Alternative News for You

by Cointelegraph by Zoltan Vardai on March 29, 2025 at 11:51 am

Sonic Labs has canceled plans to launch a US dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin, opting instead to develop a United Arab Emirates dirham-denominated alternative.On March 22, Sonic Labs co-founder Andre Cronje said the company was working on a US dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin with an annual percentage rate (APR) of up to 23%, Cointelegraph reported.However, one week later, the firm reversed course.“We will no longer be releasing a USD based algorithmic stable coin,” Cronje said in a March 28 X post. “Completely unrelated, we will be releasing a mathematically bound numerical Dirham which is settled and denominated in USD, which is definitely not a USD based algorithmic stable coin.”The shift in strategy comes shortly after the UAE announced it would launch its digital dirham central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the fourth quarter of 2025.Source: Andre CronjeKhaled Mohamed Balama, governor of the Central Bank of the UAE, said the blockchain-based dirham could enhance financial stability and help combat financial crime. The digital currency will be accepted alongside its physical counterpart in all payment channels, according to a report from the Khaleej Times.Related: Paolo Ardoino: Competitors and politicians intend to ‘kill Tether’Sonic faced criticism over stablecoin plansThe reversal follows widespread criticism of Sonic’s original plan to launch an algorithmic stablecoin — a model that has raised concerns across the crypto industry since the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in 2022.Cronje himself previously admitted to experiencing Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to algorithmic stablecoin due to previous cycles:“Pretty sure our team cracked algo stable coins today, but previous cycle gave me so much PTSD not sure if we should implement.”In May 2022, the $40 billion Terra ecosystem collapsed, erasing tens of billions of dollars of value in a matter of days. Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin, TerraUSD (UST), had been yielding an over 20% annual percentage yield (APY) on Anchor Protocol prior to its collapse.As UST lost its dollar peg, crashing to a low of around $0.30, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon took to X (then Twitter) to share his rescue plan. At the same time, the value of sister token LUNA — once a top 10 crypto project by market capitalization — plunged over 98% to $0.84. LUNA was trading north of $120 in early April 2022.Related: Tether’s US treasury holdings surpass Canada, Taiwan, ranks 7th globallyThe collapse of the algorithmic stablecoin issuer created shockwaves among both crypto investors and lawmakers.To reduce systemic risk, the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) bill will prohibit algorithmic stablecoins to avoid another Terra-like failure.Meanwhile, stablecoins are increasingly being used for smaller, everyday payments rather than large transfers, according to CoinFund managing partner David Pakman.“We’ve seen a significant decrease in the size of each stablecoin transaction, which points to the fact that they are being used more as payments and less for large transfers,” Pakman said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X on March 27.Magazine: Ripple says SEC lawsuit ‘over,’ Trump at DAS, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 16 – 22

by Maani Truu on March 29, 2025 at 11:29 am

The government vows to set up a taskforce to investigate how to best make it illegal for supermarkets to price-gouge customers, despite the ACCC's inquiry failing to confirm price gouging was happening.

by Cointelegraph by Zoltan Vardai on March 29, 2025 at 9:47 am

The global stablecoin supply could surge to $1 trillion by the end of 2025, potentially becoming a key catalyst for broader cryptocurrency market growth, according to CoinFund managing partner David Pakman.“We’re in a stablecoin adoption upswell that’s likely to increase dramatically this year,” Pakman said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X on March 27. “We could go from $225 billion stablecoins to $1 trillion just this calendar year.” He noted that such growth, while modest compared to global financial markets, would represent a “meaningfully significant” shift for blockchain-based finance.Pakman also suggested that the rise in capital flowing onchain, combined with growing interest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), could further support decentralized finance (DeFi) activity:“If we have a moment this year where ETFs are permitted to provide staking rewards or yield to holders, that unlocks really meaningful uplift in DeFi activity, broadly defined.”https://t.co/v9lOnk00QY— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) March 27, 2025Related: BlackRock Bitcoin ETP ‘key’ for EU adoption despite low inflow expectationsThe aggregate stablecoin supply stood at an all-time high of above $208 billion across the five largest stablecoins on March 28, according to Glassnode data.Stablecoins, aggregate supplies. Source: Glassnode “This is the major catalyst that’s been missing for over a decade: a major movement of people’s wealth onchain that brings everyone else on,” added Pakman.The growing stablecoin supply recently surpassed $219 billion and continues to rise, suggesting that the market is “likely still mid-cycle” as opposed to the top of the bull run, according to IntoTheBlock analysts.Related: Most EU banks fail to meet rising crypto investor demand — SurveyStablecoin payment adoption on the riseStablecoins use for daily payments is on the rise, illustrating the efficacy of blockchain-based transactions.“We’re up over 22x in stablecoin volume since 2021,” Pakman said, adding:“We’ve seen a significant decrease in the size of each stablecoin transaction, which points to the fact that they are being used more as payments and less for large transfers.”BTC-to-stablecoin ratio. Source: Ki Young JuThat aligns with recent comments from CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju, who said stablecoins are increasingly being used for remittance payments and as a store of value. However, Ju said stablecoin supply won’t pump Bitcoin’s (BTC) price without additional catalysts.Magazine: Bitcoin $500K prediction, spot Ether ETF ‘staking issue’— Thomas Fahrer, X Hall of Flame

by Cointelegraph by Ciaran Lyons on March 29, 2025 at 8:47 am

The New York State Attorney General’s (NAYG) recent legal action against Galaxy Digital over its promotional ties to the now-collapsed cryptocurrency Terra (LUNA) was unfair and an abuse of the legal system, says SkyBridge Capital and founder Anthony Scaramucci.“It’s LAWFARE, pure and simple due to an obscure but dangerously powerful New York law known as the Martin Act,” Scaramucci said in a March 28 X post.Martin Law can “open the door for abuse”“The law has no need to prove intent, creating a low standard of proof that can open the door for abuse like this. It shouldn’t exist,” he said.New York’s Martin Act is one of the US's strictest anti-fraud and securities laws, allowing prosecutors the power to pursue financial fraud cases without needing to prove intent. The NAYG alleged that Galaxy Digital violated the Martin Act over its alleged promotion of Terra, with Galaxy Digital agreeing to a $200 million settlement.According to NAYG documents filed on March 24, Galaxy Digital acquired 18.5 million LUNA tokens at a 30% discount in October 2020, then promoted them before selling them without abiding by disclosure rules. Scaramucci reiterated that Galaxy CEO Michael Novogratz was under the impression everything he was saying about Luna was true, as he had been deceived by Terraform Labs and its former CEO, Do Kwon.Source: Amanda FischerMeanwhile, MoonPay president of enterprise, Keith Grossman, said he had never heard of the Martin Act and had to look it up using AI chatbot ChatGPT.“It is so broad and essentially is the essence of lawfare,” Grossman said. “Sorry you got caught in the crosshairs of it, Mike,” he added.Related: Sonic unveils high-yield algorithmic stablecoin, reigniting Terra-Luna ‘PTSD’The filing alleged that Galaxy helped a “little-known” token, referring to LUNA, increase its market price from $0.31 in October 2020 to $119.18 in April 2022 while “profiting in the hundreds of millions of dollars.”Asset manager and investor Anthony Pompliano said he isn’t familiar with the details of the lawsuit but vouched for Novogratz, calling him a “good man” who has devoted a lot of time and money to helping others.The Terra collapse is one of the crypto industry’s most infamous failures. In March 2024, SEC attorney Devon Staren said in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York that Terra was a “house of cards” that collapsed for investors in 2022.Magazine: Arbitrum co-founder skeptical of move to based and native rollups: Steven Goldfeder

by Yiying Li on March 29, 2025 at 8:04 am

"He has told me if I crossed him, he would ruin my life, rape me, or kill me," Mr Tate's ex-girlfriend Brianna Stern says. Her  lawyer says the facts alleged in the lawsuit are extremely disturbing.

by Xanthe Gregory on March 29, 2025 at 5:55 am

Federal MP Andrew Gee's Facebook account has been caught impersonating a disgruntled voter and praising the politician for his stand against "dirty tactics" by an opponent.

