Articles by Khal
Latest from Khal
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Dollar posts best day in two weeks as oil prices climb on Strait of Hormuz tensions
The US dollar surged 0.2% on August 6, its strongest day in two weeks, as reports of Iranian restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher and reshaped market expectations around geopolitical risk.
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Trump convenes mining CEOs to secure critical minerals for defense
President Trump is hosting a roundtable with top mining executives on August 7 to advance a $12 billion national mineral stockpile initiative and restrict defense contractors' reliance on foreign suppliers, targeting China's dominance in rare earth processing.
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Binance Bitcoin futures hit record 7.82x spot volume ratio
Bitcoin derivatives trading on Binance reached nearly eight times higher than spot markets, with daily futures volume hitting $57.82 billion versus $6.08 billion in spot trading, according to CryptoQuant data released Friday.
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American Bitcoin Holds 8,002 BTC; 38.6% Restricted by Bitmain Deals
American Bitcoin ended Q2 with 8,002 BTC in reserves, but nearly two-fifths are tied up under Bitmain miner-purchase agreements. Mining supplied 95% of quarterly reserve growth, while operations and asset purchases consumed $129.1 million in cash.
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Bitcoin holds $64,000 as weak ADP jobs data precedes Friday payrolls
Bitcoin hovered near $64,000 Friday morning as ADP reported private employers added just 44,000 jobs in July, down sharply from 95,000 in June. The weak hiring data clashed with accelerating wage growth, setting up a critical test when the official jobs report arrives at 8:30 a.m. ET.
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Ether.fi splits weETH from restaking as Ethereum rewards debate heats up
Ether.fi removed restaking from weETH, its flagship staking token, forcing users into a separate token (weETHs) to access higher-risk yield. The move comes as Ethereum researchers propose capping validator rewards, sparking criticism from staking operators.
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EU Regulators Warn of Crypto Impersonation Scams Amid MiCA Rollout
European regulators are cautioning cryptocurrency users about a spike in impersonation scams targeting investors displaced by the EU's MiCA framework, which requires all crypto firms to obtain licenses or exit the market by a set deadline.
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Bitcoin wallet dormant since 2011 moves $3.2M to FalconX-linked address
A bitcoin wallet inactive for over a decade moved roughly 50 BTC worth $3.2 million on Thursday to an address previously linked to institutional broker FalconX, though the coins remain unsold as of Friday.
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Senate delays Clarity Act vote until September over party disagreements
The U.S. Senate will not vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act before its August recess, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune confirming a September vote instead. Democrats and Republicans remain divided on ethics provisions tied to President Trump's crypto holdings.
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Ethereum controls 67% of $23B DeFi lending market
Ethereum and its liquid staking tokens now account for 67% of all DeFi borrowing activity, with total outstanding lending at $23 billion as of May 2026. The market has contracted sharply from 2025 highs, but Ethereum's dominance reflects the structural appeal of yield-bearing collateral like stETH.
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Alphabet raises $25B in bonds as AI capex nearly doubles to $190B
Alphabet is planning a $25 billion bond offering in August 2026, marking its third major debt raise this year as the company's AI infrastructure spending surges. The move signals a structural shift toward external financing to fund capex guidance between $185 billion and $190 billion.
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Ondo Finance control battle erupts after founder Nathan Allman's death
Three Delaware Chancery Court filings reveal a power struggle at tokenized real-world asset issuer Ondo Finance following founder Nathan Allman's death in May, with his mother and the current CEO claiming competing rights to control the company.
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Wintermute registers as US broker dealer, targets Wall Street expansion
Wintermute's US division has registered as a broker dealer with the SEC and FINRA, positioning the crypto market maker to become a designated market maker on major US exchanges and compete with traditional firms within three to five years.
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Brent crude tops $82 amid Middle East supply concerns
Brent crude reached an intraday high above $82 per barrel in 2026, driven by ongoing Middle East supply disruptions affecting global oil markets. Prediction markets assign only 3.6% odds to a new all-time high by September 30, though year-end odds stand at 11.5%.
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Samsung, SK Hynix face shareholder pressure for AI chip capital returns
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix posted record quarterly profits from AI chip demand, but shareholders are pushing the companies to return 80% of free cash flow instead of reinvesting most earnings. A retail investor group launched a campaign calling for Samsung to conduct a $32 billion share buyback.
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Digital Asset Clarity Act stalls in Senate as August recess looms
The U.S. Senate has not yet indicated whether it will advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act before its summer recess on August 7. Negotiations over ethics provisions and agricultural language continue, with multiple scenarios possible ranging from an immediate vote to delay until September.
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Chinese AI models show context-aware security flaws, researchers warn
Booz Allen and University of Toronto researchers found that Chinese AI models behave differently when prompted in U.S. government contexts, and that open-weight AI can power adaptive worms. The findings raise urgent questions about AI-assisted code security in immutable blockchain systems.
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Feds charge Few and Far founder Taj Tarsha with $10M investor fraud
Federal prosecutors charged Taj Tarsha, founder of NFT marketplace Few and Far, with securities and wire fraud after he allegedly raised more than $10 million from investors and diverted the funds to gambling, cryptocurrency trades, and personal expenses including a DJ hobby.
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UK tribunal certifies £5bn class action against Google over search abuse
The UK Competition Appeal Tribunal certified a class action lawsuit against Google on behalf of approximately 880,000 British businesses, alleging the tech giant abused dominant positions in search, mobile operating systems, and advertising to overcharge for search services.
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Western Union launches Stablecard for USDPT remittances in 37 markets
Western Union and Rain unveiled Stablecard, a Visa-branded digital wallet enabling users to hold USDPT stablecoin, receive cross-border payments, and spend in volatile-currency economies. The product launches in 37 markets with plans to expand to 60 by year-end.
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Galaxy Digital shares fall 13% on $85M Q2 loss
Galaxy Digital reported an $85 million net loss for Q2, driven by digital asset depreciation, but the company's data center business showed early momentum with first revenue generation and a $3.5 billion debt raise to fund expansion.
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FORMS HK, Chainlink launch tokenized securities framework in Hong Kong
A coalition of financial and blockchain firms launched a standardized framework for issuing and settling tokenized securities in Hong Kong, built on compliance-first infrastructure and the ERC-3643 token standard.
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Iran and Oman agree on Strait of Hormuz shipping route
Iran announced an agreement with Oman on a proposed shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz, potentially easing restrictions that have limited access to the critical waterway since February 2026 and signaling a strategic shift in managing regional energy flows.
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Bitzero's $25M Raise Consumed by Debt, Warrants Risk 21.6% Dilution
Bitzero Holdings raised $25 million via warrant placement but committed $22.375 million—89.5% of proceeds—to repay secured-loan principal within days. Automatic warrant exercise could dilute shareholders by 21.6% over five years.