Russia ends public offering using cryptocurrency WLFI in oil trade

Golden Weekly is a weekly blockchain industry summary column launched by Golden Finance, covering weekly key news, mining information, project trends, technological progress and other industry trends. This article is one of the news weekly news magazines, which will take you to take a look at the major events in the blockchain industry this week.

Headlines

▌Russia is using cryptocurrency in oil trade with India to circumvent Western sanctions

Russia is using cryptocurrency in its oil trade with India to circumvent Western sanctions, according to four sources with knowledge of the situation. Although Russia publicly encourages the use of cryptocurrencies and passed a law last summer that allows payments using digital currencies in international trade, there have been no reports that it uses cryptocurrencies in oil trade. Sources said some Russian oil companies are using stablecoins such as Bitcoin, Ether and Tether to facilitate the process of converting Indian rupee to Russian rubles. They also added that this portion of cryptocurrency transactions, although small, accounted for a small proportion of Russia's total oil trade worth $192 billion last year (according to the International Energy Agency). Cryptocurrencies have previously helped countries like Iran and Venezuela with U.S. sanctions to keep their economy running while avoiding the use of the US dollar, the preferred currency for global oil market transactions. (Jin Shi)

▌Trump 's crypto project WLFI has ended its public offering, with a total financing of US$550 million

According to the official website, World Liberty Financial, the Trump family crypto project, has completed all community public offering financing (a round previously) with a total financing amount of US$550 million.

▌ CZ: Wall Street Journal reports distorting facts and has not discussed the Binance US deal

Binance CZ posted on the X platform that the Wall Street Journal reported distorting the facts and they worked hard to make up a story to report that they have not discussed the Binance US deal with anyone. No felon would mind pardoning, and it feels like the motivation for this article is to attack President Trump and cryptocurrency, and the remnants of the last U.S. administration’s “cryptocurrency war” are still in play. It's great to see that even the Wall Street Journal thinks I should be pardoned.

▌Wall Street Journal: Zhao Changpeng remains Binance 's largest shareholder

According to the Wall Street Journal, Zhao Changpeng is still Binance's largest shareholder (Zhao, widely known as CZ, remains Binance's largest shareholder), and Binance admitted to violating US anti-money laundering laws in 2023. Previous news, people familiar with the matter revealed that representatives of the Trump family have held negotiations on a stake in the cryptocurrency exchange Binance US branch, aiming to explore business development.

▌Fox reporter: The US SEC lawsuit against Ripple has entered the final stage

According to Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett, the US SEC lawsuit against Ripple may soon end in ongoing negotiations and is now in the final stage. The delay in reaching the agreement was reportedly because Ripple's legal team was negotiating more favorable terms on the August district court ruling, which fined the company $125 million and included a permanent injunction that prohibited the company from selling XRP to institutional investors.

policy

▌U.S. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce: It is still believed that a "safe harbor" should be established to promote cryptocurrency innovation

Coindesk released an exclusive interview with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce at the end of February. She said she still believes that "safe harbor" should be established to promote cryptocurrency innovation and is not obsessed with it. If people have better ideas to come up with, the SEC’s goal is to make people truly willing to disclose information, so that they don’t worry that if it is disclosed, it will become the goal of the SEC’s enforcement action. In addition, Hester Peirce also revealed that he had worked for Paul Atkins, the current acting chairman of the SEC, for four years, saying he was a person who likes the law to be clear and then enforced.

▌Hong Kong Provident Fund Bureau: It will study the inclusion of virtual assets in mandatory provident fund

When attending the Legislative Council, Liu Mai Jiaxuan, Chairman of the Hong Kong Mandatory Provident Fund Scheme Authority (Provisional Fund Bureau), and Executive Director Zheng Enci, said that some lawmakers are concerned about whether Hong Kong will include virtual assets in mandatory provident funds in the future. The Provident Fund Bureau will conduct research, paying special attention to whether there is sufficient transparency, as well as issues such as price fluctuations, platform risks, liquidity risks and security risks. At present, the regulation of virtual assets in multiple markets is still in the initial stage and requires more time to supervise and observe.

▌Argentine securities regulators finalize virtual asset service provider rules

The Argentina National Securities Commission (CNV) formally approved General Resolution No. 1058 to establish final regulatory guidelines for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). The new regulations cover registration obligations, network security, asset custody, anti-money laundering measures and risk disclosure, and aim to ensure the transparency, stability and user protection of the encryption ecosystem. Under the new regulations, VASP must ensure that the company is separated from its clients’ funds, conduct annual audits regularly, and submit reports to CNV monthly. In addition, unregistered businesses or violate the regulations may face registration revocation or court blockade. In terms of compliance period, registered individual service providers must complete adjustments before July 1, local registered companies must comply with regulations before August 1, while overseas companies must meet new requirements before September 1. “Those who fail to comply on time will not be allowed to operate in Argentina,” said CNV Chairman Roberto E. Silva.

