Crypto World
Bitcoin’s mining concentration just showed up in a rare 2-block reorg
Bitcoin’s mining concentration problem just showed up on the blockchain itself, triggering a small “reorg.”
Foundry USA, the largest bitcoin mining pool, produced seven consecutive blocks late on Monday and in the process orphaned two valid blocks mined by AntPool and ViaBTC.
Think of it as two checkout lines opening at the same time in a busy store. At first, both lines are moving, but suddenly, one of the line starts clearing customers faster. This leads everyone to shift to the faster line and the slower one gets abandoned.
That’s essentially what happened here: Dominant pool Foundry’s “line” moved ahead quickly with several blocks in a row, so the network followed it, leaving the other valid blocks by AntPool and ViaBTC behind.
Bitcoin miners compete to add new blocks of transactions to the blockchain, and sometimes two miners find a valid block at nearly the same time. When that happens, the network briefly splits, but it ultimately chooses one chain to continue – usually the one that grows faster.
A mining pool, such as Foundry, is a group of miners who combine their computing power to mine blocks and split the rewards,. Finding a block solo is like winning a lottery that individual miners can rarely win on their own.
Bitcoin’s consensus rule is absolute: the chain with the most cumulative proof of work wins. AntPool and ViaBTC’s two blocks became stale, permanently erased from the ledger, and those miners earned nothing for producing them.
The event was a 2-block chain reorganization, rare but not unprecedented, and the clearest on-chain signal yet that hashrate is concentrating into fewer hands as the industry contracts.
At block height 941,881, AntPool and Foundry found valid blocks within 12 seconds of each other, at 15:49:35 and 15:49:47 UTC respectively. Both were legitimate and the network briefly split, with some nodes following one chain and others following the other.
The race continued to block 941,882, where ViaBTC extended AntPool’s chain and Foundry extended its own.
That created two competing chains, each two blocks deep, running in parallel. Later on, blocks 941,883 through 941,886 all went to Foundry, making their chain the heaviest by a wide margin.
Transactions in the orphaned blocks weren’t lost, however. They return to the mempool and get included in future blocks. An orphaned block is a valid block that loses the race when two miners find blocks at nearly the same time, getting discarded permanently from the chain despite being perfectly legitimate.
Mining difficulty just dropped 7.76% on Saturday, the second-largest negative adjustment of 2026. Hashrate has retreated to roughly 920 EH/s from the 1 zetahash record hit in 2025.
Smaller and mid-sized miners are exiting because bitcoin at $70,000 sits well below the estimated $88,000 average production cost. Every operator that shuts down concentrates the remaining hashrate into fewer pools.
A 2-block reorg doesn’t threaten Bitcoin’s security. The network handled it exactly as designed, with the longer chain winning and consensus re-establishing within minutes.
But when fewer pools control more hashrate, the probability of a single pool finding multiple consecutive blocks increases, and with it the probability of competing chains when two large pools find blocks near-simultaneously.
The European Central Bank has renewed its push for tokenized central bank money as Europe works to build a larger tokenized financial market. ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said tokenized deposits and stablecoins will need a public settlement base in central bank money if the market is to grow across the region.
Summary
- ECB says tokenized deposits and stablecoins need central bank money to scale in Europe.
- Pontes will connect DLT platforms with TARGET Services for settlement in central bank money.
- Cipollone said Europe still needs clearer tokenization laws and stronger public-private coordination efforts.
Cipollone made the case during a speech in Brussels on March 23. He said tokenized central bank money is needed as a settlement anchor for tokenized securities, deposits and stablecoins. He warned that without it, market participants may receive payment in assets they do not want to hold because of price swings or credit concerns. He said,
“Without tokenised central bank money, a seller of a tokenised security may receive payment in an asset they are not comfortable holding – one exposed to price volatility or credit risk – which limits the market’s ability to scale.”
His remarks place public money at the center of the ECB’s tokenization plan. The ECB has been building that plan through Pontes, the Eurosystem’s distributed ledger settlement project. Pontes is designed to connect DLT-based market platforms with the Eurosystem’s TARGET Services so transactions can settle in central bank money.
