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China’s Xi builds diplomatic clout with multiple state visits ahead of Trump summit

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China's Xi builds diplomatic clout with multiple state visits ahead of Trump summit

Chinese President Xi Jinping and First Lady Peng Liyuan arrive in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on August 30, 2026, for an official state visit and to attend the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit on September 1.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to make rare state visits to Egypt and, likely India, before his expected trip to the U.S. in late September.

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Xi has “sharply curtailed foreign travel in recent years, so his busy upcoming travel schedule is a significant gauge of his priorities,” Gabriel Wildau, managing director at Teneo, told CNBC in an email.

The Chinese leader this year has so far only ventured abroad once: a state visit in June to North Korea for the first time in seven years. Meanwhile. the world has come to China, with more than 20 leaders — including U.S. President Donald Trumpvisiting Beijing in the first half of the year, pointed out U.S.-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The global stakes have only risen, with the Iran war, U.S.-China trade tensions and growing security risks from artificial intelligence. For Beijing, that’s building the case for an evolution in its global role.

“It’s time for China to probably take bigger responsibility, provide more global public goods,” said Hai Zhao, a director of international political studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a state-affiliated think tank.

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“Because of China’s deep integration into the global economy, China is an integral part of the solution,” he said, whether it’s supply chain security, oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz or cybersecurity.

Xi landed in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Sunday. The country is hosting the security-focused Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit Monday and Tuesday. The annual event gathers the heads of Russia, India and other non-Western nations.

As part of the same trip, which runs through Thursday, Xi plans to make his first state visit to Egypt in a decade. China has built up its presence in the Suez Canal region with a bilateral economic and trade cooperation zone.

Xi is then expected to attend another non-Western leaders’ summit, BRICS, which will be held in New Delhi from Sept. 12 to Sept.13. China has yet to confirm Xi’s participation. It would be Xi’s first visit to India since 2019 and after the deadly border clashes between the two countries in 2020.

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Washington is watching

Experts said the U.S. will be monitoring developments at the SCO and BRICS summits, as it looks to improve ties with India and China but plans to get tougher on Russia to bring an end to Moscow’s war with Ukraine.

Last year, as the U.S. imposed tariffs against Beijing and New Delhi, a clip of Xi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin laughing together at the SCO summit in Tianjin went viral.

The meeting drew the ire of Washington, with Trump claiming that it had “lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China.”

A lot has changed since. In February this year, Trump announced that he would scale back the tariffs on India to 18% from 50%, and the two countries are in the process of negotiating a trade deal. Trump also made a landmark visit to China earlier this year, and Xi is expected to visit Washington in September, after the BRICS summit.

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But India and China still face threats of up to 100% tariffs from Washington if the U.S. House passes the Graham bill, which punishes countries buying Russian oil. More than 50% of India’s crude supplies originated from Russia in June and July, and were around 43% as of last week, according to Kpler data.

“Visible warmth” between Modi and Putin “could shape the President’s [Trump] calculations over using potential new secondary tariff authorities,” over India’s purchases of Russian oil, Richard M. Rossow, senior advisor and chair on India and Emerging Asia Economics at CSIS, told CNBC.

Meanwhile, experts expect New Delhi to use its presence at the SCO and BRICS summits to highlight the strength of its multi-polar alignment. India is much closer to the U.S. than Russia or China, but it will use the SCO and BRICS to show Washington that it has other partners, they said.

The Indian side, through these meetings, will convey to the U.S. that “there will be a price if you continue to remain uncertain,” Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, South Asia practice head at Eurasia Group, told CNBC.

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Elephant-dragon tango

After their SCO meeting, Xi and Modi are expected to meet in New Delhi for the BRICS summit.

The ties between the two neighbors have improved over the last year after Modi and meeting in Tianjin last year. Direct flights have resumed between India and China, a few old Silk Road trade routes have opened, and in March India relaxed rules around investment from Beijing.

Last week, the two sides also agreed to work on resolving their long-standing border disputes. Yet, the issues between the two sides are far from resolved. According to local media reports, Indian businessmen and executives are facing “significant difficulties” in getting Chinese visas.

“It is good to see India-China tensions confined to trade and visas!” Rossow told CNBC, adding that it is an improvement over the earlier military confrontation.

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The two sides are trying to balance commercial linkages, experts said.

While India is easing investment rules for Chinese firms, it is also imposing some trade restrictions on goods in sectors where India is closer to self-sufficiency. Meanwhile, China is wary of technology transfers to India as it could undermine Beijing’s role in key global supply chains.

