The Blockchain Bulletin May 21: CME Launches XRP Futures for Institutions

Hey folks! Welcome to the latest edition of the Blockchain Bulletin, where we unravel and uncover the latest insights that took place in the past 24 hours. 

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group launched XRP futures products on May 19, introducing both Micro XRP futures (2,500 XRP per contract) and standard contracts (50,000 XRP). These instruments are pegged to the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate, allowing professional traders to gain exposure to Ripple’s native token in a regulated environment. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse described the launch as a milestone for institutional market growth, revealing that Hidden Road executed the first block trade.

Meanwhile, the market continues to surprise the traders. After establishing its highest intraday level at $106,851, the Bitcoin (BTC) price slightly retreated to a level of $105,302. Buyers still remain bullish after the minor pullback. The on-chain analyst, @avocado_onchain, interpreted Bitcoin’s current movement as part of a structured three-phase rally beginning in early 2024.

The recently launched Pi Network (PI) has experienced a sharp reversal on the charts. After reaching a high of $1.73 on May 12, PI has plunged 57%, now trading at $0.7355. Despite a 14.75% monthly gain, the token failed to hold critical technical levels, notably breaking below the $1 support. Technical indicators point to weakening momentum and declining volume, suggesting traders are exercising caution amid heavy resistance.

In regulatory developments, the U.S. Senate took a historic step by advancing the GENIUS Act, a bill focused on stablecoin regulation. Passing with a 66-32 bipartisan vote, the bill overcame previous opposition after Democratic and Republican lawmakers negotiated key amendments. These changes introduced consumer protection measures and limits on tech firms issuance of stablecoins. Senators Cynthia Lummis, Kirsten Gillibrand, Mark Warner, and Ruben Gallego led the talks. The bill’s progress marks a notable shift in the U.S. legislative approach to digital assets, with the potential to establish clear federal guidelines for stablecoin markets.

In legal action, the Bprotocol Foundation and LocalCoin Ltd., custodians of the Bancor Protocol, have filed a lawsuit against Uniswap Labs in the Southern District of New York. The plaintiffs allege that Uniswap used Bancor’s patented algorithmic technology for years without proper licensing. Mark Richardson, Bancor’s Project Lead, emphasized that their innovations were instrumental in enabling decentralized exchanges and called the legal move a necessary step to protect intellectual property developed over nearly a decade.

Related: Will Cardano’s $0.63 Support Hold or Trigger More Losses?

Meanwhile, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson is under scrutiny after NFT artist Masato Alexander made fresh allegations. The allegation concerns the transfer of 318 million ADA during the 2021 Allegra hard fork,  through a “genesis key.” The so-called transfers were legitimate MIR operations under which money was forwarded from reserve pools to staking funds and treasury funds. Critics question the transparency of Input Output Global (IOG) and how unclaimed ADA has been managed within Cardano’s ecosystem.

Lastly, the Supreme Court of India has urged immediate regulatory clarity on cryptocurrency. During a May 19 hearing, Justices Surya Kant and N. Kotiswar Singh warned that failure to regulate assets like Bitcoin could lead to financial misuse akin to the hawala system. Bitcoin was trading at $105,336.15 during the hearing, with a 2.23% daily gain, a $2.09 trillion market cap, and volume down 10.38% to $54.65 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.

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