Crypto World
Tensions rise across Ethereum as scaling, security and AI Priorities intensify
The first couple of months of 2026 have forced the Ethereum community into a kind of introspection—one that goes beyond price, beyond technical upgrades, and into the question of what the network is actually trying to be.
Even before this year, there has been a sense among builders and executives that Ethereum was on the verge of another growth phase—this time driven not by crypto-native users but by institutions and technology. Neobanks, as some argued, would quietly onboard millions by abstracting away the complexity of wallets and gas fees. Ethereum, in this framing, wouldn’t need to win users directly. It would sit beneath the interface, powering a new financial stack that, on the surface, looked nothing like crypto.
It was a continuation of a long-running thesis: that Ethereum’s success would come from invisibility.
That vision has been shaped in part by years of previous upgrades aimed at improving user experience and reducing costs. Changes like “proto-danksharding”, introduced in the Dencun upgrade, significantly lowered fees for layer 2 networks by increasing data downloads for transactions, while ongoing improvements to the base layer have made transactions more efficient.
While the price of the network’s ether (ETH) token has been determined by market forces, these upgrades have, together, helped move Ethereum closer to a model where users interact with applications without needing to understand the underlying infrastructure.
But that narrative began to change a few weeks into the year, refocusing on the core roadmap.
The L2 debate
Earlier this year, the co-founder of the network, Vitalik Buterin, delivered a sharp reality check to the broader ecosystem: “You are not scaling Ethereum.”
The comment cut through what had, until then, been a largely celebratory conversation around rollups. These types of networks, also known as layer-2 (L2) networks, process transactions off Ethereum and then bundle them back onto the main chain to make it faster and cheaper. Layer-2 networks have exploded over the last few years, transaction fees have come down, and activity has spread—but the deeper question was whether any of this amounted to coherent scaling.
Buterin’s argument went further than a general critique of progress. In his view, many of today’s layer 2 designs are drifting away from Ethereum’s core model: relying on centralized components and siloed environments that don’t fully inherit the guarantees of the base chain. The concern wasn’t that L2s exist, but that in their current form, they may not be delivering the kind of scaling Ethereum was meant to achieve.
His critique highlighted a growing unease.
Fragmentation across L2s, inconsistent security assumptions, and reliance on centralized components were beginning to look less like temporary trade-offs and more like structural risks. Ethereum, in trying to scale outward, risked losing the very properties that made it valuable in the first place—its strong security, decentralization, and role as a shared, neutral settlement layer where applications and liquidity can seamlessly interoperate.
L2 teams, for their part, didn’t push back so much as recalibrate. Some acknowledged the critique and leaned into a future where rollups differentiate through specialization: privacy, consumer apps, or unique execution environments, rather than simply acting as cheaper Ethereum. Others defended their role more forcefully, arguing that high-throughput environments are still essential.
Ethereum’s base layer, meanwhile, has made incremental progress on its own. Recent upgrades, such as December’s Fusaka hard fork, increased data capacity and efficiency on the main network, allowing more transactions to be processed while lowering costs. Although that spike in transactions came under scrutiny recently, with some calling them ‘address poisoning’ scams.
What this tense episode established for Ethereum is that the path forward needs a delicate balance between the base layer’s structural upgrades and a new breed of specialized rollups that can grow the ecosystem without breaking its foundational security.
This could also lead to consolidation among the layer 2 networks, according to 21shares. “The year ahead is likely to mark Ethereum’s L2 consolidation: a leaner, more resilient layer anchored by ETH-aligned, exchange-backed, and high-performance networks,” the firm said in a research report.
The quantum threat
At the same time, another issue—long discussed but rarely urgent—suddenly moved up the priority list: Quantum Computing.
The Ethereum Foundation signaled a shift in posture, elevating efforts like ‘LeanVM’ and post-quantum signature schemes. What had once been treated as a distant, almost academic concern was now being folded into near-term planning.
The implication was hard to ignore: the network is no longer just building for the next cycle, but for threats that could fundamentally break its cryptographic assumptions. The foundation has signaled it is taking that risk seriously, establishing dedicated research efforts focused specifically on post-quantum security.
