BNB AI News by ChainGPT

Maxine Waters presses Kansas City Fed after Kraken granted Fed access, demands answers House Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Rep. Maxine Waters has formally challenged the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City over its recent approval of a “limited purpose account” for Kraken, pushing the regional Fed to explain what it actually means to give a crypto firm direct access to the Fed’s payment system. In a letter to Kansas City Fed President and CEO Jeff Schmid, Waters — the top Democrat on the committee — asked for details about the practical implications of the decision “at a time when Congress has debated whether or not to expand access to the Fed’s payment rails and on what terms.” She asked that the Fed provide information by April 10, 2026 on which Federal Reserve services Kraken can access, any conditions or restrictions attached, and the prudential, anti-money-laundering (AML) and consumer protection considerations weighed before approval. Why this matters Kraken Financial — Kraken’s banking arm — recently became the first crypto company to obtain direct access to the Fed’s core payments infrastructure after the Kansas City Fed approved a Fed master account for the firm. That authorization gives Kraken Financial the ability to settle payments more quickly for large clients and professional traders and provides direct access to Fedwire, the interbank transfer system that processes more than $4 trillion a day. Until now, crypto firms like Kraken relied on intermediary banks to move funds on their behalf. Regulatory and policy questions The Kansas City Fed’s announcement withheld specifics, citing the confidentiality of applicant business information. But Waters flagged a broader governance issue: neither statute nor the Federal Reserve Board’s Account Access Guidelines use the term “limited purpose account,” raising questions about the legal basis and precedent for this type of access. She called access to the nation’s core payments rails a “significant public responsibility” that “should not be extended without full transparency, clear legal grounding, and confidence that risks will be properly managed.” Pushback from traditional banking groups Waters’ letter echoes growing concerns from legacy banks and industry groups. Banking organizations argue that allowing fintechs and crypto firms direct — even restricted — access to the Fed could pose risks to the U.S. payments system and overall financial stability. Last month the American Bankers Association urged the primary banking regulator to delay approvals of crypto bank charters until regulatory uncertainties are resolved. Broader regulatory backdrop Kraken’s “limited” master account resembles the “skinny” master account concept proposed by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in October 2025 — a restricted account model intended to let payment fintechs and crypto firms tap Fed payment systems while excluding privileges tied to traditional banking, such as access to the discount window. The debates over where to draw the line between bank-like privileges and limited payment access have intensified as other regulatory moves unfolded: in December, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency approved conditional bank charters for Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Paxos, and Fidelity, moves critics say could blur the line between banking and nonbank payment services and enable regulatory arbitrage. What’s next Waters’ request forces the Kansas City Fed to clarify on record what Kraken can and cannot do with its new Fed access and how regulators evaluated risks. The response — due by April 10, 2026 — will be closely watched by crypto firms eyeing deeper integration with traditional payments infrastructure, banks worried about competition and systemic risks, and lawmakers weighing whether to formalize broader Fed access for nonbank payment providers. For the crypto industry, Kraken’s approval is a milestone; for regulators and lawmakers, it opens a new front in the debate over how to safely integrate fast-moving financial innovation into core national infrastructure. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Ripple has begun piloting its RLUSD stablecoin inside the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s BLOOM sandbox, kicking off a test designed to speed up and automate cross-border payments using blockchain technology. The MAS BLOOM environment today relies heavily on manual payment processes and interdepartmental checks that slow settlements. Ripple says RLUSD — settled on the immutable XRP Ledger — could replace many of those paper-based steps and act as a single correspondent for banking counterparties, enabling faster, automated settlement flows and programmable payment logic. BLOOM is MAS’s initiative to expand settlement capabilities for tokenized bank liabilities and regulated stablecoins. Ripple confirmed it has entered the pilot phase there, though both the company and MAS have not disclosed an end date. The sandbox is tightly regulated, so RLUSD must meet Singapore’s compliance, programmability and oversight requirements before any broader rollout. If the pilot clears regulators, it would be one of Ripple’s biggest strategic wins this year and keep attention on XRP’s role in modernizing payment rails. The move also fits Ripple’s wider expansion push — the company is deepening its presence in Singapore and Brazil and is positioning its tech to modernize cross-border payment infrastructure in parts of Africa and beyond. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

AAVE slips 3.2% as CoinDesk 20 falls 2.4% The CoinDesk 20 index dropped to 1,912.59, down 2.4% (−47.98 points) since 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, with nearly every constituent in the red. Only one of the 20 assets was trading higher. - Lone gainer: Bitcoin Cash (BCH) +0.8% - Best-performing loser: Crypto.com Coin (CRO) −0.7% - Biggest decliners: Aptos (APT) −4.6% and AAVE −3.2% The CoinDesk 20 is a broad-based index that’s tracked and traded across multiple platforms around the world. Stay tuned for further intraday moves as markets react. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

