Crypto Industry News & Market Trends

Solana Foundation launches framework for protocol-level governance

The Solana Foundation, the Swiss organization that supports the Solana networks development, launched a new framework for protocol-level governance that enables proposing and voting on governance decisions for the Solana blockchain.　　The Solana Governance Proposals (SGPs) establish a standard that enables validators to submit core protocol proposals and vote onchain, with voting power based on their delegated Solana (SOL) stake, the Foundation announced in a Thursday X post.　　“An SGP captures a stake-weighted directional decision. It records what the community wants. It is not strictly focused on the technical detail of how to build the feature,” according to the GitHub repository, launched on Thursday.　　The new framework offers Solana a transparent, community-driven way to make major protocol decisions, reducing reliance on centralized coordination while keeping technical implementations, or Solana Improvement Documents (SIMDs), separate from community governance.　　Other blockchain networks with similar stake-weighted governance mechanisms include Polkadot, Cosmos, Cardano, Tezos and Avalanche.Source: Solana Foundation on X.com　　Proposals require minimum 15% support　　A proposal must receive endorsements from validators representing at least 15% of actively staked Solana tokens to qualify for a formal onchain vote, a measure that seeks to filter out low-quality proposals.　　Validators with at least 100,000 SOL delegated can open a new governance proposal via SGP.

07-02Industry

FBI Director Kash Patel disclosed six-figure Strategy stock purchase months after trade: report

Quick TakeFBI Director Kash Patel disclosed a $100,001 to $250,000 purchase of Strategy stock about six months after buying the shares, according to a NOTUS report.　　FBI Director Kash Patel disclosed a six-figure purchase of Strategy (MSTR) stock roughly six months after executing the trade, according to a NOTUS report citing federal ethics records.　　Patel acquired between $100,001 and $250,000 of Strategy common shares on Nov. 21, 2025, but did not disclose the transaction until filing an amended ethics report on May 26 this year, the report said.　　The late disclosure stemmed from what Patel described in the filings as an “inadvertent omission.” According to records cited by NOTUS, Deputy Assistant Attorney General William Taylor said the omission resulted from a miscommunication and that Patel remained in compliance with applicable conflict-of-interest rules. The FBI said in response to inquiries that the corrected paperwork had been submitted and approved.　　Under the STOCK Act, covered executive branch officials generally must disclose securities transactions above $1,000 within 30 days of notification and no later than 45 days after the transaction. First-time violators are subject to a $200 fine, though no fine has been issued in Patels case, according to an FBI official familiar with the matter.　　The purchase

07-02Industry

Dubai crypto market hits 50 licensed firms after new VARA approval

The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), Dubais crypto regulator, has granted its 50th virtual asset service provider (VASP) license.　　On Thursday, VARA said its latest approval went to tokenized assets platform Tribe Tokenisation FZE.　　The milestone provides one measure of the growth of Dubais crypto licensing regime, though license totals alone do not show how many firms are operational or the level of business they generate.　　A VARA spokesperson told Cointelegraph that holding an active license does not necessarily mean a firm has completed its commercial launch. Newly licensed companies may go through a controlled operationalization period before offering services or onboarding customers.　　At the end of 2025, VARA classified 39 licensed VASPs as fully operational. The spokesperson said the regulator is validating an updated figure for 2026.　　Dubais bid to attract crypto firms　　Dubai has spent the past several years positioning itself as a global hub for digital asset businesses. As part of that effort, the emirate established VARA in March 2022 as a dedicated crypto regulator and has sought to attract crypto businesses through a standalone licensing framework.　　Against that backdrop, Dubais 50 licensed VASPs exceed the totals reported in Hong Kong and Singapore, two other jurisdictions competing to attract regulated crypto businesses. Each jurisdiction

