What do the latest France crypto kidnapping cases say about how wealth, risk, and reality now collide? France crypto kidnapping goes beyond cybercrime In recent months, a concerning trend has been unfolding in France. Several individuals linked to the crypto…

Why France is suddenly the world’s epicenter for “crypto kidnappings”

**Key takeaway:**
 * Bitcoin&#8217;s struggles to overtake the $105,000 level as US macroeconomic headwinds remain a challenge. 
 * Steady inflows from institutional investors and the strength of the $100,000 support point to growing confidence in Bitcoin.
Bitcoin (BTC) has struggled to break above $105,000 since May 10, leading 
traders to question whether the bullish momentum has faded. Although BTC 
managed to reclaim the $104,000 level, demand for leveraged long positions has 
dropped sharply, as indicated by the decline in the Bitcoin futures premium.
_Bitcoin 2-month futures annualized premium. Source: laevitas.ch_
On May 14, the annualized Bitcoin futures premium peaked at 7%, but then fell 
to 5%, which is near the neutral-to-bearish threshold and matches the level 
seen four weeks ago when BTC traded around $84,500.
This decline in demand for leveraged bullish positions appears to be linked to 
broader macroeconomic uncertainty, since Bitcoin&#8217;s price has been closely 
following movements in the stock market.
_S &amp;P 500 futures (left) vs. Bitcoin/USD (right), 30min. Source: TradingView_
The S&amp;P 500 futures reversed early weakness on May 15, coinciding with 
Bitcoin&#8217;s rebound from $101,800 to $104,000. Investors seem more confident 
that the US Treasury will be compelled to inject liquidity after Federal 
Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that &#8220;supply shocks&#8221; could keep interest 
rates higher for longer than expected.
Signs of economic weakness have also emerged. The US Bureau of Labor 
Statistics reported that April&#8217;s Producer Price Index fell 0.5% from the 
previous month, while economists surveyed by FactSet had anticipated a 0.2% 
rise. According to Reuters, investors&#8217; limited risk appetite is also 
influenced by ongoing global trade tensions, as the US-China tariff agreement 
remains only a temporary solution.
_US 10-year Treasury yields. Source: TradingView / Cointelegraph_
Demand for fixed income has increased, with the yield on the 10-year US 
Treasury dropping to 4.45% after reaching 4.55% on May 14, reversing the 
previous week&#8217;s trend. Historically, Bitcoin tends to perform better when 
government bond yields are rising, as this signals reduced confidence in the 
Treasury&#8217;s ability to manage its debt.
## Bitcoin&#8217;s rally to $105,000 hinges on macroeconomic trends
To assess whether traders are simply avoiding leverage or actively betting on 
a price decline, it is helpful to analyze Bitcoin options demand. Typically, 
periods of bearish sentiment push the BTC delta skew indicator above the 
neutral 6% threshold.
_Bitcoin 60-day options delta 25% skew (put-call) at Deribit. 
Source:__laevitas.ch_
Contrary to expectations, Bitcoin put (sell) options have been trading at a 
discount compared to call (buy) options, signaling strong confidence in the 
$100,000 support level. However, the optimism seen on May 14 has faded, with 
the indicator now at a neutral -4%.
_**Related:**__**What the 10-year Treasury yield means for crypto yields and 
stablecoins**_
Since Bitcoin&#8217;s price has closely mirrored the US stock market, the chances of 
breaking above $105,000 depend heavily on macroeconomic developments, such as 
trends in the US Federal Reserve&#8217;s balance sheet and recession risks. Notably, 
Bitcoin&#8217;s high correlation with the S&amp;P 500 rarely persists for more than two 
months.
Net inflows of $320 million into US Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on 
May 14 point to ongoing institutional demand. This suggests that investors are 
gradually shifting their perception of Bitcoin from a risk-on asset to a non- 
correlated instrument, which may reduce the likelihood of sharp price 
corrections, even in the absence of strong leveraged bullish positions.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and 
should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and 
opinions expressed here are the author&#8217;s alone and do not necessarily reflect 
or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

Bitcoin traders’ evolving view of BTC’s role in every portfolio bolsters $100K support

