Crypto Weekly Market Wrap April 20: Fund Flows, Security Breaches, Policy Moves, and Market Rebound

A wave of policy moves, security alerts, product launches, and market events shaped the latest crypto market across several major jurisdictions last week. Regulators, banks, public companies, and protocol teams pushed new rules, launched infrastructure, addressed security failures, and adjusted treasury strategies as the industry moved through another dense stretch of developments. In this article, we will discuss the major events that made headlines last week.

SEC Outlines Operating Path for DeFi Front Ends

The SEC said some DeFi front ends can operate without broker licenses when they act as neutral software interfaces. The agency drew a distinction between passive interfaces and traditional intermediaries handling execution or client relationships. The outlined safe-harbor approach favors apps that avoid custody, discretion, and solicitation. However, platforms with order routing, deal negotiation, or centralized matching still face broker-dealer treatment.

Ethereum-backed Effort Tracks Suspected DPRK Workers

A security program backed by the Ethereum ecosystem identified about 100 suspected North Korean operatives. According to investigators, they joined Web3 companies via recruitment platforms and contacted about 53 projects.

The ETH Rangers Program has wrapped up and the results speak for themselves: $5.8M+ recovered, 785+ vulnerabilities reported, 100+ DPRK operatives identified, and so much more.

A decentralized defence for a decentralized network.

Read the full recap 👇

— EF Ecosystem Support Program (@EF_ESP) April 16, 2026

Researchers associated wallet flows and recycled developer accounts, resume trends, and Internet profiles. The efforts also alerted the teams that were affected, which then blocked the access, changed keys, and froze some related funds. The trend shows how the pipeline hiring method has become a breach point for network intrusion.

Circle Chief Backs Case for Yuan Stablecoin

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said a yuan-backed stablecoin offers major global potential. He argued that digital currencies help countries extend monetary reach through faster cross-border payments and lower transfer costs. Speaking in Hong Kong, Allaire said China wants a stronger global role for the yuan. He added that a compliant stablecoin may serve that goal better than a tightly controlled CBDC. He framed payments technology as a new channel for currency influence in trade.

DOJ Opens Claims Route for OneCoin Victims

The U.S. Justice Department launched a claims process for victims of the OneCoin fraud. The move follows convictions tied to one of the biggest scams connected to digital assets. Victims must submit records such as transfers, receipts, emails, or screenshots. The DOJ will verify losses and eligibility before distributing seized funds among approved claimants. This process gives victims a formal route after years of stalled recovery efforts.

Russia Advances Stricter Rules for Crypto Trading

The central bank of Russia plans to impose identity checks on crypto traders and stronger KYC requirements on local exchanges. The proposal also applies to anonymous flows and foreign-wallet transfers. Separately, lawmakers passed criminal penalties for illegally circulating crypto, with terms of imprisonment depending on the size of the transaction. These new penalties will be effective on July 1 next year.

REGULATION 🇷🇺 | Russia Introduces Crypto Bill With Severe Criminal Penalties and Prison Time for Unregistered Operations

Under the proposal submitted to the State Duma, individuals and entities involved in #organizing or #facilitating crypto transactions without #registration… pic.twitter.com/hDDlpsMKlk

— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) April 18, 2026

France Plans Response to Crypto Kidnapping Threat

French officials said new protections are coming as crypto-related kidnappings and wrench attacks rise across the country. Interior Minister Delegate Jean-Didier Berger discussed the issue during Paris Blockchain Week. Authorities already launched a preventive platform that has drawn thousands of registrations. France has recorded 41 crypto-linked kidnappings since January, while global attacks rose sharply in the last year, placing France at the center of the trend.

Bhutan Sells More Bitcoin This Year

Bhutan sold another $18.46 million in bitcoin, bringing 2026 sales to nearly $198 million. After the latest transfer, the country still held roughly 3,524 BTC. The remaining holdings are valued at nearly $264 million at the cited market price. Based on the recent selling pace, observers suggest Bhutan’s treasury could run much lower before September if disposals continue.

Bitmine Reports Heavy Loss From Asset Repricing

Bitmine Immersion Technologies recorded a loss of $3.82 billion net in the quarter that ended in February. The company claimed that the result was driven by large fair-value changes in digital assets. During the week ending April 15, the firm acquired 71,524 ETH and reported about 10 million ETH staking revenue. According to Bitmine, the position is approximately 4.04% of Ethereum’s total supply.

🧵
1/
BitMine provided its latest holdings update for April 13, 2026:

$11.8 billion in total crypto + "moonshots":
– 4,874,858 ETH at $2,206 per ETH (@coinbase)
– 198 Bitcoin (BTC)
– $200 million stake in Beast Industries @MrBeast
– $85…

— Bitmine (NYSE-BMNR) $ETH (@BitMNR) April 13, 2026

Circle Launches Native Burn And Mint Bridge

Circle introduced USDC Bridge, a platform designed to transfer USDC across chains via native burn-and-mint techniques. The company indicated that the product displays charges initially and real-time monitoring of progress.

The bridge eliminates manual selection of routes and has destination-chain gas functionality. Circle positioned the service as an easier way for users to send USDC between the networks supported, with no option to define transfer paths.

