Cryptocurrency
PlayFi Powers FIrst AI-Driven Prediction Market for Esports World Cup CounterStrike

[PRESS RELEASE – New York City, New York, July 16th, 2024]
PlayFi, an AI-powered data network and blockchain tailored for the live streaming industry, is excited to announce its groundbreaking first live content predictive market competition for the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia. The competition is completely powered by PlayFI AI processors and backed by the data of its AI agents enabling users to mint NFTs, predict Esport World Cup CounterStrike tournament outcomes, and earn significant rewards.
“We’ve told you what PlayFi can do. Now it’s time to see it in action,” said Ben Beath, founder of PlayFi. “This initiative marks a significant milestone in our mission to transform the way we interact with live content and streaming.The PlayFi AI will analyze and predict the outcomes of live events in real-time, opening the door for interactive experiences and innovative prediction markets across the entire live streaming landscape. Join us and be early to the AI revolution.”
Here’s how participants can join:
- Mint an NFT: Mint an NFT through the MetaverseHQ campaign on www.playfi.ai/esports.
- Official Entry: The first NFT minted will be considered the official entry.
- Bonus Points: Mint as many NFTs as desired. Bonus airdrop points are available for minting all of them.
- Claiming Points: Points can be claimed on the airdrop platform.
- Updates and information are available on PlayFi’s social channels and the PlayFi esports page.
By participating, players are not only minting a special edition PlayFi Esports NFT and earning outsized airdrop points but are also taking part in the very first live content predictive market powered by PlayFi. PlayFi’s powerful AI agents will be monitoring every second of the CounterStrike tournaments, collecting data in real time, and sending it to the blockchain to identify the eligible winners.
Live content. Real-time data. Instant on-chain rewards. The future of content starts now!
The PlayFi team is led by a six-time startup founder alongside builders who have impressive experience at Activision Blizzard, BumbleBear Games (developer of the popular arcade game Killer Queen), Meta, BattleFly Game, and more.
Users can follow PlayFi on X or visit PlayFi.ai to join the PlayFi Airdrop Platform and for continued updates.
About PlayFi
PlayFi is redefining gaming by integrating blockchain technology to enhance gameplay and community engagement. Through its cutting-edge PlayChain technology and AI-powered PlayBase network, PlayFi ensures a fast, secure, and scalable zkEVM blockchain solution, as well as optimal data processing and analysis tailored for the gaming industry. With a commitment to enhancing the gaming experience with web3, PlayFi is empowering developers, players, and studios across the globe to push the boundaries of innovation in an ever-evolving digital landscape and setting new standards in how games are played, developed, and monetized. For more information, users can visit playfi.ai.
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Cryptocurrency
4 Things That Could Rattle Bitcoin and Crypto Markets This Week

Crypto markets took a big dip in late trading on Sunday, with Bitcoin falling below $100,000 for the first time since early May, but it appears to be recovering already.
Markets have been highly volatile over the past week amid geopolitical tensions and the US air strike on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend.
Those tensions escalated with Iran threatening to close the Straits of Hormuz, a key shipping channel, which would impact global oil prices.
Russia has also reportedly stated that countries are ready to supply Iran with nuclear weapons.
This market has all your answers:
Over the last 72 hours, the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites, Russia said countries are ready to supply Iran with nukes, and Iran’s parliament voted to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Yet, stock market futures are down a mere -0.5% at the open and…
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) June 22, 2025
Economic Events June 23 to 27
Key inflation data is due this week, kicking off with June’s S&P Global Manufacturing PMI and Services PMI preliminary readings on Monday,
These purchasing managers’ indexes are leading economic indicators used by analysts to gain insights into changing economic conditions and rates of change.
Tuesday will see home sales data and consumer confidence reports released, while Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will be speaking before Congress to give lawmakers an update on the central bank’s views on inflation and the economy.
Thursday will see more GDP data released for Q1, which will paint a broader picture of the state of the economy and what to expect going forward.
Friday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) for May is the big report of the week as it tracks changes in inflation based on consumer spending. The Fed considers the annualized Core PCE Price Index its preferred gauge for inflation in the US.
Key Events This Week:
1. Markets React to US Strikes on Iran – Monday
2. May Existing Home Sales data – Tuesday
3. June CB Consumer Confidence data – Tuesday
4. Fed Chair Powell Speaks – Tuesday & Wednesday
5. US Q1 2025 GDP data – Thursday
6. May PCE Inflation data- Friday…
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) June 22, 2025
A very busy economic calendar combined with increased tensions in the Middle East is likely to create a very volatile week ahead for crypto markets.
Crypto Market Outlook
Digital assets continued to weaken over the weekend following US military action in the Middle East and more rhetoric from Iran and Russia as the situation escalates.
Markets lost 4% in a fall to $3.15 trillion but managed to recover slightly during early trading in Asia on Monday morning.
Losses were led by Bitcoin, which fell to $98,500 briefly in its first sub-six-figure dip since May 8. However, BTC had reclaimed the $101,000 level at the time of writing.
Ethereum dumped more than 7% in a fall to $2,135, its lowest level since it broke above $2,000 in early May. Nevertheless, it also made a minor recovery to trade around $2,240 on Monday morning.
Altcoins were all in the red aside from Hyperliquid as markets continue to weaken again.
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Cryptocurrency
Metaplanet Buys 1,111 BTC, Total Holdings Now Top $1.1 Billion

