Crypto World
Bank of Russia blacklists 2,600 crypto wallets linked to suspected scams
The Bank of Russia has added 2,600 crypto wallets linked to suspected illegal financial activity to a system used by banks and law enforcement after more than 1 billion rubles flowed into the addresses during the first half of 2026.
Summary
- Bank of Russia flagged 2,600 crypto wallets linked to suspected illegal financial activity after about 1 billion rubles in crypto flowed into the addresses.
- The wallets were added to a system used by banks and law enforcement agencies for client risk assessments and financial investigations.
- More than 74% of identified pyramid schemes used cryptocurrencies to attract funds, with scams promoting crypto investments, mining and fake data centers.
- F6 separately identified fake Kanye West ticket websites seeking crypto payments from Russian users.
The Bank of Russia said the wallets belonged to companies, projects, individual entrepreneurs and other entities showing signs of illegal activity in the financial market. Banks and law enforcement agencies use the information system for digital compliance, client risk assessments and financial investigations.
During the same six-month period, the regulator identified 2,891 entities with signs of illegal financial activity, down nearly 31% from the first half of 2025. The figure remained close to the level recorded during the second half of last year.
Bank of Russia adds 2,600 crypto wallets to monitoring system
The 2,600 crypto wallets were added to a database that can help financial institutions assess transactions connected to entities flagged by the regulator. More than 1 billion rubles in crypto, based on its ruble equivalent, had been attracted through the identified addresses, according to the central bank.
The regulator sends information on suspected illegal financial activity to law enforcement agencies, Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service and other authorized bodies. Banks took restrictive measures against more than 500 payment details used for illegal financial activity during the first half of 2026.
Regulatory action during the period led to more than 330 administrative cases based on material supplied by the central bank, including information collected during previous reporting periods. Authorities took more than 450 other enforcement measures and restricted access to over 11,800 online resources belonging to suspected illegal financial market participants and pyramid schemes.
Crypto remained a common payment method among schemes tracked by the regulator. More than 74% of identified pyramid schemes used cryptocurrencies to attract funds, while the rest relied on foreign payment services or cash. Organizers used more than 940 websites, 120 Telegram channels and over 2,500 social media pages to bring users into their projects during the first six months of the year.
The figure was lower than in 2025, when the Bank of Russia identified more than 4,600 crypto wallets used by organizers of pyramid schemes to receive initial investment payments. Crypto was accepted by 84% of pyramid projects identified last year, up from 77% in 2024.
As crypto.news previously reported, the regulator has linked digital assets to fraudulent investment schemes for several years. In 2024, the central bank warned that scammers were using memecoins, tap-to-earn games and other popular crypto trends to attract victims. Its first-half 2024 data showed more than 3,490 entities with characteristics of pyramid schemes, 43% more than a year earlier.
Crypto remains a common tool in investment scams
Pseudo-investment projects identified this year frequently offered exposure to cryptocurrencies or promised income from crypto mining, according to the Bank of Russia. Some schemes promoted investments in data centers supposedly supplying computing capacity to miners, while others offered digital tokens said to track gold prices.
The regulator identified 929 entities with signs of financial pyramid activity and another 379 suspected of illegally attracting investments during the first half. Combined, the number of pyramid and other pseudo-investment projects fell 44% from the same period in 2025. Most operated online without physical offices and contacted potential clients through social networks, messaging services or phone calls.
Illegal lending moved in the opposite direction. The number of identified illegal lenders doubled from the first half of 2025, reaching 999, compared with 467 a year earlier. The Bank of Russia linked part of the increase to tighter requirements for legal lenders, which limited access to borrowing for customers with high debt burdens.
Among the products promoted outside the formal financial system were so-called crypto loans. Such services offered borrowers loans denominated in Tether’s USDT stablecoin or rubles converted at a specified exchange rate. The regulator said it continued to receive hundreds of complaints about the model while websites associated with such projects were blocked and replaced with duplicate resources.
Russia has been moving to bring more cryptocurrency activity under licensed financial institutions while keeping domestic crypto payments restricted. A law approved this summer created rules for exchanges, brokers, custodians and other intermediaries, with the Bank of Russia responsible for supervising the market. The framework permits regulated crypto activity and certain cross-border uses while maintaining the ban on using cryptocurrency as a domestic payment method.
