

Twenty-one of the world's largest banks and asset managers, including Goldman Sachs, Citi and Bank of America, agreed Sept. 1 to form a company that will issue a dollar-denominated stablecoin on public blockchains, targeting a first-half 2027 launch. "US banks could outperform us early in the American market," Paolo Ardoino, chief executive of Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, said after the US GENIUS Act took effect last year. The unnamed venture, due to be established in the second half of 2026 subject to closing conditions, spans 21 institutions across North America, Europe, East Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Members include Deutsche Bank, UBS, Wells Fargo, Fidelity Investments, Santander, BBVA, MUFG and Standard Bank. The group grew from the ten banks that floated the idea in October 2025 and plans to extend issuance to other G7 currencies, naming a euro token as its next priority. It enters a market Tether still dominates with more than $180 billion in dollar-pegged tokens outstanding, while Société Générale's dollar stablecoin has drawn only about $12.5 million in circulation. The decision to issue on public blockchains rather than a private bank network is what most directly threatens Circle and Tether, because it removes the distribution edge the incumbents built by wiring USDC and USDT into exchanges, wallets and DeFi protocols. A stablecoin — a token pegged one-to-one to a fiat currency and backed by reserves — minted by banks with existing customer relationships and payment infrastructure can reach wholesale and retail users through the same rails the issuers already control, without first winning over crypto-native venues. The consortium said the token will comply with the US GENIUS Act and Europe's MiCA where applicable. The law, signed July 18, 2025, requires one-to-one backing by eligible liquid reserves, redemption protections and regular disclosure, and bars issuers from paying interest solely for holding the coin. Several implementing rules remain unfinished after agencies missed a July 18, 2026 deadline, with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency targeting November 2026 for final rules — a timeline that lands just before the consortium's launch window. A future euro-denominated token would fall under MiCA's electronic money token category, subjecting it to authorization, reserve and redemption requirements in the bloc. A separate European push is already underway. Qivalis, a bank consortium building a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin for the second half of 2026, has grown to 37 members, with some banks, including BBVA, in both efforts. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has warned that privately issued stablecoins pose risks to monetary policy and financial stability. The venture has not disclosed which public blockchains it will support, where reserves will be held, or whether customers can hold and transfer the token directly or must do so through participating institutions. Those details, along with the company's name and token branding, will determine how the consortium's distribution reach translates into circulation once the dollar coin launches in the first half of 2027. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Bitcoin's Cycle Momentum indicator turned positive for the first time in eight months, a CryptoQuant on-chain signal that historically has marked the end of prolonged bear markets. "To confirm the reversal, the indicator needs to continue moving higher and reach the 20-30 level in the coming weeks," CryptoQuant analysts wrote in a Sept. 2 quicktake, cautioning that the current market structure remains mixed. The flip follows Bitcoin's surge from $62,000 to $81,000 in August, which pulled the market out of a months-long slump. Wallets holding at least 100 BTC added roughly 60,000 coins during the month, while investors holding less than 100 BTC sold a combined 47,000, according to CryptoQuant data. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded their strongest weekly inflows in 10 months, and more than $470 million in USDC flowed into major exchanges. The signal challenges the view that institutional inflows had rendered Bitcoin's four-year cycle obsolete. Skeptics who argued that ETF-era capital had flattened the halving-driven rhythm have been shown wrong on this reading, and cycle-following traders are returning to the market. ## STH Profit-Taking Pressures the Rally Short-term holders complicate the picture. Analyst Darkfost flagged that this group realized average profits of up to 15 percent in August — above the roughly 11 percent seen during the all-time high — the highest level since October 2025. That profit-taking adds sell-side pressure that must be absorbed by fresh demand. Apparent demand, meanwhile, has deteriorated. The metric moved back into negative territory over recent days, Darkfost said, warning that without a rebound Bitcoin could enter a new leg down. Large holders, by contrast, are leaning into the recovery. Rather than selling, some have used their Bitcoin as collateral for loans to ride out the downturn, with the volume of such borrowing among big investors rising 18 percent on specialized platforms, per CryptoQuant. ## Support and the Confirmation Window Bitcoin traded near $77,341 at the time of writing, down 1.9 percent over 24 hours, after closing August at $78,581 on Binance. The key support zone sits around $69,000, the average price at which short-term investors bought their coins. If that level holds, a return to the broader bullish trend would be a matter of time, analysts said. The confirmation window is the coming weeks. If the Cycle Momentum indicator reaches 20-30 and apparent demand recovers, the bear-market reversal would be validated; if demand keeps sliding, the positive flip risks proving a false dawn. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Over 90,000 leveraged crypto positions were liquidated totaling $369.67 million on Sept. 2, CoinGlass data shows, as oil and Treasury yield surges fueled Fed rate hike expectations. Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh signaled last week the central bank is uncomfortable with the current pace of inflation, remarks traders read as pointing to a rate hike this month. Brent crude climbed more than 5 percent to about $95 a barrel after fresh U.S. strikes on Iranian targets, while the 10-year Treasury yield rose to roughly 4.8 percent, its highest level since January 2025. XRP, Ethereum, and Solana came under the heaviest selling pressure. Ethereum dropped under $2,400, while Bitcoin briefly fell below $77,000 before recovering toward $78,000. Watcher.Guru reported roughly $100 million was liquidated within 60 minutes during the sharpest leg of the decline. The S&P 500 fell 0.71 percent and the Nasdaq dropped about 1 percent as the risk-off move extended across asset classes. The cascade shows how macro repricing now dominates crypto price action. Higher yields raise the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as Bitcoin, while a stronger inflation backdrop reduces expectations for easier monetary policy. The same forces that pressured the Nasdaq and other growth assets Tuesday are now flowing directly into crypto derivatives markets, where leveraged longs are the first to be flushed out when liquidity tightens. Spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted roughly $217 million on Aug. 31, reversing the prior session's outflow. BlackRock's IBIT accounted for $205.9 million of the total, following a nine-session buying streak that brought about $3 billion into Bitcoin funds during August. That institutional demand helped BTC gain roughly 24 percent last month, briefly pushing it above $81,000 before momentum cooled near $78,500. The divergence between ETF inflows and spot price weakness highlights a structural tension. While long-dated institutional buyers continue accumulating through funds, the derivatives market is repricing rapidly as macro conditions deteriorate. Higher energy costs feed directly into inflation expectations, and if the Fed responds with a hike, the opportunity cost of holding crypto rises further, potentially extending the deleveraging cycle. Traders now watch whether the Fed follows through on a rate increase at its September meeting. If Brent stays near $95 and Treasury yields remain elevated, ETF demand may not be enough to absorb further macro shocks, leaving leveraged positions across XRP, Ethereum, and Solana vulnerable to additional forced selling. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.