The crypto market was mixed before the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision later Wednesday. The CoinDesk 20 Index has added 0.41% since midnight UTC, with 10 members advancing and 10 declining.

Bitcoin BTC$64,512.66, the largest cryptocurrency, added 0.75% to claw back some of Tuesday’s losses after a volatile 48 hours that saw it spike to $66,700 last week before crashing to $62,400 in the wake of the rout in South Korean stocks.

Inflation running at 4.1% makes the case for the Fed to raise the fed funds target rate for the first time in three years. Balanced against that, a pause in Iran-U.S. hostilities has taken some of the heat out of oil prices and slightly trimmed the odds of an increase.

Ether (ETH) is down 0.13% on the day. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 index futures are both positive, while gold holds above $4,000 and silver gained 1.40%, suggesting markets are hedging rather than committing ahead of the announcement.

Derivatives positioning

• Steady positioning ahead of Fed meeting: The crypto taker long-short volume ratio is almost in a perfect balance ahead of the Fed meeting. Open interest (OI) has held steady near $113 billion over the past 24 hours while volume increased by 10% to $205 billion. Taken together, the numbers point to steady positioning but slightly higher churn.
• Spot gains yet to lift futures participation: Both BTC and ETH’s spot prices have risen more than 1% in 24 hours, but the moves have yet to translate into increased participation in futures. BTC’s OI remains steady near 750K BTC. ETH’s dropped for a fourth straight day to 14.14 million ETH.
• UNI is an exception: Most of the top-20 tokens have seen OI hold steady or fall over 24 hours. UNI is an exception, with OI up slightly to 68.53 million tokens, the most since July 13. This validates the 5% upswing in the token’s price in the wake of BlackRock’s decision to bring its tokenized Treasury fund to the decentralized exchange.
• Mixed signals from OI-adjusted CVD: The 24-hour OI-adjusted CVD paints a mixed picture. It’s positive for tokens such as ADA, TRX, XRP, CC, UNI and ETH, a sign of more and more traders going long at market orders rather than passive limit orders. Other coins display the opposite dynamic.
• Implied volatility stays near recent lows: Bitcoin and ether’s 30-day implied volatility indexes remain near recent lows, a sign that traders do not expect any near-term jitters. It also contradicts the unease in the analyst community over the fact that traders still assign a 35% probability of the Fed raising rates on Wednesday. This is unusual as markets typically reach a consensus on what the Fed will do before the decision.
• Puts dominate BTC options volume: In Deribit-listed options, BTC puts at strikes $62,000, $60,000 and $54,000 dominate the 24-hour volume rankings. A put option offers insurance against price drops in the underlying asset. In ETH’s case, calls are at the top of the list.

Token talk

• XRP led altcoin gains on Wednesday, rising 1.72% to $1.086, with ADA$0.1635 rising 1.48%. Both are continuing to recover from their July lows as the major cryptocurrencies consolidate.
• Jupiter (JUP) was the standout 24-hour performer among DeFi coins, rising 5.79% as trading volume ticked up, extending a recovery that has now seen it rise in three of the past four days.
• FET continued its retreat, falling 4.60% since midnight and 6.78% over 24 hours. The AI token is now down nearly 14% over the past week as the sector’s early-July momentum continues to unwind.
• PUMP$0.001878 shed 5.14%, giving back the bulk of last week’s speculative gains as retail enthusiasm fades.
• Monero (XMR) bucked the trend with a 1.82% gain to $347, quietly extending a run of outperformance from the privacy coin sector that has gone largely unnoticed amid the broader market turbulence.

Options are derivative contracts used by traders to hedge price volatility risks. A call option offers asymmetric upside exposure in the underlying asset for a small upfront payment, much like a lottery ticket. A put option represents an insurance against price drops.

Exchanges typically follow a playbook when offering derivatives as a product. They start with futures to build a deep, liquid order book and tight spreads, and only once that core market is humming do they layer on options as a second wave of more complex, higher‑margin products.

