Assemble AI

This week features several significant financial events including speeches by U.S. President Donald Trump and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde. The U.S. Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision and hold an FOMC press conference. Additionally, U.S. initial jobless claims data will be released, providing insight into the labor market.

A prominent long-term Bitcoin holder, known as 1011short, injected an additional $20 million USDC into Hyperliquid to avoid liquidation. Despite this move, the holder suffers an unrealized loss of about $83.4 million, with profits dwindling significantly. Large leveraged long positions remain active in Ethereum, Bitcoin, and Solana.

CoinMarketCap's Altcoin Season Index is currently at 27, showing that Bitcoin is outperforming most altcoins over the past 90 days. The index measures the price performance of the top 100 cryptocurrencies against Bitcoin, excluding stablecoins and wrapped tokens. A score below 75 suggests that the market favors Bitcoin rather than altcoins at this time.

In the past 12 hours, the crypto market experienced $583 million in contract liquidations, predominantly from long positions totaling $553 million. Short position liquidations were significantly lower, at around $30 million. The largest individual liquidation was a $15.2 million ETHUSDT long position on Binance.

Bitcoin OG has deposited an additional $20 million USDC into Hyperliquid to prevent position liquidation amid a declining market. Despite this, floating losses have grown to approximately $83.4 million, with cumulative funding fees totaling around $8 million. The address holds significant assets, including over 223,000 ETH, 1,000 BTC, and more than 511,000 SOL.

Japan's Financial Services Agency is exploring lifting the ban on spot cryptocurrency ETFs by 2028, potentially allowing virtual currencies to be included under investment trusts. Leading financial firms like SBI Holdings and Nomura are actively developing related ETF products ahead of potential approval. Tax reform discussions aim to reduce the current high tax on crypto profits from up to 55% to around 20%, facilitating wider investor participation.

CME Bitcoin futures opened Monday with a $2,940 price gap, starting at $86,560 after closing last week at $89,500. This gap occurs because CME futures markets close over the weekend while the spot Bitcoin market operates continuously. Investors are closely monitoring whether the futures price will adjust to close this weekend-induced gap.

Entropy, a decentralized custody startup backed by a16z and other major investors, announced its shutdown after four years and multiple pivots. The firm, specializing in multi-party computation and cross-chain asset management, raised about $27 million but concluded that its business model could not sustain venture-scale growth. This decision highlights mounting difficulties in the crypto startup environment since 2025.

Gold prices reached a historic $5,000 per ounce, driven by rising market anxiety linked to tariffs among the US, Canada, and China, a potential yen currency intervention, and increased chances of a US government shutdown. This surge reflects shaken trust in the global financial system alongside declining US dollar strength and central bank gold purchases. Investors are seeking safe havens amidst uncertain macroeconomic conditions and looming geopolitical tensions.

RAIN token has surged nearly 40% in the past 30 days, approaching a projected new all-time high near $0.0110, over 10% above current levels. Despite the strong bullish breakout pattern and reduced token movement on-chain indicating sellers are holding back, technical indicators like RSI and MFI show weakening buyer momentum. Key support and resistance levels around $0.0099, $0.0082, and $0.0128 will determine whether the rally sustains or faces a deeper correction.

Michael Saylor, founder of MicroStrategy, posted a chart on his social media hinting at a new Bitcoin purchase. His phrase 'Unstoppable Orange' references Bitcoin's iconic color and its resilient nature. Historically, such posts from Saylor have preceded announcements of additional BTC acquisitions.

Spot gold has reached an unprecedented price level, exceeding $5,000 per ounce for the first time. The metal's price has increased by around $700 since the beginning of the year. This rise in gold value continues with a recent gain of 0.52% compared to the previous trading session.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that Canada has no intention of pursuing a free trade agreement with China. This decision follows U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to impose 100% tariffs on Canadian goods if such a deal occurs. The development reflects ongoing geopolitical tensions impacting international trade relations.

Strive asset manager replaces convertible bonds with floating-rate perpetual preferred stock to enhance its financial structure. The new preferred stock issuance improves leverage ratios by reclassifying debt as equity and offers creditors high dividends and priority over common stockholders. This strategy may serve as a model for companies like Strategy (MSTR) facing large convertible debt burdens.

John Daghita, the son of a US government contractor head, is accused of stealing over $40 million in cryptocurrency linked to government seizure wallets. The theft exploits insider access through CMDSS, an IT firm with active federal contracts managing seized crypto assets. The case raises serious concerns about insider risks and management of government-held digital assets amid ongoing investigations.

President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 100% tariff on Canadian products should Canada go ahead with a trade agreement with China. He expressed concern over China gaining significant control over Canada and labeled the potential deal as very detrimental. The announcement has escalated tensions between the U.S., Canada, and China regarding trade relations.

Japan’s Prime Minister warned against abnormal yen movements amid the currency's largest rally in six months, sparking speculation of coordinated intervention with US Fed support. Past joint interventions have historically stabilized the yen, weakened the dollar, and boosted global assets, including cryptocurrencies. While a weaker dollar could benefit Bitcoin and other digital assets long-term, short-term volatility is expected as leveraged yen positions unwind.

Strive, a bitcoin treasury company, is utilizing perpetual preferred equity to retire its significant $8 billion in convertible debt. This innovative approach could serve as a blueprint for managing long-term leverage in crypto firms. The strategy aims to provide a framework for reducing debt burden while balancing investor interests.

Tokenized US Treasuries have surpassed $10 billion in total value, marking their transition from proof-of-concept to operational infrastructure. Circle's USYC overtook BlackRock's BUIDL as the largest tokenized Treasury product, driven by superior distribution, simpler collateral mechanics, and broader investor access rather than brand strength. This shift highlights the growing importance of integration and operational efficiency in the tokenized collateral space and signals increasing adoption by institutional users.

Researchers report that new autonomous AI swarms are making online misinformation and manipulation harder to detect and sustain over longer periods. Unlike traditional botnets, these AI agents mimic human behavior and coordinate autonomously, complicating content moderation efforts. Experts suggest stronger identity verification and transparency measures as partial solutions, but emphasize no single fix exists.