Headline
▌US Sanctions Iranian Cryptocurrency Trading Platforms and Related Individuals
On June 3, local time, on June 2, the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control announced an update to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list, adding several Iranian cryptocurrency trading platforms and related individuals to the sanctions list. (CCTV News)
▌Sources: SpaceX Plans to Raise at Least $75 Billion Through IPO
On June 3, sources revealed on Tuesday that Elon Musk's rocket and satellite company SpaceX plans to raise at least $75 billion through a record initial public offering (IPO). Sources said that after initial contact with investors, the company has indicated a target valuation of $1.75 trillion (including the greenshoe option, or over-allotment option).
Sources indicate that the greenshoe option gives underwriters the right to issue additional shares if investor demand exceeds expectations. However, sources cautioned that plans, including the size of the fundraising, could change as investor meetings progress. Insiders say the IPO is expected to use a new share issuance structure, meaning all proceeds will go to the company, not existing shareholders. As of press time, according to CoinGecko data: BTC price is $66,458.68, a 24-hour change of -7.0%; ETH price is $1,849.69, a 24-hour change of -7.7%; BNB price is $647.99, a 24-hour change of -6.6%. The price of SOL is $73.59, a 24-hour change of -9.4%; the price of DOGE is $0.09187, a 24-hour change of -8.9%; the price of XRP is $1.20, a 24-hour change of -7.2%; and the price of TRX is $0.3322, a 24-hour change of -3.3%. The price of WLFI is $0.05906, a 24-hour change of +0.1%; the price of HYPE is $69.42, a 24-hour change of -5.7%.
Policy
▌Hong Kong Plans to Fully Incorporate Virtual Asset Trading, Custody, Investment Advisory and Asset Management Businesses into Licensing Regulation
June 2nd news: The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government's Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau stated that following the implementation of the licensing system for virtual asset trading platforms and the regulatory system for stablecoin issuers, Hong Kong's next phase will establish a unified regulatory framework covering virtual asset trading, custody, investment advisory and asset management services, further improving the digital asset ecosystem. According to the disclosed plan, any institution engaged in virtual asset trading, custody, providing investment advice or asset management business in Hong Kong must, in principle, obtain a license or registration from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). The regulatory scope will correspond to Type 1 (Securities Dealing), Type 4 (Investment Advisory) and Type 9 (Asset Management) regulated activities under the Securities and Futures Ordinance, respectively. For virtual asset custody services, the regulatory focus will be on private key management and client asset security risks.
▌US Secretary of State: Iran Deal May Be Reached Today, Tomorrow, or Next Week
On June 2, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that negotiations are underway with Iran. Iran may have agreed to discuss some aspects of its nuclear program that it previously refused to mention in negotiations. An Iran deal may be reached today, tomorrow, or next week.
▌Iranian Media: Information Exchange Between Iran and the US Has Been Halted for Several Days
On June 2, according to Iranian media Fars News, an informed source revealed that although some Western media and officials have attempted to describe the information exchange process between Iran and the US as normal, there is currently no information exchange between the two sides. Information exchange between Iran and the US aimed at reaching a preliminary memorandum of understanding has been interrupted for at least several days.
Blockchain Applications
▌Anthropic is granting access to Mythos to an additional 150 institutions worldwide
June 2nd news: Anthropic is allowing an additional 150 institutions worldwide to use the Mythos artificial intelligence model. This model is designed to discover cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and Anthropic has stated that making it publicly available poses too great a risk. Anthropic plans to announce the increase in users on Tuesday, at which point the total number of users with access will be approximately 200. The company stated that these new institutions are located in 15 countries and involve industries such as power, healthcare, and communications. Although Anthropic did not disclose their specific names, the company stated that it includes some companies and non-profit organizations that produce critical programming code.
Blockchain Applications
▌Anthropic is granting access to Mythos to an additional 150 institutions worldwide.
Previously, sources indicated that the EU's cybersecurity agency would gain access to the software.
▌IBM Pledges Over $10 Billion in Quantum Computing
On June 2nd, IBM announced plans to invest over $10 billion in quantum computing over the next five years. This investment covers research and development, capital expenditure, manufacturing scaling, ecosystem collaboration, and mergers and acquisitions. These areas are collectively designed to accelerate IBM's quantum roadmap, exceeding the delivery of the world's first large-scale fault-tolerant quantum computer by 2029.
