LeakBase, one of the internet's most active cybercrime forums with over 142,000 registered users and more than 215,000 posts, was dismantled in an international operation led by the FBI and Europol on March 3–4, the U.S. Department of Justice said. Authorities in 14 countries executed coordinated actions including warrants, arrests, and site seizures, replaced the platform with seizure banners, and collected user data, posts, and IP logs to support ongoing prosecutions. Officials said LeakBase functioned as a marketplace for stolen credentials, financial data, and other sensitive information, and noted that disrupting such hubs can reduce the pool of leaked data that criminals may use for social engineering, targeted phishing, and account takeovers across digital ecosystems including the crypto sector.

Kraken Financial received Federal Reserve approval for a master account, becoming the first cryptocurrency company with direct access to the Fed's core payment system and channels used by thousands of banks and credit unions, the Wall Street Journal reports. The account enables Kraken Financial to connect directly to Fedwire, which processes over $4 trillion in interbank transactions daily, eliminating its reliance on intermediary banks for fund transfers. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City announced the approval on Wednesday following a review, granting limited master account access under Kraken Financial's Wyoming specialized bank charter for crypto companies, excluding services such as earning interest on reserves. Kraken Co-CEO Arjun Sethi said the decision will improve reliability and efficiency of fiat deposits and withdrawals to and from the digital asset market, while Bank Policy Institute Co-Head of Regulatory Affairs Paige Pidano Paridon criticized the move as lacking transparency in approval process and risk controls, and the WSJ noted Kraken completed a funding round at a $20 billion valuation last November and has filed IPO plans.

Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded a combined net inflow of $461 million yesterday, with BlackRock's IBIT contributing $306 million, Trader T data show. Fidelity's FBTC saw $48.01 million in net inflows, while Grayscale's BTC (mini) and GBTC drew $32.35 million and $21.66 million, respectively. Ark's ARKB posted $14.63 million, Invesco's BTCO added $9.1 million, Franklin's EZBC took in $8.5 million, Bitwise's BITB recorded $7.98 million, WisdomTree's BTCW saw $7.77 million, VanEck's HODL logged $5.2 million.

Ethereum spot exchange-traded funds recorded a combined net inflow of $169 million on March 4, Trader T data show. Grayscale's mini ETH product led with a $59.51 million net inflow, followed by BlackRock's ETHA at $39.01 million and Fidelity's FETH at $30.29 million. Grayscale's ETHE saw a $21.91 million net inflow, while VanEck's ETHV and Bitwise's ETHW posted net inflows of $9.52 million and $8.85 million, respectively.

Crypto trader @sillytuna lost 23.6M aEthUSDC worth about $23.6M in an alleged violent extortion, @lookonchain reports. On-chain data show most stolen assets have been swapped, with 20.34M converted to DAI and a smaller portion bridged to Arbitrum. The funds are reportedly being routed to @HyperliquidX for planned XMR purchases, with a 10% bounty offered on recovered assets that also applies to individuals involved in the incident.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has submitted a regulatory proposal on how federal securities laws apply to digital assets to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for review, according to Nate Geraci. The measure relies on the SEC's existing legal authority and includes consideration of a token classification system. The initiative proceeds without the Crypto Clarity Act and aims to clarify digital asset regulation in the United States.

Administración Nacional de Electricidad (ANDE), Paraguay's state electricity monopoly, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with infrastructure firm Morphware to develop a government-run Bitcoin mining program using confiscated mining machines and surplus hydroelectric power from the Itaipú dam, according to Morphware founder and CEO Kenso Trabing. ANDE will own and host the mining operations at existing utility buildings near substations, initially connecting about 1,500 seized miners supported by ventilation, transformers, distribution units, and metering, while Morphware provides technical advice. The equipment stems from nationwide raids against unmetered and fraudulent high-voltage connections used by illegal miners since early 2024, including 2,738 mining rigs seized in Salto del Guairá tied to an unmetered high-load connection that accounted for roughly 1.1 billion guaraníes (around 146,000 dollars) in stolen electricity per month, contributing to a total stockpile of nearly 30,000 ASIC units.

A BTC move below $68,890 would trigger $2.964 billion in cumulative long liquidations on major centralized exchanges, Coinglass data cited by ChainCatcher show. A break above $76,110 would push cumulative short liquidations on major CEXs to $1.422 billion.

China has ordered its largest oil refining companies to suspend diesel and gasoline exports as the conflict in Iran escalates. The directive targets outbound fuel shipments, reflecting Beijing's response to the intensifying war in Iran.