Important news from last night and this morning (March 5th - March 6th)

Hyperliquid's top BTC long position will be liquidated with only $729 remaining.

According to on-chain analyst @ai_9684xtpa, Hyperliquid's top BTC long position is about to be liquidated, with only $729 remaining. Address 0x1bf…9547e currently holds a 40x leveraged long position of 731.73 BTC, with an opening price of $71,441 and a liquidation price of $70,200, resulting in a current unrealized loss of $375,000. Since March, this address has also been trading BTC contracts at high frequency, both long and short positions, accumulating profits of $644,000.

CleanSpark sold 97% of its February Bitcoin production to fund its AI transformation.

According to CoinDesk, Bitcoin mining company CleanSpark released its February operations update, reporting that it produced 568 Bitcoins that month while selling 553, a sales ratio of 97%, one of the highest reported production-to-sales ratios for the company. Based on an average price of $66,279, this generated approximately $36.65 million in cash. This sale aims to fund its expansion into AI and high-performance computing data centers. As of February 28, CleanSpark still held 13,363 Bitcoins, of which 1,086 were held as collateral or receivables related to derivatives trading. The company operates at a hashrate of 50 EH/s, representing approximately 7% of the global hashrate, and has added 300 megawatts of capacity in Texas, bringing its total contracted power to 1.8 gigawatts.

Vitalik: Ethereum should adhere to its core L1 characteristics while adopting a bolder and more open mindset at the application layer.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin published an article on the X platform, arguing that while adhering to its core L1 characteristics—censorship resistance, open source, privacy, and security—Ethereum should adopt a bolder and more open approach to application layers and its interaction with the world. He raised the question: What should we do if AI causes Ethereum wallets, which function as browser extensions, to disappear within a year? What would the future of DeFi be like if it were essentially just a general futures market based on decentralized oracles, where users self-organize? He pointed out that as AI develops, "applications" are evolving from discrete behavioral categories into a continuous space, thus the model of "reducing application development and relying more on users to self-organize around core functions" will inevitably expand.

Vitalik: Next-generation wallets will heavily utilize AI; completely removing the DApp user interface can prevent numerous attacks.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin posted on the X platform: "It's clear that next-generation wallets will heavily rely on artificial intelligence. I wouldn't trust a local light client (LLM) to handle millions of dollars in transactions or funds. In high-value scenarios, the best workflow is 'AI proposes a solution, the local light client simulates its execution, and the user views the operation and simulation results and manually confirms them.' All of this needs to be done with caution and a high degree of security, but it could bring immense convenience; completely removing the DApp's user interface can eliminate a large number of attack avenues, including theft and privacy breaches."

ParaFi Capital appears to have swapped over $5 million worth of AAVE for SKY over the past three days.

According to on-chain analyst Yu Jin, seemingly influenced by the Aave governance controversy, investment firm ParaFi Capital may have exchanged AAVE for SKY within the past three days. Three days ago (March 3rd), ParaFi Capital transferred 42,500 AAVE ($5.26 million) to Coinbase Prime. Then, four hours ago today, ParaFi Capital withdrew 70 million SKY ($5.38 million) from Coinbase Prime.

Farage's Reform Party Receives Second Large Donation from Crypto Investors

According to Reuters, the UK's Reform Party, led by Nigel Farage, received a large donation from crypto investor Christopher Harborne for the second consecutive quarter, raising £5.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, with £3 million coming from Harborne. Previously, in the third quarter, Harborne donated £9 million, setting a record for the largest single donation by a living donor in British political history. For the year, the Reform Party raised over £18 million in cash donations, more than double the ruling Labour Party's £8.1 million and exceeding the opposition Conservative Party's £13.4 million. The Reform Party currently holds only eight parliamentary seats but has led in national polls since early last year and hopes to win the local elections in May.

Culper Research announced a short position on ETH and related securities, citing damage to the token economic model following the Fusaka upgrade.

