Cointelegraph

Bitcoin (BTC) rose 2.66% to around $75,800 on Monday after Strategy disclosed a $2.54 billion purchase, the company’s third biggest ever, and equivalent to about 2.5 months of new BTC supply.

However, several indicators suggest the rally may fizzle out.

BTC/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView

Key takeaways:

Poor macro conditions can spark BTC price pullback if Strategy’s buying slows.

Bitcoin’s technical setup hints at a potential dip toward $67,000–$69,000.

Strategy may halt BTC purchases this week

Strategy funded most of its latest 34,164 BTC purchase through its preferred stock, Stretch (STRC), which generated over $2.17 billion through at-the-market share sales between April 13 and April 19.

Source: Strategy’s SEC Filings

That accounted for roughly 86% of the total amount spent, while sales of its Class A common stock, MSTR, added another $366 million.

STRC lets Strategy raise cash for Bitcoin when it trades at or above $100. Stronger prices mean easier fundraising and more BTC buying. In 2026, STRC enabled the purchases of 77,000 BTC, ten times more than all the ETFs combined, per River data.

Bitcoin ownership YTD change. Source: River

But STRC has been trading below its $100 par value since April 15, which may limit Strategy’s ability to keep raising cash to purchase more Bitcoin this week.

STRC weekly estimates. Source: STRC.LIVE

In past episodes, pauses in Strategy’s Bitcoin purchases have coincided with BTC price slumps.

For instance, on average, BTC’s price has dipped by roughly 30% when STRC traded below its $100 par value.

BTC/USD vs. STRC daily performance chart. Source: TradingView

A 30% dip will take Bitcoin’s price to $53,000 when measured from current levels.

Source: X

The halt appears alongside weakening risk sentiment, with US stock indexes falling amid doubts over the US–Iran peace deal.

Nasdaq, S&P 500, and Dow Jones daily performance charts. Source: TradingView

US President Donald Trump said it was “highly unlikely” he would extend the two-week truce if no agreement is reached before it expires on Wednesday.

Any signs of an extended Middle East conflict may weigh on BTC’s prices.

BTC flag pullback hints at $67,000–$69,000

Bitcoin’s current chart structure shows classic flag consolidation, with price now drifting toward the pattern’s lower boundary. This setup raises the risk of a pullback toward the $67,000–$69,000 region in April, if support gives way.

BTC/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView

At the same time, downside may remain limited as the 20-day (green) and 50-day (red) EMAs continue to act as dynamic support levels. Holding above these averages would signal underlying demand, increasing the chances of a rebound.

If that happens, BTC could attempt a breakout above the flag’s upper trend line, effectively invalidating the bearish setup.

Such a move would open the door for a recovery toward the 200-day EMA (blue), currently near $82,750.

As Cointelegraph reported, breaking the resistance near $78,000 is now a top priority for the bulls.

A consortium of 12 European banks led by Qivalis has selected Fireblocks to provide infrastructure for a Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA)-compliant euro stablecoin, according to a Tuesday release shared with Cointelegraph. 

The group says it is targeting a launch in the second half of 2026, subject to approval from the Dutch central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank, under the European Union’s MiCA regulatory framework.

Qivalis, a Netherlands-based venture backed by major banks including BBVA, BNP Paribas, ING and UniCredit, said in the release it plans to issue a fully regulated, 1:1-backed euro token structured as an electronic money institution under Dutch supervision. 

The stablecoin is intended to support institutional use cases such as settlement, treasury and tokenized assets, and Fireblocks will provide tokenization technology, wallet infrastructure and lifecycle management tools, including features designed to support compliance such as identity verification and sanctions screening.

The project comes as European banks and policymakers step up efforts to reduce reliance on dollar-denominated stablecoins in digital payments and settlement, and as European banks and corporates actively select partners and infrastructure providers to accelerate euro stablecoin initiatives across the region.

A spokesperson from Fireblocks told Cointelegraph that the project is being designed as a “regulated euro-native settlement instrument” for European institutions, rather than relying on dollar-based alternatives or smaller euro tokens without comparable banking backing.

The spokesperson added that the platform is intended to support issuance, custody, treasury management and payment orchestration, enabling participating banks to offer clients a compliant euro-denominated digital payment asset across multiple business lines.

European banks push euro stablecoin to counter dollar dominance

According to DeFiLlama data, the total global stablecoin market capitalization is around $320 billion, with roughly 99% of supply tied to the US dollar and only a small share denominated in euros.

Total stablecoin market capitalization. Source: DeFiLlama

The initiative also follows warnings from the Bank for International Settlements and other regulators that some dollar stablecoins may function more like investment vehicles than money due to their reliance on short-term securities. 

On Monday, BIS general manager Pablo Hernández de Cos repeated that warning, urging for greater global coordination on stablecoin regulation to address cross-border risks and prevent gaps in oversight.

Earlier this month, Bank of France first deputy governor Denis Beau urged the European Union to limit the use of non-euro-denominated stablecoins in everyday payments to reduce regulatory arbitrage in times of stress.

Magazine: Singapore isn’t a ‘crypto hub’ — it’s something better: StraitsX CEO

Key takeaways

Crypto security is expanding beyond digital threats, with criminals increasingly targeting individuals directly through physical coercion rather than trying to exploit blockchain vulnerabilities or hack wallets.

The French case illustrates how attackers used a fake police raid and violence to force a Bitcoin transfer worth $1 million, bypassing encryption entirely by compelling the victim to authorize the transaction.

Wrench attacks are rising, with criminals using threats or force instead of technical exploits. This highlights how human vulnerability can override even the most secure cryptographic systems.

Impersonating authority figures such as police is highly effective because it combines fear, urgency and social conditioning, making victims more likely to comply without questioning the situation.

Digital defenses are no longer the only front line in crypto security. While phishing and exchange hacks have long been major threats, a growing number of thefts now bypass code entirely and target crypto holders directly.

A recent case in France highlights this shift. Attackers posing as police staged a “raid” and physically coerced a couple into transferring nearly $1 million in Bitcoin (BTC). This was not a failure of software, but a high-stakes robbery carried out through physical force.

When the victim, not the wallet, becomes the target

The incident occurred in Le Chesnay-Rocquencourt, a town near Paris, where a couple in their late 50s was allegedly assaulted inside their residence.

Here is the chronology of the incident:

Three individuals disguised as police officers gained entry to the home.

The couple was threatened at knifepoint.

The husband was forced to send Bitcoin to the attackers.

Both victims sustained injuries, and the husband was physically restrained and tied up.

The assailants fled the scene in a vehicle.

French authorities are currently investigating the matter, with charges including armed robbery and organized criminal conspiracy.

What distinguishes this case is not only the use of violence, but the specific strategy employed.

Rather than attempting to crack encryption, the perpetrators bypassed it entirely by coercing the owner into authorizing the transfer.

Why impersonating police officers is so effective

Posing as law enforcement officials is often effective because it taps into several psychological triggers:

Authority: People are socially conditioned to obey police directives.

Urgency: The appearance of an official raid creates the impression that immediate compliance is necessary.

Fear: Any resistance can seem as though it may lead to criminal consequences.

When criminals present themselves as police, victims often fail to question:

The reason for their presence.

The legitimacy of their demands.

The authenticity of the entire situation.

Under stress, the impulse to obey tends to overpower the instinct to verify or question what is happening.

In crypto, this risk is even greater because a single approved transaction can move significant funds in seconds.

Did you know? The term “wrench attack” became popular in the crypto space after an online comic joked that threatening someone physically is easier than breaking encryption. It reflects a real-world shift in which attackers bypass complex systems by targeting people rather than technology.

From simulated police raid to coerced Bitcoin transfer

Unlike conventional robberies that target cash, jewelry or other tangible items, this assault specifically targeted digital cryptocurrency holdings.

The attackers’ objective was straightforward: force the victim to carry out an immediate crypto transfer.

