BTCETHKelpDAO Hacker Launders 34,500 ETH, Sending THORChain Volume SurgingFunds stolen in the KelpDAO hack are being actively laundered, driving a surge in trading volume on decentralized swap protocol THORChain. EmberCN reported on April 21 that the hacker began moving Ethereum funds the previous afternoon. So far, the at4.22
Trump Says No Iran Deal Possible if Strait of Hormuz Reopens, Mentions Broad Strike Including LeadershipPresident Donald Trump escalated his rhetoric on negotiations with Iran, saying pressure should be maintained by keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed. In a Truth Social post on April 21, Trump wrote that Iran does not want the waterway closed because 4.22PiCK
April 22 Economic and Crypto Calendar: US Crude Inventories, Atlanta Fed GDPNow DueToday's Key Economic Events ▶︎April 22 (Wednesday): △ Atlanta Fed first-quarter GDPNow (12:30 a.m. Korea Standard Time / 10:30 a.m. US time) △ South Korea March producer price index (6 a.m. Korea Standard Time / 4 p.m. US time) △ Japan March trade ba4.22PiCK
BTCBitcoin Demand Cools as Tight Supply Offsets Geopolitical RisksBitcoin is showing an asymmetric market structure in which slowing demand and constrained supply are offsetting each other despite heightened geopolitical risks, according to an analysis. On April 21, the US said it would extend its ceasefire with Ir4.22
US CLARITY Act Unlikely to Advance in April; May Committee Review, Pre-July Senate Vote Are CriticalProspects for the CLARITY Act, a US market-structure bill for digital assets, advancing in April have effectively faded. CoinDesk reported on April 21 that industry lobbyists and a Senate staffer said the bill must clear the Senate Banking Committee 4.21PiCK
BTCETHS&P 500 Futures Rise 0.4% After Trump Signals Extension of Iran CeasefireRelief spread across global markets after President Donald Trump signaled an extension of the ceasefire with Iran. Bloomberg reported on April 21 that Trump said the ceasefire would remain in place until negotiations with Iran are completed. S&P 500 4.21
ETHEthereum’s Long-Term Price Target Set at $250,000 as Global Finance BackboneEthereum may rise to $250,000 over the long term, according to a new forecast. The Block reported on April 21 that Etherealize, an institutional marketing organization for Ethereum, said in a report that the token is likely to become core infrastruct4.21
Iran Says Strait of Hormuz Won’t Reopen While Sea Blockade ContinuesTensions in the Middle East are rising again after Iran said it will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz as long as the sea blockade remains in place. Tasnim News Agency reported on April 21 that Iran views the continued blockade as an ongoing hostile ac4.21
Kalshi Weighs Launch of Crypto Perpetual Futures as It Expands Beyond Prediction MarketsUS prediction-market platform Kalshi is exploring an expansion into crypto derivatives as it looks to broaden its business. The Information reported on April 21, citing multiple sources, that Kalshi is preparing to launch perpetual futures tied to cr4.21
Verse8 Concludes BuidlHack 2026 as Non-Developer Solo Creator WinsVerse8, an AI-based game creation platform, said Tuesday it had wrapped up BuidlHack 2026, a hackathon held with YGG Play. The event was held in Seoul during Korea BUIDL Week. A total of 120 teams submitted games built with Verse8’s AI creation tools4.21
Tokenized RWA Market Grows 20-Fold in 3 Years, Surpasses $29 BillionThe market for tokenized real-world assets, or RWAs, is expanding rapidly and emerging as a major sector within digital assets. UBlockchain reported on April 21, citing a Cryptopolitan report, that the tokenized RWA market has grown about 20-fold ove4.21
Coinbase Launches x402-Based Marketplace for AI Agent PaymentsCoinbase has launched a service marketplace built on x402, a payment standard for artificial intelligence agents, as it moves to expand the ecosystem. Cointelegraph reported on April 21 that Coinbase launched Agentic.market, a marketplace built on th4.21
ETHARBArbitrum Freezes 30,766 ETH Linked to KelpDAO Exploit in Emergency MoveArbitrum has taken emergency action to freeze funds tied to the KelpDAO exploit. In a post on X on April 21, Arbitrum said its Security Council froze about 30,766 ETH held by an address linked to the KelpDAO exploit. The action followed cooperation w4.21
ETHUS Spot Ether ETFs Draw $67.77 Million, Extend Inflow Streak to Eight SessionsU.S. spot Ether exchange-traded funds extended their net inflow streak to eight consecutive trading sessions. Data from Trader T showed the funds recorded combined net inflows of $67.77 million on April 20. BlackRock’s ETHA led the gains with $76.05 4.21PiCK
BTCUS Spot-Bitcoin ETFs Draw $238.37 Million, Extending Inflow Streak to Five Trading DaysUS spot-Bitcoin exchange-traded funds extended their run of net inflows, underscoring continued institutional demand. US spot-Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $238.37 million on April 20, according to Trader T. That marked a fifth straight tradin4.21PiCK
