Crypto World
What is a community takeover (CTO)? When a memecoin’s holders seize the wheel
A community takeover, or CTO, is when the holders of an abandoned token band together and run it themselves after the original developer walks away. It is one of the defining rituals of Solana memecoin culture. Here is how a CTO works, why most fail, and what separates the rare survivor from the rest.
Summary
- A community takeover (CTO) is when the holders or broader community of a token take over running it, marketing, socials, and coordination, after the original developers abandon the project, walk away, or lose credibility.
- CTOs are most common with Solana memecoins, where tokens are fully liquid from launch, so the token keeps trading on a decentralized exchange even after the creator leaves.
- The mechanics involve the community seizing the social accounts, organizing on Telegram and X, sometimes getting listing trackers to relabel the token as a CTO, and rallying new marketing and momentum.
- The appeal is an underdog, level-playing-field narrative: with the original developer gone and no insider advantage, holders feel they finally own the project outright.
- The hard reality is that most CTOs fail and the token stays near zero, because a new logo and a Telegram group do not create real demand, and the same speculative dynamics that sank the project remain.
A community takeover, almost always shortened to CTO, is what happens when the people who hold a token decide to take over and run the project themselves after its original developers abandon it, walk away, or lose the community’s trust. It is one of the most distinctive rituals of memecoin culture, particularly on Solana, where the fast, cheap, fully liquid nature of token launches makes both abandonment and revival routine events. In a typical CTO, the founding developer of a memecoin disappears, sells their holdings, or is exposed as untrustworthy, and the token, which would normally just collapse to nothing, instead gets a second life when a group of remaining holders bands together to keep it alive.
They take over the project’s social media accounts, organize themselves in group chats, raise money for marketing, and try to generate fresh momentum around a token that technically has no team behind it anymore. The contract on the blockchain stays the same; what changes is who is steering the narrative and the community around it. The holders, in effect, seize the wheel of a car the driver has jumped out of.
Understanding the CTO is essential to understanding how the memecoin trenches actually work, because abandonment and revival are not edge cases there but core features of the landscape. This guide explains what a community takeover is and why it is possible at all, the mechanics of how a CTO unfolds step by step, why these takeovers happen so often on Solana specifically, a worked example tracing a typical CTO from abandonment to revival attempt, what separates the rare CTO that succeeds from the many that fail, and an honest look at why most CTOs go to zero and how to think about the risks.
The aim is to give you a clear and unromantic picture of a phenomenon that memecoin culture often wraps in heroic, underdog language, because the narrative of a community heroically rescuing an abandoned token is emotionally powerful and frequently used to draw in buyers, and the reality is far more sobering than the story.
This is educational material, not investment advice, and the memecoin environment it describes is among the riskiest corners of crypto.
What a CTO is and why it is possible
Start with why a community takeover can happen at all, because the answer reveals something fundamental about how memecoins are structured. When a memecoin launches on a platform like those common on Solana, the token is created with its liquidity placed in a pool on a decentralized exchange, which means the token can be bought and sold by anyone the moment it exists, with no central party required to keep the market running. The developer who launched it does not control the trading; the market lives on-chain, in a liquidity pool that functions independently of whether the creator is still involved.
This is the structural fact that makes a CTO possible. Even if the original developer completely abandons the project, sells everything, and deletes the social accounts, the token itself keeps existing on the blockchain and keeps trading on the exchange, because the liquidity pool and the contract do not depend on the creator’s presence. The project as a social and marketing entity may be dead, but the token as a tradable asset survives.
This separation between the token and its creator is what gives the community something to take over. In traditional contexts, if a company’s founders walk away, the company often simply ceases to function. But a memecoin is not a company; it is a freely trading token with a community attached, and the community can continue even when the founder does not. A community takeover is the act of that community formally adopting the orphaned token, declaring that they will now run the things the developer used to run, the social media presence, the marketing, the coordination, the narrative, and attempting to carry the project forward on collective effort alone.
Crucially, a CTO does not change the underlying token or its contract; the holders cannot rewrite the code or mint themselves new control. What they take over is everything around the token: the story, the channels, the momentum. The token is the same; the stewardship is new. This is why a CTO is sometimes described as the community inheriting a project rather than acquiring it, they take possession of an asset that was left behind, with all its existing properties intact, good and bad.
How a CTO unfolds
The mechanics of a community takeover follow a recognizable sequence, even though the details vary from case to case. It begins with the trigger: the original developer abandons the project. This can take several forms. The developer might pull the liquidity or sell their entire holding in a rug pull, crashing the price and signaling they have given up; they might quietly disappear, going silent on social media and ceasing all activity; or they might be exposed as having acted in bad faith, destroying the community’s trust even if they have not formally left. Whatever the form, the result is a token with no active team, a collapsed or collapsing price, and a community of holders sitting on losses and a decision: walk away, or try to save it.
If enough holders choose to try, the takeover organizes itself. A core group, often the most committed remaining holders, coordinates through group chats on Telegram and through posts on X, rallying the community around the idea of continuing without the developer. They take over or recreate the social media accounts, establishing new official channels under community control, since the original accounts may have been deleted or abandoned.
They frequently seek to have the token’s listing on price-tracking sites relabeled to reflect the takeover, since major trackers have processes for marking a token as community-run when the original team is gone, which updates the project’s public information to point at the new community channels. The community then tries to do the work a team would normally do: organizing marketing pushes, raising funds for promotion, sometimes coordinating to provide or lock liquidity, and generating social momentum to attract new buyers.
In the best cases, the community also pushes for transparency about who is now leading and takes steps to reassure potential buyers, such as confirming that the liquidity is locked or burned so it cannot be pulled again. The whole effort is a bet that collective enthusiasm can substitute for a founding team and breathe new life into a token the market had written off.
