The Ethereum Foundation has withdrawn more than 21,000 ETH from Lido staking weeks after carrying out earlier unstaking activity and multiple OTC treasury sales tied to operational funding.

According to blockchain analytics platform Arkham, an Ethereum Foundation-tagged wallet initiated the withdrawal of 21,270 ETH on Monday, an amount worth nearly $50 million at current prices. The transaction moved the funds out of Lido’s liquid staking system and into Ethereum’s withdrawal queue, where staked ETH remains locked until the unstaking process is completed.

Under Ethereum’s proof-of-stake system, validators stake ETH on the Beacon Chain to help secure the network and receive yield in return. Once an unstaking request is submitted through Lido, holders receive a withdrawal claim before the ETH becomes redeemable after the queue clears.

Earlier in late April, the foundation unstaked 17,035 ETH shortly after approaching its internal target of roughly 70,000 staked ETH. Arkham data at the time showed the organization depositing wrapped staked ETH into Lido’s unstETH contract, though the foundation did not publicly explain the reason behind the move.

Questions around treasury activity intensified after the nonprofit later sold 10,000 ETH to BitMine in an over-the-counter transaction completed on May 1. The deal, priced at an average of $2,292 per ETH, followed two previous OTC sales to BitMine in March and April, bringing total recent sales to 25,000 ETH.

In a statement accompanying the May transaction, the Ethereum Foundation said the sale would fund “core operations and activities,” including protocol research, ecosystem development, and community grants.

Treasury adjustments continue as staking policy evolves

Following criticism over past ETH sales, the foundation revised its treasury policy in June 2025 and said increased staking participation would help support long-term development funding while reducing dependence on direct market sales.

Since February, the organization has steadily expanded its staking position. Foundation wallets first staked 2,016 ETH, followed by another 22,517 ETH in March. During early April, more than 45,000 ETH was added, lifting the total staked balance to around 69,500 ETH before the first major withdrawal took place.

Arkham suggested the latest unstaking activity could be tied to funding requirements for ongoing network work. The analytics provider also pointed to rising concerns around third-party protocol risk following the $293 million Kelp DAO exploit involving rsETH-linked assets.

At the same time, parts of Ethereum’s DeFi ecosystem have continued recovery efforts connected to the exploit. Earlier reports showed Aave coordinating support alongside Lido DAO, EtherFi Foundation, Mantle, and other groups after more than 116,000 restaked ETH tokens were affected.

Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s co-founder, has previously warned about governance risks tied to large-scale foundation staking during disputed hard forks, particularly if the organization becomes too deeply involved in validator participation.

Foundation funding remains focused on infrastructure and ZK research

Alongside the treasury activity, the Ethereum Foundation has continued directing grants toward protocol infrastructure, zero-knowledge research, validator security, and developer tooling.

Its Q1 2026 allocation report included support for execution clients such as Geth and Erigon, upgrades tied to the Lighthouse consensus client, validator security systems including Vero, and node discovery work through DISC-NG.

Additional grants covered Poseidon hash analysis, research into algebraic attack vectors affecting ZK systems, quantum-resistant cryptography, and formal verification tied to RISC-V-based zkVM infrastructure.

Developer-focused funding also went toward WalletConnect clear-signing libraries, L2BEAT analytics tools, ERC ecosystem initiatives, DAO governance research, decentralized identity standards, and privacy tools, including Privacy Pool integrations and Tor-related work.

Separately, the foundation recently confirmed progress tied to Ethereum’s upcoming “Glamsterdam” update after establishing a 200 million gas limit floor. According to earlier reporting from crypto.news, the change could increase throughput significantly from Ethereum’s current 60 million gas limit environment.

TLDR:

Tron has surged 26% over the past three months despite persistent negative sentiment from retail traders. The asset recently reclaimed the $0.35 level, a mark it had not touched since last September.

Crowd FUD Continues to Fuel the TRX Price Rally

Despite the sharp recovery, public opinion on Tron remains largely critical. Much of that skepticism traces back to founder Justin Sun.

