Nasdaq seeks SEC approval to launch binary options on the Nasdaq 100, entering the fast growing prediction market space.

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Pump.fun expands its app to support external launchpad tokens, WBTC and USDC, with video hinting at Raydium and Meteora integrations.

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xAI plans early repayment of $3B in bonds at 117 cents as Elon Musk prepares SpaceX for a potential $1.75T IPO.

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Iran crypto outflows surge 700% following US-Israeli strikes as capital shifts offshore amid withdrawal spike from Iranian exchange.

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Rising crypto prices amid geopolitical tensions may signal investor confidence in digital assets as a hedge against potential economic instability.

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Bitcoin Magazine

As Bombs Fall on Tehran, Iran’s Crypto Lifeline Lights Up

Within minutes of the first U.S.-Israeli missiles striking Tehran on Saturday morning, a different kind of exodus was already underway. 

Crypto outflows from Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, surged 700%, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The spike was capital flight, executed in real time, by Iranians racing to move money out of a country suddenly under full-scale military bombardment.​

Nobitex processed $7.2 billion in crypto transactions in 2025 and serves more than 11 million users, Elliptic said. It allows Iranians to convert rials into crypto and withdraw to external wallets which is a direct pipeline around the country’s crippled banking system and the web of international sanctions choking it. 

Elliptic’s initial tracing of the weekend’s outflows shows funds flowing to overseas exchanges that have historically received significant Iranian inflows, suggesting the crypto is being moved out.

Elliptic flagged similar spikes earlier this year: a massive outflow on January 9 coincided with widespread anti-regime protests and a government-imposed internet blackout. Even during that blackout, some outflows continued, raising questions about who retains access to Nobitex’s holdings when the platform’s website goes dark. 

Two additional surges aligned with announcements of fresh U.S. sanctions on Iranian actors. Each time, crypto served as the escape hatch.​

“The outflows potentially represent capital flight from Iran that bypasses the traditional banking system,” said Dr. Tom Robinson, Elliptic’s co-founder. 

Bitcoin’s weekend rollercoaster

The strikes — codenamed Operation Roaring Lion by Israel and Epic Fury by the Pentagon — hit at 9:45 a.m. Tehran time on Saturday, targeting nuclear facilities, missile sites, and the Pasteur district in the capital where Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei resided. 

Iran confirmed Khamenei’s death hours later, along with other top officials.

Crypto markets reacted instantly. Bitcoin plunged from roughly $67,000 to below $64,000, shedding nearly 5% in minutes. The total crypto market capitalization dropped $128 billion as forced liquidations cascaded across exchanges.

Then came the snapback. The news of following events briefly pushed Bitcoin above $68,000, as traders speculated the regime’s decapitation might shorten the conflict. But the rally fizzled as Iranian retaliation — missiles and drones launched at Israel, Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, and U.S. bases across the region — made clear this was no contained event. 

By Sunday afternoon, Bitcoin had settled around $65,300. At time of writing, Bitcoin is flirting with $70,000.

“The positive performance of the crypto market today can be explained primarily by a significantly more restrained reaction than anticipated,” Thomas Probst, a research analyst at Kaiko, wrote to Bitcoin Magazine. 

He noted that when U.S. equities opened slightly positive on Monday, it reinforced the upward bias, with Bitcoin approaching $70,000 and major altcoins posting gains of 6–10%.

Open interest also climbed on February 28, showing that traders were adding new positions rather than reducing exposure ahead of the event. According to Axis, this behavior indicates that the market had largely priced in the geopolitical developments and was no longer viewing them as a major threat.

Still, the options market tells a more cautious story. On Deribit, $1.9 billion in Bitcoin put options were stacked at the $60,000 strike price over the weekend — heavy demand for downside protection that suggests sophisticated traders are hedging for worse to come.​

Timot Lamarre, director of market research at Unchained, said bitcoin’s reaction to periods like this challenges the idea that it trades only as a risk-on tech proxy and instead reflects growing recognition of its role in times of counterparty risk.

“Much like we saw during the banking crisis of 2023, when the market runs to bitcoin in chaos, it gives a glimpse into more people understanding bitcoin’s value in a chaotic world full of counterparty risk,” Lamarre wrote to Bitcoin Magazine.

A conflict beyond crypto

The conflict’s economic ripple effects extend well beyond crypto. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that no vessels would be permitted to cross the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of the world’s daily oil supply passes. 

Oil futures surged at Monday’s open. Goldman Sachs has projected oil could hit $100 per barrel if the conflict persists for the four to five weeks that President Trump suggested in remarks over the weekend.

For Bitcoin, the Iran crisis underscores a fundamental tension.

Crypto was built to operate outside state control — and Nobitex’s 700% outflow spike proves it can. But that same utility makes it a front line in the shadow financial war between Western sanctions regimes and adversary states. 

This post As Bombs Fall on Tehran, Iran’s Crypto Lifeline Lights Up first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

St. Cloud Financial Credit Union Rolls Out Core-Integrated Digital Asset Platform for Members

St. Cloud Financial Credit Union (SCFCU) announced the launch of its CU-Digital Asset Vault, a digital-asset platform built specifically for credit union members. 

Essentially, the Vault integrates directly with the credit union’s core systems, allowing members to hold and manage digital assets – like Bitcoin – while keeping the credit union in control of data, governance, and member relationships.

The Vault uses DaLand’s CUSO’s Coin2Core architecture to connect digital-asset activity to SCFCU’s existing infrastructure. 

Unlike many digital-asset services that hand off wallets — and along with them, control of member relationships, deposits, and data — to outside providers, the Vault keeps management in the hands of the credit union. 

Members stay in control of their own assets through a hybrid self-custody system, while SCFCU adds institutional-level safeguards and reporting, the credit union said in a press release seen by Bitcoin Magazine.

“Credit unions need an operating model that protects the member relationship and works over the long term,” said Jed Meyer, CEO of SCFCU. “This Vault keeps the credit union at the center while giving members ownership and security.”

Many early digital-asset services depend on third-party wallets or vendors that sit outside a financial institution’s systems. That setup can create a fragmented experience for users and limits the institution’s view of member activity. SCFCU’s Vault works differently. 

By bringing digital assets directly into its core operations, the credit union can oversee transactions, manage risk, and keep data in-house. 

The digital assets stay in hybrid control 

The platform also allows for board-level oversight and supports regulatory compliance, staying true to the cooperative principles that define credit unions.

Jon Ungerland, CIO and Chief of Staff at DaLand CUSO, said Coin2Core was built to expand the value of the credit union’s existing systems. “Traditional vendor wallets pull deposits and member relationships away from the credit union. Coin2Core connects digital-asset activity to the core, allowing credit unions to remain trusted depositories and service providers while supporting digital-asset ownership,” Ungerland said.

SCFCU designed the Vault to support future capabilities beyond basic safekeeping. The platform can evolve to include network connectivity, transaction services, and credit use cases without requiring members to switch platforms or re-learn processes. 

By anchoring digital assets at the core level, SCFCU said credit unions can expand services as digital wealth infrastructure develops.

The CU-Digital Asset Vault has been available to eligible SCFCU members since February 9, 2026. 

Feature availability, limits, and policies follow SCFCU governance standards and applicable regulatory guidance.

Meyer emphasized that digital assets are becoming financial infrastructure. “Credit unions now face a choice: remain the trusted gateway for their members’ digital wealth, or allow that relationship to shift to third parties,” he said.

This post St. Cloud Financial Credit Union Rolls Out Core-Integrated Digital Asset Platform for Members first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Cake Wallet Launches Bitcoin Lightning Network Support With Full Self-Custody and Privacy Defaults

Cake Wallet has announced the integration of Bitcoin’s Lightning Network into its advanced privacy wallet. The move comes after a series of Bitcoin-specific updates that put Cake at the forefront of mobile wallets across the broader crypto industry. 

This is not Cake Wallet’s first inroad into advanced Bitcoin features. Unlike most multi-coin wallets such as Binance’s popular Trust Wallet, Cake has gone a lot further than just supporting basic on-chain addresses. Cake has deployed some of Bitcoin’s more sophisticated technology, such as Silent Payments and Payjoin, powerful privacy technologies that most other blockchains and crypto wallets are not even close to. Features of this sort protect users from a wide range of risks, such as targeted scams, as third parties have a harder time tracking user behaviour across the blockchain.

The Lightning Network integration brings Cake wallet into a small group of wallets that support Bitcoin’s fast payments layer with self-custody and privacy in mind. The update is powered by the Breez SDK and Spark, which unlocks self-custody control for users without the need to manage a lightning node.

On the privacy front, Cake has a custom implementation of the Spark suite, which further protects user privacy. In a press release shared with Bitcoin Magazine, the company said, “Lightning transactions in Cake Wallet do not embed your Spark address in Lightning invoices, and transaction data is not published to public explorers by default. Visibility is intentionally limited, reducing unnecessary exposure of user activity and safeguarding user privacy.”

Seth for Privacy, COO of Cake Wallet, highlighted that “Lightning should not require users to sacrifice privacy or custody just to get speed,” adding that “what we have today makes Lightning practical with solid privacy defaults, simple self-custody, and a clear on-chain exit.”

Vikrant Sharma, CEO of Cake Labs, also commented on the announcement, adding that “with Breez and Spark, Lightning finally reaches a point where it can be fast and intuitive without turning bitcoin into an IOU or giving up control. This is the first time Lightning felt aligned with the principles Cake was built on.”

This latest Cake Wallet update also rolled out a variety of improvements to the user interface, including social features like Birdpay, which lets users send crypto to X.com accounts by simply sending to their username.

In recent months, Cake also added support for xStocks, letting users trade and invest in tokenized equities, a breath of fresh air from the tsunami of meme coins and hype chains that have, up until recent years, flooded the broader crypto market. 

This post Cake Wallet Launches Bitcoin Lightning Network Support With Full Self-Custody and Privacy Defaults first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Juan Galt.

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Price Pumps 7% in Early Trading to Over $70,000

The bitcoin price is on the move again this morning, pumping sharply from the mid‑$65,000 range to push toward $70,000, representing roughly a 6% gain in just a few hours as leveraged short positions face heavy liquidations. 

Last week, Bitcoin price briefly surged past $69,000 on February 25 before retreating over the weekend, falling back to around $65,000.

The move today comes after a volatile weekend marked by heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, when joint U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets, including reports of attacks near Tehran and Iran’s leadership, and then Iran’s retaliatory actions rocked risk assets across global markets. 

Bitcoin initially sold off sharply over the weekend, dipping as low as the low $63,000s as markets digested the news. But, within a couple of hours, the price rebounded back to levels it was at before the news.

Bitcoin price analysis

Macro conditions continue to influence Bitcoin’s trajectory. Elevated U.S. interest rates and persistent inflation signals have kept the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets high, limiting aggressive upside moves. 

Meanwhile, geopolitical developments—including the conflict in Iran—have amplified short-term swings but have not fundamentally shifted Bitcoin’s broader trend. 

Investor sentiment remains cautious, with the Crypto Fear & Greed Index hovering near extreme fear, reflecting hesitancy to push prices significantly higher amid ongoing uncertainty.

Bitcoin price is also on track for a historically weak first quarter, down more than 25% in 2026, marking its worst Q1 performance since 2014, according to Bitcoin Magazine Pro data.

Historical patterns suggest that bear markets in dollar terms can extend 12 to 13 months, potentially stretching through late 2026. However, when priced in gold, the market may be closer to a bottom, with some analysts pointing to a possible rebound beginning this month. 

Large-scale investors are also increasingly treating the current environment as an accumulation zone, suggesting that long-term holders are positioning for future gains even as retail activity remains subdued.

The real price reckoning arrives today. Weekend crypto trading was notoriously thin, and price action during that period can mislead. 

Bitcoin ETFs are the key variable this week. Spot Bitcoin ETFs pulled in $787 million in net inflows last week, and $1 billion over three consecutive sessions before the strikes hit. If that trend reverses, Bitcoin could punch through below $63,000.

