Peter Schiff Warns US Economy Faces ‘Worst Inflation Yet’ at VRIC Media Interview

Peter Schiff Warns US Economy Faces ‘Worst Inflation Yet’ at VRIC Media Interview

May 17, 2026 — Longtime gold advocate and Euro Pacific Asset Management chairman Peter Schiff told VRIC Media this week that the U.S. economy is far weaker than markets realize, warning that inflation is accelerating and the Federal Reserve’s policies are making the problem worse.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

Schiff pointed to the year-over-year Consumer Price Index reading of 3.8%, up from 3.3% the prior month, and said the annualized April figure is running closer to 7.2%. He noted oil prices have already climbed above where they were when those calculations were made.

“The markets are really set up for a major disappointment,” Schiff told host Darrell Thomas. He warned that 30-year Treasury yields could break above 8%, a level that would inflict serious damage on U.S. government finances given the current debt load. The 20-year high currently sits around 5.1%.

Schiff also flagged the Fed’s balance sheet as a direct concern. He said it has expanded by more than $200 billion so far this year, and that the money supply is growing at a rate of at least 5%—which he called incompatible with a 2% inflation target.

Market Context & Reaction

The Fed, Schiff argued, is still holding an easing bias while inflation worsens, and markets are pricing in rate cuts that will not arrive. He expects the Fed to accelerate bond purchases, particularly if the 10-year yield breaks decisively above 4.5%. The result, he said, will be a much larger balance sheet and more inflation, not less.

On the federal debt, Schiff said the official figure of roughly $39.2 trillion understates the real problem. When unfunded liabilities like Social Security, Medicare, and pension commitments are factored in, he puts the total closer to $150 trillion. He called the U.S. “completely insolvent” as a nation and said foreign central banks have already started drawing the same conclusion, which is why gold has been moving higher.

Schiff described Social Security as a Ponzi scheme structured around government IOUs. The trust fund, he said, holds nothing but U.S. Treasury bonds, meaning the government would simply have to sell new bonds when it runs out of old ones. He advised younger Americans to exclude Social Security from any retirement planning.

Background & Historical Context

Schiff offered a straightforward comparison on gold. In 1971, an ounce of gold cost $35. Today it trades near $5,000. Burying $35 in the ground that year and digging it up today leaves someone with $35. Burying gold leaves someone with $5,000. He said the same forces driving that move over the past 50 years remain in place.

He projected gold could reach $20,000 over the next decade. Schiff said mining stocks offer better upside than the physical metal for investors with higher risk tolerance, though physical gold and silver remain essential for everyone.

Beyond his macro outlook, Schiff has been targeting Strategy Inc. chairman Michael Saylor and the company’s perpetual preferred stock, STRC. Strategy issues STRC as a high-yield product paying roughly 11.5% annually, marketed in part to income-seeking investors, including retirees.

After Saylor suggested in an early May interview at Consensus Miami that Strategy might sell bitcoin to cover STRC dividends, Schiff called the product “a pure Ponzi” on X. He posted that if Strategy ever had to choose between selling bitcoin or suspending STRC dividends, Saylor would sacrifice the dividend and crash the stock.

What This Means

Schiff’s warnings carry specific implications for investors. He sees gold, silver, and mining stocks as the primary hedge through 2026, with 30-year Treasury yields potentially hitting 8%. For those in their 20s or 30s, he said Social Security payments—if they come at all—will not carry enough purchasing power to matter.

He manages the Euro Pacific Gold Fund (EPGIX) and separately managed mining portfolios through Europac.com. He also operates schiffgold.com, where clients can take physical delivery or hold metal in storage through a program called T-Gold. Schiff has accused Saylor of violating SEC marketing rules by describing STRC as appropriate for retirees seeking low-risk wealth preservation, warning that retirees who lose money could win lawsuits against Strategy.

Not financial advice. Conduct your own research before making investment decisions.

Less Than 2% of DeFi Funds Are Insured as Hacks Surpass $7.7 Billion

May 16, 2026 — Despite billions of dollars flowing through decentralized finance, less than 2% of total value locked is insured, leaving the vast majority of users exposed to mounting security exploits, a new analysis reveals. The gap between risk and coverage has widened as attackers have shifted from smart contract bugs to harder-to-price offchain failures, with protocols losing $7.7 billion to hacks over the past six years. In April 2026 alone, over $600 million was drained in security incidents, led by the Drift and Kelp DAO exploits.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The DeFi insurance sector, which debuted with massive ambitions during the 2020 crypto boom, has largely failed to keep pace with evolving threats. Data from DeFiLlama shows that just 28 insurance protocols exist today, but Nexus Mutual accounts for nearly the entire sector’s $123.5 million in total value locked — a mere 0.14% of DeFi’s broader $83 billion market.

