Bitcoin price edged closer to the $75,000 mark after news reports suggested a potential de-escalation of the U.S.-Iran war. Bitcoin is now close to breaking out of an ascending triangle that could push it higher this week.

According to data from crypto.news, Bitcoin (BTC) price rose nearly 6% to a 4-week high of $74,788 on Tuesday morning Asian time. Trading at $74,675 at press time, it stood nearly 9% higher over the past week.

Bitcoin price climbed higher amid renewed hopes of a potential ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran after the latter hinted that its officials are ready to abandon pursuing a nuclear enrichment program. This came just a day after U.S. naval forces began intercepting and blocking Iranian traffic at the Strait of Hormuz.

Following this, crude oil prices, which rose to nearly $120 yesterday, came crashing down under $100 at press time, reducing fears of global inflation and boosting risk assets such as Bitcoin.

Bitcoin price also benefited from anticipation surrounding the U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) scheduled for release later today, as investors look for signs that wholesale inflation might come in lower than the 4.6% year-over-year forecast.

Risk assets, including Bitcoin, tend to thrive when PPI data shows cooling below expectations—currently estimated at a 1.2% monthly increase, as it suggests slowing inflation at the production level. This trend could encourage the central bank to pause its aggressive stance on interest rates or even begin cutting interest rates later this year.

Over $225 million in short positions from across derivatives markets also helped lift Bitcoin price as bears were forced to buy back their assets at a loss. This wave of forced buying created a short squeeze that provided the necessary fuel to accelerate the current market breakout.

On the daily chart, Bitcoin has been forming an ascending triangle pattern that it has been developing since its drop in early February this year. Following the recent Bitcoin rebound, the bellwether asset is moving closer toward breaking out of the upper horizontal trend line of the pattern at around $76,000.

A look at technical indicators shows that bulls currently maintain control of the market. The Supertrend has flipped green for the first time this month, which means the short-term momentum has shifted from bearish to bullish.

The Aroon Up sits at 100% while a much lower Aroon Down reading also reinforced the bullish view by suggesting that new highs are being reached while selling pressure remains weak.

For now, $76,000 is acting as the key resistance level to watch. A decisive breakout above the current triangle could embolden bulls to reach for the next immediate psychological resistance level at $80,000.

On the contrary, a drop below $72,000 could invalidate the short-term bullish setup.

TLDR:

• Rakuten Wallet lists XRP on April 15, 2026, giving 44 million Rakuten Pay users direct access to the asset.
  
• Users can convert Rakuten Points into XRP, tapping a loyalty pool worth approximately $23 billion USD.
  
• XRP converted to Rakuten Cash becomes spendable at over five million merchant locations across Japan.
  
• Rakuten’s ecosystem records 5.6 trillion yen in annual GMV, placing XRP inside one of Asia’s largest commerce networks.

Rakuten Wallet will list XRP as a supported asset and payment method starting April 15, 2026. The move connects XRP to one of Japan’s largest consumer ecosystems.

Rakuten Pay serves 44 million users across the country. Users will be able to buy XRP directly with Rakuten Points or convert XRP into Rakuten Cash for everyday spending. The integration covers over five million merchant locations nationwide.

XRP Enters Japan’s Mainstream Commerce Network

Rakuten Pay is not a crypto-native platform. It is Japan’s everyday commerce app, used by tens of millions of consumers for routine purchases.

Bringing XRP into this environment puts the asset in front of users who may have never engaged with digital currencies before.

Through this integration, users can convert Rakuten Points directly into XRP. Rakuten has issued over three trillion points to date, which is equivalent to roughly $23 billion USD. That existing pool of value now has a direct pathway into digital assets.

Spending XRP will be straightforward for users. Once converted to Rakuten Cash, XRP can be used at any of the five million-plus merchants that accept Rakuten Pay across Japan. This gives XRP real transactional utility at a scale that few digital assets have reached in any market.

