Nasdaq invested $50M into Gemini right before the crypto exchange ended up ~15% on its debut, while Cantor Fitzgerald introduced a five-year, gold-protected bitcoin fund and Sora Ventures launched a $1B treasury vehicle for Asia. Balance-sheet accumulation continued with Strategy, Metaplanet, and Tether’s USA₮ announcement alongside disclosure of 100,521 BTC in corporate holdings. On the legislative front, there were mixed signals, with a potential expansion of the Patriot act potentially marking self-custody as suspicious activity, while the senate banking committee pushed to protect noncustodial developers and tools.
Bitcoin Update
Bitcoin closed the week up over 4%, as risk assets rallied, buoyed by expectations of incoming rate cuts.
Early Riders Media
Michael, Brian, and Liam discuss the latest in capital formation, market structure, and bitcoin adoption on this week's podcast.
Michael, Liam, Chase, and Matt discussed the reasons driving and implementation for bitcoin adoption across businesses on their inaugural bitcoin for businesses podcast.
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Industry & Institutional Updates
Nasdaq invested $50 million in Gemini in a concurrent private placement prior to the exchange’s U.S. listing, which will allow Nasdaq to offer Gemini's custodial services to its financial institution clients.
Gemini popped ~15% in its Nasdaq debut, at a valuation of ~$3.8B reflecting continued strength in demand for the digital asset exchange.
Tether unveiled USA₮, a planned U.S.-regulated dollar-backed stablecoin, and names Bo Hines CEO, with Anchorage Digital as issuer and Cantor Fitzgerald as reserve custodian. Tether also added over 27,700 BTC in the past year, 7,900 into USDT reserves and 19,800 via Twenty One Capital, making it now the third-largest corporate holder with 100,521 BTC.
Cantor Fitzgerald launched a gold-protected bitcoin fund offering five-year exposure to 45% of BTC upside with gold-based downside protection.
Sora Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Taiwan, has launched a $1 billion Bitcoin treasury fund aimed at bolstering Bitcoin holdings across Asia.
Metaplanet added 136 BTC to its treasury, boosting its total holdings to 20,136 BTC as part of its ongoing accumulation strategy and they are planning a discounted offering of 385 million new shares to raise about ¥212.9 billion (~$1.44 billion USD) in order to purchase more Bitcoin.
Strategy purchased an additional 1,955 BTC for approximately $217 million, at an average price of $111,196 per coin, raising its total holdings to 638,460 BTC.
KindlyMD’s Bitcoin-focused subsidiary, Nakamoto Holdings, has committed $30 million to Metaplanet’s international equity offering, marking its biggest investment yet with the capital set to fund further purchases of Bitcoin.
Crypto lender Figure raises $787.5M in a U.S. IPO at a ~$5.3B valuation, with billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller's Duquesne Family Office had indicated interest in buying up to $50 million worth of shares.
Regulatory Updates
U.S. Congress considers a measure giving Treasury 90 days to outline a strategic Bitcoin reserve and related custody/cybersecurity guidelines.
U.S. Government moves to apply PATRIOT Act “special measures” authorities to digital assets via new legislation, potentially marking self-custody as suspicious activity.
Senate Banking Committee draft amends money-transmission laws to protect developers and clarify non-custodial software roles.
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has capped crypto lending annual interest rates at 20%, banned leveraged loans exceeding collateral, restricted lending to the top 20 tokens or those listed on multiple won-based exchanges, and mandated borrower education and liquidation alerts to bolster investor protection and market stability.
Kazakhstan President Tokayev called for the creation of a state Digital Assets Fund under the National Bank’s investment arm, proposed a law by 2026 to establish a strategic crypto reserve, and pushed to accelerate development of the country’s digital asset ecosystem and digital finance infrastructure.
Chart of the Week
The U.S. posted their second largest monthly deficit ever in August at $345B, and is on track to post its second largest annual deficit ever.
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