Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, has taken an equity stake in crypto exchange OKX at a $25 billion valuation, according to Fortune. The deal grants ICE a board seat and outlines plans for OKX to list tokenized NYSE stocks and derivatives in the second half of 2026, alongside a data arrangement for crypto price feeds.

From March 2 to March 4, spot bitcoin ETFs saw around $1.1 billion in net inflows while bitcoin's price briefly touched $74,000 and traded above $73,000. Analysts say the renewed institutional demand, led by BlackRock's IBIT, is reigniting discussion about bitcoin's potential role as a geopolitical and macro hedge amid tensions involving the U.S., Israel and Iran.

Core Scientific plans to sell substantially all of its bitcoin holdings in 2026, with most sales expected in the first quarter, to support its expansion into AI and high-performance computing infrastructure. The company held 2,537 BTC valued at $222 million at the end of 2025 and had already liquidated just over 1,900 BTC for about $175 million in January, leaving fewer than 1,000 BTC on its balance sheet.

Aave Chan Initiative founder Marc Zeller has released a detailed review of Aave Labs' historical funding and delivery ahead of a $51 million "Aave Will Win" Snapshot proposal. His report claims Aave Labs has benefited from about $86 million in total capitalization, questions revenue and usage around the Horizon RWA market, and raises concerns over swap-fee flows and voting power concentration. The review asks tokenholders to weigh these accountability and transparency issues before backing Aave Labs' new expansion plan and V4 roadmap.

Crypto exchange Backpack said it will allocate 20% of its equity to users who stake its token for at least one year. The plan offers a fixed token-to-equity swap ratio and seeks to address incentive misalignment, according to founder Armani Ferrante. The exchange flagged the initiative in an X post on Monday.

House Democrats have sent a formal letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asking about the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's review of World Liberty Financial's application for a national trust bank charter. The lawmakers are focused on issues such as foreign ownership, national security, regulatory independence and possible involvement of the White House or Treasury in the process.

Bitcoin remains under the "True Market Mean" near $79,000, while the Realized Price around $54,900 defines the lower structural boundary. Analysts say persistent U.S. spot ETF outflows, tight liquidity and muted large-holder demand have kept price action confined to the $60,000–$70,000 band heading into late February.

CME Group plans to introduce round-the-clock trading for cryptocurrency futures and options on May 29, 2026, pending regulatory review, covering assets such as BTC and ETH. The derivatives marketplace reported $3 trillion in notional crypto derivatives volume in 2025 and a 46% year-over-year rise in average daily crypto futures volume in 2026. The move aims to align its regulated products with the continuous trading hours of digital asset spot markets as institutional demand grows.

On the morning of Feb. 12, Binance France head David Princay was reportedly the target of two failed home invasions in Val-de-Marne and Vaucresson, during which three masked suspects allegedly stole two mobile phones. Police later traced the devices and used surveillance footage to locate the trio on a train to Lyon, where they were arrested at Lyon Perrache station and placed in custody. The incidents come amid a broader rise in France in so-called wrench attacks involving physical coercion to access crypto assets.