Crypto World
Balancer Proposes Winding Down Labs, Ending BAL Emissions in Sweeping Reset
Five months after a $128M exploit rocked the protocol, Balancer is proposing its most radical restructuring yet.
The team behind veteran DeFi protocol Balancer has posted two sweeping governance proposals that would wind down Balancer Labs, consolidate all operations under a DAO-controlled entity, and end BAL token emissions entirely.
The operational restructuring proposal, posted on March 23, formalizes the wind-down of Balancer Labs OÜ, the Estonian entity that originally built the protocol, and consolidates all activity under Balancer OpCo Limited, a BVI entity that operates as a direct agent of the DAO.
The team would shrink from roughly 25 to 12.5 full-time equivalents, with an annual operating budget of $1.9 million — a 34% cut from the $2.87 million approved under the previous roadmap.
The accompanying tokenomics revamp proposal, also published on Monday, goes further. It proposes halting all BAL emissions immediately, sunsetting veBAL — the protocol’s governance and yield-bearing token — and routing 100% of protocol fees to the DAO treasury. The move would replace a fragmented split that previously flowed to veBAL holders, core pool incentives, and partners.
To soften the blow for locked veBAL holders, the proposal includes a $500,000 compensation campaign paid in stablecoins over six months. The proposal also offers a BAL buyback and burn program capped at 35% of treasury holdings, or roughly $3.6 million, at net asset value (~$0.16 per BAL) — a slight premium to current market prices that would retire approximately 35% of circulating supply if fully exercised. The buyback and burn program is aimed at “providing exit liquidity for holders who want out.”
The projected impact, per the proposal, includes reducing Balancer’s annual deficit from ~$2.6 million to ~$700,000, and extending its treasury runway from under four years to roughly nine.
In an extended X post following the proposals, Marcus Hardt, CEO and co-founder of Balancer Labs, framed the moves as a necessary reckoning. “The technology works. Balancer v3 works. Boosted pools work. The infrastructure we built is strong,” he wrote. “What stopped working was the economic model around it.”
Hardt acknowledged the pain for veBAL holders directly:
“If you locked in good faith, losing those economic rights is painful. That is exactly why the buyback and the compensation campaign are part of the package. The goal is not to trap anyone into a decision.”
November Exploit
The restructuring comes as Balancer tries to find stable footing after a brutal stretch. The protocol was hit by a $128 million exploit in early November, the same week that Stream’s unwind shook broader confidence in DeFi. The proposals acknowledge that the November exploit “removed the option of growing out of” problems with the economic model that had been building for some time.
The exploit triggered months of crisis response, significant TVL loss, and difficult decisions about what the protocol could realistically sustain. The current restructuring proposals are the clearest signal yet of just how much the event reshaped Balancer’s trajectory.
Despite the severity of the changes, Hardt struck a cautiously optimistic tone. “Balancer still has real products. Boosted pools are generating real usage,” he wrote on X. “I believe the protocol still has room to build products and revenue streams that fit Balancer uniquely well.”
Both proposals are live on the governance forum and open for community discussion ahead of a snapshot vote.
BAL is mostly flat on the news, down less than 1% in the past 24 hours, and over 99% from its 2021 all-time hight.
Labs vs DAO Restructuring
Balancer’s restructuring is the latest in a string of high-profile governance crises forcing DeFi projects to confront whether the Labs-plus-DAO structure — once a standard template for decentralized protocols — is still fit for purpose. At Aave, months of escalating conflict between Aave Labs and the DAO over fee distribution, brand ownership, and token-holder rights eventually pushed Labs to propose routing 100% of product revenue to the DAO treasury — though not before key service provider BGD Labs announced it was leaving amid the fallout.
Meanwhile, cross-chain bridge protocol Across took an even more radical turn, with Risk Labs proposing to dissolve the DAO entirely and convert the project into a U.S. C-corporation, citing friction with institutional partners.
This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.
Crypto World
Balaji’s viral post says Singapore-style order makes libertarianism work
Balaji Srinivasan’s viral X post argues libertarianism only works with Lee Kuan Yew‑style order, using Singapore to link his crypto, network‑state and U.S. debt theses.
Summary
- Balaji Srinivasan, former CTO of Coinbase and general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, posted a four-line political thesis on March 24 arguing that functional libertarianism requires a pragmatic, order-driven state to underpin it — drawing the largest engagement of any crypto-adjacent post on X in the past 12 hours.
