Cointelegraph.com
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Cointelegraph.com - 14:13 Mar 17, 2026
Mastercard agreed to acquire BVNK for up to $1.8 billion as it expands further into stablecoin and blockchain-based payments. Mastercard has agreed to acquire stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK in a deal valued at up to $1.8 billion, further expanding into blockchain-based payments. The deal includes up to $300 million in contingent payments and is intended to strengthen Mastercard’s ability to connect fiat payment rails with onchain transactions, the company said on Tuesday. “We expect that most financial institutions and fintechs will in time provide digital currency services, be it with stablecoins or tokenized deposits,” Jorn Lambert, chief product officer at Mastercard, said. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 14:00 Mar 17, 2026
Maestro launched Mezzamine, a Bitcoin credit market linking institutional BTC holders with miners seeking capital backed by mining output. Bitcoin infrastructure provider Maestro has launched a Bitcoin-denominated credit market backed by mining economics, aiming to give institutions a new way to earn yield on idle Bitcoin while expanding financing options for miners. Maestro said Mezzamine went live with its first program in partnership with mining-as-a-service provider Sazmining. According to a Tuesday announcement shared with Cointelegraph, the program is designed to let institutional Bitcoin (BTC) holders deploy BTC into mining-backed credit facilities targeting an annual yield of 8% to 9%. The offering is designed to connect miners seeking capital with institutional Bitcoin holders seeking BTC-denominated yield, creating an onchain credit market tied to mining expansion rather than protocol staking rewards. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 13:30 Mar 17, 2026
PayPal is rolling out its PYUSD stablecoin in 68 additional countries beyond the US and UK, aiming to reduce cross-border fees and offer rewards on holdings. Payments giant PayPal is expanding access to its US-dollar stablecoin, PayPal USD, adding 68 more markets globally in its latest stablecoin push. PayPal USD (PYUSD) will be made available to customers in 70 countries worldwide in March, allowing them to receive, hold and send the stablecoin, the company announced Tuesday. With the expansion, PYUSD is now available to users with PayPal accounts across multiple regions, including the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America. Previously, only customers in the United States and the United Kingdom could hold the stablecoin. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 13:30 Mar 17, 2026
Saifedean Ammous, the author of The Bitcoin Standard, released an alternate history last fall, in which a decentralized gold system uproots central banking. Author of The Bitcoin Standard, Saifedean Ammous, believes that fiat is the central problem plaguing society. "The 20th century is just an enormous amount of wealth being taken away from people who produced it and being sent to the meat grinder of war. And this is what fiat does," he told Cointelegraph. "If you take that away, we get a lot less murder and death, and then we get a lot more prosperity, productivity and a lot more wealth.” In his latest book, The Gold Standard, he explores this very concept. What if the civil, political and social upheavals of World War One never happened? What if a new, decentralized form of money took hold, soon after the war began in 1915? Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 13:04 Mar 17, 2026
Cango shares fell from about $4.50 in October to around $0.68, declining more than 84% over six months amid losses and restructuring. Bitcoin mining firm Cango Inc. reported a net loss of $285 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, as impairment charges, fair-value losses and higher mining costs outweighed revenue from its expanding Bitcoin mining business. In its earnings report published Monday, Cango said fourth-quarter revenue reached $179.5 million, including $172.4 million from Bitcoin mining, while total operating costs and expenses rose to $456.0 million. The losses were driven in part by an $81.4 million impairment on mining machines and a $171.4 million loss tied to changes in the fair value of Bitcoin (BTC)-collateralized receivables. The company also reported higher production costs, with all-in mining expenses rising to $106,251 per BTC in the quarter. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:47 Mar 17, 2026
Stablecoins are emerging as cheaper alternatives to costly legacy FX rails, but off-ramps such as bank account access add significant friction, according to Delphi Digital. Stablecoins are gaining traction in high-cost cross-border payment corridors in emerging markets as they reduce some of the inefficiencies of legacy foreign exchange (FX) infrastructure, according to research firm Delphi Digital. Stablecoins are emerging as the cheapest way to move US dollars in emerging economies due to the high costs of legacy FX corridors, which can reach up to 8% in combined fees when sending money to Argentina or Nigeria. Delphi said in a Monday article on X that 81% of the cost in those corridors comes from servicing the underlying banking infrastructure, which it argues gives stablecoin rails a structural advantage. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:46 Mar 17, 2026
