Decentral Block Post

Opinion by: Merav Ozair, PhD

Tech moguls cannot stop heralding the artificial intelligence revolution — from Bill Gates to Sundar Pichai to Jensen Huang — signaling that agentic AI and robotics will claim our jobs and act as our autonomous assistants performing on our behalf in our professional and personal lives.

Whether these scenarios happen in a few years or are decades away, we will most likely evolve into that future in some manner, and technology, once again, will reshape our lives. Without the support of blockchain technology, however, it would be quite difficult, and potentially impossible, for agentic AI and robotics to evolve to what its proponents expect them to.

If we expect these services and devices to act autonomously, security, privacy, transparency and accountability will be at the top of our minds. These areas are where blockchain shines and can support AI weaknesses to facilitate the scaling and evolution of this vision. 

Blockchain strengths support AI weaknesses

Blockchain technology can significantly bolster the security of AI models by leveraging its key features such as decentralization, immutability, traceability, smart contracts, data privacy and identity verification. For example, but not limited to:

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes says US President Donald Trump's tariffs may rattle the global economy in some ways, but that same disruption could be exactly what Bitcoin needs to rally.

“Global imbalances will be corrected, and the pain papered over with printed money, which is good for BTC,” Hayes said in an April 3 X post.

Several factors contribute to Bitcoin’s potential pump

“Some of y'all are running scurred, but I LOVE TARIFFS,” Hayes said. 

His comments come just a day after it was announced that the Trump administration will hit all countries with a 10% tariff starting April 5, with some countries facing even larger rates, such as China facing a 34% tariff, the European Union 20%, and Japan 24%. 

Hayes explained that tariffs positively impact Bitcoin's (BTC) price for several reasons. 

Online battle royale shooter Fortnite has just added a new secret “Dill Bits” server mine location to its latest map update — prompting a small spike in an otherwise obscure memecoin.

Videos on social media show a new “Dill Bit” server farm location in the game — made to look like a cryptocurrency mining operation. There are other locations on the map where it has appeared.

Fortnite added a Bitcoin mine to the new map pic.twitter.com/z8ABokLG2b

— Documenting ₿itcoin 📄 (@DocumentingBTC) April 3, 2025

Players in the game can collect Dill Bits by destroying the equipment. It’s a unique resource that is typically hard to obtain.

Dill Bits memecoin spikes

Solana-based memecoin Dill Bits, inspired by the Fortnite in-game currency, spiked 200% to $0.0005 on April 4 as the crypto community also took notice of the latest addition.

European Union regulators are reportedly mulling a $1 billion fine against Elon Musk’s X, taking into account revenue from his other ventures, including Tesla and SpaceX, according to The New York Times.

EU regulators allege that X has violated the Digital Services Act and will use a section of the act to calculate a fine based on revenue that includes other companies Musk controls, according to an April 3 report by the newspaper, which cited four people with knowledge of the plan.

Under the Digital Services Act, which came into law in October 2022 to police social media companies and “prevent illegal and harmful activities online,” companies can be fined up to 6% of global revenue for violations.

A spokesman for the European Commission, the bloc’s executive branch, declined to comment on this case to The New York Times but did say it would “continue to enforce our laws fairly and without discrimination toward all companies operating in the EU.”

In a statement, X’s Global Government Affairs team said that if the reports about the EU's plans are accurate, it “represents an unprecedented act of political censorship and an attack on free speech.”

US crypto exchange Coinbase has filed with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to launch futures contracts for Ripple’s XRP token.

“We’re excited to announce that Coinbase Derivatives has filed with the CFTC to self-certify XRP futures — bringing a regulated, capital-efficient way to gain exposure to one of the most liquid digital assets,” stated Coinbase Institutional on April 3. 

The firm added that it anticipates the contract going live on April 21.

According to the certification filing, the XRP (XRP) futures contract will be a monthly cash-settled and margined contract trading under the symbol XRL.

The contract tracks XRP’s price and is settled in US dollars. Each contract represents 10,000 XRP, currently worth about $20,000 at $2 per token.

Altcoins may have just one last rally this cycle, but only those with real utility and strong network activity will see price gains, according to an analyst. 

“I think there will be one more breadth thrust from altcoins. The question is, is it a sustained rally that we will see for six to twelve months,” Real Vision chief crypto analyst Jamie Coutts told Real Vision co-founder Raoul Pal on an April 3 X livestream.

