France’s nuclear Bitcoin pivot begins

August 04, 2025

 

Reading time: 5 minutes

France bets big on Bitcoin mining as ETF tailwinds and macro turmoil collide

Key points:

  • French MPs are drafting a bill to mine Bitcoin using surplus nuclear power, as BlackRock’s ETF dominance strengthens amid SEC support.

  • Bitcoin’s price hovers near $114K, with $117K emerging as the key breakout zone amid macro headwinds and weakening sell pressure.

News - France's Rassemblement National (RN) party has proposed a bold new bill to mine Bitcoin using surplus nuclear energy from EDF-operated plants. RN MP Aurélien Lopez-Liguori called the initiative a “secure and extremely profitable” solution that could turn wasted energy into digital assets. The bill marks a sharp departure from RN leader Marine Le Pen’s former anti-crypto stance and reflects a broader party pivot toward economic sovereignty through Bitcoin.

France, the EU’s largest nuclear energy producer, generated over 338,000 GWh in 2023, with more than two-thirds of that energy typically lost, per Eurostat. Lawmakers are now seeking to repurpose this excess energy for crypto mining, a strategy also pursued in Pakistan and by firms like Tether in South America. Despite ideological splits within RN, the party remains the country’s most proactive political force for pro-crypto legislation.

ETF tailwinds strengthen Bitcoin’s base - Meanwhile, the U.S. SEC has approved a tenfold increase in Bitcoin ETF options contract limits, boosting BlackRock’s IBIT to a potential “monstrous lead,” according to NYDIG’s Greg Cipolaro. With $85.5 billion in assets under management, IBIT already outpaces its rivals. Experts suggest this change may dampen volatility and drive sustained institutional inflows through covered call strategies and in-kind redemptions.

Price caught between resistance and reversal - Bitcoin rose roughly 1.5% from its weekend low to trade around $114,000. While long-term holders have eased their selling, macro risks remain. CTAs are 110% net long on equities, raising concerns about a possible deleveraging event that could pressure risk assets like BTC. Derive’s Sean Dawson flagged rising demand for $100K–$80K puts, hinting at bearish sentiment.

Still, traders are watching $117,000 as the key resistance. On-chain metrics show a cooling in long-term holder exits, while the MVRV ratio at 2.19 aligns with past rally setups. If BTC clears $117K, it could signal the start of a new bullish leg. Otherwise, a prolonged consolidation phase looms.

Crypto treasuries surge as whales load up on ETH, BTC, TON

Key points:

  • BitMine became the largest corporate ETH holder, while Verb launched a $558M Toncoin treasury and Metaplanet added $54M in BTC.

  • Whales ramped up ETH buying over the weekend, with ETF inflows, OTC deals, and mega wallet counts all climbing.

News - Crypto markets kicked off the week with a wave of major treasury moves by public companies and whales. BitMine Immersion Technologies now holds the world’s largest Ethereum treasury, accumulating 833,137 ETH worth over $2.9 billion in just 35 days. It now trails only Strategy and MARA Holdings in total crypto holdings and aims to capture 5% of ETH’s supply. The company’s stock climbed 6%.

Verb Technology launched a $558 million Toncoin treasury, rebranding itself as TON Strategy Co. and bringing in new leadership from the TON Foundation and Blockchain.com. Its stock surged 65%, while TON fell 8%.

Tokyo-listed Metaplanet added 463 BTC worth $54 million, taking its total to 17,595 BTC. The purchase came as its stock slid 7%, leaving it down nearly 50% from June highs.

Ether whales, ETFs, and OTC buyers step in - SharpLink bought 30,755 ETH for $108.5M, and another whale acquired $300M in ETH via Galaxy OTC. ETH ETF inflows also surged, with BlackRock’s product bringing in $1.7B over 10 consecutive days. Glassnode reported more than 200 new mega whale addresses, wallets holding over 10,000 ETH, emerging in the last month.

