Strategy’s $216 million Bitcoin sale on Monday should be seen as a positive development for the price of Bitcoin and as a move that renews confidence in STRC, according to analysts.

The sale of 3,588 BTC to fund preferred stock dividend payments and replenish cash has boosted Strategy’s dollar reserves to cover 17 months of dividend payments. “The rebound in STRC suggests investors are responding positively to this decision,” Grayscale Research said Monday.

Andri Fauzan Adziima, research lead at Bitrue Research Institute, told Cointelegraph that Strategy’s recent sale was a “smart, stabilizing move that actually strengthens the setup for Bitcoin.”

Zach Pandl, Grayscale’s head of research, said Strategy’s actions should “restore market confidence” in its financing structure, and may help Bitcoin’s price “find a more durable bottom,” as it relieves the pressure of further BTC sales from Saylor’s company. 

Strategy’s announcement that it sold Bitcoin caused the asset to drop 2.4% in a matter of hours. However, both Bitcoin and Strategy’s yield-bearing STRC product rebounded soon after, suggesting that investor concern was short-lived.

Restoring market confidence 

There is nothing wrong with Strategy’s balance sheet, and the company clearly has sufficient financial resources to service its debt and dividend obligations, Pandl said. 

“Nevertheless, shifting market conditions created uncertainty about how Strategy would balance competing priorities.”

Related: Strategy will be ‘less important’ in Bitcoin after STRC incident: Bitwise

Strategy clarified in late June that it would issue shares and sell Bitcoin as needed to maintain sufficient US dollar reserves to cover its dividend obligations. 

Strategy’s dollar reserves now total $2.55 billion, or the equivalent of about 17 months of dividend cover. Meanwhile, the rebound in the price of STRC — which topped $91 for the first time in three weeks on Monday — “suggests investors are now more confident about the instrument,” Pandl said. 

Bitcoin sales funded Strategy’s USD Reserve and bolstered investor confidence. Source: Grayscale

The sale reduces forced-selling risks

“By using the proceeds to pad cash reserves for roughly 17 months of STRC dividends, they’ve cut near-term financing pressure and overhang, which helped spark Bitcoin’s quick recovery above $64k while lifting STRC near $90,” Adziima said.

“In my view, this reduces forced-selling risks, rebuilds confidence in their structure and paves the way for a more durable bottom as other buyers step in, prudent balance-sheet management rather than any kind of capitulation.”

BTC recovered to reach $64,400 in late trading on Monday, but had dipped to $63,120 at the time of writing. 

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Bitcoin’s dip from just under $64,000 to around $62,000 Monday was not a slow grind lower—it was a fast unwind driven by derivatives positioning, then amplified by a new catalyst from Strategy’s latest regulatory disclosure.

According to Cointelegraph’s coverage of the filing, the move was linked to Strategy’s largest reported Bitcoin sale of 3,588 BTC. While spot demand was only slightly negative during Sunday’s upswing, Monday’s turn showed how quickly leverage can shift when corporate treasury supply hits the tape.

Key takeaways

• Sunday’s rally was largely futures-led, with net futures buying of roughly $415 million, leaving price vulnerable to forced unwind.
• Strategy’s SEC disclosure appears to have triggered Monday’s unwind, with four-hour net futures selling jumping to about $456 million.
• Liquidations ran in both directions during the volatility, totaling roughly $42 million in long liquidations and $49 million in short liquidations.
• Spot buying returned on Monday afternoon—after days of limited spot participation—suggesting a more balanced push-pull between spot and derivatives.
• With open futures positions near $20.6 billion and funding staying positive, the market remains leveraged, but the setup is fragile if new macro headlines or selling pressure extend.

From futures momentum to leverage unwind

Sunday’s move toward $64,000 was dominated by derivatives flows. The session saw net futures buying of roughly $415 million, including a concentrated four-hour window of about $687 million. That burst reportedly force-closed around $33 million in bets against Bitcoin, highlighting how rapidly directional exposure built.

