Japan is sitting $14.9 trillion In domestic financial assets, its bond markets offer some of the lowest returns in developed countries. 10 years of Japanese government bonds are just harvested ~1%and corporate bonds often have a hard time clearing 2%. For decades, pension funds, insurance companies and banks have been locked in low-turn allocations simply because they had no compliant and familiar options.

Metaplanet’s second quarter earnings announcement aims directly at this gap. The company announced:

• “Metaplanet is Plays” – A Bitcoin Support Preferred Stock Program designed to expand the operations of the Bitcoin Ministry of Finance.
• Plans to build a yield curve for Bitcoin support Japanese bond market.

In markets that even “high yields” mean low single digits, 7-12% are provided with well-structured Bitcoin-assisted preferred stocks to provide serious attention and serious capital.

Record Q2 Growth Fuel Bitcoin Support Priority Share Strategy

Metaplanet’s second quarter not only unveiled a new funding model, but also provided one of the most powerful quarters in the company’s history. Both revenue and profitability have skyrocketed, but assets and net assets have increased, highlighting the size currently operating.

Metaplanet Q2 Revenue Results:

• Revenue: ¥1.239B ($84 million) +41%
• Gross profit: ¥816m ($5.5 million) +38%
• Normal benefits: ¥17.4b ($117.8m) vs ¥6.9b
• Net profit: ¥11.1.B ($75.1M) vs ¥5.0B
• assets: ¥238.2b ($1.61b) +333%
• Net worth: ¥201.0b ($13.6 billion) + 299%

This surge in financial performance will strengthen Metaplanet’s reliability with investors and use its momentum to deploy Bitcoin-backed preferred stocks on a large scale to gain shares in Japan’s vast but yielding bond market.

BTC-backed priority equity: How Metaplanet Play Works

Preferred shares are between obligations and common stock in the company’s capital structure. Provides dividend priorities, higher liquidation claims and predictable payments.

Metaplanet Bitcoin-backed preferred stocks It is designed as follows:

• It offers significantly higher yields than JGB, while retaining a format familiar to Japanese institutions.
• Avoid refinancing risks related to the maturity of your obligation.
• Diversify funding sources for BTC accumulation beyond the issuance of Common Equity.

Precedent: Multiclass stack of strategies

Strategy (previous micro-strategy) It already shows what is possible. The company has built a stack of Bitcoin-backed priority equity classes.

• A low volatility, income-focused class for conservative buyers.
• Convertible priority combining bonds and BTC upside down.
• A high yield class aimed at risk-resistant investors.

By matching each issue to market demand, the strategy has raised billions and has increased its Bitcoin holdings more than 500,000 BTC– Without relying solely on general stock dilution.

Metaplanet incorporates the same multi-class concept into a market where preferred stock issuance is rare, investor bases are yielded, and Bitcoin-backed preferred stocks can see rapid adoption.

Japan’s capital market: $14.9 trillion opportunities

Japan’s bond market faces decades of zero yields, with fewer options to generate income, leaving trillions in capital. This rarity makes it uniquely prepared for high-yield devices like Bitcoin-backed preferred stocks.

Japan’s household financial assets collapse as follows:

• $9.5 trillion Bonds
• $6.8 trillion In stocks
• $7.6 trillion Cash and deposits

The preferred stock market listed is exactly what $2.7 billion– Less than 0.02% of total financial assets. However, the demand for stable, revenue-oriented products is immeasurable.

The gaps are as follows: 8% Offer 8x 10-year JGB return and 4x most luxury corporate bonds return. In a familiar structure that complies with regulations, its spread can attract both domestic institutions and retail allocators looking for yields without leaving the bond universe.

Engineering Bitcoin Support Yield Curve

Metaplanet plans to issue multiple classes of Bitcoin Support Priority Shares.

• Short-term variable dividends forever It is pinned in a short-term JGB spread for conservative buyers.
• Medium Duration Variable Dividend Permanent As a medium-distance corporate credit alternative.
• Senior fixed dividend perpetual (Class A) For long-term portfolios focused on stability.
• Fixed dividend convertible (Class B) Combine predictable revenue with BTC’s upside potential.
• High yield fixed dividends forever For investors willing to take on more risk in exchange for higher returns.

