Crypto World
IPOs, Venture Rounds and On-Chain Credit: Quick Guide
Venture capital and institutional money are returning to digital asset companies as 2026 kicks off, with fresh industry data showing roughly $1.4 billion committed across venture rounds and public market listings. The momentum is being driven by large-scale financing rounds and high-profile tokenized offerings that signal a renewed appetite for infrastructure and on-chain capabilities, even as the broader crypto market faces cyclical pressure from a liquidity-constrained environment. One standout theme is the ongoing diversification of funding sources, spanning traditional venture backers, blockchain-native funds, and strategics drawn to regulated, scalable platforms.
The year’s heavy hitters include a Visa-linked stablecoin issuer that reached a $1.9 billion valuation after a $250 million raise, and a crypto custodian that completed a multi-hundred-million-dollar IPO on the New York Stock Exchange in January. Together, these transactions underscore both the breadth and the depth of institutional engagement, extending beyond early-stage seed rounds to fully public, investor-grade capital markets activity. Despite a fragile market backdrop that erupted in a broad October deleveraging, venture interest in crypto infrastructure, on-chain finance, and tokenized assets remains persistent and increasingly sophisticated.
This edition of VC Roundup highlights traditional venture raises, dedicated blockchain funds, and notable on-chain financing that illustrate broader shifts in how capital flows through the sector. The deals reflect an emphasis on on-chain financial services, cross-chain interoperability, and products designed to lower barriers to retail participation while introducing rigorous verification and risk controls.
Key takeaways
- Bitway, an on-chain financial infrastructure provider, closed a seed round of over $4.4 million led by TRON DAO, expanding on a prior EASYResidency investment from YZi Labs and a slate of strategic backers.
- Everything, a digital trading platform builder, secured $6.9 million in seed funding led by Humanity Investments, with participation from Animoca Brands, Hex Trust, and Jamie Rogozinski, aiming to unify perpetual futures, spot markets, and prediction markets under a single account framework.
- Galaxy completed a $75 million on-chain credit deal on the Avalanche network, anchored by a $50 million institutional allocation, a sign of growing comfort with on-chain securitization and private lending bundled as digital securities.
- Veera raised $4 million in a seed round backed by CMCC Titan Fund and Sigma Capital, bringing total funding to $10 million as it builds a mobile-first, on-chain financial services hub for saving, investing, and spending.
- Prometheum disclosed it has raised $23 million since the start of 2025 to support the rollout of on-chain clearing services for US broker-dealers and the expansion of tokenized securities within traditional custody and settlement ecosystems.
- Solayer launched a $35 million ecosystem fund to back early- and growth-stage teams building on its infiniSVM network, signaling continued investment in Solana-aligned infrastructure and scalable on-chain products.
Tickers mentioned: $AVAX
Market context: Neutral
Market context: The year begins against a backdrop of improved liquidity in select segments of the crypto market and a cautiously optimistic stance among institutional participants, who seem to prefer funding rounds that build real-world use cases and regulated pathways for digital assets.
Why it matters
The surge in seed and early-stage rounds for on-chain infrastructure providers and unified trading platforms matters because it signals a maturation of the crypto ecosystem beyond pure token bets. Investors are increasingly prioritizing products that can operate at scale, comply with evolving regulatory standards, and deliver tangible, regulated services to institutions and retailers alike. Bitway’s seed round illustrates how sophisticated backers are willing to back cross-chain financial services, while Everything’s seed funding points to demand for integrated trading experiences that reduce friction for retail participants without sacrificing compliance or risk controls.
Galaxy’s on-chain credit deal—executed on the Avalanche blockchain (CRYPTO: AVAX)—highlights a broader appetite to tokenize private loans and deliver them as digital securities with on-chain oversight. The move aligns with a growing view that real-world financing can be embedded within decentralized networks, offering speed, transparency, and audited provenance for lenders and borrowers. It’s a sentiment echoed by Prometheum’s ongoing efforts to bring on-chain securities into the regulated brokerage and custody ecosystem, signaling an infrastructural shift that could influence how venture capital and institutional capital allocate capital to crypto startups in the near term.
Veera’s seed round underscores a push to make on-chain financial tools accessible to everyday users, not just sophisticated traders. By funding a mobile-first interface that consolidates savings, asset swaps, and spending, backers are signaling confidence in consumer-grade on-chain experiences that maintain security and user-friendly design. Meanwhile, Solayer’s ecosystem fund underscores the ongoing effort to cultivate builders on Solana-aligned infrastructure, pointing to continued diversification of the base technology stack and incentive structures that can sustain a broad developer ecosystem.
