XRP stays muted amid 3iQ, Purpose and Evolve XRP ETFs debut in Canada

PANews reported on August 11th that Web3 game studio Delabs Games' Ragnarok Libre officially launched and kicked off its first season of airdrops. The event runs from 08:00 on August

Chainlink has announced a partnership with Mastercard that allows over 3 billion cardholders worldwide to purchase crypto directly on-chain through a secure fiat-to-crypto conversion system. The collaboration leverages Chainlink’s interoperability infrastructure and Mastercard’s global payments network to power the new Swapper Finance platform. It addresses a key barrier that has prevented mainstream users from accessing on-chain economies by eliminating the complex multi-step processes traditionally required to convert fiat currency into cryptocurrency. We’re excited to announce that Chainlink and @Mastercard have partnered to enable billions of cardholders to purchase crypto directly onchain. https://t.co/1pKz03jQ7t Chainlink verifies and synchronizes key… pic.twitter.com/5jfLAAYn4D — Chainlink (@chainlink) June 24, 2025 “This is the type of traditional finance and decentralized finance convergence that Chainlink was built to make possible,” said Sergey Nazarov, co-founder of Chainlink, in the official announcement . Cardholders can now seamlessly convert fiat currency into crypto assets as easily as they would with any other purchase, directly accessing the on-chain economy without the hassle of setting up a wallet or registering with an exchange. Multi-Partner Ecosystem Powers Seamless Integration Behind this seamless experience lies a robust web of collaborators ensuring everything works flawlessly in the background. The Swapper Finance platform operates through a sophisticated ecosystem involving multiple technology partners collaborating to deliver a seamless user experience. ZeroHash provides the core compliance, custody, and transaction infrastructure, facilitating the conversion of regulated fiat currency into cryptocurrency for smart contract consumption. Shift4 Payments handles seamless card processing, while XSwap sources liquidity from decentralized exchanges, including the Uniswap protocol, to execute the final on-chain swaps. “ We are excited to be the infrastructure partner alongside Chainlink and Mastercard on the Swapper Finance platform ,” said Edward Woodford, CEO & co-founder of ZeroHash. As for Chainlink, the integration uses its verification system to synchronize key transaction details, ensuring secure connections between traditional payment methods and decentralized finance protocols. 💳 @Mastercard has reported that 30% of its transactions in 2024 were tokenized, recognizing stablecoins ability to disrupt financial services. #Mastercard #Tokenization https://t.co/rEFnCGmIao — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) February 13, 2025 This development arrives at an opportune moment when institutional adoption of blockchain technology is accelerating. In fact, Mastercard previously reported that 30% of its transactions in 2024 were tokenized . The partnership builds on this momentum by providing practical utility for digital assets beyond speculative trading, opening the door to mainstream adoption. Industry Giants Race to Capture the Crypto Payments Expansion While Chainlink and Mastercard’s partnership represents a major milestone; it’s part of a broader competitive struggle where payment giants are rapidly expanding their crypto capabilities. @visa and @yellowcard_app have partnered to expand stablecoin-powered payments across Africa. #stablecoin #Visa https://t.co/nB85xKKAXa — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) June 19, 2025 Visa recently partnered with Yellow Card Financial to bring stablecoin-powered payments to 20 African nations, demonstrating how traditional payment networks view crypto as essential infrastructure for emerging markets. Mastercard has also been particularly aggressive in building its crypto ecosystem, having launched over 100 crypto card programs globally and developing solutions like Crypto Credential for simplified transactions in the UAE and Kazakhstan . We’re beginning to witness a competitive dynamic that contrasts sharply with the payment industry’s more cautious approach during crypto’s early years, when Visa and Mastercard temporarily halted new crypto partnerships in 2023 following high-profile industry failures. 📊 @chainlink targets $260 trillion untokenized assets market through CCIP partnerships with top players as technical analysis shows descending triangle breakout potential toward $26-$30 targets. #Chainlink #Link https://t.co/NnPbSuLOOX — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) June 19, 2025 With these new developments, we could be gearing toward a maturation phase in which crypto utility is beginning to match its speculative appeal. This will potentially unlock the massive untokenized assets market that Chainlink has recently identified as a $260 trillion opportunity . Chainlink’s co-founder, Sergey Nazarov, sees this as a turning point that will finally connect three billion Mastercard users with on-chain trading environments globally.

Strategy (MSTR), the publicly traded firm known for holding the largest Bitcoin reserve of any listed company, is now on the brink of being added to the S&P 500, but only if Bitcoin avoids a steep drop before the second quarter ends. Key Takeaways: Strategy’s S&P 500 inclusion hinges on Bitcoin staying above $95,240 through June 30. New accounting rules allow BTC gains to count toward earnings, making its price critical for Q2 results. Analyst Jeff Walton gives a 91% chance of inclusion, based on Bitcoin’s historical stability over short timeframes. Financial analyst Jeff Walton said in a video published Tuesday that Strategy has a 91% chance of qualifying for inclusion in the S&P 500, provided Bitcoin’s price does not fall more than 10% before June 30. At the time of his analysis, BTC was trading around $106,044. MicroStrategy’s S&P 500 Bid Hinges on Bitcoin Holding $95K Line Walton pinpointed $95,240 as the critical level; if Bitcoin closes below that threshold, MicroStrategy may fail to meet earnings eligibility criteria. “To be considered for the S&P 500, a company must report cumulative positive earnings across the past four quarters,” Walton explained. Strategy has posted losses in the last three quarters, and with its massive Bitcoin holdings, currently 592,345 BTC, its earnings for Q2 heavily depend on the crypto asset’s fair market value. The stakes are heightened by recent volatility. Over the weekend, Bitcoin dipped below $100,000 amid renewed geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran, briefly jeopardizing Strategy’s position. However, prices have since rebounded, with BTC trading near $106,200 as of Wednesday. 91% chance of $MSTR qualifying for S&P in 6 days https://t.co/uGkzAuTQ2Y — Jeff Walton (@PunterJeff) June 24, 2025 Strategy adopted new accounting standards (ASU 2023-08) at the start of 2024, allowing unrealized gains and losses on its Bitcoin stash to be reflected in net income. The change significantly impacts its financial statements and S&P 500 eligibility. Walton’s forecast is based on historical BTC price behavior. Since September 2014, in over 3,900 six-day periods, Bitcoin fell more than 10% just 343 times — or roughly 8.7% of the time. “The longer we go without a drop, the lower the odds get,” Walton noted. For instance, the odds of a 10% fall shrink to 4.2% if only two days remain in the quarter. If successful, Strategy would become the second crypto-related company to join the S&P 500 in 2025, following Coinbase’s inclusion in May. In December 2024, Strategy was added to the Nasdaq-100, joining the ranks of tech giants. Strategy Could Become Top Publicly Traded Company in World In May, Walton said Strategy may one day rise to become the top publicly traded company in the world. Walton believes the company’s unprecedented exposure to Bitcoin gives it a unique edge. “Strategy holds more of the best asset and most pristine collateral on the planet than any other company, by multiples,” he said. As reported, Strategy plans to raise as much as $2.1 billion through the sale of its 10% Series A Perpetual Strife Preferred Stock. The capital raise follows a similar structure to Strategy’s previous fundraising rounds, many of which directly funded large-scale Bitcoin purchases.