Ethereum price target shifts to $3K after SharpLink adopts ETH ‘treasury strategy’

Key takeaways:

SharpLink Gaming establishes the first ETH treasury, backed by Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin. SharpLink will invest $425 million to acquire 120,000 ETH.

Ethereum futures open interest hits an all-time high of $36.1 billion, with ETH price climbing 4.5% on the daily chart.

Nasdaq-listed SharpLink Gaming (SBET) announced a $425 million private investment in public equity (PIPE), acquiring approximately 69.1 million shares at $6.15 each to establish the first Nasdaq-listed Ethereum (ETH) treasury company.

Spearheaded by Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, this move mirrors Strategy’s (MSTR) successful Bitcoin treasury strategy, which has yielded over $8.2 billion in gains in 2025, by leveraging stock and bond sales to acquire BTC.

Former Ethereum core developer and contributor Eric Conner highlighted the bullish implications of SharpLink’s move, noting its potential to create a “public ETH proxy for funds that can’t hold tokens directly.” 

Conner emphasized that the acquisition

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Third individual arrested in NYC crypto torture and kidnapping case

A third individual, suspected of being connected to the recent kidnapping, torture and attempted extortion of an Italian tourist in New York City, surrendered to law enforcement on May 27.

33-year-old William Duplessie was taken into custody by the New York Police Department (NYPD) and will be charged with “kidnapping and false imprisonment of an associate,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

The incident comes amid a string of kidnappings and ransom attempts targeting crypto investors and their loved ones, prompting additional security measures from investors and industry executives.

According to reporting from The New York Times, Duplessie and crypto investor John Woeltz, who was previously arrested by police in connection with the case, both had connections to an NYC-based crypto hedge fund.

Source: Jameson Lopp

Duplessie negotiated his surrender with the NYPD over the course of several days leading up to his arrest.

Related:

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Growing BTC reserve requires Congressional legislation — VanEck exec

Building a permanent US strategic Bitcoin reserve would likely require targeted legislation rather than executive action, according to VanEck’s head of digital assets, Matthew Sigel. Speaking at Bitcoin 2025 in Las Vegas, Sigel said the most viable path forward may involve inserting Bitcoin mining incentives into the congressional budget reconciliation process.

According to Sigel, the most effective path to growing a US strategic Bitcoin reserve would be through targeted amendments to congressional budget legislation. These could include tax credits for mining companies that use methane gas and other incentives aimed at encouraging miners to share a portion of their mined BTC with the federal government.

He argued that such an approach would allow the reserve to grow organically over time. Sigel also highlighted the limitations of executive actions in achieving this goal:

“The problem with executive action is that it’s going to prompt lawsuits. And anything over $100 million is going

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Trump supports bill to buy 1 million BTC — Senator Lummis

US President Donald Trump supports the BITCOIN Act and has a team of experts in the White House working to roll out landmark digital asset legislation in the coming weeks, according to Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis. 

Speaking at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, Lummis said she is bringing the BITCOIN ACT to the “attention of the American people and the world,” adding that, “President Trump supports the bill.”

In March, Lummis reintroduced the BITCOIN Act — landmark legislation that directs the US government to acquire 1 million Bitcoin (BTC) over five years. The acquisitions would be financed using existing funds within the Federal Reserve System and the Treasury Department. 

As Cointelegraph reported, the Trump administration has reiterated the need to use “budget-neutral ways” to acquire Bitcoin without burdening taxpayers.

Source: CryptoGoos

At the Bitcoin Conference, Lummis said the Trump administration

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Selling Bitcoin is like playing in a 'bad house-rate casino' — Adam Back

Selling Bitcoin is like “playing in a really bad house-rate casino,” according to Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream and one of Bitcoin’s earliest adopters. In a recent interview with Bitcoin financial services firm Unchained, Back said the odds are stacked against traders trying to time the market.

Back came to this conclusion in the early days of Bitcoin, he said, when the price “was going up basically exponentially but it [was] extremely volatile.”

“So […] if you see something that’s going up exponentially but with volatility, if you sell it to time the market a bit falling, the odds are against you,” Back said, adding:

“The trend line is up and to the right, exponential, and so there’s extremely bad trading odds attached to selling because you’re really hoping that it falls.”Adam Back during the interview. Source: Unchained

Bitcoin is known for its extreme volatility and heightened bull-bear market cycles.

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Maple Finance, FalconX secure Bitcoin-backed loans from Cantor Fitzgerald — Report

Wall Street financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald has closed its first Bitcoin lending deal nearly a year after announcing its crypto lending services.

