According to Cointelegraph, a private luncheon for holders of the TRUMP memecoin is planned at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, marking a second such gathering tied to the token. The event is described by its organizers as a closed meeting with the former president, but it has drawn scrutiny from lawmakers and policy observers concerned about political access linked to crypto fundraising and token ecosystems.

On Saturday, Trump and up to 297 memecoin holders are expected to convene at the Mar-a-Lago estate. The attendee roster, published by the TRUMP project, includes Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether; ChiHyung Song, founder and CEO of Upbit; Anthony Pompliano, a prominent Bitcoin advocate; and Nathan McCauley, co-founder and CEO of Anchorage Digital, among others associated with financial institutions, crypto firms, and blockchain ventures. The list is attributed to GetTrumpMemes.com. Notably, there was no public confirmation of Tron founder Justin Sun’s attendance, despite his visible support for Trump and his involvement in related ventures with the Trump family ecosystem.

Cointelegraph reached out to a spokesperson for Justin Sun seeking comment on potential attendance, but did not receive an immediate response. Sun has been in the headlines this week after announcing a lawsuit against World Liberty Financial, alleging that the platform froze his tokens and threatened to burn them “without any proper justification.” Sun described himself as an “ardent supporter” of Trump, while suggesting that certain World Liberty team members were acting in ways that conflict with the president’s values.

Sun’s public profile within the crypto space includes past high-profile appearances, including a May 2025 dinner for TRUMP memecoin holders that featured figures such as Synthetix founder Kain Warwick and Kronos Research chief investment officer Vincent Liu. A separate report noted markets participants who attended last year’s gathering paid around $1,200 for a seat and later secured a spot for this weekend’s event for roughly $500. The broader context underscores continued interest from sector participants in the token’s ecosystem, even as sentiment surrounding the project has shifted.

Bloomberg described a cooling sentiment toward Trump within crypto circles, noting that the combination of regulatory pressures and tariffs has contributed to a more cautious stance among crypto participants. One observer cited by Bloomberg suggested that Trump’s standing in the crypto community has weakened, reflecting the broader regulatory and market environment facing memecoins tied to political branding.

Key takeaways

• Private Mar-a-Lago luncheon will bring together up to 297 TRUMP token holders with notable crypto industry figures, intensifying scrutiny of political access linked to memecoin ecosystems.
• Justin Sun’s attendance remains unconfirmed; Sun is involved in a separate litigation matter against World Liberty Financial over token handling allegations.
• TRUMP token has fallen more than 93% from its all-time high, raising questions about the economics and demand for politically connected memecoins.
• Lawmakers and watchdog groups have criticized the event as potentially creating conflicts of interest and reducing transparency in fundraising-related crypto activity.
• The episode highlights broader regulatory questions, including token classification, AML/KYC compliance, and cross-border oversight under frameworks such as MiCA and U.S. enforcement regimes.

Event scope, attendees, and regulatory optics

The luncheon is described as a private gathering, with the former president hosting and up to 297 memecoin holders in attendance. The attendee roster includes senior figures from the crypto and fintech sectors, underscoring ongoing interest from institutional actors in political-linked token ecosystems. The project’s promoters have circulated the list, with GetTrumpMemes.com cited as the source. Public confirmation of Justin Sun’s presence has not been issued, despite his role as a high-profile backer of Trump and involvement in related initiatives with the Trump family network.

Commentary from lawmakers and examination groups has focused on transparency and governance risks. The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) argued that crypto wallets tied to the TRUMP token could obscure profit flows and beneficiary metrics, complicating efforts to assess potential personal gain from trading activity. The group emphasized that while token prices may rise on speculation, the real concern centers on accountability and the ability to trace financial outcomes linked to political fundraising.

The TRUMP token’s price trajectory since launch has been steeply negative, with declines from an all-time high near $45 to under $3 at the time of reporting. This backdrop informs the regulatory conversation about whether memecoins tied to political figures represent securities, how they should be classified, and what disclosures are required for participants and platforms facilitating their trading.

