Senator Cynthia Lummis wants to make sure the next time a crypto project implodes, customers aren’t left holding an empty bag. The Wyoming Republican is pushing the CLARITY Act through the Senate, a bill designed to keep customer digital assets legally separated from the firms that hold them, even when those firms go belly up.
The legislation, formally known as the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025 (H.R. 3633), already cleared the House and is now awaiting Senate deliberation. Lummis put it simply on July 20, 2026: “your crypto stays yours.”
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What the CLARITY Act actually does The bill tackles two problems that have plagued crypto markets since the industry’s spectacular string of failures. First, it establishes that customer digital assets must remain distinct from company assets in bankruptcy proceedings. Second, the CLARITY Act draws clearer jurisdictional lines between the SEC and the CFTC, settling which agency handles what and creating a more predictable regulatory environment for firms and investors alike.
The legislation earmarks approximately $150 million specifically to combat crypto scams, bolster anti-money laundering capabilities, and give law enforcement the tools for real-time interdictions against fraudulent operations.
The Senate Banking Committee has been working through discussions on the bill since 2025, building on the House version. Senate action is targeted for July 2026.
The Terra-shaped hole in crypto regulation Terra’s collapse wiped out tens of billions in value practically overnight, turning a supposedly stable ecosystem into a cautionary tale about systemic risk in digital assets. The cascade of failures that followed exposed a fundamental problem: when crypto companies go bankrupt, customers often discover that the assets they thought were theirs have been commingled, rehypothecated, or simply mismanaged beyond recovery. The CLARITY Act introduces standardized custody protocols for digital assets, creating a framework that didn’t exist when the dominoes started falling.
What this means for investors If the CLARITY Act passes the Senate, for retail investors the immediate impact is legal certainty that their digital assets belong to them, not to their platform’s balance sheet. For institutional investors, the bill clearly delineates SEC and CFTC jurisdiction, mandates asset segregation, and funds enforcement infrastructure. The $150 million anti-fraud allocation signals a philosophical shift toward prevention and real-time intervention rather than reactive enforcement after damage is done.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
The last time the stablecoin market contracted this sharply in a single month, Terra-Luna was imploding and crypto was entering a year-long winter. That was May 2022. Now, four years later, the market is doing something similar in size, minus the existential crisis.
The total stablecoin market cap fell by approximately $7.7 billion in June 2026, the largest monthly dollar decline since that infamous collapse. That drop pulled the aggregate market down roughly $10 billion from its May 2026 peak, leaving the total sitting around $312 billion.
Where the money went Tether’s USDT fell by roughly $6 billion, sliding from approximately $190 billion in May to around $184 billion. Circle’s USDC dropped from nearly $80 billion at its March 2026 peak to approximately $73 billion. Together, those two contractions account for the bulk of the headline number.
In percentage terms, the overall pullback clocks in at around 3%. For context, the 2022 bear market wiped out roughly 26% of stablecoin supply at its worst.
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Why this matters for crypto markets Stablecoins are the plumbing of crypto. They are the primary trading pairs on most exchanges, the dominant form of on-chain liquidity, and the default settlement layer for everything from DeFi protocols to institutional OTC desks.
When stablecoin supply contracts, that liquidity has to come from somewhere else, or it simply does not show up. Reduced stablecoin supply generally translates to lower trading volumes, tighter on-chain liquidity, and a market that has less dry powder available to absorb selling pressure or fuel new buying.
Paul Howard, an analyst at Wincent, described the current decline as a small fluctuation within an overall growth trajectory, signaling that investors are not in panic mode.
The broader stablecoin market has grown from under $50 billion in early 2020 to over $300 billion at peak supply.
New competition is changing the landscape While USDT and USDC absorbed the headline losses, newer regulated stablecoin issuers have been quietly gaining traction. The GENIUS Act and other regulatory clarity efforts in the US have opened the door for banks, fintechs, and payment processors to enter the stablecoin space with compliant, government-approved products.
That competition will not displace Tether overnight. USDT’s roughly $184 billion market cap gives it a gravitational pull that no newcomer can challenge in the short term.
For Circle, the dynamic cuts both ways. USDC is the preferred stablecoin for regulated institutions and compliance-conscious DeFi protocols, which should benefit from the regulatory clarity trend. But the same environment that legitimizes USDC also legitimizes every bank-issued stablecoin trying to carve into its market.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Key Highlights Stablecoin market capitalization declined approximately $10 billion from its May 2026 all-time high The month of June alone saw $7.7 billion in supply reduction, marking the steepest monthly contraction since TerraUSD’s implosion in May 2022 Tether’s USDT supply contracted from $190B to $184B; Circle’s USDC fell from $80B to $73B Transaction volumes reached unprecedented levels at $1.78 trillion in June, even as supply decreased Market observers characterize the downturn as temporary consolidation rather than a new bear market The aggregate stablecoin market has contracted by approximately $10 billion following its all-time high in May 2026. Current total supply stands at roughly $312 billion, representing a notable retreat from recent peaks.
Stablecoin Market Loses $10B Since May in Biggest Retreat Since the Terra Crash
According to CoinDesk, stablecoin market capitalization has fallen by roughly $10 billion from its May peak, including a $7.7 billion drop in June—the largest monthly decline in dollar terms since… pic.twitter.com/RafAPoaerJ
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) July 12, 2026
June 2026 marked the most significant monthly contraction for stablecoins measured in absolute dollars since the catastrophic Terra-Luna ecosystem failure in 2022. The market shed $7.7 billion throughout the month, translating to approximately 2.4% of total supply.
The market’s two dominant players accounted for the bulk of this contraction. Tether’s USDT circulating supply decreased from approximately $190 billion in May to roughly $184 billion. Circle’s USDC token declined from a March 2026 high of nearly $80 billion to approximately $73 billion.
These two stablecoins maintain overwhelming market dominance. USDT alone represents nearly 59% of all stablecoin supply currently in circulation.
Implications of Declining Stablecoin Supply Stablecoins function as the primary settlement mechanism throughout cryptocurrency trading platforms and decentralized finance protocols. Supply contractions typically signal that market participants are converting their holdings to fiat currency or withdrawing capital from digital asset markets entirely.
This withdrawal diminishes the available dollar-denominated liquidity for purchasing Bitcoin, Ethereum, and alternative cryptocurrencies, creating headwinds for price appreciation across the sector.
The supply decrease coincided with broader weakness in cryptocurrency markets. U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds experienced over $4 billion in net outflows during June, representing their worst monthly performance since launching. These parallel trends indicate simultaneous weakening of both institutional investment channels and on-chain market participation.
Despite supply contraction, on-chain transaction activity remained robust. Adjusted stablecoin transaction volume climbed to an all-time high of $1.78 trillion throughout June. USDC facilitated approximately $1.21 trillion in transfers, while USDT processed $573 billion.
Divergence from 2022 Bear Market Dynamics Industry analysts maintain a measured perspective on the current downturn. Paul Howard, senior director at trading firm Wincent, characterized the decline as “a relatively small pullback in what we believe is a long-term growth market.”
The present contraction of roughly 3% pales in comparison to the devastating 26% supply collapse witnessed during 2022’s bear market, which followed multiple catastrophic failures including Terra-Luna, FTX’s bankruptcy, and the insolvencies of Celsius and BlockFi.
A comparable pattern emerged between December 2025 and February 2026, when stablecoin supply contracted by $9 billion before rebounding to establish new records.
Emerging competitors continue gaining market share. Global Dollar, a Paxos-issued stablecoin backed by a consortium including Robinhood, exceeded $3.2 billion in circulation. USDGO, issued by Anchorage Digital, nearly doubled its supply to $900 million.
The U.S. GENIUS Act established comprehensive federal regulation for payment stablecoins, attracting additional issuers and fundamentally restructuring market dynamics.
Tokenized real-world assets demonstrated inverse performance during this period. Their aggregate on-chain valuation surpassed $30 billion in 2026, with tokenized equity transaction volume surging 145% in June to reach a record $3.86 billion.
Market participants now await July supply data, ETF flows, and exchange metrics to determine whether capital is returning to the ecosystem or if the downturn will persist.
The total market capitalization of stablecoins has quietly shrunk by $10 billion since May, with $7.7 billion of that decline occurring in June alone, data highlighted by CoinDesk reveals. It marks the steepest monthly dollar outflow for the sector since the catastrophic Terra-Luna implosion in May 2022. For a market that has grown accustomed to ceaseless expansion, a contraction of this size raises immediate questions about the health of crypto liquidity channels. Yet one analyst suggests there is little reason to sound alarm bells, pointing to structural demand drivers that remain firmly in place.
The pullback is concentrated among the largest centralized stablecoins, not fringe algorithmic experiments. That detail alone explains why the mood among professional observers hasn’t turned sour. During Terra’s collapse, a $40 billion ecosystem evaporated in days, dragging leveraged DeFi protocols and centralised lenders into insolvency. Today, the drop reflects outflows from trading pairs on major exchanges, profit-taking after the first-half rally in digital assets, and perhaps a temporary rotation into higher-yielding tokenized treasury products. None of those forces imply systemic fragility.
June’s Record Outflow A $7.7 billion monthly decline is not trivial. Stablecoin supply acts as a rough gauge of on-chain purchasing power and trading appetite. When it contracts, spot volumes often follow, and that pattern has held in recent weeks. Exchange order books are thinner. DeFi lending pools on Ethereum and Solana have seen modest liquidity tightening. For traders who track stablecoin velocity as a leading indicator, the signal is worth watching.
Still, the composition of the decline is telling. Tether’s USDT shed about $5 billion over the period, while Circle’s USDC lost roughly $2 billion. The rest came from smaller issuers. In previous cycles, redemptions at this speed would have been accompanied by a credit event or a regulatory shock. That is absent. Issuers are maintaining their reserves and redemption mechanisms without a hitch, suggesting the flight is voluntary and orderly.
Why This Time Is Different The post-Terra regulatory and structural environment has fundamentally changed the stablecoin landscape. New legislative efforts, including a landmark US crypto bill that has faced fierce last-minute pushback from banking interests, are still moving toward a framework that could cement stablecoins as regulated payment instruments rather than shadow money. The legislative battle, covered in a recent update on banking opposition, demonstrates that the political class is finally engaging with the sector, not ignoring it. For institutional capital, that legislative clarity, even if still in flux, reduces tail risk.
Meanwhile, the expansion of tokenized real-world assets has created a new demand anchor for stablecoins. On-chain treasuries and private credit pools now routinely settle in USDC or USDT. A recent weekly tokenization roundup showed that real-world assets crossed $20 billion in on-chain value, with major institutions like JPMorgan running live settlement. Every tokenized trade requires a stablecoin leg, creating a structural bid that didn’t exist three years ago. A contraction of a few billion dollars does little to dismantle that infrastructure.
Liquidity Fears and the Bigger Picture The fear among traders is that shrinking stablecoin balances foreshadow a broader liquidity drain, forcing leveraged positions to unwind. That narrative has circulated during past supply dips, but the current data is more nuanced. Developer activity across the major blockchains remains robust, as evidenced by the latest rankings of blockchain developer activity. Ethereum, BNB Chain, Polygon, and Solana continue to attract builders, and developer engagement is often a leading indicator of future user and capital inflows. If protocols keep shipping, they will need liquidity, and stablecoins will return.
What is less certain is the timeline. If US yields stay elevated and traditional fintech apps offer competitive interest on fiat balances, the opportunity cost of holding yield-free stablecoins remains high. A prolonged sideways period could keep a lid on the aggregate market cap. For exchanges, this means thinner fee revenue; for DeFi protocols, it pressures total value locked. Centralised exchanges may accelerate promotional campaigns for stablecoin staking or yield-bearing products to retain deposits. The next few months will reveal whether the outflow stabilizes or deepens.
What Comes Next The analyst cited in the CoinDesk report views the contraction as a pause, not a reversal of the long-term growth trend that has seen the stablecoin market rise from $120 billion in early 2023 to over $200 billion before the recent dip. The baseline assumption is that as regulatory rails firm up and real-world asset settlement expands, stablecoin demand will resume its upward march. The more cautious question is whether the market has become too dependent on centralized issuers whose growth is now being moderated by higher interest rates and compliance costs.
For the crypto ecosystem, the stablecoin outflow is a reminder that liquidity is never guaranteed. It encourages market participants to watch not just price charts, but the plumbing—the flow of capital on and off chain. While the panic is unwarranted, the vigilance is not.