In aggregate, these moves suggest a broad-based trend toward infrastructure-first capital, where the objective is to reduce friction, increase transparency, and broaden access to tokenized financial products. That shift can create a more robust pipeline for venture funding, with follow-on rounds likely to reward teams delivering scalable, compliant on-chain solutions that can operate within traditional financial rails or alongside them.
What to watch next
- Regulatory progress around on-chain securities and broker-dealer infrastructure, particularly as Prometheum advances its clearing services and custody capabilities.
- Next-stage funding rounds for Things like Bitway, Everything, and Veera, including any strategic partnerships with traditional financial players or issuers of regulated digital assets.
- New tokenized asset offerings and on-chain lending products that demonstrate real-world use cases beyond speculation, especially those tied to institutional capital allocations.
- Follow-on rounds and potential IPOs or SPAC-like paths for blockchain-native infrastructure firms that attract a broad base of backers.
Sources & verification
- Bitget data on 2026 venture rounds and public listings as the starting point for this year’s fundraising momentum.
- Rain’s $250 million raise and the subsequent $1.9 billion valuation as reported in coverage of a Visa-linked stablecoin issuer.
- BitGo’s $200 million-plus IPO on the NYSE in January as cited in market roundups.
- Galaxy’s $75 million on-chain credit deal on the Avalanche network, including the $50 million anchor allocation, as reported in on-chain financing briefs.
- Veera’s $4 million seed round led by CMCC Titan Fund and Sigma Capital, bringing total funding to $10 million.
- Prometheum’s $23 million funding since early 2025 for on-chain securities infrastructure and broker-dealer support.
- Solayer’s $35 million ecosystem fund to back infiniSVM-based projects on its Solana-aligned network.
Market reaction and key details
Institutional confidence in crypto infrastructure appears to be strengthening as 2026 unfolds. A wave of seed rounds and targeted funding for on-chain financial services suggests that investors are favoring real-world use cases that can scale and integrate with regulated markets. Bitway’s seed round, supported by TRON DAO and YZi Labs, signals enthusiasm for cross-chain financial infrastructure that can support a broader ecosystem of on-chain lending, settlement, and custody. The Everything project, pursuing a unified trading platform, demonstrates a clear intent to marry derivatives, spot trading, and predictive markets into a single user experience—an innovation that could reshape how retail traders access crypto markets while maintaining guardrails against automated manipulation.
Perhaps most notable is the Avalanche-based financing move by Galaxy, where a $75 million on-chain credit facility demonstrates not only liquidity depth but a willingness among institutional participants to engage with digital securities on a public blockchain. The combination of a $50 million anchor and the machinery to tokenize private loans offers a blueprint for how venture capital and risk capital might flow into crypto startups through more mature, securitized structures. Prometheum’s ongoing capital raise to expand its clearing and custody capabilities reinforces the theme of deeper integration between crypto markets and traditional brokerage infrastructures, a development that could lower barriers for regulated players to participate in tokenized asset ecosystems.
On the consumer-facing side, Veera’s seed funding underscores a push to package on-chain tools—savings, investing, and payment options—into a mobile-centric interface that non-technical users can navigate. Solayer’s fund, meanwhile, signals continued interest in the broader Solana ecosystem and in scalable, revenue-generating on-chain products, a trend that could diversify the tech stack beyond Ethereum-native architectures and encourage a broader set of application developers to pursue on-chain solutions.
Taken together, the data points suggest a sector that remains deeply capital-intensive but increasingly disciplined. The year’s early rounds reflect a structural shift toward infrastructure-enabled growth, with more capital targeting platforms that can deliver regulated, auditable, and scalable on-chain financial services. That trajectory, if sustained, could accelerate the maturation of crypto markets, attract more traditional investors, and embed digital assets more deeply into mainstream financial activity.
A fresh wave of online backlash is now building around Pakistan’s request to extend Trump’s Iran deadline, with users questioning whether the move was genuinely independent.
The speculation centers on the edit history of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s post on X. History shows an earlier version of the message, followed by a more detailed “draft” version that explicitly calls for a two-week extension and reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
Some users claim this suggests coordination behind the scenes. The theory is simple: if the US agrees to extend the deadline, framing it as a response to Pakistan’s request allows Washington to avoid appearing to back down under pressure.
