The total cryptocurrency reported in 2024 exceeded $4 billion, including around $550 million in gains and $290 million in losses.

Authorities are preparing for stricter reporting: starting in 2026, crypto exchanges and custodians will provide third-party reporting to the tax office, helping to track ownership and taxable events more accurately.

It’s finally here.

After years of confusion, turf wars between the SEC and CFTC, and a pileup of lawsuits — including the now-resolved Ripple vs. SEC case — the White House has published its long-awaited crypto policy recommendations.

And it could be the most bullish thing to come out of D.C. since “we like Bitcoin.”

Let’s break it down.
🧠 What’s in the Report?

The Working Group on Digital Assets, under President Trump, laid out a new framework to:

📜 Clarify which agency regulates what: The CFTC will now oversee spot crypto markets, while the SEC focuses on securities. This ends years of overlapping enforcement.

🪙 Promote USD dominance via stablecoins and crypto tax clarity

🔧 Streamline market structure & banking rules (still in progress)

This is a huge win for builders, traders, and founders who’ve been caught in the legal gray zone. Now, if your project isn’t offering securities? You don’t need to guess which regulator will knock first.
️ Ripple Case Was the Turning Point

The SEC’s years-long lawsuit against Ripple Labs ended with a settlement and a $125M fine — but XRP was not declared a security in retail markets.

The case helped force regulators to define rules more clearly, leading to the changes we’re now seeing in the White House report.
What This Means for You

Whether you're trading, building, or investing, here’s why this matters:
1. Clearer rules = more growth

Projects can finally plan long-term in the U.S. market without fear of surprise lawsuits. Expect more token listings, fund launches, and U.S.-based innovation.
2. Easier path for tokenized assets & stablecoins

The report backs stablecoin infrastructure — good news for anyone building payment rails, DeFi platforms, or RWA tokenization tools.
3. Banking custody rules may be next

Speculation is rising that crypto custody rules will soon be relaxed for banks. If true, that’s a green light for more institutional inflows.
️ A Few Red Flags to Watch

The SEC isn’t backing down — non-compliant projects will still face enforcement

No mention yet of a U.S. Bitcoin Reserve, despite rumors

Some fear stricter rules could “split” the community (Web3 vs TradFi)

🧩 TL;DR: This Is the “Regulatory Clarity” Crypto Needed

This report could be a turning point for U.S. crypto policy — removing one of the last major roadblocks to mainstream adoption.

If you're a:

Trader → Expect more listings and liquidity as clarity increases

Builder → Start preparing for U.S. market entry — clarity means compliance is now possible

Investor → Look for projects aligning with CFTC regulations, not just SEC-safe plays

We’re entering a new phase: from fighting the rules to building within them.

Cronos, the native token of Crypto.com’s Cronos Chain, just hit multi-year highs following the announcement of the Trump Media Group CRO Strategy.

The Big Announcement

On Tuesday, Trump Media & Technology Group revealed a joint venture with Crypto.com and Yorkville Acquisition:

A $6.4 billion Cronos treasury

Trump Media now holding $1.5 billion worth of CRO

Following the news:

CRO price jumped 25% to $0.20 in hours, later climbing past $0.23 — its highest since May 2022.

Trump Media (DJT) shares rose 5%.

CRO market cap hit $7.8 billion, putting it among the top 30 crypto assets.

Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek confirmed on X that CRO had surged 40% post-announcement.

Community Reactions: Hype vs. Skepticism

The move has split the community:

Optimists: See this as validation for CRO, with some calling for a permanent top-10 spot.
Skeptics: Point to political risk and past controversies — like the 70 billion CRO token burn cancellation earlier this year.

One frustrated user on X wrote:

“Great, so now my crypto portfolio is dependent on what some politician says or does. Just what everyone wanted.”

The Bigger Picture

CRO all-time high: $0.965 (Nov 2021, right after Cronos mainnet launch).

Current price: ~70% below ATH, despite the rally.

Cronos has evolved from its ERC-20 roots (2018) → Crypto.org Chain (2021) → Cronos rebrand (2022).