Cryptocurrency
▌Ondo Perps to Launch on June 9th
On June 2nd, according to official news, OndoPerps announced its launch on June 9th. OndoPerps is the first perpetual contract platform built specifically for Real-World Assets (RWA).
▌Crypto Derivatives Trading Volume Falls to New Low Since End of 2023
On June 3, according to data from The Block, the total trading volume of futures on major cryptocurrency exchanges in May was approximately $2.9 trillion, a 12-month low, falling back to levels seen at the end of 2023, far below the peak of $6 to 7 trillion last year. Trading activity remains highly concentrated on a few platforms. Meanwhile, the CFTC officially opened the door for the launch of cryptocurrency perpetual contracts in the US market. Perpetual contracts have no expiration date and are pegged to spot prices through funding rates, becoming a mainstream trading tool for global cryptocurrency derivatives. Analysts point out that the compliant perpetual market in the US is expected to attract institutional participation, but whether it can recover trading volume remains to be seen, depending on its competitiveness against offshore exchanges.
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▌Mt. Gox May Transfer $739 Million Worth of Bitcoin Due to Approaching Repayment Deadline
According to Arkham's monitoring, the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox transferred 10,422.65 bitcoins, worth over $739 million, from its cold wallet today. Most of the funds were sent to a new wallet, while 116.30 bitcoins were routed to Mt. Gox's known hot wallets. This transaction does not indicate that Mt. Gox sold any bitcoins or initiated a new round of creditor repayments. Due to incomplete creditor procedures and processing delays, the liquidation trustee extended the repayment deadline to October 31, 2026. Currently, Mt. Gox still has approximately 35,000 bitcoins awaiting distribution, worth approximately $2.4 billion.
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▌Strategy Proposes Increasing STRC Dividend Payment Frequency from Once a Month to Twice
According to the official announcement, Strategy proposes to adjust STRC's dividend payment frequency from once a month to twice a month. If the proposal is approved and adopted, it is expected to shorten the reinvestment lag, enhance liquidity and market efficiency, and improve price stability. The proposal requires a joint vote from both MSTR and STRC shareholders, and it will only pass if both types of shareholders vote in favor. According to the proposal timeline, voting began on April 28 and will end on the meeting day of June 8. If the proposal is approved, the first record date under the new schedule will be June 30, and the first dividend payment date will be July 15. Eligible shareholders must have held shares before April 17.
Michael Saylor: Urges Shareholders to Support Semi-Monthly Dividend Plan in Final Voting Week Michael Saylor posted on the X platform, stating that it is currently the final voting week for supporting the semi-monthly dividend plan, and urging shareholders who have not yet voted to participate immediately. He believes that this upgrade will help improve the utility of Digital Credit for BTC, MSTR, and STRC, and calls on shareholders to spread this information to other holders to gain support. BlackRock Deposits 900 Bitcoins and 17,511 Ethereum to Coinbase On June 2nd, according to OnchainLens monitoring, BlackRock just deposited 900 Bitcoins and 17,511 Ethereum to Coinbase. Tom Lee: Bitmine's daily staking returns reach $1 million. Tom Lee stated that Bitmine's Ethereum treasury offers $1 million in daily staking returns. Robinhood Launches BIO and AXS Trading: On June 2nd, according to its official website, Robinhood launched spot trading for BIO and AXS. Important Economic Developments: Federal Reserve's Hammarck: Maintaining stable interest rates is reasonable at present. If high inflation persists, a more significant adjustment may be necessary.
▌Iranian Media: Strait of Hormuz Passage Permit Applications Now Open
On June 2nd, according to Iranian media reports, the application system for ship passage permits in the Strait of Hormuz has been fully opened, allowing ship owners and captains worldwide to submit applications at any time of day, 24 hours a day. It is reported that ship owners can submit their applications for passage through the electronic system established by the management agency. Upon approval, the ship will receive a passage permit.
▌$80 Billion Funding Plan Shakes the Market, Google A Shares Fall Over 4%, Hitting a More Than One-Month Low
Google A (GOOGL.US) fell over 4%, hitting a low of $359.7, a more than one-month low. In related news, Google's parent company, Alphabet, announced plans to raise up to $80 billion through equity financing to support its large-scale AI infrastructure investment.
