Solana is bringing key changes to its validator delegation program, hoping to increase decentralization.

Solana Foundation to slash support for ‘validators in name only’ in a decentralization push

SOL Strategies, a Canadian investment company, issued $500 million in 
convertible notes to buy and stake in Solana (SOL) tokens.
The $500 million issuance was made to a singular investor, ATW Partners, a New 
York-based investment firm. The company provides growth equity and structured 
capital to companies across public and private markets, a spokesperson for SOL 
Strategies told Cointelegraph.
A spokesperson for SOL Strategies said the company is focused on building 
institutional-grade infrastructure for Solana, rather than reacting to short- 
term price volatility.
According to an April 23 announcement, the yield generated from staking will 
accrue back to both SOL Strategies and ATW Partners. SOL Strategies is a 
publicly traded company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Its share 
price has risen 25.3% on the day, according to Google Finance.
_**Related:**__**Astra Fintech commits $100M for Solana growth in Asia**_
 _SOL Strategies &#8216; share price movement. Source: __Google Finance_
&#8220;This investment represents significant institutional confidence in Solana&#8217;s 
long-term potential,&#8221; the spokesperson said. &#8220;From an ecosystem perspective, 
we expect several positive impacts. First, by increasing our validator 
network&#8217;s stake, we&#8217;ll contribute to greater network security and 
decentralization.&#8221;
According to StockAnalysis.com, SOL Strategies posted CAD$10.62 million ($7.65 
million) in revenue for 2024, a positive turnaround of CAD$15.65 million 
($11.27 million) from 2023, when the company posted a loss.
_**Related:**__**Debate as Solana briefly flips Ethereum in staking market 
cap**_
## Companies move into Solana
SOL Strategies becomes the second publicly traded company to announce a 
capital raise aimed at purchasing SOL. On April 21, Upexi disclosed a $100 
million raise aimed at building a SOL reserve.
The DeFi Development Corporation (formerly Janover) also recently announced a 
$42 million raise and plans to create a Solana reserve treasury.
_**Magazine: Memecoins are ded &#8212; But Solana &#8216;100x better&#8217; despite revenue 
plunge**_

SOL Strategies raises $500M in convertible notes issuance to buy Solana tokens

Bitcoin’s ascent gathered fresh momentum on Tuesday, charging above the 
$94,000 mark and extending the gains to 26% since April 9. Three interlocking 
forces—geopolitics, strategic balance-sheet demand, and resurgent exchange- 
traded-fund flows—coalesced over the past 24 hours to ignite the rally. Why Is 
Bitcoin Up Today? The first spark came from Washington, where US President 
Donald Trump signaled a partial détente in his long-running tariff dispute 
with Beijing. Sitting behind the lectern at the White House, Trump declared 
that duties on Chinese imports “will come down substantially, but it won’t be 
zero,” before insisting he would “be very nice to China” so long as both sides 
reach a deal. Macro economist Alex Krüger distilled the president’s remarks in 
a widely circulated X post, noting that Trump had “just ticked most de- 
escalation / bullish boxes.” Among the verbatim phrases Krüger highlighted 
were: “Tariff on China will not be as high as 145%,” “It’ll come down 
substantially,” and, when asked whether he would “play hardball,” the 
president’s succinct “No.” Related Reading: Is The Bitcoin Price Top In At 
$109,000 Already? What The MVRV Z-Score Says Equity indices responded 
immediately, but Bitcoin’s move was more dramatic, underscoring the market’s 
sensitivity to macro uncertainty—and to any sign that the Federal Reserve’s 
path could tilt more dovish should trade frictions ebb. While geopolitics set 
the tone, a second catalyst arrived from Wall Street: the prospect of a 
multibillion-dollar balance-sheet bid for Bitcoin spearheaded by the next 
generation of the Lutnick family. According to the Financial Times, Brandon 
Lutnick—the newly installed chair of Cantor Fitzgerald and son of Commerce 
Secretary Howard Lutnick—is forming “Cantor Equity Partners” in concert with 
SoftBank, Tether, and Bitfinex. The consortium plans to seed a new entity, 21 
Capital, with approximately $3 billion in Bitcoin. Tether intends to 
contribute $1.5 billion worth of the asset, SoftBank about $900 million, and 
Bitfinex roughly $600 million, the report said, cautioning that the numbers 
could still shift before a formal announcement expected in the coming weeks. 
On X, Texas Bitcoin Foundation board member Tuur Demeester framed the 
implications bluntly: “This announcement could explain why bitcoin is up 12% 
in the past week.” Related Reading: Bitcoin Rally Ahead? Analysts Say These 
Key Indicators Look Bullish The third leg of support arrived from the US spot 
Bitcoin ETF market, where inflows swung decisively back into positive 
territory. Data compiled across issuers show aggregate net inflows of $911.2 
million on Tuesday—the most forceful daily total since January 17, when pre- 
inauguration optimism around Trump’s “crypto president” rhetoric produced 
$975.6 million. Fidelity’s FBTC absorbed $253.8 million, Ark Invest’s ARKB 
attracted $267.1 million, and BlackRock’s market-leading IBIT added $192.1 
million, while the smaller Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) reversed weeks of 
redemptions with a $65.1 million intake. The turnaround began Monday, when the 
cohort drew $381 million—ending a multi-week stretch dominated by outflows—and 
gathered pace as Bitcoin cleared the $90,000 threshold. The two-day, $1.29 
billion surge signals a material revival of institutional appetite. At press 
time, BTC traded at $94,212. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from 
TradingView.com