This form of theft can be difficult to contain for several reasons: 

Stolen funds can be transferred anywhere in the world within minutes.

Blockchain transactions are generally irreversible.

Once transferred, funds can be moved quickly, which can make tracing and recovery more difficult.

When the victim retains direct control over their wallet, criminals do not need to steal hardware or break through security. They only need to force the victim to approve and send the transaction personally.

Understanding wrench attacks in the cryptocurrency space

It is often far easier to threaten a person with a wrench than to try to crack their encryption.

Rather than attempting to hack a wallet, perpetrators may use:

Threats

Physical violence

Other forms of coercion

These methods are used to force victims to reveal private keys or authorize the transfer of funds. Such attacks bypass even the strongest technical protections.

No matter how strong the encryption is, human vulnerability can make that security irrelevant.

Did you know? Some high-net-worth crypto holders now use “decoy wallets” with small balances. In a coercive situation, they can reveal these wallets instead of their main holdings, adding an extra layer of psychological and financial protection.

Why these attacks are becoming more frequent

Several underlying factors are driving this increase:

Growth in self-custody: A rising number of users now hold their own private keys and manage their assets directly, making them more immediate and accessible targets.

Visibility of high-value targets: Many cryptocurrency investors, company founders and executives maintain public profiles that make their wealth and identity relatively easy to identify.

Advances in cybersecurity: As digital wallet security improves and remote hacking becomes more difficult, criminals are increasingly turning to the softer target, the human user.

Instant global liquidity: Cryptocurrency enables near-instant transfers of value anywhere in the world without banks or intermediaries acting as gatekeepers.

In 2025 alone, documented cases of verified wrench attacks reportedly rose sharply, increasing 75% from 2024. Europe, and France in particular, stood out as a growing hotspot for such incidents. Financial losses reached $40.9 million in 2025, marking a 44% annual increase. While kidnapping remained the primary threat vector, physical assaults surged by 250%.

Why France has experienced a surge

France has recently recorded multiple high-profile violent crimes linked to cryptocurrency:

Kidnappings carried out to extort cryptocurrency ransoms.

Home invasions specifically targeting high-profile figures in the crypto industry.

Coordinated operations by organized criminal groups aimed at stealing digital assets.

These recurring incidents point to a shift in criminal behavior:

More deliberate efforts to identify individuals who hold cryptocurrency.

Increased surveillance of their physical locations and daily routines.

A growing preference for direct physical targeting over purely digital methods.

As cryptocurrency adoption continues to expand, public awareness of who owns it is also growing. Unfortunately, the physical risks associated with that visibility are rising as well.

Why criminals increasingly choose coercion over hacking

Crypto security has become increasingly strong. Hardware wallets, multisignature setups and cold storage solutions make remote hacking far more difficult.

Coercion, however, changes the equation.

Even the strongest technical protections may fail if a victim is coerced into unlocking their hardware device, revealing their credentials or authorizing a transaction.

Coercive attacks bypass cryptographic defenses entirely, target points of human access and exploit natural human reactions.

For perpetrators, this approach is often faster and more reliable than trying to break through technical defenses.

Why Bitcoin remains particularly exposed in duress situations

Bitcoin’s core architecture gives it considerable strength, but it also creates significant vulnerability when the owner is under coercion.

Its key features include:

The ability to transfer value immediately

The absence of any central entity capable of reversing transactions

Permissionless, worldwide accessibility

In a situation where the holder is forced to transfer funds, these traits can result in:

Assets being moved almost instantly

Virtually no realistic chance of recovery

Attackers rapidly moving funds across multiple addresses

The same qualities that give Bitcoin its independence and value also make stolen funds extremely difficult to recover once they are transferred under duress.

Did you know? Private security firms have started offering specialized protection services for crypto investors, including travel risk assessments, home security audits and digital footprint reduction strategies aimed at preventing targeted attacks.

How French authorities are responding

French law enforcement agencies are actively investigating the incident, with specialized organized crime units leading the effort.

Potential criminal charges under review include:

Armed robbery by an organized criminal group

Unlawful detention

Criminal conspiracy

Although authorities are increasing enforcement in response to such incidents, these cases continue to present serious challenges because of:

The rapid cross-border movement of stolen assets

The pseudonymous and irreversible nature of cryptocurrency transactions

The involvement of organized and professional criminal groups

Key security takeaways for cryptocurrency owners

This incident underscores a major shift in the nature of cryptocurrency security threats.

Protecting technical systems alone is no longer enough. Safeguarding wallets, private keys and physical devices must now be paired with strong personal security measures.

Essential protective steps include:

Never publicly reveal or discuss the extent of your cryptocurrency holdings.

Keep your real-world identity separate from your wallet addresses and ownership.

Use multisignature wallets so that no single individual or compromised key can authorize transfers.

Distribute signing authority and key control across different geographic locations or trusted parties.

OCBC, one of Singapore’s largest banking and financial services corporations, has launched a tokenized physical gold fund, with the underlying token, GOLDX, issued on both Ethereum and Solana.

The launch was made together with its asset management arm, Lion Global Investors and digital asset exchange DigiFT. The token is aimed at institutional investors, hedge funds and asset managers and can be bought and sold using both stablecoins and fiat currencies. After subscription, the token is delivered directly to investors’ blockchain wallets, OCBC said on Monday.

Kenneth Lai, head of global markets at OCBC, said the move is part of a new corporate strategy and a milestone in the corporation’s blockchain-focused approach.

“We believe digital assets will play an increasingly important role in financial services and our focus is on bridging traditional finance with the emerging world of decentralized finance,” he said.

The value of tokenized real-world assets on public blockchains has been on the rise in 2026, and is sitting at over $29 billion, up over 10% in the last 30 days, according to data from rwa.xyz.

The value of tokenized real-world assets on public blockchains is estimated at $29 billion. Source: rwa.xyz 

GOLDX token tied to a physical gold fund

OCBC’s GOLDX token offers on-chain exposure to the LionGlobal Singapore Physical Gold Fund, which launched in December and had about $525 million (669 million Singapore dollars) in assets under management as of April 16, according to OCBC.

The goal of the tokenized fund is to attract Web3 ecosystem participants and high-net-worth individuals who operate in blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystems, according to OCBC. 

OCBC has used blockchain technology before, starting with its first tokenized equity-linked note for accredited investors in 2023. Its total assets were estimated at about $526 billion as of December 2025. 

Magazine: Will the CLARITY Act be good — or bad — for DeFi?

Ethereum layer-2 blockchain Arbitrum on Monday froze more than 30,000 Ether worth about $71.2 million held in a wallet connected to the recent exploit of the Kelp protocol.

Arbitrum said on Monday that its security council, a 12-member body elected by the Arbitrum community, took “emergency action” to freeze 30,766 Ether (ETH) that was held in a wallet connected to the Kelp exploit.

It added that the ETH had been moved to “an intermediary frozen wallet” and was “no longer accessible to the address that originally held the funds, and can only be moved by further action by Arbitrum governance.”

Kelp, a liquid restaking protocol, was hacked for at least $293 million on Saturday through its LayerZero-powered bridge, with LayerZero accusing North Korea of carrying out the attack.

Source: Arbitrum

The exploit has caused millions of dollars' worth of “bad debt” in the highly interconnected crypto lending market, as the attackers used stolen Kelp tokens to borrow cryptocurrencies on the lending platform Aave.

A blockchain freezing crypto is a divisive measure in the crypto sector, with opponents of freezes arguing that such action is antithetical to the purpose of the technology, while supporters argue it enhances security and maintains a network’s integrity.

Multiple users on X criticized Arbitrum over the freeze and questioned its decentralization in light of funds being frozen by decree of a council.

Griff Green, a member of the Arbitrum Security Council, posted to X that the group “did not make this decision lightly, there were countless hours of debates, technical, practical, ethical and political.”

