Crypto World
Aptos-Based Perp DEX Merkle Trade Shutters Business
The move comes amid a broader Aptos TVL decline and less than two years after Merkle closed a $2 million seed round with participation from Aptos Labs.
Merkle Trade, the largest decentralized perpetual futures exchange on Aptos by trading volume, said in an X post on Feb. 3 that it will begin winding down operations over the coming weeks.
The team said the decision followed “careful consideration” and comes after the platform processed nearly $30 billion in cumulative trading volume since launch. Without specifying a reason for the winddown, the statement concludes: “But we are proud of what we built, and grateful to everyone who was part of it.”
According to the announcement, new positions will be disabled on Feb. 6, with all remaining positions forcibly closed on Feb. 10. Merkle Trade’s native MKL token will become redeemable without fees or withdrawal delays, while a final revenue distribution is scheduled for Feb. 12, after which staked MKL can also be redeemed, the announcement said.
The price of MKL spiked 11.5% in the past 24 hours, though the token is down 90% from its all-time high in December 2024.
Launched in late 2023, Merkle Trade offered non-custodial derivatives trading alongside features such as trading missions and loot boxes, leaning heavily into game-like mechanics.
That approach helped Merkle raise $2.1 million in a seed round in April 2024 led by Hashed and Arrington Capital, with participation from Aptos Labs, Morningstar Ventures, Amber Group and others.
By May 2024, total value locked (TVL) on the platform peaked at more than $7.4 million, according to DefiLlama data. Since then, TVL has fallen by more than half to about $3.47 million, making Merkle Trade the 17th-largest protocol by TVL on Aptos at press time.
Among the four Aptos-based perp DEXs listed on DefiLlama, however, Merkle is the leader by far, accounting for $12.4 million of the total $13.68 million in perp volume on the chain in the past 24 hours.
Aptos Struggles
Merkle’s slide in TVL since 2024 reflects weakness across the broader Aptos ecosystem, where total value locked is currently around $332.6 million, making it the 16th-largest chain by DeFi TVL.
Current TVL across the ecosystem is down more than 70% from December 2024 where it was over $1.2 billion, and back to levels last seen in the summer of 2024.
App revenue on the network, however, increased in 2025, though it remains relatively low. Weekly revenue from decentralized applications (DApps) on Aptos is led by DEX PancakeSwap, with $44,396 followed by Merkle Trade with $29,575.
By comparison, the top-four chains by app revenue today — Solana, Hyperliquid L1, Ethereum and EdgeX — have all recorded over $1 million in the past 24 hours.
The broader perp DEX sector exploded in 2025, with 24-hour volumes now outpacing most centralized exchanges. Hyperliquid has led the sector by trading volume, with rivals Lighter and Aster sometimes taking the lead.
US media personality and former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner has escaped a class-action lawsuit after a federal judge ruled her memecoin was not a security under US law.
California federal judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr. wrote in an order on Thursday that the lawsuit failed to plausibly plead that Caitlyn Jenner (JENNER) tokens were investment contracts, as they didn’t pool investor money or use funds to develop “any related product or technology.”
“Defendants stated that ‘[t]he $JENNER token is a memecoin on the Ethereum blockchain intended solely for entertainment purposes,’ and that its value would increase because Jenner would use her fame and influence to promote it, increasing demand,” the order said.
“Promotion alone, however, does not establish a common enterprise absent pooling or a structure linking investor fortunes,” it added.
A group of JENNER memecoin buyers first sued Jenner and her late manager, Sophia Hutchins, in November 2024, claiming they lost thousands of dollars as the token’s price collapsed and that JENNER was an unregistered securities offering.
Blumenfeld tossed the suit in May 2025 for failure to state a claim, and the group filed an amended complaint later that same month, led by Lee Greenfield, a UK citizen who claimed he lost more than $40,000 investing in JENNER.
The amended complaint had argued that investors had pooled their assets as Jenner promised that once the token reached a market value of $50 million, a 3% transaction fee would fund token buybacks, marketing, donations to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and a token for ownership in Jenner’s Olympic gold medal.
Blumenfeld wrote that the amended complaint heavily focused on planned donations to Trump, but didn’t explain how investors believed that doing so would provide a financial return to them.
“Nor is it clear that the alleged plan to distribute fractionalized ownership interests in Jenner’s gold medal has any bearing on Greenfield’s claim, since the plan was not announced until August 2024—after the last of his purchases—and was never executed,” he added.
Related: TRUMP whales load up as Mar-a-Lago luncheon approaches
Blumenfeld denied allowing the class group another chance to amend the lawsuit and added that claims regarding contracts and common law fraud under California law were best sent to state court.
