Category: Cryptocurrency

Despite a five-year surge in non-dollar stablecoin supply, the US dollar remains the undisputed leader, commanding a staggering 99% of the global stablecoin market. The combined value of euro, yen, and other non-dollar tokens has climbed to $771 million by April 2026, up from $261 million in May 2021. Yet their market share has actually shrunk to a mere 0.24%, highlighting a structural advantage for dollar-pegged assets.

The key driver is not regulation but access to deep liquidity reserves. Dollar stablecoin issuers leverage a massive $15.4 billion in tokenized US Treasury securities, providing a yield and liquidity cushion that non-dollar competitors cannot match. In contrast, tokenized non-US government bonds total only $1.4 billion. This gap allows dollar issuers to fund distribution and partnerships, widening the chasm.

European initiatives are making headlines but failing to shift the balance. Qivalis, a consortium of 37 banks across 15 countries, has tripled its membership. However, its euro stablecoin is not expected to launch until the second half of 2026. Another group of twelve European banks, including UniCredit and ING, selected Fireblocks for a separate euro stablecoin project with a similar timeline. Despite these efforts, no euro stablecoin has yet achieved meaningful scale or liquidity.

The structural hurdle is profound. Only a handful of currencies—the dollar, euro, yen, sterling, and Swiss franc—possess the deep foreign exchange markets necessary to support a global stablecoin. S&P Global Ratings projects the euro stablecoin market could grow to €1.1 trillion by 2030, but that would require institutional adoption, regulatory clarity, and the same kind of deep liquidity infrastructure that took dollar stablecoins years to build. Until then, the dollar’s grip on the stablecoin market remains unshaken.

Despite Bitcoin’s downward trend, leveraged traders on Bitfinex have aggressively added to their long positions. Data from TradingView reveals that margin longs on the exchange reached 80,636 BTC on May 20, marking the highest point since late 2023. This represents an increase of about 10% since the start of 2026, even as Bitcoin’s price has dropped 13% during the same period.

Bitcoin experienced a five-day losing streak from May 15 to May 19, falling from above $80,000 to roughly $76,000. This is the second-longest slump of the year, with the asset now about 35% below its all-time high of $126,000 reached in October 2025.

The behavior of large traders on Bitfinex, often referred to as the Bitfinex whale, has historically been a contrarian signal. In the past, these traders have increased their leveraged long positions during market downturns and reduced them near local peaks. While this pattern does not confirm a floor, it garners attention from analysts who monitor whale activity as a potential leading indicator.

Bitcoin is currently testing a critical technical zone around $78,000, which includes the True Market Mean and the short-term holder cost basis. The 200-day moving average sits above $81,000, and reclaiming this level is considered an initial step toward recovery by many traders.

However, the rise in margin longs during a price decline also poses risks. A buildup of leveraged positions can make the market more susceptible to liquidation cascades if prices fall further, potentially amplifying downside pressure. Analysts have consistently identified the $78,000 to $81,000 range as key for Bitcoin to regain before a sustained uptrend becomes likely.

This divergence between increasing long exposure and falling prices highlights an ongoing tug-of-war between buyers seeking bargains and sellers dominating the market. Real-time price movements continue to reflect this tension as traders assess the next direction for Bitcoin.

A new federal lawsuit in Manhattan alleges that Jane Street used a private Telegram channel to offload $192 million worth of TerraUSD (UST) just before the stablecoin lost its peg in May 2022. The complaint, filed by the administrator winding down Terraform Labs, claims the trading firm made around $134 million by betting against UST as the Terra ecosystem imploded.

The suit specifically names Jane Street co-founder Robert Granieri and trader Michael Huang, along with a former Terraform intern who later joined Jane Street. According to the complaint, this intern allegedly passed non-public information through the Telegram group, allowing the firm to sell ahead of the depegging event. On May 7, 2022, Jane Street reportedly sold 85 million UST just minutes after Terraform removed 150 million from a critical Curve pool.

A spokesperson for Jane Street dismissed the allegations, calling the lawsuit a transparent effort to extract money. They emphasized that the losses suffered by Terra and Luna holders resulted from a massive fraud by Terraform Labs management, not from Jane Street’s actions. The firm previously filed a motion in April 2026 to dismiss the case with prejudice, arguing that its trading was based on publicly available information and citing the Wagoner rule, which restricts bankruptcy estates from suing third parties for losses tied to the debtor’s own misconduct. The court has yet to rule on the motion.

