Decentral Block Post

California Representative Maxine Waters, ranking member of the US House Financial Services Committee, has announced plans to introduce legislation “to block [Donald] Trump’s memecoin and stop his crypto corruption.”

In a May 22 notice, Waters said the Stop Trading, Retention, and Unfair Market Payoffs (TRUMP) in Crypto Act of 2025 bill would be aimed at blocking the US president, vice president, members of Congress and their families from engaging in “crypto crime.” The US lawmaker referred to Trump and his wife, Melania, issuing personal memecoins in January, his family launching a stablecoin, USD1, through the crypto platform World Liberty Financial, and the president attempting to establish a national Bitcoin (BTC) reserve as his sons back a BTC mining venture.

“Donald Trump is preparing to dine with the top donors of his memecoin who’ve made him, and his family, richer,” said Waters, adding:

“Trump’s crypto con is not just a scam to target investors. It’s also a dangerous backdoor for selling influence over American policies to the highest foreign bidder.”HR 3573, Stop TRUMP in Crypto Act of 2025, introduced by Rep. Maxine Waters. Source: House Financial Services Committee Democrats

Waters’ bill was one of many actions announced to oppose the president’s dinner to reward memecoin holders. Senators Chris Murphy and Elizabeth Warren are expected to attend a press event with representatives for the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, and two Democratic organizations are set to protest at the Trump National Golf Club outside Washington, DC, where the memecoin dinner will be held.

Majority of participants have stayed anonymous ahead of dinner

The number and names of attendees to the May 22 dinner were still largely unknown, but several revealed their intentions through social media and news outlets to apply for background checks and meet the president. Bloomberg reported that more than half of the participants eligible for the dinner and “VIP Tour” — a separate experience limited to the top 25 memecoin holders — were likely foreign nationals.

Key points:

Mixed results for US jobless claims fail to dent risk-asset enthusiasm.

Despite concerns over the bond market, Bitcoin and stocks enjoy stability at the start of the Wall Street trading session.

BTC price expectations remain lofty amid low volatility and a curious lack of profit-taking.

Bitcoin (BTC) focused on $111,000 around the May 22 Wall Street open as record highs met mixed US unemployment data.

Key takeaways:

Bitcoin’s rally to new price highs happened as funding rates and trading sentiment remained unusually subdued.

Rising stablecoin supply and global M2 growth indicate untapped liquidity and the potential for further price increases.

Long-term holders are not aggressively selling, reflecting their expectation for continued Bitcoin price appreciation.

Bitcoin (BTC) hit a new all-time high on May 21, with prices rising to $111,860 on Binance on May 22, but the markets lack the state of frenzy associated with new highs. Economist and crypto commentator Alex Krüger noted that “this is the least euphoric new all-time highs” for Bitcoin, after highlighting subdued funding rates for Bitcoin across crypto exchanges.

DeLorean launched an onchain reservation system and non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace for its upcoming electric vehicle launch, introducing a new blockchain-based approach for reserving and reselling cars.

According to DeLorean, its Build Slot NFT collection grants holders priority access to purchase DeLorean’s upcoming electric car, Alpha 5 EV. The model is the carmaker’s first vehicle in over 40 years, inspired by the iconic flux capacitor from the movie Back to the Future.

The company created an exclusive marketplace for its NFT holders, in which users can buy or trade the NFTs using the USDC (USDC) stablecoin on the Sui network and will be able to earn rewards.

DeLorean says that each vehicle’s history and performance data will be recorded onchain through the FLUX protocol, including key data such as battery health, maintenance records, accident history, and verified odometer readings. 

This detailed data makes it easier for auto enthusiasts to bid on or resell vehicles in the secondary market, the company said.

Opinion by: Ahmad Shadid of O.xyz

Semiconductors scored a rare exemption from US President Donald Trump’s aggressive reciprocal tariffs, but the relief is symbolic at best. Most semiconductors enter the US embedded in servers, GPUs, laptops, and smartphones. 

The finished goods remain heavily tariffed, some with duties reaching up to 49%. The exemption looks good politically but delivers little practical benefit. Nvidia’s DGX systems, crucial for training advanced AI models, do not fall under the exempted HTS codes. Nvidia could pay effective tariffs nearing 40% on these vital components. Such costs threaten to stall critical AI infrastructure projects across the country. 

