The U.S. Issues License Related to Russian Oil Sanctions

On March 20, Onchain Lens data shows a crypto whale flipped from short to long, opening a 20x leveraged long position holding 284.68 BTC and 9,336 ETH. The whale has netted over $4 million in profits from frequent similar trades.

On March 20, Cointelegraph reported that U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins said in prepared remarks at a law practice forum on Thursday that the SEC will adopt a different approach to digital assets than its prior "enforcement-focused regulation." Following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the SEC will first prioritize clarifying how federal securities laws apply to crypto assets. "While this interpretation delivers the long-needed clarity, I want to assure you it is just a beginning—not an endpoint," Atkins noted. Earlier reports indicated the SEC and CFTC jointly issued new regulatory guidance, explicitly stating most digital assets are not securities, with the aim of establishing a clearer regulatory framework for the market.

- March 20: Per Onchain Lens monitoring, a whale bought 17,084 ETH for 36.75 million USDT, averaging $2,151 each. - Since March 10, 2026, five whale addresses have accumulated 103,352 ETH total, worth roughly $224.38 million combined.

March 20 HTX market data shows Bitcoin is trading in a low range again, currently at $70,071—down 1.51% over the past 24 hours. Total network liquidations hit $407 million in the same period, with $307 million in long positions and $100 million in short positions liquidated. Bitget market info indicates U.S. major indexes all closed lower: the Dow fell 0.4%, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 each dropped 0.28%. Most crypto-related stocks declined: MSTR was down 1.65%, BMNR 1.26%, and CRCL 3.4%. Separately, after the U.S. Treasury Department announced a new general license related to Russia, WTI crude oil fell below $94 per barrel, dropping more than 1% intraday.

March 20th (Bloomberg) — Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini (Gemini Space Station Inc.) said its headcount has dropped by roughly 30% since the start of the year following the latest round of layoffs, while it’s rolling out artificial intelligence tools to boost operational efficiency. The firm posted a loss of more than $500 million last year. As of March 1st, the New York-based company—founded by billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss—had around 445 employees. Gemini did not provide a 2026 business outlook when reporting its fourth-quarter results.