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In a pattern that has now become established, the FTX wallet addresses, along with those tied to the sister trading firm Alameda Research, have executed another major Solana (SOL) transfer.

At 10 a.m. EST, exactly seven hours before press time, they moved 188,000 SOL worth $31.5 million to 30 different wallets. This movement, which is now occurring on a fixed schedule, appears to be a liquidation of SOL that the two firms hold.

Blockchain analysts and on-chain data trackers have observed that this is not a singular occurrence. Since the bankruptcy proceedings commenced, FTX and Alameda-associated addresses have displayed the same monthly-motif as the wallets unstaking SOL every month on the same date and transferring the tokens to, well, multiple wallets. Notably, many of these wallets have directly sent the funds over to major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, hinting at a 1-2 setup for either liquidation or a fresh series of liquidations.

Over $1 Billion in SOL Moved Since November 2023

This month’s movement of funds is not an isolated occurrence but part of a broad series of liquidations. From November 2022 through November 2023, a period coinciding closely with the FTX bankruptcy proceedings, the FTX/Alameda staking address has redeemed and transferred a mind-boggling 8.407 million SOL, or about 1.094 billion dollars. This works out to a not-so-pleasant average price of 130 bucks per token. What makes this operation effective—and concerning from a market perspective—is that it is very public. The transfers to these addresses are all easily seen on-chain, and the choice of multiple addresses to which to transfer the SOL quite clearly signals that the staked SOL is being converted to cash.

Notably, Solana was one of the digital assets that FTX and Alameda held most prominently. They had invested massively in the ecosystem, making large and early bets on SOL and its related projects. Now, that extensive position has turned into a double-edged sword: it’s valuable, yes, but as FTX and Alameda go through the process of liquidating such a large amount of SOL, it can—and does—affect price stability and market confidence, particularly on days when large movements are happening, like June 10.

Over $726 Million Still Locked in Staking Contracts

Even though a huge amount has been shifted already, a large part of SOL is still staked in wallets tied to FTX/Alameda. On-chain data shows that around 5.046 million SOL is staked, worth right about $726 million these days. If the current trend were to keep on keeping on, we might expect mostly these same recent, monthly shifts to continue through the rest of 2025 (or until the staked funds are fully unlocked and not re-staked in the FTX/Alameda wallets).

These transfers serve as a reminder for the wider crypto world of the damage that FTX did. They also happen to coincide with what seems to be a broader recovery in the crypto markets. Solana, for instance, is trading near its multi-month highs.

Still, these are not good things for the world of decentralized finance. When you have what seem to be regular supply shocks hitting the market because large institutions are cashing out, it does not communicate to the average consumer that the ecosystem has achieved a state of health.

Even though the ongoing liquidation right now seems to be methodical, it nonetheless reinforces just how colossal FTX’s collapse was—and how long and complicated the restitution path ahead appears. Both creditors and market participants plan to watch on July 10th and see if any of the above happens to be in play.

Traders are advised to watch wallet activity and exchange inflows at the same time each month. These inflows are now one of the indicators of large-scale sell-side pressure in the Solana market.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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Worldwide financial markets were thrown into chaos after tensions in the Middle East escalated dramatically, as Israel directed a large-scale military operation aimed at Iran.

The Iranian nuclear program and military targets were the focus of an apparent attempt to “eliminate the Iranian nuclear threat” that involved dozens of Israeli Air Force strikes, coordinated with ground assaults by elite infantry units. The operation’s results are hard to judge, as the press has been aiming mostly at shielded targets: among those hit in Iran’s chaos were forces in the IRGC, the senior commander of which, Hossein Salami, is apparently a casualty of the operation.

The attack, which startled the markets, is now sending shockwaves through the geopolitical and financial landscapes. Israel’s offensive posture toward Iran is now one of the most substantial escalations we’ve seen in recent years, and all attention is fixated on how Iran is going to respond. That response, which we may well see in the next few days, is a factor likely to determine the direction of both regional stability and the stability of global asset prices.

Crypto Market in Freefall: Over $1 Billion in Liquidations

One of the most immediate casualties of the geopolitical fallout was the cryptocurrency market, which saw a sharp and sudden sell-off as investors rushed for the exits. Bitcoin (BTC) shed about 3%, while Ethereum (ETH) took a much worse beating, falling around 9% at its intraday low. Market anxiety was bubbling over, as evidenced by Bitcoin’s 2% drop and Ethereum’s 4.4% plunge within just an hour of the announcement that Israel had struck Hamas.

As per data from CoinGlass, the 24 hours subsequent to the strike experienced an unparalleled $1.019 billion in crypto liquidations. This event took place across numerous centralized exchanges and effectively wiped out positions for seemingly around 215,000 traders. Most of these traders had seemingly been using the 24-hour period prior to the strike to set up long positions on exchange because approximately $945 million of the liquidated positions were long bets.

The most significant liquidation happened on Binance, where a long position in the BTC/USDT pair was closed for an astonishing $201 million, making it one of the largest sell-offs forced by market conditions in recent cryptocurrency trading history.

In a marketplace routinely characterized as unstable, even in ordinary conditions, the response was immediate and harsh. Market participants hurried to insulate themselves from potential losses or to cut back on borrowed money they were using to invest, with both the options marketplaces and the recent surge in sold-short investments across various digital currencies showing an increased appetite for loss-limiting trades.

Oil Surges While Capital Markets Stagger

In addition to the world of cryptocurrency, traditional markets also reacted to the quickly developing situation. Oil prices not only didn’t go down, they surged upward, with Brent crude at one point vaulting by as much as 11%. That increase reflected supply concerns, with traders fearful that the situation could escalate, and that a wider regional conflict might affect major supply routes or critical energy corridors like the Strait of Hormuz.

The risk asset class, which includes equities and crypto, shows marked weakness that stands in stark contrast to the surge in oil prices. Despite a mixed and somewhat nervous reaction from the world’s stock markets, the dominant sentiment seems to be one of renewed caution. Given what’s unfolding, is it any wonder? Gold, a slightly more liquid safe-haven asset, saw some modest inflows on Friday as did the U.S. dollar. The volatility index (VIX), also known as the fear index, registered an uptick.

The direct effect was sensed throughout the capital markets, but while stocks fluctuated, they did so for a much shorter period than the crypto market, which has been under sustained pressure ever since the announcement.

Currently, those who are in the market are keeping a close watch on any formal replies issuing from Iran. If Tehran were to lash out and do so in kind, it could well provoke a fresh wave of volatility across many markets in the event that they were to retaliate militarily or target Israel or its allies. On the other hand, if Iran could somehow keep a lid on such things, a restrained response might soothe investor nerves and help stabilize risk assets.

Looking Ahead: A Market on Edge

The intertwining of global markets with geopolitical developments has never been so apparent as now. Information travels at the speed of light in today’s world, and in a nanosecond, the markets will have reacted to whatever is happening, for good or ill. What bases can we count on when it seems that both traditional asset classes and decentralized ones like cryptocurrencies are vulnerable to the specter of war?

The implications of Israel’s recent advance for markets are quite clear: even more volatility seems to be on the way. And if the last few days of trading are any indication, the stakes—and the possible payoffs—appear to be rising considerably. Here’s why: traders, institutions, and policymakers are trying to get their heads around what’s really gone down and what it all means.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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The NFT market is appearing again, as OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace, shows a major rise in user activity right before its long-awaited airdrop and token generation event (TGE) for $SEA.

But overall trading volume is still well below the highs of the bull market; however, recent user engagement data suggest that the NFT space might be heating up again.

Monthly Active Users Hit 2-Year High

In May 2025, OpenSea claimed to have counted 467,000 monthly active users—a number that surged to its highest level in over two years. The increase in activity came hand in hand with growing excitement for OpenSea’s native token, $SEA, which is expected to be distributed to eligible users airdrop-style following the soon-to-happen token generation event (TGE).

In this, the first section of the piece, I will discuss the activity surge at OpenSea and then speculate on what it might mean for the upcoming OpenSea token event.

In tandem with this growth in users, the platform also witnessed a significant increase in NFT trades. Monthly sales soared to 2.12 million, making it one of the top-performing months in recent memory. This number is nearly at a 30-month high, showing that both collectors and traders appear to be reinvigorated with their interest in NFTs.

The increase in user count and transaction volume follows a long period of stagnation in the NFT market. While overall market sentiment is still cautious, even some commentators who are usually very upbeat have recently taken a more measured tone, the combination of token incentives, platform upgrades, and possibly the launch last week of what are expected to be several exciting developments from Instagram (see below) appears to have reignited user engagement in the space.

OS2 Upgrade Brings Multi-Chain Support and Rewards

The latest push is largely credited to OpenSea’s launch of its next-gen, May 29 platform, “OS2.” This upgrade brought with it a slew of new features, such as the support for a very diverse lineup of 19 blockchains, which most of OpenSea’s competitors do not offer. This expanded compatibility might play an important role in wooing a bunch of users and projects from the much larger crypto ecosystem.

OS2 also contains a newly integrated token swap feature and an improved rewards program designed to stimulate platform usage. These updates show that OpenSea has intentions beyond just being a marketplace. By adding these DeFi-like functions, OpenSea is attempting to become an all-in-one ecosystem that can serve both Web3 veterans and newcomers.

The direct effort to re-engage the user base is what the new rewards system looks like. It is, in my opinion, a pretty straightforward response to a problem that has a lot of potential solutions. The rewards system isn’t going away anytime soon; it appears to be here to stay.

Trading Volume Still a Fraction of Peak Levels

Even with the truly impressive swell of active users and total transactions, OpenSea’s trading volume still feels relatively modest. In May, total volume hit $84 million, while the platform’s all-time high felt like it hit a different stratosphere at $5 billion recorded back in January 2021.

The difference between user activity and dollar volume suggests that the current wave of engagement is still in its early stages. It seems a lot of the recent transactions may be driven more by speculation on the airdrop than by real market demand for high-value NFTs.

