income advancing 9% to $102.5 million.
Integrated Capacity Solutions turned profitable with $1.7 million in operating income compared to a $3.6 million loss in the prior-year period, supported by revenue of $388 million—a 49% jump.
Challenges in Select Segments Not all divisions performed equally. The Truckload division recorded a $1.3 million operating loss despite revenue soaring 35% to $240 million, as elevated purchased transportation expenses offset revenue gains.
Final Mile Services represented the weakest area, with revenue declining 6% to $198 million and operating income dropping 30% to $5.6 million. Management attributed the downturn to anticipated customer losses related to strategic initiatives aimed at enhancing revenue quality.
CEO Shelley Simpson attributed the strong performance to strategic investments in workforce, technology infrastructure, and capacity expansion. During the earnings conference call, she emphasized that industry capacity constraints stemmed from supply-side reduction rather than dramatic demand increases.
Wall Street Response Citi’s Ariel Rosa elevated his price target to $309 from $278, describing the quarter as one with “much to like.” He emphasized improving supply-demand fundamentals, market share expansion, operational efficiency gains, and a robust sales pipeline. While maintaining his Hold rating, Rosa suggested the results signal positive trends for the broader U.S. transportation industry.
The consensus analyst price target now stands at approximately $302, climbing roughly $8 following the earnings announcement. Twelve months ago, that consensus averaged around $158.
At present valuation levels, JBHT trades at approximately 31 times forward earnings, elevated from roughly 24 times a year earlier. Entering Thursday’s session, the stock had already gained 42% year-to-date and more than 80% over the trailing twelve months.
Throughout the quarter, the company repurchased approximately 392,000 shares for roughly $98 million. Total outstanding debt as of June 30 stood at $1.15 billion, down from $1.72 billion in the comparable year-ago period.
U.S. stock futures declined on Thursday, as the Dow Jones, Nasdaq 100, and S&P 500 indices fell, following Wednesday’s higher close.
President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate even as U.S. forces launched a second wave of strikes against Iranian military targets.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury announced new sanctions targeting an international network accused of procuring weapons for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps following attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.57%, and the two-year bond was at 4.15%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing an 89.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during July’s meeting.
IndexPerformance (+/-)Dow Jones-0.01%S&P 500-0.08%Nasdaq 100-0.36%Russell 2000-0.28%Stocks In FocusJB Hunt Transport Services Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that JBHT maintains a strong price trend in the short, long, and medium terms, with a moderate quality score. Agape ATP Agape ATP Corp. (NASDAQ:ATPC) surged 55.56% following the Securities and Exchange Commission filing that disclosed a new stake held by proprietary trading firm and liquidity provider Jane Street Group LLC. Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ATPC maintains a weak price trend in the short, long, and medium terms. AST SpaceMobile AST SpaceMobile Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) tumbled 10.01% after the company announced a $1.0 billion proposed public offering of Convertible Senior Notes. Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ASTS maintains a weak price trend in the long, short, and medium terms. Growhub Growhub Ltd. (NASDAQ:TGHL) gained 33.89% after the company announced a $400 million merger agreement with EnChem. Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that TGHL maintains a weak price trend in the long term but a strong trend in the short and medium terms. Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ATAI maintains a strong price trend in the short, long, and medium terms. Cues From Last SessionConsumer discretionary, financial, and communication services stocks recorded the biggest gains on Wednesday, while utilities and energy stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.
Insights From AnalystsBlackRock remains tactically constructive on the U.S. stock market while navigating a fundamentally transformed economic landscape. In its commentary, the firm maintains an overweight position on U.S. equities, noting that “strong corporate earnings, fueled by the AI buildout and a favorable macro backdrop, are outpacing higher interest rate expectations.”
Within equities, BlackRock advises focusing closely on AI bottleneck opportunities such as power, chips, and data centers.
Regarding the broader economy and policy environment, BlackRock emphasizes that a structural shift has taken hold, reinforcing its view that “the global rates reset is real and significant.”
The firm cautions that underlying inflation remains too firm to confidently return to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, which will likely keep the central bank on hold.
In this “new regime” of elevated rates, fixed-income dynamics have changed. While higher yields have made durable income an opportunity again,
BlackRock warns that long-term bonds are “less reliable diversifiers”. Consequently, the firm prefers the front end and belly of the U.S. yield curve, advising investors to target areas where they are best compensated for risk.
Upcoming Economic DataHere’s what investors will be keeping an eye on this Thursday.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity MarketsCrude Oil WTI futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.08% to hover around $79.54 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar fell 0.65% to hover around $4,033.80 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.05% higher at the 100.5320 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 1.00% lower at $64,042.02 per coin over the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday, except Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and India’s Nifty 50 indices. China’s CSI 300, Australia’s ASX 200, South Korea’s Kospi, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 indices fell. European markets were mostly lower in early trade.
Photo courtesy: Frontpage / Shutterstock.com
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Security researchers are turning artificial intelligence into a powerful new tool for protecting blockchain infrastructure.
The Ethereum Foundation’s Protocol Security team says it’s running a fleet of coordinated AI agents against critical protocol code, reports the Ethereum Foundation.
The effort uncovered genuine vulnerabilities, including a remotely triggerable panic in the libp2p gossipsub library that underpins Ethereum’s peer-to-peer communications.
“Agents finding bugs wasn’t the surprise. The surprise was how little of the work went into finding them, and how much went into telling the real bugs from the ones that just looked real…
AI didn’t replace the security researcher. It moved the work. The time that used to go into coming up with and chasing down hypotheses now goes into judging them at scale, including building the oracle, running the triage, keeping the list of known issues, and handling disclosure.
The bottleneck didn’t go away. It moved from finding bugs to trusting the results, which is a better place for it, because that’s where human judgment actually matters. But it’s still a bottleneck, and ignoring that is how you end up shipping a wrong “it’s fine.”
That specific issue has been resolved and publicly disclosed as CVE-2026-34219.
The project revealed that the hardest part of AI-assisted security work is not finding potential bugs but rigorously triaging them to separate real issues from false positives.
Agents were organized into roles for reconnaissance, hunting, gap-filling, and independent validation, with every candidate requiring a reproducible proof against real code.
The approach demonstrates how AI can expand coverage of complex systems while human judgment remains essential for verification.
12 July 2026 | 15:10 Bitcoin's most aggressive buyers of the bull market have gone quiet at exactly the prices where its oldest valuation model says accumulation historically happens, and the bid they abandoned is being picked up by whales while retail traders position for more downside.
Key Takeaways Treasury company market cap down from $396B to $272B since October 2025; buying nearly halted since May. Whale longs rose around the $58,000 bottom while retail bets on more downside, per Alphractal. Fidelity’s power law chart puts BTC in an accumulation zone, support line near $56,488. Visser’s markers: RSI divergence in, $60,000 entry, 200-day near $76,000 confirms. Data published this week describe the same market from three altitudes: corporate treasury flows, derivatives positioning, and Fidelity’s long-run power law framework. Read together, they show a bottom being contested by completely different hands than the ones that built the top, and one veteran macro voice argues the process has just produced its first technical confirmation.
The Corporate Bid Bought High and Froze Low CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost wrote on X that the cumulative market capitalization of Bitcoin treasury companies has fallen from $396 billion in October 2025 to $272 billion, a loss of more than $100 billion, even as their combined holdings grew from 953,000 BTC to 1.14 million.
📉 The market cap of treasury companies has lost more than $100B since October 2025. Their holdings went from a valuation of $396B to $272B.
Over the same period, the number of BTC held by these companies increased from 953,000 BTC to 1.14 million now.
—> Since May, as BTC… pic.twitter.com/B9yvSaGON7
— Darkfost (@Darkfost_Coc) July 11, 2026
The timing of that growth is the uncomfortable part. The cohort tripled its Bitcoin position between November 2024 and October 2025, buying in a price range of $75,000 to $125,000, and since May, with the market trading far below that range, accumulation has slowed to nearly a halt. Strategy, the sector’s template, has started selling, per the same analysis.
The behavior inverts the thesis these companies sold to their shareholders. Treasury vehicles were pitched as price-insensitive permanent bids, buyers of every dip. The data instead shows procyclical buyers who scaled purchases with access to capital markets, and that access moves with their share prices. Falling equity valuations closed the financing channel that funded the buying, which means the corporate bid was never insensitive to price; it was leveraged to it. The cohort still holds more than 5% of Bitcoin’s supply, but as a source of new demand at these levels, it has effectively left the market.
Whales Filled the Gap at $58,000, and Retail Took the Other Side The bid that appeared where the corporate one vanished shows up in positioning data. Analytics firm Alphractal wrote also on X that its Whale vs. Retail Delta is rising again, meaning large positions have cut short exposure and added longs across the top 250 cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin’s reading “even stronger than most altcoins.” Around the recent $58,000 bottom, the firm identified a sharp increase in whale long exposure, while smaller positions, the retail cohort, moved the opposite way and are positioned for further downside.
Alphractal heatmap illustrating the divergence between whale and retail positioning across various crypto assets alongside Bitcoin price action. The split matters because of what each group’s track record at extremes looks like. Concentrated long positioning by large accounts at a local low, opposed by retail shorts, is the configuration that has historically marked accumulation phases rather than distribution ones. It is not a guarantee; Alphractal itself frames the open question as whether the whale flows represent conviction or a short-term trade around an oversold level. The honest version of the signal is directional but unproven: the biggest accounts on derivatives venues are treating $58,000 as a level worth owning, and the crowd is paying them funding to disagree.
