Maryland State Delegate Adrian Boafo has won the Democratic primary for Maryland’s 5th Congressional District, putting him on track to compete for the seat held by retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer. 

The Associated Press and Decision Desk HQ called the race Tuesday night after a crowded primary with more than 20 Democratic candidates.

Analysts track this using a metric called spent transaction outputs (STXO), which, in simple terms, tracks the movement of BTC on the blockchain. An OG moving coins after holding them for half a decade is almost always a sign of impending liquidation or profit-taking.

During the peak of the bullish cycle, single-day sell-offs sometimes exceeded 142,000 BTC, sending shockwaves through the market.

But that’s not the case anymore.

The timing of this slowdown in OG selling is not a coincidence, according to analysts at CryptoQuant. Currently, bitcoin is trading around $63,000, which, as it turns out, could be the “break-even” point for the most expensive coins this group could have possibly purchased five years ago, analysts explained on X.

By looking to hold at these levels, the OGs are effectively removing a massive source of selling pressure that capped BTC’s gains above $100,000 last year.

In other words, sell-side pressures are weakening just as some contrary indicators warn of a bottom. Note that outflows from spot ETFs have also slowed over the past two weeks in a positive sign for the cryptocurrency.

As of this writing, bitcoin changed hands near $62,750, largely unchanged on a 24-hour basis.

The US House has passed a major housing bill that includes a ban on central bank digital currencies until 2030, in what is set to be a major win for Republicans who have long pushed for such a measure.

The House voted 358-32 on Tuesday to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a day after the Senate voted 85-5 to pass the bill, which largely aims to tackle housing affordability. The bill now heads to US President Donald Trump, who has signaled support for the measure and is expected to sign it into law on Wednesday. 

“Today, Congress delivered a major win for families working toward the American Dream,” said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott. “I look forward to President Trump signing it into law.”

CBDCs are a representation of fiat currency issued by a central bank on a ledger. The signing of the bill will be a win for Republicans who have tried to pass a CBDC ban for years, and for crypto advocates who see CBDCs as an attempt to repurpose technology made for decentralized assets into a centrally controlled asset. 

The housing bill includes language that the Federal Reserve may not, directly or indirectly, “issue or create a central bank digital currency or any digital asset that is substantially similar to a central bank digital currency,” a clause that expires on Dec. 31, 2030.

Source: US Senate Banking Committee GOP

The bill’s quick passage comes after House and Senate leaders reached a deal to move forward with the housing bill last week, after previously disagreeing over multiple aspects of the legislation.

The bill has included the CBDC ban since the Senate passed a version of it in March. It also features a carve-out for crypto stablecoins, allowing “dollar-denominated currency that is open, permissionless and private.”

The CBDC ban revived language from Republican Representative Tom Emmer’s Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. That bill was introduced in June 2025 and passed the House a month later, but it never saw movement in the Senate.

Related: Crypto lobby urges Congress to pass staking and mining tax bill as is

With the bill off lawmakers’ agenda, Congress can now focus on passing other legislation before the August recess and the November midterm elections.

One bill that has garnered particular interest is the Senate’s crypto market structure bill, dubbed the CLARITY Act, which many lawmakers have been pushing to advance.

Despite months of talks between lawmakers and crypto and banking lobbyists, the CLARITY Act is still seeing pushback, and the odds of it being passed this year have slipped.

Earlier this month, Galaxy Digital lowered its estimate of the Senate passing the bill before the end of the year, giving it a 60% chance as the congressional calendar tightens.

Magazine: How crypto laws changed in 2025 — and how they’ll change in 2026

BlackRock has renewed its view that Bitcoin can sit inside some investment portfolios as a small complementary diversifier. 

The firm said Bitcoin’s role is changing as more investors study its supply, demand, adoption path and place beside traditional assets.

“Bitcoin’s role in portfolios is evolving, and it could be considered a complementary diversifier,” said BlackRock. The asset manager said a typical 1% to 2% allocation may support return potential while keeping risk within a suitable range.

The 1% to 2% range reflects risk limits

BlackRock’s view does not present Bitcoin as a core holding for every investor. Its research says the asset still carries high volatility, unstable correlations and adoption risk. A larger position may raise total portfolio risk beyond what many investors can accept.

The firm uses a risk budgeting approach when sizing Bitcoin exposure. In a 60/40 portfolio, BlackRock said a 1% to 2% Bitcoin position can add risk at a level similar to one large technology stock. The firm warned that going above that range can make Bitcoin a bigger driver of portfolio swings.

ETF growth keeps BlackRock near Bitcoin demand

BlackRock’s comments come as the firm keeps expanding Bitcoin-linked products. Its iShares Bitcoin Trust remains one of the largest spot Bitcoin ETFs, and the company has added new products for investors who want different ways to access Bitcoin exposure.

As previously reported by crypto.news, BlackRock launched the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF on Nasdaq in June. The fund holds Bitcoin exposure mainly through IBIT and sells call options to target a 15% to 25% annual yield paid through monthly distributions.

The product does not offer the same return profile as spot Bitcoin. It seeks income from option premiums while keeping partial upside exposure to Bitcoin’s price. That structure may suit investors who want Bitcoin-linked income, but it can limit gains during sharp rallies.

In a recent update, crypto.news covered BlackRock’s earlier filings for the Bitcoin income ETF. The product showed how traditional asset managers are shaping crypto access through regulated funds rather than direct token custody.

