Plus: UK cop caught stealing seized Bitcoin

GM. We crushed the news into a piña colada - hold the umbrella and sip responsibly.

💳 Crypto payments.

👀 No-KYC CEX.

🍋 News drops: US crypto bills move forward, UK officer jailed for stealing seized Bitcoin + more

🍍 Market flavor today

Crypto Market Cap: $3.84T 1.58% (24H)
Name		Price	24H	7D
	Bitcoin BTC	$118,623.00	-0.26%	5.49%
	Ethereum ETH	$3,423.22	5.45%	21.83%
	XRP XRP	$3.23	8.21%	31.02%
	BNB BNB	$723.52	3.10%	6.88%
	Solana SOL	$174.74	4.60%	10.20%

You know that wonderful feeling when Bitcoin smashes through $120K again?..

Yeah, me neither. Because it didn’t happen. Today, at least.

But! Like we’ve been saying the past couple days - just because it hasn’t yet doesn’t mean it’s not gonna.

Matter of fact, CryptoQuant contributor Darkfost pointed out a good reason to think we’re not at the top yet:

Short-term Bitcoin holders still haven’t hit the kind of profits that usually make them dump.

In past cycles, they started cashing out when they were up around 35%. Right now, they’re only up about 15%.

That means Bitcoin could still climb another 20 - 25% before hitting the point where those holders typically take profits and put downward pressure on the price.

And while the king of cryptocurrencies is taking its sweet time... the princes and princesses are having their moment.

Major alts have been outperforming Bitcoin lately, which has a lot of people asking: is altseason finally here?

Analyst Colin Talks Crypto said: …maybe.

He pointed out that true altseasons usually start when Bitcoin dominance falls back to 40 - 44%, and we’re not quite there.

Until then, altcoins are still showing strength, so enjoy the gains and keep an eye on that dominance level.

📧 Just an email away

If you've ever done KYC... bless your heart.

Scan your ID. Take a selfie. Retake it because “bad lighting.” Upload your bank statement. Wait. Maybe even send a blood sample while you’re at it.

KCEX said nah - it's a centralized exchange where you just drop your email and start trading.

Once you’re in, you get zero-fee spot trades, low-cost futures, and more markets than you’ll know what to do with - 1K+ spot pairs and 700 perpetuals.

That’s what the new BitDegree Mission has you exploring. And if you complete it by August 17, you could walk away with:

🎁 1,600 Bits;

🎁 Up to 19 USDT New User Bonus.

This one’s not the kind you scroll past. Get it before it's gone.

🥝 Memecoin harvest

Warning: the tokens below may cause spontaneous keyboard smashing and disbelief 💥

Data as of 06:15 AM EST.

Check out these memecoins and plenty more here.

💳 I'll pay in Bitcoin, thank you

If you ask people why they got into crypto, you’ll hear all kinds of answers:

1. "Number go up";

2. "My friend wouldn’t shut up about it";

3. "I needed out of my 9-5";

4. "To feel something. Anything";

5. "I believe in decentralization and financial freedom"... which, tbh, is just reason #1 but paraphrased.

What you likely won’t hear, though, is: "Oh, I just use it to pay for stuff."

That’s because paying with crypto feels… awkward. Not enough places take it + most people prefer to hold it, hoping it'll gain value, rather than spend it on groceries.

But that doesn’t mean nobody’s spending.

Bitget Wallet surveyed 4,599 users across 9 regions and found that people are increasingly experimenting with crypto payments.

Gaming (36%), daily purchases (35%), and travel bookings (35%) ranked as the top spending categories.

Here are the rest:

It’s still early days, but the numbers show that there's a demand for crypto to behave more like money - flexible, practical, and spendable.

And the industry is trying to catch up: things like QR-based payments, crypto-linked debit cards, and stablecoins are making it easier for those who do want to use crypto in daily life.

Now, if you're like, "Uhh... ok? I don't need this and, quite frankly, don't care 😐" - lemme change your mind:

1/ Real demand

When people can spend crypto on real things, it becomes more than just a gamble - it’s useful.

That usefulness creates real, steady demand that supports the value of what you hold.

2/ Stronger ecosystem

More usage means more businesses, developers, and infrastructure built around crypto - which makes the whole system healthier and more resilient.

3/ More stability

A currency people actually rely on day-to-day is less likely to collapse when hype fades - protecting the long-term value of your holdings.

So even if you’re not planning to spend your coins on coffee anytime soon, you should still care that others are.

Every real-world use case makes crypto more mainstream and stronger - and that strength helps keep your bags safer and more valuable in the long run.

🍋 News drops

💳 So… did all this talk about crypto payments get you curious? We’ve got a guide to the best crypto debit cards waiting for you.

🗣️ After nine hours of arguing, the US House agreed to move ahead with the CLARITY, GENIUS, and Anti-CBDC Acts. Some Republicans refused to back it at first because they wanted a guaranteed ban on central bank digital currencies.

🔓 World Liberty Financial, a crypto project tied to Donald Trump, is unlocking its tokens. This means holders can now trade on peer-to-peer and secondary markets.

🐋 Lookonchain said that an old Bitcoin whale moved over 40K BTC into a new wallet. They added the owner “may keep selling,” meaning more of those coins could hit the market soon.

👮 Paul Chowles, a former UK crime agency officer, was jailed for stealing 50 BTC during a Silk Road 2.0 investigation. He got five and a half years.

🍌 Juicy memes