This is not just a product lineup, it is a construction of an investable BTC-backed yield curve. Strategies built in the US. Metaplanet does the same thing in Japan, but with the added tailwind of the market, the yield is desperate.

Impact on corporate Bitcoin strategies

Metaplanet’s approach offers corporate strategists three distinct takeaways.

• Capital efficiency: Bitcoin-backed preferred stocks acquire capital that acquires yield capital to the Ministry of Finance without relying on a common stock. They provide permanent capital without the same maturity constraint as debt.
• Market Compliance: The strategy was successful in the US, where convertible debt and equity rise, as their markets are deeply and liquid. The norms of Japan’s capital structure are different, with Metaplanet adapting its playbook to local investor behavior. This is an important step in hiring.
• Justification of Bitcoin as collateral: With each Bitcoin-backed preferred stock issue that finds a regulated yield-hungry portfolio home, we abandon Bitcoin recognition as speculative only. Normalised in one major economy makes it easier to replicate other major economies.

The big picture: Bitcoin bond age

Metaplanet’s Q2 announcement serves as a blueprint for how Bitcoin is integrated into domestic capital markets.

By combining a proven capital structure model with one of the world’s most harvest-limiting environments, Metaplanet positions Bitcoin as the legitimate and income-generating collateral base for sovereign scale bond markets.

If they succeed, Japan’s first Bitcoin support priority sharing program will not be the last. A case study of the beginning of the Bitcoin bond age and how companies’ Bitcoin strategies evolve could mark them fit the market they enter.

Disclaimer: This content was written on behalf of Bitcoin for businesses. This article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as an invitation or solicitation to acquire, purchase, or subscribe to a security.

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US President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order this Thursday that could shake up how Americans invest for retirement. The move would allow 401(k) plans to include a wider range of assets — like private equity, real estate, and yes, even cryptocurrency.

The order, as reported by Bloomberg News, tells the Labor Department to take another look at the current rules under ERISA — that’s the Employee Retirement Income Security Act — and figure out how to give retirement plan administrators more room to include less traditional, higher-risk investments.

Trump: Rewriting The Playbook

Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer has been tasked with working alongside the Treasury, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other federal agencies to make this happen. The main goal? Give plan sponsors a clearer roadmap to offer more diverse investment options, without falling foul of the law.

Donald Trump will sign an executive order that aims to allow private equity, real estate, cryptocurrency and other alternative assets in 401(k)s https://t.co/IXetIBnTzL

— Bloomberg (@business) August 7, 2025

Right now, most of the $12 trillion sitting in 401(k)s is invested in good old-fashioned stocks and bonds. But with this new push, savers might soon get the option to invest in assets that were once out of reach.

That said, it’s not as simple as just adding a few new buttons on a retirement dashboard. Offering private equity or crypto means plan administrators will have to show that they’ve done their homework — that the managers are qualified, the fees are fair, and that everything lines up with fiduciary standards.

BTCUSD trading at $116,349 on the 24-hour chart: TradingView

Winners And Warnings

Supporters of the move argue that expanding into private markets could lead to better long-term returns, especially in times when public markets are lagging. Critics, however, worry about the downsides — like high fees, limited access to funds, and the risks that come with less liquid investments.

Big players like Blackstone, Apollo, and KKR could benefit big-time from the change. In fact, BlackRock is already planning to roll out a new 401(k) fund with private investments in 2026. Empower Retirement is expected to launch similar offerings later this year.

Crypto Takes A Step In

What really stands out in this executive order is its nod to crypto. It’s the latest in a series of moves that show Trump warming up to digital assets. Just this past summer, the White House hosted “Crypto Week,” discussed new rules for stablecoins, and even floated the idea of a national Bitcoin reserve.

The new order reportedly asks the SEC to loosen restrictions that have kept crypto out of most retirement plans. If successful, this could open the door for Bitcoin, stablecoins, and other digital assets to become part of Americans’ retirement portfolios.

Featured image from The Traveller Mindset, chart from TradingView

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The Trump White House has reportedly set its sights on punishing banks it believes have been debanking conservatives.

The Wall Street Journal says it has reviewed a draft executive order that would instruct banking regulators to probe banks that may have violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

Regulators would also be directed to investigate whether the financial institutions have broken antitrust and/or consumer financial protection laws.