Vitalik Buterin also outlined a roadmap to protect the blockchain from the long-term risks posed by quantum computers
The internal shuffle
If scaling exposed cracks in Ethereum’s present, quantum risk cast a shadow over its future, and it seemed that the network was taking the threat seriously.
Then came changes from within.
The departure of Tomasz Stańczak as co-executive director of the Ethereum Foundation marked more than a leadership reshuffle. At a moment when the network is facing technical, strategic, and philosophical reevaluations all at once, even subtle shifts at the top can signal a broader recalibration.
The move also came as something of a surprise.
The foundation is not known for abrupt shifts, and Stańczak had only stepped into the role about a year earlier, following the long-standing tenure of Aya Miyaguchi. In an ecosystem that tends to favor continuity, the rapid turnover hinted at a deeper internal recalibration underway, as the foundation reassesses its priorities amid growing demands for scaling, security, and Ethereum’s potential role in new frontiers such as artificial intelligence (AI).
‘Trust layer’
And AI, a topic that has become impossible to ignore, not just for crypto but for every industry, began to shape a separate line of thinking for the network.
Buterin outlined how Ethereum could play a foundational role in the future of artificial intelligence. The vision extends beyond payments or DeFi—into a world where Ethereum acts as a coordination layer for decentralized AI systems, enabling verifiable outputs, trust-minimized data sharing, and machine-to-machine economic activity.
That push didn’t emerge overnight.
Early last year, the foundation spun up a dedicated decentralized AI research unit (dAI) exploring how the network could support autonomous agents and machine-to-machine economies. What felt experimental at the time has since accelerated into something more deliberate in 2026, with the foundation increasingly framing Ethereum as a potential “trust layer” for AI: a system for verifying outputs, coordinating agents, and anchoring a rapidly evolving ecosystem that, until now, has been largely controlled by centralized players.
All of this is an ambitious expansion of scope, placing Ethereum at the intersection of two of the most consequential technologies today.
But overall, the first three months of the year suggest that Ethereum no longer has the luxury of tackling these questions in isolation; rather, they are converging.
What emerges is a network being pulled in multiple directions, each one with its own sense of urgency, and a balancing act is becoming harder to ignore. And unlike previous cycles, where narratives could shift as quickly as prices, the issues now feel deeper, less about momentum, and more about structure.
These tensions are unlikely to be resolved anytime soon and will continue to shape Ethereum’s trajectory in the months ahead.
In the immediate term, however, the focus remains on scaling the base layer, with the upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade, slated for this year, expected to accelerate that effort. The upgrade will likely become a litmus test for the network’s ability to solve issues that can successfully shift Ethereum into a robust, quantum-secure “trust layer” capable of anchoring the global AI economy.
Read more: Ethereum’s ‘Glamsterdam’ upgrade aims to fix MEV fairness
Bitcoin (BTC) saw volatility at Monday’s Wall Street open as fresh US-Iran war events sparked instability.
Key points:
- Bitcoin wobbles around the $80,000 mark as Iran tensions steer risk-asset markets.
- The overhead CME futures gap becomes the new target for traders wanting proof of BTC price strength.
- Short-term holders approach breakeven on their unrealized losses.
Iran injects fresh BTC price volatility with $80,000 at stake
Data from TradingView showed whipsaw BTC price action as $80,000 became a central focus for both bulls and bears.
BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
News that Iran had struck a petroleum facility in the United Arab Emirates sent oil prices surging on the day, with US stocks under pressure.
WTI crude added over 5% to return past $105 per barrel, while Brent hit $119 per barrel — within striking distance of its highest levels in nearly three years.
CFDs on Brent crude oil one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Earlier, trading company QCP Capital described the Iran situation as “fluid.”
“For now, markets appear to be pricing in de-escalation. That calculus could change quickly,” it wrote in its latest Market Color analysis.
For Bitcoin itself, QCP argued that the semi-filled gap in CME Group’s futures market formed the key resistance hurdle for buyers to overcome.
“Opened up with a new small CME gap. It is also well on its way to close the previous large gap from $84K,” trader Daan Crypto Trades continued on the topic in a post on X.