A federal judge has blocked the Pentagon from branding Anthropic as a national security/supply-chain threat, finding that the military’s campaign against the AI company violated Anthropic’s First Amendment and due process rights. What happened - U.S. District Judge Rita Lin (Northern District of California) issued a preliminary injunction after a brief hearing, saying the government’s actions amounted to impermissible retaliation. “Nothing in the governing statute supports the Orwellian notion that an American company may be branded a potential adversary and saboteur of the U.S. for expressing disagreement with the government,” Judge Lin wrote. - The ruling follows an internal record that critics say undercuts the Pentagon’s case. Andrew Rossow, CEO of AR Media Consulting, told Decrypt the designation was “triggered by press conduct, not a security analysis” and called the government’s motive “retaliation.” The dispute in brief - In July 2025, the Department of War’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office awarded Anthropic a two-year, $200 million contract to deploy its Claude model on the GenAI.Mil platform. Negotiations collapsed when Anthropic insisted on two usage limits: Claude not be used for mass surveillance of Americans and not be used for lethal autonomous weapons, arguing the model was not safe for those applications. - At a February 24 meeting, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth demanded Anthropic drop those restrictions by February 27 or face an immediate supply-chain designation. Anthropic refused. - On February 27, President Trump posted on Truth Social directing federal agencies to “immediately cease” using Anthropic’s tech and labeled the company a “radical left, woke company.” Shortly after, Hegseth called Anthropic’s stance a “master class in arrogance and betrayal,” ordering contractors doing business with the military not to commercially work with Anthropic. - A formal supply-chain designation letter followed on March 3. Anthropic sued on March 9, alleging First Amendment retaliation, due process violations, and breaches of the Administrative Procedure Act. The court’s order and immediate effects - Judge Lin’s order — stayed for seven days and requiring a compliance report by April 6 — blocks the three government actions and restores the status quo ante (i.e., the situation before February 27). She wrote that “punishing Anthropic for bringing public scrutiny to the government's contracting position is classic illegal First Amendment retaliation.” - The “supply chain risk” label has historically been reserved for foreign intelligence services, terrorist groups, and other hostile actors; it had never before been applied to a domestic company. In the weeks after the label was threatened, defense contractors reportedly began reassessing or terminating relationships with Anthropic. Reactions and implications - Critics say the government’s internal paperwork essentially documented its motive, making the case vulnerable. Rossow described the move as “weaponization” of the supply-chain statute and warned that accepting the government’s theory would create a dangerous precedent: private firms could be blacklisted for adopting safety policies the government dislikes “before any harm occurs,” without due process. - Others see a different, potentially constructive effect. Pichapen Prateepavanich, founder of infrastructure firm Gather Beyond, told Decrypt the ruling could push AI vendors to formalize ethical guardrails when working with governments and shows companies can set clear usage limits without automatically triggering punitive regulatory action — though she added the broader tension between safety priorities and government demands remains. Why crypto readers should care - The case sets an important precedent about government leverage over private tech vendors and the limits on labeling companies as security risks. For crypto and blockchain infrastructure providers—custodians, oracles, node operators, and others that often sit between private actors and government contracts—the ruling signals that political or contractual disputes can’t easily be escalated into blacklisting without running afoul of constitutional protections. It also highlights how safety or ethical guardrails demanded by providers could become flashpoints in procurement talks. Bottom line Judge Lin’s injunction restores Anthropic’s position for now and curtails a government action that had no prior domestic analogue. The ruling may curb the ability of federal agencies to use supply-chain designations as a punitive tool in contractual disputes, but it also underscores the unresolved tension between national-security demands and private-sector safety policies—tension that will matter for AI vendors and infrastructure providers across tech and crypto. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

ZachXBT blasts religion-themed $LAMB presale as a 2026 “grift” Blockchain investigator ZachXBT publicly called out a religion-themed token presale on March 26, accusing the project behind $LAMB of “grifting religion” to sell access to a paid community. The post on X (formerly Twitter) — which questioned whether “grifting religion to promote a crypto token presale for a glorified paid group is still a viable strategy in 2026” — quickly went viral, drawing tens of thousands of views and sparking a wave of ridicule and scrutiny across crypto social channels. What happened - Project: $LAMB, launched by YoungHoon Kim (who lists himself on X as “IQ 276” and founder of @LAMB276_X). - Announcement: Kim posted about the presale on March 25, saying he was launching “my mission token to build churches across the world where Jesus Christ alone is Lord. Every profit belongs to His Kingdom because Jesus Christ is Lord.” That announcement reportedly reached 176,000 views and 1,000 likes. - Presale mechanics: Offered via Fjord Foundry (a decentralized launchpad), contract 0x019E1f53Bf2EA52558c33feD363b491362c0d533. At the time of ZachXBT’s callout the presale had raised about $51,910 with a token price of $0.246, a stated liquidity pool of $1.837 million, and a fully diluted valuation of roughly $6.804 million. - Token supply and messaging: The total supply was set at 276,000,000 tokens — a number matching Kim’s self-styled IQ — and the sale was framed as a “final sale” before a broader community rollout. Promotional materials featured language such as “LAMB IS THE HEARTBEAT