Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company reported strong first-quarter earnings on Thursday, as steady demand for artificial intelligence chips pushed both revenue and profit to record levels.

The world’s largest contract chipmaker posted net income of $18.2 billion for the three months ended March, up 58% from a year earlier and ahead of expectations. The result extended its streak of record profits to a fourth consecutive quarter. It also marked its eighth straight period of double-digit growth.

According to LSEG SmartEstimates, which weigh forecasts from consistently accurate analysts, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company beat expectations on both revenue and profit.

The company reported revenue of about $35 billion, ahead of the expected $34.8 billion, while net income came in at around $18.2 billion, surpassing estimates of roughly $17.3 billion. On a yearly basis, revenue rose 35% to about $35 billion, in line with the preliminary figure disclosed earlier.

As Asia’s largest listed technology firm, TSMC manufactures chips used across a wide range of industries, from consumer electronics to hyperscale data centers. It has seen strong demand from major clients such as Apple and Nvidia, with the latter now its largest customer due to rising demand for AI processors.

Chief Executive C.C. Wei said “AI-related demand continues to be extremely robust,” adding that rapid advances in artificial intelligence are driving more computing needs and, in turn, higher semiconductor demand. He also pointed to strong customer signals that support expectations for a multi-year growth cycle tied to AI.

TSMC now expects full-year 2026 revenue to grow by more than 30% in U.S. dollar terms, slightly above its earlier outlook. For the second quarter, it forecast revenue between $39 billion and $40.2 billion, implying about 10% sequential growth.

The upbeat guidance comes despite concerns over supply chain risks linked to the Middle East conflict, which could affect energy supplies and key materials such as helium and hydrogen. Executives said they do not expect any near-term disruption, noting the company maintains safety inventories and sources critical inputs from multiple suppliers.

Advanced chips lead revenue mix

High-performance computing, which includes AI and 5G applications, remained the main driver of sales, accounting for 61% of total revenue in the first quarter.

Advanced chips, defined as 7-nanometer or below, made up around 74% of wafer revenue. Within that, 3-nanometer chips contributed 25%, highlighting a rapid shift toward more advanced nodes. Smaller process nodes allow for more compact transistor designs, improving both performance and energy efficiency.

To keep up with demand, TSMC is expanding its manufacturing footprint. The company confirmed plans to add a new advanced fabrication plant in Tainan, Taiwan, while also scaling 3-nanometer capacity across Taiwan, the United States, and Japan. Its U.S. expansion forms part of a broader $165 billion investment in Arizona.

William Li, senior analyst at Counterpoint Research, said demand for AI chips has effectively pushed TSMC’s production capacity to its limits.

“Demand still significantly outpaces supply and isn’t showing any major sign of slowing down,” Li said, adding that tight capacity conditions are likely to persist through 2026.

External analysts echoed similar views, noting that TSMC’s facilities are operating at high utilisation levels as AI workloads continue to drive orders.

The company reiterated that capital expenditure for 2026 will be at the upper end of its previously guided $52 billion to $56 billion range, as it accelerates expansion to meet sustained demand.

Chainlink price has remained confined in the consolidation range between $8 and $10 since early February this year as market participants weigh broader macroeconomic uncertainty against the protocol’s growing fundamental utility.

According to data from crypto.news, the Chainlink (LINK) price fell over 40% from its January high of $14.12 to a yearly low of $7.93 in February. It has since entered into a consolidation phase between the $8 and $10 range as liquidity remains fragmented across the decentralized finance sector.

Despite the recent stagnation, a look at charts reveals several conditions that are close to completion that could potentially empower the token to exit from consolidation and potentially spark a sustained rally.

On the daily chart, Chainlink price appears to be approaching a bullish crossover between the 50-day SMA and the 100-day SMA. Such a crossover, which indicates strengthening medium-term momentum, has previously been a precursor to significant parabolic moves.

In Chainlink’s case, a crossover could lead its price to climb as high as $12, which represents the next key psychological resistance level. A strong breakout from this range with supporting trading volume could push prices all the way up to its year-to-date high of $14.

Momentum indicators like the MACD and the RSI lines both seem to suggest that a bullish reversal is already underway, as both of these metrics were pointed upward.