- The tweet — which accumulated 60.6K views, 185 reposts, 1.3K likes, and 89 replies within hours — invoked Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew as the embodiment of a governance model that makes free markets and open trade sustainable in the real world.
- In a follow-up reply, Srinivasan cited Singapore’s Housing Development Board flats, Health Savings Accounts, and ethnic-resentment restrictions as proof that the optimal political model occupies multiple ideological quadrants simultaneously — a framework he compared to combining programming paradigms rather than choosing one.
Balaji Srinivasan (@balajis), former chief technology officer of Coinbase and former general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, posted a terse but widely discussed political and philosophical argument on X on March 24, contending that libertarianism as an ideology can only function when paired with the kind of disciplined, order-driven governance associated with Singapore’s late founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew — a post that generated 60.6K views and 185 reposts within hours of publication.
“Libertarianism in theory requires Lee Kuan Yew in practice,” Srinivasan wrote. “Order and borders are prerequisites for liberty and prosperity. Tolerance and internationalism enables trade and capitalism. Pragmatism about the scope of the state minimizes the scope of the state.” The four-sentence formulation is a deliberate compression of a political philosophy Srinivasan has developed across years of writing and public speaking, and one that sits at the intersection of his views on crypto, network states, and sovereign city models.
Who Was Lee Kuan Yew — and Why Does It Matter to Crypto?
Lee Kuan Yew served as Singapore’s prime minister from 1959 to 1990, transforming a former British colony with no natural resources into one of the world’s wealthiest and most stable economies. His model combined strict rule of law, low corporate taxes (17%), no capital gains tax, rigorous anti-corruption enforcement, and open trade — while maintaining firm social controls on speech and behavior that Western libertarians would typically reject. By 2020, foreign investment in Singapore had grown to $92 billion, up from $1.2 billion in 1980.
For Srinivasan, Lee Kuan Yew has long represented a practical answer to the central failure of libertarian political theory: that without the preconditions of order, property rights, and enforceable contracts, free markets cannot function. It is an argument with direct resonance in the crypto world, where stateless financial infrastructure and decentralized governance have repeatedly collided with the practical need for regulatory clarity, institutional trust, and enforceable rules.
The Follow-Up: Singapore as a Multi-Paradigm Model
In a reply to the thread, Srinivasan elaborated, pointing to Singapore as a state that operates across all four quadrants of conventional political mapping. “Singapore does things like HSAs and HDB flats (top left) and also restricts behavior likely to cause ethnic resentment (bottom left),” he wrote. “I think of political paradigms as akin to programming paradigms. Often you use” — with the remainder visible only upon expanding the post — the implication being that pragmatic governance, like good code, selects the best tool for each problem rather than adhering dogmatically to a single ideology.
The framing echoes ideas Srinivasan has been developing publicly for several years. In December 2025, the Financial Times reported on Srinivasan’s efforts to build self-governing network states and experimental cities — initiatives backed by venture capital and cryptocurrency funding — describing him as a central figure in a movement to create new governance structures outside the traditional nation-state framework.
A Philosopher-Investor With Stakes in the Crypto Future
Srinivasan is not merely a commentator. He has repeatedly argued that the U.S. faces an unfixable $175 trillion in fiscal obligations when future entitlement promises are included, calling it “a national bankruptcy” to be resolved through money printing — a thesis that directly underpins his conviction in Bitcoin and hard-capped digital assets as exit vehicles from fiat debasement. He has also argued that crypto is the foundational currency of AI economies, positioning decentralized financial infrastructure as the rails on which autonomous agents will eventually transact.
That the post garnered more than 60,000 views and drew responses ranging from memes to academic political theory charts suggests Srinivasan has touched a live nerve — not only in crypto circles, but among a broader audience wrestling with the gap between libertarian ideals and the institutions required to make them work.
Crypto World
MNT price prediction as Mantle DeFi TVL surpasses that of Sui
- Mantle’s DeFi TVL surges, surpassing major rival networks.
- Mantle (MNT) price lags despite strong ecosystem growth.
- The key MNT price levels to watch are the $0.75 resistance and the $0.65 support.
Mantle (MNT) network’s DeFi ecosystem has expanded rapidly and overtaken Sui in total value locked (TVL).
The milestone reflects a sharp increase in capital flowing into Mantle, even as broader market conditions remain uncertain.
