cryptocurrencies

CoinGecko's report on the cryptocurrency industry for the first quarter of 2026 shows that the cryptocurrency market has shifted from a sharp correction to a prolonged "winter," with the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies dropping by 20.4% ($622 billion), ending the first quarter of 2026 at $2.4 trillion, a decrease of about 45% from the peak in October 2025.The report also states that the market capitalization of stablecoins remains unchanged at $309.9 billion, with a decline in USDT supply, marking the first decrease since the second quarter of 2022.Crude oil prices performed the strongest in the first quarter of 2026, rising by 76.9%, while Bitcoin fell by 22.0% alongside the stock market.In the first quarter of 2026, the spot trading volume on centralized exchanges decreased by 39.1% to $2.7 trillion, with March setting a new monthly low of $80 billion.Solana continues to dominate the spot trading volume on decentralized exchanges, expected to hold a 30.6% market share in the first quarter of 2026.Driven by the demand for all-weather oil trading, commodity traders currently account for about 30% of Hyperliquid's open contracts.

According to CoinMarketCap data, the performance of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization is as follows:Top five gainers: RaveDAO (RAVE) up 39.53%, current price $17.06; siren (SIREN) up 37.75%, current price $1.11; MemeCore (M) up 27.84%, current price $3.68; Celestia (TIA) up 25.37%, current price $0.3997; edgeX (EDGE) up 16.31%, current price $1.2.Top five losers: JUST (JST) down 15.44%, current price $0.0597; DeXe (DEXE) down 8.6%, current price $11.16; Venice Token (VVV) down 4.67%, current price $8.48; Dash (DASH) down 4.19%, current price $36.52; Zcash (ZEC) down 3.96%, current price $337.2.

The "2026 Digital Asset Institutional Investor Survey" released by financial giant Nomura Securities shows that nearly 80% of institutional investors plan to allocate 2% - 5% of their total managed assets to the cryptocurrency sector. 65% of the surveyed institutions view cryptocurrencies as a diversification tool on par with stocks, bonds, and commodities.The survey covered institutional investors and family offices managing over $60 billion in assets. In terms of investment direction, more than two-thirds of respondents hope to earn returns through DeFi mechanisms such as staking, 65% are focused on lending and tokenized assets, and 63% are exploring derivatives and stablecoins. Additionally, 63% of respondents believe that stablecoins have practical uses for managing cash, cross-border payments, and investing in tokenized assets, with stablecoins issued by major financial institutions being the most trusted.Nomura Securities stated that regulatory clarity, increased awareness, and improved risk control frameworks are key to expanding investments. Although challenges such as the lack of clear methods for asset valuation and regulatory uncertainties still exist, the development of diversified investment products and improvements in risk management practices are accelerating institutional adoption.

According to Coinmarketcap data, the performance of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization is as follows, with the top five gainers: RaveDAO (RAVE) up 207.51%, current price $9.94; Venice Token (VVV) up 6.37%, current price $8.47; Aave (AAVE) up 5.46%, current price $94.02; XDC Network (XDC) up 4.59%, current price $0.03129; Canton (CC) up 3.95%, current price $0.1511.The top five losers: Polkadot (DOT) down 4.57%, current price $1.17; Zcash (ZEC) down 4.09%, current price $346.48; Dash (DASH) down 3.6%, current price $40.86; Chiliz (CHZ) down 2.44%, current price $0.0364; Pi (PI) down 2.25%, current price $0.1647.

According to DigitalAsset, the Audit and Inspection Agency of South Korea has released the "Audit Report on the Operation and Management of the Elderly Welfare System," which requires the Minister of Health and Welfare to amend relevant regulations to include digital assets in the property calculation scope for basic pension reviews. The agency pointed out that digital assets have a clear economic value, but the current basic pension law does not include digital assets in its property scope, which may result in individuals holding significant digital assets still being eligible for basic pension benefits.The agency believes that digital assets should be regarded as property with clear economic value, even if their form differs from traditional financial assets, as the value of the property itself is not different. The Ministry of Health and Welfare agrees with this view, stating that it is necessary to prevent relatively high-income individuals in the lower 70% of non-income earners from receiving basic pensions, and agrees that digital assets should be included in the property calculation scope.