Green added that nine members of the 12-member council voted to freeze the funds, but did not share further details.

Arbitrum said its council acted with input from law enforcement and “weighed its commitment to the security and integrity of the Arbitrum community without impacting any Arbitrum users or applications.”

Magazine: South Korea gets rich from crypto… North Korea gets weapons

A US senator has reportedly urged Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott to delay the markup for the crypto market structure bill until May, as banking and crypto representatives need more time to resolve disagreements over stablecoin yield provisions.

US Republican Thom Tillis of North Carolina told reporters Monday that he does not expect the Senate Banking Committee to mark up the legislation, also known as the CLARITY Act, in April and has recommended that Scott schedule it for next month, according to Punchbowl News.

Tillis, who has been leading discussions between crypto and banking members, reportedly told Scott: “It’s very important to me not to accelerate things, to hear everybody, and give them a rational basis for what we do accept.”

Continued delays have sparked concern that the CLARITY Act may not pass before the US midterms in November, an event that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said could reverse momentum of the bill.

Source: Brendan Pedersen

“I think if the Democrats were to take the House, which is far from my best case, then the prospects of getting a deal done will just fall apart,” Bessent said in March.

CLARITY Act cannot wait any longer, crypto group says

It comes the same day crypto advocacy group The Digital Chamber sent a letter to the Senate Banking Committee asking it to move the crypto market structure legislation forward to a Senate markup “as soon as the calendar allows.”

The banking industry has raised concerns that allowing stablecoin yield could trigger significant deposit outflows from the traditional banking system, particularly at community banks. 

It argues that those banks may not have enough balance-sheet flexibility to absorb such outflows without relying on higher-cost wholesale funding.

Meanwhile, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and others have pushed for more favorable stablecoin provisions. 

Last month, members of the banking and crypto industries were reportedly close to agreeing on enabling stablecoin rewards tied to crypto activity on third-party crypto platforms, but not for passive balances.

The Digital Chamber noted that it has now been more than 270 days since the House passed the CLARITY Act with bipartisan support.

“Clarity cannot wait,” The Digital Chamber’s government affairs director, Taylor Bar,r said, adding: “More than 70 million Americans who have embraced digital assets deserve the regulatory clarity they have waited far too long for.”

Source: The Digital Chamber

Other members of the crypto industry have argued that moving the bill forward is more important than holding out for perfect terms.

Magazine: Will the CLARITY Act be good — or bad — for DeFi?

Everything that happened in crypto news in Asia over the past seven days: Asia Express.

In this edition

Neo co-founder floats $461 million governance reset

Over 50 projects flagged in DPRK infiltration sweep

Pakistan lifts crypto banking ban under strict regulatory limits

Ledger device that drains funds sold in Chinese marketplace

South Korea trials tokenized deposits for controlled public spending

Naver moves to fold Upbit operator into fintech arm ahead of IPO

Tokyo funds yen stablecoin use cases to boost global finance push

SBI Remit taps Ripple tech to expand remittances for foreign workers

Neo co-founder floats $461 million governance reset

Zhang pushes back on Das proposal. (Erik Zhang)

Neo co-founder Da Hongfei has proposed stripping founders of control, returning nearly 50 million tokens to the community and installing formal oversight in a bid to overhaul a $461 million treasury.

In March, the smart contract blockchain disclosed its finances for the first time since 2019, revealing assets held across the Neo Foundation and Neo Global Development.

The proposal would move the foundations legal base to the Cayman Islands, install a five-member board and an independent supervisor, and bar both Hongfei and co-founder Erik Zhang from holding governance roles for two years. It also includes returning 49.5 million NEO tokens to the community.

Founded in 2014, Neo rose to prominence during the 2017 bull market, when it was widely dubbed Chinas Ethereum. The two co-founders publicly clashed on X on New Years Eve, accusing each other of mismanaging the project’s treasury.

Over 50 projects flagged in DPRK infiltration sweep

An Ethereum Foundation-funded program alerted more than 50 crypto projects to potential North Korean infiltration.

The Ketman Project, one of its recipients, identified 100 suspected DPRK IT workers operating inside Web3 firms under false identities.

The group flagged patterns such as reused GitHub profiles, mismatched language settings and identity inconsistencies used to evade detection.

Security researcher Heiner Garcia and Cointelegraph interview a suspected North Korean operative. (Heiner Garcia/Ketman)

North Korean IT workers have allegedly tricked crypto firms for years to earn salaries that can be funneled back to the regime. Recently, suspected operatives escalated their tactics by physically approaching Drift contributors at a conference, culminating in a $285 million exploit.

Pakistan lifts crypto banking ban under strict regulatory limits

Pakistan has ended an eight-year ban by reopening its banking system to licensed crypto firms.

Banks will be allowed to open accounts for licensed virtual asset service providers and their customers under a new framework set by the central bank.

However, banks will not be allowed to trade or hold crypto, with their role limited to providing services such as account access and payments to licensed firms.

The change follows the passage of the Virtual Assets Act 2026 in March, which established a licensing regime for crypto firms and created a formal regulatory framework for the sector.

Read also

Features Thailands Crypto Utopia 90% of a cult, without all the weird stuff

Features Crypto critics: Can FUD ever be useful?

Ledger device that drains funds sold in Chinese marketplace

Researcher dissects counterfeit Ledger device. (Past_Computer2901/Reddit)

A cybersecurity researcher has identified a fake Ledger hardware wallet designed to capture seed phrases and drain user funds.

The researcher said they purchased what appeared to be a Ledger Nano S Plus from a Chinese marketplace for personal use.

When the device was connected to the official Ledger Live app, it failed the built-in verification check. The researcher already had the app installed, but first-time users would likely have been prompted to download a malicious version instead.

Ledger told Cointelegraph that customers should only download official apps on desktop and mobile devices.

Earlier in April, Apple removed a fake Ledger app from its App Store that led to a combined $9.5 million in losses for victims who downloaded it.

South Korea trials tokenized deposits for controlled public spending

Sejong City is South Koreas administrative center. (YHBae/Pixabay)

South Korea will pilot tokenized deposits for government spending in late 2026 under a regulatory sandbox testing blockchain-based payments.

The pilot, led by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, will launch in Sejong City and apply predefined conditions such as time limits and permitted spending categories.

Authorities will assess whether the model improves oversight of public funds.

The Philippines is also weighing blockchain to track government spending through the Citizen Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability Act, or CADENA. The bill has cleared the Senate and is now pending in the House of Representatives.

Naver moves to fold Upbit operator into fintech arm ahead of IPO

South Koreas Naver and Dunamu have outlined a path toward a potential Naver Financial IPO in a corrected filing tied to their share swap deal, including plans to form a listing committee within a year.

The plan hinges on a share swap that would bring Dunamu, operator of the countrys largest crypto exchange Upbit, under Naver Financial.

The companies also agreed to use best efforts to pursue a listing within five years of the deals closing, with a possible two-year extension.

Naver is one of South Koreas largest internet firms. The plan builds on a $10.3 billion all-stock deal first reported in 2025, which would bring Dunamu under its fintech arm.

Read also

Features Thailands Crypto Utopia 90% of a cult, without all the weird stuff

Features Crypto critics: Can FUD ever be useful?

Tokyo funds yen stablecoin use cases to boost global finance push

Tokyo is offering subsidies of up to 40 million yen (about $250,000) to companies building yen-denominated stablecoin use cases.

The program will cover up to two-thirds of eligible costs, including infrastructure, compliance and system development expenses.

Japan foreign worker numbers over the years, broken down by visa type. (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare)

The initiative is part of Tokyos broader push to position itself as a global financial hub, backing stablecoin development as a faster and lower-cost payment rail with potential use cases in areas such as cross-border transfers.

