- BTC consolidated tightly around $95K ahead of Friday’s U.S. Jobs report.
- Ripple’s offer to acquire Circle for $5 billion was reportedly rejected as ‘too low.’
Bitcoin [BTC] extended its price consolidation between $92K-$95K after ‘cool’ U.S. inflation data was released on the 30th of April.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) report, the Fed’s favorite inflation indicator, Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Index, eased to 2.3% every year in March.
However, the Core PCE Index, which removes volatile energy and food prices, rose 2.6% over the same period but was aligned with analysts’ expectations.
With no sticky inflation, the market will focus on the Jobs report set to come out on the 2nd of May, assessing the labor market.
A weak job report will increase the odds of a Fed rate cut and boost risk-on sentiment, including BTC and crypto.
That said, the market expected no interest rate cut at the next Fed meeting scheduled for the 7th of May. About 95% of interest traders expected the rate to remain unchanged at 4.25%-4.50%.
Ripple’s Circle offer, Solana, Ethena adoption moves
Ripple’s attempt to acquire stablecoin issuer Circle has made waves in the crypto industry. According to a Bloomberg report, Ripple proposed a buyout valued between $4 billion and $5 billion.
However, Circle reportedly rejected the offer, deeming it “too low.” The stablecoin giant is rumored to have an equity valuation of $4 billion to $6 billion. It has also established strong regulatory ties, positioning itself as the most compliant stablecoin issuer in the U.S. and E.U.
In 2025, the market for USDC expanded significantly, growing from $43 billion to $62 billion. Recently, Circle launched a cross-border payment network and partnered with global and local merchants to advance this vision.
Analysts see this move as a potential challenge to Ripple’s business model.
Whether Ripple will make another attempt to acquire Circle before its planned IPO (Initial Public Offering) remains uncertain.
Finally, Solana [SOL] and Ethena Labs have made massive adoption moves. Solana submitted a proposal (Project One) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The project, if approved, would bring U.S. stocks on-chain and offer more access to non-U.S. investors.
Ethena Labs, on the other hand, has partnered with Telegram to allow the messenger’s billion users access to yield-bearing stablecoins (USDe).
The firm added that, starting in May, it will enable users of Wallets in Telegram to stake USDT or USDe and earn rewards.
“This unlocks dollars held by the hundreds of millions of users in Wallet in Telegram to dollar savings functionality without having to leave the application.”
In fact, TON users could enjoy as much as a 10% annualized yield paid weekly.
