Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Zug, Switzerland, October 1st, 2024, Chainwire

Energy Web’s innovative app enables EV owners to decarbonize charging sessions with renewable energy 

Energy Web is proud to announce the beta launch of AutoGreenCharge, a mobile app designed to decarbonize electric vehicle (EV) charging. With AutoGreenCharge, users can ensure that every EV charging session is powered by renewable energy. The app is accessible to owners of popular electric vehicles, including Tesla, BMW, Mercedes, and others, bringing the promise of green charging to a worldwide, mainstream audience.

Powered by the decentralized technology of Energy Web’s EnergywebX and secured by the Polkadot blockchain, AutoGreenCharge offers a simple, secure, and verifiable solution to ensure EV charging is not just electric, but 100% renewable. By integrating renewable energy certificates (RECs), the app will automatically match EV charging sessions with clean energy, providing verifiable green charging in real time. While in the beta phase, users can familiarize themselves with the app’s core features and experience the future of EV charging firsthand.

AutoGreenCharge allows EV owners to easily connect their vehicles through a partnership with Smart Car. Once connected, every charging session is automatically tracked, giving users detailed insights into their energy consumption and environmental impact. As the app evolves toward full production, users will be able to retire real renewable energy certificates with each charging session, ensuring their cars are powered by clean, sustainable energy sources. Additionally, they will have the option to specify preferences for the type and location of renewable energy, offering personalized access to solar, wind, and other clean energy sources from around the globe.

Mani Hagh Sefat, CTO of Energy Web, shared, “AutoGreenCharge represents a major step forward in the electrification and decarbonization of transportation. By providing EV owners with a seamless way to ensure their cars are charged with renewable energy, we’re empowering drivers to make more sustainable choices and actively contribute to the global energy transition.”

AutoGreenCharge’s integration with the Polkadot blockchain ensures that every transaction and certificate retirement is securely recorded and verifiable, enhancing transparency and trust in the system. This cutting-edge app is a key development in the broader mission to build a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable energy system.

With the beta version now available, EV owners are encouraged to download the AutoGreenCharge app and start participating in this transformative initiative. The app can be easily found on the testflight Apple and Google Play Stores. As the app moves towards its full production release, users will play a crucial role in refining its features and improving the future of green charging.

For more information, users can visit Energyweb.org

About Energy Web

Energy Web is driving the global energy transition through cutting-edge, open-source, decentralized software solutions. By leveraging blockchain technology, we create new market mechanisms and decentralized applications that empower energy companies, grid operators, and consumers to actively shape their energy futures. Our mission is to build a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable energy system for all.

Contact Jonathan
[email protected]

Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.

[PRESS RELEASE – Zug, Switzerland, October 1st, 2024]

Energy Web’s innovative app enables EV owners to decarbonize charging sessions with renewable energy 

Energy Web is proud to announce the beta launch of AutoGreenCharge, a mobile app designed to decarbonize electric vehicle (EV) charging. With AutoGreenCharge, users can ensure that every EV charging session is powered by renewable energy. The app is accessible to owners of popular electric vehicles, including Tesla, BMW, Mercedes, and others, bringing the promise of green charging to a worldwide, mainstream audience.

Powered by the decentralized technology of Energy Web’s EnergywebX and secured by the Polkadot blockchain, AutoGreenCharge offers a simple, secure, and verifiable solution to ensure EV charging is not just electric, but 100% renewable. By integrating renewable energy certificates (RECs), the app will automatically match EV charging sessions with clean energy, providing verifiable green charging in real time. While in the beta phase, users can familiarize themselves with the app’s core features and experience the future of EV charging firsthand.

AutoGreenCharge allows EV owners to easily connect their vehicles through a partnership with Smart Car. Once connected, every charging session is automatically tracked, giving users detailed insights into their energy consumption and environmental impact. As the app evolves toward full production, users will be able to retire real renewable energy certificates with each charging session, ensuring their cars are powered by clean, sustainable energy sources. Additionally, they will have the option to specify preferences for the type and location of renewable energy, offering personalized access to solar, wind, and other clean energy sources from around the globe.

Mani Hagh Sefat, CTO of Energy Web, shared, “AutoGreenCharge represents a major step forward in the electrification and decarbonization of transportation. By providing EV owners with a seamless way to ensure their cars are charged with renewable energy, we’re empowering drivers to make more sustainable choices and actively contribute to the global energy transition.”

AutoGreenCharge’s integration with the Polkadot blockchain ensures that every transaction and certificate retirement is securely recorded and verifiable, enhancing transparency and trust in the system. This cutting-edge app is a key development in the broader mission to build a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable energy system.

With the beta version now available, EV owners are encouraged to download the AutoGreenCharge app and start participating in this transformative initiative. The app can be easily found on the testflight Apple and Google Play Stores. As the app moves towards its full production release, users will play a crucial role in refining its features and improving the future of green charging.

For more information, users can visit Energyweb.org

About Energy Web Energy Web is driving the global energy transition through cutting-edge, open-source, decentralized software solutions. By leveraging blockchain technology, we create new market mechanisms and decentralized applications that empower energy companies, grid operators, and consumers to actively shape their energy futures. Our mission is to build a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable energy system for all.

Nick Sawinyh on 11 Mar 2026

Stablecoins are blockchain tokens pegged 1:1 to a fiat currency, usually the U.S. dollar. They give you the programmability and speed of crypto without the price swings. That simple combination has turned them into plumbing for DeFi, cross-border payments, remittances, treasury management, and on-chain settlement.

The market crossed $250 billion in total supply by mid-2025 and has continued growing. As of early 2026, total stablecoin market capitalization is above $310 billion according to DefiLlama data. Tether’s USDT sits around $183-187B (roughly 60% of the market), Circle’s USDC around $74-76B. Growth has been driven by regulatory clarity in the U.S. and EU and a wave of institutional adoption.

This article is for anyone considering issuing a stablecoin, evaluating the infrastructure to do so, or trying to map the competitive field. It covers issuance models, regulatory frameworks, technical architecture, service providers, the new “stablechains,” step-by-step launch guidance, and the risks worth planning for.

How stablecoin issuance works Issuing a stablecoin means designing, launching, and operating a token where new units are minted only when equivalent reserves or collateral are locked up. Tokens can be burned (destroyed) when someone redeems. The issuer’s job is keeping that mint-burn cycle trustworthy, transparent, and compliant.

You can either build it yourself with custom smart contracts, banking partnerships, and compliance infrastructure, or use a turnkey platform (often called “Stablecoin-as-a-Service”). Most organizations in 2026 choose the turnkey route, at least to start. But understanding both matters. Even turnkey solutions force architectural decisions that stick with you for years.

Which issuance model fits? Every stablecoin starts with a model decision. Your choice determines capital requirements, regulatory burden, revenue mechanics, and risk profile.

Fiat-backed (custodial / off-chain reserves) The dominant model, accounting for over 90% of the market. Also the one regulators prefer.

Users or institutions deposit fiat (USD cash, Treasuries, repos, money market funds, or insured bank deposits) with the issuer or a qualified custodian. The issuer mints an equivalent number of tokens on-chain. When someone redeems, the tokens get burned and the reserves are released. Reserves sit in segregated, audited accounts.

The economics: issuers earn yield on reserves, primarily from short-term Treasuries. That’s how Circle, Tether, and Paxos make money.

The trade-off is centralization. You depend on banks and custodians, you need licenses, and you’re subject to ongoing audits. But for most businesses, this is the right starting point. USDC, USDT, PayPal’s PYUSD, and newer entrants like KlarnaUSD (issued via Bridge) all use this model.

Crypto-collateralized (on-chain, over-collateralized) Users deposit volatile crypto (typically ETH) into smart contracts at 120-200% collateralization ratios. Price oracles are central to this model. They’re external data feeds (Chainlink is the most widely used) that supply real-time asset prices to on-chain contracts. If oracle data is stale, manipulated, or delayed, liquidations can misfire or fail entirely, potentially threatening the peg. Oracle risk is one of the less-discussed but more dangerous failure modes in crypto-collateralized stablecoins. If the collateral ratio drops below a threshold, automatic liquidation kicks in. Minting and burning happen entirely through smart contracts.

This model is fully transparent and doesn’t need traditional banking relationships. The downside is capital inefficiency: you lock up significantly more value than you mint. Liquidation risk during volatile markets is real. MakerDAO’s DAI is the best-known example. Ethena’s USDe is a newer hybrid.

Revenue comes from stability fees and liquidation penalties rather than reserve yield.

Algorithmic / hybrid Pure algorithmic stablecoins use smart contracts to expand and contract supply through incentive mechanisms, with little or no collateral backing. After the TerraUSD collapse in 2022, this model is largely discredited. Most regulators have banned or restricted it. The EU’s MiCA framework prohibits purely algorithmic stablecoins outright.

Hybrids like FRAX combine partial reserves with algorithmic mechanisms, but adoption remains niche. Unless you have a very specific reason, avoid this model in 2026.

Tokenized deposits / bank-integrated Tokens represent direct claims on insured bank deposits or tokenized reserves on permissioned or public chains. JPMorgan’s JPM Coin (now JPMD) is the primary example. These stablecoins integrate directly with traditional banking rails.

The advantage is deposit insurance and the trust infrastructure of established banks. The downside is ecosystem lock-in and limited multichain reach. This model works best for large financial institutions that already have a banking charter and want to extend their rails onto blockchain.

Regulatory frameworks in 2026 Regulation is simultaneously the biggest barrier and biggest enabler of stablecoin issuance. If you don’t understand the regulatory environment, the rest of this article won’t matter much.

The global picture has converged around a few core requirements: 1:1 reserves in high-quality liquid assets, licensing, redemption rights at par, regular audits, and AML/KYC compliance. Most frameworks also restrict or prohibit yield payments directly to stablecoin holders, keeping the instrument classified as a payment tool rather than a security. But the specifics vary by jurisdiction, and the debate around yield-bearing stablecoins is active (the White House held closed-door meetings on this topic as recently as February 2026).

United States: the GENIUS Act and federal/state oversight The GENIUS Act, passed in 2025, created the first comprehensive federal framework for stablecoin issuance. Only “permitted” issuers can operate: FDIC-insured banks and their subsidiaries, or federally/state-qualified non-bank issuers.