Why CTOs happen so often on Solana
Community takeovers are not unique to Solana, but they are far more common there than anywhere else, and the reasons are structural to how the Solana memecoin ecosystem works. The first reason is the sheer volume of memecoin launches. Solana’s low fees and fast transactions, combined with launch platforms that make creating a token nearly effortless, have produced an enormous number of memecoins, far more than could ever succeed, which means abandonment is constant and the raw material for CTOs, orphaned tokens, is abundant.
Where thousands of tokens launch and the overwhelming majority fail or are abandoned, there is a steady supply of projects a community could potentially take over. The second reason is that Solana memecoins are fully liquid from day one, trading freely on decentralized exchanges, so an abandoned token does not vanish; it keeps trading, which is the precondition for any takeover.
The third reason is cultural and narrative. The Solana memecoin scene has developed a powerful underdog mythology around the CTO, in which a community rescuing a token abandoned by a faithless developer is framed as a triumph of the people over insiders. This narrative has real emotional force in a market where traders are acutely aware that many tokens are stacked in favor of developers and early insiders. When the developer leaves, the community feels it is finally operating on a level playing field, with no insider dumping on them and no hidden team allocation, just the holders and the token.
That underdog framing, the sense of a genuine community reclaiming something and proving the doubters wrong, turns a failed launch into a movement, at least in the storytelling, and movements attract attention and buyers. The combination of constant abandonment, full liquidity, and a culture that celebrates the takeover as a heroic act makes Solana uniquely fertile ground for CTOs. It is worth being clear-eyed that this same narrative is also a marketing device, deployed precisely because it is effective at drawing in new money, which is part of why the romance of the CTO deserves scrutiny rather than acceptance.
A worked example
Trace a representative case to see how a CTO actually plays out, using an illustrative example rather than any specific real token. Picture a memecoin that launches with an appealing theme and a charismatic developer who builds an early community. The token runs up quickly as buyers pile in, reaching a meaningful market value within days. Then the developer, having accumulated a large position at launch, sells their entire holding into the buying, crashing the price by most of its value in minutes, and goes silent, deleting the project’s social accounts. The remaining holders are left with a token that has lost the vast majority of its value, no team, and no official channels. By the normal logic of memecoins, this token is dead, and most would simply go to zero from here.
But a group of holders decides to attempt a community takeover. They form a new Telegram group, recreate the project’s presence on X under community control, and begin coordinating. They publicize that the original developer is gone and frame the situation as an opportunity: the insider who was dumping on everyone has left, the liquidity that remains is now locked so it cannot be pulled again, and the token is in the hands of the community. They petition the major price-tracking sites to relabel the token as a community takeover, updating its public listing to point at the new channels.
They organize a marketing push, pooling funds to pay for promotion and rallying members to post about the revival. For a while, this can work: the CTO narrative attracts fresh attention, new buyers come in drawn by the underdog story and the apparent absence of an insider threat, and the token’s price recovers some ground on the renewed momentum. Whether this recovery lasts is the crucial question, and in the great majority of cases it does not, because, as the next section explains, enthusiasm and a new logo do not generate the durable demand a token needs to hold value. The example shows the mechanism clearly; it does not imply the mechanism usually succeeds.
What separates a rare success from the many failures
Among the flood of community takeovers, a small number achieve a real and lasting revival while most fade, and the differences between them, though they do not guarantee anything, are instructive. The first factor is transparent and credible new leadership. A CTO led by identifiable, communicative people who articulate a clear plan and follow through tends to fare better than one run anonymously with vague promises, because trust is the scarce resource in a project that has already betrayed its community once.
The second factor is the state of the liquidity. A takeover where the remaining liquidity is verifiably locked or burned, so it cannot be pulled out from under buyers again, removes one of the biggest risks and gives new participants a reason to believe the rug cannot happen twice. Checking whether liquidity-provider tokens have been burned or locked is one of the most important pieces of due diligence in any CTO.
The third factor is the distribution of holdings. A CTO where the token supply is spread across many holders is healthier than one where a few large wallets dominate, because concentrated holdings mean a small number of people can crash the price by selling, recreating the very dynamic the takeover was supposed to escape. A diversified holder base gives a revival a more stable foundation. The fourth factor, the hardest and least common, is genuine sustained effort and some reason for the token to attract ongoing attention, real marketing, real community activity, sometimes an attempt to build something beyond pure speculation.
Even with all of these factors present, success is rare, and it is essential to understand that these are markers that improve the odds at the margin, not formulas that produce a winner. The base rate is failure. The point of knowing the success factors is not to identify guaranteed revivals, which do not exist, but to recognize the warning signs in their absence: anonymous leadership, unlocked liquidity, and concentrated holdings are signals that a CTO is especially likely to fail, and their presence should make anyone considering participation far more cautious. The factors are a filter for avoiding the worst, not a recipe for finding the best.
The hard truth about CTOs and how to think about the risk
The unromantic reality, which the heroic CTO narrative tends to obscure, is that the overwhelming majority of community takeovers fail, and the token settles at or near zero regardless of the community’s effort. This is not a cynical exaggeration but the base rate of the phenomenon, and understanding why is essential. A community takeover changes the stewardship of a token, but it does not change the fundamental problem that sank the project in the first place: a memecoin has no inherent product, revenue, or utility, and its price depends entirely on continued speculative demand.
A new Telegram group, a recovered social account, and a wave of marketing can generate a burst of renewed attention, but attention is not the same as durable demand, and once the initial CTO excitement fades, the token is left exactly where it was, a speculative asset with nothing underneath it, now without even the novelty of a fresh launch. The community can work tirelessly and still fail, because the thing they are trying to revive never had a foundation to stand on.
