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WE-Launch
Weekly Recap | MANTRA (OM) Plunges Sparking Controversy; Powell Emphasizes No Immediate Market Intervention
BlockBeats will compile the industry's key news content for the week of 4.14-4.20 in this article, and recommend in-depth articles to help readers better understand the market and grasp industry trends.
Important News Review
RWA Sector Project MANTRA (OM) Plunges Over 80%, Market Questions Team's Sell-off; Team Responds Due to Improper Platform Liquidation, Will Initiate Buyback and Burn Mechanism
Early on April 14, the RWA sector project MANTRA (OM) experienced a rapid 90% drop, plummeting from $6 to $0.5 within a short period, causing a market cap evaporation of over $5.5 billion. Three hours later, the MANTRA team (OM token issuer) released a statement, indicating that this crash was triggered by irrational liquidation and was unrelated to the project itself, asserting that the team was not involved. Prior to this sharp decline, OM had undergone several violent price surge phases since November last year, earning the nickname "Strong Battle-Tested Magic Coin" from the community.
According to on-chain detective ZachXBT, Reef Finance founder Denko and Fukogoryushu attempted days before the OM crash to borrow a large sum by collateralizing OM. During the same period, LookIntoChain detected that at least 17 wallets had transferred 43.6 million OM to centralized exchanges before the OM collapse, accounting for 4.5% of the circulating supply, with two addresses linked to strategic investor Laser Digital.
On the 14th at noon, Binance responded to the OM flash crash, stating that this drop was primarily caused by cross-platform liquidation. They mentioned that since October last year, they had implemented risk controls on OM, including reducing leverage and issuing risk reminders. In the afternoon, OKX announced that this crash occurred at 2:28 am on April 14 and initially triggered a selloff on other exchanges, quickly spreading. On-chain data shows that since October 2024, the OM token's economic model has undergone significant changes, with recent large deposits and withdrawals. Additionally, revealed by members of HashKey Capital and the founding partner of ArkStream, MANTRA was originally an OTC pump-and-dump project, which after an early FDV drop was taken over by Middle Eastern capital and rebranded as an RWAfi concept. It has continued to promote OTC chips recently, ultimately leading to a comprehensive structural liquidation crisis.
On the 15th, MANTRA founder JP Mullin once again denied any team or advisor sell-off actions, stating that the tokens are still under lockup, and the crash was caused by inappropriate liquidation on other exchanges, committing to announcing an OM buyback and burn mechanism. On the 16th, MANTRA's official event statement reiterated that the team was not involved in any sell-offs, confirming that significant liquidations during low liquidity periods severely impacted the market, while also disclosing that the CEO would burn the team's allocation. Further reading: "After Vanishing $5.5 Billion in 15 Minutes and Then Soaring 4x, Why Did 'Magic Coin' OM Suddenly Plummet?", "Mantra Co-Founder Reveals: $5 Billion OM Token Collapse, Truly 'Luna 2.0'?", and "Timeline | OM Plunges Over 80%, Whose Fault Is It Really: Team, Liquidity Provider, or Investor?"
Trump's Latest Crypto Project Will Be a Real Estate Video Game
On April 15, according to Fortune, Trump's latest crypto project will be a real estate video game. In 1989, the real estate tycoon launched Trump: The Game, a real estate-themed board game variant. In 2006, he had considered launching a reality show inspired by Monopoly, but the show ultimately did not materialize. Now, Trump's latest project will be a crypto game bearing the Trump brand—according to two sources familiar with the matter, this game will have a Monopoly-like feel. This planned real estate game will be the latest addition to Trump and his family's growing list of crypto projects. In addition to an NFT series and a MEME coin, there is the decentralized finance project World Liberty Financial, a stablecoin, and a Bitcoin mining company, in which President's sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. hold significant stakes. Related reading: "Three Failures, Four Attempts: Why Is Trump Insistent on a 'Crypto Monopoly'?"
BlockBeats Initiates "Call on Major Exchanges to Stop Promoting Contract Demo Funds to College Students" Initiative
On April 14, BlockBeats initiated a call for major exchanges to stop promoting contract demo funds to college students, causing industry attention. Recently, ETHPanda, LXDAO co-founder Brucexu.eth exposed on social media that some crypto exchanges are distributing so-called "contract demo funds" to college students. These demo funds cannot be withdrawn directly, and once profitable, the gains belong to the students; in case of a loss, there is no need to repay, and flaunting high profits in social circles can even earn additional rewards.
From principal giveaways to leverage incentives, and then to social fissure, this entire process is precisely harvesting the college student community. This behavior is not fundamentally about contract knowledge dissemination or user education, but rather a gambling inducement disguised in the cloak of "financial enlightenment," precisely harvesting the college student community with weak risk awareness and inadequate financial management capability. Even though the overall crypto trading platforms are facing user growth bottlenecks, it does not mean that college students can be leveraged as a breakthrough for business expansion. Such behavior poses compliance risks and has long-term negative effects on the industry's image.
We must act now to resist this behavior. If the platforms turn a blind eye, we will join more KOLs and media to continue exposing until all of this is put to an end. Related reading: "Please Stop Promoting Contract Demo Funds to College Students on All Trading Platforms Immediately"
White House Official: U.S. May Use Tariff Revenue to Purchase Bitcoin
On April 15, according to Bitcoin Magazine, Bo Hines, Executive Director of the White House Presidential Digital Asset Working Group, stated that the U.S. may use tariff revenue to purchase Bitcoin. Related Read: "29-Year-Old Rugby Player Turns White House: The Rise of Trump's 'Crypto Advisor' Bo Hines"
Solana Spot ETF Launches in Canada This Week with Token Staking Support
On April 14, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas tweeted that Canada is set to launch a Solana spot ETF this week, with regulatory approval granted to multiple issuers including Purpose, Evolve, CI, and 3iQ. These ETF products will have staking services provided by TD Bank.
Community Questions HashKey Token HSK for Allegedly Not Following Whitepaper's Buyback-and-Burn Plan
On April 15, community feedback indicated that there has been no public disclosure of a buyback-and-burn record for the HashKey token HSK. As described in the HSK whitepaper, HashKey employs a burning mechanism to safeguard the intrinsic value of HSK. HashKey is supposed to regularly use 20% of the group's net profits to repurchase circulating HSK and permanently remove it from circulation. Upon querying on BlockBeats, the "Buyback/Burn" data on the HashKey Group's HSK page is shown as 0. The HashKey trading platform stated that the results of the burn will be disclosed on the 11th day of each quarter. HSK was launched in November 2024, and on April 11 this year, HashKey announced that the HSK token burn plan would be regularly evaluated and disclosed when applicable. The community understands that currently HSK has not undergone buyback and burn. Some opinions suggest that the reason for the lack of buyback and burn for HSK is because the HashKey Group did not generate a net profit in Q1 2025, making the lack of buyback reasonable.
Powell States in Wednesday Speech: U.S. Economy Still "Strong," Will Not Intervene to Support Markets; Proposes Establishing Stablecoin Legal Framework
On April 17, Federal Reserve Chairman Powell spoke at the Economic Club of Chicago event. He stated that, as of now, higher-than-expected tariffs could mean higher inflation and slower growth. Despite increasing uncertainty and existing downside risks, the U.S. economy remains "strong." Powell emphasized that the market's hope for the Fed to intervene to calm volatility expectations may be misplaced. He said, "The market is dealing with a lot of uncertainty, and that means volatility. Given the significant changes in the U.S. tariff system under President Trump, it is understandable that the market will face challenges." He further added, "In the short term, we may continue to see market volatility." He also stressed that the Fed will not be influenced by political pressure. In his speech that day, Powell made a rare mention of cryptocurrency, stating that cryptocurrency is gradually becoming mainstream, and establishing a legal framework for stablecoins is a good idea. Stablecoins may have broad appeal, and consumer protection measures should be established. Related Read: "Fed Chair Powell Mentions Cryptocurrency, What Positive Signals Has He Sent to the Industry?"
WSJ: Trump Once Discussed Privately Firing Fed Chairman Powell
On April 18, according to the WSJ, Trump privately discussed the idea of firing Federal Reserve Chairman Powell. Sources said Trump had spoken with former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh about replacing Powell. Related reads: "What Would Happen to the Market If Trump Fired Fed's Powell?", "Named and Shamed Three Times in a Day, Trump: Fed Should Have Cut Rates Long Ago, Powell Is Playing Politics and Should Have Been Fired Long Ago"
WSJ: Musk Once Sent Private Message to Crypto KOL Tiffany Fong Seeking Child, Got Rejected
On April 17, according to The Wall Street Journal, cryptocurrency KOL Tiffany Fong received interaction from Musk on X after reporting on the FTX collapse event. As Fong posted more political content supporting Trump, Musk's interactions with Fong increased, and last summer, Musk started following her. Sources revealed that Musk had directly messaged Tiffany Fong asking if she would be interested in bearing a child for him. The two had never met in person. Tiffany Fong declined further engagement with Musk, and upon learning that Tiffany Fong had disclosed this request to others, Musk reprimanded her for not being discreet enough and unfollowed her. Related read: "The Girl Who Rejected Musk's Proposal to Have a Child"
Binance Wallet Launches Lorenzo Protocol TGE
On April 18, Binance Wallet announced a partnership with PancakeSwap to host an exclusive token generation event for the Lorenzo Protocol. Total amount raised: $200,000 (in BNB); Available tokens: 42,000,000 (2% of total supply); Subscription cap per Binance Wallet user: 3 BNB. Participation eligibility for this TGE event of Lorenzo Protocol: Users must have completed a valid purchase of Binance Alpha tokens through Binance's non-custodial wallet or Binance exchange platform 30 days before the TGE date.
Base Officially Promoted Meme Coin, Then Clarified: No Token Launch, Base is for Everyone Not an Official Token
On April 17, the Base official made a post stating "Base is for everyone" and claimed to have minted a token of the same name on Zora. However, the minting of this token occurred before the Base official post, and there were 3 wallet addresses that bought a large amount before the post and later dumped, causing the token price to drop over 95%. According to The Block, a Base spokesperson stated that Base did not launch the token, the "Base is for everyone" is not the official Base token, and Base did not sell this token. As per the team's explanation, Base did not actually launch the "Base is for everyone" token as it was auto-minted on the Zora platform, and Base simply posted about it on that platform. On the same day, the meme coin's market capitalization exceeded 20 million USD. Related readings: "After a 95% Price Crash in 5 Minutes, Base's $20 Million 'New User Promotion Plan'" | "Base Officially 'Promoted' Meme Coin Plunges 90% Before Bouncing Back: Mystery Address Harvests $200,000 in Precision"
Binance's Second Delisting Vote Concludes, FTT Tops Delisting Chart
On April 17, according to official data, Binance's second delisting vote concluded. FTT topped the delisting chart with an 11.1% voting share, followed by the following 4 tokens in order: ZEC, JASMY, GPS, PDA. Binance noted that while they value and consider the voting results, the outcome will not be the sole determinant for the final delisting decision. Project monitoring is still under evaluation, and the ultimate decision will be made by Binance based on its official review processes and standards. Furthermore, the delisting timetable will depend on Binance's procedures.
