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According to the CME FedWatch Tool, there is a 99% probability that the U.S. Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady in June, with a 1% chance of a 25-basis-point cut. Looking ahead to the July meeting, the tool indicates an 84.4% probability of rates remaining unchanged, a 14.8% chance of a 25-basis-point hike, and a 0.8% chance of a 25-basis-point cut.

Japan will fully permit the use of overseas stablecoins starting June 1, according to a report by BeInCrypto. The move will integrate these assets into the country's financial network, clarifying their legal status after previously being subject to securities laws or operating in a regulatory gray area.

Cryptocurrency custody firm BitGo has launched a modular digital asset infrastructure platform aimed at banks and financial institutions, Cointelegraph reported. The comprehensive solution goes beyond simple custody to include trading, settlement, staking, and stablecoin issuance, allowing banks to selectively integrate the services they need.

Coinbase announced the addition of META and DRV to its listing roadmap.

Deloitte has acquired cryptocurrency infrastructure firm Blocknative in a team acquisition, Odaily reported. The Blocknative team will now focus on driving Web3 innovation within Deloitte's client portfolio. Its API services and gas network will operate until June 19 before being phased out. Founded in 2018, Blocknative primarily provided real-time mempool monitoring, gas fee prediction, and transaction management tools.

German asset management giant Union Investment has strongly criticized what it sees as structural flaws in private stablecoins like Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC). The firm argued that their reserve assets, which include Bitcoin and gold, effectively turn the stablecoins into highly speculative stealth hedge funds. Union Investment added that this asset composition poses a significant risk, potentially inflicting losses comparable to a margin call on corporate finance teams or institutional investors during periods of market volatility.

Daily trading volume for stock tokens has hit a new all-time high of $3.57 billion, The Block reported. The new record marks the culmination of a weekly surge in trading volume that began in April. Binance and Hyperliquid accounted for the majority of the total volume.

President Trump's Truth Social withdrew its application for a Bitcoin ETF, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart.

Ripple and the XRPL Foundation have partnered with cryptography firm Project Eleven to address the threat of quantum computing, U.Today reported. The collaboration has initiated practical steps to transition the XRP Ledger to a quantum-resistant cryptographic system. As a first step, Project Eleven conducted a detailed assessment of quantum vulnerabilities across the XRPL's validator, custody, network, and wallet layers. The project will also introduce hybrid signatures, a method that layers quantum-resistant cryptography on top of existing security standards.

K33 Research argues that the market's current "unique pessimism" is acting as a safety net preventing a deeper crash. According to CoinDesk, the firm noted that while Bitcoin is declining after failing to break its 200-day moving average of $83,000, the scenario is unlike the leverage-driven collapses of 2014, 2018, and 2022. K33 diagnosed $60,000 as the bottom for this cycle. The research firm explained that investors are showing an overly defensive stance, and this "unique pessimism" is similar to characteristics seen at market bottoms. As evidence, the 30-day average funding rate for Bitcoin has been negative for 81 consecutive days. This indicates that even when prices rebounded, traders were overwhelmingly pessimistic, betting on declines (shorts) rather than rises (longs). Additionally, the annualized basis for CME Group's Bitcoin futures has fallen below 2.5%.

Michael Terpin, an early Bitcoin investor known as the "godfather of cryptocurrency," has predicted a 50% probability that Bitcoin will bottom out between $48,000 and $57,000, potentially this October. He added that buying pressure from Strategy STRC and ETFs has raised the floor, making a drop below $40,000 unlikely. Terpin explained that the current primary selling pressure is not from whale investors but from retail traders liquidating leveraged positions. While he does not see quantum computing as a short-term threat to Bitcoin, he warned that advanced AI models could disable major Ethereum smart contracts, potentially causing an FTX-like situation within this market cycle. He maintained his existing forecast that Bitcoin will reach $1 million by 2033.

Bitcoin is losing its upward momentum and becoming more vulnerable to external shocks and a prolonged high-interest rate regime as the U.S. macroeconomic environment shifts, according to a report from Bitfinex Alpha. The report notes that key drivers of Bitcoin demand, such as spot ETFs and income-generating products like Strategy's STRC, are facing headwinds. "As market sentiment shifts from extreme fear to persistent uncertainty, the sustainability of the current recovery depends almost entirely on whether new net capital inflows continue," analysts explained.

Zerohash is pursuing a new funding round at a valuation of over $1.5 billion after Mastercard withdrew its investment plans, Unfolded reported.

Global asset manager Bitwise has identified Hyperliquid's HYPE token as one of the most undervalued assets in the market, CoinDesk reported. Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan pointed out that the market is making a pricing error by treating Hyperliquid as just a futures decentralized exchange (DEX). He explained that the platform is evolving into a global financial super app that extends beyond crypto assets to include stocks, commodities, foreign exchange (FX), and prediction markets. Hougan emphasized that Hyperliquid has an estimated annual revenue of $800 million to $1 billion and a strong value accrual model, with 99% of its trading fees used for HYPE buybacks.