At the same time, spot flows were slightly negative. That matters because when price rises mainly on paper positions rather than cash demand, the move can reverse quickly if traders reduce risk—especially when leverage is crowded and stops or margin calls force synchronized selling.

Monday’s selloff accelerated once the Strategy story landed. The SEC disclosure described the company selling BTC to fund dividend payments, with additional sell capacity still available afterward. As that information reached traders, the derivatives market shifted from buying pressure to selling pressure within hours.

Strategy’s sale: what the filing implies for flow expectations

The filing referenced in Cointelegraph’s reporting described Strategy selling 3,588 BTC for $216 million to fund dividend payments. The disclosure also indicated that an additional $1.25 billion of sale capacity remained unused.

For traders, the near-term question is straightforward: was Monday’s move a one-off repricing of known corporate supply, or the start of a broader selling pattern? The market’s reaction suggests traders treated the disclosure as actionable, at least for positioning purposes.

Immediately after the news hit, futures flows swung to approximately $456 million of net selling in a four-hour window. Both sides were liquidated as price moved sharply, with around $42 million of bullish positions wiped out alongside about $49 million of bearish positions—an outcome consistent with choppy, momentum-driven trading rather than a clean trend.

Funding stays positive, but fragility is rising

Despite the whipsaw, Bitcoin’s funding rate reportedly remained in positive territory for more than a week, including during Monday’s decline. Positive funding typically indicates that leveraged longs are paying shorts—often interpreted as “optimism” in the derivatives market.

That said, the overall structure matters more than a single funding reading. With roughly $20.6 billion in open futures positions, the market still carries significant leverage. In this environment, even modest catalysts can produce outsized price swings if many traders are already crowded on the same side or if momentum traders are forced to exit quickly.

Open interest figures showed the scale of exposure did not disappear—meaning the market may still be susceptible to another round of repricing should catalysts stack up.

One notable difference between Sunday and Monday is the market’s later composition: Monday afternoon recovery included net futures buying of about $568 million paired with spot buying of roughly $143 million. That combination—spot participation joining derivatives—helps explain why the rebound looked less like a pure futures-led bounce and more like a market trying to find support with cash demand.

What to watch next: unused capacity and the Fed’s minutes

Beyond Strategy, the key uncertainty is whether the unused $1.25 billion authorization becomes a lingering overhang for rallies. If traders believe additional corporate sales are likely, rallies can struggle to sustain even when funding remains positive and spot buying appears to return.

On the macro side, attention turns to the Federal Reserve’s minutes from the June meeting. Cointelegraph notes markets are currently pricing a 75.6% chance that rates will remain at 3.50%-3.75% in July. Still, any hawkish language in the minutes could test crowded leveraged long positions.

The article highlights potential pressure zones around $62,300 to $62,800 above current price action, and downside levels around $61,000 and $59,500 if momentum shifts again. In a market where funding has stayed positive and open interest remains elevated, levels tied to forced unwind dynamics can matter as much as long-term valuation arguments.

For now, traders should focus on whether Monday’s spot reappearance persists and whether Strategy’s remaining sale authorization translates into further market-selling expectations. With leverage still embedded in open futures positions and upcoming macro catalysts in play, Bitcoin’s next move may depend less on narrative and more on whether cash buyers can consistently offset derivatives-induced volatility.

Key Highlights

• XRP gained approximately 8% over a seven-day period following a rebound from $1.03
• Spot ETF net inflows decreased by 55% during June, falling from $132M to $59M
• The XRP Binance Scarcity Index reached 0.77, marking its highest reading in over 24 months
• Binance’s XRP holdings have declined 20% since November 2024, currently sitting at approximately 2.6 billion tokens
• Critical resistance level identified at $1.20, with upside target at $1.50 and downside risk at $0.80

XRP has demonstrated a solid recovery over the past week, posting gains of nearly 8% after establishing support at the $1.03 level. The digital asset is currently changing hands above $1.15, successfully reclaiming a price point that served as a support threshold before the June downturn.

Market activity intensified significantly, with trading volume surging approximately 62% within a 24-hour window to reach $1.8 billion. Such dramatic volume increases typically indicate fresh market participation following periods of subdued trading activity.

