According to PANews, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has proposed the first block on the Taiko mainnet. The event took place at 15:03:47 Beijing time. In his remarks attached to the block, Buterin expressed his pleasure at seeing Taiko launched as a Based Rollup platform. He also noted that Ethereum benefits from adopting various Layer 2 (L2) methods and appreciated that Taiko is among the first projects to develop in this direction. Buterin's involvement in the Taiko mainnet signifies a significant step in the development of the platform. The Ethereum co-founder's endorsement of Taiko's direction of development further highlights the potential of the project. The use of multiple L2 methods, as noted by Buterin, is a key aspect of Ethereum's success, and Taiko's adoption of this approach could potentially lead to similar benefits. This development marks a significant milestone for Taiko, positioning it as a leading player in the adoption of L2 methods. The endorsement from a figure as influential as Buterin could potentially boost the project's visibility and credibility in the blockchain space. However, the long-term success of the project will depend on its ability to effectively implement and optimize the use of L2 methods.

According to Odaily: Bloomberg ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas, has suggested that Ethereum's narrative lacks the simplicity needed to resonate with the Baby Boomer generation, which could pose a challenge for its ETFs. Balchunas questioned if there exists a simplified pitch for Ethereum and expressed that the key to attracting investors aged 60-80 is to compress the purpose and value of Ethereum into a clear and concise narrative. 

According to Odaily, data from Nasnen reveals that a newly created wallet address, initially funded by GSR, has invested $1 million in DMT and has already seen a 24% profit. The value of DMT has surged by 92% over the past week. The significant increase in DMT's value has contributed to the profit margin of the new wallet address. The initial funding for this wallet address was provided by GSR, a well-known entity in the digital currency market. The data highlights the potential profitability of investments in digital currencies like DMT, especially in a bullish market. However, it's important to note that the digital currency market is highly volatile and investments should be made with caution.

According to Odaily, following the recent approval of the Ethereum ETF19B-4 form by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), South Korean regulators are facing increasing pressure to approve cryptocurrency ETFs. The SEC's decision on Ethereum is expected to put pressure on South Korean financial regulators, forcing them to reconsider their stance on digital assets. Unlike the U.S., the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) in South Korea have been cautious about introducing crypto asset trading in traditional securities markets. According to FSC regulations, ETFs must strictly comply with the Capital Markets Act, which stipulates that ETFs must only be linked to traditional underlying assets. These assets include mature financial instruments, securities, international currencies, and commodities, which provide the basis for financial derivatives. Xangle, a digital currency data provider based in Seoul, has publicly opposed the ban on digital assets in traditional securities markets, calling it 'outdated' and in need of revision to adapt to the increasingly important role of digital assets in modern finance. Jung Eui-jung, head of the Korean Stockholders’ Alliance, also emphasized the importance of Seoul following the U.S. and approving Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. Jung warned that if South Korean regulators continue to make no progress while the U.S. is making advances, investors may shift their funds to the U.S. market, stating that 'it is only a matter of time before the U.S. fully opens the door to other cryptocurrencies with smaller trading volumes.'

According to Odaily, US banks have expressed concerns over potential inflation risks due to robust spending in the service sector, a tight labor market, and fiscal uncertainty. Despite the PCE inflation index gradually nearing its target, the resilience of US economic growth and a positive output gap make any monetary easing seem premature. This supports the view that the easing cycle may begin in December. The impact and uncertainty surrounding the US elections could be another reason why the US may not want to lower interest rates prematurely. The US banking sector's perspective on the economic situation provides a crucial insight into the potential future of the country's financial landscape. The concerns raised about inflation risks and the reluctance to lower interest rates prematurely highlight the challenges faced by the US economy. The potential start of an easing cycle in December could signal a shift in monetary policy, which will have significant implications for the US and global economies.

According to CryptoPotato, Bitcoin's price has seen notable fluctuations in recent days, dropping to under $66,500 before rising to just over $69,000. Altcoins have also seen a slight increase, with Uniswap (UNI) experiencing a significant 20% surge, pushing its value over $10. PEPE, another altcoin, has reached a new all-time high. The US Securities and Exchange Commission's approval of eight spot Ethereum ETFs on Thursday has been a major development in the cryptocurrency industry this week, primarily impacting Ethereum (ETH). This news, coupled with the surrounding hype, triggered a substantial rally for ETH, which rose from $3,100 on Monday to over $3,900 mid-week before slightly retracing to its current position of $3,750. Several other altcoins have also seen substantial gains this week, including PEPE, which increased by another 12% in the past day, reaching a new all-time high of $0.00001538. Uniswap's native token, UNI, has also seen a significant increase, soaring by 20% and now trading close to $11. Other altcoins such as XRP, DOGE, TON, SHIB, DOT, IMX, and NEAR have also seen increases. The total crypto market cap has recovered over $60 billion since yesterday and now sits close to $2.7 trillion. Bitcoin's price was also affected by the Ethereum ETF news, rising from $67,000 to a multi-week peak of $72,000 on Monday and Tuesday before retracing in the following days. The most significant price decline came on Thursday, just hours before the US SEC announced its decision, dropping BTC to under $66,500. However, the asset bounced back, experienced further fluctuations, and began to rise again last night, reaching just over $69,200. Currently, Bitcoin trades just below $69,000, with a market cap of $1.350 trillion and a dominance over the altcoins of 50.2%.