The case gains legal traction from a 2023 ruling that deemed UST and Luna as securities, strengthening the securities fraud claims against Jane Street. Separately, Terraform’s administrator sued Jane Street in February 2026 over front-running allegations linked to the Curve pool withdrawal. Do Kwon, Terraform’s co-founder, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud and is serving a 15-year prison sentence. Administrator Todd Snyder previously stated that Jane Street’s trades accelerated the collapse by draining liquidity and worsening market panic.

WhiteBIT, recognized as Europe’s leading cryptocurrency exchange by web traffic, has unveiled whitebit.uk, a specialized platform catering exclusively to users in the United Kingdom. This strategic initiative underscores the exchange’s commitment to expanding its footprint within one of the world’s most sophisticated and stringently regulated financial ecosystems.

The new platform is designed to address the needs of both individual retail traders and institutional clients. For everyday users, WhiteBIT UK provides essential services such as spot trading, advanced market analytics, and instant fiat-to-crypto conversions. Account funding is simplified through GBP deposits via debit/credit cards and the Faster Payments Service (FPS). Institutional participants gain access to liquidity provisioning, market-making support, token listing opportunities, Crypto-as-a-Service solutions, and robust API connectivity for seamless integration of digital asset operations.

Additionally, UK customers can utilize crypto lending products and auto-invest features, subject to product availability, onboarding verification, and applicable UK regulatory guidelines. The launch coincides with a period of increasing crypto adoption in the UK. Recent data from the Financial Conduct Authority indicates that 91% of the general public is aware of cryptoassets, with approximately 8% of adults holding digital currencies. Centralized exchanges remain the primary access point for 73% of users, highlighting the importance of trusted platforms in this market.

Volodymyr Nosov, Founder and President of W Group (the parent organization of WhiteBIT), remarked: “Expanding into the UK market represents a significant milestone in WhiteBIT’s growth across regulated jurisdictions. The UK has long served as a global financial hub, and we recognize a strong demand for platforms that seamlessly blend innovation with trust, transparency, and compliance. Our objective is to deliver access to digital assets while upholding the rigorous standards that define our platform worldwide.”

WhiteBIT has established a reputation for security and operational excellence, consistently ranking among the top three most secure exchanges globally according to CER.live. It was the first exchange to achieve Level 3 certification under the Cryptocurrency Security Standard (CCSS) developed by the CryptoCurrency Certification Consortium (C4). The exchange enforces stringent compliance measures, including anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) protocols, supported by advanced infrastructure designed to protect user assets.

As the UK digital asset landscape continues to mature, WhiteBIT intends to broaden its product offerings and local presence, delivering compliant solutions for both individual and institutional clients. It is important to note that investing in cryptoassets carries substantial risk of loss due to market volatility, liquidity constraints, technological challenges, or third-party actions. While platforms implement security and risk management measures, these cannot eliminate the possibility of losing some or all invested capital. Cryptoassets are not regulated like traditional financial products and are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Users should carefully consider their suitability and seek independent advice if necessary.

Founded in 2018, WhiteBIT is part of the W Group and serves over 35 million customers globally. The exchange collaborates with Visa, FACEIT, FC Barcelona, Juventus FC, and the Ukrainian national football team, with a mission to drive widespread blockchain adoption worldwide.

Exa Labs has successfully closed a $250 million funding round, with Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) taking the lead. This significant investment catapults the AI search startup’s valuation to an impressive $2.2 billion, a dramatic increase from its previous estimated value of around $700 million just a few months ago.

The company specializes in developing search infrastructure specifically designed for AI systems rather than human users. As large language models require efficient retrieval of live web data, Exa’s technology has become increasingly crucial. The firm describes its product as a fundamental building block for the next generation of software applications.

This funding surge reflects a broader trend where venture capital is aggressively flowing into companies aiming to revolutionize information retrieval in the AI era. Even as traditional search remains dominated by major players like Google, investors are betting on new approaches tailored for AI agents and models.

The latest valuation represents more than a threefold increase in less than a year. Exa had previously raised $85 million in a Series B round last September, when it was valued at roughly $700 million. That swift repricing signals that AI-native search is no longer viewed as a niche experiment but as a core component of the emerging AI infrastructure stack.

a16z’s involvement aligns with its broader strategy of investing heavily in frontier technologies. The venture firm recently raised $15 billion in its largest-ever fundraising effort, indicating the immense capital available for AI-related bets.

