The Ethereum community has introduced Clear Signing, a security feature that ensures users can clearly understand transaction details before signing, replacing unreadable hex data and reducing risks from blind signing attacks.

“Approving a transaction is meant to be the last line of defense when exercising control over what happens to your assets on the blockchain. When it is done blindly, that defense does not hold,” the Ethereum Foundation said on Tuesday, calling blind signing a “structural flaw” that has contributed to billions of dollars in losses, including the $1.4 billion Bybit hack last year.

The “What You See Is What You Sign” security feature aims to address this issue and is being integrated by several self-custody crypto wallets, including Ledger, Trezor and MetaMask. 

Source: Ethereum Foundation

The security feature comes as bad actors target the crypto industry with increasingly sophisticated hacks and scams despite considerable improvements in security measures in recent years.

North Korean state-backed workers have stolen over $7 billion in funds alone since 2009, with a large share of that coming from crypto protocols. The Bybit hack was its largest crypto heist by compromising a third-party service provider and manipulating transaction signatures. 

Trezor chief technology officer Tomáš Sušánka told Cointelegraph that attackers have been exploiting this relentlessly due to there not being a widely accessible security feature that is capable of distinguishing malicious smart contracts from legitimate transactions.

This issue has led users to “unknowingly sign them, and lose everything,” Sušánka said, adding that the Clear Signing feature “directly addresses this by making transactions human-readable before approval.”

The Clear Signing feature was introduced through the Ethereum Foundation’s Trillion Dollar Security Initiative and initiated by Ledger through the open-source ERC-7730 token standard.

The foundation said the key components of the Clear Signing feature include “human-readable transaction descriptions” and a “neutral, mirrorable descriptor registry.”

Related: Ethereum’s EEZ could pull other blockchains into its orbit 

It also includes an attestation framework enabling auditors to verify those descriptors.

A host of crypto platforms are supporting Clear Signing

Several other crypto wallets and Ethereum privacy and security platforms contributed to the Clear Signing feature, including Keycard, WalletConnect, Argot, Sourcify, Zama, ZKnox and Fireblocks.

Sušánka said Trezor seeks to implement the security feature before June 30.

“We’re implementing this standard because it’s the right thing to do for our users,” Sušánka said before calling the Clear Signing feature a “critical security advancement for our entire industry.” 

Magazine: Guide to the top and emerging global crypto hubs: Mid-2026

Crypto asset manager 21Shares’ first Hyperliquid exchange-traded fund in the US has attracted $1.2 million in net inflows and seen $1.8 million in trading volume on its Nasdaq debut.

“Very very solid day and better than your average ETF launch for sure but nothing too crazy,” Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart said as the ETF finished its first day of trading on Tuesday.

The 21Shares Hyperliquid ETF (THYP) debut trading volume, however, was a fraction of the volume compared to earlier buzzy crypto ETFs, such as the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL), which attracted $56 million on its opening day in late October, and the Canary XRP ETF (XRPC), which brought in $58 million on its debut in November.

THYP seeks to track the spot price of the Hyperliquid (HYPE) token, which is tied to the perpetual futures platform of the same name that has facilitated over $8.4 trillion in trading volume since launching in 2023.

Source: 21Shares

21Shares’ Hyperliquid ETF adds to a growing number of altcoins that have been packaged into funds made available on Wall Street, as the Securities and Exchange Commission has loosened its grip on crypto ETFs.

In September, the SEC moved away from a case-by-case review of spot crypto ETFs in favor of “generic listing standards,” making approvals of crypto ETFs easier.

THYP was launched ahead of the Bitwise Hyperliquid Staking ETF (BHYP), which Seyffart predicted is next in line for SEC approval.

Grayscale is also awaiting the SEC’s decision on its Grayscale HYPE ETF (GHYP).

Related: Trader loses $3M as leveraged Fartcoin position unwinds on Hyperliquid 

THYP carries a 0.3% management fee, far lower than the 0.67% fee proposed by Bitwise for its Hyperliquid ETF. Grayscale is yet to set a fee for its ETF.