Bitcoin Explodes Above $94,000 — What’s Igniting The Fire?

Paypal is launching a new rewards program for its stablecoin PYUSD, offering 
U.S. users a 3.7% annual return to boost adoption in the competitive 
stablecoin market. Incentivizing Use of PYUSD Paypal Holdings is launching a 
new rewards program for its stablecoin PYUSD to boost adoption of the digital 
token within a fiercely competitive market. The […]

Paypal Seeks to Drive PYUSD Adoption With 3.7% Reward on Users’ Stablecoin Holdings

Crypto analyst Melika Trader has warned about a bearish pattern that could be 
forming for the Bitcoin price. Based on this, the analyst predicts that the 
largest crypto by market cap could crash to as low as $78,000. Bitcoin Price 
Forming Head And Shoulders Pattern In a TradingView post, Melika Trader 
revealed that the Bitcoin price is forming a complex head-and-shoulders 
pattern. He remarked that the left shoulder and double head had already formed 
while the right shoulder is currently forming, with BTC at risk of suffering a 
massive crash once this happens. Related Reading: Analyst’s Bitcoin Price 
Prediction From March Plays Out, Here’s The Rest Of It As part of the expected 
move, Melika Trader suggested that the Bitcoin price could show a possible 
fake breakout above the resistance between $87,000 and $88,000. Once that 
happens, the analyst predicts that a strong drop will follow, with BTC 
dropping to as low as $78,000, which is the first support area. The Bitcoin 
price has surged past the $90,000 mark on the back of the US Dollar dropping 
to new lows and has continued to reach new highs, leading to optimism that it 
could soon reclaim $100,000. There is the possibility that BTC could still 
rally to as high as $98,000 before any massive correction. Crypto analyst Ali 
Martinez revealed that on-chain data shows that the next key area of 
resistance for the Bitcoin price is between $95,600 and $98,290. That range 
acts as a major supply wall, as 1.65 million addresses bought 1.09 million BTC 
around that area. Bitcoin’s next move will depend on whether these holders 
choose to hold or offload their coins as soon as it reclaims this range. 
However, it is worth mentioning that crypto whales are actively accumulating 
BTC, which is bullish for the Bitcoin price. Martinez revealed that over 
17,000 BTC have been withdrawn from exchanges in the past week. BTC Eyeing 
Rally To A New All-Time High Crypto analyst Titan of Crypto has predicted that 
the Bitcoin price could soon rally to as high as $137,000, marking a new all- 
time high (ATH) for the leading crypto. He stated that BTC has finally broken 
out of a bull pennant, with two strong consecutive daily bullish candles, 
confirming this move. The analyst added that the projected target is $137,000 
if this bull pennant is confirmed. Related Reading: Bitcoin Price Following 
Analyst’s Prediction For Bullish Breakout, Here’s The Target Crypto analyst 
Egrag Crypto stated that a daily close above $93,000 will send a strong 
bullish signal, while raising the possibility of BTC rallying above $100,000. 
He claimed that any retracement fears will be eliminated if the leading crypto 
closes above $103,000. At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at 
around $93,000, up over 5% in the last 24 hours, according to data from 
CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com

