Bitcoin took a major dive, dropping to around $73,000. However, on April 9, it made an impressive recovery after President Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariffs for non-retaliating countries, although it’s important to note that China’s tariffs are still high.
This decision sent shockwaves through the crypto and stock markets. Despite the pause, the trade war between the U.S. and China continues, and experts are anticipating significant market volatility through the second and third quarters of 2025.
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan, stated that a recession in the U.S. is now a likely outcome. While this news may sound concerning, I personally believe we’ve already been in a recession for some time. Before Trump’s 90-day tariff pause, Goldman Sachs had already predicted a recession, but they later rescinded that statement. This just goes to show how uncertain the economic landscape is right now.
On the regulatory front, some positive developments are taking place.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently issued a memorandum titled Ending Regulation by Prosecution. This new directive will shift the DOJ’s focus away from crypto companies that are operating in good faith and direct efforts toward combating terrorism, drug trafficking, and organized crime instead.
We also saw some exciting news in the ETF space. The Canary Capital SUI ETF has been filed with the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), bringing us closer to a potential launch in the U.S. Additionally, asset manager Teucrium recently launched launched the first ever XRP futures ETF on the NYSE Arca.
Meanwhile, Hedera has made some major moves as well. The project is now a member of Global Digital Finance (GDF), a nonprofit organization that advocates for open innovation and best practices for digital assets. This position will allow Hedera to have a direct influence on crypto regulation moving forward, which could be key for future adoption.
Some of the biggest news this week was Ripple’s acquisition of Hidden Road for $1.25 billion, one of the largest crypto deals ever. Ripple is now the first ever crypto company to own a global multi-asset prime broker. Hidden Road’s capabilities, including clearing $3 trillion annually for top-tier institutions, will help Ripple expand its influence in the crypto space and solidify its position in the growing real-world asset sector.
Finally, Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (or CCIP) is now officially live on Hedera, further enhancing DeFi and the tokenized RWA ecosystem. As the RWA market grows, projects that can adapt to this shift will thrive, especially those focused on stablecoins and proof of reserves.
