June 17, 2025

The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day 

Welcome to The Node! This is Ben Schiller to take you through the latest crypto news from CoinDesk's reporters.

Memecoin Accounts Suspended From X in Apparent Crackdown

• Social media giant X suspended Pump.fun’s official account and co-founder Alon Cohen’s handle on June 16, along with other memecoin platforms
• The platform provided no reason for the suspensions, leading to speculation about policy enforcement or regulatory intervention

CoinDesk Research's latest protocol research explores Bahamut, an EVM-compatible layer-1 protocol that offers a unique approach to validator economics.

Commissioned by Bahamut, the report evaluates the protocol's novel consensus mechanism along with its validator design, tokenomics, architecture and application-layer ecosystem, including adoption metrics, scaling infrastructure, grants and more.

ARK Invest Offloads Over $50M in Circle Shares as Stock Extends Rally

• ARK offloaded a total of 342,658 shares across three of its ETFs, coinciding with a 13% gain in Circle's stock
• The fund bought $373 million worth of Circle shares when the company listed on the NYSE earlier this month

a16z Bets Big on EigenLayer

• Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has invested an additional $70 million in EigenLayer
• The restaking protocol has launched EigenCloud, a new platform for developers offering “verifiability-as-a-service”

Today's Op-Ed

Can the Real Cypherpunks Please Stand Up?

BY MEGAN KNAB

• I feel a growing cognitive dissonance in crypto as its revolutionary roots seem diluted, even though it's gained mainstream acceptance.

• The core cypherpunk values of using technology to rebalance power towards individuals are being compromised as fintech and political interests get involved.

• I worry that acquisitions and political engagements, like sponsorships, are being mistaken for validation of crypto's principles, when in reality, they may be co-opting its original mission.

• It's crucial for the crypto community to revisit its roots and remember that crypto was intended to be a counterweight to centralized power, not another tool of the state.

Note: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of CoinDesk, Inc. or its owners and affiliates.

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