SuperCryptoNews

U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tracking Ethereum (ETH) are experiencing a surge in demand, with inflows far outpacing those of their Bitcoin (BTC) counterparts. The latest trading session on August 13 saw Ethereum ETFs log a massive $729 million in inflows, marking their second-largest single-day performance since launch, according to data from SoSoValue.

This significant influx of capital was led by BlackRock’s ETHA, which alone attracted a staggering $501 million. Fidelity’s FETH followed with $154.7 million, and Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF saw $51 million in new investment. The strong performance highlights a growing institutional appetite for Ethereum, as major players shift their focus from Bitcoin.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin ETFs are seeing a slowdown in demand. The latest session recorded just $86.9 million in inflows, continuing a week of sluggish performance for the once-dominant funds. This shift in institutional preference comes even as Bitcoin’s price has been setting new all-time highs, recently climbing above $124,128.

The renewed interest in Ethereum is being driven by a belief in its long-term potential as a foundational technology for global finance. Joseph Chalom, co-CEO of SharpLink, an iGaming company that recently pivoted to an Ethereum-focused treasury strategy, stated, “We believe in Ethereum as a transformational technology and a long term opportunity.” The company, now the second-largest public holder of ETH, plans to continue its aggressive accumulation. Tom Lee, chairman of BitMine, the largest corporate holder of ETH, echoed this sentiment, calling the asset “Wall Street’s preferred choice.”

This institutional conviction has propelled Ethereum’s price, which has surged nearly 60% in the past month to trade above $4,720. While the bullish predictions for ETH are strong, with some price targets as high as $7,500, analysts are watching to see if this momentum can be sustained.

Military Bank (MB), a state-controlled Vietnamese financial institution, is partnering with South Korean fintech firm Dunamu, the parent company of the Upbit cryptocurrency exchange, to launch a new crypto trading platform. The initiative is a significant step forward for Vietnam’s digital asset market, which is currently in the process of establishing a formal regulatory framework.

The partnership, formalized through a memorandum of understanding, was announced by Dunamu on Wednesday. A subsequent Facebook post from Military Bank confirmed the collaboration, stating that Dunamu would provide its technological expertise to build the cryptocurrency exchange in Vietnam.

Luu Trung Thai, Chairman of Military Bank, emphasized the importance of the partnership, saying, “MB and Upbit will be trusted partners, working together to promote Vietnam’s digital financial market.”

As a financial institution under the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense, Military Bank’s involvement gives this crypto exchange a government-backed imprimatur. This aligns with recent efforts by the Vietnamese government to regulate and formalize the digital asset sector.

In March, Deputy Minister of Finance Nguyen Duc Chi announced a pilot program for fintech companies, including crypto exchanges. This was followed by an announcement from Pham Tien Dung, Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), that a legal framework for digital assets had been officially established. This new framework, developed with input from the pilot program, a National Assembly resolution, and a law on industry and digital technology, is designed to facilitate investment and business in the sector.

While Vietnam already has some domestic crypto exchanges like BitcoinVN and Nami.Exchange, Military Bank’s new platform could be the first to operate under the country’s new, government-approved regulatory scheme. The Ministry of Finance has indicated that the pilot program is being finalized and will allow for multiple exchanges to operate.

Solana’s (SOL) native cryptocurrency has surged, jumping 15.4% in the last 24 hours to reclaim the $200 mark. This is the first time since July 24, and only the second time this year, that SOL has reached this price point.

The cryptocurrency’s recent performance follows a period where it had underperformed compared to other major digital assets, particularly Ethereum (ETH). Since July 14, ETH has outperformed SOL, flipping it for yearly gains for the first time since September 2024. Over the past year, ETH is up 20% against SOL, and 25% year-to-date.

However, a broader rally appears to be underway in the altcoin market, seemingly sparked by ETH’s recent surge above $4,700—its highest level since its November 2021 all-time high. This movement has benefited several other top cryptocurrencies, which have also posted significant 24-hour gains. Among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap, ETH is up 9.7%, XRP is up 5.2%, BNB 6.4%, DOGE 12.5%, and ADA 13%. Bitcoin (BTC) saw a more modest rise of 1.6% during the same period.

Solana’s momentum may also be bolstered by new digital asset treasury companies. For example, a Solana treasury firm, DeFi Development Corp, recently reported earning an estimated $63,000 per day from its 1.3 million SOL stockpile, valued at over $260 million. Total SOL holdings by public companies are now approaching the $675 million level.

