The U.S. labor market continued to show at least modest strength in April, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The economy added 115,000 jobs during the month, well above economist expectations for 62,000, though down from 185,000 in March (revised from an originally reported 178,000). The unemployment rate remained at
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has intensified her opposition to euro-denominated stablecoins, warning that the risks to financial stability and monetary control outweigh any benefit to the euro’s international role. Speaking Friday at the Banco de Espana LatAm Economic Forum in Spain, Lagarde argued that Europe does not need to replicate the stablecoin models
Benchmark Equity Research reiterated its “buy” rating and $27 price target on Bitdeer Technologies, citing the stock’s re-rating potential as a bitcoin miner transitioning into AI/HPC infrastructure. Bitdeer shares (BTDR) surged nearly 21% Wednesday following Hut 8’s (HUT) announcement of a massive 352 MW AI data center deal at Beacon Point, highlighting investor enthusiasm for
The crypto industry’s embrace of AI is less about chatbots and more about building financial infrastructure for autonomous machines, says Chappy Asel, a former Apple engineer and founder of AI nonprofit The AI Collective. Speaking at Consensus Miami, Asel, founder of The AI Collective, a global nonprofit AI community with more than 200,000 members across
Stablecoins are emerging as one of the most closely watched developments in global finance, as banks, payment firms, and technology companies explore blockchain-based alternatives to traditional payment rails. Once mainly used by traders moving funds between cryptocurrency exchanges, stablecoins are now expanding into cross-border remittances, merchant settlements, treasury management, and machine-to-machine payments. The shift is
The market for real world assets (RWAs) is really taking off now that big investors are getting involved. CoinGecko latest report shows that tokenized real world assets are worth $19.3 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2026. It is one of the most impressive growth stages for blockchain financial products, marking a
MIAMI – Coinbax won the $20,000 grand prize at Consensus Miami’s PitchFest after pitching a system designed to help banks and financial firms manage compliance for stablecoin payments. The company, founded by former Jack Henry executive Peter Glyman, builds programmable escrow infrastructure that adds controls to wallet-to-wallet crypto transactions. The software is meant to reduce
Anthropic’s tokenized pre‑IPO shares now imply a $1.2T valuation—above OpenAI—showing how on‑chain markets are front‑running late‑stage AI pricing before any IPO. In February 2026, Anthropic closed a Series G round at a $380 billion post-money valuation, led by GIC and Coatue, already putting it in the ultra-elite tier of private tech firms. Since then, secondary
Lord Ranger is a Member of the UK House of Lords and serves as Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Digital Markets and Digital Money. Opinions below are his own. At a pivotal moment for the future of money, last week an evidence session with the Bank of England offered something we do