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IMX surges 15% after Immutable says SEC ended probe

The token tied to the crypto gaming giant Immutable surged 15% in the hours after it announced that the US Securities and Exchange Commission closed its investigation into the firm and would take no further action.

The Immutable (IMX) token rose around 15% on March 25 to reach just under $0.74 shortly after the firm announced that the SEC shut its inquiry without any breach of violations, which Immutable said closed “the loop on the Wells notice issued by the SEC last year.” 

IMX matched crypto market downtrend

It is the highest price that IMX has reached since March 3, before a broader market decline — driven by prolonged uncertainty over US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and US interest rates — pushed it down to $0.46 on March 11.

At the time of publication, IMX had retraced back to $0.67, according to CoinMarketCap. A move back toward $0.70 would wipe approximately $449,500 in short positions, according to CoinGlass data.

IMX is up 0.34% over the past 30 days. Source: CoinMarketCap

IMX surges 15% after Immutable says SEC ended probe
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North Carolina bills would add crypto to state’s retirement system

North Carolina lawmakers have introduced bills in the House and Senate that could see the state’s treasurer allocate up to 5% of various state retirement funds into cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

The Investment Modernization Act (House Bill 506), introduced by Representative Brenden Jones on March 24, would create an independent investment authority under the state’s Treasury to determine which digital assets could be suitable for inclusion into the state retirement funds.

An identical bill, the State Investment Modernization Act (Senate Bill 709), was introduced into the state’s Senate on March 25.

The bills define a digital asset as a cryptocurrency, stablecoin, non-fungible token (NFT), or any other asset that is electronic in nature that confers economic, proprietary or access rights.

The North Carolina bills don’t set market cap criteria for digital assets, unlike other crypto bills that are working their way into law at the state level.

North Carolina bills would add crypto to state’s retirement system
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SEC plans 4 more crypto roundtables on trading, custody, tokenization, DeFi

The US Securities and Exchange Commission will host four more crypto roundtables — focusing on crypto trading, custody, tokenization and decentralized finance (DeFi) — after hosting its first crypto roundtable on March 21.

The series of roundtables, organized by the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, will kick off with a discussion on tailoring regulation for crypto trading on April 11, the SEC said in a March 25 statement.

A roundtable on crypto custody will follow on April 25, with another to discuss tokenization and moving assets onchain on May 12. The fourth roundtable in the series will discuss DeFi on June 6.

A series of four crypto roundtable discussions are scheduled from April through to June. Source: SEC

“The Crypto Task Force roundtables are an opportunity for us to hear a lively discussion among experts about what the regulatory issues are and what the Commission can do to solve them,” said SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, the task force lead.

SEC plans 4 more crypto roundtables on trading, custody, tokenization, DeFi
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Custodia and Vantage Bank partner for ‘first bank-issued stablecoin’

The crypto-friendly Custodia Bank has worked with Vantage Bank to complete what the two firms say is “America’s first-ever bank-issued stablecoin” on a permissionless blockchain.

Custodia said on March 25 that it tokenized US dollar demand deposits and facilitated the issuance, transfer and redemption of the stablecoin “Avit” on Ethereum via the ERC-20 token standard.

“A new US dollar payment rail has now been activated inside the US banking system,” Custodia added.

“We broke ground on the legal/regulatory front, proving that US banks can collaborate to tokenize demand deposits on a permissionless blockchain in a regulatorily-compliant manner,” said Custodia CEO Caitlin Long.

Source: Caitlin Long

Custodia and Vantage Bank partner for ‘first bank-issued stablecoin’
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Bitcoin, Ethereum to end Q1 in the red, ‘vertical swing up’ unlikely

Bitcoin and Ethereum are poised to suffer their worst first quarter in years unless they can pull off a huge rally in the next few days.

Ether (ETH) has dropped 37.98% so far over the first quarter of 2025, its worst Q1 decline since 2018, when it plunged 46.61%, according to CoinGlass data. Meanwhile, Bitcoin (BTC) is down 6.49% so far over the quarter, which is slated to end on March 31 — marking its worst Q1 performance since 2020, when it saw a 10.83% decline. 

Crypto market unlikely to flash green before end quarter

Swyftx lead analyst Pav Hundal told Cointelegraph that a “vertical swing up into the end of the quarter looks unlikely.” 

