Bitcoin news

On 21 July 2026, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Congress was at the 1-yard line for passing the CLARITY Act, the bill on cryptocurrency market structure, according to Bloomberg. The day before, the White House had said that Donald Trump had accepted an ethics clause barring federal officials from issuing cryptocurrencies and assigning enforcement to the Justice Department. Following these announcements, the price of bitcoin climbed back above 66,000 dollars, its highest level in more than a month.

The CLARITY Act aims to split oversight of the crypto market between two US regulators: the SEC for securities and the CFTC for commodities. Until now, the lack of clear rules on the legal status of digital assets had slowed the participation of large financial institutions, which did not know which regulator applied. Bitcoin is generally treated as a commodity, which would place it under the authority of the CFTC. An ethics clause had stalled the talks, with several lawmakers worried about conflicts of interest linked to the crypto activities of public figures.

A stable legal framework would reduce the regulatory uncertainty that has weighed on the sector in the United States for years. For holders, it would mean clearer rules for exchanges and for financial products backed by bitcoin. Prediction markets put the probability of passage before April 2027 at between 50 and 61 percent. This text does not change taxation for individuals and is not investment advice.

The timetable is tight: lawmakers are seeking to move forward before the August recess, failing which the matter would be pushed past the midterm elections, a deadline seen as less predictable. Points to watch are the Senate vote, the final version of the ethics clause and the exact split of powers between the SEC and the CFTC.

On 16 July 2026, T. Rowe Price launched the Active Crypto ETF (ticker TKNZ) on NYSE Arca, presented as the first actively managed spot fund diversified across several cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin is its largest holding, at about 41 percent of the portfolio, ahead of ether, BNB, XRP and solana. The management fee is 0.75 percent.

Until now, spot crypto ETFs listed in the United States were passive products: they track the price of a single asset, like the spot Bitcoin ETFs approved in January 2024, with no management decisions involved. TKNZ takes a different approach: a team of managers sets the weight of each cryptocurrency and can adjust it over time, as in a traditional equity fund.

For investors, the distinction matters. An active fund promises a reasoned selection, but it charges for that work: 0.75 percent per year, against 0.20 to 0.25 percent for most passive Bitcoin ETFs. Nothing guarantees that the manager's choices will beat simply holding bitcoin. The weight given to BTC, about 41 percent of the portfolio, does confirm its status as the sector's reference asset.

Worth watching in the coming months: how investor flows respond to this format, the likely arrival of competing actively managed products, and the SEC's still recent doctrine on multi-crypto funds, which may continue to evolve.

On 17 July 2026, the House Financial Services Committee held a public hearing in New York, at Federal Hall, titled Building the Future of Finance. Focused on the CLARITY Act, which seeks to define a market framework for digital assets, it aimed to push the Senate to vote on the bill before the summer recess. No decision was made, and written answers from witnesses are due by 21 August.

The CLARITY Act tries to answer the question that has dogged the US industry for years: who regulates what. The bill divides responsibilities between the SEC, which polices securities markets, and the CFTC, which oversees commodities markets, and spells out when a digital asset falls under one or the other. Bitcoin, widely treated as a commodity, would remain under the CFTC.

For exchanges, issuers and investors, the stakes are high: clear rules would reduce the risk of unpredictable enforcement and make it easier for firms to build durable businesses in the United States. Without a law, each asset's status keeps being decided case by case, often in court.

Next steps to watch: the Senate's calendar after the recess, the witnesses' written answers due by 21 August, and whether the two chambers can agree on a common text before the end of the session.

Listed companies now hold more than 1.26 million bitcoins, worth about 79 billion dollars and over 6 percent of the supply capped at 21 million units. They acquired close to 110,000 BTC in the second quarter of 2026, the largest quarterly buying volume ever recorded. Strategy remains the top holder with around 847,000 bitcoins, ahead of Twenty One Capital and Metaplanet.

This treasury strategy was pioneered by Strategy (then MicroStrategy) in August 2020, when the software company converted part of its cash reserves into bitcoin as a hedge against monetary inflation. Dozens of listed companies have since followed, some funding their purchases through share issues or convertible debt, turning BTC accumulation into a business model of its own.

