Key Highlights

• Salesforce has entered into an agreement to purchase AI agent specialist Fin, previously known as Intercom, in a transaction valued at $3.6 billion
• The transaction is anticipated to finalize during Salesforce’s fiscal fourth quarter of 2027
• Shares of CRM increased 0.8% to reach $167.10 on Monday, potentially breaking a nine-day decline
• Fin operates its own AI technology platform, Apex, designed exclusively for customer service applications
• Salesforce’s Agentforce platform reported a 20% increase in annual recurring revenue, reaching $1.2 billion in the company’s fiscal first quarter of 2027

On Monday, Salesforce revealed its plans to purchase Fin, the artificial intelligence agent firm that was previously operating as Intercom, through a $3.6 billion acquisition agreement.

Shares of CRM traded higher by 0.8% to $167.10 during Monday’s session. This uptick would mark the end of a nine-day downward trend. However, the stock remains down 37% on a year-to-date basis.

Salesforce, Inc., CRM

This strategic acquisition arrives at a time when Salesforce is experiencing increased scrutiny from shareholders concerned that AI-powered coding solutions might enable clients to develop their own customized Agentforce alternatives, potentially diminishing demand for Salesforce’s offerings.

Fin’s flagship offering is an AI agent designed to manage customer inquiries from start to finish. The technology operates seamlessly across multiple communication channels including live chat, email, WhatsApp, text messaging, phone calls, and Slack.

The platform operates using Fin’s proprietary model known as Apex. According to Salesforce, Apex has been specifically engineered for customer support applications and delivers superior resolution rates compared to leading commercial models available today.

Marc Benioff, Chief Executive Officer, described the acquisition as an ideal match. “Fin delivers battle-tested agent technology, a strong dedication to customer satisfaction, and an exceptional AI team that will enhance Agentforce with robust service agent functionalities,” Benioff stated.

Eoghan McCabe, CEO and co-founder of Fin, emphasized that the partnership provides scale his organization couldn’t achieve independently. “Through this combination with Salesforce, we can implement it extensively at a pace we never could have reached working alone,” McCabe explained.

Understanding Agentforce’s Current Performance

Agentforce demonstrated a 20% growth in annual recurring revenue, achieving $1.2 billion during fiscal Q1 2027. The addition of Fin is projected to broaden this platform’s capabilities within customer service environments.

The transaction is scheduled to conclude during Salesforce’s fiscal fourth quarter of 2027, pending specific price adjustment provisions.

Analyst Community Expresses Mixed Views

Rishi Jaluria, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, acknowledged the strategic merit of the acquisition, particularly for customer engagement purposes. However, he raised several reservations.

“We remain uncertain about certain aspects of the acquisition rationale and recognize that this introduces further integration and execution challenges considering that Informatica, Contentful, and various smaller acquisitions are being incorporated simultaneously,” Jaluria noted on Monday.

Barron’s withdrew its recommendation for Salesforce last week, reversing its original buy rating from December.

The software industry overall has faced headwinds this year from what market observers have dubbed the “SaaSpocalypse” — apprehension that AI agents might diminish reliance on conventional SaaS products.

Heading into this week, Salesforce shares have declined 37% year-to-date.

Standard Chartered is forecasting a major acceleration in how decentralized finance (DeFi) can absorb tokenized assets. In a research note released Monday, Geoff Kendrick—head of digital assets research at the bank—projected that assets actively used in DeFi could expand 37-fold to $2.7 trillion by the end of 2030.

The estimate hinges on a shift in where tokenized value goes once it is issued. Kendrick argued that DeFi protocols could become a key distribution channel not only for crypto-native assets, but also for tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) that are increasingly being developed by traditional finance participants.

Key takeaways

• Standard Chartered expects DeFi-active tokenized assets to reach $2.7 trillion by 2030, implying a 37x increase from current levels.
• The forecast depends on both tokenized RWAs and crypto-native assets finding their way into onchain lending, trading, and other DeFi use cases.
• According to Kendrick, only 3% of stablecoins and 10% of tokenized RWAs are currently used in DeFi.
• Standard Chartered projects tokenized asset usage in DeFi rising to about 30% by end-2030, from roughly 3.5% today.
• The bank points to Uniswap as a possible hub for tokenized markets, though other researchers warn tokenization alone doesn’t solve liquidity fragmentation.

