Apollo, Silver Point, H.I.G. Bayside, and Sweden's Altor were some the private capital firms announcing deals across food, travel, blockchain, software, alternative energy, and various real estate asset classes today. AW Monthly $30 / Month • Instantly unlock all new and archived articles• Access to AW Research articles & data• Daily, weekly and monthly e-mail newsletters Join Now AW Annual $300 / Year • Everything in Monthly at a 20% discount• Access to AW Research data downloads and annual Manager/Investor Compendiums• Discounts on advertisement rates and article reprints Join Now Join industry leaders who rely on Alternatives Watch's comprehensive coverage of alternative investments across asset classes. © 2019-2024 BMV Digital Inc © 2019-2024 BMV Digital Inc Join industry leaders who rely on Alternatives Watch's comprehensive coverage of alternative investments across asset classes.

Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is increasingly behaving like a high-volatility, liquid version of gold, according to Bernstein analysts. What Happened: In a note to clients on Tuesday, the analysts wrote that despite falling roughly 26% amid ongoing tariff disruptions and geopolitical volatility, Bitcoin has performed better than expected in historical context—especially compared to past market shocks like COVID or rate hike cycles, which triggered 50–70% drawdowns. The asset's resilience during recent global market stress signals a shift toward higher-quality capital and growing institutional adoption, making it a "more liquid and higher-volatility version of gold." "It trades like the most accessible and liquid risk-market when equities are closed, acting as a weekend signal for investor sentiment." Bernstein's report suggests that while Bitcoin has not fully decoupled from traditional equities—and still correlates with risk-on assets—it is increasingly being treated as a long-term store of value. See Also: Hasbro, MGM, and Skechers trust this AI marketing firm — invest pre-IPO from $0.55 per share. Spot Bitcoin ETFs have collectively seen inflows of around $770 million year-to-date despite recent price declines. "The ETF flows are still in positive territory and reflect higher-quality capital," the analysts noted, adding that nearly 10% of Bitcoin's total supply is now held in ETFs and corporate treasuries combined. While macro headwinds like tariffs on China-based mining hardware could impact Bitcoin mining capacity in the short term, U.S. miners such as Riot (NASDAQ:RIOT), CleanSpark (NASDAQ:CLSK) and Core Scientific (NASDAQ:CORZ) are pivoting to AI infrastructure to diversify revenue streams and withstand geopolitical shocks. Bernstein's core thesis remains that Bitcoin's volatility, liquidity, and emerging role in institutional portfolios are cementing its evolution as a digital commodity asset—distinct from gold, but increasingly a peer in investor strategy. This article Bitcoin Is A 'More Liquid And Higher Volatility Version Of Gold': Bernstein originally appeared on Benzinga.com

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of Game of Silks non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”), including Silks Avatar NFTs, Silks Horse NFTs, and Silks Land NFTs, and who were damaged thereby, of the important April 25, 2025 lead plaintiff deadline. SO WHAT: If you purchased Game of Silks NFTs you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. at 866-767-3653 or email case@rosenlegal.com for more information. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company at the time. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers. DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, Game of Silks created a metaverse game that brought real-life horse racing to the blockchain, allowing users to invest in virtual versions of real racehorses and earn money based on the real-world performance of those horses. The complaint further alleges that the Game of Silks NFTs, which were first sold beginning in April 2022, are securities as defined by the Securities Act of 1933 (“Securities Act”), and as such required registration statements, which were never filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Further, the complaint also alleges that the defendants made material misstatements and omissions in connection with the sale of the Game of Silks NFTs, including failing to disclose critical financial information about Game of Silks' business model and sustainability. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email case@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Top website in the world when it comes to all things investing. No other fintech apps are more loved. Custom scripts and ideas shared by our users.

