Crypto World
South Korea opens hearing process in Polymarket gambling review
South Korea has delayed any enforcement decision against Polymarket after giving the prediction market platform a chance to respond to concerns that its service may violate the country’s gambling laws.
Summary
- South Korea has given Polymarket a chance to respond before deciding whether to take action over gambling concerns.
- The review follows an earlier police investigation into local Polymarket users over alleged illegal election related gambling.
- The case adds to growing regulatory scrutiny of Polymarket as authorities in Europe and the United States also examine its operations.
According to the Broadcasting, Media and Communications Review Committee, it has decided to hear Polymarket’s position before ruling on whether to issue a corrective request against the platform. The committee said the additional step would allow it to verify both the legality of the service and the way it operates before reaching a final conclusion.
Under South Korea’s National Gambling Control Commission Act, an illegal gaming business includes online services that facilitate speculative gambling, giving authorities the power to monitor and respond to such activities.
The latest review comes after South Korean authorities had already begun examining local use of the platform. In early June, the Gangwon Provincial Police launched what local media described as the country’s first investigation into Polymarket users over alleged illegal gambling connected to election-related prediction markets. The probe was reportedly requested by the National Police Agency.
South Korea’s Criminal Act allows fines of up to 10 million won (about $6,500) for gambling offences, while habitual gambling can result in prison terms of up to three years or fines reaching 20 million won. Operating a gambling venue for profit carries penalties of up to five years in prison or a fine of 30 million won.
Polymarket states that access restrictions on its platform are designed to comply with sanctions, local financial regulations, gambling and prediction market laws, anti-money laundering requirements and Know Your Customer rules.
According to the company, users from 33 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Brazil, Singapore, Japan, and Australia, cannot access the platform. It also blocks certain regions within otherwise permitted countries, including several Canadian provinces and parts of eastern Ukraine.
Global pressure on prediction markets continues
The South Korean review adds to the increasing regulatory attention facing prediction market operators in several jurisdictions.
Earlier this month, the European Securities and Markets Authority clarified that some event-based contracts offered in the European Union could already fall within the scope of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II if they qualify as financial instruments. The regulator said those products could also become subject to the European Union’s existing retail restrictions on binary options without requiring new legislation.
In the United States, Bloomberg and CNBC recently reported that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is conducting a broad investigation into Polymarket’s business activities, including its social media operations.
The reported inquiry followed allegations published by The Wall Street Journal that the platform promoted simulated trading videos through paid content creators without adequate disclosure. Polymarket later told CNBC it had begun auditing its promotional content to ensure compliance with company standards and legal disclosure requirements.
On-chain research firm Allium also reported this week that U.S.-linked wallets traded about $571 million worth of political contracts on Polymarket during the past year despite the platform’s restrictions on American users.
While Allium cautioned that its country attribution covered only a small share of wallets and should be treated as directional rather than exact, the findings added to ongoing questions about how users continue accessing offshore prediction markets despite geographic restrictions.
The German government has placed crypto taxation on its savings list for the 2027 federal budget. The move could end the crypto tax exemption that investors currently earn after a one-year holding period.
The Federal Ministry of Finance detailed the plan in its monthly report. An adjustment of cryptocurrency taxation for 2027 appears among the consolidation measures agreed by the governing coalition.
Crypto Taxes Join Germany’s Budget Consolidation List
The cabinet approved the key figures for the 2027 budget. The Ministry set a spending frame of €543.3 billion, with net borrowing of €110.8 billion.
Consolidation carries much of the load. The coalition agreed on structural savings of roughly €4 billion per year, alongside a package of revenue measures. That package includes new plastic and sugar levies, higher alcohol and tobacco taxes, a tougher fight against tax crime, and a change to how cryptocurrencies are taxed.
Why the Crypto Tax Exemption Is Under Pressure
German law treats crypto as a private asset under Section 23 of the Income Tax Act. Gains become tax-free once coins have been held for more than 12 months. Sales within a year face personal income tax rates of up to 45%, while total annual gains below €1,000 stay untaxed.
Calls to scrap the rule have grown louder since late 2025.
“in future, capital gains should be taxed uniformly regardless of the holding period,” The SPD’s Seeheimer Kreis demanded in a position paper, cited by the Bitcoin Bundesverband.
Industry voices pushed back hard. Bundesverband board member Matthias Steger warned that taxing every disposal would turn each everyday payment into a tax event and push firms to friendlier countries such as Portugal.
