Key Highlights

• Shares of Intel and AMD each climbed approximately 7% following revelations of upcoming CPU price increases between 10% and 15%
• According to Nikkei Asia, both semiconductor manufacturers informed clients that pricing adjustments would take effect beginning in March and April
• Intel attributed the price changes to “sustained demand, increased component and material costs” among other factors
• These adjustments represent the latest in a series of price hikes implemented throughout the current year, accompanied by extended delivery timelines
• The wider semiconductor sector index advanced 1%, with notable gains for Nvidia, Marvell, and Qualcomm

Shares of Intel and AMD experienced significant upward momentum on Wednesday following revelations that both semiconductor manufacturers are implementing price increases across their central processing unit portfolios. The announcement propelled both companies to the forefront of the S&P 500’s top-performing stocks for the trading session.

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., AMD

According to a report published by Nikkei Asia, both Intel and AMD have communicated upcoming pricing adjustments to their customer base for their CPU product ranges. These modifications are scheduled to commence during March and April, with typical increases falling within the 10% to 15% range. Certain product categories may experience even more substantial price adjustments.

Intel validated these developments in an official statement provided to Investopedia. A company representative indicated that the pricing modifications account for “sustained demand, increased component and material costs, and evolving market dynamics.” AMD has not yet provided commentary on the matter.

Intel shares appreciated by approximately 7% during Wednesday’s trading session. The stock has accumulated nearly 20% in gains year-to-date for 2026, fueled partly by positive sentiment surrounding governmental backing for domestic semiconductor production and speculation regarding potential new customer partnerships.

AMD’s stock similarly advanced roughly 7% during the session. Nevertheless, the shares remained down approximately 4% for the year prior to Wednesday’s trading. Market participants have expressed reservations about AMD’s competitive positioning against Nvidia within the artificial intelligence chip sector.

Factors Behind the Semiconductor Pricing Surge

This latest round of price adjustments marks not the initial instance where Intel and AMD have implemented pricing increases during the current year. Both organizations have already executed multiple price elevations throughout 2026, as supply chain limitations have intensified. Lead times for product delivery have similarly extended, based on information from the Nikkei Asia report.

Chip demand has maintained its robustness across consumer and enterprise segments alike. Elevated pricing combined with consistent demand patterns could enhance revenue generation and profitability margins for both semiconductor manufacturers.

The PHLX Semiconductor Index recorded a 1% gain on Wednesday. Nvidia, Marvell Technology, and Qualcomm similarly posted advances alongside Intel and AMD.

Wider Market Dynamics Contributed to Stock Performance

Beyond semiconductor-specific developments, broader equity markets trended upward on Wednesday. S&P 500 futures contracts increased approximately 0.6% following news reports indicating the U.S. had formulated a proposal to cease hostilities in the Middle East region.

Crude oil valuations declined 5% to trade beneath the $100 per barrel threshold. This development alleviated certain concerns regarding energy-related inflationary pressures, which had weighed on technology sector equities in recent trading periods.

AMD benefited from additional company-specific positive catalysts. The organization recently unveiled an agreement with Meta for the deployment of 6 gigawatts worth of graphics processing units. This partnership contributed to favorable investor sentiment regarding AMD’s business trajectory.

Intel’s shares began Wednesday’s session carrying robust year-to-date upward momentum, whereas AMD was working to regain previously lost valuation. The CPU pricing increase revelations provided simultaneous upward impetus for both stocks during the same trading day.

Processor delivery lead times have expanded in tandem with the price increases, based on the Nikkei Asia reporting, indicating more constrained supply dynamics throughout the semiconductor industry.

Swan Bitcoin has asked a New York court for permission to subpoena Cantor Fitzgerald and its former chief executive, Howard Lutnick, as part of a legal fight over a failed Bitcoin mining venture. 

The request links the dispute to Swan’s claims that former employees left the company, took internal material, and later worked with Tether on a competing operation.

Swan filed the application in the Southern District of New York on Monday. The company said it wants discovery from Cantor Fitzgerald and Lutnick because they may hold documents tied to Swan’s former mining business with Tether, known as 2040 Energy.

The case comes from a lawsuit Swan filed in September 2024 against several former staff members. Swan claimed the group resigned, took confidential documents, and then launched Proton Management days later. The company also alleged that the former employees pushed Tether to end its relationship with Swan and back their new venture instead.

Swan’s filing said Cantor Fitzgerald may have knowledge of events surrounding the sale of Swan’s mining assets to a Tether subsidiary. Swan argued that Cantor’s advisory role with Tether and its work in Bitcoin mining may place it near documents relevant to the dispute.

The filing also drew attention because Lutnick now serves as US secretary of commerce. Swan’s move comes as Democratic senators, including Elizabeth Warren, continue to question Lutnick over possible conflicts tied to Tether. Swan has not accused Lutnick of wrongdoing in the filing described here, but it said his records may matter to the case.

