JOON HYOUNG LEE

Capital B Approves $121 Billion Fundraising Plan to Boost Bitcoin Purchases

Capital B, a Bitcoin-based digital asset treasury company, is pursuing a $120 billion fundraising plan to buy more Bitcoin. Odaily reported on June 18 that Capital B’s board recently approved a fundraising plan totaling about $121 billion. Under the

Binance Releases 43rd Proof-of-Reserves Report; Bitcoin Holdings Climb 4.26% in a Month

Binance's Bitcoin holdings rose more than 4% over the past month, according to the global cryptocurrency exchange's latest proof-of-reserves report. Odaily reported on June 18 that Binance released its 43rd proof-of-reserves report the same day. As o

JPMorgan Asset Management Says Fed Unlikely to Change Rates This Year

JPMorgan Asset Management said the Federal Reserve is unlikely to adjust its benchmark interest rate this year. BlockBeats reported on June 18 that Tai Hui, chief market strategist for Asia at JPMorgan Asset Management, said the Fed showed no sign at

Bitcoin Open Interest on Binance Drops 18% After Fed Holds Rates

Bitcoin open interest in the derivatives market shrank sharply after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged. Amr Taha, a CryptoQuant contributor, wrote on June 18 that Binance’s derivatives market saw a sharp deleveraging on June 17. Bitco

Kospi Closes Above 9,000 for First Time, Jumps 2.25% to 9,063.84

South Korea’s Kospi closed above the 9,000 mark for the first time on June 18. The benchmark index rose 2.25% from the previous session to end at 9,063.84. It was the first time the Kospi had finished above 9,000. Foreign investors drove the advance

Gate Expands Hong Kong Stock Offering to 1,500, Adds USDT Trading

Global cryptocurrency exchange Gate has sharply expanded the number of Hong Kong stocks available on its platform. Gate said June 18 that it increased the number of Hong Kong stocks available for trading to about 1,500 from about 1,000, according to

Bybit Says It Was Added to Singapore Investor Alert List, Is Engaging With MAS

Global cryptocurrency exchange Bybit said it has been subject to an investor warning action in Singapore. Odaily reported on June 18 that Bybit had become aware it was added that day to the Monetary Authority of Singapore's Investor Alert List. The e

Altus Formalizes ‘Institutional Blockchain Foundry’ Push for Financial Firms

Altus, a South Korean blockchain company formerly known as Behavest, is formalizing a business focused on helping financial institutions build and operate blockchain services. Drawing on expertise accumulated over the past eight years, the company ai

Mexican Billionaire Says 70% of His Portfolio Is in Bitcoin, Calls It Better Than Real Estate

Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego says Bitcoin is a better long-term investment than real estate. In a June 17 interview with CoinDesk, Salinas said 70% of his investment portfolio is in Bitcoin. Salinas heads Mexican conglomerate Grupo Elek

MEGA Launches MOSS Wallet for AI Agents

MEGA has launched a cryptocurrency wallet designed for artificial intelligence agents. BlockBeats reported on June 17 that MEGA introduced the wallet solution, called MOSS, that day. MOSS is built around limited permissions. Until now, AI agents need

Aster to Use 99% of Platform Fees for Token Buybacks, Expand Burns

Decentralized exchange Aster will use 99% of its platform fees for token buybacks. Aster said on its official X account on June 17 that it upgraded its buyback program to allocate 99% of daily platform fees to token repurchases. It added that it will

US Senators Introduce Resolution Opposing Clemency for Sam Bankman-Fried

A resolution opposing any federal clemency for FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been introduced in the U.S. Senate. Decrypt reported on June 17 that Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego and Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced the measure that d

Benchmark Keeps Buy Rating on Coinbase, Maintains $270 Price Target

Benchmark, a US investment bank, maintained its $270 price target on cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. The Block reported on June 17 that Benchmark wrote in a client note that Coinbase is rapidly evolving from a crypto brokerage into an infrastructur

US May Retail Sales Rise 0.9%, Beating Forecasts

US retail sales rose 0.9% in May from a month earlier, exceeding market expectations. The Commerce Department said June 17 that retail sales increased 0.9% in May from April. That was 0.4 percentage point above economists’ forecast for a 0.5% gain. F

UK Fintech Revolut Secures UAE Central Bank License, Advances Market Entry

UK fintech company Revolut is stepping up its expansion into the United Arab Emirates. Bloomberg reported on June 17 that Revolut recently obtained stored value facility, or SVF, and retail payment services licenses from the UAE central bank. Before

Bitcoin Long-Term Holder Share Hits Record, Signaling Bear Market May Be Near End