Parliament has resisted similar moves before. In May 2026, the Bundestag Finance Committee rejected a comparable bid by the Green Party to abolish the exemption.
A Signal for the Rest of the EU
Germany is not the only EU country with such a rule, but it is close. Portugal is the sole other member state that fully exempts crypto gains after a one-year holding period. Austria, by contrast, scrapped its holding period in 2022 and now taxes new holdings at a flat 27.5%.
The stakes reach beyond national borders. As the EU’s largest economy and its leader in MiCA license approvals, Germany often sets the template that other member states follow.
That influence matters now more than ever. Because one in four European investors has invested in cryptocurrency, and new tax reporting rules under CARF and DAC8 are already in force. If Germany exits the exemption, it could reshape the debate in Brussels and beyond.
Whether the rule survives should become clearer once the Bundestag takes over the draft. A regime that made Germany one of Europe’s friendliest places to hold Bitcoin (BTC) long term now depends on how much revenue lawmakers believe they can raise from it.
The post Germany’s 2027 Budget Targets the Crypto Tax Exemption appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Coinbase sent a push notification about Norway beating Brazil in their World Cup match yesterday hours before the result of the match was actually decided.
The company’s AI hallucinated the “news” and, because Coinbase employees have permitted non-fact-checked push notifications in the first place, the computer blasted it onto the phones of countless customers.
Despite Coinbase’s 3-2 score turning out to be wrong, Norway did actually emerge victorious, winning 2-1 against the five-time world champions with Norway and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland scoring the goals.
Disconcertingly, Coinbase’s AI had also made up commentary about Haaland being the goalscorer before either of his actual goals hit the net.
Obviously, there are only two possible team names for the winner of a soccer game, so Coinbase guessing this isn’t particularly remarkable. Haaland is also Norway’s leading goalscorer, so he was also pretty likely to be the man to get the goals.
Still, Coinbase’s push notification was enough to generate hundreds of thousands of views worth of social media controversy.
Read more: Brian Armstrong sold more stock in 12 months than Coinbase’s Q1 loss
Coinbase’s AI reported its guess as fact
Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the US, doesn’t run its own sportsbook. Instead, it routes sports prediction markets through Kalshi’s federally regulated event-contract platform.
The exchange rolled that partnership out to all 50 states in January. The AI notification pulls in data from Kalshi, occasionally framing sharp market swings as so-called news.
Unfortunately, media often reports on the odds of prediction market betting lines as though these percentages are the odds of an event occurring in real life.
In reality, prediction markets are similar to binary options contracts and gambling, trivially easy to manipulate with relatively small amounts of money, and disproportionately reward market-makers.
Concerned, one customer posted a screenshot of Coinbase’s push notification about the Norway vs. Brazil outcome. “Apparently Coinbase has opened a miniature black hole, stepped into the future, and returned with news of Norway bouncing Brazil out of the World Cup… hours before the game has even started.”
More screenshots spread. A widely shared post complained that the exchange hallucinated a World Cup victory for game that hadn’t even played, drawing over 150,000 views.
Another user tagged Coinbase and asked, “Insider info or AI hallucination? This match won’t take place for another five hours.”
Coinbase already promised to fix its push notifications
Coinbase has previously blasted its customers with troubling prediction market alerts. It’s promised to fix the problem.
During the March Madness basketball tournament, customers complained to CEO Brian Armstrong for flooding lock screens on phones with prompts that encouraged them to “predict” sports gameplay.
Armstrong blamed a targeting bug and apologized.
Nevertheless, prediction markets alerts keep blasting for one simple reason: profit. Indeed, prediction markets are one of Coinbase’s fastest-growing business lines.
Bernstein analysts pegged the product at a roughly $100 million annualized run rate barely two months after it went live. Kalshi, Coinbase’s prediction market partner, paid roughly $20 million to plaster its logo across World Cup stadiums.
The incentive to make sports feel urgent and immediately tradeable is enormous.
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Crypto World
Deribit and SignalPlus Launch The Island Trading Competition With Up to $600,000 USDC in Prizes
Deribit by Coinbase, via its broker-dealer DRB Panama Inc., and SignalPlus, a leading provider of software and infrastructure solutions for crypto derivatives, today announced the launch of The Island, their fifth trading competition and biggest edition to date.
Running for 35 days, the competition features up to $600,000 USDC in prizes across solo and team competition, daily and weekly reward rounds, Mystery Box deposit mechanics, short-dated options challenges, and a Private Island jackpot.
