Golden Weekly is a weekly blockchain industry summary program launched by Golden Finance, covering key news of the week, mining information, project dynamics, technological progress, and other industry trends. This article is part of the news weekly, providing a glimpse of this week's major events in the blockchain industry.
Headlines
▌Tether CEO: Tether has over 450 million users, and is growing by more than 30 million each quarter
According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino's post on X, USDT is driving the hegemony of the dollar in all emerging markets, with over 450 million users, especially in developing countries, growing by more than 30 million each quarter.
▌U.S. legal groups file lawsuit to block Trump's tariff policy
Court documents show that legal groups have filed a lawsuit in the U.S. International Trade Court aimed at blocking President Trump's tariff policy.
▌Survey: Trump's approval rating in the economic field has dropped to its lowest level since his presidency
On April 19, according to the latest CNBC nationwide economic survey, President Donald Trump’s handling of issues such as tariffs, inflation, and government spending has sparked widespread dissatisfaction, and his approval rating in the economic field has reached its lowest level since he took office. The survey shows that the economic optimism brought by Trump's campaign for re-election has disappeared, and the proportion of Americans believing the economy will worsen has reached the highest level since 2023, with a clear shift towards pessimism regarding U.S. stocks. This nationwide survey of 1,000 Americans found that 44% approve of Trump's overall governance performance, while 51% disapprove, which is slightly better than his final approval rating when he left office in 2020. However, in terms of economic performance, only 43% approve, while 55% disapprove, marking Trump's first negative net approval rating on economic issues in CNBC's polling history.
▌California sues Trump's tariff policy, claiming it is illegal and detrimental to the economy
The office of California Governor Newsom issued a statement regarding Trump's tariff measures, stating that the state will file a lawsuit to seek an end to Trump's tariff policy. California heavily relies on global trade across major industries from Silicon Valley to agriculture and may lose billions of dollars due to tariffs. Newsom stated in the announcement, 'President Trump's illegal tariff measures are causing chaos for California families, businesses, and our economy—driving up prices and threatening jobs.' This lawsuit is Newsom's most direct legal challenge to Trump's policy agenda since he took office again in January. Newsom's argument targets the U.S. International Economic Emergency Powers Act, under which Trump imposed tariffs without congressional approval. This Democrat believes that under this law, Trump does not have the authority to impose tariffs, which aligns with a similar lawsuit filed by a group of American businesses on Monday.
▌U.S. White House: Trump will consider banning stock trading by members of Congress
U.S. White House: Trump will consider banning stock trading by members of Congress.
Policy
▌Arizona's Digital Asset Reserve Act passed in House committee
The Arizona Strategic Digital Asset Reserve Act (referred to as 'SB 1373') was passed by the House committee on Thursday. The bill still requires three readings and a full vote before being sent to the governor for final approval. The SB 1373 bill proposes the establishment of a digital asset strategic reserve fund, which will consist of funds allocated by the legislature and seized crypto assets. The bill states that the state treasurer will be allowed to deposit seized cryptocurrencies into the fund via qualified custodial solutions or state-registered exchange-traded products, and the treasurer can borrow digital assets from the fund for additional returns. The bill states, 'The state treasurer's investment amount in any fiscal year shall not exceed 10% of the total deposits of the fund.'
▌U.S. 'reciprocal tariffs' may cost the EU €1.1 trillion
A research report released by the German Institute for Economic Research recently indicated that over the next four years, the U.S. 'reciprocal tariff' measures could cost Germany €290 billion and the EU €1.1 trillion. (Jin Shi)
▌U.S. judge suspends cryptocurrency regulatory lawsuit against SEC from 18 states
On Wednesday, a federal judge in the U.S. agreed to suspend a lawsuit filed by 18 state attorneys general and a DeFi lobbying group against the SEC, after all parties noted that the SEC's new leadership is now in place. In November of last year, after Trump won the 2024 presidential election, these state attorneys general (all Republicans) filed this lawsuit along with the DeFi Education Fund. They accused the federal securities regulatory agency of overstepping its authority in suing cryptocurrency exchanges. In documents submitted on Wednesday, the SEC stated that the lawsuit could be concluded after Paul Atkins was confirmed as the new agency chair. The judge ordered all parties to submit a joint status report within 30 days but suspended all deadlines for 60 days. On Wednesday, another lawsuit filed by the DeFi Education Fund, the Texas Blockchain Council, and the Blockchain Association against the IRS was also dismissed. This lawsuit argued that the IRS's DeFi broker rules exceeded the agency's authority. Last week, Trump signed a resolution passed by both the House and Senate under the Congressional Review Act, repealing this rule. In documents submitted on Wednesday, all parties stated that after Trump signed the resolution, the lawsuit has become 'of no practical significance.'
