Liana, a Bitcoin wallet designed for self-custody with built-in loss prevention and inheritance features, has released its latest version—Liana 7.0. This version brings significant updates that enhance user experience, including new backend options like Liana Connect and support for Electrum servers. These additions aim to improve accessibility for both privacy-conscious users and those less concerned with self-sovereignty.

Dana Wallet, a privacy-focused mobile app for Bitcoin donations, has officially launched its first public release, version v0.1.0-alpha. The wallet, developed by user "cygnet3," is built with the silent payments protocol, which allows users to accept Bitcoin payments while preserving on-chain privacy. The pre-release version is now available for download as an APK file for Android devices.

Keonne Rodriguez, co-founder of Samourai Wallet, has been denied a request to modify his bail conditions, including the removal of home detention, by Judge Richard M. Berman. Rodriguez, alongside co-founder William Lonergan Hill, faces money laundering charges related to their development of the Samourai Wallet, a cryptocurrency anonymization tool.

Cathedra Bitcoin Inc. has formalized its Bitcoin Treasury Strategy, emphasizing its commitment to maximizing Bitcoin holdings per share for its shareholders. In a memo , Cathedra’s leadership highlighted their belief in Bitcoin’s long-term potential as a dominant global reserve asset and outlined a detailed strategy to grow their Bitcoin reserves while moving away from traditional mining operations.

Australian police have successfully infiltrated Ghost, an encrypted messaging app that was allegedly designed for criminal activities, resulting in the arrest of 38 suspects across four states. Ghost, reportedly developed in 2017 by Jay Je Yoon Jung, 32, was used by international criminal organizations for illicit drug trafficking and orchestrating violent crimes.

A recent survey conducted by Deutsche Bank reveals that a portion of consumers are hesitant to adopt Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), favouring traditional forms of payment like cash and debit or credit cards instead. Despite growing interest from central banks globally, consumer sentiment suggests that CBDCs have a long way to go before becoming mainstream.

The development team behind Bitcoin Keeper has announced the release of Keeper Desktop v0.1.1, a cross-platform desktop application designed to securely integrate hardware wallets with the Bitcoin Keeper mobile app. This initial release is part of a broader effort to provide users with a seamless and secure way to manage their Bitcoin transactions.

Keychat, the decentralized messaging app that integrates Bitcoin ecash, Nostr protocol, and Signal protocol, has recently released its latest update, version 1.19.7. The app offers a unique, privacy-focused messaging experience by utilizing decentralized technologies to ensure secure and anonymous communication.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has announced the launch of the design phase of Project Agorá, an initiative aimed at enhancing the efficiency of international payments and developing programmable financial platforms. The project, which began in April, involves 41 private companies from the financial sector and collaboration with seven central banks. Among the companies participating are major players such as Visa, Mastercard, SWIFT, JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, SIX Digital Exchange, and Monex.

Meta has announced plans to use public content from adult users on Facebook and Instagram in the U.K. to train its artificial intelligence (AI) systems. The social media giant stated that this initiative will help its generative AI models reflect British culture, history, and language, while providing U.K. businesses and institutions access to advanced AI technology.

The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) announced that its Bitcoin Development Fund has granted 1 billion satoshis to support 20 projects worldwide, aimed at advancing Bitcoin-related development and education, especially in regions affected by authoritarian regimes. The grants target technical education, Bitcoin conferences, decentralized mining efforts, and the provision of private financial solutions to human rights organizations across Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

Alby, the versatile browser extension designed for seamless online content consumption and payments using Bitcoin and the Lightning Network, has released v1.8.0. The update brings new features, mobile UI improvements, and greater flexibility for users managing their Lightning nodes.

Phoenix, a self-custodial Bitcoin wallet leveraging the Lightning Network for seamless payments, has released its latest Android version, v2.3.9. The update focuses on fixing UI issues and improving the user experience for Lightning payment users.

Dada Devs, Africa’s first development program exclusively for women developers, has officially launched. The ground-breaking initiative, designed to empower women in the tech space, particularly in the world of Bitcoin development, marked a massive step forward for gender inclusivity in the African tech ecosystem.

Research conducted by pseudonymous researchers Mononaut and 0xB10C has revealed findings regarding the extent of Bitmain's influence over Bitcoin mining pools. While it has long been suspected that Bitmain, a leading manufacturer of Bitcoin mining hardware, exerted control over a substantial portion of the mining network, new research confirms that many so-called independent mining pools may actually operate as proxies for Bitmain.

Following the controversial July 2024 presidential elections in Venezuela, a severe crackdown on protests and dissent has unfolded, with technology playing a central role in facilitating state repression. Thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets to demand transparency after the election results, which claimed the re-election of Nicolás Maduro. These results have been widely contested both within Venezuela and by international bodies like the Organization of American States (OAS).

Nayuta Co., Ltd., a company founded in March 2015 with a focus on developing Lightning Network (LN) solutions, has announced its closure. Kenichi Kurimoto, CEO of Nayuta, shared the news on the company's official blog, citing both personal health reasons and shifts in the Lightning Network business landscape as the primary factors behind the decision.

BlueWallet, a popular Bitcoin and Lightning wallet, has rolled out version 7.0.4, featuring a range of bug fixes and user experience improvements. This latest update, released four days ago, addresses various issues affecting both mobile and desktop users, while introducing refinements aimed at improving overall functionality.

Microsoft is updating SymCrypt, its core cryptographic library, by incorporating new post-quantum cryptography algorithms aimed at future-proofing against the growing threat of quantum computing. The new additions include ML-KEM, previously known as CRYSTALS-Kyber, and XMSS, marking Microsoft's latest efforts to bolster security in a quantum world.

Alaa Abd El Fattah, a British-Egyptian coder, blogger, and activist, is entering his fifth year in a maximum-security prison outside Cairo. Fattah’s incarceration has drawn widespread condemnation, with supporters calling for his immediate release as he continues to endure harsh conditions, including beatings, solitary confinement, and limited contact with his family. His detention, based on charges of supporting free speech and privacy rights, highlights the Egyptian government's ongoing crackdown on activists.