Crypto Daybook Americas: Bitcoin, Ether Rise After Court Nixes Trump’s Tariffs
Bitcoin (BTC) and stock index futures surged Thursday following a U.S. court’s invalidation of President Trump’s tariffs. Nvidia’s positive earnings further boosted sentiment. However, on-chain data reveals large Bitcoin wallets (holding over 10,000 BTC) are shifting from buying to selling, with increased exchange deposits indicating selling pressure. Options market data suggests potential volatility before Friday’s monthly settlement.
Ether (ETH) reached its highest point since February 24th, at $2,780, aligning with bullish derivatives market signals. This surge is partly attributed to SharpLink’s $425 million Treasury plan. U.S.-listed spot ether ETFs saw an $84.89 million net inflow on Wednesday, marking eight consecutive days of inflows. Sol Strategies, a Canadian investment firm, filed a prospectus to raise up to $1 billion for Solana ecosystem investments, although SOL remained relatively flat at around $170.
In broader crypto markets, TON, PEPE, and FLOKI led gains, while FARTCOIN, PI, and JUP experienced losses. TON perpetual futures open interest surged 33% to $190 million. Circle froze wallets linked to the Libra token holding millions in USDC. Metaplanet issued $21 million in bonds to fund further Bitcoin purchases.
Traditional markets saw some investment banks suggesting Trump possesses alternative means to circumvent the tariff ruling. Longer-duration Treasury note yields rose, suggesting dollar strength.
Upcoming events include the second round of FTX repayments (May 30th), the Mezo mainnet launch (May 31st), and a U.S. SEC Crypto Task Force roundtable on DeFi (June 6th). Macroeconomic data releases include Brazilian and U.S. GDP data, unemployment rates, and consumer income/expenditure data throughout the end of May and beginning of June.
The Cork Protocol experienced a $12 million smart-contract exploit, highlighting ongoing DeFi vulnerabilities. Despite this, Ether remains strong due to renewed institutional interest and ETF flows. Perpetual futures open interest increased for several major cryptocurrencies, with funding rates signaling bullish sentiment. However, Deribit data shows some caution, with BTC put skew increasing and ETH call skew softening.
