Из жизни альткоинов

В января — марте у 34 протоколов децентрализованных финансов (DeFi) хакеры украли криптовалюту на сумму более $168,6 млн, сообщил сервис DefiLlama.

Аналитики ончейн-платформы CryptoQuant обратили внимание, что крупные биткоин-инвесторы перешли от накопления к распределению актива. Эксперты считают эту тенденцию способной иметь долгосрочный характер.

Команда криптовалютного кошелька Leap Wallet объявила о решении прекратить поддержку сервиса и связанных с ним продуктов. Все они будут отключены 28 мая, до этого дня пользователям предложено завершить перенос активов. О причинах своего решения Leap не сообщает.

Bitcoin ended the first quarter of the year on a bearish note, and this red quarter carries some implications for the cryptocurrency. Despite the calls for a bottom, it seems that the digital asset might be far from actually reaching a bottom. As the new quarter unfolds, there is also the possibility that the Bitcoin price will end up forming a bearish pattern, and this could mean that the crypto winter could continue for much longer than expected.

Bitcoin’s Bearish Close And Its Implications

Pseudonymous crypto analyst Ming outlined what the bearish close actually means for the Bitcoin price. According to the post, this move shows that the bears are actually in charge and that the possibility of a lower decline is still very much in play.

Instead, the crypto analyst is looking at the Bitcoin price from the Higher Time Frame (HTF), putting the focus on the structure of the digital asset, as well as key levels that investors need to watch. Taking these in tandem, it could point to where the price is headed next.

The main level, the crypto analyst says, actually lies at around $58,900. This is interesting because the Bitcoin price has yet to hit this low since the decline began, making it an untapped monthly low. Therefore, whether or not the price ends up touching this level would be a great determinant of where Bitcoin is headed next.

What To Expect If Bears Break The Line

As already mentioned above, $58,900 is the next important level for Bitcoin, so it is imperative for bulls to hold above this level while the bears try to pull it down. In the case that the price breaks blow $58,900, then the analyst predicts that further decline are in view.

This is because a break of this level would lead to the formation of the Three Black Crows candlestick pattern. This is historically bearish and would lead to a bearish candle. Following previous performances, it could result in an over 30% decline.

However, in the event that the Bitcoin price does maintain above this level after sweeping it, then it would be bullish for the price. The analyst predicts that the cryptocurrency could end up moving back into the $71,300-$74,400 level as a result. But Minga explains that “There’s liquidity resting there on the LTF so another bearish retest of that area is still very much in play before continuation back to the downside.”

Мемкоин JONATHAN взлетел в цене после новости о смерти маскота монеты — 193‑летней черепахи по имени Джонатан, признанной старейшим наземным животным планеты. Позже выяснилось, что новость была первоапрельской шуткой.

Американская майнинговая компания Riot Platforms сообщила о продаже 3778 BTC на сумму $289,5 млн в первом квартале 2026 года. Средняя цена сделки составила около $76 600 за монету.

Депутат Госдумы России Антон Горелкин заявил, что законопроект об ответственности за незаконный майнинг, предусматривающий до пяти лет лишения свободы и конфискацию имущества, не содержит стимулов для легализации отрасли.

Компания Circle, эмитент стейблкоина USDC, представила «обернутую» версию биткоина — cirBTC, обеспеченную BTC в соотношении 1:1. Инструмент предназначен для расширения использования биткоина в финансовой инфраструктуре.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has issued a fresh assessment of the tokenization sector, forecasting rapid expansion of on‑chain representation of financial claims while warning that the shift could reconfigure the global financial system and introduce new systemic vulnerabilities.

IMF Flags Limits Of Traditional Resolution Tools

In a note released by the IMF on Wednesday, tokenization is described as more than a technological innovation: it represents an institutional transformation. 

By converting money, securities, and derivatives into programmable digital tokens recorded on shared ledgers, tokenization changes how claims are created, moved, and settled, the IMF stated. 

That change, the note says, carries both the potential for efficiency gains and the risk of significant disruption to established regulatory and crisis‑management frameworks.

A central concern for the Fund is that tokenized finance does not fit neatly within the national, territorially bound legal and oversight structures that underpin current resolution regimes. 