The ECB said Pontes is due for an initial launch in the third quarter of 2026. That first phase is meant to meet immediate market demand and let participants settle DLT-based transactions in central bank money.
Pontes is part of a broader two-track plan. The shorter-term track focuses on practical settlement tools, while the longer-term track is Appia, which is meant to help shape a wider European tokenized financial system by 2028.
The ECB said Appia will be built with market input. It is meant to map out how tokenized finance can develop in Europe while keeping central bank money as the base layer for trust and settlement.
Cipollone calls for legal clarity across the bloc
Cipollone also said settlement alone will not be enough. He called for closer work between public institutions and private firms, along with legal rules that fit tokenized finance across the European Union.
One part of Appia focuses on interoperability. The goal is to make tokenized assets transferable across different DLT platforms through shared data formats and compatible smart contract standards.
He said the European Commission’s plan to extend and improve the DLT Pilot Regime is “important and welcome.” At the same time, he warned that Europe may still need a dedicated legal framework so tokenized assets can be issued, held and transferred more smoothly across the bloc.
In addition, the debate has also drawn comments from private sector firms. Circle said in feedback submitted on March 20 that the Commission should widen the DLT Pilot Regime and allow authorized crypto-asset service providers to offer e-money token cash account services.
That feedback came just days before Cipollone’s speech. Together, the comments show that both public institutions and private firms are pushing for clearer rules as Europe tries to build tokenized markets that can work at scale.
Bitmine Immersion Technologies has increased its Ether holdings again as chairman Tom Lee said the token’s recent weakness may be nearing an end. The company disclosed a fresh purchase of 65,341 ETH worth about $139 million, lifting its total holdings to more than 4.6 million Ether.
Summary
- Bitmine bought 65,341 ETH, lifting total holdings above 4.6 million tokens this week.
- Tom Lee said Ether’s mini-crypto winter may be nearing its final stage now.
- Bitmine is nearing its goal of owning 5% of Ether’s circulating supply.
Bitmine said it has raised its buying pace over the past three weeks. Lee said the company’s base case is that Ether is in the final stages of a “mini-crypto winter” after several months of pressure across digital asset markets.
The latest purchase added 65,341 ETH to the company’s balance sheet. That brought Bitmine’s holdings to about 4.661 million Ether as of March 23, according to the company’s update.
Lee also pointed to policy and market signals that he said support a better outlook for crypto. In the company statement, he linked that view to progress on the CLARITY Act and to the way Ether and other digital assets have held up during recent geopolitical stress.
Bitmine’s total Ether position now equals about 3.86% of the circulating supply, based on Ethereum’s circulating supply of about 120.69 million tokens. The company has said it wants to accumulate 5% of the circulating supply over time.
To reach that goal at the current supply level, Bitmine would still need roughly 1.37 million more ETH. At prices near $2,156, that would require close to $3 billion in additional purchases.
Ether’s supply is not fixed. The total can rise or fall depending on issuance and token burning, so the amount needed to reach 5% can change over time.
Staking remains part of the strategy
Bitmine said more than 3 million of its Ether is now staked. That means the company is not only building a treasury position but also using the assets within Ethereum’s proof-of-stake system.
The company also reported other holdings on its balance sheet. These include about $1.1 billion in cash, 196 Bitcoin, a $200 million stake in Beast Industries, and a $95 million stake in Eightco Holdings.
Moreover, Bitmine is now one of the largest corporate Ether holders in the market. Strategic ETH Reserve data cited in public reports shows Bitmine ahead of other treasury firms, with SharpLink Gaming and Ether Machine trailing by a wide margin.
The company’s latest move also reflects a wider trend that grew across 2025 as more firms shifted capital into crypto treasury strategies.
Fraud networks work by using X accounts
ZachXBT determined that there was a group of X accounts on the network that shared updates related to war to gain some credibility and an audience. Most of these accounts would frequently post about the political happenings to become known to active users, and they also had the benefit of reposting similar content that would assist in increasing their reach as well as ensuring constant exposure.
The accounts later started to promote fraud involving crypto after gaining a following. They involved bogus giveaways and organized pump-and-dump operations on unsuspecting participants. As a result, the users, who interacted with content about the war, were exposed to false promises of easy returns with the help of digital assets.
