Author: James Wilson

Celsius co-founders Shlomi Daniel Leon and Hanoch “Nuke” Goldstein will pay a combined $6.5 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges tied to the collapsed crypto lender.  Summary Leon and Goldstein will pay $6.5 million combined under separate FTC settlements over Celsius claims. The FTC accused Celsius executives of falsely promoting customer deposits as safe and readily available. Mashinsky’s earlier $10 million settlement brings total payments from three Celsius co-founders to $16.5 million. The FTC said Leon will pay $4.1 million, while Goldstein will pay $2.4 million under separate court orders. The settlements end the FTC cases against the two…

Tether Gold has gained commodity status in Abu Dhabi, as DefiLlama data shows XAUT’s locked value has climbed more than threefold to about $2.86 billion over the past year. Summary ADGM recognized Tether Gold as an Accepted Spot Commodity for approved regulated firms. XAUT’s locked value more than tripled over the past year to $2.86 billion. Tether is expanding across tokenized gold, US payroll payments and Latin American banking. Abu Dhabi Global Market has recognized XAUT as an Accepted Spot Commodity, allowing regulated firms in the international financial center to provide services involving the tokenized gold asset when they hold…

Exodus Movement has cut about 25% of its global workforce as the crypto wallet company reorganizes around a full-stack stablecoin payments platform. Summary Exodus has cut 25% of its global workforce, potentially affecting about 54 employees. The company expects $10 million to $13 million in annual savings by 2027. Exodus is integrating Monavate and Baanx to build its stablecoin payments and card platform. According to a July 17 company notice filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the reduction will align Exodus’s costs and staffing priorities with its card issuance and payments strategy. The company also cited current market…

Coinbase has backed a tougher CLARITY Act after Senate Democrats added customer safeguards, even as its 2026 approval odds have fallen to 31% on Polymarket amid a dispute over ethics rules involving President Donald Trump. Summary Coinbase backs the revised CLARITY Act after Democrats secured stronger customer protections. White House resistance to crypto ethics rules threatens a Senate vote before August. Polymarket traders place the bill’s chance of becoming law in 2026 at 31%. Coinbase vice chair Ryan VanGrack told CNBC on Monday that Democrats had secured stronger consumer protections during closed-door negotiations over the bill’s final Senate text. He…

SpaceX stock has fallen to $119.79 after seven straight losing sessions, leaving SPCX 11% below its $135 IPO price before Tesla’s second-quarter earnings and a renewed Starship launch attempt. Summary SpaceX stock closed 3.34% lower at $119.85 before recovering slightly after hours. SPCX faces resistance near $125 as Tesla earnings and Starship Flight 13 approach. ARK Invest bought another $18 million in shares despite continued selling pressure. TradingView’s one-hour chart shows SPCX pressing against the lower boundary of a descending channel that has guided the stock down from around $170 at the start of July. The shares closed 0.93% lower…

The Trump administration has reportedly considered restrictions on Chinese AI models after Moonshot AI’s 2.8-trillion-parameter Kimi K3 topped a major coding leaderboard and drew growing interest from US companies. Summary Trump officials are reportedly reconsidering restrictions on Chinese open-source AI models. Moonshot’s Kimi K3 topped a coding benchmark and attracted strong developer demand. Polymarket traders see a low probability of Washington broadly blocking Chinese models. According to Axios, parts of the administration have renewed efforts to place de facto limits on foreign open-source models as Kimi K3 gains traction among developers. No formal ban has been announced, and the report…

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao has drawn a line between Bitcoin’s 21 million supply cap and an AI investment cycle that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon expects to attract $725 billion this year. Summary CZ says AI boosts productivity, while Bitcoin’s fixed supply protects wealth from inflation. Jamie Dimon expects AI investment to reach $725 billion amid a powerful spending cycle. BlackRock executives believe debt and currency concerns could strengthen Bitcoin’s long-term case. CZ wrote in a recent X post that artificial intelligence and Bitcoin serve separate financial and economic roles, rejecting the idea that rapid advances in AI can protect investors…

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has sued Mining Automatic and its owner, Zan Shaikh, after they allegedly raised about $22 million from more than 380 investors through a fraudulent crypto mining operation. Summary The SEC alleges Mining Automatic raised $22 million from more than 380 investors. Only 13% of investor funds reportedly covered costs linked to crypto mining. Zan Shaikh allegedly used investor money for marketing and unrelated personal expenses. The SEC announced the partially settled charges on July 20, accusing the Florida resident and his company, legally registered as Bright Vision Distribution LLC, of misusing investor money while…

Cardano price remained under pressure on Monday despite the activation of the network’s van Rossem hard fork, leaving ADA traders focused on whether the token can break through its next major resistance zone. Summary Cardano remains near $0.16 as weak momentum limits gains following the van Rossem hard fork. ADA must reclaim $0.17 and $0.19 before the broader downtrend shows clearer signs of reversing. Positive funding offers support, but a sub-one long-short ratio shows traders remain cautious about recovery. ADA was trading near $0.162 at the time of writing, down around 2% over 24 hours. The token has remained broadly…

Strategy raised another $263.5 million by selling Class A common stock while leaving its Bitcoin holdings unchanged for a second straight week. Summary Strategy raised $263.5 million through MSTR sales while keeping its Bitcoin holdings unchanged this week. Strategy increased its U.S. dollar reserve to $3.225 billion to support dividends and debt obligations. STRC valuation debate continues as investors assess cash flows, leverage, dividend coverage and Bitcoin exposure. The company sold 2,732,318 MSTR shares between July 13 and July 19 through its at-the-market program, according to a July 20 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Strategy reported no…