According to a May 27 Bloomberg report, Cantor provided Bitcoin-backed loans to FalconX and Maple Finance. FalconX, a digital asset broker, said it secured a facility worth over $100 million as part of a “broader credit framework,” while Maple Finance reportedly closed the first tranche of an agreement with Cantor.

The service allows companies holding Bitcoin to borrow funds and use the cryptocurrency as collateral, providing a way to unlock liquidity without selling their BTC holdings. Cantor announced its Bitcoin financing business with an initial capital of $2 billion in July 2024, targeting institutional investors seeking to leverage their Bitcoin. At the time, the company said Anchorage Digital and Copper would serve as custodians and collateral managers in the venture.

Credit markets are a fundamental part of the financial system, allowing

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Bitcoin price held up by corporate adoption and ‘inflation hedge’ narratives

Key takeaways:

Institutional investor demand and corporate adoption may push Bitcoin higher despite recession fears.

Investors’ belief that the US Federal Reserve will hold rates favors Bitcoin price upside.

Stock markets around the world responded positively to the temporary suspension of import tariffs between the United States and the European Union, with the S&P 500 rising 1.5% on May 27. However, concerns over a global economic recession persist, capping Bitcoin’s (BTC) upside, especially since the baseline US import rates have been raised for most regions.

Bitcoin remains antifragile and poised to outperform in uncertain times

Given the growing investor uncertainty about economic conditions, Bitcoin hovering around the $110,000 level has taken investors by surprise as it consolidates the top-6 position as a global tradable asset by market capitalization. Investors now ask whether Bitcoin is becoming antifragile or if a drop below $100,000 is inevitable in a recessionary environment.

Traders currently

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Trump Media Group reverses stance, confirms $2.5B Bitcoin capital raise

Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), the company that owns US President Donald Trump’s Truth Social platform and is partially owned by the president, confirmed a $2.5 billion capital raise to purchase Bitcoin (BTC) after denying earlier reports of the deal.

According to a May 27 announcement from the company, the capital raise comprises a $1.5 billion stock sale and $1 billion in convertible senior secured bonds, with a 0% coupon. The sale is expected to close on May 29. TMTG CEO Devin Nunes said:

“We view Bitcoin as an apex instrument of financial freedom, and now Trump Media will hold cryptocurrency as a crucial part of our assets. This investment will help defend our Company against harassment and discrimination by financial institutions.”

TMTG spokespeople responded to the initial report from the Financial Times, published a day before the announcement, with derision.

“Apparently, the

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Ramaswami's Strive raises $750M for 'alpha-generating' Bitcoin buy strategy

Strive, an asset manager founded by American entrepreneur and politician Vivek Ramaswamy, has announced a $750 million raise to establish “alpha-generating” strategies through Bitcoin-related purchases.

According to a May 27 announcement, the strategies will include buying undervalued biotech companies, purchasing “distressed Bitcoin claims” like those associated with crypto hacks and bankruptcies, and acquiring bottom tranches of Bitcoin credit vehicles at discounted prices.

“ […] our alpha-generating Bitcoin accumulation strategies are designed to drive sustained outperformance relative to Bitcoin itself, which requires a new valuation framework,” Strive CEO Matt Cole said.

Related: Strive targets Intuit for Bitcoin buys after orange-pilling GameStop

The $750 million raise could expand further through the exercise of warrants, potentially doubling the total to $1.5 billion. The announcement indicates that the entire raise could go to Bitcoin purchases, which could make Strive the fifth-largest Bitcoin treasury company.

The raise, completed through private investment,

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BlackRock in-house portfolio boosts IBIT Bitcoin ETF exposure by 25%

BlackRock’s in-house portfolio has been quietly accumulating shares of its Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), underscoring the asset manager’s growing commitment to the cryptocurrency as part of a broader diversification strategy.

As of March 31, 2025, the BlackRock Strategic Income Opportunities Portfolio held 2,123,592 shares of the company’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), valued at $99.4 million, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). That’s a notable uptick from Dec. 31, 2024, when the portfolio held 1,691,143 IBIT shares. 

The BlackRock Strategic Income Opportunities Portfolio’s consolidated schedule of investments as of March 31, 2025. Source: SEC

BlackRock’s IBIT was among 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs approved by the SEC in January 2024. Since then, it has emerged as the largest fund in its category with more than $72 billion in net assets, according to Bitbo data.

The second-largest US Bitcoin ETF

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