Matt Huang, co-founder and managing partner of crypto investment firm Paradigm, is set to become the CEO of Stripe’s new blockchain project, according to a report from Fortune. The project, reportedly named Tempo, is being developed in collaboration between Paradigm and the fintech giant.

According to sources cited by Fortune, Huang, who already serves on Stripe’s board, will lead the new venture while continuing his role at Paradigm. The news follows a job posting on the Blockchain Association’s website that described Tempo as a “high-performance, payments-focused blockchain.” Although the post was later removed, it outlined the search for a marketing hire to help with launch strategies for the mainnet and new features.

Tempo is reportedly an EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain. While Stripe has not publicly commented on its plans or a timeline for the project, sources suggest it will focus on payments. There has been no indication of whether the company plans to issue its own cryptocurrency.

This new project is the latest step in Stripe’s growing involvement in the crypto space. The company acquired stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge for a record $1.1 billion last October and later launched a stablecoin feature on its platform. Stripe also recently partnered with Coinbase to integrate its Base Layer 2 network and acquired crypto wallet firm Privy.

Stripe’s move comes as other major fintech companies are also developing their own blockchains. Stablecoin issuer Circle announced plans for a new stablecoin-focused Layer 1 called Arc, and Robinhood unveiled its own Arbitrum-powered Layer 2 network in May.

Trump Media, the parent company of the social media platform Truth Social, has filed an amendment to its registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). The filing, however, did not include key details such as the fund’s fee structure or a ticker symbol.

Bloomberg Intelligence senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas commented that the fund may face a challenge in a market already dominated by major players. The spot Bitcoin ETF market includes asset managers like BlackRock, Fidelity, and Grayscale.

If approved by the SEC, the ETF would hold Bitcoin directly and aim to reflect the cryptocurrency’s price performance for investors. The fund’s shares would be listed on the NYSE Arca. According to a recent release, Crypto.com will serve as the Bitcoin custodian and liquidity provider, while Yorkville America Digital will act as the fund’s sponsor.

The amended S-1 filing, submitted on Monday, updated the original document from June. Changes include new details on a Digital Asset Cooperation Agreement, policies for handling airdrops, and clarified operational procedures for share creation and redemption. The filing also expanded on regulatory risks, mentioning the GENIUS Act, stablecoin risks, and recent executive orders.

Given the existing competition, analysts say the success of the Trump Media ETF would likely depend on offering a much lower fee than competitors or providing a unique value proposition to investors. While no launch date has been announced, the company’s decision to partner with established infrastructure providers like Crypto.com could help it navigate regulatory scrutiny.

The total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies has reached a new all-time high of $4.14 trillion, driven by significant gains in Bitcoin and Ethereum. This new peak surpasses the previous record set on July 23, with the crypto market gaining 22% since the beginning of the year. This inflow of approximately $750 billion is comparable to the entire market cap during the bear market crash in November 2022.

Despite the growth, the total crypto market is still valued less than tech giant Nvidia, which has a market capitalization of $4.45 trillion.

Ethereum has been a primary driver of the market’s recent growth, with its price reaching $4,332. This marks its highest value since December 2021, following a 46% increase over the past month. The rally has been attributed to institutional investments and corporate treasury accumulation.

As a result of this surge, Ethereum’s market capitalization has climbed to $522 billion, making it more valuable than companies like Mastercard and Netflix.

Bitcoin also saw strong gains, rising 3.3% to exceed $122,000. The asset is now within $1,000 of its all-time high, having recovered from losses earlier in the month.

While the top two cryptocurrencies have seen significant movement, most altcoins have remained flat. Major tokens like XRP, Binance Coin (BNB), and Solana (SOL) have shown little daily movement. Analysts, however, suggest that an “altseason” could be approaching, as Bitcoin dominance has declined and altcoin market share is slowly increasing.

Rumble, the video-sharing platform, announced a plan to acquire Northern Data, a high-performance computing and bitcoin mining company, in a potential all-stock deal valued at €1 billion ($1.17 billion).

If the acquisition goes through, Northern Data shareholders would receive 2.319 new Class A Rumble shares for each of their shares, giving them a 33.3% stake in the combined company. Tether, a major stablecoin issuer that holds a 54% majority stake in Northern Data, has expressed support for the deal. This would make Tether the single largest holder of Rumble’s Class A stock.

In a separate press release, Northern Data acknowledged the potential offer and indicated a willingness to discuss the terms with Rumble.

