Crypto World
Why Nexo Is Reentering the US After the 2023 Crypto Lending Crackdown
Key takeaways
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After paying a $45-million settlement in 2023 and exiting the market, Nexo has reentered the US with a redesigned product model focused on regulatory alignment rather than direct yield issuance.
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The 2023 crackdown centered on unregistered securities concerns. The SEC alleged that Nexo’s Earn Interest Product functioned as an unregistered security, raising questions about retail yield marketing, transparency, custody practices and counterparty risk.
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The new model relies on licensed US partners. Instead of directly offering yield products, Nexo now operates through regulated US intermediaries, including licensed entities and, where required, SEC-registered investment advisers.
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The Bakkt partnership anchors the compliance strategy. By collaborating with Bakkt, a publicly traded US crypto firm with regulatory licenses, Nexo shifts from a direct issuer model to a partner-delivered framework embedded within regulated infrastructure.
Three years after departing the US and paying a $45-million settlement to federal and state regulators, Nexo has formally reentered the US market. But this is not a straightforward relaunch. Rather, it is a structural overhaul.
What changed is not merely the timing or the political climate; it is how the product is designed, delivered and regulated.
This article examines why Nexo exited in 2023, what regulators objected to and how its 2026 return is structured differently. It also explores what US users should watch before engaging with crypto-backed loans or yield-style products.
The 2023 crackdown: Why Nexo left the US
Nexo, co-founded by former Bulgarian lawmaker Antoni Trenchev, developed much of its initial US footprint through its Earn Interest Product (EIP), which enabled users to deposit crypto and earn yield.
In January 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Nexo of offering and selling unregistered securities through this product. The SEC contended that the EIP met the legal definition of a security and, therefore, required proper registration.
Nexo consented to a settlement:
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It paid a total of $45 million in fines to the SEC and various state regulators.
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It neither admitted nor denied the allegations.
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It ceased offering the product to US investors.
Soon after, Nexo withdrew from the US retail market.
Why regulators targeted “earn” products
The enforcement action stemmed from a wider post-2022 crypto lending fallout. Major failures across the lending industry had revealed liquidity mismatches, rehypothecation risks and retail exposure to opaque yield structures.
Regulators were particularly concerned about:
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The promotion of yield products to retail investors
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Transparency regarding how returns were generated
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Custody practices and credit counterparty risks
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Whether these offerings functioned as investment contracts.
The crackdown extended beyond Nexo and signaled a broader regulatory overhaul for centralized crypto yield offerings.
Did you know? Borrowing against volatile assets is not a new concept. Traditional stock margin lending has existed for decades, but crypto’s 24/7 trading makes liquidation mechanics far more dynamic and automated.
What changed in 2026
Nexo’s 2026 comeback rests on a core claim: The product is now structured differently and provided through licensed US partners.
Instead of directly delivering yield-like products to US investors under its former approach, Nexo states that its updated structure:
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Relies on properly licensed US partners
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Incorporates an SEC-registered investment adviser when required
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Has phased out the product addressed in the 2023 order.
This difference is significant: Rather than operating as an independent provider of an earn program, Nexo is now positioned within a regulated infrastructure framework.
According to Nexo, it will offer crypto-backed loans and yield-generating products. These services will be provided through licensed US partners.
Crypto-backed loans differ from the unsecured lending models that failed in 2022. Users deposit digital assets as collateral and borrow against them. Liquidation occurs if the collateral falls below set loan-to-value thresholds.
The Bakkt partnership: Compliance by design
A key factor in the relaunch is Nexo’s collaboration with Bakkt, a publicly traded US crypto firm.
Bakkt provides regulated trading infrastructure and holds multiple US licenses. By channeling US operations through regulated entities, Nexo is effectively moving from a direct issuer model to a partner-delivered model.
In practical terms, this means:
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Trading, custody or advisory services could reside with regulated entities.
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Product elements may be distributed across licensed intermediaries.
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Supervision may occur across multiple regulatory layers.
This framework is designed to address the regulatory objections that led to the 2023 settlement.
Did you know? Unlike banks, most crypto lending platforms do not benefit from federal deposit insurance, meaning customer protections depend heavily on custody structures and legal agreements rather than government backstops.
A shifting regulatory landscape
Timing is a factor in Nexo’s return to the US. Under President Donald Trump’s administration, the SEC has terminated or scaled back multiple crypto enforcement actions. The enforcement environment has shifted from an intense crackdown to a period of readjustment.
For instance, the SEC moved to drop a lawsuit involving the Gemini Earn program following investor recoveries. This does not indicate that crypto lending issues are entirely resolved, but it points to a more adaptable regulatory stance than in early 2023.
