ETH Exchange Reserves, Source: CryptoQuant

Spot ETH ETFs, Source: SoSoValue

Bullish (NYSE: BLSH) shares jumped in early trading on Thursday after the institution-focused crypto exchange and CoinDesk owner reported a strong rebound in quarterly results. The company said second-quarter adjusted revenue climbed 62% year over year, while adjusted EBITDA more than tripled, reflecting both improved operating performance and a shift in where income was coming from.

The stock’s move also followed a regulatory step in Gibraltar that broadens Bullish’s ability to operate in tokenized securities—an area that has increasingly drawn attention from traditional finance. Investors appear to be weighing the quarter’s financial momentum alongside the company’s push toward more regulated onchain market activity.

Key takeaways

• Bullish reported second-quarter adjusted revenue of $92.6 million, up from $57.0 million a year earlier.
• Adjusted EBITDA rose to $29.5 million from $8.1 million, indicating a significant improvement in profitability.
• Subscription, services and other revenue reached a record $62.7 million, helping offset weaker exchange activity.
• The company’s quarterly trading volume totaled $179.6 billion, down from $197.4 billion year over year, while average daily volume fell to $2.0 billion.
• Bullish received approval from Gibraltar’s Financial Services Commission to offer secondary trading in issuer-sponsored tokenized securities and raised full-year guidance for subscription-related revenue.

Quarterly results point to operating leverage

In its earnings update, Bullish said adjusted revenue for the second quarter reached $92.6 million, compared with $57 million in the same period of the prior year. The profitability turnaround was even more pronounced: adjusted EBITDA increased to $29.5 million from $8.1 million.

On the bottom line, the company reported adjusted net income of $14.3 million, reversing a $6.0 million loss in the year-ago quarter. For shareholders, the combination of rising revenue and sharply higher adjusted EBITDA suggests the business is capturing more value per unit of activity—an important signal for exchanges that have historically been sensitive to market volumes.

Revenue mix strengthens as exchange activity cools

While exchange volumes softened compared with the year before, Bullish highlighted a key offsetting driver. Subscription, services and other revenue totaled a record $62.7 million in the quarter.

That figure mattered because trading metrics declined: Bullish reported $179.6 billion in quarterly trading volume, down from $197.4 billion a year earlier. Average daily volume also slipped to $2.0 billion from $2.2 billion. The implied message is that the company’s income stream is becoming less dependent on pure trading throughput and more supported by services and subscription-related earnings.

For traders and institutional users, a revenue mix that relies more on subscriptions and services can be beneficial—especially if broader market activity fluctuates. It may also indicate that Bullish is attracting customers not only for spot trading, but for infrastructure and ongoing platform access.

Gibraltar approval expands tokenized securities business

Separate from the financial results, Bullish reported it received approval from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission to offer secondary trading in issuer-sponsored tokenized securities. This is a notable development for a company positioning itself in regulated onchain markets.

The approval matters because secondary trading permission moves tokenized securities beyond primary issuance mechanics and into ongoing liquidity, where regulatory frameworks and market structure typically become more complex. Bullish framed the step as part of its expansion into regulated tokenized markets.

However, the exact scope of what products can be listed and how trading will operate in practice was not detailed in the provided information. Investors will likely watch for further clarification on launch timelines, participating issuers, and how trading activity in tokenized securities compares with the broader crypto exchange volume.

Guidance raised amid improved visibility

Bullish also lifted its full-year guidance. The company now expects $225 million to $245 million in subscription, services and other revenue, citing performance in the first half of the year and improved visibility.

Raising guidance can be interpreted as management signaling confidence that the stronger revenue mix seen in the quarter will persist. That is particularly relevant given the reported decline in trading volume versus the prior year—suggesting the company believes its non-exchange revenue streams are gaining enough momentum to offset weaker trading activity.

At the same time, investors should note that guidance is tied specifically to subscription, services and other revenue. The company did not provide a revised outlook in the provided excerpt for exchange-specific results, so it remains unclear how much of the improvement will translate into sustained volume growth.

Shares rally, but longer-term performance remains a concern

Thursday’s advance extends a broader rebound for Bullish shares. The stock has gained around 20% over the past month, according to Yahoo Finance data. Even with the recent rally, Bullish shares remain far below levels seen after the company’s listing last year, trading about 70% under post-listing highs, based on the same Yahoo Finance reference.

