BlackRock took another step toward introducing its bitcoin income exchange-traded fund on Nasdaq, filing a share registration document that often signals an imminent debut.

The world’s largest asset manager filed the Form 8-A for the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF on Thursday, usually one of the last procedural moves before an ETF goes live.

The filing “typically means launch in one week,” Eric Balchunas, an ETF analyst at Bloomberg, wrote on X, adding that he would bet the fund, ticker BITA, starts trading on June 18.

Balchunas said a day earlier that he expected the fund to debut “very soon” and noted BlackRock was racing to beat a competing Goldman Sachs product to market. Goldman’s fund is due to go live around July 1.

BlackRock’s fund will earn income by selling call options on BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the largest spot bitcoin ETF, with $49 billion in net assets. Each month, it will write options on a portion of its holdings and collect the premium as income.

Key Highlights

• Dutch TTF natural gas futures plummeted more than 5% on Friday, reaching their lowest point in two weeks.
• President Trump announced that a peace agreement between the U.S. and Iran might be finalized this weekend.
• Planned U.S. military operations against Iran were cancelled by Trump, reducing conflict escalation concerns.
• Approximately 20% of the world’s LNG supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, making it a critical supply route.
• Iranian officials have yet to confirm a finalized agreement, leaving markets in a state of cautious optimism.

Natural gas prices across Europe experienced a significant decline on Friday following remarks from President Donald Trump suggesting a potential diplomatic resolution with Iran. The Dutch TTF natural gas benchmark contract, Europe’s primary pricing reference, tumbled more than 5% to approximately €47 per megawatt-hour, marking its lowest trading level in a fortnight.

According to Trump’s statements, a comprehensive peace agreement could potentially be executed in Europe within days. The President also revealed that he had called off scheduled U.S. military actions targeting Iran. These developments triggered a rapid selloff in energy commodities as market participants scaled back expectations of imminent supply chain disruptions.

The Strategic Importance of the Strait of Hormuz

The Strait of Hormuz has emerged as a focal point for energy market anxiety throughout recent weeks. This critical maritime chokepoint facilitates the transit of roughly 20% of global liquefied natural gas shipments. Any military confrontation or blockade in this strategic waterway could severely constrain supply flows to European nations and international buyers.

Earlier in the week, Trump had issued warnings about potentially seizing Iran’s Kharg Island and asserting control over Iranian energy infrastructure. These aggressive statements had propelled gas prices toward multi-week peaks and maintained elevated anxiety among market participants as summer approached.

European markets face heightened vulnerability given that current underground gas storage inventories are tracking below previous year levels. Any constriction in global LNG availability could have amplified price increases during the critical summer storage replenishment period.

Qatar, a leading LNG producer, relies on Strait of Hormuz transit routes for its export operations. Although Europe sources considerable gas volumes through pipeline infrastructure and Atlantic basin suppliers, it remains a competitor for spot LNG cargoes in the international marketplace.

Traders Remain Wary Despite Price Decline

Notwithstanding the substantial price correction, market participants maintain skepticism about whether a definitive agreement has been reached. Iranian representatives have not yet publicly acknowledged the existence of a completed framework agreement, though some officials indicated that primary terms have been settled.

The United Kingdom’s natural gas futures contract similarly declined approximately 2% on Friday, briefly touching one-month lows during early trading before recovering modestly by settlement.

Crude oil prices also retreated to two-month lows following the same diplomatic developments. Market analysts characterized Trump’s peace deal statements as the most substantive indication to date of genuine diplomatic progress.

The ICE Dutch TTF futures contract, serving as Europe’s benchmark gas pricing instrument, descended below the €47 threshold, briefly reaching €46.19 during intraday trading. This represents a notable retreat from levels exceeding €50 observed earlier in the trading week.

The geopolitical risk premium that had accumulated throughout weeks of escalating U.S.-Iran confrontation was rapidly being eliminated from market valuations. However, absent formal signatures on a binding agreement, traders are anticipated to maintain vigilance.

Any resumption of hostile actions or breakdown in diplomatic negotiations could swiftly reverse Friday’s price decline and propel European gas futures back toward their recent elevated levels.

