Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered the Public Utility Commission of Texas and grid operator ERCOT to audit all data center projects awaiting approval to connect to the grid, a move expected to weigh mainly on speculative projects that have not yet been cleared. With data center proposals making up about 90% of ERCOT’s 474 gigawatts interconnection queue, restrictions on new connections could make existing AI campuses and Bitcoin mining facilities more valuable. Bitcoin miners have signed more than 20 AI infrastructure deals totaling about 8 gigawatts of contracted power capacity, with an estimated $160 billion in total contract value.

Keel said it has exited its U.S. Bitcoin mining business and is redirecting its power portfolio toward artificial intelligence. The company reported second-quarter revenue fell 50% year over year to $30.4 million, with a net loss of about $65 million. It sold 1,085 BTC for roughly $75 million and held 1,861 BTC valued at approximately $121 million, with a plan to liquidate its Bitcoin position in 2026. Total liquidity was approximately $819 million as of Aug. 7.

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned crypto exchanges Shelbit and Aban Tether on August 7, accusing them of moving funds for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. TRM Labs data show the unlicensed, Dubai-registered exchange Shelbit processed more than $6.3 billion in flows between May 2024 and March 2026, which OFAC described as a settlement layer for Iran’s illicit economy. The action is part of the Treasury’s “Economic Fury” campaign and marks the latest step since January targeting Iran-linked crypto platforms.

Vodafone Idea reported a June-quarter net loss of Rs 3,754 crore, narrowing from Rs 6,608 crore a year earlier, while consolidated Ebitda rose 9.1% year on year to Rs 5,034 crore and ARPU increased 10.2% to Rs 195. Brokerages updated their calls, with UBS and Nomura at ‘Neutral’, CLSA at ‘Hold’, and Axis Capital at ‘Reduce’, setting targets between Rs 12.25 and Rs 15. The company is scheduled to hold an analyst briefing at 2:30 PM IST.

Anthropic has reached a $9.1 billion cloud infrastructure agreement with Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms. Riot will supply 191 megawatts of computing capacity from its Texas campus. The contract is expected to generate $9.1 billion in revenue through June 2048. Riot shares jumped 25% in after-hours trading after the deal was disclosed.

Gold rose to a two-month high above $4,400 an ounce as traders positioned ahead of the US consumer price index release due Wednesday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey sees July CPI rising 0.1% month-on-month after a 0.4% decline the prior month. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said multiple rate hikes may be needed to return inflation to the central bank’s 2% target. Silver climbed 0.4% to $65.98 an ounce.

AI company Anthropic has signed a 20-year, $9.1 billion agreement with Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms to secure AI compute capacity. Under the deal, Riot Platforms will provide data centers and power infrastructure to support the training and deployment of Anthropic’s AI models. The partnership highlights a broader push by Bitcoin mining firms to diversify into high-performance computing and lock in longer-term, more stable revenue streams.

Bitcoin-holding firm Strategy sold 1,690 BTC at an average price of $64,262, generating $108.6 million, and used the proceeds to repurchase about 1.15 million shares of its STRC preferred stock. The company also sold 6.59 million MSTR common shares for $653.1 million, with $650 million allocated to its U.S. dollar reserve. After the transactions, Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings fell to 840,447 BTC, acquired for an aggregate $63.36 billion at an average cost of $75,385, according to CoinDesk.