As the SEC vs Ripple lawsuit is coming to an end with the blockchain firm paying a $50 million penalty, developments on an XRP ETF are gathering pace once again. In his latest Bloomberg interview, CEO Brad Gralinghouse said that it’s important to have this exchange-traded fund, while just falling short of accepting that they are working with the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock. XRP price movement has been relatively mute to this development, while industry players expect a $3 breakout soon.
Are Ripple and BlackRock Exploring Potential XRP ETF?
In his recent Bloomberg interview, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse was asked whether they are collaborating with BlackRock to launch an XRP ETF in the US. Although Garlinghouse didn’t explicitly accept such a collaboration, he sparked speculation by stating, “We think it makes sense for the XRP community overall”.
The prospect of a BlackRock filing for an XRP ETF in 2025 has captured the attention of the crypto community. Many believe that once the regulatory wall over Ripple is removed, asset managers will rush in the second-half of the year to bring a Ripple ETF to the market. Furthermore, Ripple CEO Garlinghouse is also confident that XRP would make it to the US Digital Asset stockpile.
Adding to the discussion, Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek highlighted the transformative potential of XRP ETFs. He predicts that the development could attract $8 billion in inflows following the approval.
Ripple Drops Cross-Appeal Against US SEC
The long-running Ripple vs SEC lawsuit has finally come to an end as the blockchain startup has decided to no longer pursue the cross-appeal against the securities regulator. The resolution involves a $75 million refund to Ripple, following the SEC’s decision to drop its appeal and Ripple abandoning its cross-appeal.
This settlement concludes a case that initially resulted in a $125 million penalty against Ripple. With the refund, the company’s net payment to the SEC amounts to $50 million. Under the Trump administration, the SEC has softened its stance, while putting a greater focus on establishing clear crypto regulations.
XRP Price Surge to $3 Soon?
Amid the current development and hopes for XRP ETF, the XRP price has given a muted response as it continues to face strong rejection at $2.50 levels. Despite this, market analysts have made bold predictions, expecting the XRP price rally to continue at $15 and beyond.
Sharing the XRPUSDT chart, popular crypto trader Seyma stated that she’s more bullish on the Ripple cryptocurrency in comparison to other altcoins. “My weekly target is $3-$3.24 i never give investment or trading advice just noted to myself,” she wrote.
Welcome to the US Crypto News Morning Briefing—your essential rundown of the most important developments in crypto for the day ahead.
Grab a coffee as we discuss the growing influence of stablecoin issuers in the US Treasury market. With growing institutional adoption and regulatory legitimization of US dollar-pegged stablecoins, experts warn of artificial inflation of demand for the dollar.
Crypto News of the Day: Using Government Debt Instruments To Back Digital Dollars is Risky, Keiser Warns
The influence of stablecoin issuers in the US is growing, so much that Tether, which already issues the USDT stablecoin, plans to launch a US-only stablecoin by 2025. Tether aims to position stablecoins as strategic financial tools under the Trump administration.
Stablecoin supply by issuer in billions of US dollars. Source: Bain & Company
This chart shows Tether’s dominance in the stablecoin market, with overall supply going from $2 billion to more than $200 billion in recent years.
Meanwhile, the US Treasury projects stablecoins could reach a $2 trillion market by 2028, which could attract more players.
Nevertheless, as stablecoin influence in the Treasury market grows, the House Financial Services Committee is concerned.
Perhaps, however, the greater concern is stablecoin issuers’ using Treasury yields to buy Bitcoin. According to experts, this could undermine US government reserves.
A recent US Crypto News publication indicated reports of stablecoin issuers using Treasury yields to buy Bitcoin. Some say this could undermine initiatives like the proposed US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which aims to bolster national holdings of the pioneer crypto.
Growing Influence of Stablecoin Issuers in US Treasuries Market is Concerning, Max Keiser Says
Among them is Bitcoin pioneer Max Keiser, who voiced concerns over the growing influence of stablecoin issuers in the US Treasury market. Keiser warns that their use of government debt instruments to back digital dollars may have broader implications for the global financial system.
As of Q1 2025, Tether reported holding nearly $120 billion in short-term US Treasury securities and reverse repos. This makes it one of the largest non-sovereign holders of American government debt.
Meanwhile, Circle, issuer of USDC, disclosed more than $22 billion in Treasury bills in a February 2025 attestation.
These holdings collateralize dollar-pegged stablecoins, helping issuers maintain liquidity and trust. The issuers benefit from the interest income generated by the bonds.
While this practice is common and legal, Keiser contends it contributes to deeper systemic issues tied to fiat currency dynamics.
“This is exactly why the stablecoin issuers are buying Bitcoin, this is called a speculative attack on the US dollar. Feeding the debt spiral with fiat stablecoins, buying treasury bills, and then investing the interest into Bitcoin, allowing the stablecoin issuers to buy billions in Bitcoin for free,” Keiser told BeInCrypto.
Stablecoin issuers purchase US debt on secondary markets and earn interest, which they may or may not deploy into digital assets like Bitcoin. Keiser is critical of the broader financial architecture underpinning stablecoins.
