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Man Gets Six Years for Laundering $1M into Bitcoin for Scammers and Drug Dealers

by admin May 23, 2025

A man who converted cash into Bitcoin for scammers and a drug dealer has been sentenced to six years behind bars.

Trung Nguyen of Danvers, Massachusetts ran an unlicensed, “no questions asked” money transmitting business called National Vending, according to a statement released by the U.S. Justice Department.

More than $1 million was converted into crypto over a three-year period, with Nguyen receiving a fee in exchange.

The 48-year-old was convicted of accepting $250,000 in cash from a man who identified himself as a meth dealer—and $445,000 from romance scam victims who had been duped into sending BTC to con artists overseas.

Ngyuen also took steps to cover his tracks, telling banks and crypto exchanges that his company was actually a vending machine business.

Encrypted messaging apps were used to communicate with customers, while BTC transactions were obfuscated, making it harder to track the flow of funds.

When making larger cash deposits of more than $10,000, the funds would be broken down into smaller chunks over several days, or split between banks.

He even enrolled in a course so he could learn how to conceal his business, in which he was told to “develop a cover story,” generate a fictitious list of suppliers, and never say the word “Bitcoin.”

Judge Richard G. Sterns ordered Nguyen to forfeit $1.5 million, and ordered him to serve three years of supervised release following his jail term.

When Nguyen was convicted following a five-day trial last November, Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy had a message for money launderers: Bitcoin won’t allow you to clean dirty funds anonymously.

“This defendant’s ‘no questions asked’ money laundering operation allowed a known drug dealer to turn their dirty cash into more deadly meth to pump onto our streets and it allowed scammers to swindle vulnerable victims out of their hard-earned savings,” Levy said.

National Vending was in operation between September 2017 and October 2020, but it lacked anti-money laundering checks and wasn’t registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

Cointelegraph Bitcoin & Ethereum Blockchain News

by admin May 23, 2025

Understanding the Curve Finance DNS hijacking

On May 12, 2025, at 20:55 UTC, hackers hijacked the “.fi” domain name system (DNS) of Curve Finance after managing to access the registrar. They began sending its users to a malicious website, attempting to drain their wallets. This was the second attack on Curve Finance’s infrastructure in a week.

Users were directed to a website that was a non-functional decoy, designed only to trick users into providing wallet signatures. The hack hadn’t breached the protocol’s smart contracts and was limited to the DNS layer.

The DNS is a critical component of the internet that functions like a phonebook. It allows you to use simple, memorable domain names (such as facebook.com) instead of complex numerical IP addresses (like 192.168.1.1) for websites. DNS converts these user-friendly domain names into the IP addresses computers require to connect.

This is not the first time Curve Finance, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, has suffered such an attack. Back in August 2022, Curve Finance faced an attack with similar tactics. The attackers had cloned the Curve Finance website and interfered with its DNS settings to send users to a duplicate version of the website. Users who tried using the platform ended up losing their money to the attackers. The project was using the same registrar, “iwantmyname,” at the time of the previous attack.

How attackers execute DNS hijacking in crypto

When a user types a web address, their device queries a DNS server to retrieve the corresponding IP address and connect to the correct website. In DNS hijacking, fraudsters interfere with this process by altering how DNS queries are resolved, rerouting users to malicious sites without their knowledge.

Fraudsters execute DNS hijacking in several ways. Attackers might exploit vulnerabilities in DNS servers, compromise routers, or gain access to domain registrar accounts. The objective is to change the DNS records so that a user trying to visit a legitimate site is redirected to a fake, lookalike page containing wallet-draining code.

Types of DNS hijacking include:

Local DNS hijack: Malware on a user’s device changes DNS settings, redirecting traffic locally.
Router hijack: Attackers compromise home or office routers to alter DNS for all connected devices.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts DNS queries between user and server, altering responses on the fly.
Registrar-level hijack: Attackers gain access to a domain registrar account and modify official DNS records, affecting all users globally.

