Cointelegraph

Bitcoin (BTC) deepened six-week lows at Friday’s Wall Street open as US stock markets diverged to all-time highs.
Key points:
Bitcoin sinks closer to $72,000 as analysis eyes "crucial" BTC price levels.
US-Iran ceasefire talks send stocks to even higher records as the crypto divergence continues.
Bitcoin's 100-day moving average gains significance as a battleground for bulls.
BTC price analysis sees "crucial" range now in play
Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD dropping to $72,395 on Bitstamp to start the US TradFi trading session.
BTC/USD one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Continuing a losing streak from recent weeks, the pair again saw downside pressure, even as stocks surged further into price discovery.
The S&P 500 started Friday with new record highs, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average did likewise.
S&P 500 vs. Dow Jones one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Anticipation of a lasting ceasefire between the US and Iran drove the momentum, even as military strikes continued.
Commenting, trader and analyst Michaël van de Poppe argued that geopolitical changes could still save the Bitcoin price trend.
“Bitcoin is about to collapse to lows, if this level of support doesn't hold. That's just the reality,” he wrote in a post on X.
“Anything between $72,000-74,000 is crucial and could be the end of the correction, especially if Trump comes with a new deal --> rates go down --> oil goes down --> risk-on assets (especially crypto) go higher.”
BTC/USDT one-day chart. Source: Michaël van de Poppe/X
Van de Poppe suggested that $77,000 was the line in the sand to start the “next leg upwards.”
“If that doesn't happen, then we're about to witness another leg towards the lows and probably new lows on the altcoin markets,” he added.
Weekly close tipped to see extra volatility
Continuing the general sense of caution among Bitcoin market participants, trading account CGT Trader warned that BTC long positions could face liquidation next.
“Long squeeze loading …. Price continues to range while funding stays heavily positive and open interest keeps declining. That usually suggests the market is still leaning aggressively long, even as some participants are already closing positions and derisking,” an X post read.
“At the same time, spot volume continues to fade, which points toward underlying weakness. Given these conditions, a long squeeze looks increasingly likely.”
Binance BTC/USDT futures order-book data. Source: CGT Trader/X
Data from CoinGlass showed the total 24-hour cross-crypto liquidations passing $200 million at the time of writing.
Crypto liquidation history (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass
Looking ahead, trading resource Material Indicators told followers to “expect volatility” on Bitcoin as Sunday’s joint daily, weekly and monthly close approached.
“We have a cluster of liquidations around $76k and a developing H & S pattern that could take price down to the Q2 Timescape R/S Levels in the$68k - $69k range,” it noted, referring to data from its proprietary trading tools.
“The big tells will be whether bulls can rally from the 100 DMA, and how Weekly RSI is trending after the W close.”
BTC/USD one-hour chart with 100-day SMA. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Material Indicators referenced the 100-day simple moving average, currently at $72,972.

Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius, has filed a motion in a New York court to vacate his 12-year sentence for fraud and market manipulation.
In a Tuesday filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Mashinsky filed a motion to vacate his 144-month sentence, set by Judge John Koeltl in May 2025. The former Celsius CEO filed the paperwork without additional counsel, having announced on May 5 that he would be proceeding pro se in his case.
Although Mashinsky pleaded guilty to commodities fraud and securities fraud related to “manipulative and deceptive devices,” he filed a motion to vacate on the grounds that he had ineffective counsel and “fruit of [the] poisinous [sic] tree,” a legal doctrine referring to evidence tainted by authorities’ misconduct.
“I did not discharge my counsel at this time but they stopped communication with me so I had no choice but to file my reply directly with the court,” said Mashinsky.
Source: Courtlistener
In documents attached to his motion to vacate, Mashinsky said former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried intended to “destroy Celsius,” blaming him for much of the market manipulation of the network’s CEL tokens on the crypto exchange. He asked that the judge deny any FTX trust request, and provided text messages with Celsius’ former chief revenue officer Roni Cohen-Pavon, claiming he had attempted a “hostile takeover” of the platform.
Celsius filed for bankruptcy in 2022 amid a market downturn that saw the collapse of many crypto exchanges, including FTX. US authorities indicted Mashinsky and Cohen-Pavon in July 2023 on charges related to fraud and market manipulation, with both men later pleading guilty.
Cohen-Pavon was sentenced to time served after pleading guilty in September 2023, with prosecutors citing his “substantial assistance” to the government, including being prepared to testify against Mashinsky. His sentencing followed the court officially closing the criminal cases against the Celsius executives.
Alex Mashinsky at the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami. Source: Cointelegraph
Financial penalties against Celsius execs
Although the court may still consider Mashinsky’s motion to vacate, the former CEO was already ordered to pay $48 million as part of a forfeiture in his criminal case settled in 2025. He also agreed to pay $10 million as part of a settlement with the US Federal Trade Commission in a mostly suspended $4.72 billion monetary judgment.
Cohen-Pavon, sentenced to time served, agreed to pay more than $1 million and a $40,000 fine.
Magazine: HYPE chases $100 target, ETH could dump below $1800: Market Moves