Ether (ETH), the native token of Ethereum, is showing signs of bullish exhaustion after a steep 65% decline over the past three months. Ether's current price action mirrors a familiar fractal pattern seen in 2018 and 2022. In both instances, ETH price saw euphoric rallies that ended with sharp breakdowns and prolonged bear markets. Each of these cycles shared the following key traits: Higher price highs were accompanied by lower highs in the relative strength index, which is a classic sign of bearish divergence and weakening momentum. Cycle bottoms typically formed once the RSI dipped into oversold territory (below 30), with price stabilizing near historical Fibonacci zones. Currently, ETH's price has closed below the 1.0 Fibonacci retracement level at around $1,550. Meanwhile, its weekly RSI is still above the oversold threshold of 30, suggesting room for further declines, at least until the reading drops below 30. Related: 3 reasons Ethereum could turn a corner: Kain Warwick, X Hall of Flame Ethereum's Net Unrealized Profit/Loss (NUPL) has entered the “capitulation” zone—an onchain phase where most investors are holding ETH at a loss. In previous cycles, similar moves into this zone occurred close to major market bottoms. A similar pattern emerged in June 2022, when the metric fell into capitulation territory shortly before Ethereum established a bear market low of around $880. Now that ETH is once again entering this zone, the current setup loosely echoes those prior bottoming phases—coinciding with key Fibonacci support levels near $1,000. This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations.

The crypto market's relief rally fizzled out on Tuesday as stocks gave up big early gains and turned lower alongside the Trump administration's plan to imminently enforce punitive tariffs against China. The CoinDesk 20 — an index of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, except for stablecoins, memecoins and exchange coins — was down 2.2%. One outlier is DeFi Technologies (DEFTF), which is up 10.27%, potentially due to an expectation from some of its shareholders that the Toronto-based company could soon follow in Galaxy Digital's (GLXY) footsteps and get listed on the U.S. Nasdaq. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are down 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively — modest losses, but sharply reversed from roughly 4% advances earlier in the session. Some have suggested that Beijing could respond to the tariffs by allowing a sizable weakening in the yuan, thus making China's exports more competitive than otherwise. Bitcoin bulls have seized on that idea, noting a devaluation in the yuan would surely lead to capital flight from China, with at least some of that money potentially looking to hide out in bitcoin. Read more: Bitcoin Analysts Optimistic as China Surprisingly Fixes Yuan Beyond 7.2 Level "We are currently in a phase of heightened uncertainty, with persistent trade disputes, geopolitical friction, active conflicts and growing fears of a global slowdown," Kirill Kretov of cryptocurrency trading automation platform CoinPanel told CoinDesk in a Telegram note. The choppy market conditions will likely remain, Kretov noted, with shallow liquidity on crypto and traditional markets exacerbating volatility. "Until more participants adjust to and capitalize on this environment, we're unlikely to see a strong directional trend," he added. Tom writes about markets, bitcoin mining and crypto adoption in Latin America. He has a bachelor's degree in English literature from McGill University, and can usually be found in Costa Rica. He holds BTC above CoinDesk's disclosure threshold of $1,000. Krisztian Sandor is a U.S. markets reporter focusing on stablecoins, tokenization, real-world assets. He graduated from New York University's business and economic reporting program before joining CoinDesk.