Sun, World Liberty, and broader policy considerations

In parallel to the luncheon discourse, Justin Sun’s legal action against World Liberty Financial has drawn attention to governance and token-management practices within Trump-affiliated ventures. Sun asserted that World Liberty’s actions—such as token freezes and potential attempts to burn tokens—were unjustified, while reaffirming his status as a Trump supporter. This dispute reinforces concerns about project governance, investor protection, and the risk of conflict between promotional activity and corporate decision-making within politically affiliated crypto projects.

These dynamics occur amid ongoing regulatory dialogue surrounding memecoins and politically linked tokens. Analysts note the need for clear frameworks governing token offerings, KYC/AML controls for trading venues, and licensing considerations for entities operating in cross-border environments. While MiCA governs European markets, U.S. enforcement actions by the SEC, CFTC, and DOJ continue to shape how such assets are monitored, classified, and potentially regulated, with cross-border differences complicating compliance for global participants.

From a policy perspective, the Mar-a-Lago gathering underscores the tension between political expression, fundraising mechanisms, and regulatory safeguards. For institutions, exchanges, and banks that engage with memecoins or tokenized assets tied to political figures, the case highlights the importance of robust disclosure, transaction-tracing capabilities, and rigorous AML/KYC programs to manage risk and ensure oversight aligns with evolving legal standards.

Looking ahead, observers will monitor how regulatory authorities respond to high-profile gatherings that mingle politics with token-based fundraising, how enforcement actions might unfold around token governance and market manipulation concerns, and how international policy harmonization—such as MiCA’s regime and U.S. regulatory approaches—will influence future conduct and licensing requirements in the memecoin space.

In sum, the Mar-a-Lago luncheon exemplifies the growing convergence of politics, finance, and crypto. As regulators sharpen their lens on token offerings, governance, and cross-border activity, institutions will need to adapt with enhanced compliance controls and transparent governance structures to navigate the evolving landscape.

U.S. Treasury and Tether froze $344M in USDT tied to Iran’s IRGC, spotlighting how Tehran’s $7.8B crypto ecosystem leans on stablecoins to dodge sanctions and move oil money.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has confirmed that the United States has sanctioned and frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency connected to Iran, targeting what he called “multiple wallets” that form part of the regime’s offshore funding channels. Bessent said Treasury would “track and combat all financial lifelines associated with the regime,” signaling that crypto flows are now firmly in Washington’s crosshairs alongside traditional banking networks.

The action follows a move by stablecoin issuer Tether, which announced it had frozen more than $344 million worth of USDT across two addresses after receiving information from U.S. authorities about possible links to illicit activity and sanctions evasion. KuCoin and other outlets reported that the two Tron wallets held about $213 million and $131 million in USDT respectively, and had been flagged by blockchain security firm PeckShield for connections to terrorism financing and criminal operations.

Chainalysis says the transaction behavior of the blacklisted addresses closely mirrors on‑chain patterns previously observed in Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps networks, including the use of layers of intermediary wallets to route funds through addresses linked to the Central Bank of Iran. In a January report, the analytics firm estimated that Iran’s crypto ecosystem reached about $7.78 billion in 2025, and that IRGC‑associated addresses accounted for over 50% of total value received in the fourth quarter of that year.

According to Chainalysis, the IRGC’s crypto intake surged from more than $2 billion in 2024 to over $3 billion in 2025, with a significant share tied to sanctions‑busting trade, oil exports, and payments routed through offshore intermediaries. Earlier research by Elliptic also found that the Central Bank of Iran had acquired about $507 million in USDT to stabilize the rial and facilitate international trade settlement despite U.S. restrictions, illustrating how dollar‑pegged stablecoins have become embedded in Tehran’s workaround strategies.

The latest freeze underscores the double‑edged nature of stablecoins for U.S. policymakers. On one hand, real‑time blockchain analysis gives Treasury and its partners unprecedented visibility into Iranian financial activity and the ability to surgically blacklist high‑value wallets; on the other, the same tools that let ordinary users bypass capital controls can be weaponized by sanctioned actors at scale until they are caught.

Trump’s memecoin TRUMP is again at the center of crypto’s crossover with politics, as a private luncheon at Mar-a-Lago brings together hundreds of memecoin holders and a cadre of crypto figures. The invitation-only event highlights ongoing questions about access, influence, and how token communities intersect with real-world power.

