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Blockchain investment firm ParaFi Capital has raised a new $125 million venture fund, Bloomberg reported. Since early last year, the firm has secured an additional $325 million for cryptocurrency investments and now manages assets totaling approximately $2 billion. The new fund is slated to invest in stablecoins, asset tokens, and on-chain finance for institutions.

A massive $580 million options trade occurred in the oil market just before U.S. President Donald Trump posted on social media suggesting possible negotiations with Iran, the Financial Times (FT) reported. Just prior to Trump's post, 6,200 contracts related to Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude were traded, while S&P 500 futures with a notional value of $1.5 billion were also executed at the same time. The FT noted that the market is focused on the timing of the large capital movement, which coincided precisely with the president's official statement, raising suspicions of a potential information leak or preemptive action. After Trump's post, oil prices saw sharp volatility, and the traders who bet on the oil-related options could have made over $100 million in profit in about 20 minutes, the outlet explained.

A provision in a draft U.S. crypto bill that would ban interest payments on stablecoin balances is sparking concern within the industry, CoinDesk reported. The measure is part of a compromise agreement for the crypto market structure bill (CLARITY) that was released on March 21. The ban is seen as a concession to the banking sector, which has sought to prevent stablecoins from becoming a direct competitor to traditional deposits. However, the outlet noted that while the agreement prohibits interest on balances, it may still permit interest generated from stablecoin-related activities. This ambiguity has drawn criticism from those who have reviewed the draft, who pointed to unclear legal standards regarding interest.

Balancer (BAL) founder Fernando Martinelli announced in an official forum that the project's development company, Balancer Labs, will be shut down after being left effectively in debt following a hack last year. He explained, "Due to the v2 exploit in November of last year, subsequent legal action, and the sharp drop in the token price, we have decided to wind down Balancer Labs for the sustainability of the protocol." Martinelli added that going forward, Balancer will be operated by its community, foundation, and service providers rather than a specific company. He also noted that measures will be taken to conduct a buyback for existing BAL holders, adjust the v3 protocol's share, and transfer fees to the community. Balancer suffered approximately $137.4 million in damages from the exploit last year.

While Ethereum's (ETH) price remains range-bound, its on-chain data indicates a structural shift toward reduced supply and recovering demand, according to an analysis by XWIN Research Japan posted on CryptoQuant. The analysis noted that the amount of ETH on exchanges has plummeted to 16.2 million, the lowest level since 2016, while approximately 37 million ETH is currently staked. This creates an environment with limited selling pressure where new demand could lead to significant price increases. Simultaneously, the number of active network addresses is on the rise, and lower gas fees following the implementation of EIP-4844 are stimulating transaction activity. In the derivatives market, rebuilding open interest (OI) suggests new capital is flowing in. Furthermore, the launch of spot staking ETFs and clearer guidelines from U.S. regulators have reduced uncertainty, improving access for institutional investors. XWIN Research Japan concluded that Ethereum is being influenced by a combination of constrained supply, growing demand, and an improved market structure, suggesting the current phase may not be temporary but rather the initial stage of a larger upward trend.

The Solana Foundation has released a report arguing that a flexible privacy system is necessary to expand corporate adoption of cryptocurrency, CoinDesk reported. According to the foundation, the next phase of crypto adoption hinges on empowering businesses to control what information they disclose and to whom, rather than on transparency alone. It added that Solana's high transaction speeds can support regulatory compliance while simultaneously enabling advanced privacy technologies like zero-knowledge proofs. Instead of a one-size-fits-all solution, the foundation is proposing a new, customizable approach that offers four distinct modes: pseudonymity, confidentiality, anonymity, and a fully private system.

The three major U.S. stock indices closed higher today. - S&P 500: +1.15% - Nasdaq: +1.38% - Dow Jones: +1.38%

Whale Alert reported that 250 million USDC has been minted at the USDC Treasury.

Whale Alert reported that 250 million USDC has been minted at the USDC Treasury.

