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Circle CEO Says Crypto Tolls at Hormuz Strait Unlikely To Use USDC

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Circle CEO Says Crypto Tolls at Hormuz Strait Unlikely To Use USDC

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire pushed back on concerns that USDC could be used for Iran’s crypto transit tolls at the Strait of Hormuz.

Allaire made the remarks at a press conference in Seoul on the afternoon of April 13, where BeInCrypto East Asia Editor-In-Chief, Oihyun Kim, was present. Allaire is visiting South Korea this week to meet exchanges, banks, and regulators.

Hormuz Tolls: ‘Highly Unlikely’ for USDC

A reporter asked whether Iran’s Revolutionary Guards might accept USDC for Hormuz passage fees. Allaire dismissed the idea.

“Circle operates a highly compliant infrastructure,” he said.

He noted that the company works closely with law enforcement and sanctions authorities.

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Allaire pointed to public research from the United Nations and forensic firms. That data shows sanctioned actors tend to favor other stablecoins over USDC. He did not name specific tokens.

“It’s highly unlikely that a regime under sanctions would attempt something where the likelihood of the assets being immediately frozen is extremely high,” he said.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire at a Press Conference in Seoul. Source: BeInCrypto

Drift Hack: Circle Defends Freeze Delay

The $285 million Drift Protocol exploit on April 1 drew sharp criticism of Circle. Attackers bridged over $230 million in stolen USDC from Solana to Ethereum over six hours. Circle took no action to freeze the funds during that window.

Allaire said the company follows strict legal obligations. Circle can only freeze wallets at the direction of law enforcement or courts.

“We do not as a company decide what is the right path,” he said. He warned that letting a private firm make those calls creates a “very significant moral quandary.”

He acknowledged the gap in the current framework. Circle is pushing for the CLARITY Act to include “safe harbors” that would let issuers freeze funds preemptively under extreme circumstances.

“We need that to be in the law, not just what we decide on our own,” he said.

Clarity Act: Yield Ban Won’t Hurt Circle

Allaire also addressed the CLARITY Act’s proposed ban on passive stablecoin yield. The bill would bar platforms from paying interest simply for holding stablecoins.

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He said the change does not affect Circle directly. The GENIUS Act already forbids stablecoin issuers from paying interest to holders.

The real impact falls on distributors like exchanges and wallets. They can still offer activity-based rewards, but cannot market stablecoin holdings as bank deposit substitutes.

Allaire called the yield debate “overblown.” He noted that the vast majority of stablecoin holders worldwide receive no rewards at all. About half of the $120 trillion global M2 money supply sits in physical cash or non-interest-bearing accounts.

Korea Visit: Exchanges, Banks, and Regulation

Allaire spent several days in Seoul meeting major exchanges, financial groups, and regulators. Upbit operator Dunamu and Bithumb both signed MOUs with Circle on the same day. He also met executives from Shinhan, Hana, and KB Financial.
He said Circle does not plan to issue a Korean won stablecoin itself.

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Korean law will likely require domestic bank-led consortiums for that role. Circle would instead offer its technology stack to local issuers.

The post Circle CEO Says Crypto Tolls at Hormuz Strait Unlikely To Use USDC appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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Foundry unveils Zcash block explorer as mining pool reaches 30% of hashrate

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Foundry unveils Zcash block explorer as mining pool reaches 30% of hashrate

Foundry Digital, the largest Bitcoin mining pool by hashrate, launched a Zcash (ZEC) mining pool that quickly grew to control about 30% of the network’s hashrate, according to company data and its newly released block explorer.

The New York-based firm said multiple institutional miners joined the pool ahead of its public debut, following an initial announcement in March.

Alongside the pool, Foundry introduced Zcashinfo.com, a block explorer that tracks network activity. The site shows pool rankings, hashrate distribution, block data and mining difficulty in real time.

Zcash, launched in 2016, lets users send transactions on a public blockchain while keeping key details private through zero-knowledge proof technology. The network can verify that a transaction is valid without revealing the sender, receiver or amount involved using a cryptographic method known as zk-SNARKs.