Vance to Travel to Pakistan for Iran Talks Ahead of Ceasefire DeadlineThe US is preparing a last-minute diplomatic push to end the war with Iran. Axios reported on April 20, citing US sources, that Vice President JD Vance is expected to depart for Islamabad, Pakistan, to discuss a deal to end the war. Vance would join 4.21PiCK
Busan Digital Asset Exchange’s Bdan Posts $2.9 Million First-Quarter Operating Profit, Up 100-Fold From Year EarlierBusan Digital Asset Exchange said April 21 that Bdan, its real-world asset trading platform, posted sharp growth in the first quarter. Its subsidiary Bdan Gold recorded first-quarter transaction volume of 363.3 billion won ($252.3 million), revenue o4.21
BTCUS Spot-Bitcoin ETFs Top $1 Billion in Year-to-Date Net Inflows, Eye Record Cumulative TotalU.S. spot-Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have swung back to net inflows this year, signaling a recovery in investor demand. As of April 20, U.S. spot-Bitcoin ETFs had attracted more than $1 billion in net inflows on a year-to-date basis, Bloomberg ETF4.21
Wemade, BDACS Sign MOU to Develop Standard Model for Stablecoin PaymentsWemade said April 21 that it signed a memorandum of understanding with digital-asset custody firm BDACS Co. to jointly develop a stablecoin payment model and pursue broader business cooperation. The agreement is aimed at combining Wemade’s stablecoin4.21
CHZChiliz Sells Out 50,000 Persija Jakarta Fan Tokens Within an HourBlockchain-based sports platform Chiliz said on April 21 that 50,000 fan tokens for Indonesian professional soccer club Persija Jakarta sold out within an hour of launch. The company said the tokens were quickly bought up after sales opened, highligh4.21
BTCBitcoin Stuck in Range as Exchange Inflows Surge, Raising Risk of Renewed SellingBitcoin has traded in a tight range for about three months, but rising deposits to major exchanges may be signaling a fresh buildup in selling pressure, according to an analysis. CryptoQuant contributor Darkfost wrote on April 20 that on-chain data s4.21
US March Retail Sales, Sui Connect in Hong Kong: April 21 Economic and Crypto CalendarKey Economic Events Today ▶ April 21 (Tuesday): U.S. March retail sales (9:30 p.m. Korea Standard Time; 7:30 a.m. U.S. time) Key Cryptocurrency Events Today ▶ April 21 (Tuesday): Sui Connect in Hong Kong4.21PiCK
US Senate’s CLARITY Act Faces April Delay, With Markup Potentially Slipping to MayThe Senate’s timetable for the CLARITY Act, a bill to establish a market structure for digital assets in the US, may be slipping. Punchbowl News senior reporter Brendan Pedersen reported on April 21 that Republican Senator Thom Tillis asked Senator T4.20PiCK
Bybit Leads $8 Million Investment in Malaysia’s Hata to Accelerate Southeast Asia ExpansionGlobal cryptocurrency exchange Bybit is stepping up its Southeast Asia expansion with an investment in Malaysian digital-asset exchange Hata. Bybit led Hata’s Series A funding round with an $8 million investment, Cointelegraph reported on April 20. G4.20
USDTTether Takes 8.2% Stake in Antalpha, Expanding Reach in Bitcoin Mining FinanceTether has acquired a stake in Bitcoin mining finance firm Antalpha, extending its influence in the sector. A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on April 21 showed Tether bought an 8.2% stake in Antalpha, making it a major sharehol4.20
SEC Turns Softer on Crypto Regulation in Atkins’s First YearThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has shifted toward a looser approach to cryptocurrency regulation and enforcement since the Trump administration took office, Cointelegraph reported on April 20. In the year since Paul Atkins became SEC cha4.20
DeFi Loses More Than $600 Million to Hacks in Three Weeks as TVL Hits 1-Year LowA string of security breaches is weighing on the decentralized finance, or DeFi, market, dragging down both total value locked and investor sentiment. The Block reported on April 20 that cumulative losses across the DeFi market have exceeded $600 mil4.20
ZROLayerZero Says $290 Million KelpDAO Hack Is Suspected Lazarus AttackLayerZero said a hack that drained about $290 million from KelpDAO is preliminarily believed to be linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group. In a post on X on April 20, LayerZero said KelpDAO suffered an exploit that resulted in the loss of about $290 m4.20
BTCBitcoin Erases Weekend Gains, Drops to $74,000 as US-Iran Tensions EscalateBitcoin erased its weekend gains and fell to the $74,000 level as military tensions between the US and Iran intensified. As of April 20, according to CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin traded at $74,478.10, down 1.39% from a day earlier. It had earlier climbed t4.20
SOLUSDCKMNOKelpDAO Hack Fallout Spreads to Solana as Kamino USDC Liquidity Dries UpCapital outflows from decentralized finance triggered by the KelpDAO hack are spreading beyond Ethereum-based networks into the Solana ecosystem. Wu Blockchain reported on April 20 that Solana lending protocol Kamino is showing signs of a liquidity s4.20