BizwavemediaPersonal Finance and Crypto Updates

Dubai, UAE, May 15th, 2025, Chainwire

Falcon Finance, a next-generation synthetic dollar protocol backed by DWF Labs, announced it has surpassed $350 million in circulating supply of its overcollateralized digital asset, USDf. This milestone underscores the protocol’s rapid ascent within two weeks from public launch as a credible, transparent, and scalable solution for on-chain dollar demand. 

The announcement follows a strong wave of adoption since Falcon’s public launch, building on momentum two weeks from a successful closed beta that accumulated over $200 million in Total Value Locked (TVL). USDf is now actively minted, staked, and traded across Ethereum, with liquidity available on leading decentralized exchanges including Uniswap, Curve, and Balancer, as well as centralized platforms such as Bitfinex.

“This achievement reflects both user confidence and market demand for secure, yield-generating digital dollars,” said Andrei Grachev, Managing Partner at Falcon Finance. “In surpassing $350 million, Falcon reinforces its role as a core building block for the future of programmable finance.”

The growth in USDf circulation also comes shortly after the launch of Falcon’s transparency page, which offers users full visibility into the protocol’s collateral composition, reserve distribution, and third-party audit data. This includes breakdowns of reserves held with institutional-grade custodians through Fireblocks and Ceffu, mirrored trading positions on centralized exchanges, and on-chain deployment across staking and liquidity protocols.

Falcon Finance’s design emphasizes asset safety and operational transparency, with the majority of reserves secured in MPC-based wallets and subject to quarterly third-party attestations. The protocol’s first audit reports from Zellic and Pashov Audit Group were first released in Q1 2025, with additional reports scheduled on a rolling basis.

USDf can be minted using a wide range of collateral, including USDT, USDC, ETH, BTC, SOL, TON, NEAR, and other supported tokens. Staked USDf is converted into sUSDf, a yield-bearing asset that offers users approximately 15 percent APY, with the potential for enhanced returns through Falcon’s Boosted Yield NFTs.

As part of its long-term user growth strategy, Falcon also launched Falcon Miles, an ecosystem-wide points program that rewards user activity across minting, staking, and asset holding. The program is set to expand to additional on-chain integrations, including lending markets and tokenized yield protocols, as the Falcon ecosystem continues to evolve.

With cross-chain deployments and new collateral integrations underway, Falcon Finance is advancing toward its mission of building a robust foundation for synthetic digital dollars.

For more information, please visit www.falcon.finance.

Contact

Managing Partner
Andrei Grachev
[email protected]

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XRP has surged 10% over the past 24 hours to reach $2.6, lifting its market capitalization to approximately $152 billion and reclaiming its position as the third-largest crypto asset, CoinGecko data shows.

The surge narrowly pushed Ripple’s flagship currency ahead of Tether’s USDT, which also achieved a major milestone. USDT’s market cap hit $150 billion for the first time on Monday, cementing its role as the leading and most widely used stablecoin in the crypto ecosystem.

XRP is now trading at its highest level since early March, though the digital asset remains about 24% below its all-time high of $3.4, set in January 2018.

This isn’t the first time XRP has climbed to the third spot in market rankings. Last December, the crypto asset reached a market capitalization of over $140 billion, surpassing Tether and Solana to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market value.

At the time, the rally was driven by optimism over a US election outcome seen as favorable to local crypto initiatives, along with speculative interest in the potential approval of spot XRP ETFs.

Those same catalysts have once again reignited bullish momentum. Last Friday, Ripple and the SEC announced a joint motion to settle their years-long legal dispute for $50 million.

The agreement, pending court approval, would allow Ripple to recover $125 million currently held in escrow, while upholding the court’s prior ruling on XRP sales.

Apart from its ongoing attempts to resolve the case, Ripple has also made headlines for its recent push to expand its footprint in institutional finance and the stablecoin market.

In April, the company reached an agreement to acquire Hidden Road, a multi-asset prime broker, for $1.25 billion. The acquisition aims to strengthen Ripple’s financial services offerings, with Hidden Road planning to transfer its post-trade activities to the XRP Ledger.

Also last month, Ripple reportedly made a bid between $4 billion and $5 billion to acquire Circle, the USDC stablecoin issuer. However, the offer was ultimately rejected by Circle, which deemed the valuation undervalued in light of its upcoming IPO.

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B3, the leading exchange in Latin America for crypto ETFs and derivatives, is set to launch Ethereum and Solana futures contracts on June 16 after introducing Bitcoin futures last April, the exchange said in a Friday statement.

B3 has confirmed the launch date for its new futures products after securing approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM). The plans were first announced in February, local news outlet Valor Investe reported.

