BTC Gains 14% in April

Q: Bitcoin gained 14% in April and Bitcoin ETFs pulled in nearly $2B in net inflows, while Morgan Stanl

Bitcoin gained 14% in April and Bitcoin ETFs pulled in nearly $2B in net inflows, while Morgan Stanley's MSBT ETF launched with the lowest fees and $163.86M inflows in its first month.

Q: DeFi suffered $635M in April exploits led by the $285M Drift Protocol drain and $293M Kelp DAO bridg

DeFi suffered $635M in April exploits led by the $285M Drift Protocol drain and $293M Kelp DAO bridge hack, causing Aave's TVL to collapse ~40% to ~$15B.

Q: MegaETH's MEGA token launched at a $2B FDV across 13 CEXs, putting all community raise participants

MegaETH's MEGA token launched at a $2B FDV across 13 CEXs, putting all community raise participants in profit.

The Defiant·Friday, May 1, 2026·4 min read

Crypto/Web3 DeFi Finance

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AI Summary

Bitcoin gained 14% in April 2026, reaching near $80K, while the total crypto market cap rose above $2.6 trillion. DeFi faced a brutal month with $635 million in exploits, including the $285M Drift Protocol and $293M Kelp DAO hacks, causing Aave's TVL to drop ~40%. Crypto ETFs performed well, with Bitcoin ETFs seeing nearly $2B in net inflows and Ethereum ETFs turning positive after five months of outflows.

Key Facts

✓Bitcoin gained 14% in April and Bitcoin ETFs pulled in nearly $2B in net inflows, while Morgan Stanley's MSBT ETF launched with the lowest fees and $163.86M inflows in its first month.

✓DeFi suffered $635M in April exploits led by the $285M Drift Protocol drain and $293M Kelp DAO bridge hack, causing Aave's TVL to collapse ~40% to ~$15B.

✓MegaETH's MEGA token launched at a $2B FDV across 13 CEXs, putting all community raise participants in profit.

Author Takes

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April was a brutal month for DeFi, marked by historic exploits and a continuing downward trend in TVL and trading volumes since October 2025.

SkepticalThe Defiant

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The $300M DeFi United bailout raises questions about whether crypto bailouts are good for crypto and what DeFi must fix before it can scale to the mainstream.

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