Altcoins draw big bets, and bigger mysteries - Paradigm allegedly holds $765M in HYPE, while the GAS…ODM wallet accumulated 331M Pi coins ($148.5M) over three months. The Pi buying spree, often during dips, has sparked speculation about a stealth core team buyback or an upcoming exchange listing.

Crypto inflows hit $223M as Fed spooks markets, but policy clarity emerges

Key points:

  • Crypto ETPs saw $223 million in outflows, ending a 15-week inflow streak amid hawkish Fed sentiment and profit-taking.

  • The White House’s new crypto policy framework triggered a CFTC–SEC “crypto sprint,” with Project Crypto promising major regulatory reform.

News - Investor sentiment shifted sharply last week as global crypto investment products recorded $223 million in outflows, breaking a 15-week streak of inflows. The pullback came despite an early-week surge of $883 million and was triggered by the Federal Reserve’s hawkish tone during the FOMC meeting, along with stronger-than-expected U.S. economic data.

Bitcoin bore the brunt with $404 million in outflows, while altcoins like Ethereum, XRP, and Solana saw continued inflows of $133 million, $31.2 million, and $8.8 million, respectively. Analysts tied the trend to minor profit-taking after a 30-day inflow of $12.2 billion, as well as macro jitters tied to U.S. job cuts and new trade tariffs.

Market uncertainty meets regulatory breakthrough - Amid market volatility, Washington released a landmark White House crypto policy report, laying out clear jurisdiction lines between the SEC and CFTC. The plan gives the CFTC oversight of spot digital assets while allowing the SEC to modernize securities rules under its new Project Crypto initiative.

Acting CFTC Chair Caroline Pham confirmed a “crypto sprint” to implement the report’s 18 recommendations, working in tandem with SEC Chair Paul Atkins and Commissioner Hester Peirce. The agencies aim to build a joint regulatory sandbox and streamline token categorization.

Project Crypto: The SEC’s boldest shift yet - Atkins’ Project Crypto marks a sharp departure from the SEC’s previous stance. Declaring that most digital assets are not securities, he vowed to end confusion around the Howey Test and enable tokenization of real-world assets like stocks and bonds. Analysts at Bernstein called it the most transformative vision ever laid out by a sitting SEC chief, with ambitions to create the world’s largest tokenized securities market.

DeFi resilience tested: Hacks, payouts, and Monero's mining war

Key points:

  • Nexus Mutual reimbursed $250K to Arcadia hack victims, while Hyperliquid refunded nearly $2M after an API outage; CrediX promised full user recovery after a $4.5M exploit.

  • Monero’s network faced a takeover attempt from Qubic, triggering alleged DDoS retaliation and deep community tensions.

News - Last week brought a surge of stress tests for decentralized finance, as exploits, outages, and mining wars hit major protocols, yet multiple players responded with swift reimbursements or defense measures.

Arcadia Finance users impacted by a $3.5 million exploit on Base have now received $250,000 in claims through Nexus Mutual, a crypto-native insurance protocol. Partnering with OpenCover, the payouts were processed shortly after a 14-day cooldown, with no impact on Nexus Mutual’s solvency. The firm maintains over $100 million in active cover and has now paid out more than $18 million in claims since its inception.

Meanwhile, CrediX Finance was taken offline after suffering a $4.5 million exploit on the Sonic chain. CertiK confirmed the stolen funds were bridged to Ethereum and split across wallets. CrediX pledged on X that all user funds would be fully recovered within 24–48 hours, aiming to maintain investor confidence amid rising concerns around multi-sig wallet vulnerabilities.

Hyperliquid and the case for faster DeFi accountability - Decentralized exchange Hyperliquid reimbursed $1.99 million in USDC to users after a 37-minute API outage. The incident, caused by a traffic spike, interrupted trading for a brief window but was not an exploit. Hyperliquid’s proactive handling and transparency have drawn praise, especially as the platform climbs global DEX rankings with over $10.6 billion in open interest.

