Binance Wallet launched a feature on Wednesday, integrating with decentralized exchange Aster—the second-largest perpetuals platform with $6.74 billion in 24-hour volume—to enable leveraged futures trading directly from users' self-custody wallets on BNB Smart Chain. This allows trading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC at $97,447.39) and Ether (ETH at $3,379.38), plus equities such as Apple (AAPL) and Nvidia (NVDA), and the Invesco QQQ ETF, using collateral like BNB and Tether's USDT. Users retain full asset control, blending CeFi speed with DeFi security, amid risks highlighted by FTX's 2022 collapse. Winson Liu, Binance Wallet's global lead, called it a step toward sophisticated tools in Web3. The web-interface feature is the first in the Binance ecosystem, excluding the centralized exchange's futures platform, potentially attracting users from Binance's 200 million base.

KuCoin achieved a record $1.25 trillion in trading volume for 2025, averaging $114 billion monthly, capturing an all-time high centralized exchange market share as volumes outpaced the broader crypto market. Spot and derivatives each exceeded $500 billion, with altcoins dominating activity beyond BTC and ETH.

Bybit Pay partnered with Peru's Yape and Plin digital wallets, each reaching 14 million users, to enable crypto payments (stablecoins and majors like BTC) automatically converted to Peruvian soles at point-of-sale, expanding in Latin America after Brazil and Argentina ties.

Bitcoin surged over 4% on Wednesday, breaking above $95,000, fueled by lower-than-expected US inflation data. This reinforced market expectations that the Federal Reserve will continue cutting interest rates this year, boosting overall crypto sentiment.

Ethereum climbed more than 7% to $3,330 during the same period, reflecting broader market gains. Over $688 million in crypto derivatives positions were liquidated in the prior 24 hours, with short sellers bearing the brunt of the losses.

The rally also highlighted regulatory optimism, as seen in Ripple (XRP)'s price rise amid the positive inflation data. Additional industry news included Prosperity Life Group naming Mark Williams as VP of National Accounts, and Salt Financial's collaboration with FTSE Russell on risk-managed index solutions.

Corporate Bitcoin accumulation has outpaced new supply, with companies adding a net 260,000 BTC to balance sheets over the past six months—more than three times the 82,000 BTC mined globally. Treasuries grew from 854,000 to 1.11 million BTC, averaging 43,000 BTC monthly purchases, absorbing over three times daily miner output of 450 BTC. Holdings are concentrated, led by Strategy (co-founded by Michael Saylor) with 687,410 BTC (60% of corporate total, valued at $65.5 billion). Strategy resumed buying, acquiring 13,627 BTC from January 5 to 11—its largest since July. MARA Holdings follows with 53,250 BTC ($5 billion).

Spot Bitcoin ETFs have intensified supply pressure, purchasing over 100% of new issuance since early 2024. In 2025, U.S. ETFs saw $22 billion inflows, led by BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust; 2026 inflows remain modestly positive.

Strive’s stock fell nearly 12% on Tuesday after announcing an all-stock acquisition of Semler Scientific, adding 5,048.1 BTC to Strive’s 7,749.8 BTC (post-123 BTC purchase), totaling 12,797.9 BTC (11th-largest holder). Plans include monetizing Semler’s business, retiring a $100 million convertible note and $20 million Coinbase loan, and a 1-for-20 reverse stock split. Such pivots show volatility: Strive surged over 2,000% after May 7 announcement (from $0.61 to $13.01 by May 22), now at $0.97; Semler rose from $30 to $67 by December 2024 after May adoption, now ~$20.