Ahead of the new framework, the central bank published draft operating rules for cryptocurrency exchanges and digital asset depositories, including capital requirements and official registers for licensed market participants. The rules were prepared ahead of the country’s regulated crypto market rollout scheduled for September.
Russian authorities have been taking enforcement action against crypto businesses suspected of operating outside permitted channels. Back in August, more than 20 people were detained after authorities raided nine crypto exchanges in Moscow. Investigators alleged that the services converted proceeds from scams into cryptocurrency before transferring the assets to handlers in Ukraine.
Scammers turn to fake Kanye West ticket sales
Separate fraud campaigns detected this month have used crypto payments to target Russians seeking tickets for Kanye West concerts.
Cybersecurity company F6 said its Digital Risk Protection analysts found at least 10 websites registered since Aug. 17 across the .ru, .com, .site and .shop domains. The pages used names connected with West, including variations containing “ye,” “yerussia” and “ye-tickets,” while presenting themselves as official ticket or tour websites.
Some of the sites allowed visitors to select apparently available seats before requesting payment in cryptocurrency. Prices ranged from $60 for upper-level seating to $2,100 for a VIP box, according to F6. Other pages requested transfers to a phone number, with advertised ticket prices ranging from 28,000 rubles to 6.2 million rubles.
Several fake pages advertised tickets for concerts in Moscow even though the two announced performances were scheduled for St. Petersburg. Other sites redirected users who clicked the purchase button to illegal online casinos.
F6 found at least seven Telegram bots connected with the ticket campaign. Only one was active when researchers checked on Aug. 21, offering users a mini-app for selecting seats and entering contact details before requesting payment through a phone-number transfer. The company said requiring crypto or phone transfers when no other payment options are available is a sign of possible fraud because recovering money sent through such methods can be difficult.
The campaign follows other attempts to use interest in cryptocurrency to impersonate established Russian financial institutions. The anti-fraud project Moshelovka previously reported schemes that claimed to give Russians access to cryptocurrency trading through the Moscow Exchange.
The real exchange has been expanding its crypto-linked products within Russia’s regulated market. Moscow Exchange introduced indexes tracking Solana, XRP, Tron and BNB in May, adding them to its existing Bitcoin and Ethereum benchmarks. The products were designed for professional investors, while direct cryptocurrency trading remained outside the exchange’s existing offering. Moscow Exchange planned to expand the benchmark list to 10 crypto assets and had discussed futures linked to its crypto indexes.
Crypto World
XAU/USD: Gold Tests Its Trendline After a Powerful August Rally
Gold has staged a remarkable comeback, surging almost 14% in August alone and reclaiming levels not seen since May, a stark reversal from late July, when prices had dipped below $4,000. The rally has been driven by a genuinely unusual combination of forces: the US Treasury’s surprise decision to double its long-dated bond buyback programme reignited fears over fiscal credibility and dollar debasement, while persistent Middle East tensions and steady Chinese buying have kept safe-haven demand firmly in place.
All eyes now turn to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech, the week’s pivotal event. A hawkish tone or a fresh rise in real yields could trigger meaningful profit-taking after such a sharp run-up, while continued dollar weakness would likely keep gold’s momentum intact. Adding to the tension, this week’s data slate, including preliminary Q2 GDP, jobless claims, and Michigan’s inflation expectations, gives markets plenty of reasons to stay on edge.
With gold already up nearly 96% over the past year and testing territory unseen in months, the metal finds itself balancing two powerful forces: genuine structural demand against a market that may finally be due for a pause.
Technical Analysis of XAU/USD

As the XAU/USD chart shows, gold has been trading within a well-respected ascending trendline since the 4,022 low in late July, having earlier broken decisively above the descending trendline that capped the May–July decline. Price recently touched a fresh high near 4,698, the 0 Fibonacci level, before pulling back and now testing the confluence of the ascending trendline and the 50-period EMA near 4,561.
Bullish Scenario
Should buyers defend this trendline-EMA confluence, the broader uptrend structure remains firmly intact. A renewed push higher would target a retest of the 4,698 high, with a confirmed break above that level opening the door toward the 4,760–4,800 resistance zone and fresh record territory beyond.