Semiconductor tariffs may compromise the goal of the CHIPS Act. The act promised tens of billions of dollars in subsidies to support domestic chip manufacturing. Yet advanced lithography machines — key equipment from countries like the Netherlands and Japan — face 20%–24% tariffs. Ironically, tariffs designed to boost American production increase the cost of essential manufacturing equipment.

The effect of new tariffs is already slowing progress in critical supply chains — just as generative AI and large language models are gaining momentum across sectors like finance and defense. Any delays or cost increases now could blunt America’s technological advantage.

As the question of stablecoin regulation heats up in the US Senate, so has the issue of which members are personally invested in cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency firms.

On May 19, the Senate voted to invoke cloture and move ahead with the GENIUS Act, which would provide a regulatory framework for stablecoins. The measure passed 66-32, with 16 Democrats supporting the bill.

Democratic concerns over corruption and politicians’ ties to cryptocurrency firms made the bipartisan move controversial. After the vote was finished, Colorado Senator Michael Bennet introduced the STABLE GENIUS Act. The bill would prevent members of Congress from issuing or investing in digital currency and require them to put their crypto in a blind trust while in office.

Bills to prevent members of Congress from investing in companies they regulate have had little success. However, lawmakers are still required to disclose rough estimations of their, their spouse’s and their children’s investments. Here are 11 US senators who have invested in crypto firms.

Montana

Tim Sheehy, Republican

Cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) can help investors protect their eroding purchasing power during an era of exponential currency debasement, according to analysts and industry leaders.

Investing in digital assets is becoming increasingly important in the “world of the exponential age and currency debasement,” according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.

“You don’t own enough crypto. When you do, you don’t own enough NFT’s, as art is upstream of wealth. Both will never be this cheap again,” Pal said.

NFTs are “the single best long term store of wealth I know and you get to buy it before network effects kick in,” he added in another response.

Source: Raoul Pal

“There is some validity to the statement that NFTs, and in extension art, become a vehicle for the wealthy once a certain level of wealth is reached,” wrote Nicolai Sondergaard, research analyst at Nansen, calling it a “natural move” for asset diversification.

What if a financial system could run itself not by burning electricity, but by rewarding good behavior? That’s the promise of staking, a mechanism that powers many modern blockchains by turning users into network operators. 

In this week’s episode of The Clear Crypto Podcast, hosts Gareth Jenkinson and Nathan Jeffay sit down with StarkWare’s Noam Nisan to unpack how this trustless engine works, why it matters and what’s really at stake.

Understanding staking

Jeffay began by highlighting how staking is part of the backbone that keeps the blockchain running, and runs itself, with volunteers.

“By doing this, they’re saying, OK, we’re taking this task of running the blockchain seriously. Here's some of our money. We're putting it down. We're showing that we're serious about doing this.”

To help unpack this topic further and examine the deeper mechanics behind staking, the hosts are joined by Noam Nisan, principal researcher at StarkWare and a widely respected computer scientist who has held roles at Google and Princeton.

Related: How to handle crypto trading gains and losses on your balance sheet

Key takeaways:

Memecoins like Fartcoin, WIF, SPX6900, and Popcat are outperforming Bitcoin in the short term amid renewed crypto market euphoria.

Bullish technical patterns signal more upside for top-performing memecoins.

Popcat stands out with a potential 350% rally, while Fartcoin and WIF also eye significant gains in the coming weeks.

Bitcoin (BTC) has surged 7.35% over the past three days, hitting a new all-time high near $112,000 on May 22, but memecoins are stealing the spotlight.

Key takeaways:

XRP price has gained 4% over the last 24 hours to $2.43, and its open interest has risen by 25%.

Positive spot market activity flips the futures funding rate positive, suggesting a return of investor optimism.

XRP could rally to $14 if a classic bull flag pattern is confirmed.

XRP printed a “bull flag” triangle on the weekly chart, a technical pattern associated with strong upward momentum. Breaking above this technical setup and a surge in XRP futures demand could signal a rally to $14.