Applications are open until June 30, according to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

SBI Remit taps Ripple tech to expand remittances for foreign workers

SBI Remit has partnered with Tottori Bank to expand low-cost, app-based remittance services for foreign workers in Japan.

The service allows customers to send money abroad through SBI Remits platform via the regional bank via Ripples technology to enable faster and lower-cost cross-border transfers.

The partnership targets growing demand from foreign workers, who are increasingly relying on digital remittance services over traditional bank transfers.

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Crypto lobby Coin Center has expanded on its argument that software code is free speech and should be protected under the First Amendment of the US Constitution, amid continued uncertainty over whether crypto developers could be liable for how their inventions are used.

In a report published Monday, Coin Center Executive Director Peter Van Valkenburgh and Director of Research Lizandro Pieper said writing and publishing crypto software code is the same as writing a book or publishing a recipe.

The pair argued that the First Amendment, which protects individuals' freedom of speech and expression, offers strict constitutional protection for developers who only publish and maintain software. 

“They are speakers and inventors, not agents, custodians, or fiduciaries. Extending pre-registration or licensing requirements to this speech activity drops the historical logic of financial oversight and imposes a classic prior restraint on activities that are primarily speech and expression—which is almost always unconstitutional,” they added.

Source: Peter Van Valkenburgh

Crypto software developers have been seeking legal protections to shield themselves from criminal liability over the software they create. Last year saw several high-profile convictions of crypto developers based on how their software was used, including the trial of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm.

Regulation applies when devs interact directly with users

Van Valkenburgh and Pieper said the paper is aimed at providing a framework for courts and regulators to distinguish between protected software publication and a developer’s professional conduct. 

They argued that a developer crosses into regulatable conduct when controlling user assets, executing transactions for users or making decisions on users' behalf.

“Lower court confusion over the distinction between conduct and speech naturally found in software publishing has fueled the development of what might be called a functional code theory of diminished First Amendment protection,” they said.

Source: Neeraj Agrawal 

“Some courts have suggested that because software can be executed to produce real-world effects, it resembles conduct rather than speech,” they added.

“We argue that such activities are pure speech and that the Supreme Court’s existing jurisprudence insists on this interpretation even if some lower courts have gone astray.”

They cited the 1985 case of Lowe v. SEC, in which the Supreme Court found that a publisher that does not hold assets on behalf of a client or take action on the client's behalf is protected by free speech and does not count as practicing a regulated profession. 

Crypto developers can’t be used as scapegoats

In some cases, crypto software has eliminated certain traditional middlemen, with self-custody and peer-to-peer transactions removing the need for a central authority to send funds or hold them. 

Traditionally, financial institutions acting on a user's behalf as intermediaries are regulated by governments and required to hold licenses.

Van Valkenburgh and Pieper said that while it is challenging to build regulatory frameworks around new technology, declaring software developers to be middlemen for “administrative convenience” is not the answer either. 

“Crypto software does not necessitate the invention of new legal doctrines or novel carveouts. It requires the faithful application of settled First Amendment principles to a new technological context,” they added.

“In the age of computers, where software is the primary means for expressing ideas and organizing economic life, those principles matter more, not less. Writing and publishing code is speech. And in a free society, speech cannot be licensed into silence.”

Storm was convicted last year on charges of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business, but his lawyers have been working on a motion to dismiss using the Supreme Court case, Cox Communications Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment, to argue he had no intent to participate in the crimes of which he is accused 

The co-founders of privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet Samourai Wallet were also found guilty on the same charge and were sentenced to between four and five years in prison.

Magazine: Will the CLARITY Act be good — or bad — for DeFi?

Coinbase-backed artificial intelligence payments standard x402 has launched a marketplace for apps and services to boost the usefulness of AI agents.

Coinbase product lead Nick Prince said in a video posted on X on Monday that the idea behind the platform, called Agentic.market, was to “give humans and their agents access to thousands of services, with zero API keys required.”

Prince, in a separate post, said the market was a “storefront for discovering, comparing, and using x402 services” and offers access to a wide variety of apps and websites that AI agents can use, such as CoinGecko, Google Flights and the social media site X.

He added that hundreds of thousands of AI agents have transacted hundreds of millions in volume, but AI agent users have “relied on fragmented sources and word-of-mouth” to find compatible services.

The x402 protocol, launched by Coinbase in May 2025, allows AI agents to make internet payments using stablecoins and has seen growing support as many companies believe AI technology will become more involved in commerce.

Introducing Agentic(dot)Market, the homepage of the agent economy.

- Monitor agentic commerce trends
- Discover services for your agent to buy
- Sell your services to agents

Thousands of services. Zero API keys. Powered by x402. https://t.co/dgrNV73MAJ pic.twitter.com/0QU9Bpb3kG

— nick.base.eth 🛡 (@Nick_Prince12) April 20, 2026

Prince said the marketplace has a web interface “for humans to browse and evaluate services” and a programming layer that allows AI agents access to the platform to “search, filter, and integrate new capabilities autonomously at runtime without a human in the loop.”

The platform provides an AI agent with “skills,” or code on how to use a service, along with a wallet that gives it the ability to “buy services and also sell services,” Prince added.

The x402 protocol, named after the rarely used HTTP status code “402 Payment Required,” received support earlier this month from Google, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services, which backed the creation of the x402 Foundation to govern the protocol.

American Express, Mastercard, Visa, Cloudflare, Shopify, Stripe, Circle, Base, Polygon Labs, the Solana Foundation, Thirdweb and KakaoPay also expressed their “initial intent and support” of the foundation.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said at the time that “there will be more AI agents transacting online than humans very soon,” echoing Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire, who in January said that “literally billions of AI agents” will be transacting on blockchains in three to five years.

Magazine: AI agents will kill the web as we know it: Animoca’s Yat Siu

A New York state assemblymember and congressional candidate has proposed an artificial intelligence dividend program for US citizens to address potential job losses stemming from advances in AI technology.

In an X post on Sunday, New York lawmaker Alex Bores outlined a plan to prepare the US and its citizens for the "potential large-scale displacement of human labor by artificial intelligence."

"Today, I'm proud to announce the AI Dividend, my plan to prepare for the AI economy with direct payments to Americans funded by tax reform that simultaneously incentivizes hiring humans instead of AI," he said.

Bores' move comes amid growing concerns that AI could eventually drive mass unemployment. According to a recent Goldman Sachs report, AI adoption has resulted in the loss of about 16,000 jobs per month over the past year.

Alex Bores’ proposed AI dividend program. Source: Alex Bores

The proposed program would be funded through avenues such as a tax on AI use, equity stakes in leading AI companies, and tax reforms to the "treatment of labor and capital."

Bores is currently touting the policy as part of his run for a seat in Congress, and its progress in getting off the ground may be dependent on the success of his campaign. 

Alongside paying dividends to US citizens, the funds would also go toward investments in "workforce transition, training and education" and establishing oversight and safety infrastructure.

"At its core, the AI Dividend is simple: if AI dramatically increases productivity and concentrates wealth, the American people have a stake in those gains,” the dividend plan read. 

“The AI Dividend is a direct payment program that kicks in when and if AI meaningfully displaces American workers. It is not a punishment for innovation — it is an insurance policy.”

High-profile US tech giants such as Amazon, Meta, Intel and Microsoft have either already laid off thousands of workers or have reportedly planned to, due to efficiencies created by AI.  

However, global investment banking firm Morgan Stanley released a report on April 14 on AI job displacement, noting that the impact on the labor market has been "modest so far."

Morgan Stanley argued that there has been limited evidence of widespread job losses and that, historically, new waves of technology can help expand employment over time, even as they displace some roles. It did, however, acknowledge that AI could defy this historical precedent.

Magazine: Will the CLARITY Act be good — or bad — for DeFi?

Decentralized lending platform Aave’s risk management provider has outlined two scenarios on how bad debt from the Kelp DAO exploit over the weekend could impact the ecosystem, depending on how the losses are allocated.