Over the years, Sun has faced accusations of market manipulation and aggressive promotion tactics. He has also dealt with multiple lawsuits and ongoing regulatory scrutiny from various authorities. Many retail traders still associate Tron with the hype-driven behavior that shaped past market cycles.

Santiment Intelligence recently flagged this trend in a post on X. The analytics firm noted that crowd discussions around TRX have remained “very mixed” even as prices climb.

That divided sentiment has continued throughout much of 2026. Fear and hesitation still dominate retail conversations about the asset.

A large portion of the crypto crowd still views TRX as too risky or too controversial. Many traders prefer newer narratives around AI or DeFi over Tron’s established model.

That widespread distrust, however, creates a market condition where key stakeholders can drive prices higher. They face little resistance from retail crowds that remain on the sidelines.

Markets tend to reverse most sharply when crowds turn overly bullish and euphoric. Tron has experienced the opposite dynamic for most of 2026.

Persistent skepticism and hesitation have allowed TRX to trend upward without triggering FOMO-driven buying. That absence of retail excitement often shields the asset from the corrections that follow euphoric rallies.

Stablecoin Criticism and Ecosystem Doubts Add Further Pressure on Tron

Two key developments in 2026 have added further negativity around Tron. The network faces heavy criticism over its dominant role in global USDT transfers.

Tron processes a large share of stablecoin activity because of its low fees. Its fast settlement speeds have made it one of the busiest chains for dollar-pegged transactions.

Critics argue this setup has made Tron an attractive channel for illicit transfers and suspicious wallet activity. Tether freezes tied to Tron addresses have continued to make headlines throughout the year. Each new freeze reinforces existing fears among traders who already viewed the chain with suspicion.

Beyond stablecoin concerns, many traders have also grown frustrated with Tron’s ecosystem development. Growth on the network has come mainly from stablecoin movement and yield products.

There have been few flashy consumer-facing applications to attract broader attention. In a market chasing AI agents, meme coins, and Layer-2 launches, Tron’s approach has left many retail investors unimpressed.

That frustration has led many to dismiss the TRX rally as unsustainable or unexciting. Yet the constant doubt may be the very factor keeping prices elevated.

When the crowd stays skeptical, sell-side pressure stays low. That gives TRX room to move higher without triggering widespread profit-taking.

Fundamental Background

The key event for XRP in May remains the fate of the CLARITY Act, which is expected to establish XRP’s status as a digital commodity at the federal level. According to CoinMarketCap, the Senate Banking Committee has scheduled consideration of the bill for 14 May 2026. According to estimates by 24/7 Wall St., if the vote does not take place before the start of the May recess on 21 May, consideration of the bill could be delayed. Against this backdrop, institutional interest remains steady: according to SoSoValue, net inflows into spot XRP ETFs totalled $34.21 million during the first ten days of May.

Technical Picture

Since July 2025, XRP has formed a descending channel from the peak near $3.6. The move culminated in accelerated selling pressure in early February 2026, with the price falling towards the $1.12 area, after which the asset entered a sideways consolidation phase. The horizontal volume profile formed during this period covers the range between the lower boundary at $1.30 and the upper boundary at $1.50. The point of control (POC) is located between $1.39 and $1.44.

The price is currently trading above the POC zone but below the upper boundary of the profile and is preparing to test the channel boundary. The POC area acts as the nearest support zone during pullbacks. The key support and resistance levels within the horizontal volume range are $1.29 and $1.60 respectively. The RSI + MAs indicator shows readings of 62, 51 and 51 — the main indicator line remains in positive territory and noticeably above the moving averages, indicating continued buyer interest, although the averages themselves remain neutral.

Key Takeaways

In the short term, the direction of XRP/USD will largely depend on regulatory developments in the coming weeks: consideration of the CLARITY Act in the coming days could become the catalyst for a breakout from the current range in either direction. The volume profile and the $1.29 level form the lower support zone, while $1.60 remains the nearest resistance above the current market profile range.

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The broader crypto market ticked lower on Tuesday with bitcoin BTC$80,984.66 falling 1% since midnight UTC to $80,800 and ether (ETH) losing 2% to $2,290.

