South Korean politician Lee Jae-myung has vowed to approve spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds and create a safer investment environment for young investors if elected president. Lee, who is the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, has rolled out a set of crypto-friendly…

South Korean presidential hopeful Lee Jae-myung vows to approve crypto ETFs

The central bank committee members unanimously voted to keep rates unchanged 
and expressed concerns about the elevated levels of inflation. BTC Trends 
Upward After Fed’s Rate Decision The price of bitcoin (BTC) jumped 2% after 
the U.S. Federal Reserve decided to keep its policy rate in the 4.25% – 4.5% 
range on Wednesday afternoon sighting […]

Bitcoin Edges Higher After Fed Leaves Rates Untouched

**What to know** :
 * Lyn Alden says a weaker dollar is necessary for the US to stabilize its financial system.
 * Bitcoin and gold are well-positioned to benefit from de-dollarization.
 * Sovereign wealth funds and various nations are already increasing their Bitcoin exposure as the dollar&#8217;s global dominance starts to wane.
The weakening of the US dollar (DXY) is no longer headline news. With mounting 
disruptions across the US economy, a declining greenback has become part of 
the backdrop. Since the start of 2025, the US Dollar Index has dropped 11%, 
now hovering around levels last seen in April 2022. Markets have largely 
responded with a shrug. After all, in times of deep restructuring, isn&#8217;t some 
dollar weakness to be expected?
The trouble is, this might not be a temporary dip. The dollar&#8217;s slide could 
reflect a deeper, long-term reconfiguration of both the US economy and the 
global monetary order. In a May 4 newsletter, independent market analyst Lyn 
Alden made a compelling case: not only is a weaker dollar likely, but it may 
be necessary. According to Alden, a controlled retreat from dollar hegemony 
might be one of the few paths left to stabilize an increasingly fragile 
system. And if the US relinquishes its role at the center of the monetary 
universe, the world will need alternatives. Neutral assets like gold and 
Bitcoin could be well-positioned to take on a more central role.
## The US and the dollar are in a &#8220;long-term transition&#8221;
Fractional reserve banking, the system that fiat money relies on, creates 
money through lending. Each time a bank issues a loan, it expands the supply 
of broad money, without necessarily creating enough base money to cover the 
loan principal and its interest. This means that the current financial system 
relies on continual credit expansion and refinancing to remain solvent.
Today, the US economy holds around $102 trillion in public and private dollar- 
denominated debt, with another $18 trillion owed by borrowers outside the US 
And that&#8217;s not even counting derivatives, which would push the total much 
higher.
Yet only $5.8 trillion in base money actually exists.
&gt; &#8220;It&#8217;s like a game of musical chairs with more than 20 kids for every chair,&#8221; 
&gt; Alden writes. &#8220;And the music can&#8217;t stop for long.&#8221;
The US plays a special role in this system. It imports more than it exports, 
while surplus countries funnel their dollar earnings back into American 
stocks, bonds, real estate, and private equity. For the $18 trillion in dollar 
liabilities held abroad, non-US entities hold roughly $61 trillion in US 
dollar assets. But when dollar liquidity tightens &#8212; when the music stops &#8212; 
foreign holders often have to sell those assets to service their debts, which, 
in turn, threatens US financial stability.
This happened in March 2020, when parts of the Treasury market froze during 
the peak panic stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fed stepped in, quickly 
opening emergency swap lines with foreign central banks and printing trillions 
in base money to re-float the system. That solved the liquidity issue but 
unleashed inflation, hitting lower-income Americans the hardest.
Combined with decades of industrial decline and widening social gaps, this 
situation eventually created the political mandate for Donald Trump and his 
protectionist agenda. However, the tariff shock is unlikely to be successful, 
Alden argues. The current system implies that the US must run structural trade 
deficits to provide the global economy with enough dollars to keep the 
greenback&#8217;s dominance. The only way of rebalancing trade flows is through a 
weak dollar and a step back from monetary hegemony.
As Alden puts it,
&gt; &#8220;I view the United States and indeed the global financial system as likely 
&gt; beginning a very long-term transition.&#8221;
## The Bitcoin to DXY relationship
Bitcoin (BTC) and DXY are inversely correlated. When the dollar strengthens, 
risk-on assets like BTC lose some of their appeal to investors. When the 
dollar weakens, BTC becomes more attractive not just as a speculative play, 
but as an alternative currency. In a system where fiat must effectively lose 
value over time to function, Bitcoin&#8217;s fixed supply and monetary neutrality 
offer a compelling hedge.
Overlaying BTC and DXY charts reveals that major divergences between the two 
often align with Bitcoin trend reversals. In April 2018 and March 2022, such 
divergences signaled bear markets, while November 2020 marked the start of a 
bullish rally.
In the 2023-2026 cycle, BTC caught up with the DXY in early 2024, and the two 
moved largely in sync until recently. A clear divergence began at the 
beginning of April 2025, with the DXY dropping below 100 for the first time in 
two years.
If past patterns are any guide, this could signal the start of a new BTC 
rally. And if the US moves to strategically weaken the dollar in the long 
term, the impact could extend well beyond Bitcoin&#8217;s usual cyclical price 
action.
_DXY vs BTC/USD 1-day. Source: Marie Poteriaieva, TradingView_
 _**Related:**__**How much Bitcoin can Berkshire Hathaway buy?**_
## Where to invest in a post-dollar era?
Periods of monetary upheaval are notoriously difficult to navigate. While 
short-term tactics may differ, longer-term strategies point to neutral, high- 
quality reserve assets &#8212; especially those that stand to benefit structurally 
from de-dollarization.
Gold fits this bill. So does Bitcoin.
Several sovereign entities are already stockpiling Bitcoin. El Salvador and 
Bhutan are directly buying and mining BTC. Abu Dhabi&#8217;s Mubadala Investment Co. 
and the US state of Wisconsin&#8217;s pension fund have exposure via spot BTC ETFs. 
A dozen US states hold equity in Michael Saylor&#8217;s Strategy, as well as over 
13,000 companies and institutions. Even Norway&#8217;s sovereign wealth fund, the 
world&#8217;s largest, has Bitcoin exposure through its holdings of Strategy, Mara 
Holdings, Coinbase, and Riot.
With the dollar retreating from the global financial arena, space will open 
for other currencies. There are more and more examples of international trade 
deals settled in yuan, dirham, or other national currencies. Reuters reports 
that cross-border yuan payments surged to a record in March. The euro is also 
on the rise, gaining 10% against the dollar since February. This is all the 
more impressive taking into account that the European Central Bank has been 
continuously cutting interest rates, which now stand at just 2.5%, far below 
the Fed&#8217;s 4.5%.
The much-debated &#8220;de-dollarization&#8221; is no longer hypothetical. It&#8217;s unfolding 
in real time. As nations and companies search for stable, neutral alternatives 
to settle trade and store value, Bitcoin&#8217;s borderless and politically neutral 
nature positions it as a serious contender.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every 
investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their 
own research when making a decision.

