demand

KelpDAO stated on platform X that it has filed a lawsuit against LayerZero and its co-founder Bryan Pellegrino, seeking accountability for the rsETH cross-chain bridge attack incident that occurred earlier this year. The lawsuit claims that LayerZero failed to adequately disclose its inherent technical weaknesses and risks; failed to prevent its security infrastructure from being compromised; and that LayerZero had previously reviewed and approved Kelp's deployment and configuration in writing.Officials stated that LayerZero has publicly attributed responsibility to itself in recent months. Since the occurrence of the attack, the team has taken action to ensure the safety of user assets, including migrating the rsETH cross-chain bridge to a more secure cross-chain standard.LayerZero co-founder and CEO Bryan Pellegrino tweeted that KelpDAO's related claims lack basis and that he will respond and defend in Vancouver.Previously, LayerZero released an incident report indicating that on April 18, 2026, the KelpDAO rsETH cross-chain bridge built on LayerZero was attacked, resulting in a loss of approximately 116,500 rsETH, valued at around $292 million.

CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost pointed out that although the price of Bitcoin is rising, sustained buying pressure is still difficult to rebuild, and market signals are mixed. The cumulative spot demand over the past 30 days is -180,000 BTC, still negative, while futures demand is +54,000 BTC, still positive but slightly declining. The total average demand improved from -188,000 BTC to -126,000 BTC, narrowing the gap but still remaining in negative territory. Recently, there has been a divergence between price and total demand; Bitcoin's price has risen, but total demand has not turned positive, indicating that the increase is more driven by reduced selling pressure rather than strong buying.Looking at different sectors, the demand recovery is not uniform. For institutions, the geopolitical and macro environment is poor, but the Coinbase Premium, weighted by trading volume, has briefly turned positive, indicating that U.S. spot prices occasionally have a premium over other markets, and institutional selling pressure has significantly eased. ETFs have seen the biggest change in this round, with demand completely reversing compared to this summer, having recently net purchased about 70,000 BTC. The cumulative net inflow for 2026 is still about -17,000 BTC, but it is close to turning positive. In terms of trading platforms, the entire month of September has been characterized by net outflows, leaning towards accumulation rather than distribution. Bitcoin leaving trading platforms usually means that short-term selling pressure is lighter. Analyst Darkfost summarized that the current price increase is not due to enhanced buying pressure, but rather because investors have not continued to increase selling pressure at higher price levels, and the market structure remains fragile.

UBS strategists pointed out that Meta's new consumer-facing AI entity, Muse, is very popular, indicating that the demand for products in the AI supply chain will increase. The strategists stated that the competition in the AI product sector is fierce, which will drive the demand for computing power and AI infrastructure, benefiting leading companies in the semiconductor and hardware industries.

According to Money Today on September 21, Samsung Electronics is advancing the expansion of advanced process capacity in wafer foundry due to the growth of the HBM market. To meet the rising demand for HBM4 base chips, it is evaluating the expansion of its 4-nanometer process. Samsung's HBM4 consists of 10-nanometer 6th generation (1c) DRAM core chips and 4-nanometer logic base chips, with the base chips responsible for high-speed data exchange with AI accelerators such as GPUs.Unlike SK Hynix, which uses TSMC's 12-nanometer process for HBM4 base chips, Samsung employs its own 4-nanometer process. This production line is operating at full capacity and has taken on orders from companies like Nvidia and Groq for 3 LPU, and the company has recently raised its prices for new 4-nanometer orders and HBM4 base chips. Samsung expects HBM4 revenue in the third quarter to increase more than threefold quarter-on-quarter, with HBM4 accounting for significantly more than 60% of HBM revenue in the second half of the year. The additional expansion at P4 in Pyeongtaek will mostly be used for 1c DRAM for HBM, with more than half of the wafer foundry's 4-nanometer capacity allocated to HBM4 base chips.HBM4E also uses 4-nanometer base chips, and Samsung provided samples to customers in May. The company is also evaluating the construction of a new 2-nanometer production line for HBM5, aiming for a GAA structure 2-nanometer process and increasing TSV density to improve operating speed by more than 50% compared to HBM4E. Samsung started the first generation of 2-nanometer mass production in the second half of last year and is advancing the second generation of products in the second half of this year. Citigroup expects global HBM bit demand to reach 75.2 billion Gb next year, a year-on-year increase of 62%, with supply around 59.4 billion Gb and a gap of about 21%.

