Bitcoin News Today: Bitcoin, Ether Hold Gains as Ethena TVL Surpasses $11.89 Billion

Bitcoin and ether maintained their gains amid shifting market dynamics, as total value locked (TVL) in the DeFi protocol Ethena surpassed $11.89 billion, marking its entry into the $10 billion club. The global crypto market cap climbed 2% to $4.03 trillion, with BTC rising 2.3% to $118,527 and ETH increasing 0.7% to $4,293. Other altcoins also recorded gains, including Solana, XRP, and Dogecoin, as macroeconomic conditions stabilized and short positions were liquidated [1].

Despite the upward price movement, open interest in futures contracts for major tokens decreased over the past 24 hours, signaling capital outflow and potential profit-taking. This decline in open interest suggests that losses in the price were driven primarily by the unwinding of long positions rather than aggressive shorting. On the CME, open interest in ETH futures climbed to 1.70 million from 1.51 million, while BTC open interest held steady near 138K BTC—its lowest level since April [1].

Ethena’s TVL growth highlights the increasing popularity of non-staking DeFi models. The protocol now ranks as the second non-staking DeFi project to cross the $10 billion threshold, following Aave. Its stablecoin, USDe, maintains a $1 peg and has a market cap of $10.48 billion, with a 24-hour trading volume of $371.97 million. The 4.72% APY on sUSDe has attracted yield-focused investors and suggests broader institutional interest in algorithmic stablecoins [1].

Meanwhile, the meme token PENGU—associated with the Pudgy Penguins NFT collection—secured high-profile exposure at the Singapore Grand Prix. Pudgy Penguins won Kraken’s memecoin trading contest, resulting in PENGU branding appearing on the Williams Racing FW47 car. The token, which gained 55.1% over the past 30 days, dipped 11.8% in the last 24 hours before rebounding slightly with a 1.4% intraday gain. This strategic partnership is expected to enhance the token’s visibility among mainstream audiences and align with Kraken’s broader efforts to expand its presence in sports-related crypto promotions [1].

Derivative markets reflected mixed sentiment. Bitcoin’s open interest remained relatively flat, while ETH’s open interest showed slight gains. On Deribit, BTC options displayed a mild put bias ahead of the August expiry, while ETH options showed a more bullish outlook across all tenors. Implied volatility for ETH steepened, indicating rising uncertainty, while BTC’s volatility remained unchanged. Large OTC trades, including a $115K BTC put expiring on August 13 and $150K calls expiring in September, underscored strategic positioning in the market [1].

In the broader DeFi space, Polymarket announced an upcoming transition of UMA’s oracle system from OOV2 to MOOV2. The change, subject to governance approval, will restrict market resolution proposals to a whitelist of vetted participants, aiming to reduce disputes and prevent manipulation. The initial whitelist includes 37 addresses, signaling a shift from open debates to a more controlled, council-style resolution mechanism [1].

Ethena’s TVL milestone and the growing influence of meme tokens like PENGU suggest a broader diversification in the crypto market, with both institutional and retail participants adapting to new financial models and branding opportunities. As TVL and open interest fluctuate, investors continue to monitor positioning data and on-chain metrics for signals of potential market shifts [1].

Source: [1] Markets Today: Bitcoin, Ether Hold Gains as Ethena Hits $11.9B TVL, Pudgy Penguins Race to F1

(https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/08/12/markets-today-bitcoin-ether-hold-gains-as-ethena-hits-usd11-9b-tvl-and-pudgy-penguins-race-to-f1)