Traditional crisis-management tools rely on jurisdictional control of institutions, infrastructures, and assets. In contrast, the IMF describes tokenized systems capable of executing transactions across multiple jurisdictions at “machine speed.” 

The IMF cautions that this could leave authorities with limited levers to contain stress when the critical control points in a tokenized environment may rest in governance keys, consensus mechanisms, or the logic of smart contracts rather than in nationally domiciled entities.

Five‑Point Roadmap To Tame ‘Tokenization Risks’

To address these alleged tokenization challenges, the IMF sets out what it calls a “coherent policy roadmap” built around five pillars that respond to the new allocation of trust and risk created by tokenized infrastructures. 

First, the Fund claims settlement should be anchored in safe forms of money: systemically important tokenized transactions must ultimately settle in assets that minimize credit and liquidity risk. 

Second, the IMF urges the adoption of global standards and recommendations for crypto markets consistent with the principle of “same activity, same risk, same regulatory outcome,” echoing prior IMF and Financial Stability Board work. 

Third, the Fund calls for legal certainty: they said legislators and courts should clarify the legal status of the tokenization sector, how ownership records are established, and when settlement becomes final, ensuring that legal frameworks evolve alongside technical deployment.

Fourth, the IMF recommends common standards for settlement expectations and finality, and cooperative oversight arrangements to prevent fragmentation and to manage cross‑border risks. 

Fifth, liquidity and crisis‑management frameworks must be adapted to a continuous, 24/7 automated environment; central banks and other authorities may need to develop new tools or operate directly within tokenized infrastructures to keep their policy instruments effective.

Taken together, the IMF argues, these measures would form the backbone of a stable and efficient tokenized financial system. Implementing the roadmap will require sustained and close cooperation between public authorities and private sector participants across jurisdictions, the Fund notes.

Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com 

Германия и Италия представили совместный документ с предложениями по ужесточению регулирования стейблкоинов в Евросоюзе. Инициатива предусматривает ограничение доступа эмитентов стабильных токенов на европейский рынок и расширение полномочий регуляторов.

В первом квартале 2026 года блокчейн Эфириума зафиксировал рекордное количество транзакций с момента запуска. За три месяца показатель составил 200,4 млн операций.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has escalated a jurisdictional clash with state governments by filing lawsuits against three states in a bid to assert exclusive federal authority over prediction markets. 

The litigation targets Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois — and in Illinois’ case, specifically names Governor J.B. Pritzker — after those states took steps the CFTC says improperly constrain or try to regulate contract markets that are registered with the agency.

CFTC Seeks Unified Regulation

In a statement announcing the legal action, the CFTC said event contracts traded on platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket fall squarely within the Commission’s remit under the Commodity Exchange Act. 

The agency argued that Congress intentionally established a unified national regulatory framework for commodity derivatives markets to prevent a fragmented patchwork of state rules that would, in the regulator’s view, undermine consumer protection and increase risks of fraud and manipulation. 

“The CFTC will continue to safeguard its exclusive regulatory authority over these markets and defend market participants against overzealous state regulators,” CFTC Chairman Mike Selig said in the release.

The suits mark the first time the regulator has resorted to litigation to press this point, reflecting mounting tension between federal and state officials over how to treat prediction markets. 

Congress Considers Tighter Prediction‑Market Curbs

The CFTC accused the named states of attempts to outlaw, limit, or otherwise interfere with the operations of designated contract markets (DCMs) that are registered with the Commission. 

Those state actions, the agency said, run contrary to the Commodity Exchange Act’s delegations and risk imposing inconsistent obligations on market participants. 

The regulator noted it recently issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to clarify the application of the CEA and CFTC regulations to prediction markets, and signaled it expects to follow through with formal rulemaking that will more explicitly define and reinforce its supervisory role.

The legal push comes as Capitol Hill and other institutions weigh tighter curbs on certain types of event contracts. A group of congressional Democrats last week introduced legislation that would ban prediction-market wagers on sensitive topics, including elections, war, and sports. 

