Miami Beach, FL — Morgan Stanley’s newly launched spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (MSBT) has attracted over $200 million in early demand, and it’s largely without help from its own advisors.

“Almost all of that first week or two of activity was self-directed, meaning it was not our advisors that were selling this,” Amy Oldenburg, the bank’s newly appointed head of digital assets, said during a fireside chat at Consensus in Miami.

The fund, just a few weeks old, has already gathered more than $200 million in assets, an unusually fast start in the traditional ETF market, where most launches struggle to gain traction over a short period of time. Oldenburg said the flows reflect individual investors making their own allocation decisions rather than relying on financial advisors.

The dynamic points to a broader shift.

Crypto exposure is no longer limited to niche or speculative corners of the market. Instead, investors who may already hold digital assets directly are now moving some of that capital into regulated products.

Oldenburg noted “how much activity that we’re fielding in terms of spot crypto holders that are also looking to put assets into ETPs,” describing a transition from decentralized holdings to more traditional investment vehicles.

‘Hybrid world’

However, Morgan Stanley is not betting on a single format. The firm plans to support both ETF access and direct crypto ownership, including spot trading on its wealth platform later this year.

“We’ll live in a hybrid world for quite some time, where we’ll be supporting both the digital native and the traditional business all in one,” Oldenburg said.

That approach reflects a practical challenge facing large financial institutions: clients increasingly hold both stocks and crypto, often across disconnected systems. Bringing those assets into a single view remains a work in progress.

Beyond the ETF, Oldenburg said the bank is exploring how digital assets could reshape market structure more broadly, including faster settlement and tokenized financial products.

“We’re not tokenizing for the sake of tokenizing,” she said. “Ultimately, we want to provide the client more value and better service.”

The effort is part of a longer-term shift rather than a short-term trend. “This isn’t a 2026 project or 2027 project. This is the next decade,” she added.

OnRe Finance raised $5M from Forward and RockawayX as Forward prepares up to $25M into ONyc, scaling Solana-based, tokenized reinsurance with DeFi integrations.

OnRe Finance said it has closed a $5 million strategic funding round to accelerate development of its tokenized reinsurance platform on Solana, with the raise co-led by Solana-focused treasury company Forward Industries and multi-strategy digital asset firm RockawayX.

Forward and Rockaway back on-chain reinsurance on Solana

According to the GlobeNewswire announcement, the capital will go toward expanding OnRe’s underwriting programs, hiring, and integrating its products more deeply into Solana’s DeFi stack.

Forward, listed on Nasdaq as FWDI, described the move as a “natural extension” of its Solana treasury strategy, which it says is shifting from relying solely on staking yield to adding “high-quality, real-world cash flows that are both complementary and uncorrelated.”

OnRe is licensed in Bermuda under both the Insurance Act and the Digital Asset Business Act, allowing it to accept digital assets as collateral for traditional reinsurance contracts and to pass through returns from a diversified book of underwriting risk to on-chain investors.

$25M ONyc deployment for tokenized reinsurance yield

Separately from the equity round, Forward said it “intends to deploy up to $25 million into ONyc,” OnRe’s yield-bearing RWA token on Solana, which turns stablecoins into reinsurance collateral and pays out returns from both reinsurance income and collateral yield.

ONyc pools are integrated with leading Solana DeFi venues and can be used as collateral for lending, borrowing, and looping strategies, effectively letting investors turn reinsurance-backed cash flows into composable on-chain capital.

Insurance industry coverage notes that OnRe has previously launched structured products like the ONe token, which targeted projected returns north of 30% by combining reinsurance performance, collateral yields, and token incentives, leveraging the $750 billion global reinsurance market as a base.

RockawayX, an early Solana backer and investor in more than 15 Solana ecosystem projects, has argued that OnRe’s model can “generate the same revenue from $10 million in TVL as a $500 million money market fund” because reinsurance premiums and collateral income stack in a capital-efficient way.

Miami Beach, FL — “The market is the market… it’s not crypto and traditional anymore,” said Dave LaValle, President of CoinDesk Indices and Data, on a panel at Consensus Miami Tuesday, capturing a shift echoed across issuers and asset managers.

As traditional finance firms pour in, Douglas Yones of Direxion argued that institutional participation is “good for the industry,” bringing standardization and discipline to processes that were once fragmented.

