律动BlockBeats

BlockBeats report, August 23: Morgan Stanley’s equity research team conducted its annual survey of more than 500 North American summer interns. Most respondents are no older than 21. More than a quarter of the interns said they used prediction market apps in the past year; Kalshi and Polymarket were the most common choices. Among them, 55% of users use multiple betting apps at the same time.
Prediction markets in the U.S. are facing increased scrutiny, with multiple states taking legal or regulatory action against related platforms. Morgan Stanley’s employee code of conduct covers trading and investing matters, including prediction markets, but insiders have not disclosed further details. Another national survey shows that 21% of U.S. adults surveyed have used prediction market platforms, and the share among people aged 18 to 34 is 37%.

BlockBeats message: On August 23, according to a report by Bloomberg, financial disclosures released by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics on Saturday show that in June, Trump conducted more than 1,000 securities transactions with a total value ranging from $78.10 million to $263.1 million. The trades included purchases of stocks in companies such as Berkshire Hathaway, Visa, Mastercard, and Cintas.
Among them, the largest transaction was the sale on June 22 of a Vanguard Group ETF valued at between $5 million and $25 million. Trump also bought Palantir stock valued at between $1,001 and $15,000 on June 3, then sold positions valued at between $15,001 and $50,000, and between $500,000 and $1 million on June 16 and 18, respectively. He then bought again on June 23 and 24. Other investment targets included Coinbase, Meta, and Home Depot.

BlockBeats messages: On August 22, according to CCTV Finance and Economics, in recent times, yields on long-term government bonds in major global economies have continued to rise, and selling pressure in the bond market has intensified. Meanwhile, China’s bond market and exchange rate have remained relatively stable, and the issuance scale of panda bonds has even hit a new high for the same period.
Data show that as of August 21, in 2026, the cumulative issuance scale of panda bonds reached RMB 209.975 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of over 73%. Against the backdrop of sharp volatility in global bond markets, increased efforts by international institutions to raise RMB financing domestically have drawn attention. Industry insiders noted: "We are in completely different economic and monetary cycles overseas. Foreign investors account for only about 5%-8% of China’s bond market. Domestic investors hold absolute pricing power. Combined with the fact that our monetary policy remains anchored to us, overseas shocks cannot reverse the overall trend of China’s bond market."

BlockBeats message, August 22: Analysts say that U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to achieve goals that tens of thousands of bombs and missiles failed to deliver—by imposing a new round of sanctions, implementing a maritime blockade, and increasing economic pressure on Iran’s trade partners—forcing Iran to end the war according to the terms set by the United States.
But this kind of old path of “forcing Iran to submit” has one fatal bottleneck: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has in practice taken control of the Strait of Hormuz and has repeatedly fired large batches of attack drones toward the Persian Gulf. The Revolutionary Guard is largely immune to economic pressure, and it also holds plenty of means of retaliation. The key timing for this round of U.S. actions is Monday, when Treasury Secretary Bessent will unveil the details of a new plan. The plan is intended to shift the mode of conflict away from mutual airstrikes in the Middle East and toward comprehensive economic isolation.

BlockBeats message: On August 22, a fragmented investment product based on various assets and rights such as artworks, real estate, and music copyrights is expected to officially launch in the Korean Exchange (KRX) in November this year, and will be traded like stocks.
The KRX currently plans to open a new securities market on November 16. Related system development and preparations by market participants are underway. Before that, the KRX plans to conduct a six-week simulated trading period from October 6 to November 13. However, the actual opening date may still be adjusted depending on the progress of approvals for listed products by financial regulators.