This week, Bitcoin traded between $82,500 and $84,000, while most altcoin sectors saw gains. According to CoinGecko data, the top-performing sectors were AI Agent Launchpads, AI Meme coins, and LSDFi, with respective 7-day market cap increases of approximately 188.3%, 40.8%, and 38.2%.[8]
AI Agent Launchpad — This sector refers to decentralized platform ecosystems focused on building, deploying, and monetizing autonomous AI agents. By offering development tools, tokenization mechanisms, and community governance frameworks, users can easily create AI agents with cognitive, decision-making, and execution capabilities, and integrate them into Web3 applications such as DeFi, social media, and gaming.
The AI Agent Launchpad sector surged 188.3% in the past 7 days, reaching a market cap of $2.041 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $318 million. Notably, MINDS, a token within this sector, rose 13,674.6% over the past week. [9]
AI Meme — This sector revolves around crypto assets that merge artificial intelligence (AI) narratives with meme culture. It focuses on creative token launches, community-driven hype, and speculative trading around the theme of “AI + memes,” aiming to achieve viral attention and community consensus at low cost.
The AI Meme sector rose 40.8% in the past 7 days, with a market cap of $2.232 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $885 million. Within this category, AIDOGE gained 273.9%, AVA rose 73.9%, and AKI climbed 63.6% over the past week. [10]
LSDFi — This sector refers to DeFi protocol ecosystems centered on liquid staking assets, enabling lending, trading, and yield aggregation around stTokens to enhance capital efficiency of LSDs (Liquid Staking Derivatives).
The LSDFi sector posted a 38.2% market cap increase this week, reaching approximately $1.62 billion, with a 24-hour trading volume of $476 million. Among the tokens in this sector, RAFT rose 38.1% over the past 7 days. [11]
According to CoinGecko data, the top-performing tokens over the past 7 days are as follows: [12]
CRV (Curve DAO) — 7-day gain of approximately 21.2%, with a circulating market cap of $833 million.
Curve Finance is a decentralized exchange focused on efficient swaps between stablecoins and pegged assets. Built on Ethereum and utilizing an Automated Market Maker (AMM) model, it optimizes low-slippage trading between like-kind assets. The platform attracts liquidity through multi-asset pool designs and incentive mechanisms, allowing users to earn trading fees and CRV governance tokens by providing liquidity. As a core DeFi infrastructure for stablecoin trading and yield aggregation, Curve has been widely integrated into major protocol ecosystems.
Recently, with the continued expansion of stablecoins such as USDC, DAI, and USDT, Curve’s trading volume has risen significantly, boosting protocol revenue. To date, Curve has distributed over $155 million in real income (excluding additional governance incentives) to CRV holders—forming a positive cycle between growing demand for stablecoins and tokenholder rewards. This shift in fundamentals has led the market to re-evaluate CRV’s value, becoming one of the key drivers of its recent price surge. [13]
KAS (Kaspa) — 7-day gain of approximately 12.9%, with a circulating market cap of $1.957 billion.
Kaspa (KAS) is a Layer 1 blockchain based on Proof-of-Work and the GHOSTDAG protocol, designed for faster confirmations and greater scalability. Unlike traditional blockchains, Kaspa uses a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure that allows multiple blocks to be created and processed in parallel—significantly boosting block generation speed and network throughput.
A major hard fork upgrade, Crescendo v1.0.0, is set for early May. It marks the completion of the development roadmap from KIP1 to KIP15, increasing the network’s block production speed from 1 BPS (block per second) to 10 BPS. This will greatly improve transaction capacity and user experience by shortening block intervals. The upgrade strengthens the network’s utility and scalability, bolstering confidence among miners and users. Currently, over 45% of nodes have upgraded, and hashrate support stands at 37.45%. As the upgrade approaches, strong market expectations have driven KAS price gains. [14]
SOL (Solana) — 7-day gain of approximately 10.3%, with a circulating market cap of $67.7 billion.
Solana (SOL) is a high-performance third-generation blockchain platform designed to provide fast, secure, and scalable infrastructure for decentralized applications (DApps) and smart contracts. Its key features include high throughput, low latency, and low transaction fees, making it ideal for use cases in finance, gaming, and NFTs. Solana leverages a combination of Proof of History (PoH) and Proof of Stake (PoS) to enhance network performance.
Recently, Solana successfully implemented the SIMD-0207 upgrade, increasing the block size limit by 4%, improving throughput and scalability. Additionally, a Canadian asset manager launched four Solana spot ETFs on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), marking the first Solana exchange-traded products (ETPs) in North America to offer staking functionality. This milestone offers investors easier access to SOL and has significantly boosted market attention—contributing to the token’s upward momentum. [15][16]
Sony-Backed Soneium Partners with EigenLayer to Slash Finality Time by 98%, Setting New L2 Performance Benchmark
Soneium, a blockchain network supported by Sony, has announced a strategic partnership with AltLayer and EigenLayer to launch a “Fast Finality Layer“ that reduces transaction finality time from 15 minutes to under 10 seconds—an improvement of over 98%. This breakthrough significantly enhances user experience and enables high-performance support for mainstream blockchain use cases such as payments, gaming, and real-time data processing.
