Crypto World
This bitcoin bear market is different with 'uniquely pessimistic' traders limiting downside, K33 says
The research firm said bitcoin traders remain unusually defensive, reducing the risk of the kind of leverage-driven collapse seen in prior downturns.
Consensus 2026 will be remembered less for what happened on its main stage and more for what happened after hours. The choice of E11even, a Miami strip club, as the official closing party venue sent shockwaves through Crypto Twitter, igniting a debate about professionalism, culture, and who the industry is really building for.
Beneath the controversy, however, the same event highlighted the widening gap between crypto’s retail base and an industry increasingly catering to institutional investors.
Lanyards at a Strip Club
Jess Zhang arrived at E11even reluctantly. She was originally going to opt for another plan, but at the behest of other partners, she changed her mind at the last minute. She walked in around midnight, during the peak of the party.
Almost immediately, she sensed she should have stuck with her original instinct. Most attendees’ faces spelled confusion, and the ambiance exuded awkwardness.
Zhang, CEO of Blockus and a member of the crypto industry since its peak non-fungible token (NFT) days, summarized it plainly:
“It was just like a dingy strip club,” she said in conversation with BeInCrypto. “People were in business casual, they had their conference lanyard on, they just looked very confused.”
She was not alone in that assessment. Amanda Wick, a former federal prosecutor turned crypto compliance consultant who was also in attendance, questioned how an industry actively courting institutional legitimacy could still default to this kind of entertainment.
“When will the crypto industry figure out not to use strip clubs as entertainment at supposedly professional events?” she wrote on LinkedIn shortly after.
The broader context also puts the choice of event at odds with the stage the crypto market is currently at.
Following widespread criticism of the event, the “Association for Women in Crypto” posted several open letters to the event’s sponsors.
Wall Street Takes the Main Stage
The day of the conference featured some prominent entities that only a couple of years ago had never set foot in the sector. Among the 15,000 different names, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and other big banks stood out.
The morning after the E11even afterparty, Morgan Stanley announced crypto trading on its E*Trade platform with fees more competitive than those of Coinbase.
Beyond the events in Miami, crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have grown in popularity, while exchanges like Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) announced plans to build their own platforms for tokenized stocks.
“We should be leveling up as an industry, so this shouldn’t be a venue for the official closing party,” Zhang said.
More importantly to her, however, was another contradiction made apparent during the event’s afterparty.
Institutional Gains, Retail Pains
Despite unprecedented institutional interest in crypto in recent months, prices across the board have plateaued or fallen. The economic strain on founders and developers has become hard to ignore.
For Zhang, that reality was also impossible to miss at the afterparty.
“The floor was very dry, there was nearly no money being spent at all. People weren’t tipping the dancers,” she said.
Zhang also recalled a video that circulated on Crypto Twitter shortly after, showing a man apparently pocketing dollar bills meant for the dancers.
“It felt metaphorical of the bear market and the institutionals taking from us,” she said, referring to builders and retailers.
She contrasted the scene sharply with her last visit to the same club in 2021, when now-defunct exchange FTX hosted a similar event during a historic bull run. Back then, the atmosphere was celebratory, almost cabaret-like. The club accepted crypto payments and had its own NFT project.
This time, none of that energy was present. And that sentiment wasn’t limited only to Consensus.
Survival Mode Beyond Consensus
Across some of the most prominent crypto events of 2026, what stood out to attendees were quieter-than-usual auditoriums and a palpable sense of unease.
Owen Healy, a Web3 recruiter and regular event attendee, observed this firsthand at EthCC in Cannes, France.
With a front-row seat to the industry’s job market, he noted that anxiety was widespread, cutting across companies that, from the outside, still appeared to be doing well. Few were willing to admit it openly, he said, for fear of the professional consequences.
“From the start, it was obvious we were in a bear market. Fewer side events, fewer booths, fewer attendees and fewer items of swag to take home,” Healy said in an X post. “As a recruiter, I felt sad leaving. It was scary how many attendees expressed deep concern regarding their careers. Many attendees were recently let go and many more felt it was only a matter of time.”
Paris Blockchain Week told a different story. Men in suits had largely replaced the crypto faithful, and the mood lifted accordingly– but only for those in the right rooms. For Healy, it crystallized a divide that had been building for some time.
