TL;DR
Coinbase breach, GENIUS Act stablecoin vote, Tether mints $2B USDT on Tron, Solana leads DeFi.
Highlights
- Coinbase disclosed a data breach with up to $400M in potential losses, refused a $20M ransom, faces an SEC probe, and prepares for S&P 500 inclusion; stock fell over 7%1.
- Judge Torres blocked the SEC-Ripple $125M-to-$50M settlement, returning $75M escrow to Ripple; XRP trades at $2.42, down 1.6% on the day but up 366% YoY2.
- U.S. Senate to vote Monday on the GENIUS Act, a bipartisan stablecoin bill; new draft addresses Big Tech and political conflicts, with Trump-linked USD1 stablecoin in focus3.
- Tether minted $2B USDT on Tron, pushing 2025 issuance to $15B and Tron's USDT supply above Ethereum for the first time4.
- DOJ will proceed with most charges against Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm; trial set for July 14, 2025, after dropping the unlicensed money transmission charge5.
- BlackRock 's $3B sBUIDL fund integrated with DeFi on Avalanche via Securitize's sToken, enabling on-chain collateralization of tokenized Treasuries6.
- JPMorgan settled tokenized Treasuries (OUSG) on public blockchain using Kinexys , Chainlink , and Ondo , marking a TradFi–DeFi interoperability milestone7.
- Solana leads with $7.96M daily revenue, 87% of blockchain transactions, 84M active wallets, and dominance in DeFi/DEX volume16.
- Hyperliquid exchange reports up to $1B income, HYPE token up 260% from April lows, open interest near $1B, and traders net long on SOL , ETH , and HYPE15.
- BlackRock acquired $409.7M in Bitcoin and 3,220 ETH ; its spot Bitcoin ETF saw inflows while spot Ethereum ETFs saw outflows. Avenir Group (Hong Kong) is Asia’s largest IBIT holder at $691M1318.
- Fourteen U.S. states, led by California and Florida, increased MicroStrategy holdings to $632M, signaling growing institutional Bitcoin exposure via equities19.
- WLFI’s USD1 stablecoin launched cross-chain with Chainlink CCIP on Ethereum and BNB Chain, reaching $2.2B market cap; Tron expansion planned17.
- FTX Recovery Trust to distribute over $5B to creditors on May 3012.
- Elon Musk changed his X username to "Kekius Maximus," triggering a 136% surge in the KEKIUS meme token on Ethereum11.
- Nexon's Nexpace launched MapleStory N on Avalanche , debuting the NXPC token and driving major NFT and wallet activity9.
- DeGods founder Rohun Vora’s wallet was hacked, 16 NFTs stolen after CEO departure; project faces leadership transition and declining floor prices10.
- North Korea’s $8B crypto black market and $88M theft exposed; U.S. increases enforcement and visa crackdowns amid ongoing cyber threats20.
Commentary
Institutional activity remains a key driver, with BlackRock expanding both spot Bitcoin and Ethereum holdings and integrating its $3B sBUIDL fund into DeFi on Avalanche 613. JPMorgan ’s on-chain settlement of tokenized Treasuries using Chainlink and Ondo further demonstrates the increasing interoperability between traditional finance and public blockchains7. U.S. state pension funds and Asian investors, notably Avenir Group, are also ramping up indirect Bitcoin exposure via MicroStrategy and Bitcoin ETFs, underlining persistent institutional demand1819.
Stablecoins are in the regulatory spotlight as the U.S. Senate prepares to vote on the GENIUS Act, which could set new standards for issuer conduct and Big Tech participation3. Tether ’s $2B USDT mint on Tron—now surpassing Ethereum in USDT supply—highlights both the scale and concentration risks in the stablecoin sector4. WLFI’s USD1 stablecoin is expanding cross-chain, leveraging Chainlink CCIP for interoperability, while political scrutiny over issuer affiliations remains high17.
On-chain activity is robust, with Solana leading in transaction volume, active wallets, and DEX/DeFi engagement16. The network’s revenue and ecosystem growth continue to outpace competitors, attracting both retail and institutional interest. Avalanche is also seeing increased traction from new game launches (MapleStory N) and DeFi integrations96. Meanwhile, Hyperliquid’s strong profitability and HYPE token rally reflect trader appetite for high-leverage venues, even as security incidents (Coinbase breach, DeGods hack) and regulatory actions (Tornado Cash trial) underscore operational risks151015.
Meme coins remain highly reactive to celebrity and social media signals, as seen with the KEKIUS token’s surge following Elon Musk’s profile update11. Ongoing FTX creditor distributions and enforcement actions against North Korean cyber operations also remain relevant for market sentiment and security awareness1220.
Traders should monitor the GENIUS Act vote, flows into tokenized RWA products, and Solana /Avalanche ecosystem activity. Security and regulatory headlines remain key risk factors as institutional adoption and on-chain innovation continue to shape the market landscape.