This rebound follows a challenging June for XRP holders. The token experienced a significant decline from heights above $1.55 in February, ultimately bottoming out near the $1.00 to $1.04 range by late June—representing the most substantial holder drawdown in over a decade.

Institutional appetite, as measured through ETF flows, painted a cautious picture during this period. Net capital inflows to XRP-linked spot exchange-traded funds contracted from $132 million in May to just $59 million in June, representing a 55% month-over-month decline. Traditional finance interest appeared to wane despite the token’s price compression.

Large Holders Accumulate as Exchange Inventory Tightens

Blockchain metrics revealed a contrasting narrative within the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Daily active addresses on the XRP Ledger surged to levels not witnessed since February, as reported by Santiment. During that February timeframe, XRP traded within a $1.47 to $1.54 range.

Concurrently, the XRP Binance Scarcity Index climbed to 0.77 this week, representing its most elevated reading in more than two years, based on analysis from CryptoQuant researcher ArabxChain. This indicator quantifies XRP’s availability on Binance compared to historical benchmarks.

Binance’s XRP inventory has contracted by approximately 20% since November 2024, declining from roughly 3.27 billion tokens to around 2.6 billion currently. Holdings specifically dropped from about 2.8 billion in May to 2.6 billion by early July, coinciding precisely with the scarcity index’s breakout to new highs.

Market observers at ChartNerd highlighted this technical formation on X, describing XRP’s “3rd Retest” as a favorable entry point for position builders, characterizing it as “a gift” for chart-focused market participants.

Short Position Liquidations Contributed to Initial Rally

Futures market data from Coinglass reveals funding rates plunged into deeply negative territory between June 26 and 28, coinciding precisely with the price bottom. This concentration of short positions created conditions favorable for a squeeze.

The subsequent rally to $1.13 appears consistent with forced short covering rather than organic new demand. Funding rates have since normalized to slightly positive, suggesting a healthier positioning landscape.

Immediate resistance is located at $1.20, which previously contained the mid-June recovery attempt. A confirmed daily close above this threshold would expose the $1.35–$1.40 region, representing approximately 22% upside from current pricing.

The daily Relative Strength Index currently reads near 55, indicating additional headroom exists before overbought territory becomes a concern.

The 200-day Exponential Moving Average is positioned at $1.50, which technical analysts identify as the primary bullish objective if buying momentum persists. Conversely, a breakdown below $1.00 would negate the current recovery thesis.

XRP volume recently exceeded Bitcoin on South Korean platform Upbit, providing an interesting data point as market participants evaluate whether genuine demand is materializing.

TLDR:

• BONK faces renewed scrutiny after BonkDAO confirmed a malicious governance proposal drained about $20 million from its treasury.
• The attacker reportedly spent about $4.4 million buying BONK tokens to gain enough voting power for the proposal.
• The vote passed through the DAO’s own governance process, meaning the attack did not rely on a smart contract exploit.
• BONK price action weakened after the drain, with the token trading below major moving averages and facing resistance near $0.00000445.

BONK faced fresh selling pressure after BonkDAO confirmed a malicious governance proposal drained about $20 million from its treasury. The incident took place on July 6, 2026, and exposed a weak point in token-weighted voting systems. BonkDAO said the attacker used a proposal to move treasury funds into a wallet they controlled. 

The move did not involve a smart contract exploit. Instead, the attacker used the DAO’s own rules to pass the vote. BONK traded near $0.00000442 after the incident, with an intraday low near $0.00000414.

BONK Treasury Drain Shows DAO Voting Risk

BonkDAO described the incident as a malicious governance proposal that drained an estimated $20 million in BONK tokens. The project said it identified exchange wallets used to buy tokens before the proposal. It also said it was working with exchanges, bridges, the Solana Foundation, and law enforcement.

The attacker reportedly built voting power over several days. Onchain reports said the wallet spent about $4.4 million buying BONK before the vote. That stake gave the attacker enough influence to push the proposal past quorum.