In the blockchain field, transaction finality time determines when a network considers a transaction permanently valid—it’s a crucial parameter for evaluating usability and security. Previously, Soneium used Optimism’s OP Stack architecture, which was constrained by sequencer and challenge period mechanisms, requiring about 15 minutes for final confirmation. Now, by incorporating EigenLayer’s decentralized validator network and integrating AltLayer’s elastic execution layer, Soneium has built an L2 infrastructure that balances throughput and security, establishing a foundation for future performance optimization and ecosystem expansion.
Compared to other major L2s like Arbitrum and Optimism, Soneium’s Fast Finality Layer offers an improved balance between speed and security. This positions it well to attract latency-sensitive applications—including high-frequency DeFi strategies, Web3 games, and payment systems—while boosting ecosystem stickiness and developer engagement. [17]
Panama City Takes the Lead in Accepting Crypto Payments, Opening a New Chapter in Cryptocurrency
Panama’s capital has taken a crucial step towards integrating digital assets into public services. On April 15, Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi announced that the city council has unanimously approved a new policy allowing residents to pay taxes and municipal service fees using cryptocurrency. This makes Panama City the first local government in the country to officially adopt crypto for public payments.
The city will partner with an authorized bank to provide real-time crypto-to-USD conversion, helping mitigate price volatility and maintain fiscal stability.
This innovative payment mechanism marks not only a significant step in digitalizing municipal services but also serves as a strategic component of Panama’s vision to become a “crypto hub.” At the national level, Panama is also developing a registration system for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) and an anti-money laundering (AML) regulatory framework, establishing the compliance foundation for blockchain finance and Web3 applications.[18]
sUSD Depeg Intensifies, Triggering Market Concerns
Since April 10, 2025, the sUSD stablecoin within the Synthetix ecosystem has experienced a severe depeg, currently trading at $0.8107—down 5.8% today—with market cap falling to $25.76 million. The depeg is primarily linked to an ongoing protocol upgrade, in which the old debt management system is being replaced by the new “420 Pool” mechanism, temporarily disrupting market-based price stabilization. Synthetix founder Kain Warwick emphasized that this is not a systemic crisis, but rather a short-term transition issue.
sUSD’s stability has long relied on high collateralization of the SNX token and a dynamic debt adjustment model. Under the new system, the collateral ratio has been reduced to 200%, and the protocol plans to forgive $62 million in legacy debt over the next 12 months to improve capital efficiency and systemic security. However, during this transitional phase, market confidence in sUSD has been shaken, leading to heightened price volatility. The Synthetix team has rolled out several countermeasures, including boosting incentives for Curve liquidity pools, extending the Infinex deposit program, and laying the groundwork for long-term price support mechanisms for sUSD.
This depeg event has put investor trust in stablecoins under pressure. While the team’s response may help stabilize sUSD over time, the token continues to trade 5–10% below its peg in the short term. As the new system matures, sUSD may regain stability, but the incident has sown doubt among holders—highlighting that a stablecoin’s “stability” ultimately depends on both sound design and market confidence. [19]
KiloEx Hack Attack Results in $7 Million Loss
Decentralized perpetual trading platform KiloEx was hacked this week, with total losses amounting to approximately $7 million. The incident affected multiple blockchains, including Base, BNB Chain, and Taiko. The attacker exploited oracle vulnerabilities and used flash loans to manipulate asset prices, then funneled the stolen funds through Tornado Cash. The largest single transaction yielded $3.12 million.
On April 14, KiloEx urgently announced a suspension of services and published the attacker’s wallet address, calling on the community to help track the funds. The team has since launched a full investigation in collaboration with BNB Chain, Manta Network, and security firms including Seal-911, SlowMist, and Sherlock. The underlying smart contract vulnerability has been identified, and a fix is in progress.
To recover losses, KiloEx proposed a white-hat deal to the attacker: return 90% of the funds and keep 10% as a bounty. The platform set a 72-hour deadline, after which it will work with law enforcement to pursue legal action.
The attack triggered sharp volatility in the KILO token, which dropped 28% within 24 hours to $0.03821—over 70% below its March peak. Community sentiment has turned negative, with users questioning KiloEx’s credibility and urging major exchanges to investigate. [20]
ZKsync Airdrop Contract Exploited, 111M ZK Tokens Illegally Minted
On April 15, ZKsync disclosed that the admin account managing its airdrop distribution contracts had been compromised in a hack. The attacker exploited the sweepUnclaimed()
function to illegally mint approximately 111 million unclaimed ZK tokens from three airdrop contracts—equivalent to 0.45% of total supply. The exploit was limited to the airdrop distribution contracts; the core ZKsync protocol, the ZK token contract, governance mechanism, and other token distribution plans were unaffected. [21]
The team described the incident as an isolated key compromise and stated that the attacker can no longer use the same method. All mintable airdrop tokens have now been exhausted. ZKsync is currently working with the Security Alliance and multiple exchanges to trace the stolen assets and has publicly urged the attacker to return the funds to avoid legal consequences.Despite the quick response, some community members raised concerns about potential insider involvement and questioned the transparency and governance structure of ZKsync.