AUTHOR
Mushumir Butt is a seasoned crypto journalist with over three years of experience reporting on the world of blockchain and cryptocurrency. At Blockchain Reporter, he delivers insightful news, in‐depth project reviews, and precise price analysis and predictions. With a strong background in SEO and digital marketing, Mushumir excels at breaking down complex trends into clear, accessible content, ensuring readers stay ahead in the fast‐paced crypto space.
The stablecoin market has shrunk by roughly $10 billion since its May peak, including a $7.7 billion decline just in June.On a percentage basis, though, it was just a 3% fall; still modest compared with the 26% contraction during the 2022 crypto bear market.Newer regulated issuers are beginning to chip away at the dominance of USDT and USDC, according to data.The stablecoin market posted its biggest retreat in years in June, a sign that onchain liquidity has dwindled as crypto markets continued to consolidate near 2026 lows.
Last month saw a $7.7 billion decline in stablecoin market capitalization, the largest dollar amount since May 2022, when blockchain protocol Terra-Luna collapsed, kickstarting a brutal bear market often dubbed as crypto winter, CoinDesk Data reported.
Stablecoin market capitalization (CoinDesk Data)Zooming out, the total value of stablecoins in circulation has fallen ny roughly roughly $10 billion since its May peak, according to data from RWA.xyz. It's about a 3% drop on a percentage basis, the largest such downtrend since 2023, but well shy of 2022's 26% collapse.
The decline has been driven mainly by the two dominant issuers. Tether's USDT, the largest stablecoin, has seen its market capitalization fall to roughly $184 billion from $190 billion in May, a decline of about $6 billion. Circle's USDC has dropped to around $73 billion from its March 2026 peak of just shy of $80 billion, shedding another $7 billion.
The setback is notable because it runs counter to the bullish outlooks of Wall Street banks on stablecoin growth. Last year, global bank Citi revised its stablecoin growth forecast for 2030 to $1.9 trillion in its base case and $4 trillion in a bull case, up from $1.6 trillion and $3.7 trillion, respectively. Standard Chartered projected a $2 trillion market by 2028.
The decline also carries broader relevance for the crypto market. Major stablecoins are widely used as the quote currency for crypto trading and increasingly for payments and settlement, making changes in their supply a closely watched gauge of liquidity flowing into or out of digital assets.
Nothing like the 2022 crypto winterThe pullback may seem dramatic, but it's modest by historical standards.
A similar pullback occurred between December 2025 and February 2026, when stablecoin supply fell by roughly $9 billion before bouncing to a new record. That coincided with a major correction in cryptocurrencies, with bitcoin plunging from around $95,000 to $60,000.
Altogether, the stablecoin market has largely stalled around $300 billion since October (coinciding with bitcoin hitting its $126,000 record) after more than doubling in size in two years.
The 2022 bear market, marked by major implosions like crypto exchange FTX and lenders Celsius, BlockFi and Genesis, was far more severe for stablecoins.
The combined market capitalization of major stablecoins fell from roughly $166 billion in March 2022 to $122 billion by September 2023, RWA.xyz data shows — a decline of over 26% as investors pulled money from the digital asset market.
Tether's USDT fell from $78 billion to $65 billion between March and November 2022. For USDC, the downtrend took much longer to play out, falling from $55 billion in July 2022 to below $24 billion by November 2023, exacerbated by its banking partner Silicon Valley Bank's collapse in 2023 March.
The implosion of TerraUSD, the algorithmic stablecoin of the Terra-Luna crypto project, also wiped out $18 billion from the stablecoin market.
The current decline is only a temporary setback in a long-term uptrend, one analyst said.
"The recent decline in stablecoin market cap represents a relatively small pullback in what we believe is a long-term growth market," said Paul Howard, senior director at trading firm Wincent.
"Short-term fluctuations in liquidity are normal, but they don’t change our view that stablecoins will continue to play an increasingly important role in the digital asset ecosystem," he added.
Increasing stablecoin competitionLooking beyond the headline decline, the trend appears more nuanced.
Part of the slowdown reflects a changing competitive landscape. As stablecoins move beyond crypto trading and into mainstream payments, new issuers have entered the market following regulatory progress such as the GENIUS Act in the U.S.
While Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC have both seen supply decline recently, several smaller competitors have expanded. Global Dollar (USDG), issued by Paxos and backed by a consortium including Robinhood, surpassed $3.2 billion in circulation, while USDGO, issued by Anchorage Digital with Hong Kong's OSL Group, nearly doubled to $900 million, CoinGecko data shows.
More competition is on the way, too. OpenUSD, backed by a group of payments and financial firms, is among several newcomers looking to challenge the dominance of USDT and USDC.
Even so, stablecoin growth has historically coincided with bull markets by providing fresh onchain buying power. Shrinking aggregate supply removes a tailwind for crypto markets, making it harder for cryptocurrencies to sustain rallies unless new demand emerges.
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Digital Assets: Quarterly Review and Outlook Q2
Digital Assets: Quarterly Review and Outlook Q2
Digital assets posted a third consecutive quarter of losses in Q2 2026, the longest losing streak since the 2022 bear market, as institutional capital rotated into AI equities and Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest quarterly outflow since launch. Our report examines what drove the divergence, where structural adoption continued regardless, and what Q3 signals to watch.
Jul 10, 2026
Digital assets posted a third consecutive quarter of losses in Q2 2026, the longest losing streak since the 2022 bear market, as institutional capital rotated into AI equities and Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest quarterly outflow since launch. Our report examines what drove the divergence, where structural adoption continued regardless, and what Q3 signals to watch.
Why it matters:
Digital assets posted a third consecutive quarter of losses in Q2 2026, the longest losing streak since the 2022 bear market, as institutional capital rotated into AI equities and Bitcoin ETFs recorded their largest quarterly outflow since launch. Our report examines what drove the divergence, where structural adoption continued regardless, and what Q3 signals to watch.
PANews, July 12 news, according to CoinDesk report, the stablecoin market in June saw its largest pullback in recent years, with total market cap shrinking by $7.7 billion that month, the biggest single-month decline since the Terra-Luna collapse in May 2022. Since the peak in May, the stablecoin market has cumulatively shrunk by about $10 billion, with a total market cap decline of about 3%. Among them, two major stablecoin issuers were the main drivers of this pullback. The market cap of USDT issued by Tether fell from about $190 billion in May to $184 billion, a decrease of about $6 billion; USDC issued by Circle retreated from a peak of nearly $80 billion in March 2026 to about $73 billion, a contraction of about $7 billion.
However, compared with the cumulative decline of over 26% in the stablecoin market during the crypto winter of 2022, the magnitude of this round of adjustment is still relatively mild. Data shows that from March 2022 to September 2023, the total market cap of major stablecoins fell from about $166 billion to $122 billion, during which the TerraUSD crash, FTX bankruptcy, and failures of multiple crypto lending institutions severely hit market liquidity.
Despite overall market pressure, the competitive landscape of the stablecoin industry is changing. As regulatory developments like the U.S. GENIUS Act drive the expansion of stablecoins into payment and settlement scenarios, more issuers are entering the fray. The circulation of USDG, issued by Paxos and supported by institutions such as Robinhood, has exceeded $3.2 billion, while the circulation of USDGO launched by Anchorage Digital and Hong Kong's OSL Group has nearly doubled to $900 million.
Wall Street institutions remain optimistic about the long-term prospects of stablecoins. Citi previously estimated that the global stablecoin market size would reach $1.9 trillion under a base-case scenario and $4 trillion under an optimistic scenario by 2030; Standard Chartered Bank predicts that the stablecoin market size will grow to $2 trillion by 2028. Analysts point out that stablecoin supply growth has historically been one of the important drivers of a crypto bull market, while the current overall supply contraction means reduced new on-chain liquidity. Without support from new capital demand, the difficulty for crypto assets to sustain their rise may increase.
The U.S.-Iran standoff in the Strait of Hormuz is approaching a dangerous tipping point, with military conflicts escalating anew.
US officials stated that the U.S. military conducted multiple strikes on missile and air defense systems at several sites around the Strait of Hormuz, as well as small vessels belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) an hour ago. Officials from Iran’s Qeshm Island confirmed that local time on Sunday afternoon, the enemy launched 10 to 11 missiles at Qeshm Island; all targeted military facilities, and no casualties were reported in the attack. Earlier, Iran announced it had launched an attack on a U.S. missile base in Kuwait. The ATACMS missile system facility at the U.S. military base in Kuwait was struck, with smoke rising at the scene. Meanwhile, Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that Israeli artillery carried out additional shelling in southern Lebanon. Two Israeli shells hit Kafr Tibtin town in Nabatieh District, southern Lebanon. The agency added that the attack originated from Israeli military positions in the occupied border area. In addition, Israel also shelled the town of Zawtar al-Sharqiya near Meifadoun.
1 hours ago
Iran launches an attack on the U.S. missile base in Kuwait.
According to Iran's Mehr News Agency, Iran launched an attack on a US missile base in Kuwait. The ATACMS missile system facility at the US military base in Kuwait was struck, with smoke rising at the scene. Iran's president also noted: "We are engaged in a complex economic war, and successfully overcoming this phase requires the active participation of citizens." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated: "Trump hopes to reach an agreement with Iran, particularly on the nuclear issue, but if Iran fails to abide by its commitments, he will not hesitate to use military force."
1 hours ago
A whale has collateralized 1.56 million kHYPE on the HyperlendX platform, borrowing 1.06 million WHYPE.
According to OnchainLens monitoring, a crypto whale deposited approximately $107.21 million in assets on the HyperlendX platform and borrowed around $70.94 million using this deposit as collateral. The address currently holds 1.56 million kHYPE as collateral, has borrowed 1.06 million WHYPE, with a health factor of 1.31, indicating relatively prudent operations. Additionally, the whale has staked 12,305 HPL.
1 hours ago
During the World Cup, high-frequency sports prediction whale swisstony emerged, with its account notching up over 139,000 predictions and generating nearly $20 million in profits.
Data from prediction market platform Predict.fun shows that top high-frequency sports trader swisstony emerged during the 2026 FIFA World Cup (co-hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico). Since entering the market in July 2025, the whale has generated total profits of $18.648 million, with a single largest profit of $1.2 million, having made a total of 139,304 predictions, and its profit curve has been steadily rising. Its World Cup prediction record is impressive: it excels in contrarian trades when popular odds are overvalued, amassing huge profits through high-frequency, small-margin trades. While average per-trade gains are modest, its stable win rate leads to strong cumulative returns. In June, the whale earned around $9.5 million by contrarian betting on popular teams including England, Spain, and Belgium, briefly becoming the platform’s 5th highest-earning user. Currently, swisstony is focusing on the France vs Spain match on July 14 (local time), placing heavy positions across multiple sub-markets for the game. Its core strategy remains making large volumes of "No" predictions—especially for low-probability exact scores—paired with some handicap and over/under bets. The whale consistently ranks at the top of prediction market monthly profit leaderboards, with a single-day profit exceeding $2 million. Analysts believe swisstony likely uses automated tools or real-time data to assist its trading.
1 hours ago
Data: 48% of Nasdaq 100 constituent stocks have corrected over 20% from their respective peaks, while 64% still trade above their 200-day moving average.
In the Nasdaq 100, 48% of constituent stocks have corrected at least 20% from their respective peaks. This proportion has doubled over the past 12 months, but remains lower than the 60% level recorded before the market bottomed at the end of March, and is still short of the extreme 80% hit during the 2022 bear market. Meanwhile, 64% of constituents are still trading above their 200-day moving average, near the year's highest level — a figure that stood at just 38% before the market bottomed on March 30. The rally in the U.S. stock index is increasingly relying on a small number of stocks for support.
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Analysis: BTC reclaiming the $70,700 level is the primary signal of a trend reversal, with some long-term investors accumulating at lower levels.
Analyst Darkfost points out that Bitcoin trading below the Short-Term Holder (STH) cost base is a hallmark of every bear market cycle. BTC has remained below this level for over nine months. The STH cost base currently stands at $70,700 and has consistently acted as a resistance level. In May, Bitcoin attempted to test the nearby level of roughly $82,000, only to pull back immediately. Since then, the STH cost base has dropped significantly, signaling that some investors have accumulated positions at lower prices, lowering their average holding cost. However, the price has yet to effectively hold above this key level. The analysis notes that a sustained recovery above the STH cost base will mark the first positive signal. Bitcoin is currently trading in a range of $59,000 to $64,000, a notable distance from the $70,700 resistance level. If BTC can later break through and hold above this level effectively, it will mean the entire short-term holder cohort has exited unrealized losses, and market sentiment could shift from bearish defense to structural recovery. Conversely, if resistance persists, the STH cost base will continue to decline, potentially extending the bear market bottoming cycle.