Exa’s vision is not to compete directly with Google on consumer search but to provide an entirely different kind of search engine optimized for AI models. The company argues that the current generation of search tools is inadequate for the precise, structured, and real-time data retrieval needed by intelligent agents. As AI applications increasingly rely on up-to-date web information, this thesis is gaining traction.

Industry observers note that the line between crypto, AI, and data infrastructure continues to blur, creating opportunities for startups that can bridge these domains. The rapid ascent of Exa underscores the market’s appetite for foundational AI infrastructure plays.

A German fintech startup, AllUnity, has announced plans to introduce SEKAU, a stablecoin pegged to the Swedish krona, with a target launch in June 2025. The token, which requires final approval from Germany’s BaFin regulator, will be fully backed by krona reserves and compliant with the EU’s MiCA framework.

Based in Frankfurt and backed by DWS, Flow Traders, and Galaxy Digital, AllUnity aims to expand its stablecoin lineup beyond the euro and Swiss franc. SEKAU is designed for instant settlements, cross-border payments, and corporate treasury operations, catering to financial institutions and enterprise clients.

The company also unveiled Agentic Payments, a settlement layer using Coinbase’s x402 standard, enabling businesses to accept transactions initiated by autonomous AI agents and settle funds directly into local bank accounts. CEO Alexander Höptner emphasized that Sweden’s move toward a cashless economy requires a digital currency that is interoperable and globally accessible.

AllUnity’s multi-currency model now spans three European currencies, positioning it as one of the few regulated stablecoin issuers offering non-dollar alternatives. However, dollar-pegged tokens still dominate 99% of the global stablecoin market, as US Treasury markets provide deeper liquidity and higher yields. Tokenized US government bonds on-chain total about $15 billion, compared to just $1.4 billion for all other government bonds combined.

Despite the challenges, AllUnity’s COO Peter Grosskopf stated that the platform is built for scale, serving as a gateway for European businesses to integrate agentic payments. Meanwhile, a consortium of 37 European banks is working on a competing MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin targeting a 2026 launch, and other banking groups have selected Fireblocks for a separate euro stablecoin project.

Tether and Gnosis have jointly invested $4.4 million into Sorted Wallet, a lightweight mobile crypto application designed for emerging markets. The funding includes $3.4 million in equity led by Tether and Gnosis, with additional contributions from Movement, Angel Invest Group, and angel investors like the founders of RWA.io. Strategic support of $1 million came from Vox Solutions.

Sorted Wallet’s app is only 10MB, making it ideal for low-cost feature phones and basic Android devices prevalent in Africa, South Asia, and parts of Central America. The wallet has already surpassed 500,000 downloads, with strong adoption in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Bangladesh, and Madagascar. Mexico and several Central American nations are also showing growth.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino emphasized that true financial inclusion requires reaching users who can’t afford expensive smartphones or data plans. He noted that digital assets have moved beyond trading to real-world applications, but infrastructure must be built for those on simpler devices. Tether previously invested $1.5 million in Sorted Wallet in 2024, and this latest round reinforces their commitment.

Gnosis investment partner Daniele Pinna described Sorted Wallet as a crucial access layer for stablecoin payments in markets where traditional fintech has limited reach. Gnosis, known for the Safe non-custodial wallet, sees Sorted’s lightweight approach as key to extending crypto payments via telecom networks.

The new funds will help Sorted Wallet expand into more Sub-Saharan African and South Asian markets, strengthen telecom integrations, and launch a new payment mechanism in May.

On-chain sleuth @ai_9684xtpa has identified a cluster of wallets potentially tied to venture capital firm a16z that may now hold a significant amount of Hyperliquid’s HYPE token. The analysis suggests these addresses could be the sixth-largest HYPE holders, and possibly the biggest external holder outside of Hyperliquid’s own ecosystem. However, a16z has not officially confirmed this connection, so the attribution remains speculative.

According to the analyst, the wallets have accumulated roughly 9.18 million HYPE since August 2025, with a current estimated value near $356 million based on an average purchase price of about $38.77. Lookonchain adds that since the start of 2026, the addresses added 4.92 million HYPE, worth around $183 million, and still hold 8.844 million HYPE across dozens of addresses after some transfers to exchanges and liquidity providers.

The whale activity coincides with a strong rally for HYPE, which recently surged about 24% in six days, approaching its all-time high. This uptick is attributed to factors like ETF demand, USDC growth, and increased synthetic market activity. Data from Santiment shows HYPE climbing from $38.32 on May 13 to roughly $47.65, with TradingView indicating strong buying pressure near $48.

