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Trump’s Ripple (XRP) Post Fallout: How the White House Sidelined Lobbyist (Report)

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In early March, a Truth Social post by President Donald Trump promoting a “Crypto Strategic Reserve” went viral in the United States.

However, within hours of its going up, the post backfired on one of Washington, D.C.’s most well-connected lobbyists, Brian Ballard.

Truth Social Post Drama

According to a report from Politico, the idea for the post came from a staff member at Ballard’s lobbying firm who had spoken to Trump several times during a weekend donor event at Mar-a-Lago. She allegedly urged the president to back the crypto industry publicly and even suggested the language he would use.

Unknown to Trump at the time, Ripple, whose native XRP token was mentioned in the message, was a client of Ballard’s firm. CEO Brad Garlinghouse has made no secret of his desire to see XRP included in a proposed digital asset reserve.

Once the President learned of the connection, he was furious. “He is not welcome in anything anymore,” Trump reportedly told White House associates later that month, referring to Ballard.

As a result, staff were allegedly quietly directed to avoid meetings with him, effectively freezing him out of the West Wing.

Since Trump’s return to power, Ballard Partners has gained 130 new customers. The firm earned $14 million in the first three months of 2025, more than three times what it made in the same period last year.

However, some people in Trump’s circle now believe the influence peddler has gone too far. According to Politico, they think he uses his past ties to the President and his team to get more clients, even though those relationships may not be as close as he claims.

“One way to get yourself in the doghouse is for the President to think you are trading on his name,” one Trump ally told the media outlet, adding that the lobbyist overstates his “importance and value.”

Ballard Denies Accusations

In a statement to the media outlet, the 65-year-old rejected the criticisms and denied that he has been sidelined. “I have never touted my relationships with people in the West Wing to try to win clients,” he noted.

Regarding the Truth Social incident, someone from his team said they never tried to trick Trump with the message. Despite this, the situation seems to have caused Ballard some trouble with his business. A few of his clients have reportedly begun seeking alternative routes to gain access to the President and his advisers.

After opening his Washington office in 2017, Ballard quickly became one of the city’s most successful lobbyists. He is a well-known figure in Trump’s world, having helped raise tens of millions of dollars for the politician’s campaigns.

He also used to represent the Trump Organization, and his firm also employed two of the President’s close allies, Susie Wiles and Pam Bondi.

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Bitcoin Price Analysis: What’s Next for BTC After Breaking Above $104K?

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Bitcoin kicked off the second week of May with a powerful continuation move, breaking through key resistance levels and climbing to fresh local highs. While the rally has been rapid, and the current technical signals suggest there’s still gas left in the tank, caution is still warranted.

The Daily Chart

On the daily timeframe, BTC has pushed decisively above the $100K resistance and is now hovering around the $104K mark. This breakout marks a clear escape from the month-long compression between the rising trendline and the 100 and 200-day moving averages.

The price has reclaimed both the moving averages around the $90K price level, and the RSI is holding above 70, indicating strong momentum. However, it also points to slightly overbought conditions. If the buyers maintain pressure and avoid sharp rejections, a run toward a new all-time high is likely.

The 4-Hour Chart

Zooming into the 4H chart, the breakout becomes even clearer. BTC exited an ascending channel pattern to the upside, rallying through the previous key supply zone around $98K with almost no resistance. Since then, the asset has been grinding higher in an orderly fashion, supported by the RSI cooling off.

The latest price action shows signs of slowing momentum, but there’s no reversal confirmation yet. A healthy pullback into the $100K–$98K range would be a logical area to look for continuation setups if the buyers remain in control. However, if that level fails, support at $94K could catch the next wave of bids.

Onchain Analysis

Miner Reserve

On-chain data reveals a persistent downtrend in the Bitcoin Miner Reserve, which has now dropped to around 1.8M BTC, the lowest in recent years. This suggests that miners are not accumulating, but rather continuing a long-term distribution pattern. Instead of increasing their holdings during this rally, they appear to be gradually offloading BTC, possibly to capitalize on higher prices or manage operational costs post-halving.

While this doesn’t necessarily signal aggressive selling, it does indicate that miners are not contributing to long-term supply tightening at the moment. Their lack of accumulation, in contrast to strong spot buying, reinforces the idea that current demand is being driven by other market participants, such as institutions and retail investors.

 

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Disclaimer: Information found on CryptoPotato is those of writers quoted. It does not represent the opinions of CryptoPotato on whether to buy, sell, or hold any investments. You are advised to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. Use provided information at your own risk. See Disclaimer for more information.

Cryptocurrency charts by TradingView.

