The FDIC Proposes New Regulation, Posing Stablecoins Not Having Deposit Insurance Coverage

On April 8, Raoul Pal—former Goldman Sachs executive, author of *Global Macro Investor*, and co-founder/CEO of Real Vision—took to social media to note: "The ETH/BTC exchange rate is now getting very interesting, aligning with the business cycle (rising ISM) and a trend of increasing liquidity. Looking at the long-term chart, the trend remains very constructive. Since 2017, ETH has broadly held its value relative to BTC; if this chart plays out as currently trended, ETH should outperform BTC over time." This also makes intuitive sense: as a smart contract platform, ETH’s Total Addressable Market (TAM) is fundamentally distinct from BTC’s "store of value" attribute. BTC primarily carries the value of total savings, while ETH can carry the value of economic activity itself. Precisely because of this difference, over time, the dominance of smart contracts (represented by ETH) relative to BTC will continue to rise.

On April 8, Decrypt reported that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Tuesday explicitly opposed Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm’s latest motion to dismiss criminal charges, arguing a recent Supreme Court ruling is irrelevant to the case and should not serve as grounds for dismissal. Storm’s attorney previously signaled intent to cite the high court decision—linked to a civil copyright infringement case—to bolster the dismissal bid. However, federal prosecutors noted in a letter to the judge that the ruling addresses a scenario and industry entirely distinct from the current criminal charges, and thus should not impact the case’s handling. This legal fight underscores the Trump administration’s contradictory stance on the crypto sector: While the U.S. government has taken relatively supportive crypto policies, it still insists on holding some crypto project developers criminally liable. As of now, Storm could face a retrial, and the case is likely to be sent back to court

Israeli outlet N12 News reported on April 8 that a senior U.S. official said the United States had coordinated with Israel in advance on a temporary ceasefire. The official added the U.S. had explicitly told Israel that during upcoming two-week negotiations, Washington would firmly insist Iran remove nuclear materials, halt uranium enrichment, eliminate ballistic missile threats, and address other related issues.

Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday (April 8) that Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has issued a statement announcing it will hold two weeks of negotiations with the United States in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital, starting April 10. The talks are proceeding on the recommendation of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and with the council’s approval. However, the statement notes Iran “has complete mistrust” of the U.S.

**Binance Founder CZ: Autobiography *Freedom of Money* Launches Globally April 8th** On April 8th, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) took to social media to share: "The autobiography *Freedom of Money* has launched in select countries. It will be available for global purchase at midnight local time on April 8th. All proceeds from the book will be donated to charity."

April 8 (Xinhua) — The Times of Israel reported on April 8, citing a security official, that Israel "continues to strike Iran" despite the U.S. and Iran announcing a ceasefire.