Put differently, even though the indicators tied to users and sales are looking better these days, it clearly isn’t time yet to shout from the rooftops that a full-on NFT revival is here. The larger crypto market is also a factor, with NFTs tending to trail in the wake of big moves for top assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum. But whatever else might be going on, the latest performance from OpenSea is a clear signal that the NFT sector itself is gaining momentum.

Conclusion: Early Signs of a Thaw

The NFT market may not be completely vibrant yet, but the performance of OpenSea recently suggests something of a thaw. With user engagement at a two-year peak and millions of NFTs trading hands every month, the digital collectibles scene seems to be gaining traction again.

The wave of optimism that has been created among NFT enthusiasts and watchers by the OS2 platform upgrade and the upcoming $SEA token drop is something we should note. Trading volume is still not in the neighborhood of what it needs to be before matching previous highs, but OpenSea’s growth is a positive sign. If nothing else, it’s preparing us for the next big moment in the NFT space, which this time could be more about utility, interoperability, and community incentives.

The crypto ecosystem is still evolving, and all eyes will be on OpenSea to see if it can shift this early momentum into something more sustainable—a sustained growth pattern in a market that’s still uncertain.

I mean, this isn’t even a growth story yet, is it? It’s a story of successful fundraising. But hey, it looks like they’re using the capital to make something big happen. So, good on ’em!

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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Pump.fun has again moved a large part of its transaction fee income. On-chain data shows that the project transferred 154,000 SOL (approximately $24.39 million) to centralized exchange Kraken over nine hours.

This sale is part of a pattern in which the earnings of Pump.fun are moved to liquid assets every one to two weeks.

Even though this practice is not new for Pump.fun, the timing and context of the latest transfer raises questions.

– Meme coin trading activity is cooling off, and daily/weekly volumes on the platform were starting to dip.

– Transaction volume at Pump.fun soared to around $700 million by early June, but now hovers between $300-$350 million, indicating not only a solid downturn in user engagement but also a clear sign of on-chain trade frenzy having calmed down.

More Than $750 Million in SOL Cashed Out Over a Year

Pump.fun has been building a huge treasure quietly through transaction fees after it rose to prominence. In the past year, the platform has sold approximately 4.179 million SOL, which equals about $751 million in realized value. This amounts to an average sale price of $179.89 per SOL, which not only underscores how much activity there has been on the platform, but also highlights the platform’s consistent strategy of managing its revenue on the way up.

https://twitter.com/EmberCN/status/1932590352558645555

Micro-transactions that occur when users launch or trade meme tokens are the main source of fees. During the past few months, as people have gotten hyped on meme coins on the Solana network, Pump.fun has been one of the main places where you can get low-cost, quick meme-token launch services. Like, okay, in some way these were probably just speculative plays. Still, that kind of traffic and those kinds of visitors make for a potentially significant revenue stream.

Nevertheless, these consistent SOL sales to Kraken also imply a certain degree of centralization in the platform’s revenue model, which is extracting profits and systematically off-ramping them. Although this is probably a sensible business move, it is also putting supply-side pressure on SOL that a few people in the market are closely watching.

Falling Volume May Signal Market Saturation—or a Cooldown

The latest SOL transfers come as Pump.fun has shown a marked decline in its trading volume. At its peak, right earlier this month, the platform was handling around $700 million in daily volume, largely driven by meme coin launches that went viral. But that figure dropped sharply right after. Its current volume seems to be settling in between $300 million and $350 million.

These overlapping factors could be responsible for the drop: diminished retail ardor, a dearth of eye-catching token introductions, or just market mechanics shuffling capital from the heavily hyped meme space into quieter corners. Some users might also be sitting on the sidelines, biding their time until the next fresh narrative that will get them amped up again, be it new market incentives like airdrops or upgrades to the Pump.fun platform itself.

Market observers observe that meme coins follow a highly cyclical behavior—rising during short bursts of euphoria and falling just as fast when sentiment cools. Thus, the dip in volume may be temporary. But if the platform does not reignite excitement, it risks slipping from its peak prominence in the Solana ecosystem.

A Critical Juncture for Pump.fun and Meme Coins on Solana

SOL sales by Pump.fun have been regular, but alongside them, we’re seeing the current decline in volume. This puts the platform almost at a kind of crossroads. On the one hand, it’s a huge platform that has really made itself a big player in Solana’s space. You look at its sales—I think there was something like $5 million or close to it in sales over this last week alone—and it’s just a force at this point.

But alongside that force, you’ve got the wave of volume that’s declining right now. So this is an attempt to redirect Speculative FOMO back toward an upward price trajectory, I think.

It is uncertain whether what we are witnessing now is a short-term breather or the onset of a much more extended slowdown. What is clear, however, is that the outfit behind Pump.fun has somehow managed to monetize the meme coin movement to an extraordinary degree, building what appears to be a nine-figure revenue stream by capturing value from speculative trading activity.

As market conditions evolve, people will continue to watch Pump.fun—not just for its transactional behavior but for what it does next and whether it can adapt and innovate past the present moment of launching meme coins. For now, the platform’s movement of SOL to Kraken on a consistent basis shows just how profitable the meme coin space has been, even if the initial excitement about meme coins is starting to die down.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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Societe Generale’s crypto-focused subsidiary SG-Forge is advancing into the rapidly expanding digital asset ecosystem with the imminent launch of a US dollar-pegged stablecoin named USD CoinVertible, or USDCV.

This new token, which begins trading in early July, will be deployed on both the Ethereum and Solana blockchains. This move demonstrates SG-Forge’s commitment to offering stable, well-regulated digital assets across multiple blockchain networks.

USDCV facilitates round-the-clock transactions by allowing users to convert U.S. dollars and to and from the stablecoin at any time. This 24/7 convertibility is a huge step forward for integrating traditional finance with blockchain systems, especially in a fast, accessible, and compliant world. With instant settlement and low-cost transfers as main features, USDCV aims to support a wide range of use cases, from enterprise payments to decentralized finance applications.

Alongside its blockchain capabilities, USDCV will gain from the institutional-grade custody services that are the hallmark of Bank of New York Mellon. BNY Mellon, among the most established custodians in the global financial industry, will look after the underlying reserves of the stablecoin. This partnership illustrates SG-Forge’s strategy of coupling digital innovation with traditional financial infrastructure and compliance.

A Follow-Up to the Euro-Pegged EURCV

The new stablecoin has emerged in the wake of EUR CoinVertible, or EURCV, a digital asset backed by the euro and launched by SG-Forge in April 2023. Like EURCV, the planned USD CoinVertible is fully compliant with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulations, which are some of the most comprehensive digital asset laws in the world. They establish a clear legal framework for the issuance and operation of stablecoins. Under those rules, both USDCV and EURCV are categorized as Electronic Money Tokens, which require strict adherence to rules regarding asset backing, transparency, and user protections.

Ethereum and Solana Support for Broader Adoption

Launching USDCV on both Ethereum and Solana shows a strategic focus on interoperability and network diversity. Ethereum is still the leading platform for smart contracts and DeFi, while Solana is known for fast, low-cost transactions. By operating on both chains, SG-Forge seems to be covering a lot of bases, serving a use-case range that goes from straightforward institutional applications to the kind of decentralized protocols that developers build and work with.

This advancement also showcases the increasing influence of conventional financial institutions in the digital asset arena. As more long-standing organizations migrate to Web3, the appearance of stable, compliant, fiat-backed tokens such as USDCV signals a near-future where blockchain-based financial services are as accessible to crypto-skeptical individuals as they are to the crypto-enthused. And, with the backing of traditional institutions, these services seem poised to become a more entrenched part of the mainstream economy.

A Sign of TradFi Embracing Web3 Infrastructure

The launch of USD CoinVertible could act as a driver for the next wave of regulated stablecoin adoption and help close the gap between CeFi and DeFi. With a strong regulatory framework, trusted custodianship, and robust multi-chain capabilities, SG-Forge’s new stablecoin is well-positioned to be a go-to digital dollar for those ordering by secure and scalable means.

With the early July rollout approaching, industry participants will be paying close attention to the market’s response to USDCV. If it proves successful, we could see a real shift in the landscape for stablecoins—where regulatory compliance, interoperability, and institutional backing are now seemingly sine qua nons for any token to achieve even a semblance of mainstream adoption.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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Founder of Cardano, Charles Hoskinson, has officially launched Cardinal, the first Bitcoin-focused, decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, which is built on the Cardano blockchain.

This event is a major step forward in blockchain interoperability. Now, Bitcoin users can interact with Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem without surrendering custody of their assets. Cardinal contains several advanced technologies that make its secure, cross-chain transactions possible. Bitcoin holders have a new way to make their assets work for them, all while using Cardano’s scalable infrastructure.

The protocol uses MuSig2, a multi-signature technology that aggregates signatures from several parties into a single, compact form. This is what makes it possible for Cardinal to implement non-custodial cross-chain functionality. Users of this functionality retain full control of their Bitcoin while utilizing its value on Cardano. And it gets better. Bitcoin’s UTXO-based structure is directly integrated into DeFi functions on Cardano. This allows BTC holders to participate in lending and staking operations. And there’s more.

By using Cardinal, Cardano is among the first ecosystems to provide a native, non-custodial bridge to Bitcoin’s liquidity. This not only gives Bitcoin users access to great DeFi opportunities on Cardano, but it also helps to fund the DeFi growth in the Cardano ecosystem. The bridge was built by the digital finance company—Cardinal—whose founders are also the creators of the DeFi loan platform, Indigo. These are all native tools used on the Cardano blockchain.

Unlocking Bitcoin Utility on Cardano

Cardinal allows Bitcoin users to engage in decentralized finance on Cardano without needing custodial services or wrapped tokens. With MuSig2, Bitcoin users can initiate transactions that are verified and processed on Cardano while maintaining the security and decentralization of the original Bitcoin blockchain. Through collaboration among multiple parties, MuSig2 enables the creation of a multisignature (multisig) transaction that requires a signature from each party for the transaction to be valid.

