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Transportation blockchain solutions provider TCS Blockchain is adopting PayPal's stablecoin, PYUSD, The Block reported. The company plans to use the stablecoin to offer same-day financing and on-chain payments for freight invoices. This move is expected to cut costs by 90% and significantly reduce payment times compared to traditional remittance processes.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) warned in a recent report that stablecoins are increasingly being used for sanctions evasion and money laundering, CoinDesk reported. The report states that stablecoins are now the most-used virtual asset for illicit transactions by several countries, including Iran and North Korea, and account for the majority of illegal on-chain activity. The estimated scale of fraud and illicit activity involving stablecoins in 2024 is approximately $51 billion. The FATF stressed that as stablecoin adoption accelerates, regulators must move quickly to close compliance gaps.

Global investment bank Mizuho Securities has raised its price target for Circle from $90 to $100 while maintaining a neutral investment rating, CoinDesk reported. Mizuho attributed the 20% rise in Circle's stock price this week to surging oil prices amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. The firm noted that this has lowered expectations for a U.S. Fed rate cut, which is consequently expected to increase Circle's interest income from its reserves.

Illia Polosukhin, co-founder of Near Protocol (NEAR), predicted that AI agents will become the primary users of blockchain in the future. In an interview with CoinDesk, he envisioned a future where AI serves as the front end and blockchain as the back end. According to Polosukhin, AI will become the main interface layer for all online activities, including crypto, by abstracting away complex elements like wallets and explorers to make them invisible to the user. The goal, he explained, is to make blockchain invisible through AI. In this model, AI agents would interact directly with protocols to handle various tasks while the blockchain operates in the background, leaving humans to simply communicate with the AI. He forecasted that within a few years, AI will function as the front end for everything, much like an operating system.

U.S. President Donald Trump stated that oil prices could fall below previous levels once the war with Iran concludes, according to Walter Bloomberg. He added that while prices might see a temporary spike, they would ultimately decline.

Michael Saylor, founder of MicroStrategy (Nasdaq: MSTR), said on X that he is currently buying BTC and asked his followers if they are doing the same.

Binance has launched its first seven AI agent skills. The new features allow AI agents to access the exchange's spot and wallet data and utilize trading functions through an integrated interface. Key capabilities include querying real-time market data, executing trades with support for OCO, OPO, and OTOCO orders, analyzing address and token information, accessing market ranking data, tracking smart money signals, and detecting contract risks.

South Korean financial authorities have significantly shortened the government's proposed Digital Asset Act, Maeil Business Newspaper reported. The draft has been reduced to 135 articles from an initial 171 prepared by the ruling party's task force. A National Assembly official suggested that the Financial Services Commission (FSC) likely removed provisions it was reluctant to implement or found difficult to execute immediately. Notably, regulations concerning bank-led stablecoin issuance, a key point of interest for the virtual asset and financial sectors, are now expected to be delegated to an enforcement decree rather than being specified directly in the act. The final version of the bill is scheduled for in-depth discussion at a meeting of the FSC's Virtual Asset Committee today, March 4.

An address believed to belong to the U.S. government transferred 0.3348 BTC ($22,658) to three new addresses over the past hour, Onchain Lens reported.

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

The value of cryptocurrency held by U.S. President Donald Trump has fallen by 94%, Watcher.Guru reported. According to data from Arkham, Trump's crypto portfolio was valued at $11.49 million on his inauguration day, Jan. 20, 2025, but has since declined to $700,000. His portfolio is primarily composed of meme coins themed after him, including TRUMP, TROG, and GUA.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon criticized demands for yield on stablecoins in an interview with CNBC, emphasizing that the public would pay the price. He warned that it could be a disaster for the U.S. economy if crypto companies offering returns on stablecoin holdings are not regulated while banks are. Dimon argued that the public would ultimately be harmed and the situation would worsen. He added that if crypto firms like Coinbase want to offer stablecoin rewards, they should become banks, after which they could do whatever they want.

The Central Bank of Brazil plans to hold cryptocurrency exchanges to the same standards as traditional banks, DL News reported. Under a new resolution, exchanges will be required to submit daily reports demonstrating they possess sufficient funds to cover potential costs from hacks or data breaches. The central bank also mandated that these platforms adhere to the same data protection and confidentiality standards applied to commercial banks. Additionally, the bank has issued a new accounting manual that permits crypto firms to record digital assets directly on their financial statements without first converting their value into fiat currency.

