BTCC Daily (8.26) | Japan Plans Blockchain-Based Real-Time Settlement System, Bitcoin Pulls Back to $79,000 After Rally

Top Highlights

• Bitcoin surged above $81,000 before pulling back to around $79,000, while total crypto market capitalization fell to about $2.61 trillion.

• U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $314 million, marking the seventh consecutive trading day of net inflows.

• Iran and Oman discussed establishing a temporary shipping channel through the Strait of Hormuz, while international oil prices fell more than 2%.

Macro & Policy Outlook

Today’s Key Events

• U.S. July PCE Price Index, personal income, and personal spending

• U.S. Q2 GDP revised reading

• U.S. July durable goods orders

• Nvidia reports earnings after the U.S. market close

Macro Headlines

1. U.S. July PCE inflation due tonight, markets expect 3.6% year-over-year increase

The U.S. July PCE Price Index is expected to rise 0.1% month over month and 3.6% year over year. Core PCE is expected to rise 0.2% month over month and 3.3% year over year. U.S. Q2 GDP growth may be revised up from the initial 1.5% to 1.7%. Previously, U.S. August consumer confidence fell to 89.4, while July new home sales declined 10.5% month over month.

2. Nvidia earnings due soon, options market implies about 5.4% stock move

Nvidia will release quarterly results after the U.S. market close on Wednesday, with markets focusing on AI chip demand, data-center revenue, and forward guidance. Analysts expect the company may guide next-quarter revenue to around $104.2 billion, up 82.8% year over year. Options market pricing implies a post-earnings stock move of about 5.4%.

3. Iran and Oman discuss temporary shipping channel, international oil prices continue to fall

Iran and Oman are discussing arrangements to establish a temporary shipping channel in the Strait of Hormuz and clear mines, raising market expectations for a gradual restoration of passage through the strait. Only five commodity vessels passed through the strait on Tuesday, well below the 10-day average of 15 vessels, and specific reopening conditions are still under negotiation.

4. Australia July CPI rises 1.0% month over month, above market expectations

Australia’s July CPI rose 1.0% month over month, above market expectations of 0.8%. It rose 3.5% year over year, also above the 3.3% forecast. Trimmed mean core CPI rose 0.5% month over month and 3.6% year over year. Traders raised pricing for a September rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia from 17% to 38%.

5. Japan July corporate service prices rise 3.6% year over year

Japan’s July Corporate Services Price Index rose 3.6% year over year, accelerating further from June’s revised 3.4%. A tight labor market and rising corporate costs continued to push up service prices. The latest data will serve as an important reference for the Bank of Japan in assessing future rate policy.

Global Asset Performance

• Equities: Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed up 0.62% at 66,262.16. Korea’s KOSPI Index closed up 0.97%, with Samsung Electronics rising 1.75% and SK Hynix gaining 0.60%. At press time, Nasdaq 100 futures were down about 0.08%, S&P 500 futures fell about 0.05%, and Dow futures rose about 0.04%.

• Crypto: The CoinMarketCap Crypto Fear & Greed Index stood at 81, in the extreme greed zone. Total crypto market capitalization was about $2.61 trillion, down about 1.52% over the past 24 hours. BTC traded near $79,000, down about 1.18% in 24 hours. Today’s trending cryptocurrencies: ENA rose about 9.59%, while SOL fell about 4.13%.

• Energy & Metals: Brent crude fell about 2.4% to $85.19 per barrel, while WTI crude fell about 2.8% to $80.08 per barrel. Spot gold fell about 0.6% to $4,630.72 per ounce, while spot silver rose about 0.3% to $68.81 per ounce.

(Data as of August 26, 15:00 HKT)

Crypto Market Snapshot

1. Futures Capital Flow Analysis

On August 26, according to Coinglass data, BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, ZEC, SNDK, and other contracts led net outflows in futures trading over the past 24 hours, potentially signaling trading opportunities.

