Top Stories of The Week Market is underestimating how quickly
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Top Stories of The Week
Market is underestimating how quickly Bitcoin will hit new ATH: Analyst
Bitcoin will break past its $109,000 all-time high sooner than expected despite recent volatile US macroeconomic conditions, according to a crypto analyst.
“The market may be underestimating how quickly Bitcoin could surge – potentially hitting new all-time highs before Q2 is out,” Real Vision chief crypto analyst Jamie Coutts told Cointelegraph.
He said this forecast stands regardless of whether or not there is more clarity on US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and potential recession concerns.
Trump pardons 3 BitMEX co-founders — Report
US President Donald Trump reportedly issued pardons to three co-founders of the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, who had pleaded guilty to felony charges.
According to a March 28 CNBC report, Trump granted pardons to Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo and Samuel Reed, who were facing a range of criminal charges related to money laundering or violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
Hayes and Delo pleaded guilty in February 2022, admitting they “willfully fail[ed] to establish, implement and maintain an Anti-Money Laundering program” at BitMEX, while Reed entered a plea a few weeks later.
Ex-FTX CEO moved to transit facility after interview
Officials with the Federal Bureau of Prisons have moved former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to a transit facility days after political commentator Tucker Carlson interviewed him.
As of March 27, the bureau’s website showed Bankman-Fried was being housed at the Federal Transfer Center in Oklahoma City, suggesting he may be moved from the facility where he was incarcerated while awaiting trial and then moving forward with an appeal of his conviction.
Carlson remotely interviewed Bankman-Fried, commonly known as SBF, from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, on March 5 — a reportedly unsanctioned event that resulted in the former FTX CEO being sent to solitary confinement.
UAE expects digital dirham rollout in Q4 2025
The United Arab Emirates expects its digital dirham central bank digital currency to roll out in the fourth quarter of 2025.
According to a report in the Khaleej Times, Central Bank of the UAE Governor Khaled Mohamed Balama said that the blockchain-based currency could improve financial stability and help combat financial crime. According to the report, the retail sector could expect the issuance of a digital dirham in the last quarter of 2025.
“It [digital dirham] will further enable the development of innovative digital products, services, and new business models while reducing cost and increasing access to international markets,” Balama said.
Onchain sleuth ZachXBT accuses Crypto.com of CRO supply manipulation
Crypto.com is facing criticism from the crypto community after reissuing 70 billion Cronos tokens burned in 2021. Critics said the move undermines the principles of decentralization and transparency in the cryptocurrency space.
The controversy erupted on March 25 after pseudonymous onchain investigator ZachXBT posted on X, accusing Crypto.com of reissuing Cronos tokens that had been declared permanently removed from circulation. “CRO is no different from a scam,” ZachXBT said, claiming the reissued amount represented 70% of the total supply and contradicted the community’s expectations.
“Your team just reissued 70B CRO a week ago that was previously burned ‘forever’ in 2021 (70% total supply) and went against the community wishes as you control majority of the supply,” he added.
Winners and Losers
At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $84,437, Ether (ETH) at $1,907 and XRP at $2.21. The total market cap is at $2.74 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Berachain (BERA) at 32.97%, Cronos (CRO) at 30.01% and ZCash (ZEC) at 20.12%.
The top three altcoin losers of the week are PancakeSwap (CAKE) at 22.63%, Pi (PI) at 19.15% and Hyperliquid (HYPE) at 14.59%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.
Most Memorable Quotations
“They used every tool available to attempt to stifle us, restricting access to banking, auditors, investors, and beyond. It was a calculated attempt to put an end to the industry.”
Kris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com
“Hyperliquid may be on track to become FTX 2.0.”
Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget
“After a year of fighting, this threat to digital ownership rights has finally been put to rest.”
Robbie Ferguson, co-founder of Immutable
“I bet $BTC hits $110k before it retests $76.5k. Y? The Fed is going from QT to QE for treasuries. And tariffs don’t matter cause of “transitory inflation.”
Arthur Hayes, co-founder…
cointelegraph.com