Following the exploit, the ZK token fell more than 14% within 24 hours, and several exchanges temporarily suspended ZK deposits and withdrawals. The incident has intensified concerns over ZKsync’s security and credibility, potentially weakening its competitive position in the Layer 2 sector. Market sentiment will likely hinge on how effectively the team manages the crisis and improves future security governance.
Raydium Launches LaunchLab to Strengthen Token Issuance Infrastructure on Solana
Leading Solana-based decentralized exchange (DEX) Raydium has officially launched LaunchLab, a token issuance platform designed to provide creators, developers, and communities with low-barrier, censorship-resistant tools for on-chain token launches and liquidity bootstrapping.
LaunchLab enables users to issue tokens using customizable pricing curves—supporting linear, exponential, and logarithmic bonding curves—and allows pricing in multiple assets, including but not limited to SOL. The platform integrates Raydium’s AMM v4 and token locking features. Creators can allocate a portion of protocol fees to RAY buybacks, community pools, or operational expenses. After launch, creators are also entitled to 10% of AMM trading fees, incentivizing long-term project development.
Raydium noted that LaunchLab was originally scheduled for a later release to avoid direct competition with ecosystem partners. However, after Pump.fun announced plans to build its own AMM, Raydium expedited LaunchLab’s debut—positioning it as a more flexible, sustainable, and creator-friendly alternative.
Recent data reveals that meme coin trading volume from Pump.fun has accounted for 41% of Raydium’s total transaction fees in the past 30 days, highlighting LaunchLab’s critical timing. This launch serves as both a strategic response from Raydium and a catalyst for advancing creator tools and asset issuance capabilities throughout the Solana ecosystem.[22]
Bitcoin Miners Sold Over 40% of March Output — Highest Since Oct 2024
In March 2025, 15 publicly listed Bitcoin mining firms sold over 40% of their mined BTC—marking the highest monthly sell-off ratio since October 2024. This trend signals a temporary reversal of the post-halving “HODL-first” strategy and reflects ongoing pressure across the industry amid macroeconomic uncertainty.
According to tracking data from TheMinerMag, the sell-off was largely driven by rising operational costs and widening funding gaps. Faced with higher energy and hardware expenses, as well as trade tariff pressures from geopolitical tensions, many miners were forced to liquidate BTC holdings to cover daily operating expenses. This added to broader market selling pressure and may have influenced short-term price action. In March, Bitcoin fell 2.3%, following a 17.39% drop in February.
Overall, the global Bitcoin mining sector is undergoing a recalibration of cost structures while navigating rising geopolitical and economic risks. In the near term, collective miner selling may persist, weighing on BTC prices and raising questions about the long-term sustainability of the mining industry. [23]
Multichain DeFi TVL Drops 27.5% in Q1 2025 as Berachain Climbs into Top 6
In Q1 2025, the total value locked (TVL) in multichain DeFi protocols fell by 27.5%, dropping from $177.4 billion at the end of 2024 to $128.6 billion by the end of March 2025. The sharp decline was primarily driven by a broad downturn in altcoin prices.
Ethereum was hit the hardest, with its TVL plunging 35.4%—from $112.6 billion at the start of the year to $72.7 billion—causing its market share to fall from 63.5% to 56.6%. While Solana and Base also saw TVL declines of 23.5% and 15.3% respectively, their relative market shares increased slightly due to steep corrections in SOL and ETH prices.
One standout performer was Berachain, which launched on February 6 and quickly gained traction. By the end of Q1, it had attracted $5.2 billion in DeFi TVL, ranking it as the sixth-largest DeFi chain. Notably, Boyco’s pre-deposit vault alone brought in approximately $2.3 billion on its first day, injecting significant initial liquidity into the ecosystem. [24]
Solana Maintains DEX Dominance as Sonic and Berachain Rapidly Gain Market Share
Building on its strong momentum from late 2024, Solana continued to lead the decentralized exchange (DEX) market in Q1 2025, recording $293.7 billion in total trading volume—a 35.3% increase from the previous quarter’s $217 billion—and capturing a commanding 39.6% share of the market.
January was particularly notable, as a surge in “political meme coins” (led by $TRUMP memecoin) drove Solana’s on-chain trading volume to a record-breaking $184.8 billion for the month, accounting for 52% of trading across major chains. This spike pushed Ethereum’s market share below 20% for the first time in history.
As meme coin activity cooled, Ethereum rebounded in March and regained its lead, with market share climbing back to 30.1%, while Solana dropped to 23.4%.