Ether has posted an average return of 78.23% in the first quarter of every year since 2017. Source: CoinGlass

Hundal said that the crypto market will be “flying a little blind” until the middle of April when the broader market should have better clarity on US President Donald Trump’s tariff plans.

Bitcoin, Ethereum to end Q1 in the red, ‘vertical swing up’ unlikely
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Crusoe to sell Bitcoin mining business to NYDIG to focus on AI

Crusoe Energy, a company that captures waste gas from oil to power high-performance compute, is selling its Bitcoin mining business to New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) to focus on artificial intelligence. 

In a March 25 announcement, Crusoe said it plans to sell its Bitcoin (BTC) mining operation,  including its digital flare mitigation business, to NYDIG, subject to regulatory approvals and other consents. 

The deal includes Crusoe’s 270 megawatts of power generation technology from more than 425 modular data centers across the United States and Argentina, along with 135 Crusoe employees who will join NYDIG, as no roles will be eliminated as a result of the transaction. 

Crusoe was founded in 2018 and pioneered technology that captures waste gas created during oil extraction and refinement that would be normally burned off in a process called gas flaring in order to power Bitcoin miners.

Photo of gas flaring in action. Source: Crusoe Energy

Crusoe to sell Bitcoin mining business to NYDIG to focus on AI
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Crypto influencer Ben ‘BitBoy’ Armstrong arrested in Florida

Update (March 26, 6:12 am UTC): This article has been updated to add information on Ben Armstrong’s prior arrest and background.

Crypto influencer Ben Armstrong, also known as “BitBoy,” has been arrested in Florida after disclosing on social media just days ago that a warrant was out for his arrest.

Florida’s Volusia County Division of Corrections listed Armstrong as a fugitive from justice who was taken in custody on March 25 at 7:18 pm local time.

Days prior, Armstrong said in a March 21 X post that he could “confirm that the warrants for my arrest” were due to sending emails to Cobb County, Georgia Superior Court Judge Kimberly Childs while acting as his own attorney.

Source: Ben Armstrong

Crypto influencer Ben ‘BitBoy’ Armstrong arrested in Florida
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Pirating pioneer Napster sells for $207M with plans for music metaverse

Artificial intelligence startup Infinite Reality has acquired the music-pirating app turned music streaming service Napster in a $207 million deal and plans to add a music-focused metaverse. 

Infinite Reality said in a March 25 statement that Napster would offer “branded 3D virtual spaces” to allow virtual concerts and “social listening parties” along with the ability to offer virtual merchandise.

“Imagine stepping into a virtual venue to watch an exclusive show with friends, chat with your favorite artist in their own virtual hangout as they drop their new single, and be able to directly buy their exclusive digital and physical merch,” said Napster CEO Jon Vlassopulos, who will continue in his role amid the acquisition.

“The internet has evolved from desktop to mobile, from mobile to social, and now we are entering the immersive era,” he added.

"The most legendary collab?! Infinite Reality has acquired iconic online music brand @Napster.

With this acquisition, we're expanding and reimagining Napster, empowering artists with new audience monetization and engagement capabilities, underpinned by iR’s #immersivepic.twitter.com/L4Fig7QFct

Pirating pioneer Napster sells for $207M with plans for music metaverse
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Bitcoin price has 75% chance of hitting new highs in 2025 — Analyst

Bitcoin network economist Timothy Peterson maintains his optimistic outlook for BTC (BTC), suggesting that there is a 75% chance that the asset will hit new highs in the next nine months.

In a March 25 X post, Peterson highlighted BTC’s current position near the lower bound of its historical range. The analyst emphasized that Bitcoin’s current path aligns with the bottom 25% threshold, giving it majority odds for a positive rally.

Bitcoin 10-year seasonality chart. Source: X.com

Peterson said, 

“Here is a 50% chance it will gain 50%+ in the short term.”

Peterson’s statements follow an earlier study that found that most of Bitcoin’s annual bullish performance occurred in April and October, which have averaged 12.98% and 21.98%, respectively, over the past decade.

Bitcoin price has 75% chance of hitting new highs in 2025 — Analyst
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FDIC moves to eradicate 'reputational risk' category from bank exams

The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, an independent agency of the federal government, is reportedly moving to stop using the “reputational risk” category as a way to supervise banks.

