Daily Report 11 Aug 2025

Global markets advanced with the Nasdaq hitting a record high (+0.98% to 21,450) led by Apple's 4.24% surge, while the Dow (+0.47%) and S&P 500 (+0.78%) also gained in broad-based rallies. European markets posted their best weekly performance in three months with the Euro Stoxx 600 up 2.2%, though Australia's ASX200 slipped 0.28% on banking weakness ahead of expected RBA rate cuts. Commodity markets saw volatility as US customs initially subjected 1kg gold bars to import tariffs before the White House promised clarification, while copper climbed on mine disruption concerns in Chile. President Trump announced a meeting with Putin in Alaska for August 15th amid ongoing Russian-Ukraine tensions, and investors await Tuesday's CPI data with economists expecting 3% core inflation.

The global crypto market cap is up 4.9% over the week end (+2.43% over the past 24 hours) to $4.05tn.

• In the past 24 hours, crypto liquidations increased by 9.8% and totaled $351.8m,  with 61.4% of them short positions. In terms of market share, BTC and ETH dominate, accounting for 32.5% and 25.9% of total liquidations, respectively, with Ether having reached $4,000 for the first time in eight months and currently trading around $4,300.

• According to data from SoSo Value, US Spot BTC ETF market saw a significant influx of capital on August 8, 2025, with a daily net inflow of $403.88m, marking a substantial increase from the previous day's $280.69m and a notable reversal from the outflows seen on August 5 and 4. This surge contributed to a weekly net inflow of $1.055bn from August 4 to 8, a stark contrast to the $643m outflow observed in the preceding week. The total assets under management now stand at $150.7bn, with IBIT dominating the market, holding over 57% of the total AUM at $86.5bn. The daily volume of $2.6bn also suggests a high level of activity in the market, indicating that investors are actively engaging with Bitcoin ETFs.

• According to data from SoSo Value, US Spot ETH ETF market saw also a significant influx of capital, with a daily net inflow of $461 million, marking a substantial increase from the previous day's $222 million and more than 10 times the $35 million inflow on August 6th. This surge in inflows contributed to a weekly net inflow of $1.25 billion from August 4th to 8th, which is notable but still lower than the $1.85 billion and $2.18 billion weekly inflows seen in the two weeks prior. The total AUM in the market now stand at $23.38 billion, with the top ETF, ETHA, holding nearly $12.35 billion in AUM and accounting for a significant portion of the daily volume. Overall, the market's daily volume of $2.44 billion suggests a high level of activity and interest in Ethereum-based ETFs, and the recent inflows suggest that investors remain bullish on the asset class despite some volatility in recent days.

• President Trump signed an Executive Order on August 7, 2025, directing the Department of Labor and SEC to allow 401(k) investors access to alternative assets including private equity, real estate, and digital assets, aiming to provide the same investment diversification opportunities currently available to wealthy investors and government workers to more than 90 million Americans in employer-sponsored retirement plans.
• Binance has partnered with Spain's BBVA bank to act as an independent custodian for customer funds, according to the Financial Times, with the arrangement involving customer assets held in US Treasurys at the Spanish bank to reduce counterparty risk in an effort to rebuild trust in cryptocurrency exchanges, which have been plagued by low confidence among investors and users.
• According to blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs, the Embargo ransomware group, which has targeted US hospitals and critical infrastructure, has moved over $34 million in ransom-linked crypto since April 2024 through high-risk exchanges and sanctioned platforms including Cryptex.net, with $18.8 million still sitting dormant in unaffiliated wallets.
• Standard Chartered's Hong Kong subsidiary and Web3 company Animoca Brands launched joint venture Anchorpoint Financial on Friday to develop a licensed Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, formally indicating interest with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on August 1st following the regulator's implementation of new stablecoin framework rules.
• Bo Hines, Trump's top crypto advisor who headed the White House Crypto Council for eight months, resigned Saturday to return to the private sector after spearheading federal policy reforms including the push for a national Bitcoin strategic reserve and efforts to make the US the "crypto capital of the world."
• El Salvador's Legislative Assembly approved a new Investment Banking Law allowing specialized financial institutions to offer Bitcoin and digital asset services to sophisticated investors with at least $250,000 in liquid assets, requiring $50 million minimum capital and aiming to establish the country as a regional financial hub for international private capital.