Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Neutrl has suspended minting and redemptions for its NUSD synthetic dollar after unspecified circumstances affected protocol reserves, leaving the cause and scale of any potential impairment unclear. 

On Thursday, Neutrl said it had also paused other protocol functions on legal advice while it assesses the impact. The protocol did not identify the affected asset or counterparty, say whether reserves suffered a realized loss or provide a timeline for resuming operations. 

Structured-yield protocol Strata later said it paused minting, redemptions and related functions for contracts in its Neutrl market, which supports several NUSD-linked products. Strata said its other markets remained operational. 

With about $53.6 million in NUSD in circulation, the suspension prevents approved counterparties from exchanging the token for its backing assets while Neutrl determines whether its reserves have been impaired. Neutrl said it would provide timing and next steps when available. 

Cointelegraph contacted Neutrl for comment but had not received a response by publication. 

NUSD supply falls 18% over 30 days

According to RWA.xyz, NUSD had a market capitalization of about $53.6 million on Friday, down 18.4% over 30 days, while monthly transfer volume fell 72.4% to $71.4 million. However, the data does not establish that the earlier contraction was related to the reserve issue.

The synthetic dollar is designed to track the US dollar using yield-bearing crypto assets and market-neutral strategies rather than deposits held in a bank. RWA.xyz showed NUSD trading at about $0.9984, with 615 holders and 347 active addresses over the preceding 30 days. 

On May 25, verification platform Accountable said its Neutrl dashboard provided continuous cryptographic proof that NUSD reserves matched the protocol’s liabilities. 

Related: ‘DeFi doesn’t exist anymore,’ just onchain finance: Andre Cronje

A February assessment by risk-advisory team BA Labs nevertheless classified a proposed Neutrl integration as higher risk because of counterparty, operational and liquidity exposure. It said direct redemptions were limited to KYC or KYB-approved counterparties and that requests exceeding the liquid buffer could enter a queue targeted for completion within 48 hours, without a guarantee. 

BA Labs estimated NUSD supply at $226 million and reserves at $233.7 million at the time, implying a 103.6% collateralization ratio. It said more than 87% of reserves were held through Fireblocks, while smaller amounts sat on centralized exchanges.

Magazine: Inside the fake crypto startup that fooled North Korean IT workers

Controversy

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is reviewing prediction market “mention markets” over concerns that contracts tied to specific spoken words may be unusually easy to manipulate, NPR reported late Aug. 13, citing two people with direct knowledge of the inquiry. 

Kalshi has responded by removing sports mention markets “until further notice,” according to the report. The inquiry has not been publicly confirmed by the CFTC. Both the regulator and Kalshi declined to comment to NPR, and the CFTC had not published an enforcement action or announcement describing the review as of publication.

Kalshi removes sports mentions while other word bets remain

Mention markets let traders buy contracts based on whether a person says a particular word or phrase. Sports versions have included wagers on whether broadcasters utter terms such as “MVP,” “ankle” or “redshirt.” NPR reported that Kalshi removed all such sports contracts as the regulator examines the category.

The suspension does not cover every mention market. Kalshi’s current page still shows active contracts tied to President Donald Trump, political appearances and corporate earnings calls. One Klarna earnings market, for example, has contracts tied to whether executives mention specific companies or business topics.

Polymarket also offers mention markets on its offshore platform, NPR reported, but its smaller CFTC-regulated U.S. exchange does not currently list them.

CFTC rules put manipulation at the center of the review

The regulatory question goes directly to one of the Commodity Exchange Act’s core requirements. Designated contract markets may list only contracts that are not “readily susceptible to manipulation.” They must also maintain surveillance and enforcement systems capable of preventing manipulation and distorted settlement outcomes, according to the CFTC’s current proposal.

That framework helps explain the concern around word bets. The CFTC has said in its broader prediction-market rulemaking that sports contracts based on aggregate performance can present lower manipulation risk when no single participant can determine the outcome through one action. A mention contract can work differently because one broadcaster, executive or politician may effectively determine settlement simply by saying a particular word. This comparison is an inference from the regulator’s published manipulation framework.

