Despite a week of price stabilization for Bitcoin (BTC), new legislative developments in the digital asset sector may serve as a crucial trigger for the first cryptocurrency. Proposed regulations on stablecoins, particularly the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, could potentially set the stage for Bitcoin to surpass the $150,000 mark, as suggested by Alice Li, an investment partner and the head of US operations at crypto venture capital firm Foresight Ventures.
### Venture Capital Interest Declines Amidst Market Challenges
In contrast, interest from venture capitalists has waned significantly. May marked the lowest number of closed VC deals for the year, with only 62 investment rounds resulting in a total of $909 million raised. According to Patrick Heusser, head of lending at Sentora and a former investment banker, a difficult macroeconomic environment, characterized by persistent high interest rates, volatile bond markets, and new tariff news, has hindered the ability of risk assets to finalize new mergers and acquisitions.
### Regulatory Clarity May Propel Bitcoin Prices
According to Alice Li, regulatory clarity in the United States could enable Bitcoin to break through the $150,000 threshold during the current market cycle. Speaking during Cointelegraph’s Chain Reaction X Spaces event on June 3, Li pointed out that the anticipated rally for the crypto market in 2025 is largely fueled by evolving US policies. She highlighted US President Donald Trump’s approval of Bitcoin reserves and advancements in stablecoin legislation as pivotal factors driving Bitcoin’s potential price increase in 2025. Li expressed a strong belief in stablecoins as a long-term investment avenue, noting the importance of regulatory progress in the United States.
### Ethereum’s Resurgence in the DeFi Space
In 2025, the Ethereum network is experiencing a revival, as heightened activity from automated bots and the growth of stablecoins are bringing it back to the forefront of decentralized finance (DeFi). A report from the crypto trading platform Cex.io revealed that automated bots were responsible for facilitating 4.84 million stablecoin transfers on Ethereum’s layer-1 blockchain in May, resulting in a staggering volume of $480 billion—the highest recorded to date. Illia Otychenko, Cex.io’s lead analyst, attributed this surge to reduced transaction fees during the first quarter of 2025, which reversed a prolonged trend of user and liquidity migration to competing blockchains and Ethereum layer-2 networks. Consequently, the market capitalization of stablecoins on the mainnet increased by 11% in 2025, redistributing market share from its layer-2 counterparts, which saw only a 1% decline in stablecoin market size.
### Binance Co-Founder Proposes Dark Pool DEXs to Prevent Market Manipulation
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, co-founder of Binance, has suggested the creation of a dark pool perpetual swap decentralized exchange (DEX) to mitigate market manipulation. In a post on June 1, Zhao expressed his confusion over the transparency of orders on DEXs, especially in the context of perpetual swaps where liquidations occur. He noted that large purchases, such as buying $1 billion worth of a cryptocurrency, should remain discreet until completed to avoid preemptive actions by other traders. Zhao’s comments came in light of a recent incident where nearly $100 million in Bitcoin long positions were liquidated on Hyperliquid, allegedly linked to a trader named James Wynn. This event ignited discussions on social media about possible coordinated actions among users to target Wynn’s liquidation.
### Tokenization of Real-World Assets Experiences Significant Growth
The tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) has seen remarkable expansion in the first half of 2025, driven by enhanced regulatory clarity that has encouraged broader adoption of blockchain-based financial solutions. RWA tokenization involves the creation of digital representations of tangible assets on a blockchain, thereby facilitating easier access and trading opportunities for investors. According to a report by Binance Research, the RWA market experienced over a 260% growth during this period, reaching a valuation exceeding $23 billion, up from $8.6 billion at the start of the year. Tokenized private credit dominated this market expansion, capturing about 58% of the share, followed by tokenized US Treasury debt at 34%. The report emphasized that as regulatory frameworks become more defined, the sector is set for sustained growth and heightened engagement from significant industry players.
### BitoPro Confirms Major Security Breach
Taiwan’s cryptocurrency exchange, BitoPro, has acknowledged a security incident that resulted in the theft of over $11.5 million in digital assets from its hot wallets on May 8. The unauthorized transactions were observed across various hot wallets on Ethereum, Tron, Solana, and Polygon, with assets subsequently transferred to decentralized exchanges (DEXs) where they were reportedly sold. Despite the seriousness of the breach, BitoPro refrained from publicly disclosing the exploit for several weeks, as noted by blockchain investigator ZachXBT in a June 2 post. Data indicated that the stolen assets were funneled through cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash or converted to Bitcoin via THORChain, common practices among hackers to obscure the trail of illicit funds. Following the incident, BitoPro announced a maintenance period for the exchange, which was resolved on the same day. However, many users continued to experience difficulties withdrawing USDt (USDT). Three weeks later, BitoPro confirmed the hack occurred during an internal wallet system upgrade, where an attacker took advantage of an “old hot wallet” during the reallocation of funds.
### Overview of the DeFi Market
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView reveal that most of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization ended the week on a downward trend. The DeXe (DEXE) token recorded the steepest decline, dropping over 30%, followed closely by the Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) token, which fell 24% over the week. Thank you for reading our recap of the week’s most significant developments in the DeFi landscape. Be sure to join us next Friday for more stories, insights, and educational content about this rapidly evolving space.