Did you know? During the Curve Finance DNS attack in 2023, users accessing the real domain unknowingly signed malicious transactions. The back end was untouched, but millions were lost through a spoofed front end.

How DNS hijacking worked in the case of Curve Finance

When attackers compromise a website with DNS hijacking, they can reroute traffic to a malicious website without the user’s knowledge.

There are several ways DNS hijacking can occur. Attackers might infect a user’s device with malware that alters local DNS settings, or they may gain control of a router and change its DNS configuration. They may also target DNS servers or domain registrars themselves. In such cases, they modify the DNS records at the source, affecting all users trying to access the site.

In the case of Curve Finance, the attackers infiltrated the systems of the domain registrar “iwantmyname” and altered the DNS delegation of the “curve.fi” domain to redirect traffic to their own DNS server.

A domain registrar is a company authorized to manage the reservation and registration of internet domain names. It allows individuals or organizations to claim ownership of a domain and link it to web services like hosting and email.

The precise method of the breach is still under investigation. By May 22, 2025, no evidence of unauthorized access or compromised credentials was found.

Did you know? DNS hijacking attacks often succeed by compromising domain registrar accounts through phishing or poor security. Many Web3 projects still host domains with centralized providers like GoDaddy or Namecheap.

How Curve Finance responded to the hack

While the registrar was slow to respond, the Curve team took measures to deal with the situation. It successfully redirected the “.fi” domain to neutral nameservers, thus taking the website offline while efforts to regain control continued.

To ensure safe access to the frontend and secure fund management, the Curve team quickly launched a secure alternative at “curve.finance,” now serving as the official Curve Finance interface temporarily.

Upon discovering the exploit at 21:20 UTC, the following actions were taken:

Users were immediately notified through official channels
Requested the takedown of the compromised domain
Initiated mitigation and domain recovery processes
Collaborated with security partners and the registrar to coordinate a response.

Compromise of the domain notwithstanding, the Curve protocol and its smart contracts remained secure and fully operational. During the disruption of the front end, Curve processed over $400 million in onchain volume. No user data was at risk, as Curve’s front end does not store any user information.

Throughout the compromise, the Curve team was always available through its Discord server, where users could raise issues with them.

After implementing immediate damage control measures, the Curve team is now taking additional steps to prepare for the future.

Assessing and enhancing registrar-level security, incorporating stronger protections and exploring alternative registrars
Investigating decentralized front-end options to eliminate dependence on susceptible web infrastructure
Partnering with the broader DeFi and Ethereum Name Service (ENS) communities to advocate for native browser support for “.eth” domains.

Did you know? Unlike smart contract exploits, DNS hijacks leave no trace onchain initially, making it hard for users to realize they have been tricked until funds are gone. It is a stealthy form of crypto theft.

How crypto projects can deal with DNS hijacking vulnerability

The Curve Finance attack is concerning because it bypassed the decentralized security mechanisms at the protocol level. Curve’s backend, meaning its smart contracts and onchain logic, remained unharmed, yet users lost funds because they were deceived at the interface level. This incident underscores a significant vulnerability in DeFi.

While the backend may be decentralized and trustless, the front end still depends on centralized Web2 infrastructure like DNS, hosting and domain registrars. Attackers can exploit these centralized choke points to undermine trust and steal funds.

The Curve attack serves as a wake-up call for the crypto industry to explore decentralized web infrastructure, such as InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) and Ethereum Name Service (ENS), to reduce reliance on vulnerable centralized services.

To address the gap between decentralized backends and centralized frontends, crypto projects must adopt a multi-layered approach.