The research revealed that operators used to switch usernames and account identities to minimize chances of detection. They also purchased older accounts that were already followed to sound more believable. In addition to that, the network employed the same message being sent repeatedly on a number of profiles, which enabled them to push scam campaigns within a short period and successfully.
Major Profits on Organized Plans
According to on-chain data, such synchronized operations brought a lot of money to the operators. One instance was the report by ZachXBT that a campaign generated six-figure profits during short-term token promotions. There was also one case where multiple accounts promoted the token known as ORAMAMA in a single day and then never promoted it again.
The emergence of the scams is a part of a bigger story with scammers exploiting major international events to target online audiences to trick them. The presence of fear and uncertainty in the current conflict has empowered purported scammers to integrate misinformation into financial frauds, although the social media platforms continue to be at the center of the operation plans. The results mention how scammers can use geopolitical tension to organize coordinated campaigns of financial frauds, whereas the social media platforms remain central to their operational strategies.
Bitcoin is experiencing a sharp sell-off, even as the U.S.-Iran war de-escalates, trading at the $71,000 level, and still is 4% lower than a week ago. The broader crypto market has underperformed significantly this week despite a bullish Bitcoin price prediction.
This retreat places BTC below its critical 20-day EMA of $70,515, signaling renewed bearish momentum in the short term. Amid the volatility, macro factors are heavily influencing price discovery, pushing the Fear & Greed Index down to a reading of 11, or extreme fear.
While the immediate outlook appears grim, a major catalyst looms: the SEC decision on 91 crypto ETF applications due by March 27. Market participants are bracing for extreme volatility; an approval could trigger a swift rebound, while rejection may force a deeper capitulation.
Can Bitcoin Price Reclaim $73,000 Before the Weekly Close? Here’s Our Prediction.
Bitcoin’s failure to hold the $69,000–$71,000 consolidation zone has exposed lower support levels. Currently, BTC is struggling against resistance at $71,500, blocked by the falling 20-day and 50-day EMAs.
The MACD histogram remains positive but is trading below the signal line, indicating that while selling pressure has eased slightly, bullish momentum is nonexistent. A critical defense line sits at $65,500; losing this level could validate a prolonged correction. Conversely, a successful breakout above immediate upper resistance at $73,600 could invalidate the bearish thesis.
For now, we should watch the $73,600 level closely; a clean break here is required to shift the 14-day RSI from its neutral 50.20 stance into bullish territory. This cycle, Bitcoin price prediction focuses more on sentiment than chart structures.
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LiquidChain Targets Early Mover Upside as Bitcoin Consolidates
While Bitcoin struggles to maintain the $67,000 floor, capital is beginning to rotate into infrastructure plays that solve the market’s fragmentation issues. The current bearish sentiment provides a pivotal moment for “pick-and-shovel” assets, or projects that gain utility regardless of whether the market trends up or down. As BTC dominates headlines, smart money often hunts for asymmetric returns in presale markets.
Enter LiquidChain ($LIQUID), a Layer 3 (L3) infrastructure project designed to fuse Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana liquidity into a single execution environment. The project has raised more than $600K in its ongoing presale, with tokens priced at $0.0143 at a very early stage.
LiquidChain’s “Deploy-Once Architecture” allows developers to write code once and access users across three major chains, eliminating the friction of bridging while giving more than 1700% APY on staking rewards.
It acts as “The Cross-Chain Liquidity Layer,” offering sub-second unified settlement. However, early-stage infrastructure carries development risk; the roadmap must be executed flawlessly to compete with established L2s. Investors looking for a hedge against BTC stagnation can research the presale below.
Disclaimer: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice. You could lose all of your capital.
The post Bitcoin Price Prediction: War De-escalates, But Still Underperforming appeared first on Cryptonews.
