In this week’s edition of the weekly recap, Token2049 organizers postponed the Dubai edition until 2027 citing safety concerns from escalating Iran-Israel-U.S. tensions, Robinhood reported February crypto notional volumes increased 9% to $25 billion and the Ethereum Foundation published a formal mandate establishing its role as steward of a censorship-resistant, privacy-first protocol.

Token2049 Dubai delayed amid regional conflict

• Event organizers postponed the Dubai edition until 2027 after citing safety concerns linked to rising geopolitical tensions from the Iran-Israel-U.S. military confrontation.
• The decision follows cancellation of another major industry gathering, the TON Gateway event, which had also been scheduled for Dubai.

Robinhood shows crypto trading dominance

• February data revealed crypto notional volumes increased 9% to $25 billion while equity, options, and event contracts experienced contraction.

Ethereum Foundation establishes written doctrine

• The organization published an “EF Mandate” formalizing its role as steward of a censorship-resistant, privacy-first, open-source base layer.
• The document signals zero appetite for surveillance-chain compromises as the protocol scales to accommodate broader adoption.

Buterin explains 2021 donation circumstances

• Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin clarified the massive 2021 Shiba Inu donation to the Future of Life Institute while distancing himself from the group’s recent artificial intelligence policy approaches.
• Buterin explained the tokens surged in value during the 2021 meme coin boom with peak “book value” exceeding $1 billion, prompting him to access cold storage funds, sell portions for Ether, and donate to various causes.

Hong Kong prepares banking stablecoin licenses

• Banking giants HSBC and Standard Chartered are expected to be among the first institutions receiving stablecoin issuer licenses in Hong Kong.
• The licensing approach positions Hong Kong to compete with other jurisdictions for regulated stablecoin issuance and operations.

DeFi user loses millions in slippage error

• A user attempting to swap $50 million USDT for AAVE through the protocol’s interface received only 324 AAVE after accepting a quote with extreme price impact.
• The transaction prompted Aave to review safeguards and refund a portion of transaction fees following the catastrophic slippage outcome.

Prosecutors oppose Bankman-Fried retrial request

• U.S. prosecutors asked a federal judge to deny a new trial for the disgraced crypto entrepreneur, arguing he has not shown legal basis for overturning his FTX-related conviction.
• As per the report, prosecutors told the court Bankman-Fried’s motion fails to showcase his original trial was unfair or that new evidence would meaningfully alter the verdict.

Bonk.fun warns users of domain compromise

• The Solana-based meme coin launch platform team alerted users to avoid its website after hackers reportedly compromised the domain and deployed a malicious wallet drainer.
• At least one trader claimed losses of $273,000 after connecting their wallet to the compromised interface.

Indian authorities arrest GainBitcoin fraud suspect

• The Central Bureau of Investigation arrested Ayush Varshney, co-founder and chief technology officer of Darwin Labs Private Limited, in connection with alleged GainBitcoin cryptocurrency fraud.
• Investigators allege Darwin Labs helped build technical infrastructure for the scheme including the MCAP token and GBMiners platform.
• Varshney was intercepted at Mumbai airport while allegedly attempting to leave India after a Look Out Circular was issued.

Ripple acquires Australian payments firm

• The company announced plans to secure an Australian financial services license through acquisition of BC Payments Australia Pty Ltd, a payments company linked to the European Banking Circle Group.
• The deal remains underway and is expected to close April 1 after standard closing processes finalize.

Anthropic sues government over AI blacklist

• The artificial intelligence developer filed a lawsuit against multiple U.S. government agencies, accusing federal authorities of unlawfully blacklisting its technology.
• The legal action alleges the blacklisting occurred after Anthropic refused to allow certain military uses of its AI systems.

Bitcoin was (again) called dead six years ago during the COVID-19 flash crash and it’s now lightyears ahead. Do you see any resemblance with the current landscape?

The more things change, the more they stay the same. You have probably heard that saying at some point in your life. Bitcoin’s price has certainly felt it, as it has experienced countless crashes over the years under (slightly) different circumstances, only to be called dead again.

Yet, after each such instance, it has come back stronger than before, providing substantial (paper or not) gains for those who persevere and stay away from all the noise.

6-Year Anniversary

Six years ago, it was the COVID-19 crash. The panic of an unprecedented outbreak that essentially halted the world led to a massive crash in the ever-volatile cryptocurrency sector. Bitcoin, for one, experienced arguably its worst single-day performance in terms of percentage losses, going down by almost 50% from $8,200 to under $4,700.