OF OUR COMMUNITY,” and even listed Conor McGregor (described on the materials as a “5-time World Champion”) as an advisor. Red flags flagged by ZachXBT and community ZachXBT alleged that much of the engagement around the presale looked artificial, asking rhetorically whether the announcement’s activity was “botted.” He pointed to recycled marketing copy and a playbook he’s seen in prior fraud investigations: identity-backed launches that trade on cultural or religious credibility to drive early retail demand. A commenter noted the site’s phrasing echoed historical crypto scams, while others summarized community sentiment bluntly: “He’s using the prophet for profit!” Context and pattern This callout is consistent with ZachXBT’s recent work exposing coordinated manipulation and abuse in crypto markets. Earlier in March 2026 he disclosed a network of accounts using geopolitical panic to drive pump-and-dump schemes, and he also accused staff at crypto platform Axiom of misusing internal tools for insider advantage. The $LAMB situation fits a broader pattern of celebrity- and identity-backed token sales that use social engineering to attract retail buyers. Background on Kim and the project Kim markets himself as a No. 1 Amazon bestselling author in Christian Apologetics and a Mensa member. His past crypto price predictions — including Bitcoin to $276,000 and XRP hitting triple digits — have not materialized within the timelines he suggested. The project had previously operated on Solana before the current presale on Ethereum. Why it matters The $LAMB episode highlights two recurring vulnerabilities in retail crypto markets in 2026: the use of identity or cultural authority to sell tokens, and artificially amplified social engagement to manufacture trust. Investigators and community watchdogs continue to flag those tactics as consistently effective for bad actors — and increasingly obvious to skeptical traders and on-chain sleuths. Read more about crypto scams and how to spot presale red flags on our platform. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Blockchain sleuth ZachXBT publicly slammed a religion-themed token presale this week, calling it a “religion-wrapped grift” and prompting fresh scrutiny of identity-driven crypto launches. What happened - On March 25 YoungHoon Kim — who presents himself on X as “IQ 276” and the founder of @LAMB276_X — announced a presale for $LAMB, a token he said will “build churches across the world where Jesus Christ alone is Lord,” with “every profit” destined for “His Kingdom.” The announcement, posted via Fjord Foundry (contract 0x019E1f53Bf2EA52558c33feD363b491362c0d533), accumulated roughly 176,000 views and 1,000 likes. - By the time investigator ZachXBT called the project out on March 26, the presale had reportedly raised $51,910. Public token metrics show a presale price of $0.246, a liquidity pool of $1.837 million and a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of about $6.804 million. Why it raised alarms - ZachXBT accused the project of “grifting religion to promote a crypto token presale for a glorified paid group,” and suggested the engagement spike around the announcement was bot-driven. His X post attracted tens of thousands of views and thousands of interactions, fueling a wave of mockery and skepticism across crypto Twitter. - Observers flagged a number of red flags: marketing language described $LAMB as “the heartbeat of our community,” site copy seemingly lifted from prior scams, and the token’s total supply (276,000,000) mirrors Kim’s advertised IQ. Promotional materials also listed Conor McGregor — called a “5-time World Champion” in the project literature — as an advisor. - Kim markets himself as a No. 1 Amazon bestselling author in Christian apologetics and a Mensa member; critics pointed out past price predictions from Kim (Bitcoin to $276,000, XRP to triple digits) that have not materialized within the forecasts’ timelines. The project previously operated on Solana and has moved this presale to Ethereum. Context and pushback - Community reactions ranged from sarcastic to blunt. ZachXBT quipped, “Is botted engagement on a presale announcement considered high IQ?” and later mocked, “guess us plebs cannot possibly understand the grander vision since we’re not 276 IQ.” User @patty_fi summarized the sentiment: “He’s using the prophet for profit!” - ZachXBT is a prominent flagger of alleged market abuse; earlier in March he exposed a coordinated network that used geopolitical panic to drive pump-and-dump token flows (on-chain evidence suggested six-figure proceeds), and he publicly accused employees at trading platform Axiom of misusing internal tools for potential insider profits. Why this matters - The $LAMB episode fits a larger pattern: projects leaning on celebrity names, religious or cultural credibility, and slick marketing to drive retail interest. Industry watchers warn that social engineering and identity-based manipulation remain recurring and effective vectors for retail crypto fraud in 2026. - The presale’s contract address and on-chain metrics are public; investors can verify activity themselves. Neither ZachXBT nor other critics have presented legal proof of criminality — their role here is calling attention to patterns and anomalies that merit caution. Bottom line The $LAMB presale has become a lightning rod for debate about ethics, marketing and manipulation in token launches. Whether this project will follow through on its stated mission — or whether it’s another iteration of a familiar playbook — remains to be seen. Investors should exercise caution, verify on-chain data, and treat identity- and religion-backed pitches with extra skepticism. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Will Taylor (@Cryptoinsightuk) says a slide toward $0.078 could offer Dogecoin’s best risk/reward in over two years — and he’s ready to buy. On March 25 Taylor posted that he’s watching for a dip to roughly $0.078, calling it “the best R/R we’ve seen since October 2023” and saying he would “buy a decent size” at that level. His analysis, backed by charts, is conditional rather than bullish-by-default: he’s not claiming a breakout has already occurred, but argues several technical signals converge around that zone. Why $0.078 matters - Multiple technical factors overlap near $0.078: a prior accumulation zone, a high-volume trading area on the volume profile, and the lower boundary of a long-running pennant-like range. - Weekly RSI is “compressed,” Taylor notes — an indication downside momentum may be easing rather than accelerating. - For technicians, that kind of confluence can mark a price region where buyers previously stepped in, increasing the odds of a bounce if support holds. Asymmetry and upside potential Taylor emphasizes the asymmetry of the setup: playing a rebound within the range could, in his view, produce outsized returns. He points to a chart projection that maps roughly a 300–348% move from the lower support to the range’s upper boundary if DOGE reclaims and rallies from that area. He describes the trade as “great for a spot buy technically” while still planning “a few stabs” rather than an all-in. A cautionary note Taylor’s thesis is explicitly conditional — it depends on DOGE holding the lower support and losing further downside momentum. It is not a guaranteed outcome, merely a trade framework based on technical overlap and market structure. Market snapshot At press time DOGE traded around $0.09. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Cardano has slipped out of the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization as its native token ADA comes under renewed downside pressure. On‑chain analytics paint a stark picture of investor pain: average Cardano wallets are sitting roughly 43% underwater over the past 12 months, according to Santiment — a backdrop that's feeding bearish sentiment and raising the risk of further falls toward new multi‑year lows. On‑chain losses and what they mean Santiment’s data shows the average active wallet on Cardano is carrying about a -43% return, reflecting widespread unrealized losses across the ecosystem. ADA has relinquished roughly 74% of the gains it posted after peaking at $1.19 in January 2025. That mix of high entry prices and an extended downtrend has pressured holders: small wins prompt immediate profit taking, while many weaker hands have already rotated out. MVRV, accumulation and whale activity The token’s MVRV (Market Value to Realized Value) metric has plunged into negative territory — a sign that, on average, selling current holdings would lock in losses for investors. While negative MVRV often accompanies capitulation, it can also set the stage for longer‑term accumulation. Santiment notes this dynamic on X, arguing that severely negative average returns can precede a market turnaround as weak hands exit and stronger hands build positions. There are early signs of that process: on‑chain flows suggest longer‑term holders and whales have been stepping in to buy dips, taking advantage of discounted ADA levels. Technical view and key levels Technically, ADA remains in a broad downtrend that started after the 2025 peak. Bulls have repeatedly failed to clear supply around $0.30–$0.33, making those levels key resistance. The lack of sustained upside has kept the market structure tilted toward sellers. Still, several indicators hint a bounce could be possible: negative MVRV combined with oversold readings on traditional oscillators suggests the market may be near a short‑term inflection point. If momentum shifts, $0.33 is the breakout level to watch; upside targets noted by analysts include $0.50 and $0.75. On the downside, $0.22 is highlighted as a crucial demand/reload zone where buyers might step in more aggressively. Outlook The current environment is sentiment‑driven: average wallets are under pressure and short‑term participants have largely exited, but an improving macro crypto market and continued accumulation by long‑term holders could catalyze a recovery. For now, ADA remains vulnerable until it reclaims and holds the $0.30–$0.33 area, yet the same on‑chain signals that have amplified downside also point to where a sustainable rebound could begin. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Global markets are jittery as the US-Iran conflict escalates, pushing equities lower and sending energy prices higher. Major Asian indexes opened sharply down, with South Korea’s market plunging more than 6% as investors price in the risk of prolonged disruptions to oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Why it matters: the Strait of Hormuz is a critical chokepoint for global oil flows. Concerns that it could be closed for an extended period have amplified fears of an energy squeeze across Asia and beyond, fueling volatility across equities, commodities and safe-haven assets. Where equities stand: the S&P 500 has fallen roughly 5% since the outbreak of the conflict and is now about 15 trading days into the sell-off. US futures opened lower amid fresh rhetoric from Washington, with benchmark futures down around 0.6–0.7% at the open. At the same time, crude oil futures rose—WTI by about 2% and Brent by about 1.5%—while gold briefly dropped roughly 2.5%. Historical context suggests opportunity: analysts at the Kobeissi Letter note that across more than 30 major geopolitical shocks since 1939, US stocks have tended to bottom around the 15th trading day on average. After that typical trough, the average recovery has taken about 40 trading days to reach pre-event levels. Based on that pattern, the current sell-off is tracking closely with the historical median and average paths, which some investors interpret as a potential buying window. Market reaction and risks: the headlines driving markets include threats to Iranian infrastructure and tight deadlines for reopening the Hormuz route, which have stoked fresh downside in equities and upside in oil. That combination—heightened geopolitical risk, rising energy prices and equity weakness—creates a volatile environment that can present discounted entry points but also carries significant downside if the conflict deepens. What this means for crypto traders: risk assets often move in tandem during major shocks. Crypto markets can react to the same liquidity and risk-on/risk-off flows affecting stocks and commodities. Traders looking for buy-the-dip opportunities should weigh historical patterns against the unusually fluid geopolitical backdrop and elevated volatility. Bottom line: while history shows markets can rebound after geopolitical shocks—often beginning near the two-week mark—this event’s energy and geopolitical dynamics make outcomes uncertain. Investors and crypto traders should prepare for continued volatility and consider risk management if positioning for any potential rebound. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Tom Lee used the stage at Hong Kong’s 3rd Futu Expo (March 13–14) to make a bullish, data-driven case that Ethereum may already be at — or very close to — a cyclical bottom. What he argued - Lee said Bitmine advisor and veteran market-timer Tom DeMark found a striking similarity between Ethereum’s recent price action and two major S&P 500 selloffs: the 1987 crash and the 2011 decline. According to DeMark’s mapping, Ethereum’s pattern shows a 93% correlation with the 1987 move and also lines up with the 2011 bottom. - If the 1987 analog is the right model, Lee said ETH had already bottomed on March 7; if the 2011 analog is the better fit, the market is bottoming now. Either way, his takeaway: “we think we’re at the bottom or exiting the crypto winter now.” On-chain evidence Lee highlighted - He pointed to Ethereum’s realized price — an on-chain metric that approximates the average acquisition cost of coins based on when they last moved on-chain — which he said sits at $2,241. - Using realized price as a baseline, Lee noted prior exhaustion levels: in 2022 ETH fell to a roughly 39% discount to realized price; in 2025 that discount reached about 21% before a rebound. “Currently, we’re at 22%,” he said, putting today’s drawdown in the same zone where last year’s reversal began. By that metric, the selloff could be reaching exhaustion. Why it matters - Lee’s argument blends chart analogs with on-chain cost-basis data to claim the market has reached the kind of holder “pain” that historically marks cycle lows — suggesting a bottom may not require a pristine macro backdrop or a new narrative cycle to form. Long-term context - Lee also reminded the audience of Ethereum’s decade-long outperformance: “In the last 10 years, Ethereum’s return is 49,000%,” he said — roughly 490x — and contrasted that with Bitcoin’s 11,000% and Nvidia’s ~65x over the same period. Market snapshot - At press time ETH traded at $2,147. Lee’s thesis will likely invite debate: pattern-matching to past crashes and realized-price thresholds are popular but not definitive signals. Still, his presentation — pairing DeMark’s historical analogs with on-chain cost-basis data — gives bulls a clear framework to argue that the worst of the selloff may be behind Ethereum. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Crypto fear returns as Bitcoin sheds $75K spike, market braces for volatility Investor sentiment has swung back to “Extreme Fear” after Bitcoin gave up the brief rally that pushed it above $75,000 earlier this week. CoinGecko data shows BTC trading around $69,340 on Thursday, down roughly 3% over the past 24 hours after touching an intraday low below $69,000. The mood shift is reflected in Alternative.me’s Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which moved from “Fear” into “Extreme Fear.” That gauge aggregates signals such as social media activity, trading volumes and volatility to quantify market sentiment. Despite the pessimism, prediction-market traders are betting on a recovery. On Myriad — the prediction market run by Decrypt’s parent company — participants assign a 59% probability that CoinMarketCap’s Fear & Greed Index will climb from its current value of 28 to about 55 (a “Neutral” reading). By contrast, there’s a 41% chance markets slide further into “Extreme Fear” (a reading of 5). The roller-coaster isn’t unprecedented. In February both major Fear & Greed measures were at or near all-time lows while Bitcoin traded below $63,000, and Google Trends showed searches for “Bitcoin going to zero” and “Is Bitcoin dead?” hit their highest points since 2022. Some analysts warn lower prices may still be ahead. Standard Chartered has said Bitcoin could dip to $50,000 before reclaiming $100,000, and CryptoQuant’s analysis of past bear-market patterns points to an “ultimate bear market bottom” near $55,000. Looking ahead, Myriad predictors are roughly split on the next big move for BTC: an upside target around $84,000 or a downside to $55,000. Notably, the market’s chance of the $84,000 outcome fell by over 10% in a single day, underscoring how quickly trader expectations can shift. Bottom line: Bitcoin’s recent pullback has reset sentiment to fear, but prediction markets and analysts remain divided — leaving traders braced for continued volatility. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Headline: A New Protocol Wants to Put DeFi Directly on Bitcoin’s Base Layer — No Bridges, No Wrapped BTC A protocol launching this week is attempting something many in crypto have long debated: run decentralized finance natively on Bitcoin’s base layer. The project, OP_NET, says it can enable trading, token issuance and other DeFi primitives through ordinary Bitcoin transactions — keeping liquidity on Bitcoin itself rather than routing it through sidechains, bridges or wrapped tokens. “We were seeing pitch decks for all these so‑called layer‑two solutions, and none of them were appealing to us as investors,” Chad Master, OP_NET co‑founder and chief business officer, told Decrypt. “When you really break it down, 99% of the solutions that have come across so far have been extractive to Bitcoin.” Most current “Bitcoin DeFi” products require users to bridge BTC to another chain or create synthetic representations like Ethereum’s Wrapped_BTC. OP_NET says it takes a different path. How OP_NET says it works - Instead of moving coins off‑chain or wrapping them, OP_NET embeds smart‑contract interactions into standard Bitcoin transactions. - The team uses Bitcoin’s native scripting to create a new address that “holds the contract” as its first transaction. Users submit contract call data as part of regular Bitcoin transactions; that data is carried and confirmed by miners like any other on‑chain action. - A distributed set of OP_NET nodes scans Bitcoin blocks for contract data, executes the associated logic inside a virtual machine, and compares results across nodes to maintain consensus. Crucially, transaction settlement stays on Bitcoin — there is no separate gas token. “When we deploy a contract, we're using Bitcoin’s native scripting to generate a new address that holds the contract as the first transaction