JENNER was first launched on the Solana blockchain via the memecoin creator Pump.fun in May 2024. It was soon embroiled in controversy after Jenner and other memecoin launching celebrities claimed they were scammed by Sahil Arora, a claimed collaborator on the tokens.
Jenner relaunched the token on Ethereum, which investors claimed diminished the value of the original Solana token. The token has since essentially lost all of its value after hitting a peak value of nearly $7.5 million in June 2024.
Magazine: Memecoins: Betrayal of crypto’s ideals… or its true purpose?
Crypto World
Solana Price Prediction: SOL Is a Legacy Trap at $79 While AlphaPepe AI DEX Generates Real Traction for Early 1,000x Gains
Solana trades at $79, down 31% year to date and 73% from its January 2025 high of $293. DEX volume collapsed 62% in three weeks. Active traders fell from 4.4 million to 400,000. Meme coin trading crashed 81%. A whale unlocked 1.82 million SOL worth $163 million in a single transaction. The network has never been healthier. Record TPS, Alpenglow upgrade momentum, SEC commodity classification. None of it has moved the price. SOL at $79 with a $47 billion market cap needs $79,000 per token for 1,000x. That is the legacy trap. While SOL grinds against it, AlphaPepe is generating real traction at $0.01494 with $890,000 raised, a live AI DEX, and 1,000x math that requires $15 billion, not $33 trillion.
Why the Solana Price Prediction Is Trapped
The meme economy that powered SOL’s 2024 rally has broken. New token launches on Pump.fun dropped 80% since January. The TRUMP token wiped $2 billion across 800,000 wallets. Stablecoin transfers fell 80%. The four million traders who left took the revenue model with them.
Standard Chartered revised its target from $310 to $250. Resistance between $95 and $105 has rejected every rally. Even the $250 bull case is a 3.2x requiring ETF inflows, a Fed pivot, and a DEX volume recovery with no current momentum behind it. The Solana price prediction is a macro story wearing a network price tag. The macro is not cooperating.
AlphaPepe AI DEX Generates the Traction SOL Cannot Convert
AlphaSwap is doing what Solana’s collapsed DEX economy stopped doing. The AlphaPepe cross-chain AI DEX screens contracts for exploit patterns before users interact, surfaces whale movements across chains, and collects fee revenue today. Not from meme speculation. From infrastructure utility in a category growing at 22.3% annually toward $120 billion.
The developer proved their engineering across 500 million Shibarium mainnet transactions. A 10/10 BlockSAFU audit verified the contract. Supply fixed at 1 billion. Instant delivery. Zero vesting. Stakers earning 85% APR. Q2 DEX launch approaching. Tier 1 CEX follows.
Over $890,000 from 7,700 wallets. 100 new addresses daily. Stage 13 at $0.01494 with the price climbing every few days and jumping when stages fill. A $2,000 entry secures 133,869 tokens. At $1.50 that reaches $200,803. At $3.50 it crosses $468,541. Buyers at $2,000 or above can apply code ALPHA50 for a 50% bonus. SOL needs $47 billion in new capital for a 2x. AlphaPepe needs Q2 for 1,000x.
The Legacy Trap Has a Floor. The Presale Has a Deadline.
SOL will recover when macro turns. The network deserves a higher price. But the Solana price prediction at $79 is capped by a market cap that makes exponential returns impossible. AlphaPepe at $0.01494 with $890,000 raised and a live AI DEX is not capped by anything except the listing date. Stage 13 is filling.
Click To Visit AlphaPepe Official Website To Enter The Presale
FAQs
Why is SOL a legacy trap at $79?
SOL’s $47 billion market cap needs $79,000 per token for 1,000x. DEX volume collapsed 62%, active traders dropped from 4.4 million to 400,000, and the price is down 31% YTD despite record network performance.
How does AlphaPepe generate real traction?
AlphaSwap is a live AI DEX collecting fee revenue with contract screening and whale tracking. Over $890,000 raised across 7,700 wallets at $0.01494.
Is the AlphaPepe presale still open?
Stage 13 at $0.01494 with over $890,000 raised and 7,700 holders. Instant delivery, no vesting, Q2 DEX launch approaching.
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.
Comparing market value SUI Avalanche Pepeto right now reveals something massive. $9.17 million flowed into a presale while AVAX and SUI jump on CME futures news and a South Korean payments deal per CoinGecko. Sui Foundation just confirmed sponsorship of the Hong Kong Web3 Festival on April 20-23.
The wallets that got rich from crypto did one thing: they bought before the crowd noticed. AVAX trades at $9.67 and SUI at $1, but Pepeto already has the exchange built, the listing locked, and 100x written into the math between presale and listing day.