Market analysts say Ether (ETH) still faces “downside pressure” that could trigger another ETH price sell-off as traders shift their focus to support at $1,800.
Key takeaways:
Ether faces downside pressure as elevated leverage and positive funding rates amid falling prices signal fragile market conditions.
Analysts say ETH must hold the $1,800-$1,750 support zone to avoid a deeper correction.
Ether price metrics suggest downside risks remain
Analysts have highlighted several reasons for Ether’s potential to drop lower, including an elevated estimated leveraged ratio and positive funding rates amid a “weakening price structure,” according to CryptoQuant analyst PelinayPA.
The chart below shows that Ether’s estimated leverage ratio (yellow line) remains relatively elevated at around 0.74.
The funding rate (blue line) has remained mostly in positive territory since mid-April, meaning long positions still dominate the market. Meanwhile, the RSI (purple line) is closer to the oversold zone at 31 and has not yet “produced a convincing recovery signal,” the analyst said in a Friday QuickTake analysis.
“Leverage remains elevated and long positioning is still dominant, yet price continues to struggle as the RSI reflects weakening momentum,” the analyst said, adding:
“Overall this combination suggests that short term downside pressure in the ETH market still remains the dominant structure.”
ETH: Funding rates and leveraged ratio
Under normal market conditions, rising leverage and increasing funding rates are usually supported by strong price expansion. However, in this case, leverage remains high while price continues to record lower lows.
“But the key signal is that this leverage build-up came alongside heavy sell-side pressure,” fellow analyst Amr Taha said in another QuickTake note.
The chart below shows that the Binance cumulative net taker volume fell to around -$744 million, its deepest negative reading since April 6, 2026.
Amr Taha added:
“This means new leverage entered the market while aggressive sellers were still in control, making the setup more fragile than a clean bullish open-interest expansion.”
ETH: Cumulative net taker volume on Binance. Source: CryptoQuant
This suggests that the market structure is driven by derivative positioning instead of spot demand, which creates a weaker overall setup.
Waning demand is also seen in US-based spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which continue to post heavy outflows, indicating declining institutional interest. These ETFs have recorded outflows for thirteen consecutive days, totaling $695 million. The $121 million in net outflows recorded on Thursday marked the largest withdrawal in two weeks.
Spot Bitcoin Ether flows chart. Source: SoSoValue
As Cointelegraph reported, a break below the crucial $2,000 support and increased selling by whales indicate additional downside risk for ETH price in the near term.
Ether price must hold above $1,800
Ether’s 7% drop over the last three days has seen it lose the crucial $2,000 support, as the bears gained momentum.
Traders are now watching key levels on the downside, including the $1,800 demand zone.
“A good spot buy would be around $1,700-$1,800 key area,” analyst Suraj Jha said in a Friday post on X, adding:
“A confirmed breakdown below this level could shift the structure bearish and open up continuation to the downside.”
Fellow analyst Crypto Patel said Ether’s technical structure remains “bearish until we reclaim $3050.”
The ETH/USD pair “needs to hold $1,750 to keep the long-term bullish case alive,” the analyst said, adding:
“If $1,750 breaks, accumulation zone 2 sits at $,1500-$,1400, a massive discount for long-term holders.”
ETH/USD two-day chart. Source: X/CryptoPatel
A daily candlestick drop below $1,750 could trigger another sell-off episode, first toward the April 2026 low at $1,550 and later to the 2022 macro low around $1,000, as shown on the daily chart below. This would bring the total losses to 47% from the current price.
ETH/USD weekly chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
As Cointelegraph reported, after losing the psychological support at $2,000, the ETH/USD pair may then descend toward the $1,900-$1,750 zone, which buyers are expected to defend aggressively.

US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) posted their longest outflow streak since launch, extending withdrawals as institutional demand for Bitcoin exposure weakened.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded another $223 million in net outflows on Thursday, marking the record nine-day outflow streak since the funds launched in 2024, according to data from Farside Investors.
The latest streak surpassed the previous record eight-session outflow run recorded in February 2025, though its roughly $2.84 billion in cumulative withdrawals remains below the $3.2 billion lost during the earlier selloff.
US spot Bitcoin ETF outflows in May 2026 versus February 2025. Source: SoSoValue
The outflows suggest institutional demand for Bitcoin exposure is weakening through the ETF channel, and come as major corporate holders such as Strategy face renewed pressure even as some new altcoin products like Hyperliquid (HYPE) ETFs continue attracting investor interest.
BlackRock’s IBIT leads the outflows at $2 billion
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the largest US spot Bitcoin ETF by assets, accounted for a massive share of losses during the nine-session outflow streak.
The fund recorded roughly $2.04 billion in cumulative outflows between May 15 and Thursday. As Cointelegraph reported, a $527.8 million withdrawal on May 27 marked IBIT’s second-largest daily outflow on record, narrowly below the $528.3 million record posted on Jan. 30, 2025.
BTC holdings for all US spot Bitcoin ETFs as of market close on Wednesday. Source: Wallet Pilot
Despite the selling pressure, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF remains the dominant US spot Bitcoin fund by assets under management. IBIT held roughly 792,000 BTC as of market close on Wednesday, representing about 62% of all US spot Bitcoin ETF holdings, according to Wallet Pilot data.
HYPE ETFs buck the broader slowdown
While spot Bitcoin ETFs face sustained selling pressure, newly launched HYPE ETFs have continued attracting fresh capital from investors.
The products recorded steady inflows between May 12 and Thursday, with cumulative net inflows rising above $100 million, according to SoSoValue.
Daily flows in US-listed spot HYPE ETFs. Source: SoSoValue
Other altcoin funds such as spot XRP ETFs also recorded steady gains over the period, totaling roughly $120 million in net additions between May 4 and Thursday.
The divergence underscores a shift in crypto fund flows, with investors pulling back from Bitcoin and Ether ETFs while newer products tied to tokens such as Hyperliquid’s HYPE continue to attract inflows.
US spot Ether ETFs have also faced persistent selling pressure, logging 13 consecutive days of outflows between May 11 and Thursday, with cumulative losses of roughly $694 million.
Magazine: Big Questions: Do we really only need 2–5 cryptocurrencies?

