[News Brief] Jul 19, morning | Harder for U.S. Senate Bitcoin and Crypto Clarity Bill to Secure 60 Votes

Harder for U.S. Senate Bitcoin and Crypto Clarity Bill to Secure 60 Votes

Charles Schwab warned that securing 60 votes in the U.S. Senate for the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency clarity bill is becoming more difficult.

According to the report, Senate Democrats are opposing the bill over concerns about President Trump’s conflicts of interest. They argue that without ethics provisions, the legislation would fail to properly regulate Trump’s cryptocurrency businesses.

The bill is considered a key measure for establishing a clearer regulatory framework for the U.S. crypto market. If the voting threshold becomes harder to reach, it could weigh on regulatory discussions and broader market sentiment.

Cleveland Fed President Says Rate Hike May Be Needed to Curb Inflation

According to Odaily, Cleveland Fed President Hammack said the Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates to contain elevated inflation.

Fed funds futures traders are pricing in about a 15% chance of a rate hike in July and about a 65% chance in September. Expectations for higher rates could pressure sentiment toward risk assets.

U.S. Says Military Operations Against Iran Will Continue; Iran Warns of “Destructive Retaliation”

According to Odaily, U.S. Energy Secretary Wright said military operations against Iran will continue until President Trump’s objectives are achieved.

Secretary Wright said the Trump administration’s goals are to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and to weaken its ability to threaten neighboring countries and global commerce.

Odaily also reported that on the 19th, Iranian media cited Ali Abdollahi, commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, as saying in a statement that Iran would launch “destructive retaliation” against any hostile act by the United States.

Commander Abdollahi warned the U.S. that greedy and threatening behavior would provoke a firm and destructive response from Iran’s armed forces. The remarks came amid continued military tensions in the Middle East.

Cardano Activates Protocol Version 11 Through van Rossum Hard Fork

According to WuBlockchain, Cardano activated protocol version 11 through the van Rossum hard fork.

This upgrade is the first hard fork on the Cardano network approved solely through on-chain governance procedures.

The upgrade includes added Plutus functionality and cost model improvements, aimed at lowering smart contract execution costs and laying the technical groundwork for the Dijkstra phase.

North Korean Hacker Infiltrated MetaMask as External Contractor; Access Revoked and Launch Halted

According to PANews, Consensys Chief Legal Officer Matt Corva said a North Korean hacker infiltrated the MetaMask team by posing as an external contractor.

The individual, using the name Tyler Napp, joined through a long-term staffing vendor and reportedly bypassed identity verification in the direct hiring process. He worked for about a month and participated in developing MetaMask’s fiat on-ramp and off-ramp features.

Consensys said it detected suspicious IP addresses and behavioral patterns through security monitoring during the contractor’s tenure, then immediately revoked all access privileges and halted the related product launch. Corva said no material data breach or fund losses have been confirmed so far.

Michael Saylor Reposts Bitcoin Tracker Information, Fueling Speculation of More Purchases

According to Odaily, Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman and founder of Strategy, reposted information related to a Bitcoin tracker.

Because Strategy has previously disclosed changes in its Bitcoin holdings the day after posting similar content, the market is watching for a possible announcement of additional purchases or an update on holdings.

CryptoQuant: Bitcoin Building Key Support in the $59,000–$70,000 Range

According to Odaily, CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost said on X that Bitcoin is building an important support zone between $59,000 and $70,000.

He said roughly 50% of the total Bitcoin supply has changed hands above $59,000. Excluding coins believed to be permanently lost, that proportion would be even higher.

He added that this transfer of supply was led mainly by short-term holders, with panic selling and persistent buying occurring at the same time.

However, he cautioned that even if several indicators have entered extremely bearish or oversold territory, that does not confirm a Bitcoin bottom. He also said the large volume peak around $84,500 was due to an internal Coinbase transfer and should be excluded from market behavior analysis.

Whale Expands Bitcoin Long Position to 1,660 BTC

PANews, citing Lookonchain monitoring, reported that whale address 0x66f8 continued to increase its Bitcoin long position and now holds 1,660 BTC.

The position is valued at about $107.36 million, with a liquidation price of $63,123.

19.21 Million USDC Transferred From Aave to Anonymous Whale Wallet

According to Whale Alert, 19,120,390.9 USDC, worth approximately $19.125 million, was transferred from Aave to an anonymous whale wallet.

The transaction was confirmed on the Ethereum network. Large stablecoin transfers can indicate shifts in market liquidity, but without confirmation of exchange inflows or outflows, it is difficult to infer a clear price direction.

Four Bitcoin Mining Pools Control More Than 70% of Network Hashrate

According to Odaily, as of June 23, 2026, Foundry Digital, AntPool, ViaBTC, and F2Pool accounted for more than 70% of the Bitcoin network’s hashrate.

Their respective shares were about 31% for Foundry Digital, 18% for AntPool, 13% for ViaBTC, and 10% for F2Pool. Foundry Digital is a U.S.-based mining pool backed by Digital Currency Group and primarily serves large institutions and publicly listed mining companies.

Decentral’s Bitcoin Nakamoto coefficient for the first half of this year was 3, meaning just three mining pools could produce more than half of all blocks. ViaBTC reportedly saw some miners move to alternative pools such as EMCD amid tighter regulatory scrutiny this year.