Sui (SUI) trades at $1 with a $4.2 billion cap. Avalanche (AVAX) sits at $9.67 with $4.17 billion. CME Group locks in AVAX and SUI futures on May 4 pending CFTC approval, while Ava Labs signed an MOU with South Korean payment giant NHN KCP on April 14 to build a payments-optimized L1 using Avalanche infrastructure.
The math sits in plain view: two Layer 1s pricing in months of slow institutional buildup, against a presale at six zeros that packs that wait into one event.
Comparing Market Value SUI Avalanche Pepeto Side-By-Side
Pepeto: The Ground Floor That SUI And Avalanche Cannot Reset
SUI and AVAX earned their seats at $4.2 billion and $4.17 billion. But tokens already trading on every exchange rarely deliver the biggest wins. Those land on coins still hidden in presale. Pepeto pulled in $9.17 million because the tools are built and the Binance listing is locked. Tokens already move between Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Solana on the bridge for free.
Trading on PepetoSwap costs zero. Not Uniswap’s 0.3%, flat zero. The full bag stays intact from entry to exit. While listing day pulls closer, 182% APY rewards stack tokens into every wallet daily, which means the supply that reaches the market on day one shrinks while demand lands against a thinner float.
Why Smart Money Fills The Presale While Layer 1s Consolidate
The valuation gap puts the case on the table. The presale market cap looks tiny next to either coin, and that gap is the entire opportunity. The engineer who built Pepe and watched it touch $11 billion built every tool here. SolidProof signed off before any wallet entered. At $0.0000001865 you are buying ahead of the chart even existing.
The moment trading opens, that price is gone. Every BNB winner and every OKB holder shares one story: they bought when nobody was looking. Pepeto is that story right now, and the only thing between the wallets that win and the ones that regret is whether you move while the door is still cracked open.
Sui (SUI) Price At $1.00 As Hong Kong Web3 Festival And CME Futures Build Bullish Pressure
Sui (SUI) trades at $1.00 per CoinMarketCap with a $4.2 billion cap, holding the $0.80 to $1.0 range that flagged a breakout last week. Sui Foundation locked in sponsorship of the Hong Kong Web3 Festival on April 20-23, and CME futures activate May 4. Sui Stack (S2) rolls out this year with free stablecoin transfers.
Changelly targets $1.25 for May, about 23% from here. Support at $0.95, resistance at $1.10. The strongest near-term call lands short of what a presale paired with one listing event delivers.
Avalanche (AVAX) Price At $9.67 As NHN KCP Deal And Spot ETF Filings Build Demand
Avalanche (AVAX) holds $9.67 per CoinMarketCap with $4.17 billion in market cap and the spot AVAX ETF (VAVX) live since January with staking baked in. NHN KCP signed the payments L1 MOU on April 14, RWA TVL on Avalanche doubled to $2.1 billion since April 2025, and 80+ subnet chains run on the network.
Support at $9.65, resistance at $13. Marzell Crypto flagged $34 once the trendline cracks, a 230% move on an unknown timeline. The presale floor moves on listing day.
Closing Thoughts
Comparing market value SUI Avalanche Pepeto makes the call straightforward. SUI at $4.2 billion and AVAX at $4.17 billion give you safer plays with single-digit upside on a multi-month view. Pepeto gives you a working exchange, a confirmed listing, and a presale price that neither of them will ever see again.
Every BNB winner bought when the name was still unknown, and the Pepe cofounder cracked that exact window again on the Pepeto presale entry. Six months down the road you either hold the position that changed everything, or you replay this entry in your head for the rest of the year while the numbers sit in plain view.
Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale
FAQs
How does comparing market value SUI Avalanche Pepeto help investors?
The comparison reveals the upside gap. SUI at $4.2B and AVAX at $4.17B cap near 23% to 230% over months, while Pepeto targets 100x from one Binance listing event.
Is Sui (SUI) a stronger buy than Pepeto right now?
No, Pepeto at presale pricing prints listing returns SUI cannot match at $4.2 billion. Sui (SUI) trades at $1 with CME futures launching May 4, capping near-term upside under 25%.
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.
TLDR:
- An attacker drained 116,500 rsETH worth $292M from Kelp DAO’s LayerZero-powered bridge in one attack.
- Stolen rsETH was deposited on Aave, Compound, and Euler as collateral to borrow ETH, creating bad debt.
- Kelp DAO paused rsETH contracts on Ethereum mainnet and multiple L2s while coordinating with security experts.
- Over $600M was stolen from more than 10 DeFi protocols in two weeks, with AI accelerating hacker capabilities.