Binance CEO: In Contact with Many Countries to Help Establish Crypto Regulatory Frameworks and Assist in Building Strategic Reserves
On April 17, Binance CEO Richard Teng told the Financial Times that under President Trump's leadership, the U.S. has taken a more crypto-friendly stance, including plans to establish a digital asset regulatory framework and national reserves, which are prompting other countries to take similar actions. Binance has been in contact with many countries, hoping to assist them in formulating cryptocurrency regulatory frameworks. However, he declined to disclose the list of countries the company is working with. Richard Teng stated that currently Binance is helping some countries establish national strategic reserves of digital assets. Nearly a quarter of Binance's 6,000 employees are engaged in compliance work, and the company will continue to invest heavily in this area. Earlier this month, both Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan announced that Binance founder CZ had begun advising them on crafting crypto regulations and leveraging blockchain technology.
ZKsync Administrator Account Hacked, 1.11 Billion ZK Tokens Illegally Minted
On April 15, the ZKsync on-chain ZK tokens appeared to have been subject to an unauthorized minting, with the minted tokens being sold off. The ZKsync team later posted a statement saying, "The ZKsync security team has identified a compromised administrator account which controlled approximately $5 million worth of ZK tokens—these tokens were part of the unclaimed portion of the ZKsync airdrop. All user funds have been safe and never at risk. The ZKsync protocol and ZK token contract remain secure, and there is no further risk to ZK tokens. This is an isolated incident triggered by the compromised key and only affects the ZK token airdrop contract."
Later in the day, ZKsync provided an update on the hack, stating, "The investigation shows that the administrator account responsible for managing three airdrop distribution contracts was compromised. The attacker minted around 1.11 billion unclaimed ZK tokens from the airdrop contract. This has increased the circulating supply by approximately 0.45%. This incident is confined to the airdrop distribution contract, and all mintable funds have already been minted. There is no further exploit possible through this method. The ZKsync protocol, ZK token contract, all three governance contracts, and all active token plans with capped minters remain unaffected and will not be affected. On the 16th, ZKsync co-founder Alex Gluchowski reiterated that there was no code, contract, or operator key leak. For more information, read: "ZKsync $5 Million Token Hack Plunge, Once L2 Star, Now in a Mess"
KiloEx Treasury Hacked This Week, Over $7 Million Loss; All Stolen Assets Fully Recovered Three Days Later
On April 15, the perpetual contract DEX KiloEx's treasury experienced an attack, leading to an immediate pause in platform functionality. According to PeckShield monitoring, KiloEx suffered a loss of approximately $7.5 million. PeckShield's preliminary analysis of one of the attack transactions indicated an oracle price manipulation issue. The attacker exploited this vulnerability by setting the initial ETHUSD price to 100 during the opening position and then immediately closing the position at an inflated ETHUSD price of 10000, resulting in a profit of approximately $3.12 million from just that one transaction. On the same day, KiloEx expressed willingness on social media to offer the hacker a 10% white-hat bounty. On the 17th, KiloEx stated that they had reported the incident to and filed a case with the Hong Kong police. The security vulnerability has now been addressed, there is no forced liquidation risk, and all positions will be settled based on a snapshot taken before the incident. On the 18th, KiloEx announced that all stolen assets from their security incident had been fully recovered, with the attacker returning around $5.5 million worth of crypto assets and agreeing to pay a 10% reward to the white-hat individual who assisted as previously agreed. For further details, read: "KiloEx $7 Million Hack, Can $7M Market Cap Cover User Losses?"
Odin.fun Developer Account Hacked, Platform Suspends Trading and Withdrawals
On April 14, Bob Bodily, the developer of the Bitcoin ecosystem exchange platform Odin.fun, liquidated all assets on the Odin platform. The developer himself responded by stating, "My Odin.fun account has been hacked. Dealing with this, more information will be updated promptly." and announced that "trading and withdrawals have been suspended to ensure this is not a broader platform issue."
Bitcoin Network Hash Rate Hits All-Time High This Week, Surpasses 1000 EH/s
On April 17, according to CloverPool data, the Bitcoin network hash rate briefly exceeded 1000 EH/s, reaching an all-time high; the current seven-day average hash rate is 888.85 EH/s. While the growth of the Bitcoin hash rate signals improved network security, it also means that the cost of mining 1 Bitcoin is increasing. Coupled with the reduction in block rewards expected in 2024 due to the Bitcoin halving, the growth in hash rate may lead to consolidation among small mining companies.
Wu Jihan Responds to BTDR Short Report: Absurd and Misleading, Retains Right to Take Legal Action
On April 16, a company named Callisto Research released a short report on BitDeer, "We are shorting the Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining company Bitdeer Technologies Group BTDR. We have found warning signals in Bitdeer's disclosures, governance, and related party transactions. Unless Bitdeer undergoes a thorough transparency reform, we believe it lacks investment value." The next day, Wu Jihan, Chairman of BitDeer (BTDR), responded to the market's short report on BitDeer, stating, "The report is clearly based on a predetermined stance, piecing together complex but irrelevant facts, using absurd and misleading logic to construct a narrative aimed at manipulating market sentiment for the benefit of short sellers. We will continue to focus on the company's true business fundamentals and long-term value, retaining the right to take legal action to protect our reputation and shareholder interests."
Panama City to Accept Cryptocurrency Payments for Taxes, Permits, and Fines
On April 17, the Panama City government has approved the use of cryptocurrency to pay taxes, fees, fines, and permit fees. Local media has confirmed that the city will accept Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC, and USDT. Panama City has now joined other global cities that permit the use of cryptocurrency for municipal payments. Mizrachi stated that Panama City will implement this policy through collaboration with a partner bank, converting the cryptocurrency to dollars at the time of payment. Similar to El Salvador, the U.S. dollar is the legal tender in Panama.
Trump Meets Salvadoran President This Week, but Bitcoin Not Discussed
On April 15, according to Cointelegraph, U.S. President Trump met with Salvadoran President Bukele on Monday to discuss trade and immigration issues. The meeting did not touch on Bitcoin-related topics.
OpenSea Announces Launch of Solana-Based NFT Trading
On April 15, according to official sources, OpenSea announced that Solana token trading is now live on OS2 for some invite-only users and will roll out to more users over the next few weeks. Currently, tokens are tradable, with NFT trading to follow later.
a16z Founder: Launchpad Platform auto.fun to Potentially Launch This Week
On April 14, a16z founder Shaw posted on X indicating that the Launchpad platform auto.fun may launch later this week. Creators can autonomously claim fees generated from content creation and token issuance, while the community can collaborate to launch content or create CTO tokens based on other platforms. The platform emphasizes "anti-fomo" and "pure fun," aiming to create a decentralized, transparent space for content and token launches truly owned by creators and the community. Further reading: "ai16z Launches Own Launchpad, Will the First Project on auto.fun Shiba Inu Again?"
Analysis: Bitcoin Forms Daily Chart "Death Cross," Only Seen 10 Times in History
On April 16, Bitcoin formed a "death cross" on the daily chart on April 6 — a technical formation where the 50-day moving average (MA) crosses below the 200-day moving average. Historically, this signal is often associated with trend reversals and long-term bearish trading expectations, sometimes indicating a significant market downturn. Since its inception, Bitcoin has experienced this "death cross" 10 times, with the 11th currently unfolding. Analyzing the dates and durations of these "death crosses" can lead to an important conclusion: every bear market includes one "death cross," but not every "death cross" leads to a bear market. This differentiation is key to understanding the current market landscape. CoinShares research director James Butterfill stated that on average, Bitcoin's price is only slightly down (-3.2%) one month after a death cross and typically rises three months later. Therefore, "the so-called death cross is actually usually a pretty good buying opportunity."
Top Funding of the Week: Optimum Completes $11M Seed Round Led by 1kx; Resolv Labs Completes $10M Seed Round Led by Cyber.Fund and Maven11; Auradine Completes $153M Series C Led by StepStone Group
On April 15, decentralized high-performance memory infrastructure Optimum announced the completion of an $11 million seed round, led by 1kx. Other participants in this round include Robot Ventures, Finality Capital, Spartan, CMT Digital, SNZ, Triton Capital, Big Brain, CMS, Longhash, NGC, Animoca, GSR, Caladan, and Reforge.
On April 16, Resolv Labs announced the completion of a $10 million seed round led by Cyber.Fund and Maven11, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Susquehanna, Arrington Capital, and Animoca Ventures. The protocol provides a crypto-native, delta neutral income strategy for USR stablecoin holders.
Also on the same day, Bitcoin mining hardware manufacturer Auradine completed a $153 million Series C funding round led by StepStone Group, with participation from Maverick Silicon, Premji Invest, Samsung Catalyst Fund, Qualcomm Ventures, Mayfield, MARA Holdings, GSBackers, among others. This funding will be used to further develop its Bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence infrastructure business.
Raydium Launches Token Issuance Platform LaunchLab
On April 16, Raydium launched the token issuance platform LaunchLab, designed for creators, developers, and communities. Tokens are released via the JustSendIt model, and 85 SOL is raised, with liquidity immediately migrating to Raydium's AMM. Creating on-chain tokens incurs no migration fees or permissioned audits. For tokens launched through the LaunchLab UI, the basic trading fee structure is: 100 basis points (1%), with 50% allocated to the community pool (aimed at creators + traders), 25% to RAY buyback, and 25% to project fees (infrastructure and operations).
The MELANIA Team has sold a total of $14.06 million worth of tokens in the past month through providing single-sided liquidity
On April 16, according to Ember Group monitoring, the MELANIA Team has sold a total of $14.06 million worth of MELANIA tokens (20.5 million tokens) in the past month through liquidity and community addresses using a single-sided liquidity provision method. The average price was approximately $0.686. In the community distribution portion: 10.5 million MELANIA tokens were sold in exchange for 44,013 SOL. The 10.5 million MELANIA tokens were transferred to 4 addresses to provide single-sided liquidity, then the SOL was moved to 9 wallets. In the liquidity distribution portion: 10 million MELANIA tokens were sold in exchange for 57,407 SOL. The 10 million MELANIA tokens were transferred to 5 addresses to provide single-sided liquidity, then the SOL was moved to 5 wallets.
A court in Shandong province tried a virtual currency "killing foreign exchange" telecom fraud case involving over 40 million yuan
On April 14, the People's Court of the Economic Development Zone of Heze City, Shandong Province, recently tried a telecom network fraud criminal case targeting an Indian victim in which "killing foreign exchange" was used as a scam. The amount involved reached 517 million Indian Rupees (over 40 million yuan), involving 66,800 victims. Nine fraudsters received prison sentences ranging from five years to fourteen years and nine months, as well as fines. The fraudsters confessed that "they met an Indian on a messaging app, learned about a ** network investment platform, communicated with clients through the messaging app, tempted Indian individuals to invest in the platform with the lure of 8% to 15% monthly returns on a 1000 Rupee investment, and attracted customers to deposit money on the platform. When a customer's investment exceeded the return amount, they would close the platform or engage in debt-to-equity swaps, blocking the funds. Subsequently, they used a third-party payment platform to purchase 'USDT' virtual currency with the investment funds and then converted the virtual currency into RMB or USD."