Falling DXY part of US financial system’s ‘long-term transition’ — Will Bitcoin continue to shine?

The Solana Name Service (SNS), a decentralized naming protocol on the Solana 
blockchain, has launched its SNS token to decentralize governance and align 
the project’s future with its user community. Solana Naming Protocol Launches 
Governance Token with 10 Billion Supply The SNS token, with a total supply of 
10 billion, is designed to grant .sol […]

Solana Name Service Launches SNS Token to Boost Community Governance

Braden John Karony, the former CEO of crypto firm SafeMoon, made an out-of- 
court statement claiming innocence as his criminal trial began in New York.
In a May 6 X post after court proceedings had likely ended for the day, Karony 
said he was innocent and &#8220;did not commit fraud&#8221; in response to media coverage 
of his trial. The former CEO, as well as SafeMoon creator Kyle Nagy and former 
chief technology officer Thomas Smith, were charged in 2023 for having 
allegedly &#8220;diverted and misappropriated millions of dollars&#8217; worth&#8221; of the 
platform&#8217;s SFM token.
According to reporting from the US District Court for the Eastern District of 
New York (EDNY) on May 6, Karony implied that Nagy, who reportedly fled to 
Russia after authorities filed charges, was responsible for some of the 
alleged fraud at SafeMoon. On the first day of the trial, after jury 
selection, Smith reportedly appeared as a witness for the prosecution with a 
SafeMoon victim.
The trial, expected to run until May 26, has arguably received less media 
attention and scrutiny than other crypto cases, such as the 2023 trial of 
former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and the sentencing of former Binance CEO 
Changpeng Zhao. Karony pleaded not guilty to charges of securities fraud 
conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy, and has 
been free on a $3 million bond since February 2024.
_**Related:**__**What do crypto users want to happen to Alex Mashinsky?**_
Many high-profile individuals from the crypto industry who faced criminal 
charges did not publicly comment on social media until the conclusion of their 
cases, likely on the advice of counsel. Such statements may be used at trial.
## **Trump&#8217;s interim appointee moves in without Senate confirmation**
Karony&#8217;s case, first filed in November 2023, came as Donald Trump appointee 
Joseph Nocella assumed the role of interim US Attorney for the court district. 
EDNY&#8217;s courts have previously handled cases involving allegations of crypto 
fraud, but it&#8217;s unclear whether politics will play a role moving forward, 
given Trump&#8217;s alignment with the crypto industry.
In the neighboring US District Court for the Southern District of New York, 
Alex Mashinsky is scheduled to be sentenced on May 8. The former Celsius CEO 
pleaded guilty to two felony charges in December 2024. Prosecutors have asked 
a judge to impose a 20-year sentence.
_**Magazine:**__**Bitcoiner Adam Back on Blockstream conspiracy theories and 
Satoshi question**_

