BlackRock increased its holdings in Strategy by 3.14 million shares, raising its total stake to 17.75 million shares.
According to BitcoinTreasuries.NET, BlackRock has newly purchased 3.14 million shares of Strategy, a Bitcoin reserve company, valued at approximately $535.6 million.
BlackRock currently holds a total of 17.75 million shares of Strategy, valued at approximately $3.02 billion, representing a 21.5% increase from its previous position.
[ChainCatcher]
David Schwartz rejects XRP meme coin investment hype after FUZZY rumors
Ripple CTO Emeritus David Schwartz pushed back against XRP community claims around meme coins after users urged him to support the FUZZY project. Schwartz said the idea of treating meme coins as serious investments felt “distasteful.”
Meanwhile, the comment came during an X discussion about FUZZY and broader meme coin speculation. Schwartz did not reject community humor around such tokens. His concern centered on users treating meme coins as investment products and using his public profile to support that view.
The debate grew after Schwartz opened a technical trust line for FUZZY. Some XRP holders viewed the move as a signal because the token name refers to the old Fuzzybear wallet from the early XRP Ledger period. Schwartz later rejected that reading, stating that adding a token to a wallet was a routine technical step for testing, not a signal to buy the asset. He also said he knew no more about FUZZY than a normal observer.
Moreover, the warning comes as XRP users face more scams across social media. On May 14, Schwartz warned XRPL users about fake airdrops and giveaways, noting a “huge escalation lately” in scams targeting XRP users. Ripple has also warned users about fake Telegram accounts and fake executive profiles where scammers often copy branding and use edited videos to push fake XRP giveaways.
The debate also comes during a busy period for XRP markets. XRP Ledger activity rose after XRP briefly moved above $1.54 for the first time in two months, with active addresses reaching 48,453, the highest level since March 30. Spot XRP ETFs also drew fresh demand with $60.50 million in weekly net inflows, the strongest week since late December 2025. That higher market attention can give meme coin rumors more reach, making clear public warnings more important for XRP holders.
[crypto.news]
BlackRock ETF address deposited 2,221 BTC and 26,572 ETH to Coinbase, worth approximately $227.00 million.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, the BlackRock ETF address deposited 2,221 BTC (worth approximately $171.00 million) and 26,572 ETH (worth approximately $56.17 million) to Coinbase.
[Foresight News]
Binance will launch the CBRSUSDT perpetual contract on May 19, based on Cerebras Systems.
Binance Futures will launch the CBRSUSDT traditional asset perpetual contract based on the spot price of Cerebras Systems Inc. (Nasdaq code: CBRS) at 17:30 (UTC+8) on May 19.
The contract supports a maximum leverage of 10x and is settled in USDT.
[PANews]
Verus: Network has been suspended; vulnerability bounty offered to suppliers who fully repay funds.
Verus disclosed on its official Discord that the Verus-Ethereum cross-chain bridge was attacked at 23:55 UTC on May 17, 2026. The attacker transferred assets—including Ethereum, USDC, and tBTC—from the Ethereum smart contract. Subsequently, the Verus network halted operations, and most block-producing nodes voluntarily went offline to prevent further spread of the attack.
The project team stated that its development team is investigating the attack vector and the scale of losses. It added that if the attacker fully returns the stolen funds, a bug bounty will be offered and no further legal action will be pursued. Meanwhile, the official team warned that any private messages offering a “compensation plan” are scams—users should not engage with such messages.
[PANews]
Bitcoin Gets the Headlines, But Iran’s IRGC Runs on Something Else: Chainalysis
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps controls “an overwhelmingly large share” of Iran’s entire crypto economy, according to Kaitlin Martin, Senior Intelligence Analyst at Chainalysis. The newly reported Strait of Hormuz toll system appears to mark the latest expansion of Iran’s broader crypto integration efforts. Yet, behind Iran’s expanding footprint, stablecoins, not Bitcoin (BTC), appear to be doing most of the heavy lifting.
In an interview with BeInCrypto, Martin said Iran has developed a “vibrant” cryptocurrency economy as a result of sweeping international sanctions that have limited access to major global exchanges. She said that domestic Iranian crypto exchanges have seen significant growth and high trading volumes in recent years. While cryptocurrency adoption continues to expand across Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps remains the dominant force in the country’s digital asset economy.