Network activity will be the ‘north star’ for how to trade crypto

“At this stage, I am not too sure, but I do believe that quality altcoins where activity returns, activity drives prices …we will definitely see a recovery in some of these more high-quality names,” Coutts said.

Cointelegraph reported in January that there were over 36 million altcoins in existence. However, Ethereum still holds the majority share of total value locked (TVL) with 55.56%, followed by Solana (6.89%), Bitcoin (5.77%), BNB Smart Chain (5.68%), and Tron (5.54%), according to CoinGecko data.

Coutts said traders should watch where the network activity “is gravitating” and use that as their “north star” for how to trade in crypto, adding he sees an altcoin market upswing within the next two months. 

Singapore-based artificial intelligence firm Genius Group says it’s temporarily barred from expanding its Bitcoin treasury after a US court order has banned it from selling shares, raising funds and using investor funds to buy more Bitcoin.

A New York District court issued the preliminary injunction (PI) and temporary restraining order (TRO) on March 13 in connection with a broader dispute surrounding its merger with Fatbrain AI, the Genius Group said in an April 3 statement.

Fatbrain AI and Genius Group completed a merger and purchase agreement in March 2024, but by Oct. 30, Genius initiated arbitration procedures to terminate, alleging fraud by Fatbrain AI executives connected to the deal.

Source: Roger James Hamilton

In February, Fatbrain AI executives Michael Moe and Peter Ritz filed for the TRO and permanent injunction, blocking Genius Group from selling its shares, raising funds and buying more Bitcoin pending the arbitration outcome. 

Former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao will begin advising the Kyrgyz Republic on blockchain and crypto-related regulation and tech after signing a memorandum of understanding with the country’s foreign investment agency.

“I officially and unofficially advise a few governments on their crypto regulatory frameworks and blockchain solutions for gov efficiency, expanding blockchain to more than trading,” the crypto entrepreneur said in an April 3 X post, adding that he finds this work “extremely meaningful.”

His comments came in response to an earlier X post from Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Zhaparov announcing that Kyrgyzstan’s National Investment Agency (NIA) had signed a memorandum with CZ to provide technical expertise and consulting services for the Central Asian country.

The NIA is responsible for promoting foreign investments and assisting international companies in identifying business opportunities within the country.

Source: Changpeng Zhao

Between Oct. 25, 2024, and Jan. 16, 2025, XRP (XRP) had one of the best rallies of the current bull market, gaining 600% as investors piled in with the hope that a pro-crypto presidency would benefit Ripple and its cryptocurrency.

During this time, the quarterly average of daily active addresses jumped by 490% and XRP price hit a 7-year high.

XRP’s 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Fast forward to the present, and data shows that the speculative interest surrounding XRP is declining. Holders are increasingly facing losses rather than gains, which is dampening their risk appetite.

“Retail confidence in XRP may be slipping”

Since bottoming in 2022, Bitcoin (BTC) and XRP have gained 500% to 600%, but the bulk of XRP’s gains came from a parabolic price increase. Data from Glassnode shows that XRP daily active addresses jumped by 490%, whereas the same metric for Bitcoin increased by 10% over the past four months.

Economic uncertainty and a major crypto exchange hack pushed down the total value locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to $156 billion in the first quarter of 2025, but AI and social apps gained ground with a rise in network users, according to a crypto analytics firm.

“Broader economic uncertainty and lingering aftershocks from the Bybit exploit” were the main contributing factors to the DeFi sector’s 27% quarter-on-quarter fall in TVL, according to an April 3 report from DappRadar, which noted that Ether (ETH) fell 45% to $1,820 over the same period.

Change in DeFi total value locked between Jan. 2024 and March 2025. Source: DappRadar

The largest blockchain by TVL, Ethereum, fell 37% to $96 billion, while Sui was the hardest hit of the top 10 blockchains by TVL, falling 44% to $2 billion.

Solana, Tron and the Arbitrum blockchains also had their TVLs slashed over 30%.

EigenLayer plans to start “slashing” restakers on April 17, resulting in the Ethereum restaking protocol’s “first feature-complete iteration,” it said in an April 2 announcement. 

