The CME is launching futures trading on XRP on May 19, pending regulatory review. It will allow both micro and large contracts, from 2,500 to 50,000 XRP, prioritizing flexibility and precision.
This development could provide several key advantages for the asset. In addition to substantial liquidity, the CME will treat the asset as a commodity like Bitcoin and Ethereum. This could potentially boost the chances of an XRP ETF approval.
CME to Launch XRP Futures
XRP futures are financial contracts that let traders speculate on the future price of XRP without owning the actual XRP coins. It will allow institutional and professional traders to hedge risk or speculate on XRP prices using regulated instruments.
CME’s involvement is significant—it’s the world’s largest derivatives exchange, and adding XRP gives more legitimacy and market depth.
“While overdue in a bunch of ways, this is an incredibly important and exciting step in the continued growth of the XRP market!” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse claimed via social media.
Meanwhile, futures trading in the institutional market could potentially aid the chances of an XRP ETF. Additionally, it potentially opens a huge window of new liquidity for the token. The recognition of CME’s brand will guarantee product quality in the eyes of institutional investors.
Coinbase added XRP futures trading earlier this week after receiving official CFTC approval. The CME is also a CFTC-regulated institution, but it will take a few weeks to offer its own XRP futures.
Still, it began offering Bitcoin and Ethereum futures this year, and this development suggests it’s treating Ripple’s altcoin like a commodity, too.
The announcement acknowledges that it still requires regulatory approval, possibly explaining the long wait. These futures will be cash-settled and based on the CME’s XRP-Dollar reference rate, which is calculated daily.
XRP’s demand hit a five-month low this week, and the CME won’t offer futures for nearly a month. This news is undoubtedly bullish, but it may take some time to materialize fully in the market.
The state of security across the crypto and blockchain space has changed significantly in the past few months. Traditional smart contracts exploited or brute force attacks on blockchain networks are being superseded by crypto scams like rug pulls and pump-and-dump schemes.
BeInCrypto spoke with a spokesperson from security firm CertiK to understand how blockchain and security threats are evolving and how projects and users can safeguard against future exploits.
Social Media Hacks on the Rise
Over the past few months, the crypto community has seen a rise in social media-related hacks. This increasingly common tendency has pivoted away from the orchestration of more sophisticated blockchain attacks that have traditionally plagued headlines.
Whereas smart contract exploits or blockchain hacks require more knowledge, hackers have found an easier avenue by targeting social media accounts instead.
X (formerly Twitter) has quickly become the social media platform of choice among Web3 hackers.
Social Media is Now a Prime Target for Web3 Hackers
After US President Donald Trump launched his meme coin only two days before assuming office, hackers began to take advantage of the hype to hack high-profile X accounts and convince followers to invest in scam meme coins.
Last month, anonymous hackers took over the X account of the former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to promote MALAYSIA, a fake meme coin promoted as the country’s official cryptocurrency.
The post was removed within an hour, but the damage was done. Analysis shows that these hackers were probably related to the infamous Russian Evil Corp and that they stole $1.7 million in this rug pull.
The MALAYSIA token scam happened only two weeks after hackers exploited former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s social media account. In that instance, scammers promoted the BRAZIL token, which rose over 10,000% in minutes, netting the scammers over $1.3 million.
These scams have also affected technological companies.
Attacks on Tech Companies
In December, AI research and development company Anthropic also saw its X account hacked. A fraudulent post claimed that a fake token called CLAUDE would incentivize AI and crypto projects and included a wallet address for investors.
Attackers managed to collect around $100,000 from speculative investors.
These situations also highlight a broader issue of weak account security on social media platforms. As a result, even prominent individuals are susceptible to security breaches that directly affect the crypto community.
TRUMP Meme Coin Launch Was a Catalyst For Crypto Scams
“Now is the time to talk about the fact that large-scale political coins cross a further line: they are not just sources of fun, whose harm is at most contained to mistakes made by voluntary participants, they are vehicles for unlimited political bribery, including from foreign nation states,” Buterin claimed.
