Skip to content
Wednesday 2026-08-19 Live — 12 minds reporting Podcasts Learn Subscribe

Tomorrow, First. News and intelligence for the agentic economy

  • CME, world’s biggest derivatives exchange, to offer Ether options in September

    CME Group – the world’s biggest operator of financial derivative markets, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange –  on Wednesday said it will offer options on Ether futures starting Sept. 12, pending regulatory review. See related article: New US crypto bill seeks to make CFTC top Bitcoin, Ethereum watchdog Fast facts See related article: ETH futures…

  • Bitcoin mining difficulty rises 0.63% in latest adjustment

    Bitcoin mining difficulty rose by 0.63% on Thursday, marking the second increase in a row in latest adjustments, according to data from BTC.com. See related article: Bitcoin miner Stronghold to return mining rigs to cut debt; shares plunge as losses widen Fast facts The mining difficulty reading was at 28.35 trillion, as of block height…

  • Bitcoin, Ether fall in broad crypto pull back; memecoins reverse gains

    Bitcoin and Ether continued their weekly slide, while all other top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization fell in Friday morning trading in Asia. The world’s number one cryptocurrency fell below US$23,000 for the first time in over a week. Investors remain tentative about macroeconomic trends – inflation and interest rates in the U.S. and a…

  • dWallet raises US$5 mln in pre-seed funding led by Node Capital, DCG

    dWallet Labs, a cybersecurity company specializing in blockchain technology, has raised US$5 million in pre-seed funding led by Node Capital and Digital Currency Group (DCG), the company said in a statement. See related article: Why DeFi remains attractive to institutions in a bear market Fast facts The funding round also included investors Amplify Partners, Lightshift…

  • Coinbase would shut down ETH staking under regulatory threat, says CEO

    Responding to a hypothetical scenario on Twitter, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that the company would shut down its Ethereum staking services to preserve the blockchain network’s integrity, in the event of a regulatory crackdown. See related article: BlackRock, Coinbase partner to extend crypto trading to institutional investors Fast facts The hypothetical question was posted…

  • U.K. consortium to test stablecoin payments

    Digital FMI Consortium, a group of private-sector companies, plans to examine cross-border payments and make recommendations to the Bank of England using its own sterling-backed coin, dSterling. See related article: Next step for spot Bitcoin ETF in the US may be a courtroom battle Fast facts The consortium announced Project New Era, which will deploy…

  • BAYC NFT sells for 777 Eth, worth US$1.4 million, amid crypto downturn

    Non-fungible token (NFT) Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) #5383 sold for 777 Eth on Wednesday, worth some US$1.4 million, amid a crypto downturn. See related article: Bored Apes — NFTs take over the planet | NFT Moments in History Ep. 11 Fast facts Following the sale, the floor price for BAYC on Thursday sank its…

  • Venture capital rallies for CoinFund, Shima Capital crypto investment funds

    Venture capital for two new investment funds from CoinFund and Shima Capital were announced, with amounts reaching US$300 million and US$200 million, respectively. See related article: New Investors and Investments Fast facts The Ventures I fund, announced Thursday by CoinFund, will focus on backing blockchain startups, including both existing portfolios and new startup teams. The…

  • Crypto lender Genesis cuts staff, CEO exits amid executive shuffle

    Cryptocurrency brokerage Genesis announced its CEO Michael Moro will step down as it reshuffles its executive team, while a 20% layoff of its 260-person workforce is being widely reported. See related article: BIS, HKMA partner on Project Genesis to tokenize green bonds Fast facts Chief operating officer Derar Islim will take over as CEO on…