An important structural detail: oversight is split between federal and state regulators depending on issuer type and size. Non-bank issuers with under $10B in circulation can be regulated at the state level under existing money transmitter frameworks. Larger issuers and bank-affiliated issuers fall under federal oversight via banking regulators, with the OCC playing a role for non-bank issuers at the federal level. It’s not a single-regulator model.

Requirements: 1:1 reserves in cash, Treasuries, repos, and insured deposits. Monthly attestations and annual audits for large issuers. Redeemable at par. No interest payments to holders under the current framework. Foreign issuers face restrictions unless their home jurisdiction has equivalence arrangements.

European Union: MiCA The Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation took effect across 2024-2025 and creates two categories: e-money tokens (EMTs, pegged to a single currency) and asset-referenced tokens (ARTs). Issuers must be EU credit institutions or authorized electronic money institutions. Reserves must be held in high-quality liquid assets at EU banks.

Pure algorithmic stablecoins are banned. Redemption at par is mandatory, often without fees. The ECB has oversight authority for systemically important stablecoins. Full authorization is required by July 1, 2026 for all issuers operating in the EU.

Other jurisdictions The UK is building its framework through FCA and Bank of England e-money rules, with caps for systemic stablecoins. Singapore requires a MAS license and full backing. Japan restricts issuance to banks and trust companies. Hong Kong has introduced HKMA licensing for HKD-pegged stablecoins.

The pattern across all of these: convergence on reserves, redemption rights, and licensing. Differences mainly come down to issuer eligibility and acceptable reserve assets. The U.S. favors Treasuries, the EU favors bank deposits.

Technical architecture: what a modern stablecoin stack looks like Whether you build or buy, you need to understand the components.

Core smart contracts Deployed on one or more blockchains (Ethereum, Solana, Algorand, others), these handle minting, burning, and transfer logic. For 2026 compliance, your contracts need role-based access control (minter, burner, pauser, blacklister, clawback roles), pause and freeze functionality for AML and sanctions enforcement, and blacklisting and clawback for court orders.

Most teams start with audited frameworks like OpenZeppelin’s ERC-20Upgradeable combined with Pausable, AccessControl, and UUPS proxy patterns for upgradeability. Some blockchains offer built-in compliance controls at the protocol level. Algorand, for instance, has native freeze and clawback functions that make it attractive for institutional issuers without requiring custom contract logic.

Advanced standards like Tempo’s TIP-20 (on their payments-first L1) add native protocol-level features: built-in mint/burn/transfer restrictions, RBAC, transfer memos for reconciliation, and native yield distribution, all without extra contract complexity.

Issuer backend system A secure, centralized system (typically API-driven) that authorizes minting and burning events. It verifies that fiat deposits arrived before instructing the smart contract to mint, and confirms burn events before releasing fiat for redemption. This is the operational core that ties on-chain activity to off-chain banking.

Custody and reserve layer Fiat and other reserve assets sit in custody accounts at regulated banks or trust companies. Qualified custodians provide regular attestations. Typical reserve composition includes cash, short-term U.S. Treasuries, repos, money market funds, and insured bank deposits. Increasingly, reserves also include tokenized Treasuries from providers like BlackRock, WisdomTree, and Superstate, which generate yield while maintaining liquidity. As a point of reference, Tether’s Q4 2025 attestation reported $141 billion in total U.S. Treasury exposure (direct holdings plus overnight reverse repos), making it one of the largest holders of U.S. sovereign debt globally.

Compliance and identity layer KYC/AML checks and transaction monitoring tools integrate with the issuance and redemption flow. Only verified users can mint or redeem. All on-chain activity gets screened for illicit finance. Blockchain analytics providers like Chainalysis and Blockaid are standard parts of the stack.

Fiat on/off-ramps The bridges between blockchain and traditional finance. Licensed money services businesses like Coinme provide the infrastructure to move funds between bank accounts, cards, and on-chain stablecoins.

Multichain deployment Most stablecoins in 2026 operate across multiple chains. You can deploy natively on each chain, use cross-chain bridges or interoperability protocols (Axelar, LayerZero, Circle’s CCTP), or issue on specialized payment-focused L1s. The choice depends on your target users and use cases.

Security Multiple independent audits are table stakes. Beyond that: timelocks on critical contract functions, multi-sig governance, invariant checks, and HSM or MPC-based key custody. Daily reconciliation between on-chain supply and off-chain reserves is standard practice, along with monthly attestations.

Stablecoin-as-a-Service providers Most businesses in 2026 use a turnkey provider rather than building from scratch.

Paxos The most established player, operating since 2018. Paxos is the issuer behind PayPal’s PYUSD and has partnerships with Interactive Brokers and other large enterprises. They handle regulatory compliance, reserve custody, and minting/redeeming technology across multiple blockchains.

They’ve processed over $180B in activity and focus on enterprise partnerships. Expect enterprise-level pricing to match.

Circle Circle is first and foremost the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin. They don’t offer white-label issuance of fully custom-branded stablecoins the way Brale or Bridge do. What they do offer is programmable wallets, Circle Mint for institutional USDC access, and the Circle Payments Network (CPN) for connecting financial institutions. If you want to build payment products on top of an existing, highly regulated stablecoin rather than issuing your own, Circle’s stack is the natural choice.

Circle supports 20+ blockchains, offers API-based integration, and charges transaction-based fees. Their cross-chain transfer protocol (CCTP) is a real differentiator for multichain deployments. Circle also went public on the NYSE in 2025, adding another layer of transparency.

Brale A U.S.-regulated issuance platform that lets businesses create and manage their own fiat-backed stablecoins. Brale acts as the legal issuer under its money transmitter licenses, handling custody, reserve management, and compliance while providing APIs for minting and burning across 20+ blockchains.

Good option for organizations that want a custom-branded stablecoin without building the regulatory infrastructure themselves. Revenue-share pricing model.

Bridge (Stripe-acquired) Bridge offers an Open Issuance API to launch and manage a branded stablecoin with minimal code. They handle reserves, liquidity, compliance, and fiat on/off-ramps. Stripe’s acquisition gives Bridge access to an enormous merchant network.

Bridge has received preliminary approval to establish a national trust bank, which would let them offer regulated custody and reserve management under a federal framework.

Coinbase Custom Stablecoins Launched December 18, 2025, this is Coinbase’s “stablecoin-as-a-service” offering. It lets businesses create custom-branded stablecoins backed 1:1 by USDC and other USD-stablecoins, with Coinbase handling issuance, smart contracts, compliance, and custody. First partners include Flipcash, Solflare, and R2. Separately, Coinbase is also powering stablecoin-denominated institutional funding for Klarna via USDC.

Important nuance: at launch, Custom Stablecoins use USDC as the underlying collateral rather than direct fiat reserves. That means Coinbase is acting as an issuance layer on top of Circle’s stablecoin, not as a direct fiat-to-stablecoin issuer like Paxos or Brale. Coinbase has applied for an OCC national trust charter, which could eventually allow it to custody reserves directly.

Frax Finance Known for its hybrid stablecoin model, Frax now offers “GENIUS-compatible” white-label infrastructure. Per project announcements, Sonic Labs used Frax’s framework to launch a USSD stablecoin backed by tokenized Treasuries. Frax provides modular smart contract infrastructure with built-in composability through LayerZero.

The DeFi-native option, designed for teams comfortable with on-chain tooling.

Stably A primary partner for blockchain platforms like Algorand and Stacks. Stably provides a Stablecoin-as-a-Service suite including fiat on/off-ramps, multi-chain issuance, and compliance. They specialize in stablecoins pegged to various fiat currencies beyond the dollar.

M0 M0 is a programmable stablecoin issuance protocol that separates token logic from reserve custody. It lets businesses build “stablecoin extensions,” which are custom-branded tokens with their own compliance rules, yield mechanics, and access controls, all built on a shared liquidity and interoperability layer. M0 raised a $40M Series B and has over $779M in on-chain supply minted. Bridge (Stripe) uses M0’s protocol under the hood for stablecoin issuance, as confirmed when MetaMask launched mUSD. MoonPay’s PYUSDx framework also runs on M0 infrastructure.

Worth watching closely. M0’s approach of decoupling reserve management from token issuance could become the default pattern for application-specific stablecoins.

Other providers worth noting Agora offers regulated stablecoin issuance with a trust-based approach. Bastion takes a similar regulated trust posture. Anchorage Digital is primarily a federally chartered crypto bank providing qualified custody and regulated banking services. It’s not a full stablecoin issuance platform, but it plays a role in the custody and compliance layer that issuers need. Fireblocks provides infrastructure and custody tooling (MPC wallets, workflow automation, settlement) across 100+ chains. It processes roughly 15% of global stablecoin volume and is used by 300+ banks and payment providers, but it’s infrastructure plumbing, not a legal issuer of stablecoins. BitGo offers qualified custody infrastructure. Cobo provides full-suite payment operations, combining MPC custody, payment APIs, and Wallet-as-a-Service across 80+ chains. Tassat focuses on tokenized deposits and real-time settlement for institutional digital asset operations, including its Link platform for real-time collateral and settlement workflows.

The stablechains: purpose-built L1s for stablecoin payments This is probably the most interesting development in stablecoin infrastructure right now. Starting in 2025, a new category of “stablechains” appeared: Layer-1 blockchains built specifically for stablecoin payments and issuance. Instead of deploying on general-purpose chains like Ethereum or Solana, issuers can use infrastructure where stablecoins are first-class citizens rather than an afterthought.

Three projects lead this category: Tempo, Circle Arc, and Tether Plasma. All three are EVM-compatible, target sub-second finality, and aim to make stablecoin transactions competitive with Visa, ACH, and SWIFT. They differ in philosophy, ecosystem, and who they’re designed for.

A word of caution: this category is very early. As of March 2026, only Plasma has a live mainnet with real production volume. Tempo and Arc are on public testnet with mainnet launches expected later in 2026. Performance claims (TPS targets, finality times) are based on testnet data or design targets, not proven production metrics at scale. Partnership announcements reflect stated intentions and early pilots, not necessarily live integrations processing real money. That said, the backers (Stripe, Circle, Tether) have the resources and distribution to make these projects matter, which is why they’re worth tracking closely.

