Bitget integrates Coincidence AI to enhance UEX's intelligent trading infrastructure

On May 5, a16z announced the launch of its $2.2 billion fifth crypto fund, Crypto Fund 5, which will invest in blockchain startups across all stages over the next decade. Partner Chris Dixon, among others, noted that while current market sentiment is relatively low and venture capital (VC) funding has partially shifted toward AI, the crypto industry’s “fundamentals are at a historical high,” positioning it well for long-term value creation. The fund will focus on practical applications built on crypto infrastructure—including stablecoins, payments, financial services, and decentralized systems—while also targeting niche areas like perpetual contracts, on-chain lending, prediction markets, and asset tokenization. a16z noted that the stablecoin market has grown to roughly $320 billion and continues to expand in cross-border payments and everyday transactions. As AI systems grow more complex and trust concerns intensify, the value of crypto networks for providing transparency and

On May 5, Chiara Scotti, Deputy Governor of Italy’s Central Bank, said Europe should assess whether extending the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) to tokenized payments is feasible to keep the euro at the center of the digital financial system. Scotti noted SEPA’s scalability, standardization, and interoperability make it a critical foundation for tokenized payments. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank (ECB) is pushing forward several related initiatives: the distributed ledger technology (DLT)-based settlement pilot “Pontes,” slated to launch in Q3 2026, and the long-term roadmap for a tokenized financial system, “Appia,” targeted for completion by 2028. The ECB has repeatedly flagged risks tied to stablecoins, arguing widespread use could trigger bank deposit outflows, erode banks’ lending capacity, and pose a potential threat to euro currency sovereignty. Officials emphasized tokenized central bank money could serve as key infrastructure to enable tokenized deposits and stabl

On May 5th, reports indicate that despite Polymarket being banned by the Netherlands’ gambling regulator in February this year, local users still access prediction market trading via alternative platforms. Investigations show platforms like Kalshi, Hyperliquid, and Interactive Brokers continue offering such services to Dutch users. The Netherlands’ gambling authority (Kansspelautoriteit) has previously noted similar platforms could face regulation and penalties. Some platforms even offer prediction contracts for Dutch local events—like football leagues and elections—signaling active expansion into the market. Meanwhile, the regulator acknowledges blocking measures can still be bypassed, including via VPNs. Overall, prediction markets are seeing a global push for stricter regulation. Countries including the Netherlands, Brazil, and several European nations have taken action to ban or penalize unlicensed platforms, though industry compliance and regulatory oversight issues remain h

May 5 (Local Time) – The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced in a statement Friday that it eliminated Ansar Hamed, commander of Hamas’ elite Nuhba force, in an airstrike in central Gaza on Thursday (May 4). The IDF said Hamed was linked to the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

On May 5, Forbes reported that FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) could have theoretically added up to an additional $100 billion to his wealth if his early investment portfolio hadn’t been disrupted by his imprisonment. The outlet noted SBF had invested in several high-growth tech and AI firms—including Anthropic, SpaceX and Robinhood—many of which now hold far higher valuations, underscoring his apparent foresight in the AI and tech sectors. SBF is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for embezzling more than $8 billion in customer funds. At his peak, his net worth hit roughly $24 billion, earning him a spot on the Forbes 400 list. Previously, BlockBeats published a report titled *“From Bankruptcy Abyss to Hundred-Billion Phantom: SBF’s ‘Missed’ Investment Portfolio Allegedly Soared to Trillion-Dollar Levels”* (link: https://www.theblockbeats.info/flash/342630).

On May 5th, on-chain analyst Specter reported that the attacker behind the Wasabi Protocol exploit has transferred all stolen funds—totaling roughly $5.9 million—to Tornado Cash. Further analysis notes that funds linked to suspected North Korea-affiliated hackers, including those from the Kelp DAO and LayerZero exploits, have followed a similar laundering route. The typical process unfolds as follows: mixing funds through the Wasabi mixer → withdrawing and bridging back to Ethereum → depositing into Tornado Cash → dispersing to new addresses → minting new tokens and laundering via liquidity operations → bridging to USDT on TRON → ultimately landing in wallets tied to external transactions. This pattern is recognized as a key playbook for advanced on-chain money laundering, combining coin mixing, cross-chain transfers, and liquidity operations to obscure the funds’ origin.