Hyperliquid’s ecosystem has also seen a boost from new investment vehicles. Bitwise announced it would allocate 10% of management fees from its BHYP Hyperliquid ETF to buy and hold HYPE on its balance sheet. The fund launched on the NYSE on May 15. Combined with 21Shares’ THYP product, net inflows have surpassed $5.6 million quickly after launch. Hyperliquid now handles approximately $8 billion in daily trading volume and controls over 50% of decentralized perpetual futures open interest.

Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan recently described HYPE as one of crypto’s most mispriced assets, arguing that investors may still view Hyperliquid as merely a fast-growing derivatives exchange rather than a broader trading platform. This perspective adds context to the growing interest from both retail and institutional players.

Paradigm, a venture capital firm known for its deep ties to the cryptocurrency space, has taken a strategic step beyond digital assets by co-leading a massive $110 million funding round in SendCutSend, an on-demand manufacturing company. The investment marks a notable expansion of Paradigm’s portfolio into industrial infrastructure and automated production services, areas traditionally outside its core focus.

SendCutSend, which provides software-driven, rapid-turnaround manufacturing for industries such as robotics, defense, aerospace, and automotive, secured the funding at a valuation exceeding $1 billion. According to Jim Belosic, founder and CEO of SendCutSend, the company had operated profitably for years without outside venture capital before this round. He explained that surging customer demand and production pressures forced the company to seek external capital to accelerate expansion rather than resorting to price hikes or slower delivery times.

Belosic noted that over the past year, SendCutSend logged more than 35,000 overtime hours as demand consistently outstripped capacity. The company has been growing at roughly 100% year-over-year, making traditional financing options inadequate for the scale of its expansion ambitions. With the new funding, SendCutSend plans to invest over $1 billion in U.S. manufacturing and domestically produced materials over the next five years. It also intends to spend more than $250 million on expanding current facilities and opening new production sites nationwide, aiming to increase capacity, lower prices, and maintain short lead times.

Matt Huang, Paradigm’s co-founder and managing partner, confirmed the firm’s role as co-lead investor in the round. Other participants include Sequoia partner Andrew Reed and Stripe co-founders Patrick and John Collison. Belosic acknowledged that he had previously avoided venture capital because many investors misunderstood manufacturing businesses and expected software-like growth returns, but he expressed confidence in this group of backers.

This investment is part of a broader trend by Paradigm to diversify its holdings beyond cryptocurrency. In recent months, the firm has partnered with Stripe on the Tempo payments network, collaborated with OpenAI on EVMbench for smart contract security testing, and developed a professional prediction market terminal for institutional traders. Additionally, Paradigm Bitcoin general partner Dan Robinson proposed PACTs, a protocol to help Bitcoin holders prove wallet ownership privately against future quantum computing threats.

Despite this expansion, Paradigm remains a significant player in the crypto venture space. The firm’s move into industrial manufacturing signals a strategic shift toward adjacent infrastructure and technology sectors while maintaining its core crypto investments.

Zerohash, a provider of digital asset infrastructure, is reportedly in talks to secure new funding that would value the company at over $1.5 billion. This development comes after Mastercard decided not to proceed with a planned investment, instead pursuing a different strategic acquisition in the stablecoin sector. According to sources, Mastercard had been considering a significant investment in Zerohash but shifted its focus after agreeing to acquire BVNK, a stablecoin infrastructure firm, for up to $1.8 billion. The deal with BVNK is designed to bridge on-chain payments with traditional fiat systems across more than 130 countries. A Zerohash representative refrained from commenting on the fundraising discussions, while Mastercard did not respond to inquiries.

Earlier this year, Mastercard was in advanced talks to acquire Zerohash entirely, with a potential valuation between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. That deal would have been one of Mastercard’s largest moves into the stablecoin space. Zerohash offers a suite of API-based tools that enable banks, brokerages, and fintech companies to integrate crypto and stablecoin capabilities, including custody, compliance, liquidity, and settlement. The company has also been involved in tokenized fund projects with major asset managers like BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and Hamilton Lane.

Zerohash achieved unicorn status in September 2025 after a $104 million Series D-2 funding round led by Interactive Brokers, which brought its total raised capital to $275 million. Other participants included Morgan Stanley, Apollo-managed funds, SoFi, and Jump Crypto. The company’s platform now supports over 5 million users in 190 countries and powers products for notable clients such as Stripe, Shift4, DraftKings, and Kalshi. By providing a complete digital asset infrastructure, Zerohash allows firms to offer crypto trading, stablecoin payments, and tokenized assets without building blockchain systems from the ground up.