There is no evidence supporting this claim. Neither the White House nor Pakistani officials have indicated any coordinated messaging strategy.
Still, the timing has fueled suspicion. The post appeared just hours before Trump’s deadline, as negotiations intensified and markets reacted sharply.
In volatile geopolitical moments like this, narratives form quickly. Right now, this one is being driven by inference, not confirmation.
The post Internet Questions Pakistan’s Role in Trump’s Iran Deadline Twist appeared first on BeInCrypto.
TLDR
- Charles Schwab outlines two approaches for integrating cryptocurrencies into investment portfolios.
- The return-based approach focuses on expected returns, volatility, and asset correlations.
- Schwab recommends modest allocations to bitcoin and ether based on expected returns.
- The risk-based approach focuses on managing overall portfolio risk from crypto exposure.
- Schwab warns that even small allocations to crypto can significantly raise portfolio risk.
Charles Schwab, the leading U.S. brokerage firm managing over $12 trillion in assets, recently outlined two approaches for integrating cryptocurrencies into investment portfolios. The firm emphasized that while there is no fixed method for crypto allocations, investors should carefully consider their risk tolerance and long-term objectives. Schwab’s research highlights the potential for diversification, though it warns that even small allocations to crypto can significantly increase portfolio risk.
Return-Based Approach to Crypto Investments
In its white paper, Charles Schwab detailed a return-based approach to crypto investing, which is rooted in expected returns. This method examines the anticipated returns, volatility, and correlations with traditional assets like stocks and bonds. Schwab suggests that if investors expect a return of 15% per year from Bitcoin, a conservative portfolio might allocate around 1%, while a more aggressive one could allocate up to 8.8%.
The firm noted that ether, due to its higher volatility, would warrant smaller allocations. For example, a conservative portfolio might allocate just 0.1% to ether, while a more aggressive portfolio might allocate up to 2.5%. Schwab also stressed that if returns for either bitcoin or ether fall below 10%, it might not justify any allocation, even for more risk-tolerant investors.
Risk-Based Approach to Crypto Exposure
Charles Schwab also presented a risk-based approach to crypto allocation, where the focus shifts from returns to managing overall portfolio risk. In this approach, the crypto exposure is determined by the amount of total portfolio risk that comes from cryptocurrencies. For instance, in a conservative portfolio, a 1.2% allocation to bitcoin or 0.9% to ether could represent 10% of the total portfolio risk.
For moderate to aggressive portfolios, Schwab suggests allocating up to 4% in bitcoin and nearly 3% in ether to achieve similar risk levels. Schwab explained that this risk-based method is particularly useful for investors who want to understand how crypto fits into their broader asset mix. While crypto may offer diversification benefits, Schwab cautioned that increasing exposure comes with heightened portfolio concentration risk.
Charles Schwab’s Crypto Exposure Options
As Schwab moves forward with its new crypto offering, Schwab Crypto, it has also been providing exposure through various products like crypto-related stocks and exchange-traded products. Schwab has introduced a waitlist for clients interested in buying and selling bitcoin and ether directly. For now, the brokerage firm offers crypto exposure through over-the-counter trusts and futures for approved clients.
Despite initially dismissing cryptocurrencies as “purely speculative” in 2019, Schwab has evolved its stance on digital assets over time. The firm now encourages investors to carefully evaluate the role that crypto could play in their portfolios, keeping in mind the elevated risks associated with even a small allocation.
Crypto World
Next Crypto to Explode as Bitcoin Stands Firm Above $68K and Solana ETFs Hold $1.5 Billion, but Pepeto Is the Entry That Defines This Cycle
The crypto market is heating up, and the prices sitting in front of you right now will not be here when the rally kicks in. Bitcoin held $68,317 on April 7 after Iran rejected the ceasefire, per CoinDesk, and Solana ETFs kept $1.5 billion in total inflows despite SOL crashing 57% from its peak. Every indicator that marks the start of a rally is lighting up.
But the next crypto to explode is never the coin everybody already holds at a trillion-dollar valuation. It is the presale where listing day creates the gain and exchange revenue locks it in. Here is which one ticks every requirement.
Bitcoin sat at $68,317 on April 7 after absorbing Iran.s ceasefire rejection, per CoinDesk, while BTC ETFs pulled $471 million on April 6. The Fear and Greed Index sits at 9, and altcoins bounced broadly.
The market is shifting bullish, and the traders who connect those dots are searching for the breakout alt at presale cost before the listing turns cheap entries into the bags everybody else spends the cycle regretting.