Here are various ways crypto projects can deal with this gap:

Minimize reliance on traditional DNS: They can minimize reliance on traditional DNS by integrating decentralized alternatives of DNS like the ENS or Handshake, which reduce the risk of registrar-level hijacks.
Use decentralized file storage systems: Hosting frontends on decentralized file storage systems such as IPFS or Arweave adds another layer of protection.
Implement domain name system security extensions (DNSSEC): Teams should implement DNSSEC to verify the integrity of DNS records and prevent unauthorized changes.
Secure registrar accounts: Registrar accounts must be secured with strong authentication methods, including multifactor authentication (MFA) and domain locking.
Train users: Educating users to verify site authenticity, such as bookmarking URLs or checking ENS records, can reduce phishing success rates.

Bridging the trust gap between decentralized protocols and centralized interfaces is essential for maintaining security and user confidence in DeFi platforms.

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

Trend Accumulation Score By Cohort (Glassnode)

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BTC Enters Strongest Accumulation Phase Since January as Bitcoin Price Tops $110K

by admin May 23, 2025

Bitcoin

has entered a strong accumulation phase across all wallet cohorts for the first time since January, signaling renewed bullish sentiment as the largest cryptocurrency trades above $110,000, an 18% gain over the past month.

Glassnode’s Accumulation Trend Score has reached its maximum value of 1.0, indicating broad-based, aggressive accumulation by investors irrespective of the amount of BTC they already hold. The metric evaluates the relative strength of buying by different wallet sizes, factoring in both their existing holdings and the amount acquired over the past 15 days. It excludes exchanges and miners to avoid distortion.

The latest accumulation wave began in early May, led by whales holding over 10,000 BTC. As the price began to climb, cohorts with smaller holdings followed, intensifying their accumulation behavior.

This marks a significant shift from the January-to-April period, when most cohorts were in reducing their holdings as bitcoin tumbled from its then-record high of $109,000 to lows around $75,000.

Trend Accumulation Score By Cohort (Glassnode)

The renewed demand is supported by options market activity, with CoinDesk Research highlighting large bullish positions. The $300,000 strike for June expiry has become the most popular call option, with $620 million in notional value, and an additional $420 million is concentrated around the $200,000 strike.

Open Interest By Strike Price (Deribit)

While bitcoin historically tends to fall after hitting an all-time high due to profit-taking, traditional assets like the S&P 500 and gold often extend their rallies in similar scenarios. If bitcoin were to follow this more mature asset behavior, it may signal the beginning of a sustained bull cycle, a trend many in the market are now watching closely.

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

NFT Gaming

Bitcoin Trading Volume Soars as Price Pumps to New Heights

by admin May 23, 2025

In brief

Bitcoin futures trading volume on Wednesday jumped to over $203 billion, third-most so far in 2025.
Spot trading volume also soared this week as Bitcoin’s price spiked.
The leading virtual coin reached an all-time high near $112,000 on Thursday.

Bitcoin trading volume for spot and futures exchanges has soared the past two days as the underlying asset pumped to new heights.

Spot trading volume for the world’s largest crypto by market value hit the highest two-day total in nearly two months, $150 billion, according to crypto markets data provider CoinMarketCap. Meanwhile, BTC futures trading volume on Wednesday jumped to over $203 billion, the third-highest daily total of 2025, according to CoinGlass.

Those figures come as BTC’s price climbed to all-time highs just shy of $112,000. Bitcoin was recent trading at about $111,100, up 2% over the past 24 hours and nearly 8% for the past week. The surge has come as investors buoyed by encouraging macroeconomic signs, but also confident in Bitcoin’s status as a potential hedge against the potential depreciation of the U.S. dollar, purchase the asset.

The CoinGlass data does not include inflows into American spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have taken in over $1.6 billion in inflows from investors so far this week, according to Farside Investors data.

Only 10 other days this year have eclipsed more than $75 billion in single-day spot Bitcoin volume this year. CoinGlass shows that the only days that Bitcoin futures volume has been higher so far this year was on April 7 and January 20, when volumes stood at $229.7 billion and $222.9 billion, respectively.

The crypto market has rebounded as Trump has ratcheted back his global trade war, and the most recent inflation readings have been favorable.

