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Digital Asset, the developer of blockchain network Canton (CC), is working with the American Idea Foundation, founded by former U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, on a blockchain pilot for public welfare benefits, Cointelegraph reported. Under the initiative, Digital Asset and the foundation plan to integrate and distribute state-administered welfare and aid benefits across three U.S. states. The RISE program, short for Resources for Independence, Stability, and Employment, is targeted for launch in the first quarter of next year, with a model under review that would bundle multiple types of benefits and pay them out once or twice a month. Details on the three participating states and the specific welfare programs were not disclosed. The pilot is awaiting federal government approval.

U.S. crypto-related stocks were rising alongside Bitcoin, with MARA Holdings (MARA) leading the gains at 15.54%. Coinbase (COIN) was up more than 9%, while Strategy (MSTR) was rising in the 8% range. Cipher Mining (CIFR) gained 8.31%, Riot Platforms (RIOT) added 4.98%, IREN (IREN) rose 1.91%, and Bitmine (BMNR) advanced 1.08%.

Kaito AI has open-sourced its new browser extension, Kaito Pulse, and submitted it for review on the Google Chrome Web Store after privacy concerns emerged shortly after its Aug. 18 launch. A day after the controversy surfaced, on Aug. 19, Kaito founder Yu Hu pledged to release Pulse’s source code. Kaito Pulse is a browser extension that adds a trading verification feature to X, formerly Twitter, timelines. Rather than simply letting traders claim their positions, it pulls in actual public position data from Polymarket and Hyperliquid and displays it directly in X feeds. Privacy concerns spread after analysis indicated the extension uses "device fingerprinting" to prevent abuse and also records activity on X.

CoinShares said Bitcoin is likely to trade in a range in the short term, with $80,000 serving as a key upper resistance level. A clearer upside breakout would require the Federal Reserve to clearly confirm that the direction of monetary policy risk has shifted and that it is no longer leaning toward additional tightening. CoinShares added that Bitcoin’s recent gains were driven mainly by macroeconomic factors such as softer U.S. inflation and employment data, rather than crypto-specific positives. Alongside that macro shift, CoinShares said on-chain data shows Bitcoin whales are accumulating again.

Crypto asset prices are still in winter, while institutional adoption of the sector has entered summer, STS Digital CEO Maxime Seiler said, according to The Block. Seiler said institutions tend to use the underlying technology rather than allocate capital directly to tokens, creating a gap between adoption rates and asset prices. Institutional participation and support for the technology do not necessarily mean capital will flow into tokens, Seiler added, arguing that what is being adopted is the technology itself.

Whale Alert reported that 2,000 million USDT has been burned at the Tether Treasury.

BitMine Chairman Tom Lee said this week could offer an important upside opportunity for Bitcoin. In a post on X, Lee included the English phrase "10 best days" and said historical data shows most of Bitcoin’s price gains occur during the 10 best-performing days of the year, meaning the asset’s upside tends to be concentrated in just a few trading sessions. Lee added that missing those 10 days could significantly reduce investment returns, and said long-term investors should favor a holding strategy rather than trying to pinpoint the exact bottom.

We apologize for the retransmission of an earlier article as a major story following a temporary error in the CoinNess monitoring system. The article, published earlier today, said Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong was optimistic the Clarity Act had secured support from more than 60 senators ahead of a Senate vote on Aug. 15. We apologize for the inconvenience and will work to provide faster, more accurate content.

The European Commission is reviewing rules on crypto lending, Crypto Briefing reported. The Commission’s Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union began a feedback process in May as part of its review of the Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, or MiCA. A central question is whether crypto lending and borrowing should be brought into the regulatory fold. The deadline for submissions is Aug. 31, according to the report. The Commission will then compile the feedback and complete its final assessment by June 2027.

Whale Alert reported that 1,000 million USDT has been minted at the Tether Treasury.

Whale Alert reported that 1,000 million USDT has been minted at the Tether Treasury.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has warned of phishing attacks impersonating the agency and targeting cryptocurrency holders, CoinDesk reported. Attackers are using fake tax documents to prompt victims to scan malicious QR codes under the pretext of tax filing or account verification, with the goal of stealing crypto wallet login credentials and private keys.

