News linked to both this project and an event.
According to The Block, crypto market maker Wintermute has launched Armitage, a DeFi treasury curation platform offering non-custodial treasuries tailored to varying risk appetites to access decentralized lending opportunities. Wintermute stated that, leveraging its market-making operations and liquidation execution capabilities, Armitage can accept “collateral types unsupported by other curators.” The announcement notes that user deposits require no KYC, and users retain full control over their funds. As institutions continue to deploy treasury strategies on Ethereum-based Morpho, Solana-based Kamino, and others, treasuries are becoming a key tool for institutional participation in crypto markets.
According to The Block, Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has officially approved a policy proposal to build a next-generation national financial system based on blockchain and AI. The proposal also supports advancing tokenized deposits and yen-denominated stablecoins. The report notes that this initiative is being formally advanced at the ruling party level and involves strategic directions for Web3 and financial infrastructure development.
According to The Block, WLFI treasury company AI Financial released its financial results for the quarter ended March 28, 2026, reporting a net loss of $271.5 million, compared to a net loss of $2.4 million in the same period last year; the company stated that its financial condition raises substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern over the next year. Revenue for the same period totaled $4.7 million, entirely derived from its crypto payment fintech business. AI Financial holds 7.28 billion WLFI tokens, with a fair value of approximately $706 million—markedly down from over $1 billion at the end of December 2025—and recognized an unrealized loss of $348.3 million. The company also noted that certain WLFI tokens are subject to lock-up restrictions, and its liquidity improvement, revenue growth, and ability to secure future financing will impact its continued operations.
Odaily. Bernstein stated in its latest research report that the newly reached compromise on stablecoin yields under the U.S. CLARITY Act is structurally beneficial for Circle and the USDC ecosystem.The report notes that the current version of the bill prohibits stablecoin issuers from paying interest to passive holders that is "economically equivalent" to bank deposits, but allows reward mechanisms tied to actual transaction, payment, and usage activities to continue. Bernstein believes this means Circle's current model, which relies on partners like Coinbase to provide USDC reward programs, will gain regulatory recognition, while also limiting the industry's ability to compete for market share through high yields.Bernstein points out that the bill effectively reinforces the positioning of stablecoins as "payment tools" rather than "deposit substitutes," helping to protect Circle's current business model that relies on reserve income. The firm maintains an "Outperform" rating for Circle with a $190 target price.Data shows that the total global supply of dollar-pegged stablecoins has surpassed $300 billion, with USDT and USDC collectively accounting for approximately 97% of the market share. Bernstein notes that USDC's share in on-chain payments and wallet transfers is steadily increasing, and its share of payments in the AI Agent payment protocol x402 has exceeded 99%.Additionally, Bernstein mentioned that Circle's ARC chain has cumulatively completed 244 million testnet transactions. The ARC token pre-sale previously raised $222 million, with investors including a16z crypto, Apollo Funds, ARK Invest, and BlackRock.However, the report also points out that the CLARITY Act still needs to complete multiple legislative procedures before it takes effect, including a 60-vote threshold in the full Senate and coordination with the House version. Polymarket currently estimates its probability of passage by 2026 at approximately 62%. (The Block)
Bitcoin has fallen below the $77,000 mark, hitting a low of approximately $76,720. Analysts attribute the market decline primarily to multiple macroeconomic pressures, including the renewed escalation of tensions between the US and Iran, rising inflation concerns, and increased risk aversion across risk assets. Former US President Donald Trump issued a strong warning to Iran on social media, intensifying geopolitical uncertainty.Meanwhile, rising oil prices have further elevated inflation expectations, with Brent crude climbing to around $111 and WTI rising above $107. This has sparked concerns that the Federal Reserve may maintain higher interest rates for a longer period.The current selling pressure is also compounded by factors such as rising US Treasury yields, a strengthening US dollar, and ETF outflows. Data shows that Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of approximately $1 billion in the week ending May 17, ending six consecutive weeks of net inflows.In terms of market sentiment, the Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index has fallen back to 27, re-entering the "fear zone." Analysts believe that short-term trends will remain highly dependent on macroeconomic data and policy expectations. However, some institutions view the current correction as a "healthy digestion" period, suggesting the long-term structure remains unchanged. (The Block)
