Crypto

Polygon delivered its first block time reduction upgrade since genesis, as the network seeks to position for more high-frequency applications such as private stablecoin payments. Blockchain layer-2 (L2) network Polygon reduced its average block time by 250 milliseconds to 1.75 seconds, marking its first block-time reduction since genesis as the network pushes deeper into stablecoin payments and settlement infrastructure. Polygonscan shows that the latest blocks on the network were created in 1.75 seconds. The upgrade means that Polygon can process around 14% more payments per second, reaching a maximum theoretical throughput of about 3,260 transactions per second (TPS), according to Polygon software engineer Lucca Martins. Shorter block times can help transaction backlogs clear faster, reducing the duration of network congestion and subsequent transaction fee spikes, which is particularly important for high-frequency use cases such as payments, stablecoins or decentralized finance (DeFi) trading. Read more

XRP is retesting a key multi-year support zone that has historically preceded major rebounds, with analysts predicting a rally toward $12 if the level holds. XRP (XRP) is testing a key long-term support level that has historically preceded major rebounds, according to a monthly chart shared by analyst MikybullCrypto. Key takeaways: Read more

Institutional trading volume surged 800% over the past six months on the platform, while annualized trading activity reached $178 billion despite growing regulatory scrutiny.

The lending giant is expanding its asset listing criteria beyond financial risk to include cybersecurity and architecture, and wants the rest of DeFi to follow.

Google's new Multi-Token Prediction drafters can make Gemma 4 run up to 3x faster on your own hardware—no cloud required, and no quality lost.

A Unitree Robotics humanoid joins the Jogye Order, South Korea's largest Buddhist sect.

A related MVRV indicator hit overheated levels last seen before bitcoin's late-2024 push to $100,000.

Bitcoin’s return above $80,000 has brought back a question traders have not had to confront at scale since 2020: how does the world’s largest digital asset behave when a health scare, rather than rates, regulation, or crypto-native leverage, becomes the market’s dominant risk headline? The immediate trigger is a hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius, […] The post Bitcoin’s potential bull run return faces pandemic-style fear as Hantavirus scare gets amplified appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The Ethereum co-founder, who has spent months campaigning against toxic MEV with proposals for encrypted mempools, just had one of his own swaps front-run and back-run by the network's most notorious sandwich bot.

A sustained move above realized price could shift market behavior by returning a large portion of holders to profit.

The deal marks Kraken's largest acquisition as it pushes into Asian cross-border payments through stablecoin infrastructure.

South Korea’s Finance Ministry has reportedly confirmed for the first time that a 22% tax on crypto gains will proceed as scheduled in January 2027. South Korea’s Finance Ministry has confirmed that a long-delayed tax on crypto gains will take effect as scheduled in January 2027. Moon Kyung-ho, director of the ministry’s income tax division, announced at an emergency parliamentary forum on virtual asset taxation held at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building in Seoul on Thursday, according to South Korea news outlet Edaily. The forum was hosted by Representative Park Soo-young of the People Power Party and the Korea Tax Policy Association. “We will proceed with virtual asset taxation as scheduled in January next year,” Moon said in what appears to be the first public confirmation from the ministry that the crypto tax framework will move forward after multiple postponements. Read more

Core Scientific mined 279 BTC in the quarter, down 45% from a year earlier, while its colocation business became its top revenue source. Core Scientific (CORZ) reported a $347.2 million first-quarter net loss as its Bitcoin self-mining revenue fell sharply and high-density colocation became its largest revenue source.  In its earnings report published Wednesday, the company reported a net loss of $1.06 per diluted share for the quarter. A year earlier, Core Scientific reported diluted earnings of $1.24 per share. Core Scientific said the loss included $266.5 million in non-cash impairment charges and a $30.8 million non-cash loss from changes in the fair value of warrants and contingent value rights. Read more

It's day three of Consensus Miami 2026 on Thursday. Stay tuned for updates throughout the day.

Near Protocol (NEAR), down 1% from Wednesday, was also an underperformer.

The crypto asset manager will take over Superstate’s $267 million USCC fund as tokenized investment products gain traction with institutions.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs hit $108.76 billion in net assets as five weeks of inflows and fading put skew signal institutional demand is back.

Kraken owner Payward will acquire Hong Kong-based Reap Technologies as the crypto exchange expands its stablecoin and payments infrastructure business in Asia.

Brent and WTI moved higher after renewed US-Iran tensions put the Strait of Hormuz in focus, while the crypto market stayed largely flat. Bitcoin held near $81,500 as LiquidChain’s presale continued toward a $750,000 milestone. The post Oil Jumps on US-Iran Tensions as Crypto Stalls: LiquidChain Presale Nears $750,000 appeared first on Cryptonews.

VanEck’s Matthew Sigel says Bitcoin may reach $1 million in five years, comparing adoption trends to the video game industry’s shift to mainstream use. Matthew Sigel, head of digital assets research at investment manager VanEck, said he sees Bitcoin (BTC) reaching seven figures within the next five years. “Bitcoin going up for us is the base case. We think this asset is going to reach a million dollars over the next several years,” Sigel said on CNBC’s Halftime Report on Wednesday. Sigel later clarified that BTC is likely to reach that threshold in “half a decade,” comparing Bitcoin’s adoption to the video game industry’s, where usage has expanded across age groups after initially being limited to younger users. Read more