A judge’s ruling in a criminal case may pave the way for $640 million in tax refunds, challenging the Australian Tax Office’s long-held stance on crypto taxation. A court decision in Australia could open the door to as much as $640 million in capital gains tax (CGT) refunds on Bitcoin transactions after a judge ruled that crypto should be treated as money rather than a taxable asset. On May 19, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported that the decision arose within a criminal case involving federal police officer William Wheatley, who allegedly stole 81.6 Bitcoin (BTC) in 2019. At the time, the assets were worth roughly $492,000. At current market prices, the tokens are valued at more than $13 million. In the case, Judge Michael O’Connell of Victoria ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as a form of money rather than property, likening the digital asset to Australian dollars rather than to shares, gold or foreign currency. Read more
Bitcoin’s weekend breakout above $105,000 has bulls hopeful for new all-time highs at some point this week. Which altcoins will follow? Key points: Bitcoin’s rally to $105,980 has traders predicting new all-time highs this week. Traders lift their end-of-year Bitcoin price targets to $200,000 based on technical factors and institutional investor adoption. Read more
Bitcoin is in line to leave its tight range behind in the coming days — even retaking all-time highs and pushing into price discovery after several months. Key points: Bitcoin is convincing traders that an upside breakout is around the corner, with all-time highs in sight. One target demands $116,000 next week, moving BTC/USD firmly out of its narrow range. Read more
Saifedean Ammous says he would “throw in a few sats” to fund a developer dedicated to making Bitcoin spam more costly. Economist and author of The Bitcoin Standard, Saifedean Ammous, has weighed in on the ongoing debate over spam inscriptions on the Bitcoin network, suggesting he would “throw in a few sats” to fund a full-time developer focused on making Bitcoin spamming more difficult and expensive. Ammous made the remarks in response to a thread initiated by the pseudonymous developer GrassFedBitcoin, who called for Bitcoin Core to merge pull request #28408, which would enable node operators to filter inscriptions more easily. According to GrassFedBitcoin, the lack of inscription filtering tools contributes to unnecessary blockchain bloat and undermines Bitcoin (BTC)’s role as a monetary protocol. Read more
Arthur Hayes predicts Bitcoin could reach $1 million by 2028, an analyst says altcoins “powerful rally” looms: Hodler’s Digest Bitcoin has two strong tailwinds that will help propel it to seven digits in a few years, according to former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes. For Hayes, shifting capital controls worldwide and US Treasury devaluation means that Bitcoin will become the go-to safety net for investors everywhere. He summarized: Read more
Scott Melker says a $250K Bitcoin price in 2025 is “totally possible,” citing institutional adoption and declining volatility as key drivers. Bitcoin’s next explosive move could send the asset to $250,000 by the end of 2025, according to Scott Melker, a crypto analyst and host of The Wolf of All Streets podcast. Speaking in a recent interview, Melker cited growing institutional interest and diminishing volatility as key factors that could drive the next leg up. “250K this year, totally possible,” Melker said, adding that Bitcoin (BTC)’s volatility has declined significantly in recent years. Read more
The mayor of Panama City seemingly advocated for a city-level Bitcoin reserve in a mysterious post after meeting two of El Salvador’s Bitcoin policy leaders this week. Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi has hinted at establishing a city-level Bitcoin reserve in a cryptic post following his meeting with two of El Salvador’s Bitcoin policy leaders. “Bitcoin Reserve,” Mizrachi wrote to X on May 16 after meeting El Salvador-based Bitcoiners Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert. While Mizrachi didn’t share details about his discussions with Keiser and Herbert, the timing of the post came 11 days before the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, where Mizrachi is scheduled to speak. Read more
Bitcoin price consolidation after a powerful double-digit rally is normal. Will the current bull flag confirm and send BTC to new highs? Key takeaways: Traders expect a Bitcoin price pullback to $90,000, but a bull flag could break out to new highs if profit taking near the range highs reduces. On-chain data suggests the current profit taking is too weak to extinguish Bitcoin’s current price momentum. Read more
The healthcare company said that a Bitcoin treasury will help finance its expansion plans. Shares of Basel Medical Group are down around 15% after the healthcare company announced plans to buy $1 billion in Bitcoin for its corporate treasury. On May 16, Singapore-based Basel said it was “in advanced discussions with a consortium of institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals […] to acquire a US$1 billion BTC through an innovative share-swap arrangement. The company said the benefits of its planned purchase include creating “one of the strongest balance sheets among Asia-focused healthcare providers” and providing “unmatched financial flexibility for mergers and acquisitions.” Read more
Bitwise chief investment officer Matthew Hougan said that a Bitcoin supply shock is coming, driven by heightened demand from institutions. Matt Hougan, chief investment officer at Bitwise, predicts Bitcoin (BTC) will reach $200,000 by the end of 2025 due to a supply shock from heightened institutional demand. In an interview with Cointelegraph at Consensus 2025 in Toronto, the executive said that Bitwise's Bitcoin price prediction model is driven exclusively by supply and demand metrics. Hougan laid out the specific figures driving the forecast: "I think eventually that will exhaust sellers at the $100,000 level where we have been stuck, and I think the next stopping point above that is $200,000," the executive said. Bitwise is one of the issuers of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US markets, with nearly $4 billion in assets under management through its Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) as of May 14. Read more
Bitcoin is making traders wait even longer for a move out of its current range — but not everyone thinks that new all-time highs are a sure bet next. Key points: Bitcoin refuses to budge from a narrow range as traders consider the likely breakout direction. Price discovery is keenly awaited, but downside predictions include levels further toward $90,000. Read more
Shares of AsiaStrategy, formerly the luxury watchmaker Top Win, surged over 60% in premarket after announcing a Bitcoin treasury strategy in partnership with Sora Ventures. Shares of luxury watchmaker Top Win surged more than 60% in premarket trading after the company said it would adopt a Bitcoin accumulation strategy and had changed its name to AsiaStrategy. In a May 16 announcement, AsiaStrategy said it is partnering with Sora Ventures to adopt a Bitcoin (BTC) treasury strategy. Sora previously partnered with Metaplanet in 2024 to create Japan’s first corporate Bitcoin treasury. The stock market took immediate notice of the announcement. Top Win stock closed the trading day at $7.50 on May 15, but traded at $12.12 in premarket at the time of writing — a jump of over 60%. Read more