Kelp DAO suffered a major security breach involving its LayerZero-powered rsETH cross-chain bridge. The attacker drained 116,500 rsETH tokens worth approximately $292 million from the protocol.
The stolen assets were then used as collateral on major lending platforms to borrow ETH. Kelp DAO paused rsETH contracts across the Ethereum mainnet and several Layer 2 networks amid the crisis.
Security experts from multiple organizations quickly joined the investigation as it got underway.
How the Kelp DAO rsETH Bridge Exploit Unfolded
The attacker targeted the LayerZero bridge within Kelp DAO’s cross-chain system. Some 116,500 rsETH tokens were drained during the attack.
The stolen funds were transferred to lending platforms including Aave, Compound, and Euler. There, the attacker used rsETH as collateral to borrow ETH, creating bad debt across those protocols.
Kelp DAO confirmed the breach through its official X account that day. The protocol stated it had identified suspicious cross-chain activity involving rsETH.
Contracts were paused across mainnet and several Layer 2 networks accordingly. The team coordinated with LayerZero, Unichain, auditors, and security experts on root cause analysis.
Aave and several protocols froze or paused rsETH-related markets in response. This step aimed to limit further losses across affected platforms.
The AAVE token fell to $99.60 amid reports of growing bad debt from the exploit. Activity in impacted markets slowed as users closely tracked the situation.
Kelp DAO advised users to rely solely on its official handle for accurate updates. No attacker was publicly identified while investigations remained active.
Multiple security firms assisted Kelp DAO’s internal team throughout the analysis process. The full breach scope had not been confirmed at the time of reporting.
$600 Million Stolen From DeFi Protocols in Two Weeks
The Kelp DAO breach came amid a broader wave of DeFi attacks in April 2026. Over $600 million was stolen from more than 10 protocols in two weeks.
Analyst Jeremy noted that AI is helping hackers execute attacks more efficiently. He identified the Kelp DAO incident as the year’s biggest DeFi hack.
Drift Protocol also lost $285 million to North Korean hackers using AI-powered social engineering. Those hackers spent months building insider trust before striking.
Once positioned, the full attack unfolded in just 12 minutes. Rhea Finance separately lost $18 million through fake token pools that misled its oracle into approving withdrawals.
Further incidents targeted Grinex, Hyperbridge, Aethir, Dango, and Silo Finance. Grinex, a sanctioned Russian exchange, lost $15 million before suspending all operations.
An attacker on Hyperbridge minted one billion fake bridged DOT tokens notionally worth over $1 billion. However, thin liquidity meant only around $237,000 was actually extracted.
CoW Swap and Zerion were also hit in the same two-week stretch. CoW Swap’s frontend was hijacked through a DNS attack that led users to a phishing page.
Zerion suffered credential theft through North Korean social engineering. The pattern across all these attacks reflects an expanding threat to the broader DeFi sector.
TLDR:
- Security researcher Alex “Scalar” Sol reported four Zcash vulnerabilities on April 4, 2026, via coordinated disclosure channels.
- A crafted Orchard transaction with an all-zeros randomized key could crash any reachable zcashd or Zebra node instantly.
- A turnstile accounting bug introduced in zcashd v5.10.0 could be triggered by routine peer-to-peer duplicate block headers.
- Mining pools ViaBTC, Luxor, F2Pool, AntPool, and Foundry all deployed patches before the public release on April 17, 2026.
Zcash vulnerabilities have been patched across two full-node implementations following a coordinated security disclosure.
On April 17, 2026, Zcash Open Development Lab released zcashd v6.12.1, while the Zcash Foundation released Zebra v4.3.1. Security researcher Alex “Scalar” Sol reported the issues on April 4, 2026.
Four vulnerabilities were addressed, covering a node crash bug, a consensus enforcement gap, and a turnstile accounting bypass. No user funds were compromised, and no ZEC supply inflation occurred at any point.
Four Bugs Identified Across Both Zcash Full-Node Clients
The most directly exploitable bug was an Orchard transaction crash present in both zcashd and Zebra. A crafted transaction with an all-zeros randomized key encoding could immediately crash any node processing it.
Repeated broadcasting of such a transaction could effectively prevent nodes from participating in the network. No transactions triggering this condition were found on the Zcash mainnet before the patch.
A related enforcement gap also existed between the two implementations. Zebra already enforced a protocol requirement on ephemeral public keys within Orchard actions, but zcashd did not.
This meant a crafted transaction could be accepted by zcashd while being rejected by Zebra. Such a transaction could have forced a visible chain fork between nodes running different clients.
A separate bug in zcashd, introduced with v5.10.0 in August 2024, could disable turnstile accounting under certain conditions.
