Ripple Makes Power Play for Circle—While Bitcoin Holds Steady Amid Market Whiplash

Ripple’s surprise bid to acquire Circle sends shockwaves through crypto’s institutional corridors—just as Bitcoin shrugs off another round of regulatory FUD. The move could redraw stablecoin battle lines, with XRP loyalists cheering while TradFi veterans mutter about ’yet another crypto chess move with Monopoly money.’

Meanwhile, BTC clings to $60K like a bored trapeze artist, neither impressed by ETF inflows nor spooked by miner sell-offs. Analysts whisper about ’macro tides turning’ as crypto’s old guard and new money collide—proving once again this market runs on three fuels: hype, spite, and the occasional actual use case.

Source: CME Fed Watch Tool 

That said, the market expected no interest rate cut at the next Fed meeting scheduled for the 7th of May. About 95% of interest traders expected the rate to remain unchanged at 4.25%-4.50%.  

Ripple’s Circle offer, Solana, Ethena adoption moves 

Ripple’s attempt to acquire stablecoin issuer Circle has made waves in the crypto industry. According to a Bloomberg report, Ripple proposed a buyout valued between $4 billion and $5 billion.

However, Circle reportedly rejected the offer, deeming it “too low.” The stablecoin giant is rumored to have an equity valuation of $4 billion to $6 billion. It has also established strong regulatory ties, positioning itself as the most compliant stablecoin issuer in the U.S. and E.U.

In 2025, the market for USDC expanded significantly, growing from $43 billion to $62 billion. Recently, Circle launched a cross-border payment network and partnered with global and local merchants to advance this vision.

Analysts see this move as a potential challenge to Ripple’s business model.

Whether Ripple will make another attempt to acquire Circle before its planned IPO (Initial Public Offering) remains uncertain.

Finally, Solana [SOL] and Ethena Labs have made massive adoption moves. Solana submitted a proposal (Project One) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The project, if approved, would bring U.S. stocks on-chain and offer more access to non-U.S. investors. 

Ethena Labs, on the other hand, has partnered with Telegram to allow the messenger’s billion users access to yield-bearing stablecoins (USDe).

The firm added that, starting in May, it will enable users of Wallets in Telegram to stake USDT or USDe and earn rewards. 

“This unlocks dollars held by the hundreds of millions of users in Wallet in Telegram to dollar savings functionality without having to leave the application.” 

In fact, TON users could enjoy as much as a 10% annualized yield paid weekly.