News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily News: Cryptocurrency platform Bitcoin.com has announced the integration of USDU into its self-custody Bitcoin.com Wallet, serving millions of wallet users. USDU, issued by Universal Digital Intl Limited (Universal), is the first USD stablecoin registered as a foreign payment token by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). USDU is an Ethereum ERC-20 token, with each token backed 1:1 by liquid USD reserves held by regulated banks in the UAE. The reserves are independently attested monthly by a third-party accounting firm, with reports published on Universal's official website. Bitcoin.com Wallet's web and mobile versions will support self-custody holding, sending, and receiving of USDU. Bitcoin.com will accept USDU as payment for designated services and plans to enable its use for payments between users and merchants within its products. The wallet will also offer stablecoin education and Learn-to-Earn content. Exchange and buy/sell functionalities will be launched after support from third-party service providers, with availability varying by jurisdiction. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Paul Atkins introduced the "Regulation Crypto Assets" proposal on August 18, covering issuance pathways, disclosure obligations, and safe harbor conditions. Atkins stated that tailored exemptions could attract crypto issuers and investment back to the United States while preserving core investor protections, and expressed support for Congress's push for the CLARITY Act. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce noted that the proposal was developed through public comment and staff engagement, with feedback from both industry supporters and critics shaping the framework's design. SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda pointed out that fixed thresholds and disclosure obligations could enhance issuers' compliance expectations; the proposal has not yet taken effect. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Since the launch of Sui's Hashi Bitcoin lending protocol testnet on July 22, it has processed over 1.1 million Bitcoin deposits and 165,000 withdrawals within three weeks. As of last week, more than 25 institutions had participated in the system's stress testing. Participating institutions include digital asset custodian BitGo, trading firm Cumberland, as well as Swissborg, Fluid, and Ledger, covering areas such as trading, custody infrastructure, and wealth management platforms. Hashi allows users to deposit native Bitcoin, which is confirmed by Sui validators before minting hBTC for on-chain lending and stablecoin borrowing. Deposits utilize a 2-of-2 multi-signature mechanism with MPC validator signatures, while withdrawals require review by the Guardian Layer; the project team will proceed with the 2026 mainnet launch only after this security layer completes its security audit. (Bitcoin.com News)
According to Bitcoin.com, the EU adopted the 21st package of sanctions against Russia on July 23, further tightening controls in the cryptocurrency sector. The new regulations impose trading bans on 14 crypto service platforms in Georgia, Panama, the UAE, Belarus, and other locations, and starting from August 25, prohibit Russian and Belarusian citizens from holding any position or ownership in crypto service providers under the EU's MiCA framework. Additionally, new provisions authorize the EU to impose comprehensive trading bans on third countries that "systemically and persistently fail to prevent" sanctioned crypto activities, granting extraterritorial effect to the relevant regulations.
Odaily News: The Russian Central Bank has released a draft regulation stipulating that professional market participants, including brokers, trust management firms, forex dealers, and cryptocurrency exchanges, must include crypto assets in their equity calculations. Crypto assets approved for trading on exchanges may account for no more than 25% of total equity value. The draft requires that relevant crypto assets be registered with a crypto-asset custodian so that regulators can verify their existence. The Russian Central Bank stated that this ratio will be used to assess credit risk and market risk, ensuring that intermediaries have the capacity to cover potential losses. The Russian State Duma has approved a cryptocurrency regulatory framework that allows both qualified and unqualified investors to trade cryptocurrencies, though the latter are subject to an annual purchase limit of 300,000 rubles (approximately $3,800). Cryptocurrencies still cannot be used as a domestic payment instrument, but import and export enterprises are permitted to use them for cross-border settlements without restrictions. (Bitcoin.com News)
Glassnode pointed out in its latest market report that although Bitcoin has rebounded slightly after retreating from the $65,000 zone last week, it remains clearly range-bound overall. Spot trading volume and on-chain transaction throughput continue to shrink, with market liquidity and participation willingness at low levels. The derivatives market also shows caution, with leverage expanding moderately, but aggressive taker activity in perpetual contracts continues to lean toward the sell side, reflecting more aggressive distribution behavior. Funding rates remain positive, indicating lingering long-side inclination, while the options market continues to price downside protection at a premium above actual volatility levels.Institutional demand has simultaneously weakened, with declining spot ETF volumes compounded by net outflows. Institutional positions are near their cost basis, limiting unrealized profit potential for regulated investors and causing a temporary pause in accumulation momentum. On-chain profitability is under pressure, with a large portion of supply in loss and realized losses consistently exceeding profit-taking.The report also noted that the broader pace of capital outflows has begun to slow, which could be an early signal that selling pressure is stabilizing. The overall market remains caught between short-term selling pressure and relatively resilient long-term holdings. Weak spot liquidity, deteriorating institutional flows, and elevated loss realization collectively point to a continuation of the consolidation pattern, while the slowing outflow pace suggests the market may be approaching a more balanced state before its next directional move.
