Nashville, TN, USA — April 22, 2026 — BTC Inc., a Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA) company, today announced the addition of Lightning Network payments to its existing BTCPay Server infrastructure, ahead of Bitcoin 2026 (April 27–29, The Venetian, Las Vegas). The expansion brings Lightning to conference ticketing, onsite point-of-sale, and e-commerce, and marks the first time BTC Inc. has been able to deploy Lightning consistently across all of its revenue streams under a single, unified payment stack.

Bitcoin 2026 serves as the first live deployment of the expanded infrastructure.

One Stack, Many Business Models

BTC Inc. operates across a diverse set of revenue streams — live events, media, e-commerce, vendor settlements, and treasury operations, each with distinct payment requirements. Previous Lightning integrations, while promising, proved difficult to scale across this complexity. What worked for one use case often couldn’t be adapted to another, leaving the company without a practical path to consistent Lightning adoption.

BTCPay Server’s open-source, plugin-based architecture changed that. Already running as BTC Inc.’s core payment infrastructure for over a year, it provided the flexibility to address each use case on its own terms — without requiring a separate solution for each one.

“We’ve tried to make Lightning work for us before, and the honest answer is that it was never straightforward,” said Di Lewis, CFO, BTC Inc. “The problem wasn’t Lightning itself, it was that we run a genuinely complex business. Events, ticketing, an online store, payroll, what worked for one never translated cleanly to another. BTCPay Server is the first infrastructure we’ve had that’s flexible enough to fit all of it. Extending Lightning to our conference ticketing was the last piece, and now it runs end-to-end across everything, Lightning stops being a side feature and starts being the foundation.” 

“BTCPay Server has been running our payments for over a year,” said Brandon Green, CEO, BTC Inc. “What we’ve built gives us the foundation to keep expanding, and Lightning is the next layer. Free and open-source software isn’t optional for Bitcoin companies, it’s foundational.”

“BTCPay Server’s guiding principle is self-sovereignty. It is not just a headline, but a reality embedded deep in its technical design. As a result, developers and users are free to extend and use BTCPay Server in ways even we did not foresee, without needing our permission. We are thrilled to see companies like BTC Inc. lead as a prime example of that in practice!” – Nicolas Dorier, Founder, BTCPay Server

Lightning Across the Full Commerce Stack

With the addition of Lightning, BTC Inc.’s BTCPay Server infrastructure now supports instant, low-fee Bitcoin payments across three channels:

• Conference ticketing — Buyers can now complete ticket purchases at tickets.b.tc via on-chain Bitcoin or Lightning, through an integration of BTCPay Server, TicketSocket, and Strike, which provides the Lightning layer.
• Onsite point-of-sale — Lightning is live at food and beverage locations, the official merchandise store, and the bookstore across The Venetian conference floor. Attendees paying in Bitcoin can skip the line.
• E-commerce — The Lightning upgrade extends to BTC Inc.’s online store, creating a consistent payment experience across in-person and digital channels.

Building on an Established Foundation

BTC Inc. first deployed BTCPay Server at Bitcoin Asia 2024 in Hong Kong and has expanded its use at every subsequent conference. The January 2026 case study with BTCPay Server documented the results: over 5,600 in-person Bitcoin transactions, more than $1 million in vendor and staff payouts via the VendorPay plugin, and a Guinness World Record at Bitcoin Conference 2025 Las Vegas — 4,187 Lightning and NFC Bolt Card transactions processed in eight hours.

The addition of Lightning to ticketing and e-commerce extends that same infrastructure into channels where it had not previously operated. This is a significant step toward further retail adoption and support of the circular economy that Bitcoin promotes.

About BTC Inc.

BTC Inc. is the world’s leading Bitcoin media enterprise, operating Bitcoin Magazine, The Bitcoin Conference, and Bitcoin for Corporations. Through its media, events, and educational platforms, BTC Inc. delivers trusted news, research, and experiences that advance Bitcoin adoption among individuals, institutions, and enterprises worldwide.

BTC Inc. is a subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA), a publicly held Bitcoin company that owns and operates a global portfolio of Bitcoin-native enterprises.

