A US court has announced it has sentenced Braden John Karony, the former CEO of the cryptocurrency project SafeMoon, to eight years in prison.
Braden John Karony, the former CEO of cryptocurrency company SafeMoon (SFM), was on trial for securities fraud, electronic fraud, and money laundering for embezzling millions of dollars worth of SFM tokens between 2021 and 2022.
The court ruling determined that Karony embezzled millions of dollars by manipulating the token price and illegally controlling liquidity pools at the bankrupt Utah-based company SafeMoon.
The court stated that as a result of the trial, Karony was sentenced to 100 months in prison, ordered to pay $7.5 million in restitution, and had two of his properties confiscated.
U.S. Attorney General Joseph Nocella stated, “Karony lied to investors from all walks of life, including military veterans and hardworking Americans, and defrauded thousands of victims into buying mansions, sports cars, and custom-built trucks. Today’s sentencing demonstrates the significant consequences of financial crimes. Our office will continue to vigorously prosecute economic crimes that harm investors and undermine public confidence in the stability and security of digital asset markets.”
FBI Deputy Director James C. Barnacle, Jr. stated, “Braden John Karony not only abused his position as CEO, but also violated the trust of his investors by stealing more than nine million dollars in digital assets from his company to finance his lavish lifestyle.”
Aside from CEO Braden John Karony, co-founder Thomas Smith, who is also facing charges of the same crimes, pleaded guilty in February 2025 to participating in a conspiracy to commit securities fraud and electronic fraud, but his sentence has not yet been determined. Another partner, Kyle Nagy, is reportedly currently at large.
*This is not investment advice.
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Braden John Karony, the former Chief Executive Officer of SafeMoon, has been sentenced to eight years in prison after being found guilty of defrauding investors in his digital asset business.
In brief Braden John Karony, former SafeMoon CEO, was sentenced to eight years in prison for fraud and money laundering. The court ordered him to forfeit two homes and roughly 7.5 million dollars obtained through the scheme. Thomas Smith, a co-conspirator, has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, whereas Kyle Nagy remains at large. Eight-Year Sentence and Asset Forfeiture On Tuesday, Karony was handed a 100-month prison term following a three-week federal trial in May 2025, during which a jury found him guilty of financial and electronic fraud, as well as money laundering. In addition to his prison term, the court ordered him to forfeit two residential properties and approximately $7.5 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
United States Attorney Nocella stated that Karony targeted investors from a wide range of backgrounds, deceiving thousands in the process. He added that the ill-gotten gains funded a lavish lifestyle that included luxury homes, high-end vehicles, and custom trucks, emphasizing that federal prosecutors remain committed to pursuing financial crimes that harm investors and undermine trust in cryptocurrency markets.
The scope of Karony’s misconduct extended even further, according to FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Barnacle, who noted that Karony misappropriated more than $9 million in digital assets from SafeMoon for personal use.
Not only did Braden John Karony abuse his position as CEO, but he also betrayed his investors’ trust by stealing more than nine million dollars in digital assets from his company to fund his lavish lifestyle. The FBI is committed to addressing fraud in the digital asset marketplace to level the playing field for Americans.
James Barnacle How the SafeMoon Fraud Unfolded Evidence presented at trial showed that Karony and his co-conspirators repeatedly assured investors that SafeMoon’s liquidity pool was secure, company funds would not be used for personal gain, and insiders were not trading the token. However, prosecutors demonstrated that these claims were false, revealing that:
The group continued to access liquidity funds, diverting millions of dollars for personal expenses. They traded SafeMoon tokens while publicly denying such activity, misleading investors and manipulating the market. The group routed the proceeds through complex cryptocurrency transactions to conceal their gains, with Karony personally obtaining more than $9 million, which he used to purchase luxury properties and high-end vehicles. Thomas Smith, one of Karony’s associates, pleaded guilty in February 2025 to participating in a scheme that defrauded investors through fraudulent securities transactions and electronic communications and is now awaiting sentencing. Kyle Nagy, another alleged participant, remains at large and is actively being sought by authorities.
Meanwhile, HSI New York Acting Special Agent in Charge Alfonso stated that the agency, in coordination with law enforcement partners, will continue efforts to hold accountable anyone who abuses investor trust, whether through conventional financial channels or cryptocurrency.
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Ifeoluwa O.
Ifeoluwa specializes in Web3 writing and marketing, with over 5 years of experience creating insightful and strategic content. Beyond this, he trades crypto and is skilled at conducting technical, fundamental, and on-chain analyses.
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The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.
Former SafeMoon CEO Braden Karony sentenced to 8 years for fraud tied to $9 million in misused liquidity funds.
Braden John Karony, SafeMoon’s former CEO, has been sentenced to 8 years in prison for his role in a multi-million dollar crypto fraud scheme.
U.S. District Judge Eric Komite handed out the judgment in a Brooklyn federal court after a jury convicted him in May 2025 following a three-week trial.
Details of The Sentencing Court documents show that Karony was found guilty of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. As part of the ruling, he has been ordered to forfeit approximately $7.5 million, while the amount of restitution to victims will be determined at a later date. The jury also issued a verdict instructing the forfeiture of two residential properties.
Meanwhile, one of his co-conspirators, Thomas Smith, pleaded guilty in February 2025 and is awaiting sentencing, while Kyle Nagy remains at large.
“Karony lied to investors from all walks of life—including military veterans and hard-working Americans—and defrauded thousands of victims in order to buy mansions, sports cars, and custom trucks,” said United States Attorney Joseph Nocella, Jr.
FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle said the former executive abused his position and betrayed investors’ trust by stealing more than $9 million in cryptocurrency to finance a lavish lifestyle. The proceeds were used to purchase luxury vehicles and real estate, including a $2.2 million home in Utah, additional homes in Kansas, a $277,000 Audi R8 sports car, a Tesla, a custom Ford F-550, and Jeep Gladiator pickup trucks.
IRS-CI New York Special Agent in Charge Harry T. Chavis added that Karony carried out the scheme by exploiting his access to SafeMoon’s liquidity pool while attempting to conceal the transactions, which law enforcement eventually traced, exposing the scheme.
Liquidity Pool Misrepresentations SafeMoon tokens were launched in March 2021 by the firm on a public blockchain, with each transaction automatically subject to a 10% tax that was split into two 5% tranches. One was meant to be reflected to holders in proportion to their holdings, increasing their token balances, while the remaining 5% was designated for its pools to boost market liquidity.
You may also like: US Senate Clears Housing Bill That Also Halts CBDC Push Major Figure in $15 Billion Bitcoin Scam Network Arrested in Tokyo Is Bitcoin (And Peace) In Trouble as Trump Warns Iran of Fresh Strikes? In the months following its debut, SafeMoon attracted millions of customers and reached a market capitalization exceeding $8 billion.
Prosecutors claim that Karony and his partners lied about important details of the company, including false statements that its reserves were locked and could not be used for personal reasons, that tokens would only be used for specific business purposes, that digital asset pairs would be added to the liquidity pool manually when trades occurred on certain exchanges, and that the developers were not using or trading SafeMoon for their own gain.
In reality, they retained access to the liquidity pools and diverted millions of dollars’ worth of crypto for personal enrichment.
In this week’s edition of the weekly recap, Sam Bankman-Fried appeared to implement a documented media playbook from prison, former SafeMoon CEO Braden Karony received a 100-month sentence, and Strategy introduced perpetual preferred shares to fund Bitcoin purchases.
Bankman-Fried executes documented media approach Court records and recent prison communications indicate the convicted FTX founder is implementing a media strategy outlined in a January 15, 2023 Google document created shortly after his arrest. The document detailed 12 tactics Bankman-Fried considered to generate favorable media coverage following his indictment, arrest, extradition, and arraignment. Recent communications show Bankman-Fried shifting politically rightward and praising Trump’s cryptocurrency policies. SafeMoon executive sentenced to prison Former CEO Braden Karony received a 100-month sentence Monday in Brooklyn federal court for stealing millions in customer funds and using them for personal enrichment. A federal jury convicted Karony in May of last year on charges including conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Strategy introduces variable dividend preferred stock The Bitcoin (BTC) treasury company is expanding its use of preferred stock to fund cryptocurrency purchases while reducing exposure to market volatility. CEO Phong Le told Bloomberg in a February 12 interview that the company is offering perpetual preferred shares branded “Stretch” to attract investors seeking digital asset exposure without extreme price fluctuations. The product pays a variable dividend adjusted monthly, providing an alternative financing mechanism for the company’s ongoing Bitcoin accumulation strategy. Grayscale files AAVE ETF application The investment firm reportedly submitted an S-1 application to the Securities and Exchange Commission for an AAVE spot exchange-traded fund according to regulatory filings. The filing follows increased attention to AAVE, a decentralized finance protocol, after a governance vote on decentralizing its operational structure received community support. Kalshi partners with sports insurance broker The prediction market platform announced collaboration with sports insurance broker Game Point Capital and made an entry into the sports insurance market according to CEO Tarek Mansour. The partnership targets the fast-growing sports insurance and reinsurance industry, currently valued at approximately $9 billion annually and projected to double by 2030. Binance launches prepaid card in CIS markets The exchange introduced its prepaid Mastercard crypto card in several Commonwealth of Independent States countries. The card offers instant crypto-to-fiat payments and cashback rewards according to marketing lead Anka Tsintsadze’s Friday confirmation. South Korean police lose custody Bitcoin Gangnam Police Station confirmed Friday that 22 Bitcoin worth approximately ₩2.1 billion (roughly $1.6 million) were lost from police custody. The Bitcoin was voluntarily surrendered by suspects during a 2021 investigation and held in custody since then. Robinhood debuts layer-2 testnet The trading platform launched a public testnet version of its proprietary layer-2 network developed using Arbitrum’s technology stack. Robinhood Chain is currently accessible to a closed group of partners and developers who can experiment with integration, access points, and documentation. Hoskinson clarifies Midnight privacy strategy Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson stated Thursday at Consensus Hong Kong that privacy-focused blockchain Midnight doesn’t plan to recruit Monero and ZCash users, calling them a “different demographic” already caring deeply about privacy. Midnight will instead target “billions of people that don’t know they need privacy” with default privacy protection rather than optional features. BitMine continues Ethereum accumulation The company added 40,613 Ethereum (ETH) valued at approximately $83.2 million to its industry-leading Ethereum holdings last week despite unrealized losses currently sitting near $7.5 billion. Total holdings reached 4,325,738 Ethereum worth over $8.8 billion, representing about 3.58% of circulating ETH supply. Chairman Tom Lee stated “BitMine has been steadily buying Ethereum, as we view this pullback as attractive, given the strengthening fundamentals.” Strategy maintains Bitcoin purchases despite losses Strategy announced Monday it acquired an additional 1,142 Bitcoin last week even as its nearly $50 billion holdings remain underwater following last week’s cryptocurrency market plunge. The firm purchased coins for approximately $90 million total, with a cost basis of $78,815 per Bitcoin.
Analyst: SK Hynix’s US listing and fund-raising could trigger a valuation re-rating.
According to Bloomberg, SK Hynix is set to issue American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq on July 10. The listing aims to raise nearly $30 billion, making it one of the largest ADR issuances in history. Market participants widely believe the move will significantly expand its global investor base and may drive a valuation re-rating. Multiple asset management firms project that if its valuation converges with Micron Technology’s, its share price could rise by 30% over the next year. One fund manager noted that SK Hynix should trade at a valuation at least on par with Micron, as demand for memory chips is likely to outpace supply for years to come. The listing comes amid an unusually strong boom in the memory chip sector. Shares of Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung Electronics have all surged over 200% this year, marking their best annual performance in decades. Demand for High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) from AI servers is widely seen as the driver of a structural "memory supercycle".
6 minutes ago
Jefferies: Samsung is likely to follow SK Hynix’s example to list in the US via ADRs.
Jeff Kim, Head of Research at Jefferies, said Samsung is likely to follow SK Hynix in listing on the U.S. market via American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which will boost the share price of the South Korean chipmaker whose valuation lags behind Micron. "Chip stocks are at a turning point. ADRs will serve as an important catalyst to drive their valuations," he added.
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Arm’s stock price pulled back this week alongside the high-valuation AI sector, though some Wall Street analysts say the correction does not alter the company’s long-term standing in AI data centers. UBS sharply raised Arm’s price target from $260 to $470, retaining its Buy rating; TD Cowen lifted its target from $265 to $475, also keeping a Buy recommendation. Both firms share the view that as agentic AI evolves, CPUs could gain greater importance in data center architectures, rather than GPUs continuing to monopolize the investment narrative. TD Cowen believes that over the long term, CPUs could hold a more strategic position in certain AI workloads. UBS, meanwhile, emphasizes that the real debate in the market centers on the revenue potential of Arm’s self-developed or independent CPU business. The bank projects Arm’s CPU-related revenue could reach around $14 billion by 2030, though the company itself has stated this business will not have a material impact on its finances until fiscal 2028. Arm’s strengths lie in low latency and energy efficiency—metrics that major cloud providers are increasingly prioritizing as they expand AI infrastructure. Even with its stock pulling back from recent highs in the short term, analysts still view Arm as one of the key beneficiaries of the server CPU upgrade cycle.
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Crypto whale who profited over $23.77 million from BAT ICO liquidates 27,586 ETH
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Quick Answer: SafeMoon V2 (SFM) is currently trading around $0.0000027–$0.0000031, with a market cap of approximately $1.6–$1.9M and virtually zero daily trading volume. The original SafeMoon company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in December 2023; CEO John Karony was convicted on all fraud charges in May 2025. The token’s assets were acquired by the VGX Foundation, which continues operating the wallet and technology under new management. SFM remains an extreme high-risk, speculative asset trading over 99.9% below its all-time high. Third-party forecasts for 2026 range from $0.0000139 to $0.001, reflecting the wide uncertainty around the project’s survival.
Key Takeaways SFM is trading ~99.9%+ below its ATH of $0.0034 and has a market cap of just ~$1.6–$1.9M in June 2026 Former CEO John Karony was convicted on securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering charges on May 21, 2025; CTO Thomas Smith pleaded guilty in February 2025; founder Kyle Nagy remains at large In December 2023, SafeMoon LLC filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy after SEC charges; VGX Foundation acquired the assets through a public auction CoinCodex projects SFM reaching ~$0.0000244 by end of 2026 (+76%); BitScreener targets ~$0.000111 for 2026 Daily trading volume is minimal (~$1,600–$3,700), making SFM highly illiquid and vulnerable to extreme volatility The VGX Foundation has committed to token deflation and rebuilding community trust, but execution risk remains very high SFM Price & Market Overview MetricValuePrice (June 2026)~$0.0000027–$0.0000031Market Cap~$1.6–$1.9M24h Volume~$1,600–$3,700All-Time High$0.0034 (January 5, 2022)All-Time Low$0.00000188ATH Drop~99.9%+Circulating Supply~610–614B SFMMax Supply1 Trillion SFMCMC Ranking~#2,600–#6,000 Sources: CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap
What Is SafeMoon (SFM)? SafeMoon launched on March 8, 2021 on the Binance Smart Chain (BNB Chain) as a “fair launch” token — developers burned all their allocated tokens and participated in the public sale alongside regular buyers. The project marketed itself as a DeFi protocol that incentivizes long-term holding through a 10% transaction tax: 5% redistributed to existing holders (reflection mechanism) and 5% directed to a liquidity pool in BNB tokens.
At its peak in April 2021, SafeMoon’s market capitalization exceeded $5.7 billion, driven almost entirely by influencer promotion and viral social media momentum. The token surged over 55,000% between March 12 and April 20, 2021, before plunging ~50% in a single day when the public learned that SafeMoon’s liquidity pool was not locked as claimed.
SafeMoon V2 launched in December 2021 as a token migration at a 1:1000 consolidation ratio, with a maximum supply of 1 trillion SFM. The network subsequently migrated from BNB Chain to the Solana blockchain.
Key products included:
SafeMoon Wallet — a multi-currency crypto wallet SafeMoon Swap — a decentralized exchange SafeMoon Connect — a browser extension and Web3 connection tool SafeMoon’s Legal History: The Fraud Case SafeMoon’s trajectory from 2023 onward was dominated by its fraud case — facts that any investor must understand before considering exposure to SFM:
March 2023: A network upgrade introduced a bug in SafeMoon’s smart contract, compromising the liquidity pool and resulting in the loss of approximately $8.9 million in SFM tokens.
