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News | Crypto Converter | Crypto Calculators |
Franklin Templeton launches crypto unit with bold deal |
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Key points: |
Franklin Templeton is acquiring 250 Digital to launch "Franklin Crypto," a new unit focused on institutional digital asset strategies. The deal introduces an on-chain twist, with BENJI tokens used as part of the acquisition payment.
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News - Global asset manager Franklin Templeton is expanding its digital asset business with the launch of "Franklin Crypto," a dedicated division anchored by its planned acquisition of 250 Digital, a CoinFund spinoff specializing in liquid digital asset strategies. |
Expected to close in Q2 2026, the deal brings the full 250 Digital team and its strategies into Franklin Templeton's ecosystem. Christopher Perkins will lead the new unit, with Seth Ginns stepping in as Chief Investment Officer alongside Tony Pecore from the firm's digital assets team. |
The move reflects a shift toward building deeper in-house capabilities to broaden its crypto investment platform for institutional clients. |
A pivot toward active crypto investing - Franklin Templeton, which manages about $1.8 billion in digital assets, has been steadily building its presence through products like its spot Bitcoin ETF and tokenized money market fund. |
With 250 Digital's strategies now in focus, the firm is moving beyond passive exposure and into actively managed crypto investments tailored for institutional portfolios. |
Why timing could matter - The expansion comes even as crypto markets remain under pressure, with Bitcoin trading well below its late-2025 peak. However, Franklin Templeton views the pullback as an opportunity to scale, attract talent, and strengthen long-term infrastructure. |
Tokenized deal-making takes a step forward - A notable feature of the transaction is the use of BENJI tokens, which represent shares in Franklin's on-chain U.S. Government Money Fund, as part of the payment. |
This approach reflects early experimentation with blockchain-based settlement in mergers and acquisitions, signaling how tokenized assets could begin to play a role in future deal execution. |
Strategy reloads Bitcoin buying, but cracks show |
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Key points: |
Strategy is set to resume Bitcoin accumulation via STRC funding, with over $76 million potentially flowing into BTC this week. Despite aggressive buying, weakening sector demand and fading stock momentum raise questions about sustainability.
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News - Strategy is preparing to restart its Bitcoin accumulation engine after a brief pause, as its STRC preferred shares return to par, reopening a key funding channel. |
Estimates suggest the firm could deploy over $76 million into Bitcoin this week, adding more than 1,100 BTC. The move follows a break in its 13-week buying streak, a period when the company acted as one of the market's most consistent buyers. |
Bitcoin's recent rebound has coincided with this reopening window, a pattern that has historically aligned with periods of active Strategy buying. |
One firm carrying the demand? - That influence has become increasingly concentrated. In March, Strategy accounted for 94% of all public company Bitcoin purchases, acquiring over 44,000 BTC. |
Outside of Strategy, corporate demand appeared far weaker. Several firms reduced holdings, while only a small group added modest amounts, pointing to a shrinking pool of buyers. |
This raises a key question: how sustainable is a market where one company drives most institutional demand? |
Stock weakness tells a different story - Despite continued accumulation, Strategy's stock has struggled. MSTR has recorded nine straight monthly losses and remains significantly below its previous highs. |
Recent price action shows fading internal momentum, even as the stock maintains a strong correlation with Bitcoin. That link could amplify gains if BTC rises, but it also increases downside risk if sentiment reverses. |
STRC remains in focus - Strategy's ability to sustain its buying strategy depends heavily on STRC. The firm held its dividend steady at 11.5% for April after a series of increases, while retail investors now account for roughly 80% of holders. |
With a $42 billion capital-raising program in place, STRC remains a key part of the firm's funding strategy, even as broader market support shows signs of thinning. |
XRP drops 27% as demand fades despite growth |
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Key points: |
XRP closed Q1 down 27% with $29 billion wiped from its market cap, as institutional and retail demand weakened. Despite supply tightening and new enterprise adoption, price action remains stuck, highlighting a growing disconnect.
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News - XRP ended Q1 2026 with a steep 27% decline, as market capitalization dropped from $112 billion to $83 billion. The quarter began with a rally toward $2.40 in January, but gains quickly reversed, leaving the token range-bound between $1.30 and $1.50 through March. |
XRP is still hovering near $1.34–$1.35, holding support but failing to break higher despite rising volume and repeated rebound attempts. |
Demand softens across the board - Both institutional and retail interest have cooled. XRP exchange-traded funds recorded net outflows in March, while more recent activity has remained muted. Meanwhile, futures open interest has declined sharply from prior highs, reflecting reduced participation. |
Even as supply tightens, with billions of tokens leaving exchanges, buyers have largely stayed on the sidelines, leaving rallies capped near resistance levels. |
Adoption rises, but price lags - At the same time, Ripple is expanding into financial infrastructure. Its updated treasury platform allows enterprises to manage digital assets like XRP alongside fiat balances within a single system, offering real-time visibility and reducing operational friction. |
The shift reflects a broader move toward integrating digital assets into existing financial workflows. |
Regulation could be the wildcard - Evernorth has pointed to a potential catalyst. The proposed CLARITY Act could provide legal certainty around XRP's classification, potentially unlocking broader institutional participation if passed. |
For now, XRP remains caught between improving fundamentals and fading demand, leaving price action stuck between the two forces. |
U.S. crackdown on crypto wash trading escalates with extraditions |
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Key points: |
U.S. authorities have charged 10 individuals linked to crypto market manipulation, with three extradited from Singapore to face trial. The case stems from a multi-year undercover operation targeting "market-manipulation-as-a-service" schemes.