“Less than 2% of DeFi’s TVL is covered or insured, and we see that as one of the largest barriers to real DeFi adoption,” said Hugh Karp, founder of Nexus Mutual, in an interview.

Early insurance products focused on smart contract bugs, which were easier to audit and price. However, attackers have adapted. Recent exploits increasingly stem from compromised private keys, phishing scams, and social engineering — risks that are far more difficult for insurers to assess.

“Many of the largest hacks have originated offchain from operational security failures,” Karp said, adding that the premiums required for such policies become “prohibitively expensive” in the absence of clear security standards.

Market Context & Reaction

The Kelp DAO exploit illustrates the challenge. Cybercriminals manipulated a bridge mechanism to access real assets, then used them as collateral on Aave. According to Karp, “The core failure of bridge risk isn’t something that would have been covered” under typical policies.

Even when coverage applies, it can be indirect. Losses may only qualify if they trigger downstream effects, such as bad debt in lending markets caused by frozen oracles.

Why aren’t users demanding better protection? Many DeFi participants prioritize yield over security. Paying 2%–3% in insurance premiums can significantly cut into profits, especially in strategies built on narrow margins.

“Most DeFi users are yield-driven and do not want to give up several percentage points of return for cover,” said Dan She, senior audit partner at CertiK.

Background & Historical Context

The DeFi insurance sector grew rapidly during the early days of “DeFi Summer,” rising from roughly $3 million in early 2020 to $1.89 billion by November 2021. Nexus Mutual, Cover Protocol, InsurAce, Tidal Finance, and Bridge Mutual were leaders during that period.

However, the sector collapsed under the same risks it was built to cover. Cover Protocol was hacked and then collapsed, while Armor.fi, Bridge Mutual, and Tidal either flatlined or vanished between 2021 and 2024 due to unsustainable tokenomics and conflicts of interest.

Gaspard Peduzzi, founder of Spectra Finance, argued that the model itself is flawed. “You were just stacking counterparty risk on top of the counterparty risk,” he said.

Matthew Pinnock, COO at Altura, pointed to another weakness: capital backing insurance pools is often exposed to the same vulnerabilities as the protocols they cover. “When exploits hit, the capital backing the cover was often exposed to the same risks as the underlying protocol, so it evaporated precisely when it was needed most,” he said.

What This Means

The result is a system where losses still land somewhere — often on users least equipped to absorb them. According to Karp, following a major exploit, protocol safety modules absorb initial losses, treasuries take the next hit, and if those fall short, regular depositors face reductions in their holdings.

“In practice, when there’s no cover, the cost falls disproportionately on the least sophisticated participants,” Karp said.

The industry is beginning to rethink its approach. Some experts call for embedding insurance directly into DeFi products rather than selling it separately. Others advocate for narrower coverage focused on specific risks. A third camp suggests integrating traditional insurance outside the blockchain realm entirely.

For now, DeFi’s insurance market remains small — not because the need is absent, but because the risks are complex, evolving, and increasingly difficult to price. As hacks continue and losses mount, pressure is building to close that gap, or risk slowing the sector’s growth.

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CLARITY Act Advances 15-9 in Senate Committee

May 14, 2025 — The CLARITY Act cleared the Senate Banking Committee in a 15-9 bipartisan vote on May 14, marking its most significant legislative progress since a similar House version passed last July. The bill now faces major hurdles including a 60-vote threshold in the full Senate and unresolved ethics provisions before reaching President Trump’s desk.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 to advance the CLARITY Act, with all 13 Republicans joined by Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego of Arizona and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland. Both Democrats qualified their support, signaling potential trouble ahead.

“My vote today is a vote to keep working in good faith,” Alsobrooks said. “We still have so much work to do.”

Gallego warned he was “not afraid to vote no” on the Senate floor if an ethics deal is not reached. The committee vote was secured at the last moment after Chairman Tim Scott used a procedural maneuver to admit further amendments.