by Cointelegraph by Ciaran Lyons on March 29, 2025 at 5:41 am

Ether's (ETH) declining appeal as an investment comes from layer-2’s draining value from the main network and a lack of community pushback on excessive token creation, a crypto venture capitalist says.“The #1 cause of this is greedy Eth L2s siphoning value from the L1 and the social consensus that excess token creation was A-OK,” Castle Island Ventures partner Nic Carter said in a March 28 X post.Ether “died by its own hand”“ETH was buried in an avalanche of its own tokens. Died by its own hand,” Carter said. He said this in response to Lekker Capital founder Quinn Thompson’s claim that Ether is “completely dead” as an investment.Source: Quinn Thompson“A $225 billion market cap network that is seeing declines in transaction activity, user growth and fees/revenues. There is no investment case here. As a network with utility? Yes. As an investment? Absolutely not,” Thompson said in a March 28 X post. The ETH/BTC ratio — which shows Ether’s relative strength compared to Bitcoin (BTC) — is sitting at 0.02260, its lowest level in nearly five years, according to TradingView data. At the time of publication, Ether is trading at $1,894, down 5.34% over the past seven days, according to CoinMarketCap data.Ether is down 17.94% over the past 30 days. Source: CoinMarketCapMeanwhile, Cointelegraph Magazine reported in September 2024 that fee revenue for Ethereum had “collapsed” by 99% over the previous six months as “extractive L2s” absorbed all the users, transactions and fee revenue while contributing nothing to the base layer. Around the same time, Cinneamhain Ventures partner Adam Cochran said Based Rollups could solve the issue of Ethereum’s layer-2 networks pulling liquidity and revenue from the blockchain’s base layer.Cochran said Based Rollups could “directly impact the monetization of Ethereum by making a pretty fundamental change to incentive structures.”Related: Ethereum futures premium hits 1+ year low — Is it time to buy the ETH bottom?Despite optimism toward the end of last year about Ether reaching $10,000 in 2025 — especially after reaching $4,000 in December, the same month Bitcoin touched $100,000 for the first time — it has since seen a sharp decline alongside the broader crypto market downturn.Standard Chartered added to the bearish outlook via a March 17 client letter, which revised down their end of 2025 ETH price estimate from $10,000 to $4,000, a 60% reduction. However, several crypto traders, including pseudonymous traders Doctor Profit and Merlijn The Trader, are “insanely bullish” and argue that Ether could be the “best opportunity in the market.”Source: Merlijn The TraderMagazine: Arbitrum co-founder skeptical of move to based and native rollups: Steven Goldfeder

by Sundance on March 29, 2025 at 4:20 am

In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency. This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread. Posted in The post March 29th – 2025 Presidential Politics – Trump Administration Day 69 appeared first on The Last Refuge.

by Sundance on March 29, 2025 at 4:15 am

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL. The post Saturday March 29th – Open Thread appeared first on The Last Refuge.

on March 29, 2025 at 4:01 am

Myanmar's isolated military junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing, declares a state of emergency in all affected areas and says he expects the number of casualties to rise further.

by Sundance on March 29, 2025 at 3:57 am

Just an interesting placeholder given all things related to the IC control over government. Yes, factually and taking an objective review of all datapoints as they continue to assemble in the big picture, almost all roads of compromise and corruption trace a path back to Langley, Virginia, home of the CIA operation. As people are The post CIA Public Information Manager John Ratcliffe Has Invited Elon Musk to Visit CIA to Discuss “Government Efficiency” appeared first on The Last Refuge.

by Sundance on March 29, 2025 at 3:32 am

President Trump holds a press availability in the oval office answering multiple media questions. President Trump outlines the upcoming tariff program, his conversation with Prime Minister Mark Carney, the decision to pull the nomination of Elise Stefanik for U.N ambassador, and the ongoing deportation efforts. WATCH: . Posted in Big Government, Deep State, President Trump, The post President Trump Holds Presser Discussing Tariffs and Conversation with PM Carney appeared first on The Last Refuge.

by Michael Doyle on March 29, 2025 at 3:30 am

The Canterbury Bulldogs will end round four of the NRL with the outright lead of the competition, completing a 32-year first in the process.

by Libby Hogan on March 29, 2025 at 3:22 am

A March 31 deadline could see more than a million Afghans forced out of Pakistan and back to a country already buckling under crisis.

on March 29, 2025 at 2:53 am

A private search for clues relating to the presumed abduction and murder of Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon, who disappeared from Adelaide Oval in 1973, begins in South Australia's Mid North.

by Robert Burgin on March 29, 2025 at 2:49 am

Basketball Queensland says the state government's decision to scrap an indoor sports centre will "definitely" impact the region's push for a national league team.

by Maani Truu on March 29, 2025 at 2:39 am

The Coalition leader has pledged that his gas reservation plan — which was revealed in his budget reply speech this week — would bring down energy prices by the end of the calendar year.

on March 29, 2025 at 2:31 am

The all-stock deal combines two of Mr Musk's multiple portfolio companies and potentially eases Musk's ability to train his AI model known as Grok.

by Jessica Shackleton, Peter de Kruijff, and Charlie McLean on March 29, 2025 at 2:29 am

There are calls for a report to be released into potential damage to ancient rock art, before final approval is given to a major Woodside gas project.

by Emma Wynne on March 29, 2025 at 2:11 am

Sam Lovell, the first Aboriginal tourism operator in the Kimberley, is being celebrated in an exhibition at Western Australia's State Library.

by Andrew McGarry, Simon Smale, Chris De Silva, and Marnie Vinall on March 29, 2025 at 2:01 am

Hawthorn overturns a 35-point deficit to record a statement win over GWS as Brisbane roars to life in the second half against Geelong to record a 20-year first.

by Chloe Chomicki on March 29, 2025 at 1:52 am

A Townsville woman accused of killing Tanya Glover, whose body was found in the wall of a apartment unit block in 2022, has been remanded in custody.

by Tim Lee on March 29, 2025 at 1:51 am

Marbling has long been considered essential to steak quality, but new research is highlighting the role of omega-3. 

by Giulia Bertoglio and Roslyn Butcher on March 29, 2025 at 1:36 am

Communities in Western Australia's north are on high alert for the risk of flooding as ex-Tropical Cyclone Dianne continues to move inland after crossing the coast on Saturday morning.

by Emma Siossian on March 29, 2025 at 1:14 am

After decades living with congenital heart disease, Richelle Murray says she's "living proof" that organ donation can change lives.

by Cointelegraph by Ciaran Lyons on March 29, 2025 at 1:02 am

Billionaire investor Elon Musk has sold his social media platform X to his AI startup xAI, sparking controversy as it coincides with a US judge rejecting his bid to dismiss a lawsuit tied to the social media platform.The transfer of ownership of X to xAI on March 28 means that the class-action lawsuit against Musk — accusing him of defrauding former Twitter shareholders by delaying the disclosure of his initial investment in the social media platform — has become “a whole lot spicer,” Cinneamhain Ventures partner Adam Cochran said in a March 28 X post.Acquisition may open xAI up to more “exposure”On the same day that Musk said “xAI has acquired X in an all-stock transaction,” a US judge reportedly rejected Musk’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. Cochran said it has “opened up his AI entity to exposure here too, and it’s a much bigger pie.”Source: GrokMusk said the deal values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, factoring in $12 billion in debt from the $45 billion valuation. He originally bought X, formerly Twitter, for around $44 billion in April 2022.“xAI and X’s futures are intertwined. Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution and talent,” Musk said.Source: Bryan Rosenblatt“This combination will unlock immense potential by blending xAI’s advanced AI capability and expertise with X’s massive reach,” he said, adding:“This will allow us to build a platform that doesn’t just reflect the world but actively accelerates human progress.”However, Cochran claimed that “Musk used his pumped up xAI stock to pay multiple times over value for X, but still take an $11B loss on the transaction.” He said that Musk is “screwing over xAI investors, and X investors” and was executed to sell user data to xAI.Related: Elon Musk’s ‘government efficiency’ team turns its sights to SEC — ReportxAI is best known for its AI chatbot “Grok” which is built into the X platform. When Musk released it in November 2023, he claimed it could outperform OpenAI’s first iteration of ChatGPT in several academic tests.Source: Raoul PalMusk explained at the time that the motivation behind building Grok was to create AI tools equipped to assist humanity by empowering research and innovation.While Cochran said that Grok’s valuation at $80 billion is an “insanely dumb valuation,” crypto developer “Keef” disagrees. Keef said, “This is shady all around, but given the day, Grok is genuinely probably the top model for various tasks.”Magazine: Arbitrum co-founder skeptical of move to based and native rollups: Steven Goldfeder

on March 29, 2025 at 1:00 am

Curry is a dish that has become symbolic of Indian cuisine, but the word itself doesn't originate from India, and many Indian people bristle at its association with their culture. 