Key Takeaways

• NFLX shares declined approximately 13% across five consecutive trading days due to underwhelming Q2 projections
• Wolfe Research maintained its Outperform stance with a $107 target, highlighting robust user engagement metrics
• Reed Hastings, company co-founder, will exit the board of directors in June as his tenure concludes
• Content in languages other than English represented ~68% of platform engagement in 2025, a decline from 70-71% during 2023-2024
• Analyst community maintains Strong Buy consensus: 29 Buy ratings, 8 Hold ratings, with an average target of $114.96

The streaming giant has experienced a turbulent week on Wall Street. Shares of Netflix tumbled approximately 13% throughout five consecutive trading sessions after its Q1 2026 financial results disappointed market participants — primarily due to forward-looking projections rather than current performance.

Netflix, Inc., NFLX

First-quarter revenue and earnings before interest and taxes exceeded Piper Sandler’s projections by roughly 1%. However, the company’s second-quarter outlook triggered concern among investors. Projected revenue fell short of Wall Street expectations by 0.5%, while operating income guidance underperformed consensus estimates by 5%. These misses were sufficient to trigger the selloff.

Additionally, the company announced that Reed Hastings — Netflix co-founder and current board chairman — plans to depart when his current term concludes in June. This announcement coincided with the earnings disclosure, compounding downward pressure on shares.

Wolfe Research Maintains Conviction

Peter Supino, analyst at Wolfe Research, demonstrated confidence in the streaming platform. He reaffirmed his Buy recommendation and maintained a $107 price objective, emphasizing what he characterizes as strong fundamental engagement patterns.

Supino directly confronted investor worries that Netflix is hemorrhaging viewers to competing platforms including YouTube, Meta, and TikTok. His analysis indicates Netflix’s user engagement remains resilient. He characterizes the platform as a “highly differentiated product” whose competitive advantage extends beyond simple viewing duration.

He further highlighted that the typical American Netflix user already dedicates 1.6 hours daily — approximately one-third of their total daily video consumption — to the service. This represents a substantial engagement foundation.

Supino maintains that Netflix possesses pricing power as long as it remains an integral daily routine for users. He projects sustainable mid-single-digit subscriber expansion if connected television households continue growing at 70 to 100 million annually and Netflix maintains approximately 30% penetration within those households.

User Engagement Patterns Under Scrutiny

Content produced in languages other than English comprised 68% of aggregate platform engagement during 2025, representing a decrease from the 70-71% range observed in 2023-2024. This 2-3 percentage point migration translates to approximately 4 to 6 billion viewing hours shifting toward English-language content.

International engagement per user decreased at a high single-digit rate in 2025, contrasted with low single-digit declines domestically. Wolfe attributes a portion of this trend to Netflix’s penetration into markets such as Japan, where typical television consumption runs approximately 50% below U.S. levels.

While this presents a legitimate challenge, Supino characterizes it as a demographic phenomenon rather than a content quality concern. The platform is simply acquiring more users in regions with inherently lower consumption patterns.

Shares currently trade near $92.58. Sporting a PEG ratio of 0.64, InvestingPro identified the stock as undervalued when measured against near-term earnings expansion potential. Trailing twelve-month revenue growth registers at 16.7%.

Several Wall Street firms recalibrated their price objectives following the earnings announcement. Piper Sandler elevated its target from $103 to $115. KeyBanc maintained its $115 forecast. Bernstein reduced expectations from $115 to $110. Guggenheim lowered its target from $130 to $120. TD Cowen kept its $112 projection unchanged. All firms preserved constructive ratings.

The current Wall Street consensus stands at: 29 Buy ratings, 8 Hold ratings, with an average price target of $114.96 — suggesting approximately 24% potential upside from present trading levels.