Nevertheless, the US regulatory framework remains fragmented. Federal agencies, state securities regulators, money transmitter statutes and consumer lending rules may all apply depending on the structure.
What US users need to watch
Even if products are offered through regulated intermediaries, users should assess:
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Who is your legal counterparty? Is the agreement with Nexo, with a US-licensed entity or with multiple entities?
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Where does custody sit? Are assets held by a qualified custodian? Under which regulatory regime?
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How are returns generated? Are yields derived from lending, staking, market-making or other activities?
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What are the liquidation terms for crypto-backed loans?
What is the loan-to-value (LTV) threshold?
How quickly can liquidation occur?
Are there additional fees?
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What disclosures exist? Look for:
Risk disclosures
Rehypothecation clauses
Conflict-of-interest statements
Jurisdiction clauses.
“Compliant structure” does not equal “risk-free product.”
Did you know? Money transmitter licensing in the US is state-based, which means a crypto company may need approvals in dozens of jurisdictions. This is one reason partner-led models are gaining popularity.
Why this comeback matters for the industry
Nexo’s return could indicate a wider transformation in US crypto lending:
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Phase 1 (Pre-2023): Direct-to-consumer yield models with minimal registration
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Phase 2 (2023-2025): Regulatory enforcement, withdrawals and reorganization
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Phase 3 (2026 onward): Partner-led models employing licensed intermediaries and segregated functions.
If this framework proves viable, other international crypto companies may reenter the US through comparable compliance layers instead of direct issuance models.
The real shift: It is about the wrapper, not just the product
The primary takeaway from Nexo’s return is structural.
The fundamental economic idea of generating yield on digital assets or borrowing against crypto remains intact. What has evolved is the regulatory framework surrounding it.
Rather than pushing the limits of securities law, the updated model integrates into licensed infrastructure.
Whether this method satisfies regulators over the long term will hinge on:
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Disclosure quality
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Risk management practices
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Transparency of revenue sources
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Ongoing federal and state coordination.
For now, Nexo’s comeback reflects a more prudent crypto industry that recognizes that in the US, structure dictates survival.
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Crypto World
Crypto world faces growing pressure to relent on stablecoin rewards to win bigger prize
If you break down what’s standing in the way of advancing the crypto sector’s top goal in Washington — Clarity Act legislation — the part of the debate that the industry can control is narrow: stablecoin rewards.
That’s not the only issue that could potentially derail the bill to finally establish a tailored legal footing for crypto markets in the U.S., but it’s the one in which industry insiders have a strong say. Companies such as Coinbase have been vigorously defending that business turf, wanting to keep giving customers incentives for engaging with stablecoins on their platforms.
But Wall Street banking lobbyists rolled in and made an argument that getting yield on stablecoin accounts is a lot like getting interest on savings accounts, and if the former kills the latter, the death of the deposit business means the strangulation of bank lending. That argument stuck with enough lawmakers on both sides of the aisle that it stopped the Senate’s Digital Asset Market Clarity Act in its tracks.
Heels have been digging in, and the resulting impasse will get harder to break as the weeks fly by, until the Senate’s own calendar quirks could effectively shove the whole mess toward 2027.
Upper hand?
Until now, the crypto side has argued that it has the upper hand, because the crypto bill that already passed into law — the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act — seemed to allow third-party platforms such as Coinbase to offer rewards tied to other issuers’ tokens, such as Circle’s. However, a newly proposed rule from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency that’s implementing GENIUS concluded that such relationships may violate the intent of the law, leaving the crypto world’s confidence a little shaken.
The last time the crypto and banking negotiators sat down with White House officials, President Donald Trump’s crypto advisers seemed to favor a compromise that would allow some rewards — not for merely holding stablecoins, but for actually using them for transactions and to support crypto infrastructure. Crypto insiders felt confident in their leverage, with GENIUS behind them and the White House favoring certain rewards.
But bank representatives haven’t necessarily seen the White House in the driver’s seat, because the White House doesn’t get a vote in advancing the Senate’s bill. The bankers haven’t yet raised their hands to move beyond their earlier position that virtually all categories of rewards need to be banned, despite the White House having set the end of February as an informal (unmet) deadline for compromise.
So where does that leave things?
The banks can hold out, and if they continue to cast stablecoin rewards as an existential threat to the traditional financial system and Main Street lending, it could keep their allied lawmakers on their side at the fatal expense of the Clarity Act. What they risk is that the GENIUS Act remains the law of the land on this point. The OCC’s latest work may help bolster their confidence that strict rewards limits will be put in place, but that final agency rule would have to land on a very restrictive interpretation.
The crypto industry can also hold out, and if it can successfully lobby against the OCC’s proposed rule, it may still manage to preserve stablecoin reward programs it believes should be allowed under the wording of the GENIUS Act. But that may come at the cost of the Clarity Act, which is the single most important policy aim since the birth of crypto.
