ShadowStaker

Hong Kong Promotes Financial Innovation in Virtual Assets: ETF Stake Opens a New Chapter
Recently, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission issued a circular allowing virtual asset spot ETFs to participate in on-chain staking activities under a prudent regulatory framework, while also relaxing related restrictions on virtual asset trading platforms, permitting licensed platforms to offer staking services to clients. This initiative marks another significant breakthrough in Hong Kong's exploration of a compliant Web3 financial system, which not only hopes to enhance the attractiveness of Hong Kong's virtual asset ecosystem but also combines traditional financial products with the native mechanisms of the on-chain economy for the first time, providing a highly demonstrative model for global virtual asset regulation and financial innovation.
The staking mechanism introduces the traditional financial system.
Staking has become one of the most important on-chain economic activities in the virtual asset ecosystem, especially for public chains that adopt the Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. It not only maintains network security and normal operation but is also the main channel for obtaining on-chain rewards. According to statistics,

Crypto Assets market performance analysis for April: Over 70% of Tokens pump, small market cap projects lead the way.
The crypto assets market showed some signs of recovery in April. Although mainstream assets like Bitcoin are still fluctuating within a range, the altcoin sector has shown signs of revival, and market sentiment has eased somewhat. This article analyzes data from mainstream USDT spot trading pairs on a certain trading platform to reveal the true dynamics of the market in recent times.
Data Description: This study is based on the USDT spot trading pairs from a certain trading platform, incorporating basic information such as Token classification and market capitalization, totaling 397 valid Tokens for analysis. The time range is from April 1, 2025, to April 28, 2025. The price change is calculated based on the starting price and ending price during this period.
Overall market performance: Mainly moderate rise
Analysis shows that the market presented a general rise pattern in April, but the upward trend was relatively mild:
- The average rise is 13.11%, median

Overview of Common On-Chain Investigation Tools in the Blockchain Security Field
In the field of blockchain security, efficient and precise on-chain investigation tools are crucial for asset monitoring, risk prevention, and financial crime investigation. This article selects and organizes 12 commonly used blockchain analysis tools, covering functions such as multi-chain data monitoring, cross-chain bridging, fund flow tracking, and tax profit and loss calculation, providing professional-level on-chain data analysis guidance for security researchers, law enforcement agencies, compliance teams, and investors to help address the increasingly complex challenges of blockchain security.
1. Cielo: EVM compatible wallet tracking and monitoring
Cielo focuses on wallet tracking, supporting multiple blockchain platforms such as EVM-compatible chains, Bitcoin, Solana, and Tron. This tool not only enables real-time monitoring of wallet activities and fund flows but also provides a Smart Wallet list recommendation, helping to quickly identify potential risks or abnormal behaviors.

The new regulations from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange aim to improve forex supervision, enhance market transparency, and prevent risks. Comprehensive regulation of Virtual Money transactions will be implemented, and banks must monitor and report suspicious transactions. Legitimate sources of funds can mitigate legal risks, but involvement in criminal activities will face severe penalties. Enterprises must ensure Compliance.

The trading system is crucial in financial markets, encompassing rules such as get on board, exit, and stop loss. While some misunderstand that it can guarantee profits, in reality, there is no system that can ensure consistent gains without losses. Building a suitable system that includes elements like cycle judgment, operational thinking, and risk control is key to successful investing and must be continuously optimized based on individual characteristics.

Recently, the meme coin craze has resurfaced, with AIDOGE and PEPE exemplifying this phenomenon. AIDOGE attracts investors through innovative Airdrop and incentive mechanisms, with volume and market capitalization rapidly rising. PEPE, on the other hand, has garnered attention due to its no pre-sale and ultra-high investment returns. Investors need to follow fair distribution, low price high volume, and innovative topics; however, meme coin investment carries extreme risks and should be approached with caution.

Illuminating the Dark Forest: Unveiling the Mystery of MEV
With the surge of on-chain activities and the evolution and enrichment of on-chain infrastructure, on-chain MEV has long been regarded as the most dangerous part of Ethereum's dark forest, directly causing profit losses and user experience degradation in users' on-chain financial activities. The goal of this article, "Illuminating the Dark Forest," is to focus on analyzing the inherent centralization and trust issues brought about by this mechanism based on the block generation mechanism of Ethereum 2.0 and the technical evolution of proposer-builder separation (PBS), which stands in stark contrast to Ethereum's values.
The intensification of on-chain MEV is indeed a double-edged sword, with both positive and negative externalities. The positive aspects include reducing price discrepancies on DEXs and assisting in liquidating trades; the negative aspects include harm to users from sandwich trading. Therefore, solutions for MEV are more about mitigating negative externalities rather than eliminating them completely. In our efforts to alleviate M

Huaxing Capital plans to invest $100 million in expanding its Web3 business over the next two years, marking its transition from traditional Web2 to the encryption field. The company has already made multiple investments in the encryption sector and will seek to develop new opportunities in the upcoming financial transformation.

Recently, the A-share market has shown signs of a pullback after a strong pump, and discussions about sustainability are ongoing. The economic fundamentals remain weak, but policy support has strengthened, leading to expectations of a mild recovery in the future. Market valuations are close to historical medians, with short-term rises mainly based on expectations and capital. Observing the implementation of policies and economic improvements will impact future market trends.