• Filing: Sun sued World Liberty Financial in California federal court, charging breach of contract, fraud, and conversion over frozen WLFI holdings.
• Token freeze details: WLFI froze 540 million of Sun’s unlocked tokens and 2.4 billion locked tokens – holdings that dropped from over $107 million at the September 2025 freeze to an estimated $43–60 million by April 2026.
• Governance dispute: Sun alleges WLFI excluded him from governance activities and that the blacklist function enabling the freeze was never disclosed to investors.
• Market impact: WLFI fell 15% to a record low after Sun publicly accused the project of embedding an undisclosed backdoor on April 12, 2026.
• Sun’s exposure: Sun invested approximately $75 million directly into WLFI – the project’s largest known outside investor – with total exposure to Trump-affiliated crypto ventures reaching $175 million.
• Key watch item: The California court’s ruling on Sun’s motion for immediate token unfreezing will be the first hard signal on whether the blacklist function survives legal scrutiny.

Key Highlights

• Axe Compute shares explode 145% following announcement of $260M GPU infrastructure agreement
• Enterprise AI contract featuring NVIDIA hardware drives AGPU stock momentum
• Deployment of 2,304 NVIDIA B300 GPUs fuels massive pre-market rally
• Multi-year AI computing deal provides unprecedented revenue predictability
• AGPU gains significant ground with long-term enterprise infrastructure commitment

Shares of Axe Compute Inc. (AGPU) experienced explosive growth during pre-market hours following the company’s announcement of a substantial enterprise AI infrastructure agreement valued at $260 million. Trading closed at $4.88 before skyrocketing to $12.00, representing a remarkable 145.90% increase. This dramatic price movement demonstrates investor enthusiasm for the company’s entry into large-scale GPU deployment for enterprise AI applications.

Axe Compute Inc., AGPU

Multi-Year Agreement Establishes Predictable Revenue Foundation

The company has finalized a 36-month enterprise infrastructure arrangement worth approximately $260 million. This agreement encompasses GPU-based computing services and advanced high-speed storage solutions delivered through a comprehensive payment framework. Payment terms include initial deposits, upfront prepayments, and recurring monthly advance payments structured on a take-or-pay arrangement.

Axe Compute will install 2,304 NVIDIA B300 GPUs within a Tier 3-certified data center facility located in the United States. The configuration incorporates high-performance storage infrastructure optimized for handling massive data processing requirements. This powerful system will facilitate training operations, model fine-tuning activities, and inference execution at enterprise magnitude.

Deployment operations are scheduled to commence during Q3 2026, with provisions allowing for contract extension beyond the initial term. Additionally, the infrastructure configuration will operate on 4.8 megawatts of committed power allocation. The architecture implements N+1 redundancy protocols to maintain continuous operational availability and system resilience.

Strategic Infrastructure Approach Strengthens AI Computing Market Position

Axe Compute maintains its strategic focus as a specialized provider of exclusive AI infrastructure capabilities. The organization concentrates on securing extended-term agreements featuring established pricing structures and guaranteed service parameters. This business approach generates stable revenue flows and enhanced long-term operational predictability.

The service framework enables enterprise customers to select deployment locations aligned with specific workload requirements. This adaptability addresses constraints commonly encountered in conventional hyperscale cloud infrastructure models. The company delivers isolated computing clusters with committed delivery schedules.

This agreement underscores an evolving trend toward customer-specified infrastructure configurations within AI marketplace segments. Enterprise organizations increasingly pursue dedicated computing resources rather than shared cloud platforms. Consequently, Axe Compute intends to replicate this operational framework across additional enterprise partnerships.

Advanced Computing Workloads Drive Market Expansion

The installed GPU cluster specifically addresses intensive AI workload requirements spanning multiple industry verticals. The infrastructure will support foundation model training operations demanding substantial coordination across thousands of parallel GPU units. The B300 architecture delivers optimized communication pathways and accelerated processing completion.

Enterprise clients will leverage the system for customizing models using proprietary data repositories. Dedicated infrastructure guarantees data sovereignty and consistent computing availability. This configuration mitigates vulnerabilities associated with shared computing environments and unpredictable resource access.

The platform additionally manages high-volume inference operations and AI-powered data processing applications. Use cases encompass real-time decision frameworks, personalized recommendation systems, and complex multimodal data workflows. Integrated high-performance storage capabilities will enhance data ingestion velocity and overall processing effectiveness.

