August flew by—and so did crypto. In this BFRR news special, Michael and Jonas welcome Nadine from Particular for an institutional tour of markets, policy, and stablecoin surge. She sketches Particular’s “Moody’s for digital assets” approach—rating asset-backed tokens from fiat- and MMF-backed stablecoins to gold—then we dive into the month’s moves.

Markets first: total crypto market cap hovered around \$4T and briefly set a \$4.2T ATH. Bitcoin hit a fresh high mid-August yet closed slightly lower—steady, dominant, “boring” in the best way. Ether rallied ~20% with an ATH, a comeback from sub-\$2k last year.

In policy, the U.S. flipped the script. We unpack the White House’s 160-page roadmap urging pro-innovation, a larger CFTC role, and clearer taxes; Trump’s push to enable crypto in 401(k)s—and the fiduciary frictions that could still bottleneck adoption; Commissioner Hester Peirce’s privacy-first speech; and the Fed’s retreat from “novel activities” oversight as Vice Chair Bowman calls for hands-on learning.

Then: 2025, the year of stablecoins. With MiCA live and U.S. rules taking shape, issuance is exploding—PSPs (Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Stripe), commerce giants, and banks circling. We debate fragmentation versus consolidation: why network effects, distribution, and regulatory moats mean “winner takes most” by currency and region—even as new state actors (hello, Wyoming’s coin) and yield-bearing designs add complexity. Expect consolidation, not monoculture.

On infrastructure, Circle’s ARK enters: a purpose-built, EVM-compatible L1 with USDC as native gas, integrated FX, sub-second finality, and opt-in privacy—vertical integration for institutional finance while staying multi-chain.

Plus: Europe’s take, cash’s resilience, and three “knowledge bites” to keep you sharp. Subscribe to Bitcoin, Fiat & Rock’n’Roll, join our Telegram community, and get Europe’s perspective on digital money.

Disclaimer: Views are personal, not financial advice. Do your own research!

Knowledge Bite Jonas: ECB Paper on cash](https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/economic-bulletin/articles/2025/html/ecb.ebart202505_03~d74cb56069.en.html))

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