Martin noted the IRGC accounted for nearly 50% of Iran’s total crypto activity in the fourth quarter of 2025. Still, Martin emphasized that the headline number understates the picture. The $3 billion figure for 2025 is a lower-bound estimate based solely on publicly available data.
As Iran’s crypto economy grows, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps appears to be leaning heavily on stablecoins. Martin highlighted that sanctions records and seizure orders provide extensive insight into how Iran uses crypto. She noted that the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has sanctioned multiple wallets linked to IRGC-linked actors. At the same time, the National Bureau for Counter-Terror Financing of Israel has seized more than 100 related wallets, all of which used stablecoins.
Martin said regulatory filings also show Iran using stablecoins for trade and procurement at scale. Although issuers can freeze such assets, she explained that their dollar peg and ability to facilitate rapid cross-border payments make them attractive for a heavily sanctioned economy with limited access to global dollar liquidity.
The IRGC’s tracked footprint grew from $2 billion to $3 billion in a single year. With the Hormuz toll now reportedly operational, that trajectory may accelerate. The structural question is sharper. When a sanctioned paramilitary group becomes a dominant player in a national crypto economy and starts pricing its own access to global trade routes in Bitcoin, the line between the military and a financial institution blurs.
[BeInCrypto]
Hana Bank’s $668M Dunamu bet sparks Korea banking rule check
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission is reviewing Hana Bank’s plan to buy a 6.55% stake in Dunamu, the operator of Upbit. The regulator is checking whether the deal falls under rules that separate banks from commercial businesses. While Hana Bank is buying the shares from Kakao Investment rather than directly from Dunamu, an FSC official stated the deal maintains the same nature as a direct investment and is being evaluated under the same standard.
The review centers on South Korea’s “banking-commerce separation” approach, which limits banks from holding certain non-financial business interests. Crypto exchange operators occupy a sensitive area, as they are not treated like ordinary financial firms under current regulations. Since 2017, supervisory guidance has restricted financial companies from buying, holding, pledging, or investing in virtual assets and related exchange stakes, and authorities have indicated they are not directly easing these rules at this stage.
Regarding the financial details, Hana Bank recently agreed to purchase Kakao Investment’s 6.55% Dunamu stake in a transaction worth 1 trillion won, or about $700 million. Following the sale, Kakao Investment’s holding will fall to 4.03%, while Hana will become Dunamu’s fourth-largest shareholder. The transaction is expected to close on June 15, providing Hana with direct exposure to South Korea’s largest crypto exchange operator.
This move occurs as major Korean finance and technology groups increase their involvement in crypto businesses. The deal coincides with Dunamu’s planned merger with Naver Financial, which is still undergoing regulatory review; that all-stock deal was previously valued at 15.13 trillion won. Upbit currently dominates the local market, handling more than 80% of South Korea’s virtual asset trading volume.
Meanwhile, South Korea is preparing new rules for tokenized securities. The FSC plans to release detailed guidelines in July, ahead of the implementation of amended laws scheduled for February 2027.
[iNews24]
An Anchorage-related address purchased 397,000 HYPE from an exchange, worth approximately $18.00 million.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, an Anchorage Digital-associated address purchased 397,000 HYPE tokens from Bybit and OKX, valued at approximately $18 million.
Over the past month, this wallet has accumulated a total of 2.13 million HYPE tokens, valued at approximately $91.99 million.
[Foresight News]
Verus: The network is currently suspended; a bug bounty will be offered if the attacker returns the funds.
Verus announced on X that the Verus-Ethereum cross-chain bridge had been attacked, resulting in the theft of ETH, USDC, and tBTC from the Ethereum chain’s smart contract. Other bridged assets remain unaffected for now. The Verus network has been suspended; most block-producing nodes have voluntarily gone offline following secondary impacts from the attack. The development team is urgently investigating the scope of the incident, the attack vector, and potential remediation measures, and will release updates once further information is confirmed.
Verus stated it is willing to cooperate with relevant law enforcement agencies to pursue legal liability; however, if the attacker fully returns the stolen funds, the project team is prepared to offer a bug bounty and will not pursue further accountability.
Verus also warned that anyone claiming—via public channels, direct messages, or other means—to be a member of the Verus team or community and offering “compensation” or a “reimbursement plan” is fraudulent. The official team emphasized that users must not engage with anyone claiming to administer a compensation program or offer reimbursement, and should immediately report such accounts to Discord or X.
Earlier reports indicated that the Verus Ethereum cross-chain bridge was attacked, resulting in losses of approximately $11.58 million.