In December, Seyffart predicted that many crypto exchange-traded products would be liquidated by the end of 2027 due to a lack of demand. 

His comments came before a Bloomberg report in April that found that the average lifespan of ETFs fell from 4.66 years in 2024 to about 3.5 years in 2025. 

Dozens of ETFs have already been liquidated across the first few months of 2026, though none were notable crypto ETFs.

Magazine: Solana vs Ethereum ETFs, Facebook’s influence on Bitwise: Hunter Horsley 

Michael Saylor’s Strategy is in the news now after it accumulated an additional 535 BTC for $43 million. The new purchase happened at an average price of $80,340 per Bitcoin [BTC].

Thanks to this purchase, the total holdings of the largest Bitcoin digital asset treasuries (DATs) have reached 818,869 BTC – Worth $66.2 billion. 

Strategy’s latest addition

The firm also reported that it has achieved a BTC yield of 9.4% so far in 2026. This figure is not based on the performance of the Bitcoin market, but rather on the growth in shareholders’ exposure to Bitcoin per share.

According to the figure, Strategy has effectively increased its Bitcoin holdings despite capital raise dilution.

The average price of the total 818,869 BTC was $75,540. This occurred at a time when Bitcoin was trading at $80,791.33, following a slight decline over the previous day. Here, it’s still worth noting that it hiked by more than 13% over the previous month.

Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings currently represent an estimated $4.30 billion in unrealized profits. As expected, this 535 BTC addition followed Saylor’s tease on 10 May. 

MSTR and Open Interest analysis

MSTR benefited from this new Bitcoin purchase as well. As per Google Finance, it was priced at $195.94 at press time after rising by 4.45% over the previous day. 

If one looks at the quarterly patterns, MSTR has surged by more than 50%, with Bitcoin increasing by almost 20%. This suggested that MSTR’s returns were about 2.5 times that of BTC. 

Meanwhile, MSTR Open Interest has increased from almost $15 million to over $40 million since February, with the stock price recovering from about $120 to almost $190.

This implied that given the improving sentiment in the cryptocurrency market, traders are probably opening leveraged bullish positions on MSTR as a high-beta Bitcoin proxy.

Any underlying concerns?

However, the quick hike in leverage also suggested that volatility risks may be increasing. This, because a sharp drop in MSTR or Bitcoin could lead to massive liquidations and more volatile price swings.

Therefore, whether Strategy’s recent $43 million Bitcoin purchase represents a long-term breakout or merely another buy-the-dip move will depend on Bitcoin’s capacity to maintain its momentum. 

Final Summary

With Bitcoin trading above Strategy’s typical acquisition cost of $75,540, the firm reported estimated unrealized profits of $4.3 billion.
MSTR is increasingly being seen by traders as a high-beta Bitcoin proxy.

TLDR

Bitmine reduced its weekly ether purchases after months of rapid accumulation in 2026.
The company bought 26,659 ETH last week, worth about $63 million at current prices.
Bitmine now holds more than 5.2 million ETH, which equals about 4.31% of Ethereum’s circulating supply.
Tom Lee said the firm slowed buying as it approached its long-term goal of owning 5% of supply.
Bitmine has acquired over 1 million ETH since the start of this year.
The company’s total crypto and cash holdings stand at $13.4 billion.

Bitmine Immersion Technologies has reduced its weekly ether purchases after months of rapid accumulation. Chairman Tom Lee confirmed the shift after the firm approached its 5% Ethereum supply target. The company still holds over 5.2 million ETH after buying more than 1 million tokens this year.

Bitmine Eases Weekly Ether Accumulation Pace

Bitmine bought 26,659 ETH last week, valued at about $63 million at current prices. However, that figure equals roughly one quarter of its recent weekly average. The purchase increased total holdings to over 5.2 million ETH, or about 4.31% of the circulating supply.

Tom Lee addressed the change during remarks at Consensus 2026 in Miami. He said the company would reduce weekly purchases from over 100,000 ETH. “Our previous pace of buys would have us reach 5% by mid-July,” Lee said in a statement.