A hallmark of Cardinal is its support for Ordinals, a new innovation on the Bitcoin network that allows for the inscription of data directly onto individual satoshis. This feature can be used as collateral within Cardinal, achieving an NFT-like utility blended with DeFi functionality. Better yet, this development provides a bridge between the rapidly growing Ordinals ecosystem and Cardano’s smart contract capabilities.

People can stake Bitcoin by lending it through Cardano-based protocols. They can then use the returns they earn as a result of that to, I don’t know, buy houses? Or maybe just pay rent?

Minswap is a decentralized exchange on Cardano that will support trading in these Bitcoin native assets. If you are a holder of Bitcoin who is trying really hard to stick to the whole “decentralized” thing and not use Coinbase, Minswap is a pretty good option.

Interoperability and Off-Chain Verification

In addition to Bitcoin and Cardano, Cardinal also connects with other major blockchain networks like Ethereum and Solana. This is accomplished using an off-chain verification system called BitVMX, which ensures that all cross-chain operations are executed in a secure and scalable manner. In technical terms, BitVMX is an off-mainnet computation system that performs the heavy lifting when it comes to number crunching. It generates cryptographic proofs for the seemingly simple operations that take place on the mainnet.

Cardinal’s method for reducing transaction costs is to execute as many instructions as possible off-chain and only execute those that require on-chain confirmation on-chain. This not only improves efficiency but also reduces potential bottlenecks on the base layers of the participating chains. Cardinal is already a multi-chain operation, using Ethereum for some computations, and is facilitating interactions with Solana and other blockchains.

Cardinal’s inclusion of multiple chains shows its long-term vision for existing as a cross-chain protocol. It aims to pull value from the many ecosystems that exist today into a single, trustless environment.

Zero-Knowledge Proofs and the Future of Bitcoin DeFi

Romain Pellerin, who is the Chief Technology Officer at Cardano, has stated that technology involving zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP) will soon be integrated into the Cardinal protocol. He expects this addition to bolster privacy and enhance liquidity—even further than previous steps toward these goals—by enabling private transactions and using more scalable verification methods.

Users can confirm that a transaction or a computation is valid, thanks to zero-knowledge proofs. But these proofs don’t give away the secret data that was used to perform the transaction or the computation. When you think about this in the context of DeFi, you begin to see the potential for powerful, privacy-respecting efficiency.

Cardinal is the first protocol that lets Bitcoin assets reach Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem directly, without requiring custody, wrapping, or any kind of intermediary. It works in the opposite order to how DeFi protocols typically function—our secure dual-protocol architecture allows assets to bypass all those prohibitively costly steps. With this approach, not only could we see many 1:1 clones of established DeFi yield-generation applications popping up on Cardano for Bitcoin holders, but a lot of those applications could be running in parallel, essentially giving Bitcoin what DeFi-ers tend to call “money Legos.”

Cardinal rolls out. Its combination of multi-signature security, cross-chain interoperability, and privacy-enhancing technology allows it to play a central role in the next evolution of DeFi. We ensure that Cardano remains committed to these principles as we expand our capabilities.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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The week is ending on a positive note for the cryptocurrency market, which is now showing a semblance of life—”a modest rally”—in several major digital assets.

Even with this rally, however, Bitcoin seems to be experiencing rising downside pressure as long-term holders cash out in what appears to be the market’s first profit-taking episode since the price breakthrough earlier this month. With bullish catalysts absent from the scene, can the crypto market avoid a short-term correction?

On-chain metrics indicate the formation of critical support zones that could serve as potential floor levels if the sell-off speeds up. At the same time, the number of wallet holders is rising significantly across a broad spectrum of the largest-cap tokens, which indicates that the crypto ecosystem continues to see steady growth. This paints a dual picture—of expanding, on-the-ground adoption and of a profit-taking phase. And taken together, these two aspects seem to indicate a market balancing itself out.

Long-Term Holders Reduce Exposure, Increasing Downside Risk

Recently, the price of Bitcoin has moved because long-term holders have been moving their coins. Long-term holders are the group of Bitcoin investors that are most likely to push the price upward, because they tend to hold their coins even when market conditions are unfavorable. Long-term holders historically have provided a backbone of price support during periods of high volatility that many investors experienced in 2027, 2029, and during the recent COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020. Data recently released by Glassnode indicates that the long-term holders’ group has been trimming their positions in a slow and methodical manner.

On-chain models are underscoring two major levels to pay close attention to: the 0.95 SSD (Spent Supply Distribution) quantile at about $103,700 and the 0.85 SSD quantile at near $95,600. These are zones of previously concentrated demand and might give us a sense of the kind of support the price could see in the event of profit-taking.

Bitcoin may be vulnerable to rising volatility in the near term without a strong upside catalyst, like significant ETF approvals, inflows from institutions, or a major shift in the macroeconomic environment.

A Growing Base: Millions of Crypto Holders Worldwide

Even if Bitcoin is facing short-term difficulties, the situation for the cryptocurrency market overall keeps looking better. Steady growth in user participation continues, with the number of wallet holders across major blockchains consistently rising—an indication of both expanded adoption and interest that seems anything but niche.

Ethereum tops the list with a remarkable 148.38 million holders, not just making it the most held crypto, but also underscoring its role as the foundational infrastructure for decentralized applications, DeFi, and NFTs. Bitcoin, the second-most held crypto, lags behind with 55.39 million holders, a number that reaffirms its status as the leading digital store-of-value.

Additionally, other well-known cryptocurrencies reveal impressive figures:

Dogecoin, the meme-inspired asset that has grown into a payment token of real worth, has 7.97 million holders now.

Tether, the stablecoin used most in the world, has 7.79 million holders.

XRP, known for its utility in cross-border payments, has 6.53 million holders.

Cardano, a blockchain project of great academic rigor that concentrates on scalability, has 4.49 million holders.

USD Coin, another major stablecoin, holds 3.30 million wallet addresses.

Chainlink, the leading decentralized oracle provider, has 766,010 holders.

These figures depict not only the diversification of investor interest but also the uninterrupted expansion of the overall crypto economy. This continues even as specific assets go through short-term corrections or consolidations.

A Market in Transition: Between Correction and Growth

The present market environment indicates a shift in our favor. Bitcoin, along with possibly other key assets, appears to be running out of steam at these levels, with some investors choosing to take profits and reallocate back into the market. Otherwise, the upward adoption of the technology itself gives me the warm fuzzies for the long-term outlook.

Regulatory clarity is developing, and the infrastructure is maturing. The effect of these two forces on the user base is already apparent. They are driving the base of crypto users into the market, and with them has come an untapped force of potential stabilization.

Some new users are now actually using crypto as a store of value, a means of payment, or a way to earn interest. These functions—especially using the asset to generate yield—resemble the crypto version of the economy that might have existed in the pre-regulatory underworld.

At this time, traders and investors are paying especially close attention to Bitcoin’s crucial support areas. Meanwhile, the greater digital asset community is concerned about something else: the unfettered growth of a global network of digital asset users that seems to add new members every day, no matter what happens to prices in the short term.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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On June 6, 2025, ALEX Protocol, a decentralized finance platform operating on the Stacks blockchain, suffered a substantial security breach that resulted in the loss of over 8.3 million dollars’ worth of digital assets.

The incident stemmed from a defect in the protocol’s self-listing verification logic, a shortcoming connected to limitations of the Stacks network. The defect let an attacker tamper with asset listings and pull the plug on several liquidity pools.

Following the breach, the ALEX Lab Foundation declared a complete compensation plan to reimburse all impacted individuals in USDC. This is part of an effort to restore the trust of users and make the users whole after the event of the hack.

Breakdown of the Exploit and Asset Losses

The assault took advantage of a particular flaw in the reasoning that the ALEX Protocol uses to verify assets that are self-listed. Because of this loophole, the assailant was able to circumvent the usual verification processes and pull off unauthorized withdrawals from several different pools.

The assets that were taken included a mix of STX, sBTC, USDC, USDT, and WBTC. Here is how the calculations of the losses were determined:

8,403,867.57 STX, around 5,691,255.93 dollars

21.85 sBTC, about 2,244,751.87 dollars

149,850 USDC/USDT, equal to 149,850.00 dollars

2.80 WBTC, worth 287,369.33 dollars

In total, the total value in USD of the premium exploit amounted to 8,373,227.13 dollars. This event raised some eyebrows and got people talking about what happened and how risks may be tied to these automated DeFi systems, especially when you consider the self-service nature of many of these protocols and the not-so-great on-chain controls that are supposedly there to protect users.

ALEX Announces 100 Percent User Compensation in USDC

Shortly after the attack, in a statement, the ALEX Lab Foundation confirmed that it would fully compensate all users affected by the exploit. They will make the reimbursement entirely in USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, to avoid any further exposure to market volatility.

To guarantee equity, the foundation will compute every user’s indemnification using the mean on-chain exchange rates noted between 10:00 UTC and 14:00 UTC on the day of the assault, June 6, 2025. This time segment reflects the real timeframe in which the exploit took place and is designed to net the most precise asset valuations.

ALEX is taking a big financial step to preserve its integrity and show it is acting responsibly in the decentralized finance ecosystem. Its choice to pay back all the money stolen in the hack is significant and rare in this industry.

Claim Process and Timeline for Affected Users

ALEX has issued a clear schedule for users affected by this incident to follow in order to receive their reimbursement payments. By June 8, 2025, at 23:59 UTC, all done. impacted wallet addresses will receive a private, on-chain notification. This message will contain a direct link to a claims form that must be filled out in order for the user to be considered for reimbursement. ALEX has not yet specified when it will send out this notification.

The deadline for submitting the form and confirming the crypto wallet address is set for June 10, 2025, at 23:59 UTC. After this time, no forms will be accepted for USDC payment. The 1:1 USDC payment, if not converted before a future exchange date, may be converted into another currency or token that the user specifies at the time of filing.

The importance of acting quickly and checking all notifications has been emphasized by the team. Users are advised to email [email protected] for immediate help if they either do not receive a claim notice by the June 8 deadline or have any queries about the process.

