Minseung Kang

The Solana-based non-fungible token (NFT) project Pudgy Penguins (Pudgy Penguins·PENGU) was listed on the Bullish exchange and trading has begun. On the 20th, according to crypto media BlockBeats, Pudgy Penguins announced via its official X (formerly Twitter) that it had listed PENGU on Bullish, the cryptocurrency trading platform under the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). As a result, investors can buy and sell PENGU on that exchange. PENGU was trading at 0.035283 dollars on the Binance USDT market at 15:15 that day, down 7.07% from the previous day. However, it has recorded about a 25% increase this month.

### Interview with Lim Jong-kyu, Head of LayerZero Asia-Pacific ### ### Developing next-generation cross-chain token standard 'OFT' ### Pushing forward stablecoin and RWA businesses ### Full-scale investment in Asia… "Korean market is important" ### Sponsor participant at 'Eastpoint'… Targeting Korean institutions  "LayerZero plans to invest broadly across Asia and expand our team. In particular, Korea's payment and fintech services are top-tier globally, and as discussions on stablecoin regulation are becoming substantive, it can serve as a testbed for global financial innovation." Alex Jongkyu Lim, Head of LayerZero (ZRO) Asia-Pacific (APAC) (photo) told Bloomingbit in an interview on the 20th, "We want to contribute to Korea taking a central role in Asia's financial innovation." LayerZero is a cross-chain messaging protocol that enables different blockchains to send and receive assets and data. Lim has recently served as the head of the Korean market and, from this month, has expanded his role to oversee the entire APAC region. ## 'Next-generation cross-chain infrastructure' beyond bridge limitations LayerZero provides "cross-chain services" by installing smart-contract-style receivers on each blockchain to send and receive messages. To date it has connected about 140 chains and is transferring about 500 OFT (Omnichain Fungible Token) assets on top of them. In particular, LayerZero designed the industry's first cross-chain decentralized verification network (DVN) to achieve a higher level of security. It fundamentally removes the existing token bridge or swap structures that have been criticized as vulnerable to hacking due to a "single point of failure." It also allows asset issuers or application developers to configure the verification network themselves. Users can choose a desired combination from various providers such as Google, Animoca, BitGo, PayPal and set policies like "approved when 3 out of 5 validators sign," and external verification resources like Chainlink or Axelar can also be included in the DVN to strengthen security. In particular, OFT is a token standard developed by LayerZero that serves as a core pillar of the message-based cross-chain architecture. Tokens issued under this standard can be transferred or used across chains as the same asset without being fragmented, improving user experience (UX) and reducing costs. Lim emphasized, "OFT-based assets have grown to around 500, and we've expanded connections not only to EVM ecosystems but also to Move VM families such as Solana VM, TON VM, and Aptos," adding, "The number of blockchain networks and asset transfer volume supported by LayerZero exceeds the combined total of competitors." ## Focusing on stablecoins and RWA using OFT  Global stablecoin markets and traditional financial institutions are collaborating with LayerZero. Lim said, "We have collaborated with PayPal, Ondo Finance, Franklin Templeton, BitGo, and are continuing collaborations with undisclosed global large banks and financial institutions, as well as the state of Wyoming." He added, "We are also working on collaborations where LayerZero handles the multi-chain expansion of major stablecoins like USDT0 and PYUSD0." LayerZero's share and transaction volume in cross-chain services are also surging. Lim said, "Looking only at cross-chain messaging volume share, LayerZero accounts for around 70~80%%," and "According to internal analytics, about 90%% of all dollar-denominated value transfers on-chain, i.e., exchanges, are processed through the LayerZero messaging protocol." He added, "Currently about 430 applications run on LayerZero, and monthly asset movement reaches US$10 billion (about 14–15 trillion won)." LayerZero plans to concentrate on stablecoins and real-world assets (RWA) using OFT. Lim said, "On-chain foreign exchange and currency conversion will become mainstream," explaining, "For example, if a Japanese subsidiary pays in a yen stablecoin, a Philippine subsidiary could receive an OFT-based Philippine stablecoin in seconds with fees of only a few dozen won for B2B payments." Meanwhile, LayerZero recently launched a new OFT-based service called 'OVault.' This service is characterized by not being tied to a specific chain and allowing free choice of deposit/withdrawal assets. Users only need to hold USDT0 on any network to deposit or withdraw assets to their desired chain, greatly improving staking and asset management convenience. ## Full-scale investment in Asia… "We will announce various collaborations" LayerZero has unveiled a blueprint to expand investments across the Asia-Pacific region and make Korea a key hub. Lim said, "We plan to invest heavily and expand teams across Asia, including Hong Kong and Japan," adding, "We will establish dedicated marketing, business, and development personnel to pursue full localization." He also said, "The Korean market is particularly important to LayerZero," and "we plan to actively pursue collaborations with stablecoin issuers and traditional financial institutions." He hinted, "Such collaborations are underway across Asia, and various new partnership announcements will be made in the future." Lim said, "It may take time for a won-denominated stablecoin to become commercialized," but "now is the right time for financial institutions, fintechs, startups, and crypto firms to collaborate." He emphasized, "If Korea's fintech and finance integrate with stablecoins, it can become a central pillar of Asia strategy, and LayerZero wants to provide the technical infrastructure to connect and support all of that." ## Seeking collaboration with Korean financial sector at Eastpoint LayerZero will participate as a sponsor in the global Web3 private conference 'Eastpoint Seoul 2025' to be held on the 22nd, actively seeking collaboration with Korean companies and institutional investors. Lim said, "At this Eastpoint event, we will hold a panel discussion with executives from Ondo, PayPal, and the Wyoming Stable Token Committee, who are also major LayerZero clients," adding, "We hope to share the experience LayerZero has accumulated in creating a global stablecoin playbook and uncover collaborative cases." He said, "As part of the event, strategic meetings are scheduled with Korea's major banks, financial firms, and payment companies," and "we aim to find application points suited to Korea's market realities and vision based on global cases, share technical insights, and discover collaboration opportunities." He added, "Co-host Hashed has not only invested but has also carried out meaningful activities in policy and regional dimensions, and we also resonate with that direction," adding, "This Eastpoint participation will be an opportunity for LayerZero to publicly showcase its cross-chain achievements and the clients and investors it has secured." Kang Min-seung, Bloomingbit reporter minriver@bloomingbit.io