India, for example, is already emerging as a key supplier for Apple smartphones after the company started diversifying its manufacturing base away from China. As per the Indian government, the country is already the world’s second-largest mobile phone maker.

U.S.-China tech focus

Technology is rapidly emerging as a critical issue for the Trump-Xi summit in Washington, D.C., expected Sept. 24. China has not officially confirmed a visit. Senior officials from both sides met in Beijing last week — amid tough talk from the Trump administration over China’s alleged role in financing Iran.

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Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, last week also met with U.S. delegates in Beijing for a “Track 1.5” semi-official dialogue, led in part by the Rockefeller-founded nonprofit Asia Society. Its CEO Kevin Rudd said the meeting discussed the possibility of U.S.-China AI guardrails and bilateral collaboration on global cancer research.

If increasingly powerful large language models fall “into the wrong hands it will be very damaging both to the U.S. and China and to the global economy,” Zhao said. He expects the two leaders could also set up a mechanism to guide AI development, while extending a truce on tariffs will be critical for bilateral stability.

But Teneo’s Wildau was less optimistic, given “widespread conviction that AI development is a zero-sum game.”

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The S&P 500 Failed to Beat Inflation Only 4 Times in 20 Years. Here's the Pattern.

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S&P 500 vs. Inflation

The S&P 500 has gained 13.5% in 2026, outpacing US consumer prices, which rose 3.4% over the 12 months through July.

The trend also holds over the longer term. Historical data show that the index has outpaced US inflation in 16 of the past 20 calendar years.

How the S&P 500 Has Performed Against Inflation

The S&P 500 delivered a 14.76% real return in 2025 after accounting for 2.70% inflation, according to The Kobeissi Letter. The index also recorded strong real returns in the previous two years, gaining 21.47% in 2024 and 22.11% in 2023.

“Stocks have historically been one of the best hedges against inflation,” the post read.

The record is thinner than the count suggests. The four years when stocks failed to beat inflation were 2008, 2011, 2018, and 2022.

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Three of those four years ended with inflation below 3%. Consumer prices rose just 0.1% in December 2008, yet the S&P 500 plunged 37% that year.

S&P 500 vs. Inflation
S&P 500 vs. Inflation. Source: BeInCrypto

The 2022 result was different. The BLS reported a 6.5% year-over-year increase in consumer prices in December. The S&P 500 fell 18.11%. The real loss came to roughly 23%.

Only three years in the period ended with December inflation above 4%. The S&P 500 still outpaced inflation in 2007 and 2021 but fell short in 2022. The largest real return came in 2013, when the index gained 30.42%, and inflation stood at 1.5%.

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AI Earnings Are Carrying the Real Return

Earnings did most of the work in 2025. First Trust calculated that 13.5 of the index’s 17.9 percentage points came from higher earnings per share.

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According to FactSet, analysts project 28.2% year-over-year earnings growth for the third quarter of 2026. They expect 31.2% across the full year.

That growth is concentrated in a narrow group. Ben Snider of Goldman Sachs Research said in May that AI infrastructure beneficiaries should supply roughly half of index earnings growth this year. He also flagged narrowing market breadth as a risk signal.

Meanwhile, 9 of the decade’s 10 best S&P 500 performers trace to the same buildout. Nvidia leads that list by a wide margin, with gains above 13,000%.

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Inflation has cooled since the spring. Consumer prices rose 4.25% in the year through May before easing to 3.4% in July.

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The post The S&P 500 Failed to Beat Inflation Only 4 Times in 20 Years. Here's the Pattern. appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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Revolut begins EURR rollout as ECB details digital euro privacy safeguards

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Revolut lists Zama token across the European Economic Area

The European Central Bank has strengthened its privacy commitments for a potential digital euro as Revolut has begun rolling out its first euro-backed stablecoin, EURR, to selected customers across three European markets.

Summary

  • Revolut has begun rolling out its EURR euro stablecoin to eligible users in Denmark, Poland and Portugal.
  • EURR is issued by Stripe owned Bridge and initially runs on Ethereum, with wider EEA availability planned.
  • The ECB says its digital euro would provide the highest privacy level current technology can support.
  • Offline digital euro payments would remain visible only to the payer and recipient, while banks would retain information required for compliance.
  • The digital euro remains under development as regulated euro stablecoins continue expanding under MiCA.

Forbes reported that the two projects are developing on separate tracks, with the digital euro designed as central bank money while EURR is a privately issued stablecoin intended to maintain a value of one euro.