Stellar’s native token, XLM, has rallied more than 50% this week, outperforming the broader crypto market, which has declined by nearly 5% in the same period.
Key takeaways:
US financial giant DTCC announced it would integrate its tokenized securities platform with the Stellar Network.
XLM rallied by over 50% after the announcement, but risks a sharp downside in the coming weeks.
DTCC partnership fuels XLM rally
XLM's price surged after a major institutional partnership announcement by the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), a US financial giant that clears and settles $10 trillion to $12 trillion in securities transactions daily.
In a Wednesday press release, the firm revealed plans to integrate its tokenized securities platform with the Stellar network, targeting a launch in the first half of 2027.
XLM/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView
The move builds on DTCC’s tokenized trades, launched in July 2026, based on its multi-chain strategy for tokenized asset issuance, reporting, corporate actions, and settlement.
XLM rallied 51.75% after the DTCC announcement and traded for as high as $0.224 on Friday, its highest level since January. Trading volumes rose sharply alongside the upside move, suggesting that many buyers stepped in.
Short squeeze helped fuel XLM price rally
A crowded short trade appears to have also amplified the XLM upside move. Since May 28, Stellar's short liquidations have reached $12.41 million, compared with $6.82 million in long liquidations, according to CoinGlass.
Stellar total liquidations chart vs. XLM price. Source: CoinGlass
That means bearish traders suffered nearly 1.8 times more forced closures than bullish traders as XLM surged from around $0.15 to as high as $0.224.
XLM open interest nearly doubled during the same period, reaching $292.11 million on Friday. That shows traders added heavy leverage as the rally unfolded, instead of simply closing positions.
Stellar open interest vs. XLM price. Source: CoinGlass
At the same time, XLM’s OI-weighted funding rate dropped to around -0.0270%, its deepest level since April, even as the price climbed.
Stellar's OI-weighted funding rate vs. XLM price. Source: CoinGlass
Negative funding means short traders paid long traders to keep their positions open, showing that bearish positioning remained crowded during the breakout.
When the price rises against heavily leveraged shorts, exchanges force bearish traders to buy back the token to close their trades. That forced buying adds fresh upward pressure, leading to a "short squeeze."
XLM’s PayPal and Trump rallies raise sharp pullback risks
Stellar’s latest breakout mirrors earlier XLM rallies that ended with steep corrections.
In November 2024, XLM surged by roughly 640% after Donald Trump's re-election as the US president. However, the rally quickly lost momentum, with XLM later dropping by about 68.6% from its local peak.
XLM/USD two-week chart. Source: TradingView
A similar pattern played out in July 2025, when PayPal's stablecoin launch on Stellar and growing excitement around the Protocol 23 upgrade helped XLM rally by around 140%.
However, the upside was short-lived, with the XLM/USD pair later correcting by roughly 73.8%.
The risk now is that the DTCC-driven rally follows the same pattern.
XLM is running hard into long-term resistance
XLM’s latest rally has pushed the token into a major long-term resistance zone, raising the risk of a pullback or consolidation.
As of Friday, XLM was trading near the $0.198–$0.224 ceiling area, and a zone that also overlaps with three exponential moving averages (EMA), namely the 50-week EMA (red) near $0.2216, 100-week EMA (purple) near $0.2281 and 200-week EMA (blue) near $0.2083.
XLM/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView
Failure to break above the resistance confluence, which analyst MAGIC called "too strong for the first test," risks sending the XLM price toward the $0.112–$0.136 area, down 30%–40% from current levels, by June or July.
The downside target area aligns with the lower trendline of XLM's prevailing descending channel pattern.
Conversely, a decisive breakout above the resistance area raises the odds of XLM rallying toward the channel's upper boundary near the $0.28–$0.30 range by June or July. That's up roughly 40% from the current price levels.

Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), is urging regulators to allow regulated exchanges to offer 24/7 onchain perpetual futures trading, according to ICE CEO Jeffrey Sprecher.
Speaking at a Bernstein conference on Wednesday, Sprecher said that he was urging regulators to create a “level playing field” for launching 24/7 onchain perps contracts, arguing that regulators are “prohibiting us from doing this when it's already happening.”
The CEO said that ICE had multiple exploratory discussions with decentralized exchange Hyperliquid about the synergies between the crypto and traditional finance (TradFi) industries, where ICE sought to “learn” more about onchain perps.
The comments are the latest testament on how more TradFi companies are exploring ways to enable 24/7 trading for stocks and commodities via blockchain rails, following Hyperliquid's success.
The remarks come a week after OKX said it will introduce perpetual futures based on ICE’s Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude benchmarks, two of the world’s most widely used oil price indicators, Cointelegraph reported on May 22.
The trading products are the first initiative announced under a broader partnership between ICE and OKX, after ICE invested in the cryptocurrency exchange at a $25 billion valuation in March.
Earlier in March, the NYSE also partnered with tokenization platform Securitize as part of a broader effort to develop blockchain-based stock trading infrastructure with 24/7 trading and settlement for Wall Street.
Cointelegraph has approached ICE for comment on whether the exchange operator was planning to launch an onchain perps trading platform via Hyperliquid.
Hyperliquid is “bigger than Nasdaq,” says ICE CEO
Sprecher praised Hyperliquid’s rapid growth as a trading platform, which facilitated the creation of multiple new billionaires, said the CEO, adding:
“If you haven't heard about it, it's bigger than Nasdaq, okay? It's 11 people.”
Hyperliquid remains far smaller than Nasdaq by conventional trading volume measures, but Sprecher’s comment underscored the pressure that always-on crypto derivatives venues are putting on regulated exchanges.
Hyperliquid is ranked as the 7th largest decentralized exchange on CoinGecko, with a 3.7% market share and $195 million in daily trading volume.
It ranks as the fourth-largest fee-generating protocol in the crypto industry, generating $15.6 million in weekly fees in the past seven days, DefiLlama data shows.
Top decentralized exchanges by trading volume and market share. Source: CoinGecko
Hyperliquid has been expanding its functionalities and recently launched canonical prediction markets for offchain events, Cointelegraph reported on Tuesday.
The platform’s growing functionalities are positioning Hyperliquid as the crypto industry’s next “super-app,” making the Hyperliquid (HYPE) token “one of the most mispriced assets in crypto today,” as investors are still evaluating it as just a perp DEX, said Matt Hougan, chief investment officer at crypto asset manager Bitwise.
Magazine: Would Bitcoin really be at $200K if not for Jane Street? Trade Secrets

Bitcoin’s (BTC) latest drawdown to $72,000 has coincided with a sharp drop in its market capitalization, pushing it out of the global top 10 assets by market cap.
Key takeaways:
Bitcoin fell to 13th place among global assets after its market cap dropped below $1.5 trillion.
Gold, silver and AI stocks outperformed Bitcoin after investors rotated.
Bitcoin’s pending realized price death cross could signal further downside risk for BTC price.
Bitcoin’s market cap drops below $1.5 trillion
Bitcoin’s price has dropped sharply from around $83,000 in early May to as low as $72,400 on Thursday. This was accompanied by a fall in its market capitalization to $1.45 trillion from $1.66 trillion.
Bitcoin market cap, USD. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
As a result, the leading cryptocurrency has slipped out of the world’s top 10 assets by market cap, ranking thirteenth globally.
Bitcoin is now below Saudi Aramco, Tesla and Meta Platforms, reflecting a broader rotation of capital away from crypto amid strong performance in AI-driven stocks and precious metals.
Top global assets by market cap. Source: Companiesmarketcap.com
The recent BTC price decline comes amid fresh geopolitical tensions and growing macroeconomic uncertainties, coinciding with a rally in precious metals to historical highs, showing increasing demand for traditional safe-haven assets.
Gold surged to an all-time high of $5,600 per ounce in January before easing back to around $4,486, while silver climbed as high as $120 per ounce and now trades near $76.
These rallies in metals pushed gold and silver to become the world’s largest and fifth-largest assets by market cap, respectively, as shown in the table above.
Artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks have also significantly outperformed Bitcoin in 2026, with companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Broadcom (AVGO) overtaking BTC in market cap.
Meanwhile, Micron Technology recently crossed the $1 trillion valuation mark amid the ongoing AI and semiconductor-driven rally.
“Things are starting to look scary,” 0xMarioNawfal said in a Thursday X post, referring to Bitcoin’s current position in global rankings.
Fellow analyst Manly had a contrary view, saying that the drop doesn’t change Bitcoin’s scarcity as a long-term bullish factor, while Fexir said,
“This must be a bottom signal.”
Bitcoin’s “death cross” warns of more pain ahead
Bitcoin’s realized price, average cost basis of all coins in circulation, is about to print a “death cross,” indicating waning momentum, according to analyst Axel Adler Jr.
The chart below shows that Bitcoin is showing signs of exhaustion with a pending dead cross between its realized price and the 365-day moving average.
The last time the indicator produced this bearish crossover was in the middle of the 2022 bear market, preceding a 52% decline to $15,500 from $69,000. The losses were also 52% during the 2018 macro drawdown.
Bitcoin realized price with a pending “death cross.” Source: AxelAdlerJr
Note that in both instances, the crossover followed a sharp drop in BTC price toward the realized price.
Bitcoin is currently trading 35% above its realized price at $54,200. This means a 52% drop from around this level could take BTC price to the low $30,000s, an occurrence that many analysts argue is unlikely.

