Today's news highlights:
The South Korean financial regulatory authorities have issued guidelines for virtual asset lending services, prohibiting excessive leveraged borrowing.
The Binance wallet will launch Starpower (STAR) TGE on September 6.
Possibly influenced by Upbit's launch, RED rose 86.15% in a short time.
Binance HODLer airdrop launched OpenLedger (OPEN), trading opens on September 8.
Sun Yuchen issued a statement calling on the WLFI team to unlock their tokens and not to harm the project's credibility.
An Ethereum ICO participant has staked 150,000 ETH to ETH2 after an 8-year silence, equivalent to approximately $656 million.
Stripe and Paradigm launch a joint blockchain project Tempo designed specifically for stablecoin payments.
The tokenized asset management platform Plural has completed a $7.13 million seed round financing, led by Paradigm.
macro
The Supreme People's Procuratorate announced a case involving a fraudulent national project related to virtual currency, which defrauded over 6 million yuan in funds.
The official website of the Supreme People's Procuratorate announced a case involving the fabrication of false national project implementation fraud related to virtual currencies. The individuals involved attracted members to participate by releasing promotional information through social media, holding online meetings to explain the benefits of the project, and within just six months of promoting it, they attracted over 1,900 participants nationwide. Members participating in the project were required to convert RMB into USDT for recharge and transfer on the software. After the Huimin County Procuratorate in Shandong Province conducted a judicial accounting appraisal of the electronic data, it was found that the individuals involved fraudulently obtained over 6 million yuan. They were prosecuted for fraud and the defendants were sentenced to prison terms ranging from three years and six months to three years.
The Putian Hanjing Court ruled on a virtual currency-related criminal case, with the involved bank account transactions exceeding 13.3 billion yuan.
According to reports from Putian News, journalists learned yesterday that the People's Procuratorate of Hanjiang District in Putian City, Fujian Province, has firmly established an evidence foundation through proactive intervention, penetrated the review to solve data dilemmas, and empowered technology to break through the zero-confession defense line, achieving precise strikes against new types of crime across all chains. In the first half of this year, the People's Court of Hanjiang District ruled on a virtual currency-related criminal case initiated by the procuratorate. Individuals including Yan, Zheng, and Lin built an underground foreign exchange trading network using the virtual currency USDT (Tether), solicited clients through overseas chat software, and illegally exchanged RMB and foreign currencies using “U coins” as a medium, with the involved bank account transactions exceeding 13.3 billion yuan. After investigation, the amount of illegal foreign exchange trading reached 25.62 million yuan. This gang also withdrew over 478 million yuan in cash from banks in multiple locations in Fujian, purchased “U coins” to transfer to upstream criminal wallets, and “laundered” cross-border criminal funds, profiting from the price difference. Ultimately, the court sentenced Yan, Zheng, Lin, and 12 others to varying prison terms from 8 months to 3 years for illegal business operations and aiding information network criminal activities, and imposed fines.
Caixin: Beijing's largest off-site financing boss Song Shijie involved in money laundering and cryptocurrency “pig butchering” scheme.
According to Caixin, Song Shijie, the largest over-the-counter financing boss in Beijing, China, who owes 22 million yuan in fines to the national treasury, has handed over nearly 200 million yuan in asset forfeiture settlement to the UK and the US. The UK's National Crime Agency confiscated his luxury homes, apartments, and bank accounts in London, worth a total of 16.7 million pounds, approximately 161 million yuan, determining that the funds came from illegal securities trading within China and money laundering in the UK. Caixin reported that Song Shijie is also involved in a cryptocurrency “pig butchering” scheme, with three of his Binance accounts frozen, containing approximately 10 million dollars in crypto assets. According to a document from the Orlando court in Florida at the end of March, he is avoiding criminal charges by relinquishing claims.
Yunfeng Finance: In addition to ETH, it also plans to explore incorporating BTC, SOL, and others into the company's strategic reserves.