by Xanthe Gregory on March 29, 2025 at 12:42 am

More than 50 firefighters fought the blaze in Lismore for several hours. Police are set to investigate the cause.

on March 29, 2025 at 12:28 am

As American producers lobby Donald Trump to put tariffs on Australian meat imports, a Republican cattle-rancher takes the fight to the US Congress.

by Georgia Loney and Cameron Simmons on March 28, 2025 at 11:51 pm

Raw sewage is running through properties in Australia's largest northern city as infrastructure buckles after months of record-breaking rain.

on March 28, 2025 at 11:50 pm

Tennis star Daria Kasatkina will represent Australia in future tournaments after her application for permanent residency was accepted by the government.

on March 28, 2025 at 11:49 pm

South Australia wins its 14th Sheffield Shield title, completing a record run chase to beat Queensland by four wickets in Adelaide for its first crown in 29 years.

by Emily JB Smith on March 28, 2025 at 11:22 pm

Sue Starr has requested access to Voluntary Assisted Dying should she one day be diagnosed with dementia. But fulfilling that request would currently be illegal.

by Julia André on March 28, 2025 at 11:06 pm

Southern Gold Coast residents are being asked what they think about one of the state's largest infrastructure projects for the second time in three years.

by Cointelegraph by Vince Quill on March 28, 2025 at 10:35 pm

Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao is donating 500 BNB (BNB) each to Thailand and Myanmar following a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that caused severe damage to buildings and widespread flooding.Zhao plans to distribute the funds through Binance and Binance Thailand if a third-party onchain donation platform cannot be found to distribute the disaster relief funds.“I hope everyone is safe in Thailand,” the Binance founder wrote in a March 28 X post before announcing the contributions to both countries affected by the earthquake.According to The Guardian, at least 144 people are confirmed to have died as a result of the catastrophic earthquake as first responders in both countries continue rescue efforts to free people trapped under rubble.Source: CZRelated: Thailand regulator approves USDT, USDC stablecoinsDisaster strikes Myanmar and ThailandThe earthquake struck on March 28 at approximately 1:20 PM local time. The epicenter of the earthquake was approximately 10 miles from Mandalay — the second-largest city in Myanmar.The death toll in both countries is expected to rise as relief efforts continue, with 732 individuals reportedly injured as a result of the earthquake.Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing has called upon any country willing to help with the disaster relief efforts to provide any aid it can.Crypto donations amplify aid during times of crisis The cross-border efficiencies, low transaction costs, and near-instant settlement times of cryptocurrencies make digital assets an ideal medium for disaster relief funds.Following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that impacted Turkey and Syria in February 2023, philanthropist Haluk Levent began collecting crypto disaster relief donations.The Giving Block, a company that works with nonprofit organizations to facilitate crypto donations, also used crypto to raise funds for the victims of the Maui wildfires in 2023 and managed to give over $1 million to the relief effort.More recently, in January, The Giving Block started an emergency relief fundraiser for those impacted by the California wildfires in Los Angeles and the surrounding areas.At the time of this writing, the organization has raised over $1 million for the California wildfire relief fund.Magazine: Crypto is changing how humanitarian agencies deliver aid and services

by Cointelegraph by Turner Wright on March 28, 2025 at 10:10 pm

Five Democratic lawmakers in the US Senate have called on leadership at regulatory agencies to consider the potential conflicts of interest from a stablecoin launched by World Liberty Financial (WLFI), the crypto firm backed by US President Donald Trump’s family.In a March 28 letter from the US Senate Banking Committee, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and four other Democrats asked the Federal Reserve’s committee chair on supervision and regulation, Michelle Bowman, and acting comptroller of the currency, Rodney Hood, how they intended to regulate WLFI and its stablecoin, USD1.March 28 letter from five Democratic senators to OCC, Fed leadership. Source: US Senate Banking CommitteeThe letter came as members of Congress are considering legislation to regulate stablecoins through the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins, or GENIUS Act. The bill, if signed into law, would essentially allow the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Federal Reserve to oversee stablecoin regulation, including for issuers like WLFI and its USD1 coin. Trump also signed an executive order in February attempting to have all federal agencies — purportedly including the OCC — “regularly consult with and coordinate policies and priorities” with White House officials, giving the US president unprecedented control. “President Trump’s involvement in this venture, as he strips financial regulators of their independence and Congress simultaneously considers stablecoin legislation, presents an extraordinary conflict of interest that could create unprecedented risks to our financial system and to the integrity of decisions made by the [Fed and OCC],” said the letter, adding: “The launch of a stablecoin directly tied to a sitting President who stands to benefit financially from the stablecoin’s success presents unprecedented risks to our financial system.”Related: Trump’s USD1 stablecoin deepens concerns over conflicts of interestSince World Liberty launched in September 2024 — months before the US election and Trump’s inauguration — many of the firm’s goals have been shrouded in secrecy. The project’s website notes that Trump and some of his family members control 60% of the company’s equity interests. As of March 14, World Liberty had completed two public token sales, netting the company a combined $550 million. On March 24, the project confirmed launching its first stablecoin on the BNB Chain and Ethereum. The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., also pitched USD1 from the DC Blockchain Summit on March 26 with three of WLFI’s co-founders.Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions

by Cointelegraph by Big Smokey on March 28, 2025 at 9:55 pm

Bitcoin price extended its decline on March 28, falling for a fourth consecutive day to paint an intra-day low of $83,387. BTC’s (BTC) decline mirrored the Wall Street sell-off, where the DOW closed 700 points lower, alongside the S&P 500 index, which dropped 112 points. The sell-off in equities is widely attributed to investors increasing worries over inflation after the core Personal Consumption Expenditures index data from February rose to 2.8% (a 0.4% monthly increase), which was higher than expected. S&P 500 drops $1 trillion in market cap value. Source: X / The Kobeissi LetterThe sell-off was further amplified by the markets’ response to US President Trump’s newly levied “reciprocal tariffs,” which applied a 25% tariff to “all cars that are not made in the United States.” The chances for a Bitcoin relief rally or oversold bounce are likely diminishing as traders cautiously keep an eye on April 2, the day Trump has labeled “Liberation Day,” where additional tariffs, including “pharmaceutical tariffs,” are expected to be unveiled. Bitcoin price to fall to $65K? According to veteran trader Peter Brandt, Bitcoin could be on the path to $65,635. BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: X / Peter BrandtIn an X social post, Brandt confirmed the completion of a “bear wedge” pattern and said, “Don’t shoot the messenger. Just reporting on what the chart says until it says something different. Bear wedge completed with 2X target from the double top at $65,635.” Crypto trader ‘HTL-NL’ agreed with Brandt, suggesting that Bitcoin’s failure in “breaking the ice” of a long-term descending trendline and the confirmation of the bear wedge are proof that BTC is destined to revisit its range lows. BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: X / HTL-NLFrom a purely technical point of view, it’s difficult to project a swift reversal in Bitcoin’s price action as many of its daily timeframe metrics are not oversold. Despite the absence of strong spot market demand in the current price zone, crypto trader Cole Garner says that “whales are going wild right now.” BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: X / Cole GarnerAccording to Garner, the Bitfinex spot BTC margin longs to margin shorts metric just fired a powerful signal which shows historical returns of 50%+ returns “within 50 days.” Related: US regulators FDIC and CFTC ease crypto restrictions for banks, derivativesBeyond the day-to-day price fluctuations, positive crypto industry developments continue to occur on the regulatory front. On March 28, White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks commended the FDIC and its Acting Chairman Travis Hill for clarifying the “process for banks to engage in crypto-related activities.” Source: X / David SacksEssentially, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s letter to institutions under its oversight provided clear guidance on their ability to engage in and provide crypto-related products and services without needing to notify the FDIC first.This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

