Ethereum Layer2 network Zora has officially confirmed the launch of its native coin ZORA this week, April 23, 2025. The native asset will mark a significant step for the platform as it will simplify meme asset creation and launch on the Coinbase-backed Base blockchain.

This would allow them to offer deposit and loan services, placing them in direct competition with traditional banks. The push comes as U.S. lawmakers advance stablecoin legislation.

TL;DR Economic Pulse Check: Major U.S. CPI data set for release this week could either heighten fears of prolonged Fed tightening or bolster expectations for future rate cuts, both of which may sway crypto market sentiment.

A growing number of leading crypto firms, including Circle, Coinbase, BitGo, and Paxos, are reportedly preparing to apply for banking licenses in the United States. According to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal, the firms are leveraging a wave of pro-crypto sentiment in Washington to advance their long-term plans.

Major cryptocurrency firms, including stablecoin issuer Circle and crypto custodian BitGo, are reportedly considering applying for bank charters or licenses.According to an April 21 Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter, Circle, BitGo and other firms are considering applying for some form of banking license. Other firms cited include the publicly traded US-based crypto exchange Coinbase and the stablecoin issuer Paxos.

The booming $230 billion stablecoin market comprises of innovative startups and SMEs tackling significant challenges plaguing the current global payments infrastructure.

The booming $230 billion stablecoin market comprises of innovative startups and SMEs tackling significant challenges plaguing the current global payments infrastructure.

Onchain social media platform Zora said its ZORA token will go live on April 23, days after it gained viral traction on X after a push from the Base network team.

Charles Schwab Corp. CEO Rick Wurster has revealed that the prominent US financial services firm, with over $10 trillion under management, is aiming to roll out spot crypto trading within the next 12 months.

AI agents with crypto wallets automate tasks, manage payments and investments, and unlock new revenue streams—empowering businesses of all sizes with autonomous finance.

As Bitcoin starts heading towards a trend reversal, the crypto market is also beginning to stir. The segment of the crypto market that has been crushed the most is the small market cap altcoins.

Crypto casinos generated more than $81 billion in revenue from betting in 2024, even as regulators in key jurisdictions continue to block access to the platforms, according to a new report.Citing data from the anti-online-crime platform Yield Sec, the Financial Times reported that wagers paid in crypto in 2024 generated $81.4 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR). This metric refers to the difference between bets taken and winnings paid out.

New data shows over 30% of South Korea's wealthy investors prefer crypto for long-term value growth, outpacing interest in gold or property.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) says that the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) on blockchains will develop stronger links between crypto and traditional finance (TradFi).

A growing number of cryptocurrency companies are preparing to enter the U.S. banking system, propelled by a policy shift under President Donald Trump aimed at integrating digital assets into mainstream finance. What Happened: Firms like Circle (CRYPTO: USDC) and BitGo are planning to apply for bank charters, The Wall Street Journal reported, quoting sources.

A consortium of global banks including Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered is reportedly evaluating ways to expand its crypto operations in the U.S.

Charles Schwab, a top brokerage firm in the United States, has laid plans to roll out a cryptocurrency trading platform as early as next year. The development marks increasing mainstream adoption of digital currencies and may redefine the competitive dynamics for crypto exchanges.

Kenny Li, co-founder of Manta Network, recently raised alarms about the modus operandi of Lazarus, the North Korean hacking collective, and its use of Zoom. Li reported that he was targeted by a known contact using a Zoom-like app that requested access to his camera.

Bitcoin price today is trading around $87,472, posting a modest 3.23% gain in the past 24 hours. But with several major US economic updates lined up this week, that price may not stay steady for long. From consumer sentiment to jobless claims, five key reports could stir up serious volatility in the crypto market.

A group behind a Solana SOL-based non-fungible token (NFT) project is raising funds to buy an old Cold War bunker in the UK.

TL;DR Ethereum's Current Struggles: Facing scaling bottlenecks and declining transaction fees, Ethereum is losing traction as users flock to faster, cheaper layer-2 solutions. A Radical Shift: Vitalik Buterin proposes overhauling the Ethereum Virtual Machine by adopting the RISC-V architecture to boost execution efficiency, potentially up to 100 times.

With 28% of the hacked funds having “gone dark,” the exchange has called for more help decoding mixer transactions.

Ben Zhou, co-founder and CEO of Bybit, has released an executive summary detailing the status of hacked funds totaling approximately $1.4 billion, or around 500,000 ETH. According to Zhou, 68.57% of these funds remain traceable, while 27.59% have gone dark, and 3.84% have been frozen.

Blocksquare and Vera Capital partner to tokenize $1 billion in US real estate, offering fractional ownership to global investors through blockchain technology.

A fleeting exchange on social media has drawn two of the crypto sector's most prominent protocol architects into unexpected alignment. On Sunday, Cardano creator Charles Hoskinson replied to a technical blog post from Ethereum co‑founder Vitalik Buterin with a terse endorsement: “It makes sense, we are using RISC V with BitVMX.

