FARTCOIN and VIRTUAL are dominating both smart-money inflows and AI-agent mindshare while both tokens pause to consolidate following their recent 100% breakout rallies within a broader uptrend. According to smart money reporting account Stalkchain, Fartcoin (FARTCOIN) and Virtual (VIRTUAL) are…

FARTCOIN and VIRTUAL lead in AI agent mindshare and smart money inflows

Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky is seeking a one-year prison sentence, 
sharply contesting the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recommendation of 20 
years for fraud and market manipulation tied to the cryptocurrency platform’s 
2022 collapse. Mashinsky’s Lawyers Push for Leniency in Sentencing Memo In a 
30-page filing to the Southern District of New York (SDNY), Alex […]

Ex-Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky Seeks 1-Year Sentence, Rejects DOJ’s 20-Year Proposal

Binance co-founder Changpeng &#8220;CZ&#8221; Zhao expects Bitcoin&#8217;s price to top at 
$500,000 to $1 million during this market cycle.
During an interview with Rug Radio published on May 5, Zhao said that he 
expects Bitcoin to reach up to one million dollars during this market cycle. 
He also highlighted the role of Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in 
this rise, saying that the increasing institutionalization of Bitcoin is a 
good thing for the market:
&gt; &#8220;There&#8217;s the ETFs. There&#8217;s this institutionalization of Bitcoin [ … ] it&#8217;s a 
&gt; positive in terms of price action, obviously. Our bags are up &#8212; not the 
&gt; alt‑coins as much, but at least Bitcoin is.&#8221;
Zhao explained that the ETFs are &#8220;bringing the traditional institution money 
into crypto&#8221; and &#8220;most of the money in the US is institutional money.&#8221; He said 
that &#8220;Bitcoin is going up because most of the ETFs are Bitcoin-based.&#8221;
_Changpeng Zhao at Rug Radio. Source;__YouTube_
 _**Related:**__**Binance co-founder CZ proposes Bitcoin, BNB for Kyrgyzstan 
reserves**_
## Governments are in on it, too
Zhao also highlighted that governments are increasingly buying Bitcoin as 
well, which &#8220;is really good for the price action.&#8221; He also said:
&gt; &#8220;It&#8217;s also very good validation.&#8221;
The remarks follow multiple countries accumulating Bitcoin. In late April, El 
Salvador, the world&#8217;s first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, 
continued acquiring Bitcoin despite the International Monetary Fund&#8217;s comments 
claiming the opposite. In the seven days leading to April 27, the country 
acquired 7 BTC worth over $650,000 at the time.
The country&#8217;s Bitcoin Office data shows that El Salvador currently holds 
nearly 6,170 BTC worth almost $580 million. The Kingdom of Bhutan is also 
accumulating Bitcoin. January reports suggested that a new economic hub in the 
country plans to set up a strategic cryptocurrency reserve comprising major 
crypto assets, including Bitcoin and Ether (ETH).
_**Related:**__**&#8217; To have freedom of money, you have to have freedom of 
speech&#8217; &#8212; CZ**_
## A shift in US policy
The former Binance CEO also noted that the US &#8220;has pivoted 180 degrees under a 
pro-crypto president,&#8221; hinting at the election of Donald Trump. He said:
&gt; &#8220;They&#8217;re smart enough to recognise that buying Bitcoin is a great move, and 
&gt; now other countries will have to follow.&#8221;
Talking about retail investors, he said that they &#8220;had 15 years to buy.&#8221; 
Consequently, &#8220;if they&#8217;re late now, that was their choice.&#8221;
_**Magazine:**__**CZ walks free, Caroline Ellison receives prison sentence, 
and more: Hodler &#8216;s Digest, Sept. 22 &#8211; 28**_

