Last week, funds have flowed into #Bitcoin, #Ethereum, and #Hyperliquid.

May 18: During the last two cryptocurrency bear markets, May has brought sharp Bitcoin price drops in U.S. midterm election years. In May 2018, Bitcoin slid from nearly $10,000 to around $7,000. Then in May 2022, it plummeted from roughly $40,000 to $28,500 before tumbling even further to $20,000. Now, as 2026 falls in both a crypto bear cycle and a U.S. midterm election year, fears of that historical trend repeating are on the rise. Crypto analyst Merlijn Enkelaar shared last Sunday: “This is the most brutal pattern Bitcoin has ever had. No one wants to hear it, but this pattern is far too consistent. During midterm election years, Bitcoin always crashes.” He believes even current positive factors—progress on the ‘CLARITY Act,’ the Trump administration’s signals of favorable crypto policies, and a potential U.S.-China trade deal—aren’t enough to break this historical cyclical pattern. If market sentiment worsens further, Enkelaar says Bitcoin could even drop to around $33,000. M

May 18 (Bloomberg) — Prediction market platforms Polymarket and Kalshi continue to permit Indian users to register and trade on their services, even after a warning from India’s government, per Bloomberg. Indian authorities deem these platforms to be operating illegally in the country. Last month, India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) published a letter on its official website, noting that despite existing bans on such platforms in India, users are accessing what it terms “illegal and blocked prediction markets and online entertainment platforms.” The notice specifically identified Polymarket and similar sites, stating that these platforms should be blocked by local internet service providers (ISPs).

May 18. Per CCTV News, Pakistani sources report that Pakistan has handed over Iran’s revised proposal to end the war to the United States, and the U.S. has received the document.

May 18 update: According to GMGN monitoring, the Base ecosystem token aeon has been on a continuous uptrend. It rose 72% in the past 24 hours, extending its gains to hit a market capitalization of $9.5 million, with trading volume reaching roughly $3.1 million. Aeon, an AI agent infrastructure project, has recently drawn attention from multiple institutions and founders, driving its sustained market value growth. Meanwhile, MiroShark—an upper-layer application token from the same founder—also climbed around 60% on the same day, hitting a $3 million market cap. BlockBeats reminds users that on-chain transaction volatility is significant, and investors should be aware of the associated risks.

NEW YORK, May 18 (Fortune) — Per a new Fortune report, U.S. President Trump’s surprise that NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang doesn’t own a private jet is hardly surprising. Hours before Trump departed for the highly anticipated China summit, the U.S. leader arranged for Huang—billionaire co-founder of the chipmaker whose technology powers the global AI boom—to join the group of business leaders heading to Beijing, alongside JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon and Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg. Huang arrived late to the delegation but was still welcomed. In the end, Huang boarded Air Force One with Elon Musk and other business figures, after Trump made a spot for him. The report notes the key reason Huang wasn’t on the initial guest list: he never reached out to request inclusion.

May 18 – Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Baghaei says Iran is currently focused on ending the war. (FXStreet)