Bearish Scenario
Conversely, a decisive break below the ascending trendline and the 50-period EMA would signal that a deeper correction is underway, exposing the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement near 4,440 as the first real test, with a further slide risking a retest of the 0.5 level around 4,360.
With price sitting right at the intersection of a multi-week trendline and the 50-period EMA, gold’s next move looks set to determine whether this powerful August rally has more room to run or whether it’s due for a deeper pause.
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Crypto World
Live updates: Bitcoin options worth $6.4 billion just expired as prices hover near $80,000

The $6.4 billion expiry cleared after bitcoin’s run from roughly $62,000 to $80,000, leaving traders to rebuild positions around a very different price range.
Crypto World
PURR Stock Jumps 11% After Hyperliquid Treasury Firm Reports Annual Results
Hyperliquid Strategies’ stock climbed 10.99% to $12.83 on Thursday after the treasury company reported $305.5 million in net income for the fiscal year ended June 30. PURR added another 3.43% to $13.27 in after-hours trading.
The Nasdaq-listed firm finished the period with 29.3 million HYPE tokens and $149.9 million in cash. It carries no debt.
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HYPE Rally Drives the Profit
Most of the earnings came from token price movement. Unrealized gains on the HYPE token reached $709.9 million, according to the company’s results.
A one-time loss of $169.2 million on tokens contributed at the business combination offset part of that figure. Deferred tax expense absorbed another $183.5 million.
Operating income stayed small by comparison. Staking revenue and validator commissions totaled $9.5 million, while interest income added $2.7 million.
Total assets reached $2.06 billion, including $1.9 billion in HYPE valued at $65.04 per token. CEO David Schamis framed the year as a build phase.
“We more than doubled our HYPE treasury, jointly launched a validator that has quickly become one of the largest on the network and completed the exit from our legacy biotech operations,” Schamis said.
Meanwhile, Hyperliquid Strategies raised $646.6 million through a committed equity facility at an average of $8.70 per share. It also deployed $773.4 million to buy roughly 16.5 million HYPE at an average of $46.77.
The company spent $27.8 million repurchasing about 5.8 million PURR shares at an average price of $4.80. Cash stood at $132.6 million as of August 19.
HYPE Treasuries Split From the Sector
HYPE appreciated about 77% during the quarter ended June 30. Total digital asset market capitalization fell roughly 13% over the same stretch.
That divergence separated HYPE-focused vehicles from the rest of the treasury sector, which saw losses. Hyperion DeFi reported record quarterly net income of $31 million this month, driven by similar treasury gains.
Companies tied to other tokens reported the opposite. Bitcoin’s (BTC) largest corporate holder, Strategy, booked an $8.62 billion net quarterly loss.
Bit Digital posted a $107.2 million loss, with roughly $86 million tied to writedowns and non-operating items. Token performance, rather than treasury design, drove most of the gap this quarter.
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The post PURR Stock Jumps 11% After Hyperliquid Treasury Firm Reports Annual Results appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Days Before Apple Changes CEOs, Pikachu Showed Up at Apple Park
Incoming Apple CEO John Ternus met The Pokémon Company team and Pikachu at Apple Park on Thursday. Tim Cook shared the visit on X ahead of the September 1 handover.
Cook gives up day-to-day control next week. The meeting, therefore, introduced Apple’s next chief to one of the biggest franchises in gaming.
Apple CEO John Ternus Talks Gaming Before the Handover
Cook kept the tone light. He set out a three-item agenda for the day, namely introducing Ternus to the Pokémon team, discussing gaming, and keeping Pikachu away from the Apple Park pond. Two of the three worked, he joked.
The video he posted follows Pikachu across the campus. The mascot dances under the rainbow arch and helps itself to fruit in the orchard. The pond, judging by Cook’s punchline, won in the end.
Ternus arrives with a low public profile after two decades inside Apple’s hardware engineering group. Apple named him chief executive in April. Cook has led the company since 2011 and keeps his board seat as executive chairman.
Tsunekazu Ishihara, president and chief executive of The Pokémon Company, joined the visit. Pokémon has shipped mobile titles on iOS for a decade. Apple, meanwhile, keeps treating games as a services growth engine.
