Headlines
▌The U.S. House of Representatives passed all three cryptocurrency bills
On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed all three cryptocurrency-related legislations, including the CLARITY Act, the GENIUS Act, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. The CLARITY Act and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance Act will be sent to the Senate for deliberation. The GENIUS Act is expected to be signed into law by Trump on Friday local time.
▌BlackRock iShares Ethereum ETF submits pledge application
BlackRock iShares Ethereum ETF submits pledge application. According to a document filed on Thursday, the application was submitted by Nasdaq in accordance with SEC Rule 19b-4. 21Shares and Grayscale have also submitted similar proposals to introduce pledge functions for their Ethereum ETFs.
Market
As of press time, according to CoinGecko data:
BTC price is $119,642, up or down +0.8% in 24 hours;
ETH price is $3,510.14, up or down +4.1% in 24 hours;
BNB price is $722.90, up or down +2.1% in 24 hours;
SOL price is 176.23 US dollars, 24 hours up and down +1.8%;
DOGE price is 0.2188 US dollars, 24 hours up and down +3.0%;
XRP price is 3.53 US dollars, 24 hours up and down +16.3%.
TRX price is 0.3163 US dollars, 24 hours up and down +2.3%.
Policy
▌Trump will open cryptocurrency investment to the US retirement market
According to the Financial Times, Trump is preparing to open up cryptocurrency, gold and private equity to the $9 trillion US retirement market, a move that will stimulate a fundamental change in the way Americans manage their savings. According to three people familiar with the matter, Trump is expected to sign an executive order as early as this week to open up alternative investments beyond traditional stocks and bonds to 401k retirement plans. These investments will cover a wide range of asset classes, from digital assets to metals, as well as funds focused on corporate acquisitions, private loans and infrastructure transactions. The executive order will instruct regulators to investigate the obstacles faced in incorporating alternative investments into professionally managed funds used by 401k savers, the people said.
▌The Trump administration still firmly supports the tax exemption for small crypto transactions and plans to promote relevant legislation
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the Trump administration still firmly supports the tax exemption policy for small cryptocurrency transactions and will continue to promote relevant legislation in the future. Although the previous attempt to include the tax exemption clause in the "Big and Beautiful Act" was not passed, the government believes that the policy will help simplify the crypto payment process and encourage daily use.
▌White House Press Secretary: I believe there will be more crypto legislation in the future
The White House Press Secretary said that Trump plans to sign relevant crypto bills, including the Genius Act, at an event on Friday. We are willing to promote making cryptocurrency payments more convenient. We know that there are enough votes to pass the Genius Act. I believe that there will be more legislation on cryptocurrencies in the future.
▌Coinbase CEO: Crypto legislation will prevent the impact of a Biden administration in the future
Coinbase(COIN.O) CEO: Trump has been committed to promoting the widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency-related legislation will provide clarity to the industry. Relevant legislation will help protect the cryptocurrency industry and prevent the impact of a Biden administration in the future.
▌US SEC Chairman: Support the merger of the SEC and the CFTC
Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): I support the merger of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) must be coordinated.
▌Trump to issue AI-related decrees
According to the Wall Street Journal, the White House is preparing to issue an executive order on "Woke AI". Sources said the order will be part of a package of measures to be announced next week, outlining Trump's "action plan" for artificial intelligence. The bill will require AI companies that receive federal contracts to remain politically neutral, and other decrees are expected to promote U.S. technology exports and accelerate the construction and development of data centers.
▌Russian State Duma passes bill on "Phase-based introduction of digital ruble"
According to Russian news agency TASS, the Russian State Duma has passed a bill on the phased introduction of the digital ruble. The bill will take effect on September 1, 2026, and sets a timetable for the implementation of the digital ruble in the payment system. According to the bill, merchants with annual revenue of more than 120 million rubles must support digital ruble payments by September 1, 2026; merchants with annual revenue of more than 30 million rubles must support it by September 1, 2027; and the rest of the merchants must complete the access by September 1, 2028. The bill also introduces a unified payment QR code system, which will be operated by the Russian National Payment Card System. Merchants with annual revenue of more than 20 million rubles must accept digital ruble payments, while merchants with annual revenue of less than 5 million rubles and merchants in areas without Internet access are not obliged to do so.
Blockchain Applications
▌Coinbase and Robinhood stocks hit record highs
Boosted by the U.S. House of Representatives' passage of the encryption bill, Coinbase and Robinhood stocks both hit record highs on Thursday. Coinbase closed up 3.2%, with a market value of over $100 billion, Robinhood rose to more than $105, Galaxy's stock price rose more than 6%, and Circle closed at a three-week high.