Acting chairman Travis Hill emphasized the agency's interest in addressing stablecoin-related matters and tokenized deposits. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is formalizing a more permissive and transparent framework for US banks engaging with crypto, including the use of public, permissionless blockchains. In remarks delivered at the American Bankers Association Washington Summit on April 8, FDIC Acting Chairman Travis Hill addressed the agency's evolving stance on crypto-related activities. One key area under review involves the interaction between regulated banks and public, permissionless blockchains. Hill acknowledged that while jurisdictions outside the US have permitted banks to use public chains for several years, US banking regulators have maintained a significantly more cautious posture. The FDIC now considers a total prohibition on public blockchain use too restrictive. However, Hill stressed the need for appropriate guardrails to govern such activity. The question of whether public chains can operate in a permissioned mode is also considered. According to Hill, regulators must assess how to define and supervise blockchain configurations that blur the line between open and permissioned environments. The FDIC said it intends to release additional guidance addressing specific digital asset use cases. The broader objective is to establish a consistent and transparent supervisory framework that enables innovation while ensuring adherence to safety and soundness standards. Hill recently noted that the agency's revised guidance represents a foundational shift in how to treat crypto and blockchain technologies within the US banking system. He emphasized that the FDIC rescinded its previous requirement for supervised institutions to notify the agency before engaging in digital asset and blockchain activities. Hill also addressed emerging questions surrounding stablecoins, particularly regarding legislative moves by Congress. The FDIC examines potential pass-through deposit insurance regulations updates to clarify eligibility requirements for stablecoin reserve deposits. Key issues under evaluation include liquidity risk management, safeguards against illicit finance, and cybersecurity standards. However, he raised concerns about counterparties' ability to withdraw funds at par using smart contracts after a bank failure, which could increase resolution costs if safeguards are not in place to halt such flows. This concern is driving internal FDIC efforts to assess technical solutions that could prevent unintended fund outflows during bank resolution scenarios. Hill noted that the challenge lies in aligning on-chain programmability with traditional regulatory protections designed to ensure the orderly winding down of failed institutions. The FDIC's changes mark a formal move toward regulatory clarity for banks exploring digital asset infrastructure while emphasizing the need for prudent risk controls and further definitional work around permissible activities. His expertise primarily focuses on the Brazilian blockchain ecosystem and developments in decentralized finance (DeFi). Specializing in financial journalism, he now focuses on crypto reporting. Disclaimer: Our writers' opinions are solely their own and do not reflect the opinion of CryptoSlate. None of the information you read on CryptoSlate should be taken as investment advice, nor does CryptoSlate endorse any project that may be mentioned or linked to in this article. Buying and trading cryptocurrencies should be considered a high-risk activity. Please do your own due diligence before taking any action related to content within this article. Finally, CryptoSlate takes no responsibility should you lose money trading cryptocurrencies. None of the information you read on CryptoSlate should be taken as investment advice. Buying and trading cryptocurrencies should be considered a high-risk activity. Please do your own diligence before making any investment decisions.

Its high-performance mainnet and cross-chain capabilities are key to enabling the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs). The project currently focuses on practical scenarios including DeFi, IoT, and enterprise services. Originally launched as Newton, AB completed its rebranding in February 2025, marking a strategic shift from early community economy exploration toward a new phase of blockchain infrastructure evolution. Real-world assets are rapidly becoming a key narrative within the global on-chain ecosystem. In late 2024, BlackRock launched BUIDL, a tokenized U.S. Treasury product, which has since become the largest of its kind by market capitalization. In early 2025, Circle announced the acquisition of RWA platform Hashnote and integrated it with its USDC-linked fund products, further advancing the convergence between stablecoins and real-world financial instruments. These developments reflect the accelerating global interest in on-chain RWAs. The listing of AB represents another strategic step in WEEX's commitment to blockchain infrastructure development. To mark the listing, WEEX has launched a limited-time deposit and spot trading promotion. Users who complete the designated tasks will be eligible to share in a total prize pool of 10,000 USDT. With over 1,700 trading pairs covering major and emerging tokens, the platform also launched WE-Launch to help users access quality projects early. WEEX has partnered with international figures like football star Michael Owen to boost brand visibility, and recently established a new global headquarters in Dubai to accelerate international expansion. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice. Investing in crypto and mining related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital. Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. However, due to the inherently speculative nature of the blockchain sector--including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and mining--complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed. Speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose.Neither the media platform nor the publisher shall be held responsible for any fraudulent activities, misrepresentations, or financial losses arising from the content of this press release. Legal Disclaimer: This media platform provides the content of this article on an "as-is" basis, without any warranties or representations of any kind, express or implied. We do not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information presented herein. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/31add9eb-2f5c-4852-89e6-9fabb561ecde

AI cybersecurity startup Octane has emerged from stealth and announced it secured $6.75 million in a seed funding round. “Flawed blockchain code enables billions in theft across crypto, with vulnerable smart contracts creating an ever-expanding attack surface as more value enters the ecosystem,” Octane CEO Giovanni Vignone said in the release. It will soon offer code analysis for off-chain codebases as well. “Octane allows devs to battle-test their smart contract code with AI-powered security testing before it hits production on the blockchain. A growing share of chief operating officers at organizations that generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue have implemented AI-powered automated cybersecurity management systems, according to the PYMNTS Intelligence report, “COOs Leverage GenAI to Reduce Data Security Losses.” This growth has been driven by COOs' demand for GenAI-driven solutions to improve cybersecurity management at a time when companies face the threat of cyberattacks that are growing more sophisticated, according to the report. In September, Torq raised $70 million in a Series C funding round to expand its AI-first cybersecurity hyperautomation solutions that automate, manage and monitor critical security operations center (SOC) responses. Banks Say Debit Card and Check Fraud Attacks Are Gaining Momentum China Opposes Shein's Plans to Shift Production Overseas Amid US Tariffs We're always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.