Implementing slashing will mark EigenLayer’s final step toward establishing the protocol as “infrastructure for a new generation of verifiable apps and services built on the Verifiable Cloud,” it said in a post on the X platform.

In 2024, EigenLayer started distributing rewards — including emissions of its native EIGEN token — to incentivize restakers. However, slashing has so far been limited to EigenLayer’s testnets.

Once slashing is live, node operators and restakers will be able to voluntarily “opt-in,” resulting in a gradual transition for users, EigenLayer said in a blog post.

Slashing starts on EigenLayer’s mainnet soon. Source: EigenLayer

The cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, backed by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, plans to move into a Miami-area office space, as US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement case may have reached its end.

According to a March 31 post from Sterling Bay Properties, Gemini signed a lease for an office in Miami’s Wynwood Art District. The move would expand the exchange’s offices from Europe and New York to Florida, where some crypto companies are headquartered.

Bloomberg reported Gemini was expected to move into the Miami office by May. Cointelegraph reached out to the exchange for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Wrapping up regulatory issues?

The move to Florida came amid a federal judge ordering a 60-day stay on the SEC’s lawsuit against Gemini Global Capital “to allow the parties to explore a potential resolution.” The enforcement action, filed in January 2023, alleges the crypto firm offered and sold unregistered securities through its Gemini Earn program. 

Cameron Winklevoss said in February that the regulator had closed an investigation into a separate matter involving Gemini. The firm also agreed in January to a $5 million penalty imposed by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission over alleged “false and misleading” statements related to its 2017 bid to offer Bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts.

XRP (XRP) stabilized near its $2 support after today’s marketwide sell-off sent the altcoin and several other cryptocurrencies close to their swing lows.

Data now shows the XRP/USD pair exhibiting early signs of a bullish breakout. 

Ripple’s RLUSD integration could boost XRP price

Ripple’s integration of its RLUSD stablecoin into its cross-border payments system, Ripple Payments, could significantly boost XRP’s price by enhancing its utility and liquidity. 

On April 2, Ripple, the company behind XRP, announced that it had integrated its stablecoin into the company's cross-border payments system to boost adoption for Ripple USD (RLUSD).

RLUSD, a USD-pegged stablecoin launched in December 2024, complements XRP by providing stability for transactions, while XRP serves as a fast, liquid bridge currency. This dual-asset strategy targets the $230 billion cross-border payments market, and ims to increase demand for both assets. 

Key takeaways

Not all tokens can be sold immediately. Airdropped or obscure tokens may lack liquidity or could be scams, so it’s important to check before attempting to cash out.

Swapping and bridging may be required. To sell, you might need to convert tokens to ETH or stablecoins and bridge them to the Ethereum mainnet.

MetaMask integrates fiat off-ramps. You can use the MetaMask Portfolio to sell ETH directly, but be prepared for KYC with third-party providers.

Non-KYC and P2P options exist. Platforms like Bisq or LocalCoinSwap allow trading without ID, but they carry more risk and require caution.

There are plenty of ways you might end up with a mix of different cryptocurrencies sitting in your MetaMask wallet.

On April 3, yields on long-term US government debt fell to their lowest levels in six months as investors reacted to growing concerns over the global trade war and the weakening of the US dollar. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note briefly touched 4.0%, down from 4.4% a week earlier, signaling strong demand from buyers.

US 10-year Treasury yield (left) vs. Bitcoin/USD (right). Source: TradingView / Cointelegraph

At first glance, a higher risk of economic recession may seem negative for Bitcoin (BTC). However, lower returns from fixed-income investments encourage allocations to alternative assets, including cryptocurrencies. Over time, traders are likely to reduce exposure to bonds, particularly if inflation rises. As a result, the path to a Bitcoin all-time high in 2025 remains plausible.

Tariffs create ‘supply shock’ in the US and impact inflation and fixed-income returns

One could argue that the recently announced US import tariffs negatively impact corporate profitability, forcing some companies to deleverage and, in turn, reducing market liquidity. Ultimately, any measure that increases risk aversion tends to have a short-term negative effect on Bitcoin, particularly given its strong correlation with the S&P 500 index.

Axel Merk, chief investment officer and portfolio manager at Merk Investments, said that tariffs create a “supply shock,” meaning the reduced availability of goods and services due to rising prices causes an imbalance relative to demand. This effect is amplified if interest rates are declining, potentially paving the way for inflationary pressure.

