In a notable victory for decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, US President Donald Trump abolished the Internal Revenue Service’s DeFi broker regulation, which would have broadened current reporting obligations to encompass DeFi platforms.
Growing US cryptocurrency regulatory transparency will draw more technology behemoths into the realm, pressuring existing crypto endeavors to concentrate on more cooperative tokenomics to thrive, as stated by Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson.
Trump enacts resolution abolishing IRS DeFi broker rule
Trump enacted a bipartisan congressional resolution nullifying a Biden administration-era regulation that would have obligated DeFi protocols to report transactions to the Internal Revenue Service.
Scheduled to be enforced in 2027, the IRS DeFi broker rule would have widened the tax authority’s current reporting obligations to include DeFi platforms, requiring them to reveal gross earnings from crypto transactions, along with details about taxpayers involved in the trades.
Trump officially invalidated the measure by endorsing the resolution on April 10, marking the inaugural instance a cryptocurrency bill has been enacted into US law, Representative Mike Carey, who supported the bill, stated in a declaration.
“The DeFi Broker Rule unnecessarily hindered American ingenuity, violated the privacy of ordinary Americans, and was poised to inundate the IRS with an influx of new submissions that it lacks the infrastructure to manage during tax season,” he commented.
Crypto requires collaborative tokenomics to combat tech giants — Hoskinson
The forthcoming wave of cryptocurrency initiatives must adopt a more united strategy to contend with major centralized tech corporations infiltrating the Web3 domain, according to Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson.
During his address at Paris Blockchain Week 2025, Hoskinson noted that one of the primary critiques aimed at the crypto and DeFi sectors is its “circular economy,” which often means that the ascent of a particular cryptocurrency is supported by funds exiting another token, thus constraining the overall expansion of the industry.
Hoskinson asserted that to compete against the centralized tech giants entering the Web3 realm, cryptocurrency initiatives need enhanced collaborative tokenomics and market architecture.
Hoskinson on stage at Paris Blockchain Week. Source: Cointelegraph
“The issue at the moment, with the manner we’ve approached things in the cryptocurrency sphere, is the tokenomics and market framework are fundamentally antagonistic. It’s sum 0,” stated Hoskinson. “Instead of initiating conflict, what needs to be done is to discover tokenomics and market frameworks that facilitate a cooperative equilibrium.”
He argued that the prevailing environment often witnesses the growth of one crypto project at the detriment of another rather than aiding the sector’s overall vitality. He added that this is not viable in the face of trillion-dollar enterprises such as Apple, Google, and Microsoft, which may soon enter the Web3 competition amid more transparent US regulations.
Bitcoin’s round-the-clock liquidity: A double-edged sword during global market instability
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies frequently receive acclaim for providing continuous trading access, but that persistent availability could have led to a significant sell-off over the weekend following the latest US trade tariff announcement.
In contrast to stocks and traditional financial instruments, Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies facilitate payments and trading opportunities 24/7 due to the accessibility of blockchain technology.
After a record-breaking $5 trillion was erased from the S&P 500 within two days — the most significant drop on record — Bitcoin stayed above the $82,000 support threshold. However, by Sunday, the asset had fallen to below $75,000.
Sunday’s downturn could have happened because Bitcoin was the only major tradable asset available during the weekend, according to Lucas Outumuro, head of research at crypto intelligence platform IntoTheBlock.
“There was a sliver of optimism last week that Bitcoin might be uncorrelating and performing better than traditional equities, but the [downturn] did escalate over the weekend,” Outumuro mentioned during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live broadcast on X, adding:
“There’s very little people can liquidate on a Sunday because most markets are closed. That also fosters the correlation because people are panicking and Bitcoin is the most significant asset they can offload over the weekend.”
Outumuro pointed out that Bitcoin’s weekend trading can also yield positive effects, as prices often surge in calmer conditions.
Bybit regains market share to 7% post $1.4 billion hack
Bybit’s market share bounced back to pre-hack levels after a $1.4 billion breach in February, as the crypto exchange enforced stricter security and enhanced liquidity options for retail traders.
The crypto sector was shaken by the most significant hack in its history on Feb. 21, when Bybit lost over $1.4 billion in liquid-staked Ether (stETH), Mantle Staked ETH (mETH), and additional digital assets.
Despite the enormity of the breach, Bybit has consistently recouped market share,according to a report from April 9 by cryptocurrency analytics firm Block Scholes.
“Following this initial downturn, Bybit has progressively recaptured market share as it seeks to mend sentiment and as trading volumes revert to the exchange,” the report indicated.
Block Scholes noted that Bybit’s relative share increased from a post-hack low of 4% to approximately 7%, demonstrating a robust and steady recovery in spot market activity and trade volumes.
Bybit’s spot volume market share as a fraction of the market share of the top 20 CEXs. Source: Block Scholes
The exploit transpired amidst a “wider trend of macro de-risking that commenced prior to the incident,” signaling that Bybit’s early plunge in trading volume wasn’t entirely due to the hack.
Nearly 400,000 FTX users jeopardize losing $2.5 billion in repayments
Nearly 400,000 creditors of the insolvent cryptocurrency exchange FTX are at risk of forfeiting $2.5 billion in repayments due to their failure to initiate the required Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.
About 392,000 FTX creditors have not completed or at least initiated the mandatory Know Your Customer verification, as per an April 2 court filing in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
Initially, FTX users had a deadline until March 3 to start the verification process to collect their claims.
“If an individual with a claim listed on Schedule 1 attached thereto did not initiate the KYC submission process concerning such claim on or before March 3, 2025, at 4:00 pm (ET) (the “KYC Commencing Deadline”), such claim shall be rejected and eliminated in its entirety,” the filing specifies.
FTX court filing. Source: Bloomberglaw.com
The KYC deadline has since been prolonged to June 1, providing users an additional opportunity to verify their identity and eligibility for claims. Those who do not comply with the updated deadline could have their claims permanently invalidated.
According to the court filings, claims under $50,000 might correspond to roughly $655 million in disallowed repayments, whereas claims exceeding $50,000 could reach $1.9 billion, resulting in total at-risk funds of over $2.5 billion.
DeFi market summary
According to information from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, the majority of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization concluded the week in the negative.
The EOS (EOS) token experienced a decline exceeding 23%, marking the most significant drop in the top 100 for the week, trailed by the Near Protocol (NEAR) token, which fell over 19% on the weekly chart.
Total value locked in DeFi. Source: DefiLlama
Thank you for engaging with our overview of this week’s most significant DeFi updates. Join us again next Friday for further stories, insights, and educational content about this rapidly evolving field.
