Bitcoin | Crypto

HIVE Digital co-founder Frank Holmes stated this week that several sanctioned nations are actively mining Bitcoin (BTC) in secret, turning to the crypto as an alternative revenue stream in the face of U.S. financial restrictions. Holmes made the claims during a recent interview with the Roundtable. He tied a recent drop in global mining difficulty […] The post Sanctioned nations are secretly mining Bitcoin and the clues are in the hash rate appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The value of Bitcoin has grown substantially since the BTC community asserted independence from miner domination on Aug. 1, 2017. August 1 marks the eighth anniversary of a key moment in Bitcoin’s (BTC) history — the initial activation of Segregated Witness (SegWit) in 2017, a key software upgrade that reshaped the network’s future and triggered a hard fork. The move, known as “Bitcoin Independence Day,” reduced miner influence over the protocol and led to the creation of Bitcoin Cash (BCH), highlighting the community's divisions over how Bitcoin should scale to support global use. The “block size wars” were fought between those who wanted to keep the Bitcoin block size small and “big blockers,” a coalition of miners and businesses that wanted to include more transactions in each block to make BTC suitable for everyday payments and commercial transactions. Read more

Bitcoin derivatives data shows no evidence the 2025 bull run is over despite BTC price sliding to lower support levels below $115,000. Key takeaways: BTC options signals caution but not an outright bearish market shift. Bitcoin ETF outflows and futures premiums show neutral-to-bearish sentiment, but no panic. Read more

Bitcoin started August on a bearish note, but the downturn appears to have stemmed from spot market activity rather than a wave of forced liquidations in derivatives markets. Over the past 24 hours, the flagship digital asset dropped by more than 3% to under $115,000, resulting in over $200 million in market liquidation. Glassnode data reveals […] The post Short-term holders drove Bitcoin price decline but market remains profitable appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Bitcoin's bearish divergence signals a possible price correction toward $92,000, similar to the declines witnessed in 2020 and 2024. Key takeaways: Bitcoin hinges on $115,000 support, risking a drop toward $104,000. Weekly RSI divergence points to a deeper correction. Read more

The Czech Ministry of Justice has been heavily criticized after an independent audit revealed it accepted a Bitcoin donation from a convicted criminal without proper due diligence. According to a July 31 report released by Grant Thornton and shared by the ministry on X, officials failed to assess the legal and reputational risks tied to […] The post Czech ministry under fire for accepting Bitcoin from convicted criminal appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Bitcoin bulls are struggling to keep the market off new three-week lows despite a potential tailwinds coming from the US labor market. Key points: Bitcoin attempts to cement a rebound thanks to US jobs data showing labor market weakness. BTC price action remains below $116,000, but order-book data has traders favoring a short squeeze. Read more

The Japanese investment company’s stock offering is part of its treasury strategy to acquire 210,000 Bitcoin by the end of 2027. Japanese investment firm Metaplanet is seeking to raise 555 billion yen ($3.73 billion) through a stock offering to support its aggressive Bitcoin accumulation strategy. The company, which is known as “Asia’s Strategy,” announced Friday that it will issue perpetual preferred shares to help fund its goal of acquiring 210,000 Bitcoin (BTC) by the end of 2027. The shares will offer up to a 6% annual dividend, depending on market conditions and investor demand. “The Company intends to actively pursue equity financing as part of its ‘Bitcoin Strategy,’ which aims to acquire 210,000 BTC by the end of 2027,” it said. “We believe that introducing Bitcoin-backed preferred shares represents a pioneering effort to fill this gap.” Read more

Bitcoin’s range expansion chose the downside, but data suggest the larger breakout is still brewing. Key points: Bitcoin still trades in its 18-day range despite a breakdown below $116,000. The latency between pro-crypto policy from US regulators and the Trump administration and Bitcoin price has left traders feeling anxious. Read more

Blockstream launched Simplicity on the Liquid Network, enabling smart contract programability on Bitcoin’s infrastructure. According to a July 31 announcement, the idea was first proposed in 2017 by researcher Russell O’Connor. Simplicity was designed as a clean-slate smart contract language that is more expressive than Bitcoin Script yet tighter and safer than general-purpose platforms. With […] The post Blockstream enables smart contract programmability on Bitcoin via Simplicity on Liquid Network appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Global economic standards have been updated to formally recognize Bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto assets in national wealth statistics, marking a pivotal shift in how governments measure digital value and financial innovation. The new System of National Accounts (SNA), approved by the United Nations Statistical Commission and coordinated by the IMF and other global institutions, […] The post IMF, global regulators soften stance on Bitcoin and crypto in wealth assessment standards appeared first on CryptoSlate.

