The activity of Ethereum whales has not shown any clear trend in the last seven days, although there is high volatility, meaning whales are very much in action. In a recent analysis, no dominant buying or selling bias was seen despite the high activity.

One question that needs to be answered is whether the whales are moving their wealth into stablecoins or whether the reverse is the case. This will give us an idea of the dominant sentiment among large buyers who hold a significant portion of the market value.

We analyzed data sourced from Dune Analytics for USDT and USDC, the top two stablecoins, on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) for the last seven days and found that there is only a slight difference favoring stablecoins against Ethereum.

However, something more interesting could be going on, as USDC is also clearly preferred over USDT. We dug deeper to uncover the reason for this preference.

Whales Show Slight Bias Toward Stablecoins Against Ethereum

Just like there is no significant bias toward buying or selling of ETH on DEXs as revealed by the last study, whales seem to be buying a little more stablecoins than ETH. ETH to stablecoin transactions had a volume of $184 million, while stablecoin to ETH had $170 million. This shows a difference of roughly $14 million in favor of stablecoins.

However, the relatively small imbalance suggests cautious positioning rather than a decisive exit from ETH. A significant difference in volume would have suggested that large buyers are exiting ETH, which would raise concerns about a potential worsening of the bearish trend, but that is not the case at the moment.

Large buyers show slight bias towards stablecoins. Source: Dune.com | Analysis by author

Large Buyers Prefer USDC Over USDT

The data further revealed that large buyers are not just slightly flowing into stablecoins, but they prefer USDC by a wide margin. Of the roughly $162 million stablecoin volume traded over the last seven days, over $120 million was in USDC, while USDT only accounted for about $41 million.

Two scenarios are possible here. The first is that large buyers genuinely prefer USDC to USDT for different reasons ranging from security to fees. Secondly, the data may be showing pseudo bias toward USDC because most DEXs offered trades in USDC more than USDT, but that seems to be the case.

Large buyers prefer USDC over USDT. Source: Dune.com | Analysis by author

We analyzed the trading volume by trading platforms to see how the two stablecoins performed on platforms offering both options. Interestingly, Uniswap was the leading platform of choice, accounting for $135 million in volume (over 83%) of the total of $162 million, and offers both USDC and USDT.

USDC still outperformed USDT, accounting for over 77% of the Uniswap-bound stablecoin volume, worth over $104 million. This shows that large traders truly prefer USDC over USDT, which only had a little over $30 million in volume.

USDC volumes are significantly higher on Uniswap. Source: Dune.com | Analysis by author

Conclusion

Large buyers showing bias toward USDC could be for a number of reasons. First, it could be that USDC has deeper liquidity than USDT. This allows large traders to execute large trades running into millions with as little slippage as possible, which can save them thousands of dollars.

USDC is also commonly used as a dollar-denominated asset throughout DeFi, which is seeing significant growth, resulting in the higher volume relative to USDT.

In conclusion, large buyers are not exiting ETH. The difference in flow direction is marginal, suggesting cautious positioning rather than an outright bearish bias, despite ETH’s price decline. This is good news for retail traders, especially as we already established that the decline is not linked to whale activity.

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Binance Research says Gen Z traders using the exchange’s ecosystem are increasingly treating exchange-traded funds as a core part of their equity exposure. In early August, ETFs made up 25% of the cohort’s equity trading volume—an increase from earlier months—while interest in single-company stocks has eased.

The findings, based on activity across direct equities, tokenized stocks and traditional finance perpetual contracts, also highlight behavioral differences between younger traders and older generations, including how often they trade, whether they place sell orders, and the extent to which they use leveraged or inverse ETF products.

Key takeaways

• According to Binance Research, ETFs accounted for 25% of Gen Z equity trading volume in early August, up from 21.9% in July and 18.5% in June.
• Gen Z direct-equity accounts increasingly skew toward buy-only behavior, with 22% never placing a sell order—compared with 19% for Gen X and 9% for Baby Boomers.
• Gen Z traded less frequently than other working-age generations across TradFi perpetuals, averaging 13 monthly trades versus 17 for Millennials and 16.5 for Gen X.
• Leveraged and inverse ETFs appear to have limited pull among Gen Z: 88.2% of Gen Z TradFi perpetual accounts recorded no activity in those products.

