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Good Morning Crypto Enthusiasts!

Glad to have you back for another edition of the UseTheBitcoin.com newsletter.

1. Ripple Buys Prime Broker: Ripple acquired Hidden Road for $1.25B, making it the first crypto firm to own a global prime brokerage.

2. Trump’s Tariff Playbook: Raoul Pal says Trump’s new China tariffs are a negotiation tactic to secure a deal. China responded with 34% tariffs on all U.S. imports.

3. 💡Feature of the Day - Fake Tariff Pause Moves Markets: A fake post about Trump pausing tariffs sent markets soaring, with Bitcoin briefly topping $80K.

   
   All this and more in today’s headlines!

📰 News Highlights:

Ripple $1.25 Billion Deal [Source][Source][Source]

Ripple has acquired crypto-friendly prime broker Hidden Road for $1.25 billion, making it the first crypto firm to own a global, multi-asset prime brokerage.

The deal aims to bolster Ripple’s position as the largest non-bank prime broker and expand use of its stablecoin RLUSD and XRP via the XRP Ledger.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse highlighted that Hidden Road’s $3 trillion in annual clearing will now partially run through Ripple’s tech, with RLUSD used as collateral in brokerage services.

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Trump Tariffs Focus China [Source][Source]

Raoul Pal believes Trump's aggressive tariff strategy is primarily a negotiation tactic to secure a deal with China.

After Trump's April 2 announcement of sweeping import tariffs — including 34% on Chinese goods — markets reacted with fear. Pal says the real target is a China agreement and that the rest is just leverage.

Both nations understand the need for a deal: China wants a weaker dollar, and the US wants protective tariffs.

💡 Feature of the Day: 

Fake Tariff Pause [Source][Source][Source][Source][Source]

Markets surged briefly after a fake news post claimed Trump was pausing tariffs for 90 days, excluding China.

The rumor, from a verified but unofficial “Walter Bloomberg” X account, was mistakenly aired on CNBC and amplified by Reuters.

This triggered a massive spike across major indexes — the S&P 500 rose 8%, Nasdaq jumped 9.5%, and Bitcoin briefly topped $80K.

The White House quickly debunked the story, leading to an immediate reversal in market gains.

😂 Crypto Meme of the Day: 

Meme of the day provided by @americanistmemes

And that’s it for this today.

See you all tomorrow’s edition!

Jonathan Gibson
UseTheBitcoin.com