Crypto World
Framework Ventures Raises $400M Fourth Fund to Expand Beyond Crypto into AI, Robotics, Energy
Framework Ventures, a venture capital firm that has long focused on crypto infrastructure, has closed its fourth fund after raising $400 million. The San Francisco-based firm said the new capital will be directed toward “frontier technology,” a mandate that includes both crypto and adjacent innovation areas such as artificial intelligence, robotics and energy, Fortune reported on Friday.
According to the report, co-founders Vance Spencer and Michael Anderson said roughly half of the fund has already been deployed. They did not name the fund’s limited partners. Cointelegraph previously reached out to Framework for additional details about the latest vehicle but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
Key takeaways
- Framework Ventures closed a $400 million fourth fund with a “frontier technology” scope that extends beyond blockchain.
- Co-founders Vance Spencer and Michael Anderson said about half of the capital has already been deployed.
- The firm frames the strategy as following its existing founder network into new tech categories rather than abandoning crypto.
- Framework’s track record includes major crypto investments across infrastructure and decentralized finance.
A broader mandate, framed as an extension of its founder network
While many crypto-focused VCs have increasingly talked about diversifying into artificial intelligence and other emerging sectors, Framework is positioning its latest fund as a continuation of where its ecosystem is already headed. Anderson said the firm is not merely chasing AI headlines; instead, it is investing alongside founders it already backs who are building products that touch multiple frontiers.
In the context of the fund’s launch, Anderson emphasized that investors should stay alert to the direction these founders are taking, adding that “We should pay attention.”
This approach is consistent with Framework’s earlier behavior: the firm has previously invested in companies outside purely on-chain categories, while still maintaining a strong presence in digital asset infrastructure.
Concrete examples of Framework’s cross-sector investing
Fortune’s coverage and Framework’s disclosed activity point to a pattern of investments spanning crypto-linked financial infrastructure and robotics data.
For example, Framework backed robotics data startup Mecka AI with a reported $60 million round in early June. Earlier in the year, it also partnered with mortgage lender Better to support up to $500 million in financing through the Sky stablecoin ecosystem. Separately, Fortune reported that Framework took a $45 million stake in Better—representing roughly 10% of the company’s stock—citing its earlier reporting on tokenized mortgages.
Together, these examples illustrate the strategy implied by the fund’s “frontier technology” language: Framework is looking for investment opportunities where digital asset infrastructure, capital markets, and new technology stacks intersect, rather than treating non-crypto areas as entirely separate bets.
Crypto still at the core: a portfolio built around major infrastructure names
Framework’s diversification does not replace its crypto focus so much as broaden the set of bets it can place. The firm, founded in 2019, launched its first crypto fund with an emphasis on early decentralized finance (DeFi) projects.
Framework’s portfolio includes well-known crypto platforms and infrastructure businesses such as Aave, Chainlink, Hyperliquid, Jito Labs and Plasma, according to the company’s portfolio page. The firm says it invests across multiple market cycles, prioritizing founders that build “infrastructure and products” in emerging digital asset markets.
That framing matters for investors because it suggests Framework is attempting to keep its selection criteria—supporting early builders in infrastructure—while expanding the technical domains those builders operate in. For traders and users, it also implies a continued likelihood of investment in the underlying systems that power on-chain finance and related applications, even as the investment lens widens.
How the new fund fits within Framework’s capital expansion
Framework’s fourth fund comes after several rounds of increasing fund sizes and a consistent focus on crypto during earlier vehicles. Fortune’s reporting ties the firm’s scaling to earlier fundraising, noting that Framework raised a $100 million second fund in 2021 and a $400 million third fund in 2022—both described as primarily crypto-focused.
In other words, the latest $400 million raise is not just another step up in ticket size; it represents a change in headline scope. The amount remains in line with the third fund, while the stated target audience for investments expands from primarily blockchain to additional frontier technology categories.
Framework has also drawn institutional attention previously. For instance, The Wall Street Journal reported that the firm raised a round backed by institutional support, underscoring that its fundraising momentum is tied to broader demand for credible crypto VC exposure. Coverage from Bloomberg similarly described how crypto VC firms were challenging the “traditional” look of legacy venture crowds by raising capital at meaningful scales during prior fundraising waves.
As Framework shifts the narrative from “crypto only” to “frontier technology,” investors will likely look for signals on how broadly that scope will be applied. The key question is whether future deployments will concentrate more heavily in AI, robotics and energy—or whether these sectors will primarily appear when they intersect with crypto-native infrastructure and capital formation.
