Corporate bitcoin buying slowed sharply in August, even as public companies crossed the 1 million BTC mark for the first time.

Markets are bracing for the Federal Reserve’s Sept. 17 decision, with a 25 basis point rate cut widely expected despite inflation rising to 2.9%.

Shibarium, Shiba Inu’s layer-2 blockchain, was exploited in a coordinated flash loan attack that gave the attacker control over the network’s validator system and access to funds on its cross-chain bridge.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Corporate Bitcoin Buying Dropped in August as Price Rally Lost Steam
• Fed’s Sept. 17 Rate Cut Could Shake Markets Short Term, Lift Bitcoin and Gold Long Term
• Shibarium Exploited in Flash Loan Attack That Gave Attacker Validator Control

Corporate Bitcoin Buying Dropped in August as Price Rally Lost Steam

Corporate bitcoin buying slowed sharply in August, even as public companies crossed the 1 million BTC mark for the first time.

Tracked entities added 47,718 BTC worth $5.2 billion, less than half of July’s pace, according to the Bitcoin Treasuries Adoption Report. The pullback coincided with bitcoin falling from a record $123,000 to below $109,000 by month’s end.

Despite big fundraising announcements from firms like Strategy, KindlyMD and Metaplanet, much of the cash hasn’t hit the market yet. That lag may help explain the rally’s loss of momentum.

KindlyMD bought 5,744 BTC ($679 million), while Metaplanet added nearly 1,900. Bullish (BLSH), which went public in August, revealed it’s been holding 24,000 BTC since March.

Altogether, tracked treasury holdings rose to 3.68 million BTC, though their value fell to $400 billion as prices dropped.

Fed’s Sept. 17 Rate Cut Could Shake Markets Short Term, Lift Bitcoin and Gold Long Term

Markets are bracing for the Federal Reserve’s Sept. 17 decision, with a 25 basis point rate cut widely expected despite inflation rising to 2.9%.

The move could spark short-term volatility, as traders have believed to have already priced it in. But over time, risk assets like bitcoin, gold and equities could benefit if the policy sticks.

Bitcoin is trading above $115,000, while gold nears record highs. Stocks have rallied ahead of the cut, with the S&P 500 closing at 6,584.

History suggests a dip may follow the announcement, but gains could build over the next year. Since 1980, every Fed cut near S&P 500 highs has led to positive returns 12 months later.

Shibarium Exploited in Flash Loan Attack That Gave Attacker Validator Control

Shibarium, Shiba Inu’s layer-2 blockchain, was exploited in a coordinated flash loan attack that gave the attacker control over the network’s validator system and access to funds on its cross-chain bridge.

The attacker used a flash loan to acquire 4.6 million BONE tokens, which granted enough voting power to take over validator operations. With that control, they signed a falsified network state and siphoned assets from Shibarium’s bridge to Ethereum.

The exploit prompted the network to pause all staking and unstaking functions. Remaining assets were moved to a secure hardware wallet protected by a 6-of-9 multisig setup. 

Shibarium’s developers are still investigating how validator access was compromised, whether through a breached server or a developer machine.

Shibarium is now working with security firms Hexens, Seal 911 and PeckShield, and has alerted law enforcement. Developers have also opened a line of negotiation with the attacker, offering to drop charges and consider a bounty if the stolen funds are returned.

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