Crypto Industry News & Market Trends

Legendary Trader Brandt Buys Bitcoin: Rare Pattern Is Key Reason Why

Legendary futures trader and head of Factor LLC Peter Brandt has opened a long position in Bitcoin, completely reversing his previous market outlook. The change in his trading strategy was prompted by a decisive technical breakout from a rare chart pattern that pulled the cryptocurrency out of a prolonged downtrend.　　Recently, falling prices had dominated the market, and Brandt openly admitted that “there was a reason to have expected a downside move in Bitcoin.”　　Because of the prolonged formation of the right shoulder, the trader believed that the chart pattern “has a 60/40 chance to be resolved to the downside,” especially considering that the broader “trend was down.”　　Daily CME Bitcoin futures chart showing an inverted head-and-shoulders breakout to $72,330. Source: Peter Brandt / TradeNavigator　　However, this weeks price action completely invalidated the bearish scenario. A period of local calm gave way to a powerful impulse: Bitcoin moved above resistance near $64,000, established solid support and ended a multiweek consolidation with a decisive breakout.　　As a result, on the daily chart of CME Bitcoin futures (BTC-056 contract), the price broke above the key neckline of the inverted head-and-shoulders reversal pattern. The completion of this pattern, which has been rare in the current market cycle, triggered

08-20Industry

CFTC plans crypto rules regardless of CLARITY Act

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has prepared digital asset market structure proposals that could move forward even if Congress does not pass the CLARITY Act.　　Whale Insider reported on Aug. 20 that Selig said the CFTC already had regulatory proposals prepared, giving the agency a route to continue its crypto agenda if lawmakers fail to complete the legislation.　　JUST IN: ???????? CFTCs Selig says ‘Crypto will get market structure regardless of bill.’ pic.twitter.com/h0Olv6WF54　　— Whale Insider (@WhaleInsider) August 20, 2026　　“Crypto will get market structure regardless of bill,” Selig said, according to the report.　　Selig‘s statement did not identify which proposals the agency has finished drafting, when it could publish them, or how much of the planned framework could be created under the CFTC’s current legal powers. Congress would still need to act before the regulator could receive the full spot-market authority contemplated by the CLARITY Act.　　CFTC crypto rules could proceed under existing powers　　The CFTC currently oversees derivatives markets, including futures, options, and swaps tied to digital assets. Its enforcement authority also covers fraud and manipulation in spot commodity transactions, but the agency does not have the same routine supervisory power over crypto spot exchanges that it exercises over registered derivatives platforms.　　Without legislation, any CFTC

08-20Industry

The onchain agent infrastructure stack: Building rails for autonomous web3

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.　　The Graph says onchain AI agents need identity, structured data and payments to act autonomously.　　Artificial intelligence and blockchain have spent years developing largely along parallel tracks. AI has become increasingly capable of reasoning, interpreting instructions and making decisions, while blockchain networks have created programmable financial systems that can operate without centralized intermediaries. The next stage is bringing those capabilities together.　　The result could be an internet populated not only by human users, but also by autonomous AI agents capable of discovering information, making decisions, interacting with protocols and paying for services on their own.　　That future requires more than increasingly powerful large language models. As The Graph Foundation explains in its Aug. 18 blog post, “The Onchain Agent Infrastructure Stack Explained,” autonomous agents need infrastructure that translates AI reasoning into reliable blockchain actions. The Graph frames the emerging stack around three fundamental requirements: identity, environmental awareness and economic agency.　　Identity: Giving agents an onchain passport　　Before an autonomous agent can transact, a blockchain needs a reliable way to identify it and determine what it is authorized to do.　　Simply giving an AI agent access to

08-20Industry

NeoSoul Raises $11 Million in Pre-A Funding to Accelerate Its Expansion in the AI Economy