The Next Crypto to Explode Sits Below the Rally While Large Caps Grind
Pepeto: Revenue Sharing That Pays From Every Trade, at a Price the Bull Market Will Erase
Bull runs pay the people who bought during panic. The wallets that loaded Pepeto during the crash are now watching the market prove them right. Revenue sharing gives every presale holder a lasting share of trading fees based on position size, confirmed by Business Insider. BTC, SOL, and XRP generate zero income for holders. Pepeto earns on every single transaction.
SolidProof cleared the contract before the presale opened, and a former Binance executive is leading the listing plan for the exchange with its cross-chain bridge, zero-cost swaps, and token risk scoring. The $8.82 million raised came from wallets that checked every alternative and picked this one. The founder who took the original Pepe coin to $7 billion is channeling that same viral pull into tools that generate actual revenue.
At $0.0000001863, the gap between presale and listing gives a floor that no large cap can offer. 186% APY staking adds to your position while the listing gets closer, but that is just the extra.
The real payoff comes when a revenue-earning exchange token hits live bull market trading, and every bag at this price turns into supply that post-listing buyers have to purchase from you. The next crypto to explode door is closing quicker than anyone expects.
Solana: $1.5 Billion in ETF Inflows but SOL Stuck at $79
SOL trades near $79 with $1.5 billion in cumulative ETF capital proving institutional belief even as the price dropped 57% from its high, per CoinGecko. A break above $86 could push toward $100 as the broader market builds.
Strong base, but from $79 the upside is capped for anyone searching for the next crypto to explode that transforms a portfolio.
Bitcoin: Holding $68K With $80,000 as the Next Major Target
BTC held $68,317 on April 7 per CoinMarketCap and $74,500 is the final resistance before a clean run to $80,000. The $471 million in ETF capital on April 6 proves institutional appetite, and analysts keep their sights above $150,000 by December 2026.
Bitcoin is out front with clear strength, but the next crypto to explode requires numbers that go past what a $1.3 trillion coin can deliver.
The Bull Market Is Here and the Entry That Defines It Is Still Open
Step back and the whole picture becomes clear. The market tips bullish, Bitcoin refuses to break, institutions keep arriving, and Pepeto is sitting in the setup that appears once per cycle: permanent revenue sharing, SolidProof audit, a founder who generated $7 billion in demand, and exchange tools the Binance listing switches on.
Every massive crypto winner follows one pattern: a few wallets entered first, everyone else found out after, and the cheap price was gone. That sequence is playing out right now, and once the listing drops the presale cost disappears forever. Visit the Pepeto official website and make the move that puts you on the side that caught this cycle instead of the side that watched it happen. The next crypto to explode never waits for the crowd to agree, it moves while they debate, and Pepeto at $0.0000001863 is already moving.
Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale
FAQs
Why is the crypto market turning bullish right now?
Bitcoin held $68,317 after Iran rejected ceasefire, ETFs pulled $471 million on April 6, and Fear and Greed at 9 historically marks the bottom before major rallies.
Where can I find the next crypto to explode before listing?
Visit the Pepeto official website at $0.0000001863 with 186% APY staking and exchange tools ready for bull market volume.
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.
The latest AI news artificial intelligence US military Iran war 2026 debate has crystallized around one figure: in the first 24 hours of Operation Epic Fury on February 28, the US military struck more than 1,000 targets in Iran using Palantir’s Maven Smart System with Anthropic’s Claude embedded inside it — a pace CENTCOM head Admiral Brad Cooper confirmed publicly, and one that human rights experts say has raised serious questions about AI-assisted targeting and civilian harm.
Summary
- CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper confirmed in a March 11 video statement that US forces are “leveraging a variety of advanced AI tools” that allow commanders to make decisions “faster than the enemy can react,” with tasks that previously took hours or days now completed in seconds
- Palantir’s Maven Smart System with Anthropic’s Claude embedded processes satellite imagery, drone feeds, radar data, and signals intelligence into prioritized target lists with GPS coordinates, weapons recommendations, and automated legal justifications — what previously required roughly 2,000 intelligence analysts now reportedly requires approximately 20
- A US strike on a girls’ elementary school in Minab killed over 165 civilians, according to Iranian reports; the Pentagon is investigating whether the school was on an AI-assisted target list, and more than 120 House Democrats have demanded answers
The latest AI news artificial intelligence US military Iran war 2026 story is both a technological milestone and a humanitarian reckoning. According to IBTimes, more than 1,000 targets were struck in the first 24 hours of Operation Epic Fury on February 28 — more than double the air power deployed during the entire opening phase of the 2003 Iraq invasion. That pace is only possible with AI. A human-led targeting process would have required thousands of analysts working for weeks to generate and validate that many aim points.