Anonymous sources “familiar with the matter” tell the WSJ that President Donald Trump could pass the order this week.

The order, which would subject violators to fines, doesn’t name banks but reportedly alludes to an instance where Bank of America allegedly debanked a Christian organization over its religious beliefs. BofA says it shuttered the organization’s account because it doesn’t provide services to small businesses operating abroad.

BofA CEO Brian Moynihan argued in an interview with Face the Nation over the weekend that the regulators are to blame, not his bank.

“We have 70 million consumers and we’re one of the biggest small business lenders. So that’s not it. The issue they’re focused on is the regulators’ impact on this industry, and you heard Senator [Tim] Scott talk about this this week. This reputation, this after-the-fact look that you banked X, and now, after the fact, you’re going to say X didn’t turn out to be what you thought, so we look at it, we look at it based on risk.”

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An analyst from one of the largest asset managers in crypto is outlining the key drivers behind Bitcoin’s (BTC) historic bull run.

Matthew Sigel, the head of digital assets research at VanEck, says on the social media platform X that BTC is now up 30% year-to-date, outpacing gold (+27%), the MSCI ACWI (+11%) and the S&P 500 (+7%).

“This rally reflects deepening institutional engagement, favorable macro conditions, and emerging policy clarity.”

Sigel notes that corporate treasuries are driving net demand, having bought more than 300,000 BTC this year, more than double the amount absorbed by spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

“MicroStrategy and MetaPlanet remain the largest accumulators, but a surge in shells, reverse mergers, and SPACs (special purpose acquisition companies), often backed by global investment banks, has fueled fresh capital formation in the sector. This dynamic marks a shift. Bitcoin is moving from speculative trading desks to strategic balance sheets.”

The digital assets researcher also notes that Bitcoin volatility dropped to around 23% in early July, one of the lowest levels in a decade.

“Lower volatility is making Bitcoin easier to size within institutional portfolios, particularly for allocators focused on Sharpe ratios and downside risk.”

Sigel says spot Bitcoin ETFs have picked up and brought in $3.7 billion in net inflows so far this month, with year-to-date inflows hovering around $16 billion.

“Participation is growing across retail, RIAs (registered investment advisors) and wirehouse platforms such as Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch, reflecting broader institutional acceptance.”

The researcher also points to “policy tailwinds” in Washington, DC.

“Crypto Week began July 15th, with three key bills under review: the GENIUS Act (stablecoins), the CLARITY Act (market structure), and the Anti-CBDC Act. Polymarket odds place an 89% probability on passage of the GENIUS Act this year, signaling bipartisan appetite to legitimize fiat-backed stablecoins and potentially unlock a wave of new issuance and payment infrastructure.”

Sigel says the potential for two interest rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve later this year could support flows into Bitcoin and gold.

He also notes miners continue to remain net holders following the April 2024 BTC halving, with their balances recently reaching a 12-month high.

“Only approximately 5.2% of Bitcoin supply has moved in the last 30 days, according to IntoTheBlock, indicating strong holder conviction and reduced available float.”

BTC is trading at $116,524 at time of writing and is down more than 3% in the past 24 hours.

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Tether announced it will discontinue support for its USDT stablecoin on five “legacy” blockchains, including Omni Layer, Bitcoin Cash SLP, Kusama, EOS, and Algorand.

According to the July 11 announcement, the move will become effective Sept. 1, ending redemptions and freezing remaining tokens on those networks.

The decision comes as part of what the company called an “infrastructure optimization” strategy, aiming to align with shifting community usage trends and refocus resources toward more active and scalable blockchains.

The move finalizes a phased withdrawal that began over the past two years. In 2023, Tether halted minting on Bitcoin Cash, Kusama, and Omni Layer and ended minting on Algorand and EOS (recently rebranded as Vaulta) last June.

Until now, however, it had continued to redeem tokens on these networks.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said:

“As the digital asset ecosystem evolves, Tether remains committed to adapting alongside it. Sunsetting support for these legacy chains allows us to focus on platforms that offer greater scalability, developer activity, and community engagement, all key components for driving the next wave of stablecoin adoption.”