Crypto analyst Tatsuya Kohrogi noted the scale of the development on X, writing that Rakuten Pay has 44 million users and that “this isn’t a crypto-native app — it’s Japan’s everyday commerce platform.”

He described it as putting XRP in front of people who have never thought about crypto before.

The Numbers Behind the Rakuten Wallet and XRP Partnership

Rakuten’s broader ecosystem adds further weight to this development. The platform reports over 100 million total members and processes 5.6 trillion yen in annual e-commerce gross merchandise value. These figures place the XRP integration inside one of Asia’s most active digital commerce networks.

The loyalty points system alone represents a substantial entry point for digital asset adoption. With three trillion-plus points now convertible to XRP, the pipeline between traditional rewards and crypto is direct and accessible to everyday consumers.

Kohrogi also pointed out that XRP is “now embedded into its loyalty and payments infrastructure,” calling it a strong indicator of where broader digital asset adoption is heading. His post acknowledged the Rakuten Wallet team for executing the integration.

For XRP, the partnership represents access to a trusted, established consumer brand. Rakuten’s reputation in Japan is built on decades of retail and financial services.

That credibility now extends to XRP as a usable and purchasable digital asset within a familiar ecosystem.

Key Points

• Criminal organization demands payment from Kraken after obtaining video recordings of the exchange’s internal operations
• Chief Security Officer Nick Percoco states no system compromise occurred and all customer assets remain secure
• Approximately 2,000 user accounts may have been accessed during two distinct events in February 2025 and recently
• Federal authorities are collaborating with Kraken on the investigation, with one extortion scheme already neutralized
• Similar incident targeted Coinbase in May 2025, demanding $20 million following compromise of approximately 70,000 customer records

The cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has publicly declined to meet the demands of cybercriminals who captured video recordings of its internal operational systems and are threatening public disclosure. Nick Percoco, serving as the platform’s Chief Security Officer, announced the company’s position via X on Monday.

According to Percoco, the perpetrators recorded Kraken’s customer support personnel while they accessed internal client management platforms. This footage is now being weaponized to extract an undisclosed sum from the exchange.

“We will not pay these criminals,” Percoco declared. “We will not ever negotiate with bad actors.”

The exchange has verified that no complete system penetration took place. At no time were customer assets placed in jeopardy during either occurrence.

Two distinct security events form the foundation of this extortion campaign. The initial incident transpired in February 2025, when evidence suggests a Kraken support staff member recorded internal platform activities. A subsequent incident following a comparable methodology occurred more recently.

In each situation, Kraken responded swiftly to recognize the security risk and terminate unauthorized access. The platform reports successfully dismantling one extortion scheme tied to this criminal activity.

Approximately 2,000 customer accounts on Kraken’s platform were potentially accessed throughout both security incidents. The exchange has initiated contact with all potentially impacted users.

Federal Authorities Join Investigation

Kraken has engaged federal law enforcement agencies to pursue the criminal organization. Percoco indicated the ongoing investigation may result in apprehensions.

The platform is additionally coordinating with cybersecurity specialists across the industry. Percoco stated the organization is partnering to “investigate and disrupt insider recruitment efforts” focused on cryptocurrency, gaming, and telecommunications sectors.

Internal security risks have emerged as an escalating challenge throughout the digital currency ecosystem. The North Korean-linked Lazarus Group has gained notoriety for infiltrating operatives within legitimate organizations, with security researchers documenting no fewer than 60 identified Lazarus-connected developers working for cryptocurrency ventures.

Coinbase Experienced Comparable Extortion Scheme

Kraken isn’t the inaugural prominent exchange confronting this type of criminal pressure. During May 2025, Coinbase revealed that cybercriminals demanded $20 million to prevent the release of customer information.

That security incident impacted approximately 70,000 platform users and stemmed from corruption payments made to international customer support personnel.