However, on the flip side, a drop below $9 support could shift the trajectory towards the next floor at $8, which forms the ultimate demand zone for bulls.

There appear to be a few key catalysts that could help Chainlink price sustain this newfound momentum.

First, the most significant catalyst for Chainlink’s price this week is its partnership with SIX Group, the operator of Swiss and Spanish stock exchanges. SIX is now delivering real-time equity pricing for blue-chip stocks worth approximately €2 trillion directly to smart contracts via Chainlink.

The integration makes regulated financial data accessible to over 2,600 blockchain applications, reinforcing Chainlink’s role as the standard for institutional tokenization.

Second, on-chain data reveals whales have been accumulating the token while absorbing the supply of the token in a manner that often precedes a supply shock rally. Last week, whale wallets added approximately 3.30 million LINK tokens.

Furthermore, whales recently moved 265,132 LINK worth $2.38 million off exchanges, thus reducing the risk of these assets being sold on the open market.

Third, the Chainlink Reserve, a specialized vault for protocol revenue, continues to grow and currently holds over 3 million LINK tokens as protocol fees are automatically converted to the native token. This mechanism effectively tightens the circulating supply by locking up tokens as the network achieves greater adoption.

Paris Blockchain Week, the self-proclaimed “European power forum for the future of digital finance,” has reportedly doubled its security efforts for this week’s event amid claims that France has seen one violent crypto-related robbery attempt every five days on average this year.

The tally for crypto-related attacks in 2026 hit 19 on Monday when a mother and son were abducted from their home in Burgundy, according to The Register.

Franceinfo reports that the pair were held hostage in a hotel room in Val-de-Marne while the attackers attempted to extort the father, a crypto entrepreneur, for hundreds of thousands of euros.

The pair were released unharmed on Tuesday following a successful extraction operation by French counter-terrorism police. 

It’s a problem the country can’t quite seem to shake with criminals continuing to regard crypto holders and entrepreneurs as relatively easy and very lucrative pickings.

In February, the president of Binance’s French arm was targeted by three armed crypto robbers. The attackers only managed to steal his phones and, after failing to confront him in person, they decided to pursue a different target.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire anticipates a yuan-backed stablecoin could emerge within the next three to five years, a view that highlights how geopolitical rivalry over money is increasingly being settled in code as much as in policy. Speaking to Reuters in Hong Kong, Allaire framed stablecoins as a way for China to “export” its currency by making cross-border payments easier in a more tokenized financial world, even as Beijing pursues its own digital yuan and tightens rules on private RMB-pegged tokens.

The comments come at a moment of heightened tension between a centralized, CBDC-first approach and a thriving private-stablecoin ecosystem. While the Chinese authorities push the e-CNY as the flagship vehicle for digital money, they have also cracked down on offshore yuan-linked stablecoins and broader tokenization of real-world assets, signaling a deliberate shift in how China envisions its monetary sovereignty in a global, tokenized economy.

Key takeaways

• yuan-backed stablecoin on the horizon: Circle’s leadership signals opportunity for a yuan-pegged token within a few years as global payments become more digitized.
• China tightens on offshore RMB tokens: Beijing recently banned unauthorized offshore issuance of yuan-pegged stablecoins and tightened vetting for tokenizing domestic real-world assets.
• USDC remains the benchmark: Circle’s USDC grew 72% year-on-year to $75.3 billion by end-2025, underscoring continued demand for dollar-denominated stablecoins.
• Dollar dominance persists in stablecoins: Outlier Ventures data shows USD-backed stablecoins accounted for 99.8% of fiat-denominated supply in 2025, reflecting sustained market concentration in dollars.
• Regulatory tension shapes the path forward: The evolving stance from China’s authorities and the global appetite for stablecoins together frame what the next phase of digital money will look like for cross-border commerce and financial stability.

Circle’s view: yuan tokens as a gateway to global payments

Allaire’s remarks position stablecoins as a potential bridge between China’s domestic monetary strategy and international commerce. By framing a yuan-backed stablecoin as a mechanism to facilitate seamless cross-border payments, he suggests that a tokenized version of the renminbi could accelerate the currency’s global reach, even as the PBOC pilots the e-CNY for domestic use. The broader question this raises is whether governments that restrict private digital currencies can still harness the efficiencies of tokenized payment rails to maintain competitive influence in global finance.