“As things stand, we’ve two industries in one — efficient finance doing well and alternate finance not so well,” he wrote.
For many digital asset companies, that divide has made conference attendance a harder sell.
From Big Booths to Lean Budgets
For companies that built their brands on the back of crypto’s retail boom, the shift has prompted a fundamental rethink of where to put their money.
Koinly, a global crypto tax platform, is one of them. The company was an early and heavy investor in conference sponsorships, using events as a core growth engine during its formative years.
That era, according to CEO Robin Singh, is now behind them. He described the move away from large-scale conference sponsorships as a result of the broader crypto industry’s evolution toward institutionalization.
“The era of large activation booths, major sponsorship packages, and large-scale giveaways has largely been replaced by a more focused approach to capital allocation,” Robin Singh said, adding, “Today, there is a much greater emphasis on deploying acquisition spend efficiently, improving onboarding, maintaining high-quality customer support, and continuing to expand the product through the new features and integrations we regularly release.”
The shift points to something larger than conference economics. The industry is reordering itself, and not everyone is making the cut.
Zhang saw that reordering up close at Consensus. VIPs were sequestered in private events at the Ritz Carlton while everyone else was funneled into a strip club.
“It reflected a general new trend in crypto that’s very bad,” she said. “There’s just segregation into the haves and the have-nots. The institutional, the suits, VIP events that aren’t even public or talked about. And then the have-nots are the retailers, and there’s not much for them.”
Though the industry finally has the institutional credibility it spent years chasing, those who arrived long before the suits did have yet to see that validation translate into anything tangible.
The post How a Strip Club at Consensus 2026 Showed the Crypto Market’s Sad Reality appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Ethereum Price Primed for Quantum Narrative: Citi Says ETH Could Survive While Bitcoin Struggles
Ethereum price is falling by almost 8% this week, but Citi’s research notes could change how big money views the ETH/BTC relationship. The bank’s research cuts deeper than the quantum computing argument. Governance, not just cryptography, could decide which crypto survives Q-Day.
In a widely circulated research note this week, Citi analysts warned that recent quantum computing breakthroughs have compressed the timeline for practical attacks on digital assets, and Bitcoin carries structurally greater exposure than Ethereum.
Bitcoin transactions expose the sender’s public key on-chain until confirmed, creating a window for a quantum attacker to exploit private keys and redirect funds.
Citi’s analysis states the real vulnerability is not just technical on a technical level. Bitcoin’s conservative, consensus-driven governance makes rapid migration to quantum-resistant cryptography slow and politically contested, while Ethereum’s history of regular protocol upgrades gives it structural flexibility.
Separately, Citi has raised its Ethereum year-end price target to $4,500, with a 12-month projection of $5,440. That combination of quantum resilience and rising institutional targets is moving ETH into a bullish narrative.
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) October 2, 2025
LATEST: Citi sets a 12-month target of $181K for $BTC and $5,440 for $ETH. pic.twitter.com/zPr6YojbVu
The implications for near-term price action are significant. If institutional capital begins rotating on quantum risk differentiation ETH’s technical setup becomes a lot more interesting.
Discover: The best crypto to diversify your portfolio with
Realistically, How Far Can the Ethereum Price Goes?
Ethereum is currently consolidating in the $2,100 support that acts as a major floor. A sustained close above $2,500 would signal the beginning of a larger breakout phase, with Citi’s year-end target of $4,500 as the initial institutional benchmark.
The bull case is straightforward: quantum narrative accelerates institutional rotation into ETH, spot ETH ETF inflows pick up through Q3, and DeFi/tokenization activity drives fee revenue that justifies higher multiples. Under that scenario, Citi’s bull-case projection of $5,000 comes into view by mid-2026.
However, Citi’s $4,500 year-end target assumes steady ETF demand and continued Layer-2 adoption without a major macro shock.
ETH needs to see a meaningful uptick in spot buying, not just derivatives activity, to confirm any move through $3,000 is sustainable rather than a liquidity squeeze. Recent institutional outlooks remain broadly bullish on ETH into 2026, though the quantum angle adds a new variable that price models haven’t historically incorporated.