Short-selling firm Culper Research announced a short position on Ethereum and ETH-related securities, including BMNR. The firm argues that the ETH token economic model has been damaged following the Fusaka upgrade in December 2025. The upgrade increased the gas cap to 45-60 million, and while a 10-30% decrease in gas fees was expected, it actually decreased by approximately 90%. Furthermore, Culper argues that Vitalik and validators' calculations of L1 demand elasticity are based on an outdated model with an error margin of 3-9 times. Culper also refuted Tom Lee's bullish views.

The Pump.fun team's associated wallet deposited 1.757 billion PUMPs, equivalent to approximately $3.54 million, into Bitget.

According to Onchain Lens monitoring, the Pump.fun team's associated wallet deposited 1.757 billion PUMPs ($3.54 million) into Bitget. The wallet still holds 12.3 billion PUMPs ($24.77 million).

Kraken launches xChange, a unified execution layer for xStocks tokenized stock trading.

According to The Block, Kraken launched xChange, an on-chain trading engine and unified execution layer for its xStocks tokenized assets, enabling 24/7 trading on Ethereum and Solana. The platform supports direct trading of over 70 tokenized US stocks and ETFs, including popular assets such as Apple, Tesla, and the S&P 500. xChange ensures complete execution through atomic settlement, with pricing derived from the real-time open market. xStocks also announced an integration with 1inch on the same day to enhance xChange's on-chain liquidity.

Coinbase CEO and executives face shareholder lawsuits over disclosure and compliance issues.

According to The Block, Coinbase shareholder Kevin Meehan has filed a shareholder derivative lawsuit on behalf of the company, accusing CEO Brian Armstrong and other executives of making misleading statements between April 2021 and June 2023, failing to adequately disclose risks related to customer asset custody, securities law risks associated with token listings, and anti-money laundering compliance deficiencies. Defendants include co-founder Fred Ehrsam, Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal, President and COO Emilie Choi, and several board members. The lawsuit alleges that Coinbase's user agreement stated that custodial wallet assets were "assets held by the company on behalf of customers," but failed to disclose that these assets could be included in the bankruptcy estate in the event of company bankruptcy, potentially turning retail users into unsecured creditors.

CryptoQuant: Bitcoin's rebound is more like a short-term "relief rally" than the start of a new bull market.

According to The Block, Julio Moreno, head of research at CryptoQuant, stated that Bitcoin's recent rally is more of a short-term "relief rally" driven by easing selling pressure, rather than the start of a new bullish cycle. He pointed out that although Bitcoin briefly rebounded above $73,000, on-chain data shows the market remains in a bear market environment, with its Bitcoin bullish rating index still at only 10 out of 100. Moreno's analysis suggests that the contraction in spot demand has narrowed from approximately -136,000 BTC at the beginning of the year to approximately -25,000 BTC, indicating that selling pressure has eased since early February.

Solv Protocol disclosed that its BRO vault suffered an attack, resulting in a loss of approximately $2.7 million.

According to The Block, Solv Protocol, a Bitcoin-centric DeFi platform, stated that its BRO vault suffered a "limited attack," affecting approximately 10 users and resulting in a loss of 38.0474 SolvBTC (worth approximately $2.7 million at the time). The platform will cover this loss. Solv stated that other vaults and user funds are safe and that it is collaborating with multiple security agencies to investigate and take measures to prevent recurrence. It is also offering a 10% white-hat bounty to the attackers to help recover the funds. According to security analysis, the attackers exploited a double-coining vulnerability in a contract 22 times, inflating 135 BRO to 567 million, which was then exchanged for approximately 38 SolvBTC.

US Defense Secretary says military action against Iran will escalate further.

According to Jinshi News, on March 5th local time, US Defense Secretary Hergsays stated that US military operations against Iran would escalate further, with a "significant increase" in airstrikes over Tehran, the Iranian capital. Hergsays said the US military would deploy more fighter squadrons, increase combat and defensive capabilities, and raise bomber sortie rates, but did not disclose specific military details. He stated that airstrikes against Iran and its capital Tehran would "significantly increase" in the near future, and that the US military was receiving more support from overseas bases.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dismissed charges against Justin Sun and the Tron Foundation; Rainberry agreed to pay a $10 million fine.