The bill’s current 309-page text, revised on May 12, resolved one major dispute by banning passive stablecoin interest while permitting activity-based rewards. This cleared a key obstacle but left two critical issues unresolved: ethics provisions and law enforcement requirements.

Market Context & Reaction

Analysts remain pessimistic about the bill’s chances of becoming law this session. GSR Chief Legal and Strategy Officer Joshua Riezman said before the vote that odds of the CLARITY Act reaching the president’s desk were below 50%.

TD Cowen was sharper in its assessment. “We are not more optimistic because we continue to believe Democrats will demand a vote on an amendment that would apply conflict of interest standards to President Trump,” the firm said. “We believe Republicans do not want to take that vote as they do not want to be portrayed in upcoming elections as endorsing the involvement of the Trump family in crypto endeavors.”

The ethics provision is the central obstacle. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has stated the bill will not pass the full Senate without conflict of interest language restricting government officials from profiting from crypto. However, the White House has rejected any language targeting a specific officeholder.

The full Senate requires 60 votes to overcome a filibuster, meaning Republicans need at least seven Democratic votes. This math is complicated by the unresolved ethics dispute.

Background & Historical Context

The CLARITY Act has been stalled multiple times since January over the same fault lines now heading to the Senate floor. The House passed a similar version by 294-134 in July 2025.

The ethics provision falls outside the Senate Banking Committee’s jurisdiction, which is why it was not addressed in committee. This procedural reality now creates a political challenge on the Senate floor.

Senator Cynthia Lummis has warned that missing the window before the August recess could push comprehensive crypto legislation off the calendar until 2030. The bill must also be reconciled with the House version before going to President Trump, adding further steps to an already tight timeline.

What This Means

In the short term, the CLARITY Act faces three immediate obstacles: securing 60 Senate floor votes, resolving the ethics provision dispute, and reconciling differences with the House version.

The ethics battle represents the most difficult challenge. Democrats are expected to demand a vote on conflict of interest standards targeting President Trump, while Republicans are reluctant to take that vote during election season.

If the bill fails to advance before the August recess, comprehensive crypto legislation could be derailed until 2030, as Senator Lummis warned. Traders and investors should monitor Senate floor activity closely in the coming weeks.

The resolution of the stablecoin yield dispute shows compromise is possible. However, the ethics provision represents a fundamentally different kind of political obstacle that will test bipartisan cooperation on crypto regulation.

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US Stock Valuations Near Dot-Com Peak, Bitcoin Looks Cheap by Comparison

May 15, 2026 — The U.S. stock market’s cyclically adjusted price-to-earnings ratio has climbed to 42.18, approaching the 44.19 peak seen during the dot-com bubble of 1999, according to data from multpl.com. While bitcoin cannot be valued using traditional metrics like the Shiller P/E ratio, the cryptocurrency trades well below its record high of approximately $126,000, contrasting with major U.S. indexes sitting at all-time highs.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The Shiller cyclically adjusted price-to-earnings (CAPE) ratio, developed by Nobel laureate Robert Shiller, smooths short-term profit fluctuations to provide a long-term valuation picture. The current reading of 42.18 sits just below the dot-com era peak of 44.19, signaling that U.S. equities are trading at their richest valuations in over 25 years.

“While the elevated Shiller P/E ratio does not guarantee an imminent crash, it signals that even modest disappointments in earnings or the economy could provoke outsized market reactions,” the report states. The S&P 500 fell 50% between March 2000 and October 2002 following the dot-com peak, not recovering until 2007.

Vanguard’s analysis showed that equity valuations at the end of the first quarter remained elevated relative to historical averages, particularly in growth-heavy segments. Since then, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 have added 14% and 24%, respectively.

Market Context & Reaction

Bitcoin currently trades well below its all-time high of roughly $126,000 reached last year, while the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 sit at record levels. This disparity supports the view that diversification flows could rotate into relatively cheaper crypto assets during periods of equity volatility.

However, the outcome remains uncertain. Bitcoin’s growing institutionalization has strengthened its correlation with Wall Street sentiment, meaning instability in equities could spill over into crypto markets. As of May 15, 2026, the CAPE ratio suggests narrowing room for disappointment on earnings or economic fronts.

Traditional valuation frameworks like the Shiller P/E ratio cannot apply to bitcoin since cryptocurrencies do not generate cash flows. From a pure price perspective, however, bitcoin appears far from stretched compared to U.S. stocks.