“Good to mark these levels on your chart as they could act as a ‘magnet’ and local reversal zones if price trades close/into them.”
CME Bitcoin futures 15-minute chart. Source: Daan Crypto Trades/X
Bitcoin speculators almost wipe out unrealized losses
Onchain analytics platform CryptoQuant added another important level in the form of the aggregate cost basis of Bitcoin’s short-term holders, or speculative investors holding for up to six months.
Related: BTC price can ‘easily’ hit $95K: Five things to know in Bitcoin this week
“The more probable scenario is a cautious recovery attempt toward STH realized price,” contributor Crazzyblockk wrote in a QuickTake blog post.
“A confirmed daily close above $81,500 flips that level from resistance to support, opening the path toward $87–92K. Failure sends price back to test new money realized price near $76,500.”
Bitcoin aggregate cost basis (realized price) by UTXO age (screenshot). Source: CryptoQuant
Crazzyblockk added that Bitcoin’s long-term holders were “unbothered” about their average 27% unrealized losses.
Crypto World
Bitcoin drops to $79,000, ETH, SOL, DOGE sharply lower on renewed U.S.-Iran war tensions
Bitcoin dropped to $79,074 in late Asian hours Monday, reversing nearly $1,500 from a $80,594 intraday high that had marked the highest print since January 31.
The pullback came as Iran’s Fars news agency claimed two missiles hit a U.S. patrol boat near Jask Island after the vessel allegedly ignored Iranian warnings to leave its territorial waters. Brent crude jumped more than 5% to trade above $113 a barrel before paring the gain.
The U.S. denied the report shortly after and said no American ship had been struck. Oil and equity futures pared their initial moves on the denial, but bitcoin held its decline as traders priced in the fragility of the ceasefire that has held since early April.
Other majors followed bitcoin lower from intraday highs but stayed positive on the day.
Ether traded at $2,341, up 1.2% over 24 hours after touching $2,368 earlier. Solana sat at $84.08, up just 0.2% on the day after starting Monday at $85.14. XRP slipped to $1.40 and BNB to $623. Dogecoin held its gains better than most, up 2.3% on the day to $0.1102 with the weekly print still at 12.1%.
The escalation arrived hours after President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. would begin escorting ships stranded in the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz starting Monday, an operation dubbed Project Freedom that involves guided-missile destroyers, aircraft, and drones.
Iran responded by announcing it had “redefined the control zone” in Hormuz, extending its claimed maritime borders to Fujairah and signaling that Tehran would regulate shipping traffic in the area regardless of U.S. operations.
Bitcoin had broken $80,000 for the first time since January, with $301 million in shorts liquidated as the move unfolded earlier Monday. The Senate’s Clarity Act compromise on stablecoin yield, released Friday, had been adding to the risk-on tone heading into the week.
Whether the U.S. denial holds or fresh confirmations emerge from either side will likely set the tape for the rest of the U.S. session.
Crypto-related stocks rallied Monday, led by Circle (CRCL) and Coinbase (COIN), as progress on U.S. digital asset legislation and bitcoin breaking above $80,000 lifted sentiment across the sector.
Circle, issuer of the USDC stablecoin, surged 18%, extending recent gains, while U.S.-focused crypto exchange Coinbase rose about 7%. BitGo (BTGO), a digital asset infrastructure firm offering custody and stablecoin services, climbed roughly 10%.
Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate bitcoin holder, crypto-friendly digital broker Robinhood (HOOD) and Ethereum (ETH) treasury firm Bitmine (BMNR) were also up 3%-4%, underscoring the broad-market advance.
The move came as bitcoin pushed above $80,000 during the session, reaching its strongest level since late January and providing a tailwind for the broader crypto sector. BTC advanced nearly 2% over the past 24 hours, leading the broader crypto benchmark CoinDesk 20 Index’s 1.2% gain.
Further boosting investor optimism were signs that the long-debated Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, a key piece of U.S. legislation to regulate crypto markets, is moving closer to passage.