OKX Wallet Standalone App Officially Available on App Stores; OKX Announces Entry into the U.S. Market
On April 17, according to official sources, the OKX Wallet standalone app has officially launched on Google Play and select regions of the Apple App Store. Users can directly search for "OKX Wallet" to download and experience it. On April 16, per an official announcement, the cryptocurrency exchange platform OKX announced its entry into the U.S. market, establishing a regional headquarters in California and planning to launch a CEX and OKX Wallet for U.S. users. Former OKCoin users will be migrated to the OKX platform, and new clients will be gradually onboarded, with a full-scale launch within the U.S. later this year. OKX stated that it will cooperate with U.S. regulatory bodies, advance operations according to current regulatory laws, and has established a compliance system covering KYC, AML, risk assessment, and transaction monitoring.
Trump's Son to Be Invited to TOKEN2049 Dubai Conference
On April 15, according to official sources, TOKEN2049 announced that Trump's son, Eric Trump, will be invited to attend the TOKEN2049 Dubai conference, scheduled to take place from April 30 to May 1.
This Week's Top Articles
"Stock Market Influx Into 'Bitcoin Fentanyl'"
More and more companies are incorporating Bitcoin into their balance sheets, with the 'Bitcoin Treasury Reserve Strategy' initiated by MicroStrategy (MSTR) evolving into a global capital game. Some fringe companies have experienced a surge in market capitalization and narrative reconstruction through coin purchases, driven by capital catalysts like Sora Ventures and UTXO, along with political resources linked to the Trump family. While Bitcoin has brought short-term gains and market attention, corporate reliance on it has also heightened systemic risk. In the event of a Bitcoin price correction or policy tightening, companies lacking real-world support will face significant pressure and potential collapse.
"Splurging $80 Million on 'Subsidies' for Growth, Uniswap Takes a Big Step"
The Uniswap Foundation has proposed a one-year Unichain and a six-month Uniswap v4 liquidity incentive plan with a total budget exceeding $84 million. Although the proposal has passed a community vote and the first round of incentives was launched on April 15, it has faced considerable scrutiny. Some members believe such incentive strategies are outdated and inefficient, failing to address the chain's inherent lack of appeal, with historical data showing rapid liquidity outflows after incentive programs end. Additionally, the transparency and security of participating projects like Gauntlet and Layer0 have also been questioned. However, some argue that while incentives may struggle to retain users long-term, they are still an effective starting point for user acquisition.
"What Would Happen to the Market If Trump Fired Fed Chair Powell?"
Trump has repeatedly harshly criticized Powell for the Fed's failure to cut interest rates, accusing him of being slow to react and harming the economy, even hinting at considering his replacement. However, under the law, there must be a "cause" for the dismissal of the Fed Chair, and political disagreements are not sufficient grounds. Forcibly replacing Powell could not only trigger legal disputes but also shake market confidence, leading to financial turmoil. Despite Powell's insistence on the Fed's independence, his position faces potential challenges from Trump and the conservative-leaning Supreme Court. Economically, if Trump successfully pressures for rate cuts, it may short-term benefit crypto assets but could pose long-term stagflation risks, putting the Fed's policy in a dilemma. The cost of the entire game may ultimately be borne by the market and the public.
"Bitcoin Ecosystem Sees Another 10x Growth, What Is the New Asset Protocol Alkanes?"
Within the Bitcoin ecosystem, the Alkanes protocol has quickly gained popularity due to its openness and support for smart contracts. Its first fairly launched token, METHANE, has surpassed a market cap of $6 million, sparking discussions with over a tenfold return. The protocol, launched by Oyl Wallet, has received robust financial backing and active promotion from the Chinese community. With the three key elements of "mainnet assets, fair launch, and Chinese support," combined with a long-term plan to build the BTCFi ecosystem, it has become one of the most promising projects among new asset protocols in the Bitcoin ecosystem.
"DARK Surges Over 1500% in a Week, and the Solana Foundation Network Behind It"
The AI meme coin DARK in the Solana ecosystem surged against the backdrop of a downturn in the AI field, with its market cap growing by 1500% in a week. This growth is primarily attributed to founder Edgar Pavlovsky's high execution capabilities and consistent delivery, as well as the market resources and anticipated support from the MtnDAO team behind it. DARK combines two popular concepts, Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) and Modular Model Interface (MCP), and quickly launched an AI combat game as its first product, attracting market attention. Additionally, MtnDAO advocates for investment decision-making based on a market prediction mechanism (futarchy), aligning closely with DARK's timeline, creating market expectations of their synergistic effects and further boosting the token's value.
The shadow of last year's Dexx rug pull, which caused significant losses, has not yet dispersed. Now, the popular trading platform BullX has attracted widespread attention due to rumors of the "team possibly exit scamming." While community user @Nuotrix raised doubts such as the CEO deleting Telegram, customer service being unresponsive, and abnormal referral rewards, most of these are indirect evidence. Some community members have verified that customer service is still active, and the reward system is functional. Currently, BullX has been absent from social media for two months, intensifying user concerns, leading to a sharp decline in user numbers and transaction fees. Regardless of the veracity of the rumors, the competition in the trading bot arena is becoming increasingly fierce. Users should be more vigilant towards risks, diversify their assets to safeguard their funds.
"The Girl Who Refused to Have Musk's Baby"
Tiffany Fong, who entered the public eye due to her exposé of the Celsius scandal, and later became a "fringe protagonist" in the crypto world's storm center through deep interactions with FTX founder SBF, accumulated influence through persistence and serendipitous opportunities without a team or resources. Her rumored relationship with Musk has highlighted the consumption and misinterpretation of women's labels on social media. After SBF's imprisonment and the dissipation of attention, she remains active on Twitter but has fallen into an existential crisis of identity loss, becoming a free yet lonely "drifter" in the crypto circle.
"How to Mine on HyperEVM and Earn Rewards?"
The HyperEVM ecosystem has attracted attention due to the value accumulation of the HYPE token, sound tokenomics, and product-market fit. Various protocols such as Upshift, StakedHype, HyperSwapX, HyperLend, HypurrFi, and Felix offer staking, liquidity mining, borrowing, and other strategies. Users can not only earn APY but also accumulate ecosystem points and potential airdrop opportunities. However, the ecosystem is still in its early stages, with high risks. Users should pay attention to the proportion of funds invested and the security of the protocols.
"Opinion: Why Bittensor Is a Scam and TAO Is Heading to Zero?"
Despite the Bittensor project claiming to have "fair mining," the underlying chain is controlled by a foundation, and the governance structure is highly closed. Early token distribution was opaque, with at least sixty percent flowing to internal stakeholders. Behind the inflated market cap are extremely low circulation and significant inflation pressure. The dTAO upgrade seems more like a Ponzi restructuring to provide an exit channel for early interest groups. Subnet tokens lack real value support, with a confusing mechanism, causing the project team and miners to end up working for validator nodes, ultimately damaging the foundation of the entire ecosystem. Bittensor is now caught in a dual dilemma of narrative collapse and liquidity exhaustion.
In mid-April, the Meme Coin RFC on the Solana blockchain experienced a price surge driven by Elon Musk's endorsement, capital manipulation, and community frenzy, with its market cap surpassing $1 billion in just two weeks. Behind the scenes, it was actually a controlled game orchestrated by multiple market makers and whales through a sophisticated fund network; a large amount of funds circulated across chains and wallets to conceal the true intent, leveraging a narrative of "celebrity interaction + low circulation + decentralization" to efficiently attract liquidity. Additionally, the implicit support from the Solana Foundation further propelled it to become an ecological model. However, its extremely concentrated chip structure and false liquidity make it susceptible to the risk of a price avalanche at any time.
"a16z: 5 Principles of Cryptocurrency Custody"
Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) face regulatory uncertainty and custody challenges in cryptocurrency investments. Due to the unique ownership and governance attributes of cryptocurrency, traditional custody methods are inadequate to meet the demands. The industry needs a principle framework with substantive protection at its core, replacing the practice of relying solely on legal status to determine custody eligibility. It is suggested to allow RIAs to self-custody under necessary protection conditions and ensure they can exercise the economic and governance rights of cryptocurrency assets. At the same time, custodians should establish complete mechanisms such as power separation, asset segregation, audits, insurance, etc., to safeguard asset security and customer rights.
"Web3 Carnival Short Essay: The Cold Winter under Prosperity, A Chicken Hot Pot Becomes Jerusalem"
This year's Hong Kong Web3 Carnival had a slightly subdued atmosphere, yet it still brought together a large number of industry core builders to discuss topics ranging from technology and finance to cultural philosophy. Compared to the past buzz and hype, participants were generally more rational, focusing on product-market fit, sustainable business models, and genuine user needs. Narratives such as RWA and PayFi applications gained recognition, VCs lost their dominance, GameFi and empty narratives gradually exited, and challenges emerged for Web3 games, on-chain growth, and off-chain connections. The market is entering a transition period from "dream to reality," leaving room for true builders who emphasize technical depth and user value. Despite the cold bear market, it provides space for growth and breakthroughs for real builders.
"Tariff Suspension, Market Recovery, Which AI Projects Could Be the Next Turning Point?"
The crypto market saw a rebound after a 90-day tariff pause, with a 25% increase in total market capitalization. Smart interactions saw a significant increase, indicating rising user interest in AI projects. Mode Trade has launched a trading platform that integrates AI, perpetual contracts, and prediction data, leveraging LLM and synthetic data to innovate the trading experience. Meanwhile, projects like Bio Protocol are promoting the integration of AI smart agents with open science through hackathons, and Virtuals Ventures are exploring on-chain monetization in the smart agent economy, showcasing the thriving integration of Web3 and AI.
"Solana Ready for Another Revival? Analyzing On-Chain MEME Whale Anomalies"
Since mid-March, certain MEME coins on the Solana chain such as Fartcoin and RFC have experienced significant rebounds, attracting market attention. Fartcoin, for example, has surged over 340% in a month, with whales entering the market at an average cost of $0.62. Data analysis shows that large holders have cross-asset positions, especially evident in RFC and DARK, with their entry points aligning closely with the tokens' sharp spikes, suggesting potential signs of whale rotation or coordinated trading. Overall, this round of MEME frenzy has shown a non-universal surge, mainly focused on specific coins with MEME culture or AI themes, exhibiting characteristics of an "artificial bull market."
"AERGO Price Rollercoaster: From 10x Surge to 80% Plunge, What Happened Behind the Scenes?"