Registration for The Island opens on June 29 at 08:00 UTC, with the competition running from July 6 at 08:00 UTC through August 10 at 23:59 UTC. To participate, users must trade through SignalPlus on Deribit. Competition standings will be based on eligible options and futures trading volume only, with options weighted 1.0 and futures weighted 0.5.
The campaign is designed around eleven core arenas spanning weekly volume competition, daily reward loops, team participation, referral-driven expansion, whale and block-trade incentives, and dynamic ecosystem progression in one connected experience. New mechanics in this edition include the Mystery Box deposit experience, a weekly P&L leaderboard, short-dated options reward multipliers, and the Flash Arena, where higher short-dated options volume unlocks more jackpot shots and reward opportunities.
Key Details
- Total Prize Pool: Up to $600,000 USDC
- Registration Period: June 29, 2026, 08:00 UTC – August 10, 2026, 23:59 UTC
- Competition Period: July 6, 2026, 08:00 UTC – August 10, 2026, 23:59 UTC
- Eligibility: Open to eligible retail traders on Deribit via SignalPlus
- Registration Link: https://t.signalplus.com/deribitislandcompetition
This campaign is run by DRB Panama Inc and is not targeted at or intended for residents of Dubai, UAE. T&Cs apply. Virtual Assets are subject to extreme market volatility, involve a high degree of risk, and can lose value, in part or in full.
Early Bird Incentives
- Users who register by July 7th will receive 3 free Deribit options.
- Team captains who invite five or more friends to register by July 7th will have a chance to win a Cressi Velvet Wetsuit valued at 300 USDC.
- Among the first 10 participants to reach 200M in trading volume by July 12, one randomly selected winner will receive two RIMOWA suitcases valued at 5,000 USDC in total.
“The Island brings together everything we want this competition to be: bigger scale, stronger participation loops, and a structure that rewards how active options traders actually engage,” said Luuk Strijers, Senior Director from Deribit by Coinbase. “With solo and team competition, short-dated options mechanics and aspirational rewards led by the Private Island jackpot, this is our most ambitious retail trading campaign yet.”“We are excited to partner with Deribit by Coinbase once again on the latest edition of the competition,” said Chris Yu, CEO and Co-Founder from SignalPlus. “The Island is designed to make participation more dynamic and more rewarding, whether traders are competing on volume, teaming up with their network, or engaging through short-dated options and daily missions. Together, we are creating a more immersive experience for sophisticated retail traders.”
Competition Highlights include:
- Core Arena: Weekly solo and team trading leaderboards designed to reward notional trading activity across individual and squad-based competition.
- Mystery Box Deposit Round: Users who register and maintain deposits for seven days unlock Mystery Box draw chances tied to guaranteed USDC prizes and premium rewards.
- Daily Reward Ecosystem: Daily individual and team missions encourage repeat engagement, with volume-based rewards and team milestone unlocks.
- Flash Arena: Short-dated options trading powers daily reward multipliers and jackpot-style shooting mechanics, including access to the Private Island reward opportunity.
- Block Arena: High-balance and block-trade participants can unlock fee rebates and luxury reward opportunities.
- Expansion Arena: Referral mechanics reward both community growth and successful invitations of higher-value traders.
In addition to the Private Island headline reward, this year’s prize pool includes a range of premium rewards such as a Rolex Watch, Apple Vision Pro, NVIDIA Stock, Luxury Turkey Trip, Ledger Stax, Gentle Monster Sunglasses, Razer Keyboard, SOL spot rewards, trading fee coupons, and daily USDC prize pools.
The Island invites participants into a dynamic retail trading competition that combines strategic trading with team-based participation and a tiered reward structure. With every trade, participants move closer to exclusive rewards, from daily USDC prizes to the Private Island headline jackpot. The event begins today.
About Deribit
Deribit by Coinbase is a centralized, institutional-grade provider of crypto derivatives ecosystem, specializing in Bitcoin and Ethereum options and futures. With state-of-the-art infrastructure, Deribit offers instantaneous price discovery, low-latency execution, advanced risk mitigation tools, and deep liquidity through a network of top-tier market makers. Deribit facilitates the majority of global crypto options volume and upholds rigorous proof-of-reserves practices to maintain the highest standards of integrity and transparency.
About SignalPlus
Signalplus provides trading software and infrastructure for crypto derivatives, helping professional and sophisticated retail traders access options, futures, and spot markets with advanced execution and analytics tools. SignalPlus delivers a comprehensive options trading suite tailored for crypto derivatives traders.