Gen Z tilts equity activity toward ETFs

Binance’s analysis focused on how different generations allocate trading activity across three equity-related categories: direct equities, tokenized stocks, and traditional finance perpetuals. It compared account behavior across Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers using metrics such as trading frequency, net flows and leverage use.

Within that framework, ETFs gained share among Gen Z. In July, ETFs represented 21.9% of Gen Z net equity inflows. That compares with 18.5% in June, suggesting an accelerating preference for fund-based exposure rather than a rotation toward individual companies. Over the same period, the portion of Gen Z inflows allocated to individual stocks declined to 74.2% from 77%.

Binance Research did not frame this as a single-driver story, but the pattern is notable for traders deciding where to deploy capital: ETFs can offer diversified exposure, while direct equity allocation depends more heavily on idiosyncratic company performance.

Trading frequency and sell-order behavior differ by age

The report also points to structural differences in how Gen Z participates compared with older cohorts. Binance Research said Gen Z traded less frequently across all three equity products. For TradFi perpetuals, Gen Z averaged 13 monthly trades, compared with 17 for Millennials and 16.5 for Gen X.

Account behavior provides another window into how Gen Z approaches positioning. Among Gen Z direct-equity accounts, 22% had never placed a sell order. The share was lower for older groups—19% for Gen X and just 9% for Baby Boomers—while Millennials showed the highest level of buy-only behavior at 30%.

For Gen Z buy-only accounts, Binance reported that the most purchased assets by cumulative buying included Broadcom, Tesla and the Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF. The inclusion of a dividend-focused ETF among top cumulative buys aligns with the broader trend toward fund exposure rather than single-stock selection.

Binance also noted a key limitation for interpreting longer-term trends: its direct-equities offering only reached “meaningful scale” in June, leaving a comparatively short window to observe multi-month behavior changes.

Low use of leveraged and inverse ETF products

Beyond what Gen Z is buying, the report examines what it is avoiding—particularly in more complex ETF structures. Binance Research said Gen Z showed relatively little appetite for leveraged and inverse ETFs within TradFi perpetuals. Specifically, 88.2% of Gen Z TradFi perpetual accounts recorded no activity in leveraged or inverse ETFs.

For context, the no-activity shares were 84.5% for Millennials and 85.9% for Gen X, meaning Gen Z’s participation in these higher-risk product types appears modest relative to other cohorts. For traders, that matters because leveraged and inverse exposure can amplify volatility and risk management complexity, affecting how portfolios behave during market stress.

While the report does not provide breakdowns on whether the remaining Gen Z accounts used these products heavily or lightly, the headline takeaway is clear: for most Gen Z participants, ETF exposure—at least within these categories—has been largely non-leveraged.

Tokenized stocks: bStocks briefly overtake xStocks

Separately from the Gen Z cohort analysis, tokenized equities market data suggests shifting competitive dynamics among issuers. Binance’s bStocks briefly overtook Kraken’s xStocks as the second-largest tokenized stock issuer this week, according to Token Terminal data cited in the source.

As of Tuesday, bStocks held $610.6 million in tokenized stock value, compared with $601.2 million for xStocks. By Friday, the positions reversed: Token Terminal showed xStocks at $610.7 million and bStocks at $579.6 million. The report described these levels as about 22.3% and 21.2% of the roughly $2.7 billion tokenized stock market, respectively. Ondo Finance remained the largest issuer with $971.8 million.

Looking at the market as a whole, the source also pointed to continued expansion in distributed value tracked by RWA.xyz, which reported $2.43 billion in distributed value as of Friday—about 5% higher than over the previous 30 days. For investors, the issuer “leadership” flip between bStocks and xStocks underlines how quickly tokenized-stock balances can shift as flows move across platforms and products, even while the top issuer maintains its position.

That fast-moving ranking is also a reminder that tokenized equities remain a developing segment: total market growth is measurable, but individual issuers can move up or down quickly as their tokenized exposure rises and falls.