Bitcoin’s long-term holder share has reached a record high. The Block reported on June 17 that Vetle Lunde, head of research at crypto research firm K33, wrote in a June 16 report that continued accumulation by long-term holders is making the market

Trump Says Iran Ceasefire MOU Isn’t Final, Threatens Renewed Strikes

President Donald Trump said a memorandum of understanding intended to end the war with Iran is not a final agreement. Walter Bloomberg and other outlets reported on June 17 that Trump said the US would resume bombing if he does not like the terms of

a16z-Linked Address Withdraws Another $6.4 Million of Hyperliquid, 2026 Buys Estimated at $340 Million

An address linked to Andreessen Horowitz, the Silicon Valley venture capital firm known as a16z, withdrew additional Hyperliquid tokens worth $6.4 million. Odaily reported on June 17 that the a16z-linked address withdrew 88,350 Hyperliquid tokens fro

Iran Says It Will Respond if Israel Continues Strikes on Lebanon

Iran said it will respond if Israel continues its strikes on Lebanon. BlockBeats reported on June 17 that Iranian officials had said Tehran would act if Israel did not halt its attacks on Lebanon. Earlier, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, which

StraitsX Enables Samsung Pay Support for Stablecoin Card Payments

Singapore-based stablecoin issuer StraitsX has added Samsung Pay support to its card-issuing infrastructure. In a post on its official X account on June 17, StraitsX said issuers can now offer Samsung Wallet card provisioning alongside Apple Pay and

Bitcoin Falls Below $65,000; Kimchi Premium at -0.76%

Bitcoin fell below $65,000. CoinMarketCap data showed Bitcoin trading at $64,985.8 as of 5:41 p.m. on June 17 in Seoul, down 2.32% from 24 hours earlier. The cryptocurrency was still up 6.04% from a week earlier. The kimchi premium turned negative. C

Binance Says CZ Has Had No Operating Role Since 2023, Serves as Aster Adviser

Binance said founder Changpeng Zhao has not been involved in the exchange’s operations since 2023. BlockBeats reported on June 17 that Binance Co-Chief Executive Officer He Yi wrote on X that Zhao has not participated in the company’s operations sinc

Wintermute Says Bitcoin Hasn’t Bottomed; ETF, Stablecoin Inflows Are Key

Crypto market maker Wintermute said Bitcoin has yet to bottom. BlockBeats reported on June 17 that Wintermute said in a recent weekly report that risk appetite has recovered amid developments including a US-Iran ceasefire. The firm said Bitcoin has e

BitGo Offers MiCA Compliance Infrastructure in Europe for Unlicensed Wallet Firms

BitGo, the U.S. cryptocurrency custodian, is rolling out infrastructure aimed at helping European crypto firms operate under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets, or MiCA, framework. CoinDesk reported on June 17 that BitGo Europe said it wou

Strategy’s Strife Preferred Falls to Record Low of $91.79

Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock, Strife, fell to a record low, according to Cointelegraph. Strife traded at $91.79 on June 16, down about 3.6% from the previous day. That left it more than 8% below its $100 par value. The decline has been linked

US Congress Agrees to Advance Housing Bill With CBDC Ban Through 2030

The U.S. House and Senate have agreed to move forward with a housing bill that includes a provision barring the issuance of a central bank digital currency, or CBDC. Cointelegraph and other outlets reported on June 16 that House and Senate leaders ha

Bitget Introduces Weekend Trading for 20 Tokenized Stocks, Including Apple and Nvidia

Global cryptocurrency exchange Bitget has introduced weekend trading for spot stock tokens. Bitget added the feature on June 12 for its tokenized stock product, rToken, according to BlockBeats and other media reports. The initial rollout covers 20 st

Ethena to Invest $250 Million in Securitize Fund on Solana

Ethena Labs, the issuer of the stablecoin USDe, plans to invest $250 million in a real-world asset fund managed by Securitize. The Block reported on June 12 that Ethena Labs announced a $250 million investment in STAC, Securitize’s tokenized AAA CLO

SpaceX Lists on Nasdaq at $135 a Share in Record $75 Billion IPO

$75 Billion Offering Sets Record for Largest IPO Elon Musk-led space company SpaceX listed on the Nasdaq on June 12, shattering records for both IPO proceeds and market value. SpaceX sold about 550 million existing Class A common shares at $135 apiec

Trump Says Iran’s Leaked Deal Terms Are False, Tells Tehran to ‘Come to Its Senses’

President Donald Trump said Iran’s claims about the terms of a ceasefire deal were false. In a post on Truth Social on June 12, Trump wrote that the terms Iran leaked to the “fake news” media had nothing to do with the conditions agreed to in writing