Geopolitical competition over money is being fought not only through policy, but through technology choices and network effects. Allaire’s comments coincide with Beijing’s explicit push toward the central bank digital currency and a tightened regulatory stance against RMB-linked private tokens. The tension underscores a larger debate: will states embrace or curb tokenized instruments that can facilitate cross-border flows while preserving monetary sovereignty?

USDC and the dollar-led stablecoin landscape

Amid the regulatory headwinds and shifting geopolitics, the dollar remains the dominant anchor in the stablecoin universe. Circle reported that its USD-backed stablecoin, USDC, expanded to $75.3 billion in circulation by the end of 2025, a 72% year-over-year increase. The company also noted that during periods of global stress, demand for portable digital dollars surged, with Allaire alluding to “several billion dollars” in extra USDC transactions following the outbreak of the US-Iran conflict as users sought liquidity and settlement certainty in crypto markets.

The resilience of USDC underscores how, for now, the market gravitates toward dollar-denominated stability as a baseline for on-chain liquidity and settlement. Circle’s 2025 fiscal results reinforce the point: even as various jurisdictions experiment with digital currencies, the real-time utility and trust in USDC keep it at the center of many decentralized finance and cross-border payment use cases.

China’s crackdown and the CBDC-first trajectory

China’s regulatory stance remains unambiguous about the limits of offshore and RMB-pegged tokens. In February, the People’s Bank of China and seven other agencies declared that unauthorized offshore issuance of yuan-pegged stablecoins would be treated as illegal financial activity. They also signaled that tokenization of domestic real-world assets would face stricter vetting. Officials argued that such enforcement is essential to protect financial stability, curb capital flight, and safeguard monetary sovereignty as China advances the e-CNY as its preferred digital money model.

The crackdown follows a broader pattern: a 2021 prohibition on crypto trading and mining, ongoing cautions around stablecoins, and a clear pivot toward a CBDC-led framework. The timing is notable, coming after reports earlier in the year that China had been studying yuan-backed tokens as a potential mechanism to boost global usage of its currency. Beijing’s stance starkly contrasts with the more permissive, market-driven approach seen in other jurisdictions and adds another layer of complexity to the global stablecoin narrative.

Implications for the market and what to watch next

Taken together, these developments illustrate a market-wide shift where policy pragmatism and national security concerns shape how digital money evolves. For investors and builders, the key questions revolve around the viability and timing of a yuan-backed stablecoin, the regulatory trade-offs that accompany cross-border tokenization, and how the e-CNY will interact with private digital currencies in the global payments stack.

Two threads deserve close watching. First, any concrete indications from Circle or other partners about collaboration on yuan-linked tokenization or pilots would signal a new phase of cross-border digital currency experimentation. Second, China’s policy lane—whether it will relax or accelerate restrictions on RMB-linked tokens and RWA tokenization—will influence the competitive dynamics of stablecoins, international settlement rails, and the broader appetite for tokenized assets among institutions and consumers alike.

The coming quarters could reveal whether a yuan-backed stablecoin moves from concept to concrete project, and how that aligns with the e-CNY rollout and global demand for faster, cheaper cross-border payments. Readers should monitor official regulatory updates from Chinese authorities, any formal announcements from Circle or partners, and the evolution of stablecoin issuance standards and supervisory frameworks worldwide.

Key Highlights

• USB stock advances following 14% year-over-year earnings increase
• Financial institution demonstrates resilience with expanding loan portfolio and stable deposit base
• Net interest margin stability and fee income growth drive revenue expansion
• Efficiency improvements and positive operating leverage enhance profitability
• Capital strength remains robust with solid CET1 ratio maintenance

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (USB) demonstrated positive momentum following a strong quarterly earnings report, with the stock finishing regular trading at $56.37, representing a 0.50% gain. Pre-market activity showed continued strength as shares climbed to $56.79, adding another 0.73%. The financial institution’s results showcased resilient fundamentals and strengthening operational metrics.

