Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky has confirmed that hackers compromised his X account earlier this week after the profile published a lengthy thread about blockchain-based real-world asset tokenization. 

The posts later disappeared, and Chesky has now responded with a joke about the unexpected audience the incident brought to his account.

In a July 17 post on X, Chesky wrote, “To the person who hacked my account earlier this week: thanks for all the new crypto followers.” He then added, “To my new crypto followers: I’m going to be a very disappointing follow.” His statement confirmed that the earlier tokenization posts did not represent commentary he intended to publish.

To the person who hacked my account earlier this week: thanks for all the new crypto followers.

To my new crypto followers: I’m going to be a very disappointing follow. https://t.co/DtO2gtgHjQ

— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) July 16, 2026

Chesky confirms hack after unusual tokenization thread

The deleted thread attracted attention because it presented detailed arguments about tokenized real-world assets rather than promoting Airbnb’s core business. It discussed blockchain-based ownership and financial markets in a way that initially led some observers and publications to treat the posts as genuine comments from the Airbnb chief.

According to Fortune’s report on the incident, Airbnb treated the episode as a high-profile account compromise and moved to secure the profile with X. However, the nature of the posts caused confusion because the thread focused on tokenization rather than pushing a meme coin, fake presale or cryptocurrency giveaway.

The episode differs from many recent social media hacks linked directly to token schemes. As crypto.news reported this week, attackers also compromised SpaceX’s X presence in an incident linked to the SCATMAN token, renewing concerns about criminals using trusted brands to attract crypto traders.

Earlier, as crypto.news reported in May, hackers used Keith Gill’s verified Roaring Kitty account to promote and dump a Solana-based token. The incident reportedly left traders with $2.8 million in losses after users trusted posts coming from the well-known market personality’s account.

By contrast, available reports have not identified a token sale, wallet-draining link or fraudulent giveaway connected to Chesky’s deleted posts. Instead, the compromised account published commentary that users could have mistaken for a genuine shift in the Airbnb CEO’s public position on crypto. That makes the episode different from attacks built around immediate token promotion.

High-profile X profiles remain attractive targets because their established audiences can give unfamiliar crypto claims instant credibility. As previously reported by crypto.news, attackers have compromised accounts belonging to executives, companies, entertainers and market personalities to promote fraudulent tokens, fake airdrops and phishing links.

Bitcoin and Ethereum options worth about $1.43 billion expired on July 17 as crypto markets remained within established trading ranges. 

According to Greeks.live data, 19,000 Bitcoin options worth $1.2 billion expired with a put-call ratio of 0.9 and a maximum pain point of $63,000.

Meanwhile, 123,000 Ethereum options worth $230 million expired with a put-call ratio of 1.61. The maximum pain level stood at $1,800. The elevated ratio showed that put positions continued to outweigh calls, extending a trend that Greeks.live said has lasted for about a month.

Bitcoin remained above $60,000 during the week and has traded mainly between $60,000 and $65,000 for more than a month. Despite sharp moves in parts of the U.S. stock market, crypto volatility remained relatively subdued. The latest weekly expiry represented only about 5% of outstanding options, while open interest declined slightly amid fewer short-term trading opportunities.

Ethereum options show deeper divide as Bitcoin volatility stays low

Greeks.live said Bitcoin gamma exposure remained concentrated around the $64,000 and $70,000 strikes. Ethereum’s exposure was more widely spread between $1,825 and $2,000 as some traders used shallow out-of-the-money options to position for a possible rebound. The firm also said large bullish trades increased, led mainly by short-term bull spreads.

However, Ethereum’s put-call ratio continued to show strong demand for downside positions. “The proportion of put options has exceeded 1 for a consecutive month and continues to rise,” Greeks.live said, describing the current positioning as unusually divided between bullish and bearish traders.

