May 7, 2025: Ethereum’s “Pectra” Upgrade Boosts Network Functionality
Ethereum activated its Pectra upgrade on May 7, marking a significant milestone for the blockchain. The upgrade went live on mainnet at epoch 364032 and is the first major update since Dencun in 2024. Pectra is a combined hard fork (execution layer “Prague” and consensus layer “Electra”) introducing 11 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) that enhance user experience. These changes improve the staking process, add new smart wallet features, and increase layer-2 efficiency for better scalability. The successful deployment of Pectra underscores Ethereum’s ongoing evolution to become more user-friendly and scalable.
May 8, 2025: U.S. Justice Dept Disbands Crypto Enforcement Unit
In a major regulatory shift, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it would disband its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) and narrow the scope of crypto-related prosecutions. In a memo from Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, the DOJ criticized the prior administration’s “reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution” and vowed to end broad enforcement actions against crypto intermediaries. Going forward, prosecutors were directed to focus on criminals who use digital assets for traditional crimes (such as terrorism financing, narcotics, or fraud) rather than targeting exchanges or minor regulatory violations. This policy change, rooted in an executive order by President Trump, signaled a more industry-friendly stance by emphasizing investor protection and crime prevention over expansive regulation of the crypto sector.
May 8, 2025: Bitcoin Retakes $100K Amid Trade Deal Optimism
Bitcoin’s price surged past $100,000 on May 8 for the first time since early February, driven by renewed market optimism. By midday, Bitcoin was trading around $101,330 – a ~5% gain on the day – buoyed by news of a breakthrough trade deal between the United States and United Kingdom that suggested an easing of President Trump’s trade wars. The rally helped Bitcoin claw back into positive territory for the year, though it remained below its record high of approximately $109,000 set in January. Analysts noted this rapid rebound (from lows near $74K just a month prior) as a sign of returning risk appetite, with long-term investors eyeing a potential run toward new all-time highs. Bitcoin’s climb above the psychologically important $100K level was widely celebrated in the crypto community and reinforced perceptions of strengthening mainstream confidence in digital assets.
May 13, 2025: Coinbase Joins S&P 500, Marking Crypto Industry Milestone
Leading exchange Coinbase Global became the first crypto-focused company to be added to the S&P 500 stock index, reflecting crypto’s growing integration into traditional markets. S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Coinbase would replace Discover Financial Services in the index, effective before trading on May 19. News of the inclusion sent Coinbase’s stock soaring almost 15%, adding about $8 billion to its market value. Being added to the benchmark index is seen as a watershed moment for the industry, as index-tracking funds must now hold Coinbase shares, potentially broadening institutional ownership. Observers noted that this move legitimizes the crypto sector in the eyes of mainstream investors and underscores how far the industry has come since Coinbase’s 2021 public listing.
May 15, 2025: Coinbase Cyberattack Could Cost $400M as Hackers Bribed Insiders
Coinbase revealed that it fell victim to a significant cyberattack, forecasting losses of $180 million to $400 million from the incident. In a May 15 regulatory filing, the exchange said hackers breached account data of a “small subset” of customers by bribing several employees of overseas support contractors for internal access. The attackers obtained some customer personal data (names, addresses, emails) but did not compromise passwords or keys, and some users were tricked into transferring funds to the scammers. Coinbase immediately fired the staff involved and refused to pay the hackers’ $20 million ransom demand. Instead, the company is cooperating with law enforcement and has offered a $20 million reward for information to help identify and capture the perpetrators. Coinbase stated it will reimburse any customers who lost funds in the scam and has strengthened its security controls following the breach. This incident – one of the costliest hacks in crypto to date – underscored ongoing security challenges even for industry-leading exchanges.
