SpendNode Podcast: Crypto News & Analysis

Kevin Warsh is set to be sworn in as Fed Chair on May 22, 2026, replacing Jerome Powell. Crypto markets brace for a new rate path under a former hawk. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/warsh-fed-chair-sworn-in-may-2026/

Ronin's RON token surged 39.6% after Coinbase confirmed it will list the ERC-20 wrapped version on its exchange, opening US retail access. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/coinbase-wrapped-ron-listing-39-percent-surge-may-2026/

Bitwise will hold HYPE on its balance sheet and route 10% of its Hyperliquid ETF management fee back into the token, an unusual issuer commitment. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/bitwise-hype-balance-sheet-10-percent-fee-recycle-may-2026/

Santiment data shows wallets holding at least 100 BTC have grown to 20,229, up 11.2% in a year, even as price slid below $77,000 this week. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/btc-100-coin-wallets-20229-santiment-may-2026/

The SEC has rescinded its decades-old gag rule, letting companies and individuals speak publicly after settling enforcement cases. Here is what changes. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/sec-rescinds-gag-rule-enforcement-settlements-may-2026/

Strategy added 24,869 bitcoin for $2.01B as BTC sat near $77K, pushing total holdings to 843,738 BTC and extending its corporate accumulation lead. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/strategy-buys-24869-btc-2b-may-2026/

BTC traded at $76,796 on May 18, 2026 after Trump's fresh Iran warning rattled risk assets. ETH off 3.6%, SOL down 2.9%, Fear & Greed at 39. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/bitcoin-below-77k-trump-iran-warning-may-2026/

Goldman Sachs sold its entire XRP and Solana ETF positions in Q1 2026 and cut Ethereum ETF holdings by 70%, according to the bank's latest 13F filing. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/goldman-sachs-exits-xrp-sol-etfs-cuts-eth-70-may-2026/

Standard Chartered is set to fully absorb Zodia Custody's institutional crypto custody business, ending its joint-venture structure, Bloomberg reports. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/standard-chartered-absorbs-zodia-custody-may-2026/

Casa CTO Jameson Lopp tells crypto holders to treat every inbound message as hostile after a phishing scheme abused Google infrastructure to slip past filters. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/lopp-zero-trust-google-phishing-crypto-may-2026/

Irish police recovered a long-dormant Bitcoin wallet holding 500 BTC linked to convicted drug dealer Clifton Collins, worth roughly $38.5M at current prices. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/irish-authorities-recover-500-btc-clifton-collins-may-2026/

House Agriculture Committee leaders urged President Trump to fill the CFTC's four vacant commissioner seats, citing urgent regulatory work facing the agency. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/house-ag-cftc-vacancies-trump-letter-may-2026/

Cointelegraph reports SOL and XRP spot ETFs took net inflows last week while BTC and ETH spot ETFs posted net outflows, deepening a flow divergence. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/sol-xrp-etfs-inflows-btc-eth-outflows-may-2026/

Leveraged crypto longs lost $563M in 24 hours per CoinDesk, with ether and bitcoin positions taking the worst hits as ETH fell 3.1% and BTC slid 1.5%. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/crypto-traders-563m-liquidations-eth-btc-may-2026/

Anthropic will brief the G20's Financial Stability Board on cyber vulnerabilities surfaced by its Claude Mythos AI model, per FT. Implications for crypto. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/anthropic-g20-fsb-claude-mythos-cyber-briefing-may-2026/

PeckShield flagged a Verus-Ethereum bridge exploit on May 18, 2026, with attackers funneling roughly $11.4M through Tornado Cash. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/verus-ethereum-bridge-11m-hack-may-2026/

VanEck and Grayscale filed amended BNB ETF proposals on May 17, positioning the products as the next major altcoin spot ETFs in line for SEC approval. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/vaneck-grayscale-bnb-etf-amendments-may-2026/

KuCoin Australia rolls out its KuCard on Mastercard rails as the exchange leans into a regulatory-first identity ahead of broader AUSTRAC compliance work. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/kucoin-australia-kucard-mastercard-launch-may-2026/

Iran says its new Hormuz Safe program insures Persian Gulf cargo shipments in Bitcoin and claims $10B in revenue. Here is what the announcement actually says. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/iran-hormuz-safe-bitcoin-insurance-persian-gulf-may-2026/

Aave V3 has restored WETH loan-to-value ratios on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Mantle and Linea in line with the rsETH technical recovery plan. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/aave-restores-rseth-weth-ltvs-six-chains-may-2026/

Bitwise BHYP recorded $4.31M in day-one volume on May 15, the largest opening day of any altcoin ETF launched in 2026. Inflow data lands next. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/hype-etfs-strongest-altcoin-debut-bhyp-volume-may-2026/

Solana's official X account flagged $1B in cumulative spot ETF assets and an allocation from Europe's largest asset manager in a May 17 status post. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/solana-1b-spot-etfs-european-asset-manager-may-2026/

Vietnam's Deputy Finance Minister set a Q3 2026 launch for the country's first regulated crypto market, with five approved operators and a $408M capital floor. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/vietnam-regulated-crypto-market-q3-2026-launch-may-2026/

With CLARITY Act through the Senate Banking Committee, traditional banks are expected to intensify lobbying ahead of a Senate floor vote within weeks. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/clarity-act-banks-lobbying-senate-floor-vote-may-2026/

Kraken trimmed roughly 150 roles after deploying AI internally, and reports now suggest its long-tracked IPO could slip into 2027. Read the full article: https://www.spendnode.io/blog/kraken-150-layoffs-ai-ipo-2027-delay-may-2026/