Compounding this, the same dynamics that make memecoins dangerous in the first place persist through a takeover. The people coordinating a CTO are often the same speculators who bought in originally, with the same incentives to sell into any strength, so a price recovery driven by the CTO narrative can itself become an exit opportunity for early holders at the expense of the new buyers the narrative attracted. The underdog story that draws fresh money into a CTO is, viewed coldly, sometimes a mechanism for transferring losses from the people who held through the crash to the people who buy the revival. There are also coordination and trust problems inherent in running anything by committee with anonymous participants and no formal structure.
For anyone weighing involvement in a CTO, the honest framework is this: treat it as among the highest-risk activities in crypto, assume the base rate is failure, do the specific due diligence that can at least rule out the worst cases, checking that liquidity is locked or burned, researching who is now leading, examining whether holdings are concentrated, and never commit money you cannot afford to lose entirely, because losing it entirely is the most common outcome. The CTO is a real and fascinating feature of memecoin culture, and it occasionally produces a genuine revival, but it is a casino bet dressed in the language of community heroism, and seeing it clearly means holding both the appeal and the brutal odds in view at once.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does CTO mean in crypto?
CTO stands for community takeover. It refers to a situation where the holders or broader community of a token take over running the project after its original developers abandon it, walk away, or lose the community’s trust. The community assumes the roles a team would normally fill, controlling the social media accounts, organizing marketing, coordinating through group chats, and trying to generate fresh momentum, even though there is no longer an official team behind the token. CTOs are most common with memecoins, especially on Solana, where tokens trade freely on decentralized exchanges and so keep existing even after the creator leaves. A CTO changes who steers the project’s narrative and community, but it does not change the underlying token or its contract.
How does a community takeover work?
It usually starts when the original developer abandons the project, by selling out in a rug pull, going silent, or being exposed as untrustworthy, leaving a token with a collapsed price and no team. A core group of committed holders then coordinates, typically through Telegram and X, to keep the token alive. They take over or recreate the social accounts under community control, often get price-tracking sites to relabel the token as a community takeover, and organize marketing and fundraising to attract new attention. They may also confirm that the remaining liquidity is locked or burned to reassure buyers. The goal is to substitute collective community effort for the missing team and revive a token the market had written off. The token’s code itself does not change.
Why do community takeovers happen on Solana?
Three structural reasons. First, Solana’s low fees and easy launch platforms have produced an enormous volume of memecoins, the vast majority of which fail or are abandoned, creating a constant supply of orphaned tokens that communities could take over. Second, Solana memecoins are fully liquid from launch, trading on decentralized exchanges, so an abandoned token keeps trading instead of vanishing, which is the precondition for any takeover. Third, the culture has built a powerful underdog narrative around the CTO, framing a community rescuing an abandoned token as a triumph over faithless insiders, which has emotional force and attracts attention. The combination of abundant abandonment, full liquidity, and a celebratory culture makes Solana uniquely fertile ground for community takeovers.
Do community takeovers succeed?
Rarely. The overwhelming majority of CTOs fail, and the token settles at or near zero despite the community’s effort. The reason is that a takeover changes who runs the project but not the underlying problem: a memecoin has no inherent product, revenue, or utility, and depends entirely on speculative demand. A new social account and a marketing push can create a burst of attention, but attention is not durable demand, and once the excitement fades the token is left as a speculative asset with nothing underneath it. A small number of CTOs do achieve real revivals, usually those with transparent leadership, locked or burned liquidity, and a diversified holder base, but these are exceptions. The base rate is failure.
How can I tell if a CTO is legitimate?
There is no way to be certain, but several checks can rule out the worst cases. First, examine the new leadership: transparent, identifiable, communicative people with a clear plan are a better sign than anonymous accounts making vague promises, because the project has already betrayed its community once. Second, verify the liquidity: check whether the liquidity-provider tokens have been burned or locked, which prevents another rug pull and is one of the most important pieces of due diligence. Third, look at the holder distribution: a supply spread across many wallets is healthier than one where a few large holders could crash the price. These checks improve your odds of avoiding disasters, but they cannot identify a guaranteed winner, because most CTOs fail regardless.
Is buying into a CTO a good investment?
It is among the highest-risk activities in crypto, and this is not investment advice. The honest framework is to assume the base rate is failure, because most community takeovers end with the token near zero. The underdog narrative that draws money into a CTO can itself be a mechanism for early holders to exit at the expense of new buyers, transferring losses to the people the story attracted. The same speculative dynamics and trust problems that sank the original project usually persist. If you choose to participate anyway, do the due diligence that can rule out the worst cases, locked or burned liquidity, transparent leadership, diversified holdings, and never commit money you cannot afford to lose entirely, because total loss is the most common outcome.
This article is educational information, not financial or investment advice. Memecoins and community takeovers are among the highest-risk activities in crypto, and most result in total loss. Examples are illustrative and not references to specific tokens. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or participate in any project. Do your own research and never risk money you cannot afford to lose.
Binance said affected EU users can still access key account options as MiCA-related service changes take effect across the bloc.
Summary
- Binance said affected EU users’ assets remain safe and held on a one-to-one basis.
- Richard Teng said users will keep access to communicated options, including withdrawals after July 1.
- MiCA’s full rollout has raised pressure on unlicensed exchanges while approved rivals chase European users.
Binance said on X that it remained committed to supporting affected users as MiCA-related changes started in the European Union. The exchange said user assets remain safe and are held on a 1:1 basis.