Background & Historical Context

The dot-com bubble peaked in 1999 with a Shiller P/E ratio of 44.19, followed by a sharp market collapse in 2000. The S&P 500 declined 50% between March 2000 and October 2002, taking until 2007 to regain its previous peak.

Mega-cap technology stocks benefiting from the artificial intelligence boom have driven current U.S. equity valuations to their highest levels since the dot-com era. Several observers have noted that valuations appear stretched, though the elevated reading does not necessarily imply an imminent correction or crash.

What This Means

The narrowing gap between current valuations and dot-com peak levels suggests limited room for earnings or economic disappointments. Even slight negative surprises could trigger outsized market reactions, potentially driving capital toward relatively cheaper assets like bitcoin.

Traders should monitor the potential for diversification flows if stock valuations compress, though bitcoin’s increased institutional correlation with equities means crypto markets may not remain immune to Wall Street volatility. As always, conduct your own research before making investment decisions.

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Brazil’s Central Bank Fines Banco Topazio $3.2M, Issues 2-Year Crypto Trading Ban

May 14, 2026 — Brazil’s Central Bank has imposed a $3.2 million fine and a two-year ban on Banco Topazio’s foreign cryptocurrency trading operations after detecting serious compliance failures involving $1.7 billion in unchecked transactions. The penalties stem from irregularities between October 2020 and September 2021.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The Administrative Sanctioning Process Decision Committee (Copas) of the Central Bank of Brazil determined that Banco Topazio failed to conduct proper due diligence on cryptocurrency purchases during the investigation period. The bank processed $1.7 billion in crypto trades involving 15 legal entities without executing procedures to verify the qualification of third parties benefiting from these operations.

“The institution was fined $3.2 million for irregularities in determining customers’ financial capacities, deficiencies in its registration procedures, and failure in determining AML/CFT (Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) risks,” according to the official decision.

These problematic transactions accounted for 63% of Banco Topazio’s foreign exchange volumes and 46% of the institution’s total market operations during the period. The reviewing committee classified the irregularities as “serious nature,” warning they could “severely affect the purpose and continuity of activities or operations within the National Financial System.”

Market Context & Reaction

Ailton Aiquino, head of oversight at the Central Bank of Brazil, signaled that similar enforcement actions could target other financial institutions. He stated the importance of “warning and making it clear to all agents operating in this market that the banking supervisor is attentive and vigilant regarding deviant behaviors that may lead to business models capable of enabling money laundering operations.”

As of May 14, 2026, this enforcement action reinforces Brazil’s increasingly active regulatory stance on cryptocurrency operations. The measure comes after the central bank previously banned cryptocurrency use in regulated payment rails and imposed a nationwide prohibition on non-financial event markets.

The Central Bank’s decision demonstrates growing scrutiny on compliance processes as traditional banks expand into cryptocurrency services, with regulators demanding robust Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing protocols.

Background & Historical Context

Banco Topazio’s compliance failures occurred between October 2020 and September 2021, when the bank executed cryptocurrency purchases without proper third-party verification procedures. The bank failed to report these atypical operations to regulators despite their substantial volume.

The Central Bank’s Administrative Sanctioning Process Decision Committee (Copas) reviewed the case and determined the violations warranted both financial penalties and operational restrictions. The $3.2 million fine specifically addresses deficiencies in customer financial capacity assessments, registration procedures, and AML/CFT risk management protocols.

The two-year trading ban prohibits Banco Topazio from conducting foreign purchases and sales of cryptocurrency assets, effectively removing the bank from Brazil’s regulated crypto market.

What This Means

This enforcement action signals that Brazilian regulators are intensifying oversight of banking institutions entering the cryptocurrency space. Banks operating crypto trading services must ensure robust compliance programs or face potential trading bans and significant fines.

Other Brazilian financial institutions should expect heightened scrutiny on their crypto-related operations, with the Central Bank prepared to issue similar precautionary measures against violators. The message is clear: non-compliance with Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing requirements carries severe consequences.

For crypto traders and investors, this development reinforces the importance of transacting only with regulated institutions that maintain proper compliance protocols, as regulatory actions could impact market access and liquidity.