On-chain data offers a mixed picture. Nansen research analyst Nicolai Søndergaard noted to Bitcoin Magazine that $41 million left exchanges over the past seven days — a bullish signal suggesting coins are moving to self-custody — and $61 million flowing into fresh wallets, indicating new participants entering the market.

 But the top profit-and-loss wallets are distributing, with $2.5 million in outflows over the same period.

 “Profitable traders are taking chips off the table while retail accumulates,” Søndergaard said.

Søndergaard key indicators to watch are sustained exchange outflows confirming an accumulation trend, whether smart-money outflows accelerate or stabilize, and the perpetual funding rate flipping positive — which would signal longs regaining control from what he described as “crowded short positioning.”

Bitfinex analysts told Bitcoin Magazine that traders are hedging near-term downside while building significant call positions between $80,000 and $90,000 for the March 27 expiry, leaving room for a sharp recovery if ETF inflows continue and macro conditions stabilize. 

Still, funding swings, exchange reserves and uncertainty around the CLARITY Act leave bitcoin caught between a move back toward $80,000–$90,000 and a deeper drop to $47,000–$55,000 if geopolitical or liquidity shocks intensify, the analysts said.

Earlier today, Strategy ($MSTR) bought 3,015 bitcoin for roughly $204 million, raising its total holdings to 720,737 BTC, worth over $47 billion. 

The purchases, made between Feb. 23 and March 1 at an average price of $67,700 per coin, were funded through at-the-market sales of common and preferred stock. With bitcoin trading near $65,500, the company now controls more than 3.4% of the total 21 million bitcoin supply, maintaining its status as the largest publicly traded corporate holder.

At the time of writing, the bitcoin price is $69,882.

This post Bitcoin Price Pumps 7% in Early Trading to Over $70,000 first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

Bitcoin Magazine

Citrea Launches Foundation to Advance Bitcoin’s Programmable Future

Citrea, a Bitcoin application platform backed by Founders Fund and Galaxy Ventures, announced the creation of the Citrea Foundation, an independent organization aimed at accelerating the growth and decentralization of Bitcoin’s programmable ecosystem.

The foundation will serve ‘as the steward’ of the Citrea Network, supporting open-source development, fostering community growth, and expanding access to Bitcoin applications focused on self-custody, privacy, and capital market activity.

Orkun Kilic, director of the Citrea Foundation and co-founder of Chainway Labs, said the initiative will guide research and ecosystem development to shape a future where interactions with Bitcoin rely on secure self-custody, privacy, and efficient capital markets. 

Kilic said, in a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine, that the foundation will provide the structure needed to enable builders and institutions to participate in the network while maintaining its decentralized principles.

The foundation will fund cryptography research and infrastructure projects designed to create trustless bridges that remove reliance on external collateral or liquidity constraints. 

It will also provide strategic support to developers and projects that expand Bitcoin’s financial utility, offering grants and technical guidance to foster a broader ecosystem of capital-efficient applications.

Murat Karademir, co-founder and COO of Chainway Labs, and an independent non-executive director based in the Cayman Islands join Kilic on the foundation’s board. 

The board is responsible for ensuring that the foundation’s activities align with its mission to support decentralization while promoting a healthy and active developer community.

The Citrea Foundation is positioned as a central element in Citrea’s long-term goal of network decentralization. 

By coordinating research, funding development, and engaging the community, the foundation intends to expand access to Bitcoin applications and reduce barriers for users seeking self-custodial and privacy-focused solutions. 

Observers say the initiative signals a strategic push to strengthen Bitcoin’s position as a programmable financial network capable of supporting complex capital market activity.

Citrea itself operates as a Bitcoin application layer, providing institutions and individual users with tools to access Bitcoin capital markets while maintaining alignment with the network’s security model. 

Citrea mainnet

Back in January, Citrea launched its mainnet along with ctUSD, a U.S. dollar–pegged stablecoin fully backed by short-term Treasuries, aiming to enable lending, trading, and other financial activity directly on the Bitcoin network. 

The company said they seek to unlock the largely idle $1.2 trillion of Bitcoin that hasn’t moved in over a year by providing compliant, on-chain capital market infrastructure.

The platform has drawn investment from Founders Fund, Galaxy Ventures, Maven 11, Delphi Digital, Erik Voorhees, and Balaji Srinivasan, reflecting growing confidence in Bitcoin’s evolving financial ecosystem.

This post Citrea Launches Foundation to Advance Bitcoin’s Programmable Future first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Micah Zimmerman.

The XRP Ledger (XRPL) is starting to look like a financial back end that traditional finance can adopt without changing itself too much.

This is because tokenized funds can sit on the ledger, and stablecoins can move across it. At the same time, protocol upgrades keep landing, including features designed for institutions that want on-chain settlement without open access to every counterparty.

However, the awkward part for XRP holders is that a thriving XRPL does not automatically translate into proportional demand for XRP.

That is the real story in 2026. XRPL can generate significant economic activity, while XRP captures only a thin utility skim, unless market structure begins to adopt XRP as the unit of liquidity.

Put differently, XRPL can win as infrastructure and enjoy enormous gains while XRP struggles. So, the question is what part of that growth actually requires XRP.

Fees are burned, good design, weak valuation engine

XRPL links usage to XRP in the most literal way possible. Transaction fees are paid in XRP and destroyed, not distributed to validators.

Under normal conditions, the base fee is typically tiny, around 10 drops (0.00001 XRP) per transaction, and it can rise during congestion.

The design choice makes sense for security; it is a spam deterrent.

However, it is not built as a revenue stream for network operators, and it is not designed to create a visible “cash flow” that a market can easily capitalize.

At today’s fee levels, the burn math stays small. A million transactions at the base fee works out to about 10 XRP burned.

Even if throughput ramps, fees still need to remain low to compete with stablecoin rails and bank settlement networks.

If fee burn starts climbing in a way that matters, it probably means congestion, and congestion is the opposite of what payment networks want.

So yes, XRP is consumed every time XRPL is used. No, fee burn alone is unlikely to move valuation in a macro-relevant way.

Reserves lock XRP, small per user, big at object scale

The reserve mechanism is a more direct, measurable source of structural demand, even if it is not tied to the dollar value settled.

XRPL requires XRP reserves to open an account and to own certain ledger objects, including trust lines, offers, escrows, and other items that let users hold and transact with non-XRP assets.

Current mainnet reserve requirements are 1 XRP per account plus 0.2 XRP per owned item. Trust lines, which are needed to hold most issued assets such as stablecoins and many tokenized instruments, also consume reserves, with a small “first two trust lines” exception for new accounts.

This creates a floor for XRP demand. The more accounts and objects that exist, the more XRP sits immobilized.

But it scales with user and object counts, not with the nominal dollar value of what settles.

A billion dollars of tokenized funds can sit inside a small set of issuer accounts. On the other hand, a million retail users, each running active strategies that create trust lines, offers, and other objects, can lock far more XRP in aggregate.

Meanwhile, there is another nuance that matters for anyone trying to model scarcity.

XRPL lowered reserves in December 2024 to improve usability, reducing the bond-demand effect that reserves create. Base reserve dropped from 10 XRP to 1 XRP, and owner reserve dropped from 2 XRP to 0.2 XRP.

That tradeoff is intentional. XRPL is prioritizing adoption, and any scarcity effect from reserves is a secondary benefit.

So, the XRP reserves can still become meaningful if the ledger experiences what some developers call an object explosion, a surge in accounts, trust lines, and on-ledger activity that multiplies reserve requirements across millions of participants.

However, it is not a channel that scales automatically with tokenized asset headlines.

Liquidity inventory is where XRP can truly capture

If fees and reserves set the baseline, liquidity is the upside.

XRP captures the most value when it becomes the bridge asset or quote asset that market makers and institutions must hold as working capital to route flows and quote tight spreads.

It is the same mechanism that gives major currencies their durable monetary premium. So, this demand is not driven by tiny fees. Instead, it is pushed by the need to hold liquidity to do business.

A simple inventory model shows why this matters. If XRP-mediated payment volume reaches $1 trillion per year, the daily flow works out to roughly $2.74 billion.

If market makers keep about half a day of buffer inventory, the required inventory would be about $1.37 billion in XRP.

Using XRP's current price of around $1.39 and about 61.1 billion XRP in circulation, $1.37 billion in inventory would equate to roughly 986 million XRP held as working capital.

That would represent a meaningful supply sink if sustained, and it would grow with volume and volatility, as stressed markets require deeper liquidity buffers.

Meanwhile, this is also where XRPL’s growth can fail to accrue to XRP.

If stablecoins become the default unit of account and the settlement asset on XRPL, stablecoin pairs, stablecoin collateral, and stablecoin routing, then activity can rise without forcing anyone to carry significant XRP inventory beyond the minimum needed for fees and reserves.

In that world, XRPL can succeed as a settlement fabric while XRP remains an optional hop rather than the center of liquidity.

ETFs and treasuries are off-ledger, but can be the cleanest scarcity driver

There is another pathway for value capture that does not depend on XRPL usage at all, regulated wrappers that warehouse XRP.

After the SEC ended the Ripple lawsuit in August 2025, the “can institutions touch this” question softened.

Since then, US spot XRP ETF products have emerged, with the funds now amassing over $1 billion in assets under management.

Whether that AUM number holds up over time is something the market will keep testing. The mechanism is straightforward, though. Each $1 billion in net new ETF holdings can immobilize roughly $1 billion, divided by the XRP price, worth of XRP in custody.

At $1.39 per XRP, $1 billion corresponds to about 719 million XRP. When sustained and compounded across multiple issuers and institutional mandates, this can rival the on-chain reserve channel and begin to compete with liquidity inventory as a dominant driver of scarcity.

This channel is also legible to investors in a way that on-chain mechanics often are not.

People understand the warehouse model. It is the same story as spot commodity ETFs, a regulated wrapper that accumulates inventory and reduces free float, even if the underlying network does not generate distributable revenue.

Protocol upgrades show ambition, institutions still decide what is optional

The protocol itself is evolving toward the institutional use case, but adoption remains a choice, not a guarantee.

XRPL’s early 2026 releases show both ambition and caution. Rippled v3.1.0 introduced Single Asset Vaults and an amendment to the Lending Protocol, while v3.1.1 later disabled batch-related amendments due to a severe bug.

The episode highlighted both rapid iteration and the risk that comes with adding complex new transaction patterns to a ledger that wants to be taken seriously by regulated finance.

Beyond core releases, XRPL has introduced institution-focused features, including Permissioned Domains and Permissioned DEXs.

These features are designed to create gated trading venues where only approved participants can place and take orders.

Essentially, XRPL's pitch is a blockchain-based settlement with compliance-friendly access control.

Those features can help XRPL win pilots, and production flows from firms that will not touch open, permissionless order books.

However, the value-capture question does not disappear. Permissioned venues can settle stablecoin to stablecoin. They can clear tokenized funds in issued units. They can use XRPL as rails while minimizing exposure to XRP, unless the venue’s liquidity model, quoting conventions, and routing paths put XRP at the center.

This is why the distinction between XRPL as infrastructure and XRP as money keeps returning.

A payments race measured in trillions raises the stakes

In recent times, XRPL is not competing only against other crypto networks. It is competing for a seat in a global settlement stack that already includes stablecoin networks, bank consortia, and state-linked rails.

Cross-border payment flows have been estimated at hundreds of trillions of dollars annually, with projections rising to $290 trillion by 2030 in widely cited industry research.

Reuters has also reported that the China-led multi-CBDC platform mBridge processed more than $55 billion in transactions.

The direction is clear, settlement technology is scaling, and multiple models are being tested at once.

In that environment, XRPL can generate plenty of network value, payment throughput, token issuance, stablecoin rails, DEX and AMM liquidity, and real-world asset tokenization.

XRP captures only a portion of that through a few specific protocols and market plumbing mechanisms.