Readers should watch how much of the fourth fund’s remaining capital continues to flow into crypto infrastructure versus non-blockchain frontier bets, and whether the firm’s portfolio announcements clarify what “frontier technology” means in practice beyond its early Mecka AI and Better examples.
Crypto World
Polymarket Hit by Third-Party Breach Drains $2.9M, Raises Compliance Risks
Polymarket says a third-party vendor compromise discovered on Thursday enabled attackers to inject malicious code into its website interface, leading to a phishing campaign that targeted multiple users. According to blockchain analyst Specter, the injected script was used to drain an estimated $2.94 million from at least 11 Polymarket wallets.
Polymarket stated that the incident has been contained and that the compromised dependency has been removed. The platform also said affected users will receive full refunds. Cointelegraph contacted Polymarket for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
Key takeaways
- Polymarket reported a third-party vendor compromise that allowed attackers to inject a malicious script into its frontend.
- Analyst Specter linked the malicious code to phishing activity, estimating losses of about $2.94 million across at least 11 user wallets.
- Polymarket said the issue has been contained, a dependency has been removed, and users will be fully refunded.
- Blockchain security reporting data indicates the incident fits within a high volume of crypto breaches in the quarter.
- Separately, DefiLlama data shows private key compromise remains the dominant cause of reported exploit losses over the last 30 days.
Frontend compromise and phishing-driven wallet losses
The Polymarket incident centers on a supply-chain style failure rather than a direct smart contract exploit. Specter said the malicious script appeared to enable a phishing attack that redirected or induced users into compromising credentials or authorizations, culminating in unauthorized asset movement from user wallets.
In practice, this type of front-end compromise can be especially damaging for institutions and compliance teams because it shifts the risk profile away from on-chain mechanics alone. Even where contracts are unchanged, malicious web-layer code can manipulate user behavior, compromise session-related security assumptions, or trick users into signing harmful transactions. For regulated entities that integrate with or route user access to crypto services, incidents like this highlight the need for tighter vendor governance and continuous integrity controls over externally served dependencies.
Polymarket’s response suggests the affected component was identified and removed after discovery. Its commitment to fully refund users also raises operational and policy considerations: while refunds may mitigate user harm, they do not automatically address whether the underlying controls—such as third-party software update processes, dependency monitoring, and incident response playbooks—were sufficient to prevent reoccurrence.
DefiLlama breach reporting underscores a pattern of recurring exploit methods
The Polymarket case arrives as crypto security incident reporting remains elevated. DefiLlama data places the event within a broader timeline: the third quarter’s second quarter-to-date statistics indicate the quarter had its most-hacked period by incident count, according to Cointelegraph’s reference to DefiLlama and its reporting on Q2.
DefiLlama also reports that June saw reported crypto exploit losses of $74.9 million across 29 incidents, exceeding May’s $60.5 million total but remaining well below April’s $644 million peak.
Among the largest June incidents were a $36 million Humanity Protocol exploit, a $4.7 million Secret Network bridge exploit, two separate Aztec exploits valued at $2.1 million each, and a $1.7 million bridge exploit tied to Taiko. While each exploit involves different technical pathways, they collectively reinforce a key compliance reality: incident frequency and magnitude continue to stress operational risk management across exchanges, wallets, and service providers with protocol-level exposure.
DefiLlama’s breakdown of losses over the past 30 days points to private key compromise as the most common leading vector, accounting for 43% of reported exploit losses. Fake proof exploits made up 10%, and reverse MEV honeypots accounted for 8%. For risk teams, these categories matter because they indicate whether controls should prioritize key management, signature/authorization integrity, or transaction routing safeguards for automated systems and integrators.
Private key history at Polymarket highlights multiple threat surfaces
About a month before the reported Polymarket frontend incident, the prediction market disclosed an additional exploit traced to a six-year-old private key used for internal top-up operations. Cointelegraph previously reported that Polymarket said contracts and user funds remained safe in that earlier case and that all permissions associated with the compromised key were revoked.
Taken together, the two events underscore that Polymarket—or any crypto service with on-chain and off-chain touchpoints—can face multiple, distinct threat surfaces: backend key management for operational processes, and web-delivered dependencies for user-facing interactions. For institutional stakeholders, the combination can complicate assurance: even when one control area is remediated (for example, permissions revoked after a key issue), a separate control plane—like third-party dependency integrity—can still introduce new risk.
Polymarket’s scale also implies higher stakes for incident governance. DefiLlama reports that the platform holds more than $450 million in total value locked, up from $112 million a year ago.
