Ethereum traded around $2,171 on May 16, down 2.3% on the day and about 6% over the week, while holding a $2,100–$2,150 support area near the 100-day SMA. Spot Ethereum ETFs logged $65.7M of net outflows on May 15, extending the streak to five straight negative sessions. RSI near 38 suggests weakening momentum, but the setup remains unconfirmed without a daily close above the Fibonacci 0.382 level.

Bitcoin was turned back at the 200-day SMA and slid toward the $77,500 support area after trading above $81,000 earlier in the week. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs posted broad net outflows totaling about 3,670 BTC, while macro data including a 1.4% monthly PPI and 3.8% annual CPI weighed on rate-cut expectations.

Bitcoin’s global hashrate slipped nearly 6% from 1,066 EH/s at the end of Q1 2026 to 1,004 EH/s by Q2, alongside mining revenues hitting a 14-month low. The US, Russia, and China still represent about 65% of network computing power, while Paraguay and Ethiopia increased share by leveraging low-cost hydropower. The report also notes older rigs becoming unprofitable above $0.06/kWh and a policy push in the US tied to hardware supply risks.

Development data tracked over the past 30 days highlights widening gaps among leading DeFi protocols, with Chainlink (LINK) ranked first and DeepBook (DEEP) second. Key milestones include Swift and major banks completing Chainlink CCIP tokenized-transfer trials on April 5, 2026, Aave V4 launching on Ethereum mainnet on March 30, 2026, and Euler reporting more than $100 million in new deposits across Base, Swell, and Sonic.

Sen. Bill Hagerty said the CLARITY Act could enter the Senate Banking Committee work period starting April 14 and clear the panel by late April 2026. Separately, Sen. Cynthia Lummis said the stablecoin portion is "99% resolved," with leaders aiming for a full Senate vote before May. The FDIC is also set to finalize federal stablecoin issuance rules on April 7 following the GENIUS Act signed in July 2025.

On April 5, 2026, China's State Taxation Administration and the National Financial Regulatory Administration issued a joint directive ordering regions to use blockchain and privacy computing to improve small-business access to bank credit. The framework standardizes how tax compliance data is provided to lenders while enabling analysis without exposing raw files, and it is supported by reported annual blockchain infrastructure spending of about 400 billion yuan.

On 6 April 2026 at 10:28, Bitcoin traded around $68,840, up about 2.4% on the week, as analysts warned that thin volume could make price moves unstable. A leveraged trader, James Wynn, was liquidated six times in the past two weeks on BTC-USD perpetuals on Hyperliquid, with total losses exceeding $500K. Analysts also pointed to $70,000 as a key near-term threshold, while some on-chain metrics suggested elevated risk of a short-term top.

Ethereum traded around $2,058 on April 5, 2026, staying close to the $2,000 area even as several large institutions moved to deepen exposure to ETH. Charles Schwab confirmed on April 3 it will open a "Schwab Crypto" waitlist for direct Bitcoin and Ethereum trading, while Bitmine Immersion Technologies reported 4,732,082 ETH in holdings and the Ethereum Foundation staked roughly 70,000 ETH. Technical signals cited in the report showed mixed momentum, alongside notes on liquidations, ETF flows, and exchange balances.

Kevin Warsh, Donald Trump's pick for Fed chair, is scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on April 16, with Jerome Powell's term ending May 15. Bitcoin is trading around $67,000 as markets price Warsh's stated sequence of shrinking the Fed's $6.7 trillion balance sheet before discussing rate cuts. Rate-cut probabilities have shifted sharply, with June now priced at 11% and April at 1%.