Unlike Bitcoin futures, which trade in Brazilian reais, Ethereum and Solana contracts will be priced in US dollars and referenced to the Nasdaq Ether Reference Price and Nasdaq Solana Reference Price indices.

Explaining the reasons behind the launch, Marcos Skistymas, B3’s Director of Products, pointed to rising interest from investors in digital asset instruments.

“B3 is offering new cryptocurrency derivative instruments to meet the growing demand for products linked to crypto assets, bringing more innovation and sophistication to our products, in addition to offering more alternatives to investors familiar with blockchain technology against the price variation of digital assets, in a regulated and secure manner,” said Skistymas in a statement.

The Ethereum contract will have a size of 0.25 Ether, while the Solana contract will represent 5 SOL. Both contracts will expire on the last Friday of each month, with financial settlements based on crypto price movements.

The CVM has also approved reducing the Bitcoin futures contract size from 0.1 Bitcoin to 0.01 Bitcoin, effective June 16. The reduction aims to increase accessibility, enhance product liquidity, and lower trading costs.

B3 hosts numerous crypto ETFs

B3 recently launched the world’s first spot XRP ETF, the Hashdex Nasdaq XRP Fundo de Índice (XRPH11), which began trading late last month. The ETF tracks the spot price of XRP, Ripple’s native crypto asset, and allocates at least 95% of its net assets to XRP and related instruments.

In addition to the XRP ETF, B3 offers a variety of other crypto-related ETFs managed by Hashdex, including ETFs tied to Bitcoin (BITH11), Ethereum (ETHE11), and Solana (SOLH11).

Hashdex has launched nine crypto ETFs on B3, expanding the range of regulated digital asset investment products available to institutional and advanced investors in Brazil.

Crypto markets are showing strong upward momentum. Over the last 24 hours, Bitcoin has risen by 4% to around $103,000, per CoinGecko, Ether has impressively jumped by 20% to $2,300, and Solana has gained 11%, reaching $172.

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Jeffy Yu, co-founder of Zerebro, who was believed to have committed suicide during a Pump.fun livestream on May 4, was recently seen at his parents’ home in the Crocker-Amazon neighborhood, The San Francisco Standard revealed.

The developer, who was discovered by The Standard on Wednesday, looked shaken and uneasy as he stepped outside his family’s two-story home. Wearing a T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops, Yu seemed nervous and confused, the report stated.

After faking his own death, launching a memorial meme coin, and sprinkling enough on-chain breadcrumbs to summon on-chain sleuths from every corner of the crypto community on X, Yu expressed concern about being seen in public. He said he’s planning to relocate his parents.

When confronted about the false death report and the $LLJEFFY meme coin, which was released shortly after his staged death as a memorial token, Yu refused to answer. The reporter was asked to leave moments later.

Yu’s wallet stays suspiciously active despite reports of his death

On-chain analysts spotted unusual activity from crypto addresses belonging to Yu after reports surfaced that he had taken his own “exit.”

According to crypto commentator @RepeatAfterVee, Yu’s crypto address, which is linked to the creation of $ZEREBRO and $LLJEFFY is still alive and very active, offloading tokens and shuffling funds across known wallets just days after reports of his death.

I’ve just noticed that one of Jeffy Yu’s addresses is dumping $ZEREBRO, then sending USDC to the HTX exchange, and then that money is coming to Jeffy’s address that created $LLJeffy.

G5sjgjPdFdoz7hRa49yDobeSdqMooCmDwsCUERqLTfyr (the creator of LLJeffy) then buys that token and… https://t.co/f70vLp4HLw pic.twitter.com/LQWZUdyN3l

— Vee (@RepeatAfterVee) May 6, 2025

These transfers triggered a wave of skepticism across crypto community members. Some questioned whether Yu’s reported death was genuine.

Data from Bubblemaps shows that accounts linked to Yu moved up to $1.4 million in crypto assets after his supposed death, leading to accusations of a “pseudocide exit strategy.”

On May 6, Daniele Sestagalli, the founder of the Wonderland protocol, published a letter that he said he received from Yu, in which the developer allegedly admitted to fabricating his death.

Yu described the act as a last resort to prevent a collapse in the prices of Zerebro and Opaium.

Legacy.com, the obituary platform where the tribute was posted, has since removed the listing without comment.

$ZEREBRO is currently trading at around $0.048, up 24% in the last 24 hours, per CoinGecko. The token is down nearly 94% from its all-time high set in January.

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Bitcoin broke through the $100,000 mark early on Thursday, its highest level since February, and now sits just 8% below its all-time high, according to TradingView.