VanEck filed the fifth amendment to its BNB ETF registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on May 15. Grayscale also submitted the second amendment to the Grayscale BNB ETF prospectus on the same day.Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart stated that the simultaneous submission of amended documents by both institutions indicates they are responding to SEC feedback and may be planning to advance product launches in the near term.James Seyffart also noted that BNB could become the next crypto asset to pass SEC review and potentially be listed in the United States. (The Block)
the U.S. Senate Banking Committee has advanced the crypto market structure bill, the Clarity Act, by a vote of 15 to 9. The bill aims to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for the crypto industry at the federal level for the first time, garnering support from Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks.While the industry generally views the committee's passage as positive progress, analysts believe the bill still faces significant obstacles before becoming law. TD Cowen has raised the bill's passage probability from approximately one-third to 40%, noting that some Democratic lawmakers are showing willingness to find a path to support it, though substantive disagreements have not been fully resolved.Previously, the bill had long been affected by issues such as stablecoin yield arrangements, conflicts of interest, and ethical provisions. Additionally, to overcome a filibuster in the Senate, the bill will need to secure more Democratic support than it currently has. Benchmark analysts also pointed out that the current number of supporting votes is insufficient to ensure its eventual passage. (The Block)
Adam Hollander, Chief Marketing Officer of OpenSea, stated that the next cycle of NFTs could look very different from the speculative frenzy of 2022, which saw over $1.6 billion in trading volume. Speaking to The Block at Consensus Miami, Hollander noted that it "makes perfect sense" to put assets like collectible cards, luxury watches, and digital tickets on-chain for trading, and that these could be the core drivers of a new wave of NFTs.Adam Hollander emphasized that although avatar-based NFTs like Bored Apes and CryptoPunks have experienced a value crash, NFT technology still has potential to prove ownership of both digital and physical assets. He believes the previous NFT boom relied too heavily on speculation, with buyers treating NFTs more like a digital casino rather than focusing on their technology and real-world value. The future application of NFTs will be driven by actual demand for collectibles, in-game items, AI tools, and more. The development of artificial intelligence will also lower the barrier to creating digital art, animations, and games, thereby accelerating NFT adoption.Regarding platform development, OpenSea is working to build an ecosystem that allows users to manage all their crypto assets and NFTs across different wallets and chains, while optimizing the user experience. This includes simplifying the onboarding process, supporting Apple Pay-like fiat payments, and displaying NFT prices in US dollars. When asked about the delay in launching the much-anticipated SEA token, Hollander stated that the decision lies with the OpenSea Foundation, and he personally has no further information on the timeline. He emphasized that if the token were merely an "airdrop meme coin," it would not create value for users. (The Block)
According to The Block, Myanmar’s military government has released a draft of the “Anti-Online Fraud Act,” which proposes imposing the death penalty on individuals who force others to engage in online fraud and life imprisonment for those operating fraud centers or committing cryptocurrency-related fraud. The draft also proposes establishing a dedicated committee to coordinate international efforts against fraud. Myanmar’s parliament is expected to review the bill in early June. Earlier, in September 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on multiple entities in Myanmar and Cambodia suspected of involvement in cryptocurrency investment fraud. FBI data shows that cryptocurrency-related fraud losses in 2025 reached $11.4 billion—more than half of all internet crime losses.
