Latest Crypto News & Market Updates

Why is crypto going up today？ $3.5B liquidation, treasury buybacks & more…

On the 20th of August, the cryptocurrency market, which was waiting for a sudden spike, was subjected to a very aggressive short squeeze.　　As prices spiked sharply, traders who had been betting on prices to fall further were forced to exit their positions. In this, approximately $3.5 billion in leveraged cryptocurrency positions were liquidated between 20th and 21st of August, with the great majority of these positions being short positions, according to The Kobeissi Letter.　　Of that, the wider liquidation wave reportedly affected over 190,000 traders. This comes as the price of Bitcoin saw an 8.5% increase in the past 24 hours.　　For those unaware, Bitcoin [$BTC] was moving sideways for a very long time and was struggling to break above the resistance level of $65k, and at press time, it was trading at $75,311.32.　　Needless to say, the entire cryptocurrency market capitalization grew by about $280 billion in the past 24 hours.　　Source: The Kobeissi LetterWhy is crypto going up today？　　That said, besides the price action, the US Treasurys decision to expand its purchases of longer-dated Treasury bonds through its current buyback program was another reason why the crypto market is up today.　　The Treasury announced plans to raise the $2 billion cap on some

08-21Exchange

Standard Chartered says Bitcoin could retest $126K before year-end

Bitcoin has climbed about 24% over the past week to around $76,844, prompting Standard Chartered to say its $100,000 year-end forecast may now be too low as the cryptocurrency moves closer to its $126,000 all-time high.　　SummaryBitcoin has risen about 24% over the past week to around $76,844.Standard Chartered says its $100,000 year-end Bitcoin forecast may now be too low.Geoff Kendrick sees a potential move toward the $126,000 record after Oct. 6.Short liquidations and recovering spot Bitcoin ETF inflows have supported the rally.　　According to Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartereds global head of digital asset research, the latest Bitcoin rally has been driven mainly by short liquidations, while recovering inflows into U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds could provide another source of demand if the advance continues.　　Kendrick said in a Friday note shared with crypto media that low open interest across the market also leaves room for investors to rebuild positions as Bitcoin rises. A combination of forced buying from short sellers and returning ETF demand has helped BTC recover rapidly after spending much of the past two months around the $60,000 to $65,000 range.　　“For the first time this year there is now a risk my end year forecast (of USD100k) is too low,”

08-21Industry

Bitcoin Climbs Higher as $1.2 Billion in Shorts Liquidated

In briefBitcoin climbed 7.9% over 24 hours to around $77,137—up 23.2% on the week—after touching an intraday high of $79,320.The rally triggered a short squeeze, with CoinGlass logging about $1.5 billion in total crypto liquidations across 178,777 traders in 24 hours—roughly $1.21 billion of it in shorts.The surge follows a week of bullish Washington sentiment, including Trump backing the Clarity Act and signaling regulators are working to bring Hyperliquid onshore..　　Bitcoin extended its rally on Friday, punishing traders who had bet against it and wiping out more than a billion dollars in bearish positions.　　The largest cryptocurrency changed hands around $77,137, up 7.9% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data, after touching an intraday high of $79,320. The move capped a strong week that left Bitcoin up 23.2% over seven days, even as it remained down roughly 31.8% from a year ago.　　Myriad: Bitcoin next price move？ Click to make your prediction.　　The surge steamrolled leveraged short sellers. CoinGlass data showed about $1.5 billion in total crypto liquidations over the past 24 hours across 178,777 traders, with short positions accounting for roughly $1.21 billion of that sum.　　Bitcoin alone drove about $17.25 million in liquidations on the one-hour heatmap, and the single largest