The effect on the market cuts both ways. On one side, these treasuries absorb a growing share of an inherently limited supply, reinforcing the asset's scarcity. On the other, they concentrate large amounts of bitcoin in the hands of leveraged players: in a prolonged bear market, forced sales cannot be ruled out, as Strategy's first disposal in June 2026 reminded everyone.

Worth watching in the third quarter: the pace of new purchases, the possible arrival of new entrants, and how the most indebted treasuries weather downturns in the price.

A committee of Japan's upper house has approved a bill reclassifying bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as financial instruments under the FIEA, following an initial vote in the lower house. The reform, expected to take effect in fiscal 2027, sets the legal framework required for spot Bitcoin ETFs and comes alongside a proposed flat 20 percent tax on gains. The first fund listings are anticipated in late 2027 or in 2028.

Japan is a pioneer of crypto regulation: after the collapse of the Mt. Gox exchange in 2014, it was among the first countries to regulate trading platforms through a dedicated law. Until now, cryptocurrencies fell under the Payment Services Act, and individuals' gains were taxed as miscellaneous income at progressive rates that could exceed 50 percent.

The reclassification changes the picture in two ways. By placing cryptocurrencies among financial instruments, it subjects them to the investor protection rules of traditional markets and legally opens the door to spot ETFs, impossible until now. And the flat 20 percent tax would align their treatment with that of equities, a substantial cut for many Japanese holders.

Still to watch: the final parliamentary vote, the implementing rules due by fiscal 2027, then the first ETF listing applications, expected in late 2027 or 2028, which will show whether major Japanese and international asset managers step in.

In a CNBC interview from the Oval Office on July 2, 2026, the US president argued that bitcoin, which he described as a form of money, should not trigger capital gains tax when used to settle a purchase. This is a stated position rather than a law: US tax rules still apply to disposals of crypto assets.

In the United States, bitcoin is taxed as property, not as a currency. Every BTC payment is therefore a taxable disposal: someone buying a coffee must in theory compute the gain between the acquisition of their satoshis and the moment they spend them. This mechanism, burdensome to document, is regularly cited as the main tax obstacle to using bitcoin as an everyday means of payment.

The idea of a so-called de minimis exemption, which would free small everyday transactions below a certain threshold from tax, has circulated in Congress for years without ever being adopted. A presidential statement changes nothing in law: only an act of Congress, or at the margin new Treasury and IRS guidance, could alter the current regime.

Worth watching: whether a bill taking up this idea is introduced, the threshold that would be chosen for small transactions, and the position of the US Treasury, on which the real impact of this statement will depend.

Sixteen months after the executive order creating a strategic bitcoin reserve, the US administration has still not named the agency that will manage it. According to Bloomberg, the Treasury and Commerce departments are at odds over who should control the fund, which would hold more than 300,000 bitcoins seized by the government, worth over 20 billion dollars. The lack of enabling legislation from Congress and legal questions about the Treasury's authority to hold the assets are prolonging the deadlock.

The strategic reserve was established by executive order in March 2025, with one promise: building a national bitcoin stockpile without new budget spending, using assets seized in judicial cases. That was a notable shift: until then, bitcoins confiscated by US authorities were regularly auctioned off by the US Marshals, often far below their future value.

The current standoff shows the fragility of a policy built on an executive order alone. Without an act of Congress, the reserve has no clear legal status, no designated manager, and no custody or audit rules. For the market, the stakes are real: 300,000 BTC represent about 1.4 percent of the maximum supply, officially withdrawn from circulation for as long as the reserve exists.

Worth watching: the arbitration between Treasury and Commerce, possible legislation giving the reserve a durable legal basis, and the publication of an audited inventory of the assets actually held by the federal government.

On 30 June 2026, the US SEC published a request for comment (Release 33-11426) posing 27 questions about so-called novel ETFs, including funds exposed to crypto assets, leverage and event contracts. The document proposes no new rules at this stage. Comments are due within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register.

The consultation comes after two years of product inflation: since the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, issuers have filed a stream of applications for funds on other cryptocurrencies, with leverage, active management or several assets combined. Yet the SEC's review framework was designed for equity and bond funds: every crypto filing is currently handled case by case, with unpredictable timelines and criteria.

For the industry, a rethink could clarify the rules of the game: explicit approval criteria would give issuers visibility and reduce the perceived arbitrariness of decisions. A consultation is only a preparatory step, however: it creates no rights and can lead to a stricter framework just as well as a more flexible one.