In other words, the near-term reaction to stronger financial metrics and a regulatory expansion comes against a backdrop of still-limited recovery from earlier drawdowns. That dynamic often shapes how markets respond to the next earnings report: investors may continue to reward progress on profitability and services growth, while still requiring evidence that trading volumes and tokenized securities activity can scale.

Looking ahead, the key signals to watch are whether Bullish can maintain subscription and services momentum as trading volumes fluctuate, and how quickly the Gibraltar tokenized securities approval translates into tangible secondary-market activity. The regulatory green light may open doors, but the market will ultimately want proof in execution and sustained earnings.

Public Bitcoin miners are trimming capacity faster than the network itself, according to a BlocksBridge Consulting analysis shared in the Miner Weekly newsletter. The data points to a gradual redeployment of electricity, sites, and operational expertise toward data centers and high-performance computing (HPC)—a key shift in the sector’s business model.

BlocksBridge reported that realized hashrate among a cohort of public miners fell from 368.3 exahashes per second (EH/s) in Q4 2025 to 319 EH/s in Q2 2026, a 13.4% decline. The pullback was steeper when excluding Bitdeer, which continued to grow.

Key takeaways

• Realized hashrate among public Bitcoin miners dropped 13.4% from Q4 2025 to Q2 2026, according to BlocksBridge’s Miner Weekly cohort.
• Without Bitdeer, the cohort’s realized hashrate fell 21.2%, indicating that most operators contracted more aggressively.
• Bitdeer was an outlier: its realized hashrate rose 44% to 63 EH/s during the same period.
• Bitcoin network average hashrate declined 10.6% over the same six months, suggesting miners’ reductions outpaced the broader network.
• Several miners are increasingly deriving revenue from non-mining activities such as colocation and HPC leasing.

Miners shrink capacity faster than the network

BlocksBridge’s latest Miner Weekly update frames the change as part of a longer transition underway in the mining industry. In its reported cohort, realized hashrate decreased from 368.3 EH/s in Q4 2025 to 319 EH/s in Q2 2026. When Bitdeer is removed from the comparison, the decline becomes more pronounced: realized hashrate drops from 324.6 EH/s to 255.9 EH/s, or 21.2%, across the six-month span.

Bitdeer’s figures diverge sharply from the rest. BlocksBridge reported that Bitdeer’s realized hashrate increased 44% to 63 EH/s, highlighting how competitive dynamics among public miners have started to split between those expanding and those contracting.

For context, BlocksBridge also noted that the Bitcoin network’s average hashrate fell 10.6% over the same period. The gap—miners reducing faster than the network—matters because it can signal that some operators are prioritizing other uses for capital and power rather than continuing to chase mining economics.

Why non-mining revenue is becoming more central

Alongside the capacity pullback, the sector’s revenue mix is shifting. The article points to growing contributions from non-mining activities—particularly colocation and HPC leasing—at miners that have positioned their power and infrastructure for broader technology demand.

In an example highlighted alongside the hashrate data, Core Scientific generated $136.7 million in colocation revenue in Q2, compared with $27.5 million from Bitcoin mining. Similarly, TeraWulf reported $31.9 million in HPC lease revenue versus $12.8 million from mining.

While the specific companies referenced show the trend clearly, the overall message is broader: the economics of mining alone are not carrying the same weight they once did. For investors and market observers, that shift changes how to interpret operational performance. Realized hashrate trends may no longer map cleanly to profitability if more of a miner’s earnings depends on leasing, hosting, or AI-related workloads rather than block rewards and transaction fees.

The post-2021 mining migration is losing momentum

BlocksBridge attributed the current slowdown to the unwinding of the expansion cycle that followed China’s 2021 Bitcoin mining ban. That policy shock triggered one of the most dramatic hashrate declines in Bitcoin’s history, followed by a recovery as miners relocated overseas.

North America became a key destination, where migration and new operational capacity supported an expansion among public miners. The analysis frames that phase as a capital-raising and build-out period—one characterized by power-site acquisitions and a push to scale mining infrastructure.

However, the newsletter argues that after a halving cycle, conditions look materially different. Weaker mining profitability is paired with escalating demand for AI infrastructure since 2022, creating incentives for some public miners to repurpose sites and shift power capacity away from Bitcoin mining entirely.

That doesn’t mean the mining business is disappearing, but it does suggest a structural change in priorities. Instead of simply competing to add more hashpower during favorable windows, operators are increasingly treating their electricity access and data-center capabilities as an asset that can serve multiple markets.