Key Highlights
- Alibaba introduced the XuanTie C950, a cutting-edge 5nm RISC-V processor developed by its DAMO Academy division
- The processor operates at 3.2 GHz with performance exceeding its predecessor, the XuanTie C920, by over 300%
- Target applications include cloud infrastructure, AI inference operations, and agentic AI systems
- The company plans a separate public listing for T-Head, its semiconductor division
- BABA shares gained 2.98%, finishing at $126.06 on March 23
Alibaba’s semiconductor ambitions took center stage this week. During an internal DAMO Academy conference held Tuesday, the tech giant revealed its XuanTie C950 processor, claiming it represents “the highest performing RISC-V CPU in the world.”
The processor features 5-nanometer manufacturing technology and operates at 3.2 GHz, utilizing the open-source RISC-V architecture. This open framework enables chip developers to adapt instruction sets for specialized AI applications without incurring licensing costs — a strategic benefit for organizations deploying AI agents across large-scale operations.
Alibaba Group Holding Limited, BABA
Performance metrics show the C950 delivering over three times the speed of the earlier XuanTie C920 model. The company has not disclosed which manufacturing partner produced the silicon.
According to Alibaba’s announcement, the processor targets cloud computing environments and AI inference tasks. End users will have the flexibility to configure the chip for specialized inference requirements.
Building a Complete AI Ecosystem
CEO Eddie Wu articulated his strategy last year: positioning Alibaba as an end-to-end AI technology company spanning both hardware and software layers. That vision is now materializing.
During last week’s quarterly earnings discussion, Wu confirmed that Alibaba’s custom AI accelerators have transitioned into volume production. The T-Head semiconductor division is now competing directly with Nvidia and Huawei in China’s domestic marketplace.
T-Head has already onboarded significant enterprise clients, and Alibaba continues advancing preparations for the unit’s independent stock market debut. That initiative remains in progress.
The company maintains two distinct chip product families. The Zhenwu 810E lineup focuses on AI model training and inference capabilities. Meanwhile, the XuanTie portfolio, now including the C950, targets high-performance cloud environments and agentic AI deployments.
RISC-V Emerges as Strategic Architecture
RISC-V has gained substantial traction among Chinese technology firms as geopolitical friction restricts access to Western semiconductor intellectual property. Alibaba ranks among the architecture’s earliest and most committed advocates domestically.
The standard directly challenges offerings from Arm Holdings and Intel. When Arm encountered limitations conducting business with Huawei following US export restrictions, RISC-V partially addressed that market void.
The C950 debut caps an active period for Alibaba’s artificial intelligence product portfolio. Last week witnessed the introduction of Wukong, an enterprise-grade platform engineered for AI agent orchestration.
Monday brought the global launch of Accio Work, the international edition of that platform. Targeting small and mid-market enterprises, it promises autonomous execution of sophisticated operational workflows.
Earlier this month, Alibaba consolidated certain AI development teams into a newly formed division called Alibaba Token Hub, concentrating on enterprise-focused AI workplace solutions.
The competitive landscape: Token pricing for Chinese AI models has plummeted amid intense domestic rivalry, compelling firms like Alibaba to pursue margin protection and competitive differentiation through hardware and infrastructure innovation.
BABA finished trading at $126.06 on March 23, advancing $3.65 or 2.98% for the session. Pre-market activity on March 24 showed shares retreating to $124.94, declining 0.90%.
Nasdaq will integrate its Calypso risk and collateral platform and trade surveillance system with digital asset infrastructure firm Talos’s institutional trading tools.
The integration announced Monday aims to offer institutional clients a “unified” workflow for managing tokenized collateral and monitoring crypto and traditional assets for market abuse. It aims to ease a bottleneck in institutional tokenization, with Nasdaq citing internal research that roughly $35 billion in collateral sits tied up in “corrective and non-interest-bearing measures.”
Nasdaq’s integration of its trade surveillance tools means that Talos clients will be able to run alerts for opaque tactics such as wash trading, spoofing and layering across the venues they access.
The companies said the partnership is intended to bring “institutional-grade” compliance standards to digital asset markets.
Crypto’s recent history offers reasons for caution
Crypto’s history is laced with examples of the practices Nasdaq and Talos seek to address, despite previous claims of institutional-grade compliance and tooling.