Recent market moves add caution

BlackRock’s portfolio message also arrives after a volatile period for U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs. As crypto.news reported, Bitcoin ETFs saw a 13-day outflow streak from May 15 to June 3, draining about $4.37 billion from the sector.

That outflow run showed that ETF demand can shift fast when markets weaken. BlackRock’s own research also says Bitcoin has seen deep drawdowns over its short history, including drops of 70% to 80% from peak to bottom.

Still, the firm continues to describe Bitcoin as different from many traditional assets. BlackRock says its fixed supply and adoption-driven value path set it apart from stocks and bonds. The firm also says investors should review the asset with caution because future adoption remains uncertain.

For portfolio builders, the message is narrow. BlackRock is not calling for large Bitcoin holdings. It is saying that a limited allocation may fit some investors who understand the risk, accept price swings and want exposure to a digital asset that moves on different drivers.

StarkWare has unveiled a demo of “Private KYC” for Starknet, aiming to let users satisfy know-your-customer requirements without handing over complete identity documents. The privacy-focused system is built around selective disclosures using zero-knowledge proofs, designed to confirm specific facts—such as age or credential validity—while keeping the underlying personal data hidden.

In the announcement, StarkWare said the approach uses STRK20 privacy features alongside zero-knowledge STARK proofs. The goal is to reduce the amount of personal information organizations need to collect and store, addressing a core vulnerability of today’s compliance workflows: once large identity databases exist, they become high-value targets.

Key takeaways

• Starknet Private KYC is designed to verify specific attributes (e.g., “over 18” or “credential is valid”) rather than reveal full passport details.
• The demo relies on zero-knowledge STARK proofs so verifiers can confirm eligibility without viewing the underlying identity data.
• User-side steps include scanning a passport and proving eligibility via encrypted data registered on-chain.
• StarkWare frames the release as proof that compliance and privacy do not have to conflict—particularly by limiting how much identity data institutions store.
• The model is positioned as a contrast to biometric verification approaches that drew criticism for centralized custody concerns.

Selective identity checks on Starknet

Traditional KYC typically requires users to provide full documents, after which institutions must store and safeguard sensitive information. StarkWare argues that this “all-or-nothing” data exchange is unnecessary when regulations often require confirmation of only one or a small set of facts.

Under the proposed flow, users begin by scanning their passport using a smartphone camera and the device’s NFC chip to read and confirm the document is genuine and signed by the issuing authority. After that, users encrypt identity data to their Starknet wallet, register relevant attributes in a public on-chain registry, and submit zero-knowledge proofs for targeted checks.

Crucially, verifiers are able to validate eligibility by consulting the public registry and checking the proofs—without accessing the actual identity data itself. StarkWare described the principle this way: verification should “only confirm the precise fact,” such as meeting an eligibility rule, rather than expose the complete document.

StarkWare also warned that institutions collecting full identity information can create long-lived risk. In its framing, “every identity database becomes a liability the moment it exists,” underscoring why limiting what’s stored matters for both security and compliance.

How the demo’s privacy design works

StarkWare presented Private KYC as a demo rather than a fully deployed feature set, but the workflow outlines a practical mechanism for privacy-preserving verification on a public blockchain environment.

First, passport data is used locally during the scan and authenticity confirmation step. Next, identity data is encrypted and tied to a user’s Starknet wallet, reducing the likelihood that raw documents or complete personal records need to be transmitted to every counterparty.

Then, instead of sharing full documents for each verification request, users register attributes in a public on-chain registry and produce zero-knowledge STARK proofs for the specific statements that need to be checked. Starknet’s team said current identity checks often “ask for your whole document when they only need one fact,” and the architecture is intended to align the system’s disclosure level with the actual compliance requirement.

StarkWare’s core argument is that verification can be structured so institutions confirm what they need without building their own copy of someone’s identity. The company said this approach avoids creating another dataset that organizations would then have to defend.

Why KYC privacy is gaining momentum

The push for privacy-preserving verification comes as cyber risk continues to rise. The article accompanying the announcement cited StationX data suggesting the US reached a record 3,322 data compromises in 2025, representing a 79% increase over five years. It also referenced a global average data breach cost of $4.4 million, as reported by StationX in that same context.

On top of broad data-breach statistics, the wider compliance landscape is increasingly shaped by the reality that sensitive records—especially identity and credential data—attract attackers. StarkWare’s positioning is therefore less about cryptography as an abstract concept and more about changing the practical incentives for collecting and storing identity information.

The company’s approach also reflects an important asymmetry in today’s KYC systems: users often have little control over how many parties repeat collection, how long records are retained, or what security standards are used. Private KYC, as presented, aims to reduce those risks by limiting disclosure to what is necessary for eligibility decisions.

In the crypto ecosystem, there is also an example of the consequences of custody and centralization in privacy-adjacent identity systems. StarkWare compared its direction to Sam Altman’s World ID, which uses zk-proofs to verify humanness via iris scans on hardware orbs. However, World ID drew backlash over centralized biometric custody. StarkWare’s “self-custody” framing is intended to address similar concerns by avoiding the same custody pattern for biometric-style data.

What to watch next for Starknet’s Private KYC

Private KYC on Starknet is positioned as a step toward compliance-ready verification that protects sensitive personal details, but the demo nature of the announcement means implementation details and rollout timing remain unclear. Investors and builders should watch for when and how the proofs, on-chain attribute registries, and verifier tooling are integrated into real-world applications—especially those that need auditable eligibility without repeated exposure of full documents.