Ethereum open source layoffs, Circle rings the bell for listing, South Korea changes its president, the market script is becoming more and more like "Crypto Game of Thrones"
When I woke up in the morning, I saw a big negative line in the cryptocurrency circle. What was the reason for the collective plunge of the three major currencies?
📊【Performance of the three major currencies: ETF inflows still fell, Blackstone made a move, and the whole market lost weight】
📉 Bitcoin (BTC): Falling below 102,000, just because of BlackRock's U-turn?
The price was reported at $101,577, down 3.08% in 24 hours. It was still above 105,000 in the morning, but BlackRock transferred out $560 million of BTC and bought $95 million of ETH at the same time... It collapsed in the morning.
Comment: "BTC is like a prime minister who was fired today - market confidence is not lost slowly, but collapsed instantly."
📉 Ethereum (ETH): You say no, but the money is invested in you
At $2,429, a decrease of -6.90%. Although BlackRock quietly bought ETH and the ETH/BTC ratio increased by 1.05%, ETH still led the decline. Some people say it is arbitrage, some people say it is a wash, anyway, the K-line looks like a pencil with a broken end.
Comment: "ETH's current trend is a typical example of 'optimistic about you, but let you fall enough before buying the bottom'."
📉 Binance Coin (BNB): Even without drama, the price can’t escape the crash
At $634, a drop of -4.33%. There was no scandal, no hot search, no institutional dynamics, but it still fell. The only explanation is: "The overall market sentiment is low, and BNB just followed the trend and cried out of social phobia."
Comment: "BNB is like the honest guy in the corner of the office - you don't cause trouble, but if others fight, you have to lie down."
The following is the content of the cryptocurrency circle’s melon-eating series:
It is like the collective turn of traditional finance, governance structure and new regime: the Ethereum Foundation issued a "Defipunk" reform manifesto; Circle completely broke the circle with the "stablecoin IPO"; and the new president of South Korea took office, and Upbit's trading volume exploded. This is not a quiet period in the market, but a plot foreshadowing before the big move.
📈【Circle listed: USDC is not a "stable currency", it is the on-chain clone of the US dollar】
Circle finally rang the bell on Nasdaq, with the stock code $CRCL, an issue price of $31, raised $1.1 billion, and a valuation of $6.2 billion. It was oversubscribed 25 times, and even BlackRock subscribed for 10% of the shares. You read that right, this is not the Web3 circle itself hyping it up, this is traditional financial capital betting real money on USDC off-chain.
📌 What does this signal?
Stablecoins are finally no longer “marginal payment tools” but rather a financial compliance infrastructure.
USDC’s market value has exceeded 61 billion U.S. dollars, but now it has an additional identity - the main product of Nasdaq-listed companies.
It is no longer just a "temporary transit station" in DeFi, but has become an "on-chain US dollar bond" in the eyes of mainstream institutions.
Even better is the timing: just after the Ethereum Foundation announced that it would incorporate DeFi revenue strategies into the treasury management structure, USDC happened to become its "revenue fuel." ETH is used for staking, lending, and exchanging for stablecoins - this closed loop officially puts Circle into the "financial center" of Ethereum.
🧩 Key additions:
Circle has obtained money transmission licenses from 46 states in the United States, NY BitLicense, and is also registered as a FinCEN MSB. It is now compliant like a bank, but runs like a Degen.
Its income mainly comes from U.S. Treasury bond interest. In 2024, it earned $1.6 billion by holding USDC reserves. Who says stablecoins can’t be a “serious business”?
Multi-chain support (20 chains + CCTP cross-chain protocol) + monthly audits + cooperation with Visa and Stripe - Circle is in the business of making stablecoins, not creating empty money.
⚠ Worth mentioning:
This is not the first time Circle has "wanted to go public." As early as 2022, it tried to go public through a SPAC merger, but was forced to withdraw due to overvaluation ($8 billion) and a cooling market. This time, it is starting over again, cutting valuations and going through a regular IPO, which is equivalent to changing its posture and getting back on the table - instead of dreaming, it chose to directly pull the account book this time.
💬 Comments:
“Circle is not landing on Wall Street, but putting USDC in formal attire, passing through the revolving door of traditional finance, and turning around and shouting at Nasdaq: ‘Your dollar is too slow, the on-chain version is already on the market.’”
🔧【Ethereum Foundation launches "Defipunk" mode: cut spending, layoffs, and make financial reports on the chain】
The Ethereum Foundation has done two major things in the past two days:
1. Release of new treasury policies:
In the next five years, the treasury expenditure will be reduced from 15% to 5%. At the same time, ETH will no longer be "lying in the wallet", but will start to make money on the chain - staking, lending wETH, and stabilizing mortgage loans. The core goal is: "decentralization, sustainability, and flexibility", according to Vitalik, it is the restart of the DeFi punk spirit.
2. R&D restructuring and layoffs:
The technical team Protocol R&D was renamed "Protocol", and some members no longer hold positions, but are encouraged to continue contributing to the community. It sounds like "open source layoffs": it's not you who leave, but we who have changed.
📊 Background connection:
Don’t forget that last year the foundation sold 35,000 ETH at a high price, and there was a wave of high-level resignations within EigenLayer. Now it has issued a document to reduce expenditures and reorganize. On the one hand, it sends a signal of stability to the market, and on the other hand, it is also the first step in “facing the bear market.”
🧾 Community reaction:
While X platform is discussing "ETH bull market is coming", it is also asking: "You fired my brother and said it is ecological evolution?"
💬 Comments:
“Ethereum’s move seems to be saying: ‘I want to lose weight, but I also want to be a DeFi elitist.’ Between technical idealism and operational reality, the foundation has chosen a compromise.”
🧭【South Korea changes its president, Upbit explodes, XRP accounts for nearly 10%】
South Korea has elected a new president, Lee Jae-myung (Democratic Party), ending the chaotic period when the former president was impeached due to the martial law crisis. Although the new regime’s attitude towards the cryptocurrency circle has not yet been made clear, the market reaction is real:
South Korea's top exchange Upbit had a trading volume of $15.36 billion yesterday;
Among them, XRP/KRW accounted for 9.7%, almost reaching double digits;
South Korean retail investors remain enthusiastic, and the Korean won trading has once again become a weather vane for the Asian market.
📌 Why is it important?
South Korea is one of the markets with the strongest trading depth in Asia. With political stability, economic stimulus expectations and local speculative culture, once the policy is relaxed, the Korean won crypto market may become the next "Coinbase of East Asia".
💬 Comments:
"As soon as one person stepped down in South Korean politics, the exchange soared. This is not the cryptocurrency circle speculating on the president, but the market is more willing to speculate after the president changes."