The company adjusted its pace as it neared its long-term acquisition target. Lee said Bitmine considered easing purchases once it approached the 5% threshold. The firm has already acquired more than 1 million ETH since January 2026.

Bitmine continues to buy ether despite the broader market downturn. Lee stated that the company remains committed to its treasury strategy. He described the recent months as one of the fastest accumulation periods in the crypto sector.

He also expressed confidence in current market trends and recovery signals. “We have decided to slow down our pace of weekly accumulation,” Lee said. He linked the change to timing rather than a shift in outlook.

Ethereum Holdings and Treasury Composition

Bitmine’s total crypto and cash holdings stand at $13.4 billion. The company holds 201 Bitcoin alongside its Ether reserves. It also maintains $775 million in cash and equity stakes.

Those equity investments include Beast Industries and Eightco Holdings. However, ether remains the core asset in the company’s treasury. The firm focuses its strategy on Ethereum’s long-term supply position.

Bitmine has staked more than 4.7 million ETH from its total holdings. That amount represents over 90% of its ether balance. The staked assets currently hold an estimated value of $11.1 billion.

The company operates its MAVAN staking platform to manage these assets. It launched the platform earlier this year for institutional clients. Bitmine also uses MAVAN for its internal treasury operations.

Lee reiterated his outlook for Ether’s price performance. “If ETH closes above $2,100 at the end of May, this would be the third consecutive monthly gain,” he said. He added that such a streak has not occurred during a crypto bear market.

The company continues to monitor Ether’s monthly performance levels. Lee linked price strength to improving sentiment in software and growth stocks. He maintained that what he calls “crypto spring” has begun.

The spot Solana (SOL) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded their strongest weekly performance since February, attracting $39.23 million in total net flows. The surge in capital inflows coincided with SOL futures open interest rising by $1.5 billion in May, signaling a sharp increase in trader positioning across the derivatives markets.

The rise in market activity comes alongside Solana’s 15% rally to $97 in the past seven days, with traders targeting the next major resistance level at $120. 

SOL ETF demand rises with futures interest

Bitwise’s BSOL ETF led the latest inflow wave with $36 million in weekly net inflows last week, while Fidelity’s FSOL added over $1.8 million. Since its launch, BSOL has attracted $861 million, accounting for nearly 81% of cumulative inflows across all spot SOL ETFs, which now total about $1.06 billion.

Spot SOL ETF netflows. Source: SoSoValue

Futures activity rose alongside the ETF demand. Solana open interest (OI) climbed to $6.4 billion from $4.94 billion on May 1, marking a 29.5% increase in less than two weeks.

Aggregated spot cumulative volume delta (CVD), which measures the net difference between market buy and sell orders, climbed to nearly $250 million from $163 million in five days, during SOL’s push toward $96.

The futures CVD expanded to about $593.6 million after rising steadily from May 5 onward, as buyers absorbed sell-side liquidity in both the spot and futures markets. 

SOL price, aggregated open interest, spot, and futures CVD and funding rate. Source: velo.chart

The funding rate held near 0.065%, indicating traders continued to pay to maintain long exposure. The buying activity has started to flatten near the $95-$96 range as spot and volume deltas have cooled over the past 24-hours. 

Related: South Korea crypto holdings halve in a year as investors turn to stock market

Solana eyes a breakout: Is $120 next?

Solana is forming an Adam and Eve pattern near the $95 resistance level, with the setup’s neckline directly at the current breakout zone. A confirmed move above that level places the technical target near $120. 

An Adam and Eve pattern on the higher time frame chart could signal a bottom for SOL if price successfully turns the $95 resistance level into support. 

SOL/USDT, one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

SOL also pushed above its 100-day exponential moving average for the first time since October 2025, adding another technical shift to the mix alongside ETF inflows and rising futures positioning. 

A confirmed daily close and consolidation above $95 could open the path toward the pattern’s projected target near $120, due to a lack of resistance sitting between the two levels after the 42% dip in February.

Crypto analyst BATMAN noted that Solana recently broke above a 231-day downtrend on the SOL/BTC daily chart, signaling improving relative strength against Bitcoin. According to the analyst, the $89-$91 zone now acts as the nearest support cluster and a likely retest region if SOL holds above the breakout area. 