Digital euro privacy would limit ECB access to user identities

ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said the digital euro would offer the maximum level of privacy that existing technology can support, addressing concerns over how much transaction information a central bank digital currency could expose.

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For offline payments, transaction details would only be available to the payer and recipient, Cipollone said. The Eurosystem would not receive information allowing it to identify the people involved in those payments.

Online transactions would operate differently because banks participating in the payment would still need access to customer information for anti-money laundering and other compliance requirements. However, Cipollone said the Eurosystem itself would not be able to identify the users making or receiving the payment.

In practice, the ECB would not be able to directly connect a specific person with a digital euro transaction regardless of whether the payment was made online or offline, according to Cipollone.

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“The digital euro guarantees the maximum level of privacy that current technology can offer,” he said.

The privacy framework forms part of a digital euro project that remains under development. In March, crypto.news reported that the ECB expected to publish digital euro technical standards during the summer as payment providers, banks and merchants prepared their systems for a possible rollout.

Cipollone said at the time that a 12-month pilot was scheduled to begin in the second half of 2027, covering person-to-person and point-of-sale payments. The ECB has been working toward technical readiness for possible issuance around 2029, subject to the required European Union legislation.

The digital euro would complement physical cash and bank deposits instead of replacing them, according to the ECB. Private intermediaries such as banks and payment service providers would distribute the currency and provide wallets and related payment services.

Revolut EURR enters three European markets

While the ECB continues developing the digital euro, Revolut has started phased testing of EURR with eligible customers in Denmark, Poland and Portugal.

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EURR is Revolut’s first stablecoin and is designed to maintain a value of €1. The token is initially launching on Ethereum, with Revolut planning wider availability across European Economic Area markets later in 2026.

Despite carrying Revolut branding, the token is issued by Bridge Building S.A., part of Stripe-owned stablecoin infrastructure company Bridge. Revolut distributes EURR through its existing platform, giving eligible customers a way to move between fiat currency, crypto assets, external wallets and supported blockchain networks.

Bridge entered the European market with regulatory approvals before the rollout. Crypto.news previously reported in July that the company had secured MiCA and EMI licenses in Luxembourg, allowing it to provide regulated stablecoin and euro payment services across all 27 EU member states.

The company subsequently joined the European Union’s MiCA register as the bloc’s 42nd authorized electronic money token issuer. The Bridge MiCA registration gave the Stripe-owned business a regulated route for issuing euro-backed tokens and providing related payment infrastructure across the bloc.

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Revolut said EURR gives customers an on-chain euro option without requiring them to begin with a separate crypto platform. The company already serves more than 75 million customers across more than 40 markets through services covering payments, foreign exchange and crypto.

EURR is fully integrated into the Revolut platform, while stablecoins tied to other currencies are under development. Wider access to the euro token is expected later this year as the company continues its phased rollout.

Euro stablecoins expand under MiCA

Revolut’s entry comes as the supply and number of regulated euro-backed stablecoins have increased under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework.

A Decta study covered by crypto.news in July found that the market capitalization of eight MiCA compliant euro stablecoins increased 128% in the year leading up to the end of the EU’s crypto transition period.

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Their combined market capitalization rose from $295.6 million on June 30, 2025, to $673.9 million on June 28, 2026. Trading volume across the tokens increased 43.1% from $47 million to $67.3 million over the same period, while the number of compliant euro stablecoins with active market data increased from five to eight.

EURC, EURCV and EURI accounted for much of the increase identified by Decta. Dollar-backed stablecoins remained far larger, with the eight euro tokens covered by the report accounting for less than 1% of the global stablecoin market.

Circle’s EURC has become one of the largest regulated euro tokens. Its circulation passed €400 million in August after more than doubling over the previous year, while total euro stablecoin supply had reached about €650 million by June.

Circle operates EURC as a MiCA-compliant electronic money token through its licensed electronic money institution in France. Eligible Circle Mint customers can redeem the token directly for euros at a one-to-one rate, while the stablecoin has gained support across blockchain networks, exchanges and payment infrastructure.

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European banks have been developing competing products. Qivalis, a consortium involving major European financial institutions, selected Fireblocks earlier this year to provide infrastructure for a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin intended for institutional settlement, treasury operations and tokenized assets.

The digital euro would sit in a different category from EURR, EURC and other privately issued tokens because it would represent a direct liability of the central bank. Private stablecoins depend on their issuer, reserve structure, redemption arrangements and regulatory status.