Receiving a duplicate block header from a peer could silently reset pool balance tracking to null. This condition could arise from ordinary peer-to-peer network behavior, not only from deliberate attack. The turnstile tracks ZEC balances across shielded and transparent value pools and serves as a critical safety layer.
Even so, this bug was not independently exploitable to steal or inflate ZEC. The official disclosure confirmed that “exploiting it to steal funds would require a separate, independent balance vulnerability on top of it.”
Any resulting turnstile violation would also have been publicly visible as a detectable chain anomaly. No such anomaly occurred on the Zcash mainnet before the fix was deployed.
Mining Pools Deploy Patches Before Public Disclosure
Zcash Open Development Lab addressed the disclosure directly, stating: “Mining pools representing a supermajority of the network’s hash power, and the primary operator running Zebra in mining production, deployed patches prior to this disclosure.”
ZODL engineers Kris Nuttycombe and Daira-Emma Hopwood authored the zcashd patches and reviewed each other’s work.
Nuttycombe addressed the Orchard crash, enforcement gap, and turnstile accounting bug. Hopwood authored hardening patches for integer overflow undefined behavior and exception safety.
Mining pools ViaBTC, Luxor, F2Pool, and AntPool — each running zcashd — were contacted directly for coordination. Foundry, which runs Zebra in mining production, also deployed its patch ahead of public release.
The Zcash Foundation’s Conrado Gouvêa separately developed and delivered the Zebra patch. This outreach ensured network stability was preserved throughout the entire disclosure process.
The zcashd v6.12.1 release also included broader hardening changes beyond the core vulnerability fixes. A chain supply value checkpoint was added at NU6.1 activation to enable future corruption detection.
Integer overflow protections were added across pool balance accumulation routines in multiple code paths. These additions provide an extra defense layer against edge-case exploitation scenarios.
This marks the second set of Zcash vulnerabilities disclosed within a month. On X, Zcash Open Development Lab stated: “We have no evidence that any of these bugs were exploited.
User funds and privacy were never at risk, and no ZEC supply inflation was possible.” Alex “Scalar” Sol also reported the March 2026 Sprout verification vulnerability through the same coordinated channels. Users running either zcashd or Zebra should upgrade to the latest patched versions immediately.
The Bitcoin mining landscape tightened again as the network’s difficulty dipped on the latest adjustment, underscoring the pressure facing public mining operators that have been selling BTC to fund ongoing costs amid higher energy prices and a subdued price environment. Data from CoinWarz placed the current mining difficulty at about 135.5T, a roughly 1.1% decline over the prior 24 hours, signaling a modest relief for issuers still dealing with razor-thin margins.
Looking ahead, CoinWarz estimates the next adjustment will push the difficulty higher to around 137.43T, with the change expected on May 1, 2026, at about 01:24 PM UTC. The calculation places the shift at 1,865 blocks from now, roughly 12 days, 18 hours, and 41 minutes of lead time. These sequential moves illustrate the ongoing tug-of-war between miners’ costs and the rewards embedded in the BTC network’s protocol.
Key takeaways
- The Bitcoin network’s mining difficulty fell to roughly 135.5T, a 1.1% drop in the last 24 hours, signaling continued strain in a sector under cash-flow pressure.
- The next difficulty adjustment is projected to rise to about 137.43T on May 1, 2026, after 1,865 blocks, roughly 12 days and change from now.
- Publicly traded mining firms sold more BTC in Q1 2026 than in all of 2025 combined, totaling over 32,000 BTC, according to TheEnergyMag.
- Consolidated BTC sales by MARA, CleanSpark, Riot, Cango, Core Scientific and Bitdeer exceeded 20,000 BTC in Q2 2022, a period associated with the Terra-Luna collapse and a then-deep bear market.
- CoinShares’ Q1 2026 mining report shows about 20% of miners are unprofitable under current economics, highlighting persistent profitability headwinds despite operational changes by miners.
Record BTC liquidation and its implications for the sector
Publicly traded Bitcoin miners have increasingly relied on selling mined BTC to cover ongoing operating costs, a practice that has intensified as price swings and energy costs squeeze margins. The EnergyMag’s compilation indicates that in Q1 2026, a cohort of major players—MARA, CleanSpark, Riot Platforms, Cango, Core Scientific and Bitdeer Technologies—sold more than 32,000 BTC in aggregate. That figure surpasses the total BTC sold in all four quarters of 2025 combined, underscoring how the economics of mining have shifted toward cash preservation and liquidity management in a tougher market.
To put the scale in perspective, the Q1 2026 tally surpassed the 20,000 BTC sold in Q2 2022, a period that overlapped with the Terra-Luna collapse and a broad crypto downturn. The parallel illustrates how the sector’s response to stress has evolved: where miners once leaned on revenue timing and hedging, they now face a higher burden to convert freshly minted BTC into fiat to pay for electricity, hosting, and other fixed costs as the market’s risk premium remains elevated.