As bullish momentum continues to build up, Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s head of digital assets, has updated its Q2 price target for Bitcoin.

In an email to clients on Thursday, he apologized for previously predicting that Bitcoin would top out at $120,000, now admitting that the target may have been far too low.

In an April report, Kendrick predicted that Bitcoin could reach a new all-time high of $120,000 in the second quarter. The analyst also maintained a $200,000 Bitcoin price target by year-end.

His forecast was based on several supportive factors, including strategic reallocation away from US assets, strong whale accumulations, institutional flows, and regulatory tailwinds.

Kendrick now sees his early price call as “very achievable” as market conditions have shifted again.

First, Bitcoin was seen as correlated with risk assets like tech stocks, the analyst said. Then, it became a hedge or strategic play against US assets. Now, it’s about money flowing into Bitcoin, and they are coming from various sources.

Bitcoin’s rally started on Wednesday night as the digital asset surged past $98,000, driven by optimism about upcoming US-China trade talks and rising institutional interest.

This bullish trend picked up after Arizona’s governor unexpectedly signed a Bitcoin reserve bill into law on Wednesday, just days after vetoing separate crypto legislation. The signing came after New Hampshire made history as the first US state to pass a Bitcoin reserve bill.

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The White House has opposed certain elements of a sovereign wealth fund proposal developed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick at President Trump’s request, according to a new report from CBS News.

The plan, reportedly delivered by early May, follows Trump’s February executive order directing the Treasury and Commerce departments to develop a framework for a US sovereign wealth fund within 90 days.

The order fueled speculation that the fund might be used to acquire Bitcoin on behalf of the US government.

However, at the time, Bessent and Lutnick said that the fund would indeed focus on warrants, equity, and other non-crypto investments. Still, David Sacks, Trump’s crypto czar, indicated that Bitcoin could be included in the fund’s portfolio.

That no longer appears to be the case after Trump signed a separate executive order establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve and a digital asset stockpile on March 6, which suggests a standalone approach to crypto holdings.

There were also rumors that the fund might be financed through tariffs and other revenue sources despite ongoing budget deficits. But Lutnick later clarified that tariffs would not be used to support the sovereign wealth fund.

According to the CBS News report, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said the Treasury and Commerce Departments have developed plans in response to Trump’s directive, but no final decisions have been made.

The administration, Desai added, continues to view the initiative as part of its broader effort to safeguard national and economic security.

Details of the fund’s structure and purpose remain under discussion, with no formal announcement expected in the near term.

Sources say Trump has not yet decided how the fund’s proceeds would be used, though he has previously floated the idea of it taking a stake in TikTok, which faces a potential US ban unless ByteDance divests.

Regarding the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and the Digital Asset Stockpile, Bessent and Lutnick are also tasked with outlining operational guidelines, custody frameworks, and acquisition strategies. These plans are expected to remain separate from the sovereign wealth fund initiative and are designed to be budget-neutral.

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The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday at a range of 4.25% to 4.5% as officials continued to assess inflation risks and growing uncertainty sparked by Trump’s trade agenda.

The central bank’s decision was in line with market expectations. According to data from the CME FedWatch tool, markets had priced in a nearly 98% probability that rates would remain unchanged at the Fed’s May meeting.

This marks the third consecutive pause in rate cuts since January. The central bank had previously lowered rates three times in late 2024 in response to softening employment data and easing inflation.

The latest policy stance comes on the heels of cooling price pressures and continued labor market strength. In March, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) fell 0.1% on a monthly basis, while annual inflation eased to 2.4%, down from 2.8% in February.

Meanwhile, April saw solid job gains, reinforcing the resilience of the economy despite uncertainty about Trump’s tariffs.

The combination of moderate inflation and robust employment supported the Fed’s choice to hold rates steady.

The Fed’s policy statement said that recent indicators suggest economic activity has continued to expand at a solid pace, with labor market conditions remaining strong and the unemployment rate stabilizing at low levels. However, it noted that inflation remains somewhat elevated and uncertainty about the economic outlook has increased further.

The Committee said the risks of both higher unemployment and higher inflation have risen and emphasized that future decisions will depend on incoming data and the evolving balance of risks. It also reaffirmed its commitment to reducing its balance sheet and to achieving its dual mandate of maximum employment and 2% inflation.

President Trump has persistently pressured the Fed to lower interest rates, but recent strong employment data has decreased the chances of a rate cut in June.

The market has shifted its expectation of rate cuts, with participants less confident about reductions going into the third quarter. Investors now anticipate the Fed will begin cutting rates in July, with two to three additional reductions projected by year-end.

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