The Daily: OG bitcoin whale moves BTC worth billions to Galaxy Digital, why ‘Crypto Week’ bills could take the industry mainstream, and more

The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

Happy Tuesday! Bitcoin’s rally has cooled as traders book profits, slipping below $118,000 after hitting an all-time high above $123,000, with June U.S. inflation data coming in slightly hotter than expected.

In today’s newsletter, the OG bitcoin whale who recently woke up after 14 years of dormancy moves billions of dollars in BTC to Galaxy Digital. Plus, Bitwise says “Crypto Week” legislation could be set to take digital assets mainstream, while Rep. Waters slams the bills amid President Trump’s ties to the industry, and more.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Justice Department and CFTC reportedly closed their probes into Polymarket.

Let’s get started.

OG bitcoin whale moves billions of dollars in BTC to Galaxy Digital

An OG bitcoin whale transferred over 40,000 BTC worth $4.7 billion to Galaxy Digital early Tuesday, onchain data shows.

• The 2011 miner had previously moved 80,000 BTC ($9.3 billion) on July 4 after 14 years of dormancy, sparking wild speculation about their identity, ranging from Roger Ver to Satoshi.
• The transfers to Galaxy came from two addresses, each sending about 20,000 BTC in multiple large batches overnight.
• Onchain analysts Lookonchain suggested the whale is likely preparing to sell through Galaxy’s OTC desk amid bitcoin’s all-time high rally.
• This marks the whale’s first-ever known cash-out, according to fellow blockchain analytics platform Onchain Lens.
• The remaining 40,000 BTC are likely still held by the OG whale after initially transferring them on Independence Day — split equally across four addresses.

If ‘Crypto Week’ bills pass, ‘you can’t put the genie back in the bottle — crypto is going mainstream,’ says Bitwise CIOBitwise CIO

Matt Hougan said in a client memo that legislation advancing during “Crypto Week” could permanently change the crypto landscape.

• The House is moving on three key bills: the GENIUS Act to regulate stablecoins, the Clarity Act to define crypto asset market infrastructure rules, and the Anti-CBDC Act to ban a U.S. central bank digital currency, Hougan noted.
• Clear U.S. regulation would attract major Wall Street institutions, unlock billions in investment, move trillions of traditional assets onto blockchain rails, and reduce risks from unregulated markets, he said.
• “You can’t put the genie back in the bottle. If these bills pass through Congress and eventually get signed into law, we’ve entered a new era,” Hougan concluded. “Crypto is going mainstream, risk is being reduced, and Wall Street is moving into the space in a big way. No wonder we’re at all-time highs.”

Rep. Waters says crypto bills could ‘open floodgates’ to fraud, slams Trump’s ties to industry

Not everyone is enthusiastic about “Crypto Week,” however. Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters warned that the GENIUS and Clarity crypto bills could “open the floodgates to massive fraud and financial ruin for millions of American families.”

• In an opinion piece for MSNBC, Waters criticized both bills for legitimizing President Trump’s crypto ties, which account for approximately $620 million of the Trump family’s wealth, according to Bloomberg.
• Waters also argued that the bills weaken consumer protections by limiting SEC oversight and underfunding regulators tasked with enforcing rules.
• The House is expected to vote on the Clarity Act on Wednesday and the GENIUS stablecoin bill on Thursday.

SharpLink becomes largest corporate ether holder with 280,706 ETH surpassing Ethereum Foundation

SharpLink Gaming disclosed it bought 74,656 ETH for around $156 million last week, raising its total treasury to 280,706 ETH ($854 million) and surpassing the Ethereum Foundation’s holdings.

• The company funded the spree with proceeds from a $413 million at-the-market offering, leaving $257 million for more ether purchases.
• Nasdaq-listed SharpLink has also staked nearly all its ETH holdings, earning rewards and introducing an “ETH concentration” metric for investors.
• Sharplink features on a growing list of firms like BitMine and Bit Digital using ATM offerings to compete as the largest publicly traded ether holders.

Coinbase hits $100 billion market cap for first time

Coinbase closed up 1.8% at a record $394.01 on Monday, pushing its market cap past the $100 billion level for the first time.

• The crypto exchange’s stock has surged 50% over the past month alone, boosted by bitcoin’s all-time high rally and its USDC stablecoin partner Circle’s blockbuster IPO.
• Analysts see further upside, with Bernstein recently dubbing Coinbase the “Amazon of crypto” and projecting a $510 price target while Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan predicted it could be a $1 trillion company in the future.

In the next 24 hours

• UK CPI inflation data are out at 2 a.m. ET on Wednesday. Est. MoM 0.2%; Core 0.2%. Est. YoY 3.4%; Core 3.5%. U.S. mortgage figures follow at 7 a.m. and PPI numbers are due at 8:30 a.m.
• U.S. FOMC members Thomas Barkin and John Williams will speak at 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., respectively.
• Arbitrum is set for a token unlock.

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