Discover: The best pre-launch token sales
Bitcoin Hyper Targets Early Mover Upside as Quantum Narrative Hits BTC
If Citi’s quantum risk framing gains traction, the pressure will land squarely on Bitcoin’s limitations. BTC is known for slow transaction speeds, high fees, and a governance structure that resists rapid cryptographic upgrades.
Bitcoin’s recent price struggles already reflect institutional uncertainty about its near-term ceiling, with Citi trimming its BTC 12-month target while lifting ETH’s. The rotation narrative is forming. The question is where early capital moves.
Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER) is positioning directly against Bitcoin’s structural weaknesses as the first-ever Bitcoin Layer 2 with Solana Virtual Machine (SVM) integration, delivering faster smart contract execution than Solana itself at a fraction of BTC’s native cost.
The project has raised north of $32 million at a current presale price of $0.0136, with staking incentives live for early participants. The SVM integration is the differentiator: it brings Ethereum-grade programmability to the Bitcoin ecosystem without sacrificing Bitcoin’s security base, a direct architectural response to the governance rigidity Citi just flagged.
Research Bitcoin Hyper here before the next price increase.
The post Ethereum Price Primed for Quantum Narrative: Citi Says ETH Could Survive While Bitcoin Struggles appeared first on Cryptonews.
According to Cointelegraph, Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has greenlit a policy pathway to accelerate automated financial infrastructure through artificial intelligence and blockchain technology. The policy proposal, issued by the LDP Policy Research Council as part of the “Next Generation AI and Onchain Finance Initiative,” envisions using blockchain to settle payments across retail and wholesale channels, while enabling AI to autonomously execute economic activities. It also calls for clarifying the legality of yen-pegged stablecoins as part of a broader regulatory framework.
In a translated statement accompanying the publication, the council asserted that expanding blockchain adoption will be pivotal to constructing the infrastructure required to keep Japan at the forefront of AI-enabled finance. The document underscored the potential to deepen international cooperation, particularly with Asian economies that maintain strong economic ties with Japan, should Japan lead in creating a secure and trusted on-chain payments infrastructure.
“In Japan, the expanded adoption of blockchain technology will play a crucial role in establishing the necessary infrastructure to ensure that the nation remains ‘chosen by AI’,” the council stated, adding: “If we can take the lead among nations in establishing a secure and trusted payment infrastructure for on-chain transactions, we can anticipate deepening cooperation in various forms — such as by providing expertise and services — particularly with Asian countries that share strong economic ties with Japan.”
On the public record, LDP member Seiji Kihara reflected on the plan via X, describing the release as laying out the “big picture” of the initiative. He emphasized that the critical work now lies in the follow-up steps needed to translate the vision into concrete policy and implementation efforts.
Key takeaways
- The LDP Policy Research Council approved a forward-looking framework to integrate AI and on-chain finance, outlining use cases for autonomous AI-driven economic activity and on-chain payment settlements in Japan’s retail and wholesale sectors.
- The initiative places a spotlight on clarifying the legal status of yen-pegged stablecoins within Japan’s financial infrastructure, signaling a push to define digital currency instruments within existing regulatory boundaries.
- The plan positions Japan to seek regional leadership in secure, trusted on-chain payments, with potential collaboration and service provision to Asian partners that are economically entwined with Japan.
- Regulatory backdrop continues to evolve: Japan’s government earlier amended a law to classify crypto assets as financial instruments, following a period of consideration around guidelines that could enable crypto-backed exchange-traded funds.
- Industry dynamics in the domestic crypto market may be shifting toward consolidation, as evidenced by SBI Holdings’ indication of interest in acquiring a stake in Bitbank, a move with implications for market structure and regulatory oversight.
Policy framework for AI-enabled on-chain finance
The initiative represents a deliberate attempt to map a national blueprint for AI-enabled, blockchain-based financial infrastructure. By envisioning a system in which blockchain settlement mechanisms underwrite retail and wholesale transactions, and AI autonomously executes economic activities, the LDP aims to reduce friction in payments and broaden the scope of programmable finance. The emphasis on on-chain settlement is notable for potential implications across settlement latency, interoperability, and operator liability—areas that typically attract scrutiny from regulators and compliance teams as digital assets gain traction in mainstream finance.
