Gate Cryptocurrency News and Market Analysis

The Bank of Korea has expanded the Hangang Project with additional banks, advancing its digital won initiative to phase two, focusing on large-scale implementation, payment fee reduction for businesses, and potential AI integration.

Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin financial services firm Fold reported a full-year 2025 net loss of $69.6 million, with Q4 revenue rising 8% year-over-year to $9 million, as the company added 13,000 new customers and launched its Fold Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card powered by Visa and Stripe.

Goldman Sachs has become the largest public holder of XRP spot ETF with a position of approximately $154 million, but this institutional signal has yet to be reflected in the coin price, with XRP still hovering around $1.29. Technical analysis shows that the $1.50 support level is critical, and a breakthrough could push prices higher.

Pi Network recently distributed rewards to KYC verifiers, with each receiving 52.62 Pi, marking the first time verification work has been linked to token rewards. This mechanism not only recognizes the contributions of verifiers but also ensures practical use cases for Pi, such as DApps consumption and transactions, enhancing community engagement and building long-term trust. This signals sustainable development of the token economic model, with potential expansion to more application scenarios in the future.

The U.S. government registered the domain "aliens.gov," sparking widespread speculation online. Although the exact purpose is unclear, theories suggest links to immigration services or extraterrestrial research, with experts urging caution in interpretations.

BNBX, a BNB-focused DAT, has successfully secured patents in the US and Europe for LinearRx’s new RNA Synthesis model. The milestone unlocks a new monetization model for the company on top of its BNB strategy. The subsidiary of BNB Plus Corp. (BNBX), a publicly traded company leveraging a BNB

US spot Bitcoin ETF sees seven consecutive days of inflows, marking the longest streak since the start of 2025. Cumulative inflows over the past three weeks reached $2.2 billion, accounting for 79% of total crypto inflows. Although market sentiment has improved somewhat, it still falls short compared to the 2025 peak, with analysis suggesting a recovery in market demand rather than the onset of a bull cycle. Solana ETF showed outstanding performance this week, while Ethereum ETF continues to face net outflow pressure.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted 11-1 on March 18, 2026, to maintain the federal funds target range at 3.50% to 3.75%, marking the second consecutive meeting with no change in borrowing costs as policymakers flagged uncertainty stemming from the Iran conflict and persistent inflation.

Wyoming Senator Lummis indicated that the U.S. Digital Asset Market Structure Act (CLARITY Act) is close to passage, but disagreement over stablecoin yield remains a major obstacle. If not passed by May, digital asset legislation will face significant challenges. Variables from the midterm elections could impact the bill's progress, with Lummis emphasizing this is the only opportunity for market structure reform.

The FBI warns of rising impersonation scams involving cryptocurrency payments, as fraudsters use urgency and evolving tactics to pressure victims into quick financial decisions and drive increasing financial losses. FBI Warns of Rising Law Enforcement Impersonation Scams A new warning from the FB

The Ethereum Foundation announced on March 18, 2026, that it has deployed an additional 3,400 ETH (approximately $7.6 million at current prices) into Morpho Vaults, with 1,000 ETH specifically allocated to Morpho Vaults V2, continuing its strategic shift toward active, on-chain DeFi treasury management.

Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has suspended its initial public offering (IPO) plans, primarily due to the continued downturn in the crypto market since October 2025, which has affected the timing for going public. Additionally, the CFO has been terminated, raising external concerns about the company's IPO readiness. Nevertheless, Kraken completed an $800 million financing round at a $20 billion valuation and has already submitted listing documents to the SEC. The crypto IPO market faces greater challenges ahead, with successfully listed companies placing greater emphasis on compliance and operational stability.

Tarek Mansour, CEO of Kalshi, dismissed criminal allegations from Arizona as overreach, asserting the company's operations are not gambling. He emphasized that the legal dispute remains unresolved and that the CFTC has authority, not state regulators.

The Ethereum Foundation announced an additional allocation of 3,400 ETH to Morpho Vaults to advance DeFi yield strategies, marking its financial transformation. This deployment represents the Foundation's third asset allocation to Morpho, emphasizing open-source principles and security in line with the needs of large treasury management. The Foundation currently holds assets exceeding $820 million, reducing its reliance on ETH liquidation through DeFi strategies and generating stable returns.

Prediction market platform Polymarket announced the acquisition of DeFi startup Brahma, aimed at reducing user operation friction, enhancing liquidity for small-value contracts, and reaching high-risk users. Brahma focuses on DeFi infrastructure with trading volume exceeding $1 billion. This is Polymarket's third acquisition in recent period, demonstrating its comprehensive expansion strategy.

On March 18, Iran attacked Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City, a globally important liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility. Market concerns about energy supply disruptions have driven oil prices higher. This incident has triggered a systemic supply storm, impacting aviation, logistics, and consumer goods industries. The cryptocurrency market may experience volatility due to risk-off sentiment, with potential long-term benefits from quantitative easing policies. Qatar and Japan are particularly vulnerable in the supply disruption, and supply chain resilience will be tested.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved a rule change on March 18, 2026, allowing Nasdaq to support the trading of tokenized shares, enabling eligible participants to settle stock trades in tokenized form through a pilot program operated by the Depository Trust Company (DTC), a subsidiary of the DTCC.

Eric Trump announced that his American Bitcoin company's Bitcoin holdings have increased to approximately 6,899 BTC, surpassing Galaxy Digital to become the 16th largest publicly listed Bitcoin company globally. The company relies primarily on industrial-scale mining rather than market purchases, and recently acquired 11,298 mining machines to expand production capacity. The Trump family's combined Bitcoin holdings exceed 16,000 BTC, demonstrating their significance in the cryptocurrency sector.