As of April 16, 2025 at 03:00 UTC, all spot trading pairs involving these tokens (BADGER, BAL, BETA, CREAM, CTXC, ELF, FIRO, HARD, NULS, PROS, SNT, TROY, UFT, and VIDT) will be removed. The exchange said it conducted extensive due diligence, considering factors including: Although the community vote carried significant weight, Binance noted that delisting decisions are on multiple layers. The “Vote to Delist” received 103,942 total votes from 24,141 users but saw 10,262 votes disqualified by Binance for fraudulent activity, bot abuse or other methods that do not comply with BNB holding criteria. Tokens such as TROY, SNT, and UFT received the highest eligible votes across both methods but were all listed for delisting. Others expressed concerns about potential bias against BSC-based tokens — a critique that Binance has not directly addressed. A timetable for how the exchange is winding down support throughout its ecosystem has been detailed by Binance. In February 2025, AKRO, BLZ and WRX were delisted by Binance, losing over 20% within 24h. This reaction was particularly painful for BADGER and CREAM, which fell more than 15% each within hours of the news. Binance's dominant role in trading volume for many of these tokens magnifies the damage. When it is delisted on the leading stage, investor confidence disappears, in many cases permanently. The community-led (although arguably official) delisting by Binance was hailed as a step toward decentralization, but its critics now perceive it as more public relations than real change. Skeptics say popularity should not trump project fundamentals, particularly when vote manipulation is a possibility. There's also the fear that solid, but swinging, tokens may be unfairly punished. Projects may still face delisting if they fail to meet evolving standards. More News: Binance Launches “Vote to Delist” Program; First Test Begins Isabella specializes in tracking how blockchain technology is transforming industries worldwide. Her pieces explore the real-world applications of blockchain, from supply chain to healthcare. Isabella is passionate about highlighting underrepresented use cases in the crypto space.

Sequence has acquired the tech firm Light and is sunsetting Horizon, but Skyweaver remains live Existing resources and products under that brand, including its flagship 2019 game Skyweaver, will now exist solely under the Sequence brand, Sequence shared exclusively with The Drop and Blockworks. The move also finalizes Sequence's pivot away from game development as it allocates more of its resources to building crypto infrastructure. “Skyweaver still has a community,” Sequence cofounder and Chief Storyteller Michael Sanders told Blockworks in an interview, noting that the game remains playable. It had also raised another $13.3 million across three prior seed funding rounds, per Crunchbase data. Sequence also said it's acquired Light, a crypto tech firm focused on tackling the Ethereum “chain abstraction” challenge. Because there are so many Ethereum L2 and even “L3” blockchains — as well as “sidechains” and other separate EVM-compatible L1 chains — it can be difficult for non-technical or new users in crypto to navigate the space without encountering hiccups, roadblocks, glitches, delays or other problems. The goal of chain abstraction is to make as much of the technical side of a multichain experience happen under the hood, so that users don't have to do things like manually bridge tokens, pay to “wrap” tokens, “sign” with a wallet frequently, or face delays when trying to complete transactions. That's the Web3 we're building—fast, accessible, and seamlessly interoperable,” said Light founder Shun Kakinoki in a statement. Sequence provides infrastructure for some of the biggest players in the crypto gaming space, typically offering those services as “white-label.” That means you don't see their name on a product that they provided to another brand. For instance, crypto gaming platform Immutable uses Sequence's embedded wallets. Sequence also counts Ubisoft, Polygon, SKALE, Avalanche and Base among its clients. The firm has its own indexer so game devs can assess activity across multiple chains. Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto's technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you're ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens. Utilizing a ‘DeFi Mullet' approach, Coinbase's Bitcoin-backed loans integration with Morpho demonstrates a powerful blueprint for CEXs to monetize dormant assets by expanding adoption of wrapped products (cbBTC, USDC) while also supporting native and/or preferred DeFi ecosystems (Base) which can further lead to downstream growth in onchain liquidity and increased utilization of the related assets. Scott Stornetta expressed admiration for Bitcoin's achievements and criticism of its perceived limitations BTC's price went down, but institutions were buying the dip at “astounding” levels Markets recoiled on Trump's tariff talk, and crypto's resilience was short-lived Over 70 public companies already hold bitcoin, including Tesla and Block, though for some major tech stocks, this pivot might be easier than others… Our research packs a punch and gives you actionable takeaways for each topic.