U.S. equity futures also dropped after U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was “on massive life support,” leading to a spike in Brent crude oil to $107 per barrel and a 0.4% rise in the U.S Dollar Index (DXY).

Bitcoin, however, remains above Bitmine (BMNR) Chairman Tom Lee’s line in the sand at $76,000, which he said would confirm the end of a bull market if bitcoin can hold above that level at the end of the month.

The altcoin market is mixed with the majority of tokens underperforming the two largest cryptocurrencies, while a small corner of the market, including CRO$0.08090, curve (CRV) and toncoin (TON), bucked the bearish price action with upside moves between 5% and 10% in the past 24 hours.

Derivatives positioning

• Market-wide notional open interest (OI) in crypto futures rose to $125 billion even as volumes fell 6% to $174 million. The moves suggest reduced short-term speculation and gradual trader positioning.
• ZEC’s OI crashed over 10% to 1.90 million tokens from the 4.5-month high of 2.48 million tokens last week. At the same time, the token’s price dropped to $550 from $642. The combination suggests unwinding of bullish bets rather than fresh capital flows deployed for shorts or bearish plays.
• SUI, CORE, and HBAR were among the other major OI decliners. Open interest in Canton’s CC token, meanwhile, jumped more than 10%, with positive funding rates and a positive 24-hour OI-adjusted cumulative volume delta signaling stronger buyer dominance.
• ETH and XMR are other notable OI gainers, though their CVDs are negative, a sign that sellers are leading the price action with market orders rather than passive limit orders.
• The relentless decline in bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility index, BVIV, has stalled this month, stabilizing near 40%. But there are no signs of a renewed upswing, which points to continued market calm, an environment favorable for further bullish price action.
• Wall Street’s volatility gauge, the VIX, which measures the 30-day implied volatility of the S&P 500 index, has jumped more than 10% this week to nearly 19 points. Though still below the recent highs above 30, the minor upswing warrants attention.
• On Deribit, the 24-hour volume ranking featured BTC calls at strikes of $80,000, $82,000, and $84,000. The calls are bets that the price of bitcoin will rally. It also included puts, or bets on a drop, at strikes of $65,000 and $74,000.

Token talk

• All CoinDesk benchmarks are in the red since midnight UTC, with the DeFi Select Index (DFX) leading the losses with a 2.7% move, followed by the CoinDesk Computing Select Index (CPUS) down by 2.3%.
• JUP, MON and SEI are among the day’s worst-performing altcoins, tumbling by between 5.6% and 6.3% due to a persistent lack of liquidity.
• CRO$0.08090 is one of the best-performing altcoins, adding 4.1% to notch a three-day winning streak.
• CRO’s rally can be attributed to a governance proposal that, if passed, would change the project’s tokenomics by replacing inflation-driven staking rewards with a system in which yields are fully funded by actual protocol revenue.
• CoinMarketCap’s “Altcoin Season” indicator is at 50/100, the highest level since late March as sentiment across the sector shows signs of improvement.

U.S. spot XRP exchange-traded funds have pulled in their largest daily inflow in roughly four months.

According to SoSoValue data, spot XRP ETFs listed in the U.S. recorded combined net inflows of $25.8 million on May 11, the strongest single day of inflows since Jan. 5. 

Franklin Templeton’s XRPZ accounted for the largest share with $13.6 million in new capital, while the Bitwise XRP ETF added $7.6 million and Grayscale’s GXRP attracted $4.6 million.

Institutional demand has been building across several crypto ETF products in recent weeks as money continues moving into regulated digital asset vehicles. 

Bitcoin ETFs have now recorded seven consecutive weeks of positive flows, bringing in more than $3.4 billion during that period, while Solana ETFs saw $26.6 million in daily inflows, their highest level since February. 

Ether ETFs moved in the opposite direction, posting roughly $16.9 million in net outflows on the same day, according to SoSoValue data.

At the same time, Ripple has continued expanding its institutional finance business through brokerage, custody, and tokenized asset initiatives tied to the XRP Ledger ecosystem.

