Crypto World
BTC $20,000 put option is very popular
Nearly $600 million worth of $20,000 bitcoin put options has emerged as the third most popular strike ahead of Deribit’s quarterly expiry, showing how traders are positioning for extreme downside scenarios due to the Middle East conflict.
A put option gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, to sell bitcoin at a predetermined price. With bitcoin trading below $70,000, the $20,000 strike is considered deep out of the money, meaning it would only gain value in the event of a sharp market collapse, or a 70% drawdown from current prices.
Roughly $596 million in notional value, the total dollar value of underlying contracts, is concentrated at the $20,000 strike, making it one of the three most dominant positions. The others sit at $75,000, with $687 million, and $125,000, with $740 million, highlighting a wide spread of expectations across both downside and upside scenarios.
Looking at it from face value, large positioning in a $20,000 put option could suggest fears of a meltdown. However, the structure of the market is more nuanced.
Much of this activity is likely driven by traders selling these far out of the money puts to collect premium, reflecting the low probability of bitcoin falling to $20,000 rather than a direct hedge against a crash. In other words, it is often a strategy tied to income generation or volatility positioning, rather than outright bearish conviction.
The total notional value of bitcoin options expiring on Deribit is $13.5 billion. While, even though the market is in extreme fear, the options market still leans slightly bullish, with a put call ratio of 0.63, indicating more call options than puts, typically used to express bullish views. Total open interest stands at 195,719 BTC, with 120,236 BTC in calls and 75,482 BTC in puts.
Meanwhile, the max pain level, the price at which the largest number of options expire worthless, is $75,000, which could potentially act as a magnet into expiry. As options market makers often hedge around this level, pulling price toward where the greatest number of contracts expire worthless.
Key Takeaways
- Micron’s fiscal Q2 2026 results topped forecasts with $23.86 billion in revenue and adjusted EPS of $12.20
- The company’s Q3 2026 revenue projection of approximately $33.5 billion significantly exceeded analyst estimates
- Capital expenditure plans for fiscal 2026 now surpass $25 billion, representing a roughly $5 billion increase from earlier projections
- Shares declined following the earnings announcement as market participants digested the elevated investment requirements
- Analyst sentiment continues overwhelmingly positive, with 34 Buy/Strong Buy recommendations and no Sell ratings according to MarketBeat data
When Micron Technology unveiled its earnings results on March 19, the numbers looked impressive on paper. Yet exceptional revenue performance and unprecedented free cash flow generation couldn’t prevent the shares from sliding, as market attention fixated on substantially increased capital investment requirements.
The memory chip manufacturer reported fiscal second-quarter 2026 revenue reaching $23.86 billion alongside adjusted earnings of $12.20 per share. Management also disclosed that the period concluded with $16.7 billion in cash and investments, representing a company record for free cash flow.
The financial metrics were undeniably strong. However, the forward-looking statements captured market attention — triggering mixed reactions.
Micron projected fiscal Q3 2026 revenue approaching $33.5 billion. This forecast substantially exceeded Wall Street consensus expectations. Management attributed the robust outlook to accelerating demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) deployed in artificial intelligence data centers and computing accelerators.
HBM represents the most sought-after product category in memory semiconductors currently. Micron holds position among just three principal global suppliers, alongside Samsung and SK hynix. This concentrated supply landscape has provided support for pricing power and profit margins.
Understanding the Post-Earnings Decline
Notwithstanding the impressive financial performance, Micron shares retreated following the earnings disclosure. The catalyst centered on updated capital spending projections.
Micron announced that fiscal 2026 capital expenditures will now surpass $25 billion, marking an approximately $5 billion elevation from prior guidance. The company explained that expanding clean-room infrastructure and accelerating DRAM manufacturing capacity requires the additional investment to address AI-driven demand.
This represents a recognizable dynamic within semiconductor manufacturing — committing substantial resources to capture demand opportunities while navigating potential oversupply risks if market conditions shift. Memory chip producers have encountered cyclical challenges previously, and market participants retain institutional memory of those episodes.
Another consideration involves the stock’s substantial year-to-date appreciation. Micron had advanced more than 61% during 2026 prior to Thursday’s pullback, building on strong performance throughout 2025. At those valuation levels, profit-taking responses to perceived risks represent predictable market behavior.
Wall Street Maintains Positive Outlook
The analyst community demonstrated unwavering conviction. According to MarketBeat data released March 19, Micron holds five Strong Buy ratings, 29 Buy ratings, and four Hold ratings. Not a single Sell rating appears among tracked analysts.
This represents remarkably uniform bullish positioning. The four Hold recommendations suggest measured caution at prevailing price levels, yet no analysts advocate selling positions.
