Ethereum price remained trapped near $1,920 on July 30 as resistance below $2,000, restrictive US monetary policy, delayed crypto legislation, and broader market fear limited demand.

Ethereum price consolidates below $2,000

According to data from crypto.news, Ethereum (ETH) price was trading around $1,922 at the time of writing, up roughly 0.6% on the daily chart but still unable to turn its July recovery into a clean breakout.

The token has spent several sessions consolidating below $2,000 after briefly reaching the $1,970–$1,980 area earlier in the week. Sellers repeatedly appeared near the upper end of that range, preventing ETH from challenging the psychological threshold.

The daily chart places immediate resistance near $1,938, an area that previously acted as support in February and March. Ethereum’s latest candles have formed directly below that level, suggesting buyers and sellers are waiting for a stronger catalyst before taking control.

Momentum has also started to flatten. The daily relative strength index stood near 58, keeping ETH above neutral territory but below overbought levels. The MACD remained positive, although its lines were converging and the histogram had slipped slightly below zero.

These signals point to consolidation rather than a confirmed bearish reversal. However, they also show that the recovery from June’s low near $1,530 has lost momentum as ETH approaches heavier overhead supply.

Macro fear is limiting risk appetite

Ethereum’s stalled breakout follows the Federal Reserve’s decision to maintain its benchmark interest rate at 3.5%–3.75%. Although the decision was widely expected, it gave investors little reason to increase exposure to high-beta assets.

Three Federal Open Market Committee members voted for a quarter-point rate increase, showing that inflation remains a concern inside the central bank. Chair Kevin Warsh also reaffirmed the Fed’s commitment to returning inflation to its 2% target, leaving open the risk of tighter policy if price pressures persist. The Federal Reserve’s statement confirmed the 9–3 decision.

Higher rates increase the relative appeal of interest-bearing assets while raising the opportunity cost of holding cryptocurrencies. The effect is especially important for Ethereum because its recent recovery has depended partly on investors becoming more willing to move back into risk assets.

Geopolitical pressure has added another layer of uncertainty. Brent crude jumped more than 7% on Wednesday amid renewed US-Iran tensions, while the Dow fell 2.2%, the S&P 500 lost 1.5%, and the Nasdaq declined 1.7%. The combination of rising energy prices and weaker equities raised fresh concerns that inflation could remain elevated.

The crypto market’s broader mood reflects that caution. The Fear and Greed Index remained in the “Fear” category on July 30, showing that traders have yet to regain confidence despite ETH’s recovery from its June low.

CLARITY Act delay removes a crucial catalyst

Regulatory uncertainty is also weighing on Ethereum indirectly. The US Senate has postponed work on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act while lawmakers prioritize a Russia sanctions package and federal nominations.

The delay reduces the likelihood of meaningful progress before the Senate’s August recess. The bill is intended to clarify how the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission divide oversight of digital assets.

Ethereum already has access to regulated US spot exchange-traded funds, but wider market-structure rules could encourage exchanges, brokers, and institutions to expand their crypto operations. Delaying those rules leaves investors without a near-term regulatory catalyst.

According to data from SoSoValue, US spot Ethereum ETFs recorded approximately $18.65 million in net outflows on July 29, reversing the previous session’s inflow. The withdrawal was modest compared with the funds’ recent weekly gains, but it showed that institutional demand was not strong enough to force ETH through $2,000 during the latest attempt.

Ethereum breakout needs stronger capital inflows

Ethereum’s 4-hour chart remains more constructive than the macro backdrop. ETH was trading above its 20-period, 50-period, 100-period, and 200-period simple moving averages, which stood near $1,913, $1,903, $1,889, and $1,801, respectively.

An ascending trendline also continues to support the recovery. That structure gives buyers a path toward $1,960 and $2,000 as long as ETH holds above the $1,888–$1,900 region.

However, the Chaikin Money Flow indicator stood at minus 0.05. A negative reading means capital flow has not confirmed the rising price structure, increasing the risk that another push toward resistance will fade without stronger spot demand.

The liquidation heatmap shows a concentrated liquidity pocket near $1,940, followed by a wider cluster around $1,980–$2,000. A move through $1,940 could therefore trigger short liquidations and pull ETH toward the psychological barrier.

