Plus: Powell’s pausing. Bitcoin’s not

GM. Whether prices are ripe or rotten, we’ve got your daily crop report – no sugar added.

Bhutan launches a tourism crypto payment system.

News drops: ransomware gang gets hacked, CZ asks for a pardon + more

Market flavor today

The Fed kept interest rates the same yesterday for the third meeting in a row, at 4.25% – 4.5%. Just like we thought they would.

And, matter of fact, the Fed doesn’t seem to be planning to lower them anytime soon (even though President Donald Trump wants them to cut rates to help the economy).

Fed Chair Jerome Powell didn’t sound too sure about what to do next, because tariffs made things a bit tricky.

• On one hand, tariffs can push prices up (because imported goods get more expensive), which makes inflation worse. That might mean raising rates to fight inflation;

• But on the other hand, tariffs can also slow down the economy by making trade harder and more expensive. That could mean lowering rates to help the economy if it weakens.

So, for now, Powell said they “can afford to be patient as things unfold.”

Now, normally, rate cuts = good news for crypto. But the Fed isn’t cutting.

So… why is Bitcoin pumping so hard we can smell $100K again?

After saying no to a similar bill earlier this week, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed a new law that lets the state keep unclaimed crypto and start a Bitcoin Reserve Fund. No taxpayer money or state funds will be used for it.

One day too late to be the first US state to do this – New Hampshire beat them to it – but still, it’s big news!

Trump announced that the US and UK agreed to a “full and comprehensive” trade deal. It’s the first deal since Trump started a trade war with tariffs all over the place.

And since those tariffs have been partly to blame for crypto’s recent sad price action, this deal is giving the market a mood boost.

Basically, Powell’s waiting – but Bitcoin isn’t. I hope. To the moon, please.

Memecoin harvest

These tokens woke up and chose violence

Data as of 05:00 AM EST.

Check out these memecoins and plenty more here.

No, it’s not just because the place looks like a postcard come to life, the culture is just fascinating, and the flag is sick af.

… Ok, that’s definitely part of the reason. But it’s not all.

Bhutan launched the world’s first national-level tourism crypto payment system in partnership with Binance Pay and DK Bank (Bhutan’s first fully digital bank, licensed by the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan).

What that means: if you’ve got a Binance account, you can pay for almost every part of your Bhutan adventure – hotels, tour guides, you name it – using crypto.

This system supports at least 100 different crypto assets, including Bitcoin, USDC, and BNB.

So, the following situation could actually be reality:

“Here’s your wooden phallus souvenir, sir. How would you like to pay?”

(Btw, yes, that’s a thing. Phalluses have deep historic and spiritual meaning in Bhutan – they’re often painted on homes or carved from wood to keep evil away.)

“Thank you, sir. I’ll pay in BNB.”

Craaazy.

This approach removes some of the biggest travel headaches: high transaction and currency exchange fees, worrying whether your international cards will work, and the pain of waiting for payment confirmations.

Instead, you get real-time confirmations, near-zero fees, and a fully licensed local bank handling all the settlements.

And that’s not just cool for tourists – it’s a huge achievement for crypto. Here’s why:

1/ Real-world adoption

We’re not talking about buying a pizza with Bitcoin. This is an entire country letting you pay for your WHOLE trip with crypto.

That’s a level of utility we don’t often see.

2/ National-level integration

This isn’t just some forward-thinking techy business accepting crypto.

This is a government-backed system, which adds credibility and makes the process smoother and safer for users.

3/ Positive signal during regulatory uncertainty

While many governments are still debating how to regulate crypto, Bhutan’s embracing it for a national service.

Strong vote of confidence.

4/ A W for Binance

Binance has been battling some regulatory storms lately.

And partnering with a whole COUNTRY shows that despite the scrutiny, it’s still securing major, credible deals and expanding its real-world presence.

Definitely a power move.

Now, let’s hope other countries hit copy + paste…

News drops

Some hackers broke into the secret dark website of the LockBit ransomware gang. They leaked almost 60,000 Bitcoin addresses – probably tied to ransom payments. Now, blockchain investigators can use this info to trace where LockBit’s money has been moving.

Binance founder CZ, who was convicted, says he’s officially asked Donald Trump for a pardon. He said Trump’s past pardons for the three BitMEX founders pushed him to give it a shot.

There’s a new Bitcoin company in the works called Nakamoto, and it’s getting ready to go public. It’s led by David Bailey – the guy advising Trump on crypto – and he’s already raised $300M to kick things off.

Agatha Christie may have died in 1976, but now there’s a digital version of her teaching a writing class through BBC Maestro. The course gives tips for anyone looking to sharpen their writing skills.

Lost access to your Ledger wallet? No worries – we’ve got a simple guide to help you recover it.