Standard Chartered’s 2030 DeFi absorption forecast

Kendrick’s central claim is that DeFi could be the next major engine for “generational wealth” in digital assets. He estimated that the amount of tokenized assets active in DeFi will grow 37x by the end of the decade.

While tokenization is often discussed as a way to bring real-world finance onto public blockchains, the investment question is how that tokenized value translates into real onchain participation. Kendrick’s projections address that by focusing on usage rates—how much of the overall tokenized supply is actually deployed inside DeFi protocols.

Per the research note, only 3% of stablecoins and 10% of tokenized RWAs are currently used in DeFi. Standard Chartered expects those tokenized shares to rise sharply over the next several years, with the portion of tokenized value used in DeFi projected to reach 30% by end-2030, up from about 3.5% today.

The scale of the jump is important: growing the absolute figure to $2.7 trillion would require both (1) rapid growth in total onchain tokenized assets and (2) a near ninefold increase in the share of that tokenized value being put to work in DeFi.

Why tokenized value may not automatically become liquid

The bank’s outlook reinforces the broader institutional argument that tokenization could re-route capital flows toward onchain systems. However, the path from issuance to deep markets is not straightforward.

The research note acknowledges—and the wider debate around tokenization highlights—that tokenization does not inherently guarantee liquidity or a unified market structure. Other researchers have warned that tokenized assets can still trade in ways that remain fragmented across ecosystems.

Earlier coverage from Cointelegraph noted concerns raised by Axis CEO Chris Kim that issuing the same asset across multiple blockchains and formats can create “siloed liquidity,” leading to pricing gaps and higher costs. In practical terms for traders and liquidity providers, that fragmentation can make it harder for market participants to find consistent pricing and for liquidity to pool efficiently—even if total market value grows.

Similarly, Oya Celiktemur of Ondo Finance told Cointelegraph at Paris Blockchain Week in April that tokenizing an illiquid asset does not “magically” make it liquid. The implication is that deeper liquidity depends on market design, distribution, and the incentives that keep trading and settlement efficient once tokenized assets reach users.

From earlier RWA estimates to a DeFi-centered distribution thesis

Standard Chartered has previously linked tokenization growth to large market expansions. The new DeFi-focused forecast builds on an earlier projection that non-stablecoin tokenized RWAs could grow to $2 trillion by the end of 2028, according to Kendrick—where tokenized money-market funds and US equities are expected to represent much of the projected market.

What’s new here is the emphasis on where those tokenized instruments are used rather than just their total outstanding value. The shift matters because DeFi impact is not measured only by token counts or issuance volumes; it’s measured by how much liquidity and trading activity migrates into onchain protocols that support borrowing, trading, and settlement.

By framing DeFi as a destination for tokenized capital, Standard Chartered is effectively proposing that tokenization’s biggest long-term value creation could be tied to protocol-level adoption—rather than confined to isolated token issuances or simple exposure products.

Uniswap as a potential liquidity bridge for tokenized markets

Alongside the usage-rate assumptions, Kendrick singled out Uniswap as a venue that could play a growing role in trading tokenized assets as more of them move onchain. He pointed to the decentralized exchange’s scale, branding, and track record of operating through multiple crypto cycles.

In his view, these characteristics could be especially relevant for traditional financial institutions that are likely to prioritize security and reliability when integrating tokenized RWAs into DeFi. Kendrick also suggested that if Uniswap is able to “commercialise enough” and form meaningful TradFi partnerships that improve scale, it could strengthen its fee-generation relative to its market capitalization—potentially narrowing the gap with major centralized exchanges.

The bank’s bet on Uniswap aligns with the thesis that tokenized-market liquidity will depend on venues capable of onboarding new assets at meaningful volume. Still, it sits in tension with the liquidity-fragmentation warnings raised by other researchers: even if a venue is technically capable of supporting tokenized assets, liquidity can remain dispersed if the same instruments arrive in multiple formats, across multiple chains, or with mismatched trading infrastructure.