Downside liquidity is concentrated near $1,840. If Ethereum loses the ascending trendline and breaks below $1,888, that lower cluster could attract price and expose the 200-period average near $1,800.

Analysts see upside if support holds

Crypto analyst Michaël van de Poppe expects the recovery to continue while Ethereum remains above its medium-term moving averages.

“As long as ETH remains above the 21-Day MA and the 50-Day MA, higher prices are likely going to follow.”

Van de Poppe also identified US personal consumption expenditure inflation and advance gross domestic product data as the next macro catalysts. Softer inflation could ease pressure on Treasury yields and improve demand for technology stocks and cryptocurrencies.

Analyst Ted Pillows placed Ethereum’s main support slightly lower.

“As long as the $1,850–$1,870 level holds, the next big move for Ethereum will be upside.”

South Korea plans to impose an up to 22% combined tax on annual crypto gains exceeding 2.5 million won ($1,740).

The country plans on taxing cryptocurrency gains from Jan. 1, 2027, signaling that it does not intend to postpone the measure for a fourth time.

The tax was originally due to take effect in January 2022 and had been postponed until 2025. A December 2024 amendment delayed its introduction by another two years, to the start of 2027.

“We are pushing forward with the plan to tax [cryptocurrency] starting next year as scheduled., Deputy Prime Minister Koo Yun-cheol told lawmakers at a July 29 meeting of the National Assembly’s Finance and Economy Planning Committee.

Under the current framework, income from transferring or lending crypto will be taxed separately as “other income.” Investors will receive an annual deduction of 2.5 million won, with gains above that threshold subject to a 20% national tax rate, or 22% including local income tax, according to Korea’s National Tax Service.

Kim Sang-hoon, of the principal opposition People Power Party, criticized the absence of loss carryforwards and warned that investors could shift activity to overseas centralized exchanges, decentralized platforms and peer-to-peer markets.

Hedge fund Situational Awareness, founded in 2024 by former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner, is reportedly seeking new funding after taking substantial losses during a recent sell-off in artificial intelligence stocks. The Financial Times said the firm has approached investors and lenders for additional capital, and in some cases has offered investors the chance to buy assets from its portfolio.

The fund—tied to a strategy centered on the infrastructure underpinning AI—was reported by the Wall Street Journal to manage roughly $20 billion in assets under management as of June 8. However, the FT reported that the scale of losses and the amount of capital being sought were not disclosed in the discussions it reviewed, which included a July 24 investor letter.

Key takeaways

• Situational Awareness is reportedly raising fresh capital after losses tied to the July sell-off in AI-related equities.
• According to the Financial Times, borrowing amplified the impact of the downturn on the fund’s leveraged positions.
• The fund’s reported AI-infrastructure focus includes trades connected to data centers and power, with past disclosures referencing stakes in Bitcoin mining firms.
• In addition to seeking funding, the firm has reportedly offered some investors the option to purchase portfolio assets.

Why the AI sell-off became a funding story

The immediate catalyst for Situational Awareness’s capital push appears to be the market turbulence that hit AI stock momentum in July. The FT linked the losses to the broader “AI stock collapse” during that rout and emphasized that the fund’s risk profile was made more severe by increased borrowing.

While the FT did not provide a dollar figure for losses or the size of the capital requirement, it reported that Aschenbrenner’s fund had gained 439% after fees through June, as described in the July 24 investor letter. The same letter suggests that strong earlier performance did not prevent a rapid drawdown once AI equities sold off—particularly because leverage can magnify both gains and losses.

That leverage detail matters to investors because it helps explain how a thematic equity thesis—AI infrastructure—can still unravel quickly when valuation compression and liquidity pressures hit the complex simultaneously. The situation also reflects a recurring pattern in crowded “platform” trades: when the market reprices the expected earnings power of AI beneficiaries, funds exposed to those segments may require external capital to stabilize their balance sheets.

What Situational Awareness is betting on

Situational Awareness’s strategy has been described as focused on the physical backbone of AI: the power generation, data centers, and related infrastructure that enable compute-heavy systems. In earlier reporting, Cointelegraph noted that the fund made a notable bet around that infrastructure theme, including investments connected to Bitcoin miners pivoting into AI computing.