Strategy is facing renewed scrutiny over its preferred stock financing model as investors question whether dividend obligations could eventually pressure the company to sell some of its Bitcoin.
The Strategy situation has “gotten out of hand,” Arca chief investment officer Jeff Dorman said in an X post on Thursday, referring to its roughly $15 billion in preferred stocks carrying around $1.5 billion in annual dividend obligations.
Dorman warned that the structure may become increasingly difficult to manage if market conditions remain volatile, with Bitcoin (BTC) trading about 16% lower year-to-date at roughly $73,737 at the time of writing.
The remarks add to a growing debate over whether Strategy’s Bitcoin-linked capital structure can withstand prolonged price swings without forcing asset sales.
$15 billion preferred stock under pressure
Dorman’s warning centers on Strategy’s financing model, which includes a large issuance of preferred stock that carries fixed dividend commitments.
Strategy has issued five preferred shares — STRK, STRF, STRD, STRC and STRE — each carrying different dividend terms, seniority and risk exposure within the capital structure.
Source: Yves-André Graf
Dorman argues the model was built on the assumption that Bitcoin would continue rising strongly enough to support it, describing it as a bet that BTC was “about to moon” and could fund future obligations.
He said Strategy’s equity raises helped ease near-term default concerns, but questioned what followed, calling its decision to repurchase 2029 maturity bonds “baffling” given ongoing pressure from dividend obligations.
Source: Jeff Dorman
According to Dorman, the structure ultimately leaves only stark outcomes: either “sell BTC to pay the prefs” or “stop paying the dividend,” each carrying direct and asymmetric consequences for Strategy, its investors and Bitcoin itself.
CEO confirms possible Bitcoin sales as Polymarket odds rise
Dorman’s remarks came amid Strategy CEO Phong Le confirming that the company might sell Bitcoin at some point in the future after Strategy executive chairman Michael Saylor raised such a possibility in mid-May.
“We'll likely sell Bitcoin at some point in time, but we will be net increasing our Bitcoin and more importantly, increasing our Bitcoin per share,” the CEO said in a CNBC Fox Business exclusive on Thursday.
Amid rising expectations that Strategy might need to sell BTC to manage its balance sheet and obligations, the prediction market platform Polymarket has shown increasing odds of a sale across 2026.
Source: Polymarket
The “MicroStrategy sells any Bitcoin by” market shows roughly a 90% chance by Dec. 31, 2026, 71% by June 30 and 18% by May 31.
So far this year, Strategy has purchased around 170,000 BTC, bringing its total holdings to 843,738 BTC purchased at an aggregate purchase price of $63.87 billion and an average purchase price of approximately $75,700 per Bitcoin.
Magazine: Bitcoin’s ‘biggest bull catalyst’ would be Saylor’s liquidation: Santiment founder

Texas is seeking a custody and liquidity provider to help move its Strategic Bitcoin Reserve from BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) into directly held coins, according to a state procurement document.
The move, posted May 7 and announced in a Thursday release from the Texas Comptroller’s office, would move Texas closer to directly held Bitcoin through a third-party custody arrangement rather than relying solely on ETF exposure, marking a shift from ETF exposure to direct onchain ownership.
Texas has allocated $10 million to the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which the state has used to buy IBIT as an interim way to hold the funds before shifting to directly custodied Bitcoin, according to the request for proposals document.
The Comptroller’s office said the winning firm will be responsible for acquiring, holding, managing and reporting the state’s Bitcoin and any other qualifying cryptocurrency holdings, leaving the door open to assets beyond BTC over time.
RFP issued by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Source: Texas Comptroller
The mandate covers secure custody of digital assets in the name of the State of Texas, liquidity services to facilitate purchases and sales, and a transition plan that would shift existing IBIT holdings into directly custodied Bitcoin within 60 days of contract execution.
The RFP goes beyond basic safekeeping, requiring institutional-grade security controls, standard and custom reporting, and a dedicated public website showing how much Bitcoin and other qualifying cryptocurrencies the reserve holds and what they are worth.
Texas Comptroller names strategic Bitcoin reserve committee members
The request for proposals was highlighted in a statement from Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock announcing the members of the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee.
The panel includes veteran investment executive Laurie Dotter, Cormint Data Systems founder and CEO Jamie McAvity, Southern Methodist University law professor and digital asset scholar Carla Reyes, and CleanSpark president and chief financial officer Gary Vecchiarelli.
The committee is tasked with advising on how the reserve is run, including custody arrangements, risk management and how the state discloses its holdings and performance to lawmakers and the public, as well as broader governance of the reserve’s investment strategy.
Supporters of the law that created the reserve have pitched Bitcoin, and potentially other large-cap cryptocurrencies, as a strategic asset that can help hedge against inflation and economic volatility over time.
Magazine: Bitcoin will not hit $1M by 2030, says veteran trader Peter Brandt

