Markets

After Bitcoin popped to its highest price since January earlier this week, VanEck analysts said Friday that they continue to see bullish on-chain signals around the leading cryptocurrency, with historically profitable conditions emerging across key metrics. Bitcoin's hash rate currently sits at a 30-day moving average of 985.5 EH/s, down 7.5% from its all-time high of 1,065.7 EH/s set in late November, according to the report from VanEck analysts Matthew Sigel and Patrick Bush. The network weath...

Law and Order

Tennessee has become the second U.S. state to outlaw Bitcoin ATMs, making it a criminal offense in the Volunteer State to own or operate the machines that federal authorities have identified as a vector committing fraud against the elderly. Whether operators’ kiosks allow customers to purchase Bitcoin or other digital assets with cash, they have until July 1 to pull the plug under House Bill 2505, which Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law on April 13 following the legislation’s introduct...

Technology

A researcher has used a publicly accessible quantum computer to crack a vastly simplified version of a Bitcoin-style cryptographic key, marking the largest public demonstration yet of a quantum attack on elliptic curve cryptography. Project Eleven said Friday it awarded its 1 Bitcoin “Q-Day Prize” bounty—currently worth nearly $78,000—to Italian researcher Giancarlo Lelli for breaking a 15-bit elliptic curve cryptography key using a variant of Shor’s algorithm. “I joined out of a mix of wanting...

Business

Bitcoin financial services company Fold Holdings, Inc. launched a program Thursday that allows companies to pay recurring BTC bonuses to employees, following an initial rollout from restaurant chain Steak 'n Shake earlier this year. The Bitcoin Bonus Program represents the first product from Fold Business, the company's new enterprise division. Under the program, Steak 'n Shake's 10,000-plus hourly workers across the United States can receive Bitcoin bonuses, as announced in January and impleme...

Markets

Bitcoin’s sustained bullish market structure over the past three weeks has triggered a clear risk landscape signal that could hint at an extension of the ongoing rally. The Risk Index—Glassnode’s proprietary metric that quantifies systemic risk on a scale of 0 to 100—is hovering at zero, the lowest possible level, indicating a “cleared risk landscape,” according to a Thursday Telegram post from the market intelligence firm. It also serves as a primary gauge of market health, with a 25 threshold...

Opinion

Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt. And check out our new daily news show covering all of the top stories in 5 minutes or less, downloadable on Apple Pod or Spotify. GM! Today’s top news: Crypto majors rally then reverse as oil concerns mount; BTC -1% at $77,300 The US Government discloses that it’s operating a Bitcoin node Justin Sun sues WLFI to unfreeze his tokens Andre...

Business

Blockchain Capital is raising $700 million across two new funds, according to Bloomberg. Citing a source familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that the venture capital firm is simultaneously pursuing its seventh early-stage fund and its second growth fund, and has already deployed some of the new capital. The fundraising effort builds on Blockchain Capital's existing portfolio of over $2 billion in assets under management. The firm demonstrated its continued investment activity last week...

Law and Order

A top military official told Congress Wednesday that the U.S. government currently runs a node on the Bitcoin network, to conduct tests related to network security. “We have a node on the Bitcoin network right now,” Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, told the House Armed Services Committee Wednesday. “We’re not mining Bitcoin,” he continued. “We’re using it to monitor, and we’re doing a number of operational tests to secure and protect networks using the Bitcoin pro...

Law and Order

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority said Wednesday that it conducted its first coordinated raids targeting illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading, hitting eight London premises alongside tax authorities and organized crime units. The Tuesday morning operation saw FCA officers issue cease-and-desist letters at each location, ordering traders to immediately halt unauthorized activities. The raids were conducted under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds Regulations 2017....

Markets

Shares in publicly traded Bitcoin miners turned AI-focused data center companies Keel Infrastructure (KEEL) and Hive Digital Technologies (HIVE) have jumped on Wednesday amid new announcements on the firm's respective AI plans.  Keel, formerly known as Bitfarms, closed on the sale of its mining site in Paso Pe, Paraguay, netting $13 million in proceeds as it continues its departure from mining the top crypto asset. Hive, on the other hand, closed a $115 million private offering of convertible n...