Strategy Adds Another Major Bitcoin Purchase

Strategy disclosed a purchase of 13,927 BTC for about $1 billion at an average price near $71,902. The company said its year-to-date BTC Yield reached 5.6%. As of April 12, Strategy held 780,897 BTC with a total acquisition cost of around $59.02 billion. The firm stated the average purchase price across holdings stood near $75,577 after the latest buy.

Tether Releases A Consumer Self-Custody Wallet

Stablecoin issuer, Tether, launched tether.wallet, its new self-custodial wallet for retail users and global payments. The product supports several Tether-issued assets and Bitcoin across several blockchain networks. The wallet includes Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Plasma, Bitcoin, and Lightning support. Tether also added readable usernames in the form name@tether.me and said more than 570 million wallets already use its technology.

Tether Launches tether.wallet, the People’s Wallet, Extending its Global Financial Infrastructure Directly to Billions of Users Left Behind by the Traditional Financial System
Learn more: https://t.co/NygApfyAbB

— Tether (@tether) April 14, 2026

World Expands World ID Verification Integrations

World rolled out a major World ID protocol upgrade with multi-key support, rotation tools, and session management. The update also included a standalone app and open-source software kit. The company said Tinder and Zoom now use the system for authenticity and anti-deepfake checks. World also expanded into ticketing, social networking, and gaming, while keeping end-user access free under a developer fee model.

Drift Secures Funding for User Recovery Pool

Drift said it secured $147.5 million in proposed support to help users after the April 1 attack. The package includes $127.5 million from Tether and another $20 million from partners. The protocol plans to create a recovery pool and issue separate recovery tokens to affected users. Drift said the structure aims to address outstanding losses gradually and does not involve the main DRIFT governance token.

Bitcoin Developers Debate Quantum Freeze Proposal

Bitcoin developers and researchers proposed BIP-361 to freeze early addresses exposed to quantum risks. The idea targets older P2PK outputs whose public keys are already visible on-chain. Supporters called the measure a long-term defense against future key theft by quantum computers. Critics questioned whether freezing coins would violate Bitcoin’s core principles around decentralization and censorship resistance.

BIP-361 Proposes Freezing Quantum-Vulnerable Bitcoin Addresses

Bitcoin developers and researchers have proposed BIP-361, which suggests freezing early Bitcoin addresses considered to have quantum vulnerabilities—primarily P2PK addresses with publicly exposed public keys—to… pic.twitter.com/C5zksSnW7l

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 15, 2026

Pakistan Allows Banking Access for Licensed VASPs

The State Bank of Pakistan replaced its 2018 ban on virtual assets with new guidance under the 2026 law. Regulated institutions are now permitted to open accounts of licensed virtual asset service providers. The framework demands license checks, due diligence, segregated client funds, and continuous monitoring. However, banks cannot trade, hold, or invest in their own funds or client funds in crypto.

South Korea Urges Crypto Circuit Breaker Safeguards

The Bithumb incident of a misplaced transfer prompted the Bank of Korea to encourage the sector to build circuit-breaker-like safeguards. Authorities said that more stringent regulations would help curb unusual trades and abrupt price shocks.

The central bank also attributed weak approvals, lack of monitoring, and bad balance reconciliation to the reported mistake. It suggested two forms of verification, real-time checks and automated prevention devices in crypto operations.

Grinex Halts Trading After Major Cyberattack

Russian exchange Grinex suspended trading after reporting losses of about 1 billion rubles from a cyberattack. The platform claimed the operation showed signs linked to foreign special services. On-chain data indicated that roughly $15 million in USDT left the exchange and moved into ETH or TRX. Grinex previously faced allegations of ties to Garantex, an exchange seized by U.S. authorities.

Singapore Gulf Bank Starts Stablecoin Conversion Service

Singapore Gulf Bank introduced a stablecoin service to corporate and high-net-worth customers. The first phase supports round-the-clock conversion between dollars and USDC on Solana. The bank said that it will open the service to individual users before the end of the second quarter. It also plans to include USDT, USDe, and USDG later.

Singapore Gulf Bank @sgb_app has launched a stablecoin mint and redeem service, enabling 1:1 USD–USDC conversion on Solana with 24/7 settlement and waived fees for a limited time. The service currently targets institutional clients and plans to open to individuals by the end of…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 17, 2026

RaveDAO Denies Role In RAVE Token Collapse

The RaveDAO team denied responsibility for the sharp rise and crash in the RAVE token after public accusations spread online. The team claimed to know about rumors but not why the recent price action. ZachXBT also claimed pump and dump and cited a significant community of supply concentration in team wallets. Binance and Bitget have both opened reviews as the token soared up to approximately $28, then crashed to less than $1.

Kelp DAO Bridge Exploit Drains RsETH

In a transaction valued at approximately 292 million, an attacker drained 116,500 rsETH from the LayerZero-based Kelp DAO bridge. According to the investigators, the attacker previously obtained funding for the wallet via Tornado Cash. Kelp halted contracts on the mainnet and on a number of layer twos some 46 minutes later, preventing subsequent attempts. Aave then froze rsETH markets and said it would examine any bad debt linked to the incident.