A U.S. congressman has voiced concerns over plans by Beast Industries, founded by global YouTuber MrBeast, to introduce cryptocurrency to its mobile banking app for teens, Step. According to Decrypt, U.S. House Representative Warren Davidson expressed worry over the company's ability to operate a financial technology firm targeting children and teenagers. He emphasized that Step encourages risky investments and pushes children to pressure their parents for permission to invest in crypto. In response, Beast Industries stated that it is reviewing all its products and marketing methods to ensure compliance with relevant laws and regulatory requirements, adding that it plans to continue communicating with Davidson.

Deloitte Canada is partnering with Stablecorp to develop stablecoin infrastructure for Canadian financial institutions, Cointelegraph reported. The initiative plans to integrate QCAD, a stablecoin backed by the Canadian dollar (CAD) and issued by Stablecorp, into payment and settlement "Workflows" for institutional clients. Details regarding partner banks and a launch timeline have not yet been disclosed.

Ledger co-founder Eric Larchevêque has argued that cryptocurrency holders should be permitted to own firearms, DL News reported. His comments follow the recent arrest by French and Spanish police of the last suspect in the January 2023 kidnapping and assault of fellow Ledger co-founder David Balland. Larchevêque stated that violence targeting crypto holders is on the rise and that they should have the right to self-defense. He emphasized the need to be able to possess real weapons, such as pistols and small rifles. Larchevêque added that he hired a private security firm after Balland's kidnapping but has no intention of converting his crypto holdings to fiat currency. He explained that he would not be able to sleep at night holding his life's work in euros.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. is now in productive talks with Iran, which began last Saturday evening. He added that Iran wants peace and has agreed to give up its nuclear weapons, stating that he would give the country five days.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States has eliminated all individuals in Iran who deserved to be taken out, including the country's leaders.

U.S. President Donald Trump said that the U.S. is discussing whether it can reach a more comprehensive agreement with Iran. He added that Iran is serious this time and wants to solve the problem.

An Israeli government official said Washington has set April 9 as the target date for the end of the war, according to Israeli media outlet Ynetglobal.

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink stated in his annual shareholder letter that digital wallets and tokenization could modernize financial markets and broaden investor access. According to CoinDesk, he noted that recording asset ownership on digital ledgers and using regulated digital wallets could make issuing, trading, and accessing investments faster, cheaper, and more widely available, comparing the current state of tokenization to the internet in 1996. Fink explained that while tokenization will not replace traditional finance overnight, it can gradually connect existing and new systems.

Iranian media reported that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has launched a new wave of attacks against targets inside Israel and at nearby U.S. military bases.

Goldman Sachs has raised the probability of a U.S. recession within the next 12 months to 30%, an increase of five percentage points from its previous forecast. The bank cited soaring oil and natural gas prices as the reason for the revision. Goldman Sachs also expects the Fed to cut interest rates in September and December, and projects that U.S. GDP growth in the second half of the year will remain below trend, with an annual rate between 1.25% and 1.75%.

Speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has stated that there have been no negotiations with the United States. His comments follow a report from a media outlet claiming that he was in contact with U.S. officials. Ghalibaf added that such fake news is a tool used to manipulate financial and oil markets and to help the U.S. and Israel escape their quagmire.

AI content platform PeakAI has raised $2 million in a seed funding round, Foresight News reported. Participants in the round included Cogitent Ventures, CoBay, CatcherVC, 10K Ventures, Marblex, and PAKA.

High Stakes Capital is selling HYPE, according to Onchain Lens. Over the past two hours, the firm sold 300,000 HYPE at an average price of $38.17 each, totaling $11.45 million. It currently holds 302,421 HYPE, with over $33.2 million in unrealized profit.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that friendly nations recently sent messages suggesting the U.S. had requested dialogue to end the war, but that Iran did not respond, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. The spokesperson added that there has been no change in Iran's conditions regarding the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war.

Ebrahim Rezaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Parliament's National Security Commission, said President Donald Trump is either lying or speaking nonsense, according to First Squawk. Rezaei stated that the enemy is being neutralized and frustrated by military attacks and rising oil prices. He added that negotiations are meaningless and that the enemy only responds to force and missiles.

Decentralized auction platform Bounce Brand announced the launch of Bounce Predict (predict.bounce.finance), the first prediction market platform in its ecosystem. The platform allows users to predict auction outcomes. Initially, it will support Sotheby's auctions.