Crypto.com secured a $400 million strategic investment from market maker Citadel Securities in a deal that values the crypto exchange at $20 billion, marking the firm’s first institutional funding round since it was founded a decade ago, the company said in a press release Thursday.

The funding comes as digital assets draw greater participation from traditional financial institutions and as tokenized assets emerge as a growing area of focus for the industry.

The Singapore-based exchange said the capital will accelerate its expansion into tokenized securities, derivatives and other asset classes, as it seeks to bridge traditional and digital markets with around-the-clock trading infrastructure.

The deal reflects a broader shift as traditional finance firms ramp up investments in crypto infrastructure. Since the introduction of spot bitcoin BTC$64,150.05 exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January 2024, Wall Street firms have increasingly expanded into digital asset trading, tokenization and custody, while institutional investors continue to boost planned crypto allocations, according to EY research.

“The size of the opportunity in front of us is staggering, as crypto increasingly becomes the rails for finance,” Crypto.com co-founder and CEO Kris Marszalek said in the release.

Strategy CEO Phong Le has tied the company’s next Bitcoin purchase to STRC returning to its $100 par value as the preferred stock trades near $87.

Bloomberg reported that Le plans to resume issuing STRC shares once the security, known as Stretch, recovers to par, allowing Strategy to direct the proceeds toward more Bitcoin.

“We’ll continue to build that. And yeah, when Stretch gets back to par, we’ll issue more. We’ll buy more Bitcoin,” Le said.

Although Le did not give a timeline for the recovery, Strategy’s website showed STRC trading around $87 on July 16. The preferred stock pays a variable dividend designed to encourage trading close to $100, but its price has remained below that level since April.

STRC serves as one of Strategy’s main fundraising tools because the company can sell new preferred shares and use the capital to buy Bitcoin. Issuing STRC below par, however, would make that process less attractive and could reduce Bitcoin exposure per share.

STRC recovery controls the next Bitcoin purchase

During the Bloomberg interview, Le described cash reserves as an important part of restoring confidence in STRC after the preferred stock fell below $75 in late June. He noted that recent market conditions had shown Strategy the value of keeping liquid U.S. dollars on its balance sheet.

Strategy has since raised its dollar reserve to $3 billion after selling about $466 million of MSTR shares, according to crypto.news. The company can use that liquidity to cover dividends, interest payments and other obligations without relying entirely on its Bitcoin holdings.

Preferred shareholders had also pressed Strategy to hold more cash, Le told Bloomberg. Responding to those concerns, the company sold portions of its Bitcoin reserve in two consecutive reporting periods.

Strategy’s purchase records show that it sold 1,363 BTC for about $81 million in the week ending June 30 and another 2,225 BTC for roughly $135 million in the week ending July 6. Following those sales, its holdings fell to 843,775 BTC.

Despite the sales, Strategy remains ahead of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund by total holdings. Company data lists Strategy’s stash at 843,775 BTC, while the original report placed BlackRock’s IBIT holdings at 733,516 BTC.

Executive chairman Michael Saylor has also compared Strategy’s securities with IBIT. In a post on X, Saylor claimed MSTR provides the same Bitcoin exposure as IBIT, while STRC delivers 3.6 times as much and STRF offers 11 times the exposure.

MSTR holds above channel support

MSTR came under fresh pressure during the July 16 session, falling 3.65% to $93.91 even as Bitcoin traded around $64,800. The supplied daily chart shows that the stock recently escaped a descending channel formed after its May peak near $195, but the rebound stalled around the $100–$105 area.

According to the chart, $90 is the first level that could support the stock, followed by the late-June floor between $83 and $85. A daily close below $90 would place the recent channel breakout at risk, while a move through $100–$105 could open a recovery toward the $115–$120 region.

Momentum indicators still give mixed readings. The daily relative strength index stands at 39.16, showing weak demand without placing MSTR in oversold territory.

At the same time, the chart’s MACD line has moved above its signal line, and the histogram has turned positive at 2.17. Both MACD lines remain below zero, however, indicating that the early recovery signal has not yet reversed the stock’s longer decline.

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Visa introduced a new platform aimed at making it easier for banks, fintech companies and crypto firms to build products using stablecoins, expanding its push into blockchain-based payments as competition in the sector intensifies.

The company announced on Thursday that it was launching the Visa Stablecoin Platform (VSP), an enterprise service that allows institutions to issue, store, transfer and redeem stablecoins through a single Visa-managed system. The platform launched with support for Open USD (OpenUSD), a recently introduced stablecoin from Open Standard, and includes tools for minting and redeeming the token along with wallet infrastructure for managing onchain assets.

Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a fixed value, typically by being pegged to the U.S. dollar. Unlike bitcoin BTC$64,044.96 or ether (ETH), they are widely used for payments, cross-border transfers and settlement because they combine blockchain’s speed with a relatively stable price.

