Bitcoin News Today: SEC Clarity Boosts Liquid Staking Market Governance Tokens Rise 37.5% in a Week

Liquid staking has reached a pivotal milestone following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) latest regulatory clarification, which states that liquid staking operations are not classified as securities under current laws. This guidance confirms that entities such as Lido, Marinade, and Jito do not need to register under the securities framework, and the issuance or transfer of liquid staking receipt tokens is also exempt—provided the deposited assets are not part of an investment contract [1]. The announcement has led to increased activity in the liquid staking market, with governance tokens like MNDE, MILK, and RPL seeing a notable rise in trading volume and price [1]. This regulatory clarity could pave the way for broader institutional adoption, as evidenced by several ETF issuers, including BlackRock, now considering the inclusion of staking in their spot ETH ETFs [1].

The implications of the SEC’s decision are significant for the liquid staking market, which had previously operated in a gray regulatory space. The exemption from securities laws removes a major legal barrier, potentially attracting more participants and capital into the ecosystem. As governance tokens rally in the wake of the announcement, it signals growing confidence in the long-term viability of liquid staking as a legitimate financial instrument. However, the market must continue to evolve with clear regulatory expectations to sustain this momentum without exposing operators to unexpected legal risks.

Beyond liquid staking, other developments in the crypto space continue to shape market dynamics. For instance, Pump.fun, a Solana-based memecoin launchpad, has reclaimed the top spot in 24-hour token launches, surpassing LetsBonk with 13.7K token deployments compared to 13.4K [1]. The platform’s native PUMP token has surged by 37.5% in a week, reflecting increased user activity and renewed interest in Solana-based memecoins. Meanwhile, institutional investment in Bitcoin remains active, despite recent price volatility. Treasury firms added 630 BTC ($71.8M) on Monday, while spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $323M in net outflows, highlighting a divergence between traditional and institutional investor behavior [1].

The sector also experienced a major security incident with the $4.5M hack of the DeFi protocol CrediX. The attacker exploited an admin account that had been granted elevated permissions just six days before the incident, minting unbacked acUSDC stablecoins to drain user assets [1]. The stolen funds were transferred across several wallets on the Ethereum mainnet, but CrediX has since reached an agreement with the hacker for a full return of the funds, which are expected to be airdropped to affected users within two days. This incident underscores the critical importance of robust access controls and auditing in DeFi protocols, particularly as the industry scales.

Other news included a notable development in the Bitcoin market, where Galaxy Digital’s sale of $9B of Bitcoin on behalf of a Satoshi-era whale was partially absorbed by Trump Media and Technology Group and Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy, suggesting strong liquidity in the market [1]. Additionally, MEXC Ventures expanded into Indonesia by investing in Triv, a local crypto exchange, and Coinbase introduced Embedded Wallets, a new feature allowing developers to integrate self-custodial wallets into dApps with minimal coding [1]. These innovations highlight the ongoing integration of crypto infrastructure into mainstream financial applications.

Source: [1] GeckoPulse: Another Major Milestone for Liquid Stakers (https://www.coingecko.com/learn/geckopulse-another-major-milestone-for-liquid-stakers)