A newly released compromise would prohibit stablecoin issuers from offering yield on idle balances, while still allowing rewards tied to usage and transaction activity, according to a Friday text. The approach addresses one of the most contentious aspects of the bill and aligns with earlier discussions in Washington.
Clarity Act progress
That clarification appears to be a pivotal moment that brings the bill closer to passage, according to Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research.
“The latest compromise removes one of the final obstacles for the legislation,” said Thielen in a Telegram message. With the stablecoin yield issue addressed, lawmakers are expected to move toward a formal markup, potentially as soon as this week, he added.
Odds of passage on the prediction platform Polymarket have risen to 64%, reflecting growing confidence that the bill will advance.
With that, “equity markets are beginning to price in potential winners,” Thielen said.
Circle, as a regulated stablecoin issuer, is widely seen as a potential beneficiary of clearer rules, particularly if stablecoins are formally positioned as payment tools rather than yield-bearing assets, he said.
The firm’s upcoming earnings, due next week, adds another layer of momentum for the stock, Thielen noted.
After releasing last quarter’s report in February, Circle’s shares surged around 100% in the following weeks, and investors may have started to position for further gains ahead of earnings.
ePBS, Block-Level Access Lists, and EIP-8037 repricings combine to unlock a 200M gas limit floor, a throughput jump that could keep network fees pinned for years.
We prompted China’s Alibaba Qwen AI to predict near-term price predictions for XRP, Bitcoin, and Ethereum, and the result is a tightly structured outlook.
It leans on macro easing, ETF momentum, and asset-specific catalysts to justify another leg higher.
As per Qwen AI, Bitcoin is expected to push toward $95,000–$100,000 on sustained ETF inflows, potential Fed rate cuts, and continued institutional accumulation.
Which is interesting because Bitcoin just reclaimed $80,000 making the prediction realistic and possible.
Alibaba AI frame Ethereum for a move into the $3,000–$4,000 range, driven by staking ETF approval narratives, Layer-2 expansion, and deflationary supply mechanics.
XRP, meanwhile, is positioned around a technical breakout scenario, with a cup-and-handle structure and regulatory clarity acting as the core drivers behind a move toward $1.70.
What makes this set of predictions stand out is the balance between catalysts and structure. Qwen is not just projecting targets, it is tying each move to a specific trigger.
Bitcoin depends on liquidity and macro conditions. Ethereum relies on institutional product expansion and on-chain growth. XRP is driven by technical breakout confirmation and sentiment shifts tied to regulation and ETF speculation.
The question now is whether price action is actually confirming those triggers, or if the market is still lagging behind the narrative.
Price Prediction: Can Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP Validate These Alibaba Qwen AI Breakout Predicts?
Bitcoin is now trading around $78,996, still holding comfortably above the $75K pivot that Qwen’s entire bullish case depends on.
As long as this level holds, the structure supports continuation toward $95K–$100K, driven by ETF inflows and improving macro conditions.
The key shift here is stability. BTC is not just hovering at support anymore, it is maintaining strength above it.
That said, momentum is still not fully expanding. If the price slips back below $75K, the market is likely to rotate into the more conservative $75K–$85K range, delaying the breakout scenario.
Ethereum price is sitting near $2,339, still below the critical reclaim zone. The $2,400–$2,600 range remains the barrier that must be overcome for the $3,000–$4,000 projection to align with reality.
Right now, ETH is close, but not there yet. Holding above $2,300 keeps the structure intact, but without a push higher, it remains in a reactive phase.
Lose this level, and the downside toward $2,100–$2,200 comes back into focus. The narrative is strong, but price still needs to confirm it.
XRP is trading around $1.39, just below the key $1.50 resistance that defines the breakout scenario.
This keeps the setup very tight. If XRP can push through $1.50 and hold above it, the move toward $1.70 becomes a direct continuation play, aligning with the cup-and-handle breakout thesis.
Momentum can build quickly from there, especially with regulatory clarity and ETF speculation still in the background.
On the downside, rejection at $1.50 keeps XRP within its current range and brings the $1.17–$1.30 support zone back into play. That range now acts as the key defense level. Losing it would weaken the structure and shift the tone back toward consolidation rather than expansion.