Regulatory and compliance implications for crypto firms and integrators
Although Polymarket operates in a market with evolving regulation, incidents of this nature feed directly into compliance expectations for crypto businesses. Under frameworks such as the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation (MiCA), firms are expected to meet governance and operational resilience obligations, while AML/CFT requirements under applicable regimes typically extend to “know your customer” processes and the protection of user funds. Supply-chain compromise and phishing-driven theft also raise questions for regulated counterparties about how customer asset protection claims are substantiated in practice.
For exchanges, wallet providers, payment processors, and institutional service providers, vendor-linked incidents may trigger additional internal review under third-party risk management policies. Common areas include: the lifecycle management of dependencies, auditability of frontend build and deployment pipelines, incident detection and containment procedures, and the adequacy of refund or restitution policies. Even if the theft originates outside on-chain code, user harms can still translate into regulatory scrutiny about consumer protection, disclosures, and operational risk controls.
Cross-border differences in enforcement priorities can further complicate response. In the United States, where crypto enforcement actions have frequently addressed security, consumer protection, and alleged failures in compliance controls, and where federal agencies coordinate through legal processes and subpoenas, a frontend-driven phishing incident can still be framed as a failure to maintain reasonable safeguards. Separately, AML/KYC obligations do not prevent phishing, but they can affect how stolen funds are identified, how affected users are supported, and how suspicious activity is triaged.
For institutional compliance monitoring, the most actionable element is the incident pattern itself: third-party compromise leading to user deception, alongside persistent exploit vectors such as key compromise. These themes suggest that governance should cover both technical controls (key management, permissioning, transaction integrity) and administrative controls (vendor oversight, software supply-chain assurance, and documented response measures).
Closing perspective
Polymarket says the compromised dependency has been removed and that affected users will be refunded. The next phase will likely involve detailed post-incident validation of the compromised supply chain, verification of residual exposure across its frontend delivery stack, and continued alignment of technical controls with the compliance expectations institutions apply to customer protection and operational resilience. Security incident reporting will remain a key reference point for assessing whether this case reflects a broader systemic risk pattern or an isolated vendor failure.
Crypto World
How MiCA is Testing Binance’s Four Competitive Advantages
Binance’s competitive advantages are facing a hard new test. Europe’s sweeping new crypto rulebook reopens an old question: how much of its dominance is due to scale, and how much to a regulatory gap.
The pressure is immediate. The European Union (EU) is forcing Binance out of the bloc under new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) rules. Days earlier, OKX chief executive Star Xu split its success into four parts, arguing each leans on those gaps.
Binance Has Four Competitive Advantages
Analysts and rivals credit Binance’s dominance to four pillars, a breakdown Xu recently detailed. Each is a real strength. Each also now faces a harder test.
Regulatory Arbitrage
Binance scaled quickly by operating across many markets, often ahead of local licensing requirements. That kept costs low. US prosecutors later found that it had never filed a suspicious activity report and let US users trade more than $898 million with sanctioned Iran.
It settled for $4.3 billion in 2023, the year founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty and resigned.
Since then, it has chased licenses and, when pushed, left markets instead, exiting Canada, the Netherlands, and an earlier German application.
A Market-Leading Listings Engine
Binance turns attention into volume better than any rival. It took 39.2% of the top exchanges’ spot trading in 2025, almost five times the share of its nearest competitor, according to CoinGecko.
By its own count, it processed $34 trillion in total product volume across the year. Its Launchpad and constant listings keep traders chasing the next token, though critics warn the sharpest hype cycles leave retail holding the losses.
Unmatched Distribution
Binance counted more than 300 million registered users by the end of 2025, the company reported. A network of affiliates, volunteer Angels, and media partners stretches that reach further.
Supporters call it strong community building. Critics call it narrative management when bad news lands.
Heavy Compliance Investment
Binance’s compliance spending has topped $200 million a year, up from $158 million two years earlier, chief executive Richard Teng told Bloomberg. It fielded about 63,000 law enforcement requests in 2024, up from 58,000.
Yet US prosecutors still imposed a three-year independent monitor in 2023, and critics, Xu among them, say the controls long trailed the marketing.
“Let’s see how Binance plays the regulatory arbitrage game again…Regulators are ultimately evaluating outcomes, not organizational charts,” Xu said, with his own exchange competing directly with Binance.
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Why the Moat May Still Hold
Binance’s scale is hard to dispute. It pushed $7.3 trillion in spot trades in 2025, far ahead of the field. It also held the top rank through the upheaval that followed CZ’s exit and Teng’s arrival.
Binance says its proof-of-reserves system now backs about $163 billion in user assets.
That base reaches across Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, well beyond Europe.
Even so, the EU squeeze is real. Binance is winding down EU services next week, and it withdrew its Greek bid days ago.