“Issuing new stablecoins backed by US T-bills printed out of thin air is not a monetary system, but a financial hologram,” he said.
US Treasury bills are debt instruments issued by the federal government and sold to investors, including private companies like Tether and Circle, through regulated markets. These stablecoin issuers tokenize existing fiat currency held in reserve.
Keiser elaborated on what he sees as the long-term consequences of this model.
“It’s a speculative attack by private banks. It is financial repression, pushing rates down as ‘malinvestments’ increase. It is rinse and repeat,” he explained.
His critique also extends to the broader outlook for the US dollar, which, according to the Bitcoin pioneer, “is a quick, deadly fix; a USD hospice. Cue the final death throes of the US dollar.”
BeInCrypto has contacted Circle and Tether for comment and will update this article if they respond.
Max Keiser Proposes AI To Invent Novel Security Structures
Keiser also highlighted what he views as an emerging trend. He said high-profile investors and technologists use artificial intelligence (AI) and novel corporate strategies to increase Bitcoin exposure.
The Bitcoin maxi referenced Strategy Executive Chair Michael Saylor and investor-turned-politician Vivek Ramaswamy.
“Financial engineers like Michael Saylor and Vivek Ramaswamy are using AI to invent novel security structures to maximize the Bitcoin Treasury model. Vivek Ramaswamy plans to take his company, Strive Asset Management, public by merging with Asset Entities and starting to accumulate Bitcoin using the model that Saylor’s Strategy has already successfully adopted — using proceeds from stock and debt issuance,” Keiser remarked.
Though no confirmed public filings detailing Ramaswamy’s use of AI in this context, Keiser sees these developments as significant.
“The results are redefining finance globally and adding significantly to the Bitcoin demand. OG’s like myself, who have watched Bitcoin outperform everything for 15 years, are seeing, for the first time, investment strategies that are outperforming Bitcoin, and the implications are profound,” he said
Keiser believes such strategies could push Bitcoin’s market value even higher. He also implied that the extraordinary compounding rates of the past could be extended. This sentiment comes as Bitcoin captures more of the total addressable market and scales even higher price points.
The views expressed are those of Max Keiser and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BeInCrypto.
Chart of the Day
International holdings of US Treasuries in billions of dollars. Source: Bain & Company
This chart shows that stablecoins have become a large holder in US treasuries.
Byte-Sized Alpha
Here’s a summary of more US crypto news to follow today:
The Chainlink and ONDO prices are up following JP Morgan’s announcement of its first transaction on a public blockchain. The financial gain teamed up with teams of both crypto giants to carry out this transaction, which involved a tokenized treasury.
Chainlink And ONDO Prices In The Green Amid JPMorgan’s Transaction
CoinMarketCap data shows that Chainlink and ONDO prices are up today following JPMorgan’s announcement of its first public blockchain transaction in partnership with the team behind both crypto assets.
The LINK Price has recovered from losses recorded yesterday and is up almost 1% in the last 24 hours, trading at around $16.86. Meanwhile, the ONDO price is up nearly 5%, surging above the $1 mark on the back of the announcement.
According to the Fortune Crypto report, JPMorgan settled a transaction on a public ledger for the first time with the help of crypto firms Chainlink and Ondo Finance. Both firms are among the top RWA projects, which explains the collaboration.
The report revealed that JPMorgan’s blockchain division, Kinexys, transferred money between two accounts on the private blockchain to settle the purchase of tokenized treasuries on Ondo’s public ledger. The financial giant used Chainlink’s communication protocol, which lets blockchains connect with external data.
Specifically, the network’s Runtime Environment powered the end-to-end transaction, which involved an exchange between Ondo Chain’s Short-Term US Government Treasuries Fund (OUSG) as the asset leg while Kinexys Digital Payments’ network served as the payment leg.
Commenting on this move, Chainlink’s co-founder Sergey Nazarov said,
This is not just another POC. This is the beginning of something big.
LINK Price Primed For Big Moves
In an X post, crypto expert Kelly Kellam indicated that the Chainlink price is primed for big moves. He opined that LINK will flip every crypto asset except the Bitcoin price. He explained that nothing comes close to the altcoin because the Chainlink network is the infrastructure layer of the blockchain and crypto ecosystem that also bridges to web2 systems.
Expert Quinten also suggested that the LINK price is undervalued at its current level. He remarked that it makes no sense why the altcoin is lower in market cap than the XRP price, with all the network’s institutional partnerships.
Crypto analyst CW revealed that Binance’s top traders’ LINK long positions are continually increasing. Currently, the altcoin’s long position ratio on the top crypto exchange is 75.36%. This indicates that traders expect the altcoin to witness a price breakout soon.
The Solana Foundation has extended its streak of victories with the announcement of a partnership with Kazakhstan to establish a special economic zone. Dubbed the Solana Economic Zone, the collaboration brings Kazakhstan one step closer to its goals of digitization as Solana continues to court institutional interest. Solana Foundation Launches Solana Economic Zone Members of