July 17 Options Data

19,000 BTC options expired, with a put-call ratio of 0.9, a maximum pain point of $63,000, and a notional value of $1.2 billion.
123,000 ETH options expired, with a put-call ratio of 1.61, a maximum pain point of $1,800, and a notional value of $230 million.… pic.twitter.com/nlzAux4vBa

— Greeks.live (@GreeksLive) July 17, 2026

The latest expiry follows several weeks of cautious derivatives positioning. As previously reported by crypto.news, Bitcoin and Ethereum options worth about $1.75 billion expired on July 10, with Bitcoin’s maximum pain level at $62,000 and Ethereum’s put-call ratio at 1.26.

A week earlier, $1.9 billion in Bitcoin options expired while traders continued to watch the $60,000 area. Ethereum already showed heavier demand for downside protection at that time, with its put-call ratio standing at 1.29.

The July 17 expiry was smaller than major monthly and quarterly settlements, reducing the likelihood that the event alone would drive a large spot-market move. Still, Bitcoin traded close to its $63,000 maximum pain level, while Ethereum’s growing put exposure showed that traders remained divided over its near-term direction.

Greeks.live said overall market activity remained subdued despite the increase in bullish block trades. With Bitcoin still locked inside its month-long range, traders continue to watch the $64,000 and $70,000 options concentrations for signs of the next broader move.

Bitcoin Ordinals advocate Leonidas has proposed developing a new open-source Bitcoin client, aimed at removing restrictions affecting Runes and Ordinals transactions. 

In a post to X on Friday, Leonidas called the proposed client “Bitcoin $DOG Mode,” which would lift the maximum individual transaction size to 3.9 million weight units (WU), compared to Bitcoin Core’s 400,000 WU, and lower the dust limit to 1 satoshi (sats) from 294-546 sats.

The changes would make it easier to send Ordinals inscriptions and Runes, which have been described as Bitcoin’s take on fungible and non-fungible tokens. Both have been controversial within the Bitcoin community, with critics arguing they amount to “spam” on the Bitcoin network. 

“Bitcoin Core and Bitcoin Knots have spent years enforcing rules that Bitcoin itself does not have,” Leonidas said in a statement. “The $DOG Army is done asking for permission. It is time to remove even more of these frivolous restrictions.”

Source: Leonidas

Increasing the maximum transaction size would make it easier for Ordinals users to place much larger files or collections into one transaction, even ones that take up nearly an entire block. 

Meanwhile, the dust limit is a rule on the Bitcoin network defining the smallest transaction amount, or UTXO, that can be economically sent. Lowering the dust limit would stop users from having to “pad” outputs to get their transaction broadcast on default Bitcoin Core nodes.

Related: Bitcoin bulls Michael Saylor, Adam Back slam BIP-110 Ordinals proposal

Bitcoin $DOG Mode would be an alternative to Bitcoin Core and Bitcoin Knots, the two most widely used Bitcoin clients.

Leonidas said the goal is to attract enough users to the new client that Bitcoin Core would eventually have to loosen its own policy restrictions.

Magazine: Bitcoin nearing late stages of bear market: Jamie Coutts, Real Vision

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.

MegaETH is shutting down its Mega Mafia accelerator after two years, saying the program helped startups raise substantial capital but failed to keep enough value inside its ecosystem. 

Core team member Shuyao Kong said on X that most successful applications backed by the program are no longer being built on MegaETH.

The accelerator supported about 20 teams across two cohorts, which collectively raised roughly $80 million from pre-seed through Series A rounds. MegaETH selected teams to work closely with its core developers and provided technical, management and market-making support. However, the network did not take equity, governance rights or ownership positions in the projects it helped build.

MegaETH shifts resources toward first-party applications

Kong said MegaETH originally believed founders would remain aligned with the network without formal ownership arrangements. That approach produced successful startups, but many later chose different technical paths. “Very little of that value has trickled to Mega,” she wrote, while announcing that there will be no Mega Mafia 3.0 cohort.

After spending the last two years building the MegaMafia, we’ve decided to sunset the program.