Fidelity’s Map Says the Fight Is Happening in the Right Place The third dataset supplies the frame the first two lack: where these prices sit in Bitcoin’s full history. Fidelity’s Bitcoin Support and Resistance chart, with data as of July 5, shows BTC trading in what the firm labels an accumulation zone and, in its words, “getting ever closer to its power law support line,” the lower boundary of the channel that has contained every cycle since 2010.
Historical analysis of Bitcoin’s support and resistance levels alongside power law trendlines, as of July 5, 2026. The chart marks recent price near $62,685 against a power law support line near $56,488, with the 52-week Z-score against gold pressing toward the negative extremes that previously appeared at the 2015, 2018-19, and 2022-23 cycle floors.
Power law models deserve their standard caveat: they are curve fits to a young asset’s history, not physical laws, and a first-ever break of the support line could simply mean the model was wrong. What the framework contributes here is not a price target but a classification. Every prior visit to this zone occurred when the marginal buyer had capitulated and ownership was migrating to longer-horizon holders, which is a reasonable description of corporates freezing while whales accumulate.
Visser Sees the First Bottoming Signal Since the Peak Jordi Visser, a macro strategist with more than three decades in institutional finance, put a trader’s structure on the same picture in an interview with Anthony Pompliano, published on July 11, 2026. “I finally got my first RSI divergence since the peak at the end of last year,” Visser said, pointing to Bitcoin printing a new low below $60,000 while the four-hour RSI held above its prior low. His plan is mechanical rather than prophetic: “Now I can buy something when its above 60, and I’ll just stop myself back out below the lows.”
His explanation for the weakness adds the macro layer the positioning data cannot see. Visser argued Bitcoin’s decline was partly a casualty of the AI infrastructure trade, with capital rotating out and Bitcoin serving as a high-beta funding and hedging instrument for investors holding semiconductor exposure. As that trade’s momentum faded and leverage came off, the selling pressure on Bitcoin began to ease, which in his framework is how bottoms start: “Price leads narrative. The first thing that always happens in a bottom is you start getting short covering.”
Visser also read the market’s response to Strategy’s sale, the event at the center of the treasury cohort’s freeze, as evidence of absorption rather than fragility. Bitcoin traded above the level where the sale occurred instead of breaking down on it. “Once you don’t sell off after something like that, it actually is more of a positive than a negative,” he said. His confirmation line sits well overhead at the 200-day moving average around $76,000-77,000: until price reclaims it, he treats the advance as a short-covering rally, not a reversed trend. He allows the range could still stretch to $50,000 or $45,000, while expecting Bitcoin above $100,000 within a year, and flagged the Federal Reserve’s July 29 meeting as a near-term catalyst, arguing that no hike could put Bitcoin above $70,000 as markets price out further tightening.
What Each Actor Has to Prove Next The synthesis across all four reads is a market changing hands rather than finding new ones. The measurable tells from here are specific to each actor. For the treasuries, the number to watch is whether cohort holdings resume growing at all below $65,000, or whether Strategy’s selling spreads to weaker balance sheets forced to liquidate into the low, which could be the bear case the retail shorts are betting on. For the whales, the Alphractal delta staying positive through the next leg, up or down, may separate conviction from a scalp.
The Fidelity support line near $56,500 converts from chart decoration into live test if the $58,000 low breaks. And Visser’s framework adds the two dates and one line that arbitrate everything above: the Fed’s July 29 decision, reclaiming $60,000 as the entry trigger, and the 200-day near $76,000 as the level that could turn a short-covering bounce into a confirmed reversal. A bottom built by whales against corporate paralysis is a narrower foundation than the one that built the top, but it is the foundation the market currently has.
The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or trading advice. Cryptocurrency markets are volatile and involve substantial risk. Readers should conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
Author
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his 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.
Web3 security has changed dramatically over the past few years.
As protocols become more sophisticated and billions of dollars in value move on-chain every day, traditional bug bounty programs are increasingly struggling to keep pace. Security teams face growing volumes of spam, low-quality submissions, and operational overhead, while experienced security researchers often spend weeks waiting for responses, dealing with unclear processes, or wondering whether valid findings will ultimately be rewarded.
Today, we're introducing CertiK Hunt, our next-generation security research platform built to address these challenges.
CertiK Hunt connects high-quality security researchers with trusted Web3 projects through invite-only security programs designed to identify and remediate vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.
CertiK Hunt brings together bug bounty programs, audit competitions, and AI-powered security challenges in one curated ecosystem focused on quality over quantity.
Why We Built CertiK Hunt CertiK has been deeply embedded in the Web3 space for years, working with hundreds of projects across the ecosystem. Through this experience, we've identified significant gaps in the current bug bounty and audit competition landscape, making it clear that Web3 projects need a more continuous and comprehensive security solution to effectively protect themselves.
We've closely monitored how other platforms operate and have noticed that projects often receive overwhelming numbers of duplicate, AI-generated, or out-of-scope reports that consume valuable engineering time without improving security.
At the same time, talented researchers frequently encounter slow response times, inconsistent communication, unclear reward processes, and platforms where signal is buried beneath noise.
The result is frustration on both sides.
CertiK Hunt was designed to change that.
Built Around Quality Unlike open platforms that allow anyone to submit reports, CertiK Hunt is intentionally invite-only.
Security researchers are selected based on their technical expertise, previous findings, contributions to the security community, and overall reputation. By maintaining a curated researcher network, projects can spend less time filtering submissions and more time fixing real vulnerabilities.
Projects also undergo a review process before launching programs. This helps ensure that participating teams are committed to running professional security programs and treating researchers fairly throughout the disclosure process.
Our goal is simple: create an environment where high-quality researchers and serious projects can work together efficiently.
CertiK Hunt is designed to support multiple ways of improving protocol security.
Bug Bounty Programs Continuous security testing is conducted by experienced researchers who are rewarded for responsibly disclosing valid vulnerabilities. Bug bounty programs are one of the most effective and necessary crowdsourced defenses, relying on multiple sets of eyes to uncover issues that might otherwise go unnoticed. This approach has already proven its value by helping companies save billions of dollars through responsibly disclosed vulnerabilities, making it an essential component for any Web3 project that takes security seriously.
Audit Competitions Have you made an upgrade to your code? Did you add a fresh batch of smart contracts that require immediate attention? Do you have a timeframe for when you need your code to be checked? Then run an audit competition—a unique and efficient way to get all security researchers’ eyes on your code as they compete to find bugs.
AI Security Challenges As AI becomes an increasingly important tool for security research, CertiK Hunt will also host AI-focused challenges that encourage new approaches to vulnerability discovery and analysis. These challenges will help researchers explore innovative techniques and push the boundaries of automated security testing.
Designed for Researchers Researchers deserve more than a submission form.
CertiK Hunt provides a dedicated portal where participants can:
Track the status of their submissions Communicate directly throughout the review process Participate in exclusive security programs Our objective is to create a platform where researchers can focus on what they do best: finding impactful vulnerabilities.
A quick preview: you can expect a leaderboard, exclusive rewards, and plenty of exciting features ahead!
Designed for Projects For projects, CertiK Hunt provides access to an experienced network of security researchers without the operational burden that often comes with public programs. By limiting participation to approved researchers, projects receive higher-quality submissions, reduce time spent triaging spam, and can work more closely with trusted security professionals.
For your convenience, we offer a range of flexible triaging tiers designed to accommodate projects of all sizes and needs. Whether you're looking for basic support or a more comprehensive, hands-on approach, you can choose the level of service that best aligns with your project's goals, complexity, and available resources.
Whether launching a bug bounty after an audit, running a competitive code review before a major release, or continuously strengthening protocol security, CertiK Hunt provides a flexible platform tailored to modern Web3 development.
The Next Chapter of Web3 Security CertiK Hunt builds on years of experience protecting the Web3 ecosystem while introducing a new approach centered around quality, collaboration, and trust.
As the platform evolves, we plan to continue expanding its capabilities with additional program types, new researcher tools, deeper analytics, and features that improve collaboration between projects and security researchers.
Our mission remains the same: help make Web3 more secure by connecting exceptional researchers with the projects building the future of blockchain.
Join CertiK Hunt If you're an experienced security researcher interested in joining our invite-only community, request an invitation today.
If you're building in Web3 and want to launch a bug bounty program, audit competition, or AI security challenge, connect with our team to learn how CertiK Hunt can help secure your protocol.
Key Facts CertiK announced the launch of CertiK Hunt on 1 July 2026, an invite-only platform connecting vetted security researchers with Web3 projects. Projects can launch bug bounty programs, audit competitions and AI challenges through the platform, with more features planned. The invite-only model is designed to combat spam and low-quality submissions; researchers are vetted on technical expertise, track record and reputation, and projects are reviewed before launching programs. CertiK independently reproduces and rates every finding, setting severity itself rather than leaving it to the protocol, to prevent disputed or downgraded payouts. Quoted are Margarita Kadochnikova, Head of Communications, and Hudson Jameson, Head of Ecosystem at CertiK; the firm reports having secured 5,181 projects and assessed over $500 billion since 2018. CertiK has launched CertiK Hunt, an invite-only platform connecting elite security researchers with Web3 projects, the firm announced on 1 July 2026. Through the platform, projects can run bug bounty programs, audit competitions and AI challenges — with the gating mechanism, vetted researchers and independent CertiK triage all designed to solve a problem that has dogged bug bounties for years: too much noise, too little signal.