According to U.Today, the recent approval of the Ethereum ETF was not met with the anticipated market reaction. Despite the approval, Ethereum has struggled to surpass the local resistance level and has even retraced further. The current approval only pertains to 19b-4s and not the more significant S-1s. This means that while a step has been taken toward greater acceptance, the bigger, more impactful approvals are still pending. The market is aware of this and is not showing much excitement until the S-1s are also approved. This is a classic case of the market pricing in expectations — partial approval is good but not groundbreaking. The ETF approval was handled by the Division of Trading and Markets using 'delegated authority.' This suggests that a commissioner could still challenge the decision within the next 10 days. There is a sense of uncertainty in the market, knowing that this approval might not be the final word. It seems like they are trying to sneak this through, keeping the vote somewhat under the radar due to its political nature. These factors create a situation where the Ethereum ETF approval, while positive, is not a guaranteed ticket to the moon. There remains political maneuvering, and further approvals needed to solidify the move. Additionally, against the backdrop of broader regulatory and economic uncertainties, investors are playing it safe for now. Despite the lack of momentum, Ethereum is still looking well positioned for a rally; above numerous key technical resistances, cheap network fees might attract more activity and a fair price level ahead of the major $4,000 threshold.

According to U.Today, BlackRock's Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) has been listed by the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation under the ETHA ticker. This development comes after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 19b-4 forms from several Ethereum ETFs from issuers including BlackRock, Fidelity, and VanEck, among others. This decision by the SEC was unexpected as it was widely anticipated to reject these funds just a week prior. The SEC is now in discussions with potential issuers regarding S-1 registration statements. For Ethereum ETFs to commence trading, each corresponding S-1 registration statement also needs to be approved. However, the timeline for when these ETFs will actually start trading remains unclear. James Seyffart, a market analyst, clarified that the approval of 19b-4 does not mean that trading will begin immediately. The approval of the S-1 documents is still required, which is expected to take a few weeks, but could take longer. In related news, the price of Ethereum has experienced some fluctuations. After a significant rally, the ETH price has now reduced some gains, currently trading at $3,629. John Bollinger, a prominent trader, recently cautioned that Ethereum’s rally was overextended.

According to U.Today, Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog who became the face of Dogecoin and a significant meme figure, has passed away in Japan at the age of 19. The news was reported by her owner, Atsuko Sato, marking a significant moment for the meme community and cryptocurrency enthusiasts globally. Kabosu gained internet fame in 2010 when her photos went viral, leading to the creation of the 'Doge' meme. This meme, characterized by Kabosu’s expressive face and humorous captions in broken English, became a cultural phenomenon. In 2013, Kabosu's image was adopted as the mascot for DOGE, a new cryptocurrency initially started as a joke. However, it soon grew into a serious player on the crypto market. Dogecoin’s official account paid tribute to Kabosu, highlighting her immeasurable impact on the world. They noted that she was a symbol of happiness and love, whose spirit touched and shaped many lives globally. Since its launch over a decade ago, Dogecoin (DOGE) has achieved significant milestones, becoming the eighth largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization of $22.85 billion and a daily turnover in the billions. The popularity and success of Dogecoin can be largely attributed to Kabosu’s endearing presence on its logo, which captured the hearts of many. Kabosu played a crucial role in uniting a diverse community of cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Without her, the landscape of meme-based cryptocurrencies, a sector now worth $58 billion, might not exist.