▌Twenty One Capital is expected to go public in the coming weeks
According to Fortune magazine, Jack Mallers, CEO and co-founder of Bitcoin fund management company Twenty-One Capital, pointed out that investing in companies whose only goal is to accumulate more Bitcoin is more worthwhile than ETFs. Jack Mallers is famous for founding the Bitcoin company Strike. He believes that the core goal of Bitcoin fund management companies is to increase the value of each Bitcoin share, allowing investors to keep Bitcoin themselves without using cryptocurrency exchanges or more complex tools such as hardware wallets. It is reported that Twenty One Capital is preparing to go public in the coming weeks after the startup agreed to merge with Cantor Equity Partners, a special purpose acquisition company initiated by Tether custodian Cantor Fitzgerald.
▌OpenAI releases ChatGPT Agent
Early this morning, OpenAI conducted a technical live broadcast and released its blockbuster product ChatGPT Agent. ChatGPT Agent has the ability to think and act autonomously, and can actively select appropriate tools from its skill library, including Operator, Deep Research and ChatGPT to complete various ultra-complex tasks. For example, users can ask ChatGPT Agent to analyze three competitors and make slide presentations and other requests. ChatGPT will intelligently browse the website, select dates, filter results, run code, and even automatically generate polished slide presentations or spreadsheets. (AIGC Open Community) SharpLink plans to sell another $5 billion in shares to increase its holdings of Ethereum SharpLink Gaming (NASDAQ: SBET), a Minnesota company, submitted an updated prospectus to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), planning to issue an additional $5 billion in common stock on top of the original $1 billion to further purchase Ethereum (ETH) for the company's treasury. As of July 16, the company already holds more than 321,000 ETH (about $1.1 billion), making it the largest corporate holder of Ethereum. The expansion follows a $425 million private placement led by Consensys in June, where Consensys CEO and Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin now serves as chairman of SharpLink's board of directors.
▌Russia's largest bank Sberbank plans to provide custody services for Russian crypto assets
Russia's largest bank Sberbank said on Thursday that it hopes to provide custody services for Russian cryptocurrency assets and strive to play a leading role in the development of digital assets in Russia. Anatoly Pronin, executive director of Sberbank's alternative payment solutions department, said that after seeing more and more banks abroad begin to provide custody services, the bank has submitted a proposal to the central bank on the regulation of domestic crypto assets. Pronin said at a discussion on cryptocurrency regulation that Sberbank's proposal would make cryptocurrency assets regulated in a similar way to bank account assets, and the bank would ensure the security of tokens. Safekeeping crypto assets on behalf of customers means that if law enforcement agencies suspect misconduct, these assets may be frozen, but this move will make trading operations more convenient and protect accounts from hacker attacks.
▌XRP breaks through $3.5, hitting a record high
The market shows that XRP broke through $3.5, hitting a record high, rising to a maximum of $3.5495.
▌Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen transferred nearly $30 million worth of XRP to Coinbase
Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen sent about $26 million worth of XRP to Coinbase through a series of transactions earlier this week. This move came at a time when XRP was close to its historical high of $3.4. Since the beginning of the year, he has sent about $40 million in XRP to Coinbase, as well as a large number of transfers to external wallets.
Important Economic Dynamics
▌Fed Governor Waller: The Fed should cut interest rates by 25 basis points in July
Fed Governor Waller: The Fed should cut interest rates by 25 basis points at the July meeting. The July rate cut may provide room for the Fed to keep interest rates unchanged in the next few meetings.
▌Fed Governor Bostic: It may be difficult to cut interest rates in the short term
According to the Wall Street Journal, Fed Governor Bostic said that it may be difficult to cut interest rates in the short term.
▌Fed Daly: July or September rate cut is not the most critical
Fed Daly: (When asked about the possibility of a July rate cut) This is the wrong question. July or September rate cut is not the most critical.
▌Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency: Congressmen will accuse Powell of suspected perjury
Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA): According to very reliable congressional sources, one or more members of Congress may accuse Powell of suspected perjury to the Department of Justice on the issue of the $2.5 billion renovation of the Federal Reserve Building.
Golden Encyclopedia
▌What role do gold, oil, and BTC play in US reserves?
The U.S. government has long relied on gold and oil as reserve assets, but as Bitcoin has become increasingly popular among institutions, its potential role as a strategic reserve has significantly increased. While gold has historically been the backstop of the monetary system and oil remains an important economic and security asset, Bitcoin represents a new type of digital reserve that challenges the traditional financial paradigm. The United States has large gold and oil reserves, but its Bitcoin holdings are relatively small, mainly acquired through asset seizures. Gold, oil, and Bitcoin each exhibit unique liquidity and market dynamics, with gold being the most stable, oil driven by geopolitical factors, and Bitcoin characterized by high volatility and 24/7 accessibility. Gold, oil, and Bitcoin all play a strategic role in the global economy, with gold being a hedge and oil influencing geopolitical stability. All of these assets have strategic and macroeconomic significance over time. Their narratives related to the broader capital markets may be just what is needed to attract investor interest. As institutional adoption grows, Bitcoin's strategic value as a hedge against inflation and government debt is increasingly recognized. Policy initiatives suggest that establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve could allow it to stand alongside traditional assets such as gold and oil in the future.
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