Geopolitics

Igor Runets, founder of BitRiver, Russia's largest cryptocurrency mining company, faces fraud charges amounting to $12.5 million and has been transferred to prison for a preliminary hearing. The charges stem from allegations that Runets signed an $8 million equipment supply contract with

South Korea's KOSPI index dropped 1.4% today (July 30), with SK Hynix down 5.8%. Qualcomm will raise chip prices by double-digit percentages starting September. A long-dormant Bitcoin address linked to Bitminter's founder transferred 829 BTC earlier today, marking movement after 8 years of

The US Treasury sanctioned two Iranian maritime firms on Wednesday for alleged involvement in an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-backed insurance network, with one firm accepting Bitcoin and other digital assets to bypass Western sanctions. The Treasury's

According to BlockBeats, on July 30, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two maritime insurance companies in the Persian Gulf for providing insurance policies approved by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and accepting Bitcoin and other digital assets as

According to i24NEWS, the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Iranian maritime insurance companies—Persian Gulf Maritime Insurance and HormuzSafe Maritime Services Administration—for providing insurance policies to commercial vessels transiting the

According to Odaily, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Persian Gulf maritime insurance companies—Persian Gulf Maritime Insurance Company and HormuzSafe Maritime Service Management—for providing Iran-approved insurance policies to commercial vessels

According to i24NEWS, the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Iranian maritime companies on July 30: the Persian Gulf Maritime Insurance Company and HormuzSafe Maritime Services Management. Both firms provided insurance policies approved by Iran's

According to Russian media bits.media, Igor Runets, founder of Russia's largest mining company BitRiver, was moved from house arrest to pre-trial detention by Moscow's Zamoskvoretsky Court on allegations of defrauding approximately 100 million rubles. The charges fall under Article 159, Section 4 of

According to Koo Yun-cheol, South Korea's Deputy Prime Minister, digital asset taxation will be implemented as scheduled on January 1, 2027. Trading income exceeding 2.5 million won will be subject to a 20% tax rate, or up to 22% including local taxes. The policy was originally scheduled for 2022

According to Digital Currency Group on July 29, 2026, the major cryptocurrency investment firm urged the U.S. Senate to pass the Clarity Act, warning that regulatory delays are causing crypto businesses and investment to migrate to competing hubs such as Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. DCG s

Digital Currency Group released a statement Wednesday supporting the Clarity Act, calling the current draft "exactly the kind of certainty our industry needs to grow and thrive responsibly." The conglomerate warned that the U.S. is "ceding ground at an alarming pace" to countries like Singapore and

According to Russian news agency Interfax, Russia's largest bank Sberbank plans to build crypto infrastructure by December, including a digital depository that tracks clients' crypto rights and handles wallet transfers. First Deputy Chairman Alexander Vedyakhin said regulators and the market still n

According to TASS, Russia's parliament approved the Digital Currency and Digital Rights Law, which will expand stablecoins' use in cross-border settlements. Most provisions take effect on September 1, 2026. Import and export enterprises can then settle transactions using cryptocurrencies either

According to Bloomberg, Malaysia's Digital Ministry and the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) withdrew official support for Malaysia Blockchain Week 2026 this Wednesday (July 30) following controversy over promotional materials featuring a former OnlyFans creator, which sparked

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired ballistic missiles at a U.S. base near Jordan's Muwaffaq Salti Air Base at 5:45 p.m. ET on July 28, all intercepted by Patriot systems with no casualties, U.S. Central Command said. Iran claimed retaliation for U.S. actions against its interests. The st

The Korea Exchange halted trading on both the Kospi and Kosdaq indices on Wednesday after both benchmarks fell more than 8%, marking the first time in Korean market history that circuit breakers triggered on consecutive trading days. Kosdaq dropped 8.05% to 649.00 at 12:19 p.m. local time,

According to CENTCOM, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched multiple ballistic missiles at a U.S. military position near Jordan's Muwaffaq Salti Air Base on July 28 at 5:45 p.m. ET. The command confirmed all incoming missiles were intercepted by Patriot air-defense batteries, with no

Gate News message, six stablecoins have obtained licenses to operate in the European Union under MiCA regulations. The licensed stablecoins include $USDC, $EURC, $EURCV, $EURI, $EURQ, and $USDG. Under MiCA framework, dollar-denominated stablecoins continue to lead in terms of market

Bitcoin dropped to a 24-hour low of US$62,785 before recovering to approximately US$63,836 by Wednesday afternoon AEST, marking a 4.3% decline from Monday's intraday high of US$65,618 and leaving the cryptocurrency down 3.7% over seven days. The decline coincided with a second consecutive session of