Separately, Massachusetts Representative Seth Moulton proposed a restriction banning congressional staff from using prediction markets, a measure believed to be unprecedented in Congress.

Pressure has also come from professional sports organizations. Sabrina Perel, the National Football League’s (NFL) chief compliance officer, wrote to prediction market operators — in a letter reviewed by CNBC — asking them to block event contracts she considered objectionable. 

The NFL has signaled that it believes sports-related contracts may warrant a distinct regulatory approach, an idea that mirrors the CFTC’s position that certain event contracts may need special attention.

Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com 

Глава отдела исследований компании VanEck Мэтью Сигел (Matthew Sigel) заявил, что в ближайшие месяцы на рынке вряд ли появятся сильные катализаторы, способные изменить текущую динамику биткоина.

Цифровой евро планируется запустить в массовый оборот в июле 2029 года. Об этом заявил член исполнительного совета Европейского центрального банка (ЕЦБ) Пьеро Чиполлоне (Piero Cipollone).

Правоохранительные органы США конфисковали более $600 000 в криптовалюте, связанной с фишинговой схемой. Об этом сообщили в американской прокуратуре.

Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the US, has achieved a major milestone after securing a key approval from the main banking regulator, which could unlock a broader market for the company.

Coinbase Wins Major OCC Approval

On Thursday, Coinbase announced it received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to charter Coinbase National Trust Company, marking a crucial step to becoming a federally regulated crypto custodian.

In the official statement, Coinbase outlined the scope of the charter, explaining that the company is not becoming a commercial bank and will not take retail deposits or engage in fractional reserve banking.

“This charter is about bringing federal regulatory uniformity to the custody and market infrastructure business we have been building for years. The OCC charter was designed precisely for this purpose — to provide clear oversight over assets in safekeeping — and that is exactly how we intend to use it,” the announcement read.

The conditional OCC approval allows Coinbase to “build the next chapter of finance,” the company noted, bolstered by the regulatory confidence, and validates its approach of “engaging with regulators, earning their trust, and operating to the highest standards.”

Moreover, the approval signals that the federal regulatory framework is transforming to align with the evolving landscape that crypto has been gradually shaping.

In an interview, Greg Tusar, Co-CEO of Coinbase Institutional, affirmed that “the ability to have a federal framework for our custody business is important,” adding that “this is about us growing our reach and being able to conduct new business that we may not have been able to before.”

Crypto Trust Banks Face Opposition

Coinbase applied for the charter last October and has now joined the list of firms that have received the main banking regulator’s approval. As reported by Bitcoinist, the OCC approved conditional bank charters for Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Paxos, and Fidelity in December.

In February, stablecoin platform Bridge, owned by Stripe, and crypto exchange Crypto.com announced they had also secured the OCC’s conditional approval to establish a national trust bank. However, US banks have raised concerns that the approvals could blur the lines between banking activities and lead to regulatory arbitrage.

Nearly two months ago, the American Bankers Association (ABA) asked the banking regulator to postpone its review of applications for crypto bank charters, suggesting that the approvals should wait until key regulatory uncertainties are resolved.

In its letter, ABA called for patience as emerging regulatory frameworks take shape, proposing that the review process continue when the US Congress completes the rules that will ultimately govern many recent applicants for the OCC’s charter.

The banking lobby cited uncertainty surrounding emerging business models, the need for increased transparency in the charter application and decision-making processes, and the absence of finalized federal oversight as key reasons for the proposed delay.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren also sent a letter to Comptroller Jonathan Gould asking the banking regulator to pause its review of the Trump Family’s main crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, which applied for a national trust charter in January.

Министерство финансов Канады представило предложения по регулированию эмитентов стейблкоинов. Меры направлены на защиту инвесторов и снижение рисков отмывания денег.

Another outflow from Riot Platforms has been spotted on the Bitcoin network, a sign that the mining company may be participating in further selling.

Bitcoin Mining Company Riot Has Moved Another 500 BTC

As shared by on-chain sleuth Lookonchain in an X post, Riot Platforms has made a transfer away from its Bitcoin wallet during the past day. In total, this transaction involved 500 BTC, worth $34.13 million at the time that the move took place.