Juicy memes

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Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson delivered a new message to the community on April 12, declaring that the Cardano ecosystem has reached full decentralization while hinting at a potential step back from active involvement. In a livestream titled “See you on the other side”, Hoskinson reflected on a decade-long journey with Cardano, praised recent governance milestones, and announced plans for a perilous personal expedition.

Cardano Fully Decentralized, Hoskinson Steps Back Briefly

Speaking from his home office in Colorado following a trip to Paris, Hoskinson opened with a candid statement: “This time it’s to go somewhere to do something that is quite dangerous—so much so there is a possibility of death.” He characterized the livestream as a precaution, a chance to reflect on what has been built in the event something were to go wrong. While he reassured viewers that he expected to return safely, the tone of the address underscored a transition, both personal and professional.

The central focus of Hoskinson’s message was the formal maturation of Cardano’s governance infrastructure. After more than a decade of development, he asserted that Cardano has now entered a fully decentralized phase, citing recent constitutional and institutional advancements made possible under the Voltaire governance framework. “We have passed a constitution both through a constitutional convention and an on-chain ratification,” he said. “We have passed an info action approving a roadmap. There are almost a thousand DREs [Delegated Representative Entities] registered and an interesting distribution of power amongst them.”

These milestones mark a significant shift for Cardano, effectively transferring decision-making authority from the founding entities to the broader community. A transitional constitutional committee—partially elected—is currently in place, with fully democratic elections scheduled for later in the year. Budget reconciliation among DRAPs (Delegated Representative Action Plans) is ongoing and expected to conclude within the next 60 to 90 days.

Hoskinson emphasized the significance of this structural shift: “I wanted to build something where I could spend my entire life working on it, but I didn’t want to be a dictator or a king.” He likened Cardano’s trajectory to Bitcoin’s early evolution, referencing Satoshi Nakamoto’s departure from Bitcoin development as a precedent for decentralized growth.

The founder also praised the ecosystem’s increasing technical plurality, highlighting the recent node diversity workshop in Paris. There, he met with teams from Pragma, TXPipe, Blink Labs, and Harmonic—independent development groups contributing alternative node implementations to strengthen the protocol’s resilience. “It was really impressive to spend some time with them and see them,” he said. “The end result of those conversations is basically an assurance that we will have multiple independent implementations by independent teams in the Cardano ecosystem.”

In a notable moment of cross-chain collaboration, Hoskinson mentioned that even members of the Ethereum community were present at the workshop to discuss interoperability and client diversity. This broader dialogue reflects Cardano’s ambition to move beyond its insular beginnings and into a more heterogeneous blockchain environment.

While affirming Input Output Global (IOG)’s continued presence in the ecosystem, Hoskinson made clear that the organization’s prominence would now be subject to the will of the community: “You ultimately get to decide how prominent that role is […] whether it be involved in core infrastructure or simply building on top of the protocol.”

A New Era

Hoskinson also discussed the growing enthusiasm around Midnight, a new privacy-oriented blockchain protocol under the Cardano umbrella, describing it as a potential gateway for “millions of users” into the ecosystem. He portrayed hybrid applications—bridging Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Cardano to Midnight—as a promising direction for the space.

Amid these technical updates, Hoskinson’s remarks turned reflective and philosophical. At 37, he noted that he now finds himself at a liminal point—not young, not old—and is increasingly seeking fulfillment outside the crypto sphere. “I’ve been chained down for the last decade,” he admitted, referencing his ventures into ranching, synthetic biology, and even fringe endeavors like the “alien salvage expedition in Papua New Guinea.”

This upcoming venture, however, stands out in its severity. Although he declined to specify its nature, he admitted that it’s “one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done in my entire life,” and that it has been in preparation for over a year. “If I survive—which is very likely—I will record it and put it up on Twitter when I return,” he said.

Hoskinson framed the journey as both a personal test and a necessary mental reset before entering the “long brutal march” of the next Cardano era, citing Midnight, Hydra scalability, Minotaur’s AVS (Active Validator Set) ambitions, and the roadmap’s transition to full realization. “Cardano’s roadmap is the best it’s ever been,” he asserted, referencing the system’s emerging functionality as a Bitcoin DeFi platform and its commitment to scalable governance.

Yet behind the achievements lies a sense of fatigue with the broader crypto industry. Hoskinson expressed disenchantment with the market’s narrow focus on price movement at the expense of innovation and impact. “Every accomplishment doesn’t matter ]…] everything is chained to whether the price goes up or the price goes down. You have no idea how thoroughly boring that has become.”

He concluded with a reaffirmation of Cardano’s resilience and a tacit acknowledgment that his role may soon evolve. “Cardano, like Bitcoin before it, is durable. It’s here to stay. All elements of centralization have been removed… that was my life’s work, and I’m proud of that.”

At press time, ADA traded at $0.6452.

Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

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