The Federal Reserve faces a complex situation with low-interest-rate policy. Even though a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran provides an opportunity for the global economy, energy price volatility could still keep inflation elevated. War is not the main obstacle to rate cuts; instead, it may intensify policy caution, hindering progress toward easing.

Changpeng Zhao, recalling the 2017 policy turmoil, said that after it, venture capital took a cautious approach, and Sequoia paused its collaboration. He felt disappointed, but he still achieved user growth after the policy shock. In the end, due to a valuation disagreement, Sequoia was unable to invest. CZ believes that venture capital only supports projects in good times.

A CEX founder revealed in his autobiography that in 2022 he attempted to acquire another CEX, but the tens of billions of dollars in funding demands made by the other party did not actually move the deal forward—the letter of intent was only for evaluating data. The platform’s collapse ultimately hinged on a buyback proposal from the former CEO of an affiliated company, which triggered market short-selling and caused massive capital outflows. Another industry communication group was also scrutinized by regulators, but no manipulation was found.

SOL Strategies announced on April 7 that it will acquire Solana zero-knowledge technology company Darklake Labs for $1.2 million. The deal includes $200k in cash and $1 million in stock. Darklake Labs developed the zero-knowledge proof system Zyga for Solana, aiming to improve transaction privacy and prevent front-running trading and sandwich attacks. After the acquisition, its founders and core team will join SOL Strategies.

Gate News message, April 5, cross-border remittance giant Western Union announced that it has completed its acquisition deal for Singapore digital wallet Dash. The specific acquisition amount has not been disclosed yet. Dash was previously owned by Singtel, and this acquisition gives Western Union its first wallet service in the Asia-Pacific region, further expanding its digital financial services beyond its traditional remittance business. Singtel and Western Union had previously said that the sale still needs approval from regulatory authorities. The completion of the deal announced this week marks that Dash has officially been folded into Western Union’s business.

Hyperliquid co-founder announced on April 1 on a social platform that its mobile app is now live on the Google Play Store. It is currently in an MVP testing version, offering only the deal notification feature, with the goal of collecting user feedback and optimizing the product. Users were reminded to avoid downloading counterfeit apps, and future versions will continue improving functionality.

Payments giant Stripe’s Bridge Ventures Inc. is facing public backlash over a transaction involving 12 trucks with Venezuelan companies, with outside observers raising questions about its compliance. Although Bridge denies involvement in the deal and says it may have been a paperwork error, the recipient party and its sensitive background make the situation more complicated, highlighting the compliance challenges that stablecoin businesses face during global expansion.

Bitcoin mining company Bitdeer announced that it has reached an agreement with a Norwegian contractor to retrofit existing facilities into Norway’s largest AI data center, supporting NVIDIA’s AI technology. At the same time, Bitdeer is clearing its Bitcoin reserves and plans to raise $300 million by issuing convertible preferred notes to advance the transformation of high-performance computing and AI infrastructure.

Gate News reports that on March 28, the CESS Network official announced that co-founder and COO Jessie Dai is taking a temporary leave of absence to deal with family emergencies. During this period, her responsibilities will be taken over by co-founder and chairman Nicholas Zaldastani and the team.

South Korea’s banking industry is actively strengthening cooperation with cryptocurrency exchanges to deal with constrained loan growth and to seek new profit opportunities. Several banks have established partnerships with exchanges, despite historical incidents involving mistaken Bitcoin airdrops. Regulators plan to expand their regulatory authority, which could intensify competition among banks.