Senate CLARITY Act Stalls Before August Recess Despite Bipartisan Negotiations

The cryptocurrency market in late July 2026 shows Bitcoin trading around $63,580 with a firm $68,000 ceiling, while major altcoins like Ether and Solana post modest gains. Security reports highlight severe losses, with Blockaid estimating over $1 billion lost to H1 2026 exploits, largely driven by North Korean actors. Meanwhile, corporate developments include Ionic Digital's $2.8 billion Nasdaq debut and Morgan Stanley's launch of new Ether and Solana staking ETPs on NYSE Arca.

Bitcoin price trends

• ▪Bitcoin was priced at $63,580.04 on July 29, 2026, representing a 1.2 percent increase over the preceding 24 hours.
• ▪Bitfinex analysts stated that Bitcoin's near-term price direction is constrained by a lack of buyer demand, with a $68,000 ceiling holding firm.

Altcoin price updates

• ▪On July 29, 2026, Ether was priced at $1,888.51, XRP was priced at $1.07, and Solana was trading at $72.91.
• ▪XRP's price of $1.07 on July 29, 2026, represented a 2.7 percent increase over the preceding 24 hours.

H1 2026 crypto exploit losses

• ▪Immunefi and Quill Audits reported total cryptocurrency losses in the first half of 2026 at $972 million and $935.3 million, respectively.
• ▪Blockaid reported that cryptocurrency projects lost over $1 billion to hacks during the first half of 2026, with more individual exploits than in all of 2025.
• ▪North Korea-linked hackers stole nearly $600 million in the first half of 2026, including a $285 million Drift exploit and a $292 million KelpDAO exploit.

Michael Saylor protocol stance

• ▪Michael Saylor warned Bitcoin developers against altering core consensus rules, arguing that proposals like BIP-110 and larger block sizes threaten network stability.
• ▪MicroStrategy expanded its cash reserves by $525 million to reach $3.75 billion as of July 26, 2026, while maintaining a holding of 843,775 Bitcoin.

Ionic Digital Nasdaq debut

• ▪Ionic Digital, a digital infrastructure and Bitcoin-mining company created out of the Celsius Network bankruptcy, debuted on Nasdaq on July 28, 2026.
• ▪Ionic Digital's Class A common stock opened at $50 and closed at $62.90 on its first day of trading, valuing the company at $2.8 billion.

Morgan Stanley crypto ETPs

• ▪The Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust ETF, introduced in April 2026, accumulated over $381 million in assets under management by mid-July 2026.
• ▪Morgan Stanley Investment Management launched the Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust and the Morgan Stanley Solana Trust on NYSE Arca with expense ratios of 0.14 percent.