The ALEX Lab Foundation has not altered its steadfast intent to replenish the fund. Every user affected by the exploit will be returned to pre-magic state — in full. Although the exploit did expose some of the platform’s structural issues, the vulnerabilities it found seem well contained. The ALEX Lab Foundation staff and engineers seem to want to right the ALEX ship without tipping it over in the process.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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One of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase, is making big strides in addressing a long-standing problem that has frustrated users for years: unexpected and prolonged account freezes.

Co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong admits that the issue has gone on “longer than is acceptable,” but he and the rest of the company are determined to make it a top operational priority going forward—account freezes, unfreezes, and the lack thereof being a significant operational engagement with customers—and they are already seeing significant improvements.

In a public statement disseminated through social media, Armstrong acknowledged the gravity of the issue and complimented the internal teams charged with fixing it. He especially recognized Dorvon Levi, a Coinbase exec who has taken the lead on this issue, and noted that the company has already reversed a remarkable 82 percent of the problem account freezes that had been affecting customers. More fixes are said to be in the works as Coinbase continues to revamp its support and risk management systems.

Long-Standing Frustrations, Now Being Taken Seriously

For several years, Coinbase users have vented their frustrations on forums and social media over what they see as arbitrary restrictions placed on their accounts. These users have, in some cases, found themselves locked out of their funds for seemingly extended periods of time. While some of these account restrictions may be due to the exchange’s need to comply with a veritable alphabet soup of financial regulations or some sort of suspicious activity on the part of the user, a whole lot more seem to be the result of either the company’s internal review process, some technical issue on their end, or just plain old fraud detection systems that appear to be way too cautious.

One of the most direct acknowledgments from Coinbase leadership about the scale of the issue came recently from Armstrong himself. He didn’t shy away from the fact that it had become a recurring pain point for users; in fact, he nearly owns up for allowing it to persist far too long.

There are several fundamental reasons why it got so bad in the first place, Armstrong wrote, but what’s more important is we made it a priority to fix it. His message signifies an even more user-focused shift in Coinbase’s operational approach, especially in terms of customer service and trust.

Internal Overhaul and a Renewed Focus on Customer Experience

Progress has been made because Levi and his team have taken it upon themselves to internally lead the many reforms necessary to fix the systems that previously caused these problems. They could have simply reformed the most problematic areas of the systems causing these automations to not work as intended, but they have chosen instead to reform the entire system and fix its many parts. They definitely did not have to do that. In fact, very few teams inside of Meta have the kind of resources that Levi’s team has been afforded. So, from both a human and a financial perspective, these were dedicated efforts.

A substantial change, which is an 82% reduction in account freezes, has occurred, especially for a platform the size of Coinbase, where even a small percentage of user issues can translate into thousands of affected customers. While the company has not shared exact numbers, we expect that the decline will noticeably reduce the volume of support tickets and improve overall user satisfaction.

The well-known public figure of Armstrong has brought attention to this important issue and shed light on the ongoing work to resolve it. He has used his high visibility to spark serious conversations in the crypto community and beyond. Additionally, it’s a pretty big deal for the industry, too: In an industry where it feels like customer support always lags behind innovation and growth, Coinbase is—really, truly—trying to put the customer first.

Next Steps and a Call to Affected Users

Although the advancement has been considerable, Armstrong stressed that the undertaking is still a work in progress. Coinbase intends to keep perfecting its systems, listening to users, and implementing further enhancements in the months to come. The company has pledged to keep everyone in the loop when it comes to any future developments.

In the meantime, users experiencing persistent problems—especially those whose accounts are limited but not for reasons related to sanctions or illegal activity—are urged to take action. Armstrong has directed these users to contact @CoinbaseSupport via direct message to help prioritize their cases. This more proactive and personalized approach is meant to resolve these persistent issues at last and demonstrate a renewed commitment to user experience.

The more general message is plain: Coinbase is taking note and working hard to reestablish trust where it might not have been there before. While I’m sure they’ve had their challenges, the company has dramatically reduced the instances where they freeze people’s accounts. To me, that’s a strong sign that they’re evolving not just as a crypto exchange but also as a user-centric financial platform. In a still-very-young industry, that puts Coinbase among the leaders.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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A collaboration between the social media platform X, under the direction of Elon Musk, and Polymarket, a top digital market prediction service, has the potential to fundamentally alter not just what people see when they log onto X but also—thanks to Grok, an AI chatbot from Musk’s startup xAI—how they understand it.

This is how the announcement on Friday, part press release, part promotional material, put it: X can now contextualize and explain public sentiment and behavior in the market in real time. And all it took was for Polymarket to partner with X.

This is a crucial turning point in the development of prediction markets, which are morphing from specialized financial instruments into vibrant vehicles for news, information, and public sentiment.

A Fusion of Prediction Markets, AI, and Social Media

The recently launched tool is born of a unique synergy: Polymarket’s prediction data based on event outcomes, the massive volume of real-time user content from X, and Grok’s natural language comprehension capabilities. The integration enables users to get live explanations for why certain markets are moving—say, in the case of betting odds for a political race that suddenly shift, or during a live sports event or a breaking global news story, why a certain kind of speculation seems to be the dominant trend.

This AI-driven analytical instrument taps into the constantly refreshing data streams of Polymarket—streams that mirrors the bets users make on the actual events of the world—which it then channels through the trending content on X. Of course, the assistant, known as Grok, does all this for you and me on a continuous, real-time basis.

For fans of X, this is pretty much part of the total package that is the xAI company. For those who are not yet users of X, allow me a moment to set things up a bit like a stage play.

What happens on the platform isn’t just reported; the platform explains why things are happening. And it does so with financial skin in the game, AI-powered interpretation, and even community dialogue.

Polymarket Hits $1.1B in Monthly Volume, Leads Crypto Prediction Space

Polymarket is experiencing a phase of remarkable expansion. When its latest numbers came in last month, they showed that the prediction market could soon final themselves and therefore the platform itself as the first-mover standard against which other crypto prediction markets will be gauged. Basically, you’re looking at a $1.1 billion-a-month crypto company where the “company” part is actually just a smart contract.

In contrast to conventional markets, where prices are influenced by economic fundamentals or technical indicators, prediction markets adjust in response to the collective expectations of the world’s outcome—from politics to sports, and from key economic indicators to, say, the last Super Bowl halftime show. Increasingly, this data is being taken as a public opinion poll, with the added interest that the people surveyed have put their money where their mouth is.

The alliance between X and Polymarket sets up prediction markets as something more than financial instruments, framing them instead as a new platform for public discourse and news consumption. At prediction markets, we don’t merely read the headlines; we also engage, gamble, and expound upon them à la Judith Miller in a seemingly never-ending feedback loop.

A New Paradigm in News and Sentiment Tracking

The partnership redefines information delivery and digestion, transforming something as simple as a data exchange into a straightforward way for a user to interact with their experience on the X platform.

Now, users can place bets, follow odds, and consult Grok for context—all without leaving the newsfeed.

Picture a U.S. presidential debate unfolding in real time, with the outcome in each swing state hanging in the balance, and Grok giving commentary on how specific statements are affecting the betting markets.A World Cup final, with real-time odds shifting as people score goals, and X users going off in real time about the plays and strategies. These aren’t just hypothetical scenarios anymore; they’re part of the rapidly approaching reality of a post-Twitter world.

The tool has a feedback mechanism where markets respond to sentiment, and sentiment is in turn analyzed through AI. This continuous loop of data, discourse, and analysis takes how people interact with events to a whole new level.

As the market for making predictions becomes more and more credible and is used by more and more people, especially those using digital platforms, the collaboration among X, Polymarket, and Grok might not just be a test of technology. It could be—quite reasonably—viewed as a prototype for the news platform of the future: instantaneous, AI-enhanced, and with a business model that seems to involve making the platform as close as possible to a financial market. The authors of the Future of Life Institute report seem to view it in a more positive light.

Polymarket is now officially recognized as X’s prediction market partner. This integration is set to become a core part of the social platform’s ecosystem. One decentralized app—embedded in one of the world’s most influential social platforms—could reshape both how we bet on the future and how we understand the present.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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The Sonic ecosystem is undergoing rapid expansion, backed by a bold mix of incentive engineering, technical innovation, and rising adoption among both retail and institutional players.

With total value locked (TVL) surpassing $1 billion during its Season 1 (S1) airdrop, the question now is whether Sonic’s momentum can be sustained—and what its redesigned growth model means for the future of decentralized finance.

At the heart of this ecosystem are two of its fastest-growing protocols: ShadowOnSonic, the dominant decentralized exchange (DEX), and Silo Finance, the leading lending protocol. Together, these platforms are helping to define Sonic’s trajectory as it shifts from speculative hype to a more structured and utility-driven growth strategy.

From Passive Rewards to Active Utility: The Evolution of Sonic’s Incentives

Sonic’s original surge in TVL was largely fueled by the S1 airdrop, which rewarded passive liquidity providers. But as the ecosystem matures, the upcoming Season 2 (S2) airdrop marks a decisive shift. Instead of simply rewarding capital deposits, S2 will distribute incentives based on “activity points” tied to billable flow—encouraging real usage over idle capital.

This pivot reflects a broader vision for sustainability. Mercenary capital—funds that chase rewards but leave once incentives dry up—has been a persistent challenge in DeFi. Sonic aims to counter this with a vesting mechanism for S1 rewards: 75% of the tokens are locked for 270 days. This approach seeks to ensure that participants stay invested in the ecosystem long enough to contribute meaningful volume and network value.

Another innovative piece of Sonic’s architecture is Fee Monetization (FeeM), a system that rebates up to 90% of gas fees back to protocols. This not only eases the cost burden for users but also turns protocol usage into a scalable revenue stream. When paired with new institutional on-ramps—such as direct USDC issuance via Circle and recent integrations with Galaxy Digital—FeeM lays the foundation for a growth model that can scale well beyond speculative airdrops.

