Crypto Weekly 3/8/26
Kraken Becomes the First Crypto Firm to Access the Fed's Payment System, Trump Warns Banks Not to Stall the CLARITY Act, and the CFTC Greenlights Perpetual Futures
PRICE CHANGE: WTD/YTD
- Crypto Market Cap ($2.38T): +2% / -22%
- BTC ($67,372): +3% / -23%
- ETH ($1,967): +2% / -34%
- SOL ($82): -1% / -34%
- UNI ($3.72): -1% / -34%
- OP ($0.12): -4% / -56%
- COIN ($197): +12% / -13%
- Tether Mkt Cap ($184B): 0% / -2%
- USDC Mkt Cap ($77B): +3% / +2%
- BTC / ETH Dominance: 57% / 10%
THIS WEEK IN CRYPTO
- Bitcoin started the week on track for its best performance in a month hitting $73,000 but fell on the back half after a lower than expected jobs report led to a sell-off across risk assets. Link.
- President Donald Trump publicly pushed for passage of a market-structure bill known as the CLARITY Act, warning banks against stalling the legislation over stablecoin rewards. Link. Post.
- Crypto exchange Kraken was awarded a limited purpose account by the Federal Reserve, making it the first digital asset bank to gain direct access to the US central bank’s payment infrastructure. US banking industry groups are pushing back on the move, warning it would give crypto companies access to central bank payment rails without regulatory safeguards applied to traditional banks. Link. Link. Link. Link.
- The CFTC plans to allow perpetual futures contracts for cryptocurrencies within weeks. Link.
- Retail investors have been moving away from crypto towards equity since late 2024, with the trend accelerating sharply after the October crypto crash. The trend has continued as crypto’s volatility has been compressing, with the gap between crypto and equities narrowing. Link. Report.
- The SEC submitted interpretive guidance to the White House on a framework for categorizing crypto assets to determine which fall under SEC jurisdiction as securities. Link. Link. Submission.
- Frontier AI models show a consistent preference for bitcoin as a long-term store of value and stablecoins for everyday payments. 90% of the time models prefer digital native instruments over fiat. Link.
- The Federal Reserve said banks should treat tokenized securities the same as traditional securities for capital purposes, emphasizing that existing rules are “technology neutral”. The Fed also said tokenized securities could qualify as financial collateral under existing rules. Link. Tokenization FAQ.
- The ECB said the widespread adoption of stablecoins, particularly US dollar backed stablecoins, could pose major risks to euro-area banks and ECB monetary policy. Link.
- Stablecoin volumes on Solana reached $650 billion in February, more than double the prior monthly record. Link.
- Ethereum’s validator queue for staking reached 3.4 million ETH, the largest levels seen to date and a backlog of roughly 60 days. Link.
- Visa is partnering with Stripe’s Bridge to launch stablecoin-backed cards in 100 countries across Africa, Asia, and Europe. The cards allow customers to spend stablecoin balances in crypto wallets at any merchant that accepts Visa. Link.
- The SEC said it would end its lawsuit against crypto billionaire Justin Sun for securities fraud related to the Tron network, and announced a $10 million civil settlement. Link.
- ICE, the owner of NYSE, invested roughly $200 million in crypto exchange OKX at a $25 billion valuation. OKX plans to distribute ICE futures products and tokenized equities to its roughly 120 million customers. Link.
- The FBI arrested John Daghita, a government contractor accused of stealing more than $46 million in cryptocurrency from the US Marshals Service. Link. Link.
- Crypto infrastructure provider Zero Hash submitted an application for a national trust bank charter, which would allow it to expand its digital asset services to include custody, staking, and stablecoin management. Link.
- Florida is the first state to pass stablecoin-specific legislation that provides a regulatory framework for payment stablecoin issuers in the state. Link.
- A16z is reportedly targeting $2 billion for its fifth crypto-focused fund. Link. Link.
- Kazakhstan’s central bank is investing up to $350 million in crypto. Link. Link.