In mid-April 2025, $AERGO was first delisted from Binance spot trading and then abruptly listed on futures, leading to a week-long 10x surge followed by an 80% intraday crash in price. Speculative funds and community enthusiasm drove its rally, but distorted market cap data, extreme funding rates, and high concentration of holdings caused the crash, prompting strong investor doubts about Binance's transparency in operations and calls for protection of their rights. This incident exposed the deep risks of speculation mechanisms and information asymmetry in the crypto market.
BlackRock, with its powerful risk management system "Aladdin" and its founder Larry Fink's vision and experience, starting from reflection after the 1987 financial crisis, has successfully built a massive global capital network. Through tools like ETFs, BlackRock has deeply embedded itself in the equity structure of thousands of listed companies. It has not only become a giant in the asset management field but also, due to its key role in multiple financial crises, formed close relationships with powerful entities like the Federal Reserve. Gradually, it has evolved from a financial giant to a "Capital Order Torchbearer" influencing the global economic landscape.
The U.S. financial market has recently experienced intense volatility, with the volatility of U.S. stocks unusually surpassing that of emerging markets and Bitcoin. U.S. Treasuries have also been highly volatile, causing investors to doubt the safety of U.S. assets. Trump's tariff policy, deteriorating long-term bond liquidity, and dramatic shifts in risk-free rates have made the market tumultuous, more akin to emerging markets than a global safe haven, sparking concerns about a potential financial crisis. Funds are rapidly flowing into safe-haven assets like gold and the yen, and Wall Street is also calling for intervention by the Federal Reserve to prevent more severe systemic risks.
"Unveiling the Crypto VC Network: Who Is Joining Hands to Build the Next Unicorn?"
Cryptocurrency venture capital shows a highly concentrated and closely related network structure, with a few large funds leading seed rounds to Series A financing and tending to co-invest with fixed partners. These patterns significantly impact the likelihood of startup companies obtaining follow-up financing. Research has found that investor performance, partner relationships, the presence of growth funds, and historical co-investment records are important factors affecting fundraising success rates. Understanding these flows of capital and relationship networks can help founders more effectively formulate financing strategies and increase their chances of success.
"Don't Just Copy in Crypto Entrepreneurship, How to Stand Out with Your Unique Advantage?"
This article explores the entrepreneurial journey in the crypto industry, emphasizing that entrepreneurs need to define their development direction based on their unique strengths and personal talents, rather than blindly following the industry's conventional path. The author mentions that successful founders are not just excellent salespeople but also need belief and confidence to make their story come true. The article also points out that the current entrepreneurial environment is more equitable than in the past, especially with the power of AI tools, token democratization, and online distribution, enabling founders from around the world to have the opportunity to succeed.
《The TPS Scam in the Crypto Industry》
This article criticizes the crypto industry's blind pursuit of high TPS (transactions per second), arguing that this race is based on false advertising and overlooks real user needs. Projects, in their quest for funding and attention, exaggerate laboratory data but sacrifice decentralization, security, and practicality, often solving problems that no one cares about. The author calls for a focus on truly meaningful blockchain applications, building according to the scale of actual use cases rather than chasing after unrealistic digital fantasies.
《From Web2 to Web3: Why Every Company Will Become a Crypto Company?》
This article explores how the crypto industry is transforming every company into a crypto company through the integration of stablecoins, blockchain, and zkTLS, driving crypto technology into the mainstream. With stablecoins as the payment layer, blockchain as the new balance sheet, and zkTLS as the data bridge between Web2 and Web3, they collectively provide cost efficiency and user incentive mechanisms for enterprises, changing the traditional financial model, and ultimately achieving widespread adoption.
《Trump's "Crypto Dream Team" Holdings Revealed: Pence's BTC Purity vs. Musk's Meme Coin Fervor》
Several key officials in the new U.S. government hold or have held crypto assets, which could influence the future direction of cryptocurrency policy. Vice President Vance holds Bitcoin, White House crypto czar David Sacks liquidated a significant amount of his crypto investments before taking office but retained some fund interests; SEC Chairman Paul Atkins indirectly holds Bitcoin through funds and has stakes in some crypto companies; Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent owns IBIT with a very low Bitcoin asset allocation; Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick holds Tether shares and Bitcoin, being a significant stakeholder in the crypto market; Musk and his companies hold a substantial amount of Bitcoin and Dogecoin, deepening market interrelationships. These holdings may become crucial references for future crypto regulation and policy-making.
Bitcoin, while dominant in market capitalization, has far lower activity in the DeFi space compared to Ethereum, mainly due to its architecture lacking programmability, complex user experience, and high entry barriers. Nevertheless, with the emergence of wrapped Bitcoin, Layer 2 solutions, smart wallets, and other innovative tools, BTC is gradually integrating into the on-chain financial ecosystem. In the future, enhancing accessibility, simplifying operational processes, and preserving user self-custody will be key to driving Bitcoin to play a greater role in DeFi.
"Full Text of SEC Stablecoin Regulation: What Kind of Stablecoin Is Not a Security?"
The Division of Corporate Finance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission believes that a specific type of stablecoin—namely, a "compliant stablecoin" pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar, backed by low-risk, highly liquid assets that can be redeemed at any time—does not fall under the definition of a security in the Securities Act during its issuance and sale. Therefore, it does not need to be registered or exempted from registration. Such stablecoins are mainly used for payments, fund transfers, or storing value, rather than for investment purposes. They do not provide holders with returns or ownership and do not rely on the efforts of others for a return. Their design mechanisms (such as reserve accounts and unlimited redemption) effectively prevent market speculation and have clear risk mitigation characteristics. Therefore, based on the legal standards of Reves and Howey, they cannot be considered securities.
Real-world asset tokenization (RWA), despite experiencing multiple attempts and failures over more than a decade, has never really taken off beyond stablecoins, primarily due to the fundamental conflicts between the on-chain and real-world regarding decentralization principles, regulatory requirements, and asset complexity. As regions like Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai gradually introduce regulatory frameworks, the development of RWA is starting to have an institutional basis. However, differing jurisdictional standards have led to protocol fragmentation and poor interoperability, existing like isolated islands. Nonetheless, leading projects like Ondo are exploring the path of integrating compliance with DeFi. RWA fundamentally serves traditional financial users and has advantages in improving settlement efficiency, reducing costs, and expanding financing boundaries. If it can achieve more open cross-chain and cross-border collaboration in the future, it may truly become a bridge connecting the real world and the on-chain world, reshaping asset ownership and financial services in a new paradigm.
"IOSG In-Depth Report: Revealing the Harsh Reality of Web3 Consumer App Survival Rate of Only 7%"
The Alliance DAO has demonstrated strong incubation and investment capabilities in the Web3 consumer application sector. Its project layout covers seven major categories: lifestyle, gaming, social, speculation, creator economy, finance, and tools. As the market evolves, its preferences have shifted from early-stage gaming and creator economy to SocialFi, Crypto speculation, and financial applications. Its investment philosophy emphasizes avoiding the PMF deviation brought by early introduction of tokens, focusing more on serving Web3 native users and building sustainable business models. It points out three common development paradigms in Web3 consumer applications: optimizing traditional products with Web3 technology advantages, building new business mechanisms through encrypted assets, and focusing on addressing the unique needs of Web3 users. Finally, it summarizes the method of evaluating projects and future application directions to focus on, such as social, on-chain transaction tools, payments, and DeFi, among others.
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Never Underestimate the Significance of the US Stablecoin 'Infrastructure Bill'
If the US stablecoin bill, the "GENIUS Act," passes smoothly this time, its significance will be tremendous. I even think it's significant enough to enter the top five in Crypto history.
Although abbreviated as the GENIUS Act, which translates directly to the Genius Act, it is actually the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins, which translates to "Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Dollar Stablecoins."
The proposal is lengthy, with several key points summarized for everyone:
· Mandatory 1:1 Full Asset Backing: Assets include cash, demand deposits, and short-term US Treasuries. At the same time, misappropriation and rehypothecation are strictly prohibited.
· High-Frequency Disclosure: Reserve reports must be published at least monthly, introducing external audits.
· Licensing Requirement: Once the circulating market cap of the issuer's stablecoin exceeds $100 billion, it must transition into the federal regulatory system within a specified timeframe, adopting banking-grade regulation.
· Introduction of Custody: The custodian of the stablecoin and its reserve assets must be a regulated qualified financial institution.
· Clear Definition as a Payment Medium: The bill explicitly defines stablecoin as a new type of payment medium, primarily regulated by the banking regulatory system, rather than restricted by the securities or commodities regulatory system.
· Embracing Existing Stablecoins: A maximum 18-month grace period after the bill's enactment, aimed at encouraging existing stablecoin issuers (such as USDT, USDC, etc.) to promptly obtain licenses or become compliant.
After finishing the main content, let's talk about the significance of this matter with an excited heart.
Over the years, when others asked, "After working in the Crypto industry for 16 years, what application have you created?"
In the future, you can confidently tell others—Stablecoins.
Some people have held opposing views. In the past, people's impression of stablecoins was that they were an opaque black box. Every few months, there would be FUD — whether Tether's assets were frozen or Circle had a significant black hole deficit.
In fact, if you think about it, Tether easily rakes in billions of dollars a year just from the interest on those underlying government bonds. Circle, slightly less, also made a $1.7 billion profit last year.
They basically made money while standing there. From a motivational standpoint, they have no malicious intentions. In fact, they are the most eager for compliance.
Now, this opaque black box will become a transparent white box.
In the past, the only complaint was that Tether's funds might have been frozen by the United States. Now, they will be directly placed into U.S. compliant custodial institutions, with high-frequency disclosures, so you can rest assured.
【No need to worry about a rug pull】 is such a huge advantage—I think especially all Crypto people understand this.
Stablecoins were once almost on the verge of being overtaken by CBDCs. In any country, if a central bank digital currency really exists, it is highly likely not built on a blockchain, at most it is built on some internal central bank consortium chain, which to be honest, is meaningless.
When CBDCs were at their peak, that was the most dangerous time for stablecoins.
If CBDCs had become a reality back then, stablecoins today would have been relentlessly suppressed into a dark corner, and blockchain would only be able to play a minimal role.
The remaining half-dead stablecoins would even have to learn the standards of central bank digital currencies, completely relinquishing their standard-setting power.
And now, stablecoins have won (or are about to).
Instead, everyone should learn the 【Blockchain + Token】 standard.
Nowadays, many blockchains actually have no meaningful applications on top, only stablecoin transfers. For example, with Aptos, the only scenario I use Aptos for is transfers between Binance and OKX.
And now, stablecoins will be legislated, what does that mean?
That's right, blockchain will become the only standard.
In the future, every stablecoin user will be the first to learn how to use a wallet.
As an aside, I actually think Ethereum's concerted push for EIP-7702 is quite forward-thinking. While other chains are all about memes, thank you Ethereum for sticking to account abstraction.
EIP-7702 is about Account Abstraction, which can support, for example:
· Social Account Registration Wallet
· Paying GAS with Native Coin
· And more
This paves the way for future new users to heavily use stablecoins, solving the last-mile problem.