SOL/USDT, one-chart analysis by BATMAN. Source: X

Related: XRP metrics line up bull signals for ‘full-scale rally’ to $2

New treasury activity from the Ethereum [ETH] Foundation has fueled a new conversation. It has also fueled some uncertainty, even though supply conditions still seem fairly tight.

Ethereum Foundation unstakes nearly 70K ETH

The Ethereum Foundation recently unstaked 21,270 ETH. That’s nearly 30% of the 70,000 ETH it had recently committed to staking.

This happened soon after they completed deployment of the treasury staking strategy from earlier this year.

The timeline is interesting. In January 2025, they said they were exploring staking options. By June, a treasury policy described deployments as “long-term.”

The Ethereum Foundation began staking the first treasury tranche in February 2026. Further confirmation came in April, that it had fully deployed all 70,000 ETH.

Now, barely a month later, it has already withdrawn a big portion of those holdings again.

Ethereum supply is still tight

Unstaking simply moves ETH back into a liquid wallet. Worth noting, however, that on-chain data alone does not confirm the Ethereum Foundation’s next step.

In fact, the market reaction earlier this week was linked more closely to the Ethereum Foundation’s separate sale of 10,000 ETH rather than the unstaking itself. For instance – Exchange reserves have continued to fall to multi-year lows, with only around 14.5 million ETH left on exchanges.

More than 2.3 million ETH have also been withdrawn from exchanges since the start of 2026.

Is ETH’s pace weakening?

With all that in mind, the native token has struggled to build a better pace lately.

ETH’s RSI was near-neutral, with the MACD in negative territory. At the time of writing, short-term momentum was still weak despite ETH holding above the $2,300-range.

Put simply, the market seemed to be waiting with bated breath. Much now depends on where the recently unstaked ETH moves next.

If the funds stay inside treasury-related wallets, concerns could ease. However, any movement towards exchanges would likely increase fears of selling in the near term.

Final Summary

Ethereum Foundation unstaked 21,270 ETH.
Despite treasury activity, Ethereum supply has been tight with only 14.5M ETH left on exchanges.

Ethereum’s native token, Ether (ETH), has fallen more than 35% against Bitcoin (BTC) over the past year, and the downtrend may still have further to go.

Key takeaways:

ETH may plunge another 40% as it mirrors the 2025 bear trend setup.Rising Ether reserves on Binance, even as Bitcoin reserves decline, add to the case for further ETH downside.

ETH risks 40% decline after topping near multi-year trend line

ETH/BTC remains stuck below a multi-year descending trend line that has capped every breakout attempt since 2022, including one that preceded the nearly 70% decline between 2024 and 2025.

ETH/BTC monthly chart. Source: TradingView

A similar setup now appears to be taking shape again.

After retesting the same trend line in August 2025, ETH/BTC was rejected near a confluence of resistance that included the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement level and the 50-month exponential moving average (50-month EMA, red).

The pair has since turned lower and slipped back below its 20-month EMA (green) support near 0.034 BTC, a sign that sellers continue to dominate the trend.

The next major downside target for 2026 comes in around 0.0176 BTC if the weakness persists. This level, down about 40% from current rates, aligns with the 2020 cycle bottom.

Exchange reserves highlight ETH-BTC divergence

Exchange data points to persistent sell-side risk for Ether.

As of May, ETH reserves on Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume, had climbed to 3.62 million ETH, accounting for roughly 24.6% of all Ether held across exchanges, according to data resource CryptoQuant.

Ethereum reserves on Binance. Source: CryptoQuant

In comparison, Bitcoin reserves on Binance have fallen.

Bitcoin reserves on Binance. Source: CryptoQuant

Rising exchange balances usually signal that more tokens are available for sale, which can weigh on price when demand is not strong enough to absorb the added supply.

Falling reserves, on the other hand, often suggest coins are being moved off exchanges for longer-term holding.