Regulations either way
Would an absence of Clarity mean that the industry continues without U.S. regulations? Probably not, because the U.S. markets regulators — the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission — are working on rules that will define their crypto jurisdictions. The drawback, though, is that it would be done without the foundation of new law, so the rules would be reasonably easy to peel back or revise under future leadership changes at those agencies.
As if that wasn’t enough for the crypto negotiators to consider, there’s this: If they were to capitulate somehow on stablecoin yield, and the bill advanced along party lines through the Senate Banking Committee (as it already was through the Senate Agriculture Committee), the crypto-industry sacrifice brings no guarantee the effort gets passed by the rest of the Senate.
The problem is that Democratic senators have asked for some other significant points in this bill, and so far, those requests have gone unanswered. They want more vigorous defenses against illicit finance in crypto, especially focused on the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, and some of the Democrats’ past ideas were bashed by the industry as DeFi death threats. They also want politically dicey limits on the personal crypto business ties of senior government officials — most significantly, President Trump. And they demand that vacant Democratic seats get filled in the CFTC and SEC.
None of the points represent impassable roadblocks, but in the months of talks, they haven’t been cleared, yet. Some of the requests — such as commission nominations — would depend on willingness from the White House.
In the meantime, the clock is ticking away on 2026 Senate floor time for a major legislative accomplishment. Because this is a midterm election year, the lawmakers will scarcely be working in the Senate after the end of July. And apart from the scheduling practicalities, the nearness of hot-blooded campaigning erodes the chances of the parties getting together on a bill.
At this stage, insiders on the crypto side of the talks have expressed frustration over the unwavering position of the bankers, even as the digital assets businesses have seemed prepared to abandon stablecoin rewards on accounts in which the tokens are simply held (like a bank account). Still, people like Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong (“We’re going to reach a win-win-win outcome“) and Ripple CEO Brian Garlinghouse (predicting 80% odds of passage) have sought to maintain industry confidence.
That optimism seems to have kept Polymarket bettors favoring Clarity Act passage this year above a coin flip, currently at 70%.
In the coming weeks, the crypto industry may be forced to decide whether some kind of further sacrifice on stablecoin rewards is worth eliminating one of the major impediments to advancing a bill. And the banks may have to decide whether they can contend with the GENIUS Act’s treatment of stablecoins as it stands. So far, neither are moving, and tension is building.
Crypto World
Trump’s “Big Wave” Warning Moves Gold and Bitcoin Prices
US President Donald Trump jolted global markets once again on Monday, after warning that a “big wave” is still coming in the escalating Iran conflict.
However, instead of triggering a traditional flight to safety, markets witnessed one of the sharpest cross-asset reversals in recent memory: precious metals plunged while crypto surged.
Markets Defy Safe-Haven Playbook as Capital Rotates From Gold to Bitcoin
Trump described ongoing U.S. military strikes as “very powerful” in an interview with CNN, suggesting that a larger phase of the operation remains ahead.
Within just 60 minutes, gold and silver erased an estimated $1.1 trillion in combined market value. Spot gold fell 2.05%, shedding nearly $100 per ounce and wiping out roughly $750 billion in value.
Meanwhile, Silver posted an even more violent reversal, plunging 7% in under two hours. It erased approximately $370 billion as prices moved toward $88 per ounce.
At the same time, capital rotated aggressively into digital assets. Bitcoin broke above $69,000, surging 5% in roughly 50 minutes and adding an estimated $60 billion to its market capitalization. Ethereum reclaimed the $2,000 level, climbing 5.8% and contributing another $23 billion.
“The Crypto market has added $100 billion in the last 45 minutes, liquidating nearly $80 million in short positions,” one analyst noted.
The divergence caught many off guard, given that investors have been accustomed to gold outperforming during geopolitical stress.
Instead, metals saw heavy selling pressure while crypto absorbed the headline shock and accelerated upward.
Derivatives Signal Limited Leverage as Bitcoin Absorbs Geopolitical Shock
Initial headlines reportedly triggered roughly $300 million in total crypto liquidations. However, derivatives data suggested a more resilient structure beneath the volatility.
Funding rates were sitting in the 6th percentile, indicating limited speculative excess. Open interest declined by only about $1 billion, suggesting that leverage had largely been flushed out before the geopolitical escalation.
Similar Middle East tensions last year led to more disorderly price action. This time, Bitcoin dipped briefly but did not spiral lower.
The absence of aggressive cascading liquidations may signal a market that was already braced for geopolitical risk.
The metals reversal, meanwhile, raises questions about positioning and liquidity dynamics. Quick unwinds in gold and silver futures markets can amplify volatility when crowded trades reverse.
