Wall Street giants BlackRock and JPMorgan are accelerating blockchain adoption as traditional finance (TradFi) institutions increasingly embrace tokenized assets and round-the-clock settlement. Meanwhile, Bitcoin is consolidating near $82,000 as investors monitor institutional activity, artificial intelligence (AI) sector risks, and upcoming US economic data. BlackRock, managing approximately $15.5 trillion in assets, views tokenized investment funds as essential infrastructure for the future financial system. Its BUIDL fund reportedly holds $2.22 billion in distributed assets across Ethereum, Avalanche, and Arbitrum, with tokenized holdings increasingly used as collateral on cryptocurrency exchanges. JPMorgan is also expanding its blockchain operations. The banking giant has introduced JPM Coin on public Ethereum infrastructure, while its MONY and JLTXX money market funds reportedly hold a combined $844 million. Its Kinexys blockchain platform has processed more than $4 trillion in transactions, averaging $7 billion daily. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is meanwhile advocating EIP-8288, a proposal involving STARK proofs designed to improve blockchain scalability by reducing computational demands. However, concerns surrounding AI infrastructure financing are weighing on broader market sentiment. CoreWeave faces scrutiny over its substantial debt exposure, while reports of financial pressure across AI-related investments have raised questions about the sector's sustainability. Corporate Bitcoin activity remains another market focus. Strategy reportedly acquired 267 BTC for approximately $22.1 million, increasing its holdings to 848,517 BTC. Meanwhile, Bitcoin miner MARA transferred 1,000 BTC to exchanges amid operational expenses and AI infrastructure expansion. The altcoin market is also undergoing a shift as investors increasingly prioritize projects with sustainable revenue, strong on-chain activity, and token buy
Business
BlackRock, JPMorgan Drive Crypto Adoption as Bitcoin Eyes $87K