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Why Search Interest in FanDuel Alternatives Including ZunaBet Is Rising

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Hacksaw Gaming At ZunaBet

The online gambling market has shifted quickly over the past few years. What was once dominated by a handful of big-name operators is now a crowded space where players actively search for alternatives that better fit how they want to play. FanDuel remains one of the most recognized names in the industry, but search data and player forum activity suggest that a growing number of users are looking beyond established brands. Among the platforms drawing attention is ZunaBet, a crypto-first casino and sportsbook that launched in 2026 with a feature set designed to appeal to a different kind of player.


FanDuel: The Established Name

FanDuel built its reputation through daily fantasy sports before expanding into sports betting and online casino gaming. It operates legally in multiple US states and holds licenses from well-known regulatory bodies. The platform offers a solid sportsbook, a reasonable selection of casino games, and regular promotions tied to major sporting events.

For many players, FanDuel is a safe and familiar choice. It processes payments through traditional methods like bank transfers, credit cards, and PayPal. Its mobile app is polished, and its brand recognition is high thanks to years of advertising spend and partnerships with major sports leagues.

That said, FanDuel’s strengths also reflect its limitations. Its casino game library, while decent, is smaller than what some competitors now offer. Its loyalty and rewards structure is fairly standard. And its reliance on traditional payment rails means players deal with processing times and fees that have become a growing point of frustration, especially among younger users who are comfortable with cryptocurrency.

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ZunaBet: The New Challenger

ZunaBet launched in 2026 and has quickly positioned itself as one of the more ambitious new entries in the crypto casino space. It is owned by Strathvale Group Ltd and operates under an Anjouan gaming license. The team behind the platform has over 20 years of combined experience in the gambling industry, which shows in the scale of its launch.

The numbers are hard to ignore. ZunaBet offers over 11,294 games from 63 providers, including well-known names like Pragmatic Play, Hacksaw Gaming, Evolution, Yggdrasil, and BGaming. That puts its library among the largest in the crypto-focused market. The game selection covers slots, RNG table games, and live dealer tables, giving players a full casino experience without needing to visit multiple platforms.

Hacksaw Gaming At ZunaBet
Hacksaw Gaming At ZunaBet

Beyond the casino, ZunaBet runs a full sportsbook covering football, basketball, tennis, NHL, esports titles like CS2, Dota 2, League of Legends, and Valorant, plus virtual sports and combat sports. This makes it a genuine hybrid platform rather than a casino with a sportsbook bolted on as an afterthought.

The platform supports over 20 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT across multiple chains, Solana, Dogecoin, Cardano, and XRP. It charges no platform processing fees and emphasizes fast withdrawals, which directly addresses one of the most common complaints players have about traditional operators.

ZunaBet also offers dedicated apps for iOS, Android, Windows, and MacOS, along with 24/7 live chat support. Its interface uses a dark theme with fast loading speeds and responsive design, built on modern HTML5 technology.

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Crypto vs Traditional Platforms

The divide between crypto and traditional gambling platforms is becoming one of the defining trends in the industry. Traditional platforms like FanDuel rely on bank transfers, cards, and e-wallets. These methods work, but they come with processing delays, fees, and identity verification steps that some players find cumbersome.

Crypto platforms like ZunaBet take a different approach. Transactions settle faster because they run on blockchain networks rather than through banks. There are no platform processing fees, and the range of supported currencies gives players flexibility that traditional operators simply do not match. For players who already hold cryptocurrency, this removes friction from the deposit and withdrawal process entirely.

ZunaBet Payments
ZunaBet Payments

This matters more than it might seem on the surface. A player who wins on a Friday night at a traditional casino might wait several business days for a withdrawal to clear. On a crypto platform, that same withdrawal can process in minutes. For a growing segment of the market, that speed and simplicity is not just a nice feature. It is the baseline expectation.

The broader trend is clear. As cryptocurrency adoption continues to grow globally, platforms built around crypto from the ground up have a structural advantage over those trying to add it as an afterthought. ZunaBet was designed as a crypto-first platform from day one, and that shows in how deeply cryptocurrency support is integrated into every part of the experience.