While it was a success in many ways, we believe that the program was built on assumptions that no longer hold.

Here are some reflections, and what’s coming up next.

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> We had real…

— Shuyao Kong (@hotpot_dao) July 16, 2026

Several projects show how that model changed. Global Token Exchange, or GTE, decided to build its own chain after participating in the first accelerator cohort. 

Social attention market Noise later chose Base, while HelloTrade moved toward Monad. Meanwhile, stablecoin project Cap launched on MegaETH but has pursued a broader multichain strategy.

The decision comes only months after Mega Mafia applications helped MegaETH reach a key network milestone.MegaETH launched its MEGA token on April 30 after 10 ecosystem applications met the first performance target required to trigger the token generation event. The milestone tied the accelerator directly to the network’s early growth strategy.

MegaETH has since expanded the economic systems around its blockchain. As crypto.news reported in May, the MegaETH Foundation started a MEGA token buyback program funded by net income generated by the USDm stablecoin issuer. The structure connects stablecoin activity with recurring token purchases as MegaETH develops high-speed onchain applications.

However, ending Mega Mafia changes how the team plans to build future demand. Kong said MegaETH will focus resources on “OMEGA” applications, meaning products designed around capabilities that the team believes are specific to MegaETH. The network also plans to invest more directly in first-party consumer applications.

Under the new approach, MegaETH expects to build direct relationships with users instead of depending mainly on independent startups to create products and eventually return value to the network. Kong said first-party development would also give the team greater responsibility for product results.

The change comes after Mega Mafia played a central role in MegaETH’s move from development into mainnet activity and its MEGA token launch. The network is now testing whether building more consumer-facing products itself can keep users, activity and economic value closer to its core ecosystem.

Crypto trader Ansem has questioned whether token buybacks can create lasting value on their own, pointing to the wide valuation gap between Hyperliquid’s HYPE and Pump.fun’s PUMP. 

In a July 17 X post, he argued that both businesses generate large revenues and regularly repurchase their tokens, yet the market values them very differently.

According to Ansem’s figures, Hyperliquid generates about $800 million in annualized revenue and carries a fully diluted valuation near $65 billion. Pump.fun, by comparison, generates roughly $440 million in annualized revenue while PUMP trades at an FDV of about $1.4 billion. He said the contrast challenges the view that recurring buybacks alone determine crypto valuations.

“I have a thesis that buybacks don’t actually work,” Ansem wrote. 

His broader argument was that market confidence, community alignment and a project’s record of delivering on commitments can create an additional “trust premium” that financial metrics cannot fully measure.

i have a thesis that buybacks don’t actually work

hyperliquid makes $800M annualized revenue
pump fun makes $440M annualized revenue$HYPE trades at $65B FDV while $PUMP trades at $1.4B FDV

both teams do regularly recurring buybacks with portions of their profits from the…

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— Ansem 🐂🀄️ (@blknoiz06) July 16, 2026

Hyperliquid and Pump.fun show different results from buybacks

Ansem pointed to Hyperliquid as a platform that built strong confidence among core users. He said the team focused on shipping products without overpromising and rewarded users according to measurable activity. In his view, that approach strengthened trust and helped HYPE command a higher valuation relative to revenue.

Hyperliquid also operates one of crypto’s largest token repurchase programs. As previously reported by crypto.news, its Assistance Fund directs most protocol fees toward continuous open-market HYPE purchases. By May 2026, the mechanism had spent more than $1.3 billion on buybacks.

Pump.fun has also committed substantial resources to supporting PUMP. However, its token has struggled despite aggressive repurchases and burns. As crypto.news reported ahead of the July vesting event, the platform had spent $233 million buying back 62.2 billion PUMP by early January and later carried out a large token burn.

Meanwhile, Pump.fun distributed 57.279 billion PUMP worth about $86.49 million to 121 team and investor wallets on July 15, beginning a three-year vesting cycle after a one-year lockup. The transfers made the tokens available to move but did not confirm that recipients sold them.

