Summary
gm, Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced a standalone bill to ease crypto tax burdens, including a $300 "de minimis" exemption for transactions and clarifications on staking rewards taxation. Bitcoin briefly touched $110,000 before facing resistance and pulling back to around $108,000, while market observers were captivated by the movement of dormant Bitcoin worth over $8 billion from wallets inactive for 14 years. On the institutional front, Bitstamp secured a license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore, strengthening its position in Asia, while House Republicans announced a dedicated "Crypto Week" (July 14-18) to advance three key bills on market structure, stablecoins, and CBDC regulations. Additionally, Ripple's application for a US banking license has garnered attention as the company seeks to establish new standards in the stablecoin market.

News Headlines
šŸ’° Bitcoin ETF Inflows Surge Past $600 Million for First Time Since May

  • Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded inflows of $601.8 million in a single day, the highest level since early June, with BlackRock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC leading the surge. This capital influx reflects market responses to anticipated looser financial conditions under new U.S. policies.
  • Despite the significant inflows indicating confidence among institutional investors, Bitcoin struggled to maintain momentum above $110,000, settling around $108,900 as markets reacted to robust employment data and potential impacts of trade tensions.

āš ļø Amundi Warns GENIUS Act Could Backfire, Undermining Dollar Dominance

  • European asset manager Amundi warns that the US GENIUS Act may lead to an increase in dollar-backed stablecoins, potentially jeopardizing the global payment system and the dollar's long-term dominance by suggesting it is not fully collateralized with adequate assets.
  • This change could attract companies like Apple and Google to issue their own stablecoins, transforming them into 'quasi-banks' and potentially destabilizing payment systems. If enacted, stablecoins could represent a $3.7 trillion market by 2030.

šŸŒ $250M Ondo Catalyst Fund Signals 'Arms Race' for Real-World Asset Tokenization

  • Ondo Finance and Pantera Capital are investing $250 million in real-world assets (RWAs) through their new Ondo Catalyst fund, reflecting growing interest in tokenization within the financial industry.
  • The RWA market has reportedly grown by 380% since 2022, reaching $24 billion, primarily driven by private credit and U.S. government debt. This initiative follows Robinhood's launch of a layer-2 blockchain for trading tokenized US stocks and ETFs in Europe.

šŸ“± Telegram's Crypto Ecosystem Achieves Billion-Dollar Unicorn Status with The Open Platform

  • The Open Platform (TOP), part of Telegram's crypto ecosystem, has achieved a $1 billion valuation following a Series A funding round of $28.5 million led by Ribbit Capital, marking the first unicorn in the Telegram-linked The Open Network (TON) ecosystem.
  • The funding will support expansion efforts to drive mainstream crypto adoption in the United States and Europe. Key innovations include Telegram's first native crypto wallet and the Getgems NFT marketplace, with CEO Andrew Rogozov optimistic about widespread engagement through consumer apps built on TON within Telegram.

šŸ³ Mysterious Bitcoin Whale Moves $8 Billion in 'Largest Daily' Transfer of Old BTC in History

  • A Bitcoin whale moved over $8 billion worth of BTC (approximately 80,000 Bitcoin) that had remained untouched for 14 years. The transactions occurred in batches of 10,000 BTC and originated from an early miner who received the coins in 2011.
  • This transfer represents the largest daily movement of coins aged ten years or more in Bitcoin's history, surpassing previous records. At one point, this entity controlled about 200,000 BTC (estimated $21.5 billion), making it one of the largest Bitcoin holders ever.

Market Metrics

Fundraising & VC
1. Distinct Possibility Studios (Undisclosed, $30.5M) - Indie game studio led by MMO and FPS veterans
2. Zypher Network (Undisclosed, $7M) - ZK computing layer for trustless AI agents & large DApps
3. Coinstash (Series A, $3.1M) - Australian crypto exchange

Regulatory
šŸ›ļø Oregon AG Fights to Keep Coinbase Securities Case in State Court

  • Oregon's Attorney General is opposing Coinbase's attempt to transfer a securities lawsuit to federal court, insisting it should remain under state jurisdiction.
  • The case revolves around Oregon's use of the broader Pratt test to classify securities, rather than the federal Howey test, allowing for wider cryptocurrency regulation.

šŸ” IRS Fails to Meet Standards for Seizing Crypto, Says Watchdog

  • A Treasury Inspector General report revealed that the IRS Criminal Investigation division repeatedly failed to adhere to protocols for seizing and safeguarding cryptocurrencies.
  • Key recommendations include better training for personnel, creating an accurate inventory system for seized digital assets, and updating record-keeping guidelines.

šŸ¦ Bank of Canada Outlines Technical Path for Retail CBDC

  • The Bank of Canada has published research outlining a technical design for a retail central bank digital currency that prioritizes privacy, speed, and decentralization.
  • The proposed OpenCBDC 2PC system would separate personal identity from transaction data, potentially offering greater privacy than existing electronic payment systems.

šŸ’° Chinese Tech Giants Push for Yuan-Based Stablecoins

  • JD.com and Ant Group are urging China's central bank to permit the issuance of yuan-based stablecoins to counter the growing influence of US dollar-linked digital currencies.
  • The companies plan to launch stablecoins backed by the offshore yuan in Hong Kong to enhance the global status of the Chinese currency.

šŸš” Sweden Orders Increased Seizures of Criminal Crypto Assets

  • Sweden's Justice Minister has directed law enforcement to intensify efforts in seizing criminal assets, particularly cryptocurrencies, under recently implemented legislation.
  • The new law allows authorities to confiscate property even without proving an offense occurred if the individual cannot explain its origin, making it among Europe's strictest.

Technical Analysis
Bitcoin - Bitcoin is within an approximate horizontal trend channel in the short term, which indicates further development in the same direction. An inverse head and shoulders formation is under development. A decisive break of the resistance at 108880, ideally with an increase in volume, signals a further rise. The currency has given a positive signal from the rectangle formation by a break up through the resistance at 107710. Further rise to 115727 or more is signaled. The currency is testing resistance at points 109000. This could give a negative reaction, but an upward breakthrough of points 109000 means a positive signal. The currency is overall assessed as technically neutral for the short term.

Ethereum - Ethereum is in a falling trend channel in the short term. This shows that investors over time have sold at lower prices to get out of the currency, and indicates negative development for the currency. The currency is testing support at points 2490. This could give a positive reaction, but a downward breakthrough of points 2490 means a negative signal. The currency is assessed as technically neutral for the short term.