▌NFT Project CyberKongz: Investigation from the SEC has concluded
On Tuesday, the NFT project CyberKongz announced on X that the investigation by the SEC has concluded and announced a 'rebranding.' The company stated, 'For CyberKongz, the shackles have been lifted, and we have been preparing for this day for a long time. The comprehensive brand boundaries and new direction of CyberKongz will be announced soon.' Last December, CyberKongz stated that it received a Wells notice issued by the SEC.
▌Kyrgyzstan appoints Zhao Changpeng as national blockchain and Web3 strategic advisor
According to Cointelegraph, the Kyrgyzstan National Investment Agency has signed a strategic memorandum of understanding with Binance founder Zhao Changpeng (CZ), officially appointing him as the national blockchain development, cryptocurrency regulation, and Web3 innovation advisor. Under the agreement, CZ will provide digital asset framework guidance and blockchain infrastructure technical support for the Kyrgyz government while promoting talent development and DeFi innovation environment construction. Kyrgyzstan President Zaparov stated that blockchain and digital finance are priority development areas for the country, and this cooperation is an important step forward for the nation. The cooperation also includes support for education, workforce training, and cross-border knowledge exchange in the blockchain field, aiming to promote domestic entrepreneurship and align Kyrgyzstan with the global best practices in virtual asset regulation.
Blockchain applications
▌Coinbase completes the infrastructure upgrade for Solana within the platform
Coinbase Platform announced that it has completed the infrastructure upgrade for Solana within the platform, with major improvements including: implementing asynchronous processing of transactions, increasing block processing throughput by 5 times; using bare metal servers, improving RPC performance by 4 times; enhancing system resilience through improved failover mechanisms, liquidity optimization, and operational controls. Coinbase is committed to continuing to invest in Solana infrastructure to meet the future scalability needs of Solana.
▌Initia: Mainnet will launch on April 24
According to official news, L1 blockchain Initia announced that it will launch its mainnet on April 24.
▌WeChat Pay teams up with international payment giant Stripe to accelerate internationalization
According to the Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily, global payment service and financial infrastructure provider Stripe announced today that it has officially integrated WeChat Pay into Stripe Terminal in 20 countries in deepening global cooperation with Tencent. In countries such as Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore, the UK, and the USA, businesses supported by Stripe can not only seamlessly access WeChat Pay online but also implement offline payments through Stripe Terminal.
▌Solana ecological payment protocol Solayer launches non-custodial cryptocurrency debit card
Solana's ecological payment solution Solayer announced the launch of a non-custodial cryptocurrency debit card, allowing users to spend crypto assets directly without custodial funds. This product is achieved through collaboration with Visa, supporting real-time conversion of SOL and SPL tokens for fiat settlement while maintaining full control of private keys by users. Solayer stated that this move aims to promote the large-scale application of cryptocurrency in everyday payment scenarios.
▌Hong Kong Stock Exchange: Open to using blockchain and other technologies to address existing carbon market issues
Hong Kong Stock Exchange Group's Chief Sustainability Officer Zhou Guanying stated that the application of new technologies like blockchain may make the tracking of carbon credits more transparent and efficient and facilitate cross-border transactions. Therefore, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is open to using blockchain and other technologies to address existing carbon market issues.
Cryptocurrency
▌Data: The number of wallets holding over 10,000 SOL increased by 1.53% in the past week
According to on-chain analyst @ali_charts, the number of wallets holding over 10,000 SOL increased by 1.53% in the past week, from 4,943 to 5,019.
▌Matrixport: Bitcoin ETF fund inflows are concentrated among leading institutions, reflecting stronger institutional demand than broad retail participation
Matrixport released a latest report stating that in 2025, the net inflow of funds into Bitcoin ETFs will be slightly above zero, despite a strong performance at the beginning of the year, which recorded nearly $5.5 billion in inflows. This phenomenon is quite unexpected, as Bitcoin has outperformed U.S. tech stocks this year, and gold has also hit a historical high. Notably, the total net inflow into Bitcoin ETFs is $35.5 billion, with BlackRock accounting for $39.6 billion and Fidelity for $11.4 billion, together holding the vast majority of the share. In contrast, inflows from other ETF issuers are relatively limited. This indicates that current buying is more likely coming from specific institutional client groups rather than being driven by widespread retail funds—if it were the latter, fund inflows would be more evenly distributed among various ETF providers.