In 2020, Canada’s Coinsquare exchange admitted to running artificial wash trades that accounted for more than 90% of its reported volume, leading to a settlement with the Ontario Securities Commission and the ouster of senior executives.
In 2022, the collapse of US-based crypto exchange FTX revealed how an exchange touting sophisticated risk management gave a company associated with it what regulators described as an unlimited line of credit and exemptions from key controls.
In January 2025, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis found that suspected wash trading and pump-and-dump schemes still accounted for significant volumes across decentralized finance pools, and illicit crypto volumes reached almost $51 billion in 2024.
Part of a broader tokenization push
Talos, whose clients range from hedge funds to brokers, extended its Series B round by $45 million in January to a total of $150 million at a roughly $1.5 billion valuation, with backers including Robinhood Markets and BNY.
The Nasdaq deal comes as BlackRock CEO Larry Fink told shareholders in his 2026 annual letter that tokenization is “updating the plumbing of the financial system” and may be at a similar stage to the internet in 1996, arguing that blockchain‑based representations of assets could broaden access and cut costs across markets.
Nasdaq and Talos are not alone in chasing that opportunity, with the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) owner Intercontinental Exchange developing a blockchain‑based platform for 24/7 trading of tokenized stocks and ETFs, and global asset manager Franklin Templeton expanding tokenized US government money market funds and collateral programs for institutions.
Balancer Labs is preparing to shut down as the team behind the DeFi protocol moves to cut costs after months of financial strain. The plan would leave the protocol running under a leaner structure led by the Balancer Foundation and the DAO while the corporate entity winds down.
Summary
- Balancer Labs will shut down as the protocol shifts toward DAO and foundation management.
- The November hack and falling TVL increased financial pressure across the Balancer ecosystem.
- Executives want lower costs, zero BAL emissions, and more revenue flowing to the DAO.
Balancer co-founder Fernando Martinelli said he had decided to wind down Balancer Labs after reviewing the project’s position. He said the company had become a “liability rather than an asset to the protocol” and linked that decision to legal exposure tied to the November 2025 exploit.
Balancer Labs chief executive Marcus Hardt also said the business was spending too much to attract liquidity compared with the revenue the protocol was generating. He said that approach came with dilution for BAL token holders and could not continue in its current form.
Balancer was one of the better-known DeFi protocols during the 2020 and 2021 market cycle. Its total value locked reached about $3.3 billion in November 2021 before falling sharply over the following years.
The pressure increased after the November 2025 exploit, which reports said totaled more than $100 million. Balancer’s TVL had already dropped to about $800 million by October 2025, then fell by another $500 million in thetwo weeks after the hack. Recent reporting placed the protocol’s TVL near $158 million.
Furthermore, Hardt and Martinelli said they want the Balancer Foundation and the DAO to guide the protocol from here. Their plan calls for a lean continuation model with lower operating costs and fewer people involved in day-to-day work.
Martinelli also backed changes to tokenomics and treasury flow. Those include cutting BAL emissions to zero and adjusting fees so the DAO can keep more of the revenue generated by the protocol. DAO members have been asked to vote on proposals tied to the restructuring and BAL token design.
Protocol revenue remains part of the case
Even with the current pressure, Martinelli said Balancer is still producing revenue. He said the protocol brought in more than $1 million over the past three months and described it as a working system weighed down by weak economics and a heavy cost base.
That position now forms the core of the restructuring push. The protocol is expected to continue operating, but under a smaller and less expensive setup built around the DAO and foundation rather than Balancer Labs.
Ethereum price is trading at $2,160, caught in a high-stakes consolidation zone with a neutral prediction behind it. While recent price action marks a 55% recovery from cycle lows, on-chain data signals caution: whale wallets distributed heavily into the March peak of $2,370.
Volatility is the only certainty this week. Despite persistent energy-driven inflation data keeping pressure on risk assets, institutional interest remains sticky, evidenced by ongoing inflows into BlackRock’s staked ETH ETF. However, the distribution pattern suggests smart money is de-risking ahead of the Glamesterdam hard fork. A break in either direction seems imminent.
— BSCN (@BSCNews) March 21, 2026
MARKETS: BLACKROCK'S $ETH STAKING ETF IS ON FIRE!