Fees and reserves create the floor. They are real and measurable, but they are not obviously sufficient on their own.

Liquidity inventory and regulated warehousing can become the dominant drivers because they scale with volume, mandates, and the need to hold working capital.

Meanwhile, that is also where the story gets concrete. If flows are routed through XRP, holders see a structural bid that grows with adoption. If flows settle around stablecoins and issued assets, XRP’s role can remain thin even as the ledger looks busier every month.

For XRP holders, the bull case is not simply that XRPL grows. It is that XRPL’s growth is forcing choice in routing, quoting, and inventory through the digital asset.

The post XRP faces a brutal 2026 paradox as XRPL adoption surges and the token captures little value appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Bitcoin price opened US trading session strongly with a 3% surge above $68,000, according to CryptoSlate's data.

This marked a significant difference to its first response, which looked nothing like a clean safe-haven trade following the latest Middle East tensions.

When headlines hit over the weekend about US strikes on Iran, the flagship digital asset fell below $64,000 before stabilizing, behaving less like digital gold than a liquid, around-the-clock risk asset.

Gold moved the other way, rising toward $5,376 an ounce as investors sought traditional protection.

In foreign exchange, the Swiss franc and Japanese yen strengthened, while the dollar also firmed, a familiar sign that markets were bracing for wider spillover.

That opening move matters, but not as much as the next phase.

For Bitcoin, the more important question is rarely what happens in the first 24 hours of a geopolitical shock.

It is what happens after the initial liquidation wave passes, oil finds a range, and markets begin to decide whether the event is a lasting macro problem or a short, violent interruption.

That is where the historical case becomes more interesting and more supportive for Bitcoin than the first candle suggests.

Why Bitcoin usually dump first

Bitcoin’s market structure makes it especially vulnerable in the first stage of any shock.

The digital asset trades nonstop, including weekends and hours when equity markets are closed. That makes it one of the first places global investors can express fear or raise cash.

In moments of uncertainty, the assets that remain open tend to absorb the earliest pressure.

It is also easy to liquidate. In a volatility spike, investors tend to cut positions where they can move fastest, and crypto markets are always available.

That has repeatedly made Bitcoin a pressure valve for broader risk sentiment, especially when macro news breaks outside traditional market hours.

Then there is leverage. Forced liquidations can turn a headline into a cascade, pushing prices lower than the initial news alone would justify.

This year, the market has witnessed significant Bitcoin liquidations during a broader bout of risk-asset stress, with thin liquidity amplifying the move.

Those mechanics help explain why Bitcoin can fail the first-stage haven test without invalidating the longer-term bullish case.

The first move is often about liquidity and positioning, not conviction. What happens after that depends less on the initial strike and more on how the event feeds into oil, inflation, interest rates, and dollar liquidity.

Oil is the real switch for the next 60 days

In this US-Iran conflict, energy is the key transmission channel, as it could significantly impact world markets.

Reuters had previously reported that if the conflict remains contained, Brent crude could drift toward the low $80s.

However, if disruption deepens, oil could move toward $100, adding an estimated 0.6 to 0.7% points to global inflation in a meaningful supply shock.

That distinction matters because oil can alter the course of policy, and policy often alters the course of Bitcoin.

As of press time, the price of oil has risen sharply by around 9% to $80, according to FactSet data. This is its highest price level in more than two years.

So, if this current oil spike continues and inflation re-accelerates, central banks have less room to ease monetary policy.

Real yields can remain firm. The dollar can stay strong. That combination has historically weighed on risk appetite and limited rebounds in high-beta assets, including crypto.

In that regime, gold is better positioned because it benefits directly from fear and inflation hedging, while Bitcoin has to fight through tighter financial conditions.

If oil settles and the conflict looks contained, the picture changes. Hedges can unwind. Volatility can ease.

The assets that were easiest to sell in the panic can rebound once forced selling stops. That is the backdrop in which Bitcoin’s post-shock behavior has sometimes looked strongest.

This is why the next 60 days matter more than the weekend reaction. The first move signals to investors that fear has arrived. The next move tells them what kind of fear it was.

ETFs changed the plumbing this time

The biggest structural difference between the current market and in previous years is that Bitcoin now has institutional rails that did not exist then.

US-listed Bitcoin ETFs have created a visible demand channel, and they have also made de-risking easier to track.

Data from SoSo Value showed nearly $2 billion in spot Bitcoin ETF outflows within the first two months of this year. This is a sign that part of the investor base was already moving defensively before the latest geopolitical shock.

That matters because any claim that Bitcoin is set up to outperform cannot rest on narrative alone. It has to answer a practical question of who is buying?

In past cycles, that question was harder to measure in real time. Now it is visible, at least in part, through ETF flows.

Meanwhile, the change cuts both ways. If risk aversion persists, ETFs can amplify selling pressure by turning caution into sustained outflows.

However, if tensions ease, they can also accelerate a rebound by channeling renewed demand into spot Bitcoin more efficiently than older market structures allowed.

That makes the next phase unusually important. Bitcoin now has deeper institutional plumbing, but that plumbing can transmit both stress and recovery.

Moreover, internal crypto positioning suggests the market has not fully committed either way.

Stablecoin dominance has hovered around 10.3%, while roughly $22 billion in net inflows into stablecoins over a few weeks suggests investors are moving into cash equivalents rather than exiting the ecosystem altogether.

Across the options market, CryptoSlate has previously reported that Bitcoin traders are increasingly paying up for downside protection, though they remain cautiously optimistic about the market.

Those signals can be read in opposite directions. On one hand, they show a cautious, hedged market.

At the same time, they also show potential dry powder. So, if fear fades, sidelined capital can return quickly.

What history tells us about Bitcoin's future

BlackRock, the $13 trillion asset management firm, has tried to frame Bitcoin’s geopolitical behavior with a simple comparison to how gold and the S&P 500 performed 10 days and 60 days after major these major shocks.

The result showed that once Bitcoin survived the initial turbulence, it often became one of the strongest rebound assets in the post-shock window.

For context, the January 2020 US-Iran escalation remains the clearest example of the current setup. In BlackRock’s data, Bitcoin rose about 26% over the following 60 days. Gold gained roughly 7%. The S&P 500 fell around 8%.

That history is why the idea that Bitcoin can outperform during geopolitical crises keeps surfacing, even after episodes when it initially drops.

The range of outcomes is wide

In light of this, the cleanest way to think about the next 60 days is through scenarios, not certainty.

If the conflict remains contained and oil stabilizes around $80, the backdrop could support a Bitcoin rebound of 10% to 25% over 60 days. This would see BTC price reach above the $80,000 mark.

In that case, gold could be flat to modestly higher, while equities remain rangebound. This is the setup most consistent with the historical pattern that made Bitcoin look like a post-shock winner in 2020.

If tensions drag on and oil holds in a $90 to $100 zone, the environment becomes much less supportive. Inflation fears would re-emerge, policy easing could be delayed, and defensive trades would likely dominate.

In that regime, Bitcoin’s range could widen to -15% to +10%, while gold outperforms and equities remain under pressure. Here, the top crypto could drop to as low as $56,479 or trade higher at above $73,000.

A more severe disruption would carry a darker message. If energy infrastructure or shipping faced sustained stress, cross-asset de-risking could intensify.

In such a liquidity event, Bitcoin could underperform as a high-beta asset, with a 10% to 30% decline over 60 days, while gold strengthens further. This would push BTC further into bear territory of under $50,000.

Meanwhile, there is also a tail case in the other direction.

If growth concerns become serious enough that markets begin to price faster easing or liquidity support, Bitcoin could become one of the main beneficiaries.

Historically, some of its strongest post-shock rallies have occurred when the market shifts from fear of inflation to expectations of policy accommodation.

The post Did Bitcoin fail its safe haven test after US strikes on Iran? BlackRock’s 60 day data hints at what comes next appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Bitcoin rises over 6% on the U.S. open as CME premium spikes, and liquidations don’t explain it

Bitcoin jumped over 6% to threaten $70,000 during Monday’s U.S. market open even as the broader macro environment appears risk-off.

Oil ripped higher on Middle East escalation risk, equities opened sharply lower, and the dollar held firm. The S&P500 fell at open but has recovered to flat as of press time.

That mix usually pressures high-beta assets.

But BTC pushed higher anyway, and the standard crypto reflex, “shorts got squeezed,” doesn’t fit the numbers.

Coinglass liquidation data over the past 24 hours showed roughly $423 million in total liquidations, split almost evenly. About $221 million was in longs versus about $203 million in shorts.

That’s not a one-way forced-buying impulse. If anything, it suggests the market was churning through both sides, not ripping higher because a crowded short trade detonated.

The cleaner explanation is plumbing: U.S.-hours liquidity and institutional venues switching back on, then pulling weekend dislocations back into line.

Oil’s surge set the risk backdrop. U.S. crude rose about 7.6% to around $72 and Brent gained about 8.6% to roughly $79, reported market coverage tied to tanker disruption and supply-risk headlines.

Stocks dropped at the open and later pared losses.

European markets fell while defense and energy names outperformed, with natural gas ripping almost 50%.

Yet BTC’s price diverged.

The question for traders is, “Why did BTC find a marginal buyer in a risk-off, inflation-shock session?”

The answer is less about emotion and more about how the ETF era routes flows through U.S. market structure.

That becomes most significant when CME and the ETF hedge complex reopen after a weekend in which spot traded largely on its own.

Why liquidations weren’t the driver, and what that rules in instead

Start with what the liquidation print can and can’t do.

A day dominated by forced buying tends to show an obvious imbalance: shorts liquidated far more than longs, and the total notional is large enough to plausibly move the market.

Here, the split was close, roughly $221 million of long liquidations versus $203 million of shorts, and the total was about $423 million.

That profile is consistent with a market snapping around, not a market being mechanically marched higher by buy-to-cover flow.

So what actually moves price when forced flow is muted?

Two things: (1) spot-led demand that arrives at predictable hours and venues, and (2) relative-value and hedging flows that operate even when sentiment is mixed.

On Monday, those mechanisms had a clear schedule.

As U.S. hours came online, the market brought back deeper regulated liquidity: CME futures, U.S. spot participation, and, crucially in 2026, the spot ETF create/redeem complex and the market makers that hedge it.

The ETF regime changes the identity of the marginal buyer.

Retail can push perpetuals around on weekends, but large spot demand often shows up through the ETF channel during the U.S. session, then gets hedged across venues.

That can create a rally that looks “mysterious” if you only look at liquidations.

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs logged roughly $1.1 billion of net inflows over three consecutive days last week after 5 weeks of net outflows.

That flow regime can outweigh typical marginal depth, showing how quickly the demand backdrop can shift when the ETF bid is active.

Until later on this evening, we won't know whether ETF inflows were positive again today. However, we do have a baseline: in this market structure, you don’t need a liquidation cascade to move BTC 6% if U.S.-hours spot demand and hedging flows lean the same way.

The CME premium spike is the cleaner “U.S.-hours plumbing” signal

The most actionable tell on the day was the CME-versus-spot relationship shown as an indicator on the chart below.

Over the weekend, when CME was closed, spot had to absorb headline risk in thinner liquidity.

That is when dislocations form: basis swings, premium flips, and pricing gets sloppy.

When CME reopened Monday, the premium didn’t just normalize.

It widened sharply, with the panel showing the premium pushing to roughly +1.3% after the open (with earlier indications around +0.34% during the normalization phase).

A steep positive CME premium signals institutional positioning.

It typically reflects institutions paying up for regulated exposure or desks using CME to express hedges quickly.

It can also reflect ETF-era mechanics.

If spot ETF demand accelerates, market makers often hedge delta through liquid futures.

When that futures bid arrives faster than arbitrage desks can warehouse the trade, the premium can widen first, and spot can rise as the “cash leg” of arbitrage ramps.

Mechanically, that looks like: buy spot, sell CME.

Even if the end state is basis compression, the path there can lift spot.

