TLDR Crypto 2025-05-12

BlackRock has met with the SEC's crypto task force to explore incorporating staking rewards and options strategies into its proposed spot crypto ETFs. The firm aims to enhance yield generation and hedging capabilities, signaling a shift beyond passive exposure toward active performance within ETF structures.

Coinbase has acquired $150 million in crypto assets, primarily Bitcoin, increasing its long-term investment portfolio to $1.3 billion – roughly 25% of its net cash position. CFO Alesia Haas emphasized that the move is not intended as a MicroStrategy-style treasury strategy focused on Bitcoin, but rather reflects Coinbase's position as an operating company investing alongside the broader crypto ecosystem. CEO Brian Armstrong framed the investment as a testament to the company's conviction in crypto's transformative potential within financial services.

Following the acquisition of Deribit, Coinbase has rolled out 24/7 Bitcoin and Ethereum futures trading on its Advanced platform. The launch targets global retail and institutional demand for non-stop access to crypto derivatives, with contracts sized for accessibility and integrated into Coinbase's regulated framework.

EigenLayer is introducing a Redistribution upgrade to its Slashing mechanism, enabling AVSs to redirect slashed funds to designated recipients instead of burning them. By repurposing penalties, AVSs can build advanced use cases like lending and insurance with enhanced liquidity and risk controls while offering operators and stakers clearer insight into protocol risk-reward profiles.

Stripe's stablecoin pilot, enabled by its $1.1 billion Bridge acquisition, signals a broader shift in financial services. By unbundling traditional banking functions, such as value storage and transfers, and rebundling them around programmable, on-chain money, Stripe is reshaping infrastructure. Merchant acquirers can now offer global treasury solutions, real-time cross-border payments, and embedded yield. Consumer wallets are evolving into full-service digital banks with payroll, cards, and peer-to-peer capabilities. The next $100 billion financial leaders will be those who control distribution channels and integrate stablecoin rails.

This satirical thread highlights the most recognizable (and exasperating) crypto VC archetypes, from ghosting “founder-friendly” firms to ex-TradFi operators trading on past credentials. It candidly critiques behaviors, such as demanding board seats while panic selling or introducing unqualified affiliates into deals. Beneath the parody lies a serious takeaway: exceptional investors are rare, and choosing poorly can jeopardize a project's success.

Current blockchains require participants to download and validate every transaction and state update, forcing dependence on trusted servers or powerful hardware. By combining shared block propagation with succinct proofs, lightweight devices like phones can securely verify large blocks with minimal bandwidth. This approach decouples block size from verification costs, enabling larger blocks, increased decentralization, and optional privacy without compromising security.

While Bitcoin established the store-of-value narrative, it primarily functions as an institutional asset with limited real-world utility. Ethereum, by contrast, powers a dynamic ecosystem of decentralized applications, spanning stablecoins, DeFi, NFTs, and identity protocols, that actively drive user adoption. As these applications grow and increasingly lock up ETH, its utility and distribution may position it to surpass Bitcoin in both use cases and overall value.

A hacker compromised an old private key linked to Lido's Chorus One oracle, draining just 1.4 ETH before being detected by a low-balance alert.

Over 117 Ethereum validators now hold more than the previous 32 ETH cap, with five reaching the new 2048 ETH maximum enabled by EIP-7251.

Senate Democrats have formally requested details on Donald Trump's ties to the crypto industry, including financial connections to Binance and campaign fundraising via NFTs.

Aave has hit a record $25 billion in total value locked (TVL), surpassing its 2021 peak and reaffirming its status as the leading decentralized lending protocol.