Bitcoin’s record-breaking surge also comes as demand for Bitcoin ETFs increases and as publicly traded firms, including Strategy and Metaplanet, have continued their recent Bitcoin buying sprees. Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy now holds about 576,000 Bitcoin in its treasury, worth more than $64.5 billion at the current price.

Major altcoins have also risen over the same period with Ethereum, the second-largest digital asset by market value, up 56% over the past 30 days. ETH was recently changing hands at over $2,600, a 5.6% gain over the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin has often traded with stocks in its brief history, and more recently in line with safe-haven asset gold as markets look to account for macroeconomic uncertainties.

Edited by James Rubin

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

Why did Bitcoin just hit an all-time high?

Crypto Trends

Bitcoin rips all time high, derivatives traders not euphoric: Deep dive

by admin May 22, 2025

Bitcoin rallied past its previous all-time high in the USD and USDT markets on Wednesday and extended gains on Thursday, climbing to a peak of $111,880. Bitcoin’s breakout failed to usher euphoria among traders and the reaction on derivatives traders was muted, relative to previous BTC price rallies.

Ethereum (ETH) struggles to attract institutional inflows even as ETH rallies alongside Bitcoin (BTC) in its price discovery. Altcoins in the top 50 cryptocurrencies ranked by market capitalization are in the green, rallying in the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin derivatives analysis

Analysts at 10xResearch and Amberdata are in agreement on the fact that spot market strength and not speculation, is driving gains in BTC. Bitcoin’s rally beyond $111,000 failed to kick in a euphoria among traders and the long/short ratio across top derivatives exchanges is above 1. While this indicates that traders are bullish on BTC and expect further gains, on previous instances like the 2017 and 2020 cycles, the ratio exceeded 2.

The 24-hour liquidation data shows $175 million in shorts liquidations and over $47 million in long positions were liquidated. Bearish traders are being punished for betting against Bitcoin price rally, but the key question is, how high will Bitcoin go?

Bitcoin derivatives data analysis | Source: Coinglass

Bitcoin futures open interest chart on Coinglass shows a massive spike in OI. Open derivatives contracts in Bitcoin crossed a total of $78 billion in OI on May 22. OI is climbing alongside Bitcoin price, signaling strength in the BTC uptrend. Traders are confident of further gains in Bitcoin price.

Bitcoin futures open interest | Source: Coinglass

Funding rate has been positive since May 8, consistency in the green bars in the funding rate chart below shows how derivatives traders are positioning themselves for further upside in Bitcoin. A positive funding rate fuels a bullish narrative for an asset, in the case of Bitcoin this supports a thesis of gains.

Bitcoin Funding Rate (USD-24h) | Source: Bitcoin Magazine Pro

Ethereum technical and derivatives analysis

Ethereum on-chain data shows a slight increase in OI, less than 7% in the last 24 hours. In the same timeframe, the long and short liquidations in Ethereum were nearly the same amount, above $60 million.

The long/short ratio across top derivatives exchanges is less than 1, even as options volume surged nearly 60%. There is no clear indication of a bullish or bearish bias among Ethereum’s derivatives traders.

Ethereum derivatives data analysis shows the largest altcoin lags behind relative to Bitcoin, in terms of interest and activity from derivatives traders.

Ethereum derivatives data analysis | Source: Coinglass

The open interest chart on Coinglass shows, even as ETH breaks past $2,600, the OI lags levels previously seen in January and February 2025. A successful implementation of the latest technical upgrade failed to fuel a bullish sentiment among traders and catalyze gains in the altcoin.

Ethereum futures open interest (USD) | Source: Coinglass

The ETH/USDT daily price chart shows ETH is currently trading 12% below its psychologically important target of $3,000. ETH has established support at $2,415, and further gains are likely as RSI slopes upwards and MACD flashes green histogram bars above the neutral line.

