The fourth day of the Tornado Cash developer’s criminal trial in New York kicked off with witnesses from the FBI. US Attorneys in New York’s Southern District continued presenting their case against Tornado Cash co-founder and developer Roman Storm, expected to last about a month. According to reporting from Inner City Press inside the courtroom on Thursday, Assistant US Attorney Thane Rehn said the prosecution expected to close its case against Storm by the end of next week, leading to the Tornado Cash co-founder’s lawyers calling their own witnesses. Storm said he expected the trial to last “3-4 weeks due to complex legal arguments and unforeseen witnesses and evidence.” Read more
Ethereum’s role in stablecoins, RWAs, and DeFi is fueling institutional interest, positioning ETH as a reserve asset, store of value, and digital oil. Key takeaways: ETH is increasingly viewed as a reserve asset for the digital dollar economy, with over 54% of stablecoins issued on Ethereum. Fidelity sees Ethereum as a sovereign digital economy, with ETH acting as both a store of value and a medium of exchange. Read more
Staking for crypto exchange-traded funds has been a feature long sought by traditional financial institutions and asset managers. The Nasdaq stock exchange filed an application with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday on behalf of BlackRock to add staking to the asset manager’s iShares Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF). If the application is approved, the fund would give investors exposure to staking rewards accrued from using the underlying Ether as collateral security for Ethereum’s proof-of-stake consensus algorithm. In May, the SEC released guidance classifying staking rewards earned from validation services on proof-of-stake blockchain networks as earned income rather than securities transactions subject to capital gains tax. Read more
Australia’s Block Earner has launched a Bitcoin-backed mortgage as a new path into the property market, following a regulatory win that cleared the way for crypto-backed lending. As home prices in Australia continue to outpace incomes, a company is rolling out a Bitcoin-backed mortgage, offering crypto holders a new way to access the property market without selling their assets. On Wednesday, Block Earner launched the country’s first Bitcoin-backed home loan after fighting with regulators in court for over two years. The product was made possible by an April Federal Court ruling that found that Block Earner’s crypto lending products did not qualify as “financial products” under the Corporations Act. The decision cleared the company from needing a financial services license in order to offer Bitcoin as collateral in home loans. Read more
The start of a new altcoin season could play a key role in sending SUI toward $5. Key point: Growing interest in altcoins could push SUI above the stiff overhead resistance at $4.30, setting up a rally to $5. Bitcoin (BTC) has been consolidating after hitting the all-time high of $123,218. Although BTC has not given up much ground, its falling dominance of the total crypto market capitalization shows that money is flowing into altcoins. Read more