November 2023: The SEC and DOJ simultaneously charged SafeMoon LLC, creator Kyle Nagy, CEO John Karony, and CTO Thomas Smith with conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. The SEC alleged misappropriation of over $200 million from the project’s liquidity pool, which executives used for luxury cars, homes, and personal expenses — despite publicly claiming the funds were locked and inaccessible.
December 2023: SafeMoon US LLC filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation). The VGX Foundation subsequently acquired the SafeMoon Wallet, technology, and brand assets through a public bankruptcy auction.
February 2025: CTO Thomas Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud, cooperating as a witness against Karony.
May 21, 2025: CEO John Karony was convicted on all three counts — conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering — by a federal jury in Brooklyn. Kyle Nagy remains at large.
The FBI continues to seek victims for restitution proceedings.
SafeMoon Under VGX Foundation (2024–2026) Following the bankruptcy, the VGX Foundation acquired SafeMoon’s assets and has been working to rebuild under new management. Key developments:
Commitment to a token deflation program — reducing circulating SFM supply through burns to increase scarcity Continued operation of the SafeMoon Wallet platform Migration to Solana blockchain for faster, cheaper transactions Plans for a decentralized exchange and DeFi products, targeting 2027 Whether VGX Foundation can restore meaningful utility and trust to the SFM token remains deeply uncertain. Trading volumes in 2026 remain near zero on most days, suggesting minimal community engagement.
How Does SFM Compare to Similar High-Risk Tokens? TokenMarket Cap (June 2026)ATH DropKey RiskSafeMoon V2 (SFM)~$1.9M~99.9%Fraud history, near-zero liquidityKishu Inu (KISHU)~$18M~99%+No utility, high supplyShiba Inu (SHIB)Multi-billion~85–90%Meme coin dependencyPEPE~$1–2B~80%+Meme coin, high volatility SFM’s market cap of ~$1.9M places it in the extreme micro-cap tier — smaller than most meaningful DeFi projects by several orders of magnitude. Unlike Kishu Inu (KISHU) or Shiba Inu, SFM carries the additional burden of a completed criminal fraud prosecution and bankruptcy. See our price prediction category for analysis of other high-risk tokens.
SafeMoon Price Prediction 2026 Near-term forecasts for SFM in 2026 must be interpreted in the context of near-zero liquidity — small buy orders can move the price dramatically, making technical models unreliable.
CoinCodex projects SFM reaching approximately $0.0000244 by end of 2026, representing a +76% gain from current levels. Monthly projections show a potential peak near $0.000038 in mid-2026 before consolidation.
BitScreener is more optimistic, projecting SFM trading in a range of $0.000026–$0.000111 for 2026, closing the year near $0.000096–$0.000111.
DigitalCoinPrice projects SFM in a range of $0.0000133–$0.0000155 by end of 2026 — more conservative and closer to current trading levels.
Margex cites Software Testing Help forecasts placing SFM at $0.0082–$0.0093 for 2026 — significantly higher than other platforms and dependent on a major community revival.
WalletInvestor has historically rated SFM as a poor investment with downside risk.
Source2026 Low2026 Average2026 HighCoinCodex~$0.000014~$0.0000244~$0.000038BitScreener$0.000026~$0.000096$0.000111DigitalCoinPrice$0.0000133~$0.0000147$0.0000155Margex/STH$0.0082~$0.0089$0.0093 All figures are third-party estimates. Not investment advice.
SafeMoon Price Prediction 2027 For 2027, forecasts remain highly speculative. Any upside would depend on VGX Foundation executing on its DeFi roadmap and Solana ecosystem momentum.
CoinCodex projects SFM peaking near $0.0000242 in early 2027 before declining to around $0.0000167 by year-end, as post-speculation correction sets in.
DigitalCoinPrice projects SFM in a range of $0.0000182–$0.0000222 for 2027.
BitScreener forecasts $0.00076–$0.00098 for 2027, reflecting a bull case that requires significant exchange relisting and community growth.
Margex projects a maximum of $0.015 and minimum of $0.009 for 2027.
2027 Range (consensus): $0.0000167 – $0.0000242 (base case); higher if VGX roadmap delivers
CoinCodex models SFM in the $0.0000139–$0.0000158 range through most of 2028, with gradual appreciation toward $0.0000157 by year-end.
BitScreener projects a trading range of $0.000026–$0.00075 for 2028.
CoinMarketCap Academy (older model) forecasts SFM reaching $0.002 by 2028 and $0.003 by 2029 — extremely bullish and contingent on full project recovery.
SafeMoon Price Prediction 2030 By 2030, the majority of forecasts assume either gradual appreciation under VGX management or continued irrelevance — with the bear case being near-zero.
CoinCodex projects SFM at approximately $0.0000340 by 2030 (+145% from current levels), reflecting a slow compounding scenario.
BitScreener forecasts a 2030 target of $0.000143–$0.000261, representing a 50–100x from current prices — requiring dramatic improvement in token utility and community.
CoinMarketCap Academy projects a maximum of $0.005 by 2030 under their most optimistic model.
Margex projects SFM trading between $0.002143 and $0.002613 by 2030.
YearLowAverageHighSource2026$0.0000133$0.0000147$0.0000155DigitalCoinPrice2026$0.000026~$0.000096$0.000111BitScreener2027$0.0000182~$0.0000222$0.0000242CoinCodex/DCP2028——$0.002CMC Academy2030$0.000143—$0.000261BitScreener2030$0.002143—$0.002613Margex All predictions are third-party estimates. Not investment advice.
SafeMoon Price Prediction 2040 Long-term forecasts for SFM by 2040 are entirely speculative.
CoinCodex projects SFM reaching approximately $0.000077 by 2040, implying continued slow appreciation but far below prior highs.
BitScreener forecasts $0.000318 by 2040 under a bull scenario.
CoinCodex (SAFEMOON on Solana variant) projects $0.000317 by 2040 and $0.001106 by 2050.
Any 2040 upside scenario requires SFM to survive as a going concern under VGX management, grow genuine utility, and benefit from multiple crypto bull cycles — a long list of conditions given the project’s current micro-cap status and legal baggage.
Where to Buy SafeMoon (SFM) SFM is available on a limited number of platforms due to its micro-cap status and legal history:
Gate.io — Listed with SFM/USDT pair; currently one of the more active markets BitMart — Has listed SFM following VGX Foundation’s acquisition milestones LBank — Listed SFM with small trading volumes Bybit — SFM is tracked on Bybit; verify current trading availability Uniswap / Solana DEXs (Jupiter, Raydium) — SFM is tradeable on Solana DEXs using its contract address; check official SafeMoon/VGX channels for the current verified contract Important: Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, KuCoin, and OKX do not currently list SFM for trading. Always verify the contract address through official channels — fake SFM tokens are common. The FBI is actively seeking SafeMoon fraud victims; if you purchased SFM before 2023 and suffered losses, you may be eligible to participate in restitution proceedings.
Frequently Asked Questions What is SafeMoon (SFM)? SafeMoon V2 (SFM) is a deflationary token originally launched in March 2021 on BNB Chain, featuring a 10% transaction tax for holder redistribution and liquidity generation. The original company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in December 2023 following SEC and DOJ fraud charges. Its assets were acquired by the VGX Foundation, which continues operating the SafeMoon Wallet and token on the Solana blockchain. CEO John Karony was convicted on all fraud charges in May 2025.
What is the SafeMoon price prediction for 2026? Third-party forecasts for SFM in 2026 range widely due to near-zero liquidity. CoinCodex projects ~$0.0000244, DigitalCoinPrice models $0.0000133–$0.0000155, and BitScreener targets up to $0.000111. Margex cites Software Testing Help estimates of up to $0.0093. All models carry extreme uncertainty given SFM's micro-cap status (~$1.9M market cap) and minimal daily volume.
What happened to SafeMoon? SafeMoon's original company (SafeMoon LLC) was charged by the SEC and DOJ in November 2023 with securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Executives misappropriated over $200 million from the liquidity pool. The company filed for bankruptcy in December 2023. CTO Thomas Smith pleaded guilty in February 2025. CEO John Karony was convicted on all charges in May 2025. The VGX Foundation acquired SafeMoon's assets through a bankruptcy auction and continues operating under new management.
Is SafeMoon a good investment? SafeMoon carries some of the highest risks in the crypto market: a completed criminal fraud prosecution, Chapter 7 bankruptcy, near-zero trading volume (~$1,600/day), a market cap of ~$1.9M, and a price 99.9% below its ATH. While the VGX Foundation represents a new chapter, execution risk is extreme and liquidity is too thin for meaningful position sizing. Investors should treat SFM as a high-risk speculative position and only allocate capital they can afford to lose entirely.
Where can I buy SafeMoon in 2026? SFM is available on Gate.io, BitMart, LBank, and Solana DEXs (Jupiter, Raydium). It is not listed on major exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, or Kraken. Always verify the contract address via official VGX Foundation or SafeMoon channels before purchasing, as copycat tokens are common.
Shiba Inu (SHIB), which at one point even surpassed Dogecoin during the peak of the memecoin craze, is being sold by early whales.
One of Shiba Inu’s early investors has made significant SHIB sales in the past month.
The giant investor, who in 2020 purchased 103 trillion SHIB for only 37.8 ETH, or approximately $13,700 at the time, and held 17.4% of the total supply, has gradually sold 3.8 trillion SHIB over the past month.
The current value of these sales is estimated at approximately $20.73 million. The price of Shiba Inu dogs, however, has decreased by 14.5% during the same period.
The 103 trillion Shiba Inu purchased by the whale in 2020 reached a value of approximately $9.1 billion in 2021 when its price peaked. However, it appears that the investor has only sold a small portion of its assets despite the years that have passed.
According to the data, the wallet in question still holds approximately 96.27 trillion SHIB. This amount represents about 16.3% of the total SHIB supply and is worth approximately $457 million at current market prices.
Shiba Inu (SHIB), once one of the most talked-about memecoins, is currently trading 94.72% lower than its all-time high at the time of writing.
*This is not investment advice.
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Following a wave of heavy selling in the cryptocurrency market, XRP is attempting to stabilize near the $1.10 mark, aiming to form a short-term bottom after what is described as one of the major pullbacks of 2026. The asset, having dipped below major support lines and exited a multi-month trading range, continues to face downward pressure despite some signs of recovery.
Key levels to watch in XRPXRP recently lost its $1.28 support level, which had served as a key floor for most of March, April, and May. This breakdown accelerated selling, dragging the price down to recent lows around $1.05. Despite a brief rebound, the recovery was limited, indicating that market participants remain cautious even as the price attempts to rally.
Technical indicators reveal that significant resistance areas remain above the current price. The 50-day moving average stands at $1.20, while the 100- and 200-day averages are positioned at $1.28 and $1.35 respectively, reflecting an ongoing advantage for sellers in the broader trend. For a more meaningful turnaround, analysts note that XRP would need to reclaim these levels as new support zones.
Trading volume has shown a more balanced signal. There was a notable spike in volume during the initial breakdown, suggesting that much of the selling may have played out during that phase. As panicked selling has eased, volumes have gradually returned to normal, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is now attempting an upward move after exiting oversold territory.
While the downward momentum in XRP has waned compared to the first wave of selling, this alone does not confirm a lasting trend reversal.
In the near term, investors are closely watching the $1.20 level. A sustained move above this threshold could open the door to a broader rebound toward $1.28, while failure to break higher keeps the risk of revisiting recent lows on the table.
Dogecoin nears $0.10 thresholdDogecoin, despite a persistent bearish outlook, is at a price point that has drawn renewed attention from long-term investors. The so-called “zero deletion rally” in market jargon refers to the psychologically important $0.10 level, but current data suggest that such a move is not imminent.
DOGE is trading near $0.084, having recently fallen below a rising support trend that had held since February. This prompted another wave of selling, but sellers did not push the price significantly below $0.08, indicating that some buying interest remains at lower levels.
Technically, the outlook remains weak. DOGE continues to trade under its 50-, 100-, and 200-day moving averages, with the 50-day average at approximately $0.089 serving as nearby resistance. Higher up, the $0.098 and $0.114 levels are key to monitor. Following a near-oversold reading, the RSI has steadied, while previously elevated selling volumes suggest that weaker hands may have already exited.
Mini glossary: A “zero deletion rally” refers to a price move where a digit shifts upward in the decimal structure, crossing a psychological milestone. In Dogecoin’s case, this term is used for a return above $0.10.
Shiba Inu faces ongoing downward riskThe technical backdrop for Shiba Inu continues to look fragile. Although overall crypto markets have found some footing after recent volatility, SHIB remains one of the weaker major meme coins, with several indicators signaling that downside risk is still elevated.
A multi-month ascending channel that had formed since March has now been decisively broken to the downside, erasing prior recovery attempts and sparking a new round of selling. Since then, SHIB has struggled to generate enough buying interest for a significant rebound.
Trading around $0.0000047, SHIB is positioned under all key moving averages, with the 50-day at $0.0000050 and the 100- and 200-day averages at $0.0000055 and $0.0000057 respectively. The emerging minor rising wedge formation following the recent drop is under scrutiny, as such patterns often resolve lower in broader downtrends.
Despite recent attempts at a rally, modest buying volume in SHIB suggests the uptick may be driven more by short-covering than sustained accumulation.
While the Relative Strength Index has recovered from early-month oversold levels, it remains below the neutral 50-point mark. In the short run, holding above $0.0000050 and reclaiming the 50-day moving average are considered pivotal for SHIB. Otherwise, there is risk of a fresh move toward recent lows.
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.
Cover image via depositphotos.com Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
Chinese on-chain sources have reminded the market of one unpleasant but now more important than ever factor for the Shiba Inu (SHIB) token and its price: the whale known as "$13,752 purchased 103 trillion SHIB" on Arkham, also referred to as the "top SHIB donor". The trigger was a transfer of nearly 600 billion tokens, equivalent to $2.83 million, to the ForwarderV4 address.
This transaction launched a continuous chain of profit-taking, which has already cost investors a 14.5% decline in the SHIB price over the past month. Observers from EmberCN are sounding the alarm: the anonymous wallet has started systematically unloading assets accumulated at the very beginning of the project, when in August 2020 it bought 17.4% of the entire market supply, or 103 trillion SHIB, for a symbolic 37.8 ETH, worth about $13,752.
"Top SHIB donor" whale latest transfers with Shiba Inu (SHIB), Source: ArkhamAt the peak of the 2021 bull run, this position was valued at an astronomical $9.1 billion, but for all these years the whale had been 'sitting on the bags' without moving them.
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Is the SHIB accumulation era over? The situation changed after 3.8 trillion SHIB flowed into the market through the ForwarderV4 gateway over the past 30 days. In one month, the large seller withdrew and converted into cash more than $20.73 million, simply overwhelming exchange order books and leaving retail investors wondering if it is time to sell.
The overhanging supply is still pressuring the market, as the wallet still holds 96.27 trillion SHIB, worth around $457 million, as dead weight.
Weekly chart of the SHIB/USDT pair, Source: TradingViewThe market's reaction to this hidden dump is clearly visible on the fresh weekly chart of the SHIB/USDT pair. The current weekly candle has literally broken through the floor, falling below the prolonged consolidation range and refreshing multi-year lows.
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The technical picture confirms the concerns of on-chain analysts: the price has dropped below the main liquidity node, leaving all trading volume above. This indicates that major buyers have removed their limit orders and are not ready to defend the asset at current levels.
The situation is worsened by the relative strength index (RSI), which remains stuck deep in bearish territory below the 50 level and continues to fall, signaling a complete lack of buying momentum. Any new transfers to the ForwarderV4 address risk finally crushing SHIB's chances of a price recovery.
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Shiba Inu is getting close to a crucial on-chain milestone that might have a big impact on the token's future price movement.
Recent blockchain data indicates that SHIB exchange reserves are returning to the 80 trillion token threshold, which traders have historically kept a close eye on because of its connection to market liquidity and possible selling pressure.
Shiba Inu inflows flipAccording to the most recent data, exchange reserves have reached one of the highest levels in recent months, at about 80.5 trillion SHIB. In the most recent reporting period, more than 959 billion SHIB entered trading platforms, indicating a sharp increase in exchange inflows. Because tokens moved to exchanges are typically thought to be more likely to be sold than assets kept in private wallets, such movements frequently draw attention.