Loyalty Programs: Standard Points vs Gamified Progression

Loyalty programs are another area where the gap between old and new approaches is widening. Most traditional operators, including FanDuel, use point-based systems where players earn rewards through wagering volume. These programs work, but they tend to feel generic and do little to create genuine engagement beyond the transactions themselves.

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ZunaBet VIP Levels
ZunaBet VIP Levels

ZunaBet has taken a different route with its dragon evolution loyalty system. The program has six tiers — Squire, Warden, Champion, Divine, Knight, and Ultimate — each tied to a mascot called Zuno that evolves as players progress. Rakeback starts at 1% and scales up to 20% at the highest tier. Benefits include tier-based free spins up to 1,000, VIP club access, and double wheel spins.

The gamified structure is a deliberate design choice. It borrows from the progression systems that players are already familiar with from video games, making the loyalty experience feel like part of the entertainment rather than a separate accounting exercise. For players who grew up with gaming, this approach feels natural in a way that traditional point systems do not.


A Platform Built for What Comes Next

The rising search interest in FanDuel alternatives reflects a broader shift in what players want. The established operators built their businesses around traditional payment methods, standard loyalty programs, and regulated US markets. They do those things well. But the market is not standing still.

ZunaBet represents a different model. It combines a massive game library, a full sportsbook with esports coverage, crypto-native payments, and a loyalty system that feels more like a game than a rewards card. It is built for players who expect speed, variety, and an experience that matches how they interact with technology everywhere else in their lives.

ZunaBet Mobile
ZunaBet Mobile

None of this means FanDuel is going away. It remains a strong platform with clear advantages in regulated US markets. But for the growing number of players who want something different, something faster, and something that feels like it was built for them rather than adapted from an older model, platforms like ZunaBet are where the energy is right now.

The online gambling industry has always moved toward whatever gives players more choice, more speed, and more reasons to stay engaged. Right now, that momentum is pointing toward crypto-first platforms with bigger libraries and smarter loyalty systems. ZunaBet is at the front of that wave, and the search data suggests players are paying attention.

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Pepe Coin Price Prediction 2026: PEPE Rips 10% on ETF News, DOGE Whales Pile In, but Is Pepeto the Next 100x Meme Before the Binance Listing?

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Pepe Coin Price Prediction 2026: PEPE Rips 10% on ETF News, DOGE Whales Pile In, but Is Pepeto the Next 100x Meme Before the Binance Listing?

The Pepe Coin price prediction fires back to life after PEPE rallied 10% on April 17 as $39.78M in fresh derivatives capital and ETF speculation pulled the token off the lows, per CoinMarketCap.

The move tracked Canary Capital’s S-1 filing for the first U.S. listed spot PEPE ETF earlier this month. Dogecoin (DOGE) rode the same tape higher as large holders bought 330 million DOGE and pushed price toward $0.10.

Every Pepe Coin price prediction is now getting repriced around the ETF news, and projects with real tools and confirmed listings are the ones big money keeps chasing. Pepeto crossed $9.16M because the wallets inside know $1,000 at this price becomes $100,000 after the Binance listing.

Santiment data shows $39.78M in fresh capital entered PEPE derivatives on April 17, pushing the token up 10% with a positive funding rate of 0.0043% and controlled bullish leverage, per CoinMarketCap. Canary Capital filed an S-1 for the first spot PEPE ETF on April 8. Dogecoin whales bought 330 million DOGE the same week, driving DOGE back above $0.10 with $3.99M in short liquidations.

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The daily chart now flashes a confirmed breakout within a rising channel, targeting $0.0000055 on a clean close. The ETF news favors projects with real demand over tokens running on sentiment alone.