According to the organizers behind the TRUMP token, GetTrumpMemes.com, the guest list for the luncheon includes up to 297 TRUMP holders and a mix of well-known crypto executives and industry figures. Reported attendees span stablecoin issuance, exchange leadership, and prominent crypto builders, underscoring the token’s appeal within parts of the crypto ecosystem. The meeting is set at the president’s Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, echoing a similar gathering from 2025. Notably, however, there was no public confirmation that Tron founder Justin Sun would attend, and Cointelegraph reached out to a Sun spokesperson for comment without receiving an immediate response.

Sun’s involvement with Trump’s broader crypto ventures has become a flashpoint in recent days. He announced a lawsuit this week against World Liberty Financial, a project co-founded by members of Trump’s family, alleging token freezing and threats to burn his tokens “without any proper justification.” Sun described himself as an “ardent supporter” of Trump, while noting that certain individuals on the World Liberty team were acting in ways incompatible with the president’s values. The legal dispute adds another layer of tension to the evolving Trump crypto ecosystem.

Related: Trump memecoin holders get another gala as efforts to lift the token from troughs continue.

Public interest in the event has grown partly because of the token’s volatile history. The top TRUMP holder remains highly influential, with 2.4 billion points on the project’s leaderboard, according to the memecoin’s organizers. Meanwhile, a familiar tension surfaces: the gathering is framed by supporters and critics alike as a demonstration of how financial access may be linked to political capital, a concern voiced by watchdog groups and lawmakers alike.

As the gathering goes forward, it’s worth recalling how the crypto community viewed Trump’s involvement just a few years ago. A Bloomberg report quoted a participant’s assessment that sentiment toward Trump in crypto has shifted since his inauguration, describing him as less popular within the crypto crowd amid a broader climate of political and tariff-related headwinds. The report underscored the fragility of public trust in memecoins tied to political figures, even as some supporters continue to advocate for continued engagement and new fundraising events.

Key takeaways

• Private Mar-a-Lago luncheon for TRUMP token holders—up to 297 attendees—with high-profile crypto figures, signaling ongoing ambition to monetize political connection via the memecoin ecosystem.
• Justin Sun’s status remains unclear; his spokesperson did not respond to inquiries about attendance, even as Sun’s legal clash with World Liberty Financial adds friction to the ecosystem.
• Critics warn that token ownership could create “access to the presidency,” citing wallet tracing and profit-tracking concerns from watchdog groups.
• The TRUMP token hasfallen sharply since launch, losing more than 93% from an all-time high near $45 to around the low single digits, reflecting broader questions about token fundamentals and hype cycles.
• Recent coverage and Elites’ commentary indicate shifting sentiment toward Trump within crypto circles, with regulators and ethics advocates watching for governance signals and disclosures.

A private event under scrutiny

The luncheon at Mar-a-Lago epitomizes the ongoing debate about whether memecoins tied to political figures should operate in spaces that resemble fundraising or social clubs for a political brand. GetTrumpMemes.com describes the event as a private gathering of TRUMP holders and prominent crypto-connected guests, underscoring the token’s appeal to insiders who view digital assets as a pathway to influence. Critics point to the lack of transparency around who exactly benefits from the trading activity and whether participants gain privileged access beyond traditional political fundraising norms.

The event also surfaces questions about disclosure and governance. While supporters frame the gathering as a celebration of a political-memdcoin experiment, lawmakers and ethics advocates argue that tokenized access to presidential figures could blur lines between fundraising, lobbying, and governance. A Friday BlueSky post from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington highlighted concerns about wallet-level visibility and the possibility that small, frequent fees on trades could generate profits for the political brand, even as the token’s price moves independently of policy outcomes.

Sun’s legal dispute adds friction

Justin Sun’s involvement in the broader Trump crypto ecosystem has been a point of contention. Sun’s recent lawsuit against World Liberty Financial alleges improper token handling, fueling debate about governance and accountability within the Trump-backed crypto projects. Sun labeled himself an ardent supporter of Trump, while suggesting that certain World Liberty team members were acting against the president’s stated values. The dispute adds a layer of uncertainty for investors and users who track the health and direction of the TRUMP ecosystem as it navigates legal and reputational risks.

