Washington Bitcoin Plan Clashes with Market Rotation (2026-05-22)

Bitcoin reserve plan gets 20-year lock in new ARMA bill

U.S. lawmakers have introduced ARMA, a new bill that seeks to create a Treasury-run Strategic Bitcoin Reserve with a 20-year holding rule. Rep. Nick Begich introduced the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 alongside co-lead Rep. Jared Golden.

Begich’s office said the bill would create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve within the U.S. Treasury and a separate Digital Asset Stockpile for non-Bitcoin assets held by the federal government. America’s reserves balance sheet is a critical component of our nation’s insurance policy, bolstering our currency and providing assurance during times of uncertainty. Over time, the prevailing sentiment as to what constitutes a durable store of value can shift, and as such it is… pic.twitter.com/7XfBwAWFGi

The bill builds on the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve framework created by executive order in March 2025. That order directed Treasury officials to manage government Bitcoin obtained through forfeiture and other lawful proceedings, while also creating a stockpile for other seized digital assets. ARMA would require Bitcoin held in the reserve to remain there for at least 20 years.

Begich’s office said the bill also protects the right of Americans to own, transfer, and self-custody digital assets. The proposal also calls for quarterly proof-of-reserve reports, third-party audits, congressional oversight, and a full accounting of federal digital asset holdings. It directs a study into budget-neutral acquisition methods that would avoid higher taxes, deficit spending, or new national debt.

Golden said the U.S. already holds Bitcoin but lacks a clear policy for managing it. He said “digital currencies are not the fringe phenomenon they once were,” adding that Congress had not set federal rules for what the government should do with those assets. Begich said ARMA would protect taxpayer interests, support financial sovereignty, and extend private property rights into the digital space. Other supporters framed the bill as a way to stop the government from selling strategic digital assets without a long-term plan.

The bill arrives after renewed White House attention on the reserve. Recent crypto.news coverage noted that Patrick Witt, from the President’s Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, said officials were working through the legal structure needed to manage government-held Bitcoin. Fox Business reported that Begich wants the U.S. to hold about 1 million Bitcoin, equal to roughly 5% of Bitcoin’s fixed supply. The proposal builds on earlier BITCOIN Act language for up to 200,000 BTC a year over five years.

For now, ARMA remains a bill, not law. Its next steps depend on committee action, House support, and Senate alignment with broader crypto legislation. The proposal places Bitcoin reserve policy back in Washington’s crypto debate as lawmakers weigh custody, debt, and property-rights rules.

Whale James Wynn’s 50x SP500 short position faces another partial liquidation

On May 22, according to Onchain Lens monitoring, whale James Wynn was partially liquidated again.

Yesterday, he opened a 50x short position on the SP500; today, he was partially liquidated again, and he still holds this position.

[PANews]

“Whale 1011, who liquidated $230 million,” shorted ZEC and went long BTC, with a total position size exceeding $4,000.

On May 22, according to on-chain analyst AI Auntie(@ai_9684xtpa), the “whale that liquidated $230 million” has just opened a ZEC short position; it currently holds a $1.26 million 3x short position and has placed a limit sell order for $1.22 million worth of ZEC in the price range of $653.58 to $661.40.

Additionally, it holds a $39.21 million BTC long position and $2.49 million worth of HYPE spot (a $407,000 buy order remains unexecuted).

[PANews]

Bitcoin spot ETFs had a total net outflow of $101.00 million yesterday, continuing the net outflow for 5 days.

According to SoSoValue data, Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded a total net outflow of $101 million yesterday (May 21, Eastern Time).

The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest single-day net inflow yesterday was ARKB, the ETF jointly launched by Ark Invest and 21Shares, which saw a net inflow of $2.8287 million. ARKB’s cumulative net inflow to date stands at $1.282 billion.

The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest single-day net outflow yesterday was BlackRock’s ETF IBIT, which recorded a net outflow of $104 million. IBIT’s cumulative net inflow to date stands at $64.842 billion.

As of press time, the total net asset value (NAV) of Bitcoin spot ETFs stood at $10.1058 billion, with the ETF net asset ratio (i.e., the ratio of ETF market cap to Bitcoin’s total market cap) reaching 6.49%. The historical cumulative net inflow has reached $5.7189 billion.

[Odaily]

Data: 1011 whales bought $2.49M worth of HYPE spot, and simultaneously opened a $1.26M ZEC short position.