According to a letter sent by the agency’s acting chairman, Travis Hill, to Rep. Dan Meuser on March 24, banking regulators should not use “reputational risk” to scrutinize firms.

“While a bank’s reputation is critically important, most activities that could threaten a bank’s reputation do so through traditional risk channels (e.g., credit risk, market risk, etc.) that supervisors already focus on,” notes the letter, first reported by Politico.

According to the document, the FDIC has completed a “review of all mentions of reputational risk” in its regulations and policy documents and has “plans to eradicate this concept from our regulatory approach.”

Reputational risk and debanking

The Federal Reserve defines reputational risk as “the potential that negative publicity regarding an institution’s business practices, whether true or not, will cause a decline in the customer base, costly litigation, or revenue reductions.”

FDIC moves to eradicate 'reputational risk' category from bank exams
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GameStop hints at future Bitcoin purchases following board approval

GameStop Corporation (GME), the video game retailer turned memecoin stock, is reportedly moving to invest in Bitcoin after its board unanimously approved a plan to acquire digital assets. 

According to a March 25 CNBC report, the company announced that it would use a portion of its corporate cash or future debt issuances to invest in Bitcoin (BTC) and US-dollar-pegged stablecoins. 

The plan was further corroborated by the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report, which was released on March 25 and showed intent to acquire Bitcoin and stablecoins. 

“[T]he Company’s investment policy permits investments in certain cryptocurrency assets, including Bitcoin and US dollar-denominated stable coins,” the financial statement reads.

GameStop’s cash reserves stood at more than $4.77 billion as of Feb. 1, compared with $921.7 million a year earlier. 

GameStop hints at future Bitcoin purchases following board approval
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Bitcoin sellers lurk in $88K to $90K zone — Is this week’s BTC rally losing steam?

Many Bitcoin (BTC) traders became bullish this week as prices rallied deep into the $88,000 level, but failure to overcome this level in the short term could be a take-profit signal.

Alphractal, a crypto analytics platform, noted that Bitcoin whales have entered short positions at the $88,000 level. 

In a recent X post, the platform highlighted that the “Whale Position Sentiment” metric exhibited a sharp reversal in the chart, indicating that major players with a bearish bias have stepped. The metric defines the relationship between the aggregated open interest and trades larger than $1 million across multiple exchanges.

Bitcoin: Whale position sentiment. Source: X

As illustrated in the chart, the two circled regions are synonymous with Bitcoin price falling to the $88,000 level. Alphractal said, 

Bitcoin sellers lurk in $88K to $90K zone — Is this week’s BTC rally losing steam?
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SEC closes investigation into Immutable nearly 5 months after Wells notice

Update (March 25, 10:09 pm UTC): This article has been updated to include a response from the SEC and an X post from Robbie Ferguson.

Web3 gaming platform Immutable says the US Securities and Exchange Commission has closed its investigation into the company, clearing it of any further action. 

Immutable — the firm behind the Ethereum layer-2 Immutable X — said in a March 25 statement that the SEC shut its inquiry into the firm without finding wrongdoing and “closes the loop on the Wells notice issued by the SEC last year.”

In November, Immutable said it received a Wells notice from the regulator — a letter informing that the SEC is considering an enforcement action, typically sent after it concludes there is evidence of possible securities law violations.

“We are pleased the SEC has concluded its inquiry. This marks a significant milestone for the crypto industry and gaming as we advance towards a future with regulatory clarity,” Immutable president and co-founder Robbie Ferguson said in a statement.

SEC closes investigation into Immutable nearly 5 months after Wells notice
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3 reasons why Cardano (ADA) price could be on the path to new highs

Cardano (ADA) gained 8% between March 23 and March 25, once again testing the $0.76 resistance level, which has held for over two weeks. Although still far from its March 3 high of $1.18, traders remain optimistic about further gains. Their confidence is driven by the ongoing efforts of founder and CEO Charles Hoskinson to highlight the network’s advantages and ADA’s potential to industry leaders, particularly within traditional finance markets.

The ADA price surge on March 3 was triggered by US President Donald Trump, who explicitly mentioned Ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), and Cardano on his official social media accounts as leading candidates for the US Digital Asset reserves. However, the Digital Asset Stockpile executive order signed by Trump on March 7 did not include plans to purchase any altcoins, despite his earlier claims.