Why invite-only The defining feature of CertiK Hunt is its exclusivity. Only approved security researchers can participate, evaluated on technical expertise, previous findings, track record and reputation within the security community. Projects joining the platform are also reviewed before launching programs, creating a vetted environment on both sides of the marketplace.
The rationale is to combat one of the biggest challenges facing bug bounty programs: the large volumes of spam and low-quality submissions that flood open platforms. For project security teams, sifting genuine vulnerabilities from noise is a significant operational drain. By restricting participation to vetted researchers, CertiK is betting that a smaller, higher-quality pool produces more impactful findings and far less wasted triage effort — a network, as the company frames it, defined by signal rather than volume.
Independent triage to prevent payout disputes The second structural feature addresses a long-running source of friction in bug bounties: disputes over severity and payouts. On CertiK Hunt, every submission is independently reviewed by CertiK, which reproduces and rates each finding and sets the severity assessment itself — not the protocol. Accepted findings are then paid out under responsible disclosure.
That independent-arbiter role is the point. Margarita Kadochnikova, Head of Communications at CertiK, framed it around fairness to researchers. “We’ve seen too many cases across the industry where security researchers submit valid vulnerabilities only to face disputes or delayed payouts,” she said. “CertiK Hunt is built to create a trusted environment where high-quality researchers can focus on finding impactful vulnerabilities, projects receive meaningful security insights, and both sides know the rules will be applied fairly.”
By placing severity assessment with a neutral third party rather than the project paying the bounty, CertiK removes the structural incentive for a protocol to quietly negotiate a finding’s severity down to reduce its payout — one of the most common complaints researchers raise about self-run bounty programs.
Continuous security over one-time audits The launch reflects a broader industry shift from one-time audits toward continuous security. Hudson Jameson, Head of Ecosystem at CertiK, positioned the platform within that transition. “CertiK Hunt is the next step in our mission to secure the Web3 ecosystem,” he said. “By building a network defined by signal and quality rather than volume, we are creating a platform where the best researchers can do their most impactful work, while giving projects greater confidence in the security of their code.”
CertiK Hunt extends the traditional security audit by providing continuous, researcher-driven testing throughout an application’s lifecycle. By combining formal audits with ongoing bug bounty programs, audit competitions and AI-powered security initiatives, the platform is designed to help projects strengthen their security posture long after code is deployed — addressing the reality that a point-in-time audit cannot catch vulnerabilities introduced by later code changes or surfaced by novel attack techniques.
The timing: a rising cost of undiscovered bugs The launch comes after another year in which billions of dollars were lost to exploits across the Web3 ecosystem. As digital asset markets mature, regulatory scrutiny increases, and protocols grow more complex, the cost of undiscovered vulnerabilities continues to rise — making continuous, high-quality security testing more valuable than ever.
CertiK’s own research has documented the shifting threat landscape driving that cost. Its 2026 Skynet stablecoin threat report found wallet compromise overtaking code vulnerabilities as the dominant exploit vector, while its earlier regulatory report found infrastructure compromises drove 76% of 2025 on-chain losses by value. CertiK Hunt fits a wider expansion of CertiK’s product suite beyond audits — including its recent Skill Scanner for AI agents — as the firm builds out continuous, lifecycle-spanning security infrastructure.
FAQ What is CertiK Hunt?
CertiK Hunt is an invite-only Web3 security platform, launched on 1 July 2026, that connects vetted security researchers with Web3 projects. Projects can run bug bounty programs, audit competitions and AI challenges, with every submission independently reproduced and severity-rated by CertiK before reaching the project team.
Why is CertiK Hunt invite-only?
The invite-only model is designed to combat the spam and low-quality submissions that flood open bug bounty platforms. Researchers are vetted on technical expertise, previous findings, track record and reputation, and participating projects are also reviewed — creating a trusted environment focused on high-quality, impactful findings rather than submission volume.
How does CertiK Hunt handle payout disputes?
CertiK independently reviews every submission, reproducing each finding and setting its severity assessment rather than leaving that to the protocol paying the bounty. Accepted findings are paid out under responsible disclosure. This neutral-arbiter approach is designed to prevent the severity downgrades and payout disputes that researchers commonly encounter on self-run programs.
CertiK Hunt reflects a maturing view of Web3 security: that protecting protocols handling billions in value requires continuous, vetted, researcher-driven testing rather than a single pre-launch audit. Whether the invite-only model can scale enough researcher supply to meet project demand — without sacrificing the exclusivity that defines it — will be the key question as the platform grows. This article is informational and does not constitute investment or security advice.
In This Article What Kalshi Actually Is and Why the Structure MattersThe Growth Numbers and the World Cup CatalystBull Case, Base Case, Bear Case on the Valuation Kalshi is in talks to raise fresh capital at a $40Bn valuation, according to a Financial Times report, nearly double the $22Bn price tag attached to its Series F round just weeks earlier in May 2026.
That $40Bn figure is nearly triple the $15Bn that rival Polymarket is reportedly targeting. The central tension this story forces onto the table is that a valuation that has moved roughly 20x in twelve months deserves more scrutiny than a funding press release typically gets.
The ongoing regulatory scrutiny of prediction markets is dominating the discussion around the Kalshi IPO, and until the situation is resolved, it is unlikely to become a publicly traded company.
What Kalshi Actually Is and Why the Structure Matters Kalshi is not a crypto exchange or a sportsbook. It is a federally regulated event-contracts exchange, operating under the oversight of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Think of it as a stock exchange, except instead of shares in Apple, users trade binary contracts on the probability of real-world outcomes: whether the Federal Reserve raises rates, which party wins a Senate seat, or who advances in a tournament bracket.
That CFTC license is the structural asset that separates Kalshi from Polymarket, which runs on blockchain infrastructure, settles positions in cryptocurrency, and operates without US regulatory approval.
Polymarket is faster and more internationally accessible, but it cannot credibly pitch itself to institutional allocators who require regulated counterparties. That credibility gap is the direct cause of the $25Bn spread between the two companies’ current fundraising targets.
Co-founders Tarek Mansour, a former trader at Citadel Securities, and Luana Lopes Lara, a quantitative finance specialist and MIT classmate, launched Kalshi in 2018 and built the company around precisely this regulatory positioning.
On June 24, Mansour confirmed on CNBC that Kalshi is evaluating a potential IPO, though he said a public listing is unlikely before 2027. IPO speculation around Kalshi has been circulating since earlier this year, but this was the first on-record confirmation from the CEO.
⚡️ @Kalshi is negotiating a funding round at ~$40bn, per the FT, nearly double the $22bn valuation it secured in May.
CEO Tarek Mansour also said an IPO conversation at the company's scale is inevitable, though he ruled out a debut this year.
— Sandmark (@sandmark_news) June 25, 2026
DISCOVER: Best Meme Coin ICOs to Invest in 2026
The Growth Numbers and the World Cup Catalyst Monthly trading volume on Kalshi’s platform recently surpassed $17Bn, up from roughly $5Bn a year earlier, a more-than-threefold increase in twelve months.
Bernstein Research puts Kalshi’s May 2026 monthly volume at $17.9Bn, versus Polymarket’s $7.1Bn, giving Kalshi a 57% market share versus Polymarket’s 22.7%. On an annualized basis, Kalshi’s trading volume reached approximately $178Bn by April 2026.
The World Cup 2026 is a meaningful near-term accelerant. DeFi Rate estimates Americans will trade more than $2.5Bn across prediction markets on the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with $1.47Bn on Kalshi alone under the base-case scenario.
Bernstein has called the tournament a “watershed moment” for the sector. That kind of volume event helps justify momentum-based fundraising conversations, but it also concentrates near-term revenue into a window that ends when the final whistle blows.
Polymarket’s World Cup markets have drawn scrutiny over integrity and liquidity, a dynamic that further sharpens Kalshi’s regulatory differentiation argument.
The May 2026 Series F, a $1Bn round that drew Coatue Management, Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Morgan Stanley, and ARK Invest, valued the company at $22Bn. The current $40Bn target, if it closes in Q3 2026 as reported, would represent a near-doubling in a matter of weeks.
At roughly $2Bn in annualized revenue, that $40Bn figure implies approximately a 20x revenue multiple, a level that Finimize has noted: “prices it more like exchange infrastructure than a consumer app.”
(SOURCE: Kalshi)
EXCLUSIVE: Earn $10 USDC Via Binance Sign-Up
Bull Case, Base Case, Bear Case on the Valuation Bull case: The Supreme Court upholds CFTC pre-emption, Kalshi’s sports contracts survive intact, World Cup 2026 volume pushes monthly figures above $20 billion, and the company executes an IPO at exchange-infrastructure multiples that dwarf the $40Bn private price. The Polymarket gap widens further as institutional capital consolidates around the regulated venue.
Base case: Legal battles drag into 2027 without a definitive ruling, volume moderates post-World Cup, and Kalshi closes the round at or near $40Bn on the strength of its regulatory moat and long-term IPO narrative, but operates in a grey zone where state-level enforcement remains a live risk.
Bear case: A federal court ruling narrows CFTC pre-emption, forcing Kalshi to restrict or restructure sports contracts. Monthly volume drops sharply from its World Cup peak, annualized revenue falls well below $2Bn, and the 20x revenue multiple looks like a venture bet that mis-priced the regulatory outcome.
EXPLORE: Best Crypto Presales With Asymmetric Upside in the Current Market
#Altcoin News Today
Why you can trust 99Bitcoins
10+ Years
Established in 2013, 99Bitcoin’s team members have been crypto experts since Bitcoin’s Early days.