Notably, Sonic and Berachain made strong entries into the top ten DEX networks in March, overtaking long-established players Optimism and Polygon. While the latter two still maintained higher overall quarterly volumes, the rapid rise of newer chains signals a shifting competitive landscape in cross-chain DEX activity. [25]
ByteNova
ByteNova is a decentralized Edge AI ecosystem, formerly known as ClustroAI, founded in 2023. Built on a containerized architecture with GPU-accelerated orchestration and a protocol-driven framework, the project aims to deliver low-latency processing, enterprise-grade security, and scalable solutions for next-generation AI applications. ByteNova’s vision is to shift AI inference from centralized cloud platforms to edge devices—such as smartphones and industrial terminals—enabling truly distributed intelligent computing. ByteNova has launched a campaign where participants can earn points by completing social tasks, with rewards to be distributed in the future based on confirmed point totals. [26]
How to participate:
Note:
The airdrop program and participation methods are subject to change. Users are advised to follow ByteNova’s official channels for the latest updates. Additionally, users should exercise caution, be aware of potential risks, and conduct thorough research before participating. Gate.io does not guarantee the distribution of future airdrop rewards.
Several projects across infrastructure, DeFi, and other sectors successfully closed funding rounds this week. According to RootData, between April 10 and April 16, a total of 18 projects announced funding, raising approximately $250 million. [27]
Here are the top three fundraising deals by amount:
Meanwhile - On April 10, Meanwhile raised $40 million in a seed round led by Framework Ventures, Fulgur Ventures, Gradient Ventures, and Sam Altman. Meanwhile is a U.S.-based insurtech startup focused on offering Bitcoin-denominated whole life insurance products. Its core vision is to combine the protective benefits of traditional insurance with Bitcoin’s long-term value as a store of wealth—delivering inflation-resistant, tax-efficient, and liquid financial solutions to global users.
Meanwhile also plans to roll out additional BTC-denominated products such as term life insurance and accidental death coverage, while developing a Bitcoin private credit fund. The company is enhancing its AI-driven underwriting and claims system to boost efficiency and user experience. International expansion is on the roadmap, targeting markets such as the U.S., U.K., and Canada. Meanwhile also plans to grow its team by attracting talent from the crypto and insurance sectors to accelerate its Web3 insurance ecosystem.
Bugscoin — On April 11, Bugscoin secured $12 million in a Series A round with participation from Duckdao, Becker Ventures, and Maxx Capital. Bugscoin is a Web3 platform focused on financial education, offering users a risk-free simulated trading experience. Users can practice real-world investment strategies, complete learning courses, and earn $BGSC token rewards by participating in platform activities.
Bugscoin plans to expand globally, develop localized educational programs, and enhance its decentralized asset management protocol BugsFunded. The platform also plans to launch AI-powered financial advisory tools, optimize its tokenomics model, and expand its ecosystem applications. These strategic goals aim to advance its EduFi model, combining education with decentralized finance to provide more diverse financial services.
Auradine — On April 16, Auradine raised $153 million in a seed round led by StepStone Group, Marathon D, and Celesta Capital, with participation from Marathon Digital. Auradine is a Silicon Valley-based startup developing next-generation Web infrastructure at the intersection of blockchain, security, and AI.
Auradine plans to further develop and scale production of its Teraflux Bitcoin miners to meet the growing demand from major data center operators, including Marathon Digital. Auradine is also accelerating product development in AI infrastructure, with a focus on optimizing and launching AuraLinks, its networking solution for AI-driven data centers.
According to Tokenomist, several major token unlocks are scheduled for next week (April 17–23, 2025), with a combined value of approximately $563 million (excluding OM’s ongoing daily unlocks).[28]
The top three upcoming unlocks are as follows:
TRUMP token will unlock approximately 40 million tokens on April 18, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC. This represents 20.25% of its circulating supply, worth around $324 million. Given recent daily trading volumes of $370 million, this unlock could significantly impact its price.
MRS token will unlock about 121 million tokens on April 22, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC, accounting for 11.87% of its circulating supply and valued at approximately $121 million. With recent daily trading volumes of only $7,944, this unlock could have a substantial impact on its price.
FTN token will unlock around 20 million tokens on April 12, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC. This makes up 4.65% of its circulating supply, valued at about $84.2 million. With daily trading volumes of $52.34 million, this unlock may have a minor price impact.
Next week (April 18–24, 2025) will feature a series of key events that could significantly impact the crypto market, global economy, and energy sector. UXLINK Season 3 airdrop claim will begin on April 18, allowing users to receive airdrop rewards[29]. MoreMarkets will officially launch its mainnet test version on April 19, marking a further step toward enhancing platform functionality[30]. In addition, Lorentz will undergo a mainnet upgrade on April 21, going live on opBNB, bringing new features and performance improvements to the network[31]. Financial market infrastructure provider DTCC is expected to launch its blockchain-based AppChain platform on April 23, aimed at improving the efficiency of real-time collateral tokenization and management[32]. On April 24, the U.S. will release weekly initial jobless claims data for the week ending April 19. This key economic indicator may influence market sentiment and policy expectations[33].
References:
Gate Research
Gate Research is a comprehensive blockchain and cryptocurrency research platform that delivers in-depth content. This includes technical analysis, hot topic insights, market reviews, industry research, trend forecasts, and macroeconomic policy analysis.
Click here to visit now
Disclaimer
Investing in the cryptocurrency market involves high risk, and it is recommended that users conduct independent research and fully understand the nature of the assets and products they are purchasing before making any investment decisions. Gate.io is not responsible for any losses or damages caused by such investment decisions.
