Today in crypto, Michael Saylor’s Strategy bagged another 7,390 Bitcoin last week as prices rallied above $100,000 and also got hit with a class-action lawsuit, Bitcoin has notched its highest-ever weekly close, and Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov said he rejected pressure from France to censor Romanian election content.

Strategy adds 7,390 BTC for $765 million, gets hit with class-action lawsuit

Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, the top corporate Bitcoin holder, acquired nearly $765 million of Bitcoin last week. The purchase came as the company faced a class-action lawsuit.

According to a May 19 announcement, Strategy acquired 7,390 BTC for about $764.9 million at an average price just under $103,500. Strategy reported a Bitcoin yield of 16.3% year-to-date. Strategy executive chairman Michael Saylor made his usual hint at the purchase in a May 18 X post.

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Source: Michael Saylor

According to a May 19 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company was also the recipient of a class-action lawsuit. The suit accuses Strategy officials of having failed to represent the nature of Bitcoin investments accurately.

As of May 18, Strategy holds 576,230 BTC acquired for around $40.2 billion at an average price of $69,726 per coin. At current prices, the company’s total holdings are valued at more than $59.2 billion, representing an unrealized gain of $19.2 billion, or 47%.

According to CoinMarketCap data, Bitcoin traded at around $102,615 at the time of writing, up 20.3% over the last month.

Bitcoin notches record weekly close as it reaches back toward peak price

Bitcoin notched its highest-ever weekly close at just below $106,500 on midnight UTC on Sunday, May 18, as the cryptocurrency is again nearing its all-time high.

Its last highest weekly close was in December when it reached $104,400. It later went on to reach an all-time high of $109,358 on Jan. 20, according to TradingView.

Bitcoin also posted its highest-ever close in a 24-hour period on May 18. However, this is not the largest daily gain Bitcoin has made.

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BTC/USD weekly timeframe. Source: TradingView

“Bitcoin just had its highest daily candle close... ever,” investor Scott Melker posted to X on May 19. 

It put Bitcoin less than 3% away from its peak price and analyst Rekt Capital was hopeful that “Bitcoin will develop a brand new higher high.”

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov resists French pressure to censor Romanian election content

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov claims that he rejected requests from a high-ranking French intelligence official to censor pro-conservative voices and content on the Telegram messaging platform ahead of the presidential elections in Romania.

Durov did not immediately name the French government in his initial Telegram post but later confirmed that it was French intelligence services that approached him. Durov wrote in a May 18 X post:

"This spring, at the Salon des Batailles in the Hôtel de Crillon, Nicolas Lerner, head of French intelligence, asked me to ban conservative voices in Romania ahead of elections. I refused. We did not block protesters in Russia, Belarus, or Iran — We won’t start doing it in Europe."

Durov continues to be an outspoken advocate for free speech, autonomy, privacy, and individual liberty, despite repeated threats and legal action from state officials.

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Source: Pavel Durov