Crypto market on August 11: AI giant reserves capacity from miners, BlackRock opens ETF for "whales," and bitcoin freezes near $64,000
While most market participants were resting, the fundamental landscape of the crypto industry underwent notable changes. Three key events from last night — a mega-deal in AI infrastructure, an unexpected macroeconomic scenario from Arthur Hayes, and an important institutional update from BlackRock — set a new direction for digital assets in the medium term.
Market in numbers: sideways movement and targeted spikes
Bitcoin (BTC) was trading around $63,980 by 08:40 Moscow time, showing classic overnight sideways movement. On the 15-minute chart, prices briefly dipped to $63,800, then bounced to $64,100, but failed to hold above the psychological level of $64,000. Ether (ETH) held near $1,874, consolidating in a narrow range of $1,868–$1,880 after a recent decline from $1,928.
Altcoins in the top 10 showed minimal volatility, but growth leaders were found here too: Hyperliquid (HYPE) gained 2.12%, Solana (SOL) — 1.04%, while BNB corrected by 0.52%. Among the top 100 assets, Curve DAO Token (CRV) stood out with an impressive gain of 10.8%, followed by Internet Computer (ICP) and Lighter (LIT) with increases of 7.84% and 6.62%, respectively.
The day's laggard was the token Audiera (BEAT), which collapsed by 51.2%. Canton (CC) and Cardano (ADA) also came under pressure, losing 6.25% and 4.94%.
ETF flows and liquidations: institutions cautious
Analysis of spot ETF flows shows a mixed picture. Bitcoin funds recorded outflows of $144.67 million, while Ethereum products lost $14.59 million. At the same time, investors continue to build positions in alternative instruments: Solana funds attracted $8.83 million, and HYPE — $2.74 million. This points to diversification of institutional strategies and a search for new entry points.
Over the past 24 hours, exchanges liquidated positions of 68,722 traders totaling $201.08 million. The largest liquidation order came on Hyperliquid — $10.55 million was lost on a BRENTOIL oil contract, highlighting the growing role of crypto platforms in trading traditional assets.
AI and miners: the $9.1 billion deal of the century
The key event of the night was an agreement between AI developer Anthropic and Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms worth $9.1 billion over 20 years. Under the deal, Anthropic will receive 191 MW of computing capacity at Riot's site in Rockdale, Texas. Full deployment of capacity is scheduled for June 2028, and two five-year renewal options could increase the total contract value to $16.1 billion.
This deal is a vivid confirmation that AI companies, in the race for computing resources, are ready to integrate with crypto infrastructure, turning mining data centers into universal hubs for high-performance computing.
Hayes' macro scenario and BlackRock's move
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes presented an unconventional scenario for yen strengthening that could prove extremely favorable for the crypto market. According to his logic, Japan could pledge U.S. Treasury bonds in exchange for dollars, then sell them to buy yen. If the $60 billion counterparty limit is raised, the Fed's balance sheet would expand, and the resulting dollar liquidity would become a bullish factor for Bitcoin, gold, and Ethereum. Given that the Japanese government and the GPIF fund hold about $1.37 trillion in such bonds, the potential for liquidity issuance is significant.
Meanwhile, BlackRock lowered the minimum threshold for exchanges in its Bitcoin ETF. Now investors with assets from $1 million (instead of the previous $25 million) can conduct in-kind transactions through authorized participants and receive shares of the IBIT fund. Manager Robert Mitchnick also announced the BITA fund, targeting returns of 15–19% with limited volatility — a product clearly designed for conservative institutions seeking an alternative to traditional fixed income.
My view: Lowering the entry threshold for IBIT to $1 million is not just a technical change, but a signal of BlackRock's readiness to attract mid-tier institutional capital into Bitcoin. Combined with Hayes' potential macro scenario, which could inject hundreds of billions of dollars in liquidity into the market, the current BTC consolidation looks like a precursor to a larger move. However, until Bitcoin holds above $64,500, it is premature to talk about a trend reversal.