90hr+
Weekly Research
100k+
Monthly readers
50+
Expert contributors
2000+
Crypto Projects Reviewed
Follow 99Bitcoins on your Google News Feed
Get the latest updates, trends, and insights delivered straight to your fingertips. Subscribe now!
Subscribe now
Alex Ioannou
On-Chain Journalist
Alex is a seasoned cryptocurrency trader and market analyst with over seven years of active experience in the digital asset space. Since entering the markets in 2017, Alex has specialized in identifying emerging "meta" trends and high-volatility narratives. Notably, Alex... Read More
PANews reported on November 29th that Gate Alpha launched its 24th round of the Points Lucky Draw on November 29th at 14:00 (UTC+8). Users with ≥ 100 Gate Alpha Points can participate in the Lucky Draw. Users can invest 1-10 Alpha Points to participate in each round of the draw, with the probability of winning proportional to the number of points invested. The Lucky Draw consists of 20 rounds, with each participant receiving 2,000 ADO points in each round.
Gate Alpha now supports popular public chains such as SOL, ETH, Gate Layer, BNB Chain, Base, SUI, ARB, World Chain, AVAX, Polygon, LINEA, ZK, OP, and Berachain. It also enables seamless trading of tokens across the entire chain through the contract address search function, opening up cross-chain transaction links and making all on-chain tokens available with a single click.
PANews reported on December 16th that Gate Perp DEX is launching a limited-time "Christmas Fantasy Trading Journey" event from 18:00 on December 16th to 23:59 on December 27th (UTC+8), with a total prize pool of 30,000 USDT. This event includes four rewards: 1. New users who complete their first single trade of ≥50 USDT will receive a reward and unlock an additional 100% chance to win a Christmas lucky draw; 2. New address users who complete different stages of trading tasks will share 9,000 USDT; 3. Entering the Treasure Hunt Trading Leaderboard offers a chance to win up to 1,500 USDT; 4. Inviting friends to complete their first trade will reward both the inviter and the invitee, with the top 20 invitees receiving up to 500 USDT.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps warned that any vessels using the Strait of Hormuz route without Tehran's approval will be targeted.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a stern warning to international shipping on Wednesday, stating that any new shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz established without coordination with Tehran is unacceptable and dangerous, and threatening to take direct action against vessels that ignore its orders. The IRGC declared that vessels can only safely transit the Strait of Hormuz via routes designated by Iran. The IRGC Navy added that all vessels seeking to transit the strait must coordinate with the Iranian military via International Maritime Distress and Safety Frequency Channel 16, a requirement that effectively places Iranian military approval at the core of all commercial shipping transiting this key chokepoint. (Jinshi)
1 seconds ago
A crypto whale holding 120,000 ETH long positions has an unrealized loss of over $77 million, and added $8 million in margin in the early hours.
According to on-chain analyst ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, a whale holding 120,000 ETH in long positions added $8 million in margin in the early hours. Currently, the total unrealized loss on its ETH long positions across four linked addresses stands at approximately $77.047 million, with an average entry price of around $2,265. Data shows the liquidation prices for the four addresses are $1,174.6, $1,059.1, $1,064.7, and $1,143.6 respectively. Despite the significant paper losses, there remains a large buffer before liquidation, and over 6 million USDC is still held on-chain to replenish margin, resulting in low short-term liquidation risk.
1 seconds ago
A crypto whale holding 120,000 ETH long positions is sitting on an unrealized loss of over $77 million, and added $8 million in margin in the early hours.
According to on-chain analyst ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, the whale holding a long position of 120,000 ETH added $8 million in margin again in the early hours. Currently, the ETH long positions across its four associated addresses have accumulated an unrealized loss of approximately $77.047 million, with an average entry price of around $2,265. Data shows the liquidation prices for the four addresses are $1,174.6, $1,059.1, $1,064.7, and $1,143.6 respectively. Despite the massive unrealized loss, there is still a significant buffer before liquidation, and over 6 million USDC are still held on-chain to supplement margin, leading to low short-term liquidation risk.
1 seconds ago
Ripple's stablecoin RLUSD approved to enter Japanese market
According to official announcements, Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD has been officially approved by Japan’s Financial Services Agency (JFSA) and launched in Japan. Through a partnership with SBI Group and its subsidiary trading platform VCTRADE, RLUSD will be accessible to institutional and retail users for use in scenarios including payments, asset tokenization, and collateral management.
1 seconds ago
WSJ: CoinEx Linked to Iran-Related Cryptocurrency Fund Flows
According to a Wall Street Journal report, since 2019, wallets linked to Iran have transferred over $3.84 billion in assets via cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx. On-chain data shows that CoinEx’s custodial wallet received crypto proceeds from hacks tied to Iran’s central bank, and conducted direct transactions with accounts previously designated by U.S. officials as belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Additionally, in 2024, CoinEx replaced Binance to become the largest overseas counterparty for Iranian exchange Nobitex, with the two parties recording over $763 million in fund flows last year. Between 2022 and 2025, CoinEx’s custodial wallet also processed transactions involving individuals suspected of participating in the sanctioned Iranian oil sales network.
1 seconds ago
Market Sentiment: Current sentiment among smart money and retail funds in the market is at a neutral level.
According to the latest data from SentimenTrader, as of June 24, the Smart Money Confidence Index stands at 0.56, while the Dumb Money Confidence Index is at 0.49. Both smart money and retail investor sentiment are currently in the neutral range, with no clear optimistic or pessimistic bias emerging in the market.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps warned that any vessels using the Strait of Hormuz route without Tehran's approval will be targeted.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a stern warning to international shipping on Wednesday, stating that any new shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz established without coordination with Tehran is unacceptable and dangerous, and threatening to take direct action against vessels that ignore its orders. The IRGC declared that vessels can only safely transit the Strait of Hormuz via routes designated by Iran. The IRGC Navy added that all vessels seeking to transit the strait must coordinate with the Iranian military via International Maritime Distress and Safety Frequency Channel 16, a requirement that effectively places Iranian military approval at the core of all commercial shipping transiting this key chokepoint. (Jinshi)
1 seconds ago
A crypto whale holding 120,000 ETH long positions has an unrealized loss of over $77 million, and added $8 million in margin in the early hours.
According to on-chain analyst ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, a whale holding 120,000 ETH in long positions added $8 million in margin in the early hours. Currently, the total unrealized loss on its ETH long positions across four linked addresses stands at approximately $77.047 million, with an average entry price of around $2,265. Data shows the liquidation prices for the four addresses are $1,174.6, $1,059.1, $1,064.7, and $1,143.6 respectively. Despite the significant paper losses, there remains a large buffer before liquidation, and over 6 million USDC is still held on-chain to replenish margin, resulting in low short-term liquidation risk.
1 seconds ago
A crypto whale holding 120,000 ETH long positions is sitting on an unrealized loss of over $77 million, and added $8 million in margin in the early hours.
According to on-chain analyst ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, the whale holding a long position of 120,000 ETH added $8 million in margin again in the early hours. Currently, the ETH long positions across its four associated addresses have accumulated an unrealized loss of approximately $77.047 million, with an average entry price of around $2,265. Data shows the liquidation prices for the four addresses are $1,174.6, $1,059.1, $1,064.7, and $1,143.6 respectively. Despite the massive unrealized loss, there is still a significant buffer before liquidation, and over 6 million USDC are still held on-chain to supplement margin, leading to low short-term liquidation risk.
1 seconds ago
Ripple's stablecoin RLUSD approved to enter Japanese market
According to official announcements, Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD has been officially approved by Japan’s Financial Services Agency (JFSA) and launched in Japan. Through a partnership with SBI Group and its subsidiary trading platform VCTRADE, RLUSD will be accessible to institutional and retail users for use in scenarios including payments, asset tokenization, and collateral management.
1 seconds ago
WSJ: CoinEx Linked to Iran-Related Cryptocurrency Fund Flows
According to a Wall Street Journal report, since 2019, wallets linked to Iran have transferred over $3.84 billion in assets via cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx. On-chain data shows that CoinEx’s custodial wallet received crypto proceeds from hacks tied to Iran’s central bank, and conducted direct transactions with accounts previously designated by U.S. officials as belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Additionally, in 2024, CoinEx replaced Binance to become the largest overseas counterparty for Iranian exchange Nobitex, with the two parties recording over $763 million in fund flows last year. Between 2022 and 2025, CoinEx’s custodial wallet also processed transactions involving individuals suspected of participating in the sanctioned Iranian oil sales network.
1 seconds ago
Market Sentiment: Current sentiment among smart money and retail funds in the market is at a neutral level.
According to the latest data from SentimenTrader, as of June 24, the Smart Money Confidence Index stands at 0.56, while the Dumb Money Confidence Index is at 0.49. Both smart money and retail investor sentiment are currently in the neutral range, with no clear optimistic or pessimistic bias emerging in the market.
Cover image via U.Today 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.
A years-long race to de-anonymize Satoshi Nakamoto appears to have reached an ideological dead end, one that has paradoxically benefited the industry. Against the backdrop of the film "Finding Satoshi," leaders of major crypto companies have voiced a synchronized thesis: Nakamoto's identity has definitively become a historical artifact rather than a market factor.
Phong Le, CEO of MicroStrategy, commenting on the film, emphasized that Bitcoin has earned an approach grounded in humility and recognition of contributions, rather than attempts at exposure. He was supported by Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, who stated that Bitcoin's code and economic model now "stand on their own," regardless of who held the pen in 2008.
