CryptoQuant reports Bitcoin entering an early bull phase as USD1 launches on Canton and U.S. sanctions target Iran’s crypto sector; today’s BTC pulls back near $79K in Greed. The crypto market has broadly pulled back after a sharp rebound. Bitcoin fell below $79K and is now trading mainly between $78.5K and $79.5K, while Ethereum slipped below $2,500 and moved back toward $2,466. BTC briefly climbed above $81K earlier this week, while ETH also regained $2,500. As short-term gains expanded, major crypto assets began consolidating near recent highs. Most crypto sectors moved lower during the pullback. Layer2 remained relatively resilient with a 1.13% gain over the past 24 hours, while Layer1, Meme, and PayFi recorded more notable declines. This suggests that capital has yet to rotate broadly into other crypto sectors. Market sentiment also cooled. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index currently stands at 65 in the Greed zone. This is down from 74 yesterday but remains above 46 last week and 30 last month.

Meanwhile, spot ETF flows remain positive. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded USD 314 million in net inflows yesterday, while spot Ethereum ETFs attracted USD 180 million. Both have now posted net inflows for seven consecutive trading days. Cumulative net inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs have reached USD 54.358 billion, with total net assets of USD 99.045 billion. Spot Ethereum ETFs have accumulated USD 12.446 billion in net inflows and hold USD 14.881 billion in total net assets. Overall, crypto prices have retreated from recent highs while spot ETF flows have yet to turn negative. This shows that the recent price correction and institutional fund flows are not moving fully in the same direction.

Leveraged positions in the derivatives market have continued to adjust amid the recent volatility. Total crypto liquidations reached USD 621 million over the past 24 hours. Long liquidations accounted for USD 321 million, while short liquidations totaled USD 300 million. The pullback following the rapid rally therefore affected leveraged positions on both sides of the market. Short-term holders have also increased profit-taking. Exchange inflows and unrealized profit levels have risen at the same time. These developments suggest that the market is absorbing part of the profits accumulated during the recent rebound. Taken together, spot, ETF, and derivatives data show a market structure characterized by continued capital inflows, rapid leverage adjustments, and increased short-term profit-taking.

Source: Alternative

Key News Highlights:

CryptoQuant Says Bitcoin Has Entered the Early Stage of a New Bull Market, With $83K as a Key Confirmation Level

On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant said Bitcoin’s recent rally of about 24% has pushed several market and on-chain indicators into positive territory. Its research model suggests that the market may be entering the early stage of a new cycle. CryptoQuant’s Bull Score Index rose from 30 to 80 within one week. This marked its highest level since October 2025. Eight of the index’s 10 underlying indicators are now showing positive signals. The research noted that the shift has not been driven by price gains alone. Spot demand has also strengthened, while spot and futures demand have increased together for the first time since early October 2025. BTC moved above $80K during the rally and reached around $81K this week before retreating toward $79K. CryptoQuant said Bitcoin’s 365-day moving average is currently near $83K. A weekly close above this area is one of the key conditions in its model for confirming a broader market cycle shift. At the same time, several short-term indicators point to increased profit-taking. Traders’ unrealized profit margin has risen to 20.5%, its highest level since June 2025. The report showed that short-term holder whales realized about USD 1.2 billion in profits between August 20 and August 22. Around USD 614 million was realized on August 20 alone. Bitcoin inflows to trading platforms also climbed to roughly 53,000 BTC, the highest level since June. This reflects increased on-chain asset transfers during the recent price rally.

World Liberty Financial Launches USD1 Natively on Canton Network

World Liberty Financial has launched its USD1 stablecoin natively on Canton Network. The integration allows institutions to use USD1 to settle transactions involving tokenized real-world assets on the network. USD1 can serve as the cash leg of transactions involving derivatives collateral, institutional lending, asset issuance, and redemptions. Native issuance also allows USD1 and tokenized assets on Canton Network to settle within the same transaction flow rather than relying on a cross-chain structure. Canton Network provides privacy and permissioning controls designed to support the data and access requirements of institutional financial activity. Industry data shows that USD1 currently has a market capitalization of about USD 4.05 billion, placing it among the largest stablecoins globally. USD1 is issued by BitGo Bank & Trust, which manages its reserves and handles minting and redemptions. World Liberty Financial said the reserves backing USD1 include short-term U.S. Treasury, government money market funds, and U.S. dollar deposits. Canton Network focuses on institutional finance and tokenized asset infrastructure. The network says it processes and issues more than USD 9 trillion in tokenized assets each month, while more than USD 350 billion in on-chain U.S. Treasury moves across the network daily.

Solana Transactions Hit a Record High in July as On-Chain RWA Value Nears USD 4 Billion

Solana processed around 4.2 billion on-chain transactions in July, setting a new monthly record for the network and reflecting a significant increase in activity. On-chain data showed that transaction volume rose 13.5% from the previous month. It was also about 2 billion transactions higher than in December 2025. This represents cumulative growth of roughly 91% in monthly transactions since last December. The value of tokenized real-world assets within the Solana ecosystem has also continued to expand and is now approaching USD 4 billion. Data shows that the value of RWAs on Solana increased by about 11.8% over the past month. This was broadly in line with the growth of the wider tokenized asset market. The total value of tokenized real-world assets tracked across major blockchain networks has now surpassed USD 38 billion. This keeps RWA activity among the notable areas of recent on-chain development. SOL also rebounded sharply during the broader crypto market recovery. The token gained around 40% at one point over eight days and briefly moved back above $100 for the first time since February. SOL has since retreated to around $97. Its price performance, growing network activity, and expanding RWA market have all remained in focus.

U.S. Expands Iran Sanctions to Include the Digital Asset Sector

The U.S. Treasury has expanded its sanctions framework against Iran and formally brought the digital asset sector within the scope of sectoral sanctions. The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced measures covering digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping. The action also sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels. Under the new sectoral determination, the U.S. government may impose sanctions on foreign individuals and companies that operate in Iran’s digital asset sector or provide services supporting it. The Treasury said Iran has increasingly used digital assets for cross-border financial activity and linked some transactions to efforts to evade existing financial sanctions. The action was specifically named for UAE-based Ukrainian shipbroker Ivan Obukhov. U.S. authorities alleged that he processed more than USD 100 million in crypto payments since 2023. According to the Treasury, the payments were connected to oil sales conducted on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force. OFAC therefore sanctioned Obukhov and his UAE-based company, Foscom FZE. The measures broaden U.S. enforcement against Iran-related crypto activity beyond specific wallets, individuals, and companies. The framework can now extend to the wider digital asset sector and overseas service providers supporting it.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this section is for informational purposes only and doesn't represent any investment advice or FameEX's official view.