"Do we really need a 14th spot bitcoin ETF?"

Truth Social's bitcoin ETF is dead. The Ethereum Foundation's brain drain deepens. And Copper wants $500M to find a new owner. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Wednesday, May 20, 2026 Why Trump's bitcoin ETF plans likely collapsed before even getting off the ground Trump Media & Technology Group withdrew its SEC registration statements for three Truth Social-branded crypto ETFs this week — a spot bitcoin fund, a bitcoin-and-ether fund, and a crypto blue chip fund — ending a launch that had been in preparation since June 2025. ETF analysts say the real reason isn't regulatory strategy: it's the fee war. Morgan Stanley launched a spot bitcoin ETF at just 14 basis points, and Bloomberg's Eric Balchunas put the situation plainly — unless Truth Social could come in below that floor, "it could be embarrassing." The existing five Truth Social ETFs have attracted just over $30 million in combined assets since their late-2025 launch. Sponsor Yorkville America said it will pursue a more flexible '40 Act structure instead, but analysts aren't buying the strategic pivot framing. "Do we really need a 14th spot bitcoin ETF?" Seyffart wrote. The answer, apparently, was no. Read the full story → The Protocol Ethereum Foundation's high-profile departures spark fresh debate The wave of departures from the Ethereum Foundation is now prompting a broader community debate about whether the organization's deliberate step back from product development — formalized in its March 2026 mandate — is the right posture at the wrong moment. The exits of Carl Beek, Julian Ma, Barnabé Monnot, Tim Beiko, Trent Van Epps, and Alex Stokes represent a significant concentration of protocol research and coordination expertise leaving the organization within a short window. Critics argue the foundation is voluntarily ceding influence precisely as institutional capital is flooding into blockchain infrastructure and competitors are accelerating. Defenders say decentralization was always the point and the EF's role was never to be a permanent staffing agency for the protocol. The debate lands as Alpenglow — the biggest consensus overhaul in Solana's history — approaches mainnet, intensifying the competitive framing. Read more → Business Crypto custody firm Copper is looking to sell the company for $500 million Copper, the institutional crypto custody firm behind the ClearLoop settlement system, is seeking a buyer at a $500 million valuation, according to two people familiar with the matter. Cantor Fitzgerald has been appointed to run the sale process. ClearLoop — which allows delivery-versus-payment settlement from within custody without moving assets onchain — is the asset driving the price tag, serving more than 1,000 active counterparties with over $50 billion in monthly notional trading volume. Copper had been exploring an IPO earlier this year, potentially following rival BitGo's January debut, but a bitcoin price below $80,000 and AI absorbing most available growth capital have put the crypto IPO market on hold. The sale process marks a pivot from public markets to a private exit as the company weighs its strategic options. Read more → Know someone who should be reading this? Share this newsletter See all of CoinDesk’s newsletters    CoinDesk, Inc., 61 9th Avenue, 5th Floor, New York,NY,10011,USA, Unsubscribe Manage Preferences   Copyright © 2026 CoinDesk, All rights reserved.