Price objectives adjusted following the quarterly report as analysts recalibrated their financial models. MarketBeat’s aggregated consensus range established parameters between approximately $425.62 and $446.66.
Subsequently, upward target revisions emerged. Needham elevated its price objective to $500. UBS similarly increased its target while maintaining a Buy recommendation. Both firms emphasized sustainable AI-associated memory demand as the fundamental thesis.
These $500 price targets don’t represent momentum chasing — they embody convictions that Micron’s artificial intelligence growth trajectory extends further than current market pricing reflects.
The investment narrative surrounding the stock has evolved. Questions no longer focus on whether Micron can achieve recovery. Instead, debate centers on whether the organization can sustain growth without excessive capital deployment.
Presently, analysts affirm that capability. With 34 Buy or Strong Buy ratings and zero Sell recommendations in current MarketBeat tracking, Micron remains among the most broadly endorsed equities within the AI semiconductor investment theme.
Shares declined on March 19. The analyst consensus didn’t waver.
Korean traders are pulling XRP off exchanges at a rapid pace, while whale flows signal accumulation seen ahead of past rallies.
XRP (XRP) has dropped by 10.5% in the past three days, but the decline may be a typical breakout retest within a broader bullish setup, coinciding with a surge in withdrawal activity on Korea’s Upbit exchange.
Key takeaways:
XRP bull flag breakout underway
XRP broke out of its prevailing bull flag pattern last week and was pulling back on Thursday to retest the former upper trendline as new support, a common move after a breakout.
Bull flags form when price consolidates inside a downward-sloping channel following a strong rally. Once price breaks above that channel, the old resistance often becomes support on the retest.
For XRP, that key area is around the mid-$1.40s, also aligning with the 20-day exponential moving average (20-day EMA, the green line).
Holding above it would keep the breakout intact and maintain the bull flag’s upside target near $1.70–$1.72, or about 20% above current levels.
XRP record withdrawals from Upbit
XRP’s bullish technical setup aligns with a recent surge in withdrawal activity on South Korea’s Upbit, according to CryptoQuant data.
Since December 2025, wallets across nearly all size cohorts have steadily moved XRP off exchanges, reducing immediate sell-pressure. This trend is typically associated with accumulation phases.
On-chain analyst CW pointed to a similar structure between 2021 and early 2023, when elevated XRP withdrawals from Korean exchanges coincided with a broader accumulation phase.
That period preceded a sharp rally, with XRP climbing from below $1 to above $3, an increase of roughly 500%.
Related: XRP holders hit a record 7.7M: Will price break through $1.60 next?
Upbit has long been an active trading venue for XRP traders, often serving as a barometer to gauge retail sentiment. As of Thursday, XRP trades in South Korean Won (KRW) were the fourth-largest in a 24-hour rolling period.
XRP whale flows signal renewed accumulation
XRP’s whale activity is also starting to support the bullish case.
As of Thursday, the 90-day average whale flow had turned positive after staying negative for most of 2024 and early 2025, a period that saw persistent large-holder selling.
The latest reversal suggests whales are no longer distributing as aggressively and may be shifting back toward accumulation.
Historically, moves from negative to positive whale flow have appeared during the early stages of trend reversals and accumulation-led consolidations. That includes XRP’s climb to $3.55 from around $2.20 during the April–September 2025 period.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision. While we strive to provide accurate and timely information, Cointelegraph does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information in this article. This article may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Cointelegraph will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your reliance on this information.
Key Highlights
- TSEM shares have climbed approximately 14% Thursday and surged over 33% following Monday’s Oriole Networks announcement
- The collaboration targets deterministic, ultra-low latency networks for AI systems leveraging Tower’s silicon photonics capabilities
- Tower introduced its new BCD Gen3 power management solution designed for AI data center applications
- A separate partnership with Salience Labs advances optical circuit switching innovation
- Shares have skyrocketed more than 300% in the trailing twelve months
Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) experienced a substantial rally of approximately 14% during Thursday’s trading session, defying broader market weakness. This upward momentum continues a rally that started early this week following the company’s strategic partnership announcement with Oriole Networks.
Tower Semiconductor Ltd., TSEM
From Monday’s announcement through recent trading, TSEM has advanced more than 33%. The stock most recently traded near $161.90.
The collaboration with Oriole Networks emphasizes deterministic, ultra-low latency networking solutions built upon Tower’s established silicon photonics infrastructure. This technology addresses critical needs in AI systems, where networking performance and efficiency face mounting demands.
During the initial announcement, Oriole CEO James Regan emphasized that AI expansion is compelling the sector to reimagine conventional network designs. “As models scale, traditional architectures encounter an inflexible latency barrier — whereas Oriole’s deterministic, low-latency approach seamlessly overcomes it,” he stated.