A Binance representative shared volume figures for gold and silver perpetual futures that underscore their popularity. Gold perpetuals, according to the representative, have hit a peak daily volume of $7.77 billion, while silver perpetuals reached $7.27 billion. These peaks represented roughly 3–8% of COMEX gold volume and 9–20% of COMEX silver volume at that time.

“The volume growth suggests that when access to traditional market exposure becomes simpler and more integrated, user participation can ramp up quickly,” the representative said. “Liquidity can become relevant quickly.”

The new options are European-style and settled in USDT. The contracts reference a weighted average of prices drawn from multiple independent third-party data vendors that report the traditional gold and silver markets. This approach produces a robust, market-representative benchmark that does not rely on any single venue or token, according to Binance.

The CLARITY Act is facing another delay as US lawmakers prioritize federal nominations, a Russian sanctions package, and other legislative business ahead of its summer recess.

The development makes it increasingly likely the bill will not be deliberated upon during the ongoing session and will be discussed during the autumn session.

Clarity Act Faces Another Delay

The United States Senate has put the CLARITY Act on the back burner as it debates federal nominations, new sanctions against Russia, and other legislative business. According to a CoinDesk report, the bill is unlikely to be taken up by the Senate before its summer recess on August 8. Journalist Eleanor Terrett revealed that the Senate leadership is discussing deliberations beyond the planned recess if they can garner enough votes to invoke cloture and press ahead with the bill. Additionally, some senators also want a vote on the SAVE America Act and Russia-Iran sanctions.

Terrett stated on X,

“A must-read on the Senate math behind the Clarity Act without the hype. I reported this morning that Senate leadership has discussed potentially keeping members in Washington beyond the scheduled recess if they have the votes to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed.”

Democratic lawmakers remain hopeful of a compromise banning senior government officials, including President Donald Trump, from investing in crypto projects.

A Procedural Delay

However, the delay is not due to Republicans and Democrats failing to agree upon the way forward. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has prioritized discussion on the Russian sanctions package, and Senate rules outline that only one contested bill can be considered at a time. Additional Senate business has also reduced floor time. As a result, lawmakers have found it difficult to discuss the CLARITY Act during the ongoing session.

Meanwhile, SEC Chair Paul Atkins reiterated his belief that the Senate will pass the CLARITY Act. Atkins added that the SEC is ready to create rules to implement the bill once it becomes law. He added that it can also address market issues if Congress delays the bill. However, the SEC Chair stressed the importance of regulatory clarity to “future-proof” crypto in the US.

President Trump Can Reconvene Senate

According to legal analyst MetaLawman, Article II, Section 3 grants President Trump the authority to reconvene the Senate during the August recess, allowing lawmakers to vote on the CLARITY Act and other delayed bills.

“President Trump Has Legal Authority to CANCEL THE SENATE RECESS. The President has the Constitutional authority to call an “extraordinary session” of the Senate to vote on the SAVE AMERICA ACT and the CLARITY ACT.”

However, as things stand, a final Senate vote on the CLARITY Act looks unlikely before next week.

How The Delay Impacts Crypto

The CLARITY Act is a crucial piece of legislation for the cryptocurrency industry. If it fails to advance during the ongoing session, it could face a substantial delay as lawmakers focus on other priorities in upcoming sessions, including election-related legislation. The delay effectively leaves the industry in limbo, with only the GENIUS Act offering some regulatory clarity. For now, the industry will rely on SEC and CFTC oversight while waiting for the bill to pass.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

The dollar’s next move hinges on tonight’s Fed decision, and this time markets genuinely don’t know what to expect. While economists still lean toward a hold—with CME FedWatch odds sitting near 68.5% for no change—Kevin Warsh’s hawkish rhetoric on having “no tolerance” for inflation, paired with growing internal FOMC support for a hike, has pushed hike odds up sharply from just 18% two weeks ago to over 30% today. Complicating things further, Warsh has deliberately scaled back forward guidance, meaning tonight’s press conference may offer fewer clues than usual.

