Coin360 Weekly Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | May 18 - May 24, 2025

Crypto Weekly Market Update

Table of Contents

Market Movements and Trends

• Crypto Weekly Recap

Market Developments & Strategic Shifts

• Syntetika Launches Roadmap for Tokenized Asset Trading, Aiming for $200M Bitcoin Yield Vault
• Cetus Protocol Hit by $220M Exploit, Trading Frozen as Token Prices Plunge
• Strategy's Bitcoin Holdings Surpass $1 Billion Amid Legal Challenges and Rising Corporate Adoption
• Senate Advances GENIUS Act; Texas Bitcoin Reserve Approved; UK and Hong Kong Tighten Crypto Rules

Regulatory, Legal & Government Actions

• Coinbase Faces Legal Crisis Over Data Breach, Insider Corruption, and Biometric Privacy Violations
• Circle Considers Sale to Coinbase or Ripple Amid IPO Plans
• Trump’s Crypto Dinner Sparks Federal Probe as VIPs Dump Tokens; CZ Slams ‘Fixer’ Allegations
• Hester Peirce: Most NFTs Not Securities, Highlighting Royalties as Potential Exceptions

Crypto Weekly Recap

Total crypto market cap: 3.38T

Crypto Fear & Greed Index: 66 (Greed)

BTC.D: 64.17%

Bitcoin:

• Weekly performance: +5.71%
• US Spot BTC ETFs: +$2.75B
• Bitcoin Pizza Day was marked this week as the 10,000 BTC paid for two pizzas in 2010 reached a value of over $1.1 billion, with BTC hitting a new ATH near $111,900.
• Moody’s downgraded the US credit rating from Aaa to Aa1 due to rising debt and budget issues, triggering only a brief and mild price dip.
• BTC began a consistent uptrend Monday, closing the week just below $106,500—its highest weekly close ever—after rebounding from a $102,400 low as:
  • Bitcoin’s realized cap hit $906B on Monday, supported by institutional demand.
  • Open interest in BTC futures reached an all-time high of $80.91B.
  • BTC options open interest hit a record $45.8B, accounting for 84% of all digital asset options.
  • BlackRock’s IBIT became the most traded ETF with $45B in lifetime inflows.
  • Google search interest for Bitcoin stayed low, matching levels from the 2022–2024 bear market near $16K, showing retail indifference.
• Trump threatened a 50% tariff on EU imports and a 25% tariff on Apple products made overseas, starting June 1, to push for U.S. manufacturing.
• Bitcoin dropped from over $110K to below $108.4K following the tariff news, then bounced back to $109.7K.
• BTC entered its strongest accumulation phase since January as Glassnode’s Accumulation Trend Score hit 1.0, led by whales with 10K+ BTC and followed by smaller holders.
• River reported 14% of Americans owned BTC, surpassing gold at 12%, with 49.6M BTC holders vs. 36.7M gold owners; Americans made up 40% of all BTC holders.
• The U.S. held 63.3% of global government BTC reserves, compared to 29.9% of global gold reserves.
• Bitcoin increasingly replaced gold as the preferred store of value due to its digital nature and transaction ease.

Ethereum:

• Weekly performance: +2.99%
• US Spot ETH ETFs: +$248.31M
• ETH continued to lag behind BTC as BTC hit a new ATH while ETH failed to break $3,000.
• ETH rallied from $2,360 to $2,720 with the broader market but couldn’t push higher.
• Market sentiment improved as digital asset investment products saw $785M in weekly inflows, reaching $7.5B YTD—a new record.
• Vitalik Buterin proposed “partially stateless nodes” to reduce Ethereum node hardware demands, allowing users to store only part of the data and run nodes on personal devices.
• The CEX–DEX divide continued to blur—Binance Alpha became a top platform for airdrop hunters while whales shifted to Hyperliquid, driving volume and OI.
• HYPE token hit a new high above $35 as Hyperliquid open interest topped $9B; trader James Wynn opened the largest BTC-based position worth over $1B using 40x leverage.

Altcoins:

• Firms moved quickly to lock in Bitcoin profits in this week’s smart money flows.
• TradFi-crypto integration spotlighted DeFi yield, CBDCs, and tokenized real-world assets.
• Legal news this week included a $200M seizure, a CEO conviction, and multiple lawsuits.
• Kraken, Crypto.com, and BTCS secured new crypto licenses in major regulatory wins.
• Crypto funds saw a surge in ETF inflows and renewed VC interest.
• Sky Protocol migrated 26% of MKR to SKY governance, launched USDS staking rewards, and announced penalties starting in September.
• Solana Labs spinout Anza proposed Alpenglow—called the biggest change to Solana’s core protocol.
• SOON rollup launched mainnet, raised $22M via NFTs, and announced a community airdrop.
• Solana Mobile revealed plans for the SKR token and confirmed Seeker device shipping.
• Synthetix canceled its $27M Derive deal following community backlash.
• Binance listed the USD1 stablecoin from World Liberty Financial, backed by BitGo Trust.
• WalletConnect launched its token on Solana and began the WCT airdrop.
• Polygon co-founder Mihailo Bjelic stepped down, becoming the third founder to exit.

