Odaily News According to informed sources, Backpack is in discussions regarding the terms of a new $50 million funding round, with a valuation of $1 billion. (Axios)

According to the latest data from Gate, the price of gold is reported at $5,018.99 per ounce, with a slight intraday decline of 0.07%; the price of silver has risen to $81.49 per ounce, with an intraday increase of 2.45%.

Regarding volatility indices, the latest BVIX is reported at 54.30, down 4.22% intraday; the latest EVIX (ETH Volatility Index) is reported at 76.83, down 3.50% intraday.

In the foreign exchange market, USD/CNH (US Dollar to Offshore Chinese Yuan) is currently reported at 6.91736, up 0.04% intraday; USD/JPY (US Dollar to Japanese Yen) is currently reported at 156.042, up 0.15% intraday.

In the commodities market, WTI crude oil is up 1.82% intraday, reported at $64.34 per barrel; Brent crude oil is up 1.90% intraday, reported at $69.20 per barrel.

Odaily According to data from msx.com, at the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.04%, the S&P 500 Index rose 0.47%, and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.90%. The crypto sector performed actively, with Circle up 5.36%, Bitmine up 4.79%, MicroStrategy (MSTR) up 2.60%, Coinbase up 1.29%, and SharpLink up 1.14%; while Solana fell 3.65%.

It is reported that msx.com is a decentralized RWA trading platform that has cumulatively listed hundreds of RWA tokens, covering U.S. stocks and ETF token targets such as AAPL, AMZN, GOOGL, META, MSFT, NFLX, and NVDA.

Odaily News Morgan Stanley analyst Stephen Byrd stated that despite Bitcoin's price falling 44% since October, Bitcoin mining companies have found new life as AI data centers. Stephen Byrd initiated coverage on Terawulf and Cipher Mining on Monday, forecasting their stock prices to rise by 159% and 158%, respectively. Stephen Byrd pointed out that the core asset of mining companies is access to electricity, and AI companies are willing to pay a premium for this access, with AI business economics being superior to cryptocurrency mining. Currently, Terawulf has signed a 510-megawatt power agreement with Google, and Cipher Mining has reached similar collaborations with companies like Amazon. Additionally, Stephen Byrd assigned an underweight rating to MARA Holdings, citing its lack of focus in AI strategy.

Odaily News On Monday local time, the Nikkei 225 index surged over 2000 points, breaking through the 56,000-point mark for the first time in history—this also pushed the market value of Berkshire Hathaway's Japanese assets, specifically its investments in the five major trading houses, to exceed $41 billion. Since 2019, Warren Buffett, who has stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, has made a series of large bets on Japanese stocks. Monday's sharp rise in the Tokyo stock market boosted the share prices of related companies, resulting in paper gains of nearly $2 billion in a single day. Based on the details disclosed in Berkshire Hathaway's financial reports, its investment cost is approximately $13.8 billion, meaning this investment has nearly tripled in value. (Jin10)

Odaily News According to data from the Polymarket website, the probability for the event "US and Iran reach a nuclear agreement before 2027" is currently reported at 44%. The probability for this event had previously risen to 57% and has now slightly declined.

The Iran nuclear deal refers to an agreement reached between Iran and countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, and France with UN support. Under this deal, Iran restricts the development of its nuclear program in exchange for the gradual lifting of economic and financial sanctions by the parties involved. On May 8, 2018, then US President Donald Trump announced the United States' withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal at the White House.

Odaily News Federal Reserve Governor Waller stated at an event hosted by the Global Interdependence Center that the Federal Reserve plans to launch a simplified master account (Skinny Master Account) by the end of this year. As a streamlined version of the Federal Reserve's master account, this account will allow compliant institutions direct access to the Federal Reserve's payment system. Such accounts do not support interest on balances and cannot borrow funds through the discount window.

Waller pointed out that due to the stalled legislative progress of the CLARITY Act in Congress regarding cryptocurrency market structure, market regulation remains in a state of uncertainty. He mentioned that the market euphoria generated by the Trump administration taking office is gradually fading, with Bitcoin having retreated from its historical high of $126,000 last December to around $70,000. He emphasized that in the absence of a clear legal framework, the crypto industry is facing certain volatility and disruption.

Odaily News Beast Industries announced it has acquired the mobile banking app Step, which targets teenagers and young adults, to advance its strategic layout in the financial services sector. Step currently boasts over 7 million users and has raised approximately $500 million from investors including Stephen Curry and Justin Timberlake. Jeff Housenbold, CEO of Beast Industries, stated that this acquisition will leverage technology-driven solutions to enhance the financial well-being of its audience. Previously, Ethereum treasury company BitMine Immersion Technologies invested $200 million in Beast Industries in January, and the two parties are exploring the integration of DeFi functionalities into financial platforms. Additionally, Beast Holdings filed a trademark application for "MrBeast Financial" in October, covering businesses such as cryptocurrency trading and payment processing. (Cointelegraph)

Odaily News According to Arkham data, Bitmine purchased another 20,000 ETH from FalconX approximately 7 hours ago, valued at $41.07 million.