The destination of the move was an unknown wallet, so it’s not possible to say for sure what the intent behind it was, but it’s likely that it was for selling the tokens. Previously, the company offloaded $200 million worth of Bitcoin during the final months of 2025.

Riot is a public Bitcoin mining company based in the United States that holds the BTC that it mines as a treasury asset. In terms of computing power or Hashrate, the firm is among the largest miners in the world, according to data from BitcoinMiningStock.

From the table, it’s visible that Riot Platforms has a total installed Hashrate of 38.50 exahashes per second (EH/s), putting it number five on the list of the largest public mining companies.

Like other big miners, Riot has also been exploring the AI/high-performance computing (HPC) business. As such, it’s possible that the new Bitcoin sale is linked to this expansion.

Before the outflow transaction, Riot Platforms held a total of 18,005 BTC in its treasury, but if the sale is confirmed, that figure would reduce to 17,505 BTC. The miner is currently ranked seventh among the public Bitcoin treasury firms.

BTC Mining Difficulty Is Set To Jump On Friday

The Bitcoin network is approaching its next mining Difficulty adjustment and according to data from CoinWarz, the change is expected to be a green one. The “Difficulty” refers to a feature built into the BTC blockchain that controls how hard miners would find it to mine blocks on the network.

This metric automatically changes its value about every two weeks depending on blockchain conditions since the last adjustment. The BTC network targets a block time of 10 minutes, so if miners mine a block in an average interval faster/slower than this, the chain raises/eases its Difficulty just enough to counteract the change.

Since the previous adjustment, BTC has seen an average block time of 9.60 minutes, which is faster than expected. Therefore, the network will increase its Difficulty by about 4.17% to slow the miners back down to the intended rate.

BTC Price

Bitcoin made some recovery earlier in the week, but the coin has declined again as its price is floating around $66,100.

The National Policy Committee of Korea pushed the “second‑phase” crypto act debate until after the June 3 local elections.

Crypto Framework Postponed In A Time Of Need

The Korean outlet Maeil Business Newspaper reported uncertainty in the crypto industry deepening after the National Policy Committee excluded the Framework Act on Digital Assets from the 31st of March agenda.

Lawmakers sent five finance-related bills to the subcommittee that day: the Framework Act on Administrative Regulation, the Credit Information Protection Act, the Microfinance Support Act, the Insurance Business Act, and the Capital Markets Act. Not a single bill related to crypto was included, but the Political Affairs Committee’s plenary session received Representative Kim Nam-geun’s “Partial Amendment to the Act on the Protection of Virtual Asset Users, etc.” and forwarded it to the Bill Review Subcommittee.

Lawmakers opted to park the second‑phase bill during a sensitive election window rather than ram through divisive provisions on banks and exchange tycoons, which have become “core landmines” in the legislative process. Speculation in Korean political coverage suggest that the presidential office and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) are not fully aligned on how far to push ownership caps and how tightly to ring‑fence stablecoin issuance, adding to the deadlock narrative.

The proposed crypto framework comes at a time of major importance, as the aforementioned political disagreements also happen to be the two key fights occurring between major players in the Korean cryptocurrency and financial industry.

The Stablecoins Fight

South Korea has recently seen a tug‑of‑war between The Bank of Korea and the FSC over who gets to issue won‑denominated stablecoins.

The BOK is pushing for a bank‑led consortium model where commercial banks must hold at least 51% of any issuer of won‑denominated stablecoins. Bitcoinist reported this on October last year.

The FSC, however, accepts that stablecoins need strict safeguards but opposes a hard 51% bank‑ownership rule, warning it would lock out tech platforms, fintechs and exchanges that actually build the user‑facing products.

These stablecoin-issuers rules are to be hard‑wired under the Digital Asset Basic Act, so every month of delay leaves existing and would‑be KRW stablecoin issuers operating in a gray zone or stuck on the sidelines. According to local outlet Aju Economy, this is a real and concerning issue for the industry. They reported on and industry insider lament:

We need the bill to be finalized quickly to determine our business direction, but currently, we are keeping all possibilities open, which is only increasing the cost burden.