The incident began on Saturday when hackers stole 116,500 Kelp DAO Restaked ETH (rsETH) tokens worth $293 million from Kelp DAO’s LayerZero-powered bridge and used them as collateral on Aave V3 to borrow wrapped Ether (wETH).

On Monday, LlamaRisk modeled two possible scenarios for how this “bad debt” could materialize on Aave, noting that the final decision rests with Kelp DAO.

The incident highlights the contagion risk in DeFi, where a single bridge exploit can trigger liquidity crunches and mass withdrawals across interconnected protocols like Aave, which has seen nearly $10 billion in value leave the protocol since the Kelp DAO exploit took place.

Source: Aave

Two scenarios and potential paths forward

The first scenario would see losses spread across all rsETH token holders on Ethereum mainnet and Ethereum layer 2s, resulting in roughly $123.7 million of bad debt on Aave while risking a 15% depeg in rsETH relative to Ether (ETH).

LlamaRisk said this first scenario would spread losses more thinly across all chains, while noting that wrapped Ether (wETH) would be “absorbing the bulk in absolute terms but barely noticing it relative to its reserve depth.”

Aave could also use its Umbrella security model to cover losses in wETH under the first scenario, noting that 18,922 Aave Wrapped ETH (aWETH) tokens worth nearly $43.7 million have entered the unstaking cooldown phase.

The second scenario would shift the entire shortfall to Ethereum layer 2 networks, such as Arbitrum and Mantle. However, the bad debt would be significantly higher at $230.1 million.

LlamaRisk also noted that Aave has around $181 million in its treasury that could be used to address a potential bad debt shortfall.

Scenario comparison of LlamaRisk’s two scenarios. Source: Aave

On Monday, Kelp DAO said it is still assessing the financial impact of the exploit and how to safely unpause the protocol, adding that it is working with Aave, LayerZero and other stakeholders on a path forward.

Kelp DAO sheds more light on the exploit

Kelp DAO also shared more details about the incident, saying that two nodes tied to the LayerZero bridge were compromised, while a third was hit with a distributed denial-of-service attack.

The attacker forged a seemingly valid transfer message that the system approved, allowing 116,500 rsETH to be minted on one of LayerZero’s bridges.

Kelp said it paused all relevant contracts on Ethereum and Ethereum layer 2s and blacklisted all wallets tied to the exploiter shortly after, preventing them from stealing another 40,000 rsETH worth $95 million.

Magazine: Are DeFi devs liable for the illegal activity of others on their platforms?

John Oliver, host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight, targeted prediction market platforms on his show’s latest weekly deep dive.

In Sunday’s airing of the HBO show, Oliver discussed some of the trivial event contracts on platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, including betting whether members of the Trump administration would use certain words in public addresses, to the companies’ controversial partnering with news organizations. 

Specifically, the host questioned Donald Trump Jr.’s relationship with both platforms — an adviser to Kalshi and Polymarket — and how the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) “doesn’t even seem to be trying” to block event contracts on terrorism, assassination and war under Chair Michael Selig.

For much of the show, Oliver discussed how it is “incredibly easy for individuals to manipulate the outcomes,” citing Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong rattling off a list of crypto-related words in his third-quarter 2025 earnings call to cause many Kalshi and Polymarket users to win their bets.

“I’m going to make you a promise tonight,” said Oliver, echoing Armstrong’s statement. “I will never do anything because someone online placed a bet on it. So you can be confident that if I ever say Bitcoin, Ethereum, blockchain, staking and Web3, it won’t be because I’m trying to move markets — it will be because I’m having a stroke.”

Source: HBO Last Week Tonight

While user activity and trading volume on prediction markets have increased exponentially in recent months — expected to reach $1 trillion by 2030 — the platforms’ controversial bets and legal status in US states have raised eyebrows for some experts. Gaming authorities in several states are suing companies like Kalshi over alleged illegal sports betting, with Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal and others expecting the legal fight to end up before the US Supreme Court.

Financial giants looking to expand into prediction markets?

In addition to previously announced partnerships with media giants like CNN, CNBC, Fox News and Dow Jones, traditional financial companies including Charles Schwab and Citadel Securities recently signaled plans to consider prediction markets.

Charles Schwab CEO Rick Wurster said on a Thursday investors call that the company would “take a hard look at” prediction markets. In a separate event the same day, Citadel Securities President Jim Esposito said that the company was “absolutely keeping an eye on developments” as part of a potential move into the market.

Magazine: Adam Back says current demand is ‘almost’ enough to send Bitcoin to $1M

Bybit has led an $8 million Series A funding round in Hata, a dual-licensed digital asset exchange operating in Malaysia. The round also included participation from global family offices and follows Bybit’s earlier investment in Hata’s $4.2 million seed round.

According to Monday’s announcement, the funding will be used to improve liquidity, expand the user base and develop additional digital asset products.

Hata operates under licenses from the Securities Commission Malaysia and the Labuan Financial Services Authority, allowing it to offer trading and custody services for digital assets in the Southeast Asian country.

Since launching in 2023, the company has reported more than 209,000 registered users and processed 1.04 billion Malaysian ringgits (about $225 million) in transaction volume in 2025.

Ben Zhou, co-founder and CEO, said Malaysia is “strategically important” and has “one of the most digitally engaged populations in Southeast Asia and strong long-term potential for digital asset adoption.” 

Bybit is the world’s fifth largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, according to data from CoinMarket.

Beyond the region, the exchange is also deepening its commitment to the Middle East.  In March, Bybit appointed Derek Dai as the new country manager for the MENA region to oversee expansion and partnerships despite ongoing regional tensions.

Dai said the Middle East is emerging as a key crypto market, with Bybit planning to expand UAE dirham access and build partnerships with banks and payment providers in the coming months.

Malaysia builds out digital asset regulatory framework

The investment from Bybit comes as Malaysia has been developing its regulatory framework for digital assets through a series of initiatives and pilot programs.

In June, Malaysia launched its Digital Asset Innovation Hub as a regulatory sandbox, allowing fintech and digital asset firms to test use cases such as programmable payments, ringgit-backed stablecoins and supply chain financing under central bank oversight. 

During the same month, a Malaysian telecom company owned by Crown Prince Ismail Ibrahim, son of Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, launched a ringgit-backed stablecoin called RMJDT on the Zetrix blockchain under the sandbox framework.

In November, Bank Negara Malaysia outlined a three-year roadmap to explore asset tokenization, including pilots for tokenized deposits, stablecoins and cross-border settlement through its Digital Asset Innovation Hub. The central bank’s plan includes an industry working group co-led with the Securities Commission Malaysia to coordinate use cases and address regulatory and legal considerations.

More recently, the central bank said it is piloting three sandbox programs focused on ringgit-backed stablecoins and tokenized bank deposits for cross-border settlement, with participation from institutions including Standard Chartered, CIMB Group and Maybank.

Magazine: Bitcoin will not hit $1M by 2030, says veteran trader Peter Brandt

Since Paul Atkins was sworn in as chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on April 21, 2025, the agency has significantly changed its position on regulation and enforcement related to digital assets, marking a shift from the leadership of former chair Gary Gensler during the Biden administration.

During his 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump made removing Gensler one of his promises to the crypto industry, along with creating a national Bitcoin (BTC) stockpile and opposing the issuance of a US central bank digital currency.

His November 2024 election win led to Gensler’s resignation in January 2025 and the appointment of SEC commissioner Mark Uyeda as acting chair of the financial regulator until the Senate could confirm Atkins as Trump’s pick to lead the agency. 

SEC Chair Paul Atkins on CNBC’s Squawk Box on April 20, 2026. Source CNBC

Even before the Senate voted to confirm Atkins, the SEC was already signaling a change in crypto regulation and enforcement under Trump. Uyeda oversaw the creation of an SEC crypto task force headed by Commissioner Hester Peirce and the agency began to drop civil enforcement actions and investigations into crypto companies, starting with Coinbase in February.