The credibility of TVL data has always been one of the focal points of concern in the Crypto Assets field. There are views that the same UTXO may be counted multiple times as TVL for different projects, but from a technical principle perspective, this possibility does not exist. A UTXO can only be locked once, therefore it can only be counted once at the same point in time.
In fact, most projects publicly disclose their staking addresses, and even if they do not, it is possible to trace them through on-chain fund flows. These addresses are not only for users but also for allowing investors to verify the project's control over the funds.
TVL data manipulation mainly occurs on these public addresses. Project parties usually collaborate with large holders to inject funds to increase TVL. In return, project parties promise large holders a minimum yield. This practice is common in various DeFi projects and can be described as a win-win strategy.
Taking a certain project as an example, it uses an MPC wallet.

The true value of Bitcoin lies in its ability as a Medium of Exchange, rather than merely as a store of value. Liquidity and trading capability are the foundations of Bitcoin's existence; assets lacking trading functionality lose their value. Only through circulation can Bitcoin truly realize its potential, fostering cooperation and the development of the ecosystem.

Mina Protocol is a lightweight Blockchain based on zk-SNARKs, with a constant Blockchain size of 22 KB, enhancing Decentralization and security. Its unique attestation Algorithm supports more validators to participate, while also launching zkApps to achieve privacy protection and cross-chain services, which is expected to play an important role in the Blockchain ecosystem in the future.

Recently, the movements of some crypto assets investment funds have attracted attention in the industry. Last week, well-known investor Cathie Wood's fund decided to withdraw its application for the Ethereum ETF, which may have deeper underlying reasons behind this action.
Currently, the Bitcoin ETF market is highly competitive, with generally low fees, mostly between 0.19% and 0.25%. Even the fourth-ranked well-known Bitcoin ETF generates only about $7 million in annual management fee income, which is comparable to its operating costs. This means that many ETF products may be at a break-even or slightly profitable state.
The situation is even more severe for smaller market cap crypto assets. Taking a well-known public chain token as an example, its market cap is only about 5% of Bitcoin's. To make an ETF product for this token profitable, it would need to manage at least 4.5% of the total supply of that token, which is significantly higher than the current percentage of Bitcoin managed by the largest Bitcoin ETF (approximately 1.5%).
Moreover

The risks and challenges faced by the digital asset market
In the wave of rapid development of the digital economy, the cryptocurrency market is facing unprecedented challenges. On one hand, there are strict requirements for compliance and regulation, while on the other hand, there are hidden risks of market manipulation and information asymmetry.
On April 14, 2025, the cryptocurrency market experienced another tumultuous night. A token regarded as a "compliance RWA pioneer" was simultaneously subject to forced liquidation on multiple exchanges, with its price plummeting from $6 to $0.5, a single-day drop of over 90%, wiping out $5.5 billion in market value, and causing contract traders to lose $58 million. At first glance, it appears to be a liquidity crisis, but in reality, it is a meticulously planned cross-platform "harvesting" operation. This article will delve into the reasons behind this flash crash, reveal the truth behind it, and explore the future development direction of the Web3 industry, as well as how to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
Comparison of Flash Crash Events and Historical Cases
This event

Stripe recently acquired the wallet infrastructure provider Privy, aiming to build a complete tech stack for stablecoins and Programmability. With Privy and the previously acquired Bridge, Stripe will simplify the encryption payment process, enhance user experience, and promote the adoption of stablecoins in mainstream financial systems.

Real Estate Asset Tokenization: Current Status, Cases and Future Outlook
Introduction
Real estate asset tokenization is not a new concept in the cryptocurrency market. As early as 2018, asset tokenization and security token offerings (STO) emerged, bearing similarities to today's real-world asset (RWA) concept. However, due to the lack of a robust regulatory framework and the absence of significant advantages in potential returns, these early attempts failed to evolve into a mature market segment.
In 2022, as the United States continued to raise interest rates, the yield on U.S. Treasury bonds significantly exceeded the interest rates for stablecoin lending in the cryptocurrency market. Therefore, tokenizing U.S. Treasury bonds into RWA has become increasingly attractive to the crypto industry. As a result, well-known DeFi projects such as MakerDAO, Compound, and Aave, as well as some traditional financial institutions and governments, have begun to explore the RWA space.
In the past two years, multiple real estate projects have emerged in the market.

The Future Development Direction of Ethereum: An Interpretation of Vitalik Buterin's Latest Views
Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, recently expressed a series of views on the future development of Ethereum and the cryptocurrency industry. This article summarizes his core viewpoints since July 2024, let's take a look at the details:
The interoperability issues across Layer 2 will be resolved.
Vitalik believes that the interoperability issue across Layer 2 "will soon no longer be a problem". He envisions a seamless user experience across the entire Ethereum ecosystem (including Layer 1, Rollups, Validium, and even sidechains), and this progress may come as a surprise to many. He noted the tremendous drive and determination to achieve this goal.
Cryptographic support should not become the only standard of political allegiance.
Vitalik emphasized that,