Trump Jr. and Charles Hoskinson will attend DC Blockchain Summit 2025

A fresh wave of bullish speculation for ADA emerged after Donald Trump Jr. was announced as a speaker at the DC Blockchain Summit 2025, a panel moderated by Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson.

The two-day event in Washington, D.C., will feature several prominent speakers, including Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon, Majority Whip Tom Emmer, Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Cynthia Lummis, and Bo Hines, Executive Director of the Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets.

DC Blockchain Summit 2025 agenda. Source: dcblockchainsummit

3 reasons why Cardano (ADA) price could be on the path to new highs
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Bitcoin miners’ income stabilizes post-halving: Coin Metrics

Bitcoin (BTC) mining revenues hit $3.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, a 42% increase from the prior quarter, and are approaching similar levels of around $3.6 billion in Q1 2025, according to data from Coin Metrics. 

The revenue uptick suggests miners’ incomes are stabilizing after the Bitcoin network’s “halving” in April 2024 reduced mining rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block. Halvings occur every four years and cut the number of BTC mined per block in half.

“With almost one year elapsed since Bitcoin’s 4th halving, miners have endured a period of stabilization, adapting to reduced block rewards, tighter margins, and shifting operational dynamics,” Coin Metrics said in its Q1 2025 Data Special report.

This recovery could be cut short if ongoing trade wars disrupt miners’ business models, Ben Yorke, VP of Ecosystem at WOO X, a Web3 startup, told Cointelegraph.

“Should semiconductor tariffs return, Bitcoin mining could face higher costs, consolidating power among major players and forcing smaller operations to power down,” Yorke said.

Bitcoin miners’ income stabilizes post-halving: Coin Metrics
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Berkshire-backed Nubank adds ADA, NEAR, ATOM to crypto offerings

Nubank, a Latin American financial bank backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, has expanded its crypto offerings by adding four altcoins to its portfolio.

The bank is adding Cardano (ADA), Near Protocol (NEAR), Cosmos (ATOM), and Algorand (ALGO) to its 100 million clients in Brazil, according to a March 25 announcement. The four coins had a combined market capitalization of $34.6 billion at time of writing.

Nubank’s revenue grew to nearly $3 billion at the end of 2024 from $245 million in the first quarter of 2021, Statista data show.

The four additional coins will bring Nubank Cripto’s total coin offerings to 20. Currently, the platform’s customers can buy, sell and swap Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), USDC (USDC), and XRP (XRP).

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has invested in Nubank multiple times. In 2021, Berkshire Hathaway invested $500 million in Nubank’s Series G funding round, an amount later followed by an additional $1 billion. From 2022 to 2024, Buffett’s company increased its ownership stake in Nubank to 0.4% from 0.1%.

Nubank’s crypto push faces competition

Nubank has been diving into digital assets since 2022, when it announced the allocation of 1% of net assets to BTC and started offering crypto services. In October 2022, the company revealed plans to launch its loyalty tokens on the Polygon blockchain. It discontinued the servicein 2024.

Berkshire-backed Nubank adds ADA, NEAR, ATOM to crypto offerings
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Ripple will drop cross-appeal in SEC case, get refund from lower court ruling

Blockchain firm Ripple Labs’ case with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may be officially wrapped up after more than four years, subject to court approval.

In a March 25 X post, Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty wrote, in ”what should be my last update on SEC v. Ripple ever,” that Ripple will drop its cross-appeal against the SEC in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. An August 2024 judgment from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York finding Ripple liable for $125 million will essentially stand, but the SEC will keep only $50 million of the amount in escrow. The remaining balance will be returned to Ripple.

“The agency will also ask the Court to lift the standard injunction that was imposed earlier at the SEC’s request,” wrote Alderoty. “All subject to Commission vote, drafting of final documents and usual court processes.”

Ripple chief legal officer statement on latest development with SEC case. Source: Stuart Alderoty

Alderoty’s announcement came less than a week after Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the SEC would drop its appeal over the August 2024 judgment. At the time of publication, neither the SEC nor Ripple appeared to have made any filing in the Second Circuit since Jan. 31 or in SDNY since October.