by Cointelegraph by Cointelegraph on March 28, 2025 at 9:49 pm

Today in crypto, Elon Musk sold social media platform X to his AI startup, two US federal agencies eased restrictions on companies engaging in crypto-related activities, including derivatives. Meanwhile, NFT sales plunged 63% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2025.Elon Musk’s sale of X to xAI just made fraud lawsuit a ‘lot spicer’Billionaire investor Elon Musk has sold his social media platform X to his AI startup xAI, sparking controversy as it coincides with a US judge rejecting his bid to dismiss a lawsuit tied to the social media platform.The transfer of ownership of X to xAI on March 28 means that the class-action lawsuit against Musk — accusing him of defrauding former Twitter shareholders by delaying the disclosure of his initial investment in the social media platform — has become “a whole lot spicer,” Cinneamhain Ventures partner Adam Cochran said in a March 28 X post.Source: GrokOn the same day that Musk said “xAI has acquired X in an all-stock transaction,” a US judge reportedly rejected Musk’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. Cochran said it has “opened up his AI entity to exposure here too, and it’s a much bigger pie.”Musk said the deal values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, factoring in $12 billion in debt from the $45 billion valuation. He originally bought X, formerly Twitter, for around $44 billion in April 2022.US regulators FDIC and CFTC ease crypto restrictions for banks, derivativesThe Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said in a March 28 letter that institutions under its oversight, including banks, can now engage in crypto-related activities without prior approval. The announcement comes as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced that digital asset derivatives wouldn’t be treated differently than any other derivatives.The FDIC letter rescinds a previous instruction under former US President Joe Biden’s administration that required institutions to notify the agency before engaging in crypto-related activities. According to the FDIC’s definition:”Crypto-related activities include, but are not limited to, acting as crypto-asset custodians; maintaining stablecoin reserves; issuing crypto and other digital assets; acting as market makers or exchange or redemption agents; participating in blockchain- and distributed ledger-based settlement or payment systems, including performing node functions; as well as related activities such as finder activities and lending.”FDIC-supervised institutions should consider associated risks when engaging in crypto-related activities, it said. These risks include market and liquidity risks, operational and cybersecurity risks, consumer protection requirements, and Anti-Money Laundering requirements.NFT sales plunge 63% in Q1, but Pudgy Penguins, Doodles buck trendSales of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) dropped sharply in the first quarter of 2025, plunging 63% year-over-year. Still, a few standout collections defied the downturn and posted gains.NFTs recorded $1.5 billion in total sales from January to March 2025, down from $4.1 billion during the same period in 2024, according to data from aggregator CryptoSlam. March accounted for the steepest decline, with sales falling 76% to $373 million compared with $1.6 billion last year.Despite the slowdown, collections including Doodles, Milady Maker and Pudgy Penguins outperformed expectations, showing strength amid the downturn.Among the largest NFT collections, CryptoPunks recorded $60 million in Q1 2025 sales, down 47% from $114 million in the first quarter of 2024.The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) had an even bigger drop of 61%. The monkey-themed NFT collection had a sales volume of only $29.8 million in Q1 2025, down from $78 million in Q1 2024. 

by Cointelegraph by Vince Quill on March 28, 2025 at 9:15 pm

The four-year crypto market cycle that traders and investors have become accustomed to is no longer as pronounced due to the maturation of crypto as an asset class and the participation of institutional investors, according to Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal.During a recent episode of Cointelegraph's Chain Reaction, Nailwal said that Overall speculative activity is down due to high interest rates in the United States and low-liquidity conditions, but will rebound once rates are cut and the Trump administration settles into its new role.Although interest rates on 10-year Treasury bonds have come down significantly, rates still remain relatively high. Source: TradingViewNailwal added that while he expects 30-40% drawdowns between cycles and still expects the Bitcoin (BTC) halving to have some effect on markets, the four-year cycle is now less pronounced. Nailwal said:"We have generally seen 90% drawdowns between cycles, which is very normal in crypto. I feel that those drawdowns will be less pronounced and they will feel a little bit more professional, more mature, especially for the Blue Chip crypto assets."The Polygon founder concluded that once the uptrend resumes and crypto markets experience a prolonged bull run then capital will rotate from larger cap assets into smaller cap assets.Related: BTC dominance steadily rising since 2023, is altseason now a relic?Other disruptors of the four-year cycleUS President Donald Trump’s executive order establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve is one of the factors market analysts say is distorting the four-year market cycle.Pro-crypto policies from the Trump administration have also legitimized crypto in the eyes of institutional investors, which should bring in new capital flows and reduce the volatility of digital assets.Flows into crypto ETFs for the week of March 21. Source: CoinSharesThe advent of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has also disrupted the four-year cycle by propping up the prices of digital assets that have ETFs and sequestered capital in those investment vehicles.Because ETFs are traditional finance products that do not give the holder the underlying digital assets, these investment vehicles prevent capital from freely rotating into other assets.Macroeconomic pressure and geopolitical uncertainty also have a disruptive effect on market cycles, as investors flee risk-on assets for more stable alternatives such as cash and government securities.Magazine: Bitcoin will ‘start ripping’ as Trump’s polls improve: Felix Hartmann, X Hall of Flame

by Cointelegraph by Christopher Tepedino on March 28, 2025 at 8:08 pm

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said in a March 28 letter that institutions under its oversight, including banks, can now engage in crypto-related activities without prior approval. The announcement comes as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced that digital asset derivatives wouldn’t be treated differently than any other derivatives.The FDIC letter rescinds a previous instruction under former US President Joe Biden’s administration that required institutions to notify the agency before engaging in crypto-related activities. According to the FDIC’s definition:”Crypto-related activities include, but are not limited to, acting as crypto-asset custodians; maintaining stablecoin reserves; issuing crypto and other digital assets; acting as market makers or exchange or redemption agents; participating in blockchain- and distributed ledger-based settlement or payment systems, including performing node functions; as well as related activities such as finder activities and lending.”FDIC-supervised institutions should consider associated risks when engaging in crypto-related activities, it said. These risks include market and liquidity risks, operational and cybersecurity risks, consumer protection requirements, and Anti-Money Laundering requirements.On March 25, the FDIC eliminated the “reputational risk” category from bank exams, opening a path for banks to work with digital assets. Reputational risk is a term that underscores the dangers banks face when engaging with certain industries. Related: FDIC resists transparency on Operation Chokepoint 2.0 — Coinbase CLODigital asset derivatives won’t be treated differently — CFTCWhile the US crypto derivatives market had been a gray zone due to regulatory uncertainty, that has been changing. On March 28, the CFTC withdrew a staff advisory letter to ensure that digital asset derivatives — a type of trading product — will not be treated differently from other types of derivatives. The revision is “effective immediately.”The change in tone from the CFTC and FDIC follows a new environment for crypto firms under US President Donald Trump’s administration. Trump has vowed to make the US “the crypto capital of the planet.” Crypto firms are shifting strategies to align with the easing regulatory climate. On March 10, Coinbase announced the offer of 24/7 Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) futures. In addition, the company is reportedly planning to acquire Derebit, a crypto derivatives exchange.Kraken, another US-based cryptocurrency exchange, has also made moves in the derivatives market. On March 20, it announced the acquisition of NinjaTrader, which would allow the exchange to offer crypto futures and derivatives in the United States.Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions

by Cointelegraph by Sam Bourgi on March 28, 2025 at 8:00 pm

It has been a wild few years for GameStop, the video game retailer turned memecoin stock. After being pulled from the edge of bankruptcy in 2021 thanks to a surging stock price, the company has made sensible business decisions over the years, such as shrinking its physical footprint and focusing on higher-margin items. Now, GameStop is trying to secure its survival by investing in Bitcoin (BTC). This approach seems to have worked for Strategy, Michael Saylor’s business intelligence firm turned Bitcoin bank. Strategy has now amassed more than 500,000 BTC through successive purchases. And despite experiencing massive volatility, Strategy’s stock has rallied more than 2,100% since acquiring its first Bitcoin back in 2020.GameStop has memed its way back to relevance — who says it can’t secure at least the next decade of its existence by riding the Bitcoin wave?This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter chronicles GameStop’s Bitcoin gambit, the adoption magnet that is tokenization and the recovery in Bitcoin mining revenues.GameStop: Following the Strategy playbookOn March 25, GameStop confirmed that it had received board approval to invest in Bitcoin and US-dollar-pegged stablecoins. There’s reason to believe that the video game retailer could make a big splash, given its corporate cash balance of nearly $4.8 billion. This is a notable jump from one year earlier when the company’s balance sheet was around $922 million. There’s also reason to believe that GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen was orange-pilled by Michael Saylor after the two met in early February. Cohen confirmed that the meeting took place by posting an uncaptioned photo of him and Saylor on Feb. 8. Source: Ryan CohenFor his part, Saylor continues to accumulate as much BTC as humanly possible. Earlier in the week, he announced that Strategy had acquired another 6,911 BTC, bringing its stockpile to 506,137 BTC.Tokenized real estate comes to PolyonDigiShares has launched a real estate trading platform on Polygon, giving investors access to a liquid on- and off-ramp for commercial and residential properties. RealEstate.Exchange, also known as REX, launched with two luxury property listings in Miami, Florida, including a 520-unit tower and a 38-unit residential complex.A Google street view of one of the property listings, The Legacy Hotel & Residences in Miami, Florida. Source: Google MapsDigiShares CEO Claus Skaaning told Cointelegraph that REX has an additional five or six properties in the pipeline, adding that REX will eventually support all sorts of commercial and residential properties. REX operates in the United States through a license with Texture Capital, a broker-dealer registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The platform is also seeking registrations in the European Union, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Tokenized assets coming to CMECME Group, one of the world’s largest derivatives exchange operators, has tapped Google Cloud to roll out its asset tokenization program. Specifically, CME Group is using the Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL) to tokenize traditional assets on the blockchain — a move the company said would improve capital market efficiency and wholesale payments. Tokenization could “deliver significant efficiencies for collateral, margin, settlement and fee payments as the world moves toward 24/7 trading,” said Terry Duffy, CME Group’s Chairman and CEO.Although CME didn’t provide specific details about which assets would be part of the tokenization pilot, it plans to begin testing the technology with market participants next year.Bitcoin miner revenues stabilize post-halvingBitcoin miners are on track for recovery following the network’s April 2024 halving event, which reduced mining revenues from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.According to data from Coin Metrics, miner revenues are approaching $3.6 billion in the first quarter, which isn’t far off from the prior quarter’s $ 3.7 billion tally. It marks a major rebound from the third quarter of 2024 when revenues plunged to $2.6 billion. Miners have quickly adapted to the latest quadrennial halving, though revenues remain lower than the pre-halving peak in the first quarter of 2024. Source: Coin Metrics“With almost one year elapsed since Bitcoin’s 4th halving, miners have endured a period of stabilization, adapting to reduced block rewards, tighter margins, and shifting operational dynamics,” Coin Metrics said.Despite adverse market conditions since the halving, some miners are doubling down on their Bitcoin hodl strategy. Hive Digital’s chief financial officer told Cointelegraph that the company is focused on “retaining a significant portion of its mined Bitcoin to benefit from potential price appreciation.”Crypto Biz is your weekly pulse on the business behind blockchain and crypto, delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday.

by Cointelegraph by Turner Wright on March 28, 2025 at 7:13 pm

US President Donald Trump reportedly issued pardons to three co-founders of the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, who had pleaded guilty to felony charges.According to a March 28 CNBC report, Trump granted pardons to Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo and Samuel Reed, who were facing a range of criminal charges related to money laundering or violations of the Bank Secrecy Act. Hayes and Delo pleaded guilty in February 2022, admitting they “willfully fail[ed] to establish, implement and maintain an Anti-Money Laundering program” at BitMEX, while Reed entered a plea a few weeks later.Source: Arthur HayesAt the time of publication, the White House had not released a statement suggesting that Trump planned to pardon the three men. Cointelegraph contacted BitMEX for a comment regarding the pardon, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.Since taking office on Jan. 20, Trump has issued a number of controversial federal pardons, including to more than 1,500 people facing charges related to the Jan. 6, 2021, rioting at the US Capitol and Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, who was in prison for more than 11 years. Reports have suggested that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in misusing customer funds, was also attempting to cozy up to Trump and Republicans for a potential pardon.Related: Changpeng Zhao says he ‘wouldn’t mind a pardon’ from Donald TrumpUS authorities charged Delo, Reed, Hayes, and Gregory Dwyer — the exchange’s first employee — in 2020 with violations of the Bank Secrecy Act. Hayes, BitMEX’s then-CEO, stepped down from his role amid the legal battle.The reasons for Trump’s pardon were unclear at the time of publication, as the three men had already been sentenced to a combination of home arrest or probation in 2022. The BitMEX co-founders were also ordered to pay $30 million in penalties as part of a civil case with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).The exchange’s cases with US authorities included an agreement to pay $100 million in consent payments to both the CFTC and the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Center in 2021. In January, a judge imposed a $100 million fine and two years of unsupervised probation on HDR Global Trading Limited, BitMEX’s parent company. Magazine: Meet lawyer Max Burwick — ‘The ambulance chaser of crypto’

by Cointelegraph by Marcel Pechman on March 28, 2025 at 7:06 pm

Ether (ETH) price fell 9.3% between March 26 and March 28, testing the $1,860 level for the first time in two weeks. This correction led to over $114 million in liquidations of leveraged ETH futures and caused the premium relative to the regular spot market to drop to its lowest level in over a year. Some traders have said that the rock-bottom ETH futures premium is a bottom signal, but let’s dig deeper into the data to see if this perspective makes any sense.  ETH 1-month futures premium relative to spot markets. Source: Laevitas.chEther’s monthly futures typically trade above the regular spot price as sellers demand compensation for the longer settlement period. A 5% to 10% annualized premium usually indicates neutral markets, reflecting the cost of opportunity and the exchanges’ risk. However, ETH futures dropped below this threshold on March 8, following a 24% price correction in the prior two weeks.The current 2% ETH futures annualized premium suggests a lack of demand for leveraged longs (buys), but this measure is highly influenced by recent price movements. For example, on Oct. 10, 2024, the ETH futures premium dropped to 2.6% after a 14% price correction in two weeks, but the indicator rose to 7% as ETH regained most of its losses. Essentially, the futures premium rarely signals changes in the spot price trend.ETH whales are afraid Ether price will fall further To determine if whales have lost interest in Ether, it is crucial to observe how the market is pricing put (sell) options compared to call (buy) options. When traders anticipate a downtrend, the 25% delta skew metric rises above 6%, indicating a higher demand for hedging strategies. In contrast, periods of bullishness usually push the skew below -6%.Ether 1-month options 25% delta skew (put-call). Source: Laevitas.chCurrently, at 7%, the ETH options’ 25% delta skew suggests a lack of conviction among professional traders, raising the likelihood of further bearish momentum. From a derivatives market perspective, there is little indication that the recent ETH price correction has bottomed out. Essentially, investors are not confident that the $1,800 support will hold.Some analysts argue that the sharp decline in Ethereum network activity is the primary reason for the reduced appeal of ETH, while others suggest that the shift toward layer-2 scalability has significantly diminished the potential of base chain fees. Given the need to compensate network validators, the lack of capital inflow requires more ETH issuance, which negatively affects net returns from native staking.The Ethereum network faces steep competitionAttempting to pinpoint the reasons behind sellers' motivations is futile, especially when considering Ethereum’s competition, which has expanded from blockchains like BNB Chain and Solana to networks tailored for specific challenges. Examples include Hyperliquid, focused on synthetic assets and perpetual trading, and Berachain, which is apparently better suited for staked assets in cross-liquidity pools.Related: Timeline: Jelly token goes sour after $6M exploit on HyperliquidThe success of certain decentralized applications (DApps) could serve as the final blow to Ether. For example, Ethena, the synthetic dollar protocol on Ethereum, is transitioning to its own layer-1 blockchain. The project, currently holding $5.3 billion in total value locked (TVL), raised $100 million in December 2024 to support this shift.However, it may be premature to claim that ETH price will continue to fall, as a major protocol update is only weeks away. Investors should carefully track the practical benefits of Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, particularly in terms of base layer fees and overall usability for the average user. Until then, the chances of ETH outperforming the broader altcoin market remain slim.This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