NeoSoul announced the completion of an $11 million Pre-A funding round, with participation from MH Ventures, Amber Group, ArkStream Capital, 0G Foundation, Kirin Capital, CatcherVC, and New Oak International. The new capital will support the continued development of NeoSouls agentic trading products and broader AI economy infrastructure.　　The financing follows the launch of NeoTrade, NeoSouls agentic trading workbench. NeoTrade allows traders to configure their own AI trading agents and enable them to make decisions and execute trades autonomously.　　AI is moving beyond assisted analysis toward independent execution. In trading, the industry is increasingly focused on how to preserve agent autonomy while keeping capital secure and under clearly defined controls.　　The round brings together investors spanning digital assets, Web3 infrastructure, decentralized AI, and capital markets across Asia and North America. Kirin Capital, a key investor in the round with a long-standing presence in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, will further support NeoSouls expansion across Vietnam and the broader Southeast Asian market.　　Kaelan, Co-Founder of NeoSoul, said: “AI is moving from producing information to participating autonomously in economic activity, and trading is one of the earliest use cases where a complete economic loop can emerge. NeoTrade is our entry point. Following this round, NeoSoul will continue building

08-20Industry

XRP Whales Go Crazy With 300 Million Tokens Scooped Up in 25% Price Surge

XRP has risen more than 25%, reaching $1.245 early Thursday, joining a rally that took Bitcoin past $72,000.　　This follows months of quiet accumulation from large holders, or whales. Onchain data indicates that average spot order sizes for XRP have stayed in the “big-whale” territory throughout 2026. These large XRP spot orders, according to CryptoQuant, suggest “quiet accumulation.”　　In the most recent bout of accumulation, XRP whales went on a “crazy” shopping spree, according to crypto analyst Ali, scooping up 300 million tokens in a 96-hour timeframe.　　This follows a growth in millionaire wallets. Santiment reported in the past week an increase in the XRP millionaire wallet cohort, which added 32 wallets in 3 months.　　XRP price jumps　　XRP recorded a sharp price surge on Thursday, rising from $1.08 to $1.24. On Wednesday, XRP price began to rise from a low of $0.99, netting a gain of over 25% in the context of its intraday high of $1.245.　　At the time of writing, XRP was up 22% in the last 24 hours to $1.23 and up 24% weekly. An activity surge and an open interest surge had preceded XRPs massive rise.　　Earlier in the week, CryptoQuant reported a surge in XRP open interest data on Binance, indicating

08-20Industry

Every Trump-Endorsed Crypto is Down 60%. Will Hyperliquid be Different？

President Donald Trump has made eight crypto endorsements since taking office. Every one trades below its pre-endorsement price, down 60% on average. On Wednesday, he made his ninth by naming Hyperliquid (HYPE) at the White House.　　The token jumped 14% within two hours. Whether HYPE escapes the Trump-endorsed crypto pattern depends on something no earlier pick had. A regulator is actually working on the promise.　　What Trump Actually Promised Hyperliquid　　Trump name-dropped Hyperliquid on Wednesday while hosting executives from Coinbase, Ripple, Nasdaq, and other firms at the White House.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　“I understand that Mike is also working to bring Hyperliquid into the United States in a fully compliant and legal fashion,” Donald Trump, remarks at the White House, August 19, 2026.　　“Mike” is Michael Selig, chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the agency that oversees US derivatives markets.　　Minutes after the comment, HYPE spiked from $62.23 to nearly $71. Hyperliquid Strategies, a Nasdaq-listed company that holds HYPE in its treasury, closed 30% higher on its best day on record.　　HYPE trades near $71.45 at press time, up 21.3% over 24 hours. The token now ranks tenth by market cap at $15.9 billion.　　Hyperliquid (HYPE) Price Performance. Source: BeInCrypto　　Notably, Trump had never mentioned Hyperliquid before, in any post

08-20Industry

Bitdeer secures $400 million AI contract for Malaysia facility

Bitdeer AI has signed a five-year customer agreement expected to generate about $400 million from roughly half of its A102 data center capacity in Malaysia before the facility has been energized.　　SummaryBitdeer AI signed a five-year deal expected to generate about $400 million.The contract covers roughly half of the capacity at its A102 Malaysia facility.Revenue from the agreement is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2027.Bitdeer is targeting 350 MW of AI cloud data center capacity by early 2028.　　Bitdeer AI said in a Wednesday announcement that the agreement covers about 50% of the A102 sites available capacity and was signed with an undisclosed customer it described as being of “high credit quality.”　　Revenue from the contract, along with the costs associated with delivering the service, is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2027 when operations under the agreement start.　　The deal gives the Bitcoin miners AI business a contracted customer for a large portion of the Malaysian facility before commercial operations begin, while Bitdeer AI continues building data center capacity across several markets.　　Bitdeer AI has secured half of A102 capacity before launch　　Under the five-year agreement, the unnamed customer will use about half of the available capacity at Bitdeer AIs

