TL;DR

MicroStrategy, Tether, and BlackRock boost BTC holdings; SEC signals regulatory shift; Ethereum, Solana, memecoins surge.

Highlights

• MicroStrategy (now Strategy) bought 13,390 BTC for $1.34B, raising holdings to 568,840 BTC (2.7% of supply)1; Tether also surpassed 100,000 BTC after a $458.7M purchase via its new Twenty One Capital arm3.
• BlackRock’s IBIT spot Bitcoin ETF reached 621,600 BTC after 20 consecutive days of inflows; Goldman Sachs increased its IBIT stake to $1.4B, now controlling over half of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF holdings5.
• Coinbase reported Q1 EBITDA of $930M and $66M net income, acquired Deribit for $2.9B, and joined the S&P 500; shares fell post-earnings2.
• SEC Chair Paul Atkins announced a shift toward clear crypto regulation, away from enforcement-first policies7; SEC delayed decisions on Solana, Litecoin, and Bitcoin ETFs and acknowledged a 21Shares Dogecoin ETF filing8.
• Ethereum surged nearly 70% in May and 50% in the past week, outperforming Bitcoin and Solana ; Solana DEX volume hit $35.6B with a 58% TVL increase; Aave set a new DeFi TVL record at $25B1112.
• Curve Finance suffered a DNS hijack attack targeting its $3B TVL, affecting user access but not smart contracts; Convex Finance was also impacted at the interface level4.
• Memecoins rallied: MOODENG (+536%), GOAT (+194%), Fartcoin above $1.30, with total memecoin market cap at $72B; Solana memecoin cap rose to $14.2B14.
• Pump.fun on Solana introduced a 50% revenue-sharing model for memecoin creators, with $7.3M potential rewards based on April volume15.
• VanEck launched $VBILL, a tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, across Ethereum, Avalanche, Solana, and BNB Chain, offering 24/7 liquidity17.
• Robinhood agreed to acquire WonderFi for C$250M (41% premium), expanding its crypto presence in Canada6.
• Stablecoins are projected for mainstream adoption in 2025, with U.S. legislation advancing and major banks forecasting over $1T in new Treasury purchases by 2030; Tether’s USDT supply surpassed $150B10.
• Yuga Labs transferred CryptoPunks IP to the nonprofit Infinite Node Foundation; floor price rose 5% post-announcement16.
• Metaplanet issued ¥2.25B zero-interest bonds to buy Bitcoin, targeting 10,000 BTC by year-end18.
• Anchorage Digital agreed to acquire Mountain Protocol, issuer of the yield-bearing USDM stablecoin, to support institutional stablecoin adoption19.
• Former Celsius CEO Mashinsky sentenced to 12 years for fraud; U.S. seeks 2 years for the SEC X account hacker20.

Commentary

Institutional flows into Bitcoin remain a central theme, with MicroStrategy 1, Tether3, and Metaplanet18 all increasing their BTC reserves, and BlackRock’s IBIT ETF seeing persistent inflows; Goldman Sachs ’ expanded IBIT stake signals continued mainstream financial engagement5, while VanEck’s launch of a tokenized Treasury fund17 and Anchorage’s acquisition of a yield-bearing stablecoin issuer19 highlight the growing intersection of traditional finance and digital assets.

Regulatory signals are mixed: the SEC’s new chair is promising clearer, rules-based oversight, which could reduce uncertainty for U.S. crypto firms and exchanges7. However, delays on Solana, Litecoin, and Bitcoin ETF decisions, and only incremental movement on new ETF filings, suggest the regulatory environment remains in flux and could continue to impact sentiment and flows around major altcoins8.

DeFi and altcoin markets are seeing renewed activity. Ethereum ’s sharp outperformance11, Solana ’s surge in DEX volumes and TVL12, and Aave ’s record deposits12 point to capital rotation out of Bitcoin and into higher-beta assets. The memecoin sector, especially on Solana, is in a strong risk-on phase, with new revenue-sharing models like Pump.fun fueling participation1514. Traders should be alert to the potential for sharp reversals and increased volatility as the market enters an “altseason” environment.

Security remains a concern as demonstrated by the DNS hijack at Curve Finance , which disrupted user access but left core smart contracts intact; Convex Finance was also affected at the interface level4. Such incidents may prompt temporary slowdowns in DeFi activity and reinforce the need for robust operational security at the interface level.

Stablecoins and tokenized assets are advancing, with legislative momentum in the U.S. and major banks projecting significant growth in Treasury-backed stablecoin demand10. Yuga Labs’ handoff of CryptoPunks IP to a nonprofit is notable for NFT market stability16, while Robinhood ’s WonderFi acquisition signals continued expansion by U.S. retail platforms into international crypto markets6.