This partnership could bring fresh attention — but also tether CRO to the turbulence of US politics.

The Takeaway

Love him or hate him, Trump’s involvement has clearly moved markets. The question is whether this surge marks a sustainable breakout for CRO or just a politically charged pump.

What’s your call — bullish long-term momentum, or risky hype tied too closely to politics?

Something massive just shook the blockchain.

On July 4, 2025, eight long-dormant Bitcoin wallets from the Satoshi era (2009–2011) moved a total of 80,000 BTC — worth nearly $9.5 billion at today’s price. Each wallet transferred exactly 10,000 BTC, and all had been sleeping for 14 years.

The last time these wallets were touched? Bitcoin was trading around $2.45.

That means this whale’s $197,000 investment is now worth 4.8 million percent more.
🧠 Why Move Now?

The wallets moved their BTC not to exchanges, but to SegWit addresses — a modern, more secure wallet format. That’s important because it suggests the whale is:

🔒 Upgrading security

❌ Not panic-selling

⚠️ Possibly reacting to quantum security fears

These old wallets used a vulnerable format (P2PK), and while they were still safe due to not having exposed public keys, moving them to SegWit makes them even more secure — especially in case quantum computing advances faster than expected.
Quantum Computing: FUD or Future Threat?

Quantum computers could, one day, break Bitcoin’s cryptographic protections — especially the old ones. Some experts say this could happen as early as 2030, others say it’s decades away.

Either way, 5.9 million BTC (~25% of all Bitcoin) sits in vulnerable wallets.

If you’re holding crypto in an old address type (especially P2PK or P2PKH with reused addresses), it might be time to:

✅ Rotate your keys

✅ Use SegWit or Taproot wallets

✅ Revoke old approvals

Whale Sold 9,000 BTC — and Bitcoin Dropped 5%

Ten days after the move, the whale sent 28,600 BTC to Galaxy Digital. Around 9,000 BTC was sold, triggering a mini dip from $123K to around $117K.

So yes, even 14-year-old wallets can still make waves.
️‍️ Who Was It?

The wallets may belong to one entity, according to Arkham. Many speculate it could be Roger Ver (aka Bitcoin Jesus):

He was active in Bitcoin early.

He was arrested for $48M in tax fraud.

He was released on bail right before these wallets moved.

No proof yet, but the timing is… curious.
🧾 Weird Side Note: Blockchain Legal Notices?

Between July 1–4, someone sent OP_RETURN messages (embedded text in BTC transactions) claiming:

“LEGAL NOTICE: We have taken possession of this wallet.”

They even threatened to take the BTC if the wallet owner didn’t make an onchain move by September 30, 2025.

Scam? Legal stunt? Graffiti? Either way, it worked — the whale moved.
TL;DR: What You Should Do

This isn’t just whale gossip — it’s a signal to upgrade your crypto hygiene.
Action Steps:

Move old BTC or ETH to modern wallet formats (SegWit, Taproot, etc.)

Use tools like Revoke.cash or Etherscan Token Approval Checker to remove dangerous approvals

If you're serious about long-term holding, look into multi-sig wallets or hardware wallets

Don’t reuse public keys. Ever.

Final Thought

When billion-dollar bags start moving after 14 years of silence, it's not random — it's strategic. Whether it’s quantum fear, legal drama, or just a reminder from a very rich ghost, there’s a lesson here:

In crypto, silence doesn’t mean forgotten. It means waiting.

Stay sharp. 🧠

Activision made Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 free-to-play for a week, coinciding with the blockbuster release of Battlefield 6, highlighting the ongoing rivalry between the two first-person shooter franchises.

Data shows 62% of Battlefield 6’s Steam wishlist users also play Call of Duty, underlining overlapping fanbases. The release week saw intense competition for player attention, with Battlefield 6 quickly climbing to the top of Steam’s bestseller charts.

