Key Highlights

• Intel stock soared following news of a strategic chip collaboration with Apple centered on domestic U.S. production facilities
• Major semiconductor names like Nvidia, Micron, and Broadcom staged a powerful comeback following recent weakness
• SpaceX experienced its most significant drop since its blockbuster public debut as early investors locked in returns
• Crude oil retreated on optimism surrounding potential diplomatic progress between the United States and Iran
• Apple cautioned investors that escalating memory and storage component expenses may necessitate higher device pricing

Intel’s shares surged during Wednesday’s trading session following revelations that Apple intends to partner with the chipmaker on design and production initiatives within American borders. The strategic alliance between these tech giants is anticipated to focus on semiconductor projects as the nation intensifies efforts to expand domestic chip manufacturing capabilities.

This development arrives as welcome news for Intel during a critical transformation period. The company has been aggressively expanding its contract manufacturing operations—referred to internally as its foundry business—in an effort to challenge industry leaders such as TSMC and Samsung.

Semiconductor Sector Mounts Impressive Comeback

The wider chip industry experienced a robust trading day. Nvidia, Micron, Broadcom, and Marvell Technology each recorded significant advances following several challenging weeks.

Market participants had been stepping away from semiconductor investments amid worries about elevated valuations and interest rate dynamics. Numerous investors viewed the recent decline as an attractive entry point to rebuild positions.

Artificial intelligence continues serving as the primary catalyst for sector demand. Corporations are allocating substantial capital toward AI processors, data center infrastructure, and network equipment, with industry observers projecting this momentum to persist.

SpaceX Experiences Profit-Taking Pressure Following Historic Public Offering

SpaceX endured one of its most challenging trading sessions since its market debut earlier in the year. Shares declined as initial investors capitalized on profits following the company’s unprecedented IPO performance.

The SpaceX public offering set records as the largest ever completed. The enterprise’s diversified operations spanning rocket technology, satellite broadband services, artificial intelligence, and defense contracting generated substantial early enthusiasm among market participants.

Industry analysts note that post-IPO price swings are typical following high-profile market entries. The stock is projected to exhibit continued volatility in coming sessions as market forces establish appropriate valuation levels.

Crude Prices Decline on Diplomatic Optimism

Oil prices retreated as market participants grew increasingly hopeful regarding potential diplomatic breakthrough between Washington and Tehran. Should Iran resume greater oil exports to international markets, global supply would expand and prices would face additional downward pressure.

Decreasing crude costs typically provide relief for aviation companies, logistics firms, and end consumers. They can also alleviate pressure on monetary authorities working to contain inflationary forces.

Apple Signals Potential Device Price Increases

Apple informed the investment community that escalating expenses for memory and storage elements may result in price adjustments for upcoming product releases. The technology leader has been impacted by robust demand for AI-focused semiconductors, which has elevated costs for critical components within its supply chain.

Market watchers are monitoring whether potential price hikes will impact unit sales volumes and the company’s profitability metrics.

Apple’s cost warnings underscore how artificial intelligence investment is creating cascading effects throughout the broader technology landscape, influencing everything from enterprise computing infrastructure to consumer-facing electronics products.

Michael Saylor’s bitcoin (BTC) treasury company Strategy has lost 40 years of forecasted dividend coverage in just seven months.

On November 20, the company announced, “At current BTC levels, we have 71 years of dividend coverage assuming the price stays flat.”

However, on Thursday morning, it admitted, “We have 32 years of dividend coverage through our BTC Reserve.” A few hours later, the counter on its homepage ticked down to 31.

Things aren’t going well for Strategy. As of writing time, the company’s common stock, MSTR, is within 7% of its 52-week low and its largest dividend-paying stock, STRC, hit an all-time low today.

The punishments of Alexander Mashinsky, the imprisoned former chief of Celsius until its high-profile collapse, continue with a formal banishment from any ability to seek business with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission or the trading it oversees.

The derivatives regulator didn’t pile any new fines onto Mashinsky, who previously pleaded guilty to accusations he misled the public about the health of his failing crypto firm as it was imploding, but the agency added an expected registration and trading ban, according to a Thursday statement. That’s a minor addition to the 12-year prison sentence imposed in his criminal case, in which he pleaded guilty to fraud, was hit with a $50,000 fine and ordered to return $48 million.

The CFTC’s arrangement, which “permanently restrained, enjoined and prohibited” him from any commodities activity, has been recorded in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, according to the filing, and was approved by a judge on Thursday, the court docket shows.

