Morning Crypto Wrap — 02 March 2026

Executive brief

Bitcoin demonstrated significant resilience on Monday, reclaiming the $70,000 level even as geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran escalated following military strikes. The digital asset initially behaved as a liquid risk asset, dropping toward $63,000, before decoupling from traditional equities to outperform during the US trading session. The rally was supported by continued institutional accumulation, with Michael Saylor’s Strategy purchasing another 3,015 Bitcoin for approximately $204 million, lifting its total holdings to 720,737 coins. Similarly, Anthony Pompliano’s ProCap Financial added 450 Bitcoin to its treasury, making it the 19th largest publicly traded holder.

The broader macroeconomic landscape remains dominated by energy concerns, as Saudi Arabia shut down its Ras Tanura refinery following a drone strike and oil prices surged 12% to $75 per barrel. Despite these pressures, institutional interest in digital asset infrastructure is accelerating. JPMorgan analysts suggest that the possible mid-year approval of US market structure legislation could serve as a positive catalyst for the second half of 2026. In Europe, the Qivalis consortium of 12 major banks is advancing plans for a euro-backed stablecoin, targeting a late 2026 launch to ensure regional liquidity.

Regulation and security remain primary risks to the current recovery. Turkey’s ruling party has unveiled a proposal for a 10% crypto income tax, while South Korean authorities are investigating a $4.8 million theft caused by a tax official accidentally leaking a wallet seed phrase in a press photo. For investors, a key opportunity lies in the potential for easier monetary policy if the US Federal Reserve prints money to support conflict costs, though a sustained oil spike toward $100 per barrel remains a significant inflationary threat.

1) Top 20 news headlines

• Vitalik Buterin unveils plan to curb Ethereum block builder centralisation; the proposal targets toxic MEV and execution layer issues to decentralise the network.
• Bitcoin surges above $68,000 amid muted stock market reaction to Iran war; the digital asset climbed past $68,000 while stock index futures were initially down more than 2%.
• Strategy purchased more than $200 million in Bitcoin last week; Michael Saylor’s company added 3,015 Bitcoin at $67,700 per coin to reach total holdings of 720,737.
• Iranian crypto outflows jump 700% minutes after U.S.-Israeli airstrikes; Nobitex, Iran’s largest exchange, saw a 700% spike in outflows following military strikes on Tehran.
• Turkey’s ruling party unveils 10% crypto income tax proposal; the bill proposes a 10% tax on gains from regulated platforms withheld quarterly.
• Bitmine boosts ether holdings to 4.47 million tokens with $98 million purchase; the treasury firm now holds nearly $10 billion in assets with more than $6 billion of ETH staked.
• Revolut’s digital pound trial shifts the UK payments debate; the fintech is preparing to trial a pound-backed stablecoin for its 12 million users in the UK.
• Bitcoin difficulty just reset about 15% higher; the network difficulty increased 15% to 144.40T, the largest spike recorded since 2021.
• South Korea investigates seed phrase leak leading to $4.8 million theft; a tax official accidentally exposed a recovery phrase in a press photo resulting in the loss of $4.8 million.
• Aave proposal clears first hurdle with 52.6% support; tokenholders backed a $42.5 million stablecoin package and 75,000 AAVE allocation for Aave Labs.
• CME says it captures over 75% of the crypto market cap; the exchange expanded its offerings to include Cardano, Chainlink, and Stellar futures.
• DOJ strike force delivers $580 million in freezes; law enforcement seized $580 million in assets tied to overseas scam networks within three months.
• HyperLiquid’s HYPE token jumps 5% as Iran war brings windfall revenue; derivatives volume expanded as HYPE climbed alongside gold while Bitcoin churned above $60,000.
• Hong Kong links up with Shanghai trade authorities on blockchain; regulators are testing a cross-border platform to link cargo data and trade finance.
• Nasdaq follows Cboe joining world of binary bets; the exchange filed with the SEC to list yes-or-no bets tied to the Nasdaq-100 index.
• XRP faces $650M sell risk as charts hint at prices below $1; technical analysis suggests a drop below $1 could occur as exchange supply increases.
• ProCap Financial buys 450 Bitcoin and steps up buybacks; the purchase makes ProCap the 19th largest publicly traded holder of Bitcoin globally.
• Battle for Bitcoin’s soul opens as first block supporting BIP-110 is mined; a block signalling the BIP-110 proposal appeared onchain to restrict data storage methods.
• Judge blocks Binance from pushing class action suits into arbitration; a court ruling prevents the exchange from diverting 2020 token sale lawsuits.
• Trump Media weighs Truth Social spinoff as crypto expansion accelerates; the fintech brand Truth.Fi has formed a partnership with Crypto.com and filed for multiple ETFs.

2) BTC and ETH ETF flows

3) X trending news

• Saudi Arabia shuts refinery; the world’s largest oil refinery, Ras Tanura, closed following an Iranian drone strike.
• Gold surpasses $5,400; spot gold prices surged past $5,400 per ounce amid the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran.
• Maersk suspends Hormuz transit; the world’s second largest shipping company has suspended transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
• Spain bans military base use; Spain has prohibited the US from using its military bases for operations against Iran.
• Bitcoin hits $70,000; the leading digital asset officially reclaimed the $70,000 level during the US trading session.
• Global equity inflows $38.1b; international equity funds posted record weekly inflows of $38.1 billion last week.
• S&P 500 turns green; US stock markets erased earlier losses to turn positive despite energy shocks and geopolitical risk.