Bernstein set a $140 price target for Circle after USDC supply increased by $2 billion over the past week, highlighting rapid stablecoin growth tied to the company's flagship token.

ChainThink reported that Cointelegraph said on Aug. 25 that investment bank Bernstein reaffirmed its Outperform rating on Circle (CRCL) and kept its price target at $140, implying roughly 60% upside. Circle shares have gained about 40% over the past month. Bernstein analysts pointed to signs of "digital dollar reinflation", noting USDC supply jumped by around $2 billion over seven days, reversing six months of stagnation. The bank expects the next leg of stablecoin growth to be supported by a broader crypto market recovery, improved regulatory clarity, expansion of tokenized capital markets, and wider use in payments. It also cited early indications that AI agents are beginning to use stablecoins for payments. USDC's market capitalization remains smaller than USDT's, but its trading activity has accelerated. Bernstein said USDC's share of adjusted stablecoin trading volume has climbed from about 40% in 2025 to more than 60% so far in 2026, overtaking USDT on that measure.

U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs posted a sharp jump in assets under management last week, with most of the increase driven by rising token prices rather than fresh subscriptions, CoinDesk reported. Data for the week ended Aug. 21 show combined net inflows of about $2.6 billion across the two ETF groups, while total AUM climbed roughly $23.3 billion. SoSoValue figures indicate spot Bitcoin ETFs took in $1.92 billion of net inflows for the week, and spot Ethereum ETFs added $697.2 million, bringing total net inflows to approximately $2.6 billion. It was the strongest week for both product categories since October 2025. AUM for spot Bitcoin ETFs rose to $96.1 billion from $76.6 billion, a weekly increase of 25.4%. Ethereum ETF AUM grew to $14.3 billion from $10.5 billion, up 35.9% on the week. Together, the products expanded by about $23.3 billion. After subtracting the $2.6 billion in net inflows, roughly $20.7 billion of the week's AUM growth is attributed to the appreciation of assets already held by the funds. Bitcoin rallied from around $62,000 to briefly above $79,000, a weekly gain of about 24%. Ethereum advanced from below $1,900 to above $2,500, up roughly 30% on the week. The move lifted the market value of ETF holdings. CoinDesk cited three main catalysts behind the rally. The U.S. Treasury doubled the size of its long-term Treasury buyback program, a move described as weakening the dollar and boosting demand for inflation-hedging assets. The report also pointed to Trump's meeting with crypto industry executives at the White House and his call for Congress to advance the Clarity Act. In addition, short covering added momentum as prices cleared key levels. The report said about $3 billion in short positions were liquidated within 24 hours, followed by another $1 billion the next day, with forced buying contributing to further gains. Despite last week's surge, the year-to-date funding picture remains negative. CoinDesk reported that Bitcoin ETFs are still showing net outflows for 2026, and Ethereum ETFs also remain in net outflow territory. Combined year-to-date net outflows for the two product groups have narrowed to $3.1 billion from $5.7 billion.

China on Aug. 24 opened applications for an 800 billion yuan (about $119 billion) policy-backed financing facility, formally kicking off what is seen as Beijing's most forceful quasi-fiscal stimulus in years. The program is intended to provide equity-like capital to qualifying infrastructure and high-tech manufacturing projects, with the initial injection designed to catalyze larger volumes of bank and private-sector funding. The new facility expands on a 500 billion yuan version introduced in 2025. The 300 billion yuan increase represents a 60% enlargement, underscoring policymakers' concerns over weak fixed-asset investment and subdued private investment. The tool sits between direct fiscal spending and traditional lending. Local governments are tasked with compiling lists of eligible projects and submitting them through a centralized approval process for sign-off in Beijing. Caitong Securities estimates the facility could ultimately underpin roughly 10 trillion yuan in total project investment, implying leverage of around 13:1. The program was announced in March 2026, giving localities months to prepare pipelines of eligible projects. The sector focus mirrors Beijing's industrial policy priorities, including advanced technology and AI-related capacity building. Caitong analysts expect disbursements to lag the application opening by at least a month, narrowing the time window for the initiative to lift construction activity and output over the remainder of 2026. Goldman Sachs estimates a baseline GDP boost of about 0.5 percentage points, concentrated in late 2026 and early 2027. Caitong projects only around 2 trillion yuan of incremental economic support will show up in 2026, citing procedural frictions and a limited pool of bankable projects. Authorities have also rolled out supplemental measures. A central-government interest subsidy of 1.5 percentage points will support small and medium-sized enterprises, capped at 50 million yuan per company. In addition, a 500 billion yuan private-investment guarantee facility has been set up to encourage funding from non-state investors.