Ex-SafeMoon CEO claims innocence, blames founder as trial begins

Binance-affiliated BNB Chain has rebounded after a period of stagnation in 
2023 amid accelerating institutional and decentralized finance (DeFi) 
adoption.
During the past year, BNB Chain has benefited from multibillion-dollar inflows 
into DeFi, US exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and rising trading volume at 
affiliated centralized exchange (CEX) Binance.
Consequently, the blockchain network&#8217;s native BNB token (BNB) has emerged as 
among the market&#8217;s most resilient cryptocurrencies, surpassing all-time highs 
in the first quarter of 2025 even as the broader crypto market trended 
downward.
&#8220;This resilience isn&#8217;t just about price action &#8212; strong fundamentals also 
back it,&#8221; Joao Wedson, CEO of investing analytics platform Alphractal, said in 
an April X post. &#8220;Binance has built a massive ecosystem where BNB is used 
extensively,&#8221; Wedson added.
Asset manager Standard Chartered expects the BNB token&#8217;s price to continue to 
rise, reaching highs of $2,775 by the end of 2028. As of May 7, BNB trades at 
around $600 per coin. It has a market capitalization of nearly $85 billion, 
according to CoinMarketCap.
Meanwhile, asset manager VanEck proposed on May 5 the first BNB ETF in the 
United States.
_DeFi activity on BNB Chain (formerly BSC). Source:__DeFiLlama_
 _**Related:**__**Standard Chartered predicts BNB will more than double in 
2025**_
## DeFi inflows
Since the start of 2024, BNB Chain&#8217;s TVL has increased from around $3.5 
billion to more than $6 billion, according to data from DefiLlama. It still 
hasn&#8217;t recovered fully to all-time highs of more than $20 billion in 2022.
As of May 7, BNB Chain ranks fourth among layer-1 blockchain networks by TVL, 
the data shows.
According to Standard Chartered, BNB Chain&#8217;s &#8220;use cases remain almost entirely 
on decentralised exchanges [DEXs], lending protocols, and liquid staking. This 
makes it a much more concentrated and &#8216;old-fashioned&#8217; smart contract platform 
than rivals,&#8221; it said in a May research note reviewed by Cointelegraph.
&#8220;While this caps upside potential, it also provides a degree of stability,&#8221; 
according to the asset manager.
PancakeSwap is among BNB Chain&#8217;s largest DEXs, with roughly $1.5 billion in 
TVL, according to DefiLlama.
_USD1 on BNB Chain vs. Ethereum. Source:__BSC Scan_
## Institutional adoption
Institutional adoption is growing on the blockchain network, with performance 
partly driven by its ties to Binance, the network&#8217;s affiliated CEX.
The exchange clocked an all-time high trading volume of around $76 trillion in 
2024. It accounts for roughly 40% of spot trading volumes globally, according 
to Standard Chartered.
In addition, US President Donald Trump-backed stablecoin USD1 has been issued 
primarily on the BNB Chain. Data from BscScan shows that more than $2 billion 
worth of USD1 &#8212; or 99% of its circulating supply &#8212; has been issued on BNB 
Chain.
_**Magazine: **__**12 minutes of nail-biting tension when Ethereum &#8216;s Pectra 
fork goes live**_