Bitcoin adoption is surging across institutions, banks and corporations, but the price tells a different story. What explains the divergence? Bitcoin’s price reflects short-term marginal buying and selling, while adoption reflects long-term structural shifts. Ownership expansion, institutional integration and merchant growth can accelerate even when the market price remains flat or declines. In 2025, Bitcoin expanded significantly across institutions, banks, corporations, merchants and sovereign entities. These shifts represent deeper entrenchment within global financial systems, even as headline price performance appeared underwhelming. Institutions accumulated substantial amounts of Bitcoin, but much of this demand was offset by distribution from long-term holders. As supply changes hands between cohorts, price may consolidate instead of surge. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:46 Mar 17, 2026
Crypto’s push into institutional adoption is forcing DAOs to choose between maintaining decentralization and business deals. Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) were built on an ideological premise that is now running up against the realities of running a business, where decentralization collides with the need for legal ownership and control. On March 11, DAO Across Protocol made a controversial proposal to transition to a private company through a token-to-equity exchange buyout. Risk Labs, the team behind Across (ACX), said that the token and DAO structure “materially” impacted its ability to close deals with enterprises and institutions. The industry reaction has been split. Decentralized finance (DeFi) researcher Ignas called it a “huge failure of crypto.” Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:31 Mar 17, 2026
Five companies, including bank affiliates and a major conglomerate, are competing for Vietnam’s first crypto exchange licences as authorities plan to restrict offshore trading. Five Vietnamese companies are reportedly competing to launch the country’s first licensed crypto exchanges as authorities move to bring trading onshore and ban overseas platforms. Five companies have passed an initial qualification round, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing a March 12 finance ministry document. The group reportedly includes affiliates of private banks Techcombank, VPBank and LPBank, alongside stockbroker VIX Securities and conglomerate Sun Group. VPBank and Sun Group reportedly confirmed their licence applications to Reuters. Vietnam opened applications for licenses to operate crypto exchanges in January. The move came after new procedures issued by the finance ministry and a law that, for the first time, defines crypto assets as property while still banning their use as legal tender or for payments. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:30 Mar 17, 2026
Decentralized compute fails without cryptographic verification. Today's networks decentralize GPUs but centralize trust. Opinion by: Leo Fan, founder of Cysic Decentralized compute has failed. Not because it can't find you a cheap GPU; it's actually quite good at that. The problem is that every major network today still forces you to trust the node operator with your data and results. We have replaced Amazon's login page with a wallet connection and called it Web3. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 12:00 Mar 17, 2026
Cari Network is building a bank‑governed tokenized deposit platform on ZKsync’s Prividium stack, giving US regional lenders a stablecoin‑style, onchain payments rail. Cari Network, a permissioned network for banks led by former United States Comptroller of the Currency Gene Ludwig, has chosen Matter Labs’ Prividium infrastructure to power a bank-governed tokenized deposit network for US regional and mid-sized lenders. Built on ZKsync and anchored to Ethereum, the platform is designed to let participating banks issue and move tokenized deposits around the clock while keeping them on the balance sheet as bank liabilities, according to a Tuesday release shared with Cointelegraph. The move comes as lawmakers debate frameworks such as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act and as stablecoin issuers encroach on banks’ role in payments and deposit funding. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 11:10 Mar 17, 2026
A Buenos Aires court instructed Argentina's telecom agency ENACOM to block Polymarket nationwide, citing unauthorized gambling concerns. A court in Argentina has ordered a nationwide block of the major crypto-based prediction market platform Polymarket over unauthorized gambling. Argentina’s national communications and media regulator, Ente Nacional de Comunicaciones (ENACOM), received a court order to block access to the Polymarket website and its variants across the country, according to a ruling dated March 11. The order was issued by the Buenos Aires Court of First Instance in Criminal, Contravention and Minor Offenses No. 31, which is investigating Polymarket under Argentina’s Criminal Code for allegedly offering gambling services without authorization. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 11:06 Mar 17, 2026
