Shiba Inu's layer-2 network Shibarium has entered a reset phase after a steep drop in visible on-chain activity, a move tied to ongoing infrastructure upgrades and backend reorganization. Network data shows Shibarium logged 557 transactions in the past 24 hours, down from 10,940 recorded on March 26—a decline of about 94%. The fall has sparked attention across the crypto market, but it does not necessarily signal a collapse in real usage. A large share of recent activity appears to be automated, system-level processing rather than user-initiated wallet transfers. Many entries are marked "Value 0 BONE," suggesting internal operations meant to support the upgraded stack instead of token movement between participants. The Shibarium explorer is also being rebuilt following the latest upgrade. Current figures indicate only 86% of blocks have been indexed, leaving some activity temporarily missing from public records. Incomplete indexing is likely distorting on-chain metrics during the transition, as backend systems synchronize and recalibrate how data is surfaced. Market conditions are also shaping sentiment around SHIB. The broader crypto market has remained in a consolidation range since early February, keeping overall momentum muted even as some traders rotate into altcoins. As of writing, SHIB slipped 0.94% over 24 hours to $0.00000583. Trading volume rose 9.5% to $78.77 million, pointing to modest participation despite subdued conditions. The recent dip in Shibarium's visible transaction count reflects a reset tied to infrastructure work. As indexing approaches completion, reported transaction data is expected to normalize and provide a clearer view of network activity.

Ethereum has spent nearly a month trading around $2,000, with charts offering little clarity on a sustained rebound. Fresh on-chain signals, though, suggest a potentially constructive shift may be taking shape. In an April 4 post, pseudonymous analyst Darkfost said Ethereum's derivatives market is showing a regime change not seen since the last bearish phase, pointing to a recent turn in the "Net Taker Volume" metric. Net Taker Volume tracks the balance between market-buy and market-sell order volume in a crypto's derivatives market. Positive readings indicate buyers are dominating; negative readings signal heavier sell-side pressure. Citing CryptoQuant data, Darkfost noted Ethereum's Net Taker Volume has moved into positive territory by more than $104 million, the first such shift in the past three years. The analyst added that ETH faced strong selling pressure even as it rallied to record highs, but said the current change could help form a durable bottom and lay groundwork for a more bullish structure. Darkfost said a continued bid, paired with support from the spot market and ETFs, could allow Ethereum to resume a positive trend. US-listed spot Ethereum ETFs extended their weak streak, logging a third consecutive week of net outflows. Market data show more than $42.15 million was withdrawn over the past week. On Thursday, April 3, the products recorded total net outflows of over $71.12 million, underscoring softer investor demand. At the time of writing, ETH was trading around $2,058, up 0.6% over the past 24 hours.

Token Unlocks data cited by ME News shows several large token releases are scheduled for next week, including APT, BABY and LINEA. Aptos (APT) is set to unlock about 11.31 million tokens at 4:00 p.m. Beijing time on April 12, equal to roughly 0.68% of circulating supply and valued at about $9.5 million. Babylon (BABY) is scheduled to unlock about 612 million tokens at 6:00 p.m. Beijing time on April 10, representing around 37.77% of circulating supply and worth about $7.8 million. Linea (LINEA) plans to unlock about 1.38 billion tokens at 7:00 p.m. Beijing time on April 10, or about 5.32% of circulating supply, valued at roughly $4.5 million. RedStone (RED) will unlock about 40.85 million tokens at 0:00 Beijing time on April 7, accounting for around 13.89% of circulating supply and valued at about $4.2 million. Movement (MOVE) is set to unlock about 164 million tokens at 8:00 p.m. Beijing time on April 9, equal to roughly 4.92% of circulating supply and valued at about $2.9 million. io.net (IO) will unlock about 11.31 million tokens at 8:00 p.m. Beijing time on April 11, representing around 0.68% of circulating supply and valued at about $1.3 million. (Source: PANews)

EXPLOIT: Drift Protocol has been hit by an estimated $280 million hack following an infiltration that reportedly went undetected for months.

