Bitcoin Tops $125K as Stablecoins Pass $300B

MetaMask’s $30M Rewards & $MASK? | Aster Token Slides

Marco Manoppo & Karon Pangestu
October 06, 2025

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Good Morning,

Bitcoin smashed through $125K and stablecoins topped $300B, showing the market’s heating up again. Over at MetaMask, a $30M LINEA rewards drop is on the way, likely paving the road for the long-awaited MASK token.

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In Today's Email:

What Matters: Bitcoin Tops $125K as Stablecoins Pass $300B 📈
Product of the Week: Tether & Antalpha’s Gold-Backed Crypto Treasury 👀
Charts: Aster Token Slides, MetaMask’s $30M Rewards & $MASK? ⁉️

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Narratives: Cycle Reignition

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WHAT MATTERS

Bitcoin Tops $125K as Stablecoins Pass $300B

Stablecoin Total Market Cap / Source: DefiLlama

State of play: The crypto market is entering a new phase of strength, marked by two major milestones:

Bitcoin set a fresh all-time high above $125,000 amid its historic “Uptober” rally, gaining over 11% in the first five days of October.
Analysts attribute the surge to an accumulation phase and rising inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Meanwhile, the ongoing US government shutdown has reinforced Bitcoin’s appeal as a store of value.
At the same time, the total market capitalization of stablecoins has surpassed $300B for the first time, according to DeFiLlama.
Tether’s USDT remains dominant with $176B in circulation, followed by Circle’s USDC at $74B.

Why it matters: Bitcoin’s record high alongside expanding stablecoin liquidity suggests that capital is returning with confidence rather than hype.

Our take: This phase looks more sustainable than past cycles. ETF inflows, stablecoin growth, and policy clarity are reinforcing each other, forming a foundation for long-term market depth.

For builders and investors: The key risk is that Tether’s dominance still concentrates systemic exposure, leaving the market vulnerable if confidence wavers.

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK

Tether & Antalpha’s Gold-Backed Crypto Treasury

IMG: CoinMarketCap

Tether and Singapore-based Antalpha Platform are seeking to raise at least $200M to launch a digital asset treasury company focused on acquiring Tether’s gold-backed token, XAUT, according to Bloomberg.

The move would create one of the first dedicated treasuries centered on tokenized gold, blending traditional commodity exposure with on-chain liquidity.
Antalpha, a close partner of China’s mining giant Bitmain, previously collaborated with Tether on XAUT-backed lending and infrastructure solutions.
With ~250K XAUT in circulation, representing more than 7.6 tons of gold, the initiative signals growing institutional interest in metal-backed digital assets.

Other cool products:

Almanak, a DeFi Agent Platform.
Maestro, a Telegram trading bot.
WiFi Map, a decentralized connectivity platform.
Flap, a token launch and trading platform on BNB Chain.
Mimic, a platform to model and automate DeFi operations.

Take a peek at our referral reward at the bottom of this issue. Share this newsletter and receive our list of 500 crypto VC individuals 👇

CHARTS OF THE WEEK

Aster Token Slides After DefiLlama Flags Wash Trading

Aster & Binance Volume Data / Source: 0xgnmi

State of play: Aster’s token dropped more than 10% after DefiLlama delisted its perpetual trading data, citing possible wash trading activity.

DefiLlama founder 0xngmi shared charts showing Aster’s trading volumes had begun moving almost identically to Binance’s.
The correlation raised questions about the authenticity of Aster’s reported activity, especially given that the exchange doesn’t provide granular trade-level data for verification.
Aster, which counts former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao as an advisor, had recently led all perpetual DEXs in daily volume and fees before the delisting.

Our take: Aster’s surge now faces a credibility test. Without clear trade data, even rapid growth can look manufactured.

MetaMask’s $30M LINEA Rewards & $MASK?

State of play: MetaMask is preparing to launch a major rewards program that will distribute $30M+ in LINEA tokens during its first season. The program will include referral bonuses, mUSD incentives, and partner rewards, with “meaningful connections” to the upcoming MetaMask token, according to the team.

Linea, the L2 incubated by Consensys, shares close ties with MetaMask’s new ecosystem push, following the launch of its own token and mUSD.
While the initiative is pitched as a way to “give back to the community,” some users on X questioned whether the rollout would favor insiders or exclude certain jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, MetaMask’s trading volume has not shown any significant spike and remains well below the highs reached in 2023 and 2024.

Our take: MetaMask’s rewards push feels like a warm-up for the MASK token launch. It could tie users more closely to the Linea and mUSD ecosystem, but the flat trading volumes show interest isn’t there yet.

QUICK BITES

Stablecoin market boom to $300B.
Companies spent $1.2B on Bitcoin last week.
Blockchain network revenues declined 16% in September.
MetaMask's rewards program will distribute $30M in LINEA.
Bitcoin hits new all-time high, crosses $125,000 for the first time.
Crypto exchange spot volumes edge down to $1.67T in September.
Bitcoin ETFs rebound with second-highest weekly inflows since launch.
Abracadabra loses $1.8M in protocol's third major DeFi hack since 2024.
Aster's token drops 10% after DefiLlama head raises wash trading concerns.

NOTEWORTHY READS & MEME

Cred’s read on On Dynamic Position Sizing
Nic Carter’s read on The stablecoin duopoly is ending
Xbt2025’s read on Hyperfinancialization and Game Theory

anything for the agi
— tokenbender (@tokenbender)
5:57 PM • Oct 5, 2025

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