Summary
gm, Solana's Alpenglow upgrade passed with overwhelming community support (98% approval), promising to reduce transaction finality times from 12.8 seconds to approximately 150 milliseconds, dramatically enhancing network efficiency. Major corporations continued accumulating digital assets, with Yunfeng Financial purchasing 10,000 ETH ($44M), BitMine adding 153,000 ETH ($655M), and SharpLink acquiring 39,008 ETH ($176M) as part of a growing corporate treasury trend. On the regulatory front, the SEC and CFTC released a joint statement indicating registered exchanges can facilitate trading of certain spot crypto products, potentially opening the door for Bitcoin and Ethereum trading on traditional exchanges like NYSE and Nasdaq. Meanwhile, innovation in DeFi continued with SmartGold and Chintai partnering to tokenize $1.6B in IRA-held gold, allowing investors to earn yield while maintaining tax benefits.

News Headlines
🔄 Coinbase to launch Mag7 crypto equity index futures

  • Coinbase Derivatives is launching Mag7 Crypto Equity Index Futures on September 22, offering traders exposure to seven prominent tech companies (Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, Tesla) alongside crypto assets.
  • The product will be available on Coinbase's CFTC-regulated derivatives exchange, expanding their offerings beyond traditional crypto markets as derivatives trading grows in popularity.

🎭 Elon Musk's Lawyer to Lead 'Official' Dogecoin Treasury

  • Alex Spiro, Elon Musk's attorney, will chair a new digital asset treasury focused on Dogecoin, a collaboration between House of Doge and CleanCore.
  • This treasury aims to enable governance and institutional-grade reporting while exploring staking-like yield opportunities, with CleanCore securing a $175 million private investment.

💰 Ethereum Foundation to sell 10K ETH 'to fund R&D, grants, and donations

  • The Ethereum Foundation has announced the sale of approximately $43 million in Ether to support research and development, grants, and donations related to the ecosystem.
  • The foundation plans to convert 10,000 ETH through centralized exchanges over several weeks in smaller orders rather than a single large sale.

📈 Figure Technology seeks $4B valuation in public listing as crypto IPO wave builds

  • Figure Technology Solutions is targeting a $526 million IPO, planning to sell 21.5 million shares priced between $18-$20, potentially valuing the company at $4.3 billion.
  • The company is part of a growing wave of blockchain companies pursuing public listings, including Binance, Circle, and Kraken, reflecting increasing investor interest in the sector.

🔐 US Bancorp Relaunches Bitcoin Custody After SEC Rule Reversal Under Trump

  • US Bancorp has resumed its digital asset custody services for institutional clients following the rollback of SEC rules under the Trump administration.
  • Initially, the bank will offer custody for Bitcoin, with future expansions planned for other cryptocurrencies that meet their compliance standards.

Market Metrics

Fundraising & VC
1. Etherealize (Undisclosed, $40M) - Institutional business development and product firm for the Ethereum ecosystem
2. Utila (Series A, $22M) - Operating system for stablecoins and digital assets
3. Reflect (Seed, $3.75M) - Synthetic currency exchange protocol on Solana

Regulatory
🏛️ Federal Reserve to Host Conference on Stablecoins and Tokenization

  • The US Federal Reserve announced an October 21 conference focused on payment innovations, particularly stablecoins and tokenization technologies.
  • The conference will explore enhancing payment system safety and efficiency, especially following the passage of the GENIUS Act requiring regulatory frameworks for payment stablecoins.

🌍 ECB President Warns About Non-EU Stablecoin Risks

  • Christine Lagarde urged EU legislators to address issues surrounding stablecoins issued outside the EU that don't comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework.
  • Lagarde emphasized that non-EU stablecoin issuers should only operate within the EU if they provide strong safeguards ensuring par value redemption and full backing.

🔮 CFTC Grants Polymarket Relief on Event Contract Reporting

  • The CFTC issued a no-action letter indicating it won't pursue enforcement actions against QCX LLC and QC Clearing LLC regarding Polymarket's prediction platform.
  • This regulatory relief allows Polymarket to offer event contracts without immediately complying with specific reporting requirements, though other regulatory obligations remain.

📊 US Rises to Second Place in Global Crypto Adoption Rankings

  • According to Chainalysis' Global Crypto Adoption Index, the US has climbed to second place behind India, driven by advancing regulatory clarity enhancing institutional demand.
  • The regulatory progress, including Bitcoin ETFs approval, has encouraged significant institutional inflows despite challenges in grassroots adoption in various regions.

💳 PayPal Launches "Pay with Crypto" for 650 Million Users

  • PayPal has introduced a feature allowing over 650 million users to pay with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether at US merchants through automatic crypto-to-fiat conversion.
  • The wallet-agnostic service enables customers to use various wallets without transferring funds to PayPal, while merchants benefit from lower transaction fees and near-instant settlements.

Technical Analysis
Bitcoin - Bitcoin has broken the ceiling of the falling trend in the short term, which indicates a slower initial falling rate. The currency has support at points 107700 and resistance at points 113500. The currency is assessed as technically neutral for the short term.

Ethereum - Ethereum has broken the floor of the rising trend channel in the short term, which indicates a weaker initial rising rate. The currency has support at points 4130 and resistance at points 4800. The currency is assessed as technically neutral for the short term.