The scale of the move, reaching more than $1 trillion erased in an hour, shows how fragile sentiment can become when expectations shift abruptly.
With Trump signaling that a larger military phase could still lie ahead, volatility is unlikely to fade. The next wave of headlines may test whether crypto’s resilience holds, or whether traditional safe havens regain their footing.
Crypto World
Berkshire Hathaway shares drop 4% after poor fourth-quarter results
Warren Buffett and Greg Abel walkthrough the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska on May 3, 2025.
David A. Grogen | CNBC
Berkshire Hathaway shares fell Monday after the conglomerate reported a sharp decline in fourth-quarter operating earnings, while new CEO Greg Abel offered few signs of an immediate strategic shift in his first communication with shareholders.
Class A shares of the Omaha-based conglomerate slid 4.8% to start the week. The stock’s decline came after Berkshire posted operating earnings of $10.2 billion for the fourth quarter, down more than 29% from $14.56 billion a year earlier. The drop was driven largely by weakness in the insurance business, where underwriting profits tumbled 54% to $1.56 billion from $3.41 billion in the year-earlier period.
The results mark an early challenge for Abel, who succeeded Warren Buffett as CEO at the start of 2026. While investors had broadly praised Abel’s first annual shareholder letter for reaffirming Berkshire’s long-standing culture of financial strength and disciplined investing, some had hoped for more aggressive signals on capital deployment given the company’s swelling cash balance.
Berkshire ended 2025 with more than $370 billion in cash and Treasury holdings. In the letter, Abel reiterated that the company does not plan to initiate a dividend so long as it believes retained earnings can create more than a dollar of market value for shareholders.
“We were just a little surprised by the absence of any sort of dividend, and a little more by the stated sustained unwillingness to pay dividends,” Meyer Shields, an analyst at KBW said in a note. “Given Berkshire’s very significant current cash position and — just as important, in our view — its prospects for sustained cash generation, we’d seen some chance of persistent dividends accompanying the CEO transition.”
Abel instead emphasized reinvestment and opportunistic share repurchases when Berkshire stock trades below intrinsic value, maintaining the capital allocation framework long championed by Buffett.
Still, not all analysts were bearish. Brian Meredith of UBS said that while quarterly results came in weaker than expected, Berkshire’s defensive characteristics could support the stock.
“We actually anticipate BRK’s shares will outperform the broader market given the elevated geopolitical tensions,” Meredith wrote in a note to clients. “BRK is generally considered very defensive. Historically, BRK shares have outperformed during periods of market volatility benefiting from their diversified earnings streams, liquidity position, and largely U.S.-focused businesses.”
Meredith added that Berkshire’s annual letter reiterated those core principles and values. Looking ahead to 2026 and 2027, he expects management to focus on improving operating margins at BNSF to bring them closer to industry peers and boosting policy retentions at Geico while maintaining profitability.
Crypto World
Strategy Makes Largest Bitcoin Purchase Since January
Bitmine also continued adding to its crypto holdings with a fresh ETH purchase in the past week.
Strategy, formerly Microstragegy, announced today, March 2, that it has acquired an additional 3,015 Bitcoin (BTC), according to an X post from the firm. The purchase totalled approximately $204.1 million, at an average price of $67,700 per Bitcoin.
This latest BTC buy marks Strategy’s largest since January and brings its total Bitcoin holdings to 720,737 BTC, further solidifying its status as the largest corporate Bitcoin holder globally, according to data from BitcoinTreasuries. The firm, which pioneered the digital asset treasury (DAT) strategy as far back as 2020, has continued to make weekly BTC purchases in recent months.
Last week’s purchase is its largest since Jan. 20, when Strategy bought 22,305 BTC for an average cost of $91,519, according to its website, which marked its largest single purchase since late 2024.
Bitmine Also Buys ETH
Meanwhile, Bitmine Immersion Technologies continues to hold onto its position as the largest Ethereum DAT company, also announcing a fresh purchase today, according to a press release from the firm. The company accumulated nearly 51,000 ETH in the past week alone, bringing its holdings to 4,473,587 ETH, per the release. Bitmine also noted that it is staking a total of 3,040,483 ETH as of March 1.
The continued accumulation from the two largest DATs comes as BTC and ETH both post 24-hour gains in a broad crypto market rally today, despite the escalating military action in the Middle East, after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran this weekend, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
BTC rallied back over $69,000 and ETH pushed over $2,000 today, supported by renewed inflows into spot crypto ETFs at the end of last week.
The DAT trend exploded last year, as an increasing number of publicly traded firms began accumulating not only BTC and ETH, but smaller cap assets. Experts, however, expressed concerns about the risks and questioned the viability of the DAT structure as a long-term strategy, especially for smaller, more volatile crypto assets.
