We’ve been keeping an eye out for Labor Day smartwatch deals, but they’ve been slim pickings this weekend. Only one deal we’ve spotted is truly intriguing: The Galaxy Watch 6 Classic 47mm LTE is $192.99 ($287 off) on Best Buy, as the site puts all of its Classic models on clearance.

We don’t know how many Watch 6 Classics are left, but this may be your last chance at a new model, rather than a refurbished one. We also spotted the same 60% off deal at Amazon, though most other sizes come from third-party resellers.

The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is a respectable smartwatch with fast performance and the rotating bezel that long-time Samsung fans love. But its hard-edged, bulkier design has polarized these same fans, who felt that the old Galaxy Watch 6 Classic design lives up to that old-timey aesthetic much better.

So rather than spend $499 on the new model (or $549 with cellular), you can spend less than half that on the Watch 6 Classic LTE, which is still due to receive three more major version updates through the end of 2027.

Recommended if: You have a Galaxy Watch 4 Classic or Watch 5 and want a more traditional design than the newer 8 Classic; you care more about style than getting the newest features; or you hate other Galaxy Watches’ touch bezel controls.

Skip this deal if: You care more about a lighter design than a rotating bezel, and would prefer the Galaxy Watch 7 for $199 to get slightly newer hardware and sensors.

You can look elsewhere for the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic, but it’s either refurbished or sold from third-party Amazon sellers that may or may not have truly “new” models. That’s why this is your last chance to grab a Classic with some semblance of quality assurance before it’s off the market for good.

You can see in the photo above how the Watch 8 Classic and 6 Classic compare; the older model has a more subtle look, but it’s about the same weight and thickness. It has a slightly older Exynos processor, but the same amount of RAM for similar performance, making it capable of running Gemini commands swiftly.

While this model doesn’t have the new health sensors for niche data like your antioxidant index or vascular load, you’re still getting the core Galaxy Watch experience.

Also keep in mind that Samsung always offers enhanced trade-in credit for its old watches. So if the Galaxy Watch 9 series looks more tempting a year from now, this Watch 6 Classic deal will end up being a down payment when you trade it in for something better!

Dogecoin rallied on Tuesday after a string of regulatory and corporate catalysts shifted sentiment across the crypto sector. A $50 million Trump-linked acquisition of a DOGE mining firm, Wyoming’s launch of a state-backed stablecoin, and comments from Federal Reserve officials signaling a softer stance on digital assets all converged to trigger fresh institutional flows.

News Background

• Thumzup, a Trump-affiliated entity, acquired Dogehash for $50 million, creating what executives described as the largest DOGE mining operation. The deal signals deep-pocketed confidence in Dogecoin infrastructure.
• Wyoming unveiled the Frontier Stable Token, the first government-backed state stablecoin, reinforcing the U.S. regulatory pivot toward digital assets.
• Fed Vice Chair Michelle Bowman warned banks about competitive risks from delaying digital asset adoption, signaling a more crypto-accommodative posture.
• SoFi Technologies integrated Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, targeting the $740 billion remittance market — another signal of traditional finance edging deeper into crypto rails.

Price Action Summary

• DOGE traded in a $0.01 band from $0.21 to $0.22 between Aug. 20 15:00 and Aug. 21 14:00, marking ~4–5% intraday volatility.
• The token rallied 5% from $0.21 to $0.22 during the Aug. 20 evening session, establishing $0.22 as near-term resistance.
• A late-session 60-minute window (Aug. 21 13:22–14:21) saw DOGE surge 1% from $0.22 to $0.22 with volume spikes above 61.8 million, confirming institutional activity.
• Support consistently held in the $0.21–$0.22 zone with bounces on 320–380 million volume across key testing points.

