Digital asset market update — 28 August 2026

Bitcoin has maintained its upward momentum, trading near and above $80,000, driven by sustained institutional demand. BlackRock's head of digital assets, Mitchnick, noted strengthening macro case for bitcoin and robust ETF inflows, with U.S. spot bitcoin funds taking in $2.8 billion since their recent run began (CoinDesk, The Block). Analysts suggest bitcoin is testing significant supply walls, particularly in the $80,000-$86,000 range, which is critical to reaching prior highs (CoinDesk, The Block).

In institutional infrastructure developments, BitGo acquired NYDIG’s institutional trading business, expanding its derivatives offerings and adding approximately 30 employees (The Block). RQD*, a clearing firm, raised $74 million in a round led by Bain Capital, aiming to enhance its digital asset and tokenization infrastructure as Wall Street prepares for tokenized markets (CoinDesk). Charles Schwab also announced plans to add Solana, Avalanche, and Chainlink to its crypto trading platform, which began rolling out BTC and ETH trading in May (The Block). Mirae Asset revealed ambitious plans to build a $109 billion crypto empire through its acquisition of Digital X (formerly Korbit), with a focus on stablecoins, RWAs, and STOs (CoinDesk, The Block).

An XRP treasury company backed by Ripple, Evernorth, is progressing toward a Nasdaq listing under the ticker XRPN following SEC clearance of its S-4 registration statement and a shareholder vote scheduled for September 30 (CoinDesk, The Block). In tokenization, Bitfinex Securities is preparing to list a new security linked to a Luxembourg-based industrial metals platform, aiming to offer tokenized nickel trading (CoinDesk). On the regulatory front, Connecticut has initiated a new lawsuit against prediction market Kalshi, adding to an ongoing legal battle across state and federal courts (CoinDesk, The Block). Additionally, the Polish Olympic Committee president was detained amidst a bribery probe involving digital asset platform Zondacrypto, with allegations of a 40,000 euro watch given for regulatory assistance (The Block, CoinDesk).

Finally, the Ethena Foundation proposed significant updates, including a fee switch for ENA token buybacks and an overhaul of investor unlocks, aiming to reduce selling pressure and channel protocol revenue to the ENA token (The Block, CoinDesk). The crypto market will be closely monitoring Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's upcoming speech at Jackson Hole for potential impacts on monetary policy.