Author: NBTC

Stellar’s DeFi total value locked has crossed $200 million for the first time, hitting roughly $204.19 million on April 24, according to DefiLlama. The figure marks a new all-time high for the network and beats the previous peak of about $196.6 million set in January 2026. The breakout comes as many Layer 1 and Layer 2 chains have struggled to hold their TVL through 2026. Stellar has moved the other way, posting steady growth into Q2. The question is what’s behind the move. What’s pushing Stellar’s TVL higher? Real-world assets are doing most of the work. Stellar has spent the…

In brief The Federal Reserve proposed new rules requiring U.S. crypto firms to verify stablecoin users. Former Fed Chair Jerome Powell backed the proposal. Current Chair Kevin Warsh abstained without explanation. Some officials warned about the risks posed by the rules’ exemption for decentralized protocols. The Federal Reserve on Thursday issued a proposed rulemaking dictating how American crypto firms will have to evaluate customers and discourage money laundering now that stablecoins have been formally legalized. The rulemaking, proposed jointly with President Donald Trump’s administration agencies including the Treasury Department and the FDIC, interprets how to implement provisions of the $GENIUS…

The upgrade is shaping up to be one of Ethereum’s most ambitious since the network’s transition to proof-of-stake in 2022. Jayanthi described Glamsterdam as “probably the largest fork we’ve had since the Merge,” adding that it will “change a lot of assumptions about Ethereum and set us up for much more scaling in the future.” Among the headline features are enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation (ePBS), formally tracked as EIP-7732, and Block-level Access Lists (EIP-7928). ePBS would bring into Ethereum’s core protocol a separation between the entities that build transaction blocks and those that propose them. Today, that process largely relies offchain,…

Michael Egorov Says Demand Is Rising for $BTC Yield Strategies That Preserve Exposure Crypto investors have long faced an uncomfortable choice in decentralized finance: earn yield or keep clean exposure to the assets they already own. That trade-off is especially clear in bitcoin liquidity provision. In traditional automated market maker strategies, a sharp rise in $BTC can leave liquidity providers worse off than investors who simply held the asset. According to Yield Basis, a 2x move in bitcoin can put LPs about 5.7% behind passive ownership, a gap that has made onchain liquidity strategies harder to justify for long-term holders.…

Euro Stablecoin Shift: Ripple-Backed Banks in Europe Move to Redefine Global Finance A subtle but significant shift is underway in Europe’s financial system, one that could extend well beyond the region. Crypto observer SMQKE reports that three banking giants, ING, UniCredit, and BNP Paribas, are gearing up to launch a joint euro-denominated stablecoin in the second half of 2026, built on Ripple’s infrastructure. This is more than just another crypto development. It signals a deliberate push by major financial institutions to modernize how money moves in an increasingly digital economy. For years, dollar-backed stablecoins like USDT and USDC have anchored…

In brief Ireland’s government launched a new National Risk Assessment and 30-point action plan Thursday, naming the misuse of crypto-assets among the country’s evolving financial-crime threats. The plan promises “enhanced safeguards around crypto-assets and digital finance,” including a new industry standard requiring due diligence to verify that crypto used as a source of funds is legitimate. Tánaiste Simon Harris and Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said the measures aim to protect victims and keep Ireland’s defenses apace with criminals’ use of new technology. Ireland has put crypto-assets squarely in the frame of its latest crackdown on financial crime. The government launched…

Known for his years of legal battles, Australian computer scientist Craig Wright – whose claim to being Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto was officially rejected by London’s High Court – is once again attempting to regain media influence. This time, the trigger was criticism of the leading cryptocurrency from billionaire Ray Dalio, who recently stated that central banks around the world are unlikely to ever hold $BTC on their balance sheets. For those who missed it, Dalio’s main concern is the absolute transparency and traceability of the blockchain. In his view, the public ledger makes transactions vulnerable to total surveillance and…

It was the first decision under new Chairman Kevin Warsh, who said there had been rigorous debate before the vote and vowed the central bank would deliver price stability. A more hawkish Fed means tighter financial conditions, which tend to drain the liquidity that fuels risk assets like crypto. Stocks took the week’s news better, helped by a separate development. President Donald Trump signed an interim deal to end the war with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, putting the agreement into effect. S&P 500 futures rose as much as 0.9% and Nasdaq futures gained 1.5%, while Brent crude…

Shiba Inu has continued to see rising network participation since the broader crypto market began to flip positive amid the bullish shift in sentiment. While Shiba Inu remains one of the top performing meme assets, it has seen renewed investor interest amid its growing network usage. Millions of $SHIB get permanently destroyed Following the consistent surge in the Shiba Inu network activity, it has recorded another massive $SHIB burn over the last 24 hours, causing a notable spike in the metric. Per data provided by the blockchain tracking platform, Shibburn, the amount of Shiba Inu tokens destroyed over the last…

These standards, according to the rule proposal, “must include reasonable procedures for: (1) verifying the identity of any person seeking to open an account to the extent reasonable and practicable; (2) maintaining records of the information used to verify a person’s identity, including name, address, and other identifying information; and (3) determining whether the person appears on any lists of known or suspected terrorists or terrorist organizations provided to the financial institution by any government agency.” The Fed opened a 60-day public comment period alongside the other agencies in the joint effort, including the Office of the Comptroller of the…