XRP could surge to $12.5 and overtake Ethereum as the second-largest crypto asset by market cap before Trump's second term wraps up, according to a new report by Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered's global head of digital assets research. With XRP now trading at $1.9 according to CoinGecko data, reaching $12.5 would represent a surge of over 550%. “By the end of 2028, we see XRP's market cap overtaking Ethereum's,” Kendrick noted. XRP's market cap is over $110 billion per CoinGecko, positioning it as the fourth-largest crypto asset. XRP's market cap previously peaked at $190 billion in January, and it has also, at times, surpassed Tether to claim the third-ranking spot. Kendrick's forecast is based on several factors, including expected regulatory developments and institutional adoption. Prior to Ripple, the agency had already withdrawn from several high-profile crypto enforcement cases. Kendrick also forecasts SEC approval for spot XRP ETFs in the third quarter of 2025, which he estimates could attract $4-8 billion in inflows within the first year. This projection falls in line with JPMorgan's estimate. The bank, in its January analysis, also anticipated first-year inflows for potential XRP spot ETFs to be in the range of $4 billion to $8 billion. JPMorgan's forecast was based on the market penetration rates observed with existing Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. Ripple's CEO previously predicted XRP ETFs would make their market debut in the second half of 2025. Regarding XRP's use case in payments, Kendrick believes its cross-border payment functionality aligns with growing digital asset usage trends, similar to stablecoins, which he notes have seen 50% annual transaction volume growth and are projected to increase tenfold over four years. In support of this view, the analyst compares XRPL to Stellar, a blockchain with comparable architecture that has achieved success in tokenization. Franklin Templeton initially launched its OnChain US Government Money Fund on Stellar. Even though the analyst is bullish on XRP, he does not ignore existing challenges the project faces, including a smaller developer ecosystem than its competitors and a low fee model. The analyst continues to see strong potential in Bitcoin and Avalanche, but he's less enthusiastic about Ether, labeling it an “identified loser.”

BUY/SELL GOLD & SILVER All Metal Quotes Kitco NEWS has a diverse team of journalists reporting on the economy, stock markets, commodities, cryptocurrencies, mining and metals with accuracy and objectivity. Our goal is to help people make informed market decisions through in-depth reporting, daily market roundups, interviews with prominent industry figures, comprehensive coverage (often exclusive) of important industry events and analyses of market-affecting developments. Ernest Hoffman is a Crypto and Market Reporter for Kitco News. He has over 15 years of experience as a writer, editor, broadcaster and producer for media, educational and cultural organizations. Ernest began working in market news in 2007, establishing the broadcast division of CEP News in Montreal, Canada, where he developed the fastest web-based audio news service in the world and produced economic news videos in partnership with MSN and the TMX. He has a Bachelor's degree Specialization in Journalism from Concordia University. You can reach Ernest at 1-514-670-1339. We appreciate your feedback | Your Privacy Choices © 2025 Kitco Metals Inc.

We were still in the thick of COVID-19 caution but slowly coming out of quarantine when TikTok and Tiger King monopolized the collective consciousness. An artist named Beeple sits in his living room surrounded by loved ones as they all stare at his TV in disbelief. Beeple's newly created NFT has sold for $69 million. This digital artwork, which is still in the infancy stage of popularity, has officially made Beeple the third highest-selling artist of all time. But what exactly is an NFT, and why are people spending thousands, if not millions, of dollars on art that can literally be saved on a computer for free? Bruckman does a great job of getting into the minds of these digital pioneers whose lives have changed forever by selling their art on the blockchain. After Beeple's historic sale ignited an all-out frenzy, many artists found themselves living out their own rags-to-riches stories. But all good things must come to an end. Minted goes into stunning detail about the conspiracy theories, celebrity endorsements, and dark side of this controversial new frontier. Watching this film in hindsight, as the stock market is currently volatile, gives off an eerily uneasy feeling. Nicholas Bruckman could have never predicted the timing of this release to perfectly align with cultural events but it works so well in tandem. This larger philosophical question is juxtaposed against composer Dan Deacon's bright and forceful score. Minted hypothesizes that they may not be raking in millions of dollars like they used to, but there is still a market for them. However, what has died are people's hopes and dreams that this was sustainable. Minted made its World Premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and is coming to Netflix on April 9th. For disclosure purposes, Morgan currently runs PR at PRETTYBIRD and Ventureland.