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act), establishing a permanent statutory boundary between federal agencies in regulating digital assets, was formally placed on the U.S. Senate Legislative Calendar. However, its immediate passage faces strong resistance as the bill recently stumbled over crucial hurdles regarding ethics disputes and law enforcement concerns. Prediction market odds on Polymarket for the bill passing have plummeted to 47-48% (down from over 74%), with a few session days left before the August recess to debate the bill alongside competing national security priorities.

Nevertheless, the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) issued by the SEC and CFTC   and the subsequent joint interpretive release established the first formal five-part token taxonomy, explicitly classifying digital collectibles as non-securities. This provided significant regulatory clarity by confirming that NFTs are not a security.  The NFT art market has transitioned away from the speculative frenzy of 2021 into a more consolidated ecosystem with curated, high-end digital art featuring themes of the 250th anniversary of our nation.  On Flag Day, celebrated on June 14th, which marks our nation’s first crypto President’s 80^th Birthday, many museums are showing their commitment to preserving Digital Art for Future Generations and holding USA 250 themed exhibitions.

The Museum of Art + Light (MoA+L) unveiled its permanent digital art collection, featuring more than 40 works by 15 internationally recognized digital artists. Developed in partnership with Iconic, the collection represents a significant commitment to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting digital art that reflects the breadth, innovation, and cultural significance of digital artistic practice in the 21st century by a contemporary art museum in the US.

“From the beginning, our partnership with the Museum of Art + Light has centered on the belief that digital art deserves the same level of institutional support, preservation, and public engagement as any other artistic medium,” said Chris Cummings, Founder and CEO of Iconic. “We are honored to have collaborated in helping establish a collection that not only celebrates today’s leading digital artists but also creates an important cultural resource for the future.”

Conceived as the first contemporary art museum in the world to showcase immersive, digital, and permanent collections from its inception, the MoA+L has intentionally built a collection that spans generative art, AI-assisted works, digital poetry, blockchain-native artworks, and hybrid physical-to-digital pieces to assemble a collection that captures key voices shaping contemporary digital culture.

“Building a permanent collection dedicated to digital art was never an afterthought for the Museum of Art + Light, it was foundational to our vision,” said Erin Dragotto, Executive Director of the Museum of Art + Light.

“As museums around the world continue to explore how digital art fits within their collections, we have had the unique opportunity to build a collection intentionally from the ground up. These acquisitions ensure that some of the most influential artists working with technology today will be preserved, studied, and shared with audiences for generations to come.”

The National Lighthouse Museum (NLM) on June 14th, Flag Day, the NLM is launching the Statue of Liberty Art Show, which runs until January 2nd, 2027. Curated by Stevie Peters, the art show showcases a historical photo of Lady Liberty when she first arrived at NY Harbor — that is on loan from Victoria Westhead — and oil paintings by award-winning artists Hunt Slonem and Selva Ozelli.

Hunt Slonem joins the Statue of Liberty Art show with his signature “Bunny, Bird and Butterfly” series, which includes a US flag representing abundance, hope, and fertility; his Abraham Lincoln series depicting the timeless icon of American history as a “great soul,” a symbol of law and personal liberty; and his Chandelier series, which reflects his fascination with light and historic grandeur.

“On Marilyn [Monroe]’s desk, she had a picture of her mother and a picture of Lincoln. And she said, ‘I really didn’t know who my father was, so it might as well be Abraham Lincoln.’ I work with diviners and mystics, and one of them started channeling Lincoln in my house, [Lincoln] guided me to paint certain things, like my doves: he wanted me to paint them as a symbol of freedom.”

Selva Ozelli, joins the Statue of Liberty Art Show with her Ocean Lovers-Angel Fish Flag CCL a 20 ft by 13 ft US Flag from her Flag CCL series that represents the seven rays on the Statue of Liberty’s crown, depicting our world’s seven continents, seven seas, and its angel fish inhabitants, which are often regarded as a symbol of hope, peace, and spiritual guidance.

“I am honored to join the Statue of Liberty Art Show along with a historical photo of Lady Liberty and my favorite artist Hunt Slonem with my Ocean Lovers – Angel Fish Flag CCL painting. 

