The Daily: Bitcoin tops $81,000 after tariff pause, lawmakers push crypto bills, Magic Eden acquires Slingshot Finance

The following is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

It's Wednesday. The crypto markets have rebounded somewhat thanks to mostly favorable tariff news (except for China) from the Trump administration. Other people are hearing good news today as well — especially Virgil Griffith, the former Ethereum developer who got out of prison.

In today's newsletter, bitcoin reaches $81,000 after Trump issues a 90-day pause on all tariffs except for China, United States lawmakers hope to speed up crypto legislation, Solana-based NFT platform Magic Eden buys the crypto trading app Slingshot Finance and more.

Meanwhile, the crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments appoints former BlockTower exec Diana Zhang as its new chief operating officer.

Let's get started.

Bitcoin hits $81,000 after Trump pauses tariffs

Bitcoin jumped over 5% to exceed $81,000 after President Donald Trump raised tariffs on China to 125% in response to Beijing's trade moves.

• Trump also announced a 90-day pause on tariffs for other nations and temporarily lowered reciprocal tariffs to 10%.
• Following Trump’s announcements, major cryptocurrencies and U.S. stock indices, including the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, posted gains of over 5%.
• Experts noted that the increased volatility in both crypto and traditional markets resembled the sudden swings seen in meme stocks.
• Analysts pointed to the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes and upcoming U.S. inflation data as potential catalysts for further market movement.
• Fed Chair Jerome Powell emphasized a data-driven approach to monetary policy and warned that trade actions could fuel inflation and slow growth.

US lawmakers aim to speed crypto legislation

U.S. lawmakers are intensifying efforts to create comprehensive crypto regulations after the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it will close its crypto enforcement unit.

• At a House Financial Services Committee hearing, legislators emphasized the urgency of establishing clear digital asset rules, with momentum building behind bills like FIT 21.
• Despite bipartisan progress, passing a broad market structure bill is seen as more difficult than stablecoin legislation due to the former's complexity.
• Some Democrats criticized the DOJ for backing away from crypto enforcement, with concerns raised over who will regulate the space and whether outdated legal frameworks still apply.

Magic Eden acquires crypto trading app Slingshot Finance

NFT marketplace Magic Eden has made its first major acquisition by purchasing Slingshot Finance in a bid to rival centralized exchanges.

• Magic Eden now has access to Slingshot’s chain abstraction technology, letting users trade millions of tokens across multiple blockchains without needing technical knowledge.
• Despite declining NFT market activity, Magic Eden remains optimistic about NFTs’ long-term value but sees utility and ease of use as key drivers for future adoption.
• The Slingshot deal, involving a team of up to 50 and backed by major investors, is fully completed and signals Magic Eden's strategic pivot toward broader crypto services.

Binance to launch LDUSDT for its futures platform

The crypto exchange Binance is introducing LDUSDT, a new reward-bearing margin asset that allows users to trade crypto futures while still earning passive rewards from locked USDT.

• By converting locked USDT from Binance's Simple Earn Flexible Product into LDUSDT, users can use it for margin trading without forfeiting the real-time APR, currently around 1.5%.
• LDUSDT differs from the earlier BFUSD product by eliminating the trade-off between liquidity and yield, offering both in one streamlined solution.
• The APR for LDUSDT will never go negative to maintain consistent rewards as Binance aims to boost capital efficiency for its user base.

Virgil Griffith gets released from prison

Former Ethereum Foundation developer Virgil Griffith has been released on parole after serving part of a reduced 56-month sentence for violating U.S. sanctions.

• Griffith, who pleaded guilty in 2021, was accused of providing technical advice on using blockchain to bypass sanctions during a 2019 conference in North Korea.
• Griffith holds a Ph.D. from Caltech and previously collaborated on projects like Ethereum Name Service, WikiScanner and Tor2web.

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