ShadowOnSonic: A High-Efficiency DEX Engine

ShadowOnSonic is the ecosystem’s DEX powerhouse, commanding nearly 60% of all spot trading volume and between 85% to 90% of swap fees across Sonic. This dominance is powered by a unique model of dynamic liquidity and MEV (miner extractable value) recycling that maximizes returns for liquidity providers.

Shadow’s multi-token model—comprising SHADOW, xSHADOW, and x33—mimics the “x(3,3)” coordination game popularized in DeFi 2.0 but adds its own twist with automated market operations (AMOs). Shadow’s proprietary bot captures and recycles 100% of extractable MEV directly back to LPs, a feature not commonly found in most DEXs. This recycling mechanism ensures that high-volume trading benefits all stakeholders, not just arbitrageurs.

Currently, SHADOW’s liquid supply is extremely low—just 0.4 million tokens are circulating compared to a projected cap of 8 to 10 million. Combined with its strong fee generation and FeeM rebates, Shadow looks primed for significant upside in S2. The DEX is already generating forward annualized revenue of $38.3 million on a 30-day volume base of $2 billion.

Silo Finance: Lending Innovation with Deflationary Potential

On the lending front, Silo Finance has quickly carved out a leadership position, amassing $406 million in TVL and generating over $2.5 million in annualized protocol fees within just three months of launch. Silo’s modular risk isolation model has attracted both retail users and liquidity providers, offering safer lending markets without overexposing assets to systemic contagion.

Silo’s next evolution is the launch of the xSILO model. Under this structure, 50% of all protocol revenue will go toward daily buybacks of the native $SILO token. This design introduces a deflationary dynamic aimed at reinforcing token value and encouraging long-term holding. It’s a strong alignment of incentives between protocol users and token holders, potentially creating price support that scales with protocol success.

However, execution risk remains. Both Shadow and Silo must maintain technical excellence, fend off rising competition, and continue to innovate to sustain user engagement. The next six to twelve months will be critical for proving that Sonic’s new incentive structure can foster not only fast growth—but sticky, utility-based value.

As the ecosystem prepares for its S2 unlocks and protocol upgrades, all eyes will be on whether this new phase of activity-driven incentives can deliver the kind of sustainable, scalable DeFi network that early participants are betting on. If Sonic’s playbook succeeds, it may well become the blueprint for next-generation ecosystem design.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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In 2024, the ten most significant launches of crypto tokens amassed over $1 billion.

Although this amount and the average per offering are large and very respectable, even by pre-2022 Bitcoin and Ethereum standards, they do not, in and of themselves, tell us anything about these tokens’ futures or the investors’ amounts of happiness in the future with regard to these tokens.

When those future events do occur, they will speak much more loudly, and much more clearly, than the fundraising figures in what’s sure to be a very confusing future.

With a number of large unlock events on the horizon, investors are focusing on capital efficiency and timing. They want to know if the projects have done a good job of turning their fundraising into value for the investors. And with the next few months promising to be eventful, these questions could be key to understanding what’s going to happen next.

Capital Efficiency: Who Delivered More with Less?

Several projects stand out, not by the amounts they raised, but by the ways in which they effectively transformed that capital into returns for investors. Chief among these is $ATH, which raised a mere $9 million but has since burgeoned into a market valuation of $221 million—an eye-popping 24.5x ROI.

Other high-efficiency projects comprise $Swell, which transformed a $3.75 million raise into $24.22 million in worth (6.45x ROI), and $IO, which has expanded its $30 million raise into $145.5 million in present value (4.85x ROI). Both $Blast and $Eigen also returned over 4x for their early investors, despite raising much larger sums—$20 million and $164.5 million respectively.

In the meantime, $Cloud and $ZRO achieved satisfactory results. $Cloud secured only $6.1 million and is presently valued at $17.3 million, giving an ROI of 2.83 times the investment made. $ZRO, despite its sheer size of $263.3 million, only gave an ROI of 2.8 times the investment made.

The projects emphasize that robust returns are not necessarily the fruit of big initial fundraising efforts. In many instances, it is the smaller funding rounds that have yielded more effective, accelerated growth, probably because of more streamlined resource allocation and a more evident product-market fit.

Underwater Allocations: Large Raises, Low ROI

Conversely, numerous token launches from 2024 have performed very poorly. Their current valuations are far below the total raised during their fundraising endeavors. Just think of the amount of capital that was raised across these many projects. And then consider the investors who have participated in these various projects across several months now.

This group is led by $ZK, which has garnered $458 million in funding but is now worth only $194 million, giving it a 0.42x ROI. Next in line is $Scroll, which has a parallel tale—$80 million in its coffers yet only a $48.76 million market value (0.61x ROI). Finally, we touch on $Avail, which has brought in $70 million but is now estimated to be worth only $45.17 million (0.65x ROI).

These undertakings now stand as a present reminder to early investors of the unrealized losses they’ve sustained. They also serve as a reminder to all of us that just pulling in a big pile of bucks doesn’t guarantee that you’re going to be a hit in the marketplace. If the fundamentals of your business fall short of the mark, or if the vibe of the marketplace shifts on you, those high hopes that you set with your big capital raise can translate into a big letdown.

As market development continues, these tokens may regain their value or might still underperform. If they choose the latter path, they will probably reinforce the identities of their respective projects as ‘pump and dump’ schemes.

Unlocks on the Horizon: June to November 2025

An important aspect primed to affect price movement in the next few months is when tokens will be unlocked. A lot of the new launches from 2024 have this cliff vesting structure. In other words, they have a holding period during which they don’t release any tokens. And at the end of that holding period, a huge amount of tokens get released all at once. So, if you’re trying to figure out where prices might be headed, you might want to take a look at when these unlock events are scheduled.

The unlocking timetable is as stated below:

In June: $ZK, $ZRO, $Blast, $ATH

In July: $Avail, $Cloud, $IO

In October and November: $Eigen, $Scroll, $Swell

These unlocks could become turning points for each token. If investor sentiment is cautious, the influx of new supply could lead to selling pressure and further price declines. However, if projects are performing well and the macro environment is favorable, the unlocks could be absorbed without much disruption.

Whether the dates are watched with pleasure or pain, they’re still watched. They represent key moments when investors, particularly those who got in early, regain liquidity and can reallocate capital—reinvesting it in newer opportunities or taking it and running.

Final Takeaway

The 2024 cycle has yielded a broad array of investor results, with ROIs stretching from 0.42x all the way to 24.5x. What comes through crystal clear, however, is that the success of a fundraising round isn’t just about how big it is. Capital efficiency and sound execution are still very much in the mix.

The market will probably become much more volatile right around the underperforming assets as token unlocks start to happen in great numbers. If you want to make it through the coming months without too many bruises, it’s imperative to keep a close eye on how many tokens are set to be unlocked when. And an even better practice is to factor in the unlock data and use it to assess the risk and opportunity in this immature asset class.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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A blazing public argument has broken out between President Donald Trump and tech tycoon Elon Musk.

Musk has sharply criticized Trump’s controversial $1.7 trillion tax-cut and spending package. A policy disagreement that started with Musk calling Trump and his policies malaise has become a political and financial standoff with serious ramifications for both the markets and Musk’s business empire. The clash, in short, is now a high-stakes game.

Only a week after Musk officially resigned from his role as an economic advisor to the White House, the two individuals find themselves on opposite sides of a bitter dispute. Not only does this signals some increasing tensions within the U.S. business-political landscape; it also has investors rattled and shaken confidence that the economy is or will be stable.

A Spending Bill Sparks a Political Firestorm

Elon Musk’s feud with President Joe Biden and his administration flared up in late 2021 when Musk blasted the new $1.7 trillion tax and spending proposal on social media and in interviews. Musk said it and the burgeoning national debt (more than $36 trillion and counting) were dangerous. He called the 1.7 (actually, it was 1.68) written into the proposal a kind of “flubber” (as in the movie starring Robin Williams) that could not possibly create jobs.

No Americans living today could be sure that the U.S. population in, say, 2060 could afford to pay back anything like what was being proposed.

Musk said, “The government can’t keep writing blank checks with taxpayer money. This is not sustainable, and it sends a terrible signal to the markets.”

At first, President Trump held back from a direct response. Yet, he later commented on Musk’s remarks during a White House press briefing. In the briefing, Trump said he was ‘deeply disappointed’ by Musk’s public position.

The president went on to call Musk’s comments ‘reckless and unpatriotic,’ especially given the context of Musk’s prior advisory role and Tesla’s reliance on federal financing.

SpaceX doesn’t operate in a vacuum, either; it requires federal funds, contracts, and a partnership with NASA.

Federal Threats and Market Fallout

The dispute intensified considerably when President Trump indicated that he might retaliate against Musk’s companies. In effect, he threatened to take a look at all the federal contracts and subsidies that are in favor of Tesla and SpaceX. These relationships with the government are very important to the development of both these companies. They range from tax credits that help Tesla produce clean energy to certainly very important contracts that SpaceX and Tesla have with NASA and the Department of Defense.

Remarks by Trump shook Wall Street to its core. The stock of Tesla fell like a stone, plunging 14.3% in a single day’s trading, its sharpest one-day drop in history. In the wake of those comments, the selloff wiped out nearly $150 billion in market capitalization, sending investors to their fainting couches and causing even some of the ‘Long Ts’ (those who believe in Tesla’s long-term future) to reassess their confidence.

The broad market felt the turbulence, with the S&P 500 slipping on the day and tech and energy sectors taking the law of gravity to heart. As if to add to the uncertainty, cryptocurrency markets experienced a jolt, with Bitcoin and Ethereum dropping suddenly and briefly by several percentage points as investors and traders soaked up the moment and battened down for whatever potential regulatory hail might be coming.

If the impasse between Trump and Musk continues to heat up, market analysts say, it would likely provoke even more investors to bail out of the sectors that the federal government tends to influence most, notably green energy and the aerospace sector.