Going forward, traders should watch whether Gen Z’s ETF share continues to rise beyond the current early post-scale window for Binance direct equities, and whether the limited leveraged/inverse activity persists as more participants enter. In parallel, the tokenized-stock rankings may remain fluid—so changes in issuer balances could be as important as the broader market growth trend.

Coinbase and Ripple executives have been named among the expected attendees at an Aug. 19 White House meeting involving at least six crypto and prediction market companies.

Semafor reporter Eleanor Mueller said executives from Coinbase, Ripple, a16z, Chainlink, Paradigm and Kalshi were expected to attend the White House meeting, citing people familiar with the plans.

The report did not identify the individual executives who will represent each firm. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse have both supported the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which remains stalled in the Senate after lawmakers left Washington for their August recess.

President Donald Trump may attend with members of his administration, according to the original report supplied for this story. However, an earlier crypto.news report said the White House had not released a formal participant list and that Trump’s attendance remained unclear.

CFTC Chairman Michael Selig and SEC Chairman Paul Atkins are also expected to participate, according to people familiar with the planning. Neither the White House nor the two regulators had published a formal agenda for the meeting at the time of writing.

Coinbase and Ripple bring CLARITY Act interests

For Coinbase and Ripple, the meeting comes before a scheduled Senate test for legislation that could decide how the two main U.S. market regulators divide responsibility for digital assets.

The CLARITY Act would place spot markets for qualifying digital commodities under CFTC oversight while keeping crypto assets classified as securities within the SEC’s authority. It would also establish federal requirements for exchanges, brokers, dealers, advisers, and digital asset custodians.

American investors could be directly affected by that division because a token’s regulatory status can determine where it may trade, which disclosures apply, and whether a platform must register with the SEC or comply with CFTC market rules.

Coinbase has supported the legislation while continuing to raise concerns about provisions governing stablecoin rewards and decentralized finance. In an Aug. 7 statement, Armstrong called the Senate delay disappointing but said adoption would continue regardless of Congress’ timetable.

“The momentum behind this technology keeps growing with or without a congressional calendar,” Armstrong said.

An Aug. 8 report on Armstrong said the Coinbase chief pointed to stablecoin use, tokenized assets and perpetual futures as areas where activity could continue while lawmakers negotiate. He also argued that a consistent federal framework could support investment and offer stronger protections for U.S. consumers.

Garlinghouse has also backed the bill during negotiations. Ripple and Coinbase were part of a coalition of more than 120 companies that urged lawmakers to advance the proposal in April, according to a May report on Garlinghouse.

Andreessen Horowitz, better known as a16z, has also supported the legislation, while Chainlink works with financial companies on blockchain infrastructure. Paradigm invests in crypto businesses and is a backer of Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated prediction market operator.

CLARITY Act faces a Sept. 15 Senate test

Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture on the motion to proceed with the CLARITY Act before the chamber began its August recess. The Senate Daily Press schedule says the motion will ripen at 2:15 p.m. on Sept. 15, one day after senators return for regular business.

The procedural vote would not pass the bill or send it to Trump. Clearing cloture would allow the Senate to begin formal consideration, after which lawmakers could debate the proposal, introduce amendments, and hold a separate vote on final passage.

At least 60 senators must support cloture. Republicans cannot reach the threshold alone, making Democratic votes necessary even if most Republican senators back the measure.

The House approved its version in July 2025 by a 294–134 vote, with 78 Democrats joining Republicans. In May 2026, the Senate Banking Committee advanced its part of the legislation by a 15–9 vote after Democratic Sens. Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks voted with Republicans.

Any text approved by the Senate that differs from the House measure would require another House vote or negotiations between the two chambers before reaching the president.

Unresolved disagreements include political ethics provisions, rules for rewards paid on stablecoin balances, protections for software developers, illicit finance controls, and consumer safeguards. The White House has not said whether any of those subjects will appear on the Aug. 19 meeting agenda.

Prediction markets remain doubtful about passage

Prediction markets have continued to price in a low chance that the CLARITY Act will become law in 2026, even as the Senate prepares for its September procedural vote.

Polymarket traders placed the probability at 19%. Since such contracts trade continuously, the figure has moved as participants respond to the White House meeting reports and the Senate timetable.

