Spot Gold Breaks $4365/oz, 24-hour Change 0.72%

**Web3 Sector Sees Top Economists Shift to Digital Assets Track** - On April 27, Ren Zeping—former chief economist of Evergrande Group—said in a published article today he attended Hong Kong’s Web3 Carnival last week, visiting firms like HashKey and Fosun Wealth, and engaging with Hong Kong officials, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders. - Last week, renowned economist Fu Peng officially joined Hong Kong-listed NewFire Group as chief economist, marking his strategic shift from traditional macro research to the cryptocurrency and digital assets sector. The move has sparked community discussion. These developments signal traditional financial elites are accelerating their transition to the Web3 space, participating in digital economic ecosystem building across macro research, asset allocation, and industry collaboration. As the regulatory environment grows clearer and institutionalization trends strengthen, Web3 is emerging as a critical battleground for the next wave of finan

April 27th — KBank, Upbit’s partner, announced Monday it has formed a strategic partnership with Ripple. The two will collaborate on a Proof of Concept (PoC) to evaluate how cross-border transfers could improve in speed, cost, and transparency. The PoC will leverage Ripple’s blockchain infrastructure and global network. The first phase of the PoC is complete: the pair validated a wallet-based remittance system. In the ongoing second phase, they’re testing the stability of on-chain remittances in a virtual environment, including transfers to the United Arab Emirates and Thailand.

On Monday, April 27, both the Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI indices hit record highs, per Bitget market data: - **Nikkei 225**: Closed at 60,537.36 points (+1.38%), up 821.18 points (first time ever above 60,000 points) - **KOSPI Index**: Closed at 6,615.03 points (+2.15%), up 139.4 points The format uses concise bullet points (common in U.S. news alerts), clear percentage gains with "+" (standard for positive moves), and highlights the key milestone (Nikkei’s first 60k close) for emphasis—aligning with American English brevity and readability habits.

Per official sources, Upbit will list PRL on April 27, with support for KRW, BTC, and USDT trading pairs.

**Crypto Exchange CoinUp Launches Inaugural HorseCoin Event** On April 27, official sources confirmed that CoinUp has rolled out the first-ever "HorseCoin" event, with a limited-time total prize pool of 50,000 CP. The event runs from **April 25, 2026, 6:00 PM to May 25, 2026, 11:59 PM UTC+8**. To participate, users must register via the designated link. Event benefits include: - 100% fee waivers for trades on designated HorseCoin pairs; - Airdrop rewards tied to different HorseCoin deposit amounts; - Rewards calculated based on cumulative (buy + sell) trading volume. *Note: All times are in UTC+8.*

**April 27th Market Update** Market focus has shifted back to the risk of renewed geopolitical escalation. While a ceasefire is nominally still in effect, escalating clashes between Israel and Lebanon—plus Iran tightening its grip on the Strait of Hormuz—signal tensions have yet to truly ease. The crypto market is showing structural softness. Bitcoin (BTC) failed to extend its run toward recent highs, hitting consistent resistance above the 79K liquidity zone before rapidly pulling back below 78K. This signals a lack of buying support at higher levels, with price action still mostly driven by liquidation triggers. From the liquidation heatmap: the 80K–82K range above remains a clear resistance level and potential liquidation zone. The current pullback into the 77K–78K range lines up with a lower liquidity support zone. This drop is essentially a rebalancing move following the release of elevated liquidity, not a trend reversal. Overall, with geopolitical risks unresolved, BT