In that sense, Binance reserve trends reinforce the broader market picture: Ether is facing relatively higher available supply, while Bitcoin is showing signs of tighter exchange-side liquidity.

Related: Four signs that show Ethereum’s rally is exhausted at $2.4K

Ethereum’s weakness reflects a broader shift in fundamentals. For years, Ether has lagged behind Bitcoin in part because Ethereum’s “ultrasound money” narrative has lost momentum.

BTC, on the other hand, continues to draw strength from corporate accumulation led by firms like Strategy and its growing integration into Wall Street portfolios.

The value of cryptocurrency held by South Korean investors more than halved over the past year, falling to 60.6 trillion won ($41.4 billion) by the end of February 2026 from 121.8 trillion won ($83.3 billion) at the end of January 2025.

Daily trading volumes across the country’s five major exchanges, including Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone and Gopax, also took a hit, collapsing to $3 billion by February compared to $11.6 billion in December 2024, Korean outlet The Chosun Daily reported, citing data the Bank of Korea submitted to Rep. Cha Gyu-geun of the Rebuilding Korea Party.

Won deposits held at exchanges, a proxy for investor dry powder, also fell to 7.8 trillion won from 10.7 trillion won at end-2024. The drop is attributed to a combination of falling crypto prices and capital flowing into the stock market.

Stablecoins bucked the trend. Holdings climbed to a peak of $597 million in December from $60 million in July 2024. However, they eased to $41 million in February, a far smaller decline than the broader crypto market.

Related: South Korea seeks 20-year sentence for Delio CEO over $169M crypto fraud

Tighter AML rules threaten to push investors away

The market contraction comes as regulators prepare to tighten oversight. Financial authorities plan to implement revised AML rules in August that would require crypto transactions above 10 million won involving overseas exchanges or private wallets to be automatically flagged as suspicious.

Top Korean exchanges by volume. Source: CoinGecko

Industry body DAXA has pushed back, arguing the rule is disproportionate and could drive users to offshore platforms like Binance. The industry body said the proposal could increase suspicious transaction reports from South Korea’s five largest exchanges by 85 times, to over 5.4 million from about 63,000 cases last year, making compliance difficult in practice.

Debate over the government’s planned 22% crypto tax, set for 2027, is also intensifying. On Thursday, South Korea’s Finance Ministry confirmed for the first time that a 22% tax on crypto gains will take effect as scheduled on Jan. 1, 2027.

Related: Bithumb wins temporary court stay on South Korea suspension: Report

Samsung SDS to build South Korea’s blockchain securities platform

As Cointelegraph reported, Samsung SDS has won a contract to build and operate a blockchain-based securities platform for South Korea’s Korea Securities Depository (KSD), with the project expected to be completed by February 2027.

The move comes ahead of South Korea’s broader push to build market infrastructure for tokenized assets ahead of a new legal framework taking effect in early 2027.

Magazine: AI-driven hacks could kill DeFi — unless projects act now

TLDR:

Three major ETH inflows hit Binance between May 6–9, totaling over 439,000 ETH worth roughly $1 billion.

Each large inflow event occurred during a price correction, pointing to reactive selling rather than planned exits.

Binance ETH reserves climbed to 3.62 million ETH, accounting for 24.6% of all exchange-held Ethereum.

Rising reserves and repeated inflow spikes continue to suppress upward momentum, keeping ETH range-bound for weeks.

Ethereum exchange inflows have spiked sharply in early May 2025, drawing attention from on-chain analysts. ETH has remained range-bound between $2,250 and $2,450 for several weeks.

During this period, large transfers to Binance have coincided with price corrections. Analysts are now watching whether these movements reflect broader holder uncertainty or short-term repositioning among larger market participants.

Large ETH Transfers Hit Binance During Price Corrections

On-chain data shows three major Ethereum inflow events on Binance within days of each other. On May 6, approximately 216,152 ETH worth around $511 million moved onto the exchange.

Then on May 8, another 98,552 ETH valued at roughly $224 million followed. Shortly after, on May 9, a third wave of 125,146 ETH worth approximately $288 million was recorded.