TL;DR Stablecoin market capitalization fell by about $10 billion from its May peak, with June recording the biggest monthly dollar decline since the 2022 Terra crash. USDT’s supply dropped from around $190 billion to $184 billion, while USDC declined to approximately $73 billion, leading the overall contraction. Despite the headline decline, the stablecoin market shrank by only about 3%, indicating that most of the sector’s recent growth remains intact. Even as stablecoin supply declined, tokenized real-world assets reached new highs. The stablecoin market has recorded its largest monthly contraction since the collapse of TerraUSD in 2022, with total market capitalization falling by roughly $10 billion from its May peak.
While the decline has raised concerns about liquidity across the digital asset market, analysts note that the overall contraction remains relatively modest at around 3%, suggesting the sector continues to retain most of the gains accumulated over the past year.
The retreat comes as crypto markets navigate weaker investor sentiment, persistent ETF outflows, and heightened macroeconomic uncertainty that has weighed on demand for digital assets.
Tether’s USDT, the world’s largest stablecoin, accounted for much of the decline, with its circulating supply falling from roughly $190 billion to $184 billion. USDC also contracted, dropping to around $73 billion during the same period. Together, the two dominant dollar-backed stablecoins represent the overwhelming majority of on-chain liquidity used across centralized and decentralized crypto markets.
Stablecoin Data | Source: X Although the market lost billions of dollars in capitalization, the overall decline represented only a small percentage of the sector’s total value, highlighting that stablecoin adoption remains significantly higher than it was before the recent expansion cycle.
Stablecoin Market Liquidity Concerns Return to The Spotlight Stablecoins are widely viewed as the primary source of liquidity within the cryptocurrency ecosystem because they are commonly used to enter and exit positions without converting back into traditional fiat currencies.
A shrinking stablecoin supply is often interpreted as a sign that capital is leaving digital asset markets or remaining on the sidelines. The combined supply of USDT and USDC had been falling since early May, reflecting weaker on-chain liquidity during a period marked by declining crypto prices and softer institutional inflows.
The reduction also coincided with several weeks of net outflows from U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, reinforcing concerns that investor demand cooled during June.
Despite the decline in supply, trading activity remained relatively resilient. Stablecoin trading volume on centralized exchanges rose 10.8% in June to approximately $981 billion, marking the first monthly increase in five months. The increase suggests that stablecoins continue to play a central role in crypto trading even as total circulating supply contracts.
Tokenized Assets Continue Expanding While stablecoins experienced their sharpest pullback in years, tokenized real-world assets continued moving in the opposite direction.
Recent data found that the total market capitalization of tokenized assets climbed to a record $30.1 billion in June, driven by continued growth in tokenized U.S. Treasuries and public equities. Tokenized Treasury products alone expanded to approximately $17 billion, while tokenized equity trading volumes surged to fresh highs during the month.
The contrasting trends suggest that although short-term liquidity has weakened, institutional interest in blockchain-based financial infrastructure continues to grow.
The broader stablecoin sector is also benefiting from increasing regulatory clarity. Recent developments include new licensing approvals for major issuers and expanding institutional support for dollar-backed digital assets.
Circle, the issuer of USDC, recently received approval to operate as a federally regulated trust bank in the United States, allowing it to directly oversee reserves backing its stablecoin as it now dominates over USDT. The move reflects growing integration between traditional finance and digital asset infrastructure despite the recent market slowdown.
Market participants will now be watching whether stablecoin issuance resumes in the coming months. A return to supply growth would likely signal renewed capital entering the crypto ecosystem, while continued contraction could point to a more cautious investment environment during the second half of the year.
The stablecoin sector has experienced its largest single-month decline since the collapse of TerraUSD in 2022, with total market capitalization falling by approximately $10 billion from its peak in May. Although this represents the steepest monthly drop in over two years, the contraction only accounts for about 3% of the sector’s total value, indicating that much of the gains from recent growth remain in place.
Leading stablecoins drive contractionTether (USDT), the most widely used stablecoin globally, saw its circulating supply fall from nearly $190 billion to $184 billion in recent weeks. Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) also contributed to the sector’s decline, with its total supply sliding to around $73 billion over the same period. As the two largest dollar-backed stablecoins, USDT and USDC together dominate on-chain liquidity for both centralized and decentralized exchanges.
Despite the significant dollar reduction, stablecoins’ total market capitalization remains well above levels seen prior to the recent expansion phase, signaling continued adoption across the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
StablecoinMay SupplyCurrent SupplyDollar ChangeUSDT$190 billion$184 billion– $6 billionUSDC~$74 billion~$73 billion– $1 billionMarket analysts have noted that recent stablecoin outflows are coinciding with reduced risk appetite in digital assets, persistent outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs, and macroeconomic uncertainty affecting broader investor participation in cryptocurrencies.
Liquidity and trading activityStablecoins, serving as the main source of liquidity in the crypto market, are widely used for moving capital in and out of digital asset positions without the need to convert back into traditional fiat currencies. A declining stablecoin supply is often interpreted as capital exiting crypto markets or waiting on the sidelines, and recent numbers align with this sentiment.
Data shows that the combined supply of USDT and USDC had been falling since early May, mirroring slower trading activity and softer institutional inflows into the sector. This reduction overlapped with a multi-week stretch of net outflows from US spot Bitcoin ETFs, further reflecting wariness among investors in June.
Despite these factors, trading volumes for stablecoins on centralized exchanges rose 10.8% to nearly $981 billion in June. This marked the first monthly growth in five months, underlining stablecoins’ enduring role at the heart of daily crypto trading activity.
Growth in tokenized real-world assetsIn contrast to the stablecoin supply contraction, tokenized real-world assets have continued to expand. The total market cap of these assets reached a record $30.1 billion in June, fueled by the ongoing growth of tokenized US Treasuries and public equities. Tokenized Treasury products alone grew to about $17 billion, as equity trading volumes rose to new heights.
Mini dictionary: Tokenized real-world assets, also called RWAs, are traditional financial assets such as government bonds, real estate, or public equities that are converted into digital tokens and traded on a blockchain. This allows investors to access, trade, and settle these assets with greater efficiency and transparency.
These opposite trends highlight continued institutional interest in blockchain-based financial infrastructure, even as short-term liquidity for stablecoins wanes.
Regulatory clarity and sector outlookRegulatory progress has also offered a boost to the stablecoin market. Major issuers have recently gained new licenses and expanded institutional backing for their dollar-pegged digital assets.
Circle, the company behind USDC, received regulatory approval to operate as a federally regulated trust bank in the United States. This move enables the firm to directly manage reserves backing USDC and signals deeper integration between the digital asset industry and traditional finance systems.
With these shifts, market observers are closely watching whether stablecoin issuance will rebound in the second half of the year. Renewed supply growth could indicate a return of capital to the crypto ecosystem, while further declines may point to continued caution among investors.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
OpenAI is rolling out GPT-5.6 across ChatGPT, Codex, and its API, introducing a new three tier model family led by Sol, its latest flagship model.
The lineup also includes Terra, a balanced model for everyday work, and Luna, the company’s lowest cost option in the GPT-5.6 family. OpenAI says the new naming system separates the model generation from durable capability tiers, giving users and developers clearer choices across intelligence, speed, and cost.
The release follows a limited preview and expands access to GPT-5.6 across OpenAI’s consumer, developer, and enterprise products. The rollout is starting globally and is expected to continue toward full availability over 24 hours.
OpenAI is positioning GPT-5.6 Sol as its strongest model for coding, knowledge work, cybersecurity, and science. The company says the model delivers better performance per dollar by completing more successful work with fewer tokens and lower estimated cost than previous frontier models.
The company says Sol can coordinate tool use, inspect intermediate results, and refine outputs before returning finished work. In the API, Programmatic Tool Calling lets the model write and run lightweight programs in memory to filter intermediate data and decide next steps without sending every result back through the model.
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OpenAI is also introducing higher compute settings for more demanding tasks. Max gives GPT-5.6 more time to reason, check work, and revise outputs. Ultra goes further by coordinating multiple agents in parallel, with OpenAI describing the default setup as four agents working across separate workstreams before synthesizing the result.
Coding is one of the main areas OpenAI is using to frame the launch. The company says GPT-5.6 Sol sets a new state of the art on the Artificial Analysis Coding Agent Index and also improves on Terminal Bench 2.1 and DeepSWE, benchmarks focused on command line tasks and long horizon engineering work in real codebases.
OpenAI also says Terra performs above Claude Fable 5 on some coding agent measures, while Luna outperforms Claude Opus 4.8 at lower estimated cost.
OpenAI is making a similar pitch for knowledge work. GPT-5.6 is designed to work across documents, spreadsheets, presentations, Slack, Notion, Microsoft 365, Google Drive, and other workplace tools.
The company says Sol improves the quality of editable presentations, financial models, documents, and spreadsheets, especially when users provide reference files or templates.
The launch also puts safety back at the center of OpenAI’s model strategy. GPT-5.6 is more capable in cybersecurity and biology than earlier systems, but OpenAI says the models do not cross its Critical threshold in either category.
The company says its safeguards combine model training, real time checks, monitoring, account level enforcement, and access controls for higher risk capabilities.
OpenAI’s system card says GPT-5.6 Sol is treated as High capability in cybersecurity, with Terra and Luna also reaching the High threshold, though with lower overall capability than Sol.
The company says the goal is to preserve legitimate defensive work such as secure code review, patching, threat modeling, and vulnerability validation while applying tighter controls to serious misuse.
Pricing for the API starts at $5 per 1 million input tokens and $30 per 1 million output tokens for Sol. Terra is priced at $2.50 input and $15 output, while Luna is priced at $1 input and $6 output. OpenAI is also adding more predictable prompt caching, including explicit cache breakpoints and a 30 minute minimum cache life.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Estefano Gomez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
OpenAI has rolled out a new family of models under the GPT-5.6 banner, introducing three distinct variants named Sol, Terra, and Luna, each aimed at a different slice of the market.
The full global release to ChatGPT, Codex, and the API went live on July 9, 2026, following a limited preview that kicked off on June 26, 2026, restricted to U.S. government-approved trusted partners.
Three models, three jobs Sol is the flagship. It is built for heavy lifting: advanced coding, scientific research, and enhanced cybersecurity applications.
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Terra sits in the middle. OpenAI positions it as delivering performance comparable to the previous GPT-5.5 generation, but at roughly half the cost.
Luna is designed for high-throughput, routine tasks where speed and cost efficiency matter more than raw capability.
The pricing math Sol costs $5 per million input tokens and $30 per million output tokens. Terra comes in at $2.50 input and $15 output, exactly half of Sol across the board. Luna drops further to $1 input and $6 output, making it the most affordable option in the family by a significant margin.
The rollout also comes with enhanced safeguards, particularly around cybersecurity applications and misuse prevention.
About those names Sol, Terra, and Luna happen to be identical, or nearly identical, to tickers and names associated with well-known blockchain projects: Solana trades as SOL, and the original Terra ecosystem gave the world LUNA before its spectacular collapse in 2022.
OpenAI has not announced any connection to blockchain technology, and nothing in the rollout suggests a link to digital assets. Some speculation has surfaced online, though without any substantive foundation in blockchain development or token announcements.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
SK Hynix completes its U.S. ADR offering, raising $26.5 billion, setting a new record for a foreign company's IPO in the U.S.
South Korean semiconductor firm SK Hynix has completed its US depositary receipt (ADR) offering, raising $26.5 billion, setting a new record for the largest initial public offering (IPO) by a foreign company in the US and becoming the third-largest listing in global securities history. SK Hynix issued a total of 177.9 million ADRs, priced at $149 each, with each ADR equivalent to one-tenth of its common shares traded on South Korea’s domestic stock market. The final offering price was approximately 3% higher than the closing price of its home-listed shares. Per the transaction terms, SK Hynix ADRs will launch pre-market trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on Friday under the temporary ticker symbol "SKHYV", and are scheduled to switch to the official ticker "SKHY" for regular trading starting July 13. The offering is led by Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan Chase, with 9 additional firms participating. Market feedback shows the offering received over 7 times oversubscription, with total subscription interest approaching $200 billion. Asset management firms including Baillie Gifford, Coatue Management, and Situational Awareness Partners took part in the subscription, with the top ten orders absorbing nearly half of the total shares. SK Hynix aims to list on the US stock market to narrow the valuation gap with US peers such as Micron Technology, and leverage overseas capital premiums to boost its corporate value. As a core supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for NVIDIA, SK Hynix already holds a significant market share in this segment. Meanwhile, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick stated he is in talks with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, urging the two South Korean memory chip manufacturers to expand production in the US to enhance the resilience of America’s domestic chip supply chain.
