- Shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz has almost come to a standstill as the 60-day U.S.-Iran ceasefire expires without a fresh agreement, bringing oil-supply concerns back into focus for crypto markets. At the same time, Bitcoin ETF flows are showing early signs of improvement.
NVIDIA, OpenAI target $600 billion AI computing opportunity
- NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang said the company plans to secure land, electricity and infrastructure for a series of AI factories, beginning with a site in Portsmouth, Ohio, where OpenAI will be the tenant.
- NVIDIA will support certain lease and power expenses and provide a residual-value commitment, while OpenAI will make the lease payments and install NVIDIA’s computing hardware.
- The Ohio facility could generate an estimated $150 billion to $200 billion in NVIDIA revenue during each hardware upgrade cycle over its 20-year lifespan. When OpenAI’s broader planned deployments are included, NVIDIA estimates the overall computing opportunity could reach around $600 billion by 2030.
- Huang rejected claims that the arrangement represents circular financing, stating that OpenAI will pay the lease.
Strive adds 79 BTC
- Strive Asset Management purchased 79 additional Bitcoin for approximately $5 million at an average price of $63,231 per BTC.
- The acquisition lifts the firm’s Bitcoin holdings to 20,246 BTC, currently valued at about $1.27 billion.
- Strive stock gained around 0.5% in premarket trading.
Bitmine’s ETH holdings reach 4.8% of supply
- Bitmine Immersion reported that its Ethereum holdings have grown to 5.815 million ETH.
- The company’s position now represents about 4.8% of Ethereum’s total supply.
- Bitmine also repurchased 1.7 million shares last week, bringing its cumulative buybacks since the beginning of July to 20.8 million shares.
- BMNR shares were little changed before the market opened.
Anthropic reports sharp revenue growth
- Anthropic generated more than $11.5 billion in revenue during the second quarter, according to Bloomberg, marking a year-over-year increase of more than 14 times.
- The AI company also posted positive operating income, adding to speculation that it could pursue an IPO as early as this fall.
- The report gave technology stocks a modest lift, with Nasdaq 100 futures rising about 0.5%.
Strategy raises $333.7 million without buying more BTC
- Michael Saylor’s Strategy raised $333.7 million last week through common-stock sales, according to a Monday filing.
- The company spent $132.2 million buying back its STRC preferred stock, while the remaining proceeds went toward dividends and increasing its cash holdings.
- Strategy now has approximately $4.8 billion in cash reserves, while its Bitcoin holdings remain at 840,447 BTC.
- MSTR gained roughly 1.3% in premarket trading, while STRC was flat.
Bitcoin, gold and silver climb
- Major risk assets advanced Monday, with Bitcoin, gold and silver all trading higher.
- Bitcoin gained around 1% over 24 hours to move above $63,500. Gold approached $4,400 an ounce, while silver traded just below $66.
- Memory-related equities also posted strong premarket gains. The Roundhill Memory ETF climbed more than 4.5%, extending its rebound from July lows to about 35%, while Sandisk rose more than 4%.
- Micron Technology advanced around 3%, while the Invesco QQQ added more than 0.5%.
Hormuz disruption keeps oil-price threat alive
- The 60-day U.S.-Iran ceasefire was scheduled to expire Monday without a new deal, while commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained severely restricted.
- Kpler data showed only five cargo vessels crossed the waterway Saturday and none on Sunday, compared with 31 during the previous weekend.
- Shipping activity has fallen around 90% from prewar levels through a route that normally transports about one-fifth of the world’s oil.
- Tehran reportedly said it had reached a separate arrangement with Oman to reopen the strait if the U.S. ends its naval blockade, CNBC reported.
- A prolonged disruption could drive crude prices higher, potentially adding to inflation and making it harder for the Federal Reserve to adopt a more dovish policy stance.
- Higher oil prices could also push up the dollar and Treasury yields, creating additional pressure on Bitcoin even as ETF inflows begin recovering.
- Bitcoin remained around $63,300 Monday, still below the $64,000 level.
HIVE jumps after $350 million GPU agreement
- HIVE shares surged around 9% in premarket trading after the company announced a five-year GPU cloud contract worth $350 million.
- The deal increases HIVE’s contracted annual recurring revenue to about $180 million, while the company is targeting $200 million by the fourth quarter of 2026.
- HIVE’s fiscal Q1 2027 revenue increased 73.5% year over year to $79.1 million, while its high-performance computing business grew 52% to $7.1 million.
Dollar falls to June low
- The Dollar Index slipped to 99.29 early Monday, reaching its lowest level since June 5, according to TradingView.
- The move broke below the rising trendline that had guided the dollar’s recovery from its January low of 95.55.
- Further weakness in the U.S. currency could provide a favorable backdrop for Bitcoin and other risk assets.
Bitcoin ETF flows improve beneath quiet market
- Bitcoin remains near $63,500, but fund flows have shifted positively, according to Yusuf Fakhro, a partner at ARP Digital.
- U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted more than 14,000 BTC during the five days ending Aug. 7, representing their strongest inflow period since May.
- Q3 has produced around 11,000 BTC of net inflows so far, compared with approximately 110,000 BTC of outflows during the latter half of Q2.
- The change suggests institutional investors have shifted from selling Bitcoin to accumulating it, even as broader market activity remains subdued.
- Spot volumes have fallen to roughly two-and-a-half-year lows, while perpetual futures activity has dropped to three-year lows. Volatility has also declined to historically low levels.
- Fakhro said fresh demand entering such a thin market could be an early indication of a lasting bottom. He views Bitcoin’s six-month consolidation between $60,000 and $80,000 as evidence of investor apathy rather than a deterioration similar to previous bear markets.
- However, leverage remains a major source of risk. Bitcoin is still caught between $62,000 and $64,000, leaving the market vulnerable to a sharp move in either direction.
- Perpetual futures open interest has stayed above 300,000 BTC despite collapsing volumes, creating the potential for a substantial liquidation wave if Bitcoin breaks out of its current range.