by Cointelegraph by Zoltan Vardai on March 28, 2025 at 7:00 pm

Bitcoin price is poised to hit $110,000 before retesting the $76,500 range, according to Arthur Hayes, pointing to easing inflationary concerns and more favorable monetary policy conditions in the US that are set to bolster risk assets, including the world’s first cryptocurrency.Still, the decentralized finance (DeFi) industry took another hit after an unknown whale exploited Hyperliquid’s algorithms to generate over $6 million in profit on a memecoin short position.Bitcoin “more likely” to hit $110,000 before $76,500 — Arthur HayesBitcoin may reach a new all-time high of $110,000 before any significant retracement, according to some market analysts who cite easing inflation and increasing global liquidity as key factors supporting a price rally.Bitcoin (BTC) has risen for two consecutive weeks, achieving a bullish weekly close just above $86,000 on March 23, TradingView data shows.Combined with fading inflation-related concerns, this may set the stage for Bitcoin’s rally to a $110,000 all-time high, according to Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX and chief investment officer of Maelstrom.BTC/USD, 1-week chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewHayes wrote in a March 24 X post:“I bet $BTC hits $110k before it retests $76.5k. Y? The Fed is going from QT to QE for treasuries. And tariffs don’t matter cause of “transitory inflation.” JAYPOW told me so.”Source: Arthur Hayes“What I mean is that the price is more likely to hit $110k than $76.5k next. If we hit $110k, then it’s yachtzee time and we ain’t looking back until $250k,” Hayes added in a follow-up X post.Quantitative tightening (QT) is when the US Federal Reserve shrinks its balance sheet by selling bonds or letting them mature without reinvesting proceeds, while quantitative easing (QE) means that the Fed is buying bonds and pumping money into the economy to lower interest rates and encourage spending during difficult financial conditions.Other analysts pointed out that while the Fed has slowed QT, it has not yet fully pivoted to easing.“QT is not ‘basically over’ on April 1st. They still have $35B/mo coming off from mortgage backed securities. They just slowed QT from $60B/mo to $40B/mo,” according to Benjamin Cowen, founder and CEO of IntoTheCryptoVerse.Continue readingHyperliquid whale still holds 10% of JELLY memecoin after $6.2 million exploitA crypto whale who allegedly manipulated the price of the Jelly my Jelly (JELLY) memecoin on decentralized exchange Hyperliquid still holds nearly $2 million worth of the token, according to blockchain analysts.The unidentified whale made at least $6.26 million in profit by exploiting the liquidation parameters on Hyperliquid.According to a postmortem report by blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, the whale opened three large trading positions within five minutes: two long positions worth $2.15 million and $1.9 million and a $4.1 million short position that effectively offset the longs.Source: ArkhamWhen the price of JELLY rose by 400%, the $4 million short position wasn’t immediately liquidated due to its size. Instead, it was absorbed into the Hyperliquidity Provider Vault (HLP), which is designed to liquidate large positions.The entity may still be holding nearly $2 million worth of the token’s supply, according to blockchain investigator ZachXBT.“Five addresses linked to the entity who manipulated JELLY on Hyperliquid still hold ~10% of the JELLY supply on Solana ($1.9M+). All JELLY was purchased since March 22, 2025,” he wrote in a March 26 Telegram post.Continue readingFidelity plans stablecoin launch after SOL ETF “regulatory litmus test”Fidelity Investments is reportedly in the final stages of testing a US dollar-pegged stablecoin, signaling the firm’s latest push into digital assets amid a more favorable crypto regulatory climate under the Trump administration.The $5.8 trillion asset manager plans to launch the stablecoin through its cryptocurrency division, Fidelity Digital Assets, according to a March 25 report by the Financial Times citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter.The stablecoin development is reportedly part of the asset manager’s wider push into crypto-based services. Fidelity is also launching an Ethereum-based “OnChain” share class for its US dollar money market fund.Fidelity’s March 21 filing with the US securities regulator stated the OnChain share class would help track transactions of the Fidelity Treasury Digital Fund (FYHXX), an $80 million fund consisting almost entirely of US Treasury bills.While the OnChain share class filing is pending regulatory approval, it is expected to take effect on May 30, Fidelity said.Fidelity’s filing to register a tokenized version of the Fidelity Treasury Digital Fund. Source: Securities and Exchange CommissionIncreasingly more US financial institutions are launching cryptocurrency-based offerings after President Donald Trump’s election signaled a shift in policy.Continue readingPolymarket faces scrutiny over $7 million Ukraine mineral deal betPolymarket, the world’s largest decentralized prediction market, is under fire after a controversial outcome raised concerns over potential governance manipulation in a high-stakes political bet.A betting market on the platform asked whether US President Donald Trump would accept a rare earth mineral deal with Ukraine before April. Despite no such event occurring, the market was settled as “Yes,” triggering a backlash from users and industry observers.This may point to a “governance attack” in which a whale from the UMA Protocol “used his voting power to manipulate the oracle, allowing the market to settle false results and successfully profit,” according to crypto threat researcher Vladimir S.“The tycoon cast 5 million tokens through three accounts, accounting for 25% of the total votes. Polymarket is committed to preventing this from happening again,” he wrote in a March 26 X post.Source: Vladimir S.Polymarket employs UMA Protocol’s blockchain oracles for external data to settle market outcomes and verify real-world events.Polymarket data shows the market amassed more than $7 million in trading volume before settling on March 25.Ukraine/US mineral deal betting pool on Polymarket. Source: PolymarketStill, not everyone agrees that it was a coordinated attack. A pseudonymous Polymarket user, Tenadome, said that the outcome was the result of negligence.Continue readingDWF Labs launches $250 million fund for mainstream crypto adoptionDubai-based crypto market maker and investor DWF Labs launched a $250 million Liquid Fund to accelerate the growth of mid- and large-cap blockchain projects and drive real-world adoption of Web3 technologies.DWF Labs is set to sign two investment deals worth $25 million and $10 million as part of the fund.The initiative aims to grow the crypto landscape by offering strategic investments ranging from $10 million to $50 million for projects that have the potential to drive real-world adoption, according to a March 24 announcement shared with Cointelegraph.Source: DWF LabsThe fund will focus on blockchain projects with significant “usability and discoverability,” according to Andrei Grachev, managing partner of DWF Labs.“We’re focusing our support on mid-to-large-cap projects, the tokens and platforms that typically serve as entry points for retail users,” Grachev told Cointelegraph, adding:“However, good technology and utility alone isn’t sufficient. Users first need to discover these projects, comprehend their value and develop trust.”“We believe that strategic capital, coupled with hands-on ecosystem development, is the key to unlocking the next wave of growth for the industry,” he said.Continue readingDeFi market overviewAccording to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, most of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization ended the week in the green.Of the top 100, the BNB Chain-native Four (FORM) token rose over 40% as the week’s biggest gainer, followed by the Cronos (CRO) token, up over 37% on the weekly chart, despite blockchain investigators accusing Crypto.com of manipulating the CRO token supply, after reissuing 70 billion tokens that were “permanently” burned in 2021.Total value locked in DeFi. Source: DefiLlamaThanks for reading our summary of this week’s most impactful DeFi developments. Join us next Friday for more stories, insights and education regarding this dynamically advancing space.