This landmark contract represents Axe Compute’s most substantial enterprise partnership achieved thus far. The agreement reinforces the company’s competitive positioning within the expanding AI infrastructure sector. The organization’s growth trajectory remains synchronized with accelerating enterprise demand for scalable, dedicated GPU computing capabilities.

XRP: Hex Trust Confirms Isolation From Kelp DAO Exploit

XRP exposure concerns eased after Hex Trust confirmed that wXRP had no link to the exploited infrastructure. The firm explained that the attack targeted rsETH through a LayerZero bridge, not its own system. As a result, the wrapped XRP structure remained isolated from the compromised pathway.

Hex Trust also detailed its validator setup, which uses multiple decentralised verifier networks for transaction approvals. This structure prevents any single verifier from authorising transactions independently. Therefore, the firm reduced the risk of a single point of failure that affected Kelp DAO.

In addition, the custodian confirmed that none of its verifier networks experienced compromise during the exploit. The company also clarified that it does not rely on the same verifier configuration used by Kelp DAO. Consequently, the operational separation protected wXRP users from direct exposure.

wXRP Backing Structure and Bridge Safeguards

Hex Trust emphasised that it securely holds the underlying XRP assets in regulated custody environments. The firm does not store these assets on cross-chain bridges. Therefore, the exploited bridge had no access to the reserves backing wXRP tokens.

The company also reaffirmed that every wXRP token maintains a strict one-to-one backing with XRP. This structure ensures transparency and consistency across the token supply. Currently, around 50 million wXRP tokens circulate on the Ethereum network.

However, Hex Trust paused its bridge operations as a precautionary measure after the incident. The firm has begun reviewing its configurations to strengthen existing safeguards. This action reflects a broader effort to maintain system integrity amid rising DeFi security concerns.

Solana Expansion and Rising DeFi Risk Concerns

Hex Trust recently expanded wXRP availability to the Solana ecosystem, where adoption has grown rapidly. The token’s circulating supply approached one million within a week of launch. This growth followed integration with several Solana-based applications and trading platforms.

Meanwhile, industry participants raised concerns about holding wrapped tokens instead of native assets. Some analysts highlighted counterparty risks tied to issued tokens across external networks. These concerns intensified after multiple DeFi exploits occurred within a short period.

The Kelp DAO breach also renewed scrutiny of cross-chain bridge infrastructure and validator configurations. Earlier, a separate exploit involving Drift increased pressure on DeFi security frameworks. In response, developers and infrastructure providers have begun reassessing risk management strategies across networks.

The broader context shows increasing attention on secure custody and verification systems in decentralised finance. Firms now prioritise multi-layer validation and asset isolation to reduce vulnerabilities. As a result, the industry continues refining its approach to cross-chain interoperability and asset protection.

CoinDesk Indices presents its daily market update, highlighting the performance of leaders and laggards in the CoinDesk 20 Index.

The CoinDesk 20 is currently trading at 2157.12, up 3.4% (+71.19) since 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

All 20 assets are trading higher.

Leaders: APT (+5.5%) and ICP (+5.3%).

Laggards: XLM (+0.9%) and CRO (+1.9%).

The CoinDesk 20 is a broad-based index traded on multiple platforms in several regions globally.

Crypto exchange Kraken says it filed 56 million crypto-transaction forms with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the 2025 tax year. Roughly 18.5 million of them covered transactions worth less than $1, and over half were for $10 or less.

Only 8.5% of the newly introduced Form 1099-DAs cleared $600, the threshold that triggers reporting for non-employee compensation, and 74% were for less than $50, the company said in a Wednesday blog post.

Each form is also sent to the customer and creates a reconciliation task for the taxpayer who receives it. On top of that, standard tax software does not handle crypto transactions. Kraken estimated the additional burden on an active crypto holder at $250-$500 a year for dedicated tax software, on top of standard filing costs.

“The hours taxpayers spend reconciling these micro-transactions, often with incomplete data, generate costs wildly disproportionate to any revenue the IRS will collect from them,” Kraken said.

The Tax Foundation estimates individual returns already cost Americans a combined $146 billion in time and expenses, the exchange said, and the National Taxpayers Union Foundation puts the average time for non-business filers at about 13 hours and $290 per return.