In just one month, Mantle’s ecosystem has recorded a significant surge in locked assets, signalling rising confidence from both users and developers.
According to data obtained from DeFiLlama, Mantle’s total value locked in DeFi is currently valued at around $632.17 million, while that of Sui stands at $589.5 million.
This kind of growth is rarely accidental and often points to deeper structural strength within a network.
Mantle’s DeFi expansion
The surge in Mantle’s DeFi activity has been driven by a combination of strategic positioning and ecosystem development.
One major factor behind the growth is its focus on real-world assets, which continues to attract institutional interest.
By integrating traditional financial instruments into blockchain systems, Mantle is positioning itself for long-term adoption rather than short-term speculation.
Another key driver is its connection to centralised exchange infrastructure, which helps onboard liquidity more efficiently.
This hybrid model allows users to move seamlessly between centralised and decentralised finance, reducing friction that often limits adoption.
At the same time, integrations with major DeFi protocols have boosted activity across lending and borrowing markets.
These developments have helped create a steady inflow of capital rather than relying on temporary incentives.
Such consistency is often a sign of a maturing ecosystem rather than a hype-driven spike.
Despite this strong growth, the price of MNT has not followed the same upward trajectory.
This divergence between fundamentals and price action is becoming increasingly noticeable.
MNT price struggles to reflect strong fundamentals
While the network’s DeFi metrics continue to improve, MNT remains significantly below its previous highs.
The token is still trading far from its peak, reflecting broader weakness across the altcoin market.
Short-term price action has also been mixed, with recent declines interrupting what appeared to be a recovery phase.
This suggests that traders are still cautious, even in the face of improving fundamentals.
Market sentiment continues to play a dominant role, especially with altcoins reacting closely to movements in Bitcoin.
Without a strong catalyst, MNT has struggled to build sustained upward momentum.
This creates a situation where the asset shows promise on paper but remains technically fragile.
Such conditions often lead to periods of consolidation before a clearer trend emerges.
Mantle price forecast
The near-term outlook for MNT is defined by a tight range that is likely to determine the next major move.
The $0.75 level stands out as the most important resistance zone, acting as a barrier that bulls have yet to overcome.
A confirmed move above this level would signal a shift in short-term momentum and could open the door for further upside towards $0.8642 and even $0.9223 as projected by CoinLore.
On the downside, the $0.65 level is providing immediate support and remains critical for maintaining stability.
A break below this support would reinforce the current bearish structure and increase the risk of further declines.
For now, the price remains trapped between these two levels, creating a clear decision zone for traders.
Until a breakout or breakdown occurs, the current bounce should be treated with caution.
If buyers manage to push the price above resistance, it could mark the beginning of a recovery phase supported by strong fundamentals.
However, failure to hold support would likely confirm that bearish pressure is still dominant in the short term.
Crypto World
NYSE Taps Securitize to Develop Tokenized Securities Trading Infra
Securitize will become the first digital transfer agent eligible to mint blockchain-based securities on NYSE’s upcoming Digital Trading Platform
The New York Stock Exchange and real world asset (RWA) tokenization platform Securitize have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on tokenized securities infrastructure, the two companies announced on Tuesday.
Under the deal, Securitize will become the first digital transfer agent — a transfer agent that uses a blockchain-based ledger and smart contracts to process transactions — eligible to mint tokenized securities for issuers on NYSE’s upcoming Digital Trading Platform.
Per the release, NYSE plans to work with Securitize as a premier design partner to develop a digital transfer agent program supporting on-chain settlement of tokenized securities transactions. The two firms will also collaborate on setting regulatory, operational, and technology standards for the emerging digital transfer agent category — effectively writing the rulebook for institutional-grade tokenized securities infrastructure.
“As we explore how tokenization can enhance capital markets, it is critical that new infrastructure is developed in a way that preserves the trust, transparency, and protections investors expect,” said NYSE Group president Lynn Martin in the announcement.
Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo framed the tie-up as proof that tokenization is maturing beyond experimentation. “This is about building tokenization in a way that works within real market structure,” he said.
As part of the broader collaboration, Securitize Markets is expected to join the NYSE’s Digital Trading Platform as a broker-dealer participant, supporting liquidity for issuer-sponsored tokenized securities.
The deal comes amid a period of rapid growth for the wider tokenized RWA sector. RWAs became Wall Street’s gateway to crypto in 2025, with on-chain tokenized assets tripling to nearly $19 billion over the course of the year — a figure analysts project could reach $2 trillion by 2030.