Furthermore, once stablecoins receive legislative support, deposits and withdrawals will become even easier.
Let's imagine a scenario: previously, hindered by the gray nature of stablecoins, but after the bill passes, many traditional brokerages can support stablecoins themselves. The money from a US stock investor can be converted into stablecoins in minutes and instantly deposited into Coinbase. Believe it or not.
Let's imagine another scenario: if the brilliant bill smoothly passes through the House of Representatives, next, you will see:
Due to the extremely lucrative nature of this trading, existing stablecoin leaders and newly entering traditional giants will crazily start promoting their stablecoin products.
And an outsider, due to these promotions, will start using stablecoins. And then one day, after finding out that the wallet account has been created, will explore Bitcoin inside. Is mining Bitcoin difficult?
Stablecoins are a huge Trojan horse. The moment you start using stablecoins, you unwittingly step half a foot into the Crypto world.
As a large reservoir for digesting US debt, although stablecoins cannot directly absorb debt, they at least provide ammunition for the US debt secondary market. These functions are quite important, and slowly, stablecoins are becoming a part of the US debt market's body. Therefore, once the US legislation is passed and experiences the benefits, there is no turning back.
And, we are also confident that stablecoins are indeed one of the great innovations in our industry. People who have used stablecoins will find it hard to return to the traditional cash-banking system.
Once the bill is passed, users can't go back. In the future, concerns are about to be resolved, standards will be mastered, and the era of large deposits seems to be on the horizon.
Original Article Link
Pharos, deeply integrated with AntChain, is about to launch. How can we get involved?
$COIN Joins S&P 500, but Coinbase Isn't Celebrating
On May 13, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Coinbase would officially replace Discover Financial Services in the S&P 500 on May 19. While other companies like Block and MicroStrategy, closely tied to Bitcoin, were already part of the S&P 500, Coinbase became the first cryptocurrency exchange whose primary business is in the index. This also signifies that cryptocurrency is gradually moving from the fringes to the mainstream in the U.S.
On the day of the announcement, Coinbase's stock price surged by 23%, surpassing the $250 mark. However, just 3 days later, Coinbase was hit by two consecutive events: a hack where employees were bribed to steal customer data and a demand for a $20 million ransom, and an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into the authenticity of its claim of having over 100 million "verified users" in its securities filings and marketing materials. These two events acted as mini-bombs, and at the time of writing, Coinbase's stock had already dropped by over 7.3%.
Coincidentally, Discover Financial Services, being replaced by Coinbase, can also be considered the "Coinbase" of the previous payment era. Discover is a U.S.-based digital banking and payment services company headquartered in Illinois, founded in 1960. Its payment network, Discover Network, is the fourth largest payment network apart from Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.
In April, after the approval of the acquisition of Discover by the sixth-largest U.S. bank, Capital One, this well-established digital banking company of over 60 years smoothly handed over its S&P 500 "seat" to this emerging cryptocurrency "bank." This unexpected coincidence also portrayed the handover between the new and old eras in Coinbase's entry into the S&P 500, resembling a relay race scene. However, this relay baton also brought Coinbase's accumulated "external troubles and internal strife" to a tipping point.
Over the past decade, cryptocurrency exchanges have been the most stable "profit machines." They play a role in providing liquidity to the entire industry and rely on trading fees to sustain their operations. However, with the comprehensive rollout of ETF products in the U.S. market, this profit model is facing unprecedented challenges. As the leader in the "American stack," with over 80% of its business coming from the U.S., Coinbase is most affected by this.
Starting from the approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs, traditional financial capital has significantly onboarded users and funds that originally belonged to exchanges in a more cost-effective, compliant, and transparent manner. The transaction fee revenue of cryptocurrency exchanges has started to decline, and this trend may further intensify in the coming months.
According to Coinbase's 2024 Q4 financial report, the platform's total trading revenue was $417 million, a 45% year-on-year decrease. The contribution of BTC and ETH's trading revenue dropped from 65% in the same period last year to less than 50%.
This decline is not a result of a decrease in market enthusiasm. In fact, since the approval of the Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, the inflow of BTC into the U.S. market has continued to reach new highs, with asset management giants like BlackRock and Fidelity rapidly expanding their management scale. Data shows that BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) alone has surpassed $17 billion in assets under management. As of mid-May 2025, the cumulative net inflow of 11 major institutional Bitcoin spot ETFs on the market has exceeded $41.5 billion, with a total net asset value of $1214.69 billion, accounting for approximately 5.91% of the total Bitcoin market capitalization.
Institutional investors and some retail investors are shifting towards ETF products, partly due to compliance and tax considerations. On one hand, ETFs have much lower trading costs compared to cryptocurrency exchanges. While Coinbase's spot trading fee rate varies annually in a tiered manner but averages around 1.49%, for example, the management fee for IBIT ETF is only 0.25%, and the majority of ETF institution fees fluctuate around 0.15% to 0.25%.
In other words, the more rational users are, the more likely they are to move from exchanges to ETF products, especially for investors aiming for long-term holdings.
According to multiple sources, several institutions, including VanEck and Grayscale, have submitted applications to the SEC for a Solana (SOL) ETF, with some institutions also planning to submit an XRP ETF proposal. Once approved, this may trigger a new round of fund migration. According to a report submitted by Coinbase to the SEC, as of April, the platform's trading revenue from XRP and Solana accounted for 18% and 10%, nearly one-third of the platform's fee revenue.
However, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs passed in 2024 also reduced the fees for these two tokens on Coinbase from 30% and 15% to 26% and 10%, respectively. If the SOL and XRP ETFs are approved, it will further undermine the core fee revenue of exchanges like Coinbase.
The expansion of ETF products is gradually weakening the financial intermediary status of cryptocurrency exchanges. From their original roles as matchmakers and clearers to now gradually becoming mere "on-ramps and off-ramps" for funds, exchanges are seeing their marginal value squeezed by ETFs.
On May 12, 2025, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins gave a keynote speech at the Tokenization and Cryptocurrency Working Group roundtable. The theme of his speech revolved around "It is a new day at the SEC," where he indicated that the SEC would not approach enforcement and regulation the same way as before but would instead pave the way for cryptocurrency assets in the U.S. market.
With signs of cryptocurrency compliance such as the SEC's "NEW DAY" declaration, an increasing number of traditional brokerages are attempting to enter the cryptocurrency industry. One of the most representative cases is the well-known U.S. brokerage Robinhood, which began expanding its crypto business in 2018. By the time of its IPO in 2021, Robinhood's crypto business revenue accounted for over 50% of the company, with a significant boost from the Dogecoin "moonshot" promoted by Musk.
In Q1 2025 earnings report, Robinhood showcased strong growth, especially in revenue from cryptocurrency and options trading. Fueled by Trump's Memecoin, cryptocurrency-related revenue reached $250 million, nearly doubling year-over-year. Consequently, Robinhood Gold subscription users reached 3.5 million, a 90% increase from the previous year, with the rapid growth of Robinhood Gold providing the company with a stable source of income.
Meanwhile, RobinHood is actively pursuing acquisitions in the cryptocurrency space. In 2024, it announced a $2 billion acquisition of the long-standing European cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp. Additionally, Canada's largest cryptocurrency CEX, WonderFi, which recently went public on the Toronto Stock Exchange, also announced its integration with RobinHood Crypto. After obtaining virtual asset licenses in the UK, Canada, Singapore, and other markets, RobinHood has taken a proactive approach in the compliant cryptocurrency trading market.
Furthermore, an increasing number of brokerage firms are exploring the same path. Futu Securities, Tiger Brokers, and others are also dipping their toes into cryptocurrency trading, with some having applied for or obtained the VA license from the Hong Kong SFC. Although their user bases are currently small, traditional brokerages have a natural advantage in user trust, regulatory licenses, and low fee structures. This could pose a threat to native cryptocurrency platforms in the future.
In April 2025, security researchers discovered that some Coinbase user data was leaked on the dark web. While the platform initially responded by attributing it to a "technical misinformation," it still raised concerns among users regarding its security and privacy protection. Just two days before Dow Jones Indexes announced Coinbase's addition to the S&P 500 Index, on May 11, 2025, Coinbase received an email from an unknown threat actor claiming to have obtained customer account information and internal documents, demanding a $20 million ransom to keep the data private. Subsequent investigations confirmed the data breach.
Cybercriminals obtained the data by bribing overseas customer service agents and support staff, mainly in "non-U.S. regions such as India." These agents abused their access to Coinbase's internal customer support system and stole customer data. As early as February this year, blockchain detective ZachXBT revealed on X platform that between December 2024 and January 2025, Coinbase users lost over $65 million to social engineering scams, with the actual amount potentially higher.
Among the victims was a well-known figure, 67-year-old Ed Suman, an established artist in the art world for nearly two decades, having been involved in the creation of artworks such as Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog" sculpture. Earlier this year, he fell victim to an impersonation scam involving fake Coinbase customer support, resulting in a loss of over $2 million in cryptocurrency. ZachXBT critiqued Coinbase for its inadequate handling of such scams, noting that other major exchanges have not faced similar issues and recommending Coinbase to enhance its security measures.
Amidst a series of ongoing social engineering incidents, although there has not been any impact on user assets at the technical level so far, it has raised concerns among many retail and institutional investors. Especially institutions holding massive assets on Coinbase. Just considering the U.S. BTC ETF institutions, as of mid-May 2025, they collectively hold nearly 840,000 BTC, and 75% of these are custodied by Coinbase. If we price BTC at $100,000, this amount reaches a staggering $63 billion, which is equivalent to the nominal GDP of two Iceland in the year 2024.
In addition, Coinbase Custody also serves over 300 institutional clients, including hedge funds, family offices, pension funds, and endowments. As of the Q1 2025 financial report, Coinbase's total assets under management (including institutional and retail clients) reached $404 billion. The specific amount of institutional custodied assets was not explicitly disclosed in the latest report, but it should still be over 50% based on the Q4 2024 report.
Once this security barrier is breached, not only could the rate of user attrition far exceed expectations, but more importantly, institutional trust in it would undermine the foundation of its business. Therefore, after a hacking event, Coinbase's stock price plummeted significantly.
Facing a decline in spot trading fee revenue, Coinbase is also accelerating its transformation, attempting to find growth opportunities in derivatives and emerging assets. Coinbase acquired a stake in the options platform Deribit at the end of 2024 and announced the official launch of perpetual contract products in 2025. This acquisition fills in Coinbase's gap in options trading and its relatively small global market share.
Deribit has a strong presence in non-U.S. markets, especially in Asia and Europe. The acquisition has enabled Coinbase to gain a dominant position in bitcoin and ethereum options trading on Deribit, accounting for approximately 80% of the global options trading volume, with daily trading volume remaining above $2 billion.