As previously reported, the CFTC has also warned prediction markets against broad template self-certifications, telling exchanges that each product needs enough detail for regulators to assess settlement methods, data sources and compliance controls.

Trump teleprompter case exposed the insider risk

The latest review follows a case involving Gabriel Perez, Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator. Kalshi identified suspicious trades tied to words in presidential appearances and referred the activity to the CFTC. Sources told Reuters that more than $90,000 in potential profits were frozen before they could be withdrawn.

As previously reported, Kalshi flagged the Trump teleprompter trades and referred them to federal regulators. Perez allegedly had advance access to prepared remarks for more than a dozen presidential appearances. The White House later removed him from his role.

The case was not the CFTC’s first encounter with event-contract manipulation. Former Rep. George Santos recently agreed to penalties over manipulative Kalshi trades tied to whether he would attend Trump’s State of the Union address.

What happens next for Kalshi mention markets

The immediate question is whether the CFTC seeks changes only to sports mention markets or concludes that some word-based contracts cannot satisfy its anti-manipulation standards regardless of subject matter. An anonymous person familiar with the inquiry told NPR the products are “potentially very easy to manipulate,” but that remains the source’s assessment rather than a formal Commission finding.

Kalshi could also modify contract structures, eligibility requirements or surveillance controls instead of abandoning the category. The company has already introduced employer disclosures for higher-risk markets and said it blocked more than 100 potential insider trades during the first quarter.

For now, sports mention markets remain suspended with no announced return date, while other mention contracts continue trading. A formal CFTC statement, additional Kalshi restrictions or changes to future self-certifications would provide the next clear indication of how broad the review becomes.

Bitcoin (BTC), by any measure, still remains stuck in a tight trading range, but there has been some movement of note on Thursday.

Sadly for bulls, the coiled spring theory isn’t yet working. Instead, BTC is headed lower, sliding below $63,000 at one point earlier this afternoon. It’s currently trading at $63,100 down about 0.5% over the past 24 hours. Other crypto majors are seeing similar declines.

The small losses are happening even as the interest rate picture in the U.S. is improving. Decent inflation reports yesterday and today appear to have taken the idea of a September Federal Reserve rate hike off the table.

The two-year Treasury yield, which was above 4.30% just days ago, has slid back to 4.14%, reflecting the sharply lower odds of tighter monetary policy.

Other risk assets — particularly U.S. stocks — continue to be where the action is. Higher by another 0.55% on Thursday, the S&P 500 notched another record high.

Brazil’s largest bitcoin BTC$63,396.12 treasury firm, OranjeBTC, is preparing to list a monthly income exchange-traded fund (ETF) that would initially put 95% of its portfolio in Strategy’s (MSTR) preferred stock, STRC, and the rest in Strive’s (ASST) equivalent, SATA.

STRC and SATA pay recurring U.S. dollar distributions. The companies’ bitcoin remains on their balance sheets and is not pledged to the preferred shareholders. Yields are currently at 12.5% and 13.1%, respectively.

The Digital Yield ETF, or DIGY11, is planned to trade on Brazil’s B3 in the country’s fiat currency, the real, and distribute income monthly.

OranjeBTC, which holds 3,950 BTC ($250 million), expects annual distributions to be equivalent to Brazil’s risk-free rate, the Interbank Deposit Certificate (CDI), of 14.15%, plus roughly 3–5 percentage points, net of the fund’s estimated 1.30% total cost.

The estimate depends on the preferred-share distributions and the interest-rate difference between Brazil and the U.S., OranjeBTC Director of Strategy and Research Sam Callahan told CoinDesk. It excludes changes in DIGY11’s share price and does not guarantee returns.

Figure Technology Solutions posted a sharp jump in its consumer loan marketplace activity for the second quarter, reporting $4.3 billion in marketplace volume—up 132% year over year. The company also highlighted improved profitability, with quarterly profit nearly tripling and net income rising 192% to $87 million.

In its latest quarterly update, Figure said net revenue more than doubled to $226 million. It also reported an expanded net income margin of 38.8%, an increase of 10.5 percentage points from the prior year period.

