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- Ethereum Upgraded. Bybit Recovered. CZ Wants Out.
Ethereum Upgraded. Bybit Recovered. CZ Wants Out.
PLUS: This Week’s Top Remote Web3 Roles
Cryptopolitan News
May 07, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes
📬 Today’s Byte
• Ethereum’s Pectra update goes live
• Bybit’s BTC liquidity is back — But Alts still healing
• CZ applies for US Pardon, slams memecoins & media
• Cryptopolitan's Picks: Top Remote Web3 Roles
⛓️ Ethereum’s Pectra update goes live
Ethereum upgrades to Pectra — It’s the biggest update since The Merge.
👇All you need to know— Cryptopolitan (@CPOfficialtx)
10:32 AM • May 7, 2025
As of May 7, 2025, the long-awaited Pectra update is live on mainnet—fusing two major improvement tracks (Prague + Electra) into one unified leap forward. This isn't just another version bump; Pectra fundamentally reshapes how Ethereum works for users, validators, and developers alike.
At the core of the update is EIP-7702, a game-changer for wallets. It turns regular wallets into smart accounts—enabling features like fee payments in non-ETH tokens, transaction batching, and session keys for smoother dApp interactions. Think DeFi, gaming, and payments—only faster, cheaper, and simpler.
But Pectra doesn’t stop there:
Validator stake limits skyrocket from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH—streamlining operations for institutional validators.
Data blob capacity doubles, making Layer 2s like Arbitrum and Optimism even more scalable.
UX improvements across the board for validators and users alike.
The market responded with a cheer: ETH jumped 2.45% within two hours post-upgrade, trading volume surged 18%, and on-chain activity spiked. L2 tokens followed suit—ARB up 3.1%, OP up 2.8%—with DeFi tokens like UNI and AAVE seeing volume boosts of 9% and 7% respectively.
But it’s not all euphoria. Security researchers raised red flags over the new message-signing mechanics. Now, signing a message—not just a transaction—could drain your wallet. Developers also lamented the lack of standardization for features like batched transactions, warning of inconsistent UX across wallets.
Still, the update cements Ethereum’s position as the settlement layer for the decentralized economy. As Joseph Lubin put it, “We are patiently building the foundational substrate for the decentralized global system.”
📊 TL;DR: Pectra is live. ETH is strong. L2s and DeFi are surging. But watch for bugs, security hiccups, and wallet UX drama. This is Ethereum’s biggest leap since the Merge—and it’s already moving markets.
🏦 Exchange watch
Three months after its February hack, Bybit has pulled off a strong comeback—restoring core BTC market liquidity and rebuilding trader confidence.
The hack, which mostly affected Ethereum assets, triggered a broader liquidity drain and user exodus. But Bybit responded fast: securing credit lines, handling over 350K withdrawals, and stabilizing its top trading pairs.
As of May 7, Bybit’s BTC markets are back on solid ground:
$2.8M BTC market depth (for 2% slippage)
$2.8B daily trading volume
BTC = 39% of total exchange activity
But not everything has recovered equally.
Altcoin liquidity remains behind, with market depth for tokens like UNI, ONDO, and LTC hovering around 80% of pre-hack levels. While meme coin TRUMP briefly boosted volumes, broader sentiment remains bearish—slowing altcoin recovery.
What makes Bybit’s bounce-back notable is context.
Other exchanges like HTX, Bithumb, and MEXC saw double-digit liquidity drops post-hack. Even Binance lost up to 80% liquidity during the 2023 SEC crackdown—some of which is yet to return.
Bybit’s retail-focused liquidity offerings and structured crisis response have positioned it as a rare case study in exchange resilience.
📊 TL;DR: BTC is back. Alts are lagging. Bybit’s recovery stands out in a market where many still haven’t bounced back.
⚖️ Regulation Radar:
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has confirmed that his legal team has officially applied for a presidential pardon in the US—months after denying rumors of a deal with Trump’s family.
In a recent Rug Radio interview, CZ said the application was submitted about two weeks ago. He referenced past cases like BitMEX’s Arthur Hayes, highlighting that he remains the only person sentenced over a single Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) charge.
The move comes after WSJ reports claimed Trump’s family offered a pardon in exchange for a stake in Binance.US—a story CZ has repeatedly called false and fabricated.
CZ on Memecoins: “Too Much Attention”
Zhao also voiced concern about the memecoin obsession, calling it a distraction from meaningful projects.
Most memecoins are high-risk, short-term plays—and traders know it.
While acknowledging their appeal, he warned that they’re drawing attention away from utility-driven innovation. CZ pointed to past SEC pressure as one reason quality projects stayed sidelined—but expects builders to return under the new, lighter regulatory tone.
No politics, but Pro-Trump praise
CZ emphasized he’s never spoken with Trump and avoids political donations due to Binance’s foreign status. Still, he praised Trump’s pro-crypto stance, calling the regulatory pivot “unthinkable a few years ago.”
Binance.US, meanwhile, continues to operate with no major new plans. CZ remains the majority shareholder, and the equity structure remains unchanged.
📌 TL;DR: CZ seeks a pardon, slams media & memecoins, and cautiously applauds crypto’s evolving place in US politics.
⭐️ Cryptopolitan’s Picks
Every week, Cryptopolitan curates the most exciting Web3 job opportunities across engineering, growth, and business development—so you don’t have to scroll through endless listings. Here's this week’s spotlight:
Stellar — Senior Software Engineer
Onsite (USA) | $180K–$230K
Build mission-critical blockchain infrastructure with a proven team.QuickNode — Senior Software Engineer
Remote | $176K–$195K
Write Rust and Golang powering Web3’s fastest-growing infra provider.Arbitrum Foundation — DeFi Marketing Lead
Remote | $80K
Drive narrative and growth at one of the top Layer 2 ecosystems.Chainalysis — Product Marketing Manager
Remote | $107K
Tell stories that move markets at the intersection of crypto and data.Polygon Labs — DeFi BD Specialist
Remote | $72K–$90K
Connect protocols and partners to scale DeFi’s next frontier.
Market-moving headlines 🔥
The Federal Reserve will more than likely hold interest rates steady at its May 7-8 policy meeting. Still, all eyes are on Chair Jerome Powell’s comments on the state of the America market, inflation, and the possibility of a recession. | BlackRock just dropped a 50-page proxy statement stuffed with corporate jargon that couldn’t explain why its CEO, Larry Fink, earned $37 million in 2024. That’s the number staring every shareholder in the face, and they’re not getting answers. |
The United States Senate is set to start voting on a crypto bill tomorrow as it needs bipartisan backing to advance. The GENIUS Act, led by Senator Bill Hagerty, would require all stablecoins to be backed by U.S. dollars and also short-term Treasuries. | OpenAI is cutting Microsoft’s role down to size. The company told investors that it will start sending less of its money to Microsoft as it pushes forward with a new structure that puts the brakes on CEO Sam Altman’s control and keeps power with its nonprofit parent. |
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