BTC Nears Death Cross, CNY Tumbles with Asian Markets After Trump Tariffs Put Focus on China’s Response

It’s a risk-off day in Asia as traders look to Beijing’s response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping reciprocal tariffs on China and other Asian nations. On Wednesday, Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on imports from 180 nations, including higher taxes on trading partners identified as worst offenders, such as China and the European Union. Trump imposed a new 34% tariff on goods from China in addition to the existing 20% tax, bringing the total levy to 54%, the highest for any nation. Meanwhile, the latest action did not affect Canada…

Bitcoin Price Watch: Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs Stir Global Markets, BTC Holds $84K

As markets prep for President Donald Trump’s sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs, bitcoin remains resilient, posting a current price of $84,609. The digital asset’s market capitalization stands at $1.67 trillion, with 24-hour trading volume reaching $19.84 billion and intraday price swings between $81,188 and $85,438. Amid global economic uncertainty, technical indicators across multiple timeframes show bitcoin […] Original

Russian-language darknet markets still dominate, driving 97% of Bitcoin and TRON drug sales

While Western darknet markets faltered, Russian platforms dominated Bitcoin and TRON drug sales, analysts at TRM Labs say. Darknet marketplaces saw a slight revenue bump in 2024, bringing in over $1.7 billion, with Russian-language platforms still leading the way in crypto drug sales, analysts at blockchain forensic firm TRM Labs say. New darknet markets and Monero-only proportion | Source: TRM Labs In their latest 2025 Crypto Crime Report, the analysts pointed out that Russian-language marketplaces have been the main drivers of illicit drug sales, accounting for over 97% of overall…

DeFi Lending Markets in Q1 2025

The first quarter of 2025 tells a clear story about DeFi’s evolution. While yields across major lending platforms have compressed significantly, innovation at the market’s edges demonstrates DeFi’s continued maturation and growth. The Great Yield Compression DeFi yields have declined sharply across all major lending platforms: The vaults.fyi USD benchmark has fallen below 3.1%, below the U.S. 1-month T-bill yield of ~4.3% for the first time since late 2023. This benchmark, a weighted average across four leading markets, approached 14% in late 2024. Spark has implemented four consecutive rate decreases…

It’s Back to BTC for Darknet Markets After Monero’s Binance Delisting: Chainalysis

Darknet markets are increasingly returning to bitcoin (BTC) as their primary cryptocurrency because of rising liquidity and accessibility challenges associated with privacy-focused coins like monero (XMR), according to Eric Jardine, cybercrime research lead at Chainalysis. “After major exchanges delisted XMR, we observed a significant increase in bitcoin inflows,” Jardine said in an interview with CryptoX. “Reduced accessibility is steering users back toward bitcoin.” Many Western markets on the darknet — a part of the internet hosted within an encrypted network and accessible only through specialized anonymity-providing tools — had either…

Is XRP price around $2 an opportunity or the bull market’s end? Analysts weigh in

XRP (XRP) has dropped nearly 40% to around $2.19, two months after hitting a multi-year high of $3.40. The cryptocurrency is tracking a broader market sell-off driven by President Donald Trump’s trade war despite bullish news like the SEC dropping its case against Ripple. XRP/USD daily price chart. Source: TradingView However, XRP is still up 350% from its November 2024 low of $0.50, suggesting a consolidation phase after a strong rally. This sideways action has sparked discussions over whether it’s the end of the bull run or a prime buying…

Markets Tumble as Fed’s Favorite Inflation Gauge Spikes; Bitcoin Slides, Stocks Dump

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure elevated sharply in February, with the core personal consumption expenditures price index climbing 0.4%—the largest monthly spike since January 2024—while consumer spending growth fell short of expectations, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Fed’s Inflation Fight Faces Setback With Surging PCE Data The core PCE price index, which excludes […] Original

Bitcoin faces 70% odds of another drop as April tariff fears shake markets, Nansen says

As the risk of tariff-related uncertainty persists into the second quarter, the crypto market could face another dip following the recent correction in March, analysts at Nansen say. As the industry heads into April, Bitcoin (BTC) and the wider crypto market could be staring down another dip as uncertainty surrounding tariffs and U.S. trade policy might cause further volatility. According to Nansen’s analysts, there’s a chance that the market may face another correction in the weeks after April 2. In fact, the researchers believe there’s a 70% likelihood that another…

Bitcoin price prediction markets bet BTC won’t go higher than $138K in 2025

BItcoin (BTC) retains a $138,000 price target for 2025 as the market recovers from US trade tariffs, new analysis concludes. Data covering bets on prediction service Polymarket suggests that BTC/USD could still gain around 60% from current levels this year. “Conservative” Polymarket users cap BTC price upside at 60% Bitcoin bull market projections have taken a beating this quarter thanks to multiple setbacks impacting crypto and the wider risk-asset spectrum. Now, an assessment of all potential BTC price outcomes on Polymarket concludes that the bull market cycle may be capped…

Massachusetts subpoenas Robinhood over sports prediction markets

Massachusetts’ securities regulator has reportedly launched a probe over Robinhood’s prediction markets offering that has allowed users to bet on the outcomes for a slew of events, including basketball tournaments.  Reuters reported on March 24 that Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin said his office subpoenaed Robinhood last week to get information on its marketing materials and the number of Massachusetts-based users that traded sports events contracts on college basketball tournaments. Galvin said he was concerned the trading platform was “linking a gambling event on a popular sports event that’s…