According to Caixin, Yunfeng Financial has previously purchased a total of 10,000 ETH in the open market. Alibaba founder Jack Ma and Yunfeng Financial Group Chairman Yu Feng co-founded Yunfeng Fund in 2010. Yunfeng Financial stated that the purchased ETH will be listed as investment assets in the financial statements, and in the future, they will continue to increase the proportion of investment in digital assets. In addition to Ethereum, they also plan to explore including diversified mainstream digital assets such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Solana (SOL) into the company's strategic reserve assets. Previously, on September 2, Yunfeng Financial disclosed the purchase of 10,000 ETH with a total investment cost of $44 million.
South Korea's financial regulatory authorities have issued guidelines for virtual asset lending services, prohibiting excessive leveraged lending.
According to Newsprime, South Korea's financial regulatory agency has introduced its first guidelines for virtual asset lending services. Due to intensified competition among exchanges leading to increased risks for investors, the regulatory authority has comprehensively banned leverage and cash lending, set personal limits and maximum fees, and blocked behaviors similar to short selling. The Financial Services Commission of South Korea announced on the 5th that it will implement a self-regulatory guideline for virtual asset lending business formulated by the Financial Supervisory Service and DAXA. The new guidelines focus on three core areas: limitations on service scope, user protection, and market stability. The guidelines explicitly prohibit excessive leverage lending and cash lending in Korean won, requiring exchanges to use their own assets to provide services, and banning third-party entrustment or indirect lending models. In terms of strengthening user protection measures, first-time users must complete DAXA's online education and adaptive testing, with lending limits set between 30 million to 70 million Korean won based on trading experience differences; prior notification is required before forced liquidation risk occurs, and additional margin is allowed; annual fees must not exceed 20%, and the current status of lending for various currencies and liquidation cases must be publicly disclosed. In terms of market stability measures, the lending targets are limited to assets ranked in the top 20 by market capitalization or listed on more than three Korean exchanges, excluding trading warning varieties and suspected abnormal trading currencies; there is a requirement to establish internal control mechanisms to prevent market fluctuations caused by excessive concentration of specific currencies.
British regulators draft new anti-money laundering rules targeting crypto companies
According to Decrypt, this week the UK Treasury released a draft proposal for amendments to current anti-money laundering regulations aimed at closing loopholes and addressing evolving risks, which includes stricter requirements for cryptocurrency businesses. The draft states: “This update aims to build a more risk-based, proportionate system that can robustly counter financial crime, while ensuring that the system is practically viable for the industry. The government also commits to improving industry guidance on anti-money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CTF) compliance for a range of issues and will issue separate guidance on using digital identity verification for AML/CTF purposes.” The new draft proposes several reform measures for cryptocurrency businesses. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority will implement a wider-ranging “fit and proper” test for company controllers, replacing the current beneficial owner test to ensure regulation can cover complex ownership structures. Other provisions will lower the threshold for notifying changes in control from 25% to 10%, aligning with the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA) regime. This means that any party acquiring 10% or more of the shares or having significant influence must notify the UK's Financial Conduct Authority. Additionally, the draft covers revisions related to customer due diligence, trust registration, agent restrictions, and technical updates such as converting the threshold amount from euros to pounds. The UK Treasury is soliciting feedback on the draft, with a deadline of September 30, after which the regulations will be finalized in early 2026 for parliamentary review.
opinion
Analysis: If Bitcoin fails to hold in the range of $106,000 to $108,000, the market may trigger a chain reaction.
Matrixport's latest weekly report shows that the price of Bitcoin has fallen back to the range of $106,000 to $108,000, and the trend model's bearish signal has been validated. If this range is breached, the market may trigger a chain reaction. Meanwhile, gold has broken historical highs, European bond markets are under increased pressure, and U.S. debt issuance is experiencing parabolic growth. Technical support is significant, and historical data indicates that the first retest typically does not break easily. Funding rates have noticeably declined, and implied volatility is nearing historical lows, with traders adjusting positions in advance; the options market pricing indicates that investors may be underestimating the risks of subsequent volatility. The potential upside in the fourth quarter is worth noting, but risks from sharp declines need to be effectively controlled.
Spectra Markets President: If the non-farm data is stronger than expected, it may weaken the Federal Reserve's interest rate cut expectations, thereby further suppressing BTC prices.