U.S. Bancorp, USB

Quarterly Performance Demonstrates Financial Strength

The Minneapolis-based financial institution delivered net income of $1.945 billion for the quarter, representing a substantial 14% year-over-year advancement. Diluted earnings per share came in at $1.18, demonstrating a 15% annual expansion. The results underscore broadening profitability across multiple business lines.

Total net revenue reached $7.288 billion during the reporting period, propelled by strengthening interest earnings and fee-based activities. On a taxable-equivalent basis, net interest income climbed 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Fee-based revenue demonstrated even stronger momentum, advancing 6.9% and reflecting successful business diversification.

Operational efficiency metrics showed notable enhancement as the company achieved positive operating leverage of 440 basis points. The efficiency ratio improved to 58.2%, down from previous levels, signaling tighter expense management. These operational improvements underscore management’s commitment to productivity gains and disciplined cost oversight.

Balance Sheet Expansion Reflects Business Momentum

U.S. Bancorp demonstrated continued lending momentum while preserving solid funding stability throughout the quarter. Average total loans expanded 3.8% on a year-over-year basis and grew 2.4% from the previous quarter. The lending expansion signals sustained customer demand across various business segments.

On the funding side, average total deposits grew 1.7% versus the comparable year-ago period. Sequential deposit levels remained relatively flat, providing consistent liquidity support. The institution maintained a well-balanced funding mix throughout the period.

Asset quality indicators remained generally stable, though the net charge-off ratio increased modestly to 0.56%. Overall credit metrics stayed within manageable parameters. The bank’s asset quality positioning continues to support balance sheet durability.

Returns and Capital Position Remain Solid

U.S. Bancorp achieved a return on average assets of 1.15%, demonstrating enhanced asset productivity. Return on average common equity registered at 12.6%, showcasing steady returns for equity holders. On a tangible common equity basis, returns reached 17.0%.

The net interest margin remained steady at 2.77%, with a five basis point year-over-year improvement. Margin stability reflects the institution’s ability to manage the relationship between earning asset yields and funding costs. This consistency provides a foundation for reliable earnings performance.

Capital positioning remained robust as the Common Equity Tier 1 ratio stood at 10.8% as of March 2026 quarter-end. Book value per common share increased to $37.93, while tangible book value per share reached $29.56. These figures demonstrate the bank’s continued capital strength and financial foundation.

Jean-Didier Berger, minister delegate to the interior minister of France, said authorities are taking measures to protect cryptocurrency investors from the growing threat of crypto kidnappings and wrench attacks in the country.

Speaking at Paris Blockchain Week, Berger said his office has taken “preventative measures” against crypto wrench attacks, including launching a prevention platform that has drawn thousands of sign-ups. He added that he was working with Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez on what he described as a more serious plan in the coming weeks.

His comments come days after another reported crypto-linked abduction in France this week, where a mother and her 11-year-old child were reportedly kidnapped in Burgundy on Monday by four suspects who demanded a 400,000 euro ($471,000) ransom from the father, a crypto entrepreneur. Authorities caught the suspects and freed the victims on Tuesday morning, reported news outlet France24, citing the Paris prosecutor’s office.

France has become one of the most prominent centers for so-called wrench attacks, in which victims are threatened or assaulted to force the transfer of digital assets, and the government is now under growing pressure to respond.

Wrench attacks see alarming surge in France

Since the beginning of the year, there have been 41 reported crypto-related kidnappings in France, meaning that on average, a similar attack occurred once every 2.5 days in 2026, reported local news outlet RTL on Wednesday.

Wrench attacks increased by 75% in 2025 to 72 verified cases worldwide, according to cybersecurity platform CertiK. France saw the most incidents during 2025, with 19 confirmed wrench attacks, while Europe accounted for roughly 40% of global incidents.

In another incident, a French couple in their late 50s was robbed of $1 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) by criminals posing as police officers, Cointelegraph reported on March 10.

Related: Suspected insider wallets rack up $1.2M betting on ZachXBT’s Axiom exposé

A month earlier, in February, French police arrested six people over the kidnapping of a magistrate and her mother in a crypto-linked ransom attack targeting the magistrate’s partner, a crypto entrepreneur.

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