Quick Take

• Altseason index hit its highest level in 2025; Plasma selected Crypto.com to provide custody and liquidity for XPL; Truth Social users can convert ’gems’ to CRO.
• US spot BTC ETFs had a net inflow of US$2.3 billion last week, compared to $250 million the week before. Spot ETH ETFs saw a net inflow of $638 million in the same period, compared to a net outflow of $788 million the week before.
• On the macro side, the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 2.9% year-on-year in August, in line with expectations and marking the highest annual increase since January. Meanwhile, the Producer Price Index (PPI) dropped 0.1% for the month, lower than the 0.3% increase estimated by Dow Jones. The latest CME FedWatch Tool showed a 96% probability of a rate cut in September, compared to 90% the week before. The European Central Bank (ECB) kept interest rates steady. 
• Notable updates: Ethereum Foundation released a roadmap to bring privacy features to Ethereum Layer-1 (L1); Tether announced a new USD-backed stablecoin, USAT; Avalanche Foundation is reportedly raising $1 billion to launch digital asset treasury projects; MegaETH introduced its stablecoin, MegaUSD (USDm), which was built with Ethena Labs.
• Notable events in the coming week: US Retail Sales, Interest Rate Decisions from Canada, Japan, UK, and US.

Weekly Market Index

The price and volume indices were up by +4.98% and +0.57%, respectively, while the volatility index was down by -8.45% last week.

Most tokens in our index increased last week. This coincided with the US Producer Price Index showing a surprise monthly drop, and the probability of a US Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cut in September increasing to 96%. 

IMX (+25.36%), DOGE (+14.99%), and SOL (+12.21%) were among the top gainers. DOGE’s increase coincided with the anticipated launch of the Rex-Osprey DOGE ETF (DOJE), despite it being delayed twice, with the latest expected launch date set for this week. SOL futures open interest reached a record $16.6 billion last Friday, according to CoinGlass.

Chart of the Week

The altcoin season index hit its highest level this year, reaching 82 out of 100 on 15 September. The previous peak was in December 2024 when the index reached 88.

Typically, the altcoin season index is calculated based on the relative performance between BTC and the top 50 altcoins (excluding stablecoins and wrapped tokens). If 75% of the top 50 coins performed better than BTC over the past 90 days, it is generally considered as ‘altseason’. Altseason is a period in the market cycle where altcoins may make higher gains relative to BTC, potentially reflecting a general risk-on sentiment.

Weekly Performance

All top-cap tokens increased in price last week except POL. BTC and ETH increased by +2.9% and +6.9%, respectively. AVAX’s increase coincided with news that Avalanche Foundation is reportedly raising $1 billion to launch digital asset treasury projects.

All key categories increased in market capitalisation in the last seven days, led by Meme.

News Highlights

Crypto.com News 

• Plasma selected Crypto.com Custody to provide secure custody and liquidity for XPL, its native blockchain token. This partnership delivers institutional-grade security, compliance, and asset management across Plasma’s global network.
• Truth Social updated its rewards system, enabling Truth Social users subscribed to its Patriots Package to convert ‘gems’ earned through platform activities into CRO and other benefits, utilising Crypto.com's digital wallet infrastructure.

Adoption

• BlackRock is reportedly exploring tokenised ETFs on the blockchain. This comes after the success in its spot BTC ETF. 
• WisdomTree launched its Private Credit and Alternative Income Digital Fund (CRDT), a tokenised private credit fund. It is available to retail and institutional investors. 
• Jack Ma-backed Ant Digital has reportedly linked $8.4 billion in Chinese energy assets to its blockchain, AntChain. It has also been uploading real-time power output data to the blockchain. 
• HSBC and BNP Paribas have joined the Canton Foundation, the organisation behind the Canton Network, which is designed for institutional finance. Their participation demonstrates growing institutional interest in real-world asset (RWA) tokenisation.

Regulation

• US Securities and Exchange (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins clarified that most crypto tokens are not securities and supported unified regulation for trading, lending, and staking digital assets. He also mentioned that the agency will provide clear and predictable rules for innovators in the US. 
• The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) released a draft guidance proposing to ease capital requirements for banks holding regulated crypto assets if the issuers have effective risk management and mitigation. This is part of HKMA’s approach to implement the Basel standards in the local regulatory framework. 
• Vietnam is launching a five-year pilot featuring strict controls for the trading and issuance of crypto assets. This requires crypto transactions to be carried out in Vietnamese dong and that issuers must be Vietnamese firms.
• Kyrgyzstan parliament has passed key amendments to its ‘On Virtual Assets’ bill to introduce the concept of a state crypto reserve. This allows the state to accumulate digital assets through mining, tokenise RWAs, and issue stablecoins. The bill is yet to be signed by the president. 
• Chinese firms operating in Hong Kong may face restrictions on stablecoin and crypto activities, according to a local news report. This came after news that HSBC and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) are reportedly planning to apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong. 

Investment Vehicles

• Nasdaq filed with the US SEC to allow the recording of stocks in tokenised forms. If the investor wishes to clear and settle in tokenised form, the exchange will then communicate the instruction to the Depository Trust Company. 
• CBOE will launch continuous futures for BTC and ETH with a ten-year expiration on 10 November. This will give investors ongoing exposure to the two cryptocurrencies without having to roll over expiring contracts.
• 21Shares has launched a dYdX exchange traded product (ETP), the first fund tied to the decentralised exchange. This allows institutional access to the exchange and aims to promote DeFi adoption.

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