The document also contemplates a clarified legal environment for yen-linked stablecoins. While not a full endorsement of any particular instrument, the emphasis on certainty around legal status is aimed at addressing risk vectors that concern banks, payment providers, and exchanges seeking to participate in a regulated ecosystem. In this context, the plan aligns with broader policy conversations about how digital currencies interface with traditional monetary frameworks and payment rails.
The leadership’s framing of the initiative as a collaborative path to “be chosen by AI” underscores Japan’s intention to position itself as a testing ground for secure, trusted on-chain operations. The aspirational tone reflects a governance approach that seeks to balance innovation with regulatory clarity—an essential consideration for financial institutions, technology providers, and market participants seeking clarity on permissible activities, licensing requirements, and cross-border compliance expectations.
As part of the broader regulatory landscape, observers may note that Japan has been methodically adjusting its stance on digital assets. In April, the government amended a law to classify crypto assets as financial instruments, following earlier signals about potential guideline changes that could enable crypto-linked exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the near term. While the specific contours of any future ETFs remain under consideration, the trend signals a move toward formal recognition of digital asset instruments within Japan’s financial regulatory framework. For exchanges and asset managers, these developments—together with the LDP plan—could influence licensing trajectories, product approvals, and the scope of permissible client disclosures and risk controls.
Industry consolidation and market structure implications
Concurrent with the policy discourse, corporate activity within Japan’s crypto sector is shifting. On May 1, SBI Holdings disclosed that it was weighing a stake acquisition in Bitbank, one of the country’s digital-asset platforms. If negotiations advance and receive the necessary approvals, the move would constitute a notable consolidation: a major financial services player seeking to acquire or integrate a digital asset exchange. Market participants, incumbents, and regulators alike will be watching how such moves interact with the evolving regulatory regime—particularly regarding licensing, AML/KYC regimes, governance standards, and consumer protections for exchange users.
The consolidation narrative, set against a backdrop of regulatory clarity and a push for more sophisticated financial infrastructure, could influence competitive dynamics, capital allocation, and partner ecosystems for banks, payment processors, and other fintechs operating in Japan. It also raises questions for cross-border firms and foreign participants seeking to operate in Japan’s crypto market, underscoring the importance of aligned compliance programs, transparent governance practices, and robust risk management frameworks to navigate any shifts in market concentration.
Closing perspective
Japan’s LDP policy initiative marks a deliberate step toward integrating AI and blockchain into a formal financial infrastructure plan, with explicit attention to regulatory clarity around stablecoins and on-chain settlement. As the government advances this agenda, market participants should monitor the regulatory dialogue, licensing developments, and potential cross-border cooperation that could reshape the competitive landscape for digital assets and financial technology in Japan and the broader Asia-Pacific region.
Iran’s parliament is reviewing a bill that would obligate the state to pay €50 million (about $58 million) to anyone who kills US President Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, or US Central Command (CENTCOM) leader Admiral Brad Cooper.
Lawmaker Ebrahim Azizi announced the proposal on Iranian state television, framing it as retaliation for the February 28 strikes that killed former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The legislation is titled “Reciprocal action by military and security forces of the Islamic Republic.”
Reciprocal Action Bill Targets Three Leaders
Azizi chairs the parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee. He told state TV that the named officials must be “subjected to reciprocal action” and described the act as a religious duty for any “Muslim or free person.”
“Just as our Imam was martyred, the president of the United States must be dealt with by any Muslim or free person,” the Jerusalem Post reported, citing Azizi.
Parliamentarian Mahmoud Nabavian confirmed the bill is heading to a vote and warned of a “devastating” response if Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is targeted next.
The proposal has not yet cleared committee review. Any passed law would still need Guardian Council approval before taking effect.
Could Crypto Rails Enter the Picture?
Iran is among the world’s most heavily sanctioned economies, raising questions about how a state-backed reward of this size would actually be delivered.
Tehran has previously leaned on alternative settlement channels, including digital assets, to move value outside the dollar system.
The “Blood Covenant” group, which researchers say operates under regime tolerance, reportedly raised more than $40 million in pledged bounties on Trump after US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites last June.
The funding mechanics of that effort have not been fully disclosed.
Follow us on X to get the latest news as it happens
Whether crypto rails could carry any future state-linked payout remains speculative. The bill specifies no payment method, but Iran’s documented stablecoin use for sanctioned trade keeps the question open.