What to watch next: divergence among operators

The most important signal in the BlocksBridge report is divergence. Bitdeer’s continued realized hashrate expansion contrasts with more aggressive contraction from other public miners in the cohort, while Bitcoin network hashrate overall falls more moderately. For readers tracking the sector, the next question is whether the gap between “expanding” and “contracting” operators persists as electricity costs, hosting demand, and AI workloads evolve.

As more miners report meaningful revenue from colocation and HPC leasing, future comparisons may need to focus less on how quickly companies add or remove mining equipment and more on whether their non-mining services can sustainably offset changes in mining profitability.

Bullish shares jumped around 13% in early trading Thursday after the institutional-focused crypto exchange and CoinDesk owner reported a 62% year-over-year increase in second-quarter adjusted revenue and more than tripled its adjusted EBITDA.

Bullish reported $92.6 million in adjusted revenue for the quarter, up from $57 million a year earlier, while adjusted EBITDA rose to $29.5 million from $8.1 million. Adjusted net income reached $14.3 million, reversing a $6 million loss in the year-ago quarter.

Subscription, services and other revenue hit a record $62.7 million, helping offset weaker exchange activity. The company recorded $179.6 billion in quarterly trading volume, down from $197.4 billion a year earlier, while average daily volume fell to $2 billion from $2.2 billion.

The NYSE-traded BLSH shares were up more than 10% on Thursday morning. Source: Yahoo Finance.

The company also received approval from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission to offer secondary trading in issuer-sponsored tokenized securities, expanding its push into regulated onchain markets.

Bullish lifted its full-year guidance, forecasting $225 million to $245 million in subscription, services and other revenue, citing its first-half performance and improved visibility.

Thursday’s rally extends a recent rebound for Bullish shares, which have gained around 20% over the past month. The stock, however, remains about 70% below its post-listing highs last year, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Magazine: El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment turns 5: ‘It was for us, not them’

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.

Publicly traded Bitcoin miners are cutting mining capacity faster than the Bitcoin network overall, suggesting that more operators are redirecting electricity and infrastructure toward data centers and high-performance computing (HPC), in another sign of the sector’s evolution beyond creating more crypto.

In the latest Miner Weekly newsletter, BlocksBridge Consulting reported that realized hashrate among a cohort of public Bitcoin miners fell from 368.3 exahashes per second (EH/s) in the fourth quarter of 2025 to 319 EH/s in the second quarter of 2026, a 13.4% decline.

The contraction was even sharper when excluding Bitdeer, which continued to expand its mining operations. Without Bitdeer, the cohort’s realized hashrate fell 21.2% over the six-month period, from 324.6 EH/s to 255.9 EH/s. Bitdeer’s realized hashrate, meanwhile, increased 44% to 63 EH/s.

By comparison, the Bitcoin network’s average hashrate declined 10.6% over the same period.

The shift comes as more miners report a growing share of revenue from non-mining activities. Core Scientific generated $136.7 million in colocation revenue during the second quarter, compared with just $27.5 million from Bitcoin mining. TeraWulf reported $31.9 million in HPC lease revenue, compared with $12.8 million from mining.

Core Scientific and TeraWulf are now generating the majority of their revenue from non-mining activities.
Source: TheEnergyMag

Riot Platforms and Bitdeer remain much earlier in the transition, with Bitcoin mining continuing to account for the vast majority of their revenue in the most recent quarter.

Related: CoreWeave shows how crypto-era infrastructure quietly became AI’s backbone

Unwinding post-China mining boom

BlocksBridge framed the current pullback as an unwinding of the expansion cycle that followed China’s Bitcoin mining ban in 2021, which triggered one of the sharpest declines in network hashrate before a rapid recovery as miners relocated overseas.

In North America, that migration helped fuel an expansion among public miners, which raised capital and acquired new power sites to expand their operations. 

One halving cycle later, the economics have shifted significantly. Weaker mining profitability, coupled with surging demand for AI infrastructure since 2022, has prompted several public miners to repurpose sites and power capacity away from Bitcoin mining entirely.

Related: Crypto Biz: Crypto’s biggest business is starting to look a lot like banking

Key takeaways

• Hyperliquid gained 2% on Thursday after advancing nearly 3% in the previous session.
• Hyperion DeFi’s HYPE holdings recorded a $31 million fair-value increase during the second quarter.
• HYPE futures Open Interest rose more than 4% to $2.38 billion, while trading volume jumped 45%.