Overall cryptocurrency security incidents have demonstrated an upward trajectory. Blockchain intelligence provider Nominis reports that more than $178 million vanished through significant crypto-related attacks during March 2026, representing a substantial increase from $49.3 million recorded in February.

Authorization exploitation emerged as the predominant attack vector throughout March, with targets inadvertently approving transactions that granted attackers complete control over their digital assets.

Percoco emphasized that protecting Kraken’s customers remains the platform’s “highest priority” and affirmed ongoing efforts to strengthen defenses against evolving security challenges.

A bipartisan effort to bridge the divide between Wall Street and the digital asset industry could see a breakthrough as early as this week.

Politico reports that Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) is preparing to unveil a draft agreement aimed at settling the fierce debate over stablecoin yields. 

Working alongside Senator Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tillis has been refining language for the Clarity Act, a piece of legislation intended to set a regulatory framework for the crypto sector. 

The primary sticking point remains whether digital asset firms should be permitted to pay interest on idle stablecoin balances, a practice banks claim threatens their deposit base.

“I think the language has come together well,” Tillis stated on Monday, noting that a public release depends on the continued success of ongoing discussions.

Banking representatives have already expressed concerns regarding the latest proposal from the two senators. Traditional lenders argue that high-yield stablecoin products could pull liquidity out of the banking system, creating instability. 

Conversely, crypto platforms like Coinbase argue that a ban on rewards would hinder growth and ignore the potential for banks to participate in these new markets. 

While the GENIUS Act, passed last year, prohibited stablecoin issuers from paying interest directly, it left a loophole for third-party exchanges to offer yields, which the Clarity Act now seeks to address.

The White House has attempted to mediate the standoff through several private meetings since January, yet both sides have remained firm in their views. 

Senator Tillis has suggested hosting a “crypto-palooza” on Capitol Hill, bringing both factions together in a public forum to force a resolution. 

Even if a compromise is reached, the bill faces a steep climb through the Senate Banking and Agriculture Committees before it can reach the floor for a final vote.

Zero-knowledge scaling company StarkWare is cutting jobs and restructuring its operations as it shifts from infrastructure development toward revenue-generating products. 

CEO Eli Ben-Sasson said in internal remarks that the firm will split into two business units and cut headcount to move faster and operate more efficiently, with one unit focused on applications and the other on Starknet development.

Ben-Sasson said the company would adopt a “startup mode” mindset, prioritizing fewer initiatives with higher revenue potential, while warning that downsizing would affect employees across the organization. StarkWare did not disclose how many employees would be affected by the cuts.

The move reflects a wider retrenchment across crypto firms, which have been trimming headcount and narrowing priorities as they chase clearer product-market fit, stronger monetization and leaner operations. Messari, Algorand Foundation and Crypto.com all announced cuts in March.

StarkWare says technical edge must translate into revenue

Ben-Sasson said StarkWare’s next phase would center on turning its technology into “meaningful revenue” and “meaningful usage,” arguing that the company could no longer rely mainly on external blockchains or third-party teams to prove the value of its stack.

Ben-Sasson said the company would focus on “fewer things excellently” and prioritize products with revenue potential that can be built only on its technological stack. 

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“We’re going to achieve this by innovating across not just infrastructure, as we’ve done so far, but across the whole stack of infrastructure and product,” he said. 

Crypto layoffs continue as firms tighten strategy

StarkWare’s cuts follow other recent layoffs across the crypto sector as firms narrow priorities and reshape operations. On March 17, Messari announced layoffs alongside a leadership change as the company moved deeper into artificial intelligence-powered research and data tools for institutions. 

On March 19, the Algorand Foundation said it would cut 25% of its employees, citing macro uncertainty and the broader crypto downturn. The organization said the move was aimed at better aligning resources with its long-term business, technology and ecosystem priorities.

On the same day, Crypto.com also announced a 12% reduction of its workforce as part of a broader push into AI. The exchange said the layoffs were tied to company-wide AI integration and a decision to prioritize resources around key growth areas.

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