Tempo Incubated by Stripe and Paradigm with over $500M raised. Tempo is a payments-first L1 that takes a deliberately neutral approach. No native token. Gas fees can be paid in any stablecoin through an enshrined AMM that auto-swaps to validators. Issuers aren’t forced into any single stablecoin ecosystem.

Tempo’s native TIP-20 token standard includes built-in mint/burn restrictions, protocol-level compliance (TIP-403 Policies), delegatable RBAC with on-chain audit logs, transfer memos for off-chain reconciliation, and native yield distribution. Design targets include 100,000+ TPS and roughly 0.6-second deterministic finality (no re-orgs), though these are pre-mainnet projections, not production-verified metrics.

Other protocol primitives: a Fee AMM (pay gas in any stablecoin, creating structural demand), a native stablecoin DEX for on-chain liquidity and FX (on roadmap), dedicated payment lanes with guaranteed blockspace, and account abstraction with passkey support.

Per Tempo’s announcement materials, the ecosystem roster includes Stripe, Shopify, Nubank, Klarna, DoorDash, Deel, Revolut, Visa, Anthropic, and Deutsche Bank. These are announced partnerships, not necessarily confirmed live integrations. Klarna’s involvement is separately confirmed through its Coinbase stablecoin funding announcement.

Status: public testnet live, mainnet expected H1 2026.

Best for issuers who want maximum flexibility, multi-stablecoin support, and deep payments integration with minimal vendor lock-in. Contact: [email protected].

Circle Arc Circle’s own L1, announced August 2025. Arc makes USDC the native gas token, creating a fully dollar-denominated chain. It uses Malachite BFT consensus for sub-second finality (around 780ms) and targets over 50,000 TPS.

The defining feature is a built-in FX engine with on-chain RFQ and PvP settlement, which makes it attractive for cross-currency treasury operations. Arc deeply integrates Circle’s stack: CCTP, native mint/burn, Gateway, and on/off-ramps. It also offers opt-in privacy designed for compliance-ready institutional use.

Partners include BlackRock, Visa, Goldman Sachs, Mastercard, HSBC, AWS, Coinbase, and OpenAI.

Status: public testnet with 100+ institutional participants, strong activity since October 2025. Mainnet expected 2026.

Best for institutions already in the USDC ecosystem, or those needing on-chain FX and capital markets infrastructure.

Tether Plasma The only stablechain with a fully live mainnet as of March 2026. Plasma is Tether’s chain, built around USDT with a zero-fee transfer model using a Paymaster contract. Sub-second finality at 1,000+ TPS. Over $373M raised.

Plasma supports 25+ stablecoins but is clearly USDT-centric. Per Tether’s communications, it has attracted significant deposits and become one of the larger USDT networks by balance. It includes a native Bitcoin bridge and optional confidential transactions. The ecosystem spans 100+ DeFi partners (including Aave) per project announcements.

Best for USDT-focused use cases, retail and emerging-market payments, and anyone who wants live production volume today.

How to choose between them The decision comes down to a few questions.

What’s your primary stablecoin? USDT points to Plasma. USDC points to Arc. Multi-stablecoin or custom-branded points to Tempo.

Who are your target users? Retail and emerging-market payments: Plasma. Enterprise and institutional capital markets: Arc. Fintechs, merchants, embedded finance: Tempo.

How much execution risk can you tolerate? Plasma is live but carries heavier regulatory scrutiny as a Tether-affiliated project. Tempo and Arc have strong backers but are pre-mainnet.

Many issuers are hedging by testing or launching on multiple chains simultaneously.

End-to-end launch stacks Several providers bundle token issuance, reserve management, compliance, and payment rails into a single integrated offering.

Polygon’s Open Money Stack bundles blockchain settlement, enterprise-grade wallets, and regulated fiat on/off-ramps (via Coinme) into one API. Transactions settle in under 2 seconds at roughly $0.002 each. Institutions can move money from a bank account into a stablecoin, settle on-chain, and convert back to fiat without juggling multiple vendors.

Cobo combines MPC custody, payment APIs, and Wallet-as-a-Service for high-volume stablecoin operations. It supports 80+ chains and plugs into existing treasury systems.

Brale’s unified platform lets an enterprise launch a stablecoin and have it instantly provisioned with on/off-ramps, pricing, APIs, and reporting, all under Brale’s regulatory umbrella.

Step-by-step: how to issue a stablecoin in 2026 The practical sequence, from concept to production.

1. Define purpose and structure. What is the stablecoin for? Payments, treasury management, loyalty programs, embedded finance? Your answer determines which issuance model, platform, and chain make sense. Fiat-backed is the right choice for most use cases. Pick your platform early since switching later is expensive.

2. Secure banking and reserves. Partner with qualified custodians or banks. Set up segregated 1:1 reserve accounts holding cash, short-term Treasuries, repos, money market funds, or insured deposits. Diversify across custodians where possible. Stress-test your liquidity for redemption spikes. Turnkey providers like Brale or Paxos handle much of this, but you still need visibility into the reserve structure.

3. Develop or integrate the technology. If building custom: write and audit your smart contracts (start with OpenZeppelin frameworks), implement compliance controls (RBAC, pause, freeze, clawback), choose your target chains, and get multiple independent security audits. If using a platform: integrate via API (Bridge, Brale) or deploy using native token standards (TIP-20 on Tempo).

4. Set up issuance and redemption flows. Mint tokens when verified fiat deposits arrive. Burn tokens on redemption and release corresponding reserves. Build continuous reconciliation between on-chain supply and off-chain reserves. Publish monthly attestations.

5. Ensure compliance and transparency. Obtain the necessary licenses (or confirm your turnkey provider holds them). Implement KYC/AML for all mint and redeem operations. Set up transaction monitoring. Publish reserve reports and audit results. Under the GENIUS Act, large issuers need monthly attestations and annual audits. MiCA requires full authorization by mid-2026.

6. Launch and distribute. Deploy on your target chain(s). Get listed on exchanges and DEXs. Provide initial liquidity. Monitor the peg continuously. Integrate into real payment flows: payroll via Deel on Tempo, merchant checkout through Stripe, remittance corridors.

7. Ongoing operations. This is where most of the work lives. Regular audits, risk monitoring, smart contract upgrades, regulatory reporting, and responding to compliance events (sanctions, court orders, suspicious activity). It never stops.

Provider comparison Provider Core capability Target customers Supported chains Complexity / cost Paxos Regulated issuance, custody, proven at scale Large enterprises, fintechs Ethereum, others Medium. High cost (enterprise contracts) Circle USDC issuer, programmable wallets, CPN, high liquidity Startups to enterprises 20+ chains Low. Transaction-based fees Brale Full-stack issuance, acts as legal issuer, multi-chain Startups to enterprises 20+ chains Low. Revenue-share pricing Bridge (Stripe) Open Issuance API, fiat on/off-ramps, Stripe distribution Enterprises, fintechs Multiple chains + Tempo Low. Transaction-based fees M0 Programmable issuance protocol, shared liquidity layer Developers, fintechs, wallets Ethereum, multi-chain Low-medium. Protocol-based Coinbase Custom Stablecoins Stablecoin-as-a-service, USDC-collateralized branded tokens Enterprises, fintechs Base, Ethereum (expanding) Low. Revenue-share Frax White-label modular infrastructure, RWA backing Blockchain networks, protocols EVM-compatible via LayerZero Medium. Variable cost Polygon End-to-end “Open Money Stack” Institutions, payment companies Polygon, multi-chain via Agglayer Low. Volume-based pricing Cobo Enterprise payments, MPC custody, treasury automation High-volume institutions 80+ chains Medium. Institutional pricing Fireblocks Infrastructure/custody tooling, MPC wallets, settlement (not an issuer) Large institutions 100+ chains Medium. Institutional licensing Stablechains comparison Aspect Tempo Circle Arc Tether Plasma Backing Stripe + Paradigm ($500M+) Circle Tether/Bitfinex ($373M+) Status (March 2026) Public testnet, mainnet H1 2026 Public testnet, mainnet 2026 Mainnet live Performance 100k+ TPS target (unverified), ~0.6s finality (design) 50k+ TPS target, ~780ms finality (testnet) 1k+ TPS, sub-second finality (production) Gas model Any stablecoin (no native token) Native USDC USDT-native + Paymaster (zero-fee USDT) Stablecoin focus Issuer-agnostic, multi-stablecoin USDC-centric USDT-centric (25+ supported) Key primitives Stable DEX, payment memos, dedicated lanes, TIP-20 FX engine, opt-in privacy, CCTP integration Zero-fee USDT, Bitcoin bridge, confidential txs Target users Fintechs, merchants, embedded finance Institutions, capital markets Retail, emerging markets, DeFi Real-world examples A few cases that show how this infrastructure comes together in practice. Note: some of these are announced projects or early-stage deployments, not fully scaled production systems. Where possible, I’ve verified against public announcements and press coverage.

MetaMask USD (mUSD) on M0/Bridge. Announced August 2025 by Consensys, MetaMask’s native stablecoin is the first issued by a self-custodial wallet. It uses Bridge for issuance and reserve management with M0’s protocol for the on-chain infrastructure. Planned to launch on Ethereum and Linea, with spending via MetaMask Card at Mastercard merchants.

Klarna’s stablecoin initiatives. Klarna partnered with Coinbase in December 2025 for USDC-denominated institutional funding. Separately, Tempo’s announcement materials list Klarna as an ecosystem partner launching “KlarnaUSD” via Bridge on Tempo, but public documentation of that specific deployment is limited beyond Tempo’s own communications. Worth monitoring but not yet a confirmed live product.

Sonic Labs’ USSD via Frax. Per Frax and Sonic project communications, Sonic used Frax’s white-label infrastructure and backed USSD with tokenized Treasuries. Independent documentation is thin, but it illustrates the modular approach: a blockchain network launching a native stablecoin by composing existing infrastructure rather than building from scratch.

Stablecorp’s QCAD. A Canadian dollar stablecoin that uses VersaBank as federally regulated custodian for reserves through VersaBank’s VersaVault platform. Stablecorp manages issuance and compliance while leaning on established banking infrastructure for credibility.

