The two largest publicly listed bitcoin treasury companies are sitting on combined paper losses of nearly $10 billion — enough, if tokenized, to rank as the 11th largest digital asset in the world, just behind Dogecoin. Strategy carries $8.2 billion in unrealized losses on its 576,000 BTC; Tokyo-listed Metaplanet holds $1.5 billion in losses on 43,000 BTC. Both funded those purchases largely with debt. Yesterday’s CPI reading looked tame on the surface — but energy prices temporarily masked stickier underlying pressures in food and services, and the dollar barely moved, offering bitcoin little support. BTC remains choppy just below $64,000 while the S&P 500 makes record highs. A $1 million options trade is nonetheless betting BTC clears $65,500 by Saturday. PPI data lands today.
CoinDesk Disclosure: The information contained in this newsletter, and any information linked through the items contained herein, is not intended to provide sufficient information to form the basis for an investment decision. You should seek additional information regarding the merits and risks of investing in any cryptocurrency or digital assets.
L1.co Disclosure: This material is for informational purposes only, and the content contained herein should not be considered investment advice or a solicitation, offer, or recommendation to sell or buy any asset, strategy, or product. Investing in digital assets involves a high degree of risk, including the loss of principal.
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Strategy and Metaplanet’s bitcoin losses highlight the risk of going all-in on one token.
The two largest publicly listed bitcoin treasury companies are sitting on combined paper losses that, if tokenized, would rank as the 11th largest digital asset by market cap — just behind Dogecoin and well ahead of ONDO, ZEC and AAVE. Strategy reported an unrealized loss of $8.2 billion on its 576,000 BTC last month. Early Thursday, Tokyo-listed Metaplanet disclosed a paper loss of $1.5 billion on its 43,000 BTC as of end-June. The combined $9.7 billion underscores a structural argument against the single-asset treasury model: both companies have relied heavily on debt issuance to fund bitcoin purchases, creating an obligation to service borrowing costs regardless of where the price goes. That structure is not fundamentally different from a government borrowing heavily to fund investments that fail to generate adequate returns — both lead to high indebtedness relative to income. Metaplanet separately denied a report that it sold $320 million of bitcoin, calling it unfounded. The Japanese firm also unveiled “BitBonds” — a continuous bond-issuance program — with a first sale of four privately placed series worth $1.3 million. Brazil’s largest bitcoin treasury firm meanwhile announced plans to launch an ETF with 95% of assets allocated to Strategy’s STRC preferred stock — adding another layer of leverage concentration to the ecosystem. FxPro’s Alex Kuptsikevich offered the contrarian view: BTC’s decline may have run its course, with the price near the 200-week moving average and the previous cycle’s all-time high of around $64,000 — the level where the 2021 bull market peaked. Three years ago, bitcoin bottomed near $20,000, close to the 2017 cycle peak. The pattern suggests the current range could represent structural support rather than a prelude to further losses.
CEX volumes hit a 32-month low in July as DEX market share reaches an all-time high.
Combined spot and derivatives volumes on centralized exchanges fell 23.9% to $3.76 trillion in July — the lowest monthly total since November 2023, according to CoinDesk Research’s monthly Exchange Review. Spot volumes dropped 31.2% to $727 billion, their lowest since October 2023, while derivatives declined 21.9% to $3.03 trillion. The declines coincided with range-bound crypto price action, subdued investor appetite relative to equities, and the departure of several centralized venues including BitMEX. Against that backdrop, decentralized exchanges captured a record 19.5% share of total spot trading — the highest ever measured — even as DEX spot volumes fell 9.8% in absolute terms to $176 billion. CEX volumes fell faster, amplifying DEX’s relative position. Uniswap led DEX spot activity at $53.4 billion, followed by PancakeSwap at $18.5 billion. In derivatives, Binance extended its dominance with spot market share rising to 26.9% (highest since January) and derivatives market share climbing to 45.8% — its fifth consecutive monthly gain. The fastest-growing segment was RWA perpetual trading, which surged 47.8% to a record $460 billion. Gate ranked third in RWA perps with 4.39% market share and held the second-largest share of futures open interest among retail exchanges at 11.2%, trailing only Binance at 18.5%. Futures open interest fell a modest 1.26% to $80.2 billion, proving more resilient than spot as traders maintained directional bets even as headline activity shrank.
U.S. inflation is stickier than July’s mild CPI reading suggests.
Wednesday’s CPI report showed headline inflation slowed in July, with the month-on-month figure coming in at 0.3% against expectations of 0.1%, and the annual rate declining slightly. But the surface reading masked stickier underlying dynamics. Macroeconomic writer Mike “Mish” Shedlock argued in a detailed breakdown that temporary drops in energy and gasoline prices suppressed the headline number, while food prices are systematically undercounted by Bureau of Labor Statistics methodology, and the index ignores key housing costs including property taxes, insurance and home prices. The result: the dollar barely moved, and bitcoin received little support from the report. BTC continued trading choppy below $64,000. The combination of last week’s weaker-than-expected jobs data and an in-line CPI has raised the probability of a Fed rate pause at the September meeting to 63%, making today’s producer price index (PPI) the next key catalyst. Smaller coins found their moment: OKB, MNT and VVV each gained 6% or more in 24 hours, ranking among the best performers in the top 100. But bitcoin dominance held steady at around 59% — the gains came from fresh interest in those tokens, not from a rotation out of majors. A notable options trade was spotted: a large buyer spent roughly $1.07 million to purchase call options on 4,054 BTC at a $65,500 strike expiring Saturday August 15 — a bet that BTC climbs $1,700–$2,000 from current levels in under 48 hours. Jackson Hole — where central bank governors make their annual policy pronouncements — arrives next week and will be the next major macro signal for all risk assets.
CoinDesk Disclosure: The information contained in this newsletter, and any information linked through the items contained herein, is not intended to provide sufficient information to form the basis for an investment decision. You should seek additional information regarding the merits and risks of investing in any cryptocurrency or digital assets.
L1.co Disclosure: This material is for informational purposes only, and the content contained herein should not be considered investment advice or a solicitation, offer, or recommendation to sell or buy any asset, strategy, or product. Investing in digital assets involves a high degree of risk, including the loss of principal.
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