Securitize is the tokenization platform behind BUIDL, the U.S. Treasuries fund from BlackRock, with a market cap of over $2 billion. Securitize is the tokenization platform for RWAs totaling over $3 billion in distributed asset value across ten blockchain networks, with over $1 billion on Ethereum per RWAxyz. Last year, the firm partnered with risk manager Gauntlet to bridge private credit funds into DeFi protocols.
NYSE first announced it was planning to launch a platform for 24/7 tokenized securities trading in January, as The Defiant reported.
This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.
Crypto World
CFTC Launches Innovation Task Force for Crypto Oversight
TLDR
- The CFTC has launched an Innovation Task Force to oversee crypto, artificial intelligence, and prediction markets.
- CFTC Chair Michael Selig announced the new initiative at the Digital Asset Summit in New York City.
- Michael J. Passalacqua will lead the task force as part of the agency’s regulatory efforts.
- The task force will coordinate with the Securities and Exchange Commission and its crypto unit.
- The SEC and CFTC recently issued joint guidance to clarify jurisdiction over digital assets.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has created an Innovation Task Force to oversee crypto, artificial intelligence, and prediction markets. Chair Michael Selig announced the initiative on Tuesday at the Digital Asset Summit in New York City. He said the group will draft clear rules and coordinate with federal agencies to guide emerging financial products.
CFTC Sets Framework for Crypto and Artificial Intelligence Oversight
CFTC Chair Michael Selig introduced the Innovation Task Force to advance regulatory clarity for digital assets and artificial intelligence tools. He said the agency will use the group to support responsible product development and structured market growth.
Selig stated, “By establishing a clear regulatory framework for innovators building on the new frontier of finance, we can foster responsible innovation at home and ensure American market participants are not left on the sidelines.”
He said the task force will give innovators direct access to agency staff for structured discussions and policy feedback.
Selig told attendees, “The idea behind our innovation task force is to really create a space where innovators and builders can come in and talk with the staff.”
The agency confirmed that Michael J. Passalacqua, a senior advisor to Selig, will lead the new group and oversee its operations.
The task force will coordinate with the Securities and Exchange Commission and its existing crypto task force. The SEC formed its crypto task force last year and held roundtables on DeFi and tokenization topics. Both agencies issued joint interpretive guidance last week to clarify jurisdictional boundaries and confirm that most cryptocurrencies are not securities.
Interagency Coordination and Focus on Prediction Markets
Selig said the Innovation Task Force will also work with the CFTC’s innovation advisory committee, created in February. The advisory committee includes more than 30 executives from financial and technology firms. Members include Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour and Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman, according to agency records.
The CFTC has increased oversight of prediction markets over the past year and asserted its jurisdiction in this sector. Selig has stated that the agency regulates derivatives linked to future events, including sports outcomes. Several states have opposed certain platforms, arguing that sports-related contracts may conflict with local gaming laws.
The agencies have aligned their regulatory stance through joint statements and coordinated guidance over the past year. Last week’s interpretive release outlined how each agency determines whether a digital asset falls under securities or commodities law. The CFTC said the Innovation Task Force will continue collaborating with federal partners as it refines oversight for crypto products, artificial intelligence applications, and prediction markets.
Crypto World
Securitize (CEPT) teaming with NYSE (ICE) on new platform
The New York Stock Exchange (ICE) is teaming up with tokenization specialist Securitize to help design the infrastructure behind tokenized securities trading, according to a Tuesday press release shared with CoinDesk.
Securitize is aiming to go public this year via a SPAC deal with Cantor Equitize Partners (CEPT). CEPT shares are higher by 6% premarket. ICE shares are flat.
The two firms signed a memorandum of understanding to build NYSE’s planned Digital Trading Platform. Securitize will serve as a design partner, focusing on how transfer agents — the entities that track ownership and handle corporate actions — operate when securities are issued and settled on blockchain rails.
Securitize, backed by large asset managers like BlackRock and Ark Invest and registered with the SEC as a transfer agent, is expected to be among the first firms eligible to mint tokenized versions of stocks and ETFs on the platform, subject to regulatory approvals.
The firm’s broker-dealer arm could also take part in trading, giving it a foothold across both issuance and market activity.
The move comes as traditional exchange behemoths like NYSE and Nasdaq are doubling down on tokenization efforts to bring blockchain rails into stock trading. That tech would enable around-the-clock trading and near-instant settlements, similar to crypto markets.
