Wallets tied to Trump Media moved 2,628 BTC, worth about $165 million by the source’s estimate, to Crypto.com in two on-chain transactions on Aug. 1. A company spokesperson told The Block that the bitcoin was transferred, not sold, repeating the same explanation the company gave after a similar move in May. The transactions were flagged by blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain, which raised the possibility that the bitcoin may have been sold. Still, on-chain data can only show that the assets reached an exchange address; it cannot confirm whether a sale actually took place. Trump Media said the bitcoin is tied to collateral arrangements for convertible debt and cannot be distributed or withdrawn until certain loan covenant conditions are met. The company said those restrictions would be lifted no later than May 29, 2028, when the convertible notes mature. Publicly labeled wallets linked to the company currently hold about 4,261 BTC, or roughly $268 million by the source’s figure, closely matching the 4,260.73 BTC listed as collateral for convertible debt in its first-quarter earnings report.

Zcash is a privacy-focused cryptocurrency that launched in October 2016 with a design intended to hide the sender, recipient, and amount of a transaction while still allowing the network to verify that the payment is valid. Built by the Electric Coin Company and rooted in academic cryptography research, Zcash uses zk-SNARKs to enable shielded transfers, while also supporting transparent transactions similar to Bitcoin. Like Bitcoin, it has a capped supply of 21 million coins and follows a four-year halving cycle. The project has gone through several major technical milestones, including Sapling, Blossom, Network Upgrade 5, Orchard, and most recently Ironwood. In 2026, Zcash faced one of the most serious episodes in its history after a critical counterfeiting vulnerability was discovered in the Orchard shielded pool. Developers coordinated a confidential emergency response, disclosed the issue in June, and later activated Ironwood in July to retire Orchard, contain any possible counterfeit coins, and add new supply-verification and quantum-resistant features. Zcash also remains at the center of debates over privacy, regulation, and exchange listings. Regulators have long scrutinized privacy coins, yet Zcash’s optional transparent mode has helped it remain listed on more major platforms than some rivals. At the same time, the network is navigating leadership turnover, funding debates, software migration, and its next halving, all of which will shape its next phase.

Freelance journalist Ben Touati says his byline was attached to AI-written gambling guides months after ClickOut Media ended his working relationship. Touati, who said he lost access to company systems on March 9 and formally stopped working with the company on March 23, discovered five articles on his Esports Insider author page on May 26 that he says he never wrote. Press Gazette reported that the pieces were published between 5:39 a.m. and 6 a.m. over four consecutive days through May 29. Touati later filed a complaint on June 2 under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, arguing that his personal data had been misused. The company then removed his byline from the five articles and reassigned them to another writer, according to the report. Press Gazette updated the story again on July 15, saying 28 more gambling-related articles carrying Touati’s name had appeared on the German-language version of Esports Insider, with publication dates ranging from May 15 to July 14. The report also linked the episode to ClickOut Media’s parent company, Finixio, which Press Gazette said generated about £40 million in revenue in 2024 and controls more than 200 domains. The company said it uses AI-assisted content with human checks and editing, but its public statement did not explain why a former contributor’s name appeared on articles he says he did not write.

Perpetual futures, long one of crypto’s most heavily traded instruments, are moving into regulated U.S. markets and drawing fresh attention from Wall Street. Early traction has been notable: Kalshi said its perpetual futures passed $1 billion in trading volume within a week of their June launch, and Coinbase has also secured approval to list regulated perpetual futures in the United States. The product, which does not expire and instead relies on periodic funding payments to keep prices near the underlying asset, has already become central to global crypto trading. Bank of America has estimated annual volume at roughly $90 trillion. Even so, large financial institutions are not rushing in. According to people familiar with the discussions cited by CoinDesk, most major banks are still evaluating the product rather than building out large-scale launches. Prop trading firms, market makers and newer clearing firms are seen as more likely early adopters because they can deploy their own capital more flexibly and tolerate operational risk more easily. Banks, by contrast, face stricter capital requirements, client obligations and reputational considerations. The appeal goes beyond speculation. A round-the-clock perpetual market could help traders manage weekend risk and provide price signals while traditional futures venues are closed. But legal and market structure questions remain unresolved, including whether some perpetual contracts should be regulated as futures or swaps. CME has already challenged the CFTC’s treatment of Kalshi’s bitcoin perpetuals, showing that the debate is no longer only about innovation but also about market control and competitive positioning.

The U.S. push to bring crypto perpetual contracts onshore has quickly turned into a courtroom fight. Coinbase has launched U.S.-style perpetual futures on its CFTC-regulated derivatives exchange, starting with micro Bitcoin and Ether contracts, while KalshiEX won CFTC approval on May 29 to list BTCPERP, a perpetual contract tied to spot Bitcoin. On June 18, CME sued the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and its chairman, Michael Selig, in federal court in Washington, D.C., asking the court to void Kalshi’s approval and the related policy statement. At the center of the dispute is a basic legal question with large commercial consequences: whether perpetual contracts should be treated as futures or as swaps under the Commodity Exchange Act. CME argues they fit the statutory definition of swaps and should face a much stricter regulatory regime, including dealer registration, capital requirements and intensive reporting. The CFTC has pushed back, calling the lawsuit baseless and framing it as resistance from an incumbent exchange to a more competitive market. The case lands as U.S. venues roll out different perpetual models, from Kalshi’s no-expiry structure to Coinbase’s long-dated futures design that uses hourly interest accrual and twice-daily funding settlements. Funding rates, liquidation rules, collateral fragmentation and the possibility of stablecoin margin all now sit at the center of a growing fight over market structure, regulatory jurisdiction and who gets to shape a multibillion-dollar segment of crypto trading.

On May 29, a block sale of 29.21 million BlackRock IBIT shares worth $1.26B transacted at $43.16, a 2.3% discount to market price of $44.17, resulting in a ~$29.5M loss. NYDIG analysis suggests this was not an arbitrage unwind as spot bitcoin ETFs face persistent outflows.

Gtech Network's GTC token listing has been postponed three times (May 30, June 15, June 18). Presale ended at $0.002, expected listing price $0.05. Exchanges BingX, LBank, Binance Alpha unconfirmed. July listing remains uncertain.

A critical forgery bug in Zcash's Orchard privacy pool, discovered via AI, allows unlimited fake ZEC minting. The bug is fixed but ZEC plummeted over 30%. Community debates whether it was exploited.