Freelancers usually focus on getting paid — but the real edge is in what happens after the invoice clears. If you’re stacking side income in stablecoins, ETH, or BTC, you’re essentially running your own mini-treasury. And in 2025, DeFi gives you tools to turn that idle balance into a yield engine.

Why Think of It as a Treasury?

Big companies manage cash flows in treasuries, not checking accounts. Freelancers can think the same way:

Income cycles: Some months you’re flush, others you’re dry. A treasury smooths that out.

Opportunity cost: Leaving stablecoins in a wallet is like leaving dollars under your mattress.

Optionality: Extra yield buys you flexibility: new tools, courses, travel, or just peace of mind.

️ Freelancer-Friendly DeFi Moves

Stablecoin Vaults (Low-Risk Parking)

Protocols like Aave, Compound, or Maker DSR give 4–8% APR on USDT/USDC.

Good for keeping 1–3 months of expenses earning passive yield.

Liquidity Layer Yields (Mid-Risk, Mid-Reward)

Restake ETH or use LSTs (liquid staking tokens like stETH or mETH) for 3–5% base yield + extra airdrops.

Perfect if clients pay you in ETH and you’re HODL-minded.

Cash-Flow Boosters (Higher Risk)

LP farming, perp DEX fee sharing, or RWAs (tokenized T-bills, invoices, even music royalties).

These can crank yields to 10–20% — but impermanent loss and depeg risk are real.

🧰 Practical Tips

Segment your stack:

Expenses account: 1–2 months, always liquid (stablecoin vault).

Growth account: long-term holds, staked ETH/BTC.

Speculative bucket: your “play money” for riskier farms.

Automate it: Tools like Yearn, Pendle, or Beefy handle complex strategies while you focus on freelancing.

Stay tax-aware: Yield isn’t free money. In many jurisdictions, it’s taxable the moment you earn it.

️ The Big Question: Safety vs Yield

Freelancers don’t have corporate CFOs — you are your CFO.

Chasing too much yield? You risk losing runway.

Staying too conservative? Inflation eats your gains.

The sweet spot is treating your freelance income like a business treasury: keep it working, but never at the cost of your stability.

Thought Starter:
If you’re a freelancer earning $2–5K/mo in crypto, would you rather:

Park it all in safe stablecoin vaults for predictability,

Or lean into growth plays like ETH restaking + RWA funds?

Freelancing in 2025 isn’t just about finding clients — it’s about how you get paid. And right now, there’s a silent battle raging that directly affects your wallet: the Stablecoin Wars.

️ What Are the Stablecoin Wars?

Stablecoins are digital dollars pegged to fiat. They’re supposed to be boring — 1 USDT ≈ $1, right? But behind the scenes, it’s a power game:

Tether (USDT) dominates in emerging markets and exchanges, especially in Asia.

Circle (USDC) has US regulators on speed dial and strong TradFi partnerships.

PayPal’s PYUSD is piggybacking on its 400M+ users.

CBDCs (Central Bank Digital Currencies) are creeping in, state-backed and surveillance-heavy.

Each stablecoin comes with its own trade-offs: liquidity, trust, regulations, and… risks.

Why Freelancers Should Care

If you’re a freelancer earning in crypto, stablecoins aren’t just “payment rails.” They determine:

Global Liquidity
→ Which stablecoin your client pays in affects how fast you can cash out. Try moving USDT vs USDC in certain countries and you’ll see which one clears faster.

Counterparty Risk
→ Your “digital dollar” is only as safe as the issuer. Tether has survived years of FUD, Circle froze addresses during Tornado Cash sanctions, and CBDCs might give governments kill-switch powers.

Fees & FX
→ On Solana, USDC is lightning cheap. On Ethereum, gas fees can eat your lunch. Choosing the right stablecoin + chain combo can literally save you 5–10% of your income.

Regulation = Access
→ Imagine invoicing a US client who can only legally pay in USDC, while your exchange in Africa only supports USDT. That mismatch = friction (and lost income).

The Freelancer’s Playbook

So how do you protect yourself in the middle of this stablecoin arms race?