Brent Donnelly, president of Spectra Markets, plans to set buy orders at $94,000 and $82,000 for Bitcoin in response to potential market panic selling. He noted that the enthusiasm for digital assets as corporate treasury assets is waning, and the seasonal factors of the Bitcoin halving cycle turning bearish could lead Bitcoin into a prolonged bear market. Historical data shows that Bitcoin bull markets typically peak 16 to 18 months after halving events, followed by a year-long bear market. Given that the last halving occurred in April 2024, this pattern suggests the current bull market may be nearing its end. On the technical side, Bitcoin recently broke below the critical support level of $111,982, confirming a double top pattern breakout, and this price level has now become a resistance level. Meanwhile, U.S. non-farm payroll data will be released on Friday; if the data is stronger than expected, it could weaken Fed rate cut expectations, further suppressing Bitcoin prices.
Project Updates
Binance Wallet will launch Starpower (STAR) TGE on September 6.
Binance Wallet announced that Starpower (STAR) will be launched as the 37th exclusive Token Generation Event (TGE) project, and users can participate through PancakeSwap. The event will take place from 16:00 to 18:00 Beijing time on September 6. Participants need to use Binance Alpha points. Additionally, the official announcement revealed that there will be an extra 17.5 million STAR for subsequent activities, with specific details to be announced later. Previously, it was reported that DePIN startup Starpower completed a $2.5 million financing round, led by Framework Ventures.
Upbit will launch the RedStone (RED) Korean won trading market.
According to Upbit's announcement, RedStone (RED) will be listed on the Korean Won (KRW) trading market on September 5th, Beijing time, supporting transactions based on the Ethereum network.
Binance HODLer airdrop launched on OpenLedger (OPEN), trading opens on September 8.
The Binance HODLer airdrop for project OpenLedger, (OPEN), is now live. OpenLedger is an AI blockchain dedicated to providing liquidity for the monetization of data, models, and agents. Users can obtain OPEN airdrop allocations by using BNB to purchase capital-preserving earning products (fixed, flexible, or on-chain earning) from 08:00 on August 18, 2025, to 07:59 on August 22, 2025 (Beijing time). Tokens will be distributed to users' spot wallets at least one hour before trading starts. Binance will list OPEN on September 8, 2025, at 21:00 (Beijing time), and open trading pairs with USDT, USDC, BNB, FDUSD, and TRY, following seed label trading rules. The OPEN deposit channel will open on September 5 at 17:30 (Beijing time). This HODLer airdrop involves 10 million OPEN tokens, accounting for 1.00% of the maximum token supply. The circulating supply at the time of listing will be 215.5 million OPEN, accounting for 21.55% of the maximum supply.
Holding at least 220 Binance Alpha points allows you to claim 4000 SHARDS airdrop.
Binance Alpha will launch WORLDSHARDS (SHARDS) and open trading at 19:00 Beijing time on September 5, 2025. During the event, users holding at least 220 Binance Alpha points can claim an airdrop of 4,000 SHARDS tokens, on a first-come, first-served basis. If the event has not ended, the score threshold will automatically decrease by 15 points every hour.
Sun Yuchen issued a statement calling on the WLFI team to unfreeze its tokens and not to undermine the project's credibility.
Sun Yuchen has just published a letter to the World Liberty Financials (WLFI) team on platform X: “As one of the early major investors in WLFI, I have not only invested funds but also placed my trust and support in the future of this project. However, during the operation of the project, my tokens were unjustly frozen. As an early investor, I participated in the investment like everyone else and should enjoy equal rights. I urge the team to respect these principles and unfreeze my tokens.” Sun Yuchen added that a truly outstanding financial brand must be built on the foundations of fairness, transparency, and trust, rather than through unilateral actions that freeze investors' assets. Such measures not only infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of investors but may also harm World Liberty's credibility on a broader level. Earlier today, it was reported that after Sun Yuchen transferred $9 million worth of WLFI tokens, his wallet was blacklisted by the project team.