A key condition of the proposed deal is the sale of Northern Data’s bitcoin mining division, Peak Mining. A non-binding agreement has been signed to sell Peak Mining to Elektron Energy for up to $235 million, with $175 million paid upfront. The proceeds from this sale would be used to reduce a loan Northern Data received from Tether.

Rumble’s acquisition of Northern Data would not include any liability for this loan. Instead, Rumble plans to integrate Northern Data’s data centers and its GPU-as-a-service business, which includes over 20,000 Nvidia GPUs. The goal is to establish Rumble as a global leader in AI cloud services.

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2025, pending regulatory and board approvals in both the U.S. and Germany.

Following the news, Rumble’s stock gained 20% in pre-market trading, reaching $9.48.

Northern Data also reported strong first-half 2025 financial results, with revenue up 72% to €94.3 million ($109.8 million) compared to the same period last year. This growth was driven by its Taiga Cloud and Peak Mining divisions.

Coinbase has announced a major update to its platform, integrating decentralized exchange (DEX) trading directly into its main app via its Base network. This new feature, which is currently available to select U.S. customers (excluding New York State), allows users to trade millions of tokens, a significant expansion from the approximately 300 assets currently listed on the exchange.

The integration combines the extensive variety and speed of decentralized finance (DeFi) with the user-friendly interface of a centralized exchange. This gives users the ability to trade new Base-native assets shortly after their launch.

Key Details of the New Feature

Access and Usability: Coinbase simplifies the complexities of DEX trading. The new feature includes a built-in self-custody wallet and covers all network fees. Users can fund transactions directly from their Coinbase balance or with USDC.

Trading Mechanics: Trades are routed through major protocols like Aerodrome and Uniswap, with aggregators working to secure the best available pricing.

Initial Launch and Expansion: At launch, users can trade tokens from projects like Virtuals and Super Champs. Coinbase plans to index more Base assets daily and aims to expand this functionality to other networks, such as Solana, in the near future. The company also plans to eventually extend DEX access beyond the U.S.

Transparency and Safety: While Coinbase will not review or list these DEX assets, it will block any tokens flagged as fraudulent or malicious by third-party vendors. The platform will also provide on-chain data to give traders more transparency.

This move is a major step for Coinbase, allowing it to tap into the booming on-chain economy. According to data from DefiLlama, the Base network saw its monthly spot volume surpass $41 billion in July, making it the fourth-largest DEX by volume.

Jesse Pollak, the creator of the Base network, said the move “puts Base builders on a level playing field,” giving token issuers the ability to reach millions of traders through the new interface within about an hour of their token being indexed.

Ether, the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum network, has broken through the $4,000 mark for the first time in eight months. The price surge comes amid a wave of institutional investment and significant network growth.

The price of ether (ETH) rose to an intraday high of over $4,013 on Friday, according to data from Coinbase. This marks the first time the asset has traded above this level since December 16 of last year. Over the last month, ETH has seen its value increase by more than 50%. While this is a significant rally, the cryptocurrency is still down about 18% from its all-time high of approximately $4,867, which was set in November 2021.

The recent gains follow a period earlier in the year when ETH underperformed compared to bitcoin (BTC). The ratio between the two assets hit a low in April, but since then, ETH has gained roughly 90% against BTC, though it still lags behind bitcoin’s year-to-date performance.

The dramatic increase in ether’s price is being attributed to a few key factors. New companies have emerged, raising and investing billions of dollars in ETH, mirroring the strategy pioneered by Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy for bitcoin. Leading these firms are BitMine, SharpLink, and The Ether Machine, which collectively hold billions of dollars worth of ETH. Analysts at Standard Chartered believe these firms are “just getting started” and could expand their holdings significantly over time.

Inflows into U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs have accelerated, adding nearly $5 billion in the last month alone. These products, which began trading in July 2024, have now seen a total net inflow of over $9.4 billion. The Ethereum network recently reached a new all-time high of 1.74 million daily transactions, surpassing a previous record set in May 2021. This surge in activity indicates strong, growing usage of the network.

 

Animoca Brands announced today that it has formed a joint venture, Anchorpoint Financial Limited, with Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited (SCBHK) and HKT. The new company’s goal is to apply for a stablecoin issuer license in Hong Kong.

Anchorpoint formally expressed its interest to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) on August 1, 2025, the day the Stablecoins Ordinance came into effect.