Metaplanet Inc. has announced a 1,111 BTC purchase, pushing its total holdings to 11,111 BTC valued at over $1.12 billion.
This latest acquisition, executed at an average price of approximately $106,408 per Bitcoin, further solidified the Tokyo-based investment firm’s position among the world’s top ten largest corporate holders of the original cryptocurrency, increasing its lead over Coinbase in 10th place and trailing Hut 8 in 8th by 273 BTC.
Metaplanet Sets Its Sights Higher
Chairman Simon Gerovich confirmed the buy via a post on X, where he revealed that the company was targeting 30,000 BTC before the end of 2025. Additionally, in an infographic shared in a follow-up post, Gerovich outlined his firm’s path to hitting 210,000 BTC by 2027.
He projects the company acquiring 70,000 BTC in 2026 to get to 100,000, and adding another 110,000 the following year to own exactly 1% of the entire Bitcoin supply.
Metaplanet’s rapid rise, from 97.850 BTC in April 2024, has been driven by relentless capital market activity. The organization has utilized a combination of stock acquisition rights and zero-coupon bond issuances, primarily directed to EVO FUND, to fuel its Bitcoin accumulation strategy.
The 1,111 BTC, bought for $118.2 million, follows a similar pattern, coming weeks after a $117 million acquisition of 1,112 BTC on June 16, which increased its holding to 10,000 BTC. Before that, the firm purchased 1,088 BTC on June 2 for approximately $117.5 million. Its average buy-in across all 11,111 BTC now stands at $95,869.
Metaplanet measures success through the “BTC Yield” metric, reflecting Bitcoin accretion per fully diluted share. In a statement shared on X, the firm revealed that the metric has soared 306.7% year-to-date, with a particularly strong 107.9% gain between April 1 and June 23, translating to a hypothetical gain of 4,367 BTC purely from operations, worth ¥66.189 billion at their reference price.
Despite this aggressive strategy, the company’s stock was down 5.39% at the time of this writing, changing hands at ¥1,685, possibly due to heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East following the United States’ bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities.
The dip was also witnessed in the price of Bitcoin. Currently trading at around $101,511, the asset is down 4.5% over the past week and 6.5% in the last month.
BTC Treasuries Catching On
Metaplanet’s buying spree is not just reshaping its own balance sheet; it signals a deepening institutional embrace of Bitcoin as a core treasury reserve asset.
According to HODL15Capital, by June 16, 24 companies had increased their holding of the number one crypto asset by an additional 11,902 units. These include Singapore’s Genius Group, which bought 100 BTC and is targeting 1,000, and Sweden’s first Bitcoin treasury company, H100, which recently increased its ownership of the asset to 169 BTC.
Others, such as China’s DDC Enterprise and New York-based Mercurity, are planning to raise $528 million and $800 million, respectively, to purchase Bitcoin.
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Cryptocurrency
Bitcoin Bounces to $102K but Crypto Market Tensions Remain (Market Watch)
The cryptocurrency market continues to experience heightened volatility, which is evident in the elevated liquidation levels across the derivatives market.
Bitcoin has reclaimed the pivotal $100K mark but the broader situation remains uncertain as the industry remains under the heavy influence of macroeconomic and geopolitical events.
Bitcoin Price Bounces to $102K
As we reported yesterday, the conflict between Israel and Iran escalated. The US joined the war and striked three strategic Irany sites, causing immediate turmoil on international markets with crypto being no exception.
In response, Iran threatened to close the Straits of Hormuz – a critical chokepoint for oil transport, which resulted in even more highly elevated oil prices.
Amid all of this, Bitcoin’s price tumbled below $100,000 for the first time since May and reached an intraday bottom at around $98,000.
The bulls took control, however, and managed ot stage a recovery, with the price currently trading at slightly less than $102,000. The situation remains obviously uncertain, however, and very volatile, which can be seen by the elevated liquidaitons across derivatives markets. Coinglass reports over $600M liquidated in the past 24 hours – that figured surpassed $1 billion yesterday.
Altcoins Remain Shaky
Some altcoins managed to recover better than BTC throughout the same period, while others remain largely in the red. A notable example here is HYPE, which is up by almost 6% in the past 24 hours, where the broader majority of major altcoins are trading either flat or continue losing value against BTC.
Story (IP), alongside Sonic (S), and KAIA are the best-performing cryptocurrencies for the day, up in the range between 7.5% and 10%.
On the other hand, Mantle’s MNT and Bitget Token (BGB) failed to capitalize on the recovery and are down by 3.7% and 2.9%, respectively.
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