Hi Reader,
Thanks for reading The BlockByte Weekly, where we summarise the key updates in crypto over the last week and provide our perspective on what you need to know as an investor.
Executive Summary
The crypto markets rallied by 10.5% this week, led by Ethereum's ~40% price surge. At least three key drivers fuelled the rally, including positive trade deal announcements between the US and UK, and upcoming talks with China. Other positive drivers included both New Hampshire and Arizona enacting state-level crypto reserve bills into law. This week's price action followed another key driver, rising global liquidity, one of the best indicators of future price direction for risk-on assets.
In this email, we also cover the increased institutionalisation of the asset class. The major US bank regulator, the OCC, signalled to banks that they are now able to custody and provide services using cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin ETF inflows continued, as did a raft of new institutions looking to set up and acquire bitcoin as part of their treasury holdings.
Lastly, in an announcement that many investors will be pleased to hear, Alex Mashinsky, the CEO of Celsius, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for the fraudulent activities of his crypto company, Celsius.
Market Update
The 3 Drivers of the Crypto Rally
Over the past week, the overall crypto market rose by 10.5%, with altcoins gaining an average of 17%. Ethereum led the market rally, up approximately 40% this week. The positive price action coincided with its announced Pectra upgrade, which aims to bring increased scalability and efficiency to its blockchain. However, the real driver of the market's upward movement has been growing risk-on sentiment, driven by three key catalysts:
Firstly, earlier this week, the UK and US struck a trade deal, the first of what Trump claims will be many to come. Additionally, the US is set to begin long-awaited trade talks with China this weekend in Switzerland. A positive outcome here could further bolster market sentiment.
Secondly, New Hampshire, followed by Arizona, became the first US states to sign bitcoin and cryptocurrency reserve legislation into law. Whilst the bills passed differ in their implementation (e.g., New Hampshire can invest up to 5% of general public funds in cryptocurrencies with over $500B in market cap, whereas Arizona can only hold digital assets that have been confiscated or lost), you can read more about the key differences at BitcoinLaws.

The third major driver is the chart we’ve circulated for the past several weeks, before the recent rally. That is, global liquidity (the amount of money in circulation) has been increasing and is one of the best indicators of where equity and crypto market prices are heading. Raoul Pal gave an excellent talk on the topic; if you’re not overly familiar with M2, you can watch it here.

Insitutional Adoption Gathers Pace
Over the past week, institutional adoption of cryptocurrency has surged with several pivotal developments. Here's just a few of the major moves over the last week:
- The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) now permits banks to custody and trade crypto, enhancing security and regulatory clarity for institutional investors.
- Facebook (Meta) could be set to re-enter the payments space, potentially integrating Bitcoin Lightning for its 3 billion users, which could revolutionise crypto commerce and provide a trusted payments platform for people exchanging goods via its marketplace online store.
- Coinbase also finalised a $2.9 billion acquisition of Deribit, a leading crypto derivatives exchange, the move strengthens its global derivatives market presence, signaling robust institutional interest in crypto trading infrastructure.
- MicroStrategy continues its aggressive Bitcoin accumulation, with over 538,000 BTC now held, contributing to a $5.1 billion gain in 2025.
- Bitcoin ETFs have seen record inflows, with BlackRock’s IBIT alone attracting $1.03 billion last week and a 19-day inflow streak, reflecting strong institutional demand.
- Metaplanet, Japan’s Bitcoin treasury pioneer, acquired 555 BTC, bringing its total to 5,555 BTC, and launched a U.S. subsidiary to raise $250 million for further Bitcoin purchases, outpacing MicroStrategy in growth.
- Vivek Ramaswamy’s Strive Asset Management recently announced a merger with Asset Entities. The company aims to raise $1 billion to purchase Bitcoin.



@BTCTN
🚨 The OCC has confirmed that certain crypto-related activities like custody and stablecoin use are legally permissible for national banks, provided they implement appropriate risk management practices.

10:22 PM • Apr 23, 2025
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Fraudster Machinsky to Join Sam Bankman-Fried Behind Bars
Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky was sentenced to 12 years in prison for fraud by a New York federal court, despite his defence seeking a lighter sentence, citing his clean record and guilty plea. Prosecutors, led by Trump-nominated US attorney Jay Clayton, pushed for a 20-year term, arguing Mashinsky targeted unsophisticated retail investors. The sentence signals strict enforcement against crypto fraud under Trump’s administration, despite his recent pardons of crypto executives like Ross Ulbricht and BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes. Mashinsky will join Sam Bankman-Fried behind bars, though it is not confirmed if it will be in the same prison. Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was sentenced to 25 years in prison on March 28, 2024, for fraud and conspiracy related to the collapse of FTX. As of May 11, 2025, he has served approximately 13.5 months of his 25-year sentence.

Until next week,
James
James Brannan
Managing Director
BlockByte
(+61) 412 393 634
james@blockbyte.com.au
https://blockbyte.com.au/

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