The company said affected users will continue to have access to the options already communicated to them. Those options include transfers and withdrawals where applicable. Binance added that it is contacting affected users directly with next steps.
Binance CEO Teng says withdrawals remain available
“User assets remain safe and secure,” Binance CEO Richard Teng said in a post on X. He said affected users will continue to have access to the options already shared with them after July 1, including withdrawals.
“Our focus remains on giving users clarity, continuity, and confidence as we work through this period,” Teng said.
He also told users with account-specific questions to contact Binance Customer Support through official channels.
The statements came as MiCA’s transition period ended on July 1. Under the EU framework, crypto asset service providers must hold authorization to keep serving users across the bloc.
MiCA deadline reshapes exchange access
Binance told affected EU users that it could stop offering some services after missing the full MiCA licensing deadline. The exchange said user funds would remain safe while it issued country-specific service and withdrawal notices.
As reported earlier by crypto.news, the July 1 change was described as a suspension, not a permanent exit. The report said Binance was expected to halt new orders, deposits, sign-ups and staking products for EU residents while keeping withdrawals available.
The exchange has said it remains engaged with regulators. Binance had vowed to stay in Europe despite a licensing setback and was looking at other possible paths to authorization after its Greek application process did not deliver approval before the deadline.
Licensed rivals chase affected users
The MiCA change has opened a new competitive period in Europe. As reported by crypto.news, Coinbase and OKX launched campaigns targeting Binance users after the exchange began suspending some services across the region.
Those campaigns came as licensed firms tried to gain users seeking MiCA-compliant platforms. Coinbase secured a Luxembourg MiCA hub, while OKX and other approved exchanges have moved to grow their European presence.
MiCA’s transition ending on July 1 means users need to check whether their platform holds the right authorization. The rule change affects exchanges, custodians and other crypto service providers that want to serve customers in the European Economic Area.
Binance’s latest message seeks to reduce uncertainty for users already affected by the transition. The company said it is working with regulators and will communicate directly with users about available account options.
Taiwan has taken a major step toward formalizing the country’s crypto market, with lawmakers passing a new law that sets out a regulatory framework for virtual assets and stablecoins. The package establishes a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and introduces specific approval, reserve, and audit requirements for stablecoin issuers.
According to Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), the Legislative Yuan passed the bill on Tuesday, requiring VASPs to obtain regulatory approval before operating. The FSC said the move is designed to strengthen protections for traders’ rights while helping Taiwan integrate with international financial markets.
Key takeaways
- Taiwan’s new law creates a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers, overseen by the FSC.
- Stablecoins issued in Taiwan must receive approval from both the central bank and the FSC, with reserve and audit requirements.
- The framework covers multiple VASP categories, including exchanges, trading platforms, custodians, and lenders.
- The law criminalizes crypto-related fraud and price manipulation, with penalties including prison time and substantial fines.
- Implementation timing depends on publication by the executive branch, with a post-implementation license application window for firms that already completed AML registration.
Licensing and oversight for VASPs
The FSC said all VASPs in Taiwan must be authorized by the regulator before they can legally operate. The law is described as Taiwan’s first comprehensive regime specifically addressing crypto and stablecoins, aligning the jurisdiction with other major Asian markets in the region—such as Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong—that have already moved ahead with crypto legislation to encourage industry participation.
Under the rules, Taiwan defines seven types of VASPs, including exchanges and trading platforms, as well as custodians and lenders. Regardless of category, the law requires regulated firms to maintain robust internal controls and undergo audits. It also sets expectations around cybersecurity systems, listing and delisting standards for crypto assets, customer-asset segregation, and financial reporting.
Stablecoin approval, reserves, and audits
Stablecoins receive their own regulatory structure within the bill. The law states that any stablecoin issued in Taiwan must obtain approval from both the central bank and the FSC. Issuers are required to maintain sufficient reserves, with those reserves held with a trustee.
In addition, stablecoin issuers must undergo regular audits. By combining multi-agency approval with reserve custody and recurring review, the framework aims to reduce the risk of under-collateralization and improve transparency for token holders.
The FSC argued that stablecoin issuance can help Taiwan connect more effectively to international markets and strengthen its position in the global crypto sector.
Enforcement: fraud and unlicensed operation carry prison and fines
The bill also lays out enforcement measures aimed at preventing misconduct in the crypto sector. The law prohibits crypto-based fraud and price manipulation, and it sets penalties that range from three to 10 years in prison, along with fines estimated at roughly 10 million New Taiwan dollars (about $300,000) to 200 million New Taiwan dollars (about $6.3 million).
For individuals or entities that operate a VASP or issue a stablecoin without the required license, the law increases the stakes: CNA reported that unauthorized activity can result in up to seven years in prison and fines of up to 100 million New Taiwan dollars (about $3.1 million).
These figures signal that Taiwan intends to treat compliance as a central condition for market access, rather than a purely administrative requirement.
What happens next: publication, timing, and a follow-on derivatives proposal
While the legislative step is complete, the law’s timeline is not yet fully operational. The implementation date remains undecided, and the framework will only take effect after it is published by the government’s executive branch.
In the meantime, the FSC said VASPs that have already completed anti-money laundering (AML) registration before implementation can apply for a license within 12 months after the bill becomes effective. Institutions providing related services under the FSC also fall within the same general post-implementation window, according to the regulator’s comments.
Separately, CNA reported that lawmakers passed a resolution asking the FSC to propose a plan within a year detailing how the crypto industry could offer derivative crypto commodity services. The resolution frames the effort as a way to provide diversified investment options while improving the overall health of the sector—but it does not change the fact that the new law’s immediate focus is licensing, stablecoin rules, and market conduct.