Cointelegraph previously pointed to a March filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that showed approximately $1.11 billion in positions across seven Bitcoin miner stocks. The stocks cited in that disclosure included IREN, Core Scientific, Riot Platforms, and CleanSpark, among others.

That matters in the current context because it ties the fund’s AI infrastructure thesis to a sector that has its own cycle of operational risk, capital intensity, and market sensitivity. Even if the longer-term narrative is about compute supply, short-term market swings can still create liquidity and valuation pressures for holders of infrastructure-linked equities.

Investors were also offered a chance to buy assets

The Financial Times reported that the fund’s efforts have not been limited to classic fundraising. It said Situational Awareness has offered some investors the option to buy portfolio assets—an approach that can be used when a manager wants to reduce exposure or improve liquidity without immediately selling positions into a weak market.

According to the FT, the account relied on people briefed on the discussions. The report also cited the fund’s July 24 investor letter while noting that the specific amounts involved were not disclosed publicly.

For investors, asset-purchase offers can create a different decision set than a capital raise. Instead of simply assessing whether to contribute more cash, counterparties may need to evaluate the underlying securities at a point in time when market prices may reflect fear or forced selling. That dynamic can produce opportunities for investors willing to underwrite longer-term fundamentals, but it also introduces questions about what happens next if market conditions remain unsettled.

Aschenbrenner’s AGI expectations and the timing

Beyond the immediate funding pressure, the broader storyline includes how closely the fund’s emergence aligned with Aschenbrenner’s public discussion of artificial general intelligence. Cointelegraph previously reported that he authored a series of essays on artificial general intelligence in mid-2024, around the time he launched Situational Awareness, discussing how he believed AGI machines could outpace college graduates by the end of the decade.

Those views help frame why the fund may have been positioned for a sustained build-out of AI-related infrastructure rather than a short-term trade. Yet the funding request underscores an important asymmetry: even a conviction-driven infrastructure thesis can still be pressured by market mechanics—especially when leverage is used to scale returns.

As of publication, Cointelegraph said it contacted Situational Awareness for comment and had not received a response.

What to watch next

Investors watching this situation should focus on two things: whether Situational Awareness secures the capital it seeks without further destabilizing its leveraged positions, and how any asset-buyback offers to investors are priced relative to the market’s ongoing repricing of AI-exposed equities. The next reports—particularly any updates that clarify the scale of losses, borrowing, and proposed restructuring—will determine whether this becomes a one-off liquidity event or a longer process of portfolio adjustment.

Telegram, the messaging platform used by more than 1 billion people worldwide, is facing a major legal challenge in Australia over claims that it failed to stop the spread of terrorism-linked material.

Australia’s online safety regulator, the eSafety Commissioner, launched civil penalty proceedings against Telegram in the Federal Court on Thursday, according to an official statement.

The authority alleged Telegram breached its obligations under the country’s Online Safety Act to address “pro-terror” content by failing to act on multiple user complaints.

The case adds to growing global scrutiny of Telegram’s moderation practices, following legal pressure on CEO Pavel Durov in Russia and France as governments increasingly examine how major online platforms handle harmful content.

Australia alleges Telegram ignored repeated warnings

ESafety said its year-long investigation found that Telegram failed to remove certain unlawful material after becoming aware of it, with some reported content remaining visible for up to three weeks.

The regulator also alleged that Telegram did not take sufficient steps to prevent repeated violations, including removing accounts, channels and groups used to distribute pro-terror material.

According to eSafety, Telegram also failed to detect known extremist content, including footage from the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings and the 2022 Buffalo mass shooting, before the material was later removed.

Related: Pavel Durov says Telegram to roll out native Gram crypto wallet

The regulator is seeking financial penalties, with violations of Australia’s online safety rules carrying potential fines of up to 54.6 million Australian dollars ($35.8 million).

Telegram has not issued an official statement on the Australian proceedings, but its official X account posted a video captioned “freedom of expression.”

Telegram did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request to comment on this story.