 Lido (LDO), the world's largest Ethereum (ETH) staking protocol, announced on the 17th that it has expanded access to Ethereum liquid staking for institutional investors in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region through cooperation with Hong Kong digital asset financial services firm Hex Trust. Through this cooperation, Hex Trust has begun integrating and supporting stETH on its custody platform. stETH is a tokenized asset representing Ethereum deposited through Lido, designed to reflect staking rewards while remaining freely tradable and usable. Users can utilize it in the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem for lending, collateral, restaking, and other uses. Lido currently has $38 billion (approximately 52 trillion won) worth of ETH deposited, which accounts for about one-quarter of the total staked amount. The two parties emphasized that this integration allows institutions to securely custody assets within a regulatory environment while easily utilizing stETH. Institutional clients can stake ETH and receive stETH without operating separate infrastructure, and can use it as collateral. The industry views this integration as a turning point that could resolve the conflict between crypto custody security and revenue generation faced by the financial sector. Calvin Shen, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of Hex Trust, said, "Efficiency and security are essential for institutional investors. Our integrated custody solution, provided with a 'one-click' experience, reduces operational burden and counterparty risk from on-chain activity. This allows clients to focus on investment strategy rather than infrastructure management." Kean Gilbert, Head of Institutional Relations at the Lido Ecosystem Foundation, said, "Hex Trust's integration is another step in broadening access to stETH. It will be an infrastructure model that balances security, scalability, and liquidity to broaden institutional access."

The market capitalizations of major stablecoins such as Tether (USDT) and USDC appeared to have slightly increased compared to the previous week. On the 13th, according to DeFiLlama, the decentralized finance (DeFi) data platform, the total market capitalization of all stablecoins, including USDT, was approximately $289.406 billion (about 403 trillion won). This represents a 0.95% increase compared to the previous week. Currently, Tether's share of the total stablecoin market capitalization stands at 58.84%. Generally, an increase in stablecoin issuance and holdings is interpreted as a factor that increases market buying pressure. Conversely, a decline may indicate a contraction in demand for crypto assets.