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SHIB/USDT Chart by TradingViewGiven SHIB's current technical state, the timing is especially crucial. The token is still stuck below all significant moving averages after recently breaking below a rising wedge formation. The price is currently trading close to $0.0000045, and the 50-, 100-, and 200-day moving averages are still much higher, supporting the overall downward trend.
Rising exchange reserves have historically had conflicting effects on SHIB. Large reserve increases have occasionally preceded waves of selling pressure, as investors transferred tokens to exchanges in an effort to increase profits or reduce exposure. In other cases, increased reserves did not cause significant drops; rather, they simply represented increased market participation and better liquidity conditions.
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The larger market environment is what distinguishes the current situation. After months of weakness, SHIB is already trading close to local lows, indicating that many speculative holders have already sold their positions. Therefore, another significant selloff is not necessarily ensured by the return of the 80 trillion reserve threshold.
Exchange activity mattersIt does, however, heighten the significance of closely monitoring exchange activity. If reserves keep increasing in tandem with faster inflows, traders might see this as a sign that more supply is getting ready to hit the market. On the other hand, the market may absorb the available liquidity without suffering major negative effects if reserves stabilize while prices start to rise.
Technically and fundamentally, SHIB is still under pressure as of right now. Although the return of the 80 trillion reserve level is a significant change in on-chain dynamics, it is not necessarily a bearish event on its own. SHIB's next big move will probably depend on whether it becomes a source of selling pressure or merely a sign of increased market activity.
On-chain analytics sources report that a well-known large Shiba Inu wallet has re-emerged as a major player in the market. The wallet, dubbed the “biggest SHIB distributor,” recently transferred nearly 600 billion SHIB to the ForwarderV4 address, fueling increased selling pressure. The value of this latest transaction was calculated at $2.83 million.
Large wallet’s renewed selling activity draws attentionAccording to an analysis shared by EmberCN, the anonymous wallet has begun systematically reducing its holdings acquired during Shiba Inu’s early days. Data shows that this wallet purchased 103 trillion SHIB in August 2020 for 37.8 ETH, worth about $13,752 at the time, representing 17.4% of the total supply.
Shiba Inu, created on the Ethereum blockchain, gained traction as a meme coin particularly popular among retail investors. The wallet in question has long been watched by the market due to its sizeable SHIB balance.
EmberCN notes that in the past 30 days, this wallet has transferred 3.8 trillion SHIB to the market via ForwarderV4, resulting in more than $20.73 million in total outflows in just one month.
During the bull run of 2021, the holdings in this wallet peaked at $9.1 billion. Despite remaining inactive for years, the wallet has recently resumed regular transfers and is now once again active in the market.
Market analysts suggest that the selling pressure is not yet over, as the same wallet still holds 96.27 trillion SHIB. At current prices, this stash is valued at approximately $457 million.
IndicatorDataInitial purchase amount103 trillion SHIBInitial purchase cost37.8 ETH, about $13,752Latest transferApproximately 600 billion SHIB30-day total outflow3.8 trillion SHIBRemaining wallet balance96.27 trillion SHIBSelling pressure deepens on the chartPrice action has closely mirrored on-chain data. On the SHIB/USDT weekly chart, the token dropped below a long-standing horizontal support range, reaching new multi-year lows. Over the past month, SHIB has fallen 14.5%, further confirming its bearish trend.
The technical outlook shows that SHIB’s price has broken below its main liquidity zone. Despite heavy trading at higher levels, buyers have not shown strong support at current prices.
Analysts highlight that the relative strength index has remained below 50 and continues its downward trajectory. This pattern signals subdued buying appetite, and additional SHIB transfers to the ForwarderV4 address could make any recovery even more challenging.
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.
Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
Major Japanese crypto exchange Rakuten Wallet continues to demonstrate support for the dog-themed cryptocurrency Shiba Inu. Rakuten Wallet announced the addition of Shiba Inu to its lineup in April, attracting attention in the crypto community.
In a recent show of support with the Shiba Inu community, Rakuten Wallet announced it was launching dedicated content for SHIB.
— 楽天ウォレット (@Rakuten_Wallet) June 23, 2026 In a tweet, it said that to celebrate the start of SHIB coin handling, Rakuten Wallet was preparing a special video, "Understanding SHIB." This will be undertaken by Rakuten Wallet Senior Analyst Matsuda.
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In preparation for filming, Rakuten Wallet stated that its analyst Matsuda is "currently working hard to get friendly with Shiba-san first." Matsuda shows love to a Shiba Inu dog, which was captured in an image attached to the tweet.
SHIB support continuesAs reported, Rakuten Wallet called for photos of dogs on its official X account, with selected entrants set to receive SHIB or DOGE as gifts.
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The "Photo Contest 2026" campaign will distribute Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) tokens among 44 million users for posting dog photos on X. Eleven winners will be selected, each of whom will receive 11,111,111 SHIB, worth about 10,000 yen.
Rakuten Wallet is currently hosting a SHIB campaign. Users who trade over 30,000 yen worth of spot crypto assets could receive 500,000 SHIB as a gift (about 500 yen equivalent) or trade over 100,000 yen worth of spot crypto assets to receive an additional 1,000,000 SHIB as a gift (about 1,000 yen equivalent).
Rakuten Wallet is part of Rakuten Group, one of Japan's best-known consumer internet and payments companies. That gives listed tokens including Shiba Inu access to a broader retail reach than many crypto-only platforms can offer.
The listing allows users to utilize Shiba Inu across more than 5 million merchant locations in Japan. Rakuten Pay also hosts 44 million active users.
The shiba inu price prediction caught a fresh signal on June 19 after BSCN data verified that 1.101 trillion SHIB tokens left Binance reserves between May 1 and June 1, the sharpest exchange drawdown the meme coin has logged this year, while Bitcoin and Ethereum balances climbed across the same window per CoinPedia. SHIB trades at $0.000004559 with the meme coin sector building a base after months of pressure.
Every supply squeeze rewards holders who lock positions in a real project before the market notices, and Pepeto is the sharpest early entry in the meme sector today. Here is exactly why.
Shiba Inu Price Prediction Lifts as 1.1 Trillion SHIB Exit Binance While Meme Sector Builds Floor Table of Contents
Shiba Inu Price Prediction Lifts as 1.1 Trillion SHIB Exit Binance While Meme Sector Builds FloorFresh Entries as SHIB Tightens and Meme Exchange Demand BuildsThe Presale That SHIB Holders See as Their Next ShotShiba Inu (SHIB) Price at $0.000004559 as 1.1 Trillion Tokens Exit Binance and BTC/ETH Reserves ClimbConclusionClick To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The PresaleFAQsWhat is the shiba inu price prediction after 1.1 trillion SHIB left Binance from May to June?Is Shiba Inu a strong buy at $0.000004559 with exchange reserves squeezing on Binance? SHIB reserves on Binance dropped by 1.101 trillion tokens from May 1 to June 1 per BSCN’s Proof of Reserves data, the heaviest outflow of the year, while Bitcoin and Ethereum balances climbed across the same stretch per CoinPedia.
Shiba Inu (SHIB) trades at $0.000004559 per CoinMarketCap, holding the $0.0000044 floor that has anchored the chart for weeks. Burn activity has slowed to about $5 of SHIB per day per Shibburn, but the exchange supply squeeze is doing the work burns no longer can. SHIB now lands inside a market where tightening supply is meeting fading sell pressure, and that gap is where audited early-stage tokens collect the fastest capital.
Fresh Entries as SHIB Tightens and Meme Exchange Demand Builds The Presale That SHIB Holders See as Their Next Shot The meme coin sector lost most of its peak because the typical meme token shipped nothing real. No trading platform, no cross-chain rails, no contract safety. Just hype and hope. That is exactly why the exchange built by the Pepe cofounder reads differently from every other launch live in the sector today.
Pepeto guards wallets against rug pulls, hidden code backdoors, and whale-heavy supply traps spreading through every new meme launch. PepetoSwap settles every order with zero fees touching your stack. The risk engine flags loaded wallets and dangerous contract logic before money lands. The cross-chain bridge moves positions between Ethereum, BNB, and Solana without a single fee.
Over $10.307 million stacked during Fear 14 at $0.0000001878 as the presale heads toward the Binance listing. SolidProof completed every contract check. A developer who came from Binance’s listing crew built the listing path. Staking at 170% APY grows holdings while the exchange scales.
Early SHIB buyers who landed before the 2021 run turned spare change into life-rewriting money, and not one of them admits they put enough in. That exact window is shaping up around Pepeto right now, and the wallets moving before the Binance listing are setting the example everyone else will spend the rest of 2026 wishing they had followed.
Shiba Inu (SHIB) Price at $0.000004559 as 1.1 Trillion Tokens Exit Binance and BTC/ETH Reserves Climb Shiba Inu (SHIB) sits at $0.000004559 after dropping 3.51% in 24 hours per CoinMarketCap, and holding the $0.0000044 support that has anchored the chart for weeks, while SHIB trades 94.6% below its $0.00008616 all-time high per CoinMarketCap.
The T. Rowe Price crypto ETF eligible-asset list now includes SHIB after an amended SEC filing per CoinDesk, and the US Marshals Service holds 54 billion SHIB on the books. Analysts project a 2026 shiba inu price prediction range of $0.0000040 to $0.0000098, with $0.0000060 as the first resistance wall.
From $0.000004559 to the bull case of $0.0000098 gives roughly 2x over months, while the presale 100x depends on an approaching listing already in sight.
Conclusion The SHIB outlook shows the supply squeeze is doing exactly what slowing burns no longer can, with SHIB holding the $0.0000044 floor at $0.000004559 while the path to $0.0000098 stretches across many months.
Early SHIB holders who bought before anyone knew the name became the success stories that changed how the market thinks about meme coins forever, and Pepeto is building again in that exact same moment, with a working exchange, a Pepe cofounder behind it, and a Binance listing closing in fast.
What’s left of the presale shrinks with every hour as each round closes faster than the one before, and the time to act is right now because the Binance debut waits for no wallet. The buyers securing their entry before the final tranche fills are the names this cycle will headline, while every wallet that hesitated watches the chance to enter get smaller every day until it turns into the most expensive miss of the year. Once Binance opens trading, the door to this entry shuts and never opens again.
Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale
FAQs What is the shiba inu price prediction after 1.1 trillion SHIB left Binance from May to June? Analysts project $0.0000040 to $0.0000098 for Shiba Inu in 2026, with $0.0000060 as the first resistance wall. The supply squeeze on Binance is the freshest bullish signal in months.
Is Shiba Inu a strong buy at $0.000004559 with exchange reserves squeezing on Binance? Shiba Inu (SHIB) trades at $0.000004559 with tightening supply on Binance and rising T. Rowe Price ETF eligibility. Pepeto at presale pricing targets 100x returns SHIB at $2.6 billion cannot match.
Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.
Michelle DG
Michelle is an editor at CoinCentral & Blockonomi, covering the latest trends in crypto, blockchain, and digital finance. With a sharp eye for detail and a passion for emerging technologies. [email protected]
One of $SHIB's earliest and largest holders has resumed selling, raising fresh questions about supply pressure on the meme coin at an already difficult moment for its price.
The anonymous wallet originally bought 17.4% of the entire Shiba Inu supply, or 103 trillion tokens, in August 2020 for just 37.8 ETH, worth approximately $13,752 at the time. At the peak of the 2021 market rally, when SHIB hit $0.0000885, the stash was valued at more than $9.1 billion. Despite those outsized gains, the holder remained largely inactive for years, leaving the tokens untouched while the broader market cycled through multiple expansions and contractions.
A Billion-Dollar Position Begins to MoveArkham Intelligence has indexed a series of large transfers linked to the wallet, which carries the tag "$13,752 bought 103 trillion SHIB" on the platform. The whale moved approximately 600 billion tokens, worth roughly $2.83 million at the time, to a ForwarderV4 address associated with distribution activity. ForwarderV4 appears to function as a routing address that can distribute assets to exchanges, custodians, or over-the-counter desks. When whales move tokens this way, traders typically read it as a sign of preparation to sell.
This latest transfer is not an isolated event. Over the past month, the wallet has sent roughly 3.8 trillion tokens to addresses linked to distribution activity, bringing estimated liquidations to over $20 million for the period. Before this wave, the last time the wallet sold was six months ago.
Significant Overhang RemainsDespite the recent activity, the scale of what remains in the wallet is considerable. Arkham data shows the address still controls 96.2 trillion SHIB, valued at approximately $433 million at current prices. That remaining balance represents a significant source of potential supply, and if the whale continues at the current pace, it could add further downward pressure on the token's price.
The timing adds to the difficulty. The transactions are occurring while SHIB is already struggling to regain momentum, with the token down over 18% this month and trading near multi-year lows around $0.00000453. According to CryptoQuant, total exchange netflow for SHIB remains positive, meaning more tokens are being deposited to trading platforms than withdrawn, with a net 695.4 billion tokens entering exchanges over a recent 24-hour period.
The whale's continued distribution, combined with broader selling pressure across SHIB holders, leaves the token facing a challenging near-term outlook.
Sources:
The Crypto Basic: Early Shiba Inu Whale Dumps Fresh 600 Billion SHIB
Coin Edition: Massive 600B SHIB Whale Transfer Sparks Fears of Price Correction
U.Today: SHIB Top Donor Trillionaire Whale Moves 600 Billion Shiba Inu Coins
Market commentator Ryker has reflected on Shiba Inu’s early success story and how he generated millions of dollars during SHIB’s explosive 2021 rally.
Notably, Ryker revealed that he made $2 million in profit from SHIB during its historic rally. According to him, he entered the market early and eventually exited his position after the token surged above $0.00008.
However, Ryker did not disclose the size of his initial investment or the entry price that enabled him to secure the multi-million-dollar gain. Nonetheless, his experience mirrors the stories of several early SHIB investors who recorded extraordinary returns during the token’s formative years.
Shiba Inu Overcame Early Skepticism Shiba Inu launched in August 2020 but quickly fell to around $0.000000000056, with many critics initially dismissing it as another failed meme coin. However, sentiment began to shift in early 2021 as community activity intensified and major exchanges, including Binance, listed the token for trading.
Meanwhile, a major turning point came when pseudonymous founder Ryoshi sent 500 trillion SHIB, or half of the total supply, to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. Subsequently, Buterin burned 410 trillion tokens and donated the remainder to charity, an action that significantly boosted attention and demand for the project.
As retail inflows accelerated, SHIB surged to an all-time high of $0.00008845, transforming small early positions into life-changing profits for some holders. Reports from that period include investors turning a few hundred dollars into millions, underscoring the scale of the 2021 speculative rally.
Ryker Says Market Cap Does Not Limit Growth Potential Meanwhile, Ryker shared his experience while discussing lessons he learned from the rise of meme coins such as Shiba Inu and Dogecoin. According to him, market cap alone does not determine a cryptocurrency’s upside potential. He argued that investors should evaluate factors such as token distribution, market narrative, liquidity, and community engagement.
Applying that strategy, Ryker said he identified SHIB’s potential early and captured $2 million in profits during the token’s meteoric rise.
SHIB Remains Far Below Its Record High Despite its remarkable 2021 performance, Shiba Inu remains a shadow of its former peak. The token currently trades around $0.000004560, representing a decline of 94.85% from its all-time high of $0.00008845.
Shiba Inu has fallen 19% over the past month, declined 7.74% in the past seven days, and dropped 34% year-to-date. At its current market valuation of roughly $2.68 billion, SHIB ranks as the 30th-largest cryptocurrency globally by market capitalization.
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.
Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
A meagre $11 worth of Shiba Inu (SHIB) tokens was burned in the last 24 hours, according to the Shibburn website. This amount, though small in monetary worth, represents millions of SHIB; this totals 2.34 million SHIB in cryptocurrency terms.
The Shibburn website indicates 2.34 million SHIB burned in the last 24 hours, with the daily burn rate remaining in the red, down 5.98%. The burn rate was down across nearly all timeframes.
The weekly burn rate is down 21.77% in the last seven days despite 35.30 million being burned in this timeframe.
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In the last 30 days, the burn rate fell 12.58%, despite 110.45 million SHIB burned in the past month.
The drop follows weak sentiment across the board in the market, with Shiba Inu trading near recently formed lows above $0.000004. Similar drops have been seen across major tokens, which failed to reach their respective 2021 peaks in the last bull cycle and have traded down since then.