within that address,” Master explained. “Users, when interacting with that smart contract, send their contract call data through a Bitcoin transaction. The contract call data is embedded within the Bitcoin transaction.” Why this matters — and how it relates to Ordinals Smart contracts — self‑executing programs that run when conditions are met — were popularized by Ethereum, which was designed for complex programmable logic. Bitcoin’s design has emphasized simple, secure transfers rather than general‑purpose apps. But experimentation in 2023 with Ordinals — a method of inscribing images, video and data into Bitcoin transactions using SegWit and Taproot witness fields — showed developers could put a lot more payload into Bitcoin than previously assumed. OP_NET’s co‑founder and CEO Danny Plainview says the project builds on those Ordinals experiments while addressing their limitations. Ordinals typically rely on off‑chain indexers to track and interpret inscription data. OP_NET, by contrast, claims to introduce a consensus layer among indexers that collectively track and validate contract execution — “the first indexing protocol that has a consensus mechanism between the indexers that does not require a separate gas token,” Plainview told Decrypt. “It became very clear that there is no gas token for this stuff — everything is paid in Bitcoin, everything is a Bitcoin transaction,” Plainview said. He added that widening Bitcoin’s utility is important to the network’s future: “We think Bitcoiners should be allowed to do anything they want with it — if you can dream it, you can build it.” What to watch OP_NET’s approach aims to preserve Bitcoin-native liquidity and avoid some of the security and custodial trade‑offs of bridges and wrapped assets. But embedding programmability into Bitcoin transactions and coordinating off‑chain execution across a node network raises questions about performance, miner incentives, and how the system will scale and secure complex financial logic over time. The protocol’s launch this week will be watched closely by developers and investors curious whether Bitcoin can host truly native DeFi — or whether the cracks will push activity back to dedicated smart‑contract chains. Either way, OP_NET’s experiment is a notable step in the long‑running debate over how far Bitcoin’s base layer can be pushed beyond money. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Bitcoin slid back under $70,000 on Thursday as a spike in energy prices and a Fed pause dented risk appetite across markets. The largest cryptocurrency traded around $69,278, dipping as low as $69,600—about a 1.6% decline since midnight UTC. Ether mirrored the weakness, falling roughly 1.7% to $2,160. Energy moves were a key driver. Brent crude climbed to about $114 a barrel and Oman crude approached $150, while European natural gas futures jumped roughly 25% to above $78 per MWh. Those moves followed reports of Iranian attacks on Gulf energy infrastructure after an Israeli strike on the South Pars gas field, stoking supply concerns and driving a broad commodity rally. Monetary policy also played a role. The Federal Reserve kept rates unchanged at 3.50%–3.75% on Wednesday, effectively pausing a planned rate-cutting cycle—an outcome that strengthened the U.S. dollar and undercut risk assets. Equity-linked instruments reflected the shift: Nasdaq 100 futures were down about 0.3% since midnight UTC. The combination of energy-driven inflation fears and a less dovish Fed stance pressured both equities and crypto, leaving bitcoin and ether softer as traders reassess risk exposure. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Headline: Australian Senate Committee backs bill to fold crypto custodians and exchanges into financial-services rules The Senate Economics Legislation Committee has thrown its weight behind the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025, in a report published Monday, setting the stage for a major update to how Australia supervises crypto platforms and custody providers. What the bill does - The draft law would amend the Corporations Act 2001 and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 to create a licensing and compliance regime for digital token managers. - Rather than regulating blockchains themselves, the framework targets firms that hold digital assets on behalf of customers—bringing custodians, exchanges and other token managers squarely under established financial-services rules. - If passed, businesses that do not already hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) would have six months to obtain authorization and meet the new compliance requirements. Why it matters - The committee framed the Bill as a modernization of digital-asset oversight that layers traditional market safeguards onto crypto services, with consumer protection as a central objective. - For industry participants, the changes promise clearer legal status and standards for custody and trading services; for regulators and users, they aim to reduce operational and counterparty risk by applying familiar supervision and disclosure obligations. Existing obligations - Crypto exchanges operating in Australia are already required to register with the country’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, as digital currency providers before offering exchange services—this Bill would add a parallel licensing/compliance overlay specific to financial-services regulation. Next steps - The committee’s endorsement advances the Bill through the parliamentary process, but it must still be passed by both houses and receive royal assent before becoming law. If enacted, the six-month compliance clock would begin for firms without an AFSL. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Headline: Arthur Hayes Says Real Trading, Strong Revenue Could Push HYPE to $150 Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes told CoinDesk’s Jennifer Sanasie on Markets Outlook that Hyperliquid’s native token HYPE could reach $150 if the platform sustains strong revenue and genuine trading activity. Hayes argued Hyperliquid isn’t just another exchange chasing volume with incentives — it’s attracting real users and real flows. Why Hayes is bullish - Real usage over artificial volume: Hayes said Hyperliquid has “separated itself from competing perpetual futures exchanges with real usage rather than incentive-driven volume,” signaling more sustainable growth. - Unique market access: Traders are reportedly using Hyperliquid to access markets they can’t easily reach on traditional platforms, which is driving activity. - Cleaner liquidity signal: According to Hayes, Hyperliquid’s liquidity and trading metrics reflect more authentic market demand compared with many rival decentralized exchanges. Risks and warning signs Hayes warned that an uptick in hype or intensified competition could mark a turning point and present an exit signal for investors — implying the upside depends on continued real adoption, not just narrative momentum. Wider themes Hayes flagged - Privacy projects: Beyond HYPE, Hayes highlighted privacy-focused crypto projects as an emerging narrative to watch. - Bitcoin outlook: He reiterated an aggressive forecast for Bitcoin, maintaining a bullish stance on the market leader. Bottom line: Hayes believes Hyperliquid’s combination of real trading, liquidity metrics, and unique market access could justify a $150 HYPE target — but he cautions that rising hype or stronger rivals could undermine that thesis. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Headline: Binance spot flows show late‑cycle altcoin behavior — winners are liquid, losers are bleeding Binance spot trading data is painting a familiar late‑cycle picture for altcoins: quick mean‑reversion rallies in deeply oversold names, thin liquidity breakouts that reward early entrants, and sharp distribution in previously bid tokens as liquidity exits. Key movers - Mean‑reversion bounces: GTC +7.52%, OGN +5.84%, BANANA +5.03% over the past 24 hours. These moves are recoveries off depressed levels, not signs of a new structural uptrend. - Thin‑liquidity momentum: QTUM +5.34%, RUNE +7.22%, MOVE +6.28% as they pushed to intraday highs. These are the coins that move quickly when a few desks or flows lean one way because there’s just enough liquidity to be pushed through order books. - Distribution and declines: SCR plunged 8.38% intraday (high to low), THETA dropped 9.06% to a new weekly low, and TRX printed a new daily low, down 5.29%. That’s textbook distribution — bids evaporating as the market rotates. What’s actually happening - The “bottoming rebounds” are classic mean‑reversion: assets that were oversold are bouncing, but this isn’t necessarily a rotation into fundamentals or a sustained trend reversal. - Breakouts are concentrated in mid‑cap coins with fragile liquidity profiles, where momentum can be amplified by modest order flow. - The names making new lows show liquidity leaving the market. When previously bid tokens start printing fresh lows while others rally, it’s a sign of reallocation and distribution. Practical takeaways for traders - Treat bottoming rebounds as short‑horizon trades: use tight risk controls, take profits quickly, and avoid “diamond‑hands” thinking. These bounces are order‑flow driven, not proof of durable demand — size positions accordingly. - For coins showing genuine intraday momentum (QTUM, RUNE, MOVE): either buy early and cut quickly if momentum fades, or fade parabolic spikes with a clear invalidation level (especially once funding and spot volumes spike). - For the losers (SCR, THETA, TRX): have a plan — reduce exposure and redeploy capital where the market is paying, or accept the loss and move on. Sitting through distribution without a stop is effectively gifting liquidity to those exiting. Bottom line: Binance spot is once again rewarding nimble, early traders in illiquid names and punishing late chasers. Read the order flow, respect liquidity, and trade with predefined risk rules. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Arthur Hayes says HYPE could hit $150 as Hyperliquid shows “real” demand Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes told CoinDesk Markets Outlook host Jennifer Sanasie that Hyperliquid — and its native token HYPE — is positioned for a big run if the exchange’s revenue and genuine trading activity continue to grow. Hayes argued Hyperliquid has differentiated itself from other perpetual-futures venues by generating organic trading volume rather than relying on incentive-driven turnover. Real usage, not wash volume Hayes pointed to on-chain liquidity and trading metrics that, in his view, reflect authentic market participation. He said traders are increasingly using Hyperliquid to access markets and instruments they can’t easily find on traditional exchanges, driving sustained orderflow rather than temporary spikes from fee rebates or liquidity mining. What could lift HYPE to $150 The thesis hinges on two things Hayes emphasized: continued strong revenue for the platform and persistent, non-incentivized trading. If those trends hold, he believes HYPE’s market value could move substantially higher — he cited a $150 target as a plausible outcome. Risks and exit signals Hayes also warned about potential downside: a surge of speculative hype around HYPE itself or a wave of stronger competition from other platforms could be signals to take profits. In short, rising marketing noise and encroaching rivals would erode the fundamentals he’s watching. Broader themes: privacy projects and Bitcoin Beyond HYPE, Hayes highlighted privacy-focused crypto projects as a growing narrative to watch in the sector. He also reiterated an aggressive outlook on Bitcoin, maintaining bullish expectations for the flagship asset. Takeaway Hayes’ bullish case for Hyperliquid and HYPE rests on measurable, sustained trading activity and platform revenue — not short-term incentive programs. That real-usage argument is the core catalyst he sees for a significant upside, even as he flags competition and speculative frenzy as key risks. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