The Japanese government has passed an amendment to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act at a cabinet meeting. This amendment regulates cryptocurrency assets (virtual currencies) as financial instruments for the first time and prohibits insider trading and other activities based on undisclosed information. At the same time, it requires cryptocurrency issuers to disclose information annually to improve the healthy market environment. If this bill is passed in the current Diet session, it is expected to be implemented as early as the 2027 fiscal year.Previously, the Financial Services Agency of Japan primarily regulated cryptocurrencies based on their positioning as "means of payment" under the Funds Settlement Act. However, in recent years, the use of cryptocurrencies as investment tools has been increasing, leading to their inclusion in the regulatory framework of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. Additionally, the name of registered institutions will change from "cryptocurrency asset exchange operators" to "cryptocurrency asset trading operators."At the same time, the penalties will also be strengthened: for unregistered institutions engaged in sales, the maximum prison sentence will increase from 3 years to 10 years, and the fines will rise from the current maximum of 3 million yen to a maximum of 10 million yen. By increasing penalties, the stance on protecting investors will be further reinforced.

Zhao Changpeng posted on platform X that cryptocurrencies only need to upgrade to post-quantum algorithms to cope with the impact of quantum computing, and there is no need to panic.In terms of practical execution, there are difficulties in upgrading organizations in a decentralized environment, and the choice of algorithms may spark debates and lead to forks. Some projects that have stopped development may not undergo upgrades, which helps to clean up such projects. In the short term, new code may introduce vulnerabilities or security issues, and users who self-custody cryptocurrencies need to migrate their assets to new wallets.Regarding the Bitcoin held by Satoshi, if the assets move, it means he is still active; if they have not moved within a specific timeframe, the relevant addresses should be locked or destroyed to prevent being hacked. Fundamentally, encryption is easier than decryption, and more powerful computing capabilities have positive implications. Cryptocurrencies will continue to exist even after the quantum era.

According to CoinDesk, the U.S. Department of Labor has proposed a new rule that would allow 401(k) retirement plans to include alternative assets such as cryptocurrencies, private equity, and real estate, in response to an executive order signed by President Trump last year.If the rule is passed, it will change the traditional structure of retirement plans that primarily focus on stocks and bonds, allowing plan providers to include non-publicly traded products like digital assets. The Secretary of Labor stated that the rule aims to better reflect the current investment environment in retirement plans. Supporters believe this move could improve portfolio diversification, but Senator Elizabeth Warren warned that it could expose workers to higher risks, costs, and potential losses. U.S. 401(k) plans hold trillions of dollars in retirement savings, and even a small allocation to digital assets could bring significant inflows to the crypto market.

Walmart's OnePay has recently added various tokens such as SUI, Polygon, and Arbitrum to its crypto services. Previously, it had already launched assets like Solana, Cardano, Bitcoin Cash, and PAX Gold, with the total number of newly added tokens exceeding ten.OnePay launched its crypto trading services in January of this year, initially supporting only Bitcoin and Ethereum. Its head stated that when expanding assets, the platform will prioritize user demand, liquidity, and regulatory environment, emphasizing long-term practicality rather than chasing trends. OnePay also offers financial services such as savings, credit cards, and loans, and its digital wallet can be used for both offline and online payment scenarios at Walmart.

According to CoinDesk, Bitcoin has fallen below $68,000, down about 2% in the last 24 hours. The 48-hour liquidation heatmap shows a significant concentration of liquidity below $66,000, indicating that Bitcoin may further decline in the short term.In terms of funding rates, the perpetual contract funding rate has turned negative, with shorts needing to pay fees to longs, reflecting the bearish sentiment in the market. The macro environment continues to deteriorate. The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury bond is approaching 4.5%, the highest level since last year, reducing the appeal of risk assets like cryptocurrencies. The MOVE index, which measures volatility in the U.S. bond market, has risen 18% in the past 24 hours, indicating increasing uncertainty.Meanwhile, Ukraine's disruption of Russian oil circulation has derailed Trump's plans to ease supply tensions, with both Brent crude and WTI crude rising about 3%. The U.S. dollar index DXY has also risen to 100, further suppressing risk assets.

