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Decentralized exchange dYdX has released its updated 2025 roadmap, which includes plans for a Telegram trading integration and various software upgrades. This strategic update comes as the platform faces a significant decline in earnings, with a reported 84% drop in income for the second quarter of 2025 compared to the previous year. The roadmap outlines a series of technical enhancements aimed at reducing trading latency, such as designated proposers and improved order types like scale and TWAP orders. Additionally, the platform is set to launch Telegram-based trading in September, a feature made possible by its recent acquisition of the social trading app Pocket Protector.
Beyond the technical upgrades, the new roadmap focuses on improving user experience and providing incentives. A partner fee share program is planned, which would allow those who bring volume and liquidity to the platform to earn up to half of the protocol fees. The platform also aims to introduce new user-friendly features like social logins, direct swaps between USDC and DYDX, and customizable fee tiers to lower trading costs. These efforts are part of a broader strategy to regain market share and deliver long-term value, following a year of challenges that included a workforce reduction. Source
For the first time ever, a US federal agency has published official economic data on a public blockchain, selecting Chainlink and Pyth as the decentralized oracle providers to facilitate the process. The Department of Commerce is using the blockchain to publish the hash of the second-quarter 2025 GDP data, as well as the topline number, on nine different blockchains. The goal of this initiative is to make economic information immutable and globally accessible, with the help of crypto exchanges like Coinbase, Gemini, and Kraken which assisted in the publishing.
This historic move is a major step toward the adoption of blockchain technology by a national government and is part of a larger plan to make the US a leader in the crypto space. The on-chain data can be used for a variety of new applications, including automated trading strategies, prediction markets, and DeFi protocols. The collaboration is also seen as a way to increase transparency and trust in public data. Following the announcement, the native token of Pyth Network, PYTH, saw a significant price increase. Source
Stablecoin issuer Tether has announced that its USDT token will be integrated into the Bitcoin network through the use of the RGB protocol. This development will allow for the issuance of assets directly on the Bitcoin blockchain, which Tether says will make transactions for USDT faster, more private, and lightweight. The company believes this will help cement Bitcoin's role as the foundation for a more free financial future and transform it into "everyday money." This move follows a previous integration of USDT on the Bitcoin Lightning Network eight months prior.
The RGB protocol, or "Really Good Bitcoin," is a smart contract system that utilizes client-side validation to enable off-chain transactions while still using Bitcoin's security. This approach allows users to have their Bitcoin and USDT in the same wallet and even transact offline. According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, this makes USDT on Bitcoin truly native, and a powerful new pathway for the stablecoin. The move also comes at a time of positive developments for stablecoins, including new US regulations and predictions of significant market growth. Source
Canadian crypto infrastructure firm Luxxfolio is seeking to raise up to CAD$100 million ($73 million USD) by filing a shelf prospectus, a move that would grant it flexibility to raise funds over 25 months. This comes after the company shifted its digital asset treasury strategy from Bitcoin mining to one focused on Litecoin. Luxxfolio, which recently welcomed Litecoin creator Charlie Lee to its advisory board, aims to accumulate one million LTC by 2026. This pivot is taking place despite the company's precarious financial position, which includes a net loss in the second quarter and warnings about its ability to continue operations without fresh capital.
The company's strategy is centred on Litecoin as a "hard currency" and seeks to pair its treasury growth with the development of usable infrastructure for the Litecoin ecosystem. This approach, according to some observers, is a way to attract institutional capital by providing a clear utility for the asset beyond just passive speculation. While some analysts believe that Litecoin, despite its technical merits, may not attract the same level of institutional investment as Bitcoin, others argue that this trend of treating "blue-chip altcoins" as treasury-grade assets could be a major catalyst for the market. Source
In a stagnant market, Ethereum has shown remarkable strength, outperforming Bitcoin with a 17% price increase over the last month, while Bitcoin has seen a 5.5% decline. This performance is largely attributed to significant institutional interest, as Ethereum-based ETFs have attracted over $1.2 billion in inflows this week, recovering from a period of outflows earlier in the month. Experts point to Ethereum's "dynamic growth story," citing its deflationary tokenomics, the increasing adoption of Layer-2 scaling solutions, and its appealing yield-bearing staking model as key drivers of its appeal to institutional investors. The number of staked ETH reached a record high earlier in August, further demonstrating this structural advantage.
Meanwhile, other cryptocurrencies have also had notable developments, with Solana gaining 7% in the same period, fuelled by a surge in trading volume on its decentralized exchanges. However, Solana is facing challenges as its number of daily traders has decreased, suggesting a shift away from speculative meme coin trading. The overall trend highlights Ethereum's growing dominance in attracting institutional capital and solidifying its role as a foundational layer for decentralized finance and tokenization. Source
Markethive is an entrepreneurial platform that uses blockchain and its native token, Hivecoin (HVC), to transform digital commerce. Unlike early referral programs like PayPal's, which offered a one-time monetary reward without fostering long-term connections, Markethive's system is designed to create valuable, engaged leads and a sustainable, growing community. The platform redefines the concept of Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) by integrating various revenue streams and community engagement methods, estimating each new lead to be worth approximately $200 due to the high quality of data and its network-based connections.