Stay Multi-Stable: Don’t just rely on USDT or USDC. Keep a wallet that supports multiple stables.

Chain-Hop Smartly: Move across Solana, Tron, Ethereum, or L2s depending on cost/speed.

Know Your Exit Liquidity: Always check which coins are easiest to off-ramp in your country.

Watch Regulation: If the US pushes CBDCs, expect USDC to rise. If emerging markets tighten on USD access, USDT will thrive.

Final Thought

For freelancers, stablecoins are not neutral. They’re battlegrounds where politics, liquidity, and tech collide — and the outcome decides how smooth (or painful) your paycheck journey is.

So next time you’re negotiating rates, don’t just ask: “Can you pay me in crypto?”
Ask: “Which stablecoin — and on which chain?”

What do you think — in 5 years, will freelancers be mostly paid in USDC, USDT, or a government-backed CBDC?

Researchers at MIT’s Nanda Project just dropped some eye-opening data on how companies are really using AI in practice.

They analyzed 300 organizations, interviewed 150 executives and 350 employees, and found that businesses poured an estimated $30–40 billion into rolling out AI agents. The results? A mixed bag.

The Key Findings

Only 5% of AI pilot programs produced quick, measurable revenue boosts (“millions in extra sales”).

For everyone else, there were no clear financial gains despite the investment.

And here’s the kicker: the problem isn’t the AI models themselves.

Why Most Companies Fail

According to the researchers, the stumbling block is:

Employee training: Workers don’t know how to use the tools effectively.

Fine-tuning: Most AI systems aren’t adapted to corporate workflows. They don’t “remember” feedback or improve over time unless carefully retrained.

Put simply: dropping ChatGPT into your company ≠ instant profit.

What Successful Companies Did Differently

That top 5%? They didn’t just “plug in AI.” They:

Trained general-purpose tools like ChatGPT on specific tasks.

67% bought specialized AI tools from vendors who helped customize them.

33% built in-house AI assistants tailored to their needs.

Where the Money Went

Over half of AI budgets were funneled into sales & marketing tools.

But — MIT found that the real gains came from automating back-office operations (things companies often outsource to agencies).

So the “boring” stuff like paperwork, compliance, and admin may actually deliver more value than flashy marketing bots.

Takeaway: $30B+ later, AI isn’t a magic money printer. The companies winning are the ones that customize AI for their workflows and train people to use it — not the ones just buying licenses and hoping for miracles.

Bitcoin may be set for another explosive October rally, if historical data holds true. Since 2013, October has delivered an average return of 20%, second only to November’s 46%, according to CoinGlass.

Economist Timothy Peterson highlights that in years when Bitcoin dropped more than 5% in October (2017, 2018, 2019, 2021), rebounds followed in three out of four cases — up to 21% in 2019.

With Bitcoin now trading near $111,700 after dipping to $102,000, a similar 21% recovery would lift prices back toward $124,000, just below its all-time high of $125,100.

Base, Coinbase’s Ethereum L2, is rapidly rising in the token launch scene—pushed by a boom in SocialFi activity led by apps like Zora and Farcaster.

Shift in Momentum

On July 16, Coinbase rebranded its wallet into the Base App, a social hub for creators.

The next day, 22,000+ tokens launched on Base.

By July 23–24, Zora on Base beat Solana launchpads like LetsBonk and Pump.fun, hitting 38,000+ token launches in one day.

🧠 But Is It All Just Hype?

Critics argue that:

Most Zora tokens lack liquidity or value.

Users are unknowingly entering markets with no real exit.

Social token creation may be vanity metrics over substance.

“Counting tokens is meaningless. Value is what matters.” — Brian Huang, Glider

🧩 Base’s Cultural Play vs Solana’s Ecosystem Depth

Base thrives on social virality and creator engagement.

Solana still leads in TPS, liquidity, DeFi maturity, and ecosystem activity.

Solana is rolling out Firedancer, aiming for 1M TPS, reinforcing its performance lead.

Even Ansem, the “Solana guy,” is exploring Zora—showing Base is grabbing attention.

