U.S. optical communication sector opens mixed; industry giant Coherent drops over 3% despite strong earnings.

U.S. July Producer Price Index (PPI) year-over-year came in at 4.7%, the lowest since March, below the market consensus of 4.9% and a sharp drop from the prior reading of 5.5%. The monthly PPI was flat, missing the 0.2% forecast. Core PPI year-over-year hit 4.2% in line with expectations, while monthly core PPI rose 0.2%, below projections. Also released, initial jobless claims totaled 209,000, the highest since the week of July 11, exceeding the 202,000 forecast. On a structural basis, goods were the main drag on prices: energy prices fell 3.1% month-over-month, and food prices dropped 0.9%. However, core final demand PPI, which excludes food, energy and trade services, accelerated to 0.4% MoM from 0.1%, indicating underlying price pressures have not fully faded. This, paired with the earlier July Consumer Price Index (CPI) year-over-year decline from 3.5% to 3.4%, marks two consecutive months of moderate inflation signals. Market pricing for a Federal Reserve rate hike in September has cooled notably, with traders’ bet probability falling to around 40%, though hawkish voices have not abated. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Hamaker today reiterated the necessity of a rate hike, saying “current policy is not restrictive enough”, inflation is widespread, and the Fed must be accountable for inflation data. Richmond Fed President Barkin, meanwhile, noted that a rate hike remains an open question: while there is reason to believe inflation will ease as shocks like tariffs and oil prices fade, price pressures may have become entrenched, requiring weaker demand or additional rate hikes to meet targets. Overall, the signals lean more toward a “wait and see” approach rather than a shift to monetary easing. Upcoming August inflation and jobs data, along with oil price trends, will be key variables for the September policy decision.

According to GMGN data, Binance Wallet’s stock-themed meme token UTILITY surged sharply today, with its market capitalization once breaking through $4.6 million and 24-hour trading volume reaching $9.31 million. The token’s market cap has since fallen back to $2.6 million. Back on January 30, CZ stated in a post that GameStop (GME) should issue a utility token on the blockchain, preferably on BSC. Today, bStocks officially reposted CZ’s old tweet and announced that GMEB is now tradable on its platform. BlockBeats reminds users that most meme coins lack real use cases, are subject to high price volatility, and investors should exercise caution.

Blockchain lending firm Figure Technology Solutions (FIGR) announced its Q2 2026 financial results, reporting net revenue of $226 million, up 113% year-over-year. Net profit hit $87 million, surging 192% YoY, with diluted earnings per share of 35 cents. Adjusted EBITDA reached $119 million, more than doubling from the same period last year. The core growth came from the consumer lending market: the quarter’s transaction volume stood at $4.3 billion, up 132% YoY. Among this total, Figure Connect—its platform connecting loan originators and capital providers—contributed $2.8 billion, accounting for roughly 65% of overall volume.

According to market data from BIT (bit.com), digital asset tokenization platform Securitize (SECZ) plunged more than 20% intraday, with its shares trading at $6.3. Securitize is well-known for issuing and managing BlackRock’s BUIDL tokenized money market fund. The firm’s first post-listing earnings report missed expectations: revenue stood at $14.4 million, down 5% year-over-year, below analysts’ forecast of $20.6 million. It posted a per-share loss of $2.37, compared to an expected loss of just $0.15. Total net loss hit $21.7 million, while adjusted EBITDA swung from a $1.8 million profit in the year-ago period to a $5.5 million loss.

Bitcoin treasury firm Nakamoto Inc. has released its Q2 2026 financial results, marking the first full quarter of operations as an integrated bitcoin enterprise. Total operating revenue reached $35.9 million, with media information services and asset management contributing $25.6 million, and bitcoin treasury and derivatives strategies adding $10.4 million. Adjusted operating profit hit $7.3 million, the company’s first positive operating result; however, GAAP-based operating loss stood at $149.1 million, driven primarily by a $105.2 million non-cash goodwill impairment and $48.7 million in unrealized losses on bitcoin. Net loss totaled $133 million, with a diluted loss per share of $6.65. The company also reduced its outstanding debt by approximately $45 million and extended around $105 million in principal to June 30, 2027. As of June 30, Nakamoto held 4,467 bitcoin, with a fair value of roughly $261.5 million. Nakamoto Chairman and CEO David Bailey stated that the company hosted Bitcoin 2026, the world’s largest bitcoin event, this quarter, facilitated the first cleared bitcoin depositary receipt transaction for 210k Capital Fund via a prime broker and DTCC settlement, and cut about $45 million in debt. He emphasized, “Nakamoto enters the second half of the year with a stronger balance sheet, a more focused strategy, and a business aligned with the bitcoin economy.”

Binance announced it will support users to deposit eligible third-party tokenized stocks and convert them 1:1 into corresponding bStocks. During the event period (ending at 23:59 UTC on August 26), the conversion rate is fixed at 1:1 with zero fees. Four assets are currently supported: Tesla (TSLAon), MicroStrategy (MSTRon), Coinbase (COINon), and Circle (CRCLon), with versions available on both Ethereum (ETH) and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) blockchains. The converted bStocks can be traded around the clock or redeemed 1:1 for their underlying stocks.