Ripple will drop cross-appeal in SEC case, get refund from lower court ruling
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Waiting for altcoin season? Data suggests it’s already here

Few things in crypto are as elusive and misunderstood as the concept of an “altcoin season.” Traditionally, this term referred to a brief window — usually 2–3 months — following a Bitcoin (BTC) price rally, where altcoins outperform BTC in cumulative returns. That pattern held in the 2015–2018 and 2019–2022 cycles, but the verdict is not yet in on whether the current bull market has had its altcoin season. 

The Blockchain Center defines an altcoin season as a period when 75% of the top 50 altcoins outperform Bitcoin over a rolling 90-day timeframe. Its Altseason Index registered upticks in March 2024 and again in January 2025 — but neither lasted long enough to qualify as a full-fledged altseason.

Altcoin season index. Source: Blockchain Center

Some analysts argue that memecoins drained liquidity from the broader altcoin market. Others blame the oversaturation of crypto investment products — particularly ETFs — which cater to institutions and spotlight only the largest altcoins. A third explanation calls for a deeper rethink of what altcoins actually are. Within this view, altcoins are perceived as a unified asset class but are a diverse collection of crypto assets with different functions, value structures, and growth potential.

Memecoins stole the spotlight

For the crypto analyst Miles Deutscher, the launch of Pump.fun is directly correlated to the destruction of the altcoin market vs BTC.

Waiting for altcoin season? Data suggests it’s already here
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SEC nominee Atkins discloses at least $327M in assets ahead of confirmation hearing

Paul Atkins, US President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), disclosed combined employment assets of at least $327 million with his wife ahead of a scheduled confirmation hearing with the US Senate Banking Committee.

Atkins and his wife, Sarah Humphreys, held up to a combined $327 million in assets, in part through their respective stakes in Atkins’ consulting firm Patomak Global Partners and Tamko Building Products, according to a financial disclosure report made public by the US Office of Government Ethics on March 25.

Humphreys and her family members reportedly control a 75% stake in Tamco, the roofing business founded by her grandfather.

Atkins personally disclosed up to $78.8 million in total employment assets of: up to $15,000 each; between $25,000,001 and $50 million in membership interest at Patomak; between $250,001 and $500,000 in call options at Securitize, a real-world asset tokenization platform; and between $50,001 and $100,000 at financial technology company Pontoro.

If confirmed, Atkins he would resign as CEO of Patomak and divest his membership interest, as well as divest his stock options at Securitize. Atkins served as a commissioner at the agency from 2002 to 2008.

SEC nominee Atkins discloses at least $327M in assets ahead of confirmation hearing
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Cboe seeks approval for Fidelity's Solana ETF

Cboe BZX Exchange, a US securities exchange, has requested permission to list a proposed Fidelity exchange-traded fund (ETF) holding Solana (SOL), according to March 25 filings. 

The request now sits with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, which must approve the filing before trading of the Fidelity Solana Fund can commence on the exchange.

This is the latest in a spate of filings with the federal agency by exchanges and fund sponsors seeking to launch ETFs holding SOL and other cryptocurrencies. 

On March 12, Cboe filed to list another spot SOL ETF sponsored by asset manager Franklin Templeton.

Source: James Seyfart/Bloomberg Intelligence

Cboe seeks approval for Fidelity's Solana ETF
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Brazil’s data watchdog upholds ban on World crypto payments

Brazil’s data protection agency has upheld its decision to restrict cryptocurrency compensation tied to the World ID project, citing user privacy concerns. 

The National Data Protection Authority (ANDP) rejected a petition by World ID developer Tools For Humanity to review its ban on offering financial compensation to users who provide biometric data through iris scans, the agency said in a March 25 announcement.  

ANDP will “maintain the suspension of the granting of financial compensation, in the form of cryptocurrency (Worldcoin - WLD) or in any other format, for any World ID created by collecting iris scans of personal data subjects in Brazil,” a translated version of the announcement reads. 

The company faces a daily fine of 50,000 Brazilian reais ($8,800) if it resumes data collection activities. 

Cointelegraph reached out to Tools for Humanity but had not received a response at the time of publication.

Brazil’s data watchdog upholds ban on World crypto payments
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Bitcoin holds gains amid rising BTC ETF net flows, Coinbase premium and Trump tariff rollback

Bitcoin (BTC) price opened the week with strength, rallying to a daily high at $88,804, which was met by praise from analysts who have identified the $90,000 to $92,000 zone as the key price level to hit in the short term. 