Trump and Tehran Trade Public Threats
Daniel Cohen, a research fellow at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism in Israel, told the Jerusalem Post that the bill looks more like propaganda than operational planning.
He described the move as “psyops” aimed at signalling defiance after the February strikes weakened Tehran’s leadership.
Cohen warned that open, state-endorsed rhetoric could still inspire lone actors even without a functioning payout.
Trump has matched Tehran’s rhetoric with his own. In a January 2026 interview, he framed any Iranian attempt on his life as a trigger for total retaliation.
“I have very firm instructions, anything happens, they’re going to wipe them off the face of this earth,” The Hill reported, citing Trump.
The Justice Department charged an Iranian national in 2024 over an alleged Revolutionary Guard plot against Trump. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in March that an Iranian official planning a separate attempt was killed in a US airstrike.
Whether the bill clears parliament will signal how far Iran’s hardline establishment is willing to formalize threats that until now have lived in clerical statements and unofficial fundraising.
The next committee session is the moment to watch.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch leaders and journalists provide expert insights
The post Iran Parliament Weighs $60 Million Bounty Bill Targeting Trump and Netanyahu appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Crypto World
Zerohash pursues new funding at more than $1.5 billion valuation after Mastercard drops investment plans
Crypto infrastructure providers are drawing renewed investor interest as Wall Street deepens its push into digital assets.
Crypto World
Even a mountain of T-bills won't save Tether and Circle from a sudden liquidity crisis, expert says
The head of digital assets and tokenization at one of Germany’s largest asset managers said that USDT and USDC are not stablecoins, from his perspective.
Lolli launched automatic Bitcoin cashback for users who link eligible debit or credit cards, partnering with commerce network Kard.
Summary
- Lolli partnered with Kard to enable automatic Bitcoin cashback for its 600,000 account holders on linked Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards across Kard’s merchant network.
- Users earn Bitcoin rewards automatically on qualifying purchases with no extensions, codes, or checkout changes required, with rewards deposited directly to their Lolli wallet.
- Bitcoin earned can be withdrawn via the Lightning Network or used within the Thesis Bitcoin stack, including spending through Bitrefill and other integrations.
Lolli announced on Tuesday that it has partnered with independent commerce media network Kard to launch card-linked Bitcoin cashback rewards for its more than 600,000 accounts.
Users who link eligible Visa or Mastercard debit or credit cards through the Lolli app automatically earn Bitcoin on qualifying purchases at thousands of merchants — including Dropbox, Hydro Flask, and Stanley 1913 — with no extensions, codes, or checkout steps required.
“Lolli’s audience is one of the most distinctive consumer cohorts in the rewards space,” said Kard CEO Ben Mackinnon. “We’re excited to power infrastructure that lets them earn bitcoin in the background of their everyday spending, and to give our merchants a meaningful new channel into that audience.” The move marks Lolli’s biggest product upgrade since its acquisition by Bitcoin venture studio Thesis last July.
Lolli Bitcoin cashback removes friction from earning rewards
Cards are linked through Plaid inside the Lolli app, with Bitcoin rewards from qualifying purchases sent automatically to the user’s Lolli wallet. Rewards can then be withdrawn via the Lightning Network or used within the broader Thesis Bitcoin stack, including spending through Bitrefill. The feature requires no browser extension and works on both online and in-person purchases at any participating merchant.
Thesis co-founder Matt Luongo said the partnership fulfils the original acquisition goal: “Our users link a card once, and bitcoin shows up in their wallet from spending they were already going to do.” Lolli has previously raised $28.3 million in total funding.
Kard’s commerce media network reaches over 47 million cardholders and uses first-party transaction data to match offers to spending patterns. As crypto.news documented in its best crypto cards guide, consumer appetite for crypto-linked payment products has grown steadily in 2026 alongside broader regulatory clarity.
Why card-linked rewards expand Bitcoin adoption
Most Bitcoin cashback products require users to either spend crypto directly or use a dedicated crypto-branded card. Lolli’s model asks users only to link an existing card and shop normally, with Bitcoin accumulating passively in the background. That design removes every barrier to Bitcoin acquisition for users who want exposure without managing wallets or changing spending habits.