Apple shares closed at $314.58 on Thursday, up 0.36% on the day. The stock has added 37.6% over the past year. It has slipped 7.5% in the past month, however, after the Q3 earnings reaction in late July.
Ternus also takes the job eight days before Apple’s September 9 iPhone keynote. Apple has billed the event with the line “Surprise and shine,” and the iPhone 18 Pro, plus a first foldable iPhone lead expectations.
Nintendo Stock Climbs as Pokémon Worlds Opens in San Francisco
Nintendo gained 3.5% to ¥9,032 in Tokyo on Friday, or about $57 at current rates. The stock still trades roughly 38% under its ¥14,630 record from last year, worth close to $92.
Nintendo co-owns The Pokémon Company with Game Freak and Creatures. Pokémon revenue therefore reaches Nintendo indirectly, on top of Switch software sales.
Nintendo’s fiscal 2026 revenue nearly doubled to ¥2.31 trillion, around $14.5 billion, as Switch 2 shipped. Management has since reaffirmed guidance of 16.5 million Switch 2 units for the current year.
The timing helps. The Pokémon World Championships open at San Francisco’s Moscone Center on Friday and run through Sunday. Gaming has moved markets repeatedly this month. Take-Two lost billions in value after a GTA 6 leak, then answered with a Netflix reveal.
For crypto readers, the Apple CEO handover matters less for games than for App Store policy. Ternus inherits the rules that decide how wallets and payment apps reach iPhone users, an overlooked crypto angle of the transition.
Apple CEO John Ternus starts on September 1. Cook stays on as executive chairman, however, so his influence does not disappear overnight. The September keynote should show how much of Apple’s gaming talk turns into product.
The post Days Before Apple Changes CEOs, Pikachu Showed Up at Apple Park appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Solana ETF Inflows Hit Third-Largest Day Since Launch, Yet History Points to a 20% Risk
Solana (SOL) drew $60.91 million into US spot crypto ETFs on August 27, nearly seven times the previous session and the third-largest day since these funds launched. It was the strongest reading since November 3, 2025.
History gives that milestone an awkward edge. The only two days that ever beat it both arrived just before Solana fell hard.
The Record, and What It Is Not
Cumulative net inflows grew 4.83% in one session (between August 26 and August 27).It is the fastest one-day increase of 2026, lifting the running total to $1.322 billion, per SoSoValue data. Traded value more than doubled to $196.82 million.
Precision matters, though. August 27 was neither the largest inflow day nor the largest percentage jump, and Bitwise’s BSOL supplied about 66% of the total. Five of nine funds saw money arrive, so the day was broad but concentrated.
Access keeps widening around those flows. Morgan Stanley listed its MSOL trust in July, Grayscale added staking distributions in August, and Charles Schwab said on August 27 it would add SOL to its crypto accounts, though that plan is not live yet.
The Two Bigger Days Both Marked Tops
Here is the part worth pausing on. SOL took in $69.45 million on October 28, 2025, then fell 20.1% within seven days and 27.5% within a month. It took in $70.05 million on November 3, 2025, then dropped 21.1% over the next fortnight.
Two cases prove nothing, and the entire market slid through late 2025. Still, record ETF demand has so far arrived near local highs rather than launching new legs.
Why This Time Has More Under It
Unlike those episodes, Solana’s fundamentals are moving with price. Tokenized real-world assets hit an all-time high of $4.167 billion on August 25, with holders up 12.12% in 30 days, per RWA.xyz.
The network earns more too. Fees rose 37.29% against the prior month and DeFi deposits climbed 24.36% to $5.96 billion, per DeFiLlama. Solana’s share of all decentralized exchange volume hit 31.16%, above its 27.65% average.
Capacity expanded ahead of the demand. The maximum block size rose 66% in July and MoneyGram cash rails now reach over 170 countries.
Bigger blocks mean more transactions fit without fees climbing, and MoneyGram lets people convert cash to crypto over a counter, so Solana is expanding both its capacity and its on-ramps.
What the Solana Price Rally Has Not Proved
Two rails still lag. Stablecoin supply rose just 0.59% in 30 days while SOL gained 46.3%, and it sits 4.15% below July’s peak.
Weekly active addresses fell 7.23% even as transactions rose 3.31%, so fewer wallets are doing more, which can mean bots rather than adoption.
