Senators Push CFTC to Ban Wildfire Bets on Prediction Markets

In briefNine Democratic senators urged the CFTC to prohibit prediction market contracts tied to wildfires.Lawmakers said the markets could create incentives for arson, insider trading, and profiting from natural disasters.The request comes as prediction markets face growing legal and political scrutiny across the U.S.  Nine Democratic senators are urging the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to crack down on prediction markets that let users bet on wildfires, arguing the contracts create dangerous incentives to profit from natural disasters.  In a letter earlier this week to CFTC Chair Michael Selig, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and six other Democratic senators asked the agency to ban wildfire-related event contracts, warning they could encourage arson, enable insider trading, and put public safety at risk.  “Offering bets on destructive wildfires threatens to minimize communities‘ suffering all so the rich and powerful can profit,” the Senators wrote. “There’s also the heightened risk—according to state and local fire officials—that individuals could be tempted to commit arson in order to make sure their bets are successful.”  The senators pointed to reports that Polymarket accepted more than $1.2 million in bets tied to Californias Palisades and Eaton fires in 2025. They also cited newer platforms that

08-07انڈسٹری

Late Ondo founders mother seeks control of company and removal of De Bode as CEO

Quick TakeThe mother of deceased Ondo Finance founder Nathan Allman is seeking control of the company and the removal of Ian De Bode as chief executive, according to a court filing.The complaint alleges De Bode wrongfully assumed the role of CEO.De Bode said the legal complaints allegations are “meritless” and the company has the support of key stakeholders and lead investors.  Kathleen Allman, mother of the late Ondo Finance founder Nathan Allman, is seeking control of the company and the removal of Ian De Bode as chief executive and president, according to a verified complaint filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery.  In the complaint, Allman alleges that in the days after her sons death, De Bode improperly held himself out as CEO of Ondo without board approval and attempted to install himself as its sole director. She further contends that, as personal representative of Nathan Allmans estate, she holds a controlling voting interest in the company and has the authority to reconstitute its board.  The public version of the filing redacts the precise size of that voting interest and the cause of Nathan Allmans death.  “Ms. Allmans claims are meritless, and that will come through clearly in court. The company continues to have

08-07انڈسٹری

10 weirdest things ever tokenized... including farts

Brazils B3 stock exchange made headlines last month when its tokenized cows went viral.  A farmer in southern Brazil was able to use 10 cows as collateral for a 100,000 Brazilian real ($19,600) loan by virtually herding them into a blockchain based holding pen, demonstrating how farmers can literally milk their assets to access credit.  And it raises an obvious question: if cows can be tokenized, what cant be?  From dairy cows to a years worth of farts, here are 10 of the strangest things to be tokenized onchain.  1. A years worth of farts  When BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink said every asset will eventually be tokenized, he probably wasnt thinking about flatulence. Yet, thats exactly what happened here.  Every bit as appealing as, well, a years worth of farts, it has to be a contender for the strangest thingever to make it onchain.  It was during the pandemic, when most people were baking bread or leveling up on Duolingo, that filmmaker Alex Ramírez-Mallis recorded his own farts and minted each one as a nonfungible token (NFT).  They say farts are like children, and you only love your own. But the novelty factor meant that Ramírez-Mallis was able to sell his for 0.05 ETH each (about $85

08-07انڈسٹری

Situational Awareness returns with $400M investment after nearly collapsing: Report

Situational Awareness, the hedge fund founded by former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner, reportedly invested $400 million in a privately held company days after it nearly collapsed under margin calls.  The fund invested $100 million in the same unnamed company in July, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The latest investment was completed on Tuesday.  Cointelegraph has approached Situational Awareness for comment.  Assets at Situational Awareness fell about 78% in July, as an AI-stock sell-off triggered margin calls from Wall Street lenders.  The fund sought fresh capital and considered selling stakes in private companies, according to the Financial Times.  The fund subsequently sold most of its public equity portfolio to Ken Griffins Citadel, allowing it to repay lenders and retain its private holdings.  Situational Awareness had invested heavily in power and data centers supporting AI, including Bitcoin miners expanding into AI computing.  A May 18 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission covering holdings as of March 31 showed about $1.11 billion in positions across seven Bitcoin mining stocks, including IREN, Core Scientific, Riot Platforms and CleanSpark.  Magazine: Why Ray Dalio says Bitcoin cant replace gold