The euro, meanwhile, has already had its say: the ECB held rates steady at 2.25% last Thursday, as expected, with Lagarde reaffirming the 2% target while flagging that energy-driven inflation risks from the Middle East conflict have yet to fully play out. Eurozone inflation cooled to 2.8% in June, but sticky services inflation near 3.5–4% keeps the door only cautiously open for a September move in either direction.

With EUR/USD trading near 1.1408, tonight’s Fed decision—not the ECB—is what will likely determine the pair’s next major direction.

EUR/USD Technical Analysis

As the EUR/USD chart shows, the pair has been consolidating within a defined range since late June, squeezed between an ascending trendline and a descending trendline, both converging around the current price near 1.1400. The 200-period EMA continues to slope lower above price, reinforcing a cautious backdrop ahead of tonight’s Fed decision.

Bullish Scenario

Should the dollar weaken on a dovish Fed outcome, price would need to break above the converging trendlines and reclaim the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement near 1.1420, with the 200-period EMA just above acting as the next key test. A confirmed break above the EMA would open the path towards the 0.5 and 0.618 retracements near 1.1480–1.1500, where stronger resistance has capped rallies since late June.

Bearish Scenario

Conversely, a hawkish surprise—or even a hike—could send the euro sharply lower, breaking both the ascending trendline and the psychological 1.1360 support level. A confirmed break here would expose the 1.1320 zone, the 0.0 Fibonacci level marking the origin of the entire recovery move, with further downside risk towards fresh multi-week lows if selling pressure accelerates.

With price coiled right at the intersection of both trendlines and the Fed decision just hours away, EUR/USD looks primed for a decisive move. Will the dollar reassert its dominance, or will the euro finally break free of this range?

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Hungary is rolling back strict crypto rules as CoinCash prepares to resume services after receiving authorization under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.

The Hungarian parliament voted to repeal the country’s crypto validator requirement, removing mandatory third-party approval for certain crypto transactions, the Hungarian tax and legal publication Ado.hu reported on Tuesday.

Finance Minister Kármán András said the government removed the validation requirement after the previous rules disrupted Hungary’s crypto market, prompting some service providers to halt operations in the country.

“Due to the negative and market-shaking regulations so far, many players have terminated their services related to cryptocurrencies in Hungary, but the market is now showing signs of recovery,” he wrote in a Tuesday Facebook post.

The development marks a significant shift in Hungary’s crypto sector, removing an additional approval step while leaving broader licensing and compliance requirements in place.

How Hungary’s crypto checks worked

Hungary introduced the requirement through its 2024 crypto assets law, creating a separate validation process for certain crypto conversions.

The rules, which took effect on July 1, 2025, required a licensed validator to verify details including the origin of crypto assets, wallet ownership and customer information before issuing a compliance declaration.

Related: Hungary to reverse crypto trading crackdown after EU scrutiny

The system added another transaction-level approval step alongside MiCA. Hungary also applied a shortened MiCA transition period for crypto asset service providers (CASPs), requiring compliance by July 1, 2025, compared with the EU’s maximum transition deadline of July 1, 2026.

The stricter regulatory environment prompted some crypto platforms to suspend services in Hungary, including Budapest-based crypto platform CoinCash, which voluntarily paused operations in December 2025 while pursuing MiCA authorization.

CoinCash receives Hungary’s first MiCA license

The National Bank of Hungary (MNB) granted CoinCash operator Tiwala Solutions authorization under the EU’s MiCA regulation on July 20, according to a company announcement reviewed by Cointelegraph.

“We’re the first and only Hungarian company authorised directly by the National Bank under the EU framework,” CoinCash co-founder said in a LinkedIn post on Friday.

Related: Unauthorized crypto trading now carries 2 years of prison in Hungary

The authorization covers custody, crypto-to-fiat and crypto-to-crypto exchange, transfers, investment advice and portfolio management.

CoinCash said it completed a months-long compliance review before receiving approval and paused operations while preparing to meet the requirements. The company plans to gradually resume services and expand beyond trading into additional MiCA-regulated offerings.