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Blackrock Leads $635M Bitcoin ETF Selloff as Solana Demand Holds Firm

May 14, 2026 — Institutional investors pulled $635.23 million from spot Bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday, marking the second straight day of heavy outflows as Blackrock’s IBIT led the retreat with $284.69 million in withdrawals. The selloff extended to Ether funds, which lost another $36.30 million for a third consecutive losing session, while Solana ETFs bucked the trend with $5.97 million in net inflows.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The scale of Wednesday’s withdrawals represents one of the weakest sessions for Bitcoin ETF products in recent weeks. Every major fund reported net outflows, with no fund recording inflows during the trading day. Ark & 21Shares’ ARKB followed Blackrock with $177.10 million in exits, while Fidelity’s FBTC shed $133.22 million. Additional pressure came from Bitwise’s BITB, which lost $35.40 million, and Valkyrie’s BRRR, which posted a smaller $4.82 million outflow.

According to the Bitcoin.com News report published May 14, 2026, trading activity remained elevated at $1.99 billion despite the defensive sentiment, suggesting investors remain highly engaged. Total net assets across Bitcoin ETFs fell to $105.01 billion. Two days of outflows now total nearly $900 million for Bitcoin products.

Ether ETFs mirrored the broader caution on a more contained scale. Blackrock’s ETHA accounted for the largest share of withdrawals with $21.10 million in exits, while Fidelity’s FETH saw another $14.04 million leave the fund. Blackrock’s ETHB, which had previously acted as a steady inflow channel, slipped modestly into negative territory with a $1.16 million outflow. Trading volume across Ether ETFs reached $515.51 million, with net assets ending the day at $13.19 billion.

Market Context & Reaction

Solana ETFs offered the only notable sign of risk appetite amid the broader market retreat. The category attracted $5.97 million in net inflows, led by Grayscale’s GSOL with $4.89 million. Fidelity’s FSOL added another $1.08 million. While relatively modest compared with Bitcoin flows, the positive move suggests some investors continue seeking exposure to alternative blockchain ecosystems even as broader sentiment weakens.

Solana ETF trading volume reached $56.64 million, with net assets closing at $1.02 billion. XRP ETFs, meanwhile, recorded no trading activity during the session, with net assets remaining unchanged at $1.14 billion.

The divergence between Bitcoin and Solana flows highlights a potential rotation in institutional positioning. As of May 14, 2026, investor caution appears firmly in control of the broader ETF market, with the question now being whether these outflows represent short-term repositioning or the beginning of a broader pullback in institutional crypto demand.

Background & Historical Context

Wednesday’s selling follows a similar pattern from Tuesday, when Fidelity led $233 million in Bitcoin ETF losses while Solana funds added $19 million. The consecutive negative sessions mark a significant shift after weeks of relatively resilient demand across crypto ETF products.

The Ethereum ETF losing streak now extends to three sessions, reflecting persistent caution around the second-largest cryptocurrency. Blackrock’s ETHA has been the primary driver of outflows, while Fidelity’s FETH has also seen consistent withdrawals.

Solana’s ability to attract inflows during this defensive period mirrors its performance in recent weeks, where it has consistently drawn investor interest even as Bitcoin and Ether products face selling pressure. The XRP ETF market remains dormant, with no trading activity during Wednesday’s session.

What This Means

The immediate outlook suggests institutional investors are rotating capital away from Bitcoin and Ether exposure while maintaining selective interest in alternative blockchain ecosystems like Solana. Traders should monitor whether Bitcoin ETF outflows extend into a third consecutive session, which would signal a more pronounced shift in market sentiment.

For long-term holders, the elevated trading volume at $1.99 billion despite outflows indicates active positioning rather than complete market disengagement. The coming days will clarify whether this represents profit-taking after recent gains or a more fundamental reassessment of crypto exposure.

Investors should note that this is not financial advice and conduct their own research before making any investment decisions. Market conditions remain volatile, and ETF flows can reverse quickly based on macroeconomic developments or regulatory changes.

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Bitcoin’s $80K Surge May Be Temporary, On-Chain Data Suggests

May 14, 2026 — Bitcoin’s recent climb to $80,000 appears driven by short-term derivatives dynamics rather than genuine demand, with on-chain metrics and institutional flows signaling caution. Analysts at Bitfinex say the rally may represent a liquidity squeeze before prices settle between $82,000 and $84,000.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

On-chain data shows improving fundamentals, but daily realized losses averaging $479 million indicate the recovery is not yet durable, according to a Bitfinex analyst note shared Thursday. Long-term holders have increased their bitcoin holdings by 300% since end-2025, now holding nearly 4 million tokens, and are taking $180 million in profits daily since the May 11 rally above $82,000.