Moreover, Swan chief executive Cory Klippsten said he met Lutnick in June 2024 while Swan was considering an initial public offering. Swan said Cantor Fitzgerald wanted to serve as lead investment banker, and during those talks the company shared a “highly confidential and proprietary slide deck” and showed its mining facilities.

Klippsten later said Cantor stopped communicating with Swan after the employee exits and the disputed asset transfer. He wrote that Cantor “broke off contact” with Swan without explanation. 

Former employees reject Swan’s claims

Swan said former business development head Michael Holmes and former chief investment officer Raphael Zagury organized what it called the “rain and hellfire” plan. Zagury later became Proton’s chief executive, according to Swan’s court claims.

The defendants have denied Swan’s allegations. They argued that 2040 Energy did not belong to Swan because Tether fully funded the venture. The lawsuit against Proton Management remains ongoing.

The Reserve Bank of Australia has moved closer to backing real-world asset tokenization as part of its future market strategy. 

The shift follows new Project Acacia findings that tokenized finance and related infrastructure could add about 24 billion Australian dollars, or $16.7 billion, to the economy each year.

Assistant Governor Brad Jones said the debate has moved beyond whether tokenization belongs in Australia’s financial system. He said the focus is now on how it should be introduced and tested in a practical way.

In his March 25 speech, Jones said, 

”We no longer see the main question as whether tokenisation has a future in Australia’s financial system, but rather, how.” 

He also referred to industry views that tokenized finance and related infrastructure changes could be ”revolutionary.”

Project Acacia is a joint research effort led by the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre with support from public agencies and industry groups. It builds on earlier central bank digital currency work and studies whether tokenized assets can improve how Australia’s wholesale financial markets operate.

Jones said the estimated economic gain from tokenization is about A$24 billion a year, with room for more if new markets develop. The DFCRC report linked those gains to better market efficiency, faster settlement, and broader use of digital finance infrastructure.

In addition, Jones said the RBA will work with agencies and industry groups to explore a new digital financial market infrastructure sandbox. The proposed testing environment would give firms and policymakers a controlled space to trial tokenized assets, tokenized money, and new settlement systems.

He said the next phase will examine how wholesale CBDC, bank deposit tokens, and stablecoins could work together. The RBA also wants to study how tokenized asset ledgers can connect with the Reserve Bank Information and Transfer System.

Global tokenization market keeps growing

Australia’s move comes as the wider tokenized asset market continues to expand. McKinsey has projected tokenized assets could approach $2 trillion by 2030, while Australia’s securities regulator has already urged the country to move early rather than fall behind.

Market data also shows continued growth in onchain real-world assets. RWA.xyz listed distributed asset value at about $26.6 billion on March 26, excluding stablecoins, showing that tokenization activity remains on an upward path.

TLDR:

• A federal court certified a class action covering Nvidia investors between August 10, 2017, and November 15, 2018.
  
• Plaintiffs allege Nvidia hid over $1 billion in crypto-related GPU sales within its gaming revenue segment.
  
• Nvidia’s stock dropped nearly 28.5% in two sessions after CFO Colette Kress disclosed crypto inventory issues.
  
• The SEC previously fined Nvidia $5.5 million in 2022 for failing to disclose crypto mining’s effect on revenue.

Nvidia now faces a certified class action lawsuit tied to alleged crypto mining revenue concealment. A U.S. federal court ruled Wednesday that investors may pursue the case as a group.

The lawsuit covers shareholders who purchased Nvidia stock between August 10, 2017, and November 15, 2018. Plaintiffs allege the company hid over $1 billion in crypto-linked GPU sales within its gaming segment. A case conference is now set for April 21.

Court Rules Against Nvidia on Price Impact

Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr. of California federal court issued the ruling on Wednesday. He found that Nvidia failed to prove its disclosures had no effect on its stock price.

An internal email from an Nvidia vice president played a key role in the decision. The executive reportedly expressed the view that the stock remained high because of earlier statements.

The court stated it could not conclude there was “no price impact in the face of such evidence.” This ruling allows the certified class of investors to move the case forward together.

Nvidia had previously argued that crypto mining accounted for only a small part of its business. The company also claimed most mining-related sales were tracked separately from its gaming division.

However, plaintiffs alleged that a large share of crypto-driven revenue flowed through GeForce gaming GPUs. Most of that revenue was reportedly recorded within Nvidia’s gaming segment.

This exposed the company to volatility tied to crypto market cycles, according to the complaint. The court found that argument persuasive enough to allow the case to proceed.

In 2022, the SEC separately fined Nvidia $5.5 million for failing to disclose crypto mining’s effect on its business. After a 2021 dismissal, the investor lawsuit was later revived on appeal. It also survived a failed bid at the Supreme Court. The case now advances as a certified class action.