Memecoin launch platform DxSale was drained of $7.3 million in funds in a cyberattack that affected around 1,400 liquidity providers (LPs) on the BNB Chain.
The attacker's address "0xC457" transferred $1.87 million worth of BNB (BNB) tokens into two main wallets and subsequently deposited them into multiple Binance deposit addresses, according to blockchain data platform PeckShield in a Friday X post.
Back in 2021, DxSale was used to lock in liquidity for tokens launched on the BNB Chain. Blockchain analyst Tahax estimated that the locker still holds liquidity from projects launched years ago and explained that the exploiter wallet was freshly created and funded through crypto exchange Bybit.
The exploit adds to the renewed concerns around decentralized finance (DeFi) hacks, which have stolen $52 million so far in May, down from $634 million in April, which marked an over one-year high last seen in February 2025, according to data aggregator DefiLlama.
Mounting cyberattacks have led to widespread concerns about whether the wider DeFi sector is unsafe, partly due to the growing use of AI by malicious actors. “I now consider *all* of DeFi unsafe,” Manuel Aráoz, founder of the blockchain security platform OpenZeppelin, said on Tuesday, citing AI’s growing ability to identify smart contract vulnerabilities.
Source: PeckShield
DxSale stolen funds are already untraceable: onchain analyst
The attacker has already moved some funds through infrastructure that may make tracing more difficult, according to Tahax.
The analyst said that the DxSale deployer quietly transferred ownership of the locker contract to a new wallet 269 days ago, alleging that a “backdoor was left in” without an official migration announcement.
Source: Tahax
The analyst pointed to onchain evidence of another 80 transactions that executed subsequent ownership hops for obfuscation, before contract ownership landed at wallet ‘0xC45,’ which started the mass BNB withdrawals.
The backdoor in the deployer contract, paired with a backdated lock, enabled the hacker to exploit withdrawal loops and extract the BNB tokens, wrote Web3 security platform Coinsult, in a Friday X post, adding:
“A privileged setFee plus a backdated lock turned 'locked' deposits into a withdrawable balance.”
Cointelegraph has approached DxSale for comment on the exploit and the final number of affected liquidity providers.
The exploit adds to more than $17 billion in crypto exploit losses tracked by DefiLlama, including about $7.8 billion from DeFi protocols.
Magazine: Agent wastes 14 hours of scammers’ time, LLMs ‘poisoned’ by Iran: AI Eye

When Bitcoin (BTC) finally escaped from its channel pattern and secured a multiple-day close above the $77,000 resistance, traders rejoiced and declared the downtrend over.
Fast-forward to the present and BTC has fallen below multiple support levels and appears at risk of retesting $70,000, a 16% decline from its range highs.
While billion-dollar spot BTC ETF outflows, resumption of combat between the US and Iran, concerns over rising inflation and growing fear that the CLARITY Act will not pass in the Senate are all factors in Bitcoin’s crumbling strength, the real question is whether spot and futures demand will kick in and stem the price decline.
Since falling below $75,000 in February 2026, the level has served as an important support/resistance level. With $60,000 agreed upon by analysts as the cycle bottom for BTC, longer-term leverage was built around the $70,000 to $75,000 zone, and much of that is being cleared out this week.
Liquidation heatmap data from Hyblock highlighted this dynamic, and in a post on X, the analysts said,
“On the higher lookback (1 month of liquidity), we continue stairwelling down, taking another large long liq cluster.”
BTC/USDT one-month liquidation heatmap data. Source: Hyblock
While revisiting the lower boundaries of Bitcoin’s 2026 range is far from ideal for bulls, a silver lining has emerged. As BTC fell below $73,000 on Thursday, the BTC/USDT bid-ask ratio metric at Hyblock printed candles above zero, a first since April 12.
Set to 10% order-book depth, the bid-ask ratio at 0.03 shows bids becoming dominant in order books as BTC price dropped below $73,000, an early indication that traders are buying in spot markets.
At the same time, the true retail longs-and-shorts accounts metric, which shows the percentage of retail futures accounts holding long positions, has risen above 64%.
BTC one-hour chart showing bid-ask ratio and retail longs/shorts accounts. Source: Hyblock
According to Hyblock analysts,
“If you long every single 15m candle that had true retail accounts long percentage above 64% (the current value), then 927 out of 1,056 (88%) of those candles results in positive 7d forward returns.”
Bitcoin forward returns data based on true retail accounts. Source: Hyblock
The data suggest that despite the negative sentiment surrounding negative news flow, the spot ETF dynamics and fragile geopolitics, the retail investor cohorts within the spot markets view the current pricing as discounted.
A similar view is displayed by the spot and futures aggregate cumulative volume data at Binance where “dip buyers” are seen generating $185.58 million and $62.8 million in volume over the last 10 hours.
BTC/USDT one-hour chart spot and futures cumulative volume delta. Source: TRDR.io

Blockchain infrastructure platform and stablecoin issuer Paxos says it has become the first “blockchain-native” firm that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has granted registration as a clearing agency.
Paxos said on Thursday that its subsidiary, Paxos Securities Settlement Company, has become “the only blockchain-native firm” that the SEC approved to provide clearing and settlement services as a central securities depository in the US.
The approval represents a “critical piece of financial market infrastructure” as blockchain technology and traditional capital markets continue to converge, the company added.
Clearing agencies ensure securities trades are executed cleanly. Stock buyers and sellers do not trade directly and need clearing and settlement providers that verify the trade, match the buyer and seller, and then ensure the actual exchange of money and securities happens correctly.
A registered, SEC-approved blockchain clearinghouse removes barriers for banks and brokerages to build crypto-based infrastructure.
In October 2019, the SEC issued a no-action letter allowing Paxos to pilot a blockchain-based settlement service for US equities, and the service launched in February 2020.
Paxos said the pilot demonstrated that blockchain-based post-trade infrastructure could deliver same-day settlement, reduce costs and improve operational efficiency within a fully regulated framework.
“Our clearing agency registration is the result of seven years of work with the SEC, beginning with our No-Action Letter in 2019 and the settlement pilot we operated with some of the world's largest and most sophisticated financial institutions,” said Paxos co-founder and CEO Charles Cascarilla.
Paxos is the issuer of several stablecoins and digital assets, including PayPal USD (PYUSD), Global Dollar (USDG) and Pax Gold (PAXG).
The company has had a rocky history with the SEC under its former chair, Gary Gensler, having received a Wells Notice in 2023, with the agency planning to recommend an enforcement action over the issuance of Binance USD (BUSD), a stablecoin tied to the crypto exchange Binance, which the SEC considered an unregistered security.
Around the same time, the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) ordered Paxos to stop minting new BUSD.
The SEC closed its investigation in 2024 and issued a formal termination notice, stating it would not pursue enforcement action. Paxos also reached a $48.5 million settlement with NYDFS in August 2025 over Binance and BUSD compliance issues.
Magazine: Big Questions: Do we really only need 2–5 cryptocurrencies?