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News - The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has intensified its crackdown on crypto market manipulation, bringing 10 foreign nationals tied to four market-making firms into a widening wash trading case. |
Three defendants, including Vortex CEO Gleb Gora, Contrarian CEO Manu Singh, and Contrarian employee Vasu Sharma, were extradited from Singapore and appeared in federal court in Oakland. The charges follow a broader investigation into coordinated schemes designed to inflate token prices and trading volumes. |
Authorities allege that the accused used tactics such as wash trading, matched orders, and prearranged transactions to create artificial demand before selling assets at inflated prices. |
Undercover operation exposes manipulation networks - The case traces back to an undercover operation launched in 2024, where U.S. investigators created crypto tokens to identify firms offering manipulation services. |
This effort uncovered what regulators describe as organized "market-manipulation-as-a-service," with firms allegedly helping clients boost token visibility and liquidity through fake trading activity. |
More than $1 million in cryptocurrency has been seized so far, while some defendants have already entered guilty pleas. |
Global reach, growing enforcement - The investigation highlights the cross-border nature of crypto manipulation, with defendants spanning multiple countries and operations extending beyond U.S. jurisdiction. |
Prosecutors have emphasized that such practices can mislead investors by distorting liquidity and demand. |
The latest charges build on earlier enforcement actions, including prior cases involving similar schemes and penalties against firms accused of manipulating thinly traded tokens. |
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More stories from the crypto ecosystem |
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Did you know? |
Stablecoins got big enough to start nudging U.S. Treasury markets: A February 2026 BIS working paper found that a $3.5 billion inflow into dollar-backed stablecoins can lower 3-month Treasury bill yields by 2.5 to 3.5 basis points, with the effect rising to 5 to 8 basis points when bill supply is tight. Ethereum entered its second decade with zero downtime on record: On its 10-year anniversary page, Ethereum.org states the network has gone through 16 upgrades with 0 downtime, while the wider Ethereum ecosystem now handles over 250 transactions per second. The same page also notes Ethereum has grown to 24M+ daily transactions across its ecosystem, showing how much activity has shifted beyond L1 alone. The day Bitcoin accidentally broke its own scarcity rule: In August 2010, Bitcoin briefly suffered the infamous "value overflow" bug, when block 74,638 created 184,467,440,737.09551616 BTC, far beyond the network's 21 million cap. The exploit was patched within hours, and the invalid transaction was later rejected by updated consensus rules.
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Forget Nvidia — These 5 Stocks Could Soar Next |
MarketBeat's analysts just released their five highest-rated stocks for March 2026, and none of the usual suspects made the cut. Not Apple. Not Nvidia. See which companies earned a spot on this month's list. |
View the 5 Stocks Now |
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Top 3 coins of the day |
Algorand (ALGO) |
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Key points: |
ALGO broke out sharply above $0.100 after a prolonged downtrend, rallying toward $0.110 with strong bullish momentum. The Supertrend flipped bullish while DMI showed +DI dominance and a rising ADX above 40, confirming a strong trend phase.
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What you should know: |
ALGO reversed its late-March downtrend after finding support near $0.080 and surged past the $0.088–$0.090 consolidation zone before reclaiming $0.100. The move was backed by a visible spike in volume, aligning with reports of a 229% surge in trading activity as liquidity flooded in. Momentum strengthened as the Supertrend flipped green and DMI signaled firm buyer control. The rally also coincided with renewed interest in Algorand's quantum-resistant positioning following a recent Google quantum paper, alongside broader rotation into altcoins at the start of the quarter. If price holds above $0.100, the next resistance sits near $0.110, while $0.095 remains the immediate support to watch. |
Polygon (POL) |
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Key points: |
POL rebounded from the $0.088 zone and climbed back above its 9-day SMA, signaling a short-term recovery attempt. RSI moved toward the upper 50s while rising volume supported the bounce, reflecting improving but still moderate momentum.
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What you should know: |
POL recovered after a sharp drop on March 31, with price stabilizing near $0.088 before pushing toward $0.095. The move coincided with a 21% jump in trading volume, indicating renewed participation as the broader market added over 1.2% in total cap. Price reclaimed the 9-day SMA, suggesting easing bearish pressure, while RSI climbed into the mid-50s, pointing to steady momentum without overheating. Sentiment has also been supported by rising staking yields near 44.71% and positioning ahead of the PIP-85 upgrade expected within days. For continuation, $0.095 remains the immediate resistance, while $0.090 serves as the key support to watch. |
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) |
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Key points: |
BCH slipped back toward $459 after failing to hold gains near $467, reflecting continued selling pressure within its range. Parabolic SAR stayed above price while the Awesome Oscillator expanded further in negative territory, signaling strengthening bearish momentum.
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What you should know: |
Bitcoin Cash struggled to sustain its late-March recovery after a sharp drop from above $480, with price repeatedly facing rejection near the $467–$468 zone. The decline was reinforced by a large whale offloading over 60,000 BCH, which triggered a cascade of liquidations, including a $2.15 million long wipeout on Binance. Momentum weakened further as the Awesome Oscillator printed deeper red bars below zero, while SAR remained positioned above the candles. Despite brief rebounds, the structure has leaned downward, with $452 acting as the immediate support and $467 as the key resistance to reclaim for any recovery attempt. |
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