Today's news highlights:
Federal Reserve Bostic: A rate cut is expected this year
Data: Bulls currently face about $120 million in sell order resistance at $104,800 and $105,000
Binance Alpha has added SuiNS Token (NS)
The Omni Foundation has repurchased 6.77 million OMNI tokens from early investors, accounting for 6.77% of the total supply
FTX will start distributing over $5 billion to creditors on May 30 according to its bankruptcy plan
The Trump family's project WLFI spent 3 million USDT to acquire 3.63 million EOS
Brazilian listed company Méliuz has purchased $28.4 million worth of Bitcoin
Cross-border e-commerce DDC Enterprise has launched a Bitcoin reserve strategy with a target to reach 5000 BTC within 36 months
Regulatory/Macro
Federal Reserve Bostic: A rate cut is expected this year
Federal Reserve official Bostic stated that due to economic uncertainties, a rate cut is expected this year. He predicts that the U.S. economic growth rate may be between 1% and 0.5%. Despite the slowdown, he does not believe a recession will occur.
The Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives overturned the governor's veto, and the stablecoin bill has been passed
According to Cointelegraph, the U.S. Pacific territory of Northern Mariana Islands has passed a bill allowing the issuance of stablecoins by the government of Tinian Island, overturning Governor Arnold Palacios's veto on April 11. The bill passed the House of Representatives with 14 votes in favor and 2 against, after the Senate reconsidered it with 7 votes in favor and 1 against on May 9. According to the bill, the government of Tinian Island can issue, manage, and redeem the stablecoin 'Marianas US Dollar' (MUSD) through the authorized Secretary of Finance. If issued before July, Tinian Island could become the first U.S. public entity to issue a stablecoin, ahead of Wyoming, which also plans to issue a stablecoin. Tinian Island has a population of just over 2,000 and relies on tourism for its economy, being one of four autonomous municipalities in the Northern Mariana Islands. The local tech service company Marianas Ray has been selected as the exclusive infrastructure provider for MUSD, and the stablecoin will be issued on the eCash blockchain. A spokesperson for Marianas Ray declined to comment but stated that more details will be announced on May 19.
A Singapore fintech company's Hong Kong branch was the victim of employee theft of over 3.2 million USDT, with the involved personnel sentenced to 78 months in prison
According to Hong Kong media Hong Kong 01, a Singapore fintech company's Hong Kong branch was the victim of employee theft of over 3.2 million USDT, valued at approximately HKD 26 million. It is reported that the involved personnel stole USDT from the company's virtual currency account 64 times and transferred the funds to different exchanges' electronic wallets. Approximately HKD 8.6 million in virtual currency and HKD 4.65 million in cash and assets have been recovered. The involved personnel were charged with theft and three counts of handling property known or believed to represent the proceeds of crime, and pleaded guilty in the Hong Kong High Court yesterday, receiving a total sentence of 78 months.
Global business aviation dealer Jetcraft will accept cryptocurrency payments for private jet transactions
According to Cryptoslate, cryptocurrency payment platform CoinPayments has formed a strategic partnership with global business aviation dealer Jetcraft to provide digital asset payment services for private jet transactions. This partnership primarily targets high-net-worth clients, supporting real-time settlement for various cryptocurrencies while adopting security protocols in compliance with anti-money laundering regulations. CoinPayments' payment system will be directly integrated into Jetcraft's financial processes, enabling automatic conversion of cryptocurrencies to fiat. Jetcraft's chairman stated that this collaboration aims to meet the demand for innovative payment methods among clients in the tech sector.
Opinion
Data: Bulls currently face about $120 million in sell order resistance at $104,800 and $105,000
According to Kiyotaka.ai data, Bitcoin has recently risen from $75,000 to $104,000, showing a 'stair-step' upward pattern. However, bulls currently face about $120 million in sell order resistance at $104,800 and $105,000, which poses a major challenge to further increases. Over the past month, Bitcoin has risen by 38%, but the current price fluctuates between $101,000 and $105,000, indicating that the market has entered a consolidation phase. Analysts believe that despite significant sell order pressure, technical indicators suggest that Bitcoin is still likely to break resistance and set new highs.
Analysis: Bitcoin's price closely relates to gold's trends, with Bitcoin expected to reach $220,000 by 2025
According to analyst Apsk32's latest insights, there is a 'reasonable chance' that Bitcoin will reach $220,000 by 2025, and may even surpass $250,000. He predicts that if Bitcoin's market value is measured in ounces of gold, it may experience higher increases in the future based on the correlation between Bitcoin and gold prices and the 'momentum curve' model. Currently, gold prices have reached $3,500 per ounce, and Bitcoin's performance compared to gold has significantly improved. Additionally, analysts point out that if Bitcoin gradually captures market share from gold, its price may rise further. According to analyst Sam Callahan's estimates, if gold prices reach $5,000 per ounce by 2030 and Bitcoin captures 50% of the gold market, its price could approach $924,000.
