The State of Wisconsin Investment Board quietly liquidated its entire $300 million stake in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) sometime during the first quarter of 2025, according to a new 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.

The sale occurred against the backdrop of growing market uncertainty triggered by a wave of U.S. tariffs that rattled global trade and risk assets.

Notably, the filing’s cutoff date—March 31—came just two days before the so-called ‘Liberation Day’ on April 2, 2025—a reference to the day the U.S. imposed comprehensive tariffs affecting nearly all its major trading partners.

The SEC filing, dated May 15, confirms SWIB sold its Bitcoin ETF holdings ahead of the March 31 reporting date for the end of the first quarter of the year.

According to the board’s previous filing, dated February 14, the fund held 6,060,351 IBIT shares, worth approximately $321,501,621.

Shifting market optics

The broader economic landscape also shifted dramatically following President Donald Trump’s inauguration, which began an aggressive new trade policy that seeks to reshore manufacturing on U.S. soil and spur domestic growth.

The administration announced 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on Chinese imports on February 1. Two days later, the Canada and Mexico tariffs were paused for 30 days, though the 10% tariff on China took effect on February 4.

By February 11, President Trump reinstated a 25% tariff on steel imports and raised the tariff on aluminum to 25%. Trade pressure ramped up on March 4, when the U.S. increased tariffs on China to 20%.

The tit-for-tat policy spiral of tariffs led to significant market instability, with Goldman Sachs analysts warning the new tariffs could push core inflation to 3.8% this year.

The crypto markets were not left unscathed, where Bitcoin fell 2.3% to around $83,200, while Ethereum dropped 4.5%.

Amid a retaliatory spiral, U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods surged to 145%, while China raised tariffs on U.S. products to 125%, sending Bitcoin below $75,000.

Tensions began to ease in May when the U.S. and China temporarily reduced tariffs.

The U.S. lowered its rate on Chinese goods to 30%, while China reduced its tariff on U.S. imports to 10%.

As of mid-May, President Trump has also paused most reciprocal tariffs on other countries.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair

The Wisconsin judge who allegedly helped an illegal migrant evade immigration authorities pleaded not guilty through her attorney on Thursday.

Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan entered the preliminary plea in federal court, which was surrounded by a swarm of protesters supporting the judge, who has become a symbol of resistance against the Trump administration’s immigration policy.

Dugan, 66, was arrested last month after being accused of obstruction of justice and concealing Mexican national Eduardo Flores-Ruiz from federal law enforcement.

Stay up to date on the Wisconsin judge who allegedly helped a migrant doge ICE

She is accused of rushing Flores-Ruiz, who is accused of domestic battery, out of her courtroom and encouraging him to use an exit that is not usually available to the public to help him evade immigration agents who were there to bust him.

She has denied wrongdoing in the case, with the defense seeking to have the charges dismissed, arguing that the judge is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts. 

Former US Solicitor General Paul Clement, who is on Dugan’s legal team, has slammed the prosecution as unprecedented and unconstitutional. 

Dugan’s lawyers have requested a speedy trial during Thursday’s hearing, which lasted only five minutes. 

The high-profile arrest led to outcry from Democrats, with protesters lining up outside the courthouse on Thursday in support of Dugan. 

The protesters flashed signs that read, “Free Judge Dungan,” as they also criticized the spade of deportations under President Trump.  

Dugan’s trial is scheduled to begin on July 21. 

The two charges against Dugan carry a maximum penalty of six years in prison and a $350,000 fine.  

Madison, Wisconsin
AP
 — 

A Wisconsin judge charged with helping a man who is in the country illegally evade U.S. immigration agents who were trying to detain him at her courthouse filed a motion to dismiss the case Wednesday, arguing that there’s no legal basis for it.

Attorneys for Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan argue in their motion that her conduct on the day in question amounted to directing people’s movement in and around her courtroom, and that she enjoys legal immunity for official acts she performs as a judge. They cite last year’s US Supreme Court ruling in President Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case that found that former presidents have absolute immunity from prosecution for official acts that fall within their “exclusive sphere of constitutional authority” and are presumptively entitled to immunity for all official acts.

“The problems with the prosecution are legion, but most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts,” the motion says. “Immunity is not a defense to the prosecution to be determined later by a jury or court; it is an absolute bar to the prosecution at the outset.”

The judge overseeing her case is Lynn Adelman, a former Democratic state senator. Former President Bill Clinton appointed him to the bench in 1997.

A spokesperson for the US attorney’s office in Milwaukee didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Federal prosecutors charged Dugan in April with obstruction and concealing an individual to prevent arrest. A grand jury indicted her on the same charges on Tuesday. She faces up to six years in prison if convicted of both counts.

Her attorneys insist Dugan is innocent. She’s expected to enter a not guilty plea at her arraignment Thursday.

Dugan’s arrest has escalated a clash between the Trump administration and Democrats over the Republican president’s sweeping immigration crackdown. Democrats contend that Dugan’s arrest went too far and that the administration is trying to make an example out of her to discourage judicial opposition to the crackdown.

Dugan’s case is similar to one brought during the first Trump administration against a Massachusetts judge, who was accused of helping a man sneak out a courthouse back door to evade a waiting immigration enforcement agent. That case was eventually dismissed.

According to prosecutors, Eduardo Flores-Ruiz illegally reentered the U.S. after being deported in 2013. He was charged in March with misdemeanor domestic violence in Milwaukee County and was in Dugan’s courtroom for a hearing in that case on April 18.

Dugan’s clerk alerted her that immigration agents were in the courthouse looking to arrest Flores-Ruiz, prosecutors allege in court documents. According to an affidavit, Dugan became visibly angry at the agents’ arrival and called the situation “absurd.” After discussing the warrant for Flores-Ruiz’s arrest with the agents, Dugan demanded that they speak with the chief judge and led them away from the courtroom.

She then returned to the courtroom, was heard saying something to the effect of “wait, come with me,” and then showed Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a back door, the affidavit says. The immigration agents eventually detained Flores-Ruiz outside the building following a foot chase.

“The government’s prosecution here reaches directly into a state courthouse, disrupting active proceedings, and interferes with the official duties of an elected judge,” Dugan’s motion states.

The state Supreme Court suspended Dugan from the bench last month, saying the move was necessary to preserve public confidence in the judiciary. A reserve judge is filling in for her.