An increasing number of Bitcoin holders are seeing their investments turn red as the holding structure continues to deteriorate across major cohorts, according to CryptoQuant.
Annual balance growth for whale accounts holding between 1,000 and 10,000 Bitcoin (BTC) has turned negative in the fastest contraction this year, CryptoQuant said in a report on Thursday.
Monthly growth has been flat since February, suggesting a shift from accumulation to mild distribution mirroring the 2022 bear market, it added.
Bitcoin “dolphins”, who hold between 100 and 1,000 BTC and are dominated by exchange-traded funds and corporate treasuries, are still growing annually but growth has sharply decelerated.
Monthly balance growth is near zero across both cohorts, with dolphin balances printing successive lower highs since September 2025, CryptoQuant said. Historically, these periods preceded “sustained price weakness,” as these cohorts collectively represent the “primary source of structural demand support in Bitcoin markets,” it added.
The weakening holding structure is coming as the crypto bear market deepens amid mounting macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds.
CryptoQuant said that the long-term holder supply reached a fresh record of 15.8 million BTC, but it is a bearish configuration signaling the absence of new market entrants.
HashKey Group researcher Tim Sun told Cointelegraph that since Bitcoin pulled back from its peak in October, “the highest proportion of supply in unrealized loss once approached 50%, marking the highest level since the bottom of the 2022 bear market.”
“If mapped against the on-chain realized price, the absolute bottom territory could be around $40,000 to $45,000.”
However, Sun was optimistic that Bitcoin could see “a more realistic bottom range” around $55,000 to $60,000, assuming that tensions between the US and Iran do not escalate further and the Federal Reserve does not hike rates.
“Ultimately, the formation of a solid market bottom and subsequent recovery still relies on a definitive easing of interest rates and the broader liquidity environment.”
The analyst “Darkfost” said on Thursday that the current range-bound market remains a difficult environment for investors to navigate, “with euphoria emerging whenever BTC approaches the upper end of the range, while pessimism quickly returns as price moves closer to the lower boundary.”
Around 40% of the BTC supply is at a loss within the current range-bound market structure. Source: Darkfost
He added that at current prices of around $73,700, roughly 40% of the supply was acquired at higher levels and is being held at a loss.
Magazine: Polymarket seeks Japan entry, Harvard dumps entire ETH position: Hodler’s Digest

Sui Network is back online after a nearly six-hour outage on Thursday, which it attributed to a bug introduced by an update, marking the layer-1 blockchain’s second period of downtime in 2026.
Sui posted to X on Thursday that activity on its mainnet had resumed after “a halt due to a crash bug in the gas charging logic introduced by the 1.72 release. A full incident review will be shared in the coming days.”
Sui had earlier shared that the blockchain was “experiencing a network stall” and said that transactions could be paused until a fix is rolled out.
The outage lasted 5 hours and 55 minutes, according to the network’s status indicator. Sui mainnet validators are still listed as having “degraded performance.”
Source: Sui
It is the second outage of the Sui blockchain this year, following a similar incident in January where the network was knocked offline for more than six hours. Another incident occurred in November 2024, when all validators were stuck in a crash loop for around two and a half hours, preventing transactions from being processed.
Sui is the 13th-largest blockchain by total value locked at $542 million and hosts 137 protocols, according to analytics platform DefiLlama.
Sui token drops 6.6% before recovery
The Sui (SUI) token dropped around 6.6% to a low of 90 cents during the outage, according to data from crypto aggregator CoinGecko. It has since recovered slightly and was trading for about 93 cents as of early Friday.
SUI dropped about 6.6% during the outage. Source: CoinGecko
Earlier this month, the token climbed 50% to $1.41 after several positive developments, including a Nasdaq-listed company staking a large portion of the supply and developers announcing upcoming features, including zero-fee stablecoin transfers and private transactions.
Sui launched its mainnet in May 2023, aiming to be scalable and capable of processing transactions fast enough for financial institutions.
Adeniyi Abiodun, a co-founder of Mysten Labs, the developer of the Sui network, also announced at Consensus 2026 that zero-fee stablecoin transfers would roll out soon and reiterated plans to add a private-transaction feature.
Not all major crypto disruptions this year have stemmed from technical issues. Drift Protocol, a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange, was hacked in April, causing it to temporarily suspend deposits and withdrawals.
Kelp, a liquid restaking protocol, was also targeted by a cyberattack in April, prompting the platform to pause smart contracts for its restaking token (rsETH) while it investigated the incident.
Magazine: Polymarket seeks Japan entry, Harvard dumps entire ETH position: Hodler’s Digest, May 17 – 23

Key takeaways:
Bears gained a major edge ahead of Friday's $9 billion options expiry, especially if Bitcoin price stays below $74,000.
Spot Bitcoin ETF outflows and corporate BTC balance reductions fueled market pessimism.
Bitcoin (BTC) retested the $72,500 level for the first time in six weeks on Thursday, triggering $342 million in liquidations for bullish leveraged positions. Despite a subsequent relief bounce to $73,500, traders are worried that bears will keep control due to the upcoming $9 billion monthly options expiry.
May 29 Bitcoin call (buy) options open interest at Deribit, BTC. Source: Deribit
Deribit holds a 70% market share for the May monthly options expiry, capturing $3.4 billion in open interest for calls (buy) and $2.91 billion for puts (sell). However, bulls were caught off guard when Bitcoin broke below $78,000 on May 17.
If Bitcoin stays below $74,000 heading into Friday’s expiry, only $306 million worth of call options will remain in the money. In contrast, put options targeting $74,000 or higher total $1.05 billion, giving bearish strategies a massive advantage.
May 29 Bitcoin put (sell) options open interest at Deribit, BTC. Source: Deribit
Even if Bitcoin reclaims $74,000 by Friday, put options will still outpace call instruments by $265 million. On the bright side, there is no excessive demand for downside protection right now, as put options volume typically spikes only when traders anticipate severe negative surprises.
Bitcoin options put-to-call volume ratio, USD. Source: Laevitas
The Bitcoin options put-to-call volume ratio stood at 0.8 on Thursday, reflecting $1.57 billion traded in calls versus $1.29 billion in puts. This neutral setup represents an improvement from the prior week, which was marked by heavy demand for defensive, neutral-to-bearish options strategies.
Bitcoin only has an 18% chance of reaching $80,000 by June 26
The June 26 expiry shows traders are generally uninspired by Bitcoin’s short-term price prospects.
Deribit June 26 Bitcoin options pricing. Source: Deribit
The $80,000 June call option traded at 0.0103 BTC on Thursday, equivalent to $757. Given the 28 days remaining until expiry, the implied odds of Bitcoin trading above that level sit at 18%. This widespread pessimism can be partly attributed to the $1.07 billion in net outflows from US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs over two days.
On Thursday, Paris-based semiconductor developer Sequans Communications (SQNS) announced plans to fully liquidate its Bitcoin holdings, abandoning its previous accumulation strategy. Publicly traded mining firms, as well as Trump Media and Technology Group (DJT), have also recently scaled back their Bitcoin exposure.
While it is impossible to predict whether a correction to $70,000 is the most probable scenario based solely on Bitcoin options flows and positioning, bears clearly hold the upper hand heading into the upcoming Friday expiry at 8:00 am UTC. Lingering fear and market uncertainty should prevail, significantly weakening the odds of any sustained bullish momentum in the short term.

