- Despite Amazon's explanation, users remain dubious, especially given Ring's recent reestablishment of law enforcement access through a new partnership with Axon. Some users claimed the devices listed were ones they had never owned.
- Amidst the controversy, Ring's founder Jamie Siminoff returned as CEO, aiming to revert to Ring’s original mission of enhancing neighborhood safety, which includes reversing Amazon-imposed restrictions on police access to camera footage. Users are advised to secure their Ring devices by checking for unfamiliar devices, resetting passwords, and enabling two-factor authentication and end-to-end encryption.
- The defense's argument is supported by on-chain data analysis from blockchain experts, which suggests that funds from a scam victim did not pass through Tornado Cash as claimed by a crypto recovery service. The prosecution, however, insists it will soon provide evidence to the contrary.
- The trial is attracting significant attention from the blockchain community, as it could clarify coders' legal liabilities under U.S. law. Storm faces charges of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, violating U.S. sanctions, and conspiracy to launder money. If found guilty on all counts, he could face up to 45 years in prison.
- Pump.fun, which allows anyone to create a token in minutes, has been responsible for the creation of almost 11.9 million tokens. However, its daily token creation has fallen from a peak of 70,576 in January to 10,000 to 15,000 a day. Rival launchpad LetsBonk has been responsible for the majority of meme coin launches on Solana for 14 out of the past 15 days, taking significant market share from Pump.fun.
- Pump.fun's founder, Alon Cohen, believes that the market for meme coins will naturally hover around a 1% graduation rate, where a token hits a pre-defined market cap and becomes tradable on Pump.fun's own decentralized exchange, PumpSwap. However, the platform's graduation rate has dropped from 1.67% in November to as low as 0.58% in May, indicating a decrease in trader interest.
- Major incidents contributing to these irreversible losses include the Web3 Foundation losing 306,000 ETH due to a Parity multisig wallet vulnerability, QuadrigaCX losing 60,000 ETH through a faulty smart contract, and NFT project Akutars mistakenly burning 11,500 ETH. Additionally, over 25,000 ETH has been sent directly to burn addresses by users.
- Grogan suggests the actual figure could be higher as it doesn't account for ETH tied to lost private keys or dormant wallets. When considering Ethereum's destruction via the EIP-1559 burn mechanism, over 5.3 million ETH has been permanently removed from circulation, representing over $23.4 billion in value.
- Ethereum (ETH) and XRP saw rallies of 19.45% and 21.4% respectively over the week, while the "Others" index, excluding stablecoins and the top ten assets, rose by 35%, approximately $85 billion. Solana (SOL) also performed well, attracting liquidity from Bitcoin as traders sought more significant upside. Despite losing relative share, Bitcoin still trades above the cost basis of 95% of coins in circulation.
- The market outlook suggests a shift rather than a reversal, with Bitcoin's consolidation above realized cost maintaining a supportive floor, but relative momentum resting with altcoins as capital rotates. The continuation of this rotation will depend on sustained demand for Bitcoin and continued liquidity in large-cap tokens.
- BitGo recently obtained regulatory approval under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework, allowing it to offer custody services throughout all EU member states. In the U.S., the firm is pursuing a national bank charter to further integrate with traditional banking infrastructure.
- This move by BitGo follows a trend of digital asset companies preparing for public listings, including Grayscale, Bullish, and Gemini. If successful, BitGo's IPO would add to the growing list of digital asset companies trading on U.S. exchanges, indicating increasing maturity in the sector.
- The signing of the GENIUS Act, which establishes a comprehensive federal regime for dollar-backed stablecoins, has been identified as a key factor behind this shift. The act requires issuers to hold 100 percent short-term Treasury or cash reserves and comply with the Bank Secrecy Act. As a result, corporate treasuries are reportedly building their stockpiles of ether and other smart-contract platforms like Solana, XRP Ledger, and Cardano.
- The Ethereum surge has reduced Bitcoin's market share by four percentage points, bringing Bitcoin's dominance down to 60 percent and increasing Ethereum's share from 9.7 percent to 11.6 percent. QCP Capital suggests that if this trend continues, the next phase of the altcoin season could already be underway.
- Data from XRPScan shows that XRP payment volume rose to 1.72 billion on July 18, with the number of successful transactions reaching over 2.08 million. The number of new active accounts also increased significantly, recording the highest daily count over the last month at 10,279. This suggests a deeper level of network usage, not just speculative churn.
- Analysts report that XRP whale activity is back, with large holders going long just days after the network's transfer volume surge. Multiple long positions totalling over $3.8 million have been opened at a price point near $3.44, suggesting that deep-pocketed investors may have insider-level confidence in XRP's potential.
- Over the past week, Ethereum ETFs recorded a historic high of $2.18 billion in net inflows, reflecting increased institutional interest and confidence in Ethereum's long-term value. Regulatory developments, such as the GENIUS Act, are reinforcing trust in Ethereum's settlement infrastructure, positioning it as a robust network for institutional activity.
- Ethereum's price has seen a 20% rally within a week, trading between $3,100 and $3,600. This surge is driven by strong inflows into spot ETH ETFs and rising institutional demand. The BlackRock Ethereum Trust (ETHA) now holds $9.17 billion in assets, nearly half of all capital invested across Ethereum ETFs.
- Bitmine Immersion, which is backed by Peter Thiel, plans to acquire and stake 5% of Ethereum's supply. The company currently holds an Ethereum treasury exceeding $1 billion.
- In the same period, ARK Invest sold 218,986 Coinbase shares valued at over $90 million and reduced its positions in Robinhood and Block.
- The company is already implementing new settlement processes in South Africa and South America to speed up money transfers and local currency conversions. It is also looking into partnerships that would enable customers to buy and sell stablecoins through its platform. McGranahan sees stablecoins as an opportunity to innovate rather than a threat.
- Stablecoins are putting pressure on traditional remittance and cross-border payment firms by offering faster, cheaper, and more accessible alternatives. McGranahan noted that while stablecoins may not always be cheaper at present, they are likely to gain long-term cost advantages due to increasing liquidity, tighter spreads, and smarter routing.
- The company recently purchased 6,220 BTC for $739.8 million, bringing its total Bitcoin holdings to 607,770 BTC, bought for approximately $43.61 billion. The average price of $71,756 per Bitcoin indicates paper gains of over $28 billion as of July 21.
- The new STRC stock has a stated value of $100 and will pay a 9.00% initial monthly dividend. Dividends will be paid in cash, and missed payments will accrue interest. Strategy also retains the option to buy back shares under certain conditions.