The market found strength on March 24 after US President Donald Trump suggested that his April 2 “tariff number” announcement could be softer than expected after cars and microchips were removed from the list. 

According to Ben Yorke, the vice president of ecosystem at WOO, “The White House’s decision to walk back the threat of broad tariffs and to deploy a more targeted approach suggests Trump is wary of an economic backlash.”

Proof of the market’s positive response to the tariff news can be seen in the increase in Bitcoin futures open interest, where the general assumption is that traders used leverage to open new margin-long positions. 

BTC/USDT 1-hour chart. Source: MacroCRG / X 

Bitcoin holds gains amid rising BTC ETF net flows, Coinbase premium and Trump tariff rollback
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Tax season vs tax year: What’s the difference?

What is the tax year?

When filing taxes, understanding the tax season and year is crucial for staying compliant and avoiding penalties. A tax year is the 12-month period in which your income, deductions and credits are recorded for tax purposes

This period is essential because it defines the timeframe for calculating all your earnings and tax liabilities. In many countries, the tax year aligns with the calendar year, which runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, but this is not always the case. Some countries and businesses may follow a fiscal year, starting and ending on different dates.

The tax year runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 in the United States. Any income you earn within that period is reported in the following year’s tax return. For instance, if you earned income between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2024, you would report that income in your 2025 tax return.

While the calendar year is common, some businesses and countries use a fiscal year. For example, in the UK, the tax year for individuals runs from April 6 to April 5 of the following year. Similarly, many companies might follow a fiscal year, such as April 1 to March 31.

Tax season vs tax year: What’s the difference?
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History suggests that digital gold can rush in an economic revolution

Opinion by: Michael Amar, co-founder of Chain of Events and general partner at v3nture

Once upon a time, in 1848, a man could walk into the wilderness on the brink of poverty and emerge, caked in mud, dust and days-old sweat, a multimillionaire. The discovery of gold in California in the mid-19th century ignited a fuse, causing explosive ripples that transformed the American economy.

In 2025, a relatively new resource, less shiny but no less brilliant and scarce, looks set to reshape the global economy and spark another race for accumulation. Only this time, there won’t be pickaxes and pans. There will be ASICs, algorithms and distributed ledger technology. 

Of course, this refers to Bitcoin (BTC), also known as digital gold.

Just as the gold rush spurred on banking, financial systems, lending, trading and changes to monetary policy, history is repeating itself with Bitcoin, digital payments, asset tokenization and crypto-politicians. Laws, regulations and culture changed to accommodate gold. They’re now doing the same for Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies at large.

History suggests that digital gold can rush in an economic revolution
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Bitcoin sets sights on 'spoofy' $90K resistance in new BTC price boost

Bitcoin (BTC) passed $88,000 after the March 25 Wall Street open as risk assets stayed highly sensitive to US trade tariffs.

BTC/USD 1-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

BTC price gains anticipate classic April comeback

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD tightly clinging to the daily open.

US stocks opened modestly higher, building on a comeback that provided traders some long-awaited cause for optimism.

A key ingredient in stemming the risk-asset rout were cues from the US government and President Donald Trump over their planned round of trade tariffs set to begin on April 2. 

Bitcoin sets sights on 'spoofy' $90K resistance in new BTC price boost
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Timeline: How Trump tariffs dragged Bitcoin below $80K

Since US President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, Bitcoin (BTC) has swung from a record high of $109,000 to below $78,000 as major tariff announcements from the US and retaliatory moves from trade partners shaved off chunks of cryptocurrency market value and rattled global markets.

“The back-and-forth on tariffs, with Trump sometimes tough and sometimes accommodating, has left markets in a limbo state, where few people are willing to be decidedly bullish but just as few are willing to part with their assets, fearing to be left on the side-lines at the next rally,” Justin d’Anethan, head of sales at Liquify, told Cointelegraph.

By mid-March, investors began regaining confidence as White House messaging pointed to a more measured approach. But mixed signals remain, and with a second wave of “reciprocal tariffs” looming on April 2 — dubbed Liberation Day — market jitters haven’t fully subsided.