Solana (SOL) futures dropped sharply in May as traders reduced leveraged exposure across all exchanges. SOL open interest (OI) dropped to $1.90 billion on Thursday from $2.75 billion on May 11, a 30% decline, while funding rates remained close to neutral. The combination points to weakening investor sentiment as SOL eyes a retest of its yearly low at $68.
SOL spot demand offsets futures market weakness
The aggregated funding rate for Solana futures held near -0.005, showing balanced positioning between longs and shorts. SOL traders have not built aggressive directional bets despite the recent price slide to $80.
SOL price, aggregated open interest, and funding rate. Source: velo chart
At the same time, the aggregated futures volume cumulative volume delta (CVD) for stablecoin-margined orders fell to a yearly low of -$13 billion. The CVD tracks whether buyers or sellers are more active over time. The decline signals stronger sell-side pressure in futures markets through May.
BTC price, aggregated spot and futures CVD. Source: Coinalyze
However, spot activity paints a steadier picture. Spot CVD has improved to $350 million since March, showing that buyers have continued to absorb supply on spot exchanges even as derivatives positioning has weakened.
The positive flows into spot SOL exchange-traded funds (ETFs) added to that trend. The monthly net inflows reached $113 million in May, marking the strongest monthly total for SOL ETFs in 2026.
The split between futures selling and steady spot accumulation often points to a lower level of speculative appetite rather than panic selling. This indicates that leveraged traders reduced risk exposure, while spot buyers continued to add positions gradually.
Spot SOL ETF netflows. Source: SoSoValue
Related: Three key XRP metrics suggest ‘explosive price expansion’ is next
SOL retests the $80 price floor of a three-month range
From a technical standpoint, SOL continues to trade inside a broad range between $80 and $95. The range formed after Solana fell 42% during Q1. The price returned to the lower boundary on Wednesday after another rejection near the resistance level.
SOL/USD, one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
A move below $80 places focus on the yearly low near $68. The liquidation heat maps show more than $800 million in cumulative long leverage sitting near that zone, making it an important liquidity pocket if downside pressure increases.
Crypto trader Cold Blooded Shiller described SOL as one of the weaker large-cap charts in the market. In a post on X, the trader said SOL has been in a downtrend since October and lacks strong support below the current price level of $80.
Crypto commentator Zoe also placed bids near $67, closely aligning with the yearly low and the largest cluster of leveraged liquidations identified on the open leveraged positions heatmap.
SOL liquidation map. Source: CoinGlass
Related: HYPE chases new highs as ETF inflows, institutional adoption accelerate

Recent moves by the Iranian government to Bitcoin for oil tolls as gold overtakes US dollar assets in global central bank reserves signals a “shift away from dollar-based systems,” according to crypto financial services company Fidelity Digital Investments.
Tehran's acceptance of BTC for oil shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz represents the emergence of “alternative settlement mechanisms,” according to the company’s just-released "Six Key Trends Shaping Digital Assets in 2026" report.
Accepting Bitcoin for shipping toll payments is evidence that the biggest cryptocurrency could replace the US dollar as the global reserve currency because of its neutral, confiscation-resistant and decentralized properties, supporters of BTC say.
At the same time, central banks' demand for gold remains “strong” despite its 20% decline from the all-time high of about $5,600 per ounce reached in January. The report said:
“Gold’s performance and continued central bank demand are broadly aligned with our initial thesis, while the anticipated follow-on outperformance from bitcoin has yet to materialize.”
Gold overtakes US dollars in central bank reserves. Source: Kitco
Iran considers an insurance model for oil ships paid in Bitcoin
In May 2025, Iranian media reported that the government of Iran was considering a maritime shipping insurance model for oil vessels crossing the Strait that would be payable in Bitcoin and “settled at the speed of blockchain.”
“Under the Economy Ministry's plan, managing the Strait through an insurance framework would enable the issuance of various marine insurance policies as well as certificates of financial responsibility,” according to the state-run Fars News agency.
Source: Dennis Porter
In April 2026, the Iranian government announced it would accept oil shipping tolls in Bitcoin, US dollar-pegged stablecoins and Chinese yuan.
Later that month, US authorities froze $344 million in stablecoins linked to Iran’s government and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Despite the ability of US officials to freeze and confiscate stablecoins, Tether’s USDt dollar-pegged token continues to dominate oil shipping fees, according to Sam Lyman, the head of research at digital asset advocacy organization Bitcoin Policy Institute (BPI).
Magazine: Is China hoarding gold so yuan becomes global reserve instead of USD?

