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- Ripple’s $1.25B bet on XRP
Ripple’s $1.25B bet on XRP
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Key points:
Ripple acquires prime broker Hidden Road for $1.25 billion to boost institutional adoption.
The move brings real-world trading volume and RLUSD collateral utility to the XRP Ledger.
News - Ripple has announced a $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road, a global prime brokerage platform serving over 300 institutional clients. The move is being touted by Ripple CTO David Schwartz as a “defining moment” for the XRP Ledger (XRPL), potentially transforming it into a key infrastructure layer for real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and institutional finance.
Hidden Road processes over $10 billion in daily volume and 50 million transactions across FX, digital assets, and traditional markets. By integrating these operations with XRPL, Ripple aims to significantly expand on-chain utility and address long-standing concerns about the ledger’s underutilization.
Boosting XRPL adoption and RLUSD utility - As part of the deal, Hidden Road will adopt Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin as collateral, enabling cross-margining between traditional and crypto assets. Additionally, the firm’s post-trade infrastructure will transition to XRPL—cutting costs and unlocking DeFi-like benefits for institutions within a regulated environment.
This shift could inject much-needed volume into XRP’s on-chain ecosystem. For context, XRPL’s daily decentralized exchange volume sat around $44,000 as of March, despite XRP being a top-10 asset by market cap.
Ripple’s acquisition also signals a deeper push into RWA markets, aligning with global trends. The value of onchain tokenized assets has grown 9.2% over the last 30 days, per RWA.xyz, as giants like Google and CME explore tokenization rails.
Analyst take: XRP’s long-term upside - Standard Chartered recently projected XRP could hit $12.50 by 2028, potentially overtaking Ethereum in market cap. The bank cited XRP’s core utility in cross-border payments and its growing integration into institutional infrastructure as key drivers.
This momentum is further underscored by ETF developments. Asset manager Teucrium just launched the first-ever leveraged XRP ETF (XXRP) on NYSE Arca, even ahead of spot ETF approval. Bloomberg analysts have assigned a 65–75% chance for a spot XRP ETF approval in 2025, reflecting rising institutional confidence in Ripple’s future.
Bitcoin rebounds to $80K as traders eye Yuan devaluation, Fed cuts
Key points:
Bitcoin briefly stabilized near $80K as traders speculated on China’s yuan devaluation and potential Fed rate cuts.
24/7 trading access amplified weekend volatility, but analysts still see BTC as a long-term inflation hedge.
News - Bitcoin recovered toward $80,000 on April 8, stabilizing after a sharp weekend plunge fueled by escalating U.S.–China trade tensions and global market panic. The bounce came as U.S. stocks opened higher and speculation grew that China may devalue the yuan—potentially fueling capital flight into Bitcoin.
Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes warned that Beijing’s best weapon might be a weaker yuan. “CNY deval = narrative that Chinese capital flight will flow into $BTC,” he said, pointing to similar cycles in 2013 and 2015. Traders echoed that sentiment, comparing current conditions to past BTC bull runs driven by macro instability.
Fed cut bets stir risk-on sentiment - Meanwhile, Fed policy could offer another catalyst. Analysts at AllianceBernstein project up to 75 basis points in U.S. rate cuts by 2025. This could bolster BTC as a risk-on asset, despite tariff-driven inflation concerns. CME FedWatch data shows traders increasingly expect the first cut as soon as June.
Weekend volatility and Bitcoin’s role as a hedge - Bitcoin’s ability to trade 24/7—usually hailed as a feature—also became a bug during the turmoil. As equities shut down over the weekend, BTC became the primary outlet for investor panic, dropping from $82K to under $75K in less than 48 hours.
Blockstream CEO Adam Back warned that overleveraged retail investors contributed to the crash. Still, he remains bullish. “Bitcoin has the advantage of being like gold, but it’s also undergoing an adoption curve,” he said at Paris Blockchain Week, forecasting broader adoption as a hedge against long-term inflation.
Trump’s DOJ disbands Crypto Task Force, signals end of 'regulation by prosecution'
Key points:
The U.S. Department of Justice has shut down the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), effective immediately.