Looking ahead, investors and builders should watch whether DeFi protocols can convert rising tokenization volumes into sustained onchain usage—particularly by tracking how stablecoins and tokenized RWAs distribute across different DeFi activities. The key uncertainty is whether liquidity consolidates around major venues like Uniswap or continues to fragment as tokenized assets proliferate across ecosystems.

Strategy, the publicly listed company controlled by Michael Saylor, added more Bitcoin to its treasury last week, purchasing 1,587 BTC for $100 million while the token traded below the firm’s reported average cost basis.

According to Strategy’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the acquisitions took place between June 8 and Sunday. The company reported an average purchase price of $63,024 per bitcoin, slightly lowering its overall average cost basis to about $75,656.

Key takeaways

• Strategy bought 1,587 BTC for $100 million between June 8 and Sunday, per an SEC 8-K filing.
• The purchases were executed at an average price of $63,024 per BTC, reducing Strategy’s average cost basis to roughly $75,656.
• Strategy now holds 846,842 BTC, with CoinGecko valuing the holdings at about $56.1 billion at roughly $66,216 per BTC.
• The latest buy was financed through sales of Strategy’s Class A common stock, while its preferred share programs showed no activity during the week.
• Ongoing discussion around Strategy’s willingness to sell Bitcoin remains tied to its need to fund dividend-style digital credit products.

Another tranche of Bitcoin purchases

Strategy’s newest move reinforces its continued accumulation strategy, even as market prices sit under its average entry cost. The company’s SEC 8-K states that it acquired 1,587 BTC for $100 million during the period spanning June 8 through Sunday.

At an average acquisition price of $63,024, the buy occurred at a level materially below Strategy’s average cost basis of approximately $75,700 referenced in the filing details. After this round, Strategy’s overall average cost basis fell slightly to $75,656.

Where the company’s Bitcoin stands today

With the latest acquisition, Strategy’s total Bitcoin holdings reach 846,842 BTC, accumulated at a combined cost of $64.07 billion. Based on CoinGecko market pricing of about $66,216 per BTC, the current value of those holdings is roughly $56.1 billion.

That gap between carrying cost and current market value matters for both equity investors and crypto-focused observers, because Strategy’s balance sheet is built around Bitcoin exposure. When BTC trades below the company’s average cost basis, each incremental purchase can help reduce that average—though it does not automatically offset the unrealized difference in value unless the market moves meaningfully higher.

Financing the buy through MSTR share sales

Strategy’s filing indicates that the purchase was funded similarly to its prior additions: by selling shares of its Class A common stock rather than relying on activity within certain preferred stock programs.

Specifically, the company said it raised about $209 million by selling 1.73 million shares during the period. It also noted that preferred share programs—including STRC, STRF, STRK, and STRD—showed no activity over the week covered by the filing.

This structure is a key element of Strategy’s approach. Rather than treating Bitcoin accumulation as an isolated treasury action, the company ties growth in BTC holdings to capital markets operations that can provide liquidity for continued buying.

Preferred stock below par and the broader sale debate

While Strategy did not report preferred program activity during the week, outside trackers have continued to highlight market pricing pressure around at least one preferred instrument. According to STRC.live, STRC remained below its $100 par value for a fourth consecutive week as of June 12, lingering in the mid-$96 range and marking the longest stretch below par since its launch.

On Friday, STRC closed at $94.80, down about 1%, according to TradingView data cited via STRC.live.

Separately, the context for why Strategy continues to sell assets to fund Bitcoin buying—and, at times, sell BTC itself—has remained a live issue in the crypto community. The company disclosed its first reported Bitcoin sale in years in connection with an earlier transaction referenced in Cointelegraph coverage: a sale of 32 BTC on June 1. Even though that amount was small relative to its overall holdings, it sparked debate about whether Strategy is shifting away from its historically strict “buy and hold” narrative.

Michael Saylor later defended the rationale, telling Cointelegraph that Bitcoin treasury companies need the ability to sell holdings to support dividend-paying securities tied to its digital credit business.

What to watch next

Investors will likely focus on whether Strategy continues to fund Bitcoin buys primarily through common stock issuance, how preferred programs trade relative to par, and—most importantly—whether future SEC disclosures show continued accumulation at prices that further narrow the company’s cost basis versus BTC’s prevailing market level.