That institutional layer is also unlocking global access. In regions where spot crypto remains restricted, particularly across parts of Asia, ETFs have emerged as the primary on-ramp.

“ETFs are a plug-and-play solution,” said Krista Lynch, SVP of ETF Capital Markets at Grayscale, noting they fit seamlessly into existing risk systems that can’t accommodate direct bitcoin BTC$81,072.38 exposure.

The result is rapid adoption. Lynch points to surging demand for features like in-kind redemptions and collateral usage, while Steven McClurg, CEO of Canary Capital, highlights a simpler appeal: security and liquidity. “Some investors would rather hold an ETF and let issuers handle custody,” he said.

Where the market goes next is already taking shape. Index-based products are poised to organize a growing universe of assets, while staking and income-generating strategies could define the next wave. Tokenization, though promising, remains in its early stages, according to McClurg.

Still, the direction is clear: ETFs aren’t just expanding crypto access, they’re redefining how the asset class is structured, distributed, and owned globally.

Read more: Recovery in bitcoin ETF inflows is real. It is just not complete yet.

Miami Beach, FL — Tokenized money will fail to deliver on its promise if it remains siloed within individual banks, according to Ryan Rugg, Citigroup’s head of digital assets for treasury and trade solutions.

Speaking at Consensus in Miami, Rugg said large corporate clients are not looking for single-bank solutions but systems that work seamlessly across financial institutions. “No one wants just a Citi token,” she said. “They want that multi-bank aspect of it.”

The comment reflects a core challenge in the push to bring blockchain-based payments into mainstream finance. While banks have begun issuing tokenized deposits and building internal platforms, many of those systems operate within closed networks.

For global companies, that approach falls short. Rugg said Citi’s clients often manage “hundreds, if not thousands of bank accounts across multiple banks globally,” creating complexity in moving money for payroll, suppliers and investments.

Those clients are increasingly asking for real-time capabilities. In a survey Citi conducted several years ago, Rugg said the response was “basically unanimous” that faster, always-on payments were a top priority.

Blockchain technology offers one path to that goal, but only if systems can connect. Citi has built its own tokenized platform and linked it to its broader banking network, including a 24/7 U.S. dollar clearing system with more than 300 banks. Still, Rugg emphasized that internal upgrades alone are not enough.

“This is another tool in the toolkit,” she said, adding that banks must also modernize traditional infrastructure and connect it with digital systems.

The broader industry faces fragmentation. A growing number of banks, fintech firms and crypto projects are building separate networks, often using different standards. That risks recreating the same inefficiencies blockchain aims to fix.

Rugg argued that shared infrastructure — built “for the industry, by the industry” — will be key to scaling tokenized finance, citing models such as Swift’s global messaging network.

At the same time, regulation remains a constraint. Large banks require clear legal frameworks before rolling out new products. “Unless it is 100% permissible, we are not going to do that,” Rugg said.

TLDR:

• Buterin declared consortium blockchains a failure at Arbitrum Day on July 20, 2024, citing cartel-like structures.
  
• He proposed adding Merkle roots and validity proofs to centralized servers as a low-disruption enterprise fix.
  
• Buterin defined four L2 categories: EVM chains, server upgrades, experimentation zones, and app-specific chains.
  
• Interoperability between diverse L2 types is central to Ethereum’s vision of a heterogeneous sharded ecosystem.

---

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has publicly stated that consortium blockchains have largely failed to deliver on their original promise.

Speaking at Arbitrum Day, Buterin argued that these private chains combine the worst traits of both centralized and decentralized systems.

The result, he said, resembles cartel-like structures that lack genuine openness or meaningful privacy. He then proposed a more practical path forward for enterprises seeking blockchain benefits.

Buterin’s Case Against Consortium Blockchains

Consortium blockchains were once viewed as a middle ground for enterprises wary of fully public chains. However, Buterin pointed out that they inherit drawbacks from both worlds without capturing the strengths of either. They are neither truly open nor genuinely private, making them difficult to justify at scale.

Rather than scrapping existing infrastructure entirely, Buterin offered a practical alternative. He proposed retrofitting centralized servers with cryptographic tools such as Merkle roots and validity proofs. These proofs would be anchored on-chain to strengthen security without requiring a full system overhaul.

Buterin described consortium chains as structures that produce outcomes resembling cartels, noting they are “devoid of real openness or privacy.”

His remarks pointed to a fundamental design problem that no incremental fix could address within the consortium model itself.