Miners typically unwind BTC holdings to meet operating expenses denominated in fiat, making their cash flow acutely sensitive to both BTC price fluctuations and the cost of power. The broader backdrop has grown more challenging as energy prices have trended higher in many regions and the crypto bear market extended its course through late 2025 and into 2026. The difficulty trend compounds these pressures: even as the price swings rattle sentiment, the network’s computational difficulty continues to trend upward, complicating profitability for operators with under-water margins.
Profitability under pressure: a closer look at the data
CoinShares’ Q1 2026 mining report provides a sobering frame for the environment miners operate within. The study notes that about one-fifth of miners are unprofitable under current economics, a figure that signals that a significant slice of the mining sector remains at a break-even or loss point given prevailing BTC prices and energy costs. The report characterizes Q4 2025 as the most challenging quarter for Bitcoin mining since the April 2024 halving, due largely to a sharp price correction in October 2025 that pulled BTC from peaks around $125,000 to roughly $86,000 by year-end. Coupled with rising difficulty, these dynamics compressed margins and forced many operators to contend with tighter balance sheets.
Alongside these dynamics, the sector’s debt and capital expenditure plans—driven by the need to deploy new hardware and secure low-cost power—continued to shape strategic decisions. As operators balance capex with income, the ability to sustain production without eroding balance sheets remains a material question for 2026. The broader market has watched for any regulatory developments that could alter energy costs, tax treatment of mining, or access to cheaper electricity in key basins, all of which could tilt profitability in the months ahead.
Why this matters for investors and builders
From an investor perspective, the combination of rising difficulty and persistent BTC sales by miners creates a nuanced risk profile. On one hand, a higher difficulty suggests that continuing hardware investment could be necessary for those seeking to maintain production levels and capture block rewards. On the other hand, if miners’ cash flow remains constrained, they may favor further asset sales or debt-funding mechanisms, potentially creating selling pressure on BTC and altering the supply dynamics in the near term.
For builders and infrastructure operators, the current environment highlights the importance of energy strategy and location economics. Regions with access to affordable power remain the most competitive, and those with regulatory clarity around mining operations could attract future deployments. The fact that a significant share of miners remains unprofitable increases the emphasis on efficiency gains—from chip technology and cooling innovations to load management and energy hedging strategies.
Regulators, too, are watching profitability trends as a signal of the sector’s resilience. As the mining industry contends with structural shifts—price volatility, energy costs, and the ongoing evolution of carbon and energy policies—the sector’s next moves could influence broader market sentiment and adoption of blockchain-based use cases that rely on robust, secure mining networks.
What to watch next
The next Bitcoin network difficulty adjustment—expected in early May 2026—will be a key data point for assessing whether miners can sustain operations under the current cost structure. Additionally, BTC price action into spring and summer 2026 will interact with mining economics in meaningful ways. Investors and operators should monitor energy price trends, operational expenditures, and any regulatory signals that could alter the cost of running mining facilities. If the sector can stabilize cash flow and leverage efficiency gains, the coming quarters may reveal a more resilient mining landscape even as the market remains cautious.
Ultimately, the story today is one of a sector recalibrating to a tougher macro and micro environment. How mining firms adapt—through cost discipline, technology upgrades, and strategic hedging—will shape the degree to which Bitcoin mining remains a volatile but enduring edge of the crypto economy.
US Senator Elizabeth Warren has accused Paul Atkins, the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, of possibly lying to Congress about the agency’s enforcement numbers.
Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said in a letter to Atkins dated Wednesday that the SEC’s enforcement data for fiscal year 2025, released on April 7, raised “significant concerns” about his answers at a Feb. 12 congressional hearing.
“At the hearing, I specifically asked you to comment on publicly available data highlighting a decline in SEC enforcement activity,” Warren said. “In response, you demurred, stating that you were ‘not sure what data’ I was looking at.”
“Now, it is clear that my assertion regarding the SEC’s declining enforcement actions was correct: the data you released last week show that the number of enforcement actions initiated by the SEC was lower than at any point in the last decade,” she added.
The SEC has rolled back its enforcement against crypto companies under the Trump administration, settling or dismissing crypto-related lawsuits the agency launched under the Biden administration, garnering criticisms from some lawmakers.
Warren said the SEC’s enforcement data was “deeply disturbing” and showed it had “largely abdicated its enforcement responsibilities” as the agency’s enforcement activity had dropped to the lowest level in more than 20 years.
