Category: Business

Franklin Templeton is expanding its digital asset strategy through a new partnership with MoonPay that will allow institutional investors to move between stablecoins and the asset manager’s tokenized money market fund through an onchain workflow.

The integration connects Franklin Templeton’s Benji Technology Platform with MoonPay Trade’s infrastructure, creating a pathway for eligible institutions to exchange supported stablecoins for exposure to the firm’s tokenized money market fund and back again without leaving blockchain networks.

The partnership comes as Franklin Templeton pushes deeper into digital assets. In April, the $1.74 trillion asset manager announced plans to launch Franklin Crypto, a dedicated cryptocurrency division anchored by the acquisition of crypto investment firm 250 Digital. The new unit will focus on active crypto investment strategies, while Franklin Templeton continues building tokenized versions of traditional financial products.

Sandy Kaul, Franklin Templeton’s head of innovation and digital assets, said the company sees 2026 as “the year of the universal liquidity layer,” where stablecoins, tokenized funds and other forms of digital money become interoperable and can be used across trading, lending and collateral applications.

Kaul said one of the most compelling use cases for institutions is the ability to move stablecoin balances into tokenized money market funds and earn yield around the clock.

“We trade 24/7 in the crypto markets,” she said in an interview with CoinDesk. Unlike traditional money market funds, which typically require investors to hold positions through the end of a trading day to receive interest, tokenized funds can distribute yield based on the precise period an investor holds the asset, she said.

According to Kaul, institutional demand for that functionality has been strong.

“We had tremendous demand for this,” she said, referring to the ability to move between stablecoins and tokenized money market funds at any time while maintaining exposure to yield-generating assets.

The partnership also reflects MoonPay’s expansion beyond crypto trading and payments into tokenized real-world assets, an area attracting growing interest from traditional financial institutions seeking to bring regulated investment products onchain.

Strive (ASST) has acquired 2,500 bitcoin for roughly $185.2 million at an average price of $74,092 per coin, the company reported in an 8-K filing.

The new purchase was at a lower average price than Strive’s last disclosed acquisition of 1,109 $BTC at $76,989 on May 22, suggesting the company bought into the dip that has taken bitcoin from above $74,000 last week to roughly $70,800 by Tuesday morning, per CoinDesk data.

Strive disclosed its quarter-to-date $BTC yield at 23.0% and year-to-date yield at 36.7%, with an amplification ratio of 57.0%. The company said it also raised cash reserves to maintain an 18-month dividend reserve.

The purchase lifts its total holdings to 19,000 $BTC, data shows, and pushes the bitcoin treasury company further into the top 10 of publicly traded corporate holders.

The filing comes as its peer, and the largest corporate bitcoin holder, Strategy (MSTR), disclosed its first publicized sale of 32 bitcoin for $2.5 million at an average price of $77,135 on Monday, sparking a selloff in $BTC and the broader crypto market since.

Meanwhile, Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer initiated coverage on Strive with a Buy rating and a $32 price target on Tuesday, implying roughly 93% upside even after the company’s Class A shares fell 3.59% to $16.58 in pre-market trading.

After experiencing a nice recovery in early May, Bitcoin ($BTC) and Ethereum ($ETH) have been undergoing a major pullback in recent weeks.

After rising above $82,000, the Bitcoin price fell below $70,000, and some market analysts are warning against further declines.

While market anxiety persists, Bitmine (BMNR) Chairman Tom Lee says that despite short-term weakness, the long-term outlook is as strong as ever.

Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box program, Tom Lee argued that the current decline is less a sign that the crypto bullish thesis has collapsed and more a result of investors “angrily withdrawing from the market.”

Lee described the current sell-off as a classic market bottom, saying it’s something that always happens at the end of a crypto winter.

Lee described Bitcoin and Ethereum as key components of the future financial system, especially as artificial intelligence continues to develop.

“My bullish thesis for Bitcoin and Ethereum remains absolutely unchanged. $BTC and $ETH truly are the future of money.”

At this point, Lee argues that instead of focusing on short-term price fluctuations, the long-term trend that continues to support both cryptocurrencies should be embraced.

Big bull Lee also commented on Mark Cuban, who recently sold all his Bitcoins because he believed Bitcoin did not provide protection against inflation and that gold was a better investment.

Lee, arguing that Mark Cuban has a point, said, “I think Mark is right, cryptocurrencies have been disappointing because they’re supposed to move with the stock market and rise with software. But software has really surged, while cryptocurrencies haven’t moved. So, there are people selling, having what I call an outburst of anger, as if something is going wrong.”

*This is not investment advice.

Market anxiety surrounding recent institutional shifts and insider moves is merely typical bottom behavior, Bitmine Immersion (BMNR) Tom Lee told CoinDesk.

