Key Takeaways
Over $78 million in illicit USDT transfers exposed a critical vulnerability due to delayed blacklist enforcement.
Analysts predict bitcoin will outperform gold in H2 2025, driven by institutional buying and state-level adoption.
The exchange faces up to $400 million in remediation costs after insiders aided a phishing attack that targeted user data.
The crypto market is abuzz with significant developments, from security concerns to market predictions. A recent report revealed that Tether's delayed blacklist enforcement allowed over $78 million in illicit USDT transfers, highlighting vulnerabilities in the system. Meanwhile, JPMorgan analysts forecast bitcoin to outperform gold in the second half of 2025, driven by institutional buying and state-level adoption.
Coinbase faces potential remediation costs of up to $400 million in a separate incident following a phishing attack that compromised user data. Let's dive into the details of these major crypto market moves.
According to a recent report from AMLBot, around $78 million in USDT was transferred in suspicious activities because Tether experienced a delay in wallet blacklisting process. Ethereum and Tron blockchains need Tether to create several multisignature transactions for blacklisting, allowing the targeted addresses to remain unfrozen.
A Tether administrator submits a pending blacklist call on the USDT contract to begin the process. However, the actual process of enforcing the activation is carried out after a second multisignature is completed. In an instance, AMLBot noted a 44-minute delay between sending the blacklist and having it enforced on Tron. During this time, users can move their funds to prevent being frozen.
According to AMLBot, between November 2017 and May 2025, the network saw $28.5 million held due to Ethereum delays and $49.6 million being withdrawn from Tron. The report finds that this lag allows attackers to move and wash money while regulators are still caught up. Tether pointed out that it continues to work with law enforcement and that the multisignature setup combines security and governance. The company claims to improve the process to avoid delays and misuses.
JPMorgan analysts forecast that bitcoin will likely continue outperforming gold in the second half of 2025. According to a report by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, the previously concurrent “debasement trade” of both assets has turned into a zero-sum game. Recently, bitcoin’s price has risen at gold’s expense, reflecting shifts in investor preference.
Since late April, gold prices have dropped nearly 8%, while bitcoin gained about 18%. The analysts noted that money flows from gold exchange-traded funds into spot bitcoin and crypto funds. Bitcoin’s outperformance is also tied to corporate buying and increasing state-level adoption in the U.S. Firms like Strategy and Metaplanet are purchasing more bitcoin. States such as New Hampshire and Arizona are adding bitcoin to their reserves.
Further, the maturing crypto derivatives market in the U.S. is encouraging institutional participation. JPMorgan analysts expect these crypto-specific factors, combined with gold’s softness, to drive bitcoin’s upside potential through the remainder of 2025.
Coinbase disclosed it could incur remediation expenses between $180 million and $400 million following a recent insider phishing attack. In a May 15 blog post, the exchange reported that external actors bribed overseas customer support agents to access internal systems and steal limited user account data. Less than 1% of monthly active users were affected.
The attackers demanded $20 million in bitcoin in exchange for not releasing the stolen information, but Coinbase refused and instead offered a $20 million reward for information leading to arrests. CEO Brian Armstrong revealed the attack involved months of attempts to bribe support staff.
Coinbase aims to address this problem by fortifying its data safety and moving parts of customer support to reduce employee stress. The company has promised to compensate users who were tricked by phishing attacks. ZachXBT calculated that at least $45 million was lost to phishing using Coinbase between April 27 and May 7. The popularity of social engineering is leading to serious risks for crypto companies and their users.