Pepe Coin Price Prediction Compared: PEPE, Dogecoin, and the Presale Opportunity Pepeto

Pepeto Builds the Tools Pepe Never Did So the ETF Rotation Flows Here

Pepe proved meme energy alone can mint $11 billion in value and turn $500 entries into millions. It also proved that without tools, every dollar eventually comes back down. Pepeto is building what Pepe never had, which is why $9.16M is already in and the Binance listing moves closer every day.

The contract scanner scores every position for risk before capital moves, catching traps and abnormal large holder activity so traders sidestep the damage that hits everyone else. The zero fee swap engine lets holders move tokens across networks at no cost, breaking the wall that shuts smaller traders out. Both tools carry a completed SolidProof audit and run live today.

The same creator who proved one token and one community can produce $11 billion cofounded Pepeto, with a Binance exchange veteran leading development. The last stage closed early, this stage fills while the market watches, the same pattern that preceded every presale to listing move that made early buyers rich.

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Pepe (PEPE) Price at $0.0000039 After 10% Rally on ETF Speculation

Pepe (PEPE) trades at $0.0000039 on April 17 per CoinMarketCap, sitting 87% below the $0.000028 all time high with a $1.5 billion cap.

The 10% rally arrived on $39.78M in derivatives inflows and Canary Capital’s S-1 for the first spot PEPE ETF. Support holds at $0.0000036 with resistance at $0.00000408 and $0.0000055 above.

DigitalCoinPrice projects PEPE between $0.0000057 and $0.0000072 for 2026, roughly 55% to 95% from here. That math still takes months, while presale to listing entries need one event to deliver multiples no meme coin recovery can match.

Dogecoin (DOGE) Price at $0.98 as Large Holders Buy 330M DOGE in a Week

Dogecoin (DOGE) trades at $0.98 on April 17 per CoinMarketCap, sitting 86% below its $0.7376 record. Large holders bought 330 million DOGE this week, pushing price above the key $0.10 resistance. Spot and derivatives volumes surged 62% and 56%.

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Without a supply cap, every rally faces inflation pressure, and DOGE needs a supercycle to deliver the multiples presale entries with confirmed listings ahead produce from a single event.

Conclusion

Pepe already proved meme coins mint millionaires, and the ETF rally ripping 10% out of the chart today just confirmed smart money still bets on this lane, but the biggest returns in crypto history never came from chasing a recovery already in motion. They came from catching presale pricing the candle before a confirmed listing printed, every single time.

PEPE has the ETF news and DOGE has the brand, but neither holds what Pepeto holds right now, and fresh capital keeps landing on the Pepeto site every hour as this round fills toward the listing window.

Buying Pepeto now at $0.0000001865 is how the wallets reading this setup correctly step into the 100x position every trader who waits one more day ends up paying listing price for.

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Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale

FAQs

What is the Pepe Coin price prediction for 2026 after the ETF speculation rally?

Pepe (PEPE) trades at $0.0000039 with analysts projecting $0.0000057 to $0.0000072 for 2026, roughly 55% to 95% upside. PEPE rallied 10% on April 17 as $39.78M in derivatives inflows and Canary Capital’s spot PEPE ETF S-1 filing fueled the move.

How does Pepeto compare to holding Dogecoin (DOGE) for a recovery?

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Pepeto at $0.0000001865 targets 100x from a confirmed Binance listing, SolidProof audit, and live exchange. The presale raised $9.16M with 182% APY, while DOGE at $0.98 needs a full supercycle to retake its $0.7376 record.


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Analysts Forecast $10 XRP Price Prediction Amid Trump-Iran Geopolitical Breakthrough as AlphaPepe AlphaSwap Tech Outpaces Legacy Asset Returns

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Analysts Forecast $10 XRP Price Prediction Amid Trump-Iran Geopolitical Breakthrough as AlphaPepe AlphaSwap Tech Outpaces Legacy Asset Returns

Trump confirmed the US is “very close” to a nuclear deal with Iran on April 16 as a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon took effect and Pakistan mediated direct talks in Islamabad. Oil prices dropped on the de-escalation and risk assets surged across equities and crypto simultaneously. The XRP price prediction expanded immediately as analysts recalculated what a resolved Middle East conflict means for institutional flows. European Business Magazine projects $5 to $10 for XRP if the CLARITY Act passes into law, while 24/7 Wall Street notes $10 would place XRP’s market cap at $610 billion, roughly where Ethereum peaked in 2025. The geopolitical breakthrough reshapes the macro backdrop for every digital asset. But AlphaPepe does not need a peace deal to deliver. AlphaSwap is already live and outpacing legacy return profiles from Stage 13 at $0.01494 with over $890,000 raised across 7,700 wallets.

