Historically, crypto markets have been driven by a dominant narrative. Not today.
In one corner, miners are trying to break free from the four-year cycle. IREN is being restructured as an AI infrastructure company, which analysts say will count on demand as data centers and real growth engines. In the other corner, Bitcoin is doing just the opposite, pouring billions of dollars into Ether (ETH) even as losses mount.
The separation does not stop here. Stablecoin balances have exceeded $300 billion, yet activity has declined sharply. This reflects a wait for capital, with no clear consensus on what happens next.
Meanwhile, institutions are building a parallel track. Tokenized treasuries are now being used as collateral on exchanges, connecting traditional finance and crypto markets more tightly than ever before.
This week’s Crypto Biz highlights markets pulling in different directions.
Bernstein sees IREN moving from Bitcoin mining to a $3.7B AI cloud business
Bernstein analysts are reframing the narrative around IREN, arguing that the company’s future may depend less on Bitcoin (BTC) mining and more on building AI-focused data center capacity.
In a new report, Bernstein highlights IREN’s access to large-scale energy infrastructure as a key advantage, making it ready to support high-performance computing workloads involving artificial intelligence.
IREN’s AI cloud segment could grow into a multibillion-dollar business over time, with estimates suggesting a potential valuation of $3.7 billion. The company has already begun expanding its data center footprint and securing financing to support this shift, indicating a long-term strategy that extends beyond crypto mining.
This change reflects a broader trend among miners to seek more stable and diverse revenue streams as economic conditions in the mining sector worsen.
It is expected that AI Cloud will soon become a major revenue source for IREN. Source: Bernstein
BitMine piles up another 101,000 ETH as unrealized losses mount
Tom Lee’s Bitmain added another 101,000 ETH to its balance sheet, doubling down on its accumulation strategy, even though its existing holdings remain deep underwater. The latest purchase brings the total investment to approximately $17.6 billion, solidifying the company’s position as the largest corporate holder of ether.
The aggressive buying spree comes amid over $6.5 billion of unrealized losses, according to Dropstab, which shows that Ether is trading well below Bitmain’s average acquisition price, last seen at $2,248.55 versus an average of $3,621.34. data.
The scale of the decline underscores the risks of concentrating corporate coffers in a single volatile asset, especially as accumulation continues during price weakness.
BitMine is in deep waters with its ETH position. Source: dropstab
Stablecoin supply surges as transfer volume drops by nearly 20%
According to RWA.xyz data, stablecoin transfer activity declined sharply last month, with total volume falling 19% to approximately $8.3 trillion, while the overall market continued to expand. At the same time, the total supply reached above $305 billion, while the number of holders and active addresses also increased.
Divergence points to capital formation not moving forward. More dollars are entering or staying in stablecoins, but less are being used in blockchains. In practice, liquidity is increasing, but activity is slowing, which suggests that users are holding funds rather than deploying them.
Flows in personal assets tell a similar story. Tether’s USDT (USDT) saw inflows amounting to about $3.6 billion, followed by USDC (USDC), while USDE (USDE) and PayPal USD (PYUSD) saw outflows.
Net inflow of stablecoins over the last 30 days. Source: RWA.xyz
OKEx brings BlackRock’s tokenized treasury fund to trading collateral
OKEx has added BlackRock’s tokenized US Treasury fund, BUIDL, to its platform, allowing institutional clients to use the assets as trading collateral. The integration is part of a new framework developed with Standard Chartered, where funds can be posted as margin while remaining in regulated custody with the bank.
The setup changes how collateral works on crypto exchanges. Instead of hoarding cash or idle stablecoins, clients can hold a yield-yielding treasury-backed asset and still use it to support trading activity.
In some cases, the collateral remains off-exchange under the custody of Standard Chartered, while OKEx mirrors it for trading – a structure designed to reduce counterparty risk without hindering execution.
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