Syntetika Launches Roadmap for Tokenized Asset Trading, Aiming for $200M Bitcoin Yield Vault

Syntetika, a tokenization and trading platform developed by Hilbert Group in collaboration with Galactica.com, aims to facilitate regulatory-compliant trading of tokenized real-world assets and cryptocurrencies. Its roadmap includes three phases: Phase 1 focuses on launching foundational technology and regulatory compliance, starting with a $200 million Bitcoin yield vault goal; Phase 2 will launch the platform and its SYNT token, opening yield vaults to the public; and Phase 3 aims to expand offerings with tokenized pre-IPO stocks and a multi-asset ecosystem. CEO Barnali Biswal highlights the initiative's role in democratizing global market access.

Cetus Protocol Hit by $220M Exploit, Trading Frozen as Token Prices Plunge

Cetus Protocol, a decentralized exchange on Sui, suffered a devastating exploit on May 22, 2025, resulting in an estimated $220 million loss. The incident, attributed to an oracle manipulation exploit using spoof tokens, led to a collapse of token prices by up to 80%. Trading was paused, and confidence in DeFi on Sui plummeted. Although $162 million of the stolen assets were immobilized through validator action, concerns about decentralization emerged. The Cetus team is investigating the breach and plans to release a full incident report soon. Notably, SUI’s price rose by 2.2% post-exploit, indicating unexpected market resilience.

Strategy's Bitcoin Holdings Surpass $1 Billion Amid Legal Challenges and Rising Corporate Adoption

Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, has boosted its Bitcoin holdings to 576,230 BTC, valued over $59.2 billion, after purchasing 7,390 BTC for $764.9 million. Despite a legal challenge alleging misrepresentation of profitability, Strategy's stock (MSTR) rose 1.20%. Metaplanet also joined the fray, acquiring 1,004 BTC, aiming for 10,000 by year-end. Corporate Bitcoin adoption has surged, with businesses holding 1,082,164 BTC. Strategy plans to raise $2.1 billion via equity offerings, with Bitcoin hitting an all-time high of $111,900 on May 22, 2025. However, concerns persist over the sustainability of Bitcoin-heavy treasury strategies amid equity market volatility.

Senate Advances GENIUS Act; Texas Bitcoin Reserve Approved; UK and Hong Kong Tighten Crypto Rules

This week's global policy recap highlights significant advancements in cryptocurrency regulation across various regions. The U.S. Senate advanced the GENIUS Act with a 66-32 vote, garnering bipartisan support and predicting a market rally for cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Solana. Texas lawmakers passed a bill for a strategic Bitcoin reserve, with an anticipated investment in Bitcoin. The UK will implement new crypto regulations in January 2026, aligning with U.S. standards, while Hong Kong passed a Stablecoin Bill for licensing issuers by end-2025. Russia proposed a bill to classify digital currencies as seizable property, enhancing law enforcement's ability to manage crypto investigations.

Coinbase Faces Legal Crisis Over Data Breach, Insider Corruption, and Biometric Privacy Violations

Coinbase is facing a legal crisis following a significant data breach, insider corruption, and alleged violations of biometric privacy, leading to at least six class-action lawsuits filed between May 13-16, 2025. Hackers accessed user data by bribing customer support contractors, exposing sensitive information, though private keys remained secure. Coinbase reportedly refused a $20 million ransom but instead announced a matching bounty for information on the attackers. The breach has prompted investigations by the DOJ and criticisms over inadequate cybersecurity. Users have initiated over 10,000 arbitration claims regarding biometric data practices, demanding damages under Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act.

Circle Considers Sale to Coinbase or Ripple Amid IPO Plans

Circle Internet Financial, creator of the USDC stablecoin, is exploring a potential sale to Coinbase or Ripple while pursuing an IPO valued at over $5 billion. Coinbase is seen as the likely buyer due to its strong ties and significant control over Circle, stemming from their co-founding of the Centre Consortium. With $8 billion in cash reserves, Coinbase can make a competitive offer, while Ripple's acquisition bid of $4-5 billion was rejected as Circle aims for higher valuation. As Circle navigates these options, market conditions and investor interest will be crucial in determining its future direction.

Trump’s Crypto Dinner Sparks Federal Probe as VIPs Dump Tokens; CZ Slams ‘Fixer’ Allegations

On May 22, over 30 U.S. lawmakers demanded a DOJ investigation into Trump’s crypto dinner, citing emoluments violations and foreign influence, as most VIP attendees were likely non-U.S. nationals. On-chain data revealed that by dinner night, only 8 of 25 top TRUMP token holders still held coins, with many transferring to exchanges like Coinbase and Binance. Average VIP holdings dropped from $4.78M to $2.11M. CZ denied WSJ claims that he acted as a “fixer” for Trump-linked World Liberty Financial, calling it an anti-crypto smear campaign and rejecting ties to political favors or introductions abroad.