“Binance is not leaving Europe,” Gillian Lynch, its Head of Europe and UK, told Reuters.
Rivals are circling. Kraken cleared Ireland and Coinbase chose Luxembourg, ready to absorb users Binance sheds.
Analyst Paul Barron is less alarmed, calling the deadline a priced-in consolidation that mostly clears dormant platforms.
The open question is how much of Binance’s lead is scale and how much is a regulatory gap. Cleaner rules should start to answer it.
The post How MiCA is Testing Binance’s Four Competitive Advantages appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Majors fall 9% over week as AI stocks lure buyers
Dogecoin and Hyperliquid’s HYPE led the week’s losses across crypto, falling near 10%, as money kept flowing toward stocks tied to the artificial-intelligence boom and away from major tokens.
Dogecoin slid 9.6% over seven days to about $0.076 and HYPE lost 9.9%, the steepest falls among the majors. Ether dropped 8.4% to about $1,581 and XRP fell 7.8% to $1.06, while solana and tron held up better, roughly flat on the week at $72 and $0.32.
Bitcoin was the steadier major, down 5.3% to around $60,345 on Saturday after dipping to about $58,800 on Friday and recovering, per CoinDesk data.
“Bitcoin approached $58K at its lows late Thursday and early Friday, but in both cases, aggressive buying quickly pushed it back into the $60K range,” Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro chief market analyst, told CoinDesk. “This pattern resembles margin position liquidations during downtrend spikes, followed by strong buying on pending orders during the recovery.”
“Given deteriorating sentiment among institutional investors and their ability to quickly divest from cryptocurrencies to stabilise their balance sheets, it is worth preparing for continued pressure and periodic sell-off spikes by leveraged traders,” he added.
Crypto World
Ripple CEO stays bullish on bitcoin but says Saylor’s strategy has hurt crypto
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said he remains bullish on bitcoin but that Michael Saylor’s approach to funding bitcoin purchases has damaged the broader crypto market, in a CNBC interview on Friday, as the preferred stock at the center of Strategy’s model fell to a record low.
“Financial engineering does not drive long-term value,” Garlinghouse said, arguing that the lasting value of any digital asset comes from its usefulness. “Team Michael Saylor wasn’t focused on the right stuff and that has hurt the overall market.”
He separated that from his view on the asset itself, saying he is still bullish on bitcoin.
Garlinghouse’s target was the machine Strategy has used to accumulate bitcoin. For about a year, the company has issued preferred shares, a class of stock that pays a fixed dividend, to raise cash for more bitcoin.
Its STRC share carries an 11.5% annual dividend and is engineered to trade near $100. Garlinghouse pointed to STRC trading about 25% below that level as a “damning indictment” of the strategy.
Crypto World
Solana (SOL) Rebounds Above $70, Bitcoin (BTC) Fights for $60K: Weekend Watch
Bitcoin’s price volatility around and just under $60,000 continued at the end of the business week, but the asset has managed to climb above this level as of Saturday morning.
Most larger-cap alts are slightly in the green, with XRP trading above $1.05 and ETH standing close to $1,600. SOL has risen the most from this cohort.
BTC Fights for $60K
The business week began on the right foot for the primary cryptocurrency as the asset rebounded from the weekend slump to $62,500 and tapped $65,500 on Monday. However, that was a short-lived attempt for a more profound recovery as the bears were quick to intervene and halt all the progress.
In the following hours, the asset fell to $62,000. It bounced to $63,000, but the next leg down was even more painful. Bitcoin broke below $60,000 for the second time this month and tapped $59,000. After another dead-cat bounce to almost $62,000, the asset plunged even harder on Thursday, dumping to $58,000 for the first time since late 2024.
The latest leg down was strongly related to the adverse price moves observed from Strategy’s MSTR, which also marked a multi-year low of under $80. Nevertheless, BTC has managed to recover some ground from the aforementioned low and now stands at just over $60,000 despite the new attacks in the Middle East.
Its market capitalization has risen to $1.210 trillion on CG, while its dominance over the alts remains under 56%.

SOL, AAVE Pump
Ethereum continues to climb gradually after the recent low of $1,510 and now trades close to $1,600 following a minor daily increase. XRP has reclaimed the $1.05 support after a 2% jump since yesterday. Solana’s SOL has gained the most from the larger-cap alts today and sits above $72.
Even more impressive gains come from AAVE, AVAX, and MORPHO. Aave’s token has risen by double digits and sits above $95, while AVAX is north of $6.6. MORPHO has neared $1.80 following a 7% jump.
In contrast, MemeCore continues to drop, losing another 20% of value and struggling below $0.70 as of now.
