Digital asset markets have come under fresh strain lately, as relatively large market-cap cryptocurrencies register meaningful losses. Dogecoin (DOGE) and Hyperliquid’s HYPE token stand out for their substantial drops during this period of broader weakness across Bitcoin and the overall crypto space.
Meanwhile, investor interest has increasingly turned toward stocks connected to artificial intelligence developments, creating a noticeable contrast in capital allocation preferences.
This environment points to a rotation in market focus. As participants seek exposure to various technology sectors promising rapid advancement, many digital assets have faced reduced demand.
Dogecoin, which benefits from a vibrant community and cultural relevance, has not been immune to these shifts.
Similarly, HYPE, associated with advanced decentralized trading capabilities on the Hyperliquid platform, has experienced pronounced selling pressure.
These movements reflect how sentiment can quickly adjust when competing opportunities arise in equities.
Bitcoin, serving as the foundational asset in the cryptocurrency world, has also navigated challenges, though its performance has varied relative to smaller tokens.
The general struggle in crypto highlights ongoing sensitivities to external influences, including liquidity conditions and broader economic signals.
When funds flow more readily into AI-related shares—driven by expectations of transformative impacts on industries—alternative investments like cryptocurrencies can see tempered enthusiasm.
Compounding these dynamics is activity in traditional safe-haven markets.
A selloff involving precious metals such as gold and silver appears linked to additional negative effects on Bitcoin pricing.
Gold and silver often attract flows during times of uncertainty or as inflation hedges, and their recent weakness may signal shifting investor priorities or responses to macroeconomic data.
This correlation can intensify movements in crypto, as traders adjust portfolios holistically across asset types that share risk characteristics or hedging roles.
Several elements likely contribute to the current picture.
A strong US dollar, policy expectations from central banks, or profit-taking in previously strong performers can all steer capital away from higher-volatility areas.
AI stocks, by comparison, draw support from narratives of long-term productivity gains and corporate earnings potential in tech.
This selective risk appetite leaves parts of the crypto market vulnerable to extended consolidation phases.
For holders and traders, the situation emphasizes the need for vigilance regarding cross-market relationships.
Dogecoin’s price action often ties closely to retail sentiment and social trends, rendering it susceptible to swift changes.
HYPE’s fortunes connect to decentralized finance activity and platform usage, which can fluctuate with overall market conditions.
When precious metals face selling, it may prompt leveraged position adjustments that spill into Bitcoin and altcoins.
Potential stabilization could emerge if commodity markets find support or if positive crypto-specific developments capture attention.
However, until AI enthusiasm or other growth stories begin to overlap more directly with digital assets, pressures may persist.
This period illustrates the highly interconnected nature of modern investing.
Movements in equities, commodities, and cryptocurrencies rarely occur in isolation, and understanding these links helps in forming balanced strategies.
Participants are monitoring key levels for support while assessing whether the current rotation represents a short-term phenomenon or a more sustained reallocation. The recent performance of Dogecoin, HYPE, and the wider crypto arena underscores a market in transition, influenced by competing asset classes and external economic factors.
Film director Carl Rinsch was sentenced after misusing Netflix production funds connected to his sci-fi project.Prosecutors said part of the money was ultimately placed into Dogecoin, producing a large paper win during the 2021 rally.The story is not a trading success story; it is a fraud case that happens to intersect with crypto mania. Dogecoin has appeared in plenty of strange market stories over the years, but this one belongs in a different category. A federal case involving film director Carl Rinsch has ended with a 30-month prison sentence after prosecutors said he diverted Netflix production funds, gambled with the money, and then put what remained into Dogecoin during one of the wildest crypto cycles on record.
The case was handled in the Southern District of New York, with official announcements and case material available through the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. According to the validated source pack, Rinsch was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay $11 million in restitution to Netflix.
A Crypto Mania Story With A Legal Core The headline number is hard to ignore. Prosecutors said Rinsch diverted $11 million in production funds for the sci-fi series Conquest, lost money trading options, and then put roughly $4 million into Dogecoin. During DOGE’s 2021 surge, that position reportedly turned into about $27 million.
That kind of return would usually be the centre of a crypto bull-market legend. Here, it is the background to a sentencing. The court was not judging whether Dogecoin was a clever trade. It was dealing with the alleged misuse of production money that was supposed to fund a television project. That distinction matters, especially in a market where people are quick to turn dramatic gains into mythology.
Dogecoin’s role in the case also says something about the 2021 cycle. DOGE was not just another token moving on a chart. It became a cultural object, pulled along by memes, celebrity attention, retail speculation, and a sense that almost anything could go vertical if enough people believed in it at once. That atmosphere attracted ordinary traders, but it also became a tempting arena for reckless decisions.
Why This Matters Beyond Dogecoin The case lands at an awkward time for crypto’s public image. The industry is trying to push institutional adoption, ETF flows, tokenized assets, and on-chain finance. Then a story like this arrives and reminds mainstream readers of the manic side of the last cycle: sudden wealth, blurred judgment, and money moving into volatile tokens for reasons that had little to do with fundamentals.
That does not mean Dogecoin itself caused the misconduct. DOGE was the vehicle that happened to produce the gain after the alleged diversion had already occurred. The legal problem was the source and use of the funds, not the existence of a meme coin market. Still, when a court case ties Netflix money, options losses, Dogecoin gains, and prison time into one narrative, it becomes a powerful reminder of how speculative markets can amplify bad decisions.
There is another detail worth handling carefully: the defense raised mental health arguments, and those should not be treated as a throwaway line. The sentencing sits at the intersection of finance, entertainment, crypto speculation, and personal circumstances. Reducing it to “director made millions on DOGE” misses the entire point.
For crypto readers, the takeaway is blunt. A massive Dogecoin win does not clean up how the capital was obtained. The market can reward a trade while the legal system still punishes the conduct around it. That is not a contradiction. It is the difference between a price chart and a courtroom.
This article was written by the News Desk and edited by Samuel Rae.
Dogecoin’s price slipped by 0.68% over the past 24 hours, trading near $0.07228 on Tuesday. The cryptocurrency continued to hover around its daily lows, and a drop below its previous trading range has brought a more cautious, short-term outlook to the market.
Key price level: $0.073 holds short-term significanceThe $0.073 level is now seen as a critical threshold in Dogecoin’s price action. According to analyst Ali Charts, a TD Sequential buy signal has appeared on the daily chart, making the preservation of this support vital for a potential short-term rebound.
Mini glossary: The TD Sequential is a technical indicator used to detect trend exhaustion and possible turning points in markets. It does not serve as a standalone trading signal but is often combined with support and resistance levels for analysis.
Ali Charts notes that if Dogecoin maintains support at $0.073, it could stage a rebound toward $0.081, but losing this level would likely weaken the short-term bullish scenario.
A move toward the $0.081 mark could signal renewed buying interest. Should this resistance break, further upside barriers are projected at $0.084, $0.087, and $0.090. However, any price action below $0.081 would likely keep rebound attempts subdued and lacking momentum.
Drop below previous range fuels selling pressureAnalyst Umair Orakzai draws attention to Dogecoin’s fall below $0.08161, the Point of Control (POC) for its 2023 trading range. The POC is the price level with the highest traded volume over a certain period and is often considered an important equilibrium zone in market analysis.
Umair Orakzai emphasizes that $0.08161 is now the primary resistance that must be reclaimed for a sustainable recovery. If Dogecoin fails to surpass this level, continued selling pressure is likely.
On the downside, $0.06556 is emerging as the next vital support. Should this break, the market could see a deeper retreat toward the $0.060–$0.058 band. More broadly, analysts warn that the base zone between $0.0572 and $0.0550 may be retested if bearish sentiment persists.
On-chain data underscores persisting weaknessSigns of fragility are also apparent in on-chain metrics. Cryptollica reports that only 17% of the circulating Dogecoin supply remains in profit, highlighting a rise in the proportion of holders in loss and suggesting that the psychological weight of potential selling could deepen.
While this situation does not guarantee an immediate bottom, holding the $0.073 support and a recovery back above $0.081 could create the groundwork for a short-term bounce, given the current on-chain congestion. Otherwise, the market may continue searching for a new, lower base.
In summary, the $0.073 level has become the focal point for traders watching near-term Dogecoin moves. Maintaining support at this price could prompt a response from buyers and instill some short-term optimism, though technical hurdles remain pronounced.
Meanwhile, the loss of support zones such as $0.073 and $0.06556 keeps the risk of further declines on the table. Analysts continue to monitor whether bulls can reclaim key resistance points to ease the ongoing selling pressure.
Observers caution that Dogecoin’s current technical structure remains vulnerable unless it manages to reverse recent losses, with sentiment likely to remain fragile amid on-chain weakness and falling price momentum.
Market participants will be closely watching for signs of stabilization in the coming days as Dogecoin tests critical support and resistance levels, seeking any indications of a trend reversal or further downside ahead.
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.
Dogecoin (DOGE) recorded another daily decline, drawing renewed attention to long-term technical signals. As of June 30, 2026, the memecoin dropped 1.61% to trade at $0.07097. Trading volume for the day stood at $1.16 billion, while the market capitalization was reported at $10.87 billion.
Crypto analyst Trader Tardigrade highlighted in a recent weekly chart that Dogecoin’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) has once again entered oversold territory. According to Tardigrade, the last time this technical signal appeared was in 2022, a period that preceded a significant rebound in price after DOGE established a bottom.
Trader Tardigrade points out that, similar to the 2022 lows, Dogecoin’s RSI has re-entered the oversold range. He emphasizes that historically, this setup did not obstruct a sharp recovery but instead accompanied such a move.
The analyst recalls that the prior RSI signal was followed by an 886% rally in DOGE, taking the price up to $0.48. Basing his assessment on this previous scenario, Trader Tardigrade now suggests that $0.70 could represent a potential future target for Dogecoin.
Glossary: RSI, or the Relative Strength Index, is a technical indicator measuring the speed and direction of price movements. Readings below 30 are considered oversold, while levels above 70 indicate overbought conditions.
IndicatorLevelMeaningDOGE price$0.07097Weak daily performancePrevious Rally886%Increase following 2022 signalAnalyst target$0.70Expectation based on historical precedentShort-term pressure weighs on DogecoinHowever, technical indicators suggest that DOGE has yet to find short-term strength. The coin continues to trade below the middle Bollinger band at $0.08106, signaling ongoing selling pressure. Meanwhile, the lower Bollinger band at $0.06950 has emerged as a key support level to watch in the near term.
A look at the MACD indicator further confirms this weak outlook. The MACD line currently sits at -0.00534, with the signal line at -0.00478. The histogram, posted at -0.00056, indicates that any buying momentum remains limited for now.
Despite a long-term signal that stands out on the technical chart, current conditions do not confirm that downside pressure has fully dissipated in the short run.
Support level takes center stage in the coming weeksThe next several weeks could prove decisive for Dogecoin. Market participants will be watching closely to see if the renewed RSI signal kicks off a strong rebound, as it did in 2022. Should buyers manage to defend key support regions and momentum indicators start to improve, confidence may gradually return to the market.
Conversely, if selling pressure persists and the $0.06950 support fails, the price could face renewed downward momentum. While the comparison to 2022 is fueling market expectations, analysts caution that additional technical confirmation is needed before the ambitious $0.70 target becomes credible.
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.
Bitcoin on Tuesday dropped below $59,000 amid sustained ETF selling and lingering extreme fear sentiment in the cryptocurrency market.
Notable Statistics:
Coinglass data shows 82,520 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $269.92 million. SoSoValue data shows net outflows of $231.1 million from spot Bitcoin ETFs on Monday. Spot Ethereum ETFs saw net outflows of $30.04 million. In the past 24 hours, top gainers include MemeCore, Lighter and Pyth Network. Notable Developments:
Trader Notes:
Trader Rekt Capital highlighted that Bitcoin appears to be setting up for a mid-summer relief rally after plunging 21% this month. He added that sharp monthly selloffs have historically been followed by short-term rebounds.
However, the trader cautioned that any gains in July could be erased in August, mirroring Bitcoin’s price action during the 2022 bear market.
Political economist Seth said Bitcoin’s drop to around $58,000 has already triggered a wave of long liquidations, but leveraged traders are quickly re-entering, adding roughly $1.16 billion in long liquidation exposure near $57,800.
He argued that if those new bullish positions are flushed out, market makers could then target the much larger $4.14 billion cluster of short liquidations around the $62,000 level.
Industry expert Follis noted Bitcoin bulls have successfully defended the $59,000 support level 10 times during June despite repeated selling attempts, underscoring strong buying interest at that price.
However, he warned that if the support finally breaks and buyers step aside, Bitcoin could quickly fall another 3% to 4% as downside momentum accelerates.
Image: Shutterstock
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Dogecoin has remained one of crypto’s most recognizable meme assets for years, but recent market conditions have become increasingly challenging.
Slowing momentum, weak market sentiment, and technical resistance have made it difficult for DOGE to regain the strong rallies seen during previous cycles.
At the same time, investor attention is gradually shifting toward AI-powered ecosystems that combine meme culture with broader blockchain utility. MemeToro ($MT) is one of the projects benefiting from that transition, as more participants evaluate early-stage AI platforms alongside traditional meme coins.
The comparison reflects a broader change in how investors approach the memecoin market in 2026.
Dogecoin Continues Facing Technical Resistance Dogecoin remains under pressure despite stabilizing around the $0.07 level.
Current market data places the token within a neutral momentum range based on its 14-day Relative Strength Index, suggesting neither buyers nor sellers have complete control. However, longer-term technical indicators remain more cautious.
The 200-day moving average continues sloping downward, creating a significant resistance level that bulls must overcome before any sustained recovery can develop.
Short-term projections remain mixed.
Some market models estimate an average July price near $0.102, with stronger bullish scenarios reaching approximately $0.19. Those forecasts, however, depend heavily on broader market conditions improving during the coming months.
For now, sentiment remains restrained.
The wider crypto market continues operating under an Extreme Fear reading, reflecting the cautious outlook shared by many retail investors.
Investors Are Looking Beyond Traditional Memecoins Dogecoin’s recent struggles have encouraged many investors to broaden their search.
Rather than focusing exclusively on established meme assets, attention is increasingly moving toward projects that combine community participation with artificial intelligence and blockchain utility.
This shift reflects changing market preferences.
Investors now want ecosystems capable of generating continuous engagement rather than relying entirely on price speculation. Artificial intelligence has become one of the strongest narratives supporting that transition.
Projects integrating AI directly into their products are attracting growing interest despite broader market uncertainty.
Why MemeToro Is Receiving More Attention MemeToro ($MT) enters the discussion from a very different position than Dogecoin.
Instead of functioning solely as a memecoin, the project operates as an AI-powered SocialFi ecosystem that combines automated token creation, behavioral finance, prediction markets, and staking into one platform.
This broader structure allows the project to participate in multiple growing sectors simultaneously.
Because MemeToro remains in its presale phase, investors are evaluating it as an early-stage ecosystem rather than a mature cryptocurrency. That creates higher risk, but it also explains why some analysts see greater upside potential if adoption continues expanding.
The comparison with Dogecoin is therefore less about replacing an established asset and more about contrasting two different stages of crypto development.
The MemeToro Ecosystem Goes Beyond Memecoins Artificial intelligence sits at the center of the platform.
The MemeToro AI Agent continuously analyzes social conversations, online trends, market narratives, and cultural developments to identify emerging opportunities. Those insights support an automated no-code memecoin creation engine that allows users to launch blockchain assets without technical expertise.
The ecosystem also includes decentralized prediction markets where participants can forecast outcomes across cryptocurrency, sports, entertainment, politics, and major global events using both $MT and BNB.
Users can further participate through staking opportunities offering rewards of up to 35% APR.
Together, these products create multiple utility layers designed to encourage ongoing engagement rather than passive ownership.
MemeToro Price Prediction Depends on Ecosystem Adoption Any MemeToro price prediction should be viewed in the context of ecosystem growth rather than short-term speculation.
MemeToro’s Stage 3 presale is currently 33.83% filled, with $27,284.54 raised out of an $80,644.11 cap. This represents the current window to purchase $MT tokens at the $0.00154 valuation before the price adjusts to $0.00171 for the next round.
The BNB Chain project serves as a utility hub for four distinct applications: AI automated memecoin generation, event-based prediction markets, a crypto casino, and staking rewards up to 35% APR.
Of the 1.2 billion total supply, 71% is unlocked and allocated directly to presale participants. Those interested in the current round can find purchasing options, including card payments, ETH, BNB, USDT, and USDC, at memetoro.com.
What’s Ahead for DOGE and Other Memecoins Dogecoin remains one of crypto’s most recognizable memecoins, but technical resistance and cautious market sentiment continue limiting its near-term momentum.