According to Evan Auyang, group president of Animoca Brands, the partnership aims to bring stablecoins into Hong Kong’s mainstream financial ecosystem. “Stablecoins represent one of the most compelling use cases within Web3, and we believe we are still at the early frontier of widespread adoption,” Auyang said.

Since July 2024, the three companies have been participating in the HKMA’s stablecoin issuer sandbox. This initiative has allowed them to explore how stablecoins can link Web3 and traditional financial systems, a move that could strengthen Hong Kong’s position as a global digital assets hub.

Ethereum (ETH) has experienced a significant price increase, climbing roughly 7% in the past 24 hours to trade above $3,900. This rally marks a breakout from a recent period of underperformance that saw prices drop to $3,400 earlier in the week. The surge is being driven by a renewed accumulation of ETH by institutional investors and large holders.

One of the key drivers behind the latest price jump is a large purchase by SharpLink Gaming, a treasury company that holds a significant amount of ETH. The company purchased another 21,959 ETH, valued at approximately $85.5 million. This acquisition brings SharpLink’s total holdings to over 543,000 ETH, with a value of around $2.12 billion. The purchase follows a recent $200 million stock offering aimed at scaling its Ethereum treasury.

On-chain data also shows that whales have re-entered the market, accumulating nearly $670 million worth of ETH over the last four days. This reverses a previous trend of heavy selling and suggests a shift in market sentiment.

The renewed buying pressure has brought ETH back into the green for the week, with its monthly gain now at about 49.4%. The daily trading volume has also jumped by 85%, reaching approximately $48.9 billion, while open interest has risen by 11%.

Analysts and market watchers are now looking to see if this momentum can push Ethereum past the $4,000 mark. Several factors are contributing to a bullish outlook:

Consistent Inflows: Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tracking ETH have seen steady inflows over the past 30 days, indicating strong demand from traditional investors.

Bullish Forecasts: Industry figures like BitMine CEO Tom Lee, the largest corporate ETH holder, have a positive long-term view, with Lee forecasting that ETH could reach $16,000.

Market Sentiment: On Polymarket, traders are currently placing a 54% chance that ETH will reach a new all-time high before the end of the year.

In a recent interview, SharpLink co-CEO Joseph Chalom stated that Ethereum is positioned to become a platform for global finance, securing stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets, and other economic activity for the next generation.

Ethereum has reached a new all-time high for daily transactions, hitting 1.74 million on August 5, according to a seven-day moving average. This new record surpasses the previous peak of 1.65 million transactions set on May 12, 2021, according to data from The Block.

July also marked the network’s most active month ever, with a total of 46.67 million transactions processed. The number of active addresses on the network is also on the rise, reaching 683,520 on August 5, close to its all-time high of 743,730.

This surge in activity follows Ethereum’s recent decision to increase its block gas limit to 45 million, a change that significantly boosts the network’s transaction capacity.

Analysts point to increased DeFi (Decentralized Finance) activity as a primary driver of the growth, with stablecoins playing a central role. Regulatory clarity in the U.S. and increased institutional interest are contributing to Ethereum’s momentum. Dozens of companies have recently adopted Ethereum treasury strategies, with public company holdings of ETH now valued at over $7.5 billion.

Despite the record-breaking on-chain activity, the price of ETH has not yet fully reflected this growth. The potential approval of Ethereum staking ETFs could unlock further price upside and on-chain activity, as it would allow institutions to treat ETH as a yield-bearing asset.

In a move set to bolster its leadership in digital asset payments, Ripple announced today it has agreed to acquire Rail, a stablecoin-powered platform for global payments, for $200 million. The acquisition will combine Ripple’s extensive digital payments network and licensing with Rail’s streamlined virtual account and back-office infrastructure.

The deal aims to create a comprehensive stablecoin payments solution to meet the growing demand for stablecoin-based transactions. According to Ripple President Monica Long, the acquisition positions the company to drive the next phase of stablecoin and blockchain adoption in global payments.

The combined platform will allow customers to manage various payment types, including third-party and internal treasury flows, through a single interface. Users will also gain access to a global payments network that operates around the clock.

Key features of the new combined solution include:

Stablecoin On/Off-Ramps: Enables comprehensive stablecoin payments without requiring customers to hold crypto on their balance sheets.

Virtual Accounts and Collections: Eliminates the need for dedicated crypto bank accounts or wallets on centralized exchanges, lowering the barrier to entry for businesses.

Premium Digital Asset Liquidity: Supports payments across a variety of digital assets like RLUSD and XRP, with competitive pricing for high-value transactions.