Hyperliquid (HYPE) extended its recovery on Thursday as sustained corporate demand and improving derivatives activity supported bullish momentum.

The token gained approximately 2%, building on its nearly 3% advance during the previous session. HYPE is now approaching its 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) near $58.37, which represents the next major obstacle to further gains.

A decisive break above this level could allow Hyperliquid to target the $62.58 supply zone.

Corporate treasuries maintain strong HYPE exposure

Corporate interest in Hyperliquid remains firm, with HYPE-focused digital-asset treasuries increasing their exposure while benefiting from the token’s rising market value.

Hyperliquid Strategies held 17.60 million HYPE, up from 12.50 million in January. The market value of its holdings climbed from $703 million at the end of the first quarter to approximately $980 million in the second quarter.

Hyperion DeFi also increased its treasury holdings from 1.88 million HYPE to 1.93 million. The value of its position rose from $77 million at the end of the first quarter to $107 million in Q2, representing a $31 million fair-value increase.

The stability and growth of these corporate positions indicate continued confidence in the Hyperliquid ecosystem.

Digital-asset treasury companies can provide sustained demand by accumulating and holding tokens over longer periods. However, concentrated corporate holdings may also create selling risks if treasury firms later reduce their exposure.

Retail and derivatives activity has strengthened alongside the price recovery. CoinGlass data shows HYPE futures Open Interest rose more than 4% over the past 24 hours to $2.39 billion. Increasing Open Interest indicates that the notional value of active contracts is rising, potentially reflecting the creation of new positions.

Trading volume also jumped 45% to $1.60 billion over the same period, showing that traders are becoming more active as HYPE approaches key resistance.

The simultaneous rise in price, trading volume and Open Interest supports the view that fresh capital is entering the market rather than the recovery being driven solely by traders closing existing positions.

Hyperliquid’s liquidation data reflects a bullish short-term bias. Short liquidations reached $1.34 million over the previous 24 hours, significantly exceeding the $251,040 in liquidated long positions. The imbalance suggests rising prices forced bearish traders to close leveraged positions.

HYPE’s funding rate remained positive at 0.0080%, despite experiencing brief moves into negative territory. Positive funding means traders holding long positions are paying shorts, showing a willingness to pay a premium for bullish exposure.

While the data supports further gains, rising leverage could increase volatility. An unexpected reversal could trigger long liquidations and place renewed pressure on the token.

HYPE remains above long-term support

HYPE continues to trade above its 200-day EMA at $51.29 and a rising trendline near $53.05.

These levels reinforce the token’s broader constructive structure and could attract buyers if the recovery loses momentum.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence indicator has crossed above its signal line, while its histogram remains positive. The shift indicates that bullish momentum is gradually rebuilding.

The Relative Strength Index stands near 50, reflecting neutral conditions and leaving room for further gains before the token enters overbought territory.

The 50-day EMA at approximately $58.37 remains the immediate resistance level controlling HYPE’s short-term outlook.

A decisive daily close above the moving average could confirm strengthening bullish momentum and open the way toward the $62.58 supply zone.

Failure to reclaim the 50-day EMA could produce another pullback toward the rising trendline at $53.05. Below that level, the 200-day EMA at $51.29 would provide the next important support.

Buyers would need to defend this support cluster to preserve Hyperliquid’s wider bullish structure.

For now, growing corporate holdings and improving derivatives metrics favor the recovery, but a breakout above $58.37 remains necessary to confirm its continuation.

Morph has launched a non-custodial payments platform that supports USDC and USDT, lets businesses connect their own wallets, and settles customer payments directly on-chain.

Morph Payments leaves funds in users’ wallets

According to an Aug. 12 press release from Morph shared with crypto.news, the service is available to online businesses, freelancers, and distributed organizations that want to accept, send, and monitor stablecoin payments.

Morph Payments works by connecting a self-custodial wallet to the platform rather than requiring a business to transfer its funds into an account controlled by Morph. When a customer completes a payment, the stablecoins move directly to the wallet selected by the recipient.

Morph said the initial release supports USDC and USDT, the two stablecoins named in the announcement. Businesses can create an invoice or payment link that directs customers to a checkout page, while completed transactions appear in a single dashboard.

Under the setup described in the release, Morph provides the payment interface but does not hold the funds sent through it. Businesses retain control of the private wallet receiving the payment, and the stablecoins become available once the blockchain confirms the transaction.