This article was generated with the assistance of AI workflows.
Crypto World
Pi Network (PI) News Today: March 2nd
PI has the second-highest bullish sentiment today (March 2nd).
Last month, Pi Network’s team celebrated a special milestone and announced several important updates aimed at improving the entire ecosystem.
Despite the enhanced volatility, PI closed February in green, which could explain why it has been trending lately.
The Recent Developments and What’s Next?
It was on February 20, 2025, when Pi Network officially launched its Open Network, making PI publicly accessible and enabling exchanges to provide trading services with it. Last month, the team celebrated the first anniversary of that milestone and unveiled several important updates.
It revealed the completion of protocol v19.6, making v19.9 the final step ahead of the much-anticipated v20. The team also reminded that nodes need to migrate promptly, as outdated versions will no longer be able to participate in the network.
Shortly after, Pi Network introduced its long-awaited Ecosystem Token Design, a framework meant to ensure that new tokens on the Mainnet are tied to real utility rather than speculation. The team urged Pioneers to review the mode and provide feedback before final implementation.
Besides that, Pi Network’s co-founders, Chengdiao Fan and Nicolas Kokkalis, answered some hot questions involving the controversial KYC process, the entity’s jump into the AI sector, and other intriguing topics.
The community’s attention has now shifted to March 14: a date known across the community as Pi Day, due to its symbolic resemblance to the mathematical constant π (3.14). The team marked the same date last year with an ecosystem expansion, but it’s unclear whether they plan something similar in less than two weeks. X user Pi Community claimed that Pi Day has always been “a powerful moment to showcase major progress, current work, and what’s next.”
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PI in Focus
PI closed in February at around $0.17, representing a 10% monthly increase. Currently, it trades just south of that mark, which could explain why the asset has been trending lately.
According to CoinMarketCap, PI has the second-highest bullish sentiment today (March 2nd), trailing only Kaspa (KAS). Further down the list are well-known altcoins such as Ripple (XRP), Cardano (ADA), and Ethereum (ETH).
This development has left some market observers baffled. X user Mr. Brondor, for instance, wondered how “a useless crypto” like PI could have one of the strongest bullish sentiments.
Token Unlocks and More
While some industry participants have been floating the unrealistic (at least as of now) idea that PI could explode to as high as $50, certain technical indicators suggest a short-term correction could also be on the way.
Data shows that over the next few weeks, token unlocks will be quite aggressive with the record day being March 7 when almost 21 million coins will be released. This doesn’t guarantee a price decline, but it will allow some investors to offload holdings they have been waiting for some time.
Meanwhile, the amount of PI stored on centralized platforms has been gradually rising lately and now sits at nearly 435 million tokens. This trend is considered bearish, as a growing exchange supply increases the likelihood of a substantial sell-off.
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Crypto World
Polkadot price prediction ahead of DOT supply cap
Polkadot price prediction leans bullish as traders position ahead of a major DOT supply cap upgrade.
Summary
- Polkadot price is up 22% in seven days and trades near the top of its weekly range.
- An upcoming tokenomics upgrade plans to cap DOT supply at 2.1 billion starting March 2026.
- A daily close above $1.70 could open the door to a move toward $2.00.
Polkadot (DOT) is trading at $1.57 at press time, up 1.6% over the past 24 hours. The token has climbed 22% in the last seven days, recovering from a sharp pullback. Even so, DOT is still down roughly 65% over the past year.
Price is moving near the top of its weekly range between $1.24 and $1.74. Spot trading volume came in at $250 million in the last 24 hours, down about 15% from the previous day. In derivatives markets, activity has also cooled.
CoinGlass data shows volume down 25% to $558 million, while open interest slipped 5% to $203 million. As the market awaits the next catalyst, some traders seem to be lowering their exposure.
Major tokenomics changes set for March
The shift in sentiment comes ahead of a key upgrade floated by Polkadot developer Parity Technologies. Starting March 12, Polkadot will introduce a new issuance framework built around a Dynamic Allocation Pool.
Under the proposal, DOT’s total supply will be capped at 2.1 billion tokens. Treasury burns will end. Instead of removing excess tokens from circulation, newly minted DOT, transaction fees, and slashes will be directed into the DAP, a permanent on-chain account governed by the network.
Issuance will follow a stepped schedule. Emissions will be cut by 53.6% in the first phase. After that, 13.14% of the remaining supply will be issued every two years. The first reduction begins on March 14, 2026. Based on current projections, the supply cap would be reached around the year 2160.
The goal is to create a predictable monetary structure while allowing governance to allocate funds across validator rewards, staking incentives, treasury spending, and a strategic reserve.
