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- Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos, and More Week 17 2025
Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos, and More Week 17 2025
Keeping you updated on crypto, web3 and blockchain
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TL;DR
Bitcoin Surpasses Google Market Cap
US Banks Cleared to Support Bitcoin
Ethereum’s L2 Scaling Supports High-Throughput Chains
Ethereum Gas Limit Test for Fusaka Fork
Securitize and Mantle Launch MI4 Crypto Fund
Stargaze Introduces Gas Fees for NFTs
Paul Atkins Sworn in as SEC Chairman
SEC Charges Exec Over $198M Crypto Fraud
and much more!
Market, Airdrop & Memecoin Update
Before we dive in, make sure to check out our recent Market, Airdrop and Memecoin update:
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Bitcoin Highlights of the Week
Bitcoin has officially surpassed Google’s market capitalization, reaching $1.86 trillion as its price surged past $94,000. This move cements Bitcoin’s place as the world’s fifth-largest asset, behind only Gold, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The rally was fueled by a broader tech sector upswing and improving U.S.–China trade relations.
Bitcoin’s strong momentum also allowed it to outperform major benchmarks like the Nasdaq, breaking through critical technical levels. This milestone further validates Bitcoin’s expanding role in global markets and highlights accelerating crypto adoption as traditional financial and tech sectors experience shifting capital flows.
Cantor Fitzgerald, Tether, Bitfinex, and SoftBank are launching 21 Capital, a $3 billion Bitcoin investment firm set to list on Nasdaq under the ticker “XXI.” The venture will convert over 42,000 BTC into shares priced at $10 each, fixed at an $85,000 Bitcoin rate.
Strike CEO Jack Mallers will lead 21 Capital, positioning it as a diversified, structured alternative to MicroStrategy’s strategy. The firm plans to raise an additional $550 million through bonds and private equity, offering transparent Bitcoin Per Share and Bitcoin Return Rate metrics to create a regulated, tradable proxy for institutional Bitcoin exposure.
Michael Saylor’s Strategy acquired 6,556 BTC for $555.8 million last week at an average price of $84,785, boosting total holdings to 538,200 BTC. The purchase was funded through $547.7 million in common stock sales and $7.8 million from Series A preferred stock.
Strategy has now bought 91,800 BTC in 2025, accounting for 17% of its total reserves. This move follows a brief buying pause and signals renewed momentum in its aggressive acquisition strategy. Institutional interest in MSTR continues to grow, with 13 institutional holders and over 814,000 retail accounts now exposed to the firm.
Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. attracted $912.7 million on April 22, the largest single-day inflow since January 17. Top performers included ARKB with $267.1 million and FBTC with $253.8 million. The surge follows political tensions as Donald Trump criticized Fed Chair Jerome Powell, causing market uncertainty.
Bitcoin’s price rose above $90,000 as investors sought safe-haven assets amid declining confidence in the U.S. dollar. Experts note that Bitcoin is increasingly behaving like a macro asset, responding to broader economic and political shifts rather than moving independently from traditional financial markets.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has withdrawn its 2022 guidance discouraging banks from engaging in crypto, signaling a shift that could accelerate institutional Bitcoin adoption. Michael Saylor declared that U.S. banks are now “free to begin supporting Bitcoin,” following the Fed’s policy reversal.
Industry leaders view this as a pivotal moment for broader financial participation. The change paves the way for regulated banking involvement, a domain previously dominated by crypto-native firms like Coinbase. Further institutional momentum hinges on pending legislation, including the GENIUS and STABLE Acts, which aim to standardize crypto oversight.
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Ethereum Highlights of the Week
Ethereum developers are exploring a fourfold increase in the network's gas limit for the Fusaka hard fork. The proposal, outlined in Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 9678, suggests raising the gas limit to 150 million. The change aims to scale Ethereum’s layer 1 execution, requiring extensive testing for potential bugs.
With validators supporting a raise to 36 million gas, the Fusaka update is expected by late 2025. This proposal comes as part of the ongoing efforts to improve scalability without adding new features, and client developers are crucial for testing the changes.
Gitcoin, the Ethereum-based public goods funding protocol, is winding down its software development unit, Gitcoin Labs, due to profitability challenges. The project will also discontinue its Grants Stack and Allo Protocol. Gitcoin's focus will shift to its Grants program and asset management, continuing to support open-source projects.
Despite this restructuring, Gitcoin remains committed to its mission, maintaining its community-driven ethos, and ensuring a smooth transition for its partners and users. The decision follows a strategic overhaul aimed at streamlining operations and embracing more capitalistic ventures.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has proposed replacing Ethereum’s current EVM bytecode with the open-source RISC-V architecture to enhance scalability. Buterin suggests that this ambitious change could dramatically reduce on-chain execution costs by up to 100x.
The proposal would maintain interoperability between old and new contracts, ensuring a smooth transition. Other blockchain projects, like Polkadot, have also explored similar approaches. This idea aims to make Ethereum’s execution layer more efficient, marking a significant shift in the network’s scalability strategy.
