A US businessman was convicted of a $24 million crypto Ponzi scheme and faces up to 280 years in prison.

US bitcoin treasury firm Strive (ticker: ASST) CEO Matt Cole has once again reaffirmed that the bull market has only just begun. He stated that while ASST’s stock hit a bear market low in February 2026 and external sentiment was extremely pessimistic, Strive’s team’s long-term conviction never wavered. “We clearly recognize the value of our bitcoin holdings,” Cole said. Executives and directors have been buying additional stock with their own capital, and some directors have joined the company full-time. This highly aligned internal conviction and execution capability laid the foundation for the performance delivered in the subsequent six months. Strive will not forget the steadfast shareholders who supported the company during its toughest times. Now, with the stock surging and market sentiment running high, the team’s core focus remains unchanged: the bitcoin bull market has only just begun, and we will continue to go all-in. Yesterday, Cole published a lengthy bullish article on bitcoin, citing the bitcoin/gold ratio chart. He pointed out that bitcoin has broken through against both the U.S. dollar and gold, signaling the end of the bear market and reinforcing that the next cycle will be the strongest in history. Cole believes three converging forces are creating an unprecedented favorable market environment for bitcoin: the long-term weakening of the U.S. dollar, rising demand for scarce assets in the AI era, and the re-strengthening of the BTC/gold ratio. According to market data from BIT (bit.com), Strive’s U.S. stock price nearly doubled in the past week, breaking above $20. Strive announced yesterday that it purchased 1,110 bitcoin last week at an average price of approximately $73,409, a significant increase from its prior weekly purchase volume. As of August 21, Strive holds a total of 21,356 bitcoin, plus 505,000 preferred shares of Strategy STRC (with a fair value of about $48.57 million) and roughly $171.9 million in cash.

The US crypto industry’s leading unified advocacy group, the Blockchain Association, announced today it has submitted a comment letter backing the stablecoin issuer rules jointly proposed by the US Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) under the GENIUS Act. The Blockchain Association’s core position is clear: it supports limiting Customer Identification Program (CIP) obligations to direct transactions between primary market issuers and customers, rather than extending identity verification duties to downstream secondary market activities. This means routine peer-to-peer transactions would not fall under stablecoin issuers’ CIP compliance scope, balancing anti-money laundering (AML) objectives while avoiding undue burdens on decentralized trading environments. The group also called for clearer definitions of key terms including “account”, “customer”, and “digital asset service providers”, recommending excluding one-time redemptions and activities unrelated to stablecoins. It further demanded avoiding redundant compliance requirements and clarifying that stablecoin issuers have flexibility in how they verify customer information. On effective timing, the Blockchain Association suggests aligning the effective date of the proposed CIP rules with separate AML rules to be implemented under the GENIUS Act.

Matt Cole, CEO of U.S. bitcoin treasury firm Strive (ticker: ASST), has once again reaffirmed that the bull market has only just begun. He noted that despite ASST’s stock hitting a bear market low in February 2026 and extreme bearish sentiment among external investors, Strive’s team has never wavered in its long-term conviction. “We understand the value of our bitcoin holdings,” he said. Executives and directors have been buying additional shares with their own capital, and some directors have joined the company full-time. This high level of internal alignment in conviction and execution laid the foundation for the company’s performance over the following six months. The company has not forgotten the loyal shareholders who stood by it during its toughest times. Now, with the stock surging and market sentiment running high, the team’s core focus remains unchanged: the bitcoin bull market is just starting, and we continue to go all-in. Strive announced yesterday that it purchased 1,110 bitcoin last week at an average price of roughly $73,409, a significant increase from its prior weekly buying pace. As of August 21, Strive holds a total of 21,356 bitcoin, plus 505,000 shares of Strategy’s (STRC) preferred stock (with a fair value of approximately $48.57 million) and around $171.9 million in cash.

According to Bitget market data, South Korea’s KOSPI index closed up 45.77 points, or 0.68%, at 6742.73 points. Samsung Electronics ended flat, while SK Hynix rose 0.42%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed up 328.34 points, or 0.50%, at 65856.43 points.

According to GMGN market data, the BSC-based Meme coin "Niu Lai" hit a phase low of $30 million in market cap early this morning. It has rebounded over 43% in nearly 10 hours, pushing its market cap above $43 million. The coin has recorded a 23.2% gain in the past 24 hours, with 24-hour trading volume reaching $13.4 million. BlockBeats reminds users that most Meme coins have no real use cases, are highly volatile, and investors should exercise caution.

JPMorgan strategist Fabio Bassi believes US stocks still have room to rise by the end of the year, but the rally will rely more on sector rotation rather than a synchronized advance across all risk assets. The bank maintains a constructive view on equities, favoring high-quality growth stocks, cloud computing leaders, and semiconductor sectors that have undergone repricing. This assessment comes as US stock moves have grown more selective. Recently, volatility in the Nasdaq and Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has expanded significantly, with some previously strong stocks in the AI sector facing concentrated sell-offs. Investors have begun reassessing AI revenue realization, capital expenditure returns, and long-term interest rate pressures. JPMorgan notes that this volatility does not necessarily signal the end of the bull market; it is more likely an indication that capital is rotating out of crowded trades and into areas with higher earnings visibility and more digestible valuations. The bank also interprets the rise in long-term US Treasury yields as a sign of rising capital demand and improving investment opportunities. Investments in AI infrastructure, power grids, data centers, and cloud computing are absorbing large amounts of capital, and the market will continue to balance between "growth opportunities" and "financing costs".