Next steps to watch: the content of the responses from major asset managers and trading platforms during the 60-day window, then a possible formal rule proposal from the SEC, which would itself have to go through another consultation before taking effect.

US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded 4.5 billion dollars in net outflows in June 2026, their worst month since launching in January 2024 and 29 percent above the previous record set in February 2025. BlackRock's IBIT fund accounted for 3.55 billion of those redemptions. Total assets in these products fell to about 71 billion, down from roughly 83 billion at the start of the month.

Since launch, these funds have become the main bridge between traditional finance and bitcoin: their daily flows serve as a barometer of demand from institutional investors and from individuals buying through their broker. June's retreat tracked the fall in the price, which slipped below 60,000 dollars early in the month, roughly half its October 2025 record.

Mechanically, ETF redemptions weigh on the market: when investors sell their shares, the funds dispose of the corresponding bitcoins. Perspective matters, though: with about 71 billion dollars under management, these products remain very large, and monthly outflows, even record ones, have proved reversible in previous cycles.

Worth watching in July: a possible stabilisation of flows, the behaviour of IBIT, whose weight dominates the category, and the response of issuers, from fee cuts to new product launches designed to keep investors on board.

On 24 June 2026, Binance withdrew its MiCA licence application filed in Greece and told European customers it will stop providing digital asset services from 1 July 2026. Without authorisation in an EU member state before the 30 June deadline, the exchange loses access to the 27-country single market and says it plans to file a new application in France.

The EU's MiCA regulation, adopted in 2023 and applicable to crypto-asset service providers since late 2024, rests on a simple principle: a licence obtained in one member state serves as a passport for the whole Union. National transition periods ended on 30 June 2026, turning that date into a cliff edge for platforms still without authorisation, including the world's largest crypto exchange.

For Binance's European users, the consequence is concrete: no more buying, selling or trading on the platform, even though access to funds for withdrawal remains the minimum obligation. The episode illustrates a recurring lesson: bitcoins kept on an exchange depend on that exchange's regulatory situation, unlike those held in self-custody, in a wallet whose keys you control.

Worth following: the fate of the new licence application announced in France, how long customers will be able to retrieve their assets, and the redistribution of the European market toward platforms already holding a MiCA licence.

On 22 June 2026, the US Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act by 85 votes to 5. The bill prohibits the Federal Reserve from issuing or creating a central bank digital currency (CBDC) through the end of 2030. Private dollar-backed stablecoins are left outside the scope of the ban.

Central bank digital currencies have been debated for years in the United States: supporters see them as a tool to modernise payments, opponents as a risk of transaction surveillance and direct competition with commercial banks. The provision just adopted, inserted into a housing bill, settles that debate for several years by closing the door on any public digital dollar.

The choice charts a distinctive American path: leaving digital monetary innovation to the private sector, through dollar stablecoins now framed by federal law, rather than to the central bank. It contrasts with the euro area, where the ECB is pressing ahead with its digital euro project. For bitcoin, often presented as the decentralised alternative to state digital currencies, a landscape without a US CBDC reinforces its positioning.

Worth watching: the completion of the bill's legislative journey, how the Federal Reserve adjusts its research work, and the growth of regulated stablecoins occupying the space left open.

On June 17, 2026, the U.S. Federal Reserve kept its benchmark rate in the 3.50% to 3.75% range, at the first meeting chaired by Kevin Warsh. The dot plot shows that nearly all policymakers expect rates to stay flat or rise by year-end. Bitcoin's reaction was muted, trading around 63,000 dollars.

Why does the bitcoin market watch the Fed so closely? Because the level of interest rates sets the cost of money and the appetite for so-called risk assets. High rates make risk-free investments more attractive and drain available liquidity; falling rates do the opposite. Historically, bitcoin's major bull phases have often coincided with periods of accommodative monetary policy.

The message from this meeting therefore leans against the wind: without the prospect of quick rate cuts, non-yielding assets like bitcoin lose a relative argument in the short term. The muted price reaction suggests, however, that this scenario was already broadly priced in by a market that is also driven by its own dynamics, from ETF flows to the supply cycle.

Worth watching: US inflation figures over the coming months, the new Fed chair's tone at the next meetings, and the evolution of the dot plot, which will signal the expected direction of rates for 2027.