Lee dismissed the idea that Strategy’s Executive Chairman Michael Saylor selling 32 $BTC signals trouble.

“Michael said he was planning to sell bitcoin, so he’s following through on what he was going to do,” Lee said in an interview on Tuesday. “At the end of the day, he’s still got 99.99% of his bitcoin, and he only makes money if bitcoin goes up.”

Saylor’s decision to sell bitcoin at an average price of $77,135, generating roughly $2.5 million to help fund preferred stock dividend payments sparked unease. The transaction marked the corporate giant’s first bitcoin sale in nearly four years and prompted questions about whether one of the asset’s most prominent institutional advocates was changing course.

The firm still holds more than 843,700 $BTC, meaning the disposal represented a microscopic 0.004% of its total reserves. Analysts across Wall Street have largely agreed that the transaction was economically immaterial to the core accumulation thesis.

Lee’s comments come alongside broader industry unease following the longest outflow streak (11 consecutive days) since U.S. spot exchange traded funds (ETFs) debuted in January 2024 worth $3.4 billion. Lee pointed out that these capital exits are a classic trailing indicator of a market cycle resetting.

“This is what you expected at the bottom,” Lee explained. “People sell at the bottom, right?”

Despite the short-term negative price pressure and market panic, Lee confirmed that Bitmine’s broader macroeconomic playbook remains unchanged, including their ongoing strategy regarding other major layer-1 assets.

Lee also confirmed that the firm’s existing accumulation plans for ether ($ETH) remain “on track.)

Bitmine ramped up $ETH purchases last week, making its most significant since December. It bought 111,942 ether ($ETH) worth around $237 million at current prices. That lifted the firm’s holdings to almost 5.4 million $ETH, about 4.47% of ether’s circulating supply.

Bitcoin slipped below the psychologically important $70,000 level on Tuesday, trading around $69,300, as derivatives positioning reached some of the most elevated levels of the current cycle.

Open interest across bitcoin futures markets has climbed to approximately 773,000 $BTC, a level last seen only a handful of times on record, according to Coinglass data. Previous peaks have occurred during local market tops. The current positioning suggests leveraged traders are betting on a quick price rebound rather than trimming risk.

That growing leverage is also reflected in perpetual futures funding rates, which have risen to roughly 10% annualized, according to Coinglass data. Positive funding means long traders are paying shorts to maintain positions. As bitcoin continues to fall, long leverage liquidations occur, sending the price lower.

Broader sentiment remains apathetic. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index continues to signal fear, while the Coinbase Premium Index remains deeply negative at around -100. The metric measures the price difference between bitcoin on Coinbase and offshore exchanges, with a negative reading often indicating weaker demand from U.S. institutional and spot investors — a trend clearly reflected in the continuing outflows from the U.S.-based spot $BTC ETFs.

The divergence between leveraged bullish positioning and deteriorating spot demand comes as bitcoin remains largely uncorrelated to broader risk assets, with AI and software stocks continuing to push to fresh highs.

Bitcoin slipped below $70,000 for the first time in two months, leaving cryptocurrency markets vulnerable ahead of a week of important U.S. economic data that could determine the direction of the next move for risk assets.

The largest cryptocurrency has lost more than 4.45% in the past 24 hours, and was recently trading near $69,400. Ether dropped 0.6% to $1,970. The broader CoinDesk 20 (CD20) index retreated 3.2% in the same period.

Crypto’s near-term setup doesn’t appear supportive. Spot bitcoin ETF suffered an 11th straight day of net outflows and Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, said it sold 32 BTC for $2.5 million.

While the sale is small relative to Strategy’s holdings, it’s seen as symbolically important and bitcoin fell after the filing became public. Still, not everyone sees the sale as the real driver.

“Saylor / Strategy selling a few raspberries isn’t causing bitcoin to crash,” Pierre Rochard, a bitcoin researcher and board member at bitcoin holder Strive (ASST), wrote on X. “The reality is that there is a massive parabolic spike in AI-related equities that is vacuuming up all excess liquidity, multiples of bitcoin’s market cap.”

Rochard added that a healthy labor market and higher energy prices mean “sentiment for dovish rate cuts is nowhere to be found,” even as bitcoin’s fundamentals “have never been better.”

That leaves economic data as the next major catalyst. A strong U.S. jobs print on Friday could keep rate-cut hopes subdued and further pressure crypto, while softer data may help bitcoin reclaim levels above $70,000. Stay alert!

Read more: For analysis of today’s activity in altcoins and derivatives, see Crypto Markets Today . For a comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead.”