“That is a moderate amount compared with past cycles and suggests current selling is controlled,” Bitfinex analysts said. However, they noted concern: “In quieter periods, this figure sits closer to $200 million. Until losses drop to the $200 million band, the on-chain recovery is not fully confirmed.”

A large short-gamma options cluster near $82,000, with nearly $2 billion in concentrated positions, is amplifying volatility. “Dealer hedging can accelerate price toward that level, but once the squeeze exhausts itself, the same positioning can suppress momentum and act as resistance,” said Jason Fernandes, co-founder at AdLunam. “Gamma is currently amplifying the move, not necessarily validating it.”

Market Context & Reaction

Institutional demand has weakened sharply. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs recorded a $635 million outflow on May 13, the largest single-day exit since January. Corporate purchases have dropped 80% compared to last month, with major players buying very little bitcoin last week.

Bitcoin dipped from $81,000 to the lower $79,000s on Thursday after touching $82,000 on May 11. The current “cost-basis battlefield” between $79,000 and $85,000 resembles a transition zone rather than a ceiling, noted Mati Greenspan, founder of Quantum Economics.

The broader economic landscape presents hurdles. On May 13, the U.S. Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve Chair amid rising 3.8% inflation. “Kevin Warsh has already set expectations that there is unlikely to be a rate cut this year—it’s possible there may even be a rate hike,” Fernandes said. “I just don’t see BTC reaching a new ATH this year unless something radically changes geopolitically.”

Background & Historical Context

On-chain metrics are showing their most constructive signals since early February, yet seller behavior and derivatives positioning suggest a difficult path to new highs. The gamma trap creates a deceptive environment where short-term price movement appears bullish but lacks underlying validation.

Bitfinex analysts anticipate a quick jump to the $82,000 to $84,000 range, followed by a “period of neutralization.” The current structure looks like “incomplete capitulation,” Fernandes said, noting the market needs to flush out daily realized losses and reclaim institutional conviction.

What This Means

Traders should expect heightened volatility around the $82,000 level, with potential for a brief squeeze higher followed by consolidation. The $85,000 level remains the cycle’s primary “fair-value battlefield,” according to analysts.

For investors, the divergence between on-chain improvement and institutional flows is a key signal. Until daily realized losses drop from $479 million to the $200 million band and corporate demand returns, a sustained rally beyond current levels appears unlikely.

The “higher for longer” interest-rate environment under the new Fed Chair adds macroeconomic headwinds that may keep bitcoin range-bound through the remainder of the year, absent a significant geopolitical shift.

Not financial advice. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.

ADI Foundation and Settlemint Launch ADGM Tokenization Rail for $30.9B RWAs

May 14, 2026 — ADI Foundation and Settlemint have launched a partnership to build an integrated digital securities infrastructure on the ADI Chain within the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) regulatory framework. The collaboration aims to streamline the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs), which currently represent approximately $30.92 billion in on-chain value, according to RWA.xyz data.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The new infrastructure combines ADI Foundation’s compliance-ready Layer-2 blockchain with Settlemint’s digital asset lifecycle platform (DALP). The integrated system handles the entire lifespan of a digital security, from initial token creation and on-chain recording to post-trade servicing and management.

“This partnership proves that regulated, multi-asset tokenization at national scale on public blockchains is not just feasible, but live,” said Matthew Van Niekerk, co-founder and president of Settlemint.

The platform utilizes Settlemint’s implementation of the ERC-3643 standard, a protocol specifically designed for security tokens to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. While initially focusing on equity tokenization, the infrastructure is built to support other tokenized securities and financial instruments pending regulatory approval.

“The future of investment and trading will not only be digitized, but also available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” said Andrey Lazorenko, CEO of ADI Foundation. “Our partnership brings together market infrastructure, institutional-grade blockchain, and a digital asset lifecycle platform to tokenize equities and trade them on secondary platforms.”

Market Context & Reaction

The announcement comes as institutional interest in real-world assets (RWAs) on-chain continues to accelerate. As of May 2026, tokenized U.S. Treasuries account for roughly $15.20 billion of the $30.92 billion total on-chain RWA market, according to RWA.xyz data.

Market analysts expect this trend to scale significantly. A 2026 analysis by BCG projects the digital asset market could surge from $0.6 trillion in 2025 to $18.9 trillion by 2033, signaling massive institutional adoption ahead.