Ripple has been ranked 16th on CNBC's "2026 Disruptor 50" list, U.Today reported. The outlet noted that this placement recognizes the company's innovation in real-world finance through blockchain, even amid the current AI boom.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Department of Justice have sued the state of Minnesota, asserting exclusive jurisdiction over the supervision of prediction markets. According to Cointelegraph, the lawsuit was filed less than 24 hours after Minnesota Governor Walz signed bill SF 4760. The suit alleges that the state is illegally attempting to regulate federally governed derivatives markets, which fall under the CFTC's exclusive authority. Minnesota is scheduled to ban prediction markets, which allow betting on everything from sports outcomes and weather to corporate valuations and government actions, starting Aug. 1.

The total supply of stablecoins has surpassed $300 billion, but market growth is slowing, The Block reported. Over the past month, Tether's (USDT) supply increased by more than $5 billion, while the combined supply of USDC, USDe, and PYUSD decreased by $4.2 billion during the same period. This resulted in a net increase of only about $900 million for the entire stablecoin market, representing a growth rate of just 0.3% of the total supply. The data suggests a strong trend of existing stablecoin capital moving into USDT rather than new funds entering the market.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced a proposal to reform its rules for initial public offerings (IPOs) and publicly listed companies, CoinDesk reported. The SEC described the proposal as the most significant overhaul in over 20 years. The core objective is to slow the decline of public companies in the U.S. by reducing regulatory costs and streamlining the capital-raising process. Market observers believe the changes could particularly ease the listing burden for mid-sized cryptocurrency firms, for which the high costs and complex procedures of maintaining a listing have been major barriers to entry. One of the key proposed changes would allow newly public companies to use shelf registration immediately following their IPO, enabling them to raise additional funds more quickly in response to market conditions.

Deloitte has acquired cryptocurrency infrastructure firm Blocknative in an acqui-hire, The Block reported. The Blocknative team is set to join Deloitte's Web3 innovation projects. Blocknative is currently in the process of shutting down its operations, with its API and gas network services scheduled to be phased out by June 19.

The number of addresses holding over 100 BTC has increased by 11% year-over-year to 20,229, Santiment reported via X. The analytics firm noted that addresses with more than 100 BTC are typically associated with whale investors, institutions, and large long-term holders. Santiment highlighted that the number of these whale addresses has steadily increased, rather than decreased, even as BTC's price experienced significant volatility over the past year. Historically, a rise in whale addresses has been interpreted as a sign that major investors are accumulating BTC. This accumulation trend among large investors is continuing even during periods of weak retail investor sentiment, the firm explained.

Coinbase, Kraken, and Gemini have asked the U.S. Senate to remove a provision in the Clarity Act that restricts token listings, Crowdfund Insider reported. The exchanges submitted an amendment seeking to delete language that would permit the listing only of cryptocurrencies that are not easily susceptible to market manipulation. This provision, aimed at curbing trading in highly manipulable tokens, is modeled on existing regulations for the commodity futures market. The industry argues that applying the standards used by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for markets like crude oil and agricultural products to crypto would make it virtually impossible to list new, low-liquidity tokens. They contend that new tokens face a structural handicap, as their initially low trading volume and liquidity make it difficult to demonstrate market stability.

Stablecoin infrastructure startup Checker has raised $8 million in pre-seed and seed funding rounds to expand its institutional services, The Block reported. Key investors in the rounds included Galaxy Ventures, Al Mada Ventures, and Framework Ventures.

Decentralized cryptocurrency exchange (DEX) Aster (ASTER) has announced the listing of ZEST. To commemorate the event, Aster is holding a campaign with a reward pool of $50,000 in ASTER. The campaign runs from 2:30 p.m. UTC on May 19 to 2:00 p.m. UTC on May 26. During this period, a 1.5x boost will be applied to the ZEST/USDT trading pair. Rewards will be distributed proportionally based on each user's share of total trading fees. The maximum reward for any single user is capped at 3% of the total prize pool. To participate, users must generate over $5 in trading fees and qualify for a minimum reward of at least one ASTER. The campaign is open to all users with no token holding requirements, and trades made through supported channels like Binance Wallet and Trust Wallet are eligible.

Weekly trading volume on Solana-based decentralized perpetual futures exchanges (Perp DEXs) has surpassed $20 billion for the first time, Wu Blockchain reported. Notably, daily trading volume on May 18 reached $5.781 billion. This surge was led by GMTrade, which recorded approximately $4.9 billion in trading volume over the past 24 hours.

About 10% of U.S. adults used or held cryptocurrency last year, according to a survey by the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed). The figure is an increase from 7% in 2024 and marks the highest level since 2022. The survey also found that 7% of respondents held crypto for investment purposes last year. Ownership and usage rates were notably higher among adults under the age of 45 and in households with median or higher incomes. The findings suggest that market trust, which had contracted following the collapse of several crypto exchanges, is recovering amid growing institutional participation and improving market conditions.