Binance founder CZ says Bitcoin could hit $500K–$1M this cycle

Southeast Asia&#8217;s superapp Grab has partnered with Natix, a project within 
Solana&#8217;s decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN), to cooperate 
on mapping and autonomous driving technologies.
The joint collaboration aims to combine Natix&#8217;s blockchain-based mapping data 
with Grab&#8217;s camera hardware and mapmaking technology featuring artificial 
intelligence support, Natix said in an announcement on May 6.
&#8220;This partnership brings together the best of both worlds,&#8221; the announcement 
noted, pointing to Grab&#8217;s expertise in crowdsourced mapping and Natix&#8217;s unique 
DePIN model that rewards users for providing decentralized data input.
_Source: Natix_
&#8220;By combining GrabMaps&#8217; AI-powered mapping technology with Natix&#8217;s 
decentralized data network, we&#8217;re enabling real-time, high-fidelity map 
updates across the globe,&#8221; Grab&#8217;s mapping service, GrabMaps, wrote in a 
LinkedIn post on Tuesday.
## 360° vehicle imagery for Tesla drivers
As part of the collaboration, Natix will launch VX360, a device built on 
Grab&#8217;s hardware platform that allows Tesla drivers to collect and share 360° 
vehicle imagery, GrabMaps said in the LinkedIn statement.
&#8220;This rich visual data powers fresher maps and provides critical training and 
validation datasets for autonomous driving and physical AI applications,&#8221; it 
added.
_GrabMaps announced a partnership with the Natix Network on LinkedIn. Source: 
GrabMaps_
Apart from Natix, GrabMaps has also collaborated on hyperlocal location map- 
making tech with partners like Loqate, Bing Maps, Mappls and more, according 
to its official website.
## Driving data incentives for better mapping
According to Natix, traditional centralized mapping methods are inefficient, 
expensive and often associated with limited coverage and update frequency, 
requiring firms to invest trillions of dollars to update maps.
To solve this problem, Natix has built the on-street camera network, which 
enables drivers worldwide to monetize their driving data and contribute to the 
&#8220;next generation of maps.&#8221;
_**Related:**__**Tether AI platform to support Bitcoin and USDT payments, CEO 
says**_
&#8220;We&#8217;re giving Tesla drivers access and storage for their vehicle&#8217;s camera feed 
&#8212; while earning rewards for contributing 360° imagery that will be used for 
better mapping solutions and to power physical AI,&#8221; Natix said in the 
announcement.
_Source: Natix_
For the tech to pay attention to map events like accidents and roadwork as 
well as traffic signs, Natix has also been building AI pipelines for the 
extraction of data, Natix co-founder and CEO Alireza Ghods told Cointelegraph. 
He added:
&#8220;Some are internal efforts, and now we plan to tap into Grab&#8217;s AI capabilities 
as they have cutting-edge technology already built for this need.&#8221;
## Grab&#8217;s growing interest in crypto and blockchain
Grab&#8217;s new partnership with Natix is yet another milestone in the company&#8217;s 
growing number of blockchain and cryptocurrency adoption use cases.
In March 2024, Grab partnered with the payments firm Triple-A to enable its 
clients to pay for services using five cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin 
(BTC), Ether (ETH) and Circle&#8217;s USDC (USDC) stablecoin.
_An excerpt from Circle &#8216;s case study on Grab. Source: Circle_
Additionally, Grab is significantly backed by the Japanese multinational 
investment holding company SoftBank, which is known for its bullish stance on 
cryptocurrency and AI.
The news comes shortly after Grab reported a $773 million revenue in the first 
quarter of 2025, posting an 18% increase year-over-year.
_**Magazine:**__**Crypto AI tokens surge 34%, why ChatGPT is such a kiss-ass: 
AI Eye**_