Such a model differs from a custodial processor, which receives money on behalf of a merchant and later releases the balance. Morph said direct settlement can reduce the time businesses wait to access incoming funds, although the announcement did not provide transaction-speed tests or comparisons with specific payment companies.

The release also did not disclose the platform’s fees, transaction limits, supported jurisdictions, identity-verification requirements, wallet compatibility, or smart-contract audit details. Morph said businesses and entrepreneurs could begin registering through its website on Aug. 12.

Invoices and payment links target online businesses

Alongside wallet settlement, the first version lets users send stablecoins and monitor incoming and outgoing payments. The dashboard is designed to put payment records, invoices, and checkout links in one place, according to the company.

For freelancers, a payment request can be created as an invoice or a link and sent directly to a client. Online businesses can use the same process to collect USDC or USDT without giving Morph control over the receiving wallet.

Morph presented the service as an option for cross-border payments and remote work, where bank transfers may pass through several institutions before reaching the recipient. Claims about payments arriving within minutes and providing faster access to working capital came from the company; the press release did not include independent performance data or customer results.

Renna Ba, Morph’s head of ecosystem, said businesses could eventually work with several stablecoins in much the same way that companies now handle different national currencies.

“The challenge isn’t creating more payment options—it’s making that complexity invisible so businesses can focus on growing, not managing payments.”

Although the comment points to support for multiple assets, the initial product is limited to USDC and USDT. Morph did not identify other stablecoins it may add or provide a schedule for expanding the list.

Morph Payments follows earlier network programs

The launch adds a user-facing product to Morph’s existing work on stablecoin infrastructure. In January, the network selected Cobo as its first partner for the Morph Payment Accelerator, a performance-based program tied to verified stablecoin volume on Morph’s mainnet.

Cobo provides custodial wallets, multi-party computation wallets, and wallet infrastructure across more than 80 blockchains. The January announcement said the partnership would focus on institutional stablecoin activity, including cross-border payouts and high-frequency settlement.

Morph Payments takes a different approach at the user-account level because the new service does not take custody of a business’s assets. Customers can still move stablecoins received through the platform to trading services or yield products built on Morph’s network, the company said. Participation in such services would involve separate platforms and risks not detailed in the payments announcement.

The company has not disclosed transaction targets, expected user numbers, or revenue projections for the product. Additional functions are planned over the coming months, but Morph did not specify which tools will be added or when they will become available.

Stablecoin payment tools are reaching more businesses

Morph cited Visa’s on-chain analytics showing $10.2 trillion in adjusted stablecoin transaction volume during the previous 12 months, a 65% increase from the comparable period. Visa’s adjusted measure is designed to filter activity that its methodology identifies as inorganic.

Separate research published by Morph in April estimated that stablecoins handled $33 trillion in total on-chain volume during 2025. As previously covered by crypto.news, the report attributed about 60% of the measured flows to business-to-business activity and projected more than $50 trillion in settlement volume during 2026. The figures are company estimates rather than audited financial results.

Other payment providers have also introduced stablecoin tools for corporate users. In July, Ramp launched stablecoin business accounts on Solana, allowing customers to hold USDC and USDT and send payments to vendors in more than 140 countries. Ramp also said its system could convert payments into more than 40 local currencies.

Ramp’s product combines stablecoin balances with its existing approval and accounting tools, while Morph’s release focuses on direct settlement to a wallet controlled by the business. Morph did not announce local-currency conversion, bank-account funding, or accounting software integrations.

U.S. stablecoin rules remain unfinished

American businesses considering stablecoin payment products operate under a federal framework that is still being implemented. President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law on July 18, 2025, establishing federal requirements for payment stablecoin issuers, including reserve, redemption, disclosure, and supervision standards.

The law primarily regulates issuers rather than every business that receives stablecoins. Its treatment of distribution remains relevant, however, because U.S. digital asset service providers will face restrictions on offering payment stablecoins from non-permitted issuers beginning in July 2028.

USDC and USDT are issued by Circle and Tether, respectively, rather than by Morph. The launch announcement did not state whether Morph Payments would be available in every U.S. state or identify the licenses and compliance procedures that could apply to American customers.

Federal regulators missed a July deadline for completing several rules required under the GENIUS Act. As of July 19, proposals covering reserves, redemptions, custody, customer identification, anti-money laundering controls, and state supervision had not all been finalized. The statute is scheduled to take effect by Jan. 18, 2027, unless final regulations start an earlier 120-day implementation period.