Stable Sea with BitGo. A B2B infrastructure platform that partners with BitGo for regulated custody and trading. Newer platforms can assemble best-in-class services from existing providers rather than building everything internally.

Risks worth planning for Good infrastructure reduces risk. It doesn’t eliminate it. Here’s what actually goes wrong.

Depegging. Market shocks, collateral liquidation cascades, or loss of confidence can push a stablecoin off its peg. Even fiat-backed stablecoins aren’t immune. USDC briefly lost its peg in March 2023 when Silicon Valley Bank failed with a portion of Circle’s reserves held there.

Custody and banking failures. Your stablecoin is only as safe as your custodian. Diversify where possible and understand the insolvency protections (or lack thereof) for your reserve accounts.

Smart contract bugs. A vulnerability in your minting or burning logic can be catastrophic. Multiple independent audits are the minimum. Timelocks, multi-sig controls, and bug bounty programs add layers of defense.

Regulatory changes. The GENIUS Act and MiCA are still relatively new. Rules will evolve. Non-compliance carries real consequences: fines, loss of license, blocked market access. Build compliance into the product from day one, not as an afterthought.

Sanctions and illicit finance exposure. Stablecoins are tools, and bad actors use them. You need transaction monitoring and the ability to freeze or clawback assets when legally required.

Operational risk. Stablecoin operations run around the clock. Reconciliation errors, oracle failures (for crypto-collateralized models), and infrastructure outages compound quickly.

Algorithmic model risk. If you’re considering an algorithmic or lightly collateralized design, this carries the highest systemic risk. The TerraUSD collapse proved that incentive mechanisms alone can’t maintain a peg under stress.

Best practices for 2026 issuers Automate reconciliation between on-chain supply and off-chain reserves. Manual processes break at scale.

Use bankruptcy-remote structures for reserve accounts. If your company has financial trouble, the reserves should be legally protected for token holders.

Build compliance into the product. Freeze, clawback, and blacklisting capabilities aren’t just regulatory checkboxes. They’re what institutional customers and regulators look for before working with you.

Partner with blockchain analytics providers from day one. Chainalysis, Blockaid, and similar firms provide transaction monitoring that regulators expect.

Publish clear redemption policies. Specify timelines, fees (if any), minimum amounts, and the process for large redemptions. Ambiguity erodes trust.

Start with a USD peg for maximum liquidity and market access. Non-USD pegs have their place, but infrastructure, liquidity, and regulatory clarity are all strongest for dollar stablecoins.

Plan for multichain or dedicated-chain deployment from the start. Retrofitting cross-chain support later is painful.

Consider starting on a turnkey platform or specialized L1 for speed, then evaluate custom infrastructure as you scale.

Where this is heading The infrastructure to launch a compliant stablecoin in 2026 exists. You can go from concept to live product in weeks through turnkey providers and purpose-built L1s. That speed would have been absurd even two years ago.

The decisions you face: which issuance model fits (fiat-backed for almost everyone), which platform or chain to deploy on (determined by your target users and stablecoin preference), and how much infrastructure to own versus rent.

White-label platforms like Bridge, Paxos, Brale, and Coinbase, issuance protocols like M0, or payments-optimized L1s like Tempo, offer the lowest barrier for most businesses. Custom builds still make sense for large institutions that need complete control and have the engineering team to maintain it.

One thing I’d flag: the temptation to over-engineer early is strong, especially for technical teams. The businesses actually getting stablecoins into production in 2026 are the ones that started with a turnkey provider, shipped, and iterated from there. The fundamentals, robust reserves, transparent operations, and clear redemption policies, matter more than the specific technology stack underneath.

Justin Sun Offers to Negotiate With KelpDAO Hacker After $292 Million Exploit

PANews reported on May 23 that Squid, a cross-chain infrastructure platform, has completed a $6 million strategic funding round to launch a new consumer-facing product. The round was led by North Island Ventures, with participation from Ripple, Dialectic, and Borderless. Angel investors including Georgios Vlachos, co-founder and former director of Axelar, Connor Howe, founder of Enso Finance, and Dan Lynch, founder of Constructive, also participated. This new funding brings Squid's total funding to $13.5 million, following a $3.5 million seed round in 2023 and a $4 million strategic round in 2024.

Top 1 On-Chain Liquidation: ETH Bull Whale Hit With 4 Consecutive Forced Liquidations, $14.11 Million in Positions Liquidated

According to Hyperinsight monitoring, today’s largest liquidation on the Hyperliquid platform involved a high-leverage Ethereum (ETH) long whale. The address opened a long position yesterday when ETH was trading at roughly $1,661, and immediately incurred losses after entry. Triggered by ETH’s short-term dip below $1,600 in the early hours of today, the whale faced four consecutive liquidations, resulting in the forced closure of a total of 8,734 ETH positions valued at approximately $14.11 million. The address now holds less than $150,000 in remaining funds, with all positions fully cleared. Address: 0x1cb0b187c14a8c0fb36ca0dcbb775dcc7f02b408

2 minutes ago

A certain on-chain address opened long positions in BTC, ETH, and silver, and purchased $10.699 million worth of BTC and ETH spot.

According to on-chain analyst Ai Yi (@ai_9684xtpa)’s monitoring, address 0x960…3f0fc simultaneously went long on both futures and spot positions this early morning, opening long positions of 102.55 BTC, 954.38 ETH, and 8,790 silver units, with total position value around $8.29 million. It also purchased spot BTC and ETH worth approximately $10.699 million. Its current take-profit levels are set at $63,000 for BTC and $1,650 for ETH.

2 minutes ago

A whale that reaped over $23.77 million in profits from the Basic Attention Token (BAT) ICO has reawakened after six years of dormancy, offloading 12,600 ETH in the past two days.

According to monitoring by EmberCN, a whale address that participated in the BAT ICO in 2017 and generated approximately $23.77 million in total profits has started selling ETH recently after six years of inactivity. Over the past two days, the address has sold 12,586 ETH, receiving 20.59 million USDS in exchange, at an average selling price of roughly $1,636. The whale invested 17,789 ETH in the BAT ICO in May 2017, acquiring around 113.8 million BAT. It then sold BAT gradually over approximately two and a half years at an average price of $0.245, netting about $23.77 million in profits, with some of the BAT converted into 27,586 ETH. Since then, the ETH has remained inactive for a long time until it resumed reducing its holdings recently. Currently, the address still holds around 15,000 ETH, valued at approximately $24.29 million.

2 minutes ago

Japanese storage firm Kioxia plans to list American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) in the U.S. in April or May next year.

Market news: Japanese storage chip maker Kioxia plans to list its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) in the U.S. in April or May next year. (Jinshi)

2 minutes ago

Micron's earnings report lifts SK Hynix's stock price 11%, trader 'yixie' expands their unrealized profit to $1.3 million.

According to Hyperinsight monitoring, Micron’s Q3 financial results exceeded all expectations, driving peer SK Hynix’s stock to rally nearly 11% from its recent low. On the Hyperliquid platform, SKHYNIX is currently trading at $1,821, up 6.2% in the past 24 hours. Prominent trader yixie (X: @yixie10) nearly doubled his principal during this rally; he is now holding a 2x long position of 2,289 SKHYNIX contracts at an average entry price of ~$1,239.9. Fueled by the rally, the position’s unrealized profit has expanded to $1.37 million, a 96% gain. As of press time, the trader boasts an 85% win rate in semiconductor storage stock trades since opening positions this year, with total historical profits of $6.68 million, including $4.25 million from Micron Technology trades. Address: 0xa65ce1d604fa901c13aa29f2126a57d9032e412b – HyperInsight Bot is now live. Add @HyperInsightBot to your Telegram group and set it as an admin (enable message sending permission) to automatically sync on-chain news.

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STRC drops to near $80, marking another new all-time low.

According to Bitget market data, Strategy’s preferred stock STRC has dropped to a low of $80.26, hitting a new all-time low since its listing. Calculated based on a $100 par value, the current discount has reached 20%.

2 minutes ago

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Axelar has integrated Solana. The integration is now live on mainnet, enabling cross-chain message passing and asset transfers between Solana and Axelar-supported chains, including Ethereum, XRP Ledger, Sui, Stellar, Hedera, and 70+ more ecosystems.

Following recent integrations with Stellar and Hedera, Solana is the next major ecosystem connected to Axelar’s interoperability infrastructure. The integration expands Axelar’s support across different execution environments and gives developers, asset issuers, and protocols a secure and reliable way to connect Solana with the broader multichain world.

What the Integration EnablesSolana is one of the most vibrant blockchain ecosystems in Web3, with a growing application layer across DeFi, payments, tokenization, and consumer use cases. With Solana connected through Axelar, applications can combine Solana’s speed, low transaction costs, and active application ecosystem with Axelar’s interoperability infrastructure. The result is new optionality for applications that want to reach broader liquidity, expand user access across chains, and build multichain products that connect Solana with the wider ecosystems.

Ecosystem Partners Expanding to SolanaThe Solana integration launches with day-one ecosystem use cases that demonstrate how Axelar can help bring assets and applications into the Solana ecosystem.

Stronghold is a payments infrastructure platform that enables access to both legacy and next-generation financial services, with $SHx serving as its native utility token. Through Axelar's integration with Solana, Stronghold can now extend SHx reach to Solana and gain access to a broader ecosystem of users, builders, and liquidity opportunities beyond the Stellar ecosystem.

SaucerSwap is a leading decentralized exchange on Hedera, providing trading and liquidity infrastructure optimized for efficient execution and low fees. With Axelar connecting Solana, SaucerSwap can support assets from Solana and other connected blockchains and bring them into Hedera-based trading and liquidity pools. The integration also opens a new path for $SAUCE to extend beyond its native environment into the Solana ecosystem.

How to Access Solana Through AxelarSolana is now connected to Axelar and can be accessed through:

Axelar’s new bridging interface: Users can move assets to and from Solana directly through Axelar’s interface.Squid: Users and developers can access Solana through Squid, a cross-chain routing and liquidity layer built on Axelar that enables seamless asset transfers across ecosystems.Moreover, developers can now start building cross-chain applications with Solana: Send & receive messages across chains | Interchain Token Transfers | Full documentation

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Cross-chain interoperability protocol Axelar has disabled its connection to Secret Network following an exploit that resulted in the loss of approximately $4.67 million in bridged assets.

