Hey there, PoI readers! 💫

It's your favorite frozen-yet-always-hot-take crypto connoisseur, Mochi, back with another deliciously packed edition of Proof of Intel. Today we've got a wild mix brewing — from Bhutan quietly offloading Bitcoin to fund its kingdom, to Wall Street going all-in on Solana ETFs, a geopolitical rollercoaster courtesy of Trump's Iran war mixed signals, and the blockbuster news of Anthropic taking the US government to court. It's giving drama, it's giving data, it's giving everything. 🌐 Grab your beverage of choice and let's dive in — this one's a page-turner!

INTEL BRIEF

🟧 Bhutan moved $11.85M worth of Bitcoin from its national reserves, with blockchain data suggesting the kingdom periodically sells BTC in small clips to fund public services like healthcare and salaries.

🟧 Wall Street poured over $540M into US spot Solana ETFs in Q4 2024, with Electric Capital and Goldman Sachs leading the charge as institutional appetite for SOL grows despite a price dip of 30%+.

🟧 Trump's contradictory signals about the US-Iran war sent oil prices tumbling 28% while crypto posted modest gains of 3.1%, though analysts warn the conflict is far from resolved.

🟧 Anthropic sued the Trump administration after the Pentagon labelled it a "supply chain risk" for refusing to allow unrestricted military use of its Claude AI — a first for any American company.

Bhutan Sells Another Slice of Its Bitcoin Stash and Uses the Cash to Run Its Kingdom

Let's talk about Bhutan — the tiny Himalayan kingdom better known for measuring Gross National Happiness than gross crypto gains. Turns out, they've quietly been stacking sats since 2019, and they just made another move.

According to blockchain analytics platform Arkham, Bhutan transferred 175 Bitcoin (worth ~$11.85 million) from its main holding address to a wallet created just a month ago. That receiving address had previously taken in 184 BTC from the government, which was then forwarded to a third address that has collected a whopping 1,910 Bitcoin since 2024 and currently holds 126.

Yes, Bhutan has a more complex wallet setup than most of us have savings accounts.

Arkham noted that the last time Bhutan moved a similar amount — back in February — it was believed to be a sale of around $7 million worth of BTC through QCP Capital. The kingdom is speculated to sell Bitcoin in recurring clips of $5–10 million, with a notably heavy selloff period around mid-to-late September 2025.

As of Monday, Bhutan's holdings are estimated at around 5,400 Bitcoin, ranking it seventh among nation-state holders. For reference, the United States sits comfortably at number one with a jaw-dropping 328,372 BTC worth nearly $22 billion. Big brother energy, much?

All of Bhutan's crypto — including a quirky 28 Ether and 28 KiboShib (yes, an AI-generated memecoin, you read that right) — is managed by Druk Holding and Investments, the country's sovereign wealth fund.

So why sell? According to Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, Bitcoin proceeds have reportedly funded healthcare, environmental initiatives, and public servant salaries. Their hydroelectric surplus powers the mining, making the whole operation surprisingly green — and apparently, quite lucrative when the price cooperates.

Post the April 2024 halving, mining rewards dropped to 3.125 BTC, making operations pricier. Bhutan, like many miners globally, is believed to be recalibrating its strategy accordingly.

Bhutan moved 175 BTC (~$11.85M) to a new wallet, speculated to be part of their recurring sell strategy

The kingdom is believed to sell Bitcoin in $5–10M clips, using proceeds for public services like healthcare and salaries

Bhutan currently holds an estimated ~5,400 BTC, making it the 7th largest nation-state Bitcoin holder

Goldman Sachs and Wall Street Poured Half a Billion Dollars Into Solana ETFs Last Quarter

According to data shared by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, the top 30 institutional holders of US spot Solana ETFs collectively scooped up over $540 million worth of exposure in Q4 2024. That's not a typo. Half a billion dollars. In Solana ETFs.

Leading the pack were Electric Capital and Goldman Sachs, grabbing $137.8M and $107.4M worth of Solana ETF exposure respectively. Rounding out the top five were Elequin Capital, SIG Holding, and Multicoin Capital — because apparently everyone wanted a slice of the SOL pie. Even Morgan Stanley and Citadel Advisors showed up fashionably late to the party.

For context, Bitwise launched the first SEC-approved spot Solana ETF on October 28, meaning Wall Street wasted absolutely zero time getting in. The $540M in holdings was backed by approximately 4.3 million SOL tokens — which, fun fact, have since dropped over 30% in market value, falling from $124.95 to $86.53 at time of writing. Ouch.

Breaking it down by buyer type: investment advisors led with $270M+, followed by hedge fund managers at $186.4M. Holding companies, brokerages, and banks made up the rest. Banks, bless them, contributed a humble $4.5M — very cautious, very bank.

But here's the genuinely interesting part: Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted that cumulative flows into Solana ETFs have held strong despite the price decline, with 50% of Solana ETF assets held by these 13F-filing institutions — suggesting a surprisingly serious investor base for what many once dismissed as "the ETH killer that keeps crashing."

Total inflows since launch? A cool $952 million, per Farside Investors. Not bad for a few months of work.