Paradigm has led a $9 million Series A funding round for Latin American payments platform El Dorado as the company expands stablecoin-powered cross-border transfers across underserved markets in the region.

According to a June 15 announcement from Paradigm, the investment was made alongside Coinbase Ventures and Verda Ventures, with the firms backing El Dorado’s effort to build payment infrastructure for cross-border transactions in Latin America.

Ricardo de Arruda, partner for investing and research at Paradigm, said the region handles more than $100 billion in annual cross-border payment volume but continues to rely on systems that are slow, expensive, and difficult to navigate.

“Cross-border payments in Latin America represent one of the most underserved and underreported opportunities in global finance,” de Arruda said. 

“The region moves well over $100 billion across borders annually, but is plagued by slow, expensive and opaque infrastructure. El Dorado is building the payments layer this market has long needed.”

Founded in 2022 by Latin American immigrants, El Dorado said it now serves more than 100,000 active users and has processed over 5 million transactions across the region. The company currently operates in 12 countries, including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador.

El Dorado targets overlooked payment corridors

Offering a different view of the market opportunity, El Dorado co-founder and CEO Guillermo Goncalvez said in an accompanying statement that the annual cross-border payment activity in Latin America is closer to $1 trillion when broader flows are considered.

According to Goncalvez, roughly 60% of those transactions involve business-to-business payments tied to imports and exports between the U.S. and Latin America. Beyond those well-known routes, he said some of the strongest demand comes from payment corridors that large financial technology firms often overlook.

One of El Dorado’s busiest routes today connects Brazil and Bolivia, a market Goncalvez said remains underserved despite strong commercial activity. He added that countries such as Bolivia, Paraguay, Ecuador, and Peru receive less attention from larger fintech providers including Nubank and Wise.

Alongside consumer payments, El Dorado has introduced a dedicated business platform for companies moving money across borders. According to the company, the service combines fiat and stablecoin payment rails within a single application while supporting multi-signature and multi-organization account structures.

Goncalvez added that more than 100 business customers have joined the platform, with imports of electric vehicles from China emerging as one of the most common use cases.

Built on Tempo, a Layer 1 blockchain developed through a partnership between Paradigm and Stripe, the service forms part of a payment infrastructure strategy both organizations have been developing this year. Josh Itzkovitz, GTM at Tempo, said the network allows businesses worldwide to open accounts regardless of whether they maintain a U.S. legal entity.

The investment also adds to Paradigm’s growing activity outside traditional crypto venture funding. In recent months, the firm has backed manufacturing company SendCutSend in a $110 million funding round, partnered with Stripe on the Tempo blockchain network, and participated in policy discussions surrounding stablecoin regulation in the U.S.

Earlier this month, Paradigm submitted comments to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation urging regulators not to restrict third-party stablecoin reward programs, arguing that such limitations extend beyond what Congress approved under the GENIUS Act. Those efforts, together with the launch of Tempo and the El Dorado investment, place stablecoin-based payment infrastructure at the center of several of the firm’s recent initiatives.

Bitcoin treasury companies may need to revisit their capital structures if Bitcoin remains under pressure, with consolidation becoming more likely across the sector, according to Strive Chief Investment Officer Ben Werkman.

Speaking at BTC Prague, Werkman said companies that relied heavily on convertible debt during the bitcoin treasury boom could face increasing strain if Bitcoin remains far below its October peak near $126,000.

While higher Bitcoin prices would ease many of those concerns, he said an extended downturn could leave some firms with difficult choices. Under those conditions, companies may need to sell Bitcoin to fund operations or manage debt obligations, particularly where financing arrangements include collateral or coverage requirements.

Werkman said Strive was “one of the only ones that didn’t take any convertible bonds” when building its bitcoin treasury strategy, explaining that the company relied on equity financing instead. According to him, that approach has allowed Strive to continue expanding through the current market cycle without facing the same pressures as some debt funded peers.

Consolidation could accelerate if market weakness continues

Among the outcomes he expects, consolidation sits near the top of the list.

Pointing to Strive’s acquisition of bitcoin treasury company Semler Scientific, Werkman said more mergers could emerge if financially constrained firms seek alternatives to operating independently. He added that company leaders are often reluctant to sell at discounted valuations, which has limited deal activity so far.