Last week, Ripple said it completed a pilot cross-border payment transaction backed by tokenized U.S. Treasuries alongside JPMorgan Chase, Mastercard, and Ondo Finance. The transaction used infrastructure connected to XRPL and formed part of Ripple’s push into institutional settlement services.

Days earlier, Ripple’s prime brokerage arm secured up to $200 million in financing from asset manager Neuberger Berman to expand margin lending and multi-asset trading services for institutional clients. The credit facility would support trading activity across crypto, equities, fixed income, and foreign exchange markets through Ripple Prime.

At the time of publication, XRP was trading at $1.46, up 0.4% over the previous 24 hours.

One widely watched indicator for assessing whether the crypto market is in a bullish or bearish phase is the ether-to-bitcoin (ETH/BTC) ratio.

On Tuesday, the ratio fell to 0.02835, its lowest level in 10 months and the weakest reading since July 2025. The decline comes as ether dropped more than 2% on Tuesday, compared with bitcoin’s decline of just over 1%. The ETH/BTC ratio is now down more than 35% from its August high of 0.04324.

The ETH/BTC ratio measures ether’s relative performance against bitcoin across crypto exchanges and is considered a key gauge of market risk appetite. A rising ratio typically signals that investors are rotating capital into ether and other higher risk crypto assets, reflecting stronger risk sentiment. Conversely, a falling ratio suggests investors are favoring bitcoin’s relative stability and defensive characteristics.

The pair peaked above 0.08 in December 2021 before entering a prolonged multi year downtrend. Much of the weakness through 2024 and into 2025 was driven by bitcoin’s outperformance following the launch and success of U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, which attracted significant institutional inflows.

The ratio eventually bottomed at 0.01770 in April 2025 during the market turmoil surrounding President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements. It then rebounded sharply, gaining roughly 135% later in 2025 before reversing course again. Despite that recovery, the ratio has since fallen another 35% from its recent highs.

Technically, the ETH/BTC ratio remains substantially below its 200 week moving average, currently at 0.04828, reinforcing the view that ether remains in a long term bear market relative to bitcoin.

TRON traded near $0.349 after a steady three-month rally, with live market data showing a small intraday decline. 

Crypto.news price data also placed TRON (TRX) near $0.351, with a 24-hour range of $0.349241 to $0.352492. The same data showed a market cap above $33 billion and 24-hour volume near $447 million.

Meanwhile, Santiment said TRON has gained about 26% over the past three months, while crowd discussion remains mixed. The analytics firm linked part of the rally to persistent doubt around the project and its founder, Justin Sun.

The firm said many traders still view TRON as “too risky” or “too controversial” compared with newer crypto themes such as AI and DeFi. It also argued that markets often move against crowd expectations when sentiment becomes too one-sided.

TRX chart shows strong momentum

TradingView chart shows TRX in a clear uptrend from early February lows near $0.27 toward the $0.35 area. Price action has formed higher lows and higher highs through March, April, and early May.

The RSI reading sits at near 76, above the 70 level often used to mark overbought conditions. That suggests strong buying pressure, but it also shows the rally may be stretched in the short term.

At the same time, the MACD line sits at 0.00777, above the signal line at 0.00664. That setup still supports bullish momentum, while the histogram remains positive at 0.00112.

However, the latest candles show TRX pausing near the recent high. If buyers keep price above the $0.34 to $0.345 area, the trend may stay supported. A move below that zone would point to a deeper cool-off after the recent climb.

USDT activity remains central to Tron

TRON’s role in stablecoin transfers remains one of its largest market drivers. Earlier crypto.news coverage said TRON had extended its USDT lead over Ethereum, with rising active addresses and record weekly transaction volumes linked to stablecoin use.

That same stablecoin activity has also drawn scrutiny. Crypto.news previously reported that Tether froze USDT across Ethereum and Tron addresses, while a Tether-backed crime unit later froze more than $300 million in illicit assets.

Moreover, TRON has also gained wider market visibility. As crypto.news reported, Moscow Exchange plans to add a TRX index from May 13, using pricing data from Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Bitget for professional investors.