ETH's market capitalization surpasses Mastercard; Bitcoin's growth rate in 2025 will be second only to gold

Headlines

▌ETH Market Cap Surpasses Mastercard, Rising to 25th Place in Global Asset Market Cap

According to 8marketcap data, with ETH breaking through $4,300, its market capitalization now stands at $520.56 billion, surpassing Netflix and Mastercard to rise to 25th place in the global asset market cap ranking.

▌Analysis: Bitcoin's Growth in 2025 Will Be Second to Gold, but Its Long-Term Returns Lead All Major Asset Classes

Bitcoin has risen 25% so far in 2025, ranking second among major asset classes, only behind gold's 29.3% increase. Data shared by financial strategist Charlie Bilello shows that other major asset classes will perform relatively modestly in 2025: Emerging market stocks (VWO) will rise 15.6%, the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) will rise 12.7%, and US large-cap stocks (SPY) will rise 9.4%, while US mid-cap stocks (MDY) and small-cap stocks (IWM) will rise only 0.8% and 0.2%, respectively. This marks the first time on record that gold and Bitcoin have both held the top two positions in the annual asset class rankings. Over the long term, Bitcoin's cumulative return since 2011 has been a staggering 38,897,420%, far exceeding all other asset classes. Over the same period, gold's cumulative return of 126% places it in the middle of the pack, lagging behind the Nasdaq 100 (1101%), US large-cap stocks (559%), mid-cap stocks (316%), and small-cap stocks (244%). According to Bilello's data, Bitcoin's total return has outperformed gold by more than 308,000 times over the past 14 years. In terms of annualized returns, Bitcoin has averaged 141.7% since 2011, compared to 5.7% for gold, 18.6% for the Nasdaq 100, and 13.8% for U.S. large-cap stocks.

Market

As of press time, according to Coingecko data:

BTC price is $116,650, with a 24-hour increase or decrease of -0.0%;

ETH price is $4,328.61, with a 24-hour increase or decrease of +6.7%;

BNB price is $805.38, with a 24-hour increase or decrease of +1.2%;

▌Hubei Shiyan Issues Warning Against Virtual Currency Pyramid Schemes

The Shiyan Municipal Market Supervision Bureau in Hubei Province recently received multiple complaints and reports involving virtual currency projects such as "Youke Chuang," "Shiyihui," and "Ronghui Capital." Preliminary investigations revealed that these projects advertised returns on cryptocurrency investments, but in reality, they engaged in cryptocurrency speculation through overseas exchanges and recruited members through a multi-member model. In addition to following individual investors, members were also required to invite new members to profit. These suspected projects are suspected of using pyramid schemes to engage in illegal financial activities and pose significant risks. The Shiyan Municipal Market Supervision Bureau has issued a risk warning in accordance with relevant regulations, reminding the public to be wary of such virtual currency pyramid schemes. C1 Fund, a closed-end investment company, announced the completion of its previously announced initial public offering ("IPO"), issuing 6,000,000 shares of common stock ("Common Stock") at a price of $10.00 per share. C1 Fund will use the proceeds from the IPO to invest in accordance with the investment objectives and strategies described in the IPO prospectus. The Common Stock will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "CFND" on August 7, 2025. "Our mission is to democratize investment opportunities for the next generation of digital asset innovators while they are still private," said Dr. Kidwai, President and CEO of C1 Fund. "We do not speculate on token prices, but instead focus on investing in leading private digital asset service and technology companies that we believe will bring disruptive technologies, reach large potential markets, and provide significant business opportunities. This strategy, and our listing on the NYSE, enables public market investors to participate in the development stage of these private digital asset companies, which we believe reflects the opportunities that early participants have in the development stage of the Internet and artificial intelligence."

▌Solana chain stablecoin project Hylo completed US$1.5 million in seed round financing

Solana chain stablecoin project Hylo completed a seed round of financing led by Robot Ventures, raising US$1.5 million. Solana Ventures, Geoff Renaud, Erik Ashdown, Anna Yuan, YTWO, Colosseum, Matthew O'Connor, Chris Heaney, Solar, Thomas, Sean Hu, Cupid, Luke Truitt and others participated in the financing.