The proposal then transferred about 4.43 trillion BONK from the treasury. The vote passed with only a small number of active wallets involved. Most DAO members did not take part, which left the treasury exposed to a concentrated vote.

The attack stands out as it used valid transactions. The buying, voting, and treasury transfer all moved through the governance system. That makes the case different from a front-end hack or direct wallet drainer.

In March 2026, Bonk.fun faced a separate website-related incident. Attackers used a fake signing flow to target users. This time, no individual user wallets were drained. The target was the DAO treasury itself.

BONK Price Weakens as Governance Attack Hits Confidence

BONK price action weakened after news of the treasury drain spread. The token’s market value fell below the $500 million area, while trading volume rose sharply. That mix pointed to heavy speculation and fading short-term confidence.

Technical pressure also stayed visible. BONK traded below its 20-day, 50-day, and 200-day moving averages. The token faced resistance near $0.00000445, while short-term forecasts pointed to a possible range between $0.00000352 and $0.00000548.

The governance attack also revived a wider debate across DAOs. Token-weighted voting can expose treasuries when quorum levels sit too low. A wealthy attacker can buy enough influence, pass a proposal, and exit after execution.

This risk is not new, but the BonkDAO case shows how fast it can hit a major memecoin treasury. Many DAO systems focus on smart contract safety. Governance settings now need the same level of review.

Projects may respond with longer timelocks, higher quorum rules, and emergency multisig controls. Time-weighted voting could also reduce the risk of last-minute token accumulation. For BONK, the next focus is fund tracing, exchange cooperation, and whether any treasury assets can be frozen or recovered.

BNB Chain has published a guide for moving assets from a centralized exchange to BNB Chain, as European crypto users adjust to new rules under the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. 

The guide explains how users can hold crypto in their own wallets and connect directly to decentralized apps.

Meanwhile, the timing follows the end of MiCA’s transition period on July 1. As previously reported, MiCA now requires crypto firms to hold CASP licenses to keep serving users under the EU rulebook. The change has pushed users to check whether their exchanges can still offer services in the bloc.

BNB Chain guide focuses on self-custody

BNB Chain’s guide presents self-custody as an alternative to keeping assets on a centralized exchange. It says users who move on-chain control their own private keys, while centralized platforms hold keys on behalf of customers.

The guide also warns that self-custody comes with responsibility. Users must protect their recovery phrases, send test transfers before moving larger sums, and keep a small amount of BNB for network fees. It also tells users to avoid fake wallet apps, fake bridge sites, and links sent through messages or ads.

BNB Chain says users can access swaps, stablecoins, staking, lending, borrowing, tokenized real-world assets, and perpetual trading from their wallets. It names apps such as PancakeSwap, Venus, Lista DAO, Aster, DappBay, and BscTrace as tools available across the ecosystem.

Exchange shifts put wallets in focus

The guide lands as several exchange services in Europe change under MiCA. As previously reported, Binance said it would suspend several EU services after failing to secure a MiCA license before the deadline. The pause covered new spot orders, new deposits, sign-ups, and some yield products, while withdrawals remained available.

Licensed rivals have also used the deadline to compete for users. As previously reported, Coinbase and OKX targeted Binance users with transfer offers before the rule change took full effect. The shift has made regulation, custody, and access central issues for EU users choosing where to hold crypto.

Stablecoins are also part of the change. As previously reported, USDT lost access to regulated EU exchange order books after Tether chose not to seek MiCA authorization. That has pushed compliant stablecoins such as USDC and EURC into a stronger position on licensed platforms.

Licensed firms gain ground

The EU market is not closing to crypto, but access now depends more on authorization. ESMA’s MiCA register rose to 300 authorized crypto firms after 57 new providers were added around the deadline.

The updated list includes banks, trading firms, and crypto companies that can serve users across the bloc through MiCA passporting. Ripple also joined the licensed market after securing approval in Luxembourg, as previously reported.

BNB Chain’s message is aimed at users who want direct control rather than a licensed exchange account. The guide does not remove the risks of DeFi or self-custody. It instead gives users a route to move assets, test transactions, check apps, and decide how much responsibility they want to hold themselves.