She told Atkins that, in light of the data, his answers at the hearing in February “were deeply troubling and raise concerns that you may have been deliberately trying to mislead the Committee about the state of SEC enforcement.”
Related: US SEC taps new enforcement chief amid questions over predecessor’s exit
Warren said the hearing took place more than four months after the end of the 2025 fiscal year, and Atkins’ “deflection and claim to be unsure of the ‘data’ I was examining now appear deeply misleading, potentially designed to cast doubt on the now obvious fact that enforcement activity has declined significantly at the Commission under your watch.”
Warren’s letter asked Atkins a series of questions about whether he was aware of the SEC’s enforcement efforts at the time of his testimony and requested that he explain the agency’s decline in enforcement.
The letter asked Atkins to respond to the questions by April 28.
The SEC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions
TLDR:
- Nasdaq call options volume hits 3.9 million daily, nearing its highest level ever recorded
- Bullish options activity has surged sharply, with volumes rising more than fourfold since 2021
- The Nasdaq posts a 13-day winning streak, marking its longest run of gains since 2013
- The index climbs 17.7% during the streak, ranking among top short-term returns in 20 years
US technology stocks continue a strong upward run, supported by rising options activity and sustained market momentum. Recent data shows increasing bullish positioning, while the Nasdaq records one of its longest positive streaks in over a decade.
Rising Options Activity Signals Strong Market Positioning
Recent market data points to a sharp increase in bullish bets on US technology stocks. Nasdaq call options volume has reached 3.9 million contracts per day. This marks the second-highest level ever recorded.
A tweet from The Kobeissi Letter reports that this figure trails only the November 2025 level. During that period, volumes approached 4.3 million contracts per day. The post also notes that current activity reflects a broader rise in market participation.
The volume growth has been steady over recent years. Since 2021, Nasdaq call options volume has more than quadrupled. This rise shows a clear shift toward active trading in the tech sector.
At the same time, the increase in call options signals stronger interest in upward price movement. Traders often use these contracts to position for gains. However, the data reflects positioning rather than future direction.
Moreover, the rising volume aligns with broader trends in equity markets. It shows that participation has expanded as prices move higher. This pattern often appears during extended rallies.
Nasdaq Extends Winning Streak With Strong Returns
Alongside increased options activity, the Nasdaq has posted consistent gains. The index has now closed higher for 13 straight sessions. This marks the longest positive streak since 2013.
During this period, the Nasdaq has risen by 17.7%. This performance ranks among the strongest 13-day returns in the past two decades. The sustained climb has drawn attention across financial markets.
The rally reflects continued buying interest in technology stocks. It also aligns with the surge in call options activity reported earlier. Together, these trends show a period of strong market momentum.
The Kobeissi Letter notes that such a streak is rare. Extended runs like this often stand out in historical data. However, they do not appear frequently in modern trading cycles.
As the Nasdaq continues its upward movement, traders remain focused on short-term price action. At the same time, the sharp rise in options activity signals market participation. This combination shapes current trading conditions.
The ongoing rally places US technology stocks in a notable position. Market data continues to track both price movement and trading behavior. These figures offer a clear snapshot of current market dynamics without projecting future direction.
TLDR:
- Bitcoin’s STH SOPR is nearing 1.0, placing short-term holders at a key decision point between selling or holding.
- Historical patterns show repeated SOPR tests near 1.0 often occur before a sustained market trend shift emerges.
- A successful reclaim above 1.0 may support continued upside, while rejection could extend consolidation.
- Recent price recovery has brought SOPR back to break-even, reflecting shifting sentiment among recent buyers.
Bitcoin’s short-term holder behavior is approaching a critical threshold as the STH SOPR nears the 1.0 level. After a 26% recovery from early February lows, market participants now face a decisive moment that could shape near-term price direction.
STH SOPR Approaches Break-Even as Market Tests Direction
Recent data shared by analyst Darkfost shows the STH SOPR hovering near 0.998, just below break-even. This level reflects whether short-term holders are selling at a profit or loss. A move above 1.0 signals profit-taking, while values below indicate losses.
The chart tracks Bitcoin’s price alongside the STH SOPR and its 30-day moving average from 2021 to early 2026. It shows how short-term holder behavior has aligned with major market phases. At present, the indicator sits at a level that often leads to strong reactions.
According to the analysis, short-term holders now face two clear choices. They can exit positions at break-even after months of pressure, or they can continue holding in anticipation of gains. This behavior tends to influence liquidity and short-term volatility.
Past cycles show that reclaiming the 1.0 level often supports upward continuation. However, repeated rejections at this level can extend consolidation or trigger further downside. The latest recovery has brought the indicator back to this pivot zone once again.