Enterprise-Grade Compliance: Leverages Ripple’s portfolio of over 60 licenses to ensure secure and regulated payment flows.

Rail CEO Bhanu Kohli noted that the company, which is forecasted to process over 10% of the $36 billion global B2B stablecoin payments in 2025, shares Ripple’s vision for transforming international money movement.

This acquisition is the latest in Ripple’s strategic expansion efforts, with the company having invested over $3 billion in M&A and other opportunities to date. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals.

Changpeng Zhao, the co-founder and former CEO of Binance, has asked a U.S. bankruptcy court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the FTX bankruptcy estate. The lawsuit seeks to recover $1.76 billion that allegedly moved between the two entities.

In a recent filing, Zhao argued that he is beyond the court’s legal jurisdiction because he resides in the United Arab Emirates. He also contended that the U.S. statutes cited in the case do not apply to the cross-border transactions in question. “Plaintiffs’ fraudulent transfer claims improperly demand the extension of bankruptcy law abroad,” the filing stated.

The lawsuit, which was filed in November 2024, targets Binance and several executives over a July 2021 equity buyback arrangement. According to FTX’s lawyers, Binance and its former leadership improperly received funds when they sold their ownership stakes in FTX’s global operations and its American subsidiary.

Zhao’s filing claims that Binance and FTX were “briefly business partners” before they separated. He stated that Binance returned its equity stake in exchange for cryptocurrencies. Zhao’s legal team is arguing that he is not responsible for the failures of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and that the court cannot enforce its statutes on the transactions described in the complaint.

Zhao’s filing follows similar dismissal requests from other former Binance executives. Bankman-Fried is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for fraud and conspiracy charges, while Zhao recently completed a four-month sentence after pleading guilty to U.S. anti-money laundering violations.

FanC, a South Korean blockchain company, has launched a test run of what is being called the nation’s first stablecoin backed by the Korean won. The pilot was a collaboration with financial software firm Initech, marking a significant step in the race to introduce a won-pegged digital asset to the public market, The Korea Herald reported.

The stablecoin, named KRWIN, is pegged at a 1:1 ratio to the Korean won. This test issuance is a first for a private entity in South Korea and aims to assess the token’s technical viability, including its transferability and potential real-world uses. While there is no official public release date, the companies plan to eventually use KRWIN for various applications, including payments, global remittances, and tourism.

For now, the circulation of the token is limited to a closed group of affiliated companies. A fanC spokesperson stated that the pilot combines financial security with blockchain technology and is a major milestone for stablecoin adoption in the country. “KRWIN will establish itself as a leading private model driving future demand for won-denominated digital assets,” the spokesperson said. FanC has already filed a trademark for KRWIN, suggesting a public launch may be planned in the near future.

The move comes amid growing interest from major South Korean financial institutions in creating a won-backed stablecoin. This interest was sparked by comments from President Lee Jae-myung, who has pledged support for cryptocurrency assets backed by the won.

The White House is preparing an executive order that would penalize banks for discriminating against customers based on their political views or for working with digital asset firms. The Wall Street Journal reported that the order could be signed this week.

According to the report, the order directs bank regulators to investigate whether any financial institutions have violated laws such as the Equal Credit Opportunity Act or antitrust laws. Violators could face monetary penalties and other disciplinary actions.

This move follows numerous complaints from cryptocurrency companies that they have been denied banking services under the Biden administration. While banks claim these decisions are based on legal and regulatory risks, particularly anti-money laundering compliance, crypto industry leaders argue they have been unfairly targeted.

A spokesperson for Bank of America told the Journal that the bank has provided detailed proposals and will continue to work with the government to improve the regulatory framework.

The executive order marks a shift from previous banking oversight. The Trump administration is positioning itself as a defender of the crypto industry against alleged bias from the financial sector. Several prominent figures in the crypto space, including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Frax Finance founder Sam Kazemian, have publicly stated that their accounts or the accounts of others have been closed by major banks due to their involvement with digital assets.

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce is advocating for the right of Americans to use privacy-focused crypto technologies without government surveillance. Her remarks, delivered at Stanford’s Science of Blockchain Conference, were made as the criminal trial for Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm gets underway.

Peirce criticized the decades-old Bank Secrecy Act, which requires financial institutions to act as investigators by filing millions of transaction reports annually. She argued that this framework erodes Fourth Amendment protections by requiring individuals to give up their privacy when using financial intermediaries.