Under the ECB’s proposed structure, the digital euro could support offline payments while banks continue handling customer-facing services and required compliance checks for online transactions. EURR, meanwhile, gives Revolut customers a euro-denominated asset that can move through blockchain networks and external wallets under Bridge’s regulated issuance structure.

Revolut plans to extend EURR beyond Denmark, Poland and Portugal to other eligible EEA markets later this year, while the ECB’s digital euro project is moving toward its planned 2027 pilot and possible issuance around 2029.

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One Dead, 15 People Unaccounted For After Flash Flooding at the Grand Canyon

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One Dead, 15 People Unaccounted For After Flash Flooding at the Grand Canyon

NPS asked those who know of hikers or backpackers in the inner canyon along the Bright Angel Creek corridor on Saturday, “as well as anyone who had a campground reservation in the affected corridor,” to provide information.

The flash-flood event occurred in Bright Angel Canyon and the Phantom Ranch area on Saturday afternoon at around 2:30 p.m. Arizona is currently in the throes of the monsoon season, and storms poured over the Grand Canyon from early Saturday morning and returned in the evening. 

Nearly all footbridges over Bright Angel Creek were destroyed in the floods, the Park Service said, preventing hikers from crossing. NPS is continuing to assess the extent of the damage. Parts of the canyon—Phantom Ranch, Bright Angel Campground, the Phantom Ranch Canteen and cabins, and the entire North Kaibab Trail from the North Kaibab Trailhead to Phantom Ranch—were closed until further notice. 

The Transcanyon Waterline, a 12.5-mi. pipeline in the Grand Canyon that carries water for drinking and fire suppression has also been damaged. With that pipeline out of action, the park has a limited water supply and has resorted to conservation measures. 

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CFTC fines former White House operator $172K over prediction market bets

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CFTC fines former White House operator $172K over prediction market bets

A former White House teleprompter operator has agreed to pay $172,539 after U.S. regulators found he used advance access to President Donald Trump’s speeches to make more than $107,500 trading prediction market contracts.

Summary

  • Gabriel Perez made more than $107,500 trading prediction market contracts using advance access to Trump’s speeches, the CFTC said.
  • Perez must return $107,539 in profits, pay a $65,000 penalty and serve a three year trading ban.
  • The CFTC said Perez received a reduced penalty because of his cooperation and credited Kalshi for assisting the investigation.
  • The case follows other insider trading investigations involving prediction markets, including trades linked to Polymarket and Kalshi.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said on Aug. 28 that Gabriel Perez misappropriated material, nonpublic information obtained through his federal government job to trade event contracts for his personal benefit. The settlement requires Perez to return $107,539.02 in profits and pay a $65,000 civil monetary penalty.

Perez has agreed to a three-year trading ban and must cease further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations. The $65,000 penalty was substantially reduced under the agency’s new cooperation policy because of what the regulator described as his “exemplary cooperation” during the investigation.

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White House access gave Perez advance knowledge of Trump speeches

Between December 2025 and February 2026, Perez worked as a White House teleprompter operator while trading presidential “mention market” contracts, according to the CFTC.

Such contracts are event contracts whose outcomes depend on whether particular words or phrases are used during a presidential speech. Perez’s position gave him access to speeches before Trump delivered them publicly, allowing him to know information directly connected to the contracts he was trading.

The regulator found that Perez used the information in breach of his duty of trust and confidence, generating more than $107,500 in trading profits during the period.

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The CFTC credited KalshiEX with assisting its investigation. Perez is no longer employed by the federal government after previously being placed on unpaid leave following scrutiny of his trading activity.

The enforcement action comes as regulators and prediction market operators have been dealing with multiple cases involving traders accused of using information unavailable to the public.

Prediction market insider trading cases have drawn CFTC action

Another federal case centers on U.S. Army Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who has been accused of using classified military information to trade contracts on Polymarket connected to the operation targeting Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

As crypto.news previously reported, prosecutors allege Van Dyke made about $409,881 through 13 Venezuela-related trades after putting more than $33,000 into the positions. He pleaded not guilty and has disputed whether the contracts involved legally qualify as swaps.

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A federal judge in August stayed the CFTC’s civil enforcement action against Van Dyke until the related criminal proceedings are completed. The case has placed the legal treatment of event contracts and the use of confidential government information in prediction market trading before a federal court.

Kalshi has faced a separate insider-trading episode involving an editor affiliated with YouTube creator MrBeast. In February, the platform imposed a $20,397.58 penalty and a two-year suspension after finding that the editor traded contracts connected to MrBeast content using confidential information.

