cryptocurrency

The UK Financial Conduct Authority proposed in its quarterly consultation document to allow certain approved investment funds (including UCITS funds and some non-UCITS funds) to hold up to 10% of cryptocurrency exchange-traded notes. This proposal aims to align approved funds with investor demand while ensuring adequate consumer protection.The UK Financial Conduct Authority stated that, given the speculative nature of the underlying crypto assets, it is inappropriate to allow retail-focused funds to have significant risk exposure to crypto products, and the 10% cap will set a conservative limit. Additionally, the UK Financial Conduct Authority is publicly consulting on whether non-regulated and qualified investor schemes can invest in more speculative assets without a holding limit; this public consultation will last for five weeks until July 13.

According to The Block, a research paper released by IC3, composed of researchers from top universities such as Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Princeton, Yale, and ETH Zurich, points out that the role of cryptocurrency in addressing the main challenges in the AI field is severely overestimated.The paper clarifies three major misconceptions: providing AI agents with wallets does not make them truly "autonomous," but only enables automated trading; blockchain is suitable for timestamping records but cannot effectively distinguish between AI-generated content and human content; decentralization cannot fundamentally solve the problem of bias in AI algorithms.IC3 believes that while cryptocurrency can provide some infrastructure support for AI, its practicality in areas such as trust, payment, and content verification is limited.

According to Bloomberg, Bitcoin fell below $60,000 last week, with a market value evaporating by about $235 billion within seven days, nearly halving from last year's peak. The market value of altcoins has shrunk from a peak of $431 billion in November 2021 to about $170 billion, with less than 1,700 of the tens of millions of tokens created in recent years still having substantial trading activity. However, in stark contrast to the price trends, the most commercially valuable businesses in the crypto industry are accelerating growth.The annual trading volume of stablecoins reached about $390 billion, with total trading volume soaring 72% to $33 trillion by 2025. Over $30 billion in assets have been tokenized, and BlackRock's tokenized money market fund BUIDL has an asset size of $2.4 billion. Visa and Mastercard are expanding stablecoin settlement capabilities, and Nasdaq is collaborating with Kraken to offer tokenized stocks.Bloomberg Intelligence's Mike McGlone stated that the most important technology is stablecoins; when you have stablecoins, you don't need XRP or Bitcoin to store value. We are experiencing a cleansing, and this has only just begun. EMJ Capital founder Eric Jackson pointed out that "the Bitcoin price chart used to be the entire crypto story, but it is no longer."

According to Cryptopolitan, a new type of macOS malware named Reaper is spreading through fake download pages of applications like WeChat and Miro, targeting the theft of cryptocurrency wallet data, browser passwords, and sensitive documents. This malware exploits the AppleScript URL to trigger the system's built-in script editor, hiding malicious code through ASCII art and spaces. After users click the run button, a fake Apple security update pop-up lures victims into entering their computer passwords.Reaper targets desktop cryptocurrency applications such as Ledger Live, Trezor Suite, and Exodus, modifying the internal code of wallets to intercept future transactions and redirect funds. It also steals saved credentials from Chrome, Firefox, and Edge, extracting files like .docx, .pdf, and .wallet from the desktop and documents folder. Reaper also installs a backdoor disguised as a Google software update directory for persistent attacks. Security experts advise users to verify download links, avoid entering passwords in unexpected pop-ups, and immediately close the page if a website requests to open the script editor.

According to Bloomberg, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has canceled its planned headquarters relocation and will renew its lease at the current location for five years to accommodate up to 100 new employees in response to industry growth and regulatory demands. The CFTC is striving to become the primary regulatory body for prediction markets, and if the Clarity Act is passed, establishing its status as the main regulator of the cryptocurrency industry, the workload is expected to increase further.Meanwhile, the CFTC recently offered a deferred resignation plan to about 50 employees and has provided buyouts to some long-term employees. Data from the Federal Personnel Management Agency shows that the agency's workforce has decreased by nearly 25% since 2024, leaving only 553 employees as of April. The CFTC is seeking to increase its total number of employees to 650 in its budget request for fiscal year 2027. Additionally, under a White House executive order, 25 positions (including policy advisors and senior legal advisors) have been reclassified, removing civil service protections, allowing these employees to be dismissed at any time.