The total crypto market cap has recovered over $80 billion since the Thursday low and is up to $2.170 trillion.

The post Solana (SOL) Rebounds Above $70, Bitcoin (BTC) Fights for $60K: Weekend Watch appeared first on CryptoPotato.
Crypto World
Kalshi Seeks $40B Valuation Seven Weeks After $22B Raise

Prediction-market operator Kalshi is in talks to raise fresh capital at a valuation of roughly $40 billion, according to the Financial Times, nearly double the price tag from a round that closed just seven weeks ago. The Financial Times first reported the talks, citing people familiar with the… Read the full story at The Defiant
Crypto World
BlackRock-backed Securitize targets $400M in NYSE market debut
Securitize has secured commitments expected to deliver about $400 million ahead of its planned New York Stock Exchange debut through a merger with Cantor Equity Partners II.
Summary
- Securitize expects to raise about $400 million ahead of its planned NYSE listing through a merger with Cantor Equity Partners II.
- Backed by BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, Coinbase, and Circle, the firm continues expanding its tokenization business with new institutional products.
- The market debut comes as Securitize grows its on-chain asset platform while defending itself in a patent dispute with tZERO.
According to Securitize, fewer than 30% of shareholders in Cantor Equity Partners II, the special purpose acquisition company taking the firm public, chose to redeem their shares following the final redemption results.
The company said it now expects to receive approximately $400 million in gross proceeds from the transaction, including related private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing, before transaction-related expenses.
The proposed listing comes as tokenization companies continue attracting institutional attention, with firms seeking to bring traditional financial assets onto blockchain networks. Securitize counts BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, Coinbase, and Circle among its backers and has become one of the largest providers of tokenization infrastructure for financial institutions.
The merger is expected to complete next week
Market reaction has been positive ahead of the vote. Shares of Cantor Equity Partners II closed 7% higher at $10.86 on Friday before extending gains in after-hours trading to $11.

According to Securitize, shareholders are scheduled to vote on the merger on Monday. If approved and all remaining closing conditions are satisfied, the transaction is expected to close on July 1. The combined company is then expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SECZ on July 2.
Commenting on the listing, Securitize co-founder and CEO Carlos Domingo said reaching the public markets represents an important step for the company after more than eight years of building tokenization infrastructure.
“Reaching the public markets is a significant milestone for Securitize and a reflection of the growing momentum behind tokenization.”
Domingo added that tokenized securities, once considered largely theoretical by major financial institutions, are now moving into mainstream finance as institutional adoption continues to grow.
The public debut also follows several months of expansion for the company. As previously reported by crypto.news, Securitize recently extended its Tokenized AAA CLO Fund (STAC) to the Solana blockchain. The company said Ethena Labs plans to allocate $250 million to the fund, which invests in U.S. dollar-denominated AAA-rated collateralized loan obligation tranches.
According to Securitize, the product is developed with BNY serving as custodian of the underlying assets and sub-adviser through BNY Investments.
Institutional tokenization business continues to expand
Alongside new investment products, Securitize has continued growing its role in tokenized capital markets. Earlier this year, the company partnered with the New York Stock Exchange to support the exchange’s planned tokenized securities platform.
Crypto.news previously reported that Securitize provides tokenization infrastructure for more than 650 funds and oversees more than $4 billion in tokenized assets. BlackRock has also deepened its relationship with the firm.
In May, crypto.news reported that the asset manager filed a second Securitize-powered tokenized fund with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after its BUIDL fund expanded to roughly $2.3 billion in assets.
At the same time, Securitize is dealing with a legal dispute ahead of its market debut. As reported by crypto.news, the company recently asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware to declare that its products do not infringe patents owned by tZERO after receiving a cease-and-desist letter. Securitize called the allegations “without merit,” while tZERO said its claims involve patents covering compliance systems, investor registry checks, and tokenized market infrastructure.
Separate industry forecasts also point to continued growth in tokenized finance. Earlier this month, Standard Chartered projected that tokenized assets used in decentralized finance could reach $2.7 trillion by the end of 2030, up from current levels.
Crypto World
Coinbase Base Restarts Block Production After 2-Hour Halt
Base, Coinbase’s Ethereum layer-2 network, has resumed normal operation after a consensus-related issue temporarily halted block production for nearly two hours on Thursday. The incident triggered “unhealthy” block building, leaving new blocks unable to be created until the network isolated and corrected the underlying problem.
Base said blocks were later being produced normally and that the broader ecosystem infrastructure had recovered and synced. The outage was unusual for a chain that has become a go-to venue for activity on Ethereum’s scaling roadmap, highlighting how sensitive rollup operations can be when consensus and sequencing logic fail.