The United Kingdom’s Court of Appeal partially dismissed a lawsuit brought by Bitcoin SV investors against major crypto exchanges, including Binance, for allegedly conspiring to delist the token in 2019.

In a judgment handed down on May 21, the court ruled that investors who held BSV through the delisting period (classified as “sub-class B”) were not entitled to billions in speculative damages based on BSV’s hypothetical growth.

These investors had claimed over 8.9 billion British pounds ($11.9 billion) in damages, asserting that Binance’s delisting deprived holders of the chance to profit from BSV’s potential rise to a “top-tier cryptocurrency” like Bitcoin (BTC) or Bitcoin Cash (BCH).

The court rejected this “foregone growth effect” theory, stating, “BSV was obviously not a unique cryptocurrency without reasonably similar substitutes,” pointing to the representative’s own use of Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash as comparators.

Sub-class B’s central claim was that delisting led to a missed opportunity to benefit from price appreciation. However, the court determined that those investors had ample opportunity to mitigate losses by selling or reinvesting in other crypto assets.

Update (May 22, 2025, 1:27 pm UTC): This article has been updated to add further data and statements by Hacken.

Cetus, a decentralized exchange (DEX) built on the Sui blockchain, is suspected to have been hit by a massive exploit that may have drained more than $200 million worth of digital assets.

Pseudonymous Web3 researcher COMDARE3 posted on X that “users report” that Sui-based DEX Cetus is being exploited.” They also shared a screenshot of Cetus market data on DEX Screener, showing many assets losing well over half of their value over the last 24 hours.

The team behind Extractor, an onchain monitoring tool developed by crypto cybersecurity company Hacken, confirmed that “at least $63m was already bridged to Ethereum, 20k ETH was just transferred to a fresh wallet” in a single transaction. A Hacken representative told Cointelegraph that these findings were confirmed by the company’s Web3 researcher, Yehor Rudytsia.

Cetus pool data shows that as of the time of writing, the DEX processed $2.9 billion worth of transactions on May 22, a significant increase over the $320 million reported on May 21. This heightened level of activity may have been caused by funds being siphoned out of the protocol.

A crypto trader spent $3.8 million to buy Ether at a significantly higher price after selling the asset for almost the same amount about a month ago. 

On May 22, blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain reported that a crypto wallet spent $3.8 million to purchase 1,425 Ether (ETH) at $2,670 per coin, reentering ETH after a major rally. 

On April 13, the same wallet sold 2,522 ETH for $3.9 million, when the asset was trading at about $1,570, a decision that, in retrospect, looks poorly timed. 

“Think twice before selling your bags,” Lookonchain wrote, highlighting the potential gains if the trader just held on to their Ether instead of selling and repurchasing it at a higher price point. 

Whale buys ETH after selling over a month ago. Source: DeBank

Trader loses out on $2.67 million gain

With ETH up over 70% since the sale, the trader lost out on over 1,000 ETH, or roughly $2.67 million, in the process of buying back in. If the trader had decided to hold on to their Ether, the assets would be worth about $6.7 million. 

Crypto awareness in Singapore has reached an all-time high, with 94% of respondents in a recent survey indicating familiarity with at least one digital asset.

However, ownership declined, falling to 29% in 2025 from 40% the previous year, according to Independent Reserve’s fifth annual Singapore Crypto Market Survey released on May 21.

The survey, conducted in February with 1,500 participants, revealed that men remain more active in crypto investing than women, 35% compared to 24%.

Millennials and Gen X (aged 25–54) dominate the investor base, comprising 71% of all holders. Among those trading at least once a week, 76% fall into this age group.

Related: Singapore’s Grab taps Solana DePIN project Natix to ‘reshape mapping’

The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has selected Avalanche to power its dedicated blockchain network for non-fungible tokens and digital fan engagement, the organization announced on May 22.

FIFA’s layer-1 (L1) blockchain will be powered by the Avalanche network’s scalability-focused infrastructure for the association’s five billion fans worldwide.

The move comes nearly a month after FIFA announced its initial plans to launch a new network for its blockchain-based collectibles. AvaCloud’s Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility will enable smoother integration with decentralized wallets and applications.