Across all three, the structure remains intact and slightly stronger than before, but the breakout is still not confirmed.
Prices are holding in the right zones, but the market still needs that next push to turn positioning into momentum.
Discover: The best crypto to diversify your portfolio with
AI Predicts That Bitcoin Hyper Could Outperform Them All
Early-stage infrastructure plays offer a different risk/reward profile entirely, and some traders rotating between cycles are already looking there.
Bitcoin Hyper is positioning itself as infrastructure for the next leg: the first Bitcoin Layer 2 with Solana Virtual Machine (SVM) integration, claiming sub-Solana latency while inheriting Bitcoin’s security layer.
The project has raised $32M in its presale at a current token price of $0.013679, with staking available at high APY for early participants.
The core thesis, bringing fast, low-cost smart contracts to Bitcoin without abandoning its trust model, targets a gap that neither Ethereum nor Solana fills directly.
The post China’s Alibaba AI Predicts the Price of XRP, Bitcoin, Ethereum by the End of May 2026 appeared first on Cryptonews.
Crypto World
Pavel Durov Just Took Over TONCoin as Its Largest Validator and Cut Fees to Near Zero: Is This the Catalyst TON Has Been Waiting For?
In a bold move that sent ripples through the crypto world, Telegram founder Pavel Durov announced today that fees on The Open Network (TONCoin) have already dropped 6x, plummeting to nearly zero.
But that’s just the beginning. Telegram is stepping up to replace the TON Foundation as the primary driving force behind the blockchain, becoming its largest validator.
This shift marks a major turning point for TON. After delivering a 10x speed upgrade in April (Step 1 of the “Make TON Great Again” plan), the network is now accelerating its transformation with Telegram’s direct involvement.
The focus is shifting squarely to technological superiority, backed by a refreshed ton.org website, new developer tools, and significant performance upgrades, all expected to roll out in the next 2–3 weeks.
Discover: The best crypto to diversify your portfolio with
Why This Matters For Telegram And Toncoin Foundation
Durov is making a direct bet on scale.
Telegram’s nearly 1 billion users combined with TONCoin ultra-low-cost infrastructure is the thesis. Near-zero fees and sub-second transactions open the door for seamless in-app payments, mini-apps, DeFi, and mass adoption at a scale most blockchains cannot touch.
Many transactions could soon become completely feeless.
For developers it means easier building and faster iteration. For the broader ecosystem it signals Telegram’s full commitment to turning TON into a high-performance backbone for real-world applications, not just another speculative asset.
Speculation is not the endgame here. Everyday utility is. With Telegram firmly in the driver’s seat, the Make TON Great Again roadmap is just getting started.
Discover: The best pre-launch token sales
The post Pavel Durov Just Took Over TONCoin as Its Largest Validator and Cut Fees to Near Zero: Is This the Catalyst TON Has Been Waiting For? appeared first on Cryptonews.
OpenAI has sealed a $10B joint venture dubbed DeployCo with major private equity firms, giving it capital, governance access, and a captive pipeline to roll AI across thousands of portfolio companies.
Summary
- OpenAI has finalized a $10 billion joint venture with a consortium of major private equity firms to accelerate deployment of its enterprise AI tools across portfolio companies.
- The vehicle, known internally as DeployCo, will see PE investors commit around $4 billion, while OpenAI is expected to contribute up to $1.5 billion and retain super‑voting control.
- The agreement underscores how AI labs and buyout firms are aligning to use foundation models to overhaul operations in thousands of traditional businesses.
Market reports indicate that OpenAI has now closed a $10 billion joint venture with a group of private equity backers, an entity that previous filings and leaks identified as “DeployCo,” formed in Delaware as a limited liability company.
DeployCo structure and capital commitments
According to details first outlined by the Financial Times and relayed by outlets such as Bloomberg, the structure assigns a pre‑money valuation of roughly $10 billion to the new venture and is designed to act as a dedicated distribution vehicle for OpenAI’s workplace and enterprise products.
The private equity syndicate is led by TPG, with Bain Capital, Advent International, Brookfield Asset Management, and Goanna Capital also named in reports as core investors, collectively expected to invest about $4 billion for equity stakes, board seats, and influence over deployment priorities.