Russian Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov stated that Russia may introduce fees, recommendations, and technical protection mechanisms for "unfriendly" cryptocurrency transactions to protect Russian investors. During the preparation for the second reading of the cryptocurrency market regulation bill, one of the core topics is whether to allow specific digital assets (including USDT and BNB) to participate in trading. Ivan Chebeskov pointed out that the operation of such tools may pose high risks to Russian users, and therefore additional protective measures are being considered, including economic incentives such as fees or recommendations to encourage citizens to hold other assets.Previously, the Russian Ministry of Finance considered excluding USDT from the cryptocurrency market regulatory framework, but industry participants expressed their willingness to bear the risks of using the tool themselves. Additionally, in the regulatory concept proposed by the Central Bank of Russia last December, it was suggested that digital currencies and stablecoins be classified as foreign exchange assets, allowing buying and selling but prohibiting their use for domestic payments for goods and services. Ineligible investors may purchase the most liquid cryptocurrencies after passing specific tests, and the annual limit for purchasing assets through a single intermediary does not exceed 300,000 rubles.

According to Crypto In America, the U.S. House of Representatives' fundraising committee will hold a hearing on cryptocurrency tax reform this Tuesday, reviewing seven discussion drafts covering aspects such as stablecoin trading, mining and staking, crypto lending, wash sale rules, charitable donations, and taxpayer disclosures. Essentially, this breaks down the previously proposed "Digital Asset Equality Act" into multiple independent pieces of legislation.Meanwhile, negotiations on the Senate's "Clarity Act" are still ongoing. Senator Lummis stated that the bill is more likely to advance after Congress reconvenes on July 13, with core disagreements focused on ethical clauses, DeFi regulatory language, and stablecoin yield issues. The banking industry continues to lobby against stablecoin yield clauses, while over 200 crypto organizations have jointly written to urge the swift advancement of the bill for a vote.In addition, Illinois plans to impose a 0.2% tax on digital asset transactions, which has sparked strong opposition from industry groups, warning that this move will drive crypto companies out of the state.

According to The Block, a joint letter initiated by Stand With Crypto, the Blockchain Association, the Crypto Council for Innovation, and The Digital Chamber has been submitted to U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, urging a prompt full Senate vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (referred to as the CLARITY Act). More than 200 crypto companies, industry associations, and community organizations, including Coinbase, Ripple, Kraken, a16z, Circle, and Binance.US, participated in signing.The joint letter points out that the CLARITY Act will establish a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for the digital asset market, clarify the division of responsibilities among regulatory agencies, provide feasible registration pathways, and protect software developers' innovation while encouraging more digital asset businesses to return to the U.S. market. The signatories stated that the act would help keep innovation, jobs, investment, and market activities in the U.S., further solidifying the country's leading position in global digital asset innovation.It is understood that the CLARITY Act received bipartisan support from the Senate Banking Committee last month and passed the committee's review. Senator Cynthia Lummis subsequently stated that the next step for the act will be to enter the full Senate review stage.Additionally, 160 former national security and law enforcement officials had previously signed in support of the act, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt have also publicly called for advancing the legislative process. However, the issue of the Trump family's interests in relation to the crypto industry is still seen as one of the main obstacles facing the advancement of the act.

Senator Kevin Cramer stated in an interview that the U.S. Congress must immediately pass the Clarity Act, or else the cryptocurrency industry and future financial control will completely shift to other countries around the world.He emphasized, "This is not a Bitcoin issue, but a strategic issue of who controls the future of finance."

According to the latest research report "Institutional Footprints" released by CryptoQuant, Gate has performed outstandingly in several core indicators such as institutional trading activity, market liquidity, and TradFi derivatives trading, becoming one of the trading platforms with the highest institutional participation in the current crypto market. Among them, Gate ranks first in the average trading volume indicators in four major markets: Bitcoin spot, Bitcoin perpetual contracts, Ethereum spot, and Ethereum perpetual contracts, reflecting that institutional funds continue to gather at Gate. In addition, Gate ranks third globally with a cumulative spot trading volume of $253 billion for 2026, firmly establishing itself among the top global crypto asset trading platforms.It is noteworthy that as traditional finance and the crypto market accelerate their integration, Gate has performed particularly well in the TradFi perpetual contract sector. In March of this year, Gate's monthly TradFi perpetual contract trading volume approached $290 billion, setting an industry-leading level. CryptoQuant believes that with its layout of tokenized stocks, metals, index products, and a 24/7 derivatives trading system, Gate is at the forefront of the integration of traditional finance and crypto finance.