Ethereum’s target is the $4,578 level, as seen in the ETH/USDT price chart. The altcoin’s previous all-time high is the $4,878 level.

ETH/USDT daily price chart | Source: Crypto.news

Crypto trader sentiment and why euphoria is missing

The Fear and Greed Index Chart on CoinMarketCap shows that even as Bitcoin enters price discovery, the levels of “Greed” observed in November 2024 were the highest. Trader sentiment is not as euphoric as one might expect, at the time of writing it reads 73.

Extreme greed is typically correlated with cycle peaks or yearly tops. Above $110,000 Bitcoin is still lagging in terms of bullish sentiment among traders.

This may be a positive sign as it supports the thesis that the cycle top is still away and traders are likely waiting and watching for the next pullback and rally in BTC.

Fear and Greed Index chart | Source: CMC

How high can Bitcoin go?

Bitcoin’s target is the $122,000 level that coincides with the 127.2% Fibonacci retracement of its 50% rally from April 7 low to May 22 peak. BTC is currently less than 10% away from its target and technical indicators on the daily price chart support likelihood of further gains.

RSI is sloping upwards and crossed into the “overvalued” zone and MACD flashes consecutive green histogram bars. If Bitcoin tests resistance at $122,000 and breaks past this level, the next target at $127,352 comes into play.

The $127,352 target is the 141.4% Fibonacci retracement level for Bitcoin in its ongoing upward trend. While analysts at Bernstein pushed their target for Bitcoin to $200,000 in 2025, it is likely that BTC crosses the $127,000 level before June 2025, based on its gains since April 2025.

BTC/USDT daily price chart | Source: Crypto.news

Shubh Varma, the CEO of Hyblock Capital told Crypto.news that from a technical perspective, he sees the most reliable support zone between $101,000 and $102,500. Exchanges like Binance and Bybit have seen “heavy open interest entries that trap shorts and attract fresh longs,” in this zone.

Bitcoin pushed above resistance between the $105,000 and $106,000 level early on Thursday. It remains to be seen how long Bitcoin holds above the FVGs on the daily timeframe.

Bitfinex analysts told Crypto.news in a written note that the team is watching minor liquidity walls between $114,000 and $118,000 and the $123,000 to $125,000 zone is where large options open interest is building. These are key areas of interest for traders to watch in the coming weeks of May 2025.

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

Myriad Moves: Bitcoin Price Predictions and Eyes on Coinbase Hack Bounty Prize

by admin May 22, 2025

In brief

Bitcoin just marked a new all-time high, but Myriad users are now betting whether it’ll top $115K by EOD Sunday.
Predictors don’t expect Coinbase to pay out any of its $20 million hack bounty before June 15.
The final “Mission: Impossible” movie is hitting theaters, and its estimated opening weekend haul is below the Myriad line.

Everyone’s got an opinion, and prediction markets have become one of the most popular ways for users in crypto to share theirs—and maybe make some bank on it.

On Myriad Markets, users are able to predict event outcomes on markets across lots of different fields, like predicting the price of Bitcoin or the winner of the NBA Championship. And there are plenty more options beyond crypto and sports, including politics, culture, and gaming.

What’s generating interest on Myriad this week? Here’s a look at some of the most active markets, with helpful context about what might be driving current predictions.

(Disclaimer: Myriad Markets is a product of Decrypt’s parent company, DASTAN.)

Bitcoin price above $115K on May 25 at 11:59pm UTC?

Market Open: May 21
Market Close: May 25
Volume: $10.1K

After a downtrend that sent Bitcoin spiraling to around $75,000 in early April, the top crypto asset has stormed back, making new all-time highs above $111,000 in the process.

Now, a new flash market on Myriad asks predictors whether or not it can rally above $115,000 in the next few days. Will records keep being set?

So far, predictors think not, giving “yes” just a 25.8% chance despite BTC picking up 2.5% in the last 24 hours and sitting just 3.4% away from $115,000.

