US dollar liquidity dries up, stablecoins market share rises

stablecoins are gradually evolving from "cross-border convenience tools" to daily financial infrastructure in some developing regions. A new proposal in Bolivia would allow TEDA (USDT) to be used more widely for payments and savings-a move that reflects increasing local economic pressures and narrowing access to the U.S. dollar.

At the same time, the Bitcoin mining industry's transformation to artificial intelligence and data center infrastructure is triggering new scrutiny from investors, especially amid insider sell-offs and governance issues. In another development, CleanSpark highlighted the potential size of long-term data center revenue, while Bitmine reported strong results related to Ethereum pledge.

Summary of Points

Bolivia is considering establishing a regulatory framework to recognize USDT as a payment currency in the context of chronic U.S. dollar shortages.

Bolivia is still on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, which means that any promotion of stablecoins must be equipped with anti-money laundering controls.

Investors 'focus on AI-focused Bitcoin miners is shifting, with recent disclosures that insiders plan to sell shares under Rule 10b5 -1 have attracted attention.

CleanSpark's 20-year data center lease in Georgia could generate up to US$6.6 billion in contract revenue, and a potential renewal could further boost value.

Bitmine's revenue from Ethereum pledge and verification in the latest quarter reached US$45.7 million, most of which came from pledge business.

Bolivia plans to legalize USDT payments as US dollar shortage intensifies

Bolivia is weighing a regulatory path to recognize TEDA (USDT) as a payment currency. The proposal, discussed by Economy and Public Finance Minister Jose Gabriel Espinosa, would allow the USDT to be used for payments and savings along with boliano and the U.S. dollar. Espinosa said the framework was still under review and would include anti-money laundering safeguards. The country remains on the Financial Action Task Force grey list, raising the compliance threshold for integrating stablecoins into regulated financial activities.

This policy debate began with major monetary pressures earlier this year. Bolivia has faced a chronic shortage of dollars after pressure on foreign exchange reserves, leading the government to abandon its long-standing exchange-rate peg system. As the gap between official exchange rates and parallel market exchange rates widens, demand for dollar-denominated alternatives increases, thereby enhancing the role of stablecoins such as USDT in daily transactions.

Bolivia's latest move is also accompanied by two background changes: the country's lifting of the ban on cryptocurrencies in 2024, and the new government's expressed intention to expand the use of digital asset services.

The real question for investors and users is not whether stablecoins are "faster" but whether they can reliably replace the U.S. dollar within local constraints. A regulated USDT channel may reduce friction between payments and savings, while giving financial service providers dealing with tokens a clearer understanding of compliance requirements.

Bitcoin miners turn to AI and face new governance test

As some Bitcoin miners turn to AI infrastructure and high-performance computing, a separate theme is emerging: investors are increasingly concerned about what insiders are doing during strategy implementation. According to Blocksbridge Consulting, executives from TeraWulf, Cipher Digital, Riot Platforms and Core Scientific have disclosed stock sales in recent months. Many of these transactions were conducted according to a pre-arranged 10b5 -1 rule trading plan. Blocksbridge also noted that strategic investors have reduced their positions-including TEDA Inc., which reduced its stake in Bitdeer following its AI-driven rise.

The background is the weakening of optimism in AI infrastructure. Blocksbridge cited the TEM AI Infrastructure Growth Index, which has dropped 16% in the past month. The company said the market is beginning to move beyond the AI growth narrative and focus instead on whether the transformation of miners can create sustainable value for public shareholders.

This is a key difference for the industry. Miners may be building long-term infrastructure bets, but if governance signals-such as insider sales of shares-indicate that executives lack confidence in short-to-medium returns, shareholders may demand stronger evidence before funds follow that argument.

CleanSpark's long-term data center lease highlights miners 'infrastructure bet

CleanSpark has attracted strong market attention after announcing a 20-year data center lease in Georgia. The news reportedly drove shares up as much as 22%, reflecting how the market evaluates the potential size of contract revenue as miners deepen their participation in AI-related calculations.

The agreement covers CleanSpark's 175-megawatt data center in Sandsville, Georgia, and is linked to an undisclosed investment-grade global technology company. Tenants will install their computing equipment on-site, with phased delivery expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2027.

Under the announced terms, the contract could generate up to US$6.6 billion in contract revenue. If the customer exercises two five-year renewal options, the total contract value could reach $11.6 billion.

The lease also fits a broader industry model: Miners have been looking for additional sources of income as mining economics remains under pressure after halving. While many listed miners have reduced their Bitcoin holdings to enhance liquidity, CleanSpark remains largely a net accumulator, although it sold some Bitcoin earlier this year to fund operations.

For readers following this trend, the key variable to focus on is how quickly these long-term infrastructure commitments translate into realized cash flow, especially after phased delivery begins. The size of the contract may be eye-catching, but timing, utilization and cost of capital will ultimately determine whether these deals improve balance sheets or simply delay risk further.

Bitmine Ethereum pledge revenue reaches US$45.7 million, validator operations drive growth

In another corner of the market, Bitmine Immersion Technologies reported revenue from Ethereum pledge and verification. Bitmine reported revenue of $45.7 million in its most recent quarter, despite continued pressure on ETH prices.

Based on the company's results, Ethereum pledges accounted for 98% of its revenue for the three months ended May 31. Other sources of revenue include approximately $624,000 in self-mining bitcoin revenue and approximately $168,000 in consulting services revenue.

Bitmine's pledge activity followed the launch of its institutional Ethereum pledge platform MAVAN in March. According to reports, MAVAN is based on the acquisition of verifier operator Pier Two Holdings. The company said it has pledged approximately 85% of its Ethereum position-approximately 4.9 million ETH.

Chairman Tom Lee said Bitmine now pledges more Ethereum than any other entity and expects annualized pledge rewards to reach US$284 million once its positions are fully pledged through MAVAN and its partners.

For companies and investors, the correlation is obvious: Pledge revenue remains highly sensitive to pledge participation rates, operational execution and ETH market conditions. Bitmine's data suggests strong operating momentum, but readers should still focus on how pledge yields evolve and whether partners and fully deployed pledge capabilities can maintain growth over the coming reporting period.

Looking ahead, stablecoin policy decisions in Bolivia and similar jurisdictions may determine how quickly dollar-like functions can expand outside of the payments space, and the transition of Bitcoin mining to AI may depend not only on infrastructure announcements, but also on governance behavior and whether contract transactions begin to translate into shareholder value. In terms of pledges, subsequent disclosures fully deployed through platforms such as MAVAN will show whether the recent strong revenue can be sustained.