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TL;DR

• Trump Now Accepts Crypto Donations: America’s First Bitcoin President

• BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Sees Surge in Inflows

• SEC Approves Spot Ethereum ETFs

• VanEck Launches Ethereum ETF Post-SEC Approval

• TOKI and SuccinctLabs Unveil the First Open-source ZK-IBC Solution

• Injective Launches Ethereum Layer-3 Network

• Phantom Wallet Acquires Bitski to Enhance Solana UX

• Analyst: Solana Spot ETF Likely If Ethereum ETF Get’s Approved

• Ava Labs and Gamestarter Unite to Transform Blockchain Gaming

• Coinbase Launches AVAX Staking as Price Aims for Recovery

• Binance Executive Collapses During Nigerian Trial

• Venezuelan Authorities Seize Major Bitcoin Mining Facility

And much more!

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Bitcoin Highlights of the Week

Trump Now Accepts Crypto Donations: America’s First Bitcoin President

In a press release this afternoon, President Trump announced that his campaign for the White House will now accept Bitcoin donations. This move is likely to intensify tensions with President Joseph Biden, who, along with Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), has been heavily regulating the digital asset space, particularly Bitcoin, during his term.

The announcement stated, "As President, Donald J. Trump reduced regulations and championed innovation in financial technology, while Democrats like Biden and Elizabeth Warren believe government control is the solution. This effort to reduce government control over financial decisions is part of a shift toward freedom. Today’s announcement reflects President Trump’s commitment to an agenda valuing freedom over government control."

It was noted that Trump's appointment of former Coinbase VP Brian Brooks as Comptroller of the Currency was a pivotal Bitcoin-friendly move, allowing banks and financial firms to hold cryptocurrencies. This ruling took effect during the last year of Trump’s first term, and Bitcoin's price surged twentyfold in the following year.

Bitcoin Policy Institute Launches Fund to Defend Non-Custodial Tools

The Bitcoin Policy Institute (BPI) has launched the Peer-to-Peer Rights Fund to protect decentralized Bitcoin tools and their developers from regulatory overreach. The fund's first project is defending Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, founders of Samurai Wallet.

The Peer-to-Peer Rights Fund aims to maintain Bitcoin’s decentralized integrity by supporting legal cases and offering regulatory guidance. BPI emphasizes that Bitcoin's success relies on its peer-to-peer foundation, which sets it apart from other electronic cash systems. Non-custodial tools like multi-signature wallets, Lightning Service Providers, and Coinjoin coordinators are crucial for security, low-cost transactions, and privacy.

However, recent regulatory actions in the U.S. have targeted developers of non-custodial tools such as Tornado Cash, Samurai Wallet, Uniswap, and MetaMask. These actions threaten to set legal precedents that could harm the non-custodial Bitcoin ecosystem. The government’s broad interpretation of regulations could require anyone facilitating fund transmission, regardless of control, to comply with the Bank Secrecy Act. This could impact developers of various non-custodial Bitcoin tools, including hardware wallets and transaction-broadcasting nodes.

Bitcoin ETPs Approved for London Stock Exchange Listing

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has given the green light to asset manager WisdomTree, allowing them to list Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded products (ETPs) on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). Starting May 28, WisdomTree's Physical Bitcoin ETPs will be available for trading, initially targeting professional investors. This approval follows the FCA's decision in March to no longer oppose Bitcoin ETP listings for professional investors, aligning with similar approvals in the US and Hong Kong earlier this year.

WisdomTree highlighted that it's among the first firms to secure FCA approval for its Bitcoin ETP prospectus, indicating a change in the regulator's stance since banning such offerings in 2020. While the US and Hong Kong have warmed up to regulated Bitcoin funds, the FCA remains cautious and plans to maintain the ban on retail investors. This shift reflects the increasing adoption of Bitcoin ETFs, even among traditional institutions. Recent SEC 13F filings reveal major banks and financial giants have invested heavily in US spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Bitcoin Whales Amass $1.4B in BTC After FIT21 Bill Passes

A significant regulatory shift in the United States has sparked a new bullish trend for Bitcoin (BTC), positively impacting the altcoin market. Recently, several Congress members urged SEC Chair Gary Gensler to approve spot Ethereum (ETH) ETFs. Additionally, the US Congress almost unanimously passed the FIT21 bill, which clarifies cryptocurrency regulations in the country.

According to the latest on-chain data, Bitcoin whales with balances between 1,000 and 10,000 BTC have accelerated their accumulation in recent days. These whales have added 20,000 BTC, worth about $1.4 billion, in the past week. This surge in accumulation coincides with significant cash inflows into spot BTC ETFs, which have attracted about $1.7 billion in the past eight days.

Following the fourth Bitcoin halving over a month ago, demand for Bitcoin is expected to rise as various jurisdictions seek to accumulate the limited digital asset. Bitcoin has faced strong resistance around $72,000, leading to a retrace below $68,000. Meanwhile, many traders are shifting their focus to Ethereum, anticipating the approval of spot Ether ETFs.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Sees Surge in Inflows

BlackRock's IBIT saw a surge in inflows on Tuesday, May 21, totaling $290 million. This amount exceeded the combined inflows of the past 21 trading days. The IBIT, accounting for 95% of the total inflows into US spot Bitcoin ETFs, contributed to the $300 million net inflows for these ETFs on the same day.

The inflow into BlackRock's ETF marks the highest since April 5, reversing a trend of minimal inflows observed over the past six weeks. The total inflow over the past four trading days has surpassed $1 billion amid Bitcoin's volatile rally. Despite discrepancies in reported assets under management (AUM), the BlackRock fund has accumulated $16 billion in inflows since its launch.

Daily Alphas of the Week

Ethereum Highlights of the Week

Ethereum Founder Reveals Key ETH Roadmap Updates

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently addressed key decentralization challenges in a detailed blog post. He focused on three critical issues: Miner Extractable Value (MEV), staking complexities, and hardware requirements for running nodes.

Buterin emphasized the need to minimize MEV, which refers to the profits block producers can make by manipulating transaction orders. This can create an unfair system favoring those with more resources. He proposed approaches to mitigate MEV, including minimizing its occurrence and using protocols like CowSwap to ensure fair transactions by concealing details until confirmation.

Staking on Ethereum currently requires at least 32 ETH and significant technical expertise, leading many to use centralized services like Lido and RocketPool, which threatens decentralization. To address this, Buterin suggested solutions to reduce hardware and data storage needs for nodes, such as implementing Verkle trees and EIP-4444. These measures could lower storage requirements to under 100 gigabytes, making it feasible to run nodes on personal devices. Additionally, he proposed lowering the minimum staking requirement from 32 ETH.

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