Key Takeaways

• Strategy’s common stock plummeted nearly 6%, settling around $109 following STRC preferred stock’s decline to an all-time low of $89
• The STRC price drop beneath $100 par value has suspended Strategy’s capacity to issue additional shares for bitcoin acquisitions
• In May, Strategy liquidated 32 bitcoin — marking its first cryptocurrency sale since 2022 — to cover STRC dividend obligations
• Board member Jarrod Patten offloaded approximately $9 million in MSTR shares across a three-month period; additional executives sold earlier this year
• Wall Street firms including Bernstein, TD Cowen, Citigroup, and BTIG maintained positive ratings with price objectives ranging from $250 to $450

Strategy (MSTR) shares experienced a sharp 6% decline Thursday, hovering near $109, as the company confronted mounting challenges from several fronts — deteriorating preferred share valuations, executive stock sales, and a subdued cryptocurrency market following the Federal Reserve’s recent policy announcement.

Strategy Inc, MSTR

The primary catalyst was the decline of STRC, Strategy’s Stretch preferred stock, which plummeted to an unprecedented low of $89. This development carries significant implications because STRC’s trading price below its $100 par value has compelled Strategy to suspend its at-the-market offering program — the principal vehicle through which it generates capital for bitcoin purchases.

With this financing avenue now closed, Strategy’s fundamental bitcoin acquisition model has ground to a halt.

Company Breaks Bitcoin-Only Policy

Toward the end of May, Strategy liquidated 32 bitcoin for roughly $2.5 million to satisfy STRC dividend requirements. This transaction represented the company’s first bitcoin sale since initiating its accumulation program in 2022.

Executive Chairman Michael Saylor had consistently championed a hold-only approach. The sale marked a significant shift from that established strategy, though analysts from Benchmark and TD Cowen dismissed concerns about a wider strategic unraveling.

Compounding the competitive dynamics, Strive’s competing SATA preferred stock maintains trading above $99 while offering a 13.69% yield, attracting dividend-seeking investors toward an alternative vehicle.

Market analytics firm QCP calculates Strategy possesses approximately 7.5 months of remaining liquidity to satisfy preferred dividend commitments. QCP highlighted the company may ultimately confront a decision between securing additional capital, further diluting existing shareholders, or liquidating additional bitcoin holdings.

Strategy recently bought back nearly $1.5 billion in convertible debt instruments maturing in 2029 while simultaneously raising approximately $200 million through MSTR equity sales — a portion of which financed another $100 million bitcoin purchase.

Director Stock Sales Compound Concerns

Director Jarrod Patten exercised options on 1,500 Class A shares at an exercise price of $18.236 and disposed of them at approximately $134, netting roughly $200,000. Throughout the preceding three months, Patten has divested 55,750 MSTR shares generating total proceeds near $9 million.

He maintains ownership of 28,406 Class A shares along with 44,250 outstanding director options.

Earlier this year, CEO Phong Le, CFO Andrew Kang, and former EVP Wei-Ming Shao similarly sold millions in MSTR equity.

The Federal Reserve’s June 17 unanimous 12-0 decision maintained interest rates at 3.50%–3.75%, though the updated dot plot revealed nine of 18 FOMC participants now anticipate at least one rate increase before 2026 concludes. This hawkish shift pressured bitcoin and cryptocurrency-related equities despite broader market strength.

Bitcoin was trading around $63,850 at publication time, declining approximately 2% over 24 hours. At this valuation, Strategy’s holdings reflect an unrealized loss of roughly $11,658 per coin relative to its average purchase price.

MSTR finished Wednesday’s session down 5.09% at $116.56, followed by an additional 2.1% drop to $114.04 during Thursday morning trading. The equity has now declined approximately 31% over the trailing month.

Notwithstanding these headwinds, Bernstein maintained its buy recommendation with a $450 price objective. TD Cowen sustains its $350 target, Citigroup at $260, and BTIG at $250.

CME Group has filed a lawsuit challenging the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) handling of cryptocurrency perpetual futures, arguing the agency has been applying the Commodity Exchange Act in a way that Congress did not intend. The complaint was submitted in a Thursday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia against the CFTC and its chair, Michael Selig.

The dispute centers on the CFTC’s recurring approvals of perpetual futures tied to crypto spot prices, including a May 29 notice that approved a Bitcoin (BTC)-linked perpetual futures structure for prediction markets platform Kalshi and issued a no-action position for similar products on Coinbase. CME argues these actions conflict with congressional directives and asks the court to vacate the approvals.

