Payment giant Mastercard announced it has acquired BVNK, a UK-based fintech startup developing stablecoin infrastructure, for $1.8 billion. The acquisition is considered one of the biggest moves by traditional financial companies into the digital asset and stablecoin space. BVNK offers stablecoin payment services in over 130 countries worldwide and holds payment licenses in numerous countries.
Key points: Bitcoin is at a critical juncture, as a close below $76,000 may deepen the pullback toward $70,000. $HYPE and $ZEC are in an up move, but most other major altcoins are struggling to find support. Bitcoin ($BTC) has risen above $77,500, but the recovery is expected to face resistance in the $78,500-$82,000 range.
The number of unique holders of tokenized exchange-traded funds (ETFs) surged 11,803% year over year (YoY) to an all-time high (ATH) on May 20. As of press time, the number of tokenized ETF holders was about 44,400, up from 373 a year ago, according to metrics from Token Terminal analyzed by Finbold. Consequently, the unique
The US government has frozen nearly $500 million in cryptocurrency linked to Iran, with the bulk of that haul, some $344 million, seized in just the past month. The crackdown is part of a broader campaign called “Operation Economic Fury,” aimed at cutting off Tehran’s ability to use digital assets to dodge sanctions. Treasury Secretary
NHN KCP, one of South Korea’s largest payment gateway providers, has launched a pilot project aimed at accelerating the commercialization of stablecoin payments as competition grows to build blockchain-based payment infrastructure. The company announced today it is conducting a proof of concept with Payco, a mobile payment app that competes with Naver Pay and Kakao
Nvidia just went from shipping $4.6 billion worth of its most advanced AI chips to China to shipping exactly none. Zero. In a single quarter. The company’s CFO confirmed that no data center Hopper architecture shipments reached China this quarter, a jaw-dropping decline from approximately $4.6 billion in Q1 2026. For a company that has
Tether’s $USDT has expanded by over $5 billion in the past month, with competing stablecoins including $USDC, $USDe, and $PYUSD shedding a combined $4.2 billion over the same period. Key Takeaways: Tether’s $USDT supply grew by over $5 billion, reaching approximately $189.7 billion. $USDC, $USDe, and $PYUSD lost a combined $4.2 billion as net stablecoin
OpenAI is barreling toward what could be one of the most consequential IPOs in tech history. The company could be valued at as much as $850 billion, a number that makes the governance questions feel less like academic exercises and more like material risks for future shareholders. The conflict-of-interest questions Republican state attorneys general from
Crypto investment firm Capriole Investments is sounding the alarm on elevated inflation, warning that every historical instance of inflation reaching current levels has been followed by an average market crash of 30% over the next one to 24 months. Key Takeaways: Capriole Investments warns every inflation spike to current levels has triggered a 30% average
Bitcoin experienced volatile, range-bound trading, repeatedly struggling to sustain a breakout above $77,000. After a midnight surge from $76,700 to $77,200, it hit an intraday high of $77,604 before stabilizing around $77,500. Key Takeaways: Bitcoin fluctuated around $77,500 after a sharp midnight breakout from the $76,700 level. The total crypto economy climbed by over $20