Author: Tristan Lodenberg

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty confirmed that lawmakers expect progress on digital asset market structure legislation in April, renewing momentum after months of delays. Speaking at the Digital Assets and Emerging Tech Policy Summit at Vanderbilt University, Hagerty said Republican lawmakers plan to move the bill into the Senate Banking Committee starting next week. He noted that lawmakers are close to agreement but acknowledged that “there’s still a lot more work to do.” CLARITY Act Progress Faces Key Regulatory and Ethics Issues Originally introduced as the CLARITY Act when it passed the House of Representatives in July, the legislation is considered…

A solo Bitcoin miner has secured a major reward after successfully validating block 943,411 despite extremely low odds, highlighting the rare but possible success of small scale mining operations. The miner, operating with roughly 230 terahashes per second (TH/s) of computing power, earned 3.139 BTC valued at about $210,000. Bitcoin Mining Odds and Network Share Explained The miner was connected to solo.ckpool.org, an anonymous solo mining pool introduced in 2014 that allows miners to retain full block rewards minus a 2% fee. With only about 230 TH/s, the miner controlled roughly 0.00002% of Bitcoin’s estimated total network hashrate of around…

Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz and Netscape, stated that fears over artificial intelligence causing widespread job losses are “all fake.” In a recent post on X, he argued that AI will lead to a “massive jobs boom” by driving productivity and increasing demand for labor. Rising Long-Term Unemployment Contrasts Andreessen’s Optimism His comments come as U.S. labor data shows mixed signals. Unemployment remained steady at 4.3% in March, while the number of people unemployed for 27 weeks or more rose by 322,000 over the past year. Despite this, tech job openings surged in 2026, with over 67,000 software engineering…

Bitcoin climbed above $70k during U.S. afternoon trading on Monday, continuing a rally that began over the weekend and adding to signs that a potential market bottom may be forming. Btc traded near $70,144, rising nearly 4% over the past 24 hours, while Ether, and Solana recorded similar gains. Executive Moves and Bearish Views Seen as Contrarian Indicators The price gains came alongside modest advances in traditional markets ahead of President Donald Trump’s Tuesday ultimatum for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Several developments have strengthened contrarian sentiment. Jeff Park exited his role as chief investment officer at ProCap…

Prediction market platform Kalshi secured a major legal victory after a U.S. appeals court ruled that New Jersey gaming regulators cannot block the company from offering sports-related event contracts in the state. The decision strengthens the role of federal oversight in disputes between state regulators and federally licensed prediction markets. Court Backs CFTC Exclusive Jurisdiction Over Event Contracts The ruling came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, where a panel of judges issued a 2-1 decision stating that New Jersey does not have explicit authority over sports-related event contracts offered by entities regulated by the Commodity…

BlackRock Inc. has filed plans to launch a new exchange-traded fund designed to track the Nasdaq-100 Index, signaling a direct challenge to Invesco Ltd., which has long dominated this segment of the ETF market. The proposed fund, named the iShares Nasdaq-100 ETF, is expected to trade under the ticker IQQ, according to a Monday filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Details regarding the fund’s management fees have not yet been disclosed. Nasdaq-100 ETF Competition and Market Position If approved, IQQ would become one of only a few U.S.-listed ETFs that exclusively track the Nasdaq-100 Index and notably…

Onchain perpetual futures trading volumes have declined for five straight months after reaching a peak in October 2025. Data from DefiLlama shows total perp decentralized exchange (DEX) volume dropped to $699 billion in March 2026, down from $1.36 trillion recorded in October. The decline continued steadily through November and December before extending into the first quarter of 2026. Daily Perp DEX Activity Falls Below Key Levels Daily trading activity also reflects weakening momentum. On April 4, perp DEX volume fell to $8.4 billion, marking the first drop below $10 billion since Sept. 6, 2025. It was also the lowest daily…

Bitcoin faces a decisive week as macro tensions collide with signs of a potential long-term bullish reversal. The weekly chart shows Bitcoin reclaiming the 200-week exponential moving average (EMA), while the moving average convergence/divergence (MACD) indicator is close to producing its first bullish cross since May 2025. During the last similar signal, Bitcoin surged from $94,000 to $119,000 within two months. MACD Indicator and Liquidation Activity Drive Market Focus Analysts note that Bitcoin recently moved above $70,000, triggering more than $250 million in liquidations as short positions were caught off guard. Onchain data shows aggressive short term positioning, with increased…

China’s tax and financial regulators have called on banks and local authorities to adopt blockchain technology and privacy computing to improve lending services and expand financing for small businesses. The State Administration of Taxation and the National Financial Regulatory Administration issued a joint policy notice urging standardized data sharing to reduce information asymmetry between tax authorities, banks, and enterprises. Blockchain to Improve Credit Efficiency and Financing The directive encourages banks to strengthen credit models, enhance approval efficiency, and increase financing supply to “honest, tax-paying enterprises.” This push aligns with China’s broader strategy to integrate blockchain into national data infrastructure. A…

Tom Lee’s BitMine Immersion has acquired an additional 71,252 ETH, increasing total Ethereum holdings to 4,803,334 ETH, representing roughly 3.98% of circulating supply. Total Crypto and Cash Holdings As of April 6, 2026, BitMine Immersion reports total assets of $11.4 billion, including 4,803,334 ETH valued at $2,123 per ETH, 198 Bitcoin, a $200 million stake in Beast Industries, and a $92 million stake in Eightco Holdings (NASDAQ: $ORBS), which the company categorizes as “moonshots.” Cash holdings stand at $864 million. Staking and Liquidity Out of the total ETH holdings, 3,334,637 ETH are currently staked, representing $7.1 billion in value. The…