Technical Analysis

• Support: $0.21–$0.22 established as reliable floor with repeated high-volume retests.
• Resistance: $0.22 key pivot cleared, but bulls need follow-through toward $0.225 to confirm breakout.
• Volume: Peak surges of 61.8 million and 378.6 million confirm institutional buying interest.
• Pattern: Classic consolidation followed by impulsive breakout; upward trajectory if support base holds.
• Futures OI: Stable around $3 billion, reflecting sustained leveraged interest despite macro volatility.

What Traders Are Watching

• Whether DOGE can sustain above the $0.22 pivot and push toward $0.225–$0.23 resistance.
• The market’s reaction to Fed policy shifts and Wyoming’s stablecoin launch — potential sector-wide tailwind.
• Whale accumulation patterns, already totaling 2 billion DOGE ($500M) this week.
• Mining sector expansion via Thumzup’s acquisition and its impact on DOGE’s hashpower distribution.

Gemini has filed for a Nasdaq IPO under the ticker GEMI, revealing a $282.5 million net loss for the first half of 2025.

The exchange also disclosed a $75 million credit agreement with Ripple in the Aug. 15 filing submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),

The exchange, founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, joins a wave of crypto companies seeking public market access following President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. 

The filing disclosed financial details that position Gemini as the third potential US crypto exchange to trade publicly after Coinbase and Bullish.

Bitwise chief investment officer Matthew Hougan had predicted this movement in December 2024, naming 2025 the “Year of the Crypto IPO” with at least five crypto unicorns expected to go public in the US. 

Hougan and the firm’s head of research, Ryan Rasmussen, identified “growing investor demand, institutional adoption, a favorable macro environment, and a warmer political environment” as the main catalysts driving crypto companies to pursue public listings following Trump’s election victory.

Financial performance and Ripple partnership

Gemini’s losses widened considerably from $41.4 million in the first half of 2024 to $282.5 million during the same period in 2025. 

The exchange posted total revenue of $67.9 million for the six months, down from $74.3 million year-over-year. For the full year 2024, Gemini recorded a net loss of $158.5 million on revenue of $142.2 million.

The filing revealed the exchange entered a credit agreement with Ripple Labs in July. The deal permits lending requests of at least $5 million each up to an aggregate commitment of $75 million.

The agreement allows increases up to $150 million based on specific metrics. 

Once the initial commitment exceeds $75 million, lending requests may utilize USD-denominated Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin upon mutual consent. 

All lending bears interest rates of 6.5% or 8.5% annually and requires collateral security with repayment in US dollars.

Industry momentum under

The crypto IPO trend gained momentum after Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, with multiple exchanges and crypto-native companies pursuing public listings. 

Circle completed its NYSE debut in June, raising over $1.2 billion and seeing shares surge 472% relative to Bitcoin since launch. 

The stablecoin issuer’s market capitalization reached $66.9 billion, exceeding its USDC circulating supply of $61.27 billion.

Hougan and Rasmussen specifically identified Circle, Kraken, Anchorage Digital, Chainalysis, and Figure as the five strongest candidates for IPO listings in 2025. 

Their prediction proved prescient as Circle completed its blockbuster NYSE debut in June, Bullish followed in August, and now Gemini is pursuing its public offering. 

Galaxy Digital had already transferred its listing from Toronto to Nasdaq in May, while crypto trading platform eToro debuted with services including crypto investments.

The momentum reflects broader institutional confidence in crypto’s regulatory outlook under Trump. 

Hougan emphasized that the Trump administration’s pro-crypto stance creates unprecedented opportunities for digital asset companies to access traditional capital markets. Additionally, he stated that 2025 represents a “warmer political environment” for crypto IPOs compared to previous years.

Regulatory strategy and structure

Gemini plans to operate through a dual-entity structure, separating operations between New York-based Gemini Trust and Florida-based Moonbase. 

The Moonbase entity will serve as the primary platform for most users, allowing the exchange to navigate New York’s restrictive BitLicense regulations that limit staking services.