According to crypto analyst Ai Yi @ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, the “1011 whale” who once liquidated $230.00M currently holds $2.49M worth of HYPE spot, and has approximately $407,000.00 USD in HYPE buy orders that have not yet been filled.

In addition, the address also holds $39.21M worth of BTC long positions, and has opened a 3x leverage ZEC short position worth $1.26M, while placing approximately $1.22M in ZEC limit sell orders in the $653.58 to $661.40 range.

[ChainCatcher]

Bitcoin spot ETFs had a total net outflow of $101.00 million yesterday, continuing the net outflow for 5 days.

According to SoSoValue data, yesterday (May 21st, US Eastern Time), the total net outflow of Bitcoin spot ETFs was $101.00 million.

Yesterday, the Bitcoin spot ETF with the largest single-day net inflow was ARKB, the ETF of Ark Invest and 21Shares, with a single-day net inflow of $2.83 million. Currently, the total historical net inflow of ARKB has reached $1.28 billion.

Yesterday, the Bitcoin spot ETF with the largest single-day net outflow was Blackrock’s ETF IBIT, with a single-day net outflow of $104.00 million. Currently, the total historical net inflow of IBIT has reached $64.84 billion.

[PANews]

Bitcoin and Ethereum options with a notional value of $1.88B expire today

Options delivery data for May 22 shows that 21,000 BTC options are expiring, with a Put Call Ratio of 0.66, a maximum pain point of $78,500.00, and a nominal value of $1.60B; 129,000 ETH options are expiring, with a Put Call Ratio of 0.92, a maximum pain point of $2,200.00, and a nominal value of $280.00M.

Analysis indicates that Bitcoin ended its month-and-a-half-long rebound this week, but the support on the disk is still strong. The market is relatively flat, and market attention is not high. Less than 5.00% of BTC options expire this week, and ETH also has only 5.00% expiring.

[Greeks.live]

Galaxy Digital Founder: SEC Made $1.20B Merger Plan With BitGo Difficult to Complete

Galaxy Digital founder Mike Novogratz said while appearing in Delaware’s Court of Chancery that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made the company’s planned $1.20B merger with BitGo in 2021 extremely difficult. The merger was the largest cryptocurrency merger plan at the time. Galaxy Digital called off the deal in August 2022, and BitGo is demanding that Galaxy Digital pay a $100.00M termination fee for it.

Mike Novogratz said that regulatory approval was unlikely to be achieved and that BitGo lost its right to receive the $100.00M termination fee because it did not provide the required financial information on time. BitGo CEO Mike Belshe said that BitGo had provided all necessary information.

The trial is currently expected to end this week, and the judge will decide whether BitGo should receive the $100.00M fee.

[cointelegraph]

“1011 whale” bought $2.49M HYPE spot, and simultaneously opened a $1.26M ZEC short position.

According to crypto analyst Ai Aunt @ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, the “whale 1011,” which previously suffered a $230 million liquidation, currently holds $2.49 million worth of HYPE spot, plus an additional $407,000 worth of HYPE buy orders that have not yet been executed.

Additionally, this address holds $39.21 million worth of BTC long positions and has opened a 3x-leveraged ZEC short position valued at $1.26 million. It has also placed limit sell orders for approximately $1.22 million worth of ZEC in the price range of $653.58 to $661.40.

[Odaily]

Sources: Polymarket has appointed a representative in Japan and is preparing to lobby the government to approve prediction markets.

According to Bloomberg, sources revealed that Polymarket has appointed a representative in Japan and is preparing to lobby the Japanese government to approve prediction markets.

Currently, Mike Eidlin is leading Polymarket’s business expansion efforts in Japan. Its goal is to obtain Japanese government approval before 2030.

[Foresight News]

Polymarket seeks Japanese government approval, plans to enter the local market before 2030.

Prediction market platform Polymarket is seeking approval from the Japanese government and plans to operate a prediction market business in Japan by 2030. It has already appointed a local representative to carry out lobbying work.

The report stated that Polymarket believes Japan is an important market that has not been fully developed. Due to Japan’s strict regulations on gambling, Polymarket currently blocks Japanese users from participating in prediction market transactions.

According to Japanese criminal law, habitual gambling can be punished with up to three years of imprisonment, and operating a gambling business can be punished with up to five years of imprisonment. A Polymarket spokesperson said that the company has observed “substantial natural interest” from users in Japan and the Asian region, and is continuously evaluating opportunities to expand global market access in a compliant manner.

[Bloomberg]