What you need to know

• Samsung’s One UI 8 beta is spreading fast, and is now on the Galaxy S23/S24, mid-range A-series, and foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold 5/6 and Z Flip 5/6.
• The rollout is currently taking place only in South Korea for now.
• If you’re outside Korea, the beta isn’t officially out yet, but the rollout hints it’s coming soon.

Samsung’s One UI 8 beta is now reaching more phones. The program yesterday expanded beyond its initial rollout to include the Galaxy S23 series and a selection of mid-range models like the Galaxy A55, A54, A35, and A34. Access is also now live for the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5.

Samsung’s Korean Community forum confirms the One UI 8 beta is live for those two-year-old foldable phones. Tarun Vats shared news of the rollout on X (via SamMobile).

This update weaves Galaxy AI deeper into your devices to simplify everyday actions. You’ll find major upgrades to productivity tools and a tighter, more seamless connection with Galaxy tablets and wearables.

It also brings a fresh layer of personalization, giving you more control over your themes, lock screen, and widgets. Underneath it all, refined animations and transitions make every interaction feel noticeably smoother.

You can join the beta through the Samsung Members app to preview the Android 16-based update early. As the screenshot shows, it’s a sizable download at over 3GB.

Once you’re enrolled in the beta, head to Settings > Software update > Download and install. When it’s done downloading, tap “Install now” to start the update.

The One UI 8 beta is already live for the Galaxy S25 and S24 series, plus the Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6. Samsung previously confirmed the stable release would drop in September, starting with the S25 lineup, and will reach more Galaxy devices worldwide in October with Android 16 features and fresh One UI tweaks.

There’s no timeline yet for Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Flip 5 owners outside Korea, but this launch suggests a broader rollout is just around the corner, likely only a few days away.

Lisbon is hosting the fourth edition of NFC Summit this week, running from June 4 to June 6 and is expected to draw around 5,000 participants per day to Pavilhão Carlos Lopes.

This year’s event reflects a growing shift in the web3 industry—from trading and speculation to applications in culture, media, and entertainment. Organisers have positioned the summit as a multi-disciplinary gathering, with programming designed to appeal to professionals from creative industries as well as those working in blockchain development.

A single pass grants access to eight major events focused on themes such as digital art, gaming, decentralised platforms, artificial intelligence, and online communities.

What is NFC Summit?

NFC Summit (short for Non-Fungible Conference) began as a web3-focused event in 2022. Initially centred on NFTs and digital ownership, it has since expanded to include a broader range of topics related to blockchain technology and digital creativity.

It is held annually in Lisbon and attracts attendees from across Europe and beyond, including representatives of technology firms, creative professionals, and web3 communities. Previous editions have focused heavily on art and innovation, with a strong presence from digital creators and platform developers.

Now in its fourth year, NFC Summit has evolved into a hybrid format that combines panel discussions and industry talks with exhibitions, performances, and community gatherings.

What can we expect from NFC Summit 2025?

The main programming will take place on a 360-degree stage inside the Pavilhão Carlos Lopes and is intended to allow for flexible formats, including roundtable discussions, presentations, and performances.

The list of confirmed participants includes OpenSea, The Sandbox, Tezos, CoinMarketCap, and football club S.L. Benfica. Digital artists Claire Silver, Sam Spratt, and FvckRender are also among the creatives featured in this year’s programme.

This year’s event features eight core programmes with each having a specific focus and is open to all attendees through a single registration. Key events include:

• Memecon: A series of talks and sessions examining internet culture and its role in the crypto space
• Ordinals Lisbon: Exploring Bitcoin Ordinals and their relationship with Ethereum-based digital art
• AIFA Awards: A digital film and animation award programme led by Clare Maguire and Leo Crane
• TON of People: A gathering for developers, users, and communities connected to the TON blockchain
• Chilibangs Fest: A series of community-led events from a web3 collective known for global meetups
• Red Beard x 100C: A live stage show featuring interviews with artists and performers
• Music Beach Festival: Final evening at Costa da Caparica, featuring music and informal networking

Additional sessions on artificial intelligence, social applications of blockchain, gaming, and tokenisation of real-world assets are also part of the agenda.