Those odds are up since the market opened, however, up from the 16.6% “yes” odds reflected at the low point on Wednesday afternoon. As Bitcoin sustained its rally into Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning, prediction volumes have pushed to around 26%.

Blockstream CEO and longtime Bitcoiner Adam Back recently told Decrypt that he believes Bitcoin will hit between $500,000 and $1 million this cycle, and other analysts see runs to $200,000 and beyond. So are “no” predictors short Bitcoin, or merely think the “digital gold” has rallied hard enough of late, gaining more than 25% in the last 30 days?

What’s Next? Bitcoin is holding its own above $111,000 so far, needing a gain of just a few more percentage points in order to reach $115,000.

Will Coinbase pay any part of the $20 million hacker bounty before June 15?

Market Open: May 21
Market Close: June 14
Volume: $2.4K

Active crypto users were discouraged to learn that leading American exchange Coinbase suffered a major customer data breach, as disclosed last week, impacting more than 69,000 customers over the span of months.

The hackers demanded $20 million in ransom as they attempted to blackmail the firm, but Coinbase pushed back, instead offering a $20 million bounty to the public for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the attackers.

Myriad’s prediction market asks whether or not Coinbase will pay any of that bounty by June 15 as users rush to gain more information about the breach, potentially finding the culprits in the process.

As of Thursday morning, predictors strongly believe that no payments will be made before June 15 with odds of “no” sitting around 74.5% or about where they have been since shortly after the market opened.

Those odds stand despite the fact that a suspected actor in Coinbase-related social engineering scams trolled notable pseudonymous on-chain investigator ZachXBT in an Ethereum transaction’s input data, calling him a “L bozo.”

The investigator was quick to identify North Korea’s association with the $1.4 billion ByBit hack earlier this year, earning himself more than $31,000 in ByBit’s bounty program within just a few days. He’s also been involved in numerous other efforts to identify crypto attackers, leading to arrests and convictions.

Can he or others do it again?

What’s Next? Suspected Coinbase attackers are now trolling on-chain, perhaps suggesting cockiness or confidence they won’t be caught, though it’s not clear whether this particular troll is connected to the recently disclosed attacks. But will the additional data trails help lead to their downfall?

Will ‘Mission: Impossible’ gross $95 million in revenue in its U.S. opening weekend?

Market Open: May 20
Market Close: May 22
Volume: $3.83K

Another Tom Cruise movie is gracing big screens this weekend, opening Friday in more than 3,800 theaters across the United States.

The question for predictors is whether “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,” the eighth film in the long-running action series, will gross at least $95 million in its four-day opening stretch—a holiday weekend in the United States.

Thus far the market thinks not, with odds of “no” jumping around 10% since Wednesday afternoon to around 78% at the time of writing.

According to Deadline, the film’s greatest comparison is previous entry “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning,” which brought in more than $120 million in “like-for-like markets at today’s opening rates” when it opened in 2023.

Still though, the Hollywood news site expects the latest film starring Cruise as Ethan Hunt to bring in around $75-$85 million domestically, below the Myriad prediction line. That falls in line with Screen Rant’s expectation of around $80 million, or around 19% below the Myriad number.

Even with Box Office Pro estimating a potential record-breaking box office weekend, it still sees the latest, and potentially last Mission: Impossible film falling well below the $95 million mark.

What’s Next? “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” will debut in U.S. theaters on Friday.

Edited by Andrew Hayward

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

Dow Jones, Nasdaq, S&P 500 down, retailers are split on tariff impact

GameFi Guides

Dow Jones seesaws, ends flat as Bitcoin hits new all-time high

by admin May 22, 2025

U.S. stocks ended mixed Thursday as markets digested the House’s narrow approval of President Trump’s massive tax-and-spending package.

The S&P 500 dipped 0.04%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.28%.

The legislation—projected by the Congressional Budget Office to add nearly $4 trillion to the federal deficit—includes sweeping tax cuts and increased military spending.