Dogecoin (DOGE) price has broken above the 0.3 dollars level and continues to show strength. On the 13th, according to crypto asset media BlockBeats, Dogecoin is trading at 0.3042 dollars, up 16.55% over the past 24 hours. News that a Dogecoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) could be launched in the United States on the 18th is thought to have stimulated investor sentiment. According to the industry, U.S. asset managers Lex Shares and Osprey Fund are reportedly scheduled to launch a 'Dogecoin ETF' on the 18th (local time). This ETF will not directly hold Dogecoin but is structured to invest indirectly in spot and derivatives through a Cayman Islands subsidiary. Experts say that because this product is seeking listing procedures based on the Investment Company Act of 1940 rather than the Securities Act of 1933, it is seen as more likely to be approved. Currently, spot Dogecoin ETFs filed by Grayscale and Bitwise based on the Securities Act of 1933 remain under review.

A Bitcoin (BTC) whale wallet that had been dormant for 13 years was found to have moved assets worth more than $25 million to an external address. On the 13th, crypto-focused media Daily Hodl reported that on the 11th on-chain tracker Whale Alert said a whale address opened in August 2012 transferred 232 BTC (about $26.55 million · about 37 billion won) to another wallet. The address had been effectively inactive for about 13 years since its creation and was emptied after all funds were withdrawn this time. The Bitcoin price at the time of the initial deposit was $12.11, but at the time of this transaction it was $114,423, resulting in a return of approximately 944,765%. On-chain data firm BitInfoCharts pointed out traces that this address had received small deposits in the past, and analyzed that this is likely a 'dusting attack' scenario aimed at identifying users. On the same day Whale Alert said another whale wallet opened in November 2012 sent 137 BTC (about $15.63 million). That amount, purchased at $12.22 and valued at $114,094 at the time of the transaction, recorded a valuation gain of approximately 933,566% after about 12 years and 9 months.

Bitcoin (BTC) dominance has fallen to a year-to-date low level, raising expectations for altcoin strength. Dominance refers to the share of Bitcoin's market capitalization in the virtual assets (cryptocurrencies) market. According to TradingView on the 13th, Bitcoin dominance was recorded at 57.36%. This is close to the year's low of 56.63% recorded on January 4. Bitcoin dominance has been on a downward trend for three months after reaching a high of 66% in June. Typically, a decline in dominance means that the relative share of altcoin market capitalization is increasing. Market analysis indicates that the trading volume and price uptrends of major altcoins including Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and XRP are driving the decline in dominance.

Binance Coin (BNB) market capitalization has exceeded $130 billion for the first time. In the global asset market rankings, it rose to 167th, overtaking Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD. On the 13th, according to crypto-focused media Odaily, CoinGecko's tally shows BNB's market capitalization reached $130.7 billion (about 181.96 trillion won). This is an all-time high, and the 24-hour trading volume was about $1.5675 billion. BNB's price reached a new intraday high of $943.4. As of 20:10 on the day, BNB was trading at $938.09 on the Binance USDT market, up 3.46% from the previous day.