The first 12 months of Atkins’ chairmanship has seen the SEC push policies and approaches to regulation widely viewed as favorable to the crypto and blockchain industry.

In addition to wrapping up enforcement actions, the regulator has approved multiple exchange-traded funds tied to various crypto assets, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) over coordination on digital asset regulation and issued an interpretative notice on not treating most cryptocurrencies as securities under federal law.

“A year goes by quickly, but we’ve made huge progress, I think,” said Atkins in a Monday CNBC interview. “I promised a new day at the SEC when I came aboard, and we have. We’ve pivoted from the old practice of regulation through enforcement and the opaqueness of the agency, as, for example, with crypto.”

Source: CFTC Chair Michael Selig

SEC chair faces scrutiny from Democratic lawmakers

While many in the crypto industry have lauded Atkins’ approach to digital assets since taking office, Congressional Democrats have criticized the SEC and chair for potential conflicts of interest following dropped investigations and enforcement actions against companies tied to Trump and his family.

Last week, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren accused the SEC chair of misleading Congress in his testimony before a House committee in February. Warren said in an April 15 letter that the SEC’s own data from the 2025 fiscal year showed the agency had fewer enforcement actions than at any point in the previous 10 years.

Magazine: Adam Back says current demand is ‘almost’ enough to send Bitcoin to $1M

Key points:

Buyers aggressively bought into the dip in Bitcoin, indicating positive sentiment. That increases the possibility of a rally to $84,000.

Several major altcoins have pulled back to their support levels, signaling that the bears remain sellers on rallies.

Bitcoin (BTC) corrected over the weekend but is finding buyers at lower levels, indicating a positive sentiment. According to SoSoValue data, US spot BTC exchange-traded funds recorded $996 million in inflows last week, the best weekly performance since early January. 

The cryptocurrency recovery may be at risk if the US and Iran do not reach a deal before the two-week ceasefire ends on Wednesday, or if the ceasefire is not extended. Trading resource Mosaic Asset Company said in its newsletter that “intensifying hostilities could unwind the bullish action over the past few weeks.”

Crypto market data daily view. Source: TradingView

However, the short-term uncertainty could not stop Michael Saylor’s Strategy from adding more BTC to its portfolio. The BTC treasury company purchased 34,164 BTC between April 13 and April 19 for $2.54 billion, according to an 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday. That boosted Strategy’s holdings to 815,061 BTC acquired for $61.56 billion.

Could buyers resume the relief rally in BTC and the major altcoins? Let’s analyze the charts of the top 10 cryptocurrencies to find out. 

S&P 500 Index price prediction

The S&P 500 Index (SPX) rallied sharply last week, rising to a new all-time high of 7,147 on Friday.

SPX daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The sharp upward move propelled the relative strength index (RSI) into overbought territory, suggesting the index is at risk of a minor consolidation or pullback in the short term. The first support on the downside is at the breakout level of 7,002, followed by the 20-day exponential moving average (6,828). If the price rebounds off the 20-day EMA, it signals that the uptrend remains intact.

Sellers have an uphill task ahead of them. They will have to swiftly yank the price below the moving averages to signal a comeback. 

US Dollar Index price prediction

The US Dollar Index (DXY) turned down sharply from the 20-day EMA (98.73) on April 13 and dropped to the 97.74 support on Friday.

DXY daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The index is attempting to initiate a relief rally but is expected to encounter selling pressure at the 20-day EMA. If the price again turns down from the 20-day EMA, the possibility of a break below the 97.74 level increases. That may sink the price to the 96.21 support.

The index is likely to remain inside the 95.55 to 100.54 range for a while longer. The next trending move is expected to begin on a close above the 100.54 resistance or below the 95.55 support.

Bitcoin price prediction

BTC has bounced off the 20-day EMA ($72,832), suggesting the bulls are seeing dips as buying opportunities.

BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The bears are unlikely to give up easily and will attempt to halt the recovery in the $76,000 to $78,333 zone. If the BTC price turns down from the overhead zone and breaks below the moving averages, it suggests that the market has rejected the breakout.

On the other hand, a break and close above the overhead resistance zone signals the resumption of the up move. The BTC/USD pair may then skyrocket to $84,000 and eventually to the pattern target of $92,000.

Ether price prediction

Buyers tried to push Ether (ETH) above the $2,415 level on Saturday, but the bears held their ground. That started a pullback to the 20-day EMA ($2,252).

ETH/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Buyers will have to fiercely defend the 20-day EMA and secure a close above the $2,415 level to signal the resumption of the relief rally. If they do that, the ETH/USDT pair may march to the $2,800 level.

Sellers are likely to have other plans. They will attempt to push the ETH price below the moving averages, keeping the pair within the $1,916 to $2,415 range for some time.

BNB price prediction

BNB (BNB) continues to oscillate between $570 and $687, signaling a balance between supply and demand.

BNB/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The flattish moving averages and the RSI near the midpoint do not signal an advantage either to the bulls or the bears. If the BNB price breaks above $650, the next target is likely $687.

Instead, if the price breaks below the 20-day EMA, the BNB/USDT pair may plunge toward the range's support at $570. The next trending move is expected to begin on a close above $687 or below $570.

XRP price prediction

XRP (XRP) has been consolidating between the $1.27 support and the $1.61 resistance for several days.

XRP/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The flattish moving averages and the RSI just above the midpoint suggest that the range-bound action may extend for a few more days. Buyers will have to achieve a close above the downtrend line to signal a potential trend change. The XRP price may then surge to $2.

On the downside, a break and close below the $1.27 level signals that the bears are back in the driver’s seat. There is support at the $1.11 level, but that may be broken. The XRP/USDT pair may then tumble toward the support line of the descending channel pattern.

Solana price prediction

Solana (SOL) fell below its moving averages on Sunday, suggesting that higher levels are attracting sellers.

SOL/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The flattish moving averages and the RSI near the midpoint indicate that the range-bound action may continue for a while. If the price remains below the moving averages, bears will attempt to push the SOL/USDT pair toward the $76 support.

Buyers will have to push the SOL price above the $90 level to open the door to a rally toward the $98 resistance. A close above the $98 level suggests the start of a sustained recovery to the $117 level.

Dogecoin price prediction

Dogecoin (DOGE) turned down from the $0.10 psychological level on Friday and has fallen to the moving averages.

DOGE/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The flat moving averages and the RSI near the midpoint do not give either buyers or sellers a clear advantage. If the DOGE price breaks below the moving averages, the $0.09 support may be tested. A break below the $0.09 level may start the next leg of the downward move to $0.08 and subsequently to $0.06.

Buyers will have to push the price above the $0.10 level and maintain it to signal strength. The DOGE/USDT pair may then climb toward the $0.12 resistance level, where bears are expected to step in.

Hyperliquid price prediction

Hyperliquid (HYPE) fell back below the breakout level of $43.76 after staying above it for several days.

HYPE/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The bulls are attempting to halt the pullback at the 20-day EMA ($41.03), but the bears continue to exert pressure. If the 20-day EMA gives way, the HYPE/USDT pair may plummet toward the 50-day SMA ($38.09) and then toward $34.45.

On the contrary, a bounce off the 20-day EMA suggests that the lower levels continue to attract buyers. The bulls will then attempt to drive the HYPE price above the $45.77 level again. If they succeed, the pair may skyrocket to the $50-$51.43 zone.

Cardano price prediction

Cardano (ADA) rose above the 50-day SMA ($0.26) on Friday, but the bulls could not sustain the higher levels.

ADA/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The ADA/USDT pair turned lower on Saturday, falling below the $0.25 level. Sellers will attempt to strengthen their position by driving the ADA price below $0.23. If they manage to do that, the pair may resume its downtrend to $0.22 and later to the support line of the descending channel pattern.