The system at the center of it is Palantir’s Maven Smart System, running on Anthropic’s Claude large language model. Maven fuses classified feeds from satellites, surveillance drones, and archived intelligence into a unified platform. Claude synthesizes that information into prioritized target lists, complete with precise GPS coordinates, weapons recommendations, and automated legal justifications for strikes.
Admiral Brad Cooper confirmed the AI role in a publicly released video statement: “These systems help us sift through vast amounts of data in seconds so our leaders can cut through the noise and make smarter decisions faster than the enemy can react. Humans will always make final decisions on what to shoot and what not to shoot and when to shoot. But advanced AI tools can turn processes that used to take hours and sometimes even days into seconds.”
Cooper did not identify specific AI systems by name. What the statement left unaddressed was Maven’s reported accuracy rate: approximately 60%, compared with 84% for human analysts in some assessments.
The School Strike and the Accountability Gap
The most serious accountability question surrounds a US strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab that killed over 165 civilians. The school was reportedly on a target list generated with AI assistance. Pentagon officials said outdated intelligence contributed to the strike and a full investigation is underway. More than 120 House Democrats have formally demanded answers about AI’s role. As warfare expert Craig Jones told Democracy Now!, AI targeting is “reducing a massive human workload of tens of thousands of hours into seconds and minutes” — but “automating human-made targeting decisions in ways which open up all kinds of problematic legal, ethical and political questions.”
The conflict carries direct implications for commercial tech. Iran has explicitly named Palantir, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and other US companies as legitimate military targets because of their infrastructure’s role in the war. Iranian strikes have already damaged AWS data centers in the UAE and Bahrain. As crypto.news reported, Iran has demonstrated willingness to strike economic and technology infrastructure across the Gulf — a threat that now extends to the commercial cloud backbone powering US AI military systems.
What the Iran war has confirmed, as analysts have begun calling it “the first AI war,” is that commercial AI and warfare are no longer separate domains. As crypto.news noted, every escalation in this conflict reaches financial markets within hours. The AI targeting dimension adds a new layer of systemic risk: not just military escalation, but the weaponization of commercial technology infrastructure itself.
The seven House members may have affirmed the commission‘s authority over prediction markets, but asked questions about its inaction on insider trading.
Seven members of the US House of Representatives sent a letter to Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael Selig, asking for information on the agency’s inaction on insider trading on prediction markets and event contracts related to war and conflicts.
In a Monday letter, the seven US lawmakers said that the CFTC had the authority under the Commodities Exchange Act “to apply its rules and regulations for the purpose of preventing evasion of the [act’s] underlying swap provisions.” The statement signaled that the representatives affirmed Selig’s position that the commission had jurisdiction over prediction markets.
However, the House members expressed concerns about how the CFTC was policing “morally obscene” event contracts, including those on US military actions in Iran and Venezuela — in those cases, there were suspicious trades related to the timing and outcomes of US military involvement.
“Such corrupt trades deserve swift and decisive oversight,” said the letter. “Allowing these contracts to persist raises troubling concerns about the Commission’s desire and capacity to fulfill a global regulatory role.”
The legal battles over regulating prediction market platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket are being waged both at a federal and state level. Several US state gaming authorities have filed lawsuits alleging that the companies are illegally offering sports bets, while the CFTC, under Selig, claims that the event contracts on the platform amount to swaps and fall under its federal regulations.
The seven House members requested that Selig respond to their six questions by April 15.
Related: Polymarket bags 97% of onchain prediction market fees after pricing overhaul
In one of the most recent legal decisions, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling blocking New Jersey gaming authorities from filing enforcement actions against Kalshi. Two out of three circuit judges said that the company had a ”reasonable chance of success” in arguing that federal commodities laws preempted state authorities.
CFTC enforcement director says agency is “watching” for insider trading
The Monday letter followed CFTC enforcement director David Miller responding to concerns over insider trading, which has also resulted in legislation proposed by Democrats. According to Miller, the commission would only prosecute instances “against those who tip or trade with misappropriated information,” but not dedicate resources to “trivial” cases.
Magazine: All 21 million Bitcoin is at risk from quantum computers
TLDR
- Anthropic unveiled its new AI model, Claude Mythos, designed to enhance cybersecurity by identifying high-severity vulnerabilities in systems.
