Bitcoin climbed back above $70,000 on Aug. 20 after remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump at a White House gathering with crypto industry executives helped lift sentiment. Yet the sharper story may have started earlier: according to 13F filings cited by Odaily, institutions were already increasing Bitcoin exposure in the second quarter of 2026, even as BTC fell 14% during the period. Root’s data showed total ETF holdings dropped from 1,297,010 BTC to 1,211,322 BTC, while institutional holdings rose from 498,389 BTC to 535,723 BTC, pushing the institutional share from 38.4% to a record 44.2%. The main channels were spot Bitcoin ETFs and shares of Bitcoin treasury companies. Among the firms highlighted, Jane Street disclosed roughly $990 million in spot Bitcoin ETF holdings as of June 30 and sharply raised its Strategy (MSTR) position, taking its combined added Bitcoin-linked exposure to more than $800 million on a gross long basis. BlackRock added exposure through MSTR, IBIT and Strive (ASST), while JPMorgan increased its IBIT position by about $85.6 million. UBS showed a milder increase in direct IBIT holdings but a 24-fold jump in IBIT call option exposure. Market views remain divided. Bullish voices including F2Pool co-founder Wang Chun, Strive CEO Matt Cole, Standard Chartered’s Geoff Kendrick and 10x Research argue the bear phase may be over or breaking. More cautious takes from CZ, CryptoQuant’s Darkfost, VanEck and Glassnode say a durable bottom is still not confirmed.

A White House crypto gathering set the tone for the day’s market and policy headlines. U.S. President Donald Trump urged Congress to move the CLARITY Act forward, calling it a powerful market-structure bill, while saying Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig is working to bring Hyperliquid into the U.S. in a fully compliant way. HYPE rose more than 20% over 24 hours following those remarks. The event came ahead of the first meeting of the CFTC’s Innovation Advisory Committee, which is scheduled to cover crypto regulation, AI in trading and compliance, and prediction markets. At the same time, Coinbase said it has integrated Hyperliquid into Base App to offer perpetual futures trading to eligible users with up to 50x leverage in supported jurisdictions. Outside the policy story, VanEck said Bitcoin has triggered eight of its 12 capitulation indicators, suggesting the market is approaching historical bear-market bottom zones, though not necessarily a confirmed bottom. PANews’ daily roundup also highlighted Unitree’s launch of a 7-axis bionic robotic arm starting at 9,900 yuan, fresh ETF flow data, new funding deals across AI infrastructure, and several project updates spanning Berachain, Nethermind, Aligned, Linera and Flop Labs.

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said at the SALT conference that Bitcoin’s much-discussed "super cycle" has yet to materialize and that the market is still following a relatively strict four-year cycle. In his view, the industry is currently in a bear market, though price swings should narrow over time as the market grows in size. Zhao also said the current regulatory backdrop is the friendliest he has seen in his 12 years in the industry. He pointed to the U.S. regulatory framework as a reference point for other jurisdictions and said Hong Kong is accelerating legislation in line with that approach. On investments, Zhao disclosed that YZi Labs allocates about 70% of its capital to core crypto and blockchain sectors, roughly 20% to AI, and the rest to areas including biotech. He said the firm uses its own capital and puts more weight on positive impact and team execution than on financial return alone.

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, better known as CZ, said at the SALT conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, that Bitcoin’s much-discussed “supercycle” has yet to materialize. In his view, the market is still largely moving within a fairly strict four-year cycle and is currently in a bear-market phase. He also said price swings should narrow over time as the industry’s total market capitalization grows. CZ also described the present moment as the most favorable operating environment he has seen in his 12 years in the sector. He said the U.S. regulatory framework has a demonstrative effect globally, with many countries looking to U.S. securities law and exchange oversight structures as reference points. He added that Hong Kong is also accelerating legislation aligned with U.S. regulatory thinking. On capital allocation at YZi Labs, CZ said about 70% of the firm’s funds are deployed in core crypto and blockchain sectors, around 20% in AI, and the rest in areas including biotechnology. He said the firm invests its own capital rather than outside LP money, which means it is not constrained by external return cycles and places more weight on a project’s positive impact and a founding team’s execution ability than on financial returns alone.

CZ said at the SALT conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, that his earlier “supercycle” call for Bitcoin has not played out. He said market data still points to a strict four-year cycle and that crypto is now in a bear phase. He also argued that as total market value grows, price swings should narrow, more like shares of large public companies such as Amazon and Facebook. On regulation, CZ described the current U.S. environment as the friendliest he has seen in 12 years in the industry and said America’s framework has global influence, with other countries and exchanges looking to U.S. securities and trading rules. He added that Hong Kong is moving quickly to align its legislative approach with the U.S. CZ also detailed YZi Labs’ portfolio split, saying about 70% of capital goes to crypto and blockchain, around 20% to AI, and the rest to biotech and other areas. He said the firm uses its own capital, is not bound by outside LP return cycles, and focuses on positive impact and execution rather than pure financial models. On Hyperliquid, he rejected the idea that being a Binance shareholder means backing only centralized exchanges, saying he entered the industry because he believes in decentralization. He argued that if KYC-free platforms like Hyperliquid can enter the U.S. in a compliant way, it could open the door for more Perp DEX and other decentralized services to reach users in the U.S. and globally.

Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego said pushing the CLARITY Act to a Senate vote before key disputes are resolved could undermine broader US crypto market structure legislation. Speaking at the SALT Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on Wednesday, he urged the crypto industry to support continued negotiations between Senate Democrats and Republicans instead of pressing for an immediate vote. Gallego said lawmakers still need to deal with the Agriculture Committee portion of the bill, assemble the wider legislative package, and decide how it should move to the House. He also said he and Republican Senator Thom Tillis sent compromise ethics language to the White House before the congressional recess but have not received point-by-point feedback. According to Gallego, strong enough ethics restrictions are needed to win Democratic backing. His comments add friction to the Trump administration’s push for faster passage. Trump called on Congress on Wednesday to pass a “fair version” of the bill, while Senate leaders have already delayed action until September. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on Aug. 7 that the chamber was “punting” the vote and would take up CLARITY “first thing” after lawmakers return from recess. White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt has said talks with Democrats will continue until the September vote, but not indefinitely.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has released a proposed rule, Regulation Crypto Assets, aimed at creating a tailored issuance framework for investment contracts involving crypto assets. The proposal introduces two Securities Act Section 5 registration exemptions: a Startup Exemption for projects raising up to $5 million over as long as four years, and a Fundraising Exemption for issuers raising up to $75 million in any 12-month period, with audited financial statements and ongoing reporting required under the larger path. It also includes an Investment Contract Safe Harbor that would allow certain crypto assets to fall outside investment contract treatment once the issuer has completed, or permanently stopped, the essential managerial efforts previously promised to investors. The SEC said the proposal reflects longstanding problems with relying on the Howey test and disclosure rules not built for token economics, governance, and code security. The rule was published on Aug. 18 and has entered a 60-day public comment period. The proposal arrives as the CLARITY Act remains stalled in the Senate, leaving the agency to pursue a regulatory route while legislation remains unsettled.

Odaily’s Meme Flash monitored four names on BSC whose combined market value climbed above $630,000. The update also cited Grok, which said trading fees could be used to buy tokenized stocks on BNB, with holders receiving a share in each cycle. The narrative, according to the post, moved from “$4” to “4stocks.” The note also mentioned Jerry, a Binance post about a new model, and CZ speaking at SALT Conference, while warning readers to verify the information themselves and to watch asset protection because meme coin prices can swing sharply.