Odaily News Bitfinex's latest report indicates that Bitcoin (BTC) has been fluctuating within a narrow range recently, with volatility, trading activity, and market liquidity all compressed to levels similar to those seen at the end of a bear market.Currently, Bitcoin's price remains above the "Median Realised Price" of around $63,200, while the key level for short-term holders (STH) to achieve overall profitability stands at $67,176. Meanwhile, market demand is weakening: U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows of approximately $385 million last week, corporate Bitcoin reserve-related activity has turned negative, spot trading volume has fallen to multi-year lows, and Bitcoin transfer speed has dropped to its lowest level in seven years.Bitfinex stated that in the current extremely thin liquidity environment, even slight changes in capital flows could trigger significant Bitcoin price fluctuations. At the same time, weak retail activity, declining real income, and deteriorating consumer confidence indicate that U.S. household demand is under pressure. Bitfinex noted that the current market shows a clear divergence: accommodative financial conditions are driving traditional risk assets higher, but the crypto market has not yet received corresponding capital inflows.Bitfinex believes that the core market question has shifted from "whether monetary policy will improve" to "whether improved liquidity can translate into capital inflows for crypto assets." If Bitcoin spot ETFs resume sustained net inflows in the future, coupled with stablecoin supply expansion, this would signal a restart of the crypto market's liquidity transmission mechanism and could become a key catalyst for BTC breaking out of its prolonged low-volatility state.Before capital returns, although the macro environment is gradually improving, the crypto market's upside still lacks capital support. However, given that market participation has dropped to extremely low levels and BTC continues to hold key realized price support levels, once liquidity re-enters the market, it could trigger violent fluctuations. The current structure leans toward an upward breakout once demand recovers.
According to QCP, the preliminary U.S. University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for August dropped to 51.0, July retail sales fell 0.6% month-on-month, and combined with previously weak employment data, market expectations for the Fed's short-term policy tightening have declined, with federal funds futures showing a probability of about 30% for a 25 basis point rate hike in September.
Odaily News, August 14 — The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) announced a €70,000 fine against crypto asset trading platform Bitpanda. The FMA stated that this is the first legally binding penalty case under the MiCA framework. The FMA noted that Bitpanda violated Article 8 of MiCA by failing to notify the authority and submit a whitepaper at least 20 days before the relevant crypto assets were approved for trading. Additionally, Bitpanda issued marketing notices without first publishing the required whitepaper, in violation of Article 1 of MiCA. The FMA stated that MiCA has moved from mere regulation to the enforcement phase, emphasizing that even though Bitpanda is the first publicly penalized case, it will not receive special treatment. Markus Miller stated that a license can only build trust if the relevant rules are continuously complied with. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said in a post on X that the Bitcoin community deserves recognition for advancing related technical concepts, including UTXO (Unspent Transaction Output) state optimization solutions such as Utreexo. The scaling roadmap Ethereum is currently exploring is precisely about integrating the advantages of different blockchain state models in practice.Vitalik Buterin pointed out that Ethereum hopes to simultaneously possess the advantages of UTXO-mode state, dynamic state, and solutions in between, enabling the vast majority of network activity to achieve "hyperscale" without sacrificing decentralization, node operation convenience, or censorship resistance.Vitalik Buterin stated that future Ethereum scaling is not about simply replicating a single architecture, but rather about combining different design philosophies to improve throughput while maintaining network openness and security.Among these, Utreexo is a state compression solution proposed by the Bitcoin ecosystem that reduces node storage burden by introducing accumulator technology, making full node operation more lightweight and considered helpful for improving Bitcoin's long-term scalability.