Ethereum Layer 2 solution Scroll has launched the Euclid upgrade, marking a major protocol transformation aimed at improving network throughput and security. The update reduces fees by 90% and introduces key improvements such as a new L2 prover, optimized rollup processing, and support for EIP-7702 and RIP-7212.
The upgrade makes Scroll "Stage-1 ready," aligning with Vitalik Buterin's decentralization framework for Layer 2s. Euclid also deprecates the existing "halo2 circuits" in favor of the OpenVM, boosting speed and scalability. The upgrade positions Scroll for faster, more efficient operations within the Ethereum ecosystem.
Ethereum’s focus on Layer 2 scaling could create a diverse ecosystem of high-throughput chains, according to Avail co-founder Anurag Arjun. By using various L2 solutions with different transaction speeds and parameters, Ethereum offers a unique advantage over monolithic blockchain competitors.
While this architecture promotes innovation and experimentation, Arjun highlights a challenge: the lack of interoperability between L2s could complicate asset transfers. Critics argue that Ethereum's L2-centric approach limits liquidity and undermines the base layer. Meanwhile, Ethereum’s decreasing fees in 2025 indicate waning demand and reduced market interest.
Cosmos Highlights of the Week
Initia’s mainnet is officially live, and $INIT token stakers can now participate in the first VIP gauge voting round. This marks a major milestone for Initia, which seeks to revive the appchain concept with a network that offers more integrated and unified solutions.
Users can also claim their Initia airdrop, available until May 24th, 2025. The Initia appchain aims to provide full-stack control for applications, contrasting with the fragmented nature of previous appchain solutions. The network is powered by LayerZero and IBC Protocol for seamless interoperability.
Oraichain introduces Browser3, a Web3-focused tool designed for seamless AI agent interaction and on-chain execution. This tool enables AI agents to not only browse but also transact, interact, and execute tasks securely while maintaining user control.
Key features include non-custodial wallets, automated smart contract interaction, and no-code compatibility, making Web3 automation efficient and transparent. Browser3 is launching soon on Thesis.io, with $ORAI stakers getting exclusive early access. Browser3 bridges the gap between decentralized AI agents and Web3 applications, providing a more seamless user experience.
Saga is upgrading its DeFi infrastructure by transitioning LP rewards to Merkl, a leading incentive engine. This move will allow liquidity providers to claim $SAGA rewards in real time without contract migrations or additional gas costs. The first campaign will launch on Uniswap v3 deployed on Saga.
Merkl’s integration offers trusted reward distribution, deeper liquidity pools, and scalable incentives. Stakers' rewards remain unaffected for now. This upgrade strengthens Saga’s DeFi stack and aligns with its mission to accelerate liquidity and capital flow across its growing network of Chainlets.
Securitize and Mantle have introduced the MI4 Fund, an institutional-grade crypto index fund designed to offer yield from a diversified basket of digital assets. The fund includes major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ether, and Solana, alongside stablecoins.
It integrates liquid staking assets such as Mantle’s mETH and Ethena’s USDe to boost returns. Structured as a market cap-weighted index, MI4 aims to become the "S&P 500 of crypto," simplifying institutional exposure to the digital asset market.
Stargaze has activated gas fees for minting and trading NFTs, advancing $STARS as a true fee token and enhancing network sustainability. This move introduces a usage-based revenue stream, rewarding validators and stakers while protecting against spam, bot-driven congestion, and low-quality NFT activity.
Users and bots now pay fees proportional to the network resources they consume, encouraging responsible usage. The shift also promises smoother platform performance and higher-quality NFT transactions. With simple asset swaps available across L2 and IBC chains, this change positions Stargaze for a more secure, scalable, and efficient ecosystem moving forward.
Other Highlights of the Week
Paul Atkins has officially assumed the role of SEC Chairman after his confirmation earlier this month. A known crypto advocate, Atkins has expressed his commitment to prioritizing regulatory clarity for digital assets.
His appointment has generated optimism within the crypto industry, as many anticipate a more favorable regulatory approach under his leadership. Establishing a clear framework for digital assets is set to be his primary focus, potentially easing regulatory uncertainty for the crypto sector in the U.S.
The SEC has charged PGI Global founder Ramil Palafox for orchestrating a $198 million crypto fraud scheme. Palafox allegedly misappropriated over $57 million of investor funds for personal luxuries, including luxury cars and homes.
The remaining funds were used to pay earlier investors in a Ponzi-like fashion. The SEC is pursuing permanent injunctions, disgorgement of funds, civil penalties, and Palafox faces parallel criminal charges. This action, unveiled by new SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, signals the SEC's commitment to tackling crypto-related crimes.
The SEC has delayed decisions on several crypto ETF applications, including those for funds based on Hedera, Polkadot, Ethereum, and Bitcoin. The regulator postponed proposed rule changes for ETFs tracking the spot prices of Hedera and Polkadot, as well as a combined Bitcoin and Ethereum fund.
These delays come as part of a larger batch of 72 crypto-related applications currently under review by the SEC. The postponements reflect the agency's ongoing scrutiny and cautious approach toward the crypto industry, leaving market participants awaiting further regulatory clarity on crypto exchange-traded funds.
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