Balance-sheet constraints and risk limits matter, too.

Arbitrage capacity is not infinite, and Monday reopen trades can hit when desks are reloading inventory after a weekend gap.

The result is a tape where the premium expands and spot climbs, without needing a liquidation impulse.

This is also why “CME gap” narratives keep resurfacing. However, the dynamic isn’t about gaps being magical.

Related Reading

Do CME gaps always have to fill? Bitcoin’s $60k flush says no

When things are calm, gaps feel like gravity. But when the market panics and wipes out trillions in market cap, they’re just old coordinates.

Feb 8, 2026 · Andjela Radmilac

Traders respond to reopened liquidity and clearly defined reference levels as magnets when the market shifts from weekend conditions to full weekday depth.

CME gap levels can become focal points for positioning as the behavioral aspect becomes relevant when the theory gets oversold on social media.

Put simply: if the CME premium is screaming “pay up,” you don’t need to invent a squeeze.

You can describe a market repricing weekend risk on its deepest institutional venue, then pulling spot along through hedges and basis trades.

Macro looked “risk-off,” but it was an inflation shock, and that can coexist with BTC bids

The macro setup still frames why BTC’s move looked like a divergence.

Oil was the transmission line. Coverage tied crude’s jump to escalation and shipping and supply risk, including focus on the Strait of Hormuz, linking the move to disruption fears.

The Guardian also stressed the market’s focus on escalation risk and the possibility of higher oil levels if disruption persists, warning of the “$100 oil” conversation returning. That kind of shock is not a classic “hide in duration” day.

Higher energy prices can delay rate cuts and keep financial conditions tighter even as growth risks rise, creating a different flavor of risk-off. Stocks reflected the cost shock early, then stabilized somewhat.

So why didn’t BTC simply roll over with equities?

Because BTC can trade as part of a hedge complex when two conditions hold at once: (1) the shock is policy- and inflation-adjacent, not purely deflationary, and (2) there is already structural spot demand capable of absorbing supply during the U.S. session.

In that world, BTC is less “weak dollar beta” and more “flow-led instrument that can catch hedge bids when the plumbing is open.”

That distinction is forward-looking.

If the oil premium persists, macro pressure can cap altcoin beta and compress risk appetite.

BTC can still outperform the rest of crypto if the ETF/U.S.-hours bid remains persistent, driven by its deeper, more routinized channel for spot demand and hedging activity tied to regulated market flows.

What to watch next: three dials that decide whether this becomes trend

Monday’s move sets up a testable framework for the rest of the week.

If you want a causal stack that respects the liquidation data and still explains the rally, track three observable dials that can confirm (or fade) the impulse.

Then map those dials to scenarios.

If de-escalation headlines fade the oil spike over days, BTC’s Monday pump risks turning into a range trade unless ETF flows re-accelerate.

If the conflict stays contained but the oil premium persists for weeks, BTC can stay resilient but choppy.

In that setup, the rest of crypto often underperforms because tighter conditions punish leverage and liquidity.

If disruption risk grows (the “tail”), the first impulse can still be down as markets de-risk.

But a second impulse can appear if policy expectations shift and hedgers look for non-sovereign exposure with deep U.S. session liquidity.

The near-term read is straightforward: Monday’s BTC move looks flow-led, not liquidation-led.

If the CME premium stays above 1% into the close and through the next U.S. session, it argues that institutions are still paying up for exposure.

It also suggests arbitrage capacity is absorbing the basis only gradually.

If the premium snaps back fast while spot stalls, it was a reopen dislocation: a strong impulse, weaker trend signal.

Either way, the story is no longer “shorts got rekt.”

It’s “U.S.-hours plumbing turned back on, and the market repriced weekend risk where the deepest liquidity lives.”

The post Why Bitcoin price finally surged to $70k today while stocks fell as the US market opened appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Revolut is preparing to trial a pound-backed stablecoin inside a regulated stablecoin sandbox in the UK, with testing expected within the current quarter. While this might look like another fintech pilot in the long history of crypto payment tests, the more interesting part sits upstream of the token itself.

Revolut has what most stablecoin projects spend years trying to build: distribution inside ordinary money habits. Over 12 million users in the UK open the app daily to check balances, move funds, split bills, pay subscriptions, exchange currencies, and send money across borders.

A stablecoin placed inside that flow and that big of an audience succeeds or fails on product clarity and on supervision that keeps the instrument understandable to users. In that frame, the trial is for a new container for everyday balances.

The FCA selected four firms for the trial, including Revolut, and framed the program as real-world testing with safeguards so policy can be shaped around live behavior. In the UK, that supervised path is the route that changes crypto from a concept to regulated payment methods.

What it means to spend stablecoins inside a consumer app

Most people experience payments as a sequence: keep a balance, send it, spend it, and trust that the transaction finishes cleanly. A stablecoin inside Revolut turns that sequence into a set of choices with different rights, risks, and mechanics.

To fully understand the difference, we need to start with the balance. A stablecoin balance is a claim on reserve assets held by an issuer, structured to hold a 1:1 value with the pound. The promise users care about is simple: £10 in, £10 out, whenever they want it. Supervisors are the ones focusing on the conditions that make that promise durable, including reserve quality, custody, redemption rights, and operational controls.

Then comes transfer. In the app, transfers can stay inside Revolut's own ledger, where the system updates balances without touching a public blockchain. Transfers can also run onto external rails, where the stablecoin leaves the platform and lands in another wallet or another venue.

The FCA's sandbox material describes Revolut's concept as something customers can buy, hold, sell, and transfer both within the platform and “across the crypto ecosystem.” That phrasing means it's a product designed to function as both a payment balance and a crypto-native instrument.

And last comes spending. There are two broad ways the product can support it. The app can convert stablecoins to fiat at the point of sale and pay a merchant through existing card or transfer rails, making the stablecoin a funding source behind the scenes. The app can also support merchant acceptance of the stablecoin itself, making it the unit of settlement.

The first path lowers friction because merchants won't need any new tooling. The second path opens room for lower-cost settlement, programmable payments, and cross-border flows that skip layers and layers of intermediaries.

The UK's regulatory line: a clear product with explicit protections

Once stablecoins move from exchanges into consumer finance apps, the main risk becomes confusion. A stablecoin can feel like cash in an app, while the legal and prudential protections couldn't be more different from a bank deposit. Supervisors care about branding, disclosures, and the exact protections that attach to each balance type.

The Bank of England has advised banks to use distinct branding for stablecoins to reduce confusion with deposit protection. The principle is simple: a person seeing “£1,000” in an app should understand whether the balance sits under deposit protection, which entity stands behind it, and what happens in a failure scenario.

This is also where the UK's institutional stance comes through. The Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, said he preferred tokenized deposits over stablecoins. That's because tokenized deposits keep money inside the banking perimeter while modernizing how the representation and settlement layers look.

Stablecoins, however, are a parallel instrument that can live outside bank balance sheets, even when fully backed, and that forced supervisors to define what “money-like” means in both law and in consumer expectations.

The UK is running this debate through a controlled environment with a small cohort of companies and very tight guardrails. The FCA calls is “supervised experimentation in real-world conditions with safeguards.”

That's the bridge crypto needs to cross to reach the magical land of regulated payments: a pilot with oversight and reporting.

Revolut's base effect in Europe: tiny volumes, big room for distribution

One statistic explains why a small trial like this can carry weight outside the UK: European non-dollar stablecoins, including euro, pound, and Swiss franc tokens, make up less than 0.2% of the global stablecoin volume.

Treat that number as a map of behavior. The global stablecoin economy is dollar-first, built around trading venues, cross-border dollar access, and crypto-market settlement.

But in Europe, stablecoins still sit at the edge of daily use. In a region starting from a base this small, distribution can do a lot of work, much more than marketing. If people already have the app, the adoption question becomes a product question: Does the stablecoin balance feel useful enough to keep?

A pound stablecoin inside an app with a large user base becomes a distribution test in a market that barely appears on stablecoin volume charts. The numbers can stay modest, but the behavioral change can still happen quickly, with users treating a stablecoin as a normal balance.

Why supervisors are opening the door now

The UK has been busy building a roadmap that positions stablecoins within a wider payments modernisation plan for some time. The FCA said stablecoin payments were a priority for 2026 and tied that work to its sandbox so firms can test issuance and payment use cases under its supervision.

That's in line with the schedule set in HM Treasury's Payments Forward Plan, which lays out consultation and rulemaking steps for 2026 and 2027, including work on systemic stablecoins, FCA policy, and an eventual regime going live in late 2027.

The most important part of this is the staged route: pilot cohorts first, then the policy framework that can support broader rollout.

Europe's stablecoin stack is forming, and the timelines are telling

Revolut's trial sits on the fintech side of the market: user distribution, wallets, and spending behavior. European banks are building the other side: regulated issuance meant to anchor stablecoins closer to institutional money.

A consortium of major European banks formed a company called Qivalis with plans for a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin, targeting the second half of 2026. UniCredit, which is part of the consortium, said it was building a European alternative in a market dominated by US-linked issuers.

Put this together, and you get a two-part build. Fintech companies can make stablecoin balances feel normal through everyday use. Banks can push issuance toward regulated money frameworks, with governance and reserve practices that supervisors can audit.

If both of these things happen at the same time, Europe will get a stablecoin market that looks like a payments instrument that can plug into tokenized securities settlement, cross-border transfer systems, and merchant flows.

That's the wider context for the UK sandbox test. The token might be local, but the arena is global: who sets the norms for what stablecoins are for, how they're supervised, and how they sit next to bank deposits.

What would count as real usage?

However, even if the trial turns out to be a huge success, that won't prove mass adoption. So, what signals real use other than a contained pilot?

One of the first signs of adoption would be transfers. If users can send stablecoins to each other as easily as they send fiat inside Revolut, that's a meaningful behavioral win. It turns the stablecoin into a person-to-person rail rather than a trading feature.

Then we'd see spending. Internal conversion can still matter, especially if it lowers costs or improves cross-border speed, while keeping the stablecoin invisible to merchants. But direct settlement is a larger leap because it pushes stablecoins into the part of the economy where consumers meet real-world pricing, refunds, disputes, and chargebacks.

Pricing will do its own sorting. If stablecoin transfers manage to undercut card and correspondent banking costs, usage will have a very practical reason to persist. But if the experience lands on top of the same fees, usage will likely stay thin.

Revolut's trial won't immediately usher in a new age of adoption, but it will most likely have a significant effect on the market. It already shows that regulators are willing to take a bet on stablecoins and see how they fare in a payment app as large as Revolut.

Europe's non-dollar stablecoins barely register in global volume, and that's why distribution and regulatory permission carry so much weight. When the base is this small, a credible container can move the curve faster than any token launch can.

The UK is now letting that container be tested with oversight, on a schedule that treats stablecoins as part of the payments system rather than a side project.

The post Revolut’s digital pound trial shifts the UK payments debate from crypto hype to consumer protections and clarity appeared first on CryptoSlate.

When markets are closed and Bitcoin is moving, the custody agreement decides who can act.

A spot Bitcoin ETF fixed an awkward problem for finance. Bitcoin used to arrive as software, keys, and operational responsibility. The ETF repackaged it as a ticker that sits next to every other ticker.

That convenience came with a structural trade. Most ETF buyers get exposure while someone else holds authority. Gannett Trust frames that as a deliberate choice between convenience and control, rooted in something Bitcoin makes explicit.

Ownership sits in keys and authorization, not in a statement that says you have economic exposure. Traditional markets blur those layers. Bitcoin doesn’t, which is why the paperwork can look familiar while authority sits elsewhere.

That separation used to feel philosophical. It turned operational once Bitcoin moved from trading into treasuries and long-horizon portfolios, where the risks include governance, key-person dependency, operational breakdowns, and continuity planning. So when something breaks, who holds authority?

The ETF creates exposure, while custody creates power

When you buy a spot Bitcoin ETF, you buy shares in a trust, and the trust holds Bitcoin through a custodian.

