Summary
gm, The crypto market have been marked by significant volatility and market-wide declines, primarily triggered by geopolitical tensions and new U.S. trade tariffs. Bitcoin briefly fell below $75,000, reaching a four-month low, while other major cryptocurrencies like Ethereum experienced even steeper drops. Despite the downturn, some analysts view this as a potential buying opportunity, with Bitcoin's resilience being noted amidst global economic uncertainties. Notably, Ripple's acquisition of Hidden Road for $1.25 billion signals continued institutional interest in the crypto space, while the launch of the first XRP-based ETF in the U.S. reflects evolving regulatory landscapes and new investment vehicles entering the market.

News Headlines
💹 XRP Could Soar 200% by Year's End, According to Standard Chartered

  • Standard Chartered predicts XRP could rise approximately 200% by the end of 2025, reaching a price of $5.50.
  • The bank's digital assets researcher cites XRP's unique position in facilitating cross-border payments as a key driver for potential price increase.

🏦 BlackRock Taps Anchorage Digital for Crypto Custody Services

  • BlackRock has chosen Anchorage Digital to serve as the custodian for cryptocurrencies held by its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
  • Anchorage will manage custody for BlackRock's $45 billion iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF and $1.8 billion iShares Ethereum Trust ETF.

🌐 Crypto Execs Expect Global Banking Push into Bitcoin by End of 2025

  • Executives from Messari and Sygnum Bank predict a significant increase in Bitcoin adoption by banks by the end of 2025.
  • They anticipate exciting developments in Q3 and Q4, driven by broader regulatory momentum in the U.S. establishing a solid market structure for crypto.

🎮 Gaming Tokens Disappear from Crypto's Top 100 as Market Cools

  • Gaming tokens have vanished from the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with their combined market cap dropping 68% to $9.24 billion.
  • The decline is attributed to a broader crypto gaming cooldown, ongoing SEC investigations, and development hurdles faced by many projects.

🔍 Lawyer Sues US Homeland Security to Probe Alleged Satoshi Nakamoto Meeting

  • Crypto lawyer James Murphy has filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Homeland Security seeking information about an alleged meeting with Bitcoin's creator, Satoshi Nakamoto.
  • The lawsuit stems from claims made by a DHS official in 2019 suggesting that DHS officials had met with individuals involved in Bitcoin's creation.

Market Metrics

Fundraising & VC
1. Blackbird (Series B, $50M) - Blockchain-based payment-loyalty app for restaurants
2. Octane (Seed. $6.75M) - AI smart contract security
3. DecentralGPT (Series A, $3M) - Decentralized AI platform
4. Sats Terminal (Pre Seed, $1.7M) - Bitcoin DeFi aggregation protocol

On-chain Data
1. Maverick Protocol (MAV) token unlocked today ($2.66M, 10.11%)
2. Internet Computer (ICP) token unlock in 1 day ($12.70M, 0.57%)
3. Moca Network (moca) token unlock in 2 days ($16.48M, 10.76%)
4. Aptos (APT) token unlock in 3 days ($49.63M, 1.87%)

Regulatory
🏛️ SEC Approves Galaxy Digital's Nasdaq Listing

  • Galaxy Digital received SEC approval to list on the Nasdaq stock exchange, marking a significant milestone for crypto firms seeking public listings.
  • The company plans to reorganize as a Delaware holding company, with shareholders voting on May 9th.

🚫 DOJ Disbands Crypto Enforcement Unit

  • The U.S. Department of Justice has dissolved its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET).
  • The DOJ will no longer pursue criminal actions against crypto exchanges or mixing services unless they involve severe crimes.

⚖️ Pakistan Appoints CZ as Crypto Adviser

  • Former Binance CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao has been appointed as an adviser to Pakistan's Crypto Council.
  • This move aims to strengthen Pakistan's regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies and attract foreign investment.

🏦 Dubai Links Real Estate Registry with Property Tokenization

  • Dubai's Land Department and Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority have agreed to link the real estate registry with property tokenization.
  • This initiative aims to enhance digital asset adoption in the real estate sector and improve market liquidity.

💼 China Counters US Tariffs with Yuan Devaluation, Potentially Boosting Bitcoin

  • China has devalued the yuan against the dollar in response to US tariffs, with the yuan falling to its lowest exchange rate since 2023.
  • Analysts suggest this move could trigger significant Chinese investment in Bitcoin as individuals seek safety in hard assets amid escalating trade tensions.

Technical Analysis
Bitcoin - Investors have accepted lower prices over time to get out of Bitcoin and the currency is in a falling trend channel in the short term. Falling trends indicate that the currency experiences negative development and falling buy interest among investors. There is no support in the price chart and further decline is indicated. In case of a positive reaction, the currency has resistance at 80000 points. The short term momentum of the currency is strongly negative, with RSI below 30. This indicates increasing pessimism among investors and further decline for Bitcoin. However, particularly in big stocks, low RSI may be a sign that the stock is oversold and that there is a chance for a reaction upwards. The currency is overall assessed as technically negative for the short term.

Ethereum - Ethereum has broken down through the floor of the falling trend channel in the short term, which signals an even stronger falling rate. The negative development, however, may give rise to short term corrections up from today's level. There is no support in the price chart and further decline is indicated. In case of a positive reaction, the currency has resistance at 1870 points. Negative volume balance weakens the currency in the short term. The short term momentum of the currency is strongly negative, with RSI below 30. This indicates increasing pessimism among investors and further decline for Ethereum. However, particularly in big stocks, low RSI may be a sign that the stock is oversold and that there is a chance for a reaction upwards. The currency is overall assessed as technically negative for the short term.

Governance & Code
🏔️ Echelon Prime DAO | Emissary Prime Election 2025 (Active Vote)
- This proposal aims to approve three candidates at the end of the voting period to join the continuing five EPs to form a council of eight.

📟 Rarible DAO | Build a Discourse Plug-In (Preliminary Discussion)
- This proposal requests funding for the development and deployment of a Discourse plug-in that integrates with the SimScore API to automate the editing of DAO proposals based on forum discussions. 

👻 Aave DAO | Onboard sUSDS to Aave v3 Base Instance (Preliminary Discussion)
- This proposal aims to onboard Sky's sUSDS as a borrowable asset on the Aave v3 Base instance.