The Blockchain Bulletin May 3rd: Ripple’s $20B Bid for Circle Signals Stablecoin Power Play
Hey folks! Welcome again to our Blockchain Bulletin series, where we prioritize reporting the latest insights in the market within 24 hours. Ripple has reportedly raised its acquisition offer for Circle to $20 billion, following the rejection of an earlier bid in the range of $4–$5 billion. Sources familiar with the matter suggest that Circle’s executives dismissed the initial proposal as undervalued, particularly considering Circle’s $9 billion valuation during its failed 2022 public listing attempt. This bid comes as Ripple aims to extend its influence within the stablecoin ecosystem. Circle, the issuer of USD Coin (USDC)—currently the second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization after Tether’s USDT—recently filed for an initial public offering, signaling confidence in its market standing.
In addition, Strategy, one of the top investment firms in existence, has announced plans to raise $21 billion to further increase its Bitcoin holdings. That announcement came following a report of a net loss of $16.49 billion in Q1 2025, primarily from a $5.9 billion unrealized writedown on its current Bitcoin assets due to a general decline in the market witnessed earlier this year. The company’s operating expenses soared by a more-than-incredible 1,976% on a yearly basis to an amount exceeding $6 billion. Its revenue suffered a 3.6% decline, generating $111.1 million; however, Strategy noted an increase of 61.6% year on year in subscriptions, indicating persistent investor interest in the company despite such high levels of market volatility. The firm continued to deploy capital into Bitcoin, showcasing its long-term belief in this digital asset now that the short-term performance of its portfolio is under pressure.
On the other side, Movement Labs has suspended co-founder Rushi Manche after Coinbase announced it would delist the MOVE token, citing recent developments surrounding market manipulation. MOVE, introduced via a public airdrop in December 2024, has lost more than 86% of its value and now trades near $0.1960, down 22% in the past 24 hours alone. Investigations revealed that Movement Labs had partnered with a market maker, Rentech, reportedly controlled by Manche.
Regarding development, Goldman Sachs has confirmed an expansion of its digital asset operations, according to remarks made by Mathew McDermott, global head of digital assets, during the TOKEN2049 event in Dubai. The firm is entering the crypto lending sector and investing in tokenization infrastructure projects while also seeking regulatory approvals to broaden its crypto product suite. Goldman is already active in cryptocurrency derivatives, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and structured investment products.
Furthermore, Kraken made an announcement regarding a cyber incident perpetrated by the state-sponsored North Korean threat actor, who applied for a job using an assumed identity with the intent to have the company infiltrated. It is alleged that the participant in a video interview was called out by Kraken due to inconsistencies related to his name, voice modulation, and documents. Kraken’s recruitment and security teams conducted an engagement that simulated these exact scenarios and revealed the tactics being displayed, concluding that the applicant was likely being assisted in real-time, a trademark tactic observed in coordinated cyber operations.
