Economic Archives | Page 239 of 684 | Digital Watch Observatory

Bitcoin price drops after whale sell-off while Ethereum holds

Bitcoin price weakened sharply after a $2.7 billion whale sell-off sparked automated liquidations, pushing the cryptocurrency toward key support near $110,500. Over $846 million in liquidations doubled the total crypto capitalisation to about $3.83 trillion.

Indicators suggest short-term volatility and choppy price action.

Technical metrics highlight the divergence between Bitcoin and Ethereum. Bitcoin’s ADX at 16 and RSI near 42 signal low trend conviction and growing selling pressure, while the Squeeze Momentum Indicator points to potential volatility ahead.

Ethereum remains comparatively resilient, with an ADX around 41, a bullish 50–200 EMA spread, and RSI near 59, supporting continued positive momentum.

Traders are advised to emphasise risk management amid elevated uncertainty. Key Bitcoin support levels sit at $110,500 and $107,000–$107,600, with resistance at $116,000 and $120,000. Ethereum support ranges from $4,194 to $4,400, while immediate resistance reaches $4,954.

Tightening stop-losses, reducing leverage, and waiting for confirmed volatility resolution are recommended before initiating new positions.

The recent whale-induced volatility demonstrates how a large order can swiftly impact market dynamics. While Bitcoin shows fragile trend conditions, Ethereum’s technical strength provides a measure of stability.

Monitoring indicators and key levels remains essential for navigating the current environment.

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UAE emerges as major Bitcoin holder through mining operations

The UAE has emerged as a major player in the global crypto landscape, with recent data revealing Bitcoin holdings worth $700 million linked to Citadel’s mining operations. Citadel, owned mainly by the UAE Royal Group via IHC, has boosted the country’s influence in digital assets.

These holdings reflect the UAE’s strategic efforts to establish a robust crypto ecosystem, particularly in Dubai.

Enforcement actions against fraudulent investment schemes and high-profile Ponzi operations have helped the UAE accumulate approximately 420,000 BTC. Governments worldwide own roughly 463,000 BTC, equivalent to around 2.3% of Bitcoin’s total supply.

While some nations maintain secrecy over their holdings, others openly report their Bitcoin accumulation.

Several countries have obtained BTC through mining initiatives. El Salvador continues to expand its reserve with daily purchases under the ‘1 Bitcoin per day’ programme. At the same time, Bhutan has used hydroelectric resources to mine between 12,000 and 13,000 BTC, representing up to 40% of its economy.

Iran has recognised Bitcoin mining as a government-controlled enterprise, requiring licensed miners to sell directly to the Central Bank.

Other nations have acquired BTC primarily through seizures. The US leads with nearly 200,000 BTC from high-profile cases like Silk Road and ransomware takedowns.

China, the UK, and Bulgaria also hold significant amounts from fraud and cybercrime investigations, while smaller nations such as Finland, Georgia, and Venezuela maintain modest reserves.

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Trump threatens sanctions on EU over Digital Services Act

Only five days after the Joint Statement on a United States-European Union framework on an agreement on reciprocal, fair and balanced trade (‘Framework Agreement’), the Trump administration is weighing an unprecedented step against the EU over its new tech rules.

According to The Japan Times and Reuters, US officials are discussing sanctions on the EU or member state representatives responsible for implementing the Digital Services Act (DSA), a sweeping law that forces online platforms to police illegal content. Washington argues the regulation censors Americans and unfairly burdens US companies.

While governments often complain about foreign rules they deem restrictive, directly sanctioning allied officials would mark a sharp escalation. So far, discussions have centred on possible visa bans, though no decision has been made.

Last week, Internal State Department meetings focused on whom such measures might target. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has ordered US diplomats in Europe to lobby against the DSA, urging allies to amend or repeal the law.

Washington insists that the EU is curbing freedom of speech under the banner of combating hate speech and misinformation, while the EU maintains that the act is designed to protect citizens from illegal material such as child exploitation and extremist propaganda.

‘Freedom of expression is a fundamental right in the EU. It lies at the heart of the DSA,’ an EU Commission spokesperson said, rejecting US accusations as ‘completely unfounded.’