Sentiment stays weakThe crypto market remained sluggish and weak on Wednesday, with a handful of cryptocurrencies trading in the red. The lack of a meaningful bounce remains a major concern, even as the equity futures market starts to rebound from Tuesday's tech selloff.
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Trading has slowed in the derivatives market, with volumes down 24% to $144.93 billion in the past 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data. Meanwhile, open interest has increased by 1.95% to $106 billion. Crypto liquidations amounted to $191 million, the lowest in two weeks.
Generally speaking, bears appear to be leading price action in the majority of top tokens, including Shiba Inu, which has marked seven out of eight days in the red since June 15.
At the time of writing, SHIB was down 0.37% in the last 24 hours to $0.00000454 and down 8.39% weekly.
A key test for the markets comes later this week, when May's reading on the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, is released on Thursday.
Kalshi prediction market has expanded its perpetual futures trading offering to include Zcash (ZEC) and Near Protocol (NEAR). The platform shows perpetual contracts for altcoins such as Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) are also live for trading after approval from US CFTC.
Kalshi Launches Zcash (ZEC), NEAR, SHIB and DOGE Perps Trading Kalshi has added Zcash (ZEC) and NEAR to its line of US CFTC-regulated perpetual contracts. The products debuted under the trademark “American Perpetuals,” which aims to offer CFTC-regulated perpetual futures contracts trading to users in the United States.
Notably, the prediction market platform filed for ZEC and NEAR perpetual futures with the CFTC on Tuesday. The platform is offering 2x leverage on ZEC and 2.6x on NEAR.
As CoinGape reported earlier, Kalshi filed for ETH, XRP, SOL, DOGE, XLM, LINK, BCH, LTC, SUI, SHIB, DOT, HBAR, and HYPE earlier this month. Among these altcoins, approvals for XLM, DOT, and HBAR are still pending with the US CFTC.
Kalshi now offers perpetuals trading for Bitcoin and 12 altcoins. Notably, Shiba Inu perpetual contact is listed as KSHIB, with a max leverage of 2x. The perpetuals are CFTC-regulated and don’t have an expiration date.
The approvals came despite CME Group’s lawsuit against the US CFTC and Chairman Mike Selig, alleging these contracts are swaps. The SEC and CFTC are requesting public comments to clarify and harmonize definitions of derivatives products, especially swaps.
Kalshi Launches ZEC, NEAR, SHIB, DOGE Perps Will Prices Rebound amid CFTC Approvals? ZEC price jumped more than 2% to $421, but pared gains amid latest crypto liquidations. The price is currently trading at $410.66, with a 24-hour low and high of $409.29 and $425, respectively.
NEAR price has also dropped by almost 3% to $1.93 amid ongoing crypto market crash ahead of the US PCE inflation data and monthly crypto options expiry this week.
Meanwhile, meme coins DOGE and SHIB are falling deeper amid the latest selloff in the global markets amid the tech rout and strengthening US dollar.
If you’re looking to buy the dip in the crypto market across both centralized and decentralized lending models, check out our Best Crypto Loan Platforms of 2026 recommendations list.
Cover image via depositphotos.com Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
A sharp shift in sentiment is unfolding right now on the Shiba Inu (SHIB) market, as large holders interrupt a months-long trend of asset accumulation and urgently return tokens to centralized exchanges.
While the crypto community continues to debate the timing of a full-scale altcoin season at the end of June 2026, on-chain platform CryptoQuant is recording that the Exchange Reserve indicator, which reflects the total volume of coins held in exchange wallets, has made a vertical jump in just a few days and recovered to 80.5 trillion SHIB.
The expansion of available supply found immediate reflection in the meme coin's value, as against the backdrop of continued liquidity inflows into exchange order books, SHIB's price fell toward the local level of $0.0000044, turning buyers' recent optimism into a tough battle to hold key price positions at the end of Q2 2026.
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Shiba Inu (SHIB) exchange reserves, Source: CryptoQuantThe dynamics of capital movement point to local panic among investors, forcing many to reconsider their long-term targets right now. For a long time, the market was dominated by a HODL strategy — coins were steadily withdrawn to non-custodial cold wallets, which gradually reduced selling pressure and created the illusion of a supply shortage.
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However, over the past 24 hours, the situation has changed 180 degrees, as the fear of missing out on profit has been replaced by the desire to preserve remaining capital. According to the latest Netflow charts, the daily net inflow of tokens to exchanges, calculated as Inflow minus Outflow, has moved into positive territory and stands at 749.8 billion SHIB.
The scale of the maneuver is also confirmed by the gross inflow metric, which reflects the real speed of holder capitulation during these hours. In just 24 hours, investors have transferred around 1.04 trillion SHIB to exchange addresses — almost 6.5 times higher than the previous day's deposit volume, indicating that the selling gates are opening almost simultaneously across all key platforms.
Why SHIB price could face more downward pressureA spike in exchange reserves alongside a price decline is a classic bearish signal for the spot market, confirming that distribution, or selling, is prevailing over accumulation at this moment.
Judging by the on-chain picture, large players prefer to temporarily abandon long-term holding of the Shiba Inu coin and are moving volumes to trading platforms in order to lock in profits or hedge against the risks of a further market decline.
This kind of prolonged supply overhang could freeze any attempts by bulls to recover their previous positions for weeks, turning the recent upward impulse of late June into a prolonged defensive phase.
Kalshi has expanded its CFTC-regulated crypto perpetuals lineup to 13 digital assets after launching new contracts tied to Zcash, Near Protocol, and Shiba Inu, while legal battles over the platform’s products continue to intensify.
Summary
Kalshi expanded its CFTC-regulated crypto perpetuals lineup with Zcash and Near contracts, while Dogecoin and Shiba Inu perpetuals are also live. The rollout comes as CME Group challenges the CFTC’s approval of similar products and the regulator fights Kentucky over market oversight. Traditional finance firms, including CBOE and Charles Schwab, are increasingly exploring perpetual and prediction-style trading products. According to Kalshi’s latest listings, the prediction market operator has expanded its “American Perpetuals” lineup with contracts tied to Zcash (ZEC) and Near Protocol (NEAR), while Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) perpetuals are also now available for trading. The additions bring the total number of supported crypto assets to 13, alongside Bitcoin and other altcoins.
🚨SCOOP: US CFTC approves Zcash (zcash:native), near:native ethereum:0x95ad61b0a150d79219dcf64e1e6cc01f0b64c4ce DOGE and other perpetual futures trading on Kalshi
🔸Kalshi filed for ZEC and NEAR perps on June 23.
🔸Prediction market now offers perps trading for Bitcoin and 12… pic.twitter.com/ik8jMNo81X
— Rednirav (@CryptoRednirav) June 24, 2026 The contracts are available through a structure approved by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and do not carry expiration dates.
Recent filings submitted by Kalshi show the platform sought regulatory clearance for the new products on Tuesday. Zcash perpetuals are being offered with up to 2x leverage, while Near contracts allow leverage of up to 2.6x. Shiba Inu’s perpetual contract, listed under the ticker KSHIB, also carries a maximum leverage ratio of 2x. Dogecoin perpetuals are also listed on the platform as part of the latest wave of CFTC-approved crypto contracts.
The additions follow an earlier wave of filings covering assets including XRP, Solana, Dogecoin, Chainlink, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Sui, Hyperliquid, Polkadot, Hedera, and Stellar. Kalshi has already secured approval for most of those products, though contracts linked to Stellar, Polkadot, and Hedera remain under review by the CFTC.
Legal scrutiny has grown around perpetual contracts While Kalshi continues adding crypto products, regulatory questions surrounding the structure of perpetual contracts have become more prominent. As previously reported by crypto.news, CME Group filed a lawsuit against the CFTC and Chairman Michael Selig, arguing that certain contracts approved by the agency should be classified as swaps rather than futures products.
The debate has expanded beyond crypto markets. Earlier today, the CFTC sued Kentucky in federal court after the state sought to enforce gaming laws against Kalshi, Polymarket, and brokerage partners connected to Coinbase, Robinhood, and Webull.
In its complaint, the regulator argued that designated contract markets operating under federal oversight fall under the Commodity Exchange Act rather than state gaming regulations. Kentucky, however, maintains that sports-linked event contracts meet the state’s definition of sports wagering and should remain subject to local licensing requirements.
At the same time, regulators are seeking public feedback on how derivatives products should be classified. The SEC and CFTC have jointly requested comments on definitions involving swaps and related instruments, an issue that has gained urgency as event-based trading products become more common.
Traditional exchanges are moving toward similar products Interest in perpetual-style contracts has also spread across traditional financial markets. As reported by crypto.news, CBOE Global Markets has begun evaluating whether its continuous Bitcoin and Ether futures could be converted into perpetual contracts after crypto perpetuals generated more than $8.5 billion in trading volume on Kalshi within weeks of launch.
Charles Schwab has likewise entered the prediction-markets segment through a partnership with CBOE, introducing all-or-nothing contracts tied to the performance of the S&P 500. The brokerage joins firms including CME Group and Interactive Brokers that have recently expanded into event-driven trading products.
Outside the United States, Kalshi is facing a different challenge. An updated members’ agreement published on Wednesday shows the company has added India to its list of restricted jurisdictions.
Indian authorities have classified prediction-market platforms under the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025, arguing that products involving real-money speculation on uncertain outcomes can fall within prohibited betting activity regardless of how operators describe them.
In 2020, Shiba Inu showed the world what a community-driven meme coin could do. Starting as a Dogecoin alternative, SHIB surged 48,000,000% from launch to its October 2021 all-time high. That rally changed how investors think about memecoins forever.
In 2026, a new shift is underway. Artificial intelligence is becoming the new engine for meme culture. Projects combining AI automation with meme infrastructure are attracting early capital. MemeToro ($MT) is one of the most discussed names inside that trend. It is building a full memecoin economy powered by an autonomous AI agent on BNB Chain.
How SHIB Changed the Memecoin Playbook Shiba Inu was launched anonymously in August 2020 as a community experiment. It had no venture capital backing and no formal roadmap. Its growth came from viral momentum and the passionate “SHIB Army.”
SHIB has evolved significantly since then. It sits roughly 94% below its all-time high of $0.000086 from 2021. The ecosystem has grown, but price recovery has remained elusive. That gap between ecosystem development and price performance is a familiar challenge in crypto.
What SHIB built with community momentum, a new wave of projects is building with AI. The logic is simple. Memecoin narratives move faster than any human team can track manually.
By the time most traders spot a trend, the early gains are already gone. AI agents can compress that reaction gap significantly. They scan social media, news, and on-chain activity in real time. They identify viral potential before it reaches the mainstream market.
This is exactly the problem MemeToro is engineered to solve. Its AI Agent monitors live cultural moments and converts them into tradeable, fair-launched tokens. Bonded memecoins auto-list on PancakeSwap, delivering instant liquidity at launch.
MemeToro: Building What Comes After SHIB MemeToro is not just another presale token. It is a structured memecoin ecosystem on BNB Chain. The platform combines four core products.
These include
An AI Agent for memecoin creation Prediction markets layer Staking Web3 news portal The $MT token powers all of them. Users can stake $MT and earn up to 35% APR. Prediction markets add an additional engagement layer for active traders. The news portal helps new users learn how to navigate Web3 safely. This combination of tools gives $MT utility across multiple user types. Speculators, stakers, creators, and learners all have a reason to participate.
Why BNB Chain Is the Right Ecosystem for This Moment BNB Chain is one of the most active environments for memecoin launches in 2026. Sub-cent transaction fees and fast confirmation speeds make it ideal for high-volume trading. Over 150,000 AI agents have deployed across BNB Chain this cycle. The network commanded over 45% of memecoin DEX volume at its 2025 peak. MemeToro benefits directly from this infrastructure.
Presale Structure and Tokenomics The $MT presale is currently open at $0.00139 per token. A total of 857 million tokens are allocated to the public sale. That represents 71% of total supply. Presale participants face no vesting period. Tokens are fully claimable at the official launch date.
Marketing and team allocations are subject to a 24-month vesting schedule. This protects early buyers from post-launch sell pressure. Smart contracts have been independently audited by approved third-party security firms. The open-source design of the AI Agent also allows the community to verify its logic directly.
Final Words SHIB proved that memecoins can build real ecosystems and loyal communities. MemeToro is applying that same principle to a new era. The tools have changed. AI replaces pure viral luck as the growth engine. The playbook is still community-first but now automation amplifies it.
Investors who missed early SHIB may find MemeToro’s AI-memecoin angle worth watching. It offers an early-stage entry point within a growing 2026 narrative. The presale is live. Ground-floor pricing is still available at $0.00138.
More Information on MemeToro ($MT) Presale Here:
Website: https://memetoro.com/
X: https://x.com/memetoro_mt
Telegram: https://t.me/memetoro_mt
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A sharp shift in sentiment has recently taken hold in the Shiba Inu market. Big investors who had been accumulating tokens for some time have now started moving significant amounts of SHIB back to major exchanges. This development has intensified debates over the market’s direction, as on-chain data reveals the change has quickly become apparent.
Exchange reserves climb sharplyAccording to data from CryptoQuant, the exchange reserve indicator—which tracks the total amount of SHIB held in exchange wallets—jumped sharply within just a few days to reach 80.5 trillion SHIB. CryptoQuant is a prominent analytics provider known for offering data on on-chain market metrics, including flows in and out of exchanges.
CryptoQuant data reveals that the SHIB reserve on exchanges soared to 80.5 trillion within days, signaling a return of supply to the sell side.
This expansion in exchange-available supply quickly made itself felt on SHIB’s price. The token pulled back towards its local level around $0.0000044, forcing buyers—who had lately been optimistic—to shift their focus toward defending key support points. As the end of June 2026 draws near, this scenario has also ramped up pressure surrounding the second-quarter close.
Positive net inflow points to mounting sell pressureRecent capital flows suggest that short-term caution is building among some investors. Up until now, the prevailing approach for SHIB had seen tokens withdrawn to cold wallets, a tactic that typically limits selling pressure. This dynamic had created a perception of tightening supply on the market.
But in the past 24 hours, that picture reversed. Current Netflow data shows net daily inflows to exchanges turned positive, amounting to 749.8 billion SHIB. This indicator is calculated by subtracting token withdrawals from deposits and is widely seen as a key measure of shifting sentiment.
Mini Glossary: Netflow measures the difference between the amount of an asset moved into and out of exchanges. A positive Netflow generally indicates more assets are being sent to exchanges, often preceding selling activity.
1.04 trillion SHIB sent to exchanges in a dayThe scale of the new selling trend becomes even clearer in gross inflow figures. Investors transferred about 1.04 trillion SHIB to exchange addresses in the past 24 hours alone. This amount is roughly 6.5 times the previous day’s transfer volume. Data suggests that many large wallets acted in the same direction within this short window.
The simultaneous increase in exchange reserves and the fall in price are generally seen as a negative sign in spot markets. This backdrop suggests not accumulation but distribution, meaning selling activities are taking precedence. On-chain analysis indicates that big players are moving their Shiba Inu holdings to exchanges, not for long-term storage, but for possible short-term trades or sales.
Short-term defense likely to dominateIf selling pressure persists, the upward momentum seen at the end of June may struggle to turn into a sustained recovery. Extra sell-side volume on the market may limit SHIB’s efforts to regain earlier price levels for several weeks. Current data shows that, in the short run, defensive actions are taking precedence over new buying initiatives for SHIB.
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.
This week, PrimeXBT shook up the cryptocurrency industry by announcing a partnership with Covesting, a trading platform for cryptocurrencies. The partnership sees Covesting licensing its unique, highly anticipated copy-trading module to PrimeXBT, who will integrate both copy-trading and the COV utility token into their native platform.
PrimeXBT’s trading platform has recently gained traction in the crypto industry due to its fast-growing trading volume and robust feature set. Combining the power of 100x leverage trading, multiple advanced order types, and a reliable platform with Covesting’s copy-trading experience, PrimeXBT can claim to be the most feature-packed in the market.
Copy Trading Offers Crypto Traders A Wealth of Advantages
PrimeXBT had been teasing a major announcement, but even the traders that have already become enamored with the platform were shocked to learn that copy-trading would soon be coming, due to the incredible potential it offers.
Copy-trading benefits both novice and professional traders alike, which has been among PrimeXBT’s key selling points as an exchange and platform.