The post Deribit and SignalPlus Launch The Island Trading Competition With Up to $600,000 USDC in Prizes appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Ripple has secured full MiCA authorisation in Luxembourg, giving the company a regulated route to offer cryptoasset services across the European Economic Area.
The approval from Luxembourg’s financial regulator, the CSSF, comes days after the European Union’s MiCA transition period ended. From July 2026, crypto firms need proper authorisation to keep serving EU clients.
For Ripple, the licence is more than a compliance milestone. It strengthens a bigger shift inside the company’s business. Ripple is building a regulated payment infrastructure around crypto, stablecoins, and institutional settlement, with XRP playing a less central role in the story.
What the Licence Actually Allows
The approval is a Crypto Asset Service Provider, or CASP, authorisation. In simple terms, this is the main MiCA licence for companies that provide crypto services in Europe.
A CASP licence can cover services such as crypto transfers, custody, exchanging crypto for fiat money, exchanging one cryptoasset for another, executing orders, and operating trading infrastructure. The exact scope depends on what the regulator approved for that company.
Ripple says the authorisation makes its regulated crypto payments product available to financial institutions, corporates, and businesses across all 30 EEA countries.
Ripple Also Has an Electronic Money License
Ripple also holds an EU Electronic Money Institution, or EMI, licence. That covers the fiat money and e-money side of payments.
Together, the CASP and EMI approvals give Ripple a stronger legal setup for payment flows that involve both traditional money and cryptoassets. A bank or company using Ripple’s infrastructure may need to collect funds, convert value, move digital assets, and pay out in another currency.
That is where Ripple’s business appears to be heading. The company is no longer defined only by XRP.
Its recent strategy points toward regulated payment rails, stablecoin settlement, and institutional crypto services.
The XRP Link Is Weaker Than It Looks
The approval does not mean EU regulators have approved XRP. MiCA authorises the service provider, not the token.
Still, XRP could benefit if Ripple’s payment activity drives more usage on the XRP Ledger. That would require real volume on XRPL, deeper XRP liquidity, and demand for XRP as a bridge asset.
The link is indirect. If Ripple’s stablecoin and payment activity runs through centralised venues or other chains, XRP may see little direct benefit.
RLUSD is the Main Attraction
Ripple’s dollar stablecoin fits more clearly into the company’s regulated payments push than the old XRP-focused narrative.
A stablecoin can support settlement, liquidity, remittances, and business payments in a way institutions understand more easily. In Europe, that becomes more valuable after MiCA, because firms now need licensed partners to handle cryptoasset services.
Ripple’s licence could therefore help RLUSD more directly than XRP. It gives Ripple a compliant European base to offer crypto payment infrastructure at the same time many unlicensed firms are being pushed out of the market.
The unresolved question is whether this turns into real adoption. Ripple now has the regulatory structure to sell into Europe’s institutional market.
The harder task is proving that banks and businesses want to use its crypto rails at scale.
The post Ripple’s MiCA Win Raises a Hard Question for XRP appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Bitcoin has rebounded nearly 10% from its July 1 low as weak U.S. jobs data, lower oil prices, and a weekend short squeeze pushed traders back toward risk assets.
Summary
- Bitcoin rebounded nearly 10% as weak U.S. jobs data boosted expectations for Fed rate cuts.
- ETF inflows returned after a prolonged outflow streak, while lower oil prices added to risk appetite.
- Analysts identify $64K as the key resistance, with $62.5K remaining the critical support level.
According to data from crypto.news, Bitcoin (BTC) price traded near $62,990 on July 6 after climbing from $58,293 earlier in the week to an intraday high near $64,000. The move followed a weaker-than-expected U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, which showed only 57,000 jobs added in June against forecasts near 110,000.
The miss reduced expectations for more Federal Reserve tightening and helped ease pressure on non-yielding assets. Crude oil traded below $69 per barrel on Monday as energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz recovered, and OPEC+’s planned 188,000-barrel-per-day production increase fueled concerns over a supply glut.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs added to the recovery after snapping a 10-day outflow streak with more than $220 million in net inflows. The rebound came after June produced more than $4.5 billion in redemptions and pushed sentiment into extreme fear, with the Crypto Fear & Greed Index falling to 11.
