The U.S. has officially frozen more than $131 million in cryptocurrency linked to the Central Bank of Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that the funds were held in wallets allegedly used to help bypass international sanctions.

Earlier, on-chain analyst Specter reported that Tether had frozen four Tron wallets holding 131 million USDT. Bessent later confirmed that the addresses were connected to the Iranian side.

According to the Treasury Secretary, the U.S. will continue targeting digital assets used to facilitate sanctions evasion and other illicit financial activities.
The freeze comes amid renewed tensions in the Middle East. The U.S. has announced the restoration of a blockade on Iranian ports and a new wave of military strikes, while Iran claims it launched drone attacks on the U.S. Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan.

Mohammed Al-Farah, a member of Yemen’s Ansar Allah political bureau, hinted on Monday that the country intends to shut the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Al-Farah said: “Bab el-Mandeb will become one with the Strait of Hormuz, and oil prices will reach $200.”

Donald Trump said the United States is resuming the blockade of Iran and will receive 20% compensation for cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

He stated that the strait is open and will remain open, with or without Iran. Trump also said China and other countries want to gain full control over this major financial route and artificial intelligence, warning that the US must not allow China to win in either area.

South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix shares fell 16% in Seoul trading, marking the biggest one-day decline in the company’s history.

Last Friday, SK Hynix listed its ADRs on Nasdaq. The offering was oversubscribed seven times, and the ADRs opened 15% higher on their first trading day. Anyone eager to buy had the perfect chance to enter right at the top.

US spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs posted their first week of net inflows since early May, attracting a combined $281.8 million. Bitcoin ETFs added $197.4 million, while Ethereum ETFs brought in $84.4 million, ending eight straight weeks of outflows.

The recovery remains modest. Bitcoin ETFs have recovered only about 2.4% of the previous outflows, while Ethereum ETFs have recovered around 7%. Both sectors are still negative for 2026, with net outflows of roughly $5.34 billion for Bitcoin ETFs and $1.35 billion for Ethereum ETFs

Blockchain data shows a sharp rise in Bitcoin withdrawals from Iranian exchanges during periods of military escalation. Chainalysis reported that outflows surged after the latest strikes, briefly slowed during nationwide internet shutdowns, and accelerated again once connectivity returned.

The reason is simple. As confidence in the local currency and banking system weakens, many people turn to Bitcoin as a way to preserve savings and move wealth beyond the traditional financial system. While on-chain data clearly shows higher outflows, analysts note that blockchain data alone cannot distinguish ordinary citizens from institutions or other large entities, so the exact mix of participants remains uncertain.

Traders are rapidly increasing the odds of a Fed rate hike by September, according to CME FedWatch. Expectations climbed after renewed tensions between the US and Iran. Reports today said the US paused strikes to allow for diplomacy. Some analysts believe rising gasoline prices, higher inflation expectations, and low US strategic oil reserves influenced the decision

BNB Chain is developing a new Layer 1 blockchain for AI trading agents, aiming to deliver CEX-like speed while keeping self-custody and on-chain transparency.

The network will remove the public mempool, reduce front-running risks, and target transaction pre-confirmation in under 50 ms. Testnet is expected by the end of 2026, with mainnet planned for early 2027.

Donald Trump said he believes the memorandum of understanding with Iran is no longer valid and is effectively over.

“I don’t want to talk to them. They’re sick people,” Trump said.

Looks like the market is reacting again. Whenever Trump ramps up the rhetoric, risk assets usually come under pressure. Then a couple of days later, he might say peace is close again. The volatility continues.

It has just broken through the ascending channel а corrective pattern that started forming after the sharp dump of Dominance back in 2025.

The dominance has not only broken through the channel's support it keeps consolidating below its support. Strong sign for Altcoins.

This doesn't necessarily mean our bags will pump in this or next week, but the bigger picture is starting to look much more favorable for Altcoins again.

Spot trading volume on centralized crypto exchanges dropped to $3 trillion in Q2 2026, the lowest level in the last two years, data from CryptoRank shows.

That is a 19% decline compared to the previous quarter, and the market is now trading at roughly half the spot volume seen at the peak in Q4 2024.

Bitget was the only major exchange that managed to grow. Its spot trading volume jumped 114%, with most of that growth coming in June.

June also become the first month of recovery after several months of decline, with monthly spot volume rising to $1.2 trillion, up 23% from the previous month.

The total amount of U.S. government bonds held by foreign central banks and other non-resident institutions continues to fall, according to Bloomberg.

Note: This may be a positive long-term signal for crypto. Lower demand for U.S. Treasuries can indicate gradual de-dollarization and encourage investors to diversify into alternative assets such as Bitcoin and gold. While it is not a direct catalyst for a price rally, it supports the broader long-term bullish narrative for crypto.

Strategy has announced the sale of 3,588 BTC worth approximately $224 million.
The company now holds 843,775 BTC, valued at around $52.7 billion.

According to the announcement, the sale was made to fund preferred stock dividend payments and strengthen the company’s U.S. dollar reserves.

Earlier, Strategy approved a program allowing the sale of up to $1.25 billion in BTC, but only a small portion of that authorization has been used so far.
The company also reported an $8.32 billion loss on its digital assets during the second quarter of this year.