Staking reforms and validator rules
Staking rules will also change. Following a transition period, validators will need to hold at least 10,000 DOT as self-stake. 10% will be the minimum commission rate.
The introduction of a StakingOperator Proxy will enable service providers to run validators for institutional clients in a non-custodial setup. In April, the unbonding period will be shortened from 28 days to 24 to 48 hours, and nominators will no longer be slashable.
These adjustments are designed to improve capital efficiency while maintaining network security as issuance declines.
Polkadot price technical outlook
On the daily chart, DOT is trying to stabilize after months of lower highs and lower lows. The long-term structure is still bearish, but short-term momentum has improved.

After a strong recovery from the $1.30–$1.40 demand zone, the price broke through resistance around $1.50–$1.55. Before the breakout, Bollinger Bands had tightened, and as the price tests the upper band around $1.68, volatility is currently increasing.
The relative strength index has recovered from near-oversold levels around 30 and is now in the mid-50s. Momentum is no longer deeply negative. A sustained move above 60 would add confidence to the recovery.
If DOT closes cleanly above $1.70, the next likely target sits near $2.00. A break above $2.20 would disrupt the pattern of lower highs and could shift the medium-term structure higher, opening the door to $2.40–$2.60.
If momentum fades and price drops back below $1.40, the recent breakout would weaken. A move under $1.12 would put $1.00 back in focus. With the supply cap narrative approaching and price holding above recent breakout levels, DOT is at a technical crossroads.
Crypto World
Inside HYPE’s bear market resilience
The crypto bear market has dragged down most major digital assets this year, but HYPE has moved in the opposite direction. Year to date, the token is up 23.9%, matching gold’s gain over the same period. The S&P 500 is slightly negative, while bitcoin has fallen 23.7% and ether more than 33%.
The divergence is notable not only because HYPE is crypto-native, but because it has decoupled from the broader digital asset market. Its performance increasingly reflects the value of the platform behind it rather than the market’s direction.
HyperLiquid, the decentralized derivatives exchange that underpins HYPE, is built to monetize activity rather than price appreciation. In bull markets, capital tends to concentrate in spot exposure. In choppier conditions marked by drawdowns and macro shocks, derivatives volume tends to persist. Traders shift from buying to positioning, and the platform collects fees on both sides.
While trading volume on competitor platforms Aster and Lighter has tumbled in recent months, HyperLiquid’s has increased, rising from $169 billion in December to more than $200 billion for both January and February. Aster, meanwhile, went from $177 billion in December to less than $100 billion in February, with Lighter suffering an even sharper drop, DefiLlama data shows.
Total volume on HyperLiquid since its inception has now hit a whopping $4 trillion.
Volatility as a business model
HyperLiquid’s core product is perpetual futures, which allow traders to go long or short with leverage. When prices grind higher, leverage amplifies upside. When markets slide, shorting and basis trades step in. The exchange collects fees on both sides.
That structure becomes particularly relevant in a year marked by turbulence across asset classes. Rather than relying on sustained price appreciation, the exchange captures turnover. In sideways or declining markets, traders often increase frequency, hedge exposure, or rotate into relative-value strategies. Activity replaces direction as the primary driver.
And that business model has yielded positive results. Gross protocol revenue grew by 96% in Q3 of 2025 to $354 million, with the fourth-quarter total hitting $286 million, the majority of which came from perpetual trading fees.
That revenue comes from a super-lean team of fewer than 15 employees, with half focused on engineering. HyperLiquid founder Jeff Yan has also refused investment from venture capitalists to maintain independence – a bold approach uncommon in the crypto industry.
Trading beyond market hours
More recently, HyperLiquid has expanded beyond crypto-native pairs. It now offers synthetic exposure to foreign exchange, commodities and major equity indices. It also provides weekend trading for U.S. equities, an innovation that resonates with retail traders accustomed to crypto’s round-the-clock rhythm.
For a generation raised on app-based brokerage platforms, the traditional market calendar feels restrictive. As seen over the past weekend, geopolitical escalations often land outside the typical weekday trading window. HyperLiquid’s structure allows traders to react in real time rather than wait for Monday’s open.
HyperLiquid’s silver market has also been a resounding success with trading volume nearing $750 million over a recent 24-hour trading period despite traditional markets being closed for the majority of Sunday.
The exchange has also introduced pre-IPO perpetual markets tied to companies such as Anthropic, OpenAI and SpaceX. These instruments are synthetic and do not confer equity ownership, but they offer directional exposure to private companies. In effect, they create a parallel venue for price discovery among retail participants otherwise excluded from late-stage venture valuations.
The product FTX tried to build
The model carries echoes of an earlier vision. FTX pitched 24-hour trading, tokenized equities and seamless leverage across asset classes. Its collapse stemmed from custody risk, shoddy balance-sheet practices, and the commingling of funds.
