Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, Ripple secured a full MiCA license to expand regulated crypto services across Europe. Elsewhere, Michael Saylor's Strategy sold 3,588 Bitcoin to fund preferred stock dividends and researchers disclosed a wallet vulnerability that may have exposed thousands of crypto users to theft.

Ripple wins full MiCA license to expand crypto services across Europe

Ripple has secured a full license under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework, allowing it to offer regulated crypto services across the European Economic Area.

The authorization, granted by Luxembourg's financial regulator, completes Ripple's licensing process in the region. It follows preliminary approval in June and complements the company's existing Electronic Money Institution license.

Ripple said it is now among a small group of crypto companies with full MiCA authorization and holds more than 75 regulatory licenses worldwide, including approval from the UK's Financial Conduct Authority.

The approval comes after the EU's MiCA transition period ended on July 1, requiring crypto companies to obtain authorization or stop offering regulated services. The European Securities and Markets Authority now lists 280 licensed crypto service providers, up from 243 a week earlier.

Not all companies met the deadline. Binance withdrew its MiCA application in Greece before July 1 and plans to seek authorization in another EU member state, while Belgium has already begun identifying unauthorized crypto service providers.

Source: Cassie Craddock

Strategy sells 3,588 Bitcoin for $216M to fund dividends, keeps $2.55B reserve intact

Strategy sold 3,588 Bitcoin (BTC) to fund preferred stock dividend payments and replenish its cash reserves.

Strategy sold the Bitcoin for $216 million, reducing its total holdings to 843,775 Bitcoin, according to a Monday 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

This included 1,363 Bitcoin sold at an average price of $59,256 between last Monday and Tuesday, and 2,225 Bitcoin sold at an average price of $60,773 between Wednesday and Sunday.

Strategy disclosed the sale of 32 Bitcoin in early June, as its first reported Bitcoin sale since the 2022 tax-loss transaction.

On its June 29 8-K filing, Strategy unveiled a capital framework allowing Bitcoin sales to fund dividends, increased the annual dividend rate on its STRC preferred stock to 12%, and disclosed that its US dollar reserve had grown to $2.55 billion. Monday's filing showed the dollar reserve remained unchanged.

Form 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Source: Strategy

Thousands of crypto wallets at risk from ‘Ill Bloom’ vulnerability: Coinspect

Thousands of crypto wallets are at risk of being drained due to the use of weaker-than-intended recovery phrases, an exploit that Blockchain security research firm Coinspect has dubbed “Ill Bloom.”

The wallets at risk span Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon, Rootstock, Tron and Solana, Coinspect said in a disclosure on Sunday, with the issue related to weak randomness — an insecure pseudorandom number generator — used during recovery phrase generation on certain software wallets. 

“If funds recently moved without your permission, this vulnerability may be why,” Coinspect said. 

The vulnerability has impacted wallets generated as early as 2018 and more often occurs in lesser-known mobile software wallets. At least $5 million has been drained from exposed wallets since May 27, though there could have been exploits on additional networks and addresses, meaning the number of wallets at risk may be much higher.