Key takeaways
- Base went offline briefly due to a consensus problem that resulted in an invalid block being sequenced and prevented new block creation.
- Base reported recovery of “healthy blockbuilding” and confirmed ecosystem-wide infrastructure synchronization.
- The outage occurred around an on-chain upgrade window, with a Base upgrade (“Beryl”) scheduled for 6 pm UTC.
- Network creators emphasized that user funds remained safe, while reiterating that a block-production halt is not acceptable.
- Thursday’s incident joins a small set of notable recent outages affecting major L2 ecosystems.
How the outage unfolded
Base’s status page said it began investigating “unhealthy” block production at 4:03 pm UTC on Thursday. In a subsequent update at 5:21 pm UTC, the Base team explained that it had “isolated a consensus problem” which caused an invalid block to be sequenced.
According to the status updates, that invalid sequencing stopped progress at the protocol level: “This prevented new blocks from being created.” In other words, the issue was not presented as a simple infrastructure hiccup; it was tied to the chain’s ability to agree on what should be built next.
Recovery confirmed, post-mortem expected
Base later posted an operational recovery update just before 6 pm UTC. It said the network had “recovered healthy blockbuilding,” and that ecosystem-wide infrastructure was able to sync again. Base also indicated that it had identified the issue and would continue investigating the root cause, promising a full post-mortem.
Separately, Base’s creator Jesse Pollack used X to reassure users that funds on the network are safe. Pollack also framed the halt as a solvable operational setback, saying it would be used to “level up” Base as a platform aimed at supporting continuous, global finance.
An uncommon downtime event for a leading L2
The episode stands out as a rare downtime event for Base. The report notes that Base is widely considered among the most-used Ethereum layer-2 networks, and it cites the chain’s previous major outage in August 2025, when Base reportedly went down for 33 minutes. That earlier incident is referenced via Base’s status page.
Such disruptions matter for users and developers because L2 block production is the backbone for transaction inclusion, sequencing, and timely settlement flows. Even if funds remain safe, a halt can translate into delays for withdrawals, reduced reliability for dApps, and friction for systems that assume steady block cadence.
Upgrade timing raises questions for reliability planning
Base downtime appeared to occur separately and shortly ahead of a scheduled network upgrade dubbed “Beryl,” planned for 6 pm UTC. The described goal of the Beryl upgrade was to reduce delays on withdrawals and introduce a new token standard intended for real-world assets and stablecoins.
That timing is important for operators and integrators: when an outage overlaps with a planned change, teams typically have to ensure that the network can recover cleanly and continue the upgrade without compounding issues. Base did not state that the outage directly affected the Beryl rollout, but the proximity means builders watching Base would likely want to see post-recovery monitoring closely through the upgrade window.
The incident also comes amid broader reminders across the L2 landscape. The report points to Sui experiencing two periods of downtime on back-to-back days in May, each involving temporary stops in block production. In that case, Sui later attributed the downtime to a network update it said it knew had a low probability of causing a halt—an example of how even planned changes can create operational risk.
What to watch next
Base has said it will share a detailed post-mortem and identified the consensus problem responsible for blocking new block creation. Investors, traders, and developers should watch for that report, plus confirmation that the Beryl upgrade proceeds smoothly with stable block production and no renewed consensus symptoms around the new token standard changes.
Crypto World
Securitize Targets $400M Raise Before Public Market Debut
Tokenization platform Securitize is set to make its long-awaited leap into the public markets after reporting final redemption results for its merger partner, Cantor Equity Partners II (CEPT). According to Securitize’s filing, fewer than 30% of CEPT shareholders chose to redeem their shares—an outcome that improves the odds that the deal can move forward as scheduled.
The company said the transaction is expected to generate approximately $400 million in gross proceeds, including private investment in public equity (PIPE) financings. The merger is expected to close on Wednesday, July 1, followed by trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SECZ on Thursday, July 2, subject to shareholder approval on Monday and other closing conditions.
Key takeaways
- Securitize said final redemption results show less than 30% of CEPT shareholders redeemed, a lower-than-feared level that supports deal momentum.
- The merger is expected to bring in about $400 million in gross proceeds, including PIPE financing, excluding transaction-related expenses.
- The company plans to begin NYSE trading under ticker SECZ on July 2, after the July 1 expected closing.
- The move reflects accelerating institutional interest in tokenized securities amid heightened attention from US regulators.
Redemption results reduce uncertainty for the merger
The immediate catalyst for CEPT’s post-announcement trading was Securitize’s update on final redemption outcomes. In a statement to investors reported by PR Newswire, Securitize said that its final redemption results indicated that fewer than 30% of CEPT shareholders elected to redeem.