Visa said the platform provides Wallet-as-a-Service infrastructure, blockchain connectivity and security features such as dual-approval workflows, audit logs and transfer allow lists. The platform is also integrated with Visa’s existing payment network, allowing financial institutions to incorporate stablecoins into treasury management, settlement and payment products without replacing their existing systems.

If Stripe owns PayPal, Bridge becomes the shared infrastructure layer under PYUSD, OpenUSD and Tempo. That’s infrastructure consolidation, not token competition, and it’s a much bigger deal than the acquisition headline suggests.”

That sort of infrastructure scale could allow Stripe to introduce lower settlement fees and checkout incentives for PYUSD, while Tempo could gradually steer users toward OUSD.

“This potentially strengthens Tempo considerably,” said Niamh Byrne, chief commercial officer at blockchain developer platform Alchemy. “If OpenUSD gains meaningful traction, it could increase the strategic importance of Tempo and position it as more than another blockchain.”

However, even if Stripe does combine multiple prominent stablecoin projects under one roof, commentators do not foresee major disruption to the stablecoin sector in the immediate future.

“Circle’s cross-chain interoperability is operationally proven at institutional scale, whereas Tempo is an unproven layer-1 still in early development,” Citi said in its note. “It is our understanding that Bridge/Tempo relies on third parties for interoperability capabilities.”

Tether’s USDT, meanwhile, holds a 60% share of the stablecoin market, dwarfing even USDC, let alone PYUSD, which is in itself something of a “mic drop” to suggestions of a threat from distant competitors. Notwithstanding that, USDT derives its prominence from the retail sector and emerging markets rather than institutions and corporates.

US crypto market-structure legislation appears to be nearing a potential Senate vote, as lawmakers race to finalize the remaining sticking points before the August work break. Summer Mersinger, CEO of the Blockchain Association and a former commissioner at the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), told attendees at the Injective Summit in Washington, DC, that the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act is “very close” on the main language and could reach the Senate floor as soon as next week—if an ethics agreement can be reached.

In a sign of how political and governance questions are driving the timeline, Mersinger said “ethics is the big elephant in the room,” pointing to ongoing discussions involving Republican senators and a White House meeting. She also emphasized that while the industry’s members support the broader bill, they do not want the ethics debate to derail the rest of the legislative package.

Key takeaways

• Summer Mersinger says the CLARITY Act is close on the bill’s core market-structure provisions and a Senate vote could come next week if lawmakers align on ethics language.
• Mersinger described ethics provisions as the primary unresolved issue, with talks involving Republican senators and the White House.
• Some Senate Democrats have indicated they will oppose a vote unless ethics provisions are clear, and the bill needs bipartisan support to pass.
• Prediction market Kalshi showed traders’ odds of a Senate floor vote before the August break rising to 75.1% (up from 47% on July 10).

Why the ethics fight could determine whether CLARITY advances

Mersinger’s remarks framed the current legislative hurdle less as a technical drafting problem and more as a political constraint. She said lawmakers have a few remaining “nits” to work out but are “very close” on the main language. According to her, progress now depends on reaching agreement on ethics provisions—language that Democrats have made central to whether they will support bringing the bill to the Senate floor.

At the Injective Summit, Mersinger tied the urgency to the legislative calendar, noting the window for action before August recess. She described the ethics question as a concern raised across “every office,” and referenced a White House meeting involving Republican senators as a potential path to compromise. Her hope, she said, is that any agreement reached there would either be acceptable to Democrats or could be adjusted so Democrats would have room to support the final text.

“Ethics is the big elephant in the room… Today there’s a meeting at the White House with some Republican senators,” Mersinger said, adding lawmakers are hopeful an agreement can be produced that Democrats can accept. “For my members and what we are advocating for on the Hill… please don’t let it kill all the hard work that we put in the rest of the bill.”

What lawmakers are trying to finalize before the August break

CLARITY, described by the Blockchain Association as a market-structure effort aimed at establishing clearer rules for digital-asset activity, has already advanced through key early stages in Congress. Mersinger said her organization has been engaged with legislators as the bill moved forward, including during the period when it passed through the Senate Banking and Agriculture committees.

Her comments suggest that the bill’s prospects now hinge on a final set of negotiations rather than on a broader lack of support for the underlying policy direction. Still, she acknowledged that the remaining debate is highly consequential: ethics language is not just a marginal edit, but the focal point for lawmakers deciding whether the bill can reach a final vote.

White House talks and Democratic opposition risks

Mersinger’s mention of ethics discussions followed earlier reporting that President Donald Trump was set to meet with Republican senators to discuss CLARITY. That coverage indicated the conversation could include Trump’s ties to the industry, after Senate Democrats had held their own meeting on the bill the prior day. The reports also pointed to Trump’s disclosure in June that he earned $1.4 billion from ventures related to digital assets, including his memecoin and his family business, World Liberty Financial.

