Welcome to The Epicenter

Intern SZN is upon us...

Jun 16, 2025

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Welcome to The Epicenter, where you’ll find the most relevant news across crypto, RWAs, DeFi, and the broader world of finance—all in a sub-5-minute scroll.

ICYMI, this week U.S. regulators doubled down on stablecoin legislation, with Trump emphasizing “clear and simple” crypto frameworks. And while Bitcoin is still holding strong at $106K, the backdrop has been anything but calm—tensions in the Middle East rattled markets and reminded everyone just how fast sentiment can shift.

Still, not everything is bleak. Spot ETH ETFs are progressing, tokenized T-Bills continue expanding across chains, and RWAs are heating up like it’s 2021 all over again. Plus, it’s officially Intern SZN, which means a flood of badge-wearing overachievers are taking over your office espresso machine and trying to steal your favorite table at Dorsia.

Let’s get into it 👇

⛓️ The On-Chain Pulse: What’s Happening on the Front Lines of Finance

This week’s biggest news in crypto and all things digital assets

BTC dipped to $102.6K in response to Israel-Iran tensions but held steady overall, with data suggesting that traders remain bullish despite broader market jitters—unlike other assets
Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, Galaxy, Grayscale, and VanEck submitted updated S-1 filings for spot SOL ETFs, signaling growing momentum as the SEC pushes issuers to amend documentation
The Trump Administration says it’s working towards “clear and simple” crypto frameworks at an annual Coinbase event this past week
The SEC declared effective Trump Media’s registration for its Bitcoin treasury deal, opening the door to a multi-billion-dollar Bitcoin buy
Circle stock surged after the WSJ reported that Amazon and Walmart are exploring their own stablecoins—but it all depends on whether or not the GENIUS Act passes
Dubai’s real estate market hit $18.2B in sales last month, fueled by growing momentum around tokenization, new regulations, and a record $3B blockchain-based property deal
War tensions held Litecoin’s price recovery at $97.80 even in the midst of its ETF optimism
Spot ETH ETFs broke a 19-day inflow streak, logging $2.2M in outflows as rising geopolitical tensions rattled markets
The SEC named Jamie Selway—a former exec at Blockchain.com and Skew—as director of its trading and markets division, signaling a more crypto-savvy regulatory approach
The RWA token market has already grown 260% in 2025, surpassing $23B as growing US regulatory clarity fuels institutional adoption of tokenized assets

🗣️ Word on the Street: What the Experts are Saying

Stuff you should repost (or maybe even *cough* reword and take credit for)

Kinjal Shah, general partner at Blockchan Capital, called the Shopify x Stripe x Coinbase integration the biggest stablecoin on-ramp yet—with nearly 1B users gaining wallet access and USDC poised to become the default for global e-commerce
Adeniyi Abiodun, cofounder and CPO at Mysten Labs, says RealVision’s integration with Sui signals a broader shift where blockchains are replacing traditional analytics—letting brands directly identify, reward, and engage their real users
Tobi Lutke sees stablecoins as the native payment method of the internet, highlighting the company’s work with Coinbase to build smart contract–based commerce rails, showing an early signal of how mainstream platforms may rewire checkout experiences
Economist Tom Clougherty says Britain’s economy is being dragged down by overregulation, high taxes, and a broken housing market—but argues free market reforms could still turn it around

🏦 Kiss my SaaS: What’s Changing the Game for Fintech

Things you should care about if you want to impress your coworkers

It looks like the US IPO revival is officially here as Chime debuts at a $14.5B valuation, signaling renewed investor appetite for fintech in public markets
Visa is doubling down on fintech, evolving from a card network into a full-scale tech partner as Q2 saw strong payment volume growth driven by app-based platforms and new fintech partnerships
Mercurity Fintech plans to raise $800M for a Bitcoin treasury, potentially making it the 11th-largest corporate BTC holder (just behind Galaxy Digital)
Carlyle and Citi are teaming up to explore asset-backed financing opportunities in fintech specialty lending, signaling growing institutional interest in alternative credit markets
Plaid, Affirm, and N26 say the future of lending won’t rely on credit scores, as outdated models fail to capture the realities of gig workers, immigrants, and younger borrowers

Closing Thoughts

Between regulations heating up, a general sense of on-chain optimism despite war tensions, and the return of the world’s most overconfident interns, this week confirms that finance is evolving into its next era...

As always, stay sharp, stay liquid, and we’ll see you again in two weeks.