This week, Bitcoin traded between $82,500 and $84,000, while most altcoin sectors saw gains. According to CoinGecko data, the top-performing sectors were AI Agent Launchpads, AI Meme coins, and LSDFi, with respective 7-day market cap increases of approximately 188.3%, 40.8%, and 38.2%.[8]
AI Agent Launchpad — This sector refers to decentralized platform ecosystems focused on building, deploying, and monetizing autonomous AI agents. By offering development tools, tokenization mechanisms, and community governance frameworks, users can easily create AI agents with cognitive, decision-making, and execution capabilities, and integrate them into Web3 applications such as DeFi, social media, and gaming.
The AI Agent Launchpad sector surged 188.3% in the past 7 days, reaching a market cap of $2.041 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $318 million. Notably, MINDS, a token within this sector, rose 13,674.6% over the past week. [9]
AI Meme — This sector revolves around crypto assets that merge artificial intelligence (AI) narratives with meme culture. It focuses on creative token launches, community-driven hype, and speculative trading around the theme of “AI + memes,” aiming to achieve viral attention and community consensus at low cost.
The AI Meme sector rose 40.8% in the past 7 days, with a market cap of $2.232 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $885 million. Within this category, AIDOGE gained 273.9%, AVA rose 73.9%, and AKI climbed 63.6% over the past week. [10]
LSDFi — This sector refers to DeFi protocol ecosystems centered on liquid staking assets, enabling lending, trading, and yield aggregation around stTokens to enhance capital efficiency of LSDs (Liquid Staking Derivatives).
The LSDFi sector posted a 38.2% market cap increase this week, reaching approximately $1.62 billion, with a 24-hour trading volume of $476 million. Among the tokens in this sector, RAFT rose 38.1% over the past 7 days. [11]
According to CoinGecko data, the top-performing tokens over the past 7 days are as follows: [12]
CRV (Curve DAO) — 7-day gain of approximately 21.2%, with a circulating market cap of $833 million.
Curve Finance is a decentralized exchange focused on efficient swaps between stablecoins and pegged assets. Built on Ethereum and utilizing an Automated Market Maker (AMM) model, it optimizes low-slippage trading between like-kind assets. The platform attracts liquidity through multi-asset pool designs and incentive mechanisms, allowing users to earn trading fees and CRV governance tokens by providing liquidity. As a core DeFi infrastructure for stablecoin trading and yield aggregation, Curve has been widely integrated into major protocol ecosystems.
Recently, with the continued expansion of stablecoins such as USDC, DAI, and USDT, Curve’s trading volume has risen significantly, boosting protocol revenue. To date, Curve has distributed over $155 million in real income (excluding additional governance incentives) to CRV holders—forming a positive cycle between growing demand for stablecoins and tokenholder rewards. This shift in fundamentals has led the market to re-evaluate CRV’s value, becoming one of the key drivers of its recent price surge. [13]
KAS (Kaspa) — 7-day gain of approximately 12.9%, with a circulating market cap of $1.957 billion.
Kaspa (KAS) is a Layer 1 blockchain based on Proof-of-Work and the GHOSTDAG protocol, designed for faster confirmations and greater scalability. Unlike traditional blockchains, Kaspa uses a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure that allows multiple blocks to be created and processed in parallel—significantly boosting block generation speed and network throughput.
A major hard fork upgrade, Crescendo v1.0.0, is set for early May. It marks the completion of the development roadmap from KIP1 to KIP15, increasing the network’s block production speed from 1 BPS (block per second) to 10 BPS. This will greatly improve transaction capacity and user experience by shortening block intervals. The upgrade strengthens the network’s utility and scalability, bolstering confidence among miners and users. Currently, over 45% of nodes have upgraded, and hashrate support stands at 37.45%. As the upgrade approaches, strong market expectations have driven KAS price gains. [14]
SOL (Solana) — 7-day gain of approximately 10.3%, with a circulating market cap of $67.7 billion.
Solana (SOL) is a high-performance third-generation blockchain platform designed to provide fast, secure, and scalable infrastructure for decentralized applications (DApps) and smart contracts. Its key features include high throughput, low latency, and low transaction fees, making it ideal for use cases in finance, gaming, and NFTs. Solana leverages a combination of Proof of History (PoH) and Proof of Stake (PoS) to enhance network performance.
Recently, Solana successfully implemented the SIMD-0207 upgrade, increasing the block size limit by 4%, improving throughput and scalability. Additionally, a Canadian asset manager launched four Solana spot ETFs on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), marking the first Solana exchange-traded products (ETPs) in North America to offer staking functionality. This milestone offers investors easier access to SOL and has significantly boosted market attention—contributing to the token’s upward momentum. [15][16]
Sony-Backed Soneium Partners with EigenLayer to Slash Finality Time by 98%, Setting New L2 Performance Benchmark
Soneium, a blockchain network supported by Sony, has announced a strategic partnership with AltLayer and EigenLayer to launch a “Fast Finality Layer“ that reduces transaction finality time from 15 minutes to under 10 seconds—an improvement of over 98%. This breakthrough significantly enhances user experience and enables high-performance support for mainstream blockchain use cases such as payments, gaming, and real-time data processing.