MemeToro represents a different investment thesis built around AI-powered memecoin creation, decentralized prediction markets, staking rewards, and SocialFi participation.
As investors continue comparing established meme assets with emerging AI ecosystems, both projects illustrate how the memecoin market is evolving beyond speculation toward broader utility and engagement.
More Information on MemeToro ($MT) Presale Here:
Website: https://memetoro.com/
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Charles Hoskinson has reaffirmed his commitment to leading Cardano through its next phase of growth.
His remarks come amid growing criticism from parts of the community, with some critics urging him to step down following a series of ecosystem setbacks, including project shutdowns and governance disputes.
In the commentary, Hoskinson dismissed those calls and insisted that millions of community members still look to him for guidance and leadership. According to him, these supporters represent the “silent overwhelming majority” of the Cardano ecosystem.
The majority, in his view, include users, developers, and stakeholders, who believe he can help solve problems, provide direction, and guide the network through difficult periods.
“I’m the guy who’s been here since day one and before,” Hoskinson said, adding that this long-standing involvement is a key reason he continues to lead Cardano.
Governance Enhancement Emerges as Cardano’s Next Priority Meanwhile, Hoskinson identified governance reform as Cardano’s most important objective moving forward. In his view, the ecosystem has reached a stage where stronger governance structures are essential for long-term sustainability and growth.
As the creator of the protocol and one of the key figures behind its launch, community expansion, and fundraising efforts, Hoskinson believes he has both the experience and responsibility to push these reforms forward.
His call for governance improvements follows weeks of disputes surrounding treasury allocations and strategic priorities within the ecosystem. Several governance disagreements have highlighted growing tensions within Cardano’s decentralized decision-making system.
For example, some DReps, including some Iagon execs, opposed key proposals backed by IOG. In addition, the community failed to approve funding for the 2026 Cardano Summit, further exposing divisions over spending priorities.
Proposed Reforms In response, Hoskinson has proposed several changes aimed at improving coordination and accountability across the ecosystem. Among them is a proposal to move the Cardano community’s governance-related discussions from X to a moderated Discord environment. However, critics argue that such a move could conflict with Cardano’s decentralization principles by introducing greater moderation over community discussions.
Hoskinson also indicated that he may become a DRep himself to vote on funding proposals directly. He described the potential move as an accountability mechanism rather than an attempt to consolidate power.
Furthermore, he has advocated for a revised Cardano constitution featuring clearer executive responsibilities, elected authority structures, and measurable growth objectives.
Unity Will Determine Cardano’s Future Despite the ongoing disputes, Hoskinson believes governance reform represents the next logical step in Cardano’s evolution, particularly as the network continues its transition toward greater decentralization and community participation.
He also emphasized the importance of unity across the ecosystem, warning that internal divisions could undermine Cardano’s ambitions and slow progress during a critical stage of development.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has outlined what he considers the ultimate measure of success for the Cardano ecosystem and its native token, ADA.
The Cardano founder has repeatedly emphasized his determination to see the blockchain succeed, describing that mission as his life’s work. In his recent commentary, Hoskinson offered fresh insight into how he defines success for the ecosystem he created.
Success Means Returning to Previous Highs and Moving Beyond Them: Hoskinson According to Hoskinson, success involves returning Cardano to its former highs before pushing the network far beyond those levels. He argued that the blockchain’s true achievement would come when Cardano emerges as the world’s leading blockchain protocol.
In his view, reaching that position would fulfill Cardano’s long-term vision while validating the strength of its technology, community, and broader ecosystem. Hoskinson further stressed that becoming the dominant blockchain network would allow Cardano to drive meaningful global change. He believes the platform can transform industries and positively influence society on a global scale.
For him, success is not simply a matter of price appreciation or market capitalization. Instead, it centers on building technology capable of changing the world through decentralization and innovation.
Bear Market Challenges Weigh on ADA Performance Despite ongoing market difficulties, Hoskinson has not softened his ambitions for Cardano. The prolonged bear market has affected investors across the industry, including himself.
For context, ADA currently trades around $0.1441, representing a decline of 95.34% from its previous all-time high of $3.10 reached in September 2021. Additionally, the asset has fallen 5.55% over the past week and 39.1% over the past month, highlighting the intense bearish pressure facing the ecosystem.
At the same time, Cardano has slipped out of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. After spending years among the industry’s largest assets, ADA currently occupies the 18th position in the global cryptocurrency rankings.
For ADA to revisit its previous all-time high of $3.10, the asset would need to rally approximately 2,052% from current levels. Such a move would theoretically increase Cardano’s market cap to roughly $112.84 billion.
Assuming competing assets remain relatively unchanged, that valuation would likely propel Cardano to the fourth-largest position in the global cryptocurrency rankings, surpassing BNB, which is valued at $74 billion.
Hoskinson Believes Cardano Can Surpass Bitcoin Although many observers consider the target ambitious, Hoskinson continues to insist that Cardano can eventually become the leading cryptocurrency network, even surpassing Bitcoin. He argues that sustained investment and continued ecosystem growth could make that objective achievable over time.
Critics, however, have dismissed Hoskinson’s projections as overly optimistic. Some highlighted his previous warnings about a potential wave of failures among Cardano-based projects as evidence that the ecosystem still faces substantial challenges.
As a result, they argue that overtaking Bitcoin and becoming the industry’s dominant blockchain remains an unrealistic objective.
Hoskinson Continues to Back Cardano’s Technology Nevertheless, Hoskinson remains unwavering in his confidence. He maintains that Cardano will eventually surpass its previous highs while delivering transformative global impact through its decentralized infrastructure.
In addition, he pointed to the network’s core technologies, including the Extended UTXO (EUTXO) accounting model, its proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, decentralized on-chain governance, and the Midnight project, as key drivers that could reduce the global cost of trust.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
A ghost chain is a blockchain that is technically running but has very little on-chain activity and development activity.
Over the past decade, there have been many shiny new blockchains that have burst onto the scene. They managed to capture the public’s attention, attracting capital inflows, but have fizzled away eventually.
This fizzle can be due to a lack of funding, community conviction, or the failure to address real issues.
A decline in upgrades and communication regarding the future vision, a failure to keep hold of the influx of initial users due to questionable utility, or a security mishap that leads to a significant loss due to hacks and exploits can devastate investor sentiment.
Compounded over time, a steady decline in usage and trading volume can see a functional chain that is hardly being used at scale.
The chains that have stood the test of time are the ones high up in the crypto assets list. None of the dozens of so-called Ethereum killers that seized the public imagination have managed to knock Ethereum off its pedestal in the crypto ecosystem.
A closer look at the current top Layer 1 tokens Owing to its reliability and security, and combined with Layer-2 solutions that address speed, Ethereum is the dominant base layer blockchain. It dominates the DeFi sectors due to liquidity and security and also processes over half of all stablecoin activity.
XRP is optimized to be a cross-border settlement layer by using its On-Demand Liquidity network to convert fiat into XRP, send it globally, and convert it back to fiat within seconds.
Solana has exceptional throughput and is a hub for trading. Low-cost, high-speed settlements mean that Solana is a leader in real-world asset tokenization.
TRON is the primary Tether [USDT] settlement layer, with over 75% of USDT transfers occurring on this network. TRON’s high throughput also makes it a highly active DeFi chain by transaction volume.
And of course, the Bitcoin network has the strongest security among them all. The asset itself is primarily used as a store of value and a hedge against inflation and also acts as institutional-grade collateral.
Cardano has a more unique role in the crypto ecosystem. Its focus is on sustainability, security, and rigorous, peer-reviewed development methodology. As a result, it is well-suited for institutional compliance and enterprise requirements.
Factors critics point at to throw “ghost chain” shade at Cardano Earlier in June, TapTools, the Cardano ecosystem’s primary blockchain explorer, began shutting down. The exit of senior executives took valuable technical know-how away.
This knowledge could not be replaced quickly enough to allow the platform to continue to be operated responsibly. It was worrisome.
Founder Charles Hoskinson warned that more dApps and DeFi on Cardano would die in the second half of the year. Treasury and community governance systems were unable to react fast enough to help save struggling projects.
Amid worsening market sentiment, the pressure on smaller projects with limited revenue could add to the concerns swirling around the Cardano ecosystem.
Source: Santiment On the bright side, the developmental activity statistics for Cardano were strong. Santiment data showed that it was only second on the list of the prominent Layer 1 networks discussed earlier, in terms of developmental activity.
Yet, Cardano has far fewer dApps, numbering only 34, compared to Solana’s 442 and Ethereum’s 1564, according to blockchain data platform Moralis.
Source: Token Terminal Yet, the transaction count comparison between Ethereum and Cardano showed a massive gulf. Solana was one of the leaders on this front, with 103.2 billion transactions over the past year, according to Token Terminal data.
Source: Token Terminal Similarly, the daily active users also showcased a giant gap in the numbers on the two chains. On this front, TRON was the winner, with 3.9 million active users, much higher even than Ethereum.
Explaining the vast gulf between Cardano and the other leading blockchains While the extreme difference in on-chain activity can be alarming at first, it is not reason enough to conclude Cardano is a ghost chain. The network uses an Extended Unspent Transaction Output (EUTXO) model.
Batcher protocols scoop up the open orders on the blockchain, aggregating them into an optimized transaction that can be submitted to the Cardano ledger.
Effectively, the difference of a factor of 50 that we saw in a couple of metrics examined can be explained by the EUTXO model. Batching capabilities of the network offer advantages in determinism and security, but also underestimate on-chain activity.
In the past, blockchains that failed to fill a niche and dominate a segment of the market have withered away. The established survivors were doing relatively well, but it remains to be seen if they can keep their status in the years to come.
Final Summary The blockchain trilemma means that various Layer 1s have to make their own tradeoffs. The dominant chains have managed to seize a niche for themselves. The Cardano network activity was much lower than its peers, but this alone was not reason enough for critics to brand it a “ghost chain.”
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52-Week Range$43.89▼
$299.86P/E Ratio89.80
Price Target$203.25
Nebius Group NASDAQ: NBIS has been one of the standout AI stories in the market this year, with shares up almost 240% year to date. But the recent bout of AI-related volatility has tested the resolve of even the most committed believers in the neocloud thesis. After surging to an all-time high of $299.86 on June 22, the stock pulled back meaningfully as fears around AI valuations and the durability of the trade swept through the technology sector. Since reaching that all-time high earlier in June, the stock has fallen by almost 13%.
The question now facing investors is straightforward: Does Nebius' elevated valuation leave it dangerously exposed if those fears intensify, or is this still one of the best long-term ways to play the AI infrastructure buildout?
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Nebius Relief Rally Shows AI Sentiment Is StabilizingThe picture brightened considerably at the start of the week. On Monday, June 29, 2026, technology stocks caught a major bid, with memory, semiconductor, and neocloud names all outperforming. Some geopolitical relief appeared to ease pressure on the broader AI trade, and the higher-beta names that had sold off the hardest were among the biggest winners. Nebius rose almost 9% on the session, closing at $261.15.
Even after that move, however, the stock remains well off its peak. At current levels, NBIS sits almost 13% below its 52-week high. That is worth emphasizing because it captures the dynamic unfolding across much of the AI complex right now. Many of these names rallied hard on June 29, but a single strong session does not erase the damage from the recent selloff. Several leading AI infrastructure names, Nebius included, remain meaningfully below their recent peaks.
Nebius Valuation Leaves Little Room for ErrorOverall MarketRank™39th Percentile
Analyst RatingModerate Buy
Upside/Downside27.2% Downside
Short Interest LevelBearish
Dividend StrengthN/A
News Sentiment0.95 Insider TradingSelling Shares
Proj. Earnings GrowthGrowing
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There is no avoiding the elephant in the room. Nebius trades at a price-to-sales ratio of roughly 80 and a trailing price-to-earnings (P/E) above 93. On any conventional measure, that is an extremely rich valuation, and it is precisely why the stock is so sensitive to shifts in sentiment around the AI trade. When a company is priced for years of hypergrowth, even small changes in the market's appetite for risk can produce outsized swings in the share price. That cuts both ways, as June 29's near-9 % jump demonstrated, but it does leave the stock vulnerable if AI fears genuinely intensify from here.
The bears have a legitimate point on this front. A stock trading at 75 times sales has very little margin for error. Any disappointment in execution, any slowdown in contracted revenue, or any broad derating of the AI infrastructure space could hit NBIS harder than its more reasonably valued peers.
Nebius Fundamentals Still Support the AI Growth ThesisThat said, the fundamental story underpinning the valuation has not deteriorated. If anything, it continues to strengthen. Nebius is guiding toward 2026 revenue of $3 billion to $3.4 billion, a staggering increase from the $529.80 million in annual sales it currently reports, and is targeting an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $7 billion to $9 billion. The company has raised its contracted power capacity guidance to over 4 gigawatts by year-end. Its backlog of contracted revenue, anchored by major multi-year agreements with Meta NASDAQ: META and Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT, provides forward visibility that few companies growing at this rate can match.
The recent news flow reinforces the trajectory. The 1.7 billion pounds (around $2.3 billion) UK expansion announced in early June, the move up the value stack through the Eigen AI acquisition, and the broader buildout across the US and Europe all point to a company executing aggressively against an enormous opportunity. This is not a speculative concept stock. It is a business converting hyperscaler demand into signed contracts and deployable infrastructure at a remarkable pace.
Nebius Stock: Worry and Opportunity Can CoexistThe honest answer is that both things can be true at once. The valuation genuinely does leave Nebius exposed to sharp drawdowns if AI sentiment sours, and investors should expect continued volatility. But the underlying business remains one of the best-positioned in the entire neocloud space, with contracted revenue visibility, accelerating expansion, and a clear runway for years of growth ahead.
For long-term investors who believe in the AI infrastructure thesis and can stomach the swings, the recent pullback, with the stock still sitting almost 13% below its high even after the surge on June 29, may represent a more attractive entry than chasing the stock at its peak. The key takeaway is this: the selloff was a sentiment event, not a fundamental one. As long as Nebius continues to execute, the long-term thesis remains very much intact.
Should You Invest $1,000 in Nebius Group Right Now?Before you consider Nebius Group, you'll want to hear this.
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Robotics and automation are rapidly becoming essential infrastructure across healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, and many other industries.
"Physical AI" is coming to the United States, and there are four ways that investors can gain exposure to this new robotics revolution. Plus, learn which seven companies are most positioned to benefit as intelligent robots enter the workforce.
Key Takeaways Rigetti ended Q1 2026 with about $569M in cash and investments and no debt.Rigetti plans elevated 2026 capex to expand Fab-1 and dilution refrigeration capacity.Rigetti aims to improve gate fidelity and achieve quantum advantage in roughly three years. Rigetti Computing’s (RGTI - Free Report) first-quarter 2026 results reinforced that one of its biggest competitive advantages extends beyond its quantum technology. The company exited the quarter with approximately $569 million in cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments while carrying no debt, giving it ample financial flexibility to fund its ambitious technology roadmap.
Rigetti appears well-positioned to continue investing in fabrication, higher-qubit systems and infrastructure without compromising execution when many early-stage quantum computing companies remain heavily dependent on external financing. Management reiterated that capital spending will remain elevated this year as it expands Fab-1 capabilities, adds dilution refrigeration capacity and advances its chiplet-based architecture, investments that are expected to strengthen its long-term competitive position rather than maximize near-term profitability.
More importantly, management made it clear that the company is prioritizing long-term value creation over short-term financial targets. Rigetti remains focused on improving gate fidelity, scaling its modular quantum systems and achieving quantum advantage in roughly three years, supported by disciplined capital allocation and a strong balance sheet.
The company also plans to invest up to $100 million in the United Kingdom to expand its global quantum footprint while continuing to pursue strategic partnerships that accelerate its roadmap. Although quarterly revenues will likely remain uneven given the timing of large system deployments, Rigetti's financial strength provides the runway needed to execute its technology strategy and capitalize on growing commercial opportunities as the quantum computing market matures.
Peers UpdatesQuantum Computing Inc. (QUBT - Free Report) or QCi announced the completion of acquiring NHanced Semiconductors, Inc. for a combination of cash and QCi stock valued at $73.1 million, subject to customary adjustments, and up to an additional $72.0 million if certain performance targets are achieved. The acquisition marks an important step in QCi’s transition from research-driven innovation and prototyping to scalable commercial production. By adding semiconductor and nanophotonics fabrication capabilities, advanced packaging expertise and specialized engineering talent, QCi is strengthening its operational capabilities and manufacturing readiness.