[Odaily]
BlackRock Deposits 2,221 BTC and 26,572 ETH to Coinbase
PANews reported on May 18 that BlackRock deposited 2,221 BTC into Coinbase, worth approximately $171.00 million.
In addition, BlackRock also deposited 26,572 ETH, worth approximately $56.17 million.
[Onchain Lens]
Strategy spent $2.01 billion last week to increase its BTC holdings by 24,869 coins.
Michael Saylor posted on X that Strategy purchased 24,869 Bitcoins last week for approximately $2.01B, at an average price of approximately $80,985.00.
As of May 17, 2026, Strategy holds a total of 843,738 Bitcoins, with a total holding cost of approximately $63.87B and an average price of approximately $75,700.00. The year-to-date BTC yield in 2026 is 12.60%.
[ChainCatcher]
Binance will launch the CBRSUSDT perpetual contract on May 19, 2026, with a maximum leverage of 10x.
According to the official announcement, Binance Futures will launch the CBRSUSDT perpetual contract on May 19, 2026, at 09:30 UTC, with a maximum leverage of 10x.
This contract tracks the price of Cerebras Systems Inc. Class A common stock (NASDAQ: CBRS), is settled in USDT, has a minimum order size of 0.01 CBRS, a minimum notional value of $5 USDT, a funding rate cap of +2.00%/-2.00%, and a settlement frequency of once every eight hours.
[Odaily]
Tether invests in LemFi
Tether announces investment in financial platform LemFi.
The investment aims to support LemFi in integrating USDT as a settlement layer in its key channels, enabling near-instant, low-cost settlements in Africa and Asia, and accelerating the construction of LemFi’s stablecoin infrastructure, gradually expanding it to a wider range of product lines.
[Odaily]
Planet Daily
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The open interest in RWA trading on Hyperliquid has surged to $2.6 billion, setting a new all-time high;
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The U.S. House Committee on Agriculture urged President Trump to promptly fill the four vacant seats at the CFTC;
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BlackRock deposited 2,221 BTC and 26,572 ETH into Coinbase, with a total value of approximately $227 million;
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Citigroup: Raised Intel’s target price to $130;
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A 25-year-old AI stock prodigy disclosed Q1 holdings: overweight positions in AI-related power, computing, and mining companies;
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An Anchorage-associated wallet purchased 397,000 HYPE tokens, accumulating over $91 million worth of HYPE in the past month;
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Iranian sources: The new proposal focuses primarily on ending the war and building trust through U.S.-led initiatives;
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Iran established a new agency to manage the Strait of Hormuz;
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Bernstein: The yield compromise clause in the CLARITY Act will strengthen Circle’s competitive advantage;
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Spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Iran is currently focused on ending the war.
Verus: Network has been suspended; willing to offer a bug bounty if the attacker returns the funds.
Verus posted on the X platform confirming that the Verus-Ethereum cross-chain bridge was attacked, and ETH, USDC, and tBTC in the Ethereum chain contract were stolen. Currently, other bridged assets have not been affected. The Verus network is now suspended, and most block-producing nodes have voluntarily gone offline after being affected by the attack. The development team is fully investigating the scope of the incident, the attack path, and subsequent handling plans, and will announce progress after confirming more information.
Verus stated that it is willing to cooperate with relevant law enforcement agencies to pursue legal responsibility; however, if the attacker returns the funds in full, the project team is willing to provide a bug bounty and will not pursue further accountability. Verus also reminded that anyone claiming to be a Verus team or community member and providing “compensation” or “compensation plans” in public channels, private messages, or other channels is a scammer. The official emphasized not to interact with anyone claiming to have a compensation program or offer compensation, and to report relevant accounts to Discord or the X platform in a timely manner.
Previously, the Verus Ethereum cross-chain bridge was attacked, resulting in a loss of approximately $11.58 million.
[ChainCatcher]
CoinShares: Digital asset investment products saw outflows of $1.07B last week, ending a six-week streak of net inflows.
CoinShares released its latest weekly report stating that digital asset investment products saw outflows of $1.07B last week, the first net outflow in seven weeks and the third largest single-week outflow in 2026, with total assets under management falling from $15.9B to $15.7B.
The outflows were mainly driven by risk aversion triggered by the situation in Iran, with the United States contributing $11.4B in outflows. Bitcoin saw outflows of $982.00M, bringing year-to-date cumulative inflows down to $3.9B; Ethereum saw outflows of $249.00M, the largest single-week outflow since January 30; and blockchain stock ETFs saw outflows of $133.00M.