This financing round consisted of three parts: a $30 billion parallel underwritten public offering, a $40 billion market offering, and a $10 billion private placement from Berkshire Hathaway. Alphabet stated that AI is bringing "an expansionary moment" for the company, and this financing will help "support significant future growth opportunities." The company reiterated its capital expenditure plan of up to $190 billion this year and expects that figure to increase "significantly" in 2027, while its total operating cash flow reached $174 billion in the past year. Bank of America's Outlook for the Semiconductor Industry: AI Investment Continues to Expand, Storage Cycle Logic May Be Rewritten On June 2, Bank of America believes that AI infrastructure construction is still in its early stages. As AI applications gradually spread from cloud computing vendors to enterprise customers, government agencies, and sovereign AI projects, the global AI infrastructure investment scale is expected to expand from the current approximately $1 trillion to $3-4 trillion by 2030. Against this backdrop, AI data centers, memory, semiconductor equipment, and analog chip industries will all see new growth opportunities. Bank of America believes the storage industry is undergoing structural changes and is expected to break free from the traditional cyclical pattern of "big rises and falls." The report points out that current factors limiting storage capacity expansion include not only capital expenditure but also advanced packaging capabilities, cleanroom construction, power supply, and geopolitical factors. On June 2nd, Musk's SpaceX was negotiating with Wall Street investment banks handling its IPO, hoping to pay extremely low fees. However, even with significantly reduced fees, the banks responsible for the listing are still expected to receive approximately $500 million from this record-breaking IPO. Musk's aerospace and artificial intelligence group plans to IPO this month, aiming to raise $75 billion. According to sources, the company is currently trying to reduce underwriting fees to below 0.75%. Despite this rate being far below usual levels, it will still be one of the most profitable IPOs in the history of the Wall Street banks that arranged this listing. As the lead underwriters for this IPO, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are expected to receive a larger share of the underwriting fees than the other 21 participating brokers. Sources familiar with the matter said the figures only reflect the base underwriting fees paid by SpaceX and do not include any potential additional incentive fees. The sources requested anonymity because the discussion is not public information. Spokespeople for SpaceX, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley declined to comment.
▌US Begins Stockpiling Copper; Large Amounts of Refined Copper May Flow into the US
On June 2nd, according to CCTV Finance, at the beginning of June, New York and London copper futures continued their upward trend. According to Reuters, due to market tensions caused by the US potentially deciding at the end of June whether to impose additional import tariffs on refined copper, US traders began to stockpile in advance. Coupled with renewed market arbitrage activities, this has pushed the global copper market into a high-level consolidation phase.
... International copper prices continued to rise today (June 2nd). Data shows that as of the close of trading on June 1st, the price of the main copper futures contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange had increased by 10% in the past month, while the price of three-month copper futures on the London Metal Exchange had increased by approximately 6.5% during the same period. It is understood that the United States plans to impose tariffs on refined copper imports in stages starting in 2027, with an initial tariff rate of 15%, which will be raised to 30% in 2028. The market anticipates that traders will rush to ship refined copper to the United States before the tariffs take effect, thereby avoiding subsequent tariff costs. Bloomberg estimates that by 2045, global copper demand during the energy transition may triple, and a global supply-demand gap may appear in the copper market as early as this year.
▌The probability of the Fed keeping interest rates unchanged in June is 98.6%
According to CME's "FedWatch" on June 3: The probability of the Fed keeping interest rates unchanged by June is 98.6%, and the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate cut is 1.4%. The probability of the Fed keeping interest rates unchanged by July is 92.4%, the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate hike is 6.3%, and the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate cut is 1.3%.
Golden Encyclopedia
▌Can Bitcoin still be called "digital gold" under geopolitical crises?
Every time there is a geopolitical crisis, gold prices rise while Bitcoin prices plummet. After six tests, the claim of "digital gold" has never been confirmed by data. Countries hoard gold but exclude Bitcoin from their reserves.
For investors, Bitcoin exhibits an asymmetry: it falls with stocks but doesn't rise with them. Three structural asymmetries prevent Bitcoin from achieving safe-haven status: an overabundance of derivatives (market structure), the dominance of leveraged traders (participant composition), and a lack of repeatable behavioral records (behavioral accumulation). Bitcoin is not a safe-haven asset, but it is a "crisis-useful asset," capable of functioning when borders are closed and banks fail. If these three asymmetries narrow, Bitcoin may no longer be a replica of gold, but rather a completely new "next-generation gold." Generational shifts and the widespread adoption of algorithms are key factors that could accelerate this process.