07-02Industry

Metaplanet buys 2,823 BTC, surpasses 43,000 in Bitcoin holdings

Japanese investment company Metaplanet acquired 2,823 Bitcoin during the second quarter at a price below its average purchase price, as its holdings surpassed 43,000 BTC.　　The company acquired its latest trove at an average price of about 12.71 million yen ($78,850 at current exchange rates), reducing its average acquisition cost to about $95,117 per BTC from $96,258, according to a Thursday announcement.　　Metaplanet now holds 43,000 Bitcoin acquired for about $4.1 billion. It also reported about $10.95 million in revenue from its Bitcoin income generation strategy in the quarter, which earns premiums by selling cash-secured options and employing other Bitcoin-related yield strategies.　　The purchase extends Metaplanets aggressive accumulation strategy, which has made the company one of the worlds largest corporate Bitcoin holders. The acquisition comes days after Michael Saylors Strategy, the worlds largest corporate Bitcoin holder, skipped its usual weekly Bitcoin purchase while unveiling a new capital framework designed to support dividends and expand its cash reserves.Metaplanet Notice of Additional Bitcoin Purchase. Source: Metaplanet　　Metaplanet shares closed 3.5% higher on Thursday but remain down 48% year-to-date, underperforming Bitcoin, which has fallen 31% over the same period.　　K Wave latest company to exit Bitcoin treasury strategy　　While companies such as Metaplanet continue buying more Bitcoin, a handful

07-02Industry

Alleged Scattered Spider Hacker Extradited to US for $8 Million Crypto Ransom Demand

In briefA 19-year-old alleged Scattered Spider member, Peter Stokes, has been extradited from Finland to the U.S. to face charges of conspiracy, cyber intrusion, and fraud.Prosecutors say he helped breach a luxury jewelry retailer in May 2025 and demand about $8 million in cryptocurrency, though the company refused to pay.The group has been tied to over 100 intrusions and $100 million in crypto ransoms.　　An alleged member of Scattered Spider, the prolific hacking crew behind some of the biggest corporate breaches of the past few years, has been extradited from Finland to face U.S. charges over an $8 million cryptocurrency ransom demand.　　Peter Stokes, 19, a dual U.S. and Estonian citizen, appeared in Chicago federal court on Tuesday on conspiracy, cyber intrusion, and fraud charges, according to a statement by the Justice Department. Finnish police arrested him in April on an Interpol Red Notice, and he was extradited last week and ordered held pending trial.　　Alleged Member of Criminal Cyber Hacking Group “Scattered Spider” Arrested in Finland and Extradited to United States @FBIChicago @DOJCrimDiv https://t.co/DWs2d9fns0　　— U.S. Attorneys Office (NDIL) (@NDILnews) July 1, 2026　　The complaint centers on a May 2025 breach of an unnamed luxury jewelry retailer. According to the indictment, Stokes and alleged

07-02Industry

Metaplanet adds 2,823 bitcoin to holdings in Q2, bringing total to 43,000 BTC

Quick TakeMetaplanet disclosed that it bought 2,823 BTC during the second quarter.The latest quarterly amount of bitcoin acquisition was notably smaller than those in previous quarters.　　Metaplanet announced on Thursday that it acquired 2,823 bitcoin during the second quarter, bringing its total holdings to 43,000 BTC.　　According to its July 2 disclosure, Metaplanet spent roughly 35.9 billion Japanese yen ($222 million) on purchasing bitcoin over the past three months, which translates into 12.7 million yen ($78,608) per bitcoin.　　The total purchase cost of its bitcoin treasury stood at 659.2 billion yen ($4.07 billion), representing an average cost of 15.3 million yen ($94,792) per bitcoin.　　During the second quarter, Metaplanet also generated $10.95 million worth of revenue from its Bitcoin Income Generation program, which involves the use of bitcoin options for additional returns.　　The Japanese firms latest disclosure shows that its pace of acquisition has slowed — it bought 17,473 BTC in Q3 2025, 4,279 BTC in Q4 and 5,075 BTC in Q1 2026. It aims to accumulate 100,000 BTC by the end of this year, and 210,000 BTC by the end of 2027.　　Bitcoin and the wider cryptocurrency market faced significant downside pressure during the second quarter. The worlds largest cryptocurrency fell to $58,558 at the

07-02Industry

Bitcoin bear market ‘dead’ after first TD9 reversal signal since July 2022 fires

Bitcoin (BTC) has delivered a key trend change setup in the latest sign that the macro downtrend could soon reverse.　　Key points:Bitcoin is seeing its first “perfected” TD9 indicator downtrend setup on monthly time frames since mid-2022.While not a “buy signal” on its own, the move marks a key inflection phase in the bear market, analysis suggests.RSI divergences continue to gain sway among those eyeing the final stages of the 2026 market downturn.　　BTC price “perfected” TD9 setup echoes final bear-market stages　　In an X post on Tuesday, analyst Tony Severino flagged a “perfected” buy signal on the TD9 indicator.　　TD9 is a derivative of the Tom DeMark Sequential market timing indicator, which alerts traders to potential trend changes. Here, price triggers a notable signal when nine candles in a row close higher (in an uptrend) or lower (in a downtrend) than the closing price four candles prior.　　“Bitcoin has ‘perfected’ a TD9 buy setup on the monthly,” Severino commented alongside data from TradingView.　　BTC/USD one-month chart with TD9 indicator data. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView　　The setup is Bitcoins first in several years on monthly time frames, with the last TD9 downtrend signal coming in July 2022.　　At the time, BTC/USD spent another five months ironing out its bear-market bottom,

