Coinbase Derivatives will introduce perpetual-style equity index futures in U.S. regulated markets on June 8, 2026, offering four thematic contracts tied to AI, Chinese equities, defense, and broad tech. The products use a funding-rate mechanism, are cash-settled, and represent 1x exposure to their underlying indexes, with retail availability expected in the coming months.

On May 19, Ripple said Ripple Prime integrated with EDX Markets and EDXM International to add EDX liquidity for institutional clients across digital asset spot and perpetual futures markets. The setup provides a single prime-brokerage access point that combines trading, credit intermediation, net settlement, and collateral and margin workflows. Ripple also said the collaboration is intended to support future use of its U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin RLUSD for settlement and collateral on EDX.

A public petition seeking to fully remove South Korea's taxation on cryptocurrency gains has surpassed 50,000 signatures, which sends it into a mandatory review stage inside the National Assembly. The next step is consideration by a relevant standing committee, but no hearing schedule or vote timeline has been confirmed.

The National Cryptocurrency Association says more than 67 million Americans—about 1 in 4 adults—now hold cryptocurrency, with 12 million entering the market in one year. The survey-based report says 90% of holders expect to buy crypto within the next year, while 77% said crypto has had a positive impact on their lives.

President Donald Trump said on May 18, 2026, that he is angry the federal government must return $149 billion in tariff proceeds after a Supreme Court decision narrowed his IEEPA-based tariffs. The Court ruled 6-3 in February 2026 that the 2025 “reciprocal” tariffs exceeded executive authority, triggering refunds through CBP’s CAPE portal and ongoing interest estimated at $650 million per month.

Binance saw a net USDT outflow of $46.15 million over the past hour, a measure that compares withdrawals against deposits for the same period. The one-hour snapshot has drawn attention from traders watching near-term exchange liquidity and positioning, though a single data point does not confirm a broader trend.

Options activity in IBM surged after news it could receive $1 billion from the U.S. Commerce Department to support quantum computing. Nearly 200,000 contracts traded, about 15 times the 30-day daily average, with calls leading puts by almost 8:1. One large trade spent $2.7 million on more than 500 Dec. 15, 2028 260-strike calls, implying a move above $312 by expiry.

Prediction-market traders are betting that SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic could enter public markets at trillion-dollar-plus levels, potentially topping Berkshire Hathaway's roughly $1.03 trillion market cap. SpaceX filed to list on Nasdaq on Wednesday, while reports the same day said OpenAI may seek a confidential IPO filing as soon as Friday and that Anthropic could post a first profitable quarter.