Tether emphasized that the five blockchains were instrumental in its early expansion but have seen a steep decline in USDT usage and trading volume in recent years. USDT remains the largest stablecoin in crypto with a market capitalization nearing $160 billion.

The company said it will prioritize emerging Layer 2 networks, such as the Lightning Network, and other high-utility chains to enhance interoperability, transaction speed, and ecosystem growth.

Tether advised customers to redeem their USDT holdings on the affected blockchains or request issuance on supported networks before the September cutoff. Holders not directly served by Tether can migrate through third-party service providers.

The stablecoin issuer added that it will continue exploring new integrations to broaden USDT accessibility globally and strengthen its infrastructure to meet evolving market demands.

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The official Pump.fun account and the personal handle of its founder Alon Cohen were seemingly suspended by X on June 16, along with a cohort of other accounts tied to the memecoin sector.

As of press time, neither X nor the people behind the suspended accounts explained the reason for the suspensions.

Users noticed that the accounts were returning “user not found” errors at approximately 7:30 p.m. UTC, effectively removing the chief communication channel for the Solana-based memecoin launchpad site.

Memecoin-related accounts suspended

An X user identified as Otto compiled a list showing dozens of locked profiles, including handles tied to the GMGN and Bloom trading communities. 

Affected accounts included @gmgnai, @haze0x, @arthur_gmgn, @BloomTrading, and @imBFFF00, as well as bot-infrastructure developers such as @bullx_io and @ElizaOS.

Otto described the event as an “internal enforcement sweep” rather than the result of coordinated mass-report campaigns. CryptoSlate has been unable to verify the claim.

Most of the frozen accounts provide trading tools, automated order routing, or marketing services for on-chain assets, functions that often interact with X’s rules on platform manipulation and spam. 

However, the list also includes influencers and well-known traders in the memecoin circles.

Over $10M within an hour

Within the first hour of the account’s disappearance, users flooded Pump.fun with memecoins referencing the suspension and the founder’s alias. 

DEX Screener data as of 8:22 p.m. UTC show five of them among the top 10 tokens trending for the day. Collectively, they accounted for $10.4 million in volume at the time.

Furthermore, 15 out of the 31 tokens that fulfilled the bonding curve and “graduated” from Pump.fun within one hour after the ban were related to the episode.

According to a Dune dashboard by user adam_tehc, the suspension-related tokens that graduated represent 9% of all memecoins that completed the bonding curve on June 16.

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Apple has delisted 14 crypto apps in South Korea at the request of one of the country’s regulators.

South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), an anti-money laundering agency, issued the requests.

The regulator claims the banned apps involved foreign virtual asset operators conducting “unreported business activities.”

Apple’s list of blocked apps includes the crypto exchange giants KuCoin and MEXC. Last month, Google Play delisted both of those exchanges and 15 other crypto operators at the FIU’s request.

The regulatory crackdown materializes as crypto adoption swells across South Korea. The Seoul-based news agency Yonhap, citing data released by the South Korean government, reported that as of late February of this year, 16.29 million people have opened accounts on Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, the country’s top five domestic crypto exchanges. The country currently has an overall population of nearly 52 million.

Banks in South Korea have also reportedly been rushing to partner with crypto firms as the country’s digital asset regulations become less restrictive.

In February, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission announced that the country would launch a pilot program in the second half of 2025 that allows 3,500 corporate entities to buy crypto for investment and financial purposes. Corporate crypto transactions have been banned in the country since 2017.

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Stablecoins backed by cash or cash-equivalent reserves and redeemable for US dollars on a one-to-one basis are not securities under federal law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said on April 4, offering one of its clearest positions yet on the regulatory treatment of crypto.

In a public statement, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance outlined its legal views on what it termed “Covered Stablecoins” — a category that includes fiat-backed digital tokens designed to maintain price stability through fully reserved dollar holdings.

According to the Division, the offer and sale of stablecoins do not involve securities transactions and, therefore, do not require registration under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The move is likely to provide legal clarity for stablecoin issuers, fintech firms, and crypto payment providers that have long operated in regulatory uncertainty.

Used for payments, not profit

According to the SEC, Covered Stablecoins are designed and marketed solely as tools for payments, money transmission, and value storage.

They do not grant holders interest, profits, governance rights, or ownership claims and are typically described as “digital dollars” rather than investment products.