by Sundance on March 28, 2025 at 6:07 pm

President Donald Trump through the Acting Solicitor General has filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court seeking intervention and relief from lower court rulings blocking deportation efforts against criminal aliens. [pdf Filing Here] The DOJ is arguing that lower court judge James Boasberg is unconstitutionally intruded on the president’s national security powers by barring The post President Trump Files Emergency Appeal to Supreme Court Asking for Intervention to Stop Judicial Overreach appeared first on The Last Refuge.

by Cointelegraph by Vince Quill on March 28, 2025 at 6:05 pm

A portion of the Ethereum community is pressuring the Ethereum Foundation to make decisions that may “break the entire social fabric” of the smart contract network by restricting Ethereum's layer-2 (L2) networks, Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal said.Speaking during a March 28 episode of Cointelegraph's Chain Reaction show on X, the Polygon founder said that he has only seen this type of pressure and anti-L2 rhetoric during the current market cycle amid suppressed price action for Ether (ETH).“Everybody understands that if Ethereum doesn’t survive, the layer-2s won’t survive,” Nailwal said, adding:"The Ethereum community should not pressure the developers enough — I should not be able to pressure the developers enough — for price movements and all that, they may end up making a decision that completely breaks the social fabric of Ethereum."The Polygon co-founder praised Vitalik Buterin’s leadership and his more active role in the Ethereum Foundation, saying he has been the biggest force in keeping Ethereum's ecosystem cohesive.Nailwal characterized Buterin as the “DNA" of the network that has attracted many talented developers over the years who are building layers on top of the Ethereum base layer.The total value secured across Ethereum’s scaling solutions. Source: L2BeatRelated: Getting crypto out of the ‘AOL era’ — Sandeep NailwalSettlement layers vs execution layersAccording to Nailwal, the layer-1 vs layer-2 dichotomy is the wrong way to think about blockchain networks.The Polygon founder defined only two settlement layers in all of crypto, Bitcoin and Ethereum, with all other crypto networks being execution layers.In the future, almost every application will have its own blockchain to avoid paying gas fees and will post final transactions to one of these settlement layers, Nailwal said.Ethereum's base layer will benefit from this explosion of execution layers, accruing value from these final settlements and promoting the long-term growth of the ecosystem, which will one day be seamlessly interoperable.Ethereum base layer fees drop following the Dencun upgrade. Source: The Tie TerminalCritics of Ethereum's execution layers say that the scaling networks are currently cannibalizing the base layer, which culminated in a 99% drop in Ethereum L1 revenue by September 2024.Nailwal concluded that due to these differences between settlement and execution layers, no other crypto network is real competition for Ethereum except the Bitcoin network.However, the only way the Bitcoin network could be a threat to Ethereum is if it adopted more advanced scripting options that give it reliable, smart contract functionality like Ethereum, Nailwal said.Magazine: Ethereum L2s will be interoperable ‘within months’: Complete guide

by Cointelegraph by Rakesh Upadhyay on March 28, 2025 at 6:04 pm

Bitcoin (BTC) is moving farther away from the crucial $90,000 mark, indicating that buying dries up at higher levels. Market participants seem nervous about the fresh round of US trade tariffs and the renewed inflation pressure as US Personal Consumption Expenditures data came in hotter-than-expected.Traders are divided about Bitcoin’s price trajectory in 2025. Analyzing data from the prediction markets platform Polymarket, X user Ashwin highlighted that Bitcoin’s most bearish target for 2025 is $59,040, and the most bullish is $138,617.Crypto market data daily view. Source: Coin360Although the near-term remains uncertain, Real Vision chief crypto analyst Jamie Coutts remains bullish on Bitcoin. Coutts told Cointelegraph that Bitcoin could hit a new all-time high above $109,000 before the end of the second quarter. He added that a lack of clarity on the US tariffs and recession concerns are unlikely to derail the potential Bitcoin rally.What are the important support levels to watch out for in Bitcoin and the major altcoins? Let’s analyze the charts of the top 10 cryptocurrencies to find out.Bitcoin price analysisBitcoin turned down from the resistance line and broke below the 20-day exponential moving average ($85,765) on March 28.BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe bears will try to pull the price below the immediate support at $83,000. If they do that, the BTC/USDT pair could slide to $81,000 and later to $80,000. Buyers are expected to fiercely defend the zone between $76,606 and $80,000.The bulls will have to push and maintain the price above the resistance line to signal that the correction may be ending. A close above the 50-day simple moving average ($89,346) could propel the pair to $95,000 and eventually to the psychological resistance at $100,000.Ether price analysisEther (ETH) turned down from the breakdown level of $2,111 and broke below the 20-day EMA ($2,032), indicating that the bears remain in control.ETH/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewSellers will try to sink the ETH/USDT pair to the $1,800 to $1,754 support zone. Buyers are expected to vigorously defend the zone because a break below it could resume the downtrend. The next stop on the downside could be $1,550.Buyers will have to push and sustain the price above $2,111 to signal that the bearish momentum is weakening. The 50-day SMA ($2,293) may act as a hurdle on the upside, but if taken out, the pair could rally to $2,550.XRP price analysisXRP (XRP) turned down and broke below the moving averages on March 26, indicating that the bears remain sellers on every minor rise.XRP/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe bears will try to sink the price to the vital support at $2. Buyers are expected to defend the level with all their might because a break below $2 will complete a bearish head-and-shoulders pattern. The XRP/USDT pair may then plunge to $1.27.On the contrary, a strong bounce off the $2 support could keep the pair stuck inside the triangle for a while longer. The bulls will be back in the driver’s seat on a break and close above the resistance line.BNB price analysisBNB (BNB) has been trading between the moving averages and the $644 resistance for the past few days.BNB/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe upsloping 20-day EMA ($618) and the RSI in the positive territory signal a slight advantage to buyers. If the price rebounds off the moving averages with strength, it improves the prospects of a break above $644. The BNB/USDT pair could then surge to $686.Contrary to this assumption, if the price continues lower and breaks below the moving averages, it indicates that the bulls have given up. The pair may descend to the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level of $591.Solana price analysisSolana (SOL) broke below the 20-day EMA ($136) on March 28, suggesting a lack of demand from the bulls.SOL/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewSellers will try to sink the price to the $120 to $110 support zone. Buyers are expected to defend the support zone aggressively because a break and close below it could resume the downtrend toward $80.The 50-day SMA ($153) is the critical overhead resistance to watch out for. Buyers will have to kick the price above the 50-day SMA to indicate that the SOL/USDT pair may have formed a floor at $110. The pair could then jump to $180.Dogecoin price analysisDogecoin (DOGE) turned down from the 50-day SMA ($0.21) on March 26, indicating that the sentiment remains negative.DOGE/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe flattish 20-day EMA ($0.18) and the RSI just below the midpoint suggest a range-bound action in the near term. The DOGE/USDT pair could swing between $0.14 and the 50-day SMA for some time.If the price turns up from the current level and breaks above the 50-day SMA, it will signal that the bulls are trying to form a higher low. That increases the possibility of a break above the 50-day SMA. The pair may ascend to $0.24 and later to $0.29.Cardano price analysisCardano’s (ADA) failure to sustain above the 50-day SMA ($0.75) may have attracted profit booking by short-term buyers.ADA/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe ADA/USDT pair could slip to the uptrend line, where the buyers are expected to step in. If the price rebounds off the uptrend line, the bulls will again attempt to drive the pair above the 50-day SMA. If they succeed, the pair may rise to $0.84 and then to $1.02.Contrarily, a break and close below the uptrend line suggests that the bears have overpowered the bulls. The pair may drop to the $0.58 to $0.50 support zone, which is likely to attract buyers.Related: XRP price may drop another 40% as Trump tariffs spook risk tradersToncoin price analysisToncoin (TON) turned up from the 20-day EMA ($3.54) on March 26 and reached the overhead resistance of $4.14 on March 27.TON/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe upsloping 20-day EMA and the RSI in the positive territory indicate advantage to buyers. If the price turns up from the current level or the 20-day EMA, it increases the likelihood of a break above $4.14. That opens the doors for a rise to $5.This positive view will be invalidated in the near term if the price breaks below the moving averages. There is minor support at $3.32, but if the level cracks, the TON/USDT pair could slide to $2.81.Chainlink price analysisChainlink (LINK) turned down from the 50-day SMA ($15.96) on March 28 and broke below the 20-day EMA ($14.76), indicating that bears are selling on rallies.LINK/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewIf the price sustains below the 20-day EMA, the bears will try to strengthen their position by pulling the LINK/USDT pair toward the support line. A break and close below the support line could sink the pair to $10.Buyers are likely to have other plans. They will try to quickly arrest the decline and push the price above the 50-day SMA. If they manage to do that, the pair could climb to $17.70 and subsequently to the resistance line.Avalanche price analysisAvalanche (AVAX) failed to sustain above the 50-day SMA ($21.93), signaling that the bears are active at higher levels.AVAX/USDT daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewThe 20-day EMA ($20.51) is the critical support to watch out for. If the price closes below the 20-day EMA, the AVAX/USDT pair could skid to $18. Buyers are expected to defend the $18 level, but if the bears prevail, the pair could retest the critical support at $15.27.The first sign of strength will be a break and close above the 50-day SMA. That suggests solid buying at lower levels. The pair may then attempt a rally to the $25.12 to $27.23 overhead resistance zone.This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