Brokers reporting for 2025 provide gross proceeds without cost basis, meaning the form shows what was sold, but not what it was bought for. Kraken said it fielded thousands of client questions about forms that captured only one side of the calculation.

Two problems

Kraken pointed to two parts of the tax code that cause problems. One is the lack of a de minimis, or low-level, exemption for crypto payments, which means even small purchases with crypto can trigger a taxable event that needs to be declared.

“Imagine you walk into a Steak ’n Shake and pay for a $7.99 meal with Bitcoin through a payment app. You have triggered a taxable event,” Kraken wrote as an example. “You are technically required to look up the cost basis of the specific Bitcoin you spent, calculate whether you had a gain or loss on that fraction of a coin, and report it on Form 8949.”

That’s the same argument libertarian think tank Cato Institute recently made. According to the institute, buying a cup of coffee every day with BTC “can result in over 100 pages of tax filings.”

The second issue is staking. Rewards earned on staked assets are treated as ordinary income at the moment of receipt, based on the token’s market price that day. Most holders keep those tokens instead of selling them, meaning they owe tax on tokens that haven’t been sold.

If the token price falls between receipt and filing, the tax can exceed the asset’s current value. Kraken calls this phantom income and says a large share of the sub-dollar 1099-DAs it issued were staking distributions.

Legislation moving through Congress includes a de minimis provision, but is limited to stablecoins. Kraken is pushing for a broader inflation-indexed exemption, paired with anti-abuse guardrails to prevent structuring.

The exchange is also asking Congress to let taxpayers elect when staking rewards are taxed, either at receipt under current rules or at sale, when a gain or loss is realized.

Kraken says its systems and those of other exchanges already support both reporting methods, but the choice needs to be authorized.

Key takeaways

• Bitcoin price rallies higher, trading above $78,000 on Wednesday after surging nearly 6% so far this week.
• US-listed spot ETF recorded a mild inflow of $11.84 million on Tuesday amid uncertainty over US-Iran peace talks.

Bitcoin (BTC) extended its gains on Wednesday, trading above $78,000 after a significant 6% surge this week. BTC showed relatively muted institutional demand on Tuesday, with Bitcoin spot Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) adding $11 million in inflows.

Bitcoin’s price was buoyed by both geopolitical developments and the US Treasury’s buyback plan, which could inject additional liquidity into markets and further support Bitcoin’s price momentum.

Ceasefire extension pushes BTC’s price higher

Bitcoin’s positive momentum was fueled by the extension of the two-week ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump late Tuesday. The ceasefire, which was set to expire on April 22, was extended upon Pakistan’s request until Washington receives a unified proposal from Tehran. 

While Trump emphasized that the US blockade of Iranian seaports would remain in place, the ceasefire extension triggered a broad risk rally, driving Bitcoin to its highest price since February 3, reaching $78,452.

Market liquidity is expected to receive a significant boost this week, as the US Treasury is poised to buy back $15 billion of its own debt—matching the largest buyback in history. This move could provide fresh liquidity to the markets, creating favorable conditions for Bitcoin. As a liquidity-driven asset, Bitcoin could benefit from the influx of excess capital, which often flows into risk assets and alternative stores of value.

However, Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded a modest inflow of $11.84 million on Tuesday, down from $238.37 million the day before.
This cautious approach reflects investor uncertainty surrounding the ongoing US-Iran peace talks. However, if ETF inflows continue to increase, Bitcoin could see further upside potential.

Bitcoin price outlook: Bullish bias remains

The BTC/USD 4-hour chart remains bullish in the near term as Bitcoin is trading above both the 50-day and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs) at $72,345 and $75,368, respectively.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) remain constructive, suggesting that buyers are in control.

Resistance levels lie at the 50% Fibonacci retracement near $78,962, followed by the psychological $80,000 level and the 200-day EMA at $82,769. 

On the downside, initial support is expected around the prior channel top at $75,680, with further protection from the 100-day EMA at $75,368 and the 38.2% Fibonacci level at $74,487. The 50-day EMA at $72,345 and the lower channel boundary near $62,950 provide deeper support.