Stuttgart Stock Exchange launches the pan-European tokenized asset settlement platform Seturion
According to Cointelegraph, Boerse Stuttgart Group, the sixth largest exchange operator in Europe, has launched a blockchain-based settlement platform called Seturion, aimed at facilitating cross-border transactions of tokenized assets across Europe. The platform is designed for banks, brokers, trading venues, and tokenization platforms. The system supports both public and private chains, allowing settlements to be made using central bank currencies or on-chain cash. Local banks have tested it in blockchain experiments conducted with the European Central Bank (ECB). The group stated that its own exchange will be the first to connect to the platform; currently, the DLT trading venue BX Digital, regulated by Boerse Stuttgart, has adopted this solution. Other market participants must obtain approval from regulatory authorities to connect.
Stripe and Paradigm launch a joint blockchain project Tempo designed specifically for stablecoin payments.
According to CoinDesk, on Thursday, payment giant Stripe and cryptocurrency investment firm Paradigm officially launched a joint blockchain project designed for stablecoin payments—Tempo. Stripe CEO Patrick Collison stated on the X platform that the project was incubated internally at Stripe and aims to meet the large-scale demand for real-world financial applications, achieving tens of thousands of transactions per second and sub-second confirmations. Tempo aims to process 100,000 transactions per second, supports paying transaction fees with stablecoins, and includes automated market makers to ensure neutrality for issuers. The chain is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine and is built on Reth. Tempo is an independent entity, with Paradigm and Stripe as early investors, led by Paradigm CEO Matt Huang with a team of 15 people. He stated that they are building Tempo with principles of decentralization and neutrality, launching with multiple validation nodes and transitioning to a permissionless model in the future.
Important Data
Possibly influenced by Upbit's launch, RED rose 86.15% in a short time.
According to Binance market data, RED briefly touched $1.19, up 86.15% in 24 hours, currently priced at $0.78. Previously, it was reported that Upbit will launch the RedStone (RED) Korean won trading market.
Ethereum spot ETF saw a total outflow of $167 million yesterday, continuing a net outflow for 4 consecutive days.
According to SoSoValue data, yesterday (Eastern Time September 4) the total net outflow of Ethereum spot ETFs was $167 million. The Ethereum spot ETF with the highest single-day net inflow yesterday was Blackrock ETF ETHA, with a single-day net inflow of $149 million, bringing ETHA's historical total net inflow to $13.122 billion. The Ethereum spot ETF with the highest single-day net outflow yesterday was Fidelity ETF FETH, with a single-day net outflow of $217 million, and FETH's historical total net inflow currently stands at $2.515 billion. As of the time of publication, the total net asset value of Ethereum spot ETFs is $27.78 billion, and the ETF net asset ratio (the proportion of market capitalization relative to the total market capitalization of Ethereum) is 5.34%, with a historical cumulative net inflow reaching $13.172 billion.
The Bitcoin spot ETF saw a total net outflow of $227 million yesterday, with only BlackRock's IBIT achieving a net inflow.
According to SoSoValue data, yesterday (Eastern Time September 4th) saw a total net outflow of $227 million from Bitcoin spot ETFs. The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest net inflow yesterday was the Blackrock ( ETF IBIT, which had a net inflow of $135 million, bringing the total historical net inflow of IBIT to $58.804 billion. The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest net outflow yesterday was the Ark Invest and 21Shares ETF ARKB, which had a net outflow of $125 million, with a total historical net inflow of ARKB currently at $2.012 billion. As of the time of publication, the total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs is $142.303 billion, with an ETF net asset ratio (market value as a percentage of total Bitcoin market value) reaching 6.47%, and the historical cumulative net inflow has reached $54.647 billion.
Anchorage Digital associated address has accumulated a recharge of 5 million ENA to Binance in nearly 17 hours.
According to on-chain analyst @ai_9684xtpa's monitoring, the Anchorage Digital associated address 0x8ab…03780 has accumulated a deposit of 5 million ENA to Binance over the past 17 hours, valued at 3.37 million USD. Currently, the address still holds 13.31 million ENA, approximately 8.71 million USD; previously, Anchorage partnered with Ethena to introduce the stablecoin USDtb to the US market, making it a stablecoin compliant with the “GENIUS Act.”
Huang Licheng opened a 5x WLFI long position in the early morning, currently holding a position size of 1.82 million dollars.