According to The Block, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dropped its 2023 charges against TRON founder Justin Sun, the TRON Foundation, and the BitTorrent Foundation, based on a final ruling issued Thursday by the Southern District of New York court. Rainberry, the company behind the BitTorrent protocol and BTT token developed by Sun, was fined $10 million and agreed to never engage in fraudulent market practices. In 2023, the SEC accused Sun and related companies of selling TRX and BTT tokens without registration and manipulating the price of TRX through fraudulent trading. Rainberry's fine primarily concerned its alleged market manipulation. Since Trump took office, the SEC has dropped several lawsuits against cryptocurrency institutions.

The Federal Reserve clarified the capital rules for tokenized securities, stating that the framework is "technology-neutral."

According to The Block, the Federal Reserve has released a Q&A document clarifying that banks should treat tokenized securities according to existing capital rules, emphasizing that the existing framework is "technology-neutral." The Fed stated that the technology used to issue or transfer securities (including blockchain technology) will not affect its regulatory capital treatment, and eligible tokenized securities should be treated under the same rules as non-tokenized securities. Tokenized securities can be used as financial collateral if they meet the same legal and risk management requirements as traditional securities. The Fed added that capital rules do not provide differential treatment regardless of whether permissioned or permissionless blockchains are used. This move follows the SEC's clarification in January that tokenized securities must still comply with federal securities laws, providing further guidance from regulators on the on-chain application of traditional assets.

OpenAI releases GPT-5.4, the most factual and efficient model.

According to Jinshi News, OpenAI officially launched GPT-5.4, claiming it to be the most factual and efficient model—fewer tokens, faster speed. In ChatGPT, GPT-5.4's thinking has been improved for deep web research, with better context preservation during long-term thought processes—users can now interrupt the model's response to add instructions or adjust its direction. The guided feature is available on Android and web this week, with an iOS version coming soon. OpenAI developers say GPT-5.4 possesses native computing capabilities. Codex and API support up to 1 million context tags, enabling optimal proxy coding for complex tasks, providing scalable tool search across a larger ecosystem, and enabling more efficient inference for long, tool-intensive workflows.

Iranian Foreign Minister: No ceasefire demanded; prepared to respond to US ground invasion.

According to a report by NBC News cited by Jinshi, Iranian Foreign Minister Araqchi stated in an interview on Thursday that Iran is prepared to respond to a US ground invasion as the war between Iran, the US, and Israel rapidly spreads throughout the region. Araqchi rejected any negotiations with the US and stated that Iran has not demanded a ceasefire. When asked if he was worried about a possible US ground invasion, Araqchi's tone was firm and provocative. "No, we are waiting for them," he added, "because we are confident we can confront them, and that would be a catastrophe for them." Araqchi also stated that despite the US and Israel launching attacks across Iran, Iran has not demanded a ceasefire. "Even last time, we did not demand a ceasefire. Last time, it was Israel that demanded a ceasefire. After 12 days of resisting their aggression, they demanded an unconditional ceasefire."

Trump: I need to personally participate in Iran's succession arrangements; I will not accept Khamenei's son succeeding as Supreme Leader.

According to Axios, cited by Jinshi, President Trump stated in an interview on Thursday that he needs to be personally involved in the selection of Iran's next leader, just as he did in Venezuela. Trump acknowledged that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the assassinated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, is the most likely successor, but also made it clear that he considers this outcome unacceptable. For several days, the Iranian regime has delayed announcing its successor. However, statements from Iranian political figures on Thursday suggested that an announcement may be imminent. Trump said, "They're wasting their time. Khamenei's son is an insignificant person. I have to be involved in the appointment process, just as I did with Delcy Rodriguez in Venezuela." He added that he rejects any new Iranian leader who would continue Khamenei's policies, which would force the United States to return to war "within five years."

ZachXBT: John Daghita's arrest was a direct result of my investigation.

