Author: Tristan Lodenberg

Major cryptocurrencies declined while energy markets surged after renewed geopolitical tensions involving the Strait of Hormuz disrupted investor sentiment. Bitcoin traded around $75,077, marking a 1.6% daily drop, though it remained 4.8% higher for the week following escalating conflict risks between the United States and Iran. Other major digital assets also moved lower. Ether fell 2.6% to $2,272, while Solana declined 1.5% to $84. Meanwhile, BNB remained steady near $618, with losses across most top-ranked tokens staying below 3%. Oil Prices Jump as Traditional Markets Reprice War Risk Energy markets reacted sharply to renewed conflict fears. Brent crude oil rose…

A major security breach involving Kelp DAO has shaken the decentralized finance sector after hackers exploited vulnerabilities tied to its rsETH token, draining approximately $292 million in assets. The incident affected nearly 116,500 rsETH tokens, representing about 18% of the asset’s total supply, and quickly triggered a wave of withdrawals across multiple lending platforms. The fallout spread rapidly to protocols including Aave, where total value locked dropped sharply from about $26.4 billion on April 18 to nearly $20 billion within hours. Panic withdrawals also pushed the AAVE token price lower by more than 18% as users rushed to secure funds…

Bitcoin erased its weekend gains after briefly dropping below $74,000, as rising tensions between the United States and Iran put pressure on an already fragile ceasefire. The cryptocurrency had climbed above $78,300 late Friday, marking its highest level since early February, before slipping back to the $75,000–$76,000 range over the weekend. The sharp decline occurred late Sunday after U.S. forces reportedly opened fire on and seized an Iranian cargo ship accused of attempting to breach a naval blockade. Iranian officials responded by accusing Washington of violating the ceasefire and warning of possible retaliation. The ceasefire, which has lasted roughly two…

Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, who also led Iran’s delegation during the recent peace discussions in Islamabad, has drawn attention after posting a finance focused message referencing oil trading strategies during ongoing tensions around the Strait of Hormuz. In the message shared publicly, Ghalibaf used technical market language, comparing what he described as “vibe trading digital oil” to hedging U.S. Treasury positions during periods of market stress linked to Hormuz risks. He also referenced the benchmark known as Dated Brent crude oil, widely used as a pricing standard in global oil markets. The post included what appeared to be a Bloomberg Terminal command…

Donald Trump confirmed on truthsocial that U.S. naval forces seized an Iranian flagged cargo ship named Touska after it allegedly attempted to bypass a naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz. The incident occurred in the Gulf of Oman, escalating tensions between the United States and Iran. According to U.S. officials, the vessel ignored repeated warnings from a Navy guided missile destroyer to halt operations. Trump stated that forces disabled the ship by striking its engine room before U.S. Marines boarded and secured the vessel. Military officials reported that the cargo ship was heading toward the Iranian port of Bandar…

Unauthorized Access to Internal Systems Impacts Limited Customer Data Cloud deployment platform Vercel confirmed a security breach involving unauthorized access to portions of its internal infrastructure, affecting what the company described as a limited subset of customers. The company said external incident response teams have been engaged and law enforcement authorities notified, while services remain operational. According to internal findings, the breach originated through a compromised account linked to a third-party AI tool identified as Context.ai. Attackers reportedly gained entry after exploiting a compromised Google Workspace OAuth connection, allowing them to escalate access within Vercel’s internal systems. Vercel CEO Guillermo…

The current Bitcoin market cycle following the April 2024 halving is showing significantly weaker performance compared with previous cycles, according to analysis from Galaxy Digital research head Alex Thorn. Data comparing earlier halving cycles in 2012, 2016 and 2020 shows that price growth has slowed dramatically. During the 2012 halving cycle, Bitcoin surged roughly 9,294%, reaching about $1,163. The 2016 cycle delivered gains of around 2,950%, pushing prices close to $19,891, while the 2020 cycle produced a rise of approximately 761%. In contrast, the current cycle has produced much smaller gains. Bitcoin reached an all-time high above $125,000 in October…

Limited Short-Term Disruption to Banking Sector Stablecoins are unlikely to disrupt traditional banking operations in the near term, according to analysis from Moody’s Investors Service. The assessment comes as the global stablecoin market capitalization surpassed $300 billion at the end of last year, highlighting rapid growth but still limited direct competition with banks. Abhi Srivastava, an associate vice president in Moody’s Digital Economy Group, noted that stablecoin adoption remains concentrated in specific areas such as payments, cross-border transfers and onchain finance. Despite expanding use cases, the overall influence on core banking functions such as deposits and lending remains relatively small…

France has become a global hotspot for so called wrench attacks, with authorities reporting at least 41 crypto-related kidnappings and home invasions so far this year an average of one incident every two to three days. These attacks involve criminals using physical force to compel victims to transfer digital assets, often targeting investors, executives, and even their families. French officials have acknowledged the growing threat and announced new security measures to address the surge. Government representatives confirmed that prevention programs are already attracting thousands of participants, but additional action is being planned as incidents continue to increase. Organized Criminal Groups…

Sberbank is preparing to introduce cryptocurrency custody and trading services for its more than 110 million retail customers, pending final regulatory approval from the Bank of Russia. The move signals a major step toward integrating digital assets into Russia’s traditional financial system. The central bank first proposed a regulatory draft in December aimed at formalizing cryptocurrency investment activity. Once the framework is finalized, Sberbank is expected to move quickly to launch trading access through established financial infrastructure. Sberbank Plans Crypto Custody, Trading and AI-Based Investment Tools At a Moscow Exchange forum, Ruslan Vesterovsky confirmed that the bank is ready to…