The MrBeast editor case involved violations of Kalshi’s prohibited insider-trading rules and a failure to cooperate with the investigation. Beast Industries subsequently opened its own investigation and said it had zero tolerance for the misuse of proprietary information.

Scrutiny has since extended to accounts whose trading patterns raise concerns before regulators determine whether a violation occurred. Polymarket referred nearly 100 wallets for further review after an analysis identified trading activity carrying characteristics associated with potentially informed positions.

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The review covered signals including newly created wallets, concentrated positions and trades entered shortly before major events. A suspicious designation does not establish that insider trading occurred, and a referral does not mean charges will follow.

Kalshi has expanded controls around prediction markets

Kalshi has introduced several controls intended to identify traders who may have access to confidential information.

In June, the exchange began requiring users in certain higher-risk markets to disclose their employers, giving its compliance team more information to compare a trader’s employment with the subject of a contract. The policy followed a series of cases involving people whose professional positions could give them access to information relevant to market outcomes.

The platform later integrated with StarCompliance, a system used by financial firms to monitor employee trading. Kalshi said the arrangement would allow participating companies to supervise employees’ prediction market activity through compliance systems already used for other financial transactions.

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Its trade surveillance controls include a whistleblower reporting channel and a risk-scoring process applied to proposed markets before they are listed. Kalshi has used its own detection engine alongside outside surveillance and integrity services to examine potentially problematic trading behavior.

Regulatory attention has extended past insider trading. The CFTC in August reminded regulated entities offering event contracts that pricing information must clearly identify the products as contracts traded on a regulated exchange. Agency staff warned that displaying the products using American-style sportsbook odds could mislead customers about the nature of the transaction.

CFTC authority over event contracts remains under legal scrutiny

The Perez order treated the presidential mention contracts as event contracts, or swaps, under federal commodities law. The classification places his use of nonpublic government information within the CFTC’s enforcement framework under the Commodity Exchange Act.

At the same time, the scope of federal authority over prediction markets remains the subject of court disputes involving Kalshi and several U.S. states.

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New York, Nevada and other states have challenged contracts offered through federally regulated prediction markets, particularly products tied to sports. Kalshi and the CFTC have argued in several proceedings that federally regulated event contracts fall within the commission’s jurisdiction, while state authorities have maintained that some products operate as gambling and remain subject to state law.

The CFTC used emergency authority in August to direct KalshiEX to continue normal operations after New York sought restrictions against the exchange. The agency said federal derivatives law gives it exclusive jurisdiction over event contracts traded on registered exchanges, while courts have reached different conclusions over the extent to which federal law preempts state gambling rules.

A separate regulatory dispute has spread across multiple states, with the CFTC filing actions or participating in proceedings involving state attempts to regulate prediction market contracts.

For Perez, the CFTC’s Aug. 28 settlement resolves the federal enforcement action without removing the financial consequences of the trades. He must surrender the full $107,539.02 generated from the activity, pay the discounted $65,000 penalty and remain out of CFTC-regulated trading for three years.

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Bitcoin ETFs Pulled In Near $1 Billion Last Week, So Why Is BTC Stuck Below $80,000?

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Bitcoin ETFs Pulled In Near $1 Billion Last Week, So Why Is BTC Stuck Below $80,000?

US spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded $924 million in net inflows from Aug. 24 to Aug. 28. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) led with $938 million, according to SoSoValue data. Despite the demand, Bitcoin’s price stayed stuck below $80,000.

Spot Ether (ETH) ETFs added $824 million over the same stretch. BlackRock’s ETHA fund led that category too, extending its own inflow streak to 10 straight trading days. Both products drew strong institutional demand, even as Bitcoin struggled to hold its recent gains.

Why Bitcoin’s Price Isn’t Following ETF Money

The stall traces largely to the Federal Reserve. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh delivered a hawkish keynote at the Aug. 28 Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium.

Bitcoin’s price is struggling to stay above $80,000. Image Source: BeinCrypto

He warned that inflation remained a bigger concern than the labor market and declined to rule out a rate hike. Bitcoin slid from around $79,500 to below $77,000 in the hours that followed. Traders priced in higher odds of a hike at the Fed’s September meeting.

Bitcoin also faces a longer-term technical hurdle. On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant has pointed to a bull market confirmation tied to Bitcoin’s 365-day moving average, near $83,000. BTC has repeatedly failed to close above that level, despite its rally from the mid-$60,000s.