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

Democratic lawmakers in Washington are backing off support for crypto 
legislation amid heightened concerns over corruption, including the conduct of 
the Trump family&#8217;s World Liberty Financial (WLFI). 
In March, the GENIUS Act, which would regulate stablecoins in the US, passed a 
critical committee reading with the support of several pro-crypto Democrats. 
Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego, Mark Warner, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Andy Kim 
and Angela Alsobrooks voted with Republicans, opposite lead Democrat and 
prominent crypto critic Senator Elizabeth Warren.
The bill passed the committee only after a number of changes were made, 
including stricter requirements for stablecoin issuers and provisions for 
Anti-Money Laundering, countering terrorism financing and risk management 
procedures.
Now, it seems that even those provisions are insufficient to quell Democratic 
concerns. Following some high-profile crypto deals that personally enrich 
President Donald Trump, Congressional Democrats are pulling their support. 
## Bipartisan efforts on stablecoin bills endangered
Of the five pro-crypto Democrats to pass the GENIUS Act in the Senate Banking 
Committee, four signed their names to a statement on May 3, saying that they 
do not feel comfortable with the direction stablecoin legislation is taking.
&#8220;The bill as it currently stands still has numerous issues that must be 
addressed, including adding stronger provisions on anti-money laundering, 
foreign issuers, national security, preserving the safety and soundness of our 
financial system, and accountability,&#8221; the announcement reads.
The statement does not explicitly call out corruption nor mention Trump by 
name, but taken alongside other measures from Democratic lawmakers, it shows a 
growing reticence to engage on cryptocurrency issues.
As Cointelegraph reported on May 5, Representative Maxine Waters and other 
Democratic members of the House Financial Services Committee plan to leave a 
House of Representatives hearing on crypto titled &#8220;American Innovation and the 
Future of Digital Assets&#8221; on May 6. According to a staffer familiar with the 
matter, this would sink the hearing, as House rules require all committee 
members to be present.
The hearing concerns a draft bill, announced by Representative French Hill and 
other top Republicans on May 5, that would change how US financial regulators, 
namely the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures 
Trading Commission (CFTC), treat cryptocurrencies.
_**Related:**__**New crypto bill draft seen to curb big crypto firm 
influence**_
Waters, who has previously called for bipartisan cooperation on crypto 
legislation, has harshly criticized Trump, specifically his WLFI crypto 
investment firm. She characterized his TRUMP memecoin, released on his 
inauguration, as &#8220;the worst of crypto&#8221; and has been particularly vocal about 
the WLFI USD1 stablecoin project.
At a markup hearing on April 2 concerning the STABLE Act &#8212; a draft bill 
circulating the House regarding stablecoins &#8212; Waters said the bill, in its 
current form, allows the president and insiders to &#8220;enrich themselves at the 
expense of everyone else.&#8221;
&#8220;If there is no effort to block the President of the United States of America 
from owning his stablecoin business [&#8230;] I will never be able to agree on 
supporting this bill, and I would ask other members not to be enablers,&#8221; said 
Waters.
Even Hill, a Republican leading the charge for crypto in Washington, said that 
Trump&#8217;s crypto projects complicate Congress&#8217; ability to pass legislation.
## Stablecoin support as political leverage
Corruption concerns may be one factor behind Democrats&#8217; pumping the brakes on 
bipartisan crypto laws, but some observers believe it could be more of a 
political ploy.
Aaron Brogan, a lawyer specializing in regulatory issues in the cryptocurrency 
industry, said it&#8217;s &#8220;unlikely that this group of Senators suddenly came to 
their senses and realized that the mostly benign stablecoin bill they had 
previously supported lacked protections they refused to name.&#8221;
Brogan suggested that either lawmakers wanted to use support for the bill as 
leverage &#8212; Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has reportedly urged 
Democratic lawmakers in private not to commit to the bill for this very reason 
&#8212; or an influential donor wants to kill the bill or use it as leverage.
_**Related:**__**Are Donald Trump &#8216;s tariffs a legal house of cards?**_
Protect Progress, a major political action committee supporting crypto, 
donated millions to Gallego&#8217;s campaign, Brogan noted. He said it is possible 
that major donors to the committee (i.e., Coinbase) would rather see the bill 
replaced with something more to their liking.
While he said it&#8217;s impossible to know for sure, &#8220;Coinbase has attempted to 
bundle the pending market structure legislation with stablecoins to make it 
more likely to pass,&#8221; he said.
## WLFI accused of shady dealing
WLFI has already netted some $550 million from Trump token sales and is 
sealing more deals that will enrich its founders and board members, many of 
whom are Trump family members.
One of them, Eric Trump, announced on May 1 that Abu Dhabi-based investment 
firm MGX would use USD1 to settle its $2-billion investment in global crypto 
exchange Binance.
At Token2049, Eric Trump praised the UAE for its crypto-friendly approach, 
saying that the regulation-heavy EU is a &#8220;lost cause.&#8221;
In November 2024, the founder of the Tron blockchain, Justin Sun, became the 
largest investor in WLFI when he bought some $30 million in TRUMP. More recent 
reports suggest he has spent nearly $70 million. On Feb. 24, just one month 
after Trump took office, the SEC, then with Acting Chair Mark Uyeda at the 
helm, halted its civil fraud investigation into Sun despite previous 
allegations that Sun and the Tron Foundation had illegally distributed tokens, 
concealed celebrity donations, and inflated trade volumes.
Critics claimed that the president was selling exposure to the highest bidder 
when WLFI announced that top TRUMP tokenholders would be welcomed to a gala 
with the president himself. This prompted one lawmaker to suggest impeachment 
&#8212; a pipedream in a Congress with Republican majorities in both houses.
WLFI has not responded publicly or on social media to these criticisms. In a 
May 5 interview with _Meet the Press_ on NBC, President Trump downplayed the 
project, saying he was &#8220;not profiting from anything.&#8221; He said he hasn&#8217;t &#8220;even 
looked&#8221; at his portfolio.
He also rejected the idea that he should forgo any profits from WLFi. &#8220;Should 
I contribute all of my real estate that I&#8217;ve owned for many years if it goes 
up a little bit because I&#8217;m president and doing a good job? I don&#8217;t think so,&#8221; 
he said.
With purported scandals and pressure mounting on Democratic officials to block 
Republican efforts on the Hill, the possibility of a bipartisan stablecoin 
bill, much less a crypto framework, looks increasingly bleak.
_**Magazine:**__**Crypto wanted to overthrow banks, now it &#8216;s becoming them in 
stablecoin fight**_

US stablecoin bill loses democrats amid Trump corruption concerns

The UK government has ruled out creating national cryptocurrency reserves at 
the moment. Economic Secretary to the Treasury Emma Reynolds expressed 
negative sentiment towards a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve at the FT Digital Asset 
Summit in London. Responding to questions…