The move marks a shift in federal crypto policy, ending broad regulatory crackdowns and focusing only on clear criminal cases.
News - The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has officially disbanded its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), a task force launched under the Biden administration to crack down on illicit crypto activity. The announcement came via a four-page internal memo by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who stated that the DOJ will no longer serve as a “digital assets regulator.”
Blanche emphasized that previous tactics amounted to “regulation by prosecution,” a strategy he described as reckless and poorly executed. The disbanding of the NCET is effective immediately and aligns with President Trump’s January executive order directing federal agencies to pull back from aggressive crypto enforcement.
The memo also ordered the closure of ongoing investigations that do not fit the new policy, especially cases targeting exchanges, privacy protocols, and other infrastructure providers. Instead, the DOJ will focus on prosecuting individuals who use crypto in criminal activities like fraud, terrorism financing, and market manipulation.
From crackdown to coordination - The NCET was instrumental in several high-profile cases, including actions against Tornado Cash developers and Mango Markets exploiter Avraham Eisenberg. However, critics of the unit have long argued that it blurred the lines between preventing crime and stifling innovation, particularly in decentralized finance (DeFi).
Blanche’s directive now pivots away from penalizing infrastructure and toward protecting consumers, stating that the DOJ will not charge crypto entities for regulatory violations like unlicensed money transmission or BSA noncompliance unless criminal intent is clear.
A strategic pivot from enforcement to enablement - This shift aligns with Trump’s broader crypto-friendly agenda, including efforts to create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and ease pressure on crypto firms through clearer rules. The CFTC has also scaled back crypto enforcement teams, and pending cases against major platforms like Coinbase and Kraken have notably slowed.
While critics caution against potential conflicts of interest—particularly given Trump’s connections to WLFI, USD1, and TRUMP memecoin—the crypto community largely views the DOJ’s latest move as a major win for innovation and regulatory clarity.
WazirX creditors approve $230M recovery plan, DEX launch & token buyback ahead
Key points:
Over 93% of WazirX creditors voted in favor of the $230M recovery plan, clearing the path for partial reimbursements.
Initial payouts could begin within 10 business days, pending Singapore Court sanction.
Plan includes DEX launch, recovery tokens, and phased return of trading and withdrawals.
News - WazirX has secured over 93% creditor approval for its $230 million post-hack restructuring scheme, marking a major milestone in the Indian exchange’s road to recovery. The vote, conducted via the Kroll Issuer Services platform, involved more than 141,000 creditors, with 94.6% of the claim value supporting the plan.
With the greenlight secured, parent firm Zettai Pte. Ltd. will now seek Singapore Court sanction to initiate the next phase: triggering initial payouts in USDT within 10 business days, alongside a phased resumption of withdrawals and trading — contingent on regulatory clearance.
From near collapse to strategic revival - The scheme is a critical pivot after the July 2024 hack, which saw North Korea-linked Lazarus Group exploit vulnerabilities in WazirX’s wallet infrastructure, draining over $230 million in crypto assets across 200 tokens.
In the aftermath, WazirX shifted custody to BitGo and Zodia, introduced insurance coverage, and earmarked $12 million for legal and recovery efforts. If the vote had failed, Zettai warned that users may not have regained access to funds until 2030 under liquidation.
The new strategy offers users 75–80% of their claims in USDT, while the rest will be covered via “recovery tokens” linked to a future decentralized exchange and the company’s new revenue streams.
Looking forward: DEX, transparency, and trust - A decentralized exchange (DEX) will anchor WazirX’s long-term recovery efforts, while recovery tokens will be periodically bought back using platform profits. The scheme has been independently verified by Alvarez & Marsal consultants and is aimed at restoring user trust through transparency.
Founder Nischal Shetty called the vote a “strong vote of confidence,” and emphasized that “the shared belief in our restructuring approach” shows a collective will to revive the platform.
More stories from the crypto ecosystem
Interesting facts
MIT’s bold Bitcoin experiment - In 2014, the MIT Bitcoin Project gave $100 worth of Bitcoin to over 4,500 undergraduate students to spark a campus-wide crypto economy. This pioneering move aimed to study digital currency adoption in a real-world setting—well before Bitcoin hit the mainstream.
