Viewpoint: Revolut ramps up marketing spending in the crypto space, and is accused of becoming a major sponsor for numerous crypto KOLs on YouTube.

Ethereum’s largest liquid staking protocol Lido has announced its biggest protocol upgrade since the 2023 V2 update, integrating over 8 million staked ETH (valued at roughly $165 billion) and migrating to the new validator architecture following Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade. The migration is expected to cut Ethereum network validators by around one-third, reducing consensus layer load. Lido said that post-upgrade, the number of attestation messages per epoch across the entire Ethereum network is projected to drop by approximately 29%, boosting network operational efficiency. The upgrade shifts professional node operators to the Curated Module v2 (CMv2) architecture. Unlike the previous model that relied primarily on operators’ reputation and historical performance, CMv2 for the first time mandates Lido’s curated node operators to lock ETH as collateral to provide economic guarantees for node operation performance. Lido added that all 34 curated node operators currently plan to complete the migration, with no operators exiting over the new collateral requirement. Isidoros Passadis, head of Lido Staking, noted the upgrade will streamline the validator set supporting Lido’s core staking business while enhancing security via capital constraints. Lido projects the migration will lower the protocol’s annual staking yield by roughly 0.28%. Validators will continue earning rewards until completing migration exit, with yield losses only possible during the short window before their balances are transferred to new validators.

Crypto payment gateway provider NOWPayments has partnered with blockchain security firm BlockSec to jointly release the *Crypto Payment System Security and Technical Compliance Checklist*, aimed at helping enterprises enhance the security of their crypto payment systems. The checklist covers 9 core security and compliance categories, totaling 25 control measures, spanning areas including private key and wallet security, smart contract security, transaction verification and signing, identity and account management, domain security, on-chain monitoring and incident response, AML/CFT technical compliance, stablecoin freeze risk management, and continuous improvement. NOWPayments noted that key risks facing crypto payment systems include private key leaks, suspicious transactions, account takeovers, and stablecoin freezes. Given the irreversibility of on-chain transfers, enterprises need to establish more robust wallet management, transaction approval, and compliance monitoring mechanisms. Andy Zhou, co-founder of BlockSec, stated that many enterprises mistakenly treat crypto payments as traditional online payments. Since on-chain transactions cannot be reversed, weak key management, unvetted transaction authorizations, and insufficient compliance checks can all lead to permanent financial losses. The checklist is designed for enterprises to use during crypto payment deployment, vendor evaluation, and routine security reviews, helping security, operations, compliance, and product teams jointly identify risks and clarify accountability. NOWPayments currently supports over 350 cryptocurrencies and more than 30 stablecoins, offering crypto payment, automatic conversion, and settlement services for merchants, online platforms, and enterprises. BlockSec provides blockchain security services including smart contract audits, real-time security monitoring, attack defense, and on-chain investigations.

Liquid Capital (formerly LD Capital) founder Yilihua stated, "Bitcoin’s resistance level remains around $67,500; only a strong breakout will kick off a sustained rally. I maintain my earlier view that investors should gradually accumulate positions in July and August to wait for the next bull market cycle. It is not meaningful to analyze market trends during range-bound periods or calculate entry prices in bottom ranges. For AI U.S. stocks, our research report covers computing power firm AGPU, which announced a new $1.5 billion contract overnight, bringing its total contracts to over $3 billion. The firm is on track to hit $10 billion in total contracts this year. Notably, AGPU’s financing method is not at-the-money (ATM) equity, which safeguards investors’ interests. These contracts will soon be reflected in its upcoming financial reports."

According to market data from BIT (bit.com), U.S. software stocks rose in early U.S. trading: Salesforce (CRM.N) gained over 3%, Oracle (ORCL.N) climbed around 5%, and ServiceNow (NOW.N) advanced nearly 4%.

According to market data from BIT (bit.com), SpaceX (ticker: SPCX.O) shares have hit their lowest level since listing, currently down approximately 4% at $110.3.

According to a report by The Information, citing sources familiar with the matter, a company backed by Chinese state-owned capital has started mass-producing domestically developed DUV (deep ultraviolet) lithography equipment, a key milestone in China’s semiconductor industry’s push for local substitution. The company plans to produce around 5 DUV lithography systems in 2026, scaling up to approximately 20 units in 2027. While there remains a gap in production capacity compared to Dutch lithography giant ASML, which delivered 131 immersion DUV lithography systems last year, the mass production breakthrough of domestic DUV equipment marks a further step toward self-reliance and controllability in China’s chip manufacturing supply chain. Sources said the domestically developed DUV lithography systems are scheduled to be delivered to major Chinese chipmakers, including SMIC, Hua Hong Semiconductor, and DRAM chip maker Changxin Memory Technologies. As a representative of China’s DRAM industry, Changxin Memory is expected to be a key adopter of domestic advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment. If domestic DUV equipment can operate stably in production lines of firms like Changxin Memory, it will further reduce China’s memory chip industry’s reliance on overseas key equipment.