In Semler’s case, Werkman said the transaction came together because Semler Scientific Chairman Eric Semler supported the preferred-stock model that Strive had been developing, even though the proposal failed to gain enough shareholder support at Semler itself.

Elsewhere in the sector, firms have already started adjusting their balance sheets. Werkman cited efforts by Nakamoto to reduce debt burdens and regain operating flexibility, describing those moves as attempts to free companies from financing constraints that accumulated during more favorable market conditions.

The comments arrive as investors continue to examine how bitcoin treasury firms balance aggressive accumulation strategies with debt servicing requirements and shareholder obligations.

Recent developments at Strategy illustrate that debate.

Earlier this month, the company disclosed the sale of 32 BTC, a move that attracted attention because of its long-standing commitment to accumulating Bitcoin. The transaction raised roughly $2.5 million at an average price of $77,135 per coin, according to previous crypto.news reporting.

Questions about the sale intensified after some market participants interpreted it as a departure from Strategy’s accumulation strategy. Company executives later rejected that view.

Strategy CEO Phong Le said the sale was conducted as a test of internal systems rather than a move to generate cash for dividend payments. He added that the company still had access to funding channels such as equity issuance and preferred stock offerings.

Strategy’s bitcoin sale draws attention from treasury firms

Discussing the transaction, Werkman said the sale carried significance beyond its size because it helped demonstrate Bitcoin’s liquidity to credit markets and rating agencies.

According to him, rating agencies currently assign Strategy a rating that effectively treats the Bitcoin on its balance sheet as having no value when assessing creditworthiness. Under those conditions, proving the ability to sell Bitcoin and convert it into cash becomes important for treasury companies that maintain dividend obligations.

He argued that Strategy needed to show investors and lenders that the market could absorb Bitcoin sales if necessary and that the company could access that value when conditions required.

The sale did not prevent Strategy from continuing its accumulation program.

On June 15, Michael Saylor announced that Strategy had purchased 1,587 BTC for approximately $100 million, increasing total holdings to 846,842 BTC. The company also expanded its cash reserve by another $100 million, bringing total dollar reserves to $1.1 billion.

Kraken just became the official crypto exchange of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Their marketing message? It’s clearly not for FIFA fans. It’s for people already in crypto. Here’s why that’s the biggest missed opportunity in sports marketing.

The Message That Reveals Everything

Kraken’s FIFA 2026 campaign just dropped. Here’s their pitch:

“Some watch every match; some only the ones that matter. Some are ride-or-die for one team, every win, every heartbreak, for life. Others just love the game, no matter who’s playing. Crypto’s no different. Some study every chart. Some go all-in on one coin and hold for years. Others just want a bit of everything. Kraken is built for all of them.”

Read that carefully.

Who is this message for?

Not FIFA fans discovering crypto. For people who already understand crypto talking about crypto using a soccer analogy.

That’s not a conversion pitch. That’s in-group messaging masquerading as a mainstream campaign.

What A Real Conversion Campaign Would Look Like

If Kraken was actually trying to convert FIFA fans, the billions of people watching the World Cup, the message would be completely different.

It would translate crypto concepts into soccer language:

Option 1 (Direct conversion): “You believe in your team. You invest emotion, time, loyalty. Investing in crypto is the same thing, belief, conviction, loyalty to an asset. Kraken makes that easy.”

Option 2 (Simple Value Prop): “Your national team wins, you celebrate. An investment wins, you profit. Kraken lets you profit from your convictions.”

Option 3 (Accessibility Angle): “Not everyone can afford to buy a team. Everyone can afford to invest in crypto. Kraken makes it accessible.”

What Kraken actually did: Used “hodlers” (a crypto insider term) in a campaign aimed at… FIFA fans?

No. Not FIFA fans. Crypto people who follow FIFA.

The Smoking Gun: “Hodlers”

The word “hodlers” is the tell.

A FIFA fan watching the World Cup has no idea what a “hodler” is. They’ve never heard the term. It means nothing to them.

But a crypto person? They know exactly what that means. It’s the crypto community’s inside joke about holding investments long-term.

Kraken used an insider term in a campaign supposedly designed to reach mainstream sports fans.

