While the market consolidated sideways, several significant events occurred that set the direction for further movement. Let's break down the key moments of the morning of July 15.
Leader Dynamics: BTC and ETH in a Sideways Trend
Bitcoin started the day without any pronounced movement. As of 07:35 MSK, the asset is trading around $64,751, having updated its daily low at $62,434 and high at $65,046. Ethereum is also showing sideways movement, hovering around $1,876. In the top 10 by market cap, the best performer over 24 hours is Hyperliquid (+5.81%), while Ethereum leads over the week with a gain of +6.98%. All coins in the top ten recorded positive dynamics over the day, indicating an overall positive sentiment despite the lack of aggressive growth.
In the top 100, Pump.fun stands out with a daily gain of +13.01%, while DeXe became the weekly leader (+45.28%). The biggest weekly loss was suffered by Pi, losing 23.33%.
Top News: Geopolitics, Corporate Strategies, and AI
Freeze of $131 Million in USDT: A Blow to Iranian Finances
The U.S. government has frozen over $130 million in cryptocurrency on wallets linked to Iran. This involves four addresses on the Tron network containing USDT worth $131 million. Tether, at the request of authorities, blocked these funds. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that the wallets are affiliated with the Central Bank of Iran. This move coincided with another round of escalation in the Middle East conflict, including the renewal of a blockade on Iranian ports and new military strikes. This event underscores that stablecoins, despite their decentralized nature, remain an instrument subject to regulatory pressure.
Bitmine Immersion: Ethereum Staking Generated $45.7 Million
Mining company Bitmine Immersion Technologies reported its quarterly earnings for the period ending May 31. The key takeaway: 98% of revenue ($45.7 million) came from Ethereum staking. This became possible after the launch of an institutional staking platform in March. For comparison, its own Bitcoin mining brought in only $624,000, and consulting $168,000. By July 13, the company had staked about 85% of its ETH holdings — approximately 4.9 million tokens. This is a vivid example of how traditional miners are adapting to the new reality of Proof-of-Stake.
ChatGPT Begins Displaying Prediction Market Quotes
OpenAI has integrated data from the Kalshi platform into ChatGPT search results. Users can now see charts of teams' chances of winning in World Cup matches. This marks the first partnership between OpenAI and a prediction market platform. The data is displayed as graphs directly within ChatGPT responses. This is a landmark step that legitimizes prediction markets in the eyes of a mass audience and could trigger increased interest in such platforms.
My Analysis: The freezing of Iranian USDT is a precedent that will make many think about the risks of centralized stablecoins. At the same time, Bitmine's success with ETH staking confirms that returns from Proof-of-Stake are becoming a serious competitor to traditional mining. The integration of Kalshi into ChatGPT is perhaps the most interesting signal: prediction markets are emerging from their niche and becoming a mainstream tool.