Buterin highlighted the tokens’ role in enabling scams and political corruption in crypto and blamed a regulatory loophole former SEC Chair Gary Gensler created for allowing bad actors to exploit governance tokens.
However, these crypto scams extend beyond political themes.
Growth of Social Engineering Exploits
A week after Buterin cautioned against political meme coins, a Coinbase user lost $11.5 million after falling victim to a social engineering scam on Base.
Crypto sleuth ZackXBT uncovered the exploit, pointing out that this incident is part of a growing trend, with multiple Coinbase users suffering similar losses. He also estimates that crypto scams of this nature have drained at least $150 million from Coinbase customers.
“Coinbase has a serious fraud problem. I just uncovered many more recent thefts from Coinbase users. The $150 million stolen from Coinbase users in a year is just from thefts I independently confirmed. So it’s more than likely multiples of this number,” ZachXBT stated.
In social engineering scams, attackers use phishing emails, spoofed calls, and other deceptive tactics to trick victims into revealing private keys or login credentials. Once they gain access, they drain wallets, move funds, and take control of accounts.
For CertiK, these situations stipulate the need for stronger security measures.
Addressing these security challenges is crucial as new crypto projects increase exponentially.
Prioritizing Proactive Security in a Rapidly Growing Industry
The Web3 sector is experiencing consistent growth, marked by a surge in new crypto project launches. This innovative momentum is expected to continue, but it’s also fueling security concerns.
Notably, the increasing rate of scams and hacks in the first three months of 2025 makes it clear that security efforts are struggling to keep up with innovation.
A study by Precedence Research estimates the Web 3.0 market will expand from USD 4.62 billion in 2025 to approximately USD 99.75 billion by 2034, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 41.18% during that period.
Predicted market size of Web3 in the next ten years. Source: Precedence Research.
Yet, CertiK believes that project developers are pushing security considerations toward the end of the priority list.
As the Web3 ecosystem evolves, a proactive and adaptive security approach is critical. Prioritizing both blockchain integrity and social media vigilance will be essential for safeguarding the growing Web3 ecosystem.
The battle against these exploits requires a future where security is not an afterthought but a foundational pillar of every Web3 project and user interaction.
Solana (SOL) has shown limited price movement recently despite a substantial accumulation of the token. The price has remained relatively stable in May, likely due to the altcoin’s overheating.
While this stagnation is a sign of caution, the market is optimistic, which could lead to potential gains for Solana in the near future.
Solana Investors Continue Accumulation
Over the past 10 days, the balance of Solana on exchanges has dropped by 2.2 million SOL, valued at approximately $381 million. This decline in supply indicates that investors have been accumulating Solana during this period.
The ongoing accumulation is likely driven by a mix of factors, including the broader bullish market sentiment, fear of missing out (FOMO), and the expectation of future price appreciation.
This reduction in supply reflects increased investor confidence, with many choosing to hold rather than sell their SOL. As more investors accumulate the token, the supply on exchanges decreases, potentially creating upward pressure on the price in the long run.
Solana’s overall market momentum shows signs of potential volatility. Technical indicators, such as the Bollinger Bands, reveal that the bands are narrowing.
This tightening of the bands is a classic signal of a potential squeeze, which often precedes a surge in price volatility.
Should the squeeze result in a bullish breakout, Solana could see a rise in price, especially with the broader market showing positive momentum.
However, the narrowing of the Bollinger Bands also suggests that a period of consolidation could occur before any significant move.
Solana’s price has been moving sideways for much of May, likely due to the token overheating in the previous weeks. However, this cooling-off period could create an opportunity for a bullish move.
As the broader market continues to show positive signals and the accumulation trend persists, Solana may rise from its current consolidation phase.
At $173, Solana is testing critical support levels. To initiate a rally, Solana would need to secure $178 as support. If it manages to break above $180 and successfully breaches $188, it could indicate the start of an uptrend.
A successful breakout above these levels would signal further upward potential.
On the other hand, if Solana fails to maintain support at $178, it could fall below the $168 mark, potentially reaching $161. Such a decline would invalidate the bullish thesis and suggest further downside risk for the token.