Analysts suggest that Harvard Management Company's (HMC) 21% reduction in its Bitcoin spot ETF holdings during the fourth quarter of last year was likely a risk management measure rather than a fundamental exit from the asset. According to CoinDesk, Michael Markov, co-founder and chairman of Markov Processes International, a firm that studies university endowment funds, explained that cryptocurrency is probably the most volatile component of Harvard's portfolio. He noted that Bitcoin fell by approximately 25% in the fourth quarter, and this sharp price movement likely prompted a portfolio rebalancing by the university. Markov added that this does not signify a strategic change.

According to CoinNess market monitoring, BTC has risen above $68,000. BTC is trading at $68,004.99 on the Binance USDT market.

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Michael Selig announced that the agency will soon release regulatory guidelines for crypto perpetual futures, CoinDesk reported. Speaking at a Milken Institute event in Washington, Selig stated that the CFTC will provide these guidelines in the near future. He added that the commission also plans to issue guidance for prediction markets and establish clear standards "in the very near future." Selig explained that the agency is also pursuing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) process as an alternative to guidelines, which are easier to discard or amend. An ANPRM is a preliminary document published by U.S. federal agencies to solicit public comment before formally proposing a new rule.

The South Korean won-to-U.S. dollar exchange rate temporarily surpassed 1,500 won at around 3:12 p.m. UTC on March 3. This marks the first time the rate has breached this level since the 2009 financial crisis. The exchange rate is currently trading at 1,498.19 won, according to TradingView.

Tether and the Swiss city of Lugano have announced an investment of five million Swiss francs (approx. $5.6 million) to advance the second phase of "Plan ₿," a project aimed at building out Bitcoin infrastructure within the city. The two parties initially unveiled the plan in March 2022 with the goal of creating a global hub for digital infrastructure. The second phase involves a broader strategy focused on digital infrastructure, resilience, and long-term technological autonomy.

Prediction market platform Kalshi has partnered with luxury watch exchange Bezel to launch event contracts related to luxury watches, Bloomberg reported. Users will be able to bet on the prices of luxury watches and whether specific models will be discontinued.

An address presumed to belong to the U.S. government transferred 0.0378 BTC ($2,520) to a new address about 10 minutes ago, according to Lookonchain. The transaction is believed to be a test transfer, suggesting that further movements could follow.

According to Walter Bloomberg, Carolane De Palmas, an analyst at online broker ActivTrades, has projected that Bitcoin's price could see further declines if the conflict between the U.S. and Iran escalates. De Palmas explained that investors would likely avoid volatile assets, creating the potential for a downturn. She added that Bitcoin could only rise if its appeal as an inflation hedge grows due to heightened inflation expectations stemming from oil supply disruptions.

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Michael Selig has announced plans to introduce regulations for prediction markets, The Block reporter Sarah Wynn reported. He stated that the agency plans to issue an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) soon to lay the groundwork for more comprehensive rules. An ANPRM is a preliminary document published by U.S. federal agencies to inform the public that new regulations are under consideration and to gather feedback before a formal proposal is made.

Iran's cryptocurrency market has shown a pattern of surging trading and on-chain transfer volumes during periods of geopolitical crisis, according to an analysis by blockchain data firm Chainalysis, as reported by The Block. The firm noted that following U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Feb. 28, approximately $10.3 million in cryptocurrency was withdrawn from Iran's major platforms through March 2. Chainalysis stated this is not a one-time reaction but part of a long-term pattern that consistently occurs during domestic unrest or regional conflicts. Events such as conflicts with Israel and anti-government protests have led to a decline in the value of the Iranian rial and high inflation. In this environment, cryptocurrency has emerged as an alternative for both individuals and the state to store value and make remittances.

The three major U.S. stock indices opened lower today. - S&P 500: -1.67% - Nasdaq: -2.02% - Dow Jones: -1.81%

ONDO Global Markets has received approval from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) to trade tokenized stocks and ETFs on Binance, CoinDesk reported. ONDO Global Markets is the platform for Ondo Finance (ONDO) that provides on-chain exposure to U.S. securities, listing tokenized shares of companies such as Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Circle, and Nvidia. This marks the first time the trading of tokenized securities has been approved under ADGM regulations.