Asset tokenization is set to accelerate the movement of capital across 
traditional markets, according to Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov. 
Speaking with Cointelegraph at Consensus 2025 in Toronto, Nazarov said the 
shift will boost capital velocity in asset classes such as treasuries, 
equities, private credit, commercial debt, and real estate.
&#8220;I think that there are two sides to this equation. One is the asset, and the 
other one is the payment. So, you need more high-quality assets onchain, but 
you also need more frictionless payments that existing institutions can use 
easily,&#8221; Nazarov said on May 14.
The remarks came on the same day Chainlink announced a partnership with 
Kinexys, a blockchain network for institutional-grade tokenized assets by JP 
Morgan, and digital asset firm Ondo Finance. Together, the companies will 
develop payment rails for institutions trading tokenized real-world assets 
onchain.
The partnership tested the exchange of Ondo&#8217;s US Government Treasuries Fund 
(OUSG), a tokenized short-term US debt fund, with Kinexys, using Chainlink&#8217;s 
Runtime Environment &#8212; a framework for connecting legacy financial systems to 
blockchains in a unified environment.
&#8220;What Chainlink is trying to do is kick off a virtuous cycle that triggers 
kind of a runaway success for the industry as a whole. We want more assets 
onchain, Nazarov added. &#8220;We want more payment systems onchain,&#8221; he continued. 
_From left to right: Colin Cunningham, Sergey Nazarov, Nelli Zaltzman and 
Nathan Allman at Consensus 2025. Source: Vince Quill/Cointelegraph_
The partnership reflects the broader institutional acceptance of 
cryptocurrencies and Web3 technologies, following a positive regulatory shift 
in the United States post-2024 elections and the resignation of Gary Gensler, 
former chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
_**Related:**__**&#8217; Everything is lining up&#8217; &#8212; Tokenization is having its 
breakout moment**_
## Chainlink&#8217;s runtime environment
Chainlink is a decentralized oracle network that connects smart contracts on 
blockchains with real-world data, APIs, and offchain systems. Nazarov said the 
company has been coordinating transactions between financial institutions, 
asset issuers, and regulators.
Chainlink markets its &#8220;Runtime Environment&#8221; as an upgrade to legacy financial 
systems&#8217; protocols, including the Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL) 
standard &#8212; an operating language developed in 1959 for automated teller 
machines (ATMs) &#8212; and the Java Runtime architecture for online banking 
applications.
_Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov speaking at Consensus 2025. Source: Vince 
Quill/Cointelegraph_
Nazarov previously stressed that the United States needs to establish a 
competitive moat around tokenized assets to keep US capital markets 
competitive and attractive in the age of global, permissionless finance.
_**Magazine:**__**Ethereum is destroying the competition in the $16.1T TradFi 
tokenization race**_

Asset tokenization expected to speed capital flows, says Chainlink's Nazarov

The New York Times (NYT) reported Thursday that the Securities and Exchange 
Commission is investigating whether Coinbase misrepresented its now- 
discontinued “verified user” metric in past disclosures, according to David 
Yaffe-Bellany and Matthew Goldstein. The probe, citing over 100 million users 
in filings until 2023, began under the Biden administration and continues 
under President Trump’s SEC, […]

SEC Probes Coinbase’s Discontinued ‘Verified User’ Claims: NYT

Bitdeer Technologies Group reported a 41% year-over-year drop in revenue to 
$70.1 million for the first quarter of 2025, the Bitcoin miner said on May 15.
The Singaporean company clocked an operating loss of $3.2 million for the 
quarter, down from a $34.1 million profit during the same period last year, 
its earnings release said.
However, Bitdeer reported a Q1 net income of more than $400 million, largely 
driven by gains on convertible notes and warrants issued to stablecoin issuer 
Tether in 2024.
Bitdeer&#8217;s revenue declines come as miners increasingly expand beyond Bitcoin 
(BTC) mining and pivot toward supplying high-performance computing (HPC) for 
artificial intelligence applications.
&#8220;As we scale self-mining and execute on our ASIC [mining hardware] roadmap, we 
are also advancing plans for U.S.-based HPC and AI infrastructure,&#8221; Matt Kong, 
Bitdeer&#8217;s chief business officer, said in a statement.
But Bitcoin miners are still struggling to adapt after the Bitcoin network&#8217;s 
April 2024 halving event, which effectively cut mining revenue in half.
Bitdeer has been trying to offset waning mining revenue by selling its own 
energy-efficient Bitcoin mining hardware. However, sales are still scaling and 
have not yet made up for lost mining income.
_Operational summary for Bitdeer in Q1 2025. Source:__Bitdeer_
 _**Related:**__**Bitfarms clocks $36M net loss amid shift from Bitcoin mining 
to AI**_
## Self-mining ramp-up
The company is also ramping up self-mining activities, which involve using 
mining hardware to accumulate Bitcoin itself.
Bitdeer expects its self-mining hashrate to reach 40 exahashes per second 
(EH/s) by the end of 2025, according to its earnings release. Hashrate is a 
measure of the computing power securing the Bitcoin network.
&#8220;With our SEALMINER mining rigs quickly coming off the production line and 
ample global power capacity available, we expect to achieve rapid growth in 
our self-mining hashrate,&#8221; Kong said.
As of March, Tether owned a 21% stake in Bitdeer, according to US regulatory 
filings.
Bitdeer has been reportedly investing in its US expansion as a hedge against 
the prospect of worsening trade wars.
_**Magazine: **__**Help! My parents are addicted to Pi Network crypto 
tapper**_