Trump’s trade war saga has rattled global markets but evolved to a softer stance by late March.

Colombian tariff standoff and DeepSeek disruption shakes Bitcoin

Bitcoin hovered above $100,000 until Jan. 26, when Trump threatened 25% tariffs on all Colombian imports after Colombian President Gustavo Petro refused to accept US military aircraft carrying deported migrants. Petro accused Trump of mistreating immigrants and retaliated with tariffs of his own.

Timeline: How Trump tariffs dragged Bitcoin below $80K
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CME Group taps Google Cloud for pilot asset tokenization program

US derivatives exchange operator CME Group is piloting solutions for tokenized assets using Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL), a new distributed ledger that was designed for traditional financial institutions.

CME has begun integrating GCUL to improve capital market efficiency and wholesale payments, the company announced on March 25.

CME Group Chairman and CEO Terry Duffy said GCUL could “deliver significant efficiencies for collateral, margin, settlement and fee payments as the world moves toward 24/7 trading.”

The announcement did not provide details about which assets would be tokenized. CME Group and Google Cloud will begin testing the technology with market participants in 2026.

Source: CME Group

CME Group taps Google Cloud for pilot asset tokenization program
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Abracadabra.Money’s GMX pools hacked, $13M lost

About $13 million worth of cryptocurrency has been drained from decentralized lending protocol Abracadabra.Money following an exploit targeting pools using GMX tokens.

In a March 25 X post, crypto cybersecurity firm PeckShield reported that contracts related to GMX and Abracadabra.Money had been compromised, resulting in the loss of about 6,260 Ether (ETH), worth around $13 million.

The news follows Abracadabra.Money losing $6.49 million after its smart contracts were compromised in late January 2024. At the time, this also led to the protocol’s Magic Internet Money (MIM) stablecoin losing its peg to the US dollar.

Related: Pump.fun’s new DEX reaches $1B volume a week after launch

GMX denies contract vulnerability

Despite initial reports, a pseudonymous GMX communications contributor claimed on X that “GMX contracts are not affected.” According to the user, GMX is involved because MIM’s pools are based on GMX v2 pools.

Abracadabra.Money’s GMX pools hacked, $13M lost
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Bitcoin mining supplier Auradine sees opportunity in Trump policies

US President Donald Trump’s trade war with China and efforts to ramp up on-shore Bitcoin mining will be a boon for US mining rig manufacturers, which currently only hold a small sliver of market share compared to their major Chinese counterparts. 

The United States accounts for over 40% of the Bitcoin network’s global hashrate but still leans heavily on China-made mining rigs. China-based Bitmain reportedly holds as much as a 90% market share in the Bitcoin mining manufacturing market. 

“Trump’s continued focus to support the US BTC mining industry highlights the urgent need to address US reliance on foreign technology,” Auradine’s chief strategy officer, Sanjay Gupta, told Cointelegraph in a recent interview. 

US Bitcoin firms hit a major supply problem last year, with thousands of Bitcoin (BTC) miners held at ports of entry by the US Customs and Border Protection

One of the firms affected believed it was due to a mistaken belief that the chips were illegally imported Chinese radio frequency devices. It took months before they started being released. 

Bitcoin mining supplier Auradine sees opportunity in Trump policies
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BlackRock’s BUIDL expands to Solana as tokenized money market fund nears $2B

BlackRock’s tokenized money market fund has expanded to the Solana blockchain as its market capitalization approaches the $2 billion mark.

On March 25, Carlos Domingo, the founder and CEO of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization platform Securitize, welcomed the Solana network to the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL). This marked the tokenized money market fund’s expansion to another blockchain network. 

BlackRock launched BUIDL in March 2024 in partnership with Securitize. In a Fortune report, Securitize chief operating officer Michael Sonnenshein said the fund aims to make offchain assets “unboring.” 

The executive said they are advancing some of the deficiencies of money markets in their traditional formats. 

BlackRock’s BUIDL at $1.7 billion market cap

RWA data platform rwa.xyz shows that BlackRock and Securitize’s BUIDL leads the Tokenized United States Treasurys in market capitalization. The platform’s data shows that the fund has a market capitalization of $1.7 billion and a nearly 34% market share. 

BlackRock’s BUIDL expands to Solana as tokenized money market fund nears $2B
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