Leverage looks deceptive as well. Open interest jumped 62.19% in dollars but only 10.34% in SOL units, meaning most of that build is the token’s own price.
Binance’s taker buy-sell ratio sat at 0.907, below neutral.
Put simply, the crowd has added fewer bets. Also, a ratio under 1 means more traders are hitting sell orders than buy orders. This means that the rally is running without fresh conviction behind it.
Solana Price Levels Into September
SOL trades near $107 after climbing 49.35% since August 16, down 1.66% today. Four moving average crossovers drove that run, ending with the 20-day line clearing the 200-day around August 28.
No fresh crossover is queued. The pullback resembles a bullish pole and flag, where a steep rally pauses before another push. SOL failed at $109.39, and a daily close above it opens $112.80, then $123.83 and $141.68.
Selling volume stays lighter than the August 25 profit-taking, which favours bulls. Below, $105.98 and $101.77 catch a slide, while losing $94.95 breaks the bullish thesis.
Analyst’s View: The difference between now and those 2025 record days is what sits underneath. Back then the flows arrived with nothing but price behind them, while today fees, tokenized assets and DEX share are all rising with SOL. That is the case for treating this record differently.
The post Solana ETF Inflows Hit Third-Largest Day Since Launch, Yet History Points to a 20% Risk appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Visa Partners With Upbit Group to Expand Stablecoin Payments and AI Commerce
Visa and Dunamu—best known as the parent company of South Korea’s Upbit crypto exchange—have announced a strategic partnership aimed at exploring how stablecoins could be used for payments, cross-border remittances, and settlement services, alongside AI-enabled commerce.
In a Friday announcement, Dunamu said the two firms plan to combine Dunamu’s digital asset technology with Visa’s global payments infrastructure to study product and service opportunities across major markets. The partnership also points to using artificial intelligence for “agentic commerce,” where AI agents can search for products or services and complete purchases and payments on behalf of users.
Key takeaways
- Visa and Dunamu will test stablecoin-based use cases spanning payments, remittances, and settlement, leveraging Visa’s existing network.
- The partnership frames stablecoins, tokenization, and AI as an interlinked trend reshaping finance and commerce.
- Dunamu said it is evaluating multiple stablecoin options rather than tying the initiative to a single project.
- Open Standard’s dollar-backed OUSD is among the stablecoin proposals being considered, according to Dunamu.
- The parties also plan to explore AI “agentic commerce” scenarios that connect AI-driven purchasing with stablecoin payment rails.
Why Visa and Dunamu are focusing on stablecoins
Dunamu’s announcement places stablecoins alongside tokenization and AI as key forces expected to “change how finance and commerce operate.” The stated goal is to connect digital asset capabilities with traditional finance, which is where Visa’s payments reach could become a critical complement.
Stablecoin-centered initiatives have increasingly targeted real-world payment and settlement pain points—particularly the frictions involved in moving value across borders. By pairing Visa’s network with Dunamu’s digital asset expertise, the partnership suggests an attempt to move beyond pilots and toward workable integration models, though the companies did not specify timelines or deployment details in the announcement.
OUSD enters the conversation, but Dunamu keeps options open
As part of the exploration, Dunamu and Visa said they are considering business models involving Open Standard’s proposed Open USD (OUSD), a dollar-backed stablecoin introduced in June. Open Standard said that more than 140 companies have signed up to use OUSD, naming Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Coinbase, and BlackRock among them.
Dunamu, however, indicated that OUSD is only one of several stablecoin projects it is evaluating. It also said the partnership has not prioritized a specific stablecoin for the work, signaling that the effort is currently oriented around feasibility and structure rather than committing to a single asset design.
This matters for market participants because stablecoin partnerships often hinge on compliance expectations, issuer and reserve arrangements, and interoperability—factors that can differ significantly between proposals. Dunamu’s stance implies that the partnership could remain flexible as regulatory and technical requirements evolve.
Upbit clarification underscores the partnership’s scope
The news comes against a backdrop of earlier discussion about OUSD and Upbit. In July, Upbit said it was not participating in the issuance of OUSD after Dunamu was named as one of the businesses involved in Open Standard’s initiative.