Recently, NYSE-parent Intercontinental Exchange invested in crypto exchange OKX to develop tokenized stocks and derivatives products. Rival exchange Nasdaq obtained regulatory approval for its tokenized stock trading framework and has tapped Kraken to distribute stock tokens globally.
“As we explore how tokenization can enhance capital markets, it is critical that new infrastructure is developed in a way that preserves the trust, transparency, and protections investors expect,” NYSE Group President Lynn Martin said.
Read more: Here is why Nasdaq and owner of NYSE are putting the $126 trillion equity market on blockchain
Crypto World
Professor Jiang’s Bitcoin conspiracy taps into war and empire angst
Viral “predictive historian” Jiang recasts Bitcoin as a CIA war‑surveillance tool and hinge of U.S. imperial decline, mixing sharp geopolitical reads with conspiratorial leaps.
Summary
- Viral “predictive historian” ties Bitcoin to U.S. imperial decline and a coming monetary reset
- Jiang claims BTC is a Pentagon/CIA surveillance weapon even as markets treat it as digital gold
- Critics say his “predictive history” blends accurate war calls with speculative crypto conspiracies
Beijing-based teacher Jiang Xueqin, the self-styled “predictive historian” who shot to fame for forecasting Donald Trump’s return to the White House and a disastrous U.S.–Iran conflict, is now recasting Bitcoin (BTC) as a tool of American empire and a hinge of a looming new world order. In recent lectures and clips circulating across YouTube, TikTok and X, Jiang argues that the world is witnessing “the end of U.S. imperial overextension” and that the monetary fallout will drive Bitcoin into “a structurally different regime” rather than another cyclical boom. He frames his analysis as “predictive history,” a fusion of structural geopolitics and game theory designed, in his words, to “test models against reality, just like artificial intelligence systems.”
In a widely shared breakdown of his Bitcoin thesis, Jiang claims that the cryptocurrency was not the work of a lone cypherpunk, but a Pentagon project engineered as “the ultimate surveillance technology,” echoing variations of the line that “Bitcoin was created by the CIA and the Deep State.” He tells audiences that Satoshi Nakamoto’s anonymity is “institutionally suspicious,” arguing that only an agency-backed team would have “the time, money, servers, and technical expertise” to deploy a global monetary network. At the same time, he leans on a factual point that mainstream analysts and chain‑forensics firms agree on: Bitcoin’s public ledger enables authorities to trace flows of illicit funds with far more granularity than cash.
Jiang’s crypto worldview is tightly bound to his geopolitical script. In multiple interviews and classroom talks repackaged online, he links U.S. “imperial overreach” in the Persian Gulf to a sequence of events in which military failure accelerates dollar erosion, pushes capital out of Treasuries and into hard assets and ultimately sends Bitcoin “nuclear.” One popular YouTube macro-finance explainer built around his framework describes Bitcoin as “the most liquidity-sensitive asset on the planet,” noting that “every dollar of monetized conflict cost is a dollar that enters the global financial system searching for hard assets with fixed supply,” with Bitcoin’s 21 million cap presented as the end of that chain. In that scenario, the video argues, the Bitcoin cycle is “not driven by the halving” but “by the fiscal response to imperial overextension,” applying Jiang’s method directly to BTC’s trajectory.
That framing has resonated with traders already treating Bitcoin as a barometer of war risk. Bloomberg recently reported that “crypto markets are once again serving as the only open window into how traders are pricing the continuing conflict” in Iran, as spot and derivatives flows react in real time to escalation headlines. Bitcoin has traded around the mid‑$60,000 to low‑$70,000 range in March, with some market forecasts projecting a possible move toward roughly $73,000–$79,000 this month while volatility remains high. Even mainstream price coverage now routinely situates BTC within a matrix of war risk, dollar policy and ETF‑driven institutional demand.
Jiang’s rise has been turbocharged by the perception that he “called” both Trump’s 2024 victory and the subsequent U.S.–Iran war, predictions that have been amplified by crypto traders, TikTok creators and even long‑form podcasts. An in‑depth profile notes that his YouTube channel, Predictive History, consists largely of unedited classroom lectures in which he maps great‑power cycles and “world order changes” for Beijing high‑school students. But academic critics and archaeologists have pushed back hard, warning that his method replaces evidence with grand narrative. In a recent debunking video, archaeologist Flint Dibble described Jiang as “a wacko who spreads insanely harmful conspiracy theories,” stressing that “his predictions about the future are mostly not accurate… a broken clock is right twice a day.”