Analyst Darkfost noted on X that these transfers rank among the largest inflow events observed since March. Each movement occurred while Ethereum’s price entered a corrective phase.

Some corrections were shallow, while others carried more weight. Still, the timing pattern remained consistent across all three events.

What stands out is that these transfers did not happen during price rallies. Instead, they arrived as ETH pulled back. This behavior points toward reactive selling rather than planned profit-taking by investors.

Such activity suggests that some holders are responding to short-term price pressure. Rather than holding through dips, they appear to be moving assets to exchanges during uncertain moments. This adds selling pressure to an already range-bound market.

Rising Binance ETH Reserves Point to Ongoing Holder Uncertainty

Alongside the inflow spikes, total ETH reserves on Binance have continued to climb. As of the latest data, reserves have reached 3.62 million ETH on the platform. That figure now represents roughly 24.6% of all ETH held across centralized exchanges.

A rising exchange reserve generally means more ETH is available for sale. When reserves grow over time, it often reflects holders moving assets closer to liquid positions. This does not always lead to selling, but it does raise the likelihood of near-term supply pressure.

Darkfost pointed out that this trend may help explain why Ethereum has stayed stuck in its current consolidation range.

With consistent inflows arriving at each price dip, buy-side momentum struggles to build. The balance between buyers and sellers remains fragile.

For now, ETH continues to trade sideways without a clear breakout in either direction. The combination of rising reserves and reactive inflows creates resistance to upward movement. Traders and analysts will likely monitor Binance reserve levels closely in the coming days.

Privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash (ZEC) has spiked by more than 70% over the past week as crypto traders have been paying closer attention to privacy-focused projects.

Zcash traded at about $346 on Friday, May 1, before hitting a seven-day peak of $593.86 on Wednesday. It has since settled at around $570 as of Friday, according to CoinGecko.

Pav Hundal, lead market analyst at crypto exchange Swyftx, told Cointelegraph that traders have begun paying closer attention to privacy projects “amid broader concerns about the impact of AI, quantum computing and financial surveillance on crypto.”

He added that ZEC was also boosted after Tushar Jain, the co-founder of the investment firm Multicoin Capital, said on Wednesday that it had “built a significant position” in ZEC since February.

Zcash is one of the more prominent privacy-focused cryptocurrencies, trailed by its significant rival Monero (XMR), and Jain said it is an attractive investment as “institutions will increasingly seek private assets to protect themselves” from what he claimed was a “political trend to seize private wealth.”

Several crypto firms have also recently released new privacy features. The Ethereum scaling solution Polygon launched private stablecoin payments on Sunday, while Aptos Labs’ privacy feature Confidential APT, which conceals token balances and transfer amounts, went live on the mainnet in April.

The market intelligence platform Santiment said in an X post on Wednesday that Zcash was “emphatically rebounding,” as fear of missing out and social media mentions of Zcash spiked along with its price.

Santiment pointed to a lack of government trust as a possible catalyst for the surge in interest from retail traders. 

Source: Santiment

“The crowd is increasingly viewing privacy-focused assets as a hedge against growing surveillance concerns, tighter exchange regulations and expanding AI-driven data tracking across financial platforms,” Santiment said.

Related: Dash Evolution chain integrates Zcash Orchard privacy pool

“At the same time, lower market caps across many privacy coins have traders eyeing them as high-upside momentum plays during this mild altcoin rally crypto has seen so far in May,” it added.

Zcash rally could be short-lived

Privacy was a significant investment theme for crypto in 2025, with privacy-focused tokens surging last year despite a broader downturn in the rest of the market.  

Zcash nearly crossed $700 in November, its highest price since 2018, while fellow privacy coin Monero reached a new all-time high of $797.73 in January.

However, neither held on to the gains, and Swyftx’s Hundal said that the recent rally could also be short-lived.

“Zcash’s move has some hallmarks of a narrative rotation into privacy coins,” Hundal said. “I’d be careful calling it a clean fundamental repricing just yet. We need more time to see how durable investor interest is.” 

Magazine: Guide to the top and emerging global crypto hubs — Mid-2026