Bitdeer Q1 revenue falls more than 40% year-over-year

After several days of intense buying pressure and strong bullish momentum, 
Ethereum has finally paused its rally, finding resistance around the $2,740 
mark. The move comes after ETH effortlessly cleared key resistance levels at 
$2,000 and $2,200, marking one of its strongest short-term performances in 
months. As excitement builds across the broader crypto market, Ethereum’s next 
move could define the strength and sustainability of this breakout. Related 
Reading: $1.2B In Ethereum Withdrawn From CEXs – Strong Accumulation Signal 
With price now stalling, analysts believe a period of consolidation is 
likely—and perhaps even necessary—before the next leg higher. Top analyst Daan 
shared a technical view suggesting that the $2,400 level will be crucial in 
the coming days. He believes it makes sense to retest that local support, 
which would provide a healthier structure for further upside. However, Daan 
also notes a cautionary signal: extremely high levels of Open Interest across 
the ETH derivatives market. He’s currently avoiding long positions until some 
of that leverage is flushed out, reducing the risk of a sharper pullback. For 
now, Ethereum bulls must hold above $2,400 to confirm strength and keep the 
uptrend intact, while traders await cleaner conditions for potential reentry. 
Ethereum’s Surge Faces a Crucial Retest Around $2.4K Ethereum has surged more 
than 50% since last week, reclaiming momentum after months of heavy selling 
pressure. ETH is showing sustained strength for the first time since late 
December, fueling optimism that the broader altcoin market could be next. Many 
analysts are calling for an altseason, and Ethereum’s breakout is seen as a 
potential catalyst for a larger move across altcoins that have severely 
underperformed in recent years. However, after such a sharp move, a period of 
consolidation or correction wouldn’t be unusual—and could even be healthy. 
According to Daan, the $2,400 level will be a key support zone to watch. He 
believes it makes sense for price to test this area before further 
continuation. Daan currently has no interest in entering long positions until 
some of the billions in Open Interest are flushed from the system. How 
Ethereum reacts around $2.4K will likely set the tone for the next phase. If 
ETH sweeps $2.4K and quickly bounces, Daan expects a local range to form 
between $2.4K and $2.7K. However, if price loses that level decisively, the 
next major support lies at $2.1K. A slow bleed into that zone could signal 
weakness, while a quick flush might present a short-lived buying opportunity. 
Despite short-term risks, Daan notes that even a pullback to $2.1K would still 
leave ETH up roughly 20% from the prior week. In his view, the larger trading 
range for now is between $2.1K and $2.8K—a zone that could define Ethereum’s 
next major trend if bulls can hold key levels and regain momentum. For now, 
the rally is alive, but the next test will be critical. Related Reading: 
Ethereum MVRV Pricing Bands Show Key Resistance Around $3,100 Level – Details 
Price Consolidation Taking Place Amid Optimism Ethereum (ETH) is currently 
trading around $2,565, following a sharp retracement from its recent local 
high near $2,740. After a powerful rally that pushed ETH above both the 
200-day exponential moving average (EMA) and simple moving average (SMA), the 
price is now consolidating just below the 200-day SMA at $2,702.93. This level 
has acted as resistance over the last few sessions, capping Ethereum’s attempt 
to continue its upward momentum. Volume has declined slightly, reflecting 
market indecision after last week’s breakout. If bulls can defend the 200-day 
EMA near $2,437 and maintain higher lows above $2,500, the structure would 
remain bullish. However, a failure to hold these levels could lead to a deeper 
pullback, with $2,400 and $2,200 as potential supports. The recent price 
action suggests Ethereum is forming a short-term range between $2,400 and 
$2,700, which could persist until a clear breakout above the 200-day SMA. 
Holding above $2,500 is crucial to maintaining bullish momentum, especially as 
the altcoin market eyes further gains. Related Reading: XRP Open Interest 
Surges 41% As Speculation Grows – Over $1B Added In Just One Week If ETH can 
push above $2,700 with strong volume, it would confirm renewed strength and 
open the path toward the $3,000–$3,100 resistance zone. Until then, 
consolidation and caution dominate the short-term outlook. Featured image from 
Dall-E, chart from TradingView