Odaily News: As Wall Street and global financial institutions accelerate their entry into the digital asset space, the boundaries between traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) are gradually blurring. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley stated that the era of "going long Bitcoin and short bankers" is over, and financial institutions are pivoting to the other side of the crypto industry, driving digital asset adoption.Hunter Horsley noted that this summer, two financial institutions, each managing over $1 trillion in assets, approved the launch of crypto products in a bear market environment, showing that large institutions are expanding client access to digital assets. "Everyone put on the crypto jersey this year. Now, everyone is working for the crypto industry," Horsley said. He pointed out that these institutions, managing over a trillion dollars in client assets, would not have opened such services during the 2022 crypto market downturn, but are now actively embracing this sector.Fabian Dori, Chief Investment Officer at Sygnum, also believes the relationship between banks and the crypto industry has undergone a structural shift. "The trade of 'going long Bitcoin and short bankers' is over. Banks have moved from resisting digital assets to building, supporting, and distributing them through custody, tokenization, and compliant trading," a change driven primarily by growing client demand and gradually clarifying regulatory rules, rather than short-term market cycles.Nathan McCauley, CEO of Anchorage Digital, said that over the past two years, its client base has increasingly reflected the convergence of traditional and crypto finance. Large financial institutions typically choose to partner with specialized crypto infrastructure companies rather than building their own technology systems.In recent years, a growing number of financial institutions have entered the crypto space, including Swissquote, DBS Bank, BBVA, BNY Mellon, Credit Suisse-affiliated entities, as well as Morgan Stanley and Charles Schwab. (CoinDesk)
Odaily News, Tornado Cash founder Roman Storm stated that if the logic behind the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) case against him holds, tech companies Google and OpenAI should also be held liable for North Korean hackers abusing their products. Those involved reportedly used ChatGPT to write code and Google Gemini for forgery and image manipulation. Storm was convicted in August 2025 of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. He pointed out that the Tornado Cash case could set a legal precedent where software developers are penalized for criminal acts committed by users, emphasizing that criminals should be held accountable rather than the developers of tools. The CLARITY Act for digital asset markets is intended to provide protections for software developers by distinguishing developer liability from the potential misuse of protocols for illegal activities. However, although a final motion for consideration of the bill has been scheduled for a vote, its current chances of passage remain low. (Bitcoin News)
Odaily News: A survey conducted by the European Central Bank (ECB) across 8,205 companies in the eurozone shows that only 0.2% of surveyed businesses accept cryptocurrencies or stablecoins for online payments, while the acceptance rate at physical points of sale stands at 1%. Among businesses with physical points of sale, 92% accept cash payments and 88% accept card payments. Mobile payment acceptance rose from 36% in 2024 to 68% in 2026. (Bitcoin.com News)
: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reviewing a rule change proposal submitted by Cboe BZX Exchange, involving six leveraged commodity ETFs that track 3 times the benchmark's single-day performance. The SEC's initial review period is 45 days after publication in the Federal Register. Volatility Shares LLC is the sponsor of the relevant funds, with products including 3x Gold, Silver, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Crude Oil, and Natural Gas ETFs, all of which are intended to operate as commodity pools and are not registered as investment companies. Among these, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs will primarily invest in near-month and next-month futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) rather than directly holding Bitcoin or Ethereum, and will allocate cash and cash equivalents as collateral or margin. Before the relevant products can be listed, the SEC must approve the exchange's rule change, and the trust's Form S-1 registration statement must also become effective. Each fund must have at least 100,000 shares at the time of listing, and authorized participants may submit cash creation or redemption orders in increments of 10,000 shares. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Cryptocurrency exchange Binance will stop processing transactions involving 16 crypto asset service providers, with restrictions taking effect in three batches on August 7, August 13, and August 23. Users will not be allowed to send or receive assets directly or indirectly with the relevant entities after the corresponding dates. The affected platforms include Shelbit, Aban Tether Exchange, A7 Nigeria, A7 Africa, HTX, EXMO, Rapira, Bitpapa, and Exnode, among others. Transactions initiated after the effective dates may be temporarily withheld and subject to compliance review, and affected wallets may face temporary restrictions. The United States has imposed sanctions on Shelbit and Aban Tether, which are linked to an Iranian crypto network; the UK has also imposed sanctions on Russia-related trading platforms and the A7 network. A7 claims it transferred over $90 billion in funds last year. (Bitcoin.com News)