Arthur Hayes published a new long article titled "Safety First," with the core argument that the claims of "safety first" by Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX, which lead to a slowdown in AGI development, are not out of concern for human welfare but rather due to economic realities. The market does not want AI; it wants AI at "Chinese prices," meaning it needs intelligence that is 100 times cheaper than what is currently available. Hayes points out that "safety first" essentially destroys the demand for computing power. If the spending on training new models decreases and laboratories shift towards efficiency optimization, customers will spend less on computing power. The three major AI laboratories do not generate any profits, and their demand for computing power supports over $10 trillion in investment-grade debt and hundreds of billions in low-quality debt, which rely on profitable tech companies like Nvidia, Broadcom, Google, and Microsoft for off-balance-sheet endorsements. The real backstop is the holders of insurance policies in the United States.Hayes cites an analysis by Nick Nameth that reveals a "self-insurance scam": private equity giants (such as Apollo, KKR, Brookfield, etc.) acquire insurance companies, stuffing AI data center debt and SaaS private credit impacted by AI into insurance assets, and then provide false endorsements with minimal capital through affiliated self-insurance reinsurance companies. Nameth estimates that the total amount of these false reinsurance assets reaches $1.54 trillion. Once the AI data center debt is downgraded by rating agencies due to insufficient demand for computing power, insurance companies will be forced to add capital, while the affiliated reinsurance companies will be unable to pay, leading to insolvency for the insurance companies. In most states in the U.S., the insurance protection limit is only $250,000 to $300,000, and existing insurance companies only pay into the protection fund afterward, which encourages all parties involved to maximize risk-taking. When AIG was bailed out in 2008, TARP funds ultimately flowed to Goldman Sachs and led to record bonuses, while the general public only received foreclosure notices; Hayes believes this scenario will repeat itself.For cryptocurrency investors, the conclusion is a win-win situation. If the U.S. government chooses to become the "last buyer of computing power," it will print money in the name of national security to fund unproductive economic goods, driving up financial speculation and Bitcoin prices; if the government chooses to bail out insolvent insurance companies, it will also need to print money to cover bad AI debts, increasing the money supply and pushing up Bitcoin. Hayes specifically points out that the Federal Reserve voted unanimously last week to raise interest rates by 25 basis points, and RMP bond purchases have stopped since August 14, but commercial banks have taken over to create over $100 billion in currency, and the interest rate hike allows banks to earn an additional $7.5 billion in excess reserve interest each year. This money will be used to expand loans and market speculation, and the net effect remains stimulative. The fluctuations in the cryptocurrency market, which saw a slight increase at the end of August, are about to end, the supply of dollars will continue to grow, and Bitcoin and some selected altcoins will rise. Hayes also described this situation as "incredibly wonderful," stating that the government will not allow the free market to stop building AI data centers, there will be an oversupply of spot computing power, the usage of AI agents will increase, and the surge in money printing will drive investors to chase cryptocurrency assets.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) established a five-year framework for tokenized stock trading days after the failure to advance the CLARITY Act. Investment bank TD Cowen stated that U.S. investors can conveniently access stocks, but issuers show limited interest in tokenization, and short-term adoption rates are expected to be low.TD Cowen pointed out that perpetual contracts remain a greater attraction for gaining exposure to crypto asset stocks, with trading volumes far exceeding those of tokenized spot products.

Micron Technology will announce its fiscal fourth-quarter results on September 30. NVIDIA CFO Colette Kress stated during the fiscal second-quarter conference call on August 26 that the company is seeing "extreme pricing conditions in memory," with price increases exceeding previous expectations, and that "will further rise next year." Pricing pressure has been reflected in NVIDIA's margins, with Kress guiding that gross margins will bottom out in the fourth quarter in the range of 71%-72%, before recovering to 72%-73% in fiscal year 2028.Kress indicated that the current memory shortage is largely driven by AI infrastructure itself. SK Hynix expects the memory market to reach supply-demand balance no earlier than 2030 and has invested approximately $38.3 billion to expand its two domestic bases in South Korea through 2031. SK Hynix holds about 50% of the high-bandwidth memory market share, leading Samsung's 33% and Micron's 18%.