Broader Implications and What Comes Next

The clash between Trump and Musk carries ramifications that extend well beyond the immediate financial consequences. It brings to light deeper fault lines between the federal government and the private sector. Musk has long portrayed himself as an independent thinker and contrarian, but there’s no denying that his companies have long enjoyed the kinds of public funding and federal support that many tech entrepreneurs can only dream about. With Trump positioning his administration against Musk, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that the future of those Musk-Trump area collaborations is now rather cloudy.

Political experts say this direct confrontation could have a major upside or downside—meaning significant implications—for the upcoming election cycle. For one, Musk is a loud, large presence online, with a following that’s arguably the most potent outside of Trump himself. So there’s that. Meanwhile, for Trump, my personal feeling is this could work out as an image-builder/badass move, showing him to be someone who’s not afraid to take on one of America’s largest, most influential entrepreneurial figures.

At present, the situation is still very uncertain. Everyone, from investors and policymakers to the general public, is keeping a close watch to see if the tensions will deescalate. The other possibility is that this well-publicized conflict will keep on sending shockwaves through financial markets and political corridors.

As the fallout unfolds, one thing is clear: this is no longer just a policy disagreement. It’s a full-scale battle between the White House and one of the most powerful figures in global business—one with stakes that reach far beyond Capitol Hill or Silicon Valley.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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An intriguing development within the crypto market is the token $MASK, which has experienced a paradoxical shift in the past few hours.

While the number of holders has decreased by 20, the price of $MASK has risen by about 10%. This contrasting movement seems to indicate that large investors, or whales, are increasing their positions, absorbing tokens from smaller holders who seem to be selling off.

Whales Consolidate Positions Amid Market Movements

In $MASK, we see something that could easily be read as smaller investors bailing and larger, smarter players stepping in to buy at what must look to them like a good price. Obviously, when 20 holders leave any space within such a dramatically short time, you expect the price to be heading south, and for it to be heading south in a way that is probably discernible on the average Joe’s technical analysis charts. Yet, here we are, with not much more than a matter of hours since that analysis was published, in what is arguably a bullish retracement after the price broke down clearly below $40.

One of the clearest signs of this whale activity is the behavior of the top holder. The largest $MASK holder has notably increased their stake by an additional 100 SOL, a move that underscores strong confidence in the token’s potential. In the world of crypto investing, such a purchase by a leading whale is a significant enough event to set the market sentiment and acts as a nice catalyst for accumulation or price gains.

Binance-Backed Wallet Fuels $MASK Demand

Another layer of intrigue in this story is the involvement of a mysterious wallet that has reportedly been funded by Binance. According to the co-founder of StalkChain—an analytics firm that is respected in blockchain circles—this wallet has just undertaken a spending spree in which it purchased over $MASK to the tune of more than $140,000. This substantial purchase not only confirms elevated interest in $MASK from influential players but also prompts one to wonder what kind of strategic thinking might be going on at Binance with regard to this token.

Even indirectly, through funded wallets, Binance can boost confidence among traders and investors. The exchange ranks among the top in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, so any show of support could significantly lift $MASK in the eyes of the market. This move could be part of a broader strategy to optimize $MASK for forthcoming partnership developments, but it also might be an opportunistic play on Binance’s part, taking advantage of favorable market conditions.

Implications for $MASK’s Future Price and Market Perception

Whales and a Binance-backed wallet have been buying up $MASK, and this activity shows a strong belief in the upside potential of that token. Accumulation trends like this often precede price appreciation. We also see less volatility when large holders are around because they provide more price support. To put it another way, concentration and accumulation of positions by large traders often leads to a better risk-reward profile for a given token.

The reduced number of holders may seem worrying to small investors at first, but when we look at the context of the what’s otherwise going on with the price and accumulation, we’ve got to consider the real big risk on the table here, which is:

If the price continues to rise and the number of whale holders continues to increase, is the overall market posture really that terrible?

No, it isn’t.

Investors in the market and holders of $MASK should watch closely for whale activity and any news regarding Binance’s involvement. If the trend holds, $MASK could be on a meteoric rise toward new all-time highs and, on a more serious note, could be experiencing demand signals that put it on a collision course for some new highs that we haven’t seen in a while.

Conclusion

Though the number of holders has recently decreased, $MASK has experienced an invigorating price uptick of 10%. This increase is the result of substantial buying by whales. The top wallet seen holding $MASK recently picked up another 100 SOL, and a wallet recently discovered to be funded by Binance has been seen acquiring over $140,000 worth of $MASK. These two events (and some others) can be interpreted as a sign of increasing interest in $MASK by both institutions and individuals with a lot of money.

A pattern of consolidation led by big players is taking place—right now in the $MASK token. And that’s not something you want to ignore. In the case of $MASK, the appearance of this pattern is an active accumulation phase. That’s a good thing when we’re looking for a potential price rise. But how high might it rise and when? That’s where this token’s ongoing price action becomes interesting.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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Increasingly, the evolution of Bitcoin from a speculative digital asset to a basic building block of institutional investment portfolios is being seen.

Recent data have shown that the number of large holders of CME Bitcoin futures has surged to an all-time high of 217. That marked a 36% increase since the beginning of this year. The data strongly suggest sustained accumulation, not short-term, in-and-out op trading around the headlines. And that, in turn, strongly suggests that Bitcoin is now being seen and engaged with in a whole new way by institutions.

The Rise of Institutional and Corporate Adoption

Increasing involvement from institutions in Bitcoin markets is no longer a passing trend; it has become part of the current crypto landscape. This is most clearly shown by the not-so-mysterious growth of the CME Bitcoin futures market (CME is short for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange), which is now pretty confidently billed as the largest, most credible, and most closely watched ETFBitcoinfutureTradeCME-parameterized Bitcoin trade in the world.

Adoption by corporations also is moving ahead in parallel with the institutional flood. A notable instance is GameStop, which has recently added Bitcoin to its treasury reserves. This signals a belief in Bitcoin’s value as a store of wealth, much like what we would expect from any company with a treasury. And then there’s Trump Media; the company, which has been recently fundraising to the tune of $2.3 billion, apparently aims to use at least part of that to buy Bitcoin.

The rising embrace among businesses is yet another factor that confers legitimacy on Bitcoin and adds to the demand for it. Even the Business Roundtable, a group of CEOs from many of America’s largest companies, recently declared that companies ought to take seriously the interests of all their stakeholders, not just those of their shareholders. A stakeholder capitalism that takes seriously the interests of all the people who have an interest in a corporation makes quite a few different kinds of financial instruments look good. And that very idea makes Bitcoin look good.

Bitcoin as a Strategic Hedge Amid Global Uncertainty

As policy becomes less certain and trade tensions globally amplify, Bitcoin shines through as a strategic asset. Its special properties make it a hedge against the uncertainties that afflict traditional assets like stocks and bonds. Regulating or taxing Bitcoin has turned out to be much less straightforward than for those old-fashioned assets, which tend to reside in a bank or business office. Without a guaranteed way for authorities to control it, Bitcoin stands as a refuge amid the heightening division and conflict all around.

While the global markets are dealing with volatility and unexpected changes, investors are seeking out Bitcoin. In its aspect as a digital currency, Bitcoin is something that can be used to purchase goods and services. In its aspect as a non-correlated asset, an investment in Bitcoin can provide a protective buffer against certain threats to a portfolio that seem to be coming from the conventional financial sector.

This development is taking a significant departure from Bitcoin’s earlier reputation as a mostly speculative vehicle. It is positioning Bitcoin as a foundational asset within institutional treasury and investment strategies.

Market Metrics Provide Insight Into Next Moves

Bitcoin’s recent trading behavior close to all-time highs serves to underscore its heightened esteem. But to grasp the market’s almost immediate future, a careful analysis of essential on-chain metrics is necessary—most especially the Short-Term Holder Cost Basis. Right now, the cost basis hovers around a not particularly auspicious $97,100. In other words, this figure represents the average price short-term holders paid for their Bitcoin.

This metric is framed within standard deviation bands, with an upper threshold at approximately $114,800 and a lower boundary near $83,200. Movement beyond these thresholds could be crucial in defining Bitcoin’s next major price direction. A breakout above the upper band might see it return to the $100,000 level, while renewed bullish might return signal. A drop below the lower band could point to either panic selling or, if it holds, a consolidation range from which it could launch higher or lower when it next escapes that range.

Whether in trading or investing, people pay close attention to these ranges. Why? Because significant market moves often occur when price shifts beyond these bands. And in the increasingly complex trading environment that people have to navigate, these band shifts can serve as useful decision-making guides.

Looking Ahead: Bitcoin’s Institutional Future

The increasing count of holders of CME Bitcoin futures, along with significant investments from corporations, indicates that a fundamental shift is taking place in the financial world’s perception of and interaction with Bitcoin. As a diverse group of institutional investors directs Bitcoin into a broadening array of future and present applications, the cryptocurrency’s market seems likely to stabilize.

Furthermore, Bitcoin’s attraction as a hedge against worldwide uncertainty is likely to become even stronger, further rooting it in the playbooks of old-school financial players. The combination of a quickly developing infrastructure, the clarity of recent strategic shifts in the Bitcoin space, and a number of key market statistics suggests that Bitcoin is entering a new phase—one in which it is more mature, more resilient, and more widely endorsed by institutions.

Knowing about these changes is of the utmost importance for investors. It is critical to track the types of institutions that are investing in Bitcoin and to pay special attention to the price levels that these investors seem to favor, as the asset transitions from being an object of only some investors’ interests to being one that many types of investors across the globe are comfortable with.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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For nine days now, BlackRock’s Ethereum-focused ETF, ETHA, has enjoyed inflows not just for a day or two, which would already be impressive, but for a week plus two days.

It has accumulated during that time period over $492 million. It is worth noting, as a first instance of this kind of streak, that BlackRock’s September inflows have thus far exceeded its August inflows.