Wall Street's top 30 institutions bought $540M+ in spot Solana ETFs in Q4 2024, led by Electric Capital ($137.8M) and Goldman Sachs ($107.4M)

The underlying 4.3M SOL tokens have lost 30%+ in value since Q4, but ETF inflows remain surprisingly steady

Total US spot Solana ETF inflows have hit $952M since launching in October 2024

Oil Crashes and Crypto Climbs as Trump Sends the World Completely Mixed Signals on Iran

On Monday, Donald Trump told CBS News that the US-Iran war was essentially wrapping up. "I think the war is very complete, pretty much," he said, adding that Iran has "nothing left in a military sense." The US military claims to have struck over 3,000 Iranian targets in the first week of operations alone — which is… a lot.

Markets responded immediately. Oil prices dropped a dramatic 28% from a four-year high of $118 down to roughly $85 within hours, per OilPrice data. Crypto, riding the "risk-on" wave, posted a 3.1% gain over 24 hours, with Bitcoin reclaiming $70,000 and Ether hovering just above $2,000 at time of writing.

Then came the Truth Social post.

In what can only be described as a vibe flip, Trump later warned that if Iran interfered with oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz, the US would hit them "TWENTY TIMES HARDER." He also threw in "Death, Fire, and Fury" for good measure. Diplomatic? Not exactly. Entertaining? Absolutely.

At a Republican fundraising event in Florida, Trump also noted: "We've already won in many ways, but we haven't won enough" — which somehow manages to be both a victory lap and a war cry simultaneously.

Analysts are urging caution. Augustine Fan of SignalPlus told Cointelegraph it's "hard to take these headline comments at face value," noting that other cabinet members suggest the conflict is still in early stages. He added that crypto will likely continue following broader risk assets, with BTC potentially acting as a store of value during prolonged uncertainty.

Andri Fauzan Adziima of Bitrue speculated that if the war genuinely winds down, a "strong relief rally in crypto" could follow — but "doubts persist." Iran's Revolutionary Guard reportedly called Trump's comments "nonsense," adding they would decide when the war ends.

So… not quite over then.

Trump's "war is over" comments sent oil down 28% from a 4-year high, while crypto gained 3.1% with BTC reclaiming $70K

Trump then posted "Death, Fire, and Fury" on Truth Social, contradicting his earlier tone entirely

Analysts are skeptical the conflict is ending soon — crypto expected to follow macro risk assets until clearer signals emerge

Anthropic Hits Back at the Trump Administration With a Lawsuit Over Its AI Being Weaponized

In what is arguably the most dramatic AI news of the year, Anthropic — the company behind your friendly neighbourhood AI Claude — has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, calling the government's actions an "unprecedented and unlawful campaign of retaliation."

So what happened? In short: the Pentagon wanted unrestricted access to Claude. Anthropic said no. Then things got very messy.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — now named in the lawsuit — moved to label Anthropic a "supply chain risk", a designation finalised on March 3. The label, typically reserved for companies linked to foreign adversaries, means any person or business working with the military cannot also work with Anthropic. Notably, this marks the first time an American company has ever received such a designation. Historic, just not in the fun way.

The core dispute? Hegseth allegedly demanded Anthropic "discard its usage restrictions altogether" — specifically, clauses preventing Claude from being used for lethal autonomous warfare and mass surveillance of Americans. Anthropic refused, stating plainly that Claude has "never been tested" for such uses and that it cannot currently guarantee the AI would "function reliably or safely" in lethal autonomous combat scenarios.

Honestly? Fair enough. Nobody wants a hallucinating chatbot calling in airstrikes.

Anthropic filed suits in both a California federal court and a Washington D.C. appeals court, seeking to reverse the supply chain label and overturn Trump's directive ordering federal employees to stop using Claude.

The lawsuits named a remarkable 20+ government agencies and officials, including the US Treasury, State Department, Scott Bessent, and Marco Rubio.

In a show of solidarity, over 30 AI engineers and scientists from OpenAI and Google — including Google's chief scientist Jeff Dean — filed a legal brief supporting Anthropic, warning that punishing a leading US AI firm could seriously damage America's competitiveness in artificial intelligence.

The government has not yet publicly responded to the suit.

Anthropic sued the Trump administration after the Pentagon labelled it a "supply chain risk" — the first American company ever to receive this designation

The dispute stems from Anthropic refusing to allow Claude to be used for lethal autonomous warfare and mass surveillance, which it says Claude was never built or tested for

30+ AI scientists from OpenAI and Google filed a legal brief backing Anthropic, warning the move could harm US AI competitiveness

And that's a wrap, my wonderful PoI readers Whether today's edition had you questioning geopolitics, eyeing Solana ETFs, rooting for Bhutan's Bitcoin strategy, or nervously watching the Anthropic vs. Trump administration legal saga unfold — I hope it left you feeling informed, entertained, and just a little bit smarter.

Remember — in this wild world of tech and Web3, staying informed is your biggest edge. So keep those eyes sharp, those wallets watched, and those questions coming.

Until next time, this is Mochi — signing off with a virtual high-five and a heart full of alpha!

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