Zhou Xiaochuan, former governor of the People's Bank of China, stated yesterday at the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2026 that a good payment system is not a champion of a single technology or performance. Just like instant payment is not necessarily good, the most important thing is "adaptation." He pointed out that regulation needs to combat money laundering and prevent drug trafficking, cross-border gambling, telecom fraud, etc. Several central bank governors mentioned at the forum that digital currencies are now used in payment systems, but fraud also uses digital currencies, and "it is quite severe." Zhou Xiaochuan believes that the ability to combat fraud still needs to be continuously improved.When discussing the topic of regulatory adaptation, Zhou Xiaochuan mentioned stablecoins again. He said that now, as soon as the proceeds from telecom fraud arrive, they are immediately split into hundreds or thousands of accounts to evade compliance checks, which means it is quite difficult to recover losses afterward. "Stablecoins fundamentally bypass compliance checks; everyone needs to think clearly and not follow the trend." Zhou Xiaochuan also emphasized that cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology can be explored, but it does not mean that "peer-to-peer" and "decentralization" are all positive. One cannot hastily conclude that using correspondent banks and SWIFT messages in the original backend systems is outdated; the key is to adapt to the user's experience.

According to Cointelegraph, the proposal supported by Trump to "allow cryptocurrencies and private equity to be included in 401(k) retirement plans" has passed White House review. The U.S. Department of Labor is expected to issue relevant rules soon.

According to CoinDesk, Robin Vince, CEO of BNY Mellon, stated that large financial institutions will play a key role in the next phase of crypto adoption, serving as a bridge between traditional finance and digital assets.He pointed out that tokenization is one of the key areas, including the creation of digital tokens for money market funds and new classes of stocks. Vince emphasized that trust and regulation will determine the pace of industry growth, requiring clear rules. Vince mentioned that areas with current system inefficiencies, such as lending and real estate, may benefit first from tokenization.He also noted that the divergence between the crypto industry and traditional banks regarding the handling of stablecoin yields continues. He believes this transformation will be a long-term process of 5 to 15 years, depending on the coordinated progress of technology, regulation, and market participation.

According to Cryptopolitan, the Legislative Activity Committee of the Russian government has approved a bill regulating cryptocurrency trading, which will allow the country's crypto exchanges to list digital assets with the largest market capitalization and trading volume.According to the bill, cryptocurrencies approved for trading must meet the criteria of having an average market capitalization of over 5 trillion rubles (approximately 600 billion USD) over the past two years, an average daily trading volume of at least 1 trillion rubles (approximately 120 billion USD), and a trading history of at least five years. Mainstream cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana meet these standards. The bill grants the Central Bank of Russia the authority to determine the list of digital assets allowed for circulation and empowers the financial intelligence agency to blacklist specific cryptocurrencies, with privacy coins being banned from trading.Cryptocurrencies and stablecoins are classified as "monetary assets," and the annual investment amount for ordinary Russian citizens will be limited to below 4,000 USD. The bill also stipulates that non-compliant crypto exchanges will face fines of up to 1 million rubles, illegal mining entities may be fined up to 2.5 million rubles, and large-scale illegal mining could face up to five years in prison.

According to CoinDesk, influenced by Trump's 48-hour ultimatum to Iran and threats to strike power facilities, Bitcoin quickly fell back over the weekend, dropping below the $69,200 mark, with a 24-hour decline of about 2.2%, and a weekly decline expanding to 3.1%. Affected by market sentiment, mainstream crypto assets weakened simultaneously: Ethereum fell to about $2,114, while XRP, BNB, Solana, Dogecoin, and others recorded varying degrees of decline.This week, the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged, and its dovish stance should have supported risk assets, but the ongoing war risk news has made traders hesitant to make significant unilateral bets. Analysts believe that if Iran does not restore passage through the Strait of Hormuz by the deadline, the conflict may escalate further to the level of energy infrastructure, compounded by disruptions to about 20% of global oil and gas transportation, which may continue to suppress the performance of risk assets.