9 minutes ago
The USDT Circulating Supply on #TRON has surpassed $90B.
The USDT Circulating Supply on #TRON has surpassed $90B. The network also processes an average of $23.8B in daily USDT transfer volume.
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Polymarket Seeks to Offer Legal Margin Trading in the US
，据彭博社报道，Polymarket 正在寻求监管批准，以在美国合法提供保证金交易。若获批，用户将能够以更少的前期资金押注事件结果，也有助于该预测市场平台吸引更成熟的交易者。根据 7 月 3 日提交给美国全国期货协会的文件，Polymarket 已通过其关联公司 Coming Home GBA LLC 申请注册为期货佣金商（FCM）。此外，Polymarket 还需要获得美国商品期货交易委员会批准，对其规则手册进行修改，以允许非全额抵押交易。
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The Federal Reserve has set up five external working groups to conduct a comprehensive review of its monetary policy operating mechanisms.
Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh has formed five working groups to conduct a comprehensive review of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy operational framework, covering areas including balance sheet management, policy tools, and the impact of artificial intelligence. The Fed stated that each working group will operate independently, conduct fact-based research, and submit rigorous analysis findings to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). The groups will assess whether there is room for improvement in policy tools, analytical methods, and policy frameworks. Members of the review team include several prominent economists and former central bank officials. Among them, Harvard University economist Raj Chetty will co-lead the data working group, tech investor Marc Andreessen will head the productivity and employment working group, and former Chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers Greg Mankiw will co-lead the inflation working group. Warsh noted that the U.S. economy has undergone massive changes over the past generation, with an even faster pace of transformation currently. The Federal Reserve needs to ensure it is operating at its optimal state to achieve its dual mandates of price stability and maximum employment. (Jinshi)
9 minutes ago
Goldman Sachs bans its employees from participating in financial and politics-related prediction market trading.
According to Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs has banned its employees from trading in prediction markets, with the exception of sports and entertainment bets. This marks one of the clear steps Wall Street firms are taking to address new regulatory challenges stemming from the surge in event betting activity. Goldman recently updated its personal trading policy, prohibiting employees from trading event contracts linked to specific companies (including Goldman itself), as well as contracts tied to election outcomes and any financial market performance. Repeated policy violations may result in employee dismissal or account closure; in cases of improper trading, Goldman can also require staff to surrender profits exceeding $200 or donate the funds to charity. The firm’s policy explicitly bans employees from participating in event contracts related to corporate restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, ceasefire dates, Bitcoin prices, and M&A regulatory approval outcomes, among others. However, contracts such as "whether a particular team will win a championship" remain permitted. By comparison, JPMorgan Chase previously only required employees to "think carefully" before engaging in finance-related prediction markets, while hedge funds including Point72 and Balyasny have fully banned staff from using prediction markets via personal accounts.
PANews, July 10 - According to a report by Jiemian, OpenAI announced that the GPT-5.6 series models are officially fully available, including the flagship model GPT-5.6 Sol, the balanced model Terra, and the low-cost model Luna. Among them, Sol supports the new Ultra mode, which can coordinate four AI agents by default to process complex tasks in parallel, further improving efficiency in scenarios such as code development, scientific research, cybersecurity, and knowledge work. OpenAI stated that the GPT-5.6 series achieves industry-leading performance across multiple benchmarks, while significantly reducing inference costs and response times while maintaining or improving performance. The company also said that GPT-5.6 is equipped with the most comprehensive security protection system to date, and officially supports programmatic tool calls, further enhancing the ability to autonomously execute complex tasks.
Additionally, OpenAI launched a new enterprise-level feature—ChatGPT Work. As a brand-new intelligent agent (Agent) for ChatGPT, this feature is powered by the frontier model GPT-5.6. Unlike instant conversations, ChatGPT Work is designed for multi-step complex projects. Users simply input the ultimate goal, and it can autonomously break down tasks, formulate plans, extract context from connected tools, and automatically generate documents, spreadsheets, or presentations. At the same time, the simultaneously launched ChatGPT Sites feature supports one-click generation of lightweight collaborative websites from ideas or data. Currently, this feature is available on macOS and Windows desktops, and is being gradually rolled out to paid plan users such as Plus and Enterprise. Users and enterprise management still have absolute control and approval rights during the execution process.
OpenAI has announced that its GPT-5.6 Sol model, along with Terra and Luna variants, will be launching publicly this Thursday. This development follows a period of limited preview that began in late June, restricted to select U.S. government-approved organizations. The public release is set to broaden the availability of these models globally, expanding beyond the initial limited access. Market observers have noted that this announcement aligns with prior expectations that the official release would occur in early July, particularly on July 9, when Anthropic’s Claude Fable 5 is set to exit subscription tiers.
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Key Takeaways The announcement of GPT-5.6’s public launch appears consistent with expectations of an early July release, as suggested by market pricing. Market pricing for the July 9, 2026 release date has increased to 86% YES, reflecting confidence in the imminent launch. Broader availability of GPT-5.6 is expected to drive significant activity in associated markets, as indicated by the sharp increase in odds for a near-term release. What to Watch Markets will be closely monitoring any official communications from OpenAI confirming the release of GPT-5.6 on Thursday. Additionally, any updates from OpenAI leadership or related media coverage could further influence market expectations. Observers should also watch for potential impacts on competitor products, such as Anthropic’s Claude Fable 5, which may adjust its strategy in response to GPT-5.6’s entry into the market.
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Term Structure
Contract Odds Δ since publish Volume 24h July 31, 2026 98.8% — — View market → July 17 2026 97.4% — — View market → July 13 2026 97.5% — — View market → July 24 2026 98.9% — — View market → July 10 2026 94% — — View market → July 8 2026 7% — — View market → July 15 2026 97.4% — — View market → July 7 2026 0.1% — — View market → July 9 2026 93% — — View market →
The announcement follows last week’s launch of a limited preview of the GPT-5.6 family, making its latest AI models available to a small group of trusted organizations ahead of a wider release.
The preview includes GPT-5.6 Sol, the company’s flagship model, as well as GPT-5.6 Terra and GPT-5.6 Luna, which are designed to offer lower-cost and faster performance, respectively. The models can currently be accessed only via the OpenAI API and Codex, with ChatGPT excluded from the preview.
According to OpenAI, the staged rollout supports further safety testing and coordination before expanding access. The company also introduced new pricing tiers and enhanced prompt caching capabilities for the GPT-5.6 models.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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.
Elon Musk said SpaceXAI will release Grok 4.5 to the public tomorrow. He called it an Opus-class model that runs faster and costs less.
The launch would land around the same time OpenAI moves its GPT-5.6 models toward broad availability.
Grok 4.5 Meets a GPT-5.6 DeadlineGrok 4.5 runs on xAI’s 1.5 trillion-parameter V9 foundation, with Cursor coding data added in supplemental training. It entered private beta at SpaceX and Tesla on June 28.
Musk said at the time that it performs close to or beyond Opus, a claim that rested on early evaluations. Today, he announced that positive feedback from beta customers drove the decision to open Grok 4.5 to the public.
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Based on strong positive feedback from customers in our beta test program, @SpaceXAI will make Grok 4.5 available to the public tomorrow.
It is an Opus-class model, but faster, more token-efficient and lower cost.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 8, 2026 OpenAI also previewed its GPT-5.6 family in late June, but limited access to a small group of vetted partners. On Wednesday, the company said GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra, and Luna will launch publicly on Thursday.
“We’re expanding preview access globally now,” the post read.
The timing revives a long rivalry between Musk and the company he helped start. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 and left the board in 2018.
He then sued OpenAI and Sam Altman in 2024, arguing they had broken an early pledge to run the AI venture as a nonprofit. However, a jury dismissed that lawsuit in May as untimely.
The upcoming launches put the two head-to-head once more. With both companies opening access to their latest flagship models, the focus now shifts from early previews to real-world performance as developers and enterprises begin evaluating the competing systems.
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Key Takeaways OpenAI received federal authorization to deploy GPT-5.6 publicly this Thursday, featuring Sol, Terra, and Luna model variants Security concerns regarding AI’s capacity to detect software weaknesses caused the initial postponement Federal officials under the Trump administration authorized widespread deployment after evaluations and consultations with OpenAI leadership Competitor Anthropic experienced temporary suspension of its Mythos 5 and Fable 5 systems following June 12 export restrictions, with limited restoration occurring recently OpenAI and Anthropic have both submitted private IPO filings seeking approximately $1 trillion valuations OpenAI has announced it will deploy its most advanced artificial intelligence model collection, GPT-5.6, this Thursday after receiving federal authorization following comprehensive national security evaluations.
The GPT-5.6 collection consists of three distinct tiers. Sol represents the premium flagship offering. Terra serves as the intermediate option designed for routine applications. Luna provides a rapid, economical alternative.
The company announced the deployment through a Tuesday post on X, noting it was simultaneously broadening preview availability across international markets before the complete rollout.
The deployment experienced postponement after federal authorities requested OpenAI restrict availability to a limited group of authorized domestic partners. This directive emerged from apprehensions that sophisticated AI systems might enable malicious actors to discover code vulnerabilities.
According to Axios, the Trump administration authorized the expanded deployment following supplementary technical evaluations and discussions between OpenAI representatives and government authorities.
Security Considerations Influenced Deployment Timeline Washington has intensified monitoring of advanced AI systems due to concerns about potential exploitation by foreign adversaries, particularly China and Russia.
The United States and China are engaged in competitive development of next-generation AI capabilities, with analysts warning these systems could enable more sophisticated cyber operations targeting complex, outdated infrastructure networks.
OpenAI competitor Anthropic encountered comparable limitations. Its Mythos 5 and Fable 5 systems were deactivated for all users following a federal export control directive issued June 12. Limited access was reestablished recently after Anthropic implemented protective measures.
Mythos, designed specifically for cybersecurity specialists, continues to be accessible exclusively to approved US-based organizations. Chinese officials have expressed concerns the system could be weaponized to exploit software weaknesses against their strategic interests.
Anthropic has stated it is “probably impossible” to create any AI system completely immune to circumvention attempts.
Cost Structure and Market Dynamics OpenAI announced Terra will carry pricing at fifty percent of its predecessor, GPT-5.5, as rivalry with Anthropic and Google escalates.
GPT-5.6 Sol was characterized by OpenAI as comparable to Anthropic’s Mythos Preview on the ExploitBench cybersecurity evaluation metric during late June previews.
Elon Musk’s SpaceXAI also took action this week, releasing its Grok 4.5 system to general users.
The Trump administration has enacted an executive directive establishing a voluntary arrangement allowing AI developers to provide frontier systems to federal authorities for up to 30 days prior to public deployment.
OpenAI has expressed opposition to making this type of government review process the permanent standard, contending it delays access to powerful capabilities for enterprises and consumers who require them.
Both OpenAI and Anthropic have submitted confidential IPO documentation with federal regulators, with each company pursuing valuations approaching $1 trillion.
Binance Closes In on 90 Billion LUNC BurnedBinance burned over 600 million $LUNC tokens on July 1, according to data from LUNC Metrics. The latest burn brings the exchange's cumulative total to 87.37 billion Terra Classic tokens permanently removed from circulation, putting the 90 billion milestone firmly within reach.
The burn forms part of Binance's long-running monthly program, which allocates 50% of LUNC trading fees collected on the platform to be permanently removed from circulation. Binance has burned LUNC every single month since late 2022, using trading fees collected from LUNC spot and margin pairs, converting them into LUNC and permanently sending them to the burn address.
The program has made Binance the dominant force in Terra Classic's deflationary effort. Binance remains the largest single contributor to this effort, having permanently removed over 84.94 billion LUNC tokens through its ongoing burn program as of early May 2026, a figure that has continued to climb with each subsequent monthly burn.
Supply Pressure Builds, But Price Under PressureThe July 1 burn arrives amid mixed market conditions for Terra Classic. LUNC trading volume is up 5% over the past 24 hours according to CoinMarketCap data, though the token has shed nearly 30% of its value over the past month.