Sun’s presence at public events has previously been noted, including a May 2025 dinner for TRUMP memecoin holders that featured industry figures such as Synthetix founder Kain Warwick and Kronos Research’s Vincent Liu. The unfolding legal fight, coupled with public endorsements and appearances, illustrates the fragility of cross-domain support in a space where celebrity endorsements and institutional ties can shift quickly.

Market signals and investor implications

From an investor perspective, the TRUMP token’s trajectory remains illustrative of the volatility that characterizes memecoins anchored to political narratives. Launched in January 2025, the token has experienced a dramatic drawdown from its all-time high of roughly $45, with its price dipping well below $3. This collapse underscores the risk of token-based narratives that hinge on social media momentum and celebrity endorsements rather than underlying utility or revenue models.

Beyond price, the ongoing discussions around transparency, governance, and potential conflicts of interest matter for participants and the broader crypto community. The debate touches on fundamental questions about how such tokens should be regulated, how conflicts of interest are disclosed, and what safeguards (if any) are needed to separate political processes from purely speculative asset trading. Observers pointed to the need for clearer disclosures and governance standards as essential prerequisites if memecoins tied to political figures are to persist in a more scrutinized environment.

Regulatory and governance considerations

The combination of political branding and memecoin trading invites closer scrutiny from lawmakers and oversight groups. Critics argue that tokenized participation could amount to de facto access to political influence, raising concerns about fairness and disclosure. watchdogs have pointed to opaque wallet activity and fee structures as potential red flags, while proponents stress that open markets and voluntary participation are core to crypto’s ethos. As regulators across jurisdictions weigh policy responses, events like the Mar-a-Lago luncheon will likely inform the ongoing debate about transparency, consumer protection, and the appropriate boundaries between politics and finance in crypto.

Looking ahead, market participants will be watching for how the TRUMP project and similar initiatives navigate governance, disclosures, and any regulatory guidance that may emerge. The interplay between celebrity-backed assets and policy implications remains a key frontier for crypto’s evolution, with readers and investors seeking clarity on what’s permissible, what’s beneficial, and what constitutes meaningful value in a space prone to rapid shifts in sentiment.

Readers should stay tuned for any official statements accompanying future memecoin events, as well as any regulatory developments that address token-based access to political influence. The TRUMP story continues to unfold at the intersection of crypto, celebrity branding, and public accountability.

The Senate voted 46 to 51 on April 22 to defeat a war powers resolution that would have directed the president to withdraw US armed forces from hostilities against Iran without congressional authorization, marking Democrats’ fifth consecutive failure to advance the measure since the conflict began on February 28.

The Senate defeated the war powers resolution 46 to 51 on April 22, blocking for the fifth consecutive time a Democratic-led effort to require the president to seek congressional authorization before continuing military operations against Iran. The vote came one day after Trump extended the ceasefire indefinitely, but with no change in how any senator voted from the four prior attempts.

Senate Iran War Powers Vote Fails as Both Parties Hold Their Lines

Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who sponsored the resolution, argued on the Senate floor that Trump had pledged during his campaigns not to begin new foreign wars and that the conflict with Iran bore “many similarities to the Iraq war,” which ran from 2003 to 2011. “In both wars, we had zero plans for the days to come and failed to outline our specific goals. In both wars, we had zero strategy to get out. And in both wars, we had servicemembers dying overseas for a cause that Americans did not support,” Baldwin said. A Reuters and Ipsos poll of 4,557 US adults cited in congressional briefings found that 56% of Americans now oppose the war, including 40% of Republicans. The War Powers Resolution of 1973 requires US forces to be withdrawn from hostilities within 60 days unless Congress formally authorizes continued military engagement, a deadline that Stars and Stripes noted is set to arrive on April 28, potentially triggering a constitutional confrontation over executive war authority if Democrats force the issue.

The Political Math Behind the 46-51 Split

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said at the floor that “every day we hear new promises from the Trump administration, that victory has been achieved, that peace is at hand, that the costs are starting to come down, and every day we see the opposite.” Senators Chuck Grassley of Iowa, David McCormick of Pennsylvania, and Mark Warner of Virginia were absent from the vote. Three absent Republicans could have theoretically changed the outcome, but none had indicated prior to the session that they were wavering. Senator Edward Markey of Massachusetts, who voted in favor, stated after the vote that thirteen US service members and over five thousand civilians across the Middle East have died in the war and that Congress never authorized it. Democrats have vowed to force the vote again next week, and every week after, as long as hostilities continue.

