Global markets were mixed as the Dow Jones (-0.1%) and S&P 500 (-0.03%) dipped, while the Nasdaq (+0.13%) edged higher. The Fed held rates steady but showed less consensus on future cuts, signaling caution ahead. Geopolitical uncertainty added to investor caution after President Trump hinted at possible military action in the Middle East. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 dropped 0.5% on risk-off sentiment, while in Australia the ASX 200 slipped 0.1% as iron ore prices fell below $93, dragging down major miners. Oil prices were flat, gold eased 0.6%, and Bitcoin dipped 0.4% to $103,952 as crypto markets held relatively steady. Investors now await Australia’s May jobs data and the Bank of England’s rate decision later this week.
- The global crypto market cap decreased 0.5% over the past 24 hours to $3.26tn. The total crypto market 24h volume decreased 8% to $111bn.
- In the past 24 hours, crypto liquidations decreased 30% and totaled $221m, with 67% of them long positions.
- According to data by SoSo Value, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs added $389.57 million in net inflows on June 18, marking a sharp rebound from the $216.48 million recorded the previous day. BlackRock’s IBIT led with $278.93 million, pushing its cumulative inflows to $50.95 billion and total assets to $71.06 billion. Fidelity’s FBTC followed with $104.38 million, while Grayscale’s GBTC saw $16.36 million in net outflows despite holding $19.23 billion in assets. Bitwise’s BITB added $11.32 million. Total trading volume across the 12 ETFs reached $2.94 billion, with combined net assets standing at $127.43 billion.
- U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs added $19.10 million in net inflows on June 18, rebounding modestly after two days of lower volume. BlackRock’s ETHA led with $15.11 million, bringing its cumulative inflows to $5.30 billion and total assets to $4.19 billion. Grayscale’s ETH fund followed with $3.99 million, while its legacy ETHE product saw no flows and continues to carry a steep 2.5% fee. Total trading volume across the nine ETFs reached $380.08 million, with net assets for the group totaling $9.94 billion.
- Deribit and Crypto.com have begun accepting BlackRock’s tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, BUIDL, as trading collateral for institutional and experienced clients, lowering margin requirements by enabling the use of a low-volatility, yield-bearing asset. BUIDL now holds nearly 40% of the $7.3 billion tokenized Treasury market, with most assets hosted on Ethereum. The move highlights growing convergence between crypto and traditional finance, though concerns persist over centralization, with six firms—led by BlackRock—controlling over 88% of the tokenized U.S. government debt market. Coinbase’s recent $2.9 billion deal to acquire Deribit may further expand BUIDL’s reach.
- Circle’s USDC stablecoin will soon be accepted as collateral for margined futures trading in the U.S., under a new partnership between Coinbase Derivatives and clearinghouse Nodal Clear. Announced Wednesday, the integration—pending approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission—marks what could be the first regulated use of USDC as futures collateral.
- Prenetics health company made an initial purchase of more than 187 Bitcoin as part of its strategy to substantially increase its Bitcoin holdings.
- Crypto asset managers have allocated $4 billion on-chain so far this year, as reported by Artemis and Vault, signifying DeFi’s growing role as the foundational back-end infrastructure for fintech companies.
- The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a civil forfeiture complaint to seize more than $225 million in cryptocurrency tied to “pig butchering” scams—fraudulent investment schemes that trick victims into sending increasing amounts of crypto. Officials say over 400 individuals were defrauded, with funds laundered through crypto channels. The Secret Service carried out the seizure, and the DOJ aims to compensate victims using the recovered assets. Tether assisted in the investigation, which follows reports that crypto-related fraud cost investors over $5.8 billion in 2024. The DOJ emphasized its focus on protecting consumers rather than political connections to the industry.
- 3iq’s new XRP ETF, backed by Ripple, began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange with zero management fees for the first six months.
- Ethereum’s staking yield has fallen below 3%, trailing newer yield-bearing products like sUSDe and SyrupUSDC, which offer 4–6.5% returns and are rapidly gaining market share. As decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols and tokenized U.S. Treasuries become more attractive to both retail and institutional investors, Ethereum faces growing pressure in the battle for onchain yield. However, many of these higher-yielding instruments are built on Ethereum itself, reinforcing the network’s value through increased usage and fees.
- China is challenging the US dollar’s reserve status by expanding the digital yuan’s reach to include domestic and international payments, as part of its strategy to increase economic influence globally.
- Chinese e-commerce company, jd.com, announced plans to apply for stablecoin licenses in major countries, aiming to reduce cross-border payment costs by 90% and enable transactions to settle in just 10 seconds, as part of its strategy to improve financial services and transaction efficiency.
- The blockchain group acquired an additional $20 million in bitcoin in 2025, bringing its total holdings to 1,653 BTC.
- Over the past two days, Ark has sold 642,766 Circle shares, equivalent to 14% of its 4.49 million CRCL purchase made during the company’s public launch, marking a significant reduction in its holdings.
- Norwegian crypto broker K33 initiated a share issue to raise at least 85 million Swedish krona, equivalent to $8.9 million, for the purpose of purchasing up to 1,000 bitcoins to add to its treasury, marking a significant investment in cryptocurrency.