Trump has framed the dispute in broader terms, threatening tariffs and export restrictions on any country that imposes digital regulations he deems discriminatory. In recent months, he has repeatedly warned that measures like the DSA, or national digital taxes, are veiled attacks on US companies and conservative voices online. At the same time, the administration has not hesitated to sanction foreign officials in other contexts, including a Brazilian judge overseeing cases against Trump ally Jair Bolsonaro.

US leaders, including Vice President JD Vance, have accused European authorities of suppressing right-wing parties and restricting debate on issues such as immigration. In contrast, European officials argue that their rules are about fairness and safety and do not silence political viewpoints. At a transatlantic conference earlier this year, Vance stunned European counterparts by charging that the EU was undermining democracy, remarks that underscored the widening gap.

The question remains whether Washington will take the extraordinary step of sanctioning officials in Brussels or the EU capitals. Such action could further destabilise an already fragile trade relationship while putting the US squarely at odds with Europe over the future of digital governance.

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Gmail accounts targeted in phishing wave after Google data leak

Hackers linked to the ShinyHunters group have compromised Google’s Salesforce systems, leading to a data leak that puts Gmail and Google Cloud users at risk of phishing attacks.

Google confirmed that customer and company names were exposed, though no passwords were stolen. Attackers are now exploiting the breach with phishing schemes, including fake account resets and malware injection attempts through outdated access points.

With Gmail and Google Cloud serving around 2.5 billion users worldwide, both companies and individuals could be targeted. Early reports on Reddit describe callers posing as Google staff warning of supposed account breaches.

Google urges users to strengthen protections by running its Security Checkup, enabling Advanced Protection, and switching to passkeys instead of passwords. The company emphasised that its staff never initiates unsolicited password resets by phone or email.

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Bluesky shuts down in Mississippi over new age law

Bluesky, a decentralised social media platform, has ceased operations in Mississippi due to a new state law requiring strict age verification.

The company said compliance would require tracking users, identifying children, and collecting sensitive personal information. For a small team like Bluesky’s, the burden of such infrastructure, alongside privacy concerns, made continued service unfeasible.

The law mandates age checks not just for explicit content, but for access to general social media. Bluesky highlighted that even the UK Online Safety Act does not require platforms to track which users are children.

US Mississippi law has sparked debate over whether efforts to protect minors are inadvertently undermining online privacy and free speech. Bluesky warned that such legislation may stifle innovation and entrench dominance by larger tech firms.

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INTERPOL reports over 1,200 arrests in Africa-wide cybercrime operation

INTERPOL has announced that a continent-wide law enforcement initiative targeting cybercrime and fraud networks led to more than 1,200 arrests between June and August 2025. The operation, known as Serengeti 2.0, was carried out across multiple African states and focused on ransomware, online fraud, and business email compromise schemes. Authorities reported the recovery of approximately USD 97.4 million, allegedly stolen from more than 88,000 victims worldwide.

In Angola, police closed 25 unauthorised cryptocurrency mining sites, reportedly operated by 60 Chinese nationals. In Zambia, authorities dismantled a large-scale fraudulent investment scheme involving cryptocurrency platforms, which is estimated to have defrauded around 65,000 individuals of roughly USD 300 million. Fifteen suspects were detained, and assets, including domains, mobile numbers, and bank accounts, were seized.

In a separate raid in Lusaka, police disrupted a suspected human trafficking network and confiscated hundreds of forged passports from seven different countries.

INTERPOL has previously noted that Africa’s rapid uptake of digital technologies, particularly in finance and e-commerce, has increased the scope for cybercriminal activity. At the same time, comparatively weak cybersecurity frameworks have left financial institutions and government systems exposed to data breaches, economic losses, and disruption to trade.

Separately, in June, a Nigerian court sentenced nine Chinese nationals to prison for running an online fraud syndicate that recruited young Nigerians. Following the verdict, China’s ambassador to Nigeria proposed the creation of a joint working group to investigate cybercrime involving Chinese nationals in the region.

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Google Cloud’s new AI tools expand enterprise threat protection

Following last week’s announcements on AI-driven cybersecurity, Google Cloud has unveiled further tools at its Security Summit 2025 aimed at protecting enterprise AI deployments and boosting efficiency for security teams.