Ripple has acquired Hidden Road for $1.25 billion, aiming to serve institutional clients on a larger scale. The U.S. Department of Justice has disbanded its crypto-dedicated enforcement team and will no longer pursue criminal ca... Read Summary Anchorage Digital will safeguard Bitcoin and Ethereum for BlackRock's ETFs, as per SEC filings. Plume, a blockchain platform specializing in real-world assets, received an investment from Apollo Global Management to... Read Summary Over $11 billion has been stolen in crypto hacks, prompting Giovanni Vignone to create Octane, an AI security platform. Octane aims to prevent attacks by providing continuous AI defense... Read Summary Scott Stornetta, a physicist and researcher cited in Satoshi Nakamoto's white paper, expressed admiration for Bitcoin's... Read Summary WazirX, recovering from a $235 million hack, received overwhelming creditor support for its restructuring plan. Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater, highlights the global chaos triggered by Trump's tariff policy, attributing it to und... Read Summary Global stock indices suffered trillions in losses due to President Trump's recent tariff policy, impacting crypto market... Read Summary

PARIS, April 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Paris Blockchain Week (PBW) 2025 officially opened today at the Carrousel du Louvre, drawing global attention as Europe's most influential gathering for blockchain and Web3 innovation. As an official sponsor, BYDFi marked its fifth anniversary with a major reveal—debuting its brand-new on-chain trading platform, MoonX, for the first time on an international stage. The timing couldn't have been more fitting: MoonX's unveiling aligned perfectly with BYDFi's five-year milestone, adding an extra layer of significance to the launch. To celebrate its anniversary and kick off PBW with energy, BYDFi launched its “Crypto Travel Challenge”—a hybrid online-offline campaign inspired by the brand's five-year journey. On site, attendees scanned QR codes at the booth to complete missions and claim exclusive “Crypto Voyager Backpacks” and limited-edition BYDFi merch. Meanwhile, online participants joined from around the world by following BYDFi's official X account (@BYDFi_Official), reposting the challenge, and tagging #BYDFiPBW2025 to enter giveaways. Throughout the day, BYDFi's booth welcomed a steady stream of crypto professionals, investors, and curious newcomers. Visitors demoed MoonX, engaged in real-time conversations about the MemeCoin market, and explored the next phase of on-chain trading. Nearby, a crypto-themed coffee bar added a relaxed touch, reinforcing BYDFi's mission to bring warmth and personality to the digital finance space. The Paris Blockchain Week journey has only just begun. Founded in 2020, BYDFi is one of Forbes' Top 10 Global Crypto Exchanges, serving over 1,000,000 users worldwide. The platform holds multi-national MSB licenses, is a member of Korea's CODE VASP Alliance, and leads the industry in compliance and transparency with a 1:1 asset reserve policy and regular Proof of Reserve reports.

