Fed Governor Waller: The Fed’s balance sheet could be reduced by $300 billion to $500 billion.
On May 22, Federal Reserve Governor Waller stated that given the growing risks of inflation, further interest rate cuts should no longer be the default plan; the current stance is to keep interest rates stable in the short term.
If inflation expectations become unanchored, interest rate hikes will be necessary. Additionally, the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet could be reduced by $300 billion to $500 billion.
[PANews]
Polymarket private key leak incident has frozen $164,000.
PANews, May 22: According to Josh Stevens, Engineering Vice President at Polymarket, $164,000 has been frozen in the Polymarket private key leak incident, with assistance from ZachXBT, BitcoinVN, and ChangeNOW—representing approximately 28.6% of the total $573,200 transferred.
Josh stated that this incident did not impact Polymarket or UMA smart contracts; user funds remain secure, and platform operations continue normally. The investigation revealed that the incident originated from a private key—used for internal deposit configurations—that had existed for roughly six years and was subsequently leaked, resulting in continuous fund transfers to the affected address.
Relevant teams are currently continuing to trace the flow of the remaining stolen funds.
[PANews]
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson: No Agreement Imminent
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that the differences between Iran and the United States are deep and significant, and there is no agreement imminent.
[Odaily]
U.S. President Trump: Waller will limit the Fed’s forward guidance practices
US President Trump: Walsh will limit the Federal Reserve’s forward guidance practices.
[Odaily]
LayerZero partners with Superset to launch the cross-chain stablecoin FX settlement layer
On May 22, the cross-chain protocol LayerZero and Superset are building Superset FX Layer, an on-chain foreign exchange (FX) infrastructure for institutional clients.
[PANews]
Federal Reserve Chair Walsh: Will Lead a Reform-Oriented Federal Reserve
Federal Reserve Chair Walsh: Will lead a reform-oriented Federal Reserve.
[Jin10]
Zcash upgrade trio targets 300% speed boost via NU7
The Zcash upgrade roadmap includes three advances targeting a 300% speed boost as ZEC gained 73% in a month. The Zcash Foundation outlined a three-pronged technical roadmap building toward NU7, its ninth planned network upgrade.
The SEC also closed its investigation into the Zcash Foundation on May 20 with no enforcement action, removing a major regulatory overhang. NU7 is planned to introduce Zcash Shielded Assets, allowing user-defined tokens within shielded pools with full Zcash-grade privacy, alongside a Network Sustainability Mechanism that modernises fee mechanics.
Community sentiment polling found more than 90% support among ZCAP members and coinholders for Project Tachyon and Orchard Quantum Recoverability as NU7 priorities. The first NU7 testnet, doubling shielded TPS and reducing block times from 75 to 25 seconds, is live.
Project Tachyon scales Zcash’s shielded throughput using proof-carrying wallets and oblivious synchronisation, targeting thousands of transactions per second. The upgrade removes runaway state growth for validators, eliminating the rising marginal cost that currently limits Zcash’s scale.
FROST v3 brings flexible threshold signatures to Zcash shielded transactions with cheater detection enabled by default and stronger memory protection. The Foundation expects FROST v3 and ZIP-312 finalised in 2026 as part of the Z3 stack integrating Zebra, Zaino, and Zallet with built-in Tor support.
ZEC’s 73% monthly gain coincides with growing market attention to quantum-resistant protocols. Zcash’s zero-knowledge proof technology, which now underpins major Ethereum layer-2 networks, is being re-rated as infrastructure rather than speculation.
The NU7 upgrade includes Orchard Quantum Recoverability, enabling recovery pathways for keys that might become vulnerable to future quantum hardware. Citi’s analysis found a quantum attack on major financial institutions could put $2 to $3.3 trillion of GDP at risk. NU7’s quantum recovery component positions Zcash as one of the few protocols actively preparing for that scenario.
[Crypto.news]
Fed Governor Waller: Has not discussed policy with Fed Chairman nominee Wash
Federal Reserve Governor Waller said: Has not discussed policy with Federal Reserve Chairman nominee Wash.
[Golden Ten Data]
Fed Chair Powell: Thank you, U.S. President Trump—we are at a critical moment.
Federal Reserve Chairman Walsh: Thank you, U.S. President Trump. We are at an important moment.
[Odaily]
沃什 sworn in as Federal Reserve Chairman
On May 23, Kevin Warsh was sworn in as Chairman of the Federal Reserve.