The optical networking sector Tower is pursuing could achieve $80 billion in value by decade’s end, based on projections referenced during the partnership announcement.
Power Management Innovation Strengthens Growth Narrative
Alongside the Oriole collaboration, Tower unveiled its BCD Gen3 power management solution this week. This platform addresses AI data center requirements and mobile power applications, with Tower claiming best-in-class LDMOS capabilities.
The introduction establishes Tower’s presence in the AI power management sector, an area experiencing rising demand for efficient, high-capability semiconductor solutions.
Tower reported approximately $1.44 billion in quarterly revenue during its latest period, demonstrating the company’s breadth across diverse semiconductor segments.
Advancing Photonics Innovation with Salience Labs
Tower maintains an ongoing collaboration with Salience Labs centered on optical circuit switching technology — transmitting information via light signals instead of traditional electrical pathways.
This initiative has transitioned from research phases into pre-production stages, based on recent company communications. The approach substitutes conventional electronic switching with photonic architecture, offering enhanced capability for managing data throughput in large-scale AI computing environments.
Combined, the Oriole and Salience collaborations establish Tower’s position across multiple dimensions of AI networking technology.
TSEM has appreciated more than 300% during the past year, positioning it among the top-performing semiconductor stocks over this timeframe.
Thursday’s 14% advance occurred despite weakness across major market indices, highlighting the substantial investor focus generated by the Oriole partnership since Monday’s revelation.
Ryde Group, a Singapore-based ride-hailing and carpool platform listed on the NYSE American, said on Wednesday that it will formalize a crypto treasury strategy for its corporate reserves. The plan contemplates allocating a portion of Ryde’s treasury to Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Solana (SOL), with exact allocations and timing to be determined by a governance team within the company, per its announcement.
The company argues that the evolving macroeconomic environment warrants a more flexible approach to treasury management, and says holding digital assets could offer additional options for optimizing capital and liquidity. Ryde emphasized that its crypto holdings will be stored with a third-party custodian, and that it has established an investment committee to oversee portfolio decisions and a separate risk management committee to ensure safety and regulatory compliance. These governance layers are designed to balance potential upside with prudent oversight.
Ryde’s stock, which trades on the NYSE American, traded down roughly 13% in early Thursday afternoon trading, trimming a year-to-date gain of more than 122% per Yahoo Finance. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment by publication time.
Historically, Ryde began accepting Bitcoin as an in-app payment method in 2020 and later broadened support to include some altcoins. It remains unclear whether the platform currently accepts cryptocurrency for payments, but RydePay historically allowed users to convert supported cryptocurrencies into Ryde tokens to pay for services on the platform.
The move to crypto treasuries is noteworthy as the broader sector faces mounting headwinds. Industry data cited by Cointelegraph shows that digital-asset treasury firms have struggled with a challenging environment, including a September 2025 multi-asset net asset value (mNAV) collapse that left many treasuries trading below the value of their crypto holdings. In February 2026, monthly inflows into crypto treasury firms slowed to their lowest levels since October 2024, reaching about $555 million for the month. The sector’s fragility is also reflected in corporate actions like GD Culture Group (GDC) authorizing the sale of portions of its Bitcoin reserve to finance a share buyback, and in the challenges faced by Ether-backed treasuries such as BitMine Immersion Technologies, which reported substantial paper losses as Ether prices remained far from its average acquisition price.
Key takeaways
- Ryde Group plans a formal crypto treasury, allocating reserves to BTC, ETH, and SOL, with allocations and timing set by an internal governance team.
- Assets would be held with a third-party custodian, supported by an investment committee and a separate risk management committee to oversee compliance and risk.
- The development follows Ryde’s prior crypto usage for payments (BTC in-app payments started in 2020), though current acceptance for payments is not clearly stated.
- Ryde’s stock fell about 13% in Thursday trading, after a strong year-to-date rally, highlighting the market’s sensitivity to treasury-related disclosures and crypto volatility.
- Industry-wide data show a difficult environment for corporate digital-asset treasuries, with an mNAV collapse in 2025 and subdued inflows in early 2026, alongside corporate strategies to rebalance holdings (e.g., GD Culture Group and Ether treasuries).
Ryde’s treasury pivot and the path forward for corporate crypto strategies
Ryde’s announcement positions the company within a growing, albeit cautious, cohort of corporate treasuries embracing digital assets as part of their capital management playbooks. By formalizing a governance-driven framework, Ryde aims to navigate crypto volatility while seeking potential upside from long-hold assets like BTC, ETH, and SOL. The use of a custodian and dedicated governance structures points to a desire for regulatory compliance and risk containment, two features that have separated blue-chip treasuries from opportunistic trades in the sector.