Key takeaways

• Figure reported $4.3 billion in consumer loan marketplace volume for Q2 2026, up 132% year over year.
• Net income surged 192% to $87 million, while net revenue rose to $226 million.
• Third-party loans on Figure Connect made up $2.8 billion (65%) of the quarterly volume.
• Figure expects Q3 consumer loan marketplace volume between $4.8 billion and $5.2 billion.
• The company says weekly loan applications exceeded $1 billion in July.

Marketplace volume accelerates, profit improves

Figure’s growth was driven by expansion across the products routed through its loan origination system and its trading activity on Figure Connect. The company defines marketplace volume as including home equity lines of credit, debt-service coverage ratio loans, and personal loans processed through its origination platform, as well as third-party loans traded on Figure Connect.

According to Figure, third-party loans accounted for $2.8 billion of the $4.3 billion total in Q2—representing 65% of marketplace volume. That mix matters because it suggests the marketplace’s scale is not only dependent on Figure originating loans itself, but also on external participants using Figure Connect to trade.

Figure also said marketplace volume increased 262% compared with the same period last year. The company launched its consumer loan marketplace in June 2024, and it is now scaling both its underlying origination network and its partner-driven trading ecosystem.

Partner growth and the “application” signal

Beyond the topline numbers, Figure tied its momentum to supply-side expansion. During the quarter, it added 102 loan-origination partners, bringing the total to 489.

The company’s CEO, Michael Tannenbaum, also pointed to demand and throughput indicators. He said weekly loan applications surpassed $1 billion in July. While applications are not the same as funded volume, the figure is often used by consumer finance marketplaces as a forward-looking signal for how much loan demand is entering the system—particularly in an industry where conversion from application to funded loan can fluctuate based on underwriting and capital availability.

For investors and market participants, these details provide a more complete picture than quarterly volume alone: volume is the outcome, while applications and partner counts can help explain what might drive the next quarters’ results.

What to watch in Figure’s outlook

Looking ahead, Figure expects consumer loan marketplace volume of between $4.8 billion and $5.2 billion for the third quarter. The midpoint implies continued growth from the reported $4.3 billion in Q2, suggesting Figure believes current momentum can carry into the next reporting period rather than being a one-quarter acceleration.

The company’s guidance also gives traders and lenders a measurable benchmark to monitor. If actual volume tracks toward the top end of the range, it could reinforce the idea that the marketplace’s scale effects—more partners, steady application flow, and a larger trading share from Figure Connect—are compounding. If results fall toward the low end, it may indicate that growth is increasingly constrained by underwriting capacity, pricing dynamics, or the availability of capital through its ecosystem.

Why blockchain-linked transparency is part of the narrative

Figure’s quarterly report arrives amid continued investor interest in how blockchain-based marketplace activity could be monitored. Bernstein analysts, in a prediction made in May and cited in the company’s reporting, said Figure’s Q1 results demonstrated the “uniqueness” of blockchain marketplaces. They also argued that live blockchain data could increasingly allow investors to track Figure’s lending activity in real time.

That framing is relevant because it suggests Figure is not only competing as a consumer finance platform, but also as a system designed to make certain marketplace activity more observable. If that transparency thesis holds up, it may help investors evaluate momentum with less delay than traditional financial reporting—though the extent of what can be reliably inferred from on-chain activity is still something markets will test over time.

Earlier coverage from Cointelegraph had highlighted the Bernstein view about the potential for real-time monitoring via blockchain data. As Figure scales, the industry will likely watch whether that observability translates into better risk assessment, stronger participation, or improved market confidence in marketplace performance.

For now, the most immediate checkpoints are Figure’s next quarterly volume print versus its $4.8 billion–$5.2 billion Q3 outlook, whether third-party participation on Figure Connect continues to hold a majority share, and how application momentum reported in July translates into funded loans over subsequent weeks.