According to Cointelegraph, Immunefi's latest security report shows that cryptocurrency hacking attacks are still steadily occurring, with losses increasingly concentrated in a few large-scale attack events.The report states that between 2021 and 2025, there were 425 publicly known hacking incidents, with an estimated average loss of about $25 million per incident. In just 2024 and 2025, 191 hacking incidents caused losses of $4.67 billion, with only 5 incidents accounting for 62% of the total losses.Additionally, the study tracked 82 tokens that were hacked, of which 83.9% saw their median price drop by 61% within six months, and during this period, the price remained below the price on the day of the attack.

According to the official website of the SEC, Paul Atkins, the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, announced new cryptocurrency guidelines at the DC Blockchain Summit, and proposed the concept of a regulatory safe harbor for crypto assets, which includes three exemption pathways:Startup Exemption: A maximum of four years, allowing projects to have a regulatory buffer period before reaching maturity, with a fundraising limit of no more than $5 million within four years, requiring the submission of principal disclosure information.Financing Exemption: Allowing up to $75 million in fundraising within 12 months, requiring the submission of disclosure documents to the SEC that include principal disclosures, financial status, and financial statements.Investment Contract Safe Harbor: When the issuer completes or permanently ceases core management efforts under the investment contract, the relevant crypto assets may be exempt from the definition of securities.Atkins stated that this framework draws on Congress's work in recent years, particularly the CLARITY Act, and proposed rules are expected to be released for public comment in the coming weeks.

According to Coinmarketcap data, the performance of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization is as follows, with the top five gainers: Zcash (ZEC) up 14.4%, current price $267.58; MemeCore (M) up 8.6%, current price $1.74; Kaspa (KAS) up 6.59%, current price $0.03582; Aster (ASTER) up 4.66%, current price $0.7556; DeXe (DEXE) up 4.63%, current price $5.41.The top five losers: Pi (PI) down 8.65%, current price $0.1786; Pepe (PEPE) down 7.6%, current price $0.0000053641; Kite (KITE) down 6.35%, current price $0.1989; Bittensor (TAO) down 6.28%, current price $271.51; Morpho (MORPHO) down 5.96%, current price $1.77.

According to China Securities Journal, the global on-chain transaction volume of stablecoins in 2025 is estimated to be around $25 trillion after deduplication and adjustment for inflated figures, but the proportion of transactions with actual payment backgrounds is less than 1%, with the vast majority being "inflated transactions."This statistic covers 36 mainstream stablecoins on 16 major public chains, including Ethereum, Tron, and Solana. Analysis shows that "inflated transactions" are mainly composed of three categories: first, internal fund transfers within institutions, meaning transfers between different wallets or protocols under the same institution; second, on-chain protocol splits and transfers, where the same business is inflated due to multiple internal calls; third, stablecoins used as intermediary currencies for cryptocurrency exchanges, leading to the same funds being counted multiple times.In terms of real payment scenarios, in 2025, 15 leading cryptocurrency payment institutions, including Coinbase, BVNK, Bitpay, and Binance Pay, processed stablecoin transactions totaling $132 billion, while international card organizations like Visa processed approximately $4.5 billion in stablecoin-related transactions. Even when including the use of stablecoins in illegal activities such as money laundering, telecom fraud, and online gambling, the proportion of transactions with actual payment backgrounds remains less than 1%.

According to Coinmarketcap data, the performance of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization in the past 24 hours is as follows, with the top five gainers: Official Trump (TRUMP) up 37.42%, current price $3.83; Render (RENDER) up 11.4%, current price $1.81; Bittensor (TAO) up 9.52%, current price $235.29; Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET) up 8.77%, current price $0.1752; DeXe (DEXE) up 8.58%, current price $4.62.The top five losers: Pi (PI) down 17.21%, current price $0.2012; Sky (SKY) down 8.8%, current price $0.07393; Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) down 5.81%, current price $0.7047; Curve DAO Token (CRV) down 5.76%, current price $0.2268; Aptos (APT) down 5.45%, current price $0.9103.