Meanwhile, 80-90% of Deribit's customer base consists of institutional investors, with their professionalism and liquidity in the Bitcoin and Ethereum options market highly favored by institutions. Coinbase's compliance advantage, coupled with its already robust institutional ecosystem, makes it even more suitable. By using institutions as an entry point, it can face the squeeze from giants like Binance and OKX in the derivatives market.
Facing a similar dilemma is Kraken, which is attempting to replicate Binance Futures' model in non-U.S. markets. Since the derivatives market relies more on professional users, fee rates are relatively higher and stickiness is stronger, making it a significant source of revenue for exchanges. In the first half of 2025, Kraken completed the acquisition of TradeStation Crypto and a futures exchange, aiming to build a complete derivatives trading ecosystem to hedge the risk of declining spot transaction fee income.
With the surge of Memecoin in 2024, Binance, OKX, and various CEX platforms began massively listing small-market-cap, highly volatile tokens to activate active trading users. Due to the wealth effect and trading activity of Memecoins, Coinbase was also forced to join the battle, successively listing popular tokens from the Solana ecosystem such as BOOK OF MEME and Dogwifhat. Although these coins are controversial, they are frequently traded, with fee rates several times higher than mainstream coins, serving as a "blood-boosting" method for spot trading.
However, due to its status as a publicly traded company, this practice is a riskier endeavor for Coinbase. Even in the current crypto-friendly environment, the SEC is still investigating whether tokens like SOL, ADA, and SAND constitute securities.
In addition to the forced transformation strategies carried out by the aforementioned CEXs, they are also starting to lay out RWAs and the most talked-about stablecoin payment fields, such as the PYUSD launched through a collaboration between Coinbase and Paypal, Coinbase's support for the Euro stablecoin EURC by Circle that complies with EU MiCA regulatory requirements, or the USD1 launched through a collaboration between Binance and WIFL. In the increasingly crowded trading field, many CEXs have shifted their focus from just the trading market to the application field.
The golden age of transaction fees has quietly ended, and the second half of the crypto exchange platform game has silently begun.
Arthur Hayes: Why I'm Betting on ETH While the Market Is Obsessed with SOL
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May 16 Key Market Information Gap, A Must-Read! | Alpha Morning Report
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Key Market Intelligence on May 14th, how much did you miss out on?
1.Binance Alpha Launches HIPPO, BLUE, and Other Tokens
2.Believe Ecosystem Tokens See General Rise, LAUNCHCOIN Surges Over 250% in 24 Hours
3.Tiger Securities Introduces Cryptocurrency Deposit and Withdrawal Service, Supports Mainstream Cryptocurrencies such as BTC and ETH
4.Current Bitcoin Rally Possibly Driven by Institutions, Retail Traders Yet to Join
5.Binance Wallet's New TGE Privasea AI Participation Requires a 198 Point Threshold, with a Point Consumption of 15
Source: Overheard on CT (tg: @overheardonct), Kaito
PUMP: Today's discussions about PUMP focus on its new creator revenue-sharing model: the platform will allocate 50% of PumpSwap revenue to token creators, sparking varied reactions from users. Some criticize the move as insufficient or even misleading, while others view it as a positive step the platform is taking to reward creators. Meanwhile, PUMP faces market pressure from emerging competitors like LetsBONKfun and Raydium, which are rapidly gaining market share. Users also express concerns about PUMP's sustainability and potential regulatory risks in the U.S., with discussions extending to the platform's impact on the entire memecoin ecosystem.
COINBASE: Today, Coinbase became the first crypto company to join the S&P 500 Index, replacing Discover Financial Services, sparking widespread industry attention. The entire crypto community views this milestone as a significant development, signaling that crypto assets are further integrating into the mainstream financial system. The news has sparked lively discussions on Twitter, with many users pointing out that this may attract more institutional investors to enter the Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency markets.
XRP: XRP became the focal point of today's crypto discussion, with its significant market movements and strategic advances drawing attention. XRP has surpassed USDT to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, sparking market excitement and discussions about its future potential. The surge in market capitalization and price is believed to be related to increasing institutional interest, deepening strategic partnerships, and its role in the crypto ecosystem. Additionally, XRP's integration into multiple financial systems and its potential as a macro asset class are also seen as key factors driving the current market sentiment.
DYDX: Today's discussions about DYDX mainly focused on the dYdX Yapper Leaderboard launched by KaitoAI. The leaderboard aims to identify the most active community participants, with a total of $150,000 in rewards to be distributed over the first three seasons. This initiative has sparked broad community participation, with many users discussing the potential rewards and the incentive effect on the DYDX ecosystem. Meanwhile, progress on the ethDYDX to dYdX native chain migration and historical airdrop events have also been topics of discussion.
1. "What Is 'ICM'? Holding Up the $4 Billion Market Cap Solana's New Narrative"
Overnight, the hottest narrative in the crypto space has become "Internet Capital Markets," with a host of crypto projects and founders, led by the Solana ecosystem's new Launchpad platform Believe, releasing this phrase. Together with "Believe in something," it has become the new slogan heralding the onset of a bull market. What exactly is the so-called "Internet Capital Market," will it become a short-lived hype phrase like the Base ecosystem's previous Content Coin, and what related targets are available for selection?2.《LaunchCoin Surges 20x in One Day, How Did Believe Create a $200M Market Cap Shiba Inu After Going to Zero?｜100x Retrospective》
LAUNCHCOIN broke through a $200 million market cap today, with the long-lost liquidity and such a high market cap "Memecoin" almost bringing half of the on-chain crypto community CT into the fray. The community is crazily discussing this token, with half of it being FOMO and the other half being FUD. This token, originally issued by Believe founder Ben Pasternak under his personal identity, transformed into a new platform token after a renaming. From once going to zero to a $200 million market cap, what happened in between?May 14 On-chain Fund Flow
Within 24 hours, GOONC's market cap soared to 70 million, could GOONC be the next billion-dollar dog on the Believe platform?
Bitcoin has broken $100,000, Ethereum has surpassed 2500, and is Solana's hot streak about to make a comeback?
The current market is in a state of macro euphoria, with GOONC riding the wave today, skyrocketing 10x in just a few hours, reaching a market cap of tens of millions of dollars, trading volume soaring past 50 million, and rumors swirling that the developer may be from OpenAI (unconfirmed but intriguing enough).
A ludicrous and absurd Solana meme that some actually buy into.
GOONC is a meme coin that has sprouted from the "gooning" subculture, offering no technological innovation or practical use, its sole function being speculation.
It takes inspiration from an NSFW term "gooning," which refers to a person being deeply immersed in certain content (you know what), eventually entering a nearly religious-like trance.
In Reddit (such as r/GOONED, r/GoonCaves) and some counterculture media outlets (such as MEL Magazine in 2020), "gooning" has gradually transitioned from an adult label to a meme-addicted, digital content and virtual self-indulgence synonym, arguably the epitome of Degen spirit.
GOONC is playing around with this concept, packaging the addictive nature, uselessness, and irony of gooning into a tradable financial product. The project team has made it clear: "We do not solve blockchain problems, we only trade absurdity." Blunt but oddly genuine.
GOONC launched on May 13, 2025, using the meme coin launch platform Believe App's LaunchCoin module on Solana. This tool is highly Degen: zero technical barriers, a few clicks to create a coin, perfect for projects like GOONC that can come up with ideas out of the blue.
The mastermind behind GOONC is also quite something and is the most talked-about, with KOL @basedalexandoor on X platform (alias "Pata van Goon") personally involved. His profile even caught the attention of Marc Andreessen, co-founder of a16z, making onlookers unable to resist speculating if GOONC has a hint of OpenAI lineage.
While this 'OpenAI Endorsement' is currently just community speculation, it is definitely a good card to play to fuel hype. Saying "we are pure speculation" on one hand, while tagging a few "AI + a16z" on the other.
GOONC took off as soon as it launched. After its launch on May 13, 2025, its market capitalization skyrocketed to $22 million within 4 hours, with a trading volume exceeding $25.6 million in 24 hours. According to platform data, the first day of trading saw an astonishing +41,100% surge, soaring from $0.0000001 to $0.02, becoming a "missed-the-boat" situation.
GOONC quickly formed an active trading community post-launch, with a lot of discussion and trading signals appearing on X platform (such as the 292x return signal provided by DeBot). Liquidity pools on exchanges like Raydium and Meteora grew rapidly, supporting high trading volumes and price increases.
The real climax occurred between May 13 and May 14, with the market cap rising to $5.5 million in the morning and directly surpassing $55 million in the afternoon. By the 14th, it briefly approached a $70 million market cap, with the trading volume soaring to $59 million. Some community members even posted screenshots claiming an increase of +85,000%, creating a new myth out of the ruins.
As of 1:30 pm on May 14, the price stabilized around $0.039, with a total market cap and FDV both around $39.6 million, and a 24-hour trading volume of $5.43 million. Active platforms include XT.COM, LBank, Meteora, and others.
Although there was a slight pullback from the peak ($0.07), the coin's popularity remains strong. For a coin that relies purely on "irony + community + X post" to thrive, this performance is already at a stellar level.
Currently, the background of the token's development team is not transparent, increasing the potential risk of a rug pull. Rugcheck.xyz warns that the creator of the GOONC contract may have permission to modify the contract (e.g., change fees or mint additional tokens), posing certain security risks.
Community members speculate that the meteoric rise of GOONC may be the "last hurrah".
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After Surging 40%, Has Ethereum Price Peaked Upon Exiting the Craze?
Whether you are an insider or an outsider, these days you must be familiar with the news about Ethereum. The reason is simple, causing Ethereum enthusiasts to sigh with emotion and almost throwing off-guard those who defend Ethereum, Ethereum, with a "3-day surge of 40%," climbed to the top of the Douyin Hot List.
As we all know, Ethereum launched the Pectra upgrade on May 7th. This most significant network upgrade since early 2024 integrates the Prague execution layer hard fork and the Electra consensus layer upgrade, significantly improving Ethereum's performance through 11 improvement proposals. The account abstraction feature (EIP-7702) allows users to flexibly manage wallets through social media accounts or multi-signature schemes, reducing the user threshold, attracting more users and developers. The staking mechanism optimization increases the validator ETH cap from 32ETH to 2048ETH and introduces a flexible withdrawal method, making it easier for institutions and individuals to participate in network security, enhancing the market's confidence in Ethereum's long-term value.
At the same time, Pectra optimized the interaction efficiency of Layer 2 networks such as Arbitrum and Optimism, making transactions faster and cheaper, leading to a surge in on-chain activity. As a crucial step for Ethereum's transition from "2G" to "5G," the Pectra upgrade not only enhances network vitality but also "recharges confidence" in the market, directly driving the price increase.
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It's not just Ethereum itself, as Wall Street also brought important bullish news.
The world's largest asset management company, BlackRock, proposed to the SEC allowing Ethereum ETFs for staking. This proposal is expected to elevate Ethereum ETFs from a mere investment tool to a bond-like "interest-bearing asset," bringing investors both capital appreciation and passive income, igniting market optimism about Ethereum's future potential.
