Growing crypto adoption and a favorable regulatory outlook have VCs on the hunt for liquidity events. New figures from DefiLlama show crypto startups raised more than $4.90 billion in the first quarter of this year, up from $3.62 billion in Q4 2024.

In the past seven days, the tokenized U.S. Treasury bond market expanded by $450 million, with Blackrock's BUIDL capturing 67.33% of that increase. Tokenized Treasuries Jump $450 million In 2025, tokenized Treasury bonds have seen extraordinary expansion, driven by substantial institutional issuances—most notably the Blackrock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) and several peers.

VanEck's NODE ETF received approval for a May 14 launch, featuring 30-60 carefully selected crypto infrastructure companies. The actively managed fund implemented a Cayman Islands structure to bypass SEC restrictions, allowing 25% exposure to digital assets. The strategy provided equity exposure without direct cryptocurrency ownership. The post VanEck's NODE ETF Debuts May 14—30‑Stock Crypto Infrastructure Play With Cayman Tax Twist appeared first on Cryptonews.

Circle announced the launch of its Refund Protocol on April 17, introducing a non-custodial smart contract system to enable dispute resolution for stablecoin transactions without relying on centralized intermediaries. The initiative addresses what it labels as a key shortcoming of using stablecoins, which is the lack of a built-in mechanism for refunds or chargebacks.

A widely followed analyst says that the crypto markets may be on the verge of an explosive breakout due to one key factor.

Crypto's most notorious criminals share a common link: They rely on a small clique of underground Chinese bankers to survive, new research shows.

Despite Bitcoin's resilience, broader crypto markets show cracks amid weak funding and bearish indicators.

As crypto matures and global adoption grows, focus is shifting away from hype and toward real utility. Inflation, outdated remittance systems, and a rising demand for decentralized services are pushing people to rethink the value in crypto.

The following article is adapted from The Block's newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

Zhejiang province became the latest testing ground for China's digital yuan as authorities rolled out a retail-focused pilot program. The central bank's digital currency underwent real-world testing across various commercial settings, positioning China ahead in the global CBDC race while officials gathered critical data before deciding on nationwide implementation. The post China's Zhejiang Launches Retail Digital Yuan Pilot—Nationwide Rollout Next? appeared first on Cryptonews.

Richard Kim, founder of Zero Edge, a defunct “crypto casino,” was arrested and subsequently released on bail in a federal securities fraud case. After an arrest on Tuesday, Kim posted a $250,000 bond using $100,000 in cash as collateral.

Former Wall Street executive Richard Kim has been arrested and charged with wire fraud and securities fraud for allegedly misappropriating over $4 million from investors in a blockchain-based online casino startup called ZeroEdge.

Velora will leverage the Across Protocol to enable users to swap assets across major chains with a single transaction.

In 2025, the crypto universe looks like a movie scene where the same actors return, despite expectations of a new script. According to CoinGecko, AI tokens and memecoins still capture 62.8% of investors' attention in the first quarter.

Self-custody provider Safe laid off 14 staff members as part of a strategic overhaul following a $1.43B Bybit theft linked to their compromised systems. The company divided operations into three units: a revenue-focused product company, R&D lab, and ecosystem foundation to address complexity issues. The post Safe Axes 14 Staff as $1.43B Bybit Hack Fallout Triggers Radical Reorg appeared first on Cryptonews.

The world's sixth-largest crypto exchange by daily trading volume is now accessible to the American market. In a statement, OKX says that it is accelerating its expansion in the US with the official launch of its centralized exchange and web3 wallet in the country.

The steep decline in crypto valuations and a breakdown of key technical indicators may signal the start of a new bear market for digital assets, according to a new report from Coinbase.

Richard Kim, the founder of crypto casino Zero Edge, was arrested on Tuesday following allegations that he had gambled away investors' funds.

We're coming up on 14 years since Satoshi Nakamoto's last-known correspondence — an email to early Bitcoin developer Mike Hearn saying that he'd “moved on to other things.”

A recently released DOJ memo marks a significant policy change and could have ramifications for cryptocurrency cases, sources say.

MEXC Ventures partnered with Korea University to create the $30M IgniteX Fund, which will support Web3 talent through scholarships, hackathons and development programs. The five-year initiative focused on decentralized infrastructure, AI-blockchain integration, stablecoins, and fintech solutions while building a sustainable blockchain ecosystem. The post MEXC Unveils $30M IgniteX Fund: 5-Year Web3 Talent Rush with Korea University appeared first on Cryptonews.

The hackers deploy stealthy info stealing malware during the recruitment process.

What if the first entry point into Web3 didn't require a wallet, a white paper, or even prior knowledge of crypto? That's the bet behind Startup Warriors, a new reality show launched by XFounders, which merges startup acceleration with mass entertainment.

WalletConnect's $WCT token experienced price volatility following its April 15 launch, climbing from $0.40 to $0.63 before dropping over 30%. Founder Pedro Gomes defended the token as essential for the protocol's growth while technical analysis revealed a bearish head and shoulders pattern, with support levels around $0.35-$0.36. The post $WCT Peaks at $0.63, Slides 30%—Is Web3's “Visa” Token in Trouble? appeared first on Cryptonews.

Opinion by: Alexander Guseff, founder and CEO of Tectum Crypto companies have spent years pushing digital wallets and exchange apps, convinced they'll bring financial inclusion to the world. Here's the reality: 1.4 billion people remain unbanked, and crypto adoption has barely exceeded 8%.

