Bitcoin Pepe’s presale sees robust inflows as BTC ETFs continue hot streak

  • US BTC ETFs have registered inflows for 13 consecutive sessions.
  • The bullish sentiment can also be seen in early-stage project, Bitcoin Pepe.
  • The project’s presale has seen inflows of over $300K in the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin (BTC) is trading around $107,000 on Friday, hovering just 4% below its all-time high as it consolidates near key technical levels.

Bitcoin briefly dropped to a daily low of $98,200 on Sunday amid geopolitical tensions but held above the key psychological level of $100,000.

It rebounded sharply on Monday and maintained momentum through midweek, closing above $107,000 on Wednesday and holding steady since.

At the time of writing, BTC remains near the $107,000 mark. A continuation of the rally could see a test of the May 22 record high of $111,980.

A decisive close above that level may open the door to further upside, with $120,000 emerging as the next potential target.

Institutional inflows have provided additional support, contributing to a broader recovery in risk appetite within crypto markets.

The current environment has also driven speculative interest in early-stage projects, with Bitcoin Pepe drawing investor attention as its presale continues.

In just the past 24 hours, the project’s presale saw inflows of over $300,000.

BTC ETF inflows show no signs of slowing

US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have logged their longest streak of inflows since December 2024, pulling in over $2.9 billion across 13 consecutive trading sessions.

The surge in demand comes as regulatory momentum builds for broader digital asset approvals expected over the next four months.

On Thursday, the ETFs brought in over $226 million.

BlackRock’s IBIT led Thursday’s activity with $163.7 million in inflows, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC with $32.9 million and Bitwise’s BITB with $25.2 million, according to data from Farside Investors.

The ETFs posted their largest single-day inflow for June on Tuesday, with $588.6 million added. In this week alone, the ETFs have seen inflows of over $1 billion.

The continued inflows highlight rising institutional interest in crypto investment products.

Bitcoin Pepe presale sees robust interest

While Bitcoin remains stable, its recent move toward fresh highs is lifting overall market sentiment, often a precursor to broader rallies across the crypto sector.

As capital returns to digital assets, speculative segments such as meme coins are regaining investor attention.

Leading this shift is Bitcoin Pepe.

Billed as the first meme-focused Layer 2 on the Bitcoin network, Bitcoin Pepe aims to merge meme culture with functional blockchain infrastructure.

The project seeks to harness Bitcoin’s security while offering scalability comparable to networks like Solana—a contrast to most meme tokens, which typically lack underlying infrastructure.

To support its Layer 2 vision, Bitcoin Pepe has announced several strategic partnerships, including tie-ups with Super Meme and Plena Finance.

The project reflects a broader push to blend real-world utility with viral appeal—an approach that may find traction in the current market environment.

Investor interest appears strong. Bitcoin Pepe has raised over $15.9 million in its ongoing presale.

A listing announcement is expected on June 30, which could act as a near-term catalyst for price movement.

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Block3 plans to leverage AI to disrupt the multi billion dollar gaming industry

  • Block3 plans to be a disruptive force in the $500 billion sector.
  • The project’s native token, BL3’s presale goes live in four days.
  • The token gives investors an entry point into the intersection of AI and gaming.

The gaming industry may be on the brink of a major shift.

With traditional studios facing layoffs and declining sales, newcomer Block3 is positioning itself as a disruptive force in the $500 billion sector.

While legacy studios typically work on multi-year timelines and budgets ranging from $50 million to $200 million, Block3 aims to compress development to near-instant speeds at minimal cost.

The platform uses AI trained on player behavior to generate and refine games in real time, relying on reinforcement learning and community prompts to iterate and improve.

At the core of Block3’s system is Trinity, its proprietary AI engine.

Trinity functions similarly to commercial large language models like ChatGPT or Claude—but instead of generating text or images, it produces entire game worlds.

Users can enter a text prompt, and Trinity responds with a fully developed game, complete with non-player characters, storylines, combat systems, and more.