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Inflow Streak Comes to an End

The nine-day Bitcoin ETF inflow streak that carried into last week’s total ended on Aug. 28. Funds recorded a $201.81 million net outflow that day. Even so, August remains 2026’s strongest month on record for the products, with more than $3 billion in net inflows.

Bitcoin recorded outflows on Friday last week. Image Source: CoinGlass

Whether Bitcoin can convert renewed ETF demand into a decisive break above $80,000 may depend on the Fed’s next moves. A close above its 365-day moving average would help, too, something it has not managed since the rally began.

The post Bitcoin ETFs Pulled In Near $1 Billion Last Week, So Why Is BTC Stuck Below $80,000? appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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Cronos Halts Network as Tectonic Faces Mango-Style Attack: $75M in Assets Reportedly Affected

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Cronos halted its blockchain on Sunday after an exploit hit Tectonic, which happens to be its largest lending protocol. Experts estimated that roughly $75 million in assets were affected.

So far, no timeline has been provided for when the network will resume. The blockchain has also not said what will happen to the assets linked to the attacker after the chain is restarted.

Third Mango-Style DeFi Attack?

Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek confirmed the security breach and said that the Cronos team was investigating the incident. The Cronos app and exchange were not affected and continued operating as usual, and Marszalek asserted that all funds were safe.

On-chain tracking platform LookonChain reported that the attacker was only able to bridge $6.29 million to Ethereum. These funds were swapped for 2,592 ETH when the network was halted. As a result, the remaining $68.7 million is stuck on the Cronos Network.

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Meanwhile, researcher Weilin Li said the attack was linked to Tectonic’s TONIC governance token, which has a 20% collateral factor despite having very thin liquidity. According to Li, the attacker carried out a Mango Markets-style pump-and-borrow price manipulation attack, which caused TONIC’s price to surge 100-fold within 20 minutes.

Similar price-manipulation attacks have also affected other DeFi platforms recently. For instance, Moonwell, a lending protocol on the Base network, lost over $8 million last week after an attacker manipulated the collateral price of MAMO, a small-cap token with thin liquidity. In response, Moonwell cut borrow caps for all Core Markets on Base to 1 wei, which effectively stopped new borrowing across the deployment. It also reduced supply caps for MAMO and WELL to 1 wei, while leaving other supply caps unchanged.

Another recent case involved a low-liquidity Pendle market, where price manipulation led to about $36 million in liquidations of leveraged PT-reUSD positions on Morpho.

Aftermath

Tectonic’s locked assets have dropped sharply following the exploit. According to the latest stats by DefiLlama, the lending protocol held around $121 million on August 29.

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Two days later, that figure had fallen to roughly $3 million.

The post Cronos Halts Network as Tectonic Faces Mango-Style Attack: $75M in Assets Reportedly Affected appeared first on CryptoPotato.

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September Fed rate hike fears look overblown as the probability stands at just 58%, not 90%

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September Fed rate hike fears look overblown as the probability stands at just 58%, not 90%


Odds of a rate hike in September remain below 60% despite Warsh’s hawkish speech on Friday. Observers downplay fears of tightening.

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USD1 flows to Binance as Fireblocks wallet moves $30M

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USD1 flows to Binance as Fireblocks wallet moves $30M

A Solana wallet labeled as Fireblocks Custody transferred another 30 million USD1 to Binance during a 15-hour period, according to an Aug. 31 report from blockchain tracker Onchain Lens.

Summary

  • Fireblocks-labeled custody wallet sent 30 million Solana-based USD1 tokens to Binance across fifteen reported hours.
  • Onchain records confirm transfers, but they do not identify the beneficial owner or transaction purpose.
  • The same wallet previously transferred 66 million USD1 to Binance during the preceding reported week.
  • USD1 is issued by World Liberty Financial and operates across multiple networks, including Solana today.
  • Neither Fireblocks, Binance nor World Liberty publicly explained whether the deposits supported trading or liquidity.

The tokens had a nominal value of $30 million because USD1 is designed to track the U.S. dollar. The transfer extended a series of large deposits from the same address, but its commercial purpose remains unknown.

Neither Fireblocks, Binance nor USD1 developer World Liberty Financial had publicly identified the beneficial owner or explained the transfers when the latest movement was reported.

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USD1 transfer is visible on Solana

Onchain Lens identified the sending address as 9Rycov3U4efJf5HiqZYGjN7qJJHEtMsj4vbmkG4xfCxk. Its activity can be reviewed through the Solscan account page.

The tracker described the address as Fireblocks Custody and the receiving destination as Binance. Those labels are blockchain-analytics attributions rather than identities recorded directly inside Solana transactions.