What’s trending

• Mt. Gox moves 10,422 bitcoin worth $739 million to a new wallet as deadline nears (CoinDesk): Defunct bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox moved bitcoin worth roughly $739 million to a new wallet. The transfer is the largest single move in months and comes ahead of the Oct. 31 deadline to complete creditor repayments.
• Bitcoin’s biggest ETF selloff yet hits $3.4 billion as AI stocks keep climbing (CoinDesk): U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs suffered their largest and longest withdrawal streak on record, with investors pulling roughly $3.45 billion across 11 consecutive trading sessions.
• MoneyGram launches stablecoin on Stellar, joining rush toward digital dollar payments (CoinDesk): MoneyGram introduced a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin that will be embedded into the MoneyGram app. It enables customers to hold a dollar-denominated balance in a self-custodial wallet and transfer funds through the company’s global payments network.
• Russian drones, missiles strike Ukraine in major attack; 11 dead, scores wounded (Reuters): Thousands took shelter as Russia launched 676 drones and 74 missiles in one its most dangerous attacks on Ukraine, killing 11 and injuring scores of people overnight.

Today’s signal

On the weekly chart, the bitcoin price is approaching a key confluence support — the 0.618 Fibonnaci level near $69,000 and the long-term ascending trendline from the 2022 lows.

RSI remains near 39 with no bullish divergence yet apparent, so there’s confirmation of a bottom from the momentum indicator. For the time being, it’s purely a structural level test.

Ripple, which won its legal battle against the SEC in the US and is making rapid strides in its global expansion, has made a move towards Türkiye.

Accordingly, Ripple will support its $RLUSD stablecoin in Türkiye.

Ripple announced it has partnered with Turkish companies such as BiLira (the issuer of TRYB), Bitexen, and Bitlo to support its dollar-pegged stablecoin $RLUSD in Türkiye.

At this point, Ripple has made its US dollar-backed stablecoin, $RLUSD, available to institutional investors in Türkiye through new partnerships with BiLira, Bitexen, and Bitlo.

This will enable Turkish institutional investors to access institutional-level US dollar liquidity using $RLUSD.

This move is part of $RLUSD’s broader international expansion, which is of great importance to Ripple.

Ripple stated that Türkiye remains one of the largest cryptocurrency markets in the MENA region. Based on Chainalysis data, the company noted that the country has an annual cryptocurrency trading volume of approximately $200 billion.

Jack McDonald, Ripple’s Senior Vice President of Stablecoins, stated the following:

“$RLUSD has rapidly gained momentum in financial use cases, serving as a vital bridge for payments, tokenization, and collateral management. With institutional demand increasing globally, launching in Türkiye marks a milestone in our expansion. Turkey is situated at the intersection of traditional finance and the digital economy and boasts one of the highest cryptocurrency adoption rates in the world. By providing a transparent and fully regulated, stable, USD-backed asset, we enable Turkish businesses to access global liquidity.”

*This is not investment advice.

B3, the Brazilian stock exchange, will develop a digital twin of its depository database in a blockchain in preparation for a potential inclusion of these into the traditional financial system. B3 also expects to launch B3RL, a Brazilian real stablecoin, later this year.

B3 Takes First Steps to Tokenize Stocks

B3, Brazil’s stock exchange, is preparing to adopt tokenization technologies for the second half of this year.

During tokenization day, an event promoted by the same company to discuss asset digitization, B3’s executives revealed that this initiative was already taking shape and that in its first stages it would not involve direct trading.

Rodrigo Nardoni, Vice President of Technology at B3, stressed that the objective was to represent all stocks in a blockchain ecosystem. “What we will have is a faithful replica of the traditional depository database on a blockchain, represented in the form of tokens. We are not talking, at this initial stage, about trading these tokens on the market,” Nardoni declared.

The project also includes the possible use of stablecoins as part of the settlement process integrated into the traditional financial system, meaning assets could be settled onchain with stablecoin-based disbursements.

“The rise of stablecoins could open up space for stock settlements using digital currencies in more direct and atomic models. I’m not saying this will necessarily happen, but we need to be prepared for this possibility,” Nardoni highlighted.

This also ties in with the exchange’s intention to launch B3RL, an in-house stablecoin, later this year, backed mainly by cash and government bonds, in line with other similar stablecoins.

In the future, this stablecoin would enable direct settlement of products using the blockchain network, though this is still just a proof of concept.

Finally, Nardoni acknowledged the relevance of blockchain and tokenization as an innovative catalyst for transforming legacy market structures. “Tokenization is advancing as one of the main drivers of transformation in the financial market,” he concluded.

The possibility of using blockchain for broker reconciliations was also considered to simplify record verification and position validation processes.

In major $XRP news today, Ripple strengthened its position in the global stablecoin sector with a major expansion of its $RLUSD stablecoin into Turkey, one of the world’s most dynamic crypto markets. As a result, $RLUSD stablecoin’s market cap surpassed $1.8 billion on Tuesday.