Author: John Smith

Cumulative stablecoin card spending has surpassed $10.9 billion, according to Paymentscan data cited by payment provider RedotPay on Aug. 25. Summary Paymentscan data cited by RedotPay placed cumulative stablecoin card spending above $10.9 billion worldwide overall. July 2026 produced a record month, with card spending exceeding $1 billion for first time. RedotPay predicts annualized spending will reach $50 billion by 2028, but independent confirmation remains unavailable. RedotPay reported more than eight million users and over $14 billion in annualized payment volume. Visa has expanded stablecoin-linked card access through its network spanning more than 175 million location. Paymentscan recorded more than…

A federal appeals court ruled on Aug. 28 that Kalshi had not shown Nevada’s regulation of its sports-event contracts was likely preempted by federal commodities law. Summary Ninth Circuit judges held Kalshi unlikely to block Nevada regulation of sports-event contracts through preemption. The ruling did not invalidate CFTC rulemaking or resolve any future Administrative Procedure Act challenge. A conflicting Third Circuit decision increases the possibility that the Supreme Court reviews Kalshi’s cases. Nevada’s election-contract challenge returns to district court while sports-contract enforcement may continue during litigation proceedings. The CFTC proposed ninety-day reviews for certain event contracts, including products involving gaming…

OCEAN co-founder Luke Dashjr left the Bitcoin mining pool on Aug. 29 after reaching a mutual separation agreement with its parent company, Mummolin Inc. He resigned as chairman, chief technology officer and director. Summary OCEAN co-founder Luke Dashjr resigned as chairman, chief technology officer and director by mutual agreement. Mummolin repurchased all Dashjr’s equity, ending his ownership interest in the Bitcoin mining pool entirely. Dashjr will establish CONVOY to continue promoting decentralized Bitcoin mining; launch details remain undisclosed today. OCEAN said it will continue operating its transparent, non-custodial pool for Bitcoin miners without Dashjr. The parties cited differing visions after…

Tokenized stock transfer volume climbed more than 415% over the 30 days ending Aug. 29, reaching $29.5 billion as Coinbase brought four equity tokens to Base. Summary Tokenized stock transfer volume increased 415% over 30 days, reaching $29.5 billion, RWA.xyz data showed. Monthly active addresses rose 209% to 1.3 million as onchain equity activity accelerated sharply globally. Coinbase launched four initial tokenized stocks on Base, each backed one-for-one by an underlying share. Coinbase currently restricts Base stock tokens to eligible non-U.S. users under Regulation S offering rules. Onchain tokenized stock value reached $2.54 billion, rising about 637% from one year…

NFT sales volume fell 44.70% to $63.33 million over the past seven days, even as the number of buyer and seller addresses increased sharply across the market. Summary NFT sales fell 44.70% to $63.33 million, while transactions declined 14.13% to 802,330. Buyer addresses rose 30.48% to 227,316, while seller addresses climbed 54.64% to 247,373. Ethereum led with $35.56 million in sales despite recording a 49.01% weekly decline. Bitcoin placed second with $8.68 million as sales fell 59.53% and buyers rose 41.11%. Courtyard led collections with $6.09 million, while a Bitcoin NFT sold for $2.14 million. According to data from CryptoSlam,…

Nine consecutive sessions of net inflows have narrowed the gap with Bitcoin ETFs to almost nothing. But spot volume tells a different story, and one that matters more. Summary U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $225.8 million in net inflows on August 28, their strongest single day in 10 months, extending a buying streak to nine consecutive sessions worth $1.42 billion. BlackRock’s ETHA fund absorbed $1.02 billion of that total, or 72% of all category flows, without missing a single day of net buying across the entire run. The gap between Ethereum and Bitcoin ETF daily inflows narrowed to just $16.5…

A research paper published this week quantifies what happens when bank deposits move at blockchain speed. The number is large enough to reshape how banks fund the economy, and the crypto industry is building the pipes without acknowledging the consequences. Summary A research paper published on August 25 found that tokenized deposits could reduce U.S. bank lending capacity by $580 billion if the technology reaches widespread adoption, roughly 5% of total bank lending. The mechanism is straightforward: banks lend against stable deposits, and if deposits can move on chain in minutes instead of days, the deposit base becomes less stable,…

The Bank of Russia is building a surveillance apparatus for digital assets at the same time the Russian state relies on those assets to circumvent Western financial restrictions. The contradiction reveals how governments actually think about crypto. Summary The Bank of Russia added 2,600 crypto wallets to a monitoring system used by banks and law enforcement after more than 1 billion rubles flowed into the addresses during the first half of 2026. More than 74% of pyramid schemes identified by the regulator used cryptocurrencies to attract funds, down from 84% in 2025 but still the dominant payment channel for financial…

Two U.S. fund filings dated Aug. 27 and Aug. 28 have listed three XRP-linked ETFs, adding fresh evidence of the token’s growing presence across regulated investment products. Summary ProShares’ filing lists its unlevered XRP ETF and the 2x leveraged Ultra XRP ETF. Morningstar Funds Trust’s amendment includes a live fund combining S&P 500 stocks with XRP exposure. Seven U.S. spot XRP ETFs had attracted $1.57 billion in cumulative inflows by Aug. 24. XRP traders face an escrow unlock on Sept. 1 and a Senate procedural vote on Sept. 15. Two filings submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission identify…

President Donald Trump has announced an oil agreement that would give the United States a 55% effective output share in a new venture controlling 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan reserves. Summary The planned venture covers 17 Venezuelan oil fields with an estimated 65 billion barrels. A U.S. official said the United States would receive equity and rights to buy crude at cost. Venezuela expects the projects to attract $100 billion in investment and generate $209 billion in taxes. Damaged infrastructure, political uncertainty, and unresolved legal questions could delay any production increase. According to Trump’s Truth Social announcement, Secretary of State…