The Bitcoin price at roughly $77,000 at time of writing means cashback earned today represents a real-time market acquisition, with the potential for appreciation over time.
Separately, Revolut’s launch of its first physical crypto card this week, as crypto.news reported, underlines the broader trend of fintech platforms competing to make Bitcoin and crypto rewards a standard feature of everyday consumer spending in 2026.
Crypto World
Bitcoin News: Iran Integrates Bitcoin for Shipping Insurance: Sovereign Settlement Rail
Bitcoin News: Iran has launched a Bitcoin-settled shipping insurance program called Hormuz Safe, developed under the Ministry of Economy and Financial Affairs, allowing vessel operators to pay premiums and receive claims entirely in BTC through a system that activates coverage immediately upon blockchain confirmation.
The program targets the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint handling roughly 20% of global seaborne crude, and represents the most structurally significant sovereign Bitcoin integration in the sanctions-evasion context to date.
The strategic implication is not incremental. Iran is not simply accepting Bitcoin for a single transaction, it is constructing a self-contained trade settlement loop that replaces SWIFT, USD-denominated premiums, and bank-backed claims processing in one move.
The unanswered question is whether any international shipping company will publicly use it, and whether that moment triggers OFAC secondary sanctions enforcement.
JUST IN:
Iran launches Bitcoin-backed insurance service for shipping companies wanting to transit the Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/kFHz14ZJfB
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) May 18, 2026
Discover: The best pre-launch token sales
Bitcoin News: How Hormuz Safe Actually Works, and Why the Insurance Mechanism Is the Real Story
The mechanism here is worth understanding precisely. Traditional maritime shipping insurance runs through Lloyd’s of London-style syndicates and P&I clubs, all of which operate on USD or major fiat rails with counterparty exposure to Western correspondent banks.
For any vessel owner operating near Iran, that structure creates dual exposure: the physical risk of the transit and the financial risk of triggering bank-level secondary sanctions just by purchasing coverage.
Hormuz Safe eliminates the second exposure by settling entirely on-chain. When a shipping company pays the premium in Bitcoin, the system issues a signed digital receipt to the vessel owner, and coverage activates immediately after blockchain confirmation, no intermediary bank, no SWIFT message, no USD clearing.
The sanction resistance built into this model is not incidental; it is the product.
Reports circulating across research desks indicate the Ministry of Economy had been developing the framework since late April 2026, and that initial coverage is focused on Iranian shipping companies and cargo owners before any broader rollout.
That narrower scope matters, it means the first phase is less about onboarding international partners and more about proving the claims infrastructure works at a sovereign level before marketing sanction-resistant coverage to third-party operators.
The Kobeissi Letter has described the move as a deliberate effort to deepen crypto’s role in energy trade, while also flagging the obvious compliance risk for any non-Iranian entity that participates.
Those are not the same thing: using Bitcoin for domestic Iranian logistics and offering Bitcoin-settled insurance to international tankers transiting Hormuz carry categorically different OFAC exposure profiles.
The program’s initial domestic focus suggests Iran understands this distinction and is sequencing accordingly.
Iran’s government has framed Hormuz Safe as a potential $10 billion revenue source, though no official timeline has been attached to that figure.
For Bitcoin’s market structure, this is a non-speculative demand source. Each premium payment is a real-economy BTC transaction tied to trade settlement, not a leveraged long or an ETF inflow.
As Bitcoin trades near two-week lows following a drop from $82,000 to $76,900, a 6% decline driven by ETF outflows and derivatives selling pressure, sovereign adoption events like this represent the floor-building utility thesis that long-term holders reference against short-term price weakness.
Discover: The best crypto to diversify your portfolio with
The post Bitcoin News: Iran Integrates Bitcoin for Shipping Insurance: Sovereign Settlement Rail appeared first on Cryptonews.
Ethereum dropped another 10.2% this week, with the ETH/BTC ratio sinking toward 0.0275, and market maker Wintermute is now flatly calling ETH “not the right asset for this macro” as yields and inflation grind higher.
Summary
- Wintermute says ETH is “not the right asset for this macro” as real yields rise and inflation re-accelerates.