What the Vote Means for Crypto and Energy Markets

The Senate’s fifth rejection of the war powers resolution confirms that Trump retains full executive authority to continue military and naval operations against Iran without any formal legislative constraint, a dynamic that keeps the Strait of Hormuz situation and its macro implications fully in the president’s hands. As crypto.news has tracked, crypto prices have been trading in direct response to every Iran diplomatic signal, with Bitcoin falling 2% to $77,593 on April 23 as stalled peace talks and rising oil prices weighed on risk sentiment. The Senate’s unchanged position means that any resolution to the conflict remains entirely dependent on executive diplomacy rather than congressional pressure, leaving markets exposed to the same headline-by-headline volatility that has defined Bitcoin and energy pricing since the war began. As crypto.news documented, Iran’s proposal to charge oil tankers a $1 per barrel Bitcoin toll at the Strait of Hormuz had already directly wired the conflict into crypto market mechanics, and the Senate’s continued support for executive war authority ensures that dynamic remains in place.

Democrats are expected to bring the war powers resolution back to a Senate floor vote as early as next week, with the outcome widely expected to mirror the 46-51 result that has held across all five attempts.

In a repeat of 2025, top holders of US President Donald Trump’s memecoin, Official Trump (TRUMP), will gather for a private event that many critics have described as selling access to the presidency.

On Saturday, Trump and up to 297 of his memecoin holders will meet at the president’s Mar-a-Lago property in Florida. According to the project behind the memecoin, attendees will include stablecoin issuer Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, cryptocurrency exchange Upbit founder and CEO ChiHyung Song, Bitcoin (BTC) advocate Anthony Pompliano, Anchorage Digital co-founder and CEO Nathan McCauley and many others associated with financial institutions, crypto and blockchain.

Source: GetTrumpMemes.com

Notably, however, there was no public statement confirming the appearance of Tron founder Justin Sun, a prominent supporter of the president, an investor in the Trump family crypto business World Liberty Financial, and the TRUMP holder at the top of the memecoin project’s leaderboard, with 2.4 billion points.

Cointelegraph reached out to a spokesperson for Sun regarding his potential appearance at the luncheon, but did not receive an immediate response.

Sun made headlines this week after announcing a lawsuit against World Liberty, alleging that the crypto platform co-founded by Trump’s sons froze his tokens and threatened to burn them “without any proper justification.”

The Tron founder publicly stated that he was an “ardent supporter” of Trump, but “certain individuals on the World Liberty project team have been operating the project in a manner that goes against President Trump’s values.”

Related: Trump offers memecoin holders another gala to boost token from lows

“The only thing more ridiculous than this lawsuit is spending $6 million on a banana duct-taped to a wall,” said World Liberty co-founder Eric Trump, referring to Sun’s November 2024 purchase of a piece of art called the Comedian, which the Tron founder then ate. 

Sun attended a similar May 2025 dinner for TRUMP memecoin holders, along with Synthetix founder Kain Warwick, Kronos Research chief investment officer Vincent Liu and others. Crypto user Morten Christensen attended last year’s dinner for a $1,200 investment in the memecoin and reportedly won a seat for Saturday’s event for about $500.

“Trump is much less liked right now than he was after inauguration,” said Christensen, according to a Bloomberg report. Now with the whole year of tariffs, crypto is bleeding, his reputation within the crypto community is not as good.”

Second memecoin event raises eyebrows among lawmakers, interest groups

The Saturday luncheon has drawn criticism from many lawmakers, who said that Trump was “dang[ling] access” to the presidency, as well as organizations monitoring potential conflicts of interest.

“Crypto wallets associated with [TRUMP] have engaged in financial maneuvers that make it difficult or impossible to track how much Trump may be profiting from the burst in trading,” said the nonprofit Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington in a Friday BlueSky post. “But what we do know is that despite the value of Trump’s coin decreasing since its first release, he can still make an enormous profit just by collecting small fees on each trade. The more people buy and sell, the more money Trump can make.”