Bitcoin bulls failed to break through major resistance at six-week highs as open interest trends triggered warnings of a BTC price reversal. Bitcoin (BTC) risks turning its rebound into a classic “bull trap” as the price rejects at strong resistance. Key points: Bitcoin faces flat Coinbase spot demand and an open interest divergence as prices rise above $75,000. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 01:25 Mar 17, 2026
OpenSea's SEA token was first announced last October as it revealed it would be transitioning from an NFT marketplace to one that can "trade everything." Nonfungible token marketplace OpenSea has postponed the launch of its native token SEA, initially slated for March 30, citing tough market conditions and it not being market-ready. “The reality is that market conditions are challenging across crypto right now, and $SEA only launches once,” OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer posted to X on Monday. The OpenSea (SEA) token, announced in October, was touted as part of OpenSea’s plan to transition into a “trade everything” app across multiple chains, which includes perpetual futures. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 23:27 Mar 16, 2026
Metaplanet invests in Japanese Bitcoin companies. Bithumb handed a six-month suspension. Asia Express -
Cointelegraph.com - 22:00 Mar 16, 2026
Bitcoin opened the week by rallying straight into a key resistance level. If it holds, BTC and altcoins could embark on the next leg of the crypto bull market. Key points: Sellers will attempt to halt the recovery at $74,508, but if buyers bulldoze their way through, the rally may reach $84,000. Select major altcoins have risen above their overhead resistance levels, signaling solid demand at lower levels. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 21:10 Mar 16, 2026
New SEC filing names Anchorage Digital Bank as the crypto custodian and adds SUI to the list of eligible tokens in the proposed fund that aims for direct digital asset exposure. T. Rowe Price, the $1.8 trillion asset manager best known for managing mutual funds and retirement accounts, has amended the registration statement for its proposed Active Crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF), updating a prospectus first submitted in October that outlines plans for an actively managed fund investing directly in digital assets. The amendment with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was submitted on Monday and lists 15 eligible digital assets that may be considered for the portfolio, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP (XRP), Avalanche (AVAX) and Shiba Inu (SHIB). The updated filing adds new operational details but it leaves the core structure of the proposed fund intact. The amendment names Anchorage Digital Bank as the ETF’s crypto custodian, expands disclosures around share creation and r... -
Cointelegraph.com - 20:56 Mar 16, 2026
Bitcoin’s recovery above $74,000 highlights a rapidly improving market, but several data points suggest that pro traders remain cautious and skeptical. Key takeaways: Bitcoin derivatives remain bearish as traders hedge against a price drop despite BTC reclaiming the $74,000 level. Fears of a global energy shortage mount as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, forcing investors into safe-haven Treasury assets. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 20:51 Mar 16, 2026
Unlike previous years, only a handful of official events at the 2026 version of the iconic Austin festival featured crypto. Cryptocurrencies seem to have lost their allure at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival, giving way this year to panels and events focused on the rise of artificial intelligence. As the annual Austin, Texas event kicked off last week for a run through Wednesday, only a few official sessions focused on crypto, while a side event, the “Bitcoin Takeover” in downtown Austin, featured Bitcoin (BTC) maximalists and other industry representatives. “Almost exactly the pattern that’s playing out with AI is what’s playing out with crypto,” Ali Tager, the National Cryptocurrency Association’s vice president of communications, told Cointelegraph, referring to many of the uncertainties from the general public in the early days of the industry. Read more -
Cointelegraph.com - 20:31 Mar 16, 2026
About two-thirds of the company’s tokens are currently staked, generating an estimated $180 million in annualized revenue. Bitmine Immersion Technologies has accelerated the pace of its Ether purchases in recent weeks, chairman Tom Lee said Monday, following the company’s over-the-counter purchase of 5,000 ETH directly from the Ethereum Foundation. Lee said Bitmine added 60,999 Ether (ETH) over the past week, up from a recent weekly average of about 45,000 to 50,000 ETH. The purchases bring the publicly traded company’s Ethereum treasury to 4.596 million ETH, giving Bitmine control of about 3.81% of the token’s total supply. The company said its combined crypto holdings, cash and other investments total about $11.5 billion. Read more
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