According to ZachXBT, John Daghita (online name Lick), the son of a U.S. government contractor, was arrested in the Caribbean for allegedly stealing over $46 million in U.S. government-seized crypto assets. ZachXBT claims that in January 2026, he exposed John's use of access to his father's company, CMDSS (which holds a contract with the U.S. Marshals Service), to transfer assets from wallets managed by the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). John subsequently mocked ZachXBT multiple times on his Telegram channel and launched a "dust attack" on his publicly disclosed wallet address, transferring some of the allegedly stolen funds.

Coinbase will launch OPN perpetual contract trading.

Coinbase plans to launch the Opinion (OPN) perpetual contract trading pair OPN-PERP on March 5, provided that liquidity conditions are met and the trading is supported in the relevant region. The OPN perpetual contracts will be available to retail investors in specific jurisdictions through Coinbase Advanced, while institutional clients can participate directly in trading these perpetual contracts in compliant regions through Coinbase International Exchange.

Tether makes a strategic investment in Axiym, pushing USDT into compliant payment networks.

According to an announcement on Tether's official website, Tether has announced a strategic investment in fintech company Axiym. Axiym provides distributed funding and clearing infrastructure within a regulated payments ecosystem, enabling the native embedding of USDT into cross-border payments and settlement processes. Axiym claims its network covers 140 countries and 70 currencies and processes real-world settlements daily.

Sources say the Polish central bank intends to sell its gold reserves to fund defense programs.

According to sources, the governor of the Polish central bank has proposed raising up to 48 billion złoty (approximately $13 billion) through the sale of its gold reserves to fund defense spending, a plan supported by the Polish president. Governor Adam Glapinski outlined the proposal during a meeting with the president on Wednesday. Glapinski informed the president that the Polish central bank could generate profits by selling a portion of its approximately 550 tons of gold reserves, which it could then repurchase. Data shows that the Polish central bank has consistently been the world's largest publicly reported buyer of gold. This financing initiative reportedly faces legal and political hurdles in Poland, as Polish law prohibits central banks from directly funding the government.

OKX Star: Plans to connect ICE futures and NYSE tokenized stock market to 120 million users

According to official sources, OKX founder and CEO Star stated that Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) has completed its investment in OKX and will join the company's board of directors. ICE owns the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and a global derivatives and clearing platform; this collaboration reflects the shared understanding between the two companies that digital asset technology will play a long-term role in future financial markets.

OKB briefly broke through $120 per coin, surging by approximately 50%.

According to OKX market data, OKB briefly broke through $120 before slightly retreating, and is currently trading at $118 per coin, representing a 24-hour increase of approximately 54%.

ICE, the parent company of the NYSE, has acquired a stake in cryptocurrency exchange OKX, valuing the latter at approximately $25 billion.

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, announced an investment in cryptocurrency exchange OKX, valuing the company at approximately $25 billion and securing a board seat. OKX will provide ICE with real-time cryptocurrency price data and plans to open trading of NYSE-listed on-chain stocks and derivatives to its 120 million users starting in the second half of 2026.

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, together with three other regulatory bodies and Cyberport, launched the "GenA.I Sandbox++ Program".

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), together with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the Insurance Authority (IA), and the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), has partnered with Cyberport to launch the GenA.l. Sandbox++ scheme. This scheme aims to promote the responsible adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technology within Hong Kong's financial ecosystem. The GenA.l. Sandbox++ provides licensed institutions with a risk-controlled environment to develop, test, and optimize generative AI solutions across three key areas: risk management, anti-fraud, and customer experience. Scheme participants will receive targeted regulatory guidance and technical support, as well as free access to GPU computing resources at Cyberport's AI Supercomputing Centre.

Google DeepMind executives publicly recruit members for the "Tongyi Qianwen" project on X.

Omar Sanseviero, Google DeepMind's head of developer experience, posted "Qwen friends...please reach out," inviting members of the Qwen team to join and participate in building the open-source model ecosystem. This comes against the backdrop of recent attention drawn by the departure of core Qwen members, including Lin Junyang.