While most market participants were resting, several landmark events occurred in the industry that could set the direction for the coming weeks. From Tether's experimental developments to unexpected conclusions about the nature of the current bear cycle, I break down the key points that cannot be ignored.
Market in numbers: cautious optimism amid ETF outflows
Bitcoin (BTC) held near the $78,847 mark by 09:00 Moscow time, showing modest growth of 0.35% over the day. The trading range was quite narrow — $77,700–$79,300, indicating consolidation before a possible breakout. Ether (ETH) rose slightly more — by 0.78%, to $2,493, moving within the corridor of $2,444–$2,512.
Mixed dynamics were observed among the top 25 by market capitalization. The growth leaders were Zcash (ZEC) with an impressive +7.76%, XRP (+2.89%), and Hyperliquid (HYPE) (+2.11%). Solana (SOL) also posted a gain of 1.12%. The laggards included Canton (CC) with a drop of 4.75%, as well as Hedera (HBAR) and Monero (XMR), which lost 2.59% each.
Among the hundred largest assets, the true hero of the day was Venice Token (VVV), which surged by 48.14%. Falcon Finance (FF) and Pons (PONS) also delighted investors, adding 22.60% and 15.12%, respectively.
However, institutional demand still leaves much to be desired. Spot crypto ETFs recorded outflows across most assets. Bitcoin funds lost $46.65 million, Ethereum products — $24.29 million, and Hyperliquid and Solana — $12.96 million and $667,720, respectively. Inflows were recorded only for XRP ($1.55 million) and HBAR ($431,180).
Fear and Greed Index and liquidations
Market sentiment remains in the "greed" zone: the Fear and Greed Index fell to 66 points from 71 points the previous day. For comparison, a month ago the indicator stood at 31, corresponding to extreme fear. Over the past 24 hours, positions worth $242.36 million were liquidated, with the main burden falling on longs — $143.74 million versus $98.62 million for shorts. The largest liquidation order was executed on Binance in the BTCUSDT pair and amounted to $2.96 million.
Tether builds a censorship-resistant internet
The main news of the night came from Paolo Ardoino, head of Tether. His team is actively working on a peer-to-peer search engine whose architecture is designed for thousands of nodes. The system independently distributes data across fault-tolerant structures, which should ensure availability and resistance to censorship. In the test environment, developers have already placed a full archive of "Wikipedia" across 100 distributed nodes with full search capability. The speed of operation, according to Ardoino, is impressive.
Bear market: not all that scary?
An analyst under the pseudonym Darkfost conducted an interesting study that breaks stereotypes about the current bear cycle. If we take the bottom of July 1, 2026 as the starting point, the version about the mild nature of the current decline finds more and more confirmation. From 2022 to the last peak, Bitcoin's market capitalization grew by 742%, more than doubling the highs of 2021. At the same time, in the previous bear period, investors lost $211 billion, whereas current losses amount to only $191 billion. Darkfost attributes this difference to a change in the composition of market participants and their growing confidence in the long-term future of the leading cryptocurrency.
Iran: cryptocurrency becomes the norm for exports
The situation in Iran deserves special attention, where cryptocurrency settlements for exports have become common practice. Under pressure from US sanctions and financial blockade, the country's central bank has quietly relaxed currency controls, encouraging exporters to repatriate foreign earnings by any means, including digital assets. Companies are increasingly conducting cross-border payments in USDT, BTC, and other coins through Iranian crypto exchanges. One executive of a state-owned company called such practice completely normal. Estimates suggest that the volume of cryptocurrency transactions in Iran in 2025 will approach $10 billion.
My comment: Tether's development of a decentralized search engine is not just an experiment, but a strategic step toward creating an independent internet infrastructure. If the project is successfully scaled, it could become a serious competitor to traditional search giants. As for the bear market, Darkfost's data confirms my observations: the current correction is more structural in nature rather than cyclical, which makes it less painful for long-term holders. However, one should not relax — volatility can return at any moment.