1. Report: The Arbitrum Foundation has proposed the adoption of a new transaction sorting strategy called Timeboost on Arbitrum One and Nova. Timeboost allows for the use of an auction fast lane, giving winners an advantage in their transactions and the opportunity to capture arbitrage opportunities.
2. Report: Coinbase Derivatives, the derivative trading platform of Coinbase, has submitted multiple certification documents to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for the listing of regulated SHIB, LINK, AVAX, XLM, and DOT futures contracts in the United States.
3. Report: Federal Reserve Board member Bowman stated that the U.S. Congress seems to have little interest in central bank digital currencies.
4. Report: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Consensys. The SEC alleges that since 2016, Consensys has developed and operated a suite of services related to crypto assets under the “MetaMask” brand. Consensys claims to be a leader and innovator in the crypto asset industry, but some of the products it offers perform traditional functions: (1) acting as a broker for retail investors in securities transactions, and (2) engaging in the offer and sale of securities. Consensys violated federal securities laws by not registering as a broker-dealer and not registering the offer and sale of certain securities, thereby depriving investors of key protections under these laws. Since October 2020, Consensys has acted as an unregistered crypto asset securities broker through its MetaMask Swaps service. Since January 2023, Consensys has engaged as an unregistered broker in the offer and sale of crypto asset staking programs through its MetaMask Staking service. Consensys has collected over $250 million in fees through these activities as an unregistered broker.
5. Report: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission considers Lido and Rocket Pool staking projects to be securities.
6. Report: Bitcoin mining company Bitdeer Technologies Group has announced a 30-year industrial base lease agreement with the Monroe County Port Authority in Ohio. This lease allows them to expand their mining operations by leasing an industrial park and is expected to provide a power capacity of 570 megawatts.
7. Report: 21Shares is the second company to submit a SOL exchange-traded fund (ETF) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Similar to VanEck, the company believes that Solana’s native token should be considered a commodity. It is reported that 21Shares SOL ETF funds will be custodied by Coinbase Custody. Andrew Jacobson, Legal Counsel at 21Shares, stated that the launch of the Solana ETF is a necessary step for the crypto industry. While the inclusion of crypto tokens in CME futures contracts sets a legal precedent, it should not be the sole criterion for ETF eligibility, as many cryptocurrencies meet the criteria for tradable ETFs.
8. Report: Eleanor Terrett, a reporter from Fox Business Channel, disclosed Consensys’ official statement regarding the SEC enforcement action. The statement reads as follows: “Consensys fully anticipated that the SEC would continue its threats against us, claiming that our MetaMask software interface must be registered as a securities broker. The SEC has been pursuing an anti-cryptocurrency agenda through its enforcement actions. This is the latest example of its regulatory overreach, an attempt to redefine established legal standards and expand SEC jurisdiction through litigation transparently. We firmly believe that the SEC has not been granted the authority to regulate software interfaces like MetaMask. We will continue to actively pursue our case in Texas, as it not only concerns our company but also the future success of Web3.”
9. Report: Binance Research Institute has released a report titled “Towards a Billion On-Chain Users.” The report highlights that the adoption rate of blockchain networks is significantly slower than that of social media networks, as decentralized systems are inherently more complex than centralized ones. Many blockchain projects aim to create decentralized alternatives to existing centralized products and services. The report examines three types of future users: institutions, retail users, and crypto skeptics. For institutions, deep liquidity is required to execute trades effectively and efficiently. The current multi-chain world leads to liquidity being fragmented across multiple independent distributed ledgers and Layer2 solutions. The lack of blockchain interoperability also forces institutions to decide on specific blockchain ecosystems. Additionally, chain abstraction has become an important development in bringing institutions onto the blockchain. The report introduces the case of cross-chain interoperability protocol Axelar (AXL), which has achieved some initial success in driving blockchain development through collaborations with institutions. In November 2023, the Axelar team successfully conducted a proof-of-concept collaboration with JPMorgan’s blockchain platform Onyx, utilizing Axelar’s cross-chain technology to achieve interoperability with private and permissioned blockchains.
10. Report: Ripple recently achieved an unquestionable victory from a monetary perspective in a collective securities lawsuit, as the judge dismissed most of the claims. However, the judge also blurred the lines on a larger issue, suggesting that Ripple’s XRP may be a security and therefore subject to stricter regulation, contradicting last year’s highly anticipated ruling. The conflicting rulings by two judges, one deeming XRP a security and the other considering it fundamentally not, signify a lack of legal and regulatory clarity in the U.S. cryptocurrency industry. Unless Congress or higher-level courts provide clear guidance, projects like Ripple may face further confusion. Moish Peltz, partner at Falcon, Rappaport & Berkman law firm in New York, explained, “At least as to this ancillary cause of action, the question of whether XRP is a security remains unresolved.”
11. Report: Cryptocurrency gamblers on the online prediction platform Polymarket predict that U.S. President Joe Biden may face speculation about withdrawing from the presidential race due to his performance in debates with former President Trump.Donald Trump performed poorly in the debate and is withdrawing from the upcoming election. Gamblers believe the probability of Biden’s withdrawal is 38 cents to 63 cents. Predictive start-up company Manifold also shows that the likelihood of Biden becoming the Democratic candidate has dropped from 94% to 68% in the past day. Market experts point out that Biden’s health and cognitive ability issues have raised widespread concerns. Possible replacements include California Governor Gavin Newsom, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Vice President Kamala Harris.