▌Kentucky Cryptocurrency Act has been sent to the governor 's desk to wait for signing, and no vote in both houses oppose

Kentucky's cryptocurrency bill HB701 has passed the Senate and was sent to the governor's desk to await signing. The bill protects custody rights, exempts nodes from currency transfer rules, and prohibits new taxes on payments. The bill was passed in both houses with no vote.

White House officials say Trump administration wants to acquire as much bitcoin as possible

At a closed-door roundtable hosted by the Bitcoin Policy Institute on Tuesday, Bo Hines, executive director of the President’s Digital Assets Working Group, told attendees that the White House intends to acquire as much bitcoin as possible, according to multiple participants. When someone in the room asked how much bitcoin the U.S. government might eventually acquire, Hines joked that the question was like asking a person how much dollars they wanted. A White House official confirmed Hines did make a statement about buying as much bitcoin as possible, but added that any such acquisition would be "in a budget neutral way and would not cost taxpayers a penny." A White House official stressed that Hines did not support any specific legislation during the event.

Blockchain application

▌Ethereum will launch Hooli test network on March 17

Ethereum core developers announced that the new test network Hooli will be launched on March 17 for the final test of the Pectra upgrade, with the goal of deploying to the main network from the end of April to early May. Previously, Pectra failed to test on Sepolia and Holesky test networks due to misconfiguration, and Holesky was down for several weeks. Hooli will conduct a Pectra test upgrade on March 26. If successful, the developer plans to start the main network upgrade in 30 days.

Telegram introduces transaction and earnings capabilities for its self- hosted crypto wallet

Telegram self-hosted cryptocurrency wallet developed by the third-party company The Open Platform (TOP), has launched new features such as multi-asset trading and income for users. According to today's update, the TOP said users will be able to buy, sell or hold cryptocurrencies without any on-chain deposits. Later this year, TOP plans to increase revenue for USDT holdings and launch a loyalty program that will benefit Toncoin holders. Telegram wallet has also been revamped, with a new navigation bar at the bottom that can easily switch between wallet, transactions and earnings sections.

▌Movement mainnet beta version officially launched

Movement announced the official launch of its public mainnet beta, marking an important step forward in the deployment of Ethereum by Facebook's Movement Virtual Machine (MoveVM). The mainnet has raised over $233 million in BTC, ETH and MOVE token liquidity through Movement's Cornucopia program and will support smart contract deployments, enabling developers to build and use applications on the network for the first time. The Move language was originally developed by Facebook and was used in Layer 1 networks such as Sui and Aptos. This time, Movement Labs expanded it to Ethereum Layer 2, providing new scalability and security solutions for smart contract development.

▌People insider: Trump 's crypto project WLFI has discussed with Binance about the possibility of cooperating with stablecoins

Four people familiar with the matter revealed that Trump's crypto project WLFI has discussed cooperation with Binance Holdings Ltd., the world's largest digital asset trading platform. The Binance founder has previously admitted that he has failed to take the necessary measures to prevent terrorists and entities in sanctioned countries from using their services. It is unclear at what stage these discussions will progress or whether a deal or partnership will eventually be concluded. The people familiar with the matter asked to be anonymous because the negotiations were private matters. Two of them said the discussion included Binance's possible collaboration with WLFI to develop a stablecoin, a cryptocurrency pegged to the US dollar. Trump and his son have been promoting the company since September last year, and according to its founding documents, the Trump family can earn three-quarters of the net income of WLFI.

▌CBOE applies to US SEC to add staking function to Fidelity Ethereum ETF

Cboe BZX Exchange, a subsidiary of the Chicago Options Exchange Group, filed a proposed rule change with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to modify the relevant provisions of the Fidelity Ethereum Fund, whose shares have been approved by the Commission to be listed and traded on the exchange under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4). The amendment is intended to allow the trust's holdings of Ethereum to be pledged.

Cryptocurrency

▌Goldman Sachs acknowledges the importance of cryptocurrencies in shareholder letters for the first time

Goldman Sachs mentioned the popularity of cryptocurrencies for the first time in its shareholder letter in 2024, calling it one of the important trends in the fintech field. "The growth of electronic transactions and the introduction of new products and technologies, including cryptocurrencies and distributed ledger technology (DLT) and artificial intelligence technology, have intensified industry competition," the letter said. Goldman Sachs acknowledged that competitors may offer financial products, including cryptocurrencies, which may be more popular with customers, although Goldman Sachs currently chooses not to provide related services. Since launching the cryptocurrency trading platform in 2021, Goldman Sachs has continued to explore the application of blockchain technology and launched a digital asset platform in 2022. In addition, Goldman Sachs is one of the few banks involved in testing the Canton Network, a blockchain communications system, showing growing interest in blockchain technology among traditional financial institutions. However, Goldman Sachs also warned that distributed ledger technology and cryptocurrencies are still in their early stages, with potential cybersecurity risks and other potential weaknesses. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon has repeatedly stated that Bitcoin is a "speculative asset", but he also acknowledged that blockchain technology has the potential and may bring about changes to the financial system. In the fourth quarter of 2024, Goldman Sachs significantly increased its holdings of two major Bitcoin spot ETFs, showing that its attention to the cryptocurrency market continues to increase.