According to The Block, Forward Industries, the treasury company of Solana, released its Q1 2026 financial report, reporting quarterly revenue of $13 million—a 319% year-on-year increase—primarily driven by SOL staking rewards. However, the company recorded a $201.7 million digital asset loss and an $85.1 million crypto-asset impairment, both stemming from the decline in the fair value of its SOL holdings (SOL fell 33.7% during the quarter), resulting in a net loss of $283.1 million—far exceeding the $1.5 million net loss reported in the same period last year. As of the end of March, the company held approximately 7.04 million SOL and had accumulated 201,200 staking rewards, nearly all of which remained staked. Additionally, in March, the company signed a loan agreement with Galaxy Digital, drawing an initial $40 million, while simultaneously advancing cost-cutting initiatives and share buybacks (reducing basic share capital by 7.4%).
According to The Block, JPMorgan stated that although the crypto market as a whole rebounded following the Iran conflict, ETH and other altcoins continue to underperform BTC—a trend that began in 2023 and is unlikely to reverse in the near term unless on-chain activity, DeFi, and real-world applications show clear improvement. JPMorgan noted that spot ETF fund flows and CME futures positioning both indicate institutions are rebuilding risk exposure to BTC more strongly than to ETH. The bank also pointed out that Ethereum’s upgrades over the past several years have not meaningfully boosted on-chain activity; instead, by lowering Layer 2 costs, they have weakened mainnet fee revenue and the burn mechanism.
crypto exchange Bullish has released its Q1 2026 financial report, recording a net loss of $604.9 million, with the loss scale expanding compared to the same period last year. The company stated that the loss is primarily due to non-cash items such as changes in the fair value of digital asset holdings.Despite the increase in book losses, Bullish's adjusted performance saw growth. Q1 adjusted revenue was $92.8 million, up from $62.4 million in the same period last year; adjusted net profit was $20.3 million, and adjusted EBITDA was $35.1 million, all showing significant increases year-over-year.Following the earnings report, Bullish's share price once fell over 11% before recovering to near the previous day's closing level.On the business front, Bullish stated it has solidified its position as the second-largest exchange for Bitcoin options. Q1 options trading volume reached $11.6 billion, accounting for approximately 14% of open interest. However, its adjusted trading revenue declined year-over-year to $38 million, and digital asset sales also fell from $80.2 billion to $51.8 billion.
According to The Block, Fidelity International’s first tokenized fund—the Fidelity USD Digital Liquidity Fund (FILQ)—has received the highest possible rating of AAA-mf from Moody’s Ratings. The fund launched on May 6 and operates using the same low-volatility net asset value (NAV) money market investment strategy as its existing counterpart, which manages nearly $7 billion in assets. FILQ leverages Sygnum’s tokenization infrastructure and Chainlink’s daily official NAV data sourced from JPMorgan, enabling investors to subscribe to and redeem shares 24/7 using stablecoins. The fund’s tokens are issued on Ethereum as ERC-20 tokens.
According to The Block, the Korean won (KRW)-denominated stablecoin KRWQ has announced its expansion to the Solana network to support on-chain KRW liquidity. KRWQ was jointly developed by IQ and Frax. The team stated that this deployment will position KRWQ as the core settlement asset for KRW liquidity on Solana. KRWQ will support a variety of KRW-denominated trading applications on Solana, including perpetual futures, on-chain foreign exchange markets, arbitrage strategies, cross-margin trading between KRW and USD stablecoins, and institutional and algorithmic trading systems.