US prosecutors have urged a federal judge to deny Sam Bankman‑Fried’s bid for a new trial, arguing the disgraced crypto founder has not offered a legal basis to overturn his 2023 conviction in the FTX collapse. In a court filing reported by Bloomberg, prosecutors say Bankman‑Fried’s motion under Rule 33 — which allows judges to order a new trial “in the interest of justice” — fails to show his original trial was unfair or that any newly offered evidence would meaningfully alter the verdict. Bankman‑Fried is currently serving a 25‑year sentence after being convicted on fraud and conspiracy charges tied to the collapse of the exchange in 2022. In February, Bankman‑Fried asked for a retrial on the basis that testimony from former FTX executives, now allegedly newly available, could undercut the government’s portrayal of FTX’s finances. His filing contends that additional witnesses might challenge claims that customer funds were misused, and that the company was insolvent rather than experiencing a temporary liquidity crunch. The motion also alleges that certain testimony at trial was misleading. Prosecutors pushed back forcefully, saying the proposed witnesses either do not constitute genuinely new evidence or would not change the outcome. They pointed to the original trial’s extensive testimony and documentary record, which they say established that billions in customer funds were misappropriated. Based on that record, they conclude there is no justification to reopen the case. The dispute is the latest development in the long‑running legal fallout from FTX’s 2022 implosion — one of the biggest scandals in crypto history — and sets the stage for a judge’s decision on whether the conviction will stand or whether any part of the case will be retried. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Mastercard is ramping up its push into crypto, unveiling a global partnership program that brings together more than 85 payments and finance firms — including Circle, Binance and Ripple — to connect digital-asset payments to Mastercard’s network. In a statement released Wednesday, Mastercard said the initiative’s core aim is to scale digital assets and fold them smoothly into established payment rails. The company is positioning itself as a bridge between legacy payment systems and emerging crypto firms, offering services such as card program support, global merchant acceptance and cross-border settlement to help early-stage projects reach mainstream customers. Who’s on board The program spans a broad mix of players across the ecosystem: SoFi Technologies, Worldpay (Global Payments), PayPal, BitGo, Crypto.com, Gemini, Marqeta, Paxos, Shift4 and many more — over 85 partners in total. Mastercard highlighted that enterprise and institutional use cases (payments, settlement and cross-border flows) are accelerating, creating opportunities to improve how money moves globally. Context and recent activity This move follows a November collaboration in which Mastercard, Ripple, Gemini and WebBank explored settling Gemini Credit Card transactions using Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). That pilot signaled the kinds of settlement innovations Mastercard is now looking to scale across its partner base. Ripple’s regulatory push in Australia Separately, Ripple said Wednesday it plans to obtain an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) — via its proposed acquisition of BC Payments Australia Pty Ltd — to expand its payments business in Australia. Once completed, Ripple says the AFSL will let it offer an end-to-end platform for cross-border transfers to banks, fintechs and enterprises, covering compliance, funding, FX and liquidity management. Binance sues WSJ On the legal front, crypto exchange Binance filed a complaint against The Wall Street Journal over a February 23, 2026 article it says was misleading and defamatory. Dugan Bliss, Binance’s global head of litigation, said the lawsuit is necessary to defend the company against misinformation that has damaged its reputation and business, adding: “This type of reporting erodes trust in the broader industry and undermines the efforts of those who are committed to protecting users and advancing positive innovation.” Market snapshot At the time of writing, XRP traded at $1.38, down about 3% over 24 hours — the second-largest decline among the top ten cryptocurrencies, behind only Dogecoin’s roughly 7% drop. Image/Chart credits: OpenArt; TradingView.com. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

Mastercard is making a bold push into digital assets with a new global partnership program that brings together more than 85 companies across payments and finance — from Circle, Binance and Ripple to PayPal, Crypto.com, Gemini and BitGo. Announced Wednesday, the initiative is designed to “scale digital assets” by linking crypto payments directly into Mastercard’s existing rails, giving early-stage crypto firms access to services like card programs, global merchant acceptance and cross-border settlement. Mastercard frames the program as a bridge between crypto and traditional payments, emphasizing fast-growing enterprise and institutional use cases — payments, settlement and cross-border flows — that could reshape how money moves globally. The move builds on prior collaborations. In November last year, Mastercard worked with Ripple, Gemini and WebBank to test settling Gemini credit card transactions using Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), a pilot aimed at exploring crypto-native settlement options for mainstream card products. Ripple itself had news on Wednesday: the company said it will seek an Australian Financial Services License (AFSL) to expand its payment services Down Under. Ripple plans to obtain the AFSL through a proposed acquisition of BC Payments Australia Pty Ltd — a deal currently going through completion steps. With the license in hand, Ripple says it can offer Australian banks, fintechs and enterprises an end-to-end platform for cross-border value transfer, handling compliance, funding, foreign exchange and liquidity management. Meanwhile, crypto exchange Binance has taken legal action against The Wall Street Journal, filing a complaint over a February 23, 2026 article it calls misleading and defamatory. Dugan Bliss, Binance’s global head of litigation, framed the lawsuit as a necessary step to defend the company from misinformation that has damaged its reputation and business. “This type of reporting erodes trust in the broader industry and undermines the efforts of those who are committed to protecting users and advancing positive innovation,” Bliss said. Market snapshot: XRP was trading at $1.38 at the time of reporting, down about 3% over 24 hours — the largest drop among the top ten tokens except for Dogecoin, which fell roughly 7%. Image credit: OpenArt. Chart: TradingView. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news