- The Mythos model has already detected thousands of flaws across major operating systems and web browsers.
- Anthropic launched Project Glasswing, a partner program offering select organizations early access to the Mythos model for defensive tasks.
- The company committed up to $100 million in usage credits and $4 million in donations to support open-source security initiatives.
- Anthropic decided not to release the Mythos model widely, citing the need for further safeguards to ensure its safe deployment.
Anthropic introduced its latest AI model, Claude Mythos Preview, on Tuesday, focusing on cybersecurity. The model aims to strengthen defenses against cyber threats by identifying vulnerabilities and developing exploits with little human oversight. This move comes weeks after a security lapse exposed Claude’s code, which drew significant attention to Anthropic’s internal security measures.
New AI Model Targets Cybersecurity Threats
Claude Mythos Preview represents Anthropic’s cutting-edge effort in cybersecurity, designed to uncover high-severity vulnerabilities. In its testing, Mythos has already identified thousands of flaws across major systems, including operating systems and web browsers. According to the company, this new model aims to equip defenders with advanced tools before cyber attackers can harness similar AI capabilities.
Project Glasswing, a partner program, was also announced alongside the Mythos model. It offers early access to the new AI system for select companies like AWS, Google, and Microsoft, among others. More than 40 organizations will be part of the initiative, with Anthropic committing up to $100 million in usage credits to support the program.
Anthropic Pushes for Secure Deployment
Despite Mythos’s promising capabilities, Anthropic has decided against a wide release. The company emphasized the need for further safeguards before deploying Mythos at scale. “Our goal is to ensure that this powerful tool can be deployed safely and responsibly,” an Anthropic representative stated.
This caution follows a mishap earlier this year when a packaging error exposed Claude’s code. The incident led to the accidental release of over 500,000 lines of code, causing a significant security breach. Anthropic’s attempt to take down the leaked files further escalated the issue, as it mistakenly removed thousands of GitHub repositories.
Large-Scale Support for Cybersecurity Defenders
Project Glasswing’s partner organizations will be among the first to test Claude Mythos. These partners include some of the largest players in technology and infrastructure, with the Linux Foundation and Palo Alto Networks joining the program. The initiative aims to harness Mythos’s ability to identify and exploit vulnerabilities while prioritizing the security of its deployment.
Along with the partner program, Anthropic has pledged $4 million in donations to open-source security groups. The company’s focus on supporting cybersecurity initiatives highlights its commitment to safeguarding against advanced cyber threats. However, Mythos’s future remains uncertain, as Anthropic continues to refine its defensive capabilities before making the model more widely available.
The development of Mythos marks a significant step in the AI-driven defense against cybersecurity risks, though Anthropic remains cautious about its broader use.
Three suspects in a crypto wrench attack ring have been charged, according to reporting from the San Francisco Chronicle.
According to the reporting, the three men have been charged in two specific crimes, but police believe that they’re part of a larger operation and are tied to several similar crimes.
The criminals apparently used a similar technique for these crimes, namely:
- Identifying a major cryptocurrency holder.
- Researching and surveilling that cryptocurrency holder. A detective who spoke to the Chronicle described this, saying, “They figure out your trends, your life cycle, what do you normally order online, What do you normally order for takeout?”
- The criminals attempt to gain access to accounts; in the case of one victim who spoke to the Chronicle, “for me, it was my DoorDash and Uber Eats accounts.”
- The criminals would then create a fake delivery, meet the victim at the door, and then threaten them.
Wrench attacks are inherent risk
Cryptocurrency’s censorship-resistant transfers as well as its pseudonymous nature make holders an attractive target for these types of attacks.
These attacks that don’t try to bypass the cryptographic security that protects the assets but use threats and violence to influence the person who has access to the keys.
Indeed, kidnappings and extortion have become an international problem for cryptocurrency holders and firms.
Read more: French crypto tax firm targeted in ShinyHunters extortion attempt
These attacks have included French firm Waltio and UK-based Sillytuna.
France has become something of a leader when it comes to this type of activity, with even Ledger co-founder David Balland targeted.
The utility of cryptocurrency for this type of attack has resulted in even non-cryptocurrency holders having ransoms demanded in bitcoin (BTC). Prominently, Nancy Guthrie, the mother of TODAY Show host Savannah Guthrie, has been kidnapped and her apparent kidnappers have sought the ransom in BTC.
