Morning Report | USDT and BNB market values hit new highs; Vitalik: Low-risk DeFi may become Ethereum's core revenue engine
Overview of Important Market Events on September 21整理：Zhou，ChainCatcher
Important News:
- Tether CEO: USDT Market Cap Surpasses $172 Billion, Continues to Set New Highs
- Vitalik: Low-Risk DeFi May Become Ethereum's Core Revenue Engine, Analogous to Google's Search Business Model
- Data: BNB Chain Has Generated Over $350 Million in Fee Revenue in Q3 This Year
- Data: The Entire Network's ASTER Contract Trading Liquidated $12.66 Million in 24 Hours, Ranking First in the Crypto Market
- Analysis: Ethereum Staking ETH Final Approval Expected to Be Advanced to Next Month
- Data: BNB Market Cap Surpasses $150 Billion, Surpassing Accenture to Rank 143rd Globally
What Important Events Happened in the Last 24 Hours?
According to ChainCatcher, Coinglass's latest data shows that ASTER and AVNT's Binance 24-hour contract trading volume both surpassed BTC. Currently, ASTER's Binance 24-hour contract trading volume is approximately $4.314 billion (141.42%), AVNT's is about $3.516 billion (+283.28%), while BTC's is around $3.406 billion (38.3%).
According to ChainCatcher, Binance co-founder Zhao Changpeng posted on X platform stating: "Asking a silly question about the X platform, during the bear market, the number of followers rapidly grew from 9 million to 10 million. Then, even in this bull market, the follower count stagnated after reaching 10 million. In the previous bull market, follower growth was rapid. Has it lost relevance now? Is this normal? Or is there something wrong with X itself? Or am I too 'KOL'? Or, have we not yet entered a real bull market?"
Tether CEO: USDT Market Cap Surpasses $172 Billion, Continues to Set New Highs
According to ChainCatcher, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino disclosed data on the X platform stating that the USDT market cap has surpassed $172 billion, continuing to set new highs. According to Coingecko data, the current USDT market cap has reached $172,020,028,458, with a 24-hour trading volume of $54,165,468,335, and the total market cap of stablecoins across the network has reached $296.956 billion.
Data: USDC Treasury Minted 250 Million USDC on Solana Chain
According to ChainCatcher, Whale Alert monitored that the USDC Treasury minted 250,000,000 USDC ($249,850,000) on the Solana chain.
According to ChainCatcher, CoinDesk reported that the American investment bank Jefferies pointed out in a recent client Q&A report for large institutional investors that cryptocurrencies, like the early days of the internet boom, are still in the "1996 stage," with even greater growth potential. Many companies are actively formulating investment strategies and determining how to allocate funds among tokens, ETFs, digital asset treasury companies (DAT), and publicly listed companies with risk exposure.
Data: BNB Chain Has Generated Over $350 Million in Fee Revenue in Q3 This Year
According to ChainCatcher, Token Terminal disclosed data on the X platform showing that BNB Chain has generated $357.3 million in fee revenue in Q3 this year, setting a record high since Q1 2023. The platforms contributing the most include: PancakeSwap, Venus, Uniswap, Solv Protocol, Aave, APX, Thena, Euler, DODO, and LayerZero.
According to ChainCatcher, CoinDesk reported that Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor stated in a recent podcast interview that Bitcoin's recent price movements are subdued, which is a sign of strength rather than weakness. The market is in a consolidation phase, with long-term holders selling part of their positions while institutional investors prepare for larger allocations, and the decline in volatility is a very good sign.
Analysis: Ethereum Whale Groups Show Clear Cash-Out Trends Recently, Which May Impact Coin Prices
According to ChainCatcher, on-chain data analyst Murphy indicated that the holding behaviors of three types of whale groups in the market are the main observation targets: A: Holding 1k--10k ETH; B: Holding 10k--100k ETH; C: Holding over 100k ETH. These three groups are also the main forces of ETH in the current market. Data shows that whenever these whale groups consistently and massively cash out profits, the market often experiences significant pressure.
Tether CEO: Toyota, BYD, and Yamaha Have Accepted USDT Payments in Bolivia
According to ChainCatcher, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that Toyota, BYD, and Yamaha have supported USDT payments in Bolivia. He noted that USDT has become a "digital dollar" for hundreds of millions of people in emerging markets and is accelerating its adoption.