▌Fireblocks: As TradFi enters the stablecoin space, Tether and Circle will face fierce competition
Digital asset encryption and custody expert Fireblocks stated that the competition for stablecoin dominance is entering its third phase, as the industry faces increasing regulation from the EU's cryptocurrency market (MiCA) regulations and U.S. legislation currently under congressional review, with the largest token issuers Tether and the second-largest issuer Circle consolidating their positions. Fireblocks' Senior Vice President of Payments, Ran Goldi, stated that the latest phase will see a variety of banks and existing payment companies participating, weighing the best ways to integrate tokens into their existing businesses. Goldi expects that by the end of this year, there will be as many as 50 stablecoins.
▌Standard Chartered: The stablecoin market size may increase to $2 trillion by the end of 2028
Standard Chartered indicated that the passage of the U.S. stablecoin bill could lead to a significant increase in the supply of stablecoins, projecting that by the end of 2028, the stablecoin market size could grow from the current $230 billion to $2 trillion. Additionally, Standard Chartered stated that the increase in stablecoin supply would impact U.S. Treasury purchases and dollar hegemony. Moreover, Standard Chartered believes that the increased demand for dollar-denominated stablecoin reserves will lead to additional demand for the dollar, thereby supporting dollar hegemony, and anticipates that the stablecoin industry will shift towards the model adopted by USDC issuer Circle.
▌Zcash may be delisted by Binance, causing dissatisfaction in the industry as regulatory pressure on privacy coins re-emerges
Binance initiated a vote to decide whether to delist one of the three tokens: Zcash (ZEC), FTT, and JASMY, sparking strong dissatisfaction among privacy coin supporters. Zcash founder Zooko Wilcox and DCG founder Barry Silbert, Ledger's CTO, and others have publicly opposed it, emphasizing the importance of privacy rights. ZEC currently has a market capitalization of approximately $500 million, with a 24-hour price drop of 3.1% to $31.26. Privacy coins have long faced regulatory pressure, and the EU has proposed a comprehensive ban on such tokens.
Important economic dynamics
▌Goldman Sachs CEO: The likelihood of a U.S. economic recession has 'increased'
Goldman Sachs CEO Solomon stated on Monday that the likelihood of a U.S. economic recession has 'increased,' citing uncertainty from the trade war and businesses being uncertain about how to plan for the future. Solomon noted that as we enter the second quarter, our operating environment is markedly different from earlier this year, and economic growth has been 'slowing,' with the implementation of Trump's new trade policy 'greatly altering the outlook for global future growth.' He also pointed out that concerns about significant uncertainties in the near and long term restrict clients' ability to make important decisions, and the uncertainty of the future path poses 'major risks' to the U.S. and global economy.
▌Federal Reserve Governor Waller: If there is a significant economic slowdown, I tend to favor earlier and more substantial interest rate cuts
Federal Reserve Governor Waller stated that the new tariff policy is one of the largest shocks to the U.S. economy in decades. I believe that the high inflation caused by tariffs will be temporary. If the current average tariff rate of 25% persists for a while, inflation may peak at around 5%; if it drops to 10%, inflation could peak at 3%. Under high tariffs, the drag on output and employment may be more persistent; the unemployment rate could rise to 5%. In a scenario of massive tariffs, if there is a significant economic slowdown, I tend to favor earlier and more substantial interest rate cuts than previously thought. With average tariffs below 10%, economic activity will be limited; I support a limited monetary policy response. In scenarios with smaller tariffs, the Federal Reserve may be more patient, and rate cuts could occur in the second half of the year. Policy has a high degree of uncertainty, and the Federal Reserve should remain flexible. A temporary pause on some tariffs may have broadened the range of potential outcomes, making the timing of (rate cuts) less certain. Inflation expectations have not lost stability, and inflation is expected to return to more moderate levels by 2026. Monetary policy is significantly restricting economic activity, and potential inflation is expected to continue to decline moderately.
▌Deutsche Bank: Now expects the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points in December
Deutsche Bank now expects the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points in December, having previously anticipated no cuts in 2025. (Jin Shi)
▌Market analysis: Dollar depreciation may lower inflation rates for U.S. trading partners
Thu Lan Nguyen, an analyst at Commerzbank, stated that due to Trump's tariff policy, the depreciation of the dollar may lower the inflation rates of U.S. trading partners. She said, 'If this situation continues, most central banks will not face a dilemma: weighing economic and inflation risks.' This would allow for further interest rate cuts, easing the appreciation pressure of non-dollar currencies against the dollar. She noted that for now, the impact of tariffs seems highly unlikely to reverse.
▌Goldman Sachs: Gold prices may reach $4,500 per ounce by the end of 2025
Goldman Sachs indicates that by the end of 2025, gold prices could reach around $4,500 per ounce, suggesting a potential upside of 38%.