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The network, like Bitcoin, relies on proof-of-work mining, where specialized machines compete to solve cryptographic puzzles in exchange for rewards paid in newly issued ZEC tokens and transaction fees.

Blocks on Zcash are produced roughly every 75 seconds, far faster than Bitcoin’s 10-minute cycle, though both networks cap supply at 21 million coins. Zcash uses the Equihash algorithm, which is designed to require large amounts of memory, unlike Bitcoin’s SHA-256 system.

Because the odds of solving a block alone are low, miners often group into pools to combine computing power and share rewards. That structure has made large pools central to network performance, as they can control sizable portions of total hashrate.

Foundry’s pool distributes rewards through transparent addresses and uses a pay-per-last-N-shares (PPLNS) model, which tracks miner contributions over time to calculate payouts.

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The pool is open to new institutional participants, with onboarding focused on regulated entities.

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Donald Trump backed World Liberty Financial mints $25 million in fresh USD1

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(Arkham)

World Liberty Financial minted 25 million USD1 stablecoins on Monday morning and burned 3 million through its TokenGovernor contract, on-chain data shows, as the Trump-linked venture continues managing the fallout from a lending position that trapped depositors on DeFi protocol Dolomite.

The activity follows WLFI’s statement last week, posted in response to CoinDesk’s reporting on the Dolomite transactions, that it had repaid $25 million of the roughly $75 million it borrowed against its own governance token.

The venture deposited billions of WLFI tokens as collateral and borrowed stablecoins that were partially routed to Coinbase Prime, pushing Dolomite’s USD1 lending pool to near-100% utilization and leaving other depositors unable to fully withdraw.

Monday’s mint was funded through BitGo Custody and executed via WLFI’s USD1 Mint Authority contract. The 3 million USD1 burn moved from an address starting 0x2ce to the TokenGovernor contract before being sent to the null address, permanently removing the tokens from circulation.

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(Arkham)

Smaller test transactions of $10, $10,000, and $40,800 in USD1 were sent to a previously inactive address in the hours before the mint, a pattern consistent with wallet verification ahead of larger transfers.

The net effect is a $22 million increase in USD1 circulation. The simultaneous mint and burn indicates active supply management rather than a simple expansion.

However, the burn raises its own question of where those 3 million USD1 came from and why they were retired rather than redeployed.

Stablecoin issuers routinely burn tokens when collateral is redeemed, but WLFI has not disclosed the specific reason.

It is not yet clear whether the newly minted USD1 is intended to replenish Dolomite’s lending pool, fund additional treasury operations, or serve another purpose.

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WLFI’s governance token has fallen roughly 15% since CoinDesk first reported the Dolomite transactions on April 9. Dolomite co-founder Corey Caplan is an advisor to World Liberty Financial.

CoinDesk has reached out to World Liberty Financial for comment in European morning hours.

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Meta builds photorealistic AI Zuckerberg to engage employees in real time

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Meta builds photorealistic AI Zuckerberg to engage employees in real time

Meta Platforms is experimenting with AI to develop a new way for its chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, to communicate with his staff without being physically present.

Summary

  • Meta Platforms is developing a photorealistic AI-powered 3D version of Mark Zuckerberg to enable real-time interaction with employees without physical presence.
  • The system is being trained on Zuckerberg’s voice, expressions, and communication style, with the goal of providing staff direct access to leadership for guidance and updates.
  • The initiative comes as Meta expands its social commerce tools, allowing creators to link product catalogues within Reels, turning content into shoppable storefronts across 22 countries.

A recent report by the Financial Times says the company is building a photorealistic, AI-powered 3D version of Zuckerberg, which would be capable of engaging with his employees in real time.

The system will be designed to simulate natural conversations, allowing staff members to interact with the digital representation of Zuckerberg, who can respond in a human-like manner.

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While still in early stages, the initiative signals Meta’s continued investment in virtual human systems that can speak, respond, and hold conversations across different environments.