The $10 XRP Price Prediction and What the Iran Breakthrough Unlocks

The conflict has been the single largest macro headwind suppressing crypto since February 2026. Oil above $100 kept the Fed locked at 3.5%. XRP fell from $2.40 to $1.35 during the war months. A resolution changes the calculus at every level. Lower oil frees the Fed to signal cuts. Rate signals drive institutional capital back into risk assets. ETF inflows resume at scale.

Standard Chartered’s Kendrick projects $8 if the CLARITY Act passes and ETF inflows reach $10 billion. Zipmex places the 2030 range at $5 to $15 with $10 achievable if Ripple captures meaningful SWIFT settlement volume. A Coinbase and EY-Parthenon survey found 18% of institutional investors already hold XRP and 25% plan to add exposure in 2026. From $1.35 to $10 is a 640% return that requires peace, legislation, and institutional adoption scaling over 12 to 18 months. Legacy asset returns across BTC, ETH, and XRP all measure in single-digit multiples from current prices. That is meaningful wealth preservation. It is not the compressed asymmetry presale positioning offers.

AlphaSwap Tech Outpaces Legacy Returns Before Any of Those Catalysts Arrive

AlphaSwap does not need an Iran deal, a CLARITY Act vote, or ETF inflows to function. It is already live. A cross-chain AI DEX screening every contract for exploit patterns before execution, tracking whale flows across chains in real time, and generating trading fee revenue today. The technology operates in a category where AI now catches 92% of exploited vulnerabilities before human auditors flag them. AlphaPepe puts that capability directly at the retail level through an interface that works now, not after a diplomatic milestone.

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The developer behind AlphaSwap delivered 500 million transactions across Shibarium mainnet. A 10/10 BlockSAFU audit verified the contract with zero flags. Supply capped at 1 billion tokens. Instant delivery. Zero vesting. Stakers earning 85% APR while Q2 approaches. Tier 1 CEX debut follows.

Over $890,000 raised from 7,700 wallets. Stage 13 at $0.01494 with 100 new addresses arriving daily. A $2,500 entry secures 167,336 tokens. Analysts targeting $1.50 value that at $250,904. At $3.50 it crosses $585,676. Buyers at $2,000 or above can apply code ALPHA50 for a 50% bonus. XRP needs peace, legislation, and institutional scaling for 640%. AlphaPepe needs Q2 for a return that outpaces every legacy asset on the board.

Geopolitics Reshape Timelines. AlphaSwap Already Shipped.

The Trump-Iran breakthrough may accelerate the $10 XRP thesis or it may stall at the negotiation table. The presale at $0.01494 with $890,000 raised and a live AI DEX does not fluctuate with diplomatic headlines. Stage 13 is filling and the $1 million milestone approaches.

Click To Visit AlphaPepe Official Website To Enter The Presale

FAQs

Can XRP reach $10 after a Trump-Iran deal?
Analysts project $5 to $10 if CLARITY passes and macro conditions improve. A peace deal would lower oil, free the Fed, and accelerate institutional ETF inflows toward the $10 billion threshold XRP needs.

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How does AlphaSwap outpace legacy asset returns?
A live AI DEX at Stage 13 pricing of $0.01494 with analyst targets of $1.50 to $3.50 offers 100x to 234x versus single-digit multiples from BTC, ETH, and XRP at current levels.

How close is AlphaPepe to raising $1M?
Over $890,000 across 7,700 wallets at $0.01494. The $1 million mark is approaching with 100 new addresses entering daily.


Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.

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Solana futures open interest up 20% this week; price upside hinted

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Crypto Breaking News

Solana’s SOL token has rallied about 10% over the past five days, trading at a three‑week high as broader risk appetite improves following news of a ceasefire extension between the United States and Iran. Despite the price strength, SOL remains a relative laggard in 2026, with the token underperforming the wider crypto market year-to-date.

Derivative markets point to renewed interest in SOL. Aggregate SOL futures open interest rose to about $4.2 billion on Friday, up from roughly $3.5 billion at the start of the week. While higher open interest signals growing participation, the perpetual funding rate has hovered around 3% annually, suggesting that buyers are not yet fully convinced and that leverage demand remains moderate. In a neutral setting, funding rates typically sit higher—roughly 5% to 10% annually—so the current reading implies cautious optimism rather than robust bullish conviction.

As Solana’s price action unfolds, on-chain activity presents a mixed picture. Solana continues to lead in decentralized exchange (DEX) volume and total value locked (TVL), underscoring its ongoing utility and network robustness. Yet Solana’s DApp revenue has softened in recent months, currently averaging around $16 million per week. By comparison, Ethereum’s DApp revenue has hovered around $10 million weekly, with BNB Chain at roughly $4 million, suggesting broader cooling in on-chain monetization across major ecosystems even as the Solana ecosystem remains an outsize DEX and TVL actor.

Key takeaways

  • Solana remains dominant in DEX volume and TVL, even as SOL underperforms the broader crypto market in 2026.

  • SOL futures open interest rose to about $4.2 billion, indicating expanding participation, while the 3% annualized funding rate signals cautious conviction from bulls.

  • On-chain revenue trends show Solana’s DApp ecosystem still active but trending lower, with weekly DApp revenue near $16 million, versus higher activity on other chains.

  • A wave of memecoin activity contributed to demand for SOL futures, echoing a pattern seen in prior bullish cycles and potentially foreshadowing a renewed price push.

  • Analysts note that if memecoin enthusiasm persists and hedging pressure eases, SOL could revisit upside targets toward the $100 level, though macro catalysts and funding dynamics will shape the path there.

Solana’s market position amid price discord

Despite SOL’s 2026 price gap relative to some peers, Solana’s core strengths remain intact. The network continues to attract substantial DEX activity and holds a commanding share of TVL, reinforcing its role as a leading layer-1 for on-chain trading and liquidity provisioning. This structural advantage matters for traders and builders who rely on Solana’s low-latency design and ambitious wallet integration to power a broad spectrum of DeFi and Web3 apps.

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Nevertheless, the broader price action tells a different story. SOL has lagged the wider market this year, suggesting that speculative drivers have cooled and that upside risk hinges on fresh catalysts beyond the continuation of positive on-chain fundamentals. For investors, the divergence between network dominance and price performance underscores a nuanced risk-reward dynamic: the chain’s intrinsic activity remains robust, but market enthusiasm requires new leverage‑driving momentum.

Derivatives backdrop: liquidity, leverage, and what to watch

The jump in open interest to $4.2 billion indicates growing participation from both institutional and retail traders interested in SOL’s volatility and spread efficiency. However, the persistent 3% annualized funding rate points to a market that is not fully pricing in a strong directional move. In calmer funding environments, sustained positive funding rates reflect ongoing demand for long positions; a reversion toward higher rates could accompany a renewed push higher in SOL, while a drop or negative rate would signal mounting short interest and potential downside pressure.

Traders will want to monitor whether the funding dynamic shifts as macro headlines evolve. A shift toward higher funding rates could accompany a more confident bull case, whereas persistent lower rates might imply a tighter range or consolidation phase. In this sense, perpetual futures markets offer a live read on market sentiment, even as they do not guarantee a specific price path.