Ethereum and the broader crypto market are showing signs of stress. Prices have stayed marginally positive at times, but buyers have struggled to overpower persistent selling. Against that backdrop, Tom Lee's BitMine has drawn attention for increasing its Ethereum exposure. On April 4, BitMine added 40,000 ETH valued at $82.07 million, sourced from FalconX, an institutional crypto prime brokerage, according to Lookonchain. The purchase landed as the Crypto Fear and Greed Index remained in "Extreme Fear." The indicator has spent most of the period since mid-January below "Neutral," largely oscillating between "Fear" and "Extreme Fear," underscoring how some firms are positioning without waiting for sentiment to recover. In the Bitcoin market, a comparable accumulation playbook has been associated with Michael Saylor's Strategy, which holds 762,099 BTC. The approach has influenced other corporate buyers, including Metaplanet, Boyaa Interactive and American Bitcoin Corp. Following the latest addition, BitMine's ETH holdings total 4,732,082 ETH, worth about $9.69 billion. SharpLink ranks next with 868,699 ETH ($1.77 billion), followed by The Ether Machine with 496,712 ETH ($1.01 billion). ETHZilla is ranked seventh with roughly 69,802 ETH ($141.92 million), while Galaxy Digital ranks ninth with 29,200 ETH ($59.33 million). Across more than 30 entities tracked, total Ethereum treasury holdings stand at 6,733,596 ETH valued at $13.79 billion. On the market side, ETH was trading at $2,028.64, down 1.34% over the past 24 hours. Spot Ethereum [ETH] ETFs recorded outflows even as the new quarter began. On-chain data points to longer-term positioning. Net transfer volume to and from exchanges suggests investors have been moving ETH off exchanges despite price weakness. Separately, the Ethereum Foundation lifted its total staked ETH holdings to around $139 million over the past seven days, signaling continued long-horizon participation from large holders. Final Summary Even with sentiment stuck in "Extreme Fear," institutional buyers are continuing to accumulate. Exchange flow data continues to support a longer-term bullish read despite near-term price softness.

Swift and Chainlink have completed a major interoperability trial designed to support tokenized bond transactions across multiple blockchain networks while remaining connected to existing financial infrastructure. The work aims to standardize digital-asset processing for institutional users through established messaging and data standards, including ISO 20022. The trial included several European banking participants, including BNP Paribas Securities Services, Intesa Sanpaolo, and Société Générale FORGE. Chainlink said the testing showed how Swift can coordinate tokenized bond flows across both blockchain environments and traditional enterprise systems. The project builds on earlier work involving UBS Asset Management and more than 12 global financial institutions. Participants including Citi and BNY Mellon tested cross-chain settlement using existing payment rails, allowing access to blockchain networks without replacing current systems. Institutions relied on Swift messaging standards alongside Chainlink infrastructure. On the data side, the initiative introduced a framework to standardize corporate actions information. During testing, Chainlink's Runtime Environment validated outputs from multiple AI models, converted the results into ISO 20022 messages, and sent them over the Swift network. In parallel, Chainlink's Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) distributed the same data across blockchains. Designated data attestors and contributors verified and enriched records, delivering nearly 100% accuracy across the corporate actions tested. The setup also supported multilingual processing, including Spanish and Chinese disclosures. Chainlink also expanded into identity and compliance tooling. Through a partnership with the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation, the firms introduced verifiable identity capabilities for blockchain use, combining legal entity data with on-chain infrastructure to support compliant transactions, asset-origin verification, and programmatic enforcement of regulatory requirements. Swift and Chainlink additionally demonstrated CCIP-based cross-chain transfers with institutions including Euroclear, Clearstream, and Lloyds Banking Group, highlighting a path for tokenized assets to move across systems while keeping data, identity, and compliance standards consistent.

Odaily Planet Daily reported that 10x Research said on X that Ethereum has lagged over the past five years, with ETH still trading around the $2,000 area last seen in the prior cycle. The firm has kept a cautious view since November, citing soft onchain activity that has constrained demand and value capture for ETH. ETH has fallen 57% from its August 2025 peak, versus roughly a 42% drop for BTC over the same period, leaving ETH relatively undervalued in 10x Research's view. The note also pointed to large market-capitalization losses, including an $8 billion drawdown at ETH treasury companies such as Bitmine. Even so, 10x Research said capital formation continues. USDT issuance on Ethereum has recently surpassed Tron, fueling the argument that Ethereum could emerge as the main beneficiary of stablecoin growth and potentially become the financial backbone for Wall Street-led onchain infrastructure. The firm said it is reassessing whether ETH is approaching a turning point or if structural headwinds remain in place.