Interested participants may visit the official NFC Summit website for a full detailed agenda.

May 9th, 2025 – Vilnius, Lithuania

The International Crypto Trading Cup (ICTC-2025) has officially launched — the world’s first global crypto trading tournament held live and on stage.

Over the next two days, May 9 to May 10, viewers around the world will witness a groundbreaking event: two 6-hour live trading sessions on crypto futures, streamed in real time with full transparency. Expect expert commentary, live strategy breakdowns, market insights, and professional discussions that bring crypto trading to life like never before.

Key Features:

• Global Participation: Top traders from around the world competing live on one stage.
• A new standard for the industry: This is more than a tournament — it’s a step forward in making crypto trading both competitive and educational.
• Educational Focus: Part trading competition, part masterclass — viewers can learn, engage, and compare their own strategies with the pros.
• Interactive Engagement: Viewers can observe trading activity live, vote in outcome-based categories, and compare strategies. Voting is linked to task completion and account registration.

Participation Options at ICTC-2025

Competing in the Tournament

Interested participants may enter ICTC-2025 either individually or as part of a team. Registration can be completed via the official competition landing page by selecting either “Compete Solo” or “Choose Squad.” Existing users of the exchange must confirm the creation of a subaccount and link it to their TradingView account to participate.

Trading will take place on May 9 and May 10, from 13:00 to 19:00 UTC, utilizing WhiteBIT futures pairs through the TradingView platform.

Engagement for Observers

Audience members who are not participating in trading can still engage through a voting mechanism across five prediction-based categories. A total of 6,500 USDT will be distributed among participants whose predictions closely align with actual outcomes.

To access the voting feature, users must complete several platform tasks such as registering an account or completing identity verification procedures (KYC), which contribute to point accumulation required for participation.

ICTC-2025 is designed to accommodate both active traders and observers seeking to engage with the event in a structured and transparent format.

Backed by Industry Leaders

ICTC 2025 is powered by a lineup of Tier 1 partners committed to innovation. TradingView joins as the official technological partner, while Tether is a title sponsor, contributing to the prize pool. 

Further strengthening the championship, XTraveler, Anda Seat, and Renty.ae come on board as official event partners and prize contributors. XTraveler serves as the official travel partner. Anda Seat will equip the stage with high-performance chairs for participating traders. Renty.ae enhances the prize pool with an exclusive 52-foot yacht experience.

About WhiteBIT

WhiteBIT is the largest European cryptocurrency exchange by traffic, offering over 780 trading pairs, 330+ assets, and supporting 9 fiat currencies. Founded in 2018, the platform is a part of WhiteBIT Group which serves more than 35 million customers globally. WhiteBIT collaborates with Visa, FACEIT, FC Barcelona, Trabzonspor and the Ukrainian national football team. The company is dedicated to driving the widespread adoption of blockchain technology worldwide.

This material does not pertain solely to the company’s European transactions but applies to the activities of all WhiteBIT Group companies globally.

Contact

WhiteBIT PR Service
pr@whitebit.com

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Data shows the sentiment among the Bitcoin traders has deteriorated into extreme fear as BTC has plunged to start the new week.

Bitcoin Has Seen Another Setback To Kick Off Monday

Bitcoin renewed optimism among investors last week as its price showed signs of recovery, but it would appear that the cryptocurrency has decided to start Monday by shattering those hopes.

Below is a chart that shows how the asset’s recent trajectory has looked.

Looks like the price of the coin has been sliding down over the last few days | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView

As is visible in the graph, Bitcoin was trading around $86,000 just yesterday, but over the past day, the asset has taken a hit that has sent its price down to $82,300.

The rest of the digital asset sector has also printed red returns during this window, although interestingly, Ethereum (ETH) has displayed more strength than the number one cryptocurrency as its price has gone down just around 2%.