The same tension defines his Bitcoin work. A detailed breakdown of “Professor Jiang’s Theory on Bitcoin’s Origins” acknowledges that he “mixes verifiable facts with baseless leaps of logic,” conceding that while DARPA did seed the early internet and Bitcoin’s transparency does aid law enforcement, there is “no public evidence linking Bitcoin’s creation to DARPA, the Pentagon, or the CIA.” Instead, Jiang’s narrative slots crypto into a larger story about the end of U.S. hegemony, the rise of a multipolar order and the search for new monetary anchors—a story that is shaping how a growing slice of retail traders interpret every tick in Bitcoin’s price chart, whether or not his “predictive history” ultimately passes its own reality test.
Crypto World
Circle, Coinbase tumbles as regulators move to ban interest on stablecoins
Stablecoin issuer Circle’s (CRCL) shares tumbled on Tuesday, after a draft version of U.S. stablecoin legislation raised concerns about limits on yield.
The stock of the USDC issuer fell as much as 18% in the early U.S. session, snapping a weeks-long rally that saw more than 100% gain. Meanwhile, crypto platform Coinbase (COIN), which shares revenue coming from the stablecoin, dropped about 8%.
The key catalyst behind the move was the latest version of the Clarity Act, as reported by CoinDesk, which would restrict offering rewards on stablecoin balances, analysts pointed out.
“Clarity Act could potentially ban yield payments for simply holding a stablecoin (e.g. passive balances) and restrict any approach that makes the program in any way equivalent to a bank deposit,” said Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev.
According to Dolev’s analysis, a potential ban could reduce the use case for Circle in the near-term, while not paying rewards would reduce the long-term attractiveness of holding USDC on Coinbase’s platform.
Stablecoin yield — whether through onchain lending or platform incentives — has been a big part of the pitch to investors. Taking that away makes it harder for tokens like USDC to evolve beyond simple payments.
“That weakens a key part of the bull case,” said Shay Boloor, chief market strategist at Futurum Equities, arguing it limits USDC’s path toward becoming a true store-of-value product.
The stablecoin-focused GENIUS Act banned issuers from paying yield directly to users, but they’ve built ways to pass through income earned on reserves. Circle collects interest on USDC’s backing assets and shares it with Coinbase, which in turn funds rewards for users.
The latest draft of the Clarity Act targets that structure by banning anything “economically equivalent to interest,” effectively cutting off a key incentive for holding stablecoins, according to Amir Hajian, a digital asset researcher at Keyrock
“It pulls the rug on the pass-through model that has been driving stablecoin adoption,” Hajian said.
There was another development in the background. Tether, issuer of the USDT stablecoin and main rival of Circle, said it has hired one of the ‘Big Four’ accounting firms to conduct a long-promised full audit of its reserves. If successful, the audit could improve USDT’s image among institutional users by demonstrating stronger risk management, potentially eating into USDC’s market share.
Not ‘as bad’
The selloff comes after a strong run, during which Circle shares gained 170% since early February, far outpacing other crypto stocks and the struggling broader stock market. That setup left the stock vulnerable to a sharp pullback on any negative headlines.
Still, analysts aren’t seeing this as an existential crisis.
According to Mizuho’s Dolev, recent outperformance of USDC’s volume means “use cases [for stablecoins] are starting to proliferate, which is a positive for the long-term” for Circle. Meanwhile, Coinbase could see a boost in profitability in the near-term as USDC accounts for about 20% of Coinbase’s revenue, and a large part of it is paid out as rewards.
In fact, Owen Lau, an analyst at Clear Street, said that “the actual situation doesn’t appear to be as bad as the headline indicates. “It looks like an overreaction, but the market tends to shoot first and ask questions later.”
Ryan Rasmussen, head of research at digital asset manager Bitwise, agreed that investors should see past today’s short-term headwinds. Circle is still up more than 30% this year after Tuesday’s drop, and remains a major player in a fast-growing market, he noted. “There will be workarounds,” such as loyalty programs that could replicate similar incentives as yield, Rasmussen said.
“With that in mind, Circle’s long-term outlook has never been better; they hold a 30% share of a market projected to grow 10x over the next four years,” he added.
UPDATE (March 24, 15:46 UTC): Adds analyst comments.
