Articles by Khal
Latest from Khal
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Ripple Launches Mint Platform, Invests in Notabene as RLUSD Volume Falls
Ripple unveiled Ripple Mint, an institutional minting platform for RLUSD, and invested in compliance network Notabene to boost adoption. Meanwhile, RLUSD's monthly transfer volume dropped 25% to $11 billion despite holder growth and a $1.5 billion market cap.
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Russians withdraw 2.4 trillion rubles, straining banking liquidity
Russians have withdrawn over 2.4 trillion rubles in cash since February, creating liquidity shortages in the banking system. Market expectations for a Bank of Russia rate cut after July have surged to 63.5% from 32% a week ago.
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Bitcoin: Businesses buy 115K BTC in Q2 as individuals sell 78K
Business entities acquired 115,000 BTC in Q2 2026 as individual investors sold 78,000 BTC during the same period. Bitcoin declined 14.1% in value, yet prediction markets now price a July $67,500 target at 46% YES, up from 24% a week prior.
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Mirae Asset Rebrands Korbit to Digital X, Launches RWA-Stablecoin Ecosystem
South Korea's Mirae Asset has completed its acquisition of Korbit and plans to rebrand the exchange as Digital X, positioning it as an infrastructure layer for an ecosystem linking real-world assets, stablecoins, and traditional investments rather than a volume-chasing trading platform.
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Bitcoin holds $65K as $800B tech selloff spares crypto market
Bitcoin traded near $65,400 on Friday morning, down less than 1%, while the Magnificent Seven tech stocks collapsed 4.8% on AI spending concerns. Dogecoin fell 5%, but most major cryptocurrencies weathered the selloff better than equities.
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Senate Democrats reject Trump ethics provision in Clarity Act
Senate Democrats rejected White House-backed ethics language in the Clarity Act, prompting bipartisan negotiations on revised enforcement rules. Majority Leader Thune no longer expects passage before the August recess.
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Brent crude hits $100 as Trump tariffs reignite trade tensions
Brent crude oil surged to $100 per barrel as former President Trump reinstated tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on goods from various countries, reigniting global trade tensions and raising questions about oil price direction amid competing supply and demand dynamics.
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Mark Sanford enters South Carolina Senate race, shifts GOP primary odds
Former South Carolina governor and congressman Mark Sanford announced his candidacy for the Republican primary to replace the late Senator Lindsey Graham, immediately impacting the nomination odds of rival Ralph Norman.
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Polymarket predicts 36% chance of two Fed rate hikes in 2026
Prediction market Polymarket assigns a 36% probability to the Federal Reserve implementing two rate hikes during 2026, reflecting moderate expectations of monetary tightening among traders.
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OPEC+ plans output increase despite production shortfalls
OPEC+ is planning another increase in oil production targets despite significant gaps between quotas and actual output, with markets interpreting the move as reducing crude's likelihood of reaching all-time highs by September 30.
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Goldman Sachs CEO Backs Crypto Clarity Act, Splits With Wall Street
David Solomon endorsed the Clarity Act's regulatory framework, splitting from JPMorgan and banking trade groups fighting stablecoin-yield provisions that could compete with traditional deposit accounts.
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Smarter Web sells 177 Bitcoin, erases 7.7M convertible shares
UK-listed Bitcoin treasury company Smarter Web sold 177.89 Bitcoin at an average price of $65,762 to repay an $11.7 million convertible instrument, eliminating 7.72 million potential shares. The move simplified the capital stack but reduced Bitcoin per share across both share-count denominators.
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Nasdaq-Listed Zhibao Plans $220M Stock Sale Payable in Bitcoin
Shanghai-based InsurTech company Zhibao announced a non-binding term sheet to raise approximately $220 million by accepting Bitcoin as payment for new shares, targeting a bitcoin treasury on its balance sheet without selling equity for cash first.
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Clarity Act likely to miss August 7 deadline, Thune signals
Senate Majority Leader John Thune signaled the crypto market structure bill will probably miss its August 7 target before Congress breaks for summer, though leadership hopes to at least begin floor debate before the recess to preserve a narrow September window for passage.
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Goldman Sachs CEO Backs Digital Asset Market Clarity Act
David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs, endorsed the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, arguing it would provide regulatory certainty and enable more regulated financial institutions to participate in blockchain markets. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, however, tempered expectations about passage timing.
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SEC Pays $150K in Coinbase FOIA Settlement, Releases Withheld Records
The SEC agreed to pay $150,000 in legal fees and release two withheld documents as part of a July 22 settlement ending a Coinbase-backed public-records lawsuit, with no admission of wrongdoing from the agency.
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Robinhood CEO's X account hacked to promote fake $VLAD memecoin
Vlad Tenev's X account was compromised Thursday and used to promote Vladhood ($VLAD), a fake memecoin falsely claiming Robinhood app listing. The incident highlighted rising memecoin activity on Robinhood's newly launched blockchain, which has attracted $700 million in assets.
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Dollar strengthens as Middle East tensions push oil above $100/barrel
The U.S. dollar and oil prices surged Thursday as escalating Middle East conflict drove demand for haven assets and supply-disruption concerns. Brent crude hit $100.60, its highest level since May, while prediction markets raised odds of new all-time highs to 12% by September and 19% by year-end.
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Franklin Templeton Files for Bitcoin DRIP ETFs Converting Dividends to BTC
Franklin Templeton filed with the SEC on June 18, 2026, to launch two ETFs that automatically reinvest quarterly stock dividends into Bitcoin, targeting traditional equity investors with no crypto experience.
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BitMEX shuts down Sept. 23; reduce-only trading starts Aug. 26
BitMEX announced its closure on July 23 with a two-month wind-down window. Starting Aug. 26, users can only reduce positions, and any contracts still open on Sept. 23 will be force-closed.
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Coinbase launches AI agent payment tools and automated trading
Coinbase rolled out agent payment support for businesses, new trading commands for AI systems, and a developer SDK for x402 payments. Agent traffic on Base documentation now exceeds human traffic for the first time.
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Senate Banking Chair Scott vows to push Digital Asset CLARITY Act forward
U.S. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott pledged to advance the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act through Congress, joining Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman and Digital Assets Subcommittee Chair Cynthia Lummis in backing the joint regulatory framework for crypto.
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BitMEX Shuts Down After 11 Years; 100x Leverage Innovation Lives On
BitMEX, the legendary crypto derivatives exchange that pioneered 100x leveraged perpetual swaps, announced it's shutting down after more than 11 years of operations. HDR Global Trading Limited made the decision following a strategic review, though the platform assured users their funds remain safe during the transition.
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ECB to raise deposit rate to 2.5% in September amid inflation pressures
The European Central Bank is expected to raise its deposit facility rate by 25 basis points on September 10, bringing it to 2.5%, as officials navigate supply shocks and inflation pressures in the eurozone economy.