ChainFeeds’ Aug. 13 research roundup pulls together five separate market narratives that are shaping crypto in Asia and beyond. One report argues that Upbit’s once-powerful listing effect is losing force as the exchange accelerates token additions while trading activity keeps shrinking. Another examines Li Lin’s path from Avenir Group to UMX, framing it as a push toward unified accounts that connect crypto collateral, U.S. equities, and cross-market risk management in one system. The package also looks at South Korea’s persistent outbound crypto demand. Tiger Research says unmet domestic demand for derivatives and broader digital asset products is increasingly being served by offshore exchanges and on-chain venues such as Hyperliquid, with billions of dollars in identifiable capital flows and fee revenue moving abroad. Coin Metrics, meanwhile, breaks down the source of this year’s $41.7 trillion in adjusted stablecoin transfer volume, showing that a large share comes from liquidity provision and flash loans rather than straightforward payment activity. The final piece from Foresight Ventures questions whether perpetual DEXs can rely on token rewards indefinitely, arguing that post-TGE value distribution often shifts away from actual trading contribution toward token ownership.

South Korea’s two biggest crypto exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb, have accelerated token listings as domestic crypto activity remains subdued and stock-market trading cools from first-half highs. Over the past month, both platforms added 17 KRW trading pairs, well above their usual pace of roughly six to 10 per month in the first half of the year. The shift comes after a period in which retail attention and capital were drawn heavily into Korean equities, especially large semiconductor names such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. Data cited from the Korea Exchange and CoinGecko shows the contrast clearly. KOSPI average daily turnover surged to more than KRW 50 trillion in May and June, while total second-quarter trading volume across South Korea’s five KRW-denominated crypto exchanges fell to about $146.43 billion, down 49.5% from the same period in 2025. Upbit’s volume dropped 54% year over year, while Bithumb’s fell 41.7%. As stock trading activity and retail participation faded in July and early August, the exchanges moved faster on listings. Even so, the article argues that the new listings are reshuffling volume within a shrinking market rather than bringing back a broad wave of fresh capital. It also notes that Upbit and Bithumb are increasingly listing similar assets as they compete for the same pool of Korean retail traders and transaction-fee revenue.

Crypto markets on Aug. 10 were driven by a mix of trading data, policy signals, corporate developments and geopolitical headlines. On centralized exchanges, BMT and TUT posted the largest gains among the top 10 tokens by trading volume, while OKX’s 24-hour leaderboard was led by BOME and PEOPLE. On-chain, GMGN’s most watched meme tokens were TODA, REMUS, LOUIE, RISK and PUMPGUY. Away from the tape, Unitree Robotics officially opened subscriptions for its STAR Market IPO, with the market estimating an allotment rate of just 0.02% to 0.03%. In U.S. crypto legislation, Polymarket data showed the probability of the CLARITY Act becoming law by Dec. 31 had dropped to 21%, while Senate procedure points to a first cloture vote on Sept. 15. Industry updates included Bithumb restricting deposits and withdrawals tied to three entities sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, fresh data showing more than 100 crypto projects have shut down or filed for bankruptcy in 2026 so far, and DeFiLlama figures showing Pump.fun’s 30-day protocol revenue moved ahead of Hyperliquid. Separate updates covered Strategy’s lack of Bitcoin purchases since June, a $10.5 million seed round for Dow Protocol, and proposed South Korean tax and VASP rule changes.

Project updates over the past week spanned restaking, token launch tooling, DAO governance, derivatives trading, legal disputes, token unlock visibility, Layer 2 upgrades, and shifting sector data. ether.fi removed all EigenLayer restaking exposure from weETH and is moving that function to a separate Symbiotic-based token, weETHs, with the remaining EigenLayer exposure already below 1% and expected to reach 0% in the third quarter of 2026. Uniswap rolled out Pools on Robinhood Chain as a launchpad for high-volatility meme tokens, offering Crowd Launch and Instant Launch formats, permanent liquidity and anti-sniping features; data from @Adam_Tehc showed $99.1 million in first-day volume, or about 54.2% of token launchpad volume on Robinhood Chain that day. Elsewhere, Lido DAO opened voting on its NEST automated buyback mechanism, Hyperliquid posted $218 billion in July perpetuals volume, and Shaw said ai16z would abandon its token, wind down the foundation and keep building open-source AI around Eliza. DeFi total value locked also turned up in July, rising 5.3% to about $73.8 billion after six straight monthly declines.

TradingBeats data shows Perp DEX platforms have moved out of their earlier high-turnover phase. Total market volume fell 13.7% week over week, while the 30-day figure dropped to about $498.2 billion, down 63.4% from last October’s peak. Hyperliquid, Lighter, GRVT and dYdX all posted weaker perpetual trading activity, and HLP and LLP sizes also declined. At the same time, Trade.xyz’s traditional-asset contracts kept growing, taking a larger share of volume even as crypto demand cooled.

WEEX announced on August 7 a limited-time zero-fee trading event for GRVT, along with a 50,000 USDT airdrop pool for participating users. The event is scheduled from 18:00 on August 6 to 18:00 on August 13, UTC+8. All users of the exchange are eligible. During the campaign, users who reach at least 50 USDT in daily GRVT spot trading volume can receive a 5 USDT futures bonus every day. The invite program allows users to earn rewards of up to 1,000 USDT per invited friend. The total airdrop pool amounts to 50,000 USDT. Users need to participate within the specified time window to qualify for the zero-fee trading benefit and the giveaway.

Bitcoin traded in a tight range around $64,000 after briefly touching about $64,500, with traders watching U.S. nonfarm payrolls, progress on the Clarity Act, and developments tied to a temporary Hormuz Strait agreement. On-chain data cited in the report showed roughly 155,000 BTC changed hands between $62,000 and $65,000, while Glassnode said about 515,000 BTC last moved near $63,000 and another 362,000 BTC near $61,000. The report also noted that spot price is sitting close to the 200-week moving average around $63,700, pointing to a key support area. Options markets remain calm for now. Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility has dropped to 36%, the lowest level since late May, even as traders on Kalshi increased bets on a move below $60,000 this month, with more users also positioning for $57,500 and $55,000. CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. said Bitcoin has a 55% probability of trading between $58,000 and $67,000 in August, versus a 30% bearish scenario and a 15% bullish one. The report also reviewed U.S. equity futures, crypto-related stocks, Michael Burry’s renewed warning that the stock market may be near a major top, and a series of upcoming earnings and token unlocks that traders are tracking.

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit said in an official announcement that it will list the GRVT token across its KRW, BTC and USDT markets. The exchange said trading is scheduled to begin at 17:00 local time on Aug. 5. The notice identifies GRVT as the token being added and specifies the three quote markets that will support trading at launch. No other listing details were provided in the announcement cited by Odaily.