Regional implications for traders and industry participants
For market participants, the practical effect of the bill will hinge on the licensing process that follows implementation—especially for platforms handling customer assets, custody, or market operations. The stablecoin provisions are likely to be particularly consequential for issuers and reserve holders, since the framework explicitly requires approvals from both Taiwan’s central bank and the FSC, along with trustee-held reserves and regular audits.
Readers should watch next for the executive-branch publication date and any subsequent guidance from the FSC on how it will evaluate VASPs across the seven defined categories, including cybersecurity expectations, customer-asset segregation practices, and listing/delisting rules. Until those details land, firms can prepare for compliance work, but the final operational path will depend on how regulators translate the law into enforceable procedures.
Sources: FSC statement (as reported in the provided material); CNA report on penalties and timelines; Cointelegraph link referenced for context.
Bitcoin fell by 20% to under $60,000 in June, its worst monthly performance since the same month in 2022. If that number alone isn’t enough to worry bulls, the price chart, especially the monthly candlestick, could be.
The June candlestick, a charting tool summarizing entire month’s price action into a single visual, looks like a solid red brick with virtually no wicks, a clear sign of complete and “uninterrupted” bear dominance throughout the month.
For anyone tracking price charts, that’s about as bearish a signal as can be and a warning that more losses could happen in the weeks ahead.
A candlestick captures four data points for any given period: where price opened, where it closed, how high it got, and how low it fell.
The candle body shows the open-to-close move. The wicks – the thin lines extending above and below the body, representing high and low – show how far price traveled in both directions during that period.
Big wicks mean buyers and sellers were fighting hard. A long upper wick means sellers beat back a rally while a long lower wick means buyers defended a selloff. Either way, wicks are evidence of two-sided activity.
The June candle
The June candle has none of that.
Crypto World
Utorg Obtains MiCA License as July 1 Deadline Forces Much of the Industry Out of Europe
[PRESS RELEASE – Dubai, UAE, July 1st, 2026]
Utorg, a crypto wallet and card platform built on institutional-grade infrastructure, today announced it has received full authorization under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, effective July 1, 2026 – the date on which the industry’s transitional period ends and unauthorized providers can no longer legally serve European users.
The company, which also provides regulated crypto rails, wallets and stablecoin infrastructure to businesses across 130+ countries, is among a small number of platforms to have completed the full authorization process and is now cleared to operate across all 29 EEA member states, a combined market of over 450 million people.
What MiCA means for users
MiCA is the EU’s first unified regulatory framework for crypto-assets, establishing binding standards on consumer protection, transparency, and financial integrity across all member states.
For users, MiCA authorization means concrete protective measures that previously did not exist in crypto: funds must be held separately from company assets, fees must be disclosed upfront, and users have a legal right to file complaints with a national regulator. If a MiCA-authorized platform fails, user assets are protected under EU law (not subject to the discretion of an offshore jurisdiction).
For Utorg, the authorization is the result of a full regulatory review of its products, operations, and compliance infrastructure. It also means ongoing oversight: Utorg is now subject to regular reporting obligations and supervisory review under EU financial law.
Industry background
July 1, 2026 marks the end of MiCA’s transitional period – the point at which crypto-asset service providers without full authorization can no longer legally serve users in the EEA.
In the months leading up to the deadline, a significant portion of the market has withdrawn from or restricted European operations. Utorg is among the few platforms to have completed the full authorization process and is operational from day one of the new regulatory regime.
Eugene Petrakov, Co-founder of Utorg, said: “Most of the industry spent the last two years hoping MiCA would get delayed or softened. We spent it building toward it. For European users, July 1 means fewer options, stricter standards, and a much shorter list of platforms they can actually trust. We intend to be at the top of that list, not just because we’re authorized, but because we built a product that is safe by design. The license confirms what was already true.”
Utorg’s products available to EEA residents
From July 1, EEA users can continue to access Utorg’s full product suite through the Utorg App, including:
- A crypto wallet supporting buy, send, receive, store, and swap across 170+ cryptocurrencies and 14 blockchains, including BTC, ETH, and SOL. Thanks to its non-custodial nature, Utorg has no access to users’ funds at any point.
- A crypto card accepted at 80 million+ merchants worldwide, with Google Pay and Apple Pay support and allowing users to spend their crypto as they wish. It’s worth mentioning that there are no fees for issuance, maintenance, or top-ups.
This crypto card operates under strict AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance requirements, as mandated by MiCA, ensuring users benefit from the full protections afforded by EU law.
For card payments specifically, Utorg holds a PCI DSS Level 2 certificate under the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. This is the same security framework used across the traditional payments industry, and it governs how card numbers, transaction records, and personal details are stored, processed, and transmitted. Compliance is verified through regular audits by an independent assessor.
About Utorg
Founded in 2019, Utorg is a crypto infrastructure and consumer application fintech company operating across 130+ countries. It provides regulated on/off-ramp rails, wallet infrastructure, and stablecoin solutions to fintechs, exchanges, digital asset platforms and other businesses globally. Its consumer app, trusted by more than 2 million users, offers a self-custodial multi-chain wallet and a free Visa crypto card, available on iOS (in July) and Android. Utorg is MiCA-authorized and holds PCI DSS Level 2 certification.
The post Utorg Obtains MiCA License as July 1 Deadline Forces Much of the Industry Out of Europe appeared first on CryptoPotato.
Jim Cramer has named the 5 stocks he believes are best positioned to benefit from the artificial intelligence (AI) spending cycle, pointing to several chip suppliers as the market’s current winners.
Cramer argued that Wall Street is rewarding companies that supply the AI boom while punishing the Big Tech giants that fund it.