In an update on June 19, Axelar said it had identified an incident affecting assets bridged over the Inter-Blockchain Communication [IBC] protocol from the Axelar chain to Secret Network. The team said the issue appears to be isolated to the Secret-side ICS-20 smart contract used in the Cosmos IBC connection between the two networks.

“Approximately $4.67M worth of tokens” were taken, according to the protocol.

Axelar shuts down affected connections Axelar said its emergency committee disabled the Secret and Secret-SNIP connections immediately after becoming aware of the incident.

The protocol also said it has contacted relevant exchanges and law enforcement agencies while investigations continue.

According to the initial assessment, the exploit is limited to assets bridged from Axelar to Secret Network through the affected IBC route. Axelar said no other IBC connections appear to be impacted and that no other Secret Network tokens have been affected.

The team further stated that Axelar’s core protocol remains unaffected.

“We’re preparing a detailed post-mortem,” the protocol said.

Investigation focuses on Secret-side contract The incident highlights the complexity of cross-chain infrastructure, where vulnerabilities can arise within specific integrations rather than the underlying bridge network.

Axelar’s statement suggests the issue originated in the Secret-side ICS-20 contract associated with the Cosmos IBC connection, rather than within Axelar’s validator network or core interoperability infrastructure.

That distinction could become an important focus of the investigation as both ecosystems work to determine the root cause of the exploit.

The latest incident adds to a growing list of bridge-related security events across the crypto sector, where interconnected networks and smart contracts continue to present attractive targets for attackers.

At the time of publication, neither Axelar nor Secret Network had released a detailed technical explanation of how the exploit occurred.

Final Summary Axelar disabled its Secret Network connections after approximately $4.67 million in bridged assets was stolen. The protocol said the issue appears isolated to a Secret-side ICS-20 contract, while Axelar’s core infrastructure remains unaffected.

Axelar has disabled its Secret Network bridge connections after a security incident resulted in the loss of roughly $4.7 million worth of bridged assets.

Summary

Axelar disabled Secret Network bridge routes after a $4.7 million exploit tied to a Secret-side ICS-20 contract. The company said the incident appears limited to Axelar-bridged assets on Secret Network, with no impact on its core protocol. Binance Research previously estimated DeFi exploits triggered $13 billion in TVL outflows and pushed leverage ratios to 2021 highs. According to Axelar, the exploit affected assets transferred from the Axelar chain to Secret Network through the Cosmos Inter-Blockchain Communication framework.

Early findings from the investigation indicate the issue is linked to the Secret-side ICS-20 smart contract used in the IBC connection between the two networks rather than Axelar’s core infrastructure.

We have identified an incident affecting assets bridged over IBC to Secret Network from the Axelar chain, with approximately $4.67M worth of tokens taken. Based on current information, the issue is isolated to the Secret-side ICS-20 smart contract of the Cosmos IBC connection…

— Axelar Network (@axelar) June 19, 2026 As part of its immediate response, Axelar said its emergency committee shut down the Secret and Secret-SNIP connections to prevent further losses. The interoperability protocol also stated that it had contacted relevant exchanges and law enforcement agencies while its investigation remains ongoing.

Secret Network operates as a privacy-focused blockchain that encrypts transaction data while allowing smart contract code to remain verifiable on-chain.

Through its integration with Axelar, developers have been able to support private cross-chain applications, including confidential decentralized finance activity, private NFT transactions, and anonymous governance functions.

Exploit appears limited to a single bridge connection Details shared by Axelar indicate that the incident is confined to assets on the Secret Network that were bridged from Axelar. The company said no evidence currently suggests that other IBC connections, Secret-native assets, or additional Axelar integrations were affected.

At the same time, Axelar emphasized that its core protocol remained operational throughout the incident. The team said the suspected vulnerability was isolated to the Secret-side contract involved in processing transfers from Axelar into the Secret ecosystem.

A full post-mortem is expected once the investigation is completed. Until then, the affected bridge routes will remain disabled as engineers continue reviewing the attack path and assessing the extent of the losses.

The incident adds to a growing list of security breaches that have disrupted crypto infrastructure projects in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Humanity Protocol disclosed recovery measures after a June 8 exploit that forced the project to retire its original H token across Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Humanity Mainnet.

According to Humanity Protocol, affected users will receive replacement H tokens through an airdrop tied to a newly deployed audited ERC-20 contract on Ethereum. The project stated that the breach resulted from stolen credentials rather than vulnerabilities in its token contracts, bridge infrastructure, or Safe setup.

Recent exploits continue to pressure crypto projects Security incidents have also had consequences beyond immediate token losses. Earlier this week, crypto payments platform Pyra announced plans to wind down operations after determining it could not recover from the financial and user impact of the Drift exploit.

Against that backdrop, Axelar’s response has focused on containing the Secret Network incident while investigators determine how the exploit occurred. The company said it will provide additional details once its review is complete and has maintained that no other parts of the Axelar network appear to be affected based on current findings.

As crypto.news reported earlier, Binance Research estimated that DeFi exploits in April alone contributed to roughly $13 billion in total value locked outflows across decentralized finance protocols, reducing available liquidity throughout the sector. The research arm also found that the on-chain leverage ratio climbed to around 38%, a level last seen in 2021, as TVL declined faster than borrowing activity.

Top 1 On-Chain Liquidation: ETH Bull Whale Hit With 4 Consecutive Forced Liquidations, $14.11 Million in Positions Liquidated

According to Hyperinsight monitoring, today’s largest liquidation on the Hyperliquid platform involved a high-leverage Ethereum (ETH) long whale. The address opened a long position yesterday when ETH was trading at roughly $1,661, and immediately incurred losses after entry. Triggered by ETH’s short-term dip below $1,600 in the early hours of today, the whale faced four consecutive liquidations, resulting in the forced closure of a total of 8,734 ETH positions valued at approximately $14.11 million. The address now holds less than $150,000 in remaining funds, with all positions fully cleared. Address: 0x1cb0b187c14a8c0fb36ca0dcbb775dcc7f02b408

2 minutes ago

A certain on-chain address opened long positions in BTC, ETH, and silver, and purchased $10.699 million worth of BTC and ETH spot.

According to on-chain analyst Ai Yi (@ai_9684xtpa)’s monitoring, address 0x960…3f0fc simultaneously went long on both futures and spot positions this early morning, opening long positions of 102.55 BTC, 954.38 ETH, and 8,790 silver units, with total position value around $8.29 million. It also purchased spot BTC and ETH worth approximately $10.699 million. Its current take-profit levels are set at $63,000 for BTC and $1,650 for ETH.

2 minutes ago

A whale that reaped over $23.77 million in profits from the Basic Attention Token (BAT) ICO has reawakened after six years of dormancy, offloading 12,600 ETH in the past two days.

According to monitoring by EmberCN, a whale address that participated in the BAT ICO in 2017 and generated approximately $23.77 million in total profits has started selling ETH recently after six years of inactivity. Over the past two days, the address has sold 12,586 ETH, receiving 20.59 million USDS in exchange, at an average selling price of roughly $1,636. The whale invested 17,789 ETH in the BAT ICO in May 2017, acquiring around 113.8 million BAT. It then sold BAT gradually over approximately two and a half years at an average price of $0.245, netting about $23.77 million in profits, with some of the BAT converted into 27,586 ETH. Since then, the ETH has remained inactive for a long time until it resumed reducing its holdings recently. Currently, the address still holds around 15,000 ETH, valued at approximately $24.29 million.

2 minutes ago

Japanese storage firm Kioxia plans to list American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) in the U.S. in April or May next year.

Market news: Japanese storage chip maker Kioxia plans to list its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) in the U.S. in April or May next year. (Jinshi)

2 minutes ago

Micron's earnings report lifts SK Hynix's stock price 11%, trader 'yixie' expands their unrealized profit to $1.3 million.

According to Hyperinsight monitoring, Micron’s Q3 financial results exceeded all expectations, driving peer SK Hynix’s stock to rally nearly 11% from its recent low. On the Hyperliquid platform, SKHYNIX is currently trading at $1,821, up 6.2% in the past 24 hours. Prominent trader yixie (X: @yixie10) nearly doubled his principal during this rally; he is now holding a 2x long position of 2,289 SKHYNIX contracts at an average entry price of ~$1,239.9. Fueled by the rally, the position’s unrealized profit has expanded to $1.37 million, a 96% gain. As of press time, the trader boasts an 85% win rate in semiconductor storage stock trades since opening positions this year, with total historical profits of $6.68 million, including $4.25 million from Micron Technology trades. Address: 0xa65ce1d604fa901c13aa29f2126a57d9032e412b – HyperInsight Bot is now live. Add @HyperInsightBot to your Telegram group and set it as an admin (enable message sending permission) to automatically sync on-chain news.

2 minutes ago

STRC drops to near $80, marking another new all-time low.

According to Bitget market data, Strategy’s preferred stock STRC has dropped to a low of $80.26, hitting a new all-time low since its listing. Calculated based on a $100 par value, the current discount has reached 20%.

2 minutes ago

Secret Network's cross-chain bridge to Axelar has been suspended after an attacker exploited a years-old minting flaw in a CW20-ICS20 contract to drain $4.67 million in wrapped tokens over seven undetected days. The exploit ran from June 10 to June 17, drained seven Axelar-wrapped assets, and has sparked a dispute between the two teams over contract responsibility.

Secret Network's cross-chain bridge to Axelar has been suspended after an attacker exploited a years-old minting flaw to drain $4.67 million in wrapped tokens over seven undetected days.

Both teams disclosed the incident on June 19, confirming approximately $4.67 million in assets were taken from the bridge's Axelar-to-Secret IBC connection. The attack itself began on June 10 but went unnoticed for seven days until a routine cross-chain transfer failed because the bridge's escrow account had been depleted.

Minting FlawThe vulnerability lived in a modified CW20-ICS20 smart contract deployed on Secret Network for the Axelar bridge connection. Security research firm Common Prefix published a technical breakdown of the incident, finding that two critical validation checks had been commented out from the contract's packet-receive function: one that should have verified incoming token denominations against the legitimate source channel, and one that should have capped outflows to amounts genuinely held in escrow.