This approach, which he described as adding a “sidecar” for verification, targets enterprises that do not need full censorship resistance.

It provides transparency and user-facing security guarantees while keeping disruption to current deployments minimal.

The proposal reflects a broader shift in how Buterin now views the relationship between centralized systems and blockchain technology.

Layer 2 Solutions and the Road Ahead

Buterin also addressed the evolving role of Layer 2 solutions within the Ethereum ecosystem. He defined L2s as systems that operate largely off-chain but draw their security from Ethereum’s base layer. Their development has moved well beyond early concepts like state channels.

He outlined two main frameworks for understanding L2s. The first treats them as an extension of Ethereum’s sharding vision, allowing for scalable transaction processing and reduced fees.

The second frames them as “servers, but better,” suited for mainstream and enterprise use cases that require a balance between centralization and decentralization.

Buterin further broke down L2s into four categories: EVM-compatible chains, server-like systems with on-chain proofs, experimentation zones for new programming languages and virtual machines, and application-specific chains such as Worldcoin’s World Chain. Each serves a different segment of the broader ecosystem.

He stressed that interoperability between these varied L2 types remains critical. Cross-chain communication and shared security allow the ecosystem to serve a wide range of applications.

Together, they form what Buterin envisions as a heterogeneous sharded network capable of meeting diverse performance and security needs.

Update May 5, 2026, 1:30 pm UTC: This article has been updated to add information from an SEC filing.

Coinbase will cut about 14% of its workforce, or roughly 700 jobs, as CEO Brian Armstrong moves to make the crypto exchange leaner and more focused on artificial intelligence.

Armstrong said in an email to employees that Coinbase is responding to two forces at once: a down market that pressured the company’s quarter-to-quarter business and rapid advances in AI that are changing how teams work. 

He said the company will flatten its organizational structure to a maximum of five layers below the CEO and chief operating officer, require leaders to act as “player-coaches” rather than pure managers and concentrate around smaller AI-native teams that can use automated tools to increase output.

“To those affected, we will be providing a comprehensive package to support you through this transition,” Armstrong said, saying that it will include at least 16 weeks of base pay for US employees, additional pay based on tenure, their next equity vest and six months of “COBRA” or the “Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act,” a US program that allows former employees to temporarily continue employer-sponsored health insurance coverage.

A Tuesday filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission showed that Coinbase expects its restructuring plan to incur about $50 million to $60 million in expenses tied to severance and termination benefits. The company expects the plan to be substantially complete in the second quarter of 2026.

The cuts show Coinbase framing AI not only as a productivity tool, but as a reason to rethink staffing, management and team structure across one of the largest US crypto companies.

Source: Brian Armstrong

Crypto companies cut staff amid AI shift

Coinbase’s restructuring follows other workforce reductions across crypto companies in recent months, as firms respond to weaker market conditions, cost pressures and the growing use of AI in internal operations. 

In February, Gemini said that it planned to cut up to 200 jobs, or about 25% of its workforce, while exiting the UK, EU and Australia as part of a broader cost-reduction plan, according to Reuters. The cuts were expected to affect employees in the United States, Singapore and Europe and be completed in the first half of 2026.

Related: Most crypto investors believe Bitcoin is undervalued: Coinbase survey

In March, Crypto.com cut 12% of its workforce as it accelerated its AI push. The move affected about 180 employees based on the exchange’s listed headcount of around 1,500. The company said the layoffs were part of its plans to prioritize resources around key growth areas.

In the same month, the Algorand Foundation also cut 25% of its staff, citing macroeconomic uncertainty, weaker crypto prices and the rise of AI. 

Magazine: AI-driven hacks could kill DeFi — unless projects act now

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Coinbase cuts 700 jobs today, with CEO Brian Armstrong saying AI is making small engineering teams far more productive

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong announced on May 5 that the company is eliminating roughly 700 employees, representing approximately 14% of its total workforce.

Armstrong attributed the cuts directly to AI changing the economics of engineering, saying the technology makes small teams capable of output that previously required far larger headcount. Coinbase shares rose on the announcement, a reaction investors typically read as margin improvement.

The company expects to record $50 to $60 million in restructuring charges. Armstrong’s framing puts Coinbase among a growing list of major tech companies using AI productivity as justification for headcount reductions, but his is a significant public statement from the CEO of the largest US crypto exchange.