With the market-wide downturn, it’s only natural that investor morale would have also been dealt a blow.

Crypto Fear & Greed Index Is Back In Extreme Fear Zone

The “Fear & Greed Index” is an indicator created by Alternative that tells us about the average sentiment present among the traders in the Bitcoin and wider cryptocurrency markets.

The index determines the investor mentality based on the data of the following five factors: trading volume, market cap dominance, social media sentiment, volatility, and Google Trends. It represents the sentiment as a score lying between 0 and 100.

All values under the 47 mark correlate to a sentiment of fear, while those above 53 suggest the investors as a whole are showing greed. The zone in-between these two thresholds corresponds to a neutral mentality.

Besides these three regions, there are also two ‘extreme‘ zones, known as the extreme greed (occurring above 75) and extreme fear (below 26).

The market currently happens to be in the latter of these special regions, as the latest value of the Fear & Greed Index suggests.

The value of the index appears to be 20 at the moment | Source: Alternative

As is visible above, the Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index has a value of 20 right now. Just yesterday, the metric was around the 27 mark, which put the market sentiment in the normal fear zone.

The trend in the Fear & Greed Index over the last twelve months | Source: Alternative

Compared to the low of 15 from earlier in the month, the indicator’s value is still improved even after the plunge. It remains to be seen, however, whether the sentiment would worsen in the coming days or not.

Historically, the extreme regions have held much significance for Bitcoin and other digital assets, as whenever the traders have held these sentiments, the prices have tended to approach a top or bottom.

The relationship has been an inverse one, however, meaning investor despair has led to a bottom and excessive hype has resulted in a top. As such, the latest drop into extreme fear could imply a low may be near for Bitcoin and others.

Featured image from Dall-E, Alternative.me, chart from TradingView.com

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HK Asia Holdings (HK1723) announced a purchase of Bitcoin through a series of transactions on an open market crypto exchange platform on 20 Feb.

The company acquired approximately 7.88 BTC at an aggregate consideration of HK$5,936,906.26 (US$761,705.07, excluding transaction costs), financing the investment exclusively with internal resources. The purchase, which follows an earlier Bitcoin acquisition announced on 16 Feb, brings the Group’s total holding to about 8.88 BTC, with an average cost of HK$756,209.74 per unit.

The aggregated investment remains below the 5% threshold specified under Chapter 14 of the Listing Rules, so the transaction does not trigger notifiable reporting requirements. Joint Offerors have consented to the initial and subsequent transactions, and shareholders are advised to exercise caution when dealing with the company’s shares.

The filing arrives amid a broader strategic realignment that has redirected HK Asia Holdings’ focus toward digital assets and blockchain technology. The company’s earlier purchase of 1 BTC was emblematic of its emerging commitment to a digital-first approach—a pivot further underscored by its recent board appointments.

Figures associated with BTC Inc. and Sora Ventures have joined the leadership team, reinforcing a strategy that now encompasses Web3 initiatives and innovative financial instruments.

The measured execution of the latest Bitcoin acquisition, structured to stay within regulatory thresholds, may reflect a deliberate effort to balance exposure to volatile digital asset markets while leveraging in-house liquidity.

HK Asia Holdings’ incremental buildup of Bitcoin positions aligns with the recently announced MicroStrategy 2.0 plan to integrate Bitcoin into traditional companies’ portfolios. The transaction’s scale and timing suggest a strategic posture aimed at capitalizing on potential market opportunities while adhering to the regulatory frameworks governing Hong Kong’s capital markets. By limiting aggregated crypto exposure below critical notifiable levels, the company appears to manage risk without compromising its broader strategic objectives.

As the company undergoes a significant transformation following the majority acquisition by UTXO Management, Sora Ventures, and other partners, the new leadership is now actively involved in day-to-day operations and steered the company toward a rebranding initiative expected to culminate in a new identity—Moon Inc.—reflecting its long-term commitment to digital assets.

HK Asia Holdings’ price hit an all-time high of 6.6 HKD following the announcement.

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