Who Satoshi is no longer matters for Bitcoin. That said, I agree this is the most thoughtful piece I've seen on the topic. It stands in contrast to prior self-indulgent exposés, approaching the topic with humility and kindness - qualities Satoshi and Bitcoin have earned. https://t.co/atGPtw6Pe6
HOT Stories
— Phong Le (@phongle) April 22, 2026 Who is Satoshi?An interesting angle is that the Finding Satoshi version suggesting a duo of Hal Finney and Len Sassaman is the most "market-neutral." Unlike past theories involving Peter Todd or Adam Back, this version implies that the "keys to paradise" are physically inaccessible, as both presumed creators are deceased - Finney since 2014 and Sassaman since 2011.
This removes the long-standing "black swan" risk of a sudden release of 1.1 million BTC from Satoshi-linked wallets. Moreover, acknowledgment from their widows of the plausibility of this theory puts a cap on speculation, transforming Satoshi from a mysterious manipulator into a tragic genius.
You Might Also Like
The numbers confirm that Bitcoin has outgrown its creator. Today, MicroStrategy holds 815,000 BTC and BlackRock holds 806,000 BTC, effectively becoming a collective "Satoshi" of the present era. Their combined holdings balance the founder's share.
Whether this makes the network more decentralized and resilient to any individual reputational risks remains an open question.
Bitcoin is currently showing a structure that often precedes sharp volatility, with liquidity building above key levels while price consolidates below. This kind of setup typically signals that the market may first move to hunt those liquidity zones before establishing its next clear directional trend.
Bitcoin Builds Liquidity Cluster Around $80K Zone Crypto analyst Cryptorphic noted that Bitcoin is once again building a dense cluster of liquidity around the $80,000 level. This area is becoming increasingly important, as leveraged positions continue to stack above current price action, creating a potential target zone for the market.
At present, Bitcoin is trading below this liquidity pocket and moving within a relatively compressed range, reflecting indecision in the market, where price consolidates before a larger expansion. Historically, similar setups have frequently led to liquidity sweeps as the market seeks out areas of unfilled orders.
Source: Chart from Cryptorphic on X These liquidity zones tend to act like magnets, drawing price toward them as stop-losses and liquidation points accumulate. With so much interest positioned around $80,000, the upside liquidity becomes a natural target if momentum shifts even slightly in favor of buyers. The broader implication is that Bitcoin may first attempt to sweep this $80,000 zone or reach that liquidity level and react from it before any sustained directional move becomes clear.
Markets Move In Two Clear Phases According to the analyst Mags, the market moves through two distinct phases. The first being the Bull Phase, Mags highlights that while the primary trend is upward, it is never a straight line to the top. Instead, price action is characterized by multiple pullbacks, often ranging from 20% to 30%, which occur before a cycle peak is reached. These corrections are presented not as threats, but as a normal and necessary part of every cycle‘s journey, resting sentiment, and fueling continuation.
The second stage identified by Mags is the Bear Phase, which is triggered when the underlying market structure finally breaks. This shift leads to a much deeper correction than the standard pullbacks seen during the ascent. During this period, the market undergoes a process of finding a definitive bottom, clearing the stage for the next trend to begin.
Ultimately, Mags argues that while the phases transition, the presence of volatility is the one that never changes. The difference between success and failure lies in the ability to recognize your current position within the cycle. As Mags points out, history has consistently rewarded those who can ignore the noise of short-term swings and focus on the long-term game, recognizing that each phase is simply a part of the market’s natural rhythm.
BTC trading at $77,638 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com Featured image from Getty Images, chart from Tradingview.com
When Gary Gensler left the US Securities and Exchange Commission in January 2025, Bitcoin was trending higher, and many expected a more favorable regulatory backdrop to drive further upside. Instead, BTC has fallen sharply to a zone that complicates a once-popular narrative that regulation, or Gensler specifically, was the primary force holding the market back.
Bitcoin’s Price May Be Saying More About Markets Than Regulators The market reaction to regulatory change hasn’t played out the way many expected. Analyst Benjamin Cowen has mentioned on X that when Gary Gensler stepped down from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in January 2025, Bitcoin was trading around $109,000. Today, it sits closer to $75,000.
Cowen argues that one major reason the crypto markets have suffered is that market participants started to lose faith in the industry itself. After Gensler left, it essentially just opened the floodgates to the grift age of crypto.
During the period, the influencers and politicians were launching memecoins and rug-pulling their followers every day, without fear of any repercussions. This led to a massive misallocation of capital, with liquidity flowing into speculative assets instead of strengthening the broader ecosystem.
While people celebrated Gensler’s exit, it marked a turning point in the industry, with BTC only marginally going higher before entering a bear market. According to Cowen, now that some people are celebrating Jerome Powell’s removal as chair of the Federal Reserve, it is a sign that history could repeat itself. They celebrated it in the short term, which will mark a turning point in credibility for the Fed in a few years.
If the Fed becomes another cabinet within the executive branch, it may lead to a lack of trust in the institution. In a few years, participants will realize that markets were better off with Powell than without him.
Liquidity Sweeps Into FOMC Are Becoming A Familiar Setup Bitcoin has shown a consistent pattern around Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings, and it’s not bullish in the short term. A crypto trader known as Max Trades highlighted that following the last seven FOMC meetings, BTC dropped sharply after each decision.
What makes the current setup notable is how closely it mirrors the conditions seen before the March meeting. Back then, price rallied into the event, repeatedly sweeping local highs while building a large pool of liquidity below. That structure marked the local top, followed by a 13% correction that erased most of the prior move.
Source: Chart from Max Trades on X Heading into the current interest rate decision, these factors are in place, with BTC price trading just below a major higher-timeframe resistance level, adding another layer of confluence to the downside scenario. However, if this same scenario plays out similarly, the BTC price could point to the formation of another local top around this event.
BTC trading at $76,071 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
Bitcoin’s recent rejection near key resistance has raised fresh concerns about the strength of its ongoing rally. After a steady climb, signs of selling pressure are beginning to emerge, hinting that bullish momentum may be weakening. With price now hovering around critical support zones, the next move could determine whether the uptrend regains traction or starts to lose steam.
2–618 Pattern Triggers: BTC Rejected At $78,000 In a market update, analyst Kamile Uray revealed that the long-anticipated 2-618 pattern for Bitcoin has officially activated. After the price approached the $78,037 mark, significant selling pressure stalled the upward momentum. This reaction at the local peak confirms that the market is currently responding to technical overhead, initiating a corrective phase.
The immediate outlook suggests the current decline could extend down to the $73,762 level, which serves as a critical decision point for the asset. If Bitcoin manages to hold this floor, the possibility of a renewed bullish push remains on the table.
Source: Chart from Kamile Uray on X Should the price slip below the $73,762 bottom, the next major target is $70,165, which aligns with the 0.618 Fibonacci support of the most recent upward wave. A successful defense of this area would likely spark another upward move. Conversely, if bulls want to reclaim full control, they must achieve a close above $79,555. Such a move would establish the first higher high on the 4-hour chart relative to the recent downturn, signaling a continuation of the macro uptrend toward the $98,000 and $107,000–$109,000 range.
In the event of a more severe retracement, secondary supports are identified at $65,666, $63,823, $62,433, and $60,000. The stakes are particularly high at this lower limit; a daily close below $60,000 would be a highly bearish signal, potentially marking the beginning of a more substantial market decline.
Key Levels In Focus: Mapping Bitcoin’s Critical Zones Highlighting the key levels marked on the chart, Daan Crypto Trades emphasized that the low $80,000 region remains a pivotal zone for bulls in the short to mid-term. He also noted that the $72,000 level, which previously acted as resistance for over two months, has now flipped into a critical support zone.
Maintaining price above this level would reinforce bullish control and suggest that the market is building a solid base for further upside, providing the foundation needed for another leg higher. A breakdown below $72,000, however, would likely indicate that the momentum from the recent bounce is fading, opening the door for more sideways market structure. Although Bitcoin has posted a steady 20% gain throughout April, the price action may not last long, as volatility is expected to emerge at any point.
BTC trading at $76,038 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
We’re thrilled to announce that today, we are launching a massive new update for Mirandus: Eternal Night!
This new version introduces our highly anticipated Boss Event and the official launch of our exclusive item collection. It is your chance to dive into the darkness, participate in an epic community event, and achieve victory.
Here is what to expect when you jump in tomorrow:
The Cosmic Hunt (Boss Event) The time has come to face the Apex Threat! A massive World Boss with a persistent global HP pool will spawn on the map. Players will engage in turn-limited auto-battles to chip away at its health.
Defeating the boss unlocks a special promotional distribution:
70% of the distribution is tied to the single player with the highest cumulative contribution throughout the event.
30% of the distribution is tied to the single player who lands the final successful strike against the World Boss.
(Please note: Acquiring gear does not guarantee better results in the event. To ensure a completely fair and compliant experience, all promotional distributions enter a holding period for an eligibility check before being fulfilled manually).
💎 Exclusive Sparkforge Launch Today, our premium collection officially opens, featuring the legendary Sparkforge armor set to grant your Echo the unbreakable resolve needed to withstand the Absence.
For most of the past year, it looked like prediction markets had kicked off a new golden age of fraud. On Polymarket, traders raked in fortunes from suspiciously timed bets on geopolitical events like the raid on Venezuela and the Iran War. It wasn’t clear whether the US government would bother pursuing some of the most flagrant bad actors, since Polymarket’s crypto-based platform was technically offshore and not regulated or licensed within the country.