That clarification indicates that being connected to a stablecoin roadmap through partnerships or infrastructure evaluation does not necessarily translate into direct issuance involvement by Upbit itself. For users and investors watching stablecoin rollouts, the distinction highlights how roles can vary—issuers, service providers, trading venues, and network integrators can all be present in different capacities without assuming identical responsibilities.
Agentic commerce: AI agents plus stablecoin rails
Beyond payments and remittances, Visa and Dunamu said they will also explore “agentic commerce.” In practical terms, this refers to AI agents that can identify products or services and execute transactions—potentially including searching, selecting, and paying—on a user’s behalf.
The companies will examine ways to combine AI with stablecoin-based payment and settlement infrastructure. While the announcement does not provide technical specifics, the direction is clear: stablecoins are being positioned not only as an alternative to traditional settlement mechanisms, but as part of an end-to-end stack that could enable automated purchasing workflows.
For developers and businesses, this raises questions about how AI decisioning, payment authorization, and compliance checks would be integrated. It also suggests that future implementations may focus on controlling risk (fraud and unauthorized spend) while maintaining the speed and global accessibility that stablecoin-based settlement can offer.
What to watch next
Visa and Dunamu’s partnership is an exploratory step, not a guarantee of an imminent stablecoin product launch. The next developments to track are whether the firms narrow down which stablecoin options they can realistically integrate, how they structure settlement and compliance workflows, and whether agentic commerce concepts move from planning into test implementations.
Crypto World
Crypto hacks cost $3.63B in 19 months
Crypto platforms lost $3.63 billion across 245 documented security incidents between January 2025 and July 2026, according to CoinGecko’s State of Crypto Security Report published on Aug. 27.
Summary
- Crypto platforms lost $3.63 billion across 245 documented incidents between January 2025 and July 2026.
- Ten largest attacks accounted for more than 72.5% of all recorded stolen funds combined worldwide.
- Audited platforms represented 147 incidents and 88.44% of reported losses during the study period overall.
- Only 11% of incidents involved vulnerabilities covered by routine smart-contract audit scopes, CoinGecko reported publicly.
- Active onchain insurance coverage fell 20.2% to $130.2 million while five protocols exited or pivoted.
Losses were heavily concentrated. The ten largest attacks accounted for more than 72.5% of the total stolen value, while infrastructure and supply-chain compromises caused more than $1.8 billion in losses.
CoinGecko identified private-key compromise as the leading risk for centralized exchanges. Decentralized applications lost approximately $546 million through smart-contract exploits, while both platform categories also faced oracle manipulation and internal-mechanism failures.
The figures represent CoinGecko’s incident dataset. The published summary does not clearly state whether every recovered or frozen asset was deducted, so the $3.63 billion should be treated as its reported loss estimate rather than a final net-loss total.
Crypto security losses were concentrated in major attacks
The February 2025 Bybit breach was the largest incident included, accounting for approximately $1.44 billion. The attack involved compromised transaction-signing infrastructure rather than a defect in an exchange smart contract.
Other major incidents included the $292 million KelpDAO breach, the $285 million Drift Protocol attack and the $223 million Cetus exploit. Their different methods show why one security control cannot cover the industry’s complete attack surface.
Infrastructure attacks can target private keys, employee devices, front-end interfaces, software dependencies and bridge operators. These components often sit outside the smart contracts reviewed during conventional audits.
State-backed groups have also adopted longer and more complex operations. As previously reported, two North Korea-linked attacks drained approximately $577 million through social engineering and bridge infrastructure compromises rather than ordinary contract flaws.
Audits covered only a minority of exploited weaknesses
CoinGecko found that 147 of the 245 affected platforms, or about 60%, had completed an independent security audit before they were attacked. Those platforms accounted for 88.44% of recorded losses.
That finding does not establish that auditors approved the vulnerable component. CoinGecko said only approximately 11% of incidents involved flaws that fell within the scope of routine smart-contract audits.
Those in-scope failures still caused about $396 million in losses. Most other incidents involved external infrastructure, unaudited software updates, compromised credentials or governance mechanisms that the audit did not assess.
An audit is also a snapshot of a particular code version. Changes made after the review may introduce new vulnerabilities. Its effectiveness depends on the scope, methodology, auditor experience and whether developers resolved the findings.