Ansem argued that the missing factor is community trust. He pointed to Pump.fun’s previously discussed user airdrop, which has not yet been delivered, as a source of weaker alignment with its core audience. Pump.fun co-founder Alon Cohen said in July 2025 that an airdrop remained planned but would not arrive in the immediate future.

Therefore, Ansem said Pump.fun could potentially close part of its valuation gap by improving communication and delivering the distribution expected by users. That remains his market thesis rather than a guarantee of future price performance. He estimated that stronger community alignment could raise PUMP’s valuation and activity.

He also cited Bitcoin as an example of what he views as an extreme trust premium. Bitcoin produces no business revenue, yet its fixed 21 million supply and established network rules support a far larger valuation. 

Bybit has moved deeper into Southeast Asia by launching a locally operated crypto trading platform in Indonesia, a step it says follows a majority acquisition of NOBI. The exchange announced Thursday that it has launched the new Indonesia entity after taking control of digital asset firm PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal, which previously operated under the name NOBI.

The deal results in a rebrand: NOBI is now Bybit Indonesia. Bybit said it intends to roll out its services in stages, beginning with 500 cryptocurrency trading pairs, and to expand from there as the platform ramps up.

Key takeaways

• Bybit has launched a locally operated Indonesia platform after acquiring a majority stake in PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal (formerly NOBI).
• NOBI has been rebranded as Bybit Indonesia, with the company set to expand its trading offering in phases.
• The exchange plans to start with 500 trading pairs and build from there rather than opening the full set at once.
• Leadership will come from former NOBI executives, with Lawrence Samantha as CEO and Dionisius Evan as chief operating officer.
• Indonesia’s regulator reports a rapidly growing crypto user base, alongside a licensing framework covering exchanges, custodians, and traders.

Bybit’s Indonesia push: acquisition to local operation

For Bybit, the launch is not just a marketing move—it reflects a shift toward operating within Indonesia’s local regulatory and market structure. The exchange said its acquisition allows it to pair Bybit’s global capabilities with an experienced local team that understands Indonesia’s market dynamics and regulatory requirements.

The company’s statement names Lawrence Samantha as CEO and Dionisius Evan as chief operating officer. Both previously served as senior executives at NOBI, indicating that Bybit is using the acquired firm’s institutional know-how and local relationships as it enters a regulated environment.

What Bybit plans to launch first

Bybit Indonesia will be introduced in phases. According to the announcement, the rollout will start with 500 cryptocurrency trading pairs. That staged approach suggests Bybit is likely pacing market access and product configuration rather than attempting a full-scale launch overnight, which can be important in jurisdictions where onboarding, compliance processes, and platform readiness must be managed carefully.

While Bybit did not provide a detailed timeline for subsequent phases in the information available, the initial pair count is a key operational signal: the exchange is aiming to offer broad spot market coverage from day one, giving Indonesian users a range of trading choices as liquidity and infrastructure are established.

Indonesia’s growing crypto market and the licensing environment

Indonesia has been steadily expanding its crypto user base under a framework overseen by the Indonesia Financial Services Authority (OJK). As of February 2026, OJK reported 21.07 million registered crypto asset users, and it cited total crypto transaction value of $26.85 billion (482 trillion Indonesian rupiah) in 2025.

Regulatory activity has also accelerated. As of April 2026, OJK reported that Indonesia had licensed 31 crypto-related entities. That includes two crypto exchanges, two clearing institutions, two custodians, and 25 digital asset traders. PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal—Bybit’s acquired company—was listed among those licensed entities.

For investors and users, the significance is that Bybit’s local launch is arriving in a market where regulatory status and licensing are increasingly central to participation. In other words, the opportunity is expanding, but so are compliance expectations. Bybit’s decision to structure entry via an acquired, locally licensed firm may reduce friction compared with trying to build a local regulated presence from scratch.

