Actor William Shatner stated on Sunday that the X Money payments service uses fiat money backed by a “real bank” and has nothing to do with cryptocurrency.

Not Crypto, But Fiat

The “Star Trek” star, who has been promoting the social media giant’s new feature, stated the deposits are held in dollars in Cross River Bank and are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to $250,000 per person.

‘Elon Dollars’ For Promoting X Money?

The clarification comes in the wake of the beta rollout of the X Money feature as part of Elon Musk’s ambitious “everything app” vision.  Shatner previewed the service earlier in the week, sharing screenshots of the user interface and…

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Leading cryptocurrencies slid alongside stock futures and commodities Sunday overnight as the ongoing Middle East conflict kept investors on edge.

Cryptos Sell Off

Bitcoin tumbled below $65,000 in the evening, while trading volume surged 52% in the last 24 hours. Ethereum also encountered strong selling pressure as the second-largest cryptocurrency gave up gains from earlier in the week.

The cryptocurrency market saw over $340 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, with nearly $175 million wiped out in just the last 4 hours, mostly from long positions, according to Coinglass data 

Open interest in Bitcoin fell 1.14% in the last 24 hours. Even so, whale and retail derivative traders…

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Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) faced setbacks in its early days, so Brian Armstrong did what most startup founders are advised to do— talk to customers to improve their product.

Coinbase Stumbled Early On

Appearing on “The Tim Ferriss Show” podcast from Oct. 11, 2022, Armstrong recalled the time when Coinbase lost traction and went “flat” after the initial launch hype in 2012.

Armstrong was enrolled in the Y Combinator startup incubator program at the time, where he learned the value of regularly collecting user feedback to refine the product.

Starup founders have regularly emphasized that by launching, talking to customers, and iterating, one can actually find a product…

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This week was a whirlwind of activity in the world of finance and cryptocurrency. From Binance debunking allegations of Iran-linked crypto flows to Kazakhstan’s central bank announcing a hefty investment in crypto, there was no shortage of intriguing developments. Here’s a quick recap of the top stories.

Binance Refutes Claims Of Iran-Linked Crypto Flows

Contrary to media reports, Binance has categorically denied any direct transactions between its platform and Iranian entities. The crypto exchange has labeled the allegations of $1.7 billion in Iran-linked flows as “demonstrably false” and “defamatory.”

Read the full article here.

Kazakhstan Central Bank’s Crypto Investment

Benzinga

Binance (CRYPTO: BNB) has told Sen. Richard Blumenthal’s (D-CT) Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations that an internal review found no direct transactions between its platform and Iranian entities.

Media reports alleging $1.7 billion in Iran-linked flows are “demonstrably false” and “defamatory,” according to Binance.

The Senate Probe

Blumenthal opened an inquiry in February, following allegations that two Binance partners, Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust, acted as middlemen for money laundering and allowed trade with Iranian government entities, Coindesk reported on Friday.

The Times reported Binance’s internal investigators discovered more than 1,500 accounts accessed from Iran…

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Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), TD Bank and Citgroup (NYSE:C) have outlined plans to integrate Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) into traditional finance as regulatory clarity improves and institutional demand grows.

At the “Bitcoin for Corporations” panel during Strategy World 2026 on Feb. 28, the banks discussed how digital assets could be integrated into traditional financial infrastructure.

Morgan Stanley Expands Crypto Services On E*TRADE

Morgan Stanley said it is expanding its crypto strategy by enabling clients on its E*TRADE platform to buy and sell spot cryptocurrencies.

Amy Oldenburg, the bank’s head of digital asset strategy, said the firm is also building native custody and exchange infrastructure…

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Culper Research published a short report on Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) on Thursday, calling its economics “impaired” and warning the network may be entering a “death spiral.”

The short seller also accused Fundstrat’s Tom Lee of “throwing good money after bad” through his ETH treasury company BitMine Immersion Technologies (NYSE:BMNR).

The report’s title says it all: “What Vitalik Knows, and Tom Lee Doesn’t.”

What Happened

In the short report, Culper says the Fusaka upgrade was supposed to cut transaction fees by 10-30%.

Instead, fees collapsed by roughly 90%, gutting the EIP-1559 burn mechanism that once made ETH deflationary.

The firm says Vitalik and validators…

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) dropped below $70,000 on Friday morning after the U.S. economy unexpectedly shed 92,000 jobs in February, and macro analyst Benjamin Cowen warned the March rally was a textbook bull trap that may now be over.

What Happened

Nonfarm payrolls came in at negative 92,000, far below the 59,000 consensus and a sharp reversal from January’s revised 126,000 gain. Unemployment rose to 4.4%.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) fell below 6,800 as oil headed for its biggest weekly gain since the early days of the Ukraine war.

Cowen argues the Fed is now trapped.

It cannot cut rates aggressively to save the labor market because energy prices are surging amid the Iran conflict.

Benzinga

A16z crypto, the Web3 arm of the venture firm Andreessen Horowitz, has started seeking capital for its fifth fund.

People familiar with the effort told Fortune the firm is aiming to gather roughly $2 billion for the fund, which will focus solely on blockchain investments.

• Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF Shares shares are sliding. Why is ETHE stock falling?

One source added that the fundraising process is expected to be completed by the end of the first half of 2026.

The firm has been actively investing in other crypto-related companies throughout the last several months. 

Yesterday, it was announced that A16z and Thrive Capital are reportedly leading a $4 billion funding round for…

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is down to $68,000, with the recent rally only a relief bounce within a broader bearish market structure, according to a prominent analyst.

Competing Market Narratives              

Trader Mayne said on Thursday Bitcoin’s rebound from the Iran conflict lows has created two opposing narratives in the market.

One group believes the breakout signals the end of a multi-month range and the start of a move higher.

The other views the rally as a temporary bounce within a broader bear trend.

Mayne sides with the bearish higher-timeframe view, arguing that Bitcoin recently confirmed a monthly market structure break, a signal that historically indicates the broader…

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