The digital version is being trained using Zuckerberg’s voice, facial expressions, tone, and public speaking patterns. It is also learning from his recent statements on company strategy, so it can deliver responses aligned with his views. Reports indicate that Zuckerberg is actively involved in testing and refining the system.

Meta expects the tool to give employees real-time access to leadership for guidance, feedback, and updates. The company also sees it as a way to improve internal communication, especially given its global workforce, where direct interaction with executives is limited.

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However, it should be noted that creating such a system requires massive computing power to ensure lifelike visuals and low-latency conversations. Teams at Meta have been working to improve both rendering quality and voice realism. As part of this effort, the company has strengthened its capabilities through acquisitions such as PlayAI and WaveForms.

The project is separate from Meta’s internal CEO assistant agent, which helps Zuckerberg manage daily tasks and retrieve information. Unlike that system, the 3D model is focused on communication and interaction, and could eventually extend beyond internal use.

Once successful, the approach may open the door for creators and influencers to build their own AI-driven avatars to engage audiences. Meta has already taken initial steps in this direction through its AI Studio platform.

Meta pushes into social commerce to strengthen creator ecosystem

The development follows Meta Platforms’ expansion in social commerce by linking creators, artificial intelligence, and advertising more closely to purchasing activity across platforms like Instagram and Reels.

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A central part of the strategy involves increasing the role of creators in the shopping journey. Businesses in 22 countries, including India, will soon be able to share product catalogues directly with creators. These can then be tagged and linked within Reels, effectively turning content into shoppable storefronts.

The update would narrow the gap between entertainment and commerce, allowing users to move more seamlessly from discovery to purchase within the same interface.

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Crypto ETP Inflows Hit $1.1 Billion, Strongest Since January

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Crypto ETP Inflows Hit $1.1 Billion, Strongest Since January

Cryptocurrency investment products clocked significant inflows last week, marking their strongest weekly gains since January.

Global crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) logged $1.1 billion in inflows last week, with Bitcoin (BTC) leading the gains with $871 million in inflows, CoinShares reported on Monday.

The inflows marked the second-biggest weekly gains in 2026 so far, following only the $2.17 billion in weekly inflows recorded in mid-January.

Weekly crypto ETP flows (in millions of US dollars). Source: CoinShares

CoinShares’ head of research, James Butterfill, attributed the spike in inflows to a rebound in investor risk appetite following tentative ceasefire developments in Iran, alongside support from softer-than-expected US inflation and spending data.

The inflows came amid volatility in spot markets, with BTC reclaiming $70,000 and briefly topping $73,000 last week, even as broader market sentiment remained negative, underscoring sustained institutional demand and resilience in regulated investment products.

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Ether ETP flows rebound, but year-to-date inflows are still negative

Ether (ETH) ETPs saw a strong rebound in sentiment with around $196.5 million in inflows, the first inflows after three consecutive weeks of outflows.

Despite the gains, Ether remains one of the only assets in a net outflow position year-to-date, at $130 million. In contrast, Bitcoin sits on the largest inflows this year so far at $1.9 billion and accounts for around 83% of the $2.3 billion in total crypto ETP inflows year-to-date.

Crypto ETP flows by asset (in millions of US dollars). Source: CoinShares

Although Bitcoin ETPs posted significant inflows, short-Bitcoin investors were also active last week, with weekly inflows totaling $20 million, their largest weekly inflows since November 2024, Butterfill noted.

Among other gains, XRP (XRP) ETPs posted inflows of around $19 million. Solana (SOL) saw minor outflows of $2.5 million.

Related: BlackRock Bitcoin ETF sees $269M inflows, best day since early March

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Regionally, positive sentiment was almost entirely concentrated in the US, which saw inflows of $1 billion, accounting for 95% of net weekly inflows. The majority of Bitcoin ETP inflows were driven by US spot BTC exchange-traded funds, which posted $786.3 million in inflows last week, according to SoSoValue data.

Germany recorded inflows of $34.6 million, while Canada and Switzerland saw more modest inflows of $7.8 million and $6.9 million, respectively.

Magazine: Your guide to surviving this mini-crypto winter