HyperLiquid operates on a non-custodial framework, with on-chain settlement and transparent vault mechanics. Users interact with smart contracts rather than deposit funds into a centralized entity’s balance sheet. In a post-FTX landscape, that distinction carries weight. Retail traders who absorbed losses from centralized failures remain sensitive to counterparty exposure.
HyperLiquid delivers many of the features once marketed by FTX, but through infrastructure designed to reduce reliance on a single custodian.
The exchange also leans into competition and gamification. Leaderboards prominently rank traders by performance, creating protagonists like James Wynn, who lost $100 million on HyperLiquid after engaging in a high-risk long-only trading strategy using leverage when bitcoin was above $100,000.
The mechanic encourages engagement. Traders can build reputations through short positions, market-neutral strategies or well-timed directional bets, and that creates a buzz on social media – effectively acting as a marketing vehicle even in volatile markets.
The centralization test
Claims that HyperLiquid is insulated from bear markets require context. One year ago, the protocol faced a credibility shock that raised questions about decentralization.
In April 2025, the total value locked in the Hyperliquidity Provider vault fell from $540 million to $150 million within a month. The trigger was a trading episode involving a token called JELLY. A trader opened a large short position on HyperLiquid while simultaneously buying the token on illiquid decentralized exchanges. Thin liquidity distorted price feeds and forced the vault into a toxic position via liquidation.
As JELLY’s reported price spiked to levels unsupported by deep liquidity, the vault’s unrealized losses mounted. HyperLiquid intervened, force-closing the market and settling JELLY at $0.0095 rather than the roughly $0.50 price being relayed by oracles. The decision protected the vault from substantial losses, but it ignited backlash.
Critics argued that a protocol marketed as decentralized had exercised discretionary control reminiscent of a centralized exchange. Governance optics deteriorated quickly. Yield on the vault fell sharply, and users withdrew capital.
Security researchers described the episode as an economic design flaw rather than a smart contract exploit. Jan Philipp Fritsche of Oak Security characterized it as unpriced vega risk, where leveraged exposure to volatile assets drained the risk fund in a predictable manner. The episode underscored that economic vulnerabilities can be as destabilizing as technical bugs.
HyperLiquid later modified its governance process, shifting asset delistings to an on-chain validator voting mechanism. The change did not eliminate scrutiny, but it addressed one of the central criticisms.
The vault has since recovered to $380 million in TVL, offering users a 6.93% APR.
Resilience through activity
Despite the controversy, trading volume on the exchange remained robust, and with competitors Aster and Lighter losing momentum, HyperLiquid is positioning itself as a mainstay in the ongoing cryptocurrency bear market.
Risks remain. Regulatory attention could intensify around synthetic exposure to private companies and U.S. equities. Liquidity fragmentation in thinner markets could resurface pricing distortions. Governance mechanisms will continue to be tested under stress.
Yet HYPE’s relative strength this year reflects a structural distinction. Rather than functioning as a high-beta bet on digital asset appreciation, it increasingly behaves like a claim on a venue that monetizes volatility.
In a cycle defined less by sustained rallies and more by sharp swings, that positioning has mattered.
Crypto World
Onchain image inscription challenges data-limit proposal
Bitcoin’s latest governance clash escalated this week as the first block signaling support for a temporary soft fork designed to restrict arbitrary, non-monetary data in the blockchain’s transactions was produced by mining pool Ocean.
The proposal, formally assigned BIP-110 after evolving from earlier drafts, aims to reinstate strict limits on transaction output sizes and arbitrary data fields for about a year. The idea is to curb what proponents see as “spam” uses of block space for non-financial data. They argue that unchecked data, including large inscriptions and so-called OP_RETURN payloads, threaten the original blockchain’s role as sound monetary infrastructure and burden node operators.
The community remains deeply divided. Prominent critics, including Blockstream CEO Adam Back, have warned that consensus-level intervention could harm Bitcoin’s credibility and lead to preferential treatment of some transactions in violation of the principle of neutral transaction capacity. He also questioned the level of support for the proposal, which, he said, increased the risk of the blockchain being split.
Adding fuel to the debate, a developer recently inscribed a 66 KB image in a single transaction on Bitcoin, an apparent pushback against BIP-110’s core claims and a demonstration of how large amounts of data can be encoded even without relying on OP_RETURN.
OP_RETURN and similar approaches are script instructions used to mark a transaction output as invalid for spending, effectively allowing users to repurpose that space to permanently embed arbitrary data — like text or images — directly into the blockchain
As the controversy unfolds, it underscores enduring philosophical tensions within Bitcoin. Should network aggressively defend a narrowly defined monetary purpose or maintain maximal neutrality toward arbitrary uses of its base layer?