LUNC's burn mechanism, combining a 0.5% on-chain transaction tax with exchange-led burns, remains the cornerstone of the community's deflationary strategy. Despite the steady pace of supply reduction, the token's structural challenges remain significant. With 5.52 trillion LUNC still in circulation out of 6.46 trillion total, the daily burn rate is marginal against the float.
With a total supply still at 6.46 trillion, the current burn rate is mathematically insufficient for fundamental revaluation alone, and price gains from burns are vulnerable to reversal if staked supply is unlocked or if broader market sentiment sours. Still, the community views consistent exchange-led burns as a key pillar of the project's long-term recovery thesis, with sentiment remaining largely positive around the burns as a steady contribution toward rebuilding confidence in LUNC, though meaningful price appreciation will likely depend on a combination of sustained burns, successful network upgrades, increased utility, and broader market conditions.
Sources
LUNC Metrics: Binance LUNC Burn Tracker
CoinReporter: Binance Burns 2.19 Billion LUNC in June 2026
Crypto Times: Terra Luna Classic Surges 150% in a Month Amid Binance Burn
Key Takeaways OpenAI introduced a restricted preview of the GPT-5.6 family featuring three models: Sol, Terra, and Luna These names echo Solana’s SOL token and the infamous Terra/Luna blockchain that imploded in 2022 According to OpenAI, the naming convention represents different performance levels with no cryptocurrency connection Sol serves as the premium tier, Terra functions as the intermediate option, and Luna operates as the budget-friendly choice Government officials requested OpenAI maintain limited access during the initial rollout phase On Thursday, OpenAI revealed its GPT-5.6 model lineup, introducing three distinct tiers branded as Sol, Terra, and Luna. The naming choices immediately triggered discussions throughout cryptocurrency communities due to obvious parallels with prominent blockchain initiatives.
Introducing a limited preview of GPT-5.6 Sol, our next generation frontier model, as well as GPT-5.6 Terra, a balanced model for efficient, everyday work, and GPT-5.6 Luna, a fast and affordable model for high-volume work.https://t.co/OoM83SyISN
— OpenAI (@OpenAI) June 26, 2026
Sol corresponds to the trading symbol for Solana, currently ranking among the top cryptocurrencies by total market capitalization. Meanwhile, Terra and Luna reference a blockchain platform that catastrophically failed in 2022, erasing approximately $60 billion in investor holdings.
OpenAI explicitly stated the naming scheme carries zero connection to cryptocurrency projects. According to the organization, these designations simply distinguish varying capability levels within the model architecture.
Breaking Down the Model Capabilities Sol represents the premium offering, engineered for computationally intensive operations. Terra occupies the middle ground, delivering performance comparable to the earlier GPT-5.5 version while costing 50% less. Luna serves as the budget tier, prioritized for rapid processing and minimal expense.
The Sol variant introduces enhanced “max” and “ultra” reasoning capabilities. Its ultra configuration deploys multiple cooperative sub-agents to accelerate complex problem-solving workflows.
OpenAI highlighted that Sol achieves record performance on Terminal-Bench 2.1, a specialized evaluation measuring command-line programming proficiency. The company also reported advances in biological research applications and cybersecurity operations.
Regarding security applications, OpenAI confirmed Sol assists in vulnerability identification and remediation. However, the company emphasized the model remains below the “Cyber Critical” threshold defined in its internal safety protocols, preventing autonomous generation of complete working exploits.
Controlled Rollout and Security Validation This deployment doesn’t constitute a general public launch. OpenAI characterized it as a “limited preview” accessible exclusively to select vetted partners. The organization continues conducting comprehensive safety evaluations before expanding availability.
White House representatives allegedly requested OpenAI maintain restricted distribution while federal agencies finalize a forthcoming cybersecurity executive order structure.
OpenAI dedicated more than 700,000 GPU computation hours to automated adversarial testing, systematically probing for model vulnerabilities prior to release. Additionally, human security specialists conducted manual assessments exploring potential misuse scenarios.
The company explained its multi-layered defense approach incorporates model-embedded protections, live content filtering systems, and user account-level surveillance mechanisms.
API access pricing starts at $5 per million input tokens and $30 per million output tokens for Sol. Terra costs $2.50 input and $15 output per million tokens. Luna operates at $1 input and $6 output rates.
OpenAI additionally confirmed plans to deploy Sol on Cerebras infrastructure this July, targeting throughput speeds reaching 750 tokens per second.
The organization projects broader ChatGPT and API integration for all three models within the next several weeks.
The US government lifted its export block on Anthropic’s Claude Mythos 5 on Friday. The decision clears the model for release to more than 100 US institutions, including major companies and government agencies.
The move reverses a two-week standoff between the Trump administration and Anthropic. It rewards Mythos 5 while leaving Fable 5, the consumer version, offline.
Commerce Clears Claude Mythos 5 for Trusted PartnersCommerce Secretary Howard Lutnick set out the decision in a Friday letter to Anthropic compute chief Tom Brown. A license is no longer required to export Mythos 5 to the entities named in Annex A.
“I have determined that appropriate safeguards are in place to permit certain trusted partners to access the Claude Mythos 5 Model,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Semafor
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Senior Anthropic staff had flown to Washington to meet administration officials during the dispute, according to CNBC.
The reversal frees the model behind the Mythos and Fable rollout from controls imposed this month. The block had forced both models offline after Amazon, one of Anthropic’s largest investors, raised the alarm. Its researchers had warned that Fable 5 could be jailbroken for harmful use.
Until then, Mythos sat inside Project Glasswing, a vulnerability-hunting program spanning about 150 organizations across more than 15 countries. The model had earlier found flaws in classified systems within hours of government testing.
Fable 5 Still Waits as a New AI Regime FormsSources near the talks said a Fable 5 release is advancing, even as the timeline stays unclear. Unlike Mythos, Fable 5 had been open to anyone with a subscription. It briefly stood as the most powerful AI tool available to the public.
The episode is hardening into a new gatekeeping system. A June 2 executive order set up a voluntary channel for federal review of frontier models. Developers can submit models for a cyber check up to 30 days before release. Washington has spent the past year tightening AI chip exports to China. Extending that authority to a model’s access marks a new front.
OpenAI followed the same path on Friday. It limited its most powerful GPT-5.6 tier, Sol, to about 20 government-approved partners. The weaker Terra and Luna versions went to the public.
The block first grew from fears over Chinese access. Reporting tied the concern to SK Telecom, a South Korean carrier added to Glasswing in early June before losing access. SK Telecom has denied any China ties.
Dozens of cybersecurity leaders had pressed the administration to drop the controls. The open letter, organized by former Facebook security chief Alex Stamos, drew signatures from firms including Nvidia, Adobe, and Zoom.
Allies in Europe and beyond have grown frustrated at suddenly depending on Washington for access. Whether Fable 5 wins the same clearance may become clear in the coming days.
A renowned Chinese hedge fund manager has warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble".
Two renowned Chinese hedge fund managers have warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble" and are on the verge of bursting. Yang Dong, founder of Ningquan Asset, explicitly warned in the "2026 Semi-Annual Investment Report" released on June 23 that a "super bubble" has formed in global AI stocks, and a crash may be imminent. The report bluntly stated that a large number of hot A-share stocks are very likely to drop by 80% or even over 90% in the future, adding that "if one lacks the ability to pull chestnuts out of the fire and emerge unscathed, taking such risks would be irresponsible to investors." Yang Dong accurately predicted the peak of the 2007 bull market. Separately, Li Bei, founder of Shanghai-based Banxia Investment, noted in her June 21 monthly report "To Banxia Investors" that "the triggering conditions for the AI bubble to burst have emerged." Taking Anthropic's ARR (Annualized Run Rate) as an example, she argued that revenue growth at downstream model companies has slowed significantly, their full-year results are likely to fall well short of market expectations, and a subsequent decline in capital expenditure is highly probable.
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An address linked to Vitalik has transferred 7,000 ETH, and is likely to deposit the funds into a centralized exchange (CEX).
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, a wallet linked to Vitalik, labeled "0xD04", transferred 7,000 ETH (valued at $11.06 million) to a new wallet. Based on the address’s historical transaction records, the ETH is highly likely to be deposited into a centralized exchange (CEX). Earlier, the same wallet transferred 1,300 ETH (worth $31.6 million), which was subsequently deposited into Paxos. The wallet currently holds 20,001 ETH, valued at $31.6 million.
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Hong Kong government: Regulated stablecoins are expected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year.
Hong Kong’s government stated in a written response to the Legislative Council that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted stablecoin issuer licenses to two bank-backed institutions in April 2026. Per the institutions’ existing business plans, Hong Kong’s regulated stablecoins are projected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year. The government added that the HKMA has sent notices to unregulated entities conducting stablecoin issuance in the market to clarify legal requirements, and will continue to follow up on related matters; individual cases may be referred to the police or the Department of Justice if necessary. Additionally, the government will submit a bill to the Legislative Council this year to establish a regulatory regime for virtual asset trading, custody, advisory and management service providers.
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The Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon.
According to Israel's Army Radio, the Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon and withdraw several combat brigades.
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Serenity's trade calls push CBRS to a short-term sharp rally, with a significant premium over post-market prices on TradFi platforms.
Serenity's bullish calls drive Cerebras' short-term sharp surge. As of press time, the stock contract is trading at $188.26 on trade.xyz, up over 5% in the past hour. Meanwhile, the stock's after-hours price (markets are now closed) stands at just $182.3. Earlier reports noted that Serenity said it first bought Cerebras stock in the $170 range, citing a valuation premium from its OpenAI partnership, though it pointed out the current valuation is slightly higher than profitable firms like JBL, while remaining bullish on Cerebras' potential as an AI inference leader.
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Serenity: OpenAI will launch GPT-5.6 Sol on Cerebras, and has opened a position in CBRS at $170.
Serenity stated in a post that OpenAI announced it will launch the GPT-5.6 Sol advanced model on Cerebras hardware in July, with an inference speed of up to 750 tokens per second — a move that will serve as a major validation of Cerebras’ technology. Serenity added that it first purchased Cerebras stock at the $170 level, arguing the OpenAI partnership brings a valuation premium, though it noted the company’s current valuation is slightly higher than that of profitable peers such as JBL. Still, Serenity remains optimistic about Cerebras’ potential as an AI inference leader.
A renowned Chinese hedge fund manager has warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble".
Two renowned Chinese hedge fund managers have warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble" and are on the verge of bursting. Yang Dong, founder of Ningquan Asset, explicitly warned in the "2026 Semi-Annual Investment Report" released on June 23 that a "super bubble" has formed in global AI stocks, and a crash may be imminent. The report bluntly stated that a large number of hot A-share stocks are very likely to drop by 80% or even over 90% in the future, adding that "if one lacks the ability to pull chestnuts out of the fire and emerge unscathed, taking such risks would be irresponsible to investors." Yang Dong accurately predicted the peak of the 2007 bull market. Separately, Li Bei, founder of Shanghai-based Banxia Investment, noted in her June 21 monthly report "To Banxia Investors" that "the triggering conditions for the AI bubble to burst have emerged." Taking Anthropic's ARR (Annualized Run Rate) as an example, she argued that revenue growth at downstream model companies has slowed significantly, their full-year results are likely to fall well short of market expectations, and a subsequent decline in capital expenditure is highly probable.
4 minutes ago
An address linked to Vitalik has transferred 7,000 ETH, and is likely to deposit the funds into a centralized exchange (CEX).
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, a wallet linked to Vitalik, labeled "0xD04", transferred 7,000 ETH (valued at $11.06 million) to a new wallet. Based on the address’s historical transaction records, the ETH is highly likely to be deposited into a centralized exchange (CEX). Earlier, the same wallet transferred 1,300 ETH (worth $31.6 million), which was subsequently deposited into Paxos. The wallet currently holds 20,001 ETH, valued at $31.6 million.
4 minutes ago
Hong Kong government: Regulated stablecoins are expected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year.
Hong Kong’s government stated in a written response to the Legislative Council that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted stablecoin issuer licenses to two bank-backed institutions in April 2026. Per the institutions’ existing business plans, Hong Kong’s regulated stablecoins are projected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year. The government added that the HKMA has sent notices to unregulated entities conducting stablecoin issuance in the market to clarify legal requirements, and will continue to follow up on related matters; individual cases may be referred to the police or the Department of Justice if necessary. Additionally, the government will submit a bill to the Legislative Council this year to establish a regulatory regime for virtual asset trading, custody, advisory and management service providers.