On Aug. 14, the contract briefly showed a 21% probability, rising from 17% one day earlier. Another recent reading placed the chance at 16%, down from an 82% peak in February.

Galaxy Research reportedly assigned a 10% chance of passage during 2026, citing unresolved policy disputes and the limited number of Senate working days before the midterm election recess.

A separate Kalshi contract provided a more favorable reading for an earlier procedural event. As of Aug. 11, traders assigned an 88% probability that the Senate would vote on the legislation before Oct. 1, with about $1.23 million traded on the contract. The date aligns with Thune’s Sept. 15 cloture schedule but does not indicate whether senators will ultimately approve the bill.

CFTC meeting will follow on Aug. 20

People involved in the planning have described the White House event as a kickoff for the CFTC Innovation Advisory Committee’s first meeting, which is scheduled for Aug. 20 in Washington.

According to the CFTC’s published agenda, the three-hour session will run from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time. Committee members will attend in person, while the public will be able to watch the proceedings online.

The first 50-minute panel will examine the history of crypto regulation, state licensing requirements, overlapping jurisdictions, and the lack of a complete federal market structure framework. Members will also discuss how the CFTC could modernize existing rules within its current legal authority and support future legislation from Congress.

A second session will cover artificial intelligence in trading, compliance, surveillance and risk management, including autonomous systems capable of carrying out transactions or managing portfolios.

During the final panel, members will examine prediction markets, event contracts, market surveillance, manipulation risks, and customer protections. The agenda also lists questions involving federal and state authority, an issue directly relevant to Kalshi and other regulated event-contract platforms.

The advisory committee will not vote on a proposed crypto rule, and its recommendations do not automatically become CFTC policy. Members of the public may submit written statements about the meeting through Aug. 27, with qualifying submissions entering the public record.

Separately, the SEC canceled an Aug. 14 open meeting that had been scheduled to consider a proposed offering framework for certain crypto-related investment contracts. The agency’s cancellation notice did not provide a reason or announce another date.

Gen Z traders on Binance are allocating a growing share of their equity activity to exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with the products accounting for 25% of the cohort’s trading volume in early August, according to Binance Research.

ETFs accounted for 21.9% of Gen Z net equity inflows in July, up from 18.5% in June, while the share going to individual stocks fell to 74.2% from 77%.

The analysis examined activity across direct equities, tokenized stocks and traditional finance perpetuals, comparing Gen Z accounts with Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers on measures including trading frequency, net flows and leverage use.

The younger cohort traded less frequently than other working-age generations across all three products. Gen Z averaged 13 monthly trades in TradFi perpetuals, compared with 17 for Millennials and 16.5 for Gen X.

Among Gen Z direct-equity accounts, 22% had never placed a sell order, compared with 19% of Gen X accounts and 9% of Baby Boomer accounts. Millennials had the highest share of buy-only accounts at 30%. Among those Gen Z buy-only accounts, top assets by cumulative purchases included Broadcom, Tesla and the Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF, according to Binance.

Net buyers by generation and product. Source: Binance

Gen Z also showed relatively little appetite for leveraged and inverse ETFs; 88.2% of Gen Z TradFi perpetual accounts recorded no activity in those products, compared with 84.5% of Millennials and 85.9% of Gen X.

Binance cautioned that its direct-equities product only reached meaningful scale in June, leaving a relatively short data window for establishing longer-term trends.

Related: Binance to restrict transactions involving HTX, 10 other crypto platforms

Binance bStocks briefly overtakes xStocks

Binance’s bStocks briefly overtook Kraken’s xStocks as the second-largest tokenized stock issuer this week, less than two months after launching. As of Tuesday, bStocks held $610.6 million in tokenized stock value, compared with $601.2 million for xStocks, according to Token Terminal data.

The positions had reversed by Friday, with Token Terminal showing xStocks at $610.7 million and bStocks at $579.6 million, representing 22.3% and 21.2% of the roughly $2.7 billion market, respectively. Ondo Finance remained the largest issuer at $971.8 million.

The broader tokenized stock market has continued to expand, with RWA.xyz tracking $2.43 billion in distributed value as of Friday, up about 5% over the past 30 days.

Tokenized stock market cap by issuer. Source: Token Terminal

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