🧪 What’s at Stake

Base is testing a new token model: content-driven, not finance-first.

But success depends on sustained use, real liquidity, and utility beyond novelty.

Without that, this could become another Friend.tech-style flash in the pan.

TL;DR

Base is booming on paper thanks to Zora and viral SocialFi — but Solana remains stronger in fundamentals. Whether Base can convert its cultural moment into a lasting ecosystem is the real test.

Technical interviews—often involving real-time coding—have become one of the biggest challenges for employers, The Wall Street Journal reports. During online interviews, candidates are increasingly using AI tools to provide them with answers “behind the scenes.”

This trend is pushing companies to return to traditional hiring methods. Cisco and McKinsey have started holding more in-person meetings with candidates. Google has also reinstated on-site interviews for certain roles, primarily to verify programming skills. “We make sure to have at least one round of in-person meetings,” CEO Sundar Pichai told Lex Fridman in an interview.

Mike Kyle, Director of Technology Recruiting at Coda Search/Staffing, told WSJ that the share of companies requiring in-person interviews rose from 5% in 2024 to 30% in 2025. “Everything has come full circle,” he summarized.

Esports is already a $2B+ industry, but Web3 esports is quietly building its own metagame: real money on-chain.

Miomi Game, the cross-chain esports platform with nearly 1M players and $143M+ in prize pools, just integrated Polygon + Agora’s AUSD stablecoin to power prize payouts.

What’s New

Polygon integration → low-cost, high-speed, battle-tested for gaming.

Agora’s AUSD → an institutional-grade stablecoin, 1:1 backed with USD + cash equivalents.

Crypto prizes → players in matches & tournaments can now win directly in AUSD on Polygon.

Miomi already runs on SKALE, Manta, TON, Tezos, and Mango Network — and just added USDT on Manta earlier this month.

Why It Matters

Prize pools in real stablecoins → no more “in-game credits” that vanish. Winners get crypto they can actually use.

Multi-chain = resilience → tapping Polygon expands liquidity and accessibility across chains.

Web2 Web3 bridge → Games like CS:GO and FIFA are in rotation, letting Web2 gamers earn Web3 rewards without friction.

Bigger Picture

Esports + crypto isn’t just about streaming and clout. It’s about:

Financialization of play: skill = yield.

Stablecoin wars entering gaming: Tether (USDT) vs. Agora (AUSD).

Mainstream onboarding: win in AUSD, swap to fiat or DeFi yield in a click.

With 4.8M+ matches played, Miomi isn’t a niche test anymore — it’s proof that esports prize pools can live on-chain.

Question for you:
Would you rather see esports prizes paid in BTC/ETH (volatile upside) or stablecoins like AUSD/USDT (stable exit-to-fiat)?

Following the discovery, Tata Motors emphasized that its infrastructure is regularly audited, access logs are monitored, and collaborations with security researchers are ongoing.

Tata’s communications head Sudeep Bhalla stated:

“We maintain comprehensive access logs to monitor for unauthorized activity and actively collaborate with industry experts to strengthen our security posture.”

While all vulnerabilities were fixed in 2023, Tata has not disclosed whether affected customers were notified of the exposure.

ZachXBT called for government intervention, but current US crypto enforcement is scaling back, and international investigations can take years.

Even if allegations are true, community outrage may not impact Garden’s operations. The case underscores the limits of grassroots oversight in curbing potential crypto crime.

The Bank of England just proposed new stablecoin rules — and while they’re softer than before, they’re still strict.
A limit of £20,000 per person on “systemic” GBP stablecoins could reshape how Brits store digital cash.
Critics say caps push users offshore. Supporters argue it protects bank liquidity — and the UK’s financial stability.

Key trends shaping global digital finance and AI regulation:

Japan’s yen-backed stablecoins signal corporate adoption of blockchain.

The EU is reviewing AI compliance timelines, reflecting evolving approaches to regulation.

After the US banned CBDC development in early 2025, the ECB delayed the digital euro launch to 2029.

