Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, Virtuals Protocol is set to expand into the Solana ecosystem, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reportedly explores using blockchain to track US government spending, Solana-based decentralized exchange aggregator Jupiter announced a majority stake in Moonshot.Virtuals expands to Solana ecosystem, establishes strategic SOL reserveAI agent platform Virtuals Protocol has announced it will expand into the Solana ecosystem, and industry participants are saying the integration will have more impact than “most people realize.”Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUALS), already on the Ethereum layer-2 network Base, said that its expansion to Solana blockchain, a layer-1 network, is part of its efforts to “drive innovation across multiple ecosystems,” as per a Jan. 25 X post.Being on both Solana and Base chains could help grow ecosystem participation, attract developers and users from Solana, and increase scalability while easing network congestion.“Solana, known for its speed, scalability, and vibrant community, is the perfect place for us to grow and bring our vision to life,” Virtuals Protocol said.Virtuals will introduce several new features on the Solana network, including a Strategic Solana reserve, where 1% of trading fees will be converted to SOL to build a reserve to “support and reward agents” and creators within the ecosystem.DOGE explores tracking government finances via blockchainThe Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk, is reportedly exploring tracking government spending via blockchain in a bid to reduce the federal deficit.According to a report published by Bloomberg, the DOGE is also exploring the potential use of blockchain in payments and securing data by storing it in a decentralized way.Sources say that personnel associated with the DOGE have met with representatives from several public blockchain networks to discuss potential implementations of blockchain in the US government's operations.Following the initial reports, Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) echoed calls to track government spending onchain and said that all government spending in every country should be on a public ledger.Solana-based DEX Jupiter acquires majority stake in MoonshotSolana-based decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator Jupiter announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Moonshot, an app that allows users to buy memecoins using Apple Pay.Meow, Jupiter’s pseudonymous founder on Jan. 25 shared the news on X:“For the first announcement of Catstanbul, I'm thrilled to share that Jupiter Exchange has acquired a majority stake in Moonshot. The team is amongst the smartest, most driven group of people I have ever met.”Moonshot’s popularity surged, especially following the launch of Donald Trump’s Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin on Jan. 18. On Jan. 1, the Moonshot app was ranked 309th in the US App Store’s finance category. However, just a day after TRUMP’s memecoin launch, Moonshot climbed to the top spot.During TRUMP memecoin’s debut, Moonshot saw nearly $400 million in trading volume. By Jan. 20, Moonshot recorded 1 million daily active users. Launched in July 2024, Moonshot is a self-custodial app powered by TurnkeyHQ.Jupiter also announced the acquisition of SonarWatch, a portfolio-tracking tool that is being integrated into Jupiter’s platform.