Professor Huang Yiping from Peking University and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the People's Bank of China stated at an economic forum in Beijing that artificial intelligence may deepen and prolong the imbalance of strong supply and weak demand in China. Huang Yiping said: As AI is more widely deployed and innovation accelerates, the imbalance of strong supply and weak demand may worsen, and the contradiction between total demand and total supply may not quickly disappear in the short term, and may even persist for a while.Huang Yiping suggested that China should further promote market-oriented reforms, allowing the market to play a greater role in resource allocation, and increase the proportion of residents' income in the economy; at the same time, consider deepening overseas investment and industrial cooperation, rather than solely relying on exports. He also recommended that the central government increase borrowing to repair the balance sheets of local governments, financial institutions, and enterprises, stating that if the ability of these entities to engage in new economic activities is not restored, the effects of stimulus policies will be limited.

J.P. Morgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou's team stated in a report on Wednesday that if ETF hedging demand decreases, Bitcoin may receive more support compared to gold. The report mentioned that after the Federal Reserve's meeting at the end of July, "devaluation trades" returned, with both Bitcoin and gold ETFs experiencing inflows.The gold ETF has recovered all outflows from earlier in 2026, while the Bitcoin ETF has recovered about half. BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) short positions remain close to year-to-date highs, while SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD) short positions are below historical averages, and the put/call ratio for IBIT is also higher than that for GLD.Analysts stated: From a positioning perspective, the higher short positions of IBIT relative to GLD may provide more support for Bitcoin compared to gold if hedging demand decreases.

The hacker group "iamnotavillain" attacked Revolut and demanded 6,000 Monero as ransom, threatening to sell the data of at least 680 customers to the dark web if payment was refused.

Carolyn Wilkins, a member of the Bank of England (BoE) Monetary Policy Committee, stated that the growth of dollar stablecoins may reinforce the global dominance of the dollar and increase the demand for U.S. Treasury bonds. She pointed out during a speech at Queen's University Belfast that dollar stablecoins can facilitate cross-border settlements and expand access to dollar-denominated assets outside the United States.Stablecoin issuer Tether's USDT and fintech company Circle's USDC held nearly $150 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds by the end of 2025, purchasing about $33 billion that year. Wilkins noted that large-scale stablecoin redemptions could force issuers to sell Treasury bonds, thereby amplifying volatility in pressured markets. Currently, the total circulation of stablecoins has exceeded $300 billion, with 98% of their value pegged to the dollar. Wilkins stated that this gives the dollar a significant first-mover advantage, and the development of the stablecoin market has implications beyond the cryptocurrency sector.The development of pound stablecoins is relatively slow. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority has tested potential issuers through a dedicated regulatory sandbox and finalized the UK's stablecoin issuance rules in June; the Bank of England has also tested the feasibility of using stablecoins alongside a simulated digital pound for cross-border trade payments.

According to the Industrial and Commercial Times, with the expansion of HBM and advanced logic below 2 nanometers, it is estimated that the global silicon wafer supply-demand gap will widen from about 8% by the end of 2026 to 15% in 2027 and 24% in 2028. GlobalWafers, Siltronic, and TSMC are expected to benefit from this. It is noted that mid-2027 will be a critical turning point; if the pace of supply expansion does not keep up, a new wave of shortages and rush buying may occur from the second half of 2027 to the first half of 2028.SEMI statistics show that the global silicon wafer shipment area reached 3.573 billion square inches in the second quarter of 2026, an increase of 9.1% quarter-on-quarter and 7.4% year-on-year. It is estimated that the global monthly production capacity of 12-inch silicon wafers will be about 10.69 million pieces in 2026, an increase of 7% year-on-year, with only about a 3% increase to 11 million pieces in 2027, and an increase of about 6% to 11.7 million to 11.76 million pieces in 2028. The new supply includes about 300,000 pieces from the second phase of GlobalWafers and about 100,000 pieces from Siltronic.It is estimated that the consumption of HBM silicon wafers will increase by 23% and 28% in 2027 and 2028, respectively; new general DRAM production capacity will gradually come online starting in 2027, with an additional monthly capacity of about 350,000 to 450,000 pieces by 2028. In terms of advanced logic, the consumption of logic process silicon wafers is expected to increase by 12% and 11% in 2027 and 2028, respectively. Currently, customer silicon wafer inventory remains at about 100 to 120 days, and it will take time to digest to the normal level of 50 to 70 days.