Since its launch just days before Trump was sworn into office in January 2025, the price of the TRUMP token has fallen more than 93% from its all-time high of about $45 to under $3 at the time of publication.

Magazine: How to fix suspected insider trading on Polymarket and Kalshi

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued New York on Friday in its latest action to shield what the agency has argued is its unassailable nationwide regulatory authority over prediction market firms.

Earlier this week, New York sued Coinbase and Gemini, arguing that their prediction market contracts violated state gambling laws. And last year, the state had similarly targeted Kalshi, demanding it cease its sports wagering platform.

The CFTC, in its role as the federal derivatives regulator, has staked out a position that the states have no business interfering with those firms. The agency’s suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York argues that federal law “designates the CFTC as the federal agency with ‘exclusive jurisdiction’ over the regulation of commodity futures, options, and swaps traded on federally regulated exchanges,” and that includes these CFTC-registered designated contract markets. State law is effectively preempted, according to the synchronized positions of the regulator and the growing industry it’s seeking to protect.

But also on Friday, 37 state attorneys general — including New York Attorney General Letitia James — signed onto a legal brief in one of the Kalshi legal fights in Massachusetts to argue that “Kalshi’s aggressive theory of preemption threatens the States’ longstanding ability to protect their citizens in this area.”

CFTC Chairman Mike Selig has made this one of his most prominent initiatives since taking over the agency four months ago, and his agency has similarly sued Arizona, Connecticut and Illinois, claiming event contracts are derivatives instruments within federal jurisdiction.

“CFTC-registered exchanges have faced an onslaught of state lawsuits seeking to limit Americans’ access to event contracts and undermine the CFTC’s sole regulatory jurisdiction over prediction markets,” he said in a statement.

TLDR:

• Stellar DeFi TVL hit a record $204.19M on April 24, surpassing its previous all-time high of $196.6M set in January 2026.
  
• RWA.xyz values Stellar’s broader distributed asset base at $1.64B, with Spiko alone accounting for $531.92M of that figure.
  
• Blend, Stellar’s top lending protocol, grew 25.9% quarter-over-quarter in Q1 2026, reaching $110.25M in total value locked.
  
• Stellar DEX volume surged 64.54% in one month, while seven-day network-wide DEX volume climbed 26.24% alongside rising TVL.

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Stellar’s total value locked has crossed $200 million for the first time, reaching $204.19 million on April 24, per DefiLlama. This new all-time high surpasses the previous peak of $196.6 million set in January 2026.

The milestone arrives as many Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks have struggled to maintain TVL through 2026. Stellar has moved in the opposite direction, posting consistent growth into Q2.

Real-world assets and native DeFi protocols appear to be driving the move.

RWA Pipeline Powers Stellar’s Institutional Growth

Real-world assets are doing most of the heavy lifting behind Stellar’s TVL growth. The network has spent 18 months building its reputation as a settlement layer for tokenized treasuries, real estate, and other off-chain instruments. That positioning is now translating into measurable on-chain liquidity.

RWA.xyz puts Stellar’s broader distributed asset value at around $1.64 billion, well above DefiLlama’s native DeFi TVL reading.

Spiko leads the network with $531.92 million in distributed asset value. Ondo Finance adds $123.12 million, while WisdomTree contributes $24.01 million.

A Messari Q1 2026 report placed Stellar’s RWA market cap, excluding stablecoins, at $1.52 billion by the end of Q1. That figure crossed $2 billion on April 11.

The Stellar Development Foundation has been direct about where it wants the network to go in 2026, with @StellarOrg publicly targeting $1 billion in network asset value growth, 15 new enterprise partners, and at least 5 live deployments by year-end.

Several major deals have backed that institutional pipeline. Mercado Bitcoin announced a $200 million RWA issuance program on Stellar in September 2025, covering fixed income and equity products.

RedSwan brought $100 million in tokenized real estate the same month. PayPal USD also went live on the network shortly after, adding another major stablecoin to the stack.

Native DeFi Protocols Build Momentum Alongside Institutions

On the native DeFi side, Blend remains the network’s leading lending protocol with $110.25 million in TVL. The platform grew 25.9 percent quarter-over-quarter through Q1 2026. Elevated yields on Blend have kept deposits steady and activity consistent over that stretch.