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New data suggests that Bitcoin (BTC) could be moving closer to a bull market phase as its supply slowly shifts back into long-term, retail-investor-linked wallets. The figure surpassed 4 million BTC in Q1 2026.
The accumulation trend aligns with a rise in Bitcoin network activity index to levels last seen in April 2025, signaling a return of stronger network activity.
Bitcoin long-term wallets expand holdings
CryptoQuant data shows that balances held by accumulating address cohorts continued to rise into Q1 2026. The total BTC held by these cohorts has crossed 4.37 million BTC as of April 7, up from about 2 million BTC in early 2024, signaling sustained supply absorption.
The retail-investor-linked accumulation addresses added roughly 857,000 BTC, while the accumulating pattern wallets, defined as addresses that steadily add BTC at recurring intervals with minimal outflows, expanded to 1.29 million BTC.
This growth occurred while the price remained capped below $70,000 throughout the first quarter of 2026.
In contrast, the inflows from centralized exchanges and highly active addresses have slowed. During the 2023–2024 expansion phases, the inflows often exceeded 1.2 million to 1.5 million BTC. The recent activity has averaged 300,000 to 350,000 BTC.
The divergence shows a shift in coin distribution. More BTC is moving into long-term wallets, while fewer coins are circulating on the exchanges. This indicates a tightening of the liquid supply and a reduction in short-term trading turnover.
Related: Bitcoin holds $67K support as data exposes price to sentiment divergence
Bitcoin network activity index highlights the trend
The CryptoQuant Bitcoin network activity index has climbed to 3,600 from 3,320 on March 22. The index aggregates broader usage signals, including transaction counts and network throughput.
As observed in the chart, it has moved above its 365-day moving average for the first time since December 2024 and entered the “bull-phase” classification for the first time since April 2025.
In parallel, Bitcoin’s active addresses momentum dropped to -0.25 on April 6, the lowest reading since April 2018. The metric tracks the rate of change in active addresses, with negative values pointing to declining user participation.
The low activity levels have persisted since July 2025, echoing a similar stretch in 2024 that preceded a 35% price decline.
According to crypto analyst Gaah, the drop in activity signals the absence of short-term participants, or “tourists.” The network usage is now dominated by long-term holders focused on accumulation.
Historically, low readings have aligned with profitable accumulation phases. The reduced activity often coincides with lower sell pressure as the coins move into long-term wallets.
Related: Bitcoin’s quantum challenges are ‘more social than technical’: Grayscale
This article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and is intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or recommendations. All investments and trades carry risk; readers are encouraged to conduct independent research before making any decisions. Cointelegraph makes no guarantees regarding the accuracy or completeness of the information presented, including forward-looking statements, and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from reliance on this content.
U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) experienced substantial inflows at the beginning of the week, marking the strongest single-day performance in over six weeks. On Monday, Bitcoin ETFs attracted $471.3 million in net inflows. This surge reversed the previous month’s outflows and underscored renewed investor interest.
The strong inflows on Monday were primarily driven by BlackRock and Fidelity. Other prominent funds, including Ark 21Shares, Grayscale, Bitwise, and VanEck, also contributed to the influx. The total inflow for Bitcoin ETFs represents the highest daily intake since late February, signaling a potential shift in market sentiment.
The positive momentum in Bitcoin-related assets has injected optimism into the market. The latest data indicates that spot Ethereum products also saw significant inflows. While uncertainty remains due to broader macroeconomic conditions, the trend could support further upside potential for Bitcoin.
BlackRock and Fidelity Lead the Charge
BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, led the pack with $181.9 million in inflows on Monday. Fidelity’s FBTC followed with $147.3 million, securing a significant portion of the daily total. Together, these two funds accounted for more than half of the day’s inflows, signaling the strength of institutional support for Bitcoin.
ARK Invest and 21Shares’ ARKB also contributed meaningfully, with $118.7 million in inflows. These funds, which focus on offering innovative financial products, are benefiting from growing interest in cryptocurrency investments. Their substantial contributions reflect the continued expansion of Bitcoin’s presence in the mainstream financial ecosystem.
This surge in investments coincides with the release of positive market data and could further bolster Bitcoin’s price performance. As the leading players in the ETF space continue to drive interest, the momentum for Bitcoin is expected to continue. Analysts predict that this trend could propel Bitcoin past its current trading range if the macroeconomic climate stabilizes.