Cango, a publicly traded Chinese conglomerate, has agreed to sell its legacy China operations to an entity associated with peer Bitmain in a bid to go all-in on Bitcoin (BTC) mining, according to a report by The Miner Mag. 

Cango agreed to sell its legacy Chinese auto financing business to Ursalpha Digital Limited in a $352 million deal, according to the report.

 Additionally, Bitmain is reportedly transferring 32 exahashes per second (EH/s) to Cango. The deal effectively brings Bitmain’s mining assets to the public market, The Miner Mag said.

Exahashes measure a miner’s contribution to the Bitcoin network’s hashrate, the total computing power securing the network.

The Miner Mag said Ursalpha Digital Limited has the same corporate address and founding director as Antalpha, an entity ultimately controlled by the chairman of Bitcoin miner Bitmain. 

The number of pre-seed funding rounds for Bitcoin (BTC) startup companies has grown by 767% since 2021, according to a report from venture capital firm Trammell Venture Partners (TVP).

Bitcoin pre-seed transactions increased 50% year-over-year in 2024, with a 27.5% year-over-year increase in the number of startup companies funded.

Christopher Calicott, TVP's managing director, attributed the increased deals to the robust security of the BTC network:

"Many entrepreneurs across crypto are revisiting the Bitcoin stack as the long-term place to build their companies. It makes perfect sense: The objectively most secure, reliable, and decentralized blockchain is the obvious platform of choice."

However, the capital raised in Bitcoin pre-seed funding rounds declined by over 22% in 2024, with the median funding round size and the median startup valuation steadily declining from 2021 to 2023.

Median valuations for pre-seed Bitcoin startups fail to reclaim 2021 levels. Source: Trammell Venture Partners

The US House Financial Services Committee advanced a bill aimed at preventing federal banks from using or issuing central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, paving the way for a vote in the chamber.

In an April 2 committee session, lawmakers voted 27-22 in favor of passing the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act. The bill was one of five the committee considered in a markup hearing discussing possible amendments. Lawmakers also approved a bill regulating payment stablecoins, setting up the legislation for a full House vote.

“Last Congress, this bill passed out of the House of Representatives by a 216-192 vote,” said Minnesota Representative Tom Emmer, the anti-CBDC bill’s sponsor. “So far this Congress, this bill has 114 cosponsors and support from groups ranging from the Independent Community Bankers Association and the American Bankers Association to Club for Growth, Heritage Action, and the Blockchain Association.”

Related: Crypto regulation must go through Congress for lasting change — Wiley Nickel

Many Republican lawmakers have warned institutions such as the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department away from exploring CBDC development, often citing financial privacy concerns. After reintroducing the bill in March, Emmer suggested it was an attempt to codify an executive order from US President Donald Trump into law. That order, signed on Jan. 23, prohibited “the establishment, issuance, circulation, and use” of a CBDC in the United States.

Bitcoin (BTC) and US stock markets all sold off sharply after US President Donald Trump shook up financial markets by announcing a list of reciprocal tariffs on several countries.

On April 3, the S&P 500 saw a 4.2% drop at market open, its most significant single-day decline since June 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 3.41%, to 40,785.41 from 42,225.32, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.23%. Overall, $1.6 trillion in value was wiped out from US stock at the market open.

Bitcoin’s value dropped by 8%, but a positive is bulls seem capable of defending the $80,000 support level. These steep declines essentially stem from uncertainty surrounding the new tariffs and amplify investors’ concerns about impending recession.

Source: X

Data from CoinGecko suggests that the total crypto market has dropped 6.8% over the past 24 hours and it seems unlikely that a relief rally is viable in the short-term.

Bitcoin (BTC) hit new monthly lows at the April 3 Wall Street open as US unemployment data added to pressure on risk assets.

BTC/USD 4-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Bitcoin gives early April gains as stocks plummet

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView confirmed the first trip below $82,000 for BTC/USD since the start of the month.

After initially surging as high as $88,580 as the US government unveiled reciprocal trade tariffs, Bitcoin soon ran out of steam as the reality of the stronger-than-expected measures hit home.

US stocks then followed, with the S&P 500 down over 4% on the day at the time of writing.