According to ChainCatcher, OKX Star posted on the X platform stating, "Hyperliquid proves that on-chain perpetual contract businesses can achieve great success even with very few employees. Now, more competitors like Aster are entering this field. OKX Web3 has also been testing similar products since 2023, but due to regulatory concerns, we chose not to launch on the mainnet."
According to ChainCatcher, reports indicate that Zheng Yutong, the founder of Zhou Dafu and former CEO of New World Development, has gradually resigned from multiple family business positions since last year and has now announced the establishment of ALMAD Group. This comprehensive enterprise group will focus on Web 3 financial innovation, exploring investments in digital assets, tokenization of real-world assets (RWA), and will also explore the application of blockchain technology and immersive digital experiences in various industries.
Data: BNB Market Cap Surpasses $150 Billion, Surpassing Accenture to Rank 143rd Globally
According to ChainCatcher, the latest data from 8 MarketCap shows that BNB's market cap has risen to approximately $150.32 billion, with a 24-hour increase of 9.58%, continuing to set historical highs. It has now surpassed giants like Accenture and China Merchants Bank to rank 143rd globally.
According to ChainCatcher, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin published a lengthy article on social media stating that the Ethereum community has long faced a contradiction between application revenue and ecological goals: high-yield applications (such as NFTs and Memecoins) are often disconnected from fundamental value goals, while non-financial applications, although aligned with the vision, struggle to support a $500 billion economy. Vitalik pointed out that low-risk DeFi (payments, savings, synthetic assets, and over-collateralized lending) could be analogous to Google's search business, becoming a core revenue source for Ethereum. Such applications support the economic ecosystem through high transaction fees and ETH collateral demand while aligning with the values of global inclusive finance, avoiding the ethical issues of data monopolization in traditional advertising models.
According to ChainCatcher, Cointelegraph reported that BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes stated that once the U.S. Treasury reaches its goal of injecting $850 billion into the TGA (Treasury General Account), the crypto market will enter a "only up" mode. Hayes wrote this as the U.S. TGA's beginning balance surpassed $807 billion, stating, "As the liquidity drought ends, the 'only up' trend will re-emerge."
According to ChainCatcher, Coinglass data shows that the entire network's ASTER contract trading liquidated $12.66 million in 24 hours, ranking first in the crypto market, with long positions liquidating $5.05 million and short positions liquidating $7.61 million. During the same period, ETH liquidated $7.95 million, ranking second.
According to ChainCatcher, Jinshi reported that next week, Fed officials will speak intensively, and the market may further assess the Fed's interest rate cut pace based on this. The specific schedule is as follows:
On Monday at 21:45, FOMC permanent voting member and New York Fed President Williams will speak on monetary policy and economic outlook; at 22:00, 2025 FOMC voting member and St. Louis Fed President Bullard will speak on the U.S. economic outlook and monetary policy;
On Tuesday at 00:00, 2026 FOMC voting member and Cleveland Fed President Mester will speak on the U.S. economy; at 2027 FOMC voting member and Richmond Fed President Barkin will speak on economic conditions; at 22:00, 2027 FOMC voting member and Atlanta Fed President Bostic will speak on the economic outlook;
On Thursday at 04:10, 2027 FOMC voting member and San Francisco Fed President Daly will speak; at 20:20, 2025 FOMC voting member and Chicago Fed President Goolsbee will speak; at 21:00, FOMC permanent voting member and New York Fed President Williams will deliver a welcome speech at the Fourth Annual Conference on the International Role of the Dollar;
On Friday at 01:00, Fed Governor Barr will speak on bank stress tests; at 03:30, 2027 FOMC voting member and San Francisco Fed President Daly will speak; at 21:00, 2027 FOMC voting member and Richmond Fed President Barkin will speak; at 22:00, Fed Governor Bowman will speak.
In terms of macro data, on Thursday at 20:30, the U.S. initial jobless claims for the week ending September 20, the final value of the U.S. Q2 real GDP annualized quarterly rate, the final value of the U.S. Q2 real personal consumption expenditures quarterly rate, the final value of the U.S. Q2 core PCE price index annualized quarterly rate, and the U.S. August durable goods orders month-on-month will be released. On Friday at 22:00, the final value of the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for September and the final value of the one-year inflation expectation for September will be announced.
Market views suggest that after the Fed's decision, the focus will return to inflation data, and next week investors' attention will fully turn to the inflation indicators favored by the Fed—personal consumption expenditures price index (PCE). The inflation data released next week may confirm whether the Fed's decision to cut interest rates this fall is wise. Economists generally predict that the August PCE will show that inflation levels are rising again.