OpenAI, for its part, is set to provide an initial equity commitment of around $500 million, with the option to increase that to as much as $1.5 billion over time, while maintaining super‑voting rights that give it effective control over the venture’s strategic direction.
In one LinkedIn summary of the term sheet, the company is described as offering investors a 17.5% annual return floor over a five‑year period, a structure one source quoted by the FT said was “a floor… but we expect it to be much higher.”
A distribution play for enterprise AI
The goal of DeployCo is not to build consumer apps but to “deploy OpenAI’s software across the portfolio companies” of the participating private equity firms, using capital and governance rights to push AI integration into manufacturing, retail, healthcare, finance, and other sectors those funds own.
Coverage from Reuters and Yahoo Finance frames the venture as a way for OpenAI to secure a pipeline of thousands of business customers in one stroke, while PE managers see it as a tool to cut costs, grow revenue, and defend legacy holdings from AI‑driven disruption.
Analysts quoted in market commentary argue the initiative marks a shift from AI labs selling generic API access toward tightly integrated, outcomes‑linked deployments, with OpenAI effectively tying its fortunes to the performance of buyout firms’ portfolios.
In a recent crypto.news analysis, the deal was described as “a whole new AI distribution war,” positioning OpenAI’s DeployCo against rival structures from Anthropic and other labs that are courting private equity and infrastructure investors with similar joint‑venture models.
Another crypto.news overview emphasized that the $10 billion vehicle could become a template for how foundation‑model companies raise capital and secure enterprise reach without going public.
A separate crypto.news briefing stressed that by committing its own capital and guaranteeing returns, OpenAI is blurring the line between software vendor and financial sponsor, taking on more balance‑sheet risk in exchange for deeper operational control.
Crypto World
XRP Price Prediction Eyes $1.50 as XRP ETFs Outperform Bitcoin While Pepeto Could Deliver Your First Million This Year
The XRP price prediction is gaining strength after XRP spot ETFs recorded $3.59 million in daily inflows on April 29 while Bitcoin ETFs posted $137 million in outflows and Ethereum funds lost $87 million the same day according to CoinEdition.
When XRP funds pull capital while the two largest crypto assets lose it, the market is telling you exactly where conviction is building. But the current XRP price prediction also faces resistance at $1.45, and that creates the right setup for smart capital to rotate into presale entries that capture the bull run from a far lower base.
Bitcoin spot ETFs attracted $630 million on May 1 while the S&P 500 hit a new record the same week. Futures open interest keeps climbing, and when institutional capital builds positions and risk appetite returns, presale tokens with real exchange infrastructure deliver the kind of returns that no XRP price prediction can match. Pepeto at $9.79M raised is exactly where that opportunity sits.
XRP Price Prediction Faces Resistance: Why Pepeto Is the Strongest Presale Entry of This Cycle
No other presale in the market right now ships a full working exchange. Pepeto does, and every crypto holder across every chain stands to gain from what it offers.
Three core systems power the platform. A bridge that lets you move assets between Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Solana without paying a cent. A trading engine that charges zero fees so your portfolio stops bleeding value on every swap. And a scoring tool that reads each token’s contract and warns you about risk before any of your money goes in.
All three work as one platform, not separate features. The exchange is not a concept on a whitepaper. It is live, it is growing, and SolidProof completed the full audit on every contract. The founder who launched the original Pepe token into a $7 billion market cap runs this project, with an ex-Binance developer shaping the listing timeline.
Due to the massive attention and growth the project is receiving, Pepeto’s original domain came under targeted attacks. The team secured a provisory domain immediately to keep access open for buyers. Click to visit Pepeto through the active link.
The numbers tell the story. Over $9.79M raised in rounds that close faster every time, and $0.0000001868 per token still leaves massive upside ahead. The moment the expected Binance listing opens, volume from every chain the bridge touches will flood in and reprice the token sharply.