According to on-chain analyst @ai_9684xtpa, after Sun Yuchen's address was blacklisted early this morning, Taiwanese singer Huang Licheng opened a 5x WLFI long position, currently holding 10 million tokens (1.82 million USD), with an opening price of 0.1822 USD.
A newly created wallet received approximately $24.74 million worth of MKR tokens from FalconX in the early morning.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, 5 hours ago, a newly created wallet received 14,000 MKR (worth approximately $24.74 million) from FalconX.
Tokenized Pokémon TCG traded over $120 million in four major markets in August.
Messari researcher AJC stated on platform X that the tokenized Pokémon TCG trading volume has surged, with the four major trading platforms facilitating transactions amounting to $124.5 million last month, an increase of 450% compared to January. The specific data for each platform is as follows: Courtyard.io ranks first, facilitating transactions of $78.4 million in August (a month-on-month increase of 49%). Collector Crypt is the largest trading platform in the Solana ecosystem, facilitating transactions of $44 million in August (a month-on-month increase of 124%).
An Ethereum ICO participant has staked 150,000 ETH to ETH2 after an 8-year silence, equivalent to approximately $656 million.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, an Ethereum ICO participant has staked 150,000 ETH (worth approximately $656 million) to ETH2 after a silence of 8 years. The participant had acquired 300,000 ETH during the ICO period, when its total value was $93,300.
Financing/Merger
RedStone acquires the DeFi credit rating platform Credora
According to CoinDesk, blockchain oracle service provider RedStone has announced the acquisition of on-chain credit rating platform Credora, with specific transaction details undisclosed. Credora is supported by Coinbase Ventures, S&P, and Hashkey, among others. After the acquisition, Credora will operate under the new brand “Credora by RedStone,” focusing on risk ratings for DeFi assets and yield strategies. Credora co-founders Darshan Vaidya and Matt Ficke will serve as strategic advisors to RedStone, assisting with integration and promotion. RedStone stated that it will provide rating services similar to S&P and Moody's for decentralized markets.
Kraken acquires Breakout trading platform
According to Reuters, Kraken has acquired the proprietary trading platform Breakout, co-created by TraderMayne and CryptoCred, to enhance its professional trading tools and market coverage capabilities.
The tokenized asset management platform Plural has completed a $7.13 million seed round financing, led by Paradigm.
According to a report by PR Newswire, the tokenized asset management platform Plural announced the completion of a $7.13 million seed round financing, led by Paradigm, with participation from Maven11, Volt Capital, and Neoclassic Capital, bringing the total funding to nearly $10 million. It is reported that Plural is building financial infrastructure for the electronic economy. Through tokenization and smart contract automation technology, Plural transforms real-world energy assets such as solar power, batteries, and data centers into scalable and programmable investment products.
Cryptocurrency-friendly bank Lead Bank completes $70 million financing with a valuation of $1.47 billion, led by a16z and others.
According to Bloomberg, Lead Bank, a loan institution in Missouri with 97 years of history that has been restructured to focus on serving fintech and cryptocurrency companies, has completed a $70 million financing at a valuation of $1.47 billion while advancing its balance sheet expansion and customer base growth—this valuation has nearly doubled compared to last year. The bank stated that well-known Silicon Valley investment firms Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Khosla Ventures led this round of financing, with existing investors Ribbit Capital, Coatue, and Zeev Ventures participating, and new investors including Iconiq Capital and Greycroft. The funds will be used to strengthen the balance sheet to support its expansion in the fintech sector. Lead Bank's clients include the “buy now, pay later” company Affirm Holdings Inc., enterprise expense management platform Ramp Business Corporation, and the stablecoin business unit Bridge recently acquired by Stripe Inc.
BlockSpaceForce and Mainnet Capital launched a crypto hedge fund with a target management scale of 100 million USD.
According to The Block, Singapore's BlockSpaceForce has partnered with Mainnet Capital to launch a cryptocurrency hedge fund that focuses on investing in Digital Asset Treasury companies (DATs) and other publicly listed companies related to cryptocurrencies, with a target management scale of $100 million. The fund adopts an open-ended structure and has invested in DATs companies such as Kindly MD, Inc. (NAKA), SharpLink Gaming Inc. (SBET), and SUI Group Holdings Ltd. (SUIG), emphasizing mainstream digital assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Chainlink, and Solana. The fund selects targets based on three criteria: sound structure, capital efficiency, and strategic advantages, and is open only to institutional and accredited investors.