As the U.S. August consumer price index met expectations and hopes for a September rate cut grew, crypto assets (cryptocurrencies) are also showing an upward trend. In particular, there is growing expectation that the altcoin market is entering the early stage of a rally. Bitcoin dominance (BTC Dominance, the proportion of Bitcoin in the total crypto asset market capitalization) was 57.35% on the 13th and is showing a downward trend again. The fact that dominance fell despite a rise in Bitcoin's price suggests that recently more buying pressure has flowed into altcoins. XRP, rising expectations due to institutional buying and ETF hopes Recently XRP has seen heightened expectations of a rise as institutional demand and accumulation by large whale holders have coincided. On the 11th, crypto-focused media BeInCrypto reported, "Open Interest (OI) of XRP futures traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has steadily increased this month and reached a record high of 384,500,000 XRP on the 10th." It added, "The current rally is supported by long-term capital rather than short-term speculative money," and explained, "the on-chain liveliness indicator fell to a 52-day low of 0.81, indicating a decrease in selling by long-term holders and holding sentiment." Liveliness is an indicator that shows the degree of movement of long-held coins. Open interest refers to the number of unsettled contracts among futures and options, and when the scale increases it means more market capital inflow. The CME is the world's largest derivatives exchange and is mainly used by institutional investors. On-chain analytics firm Santiment said on a recent YouTube broadcast, "XRP whales appeared to have sold heavily after roughly a 60% surge in mid-July, and have recently begun accumulating again during the downturn," and "such whale activity signals have coincided with three past price reversals, so a new buying opportunity could open soon." It added, "As of the past 30 days, short-term investor returns are -0.5%, effectively at breakeven, while long-term investors maintain slightly positive returns, leaving the market in a neutral state." The increase in companies classified as 'Digital Asset Treasury' (DAT), which accumulate coins, is also supporting the uptrend along with expectations for a spot XRP ETF. James Seyffart, a Bloomberg ETF analyst, said in a Milkroad YouTube interview on the 5th, "If the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) finalizes the general listing standard (GLS) under discussion within the next few months, assets whose futures have been traded for at least six months under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) could be classified as eligible for spot ETF listings, and XRP could be included." GLS refers to a general listing standard that would allow certain crypto assets that meet specific requirements to be listed as ETFs without an individual review process. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and others submitted a rule change proposal including GLS to the SEC in July, raising expectations for multiple altcoin ETF listings. "XRP rebounds after holding support…Will it enter an additional rising phase?" Analysts assessed that XRP has been seeking additional upside after rebounding while holding its support. Aayushi Jindal, a researcher at NewsBTC, projected, "Since XRP is maintaining the $2.95 support level, it is highly likely to retest the $3.02–$3.05 resistance range after a short-term correction." She added, "If it breaks through these levels decisively, there is room to rise to $3.12 and $3.15, with the next major resistance at around $3.20." However, she cautioned, "If it fails to surpass the $3.05 resistance, it will revisit supports at $2.98 and $2.915." Rakesh Upadhyay of Cointelegraph also analyzed, "XRP has secured support above $2.91 recently, so if the bearish pattern is invalidated it could rebound to $3.15 and $3.40." He added, "If the daily close slips below $2.91, it would indicate continued selling pressure," and warned, "a break of the $2.73 support could risk further declines to $2.20." XRP's price was trading at $3.165, up 3.8% from the previous day on the Binance Tether (USDT) market as of 18:13 on the 13th (4385 won on Upbit). Entire altcoin market, entering early bullish phase…expectations rising There is growing expectation that the altcoin market is entering the early stage of a bullish trend as it follows a recovery path. According to Blockchain Center, the 'altcoin season' index recorded 80, the highest since early December last year. Typically, the index is interpreted as the start of an altcoin season when it exceeds 75. On the 11th, Altcoin Vector diagnosed, "The altcoin market is gradually setting the stage for an initial bullish phase ahead of the fourth quarter." It added, "Small- and mid-cap altcoins (excluding the top 10 by market cap) that have endured long corrections are still holding above their support, and if Bitcoin continues to break out they could all respond in unison." It also cautioned, "Some rapidly rising names like Ethereum are in a 'trap zone' where breakout and profit-taking overlap, increasing short-term volatility, so caution is needed." Crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen said, "The most likely scenario now is that the altcoin market's bullishness continues amid rate-cut expectations and market flows," and noted, "Ethereum, which rose sharply over the past six months, may take a breather for a while, allowing small- and mid-cap altcoins to show relative strength versus Ethereum." He added, "In fact, over the past 2–3 weeks Ethereum's momentum has slowed while other altcoins have shown relative strength," and predicted, "ALT/ETH could rise another 10–15% over the next 2–4 weeks." Crypto strategist Michael van de Poppe forecasted, "Statistically, August and September are weak periods, but since August already fell sharply this year, September could turn into a recovery phase and this could be interpreted as a market entry opportunity." He also noted, "The altcoin market capitalization index excluding Bitcoin (TOTAL2) has confirmed the mid-term support (20-week moving average), Chainlink (LINK) has started a short-term uptrend, and Optimism (OP) is on the verge of a breakout," adding, "Volatility in altcoins will be high in the coming weeks, but opportunities will open as well." Some analysts say it remains to be seen whether a full-fledged uptrend will continue. Santiment diagnosed, "Recently market attention has concentrated on major names like Ethereum, Solana and XRP rather than minor altcoins," and noted, "Some names have seen rapid spikes in trading volume and market cap, but this flow was driven by new investors and short-term traders' rotation money, so it is not yet clear that this is a clear upward signal for the entire market." It added, "These rapid price surges are more about rotation of existing supply than new capital inflows, so their sustainability needs to be observed." Minseung Kang, Bloomingbit reporter minriver@bloomingbit.io