Its overall calamity at the time was even more profound. In the span of less than a week, it tumbled from $9,000 to a bottom of $3,720, losing roughly 60% of its value. Experts were quick to pick up this mind-blowing crash, proclaiming it dead again. Some argued that BTC had lost its safe-haven crash in those trading hours due to its intense volatility.

And, if you are looking only at those market moves, you would probably have to agree, even if you are a Maxi. However, if you zoom out and track what happened since then, it might not be such a straightforward agreement.

Not only has bitcoin never gone down to those levels in the six years that followed, but it had 10x-ed by January 2021, and kept climbing to $69,000 just a year and a half later. Fast-forward to late 2025, and it peaked at over $126,000 – or more than 3,300% higher than its COVID-induced low. Even with the current correction dragging it to $70,000, its gains since those dark times were pretty impressive, as Davinci Jeremie asserted.

Exactly 6 years ago, $BTC experienced its most brutal crash.

Everyone called #Bitcoin “dead.”

Those who bought on that day are up 1,600% today. pic.twitter.com/uZa1xmMax5

— Davinci Jeremie (@Davincij15) March 13, 2026

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Ring Any Bells?

As mentioned above, BTC currently trades nearly 50% away from its October 2025 ATH. Naturally, people are calling it dead again or predicting that it “is going to die” soon. What else is new? … the more they stay the same, right?

Yes, bitcoin ended 2025 in the red – the first such occasion in a post-halving year. Yes, it’s on a 5-month red streak. Yes, gold and silver stole the show. Yes, even the stock markets have charted notable gains despite the ongoing uncertainty, wars, threats, tariffs, Epstein files, and everything in between.

But is bitcoin dead (again)? Is it really? How many times would it have to come back from those proclaimed deaths to earn investors’ trust? Or maybe it doesn’t matter. A few former critics have been turned, but many remain skeptical. And maybe that’s how it’s supposed to be, because bitcoin is not for everyone, at least not yet.

So, if you believe in it, your faith shouldn’t be dismantled during yet another correction. If such retracements are evident even when BTC has become a trillion-dollar asset, they would likely continue for years ahead. Don’t judge it by its worst days, but enjoy the good ones, as they usually follow the darkest hours.

Regulatory uncertainty around stablecoins could place traditional banks at a greater disadvantage than crypto companies, according to Colin Butler, executive vice president of capital markets at Mega Matrix.

Butler said financial institutions have already invested heavily in digital asset infrastructure but remain unable to deploy it fully while lawmakers debate how stablecoins should be classified. “Their general counsels are telling their boards that you cannot justify the capital expenditure until you know whether stablecoins will be treated as deposits, securities, or a distinct payment instrument,” he told Cointelegraph.

Several major banks have already developed parts of the infrastructure needed to support stablecoins. JPMorgan developed its Onyx blockchain payments network, BNY Mellon launched digital asset custody services, and Citigroup has tested tokenized deposits.

“The infrastructure spend is real, but regulatory ambiguity caps how far those investments can scale because risk and compliance functions will not greenlight full deployment without knowing how the product will be classified,” Butler argued.

On the other hand, crypto firms, which have operated in regulatory gray zones for years, would likely continue doing so. “Banks, by contrast, cannot operate comfortably in that gray area,” he added.

Related: USDC market cap nears record $80B amid ‘capital flight’ in UAE: Analyst

Yield gap could drive deposit migration

Another concern is the growing difference between returns available on stablecoin platforms and those offered by traditional bank accounts. Exchanges often offer between 4% and 5% on stablecoin balances, Butler said, while the average US savings account yields less than 0.5%.

He said history shows depositors move quickly when higher yields become available, pointing to the shift into money market funds in the 1970s. Today, the process could happen even faster, as transferring funds from bank accounts to stablecoins takes only minutes and the yield gap is larger.

Meanwhile, Fabian Dori, chief investment officer at Sygnum, said the competitive gap between banks and crypto platforms is meaningful but not yet critical. He said a large-scale deposit flight is unlikely in the immediate term, as institutions still prioritize trust, regulation and operational resilience.

“But the asymmetry can accelerate migration at the margin, especially among corporates, fintech users, and globally active clients already comfortable moving liquidity across platforms,” Dori said. “Once stablecoins are treated as productive digital cash rather than crypto trading tools, the competitive pressure on bank deposits becomes much more visible,” he added.

Related: Stablecoins could form backbone of global payments in 10 years: Billionaire

Restrictions on yield could push activity offshore

Butler also warned that attempts to restrict stablecoin yield could unintentionally drive activity into less regulated areas. Under current US law, stablecoin issuers are prohibited from paying yield directly to holders. However, exchanges can still offer returns through lending programs, staking or promotional rewards.