Risk appetite crossed accepted and cryptocurrency markets saw a crisp emergence this week, helping United States cryptocurrency funds retrieve the superior mislaid to the correction of February and March, amassing implicit $7.5 cardinal worthy of play inflows.
Bitcoin (BTC) surpassed its aged all-time high connected May 21, 2 days aft President Donald Trump confirmed ongoing ceasefire negotiations betwixt Russia and Ukraine successful a May 19 X post.
Meanwhile, fashionable expert and Global Macro Investor CEO Raoul Pal warned of much fiat currency debasement, urging investors to summation much vulnerability to cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), arsenic these assets “will ne'er beryllium this inexpensive again.”
Exponential currency debasement: “You don’t ain capable crypto, NFTs”
Cryptocurrencies and NFTs tin assistance investors support their eroding purchasing powerfulness during an epoch of exponential currency debasement, according to analysts and manufacture leaders.
Investing successful integer assets is becoming progressively important successful the “world of the exponential property and currency debasement,” according to Raoul Pal, laminitis and CEO of Global Macro Investor.
“You don’t ain capable crypto. When you do, you don’t ain capable NFT’s, arsenic creation is upstream of wealth. Both volition ne'er beryllium this inexpensive again,” Pal said.
NFTs are “the azygous champion agelong word store of wealthiness I cognize and you get to bargain it earlier web effects footwear in,” helium added successful different response.
“There is immoderate validity to the connection that NFTs, and successful hold art, go a conveyance for the affluent erstwhile a definite level of wealthiness is reached,” wrote Nicolai Sondergaard, probe expert astatine Nansen, calling it a “natural move” for plus diversification.
“For traders and investors, further down the wealthiness curve, NFTs are partially astir speculating connected aboriginal returns,” helium told Cointelegraph, adding that NFTs besides payment from the allure of beardown communities, beyond conscionable wealthiness creation.
US crypto funds apical $7.5 cardinal inflows successful 2025 arsenic capitalist appetite grows
Crypto concern products successful the United States person attracted implicit $7.5 cardinal worthy of concern successful 2025, with a 5th week of nett affirmative inflows past week signaling increasing capitalist request for integer assets.
US-based crypto investment products attracted $785 cardinal worthy of concern past week, pushing the year-to-date (YTD) full to implicit $7.5 billion, according to a May 19 study by integer plus manager CoinShares.
The latest fig marks the 5th consecutive week of nett affirmative flows, pursuing astir $7 cardinal successful outflows during February and March.
The United States accounted for the bulk of inflows, with $681 million, followed by Germany astatine $86.3 cardinal and Hong Kong astatine $24.4 million.
Investor request for hazard assets specified arsenic cryptocurrencies staged a important betterment aft the White House announced a 90-day pause connected further tariffs connected May 12, which marked a 24% chopped for import tariffs for some the US and China.
A time aft the announcement, Coinbase speech saw 9,739 Bitcoin worthy much than $1 cardinal withdrawn from the speech — the highest nett outflow recorded successful 2025, signaling that organization appetite was “accelerating,” according to Bitwise’s caput of European research, André Dragosch.
VanEck to motorboat Avalanche ecosystem fund
VanEck plans to motorboat a backstage integer assets money successful June targeting tokenized Web3 projects built connected the Avalanche blockchain network, the plus manager said successful a connection shared with Cointelegraph.
The VanEck PurposeBuilt Fund, disposable lone to accredited investors, aims to put successful liquid tokens and venture-backed projects crossed Web3 sectors, including gaming, fiscal services, payments, and artificial intelligence.
Idle superior volition beryllium deployed into Avalanche (AVAX) real-world plus (RWA) products, including tokenized wealth marketplace funds, VanEck said.
The money volition beryllium managed by the squad down VanEck’s Digital Assets Alpha Fund (DAAF), which oversees much than $100 cardinal successful nett assets arsenic of May 21.
“The adjacent question of worth successful crypto volition travel from existent businesses, not much infrastructure,” Pranav Kanade, portfolio manager for DAAF, said successful a statement.
Yield-bearing stablecoins surge to $11 billion, present 4.5% of market: Report
Yield-bearing stablecoins person soared to $11 cardinal successful circulation, representing 4.5% of the full stablecoin market, a steep ascent from conscionable $1.5 cardinal and a 1% marketplace stock astatine the commencement of 2024.
One of the biggest winners is Pendle, a decentralized protocol that enables users to fastener successful fixed yields oregon speculate connected adaptable involvement rates. Pendle present accounts for 30% of each yield-bearing stablecoin full worth locked (TVL), astir $3 billion, according to a study from Pendle compiled by analysts from Spartan Group and Modular Capital shared with Cointelegraph.
The study noted that stablecoins marque up 83% of its $4 cardinal full worth locked, a crisp emergence from little than 20% conscionable a twelvemonth ago. In contrast, assets specified arsenic Ether (ETH), which historically contributed 80%–90% of Pendle’s TVL, person shrunk to little than 10%.
Traditional stablecoins similar USDt (USDT) and USDC (USDC) bash not walk connected involvement to holders. With implicit $200 cardinal successful circulation and US Federal Reserve involvement rates astatine 4.3%, Pendle estimates that stablecoin holders are missing retired connected much than $9 cardinal successful yearly yield.
Tether surpasses Germany’s $111 cardinal of US Treasury holdings
Tether, the $151 cardinal stablecoin issuance giant, has surpassed Germany successful United States Treasury measure holdings, showcasing the benefits of a diversified reserve strategy that has helped the steadfast navigate the volatility of the cryptocurrency market.
Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, USDT, has surpassed Germany’s $111.4 cardinal worthy of US Treasurys, information from the US Department of the Treasury shows.
Tether has surpassed $120 cardinal worthy of Treasury bills, the steadfast shared successful its attestation report for the archetypal 4th of 2025. That makes Tether the 19th largest entity among each counties successful presumption of T-bill investments.
“This milestone not lone reinforces the company’s blimpish reserve absorption strategy but besides highlights Tether’s increasing relation successful distributing dollar-denominated liquidity astatine scale,” wrote Tether successful the report.
During 2024, Tether was the seventh-largest purchaser of US Treasurys crossed each countries, surpassing Canada, Taiwan, Mexico, Norway, Hong Kong and galore different countries, Cointelegraph reported successful March 2025.
DeFi marketplace overview
According to information from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, astir of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by marketplace capitalization ended the week successful the green.
Worldcoin (WLD) roseate implicit 32% arsenic the week’s biggest gainer successful the apical 100, followed by the Hyperliquid (HYPE) token, up implicit 30% connected the play chart.
Thanks for speechmaking our summary of this week’s astir impactful DeFi developments. Join america adjacent Friday for much stories, insights and acquisition regarding this dynamically advancing space.