Key takeaways

• CME’s lawsuit targets the CFTC and chair Michael Selig over the agency’s regular handling of crypto perpetual futures.
• The complaint ties the disagreement to how perpetual products are classified under the Commodity Exchange Act, including whether they should be treated like “swaps” with expiry dates.
• CME alleges Selig acted unilaterally rather than through a full five-commissioner panel.
• CFTC’s response, via a spokesperson, rejects the claims and calls the complaint “frivolous.”
• The case comes amid wider uncertainty around CFTC leadership composition, with Selig operating as sole commissioner.

What CME is alleging in its complaint

According to CME’s filing, the CFTC’s approvals of perpetual futures attached to crypto spot benchmarks run contrary to what CME says Congress intended when it set out the regulatory framework for derivatives. CME’s argument focuses on the agency’s approach to classification—specifically, CME claims the CFTC has treated “futures” as if they were “swaps” that carry expiration dates.

CME further contends that these steps violate the Commodity Exchange Act. In addition to the statutory interpretation issue, the company raises a procedural concern: it argues Selig acted without the full complement of five CFTC commissioners, which CME characterizes as improper.

“With one stroke of his pen, [Selig] overrode Congress’s definition of the term ‘swap’ and circumvented the regulatory regime Congress required for that form of derivative,” the complaint says.

“The CFTC’s failure to evenhandedly, consistently, and correctly apply the CEA risks harming competition and destabilizing derivatives markets.”

Why Kalshi and Coinbase are central to the dispute

The lawsuit draws on a May 29 CFTC notice that CME says illustrates the agency’s approach. In that notice, the CFTC approved a Bitcoin spot-linked perpetual futures contract structure for Kalshi, a platform that operates in prediction markets, and it also issued a no-action position for comparable products associated with Coinbase.

CME is effectively challenging the logic behind those approvals: if the products are treated in a way that CME believes blurs the futures-versus-swaps distinction, CME argues it undermines the regulatory boundaries that Congress set.

For market participants and venues, the case matters because perpetual products are widely used in crypto markets, and regulatory classification can affect compliance expectations, oversight, and competitive dynamics among exchanges and liquidity providers. CME’s complaint signals that at least some major market infrastructure operators believe there are unresolved legal questions about how these instruments should be regulated in the US.

CFTC’s chair response and the question of authority

CME’s legal action follows closely behind public statements from both sides. One day before the lawsuit filing, CME CEO Terrence Duffy said the exchange operator would sue the CFTC over perpetual futures. In an earlier CNBC interview, Selig described perpetual futures contracts as trading similarly to other derivatives and argued that the Commodity Exchange Act does not define the term “futures contract.”

In response to the filing, a CFTC spokesperson told Cointelegraph that CME was engaging in “lawfare” and framed the suit as part of broader disputes over crypto policy. The spokesperson called CME’s complaint “frivolous.”

The clash highlights an enduring regulatory tension: whether perpetual crypto products should be treated as futures within the CFTC’s established framework, or whether they align more closely with a swaps regime that carries different requirements. CME’s filing also adds a governance dimension—its claim that Selig acted outside a full commissioner process—raising questions about how decisions should be authorized under the CFTC’s internal structure.

Leadership backdrop at the CFTC

The lawsuit lands in a period of leadership uncertainty at the agency. Selig was confirmed by the US Senate in December 2025 and, as of Thursday, remained the chair and the only commissioner on the CFTC. The CFTC’s intended leadership panel is supposed to include five people, but as of Thursday, President Donald Trump had not announced nominations to fill those seats.

Cointelegraph previously reported that many members of Congress had urged the administration to nominate commissioners for the remaining roles. This governance context is relevant to CME’s procedural argument that unilateral action should not be treated as sufficient for decisions that shape derivatives regulation.

At the same time, CME’s dispute does not only concern whether perpetual futures are substantively comparable to other derivatives; it also challenges whether the regulator’s power has been exercised in a manner consistent with the agency’s legal and administrative expectations.

What to watch next is how the court handles CME’s request to vacate the CFTC’s actions and what standard it applies to the classification and authority questions. The case could influence how perpetual crypto derivatives are structured and approved in the US, but until rulings arrive, the regulatory status of future perpetual contracts may remain contested for venues, traders, and counterparties.