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Welcome to the Coin Stories news block, powered exclusively by LEDN. I'm Natalie Brunel, and in about 10 minutes or less, I'll provide you with insightful updates on bitcoin, financial markets and the global economy. Everything you need to know in one block. Let's go. I hope everyone had a wonderful Fourth of July weekend. There's a lot to get to this week, but we have to start with one number. 1.4 billion. Last week, President Trump's annual financial disclosure was released. All 927 pages of it. And according to Reuters, the president reported more than $1.4 billion in income from his family's crypto ventures in 2025. That included nearly $800 million connected to World Liberty Financial and another 635 million tied to the official Trump Token. Bloomberg put it in perspective. Trump's crypto income was larger than the earnings of most publicly traded crypto companies, including Coinbase, which earned about 1.26 billion. So one man, while serving as president reported more income from crypto than some of the largest companies whose entire business is digital assets. Now, I want to be fair because this show always tries to be. This administration has done real positive things for Bitcoin, the strategic bitcoin reserve, ending the debanking of bitcoin companies, putting pro bitcoin voices in key seats. Those things matter, and I've said so many times, but this is different and we have to call it what it is. The official Trump token and World Liberty Financial are not bitcoin. They were politically branded crypto ventures that followed the same playbook. This industry has spent a decade trying to grow out of insiders getting an early advantage, retail getting marketed into the hype, and everyday buyers left holding the bag. And the on chain data shows exactly how it played out. About 1.5 million people bought the official Trump Token. It has since collapsed 97%. Two out of three buyers lost money to the tune of 3.8 billion in combined losses. Meanwhile, Trump reported a $636 million personal payout from the token. That tells you everything you need to know about who this benefited. And the political consequences are already showing up. Democrats are demanding ethics provisions in the Clarity act that would restrict presidents and their families from profiting off crypto. Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Reuben Gallego of Arizona, one of the few Democrats who actually supports crypto legislation. They've both said that they want to crack down on Trump's crypto dealings. When even the pro crypto Democrats are pushing back, that is a bad sign. For the bill. Remember, Bitcoin is neutral. Bitcoin is apolitical. But because of this private enrichment that we're seeing at the highest levels of politics, Democrats now have an easy way to tie Bitcoin to Trump and turn it into a partisan issue. The people who really understand Bitcoin never needed to put their name on a coin. Bitcoin doesn't have a founder collecting a check. It doesn't have a family profiting off the brand. It's the only token in the world that was never designed to make one person rich at everyone else's expense. LEDN just introduced their lowest rates ever. The larger the loan, the lower the rate. These new rates apply to all new loans, refinances and renewals. With With LEDN's gold standard protection, your Bitcoin stays custodied, never lent out. You can activate auto top ups and alerts so you're never caught off guard and you can repay anytime with zero penalties. Don't choose between a great rate and the safety of your bitcoin. Get both at leadn and a quarter percentage point off your first loan at ledn.IO Natalie before we get into the latest bear market data, an important update on strategy. This morning, Strategy disclosed that it sold 3,588 bitcoin over the past week for approximately $216 million. That's a dramatic step up from the initial 32 bitcoin sale several weeks ago. The proceeds funded preferred stock dividends and topped up the company's US dollar reserve which now stands at 2.55 billion. This is the Bitcoin monetization program in action. That's the framework strategy announced last week that authorized up to 1.25 billion in Bitcoin sales to service its capital structure. Holdings now stand at a little under 844,000 bitcoin carried at a cost basis of about 75,000 per coin, well above where Bitcoin is trading today. Now, bitcoin dipped roughly $1,000 on the news this morning. I think the market is still processing what it means when the world's largest corporate bitcoin holder shifts from buying every week to selling some of its stack. But as we discussed last week, this is the framework doing what it was designed to do. Servicing obligations while preserving the core position of being a net buyer. So now let's talk about what's happening underneath the surface of this bear market because the data is telling a familiar story. Bitcoin is still roughly 50% below its all time high. Sentiment is super weak. Every rally gets sold. But according to Glassnode, long term holders wallets that have held Bitcoin for at least 155 days have returned to net accumulation. And they're doing it while in real pain. Roughly 45% of long term holder supply is sitting at a loss, the same zone reached near prior cycle bottoms. Bitcoin's overall supply in profit is near historic lows. This is only the sixth time since 2011 that it's fallen to these levels. The last time was late 2022 when Bitcoin was around 16,000 per coin. Over the next two years it went up eight times. Now history doesn't repeat perfectly, but long term holders accumulating through the pain while supply in profit hit cycle lows. That is a signal worth paying attention to. And Michael Saylor published a piece this week that connects directly to this moment. It's titled Bitcoin Evolves by Not Changing. His argument is that Bitcoin is not a technology stock, a payments company or a software platform competing to add features. Bitcoin is a monetary network. Its purpose is not to move fast and break things. Its purpose is to move slowly and not break. The base layer is not optimized for buying coffee. It's optimized for final settlement. The world can innovate around Bitcoin, but Bitcoin's job is to remain resistant to change. And Saylor made a point about the protocol debates happening right now that I think is important. He wrote that Bitcoin's immune system is hard consensus. One of the most important features is that Bitcoin cannot be changed casually. That's not a weakness. That is the source of its strength. Price can change. Sentiment changes, narratives change. Even bitcoiners are starting to argue with and attack each other. But Bitcoin keeps doing the same thing. Producing blocks, enforcing the rules, and protecting the 21 million supply cap. That stability in a world where everything else feels unstable is its greatest feature. And on that note, I sat down with Lyn Alden for a brand new conversation on macro, of course, and Bitcoin's price. But we also get into this exact topic, the protocol debate, and what it means for Bitcoin's future. That episode drops tomorrow, so don't miss it. That's it for the news block, your weekly Bitcoin and economic news update. Powered exclusively by Leden. I'm Natalie Brunel. Make sure you're subscribed to Coinstory so you never miss an episode. This show is for educational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice. Until next time, keep stacking.
Episode: News Block: Trump's $1.4 Billion Crypto Payday, Strategy's Biggest Bitcoin Sale Yet & a Signal We've Seen Only 5 Times Since 2011
Date: July 6, 2026
Host: Natalie Brunell
In this week’s Coin Stories news block, Natalie Brunell offers a rapid analysis of three major developments in the Bitcoin and crypto space:
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Natalie Brunell underscores the contrast between opportunistic, personality-driven crypto ventures and Bitcoin’s principled, neutral foundation. While volatility and political drama swirl, Bitcoin’s core protocol and long-term holders remain steady—a beacon of stability amid market and societal turbulence. For listeners tracking the future of digital money, this news block provides concise yet deep analysis of major market and political moves that could shape the coming months.