South Korea’s 1 trillion won pension fund has increased its Bitcoin holdings via institutional channels, while major European banks launched crypto trading and Japan’s top securities firms are preparing crypto investment products. The report also warns of rising fake wallet phishing scams and highlights high-risk token unlocks (PYTH, Rain) in the coming days.South Korea’s 1 trillion won pension fund has increased its Bitcoin holdings via institutional channels, while major European banks launched crypto trading and Japan’s top securities firms are preparing crypto investment products. The report also warns of rising fake wallet phishing scams and highlights high-risk token unlocks (PYTH, Rain) in the coming days.

MEXC On-Chain Observation Daily: South Korea's 1 Trillion Won Pension Fund Boosts Bitcoin Holdings via Strategy

2026/05/18 09:28
11 min read
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News Brief
- Jump Crypto: Firedancer launches Solana mainnet to complete block production - Italy's Top Bank Increases Crypto Positions to $235 million in First Quarter - South Korea's trillion-dollar pension fund increases holdings of Bitcoin assets through institutional channels - Upbit's parent company successfully completed a $667 million large equity stake financing - Several mainstream European banks have officially launched cryptocurrency trading services

Updated: May 15, 2026 9:30 (UTC + 8) | Author: MEXC

1. Quick overview of important news

  • The US Senate Banking Committee passed the CLARITY bill by a vote of 15 to 9
  • Winklevoss Twins Invest $100 million in Gemini, Pay in Bitcoin
  • Coinbase becomes the official USDC treasury deployer on Hyperliquid
  • CME plans to launch Nasdaq crypto index futures on June 8
  • Tether and T3 freeze illegal crypto assets worth more than $450 million

2. Industry trends

Consensys delays IPO plan until autumn 2026 at the earliest

According to Odaily Planet Daily, MetaMask developer Consensys has postponed its US IPO plan due to market decline, macro uncertainty, and outflow of Bitcoin ETF funds. Previously, its valuation reached $7 billion in 2022. Recently, BitGo's stock price fell after its listing, reflecting the cautious attitude of the open market towards crypto infrastructure companies and the current pressure on the valuation of the primary market in the crypto industry. This provides a market reference for similar crypto companies' listing plans.

ZachXBT: LAB insiders control over 95% of token supply, posing manipulation risks

According to Odaily Planet Daily, the founder of the LAB project pushed the token valuation to $6 billion through shell companies, over the counter, and KOL discount operations. Recently, about 100 million LABs have been transferred from the exchange to specific addresses. The investigation shows that its model is similar to projects such as RIVER, with high control and price manipulation risks. Short selling may face further risks, which can effectively remind users to be vigilant about the liquidity and price risks of the token and avoid secondary market investment traps.

Kraken will replace LayerZero with Chainlink CCIP as cross-chain infrastructure

According to the Odaily Planet Daily, after the 292 million dollar cross-chain bridge vulnerability incident in Kelp, Kraken decided to abandon LayerZero and use Chainlink CCIP as the only cross-chain solution for kBTC and future packaging assets.At present, more than 3 billion dollars of lock value has been migrated from LayerZero, and Chainlink CCIP will be responsible for cross-chain asset transfer, which greatly enhances the security of cross-chain assets and reflects the industry's emphasis on cross-chain bridge security.

Strive's SATA will become the first daily dividend-paying security in the US stock market, with an actual yield of 13.88%.

According to Odaily Planet Daily, SATA will distribute cash dividends every trading day starting from June 16th, increasing the annual dividend yield from 13% to 13.88% through daily compound interest. The company has paid off all debts and holds 15,009 bitcoins, ranking ninth among the world's largest BTC holders of listed companies. This product provides stable cash flow tools for Bitcoin assets, expands the financial application scenarios of Bitcoin assets, and provides institutional investors with new options for encrypted asset allocation.

Korean National Pension increases holdings of Strategy shares to $147.50 million

According to BitcoinTreasuries.NET news, the world's third largest pension fund, the National Pension Fund of South Korea, increased its holdings of Strategy stocks, with a total value of $147.50 million. As a typical case of traditional institutional funds entering Bitcoin-related assets, this behavior reflects institutions' recognition of Bitcoin as an anti-inflation asset, and also provides a reference signal for other large institutions to allocate encrypted assets, accelerating the entry of mainstream traditional funds into the encrypted track.