Analysts and investors will want to watch several developments in the coming quarters. First, the allocation mix and the size of the crypto position will indicate how aggressively Ryde leans into digital assets relative to traditional cash holdings. Second, governance and risk-management processes will be tested as crypto markets move through cycles of volatility and regulatory inquiry. Finally, the company’s broader treasury strategy could influence investor sentiment around Ryde’s balance sheet resilience and capital allocation priorities in a sector where market dynamics and macro factors can trigger rapid revisions in corporate crypto plans.
Industry backdrop: what the broader market is telling treasuries
The trajectory of corporate digital-asset treasuries in 2025–2026 has been a study in contrasts. After a period of rapid expansion, the sector experienced a notable mNAV collapse in September 2025, with several treasuries trading below the net value of their crypto holdings. In February 2026, monthly inflows into crypto-treasury products slowed to about $555 million—the lowest since October 2024—signaling tighter appetite among corporate treasuries despite renewed interest in blockchain-enabled treasury solutions. This environment has also seen firms take measured actions, such as GD Culture Group authorizing the sale of Bitcoin reserves to finance a share-repurchase program, while others grapple with unrealized losses tied to ether prices in the market.
Observers emphasize that these conditions complicate the decision to deploy capital into crypto while underscoring the importance of robust governance, transparent reporting, and clear regulatory alignment for corporate treasuries. The Ryde move, if executed with discipline, could serve as a case study in how mid-cap, non-crypto-specific companies approach digital assets as part of a broader treasury strategy rather than as a speculative bet.
For readers, the next milestones to monitor include the specific asset allocations Ryde approves, the cadence of rebalancing, and the outcomes of its risk-management oversight. The evolving regulatory framework around corporate crypto holdings and the development of custodian standards will also shape how aggressively other non-crypto firms contemplate digital-asset treasuries in the future.
Sources linked in coverage and sector data provide a broader context for Ryde’s move: the company’s own announcement on the crypto-treasury shift, public stock-trading records such as Yahoo Finance for Ryde’s share movement, and sector analysis detailing mNAV developments and inflows data from Cointelegraph-reported industry metrics and CoinGecko-tracked treasury charts. These inputs help frame the decision as part of a wider re-examination of how companies balance risk, liquidity, and potential upside in a volatile macro environment.
What remains uncertain is how Ryde will calibrate its crypto exposure over time, how it will adapt to any regulatory changes, and what this means for user payments and partner ecosystems if the strategy yields meaningful reserve-driven flexibility. Investors and industry watchers will be paying close attention to whether Ryde’s framework can deliver tangible treasury resilience without compromising financial stability.
Animoca Brands has made a strategic investment in Ava Labs and entered a partnership to support projects building on the Avalanche blockchain, focusing on capital deployment, advisory support and expansion in Asia and the Middle East.
According to Thursday’s announcement by the Hong Kong-based Web3 company, the collaboration will target sectors including real-world assets, digital identity and entertainment, with Animoca providing business development support and access to regional networks to help Avalanche-based projects scale and reach institutional users.
Projects pursued under the partnership may also tap into the broader ecosystem of portfolio companies, Animoca said.
The effort is aimed at strengthening Avalanche’s position in markets where digital asset activity is growing, particularly by supporting deployments that require scalable infrastructure and compatibility with existing blockchain standards.
Animoca will also work with Avalanche developers on product integrations and funding opportunities, with an initial focus on projects seeking to launch and expand in the Middle East and Asia.
The initiative centers on connecting builders with capital and distribution channels, particularly for use cases such as tokenized assets and identity systems that target institutional and government-backed deployments.
Animoca Brands manages a portfolio of more than 600 blockchain projects, according to the company. In February, it secured a Virtual Asset Service Provider license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, allowing it to expand crypto services in the region.
Ava Labs is a blockchain development company and core contributor to the Avalanche network, a layer 1 blockchain designed for high-speed, low-cost applications, with its native token AVAX (AVAX) used for transactions, staking and securing the network.
Neither company disclosed the size of the investment or specific projects that will receive funding under the initiative.
Related: VanEck expands crypto ETF lineup with spot Avalanche product
Hong Kong emerges as a regulated crypto hub
The expansion comes as Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, continues to position itself as a digital asset hub.
In 2023, the city introduced a new licensing regime requiring crypto trading platforms to register with the Securities and Futures Commission, opening the door to regulated retail access under stricter investor protection rules.
In April 2024, Hong Kong approved its first spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds, and in October 2025 okayed a spot Solana (SOL) ETF, becoming one of the first markets to do so ahead of the United States.
The city’s push into digital assets has since broadened beyond trading, with authorities and financial institutions advancing initiatives across stablecoins, tokenized bonds and blockchain-based trade finance.
In February, officials said a new digital asset platform would support the issuance and settlement of tokenized bonds, with plans to connect it to regional tokenization infrastructure and extend it to other assets.