Every day you hold a staked position at 175% APY, the compounding adds to your total. After the listing reprices, those stacked gains on top of gains produce the kind of outcome that makes any XRP price prediction look flat. Every major analyst covering this presale places the target above 100x. A $10,000 position at these numbers could be the path to your first million this year.
Acting now is the only way to capture it, because every day closer to the expected listing is one less day of compounding at this price.
XRP (XRP) Price at $1.38 as ETF Flows Outperform BTC and ETH
On April 29, XRP trades at $1.38 according to CoinMarketCap spot ETFs pulled in $3.59 million while both Bitcoin and Ethereum funds saw outflows according to CoinEdition.
Total XRP ETF inflows crossed $1.30 billion since launch, with weekly inflows reaching $55 million in the week of April 17, the strongest single week on record. XRP trades at $1.38 according to CoinMarketCap, sitting 62% below its $3.65 all-time high reached in July 2025.
XRP sits in a symmetrical triangle between $1.35 support and $1.45 resistance. Even the aggressive $2.00 target is under a 45% gain from here, which is why the presale entry available right now in Pepeto at $0.0000001868 offers a level of return potential that XRP at this market cap will never deliver.
Conclusion:
The XRP price prediction across every credible analyst target is bullish, and the moment that breakout arrives the expected Binance listing closes the presale window on Pepeto for good so the $0.0000001868 entry simply stops existing.
This cycle will produce millionaires out of the wallets that got in position before the crowd showed up. Each round fills quicker than the last while 175% APY staking grows every position daily in real time, and the wider crypto media still has not begun covering what happens once the full exchange opens to live trading.
Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale
FAQs
What is the XRP price prediction for 2026?
The XRP price prediction for 2026 targets $1.50 to $2.00, but Pepeto at $0.0000001868 with a full exchange offers return potential that XRP at $1.38 cannot produce. Visit Pepeto.
Why are XRP ETFs outperforming Bitcoin and Ethereum funds?
XRP spot ETFs recorded positive inflows of $3.59 million on April 29 while Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs posted outflows, showing that institutional capital is shifting toward XRP as cumulative inflows crossed $1.30 billion.
Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.
Crypto World
Kraken’s parent company Payward alleges $25 million crypto custody fraud in lawsuit against Etana and firm’s CEO
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has accused former custody partner Etana and its CEO, Dion Brandon Russell, of misappropriating more than $25 million in client funds, according to a second amended complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Colorado on Monday.
The crypto exchange alleges that Etana Custody, which is undergoing a court-supervised liquidation in Colorado, operated a “Ponzi-like” scheme in which custodial assets were commingled, spent on operating expenses and risky investments, and falsely reported as intact to clients.
The Wyoming-based firm said it entrusted Etana with hundreds of millions of dollars over several years as part of a fiat on-ramp partnership. But when it sought to withdraw roughly $25 million in reserve funds in April 2025, Kraken claims Etana stalled with what it alleges as fabricated reconciliation issues and misleading explanations.
According to the complaint, Etana lacked the funds to meet the withdrawal request and instead relied on new deposits to cover shortfalls.
“Kraken has millions of users and hundreds of billions of dollars in quarterly transaction volume. We did not get here by rolling over. If you take our money or deceive our customers, then know this: we will find you, we will sue you, and we will not stop until justice has been served,” Matt Turetzky, head of litigation at Kraken, said in emailed comments.
Etana didn’t respond to a request for comment by publication time.
Counterparty risk, the danger that a firm holding or facilitating users’ assets can’t return them, has become a defining issue in crypto markets, where users often rely on exchanges, lenders and custodians to safeguard funds.
Unlike traditional finance, where segregation, insurance and oversight are more standardized, crypto platforms have historically operated with looser controls, making it harder to verify whether assets are fully backed.
High-profile failures from FTX to smaller custodians have shown how quickly trust can evaporate when that assumption breaks. Cases like Kraken’s dispute with Etana underscore the same core concern, whether customer funds are truly ring-fenced or exposed to operational and liquidity risks behind the scenes.
Kraken is a U.S.-based crypto exchange operated by Payward Inc., offering spot and derivatives trading alongside custody and staking services. Founded in 2011, the platform serves both retail and institutional clients globally, supporting trading in assets like bitcoin and ether (ETH), as well as fiat on- and off-ramps. It is known for emphasizing security and regulatory compliance across multiple jurisdictions.