Described as a Large World Model (LWM), Trinity operates on principles similar to an LLM but is trained on a different dataset—drawing from games instead of literature.

The plans to disrupt the market

Block3 is positioning itself as a next-generation platform aimed at making game development accessible to users without technical expertise.

By integrating generative AI with blockchain infrastructure, the platform enables users to build open-world video games using simple text prompts, significantly reducing development time—from years to seconds.

At the core of the ecosystem is the BL3 token, which powers key functions such as creation fees, asset trading, and revenue sharing.

The token also offers exposure to the convergence of artificial intelligence and gaming.

While traditional studios rely on high budgets and long timelines, Block3 presents a streamlined alternative, offering a leaner model for game production.

As AI continues to transform creative industries, Block3 is being positioned as a potential entry point into the foundational layer of game development and monetization.

With a tokenized structure and focus on community participation, the platform aims to reshape how content is created, owned, and experienced in the gaming sector.

The BL3 token

Block3’s native BL3 token is set to go on presale starting Tuesday, July 1.

The token is pitched as a liquid, scalable entry point into the intersection of artificial intelligence and gaming—an industry expected to reach $665 billion by the end of the decade.

For retail participants, the token offers early access to the upstream layers of game development, monetization, and distribution in a tokenized format.

The Block3 ecosystem is designed to generate value through multiple channels, including creation fees, royalties, and in-game marketplace activity.

These revenue streams are consolidated into the BL3 token, which is intended to function as a broad-based instrument linked to the growth of AI-generated gaming—comparable to index-style exposure in the entertainment space.

Beyond game creation, Block3’s platform also contributes to the development of AI systems.

Each user-generated game feeds back into the system as training data, forming a loop where gameplay data informs model improvements, which then produce more refined game experiences.

This feedback structure positions Block3 not only as a tool for accessible game development but also as a potential contributor to large-scale AI training.

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Best crypto to buy now as Bakkt Holdings maybe planning a Bitcoin purchase

  • As institutional involvement increases, major cryptos are becoming less attractive to investors.
  • Traders looking for asymmetric opportunities are looking at early-stage projects such as Bitcoin Pepe.
  • The project’s presale has raised close to $16 million.

Bitcoin (BTC) is trading around $107,000 on Friday, placing it just 4% below its all-time high.

Ethereum (ETH) and Ripple (XRP) are also nearing key resistance levels, with potential breakouts in these assets likely to draw renewed investor interest and signal further upside.

After dipping to a daily low of $98,200 on Sunday, Bitcoin avoided a close below the critical $100,000 psychological threshold.

The recovery began on Monday and carried through midweek, with BTC closing above $107,000 on Wednesday and maintaining that level into Friday.

Should Bitcoin sustain its current momentum, a move toward the May 22 all-time high of $111,980 appears within reach.

A decisive close above that mark could open the door to further gains, with the next major target at $120,000.

Institutional adoption remains a key pillar of the ongoing rally, with more firms actively expanding their exposure to digital assets.

As market volatility subsides and institutional involvement increases, major cryptocurrencies are becoming less attractive to investors seeking high-risk, high-reward opportunities.

This environment is driving a shift toward early-stage tokens like Bitcoin Pepe, which are drawing renewed interest from risk-tolerant capital amid improving sentiment across the crypto market.

With traders increasingly turning to speculative corners of the space, high-volatility assets such as Bitcoin Pepe are emerging as prominent beneficiaries of the current momentum.

Bakkt is looking to raise $1 billion

Crypto software firm Bakkt Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange—the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange—is seeking to raise up to $1 billion through a mix of securities offerings, with potential plans to allocate some of the proceeds toward Bitcoin purchases.

In a Form S-3 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday, Bakkt outlined its intention to offer a combination of Class A common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants, or other hybrid instruments, up to a total of $1 billion.

The filing also disclosed a recent update to the company’s investment policy, allowing it to allocate capital into Bitcoin and other digital assets as part of its broader treasury and corporate strategy.

While no purchases have been made yet, the company stated that acquisitions could be funded using excess cash, future equity or debt financing, or other capital sources.