El Salvador's government reportedly purchased an additional 28 Bitcoin (BTC) over the past week. On the 13th, according to El Salvador's government Bitcoin Office, the government bought 28 BTC over the past seven days. In particular, it was reported to have purchased 21 BTC in a single day on the 8th. As a result, El Salvador's total holdings increased to 6318.18 BTC, with an estimated value of about $732 million (about ₩1.02 trillion). Meanwhile, El Salvador was the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, and since November 2022 has continued a policy of purchasing 1 BTC daily.

Changpeng Zhao, co-founder of Binance, mentioned the need for global banks to adopt Binance Coin (BNB). According to the virtual asset (cryptocurrency) industry on the 13th, Zhao said on X (formerly Twitter), "Banks should adopt BNB," and "As a small community member, I will help with banks' integration," he said. He quoted a post by virtual asset analysis account Whale Insider along with this remark. Earlier that day, Whale Insider reported, "BNB has surpassed UBS (Swiss bank), the world's largest private bank, by market capitalization," emphasizing its standing in the market. That day, the price of BNB rose to $929, setting an all-time high.

The cumulative trading volume of Momentum Protocol, a decentralized exchange (DEX) operating on the Sui (SUI) blockchain, has exceeded US$11 billion. On the 13th, Mark Sean Brown, head of social media at Cointelegraph, said on X (formerly Twitter), "Momentum Protocol's cumulative trading volume has surpassed US$11 billion." This is seen as an indicator that trading activity within the Sui ecosystem is steadily expanding.

Bitcoin (BTC) miner Bitdeer mined 106.2 BTC over the past week, but sold most of it, resulting in a net holdings increase of only 0.6 BTC. On the 13th, Bitdeer disclosed its Bitcoin mining and holdings status as of the 12th on its official X (formerly Twitter). Bitdeer mined 106.2 BTC over the past week and sold 105.6 BTC, resulting in a net holdings increase of 0.6 BTC. Bitdeer's pure Bitcoin holdings excluding customer deposits totaled 1935.6 BTC.

The U.S. consumer sentiment index hit its lowest level in 5 months, while Ethereum (ETH) prices are showing an uptrend, approaching the 4800 dollars level. On the 13th, according to crypto asset (cryptocurrency) specialist media BlockBeats, the University of Michigan's preliminary September consumer sentiment index was 55.4. This was below both the market forecast (58.2) and last month's figure (58.2), marking the lowest level since May. The report analyzed that labor market unease and concerns about long-term inflation acted together. The ETH price was trading at 4712 dollars, up 4.9% from the previous day on the Binance USDT market as of 16:40. In the crypto asset market, Ethereum rose to near the 4800 dollars level immediately after the consumer sentiment index announcement. Cryptocurrency exchange Bitunix said, "The dual factors of worsening consumer sentiment and rising inflation expectations are increasing policy uncertainty," and "whether Ethereum can break the 4950 dollars resistance level and whether the 4450 dollars support level will hold will be key watch points in future volatility phases."

A total of 2.3239 billion dollars (about 3.238 trillion won) was recorded as net inflows into U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) this week. On the 13th (local time), according to Farside Investors, BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF IBIT saw inflows of 1.0369 billion dollars (about 1.445 trillion won), and Fidelity's FBTC saw inflows of 849.6 million dollars (about 1.184 trillion won), respectively leading the flow of funds. In addition, ARK Invest·21Shares' ARKB received 181.7 million dollars, and Bitwise's BITB received 138.5 million dollars. Invesco's BTCO had net inflows of 12.4 million dollars, Franklin Templeton's EZBC had 13.1 million dollars, VanEck's HODL had 43.2 million dollars, and Wise Origin's BTC had 35.2 million dollars in net inflows. Grayscale's GBTC also had net inflows of 13.3 million dollars.