Crypto World
Missouri Moves to Add XRP to State Crypto Reserve Fund
TLDR
- Missouri lawmakers advanced HB 2080 to create a state-managed Crypto Strategic Reserve Fund.
- The bill includes XRP alongside Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and USDC as approved reserve assets.
- The State Treasurer would have authority to buy, hold, and manage digital assets using state funds.
- The legislation requires the Treasurer to hold acquired cryptocurrencies for at least five years.
- Missouri agencies could accept USDC for taxes, fees, and fines with approval from the Department of Revenue.
Missouri lawmakers have moved to create a state-managed crypto reserve that would include XRP. The House Committee Substitute for HB 2080 cleared the Commerce Committee in a 6–2 vote. The proposal now advances with a “Do Pass” recommendation and outlines direct authority for the State Treasurer.
Missouri Advances Bill to Establish Crypto Strategic Reserve Fund
Representative Ben Keathley sponsored HB 2080 to establish a Crypto Strategic Reserve Fund. The House Committee Substitute outlines how the State Treasurer would manage approved digital assets. Lawmakers advanced the measure after a 6–2 committee vote, and no member voiced opposition during hearings.
Under the bill, the Treasurer can buy, hold, and manage selected cryptocurrencies using state funds. The proposal requires the Treasurer to store acquired digital assets for at least five years. After that period, the Treasurer may sell, convert, or allocate holdings based on state strategy.
The fund can also receive digital assets through donations, grants, or transfers from residents and public entities. The legislation authorizes partnerships with third-party custodians to secure state-held assets. It also requires the Treasurer to publish transparency reports every two years.
Lawmakers included compliance measures to restrict transactions tied to foreign or illegal entities. The Department of Revenue would oversee approval for crypto payment systems within state agencies. These provisions aim to ensure oversight while enabling digital asset management.
XRP Included Alongside Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and USDC
HB 2080 lists XRP among the digital assets eligible for state reserve holdings. The bill places XRP alongside Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and USDC in the proposed fund. This classification allows the Treasurer to treat XRP as part of a long-term reserve strategy.
The Treasurer may purchase XRP directly with allocated state funds under the bill. The office may also accept XRP transfers from residents or other government bodies. The legislation frames these holdings as part of a structured reserve plan.
The proposal does not set a fixed dollar cap for XRP acquisitions. Instead, it grants the Treasurer discretion within existing state financial controls. The five-year minimum holding period applies to XRP and other approved assets.
Lawmakers structured the bill to mirror traditional reserve management models. The framework allows conversion or liquidation after the mandatory holding period. Officials must document these actions in the required biennial reports.
The committee vote advanced the bill without recorded public opposition. Representative Keathley stated that the measure supports “long-term financial strategy for the state.” The bill now proceeds through the legislative process for further consideration.
USDC Payments and Federal Digital Asset Reserve Efforts
The legislation also authorizes Missouri agencies to accept USDC for certain payments. Government entities may process USDC for taxes, fees, and fines with Department of Revenue approval. This step integrates stablecoin payments into state systems.
State agencies must follow strict compliance standards when accepting USDC. The bill prohibits transactions involving sanctioned or unlawful entities. Agencies may coordinate with approved custodians to manage payment processing securely.
The measure aligns with broader federal digital asset initiatives announced in 2025. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish a national Bitcoin reserve and an altcoin stockpile. Federal authorities continue to work to implement that directive.
Missouri lawmakers now await further legislative action on HB 2080. The bill outlines clear authority for reserve creation and digital asset management. Lawmakers will determine the next procedural steps in the current session.
Crypto World
Solana Launches Enterprise Developer Platform For Institutions
The Solana Foundation has revealed it has secured Mastercard, Worldpay, and Western Union as early users of its newly launched developer platform, as part of ongoing efforts to attract enterprises to build on its blockchain.
The Solana Developer Platform (SDP) was announced on Tuesday to enable enterprise developers to build on the blockchain using a unified interface.
Much of the focus is on real-world asset tokenization, including stablecoins, which is currently a $328 billion market, according to rwa.xyz. More than half of the total value is held on Ethereum; however, with Solana holding 6.3% share of the tokenized real-world asset market.
“The early interest we’ve seen from enterprises and institutions signals strong demand,” said Catherine Gu, the head of product at the Solana Foundation.