Altcoins performed relatively well, with XRP seeing inflows of $67.60M, Solana seeing inflows of $55.10M, and TON, SUI, Ondo, Chainlink, and DOGE also recording small inflows. Sentiment in the European market was stable, with Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Canada together seeing inflows of approximately $64.90M.
[Foresight News]
Strategy spent over $2.00 billion last week to increase its holdings by 24,869 Bitcoin.
Strategy increased its holdings by 24,869 Bitcoin between May 11, 2026, and May 17, 2026, with an average purchase price of $80,985.00, for a total investment of approximately $2.01B.
BlackRock deposited 2,221 BTC and 26,572 ETH into Coinbase, with a total value of approximately $227.00 million.
BlackRock deposited 2,221 BTC, worth approximately $170.59 million, and 26,572 ETH, worth approximately $56.17 million, into Coinbase.
[Odaily]
RWA trading open interest on Hyperliquid rises to $2.60B, hitting a new all-time high
Hyperliquid announced on X that the open interest of RWA trading on its platform has reached $2.60 billion, a new all-time high and double the figure from two months ago.
Hyperliquid stated that market demand for 7×24-hour on-chain access to real-world assets (RWA) continues to grow.
[Odaily]
Galxe: Internal key of the legacy contract leaked; user wallets and funds remain unaffected
Galxe tweeted that today a leaked internal key affected the deprecated Galxe SpaceStation V2 contract. The issue is strictly confined to the contract level, and users’ wallets and funds remain unaffected.
Galxe stated that the root cause has been identified and security controls are being updated. A full investigation report will be released later.
[Foresight News]
Today’s Market Pulse
Institutional accumulation continues as BlackRock and Strategy significantly increase Bitcoin and Ethereum holdings, while market sentiment shifts with significant outflows and security incidents affecting specific protocols.
Key Themes
Institutional Accumulation Accelerates
BlackRock has increased its holdings in Strategy by 3.14 million shares, raising its total stake to 17.75 million shares valued at approximately $3.02 billion. The asset manager also deposited 2,221 BTC and 26,572 ETH to Coinbase, worth approximately $227 million. Meanwhile, Strategy purchased 24,869 Bitcoins last week for approximately $2.01B at an average price of $80,985. This demonstrates continued institutional confidence in Bitcoin as both major players significantly increase their exposure, despite recent market volatility.
Security Incidents Highlight Protocol Vulnerabilities
The Verus network has been suspended following an attack on its Ethereum cross-chain bridge, resulting in the theft of ETH, USDC, and tBTC valued at approximately $11.58 million. Most block-producing nodes have voluntarily gone offline to prevent further spread. The project team is offering a bug bounty if the attacker returns the stolen funds. Separately, Galxe reported a leaked internal key affecting a deprecated contract, though user wallets and funds remain unaffected. These incidents underscore the persistent security challenges in DeFi and cross-chain protocols.
Market Sentiment Shifts with Divergent Flows
Digital asset investment products saw outflows of $1.07B last week, ending a six-week streak of net inflows, with Bitcoin experiencing outflows of $982M. However, altcoins showed mixed performance with XRP and Solana recording inflows. Meanwhile, RWA trading open interest on Hyperliquid reached $2.60 billion, a new all-time high, indicating growing demand for real-world asset tokenization. This divergence suggests a rotation from broad crypto exposure to more specific investment themes.
Traditional Finance Deepens Crypto Integration
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission is reviewing Hana Bank’s plan to purchase a 6.55% stake in Dunamu, the operator of Upbit, for approximately $700 million. The regulator is evaluating whether the deal falls under banking-commerce separation rules. In parallel, Tether has invested in financial platform LemFi to integrate USDT as a settlement layer in Africa and Asia. These developments signal increasing traditional finance involvement in crypto infrastructure.
RichSilo Verdict
Smart money should monitor the institutional accumulation patterns, particularly BlackRock’s activities which often signal broader market sentiment shifts. The Verus incident highlights the importance of security audits for cross-chain protocols as institutional capital flows into DeFi. Watch for potential regulatory clarity on banking-commerce separation in South Korea, which could set precedents for traditional finance-crypto integration. The divergence in market flows suggests a maturing market where specific use cases and institutional-grade solutions may outperform broader speculative assets, particularly as RWA tokenization continues to attract capital.