Now, however, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which oversees prediction markets, wants you to know that it’s watching very, very closely. The agency is searching for suspicious behavior from traders within the United States who have been sneaking onto offshore markets, including Polymarket’s crypto platform—which is blocked stateside—by using virtual private networks. “We're going to find them, and we're going to bring actions,” agency chairman Michael Selig told WIRED this week, speaking from the CFTC’s headquarters in Washington, DC.
Selig says the agency, which is especially lean right now, is staffing up. Like so many other AI-pilled workplaces, the CFTC is also leaning into automation to handle the growing workload, including tools that analyze trading patterns and flag potential manipulation. “You’ve got so much data,” Selig says. “When we feed it into AI, we get really great information. It can help us understand things, like where we might want to investigate, or when we might need to send a subpoena to a trader.”
In addition to proprietary surveillance systems developed in-house, the agency’s arsenal includes third-party blockchain tracing tools like Chainalysis for crypto platforms, and market abuse detection software including Nasdaq Smarts for centralized markets. (Beyond Nasdaq Smarts, the agency did not specify which AI tools it uses and declined to share more specific examples.)
Prominent prediction market companies have recently started touting all the work they’re doing to catch sketchy bettors. US-based exchange Kalshi, Polymarket’s primary competitor, eagerly announced that it has suspended and penalized customers flagged for insider trading and market manipulation.
In April, after significant backlash over suspected insider trading, Polymarket announced its own partnership with Chainalysis. It was part of a broader push to crack down on market manipulation. While the company’s CEO, Shayne Coplan, had talked in the past about why insider trading could be good for prediction markets, Polymarket changed its approach this spring, updating its market integrity rules and announcing a partnership with Palantir for its US-based sports markets (the Chainalysis deal focuses on the offshore platform). The company did not respond to WIRED’s request for comments for this story.
According to Chainalysis spokesperson Maddie Kenney, the company analyzes the same data for both clients. “The value Chainalysis adds for our customers, including Polymarket and the CFTC, is organizing the data and enriching it with the attributions and insights we've accumulated over years in the space,” she says. Certainly sounds like a good deal for Chainalysis!
Got a Tip?Are you a current or former government employee who wants to talk about what's happening? We'd like to hear from you. Using a nonwork phone or computer, contact the reporter securely on Signal at Kateknibbs.09.The CFTC's assurances that it is hunting insiders comes at a moment of intense scrutiny on prediction markets. In March, Connecticut senator Chris Murphy told WIRED that he suspected White House staffers were engaged in insider trading on war-related contracts. At the beginning of April, seven members of Congress asked the CFTC to investigate overseas markets offering war-themed events contracts. In a letter, the lawmakers argued that the commission had the authority and responsibility to curb insider trading, especially on “morally obscene” trades on military action. Selig recently told Congress that the company is pursuing “hundreds, if not thousands” of insider trading tips.
Investigations are not limited to federally regulated exchanges. “We’re surveilling the markets on a global basis,” he tells WIRED.
Selig says that the agency will exert extraterritorial jurisdiction—its legal ability to enforce its laws beyond traditional boundaries—when it finds suspicious activity on offshore platforms like Polymarket, though he says it’s a case-by-case approach. “We use it in extreme circumstances,” he says, with an eye towards whether charges have a strong chance of sticking in court. “In any extraterritorial litigation, there's going to be challenges to our authority, and that could also impair our ability to bring cases in the future.” According to Selig, the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act allows the CFTC more leeway to pursue this kind of enforcement action, by giving it more authority over foreign swap activities that impact the US. When appropriate, the agency works with regulators from other countries, too. “For cases where we’re not sure we’ll win, or it’s less in our wheelhouse and more of a foreign matter, we would relay it to a foreign regulator,” he says. “We’re constantly referring cases.” (The agency declined to specify which cases it had referred.)
So far, exactly one man has been charged with insider trading in the United States. On April 23, federal agents arrested a US Army special forces soldier for trades he made on Polymarket last year tied to the capture of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. After the arrest, Polymarket claimed that it had flagged the trade to the government.
Selig is insistent that the CFTC is only just getting started. The agency will identify wrongdoers, he says—no matter “how large or how small.”
Update 5/15/26 2:15pm ET: This story has been updated to reflect the location of the CFTC's headquarters.
The Gauge of Stability is surging! We have already accumulated a 500 GUSDC bounty to push back the darkness. Remember, this entire pool is the reward you will be fighting to win the moment the gauge fills and the World Boss spawns! Plus, we have rolled out a bunch of highly anticipated updates for you to explore.
🔄 The Give Back System Because you truly own your assets, you have the flexibility to utilize the “Give Back” system for the premium NFTs you bought. At any time, you can choose to give your item back to the ecosystem, provided it is the exact same NFT you originally purchased from the store (this option is not available for NFTs acquired through player trades).
Choosing to give back your item will burn the NFT and automatically close its specific liquidity position on the DEX, giving the resulting $GALA and GUSDC directly to your wallet. (Note: Because this relies on live decentralized exchange mechanics, the final token amount you receive may be more or less than the original 50% backing, depending on the position’s market performance and transaction fees).
The Cosmic Hunt is almost here with a GUARANTEED 1,000 GUSDC Bounty!
A massive Apex Threat is preparing to emerge from the shadows, and the hunt begins soon.
Every time players make NFT purchases using GUSDC, it contributes to filling the gauge.
Once the boss appears:
• 70% goes to the top damage dealer
• 30% of the bounty goes to the final hit
Stock up on strong potions, prepare your loadout, sharpen your strategy, and get your gear ready to dominate the leaderboard.
PANews reported on June 2 that Bybit Options' "Golden Treasure Hunt" event has officially launched. During the event period (June 1 to June 30), trading options will allow participants to share a total reward pool of 77,640 USDT.
The event features two tracks: Track A is the XAUT Lucky Draw (prize pool of 20,000 USDT), where the higher the trading volume, the more draws there are and the higher the chance of winning; Track B is the Trading Volume Leaderboard (up to 57,640 USDT can be unlocked), where the top 30 traders unlock corresponding reward tiers based on their total collective trading volume, and the highest reward tier can be unlocked when the collective trading volume exceeds 2 billion USD.
You're reading Crypto Long & Short, our weekly newsletter featuring insights, news and analysis for the professional investor. Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Wednesday.
Welcome to our institutional newsletter, Crypto Long & Short. This week:
Alex Tapscott on the stalling of the CLARITY Act and how it’s impacting the average American consumer.Aisha Hunt writes that crypto will grow by upgrading Wall Street’s trusted products rather than replacing them.Top headlines institutions should pay attention to by Helene Braun“RWA Perp Volume by Category: Equities Overtake Commodities” in Chart of the Week-Alexandra Levis
Expert Insights
What about the American consumer?By Alex Tapscott, CEO, CMCC Global Capital Markets
The little guy is getting lost in the political horse-trading around the CLARITY Act.
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee recently advanced the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act, legislation that, if enacted, could finally establish clear rules for digital assets in the United States. The bill has survived months of bipartisan negotiations and horse trading between banking interests and upstart fintech companies.
A bipartisan compromise brokered by Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) broke a log-jam that had slowed down the bill’s progress. In the end, the banks got most of what they wanted in this “deal”: the legislation explicitly prevents fintech platforms from treating stablecoins, digital assets backed by dollars, as interest bearing accounts, while still permitting them to pay rewards and bonuses, as banks and credit card issuers do.
That should have ended the debate. Yet banking lobby groups are demanding tighter restrictions to eliminate many forms of consumer rewards altogether. Clearly, they seek to squash this already compromised bill before a full Senate vote, so that it never reaches the Resolute Desk.
Lost amid the political wrangling of crypto and banking interests is the average American consumer.
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Americans paid roughly $5.8 billion in overdraft fees in 2023, even after years of industry efforts to reduce so-called “junk fees.” Overdraft charges disproportionately hit financially vulnerable households, with nearly 80% of fees concentrated among 9% of accounts. And then there are account minimums, wire charges and payment delays, which add friction. Meanwhile, the average savings rate is only 0.38%.
Consumers want financial services to move faster, cost less and earn them more.
Stablecoins are gaining popularity because they herald a world where digital dollars move across the internet as cheaply and seamlessly as a WhatsApp message. They can lower remittance costs, improve access to digital commerce, expedite real-time payments and create new ways for consumers to save, spend and transact online.
And Americans are asking for CLARITY because many already use these tools. According to the Crypto Council for Innovation, one in five American adults now owns cryptocurrency. That’s roughly 68.5 million people. Stablecoins are among the fastest-growing categories of digital assets, particularly among younger consumers, immigrants, freelancers and underserved communities seeking faster and cheaper financial tools. Four in five merchants believe accepting crypto could help attract new customers, while 73% of small business owners expect crypto payments to grow.
That’s what makes this debate so politically mystifying. For years, progressives argued that concentrated financial power harmed consumers and Main Street. They criticized large banks for extracting rents while lobbying against regulations that diluted bank influence. Those critiques were often correct. Today some of those progressives, like Elizabeth Warren, who championed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, are now defending banking profits against a technology that could inject real competition into financial services and empower consumers and small businesses.
Congress should pass CLARITY in its current form to benefit American consumers and preserve American competitiveness and leadership in the next era of financial technology. This lead is by no means assured: today, 88% of global crypto trading volume occurs on non-U.S.-based exchanges, while foreign-issued stablecoins account for 75% of stablecoin volume. Over the past decade, the U.S. share of global crypto developers has fallen from 38% to just 19%.
