Crypto Morning Brief: Fed rate hike, OpenAI funding, and Circle Arc launch

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates to 4%, drawing criticism from Donald Trump. OpenAI is reportedly in talks for a new funding round at a $1.2 trillion valuation. Bitcoin Core 32.0 is set for release on October 10, featuring improved fee estimation and synchronization. Payward plans to launch on-chain perpetual futures for U.S. customers via Hyperliquid. Circle's Arc mainnet has officially launched with support from institutions like BlackRock and Visa, utilizing USDC for gas fees. Additionally, Justin Sun has established a new mathematics prize, and analysts suggest that the failure of the CLARITY Act (US digital-asset market-structure bill) may accelerate alternative regulatory rule-making by the SEC and CFTC.