2. Bitcoin Liquidation Heatmap

On August 26, according to Coinglass data, based on the current reference price of $78,750 on the Bitcoin exchange liquidation map, if Bitcoin falls below $77,000, cumulative long liquidation intensity across major CEXs could reach $1.26 billion. Conversely, if Bitcoin breaks above $81,000, cumulative short liquidation intensity across major CEXs could reach $1.65 billion. Traders are advised to manage leverage prudently to avoid large-scale liquidations during market swings.

3. Bitcoin Long/Short Ratio

According to Coinglass data, as of 17:00 HKT on August 26, the overall Bitcoin long/short ratio stood at 1.0995, indicating that bulls currently hold a relative advantage.

4. Stock Futures Performance

On August 26, stock contracts were broadly weaker. CRCL led gains with a 2.94% rise, while SNXX was the weakest performer, down 8.70%. Trading volume generally contracted, with only CRCL and MSTR rising by 21.25% and 3.50%, respectively. In terms of open interest, SNDK OI rose 11.43%, while SNXX fell 16.28%, showing intensified capital divergence.

5. On-Chain Monitoring

• According to on-chain analysts, new address 0xAef…Dc00B accumulated 20,000 ETH, worth about $48.89 million, possibly related to BitMine.

• According to Onchain Lens, Wintermute reduced its short exposure on Hyperliquid from $211.53 million to $80.48 million. It still holds $80.48 million in shorts and $5.51 million in longs.

• An address suspected to be linked to Justin Sun requested to redeem 5,000 stETH from Lido after about one year, worth about $12.3 million.

Blockchain Headlines

• On August 25 ET, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $314 million, marking the seventh consecutive trading day of net inflows. BlackRock’s IBIT saw $284 million in net inflows, while Fidelity’s FBTC saw $15.4469 million.

• U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded net inflows of $180 million over the same period, also marking the seventh consecutive trading day of net inflows. BlackRock’s ETHA saw $146 million in net inflows, while Fidelity’s FETH saw $25.7523 million.

• Since the start of August, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded cumulative net inflows of $2.72 billion, a monthly high for 2026. BlackRock clients bought about $1.33 billion worth of Bitcoin on a net basis last week.

• Japan plans to study a blockchain-based real-time settlement system for stocks and Japanese government bonds, with participation from the Financial Services Agency, the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Japan, and financial institutions. The system could go live in the 2030s at the earliest.

• India plans to pilot the issuance of its first tokenized corporate bond in September, with a size of no more than 5 billion rupees, using a wholesale central bank digital currency for settlement.

• Korea’s Shinhan Financial Group signed a cooperation agreement with Visa to conduct verification work around stablecoin issuance, remittances, redemption, AI payments, and corporate payments.

• According to Lookonchain, stablecoin issuer Circle minted a cumulative 5 billion USDC over the past week, including 500 million newly minted on Solana over the past six hours.

• Russian telecom operators including MTS, Rostelecom, and Megafon plan to accept digital ruble payments starting September 1. Some e-commerce platforms will also integrate related services.

• TAC blockchain was attacked due to a Cosmos EVM module vulnerability, with about $7.5 million in assets stolen. The network has been paused and related transactions have been frozen.

• Weekly spot trading volume for Meme coins on Solana surpassed $5.2 billion, reaching a new high since 2026.

Institutional Insights · Daily Picks

• CryptoQuant Research said Bitcoin’s bull-market score rose from 30 to 80 within a week, with eight of 10 indicators turning bullish. However, price still needs to move above the 365-day moving average near $83,000 for further confirmation. Traders’ unrealized profit ratio rose to 20.5%, indicating short-term overheating.

• Tradu.com senior market analyst Nikos Tzabouras said gold’s technical setup has become stretched after its previous consecutive gains, while markets are waiting for U.S. PCE data and Fed Chair Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech.

• Daishin Securities analyst Lee Kyoung-min said Korean chip companies’ share buybacks, lower international oil prices, and declining U.S. Treasury yields have jointly supported the KOSPI’s return above 6,800.