IonQ (IONQ - Free Report) recently opened a new 22,000-square-foot quantum computing R&D laboratory and semiconductor chip testing facility in Boulder, CO, to support the development of future generations of its trapped-ion quantum computing systems. The facility will enable the company to design, test and refine advanced semiconductor ion-trap chips, with plans to install its first quantum computer later this year. By expanding its presence in Colorado's growing quantum technology ecosystem and leveraging the region's deep-tech talent pool, IONQ aims to accelerate innovation, scale production capabilities and advance its roadmap toward fault-tolerant quantum computing.
Rigetti’s Price Performance, Valuation and EstimatesShares of RGTI have lost 12.3% in the year-to-date period compared with the industry’s decline of 16.3%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Rigetti trades at a price-to-book ratio of 11.07, above the industry average. RGTI carries a Value Score of F.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Rigetti’s 2026 earnings implies a significant 71.9% improvement from the year-ago period.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The company currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Updated Jun 30, 2026, 7:09 a.m. Published Jun 30, 2026, 4:59 a.m.
3 min read
Indian flag (Naveed Ahmed/Unsplash)Summary
Tether’s USDT stablecoin has surged to an unusually high premium on Indian crypto exchanges.Executives at major platforms CoinDCX and CoinSwitch say the premium reflects a demand-supply imbalance and thin local liquidity, not exchange-set pricing or hidden fees.USDT, the world's largest dollar-pegged stablecoin, is trading well above face value on Indian crypto platforms. While local reports attribute the premium to a recent enforcement action, exchanges explain it as a simple demand-supply dynamic.
The stablecoin's premium rose to 7%–10% above its dollar value on Indian platforms over the weekend. At one point, USDT traded around ₹102.88 against an official dollar-rupee rate of about 94.65 per USD. USDT's market cap stood at $184.68 billion as of this writing, making it the world's largest dollar-pegged stablecoin.
That gap, known as the USDT premium, normally runs between 3% and 4%. Put simply, it's the extra rupees buyers pay for dollar exposure via USDT instead of through a bank. The premium widens whenever local demand outpaces the supply of tokens actually available to trade.
The spike followed action by India's Enforcement Directorate related to USDT payments, the country's financial-crime agency said, CoinDesk reported Monday.
Now, exchanges are responding to the premium spike, and their explanations line up closely with that supply-side account.
The market clears higherMinal Thukral, executive vice president of the Mumbai-based CoinDCX, called the premium as a function of local order-book depth relative to the global dollar reference price.
"The INR price of USDT is set by local order-book depth and the global dollar reference. India has structurally been a net buyer of crypto, so local INR demand often runs ahead of available sell-side liquidity. When that liquidity is thinner near the global reference price, the market clears higher," Thukral told CoinDesk. "The premium then becomes a signal of the local arbitrage band: how expensive or slow it is for liquidity providers to replenish supply and close the gap," he added.
In plain terms, India has more people wanting to buy USDT than there are sellers willing to part with it near the global price. When that imbalance grows, the price Indian buyers pay rises until the market finds a new equilibrium.
Not unique to any single platformCoinSwitch co-founder and CEO Ashish Singhal gave a more detailed account, stressing that the premium isn't something exchanges are setting themselves.
"As with any actively traded asset, when demand outpaces available supply, prices adjust accordingly. The [USDT] premium is therefore not unique to any single platform; it reflects broader market dynamics, including liquidity conditions and the availability of dollar-backed digital assets.
This phenomenon is not unique to India. Stablecoins have traded at premiums in several markets during periods of elevated demand or liquidity constraints.
It is important to note that exchanges do not manually set the price of USDT. Prices are determined by buyers and sellers trading on the platform.
In recent days, USDT has traded at a premium across several Indian exchanges, with premiums generally ranging between 7% and 10%, depending on liquidity and market activity.
On CoinSwitch, USDT has traded at around a 9% premium over the past few days.
"At CoinSwitch, users always see the live buy and sell price before placing an order. We do not charge any hidden fees beyond our disclosed brokerage. The premium reflects prevailing market conditions rather than any platform-imposed markup," Singhal said. Both CoinDCX and CoinSwitch attribute the premium entirely to organic supply-and-demand dynamics: more buyers than sellers, thinner liquidity near the global reference price, and a market mechanism — not platform pricing decisions — setting the rate.
Neither executive directly addressed the ED's enforcement action or its effect on token supply in their statements, however.
Nevertheless, the supply squeeze that drove the premium unusually higher could be linked to the enforcement action.
Market makers and liquidity provides could have scaled back from sourcing USDT overseas after the ED's action, which would show up exactly as a supply-side liquidity shortage, the same mechanism both Thukral and Singhal describe in general terms.
Operating on Indian exchanges has been relatively tougher for market makers because of a flat 30% tax on gains, no allowance to offset losses, and a restrictive 1% tax deducted at source (TDS). These rules have long contributed to market dislocations.
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Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
9 hours ago
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Why it matters:
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
As Bitcoin continues to trade at less than half of its all-time high, major traditional assets such as the S&P 500, the QQQ (which tracks the Nasdaq 100), and gold are hitting fresh record levels. Tether advisor Gabor Gurbacs has pointed to a declining quality of debate within the crypto industry as a key reason behind this growing divergence. According to Gurbacs, Bitcoin is struggling under the pressure of weak, speculative products and short-term hype, rather than building infrastructure and fostering broader distribution.
The evolving culture in crypto: from cypherpunks to speculatorsGurbacs drew a clear distinction between today’s crypto market and the pre-2017 community. In the early years, the ecosystem was shaped by the cypherpunk spirit, the concept of sound money, and the active participation of seasoned capital market professionals. Now, a large part of the sector has become exposed to actors chasing rapid attention rather than aiming to create lasting value.
Glossary: Cypherpunks are advocates of using cryptography to empower individual privacy and resist censorship. The tokenization of real-world assets refers to representing traditional assets like bonds, funds, and real estate as digital tokens on a blockchain.
Gabor Gurbacs observed that the earlier crypto community operated on stronger principles and a clearer mission. He personally wishes that, instead of the 2017 ICO wave, the tokenization of real-world assets had come to the forefront.
According to Gurbacs, the root contradiction in today’s cycle is that Bitcoin has lost its synchronization with traditional safe havens and tech stocks. Although institutional capital continues to enter the market, the overwhelming speculative noise in the ecosystem is making it difficult for true long-term value to take hold.
Supply pressures and weakened institutional flowsThe pressure on Bitcoin’s price is not only a matter of narrative—data also shows it has a supply-side dimension. A model tracking the balance between institutional absorption and early-investor distribution revealed that last week saw the weakest net capital inflow of the entire cycle. Since the peak in October 2025, the cumulative balance has plunged to minus 154,169 BTC.
IndicatorStatusBitcoin price outlookBelow half of all time highS&P 500, QQQ, and goldTesting new record highsInstitutional absorption and early investor distribution modelWeakest result of the cycle last weekCumulative balanceDown 154,169 BTC since October 2025’s peakThese figures highlight both Bitcoin’s relative underperformance against external markets and the growing imbalance of capital within the ecosystem. Yet, Gurbacs remains optimistic about the long-term outlook. He emphasizes that the problem does not lie in Bitcoin’s technology itself, but in the culture of short-term speculation that has grown up around it.
Gurbacs insists that Bitcoin will ultimately regain its strength and argues that today’s issues stem from the quality of market participants, not the design of the network.
Tether is recognized as the largest stablecoin issuer in the crypto market. Gurbacs’s critical view has gained traction among industry insiders wondering why Bitcoin has been unable to keep pace with the momentum seen in other major asset classes, despite growing institutional interest.
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.
Bitcoin, which started June above $70,000, fell to $58,000 during the month. While factors such as ongoing spot ETF outflows, a more hawkish Fed, and continuing US-Iran tensions were cited as reasons for the decline, Gabor Gurbacs, an advisor at VanEck and Tether, offered a different perspective.
Gabor Gurbacs, strategic advisor to asset management company VanEck and stablecoin issuer Tether, claimed that Bitcoin failed to reach a new all-time high because of extremely irresponsible people.
Gabor Gurbacs, in a post from his X account, argued that the market is being diluted by those who prioritize copying existing products and reusing old narratives instead of building lasting infrastructure and belief systems.
Gurbacs argued that highly unserious individuals have hijacked a large part of the Bitcoin discourse.
He criticized these individuals for copying and selling substandard products and stale narratives instead of focusing on building long-term beliefs, infrastructure, and distribution networks.
Gurbacs stated that this is one of the main reasons why Bitcoin is currently unable to surpass its all-time high (ATH).
According to the expert, although Bitcoin experienced gains in the last two years and reached an all-time high of $126,000, it traded below its peak of approximately $69,000 in November 2021 for much of the past two years.
Gurbacs argues that this is not just a macroeconomic problem, but also a reflection of structural problems in the sector.
At this point, he emphasizes that the fundamental structure of the market lost its seriousness with the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) boom of 2017. Gurbacs notes that the crypto community before 2017 was sharper and acted with clear principles and a mission, adding that almost a decade has passed since the market changed.
The celebrity concluded by saying that if he had one wish, he would wish the Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization boom had happened before the 2017 ICO boom disrupted the market.
*This is not investment advice.
Follow our Telegram and Twitter account now for exclusive news, analytics and on-chain data!
Bitcoin, which started June above $70,000, fell to $58,000 during the month. While factors such as ongoing spot ETF outflows, a more hawkish Fed, and continuing US-Iran tensions were cited as reasons for the decline, Gabor Gurbacs, an advisor at VanEck and Tether, offered a different perspective.
Gabor Gurbacs, strategic advisor to asset management company VanEck and stablecoin issuer Tether, claimed that Bitcoin failed to reach a new all-time high because of extremely irresponsible people.
Gabor Gurbacs, in a post from his X account, argued that the market is being diluted by those who prioritize copying existing products and reusing old narratives instead of building lasting infrastructure and belief systems.
Gurbacs argued that highly unserious individuals have hijacked a large part of the Bitcoin discourse.
He criticized these individuals for copying and selling substandard products and stale narratives instead of focusing on building long-term beliefs, infrastructure, and distribution networks.
Gurbacs stated that this is one of the main reasons why Bitcoin is currently unable to surpass its all-time high (ATH).
According to the expert, although Bitcoin experienced gains in the last two years and reached an all-time high of $126,000, it traded below its peak of approximately $69,000 in November 2021 for much of the past two years.
Gurbacs argues that this is not just a macroeconomic problem, but also a reflection of structural problems in the sector.
At this point, he emphasizes that the fundamental structure of the market lost its seriousness with the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) boom of 2017. Gurbacs notes that the crypto community before 2017 was sharper and acted with clear principles and a mission, adding that almost a decade has passed since the market changed.
The celebrity concluded by saying that if he had one wish, he would wish the Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization boom had happened before the 2017 ICO boom disrupted the market.
*This is not investment advice.
Follow our Telegram and Twitter account now for exclusive news, analytics and on-chain data!
More than 140 companies are lining up behind Open USD, a forthcoming dollar stablecoin that would hand reserve earnings to its partners and let businesses mint and redeem for free.
Posted June 30, 2026 at 12:52 pm EST.
More than 140 companies, including Coinbase, Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, and BNY, have lined up behind a new dollar stablecoin called Open USD, in one of the broadest corporate alliances yet assembled around digital money.
Open Standard, the independent company building the token, announced the project on Tuesday. The release states that the stablecoin is set to go live later this year.
Open Standard is led by founding CEO Zach Abrams, co-founder of Bridge, the stablecoin startup acquired by Stripe for $1.1 billion in 2024. The company pitched Open USD as infrastructure for businesses rather than a consumer product, pointing to the high fees to mint and redeem most stablecoins, the reserve revenue that issuers keep for themselves, and developers’ limited say over third-party roadmaps.
To address those points, Open Standard said businesses will be able to mint and redeem Open USD at no cost and with no volume limits, and that partners will receive all of the earnings from the token’s reserves, less a small management fee. Governance will sit with a board made up of partners rather than a single issuer.
“Existing stablecoins have great strengths, but to use them at scale, businesses need something that’s open, low-cost, high-throughput, broadly accessible, and aligned to their interests,” Abrams said.
The model is a direct challenge to market leaders Circle and Tether, which typically retain the interest earned on their reserves. Circle shares fell about 13% on Tuesday, to around $66, their weakest level since late February.
Coinbase, which earns a share of USDC’s reserve revenue under its agreement with Circle, slipped about 4% even as it signed on to Open USD. Circle Chief Executive Jeremy Allaire played down the threat, saying the company welcomed “continued innovation and competition in the space.”
The partner roster spans payments, banking, fintech and crypto, from American Express, Klarna and Western Union to Google, Shopify, DoorDash, Solana and Ripple. Stripe said Open USD would become the default stablecoin for businesses running on its platform. Open Standard said many of the partners have signed up to use the token, though it did not detail how binding each commitment is, and it has yet to name a reserve custodian or the blockchains Open USD will run on.
What HappenedThe group will launch Open Standard, a new stablecoin venture designed to broaden access to digital money-movement infrastructure.
Open Standard will issue its own U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, called Open USD, which partners plan to integrate into their platforms once it launches later this year.
Other backers include Klarna, Chime Financial, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and several fintech, crypto, banking and payment companies.
The effort will be led on an interim basis by Zach Abrams, co-founder and CEO of Bridge, the stablecoin infrastructure company owned by Stripe, reported Bloomberg on Tuesday.
Abrams said existing stablecoins have strengths, but businesses need an option that is open, low-cost, high-throughput, accessible and aligned with their interests.
Neutral Governance, Shared EconomicsOpen Standard aims to differentiate itself through neutral governance and shared economics.
Most stablecoin issuers profit from interest earned on reserves. However, earnings from Open USD reserves will be shared among partners, after a small management fee to cover operating costs.
BNY chief product and innovation officer Carolyn Weinberg said a stablecoin with neutral governance and shared economics could help unlock the next phase of digital asset growth, as reported by Bloomberg.
Image: Shutterstock
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Centrus Energy (LEU +2.35%) has been around for decades but began attracting more investor attention in 2019, when it started contracting with the U.S. Department of Energy to enrich uranium and supply high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU) for next-generation reactors. In 2025, that attention elevated further, along with the nuclear industry more broadly, as HALEU was seen as a way to help meet the growing energy needs of data centers across the country. Centrus' share prices spiked from $54 in April 2025 to an all-time high of $464.25 by October 2025. The nuclear stock was riding high at that time on news that it had contracted with the National Nuclear Security Administration to develop low-enrichment uranium for government use.
But since hitting that all-time high, Centrus' stock is trading down about 63%. The reasons for the drop include a mixed first-quarter earnings report, fluctuating spot uranium prices, and concerns about production once a ban on Russian LEU imports takes effect in 2028.
The big price drop has created a potential buy-the-dip situation for investors willing to think long-term about Centrus. Here are three reasons to like the stock's long-term potential.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Centrus has an effective HALEU monopoly in the U.S. Centrus is the only U.S.-licensed producer of HALEU. That's a huge moat, especially as demand for advanced reactor fuel is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 10.8% through 2033, according to a report by DataIntelo. Centrus management estimates the HALEU market opportunity could reach $8 billion annually by 2035.
The growth of the HALEU market is driven primarily by the shift toward advanced nuclear technologies, including Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and Generation IV designs. Unlike traditional reactors, these next-generation plants rely on HALEU's higher enrichment levels to achieve longer operational cycles, better fuel efficiency, and enhanced safety.
As governments and private industries push to decarbonize the power grid and meet net-zero goals by 2050, HALEU has become essential for deploying compact, flexible, and reliable energy systems of the future.
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2. Centrus' Q1 was mixed, but it was still a solid quarter Centrus reported its first-quarter earnings on May 5, with earnings per share (EPS) coming in at $0.45, down from the $1.60 EPS it reported the prior year and missing estimates. However, it posted a non-GAAP adjusted EPS of $1.05, crushing Wall Street analyst consensus estimates of $0.33. GAAP earnings were down due to heavy spending on plant expansion, management said.
Revenue for the quarter rose 4.9% year over year, to $76.7 million. Strong demand and solid contract execution prompted management to revise its full-year revenue guidance upward to $450 million to $500 million, up from a previous forecast of $425 million to $475 million.
Centrus has a $3.9 billion long-term order backlog that extends through 2040, providing clarity on the company's future revenue.
3. Don't bet against the government Centrus is not just another utility or mining outfit. It holds a vital, strategic position in Western energy infrastructure. Following aggressive Western pushes to completely decouple from Russian enriched uranium (the import ban goes into effect in 2028), the U.S. government has designated the domestic fuel supply a matter of urgent national security.
Centrus operates under a massive financial cushion, anchored by a multi-phase Department of Energy HALEU contract worth up to $900 million. This effectively de-risks its capital-heavy centrifuge manufacturing build-out with federal taxpayer dollars.