For newbie traders seeking to turn their first profits, copy-trading takes the guesswork, research, and hard-learned lessons out of the equation. Copy-trading allows new traders to follow and mimic the trades of top professional traders throughout the industry, taking advantage of strategies these professionals gained through decades of real-world experience. These new traders can bypass years of experimenting, backtesting, losses, and learning by simply following the traders of their choice.
Professional traders greatly benefit from this as well, as they will generate income off of the traders that follow their trading strategies. And of course, the professional traders will be generating profits using 100x leverage on PrimeXBT, meaning that copy-trading will offer them yet another way to earn from their trades. It’s a win-win situation for all traders involved.
Copy Trading Will Take PrimeXBT To New Heights
While PrimeXBT has been able to easily gain market share from competitors like BitMEX due to offering a better affiliate program and advanced trading features, the platform will only grow due to the addition of copy-trading.
PrimeXBT offers a highly customizable user interface with a variety of widgets, the ability to short and long trending markets, 100x leverage across all crypto trading pairs, and so much more. While crypto traders have struggled to generate profits on other exchanges, these extra tools have helped PrimeXBT shine during the recent sideways market.
How Copy-Trading Works
Novice traders will be able to view the profiles of top traders from all over the globe and “follow” them to see all of their trades. Traders are given a rating based on their success rate, ROI, and more, which helps new traders understand who is best to follow and profit off of. Traders will be able to see first-hand how professional traders manage their portfolios when they take profits, and much more.
Best of all, these novice traders simply can copy the trades of these top traders, sit back, and watch their profits grow.
Professional traders will continue to make a name for themselves and grow their following through PrimeXBT and the copy-trading feature, allowing them to secure even more profits and income than ever before.
Copy-Trading Will Be Implemented In The Coming Months
According to a press release shared by PrimeXBT and Covesting, the copy-trading module will be implemented within the next 3-4 months. Covesting is working closely with PrimeXBT on the implementation of the technology and architecture, which will enable the copy-trading module on PrimeXBT to all of its users.
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Binance shot to stardom in 2017, shocking the cryptocurrency industry by becoming the largest exchange platform in existence in under six months. Even more shocking was continued success through 2018, a year that saw many new platforms shutting their doors. Now, a flood of new exchanges offers hope and security to the cryptocurrency trading world.
The rise of Binance
Today, Binance is to cryptocurrency what Apple is to modern technology. The level of ambivalence amongst consumers toward both giants can be staggering. Like Apple, Binance has secured a powerful position for itself across several major cryptocurrency sectors, with plans to establish an even larger presence.
The size and volume of the exchange, however, remains its biggest accomplishment to date. According to coinmarketcap.com, Binance has been in the top three cryptocurrency exchanges by reported and adjusted volume since the beginning of 2018.
At first glance, Binance appears to be filling a critical need in the industry. The demand for global cryptocurrency trading platforms is growing as the industry grows, and Binance is there, filling that need and providing ancillary tools for traders, entrepreneurs, developers, and everyone else with a stake in digital assets.
However, Binance also brings an underlying and greatly concerning risk to the industry. Because it handles nearly 20 percent of all digital assets in existence on a daily basis, Binance holds a lot of power. This is essentially the opposite of the original intent of cryptocurrency.
Binance has established itself as a centralized authority to digital assets. In other words, it is a trusted third party.
All that glitters…
Because Binance is essentially functioning as a bank, minus the regulatory standards and consumer safety precautions inherent to traditional fiat investing, a deeply concerning, worst-of-both-worlds scenario has emerged.
This was harshly brought to light with the May 2019 Binance security breach. Over 40 million dollars were hacked from a single hot wallet on the Binance platform, grinding trading to a screeching halt and instilling panic in investors worldwide. In addition to stolen funds, 2-factor authentication codes and API tokens were also compromised.
Thankfully, Binance has the foresight and the foundational infrastructure to withstand an attack of this magnitude. However, the potential damage, both practically and philosophically, is still of great concern.
An uncertain future or tentative optimism?
Of greater importance to the entire digital asset community is the realization that if even Binance is vulnerable to attack, any exchange is at risk. For exchanges, it has led to a renewed focus on tightening security. The urgent need for insurance is also obvious.
Naturally, investors view the current market from a slightly different perspective. With 2019 exchange theft numbers already well into the billions, hacking feels like a “when” rather than an “if” scenario.
Crypto investors are a notoriously independent bunch, so branching out and exploring up and coming exchanges is not a stretch. Plus, the aforementioned industry-wide heightened security focus allows investors to focus on new technology and service offerings some of the newer exchanges are providing.
Many exchanges seek to fill important roles in the crypto space. For example, BiKi, based in Singapore, launched in the middle of the 2018 bear market. Rather than folding like so many others who suffered the effects of the post-2017 ICO boom slump, BiKi saw a market need and capitalized on it.
BiKi now provides full solution product launch services for blockchain projects. This includes marketing and PR, community management, trading campaigns, and product ambassador development. With goals to globalize the platform, bringing international opportunities to the Chinese market, the project is equally committed to expanding its own footprint across the world.
The digital asset industry is largely powered by digital grass-roots style management. Led by social media influencers, community thought leaders, and leading traders, the community style marketing plan generates both local and international growth.
Other new exchanges have additional features beyond security also. The ecXX exchange platform is designed to attract and serve institutional as well as retail investors.
Bot trading is another growing sector in digital asset exchanges. 3Commas is one top-performing bot trading platform. Others, like Kryll, and Shrimpy also provide automation portfolio management and trading for investors.
Social and copy trading are also on the rise, with some investors taking advantage of expert peer advice and strategy in a collaborative environment. Exchanges like Covesting take the concept a bit further, allowing investors to literally copy the strategy of trusted high performing investors.
To complete the concept, the Darwinex platform was conceptualized to allow traders to quickly establish a reputation in the crypto investment world.
All of these features and advancements are fantastic. However, with hundreds of exchanges on the market, and more being added constantly, the ultimate value in the current market is that a Mt. Gox pandemic scenario is not only unlikely, it is quite impossible.
Even solidly centralized exchanges support this overall decentralized concept of avoiding a third party monopoly type of scenario. This, coupled with the 2019 market recovery and growth, makes now a great time to invest in crypto.
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Proposed protocol upgrade extends Stacks' live Proof-of-Transfer mechanism to let BTC holders earn native Bitcoin yield without bridging, wrapping, or surrendering custody.
Stacks Labs today published a whitepaper outlining the first self-custodial Bitcoin Staking mechanism generating Bitcoin-native yield. The whitepaper details a proposed upgrade to Stacks’ existing Proof-of-Transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism that enables BTC holders to earn Bitcoin-denominated yield while their Bitcoin remains locked on the L1 under their own keys.
The whitepaper addresses a fundamental gap in the market: Bitcoin represents over $1.3 trillion in idle capital, yet BTC holders have had no path to earn Bitcoin yield on that capital without bridging to another chain, wrapping their BTC, or handing custody to a centralized lender. Existing approaches, including restaking protocols that require moving BTC off L1 or rely on intermediary trust assumptions, leave holders exposed to risks Bitcoin was designed to eliminate. Stacks’ Bitcoin Staking mechanism is the first mechanism where BTC stays on Bitcoin, under the holder's own keys, while generating native Bitcoin yield. The publication follows last week’s launch of the Stacks 2026 roadmap (stacks.co/roadmap), which laid out a three-phase plan for building Bitcoin-native finance. Bitcoin Staking is Phase 1 of that plan: the mechanism that anchors long-term BTC capital on-chain and establishes the economic foundation for the phases that follow, including a 100x throughput increase and a full suite of Bitcoin-native lending, borrowing, and programmable capital products.
The mechanism builds directly on PoX, which has operated in production since January 2021 and distributed more than 4,200 BTC in stacking rewards to date. Bitcoin Staking extends this existing infrastructure.
How It Works
Under Bitcoin Staking, participants form “protocol bonds” where participants pair a BTC timelock on Bitcoin with a corresponding STX lock on Stacks for a 6-month bonding period, targeting a fixed yield subject to the risks inherent to the protocol. The BTC remains on the Bitcoin blockchain, secured by Bitcoin consensus, under participant-controlled keys for the full bonding period.
BTC yield is generated the same way it is today under PoX: Stacks miners bid BTC to compete for STX block rewards and transaction fees. That miner-paid BTC is distributed to eligible participants. Bitcoin Staking changes who is eligible and how rewards are prioritized, not how they are generated.
Bitcoin Staking distributes PoX rewards according to a waterfall structure. Paired BTC-plus-STX positions form the primary tranche and receive the target yield rate for their respective bonds. After protocol bond obligations are met, excess miner revenue is split between STX-only stakers and a reserve fund that buffers payouts when miner revenue falls short.
Phased Rollout
The whitepaper proposes Bitcoin Staking launches in two phases. The first, PoX-5, is a managed bootstrap period expected to run approximately 12 months. During this phase, Stacks Endowment sets capacity and yield parameters and intends to work with a set of institutional partners who have been onboarded ahead of launch. Initial program conditions target 3,000 BTC in capacity at a 3% BTC APY with a 5% minimum STX pairing ratio. Partner onboarding for the bootstrap phase is underway; interested institutions can contact Stacks Endowment directly.
During the bootstrap phase, Bitcoin Staking will progressively decentralize, eventually transitioning to PoX-6, a permissionless consensus-encoded operation. In this phase, a permissionless sealed-bid clearing auction determines capacity allocation while yield rates, and ratio requirements are determined on-chain from miner economics, reserve fund status, and prior-period participation data. This phase is the fully decentralized end state described in the whitepaper.
Both phases require community governance approval through the Stacks Improvement Proposal (SIP) process.
Participation Paths
BTC holders can pair native Bitcoin, timelocked on L1, with STX for full protocol bond participation. sBTC holders, the Bitcoin-backed asset on Stacks, can pair sBTC with STX through L2 smart contracts, enabling pooled participation and DeFi integrations. STX holders can stake without any Bitcoin commitment and receive residual yield as the third tranche of the waterfall. Pooled participation options exist across all paths for smaller holders.
"Bitcoin is the world's most trusted asset precisely because of its design and safety principles on the L1. Bitcoin Staking changes the calculus; holders can now earn yield denominated in BTC, trustlessly, while their Bitcoin stays exactly where it belongs. This whitepaper is the culmination of years of protocol-level work to make Bitcoin programmable without compromising what makes it Bitcoin." — Muneeb Ali, Founder, Stacks.
“Bitcoin holders have been waiting for a way to put their capital to work without giving it up. What we’ve built on Stacks has already distributed over 4,200 BTC in real yield since 2021. Bitcoin Staking takes that proven infrastructure and makes BTC itself the yield-bearing asset, under the holder’s own keys, on Bitcoin. The whitepaper is the technical specification for Phase 1 of what we laid out in the roadmap last week — and the institutional partners we’ve been working with are ready to move.” — Alex Miller, CEO, Stacks Labs.
Availability
The full Bitcoin Staking whitepaper is available today here. The Stacks 2026 roadmap, which provides the broader context for Bitcoin Staking as Phase 1 of the network’s development plan, is available at stacks.co/roadmap. Community discussion and the SIP governance process will follow publication. Technical specifications, implementation documentation, and partner onboarding details will be published in subsequent releases. Institutions interested in participating in the PoX-5 bootstrap program should contact Stacks Endowment at [email protected].
About Stacks
Stacks is the leading Bitcoin layer by BTC deployed, providing infrastructure for a growing range of Bitcoin-native applications. The network enables Bitcoin-native financial applications, from lending and borrowing to autonomous AI agents, all settled with Bitcoin finality. Users can learn more at stacks.co.
Strive, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST) has acquired an additional 382 bitcoin for approximately $30.3 million, paying an average cost of roughly $79,348 per coin, according to an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The purchase, executed between May 13 and May 18, lifts the Dallas-based Bitcoin treasury and asset management firm’s total holdings to 15,391 BTC — cementing its status as one of the largest public corporate holders of the digital asset.
The latest accumulation adds to a relentless buying streak that has seen Strive grow its treasury by more than 2,200 BTC since January 2026, when the company held 12,798 BTC following its acquisition of Semler Scientific.
The pace has accelerated markedly: in late April, Strive purchased 789 BTC for roughly $61.4 million at an average price of $77,890 per coin, and just weeks later added 444 BTC for $33.9 million at $76,307 per coin, crossing the 15,000 BTC threshold for the first time.
Strive’s bitcoin strategy Alongside the latest purchase, Strive disclosed updated performance figures that underscore its unique approach to capital allocation. The company reported a quarter-to-date BTC Yield of 6.6% and a year-to-date BTC Yield of 18.4% — a proprietary metric that measures the percentage growth of Bitcoin exposure per common share over time, rather than simply the appreciation of BTC’s price.
The firm’s amplification ratio, a measure of how leveraged its Bitcoin exposure is relative to market value of holdings, stands at 44.3%.
That amplification ratio has grown steadily. When Strive held 13,132 BTC in January, its amplification ratio stood at 37.2%, predominantly driven by preferred equity rather than traditional debt. The expansion to 44.3% reflects continued SATA preferred stock issuances, which the company has used to fund Bitcoin purchases without diluting common shareholders in the conventional sense.
Strive also disclosed approximately $87.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, alongside a $49.8 million position in Strategy Inc.’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock (STRC). The company, led by Chairman and CEO Matt Cole, describes Bitcoin as its “hurdle rate” for all capital deployment decisions — framing every acquisition not merely as a treasury move but as a benchmark for long-term shareholder value.
At current market prices, Strive’s 15,391 BTC treasury carries a value approaching $1.2 billion, ranking the firm among the top corporate holders of Bitcoin globally.
Earlier this week, Strive Inc. announced that its SATA preferred stock will become the first U.S.-listed security to pay cash dividends every business day starting June 16, with daily compounding lifting its effective yield to about 13.88%.
The firm also reported a $265.9 million Q1 net loss driven largely by Bitcoin valuation declines, while expanding its holdings to 15,009 BTC and maintaining a debt-free balance sheet, as CEO Matthew Cole positioned the move as a “zero-to-one innovation.”
Micah Zimmerman
Micah first discovered Bitcoin in 2018 but remained a skeptic on the sidelines for too long. Since 2021, he has covered crypto and business and now works as a news reporter for Bitcoin Magazine, based in North Carolina.
Stacks, the Bitcoin Layer 2 ecosystem, has published a whitepaper describing a new Bitcoin Staking model that lets users stake BTC and earn yield paid in BTC.
From STX stacking to BTC staking Stacks uses a consensus mechanism called Proof of Transfer, or PoX. In the previous model, users who wanted to earn BTC yield had to acquire and “stack” STX, the native token of the Stacks network. Miners would send BTC to these STX stackers as part of the consensus process, creating a flow of Bitcoin rewards back to participants.
The old STX stacking model offered yields that historically ranged from roughly 7% to 20% in BTC, though more recent rates have been variable and generally lower.
The new Bitcoin Staking model eliminates the STX requirement entirely. Users can stake BTC directly and earn BTC yield.
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How the new model works The whitepaper introduces the concept of BTC yield vaults as a central component of the new staking architecture. These vaults are designed to let Bitcoin holders deposit BTC and receive yield without needing to interact with the STX token economy at all.
The underlying mechanics still leverage Stacks’ existing Proof of Transfer infrastructure. Stacks doesn’t modify Bitcoin’s foundational code or require any changes to the Bitcoin protocol itself. Instead, it operates as a smart contract and Layer 2 ecosystem built on top of Bitcoin.
The specific yield rates for the new model haven’t been detailed in the whitepaper announcement, but the framework is designed to offer what the team describes as competitive Bitcoin-native returns.
Institutional providers that already facilitate BTC yield through STX stacking are expected to be among the first to distribute the new Bitcoin Staking product.
Why Bitcoin yield is the holy grail Institutional allocators, in particular, often face mandate restrictions that prevent them from holding smaller-cap altcoins. A pure BTC-in, BTC-out model fits much more cleanly into traditional portfolio frameworks.
Babylon Protocol has been building Bitcoin staking infrastructure. EigenLayer has explored restaking models that could eventually extend to BTC. And wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum continues to attract billions in deposits for DeFi lending and yield strategies.
