Meta’s revenue rose by 33% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, reaching $56.3 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $7.31, comfortably ahead of the consensus forecast of $6.67. However, the positive earnings results were overshadowed by other developments.

Alongside the report, the company raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast to between $125 billion and $145 billion, which the market interpreted as a signal of potential pressure on free cash flow. Additional pressure on the share price emerged in early June following reports that Meta was considering raising tens of billions of dollars through a new share offering to finance AI infrastructure projects. The company itself dismissed these reports as “pure speculation”.

Technical Picture

Since the beginning of April, Meta shares had been trading within an ascending trend structure that originated from the March low. Towards the end of April, however, a gap formed on the chart, followed by a break of the trendline. Since then, the stock has entered a sideways phase, losing its previous upward momentum.

The share price is currently trading below the lower boundary of the volume profile at 598 and below the point of control (POC) located in the 610–611 area — levels that could once again attract market attention should buying interest return.

The green support level near 565 may serve as a downside target if selling pressure continues. Meanwhile, the resistance zone around 641 remains the next major upside reference point in the event of a reversal and a break above the upper boundary of the profile.

The RSI and its moving averages currently stand at 37, 44 and 46. The oscillator has moved below the neutral zone, while the moving averages continue to confirm the prevailing bearish direction.

Key Takeaways

Following the break of the ascending trendline and the formation of the April gap, Meta shares entered a consolidation phase and are currently testing its lower boundary. Future price action will largely depend on how transparent management proves to be regarding the financing of its AI initiatives and whether the company can demonstrate that its substantial capital investments translate into tangible operational results.

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Key Takeaways

• A security breach involving an employee’s laptop led to the exposure of private keys controlling Humanity Protocol’s bridge infrastructure.
• The attackers gained control of three out of six multisig keys, enabling them to manipulate token bridges on both Ethereum and BNB Chain.
• Approximately 141 million H tokens were extracted from Ethereum, while 200 million tokens were illegally minted on BNB Chain.
• H token’s value plummeted more than 85%, declining from approximately $0.67 to bottoming out at $0.05.
• On-chain analysts detected suspicious wallet movements before the attack occurred, though no conclusive evidence of insider involvement has emerged.

Humanity Protocol revealed this Tuesday that cybercriminals successfully extracted more than $36 million in its H token following unauthorized access to private keys housed on a compromised employee computer.

The platform operates cross-chain bridges facilitating H token transfers between Ethereum and BNB Chain networks. These bridges were safeguarded using multisignature wallet technology—a security mechanism demanding multiple key approvals before executing transactions or modifying smart contracts.

According to founder Terence Kwok, the key distribution followed proper protocol across four separate individuals. However, a critical error occurred during the initial configuration phase when several keys were inadvertently stored on one device that subsequently fell victim to compromise.

“Some of the keys were accidentally backed up to a compromised device during setup,” Kwok said.

Breaking Down the Exploit

On Ethereum, the perpetrators secured three of the six keys associated with the bridge’s administrative account. This threshold gave them complete authority over the system. They swapped the authentic bridge smart contract with a fraudulent replacement and extracted approximately 141.2 million H tokens through one massive transaction.

On BNB Chain, the attackers compromised three of five keys. They injected an unlimited minting capability into the bridge contract and exploited it to create 200 million fresh H tokens, transferring them straight into their controlled wallet.

The development team immediately suspended all deposit and withdrawal operations on both compromised bridges upon detecting the security breach.

Market Reaction and Price Collapse

The H token had experienced strong upward momentum during the weeks preceding the breach, surging from approximately $0.20 to $0.70. Following public disclosure of the exploit, the token’s value crashed to around $0.05—representing a catastrophic decline exceeding 85%.

While the token eventually rebounded toward the $0.20 level, significant damage had already occurred. In the aftermath, Humanity Protocol’s team information page was also taken down from their official website.

Investigating the Attack’s Source

On-chain investigator ZachXBT initially raised concerns about potential connections between irregular market-making operations and over-the-counter H token transactions and the security breach. He subsequently clarified that these activities appeared unrelated to the key compromise incident.

Security researcher Elton Shehdula from Allium Labs suggested the blockchain evidence indicated a carefully orchestrated operation. He observed that wallets participating in the attack received funding from both an exchange and a mixing service several weeks beforehand. The attacker also seemingly tested minting permissions days before launching the full-scale exploit, with the drainage occurring simultaneously across both blockchain networks.

Shehdula indicated that such meticulous preparation suggests either an internal threat actor or an external adversary who had maintained covert possession of the compromised key for an extended period.