With stocks and bonds, the operational layer feels abstract because the legal and technical systems evolved together. With Bitcoin, the technical system is the ownership system, with keys authorizing movement and authorization creating control.

SEC filings spell the structure out. One spot Bitcoin trust prospectus states “each Share represents a fractional undivided beneficial interest in the net assets of the Trust,” while “the assets of the Trust consist primarily of bitcoin held by the Bitcoin Custodian on behalf of the Trust.” That sentence carries the whole trap. Shareholders own shares, the trust owns bitcoin, and the custodian holds it.

A newer SEC filing for another bitcoin trust uses the same basic architecture, again describing bitcoin held by the custodian on behalf of the trust and shares as beneficial interests in the trust’s net assets. The wording varies by issuer, but the structure stays consistent.

That’s where power concentrates. “On behalf of the trust” is a custody relationship, and custody concentrates operational authority. It also concentrates points of failure, because access control, signing policy, operational resilience, business continuity, and legal process sit inside that relationship. Retail shareholders can’t redeem shares for bitcoin the way a native holder can move bitcoin at will.

Bitcoin’s balance-sheet era turns keys into governance

Gannett Trust’s report helps explain why this is a hot issue right now. Bitcoin is moving from speculative positioning toward strategic ownership, with durability, control, and administrative rigor joining liquidity as core considerations.

In that framing, due diligence changes shape. Instead of focusing on execution alone, the questions move toward governance. Who has authority, how’s it exercised, and how does it persist over time? The report calls out the risk categories that grow in importance when assets move from trading accounts onto balance sheets: governance failures, unclear decision rights, operational breakdowns, and continuity planning.

That list will feel familiar to anyone with tradfi experience. Bitcoin adds a twist because the authority layer is technical. If an organization loses the ability to authorize movement, it loses control in a literal sense.

ETFs look like a way around that. For many investors, the ETF outsources the custody problem into a regulated wrapper. The custody contract becomes the governance contract. The sponsor, trustee, custodian, prime execution agent, and authorized participants become part of the control surface even though the buyer thinks they purchased a simple Bitcoin position.

Gannett Trust describes the trade as a choice between convenience and control. Derivative exposure offers simplicity and operational familiarity. Native ownership offers control and sovereignty, and it requires purpose-built governance and administration.

As Bitcoin becomes embedded within long-term structures, the enduring question becomes who holds authority, how it’s exercised, and how it endures over time.

That’s a custody question disguised as a portfolio question.

The scale tells you where the default is headed

The structural argument wouldn’t matter much if ETFs stayed small. With over $54 billion sitting in spot Bitcoin ETFs as of Feb. 25, it’s become core market plumbing. There’s about 1.47 million BTC in spot Bitcoin ETFs and another 3.27 million BTC sitting on exchanges.

Those numbers do two things at once. They show a new holder class becoming large enough to shape liquidity and market microstructure, and they show paper rails becoming the dominant on-ramp. When millions of coins sit inside institutional wrappers, new entrants first see Bitcoin as an instrument rather than an asset in a wallet.

That matters because learning shapes behavior. A buyer who learns Bitcoin through ETFs learns it as a market-hours asset, a brokerage asset, a compliance asset, and a statement asset. A buyer who learns Bitcoin through native custody learns it as a bearer asset with continuous settlement. Both groups can be long Bitcoin, but they occupy different power geometries.

The ETF share class can grow while the number of people who control keys stays flat. Over time, it starts to resemble a class system: exposure holders and owners.

Gannett’s report treats the divide as structural rather than semantic, rooted in Bitcoin’s design. Once you accept that, the next question becomes practical. What can go wrong inside the intermediary stack, and what happens to the buyer in each case?

The plumbing risk: concentration and the trading window

Start with custody concentration. The spot Bitcoin ETF market quickly converged on a pattern: a handful of major products, a handful of custodial arrangements, and one crypto-native custodian showing up again and again. Coinbase was the custodian in eight of the 11 spot Bitcoin ETF listings at launch.

Concentration can bring efficiencies through standard processes, scale economics, consistent controls, and simpler interfaces for asset managers. It also creates a single cluster where operational resilience and governance become system-level concerns.

Then there’s the trading window. Spot bitcoin ETF investors are bound by market hours for trading, while bitcoin trades continuously across venues and jurisdictions. If Bitcoin gaps on a Saturday, the ETF position can’t follow until the bell. The people who can move the underlying asset sit inside the custody stack, and everyone else sits in the share market waiting for it to reopen.

That difference forces an uncomfortable but clarifying question. Which market do you actually own exposure to if you own ETFs, the continuous Bitcoin market, or the listed share market that references Bitcoin?

When something breaks, authority looks different depending on the lane

A useful way to think about the two lanes is to focus on authority paths, meaning the routes through which decisions and actions occur when conditions change fast.

In native ownership, the authority path runs through the keys. Who can sign, under what conditions, with what approvals, who can rotate keys, where backups are kept, and how continuity works across life events and organizational transitions. Those details are the governance layer.

In the ETF lane, the authority path runs through institutional roles: sponsor, trustee, custodian, authorized participants, listing venue, and broker. The investor’s decisions are mostly financial: buy, sell, size, rebalance. They gain simplicity, and they accept that authority lives in a stack of contracts and counterparties.

People assume ETF convenience is a user interface upgrade. In reality, it’s a reallocation of operational agency. It can feel like a neat feature, and it can become a fragility layer once ETF holdings grow large enough that custody and operational practices become system-relevant.

A spot Bitcoin trade can tolerate some messiness. A balance-sheet asset needs durable governance. The ETF buyer delegates governance to institutions. The native holder builds it into key policy and procedures. Neither lane is inherently better. The risk lies in misunderstanding the lane you chose.

The new Bitcoin class system: exposure holders and owners

Spot Bitcoin ETFs succeeded because they made Bitcoin legible to the largest capital pools in the world. They turned keys into a fee line item and custody into a service relationship, offering a version of Bitcoin that fits inside the ordinary wealth stack.

The resulting divide is one of the most consequential structural features of Bitcoin’s institutional era. Exposure and ownership separate cleanly, and allocators face a choice between convenience and control. Bitcoin is one of the few assets where ownership is a technical reality, which forces the authority question into the open.

The scale makes the direction clear. Around $54 billion worth of BTC sits in ETFs, showing a market that prefers paper rails even when the underlying asset was built around bearer control. The market can live with that, and the buyer can live with that. The failure mode comes from calling it ownership when it’s delegated authority.

The post Bitcoin ETF custody concentrates power in one place, and now a single operational failure causes dangerous ripples appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The financial landscape is witnessing a rare simultaneous rally in both digital and physical "hard money." As of March 2, 2026, Bitcoin ($BTC) has successfully reclaimed the psychological $70,000 mark, while gold has surged past $5,308 per ounce, hitting fresh record highs. This double-header rally comes on the heels of significant geopolitical escalations in the Middle East and a renewed institutional appetite for risk-hedging assets.

Did Bitcoin hit $70,000?

Yes, $Bitcoin breached the $70,000 resistance level on March 2, 2026. This move follows a period of heavy consolidation and a technical "fake-out" in late February. The recovery was bolstered by significant institutional buys, including a massive 3,015 BTC acquisition by MicroStrategy, and a shift in sentiment as investors sought alternatives to traditional equities during heightened global instability. 

However, prices slightly dropped back below $70,000 to around $69,400.

Why Gold and Bitcoin are Rallying Together

While Bitcoin is often labeled "digital gold" and physical gold is the ultimate "safe-haven," they usually trade with different correlations. However, in the current 2026 macro environment, both are acting as anti-fiat hedges.

• Gold is reacting to the immediate threat of supply chain disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
• Bitcoin is benefiting from "flight-to-safety" capital that prefers the liquidity and borderless nature of blockchain assets.

Weekly Crypto Market Performance: Winners and Losers

The past seven days have been a rollercoaster for the top 10 digital assets. While Bitcoin led the charge back towards $70k, the altcoin market has also shown positive impacts.

The divergence between BTC and meme coins like Dogecoin suggests that investors are currently prioritizing large-cap stability over speculative plays. You can compare these assets' performances further on our exchange comparison page.

The "Safe-Haven" Catalyst: Why Now?

The primary driver for today's market action is the escalation of conflict in the Middle East. Following joint strikes by the US and Israel, gold prices skyrocketed as the Strait of Hormuz—a chokepoint for 20% of the world's oil—faced potential closure.

According to reports, this has triggered a "risk-off" sentiment in the stock market, pushing capital into bullion and decentralized assets. Historically, gold thrives during military conflict, but 2026 is proving that Bitcoin's narrative as a disaster hedge is gaining institutional legitimacy.

Crypto Future: Can BTC Hold $70,000?

For Bitcoin, the $70,000 level is more than just a number; it is a major pivot point. Technical analysts note that a daily close above this level could open the doors to a retest of the $74,000–$75,000 range. However, if the geopolitical situation de-escalates quickly, we might see a "sell the news" event where gold and BTC retreat to previous support levels near $65,000.

Oil vs Gold vs Bitcoin: Which Asset Wins During Middle East Tensions?

Rising Middle East tensions have shaken global markets. Energy infrastructure concerns, shipping disruptions, and escalating geopolitical risks have triggered sharp reactions across oil, gold, and Bitcoin.

But which asset actually performs best during crisis periods?

To understand where capital is flowing, we need to examine how each market reacts under geopolitical stress.

Why Oil Reacts First in a Middle East Crisis

Oil is the most directly exposed asset when tensions escalate in the Middle East.

The region accounts for a significant share of global crude production and controls critical supply routes like the Strait of Hormuz. Any threat to production, transport, or refining capacity immediately impacts pricing expectations.

In crisis scenarios:

1. Supply risk premiums rise rapidly
2. Shipping insurance costs increase
3. Traders front-run worst-case disruptions
4. Volatility spikes within hours

Oil typically becomes the first and most aggressive mover because it reflects real economy supply risk.

When conflict intensifies, oil does not wait for confirmation — it reprices instantly.

Gold: The Fear and Inflation Hedge

Gold behaves differently.

While oil responds to supply mechanics, gold responds to uncertainty and systemic risk.

Historically, gold rises when:

• War risk increases
• Currency stability is questioned
• Inflation expectations rise
• Investors reduce exposure to equities

Gold acts as a neutral asset outside the political system. During geopolitical shocks, institutional capital often rotates into gold as a defensive allocation.

Unlike oil, gold’s move is less about logistics and more about confidence.

When gold rallies alongside oil, it usually signals broader fear entering markets.

Bitcoin: Risk Asset or Digital Safe Haven?

Bitcoin’s reaction during geopolitical events is more complex.

Short term, Bitcoin often behaves like a risk asset:

• It can sell off when volatility spikes
• Liquidity stress impacts crypto faster than commodities
• Leverage unwinds amplify downside moves

However, long term, Bitcoin carries a different narrative.

It is:

• Scarce
• Borderless
• Not tied to any single government
• Increasingly viewed as a sovereign hedge

During previous crisis cycles, Bitcoin initially dropped alongside equities before recovering strongly once liquidity conditions stabilized.

This creates a key question:
Is Bitcoin still a risk asset — or is it slowly transitioning into digital gold?

At current levels, $BTC remains sensitive to macro liquidity, but structural accumulation continues in the background.

Historical Pattern: What Happens After Shock Phases?

Looking back at prior geopolitical crises:

• Oil spikes sharply at the onset
• Gold trends higher as uncertainty persists
• Bitcoin and equities experience volatility
• Once panic subsides, risk assets often rebound strongly

In prolonged energy crises, inflation becomes the secondary driver. That is when hard assets — including Bitcoin — can regain momentum.

If tensions ease quickly, oil may retrace while gold stabilizes.
If escalation continues, energy and defensive assets may remain supported longer.