Onramp completes $12.50 million Series A financing, focusing on Bitcoin multi-signature custody

According to axios, Onramp, a Bitcoin multi-signature custody platform, has received $12.50 million in Series A financing, led by Early Riders. It provides multi-institutional joint custody services for large Bitcoin holders, and assets need to be approved by multiple institutions before transfer. This model solves the single point of failure problem of a single custody institution, improves the security of large Bitcoin assets, fills the market gap of institutional multi-signature custody, and helps standardize the development of Bitcoin institutional custody.

MEXC Chain Watch Daily: South Korea 1 trillion Pension Fund Increases Bitcoin holdings through Strategy

Updated: May 18, 2026 9:30 (UTC + 8) | Author: MEXC

1. Quick overview of important news

  • Jump Crypto: Firedancer launches Solana mainnet to complete block production
  • Italy's Top Bank Increases Crypto Positions to $235 million in First Quarter
  • South Korea's trillion-dollar pension fund increases holdings of Bitcoin assets through institutional channels
  • Upbit's parent company successfully completed a $667 million large equity stake financing
  • Several mainstream European banks have officially launched cryptocurrency trading services

2. Industry trends

The Polish House of Representatives has passed a revised cryptocurrency bill, incorporating it into the MiCA framework

According to the Odaily Planet Daily, the bill passed by Poland officially includes the country's cryptocurrency market in the European Union MiCA regulatory framework, giving the Financial Supervisory Authority KNF the power to supervise market participants, impose administrative penalties, and freeze accounts. The bill has been vetoed by the president twice before, and this passage marks Poland's completion of the alignment of cryptocurrency regulation with European Union standards. This move will enhance the compliance and transparency of the Polish cryptocurrency market, clear obstacles for attracting compliance capital and institutions to enter the market in the future, and provide a model for cryptocurrency regulation in Central and Eastern Europe.

SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities plan to launch crypto investment trust products

According to the report of "Nihon Keizai Shimbun", SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities plan to develop cryptocurrency investment trust products, which will be launched after the regulatory framework is established. SBI will develop funds through its asset management subsidiary, covering mainstream assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum; Rakuten plans to jointly develop products with group members and realize transactions through a mobile app. The Japanese Financial Services Agency plans to revise the "Investment Trust Law" before 2028, including cryptocurrency as an asset class and lowering tax rates. This marks the acceleration of Japan's mainstream Financial Institutions in laying out the cryptocurrency track and providing compliant Asset Allocation channels for ordinary investors.

Japan's largest brokerage plans to launch cryptocurrency Mutual Fund

According to Cointelegraph, Japan's largest securities firm is preparing to launch a cryptocurrency Mutual Fund, with specific details yet to be disclosed. This move is another important signal for Japan's Financial Institutions to layout the cryptocurrency track, following SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities' plans to launch cryptocurrency trust products. With the gradual clarification of Japan's regulatory framework, the entry of mainstream securities firms will bring compliant institutional-level products to the Japanese cryptocurrency market, which is expected to promote the popularity of cryptoassets in Japan and improve market liquidity.

KB Financial Group completes the verification of Korean Won stablecoin payment and cross-border remittance technology

Odaily Planet Daily reported that KB Financial Group has completed the technical verification of Korean Won stablecoin in payment, settlement, and cross-border remittance scenarios. The verification was completed in collaboration with electronic payment company KG Inicis, public chain Kaia, and digital asset solution provider OpenAsset, covering the entire process of stablecoin publishing, offline payment, merchant settlement, and cross-border remittance. The payment scenario has passed the end point test of chain coffee brand Hollys, and the cross-border remittance process only takes 3 minutes, with a handling fee reduction of about 87% compared to the traditional SWIFT model.This solution migrates traditional financial settlement to blockchain, greatly improving the efficiency of cross-border transfer and providing an example for the large-scale application of stablecoins in financial scenarios.

The proportion of ADA whale holdings has risen to nearly 67%, reaching a new high since 2020

According to the Odaily Planet Daily, Cardano Whale currently holds nearly 67% of the total ADA supply, which is the highest concentration level since 2020. The continuous increase in the concentration of Cardano Whale's holdings reflects the market's recognition of the long-term value of ADA, and also means that market liquidity may be concentrated in a few addresses, which may cause significant fluctuations in currency prices in the future due to large selling pressure. This data change also provides important reference for the development of the Cardano ecosystem and market trading strategies.