Bitcoin’s rebound faces its first major resistance near $64,000
The daily chart shows Bitcoin testing the 0.236 Fibonacci retracement level at $63,994 after bouncing from the June low zone near $58,187. A clean daily close above that level would open the next resistance area near $67,587, followed by $70,491 and $73,395.
Bitcoin has also pushed back into a descending channel that has capped price action since the May high near $82,795. The latest candle is struggling near the channel’s upper boundary, making the $64,000 region the first key test for buyers.
Momentum has improved but not fully flipped bullish. The daily MACD histogram has turned positive at about 661, while the MACD line remains below the signal line. RSI has recovered to 49, just under the neutral 50 level, after rising from oversold territory in June.
On the four-hour chart, Bitcoin is holding above the Supertrend support near $61,530, while the Aroon Up reading stands at 78.57 against Aroon Down at 7.14. The setup shows buyers have regained short-term control, though price remains below the next heavy resistance band around $64,000 to $65,000.
According to analyst Ted Pillows, the $62,500–$62,800 support zone remains the level to watch.
“$BTC is holding above the $62,500-$62,800 support zone. Spot selling has definitely accelerated, so this support zone is very crucial. If it holds, Bitcoin’s next stop would be around $65,000.”
Liquidation clusters leave Bitcoin exposed on both sides
CoinGlass’ three-day liquidation heatmap shows dense upside liquidity between $64,000 and $65,300, with another pocket near $66,000. A push through $64,000 could trigger another round of forced buying if short positions remain crowded above spot.
Downside liquidity is also visible near $62,000, $61,500, and $60,000. Those levels match the support areas identified by traders after Bitcoin’s quick move higher.
Commenting on the matter, analyst Lennaert Snyder noted that Bitcoin had already pushed into the final short point of interest and warned that the bounce lacked strong spot follow-through.
“I’m still in my swing-short from 63.2K, and willing to add if we get a clean break of ~62.5K,” Snyder wrote, adding that the move appeared to be driven mainly by short closing rather than fresh spot demand.
The invalidation zone for the bullish case now sits around $62,500. A four-hour close below that area could pull BTC toward $61,500, then $60,300 and $58,800, which Snyder listed as potential targets.
Macro risks remain active as well. A stronger July CPI print, hawkish Federal Reserve minutes, or renewed energy-market stress could revive dollar strength and pressure Bitcoin again. Supply risks from Mt. Gox repayments and government liquidations also remain unresolved.
For now, Bitcoin’s recovery depends on whether buyers can defend $62,500 and convert $64,000 into support. A failure there would leave the rally looking like a short squeeze inside a still-fragile downtrend.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has warned that the world cannot wait for an AI equivalent of Hiroshima before acting, urging global powers to build consensus on artificial intelligence (AI) safety principles and standards.
Cooper made the case in an essay, positioning Britain to lead international talks on the technology.
Why Cooper Points to Hiroshima
She argued that nuclear safety rules only emerged after the world witnessed the destructive power of the atomic bomb. The Foreign Secretary said governments cannot repeat that mistake with AI.
Cooper framed AI safety as the greatest security challenge of the next decade.
“We cannot afford to wait for an AI equivalent of Hiroshima before we act,” she said.
In addition, Cooper noted that Britain ranks third among developed AI nations, behind the United States and China, and called it a leading voice on AI security.
She wants to put that convening power to work, pulling the US, China, and other major AI powers to “build consensus on safety principles and standards today.”
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AI Cyber Threat Warnings Mount
Cooper’s essay follows a wave of warnings from security and financial officials. Last month, the Five Eyes intelligence alliance issued a joint alert on AI.
The group, which links the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, said frontier AI would reshape cyber offensive and defensive capabilities within months rather than years.
Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden echoed the urgency on June 30. She told an ECB forum that AI was transforming finance at speed. She said the task is ensuring the “next surprise does not become a test of financial stability.”
Breeden noted that trading firms mostly limit agentic AI to lower-risk work, such as research, for now. She warned that it could shift fast. If many AI agents react the same way to identical prompts, she said, they could amplify volatility during market stress.
“In the hands of defenders, these tools strengthen cyber resilience. But, in malicious hands, they materially increase the chance of attacks that could harm financial stability,” she explained.
The warnings converge on one point. AI is advancing faster than the rules meant to govern it, and officials say the gap needs to be closed.
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The post UK Foreign Secretary Warns World Cannot Wait for ‘AI Hiroshima’ Before Acting appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Blockchain investigator ZachXBT said several meme coins used his likeness across multiple chains during the past week.