Van Niekerk characterized the partnership as a “blueprint” for the broader financial industry, noting that the infrastructure is intended to be a model that central securities depositories (CSDs), exchanges, and clearing houses can adopt to integrate digital assets into existing operations.

The launch addresses a primary hurdle for institutional investors: the difficulty of coordinating issuance, trading, settlement, and custody across fragmented jurisdictions. By providing an integrated architecture, the partners aim to offer a unified pathway for institutions to move traditional assets onto the blockchain.

Background & Historical Context

The ADI Foundation and Settlemint partnership represents a significant milestone in the evolution of digital securities infrastructure under regulated frameworks. The ADGM regulatory framework, established in 2026, provides the legal foundation for this initiative.

This development follows broader trends in the Middle East’s crypto and blockchain adoption. DMCC recently partnered with Crypto.com to advance commodities tokenization in Dubai, exploring blockchain-enabled infrastructure for real-world asset tokenization across commodity markets.

Saudi Arabia has also launched national blockchain infrastructure for real estate tokenization, signaling growing regional momentum for institutional-grade digital asset solutions.

The ERC-3643 standard implementation is particularly notable, as it provides a compliance-focused protocol for security tokens, addressing regulatory concerns that have historically hindered institutional participation in tokenized markets.

What This Means

For institutional investors, this infrastructure provides a clear regulatory pathway to tokenize and trade traditional assets on blockchain networks, potentially reducing costs and settlement times while increasing market accessibility.

The 24/7 trading capability mentioned by Lazorenko could fundamentally change equity market dynamics, enabling round-the-clock trading that aligns with global investor demands.

Settlemint’s blueprint approach suggests other exchanges and CSDs may adopt similar models, potentially accelerating the $18.9 trillion digital asset market projection by 2033.

Investors should monitor regulatory developments in ADGM and other jurisdictions, as approval for additional tokenized financial instruments could significantly expand addressable market opportunities. As always, conduct your own research before engaging with new tokenization platforms or digital securities offerings.

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Bitcoiner Recovers $500K in Lost BTC Using Claude AI After 11-Year Lockout

May 13, 2026 — A Bitcoin holder known on X as @cprkrn successfully recovered approximately 5 BTC, valued between $400,000 and $500,000, from a wallet that had been inaccessible since 2015, crediting Anthropic’s Claude AI for solving a technical challenge that had resisted all prior attempts.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The recovery targeted wallet address 14VJySbsKraEJbtwk9ivnr1fXs6QuofuE6, which had been locked since roughly 2014 or 2015. While in college, @cprkrn changed the wallet’s password while intoxicated and forgot the new password. He retained an old mnemonic — “lol420fu*thePOLICE!:)” — but it no longer worked on the current wallet file.

Over the years, @cprkrn spent approximately $250 on professional recovery services and attempted what he described as “like 7 trillion passwords” before abandoning conventional methods. He waited until Bitcoin crossed $100,000 to seriously attempt recovery again. By May 13, 2026, the price had pulled back to the $80,000 to $82,000 range, making the funds still worth pursuing.

“I just mega dumped all of your computers and notebooks into Claude,” @cprkrn wrote in a follow-up post, summarizing the method for others in similar situations.

Market Context & Reaction

The recovery method was direct: @cprkrn uploaded the full contents of his old college computer — including files, notebooks, and backups — into Claude AI. The AI located an older wallet file that predated the password change and identified why the mnemonic no longer worked on the current file.

The technical issue centered on how the password was being processed. The btcrecover tool, a widely used open-source Bitcoin wallet recovery utility, was concatenating a shared key with the password in an incorrect order. Claude identified the bug, corrected the decryption logic, ran the process, and extracted the private keys in Wallet Import Format.

Claude’s output, which @cprkrn screenshotted and posted to X, read: “PRIVATE KEYS DECRYPTED! WE GOT IT!!! THE 5 BTC IS YOURS!” The wallet app screenshot that followed showed an imported legacy P2PKH wallet with the full 5 BTC balance and pending outbound transactions.

The X thread drew more than 414,000 views and approximately 1,900 likes within hours. Responses came from across the crypto community, including Nic Carter, Jesse Pollak, Laura Shin, and @bitcoinarchive. Some called it a lifesaver.