Why the disconnect? The steep year-to-date drop in the stock price largely stems from broader macroeconomic energy shifts, near-term project execution jitters, some investor profit taking, and a highly premium valuation multiple heading into the year. However, the fundamental business performance remains exceptionally strong, making it a prominent good-earnings-down-stock story in the nuclear sector.
The company's huge backlog is growing. On June 19, the company signed an agreement with nuclear power plant builder Oklo to supply enough HALEU to power up to five of Oklo's Aurora powerhouses in Southern Ohio for multiple years, with deliveries to Oklo scheduled to begin in 2029.
Ethereum has ranked first for on-chain user retention among all major blockchains, according to a new cohort study published by CoinGecko. Across 11 major blockchains, Ethereum recorded the highest on-chain user retention rate of 26.2% in CoinGecko's Q1 2025 to Q1 2026 cohort study. That means roughly 1 in 4 Ethereum users who were active in Q1 2025 were still transacting on the network a year later in Q1 2026.
BNB Chain Leads on Absolute Numbers$BNB Chain followed in second place with a 20.5% retention rate, retaining over 1.49 million users in absolute terms, the highest absolute retained user count of any chain in the study. Despite Ethereum's superior retention rate, it does not top the leaderboard when measuring raw retained users. BNB Chain retained 1,494,233 users in absolute terms, followed by Solana at 1,394,873. Both blockchains are significantly ahead of Ethereum's 682,240 retained wallets.
Ronin (@Ronin_Network), the gaming-focused blockchain behind Axie Infinity and Pixels, placed third at 19.1%, a notable result for a chain with a narrower use case, likely reflecting the habitual daily activity that on-chain gaming creates.
Methodology and ContextCoinGecko's methodology tracked wallets that completed at least five successful transactions during Q1 2025, then checked whether those same wallets were still transacting in Q1 2026. That filter is designed to capture genuinely engaged users rather than one-off participants, making the retention figures a more meaningful measure of network stickiness.
Solana appears to have a low user retention rate at 7.9%, losing more than 16 million users in a year. However, this can be explained by the comparison period of Q1 2025, when memecoins were at their peak, making it an unfair comparison. Tron was excluded after data validation confirmed that top addresses exhibited automated transaction patterns inconsistent with human wallet activity, with individual addresses recording over 10 million transactions per quarter. Including Tron would measure infrastructure uptime rather than user retention.
The findings point to a clear split between retention rate and raw scale. Ethereum's long-established user base and deep DeFi ecosystem appear to keep a higher share of users engaged year over year, while @BNBCHAIN and Solana attract larger absolute audiences, even if those audiences churn at a faster rate.
Sources
CoinGecko: Blockchain User Retention Rate Analysis, Q1 2026
Crypto Briefing: Ethereum leads blockchain user retention at 26% in Q1 2026 study
Let me tell you about the most overlooked coin in the top five. While everyone argues about Bitcoin and obsesses over XRP, BNB just quietly sits there as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency in the world, rarely making headlines. But right now, BNB is at an interesting crossroads, caught between a genuine technical upgrade and a real regulatory cloud. Let me walk you through it.
First, the price. BNB is trading at $552.49, down a touch on the day and about 5.5% on the week, holding up slightly better than Bitcoin and Ethereum through the broad selloff (live BNB price on CoinGecko). It is well off its 2025 highs, but it has not crumbled the way some altcoins have. There is a reason for that resilience, and there is a reason for caution too.
What makes BNB different Here is the thing to understand about BNB. It is not like most cryptocurrencies, because its value is tied directly to the largest crypto exchange in the world: Binance. BNB is the native token of BNB Chain and the Binance ecosystem. People use it to pay trading fees at a discount, to power activity on BNB Chain, and to access Binance services.
That tie is BNB’s superpower and its weakness, both at once. When Binance does well, BNB has real, built-in demand that most tokens can only dream of. There are also regular token burns, where Binance permanently removes BNB from supply, which supports the price over time. That combination of genuine utility and shrinking supply is why BNB tends to hold up better than purely speculative coins in a downturn. It is doing exactly that this week.
The good news: the Maxwell upgrade Now for what is genuinely working in BNB’s favor. BNB Chain recently rolled out its Maxwell upgrade, aimed at improving the network’s scalability and performance. Faster, smoother blockchain performance matters because it makes BNB Chain more attractive for developers and applications, which drives more activity, which drives more BNB demand.
On top of that, the ecosystem keeps adding integrations, including things like Tether Gold coming to BNB Chain, expanding what people can actually do on the network. For long-term believers, these are the kinds of steady improvements that build durable value beneath the price noise. The Maxwell upgrade is the sort of unglamorous, important progress that does not make front-page headlines but genuinely strengthens the network.
The cloud: Europe and MiCA Here is where I have to give you the other side, because BNB’s unique strength is also its unique risk. Because BNB is so tied to Binance, anything that affects Binance hits BNB directly, and right now there is a real regulatory concern in Europe.
Binance is facing a looming rejection of its MiCA license application in the European Union. MiCA is Europe’s comprehensive crypto regulation framework, and a license is essentially permission to operate cleanly across the EU. Binance has said it is seeking alternative ways to maintain its European presence despite the potential rejection, but the situation is a genuine overhang. This is exactly the kind of concentrated, Binance-specific risk that other major coins simply do not carry. When you own BNB, you are partly betting on Binance navigating its regulatory challenges around the world.
So how do you read BNB right now? This is the balance. On one side, BNB has real utility, deflationary burns, the Maxwell upgrade improving the network, and better resilience than most altcoins in this downturn. On the other, it carries a concentrated risk tied to Binance’s regulatory standing, with the EU MiCA situation as the current example.
That makes BNB a genuinely different kind of hold than something like Bitcoin. It is a bet on the continued dominance of the world’s largest exchange, with all the upside and the specific risk that comes with that. Neither the strength nor the risk should be ignored.
The levels worth watching On the downside, the $540 area is immediate support, with $520 below it as the level that has held through recent pressure. Holding $520 keeps the structure intact. On the upside, BNB needs to reclaim $580 to ease the pressure, then the $600 to $620 zone to signal a stronger recovery is taking shape.
Where this leaves us BNB at $552 is the quiet giant of crypto, holding up better than most through a rough week thanks to its real utility and deflationary burns, with the Maxwell upgrade strengthening the network underneath. But it sits under a genuine cloud: the looming EU MiCA rejection is a reminder that BNB’s fortunes are tied tightly to Binance’s regulatory path.
So watch both sides. The $520 support and the $580 reclaim are the levels to track on the chart. And keep an eye on the Binance regulatory story, because for BNB more than almost any other major coin, the company and the token rise and fall together. That is what makes BNB both stronger and riskier than it looks.
FAQ What is the BNB price today?
BNB is trading at $552.49 on June 30, 2026, down about 5.5% on the week but holding up slightly better than Bitcoin and Ethereum through the broad selloff. It remains the fourth-largest cryptocurrency.
What is the Maxwell upgrade?
The Maxwell upgrade is a recent BNB Chain improvement aimed at boosting the network’s scalability and performance. Better performance makes BNB Chain more attractive to developers and applications, which can drive more network activity and BNB demand.
Why does BNB hold up better than other altcoins?
BNB has real utility tied to Binance, the largest crypto exchange, including fee discounts and BNB Chain activity, plus regular token burns that shrink supply. This combination of genuine demand and deflationary supply tends to make it more resilient than purely speculative coins.
What is the MiCA risk for BNB?
Binance faces a looming rejection of its MiCA license application in the EU. Since BNB is tied closely to Binance, this regulatory uncertainty is a concentrated risk for the token that other major coins do not carry, though Binance is seeking alternatives to maintain its European presence.
What are the key BNB levels to watch?
Immediate support is $540, with $520 below it. Holding $520 keeps the structure intact. On the upside, BNB needs to reclaim $580, then the $600 to $620 zone to signal a stronger recovery.
This is not investment advice. Cryptocurrency is highly volatile. Always do your own research.
The crypto market ahead of EU MiCA’s July 1 deadline remains under pressure, with total value down 0.69% to $2.05 trillion. Traders are watching BTC, ETH, XRP, and BNB Prices as Europe prepares for stricter crypto enforcement.
EU MiCA Deadline Raises Pressure on Crypto Firms The Markets in Crypto Assets (MCA) regulation is at the final stage of enforcement tomorrow. The rules stipulate that exchanges will be required to cease operations throughout the European Union if those exchanges are not approved.
MiCA provides a common ground for crypto trading, custody, and market behaviour. It’s also regarded as the initial wide crypto rulebook of the globe.
The deadline for crypto firms to be approved by MiCA has been reached and only 244 of them have obtained approval so far. Europe previously had more than 3,000 registered crypto companies.
🚨 #Crypto Firms Turn to Dubai as EU Grants Only 244 MiCA Licenses
With just 244 #MiCA licenses issued out of nearly 3,000 applicants, crypto firms are increasingly turning to Dubai as the UAE emerges as a key hub for digital asset businesses.
This will cause a disruption in service for many operators, and possibly even result in operators having to suspend or withdraw from the region. The change may impact user access and Europe’s liquidity in the future.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said the company’s Greece license application failed due to political interference. However, analysts say that euro trading only accounts for a small part of Binance’s spot volume.
The regulatory change is also driving some of the founders to the UAE. European crypto companies are increasingly interested in Dubai’s faster licensing procedures.
Bitcoin price Bitcoin price dropped 1.49% to $59,257 on Tuesday as traders awaited the due date for the EU MiCA. The pressure was largely attributed to the withdrawal of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs. June was the month for more than $4.1 billion in outflows for these funds, which dampened investor enthusiasm among institutional buyers.
Source: BTC/USDT chart Tradingview Bitcoin price now faces a decisive test around the $58,000 support zone. If bulls do a defence of that area, then the the Future Bitcoin outlook may trade sideways and regain strength. However, a break below $58,000 could open a move toward $56,000.
Ethereum (ETH) Ethereum price rebounded from $1,500 support level on Tuesday following its failure to hold above it yesterday. The token is recovering from the recent market correction in preparation for EU MiCA.
$ETH is back into its high demand zone.
As long as the $1,500 level holds, Ethereum could have a relief rally next month. pic.twitter.com/aZAB5kt6Ez
— Ted (@TedPillows) June 30, 2026
The initial major selling resistance is around $1,600, where they may test out short-term demand. If the bounce off is stronger, it could propel Ethereum back up to $2,000 and then $2,010. If selling resumes, traders will watch the $1,500 level closely. A further decline may penetrate $1,385 that is still a medium-term support level.
XRP Price XRP price dropped by 0.80% to $1.04 as sentiment in the crypto market softened. The decline came as the Fear and Greed Index stayed at 17, signaling extreme fear. However, fresh inflows into spot ETFs helped support XRP prior to the EU’s MiCA deadline.
Source: Sosovalue data XRP spot ETFs recorded $15.34 million in net inflows on June 29. Bitwise led the flow with $11.94-million, followed by Canary XRPC’s $3.40-million. Cumulative net inflows have now climbed to $1.485 billion. If the price of XRP continues to hold above $1.00, it might try to push towards $1.15. A close below $1.00 could raise the risk of further declines to $0.95.
Binance Coin (BNB) BNB Coin fell 0.92% to $549 amid broader market weakness. However, macro pressure brought by stronger U.S. dollar and geopolitical uncertainty, kept the buyers cautious. The $540-$550 range continues to be a crucial area of support in the lead up to EU MiCA enforcement.
BNB price As long as BNB remains in this range, the token could continue to hold its ground. A failure to break above the range will bring this price to the forefront of consideration at $520.
On June 30, Bitrue became the first platform anywhere to offer 3x leveraged SpaceX exposure in either direction, long (SPCX3L) or short (SPCX3S). No traditional brokerage currently offers leveraged SpaceX exposure in any form, making this one of the most distinctive products to emerge from crypto’s tokenized equity wave so far. SpaceX anchors a broader launch of 10 leveraged tokens, built on top of Bitrue’s multi-issuer spot offering and powered in part by Binance bToken liquidity.
Real Assets on Chain The crypto landscape is shifting. For years, the industry moved in cycles defined by its own assets, Bitcoin, altcoins, DeFi protocols, perpetual futures. But in 2026, a different story is taking shape. The on-chain market for tokenized real-world assets has hit a fresh record near $34 billion, more than tripling from roughly $5.4 billion at the start of 2025, and that growth is no longer being led by institutions alone. After years of flat activity from 2022 to late 2024, new wallet data shows an explosive growth curve sharply accelerating into 2026, with retail participation driving a meaningful share of that expansion. The infrastructure that once existed to trade crypto is increasingly being used to trade everything else.
Tokenized Stocks TVL Growth 2025-2026
Tokenized US stocks have been among the fastest-growing segments of that wave. Ondo Global Markets, which offers tokenized US stocks and ETFs, recently crossed $1 billion in total value locked, one of the fastest-growing real-world asset tokenization products in crypto history. The demand driving those numbers is structural: millions of investors outside the United States want access to US equities, and the traditional system, brokerage restrictions, FX conversion costs, and a market that closes at 4pm New York time, has never served them well.
A Multi-Issuer Foundation, Powered by Binance Liquidity Bitrue’s leveraged launch builds on a broader move it made days earlier: listing 20 spot tokenized US stocks sourced from three separate providers, Ondo, xStocks, and Binance BStocks, all aggregated onto one platform. Where Binance’s BStocks/bTokens product offers a clean, ecosystem-native experience within BNB Chain, Bitrue’s approach pulls that same liquidity and credibility into a multi-issuer structure, giving traders broader asset coverage and issuer optionality without the friction of managing multiple services. Binance bToken liquidity effectively becomes one of three pillars underpinning Bitrue’s aggregated offering, a structural difference that meaningfully widens the playing field for global retail investors.
Why AI and Tech Stocks Are the Real Prize The asset selection Bitrue has gravitated toward is not coincidental. AI and technology stocks now account for roughly 50% of total S&P 500 market capitalization, making names like NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, and AMD the most sought-after equity exposure on the planet. Yet for investors outside the United States, these remain among the hardest to access through traditional channels. Regional restrictions, FX conversion costs, and the hard boundary of New York trading hours have kept a significant share of global retail locked out of the very names driving the current market cycle. Tokenized stocks change that equation, tradeable 24/7, settled in USDT, with no brokerage account required.
Bitrue’s 20 spot tokenized stocks cover this ground directly, with AI and technology names forming the core: NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, and Tesla rounding out the Magnificent Seven, alongside AMD and Broadcom from the semiconductor space, and MicroStrategy and Palantir, two of the most AI-exposed names in the crypto-native equity space. For investors who want broader coverage, SPY and QQQ offer index-level exposure to the same theme, with SpaceX completing the lineup as the marquee newly listed mega-cap.
There is, however, a dynamic that both exchanges are navigating. Crypto-native traders span a wide spectrum of risk appetites, and the audience that comes to tokenized equities isn’t monolithic. Some investors want the steadier, longer-horizon characteristics that spot stock exposure naturally offers; others are looking for a way to size their conviction more aggressively and want a structured path to amplified exposure. Leveraged tokens exist precisely to serve that second group, a complement to spot, not a replacement for it, giving traders across the risk spectrum a product that actually fits their profile.
Amplifying Conviction With Bitrue’s 3x Leveraged Tokens This is where Bitrue’s June 30 launch takes the product a step further. Rather than simply mirroring the spot lineup, Bitrue curated 10 assets for its 3x Leveraged Token offering around the names where trader conviction tends to run highest, grouped across four categories:
AI and semiconductors: NVIDIA (NVDA3L/NVDA3S), Tesla (TSLA3L/TSLA3S), and AMD (AMD3L/AMD3S) Deeper chip exposure: Micron (MU3L/MU3S), Intel (INTC3L/INTC3S), and SanDisk (SNDK3L/SNDK3S) Crypto-native AI: Circle (CRCL3L/CRCL3S) and MicroStrategy (MSTR3L/MSTR3S) Index and frontier exposure: the iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (EWY3L/EWY3S) for Asian technology market breadth, and SpaceX (SPCX3L/SPCX3S), the standout first-of-its-kind addition, the only name on this list with no equivalent leveraged product at any traditional broker. What sets these tokens apart is the risk structure. Unlike perpetual futures, there are no margin requirements, no liquidation events, and no funding rates quietly eroding returns. Each token moves at 3x the underlying asset’s daily return, long or short, settled in USDT, giving traders a more direct, conviction-sized way to amplify exposure to AI and technology names without the complexity of derivatives.