Onchain data verifies that tokens moved between addresses. It cannot, by itself, establish who beneficially owned the assets or whether the transfer represented a sale, market-making activity, customer withdrawal, treasury operation or internal exchange movement.

Accordingly, the Onchain Lens report should not be interpreted as proof that Fireblocks, World Liberty or another party sold $30 million of USD1.

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Fireblocks-labeled wallet previously moved $66M

The same address previously transferred 28 million USD1 to Binance through three transactions over 21 hours, according to an earlier Onchain Lens update.

A subsequent report said the wallet had deposited 66 million USD1 into Binance over one week after sending another 10 million tokens. The latest 30 million transfer appears to follow that reported sequence.

If the periods do not overlap, the cited movements would represent approximately 96 million USD1 sent to Binance. However, Onchain Lens did not provide a complete transaction inventory in its latest post, so the combined figure should be treated cautiously.

Fireblocks provides wallet and transaction infrastructure for institutions. A wallet using its custody technology can hold assets for a customer without Fireblocks owning those assets economically.

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World Liberty’s USD1 already has close Binance ties

USD1 is a dollar-pegged stablecoin associated with World Liberty Financial, the crypto business linked to U.S. President Donald Trump and members of his family.

World Liberty’s official documentation lists USD1 deployments across several blockchains. The Solana token address begins with USD1ttGY1N17, matching the asset identified in the transfer report.

USD1 already has substantial links to Binance. Abu Dhabi-backed investment company MGX used $2 billion of the stablecoin to settle an investment in the exchange during 2025.

As crypto.news previously reported, the MGX transaction gave USD1 an early institutional use shortly after its launch.

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Binance-controlled wallets and customer accounts held nearly 87% of USD1’s supply at one stage. Such concentration can reflect exchange customer holdings, institutional settlement balances and Binance’s own operational wallets.

Binance deposits do not establish selling pressure

Sending a volatile cryptocurrency to an exchange can indicate possible selling. That interpretation is less direct for a stablecoin because dollar-pegged assets commonly move to exchanges as trading collateral, settlement funds or quote-currency liquidity.

Binance offers USD1 trading pairs, including a SOL/USD1 market. Deposits could therefore support customer trading, market-making or liquidity management.

World Liberty says USD1 circulation has exceeded $4 billion. As crypto.news reported, company CEO Zach Witkoff attributed its expansion to institutional demand. That remains a company explanation rather than proof of the purpose behind these transfers.

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World Liberty also received preliminary conditional approval to establish a national trust bank that could eventually issue and redeem USD1. The institution cannot open until it satisfies the OCC’s conditions.

Further wallet movements, changes in Binance balances or statements from the involved companies could clarify the deposits. No verified price movement in USD1, WLFI or another asset was directly attributable to the reported transfer.

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HYPE faces $36M team withdrawal on September 6

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can HYPE hit $100 in 2026?

A wallet attributed to HyperLabs, the development organization behind Hyperliquid, requested the unstaking of 433,000 HYPE tokens on Aug. 30, according to blockchain analyst Ember.

Summary

  • HyperLabs requested unstaking of 433,000 HYPE tokens, valued near $36.14 million when Ember reported it publicly.
  • Hyperliquid’s protocol places staking withdrawals into a seven-day queue before tokens return to spot balances.
  • The pending withdrawal should complete September 6, provided the protocol processes it according to schedule.
  • Previous HyperLabs withdrawals were routed through Flowdesk, but that history does not confirm another sale.
  • No official Hyperliquid statement explained whether the unstaking supports liquidity, operations, or token distribution plans.

The position was valued at approximately $36.14 million when Ember reported the transaction. That valuation implies an average HYPE price near $83.46, but the dollar value will change with the token’s market price.

The withdrawal is expected to clear the protocol’s seven-day unstaking queue on Sept. 6. HyperLabs has not publicly explained its purpose.

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HyperLabs placed 433,000 HYPE into the exit queue

The wallet’s staking activity is visible through its HypurrScan profile. The explorer records staking and balance activity associated with the address.

Hyperliquid’s staking documentation says transfers from staking accounts to spot accounts enter a seven-day unstaking queue. Tokens cannot be freely transferred until that period finishes.

An unstaking request does not itself place tokens into market circulation. It changes their status from staked and locked to pending withdrawal.

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Once released, HyperLabs could transfer the HYPE, restake it, use it as collateral, provide liquidity or hold it in a spot account. No verified transaction has yet established which option it will choose.