“That will make XRP the second-largest non-stablecoin digital asset,” wrote Kendrick in a Tuesday note. Thus, XRP joins a group of cryptocurrencies that Standard Chartered expects to be the market's big winners. Other members of that group include Bitcoin and Avalanche, while Ethereum is expected to be one of the losers. The hype has been fuelled by US President Donald Trump's pro-crypto stance and the Securities and Exchange Commission having dropped its case against Ripple. Ripple says tokenisation will be a $19 trillion business by 2033. Today, the firm still engages the XRPL developer community and provides it with tools, services, and infrastructure support. Polymarket bettors give spot XRP ETFs a 77% chance of being approved in 2025. Kendrick said he expected XRP ETFs to be approved between July and September. He also estimated that those funds will generate between $4 billion and $8 billion in the first 12 months, echoing JPMorgan, which has made a similar estimate. Ripple also recently announced a large deal with the United Arab Emirates, that will see its technology used in the Dubai International Financial Centre, itself the host of many crypto firms. To be sure, XRP's price has dropped about 12% in the past week and punters on crypto-betting platform Polymarket bet it's going to fall even more this month. Trump's so-called “psychodrama” trade policies that have slammed some of the US' closest trading partners, its rivals and even a bunch of penguins with fresh tariffs. Even so, Kendrick argued that XRP and other cryptocurrencies will come out of the mess stronger than ever. “Keep looking for winners and HODLing those you already own,” Kendrick said. “Tariff mess will be over soon, and Bitcoin's solid performance during the noise tells us a leg higher for the asset class will follow.” Andrew Flanagan is a markets correspondent for DL News.

Pepe, the popular Ethereum (ETH) meme coin, rose to $0.0000065, while SOL, JASMY, and BONK jumped by double digits. First, there is hope that the US will move to negotiate with other countries. Second, these altcoins have jumped as Wall Street analysts raised their estimates on when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates. Altcoins like Solana, Pepe, Jasmy, and Bonk do well when the Federal Reserve is cutting interest rates. This price action is also known as a bull trap. Further, Solana also gained after Janover, a small Wall Street company, changed its management and began accumulating the coin. It raised $42 million from companies like Pantera, Kraken, Arrington Capital, and The Norstar Group. Top 3 cryptos to gain from Trump tariffs and changing world order How long did it take to recover after previous crypto market crashes? Bitcoin bleeds, stocks sink, and tariffs spike — is this the start of a global sell-everything moment? Miners win most from the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve | Opinion House of Cards: NFT industry braces for impact as activity slows, marketplaces collapse SEC revisits crypto rules, tariffs cause market downturn, Circle IPO uncertain | Weekly Recap The United States is focused on tokenized certificates of deposit | Opinion Top 3 cryptos to gain from Trump tariffs and changing world order Bitcoin and altcoins at risk after Goldman Sachs, Blackrock, Citi warning Get crypto market analysis and curated news delivered right to your inbox every week.

Blackbird Labs has built a payments-meets-loyalty-meets-blockchain platform for restaurants to grow repeat business while reducing some of the friction around transactions. Now, with with some 1,000 restaurants signed up, CEO Ben Leventhal said Blackbird plans to use the money to launch its newest product, a cross-restaurant “points” service it's calling Blackbird Club, as well as to expand into more markets outside of New York (its headquarters), San Francisco, and Charleston, South Carolina. “Charleston punches above its class,” Leventhal said in an interview with TechCrunch. Spark Capital, a new backer, is leading this latest round, with participation also from Coinbase Ventures, Amex Ventures, and Andreessen Horowitz — three investors that backed Blackbird in its $24 million Series A in 2023. Amex acquired Resy, a reservations platform that Leventhal previously founded, in 2019. The two companies — Resy and Blackbird — are not integrating now, but “it's fair to say we will,” Leventhal said. No plans on how or if that'll lead to a partnership deal. Blackbird describes its Flynet payment service as a layer-three transaction protocol built on Coinbase's Base. Diners can use it to pay for meals at the table via Blackbird's app, as well as to redeem loyalty points when they visit restaurants. It's worth asking whether blockchain was strictly a necessary part of the mix. There are plenty of other loyalty and payment programs in the market, including a number that are direct competitors to Blackbird, like Punchh, Toast, and Lightspeed, built on more conventional financial structures. “I don't think it necessarily ‘has to be built on blockchain,'” Leventhal said. But Leventhal pointed out, too, that “there are a few things that we do believe that over time will be important opportunities, and those opportunities will be based on being on-chain.” These include how Blackbird and restaurants hold customer profiles and activity, he said. While platforms like Instagram and TikTok have turned the world into armchair foodies, producing legions of people who virally flock to the latest and coolest cafe, they are doing this amid a time of rapidly declining margins and heightened price sensitivity. “The restaurant industry is made up of millions of local, small business owners around the world,” Arianna Simpson, a general partner at a16z, told TechCrunch over email. Simpson believes this is specifically where blockchain can play a role: improving that margin structure. Ingrid is a writer and editor for TechCrunch, joining February 2012, based out of London. Before TechCrunch, Ingrid worked at paidContent.org, where she was a staff writer, and has in the past also written freelance regularly for other publications such as the Financial Times. Ingrid covers mobile, digital media, advertising and the spaces where these intersect. IBM releases a new mainframe built for the age of AI Google is allegedly paying some AI staff to do nothing for a year rather than join rivals Former Tesla exec Drew Baglino's new startup is rethinking the electrical transformer Meta's benchmarks for its new AI models are a bit misleading