Starbucks retired its NFT rewards program - Starbucks launched its blockchain-based loyalty program, Odyssey, in 2022 using the Polygon network, blending coffee culture with NFTs. However, the beta program was discontinued in March 2024, closing a brief chapter in Web3 brand engagement.
Ethereum powers over 70% of tokenized treasury volumes - As of early 2025, Ethereum accounts for more than 70% of tokenized U.S. Treasury volumes, according to data from 21Shares and CoinGecko. This dominance underscores Ethereum’s role as the backbone of real-world asset tokenization efforts in institutional finance.
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Celebrated as ‘The Super Bowl of Blockchain’, Consensus will welcome 20,000 attendees shaping the decentralized digital economy to Toronto this May 14-16.
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Attending is your best bet.
Top 3 coins of the day
JasmyCoin (JASMY)
Key points:
At press time, JASMY was trading at $0.011, reflecting a 14.27% increase over the last 24 hours.
The price broke above its MA Ribbon for the first time in over a month, hinting at a potential bullish pivot.
What you should know:
JasmyCoin delivered a strong intraday performance, jumping by over 14% as it broke above the MA Ribbon (20, 50, 100, and 200-day moving averages). This was the first decisive move above these compressed averages in weeks, suggesting that bullish sentiment may be returning after a prolonged downtrend. The RSI climbed above 43 but remained below the neutral 50 mark, signaling improving momentum though not yet entering bullish territory. Meanwhile, trading volume spiked significantly during the rally, reflecting strong participation from buyers seeking to front-run a potential trend reversal. If volume sustains and JASMY holds above the $0.010 level, the next resistance to monitor lies near the $0.014 zone (aligned with the 100-day MA), followed by a broader resistance around $0.021, which marks the 200-day MA. However, failure to secure a strong daily close above the ribbon could invite renewed selling pressure, especially if the RSI fails to breach 50 in the coming sessions.
Core (CORE)
Key points:
At press time, CORE was trading at $0.47, reflecting a 13.68% increase over the last 24 hours.
The price surged above the 20-day and 50-day MAs, breaking through part of the MA Ribbon for the first time in nearly a month.
What you should know:
Core DAO’s token witnessed a sharp breakout after a prolonged sideways phase, registering a 13.6% daily gain as it climbed past the 20-day and 50-day moving averages. This move sliced into the lower levels of the MA Ribbon, a region that had previously acted as dynamic resistance throughout March. Volume spiked alongside the breakout, underscoring renewed interest and confirming the bullish impulse. Meanwhile, the Directional Movement Index (DMI) showed a tightening spread between the +DI (green) and -DI (red) lines, suggesting a shift in directional strength. If the +DI manages to cross above the -DI with backing from the ADX (yellow), it could solidify the case for further upside. For now, traders should monitor the $0.50 level, which may act as a psychological resistance. A confirmed daily close above it could open the path toward the $0.63 zone—the 100-day MA and next resistance level on the MA Ribbon. However, rejection at current levels could signal a bull trap, especially if volume dries up and the DMI fails to confirm trend strength.
Lido DAO (LDO)
Key points:
At press time, LDO was trading at $0.65, marking a 5.19% drop over the last 24 hours.
The price continued to hug the lower Bollinger Band, signaling ongoing bearish pressure.
What you should know:
LDO extended its losing streak after failing to reclaim the midline of its Bollinger Bands, signaling persistent downward momentum. The token shed over 5% on the day, with a bearish engulfing candle forming after a short-lived bounce attempt. Volume remained relatively muted during the recent pullback, suggesting a lack of strong buyer conviction. Meanwhile, the Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) continued to trend below the zero line, highlighting sustained capital outflows from LDO and reinforcing the prevailing bearish bias. If sellers maintain control, LDO may revisit the $0.60 support zone—a region that briefly cushioned the price earlier in April. However, a breakdown below this could open the door to fresh multi-month lows. On the upside, the midline of the Bollinger Bands near $0.78 remains a key resistance to watch, and a close above it would be required to hint at any potential reversal. Until then, traders should stay cautious and watch for stronger confirmation from momentum and volume indicators before considering bullish entries.
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