Nasdaq-listed consumer healthcare company Prenetics Global has generated an annualized 30% return after adopting Bitcoin (BTC) as a strategic asset. According to crypto asset (cryptocurrency) media Coindoo, Prenetics began the strategy in June by investing 20 million dollars to buy 187.42 bitcoins at an average price of 106,712 dollars. Since then it has been using operating cash to buy an additional 1 BTC per day, and as of the 10th its holdings rose to 228.42 BTC (about 26.1 million dollars). With Bitcoin trading around 115,105 dollars, Prenetics' position shows an unrealized gain of about 1.6 million dollars. This corresponds to an annualized return of about 30%. Prenetics plans to continue the daily buying strategy through the end of this year and is also considering expanding the scale of purchases in 2026 as cash flow increases. Danny Yeung, Prenetics' CEO, said, "The decision to include Bitcoin in reserves is a strategy for inflation hedging and long-term preservation of asset value," adding, "It is an extension of the company's philosophy of pursuing health innovation and financial resilience at the same time."

Solana (SOL) has surged 20% over the past week, showing an upward trend. Analysts say that institutional buying and increasing on-chain activity are boosting expectations for network strength. On the 13th, according to virtual asset (cryptocurrency) specialist media CoinPedia, based on the Strategic SOL Reserve (SSR), the amount of Solana held by 17 institutional treasury firms has exceeded 10 million (about $2.5 billion). Earlier, Galaxy Digital purchased $5 billion worth of SOL and deposited most of it with Coinbase Prime Custody. On-chain indicators are also positive. The Solana network's daily transaction volume recently topped 30 million, far surpassing Ethereum. This is an indicator that reflects actual usage and user activity, which analysts say increases the credibility of the price rally. ETF hopes are also supporting the upswing. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) delayed its review decision on Franklin Templeton's application for a Solana spot ETF until November, but the industry is increasingly suggesting approval within the year is likely. As of 16:15 that day, the SOL price was trading at $242.65 on the Binance USDT market, up 1.83% from the previous day. Crypto analyst Ali Martinez said, "A classic 'cup-and-handle' pattern is appearing on Solana's price chart," adding, "If the pattern completes, it could rise to $1,300." He added, however, that if the short-term $242~$246 resistance is not broken, a retracement to $184 is possible.

The number of companies strategically holding Bitcoin (BTC) has been steadily increasing. According to cryptocurrency-focused media Cointelegraph on the 13th, 26 companies newly joined over the past 30 days, bringing the total number of companies holding Bitcoin reserves to 325. On the same day, the Bitcoin price was trading at $115,666 (about 160,580,000 won) on the Binance USDT market, up 0.37% from the previous day.

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum (ETH), warned that hastily introducing artificial intelligence (AI) into the crypto asset (cryptocurrency) industry's governance is dangerous. On the 13th, according to cryptocurrency-focused media CoinTrackDaily, Buterin wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that "a naive form of 'AI governance' is a bad idea," pointing out that "if AI were put in charge of allocating contribution reward funds, people would try to exploit the system by planting jailbreak requests like 'give me all the money' everywhere." As an alternative, he proposed the 'info finance' approach. Instead of designating a single AI, it allows anyone to put their model on the market to compete. These models can be requested for verification by participants as needed, and ultimately a human review panel would make the final evaluation. Buterin added, "The info finance approach ensures diversity by having multiple models coexist, and participants have incentives to monitor each other and correct mistakes, making it much safer than relying on a single AI."