Record-Breaking Inflows Into Ethereum ETFs

BlackRock’s ETF for Ether has become a major focal point in Ethereum investment, and its recent activity is nothing short of impressive. For nine straight trading days, the fund has attracted fresh capital—a streak that has drawn attention from investors and analysts alike. This extended run of inflows into a single ETF points to a strong conviction from one of the world’s largest asset managers in the long-term prospects of not just Ethereum but also ETH futures.

A wider embrace of Ethereum by institutions is reflected in the inflows to Ethereum ETFs, which have notched up a 14-day winning streak— the longest streak yet in 2025. That is being powered by, of course, the smart contract fortress that is Ethereum and also its burgeoning DeFi app ecosystem, just as progress on the Ethereum 2.0 front is generating serious good vibes for the future of the network.

These inflows are coming when Ethereum is returning to prominence among blockchain networks for fee generation, which is a really important indicator of network activity and demand.

Ethereum’s Return to Fee Generation Leadership

Ethereum’s growing fee generation further emphasizes the network’s vigor. This week, the platform saw a distinct uptick in transaction fees, which usually indicates a surge in on-chain activity. And we all know what that means: way more people sending transactions through the Ethereum network; way more people actually using Ethereum; and, potentially, way more people adopting the nascent platform as a go-to place for all kinds of financial star power, from trading to decentralized finance (DeFi) operations.

Since Ethereum is home to most DeFi protocols, the recent spike probably has to do with all the usages across decentralized exchanges (DEXs), lending platforms, and new decentralized applications (dApps). These protocols heavily use Ethereum’s smart contract capabilities, making fee generation a key way to take the ecosystem’s pulse.

Ethereum’s fee surging also hints at its ability to stay as a leader in the market. It shows that when it comes to the competition, despite the newer, higher-throughput blockchains, Ethereum can still hold its ground. And when the upgraded Ethereum came around, it not only enhanced transaction throughput but also, when it absolutely had to, maintained a favorable position in the market.

What This Means for Institutional and Retail Investors

The investment activity that BlackRock has maintained and the overall inflow trend into Ethereum ETFs show that institutional investors are gaining confidence in Ethereum as a piece of their overall portfolio. What’s more, the scale and consistency of these incremental moves into Ethereum signal a shift in how institutions think about and value Ethereum.

This institutional backing might validate Ethereum’s long-term potential for retail investors and could spur more retail participation in the space. In any event, having institutions involved in the Ethereum ecosystem is good for all market participants since they often bring improved liquidity and market stability.

In the future, Ethereum could see a further increase in its price and a larger adoption because of the price movements that seem to be making BlackRock an increasingly influential player in the market. How this all shakes out in the end seems to be a foregone conclusion, with Ethereum having an even brighter future than many had previously imagined.

Conclusion

For nine consecutive days, BlackRock has seen inflows into its ETHA ETF. Meanwhile, Ethereum ETFs have now had net inflows for 14 days in a row. Both trends underscore Ethereum’s resurgence in earning investment dollars.

Layer 2s like Optimism are helping put more assets on the Ethereum blockchain, too. That hasn’t gone unnoticed in decentralized finance either. Ethereum name service registrations have been rising again. Those are registration fees generating ether for the blockchain.

Accumulate it has been by one of the world’s largest asset managers; that vote of confidence signals, in zero small part, the confidence institutionals have in Ethereum as a core blockchain. Ethereum not only is solidifying its position as a seemingly unstoppable core element of the blockchain infrastructure, but it also now increasingly is an infrastructure element that diversification-seeking long-only portfolio managers are willing to buy.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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In May 2025, Raydium Protocol reached an important milestone.

The platform most recently achieved its all-time high application revenue market share across all blockchain networks. Now, this is what we call a bad

damn! And let us tell you why:

You can see, in the picture right here above, the clear differentiation with the revenue share across DeFi protocols. Moreover, while many initiatives in the DeFi space seem to be running on fumes at the moment, Raydium has new features in the pipeline that will be rolled out in coming weeks.

Explosive Volume Growth and Revenue Surge

One of the things that stood out for Raydium in May was the impressive cumulative monthly volume of $46 billion, which represented a 35% increase from the previous month. This surge in trading activity reflects the growing user engagement and confidence in the platform’s liquidity and trading infrastructure. The spike in volume contributed directly to a rise in the protocol revenue, which hit $9.2 million for the month and that represented a remarkable 59% increase from April.

This revenue boost shows that Raydium is establishing a presence in the DeFi ecosystem, where application revenue is a main indicator of sustainable growth and adoption. To be generating such strong fees in a competitive market landscape is a sign of a well-designed protocol, and indications are that Raydium has such a thing.

Strategic Allocation and Programmatic Buybacks

One notable thing about Raydium’s May performance is that it allocated $4.7 million toward programmatic buybacks of its native $RAY token. These buybacks are part of the broader tokenomics strategy that aims to prop up the token’s value and incentivize long-term holders. By systematically purchasing the $RAY tokens and retiring them from the market, Raydium is trying to reduce the circulating supply, make the token a bit more scarce, and put some upward pressure on its price.

The buyback program also signals confidence on the part of the protocol’s treasury and development team in the project and its ongoing prospects. It serves as a key mechanism for aligning incentives among token holders, traders, and the broader community. Investors and users can view these buybacks as a positive sign of governance and fiscal discipline within the Raydium ecosystem.

LaunchLab and New Cash Flow Drivers

Apart from the volume and buybacks, another significant contributor to the protocol’s recent success is Raydium’s LaunchLab initiative. That initiative, in May alone, generated new cash flows of $2.2 million, diversifying revenue sources and expediting the utility expansion of the platform.

LaunchLab is an incubator and accelerator for new projects building on the Raydium ecosystem. It provides funding, technical support, and marketing resources to help promising new applications become viable real-world solutions. Just as the DeFi applications of Raydium and Serum help sustain the growth of the whole ecosystem, so too does LaunchLab with its good old-fashioned capitalist sangfroid.

Launching new projects and drawing developers to the protocol not only strengthens protocol revenues but also creates network effects that boost user engagement and liquidity. This is a critical part of Raydium’s overall strategy to build a resilient and diversified DeFi ecosystem.

Looking Ahead

Raydium’s performance in May 2025 is a strong harbinger of its rising prominence and influence across many blockchains. We saw record trading volumes, an incredible uptick in protocol revenue, some ($) strategic buybacks, and a seriously thriving project incubator. The combination of these events tells an awesome narrative of a protocol set up for sustainable growth.

As decentralized finance moves ever forward, platforms like Raydium that manage to keep both momentum and discipline while pushing the innovation envelope are the ones most likely to lead the next wave of adoption. Of course, what comes next for Raydium and its expanding ecosystem is of particular interest to the many investors, traders, and other participants already involved with it.

To conclude, May 2025 proved to be a watershed month for Raydium Protocol, during which the pact saw metrics of an impressive growth nature, smart financial maneuvers, and an ecosystem that is expanding initiatives. Not only does this reinforce the platform’s present success, but also it sets a strong foundation for any future initiatives one trance in a competitive DeFi space.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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Riding the developer excitement from the recent BNBAI Hack, BNB Chain has proclaimed the initiation of BNB Hack—a global, long-term hackathon that aims to supercharge Web3 developers.

This is no ordinary hackathon. Traditional hackathons, while sometimes effective, can also be limiting. They are camped in time (an event) and space (a venue) and then are often filled with a kind of frenzy that is the opposite of a pace where “innovation can flourish.” By contrast, BNB Hack is a stretch event, a horizon in which developers have endless opportunities to acquire and then execute great ideas.

The BNB Hack is held over four key verticals. AI, DeSoc, DeSci, and DePIN. This is a significant evolution of the BNB Chain ecosystem and takes the Web3 world one step closer to sustainable solutions.

What BNB Hack Is Looking For

The BNB Hack wants to tap into the future of Web3. It is searching for unsolved and underlying problems with Web3 technologies and aims to fund teams that are solving them. Its vision looks well beyond a mere funding opportunity. It aspires to establish a long-term relationship with the development teams it selects.

A Hackathon Without Deadlines: Build When You’re Ready

The BNB Hack reinterprets the experience of hackathons, inverting their typical time-boxed structure. Rather than having a specific window for submitting projects, this hackathon has no window and is open all the time. Developers can apply to it whenever they like, and teams are urged to find their own pace when building the projects they submit.

Submissions are reviewed every two weeks, and the best projects in each of the four tracks are chosen for rewards and extra backing. This rolling timetable provides unfettered flexibility to the builders—a rare hackathon luxury these days—that lets them refine and improve their ideas.

This initiative is far more than just delivering some quick wins or a few demo projects that don’t last very long. This initiative is also not just a series of events scheduled along a timeline. What it really is—at its core—is a launchpad where these developers can grow projects over time.

In fact, projects are arranged in a kind of developmental tier system, starting at Tier 3 and moving upward as they mature, to Tier 2 and then to Tier 1. Each level of this developmental system unlocks greater funding and visibility.

Most importantly, each level also unlocks greater amounts of something that’s hard to put a dollar sign in front of—strategic support.

BNB Chain’s mission is to support builders of the sort who are in it for the long haul—and not just for a one-time, look-at-me-now event.

Four Innovation Tracks for the Future of Web3

BNB Hack strives to bring about innovation in four essential areas of blockchain technology.

Intelligent agents and Web3-native tools that boost the usefulness of autonomous on-chain systems are being created by developers, with encouragement from AI.

DeSoc beckons projects to investigate decentralized identity, DAO mechanisms, and digital social graphs—all part of a next-gen open and sovereign digital society.

DeSci pushes builders to rethink the scientific process. Its proponents argue that scientific knowledge is too opaque, too poorly funded, and too poorly reviewed. This is a call for a revolution in the knowledge ecosystem. It offers vision; it offers hope. In its idyllic future state, proponents argue that scientific knowledge will be better funded, better reviewed, and will flow more freely to the public on the blockchain.

DePIN connects blockchain innovations with large-scale physical infrastructure.

It is all about enabling DIAMOND. Decentralized Infrastructure, Accelerated by Modern Open Network Design.