Summary
- ZachXBT said copycat meme coins used his likeness without his support or promotion.
- He sold tokens sent to his donation wallet and sent about $41,000 to charities.
- The case shows how meme coin creators use trusted crypto figures to attract attention.
He said he did not promote, support, or launch any of the tokens. The investigator posted the update on his Telegram channel after traders created ZACHXBT-themed tokens tied to his public name.
“I have always stated I will never support or launch a meme coin,” he wrote.
ZachXBT said all tokens sent to his donation wallet were sold on the market. He then sent the full amount, worth about $41,000, to charity through The Giving Block.
The funds went to Direct Relief and GiveDirectly to support the Venezuela earthquake response. He shared transaction receipts for donations made in USDT and SOL between June 28 and July 6.
Donations sent to Direct Relief and GiveDirectly
ZachXBT said he sent 25,000 USDT to GiveDirectly on July 6 at 4:16 a.m. UTC. He also sent 5,000 USDT to Direct Relief later the same morning at 4:51 a.m. UTC.
A third donation included 153 SOL, worth about $11,000, sent to Direct Relief on June 28. Together, the receipts bring the total donation amount to about $41,000.
The move follows earlier debate around ZachXBT-linked tokens. As crypto.news reported in 2025, a ZACH token launched on Flaunch.gg claimed to direct most trading fees to the investigator.
That report also noted that another Solana-based ZACHXBT meme coin had caused controversy after developers sent ZachXBT part of the token supply. He denied creating or promoting that token.
Meme coin creators use public names
The latest case shows how meme coin creators often use public names, online narratives, and familiar branding to draw traders. These tokens can launch quickly across several chains with little notice.
ZachXBT’s public role in tracking scams makes the use of his likeness more sensitive. Traders may wrongly assume that a token tied to his name has his approval, even when he says it does not.
Crypto.news has covered ZachXBT’s work across several investigations. In March, he said a crypto scam network used war fear on X to drive users toward fake giveaways and pump-and-dump tokens.
Moreover, Hyperliquid donated 10,000 HYPE to ZachXBT earlier this year after his work on a major crypto theft case. The donation was separate from the latest meme coin sales.
Crypto donations remain part of wider trend
The charity transfer also fits a wider pattern of crypto-based giving. The Giving Block data showed more than $1 billion in crypto donations went to charities in 2024.
In ZachXBT’s case, the donations came from assets he said he did not ask to receive. His action turned unwanted token allocations into relief funding while keeping distance from the meme coins.
The event also gives traders a clear warning. A token that uses a public figure’s name does not mean that person supports it. Users still need to check official posts, contract details, liquidity, and token ownership before trading.
Bitcoin opened the second week of June hovering near its best levels in nearly two weeks, as short-term traders looked for signs that the latest bounce could extend. The push toward the low-$64,000 area comes alongside a noticeable improvement in broader crypto mood, though some market watchers are urging caution as US equities remain vulnerable to a potential pullback.
On-chain and derivatives data also point to a cooling of forced selling. Exchange inflow trends suggest both retail and large holders have been less aggressive in moving coins onto exchanges, while short liquidations over the past day remained relatively contained—factors that together help explain why the market has not seen a sharp reversal after the rebound.
Key takeaways
- Bitcoin traded around $63,960, near its highest levels since June 23, with traders targeting nearby liquidity above recent resistance.
- Short liquidations totaled just over $100 million in the last 24 hours, according to CoinGlass—suggesting upside has not been powered by a massive squeeze.
- Derivatives and order-book commentary highlighted spot selling pressure that may have been more aggressive than the perps market—an important detail for bulls to monitor.
- Crypto Fear & Greed moved up toward “extreme fear,” but it remains in that risk-off zone, implying sentiment is improving yet not fully reset.
- CryptoQuant data indicates whale exchange inflows to Binance have fallen faster than retail inflows since mid-June, reducing the role of large holders in exchange-bound supply.
From liquidity hunts to a defined support zone
BTC price action kept steady pressure on short positions into the weekly close, reaching $63,960—its highest level since June 23—based on TradingView data referenced in the market commentary. The immediate question for traders is whether the move can maintain momentum long enough to work through the next pocket of liquidity, or whether dips are simply being used to shake out weak longs and shorts.
Derivatives liquidation figures add context. CoinGlass reported that total crypto short liquidations over the prior 24 hours were just over $100 million at the time of writing. When liquidation volumes stay relatively moderate, it often indicates that price gains are not solely driven by a runaway squeeze, but rather by a broader balance between buying demand and overhead selling.