Coinbase announced the expansion of its on-chain crypto-backed lending product, adding Solana as a supported collateral asset. Users can now borrow up to $100,000 in liquidity based on their SOL holdings. The service operates on the Morpho lending infrastructure deployed on the Base network, consistent with the structure of previously supported loans backed by Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto assets.Ben Shen, Head of Financial Services at Coinbase, stated that introducing SOL as a collateral asset will enhance capital efficiency and the liquidity experience for users within the Solana ecosystem, while strengthening its "Everything Exchange" strategy—covering more crypto financial scenarios through a single platform. (The Block)
Polish Sejm Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty announced the parliament has officially begun deliberations on four competing bills for crypto asset regulation, following President Karol Nawrocki's two vetoes of related legislation. The review involves legislative proposals from the government, the Presidential Office, the Poland 2050 party, and the Confederation party, with the second reading vote expected on Thursday. Key disagreements center on the scope of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority's (KNF) power to freeze accounts and the maximum penalties for violations. The president's draft sets a maximum fine of approximately 20 million zloty (about $5.5 million), while the Treasury's version raises it to 25 million zloty (about $6.9 million).Meanwhile, the opposition Law and Justice party (PiS), after withdrawing support for an earlier regulatory proposal, submitted a separate bill on Monday advocating for a complete ban on crypto asset-related activities in Poland, further complicating the regulatory debate. Speaker Czarzasty stated that the PiS ban draft will enter the deliberation process only after the four main regulatory bills are completed, and questioned the links between crypto industry funds and political activities, specifically naming potential political funders including zondacrypto. (The Block)
Odaily Investment bank TD Cowen reiterated its "Buy" rating on Sharplink following its Q1 earnings report, maintaining a $16 price target, implying approximately 106% upside from the current share price of $7.76.Sharplink's Q1 revenue exceeded $12 million. The company also announced the establishment of an approximately $125 million income fund in partnership with Galaxy Digital, with Sharplink contributing roughly $100 million. The fund will focus on DeFi and liquidity yield opportunities, targeting returns higher than base staking yields.The analyst team believes the current share price is in a "favorable entry window," driven primarily by a persistent NAV discount and expanding Ethereum demand. Sharplink currently holds approximately 873,000 ETH (about $2 billion), translating to a net asset value (NAV) of roughly $9.68 per share, while the stock still trades at about a 20% discount to NAV. TD Cowen noted that the Galaxy partnership strengthens Sharplink's yield strategy, allowing it to maintain ETH exposure while improving capital efficiency through institutional-grade DeFi opportunities. (The Block)
Odaily Planet Daily reported that Starknet, the Ethereum Layer 2 network developed by StarkWare, has officially launched strkBTC. This is a new Bitcoin-based asset designed to achieve private balances and anonymous transfers through zero-knowledge proof (ZK) technology while maintaining composability with DeFi applications. After its launch, strkBTC supports "re-anonymization," allowing assets to be bridged back to entirely new, unlinked Bitcoin addresses, and also provides compliance audit and asset screening features. (The Block)
According to The Block, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking has released an updated 309-page version of the Clarity Act, scheduled for review and vote later this week. The new text includes language restricting stablecoin rewards and incorporates provisions from the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, clarifying that non-custodial developers are not considered money transmitters. Coinbase—which had previously withdrawn its support due to controversy over the stablecoin rewards provision—has now reversed its position and endorsed the bill; however, banking industry groups still deem the restrictions insufficient. Meanwhile, the bill still lacks ethics-related provisions targeting digital asset-related benefits received by the President and other federal officials. Democratic lawmakers have stated that, absent such compromises, the bill is unlikely to gain their support.
According to The Block, the Ethereum Foundation is restructuring its Protocol team, appointing Will Corcoran, Kev Wedderburn, and Fredrik as the new co-leads of the Protocol cluster. This reorganization comes as Barnabé Monnot and Tim Beiko plan to depart the organization, and Alex Stokes begins a sabbatical. The Protocol team is the Ethereum Foundation’s core team responsible for the design, research, development, and coordination of Ethereum’s base layer, covering areas such as security, cryptography, zkEVM, and peer-to-peer networking. The team is currently advancing Ethereum’s next major scalability upgrade, Glamsterdam, which aims to raise the gas limit ceiling and floor to 200 million and introduce ePBS. Subsequently, the team will shift its R&D focus toward the Hegotá upgrade and the FOCIL prototype to enhance Ethereum’s censorship resistance.