According to data from CoinDesk, the three U.S. Dogecoin ETFs have seen a total net inflow of only about $12 million in the past 10 months, while the XRP fund attracted $12.29 million in a single day on September 9. Out of the 199 trading days covered in the statistics, the Dogecoin fund had zero net flow for 166 days, accounting for over 83%. During the period from August 13 to September 10, it also recorded a net outflow of about $108,000.In contrast, since its launch in November 2025, the XRP fund has accumulated a net inflow of $1.7 billion, while the SOL fund has raised $1.36 billion since its launch in October 2025, both exceeding the total amount of the Dogecoin fund by more than 100 times. During the 20 trading days from August 13 to September 10, the XRP fund added $190.5 million, and the SOL fund saw inflows of $199 million, while the Dogecoin fund recorded net outflows. Even though the price of Dogecoin rose over 30% in the last two weeks of August, it did not significantly change this situation.Weak demand has led to a contraction in the product line. Cryptocurrency asset management company Bitwise announced it would close its Dogecoin ETF BWOW, which has been in operation for less than a year since its launch in November 2025, and as of September 9, had an asset size of only $687,700. Trading is expected to stop on October 14, and remaining shareholders will receive cash on October 22. A Bitwise spokesperson stated that the company decided to liquidate the fund to continue optimizing its product line to meet the changing needs of investors.

Arthur Hayes posted on the X platform that, aside from AI safety risks, if companies like Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX no longer act as buyers of computing power, the U.S. government may need to take on that role; another scenario is that if the demand for computing power disappears, leading to defaults on related AI debts, the Federal Reserve may need to "print money" to rescue the insurance institutions holding those debts. Hayes stated that regardless of which option is chosen, it will ultimately need to be resolved through monetary expansion, jokingly referring to this situation as "Yachtzee."

The main securities exchange in South Korea will trial evening trading next Monday, extending the trading hours for almost all local stocks until 8 PM, up from the regular closing time of 3:30 PM.This adjustment is the first of its kind among major exchanges in Asia and is a step towards the Korea Exchange's goal of achieving 24-hour trading by December 2027. The new trading period will test whether the market can maintain sufficient liquidity after the extended trading hours and whether there is actual demand from investors for additional trading periods.Lee Young-jae, a senior investment manager at London-based Baillie Gifford, stated that a longer trading window can enhance investor flexibility and may attract more trading-oriented investors with higher turnover rates, as well as hedge fund participation. Edward Kim, head of Korean equity sales at Bank of America, noted that this is another step in the continuous development of South Korea's capital markets and enhancing accessibility for global investors.

Following the attack on the Liquid Network, Blockstream rejected the hacker's demand for a 10% ransom on the remaining approximately 598.5 bitcoins and requested the hacker to return the bitcoins. "Unauthorized acquisition of assets and refusal to return them is a criminal act, not responsible disclosure; this is by no means white hat hacking, but outright theft."Previously, after Blockstream confirmed that the vulnerability in the bridging node had been fixed, the Liquid Network attacker returned 3,400 BTC and retained approximately 598.5 BTC (worth about 47.3 million USD).

The International Energy Agency (IEA) monthly report states that this year the global oil supply-demand gap will be larger than previously expected, as the war in Iran has not ended, and the normalization of oil flows in the Middle East has been delayed until 2027, leading to a surge in fuel prices. Inventory plays a key role in market balance, but the buffer is decreasing, and the global refining system is being stretched to its limits.

Morgan Stanley stated that although market expectations indicate that data center investment will slow down, the growth of AI semiconductor suppliers may continue to exceed the broader growth of cloud spending by 2028 due to strong demand for advanced chip packaging.It is expected that the total capacity of advanced packaging will grow by about 50% by 2028, while the capital expenditure growth of cloud service providers will be 12%.

According to Bloomberg, Dell Technologies is seeking to raise approximately $4 billion through the issuance of investment-grade bonds for refinancing existing debt. Insiders say the final issuance size has not yet been determined and will be adjusted based on market demand.This bond issuance comes at a time when demand for AI-driven servers continues to grow, and Dell is benefiting from the surge in investment in AI infrastructure, boosting its performance.