Bloomberg: Iran Launches 'Bitcoin Support' for the Hormuz Strait Shipping Insurance Mechanism

On May 18, a new poll from The New York Times finds that U.S. President Donald Trump’s approval rating has sunk to a fresh low of 37% for his second term, with 59% of those surveyed voicing disapproval. A majority of voters rated Trump poorly on his handling of the economy, inflation, the cost of living, and the U.S. conflict with Iran. The survey also shows that 49% of respondents view the U.S. economic situation as “poor” — an 11-percentage-point increase from January of this year — and just 28% approve of Trump’s handling of the cost of living issue. Several other polls have similarly indicated that since late February, following the U.S. military strike on Iran, Trump’s approval rating has stayed below 40%. Rising oil prices and the economic pressure driven by the war continue to weaken both market and public confidence, data from the surveys note.

On May 18, Iran’s Fars News Agency announced that Iran has stated its ships have bypassed the U.S. blockade.

On May 18th, SpaceX officially updated its investors on a 1-for-5 stock split plan, a move that will lower the per-share IPO price as the company prepares to go public. People familiar with the matter said the aerospace firm has emailed all its shareholders about the split. After the stock split, each share’s fair market value will drop from $526.59 to roughly $105.32, per the sources. The split process is set to commence during the week of May 18th and wrap up by May 22nd. Earlier reports from last Friday indicated SpaceX is on track to submit its long-awaited IPO application as early as this Wednesday.

May 18 – Iran has put forward a revised proposal demanding a permanent end to the war, the full lifting of sanctions on Iran, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a senior Iranian official speaking to Reuters. Tehran plans to tackle the nuclear issue in later stages of discussions, the source added. The official noted that the U.S. has so far only agreed to unfreeze roughly 25% of Iran’s frozen funds on a staggered, phased basis, while Iran is calling for the complete release of all such funds held by the U.S. Furthermore, the U.S. has shown some flexibility in the ongoing negotiations, including adopting a softer stance on limits for Iran’s nuclear activities.

On May 18, deep tech investment firm Playground Global closed a new $475 million venture capital fund, which will continue to focus on early-stage technology companies in the areas of artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, quantum computing, automation, and next-generation infrastructure.

On May 18, on-chain investigator ZachXBT announced a reward of up to $10,000 for insider information related to Hong Kong-based market maker Heisenberg Guru (HSBG). ZachXBT stated that HSBG is suspected of being involved in multiple market manipulation incidents on centralized exchanges (CEXs), including the $RIVER token case. ZachXBT pointed out that Sion and Chao are core members of HSBG’s team, noting that evidence such as chat records, smart contracts, internal communications, and other relevant materials would be eligible for the reward. He urged insiders to reach out to him via direct message on X.