Cyvers security director Hakan Unal noted that the blockchain evidence presents an ambiguous picture. He explained that authentic external attacks typically display hasty characteristics—rapid fund transfers to newly created wallets, disadvantageous swap rates, and immediate mixer usage. Conversely, orchestrated events may exhibit more controlled timing patterns, particularly coinciding with token unlock schedules or vesting milestones.

Currently, Humanity Protocol states it is collaborating with cryptocurrency exchanges and additional stakeholders to explore potential recovery strategies. The specific circumstances surrounding the initial laptop compromise remain undisclosed to the public.

The European Commission has proposed sanctions on 20 non-EU entities, including crypto platforms, as part of a new package that could introduce the bloc’s first country-level ban on foreign crypto services linked to Russian sanctions evasion.

According to the European Commission, the proposed 21st sanctions package targets banks, oil traders, and cryptocurrency platforms that have allegedly provided services to sanctioned Russian individuals and entities. 

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the measures are designed to close remaining channels used to bypass existing restrictions.

Under the proposal, transaction bans would be extended to the listed non-EU entities. In addition, the commission is seeking authority to prohibit crypto services originating from entire non-EU jurisdictions if those countries host platforms that help sanctioned Russian actors continue operating.

“It will act as a strong deterrent for the countries hosting platforms that help Russia evade our sanctions,” von der Leyen said.

Crypto platforms face growing sanctions scrutiny

The proposal arrives as regulators on both sides of the Atlantic increase pressure on crypto infrastructure they believe supports sanctioned states and illicit financial networks.

Chainalysis reported that illicit cryptocurrency addresses received $154 billion in 2025. The blockchain analytics firm also identified substantial activity linked to Russia, citing approximately $93.3 billion in transaction volume involving the ruble-backed stablecoin A7A5, which it said represented a significant portion of state-linked crypto activity.

Earlier this year, blockchain research firm Elliptic identified five crypto exchanges that it said provided financial pathways used to bypass sanctions while operating outside traditional banking oversight.

Recent enforcement actions have already targeted several crypto businesses accused of supporting sanctioned networks. In May, the United Kingdom sanctioned Huobi Global S.A., which authorities linked to HTX, over allegations that it provided services to the Russia-connected A7 network. The UK government imposed asset freezes, payment restrictions, internet service sanctions, and other measures against the company.

Elliptic said the UK action represented the first use of Regulation 17A against a cryptoasset exchange, extending restrictions on correspondent banking relationships and payment processing involving designated entities.

Across the globe, the U.S. Treasury in June designated four Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges, Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex, alleging they helped sanctioned entities access the digital asset ecosystem. Treasury officials said cryptocurrency services had become part of Iran’s efforts to move funds outside traditional financial channels.

Russia prepares domestic crypto framework

While European authorities move toward tighter restrictions, Russia is preparing a comprehensive cryptocurrency regulatory framework expected to be introduced in July.

The planned rules would establish licensed domestic trading platforms, creating a regulated structure for local crypto activity as international scrutiny of Russia-linked digital asset flows continues to increase.

Outside the crypto sector, the European Commission’s latest package also seeks to tighten pressure on Russia’s energy and trade sectors. Proposed measures include additional restrictions on oil vessels and the first sanctions targeting Russian fisheries.

“Our sanctions keep biting hard and cutting deep; they are weakening the economic foundations of Russia’s war effort,” von der Leyen added.

Key Points

• Kraken secured the position of Official Crypto Exchange Supporter for FIFA World Cup 2026
• The agreement encompasses digital asset education, supporter engagement initiatives, and platform awareness throughout North America and European markets
• The tournament will showcase an unprecedented 48 national teams competing in 104 fixtures across 16 metropolitan areas in three nations
• Tournament organizers project a combined audience exceeding six billion spectators worldwide
• Initial fan engagement launches with the FIFA World Cup 2026 Countdown Concert scheduled for June 10

The cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has secured official supporter status for the FIFA World Cup 2026 tournament. This arrangement spans North American and European territories, emphasizing supporter interaction, cryptocurrency literacy programs, and platform exposure surrounding the global football event.

Romy Gai, FIFA’s Chief Business Officer, indicated the collaboration aligns with the federation’s objectives for enhancing supporter experiences. Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Kraken, emphasized that football transcends geographical and linguistic barriers, suggesting financial systems should operate similarly.

The 2026 tournament unfolds over seven weeks spanning the United States, Canada, and Mexico. This marks the inaugural expanded format featuring 48 participating nations and 104 total matches. FIFA anticipates cumulative viewership surpassing six billion people globally.

Kraken’s Tournament Engagement Strategy

Kraken plans to leverage the World Cup’s massive platform for introducing football enthusiasts to cryptocurrency technology. The strategy prioritizes educational content, brand recognition, and seamless platform accessibility.

