The Daily: Standard Chartered sees bitcoin waking up to $135K when September ends, Robinhood deploys over 200 tokenized stocks, and more

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

Happy Wednesday! The mammoth 15-day, $4.7 billion net inflow streak into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs came to an end yesterday, with $342 million exiting the funds. The question is: are the flows following price — or leading it?

In today’s newsletter, Standard Chartered predicts bitcoin at $135,000 by Q3 close, Robinhood pays $5 in transaction fees to deploy 213 tokenized stocks on Arbitrum, Bit Digital raises $163 million for its Ethereum treasury, and more.

Meanwhile, Coinbase buys token operations startup Liquifi in its fourth acquisition this year.

Let’s get started.

Standard Chartered sees bitcoin waking up to $135K when September ends

Standard Chartered Head of Global Digital Assets Research Geoffrey Kendrick expects bitcoin to hit $135,000 by the end of September and has reaffirmed his $200,000 year-end target.

• Kendrick argues that H2 catalysts will override the typical post-halving slump seen in prior cycles, citing growing ETF flows, rising corporate treasury demand, and supportive U.S. policy tailwinds.
• Spot Bitcoin ETFs and corporate treasury buyers scooped up 245,000 BTC in Q2, and Kendrick anticipates that figure will be surpassed in Q3 as passive allocations grow and more firms adopt leveraged acquisition strategies.
• Bitcoin ETFs attracted $12.4 billion in Q2 — outpacing gold ETFs amid the geopolitical tension — with Kendrick noting the absence of significant hedging as a sign of strong net demand.
• The analyst also sees a possible Trump-led Federal Reserve leadership change, rising Treasury term premiums, and passage of the GENIUS stablecoin bill as additional bullish levers.
• If Kendrick’s $200,000 target materializes, bitcoin would gain over $90,000 in H2 — marking the largest second-half dollar rally in its 16-year history.

Robinhood pays $5 to deploy over 200 tokenized stocks on Arbitrum

Robinhood minted 213 U.S. stocks on Arbitrum for just $5 in total gas fees as it gears up to launch tokenized equity trading for EU users.

• Each deployment cost three cents on average, according to a Dune Analytics dashboard compiled by Entropy Advisors.
• The tokens mirror major U.S. stocks like Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple, but remain locked within a white-listed “walled garden” environment that prevents transfers to DeFi wallets.
• Bybit and Kraken rolled out similar products via a partnership with Backed Finance and its xStocks tool, though those can also be traded via Solana-based DEXs.
• Alongside the token issuance, Robinhood is building its own Arbitrum-based Layer 2 and is expanding into crypto staking and perpetual futures across the U.S. and EU.

Bit Digital raises $163 million to fund Ethereum treasury

Nasdaq-listed Bit Digital has now raised a total of $162.9 million through share offerings to fund its new Ethereum treasury strategy as it exits the bitcoin mining business.

• Underwriters exercised the full overallotment option, boosting the sale to 86.25 million shares and adding another $21.4 million to last week’s raise.
• The company also plans to gradually convert its existing 417.6 BTC ($45 million) holdings into ETH, building on the 24,434 ETH ($61 million) it already held as of Q1.
• Bit Digital joins a growing trend of public firms pivoting to crypto treasuries — but unlike most, it’s betting on ETH over BTC, alongside Tom Lee-chaired BitMine and Joe Lubin-led SharpLink.

Circle unveils Gateway to unify USDC stablecoin access across multiple blockchains

Stablecoin issuer Circle unveiled Gateway, an upcoming cross-chain solution that will let users access a unified USDC balance across multiple blockchains in real time.

• The system removes the need for traditional bridging by allowing users to deposit USDC into a non-custodial smart contract, unlocking capital efficiency and seamless multichain transfers.
• Gateway is set to launch on Avalanche, Base, and Ethereum testnets this month, with additional networks to be added later.
• The cross-chain solution follows Circle’s blockbuster IPO and national banking license application, signaling a major push toward deeper integration with the traditional financial system.

‘Nothing new under the sun’

Despite a packed July agenda with major political and regulatory events, K33 Head of Research Vetle Lunde expects crypto markets to remain subdued, continuing a pattern of quiet summer trading.

• Even with potential “Trump-trade” volatility amid the “big beautiful” budget bill, the end of the 90-day tariff pause, and a key crypto executive order policy deadline, Lunde sees little near-term impact, noting past Julys often paired major headlines with low volumes.
• “Expecting a new repeat this summer might strike the reader as a lazy assumption, particularly given the U.S. policy moves ahead,” he said. “Nonetheless, my base case for the month is that nothing is new under the sun and that the best path ahead is to stay patient and hold your spot exposure.”

In the next 24 hours

• U.S. jobless claims and nonfarm payroll figures are out at 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday. U.S. markets close early at 1 p.m. ahead of Independence Day.
• U.S. FOMC member Raphael Bostic will speak at 11 a.m.

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