Author: NBTC

Riot Platforms (RIOT) shares jumped about 8% on Friday after Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) expanded its capacity at the company’s Rockdale, Texas campus, highlighting Riot’s continued pivot from bitcoin mining into AI and high-performance computing. According to the Q1 financial results, AMD exercised an option to double its contracted capacity to 50 megawatts (MW), with the potential to upsize to 150MW. According to the earnings transcript, Riot said the agreement could generate roughly $636 million over a 10-year term. Riot also secured improved terms on its $200 million bitcoin-backed credit facility with Coinbase, lowering the rate to a fixed 6.15%…

The crypto space moves fast, but onboarding still slows many users. Projects struggle to connect traditional finance with blockchain systems. That gap limits adoption and blocks the next wave of innovation. Now, a major collaboration aims to solve this challenge at scale. Banxa joins as a launch partner for Kite mainnet, bringing regulated payment infrastructure. This move simplifies how users enter the ecosystem. It also ensures compliance from day one. With this step, Kite builds a stronger bridge between global finance and blockchain networks. The launch of Kite mainnet signals a shift toward usability and real-world integration. Banxa fiat on…

Gold ($2.15B) and Silver ($1.98B) futures on Binance have surged to rank fourth and fifth, respectively, in terms of trading volume, surpassed only by Bitcoin ($21.5B), Ethereum ($18.1B), and Solana ($3.0B). Cumulative trading for gold and silver contracts surpassed $130 billion by early March 2026. The milestone achievement is notable, given that the exchange launched metal perpetual contracts in January this year. Source: CryptoQuant Gold and silver futures rival Bitcoin on Binance Recent events, including geopolitical hostilities, persistent inflation, the weakening of the dollar, and increases in US trade tariffs, have triggered market-wide shocks across both traditional and cryptocurrency markets.…

Tether, the crypto firm behind the most popular stablecoin $USDT, said Thursday it has invested in Ark Labs to bring programmable payments to the Bitcoin network. The backing formed part of a $5.2 million funding round for the startup. Ark Labs develops Arkade, a system that aims to allow faster transactions and application building on top of Bitcoin. With the new funding, the start-up said it has raised about $7.7 million in total. The project focuses on making Bitcoin usable for payments and financial tools that often require faster settlement and automation. Arkade acts as an execution layer that developers…

$XRP Ledger validator Vet has pushed back against the idea that $XRP and SWIFT could work together. Specifically, Vet stated that SWIFT is not using $XRP, and more importantly, $XRP does not need SWIFT to function. The argument centers on a shift in which blockchain systems could bypass legacy financial rails entirely. According to the validator, banks and financial institutions are more likely to leapfrog outdated infrastructure and adopt blockchain solutions that integrate messaging and settlement into a single process. Key Points $XRP Ledger validator Vet says $XRP doesn’t need SWIFT to function and can bypass legacy banking rails. Blockchain…

RippleX has announced that users of Rakuten Wallet can now convert Rakuten Points directly into $XRP, trade it in-app, and spend it across more than 5 million merchant locations, marking one of the largest real-world retail deployments of $XRP to date. The rollout connects a massive consumer ecosystem, over 44 million Rakuten Pay users, and roughly $23 billion worth of loyalty points, with direct access to $XRP, effectively bridging rewards, trading, and payments into a single flow. The company explained, “Users who hold $XRP can directly charge it into Rakuten Cash from within our app. Once charged, it can be…

Tron verifies $9.4M in $USDT for crypto real estate payments through a groundbreaking joint campaign with RealOpen, a platform that enables property purchases using digital currencies. This verification marks a significant milestone in the integration of blockchain technology into traditional real estate markets. Tron verifies $USDT for real estate: How the campaign works The Tron network acted as the payment infrastructure for this initiative. It handled the verification of on-chain funds and managed crypto-to-fiat on- and off-ramps. RealOpen, the real estate platform, facilitated the actual property transactions. This collaboration demonstrates a practical use case for stablecoins in high-value asset purchases.…

The West Asia crisis resulted in surging oil prices and fears of growing inflation. This meant that institutional traders were hedging against further downside, evident in the increased demand for puts (bearish bets). Further downside was possible. Short-term holders were intent on protecting their profits or trying to exit the market at a breakeven, capping the potential of any rally. Yet, the higher timeframe price action was at an interesting place where a price bounce could not be ruled out completely. Explaining Bitcoin’s trend expectations Source: $BTC/$USDT on TradingView The swing moves on the 3-day timeframe were captured in white.…

Cryptio, a developer of accounting software for digital assets, raised $45 million in a Series B funding round as financial institutions and corporations expand their use of blockchain-based assets. The round closed about three weeks ago and was led by BlackFin Capital Partners and Sentinel Global. Existing investors 1kx, BlueYard Capital and Ledger Cathay Capital also participated, Fortune reported, citing a company announcement. The company’s valuation wasn’t disclosed. Cryptio’s platform helps companies track the digital assets they hold and where those assets are stored across wallets, custodians and exchanges. In January last year, the firm raised $15 million in an…

Circle has minted 750 million $USDC on the Solana network, injecting fresh liquidity into the ecosystem. The issuance accounts for roughly 0.3% of $USDC’s total supply and aims to support decentralized finance (DeFi) trading and on-chain activity. This move reflects Circle’s ongoing commitment to backing Solana’s growing ecosystem while responding to rising demand from both retail and institutional users. ⚡️ TODAY: Circle minted 750,000,000 $USDC on Solana. pic.twitter.com/6qiE9PbwZT — Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) March 31, 2026 Circle Boosts Solana Liquidity By minting such a large amount of $USDC, Circle strengthens Solana’s DeFi infrastructure. Stablecoins like $USDC serve as the backbone for trading,…