Related: Bitcoin hits new all-time high of $109K as trade war tensions ease

The move will enable FIFA to deliver “unique digital collectibles and immersive fan experiences, powered by the speed, scalability, and EVM compatibility,” according to Francesco Abbate, CEO of Modex and FIFA Collect.

The market cap of the world’s first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, surpassed that of retail and tech behemoth Amazon on “Bitcoin Pizza Day.”

Market data shows that Bitcoin (BTC) had a market cap of $2.205 trillion at the time of writing, $70 billion more than the $2.135 trillion Amazon valuation.

“By surpassing Amazon in terms of capitalization, Bitcoin has attracted even more attention from the non-crypto audience,” said Alex Obchakevich, founder of Obchakevich Research.

Obchakevich said the latest rally “will strengthen confidence in Bitcoin and lead to new injections into the crypto market.” The surge came as Bitcoin set a new all-time high and traded above $110,000, which Obchavich said will “attract new investors to large funds.”

Obchakevich noted that institutional players continue to expand their role in the digital asset space:

Key takeaways

ChatGPT-powered AI agents automate trading tasks using natural language prompts and API integrations, improving speed and consistency.

Successes occur when ChatGPT is used as a support tool, not a fully autonomous trading system.

Failures happen when traders over-rely on ChatGPT without real-time data, proper risk management or manual oversight.

Regulatory focus on AI in trading is increasing, with new frameworks emerging to ensure transparency, accountability and compliance.

What if a crypto trader didn’t need to constantly check charts, worry about emotions, or stay up all night watching for sudden price swings? What if those tasks could be handled by an intelligent agent that understands instructions in plain English — and reacts within milliseconds? That’s where ChatGPT-powered AI agents come in.

Travelers using cryptocurrency for booking arrangements spend more than twice as much as regular travelers using fiat money, according to a joint report from Binance Pay and crypto travel platform Travala shared with Cointelegraph.

Crypto-based bookings on Travala reached $80 million in 2024, up from $45 million the year before. Crypto travelers are also outspending their fiat counterparts, with an average booking value of  $1,211 per transaction, over 2.5 times more than fiat users who spend $469.

Additionally, the report said crypto users were three times more valuable over their lifetime due to longer stays and higher repeat bookings, with crypto travelers 57% more likely to make a repeat hotel purchase.

Source: Binance Pay, Travala

Juan Otero, CEO of Travala, attributed these travel preferences to the flexible nature of Web3 jobs:

“Many also work in the digital asset industry or have flexible, remote work lifestyles, which makes them more likely to travel frequently and stay in one place for longer while seeking out destinations that support seamless, global payments.”

Crypto-based transactions have become more common in the travel sector and beyond. Airlines that have integrated digital currencies into their booking systems have seen a 40% boost in bookings, with travel and hospitality representing 14% of all crypto transactions in 2024, according to a Feb. 21 report by Triple-A.

David Sacks, US President Donald Trump’s top adviser on crypto and artificial intelligence, said the administration expects the stablecoin bill to clear the Senate with bipartisan backing.

“We have every expectation now that it’s going to pass,” Sacks told CNBC on May 21, following a key procedural vote that saw 15 Democrats join Republicans to clear the filibuster threshold.

The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act is the most advanced federal effort yet to establish a legal framework for dollar-pegged digital assets.

Sacks said the bill could trigger “trillions of dollars” in demand for US Treasurys by unlocking stablecoin growth under clear rules.

“We already have over $200 billion in stablecoins — it’s just unregulated,” he added. “If we provide legal clarity, we create enormous demand for Treasurys practically overnight.”

Newly updated guidelines from Dubai’s crypto regulator include provisions on real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and clarify rules for issuers. 

On May 19, Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) released its updated Rulebook for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) operating in the region. The regulator gave market participants until June 19 to comply with the new rules. 

The regulator previously told Cointelegraph that it had enhanced supervisory mechanisms and brought consistency across activity-based rules. One of the more prominent changes includes regulatory clarity on RWA tokens. 

Irina Heaver, partner at the United Arab Emirates-based law firm NeosLegal, told Cointelegraph that the updated rules clarify RWA issuance and distribution. 

“Issuing real-world asset tokens and listing them on secondary markets is no longer theoretical,” Heaver told Cointelegraph. “It’s now a regulatory reality in Dubai and the broader UAE.”