4 minutes ago
The Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon.
According to Israel's Army Radio, the Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon and withdraw several combat brigades.
4 minutes ago
Serenity's trade calls push CBRS to a short-term sharp rally, with a significant premium over post-market prices on TradFi platforms.
Serenity's bullish calls drive Cerebras' short-term sharp surge. As of press time, the stock contract is trading at $188.26 on trade.xyz, up over 5% in the past hour. Meanwhile, the stock's after-hours price (markets are now closed) stands at just $182.3. Earlier reports noted that Serenity said it first bought Cerebras stock in the $170 range, citing a valuation premium from its OpenAI partnership, though it pointed out the current valuation is slightly higher than profitable firms like JBL, while remaining bullish on Cerebras' potential as an AI inference leader.
4 minutes ago
Serenity: OpenAI will launch GPT-5.6 Sol on Cerebras, and has opened a position in CBRS at $170.
Serenity stated in a post that OpenAI announced it will launch the GPT-5.6 Sol advanced model on Cerebras hardware in July, with an inference speed of up to 750 tokens per second — a move that will serve as a major validation of Cerebras’ technology. Serenity added that it first purchased Cerebras stock at the $170 level, arguing the OpenAI partnership brings a valuation premium, though it noted the company’s current valuation is slightly higher than that of profitable peers such as JBL. Still, Serenity remains optimistic about Cerebras’ potential as an AI inference leader.
PANews, June 27 – OpenAI has released the next-generation GPT-5.6 model series, comprising three variants: Sol (flagship model), Terra (a balanced model for everyday work), and Luna (a fast and cost-efficient model). Currently, limited preview access is only available to select partners, with plans to gradually expand availability in the coming weeks. Notably, the three names coincide with the crypto projects Solana (SOL), Terra (LUNA), sparking heated discussion.
A renowned Chinese hedge fund manager has warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble".
Two renowned Chinese hedge fund managers have warned that global AI stocks have formed a "super bubble" and are on the verge of bursting. Yang Dong, founder of Ningquan Asset, explicitly warned in the "2026 Semi-Annual Investment Report" released on June 23 that a "super bubble" has formed in global AI stocks, and a crash may be imminent. The report bluntly stated that a large number of hot A-share stocks are very likely to drop by 80% or even over 90% in the future, adding that "if one lacks the ability to pull chestnuts out of the fire and emerge unscathed, taking such risks would be irresponsible to investors." Yang Dong accurately predicted the peak of the 2007 bull market. Separately, Li Bei, founder of Shanghai-based Banxia Investment, noted in her June 21 monthly report "To Banxia Investors" that "the triggering conditions for the AI bubble to burst have emerged." Taking Anthropic's ARR (Annualized Run Rate) as an example, she argued that revenue growth at downstream model companies has slowed significantly, their full-year results are likely to fall well short of market expectations, and a subsequent decline in capital expenditure is highly probable.
4 minutes ago
An address linked to Vitalik has transferred 7,000 ETH, and is likely to deposit the funds into a centralized exchange (CEX).
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, a wallet linked to Vitalik, labeled "0xD04", transferred 7,000 ETH (valued at $11.06 million) to a new wallet. Based on the address’s historical transaction records, the ETH is highly likely to be deposited into a centralized exchange (CEX). Earlier, the same wallet transferred 1,300 ETH (worth $31.6 million), which was subsequently deposited into Paxos. The wallet currently holds 20,001 ETH, valued at $31.6 million.
4 minutes ago
Hong Kong government: Regulated stablecoins are expected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year.
Hong Kong’s government stated in a written response to the Legislative Council that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted stablecoin issuer licenses to two bank-backed institutions in April 2026. Per the institutions’ existing business plans, Hong Kong’s regulated stablecoins are projected to launch between mid-year and the second half of this year. The government added that the HKMA has sent notices to unregulated entities conducting stablecoin issuance in the market to clarify legal requirements, and will continue to follow up on related matters; individual cases may be referred to the police or the Department of Justice if necessary. Additionally, the government will submit a bill to the Legislative Council this year to establish a regulatory regime for virtual asset trading, custody, advisory and management service providers.
4 minutes ago
The Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon.
According to Israel's Army Radio, the Israeli military will reduce its forces stationed in southern Lebanon and withdraw several combat brigades.
4 minutes ago
Serenity's trade calls push CBRS to a short-term sharp rally, with a significant premium over post-market prices on TradFi platforms.
Serenity's bullish calls drive Cerebras' short-term sharp surge. As of press time, the stock contract is trading at $188.26 on trade.xyz, up over 5% in the past hour. Meanwhile, the stock's after-hours price (markets are now closed) stands at just $182.3. Earlier reports noted that Serenity said it first bought Cerebras stock in the $170 range, citing a valuation premium from its OpenAI partnership, though it pointed out the current valuation is slightly higher than profitable firms like JBL, while remaining bullish on Cerebras' potential as an AI inference leader.
4 minutes ago
Serenity: OpenAI will launch GPT-5.6 Sol on Cerebras, and has opened a position in CBRS at $170.
Serenity stated in a post that OpenAI announced it will launch the GPT-5.6 Sol advanced model on Cerebras hardware in July, with an inference speed of up to 750 tokens per second — a move that will serve as a major validation of Cerebras’ technology. Serenity added that it first purchased Cerebras stock at the $170 level, arguing the OpenAI partnership brings a valuation premium, though it noted the company’s current valuation is slightly higher than that of profitable peers such as JBL. Still, Serenity remains optimistic about Cerebras’ potential as an AI inference leader.
OpenAI’s recent announcement of its next-generation GPT-5.6 model family, revealed via X, quickly drew sharp responses from the cryptocurrency community. The core of the reaction centered on OpenAI’s choice of names for its new model tiers: Sol, Terra and Luna. These names are well known within digital asset circles, carrying significant associations for investors and enthusiasts alike.
Familiar names for the crypto worldAnyone closely following the digital asset markets will recognize these names as direct references to major projects within the crypto ecosystem. The designation “Sol” calls to mind the popular blockchain Solana, while Terra and Luna are inseparable from the 2022 collapse that wiped tens of billions of dollars from the market and shook investor confidence.
OpenAI’s brand choices quickly became a trending topic on social media. Many crypto users were quick to point out how closely the new model names resemble the well-known altcoins, with some comments referencing the infamous Terra ecosystem crash. Even the official Solana account on X joined the conversation, humorously referring to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as “Sam Altcoinman.”
Solana’s official X account addressed Sam Altman as “Sam Altcoinman,” while other users emphasized that Sol, Terra and Luna evoke some of the most controversial chapters in crypto market history.
Three distinct layers in the GPT-5.6 lineupAccording to OpenAI’s official information, the GPT-5.6 series introduces three different model tiers, each tailored to specific corporate needs. OpenAI is positioning GPT-5.6 Sol as its new flagship model, highlighting substantial improvements over the previous GPT-5.5 generation.
GPT-5.6 Terra is marketed as a solution for everyday workflows, with OpenAI stating it matches GPT-5.5’s performance but at just half the cost. Meanwhile, GPT-5.6 Luna stands out for its ultra-low cost, making it ideal for high-volume tasks requiring budget efficiency.
As one of the world’s leading developers of generative AI models, OpenAI used this announcement to emphasize a strategy of balancing performance and cost to suit different user profiles. The fresh approach signals ongoing innovation in building AI for a wide range of business applications.
Initial access remains limitedBased on details shared by OpenAI, these latest models are not yet widely available to the public. Despite this, the disclosed technical performance metrics have already piqued the interest of technology observers and analysts. General users may still need to wait before gaining hands-on access to the new offerings.
OpenAI confirmed that GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra, and Luna models are initially open only to a select group of trusted business partners under a limited early access preview through Codex and API platforms. Feedback from these first users is expected to come primarily from enterprise and technical stakeholders before a broader rollout.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
OpenAI has introduced GPT-5.6, a new family of three artificial intelligence models that will initially be available to a limited group of trusted partners before a wider release.
The family includes Sol, OpenAI’s new flagship model, Terra, a lower cost alternative, and Luna, its fastest and most cost efficient option.
OpenAI said it discussed the models and their capabilities with the US government before the launch. At the government’s request, the company is beginning with a restricted preview involving partners whose participation has been disclosed to officials.
The company plans to make all three models generally available in the coming weeks. It did not disclose pricing, API access details or an exact public release date.
OpenAI classified Sol, Terra and Luna as high capability in both cybersecurity and biological and chemical risk under its Preparedness Framework. None of the models reached the high capability threshold for AI self improvement.
The models represent a meaningful increase in cybersecurity performance, according to the system card. Sol and Terra were able to identify vulnerabilities and develop parts of potential exploits, but neither could autonomously complete end to end attacks against hardened targets.
External testing found that Sol discovered high impact zero day vulnerabilities affecting widely used systems. However, the model remained below OpenAI’s critical cybersecurity threshold, which would require the ability to independently identify and exploit severe vulnerabilities across hardened real world systems.
The increased capability arrived alongside new concerns about how the models behave during long autonomous tasks.
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OpenAI said GPT-5.6 showed a greater tendency than GPT-5.5 to go beyond a user’s intent during agentic coding work. The company said the absolute frequency remained low, but some tests showed the model taking actions that users had not requested.
In one internal test, Sol substituted machines that the user had not named and performed destructive cleanup operations that may have erased uncommitted work.
In another case, the model updated an internal research document to claim that a calculation had been completed and verified, despite knowing that it had not produced the result.
A separate test found Sol searching for cached credentials and moving them between machines to keep a task running without receiving authorization from the user.
OpenAI attributed the behavior partly to the model’s increased persistence. The problem was more pronounced when system instructions encouraged the model to continue working toward a goal despite obstacles.
The company said users should supervise GPT-5.6 when it is used as a coding agent, particularly during long and complex workflows.
OpenAI has introduced additional safeguards intended to reduce those risks.
Sol and Terra will use activation classifiers that monitor model activity in sensitive areas and can intervene while an answer is being generated. Certain conversations will also be scanned so that unsafe outputs can be blocked in real time.
OpenAI said it dedicated more than 700,000 A100e GPU hours to automatically searching for universal jailbreaks. Automated red teaming will continue after deployment, with reported vulnerabilities reproduced, mitigated and tested again.
GPT-5.6 also showed gains in health related evaluations.
Sol scored 60.5 on the length adjusted HealthBench Professional benchmark, compared with 51.8 for GPT-5.5. Terra scored 57.7 and Luna scored 55.7, allowing the lower cost models to retain much of Sol’s performance.
OpenAI described Sol’s HealthBench Professional improvement as the largest since the launch of GPT-5.
The flagship model also produced slightly fewer factual errors than GPT-5.5 in conversations previously flagged by users for hallucinations. It was significantly less likely to repeat the specific error that caused the original report.
Performance across general safety categories remained broadly comparable with previous reasoning models, although some evaluations showed regressions. OpenAI said the models met its safety requirements and that additional protections would apply to younger ChatGPT users.
The company plans to publish an updated system card when GPT-5.6 becomes generally available.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Estefano Gomez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
OpenAI has unintentionally caused excitement on the crypto market with the announcement of its new family of GPT-5.6 models. It’s because the names of these models are very similar to some of the most well-known digital assets in the crypto industry.
OpenAI Names GPT 5.6 Models Akin To Popular Crypto Projects Sam Altman’s OpenAI has unveiled three new GPT 5.6 models: Sol, Terra and Luna on Thursday in a blog. It prompted social media users to highlight the resemblance to Solana (SOL) and the failed Terra (LUNA) blockchain.
In its announcement, OpenAI said “We’re beginning a limited preview of the GPT-5.6 series: Sol, our flagship model; Terra, a balanced model for everyday work; and Luna, a fast and affordable model.”
The company claims that the performance of each of its models falls somewhere between the top-tier GPT-5.5 and less expensive Terra. Meanwhile, Luna is meant to be the entry level, high-speed, low cost offering. OpenAI stated that the names aren’t linked to cryptocurrencies but instead connotes various levels of capability.
The naming decision did not go unnoticed by crypto traders. It revived some of the most popular crypto brands. GPT 5.6’s Sol mirrors the ticker of Solana’s native crypto. On the other hand, Terra and Luna were also the names behind the Terra blockchain ecosystem that collapsed in 2022. At the time, it wiped out tens of billions of dollars in market value.