Monero fends off takeover bid - In a separate battle, Monero’s community clashed with the Qubic mining pool, which had launched an attempt to control over 50% of the network’s hashrate. The pool’s founder claimed it was hit by a DDoS attack, a charge the Monero community and developer Sergei Chernykh deny. While Monero’s P2Pool and decentralization tools remain operational, the incident highlights the privacy coin’s vulnerability to centralization threats.

Did you know?

  • Christie’s International Real Estate launched a crypto-only segment in July 2025, facilitating high-end property sales via Bitcoin and Ethereum, including deals reaching up to $65 million in Beverly Hills homes.

  • Venture capital funding in crypto startups hit $4.9 billion in Q1 2025, the highest quarterly total in over two years, with Binance alone securing a $2 billion deal.

  • As of July 2025, over37 million unique cryptocurrencies existed, and the number is projected to reach 100 million by year-end, up from just ~3,000 in 2018.

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Top 3 coins of the day

Litecoin (LTC)

Key points:

  • LTC traded at $116 after a 5.83% daily rise, continuing its climb from support near $104.

  • The Madrid Ribbon remained in a bullish alignment, while the Awesome Oscillator flipped green, hinting at renewed upward momentum.

What you should know:

Litecoin extended its recent gains after bouncing from the $104 support zone, briefly hitting $117 during intraday action. The price maintained its position well above the clustered green bands of the Madrid Ribbon, reflecting sustained bullish strength across short and mid-term EMAs. Notably, the Awesome Oscillator turned green again after several sessions of declining red bars, suggesting a potential resurgence in buying pressure. If bulls sustain momentum, a clear move past $117 could open room toward the $121 range, while the $114 level now acts as immediate support. Litecoin’s price action was likely supported by MEI Pharma’s recent $100M treasury allocation into LTC, announced on July 18. This corporate adoption has reinforced investor confidence, aligning with LTC’s outperformance versus the broader altcoin market.

Ethena (ENA)

Key points:

  • ENA jumped to $0.61 after a 4.06% daily gain, building on bullish momentum from late July.

  • The Supertrend indicator held firm in buy mode, while the DMI reflected sustained trend strength with the +DI far above -DI.

What you should know:

Ethena maintained its uptrend after bouncing off the $0.52 support zone last week. At press time, the token was trading at $0.61, reflecting a 4.06% daily increase. The Supertrend continued flashing a bullish signal since flipping green on July 17, while the Directional Movement Index (DMI) showed a strong trend bias, marked by a rising ADX and a wide gap between the +DI and -DI lines. Volume hovered near 245M, indicating consistent demand. With the next resistance resting at $0.66 and support still firm around $0.52, traders appear to be cautiously optimistic. Notably, the rally has been fueled in part by Ethena’s surging stablecoin metrics. USDe’s supply recently crossed $9.3B, while token unlock fears have been tempered by StablecoinX’s $260M buyback campaign, absorbing excess sell pressure ahead of the August 5 unlock event.

Stellar (XLM)

Key points:

  • XLM climbed to $0.40 after a 2.23% daily rise, staging a partial recovery from last week’s correction.

  • The RSI hovered near 53, signaling moderate bullish momentum, while a new higher low formed near $0.36.

What you should know:

Stellar rebounded after forming a higher low at $0.36 on August 2, confirming short-term trend strength despite last week’s sharp retracement. At press time, the token was trading at $0.40, up 2.23% over the past 24 hours. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) remained stable near 53, showing renewed bullish momentum without entering overbought territory. Volume registered around 76.1M, supporting the upward move but remaining below the July peaks. On the price structure front, the latest higher low follows a steep rally from June, signaling buyers are still active. If this structure holds, XLM could retest resistance at $0.45 and later challenge the $0.52 July high. The recovery also aligned with fresh upside in Real-World Asset (RWA) tokens, with Stellar seeing renewed attention following Franklin Templeton’s tokenized treasury fund and its upcoming Protocol 23 upgrade on August 14.

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