The next few years will be critical for payments, crypto, and AI adoption worldwide.

Chinese toy giant Pop Mart has once again broken the internet — this time with mini versions of its viral Labubu figurines, standing at just 10.5 cm tall.

The Hype

There are 28 variations in total, including two secret editions. Odds of pulling one? A brutal 1 in 168.

Each toy is sold in a “blind box” for 79 yuan (~$11 / ₽887).

A full set of 14 boxes costs 1106 yuan (~$152 / ₽12,400).

Demand was so insane that online sales sold out instantly — some fans said they couldn’t even load the checkout page before everything was gone.

Starting Aug. 29, Labubu figurines will hit Pop Mart’s offline stores in China, alongside a global online rollout. In the US, they’ll retail for $22.99 (~₽1,845).

From Cult Toy to Global Phenomenon

Labubu figures first appeared in the mid-2010s, but their viral moment came only in late 2024, after American pop stars and K-pop idols started showing them off on social media.

Since then, Pop Mart has basically dominated the “blind box” niche, turning quirky collectibles into a full-blown lifestyle flex.

The Money Side

Profits: up 397% YoY in the first half of 2025, hitting 4.7B yuan.

Revenue: up 204% YoY, reaching 13.9B yuan.

Founder Wang Ning is now ranked #85 on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, with a fortune of $26.5B — up a staggering $18.8B in 2025 alone.

The Takeaway

Pop Mart isn’t just selling toys — it’s selling hype, rarity, and FOMO. With Labubu’s global rollout, the brand may be on its way to becoming the Funko Pop of the 2020s, but with even stronger luxury-culture vibes.

Question is: would you pay $22.99 for a 10 cm Labubu in a blind box — knowing there’s only a 1 in 168 chance of hitting a rare?

Even experienced blockchain developers are not immune to sophisticated scams. Core Ethereum developer Zak Cole revealed on X that he fell victim to a cryptocurrency wallet drainer embedded in a rogue AI code assistant.

The malicious extension, “contractshark.solidity-lang”, appeared legitimate—with a professional icon, descriptive text, and over 54,000 downloads—but secretly exfiltrated his private key. According to Cole, it accessed his .env file and sent the key to an attacker’s server, allowing them to control his hot wallet for three days before draining the funds on Sunday.

“In 10+ years, I have never lost a single wei to hackers. Then I rushed to ship a contract last week,” Cole said, adding that the loss was limited to “a few hundred” dollars in Ether thanks to his practice of using small, project-specific hot wallets and storing primary holdings on hardware devices.

Wallet Drainers: A Growing Threat

Wallet drainers—malware designed to steal digital assets—are increasingly targeting both developers and investors. In September 2024, a fake WalletConnect app on Google Play operated for over five months before being taken down, stealing more than $70,000 in crypto. Some fake reviews for the app even described irrelevant, non-crypto features to appear legitimate.

Extensions as a New Attack Vector

Malicious VS Code extensions are emerging as a major attack vector, using fake publishers and typosquatting to capture sensitive data, said Hakan Unal, senior security operations lead at blockchain security firm Cyvers.

“Builders should vet extensions, avoid storing secrets in plain text or .env files, use hardware wallets, and develop in isolated environments,” Unal advised.

Meanwhile, wallet drainer tools are becoming easier for scammers to obtain and deploy, raising the stakes for security-minded crypto builders.

Unbanked explores how Bitcoin has changed lives worldwide, documenting stories across four continents. The documentary includes exclusive interviews with prominent crypto figures and showcases both individual and community experiences. Its creators aim to take the film beyond festivals, pursuing mainstream recognition with an Oscar campaign. Analysts say the timing aligns with increasing mainstream acceptance of crypto through political developments and institutional investment.

Some observers point to potential political motives: the Trump family has invested heavily in Polymarket, and Zohran Mamdani has voiced skepticism toward the crypto industry.

The platform, already accused of enabling Trump-linked insider trading, may be attempting to influence the election’s outcome — highlighting the blurred line between prediction markets, politics, and financial incentives.