Odaily News Nasdaq-listed company ETHZilla (ETHZ) announced that it will launch the Eurus Aero Token I this week. The token will split the monthly cash flow generated from leasing aircraft engines through tokenization, providing investors with on-chain yield exposure.

The token is issued by its subsidiary ETHZilla Aerospace, with the underlying assets being two commercial aircraft engines leased to a "leading U.S. airline." Token holders will receive monthly cash flow distributions from the base rent and usage fees through the ERC-20 token.

ETHZilla is backed by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund. The company was previously known for its Ethereum reserve strategy but has gradually shifted towards Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization since last year. Previously, the company completed a pilot tokenizing assets comprising 95 housing loans.

As the blockchain industry accelerates the on-chain migration of traditional assets, RWA is considered one of the fastest-growing sectors. Ark Invest estimates that the tokenized asset market could reach $11 trillion by 2030, while the current market size is approximately $22 billion.

Odaily News According to Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, the Fed plans to launch the so-called "skinny master account" by the end of this year. Against the backdrop of slow progress on broader crypto market regulatory rules, this will provide limited access to the payment system for certain institutions.

Waller pointed out at an event hosted by the Global Interdependence Center that traditional master accounts allow financial institutions direct access to the Federal Reserve's payment system, while the "skinny" version will have several restrictions, including non-interest-bearing account balances and inability to obtain financing through the discount window. The public comment period for the related proposal has ended. Currently, there remains a divergence between the banking industry and the crypto industry over whether non-traditional financial institutions should have access to the U.S. payment system.

He also mentioned that as crypto market prices correct, the market "excitement" brought about by Trump taking office last year is fading. Waller stated that crypto assets still exhibit high volatility, and price fluctuations are inherently characteristic of this market.

At the legislative level in Washington, the overall regulatory framework for the crypto industry still faces resistance, with progress on several related bills remaining slow.

Odaily News According to people directly familiar with the matter, subscription demand for Alphabet's bond issuance has exceeded $100 billion, with the issuance size expected to be around $15 billion. This level of demand is considered one of the hottest cases in the history of corporate bond issuance, showing investors' strong interest in debt assets related to the artificial intelligence boom. Just last week, Oracle raised $25 billion through a bond issuance, with subscription demand reaching a record $129 billion. Alphabet has also appointed multiple banks to prepare for potential bond issuances denominated in Swiss francs and British pounds, including a rare 100-year bond.

Odaily According to The Wall Street Journal, the White House is at an impasse with Congress over a housing proposal from Trump, which aims to prohibit Wall Street investors from purchasing single-family homes. Trump administration officials have been pressuring Republicans in recent weeks to include this investor ban as an amendment to the "21st Century Housing Act," currently advancing in both chambers. However, lawmakers in both houses have resisted incorporating the ban into the bill. Any such amendment could potentially derail the "21st Century Housing Act" and the broader, months-long bipartisan housing legislative process. The congressional bills focus on stimulating housing supply, whereas Trump has reservations about expanding supply. His housing plan announced this year places more emphasis on stimulating demand. Yet, key Republican lawmakers are currently disinclined to support this approach. House Financial Services Committee Chairman, Representative Hill, rejected the White House's request to add the relevant amendment to the "21st Century Housing Act." Republicans on the Financial Services Committee are also generally skeptical of the investor ban proposal, viewing it as contrary to free-market principles and property rights.

Odaily News U.S. Commerce Secretary Rutenik is facing calls to resign from both parties after appearing in the latest batch of documents related to Epstein. California Democratic Senator Schiff accused Rutenik on Monday in a statement of "lying" about the depth of his relationship with Epstein. Rutenik had previously attempted to downplay their relationship, stating last year that he had sworn in 2005 never to be in the same room as Epstein again. However, documents recently released by the Department of Justice show that Rutenik continued to have contact with Epstein thereafter. Schiff said: "Rutenik should resign immediately." Several Democrats, including Robert Garcia, the senior member of the House Oversight Committee, have also called for Rutenik to step down. James Comer, the Republican Chairman of the House Oversight Committee from Kentucky who is leading the Epstein investigation, has not ruled out the possibility of issuing a subpoena to Rutenik but stated that the committee will currently prioritize handling outstanding subpoenas.