The flaw dates to the contract's initial deployment in March 2023 and survived a migration on March 5, 2026 that updated the bytecode for new features but preserved the missing checks. Secret Network's default transaction encryption obscured the growing shortfall from on-chain observers; the attack ran for seven days before a failed transfer surfaced it.

To exploit the gap, the attacker spun up a single-validator Cosmos SDK chain and opened a new IBC channel to Secret Network. IBC channel creation is permissionless by design, meaning any chain can initiate a connection. The attacker self-relayed forged IBC packets carrying bare denominations that matched the bridge's allow-list. With both validation checks missing, the contract minted unbacked wrapped tokens on Secret. The attacker then redeemed those minted tokens over the legitimate Axelar channel to drain the real escrowed assets on the other side.

Seven Tokens DrainedThe assets taken were seven Axelar-wrapped tokens: saUSDT, saUSDC, saDAI, saWETH, saWBTC, saWBNB, and sawstETH. According to KuCoin's reporting, Common Prefix traced the stolen assets through Osmosis and Ethereum. Both teams said they are reaching out to relevant exchanges and law enforcement agencies.

Approximately $600,000 of the drained assets had been deposited by users into Shade Protocol smart contracts. Shade did not deploy the exploited contracts. Ecosystem contributor CarterWoetzel wrote in the Shade forum that bridge-level safeguards were "the appropriate place to detect and halt this class of attack, and that did not happen here."

Disputed ResponsibilityBoth teams issued a joint disclosure and said they are engaging with exchanges and law enforcement. The Shade Protocol forum noted that fund recovery discussions are led by Secret and Axelar, as the parties that control the affected infrastructure.

Axelar stated the issue was isolated to the Secret-side ICS-20 smart contract and that no other IBC connections or Axelar integrations were affected. Axelar has separately clarified the exploited contract "was not developed, deployed, or maintained" by its team. Secret Network's disclosure placed the flaw in contracts tied to the Axelar integration. Neither party has published a full post-mortem as of June 22.

Axelar's Emergency Committee disabled the Secret and Secret-SNIP bridge connections after the disclosure. Cross-chain router Squid also removed Secret Network support from its frontend. The Common Prefix report remains the most detailed public accounting of the flaw.

SCRT PriceSecret Network's SCRT token traded at $0.0558 at the time of writing, down 33% over the prior 30 days and near its all-time low of $0.0553. Axelar's AXL traded at $0.0426, down 29% over the same period. The bridge suspension leaves SCRT with limited cross-chain liquidity routes while both teams complete their investigation.

[[chartBlock BINANCE:SCRTUSDT]]

Verida Network: The Future of Data Management with DePIN Technology

Synapse is an interoperability protocol designed for the secure and safe transfer of random data between blockchains. The protocol consists of: Generalized Cross-Chain Communication, Optimistic Security Model, Synapse Bridge.

With Synapse’s generalized messaging system, any random data can be securely and seamlessly transferred between chains. According to the statements made, applications no longer need to be distributed across multiple blockchains; they can be deployed on a single chain and communicate with other chains to create the same user experience from a single centralized application layer. General messaging also includes smart contract calls, enabling smart contracts on different chains to work together seamlessly. Simply put, Synapse’s general messaging feature serves as a framework for universal blockchain interoperability.

Synapse’s optimistic verification is inspired by Celo’s Optics protocol. A multi-chain future is seen as inevitable. In such a future, generalized messaging and bridge protocols will become integral parts of the infrastructure; however, according to the team’s statements, the underlying security models of most of today’s interoperability platforms leave much to be desired.

The Synapse Bridge allows users to seamlessly and securely swap assets across more than 15 EVM and non-EVM blockchains. The bridge supports two types of bridging:

Canonical Token Bridging – bridging wrapped assets between chainsLiquidity-Based Bridging – bridging native assets across cross-chain stableswap poolsThe Synapse Bridge is also available for developers who want to natively integrate cross-chain asset swaps into their applications. By leveraging this bridge, developers can create truly cross-chain DeFi applications, including cross-chain DEX, lending platforms, margin systems, derivatives markets, yield farming, and much more.

The cross-chain AMM allows users to access deep liquidity, low fees, and minimal slippage. It is stated that within a short period, the bridge has become one of the most widely used and trusted bridges, processing nearly $11 billion in total volume, serving hundreds of thousands of users, and supporting massive-scale dapps like DeFi Kingdoms.

How to Buy SYN Coin?SYN Coin can be purchased quickly and securely via Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume.

To buy SYN Coin, you must first sign up for Binance and then deposit fiat currency. After depositing fiat currency like USD, you can proceed with the purchase in the Bitcoin (BTC) or Tether (USDT) SYN trading pair.

Additionally, on Binance, users can also place buy orders at lower values, not just at market value, allowing them to purchase at their desired price. For this, simply use the Limit tab, enter the amount you want to buy and the price you want to pay.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.

Synapse, the interoperability protocol and cross-chain bridge, has seen its native token soar after Binance Futures news.

On Aug. 16, the price of Synapse (SYN) surged to over $0.57 after gaining more than 40% in 24 hours. Daily trading volume increased by 203% to over $68 million, while market capitalization hovered around $107 million following the 40% spike at the time of writing.

The gains for the inter-blockchain compatibility project came after a major listing announcement by leading crypto exchange Binance.

Futures trading allows traders to buy or sell the underlying asset — whether it be a commodity, security, or other assets — at a set price in the future. It’s a contract that lets crypto holders speculate on the future price of the asset, whether it will rise or fall. Buyers or sellers are obligated to transact the asset at the agreed price, with the losing bet essentially compensating the winning side.

Buyers or sellers will have to buy or sell the said asset at the given price – with the bet that loses essentially paying the one that gets the future price right.

According to Binance, the launch of the SYNUSDT Perpetual Contract expands trading options for its users. The Synapse futures trading on Binance went live on Aug. 16 at 12:30 pm UTC, offering up to 50x leverage. Settlement for the contract will be in USDT.

https://twitter.com/BinanceFutures/status/1824377509171040704

Why else did SYN price rise? According to Sigil Fund partner Joe HedgeHog, SYN’s price is also surging amid community anticipation surrounding the upcoming Synapse chain and Interchain network launch expected this August.

Additionally, an address recently accumulated over $1 million worth of SYN, likely contributing to the upward pressure on the token.

While there’s no specific major news directly related to the Synapse network, traders appear optimistic about the project’s increased visibility and forthcoming milestones.

The key price target for SYN remains its all-time high of $4.92, reached in October 2021.

A widely followed crypto strategist is predicting a massive breakout for one decentralized finance (DeFi) low-cap altcoin.

Pseudonymous analyst The Crypto Dog tells his 810,200 followers on the social media platform X that Synapse (SYN), a protocol that aims to enable secure cross-chain communication, could soar more than 75% from the current value.

[adinserter block="1"]

“Think it can see $1…

10% dip back to breakout level. I rebought SYN.“

Source: The Crypto Dog/X Synapse is trading for $0.566 at time of writing, down 12.82% in the last 24 hours. The cross-chain network project was launched in August 2021 and is compatible with most other layer-1s and layer-2s.

Next up, the analyst says that he is flipping bullish on Ethereum (ETH) rival Fantom (FTM), suggesting a breakout of a descending trendline may be forming on the hourly chart.

“Would be an attractive break FTM… Started position in FTM.”

Source: The Crypto Dog/X Fantom is trading for $0.38 at time of writing, up slightly in the last 24 hours.

Lastly, the analyst says that the native asset for the stablecoin-focused decentralized exchange Curve DAO (CRV) may be gearing up for a bounce after retracing.

“Probably the dip to buy for CRV at $0.318.”

Source: The Crypto Dog/X CRV is trading for $0.30 at time of writing, down more than 1% in the last 24 hours.

Generated Image: Midjourney

Popular crypto analyst Altcoin Sherpa suggested that there might be more upward potential for PepeCoin (PEPECOIN). Speaking to his followers on the social media platform X, the analyst predicts that PepeCoin could continue its upward trend after a pullback to a critical level.

Analyst Sees Uptrend in PEPECOINAltcoin Sherpa emphasized that PEPECOIN is currently performing strongly and noted that the price could pull back to the $2.30 level, which corresponds to the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA). He mentioned that the $2.30 level could be a good entry point in the short term and that a recovery from this level is possible.

Altcoin Sherpa said, “PEPECOIN is doing well right now, showing great strength. It is still uncertain whether this momentum will continue, but pay attention to the 200-day EMA here. Around $2.30 could be a good entry point in the short term. I made some purchases.”

At the time of writing, PepeCoin is trading at $2.97, having risen over 27,000% since its low of $0.01088 on October 13, 2023.

“Synapse (SYN) Follows Sui Network (SUI)”Altcoin Sherpa also compared the price chart of the Synapse (SYN) protocol to that of the smart contract platform Sui Network (SUI). He suggested that the SYN price chart is forming a structure similar to SUI’s price movements and could rise soon. The analyst noted that several EMAs on the four-hour chart are moving upward, indicating positive momentum for SYN.

On the other hand, the analyst pointed out that SYN is lagging behind other bridge projects and that investors might find better alternatives, saying, “SUI has a solid offering and story. In contrast, SYN is a weak bridge, and there are better projects out there. Just looking at the chart, I like SYN, but it might take some time. I think other bridge projects are better investments, but this chart is definitely nice; let’s see what happens.”

At the time of writing, SUI is trading at $1.01, up over 19% in the last 24 hours, while SYN is trading at $0.61, up 8.6% in the same period.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.

Hongji Feng

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Hongji Feng

Part of the Team Since

Oct 2023

About Author

Hongji is a reporter who covers crypto, finance, and tech. He graduated from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a Bachelor's and a Master's. He has previously interned at HTX,...

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January 7, 2025

Hyperliquid highlighted key milestones in 2024, including reaching $15 billion in daily trading volume and expanding its user base ninefold to 300,000 users.

According to a post by Hyper Foundation, the decentralized exchange attributed its rapid growth and ecosystem expansion to updates such as the HyperBFT consensus, HIP token standards, and staking features.