What differentiates Stacks’ approach is the direct relationship with Bitcoin’s base layer through Proof of Transfer, which avoids the trust assumptions inherent in wrapping BTC on another chain.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
The rocket, satellite and AI company’s plan for a blockbuster Nasdaq listing is unprecedented in modern history. By Demetrios PogkasJennah HaqueKiel Porter Published: May 27, 2026 | Updated: May 28, 2026 Fittingly for a company whose ultimate goal is to send humans to the stars, Space Exploration Technologies Corp.’s initial public offering this summer is set to produce stratospheric returns for its founder, Elon Musk, and its early backers. It’s seeking to raise as much as $75 billion at a valuation of more than $2 trillion, Bloomberg News reported in April.
The rocket, satellite and AI company’s plan for a blockbuster listing on Nasdaq in June is unprecedented in modern history, with its potential impact on capital markets matched only by the antitrust efforts that saw the breakup of oil monopoly Standard Oil Company in 1911.
SpaceX’s journey from founding to public markets has been far longer than the average IPO candidate; the company has been around for nearly a quarter century. Even its closest peer, Microsoft Corp., went public in less than half the time.
Indeed, for much of SpaceX’s life, management told staff that the company had no immediate plans to go public. It would simply raise money privately and let employees cash out via periodic tender offers. The company hasn’t had any issues shoring up fresh capital and landing ever-higher valuations in the private market.
Read More: Meet the Musk Allies Set to Be Billionaires After SpaceX IPO
SpaceX’s Long Run as a Private Firm Gives IPO a Boost Pre- and post-IPO value for SpaceX and the Magnificent Seven
Sources: PitchBook, Bloomberg
Note: Public market capitalizations are the values at year-end. Data for 2026 are values as of May 20. Figures account for inflation using the seasonally adjusted urban consumer price index for April 2026 from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Valuation figures include estimates.
SpaceX’s stunning growth over the years is partly thanks to the rise of private fundraising and its ecosystem of venture capital firms and family offices. Even traditional mutual funds have become so-called crossover investors, participating in funding rounds ahead of IPOs and taking stakes in public companies as well. Coming to market with mature, yet growing, business lines like Starlink will help reassure public market investors. However, with a cash-burning AI unit that spent $7.72 billion in the first three months of 2026 alone and showed a $2.47 billion loss from operations in the same period, this certainly won’t be the last time SpaceX shakes the tin can for funding.
WATCH Why the SpaceX IPO Is Unlike Any Other
SpaceX isn’t alone in its ambition to raise a whopping sum to help it win the AI race. OpenAI is preparing to file confidentially for an IPO in the coming weeks, people familiar with the matter have said. Bloomberg News reported that Anthropic PBC was considering its own public debut as soon as October of this year. And while they continue to scale up in the private sector, most of these AI-forward companies are landing eye-watering appraisals. OpenAI raised funds at an $852 billion valuation back in March. After Anthropic achieved a $380 billion mark earlier this year, it’s now in talks for a round at a more than $900 billion valuation. Both would likely exceed their private valuations in an IPO.
Biggest Private Companies on the Rise Valuations for a selection of large private companies
Sources: PitchBook, Bloomberg
Note: Figures account for inflation using the seasonally adjusted urban consumer price index for April 2026 provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In cases where multiple valuations were reported in a year, the most recent valuation is shown. Valuation figures include estimates.
Compared to space and satellite rivals, SpaceX could end up being a bargain by some metrics. The company would have a price-to-sales ratio at a $2 trillion market value of 104 in the 12 months ended March 31, according to Bloomberg News calculations — far above the average S&P 500 constituent, yet cheap compared to satellite firms AST SpaceMobile Inc and Rocket Lab Corp.’s 409 times and 123 times, respectively.
SpaceX also pulls in far more revenue than either firm, with $19.3 billion in the past four quarters. Rocket Lab by contrast saw just $680 million in the same period. Defense primes with space exposure like Lockheed Martin Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp., which generate more revenue than all of them, have price-to-sales ratios much closer to the 4.7 times average across S&P 500 companies.
SpaceX Hype Is Huge, But More Grounded Than Space Peers Price-to-sales ratio against revenue for a selection of companies
Source: Bloomberg
Note: The price-to-sales ratio was calculated as the ratio of market capitalization on May 20 over revenue in the four most recent fiscal quarters. For SpaceX, a valuation of more than $2 trillion, as reported by Bloomberg News, was used. Bloomberg News also calculated SpaceX’s trailing revenue using figures reported in its S-1 filling released on May 20. The S&P 500 average price-to-sales ratio is as of May 20.
Looking ahead, AI accounts for most of what SpaceX describes in its filing as a $28.5 trillion total addressable market, and is expected to make up a sizable share of revenue once an agreement to supply computing power to Anthropic for $1.25 billion a month starts showing up in its financial reports. For SpaceX to really hit its goals, it’ll need to supplement its data centers on earth with facilities in space, a technology that hasn’t yet been proven to work. Can SpaceX justify the lofty projections and turn dreams of orbital data centers, bases on the moon and a colony on Mars into a bonanza for IPO buyers? Its future is in the stars.
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May 28, 2026, 6:26 PM UTC
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Bitcoin-native asset management company UTXO Management has become one of the first institutional participants in Bitcoin Staking on the Stacks network, marking a notable shift in how corporate Bitcoin holdings may be used.
The initiative introduces a structure that allows institutions to earn bitcoin-denominated yield without transferring custody or moving assets off the Bitcoin base layer.
For treasury managers holding large BTC reserves, the model presents a new option that preserves core Bitcoin properties while addressing rising pressure to generate returns.
Bitcoin Staking on Stacks requires participants to lock BTC in a Bitcoin timelock alongside a smaller allocation of STX, the Stacks network’s native token, in what the protocol defines as a “protocol bond.”
The BTC remains under the participant’s control throughout the process, while the STX component determines the scale of participation in the system. The initial bonding period is set at six months.
The yield target for the protocol is near 3% annual percentage yield, paid in bitcoin. Unlike lending-based models, the return does not rely on counterparty borrowing. Instead, it is derived from Stacks’ Proof-of-Transfer consensus mechanism.
Under this model, miners bid BTC to secure the right to produce blocks on the Stacks network, and that BTC is distributed to eligible participants, including those engaged in Bitcoin Staking.
Proof-of-Transfer has operated for several years and has distributed more than 4,200 BTC since 2021. Bitcoin Staking builds on this framework, extending its reward structure to a broader class of participants.
The protocol is expected to reach mainnet later this summer, opening with an initial bootstrapping phase managed by the Stacks Endowment.
Staking tradeoffs as bitcoin gains traction The model introduces trade-offs that institutions must evaluate. Participants must hold STX equal to about 5% of the BTC position, which creates exposure to a second asset. The bonded BTC remains illiquid during the lockup period, though an early exit option exists for the BTC portion. Yield levels depend on network dynamics, including miner demand and STX market conditions, which introduces variability.
Despite these factors, UTXO’s participation signals growing institutional interest in productive Bitcoin strategies that maintain self-custody.
The structure avoids lending desks and synthetic wrappers, both of which require relinquishing some control or altering the nature of the underlying asset.
Corporate Bitcoin treasuries have expanded in recent years. The top 100 companies now hold more than 1.2 million BTC, representing about 5% of total supply.
Executives see Bitcoin Staking as a response to that scrutiny. Tyler Evans, Chief Investment Officer of Nakamoto and UTXO, described the model as a way to generate yield while preserving Bitcoin’s settlement and custody features.
Stacks founder Muneeb Ali framed the development as a step toward transforming idle Bitcoin into productive capital within a secure framework.
Disclaimer: Bitcoin Magazine is published by BTC Inc, a subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. UTXO Management is also a subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA)
Micah Zimmerman
Micah first discovered Bitcoin in 2018 but remained a skeptic on the sidelines for too long. Since 2021, he has covered crypto and business and now works as a news reporter for Bitcoin Magazine, based in North Carolina.
For years, Bitcoin has been the world’s most valuable digital asset that mostly just sits there. Unlike Ethereum, where staking and lending have become a cottage industry, BTC holders have had limited options for generating yield without surrendering custody of their coins. UTXO Management wants to change that calculus.
The investment firm has become the first institutional participant in Bitcoin staking on the Stacks protocol, putting real capital behind the idea that Bitcoin’s Layer-2 ecosystem is ready for serious money.
What Stacks and sBTC actually do Stacks is a Layer-2 protocol that sits on top of Bitcoin. It uses a mechanism called Proof-of-Transfer, or PoX, where miners on Stacks commit actual BTC to participate in block production, while holders of STX (the native Stacks token) can lock their tokens and earn BTC rewards in return.
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sBTC is a decentralized asset backed 1:1 by Bitcoin, functioning as a bridge that lets BTC holders access decentralized finance activities like lending and staking without selling their Bitcoin.
During the initial scaling of sBTC, capacity surged from zero to 3,000 BTC within 24 hours. Jump Crypto and SNZ were also among the early participants in the rollout.
Why institutions care about Bitcoin yield UTXO Management’s entire thesis revolves around the Bitcoin ecosystem and its Layer-2 infrastructure, signaling conviction rather than opportunism.
Hex Trust added another data point in April 2025 when it expanded its institutional custody and support services to include both STX and sBTC.
What this means for investors The competitive landscape is worth watching closely. Stacks isn’t the only Layer-2 trying to unlock Bitcoin DeFi. Projects like Babylon, which focuses on Bitcoin staking for proof-of-stake security, and various rollup proposals are all chasing the same institutional dollar.
The risk side of the ledger deserves attention. Layer-2 protocols are still relatively young infrastructure. Smart contract risk, bridge risk, and the general complexity of PoX economics all represent variables that institutions need to underwrite carefully. sBTC’s 1:1 peg to Bitcoin sounds simple, but maintaining that peg under stress is a different story.
For investors tracking this space, the metrics to watch are sBTC’s total capacity growth, the number of institutional custodians supporting the asset, and whether yield rates prove attractive enough to pull capital away from competing products. Early institutional participation from firms like UTXO Management, Jump Crypto, and SNZ represents a meaningful endorsement of the Stacks ecosystem.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Jersey City, New Jersey, USA, May 28th, 2026, Chainwire
Institutional Bitcoin holders can now earn BTC-denominated yield without leaving Bitcoin.
Stacks Labs and UTXO Management, the Bitcoin-native asset management subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA), today announced that UTXO will be an inaugural participant for Bitcoin Staking on Stacks, deploying a portion of its existing BTC holdings into the protocol. This makes UTXO among the first institutional Bitcoin managers to pursue Bitcoin-denominated yield while retaining full custody of its Bitcoin on the base layer.
In Bitcoin Staking, participants form “protocol bonds” by pairing a BTC timelock on Bitcoin with a corresponding STX lock on Stacks for a 6-month bonding period, earning a target BTC yield while their Bitcoin remains on the base layer under participant-controlled keys. Yield is generated through Stacks’ Proof-of-Transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism, in which miners bid BTC to compete for Stacks block rewards; that miner-paid BTC is then distributed to eligible staking participants. STX locks determine each participant’s staking capacity.
PoX has operated in production since January 2021 and has distributed more than 4,200 BTC to participants to date. The initial rollout of Bitcoin Staking is a bootstrapping period stewarded by the Stacks Endowment, expected to go live later this year.
“Bitcoin Staking on Stacks provides something that hasn’t existed before: a way to earn BTC-denominated yield while Bitcoin never leaves the base layer,” said Tyler Evans, Chief Investment Officer of Nakamoto and UTXO. “Companies can decide to put their balance sheet to work without compromising the properties that make Bitcoin valuable in the first place, and we are excited to try out the product at UTXO.”
UTXO’s participation opens a new market for Stacks – institutional Bitcoin capital seeking self-custodial BTC yield – and lays the foundation for the next wave of Bitcoin-native financial primitives, including liquid staking tokens, lending markets, and structured yield products built around productive BTC.
“Bitcoin Staking turns the largest pool of dormant capital in crypto into productive capital — without compromising on self-custody or settlement,” said Muneeb Ali, Stacks Founder. “UTXO, the asset management arm of one of the largest Bitcoin-native enterprises, signals something important: institutional Bitcoin is ready to move, and Stacks is where it goes.”
The top 100 Bitcoin treasury companies hold over 1.2 million BTC, roughly 5% of total supply, valued at at approximately $87.6 billion. As these companies face growing investor pressure to make their balance sheets productive, Bitcoin Staking on Stacks offers a path to turn the largest pool of dormant capital in crypto into yield-bearing positions. To learn more, users can visit stacks.co/bitcoin-staking.
About UTXO Management
UTXO Management is a Bitcoin-focused asset management firm led by co-founder and CIO Tyler Evans. In February 2026, UTXO was acquired by Bitcoin-focused holding company Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA), led by CEO David Bailey, a UTXO co-founder.
About Stacks
Stacks is the leading Bitcoin layer by BTC deployed, providing infrastructure for a growing range of Bitcoin-native applications. The network enables Bitcoin-native financial applications, from lending and borrowing to autonomous AI agents, all settled with Bitcoin finality. Stacks Labs, a wholly owned subsidiary of Stacks Endowment, maintains the Stacks blockchain and builds Bitcoin products. Users can learn more at stacks.co.
An exchange may have accidentally torched $8.5 million worth of Bitcoin — that’s one of the leading theories after an unidentified wallet sent 107 BTC to an address from which the funds can never be recovered.
Conor Grogan, head of product business operations at Coinbase, said the burn was most likely caused by an exchange that made an error during a cold storage transfer.
No Public Explanation From Anyone Involved Five separate Bitcoin addresses carried out the transfers on Monday, all sending funds to a long-established burn address beginning with “11111,” according to onchain data shared by Galaxy Research.
The move brought the total amount of Bitcoin ever sent to that address to 807 BTC, now worth close to $60 million, based on data from blockchain platform Arkham.
1111111111111111111114oLvT2 corresponds to Hash160 = 0x0000000000000000000000000000000000000000 (twenty zero bytes). Base58Check-encode that with the P2PKH version byte and you get this address. Because finding a public key whose Hash160 is all zeros would require either… pic.twitter.com/WAii2UbQ0U
— Galaxy Research (@glxyresearch) May 27, 2026
The 107 BTC being destroyed made the event one of the biggest reported Bitcoin burns of 2026 so far. What made it more striking was the age of the coins — most of them had sat untouched for more than 12 years, acquired when Bitcoin was trading below $600. At today’s prices, that early buy had grown by 12,700%, according to TradingView data.
What Happens When Bitcoin Gets Burned Bitcoin, unlike some other cryptocurrencies, has no built-in mechanism for removing coins from supply. Burning it means sending funds to an address that has no known private keys — the coins show up on the ledger but cannot be touched or moved by anyone.
BTCUSD now trading at $73,561. Chart: TradingView The burn address used in this case had been used before, including by the project Stacks, which sent 40 BTC to it in September 2015 for a namespace registration.
Galaxy Research offered several possible explanations for why someone would walk away from an $8.5 million windfall.
The firm raised the possibility of tax loss harvesting, funds destroyed because of ties to illegal activity, or even a mistaken transfer made by an artificial intelligence agent.
This is fascinating to me. Someone bought 107 btc 12yrs ago, stomached nine, yes nine, 50%+ downturns, watched it grow to $8.5m only to send the coins this wk to a burn acct, permanently destroying. Smh. Theories incl: kidnapping, taxes, religion, divorce, rogue AI agent.. https://t.co/BWPk2eH1Dg
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) May 27, 2026
No clear connection was found between the burned coins and any known hacks or cyberattacks.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas weighed in as well, floating the idea of a rogue AI agent, a kidnapping scenario, or tax-related motives behind the destruction.
Theories Pile Up But No Answers Yet The burn address itself has a documented history. Reports say the address was used by Stacks years before this latest transaction, giving it a verifiable on-chain record as a destination for deliberate coin destruction — not just a random wallet.
Analysts have yet to land on a definitive answer for what happened Monday. The identity of the sender remains unknown.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Attendees look at the new Rivian R2 electric vehicle at the Rivian South Coast Theater in Laguna Beach, California, on March 7, 2024. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
The Rivian R2 is one of the most highly anticipated electric vehicles in recent years, with a launch set for June 9. The trail-ready electric SUV is loaded with cutting-edge hardware and AI to compete with Tesla.
The R2 Is Bound To Be Judged Against The Model YAs a more affordable, more compact version of Rivian’s flagship R1 SUV, the R2 begs comparison with the Model Y. “The R2 that’ll hit the streets this summer will be the nearly-$60,000 Performance model with 656 horsepower. The price lines up with the 510-hp Model Y Performance,” said Car and Driver editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga in an email. The most inexpensive version of the R2, around $45,000, won’t be available until late 2027, according to Rivian’s website.