Memecoin momentum and the DApp revenue narrative

Beyond the technical and macro layers, meme-driven demand has a notable footprint on SOL sentiment. A cluster of memecoins surged 40% or more over a short window, contributing to higher futures activity and capturing speculative interest around Solana. This pattern echoes earlier cycles where Solana benefited from surging user activity and social hype linked to memecoins, including iterations tied to high-profile tokens. While memecoins can catalyze short-term gains, they also introduce volatility that traders must manage carefully.

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At the same time, Solana’s ongoing commitments—robust validator security, a smooth user experience through Web3 wallets, and continued DEX leadership—provide a foundational tailwind for sustained activity. The ecosystem’s ability to translate on-chain traffic into real-use cases will be critical if momentum from memecoins wanes and investors seek more durable value drivers.

Where next for SOL? Risks, rewards, and the watchpoints

The potential for a renewed move toward the $100 level exists in a confluence of favorable conditions: easing geopolitical risk reducing macro risk aversion, a continued uptick in memecoin-driven demand, and a pickup in leveraged exposure if funding signals shift higher. Yet several caveats remain. The broader crypto market’s appetite for DApps and on-chain revenue remains a key variable; if user activity cools further or if competing ecosystems regain traction, SOL’s upside could be constrained despite favorable derivatives signals.

What to watch next includes the trajectory of SOL’s funding rate and open interest, any shifts in DApp monetization trends, and how memecoin liquidity evolves in the near term. Macro headlines—ranging from commodity price shifts to regulatory developments—could also tilt momentum in surprising ways, given Solana’s sensitivity to risk sentiment and liquidity conditions.

As investors weigh the signals, the path to a meaningful upside will likely hinge on a combination of renewed DEX and TVL strength, a sustained pickup in on-chain activity, and a favorable macro backdrop that encourages broader leverage in SOL futures. Until then, volatility remains a defining feature of SOL’s trading narrative.

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Readers should monitor how open interest evolves and whether the funding rate firms up or ebbs with changing sentiment, as these reads often precede more tangible price moves. The next few weeks will be telling for whether Solana can reconcile its network momentum with a fresh cycle of price appreciation.

Risk & affiliate notice: Crypto assets are volatile and capital is at risk. This article may contain affiliate links. Read full disclosure

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Kelp DAO hit for $292 million exploit with wrapped ether stranded across 20 chains

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Kelp DAO hit for $292 million exploit with wrapped ether stranded across 20 chains

A cross-chain bridge holding nearly a fifth of a restaked ether token’s circulating supply just got drained, and the fallout is moving through DeFi faster than Kelp DAO can pause contracts.

An attacker drained 116,500 rsETH (restaked ether) from Kelp DAO’s LayerZero-powered bridge at 17:35 UTC on Saturday, worth roughly $292 million at current prices and representing about 18% of rsETH’s 630,000 token circulating supply tracked by CoinGecko.

LayerZero is a cross-chain messaging layer, or the infrastructure that lets different blockchains send verified instructions to each other. Kelp DAO is a liquid restaking protocol, which takes user-deposited ETH, routes it through EigenLayer to earn additional yield on top of standard Ethereum staking rewards, and issues rsETH as a tradeable receipt.

The bridge that was drained held the rsETH reserve backing wrapped versions of the token deployed on more than 20 other blockchains.

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The attacker tricked LayerZero’s cross-chain messaging layer into believing a valid instruction had arrived from another network, which triggered Kelp’s bridge to release 116,500 rsETH to an attacker-controlled address.

Kelp’s emergency pauser multisig froze the protocol’s core contracts 46 minutes after the successful drain, at 18:21 UTC. Two follow-up attempts at 18:26 UTC and 18:28 UTC both reverted, each carrying the same LayerZero packet attempting another 40,000 rsETH drain worth roughly $100 million.

rsETH is deployed across more than 20 networks including Base, Arbitrum, Linea, Blast, Mantle and Scroll, with LayerZero’s OFT standard handling the cross-chain movement.

The rsETH held in the bridge was the reserve backing wrapped versions on every layer 2 blockchain, or networks that run atop Ethereum.