In the blockchain field, transaction finality time determines when a network considers a transaction permanently valid—it’s a crucial parameter for evaluating usability and security. Previously, Soneium used Optimism’s OP Stack architecture, which was constrained by sequencer and challenge period mechanisms, requiring about 15 minutes for final confirmation. Now, by incorporating EigenLayer’s decentralized validator network and integrating AltLayer’s elastic execution layer, Soneium has built an L2 infrastructure that balances throughput and security, establishing a foundation for future performance optimization and ecosystem expansion.
Compared to other major L2s like Arbitrum and Optimism, Soneium’s Fast Finality Layer offers an improved balance between speed and security. This positions it well to attract latency-sensitive applications—including high-frequency DeFi strategies, Web3 games, and payment systems—while boosting ecosystem stickiness and developer engagement. [17]
Panama City Takes the Lead in Accepting Crypto Payments, Opening a New Chapter in Cryptocurrency
Panama’s capital has taken a crucial step towards integrating digital assets into public services. On April 15, Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi announced that the city council has unanimously approved a new policy allowing residents to pay taxes and municipal service fees using cryptocurrency. This makes Panama City the first local government in the country to officially adopt crypto for public payments.
The city will partner with an authorized bank to provide real-time crypto-to-USD conversion, helping mitigate price volatility and maintain fiscal stability.
This innovative payment mechanism marks not only a significant step in digitalizing municipal services but also serves as a strategic component of Panama’s vision to become a “crypto hub.” At the national level, Panama is also developing a registration system for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) and an anti-money laundering (AML) regulatory framework, establishing the compliance foundation for blockchain finance and Web3 applications.[18]
sUSD Depeg Intensifies, Triggering Market Concerns
Since April 10, 2025, the sUSD stablecoin within the Synthetix ecosystem has experienced a severe depeg, currently trading at $0.8107—down 5.8% today—with market cap falling to $25.76 million. The depeg is primarily linked to an ongoing protocol upgrade, in which the old debt management system is being replaced by the new “420 Pool” mechanism, temporarily disrupting market-based price stabilization. Synthetix founder Kain Warwick emphasized that this is not a systemic crisis, but rather a short-term transition issue.
sUSD’s stability has long relied on high collateralization of the SNX token and a dynamic debt adjustment model. Under the new system, the collateral ratio has been reduced to 200%, and the protocol plans to forgive $62 million in legacy debt over the next 12 months to improve capital efficiency and systemic security. However, during this transitional phase, market confidence in sUSD has been shaken, leading to heightened price volatility. The Synthetix team has rolled out several countermeasures, including boosting incentives for Curve liquidity pools, extending the Infinex deposit program, and laying the groundwork for long-term price support mechanisms for sUSD.
This depeg event has put investor trust in stablecoins under pressure. While the team’s response may help stabilize sUSD over time, the token continues to trade 5–10% below its peg in the short term. As the new system matures, sUSD may regain stability, but the incident has sown doubt among holders—highlighting that a stablecoin’s “stability” ultimately depends on both sound design and market confidence. [19]
KiloEx Hack Attack Results in $7 Million Loss
Decentralized perpetual trading platform KiloEx was hacked this week, with total losses amounting to approximately $7 million. The incident affected multiple blockchains, including Base, BNB Chain, and Taiko. The attacker exploited oracle vulnerabilities and used flash loans to manipulate asset prices, then funneled the stolen funds through Tornado Cash. The largest single transaction yielded $3.12 million.
On April 14, KiloEx urgently announced a suspension of services and published the attacker’s wallet address, calling on the community to help track the funds. The team has since launched a full investigation in collaboration with BNB Chain, Manta Network, and security firms including Seal-911, SlowMist, and Sherlock. The underlying smart contract vulnerability has been identified, and a fix is in progress.
To recover losses, KiloEx proposed a white-hat deal to the attacker: return 90% of the funds and keep 10% as a bounty. The platform set a 72-hour deadline, after which it will work with law enforcement to pursue legal action.
The attack triggered sharp volatility in the KILO token, which dropped 28% within 24 hours to $0.03821—over 70% below its March peak. Community sentiment has turned negative, with users questioning KiloEx’s credibility and urging major exchanges to investigate. [20]
ZKsync Airdrop Contract Exploited, 111M ZK Tokens Illegally Minted
On April 15, ZKsync disclosed that the admin account managing its airdrop distribution contracts had been compromised in a hack. The attacker exploited the sweepUnclaimed()
function to illegally mint approximately 111 million unclaimed ZK tokens from three airdrop contracts—equivalent to 0.45% of total supply. The exploit was limited to the airdrop distribution contracts; the core ZKsync protocol, the ZK token contract, governance mechanism, and other token distribution plans were unaffected. [21]
The team described the incident as an isolated key compromise and stated that the attacker can no longer use the same method. All mintable airdrop tokens have now been exhausted. ZKsync is currently working with the Security Alliance and multiple exchanges to trace the stolen assets and has publicly urged the attacker to return the funds to avoid legal consequences.Despite the quick response, some community members raised concerns about potential insider involvement and questioned the transparency and governance structure of ZKsync.
