Privacy concerns tied to artificial intelligence may be one of the strongest 
cases yet for owning certain altcoins or cryptocurrencies. That was one 
argument Arthur Hayes made at Consensus 2026, where the BitMEX co-founder laid 
out a broad defense of the altcoin market and named the specific tokens he&#8217;s 
betting on. Related Reading: Bitcoin Eyes $90K As Bears Get Burned Again Amid 
$30B Open Interest Surge Hayes Sees AI Surveillance Driving Demand For Privacy 
Coins Hayes said governments, major tech companies, and AI systems are 
becoming increasingly effective at tracking blockchain activity. As those 
tools grow more powerful, he argued, more people will want financial tools 
that shield their transactions from outside eyes. Zcash, a cryptocurrency 
built around transaction privacy, was singled out as one that stands to 
benefit. &#8220;There is a role for private cash on the internet,&#8221; Hayes said. The 
remarks came during a broader conversation about the future of alternative 
cryptocurrencies — assets that have repeatedly faced waves of skepticism, 
especially after sharp market downturns. Hayes pushed back against the idea 
that institutional money and tighter regulation will wipe out most of the 
market. His position was simple: altcoins will keep coming, and some will 
generate real, lasting value. Arthur Hayes says altcoins will never die… 
Respectfully… Some of them absolutely need to 😭 There are 10 million+ tokens 
fighting for the same liquidity. At some point the market has to stop funding: 
AI Inu Elon Pepe GPT 4.0 The next alt season won’t save everything.… 
pic.twitter.com/pkx2C3jtt9 — MANDO CT 🇮🇪 🇦🇪 🇬🇧 (@XMaximist) May 6, 2026 
Hyperliquid Tops His List Of Altcoin Bets Of all the tokens Hayes discussed, 
Hyperliquid drew the most detailed attention. He described decentralized 
trading platforms as among the most consistently profitable models in crypto 
history, pointing to the wealth they&#8217;ve created for early participants. 
Hyperliquid, in his view, represents the next step in that lineage — combining 
fast infrastructure with a token structure he finds genuinely attractive. One 
feature Hayes highlighted: roughly 97% of the platform&#8217;s protocol revenue 
flows back to token holders through buybacks. He also pointed out that no 
portion of the token supply was set aside for venture capital investors — an 
arrangement that distinguishes it from many other projects. Related Reading: 
David Schwartz Says Selling XRP Doesn’t Make Him The Villain The Stock Market 
Parallel Underpins His Case For Altcoins Hayes compared the altcoin space to 
the broader stock market, where most companies ultimately fail but a handful 
go on to produce outsized returns. Tokens, he said, should be thought of like 
software startups — high failure rate, but worth participating in because of 
what the winners can deliver. Based on reports from the event, Hayes framed 
crypto markets as efficient environments for experimentation and capital 
formation, where new ideas can be tested and funded outside traditional 
financial systems. Featured image from MetaAI, chart from TradingView

Altcoins Aren’t Going Anywhere — Even After Brutal Crashes: Arthur Hayes

Two affiliates of the crypto-backed PAC Fairshake reported media buys for 
political candidates in Georgia, Alabama, Nebraska, Kentucky and Texas this 
week.

Crypto PACs spend $7.2M to support candidates in 5 US states ahead of elections

Strategy—formerly known as MicroStrategy—could meaningfully accelerate its 
Bitcoin-buying pace this year, according to analysts at JPMorgan. The firm, 
led by well-known Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor, is already one of the largest 
publicly traded Bitcoin treasury companies, and JPMorgan believes its next 
move may be a larger, faster round of acquisitions. Strategy Could Outpace 
Past Bitcoin Buying Strategy currently holds more than 818,000 Bitcoin, 
according to BitcoinTreasuries.net. Purchases have been active throughout 
2026: the company reportedly added over 145,000 BTC in just five months, which 
is estimated at roughly $11 billion. JPMorgan analysts, however, said that 
amount could rise substantially. Under their view, Strategy’s Bitcoin 
purchases this year could reach $30 billion over the course of the year. At 
today’s implied annualized pace, that would put 2026 purchases far above the 
roughly $22 billion acquired across 2024 and 2025 combined. Related Reading: 
VanEck Forecast: Bitcoin Could Climb To $1,000,000 By 2031, Research Head Says 
JPMorgan pointed to a change in momentum in April, saying Strategy “appears to 
have re-accelerated its bitcoin purchases.” The analysts tied the behavior to 
what they described as an increasingly opportunistic buying pattern. The 
optimism around Strategy’s plan also showed up in analyst price targets. On 
Thursday, TD Cowen raised its target price for the company’s stock, MSTR, from 
$385 to $395. As of the time of writing, MSTR closed at $179, translating to 
an 18% gain since the beginning of the year. If TD Cowen’s forecast were to 
play out, the implied move would represent about a 120% jump from current 
levels. Net Loss Vs. Big Forecast Analysts also highlighted the financing 
approach by Strategy behind the acquisitions. They say the firm&#8217;s increased 
use of STRC (variable-rate perpetual preferred stock) to fund Bitcoin 
purchases could improve capital efficiency, making it more attractive relative 
to prevailing market pricing. Still, the company&#8217;s latest financial picture 
includes major losses. Strategy reported a net loss of $12.54 billion for the 
quarter, driven largely by an unrealized decline in Bitcoin fair value of 
$14.46 billion. Related Reading: This New Move Just Opened XRP To 44 Million 
New Users Looking ahead, the base case and scenarios for Strategy reflect a 
bullish outlook. The firm’s base case is that Bitcoin could reach 
approximately $140,000 by the end of 2026, with an upside scenario of about 
$175,000. Separately, Joseph Vafi at Canaccord Genuity reiterated a Buy rating 
on May 7, lifting his MSTR price target from $185 to $224. Canaccord noted 
that since Bitcoin has rebounded—moving up from its roughly $62,000 low to 
more than $80,000—Strategy has continued to “weather another perceived storm. 
Featured image created with OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com

JPMorgan Says Strategy Could Buy Up To $30B In Bitcoin This Year– TD Cowen Lifts Target To $395

Mason Lynaugh, executive director of Stand With Crypto, took the Consensus 
Miami 2026 stage on Thursday to outline how the group&#8217;s 2.7 million advocates 
will engage in the November midterms. Mason Lynaugh, executive director of 
Stand With Crypto, outlined the…

Mason Lynaugh unveils Stand With Crypto strategy

Coinbase shares fell about 5% after hours as Q1 revenue dropped to $1.4 
billion and the exchange posted a $394 million loss.
The post Coinbase reports $394M Q1 loss as stock declines 5% after hours amid 
trading slowdown appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Coinbase reports $394M Q1 loss as stock declines 5% after hours amid trading slowdown

A federal court has sentenced a California man to 78 months in prison for his 
role in a social engineering conspiracy that authorities say stole more than 
$250 million in cryptocurrency. The ‘Instrument of Last Resort’ A U.S. federal 
court has sentenced a California man to 6 1/2 years in prison for his role in 
[…]

Altcoins Aren’t Going Anywhere — Even After Brutal Crashes: Arthur Hayes

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