Weekly Rollup - 5 May, 2026

Market highlights

• Bitcoin closed April up 12%, in the second positive monthly close since September 2025.
• Compromise on stablecoin yields proposed for CLARITY Act ahead of markup vote.
• Tether Investments proposed a three-way merger to create a giant BTC firm.
• Ethereum's validator exit queue surged to 433,158 ETH due to recent DeFi exploits.
• The Aave-led "DeFi United" recovery effort raised over US$300 million.
• Mining firm United Dogecoin announced merger with Shuttle Pharmaceuticals.

Macro market overview

The rally across TradFi risk assets continued this week, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closing at record highs on Friday. It’s the best monthly performance for the indexes since April 2020, as strong earnings and hopes of U.S.-Iran peace talks restarting drove risk-on sentiment. First-quarter earnings growth in the U.S. is currently tracking around 28%, according to LSEG data.

In other assets, oil gained slightly to end the week at almost US$102 per barrel. The first half of the week saw prices rise on the United Arab Emirates announcing its departure from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), effective May 1. Oil prices declined in the second half of the week and rose into the new week on escalations in U.S.-Iran tensions. Meanwhile, gold and silver declined by 2% and 0.3%, respectively, on the week.

The big macro week saw the Bank of Japan, Bank of Canada, U.S. Federal Reserve, Bank of England, and European Central Bank all leave rates on hold at its policy meetings. It was likely Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s last meeting as Fed Chair, but he intends to remain on the board as a governor until his term ends on January 31, 2028. In other economic news, the U.S. ISM manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in below forecast at 52.7, signalling the economy isn’t expanding as quickly as forecasters expected.

Heading in to the new week, market participants will presumably be watching for developments in the Middle East, the U.S. Senate’s confirmation vote for Kevin Warsh to become the next Fed Chair, various macro data releases (see below), and earnings from Palantir, AMD, Leows, Pfizer, and McDonalds.

Weekly performance: S&P 500 +0.9%, Dow Jones +0.5%, Nasdaq +1.1%.

Looking ahead:

• Reserve Bank of Australia rate decision - Tuesday, May 5
• U.S. ISM Services PMI - Tuesday, May 5
• U.S. non-farm employment change - Friday, May 8

Crypto Market Performance

Market Cap: $2.6T (+1.2%)

Most crypto sectors saw gains this week, with consumer and culture leading the way. Utilities and services declined, presumably due to concerns around the security of DeFi protocols following the recent US$290 million Kelp DAO exploit. Broader market sentiment continues to recover slowly as market participants hope for a longer term resolution to the Iran war. The crypto fear and greed index is currently neutral at 47.

Bitcoin (BTC)

• Opened the week at US$78,673, sold off to around US$75,400 and then rallied to a high of US$80,613 on hopes of U.S.-Iran peace talks progressing, though tensions escalated again heading into the new week. Bitcoin is now trading around US$80,140 (+4% 7D).
• BTC dominance ranged between 60.6% and 61% this week.
• Bitcoin investment products saw inflows of US$342.2 million.

Bitcoin closed April up 12%. It’s the second positive monthly close for the cryptocurrency since September 2025. The gains are presumably due to strong exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows, continued institutional accumulation, and leveraged trading.

Tether Investments has proposed a three-way merger between Twenty-One Capital, Strike and Elektron Energy to create a publicly traded bitcoin giant combining treasury holdings, payments and mining. The deal would unify US$3.3 billion in BTC reserves, global financial services and large-scale mining capacity into a single integrated platform.

In bitcoin buying news:

• Strive bought 789 BTC (US$60 million), bringing its total holdings to 14,557 BTC, worth around US$1.1 billion.

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

Ethereum (ETH)

• Opened the week at US$2,360, sold off to around US$2,220 and rallied into the new week, reaching a high of US$2,399 on Monday, May 4 on broader risk-on sentiment. Ethereum is now trading around US$2,350 (+2.9% 7D).
• Ethereum dominance ranged between 10.8% and 11% this week.
• Ethereum-focused funds saw outflows of US$82.5 million.

Ethereum’s validator exit queue surged to 433,158 ETH this week, driven by a wave of DeFi exploits and risk-off sentiment, with roughly US$625 million lost across DeFi networks in April. There is currently a seven-day wait in the exit queue. Despite the uptick in the exits, Etehreum’s validator queue remains healthy at 3.6 million ETH (62-day wait).

In Ethereum buying news:

• BitMine bought 101,745 ETH, bringing the company’s holdings to almost 5.2 million ETH, worth around US$12.2 billion. Over 4.3 million of BitMine’s holdings are staked. The company also bought a further 10,000 ETH (worth US$23 million) from the Ethereum Foundation, marking two consecutive weeks of buying from the foundation.- BitMine bought 101,745 ETH, bringing the company's holdings to almost 5.2 million ETH, worth around US$12.2 billion. Over 4.3 million of BitMine's holdings are staked. The company also bought a further 10,000 ETH (worth US$23 million) from the Ethereum Foundation, marking two consecutive weeks of buying from the foundation.