08-20Industry

Fake Crypto AML Checkers Are Trying to Drain Users' Wallets

In briefMalwarebytes identified fake crypto AML checkers that trick users into connecting their wallets and approving transactions.The sites impersonate legitimate services such as AMLBot and use fake scans and results to appear legitimate.A basic AML check only requires a public wallet address, not a wallet connection or transaction approval.　　Scammers are targeting crypto holders with fake anti-money laundering services designed to trick users into approving transactions that could put their digital assets at risk, cybersecurity firm Malwarebytes warned.　　In a report published Wednesday, Malwarebytes said the sites impersonate services that check whether crypto wallets have interacted with stolen or illicit funds. Some mimic the legitimate service AMLBot, while others use generic names such as “AML Check.”　　Myriad: XRP price next move？ Click to make your prediction.　　Crypto AML services check a wallets public transaction history for links to hacks, scams, sanctioned entities, and other suspicious activity. A basic check only requires a wallets public address and does not require users to connect their wallet, approve permissions, or sign a transaction.　　According to Malwarebytes, the fake sites prompt users to connect their crypto wallets for an AML check, then simulate the process with fake progress messages and results. One site asked users for a small top-up

08-20Industry

73% of Global Stock Money is Coming to Europe as Iran Threatens the Region

Iran has reportedly assessed attacks on US military targets in Europe, according to two people close to the regime.　　The timing sets up a test for the rotation into European assets. The money moved in as semiconductor volatility rose and past signs of cooling hostilities lifted regional sentiment.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　European Equity Inflows Took Nearly Three Quarters of Global Money　　European equity funds pulled in $13.52 billion in the week through August 12. LSEG Lipper data shows that it was the largest weekly inflow since July 8.　　The money arrived as global equity funds logged a 12th straight week of inflows worth $18.62 billion. Europe claimed 72.6% of that total. Investors withdrew $1.7 billion from technology funds over the same stretch.　　The rotation started earlier. BeInCrypto reported that European stock ETFs recorded their first positive month since February in July, with $4.4 billion reportedly flowing into BlackRock products.　　Tehran Signals the War Could Reach Europe　　The capital arrives as Iranian planning has reportedly turned toward Europe. The Financial Times, citing two regime insiders, reported that Iranian forces have examined attacking US military targets in Europe in case Donald Trump escalates the war.　　The targets may include Bulgaria, which cleared its Bezmer air base for American refueling aircraft last month. One

08-20Industry

OrdinalsBot, Bitcoins First Inscription Service, Is Shutting Down After 3 Years

OrdinalsBot, the first inscription service in the Bitcoin (BTC) Ordinals ecosystem, has announced its shutdown. The project will sell its brand, intellectual property, and full technology stack.　　It opened about a month after the Ordinals protocol went live in early 2023. The project said that sustaining the business is not viable.　　OrdinalsBot Puts Brand, IP, and 90 Code Repositories Up for Sale　　The team announced the decision in a post on X. OrdinalsBot said it had explored measures, including restructuring and a business pivot, but ultimately determined that continuing operations was no longer viable.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　“Unfortunately, the Ordinals market has contracted sharply over the past year…In these 3 years, we have achieved many great things and met amazing, like-minded people looking to bring new use cases to the mother chain and create a robust fee market,” the post read.　　Rather than allow the business and its technology to gradually lose value, the company has opted to sell its entire asset portfolio through an open, competitive bidding process. The package includes the OrdinalsBot brand, intellectual property, domains, social media accounts, Discord community, and GitHub presence.　　It also includes more than three years of research and development spread across more than 90 code repositories. According to the company, the

08-20Industry

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