The SEC emphasized that these tokens are not promoted as profit-generating instruments, a key distinction under federal securities law. The regulator’s conclusion was based on two landmark legal standards: the Reves v. Ernst & Young test and the Howey test.

Under Reves, the Division found that Covered Stablecoins more closely resemble instruments used for routine commercial transactions rather than speculative notes or debt securities. The agency pointed to the buyer’s non-investment motivation and the lack of trading for profit as key reasons the tokens fall outside the securities definition.

The SEC also applied the Howey test, which examines whether an arrangement involves investing money in a common enterprise with an expectation of profit from others’ efforts. The agency found that Covered Stablecoin holders are not investing for returns and that the economic reality is that of a consumer transaction, not an investment contract.

Covered Stablecoins

According to the SEC, Covered Stablecoins must be redeemable for USD at a fixed price, at any time, and in unlimited quantities. Additionally, issuers must maintain a fully backed reserve consisting of cash or liquid, low-risk assets such as US Treasury bills.

These reserves must be segregated, not used for the issuer’s business operations, and safeguarded from third-party claims. In some cases, issuers must also publish proof-of-reserve attestations to verify solvency and transparency.

While Covered Stablecoins may trade on secondary markets, their price is typically stabilized through arbitrage. If the market price rises above the peg, designated parties can mint new tokens and sell them for a profit, increasing supply and lowering the price.

Meanwhile, if the price drops below the peg, they can buy tokens at a discount and redeem them for full value, decreasing supply and lifting the price.

Questions about yield remain

The SEC highlighted that holders of Covered Stablecoins do not receive any form of yield or share in the earnings generated from reserve assets. While issuers may earn interest on the assets held in reserve, those earnings are retained by the issuer and not distributed to token holders.

The Commission emphasized that the absence of yield or financial benefit removes a key element of the Howey test, namely, the expectation of profit derived from the efforts of others.

By clarifying that Covered Stablecoins are not marketed as investments and offer no upside participation, the SEC drew a line between fiat-backed tokens used for utility and those marketed with return-generating features.

The agency noted that tokens promising returns, profit-sharing, or exposure to an issuer’s financial performance could still be subject to securities laws.

The statement does not extend to algorithmic or uncollateralized stablecoins, which remain subject to further legal and policy consideration. Nonetheless, the announcement marks a key milestone in delineating the regulatory boundaries of digital dollar equivalents.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unveiled plans to host four more crypto-focused roundtables in Washington, D.C., as part of its broader initiative to reshape digital asset regulation.

According to a March 25 statement, these sessions will explore key areas such as crypto trading, custody, tokenization, and DeFi.

The first event, Between a Block and a Hard Place: Tailoring Regulation for Crypto Trading, is set for April 11. Discussions on custody, tokenization, and DeFi will follow on April 25, May 12, and June 6.

All roundtables will be available via live stream on the SEC’s website to encourage public engagement.

These events are part of the Commission’s ongoing effort to modernize its oversight of the crypto sector. Since launching its Crypto Task Force, the financial regulator has emphasized the need for balance—protecting investors while supporting innovation.

The initiative builds on the Commission’s first crypto roundtable on March 21. Despite varying opinions, participants shared a common demand—regulatory clarity. The dialogue emphasized the need for updated policies that better reflect the unique challenges of crypto markets.

Why SEC roundtables?

According to the SEC, the planned roundtables would help the “Commission draw clear regulatory lines, provide realistic paths to registration, craft sensible disclosure frameworks, and deploy enforcement resources judiciously.”

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, who leads the Crypto Task Force, stressed the importance of direct engagement with industry experts. She noted that the sessions offer meaningful debate opportunities, helping shape a more effective regulatory path forward.

According to her:

“The Crypto Task Force roundtables are an opportunity for us to hear a lively discussion among experts about what the regulatory issues are and what the Commission can do to solve them.”

Meanwhile, this development comes amid a dramatic shift in the SEC’s stance under the Trump administration.

The agency has dismantled its crypto-enforcement program and dropped several high-profile cases and investigations involving firms like Coinbase, Kraken, Ripple, Gemini, and OpenSea.

The changes point to a significant transition—from broad enforcement actions to a clearer, more structured regulatory environment for the US crypto industry.

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