Capital Rotation: What Smart Money Is Watching

Investors are currently monitoring:

• Strait of Hormuz shipping flows
• LNG production disruptions
• Central bank policy reactions
• Inflation expectations
• Treasury liquidity conditions

Oil reflects immediate physical risk.
Gold reflects fear and inflation expectations.
Bitcoin reflects liquidity and structural positioning.

Each asset tells a different story.

Conclusion: Which Asset Wins?

There is no single winner — only different phases of reaction.

In the early stage of geopolitical escalation:
Oil tends to lead.

In the uncertainty phase:
Gold often outperforms.

In the recovery or liquidity expansion phase:
Bitcoin can deliver outsized returns.

Middle East tensions do not just move markets — they reveal how capital rotates between real assets, defensive hedges, and digital alternatives.

Understanding this rotation is more important than reacting emotionally to headlines.

In the digital asset market, volatility is often viewed as a double-edged sword. While price swings offer opportunities for high-stakes trading, they can be detrimental to those seeking long-term capital preservation. As we move through 2026, a growing number of participants are prioritizing "market-neutral" strategies—methods designed to generate a steady income regardless of whether Bitcoin is trending up or down.

The primary instrument for this approach is the stablecoin. By utilizing assets pegged to the US Dollar, such as USDC, investors can effectively "park" their wealth in a digital format that earns interest without the risk of a 20% overnight drawdown.

The Role of Stablecoins in Income Generation

Stablecoins act as the bridge between traditional finance and the high-yield opportunities of the blockchain. Because these tokens are designed to maintain a 1:1 peg with fiat currency, the focus shifts from price appreciation to yield generation.

Common Ways to Earn Yield:

• Lending: Providing your stablecoins to other market participants who pay interest for the liquidity.
• Liquidity Provision: Depositing funds into decentralized pools to earn a share of transaction fees.
• Staking Rewards: Participating in protocol-specific programs that incentivize long-term holding.

For those tracking the latest crypto news, it is clear that the "yield" is no longer just a theoretical concept but a core component of institutional-grade portfolios.

Navigating the Platform Landscape: Fees and Regulation

When choosing where to generate this income, the platform’s cost structure and legal standing are paramount. Many users opt for large-scale exchanges for convenience, though this often comes with a trade-off in terms of fees.

The Trade-off of Centralized Platforms

Platforms like OKX are often cited for having relatively high trading fees compared to pure discount brokers or decentralized protocols. These costs can eat into your net APY if you are frequently moving funds. However, the premium paid often covers the "convenience factor" and the peace of mind that comes with institutional infrastructure.

Regulatory Milestones in the EU

A significant development for the European market occurred recently when OKX obtained a Payment Institution (PI) license in Malta. This is a critical distinction in 2026, as it places their stablecoin-related services—including payment tools and the OKX Card—under the direct supervision of EU financial authorities.

This move toward a fully regulated framework is designed to provide legal certainty and consumer protection, making stablecoin income products more comparable to traditional financial instruments in the eyes of regulators.

Opportunity Spotlight: 6% APY on USDC

While market rates fluctuate, certain "Earn" programs provide a temporary boost to attract liquidity. Currently, there is an opportunity to earn up to 6% variable APY on USDC through the OKX On-chain Earn product.

Key features of this program include:

• Daily Rewards: Interest is distributed every 24 hours, facilitating faster compounding.
• Flexible Access: Unlike fixed-term deposits, funds can typically be redeemed within a 24-hour window.
• Regulatory Backing: The product now operates within the aforementioned PI license framework, adding a layer of oversight to the underlying payment rails.
• New User Incentives: Those registering for an account to access these rewards may also qualify for a 150 EUR bonus, though it is important to factor in the platform's fee structure when calculating total returns.

Conclusion: A Defensive Strategy for 2026

Generating a steady income during periods of high volatility requires a shift in mindset from "speculation" to "utility." By utilizing regulated stablecoin products such as the ones OKX offers, investors can achieve yields that frequently outperform traditional savings accounts while avoiding the erratic price movements of the broader crypto market.

The cryptocurrency market is no stranger to volatility, but the recent escalation in Middle East tensions has introduced a complex layer of geopolitical risk. In March 2026, the market witnessed sharp movements as news of airstrikes and leadership changes in the region broke. For traders, these "black swan" events can be both a threat to capital and a source of significant opportunity.

How do Middle East tensions affect crypto?

Geopolitical unrest typically triggers a "risk-off" sentiment across global markets. Initially, investors often flee volatile assets like Bitcoin in favor of traditional safe havens like gold or U.S. Treasuries. However, due to its 24/7 nature, the crypto market often acts as a "liquidity pressure valve," reacting faster than traditional stock exchanges to breaking news.

1. Monitor the "Liquidity Pressure Valve" Effect

Unlike Wall Street, crypto never sleeps. When significant geopolitical events occur over the weekend—such as the strikes reported on February 28, 2026—Bitcoin is often the first asset to price in the news.

• Early Reaction: Initial panic often leads to sharp liquidations.
• Price Discovery: Real price stability often occurs only once U.S. stock markets and Bitcoin ETFs resume trading on Monday morning.

Investors should be wary of making drastic moves during low-liquidity weekend hours when spreads are wide and price swings are exaggerated.

2. Watch the Gold and Oil Correlation

During the current crisis, we have seen a significant divergence in asset performance. While Bitcoin initially dropped toward the $63,000 support level, commodities like Brent crude oil surged toward $100 a barrel, and gold targeted new highs.

Understanding this rotation is crucial. If oil and gold continue to climb, it indicates that the market still perceives high systemic risk, which may cap any immediate "relief rallies" in the Bitcoin price.

3. Use Stablecoins as a Strategic Buffer

In turbulent times, the ability to move into "cash" without exiting the ecosystem is a lifesaver. Rotating a portion of your portfolio—perhaps 20% to 30%—into stablecoins like USDT or USDC can preserve your purchasing power.

Expert Tip: Keeping a stablecoin reserve allows you to "buy the blood" when high-quality assets hit major support levels. According to recent data, short-term holders showed "seller exhaustion" near $63,000, presenting a potential entry point for disciplined traders.

4. Re-evaluate Your Leverage and Stop-Losses

Geopolitical volatility is the "liquidation engine" of the crypto world. In a single hour on February 28, over $1.8 billion in derivatives were liquidated.

• Reduce Leverage: High leverage (10x or more) is suicidal during a war-driven market. Even a 2% "wick" can wipe out your position.
• Widen Stop-Losses: Normal volatility ranges expand during crises. Tight stop-losses may get triggered by "noise" before the actual trend continues.

5. Distinguish Between Technical and Fundamental Shifts

Is the price dropping because Bitcoin's technology failed, or because of external fear? Most geopolitical shocks are temporary technical sell-offs.

Analysts suggest that while the initial shock is painful, markets often recover within 1–2 weeks if the conflict remains localized. Long-term investors often view these dips as "black swan" opportunities to accumulate, provided they store their assets securely.

How To Trade Cryptos During War

Trading during Middle East tensions requires a blend of patience and clinical execution. By monitoring the correlation between crypto and commodities, reducing leverage, and maintaining a stablecoin "war chest," you can navigate the storm without capsizing your portfolio.

The geopolitical landscape in the Middle East has reached a boiling point following claims by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that it has targeted and struck three oil tankers linked to the United States and Great Britain. The incident, occurring in the strategic Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, comes on the heels of the reported death of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. As traditional markets prepare for the Monday open, the crypto industry is bracing for a potential "risk-off" wave that could send digital asset prices into a tailspin.

How Will Crypto Prices React?

Historically, during periods of acute military escalation, Bitcoin and the broader crypto market behave more like high-risk technology stocks than "digital gold." With the Strait of Hormuz handling approximately 20% of global oil supply, a blockade or sustained strikes usually trigger an immediate spike in crude oil prices. For crypto investors, this typically translates to a liquidity exit, as institutional players move capital into safe-haven assets like gold or US Treasuries, potentially leading to a sharp decline in the Bitcoin price when global markets fully open on Monday.

The Strait of Hormuz and Market Volatility

The Strait of Hormuz is the world's most vital energy chokepoint. Any disruption here leads to a "Geopolitical Risk Premium" being added to commodities. In the context of 2026, where Bitcoin has become more integrated into institutional portfolios, it is highly sensitive to macro shocks. When energy costs rise abruptly, inflation fears resurface, prompting a sell-off in speculative assets to cover margins in more stable sectors.

From Tankers to Tokens

The escalation began on March 1, 2026, with reports of the Palau-flagged tanker Skylight and the MKD Vyom being struck by projectiles. While the US and UK have yet to officially confirm all Iranian claims, the psychological impact on the market is already visible in perpetual futures.

• Oil Prices: Projections suggest Brent crude could surge toward $120 per barrel if the Strait is deemed "effectively closed."
• Crypto Sentiment: On-chain data often shows a spike in "stablecoin inflows" to exchanges during these events, not for buying, but as a precursor to selling volatile assets like Ethereum and Solana.

Monday Market Predictions

Previous instances of Middle Eastern conflict (such as the 2025 escalations) saw Bitcoin drop between 5% and 10% within the first 24 hours of traditional market resumption.

Why This Time is Different...

Unlike previous "contained" skirmishes, the 2026 conflict involves direct strikes on Western-linked merchant vessels and the reported death of the Iranian head of state. This level of instability suggests that the crypto market's reaction might be more prolonged than a simple "dip." Investors should keep a close eye on latest crypto news to see if the US military initiates "Operation Epic Fury" or similar retaliatory measures, which would further dampen appetite for risk assets.

Publicly traded Bitcoin treasury ProCap Financial boosted its BTC stash to $376 million as it continues buying back its own shares.

David Miller, a white-collar attorney specializing in the defense of crypto clients, will lead the CFTC’s reduced enforcement team at a critical juncture for the agency.

Nasdaq wants in on prediction markets—and it's going through the SEC to get there.

Despite battlefield blowback fears, Bitcoin’s network is likely to shrug off disruptions, experts told Decrypt.

The price of Bitcoin immediately fell following bombings on Iran this weekend, but then surged Monday as markets began to recover.

Ripple’s ambition to bridge traditional finance and DeFi reached a major milestone..

Bitcoin (BTC) staged a powerful recovery, reclaiming the $69,000 level and triggering a massive $80 million short liquidation event.

Peter Schiff reacts as Michael Saylor makes new Bitcoin buy for $204 million while restating Strategy's average price, which is back below $76,000.

Crypto market faced fresh selling pressure with $343 million in total liquidations.

Veteran analyst Bob Loukas renews Bitcoin price outlook with target below $49,000, despite admitting that the cryptocurrency is already "deeply oversold.".

TLDR

• Peter Schiff reacted to Michael Saylor’s latest Bitcoin purchase with a sarcastic congratulatory message.
• Michael Saylor announced that Strategy acquired 3,015 Bitcoin for about $204.1 million.
• Strategy’s total Bitcoin holdings reached 720,737 Bitcoin after the new acquisition.
• Peter Schiff argued that Saylor continued to average down a losing trade during market volatility.
• Schiff claimed that gold continued to outperform Bitcoin and traded above $5,400.

The market saw a new debate today as Michael Saylor expanded his Bitcoin holdings with another large purchase, and the move quickly drew a sharp reaction from Peter Schiff, and both sides repeated their long-held views as community discussions grew. The announcement detailed a fresh acquisition of 3,015 BTC, and the news pushed new conversations across trading circles. Reactions surfaced fast as both supporters and critics responded with firm and clear messages.

Peter Schiff Challenges Saylor After New BTC Move

Peter Schiff issued a short message that referenced Saylor’s latest move, and he framed it with clear sarcasm. He wrote that Saylor “brought Strategy’s average price back under $76,000,” and the statement spread fast.

He argued that Saylor continued “averaging down a losing trade,” and he claimed the firm faced growing unrealized losses. He added that gold kept trading higher when compared with Bitcoin and kept pushing his point.

He repeated that gold traded above $5,400 and suggested Saylor could have directed the purchase toward gold instead. He stated his view plainly and kept his long-running position unchanged.