Do American politicians want their country to continue leading, or do they prefer watching such financial transformation from the sidelines?
In the 1990s, the Clinton administration helped usher in the commercial internet through the Telecommunications Act of 1996, a bipartisan effort expanding innovation and competition. Now, Congress has an opportunity to unleash the new internet of value by passing CLARITY.
Under GENIUS and CLARITY, stablecoin issuers must meet strong reserve requirements, transparency obligations, anti-money laundering standards, cybersecurity rules and consumer protections. Sensible public policy will unleash investment and innovation, as it did in the internet era.
This story need not end in conflict between banks and blockchains. Incumbents can just as easily embrace blockchain and its various benefits, from real-time global settlement and tokenized assets, to new forms of on-chain lending, payments, savings and commerce.
The question is whether lawmakers will vote to lead this next technological revolution and advance the interests of American consumers or cede the future to entrenched interests.
Principled Perspectives
Why Crypto May Need ETFs More Than ETFs Need CryptoBy Aisha Hunt, founder of Kelley Hunt, PLLC
Crypto spent its first decade trying to replace Wall Street. Its next trillion dollars may come from partnering with it. The first wave of tokenization focused on creating new assets, new venues and new systems outside traditional finance. Some of that innovation mattered. Much of it struggled with the same problem: markets do not scale on technology alone. They scale on trust, liquidity and distribution. That reality favors ETFs.
The ETF wrapper became one of the most successful financial products of the modern era because it solved practical investor problems at scale: low-cost access, transparency, intraday liquidity, operational simplicity and broad distribution across brokerage platforms and advisory channels.
Those advantages took decades to build. Tokenization does not erase them. In fact, it may amplify them. If blockchain rails can be integrated into ETFs, investors may not have to choose between innovation and protection. They could gain exposure to familiar products with the potential benefits of faster settlement, programmable ownership, collateral mobility and broader digital interoperability, all inside a structure already trusted by institutions, advisors and retail investors.
That is a far bigger commercial opportunity than asking trillions of dollars to migrate into unfamiliar vehicles. This is why one underappreciated development matters. On January 21, 2026, F/m Investments LLC and The RBB Fund, Inc. filed what is believed to be the first exemptive application by an ETF issuer seeking to tokenize shares of an exchange-traded fund, TBIL, the U.S. Treasury 3 Month Bill ETF. The proposal would record ownership on a permissioned blockchain ledger while preserving the same fund, same economics, same exchange listing and same regulatory framework. The application remains pending before the SEC, and there can be no assurance relief will be granted. That may sound like a niche legal filing. It is not. It is a test of whether capital markets modernization happens inside the regulatory perimeter or outside it.
That distinction matters to investors because the next major on-chain growth category may not be speculative tokens. It may be trusted yield, usable collateral and regulated exposure. Stablecoins already demonstrated the demand for digitally native dollars. The next logical step is digitally native instruments backed by real portfolios, real governance and real investor protections.
That is where tokenized ETFs could become powerful.
Imagine Treasury exposure that can plug into next-generation collateral networks. Imagine ETF shares that remain within familiar regulatory guardrails while operating on more modern rails. Imagine advisors and institutions accessing blockchain efficiency without having to underwrite experimental structures.
The first tokenization narrative was “replace incumbents.” The stronger narrative may be “upgrade incumbents.” That does not diminish crypto; it commercializes it.
For regulators, tokenized ETFs may offer a pragmatic path forward: enable innovation where investor protections remain intact, rather than pushing demand into parallel channels with greater uncertainty. For exchanges, custodians, brokers and market makers, it could create a new infrastructure layer around products investors already understand.
For issuers, it may become a race. The firms that combine trusted wrappers, credible assets and functional on-chain rails could capture disproportionate flows. And for allocators, the signal may be simple: blockchain technology is becoming less about novelty and more about plumbing.That is usually when real adoption begins.
The broader lesson is that distribution often beats disruption:
Who already has trusted wrappers?
Who already has liquidity?
Who already has access to advisors, retirement assets and institutions?
Who can bridge old rails and new rails fastest?
Those questions point toward ETFs.
The next trillion dollars of tokenized assets may not come from inventing something entirely new; they may come from upgrading what already works. Crypto’s first era was about building outside the system. Its next era may be about powering the system.
Headlines of the weekBy Helene Braun
A few of crypto's biggest debates converged this past week as Michael Saylor's Strategy (MSTR) sold bitcoin to fund preferred stock dividends, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon escalated his fight against yield-bearing stablecoins during the CLARITY Act debate, and Citi projected tokenized securities could grow into a $5.5 trillion market by 2030, driven by rising demand for onchain Treasuries and tokenized stocks.
Michael Saylor's Strategy sold 32 bitcoin for $2.5 million to fund dividend payments: The 8-K filing Monday says proceeds from the May 26–31 sale, executed at an average price of $77,135 per coin, will fund distributions on Strategy's preferred stock.‘The banks will not accept it’: Dimon escalates battle over stablecoin rewards in CLARITY Act debate: JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon criticized Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and warned the current CLARITY Act framework could ultimately fail, as banks and crypto firms clash over whether stablecoin issuers should be allowed to offer yield-bearing rewards that resemble bank deposits.Citi predicts the tokenized securities market will grow to $5.5 trillion by 2030: Stablecoins alone will generate a demand for up to $1 trillion worth of onchain U.S. Treasury bills and $2.6 trillion for tokenized stocks, said Citi.Chart of the Week
RWA Perp Volume by Category: Equities Overtake Commodities (excluding oil)RWA perps run ~$45–60 billion/week, and flow is rotating out of commodities into equities. Equities roughly tripled to ~$18 billion and just overtook the commodities (excluding oil) block, while oil faded after its April macro spike. This implies that crypto-venue derivatives are increasingly used for 24/7 equity exposure, with commodities now the episodic, event-driven slice.
XRP could be headed for one final drop toward the key $1 level before a larger recovery begins.
Analyst Arthur believes several technical and regulatory factors are lining up for a possible turning point. His comments come as XRP remains under pressure in the ongoing crypto market decline.
Notably, the token is currently trading at $1.13, down 2.21% over the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
Key Points Analyst Arthur says XRP could make one final move toward $1 before a stronger recovery begins. XRP has broken a long-term downtrend line, a sign that bearish momentum may be fading. Arthur sees the upcoming Clarity Act discussions as a potential catalyst for XRP’s next move. The CMC Altcoin Season Index fell 6.52%, signaling capital is rotating out of altcoins and into safer assets.
Analyst Targets $1 Liquidity Zone In a chart shared on X, Arthur highlighted XRP’s weekly structure. He pointed to the 0.786 Fibonacci retracement level near $1.17, noting that it has already been tested twice.
Arthur also noted that XRP has broken a long-term descending trendline that stretches back to its all-time high. This could be a sign that the downtrend is weakening. However, he does not believe the market is finished with the $1 area.
“$1.00 still sitting there. Full of liquidity,” Arthur wrote.
According to him, traders and market makers could push XRP down to $1, or even slightly below it, to trigger stop-loss orders and shake out weaker holders. He sees this as a final liquidity sweep before a stronger upward move begins.
The chart also identifies a support zone between $0.95 and $1.00. Arthur believes this area will be important if selling pressure continues.
Clarity Act as Potential Catalyst Arthur also pointed to the Clarity Act in the U.S. Senate as a possible catalyst for XRP. He noted that July 4 is a target date for progress on the legislation. That places the event about a month away.
In his view, regulatory clarity combined with improving market structure could create favorable conditions for XRP once the current correction ends.
Community Agrees With Shakeout Scenario Arthur’s analysis received support from Korean market commentator @free_salaryKR. The commentator described the $1 level as a “massive psychological magnet.”
He argued that a move into that area would be a classic liquidity hunt, forcing impatient traders out of their positions before a larger rally.
According to his analysis, the combination of a broken all-time-high trendline, Fibonacci support, and the Clarity Act timeline creates what he called a “textbook setup” for a potential reversal.
XRP Falls Alongside Broader Crypto Market Despite the bullish long-term outlook, XRP remains caught in a market downturn. CoinMarketCap data shows that total cryptocurrency market capitalization fell 2.07% over the past 24 hours.
Investor sentiment has also weakened sharply. The Fear & Greed Index currently sits at 17, signaling “Extreme Fear.”
Meanwhile, the CMC Altcoin Season Index dropped 6.52%. This suggests capital continues to move away from altcoins like XRP and into relatively safer assets during the current macro-driven sell-off.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has launched a new season of its ‘daily treasure hunt‘ campaign, introducing football match tickets and XAUT rewards while offering eligible participants the opportunity to earn a share of 300,000 USDT in daily rewards through trading and platform engagement activities. As the latest edition of Bybit’s ongoing daily treasure hunt rewards program, the campaign encourages users to earn points through everyday activities across the platform, including trading, exploring products and participating in special missions.
This season features an expanded rewards pool, with football match tickets and XAUT airdrop rewards worth up to 100 USDT added to the scratch card prize pool.
XAUT airdrop rewards have also been introduced to the redemption pool, providing participants with additional opportunities to earn rewards throughout the campaign.
Participants can accumulate points by completing daily trading tasks, engagement activities and limited-time missions.
Trading tasks begin with as little as 10 USDT in trading volume, while additional points can be earned through interactions with Bybit products, events and features.
Users may also accelerate their point accumulation by completing special missions tied to new product offerings.
Points can be redeemed for scratch cards at a rate of 50 points per draw.
