Iran is requiring oil tankers to pay a transit fee of $1 per barrel in Bitcoin to pass through the Strait of Hormuz during a two-week window, according to the Financial Times. Tankers must contact Iranian authorities by email with their cargo details before attempting passage, after which Tehran calculates the fee and provides payment instructions. A fully loaded supertanker could face a charge approaching $2 million. The development is seen as a notable, if controversial, instance of a nation-state accepting Bitcoin for an energy-related transaction, though analysts note it also functions as a tollbooth imposed by one of the world’s most heavily sanctioned governments.
Morgan Stanley‘s Bitcoin ETF, trading under the ticker MSBT on NYSE Arca, recorded $33.9 million in volume on its first day of trading Tuesday. The fund launched with a 0.14% management fee, the lowest among spot Bitcoin ETFs currently on the market. Its debut contributed to a broader surge that pushed total spot Bitcoin ETF volume to $2.4 billion on Wednesday. BlackRock‘s IBIT alone accounted for $1.93 billion, while Fidelity‘s FBTC added $212 million, though the day still ended with $125 million in net outflows overall.
The White House Council of Economic Advisers released a 21-page report Wednesday concluding that banning stablecoin yield would increase bank lending by only $2.1 billion, equivalent to just 0.02% of total U.S. lending. The report also estimated the net welfare cost of such a ban at $800 million. Economists found that reaching even $531 billion in additional lending from a yield ban would require stacking three implausible assumptions simultaneously, a scenario the White House itself described as implausible.
The report carries significant political weight because the Clarity Act has stalled in the Senate largely over this dispute, with banks pushing to ban stablecoin yield while Coinbase and the broader crypto industry have resisted. The White House study effectively subjects the banking lobby’s central argument to a formal economic model and finds it does not hold up mathematically. Observers say the publication could provide meaningful momentum toward advancing the legislation.
The New York Times published an 18-month investigation naming Adam Back as the most likely candidate for Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. The report was written by John Carreyrou, the journalist who broke the Theranos scandal. Back denied the claim before the article was published, within the article itself, and again on X immediately after publication, writing “I’m not Satoshi” and describing the evidence as “a combination of coincidence and similar phrases from people with similar experience and interests.” The only definitive way to verify Satoshi’s identity would be to sign a message using the private keys linked to the genesis wallet, something that has not occurred.
A new fund called the Nicholas Bitcoin and Treasuries AfterDark ETF debuted on the NYSE on Wednesday with an unconventional structure: it holds U.S. Treasuries during regular trading hours and shifts to Bitcoin exposure starting around 4:30 PM ET, capturing the overnight session before exiting each morning. The strategy is grounded in research suggesting that the majority of Bitcoin’s historical gains have occurred outside U.S. trading hours, driven by activity in Asian and European markets. Geopolitical developments and social media posts from prominent figures, including those from President Trump on Truth Social, have historically tended to emerge when U.S. markets are closed. Hours after the fund launched, Trump posted a ceasefire announcement at 6:32 PM ET, sending Bitcoin from below $68,000 to $72,700 in an after-hours move that a standard ETF investor would have missed entirely.
Originally reported by Decrypt.