Cryptocurrency

▌Stablecoin Market Grows $9.11 Billion Following the Passage of the GENIUS Act

Following the passage of the GENIUS Act, the stablecoin market experienced a significant surge in market capitalization of $9.11 billion over 23 days. Among these: - Ethena Labs' USDe led the growth, adding $4.19 billion, driven by increased yield opportunities from the Aave/Pendle protocol integration. - Tether's USDT gained $3.71 billion, maintaining its dominance, while SkyEcosystem's USDS gained $1.3 billion, highlighting the diversified adoption of stablecoins. - New entrants such as PayPal's PYUSD ($146 million) and Ripple's RLUSD ($102 million) demonstrate growing institutional interest in the stablecoin ecosystem. Cryptocurrency funding surged this week, with $1.46 billion invested in 18 projects. This week, cryptocurrency funding surged, with $1.46 billion invested in 18 projects. This round, held from August 3rd to 9th, focused on blockchain, artificial intelligence, and payment infrastructure, with institutional investors pouring record amounts of capital into these sectors. Leading the way was Verb Technology, which raised $558 million in an unspecified funding round; Followed by Satsuma Technology, which raised $217.6 million. Ripple's acquisition of Rail for $200 million signals its commitment to expanding its fiat and stablecoin payment channels. According to Ember's monitoring, starting from last night, five Ethena institutional investor addresses have transferred a total of 40.217 million ENA (approximately $29.8 million) to exchanges. Among them, Strobe Ventures transferred 7 million ENA to Binance 12 hours ago and withdrew 5.087 million USDC 4 hours later, with an average transaction price of $0.726; Amber Group transferred 6.39 million ENA (approximately $4.84 million) to Binance 4 hours ago; address 0xAb4...18A transferred 6.145 million ENA (approximately $4.55 million) to Bybit 11 hours ago; address 0x6e6...922 transferred 15 million ENA (approximately $11.05 million) to Bybit 1 hour ago; address 0x969...aF5 transferred 5.682 million ENA (approximately $4.27 million) to Bybit 5 hours ago.

Important Economic Developments

▌Federal Reserve Governor Bowman: Supports Three Rate Cuts This Year, and Overlooking Temporarily High Inflation is Appropriate

Regarding inflation, Federal Reserve Governor Bowman stated that core personal consumption expenditure inflation appears to be moving much closer to the 2% target than the data suggests. He believes it is appropriate to overlook temporarily high inflation. Upward risks to inflation have decreased, and there is greater confidence that tariffs will not lead to persistent inflation. Bowman believes the sharp slowdown in job growth may be due to a significant weakening in labor demand. Bowman said that deregulation, lower taxes, and a business-friendly environment could offset the impact of tariffs on economic activity and prices. Furthermore, he supports three rate cuts this year. (Zhitong Finance) Morgan Stanley: Weak employment data and tariff-related inflation could trigger a US stock market pullback. Morgan Stanley equity strategist Michael Wilson: Weak employment data, coupled with concerns about tariff-related inflation, could trigger a pullback in US stocks, especially in the seasonally weak third quarter. We would buy on pullbacks. (Zhitong Finance) Golden Encyclopedia What is a cryptocurrency ETP? What is its future? Cryptocurrency ETPs provide investment in digital assets through traditional financial instruments. Cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs) use crypto assets as their underlying commodities. Their goal is to provide exchange-traded investments for investors who want exposure to cryptocurrencies without purchasing them directly. Many investors, especially institutional investors, prefer this approach because it opens up cryptocurrency investment within traditional financial instruments. There's no need to venture into unregulated markets or be responsible for the security of crypto assets. Several types of cryptocurrency ETPs are available, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs), exchange-traded commodities (ETCs), and exchange-traded notes (ETNs). These cryptocurrency ETPs are widely traded and often account for the majority of trading volume—both inflows and outflows. What are crypto ETP outflows? These outflows occur when funds flow out of these investment products, signaling a rush to sell positions. This can occur for a variety of reasons, including profit-taking, negative market sentiment, or risk adjustments. ETP outflows are driven by a variety of factors, including economic conditions, industry concerns, regulation, and market cycles, which can be used to predict upcoming market movements. Crypto ETP outflows signal a significant shift in sentiment, which in turn can continue to exert downward price pressure on the cryptocurrency market. The continued growth in new ETPs entering the market indicates continued investor interest in the sector. Especially considering the long-term growth trend in cryptocurrency AUM, the future of cryptocurrency ETPs as powerful investment tools and market drivers is bright. As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, the launch of new ETPs is likely to drive further innovation and attract a wider range of investors. With increasing regulatory clarity and growing institutional interest, future products may expand to include other promising cryptocurrencies.