07-02Industry

Ethereum backers launch nonprofit to lead institutional adoption efforts

An Ethereum founder and some of its biggest treasury holders are behind a new independent nonprofit launched to coordinate the blockchains institutional outreach, underscoring the ecosystems push to attract more banks, asset managers and financial institutions as competition from rival blockchains intensifies.　　The nonprofit, Ethereum Institutional, was introduced on Wednesday with backing from Ether (ETH) treasury companies BitMine Immersion Technologies and SharpLink, as well as blockchain co-founder Joe Lubin and other contributors. It plans to expand beyond New York, London, Hong Kong and Singapore into additional financial hubs while offering education, standards development, industry research and institutional events.　　In a social media post announcing the launch, Ethereum Institutional said the ecosystem has lacked “a credible, independent front door” for engaging financial institutions, arguing that such a role is needed to accelerate institutional adoption.Source: Ethereum Institutional on X.com　　The launch comes as Ethereum continues to dominate the markets for stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), even as rival blockchains step up efforts to attract institutional users. According to Token Terminal, Ethereum hosts nearly 58% of the tokenized RWA market. Data from DeFiLlama also shows the network accounts for roughly half of the $311 billion stablecoin market.　　Although competition is intensifying, Ethereum remains the dominant blockchain

07-02Industry

Bank of Korea governor outlines tokenized bond vision, unified ledger plan

Hyun Song Shin, the governor of the Bank of Korea, praised tokenization for its ability to simplify the issuance and management of government bonds.　　Shin said during a Wednesday panel discussion at the European Central Bank (ECB) Forum on Central Banking in Sintra, Portugal, that tokenized bonds would make it easier to verify collateral, credit the asset providers account and reverse transactions at the appropriate time.　　“The big prize is tokenizing government bonds,” Shin said, adding that it is “much easier, much less prone to mistakes if you have everything tokenized.”　　US Treasury debt is the largest tokenized real-world asset category, representing $14.6 billion, or about 46% of the $31.7 billion RWA market, according to data provider RWA.xyz.　　Shin also outlined plans to bring tokenized government bonds, wholesale central bank digital currencies and tokenized commercial bank deposits on a unified ledger, as part of an extension to “Project Hangang,” a Bank of Korea-led pilot project testing a blockchain-based wholesale CBDC system.　　Hyun Song Shin, governor of the Bank of Korea, speaks during a panel discussion at the ECB Forum on Central Banking. Source: YouTube　　Tokenized government bonds may boost financial innovation: BIS　　Government bond tokenization could improve market efficiency and support financial innovation, provided regulatory and infrastructure

07-02Industry

Analyst warns BTC could drop further after worst June since 2022

Bitcoin could face further downside pressure after ending June below its 200-week moving average but above its realized price, a combination that crypto analyst PlanB says suggests the market has yet to reach a bear market bottom.　　Bitcoin fell 20.5% in June to close the month at $58,526 — its worst monthly performance since June 2022 — below its 200-week moving average of $62,000 but above its realized price of $52,000.　　“ALL previous bear market bottoms were below realized price,” said PlanB, the creator of the stock-to-flow pricing model, on Wednesday, adding in a separate post that Bitcoin could drop to $52,000.　　The price move would mean Bitcoin falling about 60% from its all-time high of $126,000 in October. The dip could be even deeper, as previous bear markets have seen Bitcoin fall even further, such as 83% in 2018 and 76% in 2022.　　BTC is undervalued but can still go lower　　“Right now, price is much lower than value and indeed might go lower from here (below realized),” PlanB said. “So, Bitcoin is undervalued but can still go lower.”　　BTC is trading between the 200-week moving average and the realized price. Source: PlanB 　　Bitcoins realized price is the aggregate cost basis of all coins in

07-02Industry

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