Headline: Bitcoin Surges Above $125,000 as Perp-DEXs Engage in Fierce Competition Translation: Bitcoin Surges Above $125,000 as Perp-DEXs Engage in Fierce Competition

Bitcoin’s price has reached a new high, with the SEC declaring the crypto industry a top priority. Trading volume on perpetual DEXs has surpassed $1 trillion, Poland is tightening regulations on digital assets, and several other significant events occurred this past week.

The pioneering cryptocurrency has been gearing up for the anticipated October rally since late September. On Monday morning, it was trading below $110,000, but it quickly gained momentum towards a new record.

Throughout the week, Bitcoin exhibited a positive trend with minor interruptions for consolidation. By the morning of October 5, the digital gold had **set** a new all-time high (ATH) at $125,708.

At the time of writing, the coin adjusted to $123,300, with a market capitalization of $2.45 trillion. Over the past week, Bitcoin has risen by 13%.

The primary driver of this surge is believed to be the recent government shutdown in the United States. On September 30, the American government halted operations for the first time since 2018 due to a lack of agreement between Republicans and Democrats on healthcare funding.

The situation was further bolstered by inflows into cryptocurrency-backed spot ETFs. During the last trading week, Bitcoin funds recorded the second-largest weekly inflow since their inception, totaling $3.24 billion.

Ethereum-based instruments have gained $1.3 billion.

Over the past seven days, the price of ETH rose by 13.7%, testing the $4,600 mark. It has now dropped to around $4,500, remaining approximately 8% below its ATH.

Among the notable assets of the week was BNB, which also **set** a record by surpassing $1,110.

The overall market capitalization has exceeded $4.3 trillion, with Bitcoin dominating at 57% and Ethereum at 12.7%.

The cryptocurrency fear and greed index reached 74, a substantial increase from last week’s 34.

In September, trading volume on perpetual DEXs for the first time in history **surpassed** $1 trillion. This sector evidently captured investors’ attention, leading to intense competition among platforms.

The leader in this segment was Aster, with $493 billion. In second place is Hyperliquid, reporting $280 billion in volume, followed closely by Lighter, which accounted for $165 billion.

Launched with the support of Binance’s founder Changpeng Zhao, Aster has **maintained** its leading position since late September. Its total value locked stands at $2.41 billion.

The platform also ranked highly in terms of transaction fees, with Aster’s figure exceeding $29 million on September 28, compared to Tether and Circle’s $22 million and $7 million, respectively.

As of the time of writing, the exchange has slipped to second place with $193 million in fees over the last 30 days.

Additionally, during the week, prominent perp-DEX Lighter **announced** the full launch of its Layer 2 network after eight months of beta testing. The Token Generation Event (TGE) is expected towards the end of the year.

Despite losing market share from 45% to 8%, Hyperliquid remains «the most attractive for investments,» according to DeFi analyst Patrick Scott.

He emphasized that the platform’s key advantage is its sustainable business model. The current price-to-earnings ratio of 12.6 «indicates a fair valuation relative to the project’s earnings.»

During a roundtable with the CFTC, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins **stated** that regulating the cryptocurrency market is «job number one» for the agency. The meeting was focused on collaboration in oversight of the industry and delineating responsibilities.

They will continue to play a vital role in regulating digital asset markets. Cryptocurrency transactions classified as securities fall under the SEC’s jurisdiction, while most tokens regarded as commodities are overseen by the CFTC.

«We must work in harmony. The key is to create a system where our agencies coordinate their actions seamlessly,» Atkins noted.

CFTC Acting Chair Caroline Pham emphasized that «the battle for jurisdiction is over.»

Atkins pointed to the «limitless potential» of tokenization. He estimates that it will take up to two years to establish regulatory guidelines for this activity.

This week, the SEC also excluded DePIN tokens from its oversight, as it did not classify them as securities. The regulator **denoted** this in a letter to the DoubleZero project.

Michael Simen, Chief Counsel for the SEC’s Division of Corporate Finance, indicated that he would not recommend the commission take action against the planned launch of token 2Z, asserting that the coin does not require registration as a security.

According to DoubleZero’s explanation, its protocol grants blockchain systems access to «underutilized private fiber optic lines,» to be serviced by network participants, who will receive the 2Z tokens.

Co-founder Austin Federman described the SEC’s decision as evidence of the possibility for productive dialogue between regulators and crypto projects.

In collaboration with Kazakhstan’s supercomputer, Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov **unveiled** an AI laboratory at the Digital Bridge 2025 forum.

«A year ago, we opened our first regional office in Kazakhstan and are very pleased with the results. I am delighted to announce today the launch of a specialized artificial intelligence laboratory at Alem.ai,» stated the entrepreneur.

He explained that the company has been developing new technology that merges blockchain and AI over the past few months. This will allow more than a billion people to use AI functionalities in a private, transparent, and efficient manner.

The technology will first be tested through mini-applications in Telegram.

During the event, Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev discussed collaboration in education, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity with Durov.

The president acknowledged Telegram’s contributions to the country’s digital agenda. Durov presented ideas for joint AI projects.

At Digital Bridge 2025, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao also **met** with Tokayev, where they discussed the development of the crypto industry, exchange licensing, and the inclusion of BNB in state reserves.

They additionally announced the launch of a new stablecoin KZTx, though details were sparse.

The Polish parliament has **approved** the «Crypto Assets Market Law» and sent it to the Senate for consideration. The document introduces regulation for the industry.

According to its provisions, the main supervisory body will be the KNF. All crypto asset service providers will be required to obtain licenses in accordance with European MiCA regulations.

To get approval to operate in the country, applicants must:

Failure to operate without a license will result in criminal liability, including a prison term of up to two years and a fine of up to 10 million zloty (~$2.74 million). Should the bill pass, market participants will be granted a six-month transition period to comply with the regulations.

Opposition party Law and Justice’s member Janusz Kowalski criticized the proposed and government-supported MiCA implementation, labeling the bill «118 pages of excessive regulation» and a threat to 3 million digital asset investors.

«The KNF is the slowest regulator in the EU: the average application review time is 30 months,» added politician Tomasz Mentzen.

Writer Paul Kingsnorth **discusses** how people are **building** a «new Tower of Babel.»

In the **monthly digest**, the state of Ethereum ahead of Fusaka was evaluated, important industry news from September was compiled, and the situation in the mining sector was analyzed.