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With that reserve drained, holders on non-Ethereum deployments now face the question of whether their tokens have anything underneath them, which creates a feedback loop where panic redemptions on L2s pressure the unaffected Ethereum supply, potentially forcing Kelp to unwind restaking positions to honor withdrawals.

The contagion list is long and still growing.

Aave froze rsETH markets on V3 and V4 within hours, with founder Stani Kulechov affirming the exploit was external and Aave’s contracts were not compromised. SparkLend and Fluid froze their rsETH markets.

AAVE fell about 10% as the market priced potential bad debt.

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Kelp, a product under the KernelDAO umbrella, acknowledged the incident in its first public X post at 20:10 UTC, nearly three hours after the drain. The protocol said it was investigating with LayerZero, Unichain, its auditors and outside security specialists. It has not disclosed how the exploit bypassed the bridge’s validation logic.

Whether rsETH holds peg through the weekend depends on how much of the cross-chain float tries to redeem into ETH on Ethereum and whether Kelp can recover any portion of the stolen funds before the Tornado Cash trail goes cold.

The hack lands in an unusually hostile stretch for DeFi. Solana-based perpetuals protocol Drift was drained of about $285 million on April 1 in an attack later linked to North Korea-affiliated actors, and at least a dozen smaller protocols have been exploited in the weeks since, including CoW Swap, Zerion, Rhea Finance and Silo Finance.

Kelp’s $292 million loss is now the largest DeFi exploit of 2026, overtaking Drift by a few million dollars.

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Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Falls Slightly in Latest Adjustment

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Mining, Bitcoin Mining, Mining Pools, Home Mining

The Bitcoin (BTC) mining difficulty, the relative challenge of adding new blocks to the BTC blockchain, fell on Saturday, amid public mining companies selling record amounts of BTC to cover operating expenses.

The Bitcoin mining difficulty fell to about 135.5 T, a modest decrease of about 1.1% over the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinWarz. Mining difficulty is also projected to increase in the next adjustment period. CoinWarz said:

“The next Bitcoin difficulty adjustment is estimated to take place on May 01, 2026, 01:24:54 PM UTC, increasing the Bitcoin mining difficulty from 135.59 T to 137.43 T, which will take place in 1,865 blocks, about 12 days, 18 hours, and 41 minutes from now.”

Mining, Bitcoin Mining, Mining Pools, Home Mining
Bitcoin mining difficulty between 2014 and 2026. Source: CoinWarz

Bitcoin miners have faced mounting challenges over the past year, as reduced block rewards, rising energy prices, a crypto bear market and geopolitical shocks create economic headwinds for miners. 

Related: Solo Bitcoin miner bags $210K Bitcoin block reward

Public mining companies sell record amounts of BTC

Publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies sold more BTC in Q1 2026 than all four quarters of 2025 combined, according to TheEnergyMag.

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Mining companies MARA, CleanSpark, Riot, Cango, Core Scientific and Bitdeer, sold more than 32,000 BTC in total during Q1 2026, TheEnergyMag said.

The combined sales surpassed the 20,000 BTC sold in Q2 2022, the same quarter as the collapse of the Terra-Luna ecosystem, which plunged crypto into an extended bear market.

Miners periodically sell their BTC to cover operating expenses, which are denominated in fiat currency.

However, as the cost of mining a single BTC increases past spot market prices, many BTC mining companies are now treading water.

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Mining, Bitcoin Mining, Mining Pools, Home Mining
Mining companies’ cost of mining a single BTC. Source: TheEnergyMag

Up to 20% of Bitcoin miners are unprofitable under current economic conditions, according to asset manager CoinShares’ Q1 2026 mining report.

“Q4 2025 marked the most challenging quarter for Bitcoin miners since the April 2024 halving,” the CoinShares report said.

The authors cited the “sharp” BTC correction in October 2025, which slashed BTC’s price from a high of about $125,000 to about $86,000 by December 2025, and the rising computational difficulty of adding blocks as headwinds for the mining industry.

Magazine: 7 reasons why Bitcoin mining is a terrible business idea