Analysis: Bitcoin may welcome a favorable trading window before July, with FTX debt repayments and Bitcoin ETF inflows potentially driving the market higher
According to a Matrixport research report, Bitcoin has recently rebounded to the upper end of the fluctuation range (106,000 USD), with the market expecting it to break historical highs. Several favorable factors are driving market sentiment, including a rebound in U.S. tech stocks, increased investment in AI infrastructure, and Trump’s new policies boosting market confidence. At the same time, technical trend models indicate that the market has shifted from a downward to an upward pattern. Matrixport believes that Bitcoin may welcome a favorable trading window before July, influenced by the end of the 90-day tariff truce, the start of Q2 earnings season, and liquidity peaking. Additionally, FTX is expected to initiate the debt repayment process around May 30, which may release about $5 billion in stablecoin liquidity, potentially re-entering the crypto market and resonating with Bitcoin ETF inflows. Matrixport has maintained a bullish stance since mid-April, despite Bitcoin having risen about 25%, still believing its upward momentum is not exhausted, with the trend expected to continue into summer.
The Central Bank of Russia has rated Bitcoin as the best-performing asset in the country's financial market in April 2025
According to The Defiant, the Central Bank of Russia has rated Bitcoin as the best-performing asset in the Russian financial market in April 2025, with Bitcoin's price increasing by 11.2% that month. The bank also emphasized that Bitcoin's performance year-to-date has been the best, with a return of 17.6%, surpassing stocks, bonds, and gold. Despite a short-term volatility drop of 18.6% from January to April 2025, Bitcoin has been recognized as the best-performing investment product globally since 2022, with a cumulative return of 121.3%. Over the past year, Bitcoin has been identified by the Central Bank of Russia as the most profitable investment product, yielding a return of 38%. Since 2022, Bitcoin's cumulative return has reached 121.3%, significantly outperforming traditional assets such as gold, stocks, and the S&P 500 index. This recognition comes at a time of unprecedented interest in Bitcoin from institutions.
Project Dynamics
Binance: Users with 186 or more Alpha points can participate in the AGT TGE event
Binance announced on the X platform that users with 186 or more Binance Alpha points can participate in the TGE event through the Alpha event page. Yesterday's news indicated that Binance's wallet TGE Phase 17 is launching Alaya AI (AGT): Subscription time: May 16, 2025, between 3 PM and 5 PM (UTC+8).
Binance Alpha has added SuiNS Token (NS)
According to official page information, Binance Alpha has added SuiNS Token (NS).
The Omni Foundation has repurchased 6.77 million OMNI tokens from early investors, accounting for 6.77% of the total supply
According to Omni Labs, the Omni Foundation announced a discounted repurchase of 6.77 million OMNI tokens (accounting for 6.77% of the total supply) from early investors, reducing the investor holding ratio from 20.06% to 13.29%. The repurchase funds come from the foundation's $18.1 million seed round and Series A financing. The repurchased tokens will be transferred to the 'community growth' pool, decreasing the total holding ratio of investors, advisors, and core contributors from 48.56% to 41.79%. This operation follows established lock-up terms and references community-first allocation models of projects like Hyperliquid, aiming to optimize token distribution structure. Currently, the market price of OMNI has a premium over the repurchase price.
FTX will start distributing over $5 billion to creditors on May 30 according to its bankruptcy plan
According to The Block, bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX Trading Ltd. will launch the second phase of its Chapter 11 restructuring plan on May 30, 2025, distributing over $5 billion to creditors. The FTX bankruptcy management team announced on Thursday that qualified convenience and non-convenience creditors will receive their funds from Bitgo or Kraken within one to three business days from this date. Although the bankruptcy management team has allowed clients to 'break even' during market lows due to FTX's previous successful investments in startups like Anthropic and tokens like Solana, they have still faced criticism from some former clients. However, many cryptocurrency traders believe that if traders choose to reinvest, these distribution funds may positively impact token prices.
Important Data
Data: BlackRock's IBIT Bitcoin holdings have reached $64.697 billion, surpassing Strategy
According to official data, as of May 15, BlackRock's Bitcoin spot ETF (IBIT) has a Bitcoin scale of approximately $64.697 billion, surpassing Strategy's current holdings of about $59.146 billion.