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Cryptocurrency

AB Foundation and AB Blockchain Jointly Champion Tech-driven Global Philanthropy: Building Trust through Technology

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[PRESS RELEASE – Dublin, Ireland, May 11th, 2025]

The AB Foundation and AB Blockchain successfully hosted the inaugural “Tech-driven Global Philanthropy Closed-door Forum” today in Dublin.

The forum brought together distinguished global leaders, including His Excellency Bertie Ahern, former Prime Minister of Ireland and former President of the European Council; His Excellency Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria and former Chairperson of the African Union; Malcolm Byrne, Member of the Irish Parliament and Chairperson of the Artificial Intelligence Committee, alongside other prominent states persons and scholars. The attendees convened to discuss the transformative potential of cutting-edge technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence in global philanthropy.

The forum was chaired by Bertie Ahern, Chairman of AB Foundation, former Prime Minister of Ireland, and former President of the European Council, who delivered the keynote speech titled “Technology and Trust: Building a New Global Philanthropic Order.”

Subsequently, Anthony Tsang, spokesperson for AB Blockchain, presented key developments on AB Blockchain’s high-performance mainnet, innovative cross-chain system AB Connect, and the groundbreaking zero-Gas stablecoin protocol Universal Transfer. He emphasized AB Blockchain’s mission to provide fully compliant infrastructure platforms for global philanthropy.

The AB Foundation will actively forward the key proposals from this forum to relevant international organizations and partners, continuing to promote a new global paradigm of “Technology for Good.”

About AB Foundation

The AB Foundation is an independent international non-governmental organization registered in Ireland with recognized legal status within the European Union. Supported by technology and funding from AB DAO, the Foundation leverages advanced technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence to create transparent, trustworthy, and traceable philanthropic infrastructures, thus promoting sustainable development in education, healthcare, environment, and humanitarian aid.

For more information, users can visit the official website: www.ab.org

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Why ETH’s Undervaluation May Not Signal a Buying Opportunity: CQ Report

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Ethereum (ETH) plunged into territory not seen since 2019 before it posted a substantial recovery in the past few days. However, it’s still trading at a steep discount to Bitcoin (BTC).

According to the latest weekly report from on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant, the ETH/BTC MVRV ratio, which measures market value relative to realized value, has entered “extremely undervalued” territory, a level that in past cycles set the stage for major ETH rebounds.

 A Discount Amid Growing Headwinds

CryptoQuant’s analysis noted that Ethereum’s deep discounts against BTC have historically signaled prime buying opportunities.

However, it pointed out that the current environment is markedly different, with a series of fundamental headwinds responsible for the undervaluation. These include the unraveling of Ethereum’s once-promising deflationary supply narrative, with the asset’s total supply hitting an all-time high of 120.7 million.

The analytics platform attributed the reversal to March 2024’s Dencun upgrade, which drastically reduced transaction fees and collapsed the ETH burn rate. With fewer tokens being burned, inflationary pressure found its way back into the ETH market.

Further compounding the issue is that on-chain activity has been stagnant for a while. Since 2021, key metrics such as transaction counts and active addresses have dropped, mostly because Layer 2 (L2) networks diverted usage away from the Ethereum mainnet. Even though they have improved scalability, L2s have also diluted demand for base-layer block space, undermining ETH’s utility narrative in the process.

CryptoQuant also noted that institutional interest in the asset has been waning. The amount of staked ETH has reportedly dipped from its November 2024 peak of 35 million to about 34.4 million. ETF holdings have also shed as much as 400,000 ETH since February this year, reflecting weakening investor confidence.

“Bitcoin is benefiting from robust institutional demand, capped supply, and ETF-driven inflows,” read the report, contrasting the fortunes of the two cryptocurrencies.

Undervalued but Not Without Risk

Despite the obstacles, ETH staged a sharp rebound towards the end of the week. It shot up to roughly $2,400 on Friday.

Additionally, over the past week, the altcoin soared just above 30%, crushing Bitcoin’s 7.5% climb and vastly outpacing the global crypto market’s 8% gain. The rally coincided with the successful activation of the long-awaited Pectra upgrade on May 7, which introduced account abstraction and improved staking mechanics via 11 bundled EIPs. However, its impact may be muted.

Past experiences show that Ethereum’s discount to Bitcoin is often a buying signal. Still, CryptoQuant’s analysis suggests that the returning inflation, weakening demand, and stagnant activity may mean that this could be the first cycle in which ETH’s undervaluation isn’t a springboard but a trap.

“While ETH appears undervalued on a historical basis, its recovery path may be more complex and slower than in prior cycles,” CQ concluded.

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