Payward Moves to Buy Regulated Derivatives Firm

Payward, Kraken’s parent company, agreed to acquire Bitnomial for up to $550 million in cash and stock. The deal gives Payward access to a full CFTC-licensed U.S. derivatives stack. Bitnomial holds the three licenses needed to run a domestic digital-asset derivatives business. Payward said the acquisition will support regulated spot margin, perpetuals, options, and broader services for institutional partners.

Kraken parent @Payward is acquiring @Bitnomial – the first fully CFTC-licensed derivatives company in the US built for digital assets. Built for crypto from the ground up.

Spot margin, perpetuals, and options are coming to Kraken under CFTC regulation.https://t.co/IBLotDkqQF

— Kraken (@krakenfx) April 17, 2026

Stablecoin Yield Language Faces Another Delay

The expected release of updated Clarity Act text on stablecoin yield rules did not arrive last week. Senator Thom Tillis said timing questions around committee markup influenced the delay. Reports said the draft still reflects language that bans rewards on idle stablecoin balances in accounts. At the same time, it would allow yield tied to transactional activity rather than passive holdings.

Circle Faces Suit Over Drift Freeze Response

Circle faces a class action lawsuit from Drift users who lost funds in the April 1 exploit. Plaintiffs said Circle failed to freeze the stolen USDC quickly despite having the ability to act. The lawsuit argued that Circle showed it could freeze wallets in another civil case just days earlier. Drift had said attackers had infiltrated the project by posing as a quantitative trading firm for months.

Hyperbridge Raises Loss Estimate After Exploit

Hyperbridge revised losses from its April 13 exploit to about $2.5 million, far above the first estimate. The new figure includes losses across pools on several EVM networks. The team said part of the stolen funds moved to Binance, where compliance staff is now involved. Hyperbridge also plans a patch, audit, and possible BRIDGE token allocation if recovery falls short.

#CertiKInsight 🚨

We have seen an exploit on the @hyperbridge gateway contract. https://t.co/h27iDm1JGd

The attacker slipped through a forged message to change the admin of Polkadot token contract on Ethereum and profited ~$237K from minting and selling 1B tokens.

Stay… pic.twitter.com/3t2n4uq5hy

— CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) April 13, 2026

Schwab Starts Spot Bitcoin and Ether Rollout

Charles Schwab began the phased rollout of its Schwab Crypto platform for retail spot trading. Clients can buy Bitcoin and Ether through accounts linked to their existing brokerage profiles. Schwab set a 75-basis-point transaction fee and named Paxos as execution and sub-custody provider. Deposits and withdrawals remain unavailable at launch, and residents in New York and Louisiana cannot access the service.

UK FCA Seeks More Feedback On Crypto Rules

The UK Financial Conduct Authority opened another consultation on how digital-asset activities fit inside the future regulatory perimeter. The request covers trading platforms, custody, staking, and stablecoin issuance. Responses close on June 3, 2026, while authorization applications can start on September 30, 2026. The FCA said final policy statements should arrive this summer, with the broader regime starting in October 2027.

Digital Asset Investment Products Market Overview

Digital assets investment products reported inflows of up to $1.4 billion last week, a three-week positive streak. The mood was boosted by ceasefire optimism, and risk appetite surged as Bitcoin rose above $76,000, albeit briefly. The total assets under management were $155 billion, and weekly flows were 0.91% of assets.

🚨CRYPTO FUNDS SEE $1.4B INFLOWS IN STRONGEST SURGE SINCE JANUARY

Digital asset investment products pulled in $1.4B last week, marking their best week since January and a third straight week of inflows.

Bitcoin $BTC led with $1.11B, followed by Ethereum $ETH with $328M. pic.twitter.com/u0KVWUKFKc

— Coin Bureau (@coinbureau) April 20, 2026

The US dominated the activity in the region, recording $1.5 billion in inflows, and Germany contributed $28 million. In comparison, Switzerland registered outflows of $138 million, the largest weekly withdrawal in the country since November. Meanwhile, markets took in March inflation data, as headline CPI increased to 3.3% and core CPI rose to 2.6%.

Bitcoin attracted $1116 million, boosting annual-to-date flows to $3.1 billion since breaking out of a long trading band. Ether came in second at $328 million, its best week since January. However, short-Bitcoin products added only $1.4 million, while XRP and Solana saw outflows of $56 million and $2.3 million.

Bitcoin Price Performance

Bitcoin saw a robust performance last week, surging to highs of $78K following the changing dynamics in the geopolitical sector. The announcement of the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, which has weighed much on the crypto sector, saw the prices rally. As of this writing, Bitcoin is hovering around $75,270, with a market cap of $1.5 trillion.

Looking at the technical indicators, BTC has formed an ascending pattern on the weekly chart. The price has tested the immediate resistance around the $76,909 as the bulls hold the ground tight. Meanwhile, the RSI indicator is hovering around the 43 levels, indicating a decrease in selling pressure. Should the current trend hold further, BTC could rally toward the key resistance around the $96K levels.