08-21Industry

Michael Saylor Returns to Profit as Bitcoin Reclaims $79,000

Bitcoin veteran and vocal advocate Michael Saylor is finally back in profits as his unmatched resilience and Bitcoin conviction begin to pay off following the ongoing market rally.　　Merchant Services s Bitcoin position　　Known for his aggressive Bitcoin purchases, Michael Saylor had continued to stack up on Bitcoin even during periods of extreme volatility, until recently, when he began to boost his companys cash reserves instead.　　Following his consistent purchases, Saylors Bitcoin treasury portfolio now stands at 840,447 BTC, which was worth about $63.61 billion per its cost basis at around $75,000.　　While Bitcoin is seeing a notable shift in market sentiment, the leading crypto asset has surged massively by over 10% over the last day to reclaim its multi-month high of $79,000.　　Strategy reclaims 2.4% of its BTC gains　　With Bitcoin now trading near the crucial $80,000 mark, Michael Saylors Strategy is back in profit as its total Bitcoin holdings are now worth about $65.24 billion.　　Merchant Services s Bitcoin holdings, the firm has yet to recover all its profits as its realized losses still sit around $103.58 million.

08-21Industry

Solana cuts slot time to 350ms for first time since network launch

Solana has reduced its target slot time from 400 milliseconds to 350ms for the first time since the network launched, starting a four-stage plan that could eventually bring slots down to 200ms.　　SummarySolana has reduced its target slot time from 400ms to 350ms for the first time since the network launched.The change is the first stage of SIMD-0525, which plans further reductions to 300ms, 250ms and 200ms.Shorter slots are designed to reduce confirmation latency while network resource limits are adjusted proportionally.The remaining stages are targeted for Agave v4.2, although the activation schedule remains tentative.　　Solana Foundation vice president of technology Jacob Creech announced the change on Aug. 21, saying the network had entered “a new era of 350ms” before adding, “Next stop, 300ms.”　　Solana has officially reduced its slot time for the first time since its inception　　Were in a new era of 350ms　　Next stop, 300ms pic.twitter.com/GItTzfL6vB　　— Jacob Creech (@jacobvcreech) August 21, 2026　　Average slot times were running at around 360ms at the time of writing, according to Solana‘s slot time explorer, compared with the network’s original 400ms target.　　The change is the first step under SIMD-0525, a Solana improvement proposal that introduces four progressively shorter slot configurations at 350ms, 300ms, 250ms and 200ms. The proposal

08-21Industry

Morning Minute: CFTC Will Give Crypto Clarity If Congress Wont

Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt.　　GM!　　Todays top news:Crypto majors are up another 5-10% with BTC leading; BTC at $77.4kThe BTC ETFs saw $606M in inflows and ETH had $219M, new local highsOver $1.2B in crypto shorts liquidated in past 24 hours, nearly $5B in 2 daysCFTC Chair says he‘ll write the crypto rules himself if Congress won’tPump Fun posts 2 biggest back-to-back revenue days since January, PUMP +25%　　????️ CFTC Chair Says He‘ll Write Crypto Rules Himself If Congress Won’t　　The Clarity Act has been stuck in the Senate since lawmakers left for August recess without a procedural vote, still short of the roughly six Democratic votes it needs to clear 60. On Thursday, CFTC Chair Michael Selig told a room full of crypto executives that if the bill stays stuck, his agency will build the framework without them.　　“If Clarity continues to stall because of Democrat obstruction, the CFTC will utilize its existing authorities to begin establishing a regime for crypto asset markets,” Selig said at the inaugural meeting of the agency‘s Innovation Advisory Committee. He’s already started. Staff have been directed

08-21Industry

Ethereum Flips XRP Ledger in RLUSD Supply: What Changed？

According to the Ripple stablecoin tracker website, Ethereum has now overtaken the XRP Ledger in RLUSD supply.　　Based on current data supplied by the page, RLUSD circulating supply on the XRP Ledger is now $941.36 million, which has been surpassed by that of Ethereum, which is $989.34 million.　　The change comes as Ripple continues to adjust RLUSD liquidity across its supported blockchain networks. Specifically, the last 24 hours have seen more RLUSD minted on Ethereum than on the XRP ledger, with larger activity in favor of the former (Ethereum).　　On August 20, $73.8 million RLUSD was minted on ethereum with $23.5 million burned. On August 21 so far, $53.2 million RLUSD was minted on Ethereum with $15 million burned.　　This surpasses XRP Ledger, which saw $36.1 million RLUSD minted on August 20 and $15.4 million RLUSD burned in this timeframe. So far on August 21, $12.5 million RLUSD was minted on the XRPL and $6.5 million burned.　　Ripple stablecoin tracker X account details some of these transactions over the last 24 hours.　　In recent hours, two transactions of 25,000,000 RLUSD and 20,000,000 RLUSD minted on Ethereum were reported, while 10,000,000 RLUSD was burned on the blockchain. One transaction of 10,000,000 RLUSD minted on XRP Ledger was