In related coverage, Ripple’s security review identified 96 issues before affected code reached users, showing that audits can prevent losses when findings arrive before activation. They cannot replace continuous monitoring and operational security.
Onchain insurance capacity fell as attacks increased
Active coverage across leading onchain insurance protocols declined 20.2%, from $163.2 million to $130.2 million. Cumulative payouts remained near $33 million, according to CoinGecko.
Five of the nine protocols tracked had become inactive or moved into other business areas by August 2026. CoinGecko attributed the retreat partly to elevated risk, expensive premiums and difficulty attracting capital providers.
The $130.2 million coverage figure should not be compared directly with $3.63 billion as a formal coverage ratio. The first is a point-in-time measure, while the second covers cumulative incidents across 19 months.
Policies also contain narrow definitions. Some cover verified smart-contract failures but exclude phishing, private-key theft, employee mistakes, market volatility and losses involving unsupported chains.
Exchanges increasingly rely on self-funded reserves
Centralized exchanges have increasingly established investor-protection funds instead of purchasing full external insurance. These reserves can provide faster reimbursement after a breach.
However, a protection fund is not automatically equivalent to regulated insurance. Coverage depends on the exchange’s terms, reserve custody, asset composition and discretion over qualifying events.
Proof-of-reserves attestations address another issue by showing that an exchange controls assets corresponding to customer balances. They do not establish secure key management or prove that all liabilities have been disclosed.
The report’s next test will be whether platforms expand audits beyond smart contracts into operational systems, bridges and software dependencies. Insurance providers must also determine whether broader protection can be offered without making premiums unaffordable.
Crypto World
Bank Plans on CLARITY Act Send Circle and Coinbase Shares Lower
Circle (CRCL) and Coinbase (COIN) shares both fell more than 3% after reports that JPMorgan Chase and a consortium of major banks were moving toward issuing their own stablecoins following the advancement of the CLARITY Act. The news focused attention on the potential for traditional lenders to compete with crypto-native issuers such as Circle and Tether.
The selloff followed a Wall Street Journal report that U.S. banks are warming to stablecoins as nonbank issuers expand and executives worry the tokens could encroach on traditional banking. JPMorgan Chase has explored a potential stablecoin, though the discussions remain preliminary and no product is under development.
Separately, a consortium of more than a dozen banks, including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Santander, is advancing plans for a commercial-focused stablecoin. The consortium has discussed a stablecoin covering the U.S. dollar, the euro, and other Group of Seven currencies.
CRCL retail sentiment on Stocktwits slipped from the extremely bullish zone to the bullish zone as chatter stayed at high levels over the past day. COIN sentiment remained in the extremely bullish zone, while chatter also stayed at high levels.
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BankChain Alliance Plans a Bank-Owned Network
The BankChain Alliance announced an industry-owned and industry-governed blockchain network intended to enable banks of all sizes to build modern payment rails. According to the Wall Street Journal, the organizations involved, modeled on the Federal Home Loan Bank system, represent about 3,283 institutions and $21.8 trillion in assets. The platform is anticipated to emerge in the first half of 2027.
Planned use cases include treasury management, supply-chain financing, cash management, tokenized deposits, stablecoins, smart payment tools, and automated settlement. The Alliance said it is seeking a technology partner and that the network would be interoperable with other networks and open to ownership by banks nationwide.
Kathy Kraninger, interim chair of the BankChain Alliance and president and CEO of the Florida Bankers Association, said the collaboration is intended to help banks of all sizes build their future and continue serving customers safely and efficiently across rural, urban, and regional communities.

The announcements point to banks exploring on-chain payment and settlement services alongside tokenized deposits and stablecoins. The reported plans remain preliminary in JPMorgan’s case, while the BankChain Alliance network is planned for 2027.
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CLARITY Act Uncertainty and Coinbase Push
Coinbase has become one of the most vocal industry supporters of the CLARITY Act, with CEO Brian Armstrong and senior executives repeatedly urging the Senate to advance the crypto market structure bill. The company has also backed industry lobbying efforts, including a June letter signed by more than 200 crypto organizations calling for a Senate floor vote.