Following the exploit, the ZK token fell more than 14% within 24 hours, and several exchanges temporarily suspended ZK deposits and withdrawals. The incident has intensified concerns over ZKsync’s security and credibility, potentially weakening its competitive position in the Layer 2 sector. Market sentiment will likely hinge on how effectively the team manages the crisis and improves future security governance.
Raydium Launches LaunchLab to Strengthen Token Issuance Infrastructure on Solana
Leading Solana-based decentralized exchange (DEX) Raydium has officially launched LaunchLab, a token issuance platform designed to provide creators, developers, and communities with low-barrier, censorship-resistant tools for on-chain token launches and liquidity bootstrapping.
LaunchLab enables users to issue tokens using customizable pricing curves—supporting linear, exponential, and logarithmic bonding curves—and allows pricing in multiple assets, including but not limited to SOL. The platform integrates Raydium’s AMM v4 and token locking features. Creators can allocate a portion of protocol fees to RAY buybacks, community pools, or operational expenses. After launch, creators are also entitled to 10% of AMM trading fees, incentivizing long-term project development.
Raydium noted that LaunchLab was originally scheduled for a later release to avoid direct competition with ecosystem partners. However, after Pump.fun announced plans to build its own AMM, Raydium expedited LaunchLab’s debut—positioning it as a more flexible, sustainable, and creator-friendly alternative.
Recent data reveals that meme coin trading volume from Pump.fun has accounted for 41% of Raydium’s total transaction fees in the past 30 days, highlighting LaunchLab’s critical timing. This launch serves as both a strategic response from Raydium and a catalyst for advancing creator tools and asset issuance capabilities throughout the Solana ecosystem.[22]
Bitcoin Miners Sold Over 40% of March Output — Highest Since Oct 2024
In March 2025, 15 publicly listed Bitcoin mining firms sold over 40% of their mined BTC—marking the highest monthly sell-off ratio since October 2024. This trend signals a temporary reversal of the post-halving “HODL-first” strategy and reflects ongoing pressure across the industry amid macroeconomic uncertainty.
According to tracking data from TheMinerMag, the sell-off was largely driven by rising operational costs and widening funding gaps. Faced with higher energy and hardware expenses, as well as trade tariff pressures from geopolitical tensions, many miners were forced to liquidate BTC holdings to cover daily operating expenses. This added to broader market selling pressure and may have influenced short-term price action. In March, Bitcoin fell 2.3%, following a 17.39% drop in February.
Overall, the global Bitcoin mining sector is undergoing a recalibration of cost structures while navigating rising geopolitical and economic risks. In the near term, collective miner selling may persist, weighing on BTC prices and raising questions about the long-term sustainability of the mining industry. [23]
Multichain DeFi TVL Drops 27.5% in Q1 2025 as Berachain Climbs into Top 6
In Q1 2025, the total value locked (TVL) in multichain DeFi protocols fell by 27.5%, dropping from $177.4 billion at the end of 2024 to $128.6 billion by the end of March 2025. The sharp decline was primarily driven by a broad downturn in altcoin prices.
Ethereum was hit the hardest, with its TVL plunging 35.4%—from $112.6 billion at the start of the year to $72.7 billion—causing its market share to fall from 63.5% to 56.6%. While Solana and Base also saw TVL declines of 23.5% and 15.3% respectively, their relative market shares increased slightly due to steep corrections in SOL and ETH prices.
One standout performer was Berachain, which launched on February 6 and quickly gained traction. By the end of Q1, it had attracted $5.2 billion in DeFi TVL, ranking it as the sixth-largest DeFi chain. Notably, Boyco’s pre-deposit vault alone brought in approximately $2.3 billion on its first day, injecting significant initial liquidity into the ecosystem. [24]
Solana Maintains DEX Dominance as Sonic and Berachain Rapidly Gain Market Share
Building on its strong momentum from late 2024, Solana continued to lead the decentralized exchange (DEX) market in Q1 2025, recording $293.7 billion in total trading volume—a 35.3% increase from the previous quarter’s $217 billion—and capturing a commanding 39.6% share of the market.
January was particularly notable, as a surge in “political meme coins” (led by $TRUMP memecoin) drove Solana’s on-chain trading volume to a record-breaking $184.8 billion for the month, accounting for 52% of trading across major chains. This spike pushed Ethereum’s market share below 20% for the first time in history.
As meme coin activity cooled, Ethereum rebounded in March and regained its lead, with market share climbing back to 30.1%, while Solana dropped to 23.4%.