Earlier this month, Hong Kong and Shanghai authorities agreed to collaborate on blockchain-based trade finance and cargo data, exploring a cross-border platform for digitizing trade documentation under the HKMA’s Project Ensemble initiative.
Magazine: Are DeFi devs liable for the illegal activity of others on their platforms?
Crypto World
DeepSnitch AI Price Prediction 2026: Why Analysts Are Calling 300x to 500x Before March 31
S&P Dow Jones Indices just licensed the S&P 500 to a crypto platform so traders can trade the world’s most-watched stock index on Hyperliquid 24 hours a day without touching a traditional stock exchange.
For traders who understand that move, the DeepSnitch AI price prediction story makes more sense than it ever has, because the tools that help you navigate a market that never sleeps are super important.
DeepSnitch AI is already running five live AI surveillance tools before the presale has even closed. River and QNT round out this list as two of the strongest cycle ROI plays for traders who want fundamental exposure alongside the parabolic entry.
The S&P 500 went on-chain 24/7
On March 18, S&P Dow Jones gave permission to Trade[XYZ] to use the S&P 500, so they can launch a perpetual futures version of it on the Hyperliquid blockchain.
The S&P 500 used to be something you could only trade during NYSE hours. Now it is a 24/7 on-chain position sitting next to your crypto portfolio, settling in stablecoins, with no broker in the middle.
And in a market that operates around the clock across both equities and crypto, the tools that tell you whether a contract is malicious before you sign it, where the whale money is moving in real time, and what the risk profile on a new token looks like before you size in are super important.
That is exactly the problem the DeepSnitch AI token forecast is built around solving, and the presale that gives traders access to those tools closes March 31 with no extension.
DeepSnitch AI price prediction: The only presale running live AI tools before listing
The current DeepSnitch AI price prediction from analysts sits at 300x to 500x from the presale entry price of $0.04487, and the case for that range is not built on hype, it is built on the fact that five AI surveillance tools are already running for traders every day before a single token has traded on a public exchange.
SnitchFeed helps you track whale activity in real time, so you see accumulation before the crowd catches on. AuditSnitch checks contracts before you approve anything, adding a layer of protection against rugs. SnitchGPT simplifies on-chain research, giving you clear data so you actually know what you are buying.
SnitchCast keeps you updated with live market insights, so you are never entering trades blind. Token Explorer breaks down any token in seconds, showing risk, holders, and liquidity before you put money in.
On top of that, the entire platform has been rebuilt for speed and clarity, so you can move fast under pressure without missing key information.
Over $2 million raised and early holders already sitting on 197% gains before the Uniswap listing has even opened, giving this presale a foundation that most traders spend entire cycles looking for and never find at this price.
At $0.04487, the entry math is still working heavily in your favor, because your $15,000 through the 150% checkout bonus builds 835,748 $DSNT tokens in your wallet today. At the 300x analyst projection, that position is worth over $11.2 million.
Quant (QNT) price update for 2026
For a Deepsnitch AI price forecast trader looking for a foundational cycle hold with genuine enterprise traction behind it, QNT deserves a serious look right now.
QNT trades around $75 on March 19, down significantly from its all-time high of $428 reached in September 2021, and the 2026 price range puts the high at $280 from a current entry that is still well below the prior peak.
If you want a cycle hold with real government-level institutional adoption already confirmed and a fixed maximum supply of just 14.6 million tokens, QNT at current levels is one of the more asymmetric infrastructure plays available before the broader market connects those dots.
River (RIVER) price update for 2026
RIVER trades around $27 on March 19, down 71% from its all-time high of $87.73, and has already posted a 95% gain in the prior seven days against a broader market that moved just 2%, signalling that capital is beginning to rotate into the chain-abstraction narrative before the retail crowd recognises the setup.
The 2026 target sits at $50.38 and the long-term case for returning toward the $90 to $110 range depends on satUSD adoption across chains continuing at the current pace.
Bottom line
QNT sitting around $75 with CBDC pilots tied to big players like Barclays, HSBC, and the ECB, plus a tight supply, makes it a solid long-term hold. Some are even eyeing a $280 target for 2026.
RIVER at $27 is getting attention too, with satUSD expanding across multiple chains, a confirmed Justin Sun investment, and a strong 7-day run while the rest of the market stayed flat. It’s one of those early narrative plays traders like to catch before it gets crowded.
Both are legit holds with real backing. But they are already out there trading. No presale window, no bonus stacking, and no early-stage edge like getting in before everything goes live.
The DeepSnitch AI price prediction story is still at $0.04487 and March 31 is the close that locks that entry out permanently.
Go to the official DeepSnitch AI presale website, lock in your entry today, and follow X and Telegram to catch the listing as it happens.