The crypto community responded with strong comments, and users defended Saylor’s strategy with confidence. They pointed to recent activity and said the purchase reinforced trust among smaller buyers.

Strategy Expands Bitcoin Holdings With New Purchase

Saylor confirmed that Strategy acquired 3,015 BTC for about $204.1 million, and he released the update online. He reported an average purchase price of about $67,700 per coin.

The firm now holds 720,737 BTC worth about $54.77 billion, and Saylor repeated his focus on long-term value. He said Strategy continued to follow its chosen plan.

Community members highlighted the new average cost of $75,985 per coin and shared charts showing the updated levels. Traders echoed Saylor’s stance and compared the numbers with current price action.

Saylor also repeated his outlook and said Bitcoin could move above $200,000 soon. He pushed this view as part of his ongoing public comments.

Market Reactions Grow After Latest BTC Announcement

Users linked Saylor’s repeated purchases with increased confidence across smaller trading groups. They argued the move added fresh energy to ongoing discussions.

Commentators responded with mixed views and tracked charts that compared Bitcoin with gold prices. They used new metrics and pointed to changing ratios.

Analysts said the timing of the new purchase placed more attention on Bitcoin’s short-term movement. They examined updated values and watched price behavior closely.

Saylor continued to promote his forecast as he shared data on long-term adoption. He kept pointing to the expanding global interest.

New figures from the purchase circulated through crypto channels and formed the core of ongoing conversations. Updates included fresh calculations tied to the Strategy’s holdings.

The post Peter Schiff Mocks Michael Saylor After Strategy Adds 3,015 New BTC appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• South Korea launched a nationwide audit to strengthen controls over seized crypto assets.
• The Finance Ministry and financial regulators reviewed storage methods and internal access procedures.
• Officials aimed to identify weak practices and introduce stronger technical safeguards.
• Police in Gangnam lost 22 BTC after giving custody to an external firm without private key control.
• The National Tax Service apologized after exposing recovery phrases that led to a major theft.

South Korea moved fast to reinforce digital asset controls as officials addressed recent security failures, and the government ordered urgent checks across agencies, and leaders demanded strict oversight to prevent further losses.

Audit of Seized Crypto Holdings

South Korea launched a nationwide audit after new directives reshaped digital asset management practices. Authorities examined seized coins across agencies and reviewed storage controls. The Finance Ministry coordinated the process with the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service. Officials targeted holdings gained through tax and criminal cases.

Officials reviewed hardware wallets and custodial accounts and assessed access controls. They said the audit aimed to expose weak procedures and guide new protections. Leaders stated that agencies must “fix system gaps fast” to stop unauthorized transfers. They also confirmed that operational reports will go directly to senior oversight teams.

Police losses in Gangnam triggered stronger demands for new custody rules. Investigators confirmed that officers lost 22 BTC after handing assets to an outside firm. Officials said the officers never controlled private keys, which raised concerns about current arrangements. Regulators asked agencies to track crypto flows better.

A separate error at the National Tax Service pushed the government to act. The agency disclosed recovery phrases in a public release. Thieves drained most of a $5.6 million holding, and leaders called the failure preventable. The agency apologized and began internal checks.

Legal and Structural Shifts in South Korea

The Supreme Court of Korea ruled in January that exchange-held Bitcoin qualifies as property. This decision cleared earlier confusion over enforcement powers. Officials said the ruling eased asset seizure procedures. They added that agencies can pursue digital holdings more quickly under clear rules.

The government continued updating its Digital Asset Basic Act. Phase two will impose rules for stablecoin reserves and investor protection.  Officials said the updates will strengthen oversight for market players. They also confirmed that agencies will publish final provisions soon.

Regulators ended a nine-year block on corporate crypto trading in February. They allowed listed firms and professional traders to reenter markets. Authorities said new compliance rules will govern trading activities. They will also monitor corporate flows under updated reporting systems.

The post Seized Crypto Lapses Push South Korea to Enforce Tighter National Controls appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• xAI plans to repay $3 billion in high-yield bonds earlier than expected to reduce debt before major corporate steps.
• The company will redeem the bonds at $117 on the, which reflects recent price movement.
• Early repayment may trigger penalty costs because the bonds were expected to remain outstanding for two years.
• Musk merged xAI and X under one structure while working to simplify debt across his companies.
• Lenders were informed that both X and xAI debt will be repaid, although funding sources were not disclosed.

xAI will retire $3 billion of bonds early as the company reshapes its debt, and SpaceX prepares for a public listing, and lenders track rapid changes across Musk’s merged businesses.

Early Bond Repayment by xAI

xAI will repay the bonds at 117 cents as pricing data shows the debt rising toward that level. The move follows June’s bond sale that featured a coupon of 12.5 percent.

The redemption comes even though the structure suggested a longer timeline before repayment. The step underlines efforts to simplify obligations before further corporate actions.

Bank sources say early repayment usually triggers charges tied to make-whole terms, and xAI may incur such costs. They also state, “The process continues without disclosure of funding sources.”

Trace data shows the bonds climbed about three points on Monday to near 117 cents. The shift reflects rising expectations of an early call.

Debt Strategy and Business Consolidation

Musk merged xAI with SpaceX under a single holding entity last year. The group now carries about $18 billion of combined obligations.

Lenders say repayment plans also cover debt tied to X, formerly Twitter. They add that Morgan Stanley told them repayment will proceed as arranged.

X borrowed about $12.5 billion during Musk’s takeover, while xAI raised $5 billion through loans and bonds. Both moved under xAI Holdings after restructuring.

xAI revised its debt documents to restrict asset transfers and set a ceiling for future secured borrowing. Those provisions protect collateral for lenders.

SpaceX Prepares for IPO Filing

SpaceX may file confidentially for an IPO this month, according to sources. They say valuation targets exceed $1.75 trillion.

The company has not accessed bond markets, unlike X and xAI, which faced heavy servicing costs. X paid large monthly interest amounts, while xAI used cash rapidly.

SpaceX bought xAI last month and intends to expand data center capacity. The combined business holds a valuation of about $1.25 trillion.

People familiar with the matter say Musk plans to advance the offering timeline. They also report ongoing financing work tied to debt reduction.

Morgan Stanley declined to comment when contacted. Representatives for X and xAI did not respond to requests for comment.

The post xAI Moves to Retire $3B Debt Early as Musk Advances the Planned SpaceX IPO appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• Chainlink enabled the transfer of Coinbase’s cbBTC to Monad through its CCIP system.
• The integration opened new access to Bitcoin-backed liquidity for developers building on the Monad Foundation network.
• Early adopters such as Curvance and Neverland prepared markets built around cbBTC on Monad.
• Coinbase confirmed that cbBTC remains backed 1:1 by Bitcoin held in custody across multiple networks.
• CCIP now supports more movement of tokenized Bitcoin and enables new trading and lending products on high-speed systems.

The update links Coinbase’s cbBTC with Monad through Chainlink’s CCIP, and the move expands access to Bitcoin-backed liquidity while it also provides developers a direct route to build new on-chain financial products across the network.

Chainlink Expands cbBTC Access Through CCIP

Chainlink enabled the transfer of Coinbase’s cbBTC to Monad through its CCIP system, and the rollout opened new routes for Bitcoin-backed liquidity across DeFi. The network confirmed the integration on March 2, and it stated that it aims to support developers building on fast-settlement environments.

The bridge now moves cbBTC from Base to Monad, and users can place the asset in lending or trading markets without delays. Curvance and Neverland adopted the token early, and the two platforms plan to deploy structured products built around cbBTC.

Coinbase issues cbBTC with a 1:1 Bitcoin backing, and the asset holds more than $5 billion in circulation across multiple chains. The supply spans Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, and Solana, and the new pathway expands distribution further into high-speed environments.

Chainlink said CCIP has processed over $28 trillion in on-chain value, and the protocol uses a standardized security model for cross-chain transactions. “The system moves assets with institutional-grade protection,” said Johann Eid, and he emphasized that the design supports broad multi-network activity.

Keone Hon of the Monad Foundation said the integration gives developers a strong base asset, and he stated that builders gain faster ways to expand Bitcoin-based markets. The network expects growing use cases that center on automated routing and high-frequency strategies.

cbBTC Liquidity Extends to Monad

cbBTC now enters markets that target high-speed settlement, and developers can design products that use Bitcoin-backed liquidity with lower fees. The network targets up to 10,000 transactions per second, and it aims for sub-second finality.

The integration creates access to deeper liquidity pools, and teams can design derivatives tied to Bitcoin prices with improved execution. Lending markets will also expand, and early platforms have begun preparing launch timelines.

Users gain additional ways to earn returns on Bitcoin-backed assets, and some current cbBTC markets already offer returns near 3%. The new route brings that activity to Monad, and teams intend to scale borrowing products around the asset.

The addition of cbBTC also increases available capital for automated trading programs, and developers gain predictable settlement times. This pairing aligns with the network’s push toward capital-intensive applications, and builders will test new strategies anchored to Bitcoin.

Monad now receives more than $5 billion in potential inflows from cbBTC, and teams across the ecosystem expect rising on-chain liquidity as markets expand access to Bitcoin-backed instruments.

The post cbBTC Arrives on Monad Through Chainlink CCIP, Opening New DeFi Use Cases appeared first on Blockonomi.

TLDR

• Turkey proposed a new bill that introduces a 10% tax on cryptocurrency income and gains.
• Lawmakers stated that platforms must withhold the tax on a quarterly basis for all users.
• The bill allows the president to adjust the withholding rate between 0% and 20%.
• Service providers would pay a 0.03% transaction tax on every crypto trade they facilitate.
• Authorities confirmed that tax enforcement will rely on detailed records kept by platforms.
• The bill connects all crypto definitions to the existing Capital Markets Law for consistency.

Turkey’s ruling party advanced a new plan that would introduce a 10% tax on cryptocurrency gains, and lawmakers presented the draft to parliament as they moved to update current tax laws while outlining new rules for service providers.

Proposed Crypto Tax Framework

Turkey introduced a draft bill that creates a new structure for crypto taxation, and lawmakers placed the proposal before the Grand National Assembly as they sought clear rules for the sector. They stated that platforms regulated under the Capital Markets Law must withhold a 10% tax on quarterly income and gains, and officials confirmed that this applies to residents and non-residents.

The bill grants the president the power to adjust the withholding rate, and officials said it could move between 0% and 20% depending on asset type. They also linked the tax rate to holding periods and wallet usage, and they highlighted that different token categories may face different rules.

The legislation introduces a 0.03% transaction tax for service providers, and it applies to the sale amount or market value of assets. Lawmakers said this measure covers platforms that facilitate trades, and they reported that brokers must maintain detailed records.

Authorities emphasized that incomplete user information may trigger enforcement, and the tax agency would pursue shortfalls directly from the user. The bill ties terms such as “crypto asset,” “wallet,” and “platform” to existing financial regulations, and it ensures consistent definitions across the law.

Market Context and International Comparisons

Chainalysis reported that Turkey recorded $200 billion in crypto activity between July 2024 and June 2025, and analysts stated that rising volumes followed economic pressure in recent years. They wrote that Turkey’s economic conditions pushed many users toward digital assets, and the report said people used crypto for alternative savings.

Turkey experienced inflation that peaked at 85% in late 2022, and the rate later stabilized near 30% by early 2025. Officials believe tax reform can support regulatory oversight, and they said the new framework aims to match existing market behavior.

Lawmakers referenced international trends, and they pointed to a Dutch plan that proposed a 36% capital gains tax on digital holdings. They acknowledged that the Dutch proposal awaits a Senate vote, and they said the measure could start in 2028.

The Turkish draft includes a VAT exemption for crypto deliveries covered by the transaction tax, and lawmakers confirmed that service providers fall under the updated expenditure rules. They also stated that foundation university hospitals will lose corporate tax exemptions in 2027, and they kept this clause in the broader bill.