New data shows crypto gambling is booming, with $81.4 billion in gross gaming revenue last year, despite being illegal in most regions. Crypto casinos have experienced explosive growth, with 2024 wagers generating over $81.

Let's be real: most crypto coins explode in popularity overnight and vanish just as fast. One minute they're trending on X, and the next, they're ghost towns. But every now and then, a project shows up that's not just chasing the meme—it's rewriting the rules.

Roughly 500,000 in ETH was drained in the February attack.

Opinion by: Dominic Schwenter, chief operating officer of Lisk The US is in the middle of a crypto boom. Exchange-traded fund approvals have opened the door to institutional adoption, liquidity is increasing, and regulatory clarity is beginning to take shape under a more crypto-aligned administration.

Commission-free trading platform Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) has seen cryptocurrencies take a larger share of its reported revenues in recent years, rendering it susceptible to their market movements to some extent. What happened: None other than CEO Vlad Tenev conceded in a December interview that the HOOD stock was "highly correlated" with Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, despite Robinhood not accepting Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.

FUZE, a digital asset financial infrastructure provider, which offers global stablecoin payments, fiat payouts and collections, and embedded crypto services, has been granted a payments license from the Central Bank of UAE.

Privacy-focused crypto platform eXch has announced it will officially shut down operations on May 1, 2025. The news comes amidst growing allegations that the platform was used by North Korea's Lazarus Group, especially after the group's recent attack on Bybit.

The nation is working on the second part of its crypto legislation, focusing on stablecoins and transparency rules for crypto services.

According to the analysis, the U.S. Treasury is expected to issue more than $31 trillion in debt in 2025. This is a staggering figure that includes both new financing and refinancing of existing debt.

An apocalyptic-themed Solana-based NFT project is aiming to sell 100,000 virtual tokens to buy a Cold War nuclear bunker in England. The innovative venture combines virtual ownership with physical real estate in what could potentially be a new trend for blockchain communities.

Circle, the firm behind the $60 billion USDC stablecoin, is launching a new payments and cross border remittance network on Tuesday — the company's “next product move” — from its plush New York City headquarters, high on the 87th Floor of One World Trade Center.

Bybit's CEO Ben Zhou shared new details in an April 21 post on X about the digital asset theft linked to North Korea's Lazarus Group that hit the platform in February.

Two months after the biggest crypto hack in history, a fresh update from Bybit CEO Ben Zhou has brought a ray of hope. Out of the $1.4 billion in stolen ETH, 68.57% of the funds remain traceable, while 3.84% have been frozen. However, 27.59% have gone dark—likely laundered through mixers and bridges.

Untraceable funds flowed into mixers then through bridges to P2P and OTC platforms, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou said.

Barter operates as a solver across intent-based DEXs and aggregators such as CoWSwap, Uniswap, ParaSwap (Velora), and Delta. It helps optimize trade execution by improving pricing and reducing costs behind the scenes.

Bybit CEO Ben Zhou has revealed that over a quarter of the funds stolen in the March Bybit hack can no longer be tracked while 84.5% has been converted to Bitcoin via Thorchain. In an Apr.

Blocksquare has entered into a major partnership with Florida-based Vera Capital to tokenize over $1 billion worth of U.S. commercial real estate. The post Blocksquare Partners with Florida Firm to Tokenize $1B in U.S. Commercial Real Estate appeared first on Cryptonews.

Q1 of 2025 turned out to be an intense and complex period for the cryptocurrency market, heavily marked by international events, cyberattacks, and regulatory developments. Recent months have indeed highlighted — once again — how sensitive the world of cryptocurrencies is to global political and economic dynamics, leading to tangible consequences for investors and industry operators. One of the most alarming aspects of the quarter was the exponential increase in cryptocurrency-related thefts, with a total of over $1.78 billion stolen in targeted attacks. Of these, $1.4 billion were drained in the attack involving Bybit alone.

Crypto exchange Bybit co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou says more than two-thirds of the digital assets stolen from the platform in February by North Korea's Lazarus Group still remain traceable. In an executive summary on hacked Bybit funds posted on X on April 21, Ben Zhou said that of the total $1.4 billion hacked, 68.6% “remains traceable,” 27.6% has “gone dark,” and 3.8% has been frozen.

Several US economic indicators are in the pipeline this week, with potential implications for Bitcoin and crypto.

Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit's CEO Ben Zhou said that 27.95% of the funds lost in the $1.4 billion exploit engineered by the North Korean Lazarus Group have gone dark or become untraceable.

The digital euro, a future digital currency issued by the European Central Bank, is set to profoundly transform the European monetary landscape. According to the ECB, this CBDC could replace up to 50% of banknotes in circulation and significantly impact bank deposits!