U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. Navy's blockade of Iranian ports will continue and has already turned back 34 ships. Hegseth said an aircraft carrier will join the operation within a few days and that the U.S. military seized two vessels from Iran's "shadow fleet" in the Indian Ocean. Hegseth also warned that the U.S. would destroy Iranian mines in the Strait of Hormuz if Iran lays them there.

Morgan Stanley launched the Stablecoin Reserves Portfolio for stablecoin issuers through its MSNXX money market fund, with a $10 million minimum investment and a 0.15% management fee. The fund is structured to preserve capital, maintain a $1 net asset value, and provide daily liquidity through cash, U.S. Treasury securities with maturities of 93 days or less, and overnight repurchase agreements backed by Treasury securities. Amy Oldenburg, head of Morgan Stanley's digital asset strategy, said the product is designed to comply with the GENIUS Act signed into law in July.

North Korean hackers stole $293 million from Kelp DAO by compromising an application built on LayerZero. The attackers later used LayerZero again to move part of the stolen funds across blockchains, making it the first documented case in which the same app was used for both the exploit and part of the laundering. Onchain records show at least $500,000 moved through LayerZero. Arbitrum’s Security Council took back about $71 million that North Korean operatives had sent to the blockchain.

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul sued Kalshi, Polymarket, Robinhood, Crypto.com, and Coinbase over sports-related event contracts, and the complaint alleges Kalshi generates more than $1 billion a year from sports contracts. The lawsuits ask a Dane County court to declare the offerings illegal gambling and public nuisances under Wisconsin law. Wisconsin cited platform marketing in the filings, including Kalshi ads calling itself the first nationwide legal sports betting platform. The action follows a similar lawsuit filed Tuesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

South Africa's Ministry of Finance released draft crypto capital control rules that would route larger crypto transactions through authorized financial institutions. The proposal would require pre-approval for global remittances and declaration of crypto assets held overseas. Violators could face frozen or confiscated crypto assets, fines, or prison terms of up to five years.

Airlines are cutting schedules after the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz pushed jet fuel prices to more than double. Lufthansa Group said it will scrap 20,000 short-haul departures through October. Domestic airfare is up about 18% from last year, or around $55 more per trip. IEA Director Fatih Birol warned that Europe has about six weeks of jet fuel stocks left.

The EU's 20th sanctions package banned Russian crypto services for participants under EU jurisdiction, making transactions with Russian-registered crypto providers illegal from May 24, 2026. A Russian bill on digital currency and digital rights would require cryptocurrency storage in depositories and ban personal wallets. Experts said the combination could raise blocking and labeling risks for wallets tied to officially registered Russian platforms. Experts also said Russia may respond by deepening domestic oversight and relying more on channels outside the EU perimeter.

Chinese authorities announced a ban on online crypto marketing services, effective Sept. 30. The People's Bank of China was among the eight departments behind the move. Only government-approved platforms will be allowed to conduct such marketing after the rule takes effect.

Strategy said this week it holds more than 800,000 Bitcoin after a $2.5 billion purchase of 34,000 Bitcoin. Michael Saylor said the bitcoin winter is over after Bitcoin rebounded 30% from lows of $60,000 in recent weeks. The purchase put Strategy ahead of BlackRock's IBIT fund as the largest institutional Bitcoin holder for the first time since the second quarter of 2024. Benoît Bosc of x2B said the rebound reflects macro liquidity more than crypto-specific strength.

Nasdaq-listed Aurelion said it holds 33,318 Tether Gold worth about $157 million as of April 23. The company has staked 10,000 XAUT as yield-generating collateral. The remaining 23,318 XAUT is unstaked.