It passed the House by a single vote after last-minute revisions, including expanded deductions for state and local taxes, aimed at swaying conservative lawmakers. The bill now heads to the Senate.

Another spike in Treasury yields tempered investor sentiment. The 30-year bond briefly rose above 5.16%—its highest level since 2023—before easing.

The benchmark 10-year yield also pulled back slightly to 4.55%.

Analysts said weak demand at Wednesday’s 20-year bond auction fueled the earlier sell-off in Treasurys, while concerns about debt sustainability persist.

“Short term, the tax bill is good for the economy,” said Argent Capital’s Jed Ellerbroek. “But in the longer term, it adds to the deficit, and that’s bad for markets.”

Bitcoin keeps hitting all-time highs

Bitcoin (BTC) extended its massive rally, trading above $111,000, amid optimism over Senate progress on stablecoin regulation and anticipation surrounding a Trump donor event attended by major crypto holders.

Bitcoin’s rally sparked limited excitement among derivatives traders compared to past bull runs. Analysts noted that spot market demand, not speculation, drove the gains, with long/short ratios and liquidations indicating moderate bullish sentiment.

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

$670M in Bitcoin Moved to Major U.S. Crypto Exchange In Mere Hours

by admin May 22, 2025

On May 22, leading U.S.-based crypto exchange Coinbase received large transfers involving a total of 6,016 BTC from multiple unknown whales, according to recent data from on-chain tracking platform Whale Alert.

According to the data source, the massive Bitcoin transfers, worth more than $670 million, were executed consecutively in 13 separate, identical transactions.

The 13 transactions saw transfers made in identical amounts, with different unknown wallets sending 463 BTC to Coinbase 11 times. The remaining two transfers involved 462 BTC and 461 BTC, bringing the total Bitcoin inflow to 6,016 BTC in just a few hours.

Although the tracker could not identify the sender’s address, it revealed that the transactions were made from separate unknown accounts.

Whales dump on Bitcoin Pizza Day?

With the large BTC transfers coming during a major Bitcoin bull run that saw the leading cryptocurrency set new records and hit a new all-time high, the move has sparked discussions among the crypto community.

The timing has caught the attention of market participants as it coincides with the legendary Bitcoin Pizza Day, causing enthusiasts to speculate about the motive behind the transfer.

While the transfers were consistent in size and happened in rapid sequence, there are suggestions that it might be a coordinated activity from a single institution attempting to dump its Bitcoin stash.

Bitcoin Breaks Records as Market Value Hits Historic Peak – Here Are The Key Drivers

by admin May 22, 2025

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure

The crypto market recently witnessed a historic moment as Bitcoin, the largest digital asset, rallied hard to a new all-time high on Wednesday, triggering renewed optimism in the sector. After the milestone, BTC’s bullish performance has been analyzed and attributed to several key favorable conditions.

Triggers Behind Bitcoin’s Sharp Growth

Since gaining upward traction in April, the market value of Bitcoin has officially risen to a new all-time high of $111,867, surpassing its previous peak at the $109,241 level achieved during United States President Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20. The notable upsurge to a new peak marks a major turning point in the cryptocurrency’s development as a widely recognized financial instrument. However, this spike is being driven by a combination of strong variables rather than speculative hype.

According to Santiment, a leading on-chain data platform, this milestone was reached just six weeks after the news of Trump’s tariffs caused the crypto sector to display extreme FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt). This is a clear example that crypto markets have often moved in the opposite direction of institutional whales’ capital and retail expectations.

The on-chain platform has also taken a step to outline the key factors that supported the recent rally to a new all-time high. Aside from the tariffs being lowered and the 90-day truce between the US and China, a major factor behind the BTC’s rally highlighted by Santiment has been the increasing number of institutional investors.