Supporter engagement activities are scheduled throughout the pre-tournament and competition periods. These initiatives will integrate with match broadcasts, football supporter networks, and tournament-related events across both continental regions.

The inaugural public engagement coincides with the FIFA World Cup 2026 Countdown Concert happening June 10. This multi-city concert series represents part of the broader pre-tournament promotional campaign.

The financial details of the FIFA partnership agreement remain undisclosed by Kraken.

Existing Sponsorship Portfolio

Kraken maintains current partnerships with prominent football clubs including Tottenham Hotspur, Atlético de Madrid, and RB Leipzig. The platform additionally sponsors Atlassian Williams Racing in the Formula 1 championship.

These existing agreements positioned Kraken before substantial football and motorsport audiences prior to finalizing the World Cup arrangement. The FIFA deal significantly amplifies that exposure to a worldwide tournament audience.

With more than ten years of operational history, Kraken maintains service across over 190 nations. This established framework will support the company’s World Cup-related programming initiatives.

Cryptocurrency platforms have progressively utilized sports partnerships for reaching audiences beyond traditional trading demographics. Kraken’s strategy emphasizes educational outreach and brand awareness rather than direct trading solicitation.

The 2026 World Cup represents FIFA’s most expansive tournament regarding participating teams and total matches. Spanning three nations and 16 host metropolitan areas, the arrangement provides Kraken extensive geographical reach for its engagement initiatives.

Sethi characterized the tournament as a worldwide platform where football culture and digital finance converge. Both FIFA and Kraken emphasized supporter engagement as the partnership’s fundamental objective.

The June 10 countdown concert launches Kraken’s public-facing World Cup programming. Engagement activities throughout North America and Europe will continue through the tournament’s conclusion.

The initial public offering of Elon Musk’s SpaceX has reportedly seen an oversubscription rate running at almost ​four times the planned offering size, with some analysts suggesting it could be squeezing liquidity from the market.

SpaceX’s IPO (SPCX) has attracted over $250 billion in investor demand, far exceeding the $75 billion it is seeking to raise in what would be the largest public offering ever, with the firm valued at $1.8 trillion, Reuters reported.

Bankers and investors say it is the latest sign that demand is strong, ​as long-only funds have put in “sizable orders,” according to the sources. 

Pricing is expected on Thursday, though demand figures can still shift before then, as some large institutional investors tend to submit orders late in the process.

Tech stocks tumble in IPO hype rotation  

The IPO comes at a time of extreme volatility in markets, with US tech stocks tumbling and crypto markets shedding more than $180 billion over the past week. 

Some analysts have speculated that the market retreat could be partially driven by selling to raise funds for the SpaceX IPO.

“I’m seeing this exactly as the classic pre-mega-IPO liquidity squeeze playing out in real time,” Bitrue Research Institute research lead Andri Fauzan Adziima told Cointelegraph.

“The tanking in crypto and tech stocks right now isn’t random, it’s the direct ‘IPO tax’ from SpaceX’s record-breaking deal, with pricing tomorrow and trading Friday at $135 for a $1.8 trillion valuation,” he said.

“Oversubscription with massive orders confirms the hype, but that excitement is sucking liquidity out of correlated risk assets today, hitting crypto hardest because it’s the most retail-driven and sentiment-tied to growth/tech narratives.”

This isn’t the start of a broader bear market, it’s a “temporary rotation,” he said.

Tech stocks take a hit (five-day) ahead of SpaceX IPO. Source: Barchart

Crypto exchanges rush to offer pre-IPO perps

SpaceX’s growth story is largely tied to its satellite internet business, Starlink, which has become a major source of revenue and profitability. The firm has also touted a $23 trillion market opportunity it claims is ahead for its artificial intelligence offerings. 

Related: SpaceX IPO: ‘Bad news’ for tech stocks but what about Bitcoin?

Crypto exchanges have been quick to capitalize on the IPO hype, with Binance, Coinbase, Kraken and Bybit launching pre‑IPO perpetual futures for SPCX this month. 

Shunyet Jan, head of spot and derivatives at Binance, told Cointelegraph that the strong early traction for Binance’s pre-IPO perpetual futures “reflects growing user interest in gaining regulated-style market exposure to high-profile private companies through this native product.”

Since launch, the products have generated $2.1 billion in cumulative trading volume in just 18 days on Binance, with participation spanning more than 130 countries.

Meanwhile, decentralized exchange Hyperliquid has seen $70 million in trading volume over the past 24 hours, with the current price for its synthetic SpaceX pre-IPO perps at $157, down from $210 when the derivatives launched, according to Hyperdash.