This shelf registration gives Bakkt the flexibility to access capital markets quickly when conditions are favorable—a significant consideration given its ongoing financial challenges, including a history of operating losses and going-concern warnings.

Bitcoin Pepe rides the BTC wave

As Bitcoin continues its strong rebound and approaches a potential new all-time high, institutional participation remains a key factor supporting broader market sentiment.

Simultaneously, investor appetite is shifting toward higher-beta segments, with meme coins once again attracting capital inflows.

Among the projects gaining traction is Bitcoin Pepe, which distinguishes itself by blending meme culture with Layer 2 infrastructure capabilities.

Unlike typical meme tokens driven solely by social momentum, Bitcoin Pepe is positioned as the first meme-centric Layer 2 solution on the Bitcoin network.

The project seeks to deliver scalability and transaction speeds comparable to platforms like Solana, while preserving the security of Bitcoin’s base layer.

Its ongoing presale has raised over $15.9 million, with the BPEP token currently priced at $0.0437.

A price increase is expected once contributions cross the $17.07 million threshold.

According to the team, BPEP will be listed on BitMart and MEXC, with another listing announcement planned for June 30.

These upcoming milestones continue to support investor interest as the presale enters its final phase.

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Across Protocol price drops 11% amid allegations of $23M ACX token misappropriation

  • Across Protocol price dropped 11% in 24 hours, testing critical support at $0.13.
  • Declines come amid allegations that Across Protocol’s team misappropriated $23 million in ACX tokens.
  • The allegations are “lies”, according to a response on X by an Across Protocol co-founder.

The Across Protocol, a cross-chain intents platform, has seen its native token ACX plunge 11% in the past 24 hours amid an alleged insider misconduct.

Market data shows ACX price falling sharply to lows of $0.13. It coincides with allegations that the protocol’s team manipulated governance proposals voting to benefit from approximately $23 million in ACX tokens.

The claims have added significant downward pressure to Across Protocol’s price, even as Bitcoin holds above $107k to bolster overall sentiment.

Observers note that the claims could erode investor trust, including in other decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs).

Across Protocol team allegedly misappropriated $23m ACX tokens

Allegations against the Across Protocol team emerged on X, raised by Ogle, co-founder of cross-chain Layer 1 Glue Network and advisor at World Liberty Financial (WLFI).

Ogle shared the accusations in a post on X early Friday, June 27, 2025.

The main part of the accusation is that the Across Protocol team orchestrated a scheme to misappropriate $23 million in ACX tokens.

What happened?

According to the post, the team manipulated governance votes to transfer 150 million ACX tokens to Risk Labs through two separate proposals.

The first, in October 2023, allocated 100 million ACX tokens under the pretext of supporting future development, with assurances that the tokens would not be sold for two years.

However, Ogle claims Risk Labs began selling token option agreements to external investors shortly after.

A second vote in October 2024 secured 50 million ACX tokens for “retroactive funding.”

The vote allegedly passed due to votes from insider-controlled wallets. The vote would unlikely have passed without the insider manipulation.

“More directly, the extraction of these $ACX tokens directly harms the current and future holders by not only draining the treasury, but also creating significant future potential sell pressure during the “unlocks,” Ogle wrote.

Notably, Hart Lambur, co-founder of Across Protocol dismissed the claims in a post on X, responding to Ogle:

“The allegations in here are  categorically untrue and I will vigorously defend our protocol and our team.”

Lambur said his team will respond fully to Ogle’s “lies.”

ACX price drops amid market reaction

The ACX token was already facing some sell-off pressure having dropped from highs of $0.23 in late May.

But the reaction to the allegations has helped push ACX lower, with the token shedding 11% of its value in the past 24 hours to see its losses in the past month reach 41%.

Data from CoinMarketCap indicates that the Across Protocol price has declined by 14% over the past week.

The declines, however, happen amid a broader crypto market that remains volatile. Geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties are the major concerns.