What does that mean? At a high level:

DePIN brings together the separate components of Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks. In more understandable terms, this means DePIN links innovative blockchain technology with large-scale real-world infrastructure to enable decentralized solutions in sectors like energy, connectivity, and network deployment.

These tracks were chosen to spotlight sections where blockchain can make an immediate real-world impact and have long-term innovative potential. When it comes to building the next generation of decentralized applications and services, BNB Hack has chosen to support development in these areas. Why? That’s what this essay aims to elucidate.

Rewards, Support, and a Launchpad to Success

More than financial rewards are on offer from BNB Hack. Each two-week interval during which we evaluate the teams, the top-performing teams can earn up to $10,000. And selected projects receive a kickstart package worth $50,000, which includes infrastructure support, technical resources, and ecosystem credits.

Successful teams also get the chance to publicize their work on BNB Chain’s official channels, giving them a great deal of exposure to the broader crypto community. Even more significantly, these projects get fast-tracked for interviews that could lead to their being accepted into the Most Valuable Builder (MVB) program, BNB Chain’s accelerator for blockchain projects.

Besides financial inducements, BNB Hack stresses mentorship and long-term development. Programmers at the hackathon will get instruction from experienced developers, key ecosystem players, and strategic partners who know how to get stuff done. This is all about helping teams crush it now and over the long haul.

With an open setup, BNB Hack is a carefully chosen innovation track, and BNB Chain’s comprehensive backing means this hackathon can offer something new. It serves as not just a pathway for newcomers with potential ideas but as a growth platform that ensures opportunities well beyond the first pitch or prototype stages. With an eye on continuous development and real-world utility, BNB Hack clearly signals BNB Chain’s commitment to fostering something even more basic and necessary: significant, decentralized innovation.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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In a historic action for the cryptocurrency derivatives market, a single crypto options block trade with an unreal $1.19 billion in notional value was executed today.

The trade, which dealt with 11,350 BTC and generated $7.5 million in premiums, is the largest options block trade recorded in the sector. Watching the market, one cannot help but interpret the structure of this trade as an intelligent and strategic signal: short-term muted expectations, couple that with long-term bullish optimism.

Trade Composition: A Tale of Two Timeframes

The huge options block consisted of two different parts that provide a glimpse into market sentiment. First, the buyer took a large position in September bull spreads—specifically, a set of 3,800 contracts. Bull spreads are normally used to profiteer from a rise in an asset’s price. Accordingly, this leg of the trade was structured to be long in both price direction and volatility through the third quarter. This indicates the trader expects a strong upward move in Bitcoin between now and September. In fact, this might be the largest bull spread ever put on in Bitcoin options.

Conversely, the second part of the trade was selling June at-the-money (ATM) calls, which does well when Bitcoin’s price is either flat or declining. This leg of the trade could be structured like a calendar spread: sell near-term (June) calls and buy longer-dated (in this case, September) calls. Calendar spreads are designed to profit from the passage of time when a trader expects limited movement in the underlying asset. This position might make sense for a trader expecting a limited price range for Bitcoin up to or through June with a larger move either up or down later in the summer.

The two halves of the trade tell us that, although the Bitcoin market right now is completely devoid of any immediate momentum or bullish catalysts, the traders involved expect it to have a major upside in the not-too-distant future. They are betting that any returns the preeminent cryptocurrency makes will not happen until sometime in Q3, yet, in the meantime, this trade anticipates Bitcoin will hang around the $29,000 price point.

Muted Short-Term Sentiment Amid Liquidity Crunch

The market’s subdued stance on June can be largely attributed to a broader liquidity and active capital within the crypto space. Since there has been no near-term catalyst strong enough to push BTC past its current resistance levels, we remain neutral on the crypto market.

This atmosphere has rendered short-term bullish bets less appealing, and traders are turning to more elaborate strategies that skirt direct exposure to the kind of volatility that’s expected in early summer. Today’s block, in which June calls were sold, reflects this market view — one that even the most sophisticated investors seem to have embraced, given that selling calls to reduce risk isn’t exactly a sign of health.

In addition, worldwide interest rate policy and other regulatory developments create macroeconomic uncertainty that clouds the crypto markets. Many traders would rather watch from the sidelines until something clearer comes along. This preference serves only to concentrate the absence of short-term bullish positioning.

Long-Term Optimism Buoyed by Market Developments

Even though there is short-term caution, glimmers of optimism for the latter half of the year are appearing. Numerous key advancements—potential spot Bitcoin ETF approvals in fresh territories, unceasing corporate Bitcoin adoption, and a restored sentiment among global equities—are developing the conditions for a far more bullish long-term outlook.

Also, in recent times, we have institutional accumulation seems to be slowly picking up again, and if you look at history, the third quarter often sees strong seasonal performance for BTC. Now, if you ask the technicians, they are looking at the indicators aligning with a potential breakout scenario. They say if volume and volatility increase over the next couple of months, the September bull spreads could pay off handsomely.

Such a scenario has traders positioning themselves, taking steps to counteract possible short-term weaknesses while ramping up long-dated, bullish bets. This is all heaped onto a now-growing consensus: the crypto market may be in limbo today, but its prospects — especially in the coming months — are bright.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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Marathon Digital Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA), one of the largest miners of Bitcoin in North America, has registered a never-before-seen month in May 2025, marking a significant punctuation in its word-to-Bitcoin-long-accumulation strategy.

The company announced that it mined 282 Bitcoin blocks—a monthly record—resulting in the production of 950 BTC, a 35% increase month-over-month (MoM). That surge has boosted Marathon’s total Bitcoin-haul to 49,179 BTC, by some estimates making it the largest holder of Bitcoin among publicly traded companies.

After announcing a change toward a “Bitcoin yield” model in July 2024, Marathon has reemphasized mining and purchasing BTC, moving away from regular asset liquidation to a more consistent HODL strategy. HODLing and yielding have significantly increased Marathon’s BTC reserves. But these strategies, coinciding with a pronounced decline in Bitcoin’s price/economics, have led to a substantial erosion in the value of Marathon’s core business operations.

Record Mining Performance and Accelerated Accumulation

Unlike other months, May 2025 was Marathon Digital’s most productive month. Compared to April, the company mined a total of 282 blocks—a 38% increase, which was directly translated into 950 BTC produced, representing a 35% increase over the previous month. May’s figures underscore the company’s mining operation’s efficiency and scalability. In short, while mining post-halving has become less profitable, Marathon’s continued to operate well and produce timely results.

The freshly extracted BTC boosts the company’s total Bitcoin stash to 49,179; in so doing, it makes Marathon not just a miner, but a legitimate large-scale institutional holder of Bitcoin. And this large-scale over-the-counter buying makes even more sense in light of Marathon’s “going long” shift announced in July 2021. Using that as a base, Marathon has increased its total holdings of Bitcoin by 166.5% since that time.

Another significant development is the jump in “Bitcoin per share,” a metric investors look at when trying to assess the intrinsic crypto exposure of Marathon’s stock. Marathon has not only adopted the HODL ethos but has been working to make this key metric move higher in coming quarters. Indeed, since adopting the HODL approach, Bitcoin per share has jumped 117.4%.

Strategic Pivot: From Mining Company to Bitcoin Treasury

Marathon has shifted to HODLing and has a new focus on producing yielding Bitcoin. This is a much broader transformation that we are undergoing. We are no longer a simple, straightforward mining operation. We are an entity that resembles a hybrid, on the one hand, infrastructure-scale Bitcoin production, and on the other hand, balance-sheet mining with amounts of certain key cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.

This strategic framework is reminiscent of what MicroStrategy and other firms have done. When we think of a company that has made a huge leap in Bitcoin accumulation, we think of MicroStrategy, which transitioned into a Bitcoin-centric holding company. Marathon’s move stands apart from most mining firms because it is a bet on the long-term Bitcoin price appreciation. Most mining firms prioritize near-term profits from mining, which requires a door to be right open. Marathon is asking us to consider not only the accumulation of Bitcoin but also the possibility of Bitcoin appreciation over time.

Starting from July 2024, Marathon has been taking part in the Bitcoin spot market, adding to its strategically bought reserves. By now holding its BTC rather than offloading it, the company has been able to surf along Bitcoin’s broader upward jam—if not indeed its upward wave, surfin’ U.S.A.

Business Valuation Challenges Amid BTC Focus

The transformation has not come without consequences, though. Marathon’s Bitcoin reserves have surged, but its core business—the mining operations and related infrastructure—has seen a steep decline in value. According to our internal estimates and some analyst commentary, the value of Marathon’s operational business has fallen by more than 95% since the company announced a strategy of holding, or ‘HODLing’, as much Bitcoin as possible in July 2024.

This drop is due to several coalescing factors: the operational cost increases, the post-halving pressure on mining profitability, and Marathon’s established revenue-generating segments coming under investor revaluation. As the company morphs more into a crypto holding company than a traditional tech enterprise, little metrics like revenue, EBITDA, and margin have become less relevant in favor of Marathon’s balance sheet teeming with BTC.

For investors who adhere to a Bitcoin-maximalist philosophy, as well as those in search of public equities that provide exposure to Bitcoin, Marathon appears a very attractive option. With its huge hoard of Bitcoin, along with mining capacity that all but guarantees much more in the foreseeable future, it occupies a unique position at the intersection of digital asset infrastructure and treasury strategy.

Conclusion: A High-Risk, High-Conviction Play

Marathon Digital experienced the strongest mining month in its history in May 2025. It is accumulating Bitcoin at an aggressive pace, and this growing company is perhaps the most unique entity in the crypto ecosystem today. With close to 50,000 BTC on its books, it has a half-dozen good reasons for believing Bitcoin is going to scale in price and/or utility like nothing else in financial history.

This unique focus has its perils. As the core business value plummets, the company increasingly depends on the success of Bitcoin alone. Even the slightest dip in Bitcoin price sends Marathon’s stock tumbling. In the company’s strategy, this is the no-turning-back route.

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

Follow us on Twitter @themerklehash to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, and Metaverse news!

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