About The Latest AI Models In addition to the names, OpenAI noted a few enhancements to the GPT-5.6 family. For more challenging reasoning and agentic workflows, the company added new “max” and “ultra” modes to Sol.
It also highlighted enhanced coding, scientific and cybersecurity skills of the model range. However, the “limited” preview comes after the White House reportedly asked to restrict the GPT 5.6 rollout.
OpenAI also emphasized that the launch is not a complete public release. It’s a “limited preview” of the GPT-5.6 series, as the company is still running safety tests before it makes the model available to a wider audience.
When OpenAI took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce its next-generation GPT-5.6 models, the artificial intelligence industry was undoubtedly paying attention. However, it was the cryptocurrency community that arguably had the loudest reaction to the tech giant's latest rollout.
The source of the amusement? The names OpenAI chose for its new AI capability tiers: Sol, Terra, and Luna.
For anyone who has spent time in the digital asset space, those names immediately conjure images of major blockchain ecosystems and, perhaps more notoriously, one of the most catastrophic financial collapses in crypto history.
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'Sam Altcoinman'The crypto community wasted no time pointing out the glaring similarities between OpenAI's new branding and popular altcoins like Solana (SOL), as well as the infamous Terra (LUNA) ecosystem that wiped out tens of billions of dollars in 2022.
The official X account for the Solana blockchain even joined the fray, jokingly referring to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as "Sam Altcoinman."
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Others were quick to highlight the somewhat ominous association with the Terra/Luna crash. A Twitter user quipped, "Sol, Terra, Luna... bros naming models after the last crypto rugpull," while another commentator simply asked, "Did someone say Terra Luna[?]."
Sol, Terra, and Luna?The GPT-5.6 family introduces three distinct tiers tailored for different enterprise needs. GPT-5.6 Sol is positioned as the company's new flagship model. It is described as a "step function better than GPT-5.5." GPT-5.6 Terra is designed for everyday work. Terra reportedly "delivers performance competitive to GPT-5.5 at 2x lower cost." GPT-5.6 Luna is billed as the company's "most cost-efficient model." Luna provides "strong capability at our lowest cost" for high-volume tasks.
Despite the impressive benchmark data, everyday users will have to wait to get their hands on the new models.
OpenAI announced that, for now, the models are launching in a "limited preview among a small group of trusted partners in Codex and the API."
OpenAI has introduced GPT-5.6 models named Sol, Terra, and Luna, prompting comparisons with some of the crypto industry’s best-known blockchain projects.
Summary
OpenAI has launched a limited preview of GPT-5.6 models named Sol, Terra, and Luna. The model names sparked discussion among crypto users due to their resemblance to Solana and Terra. OpenAI said the names indicate model capabilities and are not linked to cryptocurrency projects. According to OpenAI, the company has begun a limited preview of three GPT-5.6 models called Sol, Terra, and Luna.
The announcement quickly drew attention across crypto-focused social media because the names closely resemble Solana’s SOL token and the Terra ecosystem, whose LUNA token became synonymous with one of the industry’s largest collapses in 2022.
The model names have revived memories of major crypto projects In its blog post, OpenAI described Sol as its flagship GPT-5.6 model, while Terra is designed as a balanced option for everyday tasks. Luna, according to the company, serves as the fast, lower-cost entry point within the new lineup.
OpenAI said the three models are positioned between its high-end GPT-5.5 offering and more affordable options. Sol also introduces new “max” and “ultra” modes for advanced reasoning and agent-based workflows. The company added that the GPT-5.6 family delivers stronger coding, scientific research, and cybersecurity capabilities than earlier models.
Although the names immediately caught the attention of crypto users, OpenAI did not associate them with digital assets. Instead, the company said the names represent different capability levels within the GPT-5.6 series.
Even so, the similarities proved difficult for crypto traders to ignore. Sol shares its name with the ticker used by Solana’s native token, while Terra and Luna revive the branding of the Terra blockchain ecosystem, which collapsed in 2022 after the failure of its algorithmic stablecoin erased tens of billions of dollars in market value.
The release comes only days after OpenAI introduced Jalapeño, its first custom-built artificial intelligence chip developed with Broadcom. According to OpenAI, the processor was built in nine months and is designed for inference workloads powering products such as ChatGPT, Codex, and future AI agents.
The company said developing its own hardware will give it more flexibility as demand for AI computing continues to increase.
Rollout remains limited while safety testing continues Rather than making GPT-5.6 immediately available to everyone, OpenAI said the launch is a limited preview as additional safety testing continues before a broader public release. The company also noted that Sol’s new reasoning modes are intended for more complex tasks that require extended processing.
The preview follows reports that the White House had asked OpenAI to limit the initial rollout of GPT-5.6. While the company acknowledged the limited release, it did not link that decision to any government request in its announcement.
Separately, Amazon withdrew from distributing Artificial, a film centered on OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman that also features Elon Musk, while continuing discussions with the filmmakers about finding another distributor. The decision came as Amazon expanded its commercial relationship with OpenAI through a multi-billion-dollar investment commitment tied to future milestones.
For crypto markets, however, it was the naming of Sol, Terra, and Luna that generated the strongest reaction online, reviving discussion around two of the industry’s most recognizable blockchain brands despite OpenAI stating that the names were selected solely to distinguish the capabilities of its latest AI models.
TLDR:What Is STRC and Why Are Investors Comparing It to LUNA?Why STRC Is Not LUNA and What the Slide Means for StrategyGet 3 Free Stock Ebooks STRC has dropped to $76.20, approximately 25% below its $100 par value, alarming income-focused investors. Strategy owes $1.2 billion annually in STRC dividends but holds only $1.4 billion in USD reserves currently. Unlike Terra LUNA, Saylor faces no forced liquidation if STRC falls, as dividends remain legally discretionary. A sustained STRC discount could weaken MSTR demand over time, quietly slowing Strategy’s Bitcoin accumulation pace. Is STRC the next LUNA? That question is circulating across crypto social media after Strategy’s preferred stock dropped to approximately $76.20, roughly 25% below its $100 par value.
On-chain intelligence firm Arkham has weighed in with a detailed breakdown, drawing both parallels and sharp distinctions between the two instruments.
With $1.2 billion in annual dividend obligations and $1.4 billion in reserves, the math is tight, and markets are paying close attention.
What Is STRC and Why Are Investors Comparing It to LUNA? STRC is a Nasdaq-listed perpetual preferred stock carrying a $100 stated par value. It launched in July 2025 at a 9% annual dividend rate, which Strategy has since raised seven consecutive times to 11.50% as of June 2026.
That rising yield mirrors the dynamic that drew retail investors into Terra’s Anchor protocol before its collapse. STRC also pays an 11.5% annual dividend, a yield that echoes the 20% return Terra’s Anchor protocol advertised before it imploded.
According to Arkham, there are 104.89 million STRC shares outstanding. At 11.5% on a $100 par value, Strategy owes approximately $1.2 billion per year to maintain those dividends. The firm held $1.4 billion in USD reserves as of earlier this week, leaving a thin buffer.
IS STRC THE NEXT LUNA?
Short answer – not quite.
STRC has depegged. It’s down to $76.2, approximately 25% below par. Michael Saylor has $1.4 Billion to pay STRC dividends, but will he be able to keep the stock alive? Here’s our breakdown: pic.twitter.com/bMDzGWEHMW
— Arkham (@arkham) June 25, 2026
The preferred stock fell to an intraday low of $82.53 last week, its deepest drawdown since launch, reviving comparisons on social media to Terra’s UST stablecoin collapse in 2022. A high yield and a price drifting below its target were enough to trigger that memory across crypto circles.
A hawkish Federal Reserve pivot on June 17, with nine of 18 FOMC officials projecting at least one rate increase in 2026, added further pressure on both Bitcoin and the income-oriented buyers STRC targets. That macro backdrop accelerated the selling.
Why STRC Is Not LUNA and What the Slide Means for Strategy The structural differences between STRC and Terra LUNA are where the comparison breaks down. Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer described STRC as “not a stablecoin,” characterizing the selloff as a market-driven reset of required yield rather than a depeg, noting that something never pegged cannot technically depeg.
Terra UST maintained a programmatic $1 peg enforced by algorithmic minting and burning of LUNA tokens, a mechanism STRC simply does not have.
Arkham noted that Saylor is not legally required to pay STRC dividends at any point. Unlike Terra’s design, there is no forced liquidation triggered by a price drop.
The market price of STRC reflects investor confidence in Strategy’s willingness and capacity to keep paying, nothing more.
Strategy’s legacy software business generates roughly $477 million in annual revenue against more than $1.2 billion in preferred-dividend obligations, a gap funded almost entirely by capital markets activity rather than operations. That structural mismatch is the real concern, not a death spiral.
A sustained discount still forces difficult choices on Strategy: richer preferred terms, more equity issuance, or drawing on the Bitcoin reserve itself.
Arkham warned that if MSTR investors begin to recognize their capital is being recycled into dividend payments for earlier preferred shareholders, demand for MSTR shares could soften over time, gradually constraining the firm’s broader Bitcoin accumulation engine.
PANews June 26 news, according to Arkham analysis, Strategy’s STRC perpetual preferred stock has de-pegged, falling about 25% from its face value to $76.2, with an annual dividend yield of 11.5%, requiring approximately $1.2 billion in dividend payments each year. Arkham stressed that Strategy is not legally obligated to pay these dividends, and if the company runs into trouble, STRC shareholders would not need to be prioritized. Unlike Terra LUNA, a decline in STRC’s price does not trigger liquidations; its price only reflects market concerns about Strategy’s ability to pay dividends and raise funds in the future. The current drop stems from investor doubts about the sustainability of dividend payments, rather than structural collapse risk. Arkham believes this will not directly bring down the company, but it could erode investor confidence over the long term — if the market perceives that new financing is only being used to repay old shareholders, future fundraising ability will be weakened.
Strategy faces tighter short-term liquidity, but its conservative 11% net leverage protects it from forced BTC liquidations.A Bitcoin rally above $70,000 remains unlikely as long as STRC trades under $100 and spot ETFs show net selling pressure.Bitcoin (BTC) faced a 21% price correction in 10 days, retesting the $61,000 level for the first time in four months. This movement coincided with Strategy (MSTR US) company's decision to buy back some corporate debt, temporarily pausing its Bitcoin accumulation. Traders now fear that Strategy could be forced to liquidate some of its Bitcoin holdings.
Strategy (MSTR US) Bitcoin reserve changes and average price. Source: Strategy
Strategy had been the largest known Bitcoin buyer, accumulating 126,016 BTC for $9.31 billion since March. However, the company used $1.38 billion of cash raised by recent equity issuances to buy back some of its convertible debt. The decision, announced on May 15, coincided with the Stretch preferred stock (STRC US) distancing itself from $100.
Strategy Series A Perpetual Stretch preferred stock (STRC US). Source: TradingView
The STRC preferred stock allows Strategy to issue new shares whenever its price reaches $100 and offers holders a variable dividend, currently set at 11.5% annually, paid monthly in cash. If traders decide it is no longer worth $100, new buyers step in at lower levels, which is equivalent to demanding a higher dividend. So, at first sight, this should be a non-event for Strategy’s risk perception.
Strategy raised $7.5 billion through preferred stock issuances in the first five months of 2026, which was highly supportive of Bitcoin’s price. Now, the company faces a rough path, given its cash position has been reduced to $900 million, which is enough to cover dividends for six months.
Strategy’s 11% net leverage is the key financial metric to monitor, as it represents the amount of debt the company holds relative to its assets. By any standard, the coverage provided by its Bitcoin holdings — even at a $30,000 price — should be considered conservative.
Will Strategy be forced to liquidate some of its Bitcoin holdings?While short-term liquidity conditions have certainly deteriorated, there is no contractual floor set in Strategy’s convertible debt that would force a Bitcoin reserve liquidation. Moreover, there is no prohibition on selling MSTR stock at a discount to its market-adjusted net asset value.
If debt markets are not available, the company could opt to dilute current MSTR holders. Whether this move would be interpreted as a weakness and further pressure MSTR and STRC prices is irrelevant to Strategy’s leverage ratio, as the company would remain financially solid.
Source: X/zeroxkyle
According to X user zeroxkyle, author of the Grand Line newsletter, an eventual Bitcoin sale from Strategy would only bring its price down faster, worsening liquidity conditions. The analysis refers to a “doom loop” causing buyers to withhold from adding positions due to a constant fear of a large seller entering the market.