Bitdeer: This Week's Mining Output is 99.5 BTC, Total Holdings Increase to Approximately 1966 BTC
According to ChainCatcher, Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining company Bitdeer released its latest Bitcoin holding data on the X platform, stating that as of September 19, its total Bitcoin holdings have increased to 1,966.1 BTC (note: this number is pure holdings, excluding Bitcoin deposited by clients). Additionally, this week its Bitcoin mining output was 99.5 BTC, but it sold 69 BTC during the same period.
Analysis: Ethereum Staking ETH Final Approval Expected to Be Advanced to Next Month
According to ChainCatcher, the Ethereum (ETH) staking entrance queue has dropped to its lowest level in four weeks, raising concerns in the market about a potential large-scale sell-off due to the surge in exit queues. The market has found that the continued accumulation and buying of Ethereum treasury and spot ETH ETFs are absorbing the selling pressure. Most of these institutions have already staked assets or plan to do so for additional returns, which may drive an increase in the staking entrance queue in the coming weeks.
Another positive expectation is the potential launch of ETH staking ETFs, which means some investors may release liquidity to re-enter related products in the future to adjust market exposure rather than completely exit the ETH market. The final approval deadline set by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is April 2026, but analyst Axel Bitblaze indicated that approval is expected to be advanced to October 2025, adding, "BlackRock's ETH staking approval deadline is in October, and I believe approval is very likely to happen."
Meme Hot List
According to the meme token tracking and analysis platform GMGN, as of September 22, 08:40,
The top five popular tokens on ETH in the past 24 hours are: USDe, MEMERIA, BDAG, PEPA, ZADDY
The top five popular tokens on Solana in the past 24 hours are: XPL, XPL, MetaMask, XPL, MetaMask
The top five popular tokens on Base in the past 24 hours are: R, MAGA, Polyfactual, HOPELESS, Oharlie
What Exciting Articles Are Worth Reading in the Past 24 Hours?
In-Depth Discussion on the Success Path and Concerns of Hyperliquid
The author has recently studied almost all the Perps (perpetual trading platforms) on the market. The hype market's 5-fold growth once again proves that my judgment during the first research last year overlooked its core value. Moreover, recently aster, antex, dydxV4, and even Sun Ge have entered the field, making the Perps track enter an explosive period.
Additionally, major exchanges are competing to launch hype and the perpetual trading capabilities on them. Yesterday, it was reported that MetaMask has become another major wallet platform, following Phantom, planning to integrate Hyper's perpetual trading, and Circle has also become its validator, breaking the core concerns of decentralization. Hyperliquid itself is also striving to enhance its openness, especially with the gradual launch of hyperEVM, hip2/3/4.
Examining Cryptocurrency's Yin-Yang Balance from the Perspective of Daoist Philosophy
Yin and Yang is a concept in Chinese philosophy. It refers to the perfect balance between two forces that are interrelated yet opposing. In the cryptocurrency field, this force is omnipresent—chaos and order, risk and stability, greed and patience. Understanding how they interact is key to navigating the market.
This article will explore how to apply the concept of Yin and Yang to cryptocurrency, first outlining the Yin and Yang forces in the crypto space, and then exploring how to balance them to achieve better outcomes in trading and investing.
Opportunities and Strategies in the DeFi Boom: Uncovering New Potential
Recently, the DeFi track has once again become lively. From MYX's short-term surge to AVNT's tenfold increase, and Aster's early airdrop returns exceeding tenfold, this wave of market activity has almost plunged the entire market into a FOMO state. As an observer, I feel that this is not just a short-term craze driven by market sentiment, but also reflects investors' sensitivity to innovative DeFi protocols and their ability to capture potential projects. While short-term prices attract attention, from a long-term value investment perspective, what truly deserves attention are projects with robust technology, reasonable ecological layout, and experienced teams.
Analyzing HIP-4: Hyperliquid and Kalshi Join Forces to Reshape On-Chain Prediction Markets
Recently, Hyperliquid has been quite active, previously allowing anyone to create perpetual contract markets with HIP-3, followed by the highly discussed stablecoin bidding, and now they have thrown out a heavyweight proposal—HIP-4, preparing to officially enter the prediction market.
This is not just about adding a new feature; behind it is Hyperliquid's grand ambition to evolve from a pure perpetual contract exchange to a more foundational and modular financial infrastructure. Let's take a closer look at what HIP-4 is, what it aims to do, and how it will shake up the prediction market landscape.
Risk warning
