Base Ecosystem Fund opens applications, prioritizing support for areas including stablecoins, lending, and prediction markets.

Fed’s Logan says the Federal Reserve should raise interest rates to address elevated inflation, a comment suggesting she may be prepared to oppose a decision to hold rates steady later this month. Logan noted that June inflation data released on Tuesday showed price gains are slowing, but not enough to convince her inflation is back on track to hit the Fed’s 2% target. “The June CPI data does indicate inflation has the potential to return to the target level, making the outlook more optimistic,” Logan said. “But this path remains very fragile. I currently believe a moderate interest rate hike would help better balance the outlook and risks.” (Jinshi)

Bitcoin pulled back alongside U.S. stocks on Thursday, trading around $64,500 in a range, down roughly 1.5% from the three-week high it notched the prior day. Earlier, both U.S. June CPI and PPI came in below expectations, spurring brief gains for crypto assets and U.S. equities, but tech stocks were subsequently sold off. Micron Technology has now pulled back over 30% from its all-time high set on June 22. The Kobeissi Letter noted that retail investors are cashing in on tech stock gains, with net selling of Tesla and Apple hitting $200 million each over the past two weeks, while total retail stock trading volume rose to a record $370 billion. Market participants remain cautious about Bitcoin’s price trajectory. Exitpump said Bitcoin is testing the anchored volume-weighted average price (VWAP) calculated from its early-May high of $82,000, a level that could cap the current rally and trigger stronger resistance. Rekt Capital stated that Bitcoin has shown initial signs of stalling at its 50-month exponential moving average (EMA) near $65,900, and continues to believe the current trend could mirror the 2022 bear market, with the next macro bottom potentially arriving later this year.

According to Onchain Lens monitoring, BlackRock withdrew 1,246 BTC (valued at approximately $80.6 million) and 3,542 ETH (worth around $6.69 million) from Coinbase Prime.

OpenAI Chairman Bret Taylor told CNBC in an interview that investors waiting for news of OpenAI’s initial public offering (IPO) will have to continue holding their breath, adding there is no latest update on the IPO plans. He reiterated the company’s stance from when it confidentially filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last month: “We did that to have options when we want to, but we haven’t made specific plans. There are still many things we want to do while we remain private.”

Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE has launched crypto spot trading, the firm announced. Eligible clients can directly buy, sell and hold Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana via accounts linked to digital asset infrastructure provider Zerohash. Transactions carry a 50 basis point (0.5%) fee. Clients can view both crypto and traditional investment portfolios on the E*TRADE platform, while digital asset transfer functionality is slated to roll out later this year. E*TRADE also simultaneously launched fractional share trading, retirement planning tools and a new IPO hub, and upgraded Power E*TRADE Pro for active traders. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management noted the launch is part of its strategy to expand digital asset services.

According to BIT (bit.com) market data, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has dropped to a more than one-month low, with its decline widening to 4.45%.