Crypto Tokenization Assets Evolution
Built on BNB Chain for a Reason The decision to build on the BNB Chain is deliberate rather than incidental. BStocks, backed by Binance, brings the liquidity depth and ecosystem credibility of the world’s largest exchange to the underlying token infrastructure. For a product category where liquidity and trust are foundational, that backing provides a meaningful foundation for both platforms, and it is a key reason Bitrue chose BNB Chain as the infrastructure layer for its own leveraged token products.
What This Week Actually Means Taken together, what Binance and Bitrue have each done this week reflects the same underlying conclusion: the demand for tokenized AI and technology stock assets is real, the infrastructure is ready, and the products being built on top of it are beginning to do things that traditional finance simply can’t match. Two major exchanges arriving at the same market in the same week isn’t coincidence, it’s an industry converging on what the data has been pointing to for some time.
About Bitrue Launched in July 2018, Bitrue is a global crypto exchange offering diversified digital financial services across spot trading, futures, OTC, staking, copy trading, and alpha trading. The platform supports over 700 cryptocurrencies and ranks among the top exchanges globally for XRP trading volume, with staking and investment products offering annualized rates of up to 30%.
Official Channels: Website | X / Twitter | LinkedIn | Telegram
Key Highlights Fiscal Q4 revenue at AeroVironment reached $641.6 million, representing a year-over-year increase exceeding 100%. The company’s adjusted EPS of $1.84 surpassed Wall Street’s consensus forecast of approximately $1.47. Defense sector peers including Kratos Defense, Vishay Precision, and Unusual Machines experienced sympathetic gains. The Autonomous Systems division generated $492 million, comprising roughly three-quarters of overall revenue. Forward guidance for fiscal 2027 exceeded revenue projections while falling short on earnings estimates. AeroVironment experienced a significant stock price surge Tuesday following the release of exceptional fiscal fourth quarter performance metrics. The unmanned aircraft systems manufacturer delivered revenue totaling $641.6 million, representing more than a 100% increase compared to the prior year period.
This performance substantially exceeded analyst projections, which had clustered around $557 million. On the profitability front, adjusted earnings per share reached $1.84, comfortably surpassing the consensus range of $1.47 to $1.48.
The impressive quarterly results created positive momentum throughout the defense technology sector. Multiple companies operating in adjacent drone and military technology markets experienced stock price appreciation in tandem with AeroVironment.
Sector-Wide Market Response Kratos Defense recorded an 8% advance during Tuesday’s trading session. Vishay Precision Group posted a 5% gain, and Unusual Machines similarly trended upward.
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc., KTOS
These movements came on the heels of AeroVironment’s remarkable 32% pre-market jump following its earnings announcement. Market participants interpreted the results as an encouraging indicator for the broader unmanned systems and defense technology landscape.
Red Cat Holdings registered a 3% increase in extended hours trading Monday after the announcement. Ondas climbed approximately 2%, while Kratos added nearly 3.5% during the same after-hours period.
The positive sentiment extended to specialized exchange-traded funds focused on this sector. The ARK Space and Defense Innovation ETF has accumulated gains exceeding 10% year-to-date.
The Defiance Drone and Modern Warfare ETF has similarly recorded positive returns in 2026. The REX Drone ETF, conversely, has experienced declines this year notwithstanding Tuesday’s sector-wide rally.
Detailed Performance Analysis The Autonomous Systems segment served as the primary catalyst for AeroVironment’s growth trajectory. This division produced $492 million in quarterly revenue, significantly exceeding analyst expectations of approximately $402 million.
This business unit represented roughly 76% of consolidated quarterly sales. Product offerings include the Switchblade family of loitering munition systems.
During the quarterly earnings conference call, the company’s chief executive highlighted that AeroVironment’s counter-unmanned aircraft systems business remains in early development phases. He indicated this division could potentially expand to two or three times the scale of the company’s existing core operations within a three to five year timeframe.
Funded backlog climbed to $1.2 billion, marking a 65% year-over-year increase. Total order bookings for the quarter reached $2.7 billion.
Regarding future expectations, AeroVironment provided fiscal 2027 revenue guidance spanning $2.13 billion to $2.23 billion. This forecast range exceeds the analyst consensus of $2.19 billion.
However, projected adjusted earnings per share of $3.02 to $3.34 fell short of the $3.98 analyst estimate. One portfolio manager observed that AeroVironment has traditionally issued conservative guidance at the beginning of each fiscal year.
Following Monday’s market close, AeroVironment shares had appreciated 0.76% to $139. The stock subsequently surged more than 20% during pre-market trading Tuesday after the earnings disclosure.
Despite the recent rally, the company’s momentum metrics remain subdued according to certain analytical frameworks. Price trends across various timeframes had been negative heading into this quarterly report.
Market observers will monitor whether the gains registered by AeroVironment and sector peers persist throughout the remainder of the week. Upcoming earnings releases from companies such as Kratos Defense will provide additional data points regarding the sustainability of this momentum across the defense technology sector.
RESTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Comstock Holding Companies, Inc. (Nasdaq: CHCI) (“Comstock”), a leading asset manager, developer, and operator of mixed-use, transit-oriented properties, with an expanding presence in large-scale infrastructure and data center development, today announced its inclusion in the broad-market Russell 3000® Index, effective June 29, as part of the 2026 Russell US Indexes annual reconstitution. The Russell 3000® tracks the approximately 3,000 largest U.S.-listed stocks b.
Key Takeaways Futu's Q1 profit fell after a RMB1.85 billion penalty tied to regulated activities.Futu ended March with 3.59 million funded accounts, up 34.3%, and HK$1.22T in client assets.Futu is leaning on Moomoo, Hong Kong, Singapore, crypto licensing and planned Korea access. Futu Holdings’ (FUTU - Free Report) problem is not about demand; it is about regulatory confidence. The CSRC Shenzhen Bureau proposed penalties totaling roughly RMB1.85 billion, including about RMB470 million of confiscated gains and RMB1.38 billion in fines, tied to regulated activities without required licenses or approvals. The charge also hit first-quarter 2026 profit hard immediately.
Still, the operating base looked sturdy. Futu ended March with 3.59 million funded accounts, up 34.3%, 6.28 million brokerage accounts, up 26.8%, and 30.2 million users, up 14.9%. Client assets rose 47.2% to HK$1.22 trillion, while trading volume reached HK$4.15 trillion in the quarter despite volatile markets and pressure globally.
The penalty mainly explains the profit shock. Futu reported revenues of HK$5.86 billion (US$746.9 million), up 24.7%, and operating income of HK$3.53 billion (US$450.3 million), up 31.5%. However, net income fell 61.2% to HK$831 million (US$106.0 million) after the adjustment. Before it, first-quarter net income would have been about HK$2.92 billion (US$372.7 million). Management also said fundamentals remained stable.
Earlier this month, S&P also reaffirmed Futu’s BBB- long-term issuer rating with a stable outlook, citing strong Hong Kong market position, geographic diversification and strong capitalization. On the call, management said bank facilities remained intact, which helps frame the penalty as a hit, not a funding break.
The open question is growth quality. Mainland China funded accounts were about 13% of first-quarter funded accounts, with related client assets around 17% and revenue contribution near 20%. Futu is leaning on Moomoo, Hong Kong, Singapore, crypto licensing and planned Korean stock access to keep client momentum moving abroad now.
How Are Interactive Brokers and Robinhood Placed?Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR - Free Report) kept showing scale-driven growth. Interactive Brokers reported May 2026 DARTs of 4.969 million, up 47% year over year, client equity of $937.3 billion, up 49%, and 4.995 million client accounts, up 32%. Interactive Brokers also grew margin loans 65% to $100.9 billion, pointing to active, wealthier clients globally.
Robinhood Markets’ (HOOD - Free Report) growth mix looks broader. Robinhood had 27.7 million funded customers in May, up about 1.76 million year over year, and platform assets rose 48% to $377 billion. Robinhood also posted first-quarter revenues of $1.07 billion, up 15%, helped by deposits, Gold subscribers, equities, options and event contracts in 2026.
FUTU's Price Performance, Valuation and EstimatesShares of Futu have declined 28.9% over the past three months against the industry’s growth of 7%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, FUTU trades at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings of 9.85, slightly above the industry but lower than its one-year median of 15.94. This valuation disparity might not be as favorable as it seems. It carries a Value Score of C.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Over the past 30 days, earnings estimates for both 2026 and 2027 have been revised downward, signaling a bearish outlook from analysts.
LINK’s price still hovers near local lows, but the network’s holder base is telling a different story. According to the Santiment update, the number of non-empty wallets holding Chainlink on Ethereum has jumped to 892.8K, adding more than 8,000 holders in just five days. That pace puts the network on track to cross 900,000 holders by the end of the week and potentially hit one million before the summer is out if the trend holds.
The acceleration itself is the signal. Holder count isn’t a direct gauge of demand strength—some wallets can belong to the same entity—but sustained growth in non-empty addresses during a period of price weakness often suggests accumulation that hasn’t yet been reflected in the charts. Traders tend to watch for these divergences when on-chain behavior runs ahead of price action. Right now, LINK’s price is still depressed, which means the new wallets are not being opened by euphoric retail chasing a rally. That gives the metric a different weight than if it were spiking alongside a sharp price move.
Holder Growth Runs Counter to Price Action Sharp jumps in holder counts can occasionally track airdrop farming or protocol migrations, but Chainlink’s staking mechanism and validator economics are still relatively contained compared to newer L1 ecosystems. The current bump doesn’t appear to be a one-off event either; the Santiment chart shows a steepening curve rather than an isolated step change. If the majority of these new wallets represent genuine new entrants, then quiet positioning is underway while speculative capital remains elsewhere.
What makes the timing curious is that Chainlink’s narrative around real-world assets and institutional finance has been building for months. Project Pangea, DTCC’s collateral work, tokenized asset feeds, and the rollout of 24/5 equity data streams have all pointed toward a utility layer being repriced slowly rather than suddenly repriced. The holder data doesn’t confirm institutional buying—that would show up differently via large-entity wallet clusters—but it does suggest that a broader base of market participants is starting to act on the same themes.
The Broader Tokenization Picture The quiet accumulation coincides with a week in which real-world asset tokenization hit a fresh milestone, crossing $20 billion on-chain, as covered in a recent tokenization roundup. That context isn’t incidental. Chainlink’s oracle infrastructure underpins a large share of the data feeds that make tokenized securities, private credit, and institutional settlement rails functional. When capital flows into tokenization, attention eventually turns back to the infrastructure that keeps those markets running, even if the repricing happens with a lag.
Still, holder count alone doesn’t tell you when or even if price will follow. A lot depends on whether the accumulation pattern converts into on-chain activity that generates fee revenue, staking demand, or more visible protocol usage. The number of non-empty wallets is a breadth signal, not a depth signal. It indicates participation is widening, but it says nothing about whether the average wallet size is increasing or whether large holders are distributing. That nuance is why traders will likely cross-reference this Santiment data with exchange flow metrics and whale transaction counts before drawing conclusions about a sustained trend.
For now, the takeaway is straightforward: Chainlink’s holder base is growing at a rate that doesn’t match the price tape. That gap is something market watchers will monitor as the summer progresses, especially if the tokenized asset narrative continues to attract institutional attention.
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.
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.
@Theo_network has executed a $20 million investment into $FILQ, Fidelity International's USD Digital Liquidity Fund, through the @Sygnumofficial institutional gateway. The move makes Theo the first crypto-native platform to allocate capital to Fidelity International's tokenized fund.
A First for Crypto-Native Platforms Executed through Sygnum, a Swiss digital asset bank that provides regulated banking, custody, and tokenization services for institutional clients, the allocation adds FILQ to Theo's institutional tokenized Treasury product, thBILL.
FILQ is a Moody's Aaa-mf-rated tokenized US dollar liquidity fund built on Sygnum's Desygnate platform that invests in diversified short-term money market instruments designed to preserve capital and liquidity. That rating places it among the most creditworthy classifications available for money market-style products, signaling confidence in the fund's liquidity quality and credit profile, and suggesting these products are starting to meet the standards traditional investors expect before allocating serious capital.
Chainlink Powers the Data Layer @Chainlink provides on-chain net asset value and distribution data for the fund through its Runtime Environment, while @jpmorgan receives and approves the daily NAV data. Rather than relying on delayed reporting cycles common in traditional finance, Chainlink's oracle network pushes fund NAV and distribution data directly on-chain in near real time, allowing investors to interact with the product continuously rather than waiting for standard market-hour settlement windows.
Fidelity, Sygnum, and Chainlink had already worked together in 2024 to bring NAV data for a $6.9 billion Institutional Liquidity Fund on-chain, and FILQ now turns that earlier collaboration into a fully live tokenized fund.
The launch arrives as treasury-focused tokenized money market funds near $15 billion in assets under management, attracting participation from the world's largest asset managers, digital asset exchanges, stablecoin issuers, and DeFi protocols. Fidelity's move comes as institutional demand for blockchain-based financial products continues to grow, with BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and JPMorgan expanding their tokenized treasury and money market offerings.
Sources:
Theo becomes first crypto-native investor in Fidelity tokenized fund – CoinTelegraph via TradingView
Fidelity International launches first tokenized USD liquidity fund powered by Chainlink – FXStreet
FILQ – Sygnum Bank
Onchain capital markets platform Theo has announced a $20 million investment in Fidelity International’s USD Digital Liquidity Fund. With this move, Theo has become the first crypto-native platform to allocate capital to the asset manager’s tokenized fund, marking a notable step in connecting digital asset investors with traditional finance products.
Structure of the Investment and About FILQThe transaction was executed via Sygnum, a Switzerland-based digital asset bank known for providing regulated banking, custody, and tokenization services to institutional clients. As part of this allocation, FILQ has been added to the structure of thBILL, Theo’s institutional-grade tokenized Treasury product.
FILQ stands out as a tokenized US dollar liquidity fund built on Sygnum’s Desygnate platform and holds an Aaa mf rating from Moody’s. The fund invests in a diversified basket of short-term money market instruments, aiming to preserve capital and maintain liquidity for its investors.
Glossary: A tokenized fund is a digital representation of a traditional financial product on the blockchain. Net asset value refers to the unit value calculated by subtracting a fund’s liabilities from the total value of its portfolio holdings.
Theo noted that the $20 million investment makes it the first crypto-native platform to allocate capital to Fidelity International’s tokenized fund.
According to published data, Chainlink delivers the onchain net asset value and distribution figures for the fund through its Runtime Environment infrastructure. Meanwhile, JPMorgan assumes the role of receiving and verifying the fund’s daily net asset value data.
Fund Size and Company MetricsFidelity International reported that, as of March 31, it managed $1.06 trillion in total assets. Theo, on the other hand, stated its products have generated more than $1 billion in cumulative trading volume through over 80,000 users across more than 60 countries.
Data from RWA.xyz indicates that FILQ currently holds approximately $55.1 million in onchain assets. This shows that Theo’s $20 million investment represents a significant share of the fund’s total assets.
ItemDataTheo’s FILQ investment$20 millionFILQ onchain asset size$55.1 millionFidelity International total assets under management$1.06 trillionTheo user countOver 80,000Rapid Growth of Tokenized Treasury ProductsTokenized US Treasury products have become the largest segment in the real-world asset tokenization market. According to RWA.xyz, this segment has more than doubled over the past year, with issued value rising from approximately $6.9 billion at the end of June 2025 to about $14.6 billion by the end of June 2026.
RWA.xyz tracks 83 tokenized Treasury products held by over 64,000 investors. Each of the offerings from Circle, BlackRock, Ondo, Franklin Templeton, and Securitize has surpassed $2 billion in distributed value.
RWA.xyz data indicates that tokenized US Treasury products are now the largest segment in the real-world assets market, having grown from $6.9 billion to $14.6 billion over the past year.
Traditional Financial Institutions Launch New ProductsThis market expansion has coincided with new product launches and distribution partnerships from established financial institutions. In May, JPMorgan introduced JLTXX, a tokenized government money market fund operating on Ethereum, with investments in US Treasury bills and overnight repurchase agreements.
The following month, Franklin Templeton partnered with MoonPay to further expand institutional access to its BENJI tokenized money market fund. This partnership enables eligible institutional investors to seamlessly transition between supported stablecoins and the tokenized fund onchain.
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.
Chainlink’s [LINK] holder base accelerated sharply, reaching 892.8K non-empty wallets after adding more than 8,000 holders over the past five days. The growth unfolded while LINK remained below its local highs, highlighting continued user adoption despite lingering price weakness.
Fresh interest around real-world asset tokenization and institutional blockchain initiatives appeared to support the expanding wallet count. Rather than reflecting speculative activity alone, the steady rise in holders suggested broader participation across the network.
As a result, Chainlink strengthened its on-chain foundation even though price action remained under pressure.