More recently, Coinbase Vice Chair Ryan VanGrack publicly pushed for passage as lawmakers faced mounting pressure to act, while Coinbase backed advocacy group Stand With Crypto, which endorsed congressional candidates who previously supported the legislation.
For now, the bank news arrived as the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, or CLARITY Act, had yet to pass the Senate, with the bill’s treatment of stablecoin yield among the remaining issues to be resolved.

Shay Boloor, a market strategist at Futurum Equities, said Circle stock was under pressure amid concern that a dollar stablecoin issued and distributed at scale by major banks could reduce the share of the market flowing through Circle and USDC.
Two developments remain in view. The BankChain Alliance network is anticipated for the first half of 2027, and the Alliance is still seeking a technology partner.
Meanwhile, the Senate’s handling of the CLARITY Act, including its treatment of stablecoin yield, remains unresolved. The progress of the bank initiatives and the legislation will remain central to the discussion around stablecoin competition.
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The post Bank Plans on CLARITY Act Send Circle and Coinbase Shares Lower appeared first on Cryptonews.
Crypto World
Kraken users briefly locked out after a flood of sanctioned crypto transactions

The activity, appearing to spread sanctioned funds to trigger account restrictions, occurred between Aug. 17 and Aug. 24.
Crypto World
Crypto Price Analysis August-28: ETH, XRP, ADA, BNB, and HYPE
This Friday, we examine Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, Binance Coin, and Hyperliquid in greater detail.
Ethereum (ETH)
Ethereum closed another week in the green after pushing above $2,400, ending 6% higher. If buyers manage to hold this key support level, higher highs may continue.
Bulls should do their best to consolidate their recent gains after the massive rally from the $1,500 level. To achieve this, defending $2,400 as support is key. The current resistance is at $2,800.
Looking ahead, this is the first time since 2025 that ETH has made a higher high. This halts the downtrend and positions this cryptocurrency for a sustained rally. The question is how far bulls can take it before they show signs of weakness.

Ripple (XRP)
After XRP pumped to $1.6, the price entered a pullback, which is still ongoing at the time of this post. Nevertheless, this cryptocurrency closed the week 9% higher. This recent performance is impressive and a significant change in the market structure.
With a higher high secured, XRP could be consolidating between the key support at $1.3 and the resistance at $1.6. Once the price settles, a renewed push higher could follow, sending XRP back into a rally.
Looking ahead, the most significant target, at this time, is $2. For that to happen, XRP will need to turn $1.6 into a support first. The odds favor this outcome considering that buyers have the advantage right now.

Cardano (ADA)
Cardano ended this week flat after the price failed to break the resistance at $0.23. Buyers tried to push ADA higher, but sellers would not budge. For this reason, the price is in a pullback at the time of this post.
While a consolidation period under the key resistance is normal, this cryptocurrency needs to avoid a long delay in breaking $0.23, as that may encourage sellers to step up their presence on the order book.
Looking ahead, Cardano needs to make a higher high to confirm the bottom under $0.15. So far, this has not happened, which may give bears a chance to retest the previous lows in the future.

Binance Coin (BNB)
Binance Coin had a good week, closing 7% higher. The price also broke the $690 resistance and appears close to forming a higher high. If confirmed next week, BNB may be well on its way to visit $900 next.
It is critical for the price to continue its rally, as any price below $740 would paint a lower high on the chart, which would be a bearish signal. Nevertheless, as long as the $690 level holds as support, buyers have control over the price.
Looking ahead, the recent drop under $580 could be the bottom. To confirm it, BNB needs to rally and sustain its recent gains. If so, the $900 and $1,000 targets will act as magnets for the price in the near future.

Hype (HYPE)
Hyperliquid had another fantastic week, closing 14% higher after setting a new record price of almost $87. Right now, HYPE is trading in a key range between $ 76 and $ 85 as it plans its next move.
To continue the rally, the price has to clear $85 as support and aim for $90 next. However, considering the strength of the recent move, a consolidation period would be welcomed to avoid a sharper correction later.
Looking ahead, HYPE has a real chance to hit a three-digit price in the near future if this bullish momentum is sustained. A price of $100 or higher is only a 20% rally from current levels.

The post Crypto Price Analysis August-28: ETH, XRP, ADA, BNB, and HYPE appeared first on CryptoPotato.
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