There are expectations that the U.S. government is highly likely to officially launch a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (Strategic Bitcoin Reserve·SBR) within the year. However, there are counterarguments within the industry that it is premature. On the 13th, according to crypto-specialized media Cointelegraph, Alex Son, head of research at Galaxy Digital, said on X (formerly Twitter), "It is highly likely that the U.S. government will launch the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve within the year and announce that it will hold Bitcoin as a strategic asset." He added that the market is underestimating this possibility. Earlier in March, President Trump signed an executive order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a digital asset reserve. However, concrete implementation plans have not yet been finalized. Recently, in the U.S. Congress, a bill was proposed requiring the Treasury Department to review the technical and policy feasibility of the Strategic Reserve and submit a report. However, some in the industry believe a launch within the year is unlikely. Dave Weisberger, former chairman of CoinRoutes, said, "The current administration is likely to delay the announcement until it has accumulated as much Bitcoin as its initial target," projecting that the actual launch timing will be next year or later. Additionally, some in the industry have raised concerns that U.S. delays could lead to falling behind in global competition. Samson Mow, founder of Jan3, pointed out in June, "If the U.S. does not start accumulating Bitcoin this year, other countries could secure a first-mover advantage," and warned, "There is even a risk that Pakistan could get ahead." In fact, Kyrgyzstan advanced a bill on the 11th to establish a state-owned cryptocurrency reserve fund, and Indonesia is reportedly discussing a Bitcoin reserve strategy.

The number of active wallet addresses on OKX exchange's Layer-2 blockchain network 'X Layer' set a record high. On the 12th, according to crypto asset (cryptocurrency) specialist channel U Blockchain, X Layer's daily active addresses were counted at 71,400, marking an all-time high. Cumulative addresses surpassed 4 million. The outlet said, "X Layer is also standing out in terms of transaction fee contribution," and "so far it has generated about $1 million in fee revenue for the OKX decentralized exchange (DEX)rh, which is the second-highest level among Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-based networks after Binance Chain (BNB Chain)."

There are observations that short-term Bitcoin (BTC) holders are realizing losses again after four months. Market analysts say that despite a contraction in short-term investor sentiment, the long-term uptrend remains valid. On the 12th, Gaah, an analyst at on-chain crypto analysis firm CryptoQuant, said, "The SOPR (Spent Output Profit Ratio) of short-term holders has fallen below the breakeven point of 1," adding, "This means short-term investors are again selling in loss territory." SOPR is an indicator that measures whether a coin was sold at a profit or a loss; above 1 indicates profit realization, 1 or below indicates loss realization. Gaah explained, "Even though Bitcoin's price more than doubled over the past year from $60,000 to $125,000, SOPR continued to decline, and the 'extreme greed'-driven surge seen in past cycles was not confirmed." He added, "This shows that this rally has been supported more by solid institutional/long-term capital than by short-term speculative funds." He also analyzed, "Past market peaks (tops) formed when SOPR reached extreme greed territory, but such a phenomenon did not appear in this cycle," and said, "This loss realization is more likely a healthy correction within a bullish phase." He went on to forecast, "If Bitcoin secures a solid support level and SOPR recovers above 1 again, the trend-like uptrend could continue toward new highs."

Filecoin (FIL) has upgraded the Filecoin Ethereum Virtual Machine (FEVM), which is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), enhancing its security and privacy features. On the 12th, according to crypto-focused media U.Today, this upgrade enables FEVM to support advanced cryptographic functions such as threshold signature (Threshold Signature) and zero-knowledge proof (zk-Proof). This is expected to improve developer-friendliness and expand potential use cases in decentralized finance (DeFi) and distributed storage services. The outlet said, "There are expectations that this measure could form the basis for a rebound in Filecoin's price," but added, "However, a recovery in investor demand and a shift toward long-term holding sentiment must occur in tandem for a recovery to the 2022 peak to be possible." Meanwhile, Filecoin is a project that implements a decentralized data storage system using blockchain-based distributed file system technology (InterPlanetary File System, IPFS).

Prediction market platform Polymarket has joined forces with the decentralized oracle network Chainlink (LINK) to increase the accuracy and speed of market interpretation. On the 12th (local time), according to Cointelegraph, a media outlet specializing in virtual assets (cryptocurrencies), Polymarket said it will integrate Chainlink's data standards into its market interpretation processes. The collaboration focuses on reflecting asset price determinations more quickly and accurately. It plans to expand the application to other forms of prediction markets in the future. Sergey Nazarov, co-founder of Chainlink, said, "Polymarket's adoption of verified Chainlink oracle infrastructure is an important turning point leading the evolution of prediction markets," and added, "When market outcomes are interpreted based on high-quality data and tamper-proof computations, prediction markets evolve into real-time signals the world can trust."