Charles Schwab, which serves 38.9 million active brokerage accounts and oversees $12.22 trillion in client assets, is moving from indirect crypto exposure to direct spot trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum. The firm said it will begin a phased rollout in the second quarter through Schwab Crypto, offered via its bank affiliate Charles Schwab Premier Bank, SSB. Eligible clients will be able to buy and sell Bitcoin and Ethereum directly. Availability will span all U.S. states except New York and Louisiana, with access starting with employees and a small initial group before expanding more broadly. The launch targets mainstream brokerage customers rather than crypto-native users, testing whether direct BTC and ETH ownership can fit inside a traditional investing workflow long dominated by stocks, bonds, and ETFs. Account structure and limits Schwab Crypto will operate as a dedicated account tied to the affiliated bank subsidiary, separate from clients' existing brokerage accounts. The crypto assets will not carry SIPC or FDIC protection. Schwab also said it will not accept crypto deposits and will not settle securities or futures transactions in crypto. The result is direct access, but on broker-defined rails with clear product boundaries. A distribution-based estimate highlights the potential scale: if direct-crypto adoption reaches 0.5% to 2% of Schwab's 38.9 million accounts, that would translate to roughly 194,500 to 778,000 direct holders. Regulatory calendar shaped the product calendar Schwab's timing into 2026 follows a rapid easing of major institutional frictions in early 2025: - January 2025: SAB 122 rescinded SAB 121, reducing a key accounting constraint that had made crypto custody economics unattractive for traditional banks. - March 2025: The OCC reaffirmed that crypto custody, certain stablecoin activities, and participation in distributed ledgers are permissible for national banks, and removed the supervisory nonobjection requirement. - April 2025: The Federal Reserve withdrew earlier crypto guidance and shifted oversight to standard supervisory processes. Schwab CEO Rick Wurster characterized the regulatory backdrop as "pretty green" for large firms to expand into crypto, underscoring how closely policy changes preceded the product rollout. Schwab's internal shift on Bitcoin In March 2026, Schwab published research arguing Bitcoin had matured into a mainstream asset and, by some measures, had become less volatile than certain "Magnificent 7" stocks. Reuters also reported Wurster sees the core user as an investor who already owns stocks and bonds and wants a small allocation to Bitcoin or Ethereum alongside traditional holdings. Competitive landscape Schwab enters a market where Fidelity already offers direct crypto buying, selling, and transfers alongside brokerage positions through its platform and app. E*TRADE has posted a "coming soon" page for direct trading in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, and reports have pointed to Morgan Stanley exploring a service via Zerohash in the first half of 2026. Schwab's role could be catalytic: its scale may help shift direct BTC and ETH ownership from a niche feature into a standard "asset sleeve" within diversified brokerage accounts. Two adoption paths A higher-adoption outcome would depend on Schwab expanding eligibility quickly and delivering a low-friction experience that encourages clients to consolidate holdings into the new account. In that scenario, broader brokerage distribution could accelerate retail adoption, aligning with bullish projections such as Citi's $165,000 bitcoin and $4,488 ether bull-case targets. A lower-adoption outcome would hinge on product friction: state exclusions, the bank-subsidiary structure, lack of crypto deposits, and transfer constraints may leave active users preferring crypto-native venues such as Coinbase and Kraken, or Fidelity's more integrated setup. The next key signal for the market will be how rapidly Schwab's initial second-quarter cohort converts and whether the company accelerates the rollout to general availability on schedule.

April 5 — HyperInsight data shows Huang Licheng has increased his 25x-leveraged ETH long position to 7,500 ETH, valued at about $15.24 million. The position carries an average entry price of $2,073.10 and a liquidation level of $1,988.30, with an unrealized loss currently standing at $306,000.