But the initial high price may not necessarily impact sales. “The customers probably aren’t that price sensitive. Both are considered luxury brands, so there’s less price sensitivity,” said Quiroga.
Rivian Faithful Vs. TeslaRivian already has a core of passionate, loyal owners, but Tesla has a 14-year head start. “While Rivian has generated its own core group of fans, it hasn’t engendered the same kind of cult-like interest that Musk’s Tesla did,” said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions. Another challenge it faces is the post-tax-credit EV market. “After the market for electric vehicles in the U.S. peaked in 2025, it has been difficult for any electric vehicle manufacturer, even Tesla, to regain its footing,” he added—though prospects have improved with the spike in gas prices.
Initial high price may not faze R2 buyers.
Credit: Brooke Crothers / Claude AI
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Where The R2 Breaks With The Model Y: Off-RoadRivian makes copious use of “adventure” on its website and in promotional materials. To potential car buyers, that boils down to off-road. “The R2 has the ground clearance to venture off road, something Model Y owners don’t do,” Quiroga said.
“Powerful, efficient…Built to go anywhere, on-road and off — with up to 9 drive modes that optimize for the terrain at the touch of a button,” Rivian says on its website.
AUSTIN, TEXAS - MARCH 12: Rivian R2 trucks drive on an off-road course at the SXSW Rivian Electric Joyride on Congress Avenue the first day of South by Southwest in Austin, Thursday, March 12, 2026. (Sara Diggins/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)
Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images
Where The R2 Breaks With The Model Y: Sensors Rivian is not skimping on vehicle AI, also known as ADAS or Advanced Driver Assistance Systems that can automate, for example, highway driving. The R2 will come with cameras, radar and Rivian’s Autonomy+ AI software. (LiDAR will come later.) You might call it the "belt and suspenders" approach to sensing the world. Also known as redundancy.
Rivian believes that a redundant suite of cameras, radar, and (later) LiDAR will allow the R2 to cross-verify physical reality. This triple-layer redundancy should ultimately allow the R2 to handle point-to-point (door-to-door) driving without constant human supervision. (See my road test of Rivian’s updated autonomy platform.)
This is in stark contrast with Tesla’s camera-only approach. "Tesla’s full-self-driving system relies solely on cameras and lacks radar and lidar sensors, but works remarkably well,” said Quiroga. Rivian’s approach can be compared to Waymo, which also uses a diverse suite of sensors. Waymo is considered, in some respects, the gold standard because it is a truly driverless robotaxi service. (I’ve taken Waymo driverless taxis many times in Los Angeles. It feels like you have a human driver. I’ve never experienced a mishap, even in congested Los Angeles traffic.)
The Rivian Gen 3 autonomy platform integrates 11 cameras, 5 radars and a high-mount LiDAR sensor (included on later R2 trims) and an in-house RAP1 processor (capable of 1,600 trillion operations per second). While the cameras provide semantic context (reading signs and lights), the imaging radars can, for example, track velocity through poor weather. The LiDAR is like a high-speed digital ruler. It uses lasers to instantly measure the distance to every object around it, creating a precise 3D picture that doesn’t rely on visual guesswork.
Will The R2 Be Enough To Dent Tesla’s Dominance?“The design is a big differentiator as the R2 takes on the angularity and uprightness of traditional SUVs, while the Model Y looks like a teardrop,” said Quiroga, underscoring Rivian’s emphasis on rugged adventure capability and interior space. AutoForecast Solutions’ Fiorani has a more circumspect outlook. “There will be substantial interest in the R2 initially, but nothing like the once-in-a-generation madness that followed the roll-out of the Model Y,” he said. “Rivian is capacity constrained [even] if they could gather enough momentum for the R2,” Fiorani added.
The online gambling industry is no longer defined by a single style of platform. For years, players had to pick a side. On one end were the traditional operators built on regulated markets and familiar payment methods. On the other were the crypto-first casinos that grew quickly by offering speed and a more modern feel. Bet365 leads the first group. Stake.com leads the second. Both have huge user bases, and both have shaped what players expect from an online casino in their own way.
A new name is now showing up in conversations about which platform to try next. ZunaBet launched in 2026 with a crypto-first build, more than 11,000 games, a full sportsbook, and a loyalty program built around dragons. This article takes a closer look at how Stake.com and Bet365 compare, and why ZunaBet has quickly become one of the most talked-about new platforms in the space.
The Two Giants Players Already Know Table of Contents
The Two Giants Players Already KnowA Quick Look at ZunaBetCrypto vs Traditional MoneyLoyalty Programs: A Real Point of DifferenceThe Welcome OfferWhy ZunaBet Feels Built for the Next GenerationA Look at What Is Ahead Stake.com has built one of the strongest names in crypto gambling. It supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other major coins, and its brand grew on the back of a fast platform, a clean interface, and a sportsbook that gave esports as much weight as traditional sports. Major sponsorships with sports teams and well-known creators have made Stake one of the most visible names in the space. For a lot of crypto-savvy players, it is the first stop.
Bet365 took a very different route. It started in UK sports betting and turned into one of the largest gambling operators in the world. The sportsbook is the core of the platform, with deep markets and one of the best live betting setups around. Casino games, poker, and live dealer products came later. Payments stick to cards, bank transfers, and a small list of e-wallets. Bet365 only operates in regulated markets, where it works inside strict local rules.
Both platforms have earned their spot. Stake fits players who want speed, crypto support, and a modern feel. Bet365 fits players who want a regulated, fiat-based experience tied to a long-established brand. The space in between, where crypto meets a massive library and a fully developed sportsbook, is exactly where newer platforms are starting to break through.
A Quick Look at ZunaBet ZunaBet runs under Strathvale Group Ltd and operates on an Anjouan gaming license. The team behind it has over 20 years of combined industry experience, but the platform itself is brand new and built from scratch for a crypto-first audience.
Hacksaw Gaming At ZunaBet The size of the library catches the eye right away. ZunaBet carries 11,294 games from 63 providers. The list of studios includes Pragmatic Play, Hacksaw Gaming, Yggdrasil, BGaming, and Evolution. Slots take the largest share, while RNG table games and live dealer rooms cover the rest. Few crypto casinos come close to that kind of variety.
ZunaBet Sports The sportsbook gets the same level of attention. It covers football, basketball, tennis, NHL, and other major sports with deep markets. Esports get equal focus, with markets on CS2, Dota 2, League of Legends, and Valorant. Virtual sports and combat sports finish out the lineup. Players move between casino games and sports bets in one account, without bouncing between sites.
Crypto vs Traditional Money Payments are where the three platforms separate most clearly.
Bet365 runs entirely on traditional banking. Cards, bank transfers, and a few e-wallets handle nearly every transaction. These methods are familiar but slow. Withdrawals can take a few business days. Some banks flag or block gambling-related payments. Players in certain regions are stuck with very limited options.
Stake.com is crypto-first and supports a healthy list of cryptocurrencies. Withdrawals move quickly, fees stay low, and the whole flow feels lighter than going through a bank.
ZunaBet Payments ZunaBet pushes the crypto-first model even further. It supports more than 20 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT on multiple chains, Solana, Dogecoin, Cardano, and XRP. There are no platform processing fees, and withdrawals usually clear in minutes. Anyone with a wallet and an internet connection can play, no matter where they live. That kind of access is hard to match with bank-based systems.
For players who already use crypto in their daily life, this setup feels natural. Gambling becomes one more use case for the same digital wallet they already use for trading, payments, or savings.
Loyalty Programs: A Real Point of Difference Each platform handles loyalty in its own way.
Bet365 uses a standard rewards system. Players earn points based on wagering and unlock perks like cashback and free spins. It works, but it follows the same template most traditional VIP programs use.
Stake.com runs a more modern rewards model with rakeback, weekly bonuses, and rank-based perks. It is especially popular with active players and has played a big role in the brand’s fast growth.
ZunaBet VIP ZunaBet built something with more personality. Its loyalty system runs on a dragon evolution theme with six tiers: Squire, Warden, Champion, Divine, Knight, and Ultimate. Each tier brings better rakeback, starting at 1% and reaching 20% at the top. Higher tiers also unlock more free spins, with up to 1,000 available at the highest level. VIP club access, double wheel spins, and a mascot named Zuno tie everything together.
The 20% rakeback at the top tier is one of the highest in the industry. The bigger draw is how the progression feels. Climbing through dragon tiers is closer to leveling up a character in a video game than tracking points on a card. That kind of design lines up well with how younger players already engage with the apps and games they use outside of gambling.
The Welcome Offer The welcome bonus is one of the easiest ways to compare platforms. Bet365 offers welcome bonuses tied to a single deposit, usually with wagering rules that take effort to clear. Stake.com puts less focus on a big upfront bonus and leans more on ongoing rewards and rakeback for active players.
ZunaBet Welcome Bonus ZunaBet leans hard into the welcome package. It spreads the offer across three deposits, with a total value of up to $5,000 plus 75 free spins. The first deposit gets a 100% match up to $2,000 plus 25 spins. The second adds a 50% match up to $1,500 plus 25 spins. The third closes things off with another 100% match up to $1,500 plus 25 spins. Combined, that works out to a 250% bonus across the first three deposits, which is well above the industry average.
Why ZunaBet Feels Built for the Next Generation The strength of ZunaBet is in how the pieces fit together. Crypto-first payments. A massive game library. A real sportsbook with deep esports coverage. A loyalty program with character. Each piece points to the same kind of player. Someone who already lives online, manages money in digital wallets, follows esports, and wants a casino that feels modern and a bit fun.
Meet Zuno: The ZunaBet mascot Stake.com appeals to a similar group with its own style. Bet365 serves a more traditional side of the market. ZunaBet sits between those two worlds and combines the speed of crypto casinos with the size, depth, and design that newer players expect from a 2026 platform.
A Look at What Is Ahead Stake.com and Bet365 are not going anywhere. Both have strong brands, large user bases, and proven products. They will keep serving the players who prefer their approach.
But the bigger picture is shifting. Crypto has gone mainstream. Esports betting is now a major category. Players want speed, choice, and platforms that feel alive instead of stuck in an older model. ZunaBet was built with those expectations in mind from day one rather than added on top of an older system. It is still a young platform, but it has already become one of the most talked-about launches of 2026. For players asking which platform to check out next, ZunaBet is fast becoming the easy answer.
Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.
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Jun 3rd, 2026
How Broadcom Stacks Up Against Its Peers
Gil Luria, DA Davidson Head of Technology Research, discusses the outlook for Broadcom as the Nvidia alternative releases its latest quarterly data.
Managing capital for remote developer teams has become more complex as companies are embracing global collaboration and distributed workforces.
Whether operating as an open-source community, startup, or decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), organizations need dependable systems.
These systems are important for approving expenditures, allocating budgets, and compensating contributors across various locations and time zones.
Modular funding stacks give a modern alternative to traditional funding methods, which often depend on centralized approval processes.
They combine specialized components like multi-signature wallets, treasury management tools, reporting dashboards, and payment automation systems.
This guide explains how modular funding stacks work and the advantages they present for remote developer teams.
Key Takeaways Modular funding stacks combine different tools for treasury management, governance, payment processing, and reporting into a single funding system. They help remote developer teams receive funds faster while improving transparency and accountability. Security features such as multi-signature approvals reduce the risk of unauthorized transactions and treasury mismanagement. Funding can be tied to milestones and deliverables, ensuring that resources are distributed based on measurable progress. Automation reduces administrative work and helps organizations manage payments more efficiently. The modular nature of these systems allows organizations to scale their funding operations as teams and projects grow. Regular monitoring and clear governance processes are essential for maintaining an effective and sustainable funding structure. Understanding Modular Funding Stacks These are a collection of interconnected financial tools and infrastructure components designed to manage, allocate, and distribute capital efficiently.
Rather than depending on a single platform to manage treasury approval, management, governance, and payments, organizations merge multiple specialized modules that work together to create a flexible funding ecosystem.
The concept is similar to innovative software architecture, where individual services perform specific functions while remaining connected through integrations.
Modular funding stacks distribute responsibilities across various layers of governance and security. This structure reduces operational risk while enhancing accountability and transparency.
Modular funding stacks provide a scalable foundation for managing capital without sacrificing control or efficiency, which is ideal for remote developer teams that keep expanding across geographical boundaries.
Step-by-Step Process: Building a Modular Funding Stack for Remote Developer Teams Here’s a detailed process that organizations can use to create a system that distributes capital efficiently, keeps users accountable, and supports long-term growth.
1. Create a dedicated treasury structure Begin by setting up a treasury to hold project funds. Separate funds depending on their purpose, like operations, development, or emergency reserves. This makes budgeting seamless and helps prevent overspending.
2. Deploy multi-signature security controls Use a multi-signature wallet that requires approval from several team members before funds can be transferred. This adds an additional layer of security and reduces the risk of unauthorized transactions.
3. Configure funding allocation modules Decide how funds will be distributed across projects, teams, and contributors. Set clear budgets for each area and establish rules for how funds can be used.
4. Implement contributor tracking systems Track milestones, tasks, and project deliverables. This helps managers monitor progress and ensures that funding decisions are based on actual work completed.
5. Automate payment distribution Use payment automation tools to send rewards, salaries, or milestone payments. Automation reduces manual work and helps ensure contributors are paid on time.
6. Integrate governance mechanisms Create clear approval processes for spending decisions. Depending on the organization, this might involve treasury managers, team leads, or community voting systems.
7. Establish monitoring and reporting frameworks Regularly review payment records, treasury activity, and project performance. Reporting tools are useful in identifying spending trends, improving transparency, and ensuring funds are used effectively.
Benefits of Using Modular Funding Stacks for Remote Developer Teams Here are some of the perks involved:
1. Improved transparency across financial operations One of the most notable advantages of modular funding stacks is the visibility they provide into capital allocation and spending activities. Team members, stakeholders, and project managers can track budgets, funding approvals, and payment distributions through integrated reporting systems.
2. Faster capital distribution Remote teams usually operate across diverse countries and time zones, making traditional approval processes inefficient and slow.
Modular funding systems streamline these workflows by automating approvals and payment execution. Contributors can get funds more quickly, reducing delays that could impact project timelines.
3. Enhanced security and risk management Funding stacks regularly integrate multi-signature controls, automated spending limits, and role-based permissions. These safeguards reduce the prospects of unauthorized transactions and minimize the risks associated with centralized treasury management.
Multiple stakeholders can take part in approval processes, ensuring that vital financial decisions receive adequate oversight.
4. Greater scalability As development teams get bigger, funding operations become more complex. Modular funding stacks enable organizations to add governance mechanisms, new tools, and payment modules without affecting existing workflows.
This scalability makes them properly suited for expanding projects and fast-growing organizations.
5. Reduced administrative workloads Manual budget tracking, approval management, and payment processing can consume significant time and resources.
Automation tools within a modular funding stack manage many of these repetitive tasks, enabling managers and finance teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than routine administration.
6. Better contributor accountability Funding can be connected directly to project milestones, performance metrics, and deliverables. This approach creates stronger alignment between project outcomes and financial incentives while ensuring that resources are allocated efficiently.
7. Increased operational flexibility Organizations can customize their funding infrastructure to match specific project requirements. Whether managing short-term contractors, long-term salaried developers, bounty programs, or grant receipts, modular funding stacks can support multiple compensation models within a single framework.
Conclusion – Building a Smarter Funding Framework for Remote Teams Modular funding stacks offer a practical way to improve how capital is managed and distributed across remote developer teams.
By combining tools for treasury management, governance, payment automation, and reporting, organizations can reduce delays, improve transparency, and ensure funds are allocated based on clear rules and real progress.
This approach also makes it easier to scale funding operations as teams grow and projects become more complex. With the right structure in place, organizations can maintain better control over spending while still supporting fast-moving, distributed development work.
In the end, modular funding stacks help create a more reliable and accountable system for managing remote team finances.
Crypto public token sales are on track for their weakest quarter in five years, with just $58 million raised across Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOs), Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), and Initial DEX Offerings (IDOs) in Q2 2026.
The figure marks an 85% drop from the prior quarter, highlighting a sharp decline in capital flowing through public token fundraising channels.
A Public Fundraising Market in RetreatThe number of public sales fell to 37 in Q2, down 65% from 105 in Q1, according to CryptoRank data. May proved especially quiet.