Several traders pointed to short-term order-flow dynamics as part of the explanation. Exitpump, an X account focused on market microstructure, attributed the move in part to “liquidity hunts,” noting a divergence between spot and perps activity. In a post shared Monday, Exitpump said aggressive spot selling was visible while cumulative volume delta on futures was comparatively stable, based on the account’s reference to spot CVD trending down and perps CVD remaining flat.
That kind of divergence matters because it can foreshadow a reversal if spot selling re-accelerates while upside attempts stall. Consistent with that, trader Killa identified a relatively tight support band traders should watch closely: the $60,400 to $60,900 area. Killa warned that if the market revisits that region and fails to hold it, it could fall back toward the lows again rather than forming a deeper base.
Bulls press “macro reversal” ideas, but timing remains debated
While near-term levels are under scrutiny, the debate is still larger than a single weekly range. As Cointelegraph continued to report earlier, some participants believe a bear-market low may not be fully confirmed yet—even as bullish signals multiply.
Roman, a trader who previously positioned more bearishly on BTC/USD, argued that the longer time-frame picture still looks constructive for an interim recovery. In an X post referenced by Cointelegraph, Roman said the market appears “excellent” for a continuation of a reversal toward higher prices in the nearer term, while also suggesting there may be “one more macro low” before the bottom is fully in place. That framing is not a guarantee of a sustained uptrend, but it does influence how many traders interpret current strength: as a bounce inside a broader process rather than the end of decline.
For investors, the practical takeaway is that the market can rally while the “final” macro bottom remains unconfirmed. In that scenario, what matters most is follow-through: whether BTC can convert resistance into support (rather than repeatedly rejecting gains) and whether any retracement holds the support band traders are flagging.
Risk appetite improves, even as equity pullback risk lingers
A key driver of sentiment this week has been the relationship between crypto and US equities. Bitcoin’s correlation to equities was cited as under renewed observation as stock futures started higher after the holiday weekend, with Nasdaq 100 futures up about 1% per the market recap. The optimism rests on expectations that earlier economic data softened hawkish Federal Reserve positioning.
Mosaic Asset Company’s “The Market Mosaic” newsletter highlighted that, while the S&P 500 gained roughly 15% in the second quarter and has topped out in early June, the index is still trading within a bullish continuation pattern and has continued to find support at a key level. Mosaic added that the average stock has been rallying to record highs, pointing to breadth improvements across major exchanges and indices.
At the same time, some strategists argue that stock-market optimism could be premature. Andre Dragosch, European head of research at Bitwise, raised the possibility of a larger correction ahead of US midterm elections. Dragosch pointed to the MacroQuant Equity Risk Model by BCA Research, which he described as flashing a “bear market warning signal,” comparing the current setup to late-2021 conditions—an era that preceded the top of the prior bull cycle.
Dragosch’s argument includes a nuance important for crypto traders: even if macro stress materializes, he suggested much of the worst-case scenario may already be priced in. In extended comments on X referenced by the article, he reasoned that if a recession and equity drawdown occur, downside could be somewhat muted because Bitcoin prices may already reflect that possibility. He also described a “decent chance” that BTC could outperform the Nasdaq on a relative basis over coming months.
Exchange flows cool: whales down faster than retail
Beyond macro and sentiment, flow data is offering a more granular picture of investor behavior. CryptoQuant’s QuickTake blog post said exchange inflows have declined from both retail and whale investors during the second half of June, even though price was making multi-year lows.
According to the CryptoQuant reporting cited, whale activity on Binance cooled sharply since mid-June. The rolling 30-day value of whale inflows reportedly fell by nearly $2.4 billion. Retail inflows also declined, dropping from $10.02 billion on June 12 to $8.2 billion by July 6, but the rate of decline appeared gentler.
Most notably, CryptoQuant said whale inflows were falling at nearly twice the rate of retail inflows. As a result, the relative role of large holders in exchange-bound Bitcoin supply decreased, widening the gap between retail and whale inflows from about $2.98 billion to $3.55 billion. The implication for traders is that selling pressure based on “coins headed to exchanges” may be becoming less dominated by whales—though the article correctly emphasized that exchange inflows are not a flawless proxy for intent to sell.
CryptoQuant also framed the next question as whether whale inflows stabilize around the roughly $4.65 billion level or continue to trend lower. A further decline would reinforce the view that large holders are becoming less active on exchanges compared with the retail cohort.
