Summary
gm, The SEC approved Grayscale's Digital Large Cap Fund conversion to an ETF that will hold Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, and Cardano, marking a pivotal regulatory shift for multi-asset crypto funds. Simultaneously, Circle has applied to establish a federally regulated national trust bank to manage USDC reserves, potentially enhancing stablecoin infrastructure as legislation advances. On the institutional front, Robinhood announced a layer-2 blockchain on Arbitrum for tokenized stock trading in Europe, while major financial institutions like Deutsche Bank revealed plans to offer crypto custody services by 2026, reflecting growing mainstream adoption. Meanwhile, Bitcoin achieved a record monthly close at $107,200 despite current trading around $106,000, with on-chain data showing less than 15% of Bitcoin supply remains on exchanges, suggesting a potential supply shortage as institutional demand increases.

News Headlines
📈 Analysts Raise SOL, XRP and LTC ETF Approval Probability to 95%

  • Bloomberg ETF analysts have increased the likelihood of approval for Solana, XRP, and Litecoin ETFs from 90% to 95%, with decisions expected by October 2025.
  • Other altcoin ETFs for Dogecoin, Cardano, and Polkadot maintain a 90% chance of approval, signaling a potential "crypto ETF summer" and broader regulatory acceptance.

📱 Ledger Faces Backlash Over Ending Nano S Hardware Wallet Support

  • Ledger is facing criticism for ending support for its nearly decade-old Nano S hardware wallet, citing memory limitations that prevent updates for new applications and features.
  • While the device will continue functioning for basic operations like sending and receiving cryptocurrencies, users are concerned about future security and being forced to upgrade to newer models.

📊 Bitcoin Carries Crypto Markets in 2025's First Half as Altcoins Crumble

  • The crypto market's total capitalization increased by just 3% in H1 2025, with Bitcoin gaining 13% while major altcoins like Ethereum and Solana suffered losses of 25% and 17% respectively.
  • Analysts remain cautiously optimistic for the second half of the year, traditionally stronger for crypto, supported by favorable macroeconomic conditions and regulatory progress.

🔄 Centrifuge Partners with S&P DJI to Launch First Tokenized S&P 500 Index Fund

  • Centrifuge has collaborated with S&P Dow Jones Indices to create the first tokenized S&P 500 Index fund, bringing one of the world's most important indexes onchain.
  • This partnership enables programmable index-tracking products and more efficient handling of real-world assets on transparent, programmable blockchain ledgers.

🧠 Financial Advisor Ric Edelman Recommends 10-40% Crypto Portfolio Allocation

  • Prominent financial advisor Ric Edelman now advocates allocating 10-40% of investment portfolios to digital assets, a significant increase from his previous 1% recommendation.
  • Edelman predicts the crypto market could reach $19 trillion by 2030 and recommends diversifying beyond Bitcoin to include investments in stablecoin issuers and the broader blockchain sector.

Market Metrics

Fundraising & VC
1. The Blockchain Group (Undisclosed, $13M) - Europe’s first publicly-listed Bitcoin treasury company
2. Backseat Exchange (Seed, $9.7M) - Japanese cryptocurrency exchange
3. Datagram (Pre-seed, $4M) - AI-driven hyper-fabric DePIN
4. inshAllah (Pre-seed, $2.1M) - Crypto financial products for Muslim investors

Regulatory
💸 Senate Passes Trump's Budget Bill Without Crypto Tax Relief

  • President Trump's major budget bill passed the Senate without including proposed crypto tax provisions that would have exempted small transactions and clarified taxation of staking rewards.
  • Senator Cynthia Lummis had advocated for amendments to ease tax burdens on crypto transactions under $300, but time constraints prevented these provisions from being voted on.

🔒 FATF Reports 73% of Jurisdictions Implementing Travel Rule

  • The Financial Action Task Force reports that 73% of eligible jurisdictions have implemented its Travel Rule, requiring crypto service providers to collect and share user transaction data.
  • The FATF is increasingly focusing regulatory attention on stablecoins and DeFi, which are identified as growing vectors for illicit financial activities.

⚖️ New York AG Criticizes Stablecoin Legislation

  • New York Attorney General Letitia James has warned Congress that the GENIUS Act lacks "necessary guardrails" for investor protection in regulating stablecoins.
  • She advocates for treating stablecoin issuers as banks with mandatory FDIC insurance and implementing digital identity technology to prevent anonymous transactions that could enable criminal activity.

🏦 European Central Bank Embraces DLT Settlement

  • The European Central Bank Governing Council has approved new initiatives to utilize central bank money for settling transactions on distributed ledger technology (DLT).
  • Two major projects are underway: 'Pontes' will connect DLT platforms with Eurosystem TARGET services by Q3 2026, while 'Appia' will explore global DLT settlement solutions for wholesale central bank money.

✅ SEC Considers Simplified ETF Approval Process

  • The SEC is exploring a streamlined process for crypto ETF approvals that would allow issuers to bypass traditional 19b-4 filings if the SEC doesn't object within 75 days.
  • This potential regulatory change could significantly accelerate the approval timeline for new crypto ETFs, particularly for emerging altcoin products.

Technical Analysis
Bitcoin - Bitcoin is within an approximate horizontal trend channel in the short term. This indicates that investors are uncertain and waiting for signals of further direction. A break upwards will be a positive signal, while a break downwards will be a negative signal. The currency is moving within a rectangle formation between support at 100543 and resistance at 108388. A decisive break through one of these levels indicates the new direction for the currency. The currency is approaching resistance at 108500 points, which may give a negative reaction. However, a break upwards through 108500 points will be a positive signal. The currency is overall assessed as technically slightly negative for the short term.

Ethereum - Ethereum shows weak development in a falling trend channel in the short term. Falling trends indicate that the currency experiences negative development and falling buy interest among investors. The currency is approaching resistance at 2500 points, which may give a negative reaction. However, a break upwards through 2500 points will be a positive signal. The currency is assessed as technically negative for the short term.