The Equity-Cap Fight

The FSC has been backing proposals to treat big crypto exchanges more like securities or ATS‑style markets, where no single “same person” can own beyond roughly 15–20% in principle. After heavy pushback, regulators and the ruling party have coalesced around a 20% ceiling for “major shareholders”, with a narrow exception that allows stakes up to 34% for new entrants, mirroring the 33.3% veto line in Korea’s Commercial Act. Bitcoinist covered the story at the beginning of the past month.

For existing giants like Upbit and Bithumb, this is a post‑facto rule. Founders and early backers already hold stakes well above 20%, so a hard cap would force them to sell down significant portions of their equity over a three‑year transition (six years for some smaller exchanges). This could potentially disrupt ongoing M&A and reshape control of the local market.

What This Means For The Market

South Korea seems ready to move from ad‑hoc crackdowns to a comprehensive crypto regime. This delay comes on top of recent moves from Seoul to step up oversight with strategies such as AI surveillance, manipulation probes and tax tracking, and to loosen some restrictions, like easing earlier exchange‑stake proposals and reconsidering corporate crypto trading.

Near term, rule uncertainty around KRW stablecoins and exchange ownership could keep Korean venues’ risk premia high and make local listing or market‑making plans harder to model. Post‑election, a bank‑heavy stablecoin framework plus tighter governance rules could favor well‑capitalized incumbents and banks over smaller, high‑beta platforms. This could reshape liquidity and altcoin listings.

Lawmakers watering down ownership caps or opening up stablecoin issuance beyond banks would be a clear risk‑on signal for KRW‑denominated products and for global firms eyeing Korea’s retail base.

Cover image from Perplexity. BTCUSDT chart from Tradingview.

Taiwan’s justice ministry is sitting on 210 Bitcoin, seized from criminals and worth roughly $14 million. Most governments would treat that as a footnote. The Bitcoin Policy Institute thinks it should be a starting point.

A Case Built On Worst-Case Scenarios

In a report published Tuesday, BPI research fellow Jacob Langenkamp made the case that Taiwan should build a national Bitcoin reserve — not mainly as a financial play, but as protection against the possibility of a Chinese military blockade or invasion.

His argument is simple: if China cuts Taiwan off, gold cannot be moved and dollar reserves can be frozen. Bitcoin, he wrote, requires no physical transport and remains accessible regardless of what happens on the ground.

Taiwan’s central bank had already looked at the idea and walked away from it. In December, the bank concluded that Bitcoin was too volatile, too hard to store safely, and too thin in liquidity to serve as a reserve asset.

It pointed to the US dollar as the more sensible option. Langenkamp acknowledged those concerns are real — but argued they can be solved with the right institutional know-how on custody and risk management.

The Dollar Problem Analysts Say Taiwan Is Ignoring

The report’s broader warning centers on how exposed Taiwan already is to the US dollar. At least 80% of the central bank’s reserves are held in dollar-denominated assets, and most of its trade runs through the same currency.

Langenkamp listed several pressures that could erode the dollar’s value over time — rising US government debt, Federal Reserve money expansion, a possible downturn in AI-sector valuations, and shrinking semiconductor revenues.

Bitcoin, he argued, could pair with gold to offer a buffer against those risks, giving Taiwan’s central bank a hedge before other countries make the same move.

Taiwan’s central bank did not fully close the door after its December decision. Officials said the bank would continue testing digital asset technology through a sandbox program, using crypto the country already holds.

The Numbers Behind Taiwan’s Existing Holdings

The 210 Bitcoin figure came from lawmaker Ko Ju-Chun, who disclosed it on social media last year. According to data from crypto treasury tracker BitBo, those holdings — if officially counted — would rank Taiwan seventh among nations holding Bitcoin, just behind El Salvador and ahead of Finland. The country is not currently listed in BitBo’s national reserve rankings.

Whether Taiwan’s government acts on the BPI report remains to be seen. The think tank has no formal role in Taiwanese policy, and the central bank’s position has not changed.

But the report adds a new dimension to the global debate over Bitcoin as a state-level asset — one that goes beyond economics and into the question of what a country does when access to its own money is at risk.

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView