[News Brief] Apr 22, morning | U.S. Launches Defensive Strike on Iran at President Trump’s Direction, Middle East Tensions Escalate

U.S. Central Command carried out a defensive strike against Iran at President Trump’s direction in response to the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter the previous day, according to a PA News report citing CCTV News.

U.S. Central Command described the operation as a response to an “unprovoked attack” by Iran. According to the report, explosions were heard early on June 10 in eastern Hormozgan Province in southern Iran, as well as in Qeshm Island, Sirik, and Minab, while Iranian air defenses were activated.

President Trump said, “They shot down the helicopter, and we are responding,” adding, “I believe a strong response is necessary.”

Afterward, an Iraqi militia side reportedly claimed that Iranian drones passed through Iraqi airspace and struck U.S. targets.

According to Odaily, Iran’s top joint military command said it had struck certain U.S. military bases in the region in response to the U.S. attack on southern Iran.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed it had attacked the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain with drones.

The IRGC said clashes were ongoing and warned that it would respond even more forcefully if the United States continued what it called hostile actions.

BIT analyzed that Bitcoin is at a critical test, fluctuating around $60,000 ahead of the release of the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI).

According to PANews, BIT said that persistent inflation concerns, weakening risk appetite for artificial intelligence-related assets, and geopolitical tensions surrounding the Iran conflict are all weighing on Bitcoin.

Caution was also evident in the options market. Implied volatility for put options continued to exceed that of call options, suggesting growing demand for downside protection.

This CPI release is considered a key indicator for assessing the future path of U.S. monetary policy. The market believes that if price pressures come in stronger than expected, it could place additional strain on risk assets broadly.

Odaily reported, citing SoSoValue data, that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw total net outflows of $77,437,800 on June 9 (U.S. Eastern Time).

Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows for three consecutive trading days. The largest outflow came from BlackRock’s IBIT, which saw $61,642,200 leave in a single day.

Meanwhile, Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF recorded a net inflow of $4,398,000. At the time of reporting, the total net assets of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs stood at $77,583,000,000, with cumulative net inflows of $53,772,000,000.

According to PANews, citing SoSoValue data, U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded total net outflows of $40,851,300 on June 9.

The largest outflow came from Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHE), totaling $17,420,100. ETHE’s cumulative net outflows reached $5,323,000,000.

Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH) also saw $14,958,000 in outflows. The total net assets of spot Ethereum ETFs currently stand at $9,135,000,000, with cumulative net inflows of $1,124,300,000.

According to PANews, Bitcoin Layer 2 network Botanix has begun a phased shutdown and notified users to withdraw their Bitcoin and other assets by July 9.

Botanix said market demand for Bitcoin programmability has not yet matured sufficiently, and its token issuance strategy also fell short of expectations. It also cited the fact that many DeFi users prefer Ethereum-based WBTC and that on-chain economic activity is concentrated on centralized platforms such as Hyperliquid and Robinhood.

Botanix added that because Bitcoin is mainly used as a store of value, network fees alone are insufficient to cover infrastructure costs. After July 9, any remaining Bitcoin will be reclaimed by the validator federation, while other assets will not be recoverable.

Humanity said it is preparing a recovery plan for users affected by the attack.

It has launched a page that tracks the attacker’s address and subsequent transfers in real time, which will be shared with exchanges and aggregators and continuously updated.

Humanity said it will offer a reward of 1 million USDT to anyone who provides information related to recoverable funds. All recovered funds will be used to buy back H tokens.

Previously, Humanity said that about $36 million worth of assets had been stolen and sold across its two blockchains.

Source: PANews: CME Group has launched Nasdaq CME Crypto Index futures contracts.

The futures are cash-settled at expiration and are based on the Nasdaq CME Crypto Settlement Price Index, which tracks the performance of major cryptocurrencies by market capitalization and trading volume.

As of June 9, the index components included Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, Cardano, Chainlink, and Stellar.

Reuters, cited by PANews, reported that Japan’s three major banking groups plan to jointly issue a stablecoin by March 2027.

The financial units of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, and Mizuho Financial Group will review the operating structure and form a committee to prepare for issuance.

The project is being promoted alongside a pilot support initiative by Japan’s Financial Services Agency aimed at improving payment systems using blockchain technology. Previously, Japanese startup JPYC began issuing a yen-pegged stablecoin in October last year.

The European Union plans to include restrictive measures on 11 Russia-linked cryptocurrency platforms in its 21st sanctions package against Russia, according to PANews citing Bits.media.

Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said the platforms had helped Russian authorities and companies evade international sanctions. The sanctions package includes tighter bans on providing crypto services to third countries, expansion of sanction targets, and bans on transactions with those platforms. The list of platforms has not been disclosed.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the move is intended to strengthen financial pressure on Russia. The sanctions will also affect about 90 Russian banks, 31 of which could face a complete ban on all transactions.

Previously, under the EU’s 20th sanctions package that took effect on May 24, providers of crypto transfer and trading services registered in Russia were included among sanction targets.