With digital asset taxation set to take effect in 2027, a call has emerged to overhaul the current system that classifies both capital gains and lending income as miscellaneous income. The argument is that income should be classified in line with the economic substance of each transaction type, such as trading, mining and staking. It also says tax infrastructure should be built first to link transaction information from domestic and overseas exchanges with personal wallets.

• Digital asset taxation 4 months away..."Need to redesign blanket classification as miscellaneous income"

Financial authorities are expanding token securities (STO) beyond fractional investment to include existing securities such as stocks, bonds and funds. With the system set to take effect in February 2027, they will pursue gradual tokenisation, starting with private funds for institutional investors, corporate bonds and unlisted shares.

• From a 'half product' to a full financial product...Token securities expand to stocks, bonds and funds • Beyond fractional investment to bonds and funds…Securities industry steps up STO business

Related to this, South Korean brokerages are expanding their token securities business from account management for fractional investment to issuance infrastructure for existing financial products such as bonds and funds.

⦁ Clarity Act vote on Sept. 15…U.S. Rep. French Hill: "This time it will be bipartisan" ⦁ U.S. Sen. Lummis: "If we miss passing the Clarity Act this session, there is no chance until 2030" ⦁ U.S. SEC chair: "Expect the Clarity Act to pass this month…leap to become the crypto capital"

U.S. House Republicans cancelled the final two weeks of the session that had been scheduled for late September. That leaves about a week to process the legislative calendar after lawmakers return on Sept. 14. With the Senate set for an initial procedural vote on Sept. 15, it means there is effectively no time left for the House and Senate to pass the bill in sequence.

Against this backdrop, House lawmaker French Hill said cooperation between Democrats and Republicans is needed for passage before the midterm elections. He assessed that the two parties have narrowed differences in the bill’s draft. Democrats are still seeking additional changes over an ethics provision that bans government officials from promoting cryptocurrencies or generating profits from them, leaving last-minute issues unresolved. Cynthia Lummis, head of the Senate digital assets subcommittee, went further, warning that if this session is missed, "the next real chance is 2030."

SEC Chairman Paul Atkins also said the bill would be put to a Senate vote on Sept. 15. He said he expected Senate passage and the president’s signature. He said rules are being modernised for the era of blockchain and crypto assets, and stressed that passage could help the United States leap to become the "world crypto capital." Conflicts of interest over authority to pay customer yields and investor protection, and demands to revise ethics wording, remain factors that could slow legislation.

⦁ Bitcoin jumps 5 percent, retakes $81,000…breaks September correction thesis ⦁ Bitcoin-gold correlation highest in 6 years...link to equities weakens ⦁ Is the 4-year halving era ending…a 6 to 8-year 'Wall Street-style cycle' emerges

On Sept. 4, bitcoin rose 5.53 percent from the previous day to $81,437, directly pushing back against the September correction thesis. Major altcoins including ether (up 5.27 percent), XRP (up 9.19 percent) and dogecoin (up 10.12 percent) also climbed. The backdrop was that buying flowed into risk assets broadly as the probability of a September rate hike, which had surged to 60 percent, retreated, while the ISM services PMI came in at 55.4, beating the expected 54.3 and boosting expectations for expansion. Technical expectations also followed that if bitcoin breaks above the Aug. 25 resistance level of $81,455 on a closing basis, it could open a path through the May high of $82,814 to the $85,000 to $90,000 zone.

A structural change was also detected beneath the price swings. Asset manager Bitwise said bitcoin’s 90-day rolling correlation with gold rose above 0.5, the highest in about 6 years since 2020. By contrast, its correlation with the Nasdaq 100 fell to a one-year low, and it maintained a negative correlation with the dollar index. That bitcoin rose 22.4 percent over a week during an August upswing in Treasury yields while equities fell supports this "decoupling from equities."

Analyst Willy Woo went further, arguing the influence of the 4-year halving cycle itself is fading. After the 2024 halving, annual new issuance fell to 164,250 BTC, just 0.82 percent of supply in circulation. Meanwhile, institutional holdings combining 100 listed companies (1.2 million BTC) and global spot ETFs (more than 1.5 million BTC) reached 2.7 million BTC, 16 times annual mined supply. The analysis says peaks and troughs are now being driven more by credit conditions and global liquidity than by the halving, shifting to a "Wall Street-style cycle."

⦁ As Japan rates top 4 percent, Metaplanet’s bitcoin funding burden grows ⦁ Japan reclassifies crypto as financial products...Shiba Inu gains edge in ETF eligibility race

In Japan, two variables moved at the same time: rates and regulation. The 30-year government bond auction yield jumped to 4.079 percent from 3.937 percent on Aug. 6, increasing the burden of funding costs for Metaplanet’s Bitbond, which has a coupon of 4.0 to 4.3 percent. At 214 to 244 basis points above 3-year government bonds, the structure means annual interest costs rise by 1.0 billion yen for every 1 percentage point increase in rates, based on a 100 billion yen programme.

On the regulatory front, Japan on July 15 shifted cryptocurrencies into the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA) framework, laying a legal basis for introducing crypto ETFs. Shiba Inu, which the Japan Virtual and Crypto assets Exchange Association put on its green list in November last year, appears to be taking the lead in the ETF eligibility race, helped by a June listing on Mercari, which has 23 million users. Still, a crypto ETF listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange would be no earlier than 2027, and bitcoin is likely to be listed first.

⦁ Seven Satoshi-era bitcoin mining wallets move for first time in 16 years ⦁ Solana logs $348 million net RWA inflows in past 30 days…No. 1 among major networks

On-chain data also captured a historic event. Seven wallets mined in March 2010 that had lain dormant for 16.5 years woke up and moved 50 BTC each, a total of 350 BTC, worth about $28 million at current prices. The move is seen as symbolic because the coins were mined within 15 months of the bitcoin network’s launch, but an assessment said it is too early to conclude it signals near-term selling pressure unless the coins are moved to liquidity venues such as exchanges.

Meanwhile, Solana logged net inflows of $348 million in real-world assets (RWA) over the past 30 days. It rose to the top among major networks with total RWA value of $4.23 billion and 398,644 holders, up 17.63 percent over 30 days. An analysis said it is attracting institutional funds based on tokenised Treasury products such as Circle’s USYC and BlackRock’s BUIDL.

Despite multiple variables, the direction of funds was relatively clear. A surge in mining stocks, renewed buying by Strategy and Strive, and a strengthening bitcoin-gold correlation all point to the same signal that bitcoin is being re-evaluated from a risk asset to an alternative asset. The Senate’s procedural vote on Sept. 15 and the next FOMC meeting are expected to be watershed events for gauging the next direction of this crypto rally.