The updates build on prior innovations instead of replacing them, reinforcing Google’s strategy of integrating AI directly into security operations.

Vice President and General Manager Jon Ramsey highlighted the growing importance of agentic approaches as AI agents operate across increasingly complex enterprise environments.

Building on the previous rollout, Google now introduces Model Armor protections, designed to shield AI agents from prompt injections, jailbreaking, and data leakage, enhancing safeguards without interrupting existing workflows.

Additional enhancements include the Alert Investigation agent, which automates event enrichment and analysis while offering actionable recommendations.

By combining Mandiant threat intelligence feeds with Google’s Gemini AI, organisations can now detect and respond to incidents across distributed agent networks more rapidly and efficiently than before.

SecOps Labs and updated SOAR dashboards provide early access to AI-powered threat detection experiments and comprehensive visualisations of security operations.

These tools allow teams to continue scaling agentic AI security, turning previous insights into proactive, enterprise-ready protections for real-world deployments.

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Musicians report surge in AI fakes appearing on Spotify and iTunes

Folk singer Emily Portman has become the latest artist targeted by fraudsters releasing AI-generated music in her name. Fans alerted her to a fake album called Orca appearing on Spotify and iTunes, which she said sounded uncannily like her style but was created without her consent.

Portman has filed copyright complaints, but says the platforms were slow to act, and she has yet to regain control of her Spotify profile. Other artists, including Josh Kaufman, Jeff Tweedy, Father John Misty, Sam Beam, Teddy Thompson, and Jakob Dylan, have faced similar cases in recent weeks.

Many of the fake releases appear to originate from the same source, using similar AI artwork and citing record labels with Indonesian names. The tracks are often credited to the same songwriter, Zyan Maliq Mahardika, whose name also appears on imitations of artists in other genres.

Industry analysts say streaming platforms and distributors are struggling to keep pace with AI-driven fraud. Tatiana Cirisano of Midia Research noted that fraudsters exploit passive listeners to generate streaming revenue, while services themselves are turning to AI and machine learning to detect impostors.

Observers warn the issue is likely to worsen before it improves, drawing comparisons to the early days of online piracy. Artists and rights holders may face further challenges as law enforcement attempts to catch up with the evolving abuse of AI.

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Energy and government sectors in Poland face mounting hacktivist threats

Poland has become the leading global target for politically and socially motivated cyberattacks, recording over 450 incidents in the second quarter of 2025, according to Spain’s Industrial Cybersecurity Center.

The report ranked Poland ahead of Ukraine, the UK, France, Germany, and other European states in hacktivist activity. Government institutions and the energy sector were among the most targeted, with organisations supporting Ukraine described as especially vulnerable.

ZIUR’s earlier first-quarter analysis had warned of a sharp rise in attacks against state bodies across Europe. Pro-Russian groups were identified as among the most active, increasingly turning to denial-of-service campaigns to disrupt critical operations.

Europe accounted for the largest share of global hacktivism in the second quarter, with more than 2,500 successful denial-of-service attacks recorded between April and June, underlining the region’s heightened exposure.

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Corporate ETH holdings surpass 10 billion dollars

Entities holding Ethereum treasuries now collectively control over $10 billion worth of ETH. Data from the Strategic ETH Reserve shows 64 organisations hold 2.73 million ETH, accounting for 2.27% of the total supply, highlighting the growing corporate adoption of Ethereum.

Leading the accumulation are Bitmine Immersion Tech, Sharplink Gaming, and The Ether Machine, together holding more than 1.3 million ETH. Most of these acquisitions occurred in under three months, with Bitmine alone now holding over $2 billion worth of ETH.

Public companies continue to plan further purchases, though they are taking a measured approach to limit risks.

Ethereum’s price has steadied around $3,700–$3,800, stalling short of the $4,000 mark investors had hoped to see on the token’s 10th anniversary. Despite this, on-chain activity remains strong, with over 680,000 active wallets and ETH showing significant gains independent of Bitcoin.

DeFi protocols, crypto-native organisations, and even governments also feature among the largest ETH holders. The Ethereum Foundation ranks fourth with 234,600 ETH, while the US government, Michigan State, and Bhutan maintain reserves, demonstrating Ethereum’s broad adoption across sectors.

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