CoinDesk’s coverage accelerated this week as cryptocurrencies prepared for a new presidency and a new regulation-friendly era.
Some highlights: Senior analyst James Van Straten reported on a wave of companies buying bitcoin for their balance sheets, following a model pioneered by MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor.
Markets reporter Krisztian Sandor followed the rise of Solana’s SOL, XRP and Hedera’s HBAR on rumors that Trump could support a pioneering US crypto “reserve” to complement a national holding of bitcoins.
Co-managing markets editor Omkar Godbole delved into why bitcoin remains at a price low. But he said the recent sell-off won’t hurt long-term institutional adoption.
Senior Reporter Ian Allison met with new Binance.US boss Norman Reed, who revealed how SEC officials had attempted to strangle the exchange’s banking relationships as part of their 2022 investigation.
Asian journalist Sam Reynolds investigated how regulators in several countries had recently attempted to ban Polymarket as prediction markets face gambling laws. (Kalshi, however, landed Donald Trump Jr. as an advisor, demonstrating how the United States can now become a safe haven for crypto companies.)
In a preview of what is expected to be a vibrant time for M&A activity, Ctrl Wallet, a self-custody wallet, revealed that it is for sale, Allison reported.
Meanwhile, crypto ETFs are expected to surge in volume, following the seismic debut of 2024. Litecoin, one of the first bitcoin clones, is the next project expected to gain official approval for ETF trading, the journalist said Tom Carreras.
Helene Braun went on to say 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-in-Chief Jesse Hamilton reported that the Trump administration wants to make cryptocurrency “debanking” issues a top priority.
Meanwhile, the SEC and CFTC continued to clean up “anti-crypto” officials, paving the way for new managers to join in the coming weeks, Hamilton said.
As the weekend approaches, the cryptocurrency 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.