08-21Industry

Laser Digital gets Japans first crypto exchange approval in 4 years

Nomura Group‘s digital asset subsidiary, Laser Digital, received authorization to operate as a crypto asset exchange service provider under Japan’s Payment Services Act (PSA)　　A list issued by Japan‘s Financial Services Agency (FSA) on Friday showed that Laser Digital received the country’s first crypto exchange license in four years. The last platform to receive FSA authorization was Binance Japan in October 2022.　　Japans crypto market is entering a “new phase of maturity,” creating a need for “trusted counterparties and infrastructure” as “institutional investors increase their interest in this asset class,” Jez Mohideen, co-founder and CEO of Laser Digital, said in a Friday press release.　　In July, Japan‘s parliament passed revisions that classify crypto assets as financial assets under Japan’s Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA).　　The revisions will move regulation of crypto transactions away from the PSA, where digital assets are currently treated primarily as payment instruments, and introduce insider trading rules and stronger oversight for crypto businesses. The crypto provisions will take effect on a date set by Cabinet order within one year of the amendments July 23 promulgation.　　Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama signaled the intent to bring crypto under the same umbrella as traditional finance assets in January, to ensure that citizens

08-21Industry

Standard Chartered wavers on $100K Bitcoin year-end call, says it may be ‘too low’

Bitcoin may move toward its all-time high of $126,000 before the end of the year, with the recovery potentially accelerating after Oct. 6, according to Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered.　　Kendrick said in a Friday note shared with Cointelegraph that the latest rally has been driven largely by short liquidations, while inflows into spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have also started to recover. He said low open interest could leave room for more investors to return as prices rise.　　“For the first time this year there is now a risk my end year forecast (of USD100k) is too low,” Kendrick wrote.　　In a Feb. 12 report, Kendrick cut Standard Chartereds year-end Bitcoin target to $100,000 from $150,000 and its Ether target to $4,000 from $7,500. At the time, he expected Bitcoin to fall to around $50,000 and Ether to $1,400 before recovering during the rest of the year.　　Other industry watchers have also pointed to signs that the bear market may be nearing an end. Swan Bitcoin CEO Cory Klippsten said Bitcoin may bottom in October, while 10x Research founder Markus Thielen said an August close above $63,000 could confirm a bear-market bottom.　　Bitcoin traded at $76,844 at the time

08-21Industry

Strategy's $1 Billion Bitcoin Comeback vs. XRP's 'Black Friday' Ceiling: Main Crypto News This Morning

TL;DR:Bitcoin surges to $76,945, snapping a year-long downtrend as ETF inflows hit $606.29 million on Thursday, the highest since May.Strategy returns to profit as its 840,447 BTC treasury value climbs above $64.6 billion.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent doubles long-term bond buybacks to $4 billion per operation, fueling the crypto rally.XRP jumps 18.03% to $1.37 as Korean traders rotate capital from Samsung and SK Hynix into crypto.CFTC Chairman Michael Selig warns the agency will regulate crypto independently if the Senate stalls the CLARITY Act.　　The crypto market is closing the working week of Aug. 21 with a powerful three-day rally that has finally pulled it out of its prolonged 2026 slumber. Instead of the usual dreary sideways movement, a giant green candle has appeared on Bitcoins daily chart — the price on Bitstamp as per TradingView broke through the year-long downtrend and surged to $76,945, peaking at $79,461.　　The main fuel came from large investors. Thursdays trading session ended with records for U.S. funds as per SoSoValue: net inflows into Bitcoin ETFs jumped to $606.29 million, the highest since May, while Ethereum ETFs attracted $220.77 million — their best result since last October.　　Cardano news updates　　IBIT, BTC/USD, XRP/USD, and MSTR price performance as of August

08-21Industry

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