Supersonik completed a $5 million seed round financing, led by a16z.
AI sales agency startup Supersonik has announced the completion of a $5 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). Supersonik was co-founded by Daniel Carmona Serrat, Joaquim Lechà, and Pol Ruiz, and focuses on real-time multilingual AI sales demonstrations that can instantly showcase software features based on customer needs. The funding will be used to expand into the U.S. market and grow the technology team, and it has already partnered with some clients.
Institutional Holdings
Mega Matrix submitted a $2 billion securities registration statement to advance the DAT strategy, with ENA as the primary target.
According to PRNewswire, NYSE-listed company Mega Matrix (NYSE American: MPU) announced that it has submitted a $2 billion general securities registration statement to the SEC in the United States, aimed at accelerating the governance token DAT strategy for stablecoins and planning to systematically accumulate mainstream governance tokens. Once the statement becomes effective, the company may issue common stock, preferred stock, bonds, and other securities in batches based on market conditions to support its DAT strategy, with the Ethena governance token $ENA as a primary target. The registration statement has not yet become effective, and the related securities are not available for sale.
Sora Ventures has launched Asia's first Bitcoin reserve fund, planning to purchase $1 billion worth of Bitcoin in the next 6 months.
According to official news, Sora Ventures announced during the Taipei Blockchain Week that it plans to raise Asia's first Bitcoin reserve fund with a scale of $1 billion, with $200 million of committed funds coming from partners and investors across Asia. The fund aims to purchase $1 billion worth of Bitcoin within the next six months, increase investment in existing Bitcoin reserve companies in Asia, and establish a broader network of similar projects outside the region to create synergies with existing reserve companies in Asia. The plan will be led by the management team of Sora Ventures, who will take the lead in this $1 billion reserve fund and collaborate with existing partners in Asia to promote it. In addition, the fund also plans to expand the existing leadership team by inviting new institutions to join, further extending resources for existing Bitcoin reserve companies in Asia.
Bitmine purchases an additional $65.3 million in ETH, bringing its holdings to $7.72 billion.
According to Arkham, Bitmine has just purchased $65.3 million worth of ETH, currently holding a total of $7.72 billion in ETH. In addition, Tom Lee is also continuously increasing his holdings of ETH.
Figma releases Q2 performance report: holds $90.8 million in Bitcoin ETF
According to a report by Zhitong Finance, American design software developer Figma announced that its overall revenue for the second quarter as of June 30, 2025, was approximately $249.6 million, achieving a year-on-year growth of 41%, but slightly below the average expectation of $250 million set by Wall Street analysts. Documents show that as of June 30, the company held approximately $1.6 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, including $90.8 million in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (Bitcoin ETF). The company's co-founder and CEO Dylan Field stated, “We do not intend to become Michael Saylor; this is not a company similar to a treasury based on Bitcoin holdings. This is a design company, but I believe it has its place as part of our balance sheet and diversified financial strategy.”
The listed company Robot Consulting plans to invest 1 billion yen in Ethereum to promote the development of legal technology.
The listed company Robot Consulting announced plans to invest up to 1 billion yen in ETH between the fourth quarter of 2025 and spring 2026. The company aims to promote the technological development of legal services through the integration of blockchain technology and legal technology, and to establish a digital asset reserve. Robot Consulting plans to utilize Ethereum for multiple business areas related to blockchain ecosystems and smart contract functions to enhance its influence in the legal technology sector.
The biological sample procurement company iSpecimen plans to establish a $200 million digital asset reserve covering SOL tokens.
Biological sample procurement company iSpecimen Inc. (ISPC) announced that as it advances its plan to establish a $200 million digital asset reserve, several cryptocurrency companies have approached it with investment opportunities. The company stated that the discussions cover investment opportunities in areas such as the tokenization of real-world assets and high-rated cryptocurrencies, and the company is also exploring the development of a reserve project based on the Solana blockchain.