08-07انڈسٹری

Bitcoin ETF inflows surge after Coldcard hack, but link is unclear: Bloomberg analyst

Demand for US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has accelerated over the past week, with a string of daily inflows coinciding with the Coldcard wallet hack — timing that has prompted speculation about whether some investors are reconsidering self-custody.  According to Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, BlackRock‘s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) as well as Defiance Daily Target 2X Long MSTR ETF (MSBT) have recorded inflows every trading day since the weekend exploit, totaling roughly $620 million. The cumulative figure is consistent with Cointelegraph’s recent reporting on the ETF inflow streak.  The Coldcard exploit drained more than $116 million worth of Bitcoin from over 5,200 wallet addresses, according to blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs.  “I‘m not saying it’s connected, we just don‘t know,” Balchunas said in a post on X. “[Although] long-term I can’t imagine there arent some who migrate over.”  Source: Eric Balchunas  Related: Bitcoin Red Team reports 5K findings in sweeping security audit  Coldcard exploit renews debate over self-custody risks  The Coldcard hack renewed concerns that even hardware wallet users can be exposed to firmware flaws and software vulnerabilities, highlighting the operational risks that come with self-custody.  The incident also reignited

08-07انڈسٹری

Bitcoin Holds Above $64,500 as Short Liquidations Drop

Bitcoin briefly approached $65,000 on Thursday, holding support above $64,500 despite intraday pullbacks to $64,144 and bringing its gains since Aug. 1 to roughly 3%.  Key TakeawaysBitcoin nearly reached $65,000 on Thursday, finding solid support above $64,500 despite intraday drops.Bitcoin pushed total crypto market cap near $2.29T as short liquidations fell to $30 million.Debate over BIP 110 and a potential 2-chain fork creates pre-fork buying pressure before pullbacks.  Market Momentum and Intraday Volatility  Bitcoin nearly reached $65,000 on Thursday as the cryptocurrency‘s gradual rise, albeit a slower one since the start of the month, showed no signs of slowing. Although selling pressure weighed on the market at times, bitcoin’s daily chart showed support above $64,500 during pullbacks.  However, bitcoin slipped below that threshold in two separate trading sessions. The first drop occurred between 9 p.m. and midnight, when the price fell to around $64,480 or lower. While bitcoin rallied past $64,900 by 1:30 a.m. EST, a similar pattern emerged shortly after 8 a.m., when the asset dropped to a 24-hour low of $64,144.  A swift rebound erased those losses, pushing bitcoin back past $64,800. At the time of writing, the asset was trading above $64,500, up 0.2% on the day. Since the start of the

08-07انڈسٹری

Coinbases Base app will become 'less Base-centric' under Cobie, Jesse Pollak says

Quick TakePollak said Base is seeing growing demand across tokenization, trading, payments, and financing.He called rival blockchain launches from Robinhood and Stripe “validation” of Bases strategy.  Coinbases Base app will become less closely tied to its namesake blockchain as new leader Jordan “Cobie” Fish focuses on building an all-encompassing trading platform, Base creator Jesse Pollak said Thursday.  “As its becoming a trading app, its just becoming less Base-centric,” Pollak said to The Blocks Gareth Jenkinson during an interview on The Starting Block podcast. “As weve kind of broadened the aperture to trade everything, youre going to trade assets everywhere [and] add features from different networks.”  Fish took over leadership of the Base app last month, allowing Pollak to refocus on the underlying Base blockchain and its push into trading, payments and financing. Fish initially joined Coinbase after the exchange acquired his crypto fundraising platform Echo for approximately $375 million in cash and stock last year.  Pollak said the app had previously been more zoomed in on growing the Base ecosystem through products built directly on the network. However, under Fish, it will broaden its scope to incorporate assets and features from other blockchains.  “He‘s going to be focused on just building the best trading product,”

