News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily News: The Smarter Web Company has announced plans to launch the UK's first Bitcoin-backed preferred shares, subject to shareholder approval. The company expects to raise $20 million to $34 million through a potential IPO, to be used for increasing its Bitcoin holdings and acquiring cash-flow-generating operating businesses.
According to The Straits Times, Australian AI infrastructure company Firmus announced a multi-year agreement with OpenAI to supply computing power from two data centers in Malaysia, establishing OpenAI as Firmus's anchor customer. Following the signing of the agreement, Firmus's contracted capacity across its global client portfolio has exceeded 900 megawatts. Backed by institutional investors including Nvidia, Jane Street, Blackstone, and Coatue Management, Firmus holds a recent valuation of over $10.5 billion. The company currently operates data centers in Australia and Singapore, with five additional facilities under development across the Asia-Pacific region. It plans to deploy Nvidia's next-generation Vera Rubin processors at scale in the Asia-Pacific.
According to Bloomberg, AI company Humain is planning to raise its first $2.5 billion in funding to establish a fund dedicated to data center investments. Sources familiar with the matter said the fund will finance 250 megawatts of data center capacity being developed in partnership with Al Moammar Information Systems, with the total scale potentially expanding to 1 gigawatt in the future. Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Humain is advancing local AI compute and data center infrastructure to meet growing demand for AI processing.
According to Bloomberg, Ireland has announced a new savings account plan that allows investors to hold stocks and ETFs within the account while enjoying tax benefits. Backed by the state, the account is expected to officially launch in early next year, offering full tax exemption up to a certain threshold, with a low fixed tax rate applied to amounts exceeding it. The specific tax-free threshold and related details will be formally announced in the budget on October 6.
Odaily News: Stablecoin issuer Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that stablecoins are a more credible form of money than tokenized bank deposits, as the former is almost fully backed by U.S. Treasuries, while the latter typically has only 10% liquid asset backing.Pablo Hernandez de Cos, General Manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), said stablecoins raise concerns regarding redemption capacity, supply, interoperability, and their potential to facilitate criminal activity, adding that tokenized bank deposits represent a more direct path to preserving the foundations of the monetary system while leveraging tokenization.Ardoino noted that USDT's market capitalization has surpassed $183 billion and is used in some emerging markets for domestic and cross-border commerce. In discussions surrounding the CLARITY Act, banks have expressed concerns that allowing crypto exchanges to offer incentives on stablecoins could trigger deposit outflows. (Bitcoin.com News)
According to CoinDesk, cryptocurrency platform Bullish will provide $100 million in stablecoin debt financing to USD.AI to support loans collateralized by GPUs and other high-performance computing assets, advancing AI infrastructure development.
Odaily News - U.S. mortgage lender Better Mortgage and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase have announced the launch of a bitcoin-backed mortgage product that allows U.S. homebuyers to use BTC as collateral for their down payment loan, eliminating the need to sell their bitcoin holdings. The product is now officially open for applications.The product consists of a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage paired with a separate down payment loan. Borrowers are required to pledge BTC valued at least 250% of the down payment loan amount, with the collateral transferred to Better's custody account on Coinbase Prime. Both loans carry the same interest rate and amortization period, and are repaid through a single monthly payment.A decline in the bitcoin price will not independently trigger a margin call or alter the mortgage terms, but if a borrower falls 60 days or more behind on payments, Better may liquidate the pledged BTC. Applicants must be U.S. residents with a verified Coinbase account, and Coinbase One members can also earn a 1% rebate of up to $10,000, which can be applied toward closing costs and fees. (Cointelegraph)
Better partners with Coinbase to launch Bitcoin-backed loans, allowing borrowers to access funds using BTC as collateral without liquidating assets, thereby gaining liquidity while avoiding capital gains taxes.
Odaily News: According to Onchain Lens monitoring, Fireblocks Custody (9Ryc...4xfCxk) has deposited USD1 worth $28 million to Binance in three transactions over the past 21 hours, with amounts of $10 million, $15 million, and $3 million respectively.
According to Bloomberg, the Trump family-backed cryptocurrency project World Liberty Financial has received preliminary conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a national trust bank charter, with plans to establish World Liberty Trust Company. Upon final approval, the institution will be able to directly issue and redeem the stablecoin USD1, manage its reserve assets, and provide digital asset custody services.
Decentralized finance platform Ether.fi announced that its self-custody app has added trading for tokenized stocks, metals, and crypto assets, along with the ability to borrow against multiple holdings as collateral. Users can lend assets or borrow against a portfolio through the integrated Aave market on Optimism, allowing them to transfer or spend borrowed funds without selling their positions. Ether.fi stated that its fiat accounts support global deposits and withdrawals across more than 30 currencies and payment methods. However, tokenized stock and metal trading is not available to users in the United States and certain other markets. Fiat accounts are only open to users who have completed payment card identity verification, and deposit and withdrawal speeds may vary. Ether.fi will also introduce automatic ETHFI buybacks and offer 3% cashback on card spending. Ether.fi founder and CEO Mike Silagadze said that initial support will cover Ethereum, Bitcoin, Hyperliquid, ETHFI, and select tokenized stocks and gold, with additional collateral assets to be added later. (Decrypt)
Odaily News: Michigan State Representative Donavan McKinney defeated incumbent U.S. Representative Shri Thanedar in the Democratic primary for Michigan's 13th Congressional District. As of Wednesday, McKinney held 51.9% of the vote, compared to Thanedar's 48.1%. In this primary, Protect Progress, a crypto-backed political action committee, spent over $2 million on media expenditures to support Thanedar's re-election and oppose McKinney. Protect Progress is affiliated with Fairshake, which is primarily backed by crypto companies Coinbase and Ripple. Thanedar previously voted in the House in favor of bills such as the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act. McKinney will face Republican candidate Taras Nykoriak in the November election.