Spot Ethereum Products See Uptick
Ethereum ETFs also experienced a surge in demand on Monday, with $120.2 million in inflows. This marked the highest single-day net inflow since mid-March. The increase highlights growing investor interest in Ethereum as an alternative to Bitcoin.
Ethereum’s price has faced increased volatility in recent months, but these inflows signal a resurgence of confidence. Investors appear to be looking at Ethereum as a strong performer amid the broader cryptocurrency market’s rally. The combination of rising interest in both Bitcoin and Ethereum products could be a sign of a broader recovery in the digital asset space.
However, macroeconomic challenges, such as ongoing geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty, continue to loom over the market. If these external pressures ease, it could further fuel positive sentiment for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
The Solana Foundation has launched STRIDE – Solana crypto Trust, Resilience and Infrastructure for DeFi Enterprises – a structured security evaluation program covering all Solana-based DeFi protocols, funded through a partnership with security firm Asymmetric Research.
The program arrives five days after the Drift Protocol exploit on April 1, in which attackers drained $286 million in under 12 minutes – a breach that exposed the absence of any standardized, ongoing security baseline across Solana’s DeFi layer.
STRIDE is not a bug bounty or a one-time audit mandate. It is a continuous monitoring framework, independently administered by Asymmetric Research, with tiered benefits tied directly to protocol TVL and public evaluation results available to users and investors.
Whether that structure is sufficient to rebuild institutional confidence in Solana DeFi is the question the market will answer over the next several months.
- What It Is: STRIDE (Solana Trust, Resilience and Infrastructure for DeFi Enterprises) is a foundation-funded, structured security evaluation program for all Solana DeFi protocols, administered by Asymmetric Research.
- How It Works: Asymmetric Research independently assesses protocols across eight security categories – including operational security, access controls, multisig configurations, and governance vulnerabilities – with results published in a public repository.
- Tiered Benefits: Protocols with over $10M TVL that pass evaluation receive foundation-funded 24/7 threat monitoring; those above $100M TVL unlock formal verification tools using mathematical proofs across all smart contract execution paths.
- Rapid Response Network: The companion Solana Incident Response Network (SIRN) launches with five founding firms – Asymmetric Research, OtterSec, Neodyme, Squads, and Zeroshadow – sharing threat intelligence with response priority determined by TVL and impact.
- Current Status: STRIDE version 0.1 is live; the framework will evolve based on real-world assessment feedback, with the first public evaluation reports expected as protocols apply.
- What to Watch: Track the first published STRIDE evaluation results and any SIRN activations – those two data points will signal whether the program functions as operational infrastructure or credentialing theater.
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What STRIDE Actually Does for Solana Crypto and Why the TVL Threshold Structure Changes the Calculus
The core mechanism: Asymmetric Research evaluates protocols against its own eight-pillar security framework covering operational security, access controls, multisig configurations, and governance vulnerabilities, then publishes those results publicly.
That is not an audit; it is a continuously maintained security rating. The distinction matters because audits are point-in-time assessments that expire when a protocol upgrades; STRIDE’s continuous monitoring model keeps ratings calibrated to evolving threats.
The tiered benefit structure is where the program’s real incentive logic lives. Protocols above $10 million TVL that pass evaluation receive foundation-funded 24/7 threat monitoring at no cost to the protocol – operational security support that most teams currently cannot fund independently.
Protocols above $100 million TVL receive access to formal verification tooling, which uses mathematical proofs to check every possible smart contract execution path rather than sampling representative scenarios. At current Solana DeFi TVL concentrations, that $100M threshold covers the protocols whose failures carry systemic contagion risk.
Running alongside STRIDE is SIRN – the Solana crypto Incident Response Network – a membership-based coalition of security firms that functions as a shared threat intelligence layer and rapid-response coordinating body.
The five founding members are Asymmetric Research, OtterSec, Neodyme, Squads, and Zeroshadow. SIRN is open to all Solana protocols, but response prioritization is explicitly ordered by TVL and estimated impact. The foundation funds the coalition’s operations; protocols don’t pay for access.
Prior Solana security infrastructure – Hypernative for threat detection, Range Security for risk alerts, Riverguard for attack simulation, Sec3 X-Ray for static analysis – addressed individual threat vectors. STRIDE’s version 0.1 attempts to unify those capabilities under a single evaluative baseline. Whether version 0.1 evolves quickly enough to match the attack surface expanding in parallel is the core execution risk.
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The post Solana Crypto Foundation Launches STRIDE Program to Strengthen Ecosystem Security appeared first on Cryptonews.
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