The Stocks Cramer Says Will Win
Cramer described Micron Technology (MU), Sandisk (SNDK), Intel (INTC), Marvell Technology (MRVL), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) as the quarter’s biggest gainers.
According to him, “supply-demand imbalance” has boosted earnings growth, leading analysts to issue a wave of upgrades and lift price targets for companies across the group.
The numbers behind the memory names are extreme. Micron reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of $41.5 billion. Furthermore, it briefly topped Meta in market cap at $1.4 trillion. Bank of America has also lifted its Micron target to $1,500 from $950.
Meanwhile, other firms have also experienced notable growth. The company posted $5.95 billion in fiscal third-quarter revenue, up 97% from the prior quarter.
The stock has rallied roughly 4,800% over 12 months on AI-driven NAND demand. Citi set a $2,500 price target with a Buy rating.
Intel follows with steadier numbers, reporting first-quarter revenue of $13.6 billion, up 7% year over year. Cramer named it his new favorite.
Follow us on X to get the latest news as it happens
Why Suppliers Are Beating Big Tech
Cramer explained that demand for compute has outrun supply, driving up the cost of memory chips and networking gear. That dynamic has rewarded the sellers rather than the hyperscalers writing the checks.
“Wall Street’s now rewarding tech companies with products in high demand and punishing their customers,” he said.
The pressure shows in the tape. The Magnificent 7 shed roughly $2.3 trillion in market value during June. The drop came as investors questioned whether record AI spending would generate enough profit to justify it.
Even Nvidia (NVDA), a core supplier of AI compute, has lagged the rally. Cramer attributed the drag to concerns that custom chip competition would eat into its dominance.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch leaders and journalists provide expert insights
The post Jim Cramer Names 5 Top AI Spending Cycle Stocks appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke on July 1, 2026, in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing to commemorate the 105th anniversary of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.
Eunice Yoon | CNBC
BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday emphasized the global influence of the ruling Communist Party of China as he marked its 105th anniversary, striking a more outward-looking tone than in previous speeches.
The remarks, which lasted about 40 minutes, contrasted with Xi’s prior speeches on similar occasions that had a domestic focus on China’s “national rejuvenation.”
The Chinese Communist Party has “deeply changed the trend and trajectory of the world’s development through relentless struggle,” Xi said, according to a CNBC translation from Mandarin.
Xi, who is also the party’s general secretary, described the CCP as “the world’s largest ruling party with significant global influence.” He said the CCP enabled China to overthrow imperialism, feudalism and bureaucratic capitalism, paving the way for industrialization.
The CCP was founded on July 1, 1921, and established the People’s Republic of China on Oct. 1, 1949. The economy began to open gradually to foreign investment and trade only in the last few decades and became the world’s second-largest economy in 2010.
China now accounts for about 28% of goods manufactured globally despite U.S. and EU tariffs.
Building on his frequently used phrase “changes not seen in a century,” Xi said Wednesday that those shifts were accelerating, and that “the world has entered a new era of turbulence and transformation.”
Against that backdrop, Xi said China would “promote the building of a new type of international relations,” but did not identify specific countries.
Xi is scheduled to visit the U.S. in September following President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing in May.
“A strong country must have a strong military, and only a strong military can ensure national security,” Xi said on Wednesday.
China will raise defense spending by 7% this year, the slowest increase in its annual military expenditure since 2021, according to a budget plan released in March by the Ministry of Finance. The country ranks second to the U.S. in military spending.
Xi, now serving an unprecedented third term as president, also used the speech to bolster confidence in long-term national goals.
The Chinese leader reiterated opposition to “Taiwan independence” efforts and “external interference” in the issue, adding that “resolving the Taiwan issue and realizing complete reunification with the motherland is the party’s unwavering historical responsibility.”
On Hong Kong and Macau, Xi called for “promoting the long-term prosperity and stability,” while noting the need to support the integration of the two regions into serving China’s overall development.
Bitcoin traded near $58,700 as ETF selling, weak U.S. demand and a break below long-term support kept pressure on BTC.
Summary
- Bitcoin trades below $59,000 after U.S. spot ETF outflows reached $4.5 billion in June.
- BTC’s weekly close below the 200-week average raised focus on $58,000 and $50,000 support.
- CryptoQuant data shows weak U.S. demand, but long-term holders and whales continued accumulating Bitcoin.
Bitcoin traded near $58,690 at press time, down about 1.2% over the latest session, according to crypto.news market data. BTC moved between an intraday low of $57,891 and a high of $59,447, keeping the market close to the $58,000 support zone that traders have watched through June.
Meanwhile, the latest price action followed a weak monthly close for Bitcoin. BTC ended June in the red after falling from around $74,000 to near $58,000. June was not only a price decline, but also a shift in market structure as ETF demand, Coinbase Premium and apparent demand weakened at the same time.
The decline has brought BTC back to levels last seen during earlier stress periods. A loss of the $58,000 zone would keep sellers in control and could bring the next major area near $50,000 into view. A recovery attempt would need to reclaim higher moving averages before traders can treat the move as more than a short bounce.
Bitcoin ETF outflows deepen June pressure
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded about $4.5 billion in net outflows in June, marking their worst month since launch in January 2024, according to SoSoValue data. The funds also posted $222.6 million in net outflows on June 30, extending a nine-day losing streak.
BlackRock’s IBIT accounted for the largest share of June withdrawals, with about $3.55 billion leaving the fund during the month. The combined June outflow passed the previous monthly record of $3.48 billion set in February 2025 by about 29%.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs had already seen a record 13-day outflow streak from May 15 to June 3, with about $4.37 billion leaving the products. That earlier selloff showed how ETF flows had become one of the main drivers of Bitcoin price action in 2026.
