May 13: Ripple Launches Major European Expansion, and New $38M Exploit Hits Solana DeFi
Summary
Bitcoin Update: Bitcoin holds above $80,400 amid rising geopolitical tensions and oil prices, with traders watching today’s U.S. inflation data for directional cues.
Ethereum Momentum: Spot Ethereum ETFs saw their strongest single-day inflows in over a month, led by BlackRock and Fidelity, signaling growing institutional interest in ETH.
Ripple Expansion: Ripple launched RLUSD in five new European countries with local bank partnerships to support cross-border payments and tokenized treasury services.
Institutional Move: A major European asset manager launched a new Bitcoin and Ethereum custody solution targeted at institutional clients.
Security Incident: A DeFi protocol on Solana lost ~$38 million in a flash-loan and oracle manipulation attack, one of the largest exploits on the network recently.
Major Funding & Partnerships: AetherFi (AI-powered lending protocol) raised $120 million last week and announced a new integration with Chainlink for real-time risk pricing.
Hot Presales: IONIX CHAIN raised an additional $12 million and Mutuum Finance closed its latest round at $9.4 million, showing continued retail interest in early-stage projects.
Altcoin Watch: Analysts are highlighting five altcoins with strong setups — Chainlink (LINK), Kaspa (KAS), Sui (SUI), NEAR, and Bittensor (TAO) — that could see significant breakouts if Bitcoin holds above $80K.