The post Draft bill in Turkey Seeks 10% Crypto Tax and Tighter Oversight of Exchanges appeared first on Blockonomi.

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded one of their best days for weeks in terms of inflows on February 25, marking their first meaningful increase in holdings since mid-October 2025.

The shift comes as analysts point to falling retail flows and heavy unrealized losses among newer buyers as signs that market structure could be turning.

The Institutional Signal vs. Retail Exit

In a March 2 market update, analyst Amr Taha tracked two key data points that suggest a major shift in how Bitcoin moves between different types of investors. The first chart tracks 30-day cumulative Bitcoin inflows to Binance, separated into retail inflows (small investor flows) and whale inflows (large investor flows).

According to the chart, between February 6 and March 2, retail inflows dropped significantly, going from $14.1 billion down to $9.05 billion, a total contraction of approximately $5 billion.

What makes this interesting, Taha explained, is that nearly identical patterns appeared twice in 2025, with retail inflows contracting by about $8 billion from March 5 to April 7 of that year and falling by around $5 billion from June 6 to June 22. In both cases, the drop in retail inflows happened right before significant market movements.

The second chart tracks the total Bitcoin held by all US spot ETFs combined. Here, Taha observed something important occurring on February 25: for the first time since mid-October, ETF holdings increased meaningfully. Approximately 21,000 BTC flowed into the funds, equivalent to $1.45 billion at current prices, marking what Taha called the first noticeable accumulation wave after months of stagnation.

“Historically, rising ETF demand tends to be constructive for price, while declining demand often aligns with price weakness,” the crypto trader noted.

However, data from SoSoValue and FarSide show a different number. Both sites claim that the actual net inflows on February 25 were just over $500 million, or almost three times less than what Taha suggested. Nevertheless, it was still the best day for net inflows since mid-January.

Market Situation and Sentiment

The broader backdrop for this on-chain signal has been brutal, with Bitcoin posting five consecutive monthly losses for the first time since 2018, after ending February with a nearly 15% drop. The asset is currently trading just above $66,000, down by over 20% in the past month and sitting 47% below its October 2025 all-time high.

Analyst Crypto Dan offered additional context on market psychology, noting that most investors who purchased Bitcoin within the past two years are currently in loss positions.

“In the investment market, sharp reductions often follow when the majority of people are making big profits, and conversely, strong rallies tend to begin after most people experience significant losses,” he pointed out.

Dan suggested that if Bitcoin’s price drops below $60,000, putting the majority of investors (excluding very long-term holders) into loss territory, it could represent an accumulation opportunity for those with clear entry criteria.

As it is, Taha’s data suggests institutional buyers are already making that calculation, even as retail traders step back.

The post Bitcoin On-Chain Data: Retail Exits While Institutional ETF Holdings Surge appeared first on CryptoPotato.

The situation for the second-largest meme coin has worsened recently, following a double-digit slide over the past 14 days.

Some worrying factors suggest Shiba Inu (SHIB) could experience a further collapse in the near future, while one popular analyst predicted it might crash to a five-year low.

The Free Fall is Yet to Happen?

While Shiba Inu enjoyed some notable surges last year, 2026 has been nothing but painful. As of this writing, it trades at around $0.000005467 (per CoinGecko’s data), representing a whopping 60% plunge on a yearly scale.

Its market cap has tumbled to roughly $3.2 billion, further widening the gap with niche frontrunner Dogecoin (DOGE), which maintains a capitalization of more than $15 billion.

According to Ali Martinez, SHIB might be on the verge of a crash to as low as $0.00000138. This is not the first time the analyst has warned about such a scenario. Last month, he noted that the meme coin dropped below the important level of $0.00000667, claiming this could have opened the door to a meltdown to the aforementioned zone.

Shiba Inu’s burning mechanism also signals that a further pullback may be on the way. Over the past 24 hours, the burn rate has decreased by approximately 99% after only 20,176 SHIB were sent to a null address.

The program’s ultimate goal is to reduce the meme coin’s overall supply, potentially making it more valuable in time (assuming demand remains constant or heads north). It was adopted in 2022, and since then, the team and community have destroyed more than 410.7 trillion tokens, leaving 585.47 trillion in circulation.

The stalled progress of Shibarium is also a bearish factor. Shiba Inu’s layer-2 scaling solution saw the light of day in the summer of 2023 and aims to foster the project’s development by lowering transaction fees, improving speed, and enhancing scalability. It suffered an exploit in September last year, which shook investor trust and caused widespread damage across the Shiba Inu ecosystem. Prior to the incident, daily transactions processed on Shibarium were in the millions, while after that, they plummeted to mere thousands.

The Bullish Signals

Even as the meme coin struggles and the broader crypto market is under pressure, SHIB’s supply on centralized exchanges keeps shrinking. According to CryptoQuant’s data, those reserves fell below 81 trillion tokens, the lowest point since May 2021.

The development could be interpreted as a positive sign because it suggests that investors are in no rush to move their holdings to such platforms: a move often seen as a pre-sale step.

Meanwhile, Shiba Inu’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) briefly plunged below 30, indicating the asset has entered oversold territory and could be due for a resurgence. The technical analysis tool runs from 0 to 100, and conversely, ratios above 70 suggest SHIB could be overbought and gearing up for a possible correction. As of this writing, the RSI stands at roughly 36, or much closer to the bullish zone.

The post Shiba Inu (SHIB) Plunges by 17% in 2 Weeks: Is a 75% Crash Next? appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Last month, Pi Network’s team celebrated a special milestone and announced several important updates aimed at improving the entire ecosystem.

Despite the enhanced volatility, PI closed February in green, which could explain why it has been trending lately.

The Recent Developments and What’s Next?

It was on February 20, 2025, when Pi Network officially launched its Open Network, making PI publicly accessible and enabling exchanges to provide trading services with it. Last month, the team celebrated the first anniversary of that milestone and unveiled several important updates.

It revealed the completion of protocol v19.6, making v19.9 the final step ahead of the much-anticipated v20. The team also reminded that nodes need to migrate promptly, as outdated versions will no longer be able to participate in the network.

Shortly after, Pi Network introduced its long-awaited Ecosystem Token Design, a framework meant to ensure that new tokens on the Mainnet are tied to real utility rather than speculation. The team urged Pioneers to review the mode and provide feedback before final implementation.

Besides that, Pi Network’s co-founders, Chengdiao Fan and Nicolas Kokkalis, answered some hot questions involving the controversial KYC process, the entity’s jump into the AI sector, and other intriguing topics.

The community’s attention has now shifted to March 14: a date known across the community as Pi Day, due to its symbolic resemblance to the mathematical constant π (3.14). The team marked the same date last year with an ecosystem expansion, but it’s unclear whether they plan something similar in less than two weeks. X user Pi Community claimed that Pi Day has always been “a powerful moment to showcase major progress, current work, and what’s next.”

PI in Focus

PI closed in February at around $0.17, representing a 10% monthly increase. Currently, it trades just south of that mark, which could explain why the asset has been trending lately.

According to CoinMarketCap, PI has the second-highest bullish sentiment today (March 2nd), trailing only Kaspa (KAS). Further down the list are well-known altcoins such as Ripple (XRP), Cardano (ADA), and Ethereum (ETH).

This development has left some market observers baffled. X user Mr. Brondor, for instance, wondered how “a useless crypto” like PI could have one of the strongest bullish sentiments.

Token Unlocks and More

While some industry participants have been floating the unrealistic (at least as of now) idea that PI could explode to as high as $50, certain technical indicators suggest a short-term correction could also be on the way.

Data shows that over the next few weeks, token unlocks will be quite aggressive with the record day being March 7 when almost 21 million coins will be released. This doesn’t guarantee a price decline, but it will allow some investors to offload holdings they have been waiting for some time.

Meanwhile, the amount of PI stored on centralized platforms has been gradually rising lately and now sits at nearly 435 million tokens. This trend is considered bearish, as a growing exchange supply increases the likelihood of a substantial sell-off.

The post Pi Network (PI) News Today: March 2nd appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Escalating military conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran over the weekend sent more than 472 million XRP, worth roughly $652 million, to Binance, marking the largest exchange inflow period of February.

The sudden movement of tokens onto the trading platform suggests investors are positioning for potential selling, creating conditions that could pressure XRP’s price in the days ahead.

Geopolitical Shock Waves Hit XRP

Shortly after traditional financial markets closed last Friday, the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran, leading to the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to CryptoQuant contributor Darkfost, that timing amplified uncertainty across risk assets, with digital currencies reacting quickly to the geopolitical news. Data shows Binance received over 472 million XRP this past week, with the largest daily spikes occurring in late February.

Moving tokens onto exchanges often signals a willingness to sell or at least positions liquidity closer to the market during turbulent periods, and Darkfost noted that when flows of this size are recorded, they can create conditions for a sudden wave of selling pressure that could affect price action in the short term.

XRP itself went through intense volatility on Saturday, dropping from $1.43 to $1.27 before rebounding after reports first emerged that Khamenei had been killed. The asset recovered to near its starting point as traders digested the news, but the price swing illustrated how geopolitical events are driving short-term moves.

Furthermore, the large exchange inflows come as XRP ETFs continue to see modest activity. After an initial boom following their launch in November 2025 that pushed cumulative net inflows past $1 billion within a month, the pace has slowed considerably. Only $9.55 million entered the funds during the last full week of February, and just $240 million has arrived in over two months.

XRP Price Holds Support

At the time of writing, the Ripple token was trading around $1.35, down 1.3% in the last 24 hours and 1% over the past seven days per CoinGecko. The asset hit a weekly low of $1.28 and a high of $1.48 during the volatile period, with the $1.30 level providing support during Saturday’s sell-off.

Meanwhile, futures market data from CoinGlass shows $5.37 million in XRP liquidations over the past 24 hours, with longs accounting for $3.70 million of that total. Open interest stands at $2.14 billion, while combined futures and spot trading volume reached about $5.2 billion during the same period. The liquidation figures suggest leveraged long positions took the brunt of the weekend volatility.

The exchange inflow data presents a more complicated picture than price action alone suggests. While the transfers do not confirm immediate selling, amounts of this size can change the trading environment even without a full unwind. As such, the question remains whether this episode marks the beginning of a broader distribution phase or simply short-term panic movements tied to the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.

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Bitcoin’s price is on the move again, this time favoring the bulls. The asset just exploded by several grand in less than an hour, going from just over $65,000 to a multi-day peak of early $69,000.

The altcoins are on the rise as well, with ETH skyrocketing past the coveted $2,000 level, while SOL has neared $90. XRP and BNB have gained over 4% in an hour.

It’s difficult to follow all the geopolitical developments that have taken place in the past 48 hours. Recall that the US and Israel joined forces to attack Iran on Saturday morning, killing its Supreme Leader in the process. The Middle Eastern country retaliated against several nations in the region, including Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and others.

Tension has continued to escalate since then, with US President Trump making numerous warnings toward Iran, while also speculating that the war could last up to four weeks.

Perhaps the most probable reason behind the instant price pump in the cryptocurrency markets now is the upcoming POTUS speech on the situation, which will take place in just a few hours.

TRUMP TO SPEAK ON IRAN CONFLICT AT 11 A.M. ET

Donald Trump will address the Iran war in live remarks at 11 a.m. ET, marking his first direct briefing since Saturday’s strikes. The event will also include a Medal of Honor presentation.

— *Walter Bloomberg (@DeItaone) March 2, 2026

Additionally, Trump said that while the US has used substantial force in its attacks against Iran to this moment, “the big wave” is yet to come.

Crypto liquidations are on the rise again following the latest set of volatility, with the 24-hour wrecked figures exceeding $400 million. While longs still overhauled shorts on a daily scale, the latter have reigned supreme in the past hour, with $80 million against less than $5 million for longs.

The post 5% in 1 Hour: Bitcoin Price Explodes to $69K Ahead of Trump’s Speech on Iran Situation appeared first on CryptoPotato.