The SDP will initially have three core modules: an issuance module to deploy tokenized real-world assets, a payments module to facilitate fiat and stablecoin flows, and a trading module due later this year that will support atomic swaps, vaults, and onchain forex.
Early users of the SDP include Mastercard for stablecoin settlement, Worldpay for merchant payments and settlement, and Western Union for cross-border payments, said the Solana Foundation.
Solana’s efforts to attract institutions
Solana invested in making the network enterprise-ready on a technical level with the Alpenglow upgrade in 2025, boosting transaction throughput. Meanwhile, in December, Visa launched USDC (USDC) settlement for US banks on the Solana blockchain.
“The next phase of digital asset innovation will be defined by practical use cases that integrate seamlessly with existing financial systems,” said Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president, blockchain and digital assets, at Mastercard.
Related: Agentic AI commerce may spell the end of internet ads: a16z Crypto
Meanwhile, Malcolm Clarke, vice president of digital assets at Western Union, said the SDP is “not a replacement for our network,” but allows it to expand use cases and bring more cross-border activity.
Solana enters a crowded enterprise blockchain space
Enterprise-grade blockchain solutions are not new, and Solana’s latest platform enters a crowded market.
The Ethereum ecosystem has several strong offerings targeting the same enterprise audience, including Consensys’ Infura, a scalable API infrastructure powering thousands of decentralized applications.
Consensys also has the Linea layer-2, which is positioning itself as an institutional on-ramp to crypto.
Coinbase’s Ethereum layer-2 platform Base has modular components for checkout, APIs, and commerce payments that directly compete with SDP’s payments module.
Meanwhile, Ripple’s blockchain offerings, such as XRP Ledger, also primarily target enterprise and financial institutions, as it aims to become the standard for cross-border payments.
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Crypto World
NYSE, Securitize Partner for 24/7 Tokenized Securities Platform
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with tokenization platform Securitize, as part of a broader effort to develop blockchain-based stock trading infrastructure for Wall Street.
Securitize will become the first digital transfer agent, enabling it to mint blockchain-based shares for stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the upcoming tokenized securities platform, the Digital Trading Platform, according to a Tuesday announcement from Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), parent company of the NYSE.
Under the MoU, the companies plan to develop a digital transfer agent program and standards for digital transfer agents and tokenization agents, with a focus on regulatory, operational and technology requirements for tokenized securities infrastructure.
The announcement builds on ICE’s Jan. 19 plan for a tokenized securities venue designed for 24/7 trading, instant settlement, stablecoin-based funding and onchain settlement.
ICE said the planned venue is designed to support both tokenized shares that are fungible with traditionally issued securities and securities issued natively as digital tokens, while preserving traditional shareholder dividends and governance rights. Tokenized stocks are shares of traditional company stocks minted on the blockchain ledger, offering investors exposure to stock prices with advantages including 24/7 accessibility and fractional ownership.
The agreement is the latest sign that major exchange operators are building blockchain-based trading and settlement infrastructure, even as the regulatory and market structure for tokenized public securities is still taking shape.
The news follows the US Securities and Exchange Commission giving the regulatory greenlight to Nasdaq’s pilot proposal on Thursday to support the trading of tokenized versions of high-volume stocks and securities.

“As we explore how tokenization can enhance capital markets, it is critical that new infrastructure is developed in a way that preserves the trust, transparency, and protections investors expect,” said Lynn Martin, president at NYSE Group.
Related: US financial markets ‘poised to move on-chain’ amid DTCC tokenization greenlight
Tokenized stocks surpass $1 billion amid rising demand
Investor demand for blockchain-based tokenized stocks is increasing. The total value of tokenized stocks surpassed $1 billion on March 10, in a significant milestone for the real-world asset (RWA) sector.
Over the past 30 days, tokenized stockholders rose by 16% to 193,140, while the monthly transfer volume increased by 45% to $2.5 billion, according to data from RWA.xyz.
Still, tokenized stocks are only the sixth-largest segment of the $26 billion value locked into tokenized RWAs. Tokenized treasury debt was ranked first with $11.8 billion, and tokenized commodities second with over $5 billion.

Some of the leading crypto exchanges are also racing to launch tokenized stock offerings. Coinbase launched 24/7 stock perpetual futures for non-US traders on Friday, offering cash-settled exposure to major US stocks and indices, including Apple and Nvidia.
Crypto exchanges Binance and Kraken have also launched tokenized perpetual futures trading for non-US traders, along with numerous other offshore platforms.
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