: Digital asset firm Galaxy Digital has lowered the probability of the CLARITY Act passing this year from 75% in May to 10%. The bill proposes that two U.S. federal regulatory agencies each oversee crypto asset regulation separately. U.S. Senators will return to Washington on September 14, followed by a working period of approximately three weeks. According to the Senate schedule, the motion to invoke cloture to advance the bill will be eligible for a vote at 2:15 PM on September 15. The motion requires the support of at least 60 senators. Republicans currently control 53 seats; if all Republican senators support the bill, support from at least 7 senators from other parties would still be needed. Galaxy Digital stated that unresolved ethics concerns, declining Republican support due to banking lobbying, and the shorter legislative window in September constitute the main obstacles to the bill's passage this year. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Bank Leumi, Israel's largest and oldest commercial bank, has announced a partnership with cryptocurrency company Galaxy Digital, planning to launch Bitcoin, Ether, and Solana trading services on the Leumi Trade investment app and mobile banking platform PEPPER in early 2027, subject to approval from the Bank of Israel. Customers will be able to buy, hold, and sell related crypto assets through their bank accounts, without needing to open accounts on separate exchanges or use personal wallets. Galaxy Digital will provide institutional trading platforms and custody infrastructure, while Bank Leumi intends to operate under a white-label model where customers do not hold private keys. Bank Leumi previously announced a partnership with Paxos in 2022 to offer crypto trading services, but it did not receive regulatory approval. Fees, trading limits, the asset list, and external wallet withdrawal rules for this service have not yet been disclosed, and custodied crypto assets do not enjoy the same deposit insurance coverage as shekel deposits. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Cboe BZX Exchange is seeking approval from the U.S. SEC to list a group of leveraged commodity ETFs, including daily leveraged products with 3x long exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum.According to a proposed rule change filed on Friday, Cboe plans to launch a 3x Gold ETF, 3x Silver ETF, 3x Bitcoin ETF, 3x Ether ETF, 3x Crude Oil ETF, and 3x Natural Gas ETF. These funds will primarily hold CME or COMEX futures contracts, with cash and cash equivalents as collateral, aiming to achieve 3x the daily performance of the corresponding underlying assets.Since these products do not meet the restrictions on leveraged products under the exchange's general listing standards, Cboe needs to obtain approval through a special rule filing. Such highly leveraged funds are typically geared toward sophisticated investors for short-term tactical trading and are not suitable for long-term holding.The filing also shows that these funds will operate as "commodity pools" and fall under CFTC regulation, rather than being structured as investment companies under the 1940 Act regulated by the SEC, as many traditional ETFs are. Commodity pools typically pool capital from multiple investors to trade derivatives or other commodity-related instruments.
Odaily News: Goldman Sachs has disclosed the acquisition of ETF management firm NEOS Investments in a deal valued at up to $2.25 billion, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027 pending regulatory approval. The market views this move as a way for Goldman Sachs to quickly enter the Bitcoin yield ETF space, potentially putting it ahead of BlackRock in the Wall Street crypto asset competition.NEOS currently manages approximately $30 billion in assets, with its most notable product being the Bitcoin yield ETF BTCI (NEOS Bitcoin High Income ETF), which holds about $1.1 billion in assets. The fund generates monthly income for investors by holding Bitcoin-related ETFs and selling call options, currently offering a distribution yield of approximately 27%.Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas stated that by acquiring NEOS, Goldman Sachs gains BTCI, effectively bypassing the need to build a similar product from scratch and "beating" BlackRock's previously launched Bitcoin yield ETF product, BITA.Goldman Sachs' deal is seen by the market as a new phase in Wall Street's crypto asset positioning. Industry insiders believe that Bitcoin spot ETFs represent the "first phase," while active management products based on Bitcoin, such as yield enhancement and options strategies, will become the focus of competition in the next phase.However, BTCI's high yield comes with risks. The product does not directly hold Bitcoin but instead generates returns by selling call options on Bitcoin-related ETFs, potentially sacrificing some upside when the market rallies. Analysts note that BTCI's net asset value has fallen approximately 43% over the past year, and part of its high distribution yield may come from return of capital.BlackRock has already launched a competing product, BITA, but its current scale is approximately $59 million, significantly lower than BTCI's roughly $1.1 billion in assets. The market is watching whether Goldman Sachs will maintain BTCI's existing structure after the acquisition is completed and further expand its competitive advantage in the Bitcoin yield product market. (Forbes)
According to Calcalist, Israel's Bank Leumi announced a cooperation agreement with Nasdaq-listed company Galaxy Digital, planning to launch cryptocurrency trading services within the Leumi Trade application, allowing customers to buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. The service is expected to go live in early 2027, but requires regulatory approval from the Bank of Israel. This collaboration will integrate Galaxy's Galaxy Custody (formerly GK8) blockchain infrastructure and custody services to provide customers with access to regulated digital assets.