Ripple legal chief and National Cryptocurrency Association President Stuart Alderoty said Washington should stop treating crypto users as a small political group. 

In a July 7 post on X, he said U.S. crypto holders now represent one of the country’s largest public groups.

Alderoty pointed to National Cryptocurrency Association data showing that 67 million American adults own crypto. He said, “For starters, it means more people have crypto than have dogs.” He added that crypto users are “by any reasonable standard” a large national group.

His comments came after a Politico poll showed limited public support for the CLARITY Act. Alderoty argued that weak support for one bill does not mean crypto users are irrelevant. He said the 27% support figure is close to the share of adults who already hold crypto.

Crypto ownership broadens across the U.S.

The 2026 State of Crypto Holders Report said one in four U.S. adults now owns crypto, or more than 67 million people. The report also said the country added 12 million holders over the past year.

Alderoty said the data challenges old images of crypto holders as wealthy male tech workers or short-term speculators. The report said women made up 42% of new holders in 2025 and 2026, compared with 34% among earlier holders.

The same report said nearly a quarter of holders earn $75,000 or less per year. It also said construction and manufacturing workers now make up more than 21% of the holder base. Alderoty used those figures to argue that crypto ownership now reaches working and middle-class households.

CLARITY Act debate enters tighter window

The remarks come as Congress continues to debate the CLARITY Act, a bill meant to set federal rules for crypto markets. As previously reported, the bill missed its July 4 target and now faces an Aug. 7 deadline before the Senate summer break.

The bill has already cleared key steps, but it still needs a full Senate vote. Senate staff also need to merge versions from the Banking and Agriculture committees before lawmakers can move cleanly toward final passage.

As previously reported, the Senate Banking Committee advanced the bill in a 15 to 9 vote in May. The bill still needs 60 Senate votes, while ethics language, anti-money laundering rules, and agency oversight remain points of debate.

Polling and lobbying shape the fight

Public polling gives lawmakers a mixed picture. A Politico and Public First survey found that crypto ranked low among voter priorities, with only 4% saying a candidate’s crypto stance would shape their vote.

Other polling shows voters want stronger rules. Americans for Financial Reform said voters across parties worry about crypto industry influence in Washington and want crypto firms to follow bank-like rules.

The industry has also increased political spending. Reuters reported that crypto firms have spent $189 million so far on the 2026 U.S. election cycle, more than their 2024 total. The report named Ripple Labs, Coinbase, Andreessen Horowitz, and Foris DAX among the top contributors to corporate policy-focused political action committees.

Alderoty’s message places crypto ownership at the center of the Washington debate. His argument is that lawmakers do not need to endorse a specific token to pass basic rules. They must decide whether 67 million holders are a niche group or a public market that needs clear guardrails.

Paradigm has led an oversubscribed seed funding round for sovereign financial infrastructure firm M1X Global, bringing the company’s total funding to $8.5 million just 14 weeks after its public launch.

According to a press release shared with crypto.news, the round also attracted participation from Breed VC following M1X Global’s earlier angel raise. The company said the funding comes as regulatory clarity and institutional interest continue driving adoption of blockchain-based financial infrastructure.

M1X builds blockchain infrastructure for sovereign markets

Working with governments on digital financial systems, M1X Global has concentrated on sovereign financial instruments issued on blockchain networks. Its flagship partnership with the Republic of the Marshall Islands led to the launch of USDM1, which the company described as the first U.S. dollar-denominated secured sovereign bond issued natively on a public blockchain.

M1X Global said it coordinated the issuance with Cleary Gottlieb, Stellar Development Foundation, Anchorage Digital Bank, Guidepost, Inca Digital and Crossmint. According to the company, USDM1 was created to expand access to government aid and financial services across the Pacific while introducing a blockchain-native sovereign instrument for institutional markets.