The campaign will make up to one million scratch cards available, giving participants opportunities to win a variety of rewards, including football match tickets, USDT rewards and XAUT airdrops.
Individual scratch cards may award prizes worth up to 1,000 USDT, subject to availability.
In addition to scratch card prizes, participants can redeem points for rewards including boost coupons, VIP trial passes, USDT airdrops and XAUT airdrop rewards worth up to 100 USDT.
Reward redemptions begin at 300 points.
The campaign’s pre-registration period will run from June 2, 2026, at 3:00 a.m. PST to June 9, 2026, at 2:59 a.m. PST.
The event period will take place from June 9, 2026, at 3:00 a.m. PST to July 14, 2026, at 2:59 a.m. PST, followed by a redemption period from July 14, 2026, at 3:00 a.m. PST to July 17, 2026, at 2:59 a.m. PST.
Logged-in users who visit the event page during the registration period will be automatically enrolled in the campaign.
Points earned throughout the event will continue to accumulate and will not reset. Any unused points remaining after the redemption period ends will expire.
Participation is open to users who have completed individual identity verification level one or business verification and who reside in eligible jurisdictions.
Subaccounts, market makers, institutional users, VIP users and Pro users are not eligible to participate. The campaign is also unavailable to users residing in the European Economic Area.
#Bybit / #NewFinancialPlatform
About Bybit Bybit is the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, serving a global community of over 80 million users.
Founded in 2018, Bybit is redefining openness in the decentralized world by creating a simpler, open and equal ecosystem for everyone.
With a strong focus on Web 3.0, Bybit partners strategically with leading blockchain protocols to provide robust infrastructure and drive on-chain innovation.
Renowned for its secure custody, diverse marketplaces, intuitive user experience and advanced blockchain tools, Bybit bridges the gap between TradFi and DeFi (decentralized finance), empowering builders, creators and enthusiasts to unlock the full potential of Web 3.0.
Discover the future of DeFi at Bybit.com.
For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press.
For media inquiries, please contact the email below.
For updates, please follow Bybit’s communities and social media.
China-nexus adversaries attacked the technology sector more than any other industry over the past year, stealing artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities and intellectual property (IP) that Beijing cannot build fast enough on its own, CrowdStrike said.
The cybersecurity firm tracked activity from April 2025 to March 2026, linking it to Beijing’s drive for technological self-sufficiency and its stated goal of global AI leadership by 2030.
Why China Targets the Technology SectorTechnology firms are where the most valuable AI development now sits. That concentration has pushed the sector to the top of attackers’ target lists. CrowdStrike attributed more than 58% of state-sponsored targeted intrusions against tech to China-nexus groups.
AI capabilities rank as the highest-value intelligence collection target. Beijing can apply those capabilities to military modernization, economic growth, and intelligence gathering.
“Technology entities in general serve as a strategic target for China-nexus adversaries because access to such entities provides high-value intelligence collection as well as access to downstream customer environments that can enable potential supply chain compromises,” the report read.
Several named groups drove the campaigns, including MURKY PANDA, MUSTANG PANDA, OVERCAST PANDA, SUNRISE PANDA, and WARP PANDA. MURKY PANDA’s password-spraying operation alone hit more than 340 US-based entities.
Follow us on X to get the latest news as it happens
China-Nexus Adversaries Targeting the Technology Sector. Source: CrowdStrikeThe AI Race Driving the EspionageCrowdStrike frames the espionage as industrial policy aimed at closing China’s AI innovation gap. Adam Meyers, who heads counter-adversary operations at CrowdStrike, explained that each leap in AI capability rewards the developer with an advantage and hands intruders a new way in.
“China runs cyberespionage as an industrial policy to try to close the AI innovation gap, demonstrating that AI capabilities are the prize adversaries are after. Whether you’re building AI or adopting it, security has to be built in from the start,” Meyers said.
The firm expects China to keep prioritizing technology entities for at least 12 months. It cited US-China decoupling, sanctions enforcement, and economic espionage as the main drivers.
The findings sharpen a wider debate over the US lead in AI. Anthropic has argued that Washington could lock in a 12 to 24-month advantage over China through curbs on chip smuggling, offshore data centers, and model distillation.
Therefore, the coming year will test whether export controls and security investments can protect that edge, even as adversaries target the tools used to build AI itself.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch leaders and journalists provide expert insights
Fetch.ai is bringing its Agent Execution Verification System to Product Hunt, marking what the company calls the first on-chain tool designed to generate independently verifiable cryptographic receipts for actions performed by AI agents.
Think of it as a notarized paper trail for robots. Every time an AI agent claims it processed a refund, executed a payment, or completed a task, AEVS creates a tamper-evident record that anyone can audit.
What AEVS actually does AEVS generates public audit trails for agent-executed actions like refunds and payments. These aren’t just log files sitting on a server somewhere. They’re cryptographic receipts anchored on-chain, meaning they can’t be altered after the fact without leaving evidence of tampering.
Advertisement
The verification mechanism works by creating independently verifiable proofs for each action an AI agent performs. When an agent claims “refund processed,” AEVS provides the cryptographic evidence to back that claim up.
The market noticed When AEVS first launched on May 12, 2026, FET climbed 3.15% within 11 hours. That might sound modest, but context matters. The broader crypto market dropped 0.87% during the same window, making the move a roughly 4% outperformance against the prevailing trend.
Fetch.ai’s decision to bring AEVS to Product Hunt is notable in itself. Product Hunt is traditionally a launchpad for consumer tech and SaaS products, not blockchain infrastructure. The planned Product Hunt appearance is scheduled for June 10-11, 2026.
Fetch.ai’s bigger picture AEVS doesn’t exist in isolation. Back in December 2025, the company demonstrated the world’s first AI-to-AI payment, where autonomous agents transacted with each other without human intervention. AEVS is essentially the accountability layer that makes those kinds of interactions trustworthy at scale.
Fetch.ai operates within the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance, a collaborative framework that combines resources and technology from SingularityNET and CUDOS. This alliance pools AI research, decentralized computing power, and agent infrastructure into a shared ecosystem, giving Fetch.ai access to a broader technology stack than it could build alone.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
The Anchor of Stability has reached its absolute limit!!!
💰 Claim Your Share of 1,000 GUSDC Bounty! The event is completely open to everyone, meaning any adventurer can step into the darkness and join the fight. Once the massive World Boss is defeated, the bounty will be distributed as follows:
70% of the bounty goes to the single player who deals the most cumulative damage throughout the entire event! 30% of the bounty goes to the single player who lands the final strike! (Note: To ensure a completely fair fight, rewards enter a 24-48 hour holding period for an eligibility check before being distributed via a manual drop to the winners). ⚔️ How to Play & Join the Hunt:
Find the Threat: The World Boss is currently hidden deep within the impenetrable darkness. Explore the uncharted wilderness to track it down and be the first to discover its exact location! Engage in Skirmishes: Because combat is an autobattler, the boss cannot be defeated in a single encounter. Entering the boss hex initiates a skirmish lasting a maximum of 5 combat rounds. Chip Away at the Global HP: Any damage you deal before dying or retreating is permanently subtracted from the boss’s massive Global HP pool, which updates in real-time for everyone on the server. Retreat and Restock: The boss deals brutal damage and will dynamically change its stats or stances as it loses health. You must carefully manage your Energy and HP. If you wipe out, you will be sent back to your last visited Town. Retreat to nearby towns to heal your Exemplars and buy strong potions before jumping back into the fray. Gear Up for the Challenges Ahead: The Sparkforge Collection is Available!
The Eternal Night grows darker — and your Echo needs every advantage. The Sparkforge Collection is now live in the Global Store, bringing a full set of powerful equipment forged for the battles ahead.
Head to the Global Store, connect your wallet, and secure your Sparkforge gear before it’s gone.
Log in with your Gala Wallet, check your armor and inventory, and secure your strong armor and potions. The Eternal Night is pressing in, but fortune favors the bold!
Americans lost a record-breaking $20.9 billion to cybercrime last year due to a surge in cybercrime. In response, the FBI is cracking down harshly against crypto scammers.
FBI Director Kash Patel took to social media to warn those decentralized financial systems to avoid accruing ill-gotten gains.
Crypto Fraudsters have been scamming and taking advantage of the America people for too long.
No more! This FBI will find you, and we will bring you to justice!
-DKP🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/qfJU9hCKnn
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) June 19, 2026 According to the IC3 report, cryptocurrency-related fraud now makes up more than half of all cybercrime losses in the United States, reaching a staggering $11 billion.
The pseudonymous nature of blockchain makes it possible for scammers to avoid traditional financial tracking.
HOT Stories
You Might Also Like
Investment fraud accounted for $10.7 billion of the overall cybercrime losses, which is the costliest category.
Criminals rely on an array of sophisticated tactics that include "pig butchering", fake exchanges, liquidity pool scams, as well as fraudulent decentralized finance (DeFi) that are meant to siphon off crypto from uninitiated victims.
Who is getting hit the hardest? Unsurprisingly, elderly Americans are the most vulnerable demographic, accounting for nearly a third of the total losses last year.
Older adults typically fall for investment traps, romance scams, tech support fraud, and so on. Their retirement accounts can be potentially wiped out in a matter of days (as evidenced by countless media reports in various states).
California, Texas, and Florida were the top states by cryptocurrency losses.
However, the FBI is not asleep at the wheel. The bureau has managed to freeze more than 3,000 illicit cryptocurrency wallets, thus saving more than $500 million.
The most recent social media statement indicates that the FBI plans to expand these asset-recovery and tracking operations.
