CoinDesk’s coverage shifted into high gear this week as crypto prepared for a new presidency and a new regulation-friendly era.
Some highlights: Senior analyst James Van Straten reported a wave of companies buying Bitcoin for their balance sheets, following a model developed by MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor.
Markets reporter Krisztian Sandor has been tracking the rise of Solana’s SOL, XRP and Hedera’s HBAR on rumors that Trump may support a first U.S. cryptocurrency “reserve” to supplement a national bitcoin holding.
Markets Co-Editor Omkar Godbole explained why bitcoin continues to be in a trough in terms of price. But he said the recent selloff would not harm institutional adoption in the long term.
Senior Reporter Ian Allison sat down with new Binance.US chief Norman Reed, who revealed how SEC officials attempted to stifle the exchange’s banking dealings as part of its 2022 investigation.
Asian journalist Sam Reynolds has explored how regulators in several countries have recently attempted to ban Polymarket as prediction markets face gambling laws. (Kalshi, however, won over Donald Trump Jnr. as an advisor, showing how the US could now become a safe haven for crypto companies.)
In a preview of what is expected to be a dynamic time for M&A activity, Ctrl Wallet, a standalone custodial wallet, revealed that it is up for sale, Allison reported.
Meanwhile, crypto ETF volume is expected to increase, following the seismic debut of 2024. Litecoin, an early Bitcoin clone, is the next project expected to gain official approval for ETF trading, the journalist said Tom Carreras.
Helene Braun then said that a Litecoin ETF could attract $580 million in inflows, if the vehicle proves as attractive as Bitcoin was last year.
On the regulatory front, Deputy Editor Jesse Hamilton reported that the Trump administration wants to make crypto “debanking” issues a primary concern.
Meanwhile, the SEC and CFTC continued to weed out “anti-crypto” officials, paving the way for new administrators to arrive in the coming weeks, Hamilton said.
As the weekend approached, the crypto world was set to descend on Washington DC for a series of inauguration parties and balls.
CoinDesk will have full live coverage on Monday, so stay tuned.
