Author: NBTC

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson stepped into a dispute between Emin Gün Sirer from Avalanche and Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, mocking one of the main fan slogans of the $XRP ecosystem. The trigger was an April Fools’ post by Emin Gün Sirer. The head of Ava Labs jokingly “announced” that banks are massively choosing Ripple’s technology but clarified a minute later that it was a joke. The joke was not accidental. Sirer has long criticized Ripple’s centralized model and its plans to launch a stablecoin, calling them “a step backward” for the industry. Garlinghouse, in response, said that Ripple sits…

SoFi Brings $XRP to the Mainstream as Crypto Access Expands SoFi is steadily becoming a major bridge between traditional banking and crypto, and its latest move pushes that role further. The bank has expanded its platform to support full $XRP deposits and portfolio tracking, placing $XRP alongside Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Solana ($SOL) for millions of everyday users already on the app. For a nationally chartered U.S. bank serving millions, this goes far beyond a routine token listing. It reflects a clear shift in crypto adoption, moving out of niche exchanges and into everyday banking apps used for checking…

Bitcoin traded above $69,000 at press time on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump pushed back his deadline for Iran from Monday to Tuesday night, while continuing to warn of possible strikes on critical infrastructure. Trump said the U.S. would “blow everything up” if Iran fails to reach a deal by 01:00 GMT on Wednesday. The latest extension represents the fourth adjustment to Washington’s timeline for potential military action, even as the Strait of Hormuz remains shut. For Iran’s part, the nation has dismissed any reports of ongoing peace negotiations and issued threats toward neighboring oil-producing nations within OPEC. Besides…

Institutional players have signaled their unwavering confidence in DeFi infrastructure, backing the ecosystem to maintain its stranglehold on the future of FinTech, according to Morpho co-founder Paul Frambot and an April report by Bitcoin Suisse. The comments by Frambot came as the dust settled on the KelpDAO hack that led to about $292 million in initial losses and more than $15 billion leaving the DeFi ecosystem in the days that followed. Bitcon Suisse published its report in April 2026, covering data from Hyperliquid’s L1 from November 2024, around the time it launched its Assistance Fund program, until February 2026. However,…

Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR), the ether ($ETH) treasury firm helmed by Chairman Thomas “Tom” Lee, bought 101,901 $ETH through last week, pushing its total holdings above 5 million tokens of the second-largest cryptocurrency. The purchase lifted the firm’s $ETH treasury to 5,078,386 tokens, or about 4.21% of ether’s circulating supply, according to a Monday update. Bitmine reached that milestone in roughly 10 months, since it pivoted to a digital asset treasury strategy company from a bitcoin miner in June. “Bitmine $ETH holdings crossed 5 million this past week,” Lee said. “This is a major milestone as the company moves towards…

Wall Street private-credit funds are slowing the exits as withdrawal pressure builds As Bitcoin climbs and holds above $73,000, several of Wall Street’s biggest private-credit funds have capped, stretched, or halted withdrawals, according to recent filings and reports tied to BlackRock, Blackstone, Morgan Stanley, Cliffwater, and Blue Owl. JPMorgan has also marked down some private-credit loan portfolios and reduced lending against parts of the same market, a sign that the pressure is moving beyond investor queues and into the financing that supports the asset class. Investors asked to withdraw more money than several funds were willing or able to return…

Global credit agency Kroll (KBRA) has assigned Ripple Prime an investment-grade issuer rating of BBB. Shortly after, Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, commenting on the agency’s decision, stated that the investment-grade rating from Kroll is not just a formality but a direct confirmation of three fundamental characteristics of Ripple Prime: Strength: The rating confirms the platform’s financial power and capital intensity. In the eyes of regulators and large funds, Ripple Prime now has a “margin of safety” comparable to traditional banks. Reliability: Validation of operational processes and risk management mechanisms. This is a signal to conservative institutional players that the…

Pudgy Penguins (PENGU), one of the popular NFT projects, continues to take important and critical steps. Accordingly, Pudgy Penguins held an event at the US Congress and joined the White House advisory board. Pudgy Penguins announced that their team is hosting an open, invitation-only event for policymakers on April 24th at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. The project stated that it has established a close working relationship with the U.S. Congress and the White House, and serves as an advisor on the White House’s cryptocurrency advisory committee. Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz stated that cryptocurrency projects will…

Polymarket said Tuesday that perpetual futures are coming to its platform, making the prediction market giant the latest to push into leveraged derivatives after Kalshi’s own perps plans surfaced earlier in the day. We price the future. Now you can lever it. Perps are coming to Polymarket. Sign up for early access 👇 pic.twitter.com/j3PRHhxv8N — Polymarket (@Polymarket) April 21, 2026 In a post on X, Polymarket said users can sign up for early access, while a teaser video showed positions with up to 10x leverage. The company has not yet shared launch timing, supported assets, or whether the product will…

Bitcoin is trading at $69,230 this morning, up 3.47% in the last 24 hours, after an Axios report confirmed that the US and Iran are in active discussions over a potential 45-day ceasefire, with Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey serving as mediators. Short sellers absorbed the first hit: $196 million in liquidations in 24 hours, with shorts outnumbering longs nearly 3 to 1. The move pushes Bitcoin toward the top of the $65,000 to $73,000 war range it has been trapped in for five weeks. Bitcoin Price Level You Need to Watch Michaël van de Poppe just laid it out. “If…