Author: NBTC

Babylon Labs has proposed a new Aave V4 integration that lets users borrow against native Bitcoin collateral without relying on wrapped $BTC, bridges, or custodians. The proposal, submitted as a temperature check on the Aave governance forum, seeks community approval for two custom Aave V4 “Spokes” that would onboard Bitcoin through Babylon’s Trustless Bitcoin Vaults [TBV] system. Under the model, users lock $BTC directly on the Bitcoin network through Taproot-based vault scripts while borrowing assets on Ethereum through Aave V4 infrastructure. Babylon said the system avoids traditional wrapped Bitcoin designs by keeping the underlying $BTC on Bitcoin itself. Aave founder…

Variational, a peer-to-peer onchain derivatives trading protocol, said it raised $50 million in a round led by global investment fund Dragonfy with participation from companies including Bain Capital Crypto and Coinbase Ventures. The money will be used to expand the Cayman Islands-based company’s derivatives trading services, it said in a statement released Thursday. The raise comes just as Variational introduces perpetual futures tied to real-world assets (RWAs) such as gold, silver, copper and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil. “We believe RWA perpetuals will soon be the biggest contract class in decentralized finance (DeFi), bigger than bitcoin and ether combined,”…

The cryptocurrency and traditional finance markets are going through a turbulent period with institutional ETF initiatives and new divergences within the ecosystem. Bloomberg ETF Analyst James Seyffart, a guest on the Wolf Of All Streets program, made striking assessments regarding institutional adoption, new altcoin ETFs, and SpaceX’s highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO). Morgan Stanley continues to increase its presence in the cryptocurrency market. The bank recently filed an updated application for a spot Solana ETF, which will trade under the ticker symbol “MSOL”. The most notable feature of this ETF is that, unlike Ethereum ETFs, it will directly incorporate…

Hester Peirce will leave the SEC in November 2026 to join Regent University School of Law as professor. Regent University School of Law announced on May 19 that Hester Peirce will join its faculty as associate professor starting in November 2026. The announcement signals Peirce is winding down her time at the SEC after more than seven years as commissioner. “Greg Jacob and Hester Peirce have served at the highest levels of law, government, and public life,” said Dean S. Ernie Walton. “Their decision to join Regent Law full time is a remarkable blessing for our students.” What Peirce built…

Galaxy Digital said Monday that New York regulators granted the company a BitLicense and money transmitter license, allowing the crypto financial services firm to expand institutional digital asset operations in one of the industry’s most tightly regulated markets. The approval from the New York State Department of Financial Services authorizes GalaxyOne Prime NY, the company’s New York entity, to offer regulated crypto trading and custody services across the state. Galaxy said in a press release that the move gives New York-based institutions — including hedge funds, registered investment advisors and family offices — access to its digital asset platform, which…

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs continued seeing heavy outflows for the straight five days with total withdrawals reaching nearly $1.63 billion. The biggest selling came from BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, (IBIT), as institutions continued reducing exposure. Meanwhile Bitcoin price continues to struggle below the $78,000 level. BlackRock Leads Bitcoin ETF Outflows On May 21 alone, the Bitcoin ETF saw around $101 million outflow. Meanwhile, over the past few days, BlackRock Bitcoin ETF recorded as outflow of, $448.4 million in outflows on May 18 $325.6 million on May 19 $61.5 million on May 20 $103.7 million on May 21. n total, BlackRock has…

Privacy coins including Zcash and QRL jumped up to 25% on May 21 as quantum computing fears intensified. Privacy coins surged on May 21, with Zcash up roughly 7% and QRL jumping 25%. Qubitcoin and Starknet also gained as the total privacy coin market cap approached $63 billion. The move came as investors rotated into tokens combining financial privacy and post-quantum security. Glassnode’s recent report classifying 9.6% of Bitcoin supply as quantum-exposed has sharpened demand for tokens built with quantum resistance as a core property. Why privacy and quantum narratives are converging in 2026 $ZEC rallies to a new YTD…

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has moved to block a Minnesota state law that bans prediction markets, platforms that let users bet on the outcome of events. The outright ban on prediction markets is within the broader 2026 public safety bill (SF760), which Governor Tim Walz signed into law on the 18th of May. The new law authorizes felony charges for any firm that operates prediction markets after the state issues it a cease and desist letter. On the 19th of May, the CFTC swiftly filed a lawsuit to block the law before it becomes effective on the…

RWA activity on Hyperliquid reached a new record. Open interest doubled in the past two months, reflecting the shifting interests of on-chain traders. Real-world assets (RWA) on Hyperliquid reached open interest of $2.6B, a new all-time peak. Hyperliquid reported constant growth in the past two months, as open interest doubled. The RWA expansion coincides with a general inflow of traders to Hyperliquid, boosting open interest to $8.56B. RWA trading on Hyperliquid reached a new ATH of $2.6B in open interest, double the amount from two months ago. Demand for 24/7, onchain access to real world assets continues to grow. pic.twitter.com/TZi0mm8Q8V…

Crypto infrastructure startup Cycles has raised $6.4 million in seed funding to build a private clearing network aimed at reducing liquidity usage and counterparty risk across digital asset markets. Cycles, a crypto financial infrastructure company focused on private market clearing, has completed a $6.4 million seed round led by Blockchange Ventures, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Compound VC, Primitive Ventures and other backers. According to the company, the new financing brings its total funding to $8.7 million. The startup is trying to solve one of crypto’s obvious structural inefficiencies: too much capital is trapped across exchanges, counterparties and venues because…