That’s not an accident. That’s evidence the campaign was never designed to convert new people.

It was designed to give existing crypto people a campaign they’d recognize and share with other crypto people.

That’s not marketing. That’s community building for people already bought in.

Why This Is A Massive Missed Opportunity

FIFA 2026 is the biggest sporting event in the world. It’s watched by over a billion people.

Kraken has access to all of them.

And what did Kraken do? They created a campaign that only resonates with people who already understand crypto.

Do you know how many potential new crypto users Kraken just failed to convert?

All of them.

Instead of saying “Crypto is like soccer-passion, belief, investment,” Kraken said “We understand your hodling journey, fellow hodlers.”

Those are not the same message. One converts. One reinforces.

The Pattern This Reveals

This isn’t just Kraken. This is crypto’s fundamental problem:

Crypto doesn’t know how to talk to people outside crypto.

Every major crypto campaign makes the same mistake:

• They use insider terminology (HODL, diamond hands, paper hands, rugpull, etc.)
• They assume people already understand the concept
• They communicate to crypto people using sports/culture metaphors
• They act surprised when mainstream adoption doesn’t happen

Kraken just demonstrated this at scale. With a billion-person audience. And a $X million sponsorship budget.

And they wasted it by talking to people who already get it.

What This Actually Reveals About Crypto’s Status

Here’s what Kraken’s campaign accidentally proves:

Crypto has stopped trying to convert mainstream audiences.

Why? Because it failed. The aggressive “mainstream adoption” campaigns of 2022 didn’t work. So now crypto is just trying to:

1. Retain existing users
2. Extract more value from them
3. Use mainstream visibility to communicate insider concepts

That’s not expansion. That’s consolidation.

Kraken didn’t say “FIFA fans should discover crypto.” Kraken said “Crypto people, here’s a FIFA metaphor you’ll understand.”

The audience shifted. The opportunity shrunk. And nobody noticed because the sponsorship was so flashy.

How To Actually Use A FIFA Sponsorship

If I were Kraken, here’s what I’d do:

Phase 1: Convert Target FIFA fans with crypto-as-investment messaging. “Your team wins, you celebrate. Your investment wins, you profit. Here’s how.”

Phase 2: Educate Create FIFA-themed explainers. “How Bitcoin works (explained through FIFA analogies).” “What is a blockchain (using team formations as analogy).”

Phase 3: Onboard Make it stupidly easy for FIFA fans to buy crypto. Remove friction. Simple interface. Clear language.

Phase 4: Retain Once they’re in, communicate in crypto language. Now the insider terminology makes sense.

Instead, Kraken jumped straight to Phase 4 with a billion-person audience.

That’s not strategy. That’s leaving money on the table.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Crypto has accepted that mainstream adoption failed.

Instead of trying again with better messaging, crypto is now:

• Using mainstream visibility to communicate with existing users
• Creating insider-friendly campaigns that alienate newcomers
• Celebrating “official sponsorships” while failing to convert anyone

Kraken’s FIFA campaign is just the clearest example.

A billion-person audience. A chance to convert millions of new users. And the message was: “Fellow hodlers, here’s a crypto metaphor for soccer.”

That’s not a World Cup campaign. That’s a Reddit post dressed up as a major sponsorship.

What Comes Next

Crypto will claim the Kraken FIFA partnership is a victory.

Official sponsorships. Mainstream visibility. Biggest World Cup ever.

But the campaign itself—the actual message Kraken created—reveals the truth:

Crypto isn’t trying to convert new people anymore. Crypto is just trying to extract more value from people already in the ecosystem.

That’s not a sign of maturity. That’s a sign of surrender.

And a billion FIFA fans just learned… absolutely nothing about crypto, because Kraken was never trying to teach them.

The Real Lesson

If you want to reach a mainstream audience with a niche product, you have to translate it into their language.

Kraken had the opportunity. They had the budget. They had the audience.

They just didn’t have the vision to actually try.

Instead, they created a campaign for people who didn’t need converting.

That’s the most expensive way to reinforce what people already know.

What should Kraken’s FIFA campaign have said to actually convert fans? Drop your ideas, but make them actually appeal to someone who knows nothing about crypto.