According to U.Today, Shiba Inu's recent price performance has been less than positive, with the asset struggling to maintain its position above the local support level of approximately $0.000025. This is indicative of a market that is not yet ready for a growth phase. Shiba Inu has succumbed to strong selling pressure, causing the price to fall below key support areas to around $0.0000239. This coincides with a decrease in large transactions, suggesting a drop in activity by large holders, also known as whales. Over the past week, there has been a significant decrease in the number of high-value transactions. From a seven-day high of 341 transactions, only 82 large transactions have been conducted in the last 24 hours. This suggests that whales are reducing their positions, which weakens the buying pressure needed to maintain higher prices. In the past 24 hours, the volume of large transactions amounted to 3.36 trillion SHIB, compared to a seven-day peak of 5.7 trillion SHIB. This indicates some relief in the activity of large holders, but it also hints at continued bearish pressure. Adding to the concerns surrounding the token, only 61% of holders remain profitable at the current price level, while 35% are at a loss. The concentration by large holders remains high at 73%, but the decreasing transaction volume suggests increased activity among these large holders. Another potential issue is the possible bearish cross of the 50-day and 100-day EMAs. A break below such a level could increase selling pressure, potentially pushing SHIB to further lows of support around $0.000022 and possibly even down to $0.000018.

According to U.Today, the demand for compute power is currently experiencing a significant increase, which is reflected in NVIDIA's recent earnings report. This has led to a rise in AI crypto products. The NEAR Protocol, which is working on building the largest AI consumer chain for users, has increased its efforts in this direction. The protocol is considering an AI developer incubation program to attract developers and provide support in various AI subsectors. This could potentially boost innovation and adoption within the NEAR ecosystem. Another example is AO, which combines data storage on Arweave with the horizontal scaling of computation in an extremely efficient layer. This combination addresses common issues such as memory usage and compute workloads, while expanding the potential use cases for on-chain agents. Several projects are already being developed on top of AO, including Autonomous AF, 0rbitco, and aox_xyz. The AO ecosystem is expected to make a major announcement in early June, which could provide further incentives for development. The Ora Protocol has created a model that can be tokenized through its Initial Model Offering (IMO). Token holders are incentivized through revenue sharing, using the Ora-pioneered ERC-7461 standard for the fair and transparent distribution of ETH rewards. The team is also proposing additional standards based on AI to support the sector's growth. However, despite the presence of many 'Web3 Hugging Faces', none offer sufficient incentives to contributors to support the sustainability of these models, a problem that the Ora Protocol aims to solve.

According to U.Today, following the death of Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog that inspired the Dogecoin meme, Timothy Stebbing, a developer with the Dogecoin Foundation, has warned the Dogecoin community about potential scams. Stebbing has highlighted that fraudsters are attempting to exploit the situation by creating fake Dogecoin accounts and launching deceptive schemes to trick investors and fans. Kabosu, also known as 'Kabochan', was a beloved figure in the online world, capturing the hearts of millions and becoming an internet sensation. Her image was the inspiration behind the creation of Dogecoin, symbolizing the fun and whimsical nature of the cryptocurrency world. Following her death, the crypto community, led by the Dogecoin Foundation, paid their respects to the Japanese Shiba Inu, which inspired a generation of online jokes and became the face of Dogecoin cryptocurrency. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin also expressed his condolences at Kabosu's passing. However, amidst the mourning, some malicious actors are attempting to exploit the community's emotional response. Stebbing has identified a fake Dogecoin account that emerged after Kabosu's death. This account, which could only be identified upon closer inspection, was promoting a fake NFT collection launch in honor of Kabosu. Stebbing has urged the Dogecoin community to report such accounts, emphasizing the importance of vigilance among Dogecoin users. He advises users to verify the authenticity of social media accounts or fundraising initiatives claiming to honor Kabosu and to stand united against those who seek to exploit such a somber moment for personal gain.

According to U.Today, Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, recently stated that Cardano was the first cryptocurrency to make its presence known on Mount Everest. This statement was made in response to a post suggesting that the ADA blockchain had reached the summit in 2022, following a photo shared by Michael Saylor, founder of MicroStrategy and a well-known Bitcoin advocate, showing a Bitcoin flag at the peak of the world's highest mountain. Saylor's gesture was meant to emphasize Bitcoin's global reach and dominance. However, it was later revealed that Cardano had already achieved this milestone two years earlier. In response to the post, Hoskinson humorously highlighted Cardano's superiority over Bitcoin, especially in terms of settlement time. Settlement time in blockchain refers to the time it takes for a transaction to be confirmed and permanently recorded in the blockchain ledger. This is a crucial factor for users and businesses that depend on cryptocurrencies for quick and efficient transactions. Cardano's blockchain structure is designed to process transactions faster and at a lower cost than Bitcoin. Despite Bitcoin's market dominance, it often faces criticism for its slower transaction speeds and higher fees, which are due to its proof-of-work consensus mechanism. On the other hand, Cardano uses a proof-of-stake mechanism, which not only shortens the time it takes to settle transactions but also reduces energy consumption.