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Bitcoin holds above $107K ahead of major quarterly options expiry

  • Bitcoin (BTC) held steady above $107,500 ahead of a major options expiry on Friday.
  • 38% of Deribit’s $40B in BTC options open interest will expire, with a “max pain” price of $102,000.
  • Bitcoin’s implied volatility has dropped from 50% in April to 38%, signaling increased market confidence.

Bitcoin traded within a narrow range during US hours on Thursday, holding steady above the $107,000 mark as traders positioned themselves ahead of a significant quarterly options expiry scheduled for Friday.

While the broader crypto market saw slight declines, Bitcoin’s stability belied the underlying tension of a massive volume of derivatives contracts nearing their conclusion.

The top cryptocurrency was last changing hands around $107,500, down a negligible 0.2% over the past 24 hours.

In contrast, the CoinDesk 20—an index tracking the top 20 digital assets excluding stablecoins, exchange coins, and some memecoins—lost 0.9% during the same period, indicating some weakness in the altcoin market.

Market participants are keenly focused on Friday’s event, which is set to be one of the largest options expiries of the year.

“This Friday marks one of the largest option expiries of the year on Deribit,” Jean-David Péquignot, chief commercial officer at the popular derivatives exchange Deribit, told CoinDesk.

He noted that the total open interest for Bitcoin options currently stands at a staggering $40 billion, and a substantial 38% of these contracts are set to expire on Friday.

A key metric that traders are watching is the “max pain” price, which is the strike price at which the largest number of options (both puts and calls) would expire worthless, theoretically causing the maximum financial loss for option holders.

“Max pain price for Friday is at $102,000, with a put/call ratio of 0.73,” Péquignot said. This suggests a potential gravitational pull towards the $102,000 level as the expiry approaches.

Volatility eases, but caution remains

Despite the looming expiry, market volatility has shown signs of calming down.

Bitcoin’s implied volatility, as measured by the Deribit DVOL index, has dropped to 38% from the 50% levels seen during a wild April.

According to Péquignot, this could signal that “the market is increasingly confident in the cryptocurrency’s macro-hedge role.”

However, an analysis of put-call skews reveals no clear directional bias among traders in the short term, indicating a state of market neutrality.

Péquignot emphasized that the $105,000 level for Bitcoin is pivotal from a technical standpoint, suggesting that “technicals suggest caution if support fails.”

He also noted that “low open interest in perps [perpetual futures] and fairly depressed Bitcoin implied volatility and skew are indicative of limited expectations for sharp price movements going into Friday’s expiry.”

Crypto stocks show divergent performance

In the equity markets, several crypto-related stocks managed to post gains on Thursday.

Core Scientific (CORZ) was a standout performer, surging more than 33% following a report from The Wall Street Journal suggesting that the Bitcoin miner may soon be acquired by AI Hyperscaler CoreWeave (CRWV).

Other notable gainers included Circle (CRCL), Coinbase (COIN), Riot Platforms (RIOT), and Hut 8 (HUT), which were all higher by 5%-7%. In contrast, Strategy (MSTR) was down nearly 1%.

While stablecoins like USDT and USDC have been dominating US headlines recently, thanks to the GENIUS Act and Circle’s (CRCL) blockbuster IPO, a quieter but equally significant strategic adoption of these assets is reshaping cross-border finance in Asia.

Behind the scenes, stablecoins are already playing an important role in the region’s financial plumbing.

Asian banks are increasingly viewing stablecoins not just as a speculative asset class, but as a defensive tool to guard against potential deposit flight and to protect against lost transaction revenue.

Amy Zhang, Head of Asia at Fireblocks, explained in a recent interview with CoinDesk that major banks across Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are proactively exploring the creation of their own local-currency stablecoins to mitigate these emerging threats.

“If I’m not one of the banks banking Circle or banking Tether, am I going to lose deposits?” Zhang told CoinDesk, articulating the core concern driving this exploration.

“That’s a huge risk for banks.”

This strategic consideration highlights a deeper, more utility-focused integration of digital assets that is unfolding in the East, often away from the glare of Western market speculation.

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