Magazine: The real reason DeFi projects that survived 2022 crash are shutting down now

Coinbase appointed Rob Witoff as chief technology officer on July 28, bringing an early company engineer into the role as the U.S. crypto exchange expands AI-assisted product development. 

Coinbase’s official leadership page now lists Witoff as CTO.

Chief Executive Brian Armstrong announced the appointment on X and credited Witoff with helping turn Coinbase into “one of the most AI-enabled companies in the world.” That description is Armstrong’s assessment rather than an independently measured ranking.

Rob Witoff returns to a role shaped by Coinbase’s early years

Witoff first joined Coinbase in 2014 and worked there until 2017. Coinbase said he led security and infrastructure, became chief architect and helped build some of the exchange’s earliest systems. He later founded institutional crypto custody company Unit 410, which Coinbase acquired.

Witoff said his interest in Bitcoin began in 2009. He recalled that Coinbase initially supported one cryptocurrency, used a single codebase and ran with a small engineering team. The account provides historical context from the incoming executive, although Coinbase has not independently detailed every technical claim in the July 27 post.

The company brought him back in December 2024 as head of platform and a member of the executive team. Witoff said his latest “tour of duty” began with a goal of making Coinbase “the best place in the world to build.” That remains a forward-looking management objective.

Coinbase CTO appointment comes during an AI overhaul

The promotion follows a broad change in how Coinbase develops software and organises teams. In May, the company announced plans to reduce its workforce by about 14%, or roughly 700 roles, while flattening management and building smaller teams around AI tools.

Armstrong said AI allowed engineers to complete work in days that previously took teams weeks. He also outlined experiments with “one person teams” combining engineering, product and design work. Those plans describe Coinbase’s intended operating model; their long-term effect on output, costs and staff workloads is not yet established.

Coinbase later said nearly all newly merged code had become AI-generated and human-reviewed. Its July engineering report said the share rose from 5.7% in the first quarter of 2025 to roughly 100% by mid-2026, while maintaining human review and compliance controls.

Witoff inherits reliability and security responsibilities

The CTO will oversee technology while Coinbase expands derivatives, stablecoin payments, prediction markets and services for AI agents. Each product increases the need for dependable infrastructure, security controls and fast incident response.

Coinbase experienced a roughly 50-minute service disruption on July 14 after a routine configuration update affected a shared production cluster. Transfers, card payments and some onchain services were interrupted. The company said customer funds were not at risk and later announced new deployment safeguards and recovery procedures.

Witoff’s background in security, architecture and platform engineering gives him direct experience with those areas. However, Coinbase has not published new performance targets, budget commitments or a separate technology roadmap tied to his appointment.

Leadership changes continue across Coinbase

The CTO appointment follows another executive transition. Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal notified Coinbase on July 8 that he would leave his post on July 31. Molly Abraham is expected to become general counsel and corporate secretary, while Grewal will serve as an adviser through October.

As crypto.news previously reported, Coinbase’s May restructuring placed AI-native development at the centre of its operating plan. In related coverage, crypto.news reported that Coinbase had launched tools allowing authorised AI agents to trade, make payments and perform financial tasks.

Coinbase plans quarterly reviews of its AI-focused engineering interview process and 45-day and 90-day assessments for new hires. The next test for Witoff will be whether the company can keep releasing products quickly while maintaining security, reliability and regulatory controls.

It raised $400 million in June through a private placement of convertible preferred shares and warrants. The preferred shares, priced at $53 each, converted into common stock upon completion of the listing. Investors agreed not to transfer the securities below $70 until six months after the listing, according to the filing.

Ionic decommissioned bitcoin mining at its Ward County, Texas, site in December and committed its 234 MW of capacity to Nscale under a 126-month lease carrying $1.95 billion in contracted revenue, according to the registration statement.

The company said it expects as much as $195 million in revenue this year, with more than 90% coming from infrastructure leasing. It held 2,815.6 bitcoin worth $192.1 million and had no debt as of March 31.