Crypto Market Recap: Institutional Investments, Stablecoin News and ETF Activity

Bitcoin and Ethereum price update

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$104,043, a decrease of 0.8 percent in the last 24 hours. The day's range for the cryptocurrency brought a low of US$103,832 and a high of US$105,218.

Bitcoin hovered around US$105,000 on Wednesday morning before pulling back to around US$104,000 in the leadup to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged.

The crypto market has displayed resilience despite mounting geopolitical tensions, which have been tempered in light of the Senate vote to advance the GENIUS Act. Institutional buying, partly fueled by an influx of corporate treasuries, is helping to support demand amid uncertainty.

Key levels to watch are US$102,000 to US$104,000 as support and US$106,000 as resistance.

A breakout above US$112,000 could trigger a liquidation cascade to US$114,000, while a drop below US$100,000 risks deeper downside toward US$98,000.

Ethereum (ETH) is currently priced at US$2,498.86, a 1.4 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. Its lowest valuation on Wednesday was US$2.471.24, and it reached a high of US$2,533.07.

Altcoin price update

• Solana (SOL) was priced at US$145.22, down 2.7 percent over 24 hours. SOL experienced a low of US$144.08 and reached a high of US$146.55.

• XRP was trading at US$2.15, a 2 percent decrease in 24 hours. Its lowest valuation on Wednesday was US$2.12, and it reached an intraday peak of US$2.16.

• Sui (SUI) was trading at US$2.78, showing a decrease of 3.5 percent over the past 24 hours. Its lowest valuation was US$2.73 as the markets opened, and it reached an intraday high of US$2.80.

• Cardano (ADA) is priced at US$0.5935, down 4.2 percent in 24 hours. Its lowest valuation on Wednesday was US$0.5908, and its highest valuation was US$0.6052.

Today's crypto news to know

Senate advances GENIUS Act

In a vote of 68 to 30, the US Senate passed the GENIUS Act, advancing the legislation to the House.

“With this bill, the United States is one step closer to becoming the global leader in crypto,” said Republican Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee from the Senate floor before the Tuesday (June 17) vote.

"Once the GENIUS Act is law, businesses of all sizes, and Americans across the country will be able to settle payments nearly instantaneously rather than waiting for days or sometimes even weeks," he added.

Ubyx platform aims to boost stablecoin adoption

Ubyx, a new stablecoin clearing platform designed to boost stablecoin adoption through face value redemptions, has secured US$10 million in seed funding, according to a company announcement made on Tuesday.

The round was led by Galaxy Ventures, and included participation from Coinbase Ventures, Founders Fund, VanEck and Paxos among others. Ubyx intends to launch its platform, which will enable regulated banks and fintech companies to redeem stablecoins directly for fiat currency at par value in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Ubyx's partners include stablecoin issuer Paxos and blockchain firm Ripple.

Ondo Finance launches alliance for on-chain asset adoption

On Tuesday, Ondo Finance introduced the Global Markets Alliance, a collaborative effort to encourage the adoption of on-chain financial assets. Founding members include eight crypto platforms: Solana Foundation, Bitget Wallet, Jupiter Exchange, Trust Wallet, Rainbow, BitGo, Fireblocks, 1inch and Alpaca, with expectations for additional members to join.

Ondo Finance specializes in real-world asset tokenization and recently launched a layer-1 blockchain designed for institutional on-chain assets. The platform provides tokenized treasury products collateralized by US government debt.

Corporate crypto investments exceed US$880 million in two days

Four publicly traded US companies announced a total of US$844 million in cryptocurrency investments on Tuesday, signaling a growing trend of corporations seeking returns through Bitcoin and other digital assets.

Hong Kong-based DDC Enterprise (NYSEAMERICAN:DDC) secured US$528 million via three securities purchase agreements, funding the company will use to acquire 5,000 Bitcoin over the next three years to fulfill with company's goal of building the "world's most valuable Bitcoin treasury.”

Major investors included Anson Funds and Animoca Brands' venture capital arm.

Fold Holdings (NASDAQ:FLD), recognized as the first publicly traded Bitcoin financial services firm, secured a US$250 million equity purchase facility. Net proceeds are primarily intended for further Bitcoin acquisitions.

BitMine Immersion Technologies (NYSEAMERICAN:BMNR), a firm specializing in Bitcoin mining equipment rentals, announced its purchase of US$16.3 million worth of Bitcoin, utilizing funds from a recent stock offering.

Eyenovia (NASDAQ:EYEN) disclosed a US$50 million private placement to establish a reserve for the Hyperliquid (HYPE) token. It intends to acquire over 1 million HYPE tokens to be staked on Anchorage Digital’s crypto platform.

In Europe, Paris’ Blockchain Group (EPA:ALTBG) expanded its Bitcoin reserves with the acquisition of 182 BTC for approximately US$19.6 million. This purchase increases the company's total Bitcoin holdings to 1,653 BTC and was financed through a series of convertible bond issuances.

Buying continued on Wednesday with the announcement of health services company Prenetics Global's (NASDAQ:PRE) US$20 million Bitcoin investment. This news coincided with the appointment of former OKEx COO Andy Cheung to Prenetics' board of directors, and Tracy Hoyos Lopez, chief of staff of strategic initiatives at Kraken, as an advisor to the company's Bitcoin strategy.

Crypto-finance integration deepens with collateral expansions

In a joint statement on Wednesday, Coinbase Derivatives and Nodal Clear announced they are expanding their partnership to allow Circle's USDC stablecoin to be used as collateral in US futures markets. This initiative is anticipated to be the first regulated instance of USDC being used as collateral, with Coinbase Custody Trust acting as the custodian.

The goal of this integration is to encourage wider acceptance of stablecoins within regulated derivatives markets. Pending approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the integration is scheduled to launch in 2026.

Meanwhile, ARK Invest, led by Bitcoin bull Cathie Wood, sold 642,766 shares of USDC issuer Circle (NYSE:CRCL), worth US$96.5 million, over Monday (June 16) and Tuesday.

This occurred as Circle's stock price declined by almost 12 percent during the same period. This marks ARK's first divestment of Circle since its explosive NYSE public debut on June 5. Circle’s share price has since recovered, ending the trading day valued at US$199.59, 35 percent above Monday’s opening price of US$147.54.

In other news, Deribit and Crypto.com will now begin accepting BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) tokenized US Treasury fund (BUIDL) as collateral for trading accounts held by institutional and experienced clients. This allows these traders to use a low-volatility, yield-generating asset to back leveraged positions, reducing their margin requirements.

These steps reflect a growing trend toward deeper crypto-finance integration.

New XRP ETFs launch on Toronto Stock Exchange

Three new XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) launched on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) on Wednesday, offering Canadian investors direct exposure to the XRP cryptocurrency.

• Evolve Funds Group launched the Evolve XRP ETF (TSX:XRP), which provides direct physical exposure.

• 3iQ introduced its 3iQ XRP ETF (TSX:XRPQ), notable for a 0 percent management fee for the first six months.

• Purpose Investments debuted the Purpose XRP ETF (TSX:XRPP), which offers spot exposure to XRP with various currency-hedged and non-hedged options.

These new ETFs expand accessibility to digital asset investments for Canadians within a regulated framework.