The Trump family's project WLFI spent 3 million USDT to acquire 3.63 million EOS
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, about 10 minutes ago, the Trump family project World Liberty Finance (WLFI) spent 3 million USDT to purchase 3.63 million EOS at a price of $0.825 per token.
The total net inflow for Bitcoin spot ETFs yesterday was $115 million, with only BlackRock's ETF IBIT achieving a net inflow
According to SoSoValue data, yesterday (May 15, Eastern Time) the total net inflow for Bitcoin spot ETFs was $115 million. The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest single-day net inflow yesterday was BlackRock's ETF IBIT, with a single-day net inflow of $410 million, bringing IBIT's total historical net inflow to $45.423 billion. The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest single-day net outflow yesterday was Ark Invest and 21Shares' ETF ARKB, with a single-day net outflow of $132 million, bringing ARKB's total historical net inflow to $2.567 billion. As of the time of this report, the total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs is $121.469 billion, with an ETF net asset ratio (market value as a percentage of Bitcoin's total market value) of 5.91%, and historical cumulative net inflow has reached $41.514 billion.
A whale deposited 49,858 SOL into Kraken early this morning, losing $3.11 million
According to Lookonchain monitoring, a whale deposited 49,858 SOL (approximately $8.46 million) into Kraken 7 hours ago, suffering a loss of $3.11 million. Six months ago, this whale withdrew 48,185 SOL (approximately $11.58 million) from Kraken at a price of $240 per SOL and staked it. During this period, they earned 1,673 SOL (approximately $286,000) in staking rewards, but due to the price drop, they ultimately lost $3.11 million.
Financing
Web3-based AI platform Giza has announced that it has completed a total of $5.2 million in financing
According to official news, the AI platform Giza, based on smart contracts and web3 protocols, has announced the completion of a total of $5.2 million in financing as part of Xenocognitive Finance's infrastructure, with investors including Base Ecosystem Fund, Echo, CoinFund, Re7 Capital, Stake Capital, ID Theory, CONTANGO, and others. Giza is developing a trustless protocol aimed at decentralizing machine learning inference computations to ensure the security and transparency of verifiable machine learning model deployments for open-source AI's open economy.
DeFi strategy platform XSY.fi has completed $5 million in Pre-A round financing
According to The Defiant, the DeFi strategy platform XSY.fi has launched a test version of the synthetic dollar stablecoin Unity (UTY) on the Avalanche blockchain and announced the completion of $5 million in Pre-A round financing, led by Protagonist Ventures and Borderless Capital, with participation from Paper Ventures, Chainview Capital, Blizzard the Avalanche Fund, Sonic Boom Ventures. Users can stake AVAX to mint UTY, gaining passive income while maintaining exposure to the original asset. UTY uses automated strategies to manage market risk without requiring active user intervention. Ava Labs' Chief Business Officer stated that this product will enrich the DeFi toolset of the Avalanche ecosystem.
Solana-based ticketing platform XP has completed $6.2 million in seed round financing
According to Blockworks, the Solana-based ticketing platform XP has completed $6.2 million in seed round financing, led by Blockchange, with participation from L1D and Reflexive. The platform encodes tickets as NFTs, allowing users to pay using USDC through a connected crypto wallet. Founder Mike Saunders revealed that the platform is about to launch a user-driven resale feature and plans to use blockchain technology to provide exclusive rewards and experiences for fans. Although the platform's underlying technology is based on Solana, the official website hardly mentions crypto elements, and the founder did not clarify whether a token will be issued.
U.S. AI video platform Hedra has completed $32 million in Series A financing, led by a16z
U.S. AI video platform Hedra has completed $32 million in Series A financing, led by A16Z infrastructure fund, with contributions from Index Ventures, Abstract, and others, reaching a total of $43 million in financing. Hedra plans to expand its team to 60 people by the end of the year and upgrade its Character-3 model for enterprise-level AI video marketing scenarios. The platform integrates text, images, and audio inputs to create high-quality digital characters, helping brands efficiently produce realistic video content.
Institution/government holdings
Japanese listed company Remixpoint has increased its holdings by 32.83 BTC, raising its total to 648.82 BTC
According to Coinpost, Japanese Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed company Remixpoint announced an additional purchase of 500 million yen (approximately 32.83 BTC) of Bitcoin, with an average purchase price of 15.23 million yen/BTC. As of May 14, the company's total crypto asset holdings reached 11.1 billion yen, including a Bitcoin holding of 648.82 BTC (valued at approximately 9.91 billion yen), as well as ETH, SOL, XRP, DOGE, and other mainstream tokens.