A fresh wave of profit-taking from newly emerged Bitcoin whales has marked the third major distribution event of this bull run, according to CryptoQuant. Bitcoin’s failure to hold above $120,000 was accompanied by a surge in selling from large holders, marking what analysts call the “third major profit-taking wave of this bull run.” Realized profits on Bitcoin (BTC) spiked to between $6 billion and $8 billion in late July —  levels that coincided at or near local tops in March and December 2024, according to onchain analytics firm CryptoQuant. This latest sell-off was driven by “new whales,” who began realizing gains once BTC crossed the $120,000 mark, CryptoQuant noted. Read more

Bitcoin begins a 77-day historical countdown to its potential 2025 peak, with targets around $150,000 and higher. Key takeaways: Bitcoin may reach a cycle top of $150,000 by October, based on halving-cycle fractals. New BTC investor activity is rising, signaling more room for upside. Read more

Adam Back’s Blockstream has launched Bitcoin-native smart contract programming language Simplicity, offering an alternative to Ethereum’s Solidity. Blockstream, the developer of Bitcoin’s layer-2 protocol Liquid and led by Bitcoin cypherpunk Adam Back, has launched Simplicity, a new smart contract language designed for Bitcoin. According to a Thursday announcement shared with Cointelegraph, Simplicity smart contracts will be integrated into Liquid. The company said the move marks a step forward in transforming Bitcoin (BTC) from a secure store of value into a programmable foundation for decentralized finance. The company also introduced SimplicityHL, a higher-level implementation of the language that facilitates easier development with increased abstraction. Read more

The White House’s crypto report did not provide updates to the March 6 executive order establishing a Bitcoin reserve. The White House released its long-awaited report on crypto on Wednesday, detailing a number of policy recommendations that omitted a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve. The 166-page document provides recommendations for multiple aspects of the crypto industry, including banking policy, stablecoins and countering illicit finance. The report does mention the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, insofar as it was established back in March, but makes no mention of further development. Bitcoin maximalists have stated that the Bitcoin reserve order should allow the government to actively purchase the asset in a strategy more akin to El Salvador. Read more

Naoris has launched a $120,000 bounty incentivising researchers to break key cryptographic algorithms underpinning Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana. Naoris, a cybersecurity firm focused on safeguarding digital assets from quantum computing threats, is offering bounties to anyone who can break the encryption algorithms that secure major blockchain networks. In an announcement shared with Cointelegraph on Thursday, Naoris said it has set a bounty of $120,000 — equivalent to approximately one Bitcoin (BTC) — for successfully compromising key cryptographic algorithms used in the crypto industry. The largest bounty, $50,000, is for anyone who can break secp256k1, the cryptographic standard that underpins Bitcoin, Ethereum and many other protocols. A $30,000 reward is available for breaking Ed25519, which is used by Solana, as well as encrypted messaging services like Signal and WhatsApp. Read more

Bitcoin’s explosive July rally pushed its market cap to $2.4 trillion, overtaking Amazon, silver and Alphabet, cementing its place among the world’s five most valuable assets. On July 14, 2025, Bitcoin crossed a historic threshold. Its price surged past $122,600, pushing its market capitalization to approximately $2.4 trillion — surpassing Amazon’s estimated $2.3 trillion.  With that, Bitcoin officially joined the ranks of the top five most valuable assets on Earth. Read more

Phoenix Group launched a $150 million crypto treasury with Bitcoin and Solana, becoming the first Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange-listed company to hold digital assets on its balance sheet. Abu Dhabi-based Bitcoin miner Phoenix Group has launched a $150 million strategic cryptocurrency reserve, becoming the first publicly listed company on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) to establish a digital asset treasury. The company said Thursday the reserve includes 514 Bitcoin (BTC) and 630,000 Solana (SOL), describing it as a long-term holding strategy. This makes Phoenix Group the first company listed on the ADX to establish a strategic cryptocurrency treasury, the company said in an announcement shared with Cointelegraph. Read more

A negative Coinbase Premium Index and the markets’ reaction to a disappointing Federal Reserve presser catalyzed a “big move” in Bitcoin price. Key takeaways: Bitcoin’s Coinbase Premium turned negative after a 62-day buying streak. BTC continues to hold above $115,000 despite rising sell pressure and a negative futures CVD. Read more

Bitcoin (BTC) registered a 1.11% hourly drawdown after the Federal Reserve kept its target range at 4.25%–4.50%, trading at $116,320.13 as of press time following a quick visit below the $116,000 threshold. This is the largest correction recorded during a single hour of trading since July 14, when BTC retraced 1.14% Major cap altcoins registered […] The post Bitcoin whipsaws below $116k amid largest hourly correction in two weeks; risks of further pullback to $114k appeared first on CryptoSlate.