Fear is easing—but the market isn’t out of the woods
Crypto sentiment has improved along with Bitcoin’s rebound, but it remains fragile. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index showed sentiment edging toward a departure from “extreme fear” for the first time in more than a month. The index measured 24/100 on Monday, more than double its level at the start of July, according to Alternative.me data cited in the article.
Traders acknowledged the improvement while warning against complacency. One post on X from “Master of Crypto” summarized the stance as “Fear is easing, not gone.” The practical value of that message is that Fear & Greed often behaves like a lagging indicator—reflecting changes in market behavior after they have occurred rather than forecasting the next move.
In separate commentary, blockchain advisor Anndy Lian argued that bulls need tangible confirmation rather than relying on sentiment. He pointed to $65,000 as a level that, if reclaimed and sustained, could open the door to a broader test of the 100-day moving average currently near $69,500. He also cautioned that failing to maintain momentum carries serious downside risk.
Going forward, traders should watch whether Bitcoin can hold the $60,400–$60,900 support band if the market retraces, and whether whale inflows to Binance stabilize rather than continue sliding. With Fear & Greed only beginning to lift from extreme fear and macro equity concerns still in play, follow-through—not just bounce depth—will likely decide whether this week becomes a durable shift or another stop along the way.
Ripple announced minutes ago that it has received full authorization as a Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) from Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF).
This allows the company behind XRP to offer its regulated crypto payments platform throughout the European Economic Area (EEA).
The statement from the company indicates that this approval follows the firm’s preliminary authorization announced in June and confirms that it is fully compliant with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework.
Consequently, Ripple can now provide its end-to-end crypto payments solutions to financial institutions, corporations, and businesses across all 30 EEA countries under a single regulatory framework.
Ripple’s Managing Director for Europe and the UK, Cassie Craddock, weighed in on the major authorization, indicating that it positions her firm to expand its presence in the region as demand for regulated digital asset infrastructure continues to grow.
“This CASP authorization means Ripple enters the post-transitional MiCA era fully compliant and ready to scale. The institutions we work with across Europe are looking to build their digital asset services alongside regulated partners, and Ripple is licensed and ready to meet that demand,” she concluded.
The announcement noted that Ripple has now joined a very small number of cryptocurrency firms to have the full authorization under MiCA. Moreover, its portfolio of regulatory licenses has grown to over 75.
The post Ripple (XRP) Scores Major European Win With Full MiCA License appeared first on CryptoPotato.
Bitcoin’s price jumped to $64,000 earlier today for the first time in roughly two weeks, but it was rejected there and now sits over a grand lower.
Most larger-cap alts have remained relatively stagnant on a daily scale. Pi Network’s PI token continues to flirt with its all-time low levels and is very close to charting a fresh one.
BTC Progress Stopped at $64K
June was quite brutal for the primary cryptocurrency, which only continued its losses that began from the mid-May rejection at $83,000. The sixth month of the year ended with a substantial 20% decline, making it the worst in exactly four years.
July began with another dip that pushed the asset to under $58,000 for the first time since October 2024. However, the bulls finally reemerged at this point and helped BTC recover some ground in the following days.
The actual rebound attempt was quite gradual and appeared healthy. Bitcoin quickly climbed past $60,000 and kept increasing swiftly in the following days, including during the weekend. The culmination, at least for now, took place earlier this morning when it tapped $64,000 to chart a two-week peak.
However, it was halted there and now sits below $63,000 after losing well over a grand. Its market cap is inches below $1.260 trillion on CG, while its dominance over the alts remains above 56%.
Another ATL Coming for PI?
The stagnation within the larger-cap altcoins continues as most have failed to post any significant moves in either direction. ETH, BNB, SOL, XRP, and TRX are up by up to 1%, while ZEC and ADA are down by 2%. HYPE and XLM have gained the most – 2.5% and 3.6%, respectively – while RAIN has dropped by 3%.
DEXE and LIT are the top gainers from the mid- and lower-cap alts. Both have risen by double digits, and the latter has solidified its spot in the top 100 alts by market cap.
In contrast, Pi Network’s native token continues to underperform and now sits just 1% away from its all-time low marked in late June. The token has consistently lost value and is well below $0.115 as of press time.
The post Bitcoin Rejected at $64K, Pi Network’s PI Close to New ATL: Market Watch appeared first on CryptoPotato.
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