Decentralized exchanges are also gaining ground. Aquarius holds $51.69 million in TVL, up 30 percent over the past month. Stellar DEX sits at $25.86 million, up 64.54 percent over the same period.

Seven-day DEX volume across the network is up 26.24 percent, showing the liquidity is actively being put to work.

Soroban, Stellar’s smart contract platform launched in 2024, connects the institutional and DeFi layers. On April 1, Templar launched lending and borrowing markets for six freely transferable RWAs, including Centrifuge and Etherfuse assets.

That launch allows institutional tokens to function as collateral inside Stellar DeFi. On April 2, Wirex and Ultra Stellar rolled out a Soroban-based payment layer aimed at millions of retail users.

Messari forecasts continued TVL growth into Q2 2026, citing sustained yields on Blend and the active RWA pipeline.

One detail worth noting: TVL has climbed even as XLM’s spot price has faced pressure. That pattern points to real settlement demand rather than token speculation driving the numbers.

President Trump announced on April 23 that Israel and Lebanon have agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks after a second round of high-level White House talks involving the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, and the US ambassadors to both countries.

President Trump announced on April 23 that the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by three weeks, writing on Truth Social: “The Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by THREE WEEKS. I look forward in the near future to hosting the Prime Minister of Israel, Bibi Netanyahu, and the President of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun.” The announcement came after Trump joined an Oval Office session between the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors to the United States, which also included Vice President Vance, Secretary of State Rubio, and US ambassadors to both countries.

Israel Lebanon Ceasefire Extension Marks First Successful Renewal of the Truce

The initial 10-day ceasefire had been struck on April 14 following the first direct contact between Israel and Lebanon in decades, and was due to expire on April 27. Lebanon had formally requested an extension, and US officials had been pressing both sides to agree before the deadline. The extension is the first successful renewal of the ceasefire and gives both sides additional time to move toward what Rubio described as the possibility of a permanent agreement. “This gives everybody time to continue to work on what’s going to be permanent peace between two countries that want to be in peace,” Rubio said, adding he expects the sides to be “even closer” to that goal within the coming weeks. Tensions on the ground were present even as the announcement was made, with rockets fired from Lebanon toward northern Israel during the talks, though they were intercepted without reported casualties, CNBC reported.

The Iran Dimension and How It Complicates the Lebanon Track

The Israel-Lebanon track is directly entangled with the broader US-Iran conflict. Iran claims that ongoing Israeli strikes in Lebanon constitute a violation of its ceasefire with the United States, making progress on the Lebanon front a prerequisite for any durable Iran deal. Trump acknowledged the link explicitly, saying when asked whether Iran must stop financing Hezbollah as part of any agreement: “that is a must.” Lebanese officials have insisted on keeping their negotiations separate from the Iran track, arguing Lebanon must represent itself and not be positioned as a proxy in US-Iran diplomacy. The US Navy seized a tanker carrying Iranian oil in the Indian Ocean on the same day as the ceasefire announcement, adding another active pressure point to an already complex diplomatic environment. As crypto.news tracked, crypto markets have been responding in real time to every diplomatic signal from the region, with Bitcoin moving on ceasefire developments as a proxy for broader macro risk sentiment.

What the Three-Week Window Is Meant to Achieve

The extension provides a specific diplomatic window for the US to bring Netanyahu and Aoun to Washington for a face-to-face meeting, which Trump described as something he “looks forward to in the near future.” Vance called the moment “a major, historic moment,” while Lebanese President Aoun’s government described the extension as creating space to develop a road map toward a permanent end to hostilities. The key outstanding issue on the Lebanon side remains Israeli troop withdrawals. Lebanese officials said a trilateral meeting with Israel is unlikely as long as Israel occupies roughly 6% of Lebanese territory and continues to conduct strikes despite the ceasefire. As crypto.news reported, oil markets have been watching the region’s diplomatic trajectory closely, with Brent crude trading above $105 as the Iran blockade standoff continued alongside the Lebanon extension announcement.

Trump said the United States will work with Lebanon to help it protect itself from Hezbollah, framing the extension as both a diplomatic and security commitment that goes beyond simply pausing hostilities.