Source: Santiment/X Why did exchange outflows remain dominant? Exchange activity continued favoring withdrawals despite LINK’s recent consolidation. At press time, CoinGlass data recorded a daily spot netflow of -$479.49K, showing that more tokens left exchanges than entered them.
Such outflows often reflected reduced immediate selling availability as investors shifted holdings into private wallets or long-term storage. However, price failed to respond with an immediate recovery because broader market sentiment remained cautious.
Selling pressure eased compared to previous periods of heavier exchange inflows, yet buyers had not generated enough conviction to reverse the prevailing trend. Even so, persistent negative netflows aligned with the expanding holder count, suggesting accumulation continued beneath the surface instead of aggressive distribution.
Source: CoinGlass Can buyers protect the demand zone? Chainlink continued trading inside a well-defined descending channel after failing to reclaim higher resistance levels.
Price repeatedly defended the $7.00 demand zone, preventing sellers from extending the broader decline despite several downside attempts. Buyers managed to stabilize the price above that support, although recovery lacked sufficient strength to challenge the channel’s upper boundary near $8.31.
Meanwhile, the RSI hovered around 34.6 as of writing, remaining below the neutral 50 level and reflecting weak buying participation rather than renewed bullish strength. Even so, the indicator stayed above deeply oversold territory, indicating selling pressure had moderated instead of accelerating.
Until LINK escapes the descending channel with stronger buying volume, the broader technical structure would likely remain cautious despite continued support around the current demand area.
Source: TradingView Long traders refused to abandon bullish conviction Derivatives positioning continued favoring buyers despite the prolonged corrective structure.
At press time, the OI-Weighted Funding Rate reached 0.0077%, remaining firmly in positive territory and showing that long traders still paid premiums to maintain leveraged exposure.
That positioning suggested participants continued expecting higher prices even while LINK traded inside its descending channel. However, optimistic funding alone had not delivered a decisive breakout because spot demand remained relatively restrained.
Even so, sustained positive funding reflected confidence that the current support region could eventually produce a stronger recovery. If leveraged sentiment stays constructive while on-chain accumulation continues expanding, derivatives positioning could reinforce buying interest once technical resistance levels start giving way.
Source: CoinGlass To sum up, Chainlink combined accelerating network growth, continued exchange outflows, and positive funding despite remaining inside a falling channel. Buyers successfully defended the $7.00 demand zone, but they had not reclaimed higher resistance yet.
If wallet growth continues and accumulation strengthens further, LINK could eventually challenge the prevailing downtrend once stronger spot demand returns.
Final Summary Chainlink adoption keeps expanding while exchange outflows suggest investors continue accumulating LINK. LINK holds key support despite weak RSI as bullish funding reflects trader confidence.
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.
Tomorrow marks the end of USDT’s run on regulated European crypto platforms. July 1, 2026, is the hard deadline for the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, and Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin with a market capitalization between $175 billion and $186 billion, never bothered to apply for authorization.
MiCA requires stablecoin issuers to obtain e-money token authorization to operate within the European Economic Area. Without it, exchanges can’t legally offer the token to EEA clients.
Tether has not applied for MiCA authorization as of June 2026, a decision that aligns with its broader posture of focusing on markets outside Europe rather than complying with the bloc’s stringent bank reserve mandates.
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Coinbase Europe delisted USDT back in December 2024. Crypto.com followed in January 2025. Binance’s EEA entity restricted USDT trading pairs in March 2025. Major platforms have already started converting or limiting USDT balances for their European users in anticipation of the final deadline.
Tether also discontinued its euro-denominated stablecoin, EURT, back in 2024, walking away from the European market entirely.
Circle’s USDC and EURC tokens have secured MiCA compliance and remain available across EU-licensed platforms, making Circle’s products the default stablecoin option on regulated exchanges for European traders.
A retail investor using Binance’s European entity will need to switch to USDC or another authorized alternative. A DeFi user interacting directly with smart contracts through a self-custody wallet can keep using USDT, as the regulation targets service providers, not the token itself. No legal actions against Tether itself have been reported in connection with MiCA compliance.
USDT has long been the dominant trading pair denomination across crypto markets globally. When European platforms remove it, trading volumes on those platforms will shift to USDC-denominated pairs or other compliant alternatives.
Tether’s calculus appears to be that the cost of MiCA compliance, particularly the reserve requirements mandating funds be held in European banks, outweighs the revenue from European platform activity. Institutional players and regulated funds operating within the EEA don’t have the option of routing around compliance requirements by switching to non-custodial wallets, making USDC the only compliant option for that segment of the market.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Updated Jun 30, 2026, 3:03 p.m. Published Jun 30, 2026, 2:32 p.m.
3 min read
Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO, Circle Speaks at Hong Kong Fintech Week in 2024 (HK Fintech Week)Summary
Circle shares fell more than 12% Tuesday to a 4-month low after a consortium of more than 140 companies unveiled Open USD.Stripe, Coinbase, Mastercard, Visa and BlackRock are among the project's launch partners.The new stablecoin will let partners retain reserve earnings, striking at one of the key economics of today's stablecoin issuers.Circle (CRCL) shares tumbled more than 12% in Tuesday morning trading after a consortium backed by some of the biggest names in payments, banking and crypto unveiled Open USD, a new stablecoin designed to challenge incumbents such as USDC.
The new digital dollar is launched by Open Standard, an independent company whose founding partners include Stripe, Coinbase, Mastercard, Visa and BlackRock alongside more than 140 businesses spanning payments, banking, fintech and crypto.
The initiative is led by Zach Abrams, co-founder of stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge, which Stripe acquired in 2024.
"Existing stablecoins have great strengths, but to use them at scale, businesses need something that’s open, low-cost, high-throughput, broadly accessible, and aligned to their interests," he said.
The announcement follows a CoinDesk report earlier this month that Stripe, Visa and Mastercard were among the companies backing a new stablecoin platform, with Coinbase also weighing participation.
Recently, CRCL shares traded $66, at its weakest price since late February.
Stablecoin consortiumThe launch comes as stablecoins move further into mainstream finance. Once used primarily by crypto traders, dollar-pegged tokens are increasingly powering cross-border payments, merchant settlements and corporate treasury operations. The market has grown to more than $300 billion and Citi projected it to grow to $4 trillion by 2030, attracting banks, payment companies and fintech firms eager to issue their own digital dollars.
With more institutions embracing stablecoins, the competition is increasingly shifting from issuing tokens to determining who controls the underlying infrastructure and network.
Unlike most existing stablecoins, Open USD will allow businesses to mint and redeem tokens without fees while returning reserve income to participating partners, less a management fee. Governance will also be shared among members rather than controlled by a single issuer.
The model targets one of the core economics of today's stablecoin market. Issuers such as Circle earn revenue by investing reserves backing their tokens in short-term U.S. Treasuries and retaining most of the interest generated by those assets. Open USD instead plans to distribute that yield to participating businesses.
The approach resembles the Global Dollar Network (USDG), a stablecoin consortium led by Paxos that shares reserve income with participating firms. That network is backed by companies including Robinhood, Kraken and Galaxy Digital, and was designed to encourage broader adoption by aligning incentives between the issuer and distribution partners.
In Europe, a group of banks and payment providers launched Qivalis, a venture to develop a euro-denominated stablecoin as financial institutions seek to build shared digital payment infrastructure.
The breadth of Open USD's backing reflects that shift. Beyond Stripe, Coinbase, Mastercard and Visa, launch partners include BNY, Standard Chartered, DBS, U.S. Bank, Shopify, Google, IBM, Mercado Pago, Fireblocks, Anchorage Digital, MetaMask, Aave, Solana, Polygon and Ripple.
Growing competition for CircleFor Circle, the announcement underscores how competition in stablecoins is evolving.
USDC, with a market capitalization of roughly $73 billion, has positioned itself as the regulated stablecoin for institutions, building partnerships with banks, payment firms and asset managers while securing regulatory approvals in jurisdictions including the U.S. and European Union.
By contrast, market leader Tether's USDT, with about $145 billion in circulation, has built its dominance largely through crypto trading and emerging-market payments.
Open USD takes aim at a different part of Circle's strategy. Rather than competing solely on distribution, it offers banks, payment companies and fintechs a share of the interest income generated on U.S Treasuries in reserve, a revenue stream that has become central to the business.
Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, downplayed Open USD's threat and pointed to the fast-growing stablecoin market.
"Stablecoins represent one of the largest market opportunities in the world as the internet transforms the infrastructure for storing and moving money," he said in an X post.
"We welcome continued innovation and competition in the space and look forward to remaining laser-focused on building the best stablecoin infrastructure possible and driving more customer and partner success," he added.
UPDATE (June 30, 15:00 UTC): Adds Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire's remark and updates CRCL share price performance.
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Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
8 hours ago
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Why it matters:
Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.
Shares of Circle Internet Group (CRCL) fell on Tuesday after Open Standard unveiled Open USD (OUSD), a dollar stablecoin backed by more than 140 companies, including Visa, Mastercard, and Coinbase, that targets the market its USD Coin (USDC) token leads.
The launch puts payment networks, banks, and crypto firms behind a single token. It lands as Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT control most of the stablecoin market.
Circle (CRCL) Stock Performance. Source: TradingViewWhy Circle’s USDC Faces PressureOpen USD goes after the enterprise users that drive USDC adoption. Businesses can mint and redeem it for free, and partners keep the earnings on its reserves after a small fee.
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That model strikes at how Circle makes money. Reserve interest produced 99% of its revenue in 2024, its filing shows.
Circle paid Coinbase $908 million that year to distribute USDC. Now Coinbase has joined a rival that lets partners keep those reserve earnings.
Circle stock fell nearly 15% on the news, touching its lowest level of the session. It extended a weak run after Circle’s stock rally from $50 to $129 in six weeks earlier this year.
The bigger risk is distribution. Circle gained ground as USDC overtook Tether in corporate transfers. Yet Open USD’s backers include the networks that move most of that money.
Circle still holds advantages. Its USDC carries regulatory standing in the US and Europe and deep exchange liquidity.
A Consortium Stands Behind Open USDOpen Standard will run the token through an independent board of its partners. Zach Abrams leads the company on an interim basis. He co-founded Bridge, the stablecoin firm Stripe bought for $1.1 billion in 2025.
The backers span finance and technology, from BlackRock and BNY to Google and Shopify. Many already run their own stablecoins or build stablecoin infrastructure firms, echoing Mastercard’s recent stablecoin payment integrations.
Stripe tied its payments business directly to the token.
“Open USD will be the default stablecoin for businesses running on Stripe…” read an excerpt in the announcement, citing Will Gaybrick, president of technology and business at Stripe.
Circle, Tether, and PayPal all sat out the venture. Tether’s USDT leads at about $185 billion and Circle’s USDC follows near $74 billion.
Total Stablecoin Market Cap. Source: DefiLlamaAll these notwithstanding, the history is not encouraging for consortiums. Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe each backed Facebook’s Libra stablecoin in 2019, then abandoned it within months under regulatory pressure.
Open USD goes live later this year on Plasma and other chains built for stablecoin payments.
The timing matters for Circle, whose USDC revenue-sharing deal with Coinbase comes up for renewal in August.
Survey: 88% of enterprises plan to adopt stablecoins within the next year, with cross-border payment costs reduced by an average of 35%.
Payment infrastructure company Cybrid has released a new survey report indicating stablecoins are rapidly gaining traction in enterprise payment scenarios. The survey found that 42% of participating enterprises already use stablecoins for cross-border payments, while 88% said they are likely or very likely to adopt stablecoins within the next 12 months—only 2% of firms stated they will continue to rely entirely on traditional payment systems. According to the report, enterprises using stablecoins save an average of 35% on cross-border payment costs, with firms processing over $100 million in monthly payments achieving an average cost reduction of 47%. Payroll and contractor payments represent the most prominent use case, followed by supplier payments, customer payments, investment and revenue management, and treasury management, among others. Additionally, 71% of respondents identified a clear regulatory framework as the primary factor driving further mainstream adoption of stablecoins, outranking considerations such as infrastructure provider credibility and system integration. The survey was conducted from April to May this year, covering 468 senior executives from tech, financial services, and e-commerce sectors in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
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FalconX secures EU MiCA license, allowing it to offer compliant crypto services to institutional clients in Europe.
Institutional digital asset broker FalconX announced it has obtained the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license issued by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), enabling it to provide compliant digital asset trading, custody, liquidity and related institutional services across the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA). FalconX stated that this license allows it to operate across EU member states under a unified regulatory framework, eliminating the need for individual country-specific licenses. Currently, the firm serves over 2,000 institutional clients worldwide, including asset management firms, hedge funds, banks and family offices, with cumulative transaction volumes exceeding $2.5 trillion and over $8 billion in institutional financing disbursed. FalconX noted that as the MiCA regulatory framework is fully implemented, institutional clients’ demand for compliant trading, custody and liquidity services continues to grow, and regulatory credentials are becoming a key competitive advantage in Europe’s digital asset market.
2 hours ago
Guo Wengui sentenced to 30 years in prison in connection with a fraud case involving over $1 billion.
A US court has sentenced Miles Guo (also known as Ho Wan Kwok) to 30 years in prison. In 2024, a jury convicted Guo on multiple charges including racketeering, fraud, and money laundering, with his formal sentencing now issued. Prosecutors stated that Guo defrauded over $1 billion from global victims through a series of related scam schemes spanning five years. Notably, in 2021, he promoted the cryptocurrency project Himalaya Coin (H-Coin), claiming the tokens were backed by 20% gold reserves and promising to cover all investors’ losses, raising approximately $500 million in total. Additionally, the court previously ordered the forfeiture of nearly $900 million in Guo’s illegal proceeds, as well as his luxury mansion in New Jersey and multiple high-end vehicles. Guo had close ties to Steve Bannon, a former senior advisor to US President Donald Trump; Bannon was arrested in 2020 aboard Guo’s yacht.
2 hours ago
The first-half 2026 funding rankings have been released, with Kalshi and Polymarket raising a combined $1.8 billion.
According to statistics, the 14 largest global funding rounds in the first half of 2026 raised a total of $4.3 billion, with prediction markets, AI, and payment sectors drawing the most investor interest. Specifically, prediction market platform Kalshi topped the list with a $1.2 billion funding round, while Polymarket secured $600 million—together, the two raised $1.8 billion, accounting for over 40% of the total capital of the top 14 rounds. In the AI space, Replit, Exa AI, and OpenRouter closed funding rounds of $400 million, $250 million, and $113 million respectively. For blockchain projects, Canton Network, Arc, and Morpho raised $355 million, $222 million, and $175 million respectively. Meanwhile, payment, RWA, infrastructure, and compliance projects including Rain, Slash, Goldcom, Alpaca, and Elliptic also featured on the list.
2 hours ago
Open Standard launches stablecoin Open USD, with over 140 institutions including Visa, BlackRock, and Coinbase participating.
Open Standard has announced the launch of Open USD (OUSD), a new stablecoin for global fund flows, noting that over 140 enterprises have joined its ecosystem, including financial, payment, and crypto industry players such as Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, American Express, BlackRock, BNY, DBS, Coinbase, OKX, MetaMask, Aave, Ripple, Fireblocks, Solana, and Polygon. According to the introduction, Open USD follows three core design principles: supporting zero-cost, large-scale minting and redemption for enterprises; returning all reserve asset yields to partners after deducting a small management fee; and being governed by a board of directors composed of independent firm Open Standard and its partners, rather than controlled by a single issuer. Open Standard states that Open USD will officially launch later this year, with the goal of building an open, low-cost, high-throughput stablecoin infrastructure with a sharing economy mechanism to meet the needs of the internet economy and global enterprise-level payments.
2 hours ago
Pump.fun is discontinuing support for its tokenized agent issuance feature, stating it will focus on optimizing retail user trading experience.
Pump.fun announced it will immediately cease support for its Tokenized Agent token issuance feature. The feature will no longer be available for new token launches, though projects that have already activated it will remain unaffected. The platform noted that over recent months, consistent community feedback has pointed out that excessive issuance options have sparked unnecessary user vs. user (PVP) competition. Moving forward, Pump.fun will prioritize issuance models and product features that explicitly enhance retail trading experiences.
In brief More than 140 companies have teamed up and revealed Open USD, a new stablecoin run by an independent operator called Open Standard. It promises free, uncapped minting/redemption, reserve earnings shared with partner businesses (minus a small fee), and governance by a board of partner companies. Circle's stock price has plunged nearly 16% on the day following the announcement. Coinbase, Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, and more than 140 other companies have banded together to launch a new stablecoin called Open USD (OUSD), in a bid to create shared digital payments infrastructure that no single firm controls.
The news appears to have rocked the stock price of USDC stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL), with shares falling nearly 16% on the day to a recent price of $63.99, per Yahoo Finance. That’s pushed the firm’s plunge to 39% in the last month. Coinbase is a key ally of Circle, but has also thrown its weight behind Open USD.