The company said USDM1 combines the legal and economic structure of fully collateralized U.S. dollar sovereign debt with programmable digital asset features, enabling T+0 settlement, enforceable legal protections and programmable transfers. It added that the instrument qualifies as eligible sovereign collateral for regulated 24/7 markets and has already featured in institutional working groups involving Bank of America, Citadel Securities, Virtu Financial, Tradeweb, and DTCC.

According to M1X Global, the bond has also been structured to remain bankruptcy remote while supporting look-through to high-quality liquid assets and inclusion in legal netting sets used for collateral.

“Paradigm’s investment is an important milestone for M1X Global, strengthening our ability to scale the infrastructure behind sovereign financial instruments and to accelerate the build-out of systems that can support their use across regulated markets. This support advances our capacity as we continue to see strong onboarding demand and institutional adoption of USDM1, “ M1X Global Chief Executive Officer Mark Lurie said in an accompanying statement.

Jordan Goldman, president and chief operating officer of M1X Global, added that institutional deployment of USDM1 has demonstrated how sovereign digital assets can support both public services and financial markets. 

According to Goldman, the assets can “deliver meaningful impacts in both domestic and institutional contexts” by improving access to government services while providing new sources of high-quality collateral for institutions operating in around-the-clock markets.

The investment continues Paradigm’s recent expansion beyond traditional crypto venture funding. 

In June, the firm led a $9 million Series A round for Latin American payments platform El Dorado, supporting its stablecoin-powered cross-border payment network operating across 12 countries. It has also partnered with Stripe on the Tempo Layer 1 blockchain and participated in U.S. stablecoin policy discussions, including urging regulators not to restrict third-party stablecoin reward programs.

Yield Guild Games will shut down YGG Play, its crypto game publishing arm, after deciding the business is no longer commercially sustainable. 

The company blamed weak crypto market conditions and a difficult video game publishing market.

YGG said the Oct. 10 market crash changed retail trading behavior and reduced the liquidity that many consumer crypto apps need. It said Bitcoin later fell below $60,000, while several altcoins lost 80% or more from prior levels.

The company said YGG Play had shown early traction before conditions worsened. It signed nine games, worked with intellectual property brands such as Pudgy Penguins, launched a publishing platform, and passed $9 million in lifetime revenue by the end of the first quarter of 2026.

35 staff affected by restructuring

The shutdown will affect 35 workers across different teams. YGG said it would help those employees find new roles and invited companies to contact it for hiring referrals.

The company will retire the YGG Play website, launchpad, and community rewards platform. It will also stop marketing support for third-party games. LOL Land and Waifu Sweeper will be taken down, while GIGACHADBAT and Ragnarok Breaker will continue through their own studios.

“Sunsetting YGG Play is a heavy decision, but it is a market decision, not a product decision,” said YGG co-founder Gabby Dizon.

He added that the company remains focused on using technology to create economic opportunities.

Company turns toward AI data

YGG said it will now move resources into the AI data economy. Its first focus will be a business-to-business pipeline for gaming datasets that can help train AI models.

The company said games can produce useful data because players make fast and complex decisions during play. YGG said its global community can help create behavioral datasets by playing games and completing related tasks.

YGG also pointed to its AI Alerts channel, formerly YGG Alerts, as part of the new direction. The company said the channel has already brought in 27,000 applications in its first five days by connecting Filipino workers with remote AI training jobs.

Crypto and gaming layoffs continue

The move adds to broader job cuts across crypto and gaming. As previously reported, Kraken cut about 150 jobs as AI tools took on a larger role across the exchange. Coinbase, Gemini, and Dune also reduced staff this year while reshaping operations.

In addition, BitGo cut nearly 15% of its workforce while shifting focus toward security, trading, stablecoins, settlement, and AI infrastructure. The cuts showed how crypto firms have continued to review costs after weaker market conditions.

The web3 gaming sector has also faced pressure. As previously reported, blockchain gaming activity fell in 2025 as user numbers dropped, funding slowed, and hundreds of gaming apps went inactive.

YGG said its treasury stood at $20.6 million at the end of the first quarter. It held $6.2 million in stablecoins, T-bills, and large-cap tokens. The company said the restructuring extends its operating runway to four years.