A viral Base token soared to millions, then crashed in minutes, triggering confusion across Coinbase's Layer 2.

The security of crypto self-custody remains a pressing concern, especially with increasing cases of lost funds and compromised wallets. While traditional hardware wallets rely on seed phrases, frequent firmware updates, and hardware interfaces like screens and buttons, Tangem proposes a fundamentally different approach: fixed firmware, no seed phrases, and minimalistic hardware.

Blocksquare and Vera Capital are launching a $1 billion effort to bring U.S. real estate on-chain.

AERGO price has fallen 63% in the past 24 hours following a series of controversial actions by the Binance exchange. The significant drop comes after AERGO recorded a 248.1% gain over the past 14 days, a period during which it was one of the market's top performers.

VanEck is bringing an actively-managed exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking digital asset stocks to the market after receiving approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Cryptocurrency and equities markets entered a “new phase of the trade war, amid ongoing tariff escalations between the United States and China. Global trade war concerns intensified on April 15 after the White House published a fact sheet announcing that Chinese imports would be hit with tariffs of up to 245%.

Documentary creators collected nearly $2M in cryptocurrency within days for 'Vitalik: An Ethereum Story,' while thriller 'Cold Wallet' received backing through democratic funding platforms. These crypto funded films established direct connections with audiences through NFTs and token-based communities, generating revenue streams previously unavailable to independent creators. The post Indie Filmmakers Raise $2M in 72 Hours — How Crypto is Revolutionizing Hollywood appeared first on Cryptonews.

A new survey by Ramp Network, a crypto on-ramp provider, has once again confirmed that security and transparency concerns are the chief obstacles to mainstream cryptocurrency adoption.

In the last 24 hours, the crypto COMBO has recorded one of the best performances in the crypto market, marking an increase of over 70%, reaching the price of 0.03572 dollars. Making this rally even more interesting is the impressive jump in trading volumes: an increase of 581.66%, with a daily volume reaching 8.32 million dollars.

MEXC Ventures, an investment arm of crypto exchange MEXC, launches a $30 million initiative under its CSR program “IgniteX” to support Web3 talents and drive innovation across the crypto ecosystem. Announced on Wednesday, the five-year commitment is part of the company's broader CSR strategy and will support blockchain education, developer training, and startup acceleration.

South Korean traders slowed down their activity in Q1, switching to BTC and KRW as safer assets.

Ramp Network's latest user study finds fear of scams and fraud blocks new crypto adopters. Platforms must lead with transparency to win user trust.

Bitcoin liquid staking platform Lombard Finance launches LBTC SDK, a production-ready toolkit enabling wallets, exchanges, mining pools, and DeFi platforms to easily integrate Bitcoin staking and LBTC minting. The post Lombard Finance Reveals BTC-DeFi Integration Toolkit, Bybit and Binance Already In appeared first on Cryptonews.

A historic turning point has been recorded in the world of digital finance: for the first time, stablecoin have surpassed Visa in annualized transaction volume. This event marks a significant turning point for the entire cryptocurrency ecosystem and opens up new scenarios on the evolution of the payment system.

A brand new Play 2 Earn game is set for launch this month, realizing Trump's Monopoly-inspired idea.

Canada Crypto Week returns for its fifth year, running May 11–17, 2025, bringing international attention to the city. Anchored by two global conferences: Consensus & Blockchain Futurist Conference, this week-long celebration will transform Toronto into a global hub for crypto, AI, and Web3.

NodeOps, the decentralized infrastructure platform, has officially launched its Staking Hub — a feature designed to simplify participation in Proof-of-Stake (PoS) ecosystems and streamline reward generation for users. The Staking Hub provides a unified, user-friendly interface that allows token holders to stake assets across various blockchain networks.

The crypto market is poised for a significant rally as President Donald Trump criticized Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's interest rate cut plans. The President's approach to cryptocurrencies, coupled with these recent comments on the Fed's monetary policy, has sparked enthusiasm within the crypto community.

We've talked a lot about where venture capital stands in crypto right now. I had the chance to catch up with Dragonfly's Rob Hadick and pick his brain about the industry, VCs and, of course, stablecoins.

Bybit is shutting down more of its Web3 services after axing its non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace earlier in April.According to an April 16 announcement, the exchange is shutting down its Cloud Wallet (a hosted custodial wallet​), Keyless Wallet (non‑custodial multiparty computation wallet with no seed phrase​), NFT marketplace, multi‑chain decentralized exchange (DEX)​ DEX Pro and the Swap & Bridge cross‑chain swap widget​ on May 31. Source: Bybit Web3 On April 28, 2025, Bybit will also discontinue Web3 Points, its internal loyalty program that rewarded onchain activity with redeemable points for fee discounts, airdrop boosts and early-bird perks.

TL;DR Several Bitcoin mining companies rushed to move equipment from Asia to avoid tariffs of up to 36% imposed by Trump. Sealion Cargo coordinated urgent shipments worth $330 million, with routes from Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Batam to the U.S. Although the U.S.

Leading Web3 Marketing, PR & Events agency, EAK Digital, has announced one of its biggest events, DefaiCon Dubai 2025, taking place on the 29th of April, dedicated to exploring the intersection of DeFi, AI, and AI Agents.

Something big just happened in crypto – and it might be the spark that sets off the next frenzy for meme coins. OKX, one of the largest global crypto exchanges, is expanding into the US market.