Redemption thresholds matter for SPAC-style transactions because they directly affect the cash proceeds available at closing. While Securitize did not characterize the numbers as “unexpected” in its release, the company’s disclosure effectively signals that the funding structure underpinning the merger is likely to remain intact, clearing one of the more common obstacles for deals tied to shareholder opt-outs.
On Friday, CEPT shares rose, closing up 7% to $10.86 and continuing higher after hours to $11, according to market data cited alongside the announcement.
Expected proceeds and what they mean for tokenization ambitions
Beyond the redemption update, Securitize outlined the expected funding to be raised through the combination. The company said it expects to receive approximately $400 million in gross proceeds from the merger, including related PIPE financings, while excluding transaction-related expenses.
For investors watching tokenization, the scale of the proceeds is not just about corporate finance—it also points to how seriously major market participants are preparing for tokenized securities infrastructure. Tokenization remains a complex intersection of technology, market structure, and regulatory compliance. Capital raised in public markets can help cover product expansion, business development, and operational scaling as tokenized offerings move from pilots toward broader rollouts.
Securitize positions the listing as a “significant milestone” and, in remarks shared in the company’s release, CEO Carlos Domingo framed the step as evidence that tokenization is shifting from a niche concept to a mainstream institutional priority.
Why this public listing matters to the tokenization market
Securitize’s debut arrives at a moment when Wall Street increasingly views tokenization as a route to improved settlement efficiency and asset accessibility, while regulators continue to refine expectations for how tokenized securities should be offered and traded.
The company is backed by major institutions, including BlackRock and Morgan Stanley, and also counts crypto-native firms such as Coinbase and Circle among its supporters, according to the information provided in the announcement. That blend matters because it suggests tokenization is being pursued simultaneously through traditional capital markets channels and crypto rails—an alignment that can influence how liquidity, custody, and compliance tooling evolves.
In addition, Securitize has been actively working with established market infrastructure. Earlier this year, the company partnered with the New York Stock Exchange in March to support tokenized assets for the exchange’s upcoming tokenized securities platform—an effort reported by Cointelegraph. While that project is distinct from Securitize’s SPAC path, it reinforces the company’s goal of becoming a bridge between regulated markets and tokenized issuance.
Elsewhere in the broader ecosystem, Standard Chartered earlier this month projected that tokenized assets active in decentralized finance could expand 37-fold to $2.7 trillion by the end of 2030. That kind of forecast underscores why investors are paying attention to tokenization platforms that can operate across different settlement and trading environments.
Regulatory backdrop: SEC decisions still shape the pace
Even as interest grows, US regulatory uncertainty continues to influence how quickly tokenized products can be adopted in mainstream trading venues. In mid-May, Cointelegraph reported that the US Securities and Exchange Commission was reportedly ready to allow trading of tokenized stocks under an innovation-related framework. However, the plan was later delayed after stock exchange officials raised concerns about implementation details, according to that earlier coverage.
This matters for Securitize and peers because the path from “tokenization is possible” to “tokenization is broadly tradable” depends heavily on regulatory clarity—especially around operational readiness, market oversight, and the mechanics of secondary trading for tokenized instruments. A public-market listing can bring visibility and liquidity, but compliance and market structure decisions still determine how fast product adoption accelerates.
What to watch next
With a planned July 1 closing and July 2 NYSE start under ticker SECZ, the next key signal will be whether shareholder approval and remaining closing conditions clear without further complications. Investors should also watch how regulatory developments around tokenized stock trading evolve, since they will likely influence the pace at which tokenization platforms convert momentum into large-scale liquidity and recurring issuance.
Crypto World
Bitcoin ETF Outflows Hit $696M as Regulators Brace for Market Shift
US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) posted their largest June daily net outflows on Thursday, following renewed weakness in Bitcoin that pushed the asset below the $60,000 level. The withdrawals underscore a cooling in demand that many US-listed ETF investors previously relied on as a stabilizing institutional inflow channel.
SoSoValue data shows the outflows amounted to $696.3 million on the day, exceeding the prior monthly peak of $519.2 million recorded on June 2. As a result, total net outflows for June rose to $3.61 billion, lifting year-to-date net outflows to $4.6 billion, according to the same dataset.
Key takeaways
- US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a $696.3 million net outflow on Thursday, the largest daily outflow in June.
- June net outflows reached $3.61 billion, bringing year-to-date net outflows to $4.6 billion (SoSoValue).
- Total net assets in US spot Bitcoin ETFs fell below $73 billion for the first time since late 2024, down roughly 57% from a reported October 2025 peak.
