Ethereum spot ETFs logged a $65.65 million net weekly outflow, the largest weekly withdrawal since January, with no day showing fresh inflows. Withdrawals were steady throughout the week, with the biggest single-day outflow on Tuesday, May 12, when funds shed $130.62 million in 24 hours.

On May 14, the Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, outlining how U.S. regulators would oversee crypto markets. The bill would clarify SEC and CFTC roles, create a joint advisory committee, and set frameworks covering DeFi decentralization tests, stablecoin reward limits, and tokenized securities treatment.

The Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 on Thursday to advance the CLARITY Act, moving the crypto market structure proposal out of committee. Ahead of the vote, banking advocates highlighted figures including $154 billion in 2025 illicit crypto receipts and a 162% year-over-year rise, while others argued enforcement and on-chain controls are increasingly limiting laundering.

Over the last seven days, stablecoin market capitalization rose to $323.343 billion after $1.542 billion in net inflows. USDT stayed on top with about 58.67% share and added $68.2 million since May 9, while USDC fell 1.22% on the week. USDS grew 11.50% to $8.791 billion, and Western Union's USDPT surged 597,568% but remained a $1.5 million market.

Bitcoin (BTC) slid below $78,000 on Saturday and printed an intraday low of $77,614, its weakest level since May 1. Traders pointed to weakening support with $75,000 and even lower levels on watch, while some argued the move could be setting up a "bear trap" as open interest rose and funding rates turned negative.

On Friday, May 15, 2026, the 10 largest publicly traded bitcoin mining stocks all declined 2.52% to 9.59% in one session, even as each remained ahead of bitcoin's year-to-date return. Bitcoin ended the week at $77,849 and was down 11.1% YTD, while Hut 8 led miners with a 123.16% YTD gain despite a 6.26% daily drop. Several miners cited expanding AI and high-performance computing (HPC) capacity and contracts as a key driver behind their stronger 2026 performance.

On 15 May, about $60 billion left the crypto market as U.S. equities collectively shed nearly $1 trillion, setting up what looked like a cross-asset risk reset. Around $415 million in crypto positions were then liquidated—close to 90% from longs—after Bitcoin had spent more than four weeks consolidating near $80k. The move also coincided with the U.S. 10-year yield breaking above 4.55% for the first time since May 2025, adding to broader risk-off concerns.

On May 16, a newly created wallet opened a 10x leveraged long in dogecoin for 20 million DOGE, valued at $2.25 million, with liquidation set at $0.10284. With DOGE trading near $0.1086, the liquidation level sits under 10% below spot, tightening downside room. Separately, large holders have accumulated a record 108.52 billion DOGE while the price consolidates below $0.12.