GENIUS Act Signed, ETH Gains Momentum, DeFi Goes Mainstream, and Ponzi Falls

Real World Adoption | Regulatory Wins | Billionaire Bets | Dark Side of DeFi

🚨 1. U.S. House Passes Landmark Stablecoin Bill — The GENIUS Act

In a monumental step for digital finance, the U.S. House has passed the GENIUS Act (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins), making it the first federal law regulating stablecoins.

Key provisions include:

• 💵 100% cash or Treasury reserves for all payment stablecoins

• 🏦 Banks, credit unions & fintechs now legally permitted to issue stablecoins

• 🔍 Monthly audits and strong anti-money laundering (AML) enforcement

• 🚫 Federal Reserve banned from launching a retail Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)

🖊️ President Trump signed the bill into law on July 18, triggering a crypto market surge as Bitcoin briefly touched $123K, and Ethereum gained over 4%.

🔎 Why it matters: Clear regulation opens the floodgates for traditional finance to finally embrace stablecoins—and brings long-overdue consumer protections.

🧠 2. Peter Thiel Makes Bold Ethereum Play

Billionaire investor Peter Thiel has acquired a 9.1% stake in Bitmine Immersion Technologies, a treasury-backed Ethereum asset firm founded by renowned strategist Tom Lee.

📈 Following the news, Bitmine’s stock surged sharply.

🪙 The firm operates like a decentralized reserve platform—storing and leveraging ETH-based assets for long-term growth.

💬 Why it matters:
Thiel's investment is more than just capital—it's a major vote of confidence in Ethereum's future as institutional-grade infrastructure. Ethereum continues to gain favor among high-net-worth investors and hedge funds.

💳 3. Swype Card Launches: DeFi Now Accepted at 100M+ Stores

In a powerful demonstration of DeFi’s growing relevance, Brahma and Euler Labs have launched Swype.fun — a DeFi-backed virtual credit card that lets you spend crypto without selling it.

🔧 How it works:

• Deposit ETH or USDC as collateral

• Instantly borrow USDC for payments, settled directly with merchants

• Compatible with Apple Pay, Google Pay

• Fully non-custodial — you control your assets, limits, and collateral

🌍 Why it matters:
DeFi has taken a huge leap into the real world. Swype connects on-chain liquidity to real-world commerce, allowing everyday purchases at 100M+ locations globally — without giving up your crypto holdings.

⚠️ 4. DGCX Scam Collapses With $1.8 Billion — Founder Mocks Victims

A massive crypto pyramid scheme called DGCX XinKangJia has imploded, locking up $1.8 billion in USDT from over 2 million users.

On July 7, Chinese regulators officially declared the project a fraudulent pyramid scheme. The app froze withdrawals and vanished, leaving investors in shock.

💬 Then came a disturbing message from the alleged founder, shared widely by local media:

📛 Why it matters:
This is a sobering reminder that the crypto industry still faces serious trust and security challenges. If it looks too good to be true—it probably is.

📊 Quick Market Snapshot (as of July 19, 2025)

🧠 Final Thought

This week’s headlines reveal the full spectrum of crypto’s evolution:

✅ Legal frameworks are strengthening
🚀 Billionaires are going deep on Ethereum
🛍️ DeFi is crossing into daily spending
😡 And scams are still exploiting trust gaps

Whether you’re an investor, builder, or observer—it’s never been more important to stay informed.

Want to keep your edge in crypto?
✅ Read. 🧠 Think. ⚖️ Question. 🛡️ Verify.

Until next week,
— Crypto Intelligence Weekly