The coin, unveiled Tuesday by a newly formed independent operator called Open Standard, is designed to address complaints that have dogged the stablecoin industry as it has grown: high fees for minting and redeeming tokens at scale, issuers that pocket the interest earned on reserves, and a lack of input from the businesses actually using the coins.
Open Standard—which is led by founding CEO Zach Abrams, who previously founded Stripe-acquired stablecoin company, Bridge—said that businesses will be able to mint and redeem Open USD for free with no volume caps. Partners, rather than the issuer alone, will collect the earnings on reserves, minus a management fee.
Governance will sit with a board drawn from Open USD's partner companies rather than a single corporate parent, an arrangement organizers describe as essential to winning broad adoption.
"Existing stablecoins have great strengths, but to use them at scale, businesses need something that's open, low-cost, high-throughput, broadly accessible, and aligned to their interests," said Abrams, in a statement.
The backer list spans payments giants such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, banks including BlackRock, BNY, and Standard Chartered, tech firms such as Google and Shopify, and crypto players like Coinbase and Ripple.
Executives framed the effort as an attempt to build neutral infrastructure akin to the early internet. BlackRock's Samara Cohen called it "a constructive step toward giving businesses more choice," while BNY projected the broader stablecoin market could swell to $1.5 trillion by 2030.
Open USD is expected to go live later this year.
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The decline reflects investor concerns that the new entrant could challenge the adoption and enterprise market share of Circle’s USD Coin (CRYPTO: USDC).
Open USD Launch Raises Competitive Pressure Open Standard said Tuesday that Open USD is designed for global money movement. Businesses can mint and redeem the stablecoin without fees or volume limits.
The organization said partners will receive reserve earnings after management fees. An independent board representing participating partners will oversee governance of the stablecoin.
Major Companies Back New StablecoinMore than 140 companies have committed to supporting Open USD, including Visa Inc., Mastercard Inc., Stripe, Shopify Inc. and Coinbase Global Inc.
“What sets Open USD apart is that it’s genuinely open,” said Andy Fang, co-founder of DoorDash Inc.
Visa Chief Product and Strategy Officer Jack Forestell added that Visa is applying its operational rigor to help build the trust layer for the stablecoin.
Circle Internet Group Already Facing Supply HeadwindsThe competitive launch comes as Circle was already facing pressure. Data released June 27 showed CRCL stock trading near its lowest level since February.
According to CoinMarketCap, USDC’s market capitalization has fallen to $73.7 billion from a year-to-date high of $80 billion.
Circle’s business model relies on investing reserves into short-term government bonds, leaving it vulnerable to declining asset supplies and falling U.S. bond yields.
Technical Picture Remains WeakCircle continues to trade well below key moving averages. The stock sits 19.6% below its 20-day simple moving average, 34.1% below its 50-day average and 34.3% below its 200-day average.
The moving-average setup also remains bearish. The 20-day average is below the 50-day average, while the 50-day average moved below the 200-day average in June, forming a “death cross.” Technical analysts often view that pattern as a sign that selling pressure could persist.
Momentum indicators also remain negative. The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator is below its signal line, suggesting bullish momentum continues to weaken.
The next key resistance level is around $77, where previous rebounds have struggled.
Circle Internet Group Price ActionCRCL Stock Price Activity: Circle Internet Group shares were down 16.30% at $63.57 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Photo via Shutterstock
This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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Key Takeaways Circle (CRCL) shares plummeted over 13% to approximately $65, reaching their lowest point in four months following the rival stablecoin announcement. More than 140 major corporations, including Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, BlackRock, and Coinbase, have unveiled Open USD, a new stablecoin project. Open Standard, the organization managing Open USD, is headed by Zach Abrams, who previously co-founded Bridge before its acquisition by Stripe in 2024. Open USD distinguishes itself from Circle’s USDC by offering zero-fee minting and redemption, plus shared reserve income distribution among consortium members. Circle’s CEO Jeremy Allaire dismissed concerns about the competition, asserting that USDC maintains its position as the most reliable stablecoin in the market. Shares of Circle Internet Group experienced a significant decline on Tuesday. The stock plummeted as much as 14% during trading before closing down approximately 13%, hovering around $65—marking its weakest performance since the end of February.
Circle Internet Group, CRCL
The sharp decline came after news emerged that a consortium exceeding 140 corporations intends to introduce a rival stablecoin. This new digital asset, dubbed Open USD, represents a direct challenge to Circle’s flagship USDC token.
Coinbase shares also experienced downward pressure from the announcement, declining roughly 6% to $142.37. This decline carries particular significance given that Coinbase partnered with Circle to create USDC and has historically shared in its revenue stream.
The Consortium Behind Open USD The alliance backing this initiative includes an impressive roster of industry leaders. Among the founding partners are payment giants Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe, alongside financial powerhouses BlackRock and Coinbase, plus banking institutions including BNY, Standard Chartered, and U.S. Bank.
Major technology corporations have also joined the effort. Google and IBM are both participants, along with prominent blockchain projects such as Ripple, Solana, Polygon, and Aave.
An independent entity named Open Standard oversees the project. Zach Abrams serves as its leader, bringing experience from co-founding Bridge, a stablecoin infrastructure company that Stripe purchased in 2024.
Abrams positioned the initiative as addressing market needs, stating that while current stablecoins have merits, the business community requires a solution that’s open, affordable, and structured to serve their interests at enterprise scale.
Industry observers weren’t completely caught off guard. CoinDesk had previously reported earlier this month that Stripe, Visa, and Mastercard were developing a competing stablecoin platform, with indications that Coinbase might participate.
Open USD’s Competitive Advantages Over USDC The economic model represents the most significant challenge to Circle’s revenue stream. Open USD will allow businesses to create and redeem tokens without any associated fees.
The distribution of reserve income follows a similar collaborative approach. Rather than concentrating interest earnings from reserves within a single entity, Open USD intends to distribute yields among all participating partners following operational expense deductions.
This directly threatens Circle’s primary revenue source. Circle generates income by investing USDC reserves in short-duration Treasury securities and retaining the majority of interest generated—a model that Open USD explicitly aims to disrupt.
Governance authority will be distributed among consortium members instead of residing with a sole issuer. This approach resembles USDG, another consortium-based stablecoin supported by Paxos, Robinhood, Kraken, and Galaxy Digital.
USDC presently maintains approximately $73.6 billion in circulation, positioning it as the dominant U.S.-originated stablecoin. Tether’s USDT holds a larger global presence with roughly $145 billion in circulation, though it focuses primarily on cryptocurrency trading and developing economies.
The implications for Coinbase are substantial. Revenue connected to USDC accounted for 44% of Coinbase’s subscription and services division during the first quarter.
Circle’s CEO Jeremy Allaire took to X on Tuesday to defend his company’s position, characterizing USDC as “the most trusted, widely adopted, institutional-ready stablecoin in the world.” He emphasized that Circle collaborates with thousands of institutional partners.
A Coinbase representative maintained an optimistic perspective, suggesting that additional stablecoin issuers and applications ultimately expand the total addressable market, while affirming that USDC continues to be central to their platform strategy.
According to Open Standard’s official statement, Open USD is scheduled to debut later this year.
Less than two weeks after its initial public offering (IPO), Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +4.19%), or SpaceX, went back to the capital markets. This time through debt. On June 22, the company priced its inaugural bond offering of $25 billion -- the largest investment-grade bond sale of the year -- after reportedly receiving $90 billion in orders from institutional buyers. The demand was real. The implications are worth understanding.
What SpaceX actually did SpaceX raised $25 billion through five tranches of senior unsecured notes, with maturities ranging from 2031 to 2056 and interest rates spanning 5.35% to 6.65%, locking in decades of additional debt obligations.
The notes are unsecured obligations that rank equally with all other existing and future unsubordinated debt. Unsecured means bondholders have no specific claim on any SpaceX asset -- no rockets, no satellites, no Starlink infrastructure -- if the company faces financial stress. They stand in line with every other creditor.
The primary use of proceeds will be to repay the $20 billion bridge loan SpaceX took out in March when it absorbed xAI and X. The remainder will go to general corporate purposes, which means Starship development, Starlink expansion, and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.
Image source: Getty Images.
Why the stock fell On June 22, the day SpaceX announced the bond sale, shares dropped 16.4%.
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CNBC the next day reported the $90 billion in demand. Two things explain that gap between bond demand and stock performance.
First, the bond market priced in risk that the equity market hadn't yet fully acknowledged. The 2036 tranche is priced 1.4 percentage points above U.S. Treasury yields -- roughly 0.4 percentage points wider than the average spread on comparably rated BBB debt. In plain terms, bond investors required a premium to own SpaceX debt over similarly rated companies. That premium is the market's way of saying the SpaceX story carries more execution risk than a typical investment-grade issuer.
Second, the bond sale confirmed something the IPO prospectus had disclosed, but the retail investor frenzy had glossed over: SpaceX needed the money. This company that just raised $86 billion in an IPO and then borrowed $25 billion more within two weeks carries $29 billion in long-term debt before it has built a single revenue-generating AI data center. CFRA analyst Keith Snyder put it directly in an interview with Yahoo! Finance: "They need to invest every dollar as efficiently as possible."
What this means for long-term investors The bond sale itself is not a red flag. It is standard capital structure management -- using long-dated, lower-cost debt to refinance a short-term bridge loan before it matures in September 2027. Companies like Amazon and Microsoft have used the same playbook to fund infrastructure at scale.
The question for SpaceX investors isn't whether the company is able to borrow -- $90 billion in bond orders confirmed it is. The question is whether the AI infrastructure it is building with that borrowed capital will generate the returns needed to justify a stock that, even after its recent sell-off, still trades at more than 100 times trailing revenue. Some analysts have a $250 price target on the stock that closed Monday at $164. Others have a $310 target. The range is wide, which reflects how genuinely uncertain this business model is at its current scale.
What the bond sale clarified for me is the version of SpaceX investors are buying: not a rocket company that became profitable and then expanded into AI, but an AI-infrastructure conglomerate that happens to own the most successful launch business ever built, carrying debt it will repay through 2056.
Here's my take: The debt load and execution uncertainty are real, and anyone treating SpaceX like a sure thing is ignoring what the bond market already priced in. But for investors with a long horizon, the sell-off toward IPO prices may be the entry point worth building a position around -- one layer at a time.
Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +4.19%) isn't a cheap stock by any means. At over $2 trillion in market cap, it's among the most valuable companies in the world. But many people who buy the stock, which also goes by just SpaceX, buy it for its long-term goals and the opportunities in space and artificial intelligence.
SpaceX stock has a lot of promise and long-term potential. And as long as investors are optimistic about the company's growth and its path forward, it can continue rising higher, despite its valuation. That's why I don't think the biggest risk with owning the stock is necessarily its price, but the company falling short of expectations.
Image source: Getty Images.
Elon Musk has a concerning track record SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is no stranger to making bold and ambitious claims. The problem, however, is that they can be far too optimistic. Investors, meanwhile, may become frustrated with a stock, especially one that has as much hype as SpaceX. For the stock to keep rising and trade at a valuation higher than might be warranted by fundamentals, investors need to remain bullish on its growth story.
According to a recent analysis by The New York Times, of the 600-plus claims Musk has made over the past 15 years, he came through just 19% of the time, and on time. And in 35% of cases, he either didn't deliver or was late. Another one-third of claims were considered to be too vague, and it hasn't been clear if he met them, while 13% of claims are based on future dates and thus remain to-be-determined.
This can be particularly problematic when talking about grand visions such as going to Mars and putting data centers into space. They would be amazing goals to reach, but given how ambitious they are, it may not be surprising to see them drag out over a very long time frame.
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Investing based on a long-term vision is dangerous and risky All CEOs have visions for future growth, but few are going to be as bold as Musk's. And that's why many growth-oriented investors love to invest in Musk's companies, knowing that if he meets those sky-high expectations, the stocks could soar as well.
But the danger is that such grand visions as Musk's can prove too complicated, costly, and time-consuming to be realized. In the meantime, the underlying business may continue to incur heavy losses, leading to significant declines in share price.
The most successful investors in the world have focused not on optimistic growth targets and visions but on solid facts and figures. While betting on Musk may have worked out tremendously well for early Tesla investors, that doesn't mean that SpaceX stock will go on a similar trajectory.
SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX) is surging back again after a brief fall from its highs. SPCX stock is up by almost 11 days in the past five trading sessions and is likely set to continue moving higher in the coming days as the broader rally shows no sign of stopping.
In fact, many analysts (retail and the suits) are certain the stock is moving to $3 trillion or higher.
Fundamentally, you don’t want to take this deal. SpaceX is bleeding cash, is too big, and its AI division is behind all its competition… and so on. On the other hand, many believe the stock will retain its premium perpetually. Analysts have been bashing Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA | TSLA Price Prediction) year after year, and it hasn’t made Tesla fans any less enthusiastic about TSLA stock. The same effect could drive SpaceX to $3 trillion. Let’s see what needs to take place in order for that to happen.
SpaceX is less and less space every day If SpaceX only contained Starlink plus the launch division, you’d be looking at a sub-trillion business. Starlink will face competitive pressure from Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS). It is only because of xAI’s inclusion that SpaceX is surging.
You should keep in mind that no matter how “bad” Grok or xAI looks on paper, it is still the closest generative AI pure-play the market has. Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) is the second-closest pick, but most of that business is still boring software. On the other hand, SpaceX offers you an all-flashy business under one roof. The only non-flashy business is X/Twitter, which was absorbed alongside xAI.
xAI’s uselessness to the average user is useful for SpaceX The AI division inside SpaceX is far behind OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. Several Chinese open-source models trounce Grok with a fraction of the cost. Thus, Grok is severely underutilized relative to its massive computing capacity. And I’d argue this is actually a good thing.
Instead of becoming a money pit, xAI became SpaceX’s largest money-maker right before the IPO.
xAI signed a 300 MW contract with Anthropic at $1.25 billion per month through May 2029, cancellable only with 90 days’ notice. Claude is so heavily used that I do not think Anthropic will cancel this anytime soon. xAI also signed an agreement with Google for $920 million per month from Oct 2026-Jun 2029. This is a shakier deal as Google falls behind on Gemini, but Google needs that compute if it ends up doubling down and spending more to catch up with Anthropic.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and SpaceX didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Combined, you are looking at $26 billion a year in high-margin revenue per month.
SpaceX’s neocloud AI is special What’s special here is that most hyperscalers are struggling to build data centers, and it’s taking them years. On the other hand, Elon breezed through Colossus 1 and 2 within months through loopholes and bypassing industrial timelines.
The compute-rental income flows almost dollar-for-dollar to gross profit because the data centers were already built. In fact, SpaceX still has more spare capacity to sell. SpaceX’s filing says “we expect to enter additional similar services contracts” due to the excess capacity.
Will SpaceX get to $3 trillion? xAI won’t see $26 billion as profit, no matter how high the margin is on its own. It lost $6.4 billion last year, and it’s probable that you’re going to see similar or higher core operating losses this year. That leaves it some $20 billion (give or take) in profits. If you stack Starlink, launches, and everything else on top, you’re likely looking at $30 billion a year in profits for all of SpaceX, if we are to be liberal. Both Anthropic and Google contracts need to run as-is for at least a year.
That’s 100x forward earnings, which is very much achievable. Palantir (NASDAQ:PLTR) set the precedent that even 200x forward earnings is achievable if you can convince Wall Street you’re on the extreme cutting-edge.
Thus, I’d say $3 trillion is more likely than not if this rally continues through 2027. Moreover, if xAI can sell that excess capacity, even $4 trillion won’t be too far-flung, depending on how much compute they can sell.
That said, I do not think Wall Street will perpetually pay triple-digit forward earnings multiples. The rally will end someday, and SpaceX will likely settle at a reasonable low-to-mid double-digit premium in the 2030s. Perhaps even earlier, if the AI bubble bursts.
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A billion-dollar misunderstanding has left Korean investors empty-handed in the blockbuster SpaceX IPO. Bloomberg's Bailey Lipschultz joins Ed Ludlow on "Bloomberg Tech" with the details.
Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +4.19%) had no shortage of buyers during its first days on the market. It surged from its first-day open of $150 on June 12 to over $225 on June 16. SpaceX's share price has fallen almost as quickly, back to $153 by the week ending June 26, but it's still one of the most popular stocks by trading volume.
Despite all the excitement, buying SpaceX stock right now is a risky move, and not just because of its staggering valuation.
Image source: Getty Images.