BTC’s milestone triggering crowd interest | Source: Santiment on X

This heightened institutional interest has been observed among top asset management firms like BlackRock, Fidelity, Ark Invest, and others. Santiment noted that BlackRock’s interest is evidenced by the expansion of its BTC holdings through its Spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, which currently breached the $20 billion milestone. During the period, Fidelity and Ark Invest have also reported record inflows.

BTC’s notable surge has triggered bullish sentiment in the sector. Due to ongoing tariff uncertainties and widespread jadedness, there has not been much FOMO, therefore, the path was paved for BTC to finally create history.

BTC’s Bullish Move Set To Extend To New Highs

Over time, Bitcoin has swiftly transformed from a speculative asset to a vital part of diversified investments. This is because of its increasing inclusion in the portfolios of significant asset managers and hedge funds. With the growing presence and crowd’s greed, Santiment is confident that BTC might surge to the $115,000 and $120,000 price range in the near future.

Ali Martinez, a crypto analyst and trader, also predicted a continuation of the uptrend, claiming that BTC is entering price discovery. Given the robust performance so far, Martinez believes that the next key levels to watch include $116,000, $126,000, $136,000, and $148,000.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $110,834, demonstrating a nearly 9% increase in the past week. Data from CoinMarketCap shows that investors are capitalizing on the ongoing upward trend as BTC’s trading volume has risen sharply by more than 73% in the past day.

BTC trading at $110,514 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com

Featured image from Getty Images, chart from Tradingview.com

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

Bitcoin sees limited profit taking with BTC price up 3.7%

by admin May 22, 2025

Bitcoin price remained near its all-time high after a stellar surge on May 21, with bulls largely in control as the market eyed price discovery.

After hitting highs of $111,861, Bitcoin (BTC) traded to around $110,300 before rebounding higher.

Despite the spike to a fresh peak, with Bitcoin outpacing the Dow Jones Industrial Average as stocks struggled, the market hasn’t witnessed a significant profit taking scenario so far.

What are analysts saying about Bitcoin price?

Notably, all BTC addresses flipped profitable as the cryptocurrency rallied. Yet on-chain data shows the benchmark digital asset is “still not overheated.”

CryptoQuant analyst Crypto Dan posited that despite the run to a new ATH, profit taking is so far mild.

“Overheating indicators such as the funding rate [and] short-term capital inflow remain low compared to previous peaks, and profit-taking by short-term investors is limited.”

Alex Wacy, a popular crypto analyst and investor, noted via a post on X that while BTC storms to a new ATH, “there’s no mania.”

He pointed to Google searches being low, with retail not yet in fear of missing out territory.

$BTC is hitting a new all-time high.

But look around: there’s no mania.

Google searches are quiet. Retail is still asleep. CT is loud, but it always is. The broader public isn’t rushing in — not yet.

It’s a familiar pattern. Hype always lags price. Interest follows… pic.twitter.com/hzd2sXyPpc

— AlΞx Wacy 🌐 (@wacy_time1) May 22, 2025

But as Bitcoin quietly edges towards price discovery, something else is at historic levels – the global M2 money supply. Currently, this sits at over $22 trillion.

“That means there’s more money in the system than ever before. But it’s not backed by an equivalent increase in productivity, goods, or services. It’s just… more money,” the analyst noted.

No frenzy means it’s still early days for Bitcoin, Wacy said. His forecast aligns with overall market sentiment that Bitcoin’s price could target $150k or higher in 2025. On May 21, 2025, as BTC price broke past its January 2025 peak, Michael Saylor said buying at the top could still be profitable long-term.

The confidence in Bitcoin price going higher could be why a whale just sold recently acquired Ether (ETH) and continues to hodl the BTC.

Per Lookonchain, a whale who scooped 30,000 ETH and 600 BTC on April 27, 2025 has sold all 30k ETH. However, the address still holds all 600 $BTC purchased for $56.9 million. The whale’s Bitcoin haul was worth over $66.5 million as prices hovered above $111k.

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May 22, 2025 0 comments