08-07انڈسٹری

Putin Signs Russia's First Crypto Law: Trading Is Legal, Payments Stay Banned

In briefPresident Vladimir Putin signed Russias first law giving comprehensive rules to crypto exchanges, custodians, brokers, and mining.Only firms on a state registry may run exchanges after July 1, 2027, with a 15 million ruble ($187,000) capital floor and a self-regulatory body requirement.Using crypto as money is still banned, and banks can block transfers they suspect flow to unregistered providers.  Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the countrys first comprehensive law governing digital currencies on Tuesday, state news agency Tass reported. The legislation sets rules for how crypto is issued, stored, accounted for, and traded, wrapping exchanges, digital depositories, brokers, and clearing houses into one framework.  It isnt a free market. The law keeps the ban on using crypto and digital rights as payment for goods and services, and it blocks advertising that pitches crypto payments. Russia already legalized cryptocurrency mining in 2024, when Putin signed a separate bill green-lighting the industry, so this law fills the gap on trading and custody that the mining rules left open.  How the market gets built  Only organizations on a special government registry may run crypto exchanges, and existing operators get a grace period to register by July 1, 2027. Registered exchanges need at least 15 million rubles

08-07انڈسٹری

Circle stock gets $140 target after mixed Q2 results

Circle stock gained on Thursday after Bernstein reiterated its Outperform rating and $140 target, arguing that the stablecoin issuers mixed second-quarter results challenged the bearish case against the company.  SummaryCircle generated $701 million in Q2 revenue, up 7% but about 2% below estimates.Bernstein‘s $140 target implies roughly 114% upsidefrom CRCL’s latest price.USDC circulation reached $73.3 billion, up 19% year over year but down 5% quarterly.Circle expects the Arc public mainnet to launch Sept. 16with 11 institutional validators.  Bernstein argues Circles results challenge bears  Bernstein analysts led by Gautam Chhugani described Circles second-quarter report as a “counter thesis to the bears,” according to a Thursday note to clients.  The brokerage retained its Outperform rating and $140 price target. The target is more than double Circles Thursday price of $65.29, although Bernstein had previously lowered it from $190 in late July.  ???? Circles Q2 numbers answered the bear case, Bernstein says.  It reiterated Outperform and a $140 target on $CRCL, saying markets undervalue its reach, regulatory lead and Arc.  The thesis: Circle is becoming infrastructure, not just a reserve-income stock.  Circle reported $701 million in total revenue and reserve income, a 7% increase from the same period last year. The figure missed consensus estimates by about 2%, contributing to the

08-07انڈسٹری

XRP, Bitcoin Whales Are Accumulating—Is the Bear Market Nearly Over?

In briefCryptoQuant says the largest XRP cohorts are adding supply as price holds the $1.00–$1.20 range, with neutral order flow pointing to quiet absorption.XRPs realized price sits near $0.75 versus a market price around $1.10, a gap the firm calls a late-bear-market zone.The daily chart tells the same story: a death cross, price below both moving averages, and weak trend strength.  Across some of the crypto markets biggest assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP, whales are adding to their bags, according to research from CryptoQuant.  Julio Moreno, the company‘s head of research, said in a report that these coin’s largest cohorts are adding supply as prices sit near or below their average purchase cost. “This positioning lowers downside pressure and is consistent with the final phase of the cycles decline,” he wrote in the firms weekly report.  In other words, we might be nearing the tailend of the crypto bear market.  For XRP specifically, CryptoQuant said spot order sizes stay in “big whale” territory even as the token holds the $1.00–$1.20 band, hovering around a $66 billion market capitalization. But the 90-day taker cumulative volume delta—a read on aggressive buying and selling—has drifted to neutral. The firm said that big, low-key buy orders, paired

08-07انڈسٹری
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