Circle and Tether issued a combined $3 billion in new stablecoins over the past two days, according to Lookonchain.

Bitget CEO Gracy Chen said the U.S. government is unlikely to buy Bitcoin for a strategic reserve, according to Crypto Briefing. Chen said an executive order signed in March last year limits the reserve to Bitcoin seized through criminal and civil forfeiture, with no other funds committed and no market purchases to be made. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has also expressed support for the strategy, but no specific purchase plan has been announced. For now, the initiative is seen as largely symbolic.

According to Spot On Chain, on-chain data shows BlackRock accumulated 11,098 BTC worth about $852 million and 132,769 ETH worth about $316 million over the past 48 hours. The combined on-chain purchases of the two assets totaled about $1.17 billion.

U.S. Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch warned the Clarity Act would damage the banking system and weaken the dollar’s value, Crypto Briefing reported. Lynch argued the dollar’s reserve-currency status depends in part on the strength and credibility of the U.S. banking system, and that weakening banks by eroding their deposit base would undermine the dollar’s institutional foundation.

VanEck said a shift in the U.S. debt financing structure could create a favorable medium- to long-term backdrop for Bitcoin. Matthew Sigel, VanEck’s head of digital assets research, said the U.S. Treasury’s share of short-term debt had risen to 23% of marketable Treasuries, above the recommended 15% to 20% range. VanEck said greater reliance on short-term debt could increase interest costs if high rates persist, which in turn could pressure real rates lower and weaken the dollar over time. The firm added that BTC and the dollar have shown a sustained negative correlation over the past 15 years, suggesting Bitcoin could benefit as a hedge against currency depreciation if the dollar weakens structurally.

U.S. crypto-related stocks were posting sharp gains, with Gemini (GEMI) up 10.03%, Robinhood (HOOD) up 12.98%, Circle (CRCL) up 9.25% and Coinbase (COIN) up 9.6%.

Whale Alert reported that 1,000 million USDT has been minted at the Tether Treasury.

Whale Alert reported that 268,000,000 USDC has been transferred from Coinbase Institutional to Coinbase. The transaction is valued at about $268 million.

Crypto exchange BitMart said it has withdrawn its earlier plan to shut down and is reviewing a phased resumption of operations through restructuring. BitMart said it held further discussions with community members, stakeholders and professional advisers, and is now preparing a potential restructuring plan instead of exiting the business. The plan could include an orderly, gradual restart of parts of its business, subject to additional legal, financial, operational and regulatory review, as well as asset distributions to creditors.

The three major U.S. stock indices opened higher today. - S&P 500: +0.40% - Nasdaq: +0.40% - Dow Jones: +0.50%

HYPE hit a record high of 77.44 USDT on Bybit and was recently trading at 77.08 USDT, up 4.63%.

Bitcoin’s current bear market may be unfolding about 27% faster than in past halving cycles and could bottom in the fourth quarter of this year, crypto analyst Rekt Capital said. Rekt Capital said BTC moved faster than the traditional halving cycle during the last bull market, then realigned with the historical pace after an extended correction and sideways stretch, eventually topping out in October last year as expected. Based on BTC’s recent price action, Rekt Capital said the current bear market itself may now be running about 27% ahead of the traditional cycle. If corrections continue to repeat in a pattern similar to past cycles, BTC could either form a bottom in the fourth quarter of this year or establish a higher long-term low than its previous bottom before resynchronizing with the traditional halving cycle, Rekt Capital added.

BounceBit announced that about 286.5 million BB was stolen in a hack that exploited a protocol vulnerability, and that it will permanently shut down its existing chain and reissue BB on BNB Chain as part of its response. The hacker exploited a vulnerability on the BounceBit chain to steal BB without authorization in 14 instances from nine mainnet accounts, according to the announcement. BounceBit said the issue stemmed from a protocol-level flaw inherent in the Evmos stack. No private keys were compromised, no signatures were forged, and no wallets, hardware devices or exchange accounts were hacked. Rather than restore the existing chain, BounceBit said it will abandon it. BB will be reissued as a BEP-20 token on BNB Chain based on a snapshot taken immediately before the first theft. The 286.5 million BB stolen by the hacker will not be converted into the new token supply.