The macro environment is shaky The U.S. annual inflation rate rose to 4.2% in May, its highest level since April 2023. Two-thirds of consumers said they plan to cut back on spending because of rising prices, according to The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Survey. In a separate University of Michigan survey, over half of consumers said high prices were weighing down their personal finances.
As a rocket company, SpaceX might not seem particularly vulnerable to a slowdown in consumer spending. But its only business segment that turns a profit, connectivity, is anchored by Starlink, a satellite internet service that sells to consumers and small businesses. Lower consumer spending could lead to slower subscriber growth and higher cancellations, hurting SpaceX's biggest source of revenue.
Sky-high spending Any dip in revenue would be a serious issue for SpaceX, as it carries significant debt and is spending heavily on Starship, satellite constellations, and artificial intelligence infrastructure. Capital expenditures in 2025 totaled $20.7 billion, of which $12.7 billion was allocated to its AI business. Capex in the first quarter of 2026 has already hit $10.1 billion.
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To SpaceX's credit, its revenue has grown significantly over the last three years, including by 33% to $18.7 billion in 2025. But its losses have also been growing, with the space company reporting a net loss of $4.9 billion in 2025 and $4.3 billion already in Q1 2026.
SpaceX flagged in its S-1 that it expects capex and operating expenses to increase in the future, and that failure to maintain or increase revenue could keep it from achieving profitability. This is already a company with a stretched valuation, given its $2 trillion market cap. It needs rapid growth to justify that, and any negative news could cause it to plummet.
Should you hold off on buying SpaceX? Between Starlink, the launch business, and AI, SpaceX has three businesses with growth potential. Potential doesn't pay the bills, though, and right now, this is an unprofitable, cash-hungry company recently trading at more than 100 times sales. Insiders also can't sell their shares yet, and the economy is looking fragile.
SpaceX is an interesting investment, but it's not one I'd make today. Instead, consider putting it on your watch list and reviewing the next couple of earnings reports to see how it does, rather than buying today while volatility is high.
SpaceX (SPCX +4.19%) has taken its investors on a wild ride since its June 12 IPO. It went public at $135 per share, opened at $150, and reached a record high of $225.64 on June 16. But as of this writing, SpaceX's stock trades at about $170. Let's see why it pulled back -- and how much upside it might have left after its recent decline.
Image source: Getty Images.
Why did SpaceX's stock stumble? SpaceX went public with a valuation of $1.77 trillion, making it the biggest IPO in history. But at its peak, its market cap hit $2.66 trillion, or 142 times its 2025 revenue of $18.7 billion. Even after its pullback, its market cap still hovers at $2.16 trillion, or 116 times its trailing revenue.
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That valuation might be justified if you believe Elon Musk's prediction that SpaceX could generate more than $1 trillion in revenue by 2030. But in reality, SpaceX's revenue only rose 33% in 2025, and it's unprofitable because the losses at its space and AI businesses are wiping out Starlink's profits. SpaceX will also likely rely heavily on debt offerings and dilutive acquisitions (like its recent all-stock takeover of the AI coding start-up Cursor) to expand.
For now, analysts expect SpaceX's revenue to surge 96% in 2026, 81% in 2027, and 47% to $97.5 billion in 2028. That growth could be driven by Starship, its largest rocket ever; the expansion of Starlink, which already serves over 10.3 million subscribers, and the evolution of xAI's fragmented business into a formidable AI infrastructure company.
But even if SpaceX hits those targets -- which would require hundreds of flawless launches, low interest rates, and a stable macro environment -- it already trades at 22 times its 2028 revenue.
On the bright side, SpaceX's upcoming inclusion in the Nasdaq-100 on July 7 could set a floor under its stock, since all funds passively tracking the index will need to purchase it. However, its upcoming lockup expirations -- which will start in late July or early August and ramp up through the end of the year -- could drive its stock lower as its early investors and insiders cash out. That selling could make SpaceX an attractive target for short sellers.
While SpaceX might still have significant long-term growth potential, I don't think it has much more upside for the rest of 2026. It still has a lot to prove over the next few quarters, and its high valuation and upcoming lockup expirations will likely limit its near-term gains.
Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Laureate Education remains a Buy due to strong revenue growth and attractive valuation, despite recent profitability pressures. LAUR's 2026 revenue guidance of $1.89–$1.905 billion and EBITDA of $583–$593 million signal robust top- and bottom-line expansion. Enrollment growth in both Mexico and Peru, aided by favorable pricing and currency effects, underpins management's optimistic outlook.
CAMAS, Wash., June 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL), the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes, today announced the grand opening of its newest model home at Camas Meadows Crossing, a low-maintenance luxury townhome community in Camas, Washington. The Canterwood Contemporary model home joins the Alderbrook and Brasada model homes, providing home shoppers with an additional opportunity to explore the stunning designs and finishes available at this highly sought-after community.
Located in Camas, Washington, Camas Meadows Crossing features thoughtfully designed luxury townhomes with floor plans ranging up to 2,430 square feet, offering 3 to 5 bedrooms, 2- to 3-bathrooms, and 2-car garages. Homes are priced from the upper $500,000s, with quick move-in options available. Select home designs include daylight basements, main-level bedrooms, flex rooms, and direct entry into the main living level. Each home is crafted with attention to detail, blending functionality with modern aesthetics to meet the needs of today’s home shoppers.
"The new Canterwood Contemporary model at Camas Meadows Crossing highlights the exceptional craftsmanship and innovative design that Toll Brothers is known for," said Mike Grubbe, Division President of Toll Brothers in Oregon and Southwest Washington. "This community is perfect for those seeking a low-maintenance lifestyle with access to top-rated schools, outdoor recreation, and a prime location near the best of Camas and the surrounding area."
Located near the scenic Lacamas Lake and the Camas Meadows Golf Club, the community offers abundant outdoor recreation opportunities as well as proximity to boutique shopping and dining in downtown Camas. The convenient location provides easy access to Vancouver, Portland, and the Portland International Airport, making it ideal for homeowners looking to enjoy the best of the Pacific Northwest. Additionally, homeowners will benefit from the tax advantages of living in Washington state while remaining close to Oregon amenities.
Toll Brothers customers will experience one-stop shopping at the Toll Brothers Design Studio. The state-of-the-art Design Studio allows home shoppers to choose from a wide array of selections to personalize their dream home with the assistance of Toll Brothers professional Design Consultants.
Quick move-in homes with Designer Appointed Features are also available, allowing home shoppers to move into their dream home sooner. These homes feature professionally curated finishes and details, offering a seamless home-buying experience.
The Toll Brothers Sales Center is located at 3839 NW 65th Avenue in Camas. For more information about Camas Meadows Crossing or to schedule a tour of the Canterwood Contemporary model home, call 844-900-8655 or visit TollBrothers.com/OR.
About Toll Brothers
Toll Brothers, Inc., a Fortune 500 Company, is the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes. The Company was founded in 1967 and became a public company in 1986 with common stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TOL.” Toll Brothers builds new homes and communities in over 60 markets across the United States, serving first-time, move-up, active-adult, and second-home buyers. The Company also operates its own architectural, engineering, mortgage, title, land development, smart home technology, landscape, and building components manufacturing businesses.
Toll Brothers was named the #1 Most Admired Home Builder in Fortune magazine’s 2026 list of the World’s Most Admired Companies®, the ninth year the Company has achieved this honor. Toll Brothers has also been named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine and is the first two-time recipient of Builder of the Year from Professional Builder magazine. For more information visit TollBrothers.com.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock was up more than 2% on Tuesday as investors rotated back into large-cap technology stocks during a risk-on trading session. The Nasdaq gained 1.46%, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.69%.
The rebound follows a sharp selloff last Thursday, when Apple shares fell more than 6%, marking their steepest one-day decline since April 2025.
The drop came after the company raised prices on its Mac and iPad lineup, prompting investors to assess whether Apple can pass higher component costs on to consumers ahead of any potential iPhone price increases.
The stock remains in focus as investors weigh rising memory costs, the possibility of higher iPhone prices, and Apple’s efforts to expand its supply chain by working with Chinese memory manufacturers.
Apple Seeks Relief From Memory CostsApple is again asking the administration for more flexibility to work with Chinese memory suppliers as it deals with a severe component cost and supply crunch, CNBC reported Saturday.
The effort is part of a broader push by U.S. technology companies seeking clearance from the White House, the Commerce Department, and the Pentagon to qualify Chinese vendors without violating U.S. restrictions.
Chinese memory suppliers could help Apple lower costs and gain more leverage with existing suppliers, according to the report. Apple may use those chips in devices sold outside the U.S., especially in China and parts of Asia.
However, adding a new supplier could take months of testing, security checks, and factory reviews.
Analysts See Apple Managing The PressureWedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives told CNBC on Friday that Apple had to raise prices to protect margins amid sharply rising memory costs across the technology supply chain.
Ives said Apple waited as long as possible and made the move at the right time as it enters what he expects to be a major three-year hardware cycle. He expects only limited demand weakness, possibly around 1% to 2% churn on some high-end products.
Albion Financial Group CIO Jason Ware told CNBC Saturday that investors should continue to own Apple despite recent price hikes and stock weakness.
Ware said Apple has a strong long-term setup, supported by upper-single-digit revenue growth, margin expansion, and a large share buyback program.
He said Apple’s affluent customer base remains willing to upgrade, while pricing power should help protect margins without causing major demand weakness.
Ware also pointed to a possible foldable iPhone launch this fall as a driver of upgrades.
Analysts maintain a consensus Buy rating with an average price forecast of $324.16. Recent research includes Evercore ISI reiterating an Outperform rating with a $365 price forecast, KGI Securities downgrading the stock to Hold with a $315 forecast, and Bank of America Securities maintaining a Buy rating with a $380 price forecast.
Technical Picture Remains ConstructiveApple continues to trade above its long-term trend indicators. The stock is about 4.3% above its 100-day simple moving average and 6.8% above its 200-day simple moving average, keeping its broader uptrend intact.
However, the shares remain 2.5% below the 20-day SMA and 1.3% below the 50-day SMA. That suggests the stock is still working through a short-term consolidation.
The relative strength index stands at 46.05, indicating neutral momentum. The reading suggests buyers and sellers remain balanced rather than signaling a decisive breakout.
Key resistance sits near $302.50, while support is around $287.50.
Price ActionAAPL Stock Price Activity: Apple shares were up 2.32% at $288.27 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Image via Shutterstock
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
The market has been bearish on tech giant Apple (AAPL +2.06%) of late as concerns are rising that its growth rate and margins may come under pressure in its upcoming quarters. The reason? The company is raising prices on its popular products in response to soaring memory prices, as companies such as Micron Technology benefit from insatiable demand.
While Micron is a big winner from such a trend, Apple may end up losing big from it. While the price increases can help it offset the rising memory costs, the risk is that its already expensive products may become even more unaffordable for consumers.
Does this spell trouble for Apple's stock, and is it better to ditch it now, or does its reduced value make it a more attractive long-term buy?
Image source: Getty Images.
Is Apple in a bad spot right now? Apple CEO Tim Cook has been raising the alarm over rising costs. MacBook and iPad prices are rising, in some cases by hundreds of dollars, to offset rising costs. What's troubling is that this may not be the end. The company says "the consumer electronics industry is facing an unprecedented challenge" and that "we have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly."
It's a bit surprising to see such a panic, especially given that Apple's margins have been fairly strong in recent years.
AAPL Gross Profit Margin (Quarterly) data by YCharts
The big question going into the company's next quarterly earnings report will be just how much of a dent there will be in its margins. The gravity of the company's statements suggests they will be significant. What's even more concerning is that the shortage in memory products isn't ending anytime soon, and thus, costs may continue to rise for Apple; this is not an isolated event that will only impact a single quarter. And if the company has to raise iPhone prices as well, that could devastate demand for its flagship products.
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Apple stock is down, but is it worth buying? Shares of Apple have fallen by around 10% in just the past month, which, for the tech giant, is a fairly big decline. Overall, however, it's still up around 4% since the start of the year. Investors have been bearish on the stock, but with its price-to-earnings multiple still fairly high at 34, it hasn't exactly become a bargain buy.
I'd hold off on making a decision on Apple until after it reports its latest earnings numbers, to see just how much rising memory prices have impacted its margins. If the effect is truly as bad as what management has suggested, there could be more downward pressure on the stock in the future. At this stage, however, I don't think its value is low enough to compensate for the potential risk and uncertainty ahead; I wouldn't rush to buy it right now.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock could be entering one of its strongest seasonal periods of the year, according to historical trading data.
With shares currently trading at $281, more than 10% below their all-time high near $317, investors looking for a potential entry point may find July particularly attractive, according to seasonality trends shared by charting platform TrendSpider in an X post on June 30.
In this line, seasonality data covering the last 15 years shows that July has been Apple’s best-performing month.
AAPL has posted positive returns in roughly 89% of July trading periods, while the stock’s average gain during the month stands at about 9%, significantly outperforming its historical monthly averages.
Apple seasonality chart. Source: TrendSpider The 15-year seasonality chart shows July recording the highest average monthly return of any month.
Positive performance has occurred in nearly nine out of every 10 July periods, making it one of the most reliable seasonal trends among large-cap technology stocks.
The timing is notable because Apple stock has recently pulled back amid broader technology-sector volatility, concerns over artificial intelligence execution, and rising memory component costs
The seasonal setup comes as Apple continues to post strong growth. In its latest quarter, revenue rose 17% year-over-year to $111.2 billion, while earnings per share increased 22% to $2.01.
iPhone revenue reached about $57 billion, driven by strong demand for the iPhone 17 lineup, while Services generated roughly $30 billion in revenue with margins above 75% and more than 1 billion paid subscriptions.
Impact of Apple AI strategy on AAPL stock At the same time, Apple’s AI strategy is another potential catalyst. Through Apple Intelligence, the company is integrating AI across its ecosystem with a focus on on-device processing and software-hardware integration.
The June WWDC 2026 announcements highlighted further AI enhancements, including upcoming Siri upgrades.
If successful, these features could drive device upgrades and boost Services engagement across Apple’s installed base of approximately 2.5 billion active devices.
At the same time, Wall Street analysts remain broadly constructive on AAPL stock. Consensus estimates place the average 12-month price target around $315, implying potential upside from current trading levels.
More bullish forecasts project shares could climb toward $350 or higher if AI initiatives gain traction and services growth remains strong.
Apple’s upcoming earnings report, expected around July 30, could also serve as a key catalyst, particularly if management maintains guidance for double-digit revenue growth.
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Tesla Stock OwnershipTesla went public on June 29, 2010 with shares priced at $17. Over a decade later, investors who bought in at the time of the IPO have been pleasantly rewarded. Investors who bought in other periods of time have also benefitted and grown their wealth, just like CEO Elon Musk.
Benzinga viewers of "PreMarket Playbook" were asked about their past and current Tesla stock ownership during the Tuesday, June 30 episode.
"Tesla went public 16 years ago on June 29, 2010. Which of the following best describes you?" Benzinga asked.
The results are:
Traded Tesla before, but don’t own: 53% Never owned Tesla stock (outside ETFs/mutual funds): 27% Currently own Tesla stock: 20% The poll results show that 53% of viewers polled have owned Tesla stock in the past, but don’t currently own. Add this with the 20% who said they currently own Tesla stock and the amount of people who have owned Tesla stock at some point would be 73%.
The remaining 27% of viewers said they have never owned Tesla stock outside of owning ETFs or mutual funds that own the electric vehicle stock, which would give them indirect ownership.
"PreMarket Playbook" airs on YouTube Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. ET and is hosted by Ryan Faloona. The poll in this story featured the answers of 214 viewers.
Tesla’s Lasting PopularityWhile it is unknown what percentages other popular stocks like the other Magnificent Seven members would get from Benzinga viewers, the fact that 73% of viewers polled say they have owned Tesla stock at some point is likely one of the higher figures for a public company.
With 20% of viewers still owning Tesla stock, that is also a bullish sign on the future of the company and comes with shares down 5% year-to-date in 2026.
Benzinga regularly publishes its most-searched ticker stories each month. For the month of May, Tesla was the fourth most searched ticker. For 2025, Tesla ranked second.
The stock regularly ranks among the top five most-searched tickers on Benzinga Pro each month. While searches don’t directly translate to ownership, they do indicate the importance of the company and the popularity.
A report from brokerage company Robinhood earlier this year showed that Tesla was the second top stock based on buys and sales for the Jan. 1 through May 1, 2026 period.
Tesla remains one of the most popular stocks on the planet. The recent IPO of SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX), a space company led by Musk, may have taken some of the luster away from Tesla.
With investors and fans of Musk wanting to bet on his future, they likely own Tesla and SpaceX stock. For others, looking for which stock may perform better, some investors may have sold off their Tesla stock to buy SpaceX stock.
Photo courtesy: Shutterstock
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