FAQs
What is the DeepSnitch AI price prediction analysts are putting out ahead of the March 31 presale close?
The DeepSnitch AI price prediction sits at 300x to 500x from the $0.04487 presale price, backed by five live AI tools already running daily, dual audits from Coinsult and SolidProof, and 197% gains already confirmed for early holders before listing.
Is the DeepSnitch AI coin price prediction realistic, given that QNT and River are also bullish plays this cycle?
The DeepSnitch AI coin price prediction of 300x to 500x is grounded in a presale entry price that closes permanently on March 31, while QNT and River, both solid cycle plays, but neither offers the asymmetric ground floor math that $DSNT delivers before the Uniswap listing opens.
How does the DeepSnitch AI price forecast compare to holding QNT or River into the 2026 cycle?
QNT and River both are credible 2x to 13x plays, but the DeepSnitch AI price forecast of 300x to 500x from $0.04487 is on a completely different scale for traders who want the parabolic entry and can act before March 31.
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.
Crypto World
Coinbase Commerce seed phrase page alarms security community ahead of March 31 shutdown
Coinbase Commerce’s seed phrase withdrawal page is drawing fierce criticism from security researchers, who warn it normalizes typing 12-word recovery phrases into a website just days before the March 31 shutdown deadline.
Summary
- A Coinbase Commerce subdomain at withdraw.commerce.coinbase.com/seed-phrase asks merchants to type 12-word seed phrases into a plain-text web form to recover funds.
- SlowMist’s Cos, CISO 23pds and on-chain sleuth ZachXBT say the page and its cloneable front end create a powerful phishing template, especially as Commerce is wound down into Coinbase Business by March 31, 2026.
- Critics argue the flow trains users to ignore the industry rule to never enter a seed phrase online, reviving fears after earlier Coinbase impersonation scams stole about $2 million from users.
A subdomain page belonging to Coinbase Commerce — the company’s merchant payments product — has drawn sharp criticism from leading blockchain security researchers after it was found to be prompting users to enter their 12-word seed phrases, also known as mnemonic or recovery phrases, directly into a web form in plain text. The controversy erupted on Wednesday and intensified Thursday morning, with the discovery coming at a particularly sensitive moment: Coinbase is winding down Commerce entirely by March 31, 2026, as part of a broader platform consolidation under Coinbase Business — meaning tens of thousands of merchants have a narrow window to withdraw their funds.
The page in question, hosted at withdraw.commerce.coinbase.com/seed-phrase, was referenced in a now-deleted Coinbase Commerce help document that directed users to recover funds by importing their recovery phrases into compatible wallets such as Coinbase Wallet or MetaMask. SlowMist founder Yu Xian (known online as Cos) described the practice as demonstrating an “unbelievable lack of security awareness” from a major industry player, having received multiple user reports about the page. On-chain investigator ZachXBT independently flagged the page, warning that its existence creates a direct attack surface for social engineering campaigns targeting Coinbase users.
The concerns go beyond the page itself. SlowMist’s Chief Information Security Officer, known as 23pds, escalated the alarm by pointing out that the page’s sitemap contains structural flaws that make it trivially easy for malicious actors to replicate. Using tools such as ResourcesSaver, attackers can download the front-end code and deploy visually identical phishing sites — particularly dangerous when combined with Coinbase-lookalike domains that could credibly deceive even experienced users.
The fundamental problem is one of normalisation. Every legitimate security protocol in the cryptocurrency industry is built on a single, non-negotiable principle: a seed phrase should never be entered into any website, form, or app under any circumstances — not even an official one. Seed phrases are the master cryptographic keys to a wallet; whoever possesses them owns the funds. By building a recovery workflow that requires users to type their phrase into a browser, Coinbase has — whether intentionally or through oversight — trained users to accept a behaviour that scammers routinely exploit. Coinfomania noted that the tool even suggests copying phrases from Google Drive as an intermediate step, compounding the risk.
ZachXBT’s warning carries particular weight given his track record. In January 2026, he exposed a Coinbase support impersonation scam that resulted in approximately $2 million in stolen crypto — a scheme that relied on users being conditioned to trust Coinbase-branded interfaces. The Commerce seed phrase page represents a ready-made template for a follow-up attack of potentially far greater scale.
As of Thursday, Coinbase had not publicly responded to the criticism, despite multiple requests for comment. The company has offered alternative withdrawal methods — including a separate commerce withdrawal tool considered safer by researchers — but has not removed or modified the seed phrase page. With twelve days remaining until Commerce is permanently disabled, the pressure on the exchange to act is mounting rapidly. For the crypto industry’s most prominent publicly listed company, the reputational stakes of a mass phishing event triggered by its own migration tooling could scarcely be higher.