Buyers will have to push the price above the downtrend line and maintain it there to signal a potential short-term trend change. The pair may then rise to $0.32, then to $0.37.

Tether has taken an 8.2% stake in Antalpha, making the stablecoin issuer one of the company’s largest shareholders following its May 2025 initial public offering (IPO), according to a Monday filing.

The Schedule 13D filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission indicates that Tether now holds 1.95 million shares through related entities, with Giancarlo Devasini, chairman of Tether, sharing voting and dispositive power over the position.

The filing also states that Tether and its related entities may increase or reduce their holdings over time depending on market conditions and other factors.

Antalpha provides Bitcoin-backed lending and equipment financing to mining operators, reporting a loan portfolio of about $1.6 billion as of the end of 2024, and is closely tied to the Bitmain ecosystem, a major supplier of mining hardware.

Antalpha raised about $49.3 million in last year’s IPO at $12.80 per share, according to its prospectus. Tether had previously indicated interest in purchasing as much as $25 million worth of shares.

Antalpha reported 2025 revenue of $79.7 million, up 68% year over year, while net income rose to $18.5 million, more than tripling from the previous year.

On Monday, its shares rose about 7.2% to around $9.97 in early trading, per Google Finance data.

Source: Google Finance

Tether is the issuer of Tether (USDT), the largest stablecoin by market capitalization, with a market cap of about $187 billion, roughly 58.4% of the total stablecoin market, which stands near $320.7 billion, according to DefiLlama data.

Stablecoin market cap. Source: DefiLlama

Tether expands investments across crypto infrastructure and beyond

Tether’s investment in Antalpha comes as the company is using its recent profits to expand into a range of sectors tied to digital assets, including mining, artificial intelligence, financial services and tokenized assets.

Earlier on Monday, real-world asset tokenization protocol Kaio said Tether participated in an $8 million funding round.

“The participation of Tether reflects direct strategic alignment,” the announcement said. “USDT has become the dominant settlement layer for cross-border capital flows. KAIO provides the next layer: structured, compliant access to institutional-grade yield for USDT holders.”

In March, Tether led a $50 million investment in Eight Sleep, a company that develops sleep-focused products such as smart mattresses and wellness systems, valuing it at $1.5 billion.

In February, the company acquired a $150 million stake in Gold.com, representing about 12% ownership, as part of a push to expand access to tokenized gold through its XAUt product.

The same month, Tether made a $100 million equity investment in Anchorage Digital, a federally chartered US digital asset bank that provides custody, settlement and stablecoin issuance services to institutional clients.

CEO Paolo Ardoino said in July that Tether has invested in more than 120 companies through its venture arm, with those investments funded from company profits rather than stablecoin reserves.

Source: Paolo Ardoino on X

Earlier this month, Tether was reported to be seeking fresh capital at a $500 billion valuation, with the company indicating it could delay the raise if investor demand falls short.

Magazine: Adam Back says current demand is ‘almost’ enough to send Bitcoin to $1M

An Ethereum whale has opened a significant long position on Ether (ETH) worth $90.8 million, in what looks like a bold bet that the upside is not over for the top altcoin.

Key takeaways:

Ethereum whale opened a leveraged long position totaling $90.8 million.

Ether price chart’s ascending triangle targets $3,230.

Top traders open new ETH long positions

Data from TradingView showed the ETH/USD pair trading at $2,280, or 32% higher than the $1,750 low reached on Feb. 6. 

Holding above $2,200, Ether offered some cause for optimism ahead of key volatility triggers.

“Strong retail sales could push yields higher and delay Fed cuts, while weak data would fuel risk-on bets,” analyst AlphaBTC said in a Monday post on X, referring to the main macro drivers this week, adding:

“Fed commentary and PMI data add growth signals, while geopolitical risks remain the wildcard catalyst for sudden volatility.”

As market participants waited for the next catalysts, attention has shifted to a trader with an impressive track record, who has opened a long position worth about $90.8 million in ETH, with 20x leverage.

Source: X/Ash Crypto

Analyst TAnotepad noted that another whale, 0x6C851, has opened a $61 million ETH long position at 20x leverage with entry around $2,303 on HyperLiquid.

ETH whale position on HyperLiquid. Source: TAnotepad

These moves coincide with continued flows into spot Ethereum ETFs, which have recorded net inflows for seven consecutive days, totaling $426 million. 

Spot ETH flows chart. Source: SoSoValue

Meanwhile, global Ethereum investment products recorded $328 million in inflows during the week ending April 17.

This reinforces the narrative that whales and institutions view the recent ETH price rebound above $2,400 as a promising move that could open the way toward $3,000.

Ether’s ascending triangle targets $3,200 ETH price 

Ether’s price action has formed a classic ascending triangle on the daily chart, as shown below. 

The pattern will resolve once the ETH/USD pair breaks above the triangle’s resistance line at $2,400. If this happens, the price could rise by as much as the maximum distance between the triangle’s trend lines.

That puts Ether’s breakout target at about $3,230, up by more than 41% from current price levels.

ETH/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The relative strength index has increased to 54, from oversold conditions at 18 on Feb. 6, suggesting increasing upward momentum.

However, the breakout could be curtailed by resistance from the $2,350-$2,500 resistance zone, marked by the 50-day exponential moving average (EMA).

Above that, the next major hurdle is the 200-day EMA at $2,640.

Zooming out, analyst Micro2Macr0 said that a breakout from a multi-year ascending triangle could lead to a 60%-%100% ETH price rally. 

ETH/USD weekly chart. Source: X/Micro2Macr0 

As Cointelegraph reported, ETH price closing above $2,400 resistance, puts it on the path for a recovery toward $2,800, then to $3,050 over the next few days or weeks.

Bitcoin (BTC) erased losses after Monday’s Wall Street open as markets largely shrugged off the return of the US-Iran war.

Key points:

Bitcoin joins stocks in a muted reaction to the latest US-Iran deterioration and closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

BTC price manages to top 2.5% daily upside despite the lack of resolution.

Analysis warns that Bitcoin market strength is begin driven by Strategy and speculators.

Markets avoid volatility as BTC price stays green

Data from TradingView showed 2.5% daily gains for BTC/USD, which had closed the week below $74,000.

BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

US stocks saw modest downside as the week began, but the losses remained modest, while oil began retracing an initial move toward $90.

CFDs on WTI crude oil one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The repositioning came a day after US President Donald Trump announced a fresh round of negotiations over Iran in Pakistan.

“My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social on Sunday.

Trump appeared to dismiss the significance of Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, calling its announcement “strange.”

Source: Truth Social

Responding, crypto trading company QCP Capital suggested that markets had already readjusted expectations of the war’s outcome and timeline for it.

“Despite the pullback in spot alongside renewed tensions, volatility has stayed notably subdued, hovering near year-to-date lows,” it wrote in its latest “Market Color” update. 

“This disconnect between realised risk and implied pricing suggests investors are recalibrating expectations toward a more episodic pattern of escalation: on-and-off disruptions around the Strait, paired with cycles of rhetoric and de-escalation. In effect, markets are beginning to price duration rather than intensity, pointing to a conflict that may be more protracted than initially assumed, but still contained within current bounds.”

S&P 500 one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

QCP added that even with the US-Iran ceasefire due to officially expire within days, that event was unlikely to be definitive.

“The base case, for now, remains one of range-bound volatility, rather than a decisive breakout across major asset classes,” it concluded.

Strategy, speculators under the microscope

Analyzing short-term BTC price moves, J. A. Maartunn, a contributor to onchain analytics platform CryptoQuant, had some bad news for bulls.

Bitcoin’s recent local highs, he suggested, were simply a result of buying pressure from Strategy and speculative traders, with sellers stepping in to take profit, halting the rally.

“Where does that leave price? Not far,” he summarized in an X thread.