Traders had already been watching ETF flows, geopolitical risk and the $62,000 level in late June. The move below that area now shifts attention to whether BTC can defend $58,000 or if the market starts testing lower support.
200-week moving average breaks
Bitcoin also closed below its 200-week moving average for the first time since 2023, according to a Barchart post on X. The 200-week moving average is widely watched because past breakdowns below it have often appeared near deep cycle lows or long accumulation phases.
Earlier in June, $60,000 had become an important psychological and technical level for BTC. A convincing break below that zone could push traders to watch $50,000, which is close to Bitcoin’s August 2024 low near $49,445.
Bitcoin would need to regain the 30-day and 200-day moving averages to turn sentiment more positive. Those levels were far above spot price during the June selloff, showing how much work bulls face before the chart structure improves.
Some traders still view the break as a possible long-term entry point. But the short-term structure remains weak while Bitcoin trades below major averages and below its former support zone. The market now needs stronger spot demand to stop the decline from extending.
Analysts split on Bitcoin correction depth
“If this ends up holding then those who called it a mid-cycle correction will be vindicated,” analyst Matthew Hyland said in a post on X. He argued that Bitcoin’s current decline looks closer to the 2019 and 2021 mid-cycle corrections than deeper bear markets such as 2014, 2018 and 2022.
“BTC has barely seen any massive liquidation events this cycle, relative to its last cycle,” Daan Crypto Trades said on X.
He said lower open interest and lower speculation helped make this cycle’s moves slower and more controlled than the 2021 run.
“Bitcoin has officially dropped to new lows for the year of 2026,” Rekt Capital said on X. He noted that BTC had deviated about 16% below its 2021 all-time high, moving closer to the 22% deviation below the 2017 high seen during the 2022 bear market.
CryptoQuant’s XWIN Japan said June showed two sides of the market. The Coinbase Premium Index stayed negative, showing weak U.S. institutional spot demand, while apparent demand stayed deeply negative. At the same time, long-term holders kept holding, and whale accumulation remained resilient despite short-term panic selling.
Moreover, as reported by crypto.news, SpaceX disclosed 18,712 BTC in its filing, but the IPO’s $75 billion raise also competed for risk capital. That means the listing may have helped Bitcoin’s long-term corporate-treasury story while draining some near-term market liquidity.
That mix leaves Bitcoin at a key decision point. ETF flows, Coinbase Premium, apparent demand and liquidity now matter more than price alone. A rebound in these indicators could support a base near current levels. Without that shift, BTC may remain exposed to further downside below $58,000.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
Phantom has hired three Ventuals creators after the Hyperliquid-based project shut down its OpenAI and Anthropic perpetual futures markets.
Summary
- Phantom has hired Ventuals creators Alvin Hsia, Emily Hsia and Aris Samad for its trading and data teams.
- Ventuals recently shut down its OpenAI and Anthropic perpetual futures markets on Hyperliquid.
- Phantom said the hires will support its deeper push into perpetual futures and Hyperliquid-based trading products.
Phantom CEO Brandon Millman said Alvin Hsia, Emily Hsia and Aris Samad, who created Ventuals, have joined the company’s trading and data teams.
The move brings one of Hyperliquid’s closely watched private-company market experiments into Phantom’s growing trading business.
Ventuals had earlier announced that it was winding down and joining another project within the Hyperliquid ecosystem. The project had gained attention for offering perpetual futures tied to private-company valuations, including markets linked to OpenAI and Anthropic, before those products were closed.
Perpetual futures allow traders to take positions on price movements without a contract expiry date. Unlike traditional futures, these contracts can remain open as long as margin conditions are met, making them one of the most used derivative products in crypto markets.
Their constant availability, deep liquidity, and flexible market design have also made them useful for trading assets beyond listed cryptocurrencies.
Phantom deepens focus on Hyperliquid trading
For Phantom, the hires come as the self-custody wallet continues adding trading-focused features to its core wallet business. The company is best known as a crypto wallet provider, but it has expanded into swaps, staking and derivatives as wallets compete to become more active financial platforms for users.
Millman said Phantom has become the largest distribution partner in the Hyperliquid ecosystem and plans to keep building around perpetual futures. He said open markets had become a major focus for the company and added that Phantom had gone deep into perps and planned to go further.
In the same statement, Millman described Hyperliquid as one of the strongest examples of what open markets can enable, citing its global liquidity and transparent onchain infrastructure. According to him, adding the Ventuals team will help Phantom move faster in developing trading products linked to the ecosystem.
The development also comes as perpetual futures gain attention outside crypto-native exchanges. Kalshi launched its own perpetual futures business last month after receiving regulatory approval, adding another example of trading platforms testing always-on derivatives beyond traditional crypto markets.
U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs recorded $4.5 billion in net outflows in June, their worst month since launching in January 2024, per SoSoValue data.
The previous record was $3.48 billion in February 2025. June’s figure beat that by 29%.
BlackRock’s IBIT, the largest fund by assets, accounted for $3.55 billion of the monthly total alone, including $212 million on June 30, the ninth consecutive day of net outflows. Total ETF assets have fallen to about $71 billion from roughly $83 billion at the start of the month.
[@portabletext/react] Unknown block type “image”, specify a component for it in the `components.types` prop
Two events may have set the streak in motion. SpaceX debuted June 12 and within days had absorbed billions in risk capital, with retail buying on its first trading day breaking all single-session records and the offering raising $75 billion in total.
Five days later, Kevin Warsh’s first Fed meeting as chair turned the dot plot toward hikes, took rate cuts off the table, and gave institutions a reason to reduce exposure to volatile assets.