Tether announced that its gold-backed digital asset XAU₮ has received Sharia compliance certification from Amanah Advisors, an institution led by Mufti Faraz Adam. The certification confirms that XAU₮ adheres to the core principles of Islamic finance. XAU₮ is issued by TG Commodities, S.A. de C.V., with each full token representing direct ownership of physical gold stored in Swiss vaults. Certification requirements include genuine ownership of physical gold, clear and verifiable asset backing, no interest (riba), no leverage or speculative derivatives, and transparent reserve structures. Tether stated that XAU₮ can be used for integrating digital gold products into Islamic banking, takaful and halal savings products, long-term wealth preservation strategies, as well as tokenized trade finance and collateral applications. Amanah Advisors will continue to work with Tether to develop practical guidelines and governance frameworks to support the adoption of XAU₮ in a Sharia-compliant manner.
BitcoinTreasuries.NET posted on X, stating that Swedish public company Bitcoin Treasury Capital has launched Europe’s first BTC-backed preferred stock on the Spotlight Stock Market, trading under the ticker BTC PREF. The product offers an annual dividend of 10%, paid on a monthly basis.
The South Korean government has released a "Roadmap for the Internationalization of the Won," aiming to transition the currency from a regulated currency to a freely convertible one. The roadmap was jointly formulated by the Financial Services Commission, the Bank of Korea, the Financial Supervisory Service, and the Korea Securities Depository. The Bank of Korea also plans to advance a tokenized treasury bond pilot project linked to an institutional CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency). Additionally, South Korea will participate in Project Agora, an international payment initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). (coinpost)
: AI reasoning cloud startup General Compute has obtained a $400 million loan from Upper90. This deal is the world’s first financing project to use dedicated inference chips as collateral. The company has built a proprietary AI reasoning cloud platform based on SambaNova’s self-developed ASIC chips, primarily targeting Agent-type AI computing workloads. Compared to traditional GPU clouds, it offers faster token processing speeds and lower operational latency. The hardware requires no water cooling and can be directly deployed in traditional data centers and idle cryptocurrency mining facilities.
Bilal bin Saqib, Chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), has requested Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi to clarify the distinction between speculative cryptocurrencies and asset-backed digital tokens, following the religious institution’s ruling that cryptocurrency-based purchases are not compliant with Islamic law. The ruling pertains to a consultation on using cryptocurrencies to pay for books and online course fees. Waqas Ghani, Head of Research at JS Global Capital, stated that the ruling could hinder bank-led cryptocurrency adoption in Pakistan, but trading volumes have not yet been affected. Saqib stated that PVARA is working with scholars to evaluate digital assets by category, rather than treating them as a single class. He noted that blockchain-recorded Sukuk represent ownership of real income-generating assets, while gold-backed tokens and fully-reserved stablecoins correspond to redeemable value. He added that speculative tokens without underlying assets fall into a different category, and scholars' concerns must be taken seriously. PVARA will continue to collaborate with scholars as it develops a licensing framework in Pakistan and advances efforts in stablecoins and the tokenization of real-world assets.
BitcoinTreasuries.NET posted on X platform, stating that Bitcoin Treasury Capital has been approved to list Sweden's first BTC-backed preferred stock, BTC PREF, on the Spotlight Stock Market, offering a 10% annual dividend, with trading set to begin on July 20.
the UK government is accelerating the tokenization of its financial markets. 54 financial institutions, including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, and UBS, have joined the Wholesale Digital Markets Working Group supported by HM Treasury.Backed by the City of London Corporation, the working group will explore real-world tokenization use cases in the UK financial markets over the next year, with an initial focus on tokenised repurchase agreements (tokenised repo).Chris Woolard, the HM Treasury’s lead on wholesale digital markets, stated in a report that the tokenized financial market represents a "network race" and that the UK must move at the fastest possible pace, or risk missing the opportunity to participate in the global digital financial infrastructure buildout. (CoinDesk)
on July 10, 2026, Metaplanet announced a joint research initiative with JPYC, Progmat, and Metaplanet Securities to explore Bitcoin-backed digital credit products. The plan involves using Bitcoin as collateral for tokenization tools, including settlements via a yen-pegged stablecoin and digital corporate bonds managed by security tokens. As of the end of the second quarter of 2026, Metaplanet held approximately 43,000 BTC, valued at $2.75 billion based on Saturday's BTC exchange rate. Metaplanet stated that the research has not yet yielded a product, and no issuance date, interest rate, product structure, or sales method has been determined. Its 43,000 BTC holdings have not been staked to any specific product at this stage. (Bitcoin.com News).