Only 13 token sales closed during the month. That was the lowest monthly figure since late 2020, when just 4 sales occurred. The $58 million raised marks the smallest quarterly haul in CryptoRank’s dataset.
“After peaking in Q1’25 with nearly $849M raised across 429 sales, the public fundraising market has been steadily losing momentum,” the post read.
Crypto IEO, ICO, and IDO Fundraising Falling in Q2 2026. Source: X/CryptoRankFollow us on X to get the latest news as it happens
How Q2 Stacks Up Against Prior YearsThe trend becomes even clearer when compared with previous years. Q2 2025 raised $135 million, and Q2 2024 drew $375 million.
Against those marks, Q2 2026 is down 57% from a year earlier and 85% from two years earlier. Sales counts fell even faster, dropping from 576 in Q2 2024 and 255 in Q2 2025 to just 37 this quarter.
The recent slide runs across quarters, too. Raises dropped from $482 million in Q4 2025 to $390 million in Q1 2026 and $58 million in Q2.
Despite the slowdown, IDOs remained the dominant fundraising format, accounting for 68.6% of public sales in 2026. IEOs accounted for 19.9%, while ICOs accounted for the remaining 11.5%.
Disclosed fundraising has reached $4 billion across 3,017 sales since the start of 2024. With Q2 still quarter-to-date, the final tally could shift, but it sits at a multi-year low for now.
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Fireblocks, the institutional crypto infrastructure platform that processes more than $5 trillion in digital asset transfers annually, has integrated the Stacks Bitcoin Layer 2 network. The move opens Bitcoin DeFi services to more than 2,400 institutional clients who previously had no streamlined way to access them.
The Fireblocks-Stacks integration covers several key capabilities. Institutional clients get custody support for STX tokens, plus the ability to mint and bridge sBTC, the synthetic Bitcoin asset that operates on the Stacks network.
From there, clients can access DeFi protocols built on Stacks, including Hermetica, Zest/Granite, and Bitflow. These protocols span lending, token swaps, and yield generation.
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One of Stacks’ selling points for institutional users is speed. The network processes transactions with roughly 5-second block times, compared to Bitcoin’s average of about 10 minutes. For institutions executing complex DeFi strategies, that difference matters.
The integration was announced in early February 2026, with full functionality expected by the end of Q1 2026.
Why institutions care about Bitcoin DeFi now Bitcoin’s base layer wasn’t designed for smart contracts. Layer 2 solutions like Stacks exist specifically to bridge that gap, adding programmability on top of Bitcoin’s security model. But even with Layer 2 solutions available, institutions faced a second barrier: custody and compliance. A hedge fund or asset manager can’t just connect a MetaMask wallet to a DeFi protocol and start yield farming. They need enterprise-grade custody, audit trails, regulatory compliance frameworks, and counterparty risk management. That’s exactly what Fireblocks provides.
Broader context and competitive positioning Stacks has also established partnerships with BitGo and Circle, two other heavyweight names in institutional crypto infrastructure. BitGo provides custody and liquidity services to institutional investors. Circle is the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap. Together with Fireblocks, these partnerships form a triangle of institutional credibility that few Bitcoin Layer 2 competitors can match.
For investors watching this space, the key metric to track isn’t the integration announcement itself but what happens to total value locked on Stacks-based DeFi protocols over the coming quarters. If institutional capital actually flows through Fireblocks into protocols like Hermetica, Zest/Granite, and Bitflow, it would validate the thesis that Bitcoin DeFi can attract serious money, not just crypto-native capital.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
The Obama Presidential Center opens to the public on Friday in Chicago, kicking off a Juneteenth weekend of celebrations and marking the latest addition to the uniquely American institution of presidential libraries.
While these presidential museums are best known for preserving historic documents and moments like wars and elections, they are also filled with deeply odd artifacts from certain time periods.
From entire airplanes to spacecraft and deeply personal memorabilia, presidential libraries often double as something like a national attic, revealing quirks and unexpected moments from those who held the highest office in the land.
Why It MattersAt first glance, the quirky artifacts at presidential libraries might seem trivial, but they play a real role in public history.
For one, they often humanize presidents beyond just their policy. But they can also reveal the cultural context of an era.
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What To KnowPresidential libraries are run under the National Archives system, but they do more than store official records.
They also house millions of personal items and gifts as well as objects tied to a president’s life before office. Some even store diplomatic gifts from foreign leaders.
The Obama center has been designed as a modern, community-focused campus rather than a traditional archive, but Newsweek compiled a list of the most surprising things already hiding in presidential collections.
The Wackiest Things in Presidential Libraries1. An Entire Air Force One PlaneAt the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, visitors can walk through a retired Boeing 707 that served as Air Force One for multiple presidents.
The aircraft carried U.S. presidents from the 1970s through 2001 and is now displayed inside a massive glass pavilion built around it. It’s arguably the most dramatic artifact in any presidential library.
“Here we highlight President Reagan’s face-to-face diplomacy with world leaders on economic relations, strategic relations and arms control as he travels on Air Force One,” the Reagan library writes on its website. “The Secret Service and their role in protecting the President while he travels displays on a gallery wall on this level.”
2. A Space Capsule From the Space RaceThe John F. Kennedy Presidential Library features the Freedom 7 capsule, flown by astronaut Alan Shepard in 1961, carrying the first American into space while also accelerating the U.S. moon landing eight years later.
Few museums can claim to combine Cold War politics and actual spacecraft in the same exhibit hall.
“Freedom 7’s mission was a milestone along the course charted by President Kennedy to make the United States number one in the world in space exploration,” the JFK library said on its website. “Three weeks after this capsule safely splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, President Kennedy announced to the nation the goal of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth before the end of the decade.”
3. The Crates That Carried Nixon's PandasAfter President Richard Nixon's landmark 1972 trip to China, Beijing gifted the U.S. two giant pandas, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing. The Nixon library preserves the actual transport crates used to bring them across the Pacific.
Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing were housed at the Smithsonian National Zoo for 20 years after their arrival the same year, and the pandas were said to have five cubs, though none of them survived to adulthood.
4. Eleanor Roosevelt's Pistol PermitAt the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, one of the more unexpected items is wife Eleanor Roosevelt's pistol permit, complete with photo, signature and thumbprint.
She reportedly carried a handgun at times because she often resisted traveling with Secret Service protection.
5. FDR's Luxury Trash CanAlso at the Roosevelt Library is a wastebasket fashioned from a leather hatbox and lined with old Philadelphia municipal bonds. It was apparently a gift from a family member and became FDR's personal trash can.
According to Ranker, the interior is lined with $100 and $200 bonds from the city of Philadelphia, and there’s a brass lock at the front.
6. A Cold War Atomic Bomb Board GameThe Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum displays "Atomic Bombing Care," a children's game designed to teach families about surviving nuclear attacks.
For many library visitors, it serves as a reminder of just how normalized atomic-war anxiety became during the early Cold War.
What Could Be Unusual at the Obama Center?The Obama Presidential Center is already different from traditional libraries.
It is described as more than a library and instead operates as an immersive digital museum and community campus. It will feature art, cultural programming and public spaces.
Given that presidential libraries often include gifts received while in office, it is highly likely that the collection will include diplomatic gifts from foreign leaders and cultural artifacts from Obama-era events.
However, the full artifact list has not been publicly detailed yet.
Trump’s Future Library: A Different Kind of 'Odd'Plans for Donald Trump’s future presidential library, which are still in development, suggest it may rival existing libraries in unusual exhibits.
Trump released a video detailing the plans, which include a replica Oval Office, a large gold statue of Trump and full-size aircraft displayed inside the building.
"It's most likely going to be a hotel with a beautiful building underneath and a 747 Air Force One in the lobby, which is going to be a trick," Trump told reporters earlier this year.
What Happens NextUnlike traditional museums, presidential libraries continue to grow after opening as materials are processed, cataloged and released.
The Obama center is positioned as a hybrid museum and archival space, so it will bring a digital-first approach to collections.That means some objects, especially gifts and personal items, may not be publicly displayed immediately.
Bitcoin builders have a three-week window to pitch their projects for funding. The Stacks Endowment opened applications for its Q2 2026 Builder Grants on June 5, with the deadline set for June 26 and funding decisions expected by July 1.
The grant program is specifically focused on what the Endowment calls “Bitcoin-native finance,” a category that spans decentralized finance protocols, perpetual contracts, real-world asset tokenization, agentic applications, and privacy-enhancing tools.
What’s on the table Previous 2026 grant cycles offered two distinct tracks. Builder Grants provided up to $50K for established teams with proven track records. Getting Started Grants offered up to $10K for early-stage projects still finding their footing.
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Applications close June 26, and funding decisions land by July 1. That’s a five-day review window.
The Stacks Endowment recently received a 25 million STX donation through SIP-031, which significantly bolsters its capacity to fund builders across the ecosystem.
Why Bitcoin Layer 2 development matters right now Stacks positions itself as a leading Bitcoin Layer 2 solution, enabling smart contracts and DeFi functionality that settle directly on Bitcoin.
What this means for investors The Stacks Endowment’s mission is to manage the ecosystem’s long-term treasury and allocate capital toward sustainable growth. The 25 million STX donation through SIP-031 signals that the broader Stacks community is willing to put real resources behind this strategy.
Builders interested in applying have until June 26 to submit their proposals. The rapid funding timeline, with decisions by July 1, means approved teams could be deploying capital before most traditional venture processes even schedule their first call.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
A whale has transferred nearly $20 million worth of Bitcoin to Binance as the flagship crypto continues to struggle.
Summary
A Bitcoin whale moved around 300 BTC to Binance, with roughly $20 million in value, while still holding about 200 BTC. The wallet built its position earlier in 2025 at an average price of $97,541, leaving it at a loss if the holder sells. Data from Arkham Intelligence shows that an address labeled “bc1q…kp4n” sent around 300 BTC, valued at over $20 million, to a Binance deposit address on Tuesday. As of press time, the wallet still retains roughly 200 BTC, which is worth about $13.75 million based on prices at the time of writing.
The wallet appears relatively recent compared to others seen in recent months, where decade-old holdings have suddenly become active to execute similar transfers.
On-chain data indicates that the address accumulated around 513 BTC between January and March 2025. At the time, the stash was worth close to $50 million, pointing to an average acquisition price of roughly $97,541 per coin.
So far, it remains unclear whether the transfer was made with the intent to sell, but movements to exchanges are often linked to potential selling activity. Given that the wallet is currently sitting at a loss, with Bitcoin trading near $69,000, the move could be aimed at limiting further downside.
On the contrary, the transfer could simply be portfolio restructuring or internal fund management rather than an immediate sale.
However, if we look at recent whale activity, it would not come as a surprise if the holder is preparing to sell. Bitcoin is down more than 45% from its all-time high and has faced intense volatility in recent sessions.
Last month a dormant wallet moved 2,100 BTC, worth around $147.7 million, after more than 13 years of inactivity. In another case, roughly $33 million in Bitcoin was sent to Binance by a separate whale.
This is happening as Bitcoin price has remained under pressure due to bearish macro catalysts, particularly rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran. The conflict has pushed oil prices higher and aggravated inflation concerns in the U.S. and across global markets. As long as these tensions persist, large holders may be inclined to remain on the sidelines.
On the other hand, institutions and treasury firms like Strategy have continued buying the flagship crypto.
Crypto exchange OKX CEO Star Xu has challenged Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s famous story about selling his house to invest in Bitcoin. This follows CZ’s release of his autobiography, ‘Freedom of Money,’ in which he shared insights into how he founded Binance.
OKX CEO Questions Binance Founder’s Bitcoin Story In an X post, Xu stated that CZ constantly talks about the story of selling a house to buy Bitcoin, but questioned what the “full truth” behind it was. He went further, raising questions such as where the down payment for that house originally came from and whether it was indeed CZ’s house that was sold.
The Binance founder had reiterated these claims in an interview on the All In podcast earlier this year, revealing that he sold an apartment for around $900,000 and used the proceeds to DCA into Bitcoin during the dip, at an average BTC price of $600. However, the OKX CEO has doubts, prompting him to poke holes in the story.
Xu also questioned whether CZ ever considered the feelings of his wife’s parents, who supported him, when he was using this story to portray himself as “visionary and repeatedly showcasing it as an achievement.” The OKX CEO also suggested that there are truths that he has never disclosed publicly, as it has never been his principle to ‘take advantage’ of someone’s misfortune or use their private life for moral attacks.
“If it weren’t for that book full of falsehoods dragging me into this, I would never have brought up these old matters again,” he added. It is worth noting that the clash between the OKX CEO and the Binance founder dates back to Xu’s allegations that CZ falsified company contracts involving early Bitcoin investor Roger Ver when CZ worked at OKCoin. However, CZ addressed this in his book and denied any wrongdoing, accusing competitors of using FUD to damage his reputation.
The Clash Leads To $1 Billion Wager The clash between the Binance founder and the OKX CEO intensified when CZ said he was happy to bet $1 billion after Xu questioned his claim that he had officially divorced. However, CZ said he wouldn’t post any legal documents online out of respect for his ex-wife’s privacy.
I typically ignore all these false claims attacks. But…
You can apologize now. I am officially divorced.
I won’t post any legal docs online, as I respect privacy of my ex-wife, and I appreciate the time we spent together.
I am happy to bet $1 billion USD (or any number you… https://t.co/G9GAl6nMqL
— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) April 9, 2026
However, he told the OKX CEO that they could get lawyers to validate the divorce agreement if he agreed to take the $1 billion bet. “This bet offer is valid permanently, whenever you feel ready. But if you don’t take it within 24hrs, it clearly shows who has been mis-representing to the public,” he added.
In response, Xu stated that top crypto exchanges OKX and Binance have multiple regulators and that, as the UBO of a regulated company, publicly offering $1 billion is “hardly professional conduct.” He questioned whether Binance regulators would find the move from the Binance founder acceptable.
Regarding whether CZ misled the public about his divorce, the OKX CEO questioned whether his Binance stake has been legally separated from his ex-wife. “Time to own it like a man and apologize. Don’t try to divert topics, with more false attacks,” CZ said in response.
Bitcoin reserves on Binance have dropped to about 619,000 BTC, their lowest level since October 2025, according to CryptoQuant analyst Arab Chain.
Summary
Binance Bitcoin reserves dropped to about 619,000 BTC, their lowest level since October 2025 this week. Spot Bitcoin ETFs added 25,600 BTC last week, lifting total holdings near five-month highs. Bitcoin stayed volatile near $74,800 as exchange outflows and ETF buying reshaped available market supply. The decline points to continued Bitcoin outflows from the exchange after reserves climbed sharply earlier this year.
In February 2026, Binance’s Bitcoin reserves rose to nearly 670,000 BTC, their highest level since 2024. That increase came during a strong market rally and suggested that more investors were moving coins to exchanges, often to sell or lock in profits as prices moved higher.
Investor behavior shifts toward holding Since the February peak, reserves have moved lower in a steady trend. The change suggests that investors have shifted from exchange deposits to withdrawals and off-exchange storage. This type of movement usually shows that holders are choosing to keep Bitcoin rather than sell it at current prices.
Source: CryptoQuant The decline in reserves has happened while Bitcoin has seen sharp price swings. Even with that volatility, fewer coins remain on Binance. The data points to stronger holding behavior as traders move assets into cold storage or other long-term custody options.
At the same time, spot Bitcoin ETFs posted strong accumulation last week. Data showed ETF holdings rose from 1.3141 million BTC on Monday to 1.3397 million BTC by Friday. That means the funds added 25,600 BTC over five trading days.
The latest increase brought ETF balances close to levels last seen in November. It also marked one of the strongest weekly additions in recent months. The combined trend of lower Binance reserves and rising ETF balances suggests that Bitcoin supply is moving away from exchanges and into longer-term investment vehicles.
Bitcoin price stays volatile amid geopolitical pressure Bitcoin price action remained unstable over the weekend. The asset rose above $78,300 late Friday, its highest level since early February, before falling back to the $75,000 to $76,000 range. The retreat followed renewed tension tied to the US military seizure of an Iranian cargo ship and rising concern over oil routes in the Strait of Hormuz.
Late Sunday, Bitcoin briefly dropped below $74,000 as the market reacted to the latest developments between the US and Iran. The two-week ceasefire that had helped calm markets is due to end on Wednesday.
At press time, Bitcoin traded near $74,800, down slightly over 24 hours but still up 5% over the past week.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