Figure Technology Solutions reports strong second quarter 2026 (investor relations)

While critics focus on her meltdowns, fans, friends, and rivals appreciate that what you see is what you get. “At the end of the day, she’s a very authentic person,” says fellow pro Paula Badosa of Spain, Sabalenka’s closest friend on tour. “She always shows the way she is. That’s one of the things that makes her unique.” Even as she has acknowledged that her emotions sometimes get the better of her, Sabalenka refuses to disavow her passion. “I will never be completely in control,” she says. “When I hold that negativity inside, it keeps growing, growing, growing, growing. It destroys you from the inside to the point that you don’t have any energy and power to compete and to fight. So I’ve found it really helpful to just yell something. I have to release it.” She would love a designated racket-bludgeoning area at tournaments. “Between the sets, you just go to that room, you let it go, and you come back as a new person,” she says.

Ethereum current price and solana ETF flows are stuck in neutral, see why BlockDAG’s stage 1 math makes it the best crypto to buy this month.

The Ethereum current price is parked near $1,913, a jaw-dropping 61% below its 2025 all-time high, with traders leaning on a CPI report just to justify the next 2% move. Solana ETF inflows told a similarly unimpressive story for most of August, only perking back up after weeks of stalling, while SOL is still stuck in the same $74 to $78 range it has traded in for a month. Two giants, both going nowhere fast.

BlockDAG (BDAG) is not going nowhere. While Ethereum and Solana grind out single-digit moves, BlockDAG’s stage 1 price of $0.002 against a $0.10 launch reference is a 50x spread built directly into the math, not wishful thinking, wrapped in an ecosystem already generating real utility for anyone building a best crypto to buy list right now.

BlockDAG: The stage 1 math nobody else can touch

Write this number down: $0.002. That is where BlockDAG sits right now, in stage 1 of 25 total stages. Now write down $0.10, the project’s own launch reference price. That gap is a 50x spread, and it exists before BlockDAG has even listed on a single exchange, while Ethereum and Solana are fighting over a few percentage points of daily movement.

That price is not floating on hope. The BlockDAG Super App is in development can will mine coins through the X1 Miner, pay out staking rewards, and let holders spend BDAG on real purchases through payment cards, while BlockDAGX is preparing to go live as a full exchange with sub-second execution and deep AMM liquidity.

There is also no team allocation quietly waiting to dump on early buyers, and BlockDAG plans to launch with $100 million in liquidity behind it, the kind of structural discipline that rarely shows up on any best crypto to buy list this early in a project’s life, let alone one still selling at stage 1 pricing.

Presales that promise the moon rarely deliver anything close. What BlockDAG offers instead is a documented 50x spread, a functioning ecosystem, and zero insider dilution, and that combination is exactly why experts have termed it a best crypto to buy with legitimate potential to do a 5000x climb like Bitcoin or other tier 1 networks have done in their early days.

Ethereum current price still chasing its old highs

The Ethereum current price sits around $1,913 today, virtually unchanged from where it traded a week ago and still nearly 61% below the almost $5,000 peak ETH hit back in 2025. Ethereum’s $233 billion market cap sounds massive until you remember it represents a token that has spent the better part of a year failing to reclaim territory it already owned once, even with staking, layer-2 activity, and a stablecoin ecosystem all working in its favor.

Traders are currently glued to the July CPI report, hoping softer inflation data finally gives the Fed cover to ease up, because right now the Ethereum current price needs outside help just to keep grinding higher. Staking yield and ETF flows offer some support, but this is a chart leaning on macro tailwinds, not conviction, and macro tailwinds can turn just as fast as they arrive.

Solana ETF momentum keeps stalling and restarting

Solana ETF flows have spent most of August stuck in stall mode, only breaking that streak with an $8.8 million inflow day on August 10, the category’s best single session in three months and still a modest number for a chain this size. SOL itself is trading near $76, up modestly on the week and holding above its 50-day EMA, but still trapped in the same $74 to $80 range it has fought for weeks.

A fresh MoneyGram integration and Jupiter’s Lend v2 launch are genuine wins for the ecosystem, and solana ETF issuers like Morgan Stanley entering the space adds real institutional weight. But weight is not the same as movement, and SOL has yet to prove it can turn any of this into a decisive breakout rather than another round of range-bound chop.

The bottom line: Idle giants vs. real math

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