Bitcoin Holds $80K as Schwab Opens Spot BTC Trading, Strategy Eyes 3,127 BTC Buy

Bitcoin News

Fireblocks CEO Michael Shaulov downplayed the much-discussed quantum computing threat to Bitcoin, calling the migration to post-quantum signature schemes "mostly a coordination issue" rather than a technical hurdle. Speaking at a digital asset summit, Shaulov argued that the wider internet industry must leapfrog into post-quantum encryption, and that suitable algorithms already exist. He stressed that Bitcoin has changed signature schemes before in its history and could do so again ahead of so-called Q-Day, which some researchers now place as early as 2030. Shaulov flagged state-sponsored hacking, particularly North Korean groups, and corporate privacy gaps as far more immediate institutional concerns.

Bitcoin slipped below $80,000 on Wednesday after April U.S. producer prices surged 1.4% month-over-month, nearly triple the 0.5% consensus, with annual headline PPI accelerating to 6%. Core PPI rose 1% on the month and 5.2% year-over-year, the steepest monthly increase since March 2022 and a fresh blow to Federal Reserve rate-cut expectations. The reading follows Tuesday's 3.8% annual CPI print, reviving fears that Iran-related oil supply risks and Strait of Hormuz tensions could feed another inflation leg. BTC briefly touched $79,700 before stabilizing near $80,000, as traders weighed renewed tightening risk against a more hawkish policy backdrop.

Tokyo-listed Metaplanet posted Q1 operating income of roughly $14.4 million on $19.5 million in net sales, a 73.6% operating margin driven by tripled Bitcoin option premium revenue. The performance was overshadowed by an ordinary loss of about $728 million from non-cash valuation markdowns, after BTC slid roughly 24% from $87,000 to $66,000 during the quarter. The firm ended March holding 40,177 BTC, up 5,075 coins, securing its position as the third-largest publicly traded Bitcoin treasury. Metaplanet kept its full-year sales guidance near $101 million and reported a Q1 BTC-per-share yield of 2.8% on a fully diluted basis.

Bitcoin remains pinned to a narrow $79,700–$80,200 corridor that traders now treat as critical near-term support after the latest inflation shock. Spot Bitcoin ETF products bled $233 million on May 12, led by an $86 million outflow from Fidelity's FBTC, while Ethereum funds shed another $131 million. CME FedWatch pricing now implies roughly a 30% probability of a Fed rate hike by year-end, up from 15% a week earlier. Analysts warn that a clean break below $80,000 would expose $78,000 and then $75,000, while strategists describe recent ETF flow patterns as momentum-chasing rather than durable institutional positioning.

Charles Schwab began rolling out spot Bitcoin trading to U.S. retail clients through its new Schwab Crypto platform, opening direct BTC access to one of the country's largest brokerage networks. The firm manages $11.77 trillion in client assets across 39.1 million active accounts, with Charles Schwab Premier Bank acting as custodian and Paxos handling execution and sub-custody. Spot trading carries a 75-basis-point fee and is available in every U.S. state except New York and Louisiana. The rollout deepens the wave of traditional brokerages integrating blockchain assets beyond ETFs, following a record stretch in which U.S. spot BTC funds gathered roughly $2.44 billion in April alone.

Strategy's perpetual preferred stock STRC has reclaimed its $100 par value, restoring a key funding rail that could let Michael Saylor's firm buy at least 3,127 BTC this week, equivalent to nearly 235% of new mined supply over the same window. The company has added about 101,700 BTC since February, lifting holdings to roughly 819,000 BTC worth around $65.7 billion. Analysts estimate STRC has raised $5.58 billion year-to-date and could pull in another $20 billion before year-end, while falling combined dominance of USDT and USDC near the 10–11% zone is being read as additional fuel for a push toward $100,000.

Bitcoin is trading near $79,747, down about 0.93% over the past 24 hours, with sideways action concentrated between immediate support at $79,690 and resistance at $80,400. RSI at 57.97 leaves room for upside without entering overbought territory, but a bearish MACD signal warns that downside momentum could resurface if buyers fail to defend $79,690. A reclaim of $80,400 opens a path toward $82,852 and the more critical $89,065 resistance, where a sustained bull market structure would re-engage. Conversely, a daily close below $77,541 would invalidate the recovery thesis and expose the $73,990 support shelf.