Specifically, BlackRock has proposed to amend its S-1 filing to allow investors to create and redeem ETF shares directly with Ethereum instead of the U.S. dollar (i.e., in-kind redemption). This move, combined with its $2.9 billion BUIDL Fund launched in March 2024, aims to deepen the integration of traditional finance with blockchain. The BUIDL Fund is a tokenized fund operating on the Ethereum network, investing in traditional assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds. This setup is highly attractive to institutional investors, as they can not only benefit from Ethereum's price appreciation but also earn stable cash flow through staking.
Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock's Head of Digital Assets, stated in a CNBC interview in March 2025 that the addition of staking functionality will significantly enhance the appeal of the Ethereum ETF. He admitted that when the Ethereum spot ETF was launched in July 2024 without staking functionality, the market demand was lackluster, and staking could be the key to reversing this trend.
Meanwhile, the SEC's shifting stance on cryptocurrency regulation has also fueled this upward trend. During the tenure of the previous SEC chairman, the regulatory approach was tough, and staking was strictly viewed through the Howey test as a potential unregistered security. Therefore, when approving the Ethereum spot ETF in May 2024, staking functionality was explicitly prohibited.
However, with Trump back in the White House and Paul Atkins taking over the SEC, there has been a noticeable relaxation in crypto regulation. Apart from BlackRock, ETF issuers such as Invesco Galaxy, VanEck, WisdomTree, and 21Shares have also submitted applications for similar staking and in-kind redemption.
Related reading: "New Chairman Takes Office, SEC Transforms into 'Crypto Daddy' Within 48 Hours"
If staking ETFs are approved, the benefits are likely to go beyond price appreciation. The introduction of staking functionality could redefine the role of crypto assets, making them more similar to traditional financial products that provide returns and value appreciation, thereby driving Ethereum closer to mainstream finance.
Currently, the SEC still needs to address several decisions related to crypto ETFs, including whether to approve ETFs for Solana, XRP, Litecoin, and even Dogecoin. With the calls for an "altcoin season" growing louder, Ethereum's strong performance may just be the beginning of a larger crypto market frenzy.
In addition, the Trump family-related DeFi project WLFI is also bullish on this wave of rise, with frequent on-chain activities. According to on-chain data analyst @ai_9684xtpa's monitoring, a WLFI-related address is currently borrowing coins to go long on ETH, borrowing 4 million U from Aave to buy 1590 ETH at an average price of $2515 per ETH.
For this epic surge of Ethereum after half a year of silence, the community has indeed gained more confidence and hope, which has also led to a revival of the entire altcoin market. However, amidst the joy, there are also voices of pessimism. Below is a summary conducted by BlockBeats based on community discussions.
The optimists point out that the current market structure is similar to the eve of the bull markets in 2016 and 2020, predicting a life-changing surge in the next 3-6 months, where some altcoins may even achieve astonishing single-day gains of up to 40%.
@liuwei16602825 stated that this surge signifies the return of the bull market as a sure thing. There is no need to worry about a pullback. The driving force behind the surge uses a high-cost isolated operation, fearing a drop more than any retail investor and will definitely do everything to support the price.
Related Reading: "Ethereum Leads the Surge Triggering the 'Altcoin Season' Speculation, How Do Traders View the Future Market?"
The bears mainly believe that this surge is different from the bull market of 2021, as the current market lacks the confidence of large-scale retail investors entering and holding positions for the long term, with funds rotating too quickly.
@market_beggar observed that a Bitfinex E/B whale has started to close positions and believes that if this whale maintains its high-speed position-closing operation for the next few days, it can be inferred that the whale no longer sees the upside potential of ETH, preparing to take profits and exit. The closing time will be a key focus going forward.
@FLS_OTC stated that there are still many uncertainties at the macro level, and the liquidity cannot support a major bull market. At this stage, it is a "last hurrah," not a complete reversal, and will continue to remain in a short position.
@off_thetarget believes that after ETH transitioned from POW to POS, it lost the "gold standard" of mining machine power cost support. The staking economic model led to a breakdown in value anchoring. Additionally, the L2 ecosystem (such as Starknet, zkSync, etc.) suffered from liquidity fragmentation, failing to establish an effective capital inflow mechanism, causing the collapse of the split disc pattern. Furthermore, the ETH community's excessive pursuit of technical narratives divorced from real-world needs resulted in a weak ecosystem growth. Therefore, he believes that ETH's intrinsic value system has crumbled, and the price is bound to plummet to the 800-1200 range, with a decisive short position at 1800.
@Airdrop_Guard, based on the core logic of the "High Probability Trading Strategy," where three sets of underlying logic different trading systems (such as volume depletion, price supply-demand, long/short position funding rate, etc.) simultaneously issue a short signal at the same point (2580), creating a high-probability trading opportunity. He emphasizes that these systems must be based on different algorithms and logics (rather than mere technical indicator overlays). The current ETH trend aligns with the short conditions in multiple independent dimensions of his trading system, hence the decision to short.
Overall, Bitcoin still maintains over 54% market dominance, and institutional funds' continued preference for it may limit the altcoin's upward potential. The market's future direction will depend on multiple factors, such as Bitcoin's price trend, global macroeconomic conditions, and whether funds can effectively rotate from Bitcoin to the altcoin sector.
Although Ethereum's recent leadership in the market has brought about optimistic sentiment, investors still need to remain rational as different sectors of altcoins are likely to show divergence in trends. Whether this round of Ethereum's rise will usher in a true altcoin frenzy may require more time and conducive conditions.
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Never Underestimate the Significance of the US Stablecoin 'Infrastructure Bill'
If the US stablecoin bill, the "GENIUS Act," passes smoothly this time, its significance will be tremendous. I even think it's significant enough to enter the top five in Crypto history.
Although abbreviated as the GENIUS Act, which translates directly to the Genius Act, it is actually the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins, which translates to "Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Dollar Stablecoins."
The proposal is lengthy, with several key points summarized for everyone:
· Mandatory 1:1 Full Asset Backing: Assets include cash, demand deposits, and short-term US Treasuries. At the same time, misappropriation and rehypothecation are strictly prohibited.
· High-Frequency Disclosure: Reserve reports must be published at least monthly, introducing external audits.
· Licensing Requirement: Once the circulating market cap of the issuer's stablecoin exceeds $100 billion, it must transition into the federal regulatory system within a specified timeframe, adopting banking-grade regulation.
· Introduction of Custody: The custodian of the stablecoin and its reserve assets must be a regulated qualified financial institution.
· Clear Definition as a Payment Medium: The bill explicitly defines stablecoin as a new type of payment medium, primarily regulated by the banking regulatory system, rather than restricted by the securities or commodities regulatory system.
· Embracing Existing Stablecoins: A maximum 18-month grace period after the bill's enactment, aimed at encouraging existing stablecoin issuers (such as USDT, USDC, etc.) to promptly obtain licenses or become compliant.
After finishing the main content, let's talk about the significance of this matter with an excited heart.
Over the years, when others asked, "After working in the Crypto industry for 16 years, what application have you created?"
In the future, you can confidently tell others—Stablecoins.
Some people have held opposing views. In the past, people's impression of stablecoins was that they were an opaque black box. Every few months, there would be FUD — whether Tether's assets were frozen or Circle had a significant black hole deficit.
In fact, if you think about it, Tether easily rakes in billions of dollars a year just from the interest on those underlying government bonds. Circle, slightly less, also made a $1.7 billion profit last year.
They basically made money while standing there. From a motivational standpoint, they have no malicious intentions. In fact, they are the most eager for compliance.
Now, this opaque black box will become a transparent white box.
In the past, the only complaint was that Tether's funds might have been frozen by the United States. Now, they will be directly placed into U.S. compliant custodial institutions, with high-frequency disclosures, so you can rest assured.
【No need to worry about a rug pull】 is such a huge advantage—I think especially all Crypto people understand this.
Stablecoins were once almost on the verge of being overtaken by CBDCs. In any country, if a central bank digital currency really exists, it is highly likely not built on a blockchain, at most it is built on some internal central bank consortium chain, which to be honest, is meaningless.
When CBDCs were at their peak, that was the most dangerous time for stablecoins.
If CBDCs had become a reality back then, stablecoins today would have been relentlessly suppressed into a dark corner, and blockchain would only be able to play a minimal role.
The remaining half-dead stablecoins would even have to learn the standards of central bank digital currencies, completely relinquishing their standard-setting power.
And now, stablecoins have won (or are about to).
Instead, everyone should learn the 【Blockchain + Token】 standard.
Nowadays, many blockchains actually have no meaningful applications on top, only stablecoin transfers. For example, with Aptos, the only scenario I use Aptos for is transfers between Binance and OKX.
And now, stablecoins will be legislated, what does that mean?
That's right, blockchain will become the only standard.
In the future, every stablecoin user will be the first to learn how to use a wallet.
As an aside, I actually think Ethereum's concerted push for EIP-7702 is quite forward-thinking. While other chains are all about memes, thank you Ethereum for sticking to account abstraction.
EIP-7702 is about Account Abstraction, which can support, for example:
· Social Account Registration Wallet
· Paying GAS with Native Coin
· And more
This paves the way for future new users to heavily use stablecoins, solving the last-mile problem.
Furthermore, once stablecoins receive legislative support, deposits and withdrawals will become even easier.
Let's imagine a scenario: previously, hindered by the gray nature of stablecoins, but after the bill passes, many traditional brokerages can support stablecoins themselves. The money from a US stock investor can be converted into stablecoins in minutes and instantly deposited into Coinbase. Believe it or not.
Let's imagine another scenario: if the brilliant bill smoothly passes through the House of Representatives, next, you will see:
Due to the extremely lucrative nature of this trading, existing stablecoin leaders and newly entering traditional giants will crazily start promoting their stablecoin products.
And an outsider, due to these promotions, will start using stablecoins. And then one day, after finding out that the wallet account has been created, will explore Bitcoin inside. Is mining Bitcoin difficult?
Stablecoins are a huge Trojan horse. The moment you start using stablecoins, you unwittingly step half a foot into the Crypto world.
As a large reservoir for digesting US debt, although stablecoins cannot directly absorb debt, they at least provide ammunition for the US debt secondary market. These functions are quite important, and slowly, stablecoins are becoming a part of the US debt market's body. Therefore, once the US legislation is passed and experiences the benefits, there is no turning back.
And, we are also confident that stablecoins are indeed one of the great innovations in our industry. People who have used stablecoins will find it hard to return to the traditional cash-banking system.
Once the bill is passed, users can't go back. In the future, concerns are about to be resolved, standards will be mastered, and the era of large deposits seems to be on the horizon.
Original Article Link
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$COIN Joins S&P 500, but Coinbase Isn't Celebrating
On May 13, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Coinbase would officially replace Discover Financial Services in the S&P 500 on May 19. While other companies like Block and MicroStrategy, closely tied to Bitcoin, were already part of the S&P 500, Coinbase became the first cryptocurrency exchange whose primary business is in the index. This also signifies that cryptocurrency is gradually moving from the fringes to the mainstream in the U.S.