Etana is a crypto-focused custody firm that provided fiat on- and off-ramp services and held customer assets on behalf of exchanges like Kraken.
The lawsuit outlines several alleged instances of misuse. In one, Etana purportedly deployed at least $16 million of Kraken-related funds into promissory notes issued by Seabury Trade Capital, which later defaulted. Kraken claims those funds were never returned and may have been diverted to cover company expenses.
In another, Etana is accused of using customer assets to finance a foreign-exchange hedging strategy while retaining any investment income for itself.
Throughout this period, Kraken alleges that Etana continued issuing account statements and dashboard updates that showed customer balances as secure and fully accounted for, despite internal shortfalls.
Regulatory pressure mounted in 2025, when Colorado authorities issued a cease-and-desist order and increased capital requirements. Etana ultimately entered liquidation proceedings in November 2025 and is now under the control of a court-appointed receiver.
Kraken is seeking at least $25 million in damages, along with potential treble damages under civil theft claims, plus injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees.
The complaint also targets Russell personally, alleging he exercised near-total control over Etana’s operations and directed the misuse and concealment of funds.
The custodian isn’t the only crypto firm to run into liquidity trouble in recent months. Institutional lender Blockfills filed for bankruptcy in March after halting withdrawals, reporting roughly $75 million in losses and facing a lawsuit alleging misuse of customer funds.
UPDATE (MAY 4, 13:32 UTC): Clarifies details of Etana’s liquidation process.
Crypto World
Canada just got its first regulated digital dollar to take on the U.S. stablecoin’s crypto dominance
Tetra Trust Company, a Canadian digital technology and financial services provider, launched CADD, a Canadian-dollar stablecoin approved by Alberta Treasury Board and Finance.
The company said it’s the first CAD-pegged stablecoin issued by a regulated financial institution in Canada. Reserves are held in trust under Canadian law and dedicated to redemption, according to the firm. The token is live on major blockchains, including Base, Ethereum and Tempo, with Solana support planned.
The Calgary, Alberta-based Tetra raised $10 million for the project in September 2025, with backing from Shopify, Wealthsimple, Purpose Unlimited, Shakepay, ATB Financial, National Bank of Canada and Urbana Corporation, which holds a majority stake. The same consortium is also supporting the launch.
In December, Tetra ran testnet transactions between Wealthsimple and National Bank. The transfer was the first time a Canadian stablecoin moved between two financial institutions, the firm said.
Tetra positioned CADD for institutional use cases, including 24/7 cross-border settlement, real-time corporate treasury transfers, programmable marketplace payouts, and direct fintech-to-fintech settlement without the delays of correspondent banking.
A $320 billion market
The launch isn’t a surprise, as the stablecoin sector has grown exponentially in recent years but lacked a meaningful, regulated Canadian counterpart.
Canada clears roughly $424 billion per business day on legacy rails that are still dependent on batch infrastructure first deployed in the 1980s, the firm said. While the U.S. is pushing to grow the stablecoin sector through regulation, Canadian businesses have lacked a domestic option for moving CAD on blockchains, leaving USD-denominated stablecoins to dominate.
Global stablecoin transaction volume passed $27 trillion in 2025, exceeding Visa’s annual payment volume. The current stablecoin market cap is $320 billion, with the lion’s share accounted for by USD stablecoins, according to DeFiLlama.
Meanwhile, the competitive set in the country is small.
Stablecorp, backed by Coinbase Ventures, filed a preliminary prospectus for QCAD with the Ontario Securities Commission in June last year and received final approval in December. The token is not yet broadly available.
There is also Loon, a Calgary firm spun out of Paytrie in October, that is taking over CADC, a stablecoin launched in 2021 that has processed more than $200 million in volume. Loon raised $3 million pre-seed and pre-filed a prospectus with the Alberta Securities Commission.
Tetra Trust was Canada’s first regulated digital asset custodian and provides custody for the country’s first staking-enabled ether and solana ETFs.
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