This indicates strong demand with open interest (OI) exceeding $115 million on Hyperliquid alone, and a current prediction of a $1.97 trillion SpaceX valuation. 

Magazine: Vietnam preps crypto pilot, HK pushes tokenization: Asia Express

XRP perpetual futures have started trading on Kalshi, giving U.S. users access to leveraged XRP price exposure.

The cash-settled contract trades under the XRPPERP ticker and has no fixed expiration date.

The launch expands Kalshi’s crypto derivatives offering beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. It also moves XRP into a regulated market long dominated by offshore exchanges.

Prediction market accuracy has suffered under both weak and excessive insider trading enforcement, according to a new academic study that argued a complete ban could leave markets less informative.

According to a June 2 research paper by Balbinder Singh Gill, assistant professor of finance at Stevens Institute of Technology, prediction markets work best under a middle-ground enforcement model rather than a zero-tolerance approach. The study developed an economic framework to examine how insider trading rules affect market participation and price accuracy.

Gill found that stricter enforcement can encourage more traders to participate by limiting insider advantages, but removing insiders entirely can also strip markets of valuable information. As a result, prediction market accuracy follows what the paper described as a “hump-shaped” pattern, improving as enforcement increases up to a point before declining when restrictions become too severe.

Source: Balbinder Singh Gill

The research arrives as regulators and lawmakers have intensified scrutiny of insider trading across prediction markets. In April, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s enforcement division warned that traders using non-public information could face enforcement action. A month later, U.S. House lawmakers opened an investigation into Kalshi and Polymarket over insider trading concerns.

Study argues for targeted enforcement

Rather than treating all insider activity the same way, the paper proposed different levels of enforcement based on the source of information.

Under the framework, traders who gain an informational edge through independent research should face little or no enforcement because punishing such activity could discourage information gathering that helps markets produce accurate prices.

A different standard should apply when information is obtained through leaks, stolen documents, classified material, or other forms of misappropriation, the study argued. In those situations, stronger enforcement is warranted because the informational advantage comes from unauthorized access rather than analysis.

At the highest end of the spectrum are participants who can directly influence an outcome they are betting on. According to the paper, those cases carry the highest manipulation risk and justify the toughest enforcement measures.

Recent investigations have highlighted those concerns. Federal authorities opened a probe into former U.S. Representative George Santos after Kalshi reported unusual trading activity linked to a market on whether he would attend the State of the Union address. Authorities alleged Santos publicly stated he would attend, placed a wager that he would not appear, and later skipped the event.

Following similar concerns, Kalshi imposed trading suspensions and financial penalties on local political candidates, including Virginia candidate Mark Moran and Minnesota candidate Matt Klein, after they placed bets on races in which they were competing. Such cases have drawn attention because the trader is not simply forecasting an event but may have the ability to influence the result itself.

Government agencies have also expanded enforcement against traders accused of using classified information. In April, the CFTC and the Department of Justice charged U.S. Army Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke with using classified intelligence about a planned military operation targeting Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to trade on Polymarket.

According to enforcement filings, authorities relied on Section 746 of the Dodd-Frank Act, often referred to as the “Eddie Murphy Rule,” a provision originally designed to stop government employees from profiting from non-public government reports in commodity markets. The Van Dyke case represented the first known application of that authority to a prediction market platform.

Platforms and companies tighten controls

Even as researchers debate the appropriate level of enforcement, prediction market operators have begun introducing new safeguards.

As previously covered on crypto.news, Kalshi recently announced that users trading in certain sensitive markets, including those tied to corporate performance and national security events, may be required to disclose employment information. The company has also created a market-specific risk scoring system designed to identify contracts with elevated insider trading or manipulation risks.

Those changes followed recommendations from an internal audit committee and growing pressure from regulators and lawmakers.

Two recent cases cited in the study involved traders accused of profiting from privileged information on Polymarket. One involved a Google employee charged with using internal search trend information to earn approximately $1.2 million, while another involved a U.S. soldier accused of trading on classified military knowledge.

Outside the prediction market industry, legal advisers have warned corporations that event contracts are creating new risks around material nonpublic information. 

Corporate law firms have advised companies to update compliance policies and employee handbooks, while some multinational firms are revising insider trading rules and non-disclosure agreements to explicitly cover prediction market activity.

As prediction markets continue to expand, with some financial firms projecting industry volumes could reach $1 trillion by 2030, the debate has increasingly centered on where regulators should draw the line between valuable information discovery and illicit use of privileged information. 

Gill’s research suggests that eliminating insider participation entirely may come with costs of its own, potentially reducing the very price accuracy that prediction markets are designed to provide.