On the day of the announcement, Coinbase's stock price surged by 23%, surpassing the $250 mark. However, just 3 days later, Coinbase was hit by two consecutive events: a hack where employees were bribed to steal customer data and a demand for a $20 million ransom, and an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into the authenticity of its claim of having over 100 million "verified users" in its securities filings and marketing materials. These two events acted as mini-bombs, and at the time of writing, Coinbase's stock had already dropped by over 7.3%.
Coincidentally, Discover Financial Services, being replaced by Coinbase, can also be considered the "Coinbase" of the previous payment era. Discover is a U.S.-based digital banking and payment services company headquartered in Illinois, founded in 1960. Its payment network, Discover Network, is the fourth largest payment network apart from Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.
In April, after the approval of the acquisition of Discover by the sixth-largest U.S. bank, Capital One, this well-established digital banking company of over 60 years smoothly handed over its S&P 500 "seat" to this emerging cryptocurrency "bank." This unexpected coincidence also portrayed the handover between the new and old eras in Coinbase's entry into the S&P 500, resembling a relay race scene. However, this relay baton also brought Coinbase's accumulated "external troubles and internal strife" to a tipping point.
Over the past decade, cryptocurrency exchanges have been the most stable "profit machines." They play a role in providing liquidity to the entire industry and rely on trading fees to sustain their operations. However, with the comprehensive rollout of ETF products in the U.S. market, this profit model is facing unprecedented challenges. As the leader in the "American stack," with over 80% of its business coming from the U.S., Coinbase is most affected by this.
Starting from the approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs, traditional financial capital has significantly onboarded users and funds that originally belonged to exchanges in a more cost-effective, compliant, and transparent manner. The transaction fee revenue of cryptocurrency exchanges has started to decline, and this trend may further intensify in the coming months.
According to Coinbase's 2024 Q4 financial report, the platform's total trading revenue was $417 million, a 45% year-on-year decrease. The contribution of BTC and ETH's trading revenue dropped from 65% in the same period last year to less than 50%.
This decline is not a result of a decrease in market enthusiasm. In fact, since the approval of the Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, the inflow of BTC into the U.S. market has continued to reach new highs, with asset management giants like BlackRock and Fidelity rapidly expanding their management scale. Data shows that BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) alone has surpassed $17 billion in assets under management. As of mid-May 2025, the cumulative net inflow of 11 major institutional Bitcoin spot ETFs on the market has exceeded $41.5 billion, with a total net asset value of $1214.69 billion, accounting for approximately 5.91% of the total Bitcoin market capitalization.
Institutional investors and some retail investors are shifting towards ETF products, partly due to compliance and tax considerations. On one hand, ETFs have much lower trading costs compared to cryptocurrency exchanges. While Coinbase's spot trading fee rate varies annually in a tiered manner but averages around 1.49%, for example, the management fee for IBIT ETF is only 0.25%, and the majority of ETF institution fees fluctuate around 0.15% to 0.25%.
In other words, the more rational users are, the more likely they are to move from exchanges to ETF products, especially for investors aiming for long-term holdings.
According to multiple sources, several institutions, including VanEck and Grayscale, have submitted applications to the SEC for a Solana (SOL) ETF, with some institutions also planning to submit an XRP ETF proposal. Once approved, this may trigger a new round of fund migration. According to a report submitted by Coinbase to the SEC, as of April, the platform's trading revenue from XRP and Solana accounted for 18% and 10%, nearly one-third of the platform's fee revenue.
However, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs passed in 2024 also reduced the fees for these two tokens on Coinbase from 30% and 15% to 26% and 10%, respectively. If the SOL and XRP ETFs are approved, it will further undermine the core fee revenue of exchanges like Coinbase.
The expansion of ETF products is gradually weakening the financial intermediary status of cryptocurrency exchanges. From their original roles as matchmakers and clearers to now gradually becoming mere "on-ramps and off-ramps" for funds, exchanges are seeing their marginal value squeezed by ETFs.
On May 12, 2025, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins gave a keynote speech at the Tokenization and Cryptocurrency Working Group roundtable. The theme of his speech revolved around "It is a new day at the SEC," where he indicated that the SEC would not approach enforcement and regulation the same way as before but would instead pave the way for cryptocurrency assets in the U.S. market.
With signs of cryptocurrency compliance such as the SEC's "NEW DAY" declaration, an increasing number of traditional brokerages are attempting to enter the cryptocurrency industry. One of the most representative cases is the well-known U.S. brokerage Robinhood, which began expanding its crypto business in 2018. By the time of its IPO in 2021, Robinhood's crypto business revenue accounted for over 50% of the company, with a significant boost from the Dogecoin "moonshot" promoted by Musk.
In Q1 2025 earnings report, Robinhood showcased strong growth, especially in revenue from cryptocurrency and options trading. Fueled by Trump's Memecoin, cryptocurrency-related revenue reached $250 million, nearly doubling year-over-year. Consequently, Robinhood Gold subscription users reached 3.5 million, a 90% increase from the previous year, with the rapid growth of Robinhood Gold providing the company with a stable source of income.
Meanwhile, RobinHood is actively pursuing acquisitions in the cryptocurrency space. In 2024, it announced a $2 billion acquisition of the long-standing European cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp. Additionally, Canada's largest cryptocurrency CEX, WonderFi, which recently went public on the Toronto Stock Exchange, also announced its integration with RobinHood Crypto. After obtaining virtual asset licenses in the UK, Canada, Singapore, and other markets, RobinHood has taken a proactive approach in the compliant cryptocurrency trading market.
Furthermore, an increasing number of brokerage firms are exploring the same path. Futu Securities, Tiger Brokers, and others are also dipping their toes into cryptocurrency trading, with some having applied for or obtained the VA license from the Hong Kong SFC. Although their user bases are currently small, traditional brokerages have a natural advantage in user trust, regulatory licenses, and low fee structures. This could pose a threat to native cryptocurrency platforms in the future.
In April 2025, security researchers discovered that some Coinbase user data was leaked on the dark web. While the platform initially responded by attributing it to a "technical misinformation," it still raised concerns among users regarding its security and privacy protection. Just two days before Dow Jones Indexes announced Coinbase's addition to the S&P 500 Index, on May 11, 2025, Coinbase received an email from an unknown threat actor claiming to have obtained customer account information and internal documents, demanding a $20 million ransom to keep the data private. Subsequent investigations confirmed the data breach.
Cybercriminals obtained the data by bribing overseas customer service agents and support staff, mainly in "non-U.S. regions such as India." These agents abused their access to Coinbase's internal customer support system and stole customer data. As early as February this year, blockchain detective ZachXBT revealed on X platform that between December 2024 and January 2025, Coinbase users lost over $65 million to social engineering scams, with the actual amount potentially higher.
Among the victims was a well-known figure, 67-year-old Ed Suman, an established artist in the art world for nearly two decades, having been involved in the creation of artworks such as Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog" sculpture. Earlier this year, he fell victim to an impersonation scam involving fake Coinbase customer support, resulting in a loss of over $2 million in cryptocurrency. ZachXBT critiqued Coinbase for its inadequate handling of such scams, noting that other major exchanges have not faced similar issues and recommending Coinbase to enhance its security measures.
Amidst a series of ongoing social engineering incidents, although there has not been any impact on user assets at the technical level so far, it has raised concerns among many retail and institutional investors. Especially institutions holding massive assets on Coinbase. Just considering the U.S. BTC ETF institutions, as of mid-May 2025, they collectively hold nearly 840,000 BTC, and 75% of these are custodied by Coinbase. If we price BTC at $100,000, this amount reaches a staggering $63 billion, which is equivalent to the nominal GDP of two Iceland in the year 2024.
In addition, Coinbase Custody also serves over 300 institutional clients, including hedge funds, family offices, pension funds, and endowments. As of the Q1 2025 financial report, Coinbase's total assets under management (including institutional and retail clients) reached $404 billion. The specific amount of institutional custodied assets was not explicitly disclosed in the latest report, but it should still be over 50% based on the Q4 2024 report.
Once this security barrier is breached, not only could the rate of user attrition far exceed expectations, but more importantly, institutional trust in it would undermine the foundation of its business. Therefore, after a hacking event, Coinbase's stock price plummeted significantly.
Facing a decline in spot trading fee revenue, Coinbase is also accelerating its transformation, attempting to find growth opportunities in derivatives and emerging assets. Coinbase acquired a stake in the options platform Deribit at the end of 2024 and announced the official launch of perpetual contract products in 2025. This acquisition fills in Coinbase's gap in options trading and its relatively small global market share.
Deribit has a strong presence in non-U.S. markets, especially in Asia and Europe. The acquisition has enabled Coinbase to gain a dominant position in bitcoin and ethereum options trading on Deribit, accounting for approximately 80% of the global options trading volume, with daily trading volume remaining above $2 billion.
Meanwhile, 80-90% of Deribit's customer base consists of institutional investors, with their professionalism and liquidity in the Bitcoin and Ethereum options market highly favored by institutions. Coinbase's compliance advantage, coupled with its already robust institutional ecosystem, makes it even more suitable. By using institutions as an entry point, it can face the squeeze from giants like Binance and OKX in the derivatives market.
Facing a similar dilemma is Kraken, which is attempting to replicate Binance Futures' model in non-U.S. markets. Since the derivatives market relies more on professional users, fee rates are relatively higher and stickiness is stronger, making it a significant source of revenue for exchanges. In the first half of 2025, Kraken completed the acquisition of TradeStation Crypto and a futures exchange, aiming to build a complete derivatives trading ecosystem to hedge the risk of declining spot transaction fee income.
With the surge of Memecoin in 2024, Binance, OKX, and various CEX platforms began massively listing small-market-cap, highly volatile tokens to activate active trading users. Due to the wealth effect and trading activity of Memecoins, Coinbase was also forced to join the battle, successively listing popular tokens from the Solana ecosystem such as BOOK OF MEME and Dogwifhat. Although these coins are controversial, they are frequently traded, with fee rates several times higher than mainstream coins, serving as a "blood-boosting" method for spot trading.
However, due to its status as a publicly traded company, this practice is a riskier endeavor for Coinbase. Even in the current crypto-friendly environment, the SEC is still investigating whether tokens like SOL, ADA, and SAND constitute securities.
In addition to the forced transformation strategies carried out by the aforementioned CEXs, they are also starting to lay out RWAs and the most talked-about stablecoin payment fields, such as the PYUSD launched through a collaboration between Coinbase and Paypal, Coinbase's support for the Euro stablecoin EURC by Circle that complies with EU MiCA regulatory requirements, or the USD1 launched through a collaboration between Binance and WIFL. In the increasingly crowded trading field, many CEXs have shifted their focus from just the trading market to the application field.
The golden age of transaction fees has quietly ended, and the second half of the crypto exchange platform game has silently begun.
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