Historical Patterns Show Repeated Tests Before Trend Reversal
The broader trend from 2021 to 2022 reflects a distribution phase followed by a bear market. During that period, the STH SOPR dropped below 1.0 as prices declined, showing consistent loss realization among short-term holders.
As Bitcoin moved into 2022 and early 2023, the indicator struggled to reclaim 1.0. Multiple failed attempts marked a period where weaker participants exited positions. This phase aligned with price consolidation between $16,000 and $25,000.
The recovery phase in 2023 shifted this pattern. The STH SOPR moved above 1.0 and held that level consistently. At the same time, Bitcoin climbed toward $45,000, showing renewed strength and steady profit-taking without disrupting the trend.
During the expansion phase between 2024 and 2025, the indicator frequently moved above 1.03. Pullbacks found support near 1.0, while prices pushed toward $100,000. This structure reflected strong demand and continuous absorption of selling pressure.
The recent correction from late 2025 into early 2026 has changed this dynamic. The STH SOPR dropped below 1.0 again, reaching levels near 0.98. This shift shows that short-term holders have returned to selling at a loss during the pullback.
The current rebound toward 1.0 places the market at a familiar decision point. Historical patterns show that several attempts may occur before a clear direction forms. Previous cycles recorded multiple tests before a sustained reversal took hold.
If the indicator moves above 1.0 and holds, it may support a renewed upward trend. On the other hand, failure to reclaim this level could extend the current range or lead to further downside pressure.
For now, the STH SOPR continues to act as a key measure of short-term sentiment. Its position near break-even reflects a market that remains undecided, with price action likely to follow the behavior of recent buyers.
TLDR:
-
- XRP reclaimed fourth place in global crypto rankings with a market cap of around $91 billion.
- The SEC and CFTC jointly classified XRP as a digital commodity on March 17, boosting trading volume 250%.
- Only 16% of XRP ETF assets come from institutions, leaving significant room for larger capital inflows.
- XRP would need to reach roughly $4.79 per token to match Ethereum’s current $295 billion market cap.
- XRP reclaimed fourth place in global crypto rankings with a market cap of around $91 billion.
XRP price has reclaimed fourth place in global crypto rankings, overtaking BNB with a market cap near $91 billion. The two assets have swapped positions multiple times since March 2026.
XRP trades around $1.50 as of writing, following a 10% rally. Ethereum holds a much larger market cap of roughly $295 billion. Three key developments, however, could close that gap considerably in the months ahead.
The Structural Shift Behind XRP’s Rise Over BNB
For much of the past three years, XRP and BNB have exchanged the fourth-place ranking repeatedly. XRP grabbed it in early 2025, lost it, then reclaimed it in July at a cycle high of $3.65. The token slid back as the broader market corrected through late 2025 and into early 2026.
The March 2026 flip carried more weight than previous ones. On March 17, the SEC and CFTC jointly classified XRP as a digital commodity. Banks and asset managers that had previously avoided XRP over securities concerns could now hold and trade it freely.
XRP spiked to $1.60 that day, with trading volume surging roughly 250%. The rally faded after the Fed held rates and raised its inflation forecast. BNB briefly reclaimed fourth on March 23 before XRP pulled ahead once again.
Three Catalysts That Could Drive XRP Higher
The CLARITY Act remains the most closely watched catalyst for XRP price. It cleared the House in July 2025 and is targeting a Senate Banking Committee markup in late April. Unlike March’s regulatory guidance, the CLARITY Act would permanently cement XRP’s commodity classification.
XRP ETFs represent another growing driver in the market. Currently, six XRP ETFs operate in the U.S., with retail investors holding about 84% of assets. Institutions account for only 16%, leaving substantial room for larger inflows as legal certainty grows.
Real-world adoption through Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity service adds consistent organic buying pressure. ODL uses XRP to settle cross-border payments in seconds without pre-funded destination accounts.
Expanding ODL corridors throughout 2025 and 2026 have steadily built a foundation of transaction-driven demand.
What XRP Realistically Needs to Reach Ethereum’s Level
XRP at $1.50 carries a market cap of about $91 billion, compared to Ethereum’s $295 billion. Matching Ethereum’s current valuation would require XRP to reach approximately $4.79 per token. That translates to a 219% move from where it trades today.
A more achievable target for 2026 is a range between $3.00 and $4.00. That range would roughly double XRP’s market cap, placing it about halfway toward Ethereum’s current standing. Getting there still requires the CLARITY Act to pass and macro conditions to stabilize.
Flipping Ethereum this year would need nearly every catalyst aligning at once. A legislative win, a macro recovery, and accelerating ETF inflows would all have to converge simultaneously. That combination is not impossible, but remains a considerable stretch within a single calendar year.
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