Markets

Crypto market maker GSR launched its first exchange-traded fund (ETF)—the GSR Crypto Core3 ETF—on Wednesday, and it’s now live for trading on the Nasdaq.  The fund, which trades under the ticker BESO, will offer investors actively managed exposure to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, as well as staking rewards from its ETH and SOL holdings. The fund will operate with a 1% management fee.  “GSR has spent over a decade building efficient crypto markets, and with Core3, we are extending that expertis...

Business

Russia's State Duma passed a comprehensive crypto regulation bill in its first reading, establishing the country's first formal framework for digital asset regulation while maintaining restrictions on domestic cryptocurrency payments. Per reports in local media, the legislation would classify cryptocurrency as property, enabling legal protection in court proceedings including bankruptcy and divorce cases. Non-qualified investors would face annual purchase limits of 300,000 rubles (around $3,900)...

Markets

American Bitcoin Corp. (ABTC) said Wednesday that it activated 11,298 Bitcoin miners at its Drumheller facility in Alberta, Canada, expanding the company's total owned hashrate to 28.1 EH/s across 89,242 machines. And the Trump-backed firm’s shares are soaring following the announcement. The deployment fulfills expansion plans the company first announced on March 3. With the Drumheller activation complete, American Bitcoin's owned fleet operates at an average efficiency of 16.0 J/TH. "Scaling h...

Coins

A documentary released on Wednesday asserts that Satoshi Nakamoto was never an individual, but rather a pseudonym shared by two expert cryptographers who combined forces to create Bitcoin before their respective deaths: Hal Finney and Len Sassaman. Directed by Tucker Tooley and Matthew Miele, “Finding Satoshi” showcases a four-year investigation guided by American business writer William D. Cohan and private investigator Tyler Maroney, delving deep into one of the 21st century's greatest unsolv...

Opinion

Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt. And check out our new daily news show covering all of the top stories in 5 minutes or less, downloadable on Apple Pod or Spotify. GM! Today’s top news: Crypto majors rally as Trump extends ceasefire indefinitely; BTC +2% at $78.3k Coinbase quantum report says ETH and SOL more at risk than Bitcoin Kalshi and Polymarket both tease perps lau...

Markets

Bitcoin has been on a steady uptrend in April, with shallow pullbacks, allowing altcoins to extend their gains. Pudgy Penguins meme coin PENGU led altcoin gains, up 12.6% on the day, while Cosmos (ATOM), Aptos and Bitcoin Cash saw gains of over 5% over the past 24 hours. The altcoin surge comes as Bitcoin hovers around $78,000, up nearly 2% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data. If the bullish momentum persists, the leading crypto could revisit $80,000 for the first time in over t...

Business

Core Scientific, a Bitcoin miner turned data center operator, said on Tuesday that it plans to offer $3.3 billion worth of speculative-grade debt to fund its massive pivot into AI infrastructure. In an announcement, the company valued around $6.55 billion said that it would use a portion of proceeds from the raise to refinance debt. The firm did not say what the notes due in 2031 would pay in terms of an interest, nor when they would be offered to investors. Under a 12-year agreement with cloud...

Business

Software firm turned Bitcoin treasury company Strategy has been buying BTC for more than five years, pioneering the growing trend of publicly traded firms that are adding cryptocurrencies to their balance sheets. What started as a way to "maximize long-term value for shareholders” has transformed into an industry-shifting paradigm that has been further fueled by greater entwinement of traditional financial markets and crypto.  Along the way, Strategy has accumulated 815,061 BTC, or nearly 3.9% o...

Law and Order

The state of New York filed a pair of high-stakes lawsuits Tuesday against Coinbase and Gemini, arguing the crypto companies violated state gambling laws by offering prediction markets. The suits, filed Tuesday in a Manhattan state court, target not only sports-related wagers on Coinbase and Gemini, but also the firms’ prediction markets related to entertainment and politics. New York Attorney General Letitia James also took issue in the lawsuits with the fact that both Coinbase and Gemini allo...

Business

Cash App launched managed accounts for children ages 6-12 on Tuesday, offering 3.25% interest on savings as the Block-owned fintech platform expands into youth banking. But the accounts include no access to Bitcoin, which is available to older Cash App users. Parents maintain complete control over the new accounts, approving transfers from up to five trusted contacts they select, according to the announcement. When children turn 13, the managed accounts can convert to sponsored teen accounts wi...