Crypto World
BTC, ETH Spot ETFs Reverse Weekly Outflow Streak
Spot crypto ETFs turned positive last week, but they’re still net negative for the month of February.
Both Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) spot exchange-traded funds (ETF) closed out last week in the green, a reversal from a period of multi-week outflows.
After five straight weeks of net negative flows, Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded net inflows of $787.31 million for the week ending on Feb. 27, bringing total net assets to $83.4 billion, per data from SoSoValue. The previous three weeks of February all saw over $300 million in net outflows for BTC funds, while the last two weeks of January recorded over $1 billion in net outflows from the products.
Ethereum ETFs also saw a renewed interest last week, with net inflows totaling $80.46 million during the same timeframe, also reversing a five-week net outflow streak.
Despite the final weeks of last month shifting to the green, BTC and ETH ETFs were net negative for the month of February. However, the monthly losses for Bitcoin products were milder compared to the previous three months.
The flow reversal indicates renewed institutional investor interest in crypto exposure, while spot prices remain in a tight range since early February, after losing previous support levels.

While crypto markets are experiencing a broad recovery today, March 2, February was a rough month for both BTC and ETH. Bitcoin closed the month about 15% down, per data from CoinGlass, while ETH lost 17% last month.
This article was generated with the assistance of AI workflows.
Crypto World
BRR Stock Surges 5% Following 450 Bitcoin Acquisition and Enhanced Share Repurchase Initiative
Key Highlights
- BRR stock gains 5.43% following 450 BTC acquisition and enhanced buyback activity
- Total Bitcoin reserves reach 5,457 BTC after strategic purchase
- Share repurchase program gains traction as company addresses NAV gap
- 782K shares bought back at discounts ranging from 25% to 35% below NAV
- Combined strategy pushes BRR to $2.7944 closing price
ProCap Financial, Inc. (BRR) experienced notable gains in trading sessions following the announcement of expanded Bitcoin reserves and enhanced share buyback execution. Shares advanced 5.43% to reach $2.7944 as the firm disclosed a 450 BTC acquisition alongside active repurchase operations. This development underscores BRR’s twin-pillar approach to capital deployment during ongoing digital currency market fluctuations.
Corporate Bitcoin Reserves Reach New Heights
ProCap Financial bolstered its cryptocurrency treasury by securing 450 BTC during a period of market softness. This acquisition brought the company’s aggregate Bitcoin reserves to 5,457 BTC while lowering the per-coin average acquisition cost. The transaction, valued at approximately $35.4 million, was financed through operational capital and option exercise proceeds.
During the purchase window, Bitcoin was trading in the vicinity of $65,000, representing a substantial retreat from historical highs. Leadership interpreted this price correction as an opportune moment for strategic accumulation amid broader cryptocurrency market turbulence. Through this move, BRR enhanced its treasury exposure to the leading digital currency.
The enlarged Bitcoin position establishes BRR among the top 20 publicly listed corporate Bitcoin holders globally, specifically ranking 19th. The organization maintains its commitment to a treasury strategy centered on long-term digital asset value appreciation. Thus, BRR embeds cryptocurrency accumulation as a core component of its financial operations.
Share Repurchase Initiative Accelerates
Parallel to its cryptocurrency acquisitions, BRR amplified activity under its $100 million share buyback authorization. The board greenlit this program specifically to close the gap between trading price and underlying net asset value. Beginning in late December 2025, BRR has maintained consistent open-market share acquisitions.
Throughout the most recent ten-day period, the company repurchased 782,408 common shares at substantial discounts relative to NAV. Purchase transactions occurred at discounts spanning 25% to 35% beneath calculated intrinsic worth. These acquisitions decreased the share count while simultaneously boosting per-share asset metrics.
With roughly 82.6 million shares currently outstanding, the repurchase velocity carries material significance. Leadership maintains buyback operations as long as shares trade beneath intrinsic value thresholds. As such, BRR seeks to compress the NAV discount through measured capital redeployment.
Investor Response and Operational Framework
Equity markets reacted favorably to BRR’s coordinated Bitcoin acquisition and buyback intensification. The positive price movement signals investor endorsement of the company’s capital allocation methodology. ProCap Financial functions as a publicly listed agentic finance enterprise maintaining a digital asset-focused treasury strategy. The organization blends Bitcoin treasury management with equity optimization initiatives to enhance stockholder returns. This operational model sets BRR apart from conventional financial services entities.
Leadership remains committed to executing concurrent strategies encompassing asset accumulation and share count reduction. The firm preserves sufficient liquidity to enable additional Bitcoin purchases and share repurchases as market opportunities emerge. Consequently, BRR establishes positioning for sustained balance sheet expansion while simultaneously closing market valuation discrepancies.
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