EtherFi has allocated $25 million to Plume’s real-world asset (RWA) protocol Nest, marking a move to integrate tokenized RWA yield directly into its platform as it looks to expand beyond crypto-native sources of return.
According to Thursday’s announcement, rollout will begin with exposure to Plume’s nBASIS vault, which is tied to Superstate’s USCC crypto carry fund, with plans to add a dedicated real-world asset vault directly into EtherFi’s interface in a later phase.
The initial allocation gives EtherFi users indirect exposure to a strategy combining crypto basis trades, staking rewards and government securities, a structure traditionally available only to institutional or sophisticated investors.
The integration will extend RWA exposure across EtherFi’s more than $6 billion in user deposits. According to Plume, the vault structure is designed to simplify access by handling execution and reporting onchain, while incorporating predefined risk controls and compliance features.
EtherFi is a crypto yield platform that began with Ethereum liquid staking and has since expanded into broader yield offerings, while Plume provides infrastructure that packages institutional investment strategies into onchain vaults, giving users exposure to institutional strategies managed offchain through integrated crypto platforms.
Plume has also taken steps toward integrating with traditional financial systems, including registering as a transfer agent with the US Securities and Exchange Commission in October.
Related: Babylon-Ledger tie-up expands access to Bitcoin Vaults for collateral use
Tokenized real-world assets activity surges
Unlike traditional DeFi yield, which is generated within crypto markets, real-world assets strategies derive returns from income streams such as interest on government securities and lending activity.
According to data from RWA.xyz, the value of tokenized real-world assets has surged to more than $27 billion from about $5.7 billion at the start of 2025. Much of that growth has been driven by tokenized US Treasury products, which account for over $11 billion in onchain value.
Tokenized Treasurys give investors onchain access to government-backed debt instruments, combining blockchain-based settlement with yield from short-term bills and money market funds.
Products from companies including BlackRock, Franklin Templeton and Circle account for a significant share of the market, with Circle’s USYC holding about $2.3 billion, BlackRock’s BUIDL fund around $2 billion and Franklin Templeton’s onchain fund over $1 billion in assets.
Plume reports 262,325 RWA holders holding more than $348 million in tokenized assets, with distributed asset value up 69% over the past 30 days, according to RWA.xyz data. Its Nest vault products are already live, including a basis-focused vault with more than $26 million in assets
In November, Plume co-founder and CEO Chris Yin told Cointelegraph that the tokenized real-world asset market could grow as much as fivefold this year.
He added that while most RWA value is currently concentrated in US Treasury bills, a maturing market and shifting interest rate environment are driving users to seek higher-yield opportunities elsewhere.
Magazine: Are DeFi devs liable for the illegal activity of others on their platforms?
The U.S. federal regulator of prediction markets has secured a formal information-sharing arrangement with Major League Baseball in the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s first such deal with a professional sports governing body, according to a Thursday statement.
The “landmark” collaboration will allow the U.S. derivatives regulator to swap information with the organization that oversees professional baseball, even as the CFTC is still immersed in a legal debate with several U.S. state gaming regulators on who should have jurisdiction over bets on sporting events. The new memorandum of understanding will allow the federal agency to get a better handle on shielding the markets and their users from “fraud, manipulation, and other abuses,” according to a statement from CFTC Chairman Mike Selig.
“The MOU is a collaborative step towards promoting the integrity and resilience of the prediction markets relating to professional baseball,” he said.
“Protecting the integrity of the game on the field is our top priority,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a Thursday statement. “By engaging in this community, we are able to work together to create clear boundaries with the goal of mitigating risk while providing fan engagement opportunities.
At the same time, popular platform Polymarket announced that MLB had named it the league’s official “exclusive prediction market exchange partner.”
The prediction markets — led by such companies as Polymarket and Kalshi — have erupted into sports, politics and other current events, leaving state and federal regulators trying to address their growing popularity. Though the CFTC had previously resisted the sector’s arrival and challenged some of its activity on legal grounds, the agency’s new management set by President Donald Trump embraced the technology.
To that end, Selig has been waging a rhetorical battle with state regulators, claiming that his agency’s authority supersedes the states’ reach on sports gambling.
Manfred told ESPN he saw the federal regulator having jurisdiction as marking the chief distinction that sets prediction-markets activity apart from state-based sports gambling regulations.
“The fact that you have a federal regulatory scheme makes our life a lot easier as opposed to … take for example, sports betting, where you’re going state by state,” he told the news outlet.
The CFTC is moving forward with its oversight of the sector despite a lack of regulations, which Selig said are coming. Proposing rules to govern prediction markets — a space that overlaps with his wider crypto agenda — is among the chairman’s top agenda items, he’s said.