Web3Labs Global files for IPO to raise approximately $28 million

According to Renaissancecapital, Web3Labs Global has submitted an IPO application to the US SEC, planning to publish about 6.30 million shares at $4-5 per share, raising about $28 million, with the stock code "MDAT", and listing on NASDAQ. Based on the median value of the publish range, the company is valued at about $141 million.This IPO is another attempt for Web3 industry companies to land on the US stock market Capital Markets. It will bring compliance financing channels to the company, enhance brand influence, and provide financing reference paths for other companies in the industry.

Nof1 announces completion of $15 million financing, led by SUI Group and Karatage

According to Odaily, Nof1 has completed a $15 million financing led by SUI Group and Karatage. The two institutions also jointly invested in Recursive Superintelligence, an AI company valued at over $4 billion. Nof1 plans to launch a consumer-oriented AI market coding agency platform after the second quarter to expand the application of AI in the field of financial transactions.This financing will help Nof1 accelerate Product Research & Development, promote the integration of AI and Web3 financial scenarios, and provide users with more intelligent trading tools.

Russia's stablecoin project plans to get rid of the USDT system and promote RUB cross-border encrypted settlement

According to Odaily Planet Daily, the stablecoin project A7A5 based on Russia RUB stated that even if future sanctions are lifted, the stablecoin still has long-term survival space, and its core value lies in cross-border settlement efficiency and regional encrypted payment infrastructure construction. The market value of the stablecoin is about 500 million US dollars. Initially aimed at helping Russia bypass bank restrictions, it plans to develop into a direct settlement channel between stablecoins without relying on the US dollar stablecoin system. The advancement of this project will provide Russia with an independent cross-border transfer solution independent of the US dollar system, and also bring new variables to the global multi-polar stablecoin pattern.

3 . MEXC platform heat dashboard

Data description: Taken from real-time market data before 09:30 (UTC + 8) on the MEXC platform, the data will be updated later or with market fluctuations

24H increase TOP3: XP/USDT (+ 15.83%), HYPE/USDT (+ 4.63%), LYN/USDT (+ 3.12%)

24H Volume TOP3: BTC/USDT (170.338M), ETH/USDT (109.365M), SOL/USDT (33.681M)

Meme Coin Hot TOP3: RAGEGUY/USDT , LOOP/USDT , HASH/USDT

Platform new coin launch preview:

  • BOBO/USDT Released: 2026-05-18 07:50:06
  • VIM/USDT, Release time: 2026-05-18 08:50:06
  • ATWO/USDT Released: 2026-05-18 11:50:06

4. On-chain calendar

[Approaching high-risk unlock reminder]

  • PYTH/USDT [05-21 11:15] Unlocked 95.93M USDT, accounting for 37.04% of circulation, with extremely high short-term selling pressure
  • Humanity/USDT [05-25 03:45] Unlocked 70.95M USDT, accounting for 16.04% of circulation, with high short-term selling pressure
  • MemeCore/USDT [06-03 03:45] Unlocked 178.54M USDT, accounting for 4.32% of circulation, with high short-term selling pressure
  • Rain/USDT [06-11 06:45] Unlocked 380.16M USDT, accounting for 10.57% of circulation, with extremely high short-term selling pressure

Macro events worth paying attention to today

  • May 18th 09:30: Australia Consumer Inflation Expectations Data [Focus on Inflation Stickiness, Affecting Global Risk Appetite Transmission]
  • May 18th, 10:00: China, Urban Survey Unemployment Rate, Fixed Assets Investment Data [Reflecting Domestic Recovery Pace, Affecting Market Risk Appreciation]
  • May 18, 20:30: US Federal Reserve Official Venable Speech [Focus on Interest Rate and Inflation Statements, Affecting US Dollar Liquidity Expectations]

5. Today's guide to avoiding pitfalls

Recently, there has been a high incidence of phishing scams related to counterfeit wallets. After users mistakenly download counterfeit applications from fake official websites, their assets are easily stolen. These fake wallet apps set a threshold for stealing coins and only automatically transfer them when the assets reach a certain amount. They are highly concealed, and many small holders mistakenly believe that they are safe and relax their vigilance. It is recommended that everyone download wallets through official channels, verify the authenticity of the installation package through official verification tools before use, and do not trust links and installation packages from non-official channels. Protect your own digital asset security.

MEXC Chain Observation Daily, updated daily at 09:30 am, strives to provide professional, timely, and in-depth market analysis for cryptocurrency practitioners. Welcome to share and subscribe.

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Risk Warning: The content of this article is for reference only and does not constitute any investment advice. The cryptocurrency market is volatile, please make a cautious decision based on your own situation.


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