Weekly Crypto Roundup: Another week of dizzy headlines: rates frozen, insults flying, banks freed to hoard Treasuries, and institutions stacking bitcoin and ether as if nothing’s wrong. Add new stablecoin laws, ETF milestones, and Iran-Israel jitters, and you get a market that shrugs on the surface while tectonic plates keep shifting below. Here’s the full story.
Monetary Cross-Currents
Late last week the Federal Reserve held rates steady for the umpteenth time, but the dot-plot showed a split board: seven governors see no cut at all in 2025, two see one cut, eight see two, and another two still hope for three. Fresh jobless-claim data (245 K versus 248 K prior) confirmed that the labor market is merely cooling, not cracking, so the stand-pat decision surprised no-one.
That did not spare Chair Jerome Powell from a barrage of insults said by US President Donald Trump. In two televised hits (June 18 and 21) Trump called Powell “dumb,” “a fool,” and “someone who just hates me,” insisting that a single, earlier rate-cut cycle “would have saved America a trillion dollars a year.” He even joked about appointing himself Fed chair. 2 days later he half-retracted the promise to fire Powell, “maybe I change my mind.” Markets mostly rolled their eyes; funding costs and the BTC perpetual-swap rate stayed calm.
Away from the cameras, regulators quietly rewrote the rule-book. The Treasury and the Fed turned the Supplementary Leverage Ratio (SLR) relief into permanent law, letting banks hold unlimited Treasuries without extra capital. Bank dealers can now warehouse government debt with far less balance-sheet pain, a move critics call “indirect QE.”
Geopolitics, Oil and Safe Havens
On the geopolitical front, Israel-Iran tension kept traders glued to headline feeds. The U.K. said it might join any US-led action, while Russia warned Washington not to get involved. Trump, for his part, told reporters, “We could strike, or not,” and tweeted that “everyone should evacuate Tehran right now.” This happened late last week.
On Sunday however, Middle-East risk shifted from threats to action. In the early hours of 22 June, the United States joined Israel in bombing three Iranian nuclear facilities. Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, in what the Pentagon called a “limited, precision strike.” Trump hailed it as a warning shot and vowed “force far greater” if Iran retaliates.
Tehran, which had already threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, is now “weighing retaliation,” according to Reuters, amplifying talk of an expanded conflict corridor that carries roughly 20 % of global oil.
Oil held the $70 range but strategists at JPMorgan still floated a $130 target, noting that such a spike could push US CPI back to 5 % and derail any 2025 rate cut.
Gold crept toward a new all-time high near $3,500 as a classic war hedge.
Institutions Keep Buying the Dip
Market anxiety did not chase big money away from crypto.
- BlackRock added another $750 million of ETH in June alone, extending a steady buying program.
- London-listed Smarter Web Co. topped up with 104 BTC, lifting its treasury to 346.6 BTC and formalising a ten-year “payments-plus-stacking” strategy. Its share price jumped 9 % on the news.
- Strategy, Michael Saylor’s firm, bought 10,100 BTC (~$1.05 billion) at $104 080 each, taking its stash to 592 100 BTC.
- Tokyo-based Metaplanet bought 1,112 BTC and now owns an even 10,000 coins, earning it the nickname “Japan’s MicroStrategy.”
- Spain’s BBVA privately advised high-net-worth clients to hold both bitcoin and ether as “core long-term allocation.”
Meanwhile on-chain data from Santiment and CryptoRank still show BTC above $100 k with low funding rates and ETH whales accumulating since mid-2024, evidence of spot, not leverage, demand.
Stablecoins and the Payments Shake-up
Congress passed the GENIUS Act, the first fully fledged federal framework for stablecoins. The bill defines the asset class, imposes licensing rules and consumer safeguards, and, crucially, lets non-banks compete.
Almost immediately:
- Visa and Mastercard shares dropped 5 %, as Amazon and Walmart began testing direct stable-asset checkouts that could slash fees by up to 85 %.
- JPMorgan and Coinbase unveiled JPMD, a pilot dollar token that marries JPM’s name-recognition with the Base L2. VP Jesse Pollak called it “a bridge for institutional cash.”
- Coinbase Payments went live for e-commerce, using USDC on Base with Shopify already integrated.
- PayPal said it will launch PYUSD on Stellar, adding a third chain after Ethereum and Solana.
- JD.com, China’s retail giant, filed for global stablecoin licences, aiming to cut cross-border payment costs by 90 % and settlement time to ten seconds.
ETF Pipeline and Other Market-Structure Moves
- Van Eck’s spot-Solana ETF (VSOL) quietly appeared on DTCC’s list, and Bloomberg analysts now assign a 90 % chance of approval this year.
- Seoul’s Financial Services Commission published a roadmap to allow spot crypto ETFs in H2 2025.
- Toronto-listed Sol Strategies filed to up-list on Nasdaq under the ticker STKE, highlighting its treasury of SOL and its validator fleet.
- The European Union and the US announced “advanced trade talks” that could clone London’s post-Brexit model while keeping some tariffs. Treasury Secretary Yellen also flagged a China visit “within three weeks.”
- Coinbase requested SEC blessing for on-chain equity shares, another step toward blending TradFi and Web3.