Notably, Sonic and Berachain made strong entries into the top ten DEX networks in March, overtaking long-established players Optimism and Polygon. While the latter two still maintained higher overall quarterly volumes, the rapid rise of newer chains signals a shifting competitive landscape in cross-chain DEX activity. [25]
ByteNova
ByteNova is a decentralized Edge AI ecosystem, formerly known as ClustroAI, founded in 2023. Built on a containerized architecture with GPU-accelerated orchestration and a protocol-driven framework, the project aims to deliver low-latency processing, enterprise-grade security, and scalable solutions for next-generation AI applications. ByteNova’s vision is to shift AI inference from centralized cloud platforms to edge devices—such as smartphones and industrial terminals—enabling truly distributed intelligent computing. ByteNova has launched a campaign where participants can earn points by completing social tasks, with rewards to be distributed in the future based on confirmed point totals. [26]
How to participate:
Note:
The airdrop program and participation methods are subject to change. Users are advised to follow ByteNova’s official channels for the latest updates. Additionally, users should exercise caution, be aware of potential risks, and conduct thorough research before participating. Gate.io does not guarantee the distribution of future airdrop rewards.
Several projects across infrastructure, DeFi, and other sectors successfully closed funding rounds this week. According to RootData, between April 10 and April 16, a total of 18 projects announced funding, raising approximately $250 million. [27]
Here are the top three fundraising deals by amount:
Meanwhile - On April 10, Meanwhile raised $40 million in a seed round led by Framework Ventures, Fulgur Ventures, Gradient Ventures, and Sam Altman. Meanwhile is a U.S.-based insurtech startup focused on offering Bitcoin-denominated whole life insurance products. Its core vision is to combine the protective benefits of traditional insurance with Bitcoin’s long-term value as a store of wealth—delivering inflation-resistant, tax-efficient, and liquid financial solutions to global users.
Meanwhile also plans to roll out additional BTC-denominated products such as term life insurance and accidental death coverage, while developing a Bitcoin private credit fund. The company is enhancing its AI-driven underwriting and claims system to boost efficiency and user experience. International expansion is on the roadmap, targeting markets such as the U.S., U.K., and Canada. Meanwhile also plans to grow its team by attracting talent from the crypto and insurance sectors to accelerate its Web3 insurance ecosystem.
Bugscoin — On April 11, Bugscoin secured $12 million in a Series A round with participation from Duckdao, Becker Ventures, and Maxx Capital. Bugscoin is a Web3 platform focused on financial education, offering users a risk-free simulated trading experience. Users can practice real-world investment strategies, complete learning courses, and earn $BGSC token rewards by participating in platform activities.
Bugscoin plans to expand globally, develop localized educational programs, and enhance its decentralized asset management protocol BugsFunded. The platform also plans to launch AI-powered financial advisory tools, optimize its tokenomics model, and expand its ecosystem applications. These strategic goals aim to advance its EduFi model, combining education with decentralized finance to provide more diverse financial services.
Auradine — On April 16, Auradine raised $153 million in a seed round led by StepStone Group, Marathon D, and Celesta Capital, with participation from Marathon Digital. Auradine is a Silicon Valley-based startup developing next-generation Web infrastructure at the intersection of blockchain, security, and AI.
Auradine plans to further develop and scale production of its Teraflux Bitcoin miners to meet the growing demand from major data center operators, including Marathon Digital. Auradine is also accelerating product development in AI infrastructure, with a focus on optimizing and launching AuraLinks, its networking solution for AI-driven data centers.
According to Tokenomist, several major token unlocks are scheduled for next week (April 17–23, 2025), with a combined value of approximately $563 million (excluding OM’s ongoing daily unlocks).[28]
The top three upcoming unlocks are as follows:
TRUMP token will unlock approximately 40 million tokens on April 18, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC. This represents 20.25% of its circulating supply, worth around $324 million. Given recent daily trading volumes of $370 million, this unlock could significantly impact its price.
MRS token will unlock about 121 million tokens on April 22, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC, accounting for 11.87% of its circulating supply and valued at approximately $121 million. With recent daily trading volumes of only $7,944, this unlock could have a substantial impact on its price.
FTN token will unlock around 20 million tokens on April 12, 2025, at 8:00 PM UTC. This makes up 4.65% of its circulating supply, valued at about $84.2 million. With daily trading volumes of $52.34 million, this unlock may have a minor price impact.
Next week (April 18–24, 2025) will feature a series of key events that could significantly impact the crypto market, global economy, and energy sector. UXLINK Season 3 airdrop claim will begin on April 18, allowing users to receive airdrop rewards[29]. MoreMarkets will officially launch its mainnet test version on April 19, marking a further step toward enhancing platform functionality[30]. In addition, Lorentz will undergo a mainnet upgrade on April 21, going live on opBNB, bringing new features and performance improvements to the network[31]. Financial market infrastructure provider DTCC is expected to launch its blockchain-based AppChain platform on April 23, aimed at improving the efficiency of real-time collateral tokenization and management[32]. On April 24, the U.S. will release weekly initial jobless claims data for the week ending April 19. This key economic indicator may influence market sentiment and policy expectations[33].
References:
Gate Research
Gate Research is a comprehensive blockchain and cryptocurrency research platform that delivers in-depth content. This includes technical analysis, hot topic insights, market reviews, industry research, trend forecasts, and macroeconomic policy analysis.
Click here to visit now
Disclaimer
Investing in the cryptocurrency market involves high risk, and it is recommended that users conduct independent research and fully understand the nature of the assets and products they are purchasing before making any investment decisions. Gate.io is not responsible for any losses or damages caused by such investment decisions.