Amar Kuchinad has departed from his role as CEO of cryptocurrency custody firm Copper, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Kuchinad had held the position since 2024. His exit comes as the company's search for a potential buyer stretches into its fourth month. No official reason for his departure has been disclosed publicly.
Circle has agreed to acquire Tazapay, a cross-border payments company, in a deal valued at $400 million. The acquisition is expected to provide Circle with regulated infrastructure that connects stablecoin transactions to local banking systems around the world. This so-called 'last-mile' capability addresses a key gap between digital assets and traditional financial networks. The deal signals Circle's ambition to deepen its footprint in global payments beyond its core stablecoin business.
Strive Asset Management's preferred equity instrument SATA is closing in on a $1 billion market cap, outpacing rival Strategy's STRC offering. SATA has attracted investors with its 13% annualised dividend yield and its ability to hold steady near its par value. This relative stability has enabled Strive to raise fresh capital more effectively than its competitor. Meanwhile, Strategy's STRC has continued to underperform, struggling to match SATA's appeal among income-focused investors.
Visa has announced a plan to combine its VisaNet transaction data with onchain lending to provide working capital for stablecoin card issuers. The payments giant's stablecoin settlement volume has surpassed a $20 billion annualized run rate, representing a 15-fold increase year over year. The initiative aims to allow blockchain-based lenders to use Visa's proprietary transaction data as a basis for extending credit. This move is designed to support the issuers who are driving the rapid growth in Visa's stablecoin settlement activity.
The Ethereum Foundation has made quantum resistance a top priority for the network, targeting a 2029 deadline for implementation. The move is driven by concerns that quantum computers capable of breaking current cryptographic standards could become a reality within that timeframe. Future network upgrades will be evaluated based on how well they contribute to achieving quantum-safe security. The Foundation aims to have protections in place before such a threat can plausibly emerge, treating the deadline as a key benchmark for development progress.
Two Prime CEO Alexander Blume has suggested that Bitcoin's ongoing rally still has room to grow. He pointed to subdued funding rates as a sign that excessive speculation is not yet driving the rebound. Continued call selling in the options market further supports the view that sentiment remains measured. Blume's comments indicate that the unwinding of volatility short positions could fuel additional upward momentum for Bitcoin.
Bitmine, the Ethereum treasury firm backed by Tom Lee, has made another significant purchase of Ether worth $69 million. The acquisition continues the company's aggressive strategy of accumulating ETH as a core treasury asset. Technical analyst Tom DeMark has expressed expectations that Ethereum's price uptrend will resume in the near term. At the current rate of purchasing, Bitmine is projected to reach its total crypto accumulation target within approximately seven more weeks.
Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to identify vulnerabilities in Bitcoin's supporting infrastructure, raising new concerns about network security. Recent incidents have involved Coldcard hardware wallets, the Lightning Network, and the Liquid sidechain, all key components of Bitcoin's ecosystem. The trend suggests AI is fundamentally altering the cost and efficiency of bug discovery in crypto systems. As layer-2 solutions grow more complex, they are becoming prime targets for AI-assisted security probing. The developments signal a shift in how security researchers and potential bad actors alike approach Bitcoin infrastructure.
Your day-ahead look for Sept. 8, 2026
Lending platform Curve has recorded 704 instances of soft liquidations, with each lasting a median duration of 14.5 days. The data highlights how the platform's unique liquidation mechanism allows borrowers to remain solvent even after entering high-risk territory. Unlike traditional hard liquidations that immediately close positions, Curve's model gives borrowers an extended window to recover. This approach demonstrates how certain DeFi lending protocols are evolving to reduce the impact of sudden market downturns on borrowers.
Cronos blockchain executed a controversial rollback of nearly two hours of its transaction history to recover user assets worth approximately $111 million. The decision was made after a security incident that threatened significant user funds on the network. Validators coordinated the rollback as an emergency measure to restore the compromised assets. However, the attackers had already managed to escape with around $9.19 million before Cronos was able to halt the network.
Bitcoin slipped 0.42% from midnight UTC to trade at approximately $78,874, continuing a mild decline in the world's largest cryptocurrency. Despite Bitcoin's dip, the broader crypto market showed mixed signals, with the CoinDesk 20 index edging up 0.2%. The memecoin index also posted a modest gain of 0.41%, suggesting selective investor appetite remained intact. BNB Chain tokens were among the standout performers, bucking the broader Bitcoin-led selloff.
South Korea's budget office has estimated that stablecoin adoption could save the country's merchants up to $3.8 billion per year. The report highlights the potential cost efficiencies that digital stable currencies could bring to commercial transactions. However, the budget office also raised concerns about the broader financial implications of widespread stablecoin use. Officials warned that banks could see their role as credit intermediaries weakened if stablecoins gain significant traction. The report also flagged risks of token peg instability in the event of large-scale simultaneous redemptions.
PwC, Merck, and Hashgraph have jointly developed a supply chain provenance system that combines physical authentication, digital traceability, and enterprise process design. The consortium claims their integrated approach has no direct precedent in existing supply chain solutions. The initiative currently focuses on tracking cocoa but is intended as a pilot for wider industry adoption. The partners believe the technology can be scaled and applied across multiple other supply chain sectors beyond cocoa.
Bitcoin, gold, and technology stocks came under pressure as the Japanese yen staged a notable rally in global markets. Rising government bond yields worldwide added further strain on risk assets across multiple asset classes. Oil prices bucked the downward trend, climbing amid the broader market turbulence. The simultaneous yen strengthening and yield increases created a challenging environment for investors holding speculative or growth-oriented assets.
Spanish crypto exchange Bit2Me has established a specialized unit focused on supporting law enforcement agencies in tracking and recovering cryptocurrency assets. The move formalizes investigative work the company had already been conducting on an informal basis. In 2025, Bit2Me helped process approximately 1.5 million euros worth of seized cryptocurrency on behalf of agencies. Notable clients of these past operations include major international bodies such as Interpol and Europol. The dedicated unit signals a growing role for crypto exchanges in aiding global financial crime investigations.
A memecoin themed around Hunter Biden's laptop controversy sparked significant backlash even before its official launch. Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken removed a promotional post related to the token following negative community reaction. A media organization that was named in the token's planned distribution publicly stated it had no affiliation with the project. Crypto traders and observers turned against the token, raising concerns about its legitimacy and associations. The controversy highlights ongoing scrutiny of politically themed memecoins in the digital asset space.
Bitcoin has formed a so-called golden cross on its daily price chart, a widely watched technical indicator. The pattern occurs when a short-term moving average crosses above a long-term moving average. Traders and analysts typically interpret the signal as a sign of potential sustained upward price momentum. The development has drawn attention from market participants who monitor technical patterns to guide investment decisions.
Liquid Network has recovered 3,400 of the 4,000 bitcoin taken during a security breach that occurred on Sunday. The individuals behind the incident have been described as white-hat hackers, suggesting the act may have been intended to expose vulnerabilities. Approximately $47 million worth of bitcoin remains unrecovered as of the latest update. Negotiations are reportedly ongoing between the parties to secure the return of the remaining funds.
Bitcoin dropped under $79,000 on Tuesday as selling pressure hit the broader cryptocurrency market. Every major token recorded losses on the day, with Zcash among the hardest hit. Despite the daily decline, most cryptocurrencies retained their gains from earlier in the week. Traders are currently pricing in approximately a 60% probability of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike at next week's meeting, weighing on risk assets.