Why the local leadership model matters

Bybit Indonesia’s management lineup is drawn from the former NOBI leadership, with Samantha taking the CEO role and Evan serving as COO. That continuity can matter operationally: local executives typically have deeper context around compliance workflows, relationships with regulated counterparties, and day-to-day execution in-country.

From a broader perspective, this model reflects a common pattern in regulated crypto markets. Global exchanges often need more than technology and brand recognition—they need a team that understands local rules, user behavior, and market structure well enough to execute quickly once a platform goes live.

Even so, readers should watch how the staged launch progresses beyond the initial 500 pairs. The next question will be whether Bybit increases liquidity and expands pair availability at a pace that matches Indonesia’s user growth, and how effectively it integrates the acquired platform into its wider global systems.

With Bybit Indonesia now live and using former NOBI executives to lead operations, the key developments to track are the timing of subsequent rollout phases, any expansion beyond the initial trading pairs, and how the platform performs within Indonesia’s regulated ecosystem as OJK continues to license and supervise crypto firms.

Bybit has launched a locally operated cryptocurrency platform in Indonesia following its majority acquisition of PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal, formerly known as NOBI. 

The company said the deal establishes Bybit Indonesia as a local entity operating under the supervision of the Financial Services Authority, or OJK.

The exchange plans to introduce its services in stages, starting with more than 500 trading pairs. According to Bybit’s announcement, the platform will use its global liquidity alongside market surveillance and risk controls designed to meet Indonesian requirements.

The acquisition gives Bybit a locally regulated route into Indonesia rather than operating solely through its global platform. NOBI has been rebranded as Bybit Indonesia, while its existing local management remains involved in running the business and handling regulatory compliance.

Bybit Launches Localized Indonesian Platform Bybit Indonesia

Following its majority acquisition of Indonesian crypto platform PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal (formerly NOBI), Bybit has officially launched Bybit Indonesia, which operates under the supervision of Indonesia’s… pic.twitter.com/vVPASWleci

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) July 16, 2026

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Lawrence Samantha, formerly part of NOBI’s senior management, will serve as CEO. Dionisius Evan will continue as chief operating officer, while Steven Gotama will serve as chief marketing officer. 

Samantha said “this acquisition allows us to combine Bybit’s global capabilities with an experienced local team” familiar with Indonesia’s market and regulatory system.

Bybit targets a growing regulated crypto market

Indonesia had 21.07 million crypto consumer accounts as of February 2026, according to official OJK data. The figure rose to 21.37 million in March, while crypto transactions reached IDR22.24 trillion during that month.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s crypto ecosystem has continued to expand under OJK oversight. The regulator had licensed 31 crypto-related entities by March, including two exchanges, two clearing institutions, two custodians and 25 digital financial asset traders. Indonesia also recorded IDR482.23 trillion in crypto transactions during 2025.

In additoin, Bybit is not the only international exchange expanding through a locally compliant structure. BTSE launched its own regulated Indonesian platform in July after rebranding local exchange NVX through a joint venture. The platform supports rupiah services under an OJK license.

The two launches come as authorities increase oversight of companies serving Indonesian crypto users. OJK has expanded licensing and consumer protection requirements since taking responsibility for the sector, creating a market where global exchanges increasingly need local entities and regulatory approval to expand their services.

Bybit continues regulated global expansion

The Indonesia launch also fits Bybit’s wider push into regulated markets. As previously reported by crypto.news, the exchange secured a full Virtual Asset Platform Operator license in the United Arab Emirates in October 2025 after receiving initial approval earlier that year.

Moreover, Bybit outlined plans in January to expand beyond its core cryptocurrency exchange business into a broader financial platform covering banking, custody and cross-border services. The acquisition of NOBI adds another locally operated market to that strategy.

Bybit Indonesia said future products will be introduced gradually and according to OJK requirements. The company also plans to offer local education through Bybit Learn as it transitions existing NOBI users onto the new platform and expands its services in the country.