Crypto Exposure and the Road to Trial

Nvidia’s crypto exposure became clearer through a series of disclosures made during 2018. In August, the company cut guidance, acknowledged excess inventory, and noted that crypto demand had dropped.

Then on November 15, 2018, CFO Colette Kress said gaming revenue was “short of expectations as post crypto channel inventory took longer than expected to sell through.” She added that gaming card prices “took longer than expected to normalize” following the “sharp crypto falloff.”

Following the November disclosure, Nvidia’s stock dropped approximately 28.5% over the next two trading sessions. Plaintiffs identified that date as the point when the company’s exposure became fully apparent to investors.

Those events form a central part of the timeline presented in the class action. Shareholders who bought Nvidia stock before that period are covered under the suit.

Class certification allows investors to pursue the case as a group rather than individually. It does not determine whether Nvidia is liable for any wrongdoing.

However, it marks a meaningful step toward a potential trial. The April 21 conference will allow the judge to outline the next procedural steps.

Renz Chong, CEO of modular on-chain platform Sovrun, noted the ruling sends a clear message. He said courts will not accept “segment-level reporting as a shield” when revenue carries a different risk profile than what investors are told.

Chong added that companies must “get ahead of the disclosure gap now, or litigate it later.” He warned that when markets correct, regulators will examine “what management knew, when they knew it, and what they told the public.”

Key Highlights

• Binance Coin recovered from a weekend low of $627 to reach approximately $648, driven by renewed positive market momentum.
• Futures open interest for BNB jumped 6.5% to reach $923 million, while Binance’s long/short ratio exceeded 2.21.
• Technical analysis shows BNB maintaining position above a critical ascending trendline within a bullish parallel channel pattern.
• A bullish crossover has formed as the 20-day SMA moved above the 50-day SMA, while BNB remains 53% below its peak price.
• Market analysts project price targets spanning from $2,000 to $5,000, supported by historical cycle analysis and fundamental on-chain metrics.

Binance Coin experienced a notable recovery from its weekend low of $627, pushing back toward the $648 level by Monday, March 25. This upward movement coincided with improved overall crypto market conditions as geopolitical concerns between the U.S. and Iran showed signs of de-escalation.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated from $100 to approximately $87 per barrel as international tensions cooled. During this same timeframe, Bitcoin recovered above the $71,000 threshold while Ethereum neared $2,200. Equity markets across Asia, including Japan’s Nikkei 225, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, and the Shanghai Composite, similarly recorded positive sessions.

According to CoinGlass derivatives data, BNB’s open interest expanded by 6.5% over a 24-hour period, reaching $923 million. On Binance specifically, the long/short ratio climbed above 2.21, indicating that bullish positions significantly outnumber bearish ones among active traders.

Technical Indicators Signal Continued Bullish Momentum

Chart analysis reveals BNB operating within an ascending parallel channel formation on the daily timeframe. The cryptocurrency has successfully maintained its position above the lower boundary of this channel, which has provided reliable dynamic support throughout recent weeks.

A significant development has occurred with the 20-day simple moving average (SMA) crossing above the 50-day SMA. This bullish crossover typically indicates strengthening short-term momentum favoring buyers over sellers. Meanwhile, the relative strength index (RSI) is hovering near neutral territory, implying additional upside potential remains available.

The immediate resistance zone to monitor sits at $685, a price level that has previously rejected upward attempts multiple times this month. Successfully breaking through this barrier could pave the way toward the 100-day SMA positioned around $750. Conversely, a decline beneath $600 would challenge the current constructive technical formation.

With BNB currently valued 53% below its historical peak, substantial recovery potential exists assuming market conditions remain favorable.

Crypto analyst Patel highlighted BNB’s position 53% off its all-time high, referencing historical patterns, ongoing token burn mechanisms, and robust fundamental indicators as justification for ambitious long-term price targets ranging from $2,000 to $5,000 and potentially $10,000, while identifying $300-$420 as an ideal accumulation range.

Token Economics and Network Utility Drive Underlying Value

BNB maintains significant utility across the Binance platform infrastructure. The token serves multiple functions including transaction fee payments, trading fee reductions, and various blockchain-related services, creating consistent organic demand.

Binance implements systematic token burn events that progressively reduce BNB’s circulating supply. These quarterly burns are viewed favorably by market analysts as a deflationary mechanism that complements expanding on-chain usage and network activity.

The previous accumulation range between $300 and $420 has been successfully cleared, and cycle-based projection models now suggest potential price zones between $2,000 and $5,000. These forecasts derive from historical market cycle analysis and structural data patterns.

As of March 26, BNB continues trading near $648 with the critical $600 support level holding firm.