- ETH has slid 10.2% this week, with the ETH/BTC pair pressing 0.0275 amid underperformance in both spot and derivatives.
- The firm also warns that being outright long BTC here is a bet that institutions will ignore rising Treasury yields and come back in size.
According to a note shared via industry channels and summarized by WuBlockchain on X, Wintermute says Ethereum’s (ETH) latest 10.2% weekly slide continues a pattern of underperformance “across both spot and derivatives markets,” with the ETH/BTC ratio pressing 0.0275 as traders rotate away from smart-contract beta into safer corners of the crypto complex. The firm’s verdict is blunt: “ETH is not the right asset for this macro,” citing an environment of rising Treasury yields, renewed inflation concerns and a market that is rewarding hard-asset narratives and cashflow clarity over long-duration tech bets.
Wintermute’s macro read is that crypto is now trading more like a high-beta extension of equity and credit risk, and that the current regime—re-accelerating inflation prints, stickier real yields and crowded trades in AI and growth stocks—is hostile to assets whose payoff is far out on the horizon. Ethereum, whose core bull case rests on future fee growth from DeFi, real-world assets, and L2 activity, fits that “long duration” profile, and the lack of a decisive on-chain usage surge leaves it particularly vulnerable when discount rates move higher. Recent technical work has been pointing to a choppy, range-bound ETH with only “measured optimism” toward levels like $2,300, warning that bearish MACD and fragile support around the low-$2,000s could make the path higher messy at best.
On Bitcoin, Wintermute is hardly pounding the table either. The firm cautions that being outright long BTC at current levels is effectively a macro bet that institutional investors will step back into spot and ETF markets despite higher yields and a still-uncertain inflation trajectory—something it thinks may be “difficult” until markets fully digest the shifting backdrop and the AI trade shows signs of cooling. In earlier reports, Wintermute argued that AI-linked equities and tokens have been “continuously absorbing available market funds,” leaving crypto in “high-volatility, low-spot-demand price discovery” as U.S. selling and ETF outflows bite.
That view dovetails with the firm’s broader 2026 outlook, where it has already declared the classic four-year crypto cycle “over” and replaced by a regime dominated by institutional capital flows and product rails such as ETFs and digital asset trusts. In that framework, neither halving narratives nor incremental protocol upgrades are enough; what matters is whether ETF mandates broaden, whether big allocators decide to treat BTC as macro collateral again, and whether secondary-market and token-launch activity (“DAT activity”) actually picks up.
For now, Wintermute’s message is that crypto is stuck in an awkward macro cross-current: liquidity exists, but it’s choosing AI and equities; yields are rising, making long-duration crypto bets less attractive; and structural inflows into both BTC and ETH are muted. In that mix, ETH’s combination of duration, still-unproven fee growth and fading narrative momentum makes it, in their words, “not the right asset for this macro,” while even BTC longs are, in effect, fading the bond market and betting that institutional risk appetite turns back toward digital assets before something in traditional markets snaps.
Zcash (ZEC) jumped near $580 on Tuesday after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) closed its Zcash Foundation investigation. A Q1 report also revealed a $36.7 million Foundation treasury.
The token gained nearly 10% over 24 hours. ZEC drew privacy traders back into a name battered by Electric Coin Company staff exits earlier in 2026.
The bounce extended a rally that has unfolded since institutional flows returned to the privacy sector earlier in 2026.
Follow us on X to get the latest news as it happens
Zcash SEC Investigation Closes Without Penalties
The Foundation said in its Q1 2026 report that the SEC concluded its review of the nonprofit. The agency informed leadership that it does not plan to recommend enforcement action.
The probe began on August 31, 2023, when staff served the Foundation with a subpoena. The case was filed as “In the Matter of Certain Crypto Asset Offerings,” designated SF-04569.
“We are pleased to announce that the SEC has concluded its review and informed us that it does not intend to recommend any enforcement action or other changes against Zcash Foundation regarding this matter,” Zcash Foundation noted.
The closure was formally communicated in January. It removes a regulatory overhang that had followed Zcash for over two years.
Foundation officials said the nonprofit cooperated fully throughout the process. No penalties, fines, or required changes were attached to the outcome.
The decision aligns with a broader pullback in SEC crypto cases seen since 2025. Several other projects, including Aave, OpenSea, Robinhood, Gemini, and Ondo, have seen probes closed without charges in recent quarters.