For one hundred and forty years, The Statue of Liberty  in New York Harbor and  hundreds of replicas and models of “Lady Liberty” located around the world ranging   from small, historical models in Paris to full-sized or scaled-down copies in cities like Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, and Las Vegas have become a very important symbol of  the global spread of liberty, freedom, democracy, law, hope and inspiration to serve every creature  of our world.”

“Whether people have seen Lady Liberty in real life in different cities or only in photographs, whether the people are American or from other nationalities or cultures, the Statue of Liberty,  which first served as a lighthouse standing tall in NY Harbor across from our museum has come to symbolize something important for people in their own lives at a very personal level – she represents a certain level of security, constancy, freedom, democracy, the rule of law, hope, and the abolition of slavery serving as a universal beacon of light, liberty and inspiration. We invite everyone who wants to see the Statue of Liberty Art Show or Lady Liberty herself and the largest waterfront spectacle, SAIL 4th 250…Where Light Meets Liberty! that will take place from July 3-8, 2026, in the Port of New York and New Jersey, with the main spectacle, the International Parade of Tall Ships, scheduled for July 4, 2026.

These events are part of America’s Semiquincentennial (250th) anniversary celebration and is expected to be the largest international maritime gathering in U.S. history, with over 30 tall ships from around the world, sailing up the Hudson River. Our museum, which is hosting a July 4 Watch Party Breakfast, will serve as a key viewing spot. For further details or to be an event sponsor, contact www.lighthousemuseum.org,” explained Linda Dianto, Executive Director of NLM.

About the Author:

Selva Ozelli Esq, CPA, is an international digital asset legal expert and author of Sustainably Investing in Digital Assets Globally.  Her writings are translated into 45 languages and republished in over 200 global publications.  She is recognized as an expert media/TV commentator on global digital asset regulation, tax, and technology matters.

Metaplanet (3350) acquired Siiibo Securities, a Tokyo-based Type I Financial Instruments Business Operator, in a deal valued at approximately 2.1 billion yen ($13.1 million), the Japanese bitcoin treasury company announced on Friday.

Following the completion of the transaction, Siiibo Securities will become a wholly owned subsidiary, renamed Metaplanet Securities.

The acquisition marks the first major step in Metaplanet’s “Project Nova,” a long-term strategy aimed at building a bitcoin-focused financial ecosystem. The company, which holds 40,177 BTC ($2.6 billion) as of May 31, views bitcoin not only as a treasury asset but also as the foundation for a new generation of financial products and services.

Siiibo Securities specializes in corporate bond issuance and distribution through an online platform and has supported more than 100 bond offerings for over 40 companies. Metaplanet believes the firm’s regulatory licenses, customer base, and securities expertise complement its ambitions in digital assets and tokenized finance.

The companies expect synergies including the development of bitcoin-linked investment products, expanded securities distribution capabilities, and the creation of tokenized financial instruments. Metaplanet also plans to leverage Siiibo’s platform to provide new yield-generating opportunities for investors and strengthen its presence in Japan’s evolving digital asset market.

Binance will support the rebranding of Toncoin to Gram, moving the exchange’s TON markets to the GRAM ticker through a staged process ending in early July.

Binance said it will support the Toncoin rebrand to Gram and handle the technical process for affected users. The exchange will swap TON tokens to GRAM at a ratio of 1 TON to 1 GRAM.

“Binance will handle all technical requirements for users who are involved in this event,” Binance said in its announcement.

The change means users holding TON on Binance do not need to manually complete the swap. The exchange will move eligible balances to the new GRAM ticker after the rebrand process is completed.

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Binance old TON pairs will close

Binance will remove all TON spot trading pairs at 03:00 UTC on June 30. The affected pairs include TON/FDUSD, TON/IDR, TON/TRY, TON/U, TON/USD1, TON/USDC, and TON/USDT.

All pending TON spot orders will be canceled when trading stops. Binance will then open GRAM/FDUSD, GRAM/IDR, GRAM/TRY, GRAM/U, GRAM/USD1, GRAM/USDC, and GRAM/USDT at 08:00 UTC on July 2.

Deposits and withdrawals of TON will be suspended at 03:30 UTC on June 30. GRAM deposits and withdrawals will open at 07:00 UTC on July 2, one hour before spot trading begins.

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After the process ends, Binance said it will no longer support deposits and withdrawals of TON tokens. Users who move TON to Binance close to the deadline must leave enough time for deposits to process.