Launched last week, @Blackrock's $ETHB staking ETF has already reached an AUM of more than $250 million.
Blackrock is not the first to launch an @Ethereum staking ETF but the weight carried by the firm puts it on a fast-track… pic.twitter.com/3OgLtTc513
The technical posture is mixed. While the Layer-2 ecosystem boasts more than $30 billion TVL, the immediate price action on the daily chart is testing trader resolve. Can the bulls defend the $2,000 level?
Ethereum Price Prediction: Can ETH Hold Support at $2,000?
As of this morning, Ethereum (ETH) sits at $2,160, posting a healthy +4.5% gain over the last 24 hours. The asset is currently respecting the 52-week range midpoint, utilizing the DEMA 9 at approximately $2,100 as dynamic support. This level is critical; a daily close below could trigger a slide toward the next major liquidity pool at $2,000.
Momentum indicators are flashing warning signs while the RSI hovers in neutral territory at 52 on the daily. This structure often precedes a volatility contraction before a violent expansion. Analysts note that a decisive reclaiming of $2,350 is required to invalidate the bearish distribution thesis.
Should broader market sentiment improve, perhaps tailored by a dovish FOMC dot plot, ETH could target the psychological $2,500 barrier. Conversely, if the projected +10.88% monthly forecast fails to materialize, the 50-EMA near $2,050 acts as the ultimate line in the sand for the bulls.
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Bitcoin Hyper Targets Early Mover Upside as Ethereum Stalls
While Ethereum battles localized resistance and macroeconomic headwinds, capital is beginning to rotate (as it often does during consolidation phases) into high-beta infrastructure plays. Sophisticated traders are eyeing the emerging Bitcoin Layer 2 narrative, which promises to unlock trillions in dormant BTC capital.
Leading this charge is Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER), the first-ever Bitcoin Layer 2 solution to integrate the Solana Virtual Machine (SVM). While Ethereum struggles with gas revenue issues, Bitcoin Hyper claims to deliver transaction speeds faster than Solana itself, directly on the Bitcoin network.
The market appetite for this utility is quantifiable. The project has already raised an amount of more than $32 million in its ongoing presale. Priced currently at just $0.0136, the token offers an entry point significantly lower than established L2s with 36% APY rewards.
The protocol features a Decentralized Canonical Bridge for seamless BTC transfers and supports high-speed smart contracts that break Bitcoin’s historical limitation of non-programmability.
Disclaimer: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice. You could lose all of your capital.
The post Ethereum Price Prediction: Will Critical Support Break? appeared first on Cryptonews.
- TRON DAO announced the expansion of its AI Fund from $100 million to $1 billion.
- The fund targets identity, payments, RWAs & autonomous finance.
- What does this mean for agentic economy and TRX price?
TRON DAO has dramatically escalated its commitment to artificial intelligence by expanding its AI Fund from $100 million to $1 billion.
According to an announcement, the newly scaled fund will target early‑stage companies building core infrastructure for the “agentic economy.”
But what does this mean for TRX as the crypto project eyes AI‑driven payment systems, tokenized assets, and decentralized applications on the TRON blockchain?
TRON DAO expands AI Fund to $1 billion
The scaled‑up AI Fund marks a strategic pivot from a moderate development pool into a major capital‑allocation vehicle for AI‑native infrastructure.
TRON announced the expansion of its AI Fund from $100 million to $1 billion. The fund will target investments in and acquisitions of early-stage companies building core infrastructure for the agentic economy.
The fund will prioritize the development and consolidation of agent… pic.twitter.com/5K7shMrFDp
— TRON DAO (@trondao) March 23, 2026
TRON DAO has stated that the fund will focus on investments and acquisitions in early‑stage companies that build foundational tools for agent‑to‑agent interactions.
These include AI‑driven smart contracts, identity protocols, and machine‑to‑machine payment rails.
By concentrating on “core infrastructure,” Tron aims to deepen its integration with the emerging agentic economy, where AI systems execute financial and contractual operations autonomously on‑chain.
From a network‑level perspective, this expansion is designed to accelerate the development of AI‑centric decentralized applications (dApps) on TRON.