This structure reflects the company’s approach to maintaining operational flexibility while addressing complex state-level regulatory requirements.

Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and Cantor serve as lead bookrunners for the offering. The IPO terms remain undisclosed, with completion subject to SEC review and market conditions.

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According to Thumzup Media’s filing and press release, the Nasdaq-listed company completed a $50 million secondary offering at $10 per share to fund crypto mining and expand a multi-asset treasury.

The company said it will buy mining rigs and add assets such as XRP, BTC, ETH, SOL, LTC, USDC and DOGE to its balance sheet.

The move comes after Thumzup set an internal target to grow a digital asset pool to $250 million and authorized up to 90% of its liquid assets to be held in cryptocurrencies.

Thumzup Expands Crypto Treasury

Robert Steele, Thumzup’s CEO, called the raise a step toward a “strategically managed” digital asset treasury. According to the company, Coinbase Prime will remain custodian and prime broker for the new holdings.

The firm also disclosed a Bitcoin-backed credit facility arranged with Coinbase Prime in May 2025 that is meant to provide flexible capital to support its treasury plan. This is a bold pivot for a publicly traded firm and will draw close scrutiny from investors and regulators alike.

Mining Push And Capital Use

Based on reports, the $50 million proceeds will be split toward mining equipment purchases and direct crypto accumulation. Mining requires machines, space, and power, and Thumzup says it will deploy capital to expand operations.

That’s the part that could either add steady revenue if done well or become a heavy drain on cash if costs rise or market prices tumble. The company didn’t give a detailed commissioning schedule in the initial release, so the timing of any meaningful hash rate increase remains unclear.

Peers And Market Moves

Reports have disclosed a string of similar corporate moves in recent days. Vivopower announced a partnership with Crypto.com for institutional custody.

Metaplanet Inc. of Japan reported a 468% Bitcoin yield in the second quarter of 2025, after holding 18,113 BTC valued at $2.1 billion following a $61 million BTC purchase.

Thumzup’s action sits squarely alongside these shifts as Bitcoin surged to a new all-time high.

A Risky Bet For Shareholders?

If cryptocurrency prices keep rising and margins in mining are still healthy, the plan could deliver very strong returns.

But pooling as much as 90% of liquid assets into digital tokens will expose the company’s balance sheet to sudden swings.

The mining expansion will be a big-ticket item that needs to be executed with care.

Given that the company is associated with US President Donald Trump’s family, the expansion will draw increased media and political scrutiny.

Featured image from FinanceFeeds, chart from TradingView

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Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has officially confirmed that the company has bought Rail, a payment infrastructure provider that focuses on stablecoins, for $200 million. The idea is to make Ripple stronger in the enterprise digital payments space, and if everything goes according to plan, it should all be wrapped up by the end of 2025, pending any last-minute regulatory checks.

Garlinghouse called the move a big step in Ripple’s stablecoin strategy, saying that the integration of Rail will make Ripple the go-to infrastructure provider for institutions settling payments via stablecoins. 

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Rail brings capabilities such as virtual accounts, third-party payment support and treasury automation, which will all be rolled into Ripple’s existing payment network and API stack.

This news comes at a time when Ripple’s own stablecoin, RLUSD, is starting to gain popularity. RLUSD is now ranked 105th among all crypto assets by market cap, with a circulating supply of 612.74 million, a market cap of $612.71 million and 24-hour trading volume of $45.26 million. 

RLUSD is trading just below PayPal’s PYUSD and is quickly rising up the stablecoin leaderboard.

$3 billion out

Ripple runs one of the world’s largest digital asset payment platforms, with over 60 active licenses and a network that supports both XRP and other digital assets. The Rail acquisition adds infrastructure for stablecoin flows without requiring users to hold crypto directly.

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Ripple has already spent over $3 billion on strategic acquisitions, and this latest move clearly shows a push to control stablecoin settlement infrastructure on a large scale, now backed by a growing live token.