Russia intensifies legal pressure on Durov

Australia’s legal action came a day after Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) charged Durov with facilitating terrorist activity and said it had begun procedures to place him on an international wanted list.

Russian authorities alleged that Telegram failed to remove channels, chats and bots that Ukrainian intelligence services, terrorist groups and extremist organizations used to coordinate attacks, recruit operatives and carry out cyber fraud.

Telegram has also not issued an official statement on the latest legal developments in Russia, but posted an image of Durov making a profane hand gesture.

Source: Telegram Messenger

Durov also remains under investigation in France following his August 2024 arrest at Le Bourget Airport. French prosecutors charged him with offenses including complicity in the distribution of illegal content, including material related to organized crime, through Telegram.

Durov has previously criticized what he described as growing threats to online privacy, warning that governments were rolling back protections for the free internet.

“What was once the promise of the free exchange of information is being turned into the ultimate tool of control,” he wrote in an October 2025 post on X.

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Australian authorities are taking Telegram to court over an alleged failure to remove terror-related content, including video of the March 2019 shooting at a Christchurch, New Zealand mosque in which 51 people were murdered, several news outlets reported Thursday.

Julie Inman-Grant, Australia’s Safety Commissioner, said the messaging app founded by Pavel Durov faced a fine of up to $38 million for failing to comply with its obligations under the Online Safety Act, the BBC said.

“This case concerns content linked to some of the most notorious ​acts of known extremist violence in recent history, including material associated ​with the Christchurch and Buffalo terror attacks,” Inman-⁠Grant said in a statement, according to Reuters.

“We reject these allegations and will contest them in court,” a spokesperson for Telegram said in response to Reuters a ​request for comment. Telegram’s anti-terrorism efforts are well-documented, with thousands of ​extremist communities blocked by the platform in 2026 alone, the spokesperson told the news agency.

Telegram, home of many crypto-related discussion groups, hosting project communities, trading groups, bots and blockchain-based mini apps, did not immediately respond to a CoinDesk request for further comment.

Samsung SDS, the IT services arm of Samsung Group, is exploring stablecoin infrastructure, digital asset systems and AI-based payment models with Dunamu, the operator of Upbit, one of the biggest local cryptocurrency exchanges.

Samsung SDS said it is discussing potential cooperation with Dunamu on stablecoin infrastructure, digital asset systems and AI-based payment business models, CEO Lee Jun-hee said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call on Thursday.

“We have already secured differentiated business capabilities in digital asset infrastructure through the Korea Securities Depository’s tokenized securities platform project and through end-to-end validation […] of the full stablecoin process from issuance to settlement,” Lee said. He said he expects the relationship with Dunamu will help Samsung SDS expand in the digital asset infrastructure market.

The news came days after Samsung Electronics unveiled plans to add stablecoin support to Samsung Wallet, broadening the company’s digital asset push.

Strategic investment targets digital finance

In May 2026, Samsung Securities, Samsung SDS and Samsung Card agreed to buy a combined 4% stake in Dunamu, deepening Samsung affiliates’ ties to South Korea’s digital asset sector.

In the latest Q2 call, Lee reportedly said the company’s investment in Dunamu is a strategic move rather than a financial investment, adding that both companies plan to refine potential business models for digital financial infrastructure.

Source: Samsung SDS

“By combining Samsung SDS’s IT services, cloud, and security capabilities with Dunamu’s blockchain expertise, we aim to lead this market,” the Q2 transcript said.

Related: South Korea report proposes stablecoin rules before crypto law

Samsung SDS did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment, while Dunamu declined to comment.

AI growth supports broader expansion

The digital asset initiative comes amid Samsung SDS’ ongoing expansion in AI and cloud services, which helped lift Q2 revenue 5.9% year on year to 3.72 trillion Korean won ($2.6 billion), according to the quarterly earnings presentation.

Cloud revenue increased 17% from a year earlier, with external cloud business revenue jumping 75%, driven by demand for Samsung’s cloud platform and graphics processing unit-as-a-service offerings.

The company also reportedly outlined ambitious plans to expand its AI infrastructure from 110 megawatts today to 230 MW by 2029 and more than 800 MW by 2031, underscoring its broader push to build AI infrastructure alongside digital finance services.

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