Ecosystem & On-Chain Activity
The dev community stayed busy. ICP, Chainlink, Starknet, Cardano, Polkadot, Kusama, Optimism, DeepBook on Sui, Sui itself and Ethereum ranked as the most active repos over the past month.
On-chain throughput showed similar energy:
- Avalanche jumped from ~300 K daily transactions in mid-May to over 1.2 million on 15 June.
- deBridge data showed a decisive liquidity swing toward Base in the last 24 hours.
- Solana and Internet Computer Protocol announced a deep integration that enables multi-chain smart contracts spanning Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana.
Mining, Hardware and Infrastructure
Bitmain, Canaan and MicroBT, the world’s top three ASIC makers, revealed plans to build plants inside the United States, dodging Trump’s higher China tariffs and positioning themselves closer to North American miners.
Corporate Experiments, Big and Small
- GameStop proposed a $1.75 billion convertible bond, explicitly allowing proceeds to flow into bitcoin reserves.
- Trump Mobile launched with the audacious idea of taxing rival handsets while offering a “Made in America” phone tax-free.
- The US President’s private firm also cut its stake in World Liberty Financial from 60 % to 40 %, booking a tidy $190 million profit.
- Tron Group is prepping an IPO, helped by the US closing its long-running probe of founder Justin Sun.
Security and Cyber-Risks
Cisco Talos warned of North Korean hackers who lure blockchain engineers to fake jobs and infect them with info-stealing malware. The reminder was blunt: always verify a recruiter before clicking.
The Week Ahead
Important US Numbers
| Day | What’s Coming | Why It Matters |
| Mon 23 Jun | Market reaction to the U.S. strikes on Iran | The first full trading day after the air-raids. Watch oil, gold and defense stocks: if prices jump, traders are bracing for a wider conflict; if they slip, people think the worst is over. |
| Tue 24 Jun | May Existing-Home Sales | A count of houses that actually changed hands last month. Rising sales → families feel secure, economy looks healthy. Falling sales → buyers are scared off by high mortgage rates. |
| June Consumer-Confidence Index (Conference Board) | A simple survey that asks people, “How’s your wallet today, and how will it feel six months from now?” Higher numbers mean shoppers may spend more; lower numbers flag caution. | |
| Fed Chair Powell speaks (day 1) | When the boss of the U.S. central bank talks, every trader listens for hints on future rate cuts. Even one unexpected word can move stocks, bonds and crypto. | |
| Wed 25 Jun | Powell Q&A (day 2) | Lawmakers grill him in Congress. The questions are blunt; the answers can reveal hidden worries—think banking stress, job losses, or stubborn inflation. |
| Thu 26 Jun | Q1 2025 GDP (final reading) | The official scorecard for January-March growth. Faster GDP = the economy is humming (but the Fed may stay hawkish). Slower GDP = growth is cooling (rate-cut odds rise). |
| Fri 27 Jun | May PCE Inflation | The Fed’s favourite price gauge. Core PCE above 2 % keeps rates higher for longer; a drop toward 2 % opens the door to cuts. It’s the last big data point before July’s Fed meeting. |
War headlines can swing sentiment in minutes. Keep an eye on oil – it’s the quickest stress barometer.
Housing and confidence tell the Fed whether high rates are biting Main Street. Weak readings mean relief could come sooner.
Powell’s two-day testimony often sparks the biggest mid-week moves. Traders parse every syllable for clues.
GDP shows speed; PCE shows heat. Strong growth and hot inflation? Expect more “higher for longer.” Weak growth and cooling prices? Markets will start pricing in cuts.
Token Unlocks to Watch Out For
Coin98 (C98)
Date: June 23, 2025
Unlock Value: 244K USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 0.57%
Number of Tokens: 5.56M C98
GT Protocol (GTAI)
Date: June 25, 2025
Unlock Value: 226K USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 3.75%
Number of Tokens: 1.52M GTAI
VENOM (VENOM)
Date: June 25, 2025
Unlock Value: 1.69M USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 0.50%
Number of Tokens: 10.50M VENOM
Altlayer (ALT)
Date: June 25, 2025
Unlock Value: 3.43M USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 2.87%
Number of Tokens: 100.69M ALT
Voxies (VOXEL)
Date: June 26, 2025
Unlock Value: 49K USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 0.42%
Number of Tokens: 1.00M VOXEL
BLAST (BLAST)
Date: June 26, 2025
Unlock Value: 25.15M USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 35.08%
Number of Tokens: 10.50M BLAST
Yield Guild Games (YGG)
Date: June 27, 2025
Unlock Value: 1.02M USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 1.23%
Number of Tokens: 6.44M YGG
Tribal Finance (TRIBL)
Date: June 28, 2025
Unlock Value: 33.91K USDT
% of Circulating Supply: 7.83%
Number of Tokens: 12.31M TRIBL
Final Thoughts
Markets ended the period oddly placid. US equities finished near the highs they set before the Israel-Iran flare-up, and crypto volatility fell despite a wall of headlines. Yet the mix of open war threats, shadow QE via SLR relief, and relentless institutional accumulation of bitcoin and ether leaves plenty for risk desks to ponder. As one strategist put it, “Peace rumours can vanish overnight, but BlackRock’s wallet rarely sells.”
Not financial advice. Always DYOR. For deeper dives visit blog.millionero.com and when you’re ready, trade spot and perpetuals on Millionero.