BTC/USD chart with STH cost-basis data. Source: J. A. Maartunn/X

Maartunn said that BTC/USD remained stuck below “key resistance,” including the cost basis of short-term holders (STHs) near $83,000.

“Long-Term Holders keep accumulating, and Strategy isn’t done yet,” he acknowledged.

“The key question: is it enough to push Bitcoin higher? For now, this still looks like a bear market rally… But a strong breakout could quickly shift the trend.”

BTC/USDT three-day chart. Source: J. A. Maartunn/X

Bitmine Immersion Technologies, the world’s largest public holder of Ether, increased its ETH treasury last week with another large purchase.

The company acquired 101,627 ETH during the week of April 13 to April 19, according to a press release and an accompanying Form 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday.

The purchase marks Bitmine’s largest Ether buy since Dec. 15, 2025, according to chairman Tom Lee. “Bitmine has maintained the increased pace of ETH buys in each of the past four weeks, as our base case ETH is in the final stages of the ‘mini-crypto winter,’” Lee said.

Following the purchase, Bitmine said it held 4,976,485 ETH valued at roughly $11.5 billion at a reference price of $2,301 per token. The company also holds 199 Bitcoin (BTC), a $200 million stake in Beast Industries, a $107 million stake in Eightco Holdings and $1.12 billion in cash. The company’s total crypto and cash holdings are $12.9 billion.

The latest update extends Bitmine’s lead among public company Ether treasuries as crypto balance sheet strategies continue to spread across public markets.

Bitmine is 82% of the way to the “alchemy of 5%”

In holding 4.98 million ETH, Bitmine now owns more than 4% of total Ether circulating supply.  The company said its broader goal remains to reach the “alchemy of 5%,” a long-term target it has been working toward through repeated large-scale purchases.

The purchase came after Bitmine recently started trading on the New York Stock Exchange after uplisting from the NYSE American as the company expanded its share buyback program.

Top five Ether holders by total ETH exposure (excluding latest buys). Source: CoinGecko

Bitmine has also expanded its staking operations through its MAVAN (Made in America Validator Network) platform. The system is designed to support institutional-grade Ethereum staking with an emphasis on performance and security.

The company reported that 3.33 million ETH is currently staked, generating annualized staking revenues of over $200 million.

At Paris Blockchain Week 2026, Lee said the recent crypto slump was a “mini crypto winter,” and predicted that Ether could climb above $60,000 over the next few years.

Magazine: Your guide to surviving this mini-crypto winter

Quantum computing isnt on track to break Bitcoin by 2030, despite growing fears on social media, according to Bitcoin OG and Blockstream CEO Adam Back.

I think it’s probably still a couple of decades out, but it really depends on how the research progresses, Back tells Cointelegraph during Paris Blockchain Week.

In a wide ranging interview the 55-year-old Blockstream CEO also shares his feelings about being named by the New York Times as Satoshi Nakamoto, and considers the factors that could push Bitcoin to $1 million.

If Back’s predictions are accurate, Bitcoin’s price should remain untroubled by the threat from quantum computers for some time to come.

The current state of the hardware is effectively at the lab experiment stage, where they are trying different physical architectures, so different ways to construct qubits, different ways to manage the error correction, different error codes, he explains.

I think the thing to watch for is a repeatable architecture where they start to be able to scale it. So that hasn’t happened to date, Back adds.

Back isn’t suggesting the problem should be ignored and Blockstream employs some of the leading post quantum blockchain researchers. He explains that the “safe thing” for Bitcoin is to prepare, implement, and deploy upgrade mechanisms that can become quantum-ready. “You know, that gives people a long time to migrate. And if it turns out it’s shorter, they can hurry up,” he says.

Adam Back spoke to Cointelegraph during Paris Blockchain Week. (Cointelegraph)

The comments come just weeks after Google set a 2029 deadline for its post-quantum cryptography (PQC) migration, warning that quantum frontiers could be closer than they appear.

Back has been openly critical of Bitcoiners on social media who have been talking up the threat from quantum computers. He called out Castle Island Ventures partner and Project 11 backer Nic Carter in December 2025, saying: You make uninformed noise and try to move the market or something. Youre not helping.

Back explains that markets dont like uncertainty. Specialized markets can have information asymmetry, which is to say, do people who understand the fundamentals have a very confident view?

Back says that the wider Bitcoin trading audience is reading mainstream outlets like Bloomberg and CNBC and may react to “uniformed media output.”

BlackRock informing investors of quantum risk is no big deal

Back is also not losing sleep over major asset managers like BlackRock flagging quantum risks to Bitcoin in communications with ETF investors.

I think also the institutions are more systematic about risk management. So they actually realize that there’s a low probability long-tail risk, Back says.

He doubts suggestions by some that BlackRock could be using the quantum computing narrative as a way to spook investors and push Bitcoin’s price lower.

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I think BlackRock is aligned with a higher Bitcoin price because that drives more buyers and increases their AUM ultimately,” Back says.

So if the price is ten times higher, they make ten times as much money. So I think they would be interested in that, Back adds.

Satoshi rumors resurface around Adam Back again

Back has recently been thrust back into the mainstream spotlight after The New York Times revived speculation on April 8 that he could be the leading candidate behind the Satoshi Nakamoto name, something he admits is not ideal.

Back isnt too fazed by the idea many people in the mainstream now seem to believe that he may be Satoshi. Just roll with it. I guess that’s all you can do, he says.

(Adam Back)

The theory isnt new. Back has been considered a potential candidate ever since Satoshi cited Backs Hashcash in the Bitcoin white paper, published in October 2008, as inspiration for Bitcoins proof-of-work system. 

Back developed Hashcash in 1997 to prevent email spam and DoS attacks, and it became part of the basis of Bitcoins mining algorithm.

The speculation hasnt kept him away from industry events either. One of the fun things we’re going to Bitcoin conferences is talking to other Bitcoiners, the old ones and new ones, right? Because you want to see what they’re thinking, how they’re thinking about Bitcoin, he says.

Who is Adam Back?

Back holds a computer science PhD in distributed systems from the University of Exeter and started Blockstream in 2014, which has become a leading company focused on developing Bitcoin. 

Cointelegraph spoke with Adam Back at its very own booth at Paris Blockchain Week. (Cointelegraph)

The firm has its hand in everything from building out the infrastructure around Bitcoin sidechains to dedicating full-time contributors to improving the Bitcoin network.

Blockstream has done some pretty impressive things over the years. In August 2017, Blockstream announced it would use leased satellites to beam the Bitcoin blockchain worldwide, so users could access the networks data without relying on centralized internet services.

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In October 2018, Blockstream launched Bitcoins first sidechain, the Liquid Network, which is a layer-2 scaling solution that allows faster, more confidential Bitcoin transactions.

When will Bitcoin reach $1 million?

As for Bitcoin’s short-term price, Back speculates that Bitcoins recent low of $60,000 in early February was probably the bottom for now, but reiterates that the assets price is quite unpredictable.

There are quite a few repeat buyers at these levels. The ETFs and, of course, the BlackRock ETF have actually net increased Bitcoin this year in inflows, he says.

Back says critics of Bitcoins current sideways price action have short memories and forget that the previous halving cycle had three tops.

(Adam Back)

So you had like a $64,000, a $69,000, and then a bit of a bear period. And then $73,500 right before the halving, Back says.

Many Bitcoin holders are searching for the big, game-changing catalyst that sends Bitcoin to $1 million, but Back thinks the answer is much simpler than that.

Just the market dynamic could do it with the current demand almost. Right. I think this past this halving period so far, in my view, could have done that just from the new retail interests and new ETFs, even without the institutions, Back says.

We’ll see how it evolves, he adds.

Back appears a lot more bullish on Bitcoin’s trajectory than veteran trader Peter Brandt, who told Magazine last week that Bitcoin will not hit $1M by 2030 although Brandt believes it will do so one day.

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