Futures and other products face deadlines

Binance Futures will close all TONUSDT USD-M perpetual positions and settle the contract at 09:00 UTC on June 23. Users will not be able to open new orders from 08:30 UTC on that date.

The exchange also warned futures users to monitor open positions during the final hour. Binance said reduced liquidity and market volatility may affect settlement conditions before the contract is removed.

Margin, loans, Simple Earn, Dual Investment, Pay, Gift Card, Convert, and Buy & Sell Crypto services will also face separate deadlines. Binance Margin will remove TON from cross and isolated margin on June 23.

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TON Simple Earn products will stop accepting support from June 26. Remaining positions will be redeemed to users’ spot accounts, then resubscribed as GRAM products after the swap where applicable.

Gram rebrand follows Telegram push

The rebrand returns Toncoin to the Gram name used in Telegram’s original blockchain plan. TON will remain the name of the network, while GRAM will become the token ticker on Binance.

As previously reported by crypto.news, Pavel Durov said Gram was the original name of the token in TON’s first white paper. He also said the rebrand does not require a token swap at the network level.

As reported earlier this month, Toncoin rallied earlier in June after the Gram plan revived trader interest. TON traded near $1.71 on June 12, with a 24-hour gain of about 4%, according to crypto.news data.

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The Binance timeline now gives holders clear exchange deadlines. Spot holders can wait for the automatic swap, while futures, margin, loan, and product users may need to close or adjust positions before the listed dates.

Crypto scammers have set up at least three World Cup-related fraud operations linked to four cryptocurrency addresses as millions of fans prepare to attend the 2026 FIFA World Cup, according to blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs.

TRM Labs said it identified two fake ticketing websites and a fixed-match betting scheme that were already targeting football fans as the tournament opened on Thursday across the United States, Canada and Mexico. 

FIFA expects roughly 6.5 million attendees during the competition and projects a global economic impact of about $40.9 billion, creating a large market for ticket purchases, travel bookings and betting activity.

“Criminals always look to exploit major events and cultural moments and they don’t wait until kickoff,” Ari Redbord, global head of policy at TRM Labs, told Cointelegraph. Redbord said fraud operators typically establish their infrastructure weeks before a major event and expand their activity once public attention reaches its highest point.

According to Redbord, cryptocurrency transactions also provide investigators and compliance teams with opportunities to trace suspicious activity before losses spread further.

Authorities have already warned of World Cup scams

Weeks before the tournament began, U.S. authorities had already raised concerns about World Cup-themed fraud campaigns.

In a July 4 warning, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said criminals were promoting fake World Cup tickets, hospitality packages, merchandise offers, streaming subscriptions and sports betting deals through websites and social media accounts designed to resemble legitimate FIFA services.

Law enforcement officials noted that requests for payment through cryptocurrency, wire transfers, gift cards and other hard-to-recover methods often serve as warning signs of fraud. Fans were urged to purchase tickets only through FIFA’s official channels and avoid links distributed through social media posts, text messages and messaging applications.

Security concerns have extended beyond ticket sales. The Sheriff’s Department said attackers were creating websites that closely imitated official FIFA pages in an attempt to collect payment details, login credentials and other personal information.

Separately, the FBI also warned in May that threat actors were spoofing FIFA-related websites ahead of the tournament. According to the agency, those operations were designed to gather personal data, sell counterfeit tickets and carry out additional malicious activity.

Fake domains impersonating FIFA website. Source: FBI

FIFA has also cautioned supporters against purchasing tickets through unofficial sources. The organization said tickets obtained outside its official platform could be invalidated or cancelled without notice.

Ticket demand has become a focal point as the tournament gets underway.

The Council on Foreign Relations reported that several opening matches in the United States and Canada had not sold out on FIFA’s platform as of Monday. Meanwhile, the Financial Times reported that official resale portals still listed about 176,000 unsold group-stage tickets earlier this week.

While legitimate tickets remain available through official channels, TRM Labs’ findings suggest fraud operators are attempting to capitalize on fan demand through counterfeit sales and betting-related schemes.

The latest warning arrives during a year of rising crypto-related fraud. According to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, cryptocurrency theft has already reached $3.4 billion in 2026.