by Cointelegraph by Christopher Tepedino on March 28, 2025 at 5:22 pm

Terraform Labs — the company behind LUNA (LUNA) and algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD (UST) — will launch its crypto loss claims portal on March 31. The portal is aimed at reimbursing individuals who lost at least $100 due to the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in 2022.The move follows a Delaware court’s approval for Terraform Labs to wind down operations. The judge overseeing the case agreed with Terraform Labs’ bankruptcy plan, calling it a “welcome alternative” to further litigation over investor losses. Terraform Labs settled with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June 2024 for $4.47 billion.To be eligible for reimbursement, claimants must submit a claim and supporting documentation through the crypto loss claims portal by 11:59 pm ET on April 30. Claims under $100 will not be accepted. There are two types of evidence that claimants can submit: manual and preferred. Manual evidence includes transaction logs, account statements, and screenshots. Preferred evidence refers to read-only API keys. It is considered preferred for being the most accurate and reliable data, especially for users of major exchanges. In its announcement, Terraform Labs warned that claims submitted with manual evidence “will likely be subject to a protracted review process” and may be disallowed if preferred evidence is also available. The company estimates it could pay from $184.5 million to $442.2 million to investors and stakeholders, though it noted that the total amount of eligible crypto losses remains difficult to determine.Terraform Labs’ fall from graceIn June 2024, Terraform Labs announced that it would cease operations and transfer control of the Terra blockchain to its community. The entity planned to sell key projects in the Terra ecosystem and burn unvested and vested holdings.Before its dramatic collapse, Terraform Labs presided over a $45 billion ecosystem involving its algorithmic stablecoin and the LUNA token. Do Kwan, the founder of Terraform Labs, was later arrested in Montenegro and extradited to the United States, where the US Justice Department has charged him with eight felonies.The collapse of the Terra ecosystem sent shockwaves through the crypto community. At that time, Bitcoin (BTC) lost 37% of its value in 30 days, falling $19,000.Kwon’s US court hearing has been delayed until April 10 as prosecutors are reviewing a swath of new evidence. Related: Terraform Labs and Do Kwon found liable for fraud in SEC case

by Cointelegraph by Marco Castrovilli on March 28, 2025 at 5:00 pm

For years, Cardano (ADA) has been a cornerstone of the crypto landscape, consistently ranking among the top digital assets by market capitalization. Yet, despite its prominence, ADA’s performance has left many investors questioning its long-term prospects. While it recently made headlines for being included in US President Donald Trump’s initial proposal for a national crypto stockpile, its price action and onchain activity tell a different story — one that has even led some critics to brand it a “zombie.”Recent findings suggest that the ecosystem behind ADA, the Cardano network, lags significantly behind in decentralized finance (DeFi) adoption. With only a fraction of the total value locked (TVL) compared with Ethereum and Solana, Cardano struggles to attract liquidity and stablecoin activity.While some argue that its DeFi sector is still in its early stages, several newer blockchains have outpaced it in user engagement and trading volume. The question now is whether upcoming developments can reverse the trend.With key catalysts on the horizon, such as a potential ADA exchange-traded fund (ETF) and its emerging role in Bitcoin’s DeFi ecosystem, 2025 could be a pivotal year for ADA. But will these developments be enough to turn the tide?To uncover the full story and explore the current state of Cardano's native token, watch the full video now on the Cointelegraph YouTube channel!

by Cointelegraph by Biraajmaan Tamuly on March 28, 2025 at 4:56 pm

After a positive start to the week, Bitcoin price reverted to negative returns after BTC (BTC) dropped 3.5% to an intraday low of $84,120 on March 28. The price rejection occurred at the cusp of the descending trendline (black) and the upper range of the ascending channel pattern.Bitcoin 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewOn the daily chart, BTC is currently below the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA) again, and a potential close below the key indicator might trigger further downside.  Global liquidity expansion could help Bitcoin price Recent analysis from macroeconomic market analyst Capital Flows pointed out that Bitcoin could correct to the $72,000-$75,000 region if liquidity conditions remain unchanged. Macro liquidity refers to the total capital available in the financial system that can easily flow into risk-on assets like equities and crypto but is influenced by factors like interest rates, US Federal Reserve policies and market conditions.According to Capital Flows, Bitcoin is exhibiting a “greater convergence” with traditional risk assets, but it remains at the periphery of the risk curve. This implies that for capital to flow back into BTC, investors’ mindset must shift from focusing on less risky assets, such as bonds, to riskier assets like BTC or low-quality banks in the Russell index. The researcher said, “Broadly speaking right now, the macro liquidity backdrop is neutral. Rates have come down marginally, but the carry trade continues to create risk for assets.”On the contrary, other analysts have pointed out that the rise of the Global M2 money supply could potentially trigger a BTC rally. The Global Liquidity chart, which monitors M2 growth from major central banks, has historically formed a correlation with Bitcoin's price movements. Bitcoin and Global M2 Money supply correlation. Source: X.comColin Talks Crypto, a crypto commentator, said that the predictive correlation between M2 supply and BTC indicates a BTC rally around May 1, which might last two months.However, the key difference between macro liquidity and global M2 growth is that while M2 measures total money supply, macro liquidity highlights the ease at which capital can flow into risk assets. For context, even if the M2 money supply rises, macro liquidity might remain the same if the money is allocated to low-risk assets. In light of that, Capital Flows said, “The quantity of money in the system isn’t expanding like it used to.”Related: Why is Bitcoin price down today?Bitcoin fills sub-$85K CME gapBitcoin’s recent rally created a CME gap between $84,435 and $85,000. The CME Bitcoin futures gap indicates the difference between the closing price of BTC CME futures on Friday and the opening price on Sunday evening. The gaps get filled most of the time, and traders approach these levels from the point of resistance or support, depending on the market structure. Bitcoin CME gap chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewAs illustrated in the chart, BTC price filled the CME gap before its daily close on March 28, which can lead to a short-term bounce. The CME gap is also aligned with a retest of the lower range of the ongoing ascending channel pattern, as mentioned earlier. However, crypto trader HTL-NL pointed out the possibility of a long-term correction below, forming new lows in 2025. The trader showed immediate support at $76,700, which might be a minor retest region before prices drop below $74,000. Likewise, Crypto Chase, a technical analyst, noted that it is a “do or die” situation for Bitcoin. In an X post, the trader said, “Either holds this FVG / 2 weeks ago high at 8527,0 or it fails, and I'll look for a short on retest targeting build up liq near 80K.”Bitcoin 1-day analysis by Crypto Chase. Source: X.comThis article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.