Hyperliquid’s Exponential Growth in 2024Hyperliquid experienced growth in 2024, with its 24-hour all-time high (ATH) trading volume climbing from $1 billion to $15 billion.

This major increase in trading activity was accompanied by growth in other metrics, highlighting Hyperliquid’s expanding market presence.

Hyperliquid started 2024 as a barely-known perp dex and ended the year as one of the largest decentralized financial hubs, processing billions in volume per day with a thriving ecosystem of builders, traders, and community members.

Thank you to everyone who came together for a… pic.twitter.com/GgmlsiW4mg

— Hyperliquid (@HyperliquidX) January 7, 2025 Open interest rose from $178 million to $4.3 billion, while total value locked (TVL) climbed from $56 million to $2.1 billion.

Additionally, the exchange’s user base expanded from 31,000 to 300,000, marking a ninefold rise.

Hyperliquid also supported 158 perpetual trading pairs and 128 native spot assets, generating over $3.5 million in daily revenue from trading fees and spot auctions.

These achievements were underpinned by the introduction of staking mechanisms and native token standards, including HIP-1 and HIP-2, which streamlined token usage across its platform.

Ecosystem Expansion Through New Features in 2024Throughout 2024, Hyperliquid launched new features and integrations that strengthened its ecosystem.

Third-party platforms, including Synapse, deBridge, and DEX Screener, bolstered interoperability and trading tools within Hyperliquid’s ecosystem.

Projects launched on Hyperliquid during the year included applications like HypurrScan, which allows users to analyze blockchain data, and HypurrFun, a platform for trading and creating meme coins.

Community-driven initiatives, such as Hyperliquid KR and HyperActive, further contributed to regional expansion and outreach efforts.

“All of this was achieved without taking any external funding and giving all trading fees to the community,” Hyper Foundation stated in its post. “Thank you to everyone who came together for a record-breaking 2024.”

Coinbase to Delist Four Crypto Tokens in June Over Protocol Updates

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Luffa, a privacy-focused Web3 platform, has partnered with Synapse AI, a renowned AI agent marketplace. The collaboration endeavors to integrate AI within advanced Web3 ecosystems. As Luffa pointed out in its official social media announcement, the partnership strengthens creators, community, and builders by incorporating intuitive AI agents to enhance digital experiences. Thus, this move promises to redefine the way consumers interact with artificial intelligence (AI) in cutting-edge decentralized environments.

🤝 Excited to announce our partnership with @synapseainet !

Synapse AI is an innovative AI agent marketplace and building platform — the go-to hub for discovering, deploying, and creating powerful autonomous AI agents that redefine intelligence in Web3.

Luffa + Synapse AI = the… pic.twitter.com/NlQrNwu2lu

— Luffa (@LuffaMessage) January 19, 2026 Luffa and Synapse AI Partner to Embed Autonomous AI Agents The partnership between Luffa and Synapse AI focuses on integrating independent AI agents to improve Web3 experiences. With this, the development underscores a key move to start a new epoch for creator economy. Hence, the consumers can now leverage modifiable AI agents and integrate them into mini-programs, content workflows, and fan experiences. This assists in creating intelligent and interactive environments that dynamically respond to consumer engagement.

Apart from that, by merging the autonomous agents of Synapse AI with the all-inclusive Web3 platform of Luffa, this initiative provides creators with unprecedented flexibility. As a result, they can significantly innovate while also maintaining data security and privacy. Additionally, this integration backs diverse utilities, including individualized content delivery and community engagement. At the same time, it also lets creators develop relatively immersive experiences to facilitate the audience.

Simultaneously, Synapse AI’s marketplace permits builders to reach a library of readily available AI agents, along with the capability to develop custom solutions for their unique requirements. Additionally, Luffa’s platform guarantees that the agents work seamlessly within the cutting-edge Web3 protocols. So, the partnership stresses consumer control, letting audience and creators retain privacy and ownership in a next-gen decentralized digital world.

Advancing Privacy-Conscious and Personalized Web3 Models According to Luffa, the collaboration with Synapse AI is poised to impact the wider Web3 adoption. Therefore, it demonstrates AI agents’ practical applications. For this purpose, communities and businesses can integrate the agents into their workflows to seamlessly automate moderation, improve fan engagement, or deliver individualized support while using blockchain-based security and transparency. Ultimately, the joint effort attempts to set unique benchmarks for privacy-conscious, interactive experiences within the swiftly transforming Web3 ecosystem.

AUTHOR

Umair Younas is a cryptocurrency-related content writer linked with this work since 2019. Here, at Blockchainreporter, he serves as a news and article writer. He is a crypto, blockchain, NFTs, DeFi, and FinTech enthusiast. He has strong command over writing authentic reviews about brokers and exchanges and he has collaborated with our education team to write educational content as well. He has a dream to raise awareness among people about digital currencies. His works are well-researched and brimmed with information hence they provide fresh insights. Stay tuned to his posts if you want to stay up-to-date with the crypto-verse.

Key Takeaways Why is the AKT price outlook bearish? The trend for the altcoin has been bearish throughout 2025, and the coin will be targeting new lows due to the overall seller dominance.

What should Akash Network bulls watch out for? A price move beyond the $1 level would be the first sign that bulls were back in control. Even then, a quick recovery would likely be tough.

Distributed cloud computing protocol Akash Network [AKT] was in the news recently when it suffered no downtime while Amazon Web Services went down for hours. Its founder, Greg Osuri, celebrated this as a success.

He had also explained in a post on X that the project will migrate to a new network. They are paying attention to chains whose performance was impacted by the AWS outage, he revealed.

The protocol mentioned the burn mint equilibrium model in a post on X. The model aims to boost the structural demand for AKT and reduce effective circulating supply.

What does the price action reveal about AKT’s potential future trends?

Bearish long-term trend dismays Akash Network investors Source: AKT/USD on TradingView The weekly chart of AKT showed a long-term downtrend in progress. Even the market-wide rally in November-December 2024 failed to set new highs for the year. Instead, it fell just short of the $5 mark.

In the eleven months that followed, the price of Akash Network token has declined another 86%. The $2-$2.5 zone had been a strong support level in 2024, but was retested as resistance in May 2025.

A similar scenario may develop with the $0.78-$1 supply zone above AKT prices. The $0.766 level crumbled under selling pressure, and the $0.63 support could be the next target.

The moving averages and the RSI highlighted persistent bearish momentum in the market. The OBV was sinking toward the 2025 low, another sign of seller dominance.

Source: AKT/USD on TradingView On the 12-hour chart, the bearish outlook was just as strong. The crash beneath the psychological $1 level has left a large imbalance, aligning with the higher timeframe supply zone.

The OBV was making new lows, and the RSI continued to show firm bearish momentum.

Using the previous week’s swing move southward, a set of Fibonacci extension levels were plotted. The next price targets for AKT are $0.533 and $0.456, according to the extension levels.

Meanwhile, a move back above $1 would be needed to signal a potential halt to the downtrend. Since the long-term trend was downward, investors and traders might not want to bet on a quick recovery.

Disclaimer: The information presented does not constitute financial, investment, trading, or other types of advice and is solely the writer’s opinion

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According to Phoenix, a crypto analytical platform, Saros ($SAROS) climbed 43.6% to become the daily top performer among Altcoins in the crypto market. $SAROS is trading at $0.11 on Bybit exchange with a market cap of $300.2M. Other projects, Akash Network ($AKT), Bluwhale ($BLUAI), Definitive ($EDGE), Clanker ($CLANKER), Arcblock ($ABT), Powerpool ($CVP), Recall ($RECALL), Kadena ($KDA), and Bsquared Network ($B2), show a positive response towards growth.

Similarly, $AKT is at the second position with a 39.6% price increase and is currently trading at $0.87. Its market cap is $216.8M on the Gate exchange. The given figures for these projects show a positive inclination towards these cryptocurrencies. This means that users are actively using these cryptocurrencies in daily life trading.

$BLUAI and $EDGE Post Parallel Gains While $CLANKER and $ABT Secure Mid-Spots $BLUAI and $EDGE, both cryptocurrencies, showed an increase in their prices of 35.0% and 33.0%, trading on the MEXC exchange and the Coinbase exchange, respectively. So, $BLUAI and $EDGE are currently trading with new prices $0.032 and $0.33, with market caps $40.0M and $69.7M respectively. They show a difference of 0.298% in their price change.

Simultaneously, $CLANKER is presently trading at $108.79 with a market value of $111.0M on the Coinbase exchange after a 29.2% increase in price over the last 24 hours. Moving forward, $ABT trades on Coinbase with a 26.4% increase in the price value over the previous 24 hours, and currently emerges with a new price $0.62 along with $60.9M market cap. These two cryptocurrencies have a central position among daily gainers over the past 24 hours, ranking.

$CVP and $RECALL Show Modest Gains amid Market Momentum Powerpool ($CVP) is struggling with the current price of $0.0092 and market cap of $296.4M, after getting an increase in the value of 21.5% on PinkSale exchange. Next one is $RECALL, which is trading on Bybit exchange, with the new price of $0.45 after a 21.4% increase in price and holding $91.9M market cap over the last 24 hours.

Furthermore, $KDA secures the 2nd last position in the daily gainer ranking with a 20.3% increase over the past 24 hours on the Binance exchange. It is currently trading in the crypto market with $0.0068 and has a market cap of $22.8M. Moreover, $B2 got last position in the daily gainer ranking over the past 24 hours, with a market cap of $84.9M and trading at $2.04 on Gate exchange after getting a 19.4% increase in price over the last 24 hours.

AUTHOR

Crypto journalist with years of experience providing in-depth analysis and news on blockchain and decentralized finance. With a keen eye for detail, Shahzaib delivers insightful articles that explore the latest trends, market movements, and innovations within the crypto and blockchain ecosystem. His work focuses on educating readers while offering expert commentary on the evolving landscape of digital assets, DeFi protocols, and the broader impact of blockchain technology.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s recent visit to China has sparked a sharp rally in AI-focused cryptocurrencies, as investor fears over U.S.-China tech tensions ease. The sector’s total market cap surged to $32.88 billion, led by a 35.56% gain in Virtual Protocol (VIRTUAL), with many AI coins like AIXBT, Akash Network (AKT), and Render (RNDR) also posting double-digit gains.