12. The US Treasury Department’s Internal Revenue Service has issued a cryptocurrency trading tax system for 2025, aiming to establish filing rules for digital asset brokers. However, rules related to DeFi and non-custodial wallets are temporarily on hold. The rules, released on Friday, will take effect from 2025 and require brokers to closely monitor the cost basis of customer tokens from 2026. The new rules for cryptocurrency brokers require trading platforms, custodial wallet services, and digital asset kiosks to submit disclosures on customer asset changes and earnings. These assets will also include stablecoins such as USDT, USDC, and high-value non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in very limited cases. According to the new rules, the US Internal Revenue Service will not require reporting of most regular stablecoin sales and sets an annual threshold of $600 for NFT earnings, which only need to be reported if they exceed this threshold.
13. Over 65% of the Bitcoin supply has not been transferred in over a year.
14. Dan Romero, co-founder of decentralized social media protocol Farcaster, launched a new in-app payment feature on Friday. The new tool, built for the Farcaster client Warpcast, allows for one-click payment of stablecoins using USDC through a user’s profile or the app’s messaging platform. This feature solves a long-standing problem of paying someone with cryptocurrency, which is finding their alphanumeric wallet address. As Farcaster identities are human-readable, it makes the process easier.
15. IglooInc., the parent company of Pudgy Penguins, has acquired Frame, a platform centered around Web3 creators. The Frame team will collaborate with Igloo to develop Abstract Chain, a network that builds on-chain culture and communities.
16. A spokesperson for Joe Biden’s campaign team stated that there are currently no discussions about Biden stepping down or no longer running for office. Biden is set to participate in a second debate with former President Donald Trump on September 10. President Biden’s disastrous performance in the debate against Republican challenger Trump has prompted increasing calls from Democratic figures for him to withdraw, but he has stated that he is still committed to winning the November election. Biden admitted on Friday that his old age presented a challenge for him in the previous night’s debate and that he performed poorly. However, he claimed to be capable of handling the responsibilities of the presidency for another four years. Speaking at a campaign rally in North Carolina, Biden said, “I promise you, if I didn’t wholeheartedly believe that I could do this job, I wouldn’t come out here and run again. I plan on winning this state in November.” He also told his supporters, “I know I’m not a young guy anymore. I don’t walk as easily as I used to. My debating skills aren’t what they used to be, but I know what I know—I know how to tell the truth, I can discern right from wrong, and I know how to do this job well.”
17. The US Supreme Court justices voted 6-3 on Friday to overturn the Chevron Deference rule, a 40-year-old regulation that allows administrative agencies responsible for implementing laws to make legislative rules to interpret ambiguous language or fill gaps in congressional legislation. Cryptocurrency industry insiders have hailed the ruling as a victory for the crypto industry. Amanda Tuminelli, Chief Legal Officer of DeFi Education Fund, said, “This ruling means that administrative agencies like the SEC and CFTC will need to be more cautious in expanding their regulatory reach, especially in emerging and rapidly developing areas such as crypto and artificial intelligence.” Majority Whip Tom Emmer stated that this decision will have a direct impact on SEC Chair Gary Gensler. He said, “The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Chevron weakens Gensler and all other unaccountable, unelected regulators’ abuses of power by legislating through rulemaking.”
18. Citigroup strategists state that decreased inflows and lowered growth expectations indicate an imminent stock market crash in the US. The company recently raised its year-end target for the S&P 500 index to 5600 points but stated in a client report led by Scott Chronert on Friday that “the short-term trends have us prepared for a pullback.” They noted that fund flows have slowed down, internal sentiment indicators are at “frothy” levels, and Citigroup’s forecast is for a recession in the second half of the year. Meanwhile, recent widespread growth expectations have declined. Citigroup strategists state that all of this sets the stage for a “summer squall” or “sudden gust.” Additionally, the volatility of the election remains an uncertainty, with both parties potentially facing fundamental pressures.
19. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas wrote on the X platform, “It looks like we’ll have to push back the expected launch date of a spot Ethereum ETF until after the holidays. Word has it the SEC took more time this week to respond (though just minor tweaks), and it sounds like next week will be slow due to the holiday, so approval process resumes on July 8 and then they will launch shortly after that.”
20. According to Farside Investors’ monitoring, US spot Bitcoin ETF data from yesterday (June 28) shows a net outflow of $27.2 million from GBTC funds.
21. James Seyffart, Bloomberg ETF analyst, stated in an interview before 21Shares became the second applicant for a Solana ETF that he believes VanEck’s application is a bullish bet on the November elections and should be rejected under the current SEC administration, based on years of approvals and denials of crypto ETFs because of the lack of a federally regulated futures market. However, a new government in the White House and a more crypto-friendly SEC government could change the situation.
22. Nate Geraci, President of investment advisory firm The ETF Store, stated that given the non-existence of Solana futures traded on the CME, the only feasible path to approval for a spot Solana ETF seems to be the implementation of a legitimate crypto regulatory framework that definitively defines which crypto assets are securities and which are commodities, or the SEC agreeing to designate Solana as a non-security commodity. Additionally, the institution would need to enter into monitoring sharing agreements with currently unregulated spot cryptocurrency exchanges. Under the current administration, all of this seems unlikely, making VanEck and 21Shares’ applications likely bets on a more crypto-friendly government.