The value of a Markethive lead extends beyond a single transaction, representing a continuous revenue stream fuelled by the platform's unique economic model. This model is built around Hivecoin, which is circulated through incentives like micropayments, faucets, and airdrops. The platform's integrated commerce services, including subscriptions and advertising, contribute to a stable income model. This approach allows Markethive to achieve an impressive and extended CLV while keeping customer acquisition costs low, fostering a self-sustaining community where users and the platform mutually benefit. Source
Asset management firm 21Shares has filed a registration statement with the SEC to create a new exchange-traded fund that would track the Sei blockchain's native token, SEI. The proposed ETF, the 21Shares SEI ETF, aims to provide investors with exposure to the token while also offering potential additional yield through staking rewards. This filing is part of a broader trend where asset managers are pursuing ETFs for a wider range of altcoins, building on the success of the spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs that were approved in 2024. The application for the SEI ETF joins a growing list of similar proposals for other altcoins like Solana and XRP that are awaiting decisions from the SEC.
The filing from 21Shares comes after a similar application for a SEI ETF was submitted by Canary Capital in May. The prospectus states that the primary goal of the fund is to track the performance of SEI, with a secondary objective of generating rewards by staking a portion of its holdings. The firm has designated Coinbase Custody Trust Company as the custodian for the SEI tokens. While 21Shares is exploring the possibility of including staking, the company has not yet confirmed if this feature will be implemented, citing the need to first determine that there are no undue legal, regulatory, or tax risks. Source
The crypto landscape is evolving in 2025, with a clear shift towards direct crypto swaps and away from traditional trading methods. A crypto swap is a direct, wallet-to-wallet exchange of one digital asset for another without the need for an intermediary, fiat currency, or order books. This trend is backed by data from Q2 2025, which showed a significant 25.3% increase in decentralized exchange (DEX) spot trading volume, while centralized exchange (CEX) volume dropped by nearly 28%. Swaps are favoured for their lower fees, better liquidity, non-custodial nature, and faster transactions, though risks like smart contract vulnerabilities and slippage on large trades remain.
This year has seen platforms introduce major innovations to improve the swapping experience. Symbiosis, for example, now operates on its own blockchain to manage cross-chain logic, offering consistent fees and faster execution for swaps across a wide range of networks. This new architecture eliminates the need for traditional pooled-asset bridges, which have been a frequent target for exploits. Other platforms are also pushing the boundaries of what is possible: Uniswap v4 introduced a "hooks" framework that allows for custom logic to be inserted into a swap's lifecycle, and the 4-Swap protocol has created a "grief-free" atomic swap mechanism, which enables direct peer-to-peer exchanges without the risks of a counterparty stalling the transaction. Source
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has announced that offshore crypto exchanges can now legally serve clients in the United States by registering under the existing Foreign Board of Trade (FBOT) framework. This move is part of the "crypto sprint," a broader initiative by the CFTC under the Trump administration to provide regulatory clarity and attract crypto companies back to the U.S. By clarifying this pathway, the CFTC aims to increase liquidity in crypto markets and dismantle the "walled garden" that has limited U.S. residents to a small number of domestic crypto firms.
Historically, ambiguous regulations in the U.S. have led to an exodus of crypto companies, with a majority of trading volume shifting to offshore exchanges. The new advisory seeks to reverse this trend by providing clear "rules of the road" that reduce the legal burden on companies and protect financial market participants. This development, which is consistent with the White House's vision to strengthen American leadership in digital finance, is expected to encourage platforms like Binance to re-enter the U.S. market and give American traders access to a wider range of products and deeper liquidity pools. Source
A group of experienced crypto executives has formed a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Bitcoin Infrastructure Acquisition Corp. Ltd., to raise $200 million and acquire a crypto-related business to take public. The company, which plans to list on the Nasdaq, will focus on businesses involved in digital assets, Web3, and blockchain-driven financial services. The team is led by CEO Ryan Gentry, former head of business development at Lightning Labs, and its board is stacked with seasoned industry figures from companies like Kraken and Bitcoin Magazine. This move is part of a broader trend where SPACs are increasingly being used to bring private crypto firms to public markets, following a year that has seen significant crypto-tied debuts.
The SPAC’s management team includes James "Jim" DeAngelis as CFO, and Vikas Mittal, who is an investment chief at Meteora Capital, a firm with a history of sponsoring SPACs that brought crypto companies public, such as Bitcoin Depot. Mittal is also involved in another SPAC that recently closed a $230 million IPO with the same goal. The company’s board of directors includes Parker White of DeFi Development Corporation and Matt Lohstroh of Giga Energy, among others. These efforts signal a new wave of public offerings within the crypto space, with multiple SPACs raising hundreds of millions of dollars within a short period to target this sector. Source
According to blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have become a significant force in the crypto market, with daily trading volumes often reaching between $5 billion and $10 billion on active days. This volume, which can at times surpass that of major crypto exchanges, highlights a growing institutional demand for Bitcoin. However, the world's largest crypto exchange, Binance, still consistently leads the market in overall spot trading volume. The increasing prominence of these ETFs, which now account for a substantial portion of Bitcoin's total supply, demonstrates their pivotal role in both price discovery and the broader institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies.
While Bitcoin ETFs have established themselves as a major source of trading volume, recent data indicates a shift in institutional focus. In the last four trading days, inflows into spot Ethereum ETFs have totaled $1.24 billion, more than double the inflows seen by Bitcoin funds during the same period. This suggests that while Bitcoin adoption is robust, institutional interest in Ethereum is accelerating, with analysts noting a "slower institutional adoption of Ethereum compared to Bitcoin" but a rapid recent acceleration. The trend points to ETFs not only supplementing but actively reshaping market liquidity and serving as a fundamental gateway for traditional capital into the digital asset space. Source
Disclaimer: These articles are provided for informational purposes only. They are not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other advice.
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