According to SoSoValue data, the cryptocurrency market sector has generally rebounded after several days of decline, with a 24-hour increase of about 2% to 25%. Among them, the NFT sector performed remarkably, rising 25.55% in 24 hours, with Audiera (BEAT) up 70.16% and Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) up 4.09%. At the same time, Bitcoin (BTC) rose 2.61%, rebounding above $63,000; Ethereum (ETH) rose 5.93%, approaching $1,600.It is worth noting that MAG7.ssi rose 3.02%, DEFI.ssi rose 2.28%, and MEME.ssi rose 2.52%. Other standout sectors include: the AI sector, which rose 3.84% in 24 hours, with Siren (SIREN) up 39.77%; the CeFi sector rose 3.76%, with Cronos (CRO) up 5.38%; the Layer1 sector rose 2.97%, with Zcash (ZEC) rebounding 13.58% after consecutive declines; the Meme sector rose 2.93%, with BUILDon (B) up 12.96%; the PayFi sector rose 2.42%, with Dash (DASH) up 9.71%; the Layer2 sector rose 1.98%, with Mantle (MNT) up 5.32%; and the DeFi sector rose 1.03%, with Chainlink (LINK) up 4.74%.In addition, only the SocialFi sector fell by 2.63%, with Toncoin (TON) down 3.19%. The cryptocurrency sector index reflecting the historical performance of the sectors shows that the ssiLayer1, ssiCeFi, and ssiMAG7 indices rose by 3.87%, 3.84%, and 3.5%, respectively.

According to 10x Research data, the cryptocurrency market experienced a significant correction last week, with the total market capitalization dropping to $2.13 trillion, a weekly decline of 14.5%, and a weekly trading volume of $117 billion, which is 47% higher than the average.Among them, Bitcoin's weekly trading volume was $47.3 billion, exceeding the average by 61%; Ethereum's weekly trading volume was $23.2 billion, exceeding the average by 77%. Although the market generally attributes this to leveraged traders, the actual majority of the sell-off came from the spot market.The report pointed out that Bitcoin's funding rate rose to 5.7% this week, with futures open interest decreasing by $3.5 billion to $21 billion; Ethereum's funding rate dropped to -6.6%, with open interest decreasing by $1.9 billion to $10.1 billion.10x Research emphasized that the "sellers" currently blamed by the market are not the real cause, and the true sellers are elsewhere, which will profoundly impact future market positioning.

Trader Eugene stated on June 7 that he has exited the cryptocurrency market and turned to the stock sector, believing that stocks are more attractive at the research level and that there are significantly more trading and investment opportunities. Eugene indicated that given the current trend of the cryptocurrency market, this shift may be lasting, and he will monitor the cryptocurrency market from a distance in the future but will no longer participate unless an extremely attractive risk-reward opportunity arises, which he does not see happening in the short term.Regarding Strategy (MSTR) and Saylor, Eugene believes this is the beginning of the entire collapse, questioning whether Saylor has really sold more BTC than last week, and even if he has, it is merely delaying the issue. He stated that before MSTR decouples from BTC, BTC is untouchable from a bullish perspective, and he mentioned that he does not know where the bottom is but is no longer attempting to catch the bottom.

According to Cryptopolitan, Hungary's newly appointed Minister of Technology, Zoltán Tanács, announced on June 6 that unreasonable restrictions on the cryptocurrency market would be lifted, reversing the previous government's policies, including criminal penalties for unauthorized crypto services. The rules, effective July 2025, led to platforms like Revolut withdrawing from the Hungarian market, and local businesses faced higher compliance costs.Tanács took office after the new government was formed in May 2026 and believes these rules were politically motivated. The new government also plans to amend the cybersecurity audit regulations under the NIS2 directive, with approximately 4,000 Hungarian companies facing a compliance deadline of June 30. Hungary is seeking to draw on Estonia's digital governance model, positioning itself in support of the EU MiCA framework.

According to CoinDesk, Vietnam's securities regulator stated that the country's digital finance development is entering a critical stage, and plans may soon be announced to launch a pilot project for a cryptocurrency trading market to promote the standardized development of the digital asset industry.Currently, Vietnam ranks seventh in the world in terms of cryptocurrency user scale, with a trading growth rate ranking fifth globally, and market demand remains strong.

According to the Times of India, the Gujarat police have arrested two suspects involved in cryptocurrency-related cybercrime, with the network allegedly trading over 226 million rupees. Investigators claim that the network is linked to terrorist financing, global drug trafficking, and dark web financial activities.Officials stated that this arrest is part of an ongoing investigation into the use of cryptocurrency channels for terrorist financing. Previously, 10 suspects had already been arrested during the investigation. The two latest suspects are accused of using the KYC information of a man named Sabbir Ali Sarani to create a Binance wallet and receiving 5,000 USDT through layered transactions.