Regulators are signaling a shift in digital-asset oversight as the SEC outlines an interpretive framework for applying securities laws to crypto. SEC Chair Paul Atkins, in prepared remarks at the Practising Law Institute, said the agency intends to move away from a broad enforcement-first stance toward a more principled, interpretive approach. The remarks follow the agency’s interpretive notice on crypto regulation and a memorandum of understanding with the CFTC signed last week.
“While the interpretation provides long-needed clarity, I should like to assure this audience that it amounts to a beginning, not an end,” Atkins told attendees, underscoring the framework is intended to evolve alongside market developments.
The interpretive notice, released earlier in the week, frames how federal securities laws may apply to crypto assets. It suggests that most cryptocurrencies are unlikely to be securities under federal law, with a narrow exception: traditional securities that are tokenized. Atkins later clarified that digital commodities, digital tools, digital collectibles including non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and stablecoins are typically not within the SEC’s purview.
Key takeaways
- The SEC signals a shift from enforcement-by-press release toward a interpretive, rules-based approach to crypto regulation after a new interpretive notice and a memorandum with the CFTC.
- Under the framework, most crypto assets are unlikely securities; only tokenized traditional securities would fall under federal securities laws.
- Assets like digital commodities, digital tools, NFTs, and stablecoins are generally not considered securities by the agency’s current interpretation.
- Regulatory progress intersects with Congress and the White House, as lawmakers push a market-structure bill (the CLARITY Act) and seek consensus on stablecoin regulation and crypto-asset provisions.
- Watch for how the evolving framework interacts with legislative efforts, potential CFTC authority expansion, and ongoing industry pilots and experiments.
Regulatory posture shifts amid a mixed legislative backdrop
The SEC’s interpretive stance arrives as part of a broader recalibration of how crypto regulation will be enforced and applied. The agency had long faced criticism for a perceived “enforcement-by-crisis” approach, especially for startups and projects navigating an evolving market. By contrast, the latest framework emphasizes clarity and consistency, aiming to reduce guesswork for issuers, exchanges, and investors while preserving robust investor protections.
The interpretive notice explicitly clarifies that, for many digital assets, existing securities laws may not apply in the same way as for traditional stocks or bonds. The acknowledgment that most crypto assets are not securities could lower some regulatory friction for many projects—though it also places a clear boundary around assets that would still be subject to securities regulation.
Atkins connected the interpretation to ongoing SEC coordination with the CFTC, noting the memorandum signed last week. The agreement signals an intent to harmonize approaches where possible, a relevant development given the overlapping jurisdictions in crypto markets, market infrastructure, and derivatives. The result could be a more predictable regulatory environment for token issuers and market participants, even as questions about enforcement and future rulemaking linger.
Contextual backdrop: market structure, stablecoins, and the legislative path
Beyond the SEC’s interpretive framework, lawmakers are actively shaping the arc of crypto regulation through legislation and hearings. A market-structure bill, known in industry circles as the CLARITY Act, advanced in the House in mid-2025 but has faced a slower path in the Senate. As of the latest briefing, it had not yet been scheduled for a markup in the Senate Banking Committee, leaving a critical regulatory hinge unresolved.
In parallel, the White House has engaged with lawmakers behind closed doors to advance the same package. A spokesperson for Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis confirmed that Republican senators met with White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt to discuss advancing the market-structure bill. Lummis’ team described the session as very productive and positive, with negotiators “99% of the way there on stablecoin yield” and ongoing, productive talks on the digital-asset provisions of the bill.
Stablecoins remain a focal point of regulatory and policy debate, particularly around yield, banking implications, and consumer protections. The sense among some policymakers is that achieving a workable framework for stablecoin issuance and redemption is a prerequisite for broader bipartisan consensus on crypto regulation.
The regulatory dialogue is further colored by ongoing market experiments and pilot programs. For example, the market has seen pilots exploring tokenized trading and other asset-ization concepts under the watchful eye of multiple agencies. While these pilots illustrate a regulatory appetite for innovation, they also underscore that practical, real-world testing will continue to inform how rules evolve in practice.
As the SEC’s interpretive framework takes root, traders, issuers, and developers should prepare for a regulatory environment that favors clarity and predictability but remains nuanced. The boundary between what constitutes a security in crypto, and what does not, will likely continue to shift as new asset classes and products emerge. The interplay between the SEC, the CFTC, and Congress will shape the pace and direction of this evolution in the months ahead.
Readers should watch for updates on the CLARITY Act’s progression in the Senate, any further formal guidance from the SEC, and on-the-ground outcomes from ongoing tokenization trials and stablecoin regulatory debates. The convergence of executive and legislative activity suggests that substantial clarity—across asset classes and market infrastructure—may still be months away, even as the groundwork for a more predictable regulatory framework takes shape.
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