Significantly, it could also increase the utility of USDT‑based flows that already dominate the ecosystem.
Analysts note that TRON’s emphasis on low‑fee transactions and high‑ throughput makes it a natural environment for AI agents that need to perform frequent, low‑value operations at scale.
The AI Fund’s $1B war chest is expected to attract more developers, startups, and institutional partners to build and deploy AI‑enhanced products directly on the TRON network.
What does this mean for TRX price?
The expansion of the AI Fund does not directly alter TRX’s supply‑demand mechanics. It doesn’t outline buy‑backs or burns.
However, potential implications for TRX’s long‑term price trajectory are likely.
AI and blockchain convergence is a dominant narrative, and this move can only reinforce TRON’s positioning.
The multi‑year commitment can attract more developers, capital, and transaction volume to the ecosystem.
In this case, it would mean higher on‑chain activity and transaction fees. Automated trading bots, yield‑harvesting systems, and cross‑chain payment routers could all bolster this outlook.
TRX, as the native utility and gas‑payment token, could benefit in such an environment where AI‑funded projects drive adoption and demand.
The price of TRX has hovered near $0.30 over the past few weeks, largely under pressure alongside the broader market.
However, long-term bullish sentiment remains, with the token about 29% off its all-time high of $0.44 reached in December 2024.
Recent resilience has come amid increased buying from Tron Inc.
TLDR:
- Hostplus manages over A$150 billion and is now exploring Bitcoin access for self-managed retirement accounts.
- CIO Sam Sicilia confirmed member demand is driving the fund’s renewed interest in digital currency options.
- Any crypto offering through Choiceplus requires full regulatory approval before launching in the next financial year.
- Australia’s pension sector holds little crypto exposure, making Hostplus a potential industry trailblazer here.
Australia’s Hostplus pension fund, managing over A$150 billion, is exploring cryptocurrency investment options for its members.
Chief Investment Officer Sam Sicilia confirmed the fund is reviewing Bitcoin and other digital assets. This move could make Hostplus one of the first major Australian pension funds to offer crypto access. Any rollout depends on regulatory approval and remains in the design phase.
Hostplus Eyes Bitcoin Access Through Choiceplus Platform
The fund is looking at offering crypto through its Choiceplus investment option. This platform allows members to self-manage their retirement savings portfolios. Currently, Choiceplus accounts for roughly 1% of the fund’s total assets under management.
Member demand is a key driver behind this consideration. Sicilia pointed directly to member correspondence as evidence of that interest.
“There’s certainly a demand from some of our members who write in and say ‘why can’t I have access to cryptocurrency?’” he said.
Digital asset products could potentially be available as early as next financial year. However, consumer protections and regulatory compliance must come first. Several design and structural questions still need to be resolved before any launch.
Sicilia also noted that crypto has matured considerably since Hostplus first evaluated it nearly a decade ago. “We’re now at the stage where we’re revisiting digital currencies, not just Bitcoin, but just the broader range of digital currencies,” he said.
That broader scope reportedly includes assets such as music rights alongside traditional cryptocurrencies.
Regulatory Approval Remains Central to Any Crypto Rollout
Australia’s pension sector, worth A$4.5 trillion, has largely avoided cryptocurrency exposure. AMP became the first major fund to announce a Bitcoin futures investment back in 2024. Hostplus taking a similar step would mark a notable shift in industry posture.
The fund has been firm that it will not move forward without full regulatory clearance. Sicilia made the fund’s position clear on timing.
“We’d love to get regulatory tick off, even if it means waiting another six months,” he said. That patience reflects the fund’s broader investment philosophy.
“We are long-term investors. Six months doesn’t really move the dial for us,” Sicilia added. The fund is prioritizing a compliant and well-structured rollout over a rushed launch. Member protections remain at the center of that approach.
Outside major pension funds, Australia’s self-managed super funds hold around A$3 billion in crypto. These SMSFs represent about A$1.2 trillion of the broader pension system.
That existing exposure shows retail appetite for crypto within retirement structures is already present. Once approvals are secured, a structured crypto offering could follow within the next financial year.
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