Malawi has tapped its domestic gold reserves to help pay for higher fuel costs as the war in Iran fuels a global energy shock. The Reserve Bank of Malawi said Friday it sold 590 kilograms of gold—just over half a tonne—raising $78 million earmarked to cover rising fuel expenses. Speaking to Reuters, central bank spokesperson Boston Maliketi Banda said the gold sold was sourced from local artisanal miners. Full story at Kitco:

CoinGlass data cited by Odaily Planet Daily shows 67,425 traders were liquidated worldwide over the past 24 hours, wiping out $195 million in positions. Long liquidations totaled $129 million, compared with $65.743 million for shorts. In the past 12 hours, liquidations reached $149 million, including $109 million from longs and $39.9961 million from shorts. Over the last 4 hours, liquidations were $62.4241 million, with longs at $52.7277 million and shorts at $9.6964 million. In the last hour, liquidations came to $2.997 million, split between $915,300 in longs and $2.0817 million in shorts. The largest single liquidation was recorded on Hyperliquid in the XYZ:CLUSD pair, valued at $6.5126 million.

ChainCatcher cited Coinglass data showing total crypto market liquidations of $195 million over the past 24 hours. Long positions accounted for $129 million, while shorts totaled $66.096 million. Bitcoin saw $43.6332 million in long liquidations and $6.7226 million in short liquidations. Ethereum recorded $32.1855 million in liquidated longs and $16.2638 million in liquidated shorts. Globally, 67,721 traders were liquidated during the period. The largest single liquidation was $6.5126 million on Hyperliquid (XYZ:CLUSD).

US gasoline prices climbed to a four-year high of $4.17 per gallon, up $1.19 per gallon (+28%) since the Iran war began on Feb. 28. US oil futures have been trading near $99 a barrel, more than 50% above prewar levels. Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted roughly 20% of global oil supply.

Visa has partnered with WeFi, led by former Tether CEO Reeve Collins, to let users spend self-custodied cryptocurrencies across Visa's payment network. The rollout will begin in select markets in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

Apr 28 update: #Bitcoin ETFs 1D net flow: 2,663 $BTC ($202.41M) 7D net flow: +3,725 $BTC (+$283.18M) #Ethereum ETFs 1D net flow: 27,316 $ETH ($62.23M) 7D net flow: 20,683 $ETH ($47.12M) #Solana ETFs 1D net flow: 14,488 $SOL ($1.21M) 7D net flow: +88,231 $SOL (+$7.37M)

Hyperliquid gains help offset $216 million Q1 loss at Novogratz's Galaxy Digital.

Galaxy Digital, the crypto financial services and infrastructure firm led by Mike Novogratz, reported a net loss of $216 million for Q1 2026, narrowing from a $482 million loss in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA came in at -$188 million, while diluted earnings were -$0.49 per share. Total equity rose 46% year over year to $2.8 billion. Cash and stablecoins totaled $2.6 billion, little changed from the previous quarter. The quarter's loss was driven primarily by unrealized markdowns on digital assets and investment positions in the Treasury and Corporate segment, as weaker crypto conditions weighed on valuations. Total crypto market capitalization fell about 20% during the period. Bitcoin dropped nearly 24%—its steepest quarterly decline since 2018—and ended March around $66,600. Helios data center buildout Galaxy energized its first data hall at the Helios campus in West Texas and delivered it to CoreWeave under a Phase I lease. Novogratz wrote on X: "The lights are on at Helios." He added that the AI data center business is now generating cash flow. The remaining 133 megawatts of critical IT capacity under Phase I is expected to be delivered by the end of Q2 2026. A 260-megawatt Phase II build is already underway, targeting early 2027 delivery. During the quarter, ERCOT approved an additional 830 megawatts of power for Helios, taking total approved capacity to more than 1.6 gigawatts. The full CoreWeave lease covers 526 megawatts of critical IT load across three phases with a 15-year base term. Galaxy estimates the arrangement alone will generate more than $1 billion in average annual revenue, with anticipated EBITDA margins of roughly 90%. Digital assets Adjusted gross profit in the digital assets segment was $49 million, slightly below the prior quarter's $51 million. Galaxy attributed the resilience to a greater mix of recurring fee revenue and transaction income. Trading counterparties rose 4% to 1,691. Galaxy's own trading volumes were flat even as industrywide volumes fell sharply, according to The Block. The lending book declined 20% to an average of $1.4 billion as clients reduced leverage. Asset management The asset management business ended Q1 2026 with about $5 billion in assets under management and $3.2 billion in assets under stake. Assets under stake fell 35% quarter over quarter, which the company said was almost entirely due to token price declines rather than client withdrawals. Net inflows were $69 million. BlackRock selected Galaxy as an approved validator for the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF, BlackRock's first rewards-generating crypto product. Galaxy also announced a new fintech-focused hedge fund aimed at the intersection of traditional finance and blockchain infrastructure, set to launch May 1. Corporate treasury and capital allocation The corporate treasury segment posted an adjusted gross loss of $140 million and EBITDA of -$167 million, reflecting unrealized markdowns on digital asset holdings and venture investments. Galaxy said its equity allocation is roughly split among digital assets (33%), data centers (28%), and treasury and corporate (39%). Buybacks and listing changes Galaxy repurchased 3.2 million shares for $65 million during the quarter, more than offsetting dilution from employee stock grants. The company also completed a voluntary delisting from the Toronto Stock Exchange and is now fully consolidated on Nasdaq. Management said the move streamlines the corporate structure following the May 2025 reorganization that converted the prior partnership into a standard corporate entity.