Bitrefill said it was hit by a cyberattack on March 1 that led to stolen crypto funds after attackers accessed a compromised employee laptop and expanded access across internal systems. The company said the intruders abused gift card supplier purchasing flows, drained some hot wallets, and accessed about 18,500 purchase records, while it believes customer data was not the primary target. Bitrefill said most services have been restored and losses will be covered from operational capital.

Ripple said it is expanding across Brazil with a unified institutional platform spanning custody, prime brokerage, stablecoin settlements and treasury tools, and it plans to apply for a VASP license with Brazil's central bank. SHIB derivatives activity accelerated as open interest climbed more than 26% in 24 hours to about 12.24 trillion SHIB, valued above $75 million. XRP traded around $1.53, staying above the $1.43 area while testing nearby moving-average resistance as exchange reserves ticked higher.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved a Nasdaq rule change on Wednesday, clearing the exchange to support trading and tokenized settlement of shares. In a DTCC-run pilot operated by the Depository Trust Company, eligible participants can choose tokenized settlement while keeping the same order book and execution priority as conventional shares.

The Federal Open Market Committee said on Wednesday it will keep the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.5%-3.75% while assessing the economic effects of the ongoing Middle East conflict. Chair Jerome Powell said growth remains solid and consumers are resilient, but housing is weak, the labor market is softening and inflation is still above the 2% goal. Market pricing for the April 2026 meeting shows 97% expect no change and 3% expect a 25-basis-point hike.

FTX Recovery Trust said it will distribute $2.2 billion to eligible creditors on March 31, 2026, with funds expected to arrive via selected providers within one to three business days. The round includes payouts of 18% for Dotcom Customer claims, 5% for US Customer Entitlement Claims and 15% for General Unsecured Claims and Digital Asset Loan Claims, while Convenience claims are slated for 120% under the plan. The trust said the next payment round is scheduled for May 29, 2026, bringing total distributions since February 2025 to about $10 billion after this tranche.

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index ended a 48-day run in the “extreme fear” zone after rising to 28 and then holding at 26 on Wednesday, pointing to improving risk sentiment. In March, total crypto market cap is up 7.65% (about $174 billion), while Binance logged a $2.2 billion USDT inflow on March 18 and exchange stablecoin reserves rose to $68.5 billion from $64 billion on March 8.

On 18 March, the Federal Reserve left the federal funds target range unchanged at 3.5%–3.75% and said inflation remains above its 2% goal, limiting the case for near-term cuts. Its updated projections still place 2026 PCE inflation at 2.7% and the policy rate around 3.4%, pointing to only gradual easing. The Fed also highlighted elevated uncertainty, including potential spillovers from Middle East developments.

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