Ether stole the show overnight, jumping about 4% to a two-month high just shy of US$1,970 while Bitcoin idled in the mid-US$60,000s. The Crypto Times reports ETH broke through the US$1,880–1,910 resistance band on heavy volume, helped by a squeeze on short positions, steady spot ETF inflows and a staking supply crunch — exit queues are empty while entry queues lengthen, so more ETH keeps getting locked up. All of this comes with the market holding its breath for the US Federal Reserve’s 28–29 July meeting, where a rate hold at 3.50–3.75% is heavily priced in and the real action will be in the guidance. Why it matters to an Australian holder: ETH is buying around A$2,810 — its best level since late May and up roughly 14% in a month — but it’s also the highest-beta major going into a Fed decision, so expect the sharpest moves either way once the statement drops early Thursday morning our time.
The rest of the overnight wrap
Last call: AUSTRAC registration closes tomorrow. Virtual asset service provider registration shuts Wednesday 29 July, and the Travel Rule has been live since 1 July with no minimum threshold. AU lens: from Thursday, an unregistered platform is operating outside the AUSTRAC regime — if yours hasn’t confirmed its status, get your coins somewhere regulated (or into self-custody) rather than finding out the hard way.
BitMart is shutting down — the second exchange exit in a week. Days after BitMEX announced its wind-down (covered in yesterday’s roundup), BitMart said it will wind down operations after nearly nine years, following AscendEX out the door; its BMX exchange token fell about 70% on the news. On-chain trackers saw no panic withdrawals above US$25,000, suggesting an orderly exit so far — but RootData’s list of dead 2026 projects has now hit 99. AU lens: the offshore exchange cull is accelerating. If you hold anything on a smaller overseas platform, treat these wind-downs as your reminder — withdrawals first, questions later, and remember closing positions triggers CGT events.
ETF flows: the week ended better than it looked. After Thursday and Friday’s US$200M+ daily outflows, spot Bitcoin ETFs clawed back US$33.8M on Friday, and crypto ETFs overall finished the week net positive despite US$465M leaving Bitcoin funds — with Ethereum funds doing the heavy lifting. AU lens: the institutional bid hasn’t vanished, it’s rotated. That’s consistent with ETH’s outperformance and worth knowing before you chase either coin.
Oil retreats as the Iran conflict pauses. A second straight day without fresh US–Iran strikes sent oil sharply lower — WTI is back near US$72 after topping US$85 last week — and nudged investors back into risk assets. AU lens: cheaper oil is good news for petrol prices, inflation and ultimately the AUD — but two quiet days isn’t a ceasefire, and this arc has reversed on us three times this month.
TradFi keeps borrowing crypto’s playbook. CME launched cash-settled single-stock futures on 50+ US companies including Nvidia and SpaceX, and Robinhood Chain just became the biggest tokenised real-world-asset network. AU lens: the market structure crypto pioneered — always-on, tokenised, retail-accessible — is going mainstream fast, which is the quiet bull case that has nothing to do with this week’s candles.
Market pulse
BTC is trading around A$93,600 (~US$65,100), up about 1.4% over 24 hours; ETH sits near A$2,810 (~US$1,960) after its 4% pop. Total market cap is about US$2.3T, BTC dominance ~56.6%, and the Fear & Greed Index has improved to 30 (Fear) from 26. Prices cross-checked across CoinMarketCap, Crypto.com and Coinbase AUD quotes against USD at AUD/USD ~0.70 at time of writing.
What to watch
The Fed decision lands around 4am AEST Thursday, with Chair Warsh’s press conference to follow — the guidance, not the hold, will move markets. AUSTRAC registration closes tomorrow; FTX’s ~US$900M fifth creditor distribution starts 31 July (ignore any email asking you to “verify your wallet” — phishing is guaranteed); Coinbase and Strategy report earnings this week; and CLARITY Act floor action needs to happen before 10 August.
If ETH’s run has you thinking about topping up, our guide to the best Australian crypto exchanges compares the locally regulated options — CoinSpot remains our top pick for most Aussies.
Not financial advice. This roundup is general information only — do your own research and consider talking to a licensed adviser before making investment decisions. Affiliate disclosure: some links above (including CoinSpot) are affiliate links; we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.