The concern reflected in those disclosures appears to have translated into concrete legislative posture. Earlier, three Senate Democrats announced that they would not support a crypto market-structure vote unless ethics provisions were clear. Their stated rationale was that without stronger guardrails, lawmakers and the White House could face potential conflicts or corruption risks associated with the digital-asset sector. With Republicans holding a slim majority in the Senate, the bill would require support from several Democrats to clear the chamber.

How the odds shifted on Kalshi’s prediction market

While political negotiations continue behind closed doors, market-based indicators have also shown a change in expectations about timing. At the time of publication, Kalshi—using a contract centered on whether the Senate would vote on CLARITY before the August break—showed a 75.1% chance of a floor vote, according to the market listing referenced in the source report.

The same reference noted the odds were 47% on July 10, implying that traders have become more confident in near-term movement. However, prediction markets can react to headlines and perceived momentum even when the underlying political constraints—particularly on ethics—remain unresolved. That makes the next few days’ negotiations especially relevant for readers trying to assess whether the rising odds reflect a true path to passage or simply a temporary shift in expectations.

What investors and builders should watch next

For participants across the crypto industry, the immediate question is whether lawmakers can translate the “very close” drafting progress into a workable ethics agreement that both sides can accept. Mersinger’s comments suggest the Senate vote may depend on whether a compromise can survive Democratic scrutiny—so watch for details of any ethics language emerging from White House and senator discussions, and whether Democratic leadership signals a readiness to support a floor vote once the text is finalized.

Coinbase and Ripple have secured EU-wide access through Luxembourg as MiCA’s July 1 deadline has pushed Binance and other unlicensed platforms to scale back services.

According to earlier reports, Binance withdrew its Greek license application and began suspending services in several European Union countries after the 18-month transitional period ended. The deadline requires crypto-asset service providers to obtain authorization before continuing to serve customers across the bloc.

Coinbase chose Luxembourg as its European MiCA base in June, securing passporting rights across all 27 EU member states as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. Its license from Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier allows the exchange to operate across those markets through one regulatory hub.

As users began leaving platforms that had not completed the licensing process, Coinbase offered a 5% bonus on eligible asset transfers. crypto.news reported that the campaign targeted European customers moving funds from non-compliant exchanges, giving Coinbase a direct route to capture users affected by the deadline.

Ripple followed with preliminary crypto-asset service provider approval on June 23 before receiving full authorization from the CSSF on July 6. Combined with its existing Electronic Money Institution license, the approval allows Ripple to provide regulated payment, custody and stablecoin services across the European Economic Area.

Cassie Craddock, Ripple’s managing director for the UK and Europe, described the authorization as a foundation for scaling the company’s services while remaining compliant in the post-transition market.

Luxembourg has emerged as the main MiCA entry point

Coinbase and Ripple have joined Bitstamp in placing their European operations in Luxembourg, concentrating three established crypto companies under the CSSF. Each licensed company can use MiCA passporting rules instead of seeking separate authorization in every member state.

Customer transfers, however, have created new compliance risks for both departing exchanges and licensed platforms receiving their users. As previously reported by crypto.news, Bruna Szego, chair of the EU Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism, warned that firms leaving the market could face a surge in withdrawal requests.

During a briefing before the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, Szego also cautioned that licensed providers could struggle to process large numbers of new customers. She urged those firms to maintain effective anti-money laundering controls while handling the influx.

Compliance demand has also created opportunities for legal technology providers. Global law firm Reed Smith has launched Aquarius, a platform that automates MiCA tasks such as crypto-asset classification, regulatory white paper preparation, due diligence and environmental, social and governance disclosures.

Reed Smith designed Aquarius for firms entering Europe or adding crypto services under the new rules. The law firm plans to extend later versions to regulatory systems in the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and Singapore.

USDT restrictions have opened space for USDC and RLUSD

Stablecoin access has become another point of competition as regulated European exchanges restrict or delist USDT. crypto.news reported that Tether’s reduced presence leaves more than $100 billion in EU-linked volume open to compliant alternatives such as Coinbase-backed USDC and Ripple’s RLUSD.

Ripple’s CASP and EMI authorizations give the company a regulated structure for distributing and settling RLUSD with European institutions without depending entirely on outside licensed intermediaries. Coinbase can pursue a similar opportunity through USDC, including revenue from trading, custody and payment settlement.

For investors, Coinbase’s European customer inflows could affect the company’s regional revenue in coming quarters, while Ripple’s licensed payment expansion could increase XRP’s role in services offered to EU financial institutions. Both outcomes will depend on customer adoption and the companies’ ability to meet MiCA and anti-money laundering requirements as migration continues.