Gate Daily Report (July 15): The U.S. freezes over $130 million in Iran’s digital assets; the European Central Bank selects 36 institutions to pilot the “digital euro”

Bitcoin (BTC) once again rebounded, temporarily around $64,707 on July 15. U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said he froze more than $130 million in Iranian digital assets. According to Reuters, the European Central Bank (ECB) has selected 36 banks and payments companies from 50 applicant institutions to take part in the digital euro pilot program.

Macro Events & Crypto Hotspots

1. U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said he froze more than $130 million in Iranian digital assets. According to on-chain analyst Specter monitoring, Tether has frozen four TRON wallets, holding 131 million USDT. The funds mainly came from the payment service provider DTC Pay and crypto exchange Bitso withdrawals. Specter said the frozen wallets are linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Central Bank of Iran, who are OFAC sanctions targets, but the reason for the freeze is still unclear.

2. According to Reuters, the European Central Bank (ECB) has selected 36 banks and payments companies from 50 applicant institutions to participate in the digital euro pilot program. Under the plan, the pilot will launch in the second half of 2027, lasting 12 months. The ECB said this arrangement is part of its preparation for a potential digital euro issuance in 2029.

Selected institutions include Adyen, Deutsche Bank, Revolut, SumUp, UniCredit, and Worldline. On its official website, the ECB disclosed that the pilot will cover the ECB and 19 euro area national central banks. Staff from the relevant central banks will play the role of consumers and participate in the testing.

News Updates

1. Warning: BarnBridge Smart Yield’s old proposal has token authorization risk; users are advised to revoke the relevant approvals.

2. Circle previously banned the crypto fund Heka Funds supported by Tether; after it filed for arbitration, it lost the case.

3. U.S. Treasury: froze more than $130 million in Iranian digital assets.

4. Czech Republic blocks Polymarket over illegal gambling, orders internet service providers to block it.

5. Morgan Stanley files updated documents for an Ethereum ETF and a Solana ETF, with fee rates both at 0.14%.

6. Wall Street is becoming more cautious about Circle; analysts warn that pressure on the USDC economic model is increasing.

7. As stablecoins reshape growth patterns, Binance is betting on becoming the crypto “super app.”

8. OpenAI plans to launch a home smart speaker, as its first hardware product.

9. Apple is in talks with a startup that can compress an AI model so it can run locally on iPhone.

Market Watch

1. Latest on Bitcoin: $BTC once again sees a rebound, temporarily around $64,707; over the past 24 hours, $115 million was liquidated, with the main liquidation in short positions.

2. U.S. stocks’ four major indices closed higher on July 14. The S&P 500 inched up, while chip shares rebounded, lifting the Nasdaq index by nearly 1% and pushing the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up more than 2%. U.S. inflation data came in below expectations, easing market concerns about the Fed raising rates, and coupled with solid performance from major U.S. banks, boosting overall risk appetite. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 10.02 points, a gain of 0.02%, at 52,508.66; the S&P 500 rose 28.55 points, up 0.38%, to close at 7,543.89; the Nasdaq rose 233.83 points, up 0.90%, to close at 26,107.01.

(Source: Gate)

3. In the Gate BTC/USDT liquidation map, taking current 64,770.30 USDT as the reference: if it falls to around $63,196, the cumulative long liquidation amount would exceed $420 million; if it rises to around $65,309, the cumulative short liquidation amount would exceed $152 million. The short-side liquidation amount is significantly lower than the long side; it is recommended to manage leverage ratios appropriately to avoid triggering large-scale liquidations as market conditions change.

(Source: Coinglass)

4. Over the past 24 hours, BTC spot inflows were $2.27 billion, outflows were $2.13 billion, for net inflows of $140 million.

(Source: Coinglass)

5. Over the past 24 hours, net outflows led for $BTC, $ETH, $ZEC, $XRP, $SOL , and other derivatives, presenting trading opportunities.

Selected Views from X KOLs

Phyrex Ni (@Phyrex_Ni): “Sure enough it’s still TACO. The 20% Hormuz tax from Trump makes me feel really weird. This is basically roasting the U.S. over a fire. In the end, only 18 hours later Trump is TACO. This should be a new record for Trump’s TACO. Sometimes I even think the hardline is Trump himself, sent out without considering the PR team, then the PR team gets all over him and he changes it back.”

“However, even though the 20% issue is TACO, the conflict between Iran and the U.S. hasn’t been resolved. Iran is still blocking the Strait of Hormuz, and the U.S. has also re-blocked Iranian ports—back to a tense standoff. But I still feel this situation won’t last too long; otherwise, they should just directly go all-out militarily, not some probing attacks.”

“Not sure if it can be achieved within this week, but for Trump, the CPI he just released already gives him some confidence. At this point, oil prices rising is like working against him. There isn’t much time left for Vosh, and there isn’t much time left for the midterm election either.”

“Strong CPI and Trump’s TACO stimulus boosted risk markets, with solid rebound strength in both U.S. stocks and Bitcoin. Today I also posted my ‘Carving on a stele to find the sword’ take on the midterm election. Now there are less than four months until the midterm election. For $BTC , if this boat doesn’t capsize, then after the midterm election, Bitcoin should have a decent chance for another rebound.”

Today’s Preview

1. China’s M2 money supply at end of June (year-over-year); prior value was 8.6%.

2. U.S. API crude oil inventory change for last week (ten thousand barrels) (to 0710); prior value was -39.9.

3. China’s industrial value added for June above designated size (year-over-year); prior value was 4.50%.

4. China’s total retail sales of consumer goods for June (year-over-year); prior value was -0.6%.

5. U.S. producer price index (PPI) for June (year-over-year); prior value was 6.5%.

6. Canada overnight target interest rate; prior value was 2.25%.

7. U.S. EIA crude oil inventory change for last week (ten thousand barrels) (to 0710); prior value was 299.8.

8. Remarks by William Williams, Chair of the New York Fed.

9. Bank of Canada releases its interest rate decision and monetary policy report.

10. Fed Chair Waller attends the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing titled “Fed Semiannual Monetary Policy Report.”

11. Bank of Canada Governor Macklem and Senior Deputy Governor Rogers hold a monetary policy news conference.