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

Altcoins

The altcoin season index is currently 39, which is bitcoin season.

New week, new token

• MegaETH’s new cryptocurrency, MegaETH (MEGA) declined by 23.8%. The token launched this week, alongside a new Ethereum layer-2 network featuring a performance-based rewards system, where tokens are unlocked only as key metrics like adoption, speed and decentralisation improve. MEGA’s fully diluted value is almost US$1.3 billion.

It’s not sunny in WLFI

• World Liberty Financial (WLFI) declined by 11.7%. The DeFi token backed by the Trump family presumably saw declines due to the legal dispute that has erupted between WLFI and investor Justin Sun. WLFI alleges Sun shorted its token and ran a smear campaign, contributing to price declines. Sun denies this and countersued, accusing the firm of fraud and freezing his assets.

Let’s go fly a KITE

• Kite Chain launched its Kite token (KITE), which declined by 2.1% on the week. The network combines identity, programmable wallets and settlement infrastructure, allowing AI agents to transact securely within user-defined limits across real-world services and commerce integrations. KITE current has a market cap of US$268 million, and it just listed on Caleb & Brown.

Good DOGE

• Dogecoin gained 14.7%. The meme coin climbed to a two-month high, buoyed by news that mining firm United Dogecoin will go public via a merger with Shuttle Pharmaceuticals. The combined entity plans to deploy 3,000 mining rigs and capture about 1.5% of global hash power, signalling rising institutional interest in DOGE mining infrastructure.

Crypto ETF News

Digital asset investment products saw inflows of US$392.7 million, bitcoin accounted for most of these inflows as sentiment was impacted throughout the week by the Fed’s decision to keep rates on hold, what this means for U.S. monetary policy throughout the remainder of the year, and uncertainty around conflict in the Middle East.

In altcoins, Solana ETFs saw outflows of US$1.2 million, while XRP products saw outflows of US$40,000.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission delayed the launch of ETFs tied to prediction markets, requesting more detail on structure and disclosures. The funds would let retail investors trade on real-world event outcomes via derivatives. Regulators flagged risks including insider trading, ethical concerns, and potential losses, with approval timelines now uncertain.

Other crypto news

• Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) pushed for the Banking Committee’s markup vote on the CLARITY Act to be brought forward when the Senate returns from hiatus next week. Disputes over stablecoin yield, a key sticking point for the legislation, has seen movement, with Senators proposing that rewards be banned on stablecoin deposits, but rewards tied to staking and governance would be allowed.
• Litecoin developers rolled back several hours of blockchain history after a bug allowed an attacker to execute and then erase fraudulent transactions, raising concerns about immutability. The team also apologised for controversial social media posts during the incident, as the episode sparked debate over governance and the trade-offs between security fixes and decentralisation.
• Tether reported more than US$1 billion in Q1 profit supported by income from its large reserve holdings, despite broader risk-off sentiment. The company also confirmed it has begun its first full independent audit with a Big Four firm, aiming to improve transparency as it expands operations in the U.S.
• Western Union launched USDPT, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin on Solana, issued by Anchorage Digital Bank. The token will support global settlements, exchange integration, and payments. “Stable by Western Union,” is planned across 40+ countries in 2026.
• The Aave-led “DeFi United” recovery effort has raised over US$300 million to address losses from the US$290 million Kelp DAO exploit, which created bad debt across lending markets. Backed by major protocols, DAOs and investors, the fund aims to stabilise liquidity, cover losses and restore confidence, though governance approvals remain pending. The group released its proposal to recover funds this week, which includes targeting funds still in active positions and restoring rsETH backing. Aave LLC is also currently in court over lifting an order to freeze funds (around US$73 million) tied to the exploit.
• Computershare has partnered with Securitize to enable thousands of U.S. companies to issue tokenised shares on blockchain alongside traditional stock, giving investors the choice of holding equities on-chain or through existing systems. The initiative could open a pathway for a significant portion of the US$70 trillion U.S. equity market to move on-chain.
• The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) is advancing a tokenisation service developed with over 50 financial firms to bring real-world assets on chain. It plans limited live trades in July 2026 and a full launch in October. The service will tokenise assets like stocks, ETFs and Treasuries while preserving existing investor protections and enabling greater market efficiency.
• Visa expanded its stablecoin settlement program to five additional blockchains (Base, Polygon, Canton, Arc and Tempo), bringing total support to nine networks. The pilot, now running at roughly US$7 billion annually, aims to enable faster, 24/7 cross-border settlement while positioning Visa as a multi-chain bridge between TradFi and DeFi.
• MoonPay launched the MoonAgents Card, a virtual Mastercard that lets AI agents spend stablecoins directly from on-chain wallets at any online merchant. The card converts crypto to fiat at checkout, requires no preloaded custodial funds, and allows users to revoke agent spending permissions at any time.