The Commissioner supports technologies like zero-knowledge proofs and decentralized networks, which eliminate the need for intermediaries. She also warned against making open-source software developers liable for how others use their code, arguing that it is not practical to apply surveillance measures to immutable, publicly available protocols.

Peirce’s comments coincide with the trial of Roman Storm, who is accused of facilitating over $1 billion in illicit transactions through the crypto mixer Tornado Cash. The prosecution has faced challenges with its evidence, including a key Telegram message that was initially misattributed to Storm’s co-developer, Alexey Pertsev. The defense revealed the message was actually written by a former reporter.

Peirce questioned whether the Bank Secrecy Act’s “sledgehammer approach” provides enough benefit to justify its significant costs to financial institutions and the privacy of Americans. She noted that a recent Government Accountability Office report found that most of the required transaction reports are not even used by law enforcement.

The Commissioner also criticized the SEC’s own Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), which collects extensive trading data on all customers without suspicion of wrongdoing. She and another commissioner have described the CAT as a tool of a “dystopian surveillance state” that disregards investor privacy. Following privacy concerns, the SEC recently stopped requiring customer names, addresses, and birth years in CAT submissions.

Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies are seeing a recovery after a decline last week. The price of Bitcoin rose 1.22% in 24 hours to reach $114,738 on Sunday. This follows a drop from around $119,000 on July 31 to a low of $111,800.

Major altcoins also rebounded, with Ether rising 3.12%, XRP gaining 6.32%, and Solana increasing by 1.66%.

According to analysts, the recent dip was likely triggered by a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report, which showed the addition of only 73,000 jobs in July. This data, combined with declines in the U.S. stock market, may have prompted investors to take profits after a period of market gains.

“Whenever there’s a dip, it doesn’t last very long as buyers come in very quickly to take advantage of the opportunity,” Jeff Mei, COO at BTSE was quoted by a report in The Block.

Traders are described as “cautiously optimistic” as they look toward the upcoming U.S. consumer price index (CPI) release on August 12, which could influence the Federal Reserve’s next interest rate decision. The CME Group’s FedWatch Tool currently indicates an 80.8% probability of a rate cut in September.

Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, reported a net loss of $20 million for the second quarter, causing its stock to fall nearly 4% on Friday. The company attributed roughly $15 million of the loss to legal fees from its 2024 merger.

The company, majority-owned by U.S. President Donald Trump, is currently suing its SPAC sponsor and two co-founders over the merger process. Despite the stock drop, Trump Media holds a market capitalization of about $4.7 billion.

In a recent SEC filing, Trump Media announced plans to issue a “utility token” for subscribers of its new Patriot Package. The company stated the token could be used for subscriptions to Truth Social and its streaming service, Truth+, with potential for expansion to other services.

The company’s filing did not confirm if the token would use blockchain technology. Trump Media also holds a significant Bitcoin treasury, with $3.1 billion in assets at the end of the quarter. It is currently pursuing plans to offer digital asset ETFs.

Newly released campaign finance filings show that the cryptocurrency industry has become a major financial backer for Donald Trump’s political ambitions, donating over $26 million to his campaign this year. The donations, funneled to the pro-Trump super PAC, MAGA Inc., came from key players across the industry. Blockchain.com led the charge with a $5 million contribution. Prominent venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz each gave $3 million, while crypto exchange Gemini Trust added nearly $3 million. The company’s co-founders, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, also made personal contributions of $500,000 each. Other significant donors include Ondo Finance ($2.1 million) and Paradigm ($1.2 million).

Trump’s Pro-Crypto Stance and Potential Conflicts of Interest

The surge in donations comes as Trump has publicly embraced the crypto industry, positioning himself as a strong advocate for digital assets. His administration has already taken several steps to support the sector, including signing the GENIUS Act, which addresses stablecoin regulations, and pushing for the CLARITY Act, a broader regulatory framework for digital assets. Trump has also proposed a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and laid out plans to support open-source crypto infrastructure and user privacy.

While these policies have earned him widespread support within the industry, they have also raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest. Members of the Trump family are involved in various crypto ventures, from stablecoins and NFTs to Bitcoin mining. Critics worry that this entanglement could allow his family to profit directly from policies enacted by his administration.

The issue is further complicated by Trump’s own substantial crypto holdings. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, his cryptocurrency investments have gained an estimated $620 million in recent months. This personal financial exposure to the crypto market has led to warnings from some, including Nick Carter of Castle Island Ventures, who described the situation as a potential “headache” due to conflicting interests.