While large-cap AI tokens moved first, early-stage projects are now attracting growing investor interest. One of the best cryptos to buy right now is DeepSnitch AI, currently trading at $0.02032 in Stage 2 of its presale. The project has already raised more than $470,000 and ranks as Grok AI’s top-trending token of the week that can give 100x gains heading into 2025.

Nvidia CEO’s China visit sparks AI crypto sector rally Table of Contents

Nvidia CEO’s China visit sparks AI crypto sector rallyGrok AI’s top trending coins this week1. DeepSnitch AI: Grok’s pick for explosive growth2. Virtual Protocol (VIRTUAL)3. AIXBTConclusionFrequently asked questionsWhat is the best crypto to buy now according to Grok?Why did AI crypto coins pump this week?Will the US-China trade deal affect crypto prices? Jensen Huang’s visit to China sent shockwaves through the AI crypto sector this week. The Nvidia CEO’s diplomatic mission addressed mounting concerns about U.S.-China tech decoupling, particularly around semiconductor and AI infrastructure access. Markets interpreted the visit as a signal that AI development could continue despite geopolitical tensions.

The immediate impact was unmistakable. Virtual Protocol (VIRTUAL) surged 35.56% to $1.44 on October 25, becoming the top gainer among the 200 largest cryptocurrencies by market cap. But VIRTUAL wasn’t alone. The sector-wide rally pushed the total AI crypto market cap to $32.88 billion, marking one of the strongest weeks for AI tokens in recent months.

Based on a Fundstrat report published last week, analysts cited Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) as uniquely positioned to capitalize on the AI agent economy, which led to a surge in investor interest and a price pump.

While established AI tokens pumped on sentiment alone, early-stage projects like DeepSnitch AI offer the same AI infrastructure exposure at a fraction of the cost. This sets up perfectly for the next section on emerging opportunities.

Grok AI’s top trending coins this week 1. DeepSnitch AI: Grok’s pick for explosive growth DeepSnitch AI is capturing Grok AI’s attention this week as smart money rotates from pumped majors into earlier-stage opportunities. While retail traders chase VIRTUAL’s 35% move or AIXBT’s rally, seasoned investors recognize something crucial: those gains are already behind us. The real alpha sits in presale projects that haven’t launched yet.

DeepSnitch AI solves a genuine problem that every crypto trader faces: information asymmetry. Whales move markets with insider intelligence about liquidity shifts, smart contract launches, and emerging opportunities. Retail traders get left holding the bag, reacting to price action after the fact.

The platform’s 5 AI agents track whale wallet movements in real-time, detect new token launches before they pump, analyze sentiment shifts across social channels, and deliver instant alerts about rug pulls and FUD storms. All of this intelligence flows directly to your Telegram and X feeds. So, there are no complex dashboards, and no technical analysis is required.

The project has already raised over $470,000 in Stage 2, validating market demand for AI-powered trading intelligence. At $0.02032, you’re entering at a valuation that’s a fraction of VIRTUAL, AIXBT, or any established AI token.

VIRTUAL pumped 35%, and it’s already at $1.44 with a substantial market cap. DeepSnitch needs to hit just $2 for a 100x return from current presale pricing. If AI tokens continue rallying, and with Thursday’s Trump-Xi meeting potentially confirming a trade truce, DeepSnitch could go parabolic.

2. Virtual Protocol (VIRTUAL) VIRTUAL posted a 35.56% gain to $1.44 on October 25, claiming the top spot among the 200 largest cryptocurrencies by market cap. The rally came directly on the heels of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s China visit, which signaled continued AI infrastructure development despite U.S.-China geopolitical tensions.

The token’s weekly performance reflects broader AI sector momentum, with the pump attributed to renewed confidence in AI infrastructure projects. VIRTUAL creates a protocol for AI agents on-chain, allowing developers to build and monetize autonomous AI applications, a narrative that resonated strongly with the Nvidia news cycle.

Changelly’s analysts see upside to around $5.03 by 2030, pointing to the project’s edge in metaverse-focused AI compared to more general competitors. Still, they warn that the RSI looks overheated, so a 10-15% short-term correction wouldn’t be a surprise before the next leg up.

3. AIXBT AIXBT delivered strong double-digit weekly gains as the AI crypto sector rallied following the Nvidia CEO’s China visit. The token benefits from its positioning in AI-powered trading analytics, capturing institutional interest in blockchain-based intelligence tools.

Technical analysis shows AIXBT following VIRTUAL’s momentum, with buying pressure increasing as traders rotate into AI infrastructure plays. The correlation between AIXBT’s performance and broader AI sector sentiment remains high, suggesting the token will continue tracking sector-wide movements. Analysts project AIXBT could see further upside if AI crypto maintains momentum through Q4.

Conclusion DeepSnitch AI is rapidly emerging as one of Grok AI’s top trending coins this week, as demand for AI crypto remains elevated following the VIRTUAL-led sector rally. With over $470,000 raised in its stage two presale, the project continues to draw investors betting on the expected growth of the cryptocurrency market.

With AI tokens like AIXBT posting gains, optimism in the AI crypto sector is building fast. Grok AI has identified DeepSnitch as the best crypto to buy now, going into November, pointing to its accelerating presale performance, increasing buyer demand, and high potential for a 100x return after launch.

With interest picking up and new buyers entering daily, now is the time to secure DSNT directly from the official presale site before the next stage price increase.

Frequently asked questions What is the best crypto to buy now according to Grok? The best crypto to buy now might be DeepSnitch AI, a new token that Grok predicts could grow by 100x in 2025 based on its AI utility and early-stage presale pricing.

Why did AI crypto coins pump this week? VIRTUAL led the AI crypto sector with a 35% gain, triggering rallies across AIXBT, AKT, and RENDER. The pump followed Nvidia-related AI optimism and Bitcoin stability above $115,000.

Will the US-China trade deal affect crypto prices? Yes, positive news from the US-China trade meeting is expected to reduce market uncertainty and increase appetite for risk assets like crypto. If a deal is confirmed, it could spark a short-term rally across Bitcoin and altcoins.

Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.

Upbit Deposit and Withdrawal Resumption Announced for December

Akash Network’s AKT has surged 20.2% in 24 hours, reaching about $0.417 as trading activity accelerates ahead of the Burn-Mint Equilibrium proposal vote. 

Market participation has intensified sharply, as trading volume has climbed 981.7% to $54.47M, signaling a sudden wave of speculative interest across spot markets. 

The rally has coincided with the Burn-Mint Equilibrium (BME) proposal heading for an on-chain vote, a change that links token utility directly to network demand. 

Under this structure, AKT used for compute deployments will be burned, which could tighten supply if network usage expands. 

In addition, the upgrade introduces WASM smart contracts, allowing developers to build and iterate faster on Akash’s decentralized cloud infrastructure. 

As speculation grows around the proposal’s potential impact, traders have begun positioning aggressively around AKT’s latest surge.

Breakout attempt places $0.44 resistance in focus Recent price action has shown AKT pushing beyond a prolonged consolidation phase. The chart has displayed a range between $0.289 and $0.380, where the price oscillated for several weeks before the recent breakout attempt emerged. 

AKT has now climbed above the $0.380 range ceiling, turning that level into a critical structural support. However, price has begun testing the $0.44 resistance zone, which has previously rejected upward attempts. 

This zone now represents the immediate barrier that buyers must overcome to sustain the breakout. The recent expansion from the range has indicated rising market participation. 

However, the price reaction near $0.44 suggests that sellers still remain active at higher levels. If buyers maintain pressure above the former range boundary, the breakout structure could remain intact.

Technical indicators have begun reflecting the shift in market sentiment. The MACD indicator has crossed above the signal line, while the histogram has continued printing positive bars. 

This configuration has indicated that buying pressure has strengthened after weeks of sideways consolidation. As the MACD spread widens, the indicator has shown a steady rise above the zero line. 

That movement has aligned with the recent range breakout visible on the AKT chart. The indicator has also reflected an improvement in trend strength as price climbed from the $0.332 region toward $0.414. 

However, the MACD structure has approached levels where short-term cooling phases often appear. Even so, sustained positive histogram bars would continue reinforcing buyer control as long as price holds above the breakout zone.

Source: TradingView Derivatives interest spikes as traders position Derivatives activity has expanded sharply alongside the rally. Open Interest has jumped 136.4% to $13.19M, showing a large inflow of leveraged positions into AKT markets. 

This rise has indicated that traders have opened new contracts instead of closing exposure. Such growth often reflects rising speculative conviction around a developing price move. 

As leverage increases, market volatility can intensify because liquidation levels cluster near key price zones. The Open Interest surge has also appeared during the breakout from the multi-week range. 

This alignment suggests that traders have begun positioning aggressively around the potential structural shift in AKT’s market trend. However, elevated derivatives exposure can amplify price swings if positions unwind suddenly.

Source: CoinGlass Why funding rates remain deeply negative Despite the rally, derivatives positioning has shown an unusual divergence. The OI-weighted funding rate has dropped to about -0.275%, reflecting a deeply negative sentiment in perpetual markets. 

Negative funding indicates that short traders currently dominate the derivatives side. In such conditions, long traders receive payments to maintain positions. 

This imbalance often appears when traders anticipate a price pullback after a sharp rally. However, the divergence between rising price and negative funding highlights a crowded short side.

If AKT continues pushing higher, those positions could face pressure and forced liquidations. As a result, the derivatives imbalance has introduced the possibility of sudden volatility around current price levels.

Source: CoinGlass Conclusively, AKT now faces a decisive test near $0.44 resistance as traders evaluate the long-term impact of the Burn-Mint Equilibrium upgrade. 

A sustained push above this level would signal growing confidence in the proposal’s token-utility narrative. 

However, failure to break higher would suggest the market still requires stronger demand before fully pricing in the upgrade’s structural impact.

Final Summary AKT surged 20.2% to ~$0.417 as traders positioned ahead of the Burn-Mint Equilibrium proposal vote. Trading Volume jumped 981.7% to $54.47M, signaling a sharp rise in speculative spot activity

AKT: Akash Network: Q1 2026 Report