Background & Historical Context

The wallet format involved was P2PKH, a legacy type common in early Bitcoin use before 2015. The wallet had last been publicly referenced by @cprkrn in August 2023, when he lamented the locked funds on the same address.

The funds he received on April 1, 2015, totaling 5 BTC, sat untouched until they were swept out on the same day the recovery was completed. A smaller number of community responses raised questions about the security implications of AI systems working with encrypted wallet files, though the recovery relied on the user already possessing the correct, older password.

What Claude did was not a brute-force attack. It parsed files, understood the structure of legacy wallet software, debugged an existing tool, and ran the corrected process. @cprkrn described the process as a last-ditch effort after months of digging through old files.

“This is not financial advice,” @cprkrn added in a separate post. “Step 1. Download Claude. Step 2. Mega dump all of your information and pray.”

What This Means

The wallet recovery showcases AI’s potential for handling niche technical tasks beyond simple data processing. For holders with old, inaccessible wallets, this demonstrates a new avenue for recovery that doesn’t rely solely on brute-force password cracking.

However, the method requires users to already possess older wallet files or backup materials. Claude didn’t crack the password; it identified a software bug preventing the correct password from working.

The case also underscores the importance of maintaining multiple backup formats for wallet keys and passwords. @cprkrn’s success came from having preserved old college computer files for over a decade.

@cprkrn closed the thread by thanking Anthropic and its CEO, Dario Amodei, directly. “Naming my kid after you,” he wrote.

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Strong PPI Data Signals Persistent Inflation, Rate-Cut Hopes Fade

May 2025 — A stronger-than-expected U.S. inflation reading has complicated the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook, with markets rapidly repricing the likelihood of rate cuts this year after April’s Producer Price Index (PPI) came in at 1.4%, far above the 0.5% consensus forecast.

Immediate Details & Direct Quotes

The April U.S. Producer Price Index rose 1.4%, well above economist expectations of 0.5%, according to Jinshi reports. The hotter reading suggests inflationary pressures remain more persistent than previously assumed, strengthening the argument that monetary policy will stay restrictive for longer.

Market participants have reacted by pushing expectations toward a more hawkish trajectory, including a growing probability of interest rate hikes before December. According to market pricing cited in the report, the probability of a rate hike before year-end has now risen above 30%, marking a notable shift from earlier expectations of gradual policy easing in the second half of the year.

The inflation surprise underscores a broader challenge for policymakers: producer-level price pressures often filter into consumer prices with a lag, increasing the risk that inflation remains elevated even as growth moderates.

Market Context & Reaction

Financial markets have responded by recalibrating expectations across risk assets, credit markets and interest-rate derivatives. Higher expected policy rates tend to tighten liquidity conditions, reduce speculative leverage and increase discount rates used in asset valuation models.

This repricing phase typically leads to heightened volatility, particularly in sectors sensitive to liquidity cycles and macroeconomic sentiment. Investors are now reassessing whether earlier optimism around policy easing was premature given the strength of recent inflation indicators.

As of May 2025, similar inflation shocks have triggered broad risk-off moves across speculative markets as traders rapidly unwind leveraged positions and reposition toward defensive assets. Previous episodes of unexpected inflation prints have coincided with sharp increases in derivatives liquidations and funding rate volatility.

At the same time, equity markets have shown selective resilience, particularly in sectors tied to productivity gains and structural growth trends, even as broader monetary conditions tighten.

Background & Historical Context

The current macro environment highlights a widening gap between growth expectations and inflation realities, leaving central bank policy as the dominant driver of market direction heading into the second half of the year.

In prior crypto news coverage, similar inflation shocks have triggered broad risk-off moves across speculative markets as traders rapidly unwind leveraged positions and reposition toward defensive assets. Key market indicators like derivatives liquidations and funding rate volatility have historically spiked during unexpected inflation prints.

What This Means

– Short-term impact: Markets are now pricing more than a 30% probability of an interest rate hike before December, forcing traders to reassess positions across risk assets

– Long-term implications: The “higher-for-longer” interest rate environment suggests borrowing costs will remain elevated to contain price pressures across the economy

– Key takeaway: Producer-level price pressures often filter into consumer prices with a lag, increasing the risk that inflation remains elevated even as growth moderates

– What to watch: Market participants should monitor upcoming inflation data and Federal Reserve communications for further policy signals

Not financial advice. Conduct your own research before making investment decisions.