▌David Sacks sold over $200 million in crypto assets before taking office

David Sacks, director of AI and cryptocurrency, sold more than $200 million in digital asset-related investments through his individual and his company Craft Ventures before taking office, according to a memo released by the White House. Of these, at least $85 million is directly attributable to Sacks, but Craft Ventures still holds some fund investments involving crypto assets. Sacks stressed that the sale of assets is to “avoid any suspicion of conflict of interest.” Sacks sold all its holdings of Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana and cleared its shares in the Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund, Coinbase and Robinhood. In addition, he has also begun to withdraw from limited partnership interests in crypto investment funds such as Multicoin Capital and Blockchain Capital.

▌Abu Dhabi investment in MGX spends US$2 billion to invest in Binance, setting a new record in the crypto industry

On March 12, Binance and Abu Dhabi's artificial intelligence and advanced technology investor MGX announced an iconic $2 billion investment. The investment is the first institutional investment accepted by Binance to date, marking an important step forward in promoting digital asset adoption and strengthening the role of blockchain in global finance. This is not only the largest single investment in a crypto company, but also the largest investment ever paid in cryptocurrency (stablecoin). The technology investment company MGX is announced by the Abu Dhabi Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Committee (AIATC). The investment shows the first entry into the cryptocurrency and blockchain space by gaining a minority stake in Binance as part of its broader strategy to support the transformative impact of blockchain on society. By working with industry leaders, MGX aims to promote the integration of artificial intelligence, blockchain technology and finance.

▌Tether CEO: Tether is helping to ensure US debt security

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said on social media that Tether is "helping to protect U.S. debt." Currently, most of the Tether (USDT) issuing reserves are backed by US Treasury bonds. The market generally believes that the scale of its Treasury bonds has reached tens of billions of dollars, becoming one of the important buyers of US short-term Treasury bonds.

▌ Matrixport: Slowing inflows of stablecoin may indicate that Bitcoin’s next trend needs to be cautious

Matrixport said on X platform, "Slowing inflows of stablecoin have pushed the market into a consolidation phase. We pay close attention to this data because any rise in Bitcoin will be difficult to sustain if the stablecoin minting indicators fail to recover. This slowdown may be due to the fact that stablecoin issuers have established sufficient inventory in advance or the overall market demand has declined. Regardless of the specific reason, the current crypto market has not yet ushered in large-scale capital inflows, which is also a key factor in Bitcoin consolidation. In addition, this trend may be related to the hawkish tone of the Federal Reserve meeting in December 2024, which may make institutional investors more cautious."

Important economic trends

▌Dow cuts its biggest weekly decline since March 2023

The Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded its biggest weekly decline since March 2023, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq falling for the fourth consecutive week.

▌The total market value of tokens backed by US Treasury hits a new high of US$4.2 billion

According to rwa.xyz data, the total market value of U.S. Treasury-backed tokens has increased by $800 million since the end of January, hitting an all- time high of $4.2 billion on Wednesday. Products of real-world asset platform Ondo Finance (ONDO), short-term bond-backed OUSG and USDY tokens, climbed to nearly $1 billion, with a market value soaring 53% in the past month. Token BUIDL, jointly issued by asset management company BlackRock and tokenization company Securities, rose 25% to more than $800 million in the same period. Asset management firm Franklin Templeton's BENJI token value expanded to $687 million, up 16%, while Superstate's USTB reached $363 million, up more than 63%. Brian Choe, research director at rwa.xyz, said that during a cryptocurrency downturn, tokenized Treasury bonds grew faster than stablecoins and were seen as a “quality leap” and investors turned to safer and more profitable assets.

▌U.S. short-term interest rate futures still show that the Fed will cut interest rates in June

U.S. short-term interest rate futures still show that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in June after the initial request and PPI data were released.

▌U.S. PPI increased by 3.2% year-on-year in February, lower than expected

The US PPI in February grew by 3.2% year-on-year, with an estimated growth of 3.3%, while the previous value was 3.5%. The US PPI in February remained unchanged month-on-month, with an estimated growth of 0.3%, while the previous value was 0.4%.

▌Canadian Finance Minister: From March 13, Canada will impose a 25% retaliatory tariff on US goods worth 29.8 billion yuan

Canadian Treasury Secretary: From March 13, Canada will impose a 25% retaliatory tariff on US goods worth 29.8 billion. (Jin Shi)