Quick Summary: Bitcoin trades just above $66,600 over the Good Friday weekend as large holders shift to net selling and weak U.S. spot demand weighs on the market. Bitcoin is holding just above $66,600 as markets head into the Good Friday long weekend, with futures and ETF markets pausing and overall liquidity thinning. The price comes despite recent multi-month highs recorded in ETF and corporate bitcoin purchases. The combination of reduced market activity and shifting holder behavior is drawing attention from analysts tracking the asset’s near-term direction.Overall demand for bitcoin has turned negative, even as institutional buying through ETFs and…
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Quick Summary: Stablecoin transaction volume hit $7.2 trillion in February, surpassing the US ACH network’s $6.8 trillion for the first time in the asset class’s history. Stablecoin transaction volume has surpassed the US Automated Clearing House network for the first time, marking a notable milestone for an asset class that has existed for fewer than 12 years. According to blockchain analytics platform Artemis, the 30-day adjusted rolling stablecoin volume reached $7.2 trillion in February, edging past the ACH network’s $6.8 trillion over the same period. The development signals a shift in how digital assets are positioning themselves within the broader…
Quick Summary: The IMF says tokenization can reduce friction in finance but warns the technology introduces new risks that leave its net effect on financial stability uncertain. The International Monetary Fund has released a 23-page report acknowledging that tokenization holds significant promise for the financial sector while simultaneously cautioning that it could introduce new risks to financial stability. The agency stated that atomic settlement and enhanced transparency reduce certain traditional risks, but that the speed and automation enabled by the technology create fresh challenges. The IMF concluded that the overall impact on financial stability remains uncertain.Tokenization refers to the process…
Quick Summary: Circle announces cirBTC, a wrapped Bitcoin token targeting institutional users on Ethereum, entering a market led by BitGo and Coinbase. Circle, the stablecoin issuer, has announced plans to launch a wrapped Bitcoin product called cirBTC, placing it in direct competition with existing providers BitGo and Coinbase. The asset was announced on Thursday and is designed specifically for institutional users, including over-the-counter desks, market makers, and lending protocols. Circle describes cirBTC as a highly secure and neutral version of wrapped Bitcoin, backed one-to-one by Bitcoin (BTC).The token is set to debut on the Ethereum blockchain, with additional availability planned…
Quick Summary: Riot Platforms sold 3,778 Bitcoin in Q1 at an average price of $76,626, netting $289.5 million as energy costs and market conditions weigh on miners. Riot Platforms sold 3,778 Bitcoin during the first quarter of the year, generating $289.5 million at an average sale price of $76,626 per coin, according to an operational update released Thursday. The miner produced 1,473 Bitcoin over the same period and held 15,680 coins on its balance sheet at the end of Q1. Bitcoin was trading at $66,867 as of Friday. Blockchain intelligence platform Arkham separately flagged a 500 Bitcoin outflow from a…
Quick Summary: The Linux Foundation has launched the x402 Foundation, with Google, Microsoft and Amazon among founding members, to govern AI-driven crypto and fiat payments. The Linux Foundation has launched the x402 Foundation, a new body tasked with governing and standardizing the x402 protocol for agentic AI payments across both cryptocurrency and fiat payment systems. The foundation was established on Thursday with the support of Coinbase, the original creators of the x402 protocol. The initiative brings together some of the largest names in technology and finance under a shared open-source framework.Founding members include Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, American Express,…
Quick Summary: President Trump has removed Attorney General Pam Bondi and appointed deputy Todd Blanche to lead the Justice Department. President Donald Trump has removed Pam Bondi from her position as Attorney General and appointed her deputy, Todd Blanche, to head the U.S. Department of Justice. The leadership change places Blanche, a former deputy attorney general, in one of the most prominent law enforcement roles in the country. The move comes amid scrutiny over Blanche’s prior actions and financial holdings related to the cryptocurrency industry.During his tenure as deputy attorney general, Blanche took steps to scale back federal oversight of…
Quick Summary: Naoris Protocol has launched a mainnet blockchain built on NIST-approved post-quantum cryptography to guard against future quantum computing attacks. A blockchain network designed to withstand the cryptographic threats posed by quantum computers has gone live. Naoris Protocol launched its mainnet on Thursday, describing the network as one built with post-quantum cryptography from its foundation, using algorithms formally approved by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology. The launch places Naoris among a growing number of projects exploring how distributed ledger systems can remain secure if quantum computing advances to the point of breaking current protections.The concern driving…
Quick Summary: Crypto and banking representatives are meeting with Senate staffers to review revised stablecoin yield provisions in a pending market structure bill. Representatives from the crypto and banking industries are meeting with legislative staffers on Thursday and Friday to review updated compromise language on stablecoin yield provisions contained in a broader market structure bill. Three people familiar with the plans confirmed the meetings to CoinDesk. Politico was first to report that the sessions were taking place earlier on Thursday.The compromise language was initially put forward by Senator Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) and Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and industry representatives first…
Quick Summary: Google DeepMind researchers have identified six categories of adversarial traps that can manipulate or hijack autonomous AI agents operating on the open web. Researchers at Google DeepMind have published what they describe as a comprehensive taxonomy of threats facing autonomous AI agents as they navigate the internet. The paper, titled “AI Agent Traps,” outlines six distinct categories of adversarial content engineered to deceive, manipulate, or commandeer agents that independently browse websites, manage files, and execute transactions. The work arrives as major technology companies race to deploy agents capable of booking travel, handling email, and writing code without direct…