Bitcoin has swung wildly over the last week as traders scramble to get ahead of a “crisis scenario” for the bitcoin price. Front-run Donald Trump, the White House and Wall Street by subscribing now to Forbes' CryptoAsset & Blockchain Advisor where you can "uncover blockchain blockbusters poised for 1,000% plus gains!" Now, as Wall Street giants stare down the barrel of an “existential" bitcoin and crypto game-changer, Michael Saylor's software company-turned-bitcoin buyer Strategy has warned it could be forced to sell some of its bitcoin to meet its financial obligations. Sign up now for the free CryptoCodex—A daily five-minute newsletter for traders, investors and the crypto-curious that will get you up to date and keep you ahead of the bitcoin and crypto market bull run “As bitcoin constitutes the vast bulk of assets on our balance sheet, if we are unable to secure equity or debt financing in a timely manner, on favorable terms, or at all, we may be required to sell bitcoin to satisfy our financial obligations, and we may be required to make such sales at prices below our cost basis or that are otherwise unfavorable," a Strategy regulatory filing read. Strategy said it's expecting to record a near-$6 billion unrealized loss for the first quarter, despite a related $1.69 billion income tax benefit, and warned it might not be able to regain profitability in future quarters, especially if the value of its bitcoin continues to plummet. Strategy's stock price has almost halved since soaring to its November peak that saw it inducted into the prestigious Nasdaq 100 index. At the end of March, Strategy held around $8 billion worth of debt on which it owes about $35 million per year in interest on top of almost $150 million it must pay every year in dividends on its stock. Meanwhile, crypto analysts are desperately trying to predict where the market is headed next, with one closely-watched analyst issuing a bitcoin price prediction that would see bitcoin crash back to around $10,000. “Everyone's in for the long-term, as long as it's going up," Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone, wrote in a report posted to X.

With AI, the multichain AI-powered NFT platform, has announced that it has also integrated the crypto XRP. Now, users can create and transfer their NFTs on XRP Ledger more efficiently, benefiting from real-time Artificial Intelligence that automates metadata management and contract logic. The AI-powered multichain NFT platform, Colle AI, seems to have also integrated the crypto XRP into its ecosystem. In practice, from now on, users can create and transfer NFTs on the XRP Ledger more efficiently, thanks to real-time AI support that automates metadata management and contract logic. In fact, Colle AI is precisely focused on leveraging Artificial Intelligence to simplify the process of creating NFTs, allowing artists and creators to easily transform their ideas into digital assets. Not only, the expansion of XRP support includes improved routing algorithms, optimized gas estimation, and updated compatibility with the smart contract engine powered by Colle AI. In fact, XRP joins the blockchains of Ethereum, BNB Chain, Solana and Bitcoin. Regarding Solana, Colle AI recently announced that it has expanded its strategy to strengthen AI tools and liquidity. “Colle AI amplifies its Solana strategy to strengthen AI tools and liquidity, driving next-generation multichain NFT performance and seamless scalability across the #Web3 ecosystem” In any case, the broader infrastructural goals of Colle AI are to simplify the creation of multichain through intelligent tools and ensure that NFTs move freely and securely across ecosystems. Beyond AI and NFT, Ripple today made headlines also for the report created with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), regarding tokenization. Specifically, the report predicts that by 2033, the market for tokenized assets will grow from 0.6 trillion dollars to 18.9 trillion dollars, with a CAGR of 53%. This growth will occur in three phases: 1) low-risk adoption, 2) institutional expansion, and 3) market transformation, with tokenization being incorporated into financial and non-financial products.