[PANews]
Trump: Walsh to limit the Fed’s forward guidance practices
U.S. President Trump stated that Walsh would limit the Federal Reserve’s forward guidance practices.
[Foresight News]
Trump: Wach will restrict the Fed’s forward guidance practices
May 23 news, US President Trump said at the inauguration ceremony of Warrick as Chairman of the Federal Reserve: Warrick will limit the Federal Reserve’s forward guidance practices.
[PANews]
Bitfire stablecoin push deepens despite 19x loss widening
Bitfire stablecoin ambitions are accelerating even as the Hong Kong crypto firm posts a HK$245 million half-year loss. Bitfire reported a profit warning on May 21 disclosing a net loss of up to HK$245 million ($31.28 million) for the six months through March 2026. The loss is nearly 19 times larger than the HK$12.3 million recorded in the same period a year earlier.
The company blamed the widening loss primarily on a HK$152 million value decline on held crypto assets. Rising expenses tied to professional services, customer capabilities and research and development also contributed to the shortfall.
Bitfire CEO 翁晓奇 attended the 9th World Finance Forum Annual Meeting on May 21, sharing his latest thoughts on [Web3 with integrated AI will become the digital financial base of the new era], and for the first time put forward the future vision of “Web4”:… pic.twitter.com/BCl2J4Y3xD
Bitfire CEO Livio Weng has described stablecoins as a “core pillar” of Hong Kong’s Web3 ecosystem and said the firm will prioritise integrating compliant Hong Kong stablecoins into its clearing and settlement systems. The company has onboarded hundreds of institutional and ultra-high-net-worth clients since its August 2025 strategic upgrade, all of whom have expressed demand for stablecoin access.
Hong Kong’s HKMA awarded its first batch of stablecoin issuer licences in April 2026, with approval granted only to HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank. That restricted rollout positions Bitfire as a potential integration partner for compliant stablecoins rather than an issuer itself. Bitfire operates under SFC Types 1, 4, and 9 licences plus a Trust and Company Service Provider licence.
Hong Kong’s regulatory framework creates a compliance-bounded market that larger global exchanges cannot easily enter. Bitfire’s positioning as a licensed virtual asset manager serving institutional clients gives it a structural advantage in introducing compliant stablecoins to that client base.
Bitfire’s spending blitz on professional services and R&D suggests it is building infrastructure to service institutional stablecoin demand that cannot yet be fully captured under Hong Kong’s restricted rollout pace.
[Crypto.news]
Today’s Market Pulse
Fed policy uncertainty and hawkish shifts dominate as new leadership signals reduced balance sheet and limited forward guidance, creating headwinds for risk assets while protocol upgrades highlight continued innovation in the crypto ecosystem.
Key Themes
Federal Policy Uncertainty: Fed Governor Waller signaled potential balance sheet reduction of $300B-$500B and no rate cuts as a default, while newly appointed Chair Trump intends to limit forward guidance practices. This hawkish pivot reflects growing inflation concerns and reduces market liquidity expectations. Near-term, this could pressure risk-on assets including cryptocurrencies as the Fed signals a less accommodative stance.
Protocol Development and Security: Zcash‘s NU7 upgrade targeting 300% speed boost and quantum-resistant features, alongside LayerZero‘s institutional FX settlement layer, demonstrate continued technical advancement despite the Polymarket security incident freezing $164k. These developments highlight the ecosystem’s resilience and increasing institutional adoption pathways, particularly for privacy-focused and cross-chain infrastructure.
Stablecoin Evolution and Regulatory Boundaries: Bitfire‘s accelerating stablecoin ambitions amid widening losses contrast with Hong Kong’s restrictive licensing granted only to HSBC and Standard Chartered. This divergence between regulatory constraints and private sector innovation suggests a compliance-bounded market structure emerging, potentially creating opportunities for licensed intermediaries while limiting direct competition.
RichSilo Verdict
Smart money should monitor Fed policy implementation nuances, particularly the pace of balance sheet reduction and any communication changes under new leadership. The Zcash upgrade’s quantum-resistant features could become a differentiator as regulatory scrutiny intensifies. Meanwhile, institutional adoption of stablecoins via licensed providers like Bitfire may accelerate despite current profitability challenges, creating asymmetric opportunities in compliant infrastructure providers as regulatory clarity improves globally.