September 6 marks the next onchain deadline

Ember expects the 433,000 HYPE to complete its staking exit on Sept. 6. The final time will depend on when Hyperliquid processes the pending withdrawal.

The tokens would then become transferable from the staking account. Wallet movements after that point should show whether they remain under HyperLabs’ control or move toward another address.

The scheduled amount is small relative to HYPE’s total supply, but its approximate $36 million value makes the transaction relevant to short-term liquidity monitoring.

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No official statement from Hyperliquid or HyperLabs connected the transaction to operational expenses, employee distributions, market-making arrangements or sales.

Previous HYPE withdrawals went through Flowdesk

The same HyperLabs wallet previously withdrew a similar batch of approximately 433,000 HYPE. In August, parts of that earlier distribution were routed through market maker Flowdesk and addresses associated with centralized exchanges.

HyperLabs unlocked 433,025 HYPE worth approximately $23.46 million during the earlier cycle.

Onchain analysis found that 165,000 HYPE moved to Flowdesk. Of that amount, 75,000 HYPE was reportedly exchanged for USDC on Hyperliquid, while another 90,000 tokens moved toward OKX and Bybit deposit addresses.

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That history supports monitoring Flowdesk after Sept. 6, but it does not prove the latest batch will follow the same route. Market makers can facilitate sales, over-the-counter transactions, liquidity provision or treasury execution.

HYPE unstaking does not confirm immediate selling

Large unstaking requests often attract attention because they make previously locked tokens transferable. However, unstaking should not automatically be described as selling pressure.

A confirmed sale would require additional evidence, such as swaps into stablecoins, transfers to identified exchange deposit addresses or statements from the wallet owner.

The distinction is particularly relevant because Hyperliquid also operates an Assistance Fund that uses protocol revenue to purchase HYPE. As previously reported, Hyperliquid’s buyback structure creates recurring demand that can offset part of the token supply entering circulation.

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Team and contributor distributions nevertheless remain an important part of HYPE’s token economics. Crypto.news provides a broader explanation of how vesting schedules and token unlocks can affect liquid supply.

The next confirmed development should arrive when the withdrawal clears on Sept. 6. Traders can then monitor the HyperLabs wallet, Flowdesk-linked addresses and centralized exchange deposits.

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Ternus Takes Over as Apple CEO With AAPL Near $320: History Shows Wild First-Year Swings

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Ternus Takes Over as Apple CEO With AAPL Near $320: History Shows Wild First-Year Swings

John Ternus officially becomes Apple’s chief executive on Tuesday, September 1, replacing Tim Cook, who moves into the role of executive chairman.

Apple’s board approved the succession unanimously in April, capping months of internal planning ahead of the changeover.

What History Says About Year One

Four prior planned tech CEO handoffs have a complete first year to judge, with returns ranging from a 38% decline to a 76% gain, a Motley Fool analysis found. The same analysis found no prior handoff triggered a rush to sell shares beforehand.

AAPL is up nearly 40% in the last 12 months. Image Source: Trading View

Bank of America reiterated its Buy rating on Apple ahead of the switch. Analyst Wamsi Mohan expects Apple’s core business to stay steady while Ternus considers a bigger AI budget.

Options activity in AAPL has stayed elevated heading into the handoff, with sentiment described as mixed rather than clearly one-sided.

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A Hardware Veteran Takes Charge

Ternus spent 25 years at Apple, most recently leading hardware engineering across the iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch lines. His product portfolio also included the iPad, AirPods, and Vision Pro headset.

Cook will focus on government relations in his new post, and Arthur Levinson becomes lead independent director.

AAPL closed Friday at $319.70, up 1.63% on the day. Shares sit about 6% below the record close after Apple’s brief climb to a $5 trillion market cap in July.

The AI Question Ternus Inherits

The bigger test is not the handoff itself, but whether Ternus, a hardware veteran, can deliver Apple’s AI ambitions. Cook addressed the AI compute question directly on his final earnings call, noting demand could outstrip capacity.

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“This probably would be a good problem to have.”

Tim Cook, CNBC

Apple’s next Mac software, macOS Golden Gate, is confirmed to arrive by September 22, alongside iOS 27’s Siri AI rollout. Ternus faces his first public test at Apple’s September 9 event, where a foldable iPhone is widely expected. That test will show whether hardware discipline can translate into an AI turnaround.

The post Ternus Takes Over as Apple CEO With AAPL Near $320: History Shows Wild First-Year Swings appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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