Anthropic has said it will restore public access to Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 after U.S. authorities lifted export restrictions that had kept the company’s two most advanced AI models offline since June 12.
Summary
- Anthropic said public access to Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 will resume after U.S. authorities lifted export restrictions.
- The models were pulled offline after officials raised concerns over a reported jailbreak that could make Fable 5 identify software vulnerabilities.
- Anthropic said the redeployed models will include new classifiers to block more cybersecurity-related tasks while cooperation with the U.S. government expands.
According to Anthropic, the decision followed “a series of productive conversations” with the U.S. government, after which the company began redeploying the models with new classifiers designed to identify and block more cybersecurity-related tasks.
The company said the latest safeguards are meant to address government concerns linked to possible misuse if the systems are bypassed through jailbreak methods.
The restrictions had forced Anthropic to suspend access to Fable 5 and Mythos 5 for all users earlier this month, after a U.S. government export control directive instructed the company to block both models for all foreign nationals.
In its June 13 statement, Anthropic said the order also covered foreign-national employees working inside the company, prompting it to disable the models entirely to ensure compliance.
U.S. government clears redeployment after review
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said on X on Wednesday that officials had worked with Anthropic over the past two weeks to review and approve Fable 5 while keeping the model aligned with U.S. government requirements.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles also said on X that the government’s priority was to get the best AI technology deployed “as quickly and safely as possible.”
The intervention came after officials became aware of a report in which Amazon researchers found a method to bypass Fable 5’s safeguards and make the model identify software vulnerabilities.
Anthropic, however, has argued that the reported issue was not unique to Fable 5, saying weaker models could also identify the same vulnerabilities and produce similar exploit-related output.
In its earlier response to the order, the company said authorities had presented only verbal evidence of what it described as a narrow, non-universal jailbreak. Anthropic said such a method did not remove a model’s safety protections across a wide range of tasks, unlike a universal jailbreak.
“We disagree that the finding of a narrow potential jailbreak should be cause for recalling a commercial model deployed to hundreds of millions of people. If this standard was applied across the industry, we believe it would essentially halt all new model deployments for all frontier model providers.”
The company had also warned that treating a narrow jailbreak as a reason to recall a commercial frontier model could affect the entire AI industry if applied as a general standard.
Restrictions on Anthropic have raised policy concerns outside the United States as well. On June 29, Austria urged the European Union to explore establishing Anthropic within the bloc, with State Secretary for Digitalization Alexander Proell arguing in a letter that Europe should not risk losing access to major AI advances because of decisions made elsewhere.
Anthropic expands cooperation on AI safety
Alongside the model redeployment, Anthropic said it is increasing cooperation with the U.S. government on model testing, safeguards, and misuse tracking. The company said this will include pre-release access to models and safety systems for evaluation, information sharing on jailbreaks and misuse, and dedicated resources for joint research.
Anthropic has also started drafting a framework with Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and other partners through Project Glasswing, a cybersecurity collaboration announced in April, to assess the severity of AI jailbreaks. The company said the framework is being developed as a consensus effort for classifying jailbreak risks.
The access debate came as Anthropic has continued its push for stricter frontier AI oversight. In its June 11 “Policy on the AI Exponential” proposal, the company called for testing requirements, independent evaluations, cybersecurity standards, and enforcement measures for advanced AI systems, citing potential biological, cybersecurity, and operational risks.
Strategy B The Future or Next Financial Crisis | Michael Saylor’s Biggest Risk
Full list of Manchester Airport delays as three flights cancelled today, Wednesday July 1
Why is market rising today? Sensex gains 600 points, Nifty above 24K. 3 key factors
-
Fashion5 days agoWeekend Open Thread: Staud – Corporette.com
-
Politics5 days agoThe House | Manchesterism won’t survive the painful trade-offs unless it gets citizens on board
-
Crypto World1 day agoStrategy authorizes up to $1.25B in Bitcoin sales under new capital plan
-
Politics5 days agoPotential 2028er World Cup attendee leaderboard
-
Business5 days agoAsia stock markets slide as tech shares slump
-
News Videos3 days agoMAJOR BITCOIN & MARKET UPDATE!!!! (MUST WATCH ASAP!!!)
-
Tech6 days agoA Look At A Gaggle Of Transputer Boards
-
Crypto World6 days agoDell (DELL) Shares Tumble Over 5% Following Analyst Downgrade to Hold
-
Crypto World4 days agoCoinbase, Circle Deepen Crypto Stock Losses Despite Resilient S&P 500
-
Business1 day agoAustralia treasurer says alleged access of prime minister’s bank data ’incredibly concerning’
-
Crypto World4 days agoKraken's xStocks Opens Bending Spoons IPO Registration to EEA Retail
-
Sports4 days agoFIH Pro League: India defeat Pakistan 7-1, register biggest win of campaign | Other Sports News
-
Crypto World5 days agoBitcoin Sparks $600M Hourly Liquidations With $65,000 Set To Become Resistance
-
Tech3 days agoBluekit phishing kit adopts browser-in-the-middle for login theft
-
Tech4 days agoRussian hackers now target Signal backup recovery keys
-
Crypto World5 days agoHyperliquid Named on Singapore MAS Investor Alert Register
-
Crypto World6 days agoRipple and SBI launch RLUSD in Japan after JFSA approval
-
Crypto World5 days agoRTX holders must register wallets before token distribution begins
-
Business2 days agoThe AI boom won’t burst all at once. It will pop in ‘rolling bubbles’: Macquarie
-
Tech1 day agoAnonymous researcher drops 0-day ‘exploitarium’ repo
You must be logged in to post a comment Login