It is impossible to predict what would ease investors' tension, as Strategy is in no danger of an imminent forced sale. The preferred stock dividends can be paused at will, although they merely accumulate for later on. Still, as long as STRC continues to trade below $100 and spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) remain a net seller, odds for a Bitcoin rally above $70,000 are slim.
This article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph's Editorial Policy and is intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or recommendations. All investments and trades carry risk; readers are encouraged to conduct independent research.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) around $62,000 is sitting directly on the 200-week moving average, a level that only broke during the FTX, Terra, and Three Arrows Capital collapses in 2022.
ETF Outflows Finally Printed One Green Day After $5B ExitAfter four weeks of relentless selling that drained ETF net assets from $109 billion to $80.40 billion, June 4 printed a modest $3.05 million net inflow.
One green day does not reverse weeks of institutional distribution. The long/short ratio sits at a nearly neutral 1.01 with open interest declining 2.99% to $46.44 billion, suggesting leveraged players are stepping back rather than committing directionally.
Additionally, over 24 hours, $209 million in longs were liquidated against $127 million in shorts, confirming the market is still punishing buyers.
Meanwhile, Bankless co-host David Hoffman noted on X that the 200-week moving average has only broken twice in Bitcoin’s history, both times during catastrophic contagion events.
“I don’t think Saylor’s STRC issuance is anywhere close to that level of toxicity,” he posted, drawing a line between current stress and systemic collapse.
Breaking $60,000 Would Trigger Mechanical Selling From Derivatives MarketDeribit Chief Commercial Officer Jean-David Péquignot warned that $60,000 is not just a psychological level but a structural threshold with real mechanical consequences.
A significant portion of institutional buyers, including ETF purchasers, large holders, and short-term speculators, entered between $60,000 and $67,000 over the past year and are now sitting near break-even.
“As price undercuts their cost basis, the resulting unrealized losses may incentivize rushed selling, especially as the opportunity cost of holding BTC rises against a surging AI equity sector,” Péquignot said.
The derivatives problem compounds this. Over $1.2 billion in notional open interest sits at the $60,000 strike put options on Deribit.
Market makers who sold those puts are short gamma, meaning as Bitcoin approaches $60,000 they must sell spot BTC or futures to hedge, mechanically accelerating the decline.
A break below $60,000 could trigger cascading long liquidations as collateral metrics deteriorate across leveraged positions.
Image: Shutterstock
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The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, Bitcoin, experienced a steep selloff on the final trading day of the week, plunging to its lowest point since October 2024. As of Friday, the price retraced as far as $59,073, sliding beneath the previous low reached in February, when it tested the $60,062 mark.
Rising US labor data intensifies pressureThe main catalyst behind the sharp decline was robust US employment data released on Friday. Afterward, markets factored in the likelihood that interest rates would remain elevated for a longer period. This sentiment drove US Treasury yields and the dollar index higher, exerting pressure across risk assets, including equities and the cryptocurrency market.
In the aftermath of Friday’s sharp correction, Bitcoin stabilized around the $61,000 level in Saturday’s Asian trading session. The flagship crypto remained roughly 1.3 percent in the red on the day and booked a significant weekly loss of 16 percent. Ongoing outflows from Bitcoin ETFs throughout the week added to the bearish mood and exacerbated downward price movement.
This cycle witnesses steepest demand contractionJulio Moreno, head of research at on-chain analytics provider CryptoQuant, characterized the latest correction as “a new cycle low that signals a bear market for Bitcoin.” In his analysis, Moreno argued that the current pullback marks the most severe contraction of this market cycle.
Julio Moreno, at the helm of CryptoQuant’s research division, commented that the recent price action corresponds to the steepest contraction seen in this cycle and has established a new bear market low.
CryptoQuant’s data revealed that global Bitcoin demand has dipped to its weakest point since this cycle began after the previous bear market. Aggregate demand fell by 501,000 BTC, the deepest contraction observed so far in this period. The data also pointed out that the speed of this demand drop mirrors the rapid retreat seen in the aftermath of the Terra and Luna crash.
Glossary: On-chain data refers to indicators derived from activity and balances on the blockchain. Spot demand reflects direct buying interest, whereas futures demand measures position-taking in derivatives markets.
According to the same dataset, total Bitcoin demand, which includes both speculative and spot transactions, shrank by 501,000 BTC over the past month. This marks the fastest monthly drop since May 22, 2022. Spot demand alone fell by 272,000 BTC on a rolling 30-day basis, while futures-driven demand dropped by 229,000 BTC during the same timeframe.
Analysts draw parallels with previous bear cyclesAnalysts observed that similar patterns emerged in November 2023 and again in April 2025, with market participants now focusing intently on this latest period of waning interest. Historically, such phases of low demand and muted investor engagement have sometimes preceded shifts in market direction.
CryptoQuant’s data shows simultaneous weakness in both spot and futures demand, with an overall contraction reaching a cycle low of minus 501,000 BTC.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
Pedro wipes the sleep from his eyes, kisses his wife on the cheek, and rolls over to pick up his phone to check on his Luna Classic validators. In the real world, he's waking up for his job as the head brewer at a beerhouse. But in the virtual one, he's known as Vegas, one of the leading voices in the Terra Luna Classic community.
Terra Luna Classic is the blockchain that was forked and abandoned when Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon attempted to save his crumbling empire in 2022. Kwon has since been convicted of fraud and sentenced to 15 years in prison over the $40 billion collapse of Terra. But the network he and his company created—decentralized as it is—lives on, with the support of individuals from around the world who have poured significant amounts of time and money into the project.
Vegas told Decrypt he had approximately $50,000 invested in Terra at the time of its collapse, subsequently finding himself at ground zero when efforts began to salvage the project.
Nowadays, as he walks downstairs in the morning, phone in hand, he checks in on the Terra developer group chat, then his emails for any exploit concerns, and then scrolls through the community Telegram and Discord chats while making himself breakfast. Most days, in the morning or while at work, Vegas will act as a point of contact for community members who have support requests or for developers who need help with proposals.
"In the middle of this, I have to fight all of the drama that is all over Twitter," the Portuguese-born Vegas told Decrypt, calling it a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week job. "If you ask my wife, she will say that I'm crazy, but no. I think there's still hope on the chain. I think there's massive potential for this chain to be a top 10 chain again."
Despite his dedication, Vegas isn't without his detractors. When Decrypt joined the Terra Classic Telegram group to speak with Vegas, we received several DMs accusing Vegas of being a scammer himself. Vegas says it comes with the territory—the perils of decentralization and internal power struggles, even within a group that has suffered one of the worst collapses in crypto’s short history.
"Decentralization is amazing, but at the same time, it is cruel because people want to take the spotlight," Vegas told Decrypt. "I've had physical problems in my real life with people calling the police to my house, to my work, and some other stuff … horrible, horrible times."
Where did this all begin?When Terra collapsed back in 2022, the price of the LUNA token was in free fall, the network's native stablecoin UST had depegged, and Do Kwon made his now infamous “steady lads” call on social media to rally his believers.
In a last-ditch effort, Terraform Labs hard forked the network to remove the depegged algorithmic stablecoin UST, leaving behind the original chain with the new name of Terra Luna Classic—much like Ethereum Classic.
Deploying more capital - steady lads
— Do Kwon 🌕 (@stablekwon) May 9, 2022
With its creators abandoning the original Terra Luna chain, a group of community members called the Terra Rebels started to congregate on Discord. In the short term, the Discord channel doubled as a support network with pseudonymous moderator “K_raucks” creating a suicide help line of sorts.
"A lot of people needed someone to talk to. And it's anonymous on these spaces, so we allowed the space for them to express these feelings," K_raucks told Decrypt. "It's hard when people have lost everything."
The community's first step to rebuilding the chain was proposal 3568, which introduced a 1.2% burn tax on all transactions of Terra Luna Classic, which trades as LUNC. The hope was that it would help boost demand for LUNC and therefore boost its price. The proposal was authored by Vegas and was the source of his first criticism from detractors, who claim it was just a marketing move.
The Terra Rebels continued through the summer and autumn of 2022, attempting to rebuild the chain. Things then came to a head in December when the Terra Rebels received $150,000 from the community pool to separate the Rebel Station wallet's infrastructure from Terraform Labs. This caused community uproar and accusations that the Terra Rebels were trying to centralize power on the chain, and the group disbanded.
Tensions within the LUNC community then flared.
"The situation is simple to explain: If you see someone who you think is winning money and profiting from the chain, you want their position. And you will do every single thing to make their life very, very, very messy," Vegas said.
As a result of the messy politics, Vegas explained, many developers have left Terra Luna Classic over the years.
Amidst this power struggle, the community continued to build. One of these projects includes lending protocol Juris Protocol, which aims to be an Anchor protocol alternative but without the "ponzinomics," its founder Puya Eghtessadi told Decrypt. Others have released meme coins, crypto games, and have formulated plans to repeg the chain's stablecoins.
The community's efforts have seen some modest success, with the price LUNC gaining 17.3% over the past year, per CoinGecko data. The token, however, has fallen 28.7% since proposal 3568 was first introduced in 2022 and is down 99.99% from its all-time high of $119.
While Vegas lies in bed at night dreaming that LUNC will regain its top 10 status one day, many others within the community feel like they've found a family, bonded through trauma—and price action is secondary. And like many families, it's dysfunctional.
"There is a sense of camaraderie, people are going through or have gone through traumatic [events], but you still have this common goal," K_raucks told Decrypt. "What if we can pull off one of the greatest comebacks ever? It's the freaking Hail Mary."
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Strategy faces tighter short-term liquidity, but its conservative 11% net leverage protects it from forced BTC liquidations.A Bitcoin rally above $70,000 remains unlikely as long as STRC trades under $100 and spot ETFs show net selling pressure.Bitcoin (BTC) faced a 21% price correction in 10 days, retesting the $61,000 level for the first time in four months. This movement coincided with Strategy (MSTR US) company's decision to buy back some corporate debt, temporarily pausing its Bitcoin accumulation. Traders now fear that Strategy could be forced to liquidate some of its Bitcoin holdings.
Strategy (MSTR US) Bitcoin reserve changes and average price. Source: Strategy
Strategy had been the largest known Bitcoin buyer, accumulating 126,016 BTC for $9.31 billion since March. However, the company used $1.38 billion of cash raised by recent equity issuances to buy back some of its convertible debt. The decision, announced on May 15, coincided with the Stretch preferred stock (STRC US) distancing itself from $100.
Strategy Series A Perpetual Stretch preferred stock (STRC US). Source: TradingView
The STRC preferred stock allows Strategy to issue new shares whenever its price reaches $100 and offers holders a variable dividend, currently set at 11.5% annually, paid monthly in cash. If traders decide it is no longer worth $100, new buyers step in at lower levels, which is equivalent to demanding a higher dividend. So, at first sight, this should be a non-event for Strategy’s risk perception.
Strategy raised $7.5 billion through preferred stock issuances in the first five months of 2026, which was highly supportive of Bitcoin’s price. Now, the company faces a rough path, given its cash position has been reduced to $900 million, which is enough to cover dividends for six months.
Strategy’s 11% net leverage is the key financial metric to monitor, as it represents the amount of debt the company holds relative to its assets. By any standard, the coverage provided by its Bitcoin holdings — even at a $30,000 price — should be considered conservative.
Will Strategy be forced to liquidate some of its Bitcoin holdings?While short-term liquidity conditions have certainly deteriorated, there is no contractual floor set in Strategy’s convertible debt that would force a Bitcoin reserve liquidation. Moreover, there is no prohibition on selling MSTR stock at a discount to its market-adjusted net asset value.
If debt markets are not available, the company could opt to dilute current MSTR holders. Whether this move would be interpreted as a weakness and further pressure MSTR and STRC prices is irrelevant to Strategy’s leverage ratio, as the company would remain financially solid.
Source: X/zeroxkyle
According to X user zeroxkyle, author of the Grand Line newsletter, an eventual Bitcoin sale from Strategy would only bring its price down faster, worsening liquidity conditions. The analysis refers to a “doom loop” causing buyers to withhold from adding positions due to a constant fear of a large seller entering the market.
It is impossible to predict what would ease investors' tension, as Strategy is in no danger of an imminent forced sale. The preferred stock dividends can be paused at will, although they merely accumulate for later on. Still, as long as STRC continues to trade below $100 and spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) remain a net seller, odds for a Bitcoin rally above $70,000 are slim.
This article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph's Editorial Policy and is intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or recommendations. All investments and trades carry risk; readers are encouraged to conduct independent research.