Foundation Discloses $36.7 Million Treasury
The same quarterly disclosure showed about $36.7 million in liquid holdings at the end of March. ZEC accounted for roughly 58.6% of the balance.
The Foundation also held Bitcoin, U.S. dollar reserves, and a small ether position. Average monthly operating expenses ran near $272,500.
That position gives the nonprofit a multi-year runway to keep funding engineering work. The cash buffer matters because most Electric Coin Company contributors left during a governance dispute.
The Q1 report stressed that blocks continued to settle, transactions cleared normally, and user privacy stayed intact through the transition.
Engineering output remained active in the period. The Foundation shipped several Zebra node releases and advanced the Z3 stack. FROST multi-party signing also progressed, while work continued on NU7, the next planned network upgrade.
Grayscale recently flagged Zcash as one of its preferred private-asset names. The endorsement drew fresh attention from larger allocators.
Traders watching the next leg will track NU7 timing and Foundation spending discipline. They will also weigh whether the SEC’s retreat from crypto cases holds through the next rule cycle.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch leaders and journalists provide expert insights
The post Zcash Price Surges 10% Amid 2 Major Developments appeared first on BeInCrypto.
Fighter jets scrambled over Washington DC as ‘sonic boom’ heard
GWR resumes direct trains from Bristol and Swindon to Oxford after more than 20 years
How a Strip Club at Consensus 2026 Showed the Crypto Market’s Sad Reality
Manchester United reach agreement with Casemiro over contract clause amid transfer speculation
US brings back mandatory military draft registration
Steven Gerrard disagrees with Gary Neville over ‘shock’ Chelsea and Arsenal claim | Football
AEPS Fraud System…#fraud #finance #financialfreedom #aadhar #payment #scam #bankingfraud #viral
Learn from your investment mistakes! #mutualfunds #money #bwealthy
What you prefer 1000 Guyana or 2$ #shots #travel #nyc #money #guyana #usa #giveaway #like
-
Crypto World4 days agoBloFin War of Whales 2026 Grand Prix opens registration for $5M trading championship
-
Fashion4 days agoWeekend Open Thread: Theory – Corporette.com
-
Crypto World4 days agoE-Estate Announces 1 Year Live: Washington DC Summit as Real Estate Tokenization Enters Its Next Phase
-
Crypto World7 days ago
Bitcoin Suisse expands with Digital Asset License and Investment Business Act Registration Approval in Bermuda
-
Tech5 days agoTech Moves: Microsoft AI leader jumps to OpenAI; former AI2 exec joins Meta; and more
-
Politics7 days agoPakistan to enter Chinese capital market as war inflation bites
-
Crypto World7 days agoBitcoin Suisse expands with Digital Asset License and Investment Business Act Registration Approval in Bermuda
-
Crypto World5 days agoGoogle’s Gemini AI Predicts Incredible Solana Price by the End of 2026
-
Tech4 days agoGoogle reimburses Register sources who were victims of API fraud
-
Business4 days agoH&R Real Estate Investment Trust (HR.UN:CA) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
-
Sports4 days agoNapoleonic enters 2026 Doomben 10,000 field via Abounding withdrawal
-
Entertainment5 days agoZara Larsson Has Blunt Response To Chris Brown Diss
-
Politics7 days agoPalestine’s flag becoming a regular sight at European football stadiums
-
Crypto World6 days agoTwo AI Tokens Lead May Rally, But Risks Are Rising
-
Fashion7 days agoThe Best-Kept Makeup Secret for a More Defined Face
-
Crypto World4 days agoBeInCrypto 100 Institutional Awards Nomination: KAST for Best Digital Assets Neobank and Best Digital Assets Fintech
-
Fashion3 days agoOn the Scene at Gucci’s Cruise Show in New York City: Mariah Carey, Kim Kardashian, Lindsay Lohan, Iman, and More!
-
Tech7 days agoWhy AI is making typography a boardroom conversation
-
Politics7 days agoThe 81 MPs (so far) who have demanded tick-like Starmer out
-
Crypto World7 days agoSenate Approves Kevin Warsh to Federal Reserve Board Seat
You must be logged in to post a comment Login