California pension funds disclosed the purchase of $276 million worth of Strategy shares
Bitcoin Magazine reporter @Vivek4real revealed on the X platform that California pension funds disclosed the purchase of $276 million worth of Strategy (stock code: MSTR) shares, indirectly laying out a Bitcoin investment.
Brazilian listed company Méliuz has purchased $28.4 million worth of Bitcoin
According to The Defiant, Brazilian listed company Méliuz has purchased $28.4 million worth of Bitcoin, becoming the first Bitcoin financial company in Brazil. The decision to adopt a Bitcoin financial strategy has received overwhelming approval from the company's shareholders. This marks significant progress for Brazilian companies adopting cryptocurrency as a financial asset.
Bahraini listed restaurant group AlAbraaj has implemented a Bitcoin reserve strategy and has acquired 5 BTC
According to Cointelegraph, Bahraini listed restaurant group AlAbraaj announced its Bitcoin reserve strategy through cooperation with investment firm 10X Capital, having acquired 5 BTC as an initial investment. The company has a market value of $24.2 million, with an expected EBITDA of $12.5 million for 2024, and plans to allocate its corporate funds primarily to Bitcoin while developing Sharia-compliant financial products to expand into the Middle East market. Abdullah Isa, head of the company’s Bitcoin committee, stated the goal is to become the 'MicroStrategy of the Middle East,' citing Michael Saylor's operational model as a reference. 10X Capital's CEO pointed out that this move fills the gap of publicly listed companies with Bitcoin reserves in the Gulf Cooperation Council (with a total GDP of $2.2 trillion).
Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala disclosed holdings of BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF worth over $408 million
According to Bitcoin Magazine, the latest 13F filing from Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala shows that its holdings of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) have increased to 8.727 million shares, valued at $408.5 million, a 6% increase from the end of 2024. This investment coincides with high-level interactions between U.S. and UAE officials regarding cryptocurrency policies. David Sacks, an AI and cryptocurrency advisor appointed by President Trump, discussed opportunities for the integration of digital currencies and AI with UAE officials on March 20.
Blockchain investment firm Coinsilium has raised £1.25 million, launching a Bitcoin financial strategy
According to Bitcoin Magazine, blockchain investment firm Coinsilium Group announced the completion of £1.25 million in institutional financing and launched a £250,000 retail fundraising plan to promote its Bitcoin reserve strategy. The share price for this directed issuance is set at 3 pence per share, and oversubscription funds will be injected into its wholly-owned subsidiary Forza (Gibraltar) Ltd. as the operating entity. The company’s executive chairman Malcolm Palle stated that this financing will accelerate the implementation of the Bitcoin reserve plan. Oak Securities has been appointed as a co-broker to enhance capital market operation capabilities. The newly issued shares are expected to be listed on the Aquis Growth Market on May 22, bringing the total share capital to 274.7 million shares. Board member James Van Straten emphasized that the company is fully focused on the Bitcoin reserve strategy, and this fundraising includes arrangements to pay service fees of £196,800 with 6.56 million ordinary shares.
Cross-border e-commerce DDC Enterprise has launched a Bitcoin reserve strategy, aiming to reach 5000 BTC within 36 months
According to Bitcoin Magazine, cross-border consumer goods e-commerce group DDC Enterprise has announced the launch of a Bitcoin reserve strategy, planning to accumulate 5000 BTC within 36 months. The company’s founder and CEO Norma Chu stated in a letter to shareholders that the initial phase will immediately purchase 100 BTC, with a short-term goal of increasing to 500 BTC within 6 months. The company has formed a new advisory committee and fund management team with experience in crypto assets to oversee the strategic implementation. The 2024 financial report shows that DDC achieved annual revenue of $37.4 million, a 33% year-on-year increase, with a gross profit margin rising to 28.4%. As of March 31, 2025, the company holds approximately $23.6 million in cash and short-term investments. Norma Chu emphasized that Bitcoin's characteristics as an anti-inflation asset align closely with the company's diversified reserve strategy.
Wisconsin sells over $300 million worth of BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF
According to The Block, the latest 13F filings from the Wisconsin Investment Board show that it has completely divested its $321 million worth of BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT). The filings indicate that as of the end of March, the board no longer holds any shares of IBIT. The investment board has not completely exited crypto-related investments, as the filings show it still holds about $19 million worth of Coinbase stock. Previously, the board had also sold off its holdings in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). Notably, the BlackRock IBIT fund recently set a record for net inflows for 20 consecutive days, with inflows exceeding $5 billion.
