Today in Crypto: Bitcoin at $77K, Institutional Moves, and Major Hack Reports

As of 12:25 PM IST on May 1, 2026, Bitcoin traded near $77,000, up 2% over the past 24 hours after recovering from an overnight dip near $75,500. 

The total cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at roughly $2.65 trillion, recording modest gains of 1.3%—as per CoinMarketCap data. 

Among major altcoins, Ethereum held around $2,280, Solana traded near $84, XRP at approximately $1.38, and Dogecoin showed stronger relative performance with gains of 2-3 percent. 

April closed with solid double-digit percentage gains for Bitcoin, though resistance persisted between $78,000 and $80,000 amid profit-taking, mixed ETF flows, and macroeconomic caution tied to recent Fed signals and global pressures. 

Trading volumes remained moderate as markets consolidated after the monthly close. 

Key Highlights

• U.S. Senate Bans Prediction Market Bets: U.S. senators unanimously approved a resolution banning members and their staff from betting on prediction market platforms such as Polymarket and Kalshi. The measure, passed by voice vote on April 30, amends Senate rules and takes effect immediately to address potential conflicts of interest and insider trading concerns. The bipartisan move comes amid heightened scrutiny of political betting activity.
• Wasabi Protocol Exploit: Wasabi Protocol, a perpetual trading platform operating on Ethereum, Base, Berachain, and Blast, lost between $4.5 million and $5.5 million in a multi-chain incident. Attackers compromised the deployer admin key, granted roles to a malicious contract, performed unauthorized upgrades, and drained funds from vaults and liquidity pools. The protocol urged users to avoid interactions while investigations continue, with security firms monitoring the event.
• North Korea Dominates 2026 Hack Losses: A fresh report from TRM Labs revealed that North Korean-linked actors accounted for about 76% of crypto thefts in 2026 so far. The group stole approximately $577 million across two major April incidents, pushing cumulative DPRK-related losses since 2017 above $6 billion. The findings underscore ongoing national-state threats to the DeFi sector.
• Institutional Activity: ARK Invest and other firms added to positions in Robinhood shares, betting on a rebound in its crypto business despite recent volume challenges. XRP saw modest sentiment gains tied to ongoing regional partnership discussions. Broader institutional interest in crypto infrastructure remained evident amid selective altcoin strength.

Outlook

Market sentiment remains cautiously positive, supported by institutional adoption signals and corporate interest in crypto-related infrastructure. However, persistent security incidents, including the latest DeFi exploit and North Korea’s dominant role in hacks, continue to highlight vulnerabilities and temper broader enthusiasm. 

External macroeconomic factors also weigh on near-term momentum. The industry’s flagship event, Consensus 2026, is scheduled for May 5-7 in Miami and is expected to draw significant attendance. Discussions will likely center on regulation, technology advancements, security improvements, and innovation pathways.

The coming month of May may bring further clarity on ETF flows and macro influences heading into the conference period.

Also read: U.S. Bitcoin ETFs Surge with $1.9 Billion Inflows in April 2026