Morning Minute: Relentless Sellers, War Volatility Keep Bitcoin Down

Morning Minute is simply a regular newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The investigation and opinions expressed are his ain and bash not needfully bespeak those of Decrypt. And check retired our new regular quality show covering each of the apical stories successful ~5 minutes, downloadable connected Apple Pod oregon Spotify.

GM!

Today’s apical news:

• Crypto majors dip from highs arsenic Iran negotiations autumn through; BTC astatine $71,000
• Morgan Stanley plans to widen into tokenized wealth marketplace funds, tax-loss harvesting, Bitcoin output and lending
• Bitcoin researchers find caller imaginable quantum solution not requiring a fork
• Justin Sun speaks retired against WLFI, calls for tokens to unlock
• CFTC positions for “exclusive regulatory authority” of prediction markets

📉 Crypto, markets descent arsenic negotiations autumn through

It appears the archetypal circular of Iran bid negotiations did not spell well. And markets didn’t similar it.

Vice President JD Vance walked retired Saturday nighttime without a deal. Trump posted astir immediately: The U.S. Navy volition statesman “BLOCKADING immoderate and each ships trying to enter, oregon leave, the Strait of Hormuz—effective immediately.”

This sent markets into the red, with BTC falling from the $73K+ level to $71K. ETH is down from supra $2,300 to beneath $2,200.

Oil is up 7% and backmost to $97, and concerns are precocious again astir the interaction of a blockade similar this.

But it’s not conscionable warfare volatility impacting Bitcoin. New data from Glassnode shows that Bitcoin is facing $20M successful nett realization PER HOUR supra the $70K level, arsenic large holders go relentless sellers.

It looks similar the conflict to interruption done $80K whitethorn rage connected for awhile…

Key details:

• Vance led 21 hours of talks astatine the Serena Hotel earlier announcing nary deal; Iran’s refusal to perpetrate to abandoning atomic weapons was the azygous sticking point; Trump ordered a naval blockade of the Strait “effective immediately”
• BTC fell from $73K+ to ~$71K; oil jumped 7% connected Hyperliquid with WTI concisely crossing $100
• Glassnode data shows $20M/hour successful nett realization supra $70k

🏦 Morgan Stanley is not stopping astatine Bitcoin

Morgan Stanley’s Bitcoin ETF, MSBT, launched past week. And the concern elephantine is already mapping what comes next.

The firm's digital-asset strategy caput Amy Oldenburg told Decrypt the steadfast sees a tokenized money-market money arsenic “definitely a way forward,” pursuing BlackRock’s BUIDL ($2.3B) into yield-bearing tokens. Parametric, a Morgan Stanley subsidiary, would grip crypto tax-loss harvesting. Bitcoin output and lending services are being built in-house: “We can’t conscionable chiefly rent the technology,” Oldenburg said successful February.

So they’re going aft tokenized wealth marketplace funds, tax-loss harvesting, Bitcoin output and lending. Quite the push.

Key details:

• Morgan Stanley confirmed it’s not stopping astatine Bitcoin; Oldenburg said a tokenized money-market money is “definitely a way forward” and crypto tax-loss harvesting via Parametric is “something to besides explore”
• ETH and SOL ETFs filed successful January stay pending
• E*TRADE crypto trading via Zerohash connected way for first-half 2026; Bitcoin output and lending services successful development, built in-house; tax-loss harvesting via Parametric

⚛️ A caller quantum-safe Bitcoin solution

The modular way to quantum-proofing Bitcoin runs done a brushed fork, wide assemblage consensus, and years of debate. StarkWare researcher Avihu Mordechai Levy conscionable published a connection that sidesteps each of it.

His QSB strategy makes Bitcoin transactions quantum-resistant utilizing hash-based puzzles and Lamport signatures, each wrong Bitcoin’s existing scripting rules. Users lick a ~70 trillion effort puzzle off-chain (GPU-solvable for a fewer 100 dollars), past broadcast a transaction that already contains proof. None of this would necessitate a fork, but there’s a caveat.

Levy is wide that this is simply a workaround, not a imperishable fix. Transactions are non-standard and spell straight to mining pools, and Grover’s algorithm menace remains; positive it’s costly for users and won’t standard well.

But it’s bully to spot advancement coming up with caller solutions…

Key details:

• StarkWare researcher Levy published QSB as a quantum-safe Bitcoin strategy requiring nary brushed fork; works wrong existing 201-opcode scripting limits
• The mechanism: hash-based puzzles + Lamport signatures; ~70 trillion off-chain attempts, GPU-solvable for a fewer 100 dollars per transaction
• The catch: non-standard nether existent relay policies; transactions bypass the nationalist mempool and are expensive, frankincense explicitly a impermanent workaround

⚖️ The CFTC is done sharing prediction markets with states

The combat implicit who regulates prediction markets has been moving for years. CFTC Chair Mike Selig conscionable made the national government’s presumption arsenic wide arsenic it’s going to get.

Speaking to CoinDesk connected the sidelines of Vanderbilt’s Digital Assets Summit, Selig said the CFTC volition proceed defending its “exclusive regulatory authority” implicit prediction markets successful court, careless of the underlying event.

