Kalshi Targets $40B Valuation as MemeCore Token Wipes Out $3 Billion

Crypto News

Kalshi, the US-regulated prediction-market operator, is in talks to raise fresh capital at a valuation near $40 billion, with the round potentially closing in the third quarter, according to people familiar with the discussions. The figure nearly doubles the $22 billion mark set just last month, when Kalshi completed a $1 billion Series F led by Coatue with backing from Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Morgan Stanley and ARK Invest. The platform was valued at roughly $11 billion in December and about $5 billion earlier last year — an eightfold climb in under twelve months. Rival Polymarket last reported a $15 billion valuation, underscoring how aggressively Wall Street capital is now flowing into event-contract markets.

The fragility of thinly traded assets resurfaced as MemeCore's M altcoin collapsed roughly 74% in 24 hours, sliding from near $2.92 to as low as $0.51 before steadying around $0.74. The move erased close to $3 billion in market value, dragging the token's capitalization below $1 billion from about $3.8 billion, even though only some $21 million changed hands over the day. No exploit, hack or announcement explained the drop, leaving the token far below its all-time high. On-chain data and an April warning from investigator ZachXBT had already flagged the asset, alleging insiders propped up its price and pointing to roughly $7.9 million in suspicious withdrawals routed to 18 newly created wallets.

Alphabet's artificial-intelligence unit is facing renewed pressure as senior researchers depart for rivals. Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel, both linked to Gemini's development, are reportedly moving to Anthropic, following star engineer Noam Shazeer's exit to OpenAI and the earlier departure of John Jumper, the AlphaFold lead who shared the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The exodus arrives as both Anthropic and OpenAI prepare for public listings, intensifying the competition for talent ahead of their IPOs. In a field where research capability rather than physical plant determines competitive edge, the losses raise questions about whether Alphabet can sustain the momentum it rebuilt with Gemini 3.

Fermi America detailed a water strategy for Project Matador, its AI-dedicated hyperscale campus in the Texas Panhandle, claiming a design that cuts water consumption roughly 80% versus conventional data centers. The plan centers on dry and hybrid cooling, closed-loop wastewater recycling and use-specific water quality, with a long-term goal of water-positive operations; the site pays Amarillo double the standard municipal rate. Financially, the company has secured more than 2 gigawatts of generation capacity, is permitting around 11 GW more, and closed roughly $785 million in new equipment financing. It nonetheless posted a first-quarter net loss near $189 million, driven by non-cash stock-based compensation and loan-repayment charges.

Logistics group Schneider National moved to reinforce its long-term positioning across governance, safety, technology and shareholder returns. The company appointed Husco chief executive Austin Ramirez — who tripled that firm's scale and lifted global revenue beyond $600 million — to its board and audit committee. Schneider expanded virtual-reality and simulator-based driver training, a program recognized as a 2026 industry award winner, and marked its intermodal division's 35th anniversary with more than 26,800 containers and 23,900 chassis in operation. It also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per Class A and B share, payable July 10, signaling confidence in operating stability.

In South Korea, the Homeplus rehabilitation case has reignited debate over how far controlling shareholders must shoulder losses when a company fails. MBK Partners, which acquired the retailer in 2015 and filed for court receivership in March 2025, has argued that private-equity sponsors differ from traditional family conglomerates. Critics counter that general partners owe fiduciary and duty-of-care obligations and cannot fully separate themselves from accountability. Historical precedents — from Kumho Asiana to STX and Hanjin Shipping, where controlling owners faced capital write-downs and personal asset contributions — suggest the outcome could tighten standards for shareholder responsibility across Korea's capital markets.

COINOTAG views these threads as a single tension: capital and talent are racing into AI- and prediction-driven markets faster than oversight can follow. That fault line is sharpest in the regulatory arena, where US House Democrats led by Bill Foster have pressed SEC Chair Paul Atkins for written answers by July 31 on how the agency polices retail-facing AI trading agents and emerging AI crypto wallet tools they warn could expand into cryptocurrency and event contracts. Our aggregate data reinforces the caution: the Fear & Greed Index reads 12 (Extreme Fear), Bitcoin dominance stands at 70.1%, and total crypto market capitalization sits near $1.76 trillion — a market rewarding scale while punishing fragility.