Canada's shortage of clean electricity is putting as much as $220 billion of potential investment at risk, underscoring the scale of capital required across the country's power system. Against that backdrop, utility Capital Power reported second-quarter adjusted funds from operations of $328 million and lifted its quarterly dividend by 2%, extending its dividend-growth streak to 13 consecutive years. The company has also secured Meta as a long-term customer, highlighting the premium value of clean-power assets in a tight supply environment.

Strategy said its U.S.-dollar liquidity totaled $6.69 billion as of Aug. 23, 2026, providing roughly 47 months of coverage for preferred dividends and debt interest at current outlays. The liquidity stack is split into two pools. The larger portion is a $5.1 billion USD Reserve, restricted for preferred stock dividends and interest payments. The company also established a new $1.59 billion USD Cash pool for general corporate purposes, including acquisitions, share repurchases and operating needs, without drawing on the restricted reserve. Strategy estimates annual preferred dividends and interest expense at about $1.76 billion, implying around 47 months of coverage. The estimate assumes no incremental revenue, no additional financing and no changes to the dividend and interest schedule. The increase in liquidity was funded by an equity raise completed between Aug. 17 and Aug. 23, when Strategy sold about 18.26 million shares of MSTR common stock. The offering generated roughly $2 billion, which the company allocated among the USD Reserve, preferred share repurchases and the new cash pool. In June 2026, Strategy adopted a "Digital Credit Capital Framework," formalizing its USD Reserve policy and setting rules for when and how Bitcoin may be monetized to meet obligations. Strategy said it did not sell any Bitcoin during the recent equity raise. While the framework allows limited BTC monetization for specific reserve-building purposes, the company chose to fund liquidity solely through equity issuance. Strategy's Bitcoin holdings were unchanged at approximately 840,447 BTC. The framework also authorizes up to $1 billion in repurchases of digital credit securities. Strategy's variable-rate STRC preferred securities currently yield 12% annually. The company said the 47-month coverage offers STRC investors a clearer, measurable cushion compared with prior levels. The $2 billion equity raise diluted existing MSTR shareholders through the issuance of 18.26 million new shares, a tradeoff the company framed as reducing balance-sheet risk while preserving its Bitcoin treasury strategy.

AscendEX, which has halted normal operations and customer withdrawals since July 1, plans to roll out a claims portal around Sept. 5, according to an Aug. 22 update to users. The exchange said the portal is intended to let eligible customers view recorded account balances, register account details, file claims and upload supporting documentation. AscendEX stressed that the initial launch would not restore trading, deposits or withdrawals. AscendEX also cautioned that balances displayed on the portal, or even a claim submission marked as accepted, would not mean the claim has been admitted. The exchange said these steps would not determine a claim's legal status, priority, recovery amount, or the timing of any repayment. Sept. 5 was described as an estimated initial date that could shift if additional technical, security or legal work is required. AscendEX said customers should access the portal only by typing ascendex.com directly, and warned it will not request an additional deposit, password, private key or fee to use the system. No recovery estimate or timeline for resuming withdrawals AscendEX has not provided an estimate of potential customer recoveries or a timetable for withdrawals to restart. The exchange framed the portal primarily as a mechanism to document and organize customer claims, not a process that determines who gets paid or when. Rescue options under review alongside insolvency preparations In the same notice, AscendEX said it is evaluating rescue, recapitalization and restructuring options while also taking steps toward a formal insolvency process. The company offered no assurance that a rescue transaction will be completed. The update did not indicate that any court, administrator or other authority has opened insolvency proceedings. It also did not specify which legal entity would enter insolvency, the jurisdiction or forum, any appointed officeholder, a claims deadline, or the asset pool that could be available for customer recoveries. AscendEX's shutdown followed the July 1 suspension of normal operations and withdrawals. The exchange has attributed financial strain to a failed recapitalization effort and, in part, to losses linked to a December 2021 security incident. Even with the planned portal launch, the company has not clarified how much customers may recover or when repayments could begin. Source: CryptoSlate

Validators operating chains that use the Cosmos EVM module have been asked to pause their networks as a security incident continues to spread. @cosmoslabs_io said on Monday its security teams are actively responding to an ongoing issue affecting users of the module, and that a formal incident report will be published once the situation is resolved. The same shared component disrupted MANTRA, a Cosmos-based real-world assets (RWA) chain, which went offline for about 30 hours last week. MANTRA's team said the exploit impacted two company-managed wallets and did not affect user funds.

Applied Materials has fallen more than 34% from its 52-week high, even as the company posted a record third-quarter performance. Q3 revenue reached $9.1 billion, up 25% year over year. Adjusted earnings per share climbed 41% to $3.50. Profitability also improved: gross margin rose to 50.4%, and operating margin hit a record 34%. Ongoing investment in AI infrastructure continues to support demand for semiconductor manufacturing equipment. After the sharp pullback, the stock's risk-reward profile looks more compelling for investors considering buying the dip in AMAT.