What this signals for Coinbase and the broader industry

Armstrong has been building toward this position for months. As crypto.news reported, Coinbase began testing AI agents internally in April, with Armstrong stating that “we will have more agents than human employees at some point soon.” The May 5 layoffs are the first structural workforce action that reflects that forecast moving from prediction to operational reality.

The cuts arrive as Coinbase continues to press for the Clarity Act’s passage. The company spent $1.07 million on Washington lobbying in Q1 2026 and reversed its earlier opposition to the bill after a stablecoin yield compromise was reached. A leaner cost structure strengthens Coinbase’s position heading into what is shaping up to be a high-stakes regulatory engagement window.

Coinbase is not alone in citing AI as a driver of workforce reduction. As crypto.news documented, Gemini earlier stated that “AI is now too powerful not to use,” and Crypto.com cited AI integration as a reason for its own staff reductions in early 2026.

What makes Coinbase’s announcement distinctive is its scale and the clarity with which Armstrong tied AI productivity, not market conditions, to the decision.

Miami Beach, FL — After years of experimentation, crypto today is boiling down to two core uses: trading and payments.

Speaking at a fireside chat at Consensus 2026 in Miami, Tempo’s go-to-market lead, Dan Romero, said the industry is settling into a “barbell” shape, with speculative trading like Hyperliquid’s marketplace on one end and stablecoin-based payments gaining traction on the other.

“The things that have worked over the last five years are speculation and stablecoins,” he said. “In the middle, it’s a bit of a wasteland,” he added, describing a slew of projects that have struggled to find product-market fit despite years of development and funding.

Romero is speaking from experience. Before joining Tempo, he was the co-founder of crypto social app Farcaster, which struggled to gain traction despite hefty venture capital checks and years of hype.

Tempo, a payments-focused blockchain backed by Stripe and Paradigm, is positioning itself firmly on the payments side of that divide. Built as a purpose-specific layer-1 blockchain, the network focuses on enterprise needs like compliance and transaction control — features often missing from public blockchains.

For example, companies can block interactions with certain wallet addresses, a function aimed at reducing regulatory risk, Romero said.

That design reflects a broader shift in how large firms approach crypto. Rather than experimenting with tokens, many are adopting stablecoins as backend infrastructure. “It’s plumbing,” the executive said. “But enterprises like plumbing if it’s better, faster, cheaper.”

Stablecoins are already gaining ground in areas like remittances. One example cited was cross-border payments between the U.S. and Mexico, where crypto rails now account for a growing share of flows.

The next wave could come from internet-native businesses. Startups, especially those built around AI agents, are likely to default to stablecoins as the easiest way to move money globally, he said — much like Stripe simplified online payments more than a decade ago.

Anthropic venture with Blackstone and Goldman Sachs will deliver enterprise AI tools to private equity-backed companies.

Anthropic is close to finalising a $1.5 billion joint venture with Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, and Hellman and Friedman, targeting private-equity-backed companies as its primary deployment market. Blackstone and Hellman and Friedman are each expected to commit approximately $300 million, while Goldman Sachs will contribute around $150 million.

The platform will deliver AI tools across finance, operations, customer service, analytics, and enterprise software to companies within the firms’ portfolio networks.

The announcement coincides with a rival launch from OpenAI, which announced its own enterprise AI joint venture valued at $10 billion on the same day.

The simultaneous announcements signal that both leading AI developers view private equity as the most capital-efficient channel for enterprise AI distribution at scale.

The race to capture enterprise AI deployment

The Anthropic venture arrives as the company’s revenue has been accelerating rapidly. As crypto.news reported, Anthropic’s run-rate revenue reached $30 billion in April 2026, tripling from $9 billion at the end of 2025, with over 1,000 business customers each spending more than $1 million annually. CEO Dario Amodei has said the company must “build the infrastructure to keep pace with rapidly growing demand,” a statement that captures the logic driving both the revenue growth and the new PE distribution strategy.

The venture also arrives against the backdrop of legal tension. Anthropic has been suing the US government over a directive that barred federal agencies from using its technology after the company refused to allow Claude to be used for autonomous weapons or mass surveillance. That dispute has complicated Anthropic’s government contracting pipeline, making the private equity channel a strategically important alternative route.

Both Anthropic and OpenAI are accelerating into enterprise markets ahead of potential public listings. Anthropic is exploring valuations above $300 billion, making the $1.5 billion joint venture a commercial signal as much as a revenue play.