The past week was eventful for the cryptocurrency market: Bitcoin managed to hold above the $64,000 mark despite local dips, while regulatory and technological news set the tone for further movement.
Bitcoin: From Correction to Consolidation
The week began with the first cryptocurrency falling to $61,000 amid renewed geopolitical tensions and macroeconomic uncertainty. However, after the release of U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, where the core rate came in at 2.6% year-over-year against a forecast of 2.8%, the market sharply recovered. Inflation slowed more than expected, which, combined with a positive speech by Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh before Congress, pushed BTC to a local high of $65,500 by the evening of July 15.
Then came a phase of consolidation. On Friday, July 17, digital assets fell along with traditional markets due to a crisis in the semiconductor industry, but by the weekend, Bitcoin had recouped its losses. At the time of analysis, the price stands at $64,500, representing a gain of approximately 1% over the week.
Assets in the top 10 by market cap showed mixed dynamics: Ethereum rose 4% to $1,850, while HYPE lost about 8%. The total market capitalization is $2.27 trillion, with Bitcoin dominance at 57% and Ethereum at 9.9%. The Fear and Greed Index rose to 28 points but remains in the "fear" zone.
Inflows into ETFs and Regulatory Battles
The easing of inflation expectations in the U.S. brought investors back to spot Bitcoin ETFs: from July 13 to 17, net inflows totaled $75.5 million — the second consecutive "green" week. Ethereum funds also attracted $105.5 million.
Meanwhile, debates over the CLARITY Act heated up in Congress. Three Democratic senators — Chris Murphy, Jeff Merkley, and Chris Van Hollen — opposed the current version of the bill, insisting on the inclusion of anti-corruption provisions. They demand a ban on the president, vice president, and other high-ranking officials from owning crypto businesses or promoting digital assets. Consideration of the proposal is expected starting July 20, with 60 votes needed to overcome the procedural barrier.
BIP-110: An Initiative Without Support
No major mining pool supported BIP-110 over a two-week period. The adoption rate was about 1%, with 55% required. The initiative limits non-payment data in Bitcoin transactions but faced criticism from Michael Saylor and Adam Back. Meanwhile, Runestone founder under the pseudonym Leonidas introduced an alternative client, DOG Mode, which does not require a majority vote and raises the transaction limit to 3.9 million WU, simplifying the sending of Ordinals and Runes.
Kimi K3: A New Era of AI and a Blow to Chipmakers
China's Moonshot AI released the largest open-source model, Kimi K3, with 2.8 trillion parameters, native vision, and a context of 1 million tokens. The model is built on the Stable LatentMoE architecture, where 16 out of 896 experts work simultaneously, resulting in a 2.5-fold efficiency increase compared to K2. Developers stated that Kimi K3 is second only to proprietary Claude Fable 5 and GPT 5.6 Sol.
The launch triggered a massive sell-off in chipmaker stocks: on July 17, quotes fell worldwide. Taiwan's index lost over 6%, Japan's 4%, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.5%. Shares of Chinese developer Z.ai plunged nearly 30% in Hong Kong, while Nvidia temporarily ceded the title of the world's most valuable company to Apple. Investors compare the situation to the "DeepSeek effect" from January 2025.
Expert Commentary: The release of Kimi K3 is not just a technological breakthrough but a signal of a paradigm shift in the AI market. Open-source models with such a scale of parameters challenge the monopoly of proprietary solutions, and the stock market's reaction only confirms that investors are beginning to reassess the value of semiconductor giants previously considered untouchable. For the crypto industry, this means increased volatility in the AI token sector and a potential capital shift toward decentralized computing networks.