Bitcoin Price Completes Head And Shoulder Formation, Analyst Predicts Crash To $78,000

United States exchanges are betting big on cryptocurrency derivatives as 
market turbulence from US President Donald Trump&#8217;s looming trade war propels 
demand for the financial instruments.
Since late 2024, exchanges including Coinbase, Robinhood, Kraken, and the 
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group have been listing new types of crypto 
derivatives and mulling multibillion-dollar acquisitions as they vie for 
control of the burgeoning market.
In April, the stakes became even higher after Trump&#8217;s unveiling of sweeping 
tariff plans sent financial markets into a frenzy and spiked crypto 
derivatives trading volumes.
&#8220;Institutional and sophisticated retail traders are increasingly turning to 
crypto derivatives platforms to navigate macroeconomic risks and uncertainty 
brought on by escalated tariff policies and global trade tensions,&#8221; David 
Siemer, CEO of asset manager Wave Digital Assets, told Cointelegraph.
Consequently, US exchanges are &#8220;experiencing record-breaking surges in trading 
activity and are expanding their investment offerings with the promise of 
regulatory clarity,&#8221; Siemer said.
_Net open interest in Bitcoin futures rose sharply in April. 
Source:__Coinalyze_
 _**Related:**__**Coinbase launches CFTC-regulated SOL futures in US**_
## Trump spikes trading activity
Crypto derivatives trading activity took off in 2024 after Trump&#8217;s November 
election victory sent exchange volumes to record highs.
In December, Coinbase said trading activity on its derivatives exchange rose 
by more than 10,000% year-over-year. Similarly, CME Group flagged crypto 
derivatives as among the exchange&#8217;s fastest-growing product segments during 
its 2024 earnings call.
Trump&#8217;s tariff plans, announced April 2, further accelerated trading activity. 
As of April 23, net open interest in Bitcoin (BTC) futures, the most popular 
crypto derivatives, rose by approximately 30% from the start of the month, 
according to data from Coinalyze.
Futures contracts are standardized agreements to buy or sell an underlying 
asset at a future date, often using leverage in a bid to enhance returns.
_Kraken bought NinjaTrader in March. Source: __Kraken_
## Heated competition
Burgeoning trading volumes are fueling competition among exchanges.
Since February, Coinbase has launched several new crypto derivatives products, 
including futures contracts tied to altcoins such as Solana (SOL) and XRP 
(XRP).
Meanwhile, Robinhood listed Bitcoin futures &#8212; its first crypto derivatives 
contracts &#8212; in February and, in March, CME Group listed its first Solana 
futures contracts.
The CME SOL futures clocked upward of $12 billion in volume during the first 
day of trading, the exchange told Cointelegraph.
Additionally, exchanges are turning to mergers and acquisitions to hasten 
growth.
Coinbase is reportedly in talks to buy crypto derivatives exchange Deribit in 
a multibillion-dollar bid to expand its footprint in the market segment.
In March, US crypto exchange Kraken agreed to buy NinjaTrader, a futures 
exchange, for $1.5 billion.
&#8220;The recent wave of tariffs has transformed crypto derivatives exchanges into 
critical market infrastructure,&#8221; Nic Roberts-Huntley, CEO of Web3 developer 
Blueprint Finance, told Cointelegraph.
&#8220;While traditional markets faltered under tariff pressures, derivatives 
platforms have inversely flourished, serving both as speculative venues and 
protective hedging mechanisms in a fragmenting global trade landscape,&#8221; 
Roberts-Huntley said.
_**Magazine: **__**Trump &#8216;s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, 
insider trading questions**_