“It doesn’t substance if it’s sports, politics, oregon thing else. If it’s a validly offered merchandise connected a CFTC-regulated exchange, we modulate that," helium said.

The bureau got a important tailwind April 6 erstwhile the Third Circuit ruled that the Commodity Exchange Act gives the CFTC exclusive jurisdiction implicit trades connected designated declaration markets, straight undercutting authorities gaming regulators’ arguments. The Ninth Circuit, which includes Nevada (one of the states that secured injunctions against Kalshi), hears a consolidated lawsuit adjacent week.

Selig made wide that Nevada won’t beryllium the past authorities targeted: “I wouldn’t say, conscionable due to the fact that these are the archetypal states, that they’ll beryllium the last.”

This is simply a 180-degree crook from 2 years ago, erstwhile the CFTC nether Biden was the 1 trying to unopen prediction markets down. Now it’s suing states to support them open.

Key details:

• CFTC Chair Selig argued for the agency’s exclusive regulatory authority over prediction markets successful an interrogation with CoinDesk; said national jurisdiction applies careless of whether contracts screen sports, politics, oregon thing else
• Third Circuit ruled April 6 in the CFTC’s favor, backing exclusive national jurisdiction implicit DCM-traded products
• The CFTC sued Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois on April 2 alongside the DOJ, challenging their cease-and-desist letters targeting Kalshi and Polymarket; Selig said much states could follow

🌞 Justin Sun shares frustrations with WLFI

Justin Sun invested $75M successful World Liberty Financial past year. On Sunday, helium vented connected X astir respective things WLFI has been doing.

“What was ne'er disclosed—to maine oregon to immoderate investor—is that World Liberty embedded a backdoor blacklisting relation successful the astute declaration utilized to deploy WLFI tokens. This relation gives the institution unilateral powerfulness to freeze, restrict, and efficaciously confiscate the spot rights of immoderate token holder, without notice, without cause, and without recourse.”

Sun’s comments came aft WLFI deposited 5 cardinal WLFI tokens arsenic collateral connected Dolomite, a DeFi protocol co-founded by a WLFI adviser, and borrowed $75M successful stablecoins. It's a determination that went viral and has galore claiming that the WLFI squad is selling retired without really selling.

That doesn’t look to person been astatine the bosom of Sun’s comments though, and Sun ended his station calling connected the squad to unlock the remaining tokens and uphold transparency for the community.

The WLFI squad responded precocious Sunday, stating that they person the grounds and are acceptable to spot Justin Sun successful court. The crippled thickens…

Key Details:

• Justin Sun publicly broke with WLFI, calling it a “personal ATM”; alleges governance was “neither just nor transparent”; invested $75M total
• The backstory: WLFI froze Sun’s wallet successful Sept. 2025, blocking 595M unlocked tokens worthy ~$107M; WLFI said the frost targeted wallets linked to phishing
• The math: WLFI trades astatine $0.079 vs the treasury’s $0.1507 mean buyback, frankincense 48% underwater; WLFI -18% connected the week

🌎 Macro crypto and markets

• Crypto majors fell from section highs aft Iran bid talks fell through; BTC astatine $70K; ETH astatine $2,190; SOL  astatine $82; HYPE astatine $41.60
• Stable (+10%), VVV (+5%), and AAVE (+5%) led apical movers
• Oil +3% astatine $97; Gold adjacent astatine $4,724
• Bitcoin faced $20M/hour successful nett realization supra the $70K level according to Glassnode data, meaning determination are inactive immoderate large sellers retired there
• Alameda unstaked $16M successful SOL, perchance for creditor reimbursements
• Hackers minted 1B DOT tokens connected the Ethereum mainnet and past sold them off, but netted conscionable $250k owed to constricted liquidity; the exploit was owed to a Hyperbridge vulnerability

Corporate treasuries & ETFs

• The Bitcoin ETFs saw $240M successful nett inflows on Friday, bringing the play full to $816.9M; the ETH ETFs saw $64.9M successful inflows Friday and $187M for the week
• STRC traded capable measurement connected Friday to rise superior for 3,400+ BTC successful bargain pressure

Meme Coin Tracker

• Meme leaders were mostly flat; DOGE -1%, SHIB -1%, PEPE -1%, TRUMP +1%, PENGU -1%, SPX -1%, FARTCOIN -2%
• Bull (117%), neet (+43%), triplet (+24%), and LOL (+24%) led notable on-chain movers

💰 Token, airdrop & protocol tracker

• WLFI threatened to writer Justin Sun successful effect to his condemnation station connected X asking for his tokens to beryllium unlocked

🚚 What is happening successful NFTs?

• NFT leaders were mostly level implicit the weekend; Punks -1% astatine 27.65 ETH, Pudgy -1 astatine 4.12 ETH, BAYC adjacent astatine 6.39 ETH; Hypurr’s +1% astatine 396 HYPE
• Renga (+125%) and MAYC (+6%) led notable movers
• Adam Weitsman announced the acquisition of 2,000 Otherdeeds and 203 Kodas from a backstage collection, present holds implicit 8,500 Otherdeeds