- Separate tracking data indicates ETF BTC holdings declined by about 63,500 BTC over the past 30 days.
- Strategy’s reported June buying pace slowed materially, prompting renewed scrutiny of institutional accumulation risk management and liquidity planning.
Spot Bitcoin ETF outflows accelerate in June
The Thursday withdrawals represent a material step-down in net inflows that had been supporting ETF balance sheets earlier in the year. According to SoSoValue, the $696.3 million net outflow surpassed the previous June high daily outflow recorded on June 2, signaling that the pullback is not confined to isolated days.
From a compliance and institutional risk perspective, sustained outflows can affect how ETF issuers and their service providers manage operational readiness and liquidity across custody, brokerage settlement, and fund administration. While ETFs remain structurally distinct from crypto spot custody models used by direct holders, the flow-through effect on the underlying Bitcoin exposure can become relevant to internal risk controls, including contingency planning for valuation, margining arrangements (where applicable), and concentration monitoring.
ETF net assets and holdings retrace from late-2025 highs
In addition to daily flows, broader balance-sheet data points to a sustained contraction in the ETF complex. SoSoValue reports that total net assets in US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs have fallen below $73 billion for the first time since late 2024. The same source previously cited a record net assets level of $169.5 billion in October 2025; the latest figure is about $72.6 billion, representing a decline of roughly 57%.
WalletPilot data provides a view into the underlying Bitcoin holdings. It indicates that the funds held a combined 1.24 million BTC as of Tuesday, with approximately 63,500 BTC leaving the products over the prior 30 days. For institutions, the shift from flow-based indicators to holdings-based indicators is often critical: daily net flows can reverse quickly, but reductions in the total BTC held can influence longer-horizon risk assessments related to custody balances, redemption dynamics, and exposure to market-wide volatility.
Strategy’s slower accumulation draws renewed attention
ETF outflows are occurring alongside signs that other large sources of institutional Bitcoin demand are easing. Strategy, described as the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holder, reportedly reduced its pace of Bitcoin accumulation during June.
Company filings indicate Strategy has bought roughly 3,600 Bitcoin so far in June, down from about 25,000 BTC in May and more than 50,000 BTC in April. The filings also show a net sale of 32 BTC earlier in the month—one of the few instances in which the company has sold Bitcoin during its accumulation period.
The change in behavior has prompted renewed debate about corporate treasury strategy, particularly whether liquidity preservation becomes a priority during market downturns. Critics have argued that Strategy should pause additional purchases and instead rebuild cash reserves, pointing to the importance of downside risk management for firms that rely on balance-sheet leverage and equity-linked financing structures.
In June’s context, institutional scrutiny is not limited to “buy or sell” decisions. It also extends to how capital is raised, how discount rates and equity market conditions influence treasury financing, and what liquidity buffers are maintained to support continued operations. These issues can indirectly affect how regulated counterparties—such as lenders, underwriters, and custodians—assess operational continuity.
Financing-market pressure and the preferred stock debate
Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock (STRC) has reportedly come under pressure. The stock has traded below its intended $100 benchmark level, with Thursday’s close reported at $75.69, down 6.37%.
The price movement has fueled discussion around whether the company’s preferred share financing approach is aligned with its long-term accumulation plan under stressed market conditions. CryptoQuant analysts raised concerns about timing and risk management, while Bitcoin advocate Samson Mow argued that STRC has a “self-repairing mechanism” that activates when the stock trades below its $100 benchmark. He also noted that Strategy pauses new share issuance through its ATM program at that level, limiting new supply.
For institutional stakeholders, this debate matters because financing mechanics can influence the predictability of future purchasing behavior. Where issuance programs and preferred-stock terms include triggers or constraints, equity-market volatility can propagate into accumulation schedules—creating uncertainty for counterparties that model corporate Bitcoin demand. It also raises questions for governance and disclosure oversight, particularly for firms subject to securities regulation and investor reporting obligations.
More broadly, policy compliance teams monitoring the crypto market may find it useful to connect these developments to regulatory context. US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs operate under a mature set of investor protection expectations, including custody arrangements and securities-law compliance frameworks. At the same time, corporate treasuries and their financing instruments intersect with conventional financial regulation, making transparency and risk disclosures a recurring theme for oversight bodies.
What to watch next
Whether ETF outflows continue or reverse will likely remain the near-term indicator that shapes institutional exposure to Bitcoin via regulated wrappers. Separately, Strategy’s future acquisition cadence and any further changes in financing-market conditions could affect expectations for corporate demand, reinforcing the need for monitoring of disclosures, treasury liquidity posture, and the operational implications of sustained reductions in net asset growth.
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