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and companies behind prediction market platforms are continuing legal fights against state-level authorities, with the latest battlegrounds centered in Rhode Island and Minnesota.
Last week, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed a bill into law amending statutes to prohibit advertising, creating, operating or otherwise facilitating prediction market platforms. The move prompted CFTC Chair Michael Selig to file in federal court less than 24 hours later, alleging Minnesota and its officials had enacted the “first outright ban” on prediction markets.
Source: PACER
That set up a move by Kalshi on Wednesday challenging the Minnesota law on constitutional grounds. The company echoed arguments made by Selig, claiming that the CFTC had “exclusive authority” over prediction markets under the Commodity Exchange Act and under the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution, the federal law took precedence over state laws.
Central to Kalshi’s and Selig’s claims is that event contracts on prediction market platforms are “swaps” traded on federally designated contract markets and subject to the CFTC’s jurisdiction rather than state authorities. Although some courts have rejected this argument, others have sided with Kalshi and the CFTC, setting up a potential case for the US Supreme Court.
On Thursday, the CFTC announced a joint filing with Kalshi against Rhode Island officials. The motion to intervene reiterated the agency’s previous claims on its authority over prediction markets, stemming from Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha suing Kalshi and Polymarket and asking for a declaration that the platforms’ sports-related “event contracts” amounted to bets.
Event contract on when a prediction markets case could go to the US Supreme Court. Source: Polymarket
Donald Trump weighs in, despite family ties to prediction markets
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump took to social media, claiming that it was “critically important” that the CFTC had sole authority over prediction markets. His son, Donald Trump Jr., is an adviser to Kalshi and Polymarket and invested in the latter through his venture capital firm, 1789 Capital.
“We want to remain at the top,” said Trump, referring to prediction markets and insulting state officials behind some of the lawsuits against Kalshi and Polymarket.
The platforms have come under scrutiny in the US Congress amid concerns over elected officials potentially being engaged in insider trading. Last week, the chair of the House of Representatives’ Oversight and Government Reform Committee called on the CEOs of Kalshi and Polymarket to answer questions related to the companies’ response to insider trading.
Magazine: Big Questions: Do we really only need 2–5 cryptocurrencies?

Bit Digital purchased $20 million worth of Ether earlier this month, increasing its holdings to roughly 158,462 ETH.
The Nasdaq-listed company said Thursday it acquired 8,568 ETH (ETH) on May 11 at an average price of $2,334.25 per token.
CEO Sam Tabar said the purchase reduced Bit Digital’s average ETH acquisition cost and was part of the company’s strategy to grow net asset value per share through Ethereum accumulation, AI infrastructure and acquisitions.
Bit Digital operates across Ethereum treasury management, AI and high-performance computing infrastructure and strategic acquisitions. Its WhiteFiber subsidiary trades on Nasdaq under the ticker WYFI.
Top 5 Ethereum treasury companies. Source: CoinGecko
Based on CoinGecko data, Bit Digital’s previously reported holdings of roughly 140,008 ETH placed it behind Coinbase Global, which held about 151,175 ETH. The company’s newly announced purchase would move its treasury above Coinbase’s holdings, making Bit Digital the fourth-largest public corporate Ethereum holder.
The company's shares closed Wednesday at $2.03, while the stock was up roughly 35.5% over the past month, according to Yahoo Finance data.
Source: Yahoo Finance
Ethereum fundamentals remain strong despite price weakness
The purchase comes as some analysts argue Ethereum’s network activity remains significantly stronger than its market performance. In a Thursday report, Standard Chartered said Ethereum transaction activity and total value locked remain near record levels despite ETH trading more than 50% below its 2025 highs.
StanChart's global head of digital assets research, Geoff Kendrick, reiterated his ETH price targets of $4,000 by the end of 2026 and $40,000 by 2030, arguing the gap between Ethereum’s network usage and token price could narrow as stablecoin and tokenization activity continues expanding on the blockchain.
The bullish outlook comes as some public companies continue expanding Ethereum treasury strategies. On Tuesday, Bitmine Immersion Technologies said it purchased another 111,942 Ether, its largest purchase of the year.
Chairman Tom Lee said that Ethereum could benefit from a crypto “supercycle” driven by tokenization and AI-powered agents. According to CoinGecko data, BitMine Immersion currently ranks as the largest public Ethereum treasury holder, with more than 5.39 million ETH.
The optimism contrasts with comments this week from Bankless co-founder David Hoffman, who said he sold the remainder of his ETH holdings after concluding the “ETH is Money” investment thesis had largely “played out. Hoffman said Ethereum’s network may continue growing through stablecoins, tokenization and layer-2 activity, but only a limited share of that growth ultimately accrues to ETH itself.
ETH was trading around $2,013 at the time of writing, down roughly 32% year-to-date and nearly 60% below its August 2025 all-time high near $4,946, according to CoinGecko data.
Source: CoinGecko
Magazine: Big Questions: Do we really only need 2–5 cryptocurrencies

US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce said financial privacy is becoming increasingly undervalued in US regulation, warning against treating privacy-preserving technologies with suspicion.
Speaking Wednesday at Georgetown Law, Peirce described privacy-enhancing technologies, including cryptographic tools, as legitimate components of modern financial infrastructure rather than tools primarily associated with criminal activity.
Peirce said that protecting financial privacy does not conflict with national security objectives.
“Empowering government to be able to identify, pursue, and punish the bad guys is important to the security of the nation and its people, but so too is empowering people to protect information about their lives, including their financial lives,” she said, according to a transcript published on the SEC’s website.
She added that privacy technologies can help individuals protect themselves from hackers, scammers and other malicious actors, and should not be viewed as “an opportunity for the government to watch more of what its citizens do.”
Peirce also encouraged developers building privacy-enhancing technologies to engage with the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, particularly on tools that could support Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliance requirements.
Source: zooko
Related: Tor Project to lead Web3 crowdfunding to support internet freedom
Privacy returns to crypto spotlight
Privacy and privacy-preserving technologies have long been one of cryptocurrency’s core use cases, with projects like Monero and Zcash built around shielding transaction data and user identities.
The debate returned to the spotlight over the past year as regulators and developers clashed over the role of privacy tools in crypto. While advocates argue these technologies protect users from surveillance, hackers and data exploitation, critics have raised concerns about their potential use in illicit finance.
The debate has also been taken up in the European Union, where regulators and blockchain industry participants are weighing new AML rules scheduled to take effect in 2027. Under the framework, credit institutions and crypto asset service providers would be prohibited from maintaining anonymous accounts or supporting privacy-preserving cryptocurrencies.
Maintaining access to privacy-focused digital assets has been a “constant battle” between the crypto industry and regulators, according to Anja Blaj, a legal consultant at the European Crypto Initiative.
Growing interest in privacy-focused cryptocurrencies has helped drive Zcash prices sharply higher over the past year. Source: CoinMarketCap
At the same time, companies continue developing privacy-focused blockchain applications. Aptos unveiled a privacy-focused coin designed to help businesses transact onchain without exposing treasury movements, payment flows or trading strategies to competitors.
Polygon has also rolled out private stablecoin payments for institutions, positioning the feature as a way to support broader adoption of onchain transactions.
Related: Bitcoin developer launches privacy-focused Nostr VPN using public keys